Daniel 11:21-35

 Daniel 11

Prophecy: Antiochus IV Epiphanes;

Heliodorus and Antiochus son of Seleucus;

Onias III and Jason;

Ptolemy VI Philometor and Ptolemy VIII Tryphon;

Caius [aka Gaius] Popillius Laenas;

Mattathias Ben Johanan and Judas Maccabeus

Daniel 11:21-35

Do you love Israel?

Or maybe...

Do you ignore the Israeli-Arab conflict?

Or are you an antisemite?

In October 7th, 2023, a massacre took place in southern Israel - which is not called as terrorist attack by Wikipedia and many others, but "series of coordinated armed incursions", "attack" or "invasion". Muslim Arab terrorists killed more than 1200 Israelis (including foreigners) and took circa 250 hostages. They committed atrocities beyond description. But the Wikipedia article describing this calls the terrorists "Hamas fighters". Perhaps they want us to compare them to George Washington, or the US forces on D-day? When you insist in being spineless, your political correctness makes you to a servant of Satan, without any moral compass whatsoever. "Fighters" don't rape women or behead babies, and "fighters" don't take hostages. Terrorists do. Those acts are called "war crimes", because there are ways to wage war - as Israel does - and ways to carry out terrorism - as Hamas does. 

After that horrendous terror attack, Israel launched a war against Hamas, in the same way several countries in this world fought Saddam Hussein after Kuwait's invasion, or ISIS after Syria and Iraq's invasion, or the Nazis after most of Europe's invasion; you can choose and pick any example of righteous response to an abominable aggression. But most demonstrations - even in the Western world - are calling for a "ceasefire" in favor of Hamas. 

Which sane person would demonstrate for Saddam Hussein, ISIS or the Nazis? 

Where were the passionate arguments for the Kuwaiti civilians, the Syrian/Iraqi civilians, or the German civilians?

What's the difference when evil people commit atrocities against Kuwait, Iraq and Syria, most European countries, or when it happens against Israel?

War is a terrible thing. That's why Saddam Hussein should have never invade Kuwait, ISIS should have never invade Syria and Iraq, and Hitler should have never invade almost the whole continent. But nobody would blame the Gulf War on President Bush, the Syrian War on NATO or the war against Nazi Germany on PM Churchill, President Stalin or President Roosevelt. All of them were doing what they were supposed to. 

What's the difference when the leaders of any country fight back against evil invaders, and when the PM of Israel does the same thing?

What can prompt any decent person to blame Israel and support Hamas?

NOTE: If you are about to answer, "Israel occupies Palestine", don't. Please. "Palestine" doesn't exist outside Wikipedia, because the terrorist governments which have been in charge in those territories have never come to an agreement with the Jews since 1964. Israel is a sovereign state since 1948, recognized by most of the world except radical Islamists and Communists. But "Palestine" isn't. You can't occupy a country which doesn't exist. Palestine is a name - and by the way, a European one, not Arab - for a geographical place, not a country. It could have become a country since 1936, but the radical opposition of the Arabs to a Jewish State in 20% of the area between the Jordan river and the Mediterranean made it impossible. 

Excuse me?

Yes, I mean that the British offered the Arabs 4/5 of the disputed territory at the time,  and the Jews 1/5 (after giving the whole country of Jordan to the Arabs, which was included in the British Mandate for Palestine as well). The Jews accepted that deal, but the Arabs didn't. In 1947 the British gave up on the discussion and passed it to the UN. The UN conceived another partition plan: 50/50 % between Arabs and Jews. Once again, the Jews accepted, the Arabs didn't. This time, a multinational Arab coalition attacked Israel to kill all Jews. But they lost. 1948, 1967 and 1973 are the years of three genocidal wars the Arabs conducted against the Jews. 

There is an unclean spirit of hatred against the Jewish people that has come to be called "antisemitism". The Jews are hated now on the "occupation" pretext, they were hated before because of their race, and even before because of their religion. But this unclean spirit of hatred is almost as old as the Jewish people is. They had not entered their land yet, and the Amalekites were attacking them (Exodus 17:8-16)

This old hatred remained among the Egyptians, the Philistines, the Arameans, the Ammonites, the Moabites... All of them fought against Israel. When the whole Middle East was under Persian rule, an officer of king Xerxes tried to kill all Jews. You can read about it in the book of Esther. The Roman Empire made up "Syria-Palaestina" - as they had made up "Syria-Phoenicia" - to erase Jewish identity, transforming Judea in a part of the Roman Syria. It happened after two wars where they killed more than a million Jews. The most recent examples of the Arab rulers from 1948 to 1973, the Nazis with the Holocaust and the terrorists from Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad or the PLO, engaging in terrorism for decades, are well known. 

The prophecy we are about to show you today is about a vile person who totally incarnated that spirit of hatred. His name was Antiochus IV Epiphanes, and you can read the prophecies about him in the chapter 8 of the book of Daniel in this blog. He is the "little horn" of the "goat" in that prophecy. 

This is Daniel 11:21-35 in the New International Version:

"And in his place a despicable person will arise, on whom the majesty of kingship has not been conferred; but he will come in a time of tranquility and seize the kingdom by intrigue".

"And the overflowing forces will be flooded away from him and smashed, and also the prince of the covenant. After an alliance is made with him he will practice deception, and he will go up and gain power with a small force of people. In a time of tranquility he will enter the richest parts of the realm, and he will accomplish what his fathers did not, nor his ancestors; he will distribute plunder, spoils, and possessions among them, and he will devise his schemes against strongholds, but only for a time". 

"And he will stir up his strength and courage against the king of the South with a large army; so the king of the South will mobilize an extremely large and mighty army for war; but he will not stand, because schemes will be devised against him. Those who eat his choice food will destroy him, and his army will overflow, but many will fall down slain. As for both kings, their hearts will be intent on evil, and they will speak lies to each other at the same table; but it will not succeed, because the end is still to come at the appointed time. Then he will return to his land with much plunder; but his heart will be set against the holy covenant, and he will take action and then return to his own land".

"At the appointed time he will return and come into the South, but this last time it will not turn out the way it did before. For ships of Kittim will come against him; therefore he will withdraw in fear and will return and curse the holy covenant and take action; so he will come back and pay attention to those who abandon the holy covenant". 

"Forces from him will arise, desecrate the sanctuary fortress, and do away with the regular sacrifice. And they will set up the abomination of desolation. And by smooth words he will turn to godlessness those who act wickedly toward the covenant, but the people who know their God will be strong and take action. And those who have insight among the people will give understanding to the many; yet they will fall by sword and by flame, by captivity and by plunder for many days. Now when they fall they will be granted a little help, and many will join with them in hypocrisy. And some of those who have insight will fall, to refine, purge, and cleanse them until the end time; because it is still to come at the appointed time".

The Hebrew original is this:

21 וְעָמַ֤ד עַל־כַּנּוֹ֙ נִבְזֶ֔ה וְלֹא־נָתְנ֥וּ עָלָ֖יו ה֣וֹד מַלְכ֑וּת וּבָ֣א בְשַׁלְוָ֔ה וְהֶחֱזִ֥יק מַלְכ֖וּת בַּחֲלַקְלַקּֽוֹת׃

22 וּזְרֹע֥וֹת הַשֶּׁ֛טֶף יִשָּׁטְפ֥וּ מִלְּפָנָ֖יו וְיִשָּׁבֵ֑רוּ וְגַ֖ם נְגִ֥יד בְּרִֽית׃

23 וּמִן־הִֽתְחַבְּר֥וּת אֵלָ֖יו יַעֲשֶׂ֣ה מִרְמָ֑ה וְעָלָ֥ה וְעָצַ֖ם בִּמְעַט־גּֽוֹי׃

24 בְּשַׁלְוָ֞ה וּבְמִשְׁמַנֵּ֣י מְדִינָה֮ יָבוֹא֒ וְעָשָׂ֗ה אֲשֶׁ֨ר לֹא־עָשׂ֤וּ אֲבֹתָיו֙ וַאֲב֣וֹת אֲבֹתָ֔יו בִּזָּ֧ה וְשָׁלָ֛ל וּרְכ֖וּשׁ לָהֶ֣ם יִבְז֑וֹר וְעַ֧ל מִבְצָרִ֛ים יְחַשֵּׁ֥ב מַחְשְׁבֹתָ֖יו וְעַד־עֵֽת׃

25 וְיָעֵר֩ כֹּח֨וֹ וּלְבָב֜וֹ עַל־מֶ֣לֶךְ הַנֶּגֶב֮ בְּחַ֣יִל גָּדוֹל֒ וּמֶ֣לֶךְ הַנֶּ֗גֶב יִתְגָּרֶה֙ לַמִּלְחָמָ֔ה בְּחַֽיִל־גָּד֥וֹל וְעָצ֖וּם עַד־מְאֹ֑ד וְלֹ֣א יַעֲמֹ֔ד כִּֽי־יַחְשְׁב֥וּ עָלָ֖יו מַחֲשָׁבֽוֹת׃

26 וְאֹכְלֵ֧י פַת־בָּג֛וֹ יִשְׁבְּר֖וּהוּ וְחֵיל֣וֹ יִשְׁט֑וֹף וְנָפְל֖וּ חֲלָלִ֥ים רַבִּֽים׃

27 וּשְׁנֵיהֶ֤ם הַמְּלָכִים֙ לְבָבָ֣ם לְמֵרָ֔ע וְעַל־שֻׁלְחָ֥ן אֶחָ֖ד כָּזָ֣ב יְדַבֵּ֑רוּ וְלֹ֣א תִצְלָ֔ח כִּי־ע֥וֹד קֵ֖ץ לַמּוֹעֵֽד׃

28 וְיָשֹׁ֤ב אַרְצוֹ֙ בִּרְכ֣וּשׁ גָּד֔וֹל וּלְבָב֖וֹ עַל־בְּרִ֣ית קֹ֑דֶשׁ וְעָשָׂ֖ה וְשָׁ֥ב לְאַרְצֽוֹ׃

29 לַמּוֹעֵ֥ד יָשׁ֖וּב וּבָ֣א בַנֶּ֑גֶב וְלֹֽא־תִהְיֶ֥ה כָרִאשֹׁנָ֖ה וְכָאַחֲרֹנָֽה׃

30 וּבָ֨אוּ ב֜וֹ צִיִּ֤ים כִּתִּים֙ וְנִכְאָ֔ה וְשָׁ֛ב וְזָעַ֥ם עַל־בְּרִֽית־ק֖וֹדֶשׁ וְעָשָׂ֑ה וְשָׁ֣ב וְיָבֵ֔ן עַל־עֹזְבֵ֖י בְּרִ֥ית קֹֽדֶשׁ׃

31 וּזְרֹעִ֖ים מִמֶּ֣נּוּ יַעֲמֹ֑דוּ וְחִלְּל֞וּ הַמִּקְדָּ֤שׁ הַמָּעוֹז֙ וְהֵסִ֣ירוּ הַתָּמִ֔יד וְנָתְנ֖וּ הַשִּׁקּ֥וּץ מְשׁוֹמֵֽם׃

