Goodnews Christian Ministry
http://goodnewspirit.com
Goodnews Christian Ministry
http://goodnewspirit.com
Jan. 2, 2005
Question:
While reading your section : 'The Future What is Next?" I read that Jeremiah says the earthquakes will come in association with the rise of the kings of the east (Jer.51:28-29)" Further on it states "The seas will roar and become unmanageable...there be large oceanic disturbances, there will be a tumultuos clammoring among the people on earth as well: riots, marches, etc.
It struck me as I read these words that we may be seeing the prophecy fulfilled with the widespread tsunami disaster now affecting Asia and simultaneously we are seeing a new leadership in Ukraine (as well as the upcoming election in Iraq).
Please comment. DD
Answer:
Certainly with this last week's tsunami, another epic event of biblical proportions has occurred on earth. When the lives of so many millions of people across the world are suddenly plunged into instant death, despair or injury, one must conclude that the powers of heaven have, indeed, been shaken, and mightily so. Few inhabitants now on earth will ever view the sea in the same way as they did before.
But we should remember that even though we have entered the predicted times for events such as these to occur, God is still our salvation from every kind of disaster. His rescue is as certain as the dawn. Fortunately, His kingdom remains untouched, safe and forever secure.
"God is our shelter, our strength, ever ready to help in time of trouble, so we shall not be afraid when the earth gives way, when mountains tumble in the depths of the sea, and its waters roar and seethe, the mountains tottering as it heaves." (Ps.46:1-3).
A Christian prophet today would have to be blind not to be able to connect all the dots of signs that have coalesced around us in respect to the prophecies of scripture. From the moment Jerusalem was rebuilt in 1948, there should have been little doubt in anyone's mind as to the nearness of Christ's return. Since then, the people have watched all the nations of the world begin to gather around Jerusalem, the western world re-trace Alexander's footprints all the way from the Balkans to the borders of India, set up outposts at the Euphrates, experience the two wars of Daniel, witness the king of Sheshak (Iraq) be the last to drink from the cup of Christ, see spectacular signs in the heavens, and now, watch awestruck as the strongest earthquake in forty years spawns the most destructive tidal wave in recorded history.
At the same time, as if right on que, the kings of the East are rising up in violence. Nuclear weapons are proliferating. Everywhere we look there are riots or mobs taking to the streets and gangs perpetrating terror. Christianity is disappearing in Europe and under severe attack in the United States, entertainment is satanic and the global corporate world is waging a withering assault against the poor. God warned that as these things happen, love in most people will turn cold. What is most astonishing, right in the middle of this deluge of predicted phenomena, we see such a massive exodus from belief accompanying it. It should be just the reverse. Yet worldwide, that is what we see. That, too, is prophecy fulfilled.
According to the Bible, earthquakes are a sign of the approach of God, expecially with respect to His wrath (Is. 29:6); They come in response to the mistreatment of the poor (Amos 8:4-8), and they also are destined to occur in conjunction with the rise of the East to world power in the last days (Jer.51:28-29). Take your pick. We seem to be nearing the crossroads where all three of these circumstances coalesce.
But all this is the proof of the truth of Christ. The fulfillment of scripture guarantees the very same scripture that predicted His salvation and His Second Coming in glory with all the angels of heaven. That should steel our faith. It should cause alarm only for those who continue to resist Jesus' offer of reconciliation with God.
Editor's Note (2/18//05):
This tsunami, racing across the Indian Ocean, was no ordinary event. It was the worst tidal wave in the history of the world. No tidal wave has ever killed more people as far as anyone knows. It represents an event so big, it has to be considered biblical especially now, when a tidal wave or waves figure so predominately in the prophecies.
The Indian Ocean event and the monster quake that produced it can well be seen as the second and third in a series of four critical signals presaging scripture's penalties relating to the world's abandonment of God. Those earlier signs, written first on the "wall of Babylon" as a warning because they apply to Babylon's destruction, screamed for "change or else". But no change occurred. Instead, the world's rejection of Christ's Gospel has multiplied.
As predicted, the pattern that followed the 1963 MM O'Hare decision seems to be reoccurring again today, but on the global scale it presaged. We already have the war. Now we have the quake and tidal wave. There is only one event left in the sequence. Jeremiah has said of that final sign that it will be the proof of everything that is to come. Namely, economic and physical ruin, the devastation of Jerusalem, and the appearance on earth of the ten-nation confederacy, the Parthian empire building to the north across the Euphrates and so graphically portrayed in the writings of Daniel.
The symbolism between warfare at the Euphrates and the tidal wave that engulfed it's nearby coasts has been noted.
Although the Asian tsunami struck on the day after Christmas in Indonesia, it was still Christmas day in much of the world when the waves heaved across those fateful shores. In fact, it was Christmas day throughout the entire Western Hemisphere. The relationship between Christmas and Good Friday seems too close to be ignored.
Good Friday was the day the Alaskan tidal wave associated with America's decision to evict God from it's government occurred. Christmas is the projected date of the desecration of the Perpetual Sacrifice that, according to Isaiah, plunges the earth into its firey apocalypse (Is.24:1-23). The significance of Christmas day itself and what that day means to the world is deeply architected into the prophecies of the End. Especially in relationship to the Man of Evil who attempts to desecrate it at the end of time.
We have learned from both Testaments of the Bible that the language of God is symbolism. That does not imply that everything symbolic comes from God, but it does mean we should pay careful heed before ignoring it when we see it, especially when it comes packaged in something that makes people talk about God.
All these signs exist because God loves us. They exist to show those who continue to procrastinate that time is running out. Jesus came to rescue us from eternal death, an annihilation now breathtakingly close. There is little time left for escape. Take heed.
Does the sun stopping in the book of Joshua really count as a prophecy? I haven't found anywhere in Joshua 10 that says it will happen again (although it does say that "there has never been a day like it before or since"), or that it will happen to the millenium in which Christ will lock Satan in the Abyss.AD
Answer:
Yes, absolutely. The Book of Joshua very much counts as prophecy. Not only does it tell us about one day of sunlight being stretched into two by the Lord's power, it introduces us to Michael the Archange, the captain of the army of God.
Jesus said God has directed that there be no proofs. Everything is to be based on faith. It is not necessary that you believe this prophecy, or any of the prophecies for that matter, only that you believe Jesus Christ is the divine Son of God and that obedience to His words means eternal life. Nothing else is necessary.
Jan. 5, 2005
Question:
When Jesus said to Peter at the end of the gospel of John, "If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me." I understand that to mean that John will remain alive until Jesus comes again (which you claim to be in the year 70 A.D.). Jesus doesn't really say that John WILL remain alive, but I see no reason for Jesus to say that unless it was true. Could this have simply been a lesson in selfishness, telling his disciples not to envy John or anyone for gifts offered to them?. AD
Answer:
I have never written that Jesus returned in 70 A.D. Where did you get that idea? The fact is, He has not yet returned, even now. When He does, prophecy tells us this world will instantly pass away (2 Peter 3:10). As long as this world exists, Jesus has yet to come back to it.
The most significant thing about 70 A.D. is that it is the date Herod's temple was burned down and demolished so completely that not a stone of it was left standing except for its western retaining wall.
Prophecy states that if the temple is destroyed, Christ Jesus will raise it up again in 3 days. Every Christian knows that the symbolic meaning to this prophecy was Jesus' own resurrection after His crucifixion. However, because all the works of God go in pairs by opposites, it is also possible that the destruction of Herod's temple involves a mirror image to this prediction as well.
The temple's destruction could logically lead to a "first resurrection" (Rev. 20:5) of the "first fruits of the harvest" of God. That would reprise the prediction by showing again that the true temple which is Jesus Christ, dwells in those who believe in Him. Three days after the temple is destroyed, God raises up the people in whom it dwells. Since Herod's temple was burned to the ground on August 29th, in 70 A.D., Revelation's first resurrection could have occurred on the day that corresponds to our September 1st of that year. In the Hebrew calendar, the date would have been the 13th of Loos, the month dedicated to the olive harvest.
No one will ever know if this, in fact is the date of the first resurrection, but prophecy tells us with certainty that there WAS a first resurrection (Rev. 20:5), and it would have to have a date somewhere around this period (i.e., just as the "thousand-year" reign of the Church was beginning). All the conditions for the first resurrection were met by 70 A.D. Nero, the prototype for the future 'beast of Parthia' died in 68 A.D. and during his reign, most of the top officials of the early Christian community including Peter, Paul, Luke, and many of the Apostles were put to death by his hand (Jer. 52:24-27).
More credence to this possibility can be found in the fact that the prophecy states that the first resurrection involves those "who had been given the power to be judges" (Rev. 20:4). We know from the Gospel that the twelve Apostles were awarded this power.
The only Apostle who lived beyond this date as far as anyone knows, is John. He was still alive in 93 A.D., living in exile on Patmos Island where he wrote the Book of Revelation. I think the meaning of all this has a significance far more profound than mere moral allegory. I think it means John had to stay behind until the Second Coming, when Revelation's second resurrection is to occur (Rev. 20:5).
It is interesting in this respect that the fall of Herod's temple should come in two parts. Not all of the temple fell in 70 A.D. The western wall (its western foundation platform) still remains. According to prophecy, that, too, will fall at the very end, just before Revelation's second resurrection (the event called the Rapture) occurs.
"When I have exhausted my anger against the wall and those who plastered it, I shall say to you: The wall is gone, and so are those who slapped it over with plaster, these prophets of Israel who prophesy about Jerusalem and have visions of peace for her when there is no peace." (Ez.13:10-16)
Those two parts of the temple, being torn down at different times are like bookends, not only to the two resurrections (the first and second resurrections that follow the temple's two falls) but to Christ's prophecy about Herod's edifice that not a single stone would be left on another so that nothing of that temple is going to be left standing. Again, God has dictated that there be no proofs, only faith. As always, we have to depend for our understanding on the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
Does God cause earthquakes or other catastrophe's on earth?
Answer:
No.
Scripture says that God is never the cause of what He abhors.
"God made man imperishable, he made him in the image of is own nature; it was the devil's envy that brought death into the world, as those who are his partners will discover. But the souls of the virtuous are in the hands of God, no torment shall ever touch them."
"In the eyes of the unwise, they did appear to die, their going looked like a disaster, their leaving us, like annihilation; but they are in peace. If they experienced punishment as men see it, their hope was rich with immortality; slight was their affliction, great will their blessings be...for grace and mercy await those he has chosen." (Wis. 2:23-24; 3:1-9).
According to the Bible, God sent Jesus down from heaven to warn mankind of the disasters that are coming, and to show those who would listen to Him, how to escape them.
He cautioned everyone that these are just the start of the terrible things destined to descend on this planet because of Satan's action against His Father's creation here. Jesus, speaking in terms of the new kingdom, called them "birth pangs" (the labor pains that must come as a part of the birth of the new world). As for the virtuous victims, 'There leaving us looked like disaster...but they are in peace...because their hope was rich with immortality'.
There is no future for this earth, He said no hope for long life here because of Satan. This world is doomed.
The catastrophe's we see are the tremors of a wrath straining to break free from God's staying hand. Soon, though, said Christ, it will not be catastrophe's just here and there, the entire world is going to burn up and disappear. Jesus said God cannot stop the mushrooming disintegration of this planet, forever, but He can hold back the wrath (by the power of our faith) long enough for His people (those Satan took prisoner) to choose to be resurrected into eternal life.
