A voice in the wilderness

What you will find here are thoughts and commentary on what I happen to be studying. As for me, I have two daughters who have grown up without me. Education wise, I have two AS degrees, one being in Horticulture, but no bachelors degree. The longest time spent at any one job was 15 years. Sadly, I have not been the great success I had dreamed I would be, but I find that I am becoming more content as my relationship with the Father God grows. God's word is my passion.

Showing posts with label heads. Show all posts

Friday, October 14, 2022

He will force the world to take the mark.

Considering how peculiar this “beast” is, what kind of image would you make for it?

Perhaps you could make a portrait of it and focus on the “eyes”; since scripture tells us that “it” is given a mouth, then maybe that is a good starting place.

There is a problem, as I recall, and that is that Islam detests all expressions of art. Evidence for this could be seen as the United States, under the direction of “President” Biden, tucked its tail and abandoned Afghanistan and many of the people who had allied with us. The Taliban swooped in, or maybe they were already there, waiting for their opportunity to emerge. Well, emerge they did, and one of the first things they did was to destroy music schools, crush musical instruments, and beat the youths that were there to learn.

Did you actually believe that they would allow expressions of art, a symbol of American influence and freedom, to flourish?

Not a chance; and so I do not see how they would be thrilled with this “Jewish high priest” making an image and commanding everyone to worship it; but then there are those miracles that the false prophet, or as the Muslims will call him – Jesus, performing the same miracles that the two witnesses performed.

Everyone who is still alive (I say this because there has been a prolific and deadly onslaught against people, in addition to the outpouring of God's wrath from above. It would probably be safe to say that half the population could be dead by this time.) and aware of what has been going on would know that you can't do things like the false prophet has done unless you are empowered (Ah, but by what?). To the Muslims, it will seem as if this “high priest” turned Muslim is empowered by Allah.

Not so clear, is it?

Whatever this convert to Islam decides Allah should look like, he will make an image of it and will demand that all the inhabitants of earth worship this thing that now talks.

Let's assume that many of you have never been to Disneyland. There, they have a place called the Haunted Mansion. As you walk to the “doom buggy” that will take you through the attraction, paintings follow you with their eyes. In a short distance, you come into a room with a ladies head in a glass ball, and she talks eerily to the audience; tombstone heads come alive, sort of, and sing; graves open and characters sing to you; and, there is a grand ballroom where ghostly characters dance in a classical style to some organ music. Every time I go through it, I try to figure out how they did that. It's really not much different from an illusionist's act, where misdirection keeps you from seeing the apparatus that makes it all work.

He will force the entire world to take the mark and worship the beast.

Back in 2017, I could see how Islam might have dominion over the Middle East, but you would never be able to enforce this nonsense over a Modern nation.

But what have we seen in the last couple of years?

I used to think that it would be impossible to effectively force the world to worship a man or an image and take some form of a mark, but the years 2020 through 2022 have demonstrated that most of the population can be herded like sheep and made to believe that they have to comply with the demands of some cackling governing body, and inject multiple versions of some poison into their bodies without question.

We also experienced an Islamic invasion, first in the European nations, and then President Barack Obama (he was the President in 2017 when I wrote this) took multitudes of them into this nation. Thousands of people, many of whom we know, were interspersed among veteran Jihad fighters, and this invasion is a form of Jihad/warfare. Combine that with Islam's gradual and intentional infiltration of our governing bodies, like school boards and congress (another form of Jihad), where they are making quiet inroads into establishing Sharia law as the law of the land (consider Detroit, Michigan, and a few others). Once they establish a strong foothold, they will, under Sharia law, give themselves free rein to slaughter outsiders – infidels; and it will be the unified call from the Mosques that directs them.

Assuming that the rapture has happened, what has been going on in Jerusalem?

God sends his two witnesses.

Let me point something out that most do not catch.

