Daniel 10 & 11 Pt. 1

Chapter 10 is an interesting chapter in that the angel that now comes in answer to Daniel’s prayer is described more as the angel of the Lord (otherwise known as the pre-incarnate Christ) is described rather than a regular angel. This angel had been sent from the minute that Daniel had started to pray, three weeks earlier, but had had to do battle with the prince of Persia. (a powerful demonic being or maybe Satan himself as this was the headquarters of the Babylonian mysteries and Satan‘s throne on earth at that time). Michael had even been called in to help deal with this prince of Persia. Now Daniel is told that this vision is about what will happen to Daniel’s people in the last days.

Chapter 11. There are to be three more kings in Persia and then the fourth will be much richer and will aggravate the Greeks. A mighty king (we already know this is Alexander the Great) will come forth having a vast empire and power. His kingdom will be divided into four different kingdoms, but not for his posterity (we know it was divided between his generals as he had no heirs). The rest of the chapter goes into the history of what follows. It is accepted that these verses fit the history up to Antiochus Epiphanes. Basically there was a constant rivalry between the Seleucid dynasty in Syria and the Ptolemaic dynasty in Egypt that went on for years. Verse 21 is where the historical texts about Antiochus Epiphanes start (and as he is the forerunner of antichrist, this is where antichrist’s description will also begin). The verses that we need to particularly concentrate on at the moment are 30-32. This is the basis for Hanukkah, which we have already discussed. However we need to really look at these verses to see the exact definition of what happened. After losing a battle, Antiochus Epiphanes goes into Jerusalem and takes his wrath out on the Jews. We know from history that he made reading the Torah a capital offense. He outlawed circumcision. Any mother doing that had her dead baby tied around her neck and was hanged. He stopped the daily sacrifice (vs. 31) and had a pig sacrificed on the altar. Above all he committed what is called in verse 31 the abomination that maketh desolate, or as we say the abomination of desolation. This phrase is very important as we will see later. Idolatry was an abomination to God, but this was idolatry at its worst. A.E. put up a statue of Zeus. And he didn’t just put it up anywhere, he put it up on the most holy site on the face of the planet - in the Holy of Holies. This was an abomination that desolated. It was the ultimate abomination. Some teach that the abomination of desolation was in 70 A.D. when the temple was burned, but that was not called an abomination. This is specifically called an abomination of desolation, and what that means is known, because of historic records. This is definitely not speaking of 70 A.D. That was referenced in chapter 9 vs. 26 and it was not referred to as an abomination. It’s very important to get that fact straight. The next couple of verses (32-33) are referencing the Maccabees‘ exploits. Now that we have gone over that again, we need to remember the adage that prophecies have a near and far fulfillment. Scholars agree that the verses from 36 on are difficult to reconcile with A.E. In fact, I have heard some say that there are things in previous verses that they really have to work to find some historical fact that will fit the verses. There may be a reason for that. Let’s go back and take a look at some key phrases.

We need to look for clues to see which verses may show us future events. Understand that I can’t say absolutely this is an accurate assessment, we can only look to see what Scriptures may indicate and then watch the current events to see if anything fits. Already at verse six we have the phrase “at the end of years”. We know when the Bible talks about the end of days, end of time, end of years, etc., it is talking about the literal end of this age which will soon be upon us. So we need to consider that this verse and its context, which may include previous and following verses may be part of what will happen (or has happened since 1948) in the last days and that the historical events were a shadow of a second fulfillment. In verse 13 we have the phrase “after certain years”. Oddly enough in my Bible (and in other written sources) there is a note saying that it should read as “at the end of times, even years”. We know what the end of times means. It means the tribulation period and Day of the Lord. Vs. 27 “the end shall be for the appointed time.” Vs. 35 “even to the time of the end”. Vs. 40 “at the time of the end”. I think there are enough references to the time of the end to surmise that these verses might be pertinent as to what will happen toward the end times. It involves the Middle East, naturally, and is all about warfare, political intrigue, peace treaties, etc. It isn’t hard to think that a lot will go on there in the future, as a lot goes on there now.

While historically we can look back and make sense of these verses from the B.C. era, it is difficult to deduce exactly what may be being described as happening as a future (or 20th c.) event, as these verses are a little vague. The use of pronouns without antecedents makes it hard to know who is being spoken about at times. And the compass references instead of actual kingdoms’ names or emblems leaves interpretation wide open. This may be deliberate as they may have to serve as prophecies for two entirely different events, but as written could be applied to both. The verses seem to indicate that this takes place quite a while before the end, so we would need to see if anything fits this scenario in the last few decades. I would assume that if any of this (before verse 21) is about the end times, it would start after Israel became a nation in 1948 or even after the Balfour Declaration in 1917. I haven’t studied enough of the Middle East politics to know if this describes anything that has happened. Again, theses verses may or may not refer to modern history. We can only keep an open mind that it might, based on the references that keep referring to the time of the end.

I am not going to attempt to try to reconcile the events in verses 5-20 to any modern political history. I couldn’t without a tremendous amount of research. If anyone wants to research this, I’d be delighted to add the info to the blog. Where we need to start is with verse 21. As we will find out from Christ in the book of Matthew, this is also about antichrist and has a long term fulfillment that mirrors what Antiochus did, only in a much larger way. When these prophecies are fulfilled they are carried out in a literal way, both times. This prophecy is specifically pointed out by Christ so that the Jews (and those of us who study) will, from what is happening, know exactly what is going on. It would have no meaning for anybody if it isn’t fulfilled literally.

It says that a vile person to whom is not given the honor of the kingdom comes to power peaceably through flattery. In other words, he does not become the leader through the normal means (presumably election), he comes to power in another way, namely through deceit. Someone, (those whom he overtakes) is wiped away from before him. If we were to take this literally, and we did say we should take this literally, they are inundated or swept away (overflown) by a literal flood. Oddly enough in Revelation there is a similar text which seems to indicate that a literal flood does try to wipe away the believing Jews who run from antichrist when he makes his appearance. Rev. 12: 15,16. However, they are saved by God when he has the earth open up and swallow the flood. In Daniel’s case, it says that they are broken. Broken in this text means broken-down, broken-up, or broken-hearted, not necessarily killed. In this case even the prince of the covenant has to run. Who that is we don’t know, as we don’t know who will be the political leader at that time. If this is talking about the Jews, it may be the prince of the covenant will be the Jewish leader. And if so, the fact that it says that he is the prince of the covenant would indicate that Israel did have a part in the covenant that was confirmed, as this does not call this covenant the Holy covenant. If not an Israeli leader, then maybe an actual prince (they do still exist in the Arab and European countries) is the one spoken of.

The next verse says “after the league made with him”. What is interesting about this is that the word league means a joining, but by spells or charms. The man will have charmed them into this compact or league. Whether that means only by deceit and flattery, or by occult powers is up for question. After having charmed people into this agreement, he will work behind their backs and become strong with a small group of people. The small group of people no doubt refers to the ten toes or ten horns, since he comes up from the midst of them. Who they are we will determine after we get more information. He will enter peaceably into the most fertile or possibly richest places and will do what no leader before him has been able to do. He will disperse among them the booty. It is hard to say if he restricts himself to the Arab world here. America is one of the richest places on earth too. He will be at war with the world, so it is possible. And he will weave his plots against the most strongly defended and protected places, for a time. Countries with strong militaries and weapons are not immune from him. Again, the western powers need beware. He will stir up (this means to open your eyes and suddenly wake up in the sense of suddenly realizing something) his power and courage against the king of the south and go against him with a great army. The word great here means more than large. It means one that is known as one that you don’t mess with. One that is known to be very good at what they do.Who this might be is an unknown quantity in today's terms. Back then it was Egypt. In return, the king of the south pulls together a great army of his own, but he is no match, plus they are working against him with other plots, mainly by infiltrating his own ranks and getting them to turn on him. A lot of soldiers from the king of the south will die in the conflict.

