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Jews: Behold Your God
Are Any Other Scriptures Also the Infallible Word of God?
There is only one way to learn new truth: Keep an open mind. Be willing to listen or read with an open mind, gather all the evidence, weigh the evidence without any bias or preconceived ideas and then come to a conclusion.
We have proved that the Jewish Scriptures are indeed the infallible word of God. Could scriptures of other religions also be the infallible word of God? The only way to prove that is the way we have proved the Jewish scriptures to be the infallible word of God; in the way God Himself challenged the skeptics in Isaiah 41:21-22 to do so. And the challenge to other religions and their idols was to foretell the future, not 1, 2 or 3 times but numerous times, and bring it to pass. The other test is that there should be no error of fact, science, history or geography in the scriptures. History and archaeology have also proved the Jewish scriptures to be accurate. So let us apply these tests to see if the scriptures of another religion are also the infallible word of God. Keeping an honestly open mind is critical to understanding the truth.
There are two types of religions in the world. One type are not based on the existence of an Almighty God. Budhism, Confucianism, Shintoism, Taoism etc. fall into this category. The second type of religions are based on the existence of a supreme God or multiple gods in the case of Hinduism. Hinduism, Islam, Sikhism, Judaism and Christianity fall into this category. But the holy books of Hinduism, Islam and Sikhism do not contain any prophecies. Therefore these religions fail God’s test that they are backed by His Almighty power.
Besides the holy book Judaism, the holy book of another religion also contains much prophecy. And that book is Christianity’s New Testament of the Bible.
Why Jews Have not Understood Prophecy
Though prophecies in the book of Daniel were sealed till the time of the end, it implies they would be revealed in the end time. These prophecies have already been revealed, but not to Jewish religious leaders. They have been revealed to a Jew, but not to any leader of Judaism. The reason simply is that the keys that unlock the prophecies of the Old Testament are found in the New Testament, and the keys that unlock prophecies of the New Testament are found in the book of Daniel and the other prophets. Prophecies in the Bible can be understood only if the Old Testament and the New Testament are read as one complete book.
Prophesied Elijah has Already Come and Gone
The prophecies in the book of Daniel and the other prophets were not revealed to an ordinary Jew. God sent a Jew as a prophet in the spirit and power of Elijah the prophet as prophesied in Malachi 4:5-6 to reveal all the prophecies. And the Jews in the state of Israel have been well acquainted with him, but did not recognize that he was the prophesied Elijah to come. That man was Herbert W. Armstrong, Pastor General of the Worldwide Church of God, who passed away on January 16,1986.
Malachi 4:5-6 states the Elijah’s commission: “5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord: 6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse [translated as ‘destruction’ in the Complete Jewish Bible].
From the reading of this prophecy no one would be able to recognize who would fulfill the role of Elijah the prophet. Would he be a great psychologist or a great religious leader who would preach a convincing message of “putting father back as head of the family” or a message about bringing families together or ‘Focus on the Family”? Many preachers and psychologists preach such messages. So this prophecy cannot be understood by reading only the Old Testament. The key to understanding this prophecy is found in the New Testament.
Proof that Herbert W. Armstrong was the Prophesied Elijah God Sent
How do we prove that Herbert W. Armstrong was Elijah the prophet God sent as prophesied in Malachi 4:5-6?
Malachi also wrote in 3:1-2: “1 Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me...”
This means that one in the spirit and power of Elijah would come in the end time to prepare for the coming of the Messiah.
In the New Testament Jesus Christ unlocked the key to recognizing who the Elijah would be through his commission. Jesus’ disciples asked Him in Matthew 17:10-13: “10… Why then say the scribes that Elias [Elijah] must first come? 11 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things. 12 But I say unto you, That Elias is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed [wished]…13 Then the disciples understood that He spoke to them of John the Baptist.”
Because this prophet was to come in the spirit and power of Elijah, he would fulfill the role that Elijah the prophet fulfilled in ancient Israel. In Elijah’s time Israel had departed from the true God and had started worshipping Baal and other pagan gods. In the entire nation only 7,000 were left who had not worshipped Baal. Elijah came and restored worship of the true God in ancient Israel.
