Saturday 20 May 2023

The Battles Of The King Of The North And South

 Medo-Persia, Greece And The Battles Of The King Of The North And South

The prophecy chronicles, in great detail, the exploits of the leaders and personalities of the Medo-Persian and Greek empires.

  • Medo-Persia (Verse 1-2). This starts out by referring to Darius the Mede as the initial ruler in Medo-Persia. After him there will be three more kings in Persia followed by a fourth who will be far richer and will stir up Greece. We know from history that after the death of King Cyrus who was reigning at the time of the vision, the next three kings of Persia were Cambyses, Bardiya and Darius I. 
    The Kings of Persia
    After Cyrus the Persian and Darius the Mede, these were the next kings.
    1. Cambyses (530-522 B.C)
    2. Bardiya (522)
    3. Darius 1 (522-486 BC)
    4. Xerxes (486-465 BC)
    In 457 BC Artaxerxes (465-425) issued the final decree that caused the rebuilding of the temple and Jerusalem. (Ezra 7: 11-12)
    Cyrus and Darius I issued the first two decrees to rebuild the Temple. The fourth was Xerxes. He was known in the Bible as Ahasuerus, the husband of Queen Esther. He spent four years stockpiling supplies and manpower for a military expedition against Greece and literally "stirred up" Greece.
  • Alexander the Great (Verse 3-4)But as soon as he has risen, his kingdom will be broken up and parceled out towards the four points of the compass [winds] but not to his own descendents, nor according to his authority which he wielded, for his sovereignty will be uprooted and given to others besides him. (Daniel 11: 4)
    The "Mighty King" that arose next was Alexander the Great of Greece. As we have learned, after the death of Alexander on 11 June 323 BC, his kingdom was broken up into four pieces. His four generals Cassander, Lysimachus, Ptolemy, and Seleucus ruled in his place. So, Alexander's kingdom was given to others who were not his relatives or "of his posterity /descendants" or according to his will "his authority". His entire royal family was uprooted and murdered by Cassander.
    » Illegitimate Son. Heracles was killed in 309. He was the son of his concubine Barsine who was three years old at the death of his father.
    » Son. The 13 year old Alexander IV and his mother Roxana were killed in 310. He was born after Alexander died.
    » Mother. Alexander's mother Olympias was killed in 316.
    » Half-Brother. Philip III Arrhidaeus (Arridaeus) was killed in 317 with his mother Eurydice.
    » Terms of His Will ("His Authority"). Perdiccas, the commander of the cavalry who was appointed in his will as his successor, was murdered by his soldiers.
    So neither the legitimacy of his heirs or the legality of his will were honored.
    The Division of Greece
    Since Alexander had no heirs and his half brother was retarded, his empire was divided among four generals.
    1. Ptolemy - Egypt, Palestine (South)
    2. Seleucus - Syria, Persia, Babylon (East)
    3. Cassander - Greece, Macedonia (West)
    4. Lysimachus - Asia Minor, Thrace (North)
  • King of the North and King of the South (Verse 5)
    » King of the South. Ptolemy founded the Ptolemaic empire of Egypt.
    » King of the North. Seleucus founded the Seleucid empire to the north.

    The terms "King of the North" and "King of the South" appear frequently in Daniel 11. They designate those countries or kingdoms in power which were physically located to the north or south of Palestine, the dwelling place for God's people.
    Here the angel portrays God's people caught between the great struggles of opposing powers that Satan manipulates for his own ends.
    In verse 5, Ptolemy I Soter (323-280 BC) was strong from the start.
    The prince who would become stronger was Seleucus I Nictator, who was driven out of the north by one of the other of Alexander's four generals. Seleucus I Nictator fled to Egypt where he was helped by Ptolemy I Soter who was outfitted with another army by which he eventually re-took the Seleucid empire. This made him "King of the North" and master of most of Alexander's original empire.

  • Union by Marriage (Verse 6). Around 250 BC, King Ptolemy II Philadelphus of Egypt (King of the South) and King Antiochus II Theos of Syria (King of the North) tried to guarantee peace by having King Antiochus II marry the daughter (Bernice) of Ptolemy II. Antiochus II divorced his existing wife, Laodice, in order to make this marriage. A baby boy was born to Antiochus II and Bernice. When Ptolemy II died, Antiochus divorced Bernice, and took back Laodice. Laodice, however, was bitter. She had Antiochus, Bernice, their son, and Bernice's attendants killed. This fulfilled what the angel had told Daniel some 300 years in advance.
  • Blood Avenger (Verse 7). In response to what Antiochus II had done, King Ptolemy III (246-221), Bernice's brother, invaded Syria to avenge his sister's death. He took his army all the way to Babylon and beyond before voluntarily pulling back. His navy occupied Selecia, the port that served Antioch, the capital of Syria. For some time Egypt dominated the eastern Mediterranean shipping. In the process of winning this campaign, Ptolemy III captured some 2500 gold and silver images and took them back as "booty" from his campaign.
  • Battle of Raphia (Verse 10-12)"His sons {the two sons of Seleucus II} shall wage war and assemble a multitude of great forces, which shall come on and overflow and pass through, and again shall carry the war as far as his fortress. Then the king of the south (Ptolemy IV) moved with anger, shall come out and fight with the king of the north (Antiochus III); and he (Antiochus III) shall raise a great multitude, but it shall be given into his {Ptolemy's} hand. And when the multitude is taken {that is, the army is defeated}, his (Ptolemy's) heart shall be exalted, and he shall cast down tens of thousands, but he shall not prevail. (Daniel 11: 10-12)
    The Ptolemies and Seleucids continued to quarrel. The two sons of Seleucus II (King of the North) namely Seleucus III, who was assassinated (225-223 BC) and Antiochus III The Great (223-187 BC) continued to war against the "King of the South". In 217, Antiochus III (King of the North) and Ptolemy IV (King of the South) waged a heated battle, the Battle of Raphia, with about 70,000 foot soldiers and 5000 cavalry including some 180 trained war elephants. Antiochus had a significant numerical advantage but lost the battle.
  • Civil Unrest in Egypt (Verse 13-14)For the king of the north [Antiochus III] shall again raise a multitude, greater than the former; and after some years he shall come on with a great army and abundant supplies.
    14a "In those times many shall rise against the king of the south; 
    (Daniel 11: 13-14)
    After his defeat in 217, Antiochus III went back and raised another army to attack the empire of Ptolemy. By the time he prepared for this new attack, Ptolemy IV, a boy six years old, was on the throne as "King of the South". There was great civil unrest in Egypt. The Egyptians were openly rebellious against the Greek overlords of the Ptolemies.
  • The Maccabean Revolt (Verse 14-15)14b : also the robbers of your people shall exalt themselves to establish the vision; but they shall fall. So the king of the north (Antiochus III) shall come, and cast up a mount, and take the most fenced cities: and the arms of the south shall not withstand, neither his chosen people, neither shall there be any strength to withstand. (Daniel 11: 14-15)
    The Seleucid Empire Dominates. The north subdues the south and the chosen people of God.
    There are two possible interpretations for "robbers of your people" in verse 14:
    Maccabean Revolt
    The events are a parallel of the political and religious alliances at the end of time.
    » Apostasy. Desecration of the true religion and imposition of false worship.
    » Conservatives. An ultra conservative religious faction tries to kill all sinners and compromisers.
    » Church and State. The state unites with "moderate" believers who are also trying to force their beliefs on the nation.
    » Duration. The conflict lasts 3½ years.
    1. Rome. The "robbers of your people" (literally, "the breakers of your people") that "establish the vision" refers to Rome. Recall in the vision of Daniel 7 that the fourth beast which arose after the Grecian empires was Rome. Rome entered the historical picture of the eastern Mediterranean area during the days of Antiochus III. The Romans warned Antiochus III to stay out of Egypt. Antiochus III, in alliance with Philip of Macedon, went against Ptolemy V of Egypt ignoring Rome. He defeated the south's general in a final battle by taking the fortified city of Tyre. Never again did Egypt hold control over Palestine.
    2. Maccabean Revolt. The phrase can also mean the "violent people". This refers to the Maccabean Revolt in 167 BC. The leaders killed anyone who was not with them (Jews and Gentiles).

