Please [2 Tim 2:15] "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." and be like the Noble Bereans who [Acts 17:11] "...searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so."

Since this is a Bible Prophecy website, one really needs to start with the Bible first, by reading it.  One should not study commentary on that which he or she has not yet read themselves.  And after reading the Bible, and before studying prophecy, one should then study how the Bible tells you how to understand its message.  Bible colleges would suggest you study man-made principles of hermenutics first.  Hermeneutics is the "the study of the methodological principles of interpretation".  Instead, I have studied how the Bible tells me how to study it and understand its message, rather than inventing my own principles.  I have found that people who have other views on prophecy neglect many important Bible Study principles that the Bible teaches.  People say, "The Bible is easy to understand and that God wouldn't hide things from us".  The Bible says otherwise. (Prov 25:2)  People say, "There can only be one meaning in a given passage."  The Bible says otherwise. (Galatians 4:24, Hosea 12:10)

The Bible contains "some things hard to be understood" (2 Peter 3:16) And "It is the glory of God to conceal a thing!" (Prov 25:2)
The Bible tells you how to understand the bible:  Fear the Lord, Prayer, the Holy Spirit's guidance, diligently seeking, rightly dividing, comparing spiritual with spiritual.
The Bible tells you how to interpret Bible Prophecy: (1) Stories & parallels are prophesies. (2) There are multiple fulfillments and unmentioned time gaps.

Perhaps the most important Bible Prophecy principle of all:  The sabbath days & Jewish Festivals are a shadow & prophecy of things to come!
[Col 2:16] Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:
[Col 2:17] Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.

See also: Why study about the pretribulation rapture?  Why is it important?