God has offered salvation, not just to those Satan took prisoner, but to all who abandon sin and choose to live virtuous lives. God has built a new creation in heaven where the destruction cannot reach. Those who turn to the righteousness of Jesus will be lifted out of here by God and transported to that new creation, passing from the certain death of staying here to the certain promise of everlasting life in a kingdom beyond Satan's ruinous reach.
Think of this world as a beach, and imagine Jesus as the one who has come down to the sand proclaiming that huge waves are coming and calling all the people to follow Him to the only high ground He knows will save their lives. Those who listen; those who heed His voice and do as He says, will escape unharmed. The allegory is not fanciful. Scripture likens the end of the world to the parted waters that crashed down on Pharaoh and his army as they tried to attack the rear-guard of the departing Israelites.
We are the meaning of that allegory. Those departing Israelites represent the people Christ is leading away from the looming waters that tower now over Babylon.
We can see this world's coming holocaust in our own deaths which descend on each of us inevitably, but we can also see it in the earthquakes, tidal waves, wars, diseases, famines and countless other calamities that are the precursors to the more powerful processes that are destined to follow.
Many people do not believe Christ's warning. They make up philosophies and religious teachings that ignore the realities that are bearing down on this world, encouraging others to accept their fiction. And then the tragedies suddenly strike, smashing those false beliefs into pieces. Stunned, they wring their hands and blame God. How strange that is, that they should blame God for their own refusal to believe the warnings of God's Son, and for making up foolish alternatives to His urgent pleadings.
Anyone who puts his faith in this world or in the things of this world is going to find that faith demolished. It may be an earthquake that does it, or a fire or cancer or the loss of job, home, family or friends. Jeremiah has written that all the works of mankind are going to end in fire, and Jesus has verified Jeremiah's prediction. So whether we look in the New Testament or the Old Testament, the warning is the same.
There is only one escape. It cannot be found in fanciful philosophies of worldly success or imaginative expectations. Escape from the disintegration of Satan's kingdom exists only in Jesus.
Because Jesus died for our sins, no one has to suffer the wrath that Satan has caused. Instead of chaos, only Christ restores order. Intead of panic, only Christ offers peace. Instead of death, only Christ gives eternal life. Instead of destruction, only Christ offers a new creation that will last forever. All it takes to be a part of it is the willingness to say yes to Jesus, and the faith to hold fast to His promise to the end.
Perhaps the most amazing story of the power of faith in Jesus Christ is that of Dayalan Sanders, a Christian minister who built and operated a chapel and orphanage in Sri Lanka to care for the dispossed children whose parents had died in the Sri Lankan civil war.
He and his wife had 26 orphans in their care as well several staff members of the orphanage. Dayalan, through the intercession of the Lord was able to save them all from the terrible tsunami that bore down on his facility and ripped it apart on that fateful second day of Christmas.
With pure faith, he stood up before the oncoming wave, both of his hands raised toward it, and commanded it in the name of Jesus, to stop.
To read his widely publicised story in Dayalan Sander's own words, click on the following link:
If Satan was locked in the Abyss when Nero died, how could there have been sin during Christ's thousand-year rule? AD
Answer:
Adolph Hitler has been dead now for almost 60 years but there are still many people running around wearing swastika's and saluting each other with upward raised straight-arms. It was the same with Satan's absence during the reign of the Church. His spirit of evil still covered the earth, but it was like a football team without a coach. The coordination and experience were gone. That allowed the Church to take over Satan's kingdom and establish here the rule of Christ on earth.
You can see in his return how masterfully and rapidly Satan has deceived all the nations with debauchery and orchestrated their mobilization for war, fulfilling John's prophecy (Rev. 20:8). The team was here all the time, but now the coach has returned, and his intention is to take back his world from the Church.
The Greek word for "generation" can also mean "race", so when Jesus said that he would return before "this generation" has ended... couldn't the word race be substituted? What would that mean, then? AD
Answer:
No. "Race" is a by-product of the flesh. Jesus was sent to save all flesh, not just a particular segment of it. Paul said that we must take Christ's death into us and die to our flesh so that we can be reborn into the Spirit of God. If flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, as Paul said, neither can any of its divisions. Everyone who is reborn into Jesus through obedience to the Gospel, receives a new body in Christ. That is the meaning of the word "generation". Flesh and blood is, by itself, it's own generation, just as the new creation born of the Spirit constitutes a completely new generation. The old generation of the flesh is destined to pass away, but before it does so completely, Jesus will return.
I'm not sure what Revelation means in 13:18 by calculating the number of the Antichrist. I think it's referring to the ancient Greek method of converting names into numerical values. Anyway, does Nero calculate to 666, since he's claimed to be the first appearing of the Antichrist? AD
Answer:
The name Caesar Nero has, by some calculations, been given that number. I don't know if that is shrewd enough to satisfy the prophecy, but I would think that Nero and his alter-ego to come probably fulfill one half of the prophecy, since all the works of God go in pairs by opposites. The other half of the prophecy probably involves the antithesis to Christian baptism. That antithesis is the stain of original sin, which relates to Adam & Eve via Satan. I have no numbers for that, though.
How do we know Nero was, in fact, the Antichrist? AD
Answer:
Scripture does not say that he is. Nero may be a model for the Antichrist, just as Antiochus Epiphanies IV was. In fact, since the Antichrist is described in scripture as the 8th head of the beast, all seven of its previous heads seem to be models for him. For us, Nero, the 6th head, is vague. It is easier to visualize this demon by the seventh of those heads, the one that appeared in our own time, Adolph Hitler. That evokes a more modern image of his malignancy. It is astonishing that anyone would cheer his appearance or worship him as a god, but that's exactly what happened in Germany in the 1930's. He was idolized. The whole population was mesmerized by him, strewing rose petals under his feet as he walked.
The Book of Revelation does not say outright that the reincarnation (the Antichrist) is Nero, but there is a very strong suggestion in its words that it is.
How could man have been living in the glorious thousand years and not know it? Surely there would be complete peace with no Satan? AD
Answer:
Not according to scripture. Daniel calls the reign of the Church the period of 62 weeks when the squares and ramparts of (spiritual) Jerusalem are restored and rebuilt, BUT IN A TIME OF TROUBLE (Dan. 9:25). The trouble comes from the fact that Satan's angels, the evil spirits that move man to be unrighteous, are still here, but, up to recently, they have been leaderless. Satan's return gives them back their Commanding General.
Is Revelation written in chronological order? It gives reference to Mary giving birth to Jesus (or so it seems) after it talks about the seals and trumpet soundings.AD
Answer:
No. Much of scripture is not chronological. Most of the prophecies are not even in context. The Book of Revelation consists of several unmarked flashbacks according to Bible scholars, possibly combining into one narrative, three or more separate visions by John.
As a summary, how do we know that everything in Revelation is not still in the future? Is there anything that really stands out as a proof that most of the events in Revelation did occur during the first century? How do we really know that the thousand years aren't yet to come? AD
Answer:
Two events in particular argue against that possibility. The first is the fact that Jerusalem has been rebuilt, a certain indication in scripture that the Diaspora (the "70 years" of Babylonian captivity) is about to end.
Second is the world's sudden rejection of the rule of Jesus and its turn to secularism. At first the nations streamed to the light of God, and then, after 2000 years of worship, abandoned it. Jesus said that fact, in and of itself, would be the ultimate proof of the world's love-affair with wickedness (John 3:19; 16:9). It means the harvest has almost been accomplished because it has gone to gleaning.
There are many other clues as well. This website is filled with accounts of them.
The popular Left Behind series is based on a rapture, followed by a 7-year tribulation in which people will have a second chance. Is there any scriptural mention of this, or is it complete fiction? AD
Answer:
The book you ask about is a work of fiction. Those who accept the theory proposed by the author are schooled well enough in the prophecies to know that there is to be a tribulation just before the end of the world. That is a testament to their wisdom. But they are convinced that God will spare all good Christians from its ravages.
It is mostly an American idea. That is because America has so far been spared the terrors and horrors experienced by the rest of the world over the last 100 years, a tumultuous time which has produced monstrous tribulations already. They include atomic explosions, horrible world wars, unspeakable genocides, widespread famine and starvaton, ravaging diseases, catastrophic earthquakes, and now, a mind-numbing tidal wave.
Over two million people die every year in Africa of AIDS alone. That death toll is the equivalent of 6 or more Indian Ocean tidal waves every year. Such recent world-wide mayhem attests to the fact that the tribulation has already started, a fact that means the return of Christ is closer than most think.
Since the Book of Daniel clearly shows Christians operating during the tribulation, the book's author may have added a 7-year second chance period to account for their existance. There is nothing in scripture to indicate or prove any of this. Again, Jesus said no proofs, just faith. And as far as a second chance is concerned, God has spent 40 years on each of us, refining us one by one in a trial by fire. At the end, the books will be opened. The last will not be first-time failures, they will just be first. Jesus said the first will be last and the last will be first.
do you believe in the anointed one of Aaron the chief priest Prince of Israel in the last days who will appear as it is written about him in eziekel chapters 44-47
and it is spoken of him in the dead sea scrolls C
Answer:
The "anointed one" you ask about is Michael the Archangel. (See Ezekiel 44:1-3; also Daniel 10:13-14, etc.) Michael and a small band of refugees with him are the ones who will enter through the sealed eastern (Golden) Gate at the east side of the Temple mount on the last day.
"In the twenty-fifth year of our captivity...the hand of the Lord came on me...He brought me back to the outer east gate of the sanctuary. It was shut. The Lord said to me, 'This gate will be kept shut. No one will open it or go through it, since the Lord the God of Israel has been through it. And so it must be kept shut. the prince himself, however, may sit there to take his meal in the presence of the Lord. He is to enter and leave through the porch of the gate." (Ez. 40:1; 44:1-3).
For more than 3000 years, the Jewish people have expected Elijah to appear in conjunction with the Messiah, but when he appeared to herald Jesus, his own people failed to recognize that he had come in the person of John the Baptist. Having been blinded to John's witness, and still expectant of a promise they missread, a cup is still put out on the table at every Passover Seder in anticipation of Elijah's appearance. That wait will be rewarded.
Just before the end of time, when Michael appears, Jewish hearts will be different. No longer blind, the people of Jerusalem will recognize his approach from the Mount of Olives as he heralds Christ's Second Coming. Seeing Michael advance toward them, the Jewish people will welcome his arrival with the words, "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord". At that moment, the trumpet will sound and Jesus will return in glory with all the angels of heaven.
For more on this Jewish prince who stands guard over the people of God, see 'The Last Days of Babylon', Chapter 31, "Michael the Archangel".
In the book of of Ezekiel 45:22 the prince whom you say is Michael this prince make a sacrifice for his sins and for the people. Michael doesn't sin C
Answer:
But he can conduct the sacrifice of the Mass. As you indicated, the prophecies show the prince to be a priest. Furthermore, only the Godhead is without sin. In that respect, when Jesus asked John the baptist to anoint Him, John said he wasn't worthy to do it. In answer, Christ told him it was being done to fulfill the demand of righteousness (Mt. 3:13-15). It is the same here. The prophecy is fulfilled in his actions.
also the prince is given a portion of land in Israel and his sons will also inherit his portions of his land for luke 20:36 Jesus himself says that in the resurrection there is no marriage for you are like the angels of heaven are not given into marriage C
Answer:
The King gave Esther the keys to Haman's house (Esth. 8:7); she in turn gave it to Mordecai. The people of God are to inherit the earth after it's former prince, Satan, is deposed. The creation that once belonged to Satan is given to the Bride of Christ (New Jerusalem). She is free to distribute it according to the will of God. Prophecy tells us in what manner that distribution will occur: Mordecai images Michael.
