The Gospels
The majority of Endtimes prophecy in the New Testament is found in Matthew 24, First and Second Thessalonians, and the Book of Revelation. As the synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke) contain much of the same source material, we will concentrate on Matthew chapter 24 where Jesus answers his disciples question about the future of Israel and the kingdom.
Matt 24:3 – “As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?”
Now that we have all of the back story from the Jewish Age prophecies, we can see the continuity between the Old and New Testaments. His disciples most likely saw a short interlude before the return of the Messiah to setup his kingdom. They had no knowledge of the Church Age and how long it would last.
Daniel is the most instructive on Endtimes people, places and the timeline. It is critically important that Jesus validated (for us and skeptics) that particular book in regards to Endtimes. By doing so he validates the author, prophecies and the details of the book of Daniel, especially the person, future activities and timeline of the AntiChrist. Note that the Gospel account has the lesser detail than the later Book of Revelation. So now we can line up the three books of the Bible, separated by 600-700 years and see the consistency of the Bible.
Harmonizing the Gospels Endtimes content
| Matthew | Chapters 24-25 |
| Mark | Chapter 13 |
| Luke | Chapter 21 |
| John | Chapter 14 |
Matthew 24
The Coming Judgement
Matthew 24:2 – Truly I say to you, not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down.” – the destruction of Jerusalem happened in 70 A.D. However, as the word of God often does, it uses an earlier event to foreshadow or expand to a future event. While Jerusalem was destroyed by Rome, at the second coming of Jesus, the nations once again will be focused on destroying Jerusalem in the Endtimes, leading to the battle of Armageddon. So Jesus goes on here to prophesy the fall of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. right up to Second Coming, which is exactly what the disciples asked about.
There are some different views on how to parse or correlate Jesus response to the Book of Revelation. No need to be dogmatic. Personally I see a correlation between the signs Jesus mentions, starting in Matthew 24:5 and the seals being opened in Revelation 6, which is the very first judgement. Remember that Revelation is the detailed version of the events. Jesus is giving a more compressed version after the first half. Still, they match up nicely and stay chronologically accurate.
| Matthew 24 | Revelation |
|---|---|
| Matt 24:5 – False Christs | Rev 6:1 – The First Seal – Rider on White Horse |
| Matt 24:6 – Wars and Rumors of Wars | Rev 6:3 – The Second Seal – War |
| Matt 24:7 – Famine | Rev 6:5 – The Third Seal – Famine |
| Matt 24:9 – Death | Rev 6:8 – The Fourth Seal – Death |
| Matt 24:13 – Martyrdom | Rev 6:9 – The Fifth Seal – Martyrs |
| Matt 24:15 – Great Tribulation | Rev 6: 12 – The Sixth Seal – Terror |
Up through the fifth seal represents the first half of the Tribulation, or (3.5 years)
After this Jesus describes some features of the Great Tribulation – the Abomination of Desolation (The Antichrist), and then the Second Coming (Revelation 19) These are the two main phases of the Tribulation period. (1. First five seal judgements – Israel under the peace treaty / 2. Great Tribulation – Antichrist sitting in the Temple, all hell breaks loose)
Matt 24:15 – “Therefore when you see the ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), 16then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains.
Tying this together with Daniel
Daniel 9:27 – “Then after the sixty-two weeks the Messiah will be cut off and have nothing, and the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. And its end will come with a flood; even to the end there will be war; desolations are determined. 27“And he will make a firm covenant with the many for one week, but in the middle of the week he will put a stop to sacrifice and grain offering; and on the wing of abominations will come one who makes desolate, even until a complete destruction, one that is decreed, is poured out on the one who makes desolate.”
The Prince who is to come is the Antichrist described in Daniel 9:27 (above), but that person is yet future. So, this was a prophecy that started with the 70 A.D destruction of Jerusalem by the Roman Empire, and then is expanded, something common in Bible prophecy.
- He, the Antichrist will make a firm covenant (peace treaty) with Israel for one week (seven years).
- At the midpoint of the 7-years (3.5 years) the Antichrist will stop the sacrifices and offerings, and will set himself up as God in the temple, just as his forerunner Antiochus IV did.
The Return of Christ
Matthew 24:29 – “But immediately after the tribulation of those days THE SUN WILL BE DARKENED, AND THE MOON WILL NOT GIVE ITS LIGHT, AND THE STARS WILL FALL from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30“And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the SON OF MAN COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF THE SKY with power and great glory. 31“And He will send forth His angels with A GREAT TRUMPET and THEY WILL GATHER TOGETHER His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.”