      » A Prophetic Disappointment. They did this because the political conditions seemed to fulfill the times spoken of by Daniel 9. The temple was desecrated by Antiochus Epiphenes. They tried to fulfill the vision and failed. This was because the vision was for the time of the end and their methods were not godly.
      They temporarily succeeded in driving out the Greeks and restoring the temple, but the movement quickly died within five years when Judas was killed because of the political alliance of Hellenistic Jews with the Greeks.
      The Authenticity of Daniel
      Critics claim that the book of Daniel must have been written during the Greek empire and not during the Babylonian empire because Daniel could not possibly have predicted the succession of empires. Since Daniel was included in the Septuagint (250 BC) they could not claim that it was written later. Yet, how does Daniel accurately predict these details after verse 6 that extend after 250 BC and beyond the crucifixion.


      » A Predicted Failure. Ultimately, they failed to force the fulfillment of the vision because the time of fulfillment was far into the future (2000 years). As the prophecy predicted, "they shall fall" when they try to "establish the vision" or make the prophecy come through in their time. This is remarkable!

The King of the North. As we approach this phase of history, the Seleucid empire (king of the north) was ruling the world and became a threat to the growing Roman power. Between 223-221 BC, the Graeco- Macedonian empire was geographically essentially the same as the original Grecian Empire under Alexander the Great. The Romans would attack and assume the mantle of the new King of the North.
Israel Jewish Fulfillment. Under Greek rule, the Jews were caught between the battles of the two Greek generals, the Ptolemies in the south and the Seleucids in the north.

The Leaders Of Pagan Rome Before The Messiah
The Roman Conquests. "But he who comes against him will do as he pleases, and no one will be able to withstand him; he will also stay for a time in the Beautiful Land, with destruction in his hand.
Julius and Cleopatra. "He will set his face to come with the power of his whole kingdom, bringing with him a proposal of peace which he will put into effect; he will also give him the daughter of women to ruin it. But she will not take a stand for him or be on his side. "Then he will turn his face to the coast lands and capture many. But a commander will put a stop to his scorn against him; moreover, he will repay him for his scorn.
Assassinated. "So he will turn his face toward the fortresses of his own land, but he will stumble and fall and be found no more.
Augustus Caesar (The Tax Man). "Then in his place one will arise who will send an oppressor [raiser of taxes] through the Jewel of his kingdom; yet within a few days he will be shattered, though not in anger nor in battle.
Tiberius Caesar (The Vile Person). "In his place a despicable person will arise, on whom the honor of kingship has not been conferred, but he will come in a time of tranquility and seize the kingdom by intrigue.
Crucifixion. "The overflowing forces will be flooded away before him and shattered, and also the prince of the covenant. 
(Daniel 11: 16-22)
Now the prophecy chronicles, in great detail, the exploits of the leaders and personalities of the Roman empire up to those who would rule over the Messiah.

  • The Conquests of Rome (Verse 16). In response to the attack on Egypt, the Roman general Pompey made a conquest of "the glorious land" of Palestine. As a result of the conquests of Pompey, the eastern Mediterranean fell to Roman rule.
  • Julius Caesar and Cleopatra (Verse 17-19). These verses portray the period of Julius Caesar and his affair with "the daughter of women", Queen Cleopatra of Egypt. They also suggest his later exploits in frontier areas of "the coast lands". Julius Caesar was insufferably insolent. He was a military butcher who attempted to replace the Roman republican form of government with a personal dictatorship.
    » Caesar Assassinated. Verse 19 refers to his assassination in 44 BC at the hands of fellow Romans led by G. Cassius Longinus.
  • Augustus Caesar (Verse 20). Julius Caesar was followed in rule by Caesar Augustus who was predicted by Daniel to be a "raiser of taxes" (oppressor). This act caused Mary to got to Bethlehem in her last week of pregnancy so that Jesus was born in Bethlehem as predicted
    And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed. (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city. (Luke 2: 1-3)
    Caesar Augustus established the "Pax Romana" or the Roman Peace. He died of old age, not in battle.
  • Tiberius Caesar (Verse 21). After Augustus Caesar came Tiberius Caesar. He was a pedophile ("a vile person") who would break the legs of young boys who resisted him. He was an adopted son of Augustus Caesar who manipulated his way to the throne. He was in power when Jesus was baptized and crucified. Rome hated him. So he eventually was killed, and his body was thrown into the Tiber River.
    Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judaea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of Ituraea and of the region of Trachonitis, and Lysanias the tetrarch of Abilene ... (Luke 3: 1)
    This verse leads into the account of John the Baptist baptizing Jesus. Three and a half years later, in the eighteenth year of Tiberius Caesar's reign, Jesus was crucified.
  • The Arrest and Crucifixion (Verse 22)The overflowing forces shall be flooded away before him and shattered, and also the prince of the covenant. (Daniel 11: 22)
    Tiberius Caesar was famous for a number of military conquests. "yes, also the prince of the covenant." Jesus was crucified or shattered under Tiberius Caesar's reign by Pontius Pilate after He was arrested by a Roman cohort (480+ soldiers).

    Jesus was crucified under Tiberius Caesar's reign by Pontius Pilate.
    The angel revealed prophetically to Daniel many details of the history affecting God's people almost five hundred years in advance. Daniel chapter 9 predicted the time of Christ's baptism and crucifixion. Now Daniel 11 gives us an outline of a succession of the Roman rulers at the time of Christ. It even revealed the emperor under whom Christ would be shattered. That is Tiberius Caesar.

The Rise And Fall Of The Pagan Roman Empire
So far, we have seen the outline of history to the Messiah. It lists all the leaders until the Messiah, Who would be killed by the Roman empire. That is the end of the seventy weeks of Daniel 9.
Now, the prophecy traces the relationship of the Roman empire from the time of their official alliance with the Jews.
Alliance. "After an alliance is made with him he will practice deception, and he will go up and gain power with a small force of people. " In a time of tranquility he will enter the richest parts of the realm, and he will accomplish what his fathers never did, nor his ancestors; he will distribute plunder, booty and possessions among them, and he will devise his schemes against strongholds, but only for a time.
Battle of Actium. "He will stir up his strength and courage against the king of the South with a large army; so the king of the South will mobilize an extremely large and mighty army for war; but he will not stand, for schemes will be devised against him. "Those who eat his choice food will destroy him, and his army will overflow, but many will fall down slain. "As for both kings, their hearts will be intent on evil, and they will speak lies to each other at the same table; but it will not succeed, for the end is still to come at the appointed time.
Two Expeditions. "Then he will return to his land with much plunder; but his heart will be set against the holy covenant, and he will take action and then return to his own land. "At the appointed time he will return and come into the South, but this last time it will not turn out the way it did before.
Barbarian Invasion. "For ships of Kittim will come against him; therefore he will be disheartened and will return and become enraged at the holy covenant and take action; so he will come back and show regard for those who forsake the holy covenant. 
(Daniel 11: 23-30)

