Actually, the "time of the end" and the "end of the age" correspond exactly to each other. In Da.l 8, Da. 9, Mt. 24, etc., the "end" consistently refers to the END OF SACRIFICE and the END OF THE TEMPLE -- the end of the Old Covenant and the beginning of the New.

I know this doesn't fit the big scenario we have imagined, but it fits very well with Scripture and is confirmed by both Jewish and secular history. Instead of getting down-in-the-mouth about missing out on some "grand finale", maybe we should be grateful for the chance to live in the "time of the beginning" of the New Heaven and New Earth.