32 וּמַרְשִׁיעֵ֣י בְרִ֔ית יַחֲנִ֖יף בַּחֲלַקּ֑וֹת וְעַ֛ם יֹדְעֵ֥י אֱלֹהָ֖יו יַחֲזִ֥קוּ וְעָשֽׂוּ׃

33 וּמַשְׂכִּ֣ילֵי עָ֔ם יָבִ֖ינוּ לָֽרַבִּ֑ים וְנִכְשְׁל֞וּ בְּחֶ֧רֶב וּבְלֶהָבָ֛ה בִּשְׁבִ֥י וּבְבִזָּ֖ה יָמִֽים׃

34 וּבְהִכָּ֣שְׁלָ֔ם יֵעָזְר֖וּ עֵ֣זֶר מְעָ֑ט וְנִלְו֧וּ עֲלֵיהֶ֛ם רַבִּ֖ים בַּחֲלַקְלַקּֽוֹת׃

35 וּמִן־הַמַּשְׂכִּילִ֣ים יִכָּֽשְׁל֗וּ לִצְר֥וֹף בָּהֶ֛ם וּלְבָרֵ֥ר וְלַלְבֵּ֖ן עַד־עֵ֣ת קֵ֑ץ כִּי־ע֖וֹד לַמּוֹעֵֽד׃

This is how it sounds:

"Veamád al-kanó nivzé velo-natnú aláv hod malxút, ubá besalvá vehexezík malxút behalaklakót"

"Usheroót hashétef yishtefú milepanáv veyishvéru, vegám negíd berít. Umin-hitxaberót eláv yaasé mirmá, vealá veatsám bimát-góy. Besalvá ubemishmané mediná yabó, veasá asher lo asú avotáv vaavót avotáv. Bizá veshalál urkúsh lahém yivzór, veal mivtzarím yehashév maxshevotáv vead-et"

"Veyaér koxó ulvavó al-mélek hanégev, bexáyil gadól. Umélek hanégev yitgaré lamilxamá bexáyil-gadól veatsúm ad-meód. Veló yaamód, ki-yaxshevú aláv maxashvót. Veoxlé pat-bagó yishverúhu vexeló; yishtóf venafelú xalalím rabím. Ushenehém ha-melaxím levavám lemaré, veal-shulxán exád kazáv yedabéru veló titsláx, ki-od kets lamoéd. Veyasháv artsó birkúsh gadól, ulevavó al-berít kódesh. Veasá vesháv leartsó"

"Lamoéd yashúv ubá benégev, veló tihyé karishoná vexaaxaroná. Ubáu bo ziyím kittím venixá vesháv. Vezaám al-berít-kódesh veasá, vesháv veyavén al-oshvé berít kódesh"

"Uzeroím miménu yaamódu, vexilelú hamikdásh vehamaóz, vehesíru hatamíd, venatenú hashikúts meshomém. Umarshié berít yaaníf baxalakót, veám yodé Eloháv yaxazíku veasú. Umasxilé am yavínu lerabím, venixshelú bexérev uvlehavá bishví uvvisá yamím. Uvhikashlám yeazerú ézer meát, venilvú alehém rabím bexalaklakót. Umin-hamaskilím yikashlú litseróf bahém ulevarér velalvén ad-et kets, ki-od lamoéd"

 

The rendering of the New International Version is almost a literal one, with some adjustments to get a most normal and fluent English. The prophecy about Antiochus IV Epiphanes, which we read in this passage, can be divided in five sections:

How Antiochus IV Epiphanes took the crown (verse 21)

In the previous message we have seen that Seleucus IV Philopator was reigning, as the second son of Antiochus the Great - the first one had died. We also saw that Heliodorus, an officer with no royal ancestry, got him killed and usurped the throne. He did so under the pretension of being a tutor of Seleucus son and heir Antiochus, who was only five years old. As we can see, the "majesty of kingship" was not conceded to Antiochus IV, brother of Seleucus IV, but to Seleucus son. However, Antiochus IV was a "master of intrigue" and became strong "not by his own power" (Daniel 8:23-24). He came to Syria with help of Eumenes II of Pergamon, deposed Heliodorus and proclamed himself co-regent with the child Antiochus. Later on he would kill Heliodorus and his nephew as well. So he got the throne, and "seized the kingdom by intrigue".

A brief summary of Antiochus IV's reign (verses 22-24)

Antiochus IV Epiphanes was not only an intriger, but also a very wicked and cruel person. He started two campaigns against Egypt (the "overflowing forces" are the Egyptian armies) and every time he came back from Egypt, he viciously persecuted the Jews. The "prince of the covenant" in the prophecy was Onias III, the High Priest at the time, a patriotic and religious Jewish leader that he deposed and replaced with the Hellenizer Jason. The Hellenization of Israel had not been not a special endeavor of the Ptolemies, Antiochus the Great or Seleucus IV. They used to leave the Jews free to worship God and to order their society according to the Bible. Antiochus did "what his ancestors had not done" ever. He attacked the Jews in their religion, and tried to force them to become more Greek like (meaning, pagans). He took the side of the apostate Jews (Jason and his Hellenizers) and strongly fought against the patriotic, religious Jews that tried to keep their worship and biblical way of life. He plundered Israel as well (entering "the richest parts of the realm") to distribute the plunder among his followers. 

Antiochus IV's First Egyptian campaign (verses 25-28)

These verses prophesy the first campaign of Antiochus against Egypt, called the Sixth Syrian War (170-168 BC).  The king of the South was Ptolemy VI Philometor, who was a teenager at the time. Ptolemy "couldn't stand" because of several "schemes devised against him". Because of Ptolemy's age, the country was not ruled by him. Cleopatra I his mother appointed regents, those who would "eat his choice food" and "destroy him". This was the result of wrongly counselling him about fighting Antiochus, and after it proved to be a disaster, they were replaced in a coup d'état by other regents, who tried to reach a treaty with the king of the North. Antiochus proclamed himself king as Ptolemy's tutor, "speaking lies at the same table", it means, making a false treaty. It was unacceptable to the new regents, who declared Ptolemy VIII as the only regent. The new regents "destroyed him" as well. 

When Antiochus came back from his Egyptian campaign, he attacked the Jews - "his heart was set against the holy covenant". It is written in the 2nd book of Maccabees that he killed 40 000 faithful Jews and sold another 40 000 as slaves, and that he plundered the temple in Jerusalem. 

Antiochus IV's Second Egyptian campaign (verses 29-30)

Antiochus IV Epiphanes marched against Egypt again in 168 BC, because Ptolemy VI and his brother Ptolemy VIII  had been reconciled, and the treaty he and the first Ptolemy had signed was worthless. But "this last time it did not turn out the way it did before". "Kittim" is the Hebrew name for Cyprus, and in a more extended meaning, the Mediterranean islands, under Roman rule. The "ships of Kittim" were the Roman fleet which stopped him, and the Roman Senator Caius Popilius Laenas, who was sent by the Roman Senate in order to command him to leave Egypt. 

It is said that Caius Popilius didn't welcome or even greet Antiochus. He directly exposed the Senate's demand. Antiochus asked for time to consult his generals, but Caius Popilius Laenas drew a circle in the sand with his staff around the Seleucid king, and demanded an answer before he would left the circle. Antiochus understood that leaving the circle without complying was a declaration of war against Rome, which was out of the question. Then he promised to obey the orders of the Roman Senate, and only then Caius Popilius extended his hand to him as a friend. 

The meeting between Antiochus IV and Caius Popilius Laenas, known in history as the Day of Eleusis, marked the end of the Sixth Syrian War, and killed any hope of the Seleucids about conquering Egypt. It was probably the greatest humilliation Antiochus suffered in his life, and certainly his greatest frustration. It was in this state of humilliation and frustration he "returned and cursed the holy covenant and took action", meaning he lashed out against Jerusalem in the most vicious way. This event is prophesied in Daniel 11:31-35 and the fulfilment of the prophecy is well documented in the 1st book of Maccabees.  

Antiochus IV's persecution against the Jews (vv 31-35)

The persecution that Antiochus IV Epiphanes unleashed against the Jews can only compare to the one the Persian official Haman, who plotted the genocide of all Jews, or the Roman Empire, that destroyed the temple and Jerusalem, and sent the Jews in a diaspora, or the Nazis that perpetrated a genocide of Jews as well. The Seleucid king was so vicious in his persecution that he prompted the Maccabean Revolt, that would eventually lead to Israel's independence from the Seleucid Empire. Some details can be seen in Daniel 8:9-12 in this blog, a prophecy about Antiochus IV which matches the one of Daniel 11. Besides, we have the historical confirmation in the books of Maccabees.

In Daniel 11:31 we read that Antiochus would:

- "desecrate the sanctuary fortress": 1 Maccabees 1:35-36 tells us that "they built the city of David with a great and strong wall, and with strong towers, and made it a fortress for them. And they placed there a sinful nation, wicked men, and they fortified themselves therein; and they stored up armour, and victuals, and gathered together the spoils of Jerusalem". And in v. 38 we read that "this was a place to lie in wait against the sanctuary". The city of David was contiguous to the temple, which they defiled, 1 Maccabees 1:39.

- "do away with the regular sacrifice": 1 Maccabees 1:46-48 tells us, "And the king sent letters by the hands of messengers to Jerusalem, and to all the cities of Juda: that they should follow the law of the nations of the earth, and should forbid holocausts and sacrifices, and atonements to be made in the temple of God. And should prohibit the sabbath, and the festival days, to be celebrated".

- "set up the abomination of desolation": 1 Maccabees 1:57 tells us that Antiochus "set up the abominable idol of desolation upon the altar of God".

In Daniel 11:32 we read that Antiochus would "turn to godlessness those who acted wickedly toward the covenant", which he did, empowering the apostate Jews who followed his orders and abandoned their religion. In 1 Maccabees 1:45 we read that "many of Israel consented to his service, and they sacrificed to idols, and profaned the sabbath". But "the people who knew their God would be strong and take action". The fulfilment of this prophecy appears in 1 Maccabees, chapters 2 and 3. The beginning of the Maccabean Revolt was lead by a priest named Mathathias, who was succeded by his son, Judas Maccabeus. 

Daniel 11:33 prophesies that: 

- "those who have insight among the people will give understanding to the many". We can read in 1 Maccabees 2 how Mathathias "gave understanding" to his followers.

- "yet they will fall by sword and by flame, by captivity and by plunder for many days". In 1 Maccabees 2:38 we read about the massacre that the faithful Jews suffered. 

Daniel 11:34-35 prophesy: "when they fall they will be granted a little help, and many will join with them in hypocrisy". Help was offered to the rebels in order to bribe them, and gain them to the apostate wing (1 Maccabees 2:15-18). That's why it was a "hypocritical" help. The prophecy continues like this: "some of those who have insight will fall, to refine, purge, and cleanse them until the end time; because it is still to come at the appointed time". At the "end time" of the revolt, the Maccabees won and obtained independence. The "Festival of Lights" (aka Hanukka) which is celebrated by the Jews all around the world in December, commemorates the dedication of the temple by the Maccabees, when they took it back from Antiochus IV Epiphanes. 

