Bible Chronology Timeline

14. CHRONOLOGY OF THE JUDGMENT: 1844 AND BEYOND

“God's people in these last days are not to choose darkness rather than light. They are to look for light, to expect light. . . . The light will continue to shine in brighter and still brighter rays, and reveal more and more distinctly the truth as it is in Jesus, that human hearts and human characters may be improved, and moral darkness--which Satan is working to bring over the people of God--may be dispelled. . . . As we near the close of time there will be needed a deeper and clearer discernment, a more firm knowledge of the Word of God, a living experience, and the holiness of heart and life which we must have to serve Him.” Ellen White, That I May Know Him, P. 347, 1964.

Chart of the World Chronology until Judgment Time

FATHER	FATHER’S AGE	SON’S BIRTH	TEXT	WORLD YEAR
God created	-	Adam	Genesis 1:26-31	1
ADAM	130 year old	Seth	Genesis 5:3	130
SETH	105 year old	Enos	Genesis 5:6	235
ENOS	90 year old	Cainan	Genesis 5:9	325
CAINAN	70 year old	Mahalaleel	Genesis 5:12	395
MAHALALEEL	65 year old	Jared	Genesis 5:15	460
JARED	162 year old	Enoch	Genesis 5:18	622
ENOCH	65 year old	Methuselah	Genesis 5:21	687
METHUSELAH	187 year old	Lamech	Genesis 5:25	874
LAMECH	182 year old	Noah	Genesis 5:28	1056
NOAH	500 year old	Shem	Genesis 5:32	1556
SHEM	100 year old	Arphaxad YEAR OF THE FLOOD	Genesis 11:9,10	1656
ARPHAXAD	35 year old	Salah	Genesis 11:12	1691
SALAH	30 year old	Eber	Genesis 11:14	1721
EBER	34 year old	Peleg	Genesis 11:16	1755
PELEG	30 year old	Reu	Genesis 11:18	1785
REU	32 year old	Serug	Genesis 11:20	1817
SERUG	30 year old	Nahor	Genesis 11:22	1847
NAHOR	29 year old	Terah	Genesis 11:24	1876
TERAH	70 year old	Abram	Genesis 11:26	1946
ABRAHAM	100 year old	Isaac	Genesis 21:5	2046
ISAAC	60 year old	Jacob	Genesis 25:26	2106
JACOB	130 year old	TO EGYPT	Genesis 47:9	2236
Israel’s Slavery	430 years	THE EXODUS	Exodus 12:40-41	2666
ISRAEL	40 years	Wilderness	Acts 13:18	2706
JUDGES	450 years	Joshua to Samuel	Acts 13:20	3156
JUDGE SAMUEL & KING SAUL		Saul anointed king in year 3116	1 Sam. 25:1 1 Samuel 28:3, 7 1 Samuel 31:4	3156
DAVID	40 years	Crowned at 30 years of age in year 3156	2 Sam. 5: 5	3196
SOLOMON	40 years	Crowned in year 3196	1 Kings. 11: 42	3236
REHOBOAM	17 years	Crowned at 41 years of age in year 3236	1 Kings 14: 21	3253
ABIJAM(Abijah)	3 years	Crowned in year 3253	1 Kings 15: 2	3256
ASA	41 years	Crowned in year 3256	1 Kings 15: 9,10	3297
JEHOSHAPHAT	25 years	Crowned at 35 years of age in year 3297	1 Kings 22:41,42	3322
JEHORAM	8 years	Crowned at 32 years of age in year 3322	2 Kings 8: 17	3330
AHAZIAH	1 year	Crowned at 42 years of age in year 3330	2 Kings 8: 24,26	3331
ATHALIA (woman)	6 years	Crowned in year 3331	2 Chronicles 22: 12	3337
JEHOASH: Joash	40 years	Crowned at 7 years of age in year 3337	2 Kings 12: 1	3377
AMAZIAH	29 years	Crowned at 25 years of age in year 3377	2 Kings 14: 1-2	3406
UZZIAH Azariah	52 years	Crowned at 16 years of age in year 3406	2 Chronicles 26: 3	3458
JOTHAM	16 years	Crowned at 25 years of age in year 3458	2 Kings 15: 32-33	3474
AHAZ	16 years	Crowned at 20 years of age in year 3474	2 Kings 16:1-2	3490
HEZEKIAH	29 years	Crowned at 25 years of age in year 3490	2 Kings 18:2	3519
MANASSEH	55 years	Crowned at 12 years of age in year 3519	2 Kings 21: 1	3574
AMON	2 years	Crowned at 22 years of age in year 3574	2 Kings 21: 19	3576
JOSIAH	31 years	Crowned at 8 years of age in year 3576	2 Kings 22: 1	3607
JEHOAHAZ	3 Months	Crowned at 23 years of age in year 3607	2 Kings 23:31	3607
JEHOIAKIM	4TH year	1st BABYLONIAN INCURSION	Jeremiah 25:1	3612
JEHOIAKIM Crowned in 3607	11 years	2nd BABYLONIAN INCURSION	2 Kings 23:36 2 Chronicles 36:5	3618
JEHOIACHIN	3 Months	Crowned at 8 years of age in year 3619	Chronicles 36:9	3619
ZEDEKIAH (Mattaniah)	11 years	Crowned at 21 years of age in 3619. Taken captive in 3630	2 Kings 24:17-18	3630
Nebuchadnezzar TEMPLE BURNT	19th year	3rd BABYLONIAN INCURSION	Jeremiah 52:12	3630
Decree to Restore and to Build Jerusalem	70 years	End 70 Year Desolation and	Ezra 1:1 2 Chronicles 36:21-22	3700
TEMPLE REBUILT	49 years		Ezra 6:15	3749
JESUS’ BIRTH		MESSIAH		4153 = 3B.C.
BAPTISM OF JESUS	483 (69x7)	ANOINTED	Daniel 9:25	4183 = 27A.D.
THE LORD’S CRUCIFIXION	3.5 years	LAMB OF GOD SACRIFICED	Daniel 9:26-27	4187= 31A.D.
GOD’S GRACE FOR THE JEWS	490 years	70x7	Daniel 9:24	4190 = 34 A.D.
TEMPLE DESTROYED		By the Romans		4226 = 70 A.D.
JUDGMENT IN HEAVENLY SANCTUARY		THE TIME OF THE END	Daniel 8:14	6000 = 1844 A.D.
PRESENT				6168 = 2012 A.D.

