CHAPTER NINE

Point

 
 

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Point A Events:
Tribulation Counter = 0.0 years / 0.0 months / 0.0 days and counting....
1999+?
 

Rapture - W.W.III
(Pre-Trib Events)
Ezek. 38 & 39

     |-------------------------------------------- Concurrent Judgments ---------------------------------------------|

    |-------------------------- Concurrent Judgments --------------------------------------------|
 

#	SEVEN SEALS	SEVEN TRUMPETS	SEVEN BOWLS
	GREAT TRIBULATION begins	The 3 Woes Begin (Rev. 8:13)
5	Alter of Souls (Rev. 6:9, 13:15)	1) Satan Cast to the Earth (Rev 9:11;12:3-9)
			Events leading to POINT C Last months of theTribulation......
			1. BOILS (Rev. 16:2)
			2. BLOOD SEAS (Rev. 16:3)
			3. BLOOD RIVERS (Rev. 16:4)
			4. SOLAR HEAT (Rev. 16:8)
			5. DARKNESS (Rev. 16:10)

    In the exact middle of the final shabua of secular world history, Daniel's 70th week of prophecy, the key sign for prophetic interpretation is manifest. This is the sign which Jesus used to anchor the prophetic sequence of signs given the Olivet Discourse (Mat. 24:15). This is the key sign which correlates Daniel's chapter nine vision to the timetable John is given in Revelation. Jesus ties all prophecy together with the binding of this unmistakable and clearly identifiable event: the Abomination of Desolation.
 
 

    Many of the Bible believing clergy shortly before and during W.W.II believed that Adolph Hitler was the Antichrist. This was not unjustified based upon the spectacular rise to power of the Nazi party and the malevolent character of the leader. Given Hitler's strong anti-Semitic bias and his quest for world domination, he fit the prophetic profile of the end-time demigod. Many of the Furher's traits and objectives lined up nicely with the Biblical Antichrist. In fact, it seems obvious in retrospect that this German man of sin was a prototype of the coming Antichrist mentioned in Revelation. As historically delineated in the master work, "Rise and Fall of the Third Reich" by William L. Shirer, Hitler rose to power in that time of unprecedented economic and nationalistic collapse in post-W.W.I Germany. He offered to a defeated and hopeless nation the strong personality who could restore order and return the nation to a sense of pride and prosperity. Not all the governors of Germany viewed Hitler as the savior, but they saw the Nazis as a necessary evil that could be used to catalyze the nation to a time of peace and strength.

Although many in the "old line" leadership of Germany saw Hitler and the Nazis for what they really were, thugs and murdering criminals, they were content to let the game continue to forward their political agenda. Germany in the thirties did indeed appear to achieve great progress, peace, and prosperity. However, underneath the surface it was obvious to those in the know that there was a price to be paid. At a certain time, the Fuhrer became an absolute dictator and unfurled his true colors. Anyone who opposed him was executed, even his old cronies. Eventually the true nature of this madman was manifested by his psychotic and demonic ravings. However, the military was powerless to change the course that had been set (although some unsuccessfully tried to assassinate the leader). In the end, the Third Reich ,1,000 year reign of evil, lasted only a short time.
 
 

    The Biblical Antichrist will be the full-blown version of Hitler. He will rise to power in the aftermath of a world war (III), and will be freely given the reigns of power without firing a shot (he holds a bow but has no arrows, Rev. 6:2). After the chaos of the war and resulting collapse symbolized by the red, black, and pale horses of the Apocalypse, Antichrist will present his brilliant solutions for reconstruction. His government will usher in an unprecedented time of peace and prosperity. For the first three and one half years of the Tribulation period, it will appear that the New Age and its New Age Messiah truly have brought the dawn of an enlightened utopian era.
 
 

    There is an Old Testament passage which is often quoted as applying to Satan and his tragic fall, Isaiah 14:12-19a:

"I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit. They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms; That made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof; that opened not the house of his prisoners? All the kings of the nations, even all of them, lie in glory, every one in his own house. But thou art cast out of thy grave like an abominable branch . . ." (KJV emphasis mine).

    Lucifer said he would be "like the most high," or said another way, he would mimic God. These verses which probably have a double interpretation certainly identify the characteristics of Satan and all that would follow in his sin of pride. Satan's ultimate flaw was and is that he wants to be his own god. Like all the other creatures who will join him in hell, they all want to be their own god. It can be summed up by the attitude of the citizens in the Parable of the Pounds, "We will not have this man to reign over us" (Luke 19:14). This is the attitude against God's rule and authority.

    Satan from the beginning of his rebellion has wanted to be god. Everything that he does is an imitation of what he has seen God do. Satan followed Jesus around and constantly incited riot against him. Jesus said that they would not receive Him, but if another came in his own name, they would receive that one (John 5:43). Jesus was prophesying about the coming of Antichrist. The Jewish people rejected Jesus and do as a people to this day, but another Jew will come that the Jewish leaders and people will receive, the False Messiah. Many orthodox in Israel are preparing for him even now.
 