When a Christian priest is called "father", that title in and of itself, infers sons.
from his teachings this couldn't be Michael only if Michael is sent into the world born as a man in the last days like jesus was born 2000 years ago C
Answer:
No. Actually, more in the manner in which Elijah reappeared as John the Baptist (Malachi 2:23; Mat. 11:11-15).
Michael, the prince of Israel, comes as a priest. He leads the people from the City of David in exile back to its reconciliation with Jerusalem at the end of time.
Can you tell me if the war in Iraq and the tidal wave are related?NH
Answer:
One wouldn't think so at first glance. But the western world's sudden presence at the Euphrates river is enormously significant with respect to the last day prophecies. It leads straight to Jerusalem. So when a second event of biblical proportions strikes at the very moment that presence is being established, it certainly begs a deeper look.
"There in the north, there by the river Euphrates, they have collapsed, have fallen.
Who was it rose like the Nile, its waters foaming like a torrent? Why, Egypt rose like the Nile, its waters foaming like a torrent. 'I will rise,' he said 'and drown the earth; sweep towns and their inhabitants away!
Charge, horses! Crash on, chariots! Advance, warriors, you men from Cush and Put with shield in hand, you men from Lud who bend the bow!' Now, this is the day of the Lord God Almighty, a day of vengeance for his revenge on his enemies...Yes, the Lord God has a sacrifice to make in the north country, by the river Euphrates." (Jer. 46:6-10).
We have already shown in many places on this web site how this passage of scripture is related to Israel and the war in Iraq. But we have, up to now, overlooked within its description a reference to its relationship with a foaming torrential watery wave drowning the earth and sweeping whole towns and their inhabitants away. Hundreds of bustling cities, towns and villages suddenly just vanishing in the wash of a wave? No one could imagine such a thing. But now we have the event; and its chilling pictures are everywhere. It is one of the worst human catastrophe's in the history of the world.
Certainly the war in Iraq didn't cause the tsunami. Nor did God. But Jeremiah's inclusion of a description of an event that perfectly duplicates what we have just experienced (the worst tsunami disaster ever recorded) in a prophecy that is otherwise all about Iraq (the Euphrates) is astonishing. One has to ask, did the Spirit of God inspire Jeremiah to structure that passage there as a proof of the importance of the war, i.e., to reveal where it is leading (to Jerusalem)?
God, who knows all things, had to be aware the tidal wave would strike when it did. A description of it included in Jeremiah's passages about western troops in Iraq would be confirming evidence that Jeremiah was talking about THIS war and THIS presence of western troops at the banks of Iraq's fateful river. My conclusion is that God placed that tidal wave passage in scripture as a graphic illustration, not just to pinpoint the calendar moment (the 21st century), but also to emphasize the kind of catastrophe the coming occupation portends.
In the same way in which that tidal wave suddenly rose up out of a calm sea, and in the destruction it caused, so will the East rise up and pour like a torrent across the Euphrates river and sweep away whole towns along with the inhabitants who occupied them, as it overthrows the western world. Underlying this political action is a spiritual action: Satan's own return to power, his crushing of the millenium of Christ's rule on earth (which is tied part and parcel to the western world's governing authority) and his effort to overthrow the Church in his quest to reclaim his throne as prince of this planet.
Jeremiah has already offered another, equally spectacular proof on behalf of his predictions in this regard (Jer. 44:29-30). Obviously, once that proof, too, occurs, the evidentiary correlation between them should send a signal to the faithful that is profound.
The message will be clear: 'Do not perish with the world. It is passing away. Turn to Christ and hold on tight to Him: because everything He said is true and will happen exactly as He said it would!' As it is written, so will it be.
the prince has sons
michael is a holy angel not only a holy angel but a chief angel
he dosent marry and have children
the prince in ezekiel is a son of aaron the high priest
zechariah chapter 6 God uses joshua as a sign of the prince in ezekiel
joshua was a high priest son of aaron but God said put a crown upon his head C
Answer:
You have mixed metaphors here.
The Messiah, when He came, explained that Aaron prefigured Peter. With Peter as the true Aaron, the entire prophetic equation inverts accordingly. Peter ("Petra") is the "stone" with the seven eyes (the 7 churches). He is the High Priest here (in Zechariah) called "Joshua".
The prophecy in Zechariah is focused on Peter and Paul, the two olive trees, "Joshua" & "Branch". The crowns on their heads stand for their status with respect to the Church Jesus founded through them. From them a branching out is to occur, spreading the love of Christ across the globe. That branching out constitutes the reign of Christ's Church on earth.
Joshua (Peter) in this allegory is not the Prince Ezekiel described the Prince who enters the sealed East Gate in the last days. The Prince described by Ezekiel who enters that gate will be Michael the Archangel.
Michael has several titles in scripture. Among them: "Captain of the Army of God", "the Angel of God" (the guardian angel of the people of God), and "Prince". Michael, remember, is the angel of God (the refiner's fire and fuller's alkali) that took the sins away from Joshua (Peter), the high priest in Zechariah's passage (see Zech.3:1-8 & Malachi 3:1-4).
Michael has already appeared visably on earth in the past (see Joshua 5:13-15). He came then as the Captain of the Army of God to lead Joshua in his conquest of Jericho (when the walls came tumbling down) so that Israel could enter the Promised Land at the end of their flight from captivity in Egypt.
This will happen again at the end. He will come to lead Israel into the true Promised Landthe kingdom of heaven. He will come as a priest (the High Priest of the City of David as it returns to Jerusalem from exile in Babylon). He will come, leading the exiles (the last remnant) out of the Diaspora (the allegorical 70-year captivity in Babylon).
Since, in that return, he comes as a priest he will be called, during this journey, "father". The title infers sons. Since priests cannot marry, his sons are those under his jurisdiction, the Christian remnant returning under his wing from Babylon.
Jesus, in a vision to Daniel calls Michael "one of the leading princes" and, in another passage, states that Michael is the Prince of Daniel's people (Dan.10). He is the "anointed Prince" in Dan. 9:25, the one who is to appear at the beginning of the 70th week in Daniel's prophecy.
Over the space of that 70th week he will captain the remnant to its reconciliation with Jerusalem, leading them safely through the tribulation to the once-sealed eastern gate (the stones of which will fall at the trumpet blast, just as they did at Jericho) and the reunited Israel will pass through it's opening into God's eternal kingdom. In that instant, everything will change in the brilliance of Christ's return.
Can you pls. explain what is sin against Holy Spirit, if possible with Bible Reference? Thanks AV
Answer:
Possibly because of Jesus' admonition against this sin, the Holy Spirit is probably the least known or understood aspect of the Trinity. People seem afraid to acknowledge Him or contemplate His existance even though He forms one-third of the Godhead!
Many think that the Holy Spirit came into existance only at Pentecost after Jesus was crucified. What came into the world that day in 30 A.D. was the Spirit of the completed Godhead, Father, Son and Spirit. The Spirit was in the world far earlier than that, however. He was in the world from the beginning, leading everyone to that Pentecostal moment.
Scripture tells us that the voice of the Holy Spirit has spoken through the ancient prophets, inspiring them to reveal all things, even before the first of them had occurred. In this way, the Spirit of God has, from the very beginning, guided the world toward an understanding of the Messiah which is Jesus, and without whom, salvation would not be possible.
Made complete by Jesus, the Holy Spirit is the Word of God that comes down from the Father and Son to take up permanent residence in our hearts. He reminds us of everything Jesus said, tells us what is to come, counsels us about our actions in relation to Christ, and carefully leads us to eternal life in God by a path of fire the trials and tribulations that come to each of us when we put the Word of God into action in our own lives against a world very hostile to that Word.
Just before He was crucified, Jesus told His apostles that He still had many things to tell them but that it would be too much for them at that time. Instead, He said, the Holy Spirit whom He would send to them after He was glorified, would reveal all these new truths in the days that followed. One of the greatest of these truths was the concept and understanding of the Trinity itself.
Scripture tells us the Holy Spirit does not live in a body that is in debt to sin, so the first thing the Divine Counsellor does is lead us to repentance and baptism. Once that is accomplished He is able to take up residence inside the cleansed vessel of our soul to act as the navigator of our lives in Christ. He only speaks in Christ because all He tells us is taken from what belongs to Jesus. God the Father has given everything He has to Jesus.
The Holy Spirit is the voice that speaks to our heart and guides us along the path to heaven. In this day and age it is not generally considered the height of mental stability here in Babylon to be listening to an inner voice speaking from within. So, to discourage ridicule by pagans, few Christians acknowledge His presence in their lives or encourage His active counsel. At least very few admit to receiving it. How many people have you heard say, "The Holy Spirit told me..." or, "I was instructed by the Holy Spirit not to..." ?
In the academic world, God's spiritual voice has even worse connotations. Most Bible scholars are forbidden by scholastic rules to incorporate the Holy Spirit into their work. Their colleagues at the universities would laugh them out of school if they dared give even passing credit or even credence to an invisible Spirit of God guiding them in their interpretations or in their work. For that reason they act alone, independent of divine inspiration. That omission is glaringly evident in their writings and speech.
You will never hear a Bible scholar write or talk about his being instructed in his work by the Holy Spirit. And yet, we know nothing about Jesus or God except by the instruction of the Holy Spirit. Jesus never wrote a single word down. He entrusted all of His commandments (God's commandments) to His disciples who housed them in their hearts.
That is why it is written in the prophecies:
"I bind up this testimony, I seal this revelation in the heart of my disciples." (Is.8:16).
The Holy Spirit drew the Gospels out of the memories of those in whom Jesus had entrusted His words. And it was the Holy Spirit who instructed the scribes to write the words down:
"Now go and inscribe this on a tablet, write it in a book, that it may serve in the time to come as a witness forever." (Is.30:8).
"Give them all this in writing so that they can see and take note of its design and the way it is all arranged and carry it out." (Ez.43:10-12).
"The deaf that day will hear the words of a book and, after shadow and darkness, the eyes of the blind will see." (Is.29:18).
They can read that Book because the Holy Spirit not only sparked the memories of those in whom the Word of Christ was stored, He also guided the text and message of their reminiscences and writing in such a way that it would perfectly echo the intent of the Father and Son. There was no possibility of error or mistake because of the active presence of the Holy Spirit in the formulation of the work. That is why it is written in scripture:
"I tell you solemnly, whatever you bind on earth shall be considered bound in heaven; whatever you loose on earth shall be considered loosed in heaven." (Mat. 18:18).
The same is true of the Church.
"So I now say to you: You are Peter (the name means 'rock') and on this rock I will build my Church. And the gates of the underworld can never hold out against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of Heaven: whatever you bind on earth shall be considered bound in heaven; whatever you loose on earth shall be considered loosed in heaven.' (Mat.16:13-19).
Those who maintain that modern churches are superior to the early churches have failed to understand the perfection of the Holy Spirit. The entire structure of the Church on earth from beginning to end has been architected personally by the Holy Spirit. Each part (each church) has a function vital to God. Everyone who argues against the Church argues against the Holy Spirit. Everyone who argues against Mary, the mother of Jesus, argues against the Holy Spirit who conceived the life of the world within her womb.