God’s Heavenly Sanctuary Judgment

The prophecy of Daniel 8:14 about the 2300 years reached to the time of the end (Daniel 8: 17). It began in Daniel’s time and it was fulfilled in the chronological year 6000 (1844 A.D.). This prophecy has a symbolic language reminiscent of the Day of Atonement and therefore of judgment. Notice: “And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed” Daniel 8:14.

When the Hebrews celebrated the Day of Atonement, God commanded them to afflict their souls (Leviticus 16:31). This was a day of judgment, therefore the Israelites needed to show humility and reverence. Moreover, it was a day of cleansing or remission of sins from the repentant. Notice: “For on that day shall the priest make an atonement for you, to cleanse you, that ye may be clean from all your sins before the LORD” (Leviticus 16:30).

Only the anointed high priest could make the atonement (Leviticus 16:32). Moreover, God commanded the high priest to make atonement not just for the sinner but also for the holy sanctuary, for the tabernacle of the congregation, for the altar, for the priests and for the people (Leviticus 16:33).

The book of Daniel, whose author’s name means ‘God is my judge’, is about God’s judgment. The God of Heaven (Daniel 2:19) is the only Judge Who can change the times (Daniel 2:21), He removes kings and sets up kings (Daniel 2:21). Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon praised God as King of Heaven and acknowledged that His ways are judgment (Daniel 4:37).

The prophecy of Daniel 8:14 is the climax of God’s judgment. It is a judgment that would sit after the 1260 years of the Papacy’s dominion (Daniel 7:25). That is the reason why Daniel was told: “…Understand, O son of man: for at the time of the end shall be the vision” (Daniel 8:17). Therefore, to Daniel it was reiterated that all these things would be finished after the period of 1260 years for it says that “it shall be for a time, times and an half…” (Daniel 12:7). And once again to Daniel it is told: “…Go thy way Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end” (Daniel 14:9).

Notice how the Word of God explains that the Judgment would begin after the 1260 years of Papal supremacy:

“And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time. But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end” (Daniel 7:25-26).

God’s judgment in the Heavenly Sanctuary was to be preceded by the world history of successive world empires leading to the time of the end. The Word of God represents these empires as beasts. “These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth” (Daniel 7:17). Therefore, in prophecy, Babylon is represented as a lion (Daniel 7:4); Medo-Persia, as a bear (Daniel 7:5); Greece, as a leopard (Daniel 7:6); Rome, the fourth beast dreadful and terrible (Daniel 7:7); and the Papacy, as the little horn (Daniel 7:8) with “a mouth speaking great things” (Daniel 7:8).

When the chronology of the world would reach the time of the end, God would take the dominion from all these world powers. Daniel’s vision further corroborates this: “I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit…” (Daniel 7:9) “…the judgment was set and the books were open.” (Daniel 7:10). Then, “…one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days…” (Daniel 7:13). About this judgment the Son of man said: “For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son” (John 5:22).

Like chapter 7, chapter 8 of Daniel is a recapitulation of the Heavenly Sanctuary Judgment, which is preceded by the world empires and by the Papacy. Daniel received another vision of a ram with two horns (Daniel 8:3 the two kings of Media and Persia Daniel 8: 20) and a male goat with a notable horn (Daniel8:5, the king of Greece Daniel 8:21). The goat smote the ram, and broke his two horns (Daniel 8:7). When the goat was very strong, the great horn was broken; and it came for notable ones (Daniel 8:8). “And out of one of them came forth a little horn” (Daniel 8:9).