The Word of God calls us to "pray for the peace of Jerusalem". Psalms 122:6-7 tells us:

"Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:

'May those who love you be secure.

May there be peace within your walls

and security within your citadels' ".

The peace and security of God's people is God's will. And the terrorist children of Satan have been fighting against God for decades now. The Bible shows us that God wants peace in Jerusalem, and in all Israel. But terrorists make peace impossible. This is not a war between Jews and "Palestinians". The Jews are also Palestinians. This is a war between good and evil, a war between God and Satan. The Maccabees fought an enemy that desecrated Jerusalem's temple and tried to erase God from Israel. The Israeli army is fighting today against an enemy that seeks Israel's destruction. As God gave the Maccabees victory upon a superior enemy, he will give Israel victory over the evil forces trying to obliterate them. What should we do?

The Word of God calls us to "pray for the peace of Jerusalem". This is not a suggestion. This is a commandment. God could do anything He wants, because nobody tells Him what to do. But He wants us to be aligned with His will. The Word of God says in 1 John 5:14-15, "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us - whatever we ask - we know that we have what we asked of him". The key to get a positive answer to our prayers is that they shall be "according to His will".

The children of Satan have been more than 70 years trying to undo Israel. But God told us through His prophets that Israel would be restored, and the children of God believe in His Word. We not only believe it; we shape our lives and our prayers according to it. 

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem! The same God who broke down the power of evil men like Hitler, Saddam Hussein or Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, is able to break down the terrorists of Hamas, Hezbollah, or the Houthis, and even their evil puppet master, the Iranian regime. Nothing is impossible with God.  

If you have not yet received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, let me tell you that the war in Israel, the war in Ukraine and the rumors about other wars, coming from China, Iran or Russia are signs of Jesus' Second Coming. Both the prophets of Israel and the apostles of Jesus Christ spoke about the coming of the Kingdom of God, the reign of Israel's Messiah. But this is good news only for those who believe in the God of Israel, the Creator of heavens and earth. The rest of mankind shall be oppressed and persecuted to death by the antichrist, the last human dictator who is prophesied by Daniel, Paul, John and Our Lord Jesus Himself, among many others. We don't know the time of the Lord's coming, but we do know that it will happen. 

The people who will surrender to the antichrist will seal their eternal condemnation, and those who refuse to do it will be killed by him. On that day nobody will have the freedom to receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior, which we enjoy now, at least in most of the world. Perhaps you wonder, why would I need a Lord and Savior? Because both you and I, and even all of mankind, are sinners. There is eternal condemnation for sinners in the lake of fire and eternal blessing for repented sinners in heaven. I'm not telling you as a holy child of God, but as a sinner that God reached out to, and saved. The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus, Our Lord. The only thing you have to do is to come before Him in prayer, repent your sins and ask Him for forgiveness. Then pray that He will save you and send His Holy Spirit to abide in you. If you do that, and you believe, and you seek in the Holy Scriptures, God will speak to you, as He does to all of their children. 

In the love of Christ, your brother

Israel Leonard

PS. Jesus is coming soon!

Daniel 11:20

 Daniel 11

Prophecy: Seleucus IV Philopator; Heliodorus

Daniel 11:20

Have you ever laid claim to something that belongs to another person?

We have seen the cowardly massacre that Hamas perpetrated on October the 7th, 2023 in Israel. It has prompted the war of Israel against Hamas, with the purpose of the total eradication of the abominable terrorist organization. Whereas all decent people support Israel and its goal, many deranged souls are protesting and calling for a ceasefire. Nobody would call for a ceasefire after Pearl Harbor, or in the war against ISIS. But the pro-Palestinian stance is the result of several decades of political propaganda from the Palestinian Arabs, who lay claim to the land of Israel (which was colonized by their Muslim Arab ancestors in the Middle Ages and then lost to several empires, especially to the Ottoman Turks who ruled it for four centuries). To the deranged souls defending that position, the fact that Jews are the real indigenous people in the Holy Land, or that this land has been a state only three times in history, and always a Jewish state, is not so important. Their hate of Jews is bigger than their human reasoning. 

The verse for this message is found in Daniel 11:20. It is a prophecy about two men who laid claim to something that wasn't theirs. The first one tried to confiscate the treasury of the temple in Jerusalem, and the second one, the throne of the Seleucid Empire. Both of them failed in their intentions, because God is adamant about this. He told us in Deuteronomy 5:21: 

"You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor desire your neighbor’s house, his field, his male slave or his female slave, his ox, his donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor". 

The men in this prophecy could think, "well, this verse is not about temple treasuries or thrones, is it?" and the Hamas terrorists could think as well, "it is not about a country, is it?". Besides, none of them were Jews or Christians, so they could even think that the Bible doesn't apply to them. But if this is your way to interpret the Bible, I really urge you to reconsider. The Creator of heavens and earth and Judge of the whole universe is not in favor of seizures of any kind, and His moral laws, even when given for the people of Israel, apply for all mankind. Let's read about how He punished those who coveted another's possession. 

The word of God we read today is in Daniel 11:20:

"His successor will send out a tax collector to maintain the royal splendor. In a few years, however, he will be destroyed, yet not in anger or in battle"

The original Hebrew is this:

ועמד על־כנו מעביר נוגש הדר מלכות ובימים אחדים ישבר ולא באפים ולא במלחמה

Which sounds like this:

"Veamád al-kanó maavír nogés héder malxút, ubeyamím axadím yishavér veló beapáyim veló bemilxamá"

The translation of NIV, even when it is not a literal one, conveys the meaning in a more simple way. More literal translations, as NASB or KJV, adopt a different approach, but the outcome of the prophecy is the same anyway: after Antiochus the Great, a ruler would arise who would try to collect taxes - "in the Jewel of his kingdom", meaning the Holy Land (NASB); or "in the glory of the kingdom", meaning that the tax collector would be conceded royal position (KJV). 

The one who succeeded Antiochus the Great in 187 BC was Seleucus IV Philopator his son. He sent Heliodorus, one of his officers, to collect taxes from the temple in Jerusalem, by 178 BC. But he didn't succeed. 

We can read about this event in the 2nd book of Maccabees, chapter 3, where we read that Heliodorus was very well received in Jerusalem, and when he declared the reason of his visit, the High Priest told him that the money in the temple was assigned for widows and orphans, and that a certain deposit belonged to Hyrcanus son of Tobias. Nevertheless, Heliodorus insisted in confiscating money from the temple, and went there with his guards. The book of Maccabees shows us how God Himself answered to Heliodorus profanation: 

"He had already arrived with his bodyguard near the Treasury, when the Sovereign of spirits and of every power caused so great an apparition that all who had dared to accompany Heliodorus were dumbfounded at the power of God, and were reduced to abject terror.

Before their eyes appeared a horse richly caparisoned and carrying a fearsome rider. Rearing violently, it struck at Heliodorus with its forefeet. The rider was seen to be accoutred entirely in gold. Two other young men of outstanding strength and radiant beauty, magnificently apparelled, appeared to him at the same time, and taking their stand on either side of him flogged him unremittingly, inflicting stroke after stroke.

Suddenly Heliodorus fell to the ground, enveloped in thick darkness. His men came to his rescue and placed him in a litter, this man who but a moment before had made his way into the Treasury, as we said above, with a great retinue and his whole bodyguard; and as they carried him away, powerless to help himself, they openly acknowledged the sovereign power of God".

2nd Maccabees 3:24-28

Heliodorus was restored to health by the intercession of the High Priest later, and desisted from his mission. Back in Antioch, he killed Seleucus IV in 175 BC - that's why he "was destroyed after a few years, yet not in anger or in battle" - to proclame himself as regent of the Seleucid Empire. His regency was very brief; he was deposed in the same year by Antiochus IV Epiphanes, son of Antiochus the Great, and died 170 BC. It is said that Antiochus IV got him assassinated. 

There is a reason God thwarted the purposes of those unprincipled men, and has thwarted the purpose of the antisemites who've been trying for more that 70 years to deprive the Jews from their land. He says that you shall not covet "anything that belongs to your neighbor". God is not in the business of "social justice", "wealth redistribution", Socialism, antisemitism, anti-Zionism or any ideology that justifies to take someone's property by force or by governmental decree - but I repeat myself. "Tax the rich" and "free Palestine" are both abominable things to say before the Lord our God. Every working person in a civilized country pays taxes, and there is no Palestine to set free, because such a country has never existed, let alone a "Palestinian people" before 1964, with "Palestinian" kings, generals, religious leaders, scientists, artists or whatsoever called "Palestinian" persons. Palestinian is the word that describes the persons living in the British Mandate of Palestine between 1923 and 1948, disregarding if they were Arabs, Jews or Armenians; and disregarding if they were Christians, Jews, Muslims, or believers in the Climate Change Religion. 

If you have not yet received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you are still able to do it. The only One who can save your soul from eternal condemnation is calling you and wants you to be free from your sins, declared holy and righteous by the power of His blood and having your name written in the book of life. All you need to do is to confess your sins to Him, ask Him for forgiveness, and receive the abundant blessing which will come with your salvation. 

In the love of Christ, your brother

Israel Leonard

PS. Jesus is coming soon!

Daniel 11:10-19

 Daniel 11

Prophecy: Kings of the North and the South

The Syrian Wars: Antiochus III the Great, 

Seleucus III Ceraunus, Ptolemy IV Philopator, 

Ptolemy V Epiphanes and Cleopatra I, 

Scipio Asiaticus - Daniel 11:10-19

How do you consider prophecies?

There are many persons who trust a fortune-telling by a medium, or an omen they read in the horoscope, but not the prediction of events more than 300 years before, by a biblical prophet. If you know some of them, know that this word could reach out to them and show them Who is the One that knows everything which will happen. The passage we are reading today is in Daniel 11:10-19, one of the most astonishing prophecies in the Bible. This is the rendering of the New International Version:

"His sons will prepare for war and assemble a great army, which will sweep on like an irresistible flood and carry the battle as far as his fortress.

Then the king of the South will march out in a rage and fight against the king of the North, who will raise a large army, but it will be defeated. When the army is carried off, the king of the South will be filled with pride and will slaughter many thousands, yet he will not remain triumphant. 

For the king of the North will muster another army, larger than the first; and after several years, he will advance with a huge army fully equipped. In those times many will rise against the king of the South. Those who are violent among your own people will rebel in fulfillment of the vision, but without success. Then the king of the North will come and build up siege ramps and will capture a fortified city. The forces of the South will be powerless to resist; even their best troops will not have the strength to stand. The invader will do as he pleases; no one will be able to stand against him. He will establish himself in the Beautiful Land and will have the power to destroy it. He will determine to come with the might of his entire kingdom and will make an alliance with the king of the South. And he will give him a daughter in marriage in order to overthrow the kingdom, but his plans will not succeed or help him. 

Then he will turn his attention to the coastlands and will take many of them, but a commander will put an end to his insolence and will turn his insolence back on him. After this, he will turn back toward the fortresses of his own country but will stumble and fall, to be seen no more."

