The Antichrist.

I am posting chapters from my sister's book, "The End is near. End Time Bible Prophecy Anyone Can Understand." Available at lulu.com

Continued from previous post...

Addendum

The Antichrist

The prefix “anti” is used to describe a person or organization that is against, or opposes, or counterfeits something.  So an “anti” Christ would be a person or organization that is against, opposes, or counterfeits Christ.  In the Bible, the term antichrist is not found in the book of Revelation.  Here are some verses where you will find this term.

“…just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have appeared…”  1 John 2:18  John, the same John who wrote Revelation, says there were antichrists in his time so this term is not limited to one person at the end of time, as many seem to believe.

“Who is the liar but the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ?  This is the antichrist, the one who denies the Father and the Son.”  1 John 2:22  Here we see that an antichrist is one who denies that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, and therefore an antichrist is one who denies God the Father and Son.

“…every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God; this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world.”  1 John 4:3  Even in John’s day there were people who said Jesus was just a man, or just a good man, or just a prophet.  They denied then, and millions deny today, that Jesus is from God.

As you can see, there have been antichrists for 2000 years.  There is no reason to use the term in any special way or as referring to any special person in our study of end time events.

Addendum

Prophecy uses symbolic language to refer to literal things and people.  Here is a list of what we covered in this chapter.  Also, see Appendix 2 for a more detailed explanation of these symbols and their meanings.

SYMBOL

MEANING

King of North/                          United States of America

Lamb from Earth

King of South/                           Radical Islamists

Egypt

False Prophet                             US Protestant Leader

Image of Beast                           Unification of Political, Protestant and Catholic Powers

Mark of Beast                             Compliance with Demands of Image of Beast

Babylon the Great                       False Church, Jezebel, Catholicism

Revelation: Probation Closes.

I am posting chapters from my sister's book, "The End is near. End Time Bible Prophecy Anyone Can Understand." Available at lulu.com

Continued from previous post...

Probation Closed

“But after the three and a half days, the breath of life from God came into them (the two witnesses, the two olive trees, the Holy Spirit and Jesus), and they stood on their feet; and great fear fell upon those who were watching them.  And they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here.”  Then they went up into heaven in the cloud, and their enemies watched them.  And in that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell; seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.  The second woe is past; behold, the third woe is coming quickly.”  Rev. 11:11-14

The three and one half years have passed.  Those who received the mark of the beast, whether his name or his number, are locked in with their choice and tremble with great fear.  The Holy Spirit and Jesus stop working and leave the earth on its own.

In Chapter 12 of the book of John a voice came out of heaven and spoke to Jesus.  In verse 29 it says, “So the crowd of people who stood by and heard it were saying that it had thundered; others were saying, “An angel has spoken to Him.””   Just as some who were standing around Jesus knew they had heard a voice while others thought it was simply thunder, so too when probation closes at the end of time on this earth.  Some will know that the Holy Spirit has left this earth and that Jesus has stopped interceding for us, while others will not have a clue.

Will you know when probation closes?  Will you be sealed by God or will you have received the mark of the beast?  Probation is going to close and we must make a choice as to what side we will be on.

  

Revelation: The Third Angel's Message.

I am posting chapters from my sister's book, "The End is near. End Time Bible Prophecy Anyone Can Understand." Available at lulu.com

Continued from previous post...

The Third Angel's Message:

“Then another angel, a third one, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger…”” “Here is the perseverance of the saints who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.  And I heard a voice from heaven, saying, “Write, ‘Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on!’” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “so that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them.””  Rev. 14:9, 10, 13

          “I heard another voice from heaven, saying, “Come out of her, my people, so that you will not participate in her sins and receive of her plagues; for her sins have piled up as high as heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities.” Rev. 18:4, 5

          Time is up for Babylon, for the beast and its image, for the dragon Satan.  God has withdrawn from them and is calling those who still have the chance for salvation to come out and join Jesus’ true followers and receive the seal of God: to obey only God’s commandments and to trust only in Jesus for salvation. 

Probation is almost closed and the choice must be made by every person left alive on the earth: will they join God or will they join Satan, will they be saved or will they participate in the judgment plagues God is about to send on the earth?

Revelation: The First and Second Angels' Messages.

