Yet, within this desolation, Scripture offers a remarkable image of survival and freedom: the wild donkey. The wild donkey represents the ability to live amidst surrounding evil, in a hostile wilderness, yet remain unenslaved and free.

This imagery underscores the Church’s existence in a fallen world, a “wilderness” of sin and desolation, yet preserved and sustained by God. Through divine protection, the Church is empowered to resist the forces of evil and to thrive even in the midst of spiritual emptiness. The wilderness, therefore, is not only a place of trial but also a place where God’s provision and power are made manifest.

So, when Hagar fled into the wilderness, "the Angel of the Lord said to her, Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael; because the Lord hath heard thy affliction; and he will be a wild man; his hand will be against every man, and every man's hand against him; and he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren" (Genesis 16:11–12).

And in Job: "Who hath sent out the wild ass free? Or who hath loosed the bands of the wild ass? Whose house I have made the wilderness, and the barren land his dwellings. He scorneth the multitude of the city, neither regardeth he the crying of the driver" (Job 39:5–7).

There is the wild ass, who will live in the crowded, devilish wilderness but will not be a part of it, will mock it, and will not listen to the devil.

In other words, one of the meanings of the wilderness is this world, in which the prince is the devil. But thanks to God, it is possible to live in this world and not be of it. This possibility is the place in the wilderness where the Church can dwell.

The wings of an eagle are a symbol of God's protection for His people: 

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!" (Matt. 23:37). 

The Jews did not want to be under the wings of protection. The Church of Christ, however, not only received the protection of God's wings but those very wings of God gave the Church not just static protection, as was mainly the case with the Old Testament people of Israel, tied to land and city, but incredible freedom: the Church can fly wherever it wants, penetrate wherever it wants, and it has no institutional, territorial, social, or economic boundaries. The Church, like a superfluid, can penetrate everywhere.

Despite the hostility and aggressiveness of the world—the wilderness—God can feed the Church with His Word, His Body, and His Blood. It is evident that this also refers to all other forms of nourishment: seemingly impossible at first, but through God's providence, the Church will receive all the necessary resources to live in this world without being dependent on it.

It should be noted that the Church can live in the wilderness of the world and not become "of the world" only if it exists on the principles of the Gospel, as a horizontal community-ekklesia, guided not by bureaucracy, hierarchy, money, and political power, but by the Holy Spirit. In such an arrangement, the Church can be in the world but not of the world for a very long time.

However, if we think of the Church as an institution, structure, organization, hierarchy, or bureaucracy, it will, by definition, already be part of the world and of the world, and thus no longer be the Church in the evangelical sense. But the understanding of the Church as a bureaucratic institution, especially one closely interacting with the world (in the form of caesaropapism, symphony, etc.), has long been widespread and popular. If we adopt this understanding, it becomes clear why the interpretation of the Church's time in the wilderness is often seen as 3.5 years—the idea being that the Church-institution lived in the world, interacting with it, and had no trouble, but when the last times came, it was forced to go into the wilderness "underground" for a short time of 3.5 years. And this is something that can easily be imagined.

However, Christ also said that from the very beginning, the world would be hostile to the Church, and for most of its existence in history, it would have to live "in the wilderness." This is much more difficult to understand from a worldly perspective, but from the perspective of the Bible, it is quite clear.

Let us return to the chronology.

Thus, when Christ ascended, He did not leave His Church, His Bride, alone. Through the nourishment of the Word of God, the wings of the Holy Spirit, and a special place in the wilderness of this world, the Church received the ability to live almost parallel to this world, to penetrate everywhere, to preach the Gospel everywhere, yet not become part of the world or be consumed by its prince. But the time for such miraculous living in this world is limited by "time, times, and half a time," a certain number of years, which John specifies as 1,260 years. Christ ascended and established the Church around the year 30 AD. Therefore, the period of the Church's parallel existence in the wilderness of the world should end in 1,290 AD.

Then, the last times will approach. This period of earthly history is interpreted in chapters 17 and 18 of Revelation in several stages: first, as the rise of a global state based on money and hedonism, Babylon the Great, "the great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth." (We are witnesses to the active development of this city today.) Babylon will bring much suffering to the Church, but the Church will stand firm. The Lord warns that the Church should not participate in the works of Babylon: "Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues" (Revelation 18:4). Most likely, the period of the harlot Babylon is the final period of the Church's life in the wilderness.

Then the ten kingdoms, vassals of Babylon, will rise up against the Harlot and give their power to the Beast's kingdom (described in chapter 13), and the Harlot Babylon will be overthrown.

The Beast is a symbol of government and power. In Scripture and prophecies, different beasts (leopard, goat, ram, etc.) symbolize different earthly kingdoms. But the beast in Revelation 13 is a special kingdom, a kingdom from hell (the sea beast, symbolizing Satan), representing the direct rule of the devil on earth. This is no longer power through money or wealth, like Babylon, but a direct theocratic rule where instead of "Theos" (God), it is the devil, a devilcratic rule. 

