Participants: Stephen Bohr
Series Code: HWIS
Program Code: HWIS000011
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00:33 Let's seek the Lord in prayer.
00:37 Our wonderful, loving, heavenly Father, 00:40 thank You for the privilege of being here today. 00:44 We're going to study a very solemn subject, 00:47 the chronology of the judgment, 00:51 which will set the stage for understanding several of the 00:54 other lectures that we will have in the future. 00:57 And therefore, we plead for Your wisdom in a 01:01 special way this evening. 01:04 Help us to understand what we're studying. 01:07 And not only to understand it, but help us to be firm 01:11 and strong in the trying times ahead. 01:15 We thank You, Father, for the privilege of approaching 01:17 Your throne boldly in the name of Jesus. 01:22 And we thank You for hearing us. 01:24 Because we do come in that wonderful name, amen. 01:30 As I mentioned in my prayer, this evening we are going to 01:34 study the topic which is titled, The Chronology of the Judgment. 01:40 And I'd like to begin by mentioning what many of you 01:45 are probably acquainted with. 01:47 And that is the Apostles' Creed. 01:51 Now I must say that the Apostles' Creed 01:54 is not apostolic. 01:56 In other words, it came into existence several centuries 02:00 after the death of the apostles. 02:03 But I want to read one small section of the Apostles' Creed, 02:08 and then the rest of our study we're going to try 02:11 and deal with the issue of the judgment 02:14 that is mentioned in the Apostles' Creed. 02:18 This is what it says. 02:20 "Jesus," and I quote, "ascended to heaven, 02:26 sitteth at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty, 02:31 from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead." 02:39 In other words, the Apostles' Creed, which I must repeat 02:42 is not apostolic, it was not written by the apostles, 02:46 states that when Jesus comes at His second coming, 02:51 He is going to judge the living and the dead. 02:57 Now my question is, is this statement really accurate? 03:04 Does the judgment really take place at the second coming 03:09 of Jesus Christ or does it take place before 03:15 Jesus comes to this earth? 03:19 Does this judgment take place in heaven or does the judgment 03:25 of the living and the dead take place on earth? 03:30 In other words the question is, does the judgment take place 03:34 before the second coming in heaven or at the 03:38 second coming on earth? 03:41 I believe that the answer to these questions is found 03:45 in a careful study of Daniel chapter 7. 03:50 And so I invite you to turn with me in your Bibles 03:53 to Daniel chapter 7, and we're going to move through this 03:58 chapter basically verse by verse. 04:02 Now let's begin with verses 1 to 3, 04:06 which actually is the introductory scene 04:10 to the vision of Daniel chapter 7. 04:15 And by the way, it gives us also the date. 04:19 It says there in Daniel chapter 7 verses 1 to 3... 04:41 Now he's going to tell us what this dream was. 04:58 Now let's stop there for a moment because we have 05:00 two symbols that we want to take a look at. 05:03 The first symbol is the four winds. 05:07 And the second symbol is the Great Sea. 05:11 Now what does the Bible mean when in prophecy 05:14 symbolically it refers to winds? 05:18 You know we talk about the winds of what? 05:21 The winds of war, the winds of strife. 05:24 In other words, winds represent wars. 05:28 They represent cataclysmic events; 05:32 nation rising against nation. 05:35 And you can notice this, for example, in Revelation 05:38 chapter 7 and verses 1 to 3 where the four angels 05:41 are holding what? 05:43 Are holding the four winds of strife. 05:46 And what happens when they release the winds? 05:49 Oh, there is a cataclysm in the world as a result of 05:54 releasing the four winds. 05:55 So the winds are winds of strife. 05:58 They represent wars and they represent conflicts 06:01 between nations. 06:03 Now the other symbol that we have in this introductory 06:06 passage is the sea. 06:09 Now it speaks about the Great Sea. 06:11 Now what is represented by the sea? 06:14 It says that the winds are beating up the waves of the sea. 06:19 Go with me to Isaiah chapter 17 and verses 12 and 13. 06:22 See, the Bible explains itself. 06:24 The Bible explains its own symbols. 06:27 When we find a symbol in Daniel, we go to other text in Scripture 06:30 that help us understand what that Symbol means. 06:34 Isaiah chapter 17 and verses 12 and 13. 06:40 Here, the prophet Isaiah says, "Woe to the multitude 06:44 of many people who make a noise like the roar of the..." What? 06:50 "...of the seas." 06:51 So what do the seas represent? 06:54 The multitude of many what? 06:56 Peoples. 06:57 And they make noise. 06:58 Let's continue reading. 07:00 "...and to the rushing of nations that make a rushing 07:04 like the rushing of..." What? 07:06 "... of many waters." 07:08 So what does the rushing of many waters represent? 07:11 The rushing of what? 07:13 Nations. 07:14 And then it says in verse 13, "The nations will rush like the 07:19 rushing of many waters; but God will rebuke them 07:23 and they will flee far away, and be chased like the chaff 07:27 of the mountains before the wind, like a rolling thing 07:31 before the whirlwind." 07:33 So what is represented by the sea? 07:36 Multitudes of what? 07:38 Multitudes of nations that are in turmoil, because the winds 07:43 are actually blowing the waves of the sea. 07:45 And the sea is rushing like the rush of many nations, 07:50 or many waters. 07:52 Now let's go in our study to verse 4. 07:57 Actually, verse 3. 07:59 It says there, "And four great beasts..." 08:03 What do beasts represent in prophecy? 08:06 Beasts represent nations or kingdoms. 08:10 We're going to notice that. 08:11 Daniel himself is going to explain it. 08:14 "And four great beasts came up from the..." What? 08:18 From the sea. 08:19 So these nations arise amidst what? 08:22 Amidst wars and turmoil. 