"The Book of Revelation, An Eschatological Study of the Endtimes", by Chad J. McCoy

Chapter Fourteen
Quick Questions, Easy Answers


What are the seven seals?

Seal 1: The Holy Spirit
Seal 2: The spirit of War
Seal 3: The spirit of Economic Disaster
Seal 4: The spirit of Death
Seal 5: Martyred saints ask for justice
Seal 6: Sun and moon darkened, meteors hit the earth, rapture takes place
Seal 7: A moment of silence as the 7 trumpets are ushered in

What are the seven trumpets?

Trumpet 1: Hail and fire mixed with blood - 1/3 of earth, trees, and grass burned up
Trumpet 2: Blazing meteor hits the ocean - 1/3 of sea turned to blood, 1/3 of sea life and ships destroyed
Trumpet 3: Fiery meteor contaminates 1/3 of drinking water - many people die from drinking it
Trumpet 4: 1/3 of the sun, moon, and stars are darkened
Trumpet 5: Locusts torture sinners for 5 months
Trumpet 6: 200 million troops kill 1/3 of mankind
Trumpet 7: Lightning, thunder, hailstorm, and an earthquake

What are the seven bowls?

Bowl 1: Ugly, painful sores afflict all who have taken the mark
Bowl 2: Entire sea turns to blood and every living creature in the sea dies
Bowl 3: All drinking water turns to blood
Bowl 4: Heat of sun turned up - people scorched
Bowl 5: World plunged into darkness
Bowl 6: Euphrates River dries up - armies gather at Megiddo in preparation of the march on Jerusalem
Bowl 7: Storm hits and the mother of all earthquakes levels the earth

Was the book of Revelation written in chronological order?

Yes, for the most part. Some have claimed that the 1st seal, 1st Trumpet, and 1st Bowl are the same judgements, and happen at the same time. They claim that the seventh seal is the end of the judgements, because the seventh trumpet and seventh bowl occur at the same time.
There is no basis for saying this. The whole purpose of the seventh seal is to usher in the trumpet judgements. During the seventh seal, seven angels file in, and are handed their trumpets. The first trumpet (or the first six, for that matter) can not have been sounded at the time of the first seal (or first six seals), because the trumpets are not passed out until after the seventh seal has been opened.

Do the events of Revelation all occur during the final 7 years?

No. The birth of Jesus (woman clothed with the sun in chapter 12) did not occur in the world's final 7 years. The giving of the Holy Spirit (white horse, seal number one) happened 2000 years ago. The spirit of war (red horse, seal number two) has been in our society for decades. And so on.

Have any of the seals been opened yet?

Yes. The first seal (the giving of the Holy Spirit), the second seal (the spirit of war), and I believe that we are living in the time of the third seal (economic disaster).

Will the church be subject to God's wrath?

Two definitions are needed here. What do you mean by the "church" and God's "wrath"? Bad things will happen while believers are still here. These bad things come from God. Is that the wrath of God? I would call the "wrath" of God the period of time that involves the bowl judgements. These are the most severe of all the judgements. We see the wrath of Satan evident previous to the bowl judgements, but only God's wrath afterwards.
The believers will be raptured soon after the 6th Seal. So the "church" will be gone. Only those who become believers after the rapture will go through the trumpet judgements, but even they will be gone (killed by the AntiChrist for refusing to take his mark and worship his image) by the time of the Bowl Judgements.
So the answer is, if you consider the Bowl Judgements to be the wrath of God, (and I do) no - the church will not go through His wrath.
If you believe the wrath of God involves the Trumpets, then the "real" church will have been raptured, but the "Tribulation" church will endure it.
If you believe the wrath of God involves the 6th Seal or previous, then even the "real" church will go through some of God's wrath.

When will Satan be permanently cast out of heaven?

He will be cast out of heaven at the mid-point of the 7 year Jewish Treaty, when he will possess the AntiChrist, walk into the temple, and proclaim himself God.

Is Europe the 10-nation union?

No. The ten nations will comprise the World Government. It will encompass every nation on the earth, not just Europe. It will be a World Government, not a European Government.

Will there be an endtime resurrection of the Roman Empire?

No. It will be a Babylonian system that is resurrected, not a Roman one.

Will the False Apostle really pull down fire from heaven?

Yes. The bible says it, I believe it, that settles it.

Who is Mystery Babylon?

It is the city of Babylon, the originator of the Mystery Religions that have deceived the whole world, and incurred the wrath of God. It will come again, and form the backbone of the new World Government.

What religion will the endtime global religion be?

It will be AntiChristianity. The False Apostle will institute a religious system that worships the AntiChrist and his image, and accepts his mark. All who refuse to worship the AntiChrist as God will be killed.

When will the rapture be?

It will come immediately after the sun and moon are darkened, and meteors begin to impact the earth. (Sixth Seal)

Will it be possible to be saved after the rapture?