The Three Angel’s Messages.

First Angel:  

            “And I saw another angel flying in mid-heaven, having an eternal gospel to preach to those who live on the earth, and to every nation and tribe and tongue and people; and he said with a loud voice, “Fear God, and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come; worship Him who made the heaven and the earth and sea and springs of water.””  Rev. 14:6, 7

            This first angel’s message states that the gospel has been preached to the whole world; in chapter one of this book we saw that we are already very close to seeing the gospel spread to the entire world.

This first angel also warns the world to worship God, the creator.  Notice once again that God is referred to as the Creator.  This is significant in that it points out one of the things the earth needs to be reminded of one last time. Times and laws were changed by man, not by God, and the law having to do with time and that also contains God’s title as our creator is the law regarding the Sabbath (see chapter five of this book).  Therefore, one way in which we worship God is by honoring his authorship of everything when we keep holy His Sabbath day—Saturday.

Second Angel:   

“And another angel, a second one, followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the Great, she who has made all the nations drink of the wine of the passion of her immorality.””  Rev. 14:8

          We saw in chapter four of this book that “Babylon the great, the mother of harlots…” (Rev. 17:5) was Jezebel, the false church. 

What does it mean that she is the mother of harlots?  Well, if harlots are impure women, and women in prophecy refer to churches, the harlot daughters of Babylon the great would be false churches joined with the mother of all false churches.  Protestantism united with Catholicism.

          The second Angel’s message is repeated in more detail in Revelation 18.

          “…“Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great!  She has become a dwelling place of demons and a prison of every unclean spirit, and a prison of every unclean and hateful bird.  For all the nations have drunk of the wine of the passion of her immorality, and the kings of the earth have committed acts of immorality with her, and the merchants of the earth have become rich by the wealth of her sensuality.”  Rev. 18:2, 3

          The Holy Spirit is not working in Babylon; demons and unclean spirits are.  Politicians and business people were working with her and becoming powerful and rich by doing so.  But the religious war is going badly (one third of mankind is dead) and Babylon is being destroyed.  Revelation 18:9-19 describes the despair and mourning coming from those who followed Babylon and have seen their world collapse.

Revelation: The Third Woe.

The Third Woe: Persecution - Probation Closes.

            “And it was given to him (the US religious power, the false prophet) to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast would even speak and cause as many as do not worship the image of the beast to be killed.”  Rev. 13:15

 

Here we have reached what we had been warned about: a repetition of the persecutions experienced by the Thyatira and Sardis churches.  Remember in chapter five of this book that these churches were represented by two lamp stands along with the two olive trees of the Holy Spirit and Jesus?  They witnessed and were persecuted for 1260 years from 538 CE to 1798 CE.  Well, if we go back to Revelation 11, we see in verse seven that the beast who had his wound healed and came out of the abyss (see the previous section of this chapter entitled “Resurrection of the Beast”) makes war, overcomes, and kills these witnesses.  But how can that be?  Thyatira and Sardis are church eras that existed long ago.  Yes, that is true, but the Holy Spirit and Jesus (the two olive trees) are still in this world working with and for true believers, witnessing to the truth, and calling for all who will to accept salvation. 

“And their (the two witnesses, the two olive trees, the Holy Spirit and Jesus) dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city…Those from the peoples and tribes and tongues and nations will look at their dead bodies for three and a half days, and will not permit their dead bodies to be laid in a tomb.  And those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and celebrate; and they will send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tormented those who dwell on the earth.”  Revelation 11:8-10

The persecutions will be widespread and will last for three and one half years (3 ½ days, see Appendix 2).  The start time for this period could be when the beast regains power, when the laws are passed requiring everyone to obey the image of the beast, or it could be another event.  We cannot know.  But during this time the beast, its image, and the false prophet will appear to have complete control over the Christian world.  The work of the Holy Spirit and Jesus will have been nullified and replaced with man-made rules and religions. The torment of a guilty conscience, the pleadings of the Holy Spirit, submission to the will of Jesus seem to have been eliminated and this will lead to great rejoicing by those bearing the mark of the beast. 