08:25 And it continues saying... 08:31 So you have four beasts. 08:34 Now let's notice the first beast, the lion. 08:37 Daniel chapter 7 and verse 4. 08:44 The king of beasts, by the way. 08:52 Now what does the lion represent? 08:55 There's no doubt whatsoever that the lion represents the 08:58 same thing as the gold in the head of the image. 09:01 The lion represents the kingdom of Babylon. 09:04 We know that, not only because of the parallel with Daniel 2, 09:08 but we also know it because at the entrances to all of the 09:13 gates in the ancient city of Babylon of Nebuchadnezzar 09:16 there were sphinxes that were lions. 09:20 Furthermore, in Jeremiah chapter 4 verse 7, 09:23 which I'm not going to read but you can write it down. 09:25 Jeremiah 4 verse 7 compares Babylon's invasion of Judah 09:32 as the attack of a lion. 09:35 So in other words, Scripture as well as archeology 09:39 show that the lion is a symbol of Babylon. 09:43 Now what do the wings represent? 09:46 Well, the wings represent speed or swiftness of conquest. 09:53 But now I want you to notice what happens to this lion. 09:56 It continues saying there in the second part of verse 4... 10:05 Which means that it's no longer going to what? 10:08 It's no longer going to be a conquering power. 10:12 It's not going to be swift to conquest. 10:15 And then it continues saying... 10:27 What do you think a lion is like with a man's heart? 10:31 Have you ever heard of Richard, the lionhearted? 10:34 King of England? 10:36 Why was he called, the lionhearted? 10:38 Because he was a king that had a lot of what? 10:41 Courage. 10:42 Now I hate to bring this up, but have you ever watched 10:45 the Wizard of Oz? 10:47 What was the problem with the lion in the Wizard of Oz? 10:50 He was looking for what? 10:52 He was looking for courage, that's right. 10:55 And so basically this is telling us that at some point 10:58 this lion was going to cease the swiftness of its conquering 11:04 and it was actually eventually going to fall, 11:08 because it would lose its courage. 11:12 And then in Daniel chapter 7 and verse 5, we have a bear. 11:16 Let's read about the bear. 11:24 Now don't forget this detail, because we going to 11:26 come back to it in our lecture, in fact tomorrow evening. 11:39 In other words, one side of the bear was higher 11:43 than the other side of the bear. 11:46 And then it says, it had how many ribs? 11:49 It had three ribs. 12:00 Now this beast represents the second kingdom. 12:03 The same as the breast and arms of silver 12:06 in the image of Daniel chapter 2. 12:09 It's which kingdom? 12:11 It represents the kingdom of the Medes and Persians. 12:15 We're going to notice in our study tomorrow 12:17 that the kingdom of Medes and Persians 12:20 had one of the two kingdoms that was taller than the other, 12:24 and the strong one came up last. 12:27 That's why the bear is raised up on one side. 12:30 The three ribs represent the three kingdoms 12:34 that were conquered by Medo-Persia so that this 12:37 nation could ascend to power. 12:39 Let me mention what those three nations are. 12:41 The first is Lydia, which is found in ancient Turkey, 12:46 or Anatolia in Asia Minor. 12:48 This kingdom was conquered by Medo-Persia in the year 547 BC. 12:53 The second is the city of Babylon. 12:55 The story is told in Daniel chapter 5. 12:58 And Babylon was overcome in the year 539. 13:02 And the third nation or kingdom that was defeated by the 13:05 Medes and Persian so that they could ascend to power 13:08 was actually Egypt, which was conquered in the year 525. 13:13 So this fits precisely with what happened with the history 13:18 of the Medes and Persians. 13:19 And tomorrow evening we're going to give additional details 13:23 in the prophecy of Daniel chapter 8. 13:26 Now let's go to our third beast, the leopard. 13:29 Daniel chapter 7 and verse 6. 13:32 Daniel chapter 7 and verse 6. 13:39 Question, is a leopard a swift beast? 13:42 Absolutely. 13:43 But there's something else about this leopard. 13:46 Notice it says... 13:52 Was this beast a lot swifter to conquest than the lion 13:56 who had two wings? 13:58 Absolutely. 13:59 Now let me share this with you. 14:00 This beast represents the kingdom of Greece. 14:07 Who was the first king of the kingdom of Greece? 14:10 We'll study this more closely tomorrow. 14:12 Who was the first king? 14:13 The first king is very famous. 14:16 He's knows as Alexander the Great. 14:19 Do you know how long it took Alexander the Great 14:22 to conquer all of the Far East from Egypt all the way 14:28 to the Indus Valley in India? 14:31 It took Alexander the Great a period of only three years 14:36 to conquer the known world of that time. 14:39 I would say that was rather swift. 14:42 Now notice it had four wings of a bird. 14:46 Now tomorrow when we study Daniel chapter 8, 14:49 we're going to notice that another symbol is used 14:52 to represent Greece. 14:53 And that symbol is a goat. 14:56 And the Bible says that the goat is going so fast 15:00 that it doesn't even touch the ground. 15:02 In other words, that's another way of saying that this was a 15:06 nation that swiftly conquered everything that it found 15:11 in its way. 15:12 And then you'll notice the last part of the verse says... 15:24 We're going to notice in our study tomorrow 15:27 of Daniel chapter 8 that the kingdom of Greece, 15:31 when Alexander the Great died, was divided into precisely 15:36 four permanent kingdoms. 15:39 That is, until Rome came and overcame Greece. 15:42 So these four heads on the leopard represent the 15:45 four divisions of the kingdom of Greece 15:49 when Alexander the Great died. 15:52 Now I mentioned yesterday, we don't have to guess 15:55 at these three kingdoms. 15:56 We don't even have to go to history books. 