When we are born-again into Christ, we are conceived by the Holy Spirit. He is the giver of life whose baptism imparts into each of us eternal life. The "wedding garment", which is the new body that is to be the covering of our soul in the new kingdom, is a construct of the Holy Spirit. The baptism of the Spirit comes to us the moment we recognize that Jesus is the Son of the living God.
It was decided early in the history of the Church that our faith should be defined by creed. Two primary creeds were formulated, first, the shorter Apostles Creed which was soon followed by the second and longer Nicene Creed. Both define our worship of the Spirit, the second most powerfully. They tell us that "Jesus was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit", and that the Spirit is "the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son". Together "with the Father and Son", the creed states, " He is worshipped and glorified". "He has spoken through the prophets."
Every prophecy comes from the instruction of the Holy Spirit. That is why Jesus said that every prophecy in scripture had to be fulfilled. Daniel said that the end of the world (the final day in the seventy weeks of Christianity on earth) could not occur until all those prophecies and visions had been fully revealed (Dan. 9:24). That is why there is such a spate of revelation occurring now. The time is close.
We can hear the voice of the Holy Spirit in every prophecy we read in scripture. And in every prophecy that is fulfilled we hear the truth of His voice confirmed. Every revelation comes from Him.
With the decreasing emphasis on the role of the Holy Spirit in the latest churches, especially those established in the 19th and 20th centuries, the creeds which glorify Him seem to have been more or less abandoned. This has only added to a diminishing understanding in modern times of the nature and importance of the role of the Holy Spirit in our lives by the Church faithful.
The Holy Spirit is the wall of fire that God has sent to be our guard against all the forces Satan has mounted against us. This same divine wall of fire is the guardian of all nations who believe in the Trinity and acknowledge Jesus as Lord. Those who abandon Him, He abandons. As scripture says, He cannot stay in a body in debt to sin.
Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is contemptuous speech against the righteousness of the Gospel. The Gospel writer, Mark, said that when the Lord made His statement revealing that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit was an unforgiveable sin and could not be cleansed either in this world or the next, He had said it in response to certain Jews who began claiming that Jesus had an unclean spirit in Him.
Such blasphemy used to be very unusual. Most people on earth recognize righteousness even if they don't recognize Jesus or God in it. The Book of Hebrews has a comment about insulting the spirit of grace (Heb. 10:29), and if that comment is directed at this issue, it broadens the range of spiritual blasphemy considerably.
One would hope in the great mercy of Jesus that the narrower definition be employed,. There is a trend lately, however, that goes further than merely blurring the lines between righteousness and evil, actually inverting the two. We can see it in comments made by some that ridicule righteousness while promoting abject evil in its place. Those who ridicule the righteousness of scripture fall into this category.
"Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil, who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness, who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter...For this, as stubble is prey for the flames and as straw vanishes in the fire, so their root will rot, their blossom be carried off like dust, for rejecting the Law of God Almighty, and despising the word of the Holy One of Israel." (Is.5:20-24).
Jim Jones, the minister that led has flock down to British Guiana in the 1970's and murdered them all there, had been observed on many occasions, throwing the Bible down on his church floor and stomping on it in front of his congregation. Who could argue that such an action didn't blaspheme the spiritual Author of those scriptures?
And today, we see comedians and others openly blaspheme the scriptures on national television. Repellent actions like these, inconceivable during most of the past 2000 years are suddenly becoming more common. Less overt, but still contentious are others who, in their arguments in favor of homosexuality and other sexual excesses and deviations have recently made accusations against the Book that opposes these actions.
We should always beware of calling good evil or saying that evil is good. Just remember that it is the Holy Spirit who inspired the Bible and authored the righteousness it defines in the Gospel of Christ.
Other verses concerning blasphemy of the Holy Spirit can be found in Mat. 12:31-32; Mk. 3:29 & Luke 12:10
We can be certain to avoid such a sin by living in accordance with Christ and giving reverence to God in all ways, and in acknowledging His hand and His Holy Spirit in everything that is holy and righteous.
How soon to when the Euphrates river dries up? KJ
Answer:
A fair amount of time must pass until that happens, I would think.
Once the situation in Iraq is stabilized enough for victory to be declared, the prophecies indicate there will be a brief period during which Democracy's push toward world domination will continue to arch forward. Then, suddenly, disaster will strike:
"Then the he-goat grew very strong, and at the height of his power, the great horn was broken off..." (Dn.8:8).
Jeremiah calls that sudden circumstance the sign for all that is to follow the truth of all the prophecies concerning the fate of Babylon and the successive devastations of Jerusalem.
This sudden upheaval will quickly change everything, according to Daniel. The Alexander-like doctine mandating a world-ruling democracy will be replaced by a fractured western world, divided suddenly into four "conspicuous horns, pointing to the four winds of heaven".
The smallest of these will grow into the 'ten-nation confederacy" that is to become the power structure of the great army of the Medes. This will take some time. Meanwhile, western forces will remain stationed at, or near the Euphrates river. The prophecies indicate they will remain there until the attack you ask about materializes.
When we see the Medes enter the picture we know that God's war against Babylon is passing from the spiritual phase into the physical phase. That is happening now. From the moment the first war at the Euphrates began, the signal became clear. When the East attacked the world's towers of commerce in New York, the gauntlet was thrown. The Medes had begun their rise to power. That is a certain indication that the spiritual warfare has almost been concluded. It tells us the harvest has gone to gleaning, and the physical war is about to start.
Satan's rebellion his war against God was first fought in heaven. Satan and his angels were defeated there and thrown down onto this world (a place scripture calls "Babylon"). The king of Babylon is a metaphoric term and it stands for the prince of this world, the enemy of God. Before God concluded His war against Satan, He sent His Son, Jesus Christ to search for and rescue all the people Satan had taken prisoner. That rescue is the meaning of Christianity.
The war against Satan in Babylon has two parts, the first is spiritual, the second, physical.
On a bare hill the signal for this war was raised. It was a cross. From it came a war cry: the Gospel being preached. This war of the Word is the spiritual war. The battleground is the soul. The souls of all the people in Babylon are judged by Christ's Gospel and either saved or mortally wounded depending on their righteousness or lack of it. Evil cannot co-exist with God. This is the spiritual conflagration: the refiner's fire and fuller's alkali.
God's warriors are those who preach and their army divisions are the churches, all the nations that worship Him. The judgment reaches down to the depths of the civilization, reaching past the flood all the way to the beginning of the creation. The Gospel of Christ rolls around the earth, bringing everyone under the scrutiny of its eye. The examination itself is exhaustive, interactive, and can be more than 40 years in length.
That careful examination is God's salvation of the people Satan took prisoner, lifting each one as they are found, out of the certain mortality of wickedness that surrounds us here and transporting those He has chosen to a new kingdom where they will not die, but live forever in the joy of perfect peace and prosperity according to the sure promise of God.
Once the spiritual process has been completed, the physical war will commence. God has held it back so the spiritual warfare could proceed to its conclusion. He restrained the physical death by chaining up the forces of the East at the Euphrates river. When the harvest has been completed, those chains will be removed. That is when the Euphrates will be dried and the forces of the East sweep across it like a flood, like the tsunami God used as a graphic in the prophecies which predict it.
The physical war brings the Medes who will burn Babylon to the ground. This is the physical conflagration. It brings to physical reality what has already happened to the world spiritually. The sign of its coming can be found in Isaiah13 and throughout the Book of Daniel, and those signs are unfolding all around us as we watch.
Why, in your synopsis of 2004-2005 Tsunami tragedy would you not include the millions of personal and vast world governments donations and recovery. Also the thousands of people donating there time. God is a God of Love, why only report the tragedy? CD
Answer:
The Spirit of Christ on earth is a spirit of love and mercy. The Apostle James wrote: "Pure, unspoilt religion, in the eyes of God our Father is this: coming to the help of orphans and widows when they need it, and keeping oneself uncontaminated by the world." (James 1:27; Mat. 6:1-4). Much is still needed in this regard. This tsunami has created widows and orphans in uncounted numbers. If anyone wants to donate to this desperate cause, the aide agencies still badly need your help.
NOTE, Jan.27, The Red Cross announced that they have raised 1.17 billion dollars in 30 days, enough to fund the tsunami recovery efforts for the next10 years, so is winding down its request for additional funds for this purpose. Funds are still needed by the Red Cross for other relief operations, however.
Will China be the country that leads the East's invasion against the West? WO
Answer:
The East does not come in on its own. The Invasion from the East is actually an invasion from the North (see Is.4:5++ & Ez. 38:14-16) it comes from an alliance of 10 nations & will be led by the North (relative to Jerusalem). If you draw a line straight north from Jerusalem to the North Pole, it will pass through Turkey, the Black Sea, the Ukraine, then almost through the City of Moscow in Russia. A few smaller nations in association with the Black Sea lie just to the east and west of this line.
"I am bringing you disaster from the North, an immense calamity...the destroyer of nations is on his way..." (Is.4:6-7).
Meshech and Tubal which lie on the northern borders of the Black Sea are peudonyms for nations associated with the country of Magog, the homeland of the king of the North in Ezekiel's prophecies (Ez.38). All three are related to this invasion.
In the irony of prophecy, the name "Black Sea", itself, which evokes the image of a water of darkness, contrasts with the water of "Sonlight" which is the Living Water of God that is the Holy Spirit. It is fitting that the prophecies foresee the forces of evil launching themselves from such a dark platform at the end of time. Especially when it will be their role to cloak the world in a darkness even the sun cannot penetrate (Ez.32:7-8; Joel 43:4-5).
Can a person go to heaven if they are not baptised? How important is it to be baptised? This is important to me please answer L
Answer:
The Holy Spirit has instructed the Church that everyone born onto this planet comes here with a soul stained with the mark of Satan. That mark is called "original sin". It is passed down to us from Adam, the man of original sin, and is the true meaning of the mark of the beast. Unless that stain is removed, the soul will perish. Baptism is the mechanism God has employed to cleanse us of Satan's mark (Jn3:5; Acts 2:38). It comes in three parts.
Jesus went to the cross specifically to be the sacrifice that cleansed, not just original sin, but all sin. And not just past sin, but future sin as well, provided it, too, is atoned for by repentance and love. The cross has that kind of perpetuating power. As the Son of God, Jesus went to the cross in our name, making, of His body, an offering more perfect than anything mortal man has power to duplicate. His blood washes away our sins and seals the new covenant between ourselves and God.
The sacrifice itself was essential because the Law of Moses commanded it and God is not a lawbreaker. By fulfilling the requirement of the Law, Jesus was able to remove us from the fatality it dictated for our part in the rebellion. The seal of water is our legal acceptance of Christ's offer. When we are sealed, we are free of the Law.
Scripture commands that Christ's seal be marked on our bodies (Gen. 17:13). The water of baptism, as it washes over our flesh, is that seal. Associated with it comes a baptism of the Holy Spirit which cleanses our soul of the mark of the beast, making it holy and pure. Except in the case of babies, the baptism of the Holy Spirit requires a confession of one's sinfulness, heartfelt repentance and a resolve to avoid future sin (see Ps.32). The baptism of the Holy Spirit usually comes with the baptism of water. In the case of baptised babies, the baptism of the Spirit comes later when the child reaches the age of reason and confirms the pledge.