The passing of a death sentence against those followers of  God who refuse to receive the mark of the beast, ushers in the closing hours of probation.  Those of us who refuse to follow the false prophet and become part of the image of the beast (the combination of religious denominations and political powers) will be persecuted and some will be killed.  Why?  Because the religious war with the radical Muslims has killed one third of the world’s population, and the other five trumpet judgments are making life on earth a living hell.  It will be thought that God has turned his back on the Western Christian world and the only way to regain his His favor is to act perfectly, according to apostate Protestantism’s definition of perfection.  The best and easiest way they can see to do this is to pass laws enforcing compliance with whatever laws they consider of great importance. 

Once again we see works and deeds being substituted for simple faith in Jesus’ righteousness.  Our duty is to God first and foremost, so when these so-called religious laws are passed we must compare them to what God has said in his Bible.  “To the law and to the testimony!  If they do not speak according to this word, it is because they have no dawn.” Is. 8:20  Trust in Jesus and obey him; do not trust in man-made laws or in any good deed you can perform.

Revelation: The Sixth Trumpet.

I am posting chapters from my sister's book, "The End is near. End Time Bible Prophecy Anyone Can Understand." Available at lulu.com

Continued from previous post...

Sixth Trumpet:  Religious War, 1/3 of Man Killed.

“Then the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice…” Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.”  And the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour and day and month and year, were released, so that they would kill a third of mankind.  The number of the armies of the horsemen was two hundred million; I heard the number of them.  And this is how I saw in the vision…the heads of the horses are like the heads of lions; and out of their mouths proceed fire and smoke and brimstone.  A third of mankind was killed by these three plagues, by the fire and the smoke and the brimstone which proceeded out of their mouths.  The rest of mankind who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, so as not to worship demons, and the idols…and they did not repent of their murders nor of the sorceries nor of their immorality nor of their thefts.” 

          Here we see that angels are holding back a war that will originate from the Middle East, where the Euphrates River is. 

But when the sixth trumpet sounds, the angels will back off and a world war will erupt.  We can see right now in world events that the Middle East has and is a place of trouble.  Israel and its neighbors have fought for decades, and now the West and radical Muslims are fighting and it is going to get worse.  The three plagues of fire, smoke and brimstone that kill one third of mankind can easily be seen as nuclear devastation.

World War III is right around the corner.  The king of the North (the US) and the king of the South (radical Islam) are already in conflict; it is just a matter of time before it escalates and the sixth trumpet is fulfilled.

Revelation: 666 & The Mark of the Beast.

I am posting chapters from my sister's book, "The End is near. End Time Bible Prophecy Anyone Can Understand." Available at lulu.com

Continued from previous post...

Mark of the Beast: Name or 666

          Revelation 14:9 says, “If anyone worships the beast or his image, and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand….”  We see that the mark comes from worshipping the beast or his image.

          “And he (the United States) causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free men and the slaves, to be given a mark on their right hand or on their forehead, and he provides that no one will be able to buy or to sell, except the one who had the mark, either the name of the beast or the number of his name.  Here is wisdom.  Let him who had understanding calculate the number of the beast, for the number is that of a man; and his number is six hundred and sixty-six.”  Rev. 13:16-18

          It says here in the part of Revelation 13 that describes the United States that the mark of the beast is either his name or the number of his name and those who refuse to worship the beast or his image will not be able to buy or sell.

          We saw in the last chapter of this book that for every true and good thing from God, Satan has a counterfeit: God has a church, Satan has a church; God has a Sabbath, Satan has a Sabbath; God marks his believers, Satan marks his believers.  And just as we saw in the last chapter that the seal of God is not a visible mark, so too the mark of the beast will not be a visible mark or stamp.  The mark of the beast on the forehead represents those who are unwaveringly committed to following the false prophet and the beast and its image.  They are “named” among the most faithful and radical followers of the beast.

 The mark of the beast on the hand represents those who follow along simply because it is easier than fighting and dying for God’s truth.  They act a good part and are simply “numbered” among the throngs of those who follow the beast for the sake of convenience. 

We know that true and good things from God are counterfeited by Satan.  You have probably already noticed that God uses the number seven a lot when describing true and holy things (seventh day Sabbath, seven days of creation, seven churches, seven judgments, etc), so a close counterfeit, signifying those things that are untrue or unholy, would be the number six.  That is all the number 666 probably means. 