It now says that both these kings’ hearts (since only these two have been under discussion, one has to assume it means the vile person (antichrist) and the king of the south) are out to cause trouble. They sit at a supposed peace treaty table and lie through their teeth to each other. It doesn’t matter what they say, as what is destined to happen at the end will happen at the appointed time. The fact that this is designated as "the end" would seem to indicate that these prophecies are yet to be fulfilled.

Daniel 9

Daniel 9 starts with Daniel praying to the Lord as he understands that their captivity is about to end. He knows that they owed the Lord seventy years due to disobedience of not observing the Sabbath years, (they had not let the land have its Sabbath rest for a very long time), so he prays acknowledging their sin, asks forgiveness, and is wanting to know what will happen next, but his prayer is interrupted by Gabriel. Gabriel tells him what the future holds for Israel. He says that seventy weeks are determined for Daniel’s people and Jerusalem to 1) finish the transgression, 2) to make an end of sins 3) to make reconciliation for iniquity, 4) to bring in everlasting righteousness 5) to seal up the vision and prophecy, and 6) to anoint the most Holy. Then Daniel is told to therefore know and understand (Gabriel is emphasizing that he needs to really pay attention and learn and figure it out) that from the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem until the Messiah comes there shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks. That the streets and walls shall be built again, but in troubled times. After the threescore and two weeks, the Messiah will be cut off (killed) but not for his own sake, and the people, of the prince that will come, will destroy the city and the temple and the end will come like a flood (in other words, sweep through quickly as a flood does) and until the end of the war desolations are already determined. Then it says that “he” (some say meaning the prince of the people who will come, and some say meaning God), will confirm a covenant with many for one week. In the midst of this week, "he" will cause the sacrifices to cease and to make the abomination extreme, he will desolate (destroy or lay waste) the temple even to the end of everything, and that decree shall be carried out.

To try and make this a little more understandable, let’s take it part by part. First, seventy weeks are determined for Daniel’s people. Now we know that there are two kinds of weeks in the Hebrew calendar. There is the seven day week, and there is the seven year week. Daniel in his prayer was referencing the seventy years they had been in captivity, which referred to the seven year week. Also, as we go through the prophecy, we see from the events that occur, that this cannot be talking about a seven day week as the events included are centuries in the future. As a third confirmation, if one looks at the original language, it is actually seven sevens, not seven weeks, and that phrase specifically refers to the seven year week. So to put this in simpler terms, 490 years have been decreed for the Jews to finish up their history in this age. First to finish their rebellion against God, then to put an end to their sins, to be reconciled to God for their sins, to bring in everlasting righteousness, (which comes with the Messiah’s reign) to make an end of the visions and prophecies or to fulfill them, and to anoint the most Holy, both Christ as their Messiah, and the temple for the millennium.

From the decree to rebuild Jerusalem, (this came with Nehemiah’s return to Jerusalem to rebuild the city in 445 B.C.) until the Messiah comes and is cut off (killed), there is 7 weeks (49 years) and 62 weeks (434 years). A total of 483 years. (A biblical year by the Hebrew calendar was 12 - 30 day months or 360 days). 483 - 360 day years translates into roughly 476 - 365 day years. This would bring us roughly up to 32 A.D. (Yes, I can subtract, but remember there is no year zero between B.C. and A.D. so year 1 A.D. would begin the day after 1 B.C. ended. Therefore it is 32, not 31.) Remember there are problems with the calendars (Jewish, Gregorian, Julian, etc.) that makes dating difficult. We have to look at it as an approximate dating as a result. Someone more scholarly than I did some mathematical calculations based on number of days and figured out that 483 prophetic years takes you from the decree up to Palm Sunday, the day Christ rode into Jerusalem being declared the Messiah. I can't verify this, but it is apparent that it is talking about Christ's ministry and/or death. Because we do know when the decree to rebuild Jerusalem came, and we know when the Messiah was declared to be the Messiah, we have a relative time frame to verify the interpretation of the week being a 7 year period. As to why there is the division between the 7 weeks and the 62 weeks, it took 46 years to rebuild the temple, which would, in terms of sevens, be 7 weeks. John 2:20. I see no other event in history that would cause this division, having checked the history as much as I could, so it would seem that this is the reason for the division. If anyone has any other suggestion as to what this division is for, please let me know. After the 62 week period, the Messiah would be killed and the people, of the prince who will come, will destroy Jerusalem and the temple. Since we know this happened in 70 A.D. by the Romans; they are the people of the prince who will come, which may indicate something of the identity of the beast, unless this is simply referring to the Caesar at the time of the diaspora.

Now there is a time gap between the 69 weeks and the 70th week. The destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. scattered the people in the diaspora. Their history as a nation ceased at that time. It wasn't until 1948 when they became a nation again that the clock started ticking. There is one more week determined for them in which God will finish up dealing with them. Some teach that it starts by a "prince" (antichrist) confirming , not creating, but confirming or strengthening a covenant or confederacy or league (as defined by the Hebrew dictionary definition) which already exists for one week or seven years. Some people spiritualize this week into representing the two millennia since Christ, but you can't do that. It has to be the same type of week as the other 69 and they were shown to be 7 year weeks. You can't change methods of interpretation in mid-stream. Some believe that the "he" is referring to God and that He is confirming the covenant that He made to give the seventy sevens by giving them that last seven which He still owes them, thereby reconfirming a covenant He made with them to give them this time to finish things up.  Some believe this is the Abrahamic covenant being confirmed by God. There is no way to be dogmatic about the identity of the "he," although this author leans to the "he" being God, because His covenant with Israel is the only covenant mentioned previously in this passage of Scripture. Context would infer that therefore this is the covenant being referred to, since it was already enacted and had to be confirmed and begun again, and the length of time left is seven years, which is the amount of time of the confirmation of the covenant.  From this point on we will call this the 70th week of Daniel, a seven year period of time.