This is the original Hebrew:

    10 ובנו יתגרו ואספו המון חילים רבים ובא בוא ושטף ועבר וישב ויתגרו עד מעזה

 11 ויתמרמר מלך הנגב ויצא ונלחם עמו עם מלך הצפון והעמיד המון רב ונתן ההמון בידו 12 ונשא ההמון ירום לבבו והפיל רבאות ולא יעוז

 13 ושב מלך הצפון והעמיד המון רב מן הראשון ולקץ העתים שנים יבוא בוא בחיל גדול וברכוש רב  14 ובעתים ההם רבים יעמדו על מלך הנגב ובני פריצי עמך ינשאו להעמיד חזון-ונכשלו  15 ויבא מלך הצפון וישפך סוללה ולכד עיר מבצרות וזרעות הנגב לא יעמדו ועם מבחריו ואין כח לעמד 16 ויעש הבא אליו כרצונו ואין עומד לפניו ויעמד בארץ הצבי וכלה בידו 17 וישם פניו לבוא בתקף כל מלכותו וישרים עמו-ועשה ובת הנשים יתן לו להשחיתה ולא תעמד ולא לו תהיה 

18 וישב פניו לאיים ולכד רבים והשבית קצין חרפתו לו בלתי חרפתו ישיב לו 19 וישב פניו למעוזי ארצו ונכשל ונפל ולא ימצא

And it sounds like this:

10 Ubenó yitgarú veasfú hamón xayalím rabím, ubá bo veshatáf veavár veyashóv veyitgarú ad mauzá

11 Veyitmarmár mélek hanégev, veyatsá venilxám imó im-mélek hatsafón veheemíd hamón rab venitén hahamón beyadó. 12 Venitsá hehamón yarúm levavó vehifíl riboót veló yaóz.

13 Vesháv mélek hatsafón veheemíd hamón rab min-harishón, ulekéts haitím shaním yabó bo bexáyil gadól ubirxúsh rab. 14 Ubaitím hahém rabím yaamdú al-mélek hanégev ubené paritsé ammexá yinaseú lehaamíd xazón venixshalú. 15 Veyabó mélek hatsafón veyishpóx solelá, velaxád ir mivsarót, uzeroót hanégev lo yaamódu, veám mivxaráv veéin kóax laamód. 16 Veyáas habá eláv kirtsonó, veéin oméd lepanáv, veyaamód beérets-hatsebí, vexalá beyadó. 17 Veyasém panáv labó betókef kol-malxutó, visarím imó, veasá. Ubát hanashím yitén-lo lehashxitá, veló taamód, veló-lo tiheyé. 

18 Vayasév panáv leiyím, velaxád rabím, vehishbít katsín xerpató lo biletí xerpató yashív lo. 19 Veyashév panáv lemautzé aretsó, venixshál venafál, veló yimatsé.

The translation of NIV for these verses is literal, with some adjustments which respect the Hebrew idea, and use a more fluent English. The main character whose deeds are prophesied in these verses is Antiochus III the Great (241-187 BC) who reigned in the Seleucid Empire from 223 BC to his death. He fought two campaigns against the Ptolemaic Egypt, and conquered Israel and Syria, that would remain in the power of the Seleucids (the Ptolemies never got them back)

Who are the kings of the north and south, the comander and the daughter given in marriage to the king of the south?

In verse 10 we read that there would be sons of Seleucus II Callinicus (a king of the north) who would fight for the Seleucid Empire. The first one was Seleucus III Ceraunus, who attacked Attalus I of Pergamon (it was a little kingdom at the time, south of Troy, in Asia Minor). He died in that campaign, and was succedded by his brother, king Antiochus III the Great. As Daniel prophesied, he attacked Ptolemy IV Philopator, the king of Egypt (or king of the south). 

The 4th Syrian war (219-217 BC) is Antiochus' first attempt against Egypt. He conquered many territories, "sweeping on like an irresistible flood and carrying the battle as far as [Ptolemy's] fortress". He conquered all of Lebanon, Israel and attacked Egypt. But Ptolemy defeated him and forced him to retreat north of Lebanon. That's the prophecy of verse 11. Ptolemy IV was "filled with pride", but he "did not remain triumphant". 

Verses 13-17 prophesy the 5th Syrian war (202-195 BC). Antiochus' "huge army fully equipped" included cataphracts, heavy cavalry with both the warrior and the horse protected with full armours. The Egyptian king at the time was Ptolemy V Epiphanes, who was totally defeated by Antiochus. The Seleucids occupied the whole Syria, Lebanon and Israel (the Beautiful Land). Antiochus didn't conquer Egypt, but he sent his daughter Cleopatra I to marry Ptolemy and secure it as a vassal state, which didn't prosper. Some Jewish soldiers fought under Antiochus III standard, the "violent among your own people", but they "didn't succeed" because the king's campaign, which included some Roman territories, failed on that regard, and also in the unification of the Seleucid and Ptolemaic empires. The prophecy about Rome is in verses 18-19.

In verses 18-19 we see a new person, a "commander" who would "put and end to his insolence", the insolence being the conquest of Greece, the "coastlands". The one who "turned his insolence back on him" was Scipio Asiaticus, a Roman general. In the battle of Magnesia, Antiochus was defeated by him and lost a large swath in Asia Minor, which caused Pergamon - Rome's ally - to occupy almost half the peninsula. Back in the Seleucid Empire, Antiochus died in Persia, 187 BC, trying to plunder a temple to get money to pay the tribute the Romans imposed on him. 

Antiochus III the Great was friendly to the Jews - maybe the reason many fight together with him - as the Ptolemies had been. He brought many Jews back from Babylon to Asia Minor, helped the temple in Jerusalem economically and granted the Jews their religious freedom.

The amazing fulfilment of the prophecies of this passage about Seleucus III, Antiochus III the Great and all other ones, has caused many liberal theologians to doubt the time of the book of Daniel which is - according to the prophet himself - more than 300 years before the events prophesied. But for us who believe in God, the Holy Spirit - or Spirit of God - and the anointing of the prophets of Israel by the Spirit, this prophetical gift is corroborated by the total fulfilment in history - which we know from sources outside the Bible - of Daniel's prophecy, not only about those kings and others in this passage, but in the whole book. If the book of Daniel were written after the events it prophesies, it would be a spoof, and not a part of the canon of the Holy Scripture for both Jews and Christians, quoted by Our Lord Jesus Christ, and prophetically parallel to the book of Revelation, the great prophetical book of the New Testament.

It is our prayer that everyone who reads the Holy Scripture shall receive the revelation to believe. We need the Spirit of God to discern the Word of God. If you have not yet received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, do it! The Lord is coming to take away His bride - the church - with Him, and the terrible judgements of the last times will punish this world as never before. 

In the love of Christ your brother

Israel Leonard

PS. Jesus is coming soon!

Daniel 9:24-27

 

Daniel 9

The Seventy Weeks Prophecy

Answer to Daniel's prayer

Revelation

Daniel 9:24-27

Dear readers:

Shalom!

This is your brother Israel Leonard who is back with you after these thirty months. Thank you for your prayers and the interest of all of you who have been in contact with us in this time, and for being back with us! For those who don't know, I've been studying modern Hebrew in an amazing course called "ULPAN", which anyone with a laptop and an Internet connection can receive directly from The Hebrew University of Jerusalem. I warmly recommend it to all of you who love Israel and the Jewish people, and who have the time. The layout of the Hebrew originals and the pronunciation I use in the blog have been improved because of my studies, as you will notice (see **** NOTE at the end). 

Thanks Jesus, the Wuhan-virus hasn't affected my health and, living in Sweden as I do, not my job either - there's no lockdown here. As a matter of fact, I've got whole time because of the virus, in a wonderful American company called Brightstar which works with wireless technologies and especially with cell-phones. 

Some developments that have been happening in this time are not so positive, like those in my own life. But they are to be expected, when we understand the signs that would announce the last times.

In Revelation 6:7-8 we read,

"When the Lamb opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, “Come!” I looked, and there before me was a pale horse! Its rider was named Death, and Hades was following close behind him. They were given power over a fourth of the earth to kill by sword, famine and plague, and by the wild beasts of the earth"

We could wonder, how can "plagues" be deadly in these times of a medical science which is so sophisticated? COVID-19, which originated in Wuhan, China, could show us the answer. That satanical virus has spread everywhere thanks to the cover-up of the Chinese Communist government with the complicity of the head of the Word Health Organization. World leaders with a moral compass would hold them accountable, but don't hold your breath. The West-hating, anti-Christian and anti-Semitic mob is not only killing people, rioting, destroying and stealing in Portland, Seattle or Minneapolis, with the complicity of a "fake news" media crying, "nothing to see here", and politicians who refuse to condemn them, and who call the chaos a "myth" and the forces of order "fascists". The mob is in the UN and the EU as well, and it does maximum harm there. The plague will not be the worst; a severe famine is expected in many places because of the decrease in economical activity caused by the lockdowns. 

How did those international forums become a mob? In our messages in Daniel 7:7-8 and Daniel 7:23-27 you can read about the political context where these things take place. All of these things were seen by Daniel and revealed also in the interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar's dream, where the feet of iron and clay the king saw are the same as Daniel's fourth beast in his vision. 

In Daniel 2:41-43 we read (American Standard Version; the Aramaic is better translated than in NIV, and even better using the footnotes in ASV for alternative translations)

"And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters’ clay, and part of iron, it shall be a divided kingdom; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with earthenware. And as the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly brittle. And whereas thou sawest the iron mixed with earthenware, they shall mingle themselves by the seed of men; but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron doth not mingle with clay"

The fulfillment of this prophecy is taking place in the developments we see in the European Union, by those who seek a remake of the Roman Empire. There are strong and week parties, strong and week countries, strong and week economies, strong and week ideologies... There is a deep division as well (for vs. against a takeover of sovereignty of the member states) which is added to all other ones (left-right, liberal-conservative, pro Israel-antisemitic, etc.) And the main feature: this mix is happening "by the seed of men" - that's why they "don't cleave one to another". Every policy dissension shows the same pattern: the Bible is banned, those who cling to Judeo-Christian values are fought to death by Atheist leftists, and the lukewarm ones side with the Atheists. In that way, the Word of God is utterly despised and the result is more and more satanical. 

And it is not all. Some years ago, a precious sister from South Africa was given us a word of God about China in social media, which I didn't understand at that time. But recent developments, especially an alliance between China and Iran, have shown new light on that word. It is amazing how the Lord knew those things long before they would happen. That's another example of "mix happening by the seed of men", with the difference that there's no one there with Bible, only the worst Islamists on earth mixed with Communists who have become very affluent with their use of free market economy. What can be the outcome of that marriage between fanatical terrorists committed to the destruction of Israel, and Communists with nuclear weapons and one of the largest economies of the word, it is yet to see. The only thing that impedes a full-scale war launched by Iran against Israel and the Arab Gulf-States is the economical crisis in Iran (wars cost money) but now they have very rich friends and everything is a question of the Communists' will, if they are going to sponsor those fanatical murderers to fuel the chaos in the Middle East. 

