1. There are no ancient copies of the Koran dating before 750 AD. This is long after many of the events occurred that both the Bible and the Koran talk about. The difference is that these events were written down in the documents that were compiled into the Bible WHEN THEY HAPPENED, making the Bible account far more believable. The oldest Bible manuscripts date from centuries BEFORE Christ - far older and more reliable than the relative newcomer, the Koran.

2. The Koran is totally based on the testimony of just one man; Muhammad. According to Islamic tradition, Mohammad received revelations from the angel Gabriel repeatedly over a period of twenty-three years. After each revelation Mohammad dictated the words to scribes, who then wrote them down. These dictated "revelations" taken together allegedly comprise the Koran. The problem here is obvious. There are no confirming witnesses to one word of anything Mohammad said.

The Bible has no such problem. Forty men wrote the Bible over a period of 1,600 years, yet all of it is in agreement. Much of the Bible contains multiple witnesses to the same events, the Four Gospels, for example. Further, the Bible is firmly grounded in history and has time and again been verified by science, geography, archaeology, and other non-biblical literature. The Bible does not ask us to take the word of just one witness when something so important as our faith is concerned. The Scripture declares: "At the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall a matter be established." According to this rule the Koran cannot be accepted. (Deut 19:15)

Only the Bible gives us the true history of God's relationship to man, and gives us the answer to our greatest need - the need to be saved from sin and death through Y'shua the Messiah! I hope this will give you some good points to bring to your son's attention.

1. The period of 3.5 years, comprising the period of the anti-christ's reign.

2. The period of 7 years, the "70th week" of Dan 9:24-27 which culminates in the 3.5 year reign of anti-christ, terminated by the return of Messiah and the battle of Armageddon.

In the program you mention I am referring to the "Tribulation" in this 2nd fuller sense, the full "70th week" of Daniel.

Revelation 8 follows a similar pattern of the start of the Tribulation as found in the prophets.

For example, Habbakuk chapter 2 ends with this verse:

"But YHWH is in His holy temple. Let all the earth be silent before Him."  Hab 2:20

Notice that this is the same picture as Revelation 8, YHWH in His Temple and a call to silence. This is followed in Habakkuk chapter 3 with the picture of YHWH taking stock of the world before Him .. and then startling the nations with what appears to be a global earthquake:

"He stood and surveyed the earth; He looked and startled the nations. Yes, the perpetual mountains were shattered, The ancient hills collapsed. His ways are everlasting."  Hab 3:6

This tracks very closely with Revelation 8 and the celestial events which follow the "silence." It is clearly speaking of a point when YHWH startles the nations by openly manifesting His Godship over the natural creation, as in days of old, expressing His wrath toward the nations on behalf of His people.

"The mountains saw You and quaked; The downpour of waters swept by. The deep uttered forth its voice, It lifted high its hands. Sun and moon stood in their places; They went away at the light of Your arrows, At the radiance of Your gleaming spear. In indignation You marched through the earth; In anger You trampled the nations. You went forth for the salvation of Your people, For the salvation of Your anointed." Hab 3:10-13