So, he strengthens this covenant or league (both words are valid) with many. Most teach that the antichrist creates a treaty with Israel for peace for seven years that will astound the world. This is not what this says. It says "he" will strengthen by some manner (in the case of God being the "he," the building of the temple would be the sign of the covenant being confirmed) a confederacy or covenant that already exists with many, (If this "he" is God, this could include the 10 lost tribes, not just the Jews who are only the three tribes of Judah, Benjamin, and some of the Levites), not necessarily just present day Israel (although Israel would be part of it or simply all of it) for seven years. And it doesn’t say that it will be a peace treaty, it merely says it is a league or some sort of covenant. And it doesn’t say that it will be public. We might very well know nothing about it. We cannot assume what is not said. We can be deceived if we buy into a theory that is not backed up by Scripture. We will know what it is in retrospect, but not necessarily beforehand.  In the midst or middle of that week, or 3 ½ years into the seven years, "he" will cause the sacrifices to be stopped, (which will occur just as happened with Antiochus Epiphanes) and then something even more abominable (which we will learn about later) will occur that makes the temple desolate or desecrated. It is important to realize that this stopping of the sacrifices in this verse, while mimicking what Antiochus Epiphanes did, cannot refer to that ancient event. This comes after Christ has been killed. It also does not refer to the stopping of sacrifices because of the death of Christ or the 70 A.D. destruction of the temple. (This is taught by some people.) This clearly comes after that too, by the way it is given in Scripture. It says that after these events, there will be a seven year period in which halfway through "he" will stop the sacrifices. This clearly indicates that sacrifices will occur again which means there will be another temple, which some people deny can happen. We know from Daniel 7 and 8 that the saints would be persecuted and killed for 3 ½ years and that this begins in conjunction with the stopping of the sacrifices. Now we see, putting this all together, that there is a 7 year period in the future (Daniel’s 70th week) that will lead to the end of the age. In the middle or 3 ½ years into that, the sacrifices will cease, and the temple will be made desolate. At that time antichrist will start killing the saints. As we go through more prophecies, we see how they work in tandem with previous prophecies and add to the knowledge we have as to how the events transpire. While it may appear that this part of the verse could not be talking about God, as why would God cause the sacrifices to cease, we will see in Revelation that God has Michael throw Satan out of heaven once and for all at this mid-point and so he comes down to earth having great wrath toward Israel and then Christians. Satan stops the sacrifices (through the antichrist) as a result of his expulsion, so ultimately God is responsible for causing the sacrifices to cease, even though He doesn't do it Himself, as Satan wants to get even.

Now we can look back at the 2300 days and see how they fit in. There are 2300 days or 6 years 4 ½ months from the time of the daily sacrifices until the temple is cleansed. If that is the correct understanding of the Scripture, (and I don't know that it is), that would mean that roughly 7 ½ months after this league is confirmed by antichrist or covenant confirmed by God, we should see the temple up and the sacrifices begin. That may mean that we will know nothing about a league or covenant being confirmed, but will suddenly see the temple going up. In fact I understand, from what I have read about their plans, that they will begin sacrifices before the temple is finished. This may be the only sign that we see before he actually stops the sacrifice, desecrates the temple and starts rounding us up to kill us. That may be the reason that it is emphasized that this is absolutely true. It may be that it will be this knowledge and this knowledge alone that will prepare us for what is coming. Those who (erroneously as we will see) believe they will be gone before the tribulation starts to happen, and are unaware of this one sign being within the 7 week period could be totally caught by surprise at the midpoint when we start being persecuted and killed, if it is the only visible sign that precedes that event. Even if the temple goes up, they may not realize the timeline of events and still be looking for a 7 year peace treaty, which may not exist (at all or as a peace treaty) or be public. There are others who believe that there will be no warning, as there is only 3 1/2 years left and the abomination is the next thing.  I do not believe God leaves His people without any warning.  I believe we will see the temple.  As a side note, most eschatology teachers call the 70th week of Daniel or 7 year period, the tribulation and God’s wrath, equating the three terms as the same event. It will be shown that instead they are three different things. The 7 year period is Daniel’s 70th week (for lack of any other way to describe it). The tribulation will be shown to be that period that starts at the stopping of the sacrifices, and God’s wrath will be shown to start when the 70th week is over, but that is getting ahead of ourselves. It’s just important now to realize that this 7 year period is not known as anything, by definition of Scripture itself, other than the 70th week.

Just as pertinent information, the temple has been pre-fabricated, from what I understand from the websites of the people who are going to rebuild it. They are just waiting to be allowed to start building. They have all the necessary utensils for the temple (candelabra, etc), the priests have been trained, the clothes made, etc. They are presently showcasing everything in museums for people to see. Everything is ready from what I understand except for one thing. I don't think they have a red heifer that qualifies yet. A red heifer's ashes are necessary to cleanse evrything (they are mixed with water and used to cleanse things). They did have a red heifer, but it was disqualified by 3 white hairs. It can have no blemish and no white hairs. The other option is for them to discover the red heifer ashes from the second temple. Legend says that the ashes and much more (the ark) were hidden, somewhere possibly under the temple mount or possibly in the caves of the Dead Sea, back when the priests saw the temple was going to be destroyed. It is possible at the appropriate time these things will be discovered. But that is speculation.

Addendum 12/24/18

I have recently read a book by Robert Cornuke about the temple. He has discovered through  the Scriptures, through ancient writings, and through archaeological digs in Israel that the temples were not located on what is known as the Temple Mount. The Temple Mount in fact was the Roman fortress Fort Antonia and the location of the temples were slightly south of there. As a result, because this section of Jerusalem is under Israeli control, there is no obstacle for the temple going up. It does not require a peace treaty be signed with the Palestinians or anybody for them to put it up on their own undisputed land. The Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa Mosque to be removed, for they are on the Roman Fortress, not the ruins of the Temple Mount.


 

Daniel 2-8 recap

As the visions from chapters 2, 7, and 8 all revolve around the end times, we need now to recap and put the information that they give us all together.

There are a series of four kingdoms that will lead to the last kingdom. They are Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece and Rome. These nations are all history at this point, although they were prophecy then. Greece as we know was divided into four kingdoms (one for each of the compass points). The Seleucid dynasty (from which Antiochus Epiphanes came) is one we have already dealt with when we studied Hanukkah. The other three generals and kingdoms were Cassandra - Macedonia and Greece, Lysimachus - Thrace and most of Asia Minor, and Ptolemy - Egypt and possibly Palestine. While the Roman empire came to an end per se, its political structure did not, and neither did the Babylonian mysteries which continued throughout. There is a time gap between the Roman empire as we know it, and the ten kingdoms of the future. That gap is only a gap in that there is no big empire that takes over the known world the way these others did. There were still conquerors who tried, but none quite reached this level. What these all have in common is that not only were they world conqueror nations, but they also persecuted Israel and took them captive as such, whether just by ruling over them, or actually taking them captive as did Babylon. There were two nations that had these same two characteristics in common that had preceded these four, but these were historical from Daniel’s perspective and therefore did not figure in these visions. The other two were Egypt and Assyria. So there have been up to Rome, six countries in which the Babylonian mysteries reigned and who persecuted Israel. In order they are Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome. This is important to remember for future reference.

Going back to the first vision, the fact that the ten toes come from two legs (if we are to take this at its most literal sense) would mean that the ten toes come from both the eastern and western empires of the Roman empire. This would include Europe (and its descendants or the Americas) as well as a good part of the Mid-East and northern Africa. This is most of the world except for East Asia and Australia. As to the second vision, we have two different ways of looking at it. With the historical interpretation, the same four kingdoms are past, but out of the fourth beast (again Rome) comes ten horns or kingdoms. The same ten as found in the large statue’s toes. Their purpose and importance seems to only be in that they bring forth another little horn. For the second interpretation there will be four major world powers at the end. One is a British American partnership, one is Russia, one would be a unified Central Asia, and the fourth is a world power that is totally different from the others. It has iron teeth and crushes the others. This might refer to the EU, although Britain is a part of the EU, so this may not be the EU. It is hard to say who it is, and it is hard to say whether this is a correct rendering of what this vision means. It is significant though that in the vision of the ram and goat, God uses the actual animals that represented these countries, so it is hard not to believe that these animals in chapter 7 do the same thing. (again since posting this I have come to believe Islam is the fourth beast).