John the Baptist came and prepared the way for the first coming of Jesus Christ. But when Jesus discussed this prophecy with the disciples, John the Baptist had already come and been beheaded by Herod. He could not have restored anything after his death. This means that the prophecy Jesus gave was about an end-time Elijah that would come and prepare the way for the second coming of Jesus Christ by restoring all things, meaning the truths concerning the true God, all the true doctrines and the right way to worship God. Malachi 4:5-6 also prophesied that the Elijah would come just before the Day of the Lord. And the Day of the Lord is in the end time. It is the last one year of the three and a half year long Great Tribulation, meaning of which could be understood by what is to mentioned to happen in it in the New Testament.
So the modern Elijah would fulfill a similar role. He would restore correct worship of the true God in spiritual Israel, which is God’s true Church.
What are the “all things” Jesus referred to that one coming in the spirit and power of Elijah would restore? Just as the original Elijah restored worship of the true God in ancient Israel, and one in the spirit and power of Elijah before the first coming of Jesus Christ, meaning John the Baptist restored the worship of the true God in the correct way, another prophet in the spirit and power of Elijah would be sent before the second coming of Jesus Christ to restore the worship of the true God in the right way.
There was no New Testament Church when the original Elijah or John the Baptist came. So they could restore the worship of the true God only based on the understanding provided by the prophets before them. But for the end-time Elijah, the restoration of all things would also additionally require restoring all the doctrines laid down by Jesus Christ and established by the apostles in the original Church, the knowledge of which had been lost over the centuries.
And the Elijah to be sent in the end time is twice mentioned by Jesus Christ as more than a prophet in Matthew 11:9 and Luke 7:26: “But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet.”
In Church rankings only an apostle ranks higher than a prophet as mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12:28: “And God has appointed these in the church: first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, varieties of tongues.” Mr. Armstrong thus was more than a prophet in Jesus’ words because he was an apostle as well. It was necessary for this Elijah to have the rank of an apostle as well because he would be required to restore and establish doctrine as only apostles could establish doctrine.
This end-time commission of an Elijah-like prophet was so important that in August-September 1917, Mr. Armstrong was appointed to fulfill this commission through a dream to his wife Mrs. Loma Armstrong which he described in Volume 1 of his autobiography, pages 203-205.
In the dream Mrs. Armstrong was with Mr. Armstrong and saw a solid mass of brilliant stars filling the sky and then vanishing. She realized these were angels. Then 3 angels appeared and one of them put his arm around both of them. The angel told them that Christ was really coming in a very short time.
Mr. Armstrong writes: “At that time, we had been going quite regularly to motion-picture theatres. She asked the angel if this were wrong. He replied Christ had important work for us to do, preparing for His coming – there would be no time for “movies.”
Yes, Mr. Armstrong was specifically commissioned to prepare for the second coming of Jesus Christ to earth. He restored all things as Jesus prophesied about the end-time Elijah who was also an apostle.
James describes in James 5:10 the mark of a true prophet of God: “10 My brethren, take the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord, as an example of suffering and patience.”
The mark of a true prophet of God is suffering and patience. Mr. Armstrong endured a great deal of suffering patiently to found the Philadelphian era of God’s Church, as described in his two volume autobiography, available free of charge from the Philadelphia Church of God at its web site www.pcog.org.
Mr. Armstrong mentioned several times that he spent 28 years in grinding poverty. In his autobiography he described how many times there was no food in the house with little children, housing was always a problem, much of the time he usually had only one threadbare suit to wear and the family was clothed with mended used clothing, how he had to battle ministers and wolves in sheep’s clothing who had entered the Church and tried to destroy it in its infancy.
He had to struggle to start Ambassador College. After that effort was successful and God’s Church started growing Satan was implanting tares in the Church regularly. Then these infiltrators led rebellions in the early 1970s and late 1970s when leading evangelists and ministers caused splits and led away thousands of members from the Church. At one time they induced the state of California to put the Church in receivership, impound all its assets and take over the Church. But Mr. Armstrong’s explanation through advertisements in the Wall Street Journal of what the Attorney General of California was doing was illegal led to the lawsuit being withdrawn and the receivership proceedings ended. This was another attempt by Satan that could have destroyed the Church.
God built the modern era of His Church through the blood, sweat and total selfless sacrifice of Herbert W. Armstrong. Surely no man with his own intelligence and strength could have overcome all the obstacles that Mr. Armstrong overcame. These are proofs that God Himself was leading His end-time work through Mr. Armstrong. His lifelong suffering for the sake of God’s work proves that he was a true prophet of God.
