Events Leading Up to Israel’s Salvation

Transcript

GR+ 1916
4/26/2015
Events Leading up to Israel’s Salvation
Daniel 12:1; Revelation 11-13
Gil Rugh

We are going to Daniel chapter 12 in your Bibles so if you would like to turn there you will be ready. As we talk about prophecy we talk about interpretation and how we interpret the Bible. I just wanted to read you a couple of comments from some things I have been reading. You know people often ask “Why do Christians differ on how they interpret the Bible?” And I often asked myself that, “Why do Christians differ on this?” It seems to me there ought to be simplicity and foundationally it just comes primarily over the issue of future things as I have shared this with you. I mention this because we have been talking about future things in our morning studies in II Corinthians and in our study of Daniel. It may sound overly simple but this is the reason there are disagreements. Should we interpret future prophecies literally? If you say yes, you will end up where we are, in what is called dispensationalism. It is a big word but basically you take the Scripture literally and future prophecies literally. The other view is you don’t take them literally.

Now everyone who is a true Christian, who believes the Bible, takes the Bible literally in all other areas. I mean if you don’t believe that Christ died on the cross as payment for your sin, you don’t believe He was the Son of God, you don’t believe He was raised from the dead you are not saved. So everyone who is a believer interprets the Bible literally when it comes to salvation areas. Everyone who is a Christian interprets all the past prophecies that were fulfilled literally because that is how they were fulfilled. And if you believe the Bible as we have been studying Daniel. He’s given some specific prophecies that have already been fulfilled. The Medo-Persian Empire has come and gone. The Greek Empire has come and gone. The Roman Empire is mostly gone. They have all been fulfilled just as it was said they would. The real issue comes with the future and they agree.

One of the best ways I find to be strengthened in my conviction is read the opposing view. I have been reading some books that criticize literal interpretation of the Bible but here is what one writer says. “The basic implications of dispensationalism arise out of its principle of literal interpretation.” He does not agree with literal interpretation but he agrees that its basic positions come out of literal interpretation. But he goes on to say, “I cannot resist questioning however, whether all prophetical Scripture should be interpreted literally.” And at the end of the paragraph he says, “Not all prophetic Scripture can be interpreted literally. Dispensationalism however, insists that all prophetic Scripture must be taken literally.”

Now I want you to listen. This will sound familiar. He says, “Logically carried out, this principle of interpreting prophecy literally involves the dispensationalists in these extremes.” This just demonstrates you can’t take it literally. These are the extremes. “All Israel will be saved. The boundaries of the land given in the promise to Abraham will literally be restored during the millennium. Christ will return to a literal, theocratic, political kingdom on earth with a government patterned after existing national governments with David as a region. Christ will sit on a physical throne in the city of David, in the state of Israel. The beast, antichrist and other persons mentioned in Revelation will literally appear. A city will actually descend from heaven in which God will have an eternal throne and from which the river of life will flow. All of which are inherent in the system.” He says, “Those are the extremes.” “Now can anybody really believe you should interpret the Bible literally?” I mean that is where you end up. But I say, “Well, yes, I agree with all those things.” So, it’s not only we make the point those who disagree make the point as well.

Another writer and these are intelligent men, they are anti-dispensational but they would be what we would call evangelical. They would be just as convinced as we are of the facts of the Gospel. This man is very intelligent. He’s a seminary professor at an evangelical seminary and he has a PhD from Harvard as well as a Doctor of Theology degree from an overseas university. He says, “In a sense nearly all the problems associated with the dispensationalists, non-dispensationalist conflict are buried beneath the question of literal interpretation.

I say this because it has become common in some recent articles to blur the picture. I appreciate these writers who are at least upfront. The difference is, are you going to interpret the Bible literally or aren’t you? This man says all the problems in our disagreement come down to the question of literal interpretation.

Just a couple more quotes. “Prophetic predictions with regard to the near future have a character distinct from predictions about the later days.” So now he wants to make a distinction. “All the prophecies that have been fulfilled they were in the near future for Israel.” You can’t argue. If they were fulfilled it was nearer than the ones that haven’t been fulfilled. So he says, “That means we interpret them literally.” You can’t argue with it because they were fulfilled literally. I mean what are you going to say? The prophecy in Micah that Christ would be born in Bethlehem was not fulfilled literally? So you have to say all the prophecies that have been fulfilled have been fulfilled literally.