Having said that, I did some further research on animal emblems and found something very interesting. While the U.K. is best known for having the symbol of a lion, it is not the only country to do so. The following countries have the lion as their emblem: Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Czech Republic, Ethiopia, Finland, Iran, Macedonia, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden. And while the U.S. is best known for the eagle, it is also not the only one. The following have various species of the eagle as their emblem: Austria, Egypt, Germany, Mexico, Poland, Romania, and Serbia. One country has the dual symbol of a lion and an eagle: Armenia. Only one area has the leopard as its symbol and that refers more to a people than a particular country. It is the people living in the "stan" countries as mentioned before. As for the bear, only Russia and Serbia have the bear symbols. Of the two, I think Russia is the more logical. Given the many EU countries that have the symbol of a lion, possibly the lion may stand for the EU and one of the eagle countries e.g. Germany or Austria is plucked out. It is hard to determine, given the multiple possibilities. It will be necessary to just follow the news and watch to see what fits. By knowing the Scriptures and the possibilities though, it will make it easier to see when it happens. If anyone has an idea or knows something that would help, speak up.


Now we will take a look at the little horn. In chapter 7 we are told that the little horn comes out of the ten - possibly the same ten found in chapter 2. In chapter 8 we are told the little horn, the same little horn, comes from the four. So he is both from an empire that is an heir, so to speak, of the Roman Empire, (first spiritually as the Babylonian mysteries came down through these empires, and then politically as the ten kingdom league is somehow an offshoot of the divided empires), and he is from one of the four empires that are offshoots of Alexander’s empire. As these two empires do geographically overlap, we need to keep these areas in mind. It may not mean that he is physically a patriot of these countries, he may merely be a descendant of that ethnic origin. He is different in some way from the others kings that run these kingdoms. He is much stronger in power. He overthrows three of the ten kingdoms. How this is done is still unknown. Whether by war or sanctions or what, we don’t have a clue yet. However it would appear since they are plucked up by the roots, that it is pretty devastating. Some characteristics of this person are that he blasphemes God, he persecutes the saints, he tries to change the times and laws, he has “eyes” (this may mean that he has eyes everywhere and knows what everyone is doing. We all have a profile on computer that our government keeps on us. They know everything we buy, etc.) and his look is more stout than his fellow man. We have already discussed that the word stout in this case does not mean fat, but more of a military bearing if not a military man. He gets his power from Satan (the passages in chapter 8). So this horn is a person completely possessed by Satan or inhabited by a demon and given power by Satan‘s permission and authority. He is a person of fierce countenance (again that goes along with a stout or intimidating appearance) and understands dark sentences or wicked tricks and deceptions. The common conception that is being promulgated by eschatology teachers is that antichrist is this warm charismatic person whom everyone will find so attractive. That is a hard concept to accept given that we know he has a intimidating appearance of fierce countenance. He does not sound like a warm and fuzzy person. He sounds like a cruel looking man. He also causes treachery to prosper. He will destroy a lot of people by the promise of peace. Ultimately God will destroy him, but not before he has destroyed the people of God and a good part of the world. He goes out to conquer the south, the east, (right now it is hard to say who the south and east are) and Israel.

We know from these passages that the people of God will be handed over to him for a period lasting 3 ½ years, or time, times, and dividing of a time. Chapter 7:25 We also know that this will happen in conjunction with the stopping of the sacrifices. Chapter 8:11-12. Many will die at his hand as he is given the power to destroy them. He will also cause the sacrifice at the temple to cease and desolate it.

One thing I haven’t addressed very much is the beast’s (antichrist’s) destruction. Going back, in chapter 2, we see that a stone cut out without hands (not of man) smites the image upon his feet (the ten kingdom confederation) and breaks them to bits. With the feet broken, the whole image is broken and turns to chaff and is blown away. What they represent (the Babylonian mysteries) ceases to exist at all. The stone then becomes a mountain which fills the earth. This mountain is a kingdom set up by God which shall never be destroyed. It will consume all other nations and will stand forever. In chapter 7 we see the Ancient of Days sitting on His throne. This is obviously God. He is described as having white garments, his hair is like pure wool (white), his throne is like a fiery flame with burning wheels. This description of God’s throne is similar to the vision Ezekiel has when he sees God’s throne - Ez. 1. Thousands minister to him and millions stand before him. It is judgment day and the books are opened. Now here is an interesting Scripture. According to Revelation, the White Throne Judgment for the unsaved is after the millennium. This judgment on the other hand is at the beginning of the millennium as 1) the lives of the three nations are continued for a season, although their power is removed so it indicates the beginning of the millennium as all these nations will probably cease to exist in eternity, and 2) the beast is slain, and he is given to the flame. From Revelation 19:20 we know that this happens before the millennium begins. So what is this judgment of millions of people? Well, Christians are given their rewards before the millennium, after the resurrection Rev. 11:18. Also there is the sheep and goat judgment, Matt.25: 31-46, where God judges the nations and decides who can enter into the millennium kingdom and who will be thrown in the lake of fire. The Son of man (Christ) comes with the clouds of heaven before the Ancient of Days and he is given dominion, glory, and the kingdom (millennial kingdom) where all people and nations will serve him. It is an everlasting kingdom which shall never be destroyed. Also the kingdom is given to the saints of the most High. We know that the saints will judge and rule in this kingdom. Rev. 20:4.

So that brings us up to date so far as to what we have learned in Daniel. It is important to try to keep all these facts in mind, as we continue to build upon them to get a clear picture as to what is going to happen. If anyone is confused at this point, write me or leave a comment and I will try to address it. Or if you have other ideas as to what things mean, please comment also. It gets much more convoluted as we go along, so if you aren’t understanding, it is important to stop here and go over it all until you do, or you’ll really get lost later on. It is also easier to follow the blogs in chronological order at this point, if you aren’t following regularly, as things get built upon so are less confusing that way.

***As I got further along in this study and into Revelation and more information came to light, it started changing my perspective on things, so the reader may find that what I say in the older posts becomes refined and that I come to different conclusions as you come to Revelation.  That is the thing about Scripture and learning, we must constantly be learning and being flexible to alter our understanding so that we do not become dogmatic about errors we may have made.

Daniel 8

Chapter 8 is the next vision Daniel had. Daniel sees himself at the riverbank of the Ulai river. He sees a ram with two horns and the horns were high, but one was higher than the other and the higher one came up later. The ram pushed west, north and south and no beast could stand before him and he became great. Then a goat came up from the west and he wasn’t even touching the ground. He had a notable horn between his eyes. He runs into the ram and breaks its horns and the ram has no power to stand against him. The goat gets very strong, but his horn is broken and in its place comes up four notable ones toward the four winds of heaven. Out of one of them comes a little horn which becomes exceedingly great toward the south, east and the “pleasant land” (Israel). And it gets even greater, even to the heavens, and casts down some of the host and stars to the ground and stamps on them. He magnifies himself even to the prince of the host, and by him the daily sacrifice is taken away and the sanctuary is cast down. And the host is given over to him for the transgression against the daily sacrifice, and truth is cast down. And he practices and prospers. Then one saint asks another how long will the length of this vision be wherein is the daily sacrifice, the transgression of desolation, where the sanctuary and host are trodden under foot. He is told 2300 days (or literally evening mornings) will pass for all this to occur, then the sanctuary will be cleansed.