No sane or half intelligent person would willingly use, or allow to be used, an identification as obvious as the number 666.  Satan and his followers are much smarter than that.  We will be able to recognize the false prophet by his actions and words; a number is irrelevant.  

                                                 

                                          

Revelation: Image of the Beast.

I am posting chapters from my sister's book, "The End is near. End Time Bible Prophecy Anyone Can Understand." Available at lulu.com

Continued from previous post...

Of the United States, Revelation 13:12 says, “He exercises all the authority of the first beast (Rome, Catholicism) in his presence.  And he makes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose fatal would was healed.”  Just as the Pope and the Catholic Church used to exercise political and religious authority over the Western world before its deadly wound in 1798, so the United States will exercise its political and religious authority over the Western world, uniting with Catholicism and giving back to the Pope the power his position once wielded. 

The Image of the Beast

          When you look in a mirror you see a reflection of yourself.  It is not you, but it looks just like you and it mirrors any movement you make. 

 Well, the beast was a political and religious power that ruled the Western world for centuries, and an image to this beast will have the same traits without being the exact same entity.  

Instead of being solely the Catholic Church with the Pope wielding religious and political power, this image will be political powers, dominated by the US, backing up the Ecumenical unification of religious powers (Revelation 17:12, 13 says that the kings of the earth will give their power and authority to the beast, so it will not be just the US political power).  

Combined, these political and religious powers resemble, or mirror, the works and the powers of the Catholic Church during her 1260-year reign from 538 CE to 1798 CE.  So what we will see is an unholy trinity, a joining of politics, Protestantism and Catholicism.

 This unification is already at work in what is called the Ecumenical Movement, a movement by Christians of different denominations to overcome their differences and unite under their commonalities.  (see Appendix 1)

https://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/26/world/europe/pope-francis-catholics-and-lutherans-will-recall-reformation.html?_r=0

Revelation: The Resurrection of the Beast.

I am posting chapters from my sister's book, "The End is near. End Time Bible Prophecy Anyone Can Understand." Available at lulu.com

Continued from previous post...

The US involvement in the Middle East is only the beginning.  Iran, North Korea, Syria and others are perceived as threats to the Western world and Daniel says that the US  will expand its campaign to the East and North.

The False Prophet

In Matthew 7:15 Jesus said, “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.”  Revelation 13 continues with its description of the United States’ religious leader’s powers, one of the two horns on the lamb that arose out of the earth.  

“He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down out of heaven to the earth in the presence of men.  And he deceives those who dwell on the earth, because of the signs which it was given him to perform in the presence of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who had the wound of the sword and has come to life.”  Rev. 13:13, 14  

This religious leader, in the guise of a lamb or in sheep’s clothing, is going to perform signs that are meant to deceive people into believing that he is sent by God to organize an image to the beast, when in fact he speaks like a dragon and is inwardly a ravenous wolf.  The signs he performs may be powers given to him by Satan, or they may simply be slight of hand magic tricks.  We cannot know.  What we do know is that he will be convincing enough to make people follow him unquestioningly and to make an image to the beast.

The apostle Paul was talking about the end times when he said this: “…one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders, and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved.  For this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false, in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness.”  1 Thess. 2:9-12  

People will often believe what they want to believe when it seems to benefit them the most.  God allows this as each person on earth has been given free will to love God and accept the truth, or love wickedness and believe what is false.

Resurrection of the Beast

          We saw in chapter four and five of this book that the Pope was taken prisoner in 1798, wherein the Catholic Church lost its power and suffered a fatal wound (Rev. 13:3).  However, in Revelation 17:8 it says, “The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss and go to destruction.  And those who dwell on the earth, whose name has not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will wonder when they see the beast, that he was and is not and will come.”  

It looks like the beast “is not” but the beast will rise again from the “abyss” of obscurity into which it had fallen after 1798, and it will regain its power in the end times (see also Rev. 11:7; Rev. 13:12, 14). 

Daniel 11: War Between U.S. and Middle East.

I am posting chapters from my sister's book, "The End is near. End Time Bible Prophecy Anyone Can Understand." Available at lulu.com

Continued from previous post.

