Witnessing the End — What’s Next?

End Times Berean Watchman Report

May 5, 2025 – No. 49

Analysis and commentary on today’s prophetic events from author and biblical researcher – Dr. Christian Widener

EndTimesBerean.com

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Thank you for checking in on another edition of the End Times Berean Watchman Report!

If you have been wondering how a 2020-2027 timeline could still be viable, based on the fact that it is now 2025 and the world isn’t totally on fire yet, then this update is for you! 🙂

Also, I hope you are staying up-to-date with my latest videos on my End Times Berean YouTube channel. Soon I will be releasing a new two-part series called 7 Churches — 7 Warnings. The idea is that the letters to the seven churches, among other things, were written to warn the church about specific heresies that would plague it in the Last Days. If these are the last days, then they were written to us, and I think they contain some dire warnings that the Church can’t afford to miss. If you’ve already subscribed to my channel, then you should get notified when I get them posted.

Where are we on the Last Days Timeline?

Keep reading below and find out…

I’ve been wrestling over all the different timing references in Scripture that must be reconciled in these last days, plus watching what has actually been happening and trying to make sense of both. And in the process, I think I’ve uncovered a few more things that were right there in front of me, plain as day in the Scripture, and yet they were hidden from my sight because they didn’t match the paradigm I was expecting.

Nonetheless, I remain convinced of the overall timeline for the following reasons:

1. The outstanding scriptural and physical evidence that there is a second set of Daniel’s Seventy Sevens running from 2020 to 2027, supported by excellent circumstantial evidence since 2020 that continues to look like the birth pains.

This conclusion is based on the finding of the stone decrees in Jerusalem at the Temple Mount plaza and the moat around the Tower of David dated to 1537, which was exactly 483 years before 2020. Furthermore, on September 15, 2020 the Abraham Accords were signed, “confirming the covenant with many nations” and signaling that indeed the final week of Daniel had begun. And then the confirming signs of world events that look like the first five seals.

2. There continues to be strong evidence that we are currently in the Seals/Birth Pains, with five seals open; however, they are not yet complete…

The seals began with COVID-19 and the rapid growth and expansion of global governance and the Great Reset as the first horse accompanied by many deceptions, which Jesus warns us in Matthew 24 will kick off the time of birth pains. This was soon followed by peace being taken from the earth and men slaying one another by the second horse of the second seal, matching the wars and rumors of wars of Matthew 24. This was seen in the large increase in global violent crime as well as global conflict, punctuated by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022. It then soon became evident that, for the first time in world history, we were experiencing global inflation, which previously had only ever been a local effect of bad fiscal policy by a single country. This signaled the third horse of the third seal and increase of famine, which followed and was also part of the warning Jesus gave about the time of the birth pains. Finally, we have been seeing a yearly number of excess deaths (more people dying than we would normally see) that cumulatively is admitted to be in the possible range of 30-50 million globally–but that number could even now be much higher than that…

For instance, it is suspected that many more people died in China and India than what has been reported. For more information click on the picture of this article in the Epoch Times for details. Based on anecdotal reports from Chinese citizens, cities seem less crowded now than they were 15 years ago when the population was reported to be 1.2 billion, as compared to the official numbers the CCP reports today of 1.4 billion. If that’s accurate, then China could be missing as many as 250 million people right now. That would be hard to believe, but something is definitely not right about China’s reported numbers and many more people have died than they have officially recognized…

Then finally, Christian persecution has been on the rise over the past few years and both 2023 and 2024 saw the highest numbers of persecuted believers since the watchdog group Open Doors International has been keeping records. 2025 is expected to potentially be even higher.

3. The Final Year of Jubilee will be Fall 2027 to Fall 2028.

In this update I’ll bring up another discovery regarding this last Year of Jubilee and where it fits into the last days timeline, but I just want to mention here that nothing has changed as far as when I think it will be. The only thing that has changed in my view, is what I think it probably represents. The case for it being the year after the completion of Daniel’s Seventieth week, i.e., beginning with Yom Kippur in 2027 (October 11, 2027), is still laid out here in this video:

But there are some things that I didn’t notice before that have modified my expectations…

I came across something that I think is really important in Isaiah 61 that I had glossed over in the past.