The Papacy represented by the little horn of Daniel 8:9 is the beast of Revelation 13:5 who had “a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months” (Revelation 13:5). Notice how the little horn “magnified himself even to the prince of the host, and by him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of his sanctuary was cast down” (Daniel 8:11). This is further explained in Revelation: “And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven” (Revelation 13:6).

Prior to the beginning of Judgment in the Most Holy Place in Heaven, the Papacy obliterated from the minds of people the truth, “it cast down the truth to the ground” (Daniel 8:12). The Papacy also erased the Sanctuary doctrine from people’s minds, “the place of the sanctuary was cast down” (Daniel 8: 11).

Under these circumstances of the Papacy’s eradication of God’s Sanctuary doctrine, a saint exclaimed: “…How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot?” (Daniel 8:13). Then the answer was given:

“And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed” (Daniel 8:14).

Once again the Word of God reiterates that “…the vision of the evening and the morning which was told is true: wherefore shut thou up the vision; for it shall be for many days” (Daniel 8:26). But this little horn “shall destroy the mighty and the holy people” (Daniel 8:24). Moreover, the angel said to Daniel “…I will make thee know what shall be in the last end of the indignation: for at the time appointed the end shall be” (Daniel 8:19).

Daniel’s Vision Reaches Time of the End in Year 6000

The vision of Daniel 8:14 about the 2300 years reached the chronological year 6000 (1844 A.D.). But to confirm that date you need to know when the vision would begin to be counted. Therefore, the angel told Daniel that the starting date was “from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem…” (Daniel 9:25); that is, the chronological year 3700 when the Persian King Cyrus issued that decree.

God ordained that this knowledge be written in a symbolic way so that God’s plan might not be hindered. Not even Satan could decipher the meaning of this chiastic Bible verse.

Daniel 9:25 is a chiasm because the verse is written in the form that God’s people will be able to match the whole truth, matching fact with fact as in a test. The prophet crosses two tracks in the form of a letter x. So that in one end you have the rebuilding of Jerusalem, then, in the middle you have the coming of the Messiah and on the other end you have the rebuilding of Jerusalem with its street and wall. Now 7 weeks and 62 weeks make up a total of 69 weeks until the coming of the Messiah. The first seven weeks were to build and restore Jerusalem which makes up a total of 49 years. By adding 7+62 = 69 weeks, then we multiply 69 x 7 = 483 days, this is equivalent to 483 years. Please review chapter 11 of this book.

The Church’s Great Disappointment in the Year 6000

John the Revelator was shown the events to take place at the time of the fulfillment of the prophecy of Daniel 8:14. He understood that God’s remnant people would undergo a heartfelt disappointment; a sweet bitter experience (Revelation 10:10). However, John was commanded to choose his words carefully so as not to reveal every detail of the vision, which to Daniel was sealed but to John it was “a little book open” (Revelation 10:2). John wrote:

“And when the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not” Revelation 10:4.

The message was given in a form that only the end-time people of God would be able to decipher but they would experience a bitter disappointment first. The vision was about the Heavenly Sanctuary and the ministration of the Lord Jesus. It is a vision of God’s throne: “…a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire” (Revelation 10:1). Moreover, it was God Who “cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roareth” (Revelation 10:3). Therefore, it was God Who would guide His people through their bitter Disappointment of 1844. God also commanded His remnant people to “prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings” (Revelation 10:11) With renewed strength they take the message of the pre-advent judgment to the whole world. In that context, notice what the prophet Amos wrote:

“Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets. The lion hath roared, who will not fear? The Lord GOD hath spoken, who can but prophesy?” (Amos 3: 7-8).

The message of the seven thunders was given in an encrypted form; in the form of an ellipsis that only God’s children would be able to understand; that is, the Revelator omitted some words from the message. It was written like an acronym where the reader must fill in the spaces. Notice that the angel “set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth” (Revelation 10:2). The meaning of this scenario in Rev. 10:2 is that the message would have a worldwide coverage. The fact that the angel, figuratively spoken of in this chapter, “swear by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven… and the earth… and the sea” (Revelation 10:6) indicates that it is God Himself speaking, as God only can swear by Himself. And what He swore is “that there should be time no longer” (Revelation 10:6). Here the Lord Jesus is explaining that after the fulfillment of the prophecy of Daniel 8:14, the Christian Church should not expect another time prophecy. He adds:

“But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets” (Revelation 10:7).

Habakkuk was told to “Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it” (Habakkuk 2:2). The message was clear, but God’s people failed to understand it. Habakkuk wrote:

“For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry” Habakkuk 2:3.