“And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth." These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. And if anyone would harm them, fire pours from their mouth and consumes their foes. If anyone would harm them, this is how he is doomed to be killed. They have the power to shut the sky so that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying, and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they desire. And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them, and their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city that symbolically is called Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord was crucified. For three and a half days, some from the peoples and tribes and languages and nations will gaze at their dead bodies and refuse to let them be placed in a tomb, and those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and make merry and exchange presents because these two prophets had been a torment to those who dwell on the earth. But after the three and a half days, a breath of life from God entered them, and they stood up on their feet, and great fear fell on those who saw them. Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, "Come up here!" And they went up to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies watched them.” (Revelation 11:3-12 ESV)

There is speculation on who they are, but is it important that we know that?

What is important is what they do, what they say, and when they get here. I happen to believe they show up right after the rapture, and here is the significant reason – they stop the rain.

Why is that a big deal?

Because this second beast, the false prophet, causes the rain to come back again, and that buys him notoriety. They also perform signs, and the false prophet mimics those also.

So what do the two witnesses do?

The first and most important thing they do is, as Revelation 11:3 tells us, “they will prophesy for twelve hundred and sixty days."
“if anyone would harm them, fire pours from their mouth and consumes their foes.”
“They have the power to shut the sky so that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying.”
“ they have power over the waters to turn them into blood.”
“ and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they desire”

Remember that I said that prophecy to the Jew is a pattern.

How many patterns do you think the Jewish readers are seeing?

In the days of Abram, God struck Pharaoh with plagues.

“But the LORD struck Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai, Abram's wife.” (Genesis 12:17 NASB)

What happened immediately after Moses brought each plague upon Egypt?

In Exodus chapter eight, God struck the Egyptians repeatedly with plagues until Pharaoh finally let God's people go. The bizarre part of this story is that the sorcerers in Pharaoh's court replicated what Moses and Aaron did.

So Moses and Aaron came to Pharaoh, and thus they did just as the LORD had commanded, and Aaron threw his staff down before Pharaoh and his servants, and it became a serpent. Then Pharaoh also called for the wise men and the sorcerers, and they also, the magicians of Egypt, did the same with their secret arts. For each one threw down his staff, and they turned into serpents. But Aaron's staff swallowed up their staffs. (Exodus 7:10-12 NASB)

Sorcerers - the Hebrew word is kâshaph and means those who practice or use witchcraft or sorcery. The Word Study Dictionary tells us that it is a verb meaning to practice magic, to practice sorcery. While the exact meaning of the word is obscure, it involved the use of supernatural powers that hardened hearts against the truth (And that is exactly what you see happening when you read this story.)

Magician is the Hebrew word ḥarṭōm. The Word Study Dictionary states that it is a masculine noun meaning engraver, a writer associated with the occult. (Perhaps this might be easier to grasp if you think about Ouija boards. These things are eerily associated with the occult.) These people seem to have had knowledge of astrology or divination and were commonly associated with the magicians of Egypt in Pharaoh's court. (Keep in mind that) Pharaoh could not find any magicians to interpret his dream, so he called Joseph (Gen_41:24). Moses caused plagues to come upon Egypt, which the magicians could not reverse (Exo_9:11). (Emphasis mine.)

The false prophet will follow the two witnesses to the stage (so to speak), just as Pharaoh's sorcerers followed Moses. It only makes sense that he repeats what the two witnesses just did. Odd, but it occurs to me that while many will stand in awe of the two witnesses and their message, others will see it as a circus sideshow; they will not perceive that these two are legitimate and from God, and that is why they are doing these signs (which, are an aspect of God's wrath and mercy.) It is these signs and the trustworthiness that got this man the position as high priest, to begin with, and it is those very signs that promote the deception that will convince many of Israel's religious elite.

It (the false prophet) performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people.

and by the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast, it deceives those who dwell on the earth,

Nonetheless, it is Pattern!

If I have lost you and you don't know where these bullet points came from, let me remind you. Revelation 13:13. I strongly suggest that you reread Revelation 13, starting from verse 11, as it tells us that the false prophet is the guy who makes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast.

Sounds simple enough, doesn't it? But let me show you how verse 12 ends in the NASB.