 

    Being about 30 years old, he will come upon the scene (Luke 3:23). He will be Jewish by heritage but will not practice the faith of his ancestors but an occult Eastern mysticism (Dan. 11:35b-39 note: he will not honor the god of his fathers, i.e. YHWH). He will have a False Prophet, his own evil John the Baptist, who will proclaim him as the New Age Messiah that all should follow (cp. John 1:29, Rev. 13:11). He will minister to the world for three and one- half years teaching them about his worldly wisdom and knowledge (note: the Gospel covers ~ 3.5 year ministry; Antichrist's peaceful leadership is the first 3.5 years of the Tribulation). At the mid-point of the Tribulation, Antichrist will commit the "Abomination of Desolation." This is a very definitive event in the Jewish mindset which is an act that defiles and desecrates the holy Temple in Jerusalem by pagan worship. Antichrist is the pagan and his command to worship him will defile. This is the abomination that makes desolate.

[ Chapter Nine | Section Three | Table of Contents ]
 
 

    After moving rapidly from obscurity to world prominence, he will suffer an apparently mortal wound and be resurrected from the dead (Rev. 13:3; Dan. 11:16-17). This is the definitive prophetic point where the man conceived in sin will be personally indwelt by his unheavenly father, Satan (Rev. 12:9-12; 13:2b,4). Up to this point, Antichrist has been empowered by the unholy spirit of demons. Antichrist will boast that the "faker" Jesus came and presented Himself as messiah but after three years died as an utter failure.

    At that time, all the worldly skeptics will become believers and will hail him as the true New Age Messiah (Rev. 13:4,8). There will be a ceremony in the newly rebuild Temple in Israel where this leader will proclaim himself as the messiah and "one world" god (2 Thes. 2:4, Mat. 24:15, Dan. 9:27; 11:27b-35). An "image" of the beast, possibly a computer simulated holographic projection or clone type being, will mimic his person and require obeisance (Rev. 13:14-15). Like the days of Caesar, all the citizens of the world will be required to pay him homage. If anyone does not worship this satanically possessed "son of Satan" he will not be able to carry on a normal existence and will be under the threat of execution (Rev. 13:15). As in the days of the early persecuted Church, the martyrs will cry, "Jesus is Lord" and have their heads cut off (Rev. 7:14, 20:4)). The people of God will flee to the mountains and deserts and be hunted like dogs (Dan. 11:41 "Petra", Mat. 24:16-20 ). Note that the plagues will be so great that very few will make it through the final three and one-half years of Antichrist's great persecution to see Armageddon.
 
 

    The Greek word for "mark", charugma, means a symbol which is burned in or etched. In today's technological world, it could very easily mean a symbol created by a laser device such as a tattoo. At this time in the United States, there is an amazing resurgence of body tattooing, perhaps to prepare the population for what's up ahead. Tattooing has always been pandemic in pagan societies, never in Christian ones. It's popularity in today's society indicates a general tolerance or acceptance of piercing and marking the skin to enhance personal identity.

    It is interesting to note that the Greek manuscripts for Revelation 13:17 have this literal wording: "the mark the name of the beast or the number of its name." Since the original language does not have punctuation marks, it could be read as an appositive with two meanings, i.e. "the mark: 1)the name of the beast or 2) the number of his name." As in Nazi Germany where the swastika was the symbol of party affiliation and acceptance, some kind of visible symbol would assure allegiance to the one world government of Antichrist. Concentration camp prisoners were known by their number. The scripture mentions a very definite number associated with the Mark, 666.

There has been much speculation down through the centuries about this mark, whether it will be a mere symbol or an actual numbering system. Given the translation above, it is probably is both. The mark will refer to the visible symbol tattooed upon the hand or forehead (for those who have no hands) and a numbering system. In the future Antichrist world system, reference to "the mark" will probably be understood by its context to refer to the tattooed symbol or the identification number (or even both). Possibly the unique personal number will be integrated into the tattoo or just beneath it in the skin. The numbering method will probably be some kind of computer chip which is implanted in the citizen's tissue which can be read via a wireless scanner, the ultimate "personal" peripheral IO storage device.
 
 

    Currently, every citizen of the United States has a Social Security Number. This has become the de facto identification key for almost every system employed by government and business. It consists of a number comprised of three groups of 3-2-4, i.e. 3 digits, 2 digits, and 4 digits. People are often asked for their SSN, Social Security Number, when carrying on business transactions. In the future, it might be common for the clerk to ask for your "SIN", Social Integration Number. Without this number, you will not be integrated into society, i.e. you can not buy or sell or participate in society.