Daniel asks for the meaning and Gabriel is told to explain it to him. He is told that this vision is for the end of time, or end times. Again it is reiterated that he will explain what shall happen at the last end of the indignation and the time appointed for the end. Three ways of saying at the end of the age, or end times. The ram is Media and Persia (and this time they are mentioned by name, we don’t have to go to historical records, although the ram was the national symbol for Persia.). The goat is the king of Greece (the goat was the national symbol for Greece) and the horn is the first king (Alexander). Out of his kingdom will come four kingdoms toward the four compass points, but not because he has made it thus. We know that this happened after he died, so that shows the accuracy of the prophecy. In the latter time of their kingdom (the end times again) when transgressors are come to the full (in other words, when we have filled ourselves to the full with sins till we can do no more and God has reached His limit of patience) a king of fierce countenance knowing dark sentences (this basically translates as evil tricks) shall stand up or come to power. His power will be mighty, but it won’t be his own power (he will be empowered by Satan). He will move toward the south, toward the east, and toward Israel (the pleasant land - Jews would understand this as a common way of referring to Israel.). He will destroy in an incredible manner and will destroy the holy people (us, as the believing Jews will be protected from him. We will learn this in Revelation). Through his “policy” (a very significant political term) he will cause craft (craftiness, deceit, treachery) to prosper and will magnify himself in his own heart. He will destroy many by “peace” of all things. That will be his rallying cry apparently. Peace.

Interestingly it says that this horn will wax great even to the host of heaven. He will cast down some of the host of the stars and stamp upon them. This is no longer talking about a human, as no human can ascend to the host of heaven, the host of stars. We know from previous studies that this refers to the angels. So this is talking about the spirit which will empower the horn or antichrist. The person responsible for taking a lot of angels out of heaven with him is Satan. He magnifies himself, (Satan wanted to be God) even challenging the Prince of princes (Christ), but will be destroyed without any human lifting a hand. So now we have the information that the antichrist is empowered directly by Satan, as we can see that these Scriptures also speak of a human in verse 23, so it is a melding of the two.

In all of my reading, I have never found anyone who can find an end time explanation for the 2300 days. Most people say that it refers to the time of the Maccabees, but they don’t seem to have verifiable proof that there were 2300 days from the time the sacrifices were stopped and the statue of Zeus set up to the cleansing of the temple by the Maccabees. There is approximately that much time, but I have not seen any evidence that someone can prove it was 2300 days. Other than that, people seem to be unable to account for it. I cannot say that I have any better insight, but we will take our literal approach and see what we can come up with to make any sense. Starting with the later verses and working backwards, it says concerning the daily sacrifice and the sanctuary, that the vision of the evening and morning is said to be true. He emphasizes this point. So we are not to doubt that it is about the end times, which many do. It will happen and we are to take special note of this, as we may find out that it is the only sign that we will see that will let us know we are in the actual end. First we need to look at the phrase “evening mornings” which is the actual translation of the word days here. Some say that this actually means 1150 days as they count each sacrifice as 1, thus 2300 would mean 1150 days. If we look back to the first chapter of Genesis, God uses this same phrase, and the evening and the morning were the first (or second, third, etc.) day. An evening and morning classifies as 1 day. So using Scripture to explain Scripture, this would mean 2300 days. Daniel is told to shut up the vision (in other words, keep the knowledge of it to himself) as it is for the long distant future. This seems to indicate that the daily sacrifice being taken away (verse 11) is for the end times. For the daily sacrifice to be taken away, there has to be a daily sacrifice. For there to be a daily sacrifice, there has to be a temple, and it does mention that the place of the sanctuary is cast down in verse 11 which indicates there is a temple.

So now we go back to the previous passage about the 2300 days. In verse 13 a saint asks how long will the whole process of there being a sacrifice, the transgression of desolation (stopping of the daily sacrifice) and the sanctuary and the host (the host given into his hand because of the sin against the daily sacrifice - one assumes this speaks of God’s people, as a host does not have to be a heavenly host) to be trampled under foot. This trampling under foot is mentioned in Revelation 11:2 “But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months.” He is told that there will be 2300 days for all of this to take place until the sanctuary is cleansed again. That will be at the beginning of the millennium after God’s wrath.

All of this indicates that there will be another temple in Jerusalem for all of this to take place, however Revelation tells us that it is only the temple Holy Place, as the courtyards will not be included. It is given over to the Gentiles. Rev. 11:2. So we are looking for a literal temple proper (only the Holy Place) to be built, so that the sacrifices can be taken away, or stopped, and then the temple itself will be trampled under foot. Next we see that the question is asked in parts. The first part is “how long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice”, then the next part is “and the transgression of desolation” (this is the stopping of the sacrifice - remember the setting up of a statue or image is not mentioned here, so the transgression is the stopping of the sacrifice), then “to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot”. The question does not start with how long from the time the sacrifice is stopped, but how long from the time there is daily sacrifice, and then the stopping of the sacrifice, and the sanctuary and people being trodden underfoot or persecuted. The answer given is that there will be 2300 days for all of this to take place until the temple is cleansed. We can assume that the temple will be cleansed at the end of God’s wrath and the beginning of the millennium. In later chapters we will see that we are given a timeline as to how long that will be, but for now, let us assume that from the time there are daily sacrifices, or the sacrifices commence, until the temple is cleansed there are 2300 days. That is a period of roughly six years and four and a half months. That would mean that from the start of Daniel's 70th week (which we will learn about in the next chapter), there should be roughly 8 months and then the sacrifices will begin.  If this is a true understanding of this passage, it will have great meaning when we study the rest of Daniel, and it will show us when we have entered and where we are in the 70th week.  Interestingly enough there are two time periods when there are 2300 days between two holy days, in particular they are the Feasts of Rosh haShanah and Hanukkah (which is the expected start of the millennium and end of the 2300 days).  One seven year time period would begin in 2012, and the other I believe was 2020 (or 2021, I can't find the paper with my calculations at the moment). That may or may not be significant.  Time will tell.

Daniel 7

Now we go to chapter 7. I advise reading all of these chapters I will be going over, before reading what I have written, as it will help to bring more understanding. Daniel has dreams and visions. He sees the four winds of heaven blowing on the sea. Four great beasts come out of the sea. The first is like a lion and has eagle’s wings. The wings are plucked off and it is made to stand up as a man and a man’s heart is given to it. The second beast is like a bear which is raised up on one side. It has three ribs in its mouth and it is told to devour much flesh. The third is like a leopard which has on its back four wings of a fowl. It also has four heads and dominion is given to it. Then a fourth beast comes up. It is far more dreadful and terrible and exceedingly strong. It has teeth of iron with which it devours and breaks others into pieces. It stamps upon others with its feet, and it has ten horns. Among the ten horns comes up another smaller horn before whom three of the other horns are pulled out by the roots. This horn has the eyes of a man and a mouth speaking great things. Their thrones are cast down and the Ancient of days sits in judgment before innumerable multitudes. The judgments books are opened and judgment is set. The last beast of the little horn is slain and his body thrown in the flames. As for the rest of the beasts their dominion is taken from them, but they continue to live on for a while. Then the Son of man comes before the Ancient of Days. He is given dominion and glory and a kingdom that all people, nations, and languages will serve. It is an everlasting kingdom which cannot be destroyed.

The interpretation is again given. The beasts are four kings which shall arise, but the saints of God shall take the kingdom and possess it forever. Daniel asks specifically about the fourth beast with the ten horns of whom three fell and of the horn with eyes and a mouth that spoke great things whose look was more stout than his fellows. This horn makes war with the saints and prevails against them until the Ancient of days comes and judgment is given to the saints and for them to possess the kingdom. He is told that the fourth kingdom will be different from all kingdoms and will devour the entire earth treading it down and breaking it into pieces. The ten horns are ten kings that will arise. Then another will arise after then and he will be different from the others and will overpower three of the kings. He will speak great words (the Chaldee or Hebrew [I understand that Daniel is written in Aramaic/Chaldean as well as a portion of Hebrew, I don’t know where one starts and the other ends] word for great here means domineering, which would indicate blasphemy since they are against God) against the Most High (God) and will wear out (persecute) the saints of God and try to change the times and laws. The saints will be given into his hand until a time, times, and the dividing of a time. But there will be judgment and his dominion will be taken away . The kingdom will be given to the saints for an everlasting kingdom and all dominions (nations) will serve and obey the Most High.

