Jesus' First Coming was when He was born as a baby to Mary. When He was crucified and resurrected, He spent some time with His disciples. Then He ascended into the clouds to sit at the right hand of God. He sent the Holy Spirit to dwell in His people. The Holy Spirit descended on the Day of Pentecost and has remained and will remain until the Rapture. I believe in the Pretribulation Rapture of the Church where Jesus returns without putting a foot on the earth. He stays in the sky, a trump is blown and He draws His Children unto Himself. Then the Tribulation. His Second Coming is when He returns at the end of the Tribulation and this time His feet touch earth.
Others believe the Rapture comes at different times. Here are the theories.
We have studied the
Seven Seals and
six of the seven Trumpets. We studied the
interlude between the sixth and seventh Trumpets.
Now it's time to look at the Seventh Trumpet.
The Tabernacle
God gave explicit and detailed instructions to Moses on how to build the Tabernacle and it's "furniture" (altar, laver, lampstand, table of shewbread, altar of incense, ark of the covenant with it's mercy seat lid). The Tabernacle was the mobile place of worship and God's presence among His people. Later, once the Israelites had come into the Promised Land and gotten established, King David began planning a permanant Temple in Jerusalem. His son, King Solomon, built this permanent Temple.
Hebrews 9 1 That first covenant between God and Israel had regulations for worship and a place of worship here on earth. 2 There were two rooms in that Tabernacle. In the first room were a lampstand, a table, and sacred loaves of bread on the table. This room was called the Holy Place. 3 Then there was a curtain, and behind the curtain was the second room called the Most Holy Place. 4 In that room were a gold incense altar and a wooden chest called the Ark of the Covenant, which was covered with gold on all sides. Inside the Ark were a gold jar containing manna, Aaron’s staff that sprouted leaves, and the stone tablets of the covenant. 5 Above the Ark were the cherubim of divine glory, whose wings stretched out over the Ark’s cover, the place of atonement. But we cannot explain these things in detail now.
6 When these things were all in place, the priests regularly entered the first room as they performed their religious duties. 7 But only the high priest ever entered the Most Holy Place, and only once a year. And he always offered blood for his own sins and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance. 8 By these regulations the Holy Spirit revealed that the entrance to the Most Holy Place was not freely open as long as the Tabernacle, and the system it represented, were still in use.
9 This is an illustration pointing to the present time. For the gifts and sacrifices that the priests offer are not able to cleanse the consciences of the people who bring them. 10 For that old system deals only with food and drink and various cleansing ceremonies—physical regulations that were in effect only until a better system could be established.
11 So Christ has now become the High Priest over all the good things that have come.e He has entered that greater, more perfect Tabernacle in heaven, which was not made by human hands and is not part of this created world. 12 With his own blood—not the blood of goats and calves—he entered the Most Holy Place once for all time and secured our redemption forever.
13 Under the old system, the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a young cow could cleanse people’s bodies from ceremonial impurity. 14 Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our consciences from sinful deeds so that we can worship the living God. For by the power of the eternal Spirit, Christ offered himself to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins. 15 That is why he is the one who mediates a new covenant between God and people, so that all who are called can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised them. For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins they had committed under that first covenant.
16 Now when someone leaves a will, it is necessary to prove that the person who made it is dead.h 17 The will goes into effect only after the person’s death. While the person who made it is still alive, the will cannot be put into effect.
18 That is why even the first covenant was put into effect with the blood of an animal. 19 For after Moses had read each of God’s commandments to all the people, he took the blood of calves and goats,i along with water, and sprinkled both the book of God’s law and all the people, using hyssop branches and scarlet wool. 20 Then he said, “This blood confirms the covenant God has made with you.” 21 And in the same way, he sprinkled blood on the Tabernacle and on everything used for worship. 22 In fact, according to the law of Moses, nearly everything was purified with blood. For without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness.
23 That is why the Tabernacle and everything in it, which were copies of things in heaven, had to be purified by the blood of animals. But the real things in heaven had to be purified with far better sacrifices than the blood of animals.
24 For Christ did not enter into a holy place made with human hands, which was only a copy of the true one in heaven. He entered into heaven itself to appear now before God on our behalf. 25 And he did not enter heaven to offer himself again and again, like the high priest here on earth who enters the Most Holy Place year after year with the blood of an animal. 26 If that had been necessary, Christ would have had to die again and again, ever since the world began. But now, once for all time, he has appeared at the end of the age to remove sin by his own death as a sacrifice.
27 And just as each person is destined to die once and after that comes judgment, 28 so also Christ died once for all time as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. He will come again, not to deal with our sins, but to bring salvation to all who are eagerly waiting for him.
The woman in Rev. 12 dwells inside “the temple” of God (Revelation 11:19- 12:1)
Revelation 11:19 19 Then the temple of God in heaven was opened, and the ark of His covenant appeared in His temple. And there were flashes of lightning, and rumblings, and rolls of thunder, and an earthquake, and a great hailstorm.
Revelation 12:1-2 1 A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. 2 She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth.
- she is clothed with the sun;
- she wears a crown with twelve stars;
- she has the moon under her feet;
- she cries out in labor;
- she birthed Christ;
- she is the mother of others who follow Jesus.
Four ideas of who this woman is:
- She is the Virgin Mary.
- She is the true church.
- She is the nation Israel.
- She is the faithful Jewish remnant.
1. The Catholics believe this woman is the mother of Jesus. Mary, being “the mother of all living” (Genesis 3:20), could be recognized as the “new Eve,” whose role in bringing redemption parallels Eve’s role in introducing sin and condemnation. If the dragon (satan) and the child (Jesus) represent individuals, the woman also is likely to be an individual (Mary). While the woman still may have some symbolic meaning pointing to Israel or the Church, she is portrayed as the mother of the Messiah, Mary. This woman could be understood as both Mary AND a representative of God’s People as a whole. Mary would be the right person to embody the Old and New Covenant since she is the hinge between the Old and the New. Mary is the mother of Jesus, she raised Him, she followed Him in His ministry, she was at the cross (John 19:25–27), the resurrection and ascension (Acts 1:14). Jesus is crucified by the Romans while His mother and John stand at the foot of the Cross. John 19 presents the crucifixion of Christ which was where the dragon was waiting to devour the male child and fiercely battling the forces of heaven (Revelation 12:4–7). The Son emerges victorious, enthroned in heaven, while the devil is defeated and cast down (Revelation 12:5–9). Mary is called "woman" in John 19:25–27. Earlier, Jesus tells an allegory of a woman who experiences pains of childbirth but of her joy once the child is born. This allegory foreshadows what the pain the disciples would soon experience when He is crucified but the great joy when He is risen from the dead. The birth allegory foreshadows Calvary, its mention of a "woman" in her "hour" symbolizing Christ’s death, and it stands in the background of the scene of Mary at the Cross. Mary stood at the foot of the cross with her Son as He went through His "hour" when satan was finally defeated. Horrible pain that gave birth to salvation for the world! Mary at the cross is not only as Jesus’ mother (John 19:25–26), but Jesus asks John to care for her as his own mother. She becomes the mother of John who represents all faithful disciples.
