Historicism, Dispensationalism, and certain forms of Reconstructionist Christian eschatology all depend on the concept that that there are only seven years (one "week" of years) of prophetic events to be fulfilled in the End of the Age.
But does this notion bear up under closer scrutiny?
There are seven Old Testament prophecies that speak of prophetic events in terms of seventy years, not seven. More important, John used every single one of these Old Testament seventy-year prophecies in Revelation:
John used Isaiah's "ships of Tarshish" seventy-year prophecy [chapter 23] in the second half of Revelation 18.
John used Jeremiah's "silencing Babylon" seventy-year prophecy [chapter 25] for the conclusion of Revelation 18.
John used Jeremiah's "fall of Babylon" and restoration of Israel seventy-year prophecy [chapter 29] for the first half of Revelation 18.
John used Zechariah's "four horses" seventy-year prophecy [chapter 1] in antithesis, along with his "four horns" prophecy from the same chapter, for the "four horses" prophecy in Revelation 5. (He also used Zechariah's "measuring rod" prophecy [chapter 2] in Revelation 11.)
John used Zechariah's "Great Mountain" seventy-year prophecy [chapter 7] at the beginning of the conclusion of Revelation, starting in chapter 21.
John used the "day of the Lord" = 1,000 years" concept from Psalm 90 in Revelation chapter 20. This prophecy also asks the question, "How long, O, Lord," and the answer is already given in the same Psalm--seventy, or, if by reason of vain struggle, eighty years.
Daniel's timing prophecy [chapter 9] is the structural basis for John's entire chronological scroll in Revelation, which is itself derived from Jesus three-part Olivet Discourse.
Now, some might argue that these prophecies were fulfilled in history...and they would be partly right; but if they were only fulfilled in history, why did John go out of his way to make sure that all seven of these Old Testament seventy-year prophecies made their way into Revelation?
Answer: The End of the Age won't be seven years; it'll be seventy years, just like seven...make that eight...prophets said.
These things being the case, where did the "experts" get the notion that the End of the Age would only be seven years by themselves?
Answer: They made it up to try and connect Jesus back to the prophecies of Daniel when Daniel was already fulfilled once in the events from the destruction of the First Temple of Jerusalem until the end of the Maccabean Revolt; the events involving Jesus' First Advent were a second iteration of all these prophecies (but in a different context and application of those prophecies than the previous one), and not part of the first iteration.
Sorry, but all the other schools of biblical interpretation got things wrong; the proper way to read prophecy is the way Jesus gave and interpreted prophecy--triunely!
For more information, see the links below.
Ike
********
Which of the following is the correct way to read Bible prophecy?
A. Immediacy
B. Historicism
C. Dispensationalism
D. Preterism (Full or Partial)
E. Idealism
F. Realized/Sapiential Eschatology
G. All of the above
H. None of the above
Based on an examination of how (not just what) Jesus and the prophets prophesied, "The Triune Hypothesis" is a guide to reading the Bible prophetically in all three dimensions of interpretation-the horizontal axis in time (what was, is, and/or is to come), the perpendicular axis in application (literal, figurative, and/or spiritual), and the vertical axis in context (thesis, generality, and/or antithesis).
Topics of discussion include the resurrections, the triune "Last Days," the Pentecosts, the one-baptism-in-three-parts, the triple application of the Elijah prophecies, the Temples in Jerusalem, the Abominations of Desolation, the Triune Israel, the devolution of prophecy, and much more.
Kindle Version:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Triune-Hypothesis-ebook/dp/B0049P231G/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=books&qid=1289971036&sr=1-1
Print Version:
http://www.amazon.com/Triune-Hypothesis-Mr-Eickleberry-Jr/dp/1456322087/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1290113159&sr=8-3
Facebook: (discussions enabled)
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/The-Triune-Hypothesis/102657386473773
Web: (filtered blog comments enabled)
http://thetriunist.weebly.com/index.html
But does this notion bear up under closer scrutiny?
There are seven Old Testament prophecies that speak of prophetic events in terms of seventy years, not seven. More important, John used every single one of these Old Testament seventy-year prophecies in Revelation:
John used Isaiah's "ships of Tarshish" seventy-year prophecy [chapter 23] in the second half of Revelation 18.
John used Jeremiah's "silencing Babylon" seventy-year prophecy [chapter 25] for the conclusion of Revelation 18.
John used Jeremiah's "fall of Babylon" and restoration of Israel seventy-year prophecy [chapter 29] for the first half of Revelation 18.
John used Zechariah's "four horses" seventy-year prophecy [chapter 1] in antithesis, along with his "four horns" prophecy from the same chapter, for the "four horses" prophecy in Revelation 5. (He also used Zechariah's "measuring rod" prophecy [chapter 2] in Revelation 11.)
John used Zechariah's "Great Mountain" seventy-year prophecy [chapter 7] at the beginning of the conclusion of Revelation, starting in chapter 21.
John used the "day of the Lord" = 1,000 years" concept from Psalm 90 in Revelation chapter 20. This prophecy also asks the question, "How long, O, Lord," and the answer is already given in the same Psalm--seventy, or, if by reason of vain struggle, eighty years.
Daniel's timing prophecy [chapter 9] is the structural basis for John's entire chronological scroll in Revelation, which is itself derived from Jesus three-part Olivet Discourse.
Now, some might argue that these prophecies were fulfilled in history...and they would be partly right; but if they were only fulfilled in history, why did John go out of his way to make sure that all seven of these Old Testament seventy-year prophecies made their way into Revelation?
Answer: The End of the Age won't be seven years; it'll be seventy years, just like seven...make that eight...prophets said.
These things being the case, where did the "experts" get the notion that the End of the Age would only be seven years by themselves?
Answer: They made it up to try and connect Jesus back to the prophecies of Daniel when Daniel was already fulfilled once in the events from the destruction of the First Temple of Jerusalem until the end of the Maccabean Revolt; the events involving Jesus' First Advent were a second iteration of all these prophecies (but in a different context and application of those prophecies than the previous one), and not part of the first iteration.
Sorry, but all the other schools of biblical interpretation got things wrong; the proper way to read prophecy is the way Jesus gave and interpreted prophecy--triunely!
For more information, see the links below.
Ike
********
Which of the following is the correct way to read Bible prophecy?
A. Immediacy
B. Historicism
C. Dispensationalism
D. Preterism (Full or Partial)
E. Idealism
F. Realized/Sapiential Eschatology
G. All of the above
H. None of the above
Based on an examination of how (not just what) Jesus and the prophets prophesied, "The Triune Hypothesis" is a guide to reading the Bible prophetically in all three dimensions of interpretation-the horizontal axis in time (what was, is, and/or is to come), the perpendicular axis in application (literal, figurative, and/or spiritual), and the vertical axis in context (thesis, generality, and/or antithesis).
Topics of discussion include the resurrections, the triune "Last Days," the Pentecosts, the one-baptism-in-three-parts, the triple application of the Elijah prophecies, the Temples in Jerusalem, the Abominations of Desolation, the Triune Israel, the devolution of prophecy, and much more.
Kindle Version:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Triune-Hypothesis-ebook/dp/B0049P231G/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=books&qid=1289971036&sr=1-1
Print Version:
http://www.amazon.com/Triune-Hypothesis-Mr-Eickleberry-Jr/dp/1456322087/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1290113159&sr=8-3
Facebook: (discussions enabled)
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/The-Triune-Hypothesis/102657386473773
Web: (filtered blog comments enabled)
http://thetriunist.weebly.com/index.html