  • The Jewish Alliance (Verse 23). Sometimes Rome enlarged its dominion by peace treaties rather than by the traditional method of war and conquest. In 74 BC Nicomedes III gave his entire kingdom to Rome as he was dying. Upon his death in 133 BC, Attalus III willed his kingdom of Asia and Pergamum to the Roman Empire.
    In 161 BC, the Jews made an alliance with the Romans to stop the activity of the Greeks. At the height of the Greek atrocities was the desecration of the temple and the Maccabean revolt (167 BC).
  • Mark Anthony, Cleopatra and Augustus Caesar (Verse 24-28). Prophecy states that Rome would remain only for a "time" (verses 16 and 24). For 360 years (31 BC to 329 AD) the capital of the Roman empire remained in the north. The monarcy began in 31 BC with the defeat of the Seleucid empire in the battle of Actium and by 330, Constantinopole was the new capital.
  • The Fall of Egypt: The Battle of Actium (Verse 25). Verse 25 shows the fall of the Egyptian empire to Rome at the battle of Actium on September 2, 31 BC. Cleopatra and Mark Anthony were defeated by Augustus Caesar.
    From this time on Egypt would no longer be a great kingdom. This fulfilled the prophecy of Ezekiel 29:13-15; 30:13. Egypt would always remain, but it would be a lowly kingdom without a prince. Egypt did not have a monarcy from this time and it is a poor nation today.
    In Verse 26, Mark Anthony was deserted by Cleopatra and his army. The army defected to Augustus and Cleopatra withdrew with sixty of her ships during the battle. He later killed himself.
  • Both Kings (Verse 27). Both kings were Mark Anthony and Augustus Caesar. Mark Anthony was married to Octavia, the sister of Augustus. But he divorced her and started an affair with Cleopatra. Mark Anthony made an alliance with Egypt. They pretended to be friends, but each was plotting to be the ruler of the empire.
  • Two Expeditions (Verse 28). This verse describes two returns from foreign conquest with great wealth.
    » The Richest Parts Of The Realm. They took the treasures of Egypt and Israel.
    » Distributing Booty. The emperors shipped the treasures and obelisks all over the empire.
    1. Rome Defeats Egypt. He would return with great wealth from Egypt. There was so much wealth that it caused the value of money to drop by one half. Caesar went to Heliopolis (the City of the Sun) and took all the treasures from their temples and scattered them around the world. He even took the obelisks of Ramses II and Psammetichus II and shipped them to Rome. Some ended up in Turkey, Paris, London and even New York City. Most ended up in Rome and today there are more obelisks in Rome than in Egypt because the Roman emperors kept looting Egypt for the next 300 years.
      » The Egyptian Obelisks And The Sun God Ra. After the flood the people built a tall tower that would reach the heavens as a safety net to nullify the punishment of God and escape another flood. Designed like a ray of sunshine, the obelisks also pierce the sky. These were part of the cult of the sun god Ra. The pharaohs built them to symbolize the contact between man and god and to highlight their great accomplishments.
      • The Triumph Of Pagan Rome Over Egypt. When Rome defeated Egypt the emperors brought these power symbols as a trophy to show their triumph over Egypt and their gods. They added their own Roman symbol on top of the original structure to signify this triumph. Interestingly, in 1937 Mussolini tried to recapture this ancient Roman grandeur and attacked Ethiopia and stole a 1700 year old obelisk from Axum.
      • The Triumph Of Papal Rome Over Egypt. After Rome fell, the obelisks also fell during the middle ages until Pope Sixtus V (1585-1590) and Pius VI (1775-1799) rescued and resurrected them, adding their own symbols on top.
        » Papal Propaganda. So as a symbol of the power of the church over all other powers a cross sits on top of the papal symbols which sit on top of the pagan symbol. Artists even built statues of ancient pagan gods crowned with Christian symbols to show this triumph. Consequently, Rome is filled with ancient idols and tributes to ancient gods all crowned with a symbol of Christianity.
    2. Rome Defeats Judea. The destruction of Jerusalem and the temple in 70 AD. They took away the temple treasures and burned the building.
      » The Arch Of Titus. Just outside the Forum in Rome near the coloseum is the symbol of victory over Israel in 70 AD. It depicted the solders carrying the Menorah and other temple treasures as a symbol of triumph over the God of Israel. These treasures were used to build the Coloseum (Flavian Ampitheatre) in 79 AD.
    Kittim
    Kittim eventually became a word that was used for any evil, bad guys. This is the same way that the English word vandalism was derived from the behavior of the Vandals.
    Kittim was the descendant of Japheth through Javan who occupied the region now known as Cyprus.
    In the War Scrolls of the Dead Sea Scrolls, they were called the Kittim of Asshur (Assyrians) who were part of the sons of darkness who allied themselves against Israel.
    The word was later applied to the Romans because they were the evil, invading forces fighting Israel.
  • The Roman Empire Moves South (Verse 29). On 11 May 330, Constantine 1 moved the capial from Rome to Constantinople. This time when Rome goes to the South it would remain there. The first time Rome went south, it conquered Egypt and made the country a province.

    » Against the Covenant. Just as they conquered the Prince of the Covenant, they are now persecuting the true believers. Rome orders at least ten persecutions and later supports the branch of the church that joins in the state. Constantine brings Pagan customs into the Christian church with the help of the church leaders.
  • The Barbarian Invasion (Verse 30). "ships of Kittim" or the Vandal invasion from the sea burned Rome in 455. The constant Barbarian invasions destabilized Rome and caused the division of the empire. The emperors of Rome remained in the east and ruled the Byzantine empire. The Pope remained in the west and assumed the title "Pontifex Maximus" or leader of the church. A title once held by the Roman emperors.

Wheel The Rise Of The Antichrist
Desolation. Forces from him will arise, desecrate the sanctuary fortress, and do away with the regular sacrifice. And they will set up the abomination of desolation.
Corruption. "By smooth words he will turn to godlessness those who act wickedly toward the covenant, but the people who know their God will display strength and take action.
Persecution. "Those who have insight among the people will give understanding to the many; yet they will fall by sword and by flame, by captivity and by plunder [spoil] for many days.
Help Comes. "Now when they fall they will be granted a little help, and many will join with them in hypocrisy. "Some of those who have insight will fall, in order to refine, purge and make them pure until the end time; because it is still to come at the appointed time. 
(Daniel 11: 31-35)
The prophecy now mimics the words used to describe the little horn. Now we can see that those prophecies were only concerned with the legacy of destruction against the people and sanctuary and covenant of God.

  • Desecrates the Sanctuary and Stops the Continual.
    The Romans stop the continual or "do away with the regular sacrifice" in these ways.
    • The Temple in Jerusalem. It destroyed the sanctuary in 70 AD. This stopped the ancient sacrificial system or the continual ministry because the Jews are only allowed to make such offerings in the temple at Jerusalem.
    • Christ. It killed Christ and His body temple and the High Priest who is our continual intercessor.
    • Ministry of Christ. It replaced the ministry of Christ as High Priest, making the pope the head of the church (the spiritual temple).
  • The Abomination of Desolation (Verse 31). An abomination is a covenant violation within the sanctuary. The most visible of these is a idol in the sanctuary and the desolation is the events of the final curse when the corrupt sanctuary is destroyed and the wrath of God is sent. So far, there were three abominations that caused desolations that are based on the curse of the wrath of God. The first was the destruction by Babylon. Rome was responsible for the last two. It caused one desolation in 70 AD and it set up, or gave power, to the abomination that would cause the final desolation at the end of time.
    1. Destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple by Babylon . The armies of Nebuchadnezzar looted and destroyed the sanctuary and took the people captive.
    2. Destruction of the Prince of the Covenant, Jerusalem and the Temple by Rome in 70 AD.
      Rome crucified the Messiah Prince in 31AD. The armies of Rome looted and destroyed the sanctuary in 70AD. The people were permanently exiled after the Bar-Kokba revolution in 132 AD.
    3. The Papacy. The abomination that brings idolatry to the church. It was set up by the Roman empire when they moved their capital to Constantinople and gave the old capital of Rome to the Papacy. They also left an army to help the church to defend itself from the Barbarians.
      » The Fall of Babylon the Great. The desolation of the papal system during the seven last plagues.
    The last two fulfill the prophecy. Rome destroyed the temple and it set up the papacy.
    And the dragon game him his power and his throne and great authority. (Revelation 13: 2)
    The Destruction of the Church
    The abomination desolates both the temple and the people. The disciples even referred to Rome as "Babylon".
    PowerTemple DestroyedChurch Persecuted
    Rome70 AD538-1798 AD
    Babylon586 BCJews exiled
    Babylon the GreatNowFuture
    Babylon the Great is a combination of the church of Rome and a power like ancient Babylon.

    This is a repetition of the same prophecy that shows the establishment of the papacy. In a strange twist, the last powers are called Babylon the Great. From this analogy we can see that prophetically Babylon destroyed both of the temples and it will destroy the church. This global view of Babylon makes it possible for other Old Testament prophecies about Babylon to be merged with Rome and fulfill the final desolation.

    Other interpretations place this verse in the time of Antiochus Epiphenes (about 160 BC) But Jesus places this in the future, after 30 AD. The fulfillment came with the occupation of Jerusalem by the Roman army under Titus in 70 AD.
    But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then recognize that her desolation is near. because these are days of vengeance, so that all things which are written will be fulfilled. ... for there will be great distress upon the land and wrath to this people. (Luke 21: 20, 22, 23.)

    Therefore when you see the abomination of desolation which was spoken through Daniel the prophet, standing in the Holy Place (Let the reader understand). Then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains. (Matthew 24: 15-16)
    In 66 AD, the siege of Rome was in progress under the command of Cestius. He unexpectedly withdrew and the Christians escaped.

Israel The Time Of The End For The Jews
Until the time of Jesus Christ, this prophecy has been exclusively about the fate of the Jewish people. However, after Christ, the definition of Israel as the children of God, now included the Gentile Christians. So this prophecy covers the status of physical and spiritual Israel as they encounter the Antichrist.
This complicated prophecy covers the fall of the Antichrist as it controls a split church across a split Roman empire. As both branches of Israel unite, the Antichrist makes one final effort to exterminate them.