Photo by: Martin Falbisoner

As an independent nation, the United States has always acted as gently as a lamb domestically by offering religious and political freedom to all its citizens, but in the world theater it speaks with the power of a dragon.  We know that a horn represents individual people, rulers of nations or a position of great power (see Appendix 2).  In the end times, under the sixth trumpet, two powers, one religious and one political, will arise in the United States.  Since the US is predominantly a protestant nation, we can surmise that the religious power will be someone who represents Protestant Christians.  The president will work with this religious leader and together they will govern America.

          Back in Daniel Chapter 11 we see what else the king of the North, the United States of America, will do at the end times.  “At the time of the end the king of the South will engage him in battle, and the king of the North will storm out against him with chariots and cavalry and a great fleet of ships. He will invade many countries and sweep through them like a flood. He will also invade the Beautiful Land. (Israel) Many countries will fall, but Edom,  Moab (modern-day Jordan) and the leaders of Ammon (partly in modern-day Syria) will be delivered from his hand. He will extend his power over many countries; Egypt will not escape. He will gain control of the treasures of gold and silver and all the riches of Egypt, with the Libyans and Cushites (north Africa?) in submission. But reports from the east and the north will alarm him, and he will set out in a great rage to destroy and annihilate many. He will pitch his royal tents between the seas at the beautiful holy mountain. (Jerusalem) Yet he will come to his end, and no one will help him."  Daniel 11:40-45

 As this chapter is being written, the United States is involved in a prolonged conflict in Iraq…the location of the Euphrates River.  This conflict arose out of the 9/11 attacks against the US  by radical Muslims: Islam versus Christianity, the West versus the East, the king of the North versus the king of the South.  

Daniel & Revelation: The United States in Prophecy.

I am posting chapters from my sister's book, "The End is near. End Time Bible Prophecy Anyone Can Understand." Available at lulu.com

Continued from previous post.

In the last chapter we looked at the first five trumpets and the first of three woes.  Before we begin studying the sixth trumpet and the second woe, there are a few things that must be clarified.  In the past chapters of this book I would simply refer to the appendices, but I know many readers have not flipped to the back and read them.  This section on the sixth trumpet and the second woe is too important not to be understood completely; therefore we are going to define everything up front instead of using the appendices.

   King of the North/Lamb from Earth        King of the South

          In Daniel 11:1-30 we see a repeat of the three world empires that followed Babylon:  Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome.  More detail is given as to the events that occurred under each empire, but we have already covered all this in enough detail to suit our purposes.  All we need to recognize is that in Daniel Chapter 11 the king of the North usually represents the dominant power and the king of the South represents a secondary power.  In verses 31 through 33 we find the Catholic Church described.  We know it is the Catholic Church because it is described as doing away with the regular sacrifice, as setting up the abomination of desolation, and as persecuting those who do not fall into line (see chapter five of this book).  

To confirm our identification of the Catholic Church here in Daniel, verse 37 says that he (the church, or the Pope) shows no regard for the desire of women.  Catholic priests are celibate and show no regard for the desire of women.

Daniel 11:40 says, “At the end time the king of the South will collide with him…” meaning a secondary power will wage war with (the) Catholic Church.  Catholicism is the largest and most visible of all Christian denominations, so if any other religion, such as radical Islam, were to want to attack Christianity, this would be a logical description for the Bible to give of the first target.  

Verse 40 continues; “…and the king of the North will storm against him (the king of the South) with chariots, with horsemen and with many ships; and he (the king of the North) will enter countries, overflow them and pass through.”  So what is this dominant power that will fight for Christianity against the king of the South?  The answer to that question is found in Revelation Chapter 13.

                                            

“Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb and he spoke as a dragon.”  Rev. 13:11  We know that a beast represents a nation, kingdom, or political power.  And we learned that the beast in the first half of Revelation 13 was the Catholic Church (see chapter five of this book), and that it came up out of the sea, meaning it arose out of a population of people (see Appendix 2). 

This new beast, however, comes up out of the earth.  This can only mean that it is a new power, one that does not rise out of an established population.  There were two brand new nations that arose around the time of the decline in the power of the Catholic Church in 1798:  Australia and the United States of America.  The United States was the only one to become an independent nation around this time and is the only one that is a dominant world power now.  Therefore, this beast from the earth must represent the United States.

