The Greatest Evidence That We Are Living in the Last Days
Lesson Overview
The Greatest Evidence That We Are Living in the Last Days with Dr. Jimmy DeYoung
This standalone message is given by Dr. Jimmy DeYoung, a prophecy teacher and journalist who lived in Jerusalem for many years. He argues that Bible prophecy, not current events, should be the starting point, and that when current events are read in its light, the stage appears to be set for the end times. He walks through a simple roadmap of Revelation and then points to four developments he sees as evidence. Use this overview to review the key points after watching the full video, keeping in mind that its “current events” reflect roughly 2012.
Prophecy as the Starting Point
DeYoung opens by noting that prophecy fills Scripture, with prophetic passages in every book of the Bible and, by his count, about a third of the Bible being prophecy. His method, which he credits in spirit to Dr. John Walvoord of Dallas Theological Seminary, is to begin with the exegeted text and then use it as a “spotlight” on current events, rather than reading current events back into Scripture. When events line up with the text, he says, “the stage is being set for Bible prophecy to be fulfilled.” His theme for the evening is the evidence that we are living in the last days.
The Book of Revelation and Its Title
Turning to Revelation, DeYoung stresses that the book’s true title (Revelation 1:1) is “the Revelation of Jesus Christ,” not of John, and that its purpose is to lift up Christ, who is “the spirit of prophecy” (Revelation 19:10). Chapter 1 presents the person and power of the risen Christ, and DeYoung underscores the resurrection as both the cornerstone of the faith and the foundation of prophecy.
A Simple Roadmap Through Revelation
DeYoung offers an outline based on Revelation 1:19: write “the things you have seen” (chapter 1), “the things which are” (chapters 2 and 3, the seven churches), and “the things which shall be hereafter” (chapter 4 onward).
He reads the seven churches as both real first-century congregations and representative of types of churches and believers in every age, using Ephesus (which “left its first love”) as his example.
He then explains apocalyptic literature, the genre of Daniel, Ezekiel, Zechariah, and Revelation, in which a symbol conveys a literal truth, and shows how the text interprets its own symbols (the lampstands are the churches, the stars are the angels) through inductive study. He notes the recurring phrase “as it were” signals a symbol.
From this he lays out three major events as a roadmap through the end times:
The rapture, which he places at Revelation 4:1 (“come up hither”), noting that the word “church” appears often in chapters 1 to 3 and then not again, which he takes to signal the church’s removal. He acknowledges the word “rapture” is not in the Bible, as with “Trinity,” but argues the event is taught in 1 Thessalonians 4 and 1 Corinthians 15.
The seven-year tribulation, chapters 4 through 19, which he derives as two periods of 1,260 days from Revelation 11 and 12.
The return of Christ, chapter 19, the rider on the white horse, followed by the thousand-year kingdom (chapter 20), the Great White Throne judgment, and the new heavens and new earth (chapters 21 and 22).
Along the way he pokes fun at failed date-setting predictions, stressing that the true end of the world comes at the Great White Throne judgment, not on any predicted date.
Four Evidences From the Tribulation Timeline
DeYoung’s main argument is that four features the Bible assigns to the tribulation are visibly taking shape now, suggesting the era is near. He draws them from the seal judgments of Revelation 6 and related passages.
The appearance of Antichrist. The rider on the white horse of Revelation 6:2 (distinct from Christ in chapter 19) represents a coming world ruler known by many titles across Daniel, Revelation, and the epistles, most familiarly “Antichrist.” DeYoung argues this figure will arise from a revived Roman Empire, which he identifies with the European Union, citing the Lisbon Treaty. He offers a then-current political figure as a “prototype” who shows such a role is fillable. Importantly, DeYoung explicitly and repeatedly says he does not know and cannot know who the Antichrist is, correcting anyone who thinks he is naming him. His identification of the EU with the revived Rome, and his reading of any current figure as a prototype, are his interpretive positions and are contested among prophecy teachers.
The alignment of the nations. The red horse of Revelation 6:4 takes peace from the earth. DeYoung points to the many armed conflicts in the world and to the upheaval of the “Arab Spring,” arguing that nations named in Ezekiel 38, Psalm 83, and Daniel 11 (he highlights Syria, Egypt, and Libya) are aligning against Israel as radical movements gain power. This section is his reading of 2012 Middle East politics from a strongly pro-Israel standpoint, and his characterizations of governments and movements are his own.
The arrangements for the temple. Revelation 11 has the temple measured, and at the tribulation’s midpoint the Antichrist commits the “abomination of desolation” (Daniel 9:27, Matthew 24:15, 2 Thessalonians 2:4). DeYoung argues a third temple must therefore be built, and reports his own documentation over decades of preparations by certain groups in Jerusalem (trained priests, prepared implements, a golden menorah, woven garments, harps). These are his firsthand reports; the preparations he describes reflect the aims of specific movements, not the whole of Judaism.
The authority in Babylon. Revelation 18 describes the fall of Babylon, which DeYoung takes literally as the ancient city in modern Iraq, arguing it must rise again as the Antichrist’s economic and political headquarters. This literal-Babylon reading is one view among several; many interpreters read Babylon in Revelation symbolically.
The Closing Point
DeYoung’s climax is that all four of these tribulation features (Antichrist, the alignment of nations, the temple, and Babylon) belong to the seven-year period that follows the rapture, yet their groundwork appears to be forming now, before the rapture has even occurred. His conclusion is that the rapture, which requires no preceding sign, could happen at any moment. He dramatizes this with a sudden pause, then explains he did it to show how quickly and unexpectedly the rapture could come. He closes by leading the audience in the early church’s cry “Maranatha,” meaning the Lord is coming.
Key Terms
Apocalyptic literature: the genre of Daniel, Ezekiel, Zechariah, and Revelation, using symbols to convey literal truths.
Inductive Bible study: interpreting a passage by letting other Scripture explain its symbols.
The rapture: the catching up of the church, which DeYoung places at Revelation 4:1.
The tribulation: the seven-year period of Revelation 4 through 19, containing 21 escalating judgments.
Abomination of desolation: the Antichrist’s act, at the tribulation’s midpoint, of claiming to be God in the temple.
Revived Roman Empire: the end-times power DeYoung associates with the European Union.
Verses to Know
Revelation 1:1, the Revelation of Jesus Christ. Revelation 1:19, the threefold outline of the book. Revelation 4:1, “come up hither,” which DeYoung reads as the rapture. Revelation 6:1-4, the white horse and the red horse. Revelation 11, the measuring of the temple. Daniel 9:27 and Matthew 24:15, the abomination of desolation. Revelation 18, the fall of Babylon. Revelation 19:11-14, the return of Christ on the white horse.
Takeaway
DeYoung argues that Revelation lays out a clear roadmap of the rapture, tribulation, return, kingdom, and eternity, and that four tribulation features (the Antichrist, the alignment of nations against Israel, preparations for a third temple, and the revival of Babylon) already appear to be taking shape, so that the rapture could come at any moment and believers should live watchfully, praying “Maranatha.”