15:58 Because the book of Daniel itself identifies 16:00 the first three kingdoms. 16:02 You see in Daniel chapter 2 God said to Nebuchadnezzar, 16:08 "You are this..." What? 16:09 "...this head of gold." 16:11 And then after him would arise another kingdom, 16:14 which we identified as which kingdom? 16:16 The Medes and Persians. 16:17 They are mentioned in Daniel chapter 5. 16:20 And the third kingdom, Daniel 8 refers to it by name 16:24 as Greece. 16:25 So there's no doubt whatsoever what the lion, the bear, 16:28 and the leopard represent, because the book of Daniel 16:30 itself tells us what these beasts represent. 16:35 But now let's notice the fourth beast. 16:38 It's found in Daniel chapter 7 and verse 7. 16:41 Remember the legs of iron? 16:43 This is parallel to the legs of iron. 16:45 Listen carefully. 17:04 Yeah, what kind of teeth? 17:06 Iron teeth. 17:07 So you have legs of iron and you have teeth of what? 17:10 Teeth of iron. 17:12 And this is the reason why the great historian 17:14 of the Roman Empire, Edward Gibbon 17:17 who wrote the famous series of historical books, 17:21 The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, 17:23 called the Roman Empire, "the iron monarchy of Rome." 17:32 And then the last part of verse 7 says... 17:34 "It was devouring..." 17:41 If you could see the way the Roman armies conquered 17:45 other nations, this is literally true. 17:47 They had iron weapons and they just mowed down 17:51 and trampled on everything they found in their way. 17:55 Now let's move on to Daniel chapter 7 and verse 7, 18:00 the last part of the verse. 18:03 It says this fourth beast, "was different from all the beasts 18:09 that were before it..." 18:10 And now notice carefully. 18:12 It had what? 18:14 It had ten horns. 18:16 Where did those ten horns rise from? 18:19 It must have been from the head of the fourth beast, right? 18:22 Are they on the head of the fourth beast? 18:24 Yes, so are they Roman in a certain sense? 18:27 If the fourth beast is Rome, and the horns are on the head 18:30 of the fourth beast, these horns must come from what? 18:35 From Rome, exactly. 18:37 Remember the feet of the image? 18:39 Did the feet of the image have iron? 18:41 What did the iron legs represent? 18:44 The Roman Empire. 18:45 Does Rome continue in the ten toes of the feet? 18:47 Yes. 18:48 Does Rome continue here in the ten horns that come from 18:51 the head that represents Rome? 18:53 Absolutely. 18:55 Now, I want you to notice what we find then 19:00 in Daniel chapter 7 and verse 7. 19:02 It says, once again, "It was different from all the beasts 19:05 that were before it, and it had ten horns." 19:08 Now what do those ten horns represent? 19:10 They represent the divisions of the Roman Empire 19:14 when the empire fell because of the barbarian invasions 19:18 from the northern sector of the empire. 19:19 I'm going to mention those nations. 19:21 We're going to come back to them later on in the seminar. 19:23 The names of those ten kingdoms are the Alamanni 19:26 where the Germans come from, the Franks, the Burgundians, 19:30 the Suevi, the Visigoths, the Saxons, that would be 19:34 Great Britain, the Lombards which would be Italy, 19:37 the Heruli, the Vandals, and the Ostrogoths. 19:41 Allow me to read you just a statement that was 19:43 written by Jerome. 19:45 Do you know who Jerome was? 19:46 He lived in the fourth century. 19:49 He had a lot to do with the translation of the Vulgate, 19:52 the Latin Vulgate. 19:53 He was a great scholar in Greek and in Hebrew. 19:56 And he could see what was happening in the Roman Empire 20:00 in the fourth century. 20:01 Notice what he had to say. 20:10 Did he understand what the fourth kingdom was? Yes. 20:28 "At this time" is speaking about his time. 20:33 So when were the feet being fulfilled, according to Jerome? 20:36 In his time. 20:38 And he continues saying... 20:55 Was this being fulfilled in the days of Jerome? 20:57 Absolutely. 20:58 In fact, all of the church fathers believed that... 21:03 You remember that in 2 Thessalonians chapter 2 21:06 the apostle Paul speaks about a power that was holding back 21:09 the manifestation of the man of sin? 21:11 All of the church fathers believed that the one that was 21:15 holding back, or as it says in the King James, "letting," 21:18 which means to hold back this antichrist from 21:22 manifesting itself, was the continued existence 21:25 of the Roman Empire. 21:26 And they believed that when the Roman Empire was 21:28 taken out of the way, the antichrist would be revealed. 21:32 And Jerome understood this very, very clearly. 21:36 Now let's go on to Daniel chapter 7 and verse 8. 21:39 Because we have the ten horns, just like we have ten toes 21:43 with iron in them. 21:45 But then what is added to the feet? 21:47 We studied this yesterday. 21:48 What is added to the feet? 21:50 Clay. 21:52 Is there something in Daniel 7 that is equivalent to the clay? 21:56 Absolutely. 21:57 Notice Daniel 7 and verse 8. 22:00 That is, the ten horns. 22:11 Where was the little horn going to arise? 22:14 In the Middle East, right? 22:16 Of course not. 22:17 It was going to rise among the ten. 22:19 If the ten are the western Roman Empire, 22:22 where was the little horn going to arise? 22:24 In western Europe. 22:25 Are you following me or not? 22:27 Now notice, it continues saying here 22:30 in Daniel chapter 7 and verse 8. 22:32 "I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, 22:34 a little one, coming up among them..." 22:36 And now notice... 22:44 What does that mean, "plucked out by the roots?" 22:47 It means that once they were plucked out, that was it. 22:52 In other words, they would cease to exist. 22:55 History proves that this is exactly what happened. 22:58 You see, three of those kingdoms of those 23:00 ten kingdoms were Arians. 23:02 In other words, they believed that Jesus was a created being. 