Issued 3/24/24
“As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work.”
John 9:4
PLEASE NOTE: Because Bible versions sometimes differ from each other in crucial ways, the version quoted here will be the one that best clarifies the point being made. For a quick comparison between versions, please go to: http://www.biblehub.com.
All bracketed material may be authorial comments, attempts at proper syntax, or minimal rewordings of Scripture for the sake of clarity and continuity. These emendations will not be italicized.
The “/” will be used to signify “and/or.” The symbol “↔” is used to connect verses corroborating each other and so establishing doctrinal truths (Matthew 18:16↔2Corinthians 13:1).
In differentiating between Yahweh Son [Jesus] and Yahweh Father [the Most High God], lower case letters have been used when discussing the former; upper case letters are reserved for the Only and Most High God. Since Jesus was at pains to differentiate himself from Father, we have followed his lead here.
The term neo-Christians will be used to differentiate between false Christians and Jesus’ true followers.
Last time we spoke about the limitations of prophecy in the sense that they forecast future events without giving us unequivocal facts/deadlines. A clear example is Daniel 8:23-24, where an army-less ruler would cause great ruin in opposition to Jesus (Daniel 8:25); and allowed—by Father, no doubt (Job 12:16-25; Psalms 33:10; Isaiah 45:7; Lamentations 3:7; Daniel 4:35; John 19:11—to persecute and vanquish the saints [the “army” spoken of in Daniel 7:21, 8:12]. Daniel portrayed this ruler as an arrogant “horn” with eyes;1 speaking blasphemies against Heaven (Daniel 7:20,25↔Revelation 13:5-7); and located atop one of the heads of a seven-headed beast (Daniel 7:19-20↔Revelation 13:1).2
While no other “horn” in Daniel is depicted as having eyes, by extrapolating from Daniel 7:25 and Ezekiel 28:1-5 it can be suggested that the “eyes” on the blasphemous “horn” symbolize that ruler’s ability to be aware of/complicit in on-going intrigues throughout its domain—the gist of Daniel 8:25 and Ezekiel 28:3. While writing to a universal audience Peter, ostensibly living in Rome where he would soon die (2Peter 1:14), called Rome “Babylon” (1Peter 5:13).3 Thus “Babylon the Great” must be an entity other than the city of Rome; “Great” not used in its customary meaning, but as an adjective describing the magnitude of her abominations vis-á-vis those of Imperial Rome’s capital city—an empire, by the way, whose power hierarchies, mores, laws, and pagan cults Roman Catholicism absorbed, practiced, and exported.
Expanding on Peter’s ‘geo-location’, Revelation 17:15,18 then depicts “Babylon the Great” (Revelation 17:5) exercising power over many nations (Revelation 17:15). Since Satan’s earthly headquarters is in a ‘Christian’ church (Revelation 2:13), and “Babylon the Great” is the habitation of demons (Revelation 18:2), it is but a step to correlate “Babylon the Great” with Vatican Rome, a religious city-state within a secular state—no earth-shaking revelation given her historical prominence/participation over centuries of widespread destruction and bloodshed [↔Daniel 7:23, 8:24-25]. Add to this the descriptor “mother of harlots and all the abominations of the earth,” and again we come to the one ‘Christian’ church from which all other “harlot” churches arose—not necessarily Roman Catholic temples but Protestant ones as well.
If we then add other ‘evidence,’ Scripture builds up a compelling case against Vatican Rome without definitively identifying her. Supposing the seven heads of Revelation 13:1’s beast4 represent emerging European nations/seats of power, the “wounded” head [Italy?↔Revelation 13:3] may be referencing events from 1798 to 1815, during which Napoleonic soldiers marched into Rome; deposed and imprisoned Pope Pius VII; Napoleon declared himself King of Italy [not the entire peninsula, but the regions of Lombardy and the Emilia Romagna (1805)]; and made Rome the second city of the French Empire (1810)—thus effectively ending the so-called Holy Roman Empire. Napoleon abdicated in 1814; the same year Pius VII was released from prison, greatly acclaimed en route to Rome [↔Revelation 13:3-4 or even today?], and restored nearly all Papal States—Rome included.