But where does the devil get such power? With Christ's resurrection, the devil was defeated and no longer had the power to destroy the Church. However, "good people," devil worshipers, long tended to him and finally healed him. And the healed devil, with renewed strength, will take control of the world and be able to strike the Church: "And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations" (Revelation 13:7).

With the fall of global Babylon and the rise of the openly satanic Beast kingdom, the 1,260-year period of the Church’s free and parallel existence in the wilderness of the world with the wings of an eagle will come to an end. Christians who lose their protection will be mass-murdered. 

During the reign of the Beast kingdom, another beast will arise: "And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon" (Revelation 13:11). This will likely be a ruler who will reign as if he were Christ the Lamb, but in reality will be the son not of God, but of the devil. He is called the false prophet in Revelation and the Antichrist in other Scriptures, and he will force everyone to worship the devil and, as a sign of this, to receive the mark on the forehead and hand. How long the Beast and the Antichrist will reign is not known. There is a traditional interpretation that this will be 3.5 years, but there are no such indications in Revelation. Moreover, judging by the scale of events, the Beast's kingdom will likely last much longer than 3.5 years.

After the triumph of the Beast and the Antichrist, the judgment and the seven last plagues will begin, as described in Revelation chapters 14, 15, 16, and 19. Then, in chapter 20, John writes about the events following the completion of the last plagues.

"And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, and cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season. And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years" (Revelation 20:1–6).

Daniel speaks of the same period, from the beginning of the judgment and the plagues, in chapter 12: "And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time; and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book. And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt" (Daniel 12:1–2).

But not only does he speak, but he also indicates the time when this period will end: “When shall be the end of these wonders?” And I heard the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, and sware by him that liveth forever that it shall be for a time, times, and a half; and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished. And I heard, but I understood not: then said I, O my Lord, what shall be the end of these things? And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly: and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand. And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days" (Daniel 12:6–11).

Thus, according to John, from the establishment of the Church to the reign of the apocalyptic Beast and the conflict with it, there will be 1,260 days/years, which in our calendar translates to the year 1,290 AD.

Regarding Daniel's chronology: after the Ascension of Christ, the Jews were given 40 years by God to repent and make a final decision—to be with Christ or against Him. Then, in 70 AD, the Temple was destroyed, and the abomination of desolation took place. If we add Daniel's 1,290 days/years to the destruction of the Temple, it results in the last times (Beast, judgment, and the last plagues) ending in 1,360 AD, 70 years after the establishment of the Beast's kingdom in 1,290 AD according to John. Just as the Jews were defeated and went into Babylonian captivity for 70 years, so too in the last times, the Church will be defeated and suffer for 70 years, not 3.5 years, as is commonly interpreted.

In Daniel, at the end of his prophecies, there is another phrase: "Blessed is he that waiteth, and cometh to the thousand three hundred and thirty -five days" (Daniel 12:12).

Note, it said 1,335 days/years. Here we have an important event, and the one who reaches it will be blessed. The date of this event is 1405 AD. Most likely, based on the context, the only event that can fit here is the beginning of the Millennium Kingdom.

According to the sequence of events in Revelation, after the Last Times (the Beast, the Judgment, and the last plagues), the Millennial Kingdom will begin. Daniel speaks to us about the period of 1,335 days: "Blessed is he that waiteth and cometh to the thousand three hundred and thirty -five days. But go thou thy way till the end be: for thou shalt rest, and stand in thy lot at the end of the days" (Daniel 12:12–13). Here we have a date that is 45 years after the end of the Last Times.

Thus, this is what we know regarding Daniel's date of 1,335 years:

First, this date will fall after the end of the Last Times, when, according to Revelation, the Millennial Kingdom will begin.

Second, the one who reaches this date will be blessed. So, what does the word "blessed" (אַשְׁרֵי) mean in scripture? It has meanings such as: happy, successful, one who walks the right path. In the Old Testament, "blessed" (אַשְׁרֵי) always refers to one who is faithful to God, who keeps God's commandments, who serves God, who is chosen by God, etc. "Blessed" cannot be without connection to God. Nevertheless, the verse from Daniel 12 above does not contain references to God. There, "blessed" refers to the one who waits and reaches the 1,335 years, but according to biblical language, the word "blessed" (אַשְׁרֵי) is not used without reference to God. 

Therefore, there is a connection to God, and this will be through the 1,335 years. It is obvious that few will reach this date. Daniel is not among them, but those who reach the 1,335 days will meet God, and this meeting will be unique. Daniel spoke with God and His angels, but Daniel was never called "blessed." Therefore, this meeting with God would be even grander. It is hard to imagine anything more grand than when people "shall reign with Him a thousand years" in the Millennial Kingdom.