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
Because the Lord has anointed me
To bring good news to the afflicted;
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to captives
And freedom to prisoners;
To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord
And the day of vengeance of our God;
To comfort all who mourn,

Isaiah 61:1-2

This is the passage that Jesus read in the synagogue at the beginning of his ministry in 27 AD, except that he stopped reading after he said, “to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.” The account is found in Luke 4, and after he stopped reading, he announced to everyone that, “Today, this has been fulfilled in your hearing.” I explain in the book and video that since Isaiah 61 is quoting Leviticus 25 about the Year of Jubilee and Jesus said that it was fulfilled that day, then it must have been actually a Year of Jubilee in 27 AD. Not only was Jesus announcing that it was a Year of Jubilee, but also that he was the promised Messiah who had now arrived to start fulfilling those promises. But, Jesus did not go on to read, “and the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn” because those verses are about the Second Coming, not the first. They weren’t ready to be fulfilled when Jesus was reading that in the first century.

But here’s the epiphany…

What does “the day of vengeance of our God” mean?

It means THE DAY OF THE LORD!

In other words, Isaiah 61 is also prophesying that the Day of the Lord, “the day of vengeance of our God,” will also come in a Year of Jubilee.

So what does that mean for the timeline? It means that Daniel’s Seventieth Week is most likely only for the Birth Pains, i.e. the seals. And I now expect that the Sixth Seal will come near the end of the seven years along with the Rapture, which I think is best defined as the promised return of Christ to gather His elect to meet Him in the clouds. After that, then the real trouble will begin with the trumpets and bowls as the final Year of Jubilee begins.

And one more thing, I think the two calendars idea that I have talked about before, i.e., one religious new year in Nisan and another civil new year in Tishri, is still valid. That means that things could still get cut short a little (as we are told in Matthew 24:22), and it preserves the fact that truly no man knows the exact day or hour of Christ’s return.

What does this mean for Daniel’s Seventieth Week and the Tribulation?

So the other thing this means is that the last three things mentioned as a part of the Seventy Weeks in Daniel 9:24 are probably referring to the time of the Rapture rather than Christ’s full Second Coming in Revelation 19 at the Seventh Bowl.

“Seventy ‘sevens’ are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the Most Holy Place.

Daniel 9:24

Where did I come up with this idea? Well, it’s easy to assume we know what those last three things mean in Daniel 9:24, but do we really…?

For example, the Hebrew verb ulhabi (bo – H935) for “to bring in” has a meaning of: to lead in, to carry in, to bring in, cause to come in, gather, cause to come, bring near, bring against, bring upon, which is like bringing in the harvest. And “righteousness,” sedeq (H6664) could be understood as, righteousness (as vindicated), justification (in controversy), deliverance, victory, prosperity of God as covenant-keeping in redemption, in name of Messianic king, or of people enjoying salvation. Lastly, “everlasting” is the word olamim (H5769), which is in the plural and it means forever. So taken all together, that might simply be a reference to the gathering of the elect to be with God forever!

Next, to “seal up vision and prophecy” is generally understood to mean the completion and fulfillment of all prophecy, but since prophecy really won’t all be fulfilled until the END of the one thousand year reign of Christ on the earth and the new heavens and new earth are made, etc., could it perhaps actually mean something else? Well for starters, the word “seal up” in Hebrew is vlatom (H2856), and it can mean to seal up something, but it can also mean more directly to seal, as in to affix one’s seal. As for “vision,” the word is hazon (H2377), which means a vision, i.e. a dream, revelation, or oracle. And what is translated as “prophecy” is the word nabi (H5030), which is almost always translated as “prophet,” i.e., the one that prophesies rather than the prophecy itself. Putting all of that together, the phrase might more correctly refer to the seals of the scroll of the Book of Revelation (the hazon of John the Apostle) and/or to the sealing of the 144,000 and the two witnesses.