“whose fatal wound was healed.”

We have well-known Bible teachers who should know better, trying to tell you that a “world” leader will take a bullet to the head, die, and rise again. If you have bought into that fairy tale, then you are scoffing at me now. But let me show you something.

“And the beast which I saw was like a leopard, and his feet were like those of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave him his power and his throne and great authority. I saw one of his heads as if it had been slain, and his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth was amazed and followed after the beast; ...”
(Revelation 13:2-3 NASB)

The beast is not a singular entity but a multi-headed monster. While many will attribute this to the “revived” Roman empire, it also fits the description of the Caliphate rule of Islam.

Are there many sects within Islam? The answer is yes, and they are all butting heads with each other.
“The dragon gave him his power and his throne and great authority.”

This is all happening within one paragraph and applies to a multi-headed beast; yet, Jesus refers to this thing as him and then speaks in the singular about his throne and authority. We have been watching leaders within Islam struggle for power, and one, in particular, kept decreeing himself to leader of the reborn Ottoman empire. Where did that get off to?
“ I saw one of his heads as if it had been slain, and his fatal wound was healed.”

So as you picture some freakish mutation with many heads, imagine one of those heads,
equivalent to perhaps a sect of Islam or a Caliphate, and it appears to have been killed; that could happen in so many ways. We are watching such a thing happen in real time with Ukraine. But the sentence does not say it died; it says “as if,” and in a sense, the Ottoman empire played possum as well. (This happened in 1924 when the British, with a bit of help, crushed and dismantled the Ottoman Empire. Although the world thought they were dead, like flickering embers from a wildfire that are thrown across vast regions by the wind, remnants from this empire, like the Muslim Brotherhood, continued to pursue their global domination.)

If I have opened your eyes and prompted you to study, then my job here is done.

He (meaning Jesus) is coming sooner than you can imagine, and He is coming for those who are waiting for Him. This is the rapture of the Church I am talking about. Should you miss that bus and then choose to follow Him, sorry, but you will die a martyr – for your testimony. On the plus side, Jesus will meet you on the other side, and you will be welcomed into the arms of the Father.

Do not think for a minute that you get to bring any selfish, foolish, and hateful attitude with you, as you will be changed, just as the church will be changed. Since the sinful nature is clearly attached to the body, then it might be safe to say that this body will experience death, no matter who it referred to when it comes to being in heaven.

And yes, many are dying as martyrs as we speak, so it is not an exclusive club, and whatever they are going through will come to your neighborhood sooner than you think.

Friday, January 21, 2022

The ten horns which you saw. Revelation 17:12-14

In studying Revelation 17:10, we saw the term seven used multiple times about the mountain on which the harlot sits, which also represents seven kings. Those kings are the final and fourth kingdom. I realize that may be hard to grasp, but it is there in the dream statue of Nebuchadnezzar.

Everything that appears after Alexander the Great works to fulfill the fourth empire and begins with both the Ptolemaic and Seleucid empires that rose after the death of Alexander. Just because the composition changes from brass to iron only serves to modify the leadership and direction of the beast.

I tend to emphasize Islam as a leading player in the end times, but I do not exclude a majority of our global leadership. For example, suppose you per-chanced to look at an ancestral association map that includes the beginnings of America. In that case, you will observe a relatively common heritage that will take you back to the Seleucid and Ptolemaic empires. Coincidence, I think not.

As we progress, we find out that there is the eighth beast, and he is one of the seven.

Revelation 17:10-12 MKJV And there are seven kings; five have fallen, and one is, and the other has not yet come. And when he comes, he must continue a short time. (11) And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goes into perdition. (12) And the ten horns which you saw are ten kings, who have received no kingdom yet, but will receive authority as kings one hour with the beast.

Because I have pushed Islam as part of the answer, you have to ask a logical question.

When does Islam show up?

Not until sometime around 600 A.D.

When does the Apostle John write the Revelation?

Somewhere around 95 A.D. So, John knew nothing about Islam or Mohammad as that was 500 years into the future. So Islam does not fit into the passage above.