While this sequence of events may be what Revelation 13:3-4,8 are about, they took place towards the end of the Holy Roman Empire, which had to have been the historical period alluded to in Revelation 13:5-7. Why? Because 42 months (Revelation 13:5) in the lunar Hebrew calendar = 1,260 days, which establishes a link between Daniel 12:7 and Revelation 12:4. Though using Ezekiel 4:6’s conversion factor of 1 prophetic day = 1 real-time year yields 1,260 days = 1,260 years, Scripture does not specifically tells us what “half a time” equals to. A possible answer may lie in Genesis 6:3: “My Spirit will not contend with humans forever, for they are mortal; their days will be a hundred and twenty years.” Since from Adam [died at age 930 (Genesis 5:5)] to Moses [died at age 120 (Deuteronomy 34:7)] that benchmark was often surpassed,5 it is possible that the 120 years constitute yet another conversion factor giving meaning to Daniel 12:7’s/Revelation 12:6’s timespan; to wit, “time” = 120 years; “times” = 1,080 years (9×120); and “half a time” = 60 years (120/2), which totals 120+1,080+60 = 1,260 years.
If this is the case, then Revelation 13:5 fits the timeframe6 during which the Holy Roman Empire was in full swing; whereas if we start counting from the year 1814 CE, we would end up too far into the future [3074 CE] for prophecy to be meaningful. As always, the significance of 1,260 is limited by the fact that Scripture does not specifically tells us from which year we should start counting—which has not stopped many from positing their own starting dates [probably by counting backwards from 1814]. It is then easy to see that the 1,260 years, rather than being atomic-clock accurate, are more of a benchmark in terms of duration, identifying the one and only human institution that has lasted that long and continues to endure: The Roman Catholic Church. Certainly this longevity falls within the parameters of Daniel 12:11-12; the latter outlier [1,335 years] perhaps referencing those fortunate enough to have outlived the Holy Roman Empire’s long “night”—during which Jesus’ work nonetheless continued.
Furthermore consider Revelation 17:9: The seven hills of Rome?7 Or Revelation 13:18, a title which spurious or not does fits ‘to a tee’ the professed representative of Jesus on earth: Vicarius Dei Filii—Vicar of God’s Son. Since Latin is the official language of Vatican Rome, and Latin used letters as numbers, “add the number of the beast”; to wit, V(5)+i(1)+c(100)+a(0)+r(0)+i(1)+u(5, same as v)+s(0) = D(500)+e(0)+i(1) + F(0)+i(1)+l(50)+i(1)+i(1) = 112+501+53 = 666. Or once again Ezekiel 28:1-5, where the “prince” [i.e., high priest↔Acts 23:5] in Satan’s realm (Ezekiel 28:12-19) sits on a throne professing to be a god sitting on God’s throne [i.e., Jesus, who Catholics believe to be the Father, though he sits on a throne to the right of Father‘s highest ranking throne↔Genesis 41:40; John 14:28] “in the heart of the seas” [↔Revelation 17:15]. Consider not whether the title first appeared on a Middle Ages document, but that the numerical sum of its name, 666, appeared on Revelation written centuries before.
The Instructive Side of Prophecy
Where does all of this get us to? Only as far as Father intended: “None of the wicked will understand, but those who are wise will understand” (Daniel 12:10↔Deuteronomy 29:29; Mark 4:11-12; 1Corinthians 2:7-15). How is “understanding” possible? Through the Holy Spirit Jesus “anoints” his true followers with (John 15:26, 16:13; 1John 2:27); implying that despite claims amongst neo-Christians that the Holy Spirit is as accessible to them as the Internet, those believing to be “anointed” might not be so [↔Matthew 7:22-23]. The Holy Spirit is given only to those who fear and obey Father: The disobedient are effectively tuned out/cut off (1Samuel 2:30; Ezra 8:22; Proverbs 28:9; John 9:31). Which leads us to Paul’s pointed reminder: “If anyone thinks himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself” (Galatians 6:3).
Which really tells us what? That only those who meet Father‘s criteria are made privy to wisdom “hidden” in prophecy (Deuteronomy 29:29), so that not all professed Christians are capable of making heads or tails out of it [↔1Timothy 1:6-7; 2Peter 3:15-16]. And this with several objectives in mind: 1) that men realize prophetic enlightenment comes from Heaven and not from themselves (Jeremiah 17:5,7,9; 1Corinthians 2:7-8,12-14); 2) that men seek meaning directly from Father (Jeremiah 33:3; Luke 11:13↔James 1:5) and not from other men (Psalms 146:3; Isaiah 2:22); 3) that understanding involves divine intervention of some kind (Luke 24:45↔John 20:22; Acts 8:26-39, 16:14-15); and 4) that true knowledge given the faithful will set them at odds with the non-enlightened across congregations (1Corinthians 11:18-19)—leading to violence against the former, a situation exemplified in 1Kings 22:24 and which is part and parcel of the Christian life (Matthew 10:36↔Hebrews 3:6; John 15:18; 2Timothy 3:12; 1Peter 5:9).
