There are 17
prophecies in Daniel and Revelation
that are apocalyptic in nature. In
other words, these two books contain
17 prophecies that deal with the end
of the world. Some of these
prophecies have been underway for
more than 25 centuries and others
have not yet begun to come to pass.
However, these 17 prophecies lock
together to form a comprehensive
matrix so that we can be certain of
our chronological position within
them. In short, we can clearly
determine which events are before us.
The word apocalyptic
comes from the word apocalypse.
According to Webster, an apocalypse
is a divine or glorious revelation.
For this reason, the last book of the
Bible is called The Apocalypse or
The Revelation. The title of the
book, Revelation, suggests a
revealing of something that is
otherwise unknown. However, in a
larger sense, the other 65 books of
the Bible qualify as
“revelations” for they
reveal wonderful things about God and
His works that would otherwise be
unknown.
The books of Daniel
and Revelation are unlike the other
books of the Bible. These two books
contain a special kind of prophecy
not found elsewhere. There are 17 of
these special prophecies and they are
distinguished from the other
prophecies of the Bible by their
unusual operation. For this reason,
these two books are often separated
from the others as the apocalyptic
books of the Bible.
Five types of
predictions
The Bible contains a
minimum of five distinct types of
prediction.
These include:
1.
Messianic prophecies: These
prophecies specifically relate to the
person of Jesus either His first or
second coming. There are more than
450 Messianic statements or
prophecies. Two excellent examples of
first advent prophecies are found in
Isaiah 53 and Psalm 22.
2.
Judaic prophecies: These
prophecies relate to promises of
prosperity or destruction for the
ancient nation of Israel. These
prophecies have conditional elements
in them most of the time. A good
example of this type of prophecy is
found in Ezekiel 37 through 48.
Judaic prophecies contain important
object lessons and principles for all
generations of people, for God’s
unchanging interest in man is clearly
revealed in these prophecies.
The prophetic group
also presents a special challenge.
The problem is that God gave Israel a
number of prophecies that were based
on the contingency that the people to
whom they were given did not meet
certain conditions; these prophecies
will not be fulfilled. The point is
further discussed in Appendix A.
3. Day
of the Lord prophecies: These
prophecies are numerous and are
scattered throughout Scripture. They
relate to the vindication of God
and/or His people. Elements within
these prophecies are often general
enough that they can have parallel
applications at different times.
Ultimately though, these prophecies
predict the triumph of God and/or the
vindication of His people in a
contemporary setting. For example,
Isaiah 24 and Ezekiel 7 contain
parallels between the final days of
Israel and the final days of
earth’s history. Sometimes,
“Day of the Lord”
prophecies have conditional elements
embedded in them if they are given as
a warning. Matthew 24 is a “Day
of the Lord” prophecy. This
prophecy applies both to the end of
Jerusalem in 70 A.D. and the end of
the world. Calamitous events from
each are mingled together in one
prophecy because there are ominous
parallels.
4.
Local prophecies: Local
prophecies apply to specific people,
places and times. For example, the
prophecy concerning Nineveh (Jonah 1)
was a local prophecy. Local
prophecies require a messenger to
explain or proclaim the prophecy.
Before the flood, Noah was chosen as
such a messenger. At the first advent
of Christ, John the Baptist was
appointed as a local messenger.
Even though the
messages of local prophecies are
specific to people at certain times,
universal principles and/or
conditions underlying their messages
remain applicable as we approach the
end of the age.
5.
Apocalyptic prophecies: In this
volume, the apocalyptic prophecies of
Daniel and Revelation are defined as
structural prophecies; that is,
prophesies that outline a specific
sequence of events. An apocalyptic
prophecy is identified by the
presence of a beginning and an ending
point in time. Both the fulfillment
and sequence of apocalyptic prophecy
are unconditional. A clear-cut
example of this type prophecy can be
found in Daniel 2. There,
Nebuchadnezzar’s vision outlines
a sequence of kingdoms that occur in
the order in which they were given.
Sometimes, the
sequence or structure of apocalyptic
prophecy is defined by numeric order.
For example, the second trumpet in
Revelation 8 occurs after the
first trumpet. The critical point
here is that chronological order is
always maintained in an apocalyptic
prophecy, otherwise we could not know
which event could be next.