Is more needed? Yes. That "more" is the third part of baptism, a "baptism of fire". The Holy Spirit acts as "refiner's fire and fuller's alkali", leading each Christian on the Sacred Way to eternal life. Those who keep to the path of God (even though they may stumble along it) will be saved. On the souls of those who abandon the path of God, the stain of Satan will return.
With more and more churches closing their doors these days, it is important to know that any baptised Christian has power to baptise another, washing them in water in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit in the presence of a witness. Baptism is not an initiation ceremony into a particular church. It is the covenant of Jesus Christ marked on our bodies. One baptism covers all churches. Some churches re-baptise congregants simply to make sure that the water in the ceremony actually touched the person receiving the baptism.
Nuclear Christianity is non-Christianity. It is a contradiction in terms. That is why the churches are so essential to our walk in Christ. Jesus taught that we must live our faith in the community, "No one", he said, "lights a light to hide it under a tub or under a bed". In the same way, the light that is in us must be put on a lampstand so that all who come in may see it. That is the way we gather the oil, the essential accumulation spoken of in Mat. 25:1-2. Where two or more meet in His name, Jesus is always there with them (Mat.18:20).
I have a question for you regarding Sins Against the Holy Spirit. What if one, during a period of spiritual conflict, were to impugn the known truth and resist the Holy Spirit. Then, later realize the "truth" and repent? Is there no salvation for such a soul? Such a soul could fall into despair (yet another sin against the holy spirit) not for doubting God's mercy, rather doubting their worthiness of God's mercy. RO
Answer:
Jesus told His apostles that no one can come to the Father unless he has been called:
"No one can come to me unless he is drawn by the Father who sent me, and I will raise him up at the last day. It is written in the prophets 'They will all be taught by God', and to hear the teaching of the Father, and learn from it, is to come to me." (John 6:44-45).
We do not choose God, He chooses us
"You did not choose me, no, I chose you; and I commissioned you to go out and to bear fruit, fruit that will last; and then the Father will give you anything you ask him in my name." (John 15:16).
The very fact that the person you ask about has since discovered the truth of Christ (in itself a teaching given by the Holy Spirit) indicates that God is calling them to repentance. He would not do that were they in a state of eternal condemnation. You are correct, no one should resist the call of God in Christ. Self-perception of worthiness means nothing. The call itself means everything.
Those people who disappeared in the tsunami, could that be a part of the rapture? KF
Answer:
No. If anything,, it was a part of the tribulation.
Only Satan would orchestrate that kind of mayhem on earth, not God.
That tidal wave showed graphically what happens when families and neighbors are suddenly wrenched apart in loss. I have spoken for years on these pages against a pre-tribulation rapture and what I have seen this last month only reaffirms those thoughts. Not only does it violate scripture, it is not Godlike. It is something God would never set in motion, and something He would fight to the end to prevent. It is a cold, loveless, impersonal and merciless theory. The reality of it is incomprehensible anguish.
Those stark and frightening images coming out of Banda Aceh and Sri Lanka show us what "left behind" really looks like. It's filled with orphans and widows, heartbreaking grief and bottomless despair. It's not neat and tidy like the stories claim it to be.
All one has to do is look at the psychological & physical trauma coming out of Sumatra - the horrifying losses gripping all those women, babies and children. A pre-tribulation rapture would be just as stupefying for all who are left behind. Like Banda Acehcoming out of a jumble of wrecked automobiles, motorcycles, busses, and taxicabs, the damage would be an immobilizing anguish on those still living.
And it would be world-wide. A pre-tribulation rapture would not just be limited to the seacoast of the Indian Ocean, it would extend everywhere, Denver, Memphis, Seattle, Fairbanks, Honolulu, Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, London, Paris, Holland, Mexico, the Phillipines, Japan, Brazil, Canada, all over the world at the very same moment, every city, every country, left in the ruins of instant devastation. Orphans and widows and widowers everywhere, wailing, crying in the bitter anguish of unfathomable despair. All that from God? No possible way.
Many of the medical professionals going to Banda Aceh to serve the victims left behind by the tsunami are 'burning out' by the experience in just 10 days and have to be rotated out for the sake of their sanity. It is the anguish of all that loss perpetuated on those left behind that has gripped them more violently than the injuries. For injury, they were medically prepared. Not so for the reality of the "left-behind" syndrome. There has been nothing to prepare them for that.
"Left-behind" will not come by God's hand. Not in this way. Not in a pre-tribulation nightmare like this.
God would fight to the death, even to the death of His own Son on a cross to prevent such a singular planetary holocaust.
"Left-behind" will come individually, one by one, and catastrophe by catastrophe, because God will fight till the last man stands to prevent the losses. He will toil continuously in this manner, throughout the entire tribulation. Only then will come the rapture. At the very end when all is completed and after Michael has called out the command and the trumpet blast has sounded.
The prophecy is very clear about this:
"For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, and with the call of the archangel; and with the sound of the trumpet of God; And those who have died in Christ will be the first to rise, and then those of us who are still alive will be taken up in the clouds, together with them, to meet the Lord in the air. So we shall be with the Lord forever." (1 Thes.4:16-18).
The prophesies could be about any time. They were written about what took place before Jesus was born. What makes you think those apply to things today? HR
Answer:
No one knows with absolute certainty that they do apply to our time.
They are about the future, though. That we do know. First, because the angel told Daniel all his visions were about the end of time. And second, by the context of their subject matter. There is almost as much prophecy about the Second Coming of Jesus Christ in scripture as there is about His First appearance in Bethlehem. Together, these two manifestations of God on earth are the bookends to God's offer of salvation to mankind.
It is also clear that if these visions do not apply to our time, then they do not apply to anything even remotely close to our time because there is nothing else on the horizon that even distantly approximates the circumstances these prophecies envision. Right now we have been able to catalog a perfect dance, reality for vision, step by step, in a systematic chronology in which each prediction has been closely echoed by a corresponding historical event.
As long as that sequence continues to evolve unbroken, we must track it closely, the same way we would the path of an asteroid the charts show to be on a collision course with the earth. For the end of the world, God has given us the charts. It is up to us to match those scriptural parameters with the events of our own time.
Everything that is happening now evidences a morning sky cloaked in scarlet. It strongly suggests that anyone still remaining distant from Christ better drop what they are doing and close that gap as quickly as they can. It is not enough to wait until the very last moment to light the lamp. The oil must still be gathered, and that takes time. Now is not the time to be sitting around waiting for more proof.
Your recent study on Michael had many many allegorical insights that I found tied up alot of loose ends and created many questions to be formed also where learning was once present. You know that God does all things by pairs and opposites as you discuss in your writings...
Christ, at his first advent, entered this eastern gate on Palm Sunday. Thus, there was a foreshadowing of this occurance but in Christ who came riding on a donkey, thru this eastern gate.... Do you see this event as a foreshadowing of some sort? C
Answer:
Yes! Absolutely! And not just a foreshadowing, but as the primary fulfillment of the prophecy, which, as you point out, comes to us in opposite pairs. Lest there be any doubt about it, the Messiah has already passed through the East Gate portal. The one who "comes in the name of the Lord" at the end, does so for the sake of the Jews, to fulfill their long standing expectation represented in Elijah's cup. When Michael appears, the Jews are saved. It is that salvation that brings Christ's Return!
I have noted your essential point in the paper.
You have written in your paragraph titled [River of life] quote: trees of life. i do beleive that there is only one[1] tree of life that reaches on each side of the river...in Rev.22:1,2 it only mentions one tree here.
(The reference is to) "The bible's book of revelations"------part 3----the wedding feast of the lamb.----listed under the book of life,--than under the heading of the river of life.DP
Answer:
In that particular quotation, the "tree of life" is written in the original Greek as a collective noun implying plurality. Some scriptures note this enigma, others do not. The scripture I used when writing that page was one of those which did. We know that the Tree of Life stands for the Word of God (the Gospel), and that it comes from a three-person God we call the Trinity. A similar example can be seen in Genesis 1:26 ("God said, 'Let US make man in OUR own image.") where the common Hebrew name for God "Elohim", a plural form, is used. Again, I see in both of these quotations a prophecy of the Trinity, a Godhead in three parts. Thank you for bringing it to my attention.
This said, I will change the paragraph to the more familiar singular form since there is far less agreement for using the plural form here than in the Genesis quotation. The singular form glorifies Jesus alone as the Tree of Life. Scripture tells us this is appropriate since God the Father has given everything He has to the Son (Jn.16:13-15).
Is Jesus the only way to get into heaven? JS
Answer:
Heaven means life after death. Not many religions actually offer it.
The few that do show that eternal life is not a right. It is an option.
Jesus, the first person on earth to offer eternal life, saved us from death by dying in our place on the cross. But His offer is only open to those who accept it. If we accept somebody else's plan instead, then we are dependent on their way into heaven, whatever it is. In many cases, that other way is simply, "I think...".
The reality of the end of life before Jesus appeared was the mortuary and the graveyard. A person outside of Christ still has all that. Jesus brought a way to bypass the grave. He brought a way to live forever. But not as a right. As an option. He gave us the choice.
Until Christ appeared, no one in the world had ever suggested the opportunity to knowingly live forever. The Jews didn't believe in eternal life. Moses didn't teach it. The Romans didn't either. Neither did the Greeks. Certainly all those pagan tribes slaughtering their children at altars across the ancient world to appease various gods didn't expect it. Confucius didn't offer it. Buddhists and Hindu's saw life recycled, but not in heaven and not knowingly or eternally.
Jesus changed all that. He pledged something never before offered on earth.
How do we know His offer is real? We don't. Not for sure. That is where faith comes in. Credibility is such a key issue here, it cannot be overstated. In which plan do you have such confidence that you would be willing to sell everything you own to buy it?
Six hundred years after Jesus guaranteed eternal life to Christians, Mohammed came saying he was a servant of Allah. He claimed that Allah would give eternal life to those who followed the Koran.
After that, eternal life became an issue to be debated by other religious teachers. Not by Hindu's or Confucionists or Jews, generally, but by splinter groups within the Christian and Muslim communities. They began to ponder whether there might be a way to live forever by following rules that differed from those set forth in the sacred documents of the two religions which offered it.
Al Queda, for instance, teaches that eternal life can only be achieved at the end of scimitar stained crimson by the blood of infidels. Various religious institutes promise eternal life to all who are willing to memorize their lessons and send in the appropriate monthly cash. A supermarket checker I know claims eternal life is given to everybody on earth, period. No matter what.
It all comes down to credibility. Who has the credentials to make the offer.
Remember, what's being offered here is very bizarre! It is the ability to get up out of the grave. It is the ability to survive an airliner crash in which there are no survivors, or to live through an atomic blast that explodes a foot over our heads. This is an offer so fantastic it demands credentials.
What are Al Queda's credentials? What credentials does the super-market checker have? What are the credentials of a Maharishi from New Delhi? It all boils down to what a person wants to believe. But that is not an equation that squares with credibility. In terms of credibility, if we want eternal life or heaven, there are basically only two options. The first is the original offer of Jesus Christ and the other is the one that came 600 years later by Mohammed.
Mohammed came out of the blue. There was no expectation of his coming. He started out an ordinary person in an ordinary life and then one day, he said Allah just appeared to him. That is not much different than the way Joseph Smith was introduced to God more than a thousand years later.