  • Israel Splits in 135 AD (Jews and Christians). Israel had two major falls, but after this they will rise up in time to be harvested and placed in the barns of God. The time of the end occurs when they begin their second fall.
    After the exile of the Jews by Hadrian, the children of God split into two groups, based on hatred of each other. The Christians disassociated themselves from anything Jewish.

    » The Gathering and Reunion of Israel. The final rise of the Jews eventually merges with the fall of Rome at the end of time. The Messianic Jewish movement began in 1850 after the first fall of Papal Rome in 1798. The forces that would cause the Jewish nation to form began to rise at the time the papacy was being healed in 1929. The Ottoman Turks were the last Islamic power to control Israel. Before the Turks were defeated, the British established themselves as a power in the region in 1882 when they conquered Egypt. Then, after allying with Germany, the Turks lost all power in 1917.
    So Israel was ruled by Britain when the United Nations gave Britain a mandate in 1922 to establish a state of Israel in Palestine. The Nazi terror finally forced the issue to be resolved in 1948.

  • Roman Empire Split in 330 AD (Europe and Byzantine Empire). The Antichrist had two major falls, but after this they will rise up in time to be harvested and burned.
    When the Roman empire split, the Jews were under the Antichrist powers that controlled the Byzantine empire and the Christians were under the Antichrist powers that controlled Europe. The reunion of the church began with the gathering of Israel after the Europeans controlled the eastern empire.

We are proposing that the fall of Pagan Rome and the persecution of the Jews will be signs for us at the end of time.

ChristiansSplit JewsEurope (Western Rome) ChristiansReunitedJews
Greek and LatinEnglish, French, SpanishGermanHebrew, English
ChristPagan Rome70 ADHadrianExilePapal Rome1798Little Wheel First FallHitler1948Little Wheel Second FallUnion
Little Wheel Time of the End for Israel
(Daniel 9)
Israel ScatteredWheel Time of the End for the Antichrist
(Daniel 11)
IsraelLittle Wheel Second Fall of IsraelIslamBritishNation of Israel
GreekArabicHebrew
JewsSplit JewsByzantine (Eastern Rome) JewsGathered and ReunitedChristians
SeedHard GroundJerusalem Ploughed and PlantedGrowthHarvest
Jesus Christ Had No YieldIsrael Planted and BuriedIsrael Accepts Messiah and Bears Fruit
  • Attempted Holocausts. There were three major attempts to destroy the Jews. These portray the laws and the pattern of events that will be signs for us at the end of time.
    • Pharoah and The Hebrew Slaves. He had seller's remorse after telling them to leave Egypt and pursued them through the Red Sea with His armies until God drowned them.
    • Haman and The Persian Jews. He tried to exterminate them in one day. He killed none. Instead, he became a victim of his own schemes.
    • Hadrian. He tried to wipe out all traces of their religion and God and replace it with his own ideas of morality and religion. In the process, He and Titus killed about 2 million Jews and enslaved many more.
    • Adolph Hitler and The Nazis. He tried to exterminate them while they were homeless and unloved while the world ignored their desperation. He was not interested in enslaving them. He killed six million in his efforts to annhilate them.
    » The Battle of Armageddon. It is the final attempt to destroy Israel. In it, Satan will be a victim of his own schemes like Haman. He will try to obliterate all traces of Israel and their God like Hadrian. Finally, He will try to exterminate them as cruelly as possible like Hitler.
  • Signs of the End. We will have homosexuals and pedophiles in power or with access to power trying to conform the world to their will, men claiming to be god, an attempt to enforce the Pagan religion while destroying the true religion.
    These were the signs in the fall of the Greek and Roman empire.
    These were the signs in the French empire during the fall of the papacy.
    These are the signs that are developing now.

Israel Rome Conquers Israel: The Antichrist Fights The Jews
Anticipating the birth of the Messiah, the forces of evil began a cult of making gods out of living humans so that men became gods at the same time that God became a Man. The Antichrist attacks the first branch of the church. It goes after the Jews in the eastern Roman empire.
If we see the "end time" as the end of the 490 days of prophecy when the Messiah would come, then the end would come with the end of the First Coming of the Messiah. The events at the first coming are a pattern of the Second Coming. The world was in turmoil on the eve of the First Coming of the Messiah. The rest of the prophecy can be seen as a destruction of the Jews by the Romans.

  • Remove The Daily (Verse 31). After Pompey entered the Most Holy Place, desecrating the sanctuary, the Romans intefered with the religion. When Titus destroyed the temple in 70 AD, it stopped the daily sacrifices and destroyed the priesthood under the Saducees. This condition has persisted for almost 2000 years.
    When they destroyed the Messiah in 31 AD, the daily under the old covenant was stopped and the daily under the eternal covenant was moved to heaven under the new indestructible High Priest named Jesus Christ.
  • Set Up The Abomination of Desolation (Verse 31). Rome came to power.
  • Bribery (Verse 32). The Jewish priesthood was corrupted by Roman bribery and power. The office was politically appointed and had been on sale for years. So that at the time of the crucifixion, the people who "acted wickedly towards the covenant" were able to convince the Romans to crucify an innocent Man.
    » Edomite Rule. They placed Herod in power over the Jews, fulfilling prophecies that Edom would rule Jacob.
    » Turned to Godlessness. The Edomites adopted the customs of the Greek and Roman elites. This included adultery and incest and probably homosexuality.
  • The Faithful: Those with Insight (Verse 33-35). The disciples taught the people, but they were imprisoned and martyred. During the reign of the Romans, God sends His Messiah.
    • Those With Insight (Verse 33). Jesus and the disciples.
    • Little Help (Verse 34). The Messiah came and gave them the Holy Spirit.
    • Hypocrites (Verse 34). Judas, the Pharisees, Saducees and many more were traitors.
      Even in those days Paul said that the Antichrist was in the church (Acts 20: 29-31).
    • Those With Insight Fall (Verse 35). The disciples were refined and purged by persecution.
      » Appointed Time. The end of time came at the appointed time allotted to the Jews. After this they were not the priests of the covenant.
  • Roman Imperial Cult (Verse 36). The Roman emperors made themselves gods.
    » Magnified Himself. The practice of making gods out of the living began with Augustus.
    » The Indignation is Completed. From the time the Messiah was born, the Roman emperors made themselves gods, killed the Messiah, burned down the temple, exiled the people, renamed the holy city after their god, placed a pagan temple on top of the holy temple mount and tried to make the Jews worship their god. He brought an entourage of homosexuals during Passover, offending God with both his pedophelia and homosexuality. The indignation was complete.
    The Jews had rejected Him and the Pagans were trying to usurp His rule and destroy His religion.
  • Foreign Gods In Israel (Verse 37-39). The Romans set out to replace the Jewish religion, especially Hadrian.
    • Hadrian (Verse 37). He was a homosexual who came to the temple with his lovers during Passover 130 AD and afterwards tried to enact legislation to reform the Jewish religion, outlawing circumcision and building a temple to Zeus on the temple mount around 131 AD. When his Greek lover Antinous drowned in the Nile on 28 October 130 around Succos, he was made a god whose worship was at its height in 134 AD during the Bar Kochba revolt (132-135).
      » The Imperial Tour (August 128-18 November 130). Hadrian began a tour with an entourage of homosexuals. It was fated to be cursed. In July 129, Hadrian and his favorite young males climbed Mount Casius in Syria to the temple of Zeus to watch the sunrise. While the priest was making a sacrifice, lightning struck and killed both the priest and the sacrifice.
    • New Gods (Verse 38-39). In the past, the Romans made gods of the dead emperors, now they made themselves gods as well as their friends. They did not respect YHWH.
      » Parcel out the Land for a Price. He exiled the Jews from Jerusalem and ploughed up the city. He took the land from the Jews and gave it to others.
    • Honors Unknown Gods (Verse 38). The Edomites did not honor the God of Isaac, instead they honored the Romans and their gods and took on the Roman culture and customs regarding sex and marriage.
  • The Time of the End (Verse 40-45). Rome is doomed because they destroyed the physical nation of Israel. The time of the end began near the First Coming of the Messiah and these are the wars that accompanied His introduction.
    • Edom Rescued (Verse 41). Herod Antipater, the Edomite was rewarded with dominion over Judea and Galilee because he helped Augustus Caesar to conquer Mark Anthony.
    • Egypt Does Not Escape (Verse 42). Rome defeated Egypt, ending the Ptolemaic dynasty in 30 BC.
    • Hidden Treasures of Egypt (Verse 43). Augustus took the treasures of Egypt, many from Heliopolis.
    • Rumors From The North East and Wrath (Verse 44). Rome was weakened by Barbarian forces from the north and east and by war with the Parthian empire (Persians) in the north east.
      In 123 AD, while Hadrian was suppressing a rebellion in Mauritania in North Africa he received reports about preparations for war from the Parthian Empire in the north east. He met the king at the Euphrates and settled with Osroes I.
      During the Bar Kochba revolt the Persian army (Parthians) was on their way from the north east to assist the Jews against the Roman army. They were stopped by a battle with some northern tribes. Hadrian came in fury to destroy and erase the Jewish people and their God.
    • Tents Of The Royal Pavilion (Verse 45). Herod was a great builder who remodeled the temple. He even built the seaport city of Caesarea on the shores of the Great Sea to honor Augustus Caesar.
      » Caesarea. Caesarea was made the capital of Palestine and the seat of Roman prefects and headquarters of the tenth Legion in 6 AD. In July 67 AD, Vespasian assembled 60,000 troops there by bringing in the fifth legion. They destroyed the temple in 70 AD. The city was severely damaged by an earthquake in 132 AD.
      Caesarea is between the Mediterranean sea and the Beautiful Holy Mountain of Jerusalem.
      » Constantinople. Rome moved its capital to Constantinople on the banks of the sea in 330.
      » Pagan Temple on The Temple Mount. Hadrian placed a temple to Jupiter on top of the ruins of the Jewish Temple Mount.