23:06 And as a result, the bishop of Rome influenced 23:11 the power of the Roman state to fight against these 23:16 three kingdoms to eradicate them. 23:18 And they were eradicated. 23:20 In the year 493, the Heruli were uprooted from history. 23:25 No nation in Europe descends from them. 23:27 In 534, the Vandals were uprooted. 23:31 And in the year 538, the Ostrogoths were 23:35 conquered in Rome. 23:36 They suffered a terrible defeat. 23:38 In other words, exactly the way the prophecy said, 23:41 three of these ten kingdoms were uprooted. 23:44 And there is no nation in Europe that descends from these three. 23:49 Now let's continue reading here in verse 8. 23:52 "I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, 23:54 a little one, coming up among them, before whom three 23:59 of the first horns were plucked out by the roots." 24:16 And so up to verse 8, you have several kingdoms. 24:21 You have Babylon, Medo-Persian, Greece, the Roman Empire. 24:25 The Roman Empire is divided into ten kingdoms. 24:28 And then among those ten kingdoms rises 24:31 the little horn to power. 24:32 Now we're not told, up to verse 8, how long this 24:36 little horn was going to rule. 24:38 We have to go later on in the chapter to know how long 24:42 this little horn was going to rule before it fell. 24:47 Now I want you to notice what the next scene is. 24:50 See, this little horn is persecuting the saints, 24:53 he thinks he can change God's law, 24:55 he's trampling the truth to the ground. 24:59 And the Bible says that he's prospering, 25:00 everything is going well. 25:03 But now I want you to notice how this situation is taken care of. 25:08 The next scene, Daniel chapter 7 verses 9 and 10, speaks about 25:12 the judgment. 25:13 Notice... 25:18 Were the thrones there before? 25:21 No, because they're put in place. 25:23 Right? 25:27 Who is the Ancient of Days? 25:29 God the Father. 25:30 Was what? Seated. 25:32 Was He seated there before? 25:36 No. 25:37 At this point in the prophecy, He what? 25:40 He sits. 25:41 And now notice He is described. 25:51 Oh, so this was a throne that had what? 25:54 Wheels. It is a moveable throne. 25:57 It moved there from somewhere else. 25:59 Verse 10... 26:11 "The court was seated..." 26:14 That means that the judgment is going to what? 26:17 Begin. 26:22 Where is this judgment taking place? 26:25 This judgment is taking place in heaven. 26:27 That's where the angels are and that's where the 26:29 Ancient of Days is. 26:30 Jesus taught us to pray, "Our Father, which art everywhere." 26:34 No, He said, "Our Father, which art..." Where? 26:38 "...which art in heaven." 26:39 The Ancient of Days is in heaven. 26:41 This scene, this judgment is taking place in heaven. 26:45 Now let's jump down to verses 13 and 14. 26:49 Verses 13 and 14. 26:50 Because the Father moves in this throne that has wheels 26:55 into this place, He sits down, but then somebody else 26:59 moves and joins Him there. 27:01 Notice verses 13 and 14. 27:10 Who is that? That's Jesus. 27:16 If He's coming, He must not have been there before, right? 27:19 Where would He be coming from? 27:20 If we're following the order of the Sanctuary, 27:22 where would He be coming from? 27:24 Not the earth, no. Of course not. 27:29 From the Holy Place. 27:30 Isn't that where Jesus has been ministering 27:34 since He ascended to heaven? 27:35 In the Holy Place? 27:37 So if He's moving, where is He moving from? 27:41 From the Holy. 27:42 And what is the next apartment? 27:44 The Most Holy. 27:46 And so it says, "I was watching in the night visions, 27:48 and behold, One like the Son of Man coming..." 27:52 Some people think, "See, the second coming." 27:53 Not the second coming. 27:54 Let's continue reading. 27:59 What are the clouds of heaven? 28:01 The angels. 28:02 And where is He coming to? 28:03 To the earth at His second coming? 28:05 No. 28:06 It says, "He came to..." Where? 28:09 "...to the Ancient of Days." 28:12 He's not coming to the earth here. 28:14 He's going to where His Father is going to 28:16 perform a work of what? 28:18 Judgment. 28:20 And so it says, "He came to the Ancient of Days 28:22 and they," that is the angels, the clouds, 28:24 "brought Him near before Him." 28:26 And what does He go there for? 28:29 Notice He goes there because the kingdom is going to be 28:32 taken away from the little horn and is going to be 28:34 given to whom? 28:35 To Him. 28:37 Do you remember our study yesterday? 28:40 What came after the ten toes and the clay? 28:44 There was a gigantic stone that what? 28:46 Hit the image and the stone became a mountain 28:50 that filled the whole earth. 28:51 And that's Christ's everlasting what? 28:53 Christ's everlasting kingdom. 28:55 And so it continues saying, "Then to Him was given 28:57 dominion and glory and a kingdom, 28:59 that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. 29:04 His dominion is an everlasting dominion..." 29:06 See, this is the climax of the vision of Daniel 2 as well. 29:09 "...which shall not pass away, and His kingdom the one 29:13 which shall not be destroyed." 29:16 Does the judgment begin after the little horn 29:18 performs his evil work? 29:21 Yes. 29:22 Do we have an unbroken sequence? 29:24 Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, Rome, ten kingdoms, 29:27 little horn, judgment. 29:29 That's what I want us to see for now. 29:30 We still don't know how long the little horn rules. 29:33 But we're going to see that in a few moments. 29:35 Now, Daniel was grieved by this vision because he 29:38 didn't understand it. 29:40 So in Daniel chapter 7 and verses 15 through 18, 29:44 we find Daniel expressing his grief and asking Gabriel 29:49 to explain what this vision means. 29:52 Let's read beginning at verse 15. 30:17 And here comes a brief explanation. 30:26 But as we noticed yesterday, kings and kingdoms are what? 30:30 Interchangeable. 30:31 I'm going to prove that to you in a few moments 30:33 from Daniel chapter 7. 