This in-depth study explores the biblical signs of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ through the prophetic lenses of Daniel and Revelation. It examines what will occur on planet earth before Christ returns, including the 2300-day prophecy, 457 BC to 1844, and the unfolding of end-time events.
It addresses key biblical themes — death, hell, heaven, resurrection, eternal life, and judgment — in a loving, urgent tone that calls all to readiness for the soon return of Jesus Christ.

1. Introduction — The Midnight Cry of Our Time

Something is happening in our world. The earth trembles with unrest. Nations are in conflict, the climate is unstable, technology is accelerating beyond imagination, and morality seems to dissolve into confusion. People sense it — something is coming.

Two thousand years ago, Jesus of Nazareth spoke words that now sound like headlines:

“You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.”
— Matthew 24:6–8 (NIV)

We live in the time Jesus described — a world of war, famine, floods, earthquakes, and moral collapse. The Bible warns that just before His return, the world would reach a climactic point in history — a moment when prophecy, rebellion, and redemption collide.

This message explores the great prophetic clock God set long ago — a timeline that stretches from ancient Babylon to the modern world, and from 457 BC to 1844, revealing where we stand in the stream of time.

The call of prophecy is urgent but filled with love: “Be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” (Matthew 24:44)

2. The Certainty of Christ’s Second Coming

The Second Coming of Jesus Christ is not a myth or a metaphor — it is the greatest promise ever spoken by the Savior Himself.

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.”
— John 14:1–3 (NIV)

From the earliest disciples to the believers of today, this promise has anchored the Christian hope. The return of Christ will end sin, death, and hell forever, ushering in eternal life for all who trust in Him.

The angels who watched Him ascend gave the same assurance:

“Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”
— Acts 1:11 (NIV)

It will be a real event, visible and glorious — not a secret or symbolic coming, but one witnessed by all the world.

3. Signs in the World Before His Return

Before Jesus returns, He said the earth would groan with labor pains — signs in nature, society, and spirituality that the end is near.

3.1. Wars, Earthquakes, and Natural Disasters

“There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven.”
— Luke 21:11 (NIV)

Our news is filled with these events — earthquakes shaking continents, hurricanes growing in power, and floods destroying homes. Jesus said these would increase in frequency and intensity as the world approaches its end.

3.2. Moral Decay and Lawlessness

“Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold.”
— Matthew 24:12 (NIV)

Paul also warned:

“People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy… having a form of godliness but denying its power.”
— 2 Timothy 3:2,5 (NIV)

We see this today — a world obsessed with self, pleasure, and power, while truth and holiness are mocked. It is as it was in the days of Noah — violence, corruption, and indifference to God’s call.

3.3. The Gospel to the Whole World

Amid this darkness, the greatest sign of hope shines:

“And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.”
— Matthew 24:14 (NIV)

Before Jesus comes, every person will have the opportunity to hear of His love and salvation. The digital age, satellite broadcasting, and worldwide missions fulfill this prophecy in ways previous generations could only imagine.

4. Daniel’s Prophetic Timeline — God’s Clock of Redemption

The prophet Daniel was shown the rise and fall of empires and the unfolding of God’s plan for the end of time. His prophecies in chapters 2, 7, 8, and 9 form the foundation of all biblical prophecy.

4.1. Daniel 2 — The Image of World Empires

In Daniel 2, King Nebuchadnezzar dreamed of a statue made of gold, silver, bronze, iron, and clay — representing successive world kingdoms:

• Babylon (head of gold)
• Medo-Persia (chest of silver)
• Greece (belly of bronze)
• Rome (legs of iron)
• Divided Europe (feet of iron and clay)

Then Daniel said:

“In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed.”
— Daniel 2:44 (NIV)

That stone that smote the image represents Christ’s eternal kingdom — the Second Coming that will end all earthly powers.

4.2. Daniel 7 and 8 — The Little Horn and the 2300 Days

In Daniel 7 and 8, prophecy becomes more detailed. The “little horn” power persecutes the saints and changes God’s law — a prophetic forecast of religious corruption during the Middle Ages. But Daniel hears a holy voice declaring:

“Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.”
— Daniel 8:14 (KJV)
(In NIV: “It will take 2,300 evenings and mornings; then the sanctuary will be reconsecrated.”)

This 2300-day prophecy unlocks God’s great timetable.

4.3. The 2300 Days and the Starting Point — 457 BC

Daniel 9 reveals that the prophecy begins with the command to restore and rebuild Jerusalem:

“Know and understand this: From the time the word goes out to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One, the ruler, comes, there will be seven ‘sevens,’ and sixty-two ‘sevens.’”
— Daniel 9:25 (NIV)

This command was issued in 457 BC by Persian King Artaxerxes (Ezra 7).
Applying the day-for-a-year principle (Ezekiel 4:6; Numbers 14:34), the 2300 prophetic days equal 2300 literal years — bringing us to 1844 AD.

From that time, prophecy pointed to the cleansing of the heavenly sanctuary — the beginning of God’s final work of judgment before Christ’s return.