“But prophecies yet to be fulfilled” which he calls prophecies about the latter days “have a character distinct from the prophecies that have been fulfilled. Pre-eschatological prophetic fulfillments,” just memorize that and to say it you sound intelligent. “Pre-eschatological prophetic fulfillments” which just means prophecies that have not yet been fulfilled “have a hermeneutically different character than do eschatological fulfillments.” In other words prophecies that have been fulfilled should be interpreted differently than prophecy that has yet to be fulfilled. Why? Because he says so.

Let me read you two more statements. “I claim that there is sound, solid, grammatical, historical ground for interpreting eschatological fulfillments of prophecy on a different basis than pre-eschatological fulfillments. With respect to eschatology,” future prophecies that we are studying about, “people in the Old Testament were not in the same position as they were for a short range prophecy. Eschatological prophecy had an open ended suggestiveness.” Was does he mean? They weren’t intelligent enough to know? So we come to the book of Daniel and we are in a prophetic portion again we interpret it literally just at face value.

I’m reading a hermeneutics books called Biblical Hermeneutics by Milton Terry. It is an old work. It was published in 1885 but I just copied out a page to read to you. “Ever since man was created and endowed with the powers of speech and made a communicative, social being he has had an occasion to practice upon the principles of interpretation and has actually done so. From the first moment that one human being addressed another by the use of language down to the present hour the essential laws of interpretation became and have continued to be a practical matter. I venture to advance a step further and to infer that all men are and ever have been in reality, good and true interpreters of each other’s language. One cannot commit a more palpable error in relation to this subject than to suppose that the art of interpretation is in itself wholly dependent on an acquired skill for the discovery and development of its principles.”

I mean just think about it. People everywhere communicate. They may have different languages but the principles are still the same. You start out with words. Some of you have been taking some Greek. Where do you start out in beginning Greek? Well basically you start out early with some vocabulary. If you don’t have any vocabulary how are you going to communicate so you start out with words and you learn the meaning of basic words. Then you learn how these words are put together in the structure of this language and over time you learn that words have variations in their meaning but there is a core meaning associated with the word otherwise we couldn’t communicate. You didn’t study hard on the principles of interpretation so you could understand someone. You know little children, what? They grow up knowing when their parents tell them something, no means maybe. You know, they learn. They don’t have to say, “Well I can’t wait until they get old enough and in school and learn the laws of language and then we will be able to communicate to them.” God has made us. It is just inherent in us. We grow up learning to communicate.

So we want to be careful we don’t make the Bible like they try to do. “Well, when you are talking about future prophecy now that gets a lot more complicated and you should read the way they go through some of the interpretations.” It is marvelous and wonderful. It is just not correct. Why? Because all of a sudden you depart from the way you communicate normally as though future prophecy is some esoteric, mystical and you have to have some kind of knowledge of things or otherwise you can never wade through it.

Some of you read Charles Ryrie’s books, the man who has two earned doctor’s degrees from two different countries and he has written many books and recognize him as a scholar in the world but this man criticizes him as not understand how sentences and discourse work in communication. Give me a break! If I have to read this, you have to hear it.

Alright, we are in Daniel chapter 11. And in Daniel chapter 11 much of the chapter has dealt with prophecy that has been fulfilled. In fact the first 34 verses have talked about something of Israel’s history and you know what? In exquisite detail God has told what would happen. So much clear detail that unbelievers say this couldn’t have been written ahead of time so they say Daniel wasn’t written by a prophet named Daniel. It was written in the inner-testament period after these things happened. But every Bible believing Christian who believes the Bible agrees, all these prophecies were fulfilled literally.

Any commentary you get, no matter whether they interpret future prophecy literally interprets Daniel 11 literally at least down to verse 36. And then when they get to future they become unglued. Consistent with Old Testament prophecy the church age is not seen. So we saw in Daniel 11 between verse 35 and 36 and verse 35 gives you something of a transition. You have a great leap in time. Not unusual in the Old Testament because he’s come and brought us to Antiochus Epiphanes the IV who was an historical character but much of his activity he shows you what it will be like only many times worse under the coming antichrist. So he jumps from there to the future. The church is not in view in Old Testament prophecy.