Lastly, “to anoint the most holy place” is generally thought to refer to anointing either a rebuilt temple in Jerusalem at the start of the Millennium (as the temple described in Ezekiel 45-48), or to a rebuilt temple in the Tribulation prior to it being defiled by the Antichrist. But is that what it really means? The word “anoint” in Hebrew is vlimsoah (masah, Strong’s H4886), which means to anoint or consecrate. The most holy place in Hebrew is kodesh kodeshim (H6944), which means the most holy of the holy and can refer to more than just the Holy of Holies of the temple. For example, it could be seen as a reference to anointing the elect people of God who were gathered and whose hearts are all a holy of holies for the Spirit of God.

Based on this deeper dive into the last three things that will be completed by Daniel’s Seventy Sevens, I think there is a strong possibility that the final week of Daniel’s seventy sevens is not really the time of the Tribulation, or even the last three and half years of the Great Tribulation as people have traditionally understood it, but it is the time for the Birth Pains, i.e. the Seven Seals.

Wow! That would definitely be a change from what people expected, myself included…

What does this mean for the two witnesses, the beast and the false prophet, the timing of their ministries for 42 months/1260 days, etc.?

So this is the part that I am still working on. There are two main possibilities, assuming that the overall timeline I am working on is correct.

First, if the trumpets and bowls will all be completed in the Year of Jubilee, then yes, the two witnesses and the beast have to already be here–they just haven’t been fully identified, yet. And the window for the start of their ministry would be from about April 2024 to February 2025, i.e., they are indeed already here if everything must be completed by Rosh Hashanah in 2028.

However, there is a second possibility. It could be that the trumpets and bowls will only BEGIN in the Year of Jubilee, but they will not be finished in one year. In that case, the 42 months / 1260 days of the antichrist and the two witnesses may not truly begin until shortly before the Year of Jubilee begins. That would also mean that Christ’s 1000-year reign would start in 2028, during or at the end of the final Year of Jubilee, before the judgments of the tribulation are completed. This could make sense, though, since it says that Christ “will rule them with an iron scepter and will dash them to pieces like pottery” (Revelation 2:27), which indicates that the rule of Jesus over the nations will begin before they are fully subdued.

Either way, for those wise virgins waiting for the Bridegroom, I still think 2020-2027 is the timeline to be watching.

What about Part 2 of the Abomination of Desolation?

Here’s another big change or potential revelation, and it’s based on a closer reading of Daniel 12:11. The idea builds on what I have explained previously regarding the Abomination of Desolation being in two parts, not just one.

From the time that the daily sacrifice is abolished and the abomination that causes desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days.

Blessed is the one who waits for and reaches the end of the 1,335 days.

Daniel 12:11-12

This has traditionally been understood to mean that there will be a 1290-day count AFTER the Abomination of Desolation, which is understood to be a single event where the antichrist declares himself to be god in God’s temple — at the same time, or shortly after, the sacrifices are halted.

However, another legitimate way to read Daniel 12:11 is that there will be 1290 days IN BETWEEN the halting of the sacrifice (Abomination of Desolation Part 1) and the profaning of the temple by the antichrist (Abomination of Desolation Part 2)! If that is actually the correct way to understand the passage, then part 2, would come 1290 days after October 7th, 2023, which would be around April 17-19, 2027 — a few days before Passover that year.

But it is also possible that it will be 1290 days after the completion of BOTH Parts 1 AND 2 of the Abomination of Desolation, which could be separated by some unknown amount of time. That is another possiblity if the Day of the Lord is longer than one year and extends into the final 1000 years under Christ’s rule, as we just discussed.