Yes. Nothing says the Holy Spirit will be taken away. There is no basis to say that God gives his spirit, snatches it away, then gives it back, and takes it away again. He is not engaged in a cosmic game of give-and-take. He doesn't have fits of pique. He is the same, yesterday, today, tomorrow, forever, and always.
The plan of Salvation still applies, though. There is no basis in saying that it doesn't. Simply refusing the mark isn't good enough. That will only get you killed and condemned. You must refuse the mark and have repented, been baptized, and filled with the Holy Spirit.

Who will the AntiChrist be?

He will be one who proclaims himself first to be the Messiah, and then to be God. He will capture Jerusalem, breaking the 7-year Jewish Treaty. He will enforce worship of himself and of his image, and require everyone to receive his mark.
He may even be the architect of the Jewish Treaty. We cannot know who he is until a man appears on the scene promising peace; a charismatic leader, an excellent orator. When we see a man who appears to match these descriptions, we will have identified the AntiChrist.

Will the AntiChrist be the Pope?

No. The AntiChrist will appear out of obscurity. This is the only way he can be accepted as the Messiah. The Jews did not accept Jesus as Messiah because they knew who he was and where he came from. He was Jesus, son of Joseph, the carpenter's son, who came from Nazareth.
In the same way, we know who the Pope is, and where he comes from. Gorbachev cannot be the AntiChrist by reason of the same argument. Nor can any well-known political figure. The AntiChrist will appear out of obscurity.

Will the AntiChrist be Jewish?

The bible does not say. The Jews are looking for a man who will lead them to peace. Would they accept a Gentile in the role of Messiah, as long as he gives them peace? I don't know. They might. If so, then it doesn't matter whether the AntiChrist is Jewish or not. On the other hand, if the Jews would only recognize a fellow Jew as Messiah, no matter how much peace he brings them, then I imagine the AntiChrist would be Jewish.
The bible does not say.

Will the AntiChrist be homosexual?

Probably. He will be controlled by Satan himself, who invented homosexuality. I would imagine the AntiChrist to have all the evil characteristics of Satan. The bible says he will not regard the desires of women. That may mean he is gay, or it might just mean that he will put heavy restrictions on child-bearing. (As China has done) The desire of women throughout history has been to bear children. So that scripture is not proof of his sexual alignment, and it may not even be a reference to it; however, being a product of the devil, I think it likely that he will be.

Will the AntiChrist be killed, then raised from the dead?

Yes. We are told that one head of the scarlet beast will be fatally wounded with a sword. All together, the seven heads represented the city of Babylon. Individually, they represented seven kings. Five were dead already by the time of John, and the one who existed at the time has died by now. They cannot be resurrected. They are nothing but bones now. Only the seventh king could be killed and brought back to life: The AntiChrist is the seventh king.
Remember, it is not a nation that is killed. If all seven heads had been fatally wounded, then we would have to conclude that Babylon was destroyed. But only one head was killed. The only definition we have for a single head, is a king.

How do we know that the Jewish Treaty will last for seven years?

Daniel 9:27 says: "He will confirm a covenant with many for one 'seven.' In the middle of the 'seven' he will put an end to sacrifice and offering."
The word "seven" here actually means "week". In prophecy, periods of time are described as units of years. So a week is not seven days, but seven years.
Besides, it would be pretty silly for the AntiChrist to put a treaty into effect that lasts for only seven days.

What is the Abomination of Desolation?

It should be referred to properly as the Abomination that causes desolation. The Abomination is the AntiChrist, and his image is also referred to in this manner. The desolation he causes is when he captures Jerusalem, and it and the temple become desolate of Jews. Instead, the Lord's Holy City will be trodden by the Gentiles for 3 ½ years.

Will the 3rd temple be literal or figurative?

It will be literal. The Jews will be conducting sacrifices in it, and the AntiChrist will enter it to proclaim himself God.

What about the battle of Armageddon?

Nowhere in the bible is there a battle with this name. The armies of the world are gathered at Megiddo in preparation for the march on Jerusalem. The Final Battle will be just outside Jerusalem, not at Megiddo.

What is the Mark of the Beast?

This will be a form of identification that every person must possess if they wish to buy or sell. In other words, if they want to live, they will take this mark. Possession of this mark will state that you pledge allegiance to the beast, and not God. All who take it will be surely damned. Some have thought that it will take the form of a barcode tattooed on the forehead on hand.
More likely, it will be some kind of computer chip, transmitting barcode-like data. Barcodes are not accurate enough. Just watch how many tries it takes your local grocer to scan a box of spaghetti before it is read correctly. She may have to manually enter its number. Now imagine a tattooed barcode that can be wrinkled, dirtied, cut, scarred, etc.
It is much more likely that it will be some kind of transmitting computer chip implanted into the forehead or hand.

When will the Mark of the Beast be implemented?

At the mid-point of the Treaty, when the AntiChrist captures Jerusalem and proclaims himself to be God.

What does "666" mean?

It is the number of the World Government's name. It is a base-60, Babylonian number. It means: Babylon. Remember, it is the number of the beast, not the little horn (which is the AntiChrist).

Back
Home
Next