Prophecies Fulfilled by Herbert W. Armstrong’s Life
Further proof that Herbert W. Armstrong was the one sent in the spirit and power of Elijah the prophet and an apostle by God is provided by the fulfillment of many prophecies in his life that the end-time Elijah and apostle was to fulfill.
1) Elijah the Prophet
We have already seen that Mr. Armstrong fulfilled the prophecy of Malachi the prophet as coming before the dreadful day of the Lord which is the last one year of the three and a half years of the Great Tribulation. He also fulfilled Jesus Christ’s prophecy that he would restore all the doctrines and truths to God’s true Church before His return to earth. He restored more than 20 major doctrines or truths to God’s Church.
2) Preaching the Gospel as a Witness Unto All Nations
One of the major prophecies fulfilled in our time, of course, is Matthew 24:14, which states: “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.” It all started with Mr. Armstrong. He first of all restored the knowledge that the gospel is about the reestablishment of the Kingdom of God on earth, and started preaching it. It went global beginning in 1953 when it began to be preached in Europe after having been preached only in the North American continent.
Since Mr. Armstrong’s death, though the Church has divided into different organizations, all those that adhere to what was restored through Mr. Armstrong still continue to preach the same gospel around the world. Though the funds available to all the Church of God groups are a fraction of what was available to Mr. Armstrong, because of the Internet, the reach of the gospel message has increased manifold. The gospel message is accessible to more people than ever before at even lower cost. It has truly gone global because at least some people on earth in every country understand English and can read the gospel message. In addition it is available in all other major languages of the world.
3) Fulfilling the Prophecy that One Man Would Start and End an Era of the Church
God founded the modern era of His Church through Mr. Armstrong. The modern era which we identify as the Philadelphian era began with the preaching of Mr. Armstrong around the fall of 1928 and ended with his death on January 16, 1986. Then began the Laodicean era of God’s Church! This is indicated by certain prophecies.
Zechariah 4:9 states: “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house, his hands shall also finish it.”
Mr. Armstrong told all the Church members that he fulfilled this Zerubbabel office. His entire ministry is testimony to the fact that Mr. Armstrong built the house, which is a symbol for an era of the Church, by restoring all things. Mr. Gerald Flurry, pastor general of the Philadelphia Church of God explains this prophecy in his booklet Malachi’s Message (available free of charge at www.pcog.org) on p. 59:
“When the Bible refers directly to Christ doing the building, it is usually stated as “not made with hands” (2 Corinthians 5:1), or something is accomplished “without hands” (Daniel 2:45), or “a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands” (Hebrews 9:11).
“The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it …” (Zechariah 4:9). This verse is clearly talking about a “hands-on” operation.
“It twice mentions hands, designating a starting and finishing of a project. The Anchor Bible Commentary says “hands” is literal, and expresses participation in temple building. That is, it was built through a human being with “hands,” not built “without hands”—as Christ does it without the use of a human instrument.
“Mr. Armstrong wrote a letter to the Church on March 19, 1981. Here is an excerpt from that letter: “Zerubbabel built the second temple to which Jesus came the first time. John the Baptist prepared the way before the FIRST coming. But WHO was to build the SPIRITUAL temple to which Christ shall soon come the second time? Who was to prepare the way before His Second Coming?
“Remember, God does things in DUAL stages. As Zerubbabel built the first temple of MATERIAL stone, wood and other materials, he was a forerunner or type of one through whom Christ would raise up or build the SPIRITUAL TEMPLE—His Church of our time, prior to the Day of the Lord and Christ’s Second Coming. As John the Baptist prepared the way in the PHYSICAL wilderness of the Jordan River for the first coming of the HUMAN Jesus (both man and God), then coming to His MATERIAL temple, and to His PHYSICAL people Judah, ANNOUNCING the Kingdom of God to be set up more than 1,900 years later, SO God would use a human messenger in the SPIRITUAL wilderness of 20th-century religious confusion, to be a voice CRYING OUT the gospel of the KINGDOM OF GOD, about the SPIRITUAL CHRIST, coming in SUPREME POWER AND GLORY to His SPIRITUAL TEMPLE, to actually ESTABLISH that spiritual KINGDOM OF GOD.////“Brethren, HAS THAT BEEN DONE BY THIS CHURCH?