Those last times developments are not happening only in Europe or China. Those forces of the "One World Order" which are active here have come to America and Israel in the form of violent resistance against democratically elected governments that don't side with them, mainly because they are patriotic administrations serving the people who elected them, and not serving globalist undertakings. 

Because of the evil one's divisive activity, deranged souls who call themselves "Antifa" (persecuting, physically hurting and even killing anyone who doesn't conform to their agenda and speech code, aka people who has nothing with fascism to do) or "BLM" (who have killed more than ten policemen, some of them black persons, so it is hardly worrying about "black lives") are fighting a war against the American people to reverse the results of the 2016 election. That's terrorism and subversion. The satanical forces that once allowed and made use of the earlier terrorists called "KKK", having seen that those children of them no longer serve them (because they have become their own show) have allowed, and are making use of, these two new forms of hating mobs to destroy the social order of the nation. If you turn your eyes to Jerusalem then you'll find something similar in people fighting the Prime Minister who has done more, and who can do more, to end the Arab-Israeli conflict. Their nonsensical "resistance" matches only the terrorist attacks that Hamas is conducting in the south and Hezbollah in the north. 

Jude 1:17-19 says,  

"Dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold. They said to you, 'In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires'. These are the people who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit"

The Holy Spirit is God. He leads people to do God's work, to speak God's words, to think God's thoughts and to feel God's feelings. He is the one who is capable to reveal the truth, and the difference between truth and lies. The Spirit of God doesn't care if you're white or black, man or woman, national or foreigner. I have served in the church for many years, accompanying guest singers or translating from guest preachers from North and Latin America, and from Africa, Asia or Europe, men and women alike, and God has used all of them with the same Spirit and displaying the same glory. God doesn't care about your color and gender, but Satan does. Because the evil one knows that if he divides people, he will control them. The Spirit of God came upon the 120 in the upper room to make known to us everything He receives from Jesus. That's why the Spirit of God always will remember us Jesus' words, "that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you". The Spirit of God came to unify us believers. Satan comes to divide us. "All lives matter" to God. Jesus died for all mankind, for human beings of all colors.

Now the violent forces are not the worst. On Juny 19 was released in USA the documentary film "Uncle Tom" written by a black conservative author who's approaching race problems from a very real perspective, the one of personal responsibility. The silence about this in mainstream media is deafening. There is a "narrative" going on in that circle, about the problems in the black communities, and blaming those problems on slavery - which ended more than 150 years ago - or "systemic racism", aka segregationism and racist policies - which ended in the 1960's. If the truth - as Larry Elder, author of the documentary, presents it - punches holes in that narrative, it is ostracized and fought against. The same thing applies to the drug hydroxychloroquine, which - having being proved useful in the treatment of COVID-19, and recommended by more than 100 MDs - has been vilified because it was promoted by the President. The well known non-profit organization PragerU has also seen several videos about it deleted by Big Tech companies which don't want the truth to reach us. Many other persons who speak their mind in a way the left doesn't approve experience "cancel culture" (their lives and livelihood are destroyed because of their opinions) 

There is a place in the Scriptures where this is found, and it is a main feature of the government of the anti-Christ, where your economic activity will depend on your political affiliation (it is a hallmark in any dictatorship)

Revelation 13:15-17

"The second beast was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that the image could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed. It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of its name"

The "second beast" is also called "false prophet" in the book of Revelation, and is going to be a religious power. The enemies of truth are in line with this future evil person, trying to define who can and who can't buy or sell. When the EU is fighting to destroy patriotism, democracy and its own culture, America and Israel are among the last hopes where those values are preserved, and that's why Satan is so busy trying to destroy them. Pray for America, for Israel, for President Trump, for Prime Minister Netanyahu! The Antichrist will indeed come, and cause a great deal damage to this world, but we have millions to lead to Jesus before it happens. Only patriotic administrations serving the people who elected them and not globalist undertakings, can keep the course in the midst of the storm, and only God in Heaven "deposes kings and raises up others". The change from more globalist, even leftist parties and politicians ("deposed kings") to the current administrations is not a random one, but God caring for America and Israel. 

A good sign nevertheless has come to show us that God cares for Israel and that He is in control. Whereas the children of the Antichrist are criticizing USA's and Israel's administrations, a peace deal has been signed with the United Arab Emirates, that has become the third Arab country recognizing Israel. Some time ago the Lord gave us a word about it, and it is happening and being a confirmation. Jesus is faithful! There is a positive side of the abominable Iranian aggression against Israel and the Gulf states, and it is that the Arabs are realizing that Israel is not the enemy, but certainly a friend and an ally against a real vicious one. 

If your life is in danger because of the Wuhan virus, the word of God wants to remind you that Jesus is faithful. If your neighborhood is under attack by deranged souls rioting and looting, the word of God wants to remind you that Jesus is faithful. If your country is under attack by terrorists, the word of God wants to remind you that Jesus is faithful. 

When the church was a newborn one and the terrible persecutions by the Roman Empire had commenced, the apostle John wrote the book of Revelation, which is a strong comfort and hope for all of us who trust Jesus, and especially to those suffering persecution because of their faith. The prophecies about the Second Coming of Jesus and the coming Millennial Kingdom are at the very core of the book, because God wanted to give us hope which is the last bastion of the faithful. The text we're about to share today is the most defining prophecy about the last times and the hope we treasure. It is also the undeniable proof that the Messiah Israel was waiting for is Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Savior. It is called "the 70 weeks prophecy" and it is found in Daniel 9:24-27.

This is the text in the New International Version:

"Seventy 'sevens' are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy"

"Know and understand this: From the issuing of the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One, the ruler, comes, there will be seven 'sevens' and sixty-two 'sevens'. It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble. After the sixty-two 'sevens', the Anointed One will be cut off and will have nothing. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed. He will confirm a covenant with many for one 'seven'. In the middle of the 'seven' he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on a wing of the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him"

The original Hebrew for this passage is:

שבעים שבעים נחתך על-עמך ועל-עיר קדשך לכלא הפשע ולחתם חטאות ולכפר עון ולהביא צדק עלמים ולחתם חזון ונביא ולמשח קדש קדשים

ותדע ותשכל מן-מצא דבר להשיב ולבנות ירושלם עד-משיח נגיד שבעים שבעה ושבעים ששים ושנים. תשוב ונבנתה רחוב וחרוץ ובצוק העתים. ואחרי השבעים ששים ושנים יכרת משיח ואין לו והעיר והקדש ישחית עם נגיד הבא וקצו בשטף ועד קץ מלחמה נחרצת שממות. והגביר ברית לרבים שבוע אחד וחצי השבוע ישבית זבח ומנחה ועל כנף שקוצים משמם ועד-כלה ונחרצה תתך על-שמם

The pronunciation is like this:

"Shavuim shivím nixtáx al ammexá ve-al ir kodshéxa lexalé hapésha ulaxtóm xataót ulexapér avón ulehaví tsédek olamím velaxtóm xazón venaví velimshóax kódesh kodashím"

"Vetedá vetashkél: min motsá davár lehashív velivnót Yerushaláyim ad Mashíax Nagíd, shavuím shivá veshavuím shishím ushnáyim. Tashúv venivnetá rexóv vexarúts ubetsók haitím. Veaxaré hashavuím shishím ushnáyim yekarét Mashíax veéin lo. Vehaír hakódesh yashxít am-nagíd habá vekitsó vashétef vead kéts milxamá nexerétset shomemót. Vehigbír berít lerabím shavúa exád vaxatsí hashavúa yashbít zévax uminxá veal kenáf shikutsím meshomém vead kalá venexerátsa titáx al-shomém"

Observe the following details in rendering:

In verse 24:

שבעים שבעים  (shavuím shivím) has been translated "seventy 'sevens' "
       but it means "seventy weeks" where a "week" means seven years

קדש קדשים (kódesh kadashím) was translated "Most Holy Place"
but it means literally "Holy of holies" which in Hebrew is the way to say
"most holy one". "Kódesh" usually apply to holy things - that's why the "most
holy place" was the room where the ark of the covenant was - but it can also
apply to holy people (as in Exodus 22:31; 2 Chronicles 23:6; Ezra 8:28)
Then it is possible and proper to translate "Most Holy One" - a person.

In verse 25:

משיח נגיד (Mashíax Nagíd) has been translated "Anointed One, a ruler"
but it means "Messiah Prince" literally (meaning Jesus Christ Our Lord)

חרוץ (xarúts) translated "trench" means also "wall"

In verse 26:

משיח  (Mashíax) which is translated "Anointed One" means "Messiah"

ואין לו (ve-éyin lo) is translated "and will have nothing"
but it means also "not for himself", meaning he will be killed by others

In verse 27:

ועל כנף שקוצים משמם (ve-al kenáf shikutsím meshomém)

Rendered "at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation".
But משמם (meshomém) means someone or something which causes desolation and שקוצים (shikutsím) means "abominations", in plural. כנף (kanáf) means "wing" in  Hebrew, like the birds' wings, but it means also the edge or hem of a garment, or even the corners of end of the earth ("extremity"). The figurative meaning is better translated in KJV as "overspreading" (the abominations have spread to the end of  the earth) Best translation: "and with the overspreading of abominations shall come one that causes desolation"


Revised NIV:

24 "Seventy weeks are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the Holy of holies"


25 "Know and understand this: From the time the word goes out to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Messiah Prince comes, there will be seven weeks, and sixty-two weeks. It will be rebuilt with streets and a wall, but in times of trouble. 26 After the sixty-two weeks, the Messiah will be put to death but not for himself. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed. 27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one week. In the middle of the week he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And with the overspreading of abominations shall come one that causes desolation until the end that is decreed is poured out on him."

The Prophecy of Prophecies

What would you think about a TV host who tells you the future news - aka prophecy - about the coming of an eternal kingdom, Israel's salvation on eternity, the incontrovertible proof that Jesus Christ is Israel's Messiah, the prediction about the restoration of Jerusalem that we read about in Ezra and Nehemiah, the prediction about Jesus' death on the cross, about the devastation of Judea by the Romans, the coming of the Antichrist, his pact with Israel and his betrayal, his abominations and his final defeat when Jesus comes, all these things in less than five minutes? 

You don't have to imagine it. In the times of Babylonia there was no TV, but if it were, that TV host would be the prophet Daniel and his guest, the archangel Gabriel. All of these - amazing news, revelation and predictive prophecy - is found in four verses, namely the last four verses of Daniel chapter nine which we have read before. 

Why does - pretty much - only one in five Christians believes in these things?

Why would so many of us worldwide treat a prophecy with contempt?

If you have read all messages in this blog up to now, then you're more than able to answer these questions. The satanical lies - a.k.a. false doctrines - which have come into the church in all of its history, killing evangelism and infesting the church with antisemitism, have been exposed in many of our messages. If you have not read the blog, there's always time to start doing it. About the false doctrines you'll find information in 14 special messages listed at the end NOTE* (see)

Why are we talking about the coming of an eternal kingdom in this prophecy? In verse 24 we can see six events that will occur after the 70 "weeks":

1- to finish transgression: לכלא הפשע (lexalé hapésha)

"Pésha" is translated as "transgression", "rebellion" most of the time, and it means the act of breaking the law (mostly God's Law, but we can also rebel against civil human laws, which would be also "pésha") That's something mankind has been doing since Adam and Eve. When will mankind stop transgressing all laws?

