How many die during the last wave, the woes, is left to speculation ...
Oooh, why do you need to rely on speculation to come up with your number? Such details in Revelation about future events and suddenly we are forced to deal in speculation. I'm shocked!
I can just imagine if a non-dispensationalist started throwing around the word "speculation" to justify his ideas. There would be no end of the howls from the "literalist" camp.
But I think you have rightly pointed out how much of futurist dispensational theology is all about speculation. Every time the "rapture index" goes up another point it's all based on speculation about how modern events allegedly relate to the Bible.
God is showing that the physical suffering is nothing compared to what is in store for those who refuse to repent and trust Christ for salvation.
Now we seem to be "spiritualizing" to get up to the 2/3 number for all mankind.
For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly ; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:
Ro 2:29
But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly ; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.
So technically, we are not dealing with everyone in Israel, but only with a small group, which includes Christians.
You see that's where you run into problems tc. I don't go looking every day to see whether or not the Anti-Christ has been born or whether or not God is going to do a miracle in Israel. I'm not pointing to anything other than the mass of unfulfilled prophecies and God's promises to know that the futurist position is the most consistent with the Bible and with a more literal reading of the bible.
I am more a literalist than a dispensationalist. I believe that unless there is a clear and immediate allegorical context to the word of God, then it ought to be taken literally. So when the Bible speaks of 12 thousand people from each of the 12 tribes of Israel, I don't know why that should be taken allegorically. Indeed, it makes no sense from an allegorical standpoint. And when the Bible states that the tribulation will be the worst period of time that ever was or ever will be, I think it is idiotic to believe that this is a reference to some obscure siege of Jerusalem in 70 AD, especially when the one in 130 AD was many times worse than the one in 70AD.
You never answered my question. Do you go to church on Sunday?