So verse 36 and following talked about the coming antichrist. We do accept him as a literal figure who will be on this earth. He will do great damage, be the great persecutor of Israel and down through verse 45. So verses 36 to 45 carried us to the future.

This is on the resurrection but you can see it was back here in the inner-testament period with Antiochus Epiphanes the IV that he jumped over to this period of time. Particularly he is focusing on the last three and half years. Old Testament prophecy goes from here. None of this is in Old Testament prophecy. So it can vary where Old Testament prophecy goes. It never is in here. With chapter 11 he jumps from a period, say 164 B.C. down to the coming tribulation because we are talking about Israel’s troubles and the suffering they would go through and talking about the near future carried them to the far future. Well that doesn’t mean the far future now shouldn’t be taken literally. You would think the pattern that God established so clearly that everything He says will be fulfilled as He has said it would establish a pattern. You wonder how do we de-rail?

So it is important because as we come to the end of chapter 11, chapter 12 begins, “Now at that time.” Where are we in that time? We are in this last three and a half year period. We are going to pick up on events in the middle with the coming persecution of Israel. So we are going to jump from persecution that Israel endured and thousands of Jews died and the temple was desecrated and so on back in Israel’s history under Antiochus Epiphanes. Now let’s jump to the time when Israel is going to experience the worst of its persecution under a man who is extremely vile and will do what he can to desecrate.

So you can see a connection even though you know, over 2000 years passed between the historical events which wasn’t an historical event when Daniel prophesied it. We are hundreds of years ahead of it but it was still fulfilled literally as were all the other details.

So chapter 12 begins, “Now at that time.” The time we have been talking about in verse 36 to 45. Verse 35 made the transition calling it in chapter 11, “Until the end time.” The end of verse 36, “Until the indignation is finished;” Verse 40 of chapter 11, “At the end time.” This is where we are and this whole period is the last phase in God’s program with Israel. Remember, it’s the 70th week of Daniel. 70 weeks are determined for you, your people, your holy city. It’s just Jews. Why none of this is included, the church age. And really the events he is focusing on at the end of chapter 11 and into chapter 12 are those that begin in the middle of that because that is when the persecution breaks out. During that first three and a half years Israel seems to live in relative peace under the protection of the one who is the willful king of chapter 11, verse 36. He is the one who would sign the covenant with them that starts the seven years in Daniel 9. And we know the temple is rebuilt. When it is rebuilt we don’t know but by the time you are functioning in those first three and a half years there is a temple established in Jerusalem and sacrifices going on and so on.

“Now at that time, Michael, the great prince who stands guard over the sons of your people will arise.” Michael, one of two angels mentioned in Scripture as you are aware. Gabriel being the other. Michael is the one identified as the archangel and his realm of responsibility is primarily it seems the nation Israel. You note what he says in verse 1 of chapter 12: “Michael, the great prince who stands guard over the sons of your people.” He is talking to Daniel, the Jews.

Come back to chapter 10, verse 13: “But the prince of the kingdom of Persia was withstanding me for twenty-one days then behold Michael, one of the chief princes.” He may not be the only archangel but he is one of the chief princes, one of God’s angels with greater power and authority and then you come down to verse 21 of chapter 10: “I will tell you what is inscribed in the writing of truth. Yet there is no one who stands firmly with me against these forces except Michael, your prince.” So repeatedly emphasized, Michael’s particular area of authority and responsibility is the nation Israel and of course in that sense is the position of greatest responsibility as far as we know among the angels because of all the nations, what is the most important one in the plan of God, Israel. So Michael stands out. He is mentioned in Jude, the ninth verse and that is where he is called “Michael the archangel.” Here he was referred to as Michael, one of the chief princes and then we will see in Revelation 12 is the other reference to him by name.