30:34 We already did it in Daniel chapter 2, remember? 30:37 God said to Nebuchadnezzar, "You are the head of gold." 30:39 But then He says, "After you will arise another kingdom." 30:43 So it's not only Nebuchadnezzar as a person, it's his kingdom. 30:46 We're going to notice the same thing here in Daniel chapter 7. 30:49 Now, let's notice what it continues saying. 31:12 How were the saints treated during the dominion 31:15 of the little horn? 31:17 The Bible says that they were what? 31:19 They were trampled upon and they were persecuted unjustly. 31:23 How is God going to solve that problem? 31:26 He's going to perform a work of what? 31:29 Of judgment. 31:30 And in that judgment, He's going to pronounce a judgment 31:33 against the little horn and in favor of whom? 31:36 And in favor of the saints that were persecuted 31:39 during the 1260 years, and also a group that will be 31:42 persecuted in the future. 31:43 Are you following me? 31:45 Now let's go to Daniel 7 verses 19 to 22. 31:48 See, there's something that Gabriel did not explain 31:51 that Daniel wanted to understand. 31:53 And so it says there in Daniel chapter 7 31:56 and verse 19... 32:35 Was that just? 32:37 No. Who was right? 32:39 Was the little horn right and the saints wrong, 32:41 or was it the other way around? 32:43 It was the other way around. 32:45 Did things have to be rectified? 32:47 Yes. 32:48 And God rectifies it by the judgment. 32:51 Now notice what it continues saying in verse 21. 33:05 And what did He come for? 33:07 He was seated and the book were what? 33:10 Opened. 33:11 Does the judgment rectify the wrong decisions 33:14 that were made on earth? 33:15 Absolutely. 33:16 Does it vindicate the saints and condemn the little horn? 33:19 Absolutely. Verse 22. 33:21 "...until the Ancient of Days came..." 33:24 If He came, He must not have been there before. 33:26 Hello. 33:28 "...and a judgment was made..." What? 33:31 "...in favor of the saints of the Most High..." 33:34 And notice that first the verdict is given. 33:38 And then it says, "...and the time came 33:41 for the saints to possess the kingdom." 33:43 Is there a difference between when the verdict is given 33:47 and when the verdict is implemented? 33:49 Absolutely, because it says here, "a judgment was made 33:53 in favor of the saints of the Most High." 33:54 That happens in heaven before the Ancient of Days 33:57 where the Son of Man is. 33:58 And then it says, "the time came for the saints..." 34:02 To what? "...to possess the kingdom." 34:04 Question, even in the world today, is the sentence 34:09 executed the same day that the sentence is pronounced? 34:13 No. 34:14 The sentence is given, and then after a time 34:16 the sentence is implemented, right? 34:19 Do you have an investigation of the evidence before 34:22 to see who's right and who's wrong? 34:23 Absolutely. 34:24 Do you suppose God is going to do an investigative judgment 34:27 in heaven before Jesus comes to execute the judgment 34:30 and give the reward? 34:31 Yes, because when Jesus comes, He says He brings 34:34 His reward with Him. 34:35 Which means He must have determined before 34:37 what that reward would be. 34:40 Are you with me? 34:41 Now let's go to Daniel chapter 7 and verses 23 to 25 34:47 where Gabriel gives a fuller explanation. 34:50 Because Daniel has said, "I want to know about 34:52 the fourth beast and I want to know about the ten horns. 34:55 I want to know about the little horn." 34:57 He says, "Gabriel, all you told me was that these four beasts 35:00 represent four kings. 35:01 Come on, I want to know more than that." 35:04 And so we find, beginning in verse 23, 35:07 a fuller explanation of the fourth beast, the ten horns, 35:10 and the little horn. 35:12 "Thus he said..." 35:14 I want you to notice that the fourth beast has 35:15 three stages of existence. 35:22 What kingdom is that? 35:24 Rome. 35:32 That's the first stage of the fourth beast. 35:33 Now there's a second stage. 35:41 Notice, does the fourth beast rule for a while 35:44 before it had the horns? 35:46 It sure does because it says that the ten horns 35:48 rise from the fourth beast. 35:50 So the fourth beast has to exist before the ten horns come out. 35:54 So it says... 36:00 And now notice the third stage. 36:06 Are you seeing the sequence? 36:09 The fourth beast by itself, the fourth beast with the ten horns, 36:12 and then the fourth beast with the little horn. 36:15 And so it says, "And another shall rise after them; 36:18 he shall be different from the first ones, 36:20 and shall subdue three kings." 36:22 And now notice what he would do. 36:23 "He shall speak..." What? 36:29 Revelation identifies those pompous words as blasphemy. 36:32 We're going to see that. 36:34 And what else was he going to do? 36:45 Whose law? 36:47 God's law. 36:56 Now let's take eight characteristics of this 36:59 little horn to see if we can identify who the little horn is. 37:02 We know what the fourth beast is, right? 37:04 It's the Roman Empire. 37:05 We know that the ten horns represent the fact that the 37:08 Roman Empire was what? 37:10 Divided into ten kingdoms. 37:12 And after this, it says a little horn rises among the ten. 37:16 So now we need to identify what power is being spoken of 37:20 in human history that is represented by the little horn. 37:24 I'm going to go through these characteristics quickly. 37:26 There are eight of them. 37:27 Recently, Emmanuel Beck went through these characteristics, 37:31 so I'm not going to dwell on them extensively. 37:33 First characteristic, the little horn rises from 37:37 the fourth beast, right? 37:39 Which means that it must be what? 37:43 It must be Roman. 37:45 Because it rises from the head of the fourth beast, 37:47 which represents what? 37:49 Rome. 37:50 First characteristic. 37:51 Second characteristic, and this is obvious. 37:55 If it rises from Rome, the second is quite obvious. 