The following is the usual way of viewing this passage. The connection is made between this vision and Nebuchadnezzar’s dream. Turning to a historical interpretation to understand some of the symbolism we would associate the four beasts as being the same kingdoms as the gold, silver, brass and iron of the image. The first is a lion. The winged lion was the symbol of Babylon, literally. The lion standing up and being given the heart of a man would follow the story of what happened to Nebuchadnezzar in chapter 4. He was as a beast for seven years, then repents his sin (given the heart of a man) and is returned to the sanity of manhood and he then gives glory to God. The bear on one side with three ribs is Medo-Persia. Medo-Persia was a dual country - Media and Persia, however, Persia was predominant over Media - thus the bear on one side. The three ribs indicate the three prominent countries that it conquered - Babylon, Lydia, and Egypt. It had a voracious appetite for conquering and took many nations before it was through. The leopard symbolizes Greece. The four wings are indicative of incredible swiftness. Alexander conquered the world in an amazingly short period of time. The four heads stand for the four generals who divided his kingdom after he died. The fact that he was “given” dominion is understood by the fact that he was able with 35,000 soldiers to conquer Medo-Persia who had millions of people. The fourth beast with iron (again with the iron) teeth is Rome. This beast is a terrible beast, and Rome was terrible, in every way. The ten horns correspond to the ten toes of the image which also come from the same kingdom, Rome, and are in the future. The little horn is another king that will come after the ten and is different in some way from them. He will overpower three of them, blaspheme God, and wage war against the saints (us). He will try to change times and laws (try to get rid of anything that smacks of God and make laws to no doubt enslave and kill us). Something that we learned from chapter 4 which helps us here is the use of the phrase “times”. Nebuchadnezzar was mentally ill for seven “times”. The word times refers to years. To apply that to this chapter, would mean that the saints are given to the little horn for a time (1 year), times (2 years) and a dividing of a time (½ ) year. That adds up to 3 ½ years, which we will see from other Scriptures is exactly how it is to be interpreted. As this is speaking of the end times, (as we have already deduced from chapter 2) the saints here are Christians, not Jews. After this, God sits in judgment, the beast is destroyed (as in chapter 2) and the saints inherit an eternal kingdom. This is the standard interpretation of this passage. I do believe that that is the near fulfillment of this passage, but I am going to introduce a new idea. What if this passage has a far fulfillment like so many others?.

The reason for suggesting this is for several reasons. First, we know that the head of gold was Nebuchadnezzar and that Babylon was associated with him. The problem with that interpretation is first found in verse 17. According to this verse, the first beast (lion with wings) is a king who is yet to arise when Daniel was given this vision. Nebuchadnezzar was already dead by then, and Babylon was already a kingdom, yet it says this lion is a kingdom that is yet to arise. That would seem to indicate that it isn‘t talking about Babylon. The second problem is in verse 12. According to this, the first three kingdoms, while losing the dominion over people as powerful world leading nations, continue to exist after the beast whose kingdom is destroyed by the Ancient of Days. This means that these kingdoms will exist in the millennium although only as a location and ethnic culture. This cannot be said of Ancient Babylon or Persia as they, as world powers, ceased to exist long ago. I don’t see Iran (modern Persia) or Iraq (Babylon) as world powers although they are trouble making nations for Israel. As for Greece, while it is still nation, it is not a powerful world nation. We understand that the fourth beast is an end time kingdom from which comes the ten kings and antichrist. What if the other three are also present day power nations. Who would they be?

First let’s look at the lion. It has the wings of an eagle. Britain’s animal representation happens to be a lion. And America’s is an eagle. The wings are plucked off the lion, just as America came from Britain and detached itself (from the lion), so to speak. So the connection between a lion and an eagle and America and Britain is a major coincidence, if it is a coincidence. And Britain and America are two of the most powerful countries on the planet, so no doubt will have much to do with the power plays of the end times. As to standing up and being given the heart of a man, I am open to suggestions as to what that may mean as concerning Britain. Possibly it may have some connection to Britain’s Balfour Declaration in which the English government created a policy favoring the establishment of a Jewish homeland in Palestine. It was the first move toward Israel’s dry bones (see Ezekiel 37) coming back together and Israel becoming a nation again. The plucking off of the eagles wings might also speak to our being destroyed as the wings are basically thrown away. Then there is the bear. Russia is the great bear. Why it is on its side, or what the three ribs stand for I have not been able to discern, as I don’t know enough of its history. That it devoured much flesh could refer to its overrunning all the small countries around it and incorporating them into the U.S.S.R. The third animal is a leopard. This one is interesting as the leopard is the national symbol for the Kazakhs and Tatars. Kazakhs are found mainly in Kazakhstan and Turkey, and Tatars are the peoples of all the little ____stan countries like Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, etc. and the Ukraine. It’s conceivable that four of these countries could make a league to create a single nation. The four wings of a fowl and four heads might stand for that, otherwise it is a mystery to me. I’m open to suggestions. The fact that the bear as Russia is also a dominant world power is in line with this interpretation, plus the Central Asian countries seem to fit as part of the role in the Gog/Magog war in Ezekiel 38 & 39, which is seen as a near fulfillment prophecy about Armageddon. (The far prophecy in this passage would be at the end of the millennium.) Their proximity to Israel can’t be ignored. The fact that these animals fit so well into a present day interpretation can’t be coincidence. Had one of them been New Zealand or some South American country, it might be easy to dismiss the present day prophetic meaning, but under the circumstances, it seems too coincidental to ignore. As for the last beast, it is the world government that has ten kings. Whether that is the EU or some other entity is hard to pinpoint at this juncture. [Since making this post quite some time ago, I have come to new information. I believe the beast is Islam and the ten horns will be ten of the Muslim nations. This is gone into at length further on in Revelation.] We know that the three first beasts will go into the millennium, and it is easy to believe that Britain, Russia and the Central Asian countries will. As I believe America will be destroyed, it makes sense that if it is the eagle’s wings and they are plucked off and thrown away, America won’t be in the millennium. The rest of the story is the same from this point on where it concerns antichrist.

It is important to note every character and phyical description of antichrist. We already understand that he will oppose God and kill the saints. It is not what he is doing that I want to take note of as much as descriptions of him. What I want to do is create a character and physical profile so that we may recognize him. In this passage, he is more stout than his fellows. That does not mean fat. It is in the idea of the song "Give Me Some Men Who Are Stouthearted Men". It comes from the word meaning Captain, chief, lord, or master. In other words, a man who looks like a person who should be in charge. A person who projects authority. The word Captain would seem to indicate a military bearing. Indeed the word stouthearted usually refers to military men. He comes from the beast government, but at this point we are not sure of its present day counterpart. We know he comes out of a derivative kingdom of the Roman Empire from chapter 2. [Islam is found in the same area as the Byzantine Empire which was the eastern leg of the Roman Empire. The reason the times and laws are changed is because only Muslim laws and holidays will be observed wherever the beast has power. Since almost every country is now being overrun by Muslims, it will be enforced wherever they can take power. That will probably be many areas.]

