GRA,
So, you are saying that the Tribulation is over at the start of the 6th seal and that the 7th seal and trumpets 1-6 happen, then the Lord returns at the 7th trumpet, then the 7 bowls are poured out??? I see. So you see Revelation in chronological order, the whole book? I don't see Revelation being in chronological order at all.
I think John recorded the events as they were shown to him but that does not mean the events were shown to him in order. Case in point, right after the 6th seal we see the 144K being sealed and the Great Multitude which came out of the Great Tribulation. This multitude is killed at the 6th trumpet which hasn't been described yet. They clearly were killed "during" the tribulation but according to you, the Tribulation is over before they are shown. Why seal the 144K after the tribulation too?
The seals (1-6) are of man: wars, famines, souls of the dead in heaven, reaction of men to Satan and his angels being cast to earth. Jesus discusses the first 4 seals in Mat 24:4-8. The 4 horsemen are first shown in Zech 1:8-11. These horses were sent to walk to and fro throughout the earth in Zachariah's time and at that time, the earth was quite. Now in Revelation 6, things have changed. Seal #6 is only Rev 6:12-13. We see "Sun as black as sackcloth of hair" and "Moon of blood", right? Keep this in mind. Now notice the break at the start of Verse 14 with the word, "THEN"? Verses 14-17 events occur just prior to the return of the Lord. Bear with me...
The trumpets (1-6) are of Satan: You see the 7 trumpets being blown between Mat 24:29-31, right? I see them being blown between verses 9-26. The trumpets are the wrath of Satan. They do not follow the seals, I think they run concurrently. The Great Tribulation is the TEMPTATION OF SATAN where He tricks people into thinking he's the Christ. What does Satan do first? He sets up his ONE WORLD GOV'T of religious, political, social, economic and educational systems. The first 5 trumpets represent these efforts. Verse 15 marks the middle of Daniel's 70th week. Trumpets 5-6 happen after verse 15.
Satan needs permission to harm God's children. God allows Satan to kill whoever worships him, at Satan's discretion. The 5th trumpet lasts 5 months. I believe the 5th trumpet represents the "great temptation or test period" culminating with the slaughter of the 6th trumpet (which includes many fooled believers who are seen in heaven as the Great Multitude). After the fake "rapture" where 1/3 of the world is slaughtered, the rest of the world (except the Elect which is now a small group of strong believers represented by the 144K) worships Satan via his Beast. Rev 11 (2 witnesses), Rev 13 (2 Beasts) happen during the 2nd half of the tribulation after Mat 24:15 but before verse 27. We see Satan's efforts manifested in Rev 17:5.
The Bowls (1-7) are of God and the Lamb: Rev 18:8 says the plagues come in one day. These plagues, or bowls, repay Satan double what he did with his trumpets. If you notice, the Bowls are poured against the counterpart of what Satan did, against his kingdom. Rev Chapters 16-19 further describe the demise of Satan's One World Government.
The Tribulation is then over. The Lord's return is described in various places in Revelation. Rev 6:14-17, Rev 14:14, Rev 19:11-21, Rev 20:1-6.
The 6th Seal, 6th Trumpet, 6th Bowl are of Satan: 6-6-6
The 7th Seal, 7th Trumpet, 7th Bowl are of God: 7-7-7 Perfection and Completeness
Mat 24:28 is the 6th Bowl which is Armageddon. Joel Chapter 2 describes the scene of the Lord kicking butt and taking no prisoners with His 144K + the martyred. This is how I see it.