All these contributing factors set the stage for Judeo-Christian apostasy: Father gives people an option (Deuteronomy 30:19; Ezekiel 33:11); people do what they wish (Jeremiah 5:30-31, 11:10; Lamentations 2:14↔Jeremiah 8:8↔2Timothy 4:3-4; Zechariah 7:11-12); Father gives them over to “the hardness of heart” mediated by Satan (Lamentations 3:65↔Romans 11:7), who blinds them to the “understanding” of the Gospel (2Corinthians 4:4); and for good measure, Father allows Satan to deploy all manner of deceptions against them (2Thessalonians 2:11-12). At this stage the “blind,” no matter self-righteous boasts, are effectively and irremissibly under Satan’s control; so that their falling away from the true faith is the result of a conscious choice freely made (2Chronicles 36:36; Nehemiah 9:30; Jeremiah 5:31; Zechariah 7:11-12); or to put it colloquially, having made their bed, they have to lie on it no matter the consequences. It is not so much that Father—though often so disparaged—is being vindictive, but that men defaulting on the terms of the Covenant He has struck with them must be held liable for penalties [↔Jeremiah 30:11].
One would image that facing such dangers, ‘people of faith’ would scrutinize Scripture in order to know how to proceed. But if they do, many seldom assimilate what they are being told (Mark 4:11-12); a case in point being idolatry, not only the worship of man-made cultic images, but behaviors associated with them—as for example worship of money in the form of Mammon (Matthew 6:24) or bodily cravings (1Corinthians 10:6-7). Idolatry, even the mere fact of manufacturing images to be held in reverence, is unconditionally forbidden in the Second Commandment (Exodus 20:4-5)—period! Roman Catholics may argue they do not strictly ‘worship’ these images; nevertheless they kiss crucifixes bearing Jesus’ likeness or kneel in prayer/meditation before effigies of Mary/canonized Roman Catholic ‘saints’ despite having been warned in no uncertain terms not to do so: “You shall not make idols in the form of anything in the heavens [divine beings], or on the earth below [Jesus/Mary/’saints,’ including animals worshipped in pagan religions]…You shall not bow down to them.“ So the issue is not whether an image of any ‘Christian’ exemplar memorializes his/her faith for Roman Catholic adherents: Father‘s command is never having anything to do with them regardless of what church theologians/priests say or do.
Consequently a series of pertinent warnings: “Ask your idols to save you when you are in trouble” (Isaiah 57:13): Father will not come to your aid (Isaiah 1:15; Ezekiel 39:23; Micah 3:4). “Come out of [Babylon the Great], My people. Do not take part [enable, abet or be complicit] in her sins, or you will be punished with her“ (Revelation 18:4)—an appeal that has gone/will go unheeded until end-times: “All who are dwelling on the earth will worship the beast, whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb [↔Exodus 32:32-33; Psalm 69:28; Revelation 3:5, 20:12] slain from the foundation of the world [↔1Peter 1:19-20]” (Revelation 13:8).
Which brings us to Paul’s strategic act of solidarity with Father and Jesus: As “Jesus also suffered outside the city gate in order to sanctify the people by his own blood, let us then go to him outside the camp and bear the abuse he endured. For here we have no lasting city, but we are looking for the city that is to come” (Hebrews 13:12-14); a destination not existing in the present order of things but Father-built (Hebrews 11:13-16 and Father-delivered (Revelation 21:2-3,10). Now, in Scripture earthly Jerusalem symbolizes Christendom at large, both housing temples where Father could indirectly be accessed, as Solomon well understood (1Kings 8:27↔Acts 7:47-48). But only Christendom is the conceptual location of Father‘s true Temple, the conceptual body of Christ, the human-bricked Church (Ephesians 2:19-22↔1Peter 2:5; Ephesians 5:23↔Colossians 2:9). Thus personal access to Father in Heaven is through the “veil” of Jesus’ flesh (Hebrews 10:19-20), a conceptual flesh replacing the curtain separating the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies (Exodus 26:33). And because of this symbolic link, both Jerusalem and Christendom are depicted in Jeremiah 23:15 and Revelation 17:5 as Judeo-Christian enclaves exporting corrupted gospels throughout the whole world.
