To me, one of the most fascinating and unexpected consequences of the Harmony of Revelation is the way it partitions time. Perhaps you noticed in our harmonistic derivation[1] that the events tended to clump together into five definite time slots which we called the Church Age, the Persecution of the Saints, the Devastation of the World, the Second Coming of Christ, and the Eternal Kingdom.
If these five time slots were the only ones mentioned in Revelation, perhaps things would not be so amazing. But these are not the only ones mentioned. There are two others.
One is associated with the First Coming of Christ and is mentioned in two accounts. Specifically, Account IV (12:5-11) and Account VII (20:1-3) refer to the binding of Satan that takes place during the First Advent.
The other time period is associated with what happens before Christ comes and is mentioned only in one account. Specifically, Account IV (12:1-4) refers to the fall of Satan that occurred before time began and the travail of Israel that preceded the birth of Christ.
So the total number of time divisions mentioned in Revelation is actually seven. Furthermore, together they span the whole gamut of time from eternity past to eternity future.
To me, this result is amazing. According to the Harmony of Revelation, God divides the whole expanse of time into a complete number of divisions; namely, seven!
In fact, these time divisions are of such importance to the harmonistic picture that they deserve to have their own names. For example, we could call them dispensations, ages, eras, epoches, or anything else that seemed appropriate. But the designation that I like best is simply "days."
Why? Because there are seven of them and seven days make a complete week. Then we can say that Revelation describes a "week" of time, and that the Bible begins with the seven days of Genesis and ends with the seven days of Revelation. We could even go so far as to name those days after the days of the week.
(Isn't this great terminology! I love it!)
Of course, we could also give each day its own alternate name based upon one of its more dominant characteristics. For example, we could call Sunday the Day of Preparation because that is the day God created the world and prepared it for the coming of his Son (GAL 4:4-5). We could call Monday the Day of Christ because that is the day God revealed himself through his Son, Jesus Christ (2TI 1:8-11, HEB 1:1-2). We could call Tuesday the Day of Salvation because that is the day most people come to a saving knowledge of God (1CO 6:2). We could call Wednesday the Day of Sin because that is the day that sin runs rampant and the "man of sin" reigns supreme over all the earth (REV 17:4-6, 2TH 2:3-4) . We could call Thursday the Day of Death because it is the day the earth is devastated and most of mankind is killed (MAT 24:22, MAR 13:20). We could call Friday the Day of the Lord because it is the day Christ returns in power and glory to rule with a rod of iron (REV 11:15, 19:11-15). And we could call Saturday the Day of Eternity because lasts forever (REV 22:5).
We could even count the number of times each of these days is mentioned in the various accounts. And finally, we could summarize everything we know about the seven days of Revelation in Table E1.
Table E1. The Seven Days of Revelation
|
Day |
Name |
Alternate Name |
Description |
Times |
|
|
|
|
|
Mentioned |
|
1 |
Sunday |
Day of Preparation |
Before Christ |
1 |
|
2 |
Monday |
Day of Christ |
First Coming |
2 |
|
3 |
Tuesday |
Day of Salvation |
Church Age |
6 |
|
4 |
Wednesday |
Day of Sin |
Great Persecution |
5 |
|
5 |
Thursday |
Day of Death |
Great Devastation |
7 |
|
6 |
Friday |
Day of the Lord |
Second Coming |
6 |
|
7 |
Saturday |
Day of Eternity |
Eternal Kingdom |
3 |
From this table we can see that only the last days of this week of time are emphasized in Revelation. Sunday and Monday are hardly mentioned at all.
In fact, Sunday is so briefly mentioned that I completely overlooked it the first time I tried to identify the Days of Revelation. The only reason I eventually found it was that I kept looking. And the only reason I kept looking was because Revelation's description of time would have been "incomplete" without the seventh day.
When I finally realized that the missing day consisted of the whole period of time before the first coming of Christ, then I looked more closely at the beginning of each account and eventually found Sunday mentioned. The reference was brief, but it was there (12:1-4).
As to why Sunday and Monday were mentioned so briefly, I believe the answer is because almost all the rest of the Bible is devoted to those two days. (The Old Testament deals with Sunday and the New Testament with Monday.) Since both of these days were history at the time Revelation was written, it is not surprising that this vision of the future focused primarily on the "last days" of this week of time.
Notice that the seventh day also was de-emphasized by Revelation (although not quite as much as the first two). Since Saturday deals with the new universe rather than the present universe, one concludes that the primary emphasis of Revelation is upon the "last days of this present world." (Surprise! Surprise!)
Notice also that these "last days" of Revelation are exactly the same "last days" as mentioned elsewhere in the Bible.
For example, immediately after being filled with the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, Peter proclaimed that that event was the literal fulfillment of a prophecy which specifically pertained to the "last days":
ACT 2:
14 But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words:
15 For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day.
16 But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel;
17 And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:
18 And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:
19 And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke:
20 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come:
21 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.
The conclusion is inescapable: according to the Bible, the "last days" had already begun by the time the Holy Spirit came at Pentecost. Furthermore, these "last days" would continue all the way through the "day of the Lord." Therefore, the "last days" of this Old Testament prophecy as interpreted by the New Testament are precisely the same "last days" as those identified in the Harmony of Revelation; namely, days three through six.