But again, we must reiterate: the interpretation of the 1,335 days is complex and, in our case, speculative.

Let us return to Revelation. The Lord gives the world one last chance. During the Millennial Kingdom, people will have the final opportunity to choose whose side they are on—Christ’s or the devil’s. They will choose to align with the saints or with the army of Satan. 

"And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, and shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night forever and ever. And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away" (Revelation 20:7–15, 21:1). 

That is it. The old world, corrupted by sin and ruled by the devil, has come to an end. It is destroyed. And a new world begins.

When will the end of the Millennial Kingdom, the final battle, the destruction of the old, and the establishment of the new world occur? This is difficult to answer. As we have already written, the term "thousand years" in Scripture is conditional and does not refer to a literal number of years: "But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day." Moreover, as is known, no one knows that day, but the Father only.

Interestingly, from the creation of the world, the year 1360 AD is the 6868th year, and 1405 AD is the 6905th year. But this is assuming the most popular creation date of 5508 BC. There are also chronologies that calculated slightly different dates. For example, Theophilus of Antioch calculated 5515 BC, Clement of Alexandria calculated 5589 BC, so we have 6875, 6912, 6947, and 6984 years from the creation of the world, respectively. It should be understood that there may be errors of a few years, or even several decades, in these dates, but the general chronological epochs they represent are clearly visible. As we can see, the idea of a history close to 7000 years (from the creation of the world) leading up to the last times, based on the Septuagint chronology and Daniel’s prophecy, may also have some confirmation.

So, the last times, according to Daniel and John, should begin in 1290 AD and end in 1360 AD, with the Millennial Kingdom possibly beginning in 1405 AD. It seems we’ve figured it out.

But it is the 21st century, and the dates for the last times according to Daniel and John have long passed, so is our interpretation incorrect? There have been attempts to align the apocalyptic chronology with the modern calendar, for example, by the Adventists with their year 1844. However, their argumentation is very strained and cannot be accepted. So, what should we do?

Our interpretation of the apocalyptic chronology might be wrong. But if it is close to the truth, many difficult questions arise for contemporary biblical studies.

What if our interpretation of the apocalyptic biblical chronology is correct, and the commonly accepted secular chronology of the calendar is wrong?

What if Fomenko and many other critics and exposers of historical falsification are at least partly right, and Scaliger and his colleagues in the 16th–17th centuries stretched the chronology of the new era?

What if it is not the 21st century, but, for example, the 13th century since the birth of Christ?

The chronological tables of Scaliger and Petavius are based on the chronology of the 4th-century church historian Eusebius of Caesarea. However, Eusebius refused to maintain a detailed chronology from the creation of the world and instead began his chronology from Abraham up to the 4th century. Taking this chronology as a foundation, the chronographers of the modern era added to it the chronology after the 4th century and back to Abraham, and thus, roughly speaking, we got the modern chronology, which for some reason has not been significantly revised since the 17th century.

However, in the 16th–17th centuries, and even earlier, there was a significant shift toward Judaism in Europe. For Catholics, the main Bible translation was the Latin version of the Jewish texts, which included an abbreviated Jewish chronology. The minds of the secular and ecclesiastical elites were overtaken by Kabbalah. It is quite possible that, using Kabbalistic numerology and Jewish chronology, the chronologists of the 16th–17th centuries sought to adjust the true chronology to fit an anti-Christian agenda by lengthening the "dark middle ages." Despite the apparent absurdity of this suggestion, it cannot be dismissed, as many historical suspicions and the motives of the chronographers—who were often Kabbalists—support the idea. For Kabbalists, occultists, and other servants of the devil, it is advantageous to distort chronology in order to sever the historically unified Biblical narrative and deprive Christians of a coherent vision of history, from the creation of the world to the new earth and new heaven.

When it comes to the distortion of the chronology of other periods in history, there is a certain complexity. Christians have the Bible, which is primarily a historical book and has a well-developed chronology from the creation of the world to Christ. However, the history and chronology after Christ in the Bible is described in the form of prophecies, which can be intentionally or unintentionally misinterpreted. This has allowed for speculation and the falsification of the history of the new era.

Many will say that science claims secular chronology is correct. Science says many things, but as life shows, there are many errors and falsifications in science, and especially a great deal of pride and arrogance. If precise science, like biology, tells us unproven tales about how DNA molecules arose from water on their own, and then how man evolved from an amoeba to a monkey, then it is even more difficult to trust ideologically driven humanities disciplines, especially history, which has been rewritten many times.

In the end, the Christian researcher must ask themselves—whom do they trust more, the biblical chronology and history, the prophet Daniel, the Apostle John, or the Kabbalists of the 16th–17th centuries?