Rick,
Although I found your article interesting, I have a hard time believing that the book of Revelation has any prophetic value. The problem is not really with Revelation but goes much deeper. Revelation borrows much of its imagery from the book of Daniel, which on the surface seems to contain some extraordinary prophecies. Unfortunately it can be shown that the book of Daniel is nothing more than a pseudepigraphic work
http://www.2think.org/hundredsheep/bible/comment/daniel.shtml
Although the book itself claims to be the record of Daniel in Babylon, internal and external evidence reveals that it was written in Jerusalem about the year 164 BCE. Technically, the book belongs to the class of texts known as pseudepigraphia, since it is attributed to a legendary figure, while in reality it was written at a much later time by an unknown author. Other books in this genre include the book of 1 Enoch, the Assumption of Moses, and the Apocalypse of John, although the latter was written much closer to the time of its namesake.
Ignoring for a moment the problems with Daniel, I also found the following point of interest. Much of your article centers on Dan 11:31 and Mark 13:14: the "abomination of desolation".
31 And forces shall stand on his part, and they shall profane the sanctuary, the fortress, and shall take away the continual sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate.
Dan 11:31 (Darby's)
14 But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation standing where it should not, (he that reads let him consider it,) then let those in Judaea flee to the mountains;
Mark 13:14 (Darby's)
The author of Daniel was most likely referring to the incident wherein Antiochus entered the Temple and erected an altar to Zeus in the holy place. There are vivid descriptions of the pollution of the temple to be found in 1 and 2 Maccabees which tell how Antiochus "arrogantly entered the temple" (1 Macc1:21), profaning the temple, polluting the sanctuary, then repressing the cultus by prohibiting sacrifices and offerings.
Mark's reference to the "abomination of desolation" is quite interesting. The phrase, which follows "he that reads let him consider it", is completely out of place considering that this occurs in the middle of Jesus' speech. The other phrase "then let those in Judaea flee to the mountains", suggests that Mark is most likely finding a second fulfillment in the siege of Jerusalem. Luke 21:20 also supports this view.
So in essence there has already been a first and second fulfillment of this so-called prophecy. To suggest a third fulfillment in the last days (or in our time) is stretching things way to far.
I'm really just wondering if your study of prophecy has revealed that most scholars consider Daniel to have been written much latter than the traditional Christian view. If so, do you have reasonable evidence to support the traditional 5th or 6th century date?
pseudo