Jesus was different. He was predicted in advance. He came at the end of a thousand years of prophecy. An entire Bible was produced entirely to explain the details of His coming appearance. A major world religion was formed specifically to prepare the way for Him. The core of the Jewish religion is based completely on Moses' prediction of a "son of David", a Messiah who was to bring God's personal Word to the people. The prophets, whose writings fill the scriptures, elevated the Messiah's status to the realm of divinity. He would tread the earth, they wrote, yet touch the heavens. He would be the Christ.
Those are pretty heady credentials, and a three-thousand year old scripture is the credential that verifies them. So is the life He lived in fulfillment of those predictions. So is the fact that He came as Righteousness personified. He championed love, forgiveness, mercy, compassion, justice, peace, gentleness, honesty and virtue. He has towered for 2000 years, the world's incandescent symbol of righteousness.
Adding to it, the Messiah said He and God were one (Jn. 10:30), and He rose from the dead to prove it.
Jesus told the world that God intended to save, not just the Jews and the other eleven tribes of Israel, but every person on earth willing to abandon their current sinful lives and turn to the commandments which He had brought down to them from heaven. He also gave credible reasons for death and sin and the colossal measures God had to institute to overcome them.
The Law demanded our deaths, so He paid the required penalty in our place. That payment ended our contract with the graveyard, provided we accept the terms of His offer. And if we don't? Jesus said: "You will die in your sins. Yes, if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins." (Jn 8:24). That's very plain.
God put Jesus into a real body which He had to take knowlingly into a real death, beaten to a pulp like a criminal, with nails hammered into Him in a grievous payment for our sins, Not His sins, OURS. Add to His credentials, then, proof of His willingness to lay down His life for us.
Sin, Jesus said, has made it impossible for this world to survive. He warned that its end is very near. For that reason, He explained, God has constructed a new heaven and a new earth to replace it, crafting it far away in a safe location where contamination cannot touch it. He said God had given Him authority to transport all who choose to follow Him to that new kingdom. It is a world, He said, in which evil cannot exist and that is the reason we have to change the way we live so that we can be acceptable for admittance. Whatever comes from Satan has to be left behind.
Those who persist in the rebellion will die.
Jesus taught that, as captives to what is evil, all people are separated from God. That's why we die. That is why flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God. It is also why eternal life is not a right. This world's body has to die. If we want our soul to live, we must put on a new body, and the only new body offered is the one Jesus has designed for the new kingdom. He said we have to be "born" again into a body of righteousness.
A key to Jesus' authority is His ability to permanently wash away the sins of those who come to Him. The Law dictated the rules for the remission of sin and Jesus followed those rules to the letter. Because of His unique relationship with God, His Passion on the cross was a sacrifice more perfect than any human being has power to duplicate. That preeminence gave Him the power to pay the penalty of the Law in our place.
When that power is added to the mountain of predictions that foresaw His coming, and the perfection of His life, His credibility far surpasses all who say they can do it too. The reality is, the others just WISH they could do it. They wish it would happen the way they want it to be. But they have absolutely no way and no power to make that wish come true.
Jesus, with enormous power, and overwhelming credentials has offered complete forgiveness and eternal life to everyone willing to confess their sins in His name and accept the Sacred Way He designed. That is the pathway by which God has chosen to reconcile man with Himself and rescue us from death.
Only those who accept His offer and are baptized into it are eligible to be saved. Scripture says the covenant has to be marked on our bodies.
We can see the End Jesus warned about coming now catastrophe by catastrophe. Soon, all those piecemeal annihilation's will merge into a single giant apocalypse. That event, said Jesus, is going to happen suddenly, like the two walls of water which abruptly crashed back together on Pharaoh's army in Moses' time. Christ's offer is about to run out. Those who are undecided about it need to act fast.
The prophets wrote that the captains of the Church are required to "pitch their tents close to the Tabernacle of the Testimony". That means they have to closely follow the rules of scripture. That is why there is such turbulence in the ranks when they don't. Eternal life is what is at stake. The gate in, said Jesus, is narrow, and so it has to be closely guarded by the stewards of the Church.
That is because the offer is all about credentials. And in that department, it is only about Jesus.
Please have someone re-check your facts stated on your web page. M.M. O'Hair did NOT remove prayer from our public schools - the Supreme Court Decision in the Murray vs. Curlett case removed SCHOOL-SANCTIONED prayer from public schools...please read the decision, it's available several places on the web or from the Supreme Court.
Johnson did NOT "create the Gulf of Tonkin and plunge us into the Viet Nam War." Eisenhower put us there 1st in 1959, Kennedy increased our involvement in 1961 and Johnson increased our involvement again after the Gulf of Tonkin incident in 1964. Please check these facts. God Bless You in your ministry, DA
Answer:
Actually, the threads of responsibility go back further than the ones you listed. They reach all the way to Adam and Eve who ate the forbidden fruit in the Garden at Eden. Jesus died on the cross so that Adam's unending thread of responsiblity could be broken.
Because of Christ, we all have choice.
This is why each person in the chain is reponsible for the sins they add to that chain. They can be the empetus to sin, as was Eve when she gave the fruit to Adam, or they can perpetuate sin, as did Johnson with Vietnam. Finally, they can break the thread that perpetuates sin altogether by standing up for God.
Madeline Murrary O'Hare gave the Supreme court a symbolic apple. They didn't have to be like Adam and eat it. Johnson perpetuated a war that he could have ended. All three were involved in sets of choices that had enormous consequences. Impact is the issue here, not fine-points.
Johnson, who sent a battle machine of over 400,000 troops into Vietnam (3 times the force we have in Iraq today) to replace the 15,000 "advisors" that were there when he took office, chose war instead of peace. He had the choice. Many respected historians say he orchestrated the choice. Either way, he can't point backward at the people who came before him and say, "The Devil made me do it". Jesus prevents him from doing that.
M.M.O'Hare gave the Supreme Court the opportunity to rule between a constitution with God or a constitution without God. They chose the latter. They could have blended the two choices by leaving things as they always had been, or by making small constructive changes, but they didn't. No compromise, they just threw God out.
Now we must choose. The decision in the O'Hare case proved that we can't choose both. One or the other has to be our God, but not both. That decision was a line in the sand because it took away compromise. It made all of us choose between God and no God.
As far as the "school-sanctioned" part, is concerned, one has only to look at the impact. The change in our society from the O'Hare/Supreme Court decision was dramatic, not only because it ripped out of the nation its moral base, but also because it plunged the public domain into heathenism. There is no morality in the constitution, just law.
The impact of O'Hare/S.C. has gone far beyond the school system It has reached into all aspects of American society and culture, and even into foreign societies as well. It has pitted law against biblical morality. It has pitted the law against God. It has reached to mountain-tops, courts, all aspects of government, television and radio, even into the nation's magazines and newspapers. It has come to pervade our entire culture. Only the right-wing counter-attack and its role in the re-election of President Bush has blunted the river of social change coming out of O'Hare/S.C.
Those are the facts I was looking at the facts God will discuss with us when we stand before Him at the end trying to convince Him that we were constitutionally correct in forbidding our children to hear His name mentioned in our schools because the word "God" was so controversial to our kingdom that we we had to throw Him out of it.
When we come before Him, he can do the same to us, because up there, the tables will be reversed and we might be too controversial for our names to be mentioned in His kingdom. He might just throw us out, too.
According to the Gospel of Luke, there is no "might" about it:
"But as for my enemies who did not want me for their king, bring them here and execute them in my presence." (Luke 19:27).
As you requested, I have checked the facts and updated them.
Does the false prophet have anything to do with the synagogue of satan in revelations 2:9? KJ
Answer:
No.
The false prophet in the Book of Revelation relates to Babylon, not Judea. Both houses of Israel (Christians and Jews) have been exiled into Babylon and it is out of that kingdom and away from its gods that we are being rescued by the call of Christ.
"Writhe, cry out daughter of Zion, for now you have to leave the city and live in the open country. To Babylon you must go and there you will be rescued; There God will ransom you out of the power of your enemies." (Micah 4:10).
The false prophet is the second of two "beasts" who work to prevent our escape.
The first beast is Satan's pagan world. It has seven "heads" These stand for the seven empires that have risen up over the millenia to try to subjugate or destroy the House of Israel. Each of these enemy nations has a figurehead that characterizes it. The sixth of these "heads" was a Roman empire symbolically called "Babylon" in John's prophecies. It's figurehead was Nero.
Under Nero and the other Caesar's a false religion called paganism ruled the world in association with Babylon. Demanding emperor-worship, this philosophy included the panopoly of pagan gods and goddesses and their temples that dotted his empire. We read in Rev. 19:11-21, that both Babylon and its false prophet were defeated by the Word of God, i.e., by the Sword wielded by Jesus.
In God's victory, the religion of Jesus overpowered the Roman Empire, driving paganism out of it and taking over the seat of power. Babylon and paganism were thrown "alive" into the fiery lake of burning sulphur (Rev.19:20).
With Christ's victory, temporal power (the rule of the western world) passed into the hands of governors and kings who agreed to share their rule with God. They removed paganism from their kingdoms and put Jesus in its place, inviting Him to sit next to them on their thrones. The emperor Constantine remains the figurehead of this change. The pattern he set began the "thousand-year" rule of the Church on earth. In keeping with the prophecy of Joshua, that rule has lasted longer than a thousand years.
Because the nations shared their thrones with God, there was no false prophet in the fields of harvest during this period, nor was there any "Babylon" or "head" of the beast there either. God was in control. All attempts to unseat Him ended in failure. God's control continued even through the appearance of Adolph Hitler, the seventh head of the beast. Despite the fact that Hitler was able to take temporary control of the world's temporal ruling city, Rome, the rule of Christ remained spiritually in power primarily as a result of the power of faith coming from the United States.
With the United States still sharing its throne with God, it was able to kill Hitler and defeat his allies, beating back their attempt to return Satan's beast to the seat of world power. Once again, Europe and the world were saved. The seventh head came and went. But the cracks through which Hitler was able to rise continued to grow wider. The people of the world had become tired of Jesus and His message, and their lack of faith continued to power a revolt that threatened their very lives. Country after country in the western world tossed God from it's governing board and returned to secularism. The last to join them was America. That was in 1963.
While the western world has been systematically overturning the decrees of Constantine and Theodosus by evicting Jesus from a position of shared governance in their kingdoms, and by returning godlessness to those thrones instead, a burgeoning threat to their world power has been steadily building across the Euphrates river.
Rising up in the east is a religious empire whose hated enemy is the House of Israel. Certain elements of this empire not only hate the Jews, they are fiercely Anti-christ as well. While the moderates who still hold sway there, control a third of the earth, the fierce elements standing in the wings want to control it all. With bitter hatred for the west, the angry rhetoric coming from this fringe is filled with calls for war-mongering on a level that promises the inevitability of a scorched earth.
Our protection from this committed enemy is in God. But our nations have separated themselves from Him, many forbidding even the mention of His name in civic circles. So what's to expect?
According to scripture, when the Revolt against God has grown to maturity, this eastern religious empire consisting of ten nations related to the Black Sea will mass at the Euphrates and suddenly, under the lead of a "horn" from the North, attack. They will destroy the western world, leaving only pockets of resistance. One of those will be Kittim, the land across the ocean from Europe, its stockpile of hydrogen bombs a daunting blockade to invasion. Jerusalem, though ravaged cruelly in the invasion, will be saved by treaty.