Conclusions
So that what the Holy Spirit is telling us through Paul is to free ourselves from the constraints of organized religion, as Jesus himself did; embarking on a spiritual pilgrimage with Jesus as guide in search of the true Promised Land—a journey to be undertaken at great emotional, physical, psychological, and spiritual personal costs. This does not mean singing our praises for doing so: We are still obligated to make fellow parishioners aware of their erroneous beliefs on pain of death (Ezekiel 3:18-21↔Mark 8:38; 1Corinthians 9:16; Revelation 21:8)—and that too gets us into trouble [↔Jeremiah 15:10,15-19]. And because Father is conscious of such sacrifices willingly undertaken on His behalf, He will reward us beyond our wildest dreams (Psalms 50:5↔Hebrews 12:5-8; Jeremiah 29:11↔Revelation 21:4; 1Corinthians 2:9; 1Peter 1:6-7, 5:6).
Still people being the intractable, recidivist creatures they are will do as best suits them. Father has gone on record expressing His poor opinion about the spiritual condition of His people: He has either portrayed them as diseased (Isaiah 1:2-6) or as foolish, ignorant children (Jeremiah 4:22) amongst whom not even one can be deemed righteous: “God [Yahweh Son/Jesus] looks down from Heaven upon the sons of men to see if any understand, if any seek God [Yahweh Father]. All have turned away, they have together become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one” (Psalms 53:2-3). Having said this, though Scripture differentiates between righteous and unrighteous, the criterion is not based on sins common to all human beings (Ecclesiastes 7:20, 9:3↔James 5:17-18), but on the authentic faith some of the former embrace and all of the latter reject (Genesis 15:6↔Romans 4:2-3; Galatians 2:16; Hebrews 11:6).
A ‘saint’ in Biblical parlance is not someone with a halo orbiting over his/her head or canonized by men: It is a person who by choice and in faith separates himself/herself from worldly concerns to live the rest of his/her life dedicated to the service of God (Luke 14:26,33↔2Timothy 2:4); but by no means ever entirely free from sin. Much of this we gather from Paul, hand-picked by Jesus to point Gentiles [non-Jews] in the right direction (Acts 9:15) as Peter was entrusted to so direct the Jews (Galatians 2:7).8 Paul struggled with carnal desires (Romans 7:24-25; 2Corinthians 12:7-9); and never until the very end of his life was he certain of having been victorious (Philippians 3:12-14; 2Timothy 4:7-8). And because there is no denying he is one of Father‘s ‘saints,’ sinner and fallible though he was, he remains an inspiration for us to emulate and a standard to measure against.
It has never been our intention, either here or in previous writings, to fixate on Roman Catholicism as the bogeyman of Scripture; but based on above teachings and incontrovertible historical records, Scripture sure builds up a massive, circumstantial case against her. Whether readers believe these arguments or not is not our concern: Preaching is not about convincing anybody, ramming personal opinions down anyone’s throat, or assuming tutorship over others, but repeating and reaffirming what has been previously revealed (Proverbs 30:6; Ecclesiastes 3:14; Isaiah 8:20; Acts 26:22; Titus 1:9). And remaining true to that standard, we have prefaced every assertion with statements like “if this is the case,” or “it can be suggested,” or “it is possible,” or “may be,” or “perhaps,” leaving it up to the reader to accept/dismiss each.
In all these matters we have followed Jesus’ instructions in Matthew 10:19-20: Keep your personal opinions to yourselves and let the Holy Spirit speak from Father to you [↔John 16:13]. In short imitate Jesus’ example: Repeat rather than originate doctrine (John 7:16); instruct as well as be a team player (Luke 6:40↔Hebrews 2:10); and above all annihilate yourself to such an extent that in doing so, only Father‘s will is served, Father‘s objectives are achieved, and for all practical purposes, we become one with Him in intent and purpose (John 10:33). These are very subjective experiences which no discussion can fully explain.
If only in these regards, we pride ourselves not as teachers but as regurgitators of Scripture mediated by the Holy Spirit without Whose intercession no human opinion is worth zilch. If arguments do not ring true, ignore them; if they invite scrutiny, consult the Bible. But let it be said that in this and all our essays, we have followed Biblical methodology as spearheaded by Jesus’ and Paul’s initiatives, wherein truth is established by agreement amongst witnesses (Deuteronomy 19:15; Matthew 18:16; 2Corinthians 13:1). So that like Paul, obviously extrapolating from Ezekiel 3:18-21, we can claim to be innocent of your blood (Acts 20:26); and in the spirit of James 5:18-19, hope that our humble endeavors will be to our mutual benefit.