2. Throughout the Bible a pure “woman” is a symbol of God’s true church. The depiction of the woman being protected and nourished by God in Revelation 12:13–16 describes God protecting His People in the New Covenant age. Her seed, or the child and other children would be faithful members of the Church, who keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. She is said to be “clothed with the sun,” the glory of the gospel of Christ, and have “the moon under her feet,” the reflected glory of Christ as foreshadowed in the Old Testament sanctuary services and rituals. John 8:12; Colossians 2:11-17. The “crown of twelve stars” represents the twelve apostles. The woman who gives birth to Messiah represents the true church through its entire history—from Adam and the Jewish nation to the Christian Church. But Christ gives birth to the church; the church does not give birth to the Lord. The woman is the true church. She is clothed with the sun. The Church is the bearer of divine supernatural light in the world, the gospel, and His righteousness. The church reflects His light. The moon is under her feet. The moon could represent the Jewish religion and sacrificial system. The moon shines at night and Israel is to give a light, a witness, amid the world’s darkness. It is through Israel’s seed that God promises to bring forth His Son - the Messiah. In Genesis, God repeatedly promises Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (later renamed Israel) that “in you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
"In Revelation 2:18-29, the Church in Thyatira is promised that the faithful shall rule the nations with a rod of iron. In Revelation 19:15 the same thing is stated of Jesus. In Galatians 4:26, Paul the Apostle refers to the 'New Jerusalem' as 'our mother', and in Revelation 21:2 and Ephesians 5:21-32 the New Jerusalem and the Church is portrayed as the Bride of Christ." - Wikipedia
"There was some light in it, and it gave light to the saints in the night of Jewish darkness; it pointed out Christ to them, and was their schoolmaster to teach and lead them to him; yet, like the moon, it was the lesser light, the light it gave was inferior to that which the Gospel now gives; and as the moon has its shortcomings and its imperfections; had it been faultless, there had been no need of another, and a new dispensation, but that could make nothing perfect; and, as the moon, it was variable and changeable; it was but for a time, and is now done away; it is not only waxen old like the moon in the wane, but is entirely vanished away" - Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible
The New Testament Church is called “the Israel of God” (Galatians 6:16) and likened to “Jerusalem above,” which is called “the mother of us all” (Galatians 4:26, Hebrews 12:22-23). Members of the Church are described as “a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, [God’s] own special people” (1 Peter 2:9). When Christ returns to earth, He is going to marry the Church, which is called “His wife” in Revelation 19:7.
The woman—described as being “clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a garland of twelve stars.
Ezekiel 16 1 Then another message came to me from the LORD: 2“Son of man, confront Jerusalem with her detestable sins. 3 Give her this message from the Sovereign LORD: You are nothing but a Canaanite! Your father was an Amorite and your mother a Hittite. 4 On the day you were born, no one cared about you. Your umbilical cord was not cut, and you were never washed, rubbed with salt, and wrapped in cloth. 5 No one had the slightest interest in you; no one pitied you or cared for you. On the day you were born, you were unwanted, dumped in a field and left to die. 6 “But I came by and saw you there, helplessly kicking about in your own blood. As you lay there, I said, ‘Live!’... 9 “Then I bathed you and washed off your blood, and I rubbed fragrant oils into your skin. 10 I gave you expensive clothing of fine linen and silk, beautifully embroidered, and sandals made of fine goatskin leather. 11 I gave you lovely jewelry, bracelets, beautiful necklaces, 12 a ring for your nose, earrings for your ears, and a lovely crown for your head. 13 And so you were adorned with gold and silver. Your clothes were made of fine linen and were beautifully embroidered. You ate the finest foods—choice flour, honey, and olive oil—and became more beautiful than ever. You looked like a queen, and so you were! 14 Your fame soon spread throughout the world because of your beauty. I dressed you in my splendor and perfected your beauty, says the Sovereign LORD. 15 “But you thought your fame and beauty were your own. So you gave yourself as a prostitute to every man who came along.
In the New Testament, God’s Church is symbolized as a woman; and its members are likened to virgins (Matthew 25:1-13). The New Testament Church is called “the Israel of God” (Galatians 6:16) and likened to “Jerusalem above,” which is called “the mother of us all” (Galatians 4:26, Hebrews 12:22-23).
3. While it is true that Mary gave birth to Jesus, it is also true that Jesus, the son of David from the tribe of Judah, came from Israel. Mary was a descendant of King David. She was a Jew, a Hebrew, an Israelite. Israel gave birth to Jesus Christ. If the woman is seen as the Jewish nation, then the Gentile Christians, “who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ,” would be those referred to as “the rest of her offspring.” The symbols of sun, moon and stars could be drawn from Genesis 37:9–11. Joseph has a dream of the sun and moon (symbolizing his father and mother) and stars (representing his brothers), which bow down to him. Jacob (the "sun"), Rachel (the "moon"), and Jacob's twelve sons (the "twelve stars"). The sun, moon, and twelve stars symbolize the people of Israel. Israel was the "embodiment" of the Law. Israel is often depicted in Scripture as a woman. When Christ returns to earth, He is going to marry the Church. It is even called “His wife” in Revelation 19:7.
4. Is she the faithful Jewish remnant, through whom God brought the Messiah into the world, and which followed Him as His first disciples. The Judean remnant, the spiritual Israel, thus became the beginnings of the church. In Revelation 12:1, Israel may be seen, not as she was or is, but as she will be. It is the nation as God intended her to be, a condition that will be fulfilled in the Messiah's reign. This "woman" is the earthly city of Jerusalem and the Israelites primary and capital city was Jerusalem. Jerusalem was considered to be the "wife" or "bride" of God in Jeremiah 2:2; however, she was an "adulterous wife" in Ezekiel 16:32. The woman represents the people who bring about the child, Jesus. Mary was the individual member of the faithful remnant who brought forth the Messiah. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops concurs with Victorinus: “The woman adorned with the sun, the moon, and the stars…symbolizes God’s people in the Old and the New Testament. The Israel of old gave birth to the Messiah (Revelation 12:5) and then became the new Israel, the church.”
And, of course, it could be all of the above. John's vision contains "fusion imagery," in which one symbol is composed of elements from several different things. It is called polyvalent symbolism, in which symbols have more than one meaning. This woman is a four-way symbol: Israel, the Church, Eve, and Mary. This woman could be the new Eve, God's people personified, the mother of the Messiah AND the church. She is the new Eve, and Eve is “mother of all living”. Eve was physical mother, Mary is a spiritual mother. Like Mary, she is pictured as the mother of the Messiah. Like the Church, she is persecuted by satan. Like Israel, she experiences great birth pangs as the Messiah is brought forth from the nation. And like Eve, it is her Seed whom the dragon, satan, hates. And the church as the New Israel includes believing Jews, the remnant, as well as believing Gentiles.
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Revelation 12: 3- 3 Then another sign appeared in heaven: a huge red dragon with seven heads, ten horns, and seven royal crowns on his heads. 4 His tail swept a third of the stars from the sky, tossing them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman as she was about to give birth, ready to devour her child as soon as He was born.
- Huge
- Red
- Dragon
- Seven heads
- Ten horns
- Seven royal crowns
- His tail swept a third of the stars from the sky
Revelation 12:9 identifies this dragon as satan. "The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him."
