Part Two
From the book by David Jeremiah, a Protestant prophet:
THREE
COMMENT:
Sign three given by David Jeremiah is the MODERN EUROPE ...
Ancient Rome.
He goes to Daniel 2 and the vision of Nubuchadnezzar. Here in
chapter three of his book, Jeremiah is mainly correct. It is
interesting that the Protestant prophets have come to agree with
what the Church of God was proclaiming to the world decades ago,
when none of the Protestant prophets were paying any attention.
Here is how David Jeremiah writes it:
......
Modern Europe ... Ancient Rome
The Four World Empires ....
Through Daniel, God gave King Nebuchadnezzar a composite history
of the remaining days of the world. We know this because he spoke
specifically of "days to come" and "things to come" (Daniel 2:28,
29 NIV).
He began to reveal the meaning of the dream of the statue in
five sections: the head of gold, the breast and arms of silver,
the belly and thighs of copper and brass, the legs of iron, and
the feet ... part iron, part clay.
The first world empire, represented by the statue's head of
gold, was Nebuchadnezzar's own kingdom of Babylon. Daniel's words
to the king are clear. "You, O king, are a king of kings. For the
God of heaven has given you a kingdom, power, strength, and
glory; and wherever the children of men dwell, or the beasts of
the field and the birds of the heaven, He has given them into
your hand, and has made you ruler over them all-you are this head
of gold" (Daniel 2:37-38 NKJV).
Nebuchadnezzar would not have doubted that the head of gold
referred to his kingdom since the chief deity of Babylon was
Marduk, known as "the god of gold." The historian Herodotus
described the image of Marduk as a dazzling sight - a golden
statue seated upon a golden throne before a golden table and a
golden altar. Pliny tells us that the robes of Marduk's priests
were interlaced with gold!
The second world empire revealed in the king's dream is
represented by the image's chest of silver, from which two silver
arms emerge (Daniel 2:32). This is the Medo-Persian Empire that
conquered Babylon in 539 BC and remained in power for
approximately two hundred years. We need feel no uncertainty
about that interpretation because later, when Daniel reported the
events surrounding the end of the Babylonian empire, he stated
clearly that it would be the dual monarchy of the Medes and the
Persians that would take control of Nebuchadnezzar's empire
(Daniel 5:28). The two nations are again confirmed as Babylon's
successor in Daniel 8:20.
The third world empire revealed within the image is
represented by its belly and thighs of bronze. Daniel told the
king it will be a "kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all
the earth" (Daniel 2:39). This is the empire of Greece, the
kingdom of Phillip of Macedon and his famous son, Alexander the
Great. Not only does history confirm Greece as the empire that
succeeded the Medo-Persians, but Daniel himself affirmed it by
naming Greece specifically in Daniel 8:21. Under Alexander, the
Greek empire was unified and encompassed more territory than
either of the previous empires. Alexander had such a lust for
conquest that after subduing virtually all of the known world, he
sat down and wept, fearing there were no more territories
left to conquer. It is appropriate that this third kingdom is
characterized by the bronze midsection of the massive image.
Alexander's soldiers armored themselves in bronze and brass
helmets and breastplates, and carried bronze and brass shields
and swords.
The fourth empire displayed in the image is symbolized by
its legs of iron. Daniel describes this empire as "strong as
iron, inasmuch as iron breaks in pieces and shatters everything;
and like iron that crushes, that kingdom will break in pieces and
crush all the others" (2:40). History shows us clearly that Rome
is the fourth kingdom. Not only was Rome the successor to the
Greek empire, but the iron legs of the image provide a powerful
symbol that characterizes the nature of the Romans. The word iron
is used fourteen times in the text describing Rome in Daniel 2.
Historians often use iron as an adjective when
characterizing the Roman Empire: Rome's iron hand. Rome's iron
grip. Rome's iron rule. Rome's iron fist. Rome's iron heel.
Rome's iron legions.
History confirms the progression of Daniel's explanation of
Nebuchadnezzar's dream. The Babylonians were overthrown by the
Medo-Persians; the Medo-Persians were conquered by the Greeks;
and when the Grecian empire was conquered by Rome, all of the
lands and peoples of the previous kingdoms were assimilated into
one kingdom known as the Roman Empire. This empire came into
existence fifty years before Jesus was born, and it continued in
power throughout the Lord's earthly ministry and beyond. It was
Roman rule that put Jesus on the cross. It was the imperialistic
Romans who ruled ruthlessly throughout the world during the early
days of the church.