The vision did not lie, but the church did not understand it and this caused them bitter disappointment. John was commanded to “Go and take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel” (Revelation 10:8). John said to the angel: “Give me the little book” (Revelation 10:9), and the angel said to John: “Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey” (Revelation 10:9).

The little book was the vision of Daniel 8:14 that was sweet in the mouths of God’s people proclaiming the coming of the Lord Jesus in 1844 A.D. Jeremiah wrote in another context: “Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O LORD God of hosts” (Jeremiah 15:16).

John continued to elaborate on the vision: “And I took the little book out of the angel's hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter” (Revelation 10:10). Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit Paul wrote:

“Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompense of reward. For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise. For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draws back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him” Hebrews 10:35-38.

The Word of God made it clear that at the time of the end when the mystery of God should be finished, and when the time prophecy of 2300 years should be fulfilled, God’s people would suffer a bitter disappointment. But what was it about? You ask. Well the vision was fulfilled right when the chronological clock arrived at the year 6000. A glorious event took place in the Heavenly Sanctuary, the Judgment in Heaven began. But the people overlooked what the Scriptures had to say about the fulfillment of this prophecy. In that year, Jesus did not return to earth as it was hoped but He moved from the Holy Place to the Most Holy Place in the Heavenly Sanctuary. The Holy Spirit gave testimony of this in Hebrews 9:7-8, as well as in Hebrews 10:

“Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh” (Hebrews 10:19-20).

But God’s people had previously misunderstood what the vision of Daniel 8:14 really meant. What happened is that the Adventist believers proclaimed the Second Advent of Jesus to be fulfilled in 1843-1844 A.D. For them that proclamation was sweet in their mouths, because they felt certain that our Lord would return then. But they were bitterly disappointed when the Lord did not return to earth on the date when the prophecy of Daniel 8:14 was fulfilled. The prophecy of 2300 years was fulfilled in 1844 A.D. The Adventist believers had the correct date, but they had misunderstood the event taking place in the Heavenly Sanctuary.

The Adventist believers went through a similar disappointment to that which the disciples of the Lord Jesus experienced. We are sometimes disappointed because we let ourselves to be carried away by our emotions and not by sound reasoning. We expect things to happen the way we think they should and not as it is written in the Word of God. To His disciples the Lord had said beforehand:

“Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished. For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on: And they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again” (Luke 18: 31-33).

The prophets had written extensively about the sacrifice of our Redeemer, but of the disciples it is written that “they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken” (Luke 18:34). When the two disappointed travelers heading to Emmaus were joined on their way by our risen Savior, they intended to teach the Lord about the events that had happened in Jerusalem concerning the Lord’s crucifixion. They expressed their grief as follows: “the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to be condemned to death, and have crucified him” (Luke 24:20). Then they added: “But we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel…” (Luke 24:21). These men and the other disciples had a misconception about the Messiah because they had not understood the prophecies.

Likewise, the Adventist believers had tasted a palatable message and they proclaimed the sweet promise of Jesus’ glorious return. It was sweet at first, but it turned bitter when they realized that that which they had eaten was not what they expected. Yet the Lord did not abandon them in disappointment, He encouraged them to search the Scriptures and resume their mission:

“And he said unto me, Thou must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings” (Revelation 10:11).

Notice that they must preach again proclaiming the glorious intercession of our Lord Jesus Who intercedes for us in the Most Holy Place of the Heavenly Sanctuary. This is the “everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people” (Revelation 14:6). It proclaims the truth that “Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation” (Hebrews 9:28). Our proclamation must be that judgment has begun in the Most Holy, where our Lord Jesus, since 1844 A.D. intercedes for us in the final phase of the atonement that is taking place in the Heavenly Sanctuary. Such prophesying or preaching indicates a decisive and active allegiance to our King of kings. Therefore, we must continue to prophesy again by preaching the everlasting gospel, as it is written:

“Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters” (Revelation 14:7).

The Parable of the Ten Virgins and the Talents

The 1844 disappointment was also prefigured in the parable of the ten virgins in Matthew 25:1-13. The ten virgins represent the Advent people who waited for the coming of the Lord Jesus. When the midnight cry (Matthew 25:6) was made only five of them remained steadfast to God’s Word, as they professed the righteousness by faith of Romans 1:17.

The parable of the talents in Matthew 25: 14-30 complements the parable of the Ten Virgins. The Lord Jesus is represented in both parables as delaying His coming. In Matthew 25:5 “the bridegroom tarried” while in Matthew 25:19 “After a long time the Lord of those servants cometh.” The 5 wise virgins share the character of the faithful servant who received 5 talents, while the 5 foolish virgins have the character of the wicked and slothful servant (Matthew 25:25-26). Thus, God’s people of the time of the end are represented in both parables.

