Alpha Omega |
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The BeastlesIt is essential to describe the four beasts that the prophet Daniel wrote about before continuing any farther. First of all, they represent four worldly kingdoms, not four kings as many bibles incorrectly translate. Such translations manifest how ever so slightly the evil one twists the truth in order to try to lead the children of God astray. One may liken such small deviations in the word of God to a rocket ship on a mission from one planet to another that is only one degree off course. It may not seem like much to the unlearned but it is enough to prevent the spaceship from ever reaching its goal. The same is true with the Holy Bible. Even small deviations from the truth are enough to bring ruin. Such incorrect and uninspired translations cannot be correctly interpreted. It is thus very important that the one makes sure that their own bible is correctly translated. One knows that the four beasts represent four kingdoms because each arises out of the earth.
However, earlier in the same chapter Daniel appears to have made a contradictory statement, saying that they all come from the sea.
There is no contradiction here. One must not forget that our Lord is a sign of contradiction (Lk.2:34). He does that so that He may confuse the proud in the conceit of their heart (Lk1:51). The sea is symbolic for the lies and twisted teachings that are propagated by the henchmen of each kingdom. It does not mean to insinuate that all the teachings of these beasts are falsehoods. The prophecy relates only to the theological teachings by the atheists and the ungodly henchmen of each kingdom. That is, Daniel’s prophecy is about the beliefs of the ungodly and their attempt to tyrannize the children of God with false teachings and to destroy the truth which our Lord has established. The first kingdom that the prophet Daniel wrote about is the kingdom of science. It is the scientific proof of evolution that the evil one’s henchmen have accumulated over the years in order to try to deny the existence of God and the exclusive divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ. The prophet Daniel gives a rather vivid description of an animal changing (evolving) into a human to symbolize this kingdom.
The wings of an eagle symbolize that the belief in evolution “flies” above all other scientific beliefs. That is, all scientific beliefs are guided by evolution. The wings were plucked off and it stood upon its feet symbolizing this evolution. The anti-god evolutionists claim that man’s religious beliefs evolved along with the evolution of his culture. As man’s culture became more sophisticated, they claim, so also did man’s religious beliefs. Thus, the beast was given the heart of a man. Evolution is seen as a beast because the anti-god evolutionists are using evolution as a weapon against a divided Christianity. (Some Christians believe in evolution and others do not). One should note that it is the twisted teachings propagated by the henchmen of Satan that make up the beast, not scientific fact. One must remember that not everyone seeking to understand evolution is anti-god. Many children of God are seeking to understand the truths of evolution. The kingdom spoken of here is composed of only those ungodly individuals who are misusing the truths of evolution and propagating that all religion evolved along with man’s culture. They are teaching that the belief in the existence of one High God and the belief in the existence of the soul evolved along with man’s culture. It is the atheistic and ungodly evolutionists and their teachings that are viewed as a great beast, not scientific fact. The second anti-god kingdom that the prophet Daniel saw in his dream (Dan.7:1-2) and wrote about is a beast that was like a bear.
This beast represents Communism and the communistic beliefs that have been propagated throughout the world. The three rows of teeth represent Cuba, China and the former Soviet Union. These are (were) the three major sources of all communistic beliefs in the world. The Soviet Union induced Europe and Africa to follow its communistic beliefs. China influences Asia to do so. Cuba entices North and South America. One may wonder how Communism has devoured much flesh since there are many nations that are not communistic. First of all, it was told to devour much flesh, not all flesh. Hence, there are many nations that do not follow communistic beliefs. Secondly, many nations support evil, harsh dictatorships, military juntas, terrorism and other types of totalitarian systems. Also, present day Communism teaches the evolution of man and the evolution of religion. This is seen in the bear standing on one side. Communist leaders of today are teaching that religion is the opiate of the masses of society. Communist leaders teach that religion is a waste of time, claiming that since all religious beliefs evolved along with man’s culture, a person is better off depending on science and the state for their needs. Since present day Communism supports such actions and propagates its beliefs through such actions, those nations that also support such actions and such beliefs have become one with the bear of Communism. However, they are not seen as the teeth in the mouth of the beast because they are not satellites of communism. This is how Communism has devoured much