“The dragon represents evil, chaos, and ancient opposition to God. Revelation explicitly identifies the dragon with Satan, the archenemy of God and his people. As God defeated the beast from the sea in Daniel and the dragon of Egypt through the Exodus, so he will defeat Satan (Revelation 20:3, 7-10). In the new heaven and earth there will no longer be a sea (21:1) or an ancient sea dragon to threaten God’s new creation” - Dictionary of Biblical Prophecy and End Times, p. 125.
Job 41:1-34 1 Can you catch Leviathan with a hook or put a noose around its jaw?
2 Can you tie it with a rope through the nose or pierce its jaw with a spike?
3 Will it beg you for mercy or implore you for pity?
4 Will it agree to work for you, to be your slave for life?
5 Can you make it a pet like a bird, or give it to your little girls to play with?
6 Will merchants try to buy it to sell it in their shops?
7 Will its hide be hurt by spears or its head by a harpoon?
8 If you lay a hand on it, you will certainly remember the battle that follows.
You won’t try that again!
9 No, it is useless to try to capture it.
The hunter who attempts it will be knocked down.
10 And since no one dares to disturb it, who then can stand up to Me?
11 Who has given Me anything that I need to pay back?
Everything under heaven is Mine.
12 I want to emphasize Leviathan’s limbs and its enormous strength and graceful form.
13 Who can strip off its hide, and who can penetrate its double layer of armor?
14 Who could pry open its jaws?
For its teeth are terrible!
15 Its scales are like rows of shields tightly sealed together.
16 They are so close together that no air can get between them.
17 Each scale sticks tight to the next.
They interlock and cannot be penetrated.
18 When it sneezes, it flashes light!
Its eyes are like the red of dawn.
19 Lightning leaps from its mouth;
flames of fire flash out.
20 Smoke streams from its nostrils like steam from a pot heated over burning rushes.
21 Its breath would kindle coals, for flames shoot from its mouth.
22 The tremendous strength in Leviathan’s neck strikes terror wherever it goes.
23 Its flesh is hard and firm and cannot be penetrated.
24 Its heart is hard as rock, hard as a millstone.
25 When it rises, the mighty are afraid, gripped by terror.
26 No sword can stop it, no spear, dart, or javelin.
27 Iron is nothing but straw to that creature, and bronze is like rotten wood.
28 Arrows cannot make it flee.
Stones shot from a sling are like bits of grass.
29 Clubs are like a blade of grass, and it laughs at the swish of javelins.
30 Its belly is covered with scales as sharp as glass.
It plows up the ground as it drags through the mud.
31 Leviathan makes the water boil with its commotion.
It stirs the depths like a pot of ointment.
32 The water glistens in its wake, making the sea look white.
33 Nothing on earth is its equal, no other creature so fearless.
34 Of all the creatures, it is the proudest.
It is the king of beasts.
Psalm 74:10-14 10 How long will the enemy mock you, God?
Will the foe revile your name forever?
11 Why do you hold back your hand, your right hand?
Take it from the folds of your garment and destroy them!
12 But God is my King from long ago; He brings salvation on the earth.
13 It was you who split open the sea by your power; you broke the heads of the monster in the waters.
14 It was you who crushed the heads of Leviathan and gave it as food to the creatures of the desert.
Isaiah 27:1 In that day the LORD will take his terrible, swift sword and punish Leviathan, the swiftly moving serpent, the coiling, writhing serpent. He will kill the dragon of the sea.
Leviathan is a sea monster while behemoth is a land monster. The leviathan, in the natural world, could be a whale, crocodile or a prehistoric sea dinosaur. While the behemoth, in the natural world, could be a hippopotamus or prehistoric land dinosaur. Using these terms as adjectives would mean someone, or something, is huge, powerful, muscular, dangerous, formidable, immense, uncontrollable, vicious, with monstrous ferocity.
Sometimes "leviathan" is used as a symbol for the wicked kings of the earth who have tremendous power such as the King of Babylon or a Pharoah of Egypt. In all of the scriptural references, the one thing to keep in mind is that God has absolute control over this leviathan! It is described as being much more than any man, or men, could handle. No weapon we devise can kill it. We are defenseless in the face of leviathan but God is not! The Bible says that God originally created the leviathan and gave it a home "to frolic in" but the leviathan turns evil and only God can deal with it, which He does. Satan was created by God and was one of His angels. In fact, satan was one of the very highest order of angels and he had a place in God's realm. But he turned evil and led a rebellion against God. Due to pride (Job 40:34) and the desire to be God, satan led 1/3 of the angels in rebellion and God kicked satan and 1/3 of the angels out of Heaven. God has dealt with him and has the final victory when he is thrown in the Lake of Fire.
Matthew 12:29 (Jesus speaking) "For who is powerful enough to enter the house of a strong man like Satan and plunder his goods? Only someone even stronger—someone who could tie him up and then plunder his house."
So, in Job, "Can you catch Leviathan with a hook or put a noose around its jaw? Can you tie it with a rope through the nose or pierce its jaw with a spike?" These were ways to control animals.
Making a noose over a horse's head is one way to lead it.
A ring through the nose with a lead attached is the way you can lead a cow.
A horse bridle and bit allows a rider to control the horse.
A loop on a stick helps people handle dogs in dangerous situations.
A shark captured by a hook in it's jaw.
Staples in a pig snout keeps it from rooting and destroying it's living quarters.
The rhetorical question in Job 41:1-2 is answered by: only God can control leviathan. No man can control leviathan.
We may think we can. "Can you make it a pet like a bird, or give it to your little girls to play with?" and the answer is NO! Satan is real good at making sin look enticing, flattering, cute, fun, and the answer to all your problems. But you play around with him and he will have YOU hooked, controlled, and lead by the nose. Sin is anything BUT cute.
Some people may think they can enslave, or harness, the power of leviathan to do their bidding. "Will it beg you for mercy or implore you for pity? Will it agree to work for you, to be your slave for life?" I have to think of people who believe in black magic, voodoo, satanism. Do you really believe you can play with something like this? Do you really think that you can control and order leviathan around to do your bidding? Have you ever read Johannes Wolfgang von Goethe's poem, Faust? It's a two part tragedy that made it's full debut in 1831 (parts were written much earlier). Heinrich Faust is the main character. He is a scholar trying to learn about everything. He begins to despair and takes a walk in with his assistant, Wagner, in which a stray black standard poodle follows them home. The poodle transforms into satan's agent, Mephistopheles, who offers Faust a deal.
Mephistopheles will serve Faust and do his bidding throughout the rest of his life if Faust will serve the devil in hell in the afterlife. Faust signs the contract with his own blood. Making a pact with the devil is not a new idea, as you can see. Many movies and books have taken on the topic of making a deal with the devil. But the point of this lesson is that you will come out on the wrong end of the deal. Only God can handle leviathan.
We may also think we can harness leviathan and use it for our gain. "Will merchants try to buy it to sell it in their shops?" How many people try to make money off of sin? But they will find out they can't control leviathan and it will eat them up one way or another. Any money they make will melt like snow.
You think you can make money off of sin.
You can market it and get rich.
You think it's just another way to make a living.
You don't do it, someone else will.
You think everyone else does it, why not me?
You can overlook the misery.
The wages of sin is death; it's what the Bible says.
The money you make is tainted.
The souls you rob just might be your own.
The Bible says sin has a price.
There is never a justification good enough.
The devil says, "That's tough!"