Either way, we are looking for Part 2 of the Abomination of Desolation as a sign for those wise virgins waiting for the Bridegroom. I think we are already in the Apostasy. So once the antichrist is fully revealed, as Paul told us in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-4, then we can then expect that the Lord’s return to gather us could come at any moment.

Now we ask you, brothers, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, that you not be quickly shaken in your mind or be alarmed whether by a spirit or a word or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come.

Let no one in any way deceive you, for it has not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the sanctuary of God, exhibiting himself as being God.

2 Thessalonians 2:1-4

So where does this leave us?

I think it leaves us still expecting that we are in the very last days and that Christ’s return will indeed be soon, but that we need to keep watching and see what the rest of 2025 and 2026 bring us.

And if Daniel’s Seventieth Week is really just the time of the seals, then we can also expect that the quarter of the earth to be killed by the combined plagues of war, famine, pestilence, and the wild beasts of the earth under the four horsemen could also be seen during this time. That would mean that an exponential increase in deaths globally would be coming in the not-too-distant future. That many deaths will become hard to hide at some point, conceivably by Fall 2026, if not earlier, so a marked increase in death rates is also something to be watching for.

This present timeline is a little different than what I imagined initially based on first finding those decrees and what I thought might be happening by this time, and yet, as you can see, the overall timeline hasn’t really changed.

The Typology of Noah and the Flood

There is another point that people have been asking me about, and it relates to whether or not we should be looking at Noah’s flood for a picture of the timing of the last days. To that end, many have proposed that the flood of Noah could be a template for understanding the ordering and timing of judgment in the Last Days. In light of all the things I have shared here and in previous videos, I would like to suggest a new view of how the typology of Noah’s flood may better fit the timeline that I am now presenting.

First, a lot of people use the Noah typology to imply that there must be a rescue of the Elect at the beginning of the final seven years based on the understanding that Noah was made to get into the ark seven days before the flood and then equating a year for every day that Noah was in the ark. Hence, since Noah was put in the ark seven days before the flood, then the Elect will be raptured at the beginning of the seven-year tribulation.

There are some issues with such a simple presumption, though. For instance, it is assumed that Noah and his family waited for seven days inside the ark with the door closed before the rains came. But based on Genesis 7:11-13, I don’t think Scripture is saying that God closed the door seven days before the flood. He only directed Noah to start getting everyone into the ark at that time (which could have easily required more than one day to get all the animals inside and situated along with food, etc.). I think the door was only closed on the last day, because, if you read those verses together, then it sounds like God gave Noah a seven day heads up to start getting ready and then on the seventh day, when they finished getting everyone inside the ark, they went in for the final time and God closed the door—on the very day that the rains started.

In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the month – on that day all the fountains of the great deep burst open and the floodgates of the heavens were opened. And the rain fell on the earth forty days and forty nights. On that very day Noah entered the ark, accompanied by his sons Shem, Ham, and Japheth, along with his wife and his sons’ three wives.

Genesis 7:11-13

When I look at the full context of Genesis 7, that’s what I understand from the account. Noah was sent to the ark 7 days before the flood, but the door was actually closed on the very last day. Furthermore, consider that in the traditional view, the seven days of waiting before the flood is equated to seven years of tribulation; however, didn’t the flood (i.e., judgment) begin after those seven days were completed? Hence, wouldn’t that model actually mean that the judgment of God would begin AFTER the seven years were over…?

So now that we’ve seen that the traditional view of this typology may not be quite what many thought it was, let’s consider another way of understanding that event, given the timing I am proposing.

To begin with, how long did the flood last? A whole year. Noah entered the ark and the flood started on the seventeenth day of the second month, and one year and ten days later, on the twenty-seventh day of the second month, Noah and his family walked out of the ark.

And in the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth was dried. Then God spoke to Noah, saying, “Go out of the ark, you and your wife, and your sons and your sons’ wives with you.”

Genesis 8:14-16

So that sets up the possibility of the final judgment of the earth also will be completed in a single year. But there is another reason to consider that God’s judgment is coming in a specific year and may only last for one year based on Isaiah 63:2-4.