flesh. This does not mean to insinuate that Communism in itself is evil. No government or governmental system is evil as long as it is a government that works for the people. Indeed, one of the basic cornerstones of Communism — from each according to their means, to each according to their needs — is a paraphrase of a Christian moral that a one should share the surplus of one’s household with those in need (Lk.3:11; Act.4:34-37). Thus, Communism has the potential to be a good form of government if its leaders are governed by truth and justice for all. (However, in light of mankind’s inclination for greed, it seems that Karl Marx [1818 - 1883] proposed a better social and economic system. One is not attempting to give credence to all his religious, political and revolutionary beliefs; just noting that the social and economic system proposed by Karl Marx appears to be better at coping with mankind’s inclination towards greed.) But the Communism that prevails in the world today is an evil, ungodly, atheistic form of government. It is evil because it does not grant the citizens their God given rights as human beings. It is ungodly and atheistic because it denies religious truth. One should note that these first two kingdoms have no specific leader or leaders. This is because they are also found in the minds and hearts of mankind. There are many individuals throughout the world who believe in evolution without God. There are also many individuals throughout the world — living under Communism and in other cultures — who do not believe in granting a person all their basic human rights. Because these two ungodly points of view are found in the minds and hearts of individuals, these two kingdoms have no specific leader or leaders. However, from another point of view, there are people all around the world (in the west and in the east) who believe in evolution with God and who believe that the purpose of government is to guarantee to the people their basic rights as human beings and to protect them from all evil. These latter children of God and their beliefs are not seen as part of the beast. The third and fourth beasts that the prophet Daniel saw in his vision of the night do have specific leaders. These individuals are seen in the heads and the horns of the two beasts. The third beast, which is like a leopard, is the great antichrist that St. John also saw in his vision. He has power over the music kingdom. One knows that this beast and the great antichrist are the same by comparing Dan.7:6 and Rev.13:2. They are described below. Danile’s fourth beast and the political kingdom it represents will be discussed in a later chapter of this book. St. John also saw this beast in the revelation that our Lord gave to him. The great antichrist believes in evolution without God. He does not believe in Jesus Christ, Mother Mary, the Catholic Church, the pope, John Kennedy, his fellow musicians, nor even his own wife. He does not believe in anything that pertains to religious truth. He only believes in himself. He is a beast that has come out of a sea of lies. He comes to meet his dragon.
However, the prophet Daniel describes him quite differently. He sees the great antichrist beast and his kingdom as a leopard with four heads, four wings and great power.
What appears to be a contradiction in the amount of heads can be easily explained. It is because the beast has both four heads and seven heads. The beast is the musical group formerly known throughout the world as the Beatles. The four heads that the prophet Daniel saw represents John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr (Richard Starkey). St. John saw these four individuals plus three extra heads that represent Yoko Ono, Linda Eastman and George Martin, their producer, who was frequently known as the 5th Beatle. The ten horns and the ten diadems mentioned by St. John are seen in the final ten phonograph albums recorded by the Beatles before they broke up and dissolved their music group. All ten of these albums made plenty of money as hit records. Thus, each of them is represented as a diadem or crown. The ten albums are: Rubber Soul, Yesterday and Today, Revolver, Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band, Yellow Submarine, Magical Mystery Tour, The Beatles (White), Abbey Road, Hey Jude (The Beatles Again) and Let It Be. The reason that their earlier phonograph albums were not seen by either St. John or the prophet Daniel is because John Lennon had not publicly made any antichrist statements nor tried to propagate his antichrist beliefs through his music before the above recordings were produced. St. John also saw the great antichrist with the feet of a bear and the mouth of a lion. This is how he describes an animal that he had probably never seen before he had his vision. This is how he describes a walrus, for the antichrist calls himself a walrus in the album Magical Mystery Tour. Both St. John and the prophet Daniel saw the antichrist as a leopard-like beast. The reason that he was seen as such is because one cannot change the spots of a leopard (Jer.13:20-27). This is symbolic for John Lennon’s obstinacy in refusing to believe in Jesus Christ. His refusal to admit our Lord’s superiority over him. His refusal to accept the fact that he is not God. Finally, his refusal to ask God to forgive him for his sins. Thus, he has fulfilled St. Paul’s prophecy of him.