1 In Daniel, “horns” usually represent the preeminent rulers of their respective empires; to wit, the kings of Medo-Persia (Daniel 7:20), perhaps Darius the Mede (Daniel 5:31) and Cyrus II the Persian (Ezra 1:1); followed by Alexander king of Greece (Daniel 8:21); and upon his death, his top generals (Daniel 8:22): Ptolemy I Soter (Egypt); Antigonus (areas of Turkey and Asia Minor but later uprooted by Lysimachus); Cassander (Macedonia and Southern Greece); and Seleucus (Asia Minor, Syria, Mesopotamia and parts of Iran).
2 Please note that Daniel 7:23 describes the fourth beast as one “kingdom on earth, which shall be different from all the kingdoms, and it shall devour the whole earth, and trample it down, and break it to pieces.” In what way is this fourth kingdom different from, let us say, Assyria, Babylon, Medo-Persia, or Greece? In that whereas the latter were led by secular rulers, the former would constitute an alliance between secular monarchs and a religious entity: The Holy Roman Empire. While European monarchs wielded the real power in terms of might, they were beholden to popes blessing the furthering of their respective interests/agendas.
Daniel 7:24 then changes focus onto ten horns atop these heads—specific tribes whose preeminent leaders forged European nations? After them, a horn unlike them [non-military?] would subdue “three kings” which cannot be positively identified. Though competing interpretations have been posited, we will leave it at that.
3 Peter’s usage of “Babylon” long after that Empire ceased to exist is another prophetic example of using bygone empires to reference future ones. We find evidence of the same between Jeremiah 51:6-7 and Revelation 17:4, 18:4; and more significantly, between Jeremiah 51:44 and Revelation 16:13-14—the god Bel being, of course, Satan/dragon himself (Revelation 20:2). Other examples occur in Exodus while Moses confronted Pharaoh, not the unnamed human ruler sitting on the throne, but the power behind him: Satan, as suggested in Ezekiel 29:3-6 [↔Job 41:1-2; Psalms 104:26]. Or in Isaiah 14:4,6,12-17,20, where Satan and his minions rather than any historical Babylonian ruler/army is being profiled [Isaiah 14:9↔Ezekiel 32:21; Isaiah 14:11↔Isaiah 34:3; Jeremiah 25:32-33; Ezekiel 29:5; Revelation 19:17-18].
Thus we see that “Babylon” is an an apt metaphor for the world at large, since “the whole world is under the control of the evil one” (1John 5:19↔Luke 4:5-6); as is Egypt as the starting point in the journey towards the Promised Land—i.e., Father‘s Kingdom. Furthermore “Babylon” is emblematic of the place where universal disunity and lack of consensus first originated (Genesis 11:1-9↔Job 5:12; Psalms 33:10; Isaiah 45:6-7]; which again mirrors present-day realities.
4 Please note who is empowering the beast: Satan himself, who is being worshipped through the beast (Revelation 13:4↔Ezekiel 29:3; Revelation 20:2).
5 Seth [912 years (Genesis 5:8)]; Methuselah [969 years (Genesis 5:27)]; Noah [950 years (Genesis 9:29)]; Abraham [175 years (Genesis 25:7)]; Isaac [180 years (Genesis 35:28)]; Jacob [147 years (Genesis 47:28)]; and Joseph [110 years (Genesis 50:26)].
6 In terms of the Hebrew lunar calendar—not the Gregorian, 42 months = 1,260 days (42×30) = 1,260 years as per Ezekiel 4:6’s conversion factor.
7 Over its long history, Rome’s city proper has shifted over surrounding hilly terrain, but always atop seven hills. Of these, since the 14th Century, popes have resided on Vatican Hill—hence the term ‘Vatican’ denoting the seat of the Roman Catholic Church. Of relative significance is the fact that Vatican Hill was the ancient place where pagan prophets and soothsayers delivered their oracles [Latin, “vaticinia”], which reinforces the notion that divine beings chose that spot to reveal their designs—another spurious ‘pedigree’ attached to popes as Heaven’s spokesmen.
8 Which, in addition to Matthew 20:25-27, 23:8, contradicts the Roman Catholic assertion that popes trace their office/lineage back to Peter.
BIBLE FOR END TIMES 