After the first "horn" has died, a second "horn" will arise and reconfigure those same ten nations, mobilizing them into a new attack force. The appearance of this second horn will provide conclusive evidence that this religious empire with all its dragon noises is the False Prophet, i.e., the Second Beast.
Forces of this eastern kingdom will carry their new leader to Rome, the world's designated seat of temporal power. That temporal seat cannot be Jerusalem, because Jerusalem is the world's spiritual capitol. It cannot be in the western hemisphere, either, because the beast is shown not to control it (the ships of Kittim have blocked his access to America). That rules out New York or Washington D.C.
Rome is the only city on earth that portrays temporal command of the world, just as Jerusalem is the only city on earth that portrays spiritual command of the world. Babylon and Jerusalem are the only two cities so designated in biblical prophecy.
That means the False Prophet will bring it's army to Rome and place it's leader on the Roman throne. In doing so, it will proclaim him to be the ruler of the world and order all to pay homage to him. His own claim that he is Nero reincarnated will solidify scripture's prophecy that he "once was, now is not, and will come again". Returning with him will be "Babylon", i.e., a Rome returned to Satan's control. That will complete the overturn and bring back emperor-worship and paganism as the ruling religion of much of the world.
The statue raised for him there will be wickedness personified and relate to the Abomination of Desolation. It is that edifice, together with the sacrilege of the perpetual sacrifice raised in St. Peter's Basilica, over the bodies of the fallen religious, that will define Satan's apparent overthrow of the Church his crushing of the power of the holy people (see Dan.12:7).
A planetary darkness will engulf all the nations of the world as scripture's decree that Babylon be burned to the ground is carried out. Fortunately the darkness that is coming will be short and will end in complete victory for Christ as He returns with all the angels of heaven, bringing eternal life for all who placed their hope in Him. That hope powered by faith will prove to be a sure escape from all that is coming.
I have a question about the head of the beast that was wounded to death and that heals. Do you think that head could be the return of Nebuchadnezzar rather than Nero? H
Answer:
That is a possibility. Of all the figureheads related to the seven heads which that prophecy involves, Nebuchadnezzar was the only one to erect the golden statue to wickedness that the Book of Revelation foresees being rebuilt by the monster who is to be reborn in the last days.
Most of the seven "seemed to have a fatal wound." Adolph Hitler and his Nazi regime were killed by Allied forces in World War II. Pagan Rome, the sixth "head", was destroyed by Christ. Haman, the Persian, perhaps an allegorical figure, died by order of the king. The allegory of this narrative suggests that the Persian was killed by God, Himself. Nebuchadnezzar and Babylon were destroyed by Persia, succumbing immediately after a mysterious "handwriting" appeared on his palace wall.
Any of these is a candidate.
The mortal wound seems to indicate a supernatural blow, i.e., one delivered by Jesus. That would indicate either Rome or Persia. As you can see above, only those two "heads" were destroyed by God, Himself. Since ancient Christian prophecy foresees Persian (Parthian) forces retaking Rome in the last days and returning Nero to power there, both of these now-departed nations, Rome & Persia, seem critically involved in Revelation's prophecy.
Add to that the fact that the Book of Revelation reveals that TWO beasts will be involved in this prophecy, not just one. The 8th head of the beast is the one who is given the crown; he is the reincarnated one. But he is raised to power by the second beast, the False Prophet.
The second beast (the False Prophet) is different because it is not secular, it is religious. What is involved in this prophecy is the relationship between Satan's spiritual and temporal powers When the mortal wound to godless government (temporal government opposed to God) heals, it does so with the blessing and active involvement of Anti-christ theology. With one architecting the other, the two are shown to be one and the same.
The False Prophet's proclamation that he, himself, is the beast cements this relationship.
More than that, these two world powers, in conjunction with Satan, form a caricature of the Trinity.
Rome, which calls itself the "eternal city", has been, for over 2000 years, the template on earth for world government. Before Christ came, it was the signature city of paganism. That is what earned it the symbolic designation, "Babylon". Converted to Christ, it became the signature city of world government in Christ, a picture of temporal and religious alliance honoring the God of Israel. In this respect, it reflected the "millenium", the thousand-year rule of God on earth. "Babylon" (pagan rule) died in 313 A.D. with the Edict of Milan, and in the decree's of Theodosus and Galerius that soon followed that momentous Roman edict.
The temporal/spiritual Christian alliance begun by the Edict of Milan ended in Rome in 1929 A.D. when the Italian dictator, Mussolini, dictated a policy he called "separation of church and state", which evicted the Church from his government. He created Vatican City (a separate city within Rome) to make clear the separation between his temporal regime and the religious authority he had removed from it.
Since that date, the world has followed suit. It didn't take long, especially with Hitler speeding the process.
In 1963, the United States government, itself, joined the rebellion.
What was reborn in this revolt was Babylon, world government that rules apart from God.
Not everything that claims to be "of God" truly is so. That is the meaning of the False Prophet. Daniel, Isaiah and most of the other prophets, together with the Book of Revelation foresee a religious power building in the East at the end of time, and, when it has come of age, suddenly attacking secular world government (Babylon) and overthrowing it.
Later, however, under a new leader, they re-erect it.
That is the point where Nero and the reincarnation come in. This cannot happen in Jerusalem. That is the world's spiritual city. It is secularism that is returned to power (the beast called paganism). That reincarnates "Babylon". It is in the reincarnation of Babylon that the mortal wound heals. All that has to happen in the secular city, the figurehead city of secularism on the planet. That city is Rome.
What city would Nebuchadnezzar be reborn into? Baghdad has no place in biblical prophecy. Babylon, the ancient city from which Nebuchadnezzar ruled, no longer exists. Besides, either the reappearance of Nebuchadnezzar or the original Babylon would simply glorify the allegory. Allegory always stands for something else that is the true meaning of it. In this case, Babylon stood for Rome. That was the city Jesus confronted and converted.
It's pagan rebirth underlines the rebellion against Christ in the last days.
I came across your site http://goodnewschristianministry.org/tyre.htm positing that Tyre, as mentioned in Ezekiel 26:3-4, is New York City. How does this take into account Ezekiel 26:7?
Ezekiel 26:7 For thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will bring upon Tyrus Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, a king of kings, from the north, with horses, and with chariots, and with horsemen, and companies, and much people.
26:7 explicitly states that Nebuchadnezzar will besiege Tyre. However, I'm fairly certain that Nebuchadnezzar never came near New York City. J
Answer:
Good point!
Prophecy never uses future names. They are always allegorical. The name "Babylon" practically shouts "allegory". Because his statement is a vision of prophecy, the historical basis for Ezekiel's words is of diminishing interest to us. As Peter said, prophets have no idea of what they speak about because the Holy Spirit is the architect of their words. We must expect the same here.
But, as you say, "Why Babylon? Why Nebuchadnezzar? Especially when this prophecy, if it bears any relation at all to the end times, appears to relate to the first horn of the false prophet. The second beast according to most prophecies is supposed to have a religious and Parthian character to it. Neither Babylon nor Nebuchadnezzar at first glance seem to evoke such an image.
Yet Nebuchadnezzar's relationship with the Medes is close. The original "Babylon" resided in the Median heartland. With so many prophecies forecasting such a relationship, it is certain to exhist, especially since Ezekiel bears witness to it in his announcement to Tyre that "the east wind has shattered you, surrounded by the seas." (Ez.27:26).
Daniel shows the king of the North attacking America.
In his scripture, Daniel foresees two "kings" amassing armies out of a conglomeration of ten kingdoms. We tend to concentrate on the second of these two kings because he destroys the world, but the first king has a greater per se impact on America itself, at least in terms of this particular prophecy.
The first king comes from the far north, apparently from a country above the Black Sea. After he has subjugated his continent, he turns his gaze toward the 'islands that lie across the sea' and proceeds to conquer many of them. Daniel does not say that he simply attacks them, but that he actually conquers them (Dan. 11:15-18). His invasion, therefore, must be seen as a massive and bold attack. The prophecy tells us that with him are ten kingdoms. That evokes an image of many nations and many different races of people, both clearly defined in Ezekiel's vision (Ez.26:3; 26:7). The prophecy shows he arrives on our shores in full battle regalia.
It is clear in Daniel's prophecy that this attack fails. The "magistrate" that puts a stop to these "outrages" (Dan.11:18) is likened by scholars to the great Roman general, Lucius Cornelius Scipio who, after the strongest of threats, overwhelmingly obliterated the attacking forces on which this prophecy seems to be historically based. In that historical sequence, Antiochus, defying Roman threats, actually occupied Greek and Egyptian towns before his overwhelming defeat occurred.
Are the America's the "islands of the sea"? Since the discovery of the existance of America, Europeans have referred to themselves as "the continent", and the America's as otherwise. That designation may have begun with Columbus, who landed on each of his occasions in the Caribbean and saw nothing but islands there.
Just how much damage the king of the North inflicts on the United States itself in this major battle cannot be determined. We do know that it will consist of warfare on a very serious level. We can glimpse images of it in the prophecy of Ezekiel which you have noted above. Some of our cities, especially on the seacoast seem certain to be significantly affected. Ezekiel's prophecy of Tyre may accurately reflect the extent of the damage. I think it does.
It is clear that the king of the North in this prophecy will control Europe before he sends his forces across the ocean. His government will have nothing to do with the God of Israel. That alone is enough to garner his empire the description of "Babylon", a title that belongs to all nations who have cut their ties to Christ. Here there would be an empire that virtually controlled the entire Eastern Hemisphere. Because he is the ruling king of this "Babylonian" empire, the title "Nebuchadnezzar" is appropriate prophecy. Historically, Nebuchadnezzar ruled ancient Babylon. His prophetic counterpart can be seen ruling a modern version of it. Especially since its antagonist is the same: Israel.
This is not the man who ends the world, remember. This is the first king, not the second.
His control of Europe could possibly reflect internal politics even more than it does actual warfare. Hitler took much of Europe with a handshake. Only England and Russia gave him any serious trouble at all. When nations change politics your way internally with the popular assent of its people, there is no need to attack them. A politically savvy dictator would know this and use all his skills to accomplish that end.
All of this (Tyre and the rest) takes place after the nations divide into four dissimilar spheres (Dan.8:8). That political upheaval and reapportionment removes all the political relationships we are familiar with there today. It is possible, given the new political realities, that the King of the North will be able to gain control of most of Europe without a shot being fired in anger, just by muscle flexing and bartering.
Something like this has to account for the United States waiting so long to counterattack, and then, doing so only when America itself has become the target.
Reeling from his defeat in "the islands", the king of the North will return to Europe and there meet his end. According to Daniel, after he dies, a second king will rise to power and build a new empire on the remnants of the same ten kingdoms. He is the beast (Dan.11:21-26). It is this second king who burns down the world (Dan.11:40-45; Jer. 51:58).
Why couldn't Nebuchanezzar bring the Parthian army to Rome? HL
Answer:
He could.
The prophecy only requires that he be one of the previous seven and Nebuchadnezzar satisfies that condition.
An ancient Christian prophecy predicts that the eighth head of the beast will be a reincarnation of Nero leading Parthian forces to Rome. But it could very well be a reincarnated Nebuchadnezzar leading those forces to Rome instead. The only pre-requisite is that it has to be Rome. The reason for this is that Rome is the city whose conversion to Christ signalled the mortal wound to Babylon. It's rejection of Christ, therefore, will mean the healing of the mortal wound. This needs to take place in Rome.