So who does have the power to control leviathan and to destroy him? God and God only! Thank the Lord, we have a God who has the power and the desire to save us from such a beast! We are weak but God is strong! "In that day the LORD will take his terrible, swift sword and punish Leviathan". The seven heads and seven crowns may symbolize the dragon’s false claims to divine sovereignty. The number seven in the Bible has always meant perfection and completeness. There is no one perfect and complete but God. Remember the seven crowns upon the head of the Lamb in Revelation 5:6. Satan is counterfeit. He is the Father of lies and there is no truth in him so his masquerade is fake. He wants us to think he is God and he is the almighty one. But it's nothing but a veneer, a mask, whitewash, theater makeup; it's false, counterfeit, fake.
Matthew 12:26 (Jesus speaking) "And if Satan is casting out Satan, he is divided and fighting against himself. His own kingdom will not survive".
In Daniel 7, the prophet sees a terrifying beast with 10 horns, which represent 10 kings. Satan has a kingdom and Jesus calls him the Prince of this world. Apostle Paul calls him the prince of the power of the air. His kingdom is temporary, his reign on earth is soon coming to an end. His end will be the Lake of Fire for eternal torment.
1 John 5:19 We know that we are children of God and that the world around us is under the control of the evil one.
The dragon's tail sweeps one third of the stars from the sky. Satan had been involved in a rebellion against God in which he attempted to exalt his “throne above the stars of God” and “be like the Most High” (Isaiah 14:13-14). Satan lead one third of the angels in this rebellion. In the wake of his pride and rebellion, one third of the angels fell with him. They were swept from Heaven. Fallen angels are called demons. These spirit beings can make themselves look like anything, even something good, in order to entice humans to sin. Personally, I think all these
ghosts being seen by people are this very thing. They are demons in a human form so that those who see, or hear, them will be frightened, and will begin following after ghosts and the occult, rather than followers of Jesus Christ. It's hard to understand how we can be so tricked into believing in ghosts but we refuse to believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God. We have seen people spend all their free time trying to contact ghosts, trying to become mediums, trying to find comfort or direction from the "other side". But they are following after the wrong thing.
Leviticus 19:31 Don't make yourselves disgusting to Me by going to people who claim they can talk to the dead.
Deuteronomy 18:10-12 There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD: and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee.
Why is it bad? It is an ignorant attempt to gain knowledge or help from some creature other than God. If we need to know something about the future, God tells us. Otherwise, it is for us to trust HIM and keep our focus on Him. We should have no dealings with satan and his demons, however appealing and enticing they appear. It's not Great Grandma haunting the house. Great Grandma died and she is either with the Lord or in torment awaiting final judgment. It's a demon dressed up like Great Grandma to try and frighten, confuse and entice you in a wrong direction and away from God. Do people see or hear ghosts? I'm sure they do but it's not the spirit of a dead person but a demon tricking you. Can it be caught on film or recorded? Probably. I'm not disbelieving anyone's experience. I'm just saying that it's not the spirit of dead human beings but spirit beings, demons, appearing in a way that you want them to appear. Their goal is to scare you, trick you and get you involved in anything other than God. If you are hunting ghosts, looking for ghosts, then satan and his demons will appear as a ghost. If you are expecting ghosts, afraid of ghosts, and think something is haunted, then satan and his demons will not disappoint you. But it's trickery. So God says don't fall for it, don't go after it, don't follow it, don't fool with it, don't play with it.
The sweeping of the stars is also a display of the dragon’s authority. Stars sometimes symbolized nations and kings. The dragon seems to have some power over nations and kings, able to sweep them into his wake. We know satan is the dragon and we know he has tremendous power and strength to push his agenda of control. A crown represents a permanent victory, while the diadem represents a ruling authority and power. In this verse, the word "diadem" is used rather than "crown". The horns are a symbol of power and the crowns are a representation of authority. Who can defeat leviathan, the red dragon, satan? God has! Jesus Christ dealt satan a death blow on the cross and He was resurrected in victory! Satan's end is assured. He is defeated, even though he is still feeling his power and running around on earth, his days are numbered! Satan may inspire a ruler here on earth and help him attempt to take over the world. But he is defeated. He and his tools will be ineffective against God. Man cannot overcome leviathan. But God can and He has. As God's children, we have no fear of leviathan. Our Father has him on a leash and has his days numbered. God's children will have no need to fear the red dragon, leviathan, or any satanic inspired world governments. All he can do is look scary, but he has no power over us. We need have no fear!
We know that Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem to Mary. Satan was waiting for Him and inspired Herod to try to kill the Son of God.
Matthew 2:16 When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi.
But God warned Joseph in a dream and they escaped safely. We also know that satan tries to attack God's children but...
John 10:29 (Jesus speaking) "My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand".
Satan will try to destroy the church. The church has been the object of attack from Satan from both within and without. Within, he has attacked the church by introducing false teaching and false teachers. From without with persecution.
Matthew 16:18 (Jesus speaking) "I will build My church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it".
Satan will try to destroy those who accept Christ during the Tribulation but God will save them. Satan will try to destroy the Jewish remnant who turn to God in the Tribulation. There will be a torrent of persecution against all believers. But God rescues. Bible prophecy tells us a day is coming when a great remnant will repent and receive Jesus as Savior, Messiah, Son of God, King!
Psalm 18:1-6, 16-19 1 I love you, Lord, my strength.
2 The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;
my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
3 I called to the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and I have been saved from my enemies.
4 The cords of death entangled me;
the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me.
5 The cords of the grave coiled around me;
the snares of death confronted me.
6 In my distress I called to the Lord;
I cried to my God for help.
From His temple He heard my voice;
my cry came before Him, into his ears.
...
16 He reached down from on high and took hold of me;
he drew me out of deep waters.
17 He rescued me from my powerful enemy, from my foes, who were too strong for me.
18 They confronted me in the day of my disaster, but the Lord was my support.
19 He brought me out into a spacious place;
He rescued me because He delighted in me.
God made promises to the Israelite nation. He chose Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Israel) and made covenant promises to them. If they disobeyed and turned their backs on God, rejected Jesus Christ, it wasn't all of them. Remember the disciples were Jews, the first church was made of Jews, the Apostle Paul was a Jew. There has always been a remnant that believed and there will be during the Tribulation.
Romans 11:1-5 1 I ask then: Did God reject his people? By no means! I am an Israelite myself, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God did not reject his people, whom he foreknew. Don’t you know what Scripture says in the passage about Elijah—how he appealed to God against Israel: 3 “Lord, they have killed your prophets and torn down your altars; I am the only one left, and they are trying to kill me”? 4 And what was God’s answer to him? “I have reserved for myself seven thousand who have not bowed the knee to Baal.” 5 So too, at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace. 6 And if by grace, then it cannot be based on works; if it were, grace would no longer be grace. 7 What then? What the people of Israel sought so earnestly they did not obtain. The elect among them did, but the others were hardened,
Romans 9:27 27 And concerning Israel, Isaiah the prophet cried out, “Though the people of Israel are as numerous as the sand of the seashore, only a remnant will be saved."
As a Christian, I am safe. The church is safe. The remnant is safe. God is in control and He has defeated satan and satan's end is known. He is scary, with a lot of sound and fury, but we are safe in the Father's hand and He has the power to defeat satan. However big satan is, God is bigger. However loud satan is, God is louder. However powerful satan is, God is stronger. So be encouraged if you are a Christian.