“Did God raise up a one-man LEADERSHIP to be used by Him in building this spiritual TEMPLE and in proclaiming after 1,900 years the true GOSPEL OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD IN ALL THE WORLD—to even go to kings and heads of nations (Revelation 10:11)—in bringing the Church back to the FAITH ONCE DELIVERED (Jude 3)?
“HAS THIS HAPPENED, IN YOUR DAYS, AND HAS GOD BROUGHT YOU INTO THIS PROPHETIC FULFILLMENT AS A PART OF IT?
“HAS ANYONE ELSE DONE IT?”
“Did Mr. Armstrong think one man would and did fulfill this prophecy? Absolutely! He speaks of “one,” “a human messenger,” “a voice,” “a one-man leadership”—and then ends by asking, “HAS ANYONE ELSE DONE IT?”
“Mr. Armstrong continued: “God has never removed a man called to a specific leadership or assignment or commission until his mission is COMPLETED.” Did Mr. Armstrong complete his mission? Did he finish “this house,” “restore all things” and “turn the hearts of the fathers”? He most certainly did!
“The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of THIS HOUSE; his hands shall also FINISH it; and thou shalt know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto you” (Zechariah 4:9). “House” is a very common word in the Bible. In the Englishman’s Hebrew and Chaldee Concordance, where “house” is used, the scriptures cover 13 PAGES. The word “temple” in the same book covers only ONE FOURTH OF A PAGE. “Temple” is not used here—and “temple” is not nearly as common in the Bible as the word “house.”
“The word “house” can mean an “inner part”—or only a part of something greater. It’s a name given to human bodies as being frail and transitory (Job 4:19). The word is used as “tent” (Genesis 27:15; 33:17). It is used as the “house of the spider” (Job 8:14). It’s applied to wealth, property and all that belongs to a family. All uses of this word are very temporary (like a Church era). The word temple is used in a more permanent way or to indicate a very long period of time. For example, the word “temple” often applies to ALL SEVEN CHURCH ERAS. It also applies to ETERNAL LIFE.
“The subject is “this house” and IS IN THE CONTEXT OF THE SEVEN CHURCH ERAS (Zechariah 3:7-8; 4:2, 10; Revelation 1:20). If we put all the scriptures together, it could just as well be called “this era.” And Zerubbabel did finish it. Mr. Armstrong not only laid the foundation, as we often say today—HE BUILT THE WHOLE HOUSE. When he died, the PHILADELPHIA ERA WAS COMPLETED. He restored all things (Matthew 17:10-11). No more foundational doctrines need to be added to the house. ALL WE NEED TO DO IS WALK IN Mr. Armstrong’s FOOTSTEPS…Primarily, we just need to maintain the “house” and do God’s Work.”
So Mr. Armstrong did lay the foundation of this house, the Philadelphia era of God’s Church, and also finished it.
The Philadelphia era ended when he passed away on January 16, 1986. But he had completed building the ‘house.’ His task was to ‘restore all things’ to God’s Church, meaning the doctrines and other truths about God’s way of life Jesus Christ taught to the original apostles. So no more doctrines would need to be added. There were many controversies raised by tares or infiltrators in the Church about doctrines along the way. But when Mr. Armstrong died all doctrines had been settled so that the Church now knows that we have all the truths concerning doctrines for God’s Church. The house has been completed. And since all doctrines have been restored, there is no need for another apostle to be sent in the end time to restore what has already been completely restored, and none is prophesied to come.
4) Mr. Armstrong’s Coming and Passing Away Were Prophesied
There are two prophecies that pointed to Mr. Armstrong’s death, one in the Old Testament and one in the New Testament.
The first prophecy is Zechariah 4:9, which has already been explained. It states, “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it; and you shall know that the Lord of hosts has sent me unto you.”
When the task of finishing the house, or restoring all the doctrines to the Church had been completed, Mr. Armstrong died.
Another prophecy that Mr. Armstrong’s death fulfilled is 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 (NKJV): “1 Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, 2 not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come. 3 Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, 4 who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. 5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 6 And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness [or iniquity] is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming. 9 The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, 10 and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11 And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, 12 that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.”