As I wrote earlier, of all the figureheads related to the seven heads around which the prophecy of the return revolves, Nebuchadnezzar was the only one to erect the golden statue to wickedness that the Book of Revelation foresees being rebuilt by the people of Babylon under the influence of the False Prophet in the last days (Rv.13:14-15; Dan.2&3).
No one would be better qualified to officially change Rome's name to "Babylon," once he had set up his throne there than Nebuchadnezzar. Nero wouldn't even try, he would prefer keeping the city under the name 'Rome'. Babylon was Nebuchadnezzar's city in the first place. The name change would be dynamic because it would unite the spiritual city of Babylon with a functioning allegorical counterpart.
His attack on Jerusalem that Daniel shows occurring soon after that would then have an overriding conformity to it because it would pit Babylon against Jerusalem both spiritually and physically. The spiritual cities of Babylon and Jerusalem and the allegorical cities of Babylon and Jerusalem would all come together facing one another in preparation for the battle of Armageddon.
That would be a stunning convergence!
Are the ten horns and ten kings in Daniel's prophecy (7:24) related in any way to the twenty-five nations in the European Union? PL
Answer:
Probably not.
However, as I have written before, the framework may be similar.
According to Daniel an enormous political upheaval will take place across the world soon after the west is victorious in its second war at the Euphrates river. Flush from that victory, says Daniel, the great "horn" from the west will "grow more powerful than ever, and reign over a vast empire. He will do whatever he pleases. But at the height of his strength the great horn will suddenly snap and his empire will be broken up and parcelled out to the four winds of heaven, though not to his descendants: it will not be ruled as he ruled it, for his sovereignty is going to be uprooted and pass to others than his own".
One striking phrase in Daniel's writing concerning the two wars that precede this spectacular collapse is his statement that the western troops will launch themselves into that fray by "crossing the entire earth without touching the ground". Written at least 2200 years before the invention of air travel, and defining conflicts isolated from any ocean, the prophecy remained for millenia, an enigma. Yet this phrase correlates with what we have just seen take place with respect to the two Gulf Wars fought at that identical location with troops flown in to it from across the earth.
That is why we take such careful note of the political upheaval also predicted in this passage. According to Daniel, it is imminent. Scholars tell us Daniel's words were structured on Alexander the Great. The snapping of the "great horn" was Alexander's unexpected death at a young age in Babylon (which is now Iraq).
If all this is being echoed today, two things are evident. First, we have reached the advent of the last days because Daniel was informed by the angel of heaven that his writings were sealed and could not be opened until those last days arrived. Second, the political and economic world around us is about to change so dramatically that little correlation with the global structure we are familiar with today will remain. Everything is about to change. We will change, Europe will change and Asia will change. Even the Middle East will change.
And we don't know how. Daniel only tells us that the rule of the world will pass into four spheres of influence and be totally different from the world we now know. Beyond that, everything is just guesswork. Hopefully it won't happen at all and we can put Daniel on the shelf again for another age.
If it does happen, world unity will be history. That means a body like the United Nations would not survive it. Neither would America's push for a global corporate democracy.
The ten-nation confederacy that Daniel says will rise up out of the smallest of those four spheres of power may well be something like the European Union, but its center of influence will revolve, according to prophecy, around the Black Sea area. The ten fingers of its hand will reach both north of that sea and south into Media and Persia. In Ezekiel, we find mention of nations related to this union that transliterate closely to Turkey and Russia.
Right now, Turkey is trying to gain entrance into the European Union, but there is strong sentiment by some members blocking their admittance, and any decision on the matter is considered years away. The looming collapse, if it does occur, is so imminent in Daniel's prophecy, it gives no allowance for all those years to pass.
And in the event the great horn does snap, the global deck gets reshuffled completely.
Who are the people...of the east in your prophecies? PL
Answer:
There is no way to tell. God has the ability to raise up people from the very stones of the desert if He wants to. Perhaps Satan has power like that as well, and it is such as these that are the people of the East. Regardless of their origin, scripture says God is going to use those people like a tool when the world's rebelliousness reaches its peak:
"Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal; and I will turn you about, and put hooks into your jaws, and I will bring you forth, and all your army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed in full armor, a great company...in the latter days I will bring you against my land, so that the nations may know me, when I vindicate through you, O Gog, my holiness before their eyes." (Ez. 38:1-16).
"Are you he, the one of whom I spoke in former days by my servants the prophets of Israel, who in those days prophesied for years that I would bring you against them?" (Ez. 38:17).
God did not put prophecy in scripture to make us hate or fear others. The Bible is clear. As long as we love one another, God will live in us (1 John 4:12). All prophecy is there for OUR conversion, not to give us targets for loathing. If the world heeded God's prophecy, there would be no invasion. If we do not change our ways and do as He says, nothing can stop it.
Prophecy is all about love, not hate. If anything, the Bible teaches us it is God that we should fear, not each other.
The warnings in scripture are not there to tell us who to draw sword against. They are there to tell us to drop our swords and live in peace and love, and to do it fast because the opportunity is almost gone. Eternal life is at stake. Jesus said that anyone who tries to save their life will lose it and anyone who gives up their life to live for Jesus, will save it for the eternal life.
We needn't worry about the identity of the enemy. Just knowing that he is coming is enough. It is the world's craving for sin that is bringing him. That's what the prophecies tell us. No defense can stop his coming. And despite all the prophecies that have announced him in advance, the destroyer's arrival will still be a surprise. This surprise shows us that God has not put prophecy in scripture to tell us the future, instead, it is there to PROVE that the future is in Jesus Christ.
What makes you so certain that the Book of Daniel predicts an attack on America? JI
Answer:
Daniel's prophecies are about the end of the world. That means they are not about his time. Since the world has not yet ended, it means either our own time, or a time still to come:
"Then I said, 'My lord, what is to be the outcome?' 'Daniel, he (the angel) said, 'go away: these words are to remain secret and sealed until the time of the End." (Dan. 12:8-9).
Remembering that his words are prophecy, not history, and that they are about our times (or times even beyond ours) the "islands of the sea" to the west across the sea that the first "king" attacks must be viewed in relaton to the Atlantic Ocean. In today's understanding, the "West" is America. And if the eastern king, having already conquered Europe, sends his ships out across the ocean to attack the "islands" (as Daniel's prophecy predicts) the only nations he can physically come against are in the America's: North America, Central America and South America.
If Daniel's prophecy is not fulfilled for another 10,000 years, these same three land masses will still be there. The "West" will never change it's location. God has established it in continental terms. Daniel's words will never pass away, either, because they are in scripture. That tells us that this prophecy is about the America's.
According to Daniel, the eastern king will "conquer many of these "islands of the sea" before his forces are finally defeated and driven back across the ocean." (Dan. 11:18).
Do you mind telling me your political views? M
Answer:
My web page is about Bible prophecy. It has nothing to do with politics. Some of the prophecies relate to politicians, however. Here are some samples:
"Woe to the legislators of infamous laws,
to those who issue tyrannical decrees,
who refuse justice to the unfortunate
and cheat the poor among my people of their rights,
who make widows their prey and rob the orphan.
What will you do on the day of punishment,
when, from far off, destruction comes?" (Is.10:1-4)."God calls to judgment the elders and the princes of his people:
'You are the ones who destroy the vineyard
and conceal what you have stolen from the poor.
By what right do you crush my people
and grind the faces of the poor?' (Is.3:14-15)."Ruthless judgement is reserved for the high and mighty." (Wis. 6:5).
"The lowly will be compassionately pardoned,
the mighty will be mightily punished." (Wis. 6:6)"Your busy trading has filled you with violence and sin." (Ezek. 28:16).
"He who gives to the poor shall never want,
he who closes his eyes to them will bear many a curse." (Prov. 28:27)
"When the wicked are ascending to power, men take cover,
but when they perish, virtuous men multiply." (Prov. 28:28)."As you have done, so will it be done to you:
your deeds will recoil on your own head." (Obadiah 1:15)"I hate pride and arrogance,
wicked behavior and a lying mouth. " (Prov. 8:13)"These are the things that you must do.
Speak the truth to one another;
let the judgments at your gates be such as conduce to peace;
do not secretly plot evil against one another;
do not love false oaths; since all this is what I hate.
It is the Lord who speaks.' (Zech.8:16-17)."The voice of the Lord. He is calling to the city:
Listen, tribe, and assembly of the city
whose rich men are crammed with violence,
whose citizens are liars.
Must I put up with fraudulent measure,
or that abomination the short-weight bushel?
Must I hold the man honest who measures with false scales
and a bag of faked weights?
I have therefore begun to strike you down,
to bring you to ruin for your sins." (Micah 6:9-13).Anyone who says I know him
and does not keep his commandmetns, is a liar (1 John 2:3)God has trapped the wicked in the work of their own hands (Ps.9:16).
"The love of money is the root of all evils" (1 Timothy 6:10)
"If a man who was rich enough in this world's goods saw that one of his brothers was in need, but closed his heart to him, how could the love of God be living in him? My children, our love is not to be just words or mere talk, but something real and active; only by this can we be certain that we are children of the truth..." (1 John 3:17-19).
"To sum up the whole matter:
fear God, and keep his commandments,
since this is the whole duty of man.
For God will call all hidden deeds,
good or bad, to judgment." (Eccl. 12:13-14)."Your princes are rebels, accomplices of thieves.
all are greedy for profit and chase after bribes
They show no justice to the orphan,
the cause of the widow is never heard." (Is.1:23).'No servant can be the slave of two masters:
he will either hate the first and love the second,
or treat the first with respect and the second with scorn.
You cannot be the slave both of God and of money." (Luke 16:13).Her princes pronounce their verdict for bribes,
her priests take a fee for their rulings,
her prophets make divinations for money.
And yet they rely on the Lord.
They say, 'Is not the Lord in our midst?
No evil is going to overake us.'
Because of this, since the fault is yours,
Zion will become ploughland,
Jerusalem a heap of rubble,
and the mountain of the Temple
a wooded height." (Micah 3:9-12)."Listen to this, you who trample on the needy
and try to suppress the poor people of the country.
You who say, 'When will New Moon be over
so that we can sell our corn;
and sabbath, so that we can market our wheat?
Then by lowering the bushel, raising the shekel,
by swindling and tampering with the scales,
we can buy up the poor for money,
and the needy for a pair of sandals,
and get a price even for the sweepings of the wheat?
God swears it by the pride of Jacob,
'Never will I forget a single thing you have done'.
Is this not the reason for the earthquakes,
for its inhabitants all mourning,
and all of of the land heaving like the Nile..." (Amos 8:4-8)."Turn my heart to your decrees
and away from getting money." (Ps.119:16)."Woe to those who add house to house
and join field to field
until everywhere belongs to them
and they are the sole inhabitants of the land." (Is.5:8)."Oh my people, your rulers mislead you
and destroy the road you walk on." (Is. 3:12)"Is not this the sort of fast that pleases me
it is the Lord God who speaks
to break unjust fetters
and undo the thongs of the yoke,
to let the oppressed go free,
and break every yoke,
to share your bread with the hungry,
and shelter the homeless poor,
to clothe the man you see to be naked
and not turn from your own kin?
Then will your light shine like the dawn
and your wound be quickly healed over." (Is.58:6-8)."To oppress the poor is to insult his creator,
to be kind to the needy is to honor God." (Prov. 14:31)"Virtue makes a nation great,
by sin whole races are disgraced.&q