Revelation 17:10 gave us one more massive clue as to who this king is in that it tells us that he must continue a short time. It was not that difficult to associate this "king" (king equals a dominant leader) with the antichrist or the false prophet. We assume that the antichrist reigns for at least seven years. However, Daniel 11 demonstrates that this character does not fully cooperate with the world's leaders. The ships of Kittim, which happens to be the coastal nations of the Northern and Western Mediterranean ocean, will come against him and cause him to back down; this is when we see the false prophet step in; and, though it seems as though he is following this ruler, he seems to take the lead and initiates a slaughter of anyone who demonstrates allegiance to Jesus Christ.

I hope you understand that this break in allegiance, the possible attack by the ships of "Kittim," and the entrance of the false prophet all happens at the midpoint of the seven years of God's wrath upon the earth. The wrath of God and the entry of the antichrist initiated with the removal of the church from the world.

Back to Revelation 17:11.

The beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goes into perdition.

So "the beast was."

These kings that we refer to were discussed in Daniel 11, albeit in terms that make no sense to most unless you validate them through historical accounts.

Undoubtedly, you can comprehend the range of years that they covered. https://www.faimission.org/wire/special-report-ships-of-kittim

But "now, is NOT,"

An obvious factor is that many of the rulers that make up the fourth beast have been defeated, displaced, and are physically gone.

If I was trying to focus on Islam as a motivator, I am hard-pressed to see the relationship; unless I consider that the iron legs of this statue are primarily Assyrian.

So, if I ask the question, what aspect of these "empires" is NOT gone, I believe the answer would be that they are descendants of Ishmael, whom God promised would also be as the sands of the sea and great nations.

We are frequently told that a technique used to study the Bible is to let scripture interpret scripture, so here is an example of that. A passage that speaks to a powerful empire disappearing is Revelation 13:3.
The empire that fits this description all too well is the Ottoman Empire which effectively ended November 1, 1922. The known world breathed a sigh of relief as the piracy on the Mediterranean sea and wanton slavery of its victims was rampant.
“he is the eighth and, is of the seven, -”

He is the eighth what, a king, an empire, or a beast? The answer is yes, and this will all become clear momentarily.

I could take the easy way out and call him a part of the Roman Empire, merely because that is a common but misguided argument. In my opinion, this argument is irresponsible because it demonstrates that they are not willing to do the work or accept historical testimony.

Look, according to Josephus and Tacitus, historians who documented the influence of Rome in Jerusalem during the destruction of the temple, both told us that it was Assyrian conscript troops that destroyed the temple, against orders from Titus, the Roman General.

Because I know from Revelation 17:11 that the eighth “king” goes into perdition, then I know that he is either the antichrist or the false prophet.

We rarely visualize the false prophet as a global leader, but there is no doubt that this persecution of Christ-followers and those who refuse to worship the beast, will lead to death. Perhaps he does have a global influence; this global power makes sense if you can see it from the perspective of an Islamic follower.
“and, goes into perdition.”

Verse eleven helps us to understand what this person is as it tells us that “he goes to destruction.” We religious folk consistently proclaim that there are people already in hell, with more to come. However, according to scripture, that is NOT a true statement. The only place we humans are sent to hell, up to this point, is in Revelation 19 when Jesus comes riding back to the earth to do battle. Here, only two humans are sent to the lake of fire, the beast, which is the antichrist, and the second beast, the false prophet.

So the defining piece of information comes from Revelation 19:20 below, where we see the antichrist and the false prophet being thrown into the lake of fire.
Having had these discussions, I know that arguments will come, so I will show you the evidence.
The rest?

All those who chose to fight with Jesus and the armies of heaven on that day. Remember, this Bible is context-oriented and the contest has, at this moment, everything to do with Jesus coming

So where are they and what has become of them?

They are merely sleeping in their graves.
Matthew 25 tells us that the nations will be gathered for the final judgment.
Some will say, this passage in Matthew 25 has nothing to do with the dead; that assertion is wrong since Matthew depicts the final judgment.