4.4. The Great Awakening and William Miller

In the early 1800s, the prophecy of 1844 stirred hearts worldwide. Preacher William Miller and others proclaimed that Jesus was coming soon, interpreting the “cleansing of the sanctuary” as the Second Coming.
When Jesus did not return in 1844, many were heartbroken — but the prophecy was not false; it was misunderstood. It referred not to Christ’s return to earth but to His entering the Most Holy Place of the heavenly sanctuary — a new phase of ministry and investigative judgment.

Since that time, humanity has been living in the judgment hour, the final phase before Christ’s Second Coming.

5. Revelation’s Final Warnings and Events

The book of Revelation unveils the final movements of history — global deception, spiritual conflict, and divine judgment.

5.1. The Beast, the False Prophet, and Global Control

Revelation 13 describes two beasts — symbols of political and religious powers that unite in the last days. The second beast enforces the mark of the first, leading to global economic and religious control:

“It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark.”
— Revelation 13:16–17 (NIV)

This crisis tests loyalty — between worshiping the Creator and following human systems of power.

5.2. The Three Angels’ Messages — Revelation 14

Before Christ returns, three heavenly messages go to all the world:

“Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth… He said in a loud voice, ‘Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water.’”
— Revelation 14:6–7 (NIV)

This first message calls people to true worship — remembering God as Creator.
The second warns of Babylon’s fall — false religion collapsing.
The third warns against receiving the mark of the beast — a call to faithfulness even under persecution.

These messages prepare the world for Christ’s appearing.

6. What Happens on Earth Before and During the Second Coming

6.1. The Seven Last Plagues

When humanity finally rejects God’s mercy, the seven plagues fall upon an unrepentant world (Revelation 16). They are judgments revealing God’s justice but not intended for the righteous, who are sealed and protected.

6.2. The Visible and Glorious Return

Then the sky opens.

“For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.”
— 1 Thessalonians 4:16 (NIV)

“Look, he is coming with the clouds,” and “every eye will see him.”
— Revelation 1:7 (NIV)

The graves open — the first resurrection — and believers who have died are raised to eternal life. Those alive in Christ are transformed:

“We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed — in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.”
— 1 Corinthians 15:51–52 (NIV)

The wicked, terrified by His glory, perish — this is the first death confirmed in judgment.

7. Death, Resurrection, and the Millennium

7.1. Death as Sleep

The Bible consistently calls death a sleep until resurrection.

“Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up.”
— John 11:11 (NIV)

“For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing.”
— Ecclesiastes 9:5 (NIV)

All who die — believers and unbelievers — rest in the grave until the resurrection.

7.2. The Two Resurrections

“Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out — those who have done what is good will rise to live, and those who have done what is evil will rise to be condemned.”
— John 5:28–29 (NIV)

The first resurrection (at Christ’s coming) is for the righteous.
The second resurrection (after the millennium) is for the wicked — leading to the second death, or eternal destruction (Revelation 20:14).

7.3. The Millennium

For 1,000 years, the redeemed are in heaven, reviewing God’s judgments:

“They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years.”
— Revelation 20:4 (NIV)

The earth lies desolate; Satan is bound. At the end, the wicked are resurrected, face judgment, and are destroyed forever in the lake of fire — the second death.

8. Life After Death and the Eternal Hope

After evil is destroyed, God creates a new heaven and a new earth.

“Then I saw ‘a new heaven and a new earth,’ for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away.”
— Revelation 21:1 (NIV)

“He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
— Revelation 21:4 (NIV)

No more hell, sorrow, or sin — only eternal life, joy, and peace. This is the destiny of all who accept Christ’s grace and follow Him faithfully.

9. How to Prepare for the Second Coming

The Bible’s message is not fear but preparation.
God wants you to be ready — not through panic, but through relationship.

9.1. Repent and Believe the Gospel

“Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.”
— Acts 3:19 (NIV)

Salvation is a gift — not earned, but received by faith.

9.2. Walk with Jesus Daily

Through prayer, Scripture, and obedience, stay connected to the Savior who died for you.

“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
— John 14:6 (NIV)

9.3. Share the Message

Jesus said:

“You are the light of the world.”
— Matthew 5:14 (NIV)

Now is the time to shine that light — to tell others of His soon return.

10. Conclusion — Behold, He Comes

The signs are clear. The prophetic timeline has reached its final moments.
From the days of Daniel in Babylon to 1844 and beyond, every symbol and every prophecy points to this truth: Jesus Christ is coming again.

He is coming not in secret, but in glory. Not as a humble servant, but as the conquering King. The question is not if, but when — and whether we will be ready.

“He who testifies to these things says, ‘Yes, I am coming soon.’ Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.”
— Revelation 22:20 (NIV)

Friend, the clock of prophecy has nearly struck midnight.
Now is the time to awaken, believe, and live for Jesus Christ — the Lord of life, the destroyer of death, and the giver of eternal life.

Keywords:

death, hell, second coming of Jesus Christ, sleep, heaven, resurrection, first death, second death, eternal death, eternal life, life after death, Daniel, revelation, Jesus Christ, angels, 2300 days, 457 BC, 1844, rebuilding of the temple, William Miller, wars, rumors of wars, earthquakes, flood.