The Reclamation Period

Before proceeding, please review Daniel's 1290 Days blog:  Click Here!

This will explain what I mean by "the reclamation period".  It refers to Daniel 12:11 and the 1,290 days.  30 days beyond the 1,260 days of the second half of Daniel's 70th week.

At the end of that blog I mentioned that Christ accomplishes much during this 30 day window.  That is the purpose of this blog.

When the 70th week (2,520 days) comes to a close, the natural line of Abraham will have finally atoned for her sin.  The requirements of Daniel 9:24 will have been accomplished.

The Two Witnesses

The first event of the reclamation period will be the death of the two witnesses.

We know from Scripture that they come on the scene near the midpoint of the 70th week.  They are given authority for 1,260 days before the Antichrist kills them.  One could argue that they arrive in Jerusalem the same day as the abomination, or shortly thereafter.  It doesn't really matter - either way, they are resurrected during the reclamation period.

[Rev 11:3 LSB]  “And I will give authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.”

God allows the two witnesses to be killed by the Antichrist.

[Rev 11:7-10 LSB] And when they have finished their witness, the beast that comes up out of the abyss will make war with them and overcome them and kill them. 

Let's pause here.  We need to put an issue to rest.  Note that the above verse is not a sequential definition.  It does not say "when the beast comes up out of the abyss, at that specific time, is when he will make war with them".

John is merely pointing to who makes war with them... "the beast that comes up out of the abyss"... when does this beast do so?  "when they have finished their witness" at the end of the allotted time - 1,260 days.

Also note - the beast is also said to come out of the sea (Rev 13:1).  So, which is it?  Does the beast come out of the sea or the abyss?  "sea" and "abyss" are both symbolic.  Coming of the sea speaks to his humanity, and out of the abyss speaks to his demonic / Satanic influence and character.

So many people have tried to over-complicate this verse to claim that the two witnesses appear on the scene during the first half of Daniel's 70th week.  How does that even make any sense?  

The witnesses supposedly show up during a relatively peaceful time, before Israel begins their daily sacrifices, before the Antichrist is even revealed, etc. and they supernaturally appear during the birth pains when the covenant is confirmed?  

They are shooting fire from their mouths, turning water to blood, stopping rain all in the first half?  No... they are present during the second half when all "hell" is breaking loose on earth.  They will be highly visible during the reign of Antichrist and there's nothing he can do about it until they have finished their witness.  It's flat out ridiculous to claim the two show up in the first half.

[8] And their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified. [9] And those from the peoples and tribes and tongues and nations will look at their dead bodies for three and a half days, and will not permit their dead bodies to be laid in a tomb. [10]  And those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and celebrate and send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tormented those who dwell on the earth.

When the Antichrist kills them, he will think that his rule is once again secure.  When in reality, this signals his end is near.  Like the rest of the ungodly world, he will believe that his battle with the forces of God has been won.

Now, whether we believe they show up on the exact same day as the abomination, or not, we know that they are here for 1,260 days.  Regardless of the exact timing of their death, their resurrection occurs after the 70th week has completed.  They are resurrected during the reclamation period.

However, notice the verse above.  "When they have finished their witness".  They could be killed after the 1,260 days, placing their death on the first day of the reclamation period.  Whether it's day 1,260 or 1,261, I don't think we need to be dogmatic about it.  We're just looking for a general timeframe.

Mystery of God Finished

[Rev 10:7 LSB]  but in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound, then the mystery of God is finished, as He proclaimed good news to His slaves, the prophets.

Notice, the seventh trumpet is "about to sound" and "then the mystery of God is finished".

At the conclusion of the 70th week, this mystery [the salvation of Israel] will be finished.

[Rom 11:25-26 LSB]  For I do not want you, brothers, to be uninformed of this mystery—so that you will not be wise in your own estimation—that a partial [spiritual] hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles [the completion of the 70th week] has come in; [26]  and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written, “THE DELIVERER WILL COME FROM ZION, HE WILL REMOVE UNGODLINESS FROM JACOB.”

The blowing of the seventh trumpet is at the very heart of the cosmic conflict between God and Satan (Amos 5:18-20; Mal 3:1-5).

[Zec 13:9 LSB]  “And I will bring the third part through the fire And refine them as silver is refined And test them as gold is tested. They will call on My name, And I will answer them; I will say, ‘They are My people,’ And they will say, ‘Yahweh is my God.’”

Israel will not come to this point until the fullness of the Gentiles [70th week completion] has come in.  Then the partial hardening will be lifted.

[Hos 5:15 LSB]  I will go away and return to My place Until they acknowledge their guilt and seek My face; In their affliction they will seek Me earnestly.

Then they will say:

[Hos 6:1 LSB]  “Come, let us return to Yahweh. For He has torn us, but He will heal us; He has struck us, but He will bandage us. 