2- to put an end to sin: לחתם חטאות (laxtóm xataót)

"xataót" is the plural of חטאה ("xatá") which means "sin". Again, the sinful state of Adam and Eve is inherited by every human being. When will we never sin again?

3- to atone for wickedness: לכפר עון (lexapér avón)

"avón" - translated as "wickedness" means "iniquity" (or "injustice") or sometimes the punishment for the iniquity or guilt. It is the quality of guilty or unjust which the transgressor has got, because of his sin. "Lexapér", to atone, is the act of "expiation" or "propitiation", which is in both Judaism and Christianity done through a blood sacrifice (animal sacrifices in Judaism, Jesus' sacrifice on the cross in Christianity) When did this expiation take place, when is it applied to Christians and when will it be applied to Israel?

4- to bring in everlasting righteousness: להביא צדק עלמים (lehaví tsédek olamím)

Righteousness (tsédek) or "justice" is the state we reach when expiation has taken place and our injustice is gone, pardoned. From the positional point of view, we are declared righteous because Jesus bore our sins on the cross, and His righteousness is applied to us; the faith in Jesus causes the last of sinners to become righteous. But there is a living righteousness also, meaning that we apply in our daily life that justification which Jesus won for us, that we are not only declared just but we always act justly also, we live as righteous people do. It has never been "eternal" up to now because we sin and we need new pardons all the time. When will justice become eternal?

5- to seal up vision and prophecy: לחתם חזון ונביא (laxtóm xazón venaví)

"Laxtóm" - to seal - is the act of sealing a scroll with sealing wax. It is the final act in the writing of an important decree or message, to seal it with a signet ring. It conveys the meaning of "consummation" or "culmination". When will the prophecies - those which are not yet fulfilled - be consummated?

6- to anoint the Holy of holies: למשח קדש קדשים (limshóax kódesh kodashím)

Jesus is the Holy of holies. But He was not anointed as King in His ministry, He was baptized as all Christians would do, to show us that He was coming as a servant and to identify himself as one of us. When will Jesus be the physical King of kings on earth, as He is in heaven?

Before we come to the point in time where the "seventy weeks" which "are decreed" end, it is a crucial issue to understand properly, namely the phrase "for your people and your holy city". Daniel's "holy people" is Israel - not the church - and Daniel's "holy city" is the physical Jerusalem - not the church, the spiritual one. The inevitable conclusion is that those six blessings are for the Jewish people. The church will inherit them because Israel's Messiah is our Messiah also, not because the church replaces Israel in any way (see NOTES **) The church has been inserted in Israel, and not vice versa. The point is even more evident when we understand the wider context of the prophecy, which is the prophet's prayer that we can read in Daniel 9:4-19. It is absolutely nonsensical to understand "holy people" and "holy city" as the church, because Daniel was reading in the book of Jeremiah that the Babylonian captivity - talking about the physical Jewish exiles - would last seventy years, and he was praying for forgiveness and salvation for the Jewish people. If you are a Turk praying for the salvation of Turkey, because the islamist government is decimating Christians, what sense makes to you that God would answer with a great revival that will take place in the Philippines, and with great promises for all Filipinos?

That said, all of these blessings were fulfilled at the resurrection of Jesus, in a spiritual way. There is a spiritual Kingdom of God on earth, where Jesus is already King, eternal righteousness has come for us who received Him as Lord and Savior, our sins are atoned for and we are no longer part of this world, but the "foreigners and exiles" of 1 Peter 2:11, παροικους και παρεπιδημους (paróikus kay parepidémus)  or the "foreigners and strangers on earth" of Hebrews 11:13, ξενοι και παρεπιδημοι (xénoy kay parepídemoi) A παροικους (pároikos) is a stranger, a sojourner or guest, someone who is passing by; as a παρεπιδημους (parepídemus) or a ξενος (xénos) as well. All three words in these verses show that we are not people of this world, but citizens of heaven, dwellers of eternity who are just passing by on this earth for some decades. We've been promised new heavens and a new earth, to enjoy for eternity.

Now the point in time, where the "seventy weeks" which "are decreed" come to an end, is the same for the Jewish people - waiting for the Messiah to come with His eternal justice - and for Christians - waiting for the second coming of Jesus and the establishment of the physical Kingdom of God on earth, the Millennial Kingdom, because that Messiah the Jews are waiting for is the same person that we Christians are waiting for. 

When do these blessings reach, in the physical world, both Jews and Christians? 

Observe the following passages:

Isaiah 2:1-5

"This is what Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem:"

"In the last days

the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established

    as the highest of the mountains;

it will be exalted above the hills,

    and all nations will stream to it.

Many peoples will come and say,

"Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,

    to the temple of the God of Jacob.

He will teach us his ways,

    so that we may walk in his paths"

"The law will go out from Zion,

    the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.

He will judge between the nations

    and will settle disputes for many peoples.

They will beat their swords into plowshares

    and their spears into pruning hooks.

Nation will not take up sword against nation,

    nor will they train for war anymore.

Come, descendants of Jacob,

    let us walk in the light of the Lord"

The "law" is "the word of the Lord" and it will "go out of Zion". Because all nations will desire to follow the God of Israel, there will be eternal justice and eternal peace. For the same reason, people will not sin anymore. This blessed state is described also in other passage of Isaiah:

Isaiah 65:17-25

"See, I will create

    new heavens and a new earth.

The former things will not be remembered,

    nor will they come to mind.

But be glad and rejoice forever

    in what I will create,

for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight

    and its people a joy.

I will rejoice over Jerusalem

    and take delight in my people;

the sound of weeping and of crying

    will be heard in it no more"

"Never again will there be in it

    an infant who lives but a few days,

    or an old man who does not live out his years;

the one who dies at a hundred

    will be thought a mere child;

the one who fails to reach a hundred

    will be considered accursed.

They will build houses and dwell in them;

    they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit.

No longer will they build houses and others live in them,

    or plant and others eat.

For as the days of a tree,

    so will be the days of my people;

my chosen ones will long enjoy

    the work of their hands.

They will not labor in vain,

    nor will they bear children doomed to misfortune;

for they will be a people blessed by the Lord,

    they and their descendants with them.

Before they call I will answer;

    while they are still speaking I will hear.

The wolf and the lamb will feed together,

    and the lion will eat straw like the ox,

    and dust will be the serpent’s food.

They will neither harm nor destroy

    on all my holy mountain", says the Lord"

This paradisiacal and peaceful vision of Isaiah, even when a good deal of figurative language is used, describes the real existence of a future blessed Millennial Kingdom, and it is pretty much - together with the second coming and the salvation of Israel - the "vision and prophecy" that will be "sealed" (consummated, fulfilled) after the 70 weeks. This Millennial Kingdom is found in many prophecies, both in the OT and NT. When we find it in the OT, the addressee of the prophecy is Israel (the Jewish people) meaning that there's an eternal salvation promised to them.

What "salvation of Israel" is yet to come?

The apostle Paul said that "Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, and then all Israel will be saved" (in Romans 11:25-26) The "full number of Gentiles" - read, the people that will be saved by becoming Christians - will be completed when Jesus takes His church with Him to heaven, and then God has special promises for the Jewish people. Observe these passages:

Jeremiah 31:31-34

"The days are coming", declares the Lord,

    "when I will make a new covenant

with the people of Israel

    and with the people of Judah.

It will not be like the covenant

    I made with their ancestors

when I took them by the hand

    to lead them out of Egypt,

because they broke my covenant,

    though I was a husband to them",

declares the Lord"

"This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel

    after that time", declares the Lord.

"I will put my law in their minds

    and write it on their hearts.

I will be their God,

    and they will be my people.

No longer will they teach their neighbor,

    or say to one another, 'Know the Lord',

because they will all know me,

    from the least of them to the greatest,"

declares the Lord.

"For I will forgive their wickedness

    and will remember their sins no more"

Ezekiel 36:24-28

"For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. Then you will live in the land I gave your ancestors; you will be my people, and I will be your God"

These passages in Jeremiah and Ezekiel deal with ISRAEL, both of them. The church was never led out from Egypt, or broke the covenant God gave to Moses which is not with the church but with Israel. Furthermore, the church has never been "scattered among the nations" and supposed to be "gathered to abide in Jerusalem". Both passages are dealing with an issue that Antisemites twist in their interpretations, to make it only a prerogative of the church: the dwelling of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of the believers. 

The word of God declares in Romans 8:1-2 (the great chapter about the Holy Spirit in us)

"Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death"

This justification - not being condemned for anything after the reception of the atonement Jesus provided for us - is not yet available for many Jews because they don't believe in Jesus as their Savior, and that's why they follow God by obeying His laws. And if you act according to God's law, then you act righteously - meaning you're righteous (see Luke 18:18-19, where Jesus confirms the Torah, and the argument of Peter in Acts 15:10, not that the law was bad, but that it was difficult to obey, and that's why they exempted the converted Gentiles from following it; see also NOTES ***) Then the "justification by grace" and "justification by following God's law" became the marks of Christians and Jews, separating us. But both passages (in Jeremiah and Ezekiel) that we saw before convey the notion of the Holy Spirit abiding in the believers. They convey also the notion of this miracle happening not only in Christians but in Jewish believers also, because they are both addressing the Jewish people. 

In Ephesians 1:13-14 we read, "When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession - to the praise of his glory".

This "deposit" comes from Greek αρραβων (arrabón) which means the first payment of a larger quantity of money - for instance, when you buy a house or a car. The "redemption" is to buy free the slaves of sin - we - as God has done. When we receive the Spirit of God, He has paid that deposit, the "first payment" of the price of our freedom. It doesn't mean that He has only partially paid, but that this freedom will cost much more (we will be pardoned every time we sin and repent in all years to come, meaning all other "payments" from God for our redemption) And those passages in Jeremiah and Ezekiel show us that God would pay the same deposit for Jews than he payed for Christians, filling them with the same Holy Spirit. The purpose is not hard to understand: both Jews and Christians will be sharing the same blessing on eternity with God, we have been both "bought" as God's own, we have been both redeemed from sin, saved from Satan's rule and prepared to serve under Jesus' rule for ever and ever. It is in this light we can understand why the judgments of God were refrained until 144 000 Jews were "sealed" - filled with the Spirit of God - in Revelation chapter 7. They are to be spared when the world is being judged and chastised, and even the rest of Israel will be spared also - that's why the apostle Paul says "all Israel will be saved" in Romans 11:26. "All Israel" can't be saved now because of sin. God's law justifies every one that follows it, but not every one does. That's the reason the books of the prophets include so many passages calling sinners - from Israel, which is suppossed to live by the law of Moses - back to the obedience to the law.

Let's go back to the future Kingdom issue. Observe this passage in Zechariah 9:9-10: 

"Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion!