Here is how this prophecy was also about Mr. Armstrong’s death.
In these verses Paul was explaining to the Thessalonians to not give up their normal lives and just wait for the return of Jesus Christ. He explained that Jesus Christ will not return to earth until there will be a falling away from the faith, meaning God’s Church, for only God’s Church has the true faith. In addition, Jesus Christ will not return until the ‘man of sin’ who causes the falling away is revealed.
As most prophecies in the Bible are dual, this prophecy is also dual. Usually duality means that there has been a former fulfillment of prophecy in ancient times, and there will be another greater fulfillment in the time of the end. But there is also another duality that characterizes many prophecies. There is one fulfillment of such prophecies in the world at large, and another fulfillment in God’s Church. This prophecy in 2 Thessalonians is one such prophecy with a fulfillment in the world and the Church.
The “man of sin to be revealed” mentioned here sits in the temple. Temple in prophecy means God’s Church, as well as the physical temple at Jerusalem. This means that ‘the man of sin’ in the end time will be in God’s Church, as well as another one in the world whom Jesus Christ will destroy at His coming. Revelation 19:20 describes this ‘man of sin’ in the world as the false prophet, whom Jesus Christ will destroy by having him thrown alive in the lake of fire.
This prophecy shows that “the man of sin” in the Church will actually cause the ‘falling away’ from the Church. And the ‘man of sin’ had to be revealed in the end-time. We have already seen the dramatic fulfillment of this prophecy in the Church. If Mr. Armstrong knew the beliefs Joseph W. Tkach Sr. held in secret, he would have never appointed him pastor general. But the “mystery of iniquity” that was working with Joseph Tkach Sr., meaning those helping him, was so well hidden that most Church members and Mr. Armstrong had no clue about it. If he knew, he would not have appointed Joseph Tkach Sr. as pastor general and his successor in the Church.
But now read verses 7-8 again: “7 For the mystery of lawlessness [or iniquity] is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed…”
Verse 7 says “only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way.” This means that the “mystery of iniquity” (or the synagogue of Satan – Revelation 3:9) that was at work in the Church during Mr. Armstrong’s time was actually restrained by Mr. Armstrong. He had to put down 2-3 major rebellions in the Church, and would not allow these tares or infiltrators to change any doctrines. He restrained their influence. Then verse 7 says that “he [meaning Mr. Armstrong] who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way.” Mr. Armstrong restrained the working of this “mystery of Lawlessness.” But then he was taken out of the way by death. Then the “mystery of iniquity” perpetrated by the synagogue of Satan within God’s Church under Joseph Tkach Sr’s stewardship began to work openly. Thus the ‘man of sin’ in the Church was revealed.
No man in his life and death can fulfill so many Bible prophecies and not be the man these prophecies mention. It is simply impossible for a man to fulfill all these prophecies by mere coincidence. So we can be certain that Mr. Armstrong was the prophesied Elijah and apostle to come who came and restored all truths to God’s Church in the form of major doctrines and prepared the way for Jesus Christ’s second coming.
New Testament Prophecies Unlock Old Testament Prophecies
Let us take another look at Daniel's prophecies. First of all, Daniel 12:4, 9-10 mentions that the prophecies were sealed till the time of the end. But in the end time, none of the wicked shall understand the prophecies, but the wise shall understand. We should, therefore, expect the wise to understand all prophecies. This implies that the wise have an understanding of the true God as well, who reveals these prophecies to them.
Let us now look at the prophecy in Daniel 7:7-8 (NKJV): "After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong. It had huge iron teeth; it was devouring, breaking in pieces, and trampling the residue with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns."
Vs. 8: "I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them, before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots. And there, in this horn, were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking pompous words."
Daniel did not understand this prophecy. So he asked one of the angels standing by to explain it to him. Here is the angel's explanation in Daniel 7:23-25 (NKJV): "The fourth beast shall be a fourth kingdom on earth, which shall be different from all other kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, trample it and break it in pieces. The ten horns are ten kings who shall arise from this kingdom. And another shall rise after them; he shall be different from the first ones, and shall subdue three kings. He shall speak pompous words against the Most High, shall persecute the saints of the Most High, and shall intend to change times and laws. Then the saints shall be given into his hand for a time and times and half a time."