Revelation: The Fifth Trumpet Continued...

I am posting chapters from my sister's book, "The End is Near. End Time Bible Prophecy Anyone Can Understand."  Found at lulu.com
continued from last post...

One way Satan deceives people is through spiritualism.  God is so firmly against anything to do with the occult that he said anyone who practiced it was to be killed immediately.  (see Ex. 22:18; Deut. 18:10-12)  This is because dabbling with the occult opens the door between the physical and spiritual worlds.  If we defy God and open ourselves up to the spiritual world, he cannot protect us and we have placed ourselves into Satan’s hands.  What a terrifying and dreadful place to be!  To fall into Satan’s hands and be tormented by him in whatever way he can think of is the worst torment imaginable.  It would be better to suffer physically and have our souls in God’s hands than it would be to spiritually suffer in the unmerciful hands of pure evil.

            Just as we can see the beginning of the first three trumpets occurring in the world around us, if we take spiritualism as the meaning of the fifth trumpet we can see it is also occurring now.  The rise of spiritualism is often dated as occurring in the mid 1800’s.  However, real organization of spiritualism did not happened until the Theosophical Society was founded in 1875.  The preamble to the society's bylaws states: "The Title of the Theosophical Society explains the objects and desires of its founder: they 'seek to obtain knowledge of the nature and attributes of the Supreme Power, and of the higher spirits by the aid of physical processes.' In other words, they hope, that by going deeper than modern science has hitherto done, into the esoteric philosophies of ancient times, they may be enabled to obtain, for themselves and other investigators, proof of the existence of an 'Unseen Universe,' the nature of its inhabitants if such there be, and the laws which govern them and their relations with mankind…” (18)

          Then there is witchcraft of Aleister Crowley.  “…Crowley is probably best known today as the author of the twentieth century's most influential textbooks on occultism, and as the first Englishman to found a religion—Thelema—which is today a recognized faith around the world.” (19)  “The Law of Thelema, also called Scientific Illuminism and Magick (spelled with a terminal 'k' to distinguish the authentic science of the Magi from sleight of hand), originated in the Cairo Working. At the time, Crowley interpreted the Cairo Working as an astral vision. At this time, Crowley was a Minor Adept of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. The Golden Dawn was the most distinguished occult society of recent times, which included such luminaries as the poet William Butler Yeats…” (20) 

          Then there is witchcraft of Aleister Crowley.  “…Crowley is probably best known today as the author of the twentieth century's most influential textbooks on occultism, and as the first Englishman to found a religion—Thelema—which is today a recognized faith around the world.” (19)  “The Law of Thelema, also called Scientific Illuminism and Magick (spelled with a terminal 'k' to distinguish the authentic science of the Magi from sleight of hand), originated in the Cairo Working. At the time, Crowley interpreted the Cairo Working as an astral vision. At this time, Crowley was a Minor Adept of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. The Golden Dawn was the most distinguished occult society of recent times, which included such luminaries as the poet William Butler Yeats…” (20) 

And finally we have Anton LaVey who, in 1966, formed the Church of Satan and in 1969 wrote the Satanic Bible.  His is not the only church to worship Satan, many others have sprung up since his bold move to publicly form his church, but his is the most famous. 

 Do you see how all this has progressed?  It started with spiritualism, moved on to witchcraft, and has culminated with Satanism.  Once the door to the spiritual world is opened, more and more evil floods through.  This progression can also happen to individuals on a smaller scale.  You may begin with having your palm read or getting a numerology chart made.  Then you progress to ouija boards and séances.  Eventually you get more and more involved in the occult until Satan can claim you as one of his own.  The best defense against this is to obey God and shun anything to do with the occult.

We do not know at what time the 150 years began and thus we cannot know when it will end, but the fifth trumpet promises that the torment of man by demons will culminate some time in the future. 

We have looked at the first five of the seven trumpets and have a pretty good idea of what to expect.  The sixth and seventh trumpets are so important and contain so much information that they will each be covered in a chapter of their own.

Revelation: The Fifth Trumpet & First Woe.