    Shout, Daughter Jerusalem!

See, your king comes to you,

    righteous and victorious,

lowly and riding on a donkey,

    on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

I will take away the chariots from Ephraim

    and the warhorses from Jerusalem,

    and the battle bow will be broken.

He will proclaim peace to the nations.

    His rule will extend from sea to sea

    and from the River to the ends of the earth"

The prophecy about the coming Kingdom of God in Zechariah mentions both a "lowly" Messiah "riding on a donkey" and a "righteous and victorious" royal Messiah who will rule all the earth with eternal peace. The kingship of Jesus above all men - which is a spiritual one now, after His first coming in Bethlehem, His death and resurrection and the coming of the Holy Spirit - will be a physical kingship after His anointing and second coming, as we can read about in Daniel 7:13-14. 

But... this second coming - you might wonder - is to take Christians to heaven, or to establish a Millennial Kingdom on earth with both Jews and Christians? That's a good question. Many people understand salvation as living in heaven for eternity with white robes and harps, singing praises to God forever. And even when that vision is real and biblical, it is not eternal; not in that way. Our Lord and several prophets prophesied even more than this.

Let's begin with Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ speaking about His Second Coming, the coming of the Kingdom of God where he will reign on earth. It is the great theme of the Gospel According to Matthew in chapters 24 and 25. 

Matthew 24 begins with the prophecy of Jesus about the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem. The disciples ask him about it in verse 3. In the questions: when will the temple fall? and, which ones are the signs of Jesus' coming to reign? we can see that the disciples thought that both events would occur at the same time. But He corrects them in vv. 5-6 and prophesies about many signs in vv. 7-14 that have to take place before his coming, but which aren't themselves the prediction that this second coming is immediate. From v.15 forward, the signs are pointing to a nearer second coming (after v. 14 where He prophesies, "and then the end will come")

Several points are crucial in this prophecy of the end times:

⦁ the abomination Daniel spoke about will come to the temple, v. 15

⦁ the Jews are warned to flee Jerusalem and the whole Judea, vv. 16-20

⦁ A great distress ("unequaled from the beginning of the world until now and never to be equaled again") is announced in v. 21 (the same one we read about in Daniel 12:1, "time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then") In Daniel's prophecy it was happening whereas the archangel Michael is fighting for Israel and is followed by the resurrection of the Jewish believers and the salvation of Israel, Daniel 12:2. This "great distress" is called "the Great Tribulation" after the Greek θλιψις (thlípsis) which means "persecution, affliction, distress, tribulation" and has been translated as such in the KJV version for Mt 24:21, 29 and Rev 7:14 (in NIV this word is only found in Revelation 7:14) The events which occur in this Great Tribulation are extensively prophesied by the apostle John in the book of Revelation.

⦁ In v. 32-33 we read about the parable of the fig tree, a sign that the Kingdom of God was near (compare parallel passage in Luke 21:31) This fig tree represents both the sign of the Kingdom and the restauration of the nation of Israel. 

⦁ In v. 34 the Lord gives us a very specific period of time: "this generation will not pass away until these things have happened" The generation He is referring to is the one that sees the most nearer signs (Matthew 24:15 and forward) 

Why then Jesus says in Rev 16:15 that He comes like a thief - meaning nobody knows when - and this idea is conveyed also in Mt 24:42-44, 1 Thess 5:1-11, 2 Peter 3:10? Does the second coming take place in an expected time or an unknown one? The thing doesn't become clearer when we compare promises of the second coming and find great differences between two groups. Observe this comparison:

EVENT A

1 - Mysterious and ignored (not in OT)

- Mt 24:36-44;  1 Co 15:51-52;  1 Thess 4:13

2 - Happens "in the air" and the believers go to heaven with Jesus

- Mt 24:36-44;  1 Thess 4:14-18

3 - Nobody knows when it'll happen

- Mt 24:36-44;  1 Thess 5:2-6;  2 Pet 3:10;  Rev 16:15

It is an unexpected event, where Jesus comes, takes away to heaven those who are waiting for Him, and then the Great Tribulation begins 

EVENT B

1 - Frequently found in the OT, as well as the first coming of Jesus

- Isa 9:6-7;  Dn 2:44; 7:13-14;  Mic 5:2-4;  Zac 14:1-9

2 - Happens "on the earth" and the believers will govern here with Jesus

- Zech 14:4-9;  Mt 25:31-46;  Rev 19:11-21

3 - It happens after the 70th week

- Mt 24:15-31;  Lk 21:20-24; 25-28;  Rev 19:1-11

It is known. Jesus will come to put an end to the Great Tribulation and establishes a Kingdom on earth

The "A" and "B" events are both prophecies about the second coming of Jesus - or in the OT, the coming of Israel's Messiah. Why do they show so marked differences in timing, scenario and outcome?

To answer these questions we have to understand some revelations:

• The church is saved before Israel. Jesus said, "But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first" (Matthew 19:30) and Paul says that "Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, and then all Israel will be saved" (Romans 11:25-26, revised NIV) It means Israel will be saved as a nation when the number of Gentiles which God chose in Jesus is completed and saved. 
  
  
• Israel will be on earth in the Great Tribulation, because the Antichrist will make a pact with them and not impose on them all horrible things we read in Revelation 6, 13 and other verses. However, "in the middle of the week" he will betray them and persecute them, but God will rescue them, and protect them. This is the great theme of Revelation 12. 
  
  
• The faithful church will be spared the Great Tribulation. That's God's promise in Revelation 3:10 to the church of Philadelphia: "Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth". In the prophetic history of the church, Philadelphia means the faithful church of these last days, and Laodicea the unfaithful one. That "hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world" is the Great Tribulation. 

The outcome of those revelations is clear: there are two different events of salvation in Jesus' Second Coming, the one of the church, before the tribulation, and the other one of Israel, after the Tribulation. It also shows why Christians are "caught in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air" (1 Thess 4:17) because Jesus is coming for us to take us to His Father's house - John 14:1-4; compare Psalms 115:3; 150:1; also Jesus called Heaven for "God's throne" (Matthew 5:34; 32:22) 

The "A" event at Jesus' coming, when the Lord appears in a moment when nobody is expecting Him and snatches his faithful believers to the heavens, is called "the Rapture" and takes place before the Great Tribulation begins. The "B" event is the Second Coming as it appears in Revelation 19, where the faithful saints are "the armies of heaven" that "were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean" (compare Revelation 19:8, where this fine linen that the church is dressed in represents the righteous acts of God's people, and it is the bridal clothing of the church in the Lamb's wedding, meaning the union between Jesus and His church in heaven)

Now the Rapture and the Second Coming are both called "second coming" because they are part of a greater event which is the coming of God's kingdom (Rapture, Great Tribulation and Second Coming) Whenever the prophecies about the coming of the Kingdom of God are found, they belong in a sequence of events:

⦁ The world becomes worse and worse, iniquity increases more and more

⦁ The Messiah comes to defeat iniquity, and to judge the evil ones

⦁ The Kingdom of God is established on earth and the Messiah reigns

Pay attention to these words of the Lord:

"Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man. People were eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed them all. It was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. But the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all"

"It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed"

Luke 17:26-30

In this prophecy He talks about the coming of the Kingdom of God. The Great Tribulation, as we read in the book of Revelation, will be a judgment and punishment on the world, and God's wrath will be poured on mankind as never before. There is a parallel that Our Lord is making with the flood and the destruction of Sodom, which tells us something about the coming of the Messiah and the judgment. In both examples, God spared a family - Noah's or Lot's - and then He poured His wrath on the evil ones. The Great Tribulation will not be different. God will spare the church by snatching it in the rapture, and He will also spare Israel by hiding His people from the persecution of the Antichrist. The rest of the world will suffer the atrocities of the Antichrist. 

A feature we have to deal with in some false interpretations is the confusion between the Antichrist and an evil king that persecuted the Jews to death and was defeated in the Maccabean revolt, namely Antiochus IV Epiphanes. You can read about this in this blog under the title Daniel 2:41-43, and observe these differences:

Antiochus IV Epiphanes

1. Comes from Greece

2. Died in Elam (nowadays, Iran) 

3. Seized the kingdom "through intrigues" (ordered to kill both an usurper and the real heir)

4. Tried to anihilate Judaism

5. Descended from pagan polytheists

6. Prophesied in Daniel (only in the OT; he lived two centuries before the birth of Jesus)

The Antichrist

1. Comes from the empire which defeated Greece (Rome)

2. Will die when the Lord comes, in Israel

3. Will defeat three kings from a greater coalition (those who compete with him for the supremacy)

4. Will try to exterminate Jews and Christians

5. Will descend from believers in the One and True God

6. Prophesied in Daniel, Revelation and others (he is yet to come)

The amount of evidence shows us that the Seleucid king and the Antichrist are not the same person, which means that any interpretation based on this idea is a false one. Antiochus IV Epiphanes is not the only false Antichrist that has been "found"; there are several Popes, Muhammed, Roman Emperors and more. The problem - among others - with those "Antichrists" is that the Kingdom of God didn't begin when they were defeated, nobody was risen from the dead and Jesus didn't come. It will only happen after the Great Tribulation or the 70th week. 

Why is this 70th week called "Great Tribulation"?

We can read in Daniel 9:24 the six blessings that would take place after the seventy "weeks". That's the point of time when both Christians and Jews begin to live in the Kingdom of God or Millennium. And this transition happens after an evil government which will be the last human government on earth, the government of the Antichrist. It is represented by a terrifying beast in Daniel 7, which is defeated by the Messiah when He receives the Kingdom from God his Father (Daniel 7:7-8 in this site treats this issue)

When we take a look to the verses about the fall of this terrifying beast, we ALWAYS read that the Kingdom of God comes immediately after that event. Observe these three examples from the Scripture:

In Daniel 2:44-45, the rock cut out of a mountain which broke all metals is "the kingdom that will never be destroyed", and which will be set up by God "in the time of those kings" - the ones represented by the feet of iron and clay

In Daniel 7:11-14, the Son of Man comes before God and receives the "kingdom that will never be destroyed", AFTER the destruction of the beast, which was "slain, and its body destroyed and thrown into the blazing fire"

 

In Revelation 19:11-20:6 we read about the Second Coming of Jesus, when he defeats the beast, which is "thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur", and then Satan is bound and the Millennial Kingdom begins.

This last government is the Antichrist's one, which lasts seven years (the "70th week") and is divided in two. These two halves appear in Daniel and Revelation often as "1260 days", "forty-two months" or "time, times and half a time" - all three expressions meaning 3 1/2 years. In the first half of the week, the Antichrist is waging war to conquer large territories in Europe, Africa and the Middle East, except Israel because he has "confirmed a covenant" with the Jews. In the second half, he has betrayed this covenant, invades Israel and the Jews are miraculously protected by God (the theme of Revelation 12) The evil nature of the Antichrist's regime is portrayed in Revelation 13, which mirrors and further develops the prophecy of Daniel. It's crucial for every prophecy about the Great Tribulation to observe in which half of the 70th week it belongs - the book of Revelation makes that change in chapter 12, with Satan persecuting Israel, God saving Israel and Satan "going off to wage war against the rest of her offspring - those who keep God’s commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus". This persecution of the Christians converted by the 144 000 Jewish preachers is described in Revelation 13 and forward.