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Revelation 12:5-6 5 She gave birth to a son, a male child, who “will rule all the nations with an iron scepter.” And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne. 6 The woman fled into the wilderness to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days.
Psalm 2:6-9 6 For the Lord declares, “I have placed my chosen king on the throne in Jerusalem, on my holy mountain.”
7 The king proclaims the LORD’s decree: “The LORD said to me, ‘You are my son. Today I have become your Father.
8 Only ask, and I will give you the nations as your inheritance, the whole earth as your possession.
9 You will break them with an iron rod and smash them like clay pots.’”
This male child may reference Jesus Christ who was born on this earth. Satan hated Jesus and tried to kill Him before and after His birth.
After His death and resurrection, He ascended in the clouds back to His Father to sit at His Father's right hand. The Greek word here is
harpazo, which means "caught up" or "snatched up" and indicates quickly, instantaneously. It is the word used for the rapture of the Church in 1 Thessalonians 4:17.
He has been given the Kingdom, a kingdom that will never be taken away from Him. He will take it by force from satan, the prince of the earth. He will judge satan, his demons and those who have rejected Jesus as the Son of God and as their Savior and King.
But there are other applications, or theories, concerning the "male child".
This is a prophecy concerning things to come. Jesus had already been born, crucified, resurrected and ascended when John wrote Revelation.
Jesus will rule with a rod of iron. But according to Revelation 2:26-27, so will the church.
Revelation 2:26-27 26 The one who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations, 27 and he will rule them with a rod of iron, as when earthen pots are broken in pieces, even as I myself have received authority from my Father.
In the Greek, the word for child is
teknon which is the simple and informal "child". But Jesus was always referred to as
huios which is Greek for "son of honor". John uses
teknon to refer to the Church as the children of God in his first epistle (1 John 3:1-2, 10, 1 John 5:2), and uses
huios exclusively in reference to Christ in his gospel and first epistle (John 1:49, 59, John 3:13, 16, John 5:19, John 14:13, 1 John 3:8, 1 John 4:15, 1 John 5:5, 1 John 5:20) so would he use
teknon for Christ in this passage?
Isaiah 66:7 7 “Before she was in labor she gave birth; before her pain came upon her she delivered a son."
This woman may have given birth before labor pains. I.e. the woman did not have pre-birth labor pains, contractions. If the woman is Mary, the mother of Jesus, did she have labor pains before giving birth to Jesus? Or does this child symbolize the Church and we are raptured before the pains of the Tribulation?
Jesus' ascension is described using the words
epairo or
anabaino, both of which indicate a gradual rising (like climbing a mountain) not the
harpazo, "snatching up".
Christ is the head of the Church and believers make up the body of the Church. We are united and one with Christ, our head. Believers have died to self and been resurrected with a new spirit. Our spirit will eventually be reunited with our perfected and resurrected bodies to live eternally with Christ. The Church will be raptured. We become co-rulers with Christ over the earth. So, in a sense, this male child is Christ AND His Church. Dual fulfillment through Christ and His Church.
1 Timothy 2:11-13 11 The saying is trustworthy, for: If we have died with him, we will also live with him; 12 if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he also will deny us; 13 if we are faithless, he remains faithful— for he cannot deny himself.
Psalm 8:3-6 3 When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers—the moon and the stars you set in place—4 what are mere mortals that you should think about them, human beings that you should care for them? 5 Yet you made them only a little lower than God and crowned them with glory and honor. 6 You gave them charge of everything you made, putting all things under their authority
Let's look at two of the Prophet Daniel's prophecies:
Daniel 2:27-47 27 Daniel replied, “No wise man, enchanter, magician or diviner can explain to the king the mystery he has asked about, 28 but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries. He has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in days to come. Your dream and the visions that passed through your mind as you were lying in bed are these:
29 “As Your Majesty was lying there, your mind turned to things to come, and the revealer of mysteries showed you what is going to happen. 30 As for me, this mystery has been revealed to me, not because I have greater wisdom than anyone else alive, but so that Your Majesty may know the interpretation and that you may understand what went through your mind.
31 “Your Majesty looked, and there before you stood a large statue—an enormous, dazzling statue, awesome in appearance. 32 The head of the statue was made of pure gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, 33 its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of baked clay.
34 While you were watching, a rock was cut out, but not by human hands. It struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and smashed them. 35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver and the gold were all broken to pieces and became like chaff on a threshing floor in the summer. The wind swept them away without leaving a trace. But the rock that struck the statue became a huge mountain and filled the whole earth.
36 “This was the dream, and now we will interpret it to the king. 37 Your Majesty, you are the king of kings. The God of heaven has given you dominion and power and might and glory; 38 in your hands he has placed all mankind and the beasts of the field and the birds in the sky. Wherever they live, he has made you ruler over them all. You are that head of gold.
39 “After you, another kingdom will arise, inferior to yours. Next, a third kingdom, one of bronze, will rule over the whole earth. 40 Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron—for iron breaks and smashes everything—and as iron breaks things to pieces, so it will crush and break all the others. 41 Just as you saw that the feet and toes were partly of baked clay and partly of iron, so this will be a divided kingdom; yet it will have some of the strength of iron in it, even as you saw iron mixed with clay. 42 As the toes were partly iron and partly clay, so this kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle. 43 And just as you saw the iron mixed with baked clay, so the people will be a mixture and will not remain united, any more than iron mixes with clay.
44 “In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever. 45 This is the meaning of the vision of the rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands—a rock that broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold to pieces.
“The great God has shown the king what will take place in the future. The dream is true and its interpretation is trustworthy.”
46 Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell prostrate before Daniel and paid him honor and ordered that an offering and incense be presented to him. 47 The king said to Daniel, “Surely your God is the God of gods and the Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries, for you were able to reveal this mystery.”
Daniel 7 (NIV) 1 In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream, and visions passed through his mind as he was lying in bed. He wrote down the substance of his dream.
2 Daniel said: “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me were the four winds of heaven churning up the great sea. 3 Four great beasts, each different from the others, came up out of the sea.
4 “The first was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. I watched until its wings were torn off and it was lifted from the ground so that it stood on two feet like a human being, and the mind of a human was given to it.
5 “And there before me was a second beast, which looked like a bear. It was raised up on one of its sides, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. It was told, ‘Get up and eat your fill of flesh!’
6 “After that, I looked, and there before me was another beast, one that looked like a leopard. And on its back it had four wings like those of a bird. This beast had four heads, and it was given authority to rule.
7 “After that, in my vision at night I looked, and there before me was a fourth beast—terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns.
8 “While I was thinking about the horns, there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted
9 “As I looked,
thrones were set in place,
and the Ancient of Days took his seat.
His clothing was as white as snow;
the hair of his head was white like wool.
His throne was flaming with fire,
and its wheels were all ablaze.
10 A river of fire was flowing,
coming out from before him.
Thousands upon thousands attended him;
ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him.
The court was seated,
and the books were opened.
11 “Then I continued to watch because of the boastful words the horn was speaking. I kept looking until the beast was slain and its body destroyed and thrown into the blazing fire. 12 (The other beasts had been stripped of their authority, but were allowed to live for a period of time.)
13 “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man,a coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.
15 “I, Daniel, was troubled in spirit, and the visions that passed through my mind disturbed me. 16 I approached one of those standing there and asked him the meaning of all this.