Daniel 2 & 4

Now that we have a very small overview of the Old Testament, we are going to actually start digging into the Scriptures that relate to different areas of the end times. In the process, we will be jumping all around the prophets as needed to cover the different areas. Before we start that though, we will take a look at the book of Daniel, as that is the source of a timeline into which we can plug the events, to see how things will transpire.

We will only cover the chapters of Daniel that are significant for our end times study.  For those of you already familiar with Daniel, and who wonder why I do not give more explanation at times, I will not jump ahead to explain things about it which are not apparent until you get into the book of Revelation.  I am just covering the information given here and will tie it all together later when the rest of the information becomes available.  Just a note here. You have probably noticed already, but if I have not mentioned it before, I use only the KJV Bible and so all Scripture will be from that. There is a reason for this, which I will not go into here, because again, that is another whole long Bible study. I have found after having used many a version in past years, that to get the most accurate understanding and truth as to the events about to unfold, this is the version that will give it to us. So if you are using another version and it says something totally different I would suggest finding a KJV. It is a more accurate translation.

It would be best to read Chapter 2 of Daniel before going on here, as I am going to skip right to the core of the matter and leave out unnecessary details. King Nebuchadnezzar has a dream which Daniel interprets. The reason this is so important is found in verse 28. “But there is a God in heaven that revealed secrets, and maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days.” When the Bible refers to the latter days, it is always speaking of that time just before the Lord returns, so this is relevant to us. The king sees a great image. The head is made of gold, the arms of silver, the belly and thighs of brass, the legs of iron and the feet of part iron/part clay. A stone was cut out without hands which smites the image upon the feet and breaks them to pieces. That brings down the whole image which is broken into pieces and blown away in the wind. Then the stone becomes a great mountain that fills the earth. The interpretation is given by Daniel, so we don’t have to interpret it. Remember how I said at the beginning that no prophecy is of personal interpretation and that God gives us the interpretations? So here is the interpretation. Nebuchadnezzar is the head of gold. His kingdom rules over most of the civilized earth at that time. Another kingdom inferior to Babylon is to rise after it, this is the silver. Then a third kingdom will come which is the brass which shall rule over all the earth. The fourth kingdom, which is as strong as iron, as while iron can be broken, it also breaks other things, will arise after the third. The feet of clay and iron will be a divided kingdom. It shall have the strength of iron, but it will be a broken kingdom, so partly strong, partly broken. As clay and iron can mingle but not mix, so will this kingdom be one of many seeds of men that will not cleave to one another. And in the days of the last kingdom, God (the stone) shall set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed and will consume all these other kingdoms. Daniel then affirms that this dream is a true one and his interpretation is a true one and it most certainly shall come to pass.

Now that we have the interpretation, we will apply it to history to make sense of it. First, the metals of which the image is made, are significant. Daniel tells us how to interpret these metals when he says that the silver kingdom is inferior to the gold (Babylon) and the iron kingdom is very strong. As the metals go down in decreasing order they become less and less valuable, but more and more strong. This is simply a fact about metals. So the kingdoms probably become less in the ways of splendor, (the hanging gardens of Babylon were one of the ancient wonders of the world) but they become stronger and stronger in the way of dictatorial control over their people and in their military might and ability to conquer. From history we know who these kingdoms are. We already know from Daniel that the gold head is Babylon. The silver is the Medo-Persians, who conquered Babylon, followed by the Greeks (bronze) then the Romans (iron). The two legs of iron are split in two representing the split between the Roman empire into the eastern and western empires. The feet and toes are a brittle mixture made up of mixed peoples which can’t stay together. This is a future kingdom. This future kingdom is made of ten smaller kingdoms, regions, or whatever, as there are ten toes. That it is future is a given, as there is nothing historically to which we can assign it as we can the others. That and the fact that Daniel said that it is about the last days, so something there has to be about the last days. Since we know the rest of the image’s representatives, the feet and toes have to be future. Also, God’s kingdom crushes the 10 toed kingdom and ushers in the everlasting kingdom. This absolutely confirms that the feet are a future empire.

Having studied the Babylonian mysteries, and realizing that they have come down through the ages through various nations, and were last seen with the Roman Empire, we now can see that God is giving us the lineage of the Babylonian mysteries. They passed down through the image. They will end up with the 10 nation/kingdom of the feet. In Revelation, we will see that God retains its original name - Babylon.  Right now there is much speculation as to whom these ten kingdoms are - the E.U., the 10 region division of the world.  It still remains to be seen exactly what this is.  That is must have some relation to Babylon, as this is her history, is something to be kept in mind.

Now to put in a speculation, it says that the toes mingle themselves with the seed of man. This would imply that someone other than the seed of man mingles itself with man, which is why the mixture won't hold together. The hypothesis is that just as in the days of Noah, so it will be before the return of Christ, and the spirit world will be again interacting with man on an intimate level. They will mingle themselves with the seed of man, but how they do this, whether through creating more hybrid beings, or just making an alliance is not defined by Scripture. It does seem to indicate some sort of alliance though that does not hold up.

A brief synopsis of Chapter four is necessary to understand something in chapter seven, so while it isn’t really pertinent to the end times, it is necessary to cover it. Nebuchanezzar has a dream in which a tree is in the middle of the earth and it is very great. It is so big and strong it reaches up to heaven and out to the ends of the earth. The leaves are fair and there is much fruit, enough for all to eat. It gives shelter, shade, and food to the beasts and fowl. But an angel comes down from heaven and says for the tree to be cut down, branches lopped off and fruit scattered. The stump of the roots is allowed to remain, but with a band of iron and brass around it. It must dwell in the grass and be wet with the dew of heaven and its portion is with the beasts in the fields. His heart is changed from a man’s to that of a beast’s until seven times pass over. The purpose for this is so that this “tree” may know who really rules the kingdom of men, and who bestows that kingdom upon a man. Daniel gives the bad news to Nebuchadnezzar that he is this tree and that he shall be driven from men to dwell with the beasts of the field and that he will eat grass and be wet with the dew for seven years, until he realizes that God is the one in charge and who gives the kings their kingdoms. But as the stump was left intact, so he will be given his kingdom back, just so he knows that God rules. Daniel warns Nebuchadnezzar to really watch himself and get rid of his sins. A year later, in his pride as he is looking over his kingdom, he asks (probably to no one in particular) if Babylon isn’t the greatest because he has built it by his own might and power. Before the words leave his mouth a voice comes out of heaven saying that it's his kingdom no longer. He goes bonkers and ends up out in the pastures eating grass, with his hair and nails getting really long. This goes on for seven years at which time he regains his sanity, gives glory, honor, and praise to God and regains his kingdom.

Addendum 12/24/17

Since writing this, I have come to the conclusion, through many studies, that Babylon and the beast whom she rides in Revelation are no longer a couple. There are evidences, which I present in an article on my other blog, that there was a division for some unknown reason right after Christ died thus separating the two during the conclusion of the Roman Empire. We do know that the beast is presently in the abyss, after having inhabited Hitler, (again this will be further discussed in Revelation) so it is possible he was also there from the time of the Roman Empire until Hitler. It is interesting that the legs, which represent Rome, show a separation in the kingdom for some reason. One interpretation is the split of the empire into the Eastern and Western empires, which has some validity. However it is also possible that the split stands for the split between Babylon and the beast which she has ridden up to this point. She now has her followers, and he has his, and whether it is merely conspiracy theory or fact, it is said that both of them have their own nephilim that work on their behalf. This would explain the clay and iron toes as well. It is only theory, but it does fit some of the facts that are coming to light in the political world right now.