    » The Jewish Revolts (66-136). If we assume that the time of the end began with the crucifixion, then these revolts fit the prophecy.
    • The Great Jewish Revolt (66-70 and 73). The destruction of the temple in 70 AD and the fall of the fortress at Masada in 73 killed over 1 million Jews.
    • Kitos War (115-117). During these years, the Jews revolted against Trajan and hundreds of thousands were killed in the wars against the Jewish communities of Cyprus, Cyrene (Libya), Aegipta (Egypt) and Mesopotamia (Syria and Iraq). The Jews destroyed Pagan temples and the tomb of Pompey, the great. After Trajan suddenly fell ill, Hadrian exterminated the Jews of Cyprus and Cyrene.
      » Edom, Moab and Ammon. The Arabs escaped this Roman slaughter.
      » Egypt. The Kitos War spread to the largest Jewish city in Alexandria, Egypt.
    • Bar Kochba Revolt (March 132-135). The Jews of Judea and Syria were almost annhilated. Bar Kochbah and his followers were starved to death at Bethar. A great number of Jews were sold into slavery and it was forbidden to own scrolls or to teach Mosaic laws. Pagan temples and symbols were erected above Jewish sites and he renamed places and cities so that Jewish names were stamped out. He forbid the people to enter the temple or Jerusalem and the gathering at the wailing wall began.
      » Rumors from the East. While he was in Rome the revolt began and he attacked with fury.
  • Comes to An End (Verse 45). The weakened empire finally fell when the Muslim Arabs from the south conquered them. The Muslims would rule over Israel until 1917 when they lost control to the forces of the king of the north who were controlling the Christian branch of Israel.
    Many Roman emperors came to a disastrous end. Pompey and Julius Caesar were assassinated. Antipater was poisoned. The head of Tiberius was cut off and thrown into the Tiber because he was a brutal pedophile.
    Hadrian became ill in 135 AD and suffered great pain and became mentally ill and paranoid until his death in 138. He tried to kill himself and solicited others to kill him, but these attempts failed because they would not help him.
  • Great Time of Trouble (Daniel 12: 1). At that time the Nazis were rising and the Holocaust would exterminate 6,000,000 Jews by unspeakable torture. So, the actions of the Nazis can therefore be seen as part of the end time persecution which will engulf the entire church.
    It took 100 years and two major wars for the vengance for Christ to be worked out to all the guilty parties (31-136 AD). So I predict that vengeance on Germany and the nations who did not help the Jews and those who annhilated them is not complete.

Wheel The Time of the End (Verse 40-45). Rome is doomed because they attempted to destroy the united spiritual nation of Israel. Since the "time of the end" between the fall of the Jews and their rise at "the end of time" is so long, over 1800 years, the events are the perfect candidate for the "wheel within a wheel" similarity of prophecy. The events leading up to the fall of Jerusalem between 70 and 132 AD will repeat themselves at the end. A combination of events since 1798 have shuffled powers and forces to be in position at the end of time.

  • Rumors From the North and East. Communism out of Russia in the north and China in the east were the rumored elements of global fear for decades. Now our fears include the Middle East.
  • Comes to an End. The Ottoman empire which controlled Israel for 400 years supported Germany in the world war and they came to an end in 1918. The threat of Islam is once again part of the mixture of forces at the end of time.

The forces that fulfilled the prophecy for the Christian branch of the church led to the events that propelled the Jews back to the land of Israel where they must be for Rome to repeat what Hadrian had done.

The Rise Of Papal Rome
The Antichrist fights the second branch of the church. It goes after the Christians in the western Roman empire.

  • The Papacy is Set Up (Verse 31). The Roman empire will set up the "abomination of desolation". Justinian abandoned the city of Rome for the new capital in Constantinople and used his army and his best general (Belisarius) to ensure that the Barbarian tribes were removed.
  • The Papacy Becomes the Next King of the North. After Rome moves south, the papacy becomes the new king of the north. History records that the emperors gave the bishop of Rome the capital of Rome to rule. They even provided an army to help to defeat the Barbarian nations that threatened the rule of the bishop.
    Revelation would describe these activities as follows:
    "the dragon gave him his power and his seat and great authority. (Revelation 13: 2)
  • The Corruption of the Church (Verses 32). In 313, Constantine made Christianity the official religion with the Edict of Milan. He claimed to be converted but in reality he brought Paganism into the church. The Pagan idols became Christian saints and apostles and pagan temples were turned into churches. Sunday was made the official day of rest. Christ now had an official birthday, the same birthday as their sun god. Passover was exchanged for Easter. In sixty years the church abandoned its principles and completely adopted all the pagan rituals and idols and feast days.
    So "by smooth words", the Roman emperor merged paganism with Christianity and formed a church and state alliance and desecrated the pure religion. But the underground church took brave actions to spread the word of God.
  • The 1260 Year Papal Rule (Verses 33-39). The church rewarded those that agreed with its policies and persecuted those that did not. For "many days" (1260 years) the people of God would be overcome by the flames and sword (verse 33).
    • Sword. The church used the state armies in crusades to subdue dissenting nations and groups.
    • FlameBurning slowly at the stakes and torture were officially sanctioned by the church.
    • Captivity (Prison). Imprisoned in dungeons or sentenced as galley slaves rowing ships the people of God were starved or worked to death.
    • Plunder (Spoil)Confiscation of property, wealth and all assets left them destitute and powerless. The church even confiscated the wealth of its own devotees.
    • Many Days. This is the 1260 years of persecution.
  • United States (Verse 34). Here they were given help. This probably refers to the land of the United States which became a haven for those fleeing persecution in the seventeenth century.
  • Martyrs and Reformers (Verse 35). Many leaders will suffer hardships before the time of the end.
  • The Papal Actions (Verses 36 - 39). These verses accurately detail the claims of the papacy. However, they also fit the work of the French Revolution. In this first fall of the Papacy, God subjects the Papacy to the same treatment that they gave the church over the past 1260 years. This dual application is the basis for one of the divergent interpretations of the next verses.

Wheel The Fall Of The Antichrist At The Time Of The End
This is the end of religious tyranny as God removes the Antichrist. The period from 1798 until the Second Coming is prophetically "the time of the end". We are proposing that this fall of the Antichrist takes place in two phases at the global end of time. Both phases will follow a similar pattern of events and the prophecies from verse forty to the end of Daniel 12 can be applied to both.

  1. Wounded in 1798 (First Fall). In the first phase the Antichrist is wounded at the end of the French Revolution. Then this deadly wound will be healed, as stated in the prophecy of Revelation 13.
  2. Destroyed at the Second Coming (Second Fall). In the second phase the Antichrist healed, then it is desolated by the plagues and the end of the world.

Layers The Fall Of The Papacy: Part 1 (The Deadly Wound)
In the next lesson we will present the details about the second fall of the papacy after its wound is healed. But now we present the events of the first fall of the papacy when they received a deadly wound.