Distinctive treatment
necessary
Each of the five
prophecy types deserves distinctive
treatment. Mixing the prophecies or
merging their respective rules of
interpretation makes understanding
impossible.
Rules of
interpretation
Rules of
interpretation are inseparable from
the study of prophecy, for
conclusions are directly connected to
the methods used for interpretation.
If we interpret prophecy using faulty
rules, we end up with faulty
conclusions. It’s that simple.
Rules are not biased
toward any religious denomination. We
must rely upon consistent rules to
help solve the unknown. This is true
in every science. For example, the
simple equation 2x +3 = 13 can only
be solved by using mathematical
rules. Since rules of interpretation
are not written down in the Bible,
they must come from careful research
and observation.
This is critical: Rules
of interpretation cannot be made up;
rather, we can only discover the
presence or operation of rules. Rules
are detected when we find consistent
behavior within prophetic elements.
Once consistency is recognized, we
can then define the rule. In other
words, if we observe certain things
to always be true, only then can we
identify the presence of a rule.
Consider this example:
Sir Isaac Newton researched the
effects of gravity. He studied the
behavior of gravity using different
experiments. After observing that
gravity behaved in certain consistent
ways, he wrote down a formula
expressing its operation. Sir
Isaac Newton did not make up the
rules governing gravity. God did
that. But, Sir Isaac Newton was able
to discover the rules of gravity in
such a way that the effect of gravity
could be calculated and understood by
others.
The study of
apocalyptic prophecy is very similar
to the study of gravity. We reason
from the known to the unknown. Before
we can interpret those parts of
prophecy that are unknown, we have to
discover the rules by which
fulfillments occurred in the past. By
carefully observing the behavior of
apocalyptic prophecies that have been
fulfilled, we can then discover the
rules by which they work. After we
understand how the rules apply to
those prophetic elements that have
been fulfilled, we can then begin to
solve those portions of apocalyptic
prophecy that are in the future by
using rules of interpretation that
are consistent.
World of difference
between truth and faith
One more point. There
is a world of difference between
prophetic truth and prophetic faith.
Prophetic truth refers to those
prophecies or portions of prophecy
that qualify as fulfillments.
Prophetic faith, on the other hand,
refers to those prophecies that are
yet to be fulfilled. Since no one can
prove something that hasn’t
happened, our prophetic faith should
be carefully built upon the truth
that comes from solid principles of
interpretation.
What is a prophetic
fulfillment?
So, how can we know if
an apocalyptic prophecy has been
fulfilled? A fulfillment is full
filling of the prophecy. In other
words, a fulfillment occurs when all
the specifications of a prophecy are
met. Every detail of the prophecy
must be satisfied before a
fulfillment can be declared. This
also means that the chronological
order of the prophecy must also be
satisfied. For example, some people
may claim that the fourth trumpet of
Revelation 8 has already been
fulfilled. If their claim is true,
they not only have to demonstrate
that all the details of the fourth
trumpet have been met; they also have
to demonstrate the orderly
fulfillment of the first three
trumpets.
The four rules
Four rules have been
detected in the operation of
apocalyptic prophecy. Keep in mind,
there are different types of prophecy
and each type has its own rules of
interpretation. But, regarding the
apocalyptic prophecies of Daniel and
Revelation, these four rules appear
to operate consistently:
- Apocalyptic
prophecy is defined as
prophecy that predicts a
chronological sequence of
events. Apocalyptic prophecy
has a beginning point and
ending point in time.
Elements within the prophecy
mark progression towards
fulfillment or completion.
Consequently, elements within
apocalyptic prophecy do not
occur more than once and they
chronologically occur as
predicted.
- Other types of
prophecies are subordinate to
apocalyptic structures. A
fulfillment of an element or
a prophecy occurs when both
the specifications and the
chronological sequence are
met.
- If a prophecy
contains symbolic language,
the Bible must explain the
meaning of the symbol with
relevant scripture.
- God measures
apocalyptic time in two ways.
(a) a day for a year, and (b)
as literal time. The presence
or absence of the Jubilee
calendar determines how God
measures time.
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