The fact that Rome is represented in the statue by its two
iron legs is also significant ...
By A.D. 395 the Roman Empire had split into two political
areas of rule: the [Latin-speaking] West with its capital in
Rome, and the [Greek-speaking] East with its capital in
Constantinople (modern Istanbul, Turkey), which included the land
of Israel. This division of the empire is depicted in the
statue's two legs.
But this splitting of the mighty Roman Empire into two
political units was not to be the last division that kingdom
would suffer as Daniel explained to Nebuchadnezzar when he turned
his attention to the statue's feet and toes. He noted that in the
king's dream, the feet and toes were composed of a mixture of
iron and clay. Though positioned at the bottom of the image,
these extremities are apparently highly important, for Daniel
said as much about the feet and toes as he had said about all the
other parts of the image combined....
According to Daniel, there is to be yet another division in
the Roman Empire. Not a division of two, as indicated by the
image's two legs, but of ten, as symbolized by its ten toes.
Daniel foretells a time when the Roman Empire will consist of ten
kingdoms or leaders. Since the downward movement from one section
of the statue to the next represents the passage of time, the
"feet and toes" stage must follow the "legs" stage. But when we
look back at the history that followed Daniel's prediction, we
find nothing in history that even remotely corresponds to a
tenfold Roman coalition. That shows us that this fifth and final
feet-and-toes-stage kingdom is yet to come and is yet to perform
its prescribed role in human history.
Daniel gives us one other piece of information that enables
us to understand the timing of the events conveyed in
Nebuchadnezzar's dream. He tells us that this final form of the
Roman Empire will be on the earth when God sets up His earthly
kingdom.
"And in the days of these kings [the rulers of the ten segments
of the Roman kingdom], 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" (Daniel 2:44).
"Whereas you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter's clay and
partly of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; yet the strength of
iron shall be in it, just as you saw the iron mixed with ceramic
clay. And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly
of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly
fragile. As you saw iron mixed with ceramic clay, they will
mingle with the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one
another, just as iron does not mix with clay." (Daniel 2:41-43)
.... Let's look at how Daniel describes it: "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" (Daniel 7:7). Daniel is careful to explain
that the ten horns are ten kings who shall arise from this
kingdom (v. 24).
We know that this ten-kingdom prophecy of Daniel's remains
in the future because not only has the ten-leader form of the
Roman Empire never existed in history, but neither has such a
kingdom been suddenly crushed as prophecy indicates it will be.
According to Daniel 2, the Roman Empire in its final form will
experience sudden destruction. The Roman Empire of Jesus' day did
not end suddenly. It gradually deteriorated and declined over
many centuries until the western part, the Holy Roman Empire,
fell in AD 476, and the eastern part, the Byzantine Empire, fell
in AD 1453. You can hardly imagine a more gradual slide from
glory to oblivion! We must conclude, then, that some form of the
Roman Empire must emerge in the end times, and according to
Daniel, it will be in place prior to the coming of Christ to rule
and reign over the earth...
The future manifestation of the Roman Empire that Daniel
prophesied twenty-five hundred years ago will take the form of a
coalition or confederation of ten world leaders and will
encompass the same territory as the historic Roman Empire. And
today we can see that coalition taking shape right before our
eyes! It began as early as 1930, when the French statesman
Aristide Briand attempted to enlist twentysix nations in what he
first called "the United States of Europe" and modified to "the
European Union." In his proposal he said, "The nations of Europe
today must unite in order to live and prosper." The European
press gave Briand's novel idea little attention, and nothing came
of it.
That is, nothing came of it at that time. But Briand's call
for European unity was merely one world war ahead of the curve.
Fewer than twenty years later, one of the world's most respected
leaders issued the same call ...
In 1946, following the devastation of Europe during the
Second World War, Winston Churchill forcefully asserted that "the
tragedy of Europe" could only be solved if the issues of ancient
nationalism and sovereignty could give way to a sense of European
"national grouping." He said that the path to European peace and
prosperity on the world stage was clear: "We must build a United
States of Europe."
Churchill's call initiated a series of steps toward
unification; some were faltering, but others gained traction. The
Benelux Conference of 1948, held in Brussels, Belgium, would lay
the foundation for a new organization "to unite European
countries economically and politically to secure a lasting
peace." Only three tiny nations attended the meeting - the
Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Belgium. These nations came together
because they saw unity as their only hope of survival in the
postwar world.
Another step was taken in April 1951, when these three
nations signed the Treaty of Paris with three additional nations,
Germany, France, and Italy, forming a common market for coal and
steel in an environment of peace and equality.
