THE SEVEN YEAR TRIBULATION THEORY
The teaching that projects into the future the last seven years of Daniel 9:24-27 is not in the Bible.
You will be shocked to discover that the teaching which moves the last seven years of the prophecy of Daniel into the future came from men. History documents this. It is not hard to check. In the 1500’s the reformers were teaching that the prophecies of both Daniel and Revelation indict the Papacy as the antichrist. This greatly discomfited the Papacy, so they struck back by adopting other interpretations of the prophecies. One of those alternate interpretations is Futurism, a system developed by the Jesuit scholar, Francisco Ribera, * in the 16th century. In the mid-nineteenth century, Ribera’s concept was further developed and has become the basic method of interpreting the books of Daniel and Revelation.
Modern Futurism applies all of Revelation but the first four chapters to the few final years at the end of the world. It makes antichrist a single, evil person who would be received by the Jews, would rebuild Jerusalem, abolish Christianity, deny Christ, persecute the church (the tribulation) and rule the world for 3½ years. Most groups would be startled to learn the origin of futurism.
Futurists set aside the prophetic rule that one prophetic day equals one literal year, Ezekiel 4:6. They count the 3½ years/42 months/1260 days of Daniel and Revelation as a literal 3½ years and project it into the future. But God’s prophetic rule makes the 3½ years/42 months/1260 days a literal 1260 years which is the time of the Papal persecution of the past – 538 A.D. to 1798 A.D. (More about this in later lessons).
There is no Bible justification whatever for moving the last seven years of Daniel 9 into the future. Those seven years are past. They ended in 34 A.D. Interestingly, many futurist scholars agree on the date of 31 A.D. for the crucifixion but still refuse to abandon their seven-year theory.
The TRAGEDY is that “Futurism” confuses us as to whom the REAL Antichrist is by placing ANTICHRIST or the BEAST at some time in the future, when the Bible clearly indicates this power, in existence today, CAME OUT OF PAGAN ROME. Unless I correctly identify this beast, I risk receiving it’s MARK and losing my place in God’s Kingdom!
*George Eldon Ladd, The Blessed Hope, pp. 37-40, 1956, Wm. B. Erdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids, Michigan.