“So he told me and gave me the interpretation of these things: 17 ‘The four great beasts are four kings that will rise from the earth. 18 But the holy people of the Most High will receive the kingdom and will possess it forever—yes, for ever and ever.’
19 “Then I wanted to know the meaning of the fourth beast, which was different from all the others and most terrifying, with its iron teeth and bronze claws—the beast that crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. 20 I also wanted to know about the ten horns on its head and about the other horn that came up, before which three of them fell—the horn that looked more imposing than the others and that had eyes and a mouth that spoke boastfully. 21 As I watched, this horn was waging war against the holy people and defeating them, 22 until the Ancient of Days came and pronounced judgment in favor of the holy people of the Most High, and the time came when they possessed the kingdom.
23v“He gave me this explanation: ‘The fourth beast is a fourth kingdom that will appear on earth. It will be different from all the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth, trampling it down and crushing it. 24 The ten horns are ten kings who will come from this kingdom. After them another king will arise, different from the earlier ones; he will subdue three kings. 25 He will speak against the Most High and oppress his holy people and try to change the set times and the laws. The holy people will be delivered into his hands for a time, times and half a time.
26 “‘But the court will sit, and his power will be taken away and completely destroyed forever. 27 Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven will be handed over to the holy people of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him.’
28 “This is the end of the matter. I, Daniel, was deeply troubled by my thoughts, and my face turned pale, but I kept the matter to myself.”
The number four is, in apocalyptic writings, significant of the world; "the four winds" mean the whole world. The great sea would most likely be the Mediterranean Sea (but could represent any sea) but symbolically represents the world's heathen nations with it's constant political and social agitations. The "four winds" may be angels, either good or bad, concerned in the affairs on earth, either by divine order or permission. If each nation has an angel at it's head, this would also make sense. Good angels may be commanded to stir up nations by divine order. Bad angels may be allowed to stir up nations by permission from God. But the end result is the constant shifting of political power through wars, invasions, treaties; striving and fighting to enlarge their power and territory; conquering and falling.
Babylonia was an ancient state based in central-southern Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq). A small Amorite-ruled state emerged in 1894 b.c., which contained the minor town of Babylon. Under Hammurabi in the first half of the 18th century b.c. it became a major capital city. Babylonia briefly became the major power in the region after Hammurabi. He conquered what is today Iran, Syria, Jordan. After Hammurabi, his empire declined and over centuries Babylon and the Mesopotamian region were ruled by many different groups and leaders. In 620 b.c. Nabopolassar seized control over much of Babylonia with the support of most of the inhabitants. He was forced to contend with an occupying Assyrian army encamped in Babylonia. The stalemate ended in 615 b.c., when Nabopolassar entered the Babylonians and Chaldeans into alliance with Cyaxares, an erstwhile vassal of Assyria, and king of the Iranian peoples; the Medes, Persians, Sagartians and Parthians. The coalition of Babylonians, Chaldeans, Medes, Persians, Scythians, Cimmerians and Sagartians fought in unison against a civil war ravaged Assyria eventually earning the hard won victory. Nabopolassar was followed by his son Nebuchadnezzar II (605–562 BC), whose reign of 43 years made Babylon once more the ruler of much of the civilized world, taking over portions of the former Assyrian Empire, with the eastern and north eastern portion being taken by the Medes and the far north by the Scythians. Amel-Marduk succeeded to the throne and reigned for only two years when he was murdered. Neriglissar (560–556 BC), son-in-law of Nebuchadnezzar II, also had a short reign. Then Labashi-Marduk (556 BC), who was still a boy. He was deposed and killed during the same year in a palace conspiracy. The last Babylonian king, Nabonidus (556–539 BC) who is the son of the Assyrian priestess Adda-Guppi and who managed to kill the last Chaldean king, Labashi-Marduk. He seemed to have left the defense of his kingdom to his son Belshazzar (a capable soldier but poor diplomat who alienated the political elite). It was in the sixth year of Nabonidus (549 BC) that Cyrus the Great, the Achaemenid Persian king revolted against the King of the Medes and in 3 years he became king of all Persia. In 539 BC Cyrus invaded Babylonia. The Babylonians were defeated.
The "beasts" here represent the world powers: Babylonian, Persian, Grecian, and Roman.
The lion and the eagle are chosen as being emblems of strength and swiftness and represent Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, or the Assyrian monarchy, founded by Nimrod, increased by the Assyrians, and brought to its height under Nebuchadnezzar. By plucking the eagle's wings, the beast was no longer as swift and mobile. It also began to walk on two legs rather than as a beast on four. I.e. it began to be more civilized. It became less like a lion and more like a man, with a man's weak, timid, fearful heart.
The second kingdom consists of two parts, and the raising up of one side implies that one part of the kingdom would come into greater prominence than the other. Such was the case with the Medo-Persian Empire. The 3 ribs are kingdoms subdued by the Bear of Medo-Persia, most likely the the Babylonians, the Lydians, and the Egyptians. The bear is rough, uncivilized, voracious and cruel.
Three of the historical books of the Bible: Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther, and three of the minor prophets: Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi, have their context in the reign of the Medo-Persian Empire. The
Medo-Persian Empire first came into prominence in the ninth century b.c. under Shalmaneser III (about 836 b.c.). Assyria was the dominant side until the seventh century b.c., but their decline began in 614 b.c. when the Medes captured Asshur, the capitol city of Assyria. In 612 b.c. the Medes allied with the Chaldeans and captured Nineveh resulting in the downfall of the Assyrian Empire. In the years which followed the Medes-Persians were an important ally of Babylonia and formed various alliances and intermarriages. Toward the end of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, the Persians began more powerful. Under Cyrus II Media was conquered in 549 b.c. and was combined with the empire of the Persians to form the Medo-Persian Empire. The combined strength of the Persians and the Medes led to conquest of Babylon in 539 b.c., and they ruled over much of the Middle East until the conquest of Alexander the Great in 331 b.c. Darius I (c. 550–486) was the fourth king of the Persian Achaemenid Empire (established by Cyrus I, Cyrus the Great, it was the First Persian Empire.) Darius the Great ruled the empire at its peak. He supported faiths and religions that were "alien" as long as the adherents were submissive and peaceable, sometimes funding them from his treasury. He had funded the restoration of the Israelite temple which had originally been decreed by Cyrus. His successor was Xerxes I (identified as Ahasuerus in the biblical Book of Esther) Xerxes crushed revolts in Egypt and Babylon after which he ceased to use the title of 'King of Babylon', calling himself simply 'King of the Persians and the Medes'. Burying people alive is a Persian custom and Xerxes' wife, Amestris, buried, twice, seven sons of notable Persians as an offering on her own behalf to the fabled god beneath the earth. Xerxes buried alive nine boys and nine girls who were children of local people one time. In August 465 b.c., Artabanus, the commander of the royal bodyguard and the most powerful official in the Persian court, assassinated Xerxes with the help of a eunuch, Aspamitres. He put his seven sons in key positions. Artabanus then accused the Crown Prince Darius, Xerxes's eldest son, of the murder and persuaded another of Xerxes's sons, Artaxerxes I, to avenge the patricide by killing Darius. After Artaxerxes discovered the lie, he killed Artabanus and his sons. Artaxerxes I reigned from 465-424 b.c. He commissioned Ezra, a Jewish priest and scribe, by means of a letter of decree, to take charge of the ecclesiastical and civil affairs of the Jewish nation. Ezra left Babylon in the first month of the seventh year of Artaxerxes' reign, at the head of a company of Jews that included priests and Levites. They arrived in Jerusalem on the first day of the fifth month of the seventh year (Hebrew Calendar). The rebuilding of the city had begun under Cyrus the Great, who had permitted Jews held captive in Babylon to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the Temple of Solomon. Consequently, a number of Jews returned to Jerusalem in 538 BC, and the foundation of this "Second Temple" was laid in 536 b.c., (Ezra 3:8). The temple was finally completed in the sixth year of Darius, 516 BC (Ezra 6:15). In Artaxerxes' 20th year (445 b.c.), Nehemiah, the king's cupbearer and friend, was sad. Artaxerxes inquired after Nehemiah's sadness. Nehemiah related to him the plight of the Jewish people and that the city of Jerusalem was undefended. The king sent Nehemiah to Jerusalem. (sources: Wikipedia and the Bible)
The next beast is a leopard. The swiftness, vigilance, suddenness, cruelty of the leopard who hunts by speed is indicated. The Greek Empire under Alexander the Great conquered so much so quickly. In just 12 years he had subjugated much of Europe and Asia. At the death of Alexander, the Macedonian empire was divided four ways under his generals: Macedon and Greece under Cassander, Thrace and Bithynia under Lysimachus, Egypt under Ptolemy, and Syria under Seleucus.