If only this prophecy dealt with the Second Coming and the salvation of Israel, it would been one of the most remarkable ones in the whole Bible. But what makes it to the Prophecy of prophecies is the testimony it bears about Jesus' Messiahship. We get here the exact time of the Messiah's death - which together with Isaiah 53 shows us the incontrovertible proof that He would die for us - exactly at the time of Jesus' death - and rise from the dead in order to come back some day, defeat Satan and evil, and reign in the Millennial Kingdom. 

There have been more than thirty persons claiming to be the Messiah. But all of them but Jesus have a big problem with their claims: they don't fulfill this prophecy about the Messiah. This is what Daniel prophesied about Him:

"Know and understand this: From the time the word goes out to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Messiah Prince comes, there will be seven weeks, and sixty-two weeks"

The "word" that "went out to restore and rebuild Jerusalem" is an order of the Persian king Artaxerxes that was given following the petition of Nehemiah (Neh 2:6, 8) It happened in the "month of Nisan in he twentieth year of king Artaxerxes" (Neh 2:1) Because the Persian king Artaxerxes reigned from 465 to 424 BC, his twentieth year is 445 BC. It means that the order to "restore and rebuild Jerusalem" was given in 445 BC. Then 69 weeks ("seven weeks, and sixty-two weeks") would pass from 445 BC to the Messiah. 

How many years are these 69 "weeks"?

Every "week" is a seven years period. If we multiply 69 x 7 then we get 483 years. But we are not dealing with our 365 (or 366) days long years here. The times in Daniel and Revelation are given in months and days also, and the equivalent expressions are:

"time times and half a time" - Daniel 7:25, 12:7; Revelation 12:14

"42 months" - Revelation 11:2

"1,260 days" - Revelation 11:3, 12:6

Our 365 days long years include months of 30, 31 and 28 days. But these prophetical years only include 30 days long months (1,260 / 42 = 30) then they would be 360 days long years (30 x 12 = 360) We have to convert our years to Daniel's prophetical years. If you say in Europe that the temperature is 30 degrees, it is a hot summer. But if you say in America that there are 30 degrees out there, it's freezing temperature. You didn't convert from Celsius to Fahrenheit. In order to convert 483 astronomical years - those we use to measure time - in prophetical ones - those that Daniel is talking about - we have to multiply for a ratio (360 / 365) and when we do that, we get 483 x (360 / 365) = 476 years. And it means that the Messiah would die 476 years after 445 BC, which means the year 32 AD (476 - 445 = 31, but there's no year zero, so we have to advance another year)

There are two historical mistakes that lead to a traditional established death of Jesus in 33 AD when He was 33 years old. The first one is that the beginning or year one in our calendar is supposed to be that of Jesus' birth, which was wrongly determined by a monk called Dionysius Exiguus in 525 AD, and has been replaced by 4 BC after deeper historical investigation - for instance, king Herod died 4 BC, and it was he who received the magi who were asking for the king of the Jews, when Jesus was born. The second one is that Jesus not necessarily died at 33. This idea is based in Luke 3:23,  "Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry". But we can't ignore the preposition "about" before the "thirty years old". "About" comes from Greek "ωσει" (hosí) which means "like, as if, as it were", strongly suggesting that the number is approximated. According to Daniel's prophecy, that Jesus would die in 32 AD - being 35 years old - corroborates the historical information about his birth. Pontius Pilate served from 26 to 36 AD, so the crucifixion could had happen anytime within those years. This prophecy of Daniel leaves no other option for being the Messiah than to be a Jew who was killed in 32 AD, when Pontius Pilate was governing Judea. 

There are many other prophecies that point to the Messiah. A very abbreviated list includes:

1. He would be killed (Daniel 9:26; Isaiah 53:4-10; Palms 22:7-8, 18)

2. He would be a prophet (Deuteronomy 18:18-19)

3. He would be a king and descendant of David (Isaiah 9:6-7; Zechariah 9:9-10)

4. He would be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2)

5. He would enter Jerusalem riding on a donkey (Zechariah 9:9)

6. He would be betrayed by one of His followers (Psalms 41:9; Judas fulfilled it)

There are hundreds of prophecies more, and all of them were fulfilled by Jesus when He came to us, or will be fulfilled by Him at the Second Coming. Among those prophecies are the resurrection of the dead, the final defeat of Satan and the beginning of the Kingdom of God, with its King of kings and Lord of lords Jesus Christ governing the whole world. 

There is a strong connection between your hope in Jesus and your salvation. Our Lord Jesus Christ used a parable to illustrate this, the parable of The Ten Virgins. We can read it in Matthew 25:1-13:

"At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep. At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’ Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’ ‘No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’ But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut. Later the others also came. ‘Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’ But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.’"

"Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour"

The ten virgins in the parable represent the church. In the last book of the Bible, the "revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place", the church in heaven is called Jesus' bride (Revelation 19:7) and the rapture of the church is the moment when the bridegroom come for His bride (in 1 Thessalonians 4, when the Lord descends, the dead are risen and both them and the living believers are caught up together in the clouds to meet Jesus, "so we will be with the Lord forever")

As there were foolish and wise virgins, there are foolish and wise Christians. As the wise virgins took oil for their lamps, some Christians take oil for their lamps also. And as the foolish virgins didn't take oil for their lamps, some foolish Christians don't take oil for their lamps. The terrible consequence for the foolish virgins  was to be left out. The even most terrible consequence for the foolish Christians will be to not meet Jesus in the Rapture, and to be left down here with the Antichrist. 

What do the "oil in the lamps" mean? 

The lamps represent in Jesus' words the believers. It is the meaning in Revelation 1:20 ("the seven lampstands are the seven churches") and Matthew 5:14 ("you are the light of the world") The oil is what makes the lamps shine, meaning, what makes us to fulfill our purpose. As Jesus ends the parable with the moral "keep watch", most interpreters correctly identify the oil with our prayers. But not everyone remembers that Jesus was a Jew. A consistent part of Jewish prayers is the recitation of the Scriptures. That's what Psalms 1:2 is talking about when it proclames a blessing on the man "who meditates on his law day and night". 

Why is it crucial to know the Word of God in order to pray?

In the book of Proverbs we can read, "if anyone turns a deaf ear to my instruction, even their prayers are detestable" (Pr 28:9) where "instruction" is the translation of Hebrew "תורה" (Torá) which means the Holy Scriptures. And the apostle John writes in his first letter, "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us" (1 John 5:14) God hears all prayers, but some of them are detestable to Him. That's why John is saying "He hears us", meaning "He understands our prayer and answers to it in its time". The whole meaning of what John is saying here, and what Solomon says, is that a prayer against God's will is detestable. King Balak learned it the hard way when paying Balaam to curse Israel, and three times the mercenary prophet blessed God's people instead of obeying the king's order. 

What do you pray for?

Are you praying for something God wants, or for something you want?

If it is something you want, is it according to God's will?

What does the Second Coming of Jesus mean to you?

The ten virgins were all virgins, and they were all waiting for the bridegroom. But the foolish ones didn't take the oil they needed. The wise ones did. They read 1 Thessalonians 4 & 5, 2 Thessalonians 2, James 5:7-8, Revelation 19 and other many Scriptures about the coming of the Messiah. 

If you are praying against God's will, that's no oil. Your lamp needs the oil of God's will to light the right way, no "solar and wind", ethanol or any other substitute. God is not in the "renewable energy" business. Put your will in line with God's will, and you'll see answers to your prayers. I've prayed in an ignorant way sometimes when I was a new convert, but the Lord has corrected me and taught me His ways and His will. He wants to do the same thing with everyone. 

If you have not yet received Jesus as your Lord and Savior, don't wait any longer! He is eagerly waiting for you to save you, restore everything that could be wrong in your life, and lead you to heaven. There is a blessed eternity with God that you don't want to miss! And there is also an infernal eternity for those whose names are not written in the book of life, which you don't want to inherit. Receive Jesus and all blessings He has for you!

In the love of Jesus, your brother Israel Leonard, 

PS. Jesus is coming soon!

NOTES:

* List of messages dealing with false doctrine:

Daniel 2:39-40 Daniel 8:8

Daniel 2:44-45 Daniel 8:13-14

Daniel 4:16-19 Daniel 8:15-19

Daniel 6:6-7 Daniel 8:20-21

Daniel 6:25-28 Daniel 8:22

Daniel 7:7-8 Daniel 8:23-25

Daniel 7:17-18 Daniel 9:15-19

** List of messages dealing with the falseness of replacement theology:

Daniel 1:6-7 Daniel 6:13-14 (NIV 12-13)

Daniel 3:26-27 Daniel 6:26-29 (NIV 25-28)

Daniel 5:13-14 Daniel 7:13-14

Daniel 5:24-28 Daniel 7:17-18

Daniel 5.29-31 Daniel 8:13-14

Daniel 6:4 (NIV 3) Daniel 9:15-19

*** The eternal call of Israel:

There is a tendency to confront law and grace and make them opposites, in order to make the absolute point that Judaism is a thing and Christianity a totally different one. But if we read the OT seeking for grace then we'll find how God pardoned and justified king David, the prophet Jonah, the Babylonian exiles and other ones who should be punished according to the Law but weren't. God's grace reached them when they repented and prayed to God. On the other hand Ananias, together with his wife Sapphira, fell dead when they lied to God, without mercy. There are other examples of punishment in the NT because of their transgression of God's laws (adulterers, fornicators, desecrators of the Lord's supper and others) Death, sickness or excommunication was the punishment for those who broke the law and didn't repent. There is no "God of the OT" and "God of the NT", but a God Who is the same yesterday, and today and forever. And He is gracious and compassionate, but at the same time just and holy. Jesus said:

"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law  until everything is accomplished" (Matthew 5:17-18)

When Jesus was asked about the commandments of the law, He usually confirmed them, and only rebuked His interlocutors if He perceived that the question was loaded. In a nutshell, He was a Jew who lived in Israel, under Jewish law and practicing Judaism.

That said, there are some differences between Judaism and Christianity, the first and most important one the perception of the Person of Jesus as Messiah, Son of God and equal to God. That's why God has a plan for Israel and another one for the church, as we can read in the message above. And both plans are for salvation and communion of both peoples, Israel and the church, in the coming Kingdom of God. 

**** New details of pronunciation: 

        BEFORE:         FROM NOW ON:

Soft kof and 

chet (ך/כ and ח) "kh" "x"

that sound equal

(the final sound 

of "Bach")

Soft bet (ב) which

usually can be found "b" "v"

wherever but in the 

beginning ("v" sound)

This second one could be tricky because it is the same as vav (ו) and that's why I used the "b" to make it sure that it is a "bet" even when sounding like "vav". But it is the sound which matters and it is the most accepted way wherever you see transliterated Hebrew (Yaakóv, Avrahám, davár, etc.)