37:58 It actually rises among the ten horns. 38:02 What do the ten horns represent? 38:05 The nations of western Europe. 38:07 So where was it going to rise? 38:08 In the Middle East? 38:10 Was it going to arise in Asia? 38:13 No, it was going to rise where? 38:15 Where those ten kingdoms were. 38:16 Because it rises among them. 38:18 And of course, Rome is in western Europe. 38:22 Third characteristic, the Bible tells us that it would rise 38:26 after the ten horns. 38:28 Do you remember we read that? 38:29 After the ten horns are in place? 38:30 Do you know when the ten horns were fully in place? 38:33 In the year 476 AD. 38:35 You can look it up on the internet if you want. 38:37 On that date, the last emperor of the Roman Empire was deposed. 38:42 No more emperors of the western Roman Empire. 38:44 Is name was Rumulus Augustus. 38:47 After that, there was no law and order in the empire. 38:51 It was chaos because there was no central authority. 38:54 The barbarian kingdoms had carved up the empire 38:57 into ten kingdoms. 38:59 They were complete in the year 476. 39:02 So it would have to be a power that rose after the year 476. 39:07 It would have to pluck up, through the help of the state... 39:10 Because there's a union of iron and clay, 39:12 according to what we noticed. 39:14 It would have to pluck up three of the ten. 39:17 And that's exactly what happened. 39:18 The Heruli, the Vandals, and the Ostrogoths 39:21 were uprooted by the political power, instigated by the church, 39:26 because these nations were Arian. 39:29 They believed that Jesus was created, and they did not 39:31 have the same teachings as the church. 39:33 So the church influenced the state to conquer these powers. 39:38 And there's no nation in Europe that actually 39:40 descends from them. 39:42 Another characteristic is that this little horn 39:44 would speak great words against the Most High. 39:47 Revelation identifies these great words as blasphemy. 39:52 Now the question is, what is blasphemy? 39:54 You know, some people think blasphemy is an individual 39:56 who raises his fist and curses God, 39:58 you know, because he's an atheist. 40:00 That's not the biblical definition of blasphemy. 40:02 You can be a religious person and blaspheme. 40:06 What is blasphemy? 40:07 Two things, according to the biblical definition. 40:10 John 10 verse 33, Jesus had just said, "I and My Father are one." 40:15 The Jews picked up stones to stone Him. 40:17 And notice what we find in John 10:33. 40:21 Jesus says, "Are you going to stone Me? 40:22 What are you stoning Me for?" 40:24 "The Jews answered Him saying, 'For a good work 40:26 we do not stone You, but for blasphemy, and because You, 40:31 being a Man, make Yourself God.'" 40:34 So any man who claims to be God on earth 40:38 is committing blasphemy. 40:40 There's another definition of blasphemy. 40:42 It's related to this first one. 40:44 Mark chapter 2 and verse 7. 40:46 Jesus had just said to a paralytic, 40:49 "Your sins are forgiven." 40:50 And the Jews got mad again. 40:53 And notice what they said in Mark 2 verse 7. 40:56 "Why does this Man speak..." What? 40:59 "...blasphemies like this? 41:01 Who can forgive sins but God alone?" 41:05 So it would have to be a power that claims to have 41:09 God's representative on earth and that claims that it has the 41:13 power to what? 41:14 The power to forgive sins. 41:17 Are you starting to catch a picture of what this power is? 41:21 Let's go through the characteristics. 41:22 It has to be Roman. 41:24 It has to rise in western Europe, obviously. 41:27 It has to rise to power after the year 476. 41:32 It had to use the state to pluck up three of the ten kingdoms 41:35 for being heretical. 41:38 It had to claim to have God's representative on earth 41:41 and claim to have the power to forgive sins. 41:45 What power are we talking about here? 41:47 There's no doubt whatsoever we're talking about the 41:49 Roman Catholic Papacy. 41:50 And by the way, this idea of saying that they can 41:54 forgive sins and that the pope is God's representative on earth 41:57 is only the tip of the iceberg. 41:59 Because let me mention some other things 42:01 that show that the papacy claims that they have 42:03 God's representative on earth. 42:05 Does the papacy claim to have the right to set up 42:08 and remove kings? 42:10 Just look at the history of the Middle Ages. 42:11 They say, "We have the right to set up kings 42:13 and to remove kings." 42:15 Who does that prerogative belong to, according to Scripture? 42:19 It belongs to God. 42:21 Furthermore, this power encourages people to 42:26 bow down before its leader, before the pope. 42:30 Man, even an angel would not allow John to bow before him. 42:35 And this man demands that anyone who comes into his 42:37 presence should bow. 42:39 Furthermore, he encourages people to call him, 42:41 "holy father," when Jesus said that only 42:45 one you should call Father. 42:46 And he's not talking about our earthly fathers. 42:47 He's talking about calling someone our spiritual Father. 42:50 And yet this individual claims to have the right 42:53 to be called, "the holy father." 42:55 Furthermore, during the Middle Ages he claimed to have 42:57 the right to execute the death penalty. 43:00 Who is the only one who would have the right to do that? 43:03 God, the giver of life. 43:05 Furthermore, he claims to have changed God's law. 43:07 Who would be the only one who could change God's law? 43:10 God Himself. 43:12 Furthermore, he claimed to be a supreme judge 43:14 in things in heaven, earth, and in hell. 43:17 I have quotations that I could read you where this is true. 43:21 And furthermore, this is a power that claims 43:24 to have the infallible ability to teach in faith and morals. 43:29 They claim that the pope is infallible. 43:31 The Bible says that only one is infallible. 