The fourth beast... it was such a monster, it had no natural comparison. Cruelty, oppression, and tyranny signified the Roman Empire. What wasn't destroyed by it's iron teeth was trampled by it's feet. The ten kingdoms into which Rome shall be divided are future kingdoms when the Antichrist, the little horn, shall appear. The little horn shall appear and three of the horns (kingdoms) shall fall and the rest will submit. This horn with eyes and mouth, is the AntiChrist. It has great intelligence and charm. He fancies himself as god. He will make all kinds of promises but cannot be trusted.
Daniel 8 (NIV, parenthesis mine) 1 In the third year of King Belshazzar’s reign, I, Daniel, had a vision, after the one that had already appeared to me. 2 In my vision I saw myself in the citadel of Susa in the province of Elam; in the vision I was beside the Ulai Canal. 3 I looked up, and there before me was a ram with two horns, standing beside the canal, and the horns were long. One of the horns was longer than the other but grew up later. 4 I watched the ram as it charged toward the west and the north and the south. No animal could stand against it, and none could rescue from its power. It did as it pleased and became great.
5 As I was thinking about this, suddenly a goat with a prominent horn between its eyes came from the west, crossing the whole earth without touching the ground.
6 It came toward the two-horned ram I had seen standing beside the canal and charged at it in great rage. 7 I saw it attack the ram furiously, striking the ram and shattering its two horns. The ram was powerless to stand against it; the goat knocked it to the ground and trampled on it, and none could rescue the ram from its power. 8 The goat became very great, but at the height of its power the large horn was broken off, and in its place four prominent horns grew up toward the four winds of heaven.
9 Out of one of them came another horn, which started small but grew in power to the south and to the east and toward the Beautiful Land. 10 It grew until it reached the host of the heavens, and it threw some of the starry host down to the earth and trampled on them. 11 It set itself up to be as great as the commander of the army of the Lord; it took away the daily sacrifice from the Lord, and his sanctuary was thrown down. 12 Because of rebellion, the Lord’s people and the daily sacrifice were given over to it. It prospered in everything it did, and truth was thrown to the ground.
13 Then I heard a holy one speaking, and another holy one said to him, “How long will it take for the vision to be fulfilled—the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, the rebellion that causes desolation, the surrender of the sanctuary and the trampling underfoot of the Lord’s people?”
14 He said to me, “It will take 2,300 evenings and mornings (about 6 1/3 years); then the sanctuary will be reconsecrated.”
15 While I, Daniel, was watching the vision and trying to understand it, there before me stood one who looked like a man. 16 And I heard a man’s voice from the Ulai calling, “Gabriel, tell this man the meaning of the vision.”
17 As he came near the place where I was standing, I was terrified and fell prostrate. “Son of man,” he said to me, “understand that the vision concerns the time of the end.”
18 While he was speaking to me, I was in a deep sleep, with my face to the ground. Then he touched me and raised me to my feet.
19 He said: “I am going to tell you what will happen later in the time of wrath, because the vision concerns the appointed time of the end. 20 The two-horned ram that you saw represents the kings of Media and Persia. 21 The shaggy goat is the king of Greece, and the large horn between its eyes is the first king. 22 The four horns that replaced the one that was broken off represent four kingdoms that will emerge from his nation but will not have the same power.
23 “In the latter part of their reign, when rebels have become completely wicked, a fierce-looking king, a master of intrigue, will arise. 24 He will become very strong, but not by his own power. He will cause astounding devastation and will succeed in whatever he does. He will destroy those who are mighty, the holy people. 25 He will cause deceit to prosper, and he will consider himself superior. When they feel secure, he will destroy many and take his stand against the Prince of princes. Yet he will be destroyed, but not by human power.
26 “The vision of the evenings and mornings that has been given you is true, but seal up the vision, for it concerns the distant future.”
27 I, Daniel, was worn out. I lay exhausted for several days. Then I got up and went about the king’s business. I was appalled by the vision; it was beyond understanding.
The ram with 2 horns symbolizes the Medo-Persian Empire again. The goat is the Greek Empire. Antiochus Epiphanes is the small horn of verse 9.
Antiochus Epiphanes was a Greek king of the Seleucid Empire who reigned over Syria from 175 BC until 164 BC. "Epiphanes" means illustrious one or god manifest. He is famous for almost conquering Egypt and for his brutal persecution of the Jews. here were two factions within Judaism: the Hellenists, who had accepted pagan practices and Greek culture; and the Traditionalists, who were faithful to the Mosaic Law and the old ways. Antiochus made a decree outlawing Jewish rites and worship, ordering the Jews to worship Zeus rather than Yahweh. The Jews rebelled against his decrees. Antiochus raided the temple in Jerusalem, stealing its treasures. He set up an altar to Zeus and sacrificed swine on the altar. The Jews were outraged and Antiochus responded by slaughtering them and selling them into slavery. He issued even more drastic decrees: circumcision was punishable by death, and Jews were ordered to sacrifice to pagan gods and eat pig flesh. In 167—166 BC, Judas Maccabeus led the Jews in the Maccabean revolt over the military forces of the Syrian-Greeks. After vanquishing Antiochus and the Seleucids, the Jews cleaned and restored the temple in 165. Antiochus Epiphanes was a foreshadowing of the coming Antichrist. There will be a fuller accomplishment in the future.
The prophet Daniel predicts an atrocity in the temple in the end times (Daniel 9:27; Daniel 11:31; Daniel 12:11). Daniel's prophecy in Daniel 8 came true during Antiochus Epiphanes time.
