THE SEVEN SEALED BOOK
and a different pre-trib rapture view
To the Church,
the Body of Christ, of which I am most grateful to be a part.
The Revelation is in chronological order, and chapters 11-20 overlap consistent with this order.
Beginning with chapter 11, there is a difference in the manner in which John records things. This difference seems to be closely related to what he writes concerning the 7th Trumpet in verses 15-19, for what he here records is like a concise overview of what will be taking place throughout the next several chapters. More precisely, the 7th Trumpet heralds a period that takes in everything John sees from the time of its sounding in chapter 11 until after the Last Judgment in chapter 20. In accord with the way the Bible's chapters are divided (which I attribute to the hand of God), it appears that after John is given the brief overview of this period, he uses an overlapping method of recording all of the details of it---without fail. While the order of this section is still chronological, portions of some events are revealed from different angles along the way, making for some overlaps of information, as could be expected. Because of this, it is not quite as simple to follow the order of this section, but there is still a definite pattern and progression of events. Recognizing this is an important key to understanding the chronology of The Revelation. Below is an illustration of the overlapping method in which chapters 11 through 20 are laid out:
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Further related to the preceding, near the end of my earlier mentioned Revelation outline you will find what I have entitled, DETAILS OF THE PERIOD HERALDED BY THE SEVENTH TRUMPET. A survey of the headlines and details given for each chapter covering this period will show that, aside from the mentioned overlaps of some information, the events recorded in this half of The Revelation are in strict chronological order as well---just like with the first half. The OVERLAPS references that I give for each chapter reveal the continuity of this section and also help to show that it indeed belongs to the period heralded by the 7th Trumpet, again, of which Revelation 11:15-19 is an overview.
Finally, Revelation chapters 21-22 also continue chronologically, but as a whole, as illustrated below:
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These last two chapters of The Revelation reveal John's vision of God's Heaven and the conclusion to The Revelation, which marks the conclusion of The Bible as well.
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PROPOSITION B
A very important consideration in the study of any end time view is the question of the order in which The Revelation was given to John. The position of the view herein set forth is that it was given in true chronological order, and one goal of this work has been the outlining and exposition of this order so that it can be more readily observed. For my own outline of this order, see AN OUTLINE OF THE REVELATION, under MORE (or use this link).
Before getting into some of the finer details, what John records in the first 10 chapters is in the strictest chronological order possible. It is not even within the realm of possibility for what is found in these chapters to be shown in a more chronological manner. One thing leads into another thing, which leads into another thing, and so forth throughout the first 10 chapters. No back and forth, no overlap, no repeating of anything, just chronological information laid out as simply as 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10. Basically, there is the introduction, followed by the letters to the seven churches, followed by a vision of God and the Lamb, followed by the opening of the seals of the Seven Sealed Book, followed by the sounding of the first six (of seven) trumpets, followed by John's account of an angel he saw, who had in his hand "a little book open" (Rev. 10:2). Below is a simple illustration of how straightforward the first 10 chapters are laid out:
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