The 5 foolish virgins were negligent, they had lamps but they did not take oil with them (Matthew 25:3), while the last servant received one talent but he chose to dig in the earth and bury it (Matthew 25:18). About the last servant the Lord said: “For unto everyone that hath shall it be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath” (Matthew 25: 29). Likewise the advent people who expected the fulfillment of prophecy in 1844, but had not made a profession of righteousness by faith, rejected the message of the coming of the Lord. They buried their talent because they were unprofitable servants and were cast into outer darkness (Matthew 25:30). However, the Advent people who waited for the coming of the Lord Jesus in 1844, and whose faith did not waiver, their faith was increased as they searched the Scriptures. These wise virgins kept constant in prayer and the Lord Jesus gave them five magnifying talents which are the pillars of the Seventh-day Adventist fundamental faith. Namely: The nature of Christ, the sanctuary service, the spirit of prophecy, the three angels’ messages, and the state of the dead.

The Earth is Not the Sanctuary of Daniel 8:14

The prophet wrote: “And he said unto me, unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed” (Daniel 8:14).

If a Jew were asked this question: What happened on the Day of Atonement? The correct answer would be: On that day the sanctuary was cleansed. But, how was it cleansed? Well, it was cleansed by offering the blood of the sacrifice. Now, put Daniel 8:14 into context; the vision is a time prophecy, but it has to do with language of the Day of Atonement, the cleansing of the sanctuary. So the question then arises, what sanctuary is Daniel prophesying about?

Daniel 8:14 cannot be referring to the cleansing of the Jewish temple because it was destroyed by the Romans in the year 70 A.D. Moreover, the vision is for the time of the end (Daniel 8:17). It cannot be the earth because this is purely atonement language, and atonement only happened around the sanctuary. Let the Word of God give the explanation. The Scriptures say:

“And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission” (Hebrews 9:22).

The atonement always required a sacrifice. Where there is no sacrifice, there is no cleansing and no remission of sins. Therefore, the vision of Daniel 8:14 refers to the Heavenly Sanctuary and specifically to its Most Holy Place. Let the Holy Scriptures continue the explanation:

“It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these” (Hebrews 9:23).

I beg your pardon, Lord, please refresh my mind… when would be the fulfillment of the vision? “Understand, O son of man: for at the time of the end shall be the vision” (Daniel 8:17). Praise the Lord! The book of Hebrews clarifies it even further: “…now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself” (Hebrews 9:26).

Remember that on the Day of Atonement, the atonement for the sanctuary was not made until the high priest had come out of the sanctuary’s Most Holy Place (Leviticus 16:20). So the final phase of the atonement is taking place in Heaven. But soon the atonement will be forever finished, as the Holy Scriptures confirm: “So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation” (Hebrews 9:28).

Explaining the Disappointment

The bitter disappointment for the faithful Adventist believers of all denominations took place in the United States of America. William Miller, a lay preacher of the Baptist Church, moved by the Holy Spirit, began to preach about the fulfillment of the prophecy in Daniel 8:14, which, he mistook to mean the Second Coming of Jesus in 1844 A.D. Although Miller was correct about the date of the vision’s fulfillment, he had misunderstood the whole event that was taking place. “In explaining Daniel 8:14, "Unto two thousand and three hundred days, then shall the sanctuary be cleansed,” "Miller, as has been stated, adopted the generally received view that the earth is the sanctuary, and he believed that the cleansing of the sanctuary represented the purification of the earth by fire at the coming of the Lord. When, therefore, he found that the close of the 2300 days was definitely foretold, he concluded that this revealed the time of the Second Advent. His error resulted from accepting the popular view as to what constitutes the sanctuary.”

The young Methodist teenager Ellen G. White also attended Miller’s Adventist prophecy lectures in 1842 A.D. She later received from God the ministry of prophecy and became one of the pioneers of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Some years later she wrote:

“What emotions filled my heart as I stood before the people of my native city. It was here that I received my first impressions in regard to the speedy, personal coming of our Lord. Here my father's family, including myself, were excluded from the Methodist Church for cherishing this blessed hope. I knew there were none in the congregation who had been active workers in the message of the first and second angels. And yet this city was favored with special light and privileges in the great movement of 1842-4. A large company accepted the faith, and rejoiced in the glad tidings that Jesus was soon coming. Many more would have taken their position with the waiting, watching ones, had not the ministers warned them against attending the Adventist meetings, telling them that it was as great a sin to listen to these doctrines as to attend a theater.”

Sister Ellen White was also one of those who experienced the bitter disappointment of 1844 A.D. She was also ridiculed by her former brothers and sisters of the Methodist denomination. But like the great men and women of faith, she persisted in the faith of the Lord. She explained the necessity of that bitter trial as follows:

“… Miller and his associates fulfilled prophecy, and gave a message which inspiration had foretold should be given to the world, but which they could not have given had they fully understood the prophecies pointing out their disappointment, and presenting another message to be preached to all nations before the Lord should come. The first and second angels' messages were given at the right time, and accomplished the work which God designed to accomplish by them.”