The angel's explanation says that from the fourth kingdom (which we know was the Roman Empire) ten kings will arise. Another king (perhaps lesser in stature, because he is pictured as a little horn) will arise among them and will subdue the first three of the ten. This king, pictured by the little horn will speak blasphemous words against God, persecute the saints of God, and intend to change times and laws.
Many questions arise from this explanation given by the angel. What kind of a different king is this little horn that speaks blasphemous words against God and uproots the first three kings of the Roman Empire? Who are the saints of the Most High persecuted by this king? Are they Israelites or Jews who are particularly religious or some other people? What are the times and laws that this king intends to change? It is difficult to identify the little horn from the information given by the angel in Daniel. The prophecies were sealed till the time of the end any way.
This prophecy, however, has been understood. It was first understood by Herbert W. Armstrong in the 1930s. But this prophecy could not have been understood without help of the clues given in another scripture - the New Testament of the Bible. Here then are the clues that helped Mr. Armstrong understand this prophecy.
Revelation 13:1-3 describes a seven-headed beast (NKJV): "Then I stood on the sand of the sea. And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and on his horns ten crowns, and on his heads a blasphemous name. Now the beast which I saw was like a leopard, his feet were like the feet of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave him his power, his throne and great authority. I saw one of his heads as if it had been mortally wounded, and his deadly wound was healed. And all the world marveled and followed the beast."
Revelation 13:11-12 describes another beast: "Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon. And he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence, and causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed."
Further clues to the identity of the little horn of Daniel 7 are given in Revelation 17:1-15, 18 (NKJV): " 1 Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and talked with me, saying to me, "Come, I will show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters, 2 with whom the kings of the earth committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth were made drunk with the wine of her fornication." 3 So he carried me away in the Spirit into the wilderness. And I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast which was full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. 4 The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, having in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the filthiness of her fornication. 5 And on her forehead a name was written: MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. 6 I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. And when I saw her, I marveled with great amazement. 7 But the angel said to me, "Why did you marvel? I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and the ten horns. 8 The beast that you saw was, and is not, and will ascend out of the bottomless pit and go to perdition. And those who dwell on the earth will marvel, whose names are not written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world, when they see the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.”
“9 Here is the mind which has wisdom: The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits. 10 There are also seven kings. Five have fallen, 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, is himself also the eighth, and is of the seven, and is going to perdition. 12 The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have received no kingdom as yet, but they receive authority for one hour as kings with the beast. 13 These are of one mind, and they will give their power and authority to the beast. 14 These will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, for He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and those who are with Him are called, chosen, and faithful." 15 Then he said to me, "The waters which you saw, where the harlot sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues….18 And the woman whom you saw is that great city which reigns over the kings of the earth."
There are many clues in these scriptures. First of all woman is the symbol for a Church in the New Testament. The true Church is called the bride of Christ, as Israel was called the wife of the God of the Old Testament. The woman in Revelation 17 is a great harlot, meaning it is a false Church. The woman or Church is also named MYSTERY BABYLON THE GREAT. This means that this false Church is simply the ancient Babylonian Mystery religion masquerading around as Christianity. After the Babylonian empire was conquered by the Medes and Persians, the Babylonians migrated and settled in Italy. The woman is also called that "great city which reigns over the kings of the earth." The city in Italy that reigns over the kings of the earth is none other than Rome. So this woman is a great false Church based in an enclave of Rome, the Vatican City. Thus the woman stands identified as the Roman Catholic Church.
The saints are identified in Revelation 17 as the martyrs of Jesus. That means the saints are members of God's true Church founded by Jesus Christ.
The seven headed beast of Revelation 13:1-3 with ten horns gets its power, throne and authority from the dragon or the devil. Since this beast has a lion's mouth (lion represented the Babylonian Empire in Daniel 7), bear feet (bear represented the Medo-Persian empire in Daniel 7), leopard's body (a four-headed leopard represented the Hellenistic empire of Alexander with its four divisions in Daniel 7), it means it has the strength and characteristics of all these empires. The strength of the lion is in its mouth, of the bear in its paws, of the leopard in its cunning, craftiness and speed. That is why this beast has these characteristics. It rules much of the territory of all these empires.