"Then he will say to those on his left (the goats,) 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.
(Matthew 25:41 NIV)

Since we do not accept the testimony of one witness then there has to be another example from scripture, and there is, you find it in Revelation 20. Here, instead of saying nations, He calls them the dead.

Revelation 20:15 spells out plainly, that those NOT found in the book of life are cast into the same lake of fire.

Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire. (Revelation 20:15 NIV)

If you are honest, then you must admit that both Matthew's account and Revelation 20 are the same scenarios just from different points of view. In one, we see God sitting on the throne, while in the other we see Jesus sitting on the throne. In one case He is the shepherd and in the other, He comes across as the ominous judge. Since Jesus told us that He and the Father are one, then it is God in both instances.

Revelation 17:12 NASB "The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but they receive authority as kings with the beast for one hour.

The Greek word for an hour is hōra and can mean a limited portion of time, a season of the year, or a destined period.

If it is a destined period, who has established the time?

God.

Whether it's ten mountains or ten kings, we are being directed to the same ruling bodies. Horns emerge from these seven empires and they are ten more rulers. We know little about who these are except that they have yet to receive authority as leaders of the people for one hour. Revelation 12:3 tells us that there were seven heads but ten horns. Obviously, some of these empires have multiple rulers. Daniel chapter two is where we find the dream statue of Nebuchadnezzar. Here we have these final kings detailed as toes. Daniel 7 speaks of one of those horns, the antichrist.

“While I was contemplating the horns, behold, another horn, a little one, came up among them, and three of the first horns were pulled out by the roots before it; and behold, this horn possessed eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth uttering great boasts.”

(Daniel 7:8 NASB)

These have one purpose.

Revelation 17:13 NASB "These have one purpose, and they give their power and authority to the beast.

The ten horns that emerge from the seven heads, have one purpose, to give their power to the beast.

Revelation 17:14 NASB "These will wage war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those who are with Him are the called and chosen and faithful."

They give their power to the antichrist and they, in union with the antichrist, wage war against the Lamb.

When does the antichrist and these horns wage this war?

At the end of the seven years when Jesus comes back as the warring Messiah. Read Revelation 19 for the details on this war.

The ABC’s of Salvation

A stands for “admit.” We must admit that we are sinners and that we are therefore under God’s judgment.

B stands for “believe.” We must believe that God loves us in spite of our sin and that he has acted in Jesus Christ to remove sin and restore us to himself.

C stands for “commit.” This is an act of faith by which we give up trying to run our own lives and instead place ourselves in the hands of the Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us and rose again.

Thursday, January 13, 2022

This calls for wisdom and understanding. Revelation 17:10.

To bring you up to speed, let me take you back to Revelation 17:3.

So the angel took me in the Spirit into the wilderness. There I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that had seven heads and ten horns, and blasphemies against God were written all over it. (NLT)

We are given a rather detailed description of this woman.

The woman wore purple and scarlet clothing and beautiful jewelry made of gold and precious gems and pearls. In her hand, she held a gold goblet full of obscenities and the impurities of her immorality. (Revelation 17:4 NLT)

“She wears purple and scarlet clothing.”

This is highly symbolic and, among other things, represents the blood of the saints who will be martyred during the time of wrath.

A friend read my last post on Revelation 17 and did what I wish most of you would do, analyze the symbolism and begin to grasp how the governing bodies, many of which seem to operate above the law, are actually doing us harm and creating the shortages that will play a role in the deaths of millions.

So what can we ascertain of this woman?
- It is NOT a woman but an attractive entity that feeds our lusts.
- Purple is representative of power.
  
  In a previous post, I broke down a simplistic word – king. These days it leans more toward a ruling body. There are very few countries that still have a king as the ruling body, but there are many that have multi-body voting groups, that often exclude the public's opinion. Perhaps men like Putin can fill the role of a king because to cross him means that you disappear. Emanuel Macron and Justin Trudeau are apparently striving to hold those supreme positions should they become available.
  