The Midnight Cry Vision

After proclaiming the midnight cry message in 1844 A.D., and having experienced the bitter disappointment that followed, Ellen White received her first vision to encourage the faithful believers. Remember that it was the Lord Jesus who guided them through the bitter experience of the little book (Revelation 10: 1-6). Read part of Ellen’s first vision:

“While I was praying at the family altar, the Holy Ghost fell upon me, and I seemed to be rising higher and higher, far above the dark world. I turned to look for the Advent people in the world, but could not find them, when a voice said to me, "Look again, and look a little higher." At this I raised my eyes, and saw a straight and narrow path, cast up high above the world. On this path the Advent people were traveling to the city, which was at the farther end of the path. They had a bright light set up behind them at the beginning of the path, which an angel told me was the midnight cry. This light shone all along the path and gave light for their feet so that they might not stumble. If they kept their eyes fixed on Jesus, who was just before them, leading them to the city, they were safe. But soon some grew weary, and said the city was a great way off, and they expected to have entered it before. Then Jesus would encourage them by raising His glorious right arm, and from His arm came a light which waved over the Advent band, and they shouted, "Alleluia!" Others rashly denied the light behind them and said that it was not God that had led them out so far. The light behind them went out, leaving their feet in perfect darkness, and they stumbled and lost sight of the mark and of Jesus, and fell off the path down into the dark and wicked world below…”

As the Lord Jesus mediates for us in the Heavenly Sanctuary we are encouraged to remain faithful to God’s guidance. Four and a half years after the Lord Jesus began His intercessory ministry in the Most Holy Place, Ellen White explained how the Holy Spirit reaffirmed them in this doctrine. She wrote:

“Sabbath, March 24, 1849, we had a sweet and very interesting meeting with the brethren at Topsham, Maine. The Holy Ghost was poured out upon us, and I was taken off in the Spirit to the city of the living God. Then I was shown that the commandments of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ relating to the shut door could not be separated, and that the time for the commandments of God to shine out with all their importance, and for God's people to be tried on the Sabbath truth, was when the door was opened in the Most Holy Place in the Heavenly Sanctuary, where the ark is, in which are contained the ten commandments. This door was not opened until the mediation of Jesus was finished in the Holy Place of the sanctuary in 1844. Then Jesus rose up and shut the door of the Holy Place, and opened the door into the most holy, and passed within the second veil, where He now stands by the ark, and where the faith of Israel now reaches”

We are commanded to keep the pillars of our faith. Our firm foundation will be preserved until the end of time. Please continue reading Ellen G. White’s instruction:

“I am instructed to say to those who endeavor to tear down the foundation that has made us Seventh-day Adventists: We are God's commandment keeping people. For the past fifty years every phase of heresy has been brought to bear upon us, to becloud our minds regarding the teaching of the Word--especially concerning the ministration of Christ in the Heavenly Sanctuary…But the waymarks which have made us what we are, are to be preserved, and they will be preserved, as God has signified through His word and the testimonies of His Spirit. He calls upon us to hold firmly with the grip of faith, to the fundamental principles that are based upon unquestionable authority”

In recent years there have been many false teachers who have prevaricated from the Christian faith, denying the roles of our Lord Jesus in the Heavenly Sanctuary. About them the following words are written:

“The enemies of the present truth have been trying to open the door of the Holy Place, that Jesus has shut, and to close the door of the Most Holy Place, which He opened in 1844, where the ark is, containing the two tables of stone on which are written the Ten Commandments by the finger of Jehovah.”

Satan is trying to destroy the pillars of our faith and keep people’s minds in ignorance regarding the Biblical foundations. But as he is unable to deceive the elect of God he becomes infuriated and wages a physical war against them. Revelation 12:17 says that he “went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ”.

The following quote is part of a vision that Ellen White had, regarding the cunning schemes of Satan, she wrote:

“As the people of God approach the perils of the last days, Satan holds earnest consultation with his angels as to the most successful plan of overthrowing their faith. Says the great deceiver… "We must watch those who are calling the attention of the people to the Sabbath of Jehovah; they will lead many to see the claims of the law of God; and the same light which reveals the true Sabbath, reveals also the ministration of Christ in the Heavenly Sanctuary, and shows that the last work for man's salvation is now going forward. Hold the minds of the people in darkness till that work is ended, and we shall secure the world and the church also…”