A Very Brief History Lesson

We left off, before the festivals, in Genesis with Abraham’s, Isaac’s, and Jacob’s descendants in Egypt. Exodus, Leviticus and Deuteronomy cover the 40 years of wandering and giving of the laws. After over 400 years from Abraham and as slaves in Egypt, and the 40 years in the wilderness, Israel entered into the promised land. In the book of Joshua we read of the battles that were fought to get that land. It is in this time period and up to David and Goliath, that we see that the giants again roamed the earth. There were either again fallen angels who again came and had sexual intercourse with humans to produce giants or somehow the nephilim escaped the Flood by leaving the earth (they did have the technological intelligence), or the bloodline came across the Flood through one of Noah's sons (probably Ham). No matter how it occurred, it occurred.  The spies that Moses sent out to scout out the land said that they were so large that the Israelites seemed like grasshoppers by comparison. I have no doubt this is not an exaggeration. Goliath at 9 feet was the runt of the litter. We know from the Bible that there was one at least 13 feet tall and probably some were more than this as these were not first generation giants, but a few generations down the road, which means that the more human blood they had, the shorter they would become, so the older generation ones would be much bigger. Lev. 13:33 After conquering the land and each tribe getting its section, we have Israel being ruled by judges. (Book of Judges) This is the time of Samson and Delilah. The people didn’t like the way God would have them ruled and clamored for a king, as like little children they were whining, “everybody else has one”. So God gave them a king, Saul. He fell away from the Lord and was tormented by a demon. David was anointed to take his place. David made Jerusalem the capital and started gathering the materials to build a temple, but as he was a soldier, God wouldn’t let him build the temple. So it fell to his son Solomon to build it. Upon Solomon’s death, the ten northern tribes split away from the two southern tribes of Judah and Benjamin. (The books of Samuel, Kings and Chronicles) The ten became known as Ephraim as that was the dominant tribe, and the two became known as Judah, from whence comes the name Jew. So Jews today are only from the tribes of Judah and Benjamin (and some Levites as they were dispersed among the twelve tribes). (This needs to be remembered for future reference). They both went through a series of kings. Back during the time of the judges, the tribe of Dan had lapsed into idolatry and led the other tribes astray. The tribe of Dan was held responsible for corrupting the entire northern tribe of Israel. As a result, during the time of the kings, God allowed Israel to be conquered by Assyria around 721 B.C. Unlike Judah, which retained its identity even during captivity, the ten tribes were assimilated into the culture and have come to be known as the ten “lost” tribes of Israel, although historians have found records that show where some of these tribes settled. Dan has been traced through Europe - Danube, Dnieper, Denmark (which means Dan's mark), just to name a very few, up into Ireland. In Jacob's blessing to Ephraim, he had predicted that Ephraim would become a multitude of nations. He was supposed to have gone north into Europe/Britain also. About 100 years later, the Babylonians conquered Assyria assimilating them, and then they went on to conquer Judah in 586 B.C. The reason God allowed their captivity was that they had not been observing the Sabbath seventh year of rest for the land. God had warned them after giving the laws that they would be blessed or cursed according to their obedience. He said that he would reclaim those years where they didn’t observe the seventh year Sabbath, by sending them into captivity until the land had its rest. Lev. 26:33-35. Given the supposed dates (and we know that even historians can’t be totally accurate on dates, given the changes in calendars, etc.) they had not observed this law for long, if ever, as they were in captivity for 70 years, Dan. 9:2. One year for every year of Sabbath they had not observed. The Babylonians were then conquered by the Persians and King Cyrus made a decree allowing the exiles to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple. That was in 536 B.C. Ezra (that’s what that book of the Bible is about) led them back and rebuilt the temple. Following him, Nehemiah (that‘s what his book is about) goes back to Jerusalem and rebuilds the walls of the city. That is 445 B.C. (Understand that all of these dates are approximate). Persia rules from this time until 330 B.C. when Alexander the Great conquers the Medo-Persian Empire. After his death seven years later, his generals divide his empire into four parts. The Seleucids become the rulers over Judah and forbid the practice of Judaism. This leads to the Maccabean revolt (which we already covered). Judah became an independent state from 145 to 63 B.C. At that time Roman troops invaded Judah and it became part of the Roman Empire, which it remained through Christ’s lifetime and up to 70 A.D., at which time Jerusalem was sacked, the temple burned, and the Jews fled into an exile called the diaspora. Thus ended the nation of Israel until 1948 A.D.

I will just mention a couple of passages in the book of Job that are interesting. Chapter 1:6-12. The sons of God (these are angels, the same term used in Genesis to talk about the fallen angels cohabiting with the daughters of men) come before the Lord and Satan is among them. When the Lord asks where he has been, his reply is that he comes from walking up and down the earth. Many people get the impression that Satan is in hell. Not so. It is necessary to point out here that he is allowed access to heaven and can enter it whenever he wants (to accuse us). This needs to be noted, as at some point in the future, he will finally be once and for all cast out of heaven. This passage also points out that Satan and his minions cannot touch us without God’s permission. He can do what he wants with others, but he has to get permission to give us trials. That should make us stop and think. Every trial is allowed by God for some reason. Are we sinning? I know I certainly am guilty of that. Is it merely to show our faith to Satan such as Job did? Is it for someone else’s benefit? No matter what the reason, we are to understand that God is allowing it for our or someone’s good and has things totally in control. We just need to keep the faith.

The next set of passages in Job relate to Genesis in the area of creation science and actually there is something there about the end times also. Chapters 38-41 have God telling Job all about creation. In 38: 22-23 God mentions his treasures of snow and hail. If one studies creation science further, after the Flood, there was a short ice age. What’s interesting is what this snow and hail has been reserved for - “against the time of trouble, against the day of battle and war.” Whenever the phrase “time of trouble” is used, it is in reference to what is known as “Jacob’s trouble” which as we will see refers to the tribulation of the end times. We will see in Revelation that hail is part of the wrath of God, so this store of ice and snow is partially for that eventuality. That the constellations are of some significance (we had discussed there being a possible “gospel in the stars” scenario) is seen in that God mentions them by name, and that He is in control of them. Some people say that the Bible doesn’t talk about dinosaurs, so they are a problem. Nonsense. Job 40:15-24 describes a dinosaur perfectly. The interesting thing is - God expects Job to know exactly the animal about which He is speaking. That means that they weren’t extinct then. Even today there have been reports that in the deep, dark jungles of Africa, some tribal people have seen dinosaurs. Chapter 41 is even more exciting. It describes a sea creature that is actually a fire-breathing dragon. Yes, folks you heard me correctly. Fire-breathing dragons are not myths. So now, we must consider all those old legends of King Arthur and his knights battling fire-breathing dragons. Maybe not so far-fetched after all. As I keep saying, all myths have some basis in reality. What exactly are Champ and Nessie?

The Book of Psalms has many psalms that refer to the end, but we can go back and refer to them as needed rather than going over each one separately. As to the prophets, they are all about the end times. Some people think the Old Testament is irrelevant and that it is over and done. They believe that all the prophetic books were fulfilled. It is true, they did have an initial near fulfillment, but they all have a larger more dramatic far fulfillment in our future. In fact most of the Bible is all about the Second Coming of the Lord. Why people don’t realize this is easy to understand. They don’t pick up their Bibles and study them. They “read” the Bible, but just as you can listen but not hear, look but not see, you can read and not comprehend. The pastors never preach on the Second Coming, so they never hear any of this from the pulpit. It is no wonder people are so ignorant of what the Bible says.