But come back to chapter 12 for a moment. “Michael will arise,” indicates something significant happening here, action. It doesn’t mean he is sitting on a chair doing nothing. We saw him in action in chapter 10 but here he is arising. We have come to a momentous point in the purpose and plan of God. We are right here. We are at the middle point of that three and a half years. What is happening here will be momentous in the courts of heaven as we will see in a moment. “And he says, ‘there will be a time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time. At that time your people, everyone who was found written in the book will be rescued.’” Now we enter into what we call the great tribulation, a time of trouble and turmoil for the world and for the nation Israel like they have never experienced. Also, the context of what will be going on. “Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake. These to everlasting life, the others to everlasting contempt. Those who have insight will shine brightly like the brightness of the expanse of heaven. Those who lead the many to righteousness like the stars forever.” You see what he does. He basically tells you what happens and here is the end.

So verses 2 and 3 carry us down here to the end of this three and a half years where there will be a resurrection as we will see and then the kingdom in which believing Jews will shine. Again you take it literally at face value. It is not complicated. It flows rather simply.

Let’s look at first the events of verse 1. Come over we will run them in order. Come to Matthew 24, Matthew chapter 24 and we come to this often but Jesus talks about this same period of time. In Matthew 24, verse 15 this will be the time. Remember what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age and then he overviewed that seven year period but here in verse 15: “Therefore when you see the abomination of desolation which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet standing in the holy place.” The holy place is in the temple. The temple is rebuilt. Now there is going to be an abomination set up there, something to defile the temple. That occurs in the middle of the 70th week of Daniel.

Verse 21: “Then there will be great tribulation such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now.” It seems like Jesus is understanding Daniel on a rather literal way. He is not changing anything. He adds, fills it in but nothing changes. We are still in that time of tribulation. There is a marking point in the middle. Note that the abomination is in the middle because it is going to be further clarified for us. It will climax with the return of Christ and the establishing of the kingdom and Matthew 24 and 25 go on with that.

Come over to II Thessalonians chapter 2. At the end of the first letter to the Thessalonians Paul talked to them about prophetic matters. At the end of chapter 4, he talked to them about the rapture of the church. We will talk about that in our study next Sunday morning, the resurrection and judgment of the church. Then in chapter 5 he talked to them about the day of the Lord, verse 2: “You yourselves know that the day of the Lord.” The day of the Lord title picked up that encompasses this period here and leading on, that future prophetic time and what is going to happen there and verse 3, “They are saying, ‘Peace and safety!’ then destruction will come upon them suddenly like birth pangs upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.” This is a similar kind of thing Daniel talked about, Jesus talked about and now Paul talks about it and then he encourages them in verse 9, “God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Then you come into his second letter and in chapter 2 he tells them, “I don’t want you to be upset.” There are teachers who come and already corrupting the truth regarding future things and telling them that they may be in the day of the Lord. They may be here in this time of trouble because the Thessalonians were experiencing some intense persecution and then you have false teachers who come and say, “You know what? You are in the day of the Lord. I mean look around. Do you think it would get any worse than this? Look at the suffering you are going through. Look at the opposition. Look at the persecution.”

Paul said, verse 2: “I don’t want you to be quickly shaken from your composure or disturbed either by a spirit or a message or a letter as if from us.” Somebody comes and pretends like oh, I’ve got a message, I’ve been talking to Paul and here’s what he said. Well, I got a letter from Paul. No, he says, “Don’t get upset as though the day of the Lord has come. Let no one deceive you. It will not come until the apostasy comes first, the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction.” Here we are to this person who comes on the scene in Old Testament prophecy. “He opposes and exalts himself above so called god or object of worship,” now note this. “So that he takes his seat in the temple of God displaying himself as God.” We have the temple rebuilt, right? Where we are here is in this middle period. If you are on the chart over there you can see it is divided into the two parts. We are right in the middle of that seven year period. We know that because we will get to that passage in a moment if you’ve not remembered it. You see he exalts himself. All worship now in the world will be disallowed except the worship of him.

We see some of these kind of many pictures of this in the world today and they have images of their leader and they adore him and honor him to the point of worship. He takes his seat in the temple. When you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet standing in the holy place, these things seem to sound like they are pretty similar and Paul, like Jesus seems to take that pretty, if I can use the word, “literally” just like you would assume when you read it. And here we think well that sounds like just what Daniel said and yet it is yet to come in the distant future that Paul’s writing. It’s been 2000 years and it is still not here.