When Yeshua comes to save the 144,000 plus the remnant of Israel, that survives the 70th week (one third - Zec 13:9; Isa 10:20-22), He will come in person on His journey from Edom to Jerusalem.  Israel will be reunited with their Messiah both spiritually and physically.

[Hos 6:3 LSB]  “So let us know, let us pursue to know Yahweh. His going forth is established as the dawn; And He will come to us like the rain, Like the late rain watering the earth.”

Yeshua's Physical Return

[Heb 9:28 LSB]  so Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear [G3708 - ὁράω] a second time for salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him.

G3708 - Properly to stare at (compare G3700), that is, (by implication) to discern clearly (physically or mentally); by extension to attend to; by Hebraism to experience; passively to appear: - behold, perceive, see, take heed.

This verse is not talking about "the appearance [epiphanei] of His coming [parousia]" when the righteous are raptured, but about when He will physically set foot on earth - when "they will look on Me whom they have pierced" (Zech 12:10).

[Act 1:11 LSB]  They also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking toward heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven.”

The Strong Angel

This is the "Strong Angel" with "the little scroll" who comes down from Heaven.

[Rev 10:1-3 LSB]  Then I saw another strong angel [G32a - ἄγγελος - messenger] coming down out of heaven, clothed with a cloud, and the rainbow was upon his head, and his face was like the sun, and his feet like pillars of fire; [2]  and he had in his hand a little scroll which was open [only Yeshua can open the scroll]. He placed his right foot on the sea and his left on the earth, [3]  and he cried out with a loud voice, as when a lion roars. And when he had cried out, the seven peals of thunder uttered their voices.

No other being is described like this in Scripture other than Yeshua.  Look at the similarity of Jehovah as He appears in Ezekial's vision:

[Eze 1:26-28 LSB]  Now above the expanse that was over their heads there was something in the likeness of a throne, like sapphire stone in appearance; and upon the likeness of the throne, high up, was the likeness of one with the appearance of a man. [27] Then I saw from the appearance of His loins and upward something like the gleam of glowing metal with the appearance of fire all around within it, and from the appearance of His loins and downward I saw something with the appearance of fire; and there was a radiance all around Him. [28]  As the appearance of the rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the radiance all around. Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of Yahweh. And I saw this, and I fell on my face and heard a sound of a voice speaking.

The One "with the appearance of a man" is clearly Yeshua.  The prophet later sees the same figure.

[Eze 8:2 LSB]  Then I looked, and behold, a likeness as the appearance of one on fire; from His loins and downward there was the appearance of fire, and from His loins and upward the appearance of brightness, like the gleam of glowing metal.

Like, in the Revelation account, the Lord gave Ezekial a scroll to eat:

[Eze 3:3 LSB]  And He said to me, “Son of man, feed your stomach and fill your body with this scroll which I am giving you.” Then I ate it, and it was sweet as honey in my mouth.

A similar description of Yeshua is given in the first chapter of Revelation:

[Rev 1:12-16 LSB]  Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands; [13]  and in the middle of the lampstands I saw one like a son of man, clothed in a robe reaching to the feet, and girded across His chest with a golden sash. [14]  And His head and His hair were white like white wool, like snow; and His eyes were like a flame of fire. [15]  His feet were like burnished bronze, when it has been made to glow in a furnace, and His voice was like the sound of many waters, [16]  and having in His right hand seven stars, and a sharp two-edged sword which comes out of His mouth, and His face was like the sun shining in its power.

Daniel also speaks of the same:

[Dan 10:5-6 LSB]  I lifted my eyes and looked, and behold, there was a certain man dressed in linen, whose loins were girded with a belt of pure fine gold of Uphaz. [6]  His body also was like beryl, his face had the appearance of lightning, his eyes were like flaming torches, his arms and feet like the gleam of burnished bronze, and the sound of his words like the sound of a multitude.

In addition, the Strong Angel is also shown swearing "by Him who lives forever and ever" (Rev 10:6).  Hebrews tells us that:

[Heb 6:13 LSB]  For when God made the promise to Abraham, since He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself,

Yeshua taught the multitudes that human beings should make "no oath at all... by Heaven, for it is the Throne of God" (Mat 5:34).

Without diving into all the OT references, Bible students have known that "the Angel of the Lord" are references to pre-incarnate Yeshua.

"He cried out with a loud voice, as when a lion roars" points us back to:

[Hos 11:10-11 LSB]  They will walk after Yahweh; He will roar like a lion; Indeed, He will roar, And His sons will come trembling from the west. [11]  They will come trembling like birds from Egypt And like doves from the land of Assyria; And I will settle them in their houses, declares Yahweh.

Putting it all together, the Strong Angel is a picture of Yeshua when He returns to physical earth for the first-fruits of Israel (still protected in the Edomite wilderness) and for the salvation of the 1 out of 3 Israelites who have survived the 70th week.  He will march from Edom to Jerusalem.