Why is Your apparel red, and Your garments like the one who treads in the wine press? “I have trodden the wine trough alone, and from the peoples there was no man with Me. I also trod them in My anger and trampled them in My wrath; and their lifeblood is sprinkled on My garments, and I stained all My raiment. For the day of vengeance was in My heart, and My year of redemption has come.

Isaiah 63:2-4

This is same picture as Christ coming on a white horse to execute judgment on the nations in Revelation 19. This tells us that the final judgments of the tribulation are in the Day of the Lord, and if they aren’t one year long, then they at least begin in a specific year, i.e., a Year of Jubilee (based on Isaiah 61:2 and the connection between the Year of Jubilee and the day of vengeance of our God). Isaiah again affirms that the Day of the Lord is also a year of redemption, which would fit nicely with the gathering of the elect when the Bridegroom returns for his wise and faithful virgins.

Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except Himself. He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses. Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.

Revelation 19:11-16

And there is a third time that Isaiah affirms that the Day of the Lord is also a year of recompense, which would suggest that part of the this final year of judgment will be about how the nations have treated Israel, God’s chosen people. For example, God’s recompense on the nations who have gathered for the battle of Armageddon to destroy Israel.

For it is the day of the LORD’s vengeance,
The year of recompense for the cause of Zion.

Isaiah 34:8

Counting Days Since October 7th, 2023

Another very noteworthy observation is that people have been keeping a public and running count of the days since the October 7th attacks in Israel. You will find it on some webpages and in the news reports about the war in Gaza and in follow ups on the status of the hostages, etc. Such a regular and visible counting of days following October 7th increases the probability that it is truly a date that God wants us to be counting from and paying attention to. In that case, it may be important for at least one of the counts of 1260, 1290, or 1335 days, or all three. If so, the dates to be watching after October 7th are on or about: 3/19/27 (1260 days), 4/18/27 (1290 days), and 6/2/27 (1335 days). [Those dates should be taken as plus or minus a day or two because it is unclear if you count the end date in the calculation, or not, and also because of the possibility that the count of a day is based on the Hebrew reckoning where the day begins at sunset on the previous day, meaning that any given Hebrew date actually falls on two Western dates.]

And what could those date counts mean? Regarding 1260 days, it could be that we are right now witnessing the time where Israel is sheltered in her place, i.e., the State of Israel, for 1260 days. I am suggesting that because even though Israel has been under attack, her Iron Dome system, that was largely funded by the US and its missiles that are resupplied by the US, has already very effectively protected them. Plus, the ships of the West have been protecting Israel as well.

But if their 1260 days of sheltering began with October 7th, then the time when it comes to an end could coincide with the start of the Gog-Magog War. That in turn could create the conditions for Part 2 of the Abomination of Desolation 30 days later, completing the prophesied 1290 days. And once the man of lawlessness has been revealed, the rapture of the saints could come next. Perhaps that is why it says, “blessed are those who wait for and attain to the 1335 days” in Daniel 12:12.

Clearly, I’m just speculating here. The only dates and events we can be completely sure of are the ones that have already happened. God’s Word is sure, but our interpretations and understandings of it are not so sure. We need the Holy Spirit to help guide us and we need the humility to continually reexamine our assumptions in the light of what God is actually doing.

Timeline Adjustments

So what I now understand from all of this is that we will most likely be here well into 2027. I think the rapture window will be from June 2, 2027 (1335 days after October 7th, 2023 and a few days before Pentecost-Shavuot) up to October 11, 2027 (Yom Kippur–The Day of Atonement). In my estimation, establishing a possible rapture window still doesn’t mean that I know the day or hour. I can only say that I see this window of time as a good possibility.

If I’m correct, though, then things will just get worse and worse as we approach 2027; however, people will still be eating and drinking, marrying and being given in marriage, planting and building, etc. That means things will remain plausibly deniable for those who are not really watching or wanting to believe that Christ’s return could be so near.