March 25, 1957, saw a major step toward European unification
when the Treaty of Rome was signed on Capitoline Hill, one of the
famous Seven Hills of Rome. On this occasion, Italy, France, and
Germany joined the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Belgium, creating
the European Economic Community - the Common Market.
In 1973, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Denmark joined the
EEC, and Greece was added in 1981, making it a ten-nation
confederation. On January 1, 1986, Spain and Portugal came into
the union, and the agenda expanded beyond economics when the EEC
officially adopted the goal of a politically unified Europe. In
1987 the Single European Act was implemented. With the fall of
the Berlin Wall in 1989, Germany was reunified, and East Germany
was integrated into the membership. In December 1992, the
economic borders between the nations of the European community
were removed, and a common passport was issued to travelers.
Study in universities within the nations was also permitted
without any restrictions. Austria, Finland, and Sweden joined the
Union in 1995.
In 2002, eighty billion coins were produced for use in the
twelve participating nations of the Eurozone, thus introducing
the new monetary unit, the euro. Despite expected fluctuations,
the rise in euro value has been steady and observable. The dollar
is declining against the euro, and many experts believe that
within five years the euro may actually replace the US dollar as
the standard world currency. As we learned in the previous
chapter, the Iranians have recently refused to accept the
American dollar as payment for oil, requiring payment to be made
in euro.
The march toward European unification continued on May 1,
2004, when Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia,
Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia were added,
bringing the total to twenty-five nations. These nations brought
75 million people into the European Union, expanding its
population to 450 million people and surpassing North America as
the world's biggest economic zone. In January 2007, Romania and
Bulgaria were admitted to the EU, bringing the total number of
nations to twenty-seven.
While Israel was part of the original Roman Empire, it is
not currently a part of the European Union. The EU considers
Israel ineligible for membership due to human rights violations,
based on its occupation of the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Golan
Heights, and East Jerusalem. It has been proposed, however, that
if Israel would sign a peace treaty with its hostile neighbors,
it would be offered membership in the EU.
Gradually yet steadily, the nations of Europe have come
together, creating a modern replica of the ancient Roman Empire.
Europe is more integrated today than at any time since the days
of ancient Rome. The United States of Europe is considered by
many to be the second most powerful political force in our world.
Consolidation of the European Government
Currently the EU government is organized into three bodies:
a Parliament, the Council of European Union, and the European
Commission. The Parliament is considered "the Voice of the
People" because citizens of the EU directly elect its 785
members. The Parliament passes European laws in conjunction with
the Council. Its president is elected to serve a five-year term.
The Council, "the Voice of the Member States," consists of
twentyseven members who are also the heads of their national
governments. This body participates with Parliament in the
passing of laws and also establishes common foreign policy and
security policies. As I write this book, a Reform Treaty is
currently in the ratification process. This treaty contains
proposals for two major changes to the structure of the Council.
First, it will reduce the membership of the Council from
twenty-seven to seventeen and elect a full-time president for a
two and a half-year extendable term, replacing the current
rotating presidency, which changes every six months. These steps
toward power consolidation may have very serious implications for
the future.
The third body of EU government, the European Commission,
consists of twenty-seven commissioners whose tasks are to draft
new laws and implement policies and funding. Its president is
nominated by the Council of European Union for a five-year term.
Other EU governmental entities include: the Court of Justice, the
Court of Auditors, the European Central Bank, and the European
Investment Bank.
Former British prime minister Tony Blair is rumored to be
the likely candidate for Europe's first president of the Council.
These rumors circulated as far back as 2002 and gained momentum
in 2007 after Blair stepped down from his position as prime
minister of Great Britain. French president Nicolas Sarkozy was
the first leader to propose Blair for Europe's first president.
In a speech given in January 2008, Sarkozy said this about Tony
Blair:
He is intelligent, he is brave and he is a friend. We need
him in Europe. How can we govern a continent of 450 million
people if the President changes every six months and has to
run his own country at the same time? I want a President
chosen from the top - not a compromise candidate - who will
serve for two-and-a-half years.
As we track these developments toward ever-increasing unity
and more centralized power among the European nations, we can see
a new empire in the making - an empire that occupies the same
territory as the ancient Roman Empire. Turning back to Daniel for
further insight into the nature of this rising coalition, we are
intrigued by his description of it as a mixture of two
noncohering materials. We already know that iron represented the
strength of the old Roman Empire. In the newly constituted
empire, however, the prophecy tells us that iron will be mixed
with ceramic clay. Clay is nothing like the other materials that
composed the image of Nebuchadnezzar's dream. Clay speaks of
weakness and instability.