Since this beast has the characteristics of the previous three empires, it represents the empire that came after them, in the same general territory, hence the Roman Empire. The beast of Revelation 13 received a deadly wound. This signifies the fall of the Roman Empire. But the deadly wound of the beast was healed. This means that the Roman Empire was resurrected. The ten horns then represent ten resurrections of the Roman Empire.
The beast of Revelation 13:11-12 has two horns like a lamb (Lamb is another name for Jesus in the New Testament) and speaks like a dragon (another name for the devil, Revelation 12:9). Thus this beast masquerades around as Christianity, but speaks like the devil. So this beast is a false Church as well. Horns are a symbol of authority or rulership. This beast has two horns. That means this beast is an ecclesiastical (religious) as well as a civil authority. We earlier identified in Revelation 17 the false Church as the Roman Catholic Church. The pope is the religious head of this church. But he is also the head of the Vatican State and sits on a throne as king. Thus the two horned beast that looks like a lamb but speaks like the devil is none other than the Roman Catholic Church. This two horned beast is pictured as exercising the authority of the first beast. From history we know that the Roman Catholic Church exercised the authority of the 'Holy Roman Empire' to bring the subjects of the empire under its religious authority. It exercised the authority to force the empire's subjects to become Catholics. This again identifies the first beast as the 'Holy Roman Empire.'
Prophecies foretell the future. Daniel's prophecies were given in the time of the Babylonian empire. That is why his prophecies included 4 beasts that identified each of the 4 empires to come. But the prophecies in Revelation were given to the apostle John in the time of the Roman Empire. Therefore the beasts in his prophecies refer only to the Roman Empire. The other three empires were already past history.
Since the great harlot is pictured as riding the seven heads of the beast of Revelation 17, this beast therefore also represents the 'Holy Roman Empire'. But we have seen that the Roman Empire in Revelation 13 is pictured as the beast with ten horns, meaning it will have ten resurrections after it receives its deadly wound. The great harlot riding the seven heads means that the great false Church will ride the last seven resurrections of the 'Holy Roman Empire'.
With the understanding of the symbols in Revelation 13 and Revelation 17 we are now in a position to understand the prophecy given in Daniel 7:7-8. We had already identified the fourth beast as the Roman Empire. The ten horns as we have seen in the interpretation of the beast of Revelation 13:1-3 are the ten resurrections of the Roman Empire. The Roman Empire represented by the fourth beast was destroyed in 476 A.D. That is when it received the deadly wound of the beast in Revelation 13. But this empire was to be resurrected ten times as shown by the ten horns.
Horns in prophecy are a symbol for authority or a ruler. The first three resurrections were the kingdoms of the Vandals, the Heruli and the Ostrogoths. These were to be uprooted by the little horn of verse 8. The little horn is none other than the Roman Catholic Church. At the urging of the popes, these three kingdoms that followed Arianism (which was opposed by the Roman Church as it did not believe in the doctrine of the Trinity) were plucked up. Then the empire was restored by Justinian in 554 A.D. That is when the deadly wound of the beast of Revelation 13 was healed. From then on the resurrections of the empire were called the "Holy Roman Empire", because the little horn (the pope) crowned its emperors or recognized them as 'Holy Roman Emperors'. These are also the seven heads of the beast that the great whore of Revelation 17 rides. Justinian's restoration was followed by Charlemagne (crowned in 800 A.D.); Otto the Great (crowned in 962 A.D.); Hapsburg Dynasty (Charles V crowned in 1530 A.D.); Napoleon's Empire (1804 - 1814 A.D.); Italy and Germany, ending in the Hitler-Mussolini axis from 1870 - 1945 A.D. The last and final resurrection is yet to take place, very soon. It will be a union of ten rulers in Europe, represented by the 10 toes of Nebuchadnezzar's image, and ten horns on the seventh head of the scarlet beast of Revelation 17. In the days of these kings Messiah will return and set up God's kingdom as interpreted by Daniel in Daniel 2:44 (NKJV), “44 And in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.”
The saints that the little horn of Daniel 7, the two-horned beast of Revelation 13 that looks like a lamb but speaks like the dragon, and great whore of Revelation 17 persecute are none other than the martyrs of Jesus, or members of God's true Church.