“So he takes his seat in the temple of God.” We know the temple is rebuilt. We know there has been worship going on. Now it is cancelled and he displays himself as God. This goes beyond Antiochus Epiphanes the IV. He wanted to have the Jews worship the pantheon of Greek gods. He wanted to elevate himself to be fitting there but he didn’t take the place of supreme God. This man is going beyond what has been done.

And then Paul reminds them, “Don’t you remember, I told you about this?” You know we get confused when we forget what the Scripture says. We don’t live in light of it. Why would you be upset as though the day of the Lord has come? I wrote you about that. When I was there I told you about it. Stay the course. And then he says, “The mystery of lawlessness is already at work.” So don’t be surprised at the lawlessness that is taking place in the world. It was already underway when Paul wrote. It was already at work but that doesn’t mean you are in the tribulation. “And it will continue until the restrainer is taken out of the way,” verse 8. “Then that lawless one will be revealed.” I take it that is an indication that the revelation right here will take place here after the Holy Spirit is removed. Remember he is the little horn. We will know the identification because he will sign the agreement with Israel which marks the beginning of the 70th week, certain things there. So it carries them back to talk about it couldn’t have started here. This one is the one who will come to his end. Note verse 8: “The lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming.” And the details of that are in Revelation 19. Christ Himself descends from heaven and casts this man into hell. Why do we all of a sudden say, “Well we don’t want to take these future things literally? Now we are into the church and the church has replaced Israel and this is what these men are arguing that I read you and so we see spiritual fulfillment in the church and its tribulations and its trials and we are not looking. I am. Paul evidently was and he said the Thessalonians don’t have any excuse for being confused.

We note we are not there yet. This hasn’t happened yet because Christ has to come and destroy this individual. He is a person. That lawless one will be revealed. We are talking about a specifically identified character, a willful king at the end of Daniel 11, the little horn in Daniel 7 and on it goes. “And this is one who is in accord with the activity of Satan with all power, signs and wonders.”

Come over to Revelation. We are going to chapter 12 but stop at chapter 11. I think Revelation is sequential. In other words it records events that happen one after another and you would get that sense. One seal was opened then a second seal is opened. Following that a third seal and you move through the trumpets in the same way and the bowls. Things happen one after another. There is no reason to mix things all up. Where are we here? Verse 11: “Then there was given me a measuring rod like a staff” chapter 11, verse 1. “Someone said, ‘get up measure the temple of God.’” Whoa. We are in the 70th week of Daniel in Revelation. It starts in chapter 6 and goes to chapter 19. Now we are in the middle of the 70th week so we take a break in the unfolding of the different judgments. The temple is measured for a purpose. “Leave out the court which is outside the temple. Do not measure it. It has been given to the nations. They will tread underfoot the holy city for forty-two months. I will grant authority to my two witnesses. They will prophesy for twelve hundred and sixty days;” pretty clear, amount of time. 42 months is how long? Three and a half years. A prophetic year is 360 days. How do we know that? Well 1,260 days is the same as 42 months, it’s three and a half years.

So here there is going to be the temple here under the control of the Gentiles. That’s been given to the nations. They will tread underfoot the holy city, Jerusalem, the temple. The seeming peace that Israel has been enjoying is over. Remember Jesus said, “When that abomination of desolation stands in the holy place you don’t even want to go down and get a coat.” That is how quickly persecution will break out, more than just over night. I mean “you have to go immediately” is the picture here. So we know we are three and a half years and the testimony of the two witnesses.