I am posting chapters from my sister's book, "The End is Near. End Time Bible Prophecy Anyone Can Understand."
continued from last post...

The last three trumpets are referred to as the three woes because they are extremely horrible.

Fifth Trumpet, First Woe:  Locust 

            “Then the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star from heaven which had fallen to the earth; and the key of the bottomless pit was given to him.  He opened the bottomless pit, and smoke went up out of the pit, like the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by the smoke of the pit.  Out of the smoke came locusts upon the earth, and power was given them, as the scorpions of the earth have power.  They were told not to hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but only the men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.  And they were not permitted to kill anyone, but to torment for five months; and their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it stings a man.  And in those days men will seek death and will not find it; they will long to die, and death flees from them.”  They have as king over them, the angel of the abyss; his name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in the Greek he has the name Apollyon.  The first woe is past; behold, two woes are still coming after these things.”       Rev. 9:1-6, 11, 12

You have probably heard the term, “All hell is breaking loose.”  Well, that is a good description of what happens under the fifth trumpet.  A fallen star, an angel who follows Lucifer (see Rev. 12:4), is shown releasing smoke and locust from the bottomless pit.  God had kept Satan and his demons under control and had put certain limits on their activities, but now they are loosed to wreak havoc upon the earth.  But those who belong to God and have his seal will be spared from direct attacks from Satan and his angels.

             There are two main schools of thought regarding the fifth trumpet.  We will look at both and then we will have to wait for time to tell us which is the correct interpretation.

  The first school of thought says that since the first four trumpets are literal renderings of what is going to happen, there is no reason to think the fifth trumpet is anything other than literal.  If that is true, then for the first time in our study of prophecy we see a time period that is NOT symbolic.  Five months is the literal duration of this plague. 

When Jesus was on this earth, he went to the Gadarenes one time and there he met two demon-possessed men.  As Jesus was casting the demons out of these men the demons begged to be allowed to enter and possess some pigs that were nearby.  Jesus allowed them to do so and the pigs went insane, jumping into the sea and drowning.  (see Matt. 8:28-32)  Here with the fifth trumpet we see something similar but with different results.  Demons are allowed to possess locust but instead of going insane they torment mankind for five months, driving them insane.  They are led by the demon of the abyss named Abaddon and Apollyon.  These names translate into the word Destruction and can refer to Satan himself or perhaps one of his lieutenants.

   There are three restrictions put upon the locusts:  they cannot attack those bearing the seal of God, they cannot eat grass, trees or any green thing, and they cannot kill.  The descriptions of these locusts wearing armor and having teeth like lions (Rev. 9:7-10), etc, simply indicates that they are indestructible.  No matter what man does, he cannot stop these locusts from tormenting.  Try to imagine living for five months where every time you walk out the door swarms of locust attack you.  They invade your home, surround your car, and crawl all over you whenever they can.  Would you not feel like you were going insane?  It would be horrible torment.

The other school of thought says that with the fifth trumpet we switch from literal descriptions of what will happen under the first four trumpets to a symbolic description.  Why is it symbolic rather than literal?  Because locusts do only one thing when they swarm: eat.  They eat everything in sight, but here they are told not to hurt any green thing.  They are told to harm only people, and only those who do not have God’s seal on their foreheads.  Also, these locusts have a king reigning over them, but Prov. 30:27 clearly states that locust have no king.  So the conclusion is that the locust stands for something else that will torment people.

          But what form do these attacks take?  And does the torment they inflict last five literal months or 150 years (30 x 5 = 150, see Appendix 2)?  If the events described under the fifth trumpet are primarily symbolic, then it is assumed that the five months is symbolic also and therefore means 150 years.  Now we must find out what kind of demonic activities have been, or will be, occurring for that amount of time.  Demons are not going to simply show up at your door and start tormenting you.  Satan is much more clever than that and he disguises his attacks so that they appear harmless.  But they are not harmless, and people do not realize that until they have been sucked in and start experiencing the torment Satan had planned for them all along. 

Revelation: Trumpets 1-4.

I already published this but made a mistake so have to publish again.