The little horn of Daniel 7 was also prophesied to speak pompous words against the Most High, and think to change times and laws. The Roman Church has done both these things, fulfilling these prophecies. The Church calls itself the Catholic, meaning 'Universal' Church. The popes claim that they are the Vicars of Christ, meaning they are in place of Christ. They claim that they now have the authority to bind and loose any laws, meaning change any laws. This Church changed the Sabbath to Sunday by its own authority. Those are very pompous words. God has not given anyone the authority to change the Ten Commandments. But the Roman Church has changed the Ten Commandments. It has done away with the Sabbaths and God's commanded holy days. Instead it has foisted Sunday worship and pagan holidays such as Easter and Christmas on Christianity. So it has changed laws.
This Church has also changed God's calendar. God's days begin and end at sunset. The world's days that this Church has originated begin and end at midnight. God's months begin with the new moon. The world's months begin and end according to a man-made calendar. The calendar the entire world now uses was approved by pope Gregory, hence known as the Gregorian Calendar. God's new year begins in the spring. The new year that this Church has foisted on the world begins in the dead of winter. God's calendar is based on a 19-year cycle. The Gregorian calendar is based on a four-year cycle. Thus the little horn has certainly thought to change times as well.
A very interesting part of the prophecy is given in Revelation 17:10: "There are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, and the other has not yet come." This prophecy was understood by Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong in the late 1930s. At that time five resurrections of the "Holy Roman Empire" had fallen: those of Justinian, Charlemagne, Otto the Great, the Hapsburg Dynasty, and Napoleon. The one that then existed (the 'one is') was that of Hitler-Mussolini. And one has not yet come. That will be the tenth and final resurrection of the "Holy Roman Empire" consisting of an alliance of ten rulers in Europe.
The prophecies of Daniel 7 have been understood in these end times by a wise man, as prophesied in Daniel 12. No other man from Judaism, mainstream Christianity or any other religion has understood them. And no other holy books except the Jewish Scriptures and the Bible have any prophecy at all. But Mr. Armstrong, a Jew could not have understood them without the prophecies in Revelation 13 and 17. The prophecies in Revelation 13 and 17 provide very important clues that unlock the prophecies in Daniel 7. The only right conclusion one can draw from this is that the same God inspired both prophecies: those in Daniel 7 and Revelation 13 and 17. Using our criteria given by God Himself in Isaiah 41:22-23 to judge which God is the true God, and which scriptures are His true and inspired word, we reach the inescapable conclusion, therefore, that both the Jewish scriptures (which Christians call the Old Testament) as well as the New Testament are the inspired word of God.
To get a detailed explanation of the prophecies in Daniel 7 and Revelation 13 and 17, you may read a booklet titled "The Beast of Revelation: Myth, Metaphor or Soon-Coming Reality?" published by the Living Church of God, available free of cost at the Church's web site: www.lcg.org.
God used John the apostle to canonize the New Testament and then write the last book of the New Testament, the Book of Revelation. John writes in Revelation 22:18-19 (NKJV), “18 For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; 19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.”
This signifies that with the Book of Revelation the canonization of the New Testament is complete. We do not need to add any more books to it. And since from the fulfillment of prophecies in this last book we have proved that it is backed by the power of Almighty God, we can be confident that the entire New Testament that precedes it is inspired and backed by the power of Almighty God as John stamped God’s authority on all its books by canonizing them.
Sequence of End-time Events
But these prophecies in Daniel 7 and Revelation 13 and 17 are not the only prophecies in the Old Testament. There are many other prophecies given in the prophets, psalms and other writings, and the Torah itself. At least one third of the Jewish scriptures are prophecy. But Jewish leaders do not properly understand these prophecies, particularly the time sequence in which they are to be fulfilled.
Just as prophecies in the book of Daniel could not be understood without the clues provided in the book of Revelation, these other prophecies also cannot be understood without the clues and additional details provided in the New Testament. Between one-fourth and one-third of the entire Bible is prophecy and nearly 90% of these prophecies pertain to the end-time and beyond. Most of these prophecies are yet to be fulfilled. Since we are living in the end-time, it means that the events pictured by these events would also be revealed. In fact, the exact sequence of these end-time events has been revealed to the author, which will be described later.The author also fulfills a prophecy given by Moses. He fulfills the office of a prophet, which explains why the sequence of end-time events was revealed to him. Proofs that he fulfills the office will be provided next.
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