The best interpretation of this unstable mix is that the
combination of clay and iron represents the diverse racial,
religious, and political elements that will comprise this final
form of the Roman Empire. That is, in fact, what we see today in
the early manifestation of the European coalition. While the EU
has great economic and political clout, the cultures and
languages of its various countries are so incredibly diverse that
it cannot hold together any more than iron and clay unless unity
is imposed and enforced by an extremely powerful leader. As the
EU prepares to elect a strong president for a longer term, we can
see how an uneasy unity could come about.
The Need for Renewed Vigilance
From this brief study of modern Europe and ancient Rome, we
can begin to understand the meaning of what is going on in the
world today. Three things in particular emerge from our study
that should increase our vigilance.
The Consolidation of World Power
Since the time of the Roman Empire, there has been no nation or
empire with the power to govern or dominate the known world. But
it is coming. In the future there will be a short period of time
when the world will be unified under one dominant leader.
COMMENT:
The Protestant prophet has been very good in understanding the
basic truth of Daniel. Some parts of the Church of God were
proclaiming all this and more as far back as the 1950s. David
Jeremiah now starts to go "off track" - the world is never to be
under ONE world ruler before Christ comes to earth. There will be
a "west" power (the resurrected Holy Roman Empire) and the "east"
power (Russia, China, India etc) - Keith Hunt.
......
We saw in Daniel's second vision that the fourth beast had
ten horns growing from its head. We need not wonder at the
meaning of the beast and the ten horns, for the meaning of
Daniel's dream was given directly to him: "The fourth beast shall
be a fourth kingdom on earth, which shall ... devour the whole
earth, trample it and break it in pieces. The ten horns are ten
kings who shall arise from this kingdom" (Daniel 7:23-24). The
fourth beast represents the fourth successive kingdom after
Babylon, which history identifies as the Roman Empire. But since
Rome was never ruled simultaneously by ten kings, we know that
those kings are yet to arrive on the stage of world history to
rule a newly formed empire that overlays the territory of the
ancient Roman Empire. Today the concentration of power in the
European Union signals the beginning of this new world order.
Statements such as this should chill us to the bone. It shows
that the world as a whole in its ignorance will actually embrace
the power that will seek to enslave it. The European Union is the
kindling awaiting the spark of the Antichrist to inflame the
world with unprecedented evil. It is certainly a time to be
vigilant.
The Condition for the Treaty with Israel
In the ninth chapter of Daniel's prophecy, he tells us of a
treaty that will be signed between his people and the world
leader who will head the realigned Roman Empire: "Then he shall
confirm a covenant with many for one week; but in the middle of
the week he shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering" (Daniel
9:27). Daniel tells us here that Israel will sign a treaty with
the Antichrist, and that this treaty will be forged to last for a
"week," literally in prophetic language, a "week of years," or
seven years. This treaty will be an attempt to settle the
Arab-Israeli controversy that today focuses the world's attention
on the Middle East. After three and one-half years, that treaty
will be broken, and the countdown to Armageddon will begin....
COMMENT:
Now we are into the popular Protestant prophets teaching of
Daniel 9. Daniel 9 has NOTHING to do with END TIME EVENTS!!
Daniel 9 is VERY MISUNDERSTOOD and falsely taught by the modern
fundamental Protestant prophets. The last paragraph above from
David Jeremiah is TOTALLY INCORRECT!! There will never be a
treaty with Europe and the Jews of the Holy Land. There will be
no Temple built in Jerusalem before Jesus returns. There will be
NO animal sacrifices performed by the Jews in Jerusalem. There is
NO 7 year period at the end of this age, the book of Revelation
only speaks of 42 months, 1260 days, a time, times, and half a
time - THREE AND ONE HALF YEARS! The fundamental Protestant
prophets have all the last years of this age in prophecy, mixed
up and way off the wall, including their false teaching of the
"secret rapture."
I HAVE EXPOUNDED TO YOU IN GREAT DETAIL, ON MY WEBSITE, THE
PROPHECIES OF THE BIBLE, AND THE LAST THREE AND ONE HALF YEARS OF
THIS AGE, TO THE COMING OF CHRIST, AND THE SETTING UP OF THE
KINGDOM OF GOD ON EARTH. I REFER THE READER TO ALL THOSE STUDIES.
Keith Hunt
..................
To be continued
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