The names of blasphemy upon the heads of the beast (v.1) are symbolic for the sacrilegious names the individuals of the music group have given to God. The four wings as of a fowl that the prophet Daniel saw are symbolic for the four musicians exalting themselves over other musicians and music groups. The power they possess represents the great influence that the Beatles had over all other musicians and music groups and the world. St. John describes the antichrist beast as having one of his heads wounded, slain as it were to death (v.3). In order to understand this one must first understand that to Satan or to one of his henchmen, the truth is a mortal injury. George Harrison is the wounded head that St. John saw in his vision. George Harrison sought to find the true God but quit his search. Like the seed that fell among the thorns, he quit his search to seek after the pleasures of this earthly life. He cares for his body, not for his soul. His search for truth wounded the beast. But the wound healed when he quit his search. Hence, the death wound of the beast was healed. He too mixed his religious beliefs with his other anti-god beliefs in his music. His beliefs may be heard in his song on the Sgt. Pepper album and in his other songs. In the latter part of verses three and four, St. John describes the great Beatlemania of the post Kennedy years. The beast speaking great things (v.5) manifests the perception John Lennon had in perceiving the peace that would prevail on earth if everyone loved their neighbor. Hence, the song All You Need Is Love. The forty-two month reign of the beast (v.5) did not commence until John Lennon made the statement that the Beatles were more popular than Jesus Christ. It ended when the Beatles broke up and dissolved the music group. The blasphemies uttered by the antichrist (v.6) are the ungodly statements and songs of the Beatles. For example, Come Together, Ballad of John and Yoko, Lady Madonna and Imagine are ungodly. This does not mean to insinuate that all their songs were ungodly. It represents only those songs with ungodly religious themes or messages. Verses seven and eight describe the great influence that the Beatles had on the entire world. It is important to note that these verses do not imply damnation to all those who followed after Beatlemania. These verses do not imply any reproach to all those who believe that the Beatles were great musicians. Nor does it imply any evil or sin for those who like to listen to the music of the Beatles. The eternal second death is only for those who refuse to atone for the sins they have committed of their own free will. Such individuals are filled with sin and hate. It is these latter individuals who worshiped the beast (v.8). They did this through their own evil thoughts, words and deeds. They do not have God for a Father and He does not know their names. Hence, their names are not written in the book of life. Those souls whose names are written in the book of life are they whose names will be remembered by our Lord on the last day. He will call them to Himself on the last day and they will rise with Him into Heaven. One should note an individual “erases” their name from the memory of God with their own mortal sin. One places their name back in the memory of God by asking for pardon. Finally, verse eight also reveals that God the Father decreed, before the universe was created, that God the Son would die as mankind’s Savior. Thus, Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, was slain from the beginning of the world (v.8). For this is why God created this world. God did not create this world for man. God created it for Himself to prove His absolute justice. Man is just an eyewitness or bystander, so to speak. The reign of the Beatles is for two and forty months. This is the same length of time that the gentiles tread underfoot the Holy City (Rev.11:1-2). Also, the persecution of both John and Robert Kennedy and the Blessed Mother is for forty-two months of thirty days each, although their figures are given in days. All of these time periods equal approximately three and one half years, the approximate length of our Lord’s public ministry. This is because all the figures are symbolic lengths of time representing that each will have an appropriate length of time in order to accomplish their ministries. None of the times are intended to be an actual length of time. For example, the gentiles began to trample the Holy City in the early 1960s and will not stop until the end. The reason the figures are given differently is because the days represent a length of time of persecution, while the months represent merely an indeterminate length of time. Many may disagree with this by claiming that John Lennon was persecuted by Mark David Chapman. It is true the Chapman stalked and murdered John Lennon. However, it is not true that he harassed John Lennon or any of the Beatles the entire time that they were together as a music group. Indeed, he did not persecute any of the other Beatles. Nor was he doing the will of God when he killed John Lennon.
First of all, verse nine reveals that one must have wisdom from the Holy Spirit in order to understand God’s word. Then in verse ten our Lord gives two warnings to His children. The first warning is that His children are not to enslave their neighbors through suppressive legislation or through repressive social, economic or political pressure. Nor are they to imprison their neighbor unjustly. All those individuals who do lead their neighbors into such captivity or slavery will themselves be led into the slavery of perdition. The second warning from our Lord is that His children are not to kill their neighbors. If they do, they will themselves be killed in the eternal second death. One should note that this latter is in no way giving acquiesce to any type of capital punishment. No one, absolutely no one, has the right to take another person’s life. To do so is to break God’s law. Since God would not break His own law (Wis.1:13; Ezch.33:11) an individual cannot claim that Mark Chapman was inspired by the Holy Spirit to murder John Lennon. What drove him to commit such a horrible, evil deed is not of concern to this book. Such is the business of those handling his judicial process. Finally, all these facts are not easy beliefs to accept. But in accepting them and believing in them the children of God prove their patience (v.10). |
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