The American-French Revolution
The French Revolution was actually inspired by the success of the American Revolution against Britain. The economic support of the Americans, landed the French into economic debt which helped to trigger the crises that caused their revolution.
The French revolution was exported to Rome where the city fell to General Berthier in February 1798. In France, they outlawed Christianity and established atheism as the state religion. It was France who helped to established the papacy in the fifth century and it would be France who would bring them down the first time. When the Roman caesars abdicated the throne in Rome and left the church in charge of the western empire with a small army, it was France who used their military power to keep the Papacy in power.
"Then the king will do as he pleases, and he will exalt and magnify himself above every god and will speak monstrous things against the God of gods; and he will prosper until the indignation is finished, for that which is decreed will be done. "He will show no regard for the gods of his fathers or for the desire of women, nor will he show regard for any other god; for he will magnify himself above them all. "But instead he will honor a god of fortresses, a god whom his fathers did not know; he will honor him with gold, silver, costly stones and treasures. "He will take action against the strongest of fortresses with the help of a foreign god; he will give great honor to those who acknowledge him and will cause them to rule over the many, and will parcel out land for a price [divide the land for gain]. (Daniel 11: 36-39)

  • Atheism (Verse 36). The French established atheism as the national religion and tried to eliminate Catholicism and Christianity. They did the following things to advance their new belief system.
    • Bible Burnings. The bible was publicly burned.
    • Church Closings. Churches were closed. All worship was forbidden, except for the worship of liberty and the country.
    • Ridicule. They made a donkey drink from the communion cup. They tied religious vessels on a donkey and paraded them through the streets of France.
    • Temple of Reason. They renamed the Cathedral of Notre Dame as the temple of Reason.
    • Goddess of Reason. They promoted a dancing girl as the new goddess of reason and several other women after that were named goddesses.
    • Challenged God. Monvel, a comedian who was made a priest of Illuminism, dared God to take revenge if He existed. This echoes the activities of the Marquis de Sade around the same period. While performing the vilest sexual acts, often with religious vessels, he dared God to kill him if he existed.
      Notice also that the stars of the entertainment industries were very instrumental figures in this challenge to God.
    • God of Fortresses. The government had to finally bring back religion to restore tranquility because there was chaos under the atheistic system of no rules.
  • Homosexuals (Verse 37).This Greek custom invaded Rome. The emperors preferred the company of young boys. Since the Egyptian dynasty of the Ptolemies were all Greeks, then this meant that Sodom ruled Egypt as one prophecy stated. Although we did not see any Biblical evidence that the Herodians were involved in homosexuality, because they adopted all the sexual customs of the Greeks and Romans of adultery and incest, we can assume that they probably adopted this custom also.
  • Divorce (Verse 37). On September 20, 1792 the government established divorce which was usually granted within one year of the request. By the end of 1793 there were 5,994 divorces in Paris. Within the same period the number of abandoned children rose from 4,000 to 44,000 as the children from these multiple unions were discarded.
  • The Foreign God of Forces (Verse 38). Pope John XXII granted Venice alone the license to trade with the infidel Mamluk sultans of Egypt in the 1330s. The Mongols are the "unknown foreign gods" and the military force who were rewarded for helping the merchants of Venice to conquer the world.
  • Confiscated Land (Verse 39). The prophecy may have been fulfilled before and after the French Revolution both on a global and on a local scale.

    » Dividing The Earth For Profit.
    Both the religious and political successors of Rome in Italy separated the earth into profitable zones and used their monopoly to extract wealth based solely on their need to earn more money.
    • Dividing the Land for Gain (1200-1400). The prophecy might be referring to the monopoly on precious metals trade that the Italians held on the entire world after establishing silver coins that they minted as the currency of trade. With the help of the Barbarian Mongol Khans, they divided the earth between east and west, manipulating bullion trade and prices for profit. The east, abundant in gold, was on a silver standard while the west, abundant in silver, was on a gold standard.
    • Tordesillas Line (1493). After the discovery of the new world, Pope Alexander VI divided the world between Spain and Portugal, creating a 120 year trade monopoly that remained until the British and French started taking Portuguese and Spanish possessions around 1620.
      » France. Before the revolution, most property was owned by the church or the nobility. By law, the heirs could not subdivide this land. After the revolution, this property was confiscated and divided into parcels which were sold for 700,000,000 pounds sterling.

    Israel The Division of Jerusalem. Since Zechariah describes the global preoccupation with the city of Jerusalem at the end of time, we must also look at this issue as a final battle ground in this fulfillment. The division of Jerusalem between Israel and Jordan and the capture after the six day war in 1967 has created an issue that is the final bone of contention between Israel and the Palestinians. Both claim Jerusalem as a capital and the world is in favor of a two state solution with a divided Jerusalem. The church may choose to offer itself as the international manager if the United Nations exherts its right to appoint an independent ruler over a united and international Jerusalem. They will divide the land for the price of wealth and peace which will never materialize.

War With Egypt And Turkey (The Ottoman Caliphate)
"At the end time the king of the South will collide with him, and the king of the North will storm against him with chariots, with horsemen and with many ships; and he will enter countries, overflow them and pass through. "He will also enter the Beautiful Land, and many countries will fall; but these will be rescued out of his hand: Edom, Moab and the foremost of the sons of Ammon. "Then he will stretch out his hand against other countries, and the land of Egypt will not escape. "But he will gain control over the hidden treasures of gold and silver and over all the precious things of Egypt; and Libyans and Ethiopians will follow at his heels. "But rumors from the East and from the North will disturb him, and he will go out with great wrath to destroy and annihilate many. "He will pitch the tents of his royal pavilion between the seas and the beautiful Holy Mountain; yet he will come to his end, and no one will help him. (Daniel 11: 40-45)
By this time the church was split into two branches, the Jews and Christians. In the east, the Muslims ruled the land of Palestine. In the west, the Pope ruled over the Christians. After many crusades, the church had to abandon the eastern (Byzantine) empire to the Muslims. So, following our rules if inheritance both were the "king of the north", ruling over the two branches of the church. Since the Christian branch were the official people of the covenant, the papacy remained the true king of the north. Now the prophecy chronicles the defeat of both of these powers.

  • King of the North: Turkey (Verse 40). The Ottoman empire of Syria or Turkey ruled the region for over 400 years. At the peak 1520-1566 under Sultan Suleiman 1, the empire ruled the Byzantine empire, South east Europe, the Black sea region, Hungary, north Africa and the territory east of the Red Sea as far as Yemen. The Mameluke dynasty ruling in Egypt at the time of the French campaign were of Turkish origin. They had taken over Syria in 1516 and Egypt in 1517.
    » King of the North: Papacy. Napoleon invaded Rome, then imprisoned and exiled the pope.
  • King of the South: France (Verse 40). France became the king of the south because they defeated the ruling Mamelukes and controlled Egypt for a short time before the combined forces of the British and the Turks removed them from the region. Following is a time line of the activities of Napoleon and his troops in Egypt.
    • Papacy Falls. 10 February 1798, France captured Rome and imprisoned the pope by February 20.
    • War Plans. March 5, 1798. The Directory authorizes war with Egypt.
    • Ships. On May 3 Napoleon left Paris with 400 ships, 1230 horses, 50 to 54,000 people including 35,000 soldiers and 1,000 civilians.
    • Malta surrendered on June 9. This delay prevented the British forces from finding them. Admiral Nelson expected the French fleet to be ahead of them in Alexandria.
    • Alexandria Falls. Napoleon landed in Egypt on July 1 and takes Alexandria on July 2.
    • Battle of the Pyramids. July 21, 1798. Napoleon used 25,000 troops to defeat 40,000 Mamelukes in the Battle of the Pyramids and officially assumes the title of the King of the south. The Mamelukes had only a cavalry.
      Napoleon claimed that he went there to free the fellahin (native Egyptian peasants) from the tyranny of the Mamelukes. This is eerily similar to the claims of the Bush administration that they came to free Iraq from the tyranny of Saddam Hussein. This is important because this country and the Papacy has assumed the title of the King of the North in the last days.
    • Battle of the Nile (August 1). At Aboukir Bay the French navy was lost in a battle with the British fleet and the army was stranded in Egypt.
    • Sodom and Egypt. Revelation 11 describes this period of French history and calls this beast the "spiritual Sodom and Egypt". They gained this title of Sodom because of the following events.
      • The French nobility were engaged in Sodomy in this period.
      • The Marquis de Sade was active during this time and committed many vile acts even as he challenged God to destroy him if he existed.
      • The Marquis de Sade wrote a book called "120 Days of Sodom". I saw a list of some of the contents. No one in their wildest dreams could think of the depths of depravity that were contained in that book.
      • The French troops raped and sodomized the fleeing Mameluke men after this battle.
    • Treasures of Egypt. The 1,000 civilians and historians took back the treasures of Egypt, including the Rosetta Stone to France. They even cut off the nose of the Sphinx.
    • King of the North attacks. Turkey declared war on France on September 11. The bubonic plague hit Cairo, Damietta and Alexandria and killed 2,000 of his soldiers. A British blockade cut off his supplies and prostitutes and caused his defeat.
    • Palestine. He started a march from Cairo to Syria on February 27, 1799. The British and Syrian forces established a base in the mountains of Samaria and in St. Jean d'Acre.
      He marched to El Arish which fell on February 18. Gaza fell on February 24. Jaffa was defeated on March 7 as they killed Jews, Christians and Moslems for no apparent reason. Napoleon later slaughtered 3,000-4,000 prisoners of war because his supplies were limited. The plague once again hit the soldiers.
      He engaged the Syrian army at all these locations between the fifth and the sixteenth at Nazareth, Canaa, Jordan River, and Mount Tabor.
    • Jordan. The lands of Edom, Ammon and Moab were not affected by these campaigns.
    • Siege of Acre . He reached Acre on March 17 and started an unsuccessful two and a half month siege on March 24.
    • Defeat. A few days later he lost 398 ships in the Battle of the Nile against the British. Fearing an attack by the Ottomans, he marched on Palestine and sacked Jaffa and besieged Acre. He abandoned his army in Egypt on August 23, 1799 and returned to France to seize power from the Directory of Five. He declared himself emperor of France.
    • Libya. France is unable to protect the merchant ships of the newly independent USA from attacks by pirates along the Barbary coast (North Africa and North West Mediterranean). American ships were attacked on 11 October 1984 and the first Barbary cost war is in 1801-1804 against Libya (Tripoli).
  • The French Revolution (Verses 40-43). The French Revolution specifically tried to destroy the papacy. By 1798, the pope was imprisoned and he died in captivity. Rome was made a republic and the papal states were taken away. France becomes the new "King of the South". What is the evidence.
    • Revelation 11: 7-8 specifically refers to it spiritually as Sodom and Egypt.
    • They even adopted the calendar system of the Egyptians and tried to adopt the Egyptian culture.
    • They conquered the land of Egypt in 1798.
    • They further attacked the papacy by introducing the ideas of communism which were against God and against the papal view of their role on earth.