This brings us to the mark of the beast.  You have possibly heard of it and heard people speculate that it will be tattoos of bar codes on people’s arms, or a special ID card or implant under the skin, or any other type of visible identification.  However, for every true and good thing from God, Satan has a counterfeit: God has a church, Satan has a church; God has a Sabbath, Satan has a Sabbath; God marks his believers, Satan marks his believers.  We will discuss this more in the next chapter. 

At this time probation is still open and anyone who wants to can join God’s true followers and receive his seal.

Seventh Seal:  Judgment    

          Experience

          “When the Lamb broke the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.  And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and seven trumpets were given to them.  Another angel came and stood at the altar, holding a golden censer… Then the angel took the censer and filled it with the fire of the altar, and threw it to the earth; and there followed peals of thunder and sounds and flashes of lightning and an earthquake.”  Rev. 8:1-5

           When the other six seals were opened, there was always a commotion in the form of voices or natural phenomena.  (see Rev. 6:1, 3, 5, 7, 9-10, 12)  So why is there silence in heaven when the seventh seal is introduced?  Well, when are you moved to be utterly silent?  When something momentous or fascinating is happening or about to happen and you do not want to miss one second of it.  All of heaven has been involved in what has been going on down here on earth ever since Satan and sin entered the picture, and now it is all about to climax and to come to an end.  No one in heaven wants to miss a second of the drama about to unfold

.

          The angel with the censer throws it to the earth, signaling the commencement of the seven trumpet judgments. 

Trumpets have been used for thousands of years to announce one thing or another.  They were used to announce a warning that an enemy was coming, or they relayed battlefield orders in the midst of a fight, and even today the military uses them to announce the beginning and end of the day.  So the seven angels and their seven trumpets are announcing the beginning of God’s judgments and the beginning of the end of this conflict between good and evil on this earth.

First Trumpet:  1/3 of Earth Burned

“The first sounded, and there came hail and fire, mixed with blood, and they were thrown to the earth; and a third of the earth was burned up, and a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up.”  Rev. 8:6, 7

Second Trumpet:  1/3 of Sea Becomes Blood

“The second angel sounded, and something like a great mountain burning with fire was thrown into the sea; and a third of the sea became blood, and a third of the creatures which were in the sea and had life, died; and a third of the ships were destroyed.”  Rev. 8:8, 9

Third Trumpet:  1/3 of Fresh Water Made Bitter

Fourth Trumpet:  1/3 of Sky Darkened

“The fourth angel sounded, and a third of the sun and a third of the moon and a third of the stars were struck, so that a third of them would be darkened and the day would not shine for a third of it, and the night in the same way.”  Rev. 8:12

The first thing  we must ask ourselves is if these trumpet judgments are literally going to happen or if they are figurative and stand for something else.  If we look closely at each trumpet we see that the descriptions are too specific to be figurative language.  Trees, grass, creatures in the sea, men, sun, moon and stars are all literal things affected by what is to come.  But the reference to Wormwood is figurative, right?  Yes and no.  Webster’s New World College Dictionary (4^th ed.) defines wormwood as a plant that yields bitter oil, but it also defines wormwood as, “…a bitter, unpleasant, or mortifying experience.”  Living during a time when a third of the earth is burned, a third of the ocean dies, a third of our fresh water is ruined, and a third of the sky goes dark is going to be a horribly bitter, unpleasant and mortifying experience.

           If we look at the world today, we can see that the first three trumpet judgments seem to be slowly coming true even now.  We are polluting our oceans and our drinking water, and the earth is suffering from global warming, but it will not culminate into a third of each until we are in the Laodicea Church era.  We can speculate that the great mountain of fire under the second trumpet is a volcano or some other natural phenomena that will hasten the ruination of the oceans; killing a third of the creatures in the oceans and causing tsunamis or other devastating after effects that will smash ships.

Photo by EPA

Yellowstone Park Fire

Volcanic ash from Calbuco Volcano, Chile

Late on April 22, 2015, Calbuco volcano in southern Chile awoke from four decades of slumber with an explosive eruption. Ash and pumice particles were lofted high into the atmosphere, and the debris has been darkening skies and burying parts of Chile, Argentina, and South America for nearly a week. Along with 210 million cubic meters of ash and rock, the volcano has been spewing sulfur dioxide (SO2) and other gases.