43:34 And that is whom? 43:35 That is God. 43:39 So just saying that he's God on earth and claiming to have the 43:42 power to forgive sins is only the tip of the iceberg. 43:44 There's all types of other characteristics 43:47 that show that this power blasphemed against God. 43:52 Characteristic number six, this power was a persecuting power. 43:56 Persecuted God's faithful people. 43:58 Have you ever heard of the Holy Office of the Inquisition? 44:01 There was nothing holy about it. 44:04 And you know, John Paul II offered an apology 44:06 several years ago. 44:07 I think it was in 1998. 44:09 He took months to draft it, very carefully chosen words. 44:14 And he actually said that the church apologized for a few 44:20 misguided individuals who were involved in persecution. 44:24 But the Inquisition was not some misguided individuals. 44:28 It was established and used by the church. 44:32 And it was established by the papacy. 44:36 Characteristic number seven, this power claims to have 44:39 been able to change God's holy law. 44:42 Does the papacy claim to have changed God's holy law? 44:44 It most certainly does. 44:46 I have about 12 pages of quotations. 44:48 By the way, if anybody is interested, 44:50 I'm synthesizing 132 pages tonight. 44:54 Size 10 type. 44:56 It's on our website, secretsunsealed.org 44:59 You can download it. 45:00 I have 12 pages of quotations from different 45:03 Roman Catholic scholars, priests, popes, that say 45:06 "We changed the Sabbath to Sunday by the authority that 45:09 Christ gave to us." 45:11 Furthermore, they extracted the second commandment 45:14 from the catechism that says don't worship images, 45:17 and they split the tenth commandment in two; 45:20 don't covet your neighbor's things and don't covet 45:23 your neighbor's wife. 45:24 Because if you take out one, you have to divide 45:26 number ten in two. 45:28 So this power claims to have changed God's holy law. 45:32 And how long was it going to rule? 45:34 It was going to rule, according to what we read, 45:37 time, times, and what? 45:40 And half a time. 45:41 How long is that? 45:44 It is three and a half years. 45:46 But in prophecy, a day is equivalent to what? 45:51 To a year. 45:52 And so you multiply three and a half times 360 days 45:56 for each year, and the result is what? 45:59 1260 years. 46:05 This is the amazing thing. 46:07 The last of the three opposing horns was uprooted in 538 46:11 when the Ostrogoths were severely defeated and 46:14 expelled from Rome. 46:17 And it was in February of 538. 46:20 We know the month, we don't know the exact date. 46:23 1798, February 12, we do know the date in 1798, 46:32 the general of Napoleons armies, General Berthier, 46:37 entered Rome and he arrested the pope. 46:40 He was deposed, he was taken captive to France 46:45 where he died in exile. 46:47 And every nation in Europe after that began withdrawing 46:51 their support from the papacy. 46:52 None of them raised one finger to help the papacy 46:55 when the deadly wound was given. 46:56 Not one. 46:58 During the Middle Ages, all of the nations would have 47:00 risen to defend the papacy. 47:02 Now none of them wanted anything to do with the papacy. 47:04 And now you have a proliferation of democratic governments 47:08 after 1798. 47:11 So what power is being spoken of here? 47:14 This power is no doubt the Roman Catholic Papacy. 47:20 Now let's go to Daniel chapter 7 verses 26 and 27. 47:24 Daniel 7:26-27 47:27 After speaking about the deplorable work 47:29 of the little horn, it says... 47:37 What is the purpose of that judgment? 47:38 To take away who's dominion? 47:40 The little horns dominion. 48:02 Are the tables going to be turned? 48:04 Yes, the verdict is pronounced in heaven. 48:08 But the verdict is actually implemented when Jesus 48:12 establishes His kingdom and He gives His kingdom 48:15 to the saints of the Most High. 48:18 Now we need to look at the perspective of Revelation. 48:21 We don't have much time to do this, but let's see how it goes. 48:24 Revelation chapter 12 and verses 1 through 5. 48:27 See, Revelation and Daniel go together. 48:30 Revelation 12 verses 1 through 5. 48:32 I'm going to read it quickly. 48:52 Do we have a dragon-like beast in Daniel 7? 48:55 Yes, does it have ten horns? 48:57 Absolutely. Now notice... 49:11 Who was that Child? 49:13 Jesus. 49:14 Did the devil stand next to Mary when Jesus was going to be born 49:17 with a pitchfork in his hand and his tail sticking out 49:20 and horns coming out of his head? 49:22 Of course not. 49:23 How did the devil seek to accomplish his purpose? 49:27 It wasn't personally. It was through what? 49:30 Through a ruler of the Roman Empire. 49:31 What was his name? 49:33 Herod. 49:34 Now let's continue. 49:35 Notice once again the last part of verse 4. 49:38 "And the dragon stood before the woman who was ready 49:40 to give birth, to devour her Child as soon as it was born. 49:43 She bore a..." What? 49:44 Remember that, "...a male Child..." 49:53 What event is that referring to? 49:55 It's referring to the ascension of Jesus Christ. 49:57 So we have in this passage the birth of 49:59 Jesus and His ascension. 50:00 What empire was ruling during that period? 50:03 The Roman Empire. 50:04 So what is the fourth beast, what is this dragon beast? 50:08 Clearly, it represents what? 50:10 The fourth beast is Rome. 50:12 Go with me to Matthew chapter 2 and verses 16 and 17. 50:16 Matthew chapter 2 and verses 16 and 17. 50:21 This is how Jesus was... 50:25 Well, this is the way the devil tried to kill Jesus. 50:28 Notice... 50:29 "Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, 50:32 was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death 50:38 all the..." What? 50:40 "...male children..." 50:41 What did we read in Revelation 12? 50:43 She bore a what? 50:44 A male child. 