Next, if all the trumpet and bowl judgments will be completed in one year (mid to late 2027 to Fall 2028), then the beast kingdom must have already been given authority to act and the two witnesses are already here, but neither have been fully revealed yet. Previously, I have proposed that the WEF Special Meeting on Global Collaboration in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on April 29, 2024 could have been the point where the nations of the earth decided (empowered by Satan) that this is now their hour when they have been given authority for their plans to succeed.

I would like to add three more possible starting points that could be considered, which would still allow for the three and half year periods to be completed before Fall 2028. Those events are:

The Pact for the Future – Signed on September 22, 2024 (This was another big moment where the nations of the earth got together and showed that they are committed to global governance, i.e., becoming a global beast kingdom.)
Damascus Falls to Turkey-backed Syrian rebels – December 8, 2024 (This could be seen as the third horn that fell before Turkey’s Erdogan, who was also involved in the overthrow of Saddam Hussein in Iraq and Muammar Gaddafi in Libya, which are all places now that Turkey is vying for control or greatly influence. This is a scenario that I talked about in Witnessing the End in chapter 11, the mystery of the little horn.)
Trump’s Inauguration – January 20, 2025 (Based on the current rate of changes since he became president, one could argue that one way or another, his start in the Oval Office was some kind of marker.)

But how will we know which, if any, of those dates are correct? I think we will only find out by waiting and watching. If none of those starting points ultimately prove out, then I think it will just mean that the 42 months (3.5 years) of the Great Tribulation, the time for the two witnesses, and the reign of the beast kingdom will probably not begin until the later half of 2027—not long before the Rapture and the Year of Jubilee begins.

That possibility might be exciting for some because then it would point to the beginning of the Great Tribulation in 2027 and everything being concluded by 2030.

Here’s a rough graphical sketch of what I’m contemplating. It also includes the notion that the 42 months of the beasts authority to act will end with the seventh trumpet. Since I’m not 100% on when the 42 months start, though, it’s starting date has a squiggly arrow. Consequently, I also left off an ending date for the chart until a definite start time for the 42 months can be verified. Either way, I believe that Yom Kippur 2027 will mark: 1) the end of the time of the birth pains and seals, 2) the completion of the final week of a second set of Daniel’s Seventy Sevens, 3) the gathering of the elect to meet the Lord in the air, and 4) the start of the final Year of Jubilee and the Day of the Lord. And by the time we get there, it should be clear whether the Day of the Lord will be just one year long, or if it will be the beginning of a 42-month Great Tribulation.

Wrapping Up

Thank you for digging in and considering these latest development with me. This is a heavy topic, and I know that most people would prefer certainty to a discussion of possibilities, but we are in the midst of the puzzle and this is the reality of the present time we are in. We don’t have all the answers, but God has given us all the pieces that we need in His Word to solve the puzzle in God’s perfect timing, if we faithfully keep watch and remain wineskins that are flexible and ready for new wine.

And regarding other matters, I was able to do two interviews with Chris Mitchell from CBN Jerusalem Dateline over the past couple weeks. The first interview is a podcast that is now posted on Apple Podcasts and Pray.com. Here’s the link:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/prayradio/id1757998630?i=1000704021497

I should also be featured soon on their TV program discussing the true location of the Jewish Temple, which I wrote about in The Temple Revealed. I am hoping it will air soon. When it does, I will add a link for it to my News and Media page on the website.

I am also renewing my efforts to finish my third book, Finding Solomon, and I pray that God will give me the wisdom and strength to finish it quickly.

There is so much going on right now that should be warning us that one way or another these are the Last Days. I don’t have it all figured out and I don’t know exactly what God is going to do next, but I think if we just keep watching things will continue to reveal themselves. The further in we get in the more things are going to become clear.

May the grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all, and may we be found ready when He comes. Amen and Maranatha!

Christian Widener, PhD

christian@endtimesberean.com

EndTimesBerean.com