A Mistake in the Charts

The majority of the Adventist believers gave up on prophecy altogether and went back to their former denominations. For a very small minority, however, their faith did not waver. This small remnant persisted in their resolute belief that the Lord Jesus was coming soon after the end of the 2300 years of Daniel 8:14. They did not give up hope because the Holy Spirit had given them so much light in regards to the Spirit of Prophecy. They gained greater understanding of the mysteries of God. Yet, it was under God’s providence that they should undergo a sweet/bitter spiritual experience, so that it should also be fulfilled that the “just shall live by faith” (Hebrews 10:38). They experienced a purification of their hearts, as gold refined in the fire. Their disappointment produced a refinement of their perfect love for our Redeemer. Bear in mind that God reveals His secrets when it is pertinent for us to understand these aspects of His providential plan of salvation. As the Scriptures inform us: “The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.” (Deuteronomy 29:29). The point, once again, is that God wishes to develop our faith, and this faith is translated into a genuine love for God which leads His people to obey His Commandments. Therefore, God’s wisdom directed their understanding of the Scriptures as God deemed it suitable. Ellen G. White explains:

“…I have seen that the 1843 chart was directed by the hand of the Lord, and that it should not be altered; that the figures were as He wanted them; that His hand was over and hid a mistake in some of the figures, so that none could see it, until His hand was removed.”

The mistake in the figures was a kind reminder from heaven that God’s children should live by faith under all circumstances. Bear in mind that those Adventists had not been through their bitterest disappointment yet. But after that earlier disappointment, they regained their zeal to search the Scriptures:

“Again they were led to their Bibles to search the prophetic periods. The hand of the Lord was removed from the figures, and the mistake was explained. They saw that the prophetic periods reached to 1844, and that the same evidence which they had presented to show that the prophetic periods closed in 1843, proved that they would terminate in 1844. Light from the Word of God shone upon their position, and they discovered a tarrying time…”

The Significance of the Date 456 B.C.

It has been an amazing experience to discover that the chronological year 6000 is the equivalent to the year 1844 A.D. We have learned that in that year, the Judgment began in the Heavenly Sanctuary. The Lord Jesus began what is called the Investigative Judgment in the Most Holy Place. It has been also exciting to learn that in the beginning of the year 456 B.C., immediately after the end of the descending year 457 B.C., the prophecy of Daniel 8:14 pertaining to the prophetic span of 2300 years began its count. The timing was perfect; the prophecy was fulfilled in 1844 A.D. But perhaps the reader wishes to know what exactly happened with the computation because it leads us to the exact date of the prophecy’s fulfillment with its starting year 456 B.C. rather than 457 B.C. Ellen G. White elucidates the facts:

“It was not at first perceived that if the decree did not go forth at the beginning of the year 457 B.C., the 2300 years would not be completed at the close of 1843. But it was ascertained that the decree was given near the close of the year 457 B.C., and therefore the prophetic period must reach to the fall of the year 1844.”

Remember that every Passover occurred in the beginning of every year, in the first month on the 14th day of the month. Many great events in Bible prophecy happened at the beginning of the year. The deliverance of the people of Israel from Egypt happened at the beginning of the year; thus, at the Exodus when the Lord commanded Moses to write down that date, it was the beginning of the year (Exodus 12:2). The Lord Jesus was crucified in the beginning of the year at the time of the Passover. Thus it is written: “Now before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father…” (John 13:1).

The author was ten years of age when he heard a sermon titled: “The Midnight Cry and the Great Disappointment of 1844.” In the sermon it was explained that the Adventist disappointment was due to an error in the counting of the calendar years that the Advent movement had failed to count the year zero in the current Gregorian calendar. The preacher stated that because the year zero was missing from the calendar, it was wrongly understood that the year 1843 A.D. would be the date of the prophecy’s fulfillment, and the misunderstanding could be corrected by adding the year zero. The preacher also explained that this reasoning helped the Adventist believers to arrive at the correct date of 1844. Remember that Satan had confused the chronology by introducing a system of arithmetical regression and progression to count years from top to bottom and then from bottom to top as in the following diagram:

But if you wish to understand the prophecy of Daniel 8:14 by relying solely on the Papacy’s chronology you will not be able to correctly understand why 1844 A. D. is the correct date for its fulfillment. Consequently, if you follow the arithmetical progression of counting decrescendo numerical years, reaching year zero, and then counting years in a crescendo numerical way, you will find that the calculation for the prophetic dates would oscillate and increase by one or two years. For instance, supposing that the year 457 B.C. was the correct date for counting the Messianic prophecy of Daniel 9:24-27 and you add the years up to 34 A.D. it will give you a period of 491 years and if on top of that you add the supposed year zero you get a total number of 492 years. Thus every prophetic date would increase by one if not by two years. For instance: -457+490 = 33

The biblical chronology and its wonderful prophecies confirm the fact that the chronological year 3700 (456 B.C.) is the actual year when the ‘going forth’ of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem was decreed. The year 456 B.C. was used to count the years until the cleansing of the Heavenly Sanctuary in the chronological year 6000 (1844 A.D.).