Then you come down to chapter 12. “A great sign appeared in heaven. A woman clothed with the sun, the moon under her feet; on her head a crown of twelve stars.” That is Israel. It is taken from the dream of Joseph in Genesis 37 and basically interpreted there. They all recognize the significance of that symbolism. She was with child; Israel with child. The nation what? It gives birth to the Messiah. As “another sign appeared in heaven, the great red dragon having seven heads, ten horns and on his head were seven diadems.” We’ve seen this before, the seven heads, picking up the empires going back to Egypt, the first earthly empire that has to do with Israel. Then Assyria that took the northern ten tribes into captivity. Then Babylon and we are in the line that Daniel picked up. The ten horns. We have seen this from Daniel chapter 7. The seven diadems. The diadems are crowns of rulers, the horns symbolized a king or a kingdom. So having the diadems just conveys that. A diadem is a crown of a ruler. A stephanos is usually the crown of a victor. “His tail swept away a third of the stars of heaven; threw them to the earth. The dragon stood before the woman.” That may indicate that a third of the angels followed Satan in his rebellion there. “The dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth so that when she gave birth he might devour her child.” The attempt of Satan to destroy Christ at His birth. What happened under Herod the Great, the slaughter of the infants as it is known. He attempted to kill what he saw as a potential rival even though at that point in his life and reign Herod has one foot in the grave, maybe one and a half feet in the grave. I mean, he’s a dying man but he’s holding on. At any rate, he tries to destroy. That was Satan’s power.

“She gave birth to a son, a male child who was to rule the nations with a rod of iron.” Any question about who that is? “Her child was caught up to God and to His throne. Then the woman fled into the wilderness where she had a place prepared by God so she would be nourished for one thousand, two hundred and sixty days.” So you see what’s happened here. We have gone from the death and resurrection of Christ down to this period. The Israel fleeing the persecution that Jesus talked about would come that would be climaxed with His second coming to earth. The sign of your coming and of the end of the age. “The woman fled into the wilderness.”

So Christ at the first part of the verse was caught up to God and to His throne, is seated at the throne of Father here, not the Messianic throne of David but the throne of the Father and we see how Scripture jumps. Isn’t that confusing? Not really. We just take it and understand that the church is not part of that. Now it is natural He would come over and talk about this period. He has already been talking about this 70th week in chapters 6 to 19. Now he is preparing us for the last three and a half years in these middle chapters.

What happens? Verse 7: “There was war in heaven,” Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. This is when Michael stands up, Daniel chapter 12, verse 1, “Michael, your prince will stand up, will arise.” What is going on? We are getting ready for battle. “Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. The dragon and his angels wage war and the dragon is defeated.” Verse 9: “And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan who deceives the whole world.” Just in case we have mixed it and think the symbolism here is confusing and a dragon, well you know that is not to be taken literally. That is the picture of the fierceness of the devil and if you don’t know, he’s the serpent of old. He is the one who was operating through the serpent in the garden. He is the devil. He is Satan. He is the one who deceives the whole world. He was thrown down to the earth with his angels. And as we have talked about in this passage before, Satan lost his position as the anointed cherub covering the throne of God when he sinned but he still has access to heaven, Job, the opening two chapters. “There came a day when the sons of God, the angels, came to present themselves before the Lord and the devil came among them. The Lord said to Satan, ‘where have you been?’ ‘I have been going to and fro on the earth.’” And now heaven is closed to him. He realizes that we are coming to the end. There is celebration in heaven at that point because all heaven realizes now, note what they say in verse 10: “Now the salvation, the power, the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ have come. For the accused of my brethren has been thrown down.” Heaven realizes, you hit this point we are at the closing period, will climax with the establishing of the kingdom. So there is rejoicing in heaven and verse 12: “For this reason rejoice, O heavens, you who dwell in them woe to the earth and the sea because the devil has come down to you having great wrath knowing he only has a short time.” It changes nothing in his character or his desire it just intensifies him.

I shared with some what some of you saw on one of the programs recently on the history channel they had on Hitler and what happened. The Russian armies were coming into Germany. It was collapsing and he was giving orders to his commanders. “We must accelerate the extermination of the Jews. You are within a few short days, a week of your own death and you intensify your fight.” That is what Satan is doing.

“So when the dragon saw he was thrown down to earth he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the child.” Now he pours all his energy because he knows he has a short time, three and a half years to get rid of the nation. Why is that important? He will still lose. If he destroys all the Jews there can be no kingdom. All that God has promised and prophesied fails. He loses, God wins. Well that is a distorted way to think. Why don’t you just go on and read the rest of the book? There is no sense to sin. Why don’t people repent today, be saved and avoid an eternal hell? It makes no sense but they don’t. They don’t believe it. The devil doesn’t either.