Joel Richardson wrote a great book on this journey... "Sanai to Zion".  He goes into great detail on this march to Zion.  Scripture spells out an itinerary for His journey.  I won't delve into those details here.

The Clans of Judah

You can read the full contextual accounts on your own.  I'll just post snippets of the passages below.

When Yeshua physically comes to Edom and escorts the 144,000 to Mount Zion, they will pass through the eastern Judean hills.

[Rev 14:4 LSB]  These are the ones who are not defiled with women, for they are virgins. These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These have been purchased from among men as first fruits to God and to the Lamb.

They will be joined by the "clans of Judah", who have not taken the mark, and have been fighting the evil forces since Antichrist was rendered useless at the appearance of Yeshua.

[Zec 12:7 LSB]  “Yahweh also will save the tents of Judah FIRST so that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem will not be magnified above Judah.

Egypt and Assyria

Other Jewish survivors will then join the group... those who have been hiding in Egypt and Assyria.

[Hos 11:11 LSB]  They will come trembling like birds from Egypt And like doves from the land of Assyria; And I will settle them in their houses, declares Yahweh.

In order to assist their return:

[Isa 35:8 LSB]  And a roadway will be there, a highway, And it will be called the Highway of Holiness. The unclean will not pass by on it, But it will be for him who walks in that way, And ignorant fools will not wander on it.

[Isa 27:12-13 LSB]  And it will be in that day, that Yahweh will start His threshing from the flowing stream of the River to the brook of Egypt, and you will be gathered up one by one, O sons of Israel. [13]  And it will be in that day, that a great trumpet will be blown, and those who were perishing in the land of Assyria and who were banished in the land of Egypt will come and worship Yahweh in the holy mountain at Jerusalem.

Seventh Trumpet

[Rev 11:15 LSB]  Then the seventh angel sounded, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He will reign forever and ever.”

Nations are still on the earth:

[Rev 11:18a LSB]  “And the nations were enraged, and Your rage came,..." 

Remnant to Azel

During the bowl judgments the remnant (on earth) will need to be tucked away for safe keeping.

[Zec 14:4-5 LSB] And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which is in front of Jerusalem on the east; and the Mount of Olives will be split in its middle from east to west by a very large valley so that half of the mountain will move toward the north and the other half toward the south. [5]  And you will flee by the valley of My mountains, for the valley of the mountains will reach to Azel; indeed, you will flee just as you fled before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then Yahweh, my God, will come, and all the holy ones with Him!

Bema Seat

Paul tells us of the Bema Seat Judgment for the righteous (1 Cor 3).

According to Revelation 11, it appears to happen at the seventh trumpet.  This should not be confused with the Great White Throne Judgment.

[Rev 11:18b LSB]  "...and the time came for the dead to be judged, and to give reward to Your slaves—the prophets and the saints and those who fear Your name, the small and the great—and to destroy those who destroy the earth.”

[Dan 7:9-11 LSB]  “I kept looking Until thrones were set up, And the Ancient of Days was seated; His clothing was like white snow And the hair of His head like pure wool. His throne was ablaze with fire, Its wheels were a burning fire. [10]  “A river of fire was flowing And coming out from before Him; Thousands upon thousands were attending Him, And myriads upon myriads were standing before Him; The court sat, And the books were opened. [11]  “Then I kept looking because of the sound of the great boastful words which the horn was speaking; I kept looking until the beast was killed, and its body was destroyed and given to the burning fire.

This appears to occur while the bowl judgments are being poured out on earth.

Sidenote:  Pre-tribbers often argue that the 24 elders must be representatives of the Church because they are wearing crowns received at the Bema Seat Judgment.  Therefore, since they're seen wearing their crowns around the Throne of God before the first seal - voila - pre-trib rapture.  [1]  We just saw above that the Bema Seat Judgment doesn't occur until after the seventh trumpet.  [2]  The crowns that the elders are wearing are staphanos crowns (not diadem).  With this in mind, where else do we find staphanos crowns?  On the heads of the fifth trumpet locusts that terrorize.  Bema Seat crowns?  Nope.

Ark of the Covenant

I find it fascinating that the Ark is revealed...

[Rev 11:19 LSB]  And the sanctuary of God which is in heaven was opened, and the ark of His covenant appeared in His sanctuary, and there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder and an earthquake and a great hailstorm.

There is so much that could be said about this, and the timing of this, that I may create a separate blog.  I just wanted to note it here so I don't forget.

Final Wrath - Bowl Judgments

[Rev 15:1 LSB]  Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvelous, seven angels who have seven plagues, which are the last, because in them the wrath of God is finished.

The bowl judgments will culminate with the Battle of Armageddon on day 1,290.