A 6168 Year Old Conspiracy Against God

The war that happened in Heaven was waged on the issue of worship. It was a war between good and evil, between the Creator Jesus Christ, in Whom “God hath given to us eternal life” (1 John 5:11), and Satan who “was a murderer from the beginning” (John 8:44). It was a war between God Who is light, in Whom there is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5) and “the rulers of the darkness of this world…” (Ephesians 6:12). This conflict has continued on this earth for over six thousand years and we are yet to undergo our worst battle as the end of the world approaches. The final conflict will also revolve around the issue of worship: either you worship God and keep His Commandments or you worship Satan and follow the commandments of men.

When Cain murdered his brother Abel, he did it because of his hatred against the righteous Abel of whom God accepted worship (Genesis 4:5, 6). The construction of the tower of Babel was due to a confederacy of the earth in rebellion against God. It was an issue of worship; they wanted a tower “whose top may reach unto heaven” (Genesis 11:4). The split in the kingdom of Israel was also an issue of power, control and worship to subjugate the ten tribes led by Jeroboam. This division led to the establishment of two altars to Baal (1 Kings 12:28). The Lord Jesus was crucified because of the issue of worship. The earth and the universe have witnessed a horrendous hatred and crimes against the people of God throughout the history of this world. It is shocking to know that those atrocities were carried out under the name of worship. To the religious leaders of Jerusalem the Lord Jesus said:

“Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city: That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar” (Matt. 23:34-35).

The following righteous people hoped for God’s promise of redemption. They “all died in faith… and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth” (Hebrews 11:13): Abel (Hebrews 11:4), Noah (Hebrews 11:7), Abraham (Hebrews 11:8), Sara (Hebrews 11:11), Isaac (Hebrews 11:20), Jacob (Hebrews 11:21), Moses (Hebrews 11:23), Rahab (Hebrews 11:31), Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets (Hebrews 11:32). Moreover, others were tortured (Hebrews 11:35), stoned, sawn in half, slain with the sword, dressed in sheepskins and tormented (Hebrews 11:37). And in the Christian Era people who believed that the righteous must live by faith such as the great Reformer Martin Luther, Jerome, John Huss, William Tyndale, and the more than one hundred million people who were tortured and killed for their faith during the 1260 year reign of spiritual darkness. More could be said every unknown servant of the Lord who sleeps in the Lord until judgment day. The blood of the martyrs “who were slain for the word of God” (Revelation 6:9) metaphorically cries with a loud voice: “How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?” (Revelation 6:10). The Almighty God is soon to fulfill His promise written a long time ago:

“O thou enemy, destructions are come to a perpetual end: and thou hast destroyed cities; their memorial is perished with them. But the LORD shall endure forever: he hath prepared his throne for judgment. And he shall judge the world in righteousness; he shall minister judgment to the people in uprightness. The LORD also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble” (Psalms 9: 6-9).

Reader, if you follow the religion of Judaism, or Christianity, or Islamism, or Buddhism, or Hinduism or any other religion, remember that Almighty God loves you, as it is written in God’s Word:

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

But do not find yourself fighting against God the Creator. Too much innocent blood has been shed because of religious hatred against the Commandments of God. Remember, that the day God has reserved for us to worship Him is the seventh day of the week: Saturday. This is the Sabbath that our Creator God blessed and sanctified (Genesis 2:2). It is not the sixth day of the week, Friday, nor the first day of the week, Sunday. Remember Noah, Daniel and Job; they all kept the seventh day Sabbath holy.

The day is coming when God’s final judgment upon the wickedness of the world will be declared. God has not forgotten the earth. He will end the misery of this world

The chronology of the mysteries of God is coming to an end. But it will not be over without a final conflict between good and evil. The Scriptures affirm that the final conflict will test the character of each individual in the whole world. Therefore: “Though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they should deliver but their own souls by their righteousness, saith the Lord GOD” (Ezekiel 14:14).

Let the whole world know that our Creator gave His life for us: “He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not” (John 1:10). David prophesied of our Lord in the Psalms: “For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have enclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet” (Psalms 22:16).

The Word of God depicts the current world condition as “the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified” (Revelation 11:8). The Lord Jesus is crucified in a spiritual sense by the system identified as the mystery of iniquity. The Eucharist is one example of the idolatrous worship adopted from Egypt; the Papacy do not deny it that it is a repetition of the crucifixion of Jesus. Likewise, spiritual Sodom is a depiction of the apostate nations who cover up the man of sin, who “were once made partakers of the Holy Ghost” (Hebrews 6:4), for whom “it is impossible” “If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame” (Hebrews 6:4, 6). The day of our Redeemer’s return is approaching, but “that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition” (2 Thessalonians 2:3).

Our Redeemer has an appointment with our world; His promise of His glorious return will be fulfilled soon. “And it shall be said in that day, lo this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us…” (Isaiah 25:9). “Behold, he cometh with the clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they that pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen” (Revelation 1:7).

This concludes the document of the “Chronologies of the Mysteries of God”