Antiochus desecrated the temple in Jerusalem and severely persecuted the Jews from about September 171 BC-December 165 BC (a little over 6 years). Diodorus Siculus, who wrote during the first century B.C., recorded that Antiochus Epiphanes IV “was driven mad by certain apparitions and terrors, and finally died of disease” (1947, 31:18a). When Antiochus died, the Jews purified and rededicated the temple, just as Daniel had predicted. These events are commemorated in the celebration of Hanukkah. The period referred of 2300 days (six years, three months, and eighteen days) is that between the desolation inflicted on the temple by Antiochus Epiphanes and its cleansing by Judas Maccabaeus. Daniel 8 provides an accurate, detailed description of the historic events that occurred between 550 b.c. and 164 b.c. But they were hundreds of years in the future for Daniel!
Verses 17, 19, 26 says the vision pertains to the end times. What are the "end times" to Daniel? We can conclude that Daniel's prophecy has dual fulfillment. It was fulfilled before Christ came to earth the first time as a baby born in Bethlehem. But it will also become fulfilled, in a fuller sense, before Christ's second coming at the end of the Great Tribulation. The "end time", and this king, serves as a prototype of another “horn” in the last days, who brings about such tribulation as the world has never seen. The angel, Gabriel, informs Daniel of events in the “final period of the indignation” (verse 19). The AntiChrist will be allowed to rebel against God for a period of time. It will appear he is successful. Satan is behind this arrogant, wicked, charismatic liar. He is the power behind this puppet who only thinks he is the master of the universe. His pride, deceit and destruction are beyond compare.
Luca Signorelli's 1501 depiction of the face of antichrist, from the Orvieto Cathedral
Revelation 12: 6 The woman fled into the wilderness, where God had prepared a place for her to be nourished for one thousand two hundred sixty days.
1,260 days
Revelation 11:2-3 [The Gentiles] will trample on the holy city for 42 months. And I will appoint my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.
The time period covered, 1,260 days, figures to 42 months, or 3 1/2 years.
Historicist interpreters have usually understood the "time, times and half a time" (i.e. 1+2+0.5=3.5), "1,260 days" and "42 months" mentioned in Daniel and Revelation to be references to represent a period of 1260 years (based on the 360 day Jewish year multiplied by 3.5).
The Tribulation begins and for 3 1/2 years the AntiChrist grows in power and strength. He makes promises to the Jewish nation. Mid-way, he enters the new Jewish Temple and makes it his own. He demands to be worshiped as god. The Jews will be aghast and realization will come hard that the man they thought was their Messiah, is really the AntiChrist, the opposite of their Messiah. For the next 3 1/2 years, the tribulation will be greatly increased, especially directed against all who accept Jesus as the Messiah and their Savior. They are protected in the wilderness by God. At the end of the 7 year tribulation period, the AntiChrist will be defeated at Armageddon.
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Revelation 12:7-9 7 Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8 But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. 9 The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.
Lucifer, satan, the devil, was a created being called a Cherubim, an angelic or heavenly being. He and the hosts of angels were probably created sometime between Days 1-3 of Creation.
Satan was originally perfect (blameless) from the day he was created until he sinned (wickedness was found in him). Thus, we can deduce that Satan was created during creation week; since he was blameless, he was under God’s “very good” proclamation.
Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day. (Genesis 1:31 NKJV)
Ezekiel 28:1-19 1 The LORD God said: 2 Ezekiel, son of man, tell the king of Tyre+ that I am saying:
You are so arrogant that you think you're a god and that the city of Tyre is your throne. You may claim to be a god, though you're nothing but a mere human. 3 You think you're wiser than Daniel and know everything.
4 Your wisdom has certainly made you rich, because you have storehouses filled with gold and silver. 5 You're a clever businessman and are extremely wealthy, but your wealth has led to arrogance!
6 You compared yourself to a god, so now I, the LORD God, 7 will make you the victim of cruel enemies. They will destroy all the possessions you've worked so hard to get. 8 Your enemies will brutally kill you, and the sea will be your only grave.
9 When you face your enemies, will you still claim to be a god? They will attack, and you will suffer like any other human. 10 Foreigners will kill you, and you will die the death of those who don't worship me. I, the LORD, have spoken.
A Funeral Song for the King of Tyre
11 The LORD said:
12 Ezekiel, son of man, sing a funeral song for the king of Tyre+ and tell him I am saying:
At one time, you were perfect,+ intelligent, and good-looking. 13 You lived in the garden of Eden and wore jewelry made of brightly colored gems and precious stones.
They were all set in gold+ and were ready for you on the day you were born. 14 I appointed a winged creature to guard your home+ on my holy mountain, where you walked among gems that dazzled like fire.
15 You were truly good from the time of your birth, but later you started doing wicked things. 16 You traded with other nations and became more and more cruel and evil. So I forced you to leave my mountain, and the creature that had been your protector now chased you away from the jewels.
17 It was your good looks that made you arrogant, and you were so famous that you started acting like a fool. That's why I threw you to the ground and let other kings sneer at you. 18 You have cheated so many other merchants that your places of worship are corrupt. So I set your city on fire and burned it down. Now everyone sees only ashes where your city once stood, 19 and the people of other nations are shocked. Your punishment was horrible, and you are gone forever.
This passage not only describes an earthly king, King of Tyre, but is a picture of what happened to satan.
The prince of Tyre of the time was probably Ithobal II (aka Ethbaal, or Ithobalus). It is not, however, any individual prince that the prophet threatens, but the ruler of Tyre, who is the embodiment of the spirit of the proud commercial city. The sin with which the prophet charges the prince is pride of heart and self-deification. - The Cambridge Bible For School And College
Idolatrous nations and idolatrous kings were, in the eyes of the prophet, antagonists to the true God. In them was embodied the principle of evil opposing itself to the divine government of the world. Hence, some of the fathers saw upon the throne, not simply a hostile monarch, but “the Prince of this world, spiritual wickedness (or wicked spirits) in high places.” Whenever evil in any way domineers over good, there is a “prince of Tyrus,” against whom God utters His voice. The “mystery of iniquity is ever working, and in that working we recognize the power of Satan whom God condemns and will destroy. -Albert Barnes' Notes On The Bible
The vision is not of Satan in his own person, but of Satan fulfilling himself in and through an earthly king who arrogates to himself divine honours, so that the prince of Tyrus foreshadows the Beast. -Scofield Reference Notes
And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. (2 Corinthians 11:14, New King James Version)
Isaiah 14:11-20 11 Your might and power were buried with you.
The sound of the harp in your palace has ceased.
Now maggots are your sheet,
and worms your blanket.’
12 “How you are fallen from heaven,
O shining star, son of the morning!
You have been thrown down to the earth,
you who destroyed the nations of the world.
13 For you said to yourself,
‘I will ascend to heaven and set my throne above God’s stars.
I will preside on the mountain of the gods far away in the north.
14 I will climb to the highest heavens and be like the Most High.’
15 Instead, you will be brought down to the place of the dead,
down to its lowest depths.
16 Everyone there will stare at you and ask,
‘Can this be the one who shook the earth and made the kingdoms of the world tremble?
17 Is this the one who destroyed the world and made it into a wasteland?
Is this the king who demolished the world’s greatest cities and had no mercy on his prisoners?’
18 “The kings of the nations lie in stately glory, each in his own tomb,
19 but you will be thrown out of your grave like a worthless branch.
Like a corpse trampled underfoot,
you will be dumped into a mass grave with those killed in battle.
You will descend to the pit.
20 You will not be given a proper burial,
for you have destroyed your nation and slaughtered your people.
The descendants of such an evil person will never again receive honor.
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