    But the papacy ("king of the north") will attack the French. Those systems and ideologies introduced by the revolution, especially communism, will be conquered by the church. Because he magnifies himself above every god, the church will attack both the true and the false gods. He will attack these:
    • The Glorious Land. After the crucifixion of Christ, the people of God were no longer limited to the area of Israel. So He attacks God's people, or the remnant.
    • The King of the South. He would conquer the ideas of liberalism, communism and secularism introduced by the old king of the south, France.

    Palestine was overflowed but others escaped. The group that escaped are close relatives of Abraham. It could be a group that is so close to papal doctrine that they are not targeted like the rest of Protestantism.
    Or, it is possibly a prediction of the power of the message of God in the last days, these will escape the papacy and will return to God:
    • Edom. Descendants of Esau, grandson of Abraham. Gentiles called by God's name. Amos 9: 12. Isaiah 34: 9-17 refers to the nations as Edom.
    • Moab. Descendants of Abraham. Jeremiah 48: 46-47 states that the captivity of Moab will be restored in the latter days.
    • Ammonites. Descendants of Abraham. Jeremiah 49: 3-6 states that God will "restore the captivity of Ammon".
    • Libyans and Ethiopians (Cushites or Nubians) Submit. In the ancient times Libya was all the land west of Egypt. This includes modern day Libya, Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco. In the 1790s that region was called the Barbary coast and pirates often kidnapped ships and ransomed the vessels and crew and forced Europen nations to pay exhorbitant tribute which at its height amounted to 17% of the United States annual federal budget. American ships were guarded by the British until the revolution when the French assisted the United States. Eventually, the USA navy was formed in 1798 specifically to deal with the issue of Mediterranean piracy. Finally, by 1816 the United States and Britain defeated these nations in two wars (1801-1805 and 1815-1816). France and Italy colonized them around 1830 and placed them under subjection.
      » Prophesy Again. It is interesting that in the first phase of the prophecy all of north Africa, pirates, Britain, France and the United States were in turmoil. Now that the prophecy is being repeated at the second fall of the Papacy these same powers and Ethiopian-Somalian pirates are involved in the 2011 crisis stirred up by an Islamic revolution.
      In the first phase Islamic terrorism caused a new military department to be created in the United States. At the end the Department of Homeland Security was created in 2002 in response to the Muslim threat.
  • Crimean War of 1853-1856 (Verse 44). The war breaks is caused by the dispute between the Russian Orthodox monks and the French Catholics over who had precedence over the Holy Places in Jerusalem and Nazareth. Turkey became the ruler of Egypt and subjected the people to worse oppression than the French. Uncertainties about the Persians in the east and the Russians in the north caused Turkey to declare war on Russia in 1853 and they were defeated.
  • The End of Napoleon (Verse 45). Napoleon was defeated while he was in the land of Palestine. He had defeated the Papacy prior to this.
  • End of Islamic Rule in 1918 (Verse 45). After World War 1 the Ottoman empire was occupied by allied forces, including Britain and Greece because it had supported Germany in the war. The empire declined and ended in 1918 at the same time European monarchies collapsed. So both kings of the north fell. The church in the western empire no longer had influence over the kings when new forms of governments emerged. The Ottoman Turks in the eastern empire no longer controlled the Middle East.

    Israel Palestinian Mandate. By 1922, the Jews would no longer be controlled by Islam and they were back under the control of the Christians until 1948. The League of Nations gave the British a mandate to establish the land of Israel in Palestine. The crisis of World War II and the Nazi Holocaust forced the establishment of a homeland on 14 May 1948 when the mandate ended.

    Law Curse: The Diaspora Lasted Seven Times. So this prophecy ends and Daniel is told the fate of the Jewish people until the end of time. After approximately 2520 years of foreign occupation (586 BC-1948AD), the independent land of Israel is under Jewish control. As the curse stated, the people would be punished seven times or seven prophetic years. That is 2520 real years of exile since the Babylonian captivity!

Israel The Five Curses Fall On Israel.

Curse 1Second CurseThird CurseFourth CurseFifth Curse
1 TimePunished 7 TimesPunished 7 TimesPunished 7 Times with HostilityPunished 7 Times with Wrath
ExileTemple FallsLand70
Years
70x7
Years
ChildrenCrossTemple Falls100
Years
CovenantExile400
Years
1410
Years
Gathering1948
DividedExileLand TakenChildren TakenVengeance for the CovenantMartyrsWrath of God
AssyriaBabylonPersia to MessiahRomansIslam
NorthDiaspora (2520 Years of Occupation and Exile)

This interesting analysis of the covenant and its curses shows that while the fourth application of the curse may have been related to Christ, the entire 2520 year can be seen as an overall pattern that is related to the original punishment for idolatry under the judges. So that their repatriation into the land is because the punishment had ended.