  Along the lines of people who have power. Just this morning 01/07/22 I read a quote from Justin Trudeau, the Prime Minister of Canada. He said, shall we tolerate those who refuse to get vaccinated. A website called the Pulse (https://thepulse.one/2022/01/03/prime-minister-justin-trudeau-calls-the-unvaccinated-misogynistic-racist-extremists/) tells us that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on a Quebec television station that “people who do not get vaccinated against COVID-19 are often racist and misogynistic extremists.” I looked up the definition of misogynistic and this is what I found. “Someone who is strongly prejudiced against women.” Where did that kind of hateful comment come from? The Pulse website added this assertion. “What type of reasoning is being used to label the unvaccinated as racist and misogynistic? This clearly has no basis in fact and simply continues what seems to be a coordinated political campaign to demonize the unvaccinated.”
- “ and scarlet clothing”
  
  We are told that the scarlet clothing is covered in the blood of martyred saints.
  How much blood does it take to soak your clothing? Revelation 7:9 answers the question.
  This group is defined in Revelation seven, verses fourteen and fifteen.
  The point here is that the woman, clothed in scarlet, is clothed in this color because she is stained with the blood of those this entity or ruling body has killed. I am not suggesting that this is a contest, and yes the majority seems to happen during the seven years after the church is gone, but many will pay for the babies we have allowed to be murdered.
“and beautiful jewelry made of gold and precious gems and pearls.”

The harlot, called a woman, is an entity. We are NOT to be looking for some woman, as there are NO women listed as a world leader in end times eschatology. I will say that while all these things; jewelry made of gold, along with precious gems and pearls, tend to be associated with women's jewelry, they are representative of financial gain.

I learned, years ago, that the Rothschild family financed both sides of virtually every “modern” war; and made serious money because of their financial decisions. We are in a war now, and for the most part, we, the general public, will be the bodies left lying in the fields. I see so many more than the Rothschild family involved in this pathetic way of life they are feeding us.

So much for an introduction. Let's move on to verse ten and beyond.

Revelation 17:9-10 GNB "This calls for wisdom and understanding. The seven heads are seven hills, on which the woman sits. They are also seven kings: (10) five of them have fallen, one still rules, and the other one has not yet come; when he comes, he must rule only a little while.

The seven heads
Are seven hills
“so “mountains” have a symbolical meaning, namely, prominent seats of power.”
“Especially such as are prominent hindrances to the cause of God” (Psa_68:16, Psa_68:17; Isa_40:4; Isa_41:15; Isa_49:11; Eze_35:2);
“especially Babylon (which geographically was in a plain, but spiritually is called a destroying mountain,” Jer_51:25),
“in majestic contrast to which stands Mount Zion, “the mountain of the Lord’s house” (Isa_2:2), and the heavenly mount; Rev_21:10, “a great and high mountain ... and that great city, the holy Jerusalem.”
Upon which the woman sits
They are also seven kings
"Now in those times many will rise up against the king of the South; the violent ones among your people will also lift themselves up in order to fulfill the vision, but they will fall down. "Then the king of the North will come, cast up a siege ramp and capture a well-fortified city; and the forces of the South will not stand their ground, not even their choicest troops, for there will be no strength to make a stand. (Daniel 11:14-15 NASB)
"He will set his face to come with the power of his whole kingdom, bringing with him a proposal of peace which he will put into effect; he will also give him the daughter of women to ruin it. But she will not take a stand for him or be on his side. (Daniel 11:17 NASB)
five of them have fallen, one still rules,
and the other one has not yet come; when he comes, he must rule only a little while.

Forty-two months, or 1260 days.

How or why his tenure is so short is not clearly spelled out in scripture, however, it is spelled out in the prophecies of the Muslims. It is evident that the “false prophet”, or, as the Muslims call him, ʿĪsā ibn Maryam will step in as the enforcer of Sharia. This opens the door to the drastic increase in deaths that Jesus spoke of.

Sorry, if this disappoints, as I would have liked to gotten farther in the Revelation, but I hit my limit in terms of the amount of information.