    The problem with the SSN that we use in the U.S. today is that its potential for world wide deployment is limited; it is too small for projected need. With a world population approaching six billion, a unique identifier for each human being would take a much larger numbering scheme, especially if additional information were encoded in the overall UPC, universal person code. The creator of this new numeric identifier would want to assure scalability for future population growth and sub-code use. A number based upon the SSN division of three groups but increased to sufficient size to project future needs could be assigned:
 
 

Three groups of six digits would be more than sufficient to accommodate world population identification and subgroup categorization. 6digits-6digits-6digits, 6-6-6, or just 666 for short would do it.
 
 

    During the last six months of the Great Tribulation (the last 3.5 years), five terrible plagues will be unleashed upon the earth-dwellers. Moses announced ten great plagues upon Pharaoh's Egypt in less than a year (note: according to most Biblical scholars, the ten plagues occurred over approximately one year). The last judgments in the Book of Revelation are called the "bowl" or "vial" judgments. As has been shown earlier, the final two judgments - the great earthquake and Parousia of Christ - occur at point C, the end of the Tribulation. The preceding five "bowl" plagues occur rapidly just before the end, probably over less than six months (note: if ten plagues took one year, then five plagues could possibly take half a year or so).
 
 

    The body of Moses was never found and a chariot of God took Elijah up to heaven. Upon the Mount of Transfiguration, Jesus spoke with Moses and Elijah. The last plagues of the Book of Revelation are very similar to those of Moses and Elijah. The Old Testament ends with this verse:

"Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD" (Mal. 4:5 KJV)

    John the Baptist said that he was not the fulfillment of this prophecy (John 1:21). (note: Jesus said he had come in the spirit of Elijah, Luke 1:17; Mat. 17) The great and dreadful day of the Lord is a reference to the end times and the Tribulation. The Revelation speaks of two prophets who prophesy the last three and one-half years of the Tribulation (42 months/1260 days) clothed in sackcloth (Rev. 11:1-13). They represent God's judgment on an Antichrist world. The Gentiles have control over the Holy City for the last 42 months (Rev. 11:2) of the seven-year period. This shows that the Times of the Gentiles are not over yet; they will not be over until Christ returns at Armageddon.
 
 

    The first five plagues of the bowl judgments are boils, bloody seas and rivers, scorching heat, and darkness (Rev. 16:2-10). After reading about this quinella of disaster, it is easy to see why Jesus said that nothing would be left if the time wasn't limited (Mat. 24:22). Although these plagues probably take place over six months or less, it is not unreasonable to believe that they happen in rapid succession over the course of only weeks or even days (note: nothing in the text indicates a particular designation of time period). These plagues occur before Point C - the Parousia. They are anchored in that final point of the Tribulation and find their proper termination at the end of the Great Tribulation.
 
 

    The first five bowl judgment are pre-Parousia events, occurring just before the Battle of Armageddon, and could be likened to the heavy shelling on D-Day before the Normandy invasion. The Allied ships bombarded the coastal defenses and as soon as the shelling was over, the troops hit the beach. The last plagues are probably like that, one after the other in rapid succession and then the final attack on P-Day, Parousia-Day at the Battle of Armageddon. Some have suggested that this could be the result of a supernova of our sun or meteor impact.
 
 

    Three of the plagues that Moses cursed Egypt with are similar to the bowl judgments: the boils (Exo. 9:8), the bloody waters (Exo. 7:19) , and the darkness (Exo. 10:21). Elijah brought down fire from heaven (1 Kings 18:38) which is similar in kind to the scorching heat of the sun. In Revelation chapter 11 concerning the "two witnesses", it states that they have power to send plagues upon the earth. The only plagues that match the description of these terrible judgments are the seven bowls.

"And if any one would harm them, fire pours out from their mouth and consumes their foes; if any one would harm them, thus he is doomed to be killed. They have power to shut the sky, 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 smite the earth with every plague, as often as they desire." (Rev. 11:5-6 RSV emphasis mine)

    Elijah shut up the heavens so that it did not rain (James 5:17-18) and brought fire down from the heavens. Moses turned the water to blood and brought many plagues upon Egypt. Death could not conquer Moses and Elijah^j the first time and it will not prevail the second time either, after three and one half days they shall rise again (Rev. 11:11).

[ Chapter Nine | Section Three | Table of Contents ]
 
 

^h The Times of the Gentiles refer to Gentile domination of the world which began when Solomon's Temple was destroyed in 586 BC and will end when Christ returns and destroys the "ten toes" of Daniel's Image (Dan. 2:34, 44).  [ Return ]

^j The scripture does not mention the two prophets by name and some scholars have speculated that these two are Moses and Enoch since Moses' body was not found and Enoch was translated, i.e. they are types of the resurrected saints and the raptured saints.  [ Return ]