50:46 What does this say? 50:47 He had "all of the male children who were in 50:49 Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old 50:51 and under, according to the time which he had determined 50:54 from the wise men." 50:56 So, through whom does the devil try to slay 50:59 the Child that is born? 51:00 Through Herod, who is a ruler of what? 51:04 Of Rome. 51:05 Now let's go to Revelation 13 verses 1 and 2. 51:07 Revelation 13:1-2 51:09 Very important historical reference point. 51:11 "Then I stood on the sand of the sea. 51:13 And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea..." 51:21 Verse 2 is key. 51:32 How many beasts are mentioned here is this verse, verse 2? 51:36 Is there a leopard? 51:38 Is there a bear? 51:40 Is there a lion? 51:43 Is there a dragon beast? 51:44 Are these the same four beasts that we found 51:46 in Daniel chapter 7? 51:47 Yes, and we don't have a lot of time, but let me tell you this. 51:51 If you look at the order of the beasts in Daniel chapter 7, 51:54 it's lion, bear, leopard, dragon. 51:56 But in Revelation chapter 13, it's dragon, leopard, 51:59 bear, lion. 52:01 Do you know why? 52:02 Because Daniel is living in the time of the lion 52:05 and he's looking forward, whereas John is living in the 52:08 time of the dragon and he's looking backwards. 52:11 Very important reference point. 52:14 So you notice you have a lion, a bear, a leopard, a dragon. 52:18 How many horns does the dragon have? 52:20 We already noticed this. 52:21 It had ten horns. 52:22 And then the ten horned dragon gives its what? 52:25 His power, his throne, and great authority to the beast. 52:29 Just like the fourth beast gave its power to the little horn. 52:32 In other words, the beast is the same as the little horn. 52:35 Let me prove it to you, Revelation 13 52:37 verse 5 and verse 7. 52:39 You're going to see that the beast of Revelation 13 52:42 does the same thing as the little horn in Daniel 7. 52:45 It says... 52:49 Is that what the little horn did? 52:50 Absolutely. 52:54 Is that the same time period? 52:56 Of course. 52:57 If the year has 360 days, how many days does the month have? 53:03 Thirty. 53:04 Now you multiply 30 days times 42 months. 53:08 What is the result? 1260. 53:11 It's a different way of explaining the same time period. 53:13 So it says... 53:20 "It was granted to him to make war with the saints..." 53:22 Did the little horn do that? 53:24 "...and overcome them..." 53:25 Did the little horn do that? 53:27 Absolutely. 53:34 Is the beast the same as the little horn? 53:36 You see the same sequence, the same identical sequence. 53:40 Now there's something that I want us to notice. 53:42 This will introduce tomorrow's subject. 53:43 Revelation 13 verse 6. 53:45 We're not going to comment on it tonight, 53:47 but I want you to see. 53:49 Speaking about this beast, it says... 54:04 Tomorrow we're going to study Daniel 8. 54:06 And we're going to find the little horn trampling 54:09 on the Sanctuary. 54:11 Revelation 13 has that detail. 54:13 We haven't studied it tonight, but we're going to study it, 54:15 Lord willing, tomorrow night. 54:17 Now let's go to Revelation 14:6 and 7. 54:20 We've already found the lion, the bear, the leopard, 54:23 the dragon, the ten horns, the beast that rules 42 months. 54:28 Would you expect that there would be a judgment after this? 54:30 Absolutely. 54:31 Notice Revelation 14 verses 6 and 7. 54:45 By the way, when this message is being given, 54:47 can people still be saved? 54:49 Or has Jesus come already? 54:51 That's a dumb question. 54:53 Why would you preach the gospel if Jesus already came. 54:57 So is the door of mercy open at this point? 55:00 Yeah, because the gospel is being what? Preached. 55:03 Now notice, very important, verse 7. 55:16 That in Greek is called an aorist. 55:19 It is a punctual past. 55:21 In other words, when this first angel is proclaiming 55:24 his message, "Fear God, and give glory to Him, 55:26 for the hour of His judgment has come," 55:29 the judgment begins while the gospel is being what? 55:33 While the gospel is being preached. 55:37 And then it says, "And worship Him who made heaven 55:40 and earth, the sea and springs of water." 55:42 Now the question is, does the judgment begin 55:44 before Jesus comes? 55:46 Absolutely, because the hour of God's judgment comes 55:50 while the everlasting gospel is being preached. 55:52 You see that point? 55:54 Furthermore, listen up to what I'm going to say. 55:58 After the first angel's message where it says, 56:00 "the hour of His judgment has come," 56:01 you have a second message calling God's people to 56:03 come out of Babylon. 56:04 That can't take place after the second coming of Jesus, 56:07 or at the second coming. 56:08 And then the third message says, beware of the beast 56:11 and his image and his mark. 56:13 Is the door of probation still open when the people are 56:17 being warned about the mark of the beast? 56:19 Absolutely. 56:20 And only after these three messages are proclaimed 56:24 do you see Jesus, in Revelation 14:14, 56:27 seated on a cloud coming back to the earth. 56:31 So the judgment begins after 1798, after the work 56:36 of the little horn, but it takes place in heaven 56:39 before the second coming of Jesus Christ. 56:43 Now let's review what we studied very briefly. 56:45 We have Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, the Roman Empire, 56:50 Rome divided, the little horn, which is the papacy. 56:55 And then after the little horn rules 1260 years, 56:59 you have what? 57:00 You have the judgment that takes place in heaven. 57:03 And then eventually the time comes when God's people 57:08 will inherit what? 57:09 The kingdom, based on the verdict that was reached 57:13 in the judgment that took place in heaven. 57:17 Now can we know the specific date when that judgment began? 57:22 Well, don't miss the next exciting episode. 57:26 Tomorrow night, we will give the exact date 57:28 of the beginning of the judgment. |
Revised 2014-12-17