  1. Division of the Nation (One Time). In 722 BC, the Assyrians captured the ten northern tribes.
  2. Land Taken (Seven Times). The remaining southern tribes would be scattered, occupied and in exile for almost 2520 years after the Babylonian captivity. Intrestingly, the ten northern tribes would be also under captivity for 2520 years (721-1798).
  3. Children Taken Away (Seven Times). This period ended with the death of Christ, the Son that they waited for, but rejected. He was given to the Gentiles to raise. The Jews would also be scattered among the nations in this time, coming from about fourteen places for the Passover in the year Christ died.
  4. War and Vengeance for the Covenant (Seven Times With Hostility).
    During this period they had three wars with the Romans and vengeance was brought upon them and Rome because of the destruction of the Prince of the Covenant. The Jews were scattered further in Europe and the new world because of relentless persecution.
    Lamb In the Christian branch of the church, the sword of vengeance for the covenant would fall in 1798. After over 1260 years of apostasy, the Christian branch would go through five cycles of the curses themselves.
    Amazingly, 2520 years of exile for the ten northern tribes ended in 1798 also!
  5. Sanctuary Destroyed and Exile (Seven Times With Wrath). The Nazi Holocaust lasted seven years (1938-45). 6 million Jews were killed. This final wrath ended with the regathering of the people. Was this a punishment from God?
    No. As the evidence showed, they already suffered the fifth curse two times when the temple was destroyed. Their fate must be resolved because there can never be a third destruction of the temple. So, from the time Hadrian exiled them, the longest they could be taken from the land according to the covenant was about 500 years. So why were they kept from the land for almost 1500 years more? Why was the temple not rebuilt?
    • 2520 Years in Exile. It fulfilled the time requirement of seven times. While they were scattered, they would remain as seeds, buried under the earth until the appropriate time.
    • The Third Temple. If they had been repatriated into the land and rebuilt the temple, it would set up a system that was forbidden. Animal sacrifices cannot be allowed in the official place of the temple of God in the name of God. Notice the events that have ensured that this will not occur. When they accept Yeshua as Messiah, then they would not restart animal sacrifices in any temple built to honor YHWH.
      The third temple is in heaven.
    • Gentiles. The timing of their return must be synchronized with the Gentiles.
    • Fifth Seal. We will learn from the prophecy of the seven seals that God asks one group of martyrs to wait for another group of their brothers to be martyred before He takes revenge.
    • The Fall of Babylon. This 2520 years is being synchronized with the crimes of Babylon against Israel. This fifth curse will be the wrath on Babylon and all the empires used by Satan.
    In this period, the temple is being rebuilt and its holy objects restored and the people gathered for Succos. Then God will take revenge on their enemies.

Persecution And The Second Coming.
Persecution. And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince who stands for the children of your people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time your people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.
Resurrection. And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever. 
(Daniel 12: 1-3)

The Ottoman rule ends with world war 1. The "time of trouble such as never was" introduced two world wars and the atomic bomb that is capable of annihilating the planet. This is the legacy of the first fall which ended the rule of the military and religious king of the north. It established atheism in the French Revolution which spread to Russia in the 1917 communist takeover. Old colonial empires such as Britain and France lost their power because of world war 2.

  • Michael Stands Up. Michael is another name for Christ. He prepares to leave His throne and lead His armies for the Second Coming.
  • The Final Persecution. The first papal rule has ended during an age of global revolution. The final papal rule will also be accompanied by global revolution.
    • French Revolution. In the eighteenth century, the king of the south (France) started a global war which ended in a revolution at home which toppled the Papacy.
    • Islamic Revolution. In September 2001, the king of the south (Islam) started a global war and it has resulted in an Islamic uprising which has swept across North Africa, the Middle East, Iran and the Arabian Peninsula in early 2011. It toppled the Egyptian prince after his 30 year rule since 1981. Sudan voted to divide into the Muslim North and Christian south. It caused a civil war in Libya as the ruler fights to keep his throne. It toppled the government of Tunisia and caused parliaments all over Islam to resign. It threatened the monarchy of Bahrain and as of March 1 the issues have been unresolved.
      If this revolution is the same pattern that fulfills prophecy, then it will lead to the rise of the Papacy in Jerusalem, the union of the Islamic nations against Israel and the fall of both.
      » Ethiopia. This country is now split up among several nations. The US and its allies attacked Mogodishu, the capital of Somalia on two occassions. The first Battle of Mogadishu (October 3-4, 1993) where 18 USA marines died in the "Black Hawk Down" incident. In February 2006 the second battle was fought.
      » Pirates. Since 2008, Somali pirates have plagued the gulf of Oman, seizing merchant and private ships and their passengers and crew for exhorbitant ransom, mirroring the pirates of the Barbary coast during a similar period in the 1790's-1816.
      » Libya. On 19 March 2011, USA, Britain and France launched 112 tomohawk cruise missiles to begin the installation of a no-fly zone according to a UN resolution passed on March 17.
      » The French Connection. One notable aspect of this revolution is that it is occurring among territories that were former French colonies or territories. Tunisia, Egypt, Algeria, Yemen, Oman, Bahrain, Morocco, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan.
    French
    Revolution
    Three
    Angels
    Fall of Babylon
    The Great
    The Rescue Of The Church1000
    Years
    The Final Judgment
    Papacy
    Falls (1)
    Preach
    Gospel
    PapacyPlaguesChrist
    Comes
    2nd
    Satan
    Falls
    Satan(1)
    Resurrection
    Righteous
    Raised (1)
    Satan 
    Jailed
    Satan
    Resurrection
    Wicked
    Raised (2)
    Christ
    Comes
    3rd
    Satan
    RisesFalls (2)RisesHellFalls (2)
  • Two Resurrections. The events at the time of the end from verses 40 to 45 are merged into one event because there will be two falls of the papacy. Notice that this final prophecy also merges two separate resurrections into one event. Verses 2 and 3 talk about both resurrections as if they occur on the same day. But we know from Revelation 20 that they are 1000 years apart.
    Therefore we conclude that this entire section is to be repeated because they are merged into one event.

Repeat Repetition and Enlargement

DanielDaniel 11Events during the 2300 daysSections
2, 7-BabylonMedo-Persia
and
Greece
2, 7, 82PersiaThe First
Seventy weeks

490 years
to the Messiah
2, 7, 83,4Greece
2, 7, 85-15King of the North (Syria). The Seleucid Empire.
King of the South (Egypt)
14-15Maccabean Revolt. The Jews try to end Greek rule. They ally with the Romans
2, 7, 816-30RomePagan Rome
-17-19Julius Caesar and Cleopatra
-19Assassination of Julius Caesar
-20Augustus Caesar
-21Tiberius Caesar
922ChristChrist and the crucifixion by the Romans
-25Battle of Actium - Rome moves south and conquers Egypt1810 years
-26Mark Anthony deserted by Cleopatra
-28The conquest and return from Egypt (31 BC) and Judea (70 AD).
Treasures were looted from Egypt and the Sanctuary in Jerusalem.
-29330 AD. The capital was moved from Rome to Constantinople, from north to nouth. Authority over western Rome and the old capital given to the PopePapal Rome
-30"ships of Kittim". Vandal invasion from the sea in 455. Rome burned.
7, 831-39Little Horn. Papal Rome
Prophesy AgainJews
Israel
Babylon FallsFirst Fall (Wounded in 1798)Second Fall (Desolated)
831Abomination of desolation set up by Rome. Temple destroyed (70 AD)Papal Rome set up in 538Crucifixion
-32Pagan corruptionPriests
-33-351260 year persecutionDisciples
-34United States helped. A new world opened for the persecutedHoly Spirit
-36Pope magnifies himselfHadrian
-37The dominance of the homosexual community as in Sodom and Gomorrah
-38New gods, new saintsNew Age movementImperial cult
-39Tordesillas Line (1493)Property confiscatedJerusalem
440-45Time of the end and the French Revolution. The god of forces arisesWar in the Middle East. Babylon the Great emergesBarbarians, Parthians and ArabsThe time of the endThe Papacy
falls
-40Turkey Vs FranceUnited States Vs Al-Qaeda
-42France attacks EgyptUSA attacks Al-QaedaKitos war
-43Treasures of Egypt taken or destroyed by FranceIraqi oil and treasures.
Egyptian treasures taken in the 2011 Islamic revolution
Jews of Alexandria
-43Piracy from Libya was in the Ottoman empire. Ethiopia was in the British empireLibyan Terrorism. USA War in Somalia (1993, 2006). 2008 Somali pirates. March 2011 war on LibyaJews of Cyrene (Libya)
-44Rumors. Turkey suspicious of Iran and RussiaThe latter rain evangelismBar Kochba Revolt
-44Wrath. Turkey goes to warIranian nuclear ambitions?
2, 7, 844-45The end of the papacy and the Ottoman EmpireFall of Babylon the Great
-12: 1PersecutionThe last persecutionMark of the BeastHolocaust
2, 7, 812: 1-3ResurrectionThe first resurrection and Second ComingSecond resurrectionFirst resurrection

God wanted the Messiah to be recognized. So this prophecy gives details about the political players just before and immediately after the Messiah in great detail. This is the first time that we have seen such detail.
Then the prophecy proceeds to describe the little horn as the king of the north. It gives more details about its activities. It is here that the apostle John picks up the prophecies in Revelation. As you will see, Revelation concentrates on the activities of this power and the actions of God to stop it.

One notable aspect of the prophecy is the merging of the events at the time of the end in Daniel 11: 40-45 and Daniel 12: 1-3. We can more easily accept the fact that Daniel 12 does merge the prophecy of the resurrection, so it is not unreasonable to assume that the prophecy might also merge the events before it. That is the fall of the papacy.