After the thousand years you know what he will do when he is released? Make one final effort to dethrone Christ. So what happens? He persecutes the woman. She is given two wings of an eagle to fly into the wilderness. Everybody understands figures of speech. Does this mean the nation of Israel has to have two literal wings given? Nobody interprets it that way. We communicate all the time like that. We will say, “Boy, I watched the race. He ran like the wind.” Well, that is a figure of speech. We all know it. Now let me explain to you. I don’t really mean he was wind or windy or he was literally as fast as the wind. We all understand. Why when it comes to the Bible and future things do people say, “Well…” So the serpent attempts to destroy the woman.

Verse 17: “The dragon was enraged with the woman; went off to make war with the rest of her children,” all who are faithful to God. So you come to chapter 13. Let’s find out about Satan’s man. “I saw a beast coming up out of the sea having ten horns and seven heads.” Here we are. I mean this stuff is repeated. It is not hard to understand. The ten horns had diadems and then described. “I saw one of the heads as if it had been slain and his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth was amazed and followed after the beast.” We saw in chapter 2 they are going to worship him. II Thessalonians: “They worshipped the dragon because he gave authority to the beast. They worshipped the beast. There was given to him a mouth speaking arrogant words and blasphemy; and authority to act for forty-two months.” That is the same as twelve hundred and sixty days in chapter 12 and the forty-two months and twelve hundred and sixty days in chapter 11. And people say, “Well, you don’t take the number in the book of Revelation literally.” I just don’t have much to say to those people. What could I say? Could you make something else out of this? Yes, you could make a lot of other things out of it but we are expected and held accountable remember. “Blessed is the one who reads and heeds what is written in this book.” You are expected to know it.

Verse 6: “And he opened his mouth in blasphemies against God, to blaspheme His name and His tabernacle, that is, those who dwell in heaven. It was given to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them; and authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation was given to him.” God is sovereignly in control and He removed the restraint of the Holy Spirit and now it is His plan, if you will, to let Satan be turned loose on the earth. Part of His wrath to bring judgment on an unbelieving world.

Verse 8: “All who dwell on the earth will worship him,” all the unbelievers. It is where it is going. Then you have the false prophet, another beast coming out of the earth who directs the worship of the world and as we have noted you have the Satanic trinity with Satan taking the role of God the Father, with the antichrist taking the role of Christ and suffering the wound unto death and coming to life in the first part of this and then the second beast, the false prophet who functions as the Holy Spirit who directs all the worship of the world to the antichrist. And it concludes with the number 666.

Now we are ready for the resurrection and judgment of Israel which we will do next time because chapter 12 jumps to the end because well, we all want to see like we have been studying in II Corinthians, how does it end for us? What is the goal? The goal is the resurrection of the nation Israel. Here is a clear statement of when the resurrection of Old Testament saints will occur and with that will be their judgment so we will talk about that and it gets more specific.

Before Daniel is done he is going to lay out not only are there twelve hundred and sixty days there will be twelve hundred and ninety days and there will not only be twelve hundred and ninety days there will be thirteen hundred and thirty five days and then we will be ready to be in if you will, a full blown kingdom. But we have to wait and do that.

Let’s pray together. Thank You Lord for Your Word, the beauty of Your Word. Lord, it is awesome that You are the God who is in control of all things. You are the God who has ordained the future and the wrath and rebellion of Satan, the wrath and rebellion of man only accomplishes Your purposes, reveals the vileness of a character of a being like Satan, the vileness of our own character apart from Your redeeming grace that we should join together with Satan in opposition to You and but for Your grace and redeeming us and cleansing us causing us to become Your children we would be in continual rebellion. Thank You for the wonder and power of Your salvation and Lord how privileged we are to live in these days. Live anticipating and expecting the return of the Lord for the church, a culmination of the church age so that the final events for the nation Israel, the people of this earth can come to completion so that the King can return, establish a kingdom and we will return with Him to rule and reign in glory. May we live in light of these truths in the days of the week before us we pray in Christ’s name, amen.