Introduction: Learn how to become a biblical eschatologist. Biblical Eschatologists are bible prophecy scholars who are experts in biblical history and prophecy. A few prophecy scholars have doctorates in biblical theology, history, and archaeology, but many prophecy scholars are Christians with a special gift for understanding the times. Prophecy scholars are men and women who are experts in biblical history and prophecy. Prophecy scholars are not prophets because they do not have the gift of prophecy, according to Corinthians chapter 12. In other words, prophecy scholars usually do not see visions of the future because they learn about the future by carefully studying and analyzing the prophetic writings of biblical prophets. A few prophecy scholars have doctorates in biblical eschatology, biblical archaeology, and secular history, while many other prophecy scholars are simply knowledgeably about the Holy Scriptures.
Step 1: Study secular and biblical history. The best prophecy scholars are educated men and women equipped with a great knowledge of biblical and secular history who read the Holy Scriptures as literal history while they are under the influence of the Holy Spirit. Without the Holy Spirit a prophecy scholar is just a secular academic incapable of revealing prophetic insight to their readers. Today, some of the best prophecy scholars are Dr. Tim LaHaye, Dr. Grant Jeffrey, Dr. Jack Van Impe, Dr. Mark Hitchcock, Perry Stone, Donald Perkins, Dr. Chuck Missler, Tom Horn, Bill Salus, and Dr. John McTernan. They have devoted their lives to studying and helping prophecy students understand the mysteries of the end times.
Step 2: Build a strong spiritual relationship with God the Holy Spirit because He is the Author of the whole bible. God the Holy Spirit inspired and directed the human authors who wrote every word in the Bible from Moses to John. All students of prophecy must have a spiritual relationship with God’s Holy Spirit in the person of Messiah Yeshua to understand biblical eschatology. All biblical prophecy points to events leading up to the return of Messiah Yeshua.
Step 3: Study the Holy Scriptures. A daily study of the Holy Bible reveals that 75 percent of the Bible is decorated with visions of the past, present, and future. The Holy Scriptures are filled with thousands of prophesies revealed in the Old Testament Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament Christian Scriptures, which highlights the apocalyptic events coming to planet earth. Messiah Yeshua Himself said that He would return to earth and believers should watch for his majestic return. Thus, a study of Biblical eschatology includes becoming familiar with the Holy Scriptures.
Step 4: Study the prophetic books. The prophetic books of the Holy Scriptures begin with the book of Genesis because many future events are symbolically revealed in the first 11 chapters of Genesis. Learn the book of Exodus because it highlights Messiah’s relationship with his people. Study the book of Leviticus because Leviticus reveals Israel’s history and future destiny and the events surrounding the Lord’s prophetic Feast Days. Study the wisdom literature in the Psalms because Psalm 48 to 150 parallel events from 1948 to the year 2050 and these writings offer insight into the past and the future. Study the prophets in the Holy Scriptures, such as Isaiah, Obadiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Zachariah, and Joel because their writings forecast the future of gentile and Jewish history and most of their prophecies parallel the book of Revelation. Study the book of Revelation because God will bless and give a reward for reading and understanding the prophetic words in this book.
Step 5: Study ancient commentaries on God’s Holy Scriptures because they give prophecy students insight into understanding the culture and meaning of various books of the Holy Bible. Some of the best early commentaries on God’s word originated from works of Flavius Josephus, the writings of St. Barnabas, the book of Enoch, the book of Yashar, the book of Jubilees. Although these commentaries are not inspired writings, they offer readers additional information, insight, and an improved understanding of biblical prophecy.
Step 6: Study Israeli history because all biblical prophecy points to the restoration of Israel and the return of Messiah Yeshua. If Israel is destroyed by her surrounding gentile neighbors, then we are not living in the last days and Messiah Yeshua will return in a another generation because the prophets in the Holy Scriptures predicted the creation of the Israeli people, the rise of the Israeli people, and the scattering of the Israeli people before they return back to Israel during the final generation of worldwide gentile domination. The restoration of Israel is the most powerful prophetic sign indicating that Messiah Yeshua will return for his Church and later to the Earth within the near future.
Step 7: Learn the Hebrew and Greek languages because the Holy Scriptures were originally written in Greek and Hebrew. By understanding ancient Greek and paleo Hebrew languages, you will be able to correctly interpret the prophecies in God’s Holy Scriptures. Therefore, a basic understanding of some of the Hebrew and Greek languages will help students when they study Biblical prophecies.
Step 8: Study the Bible Code. While there exist much controversy surrounding the Bible Codes, Christian and Jewish Bible code researchers have found future events related to the end times by employing the equidistant latter spacing (ELS) system of the Bible Code. Additionally, students of prophecy cannot understand the mysterious bible codes without first studying the Hebrew alphabet and language. All bible codes are in Hebrew and they contain information about the past, present, and future. The English scientist, famous mathematician, and celebrated physicist Sir Isaac Newton believed in Biblical prophecy and the existence of Bible codes. He was motivated to learn Hebrew in order to understand more of the Bible. He wrote more on Biblical eschatology than on issues of science and he spent half of his life searching for Bible codes, but he lacked the computer technology to understand the mysterious bible codes.
Step 9: Learn where to look for prophetic information. Analysis of the internet, local library, and bookstore reveals where you will find a wealth of information on the subject of Bible prophecy. For many years, academics, researchers, scholars, poets, philosophers, and theologians have been writing about their discoveries obtained through numerous hours of study of The Holy Bible. Many of their books are written to be easily understood by the average layperson, making it easy for us to read a prophecy book and compare its primary points to what the Bible says about future events. Furthermore, watching the national and international news programs on TV and the internet will help you stay abreast of what is happening in the Middle East because many Bible prophecy researchers and teachers believe that what happens in the Middle East is part of a much larger picture. The restoration of the state of Israel is often mentioned by prophecy experts as the primary sign indicating Messiah’s return to earth. They teach that God’s plan for the future of the whole world is connected to what happens to the State of Israel. Nationally syndicated newspapers and national news broadcasts keep us informed about what’s happening in that part of the world. Pay attention and compare what you hear to what you read in the Bible. Look for parallels.
Step 10: Finally, realize that understanding biblical eschatology involves a lifetime commitment to studying and learning biblical and secular history. Students of biblical prophecy should purchase a good Bible dictionary, Bible encyclopedia, and Bible concordance for looking up the original Hebrew and Greek meaning of words and phrases in the Bible that pertain to future events.
Related Sources: Bible Mysteries by Donald P. Ryan, PhD; Learn The Bible in 24 Hours; Illustrated Family Bible by Dr. Claude-Bernarde Costecalde; The Holy Bible; The Book of Revelation by Larry R. Helyer, and Richard Wagner; The Bible by Jim Bell and Stan Campbell; and The Last Days by Richard H. Perry.
