Jesus said Jerusalem will be surrounded by armies, and that an event will occur causing the city to be left desolate. Daniel sees a vision of this; He is studying the vision of the prophet Jeremiah concerning the judgment of Jerusalem and prays that God will turn His anger from them. An angel is then sent with a vision of what will happen[1]. The angel explains that there is a prince to come who will make a covenant with many for ‘a week’, but in the middle of that week he cuts it off. Jerusalem is then left desolate by an event, which lasts until the end of it all. Left with this vision, Daniel seeks God for more information, and is shown a vision of a succession of kingdoms from which a mighty king arises who has great control, makes a treaty, moves against it, defiles the sanctuary, and places an abomination that causes desolation. This is not the only vision Daniel had received; he actually had many depicting the rise of an authority that takes control while blaspheming God. The authority is overcome, then Daniel sees multitudes standing before the throne of God, the books being opened, and judgment being made. The beast is slain, given to burning flames, The Messiah is given dominion and the saints possess the kingdom[2]. This is what Daniel sees over and over again in his visions.
In Revelation[3] John sees more about this ruler; he is given a vision of a beast rising up out of the sea. The beast is fatally wounded, but recovers. The world marvels and follows him, to the point of worshipping it. He boasts and blasphemes for 42 months (3.5 years), makes war with and overcomes the saints, and is given authority over all the nations of the world. All the world worships him, except for those whose names are written in the book of life. A second beast arises, having the authority of the first and causing the earth to worship the first. This beast performs miraculous sign and wonders with which he deceives the world. He causes those who will not worship and take a mark, which will be required to buy or sell, to be put to death. Those who do take the mark and worship the beast will drink the wrath of God, and forever be tormented with fire and brimstone[4].
These passages again speak of a ruler who arises to global power in the end times. Most commonly known as the antichrist, which is really a misnomer but we won’t go into that, this ruler is much greater than any other and takes power globally as the nations submit to his authority. He negotiates a treaty which brings peace and allows the rebuilding of a Temple, but after 3½ years he breaks it. He demands that all people to submit to his marking and worship him as supreme ruler/god. Those who don’t are killed, those who do will see eternal fire and brimstone. This ruler makes war with God’s people and causes an event which desecrates the temple and causes Jerusalem to be left desolate.
Of course, we are just glossing over the tribulation events here. Many commentators have done much better jobs at examining these concepts and they’re all worth reading to find out more. Perhaps the better question is, why the tribulation happens?
When man handed over his authority to the horde he was exiled from the presence of God – the spiritual as we call it. Most sense it the same way science senses dark matter… you can’t really see or detect it directly, but we can see and detect it’s effect upon that which we can see directly. When Jesus returns it is to restore that connection, to re-immerse us in it physically. Try to picture that for a moment. All of what we know and see now is but 10% of what’s to be our new environment. That which we were exiled from, the Messiah will restore to us.
And we have to understand the where-what-all about judgment. Judgment is not so much a deliberate delivery of God’s hammer, but a releasing of that which He has been holding back. Judgment is an allowing of man to reap what he’s sown. Man’s been packin’ a powder keg ever since he first thumbed his nose at God. God’s just saying enough, let’s light the fuse and see how that works out for ya.
Also interesting is the end of the book of Daniel. I like Daniel, I picture him as being kinda nosey with God. Throughout his book we see him pondering on the future of things and ever pestering God to know more, and God responds time and again with visions and dreams of it. At the end of the book Daniel has been really pushing to see more and more, and in a vision takes advantage of his position in the heavenlies to venture a look down upon things he wasn’t supposed to see. He is told to seal up what he saw ‘until the time of the end’. Is it possible that Daniel was taking advantage of God’s hospitality and sneaking a peek at the things John would later see and record in Revelation? What a guy...
Also worth a look at is the proportions of the judgments. We are told that when Satan fell he took 1/3rd of the heavenly host with him, and many of the tribulation judgments we see affect 1/3rd groupings. For you numerologists.
Wow. War. Death. Famine. Pestilence. Lawlessness. All kinds of madness and mayhem. If the Tribulation is a time of judgment against man, do God’s people go through it ? What about it Lord, Will we go through the Tribulation?
[HR][/HR][1] Dan 9
[2] Daniel 7 to the end of the book
[3] 13
[4] Rev 14:9-11
In Revelation[3] John sees more about this ruler; he is given a vision of a beast rising up out of the sea. The beast is fatally wounded, but recovers. The world marvels and follows him, to the point of worshipping it. He boasts and blasphemes for 42 months (3.5 years), makes war with and overcomes the saints, and is given authority over all the nations of the world. All the world worships him, except for those whose names are written in the book of life. A second beast arises, having the authority of the first and causing the earth to worship the first. This beast performs miraculous sign and wonders with which he deceives the world. He causes those who will not worship and take a mark, which will be required to buy or sell, to be put to death. Those who do take the mark and worship the beast will drink the wrath of God, and forever be tormented with fire and brimstone[4].
These passages again speak of a ruler who arises to global power in the end times. Most commonly known as the antichrist, which is really a misnomer but we won’t go into that, this ruler is much greater than any other and takes power globally as the nations submit to his authority. He negotiates a treaty which brings peace and allows the rebuilding of a Temple, but after 3½ years he breaks it. He demands that all people to submit to his marking and worship him as supreme ruler/god. Those who don’t are killed, those who do will see eternal fire and brimstone. This ruler makes war with God’s people and causes an event which desecrates the temple and causes Jerusalem to be left desolate.
Of course, we are just glossing over the tribulation events here. Many commentators have done much better jobs at examining these concepts and they’re all worth reading to find out more. Perhaps the better question is, why the tribulation happens?
When man handed over his authority to the horde he was exiled from the presence of God – the spiritual as we call it. Most sense it the same way science senses dark matter… you can’t really see or detect it directly, but we can see and detect it’s effect upon that which we can see directly. When Jesus returns it is to restore that connection, to re-immerse us in it physically. Try to picture that for a moment. All of what we know and see now is but 10% of what’s to be our new environment. That which we were exiled from, the Messiah will restore to us.
And we have to understand the where-what-all about judgment. Judgment is not so much a deliberate delivery of God’s hammer, but a releasing of that which He has been holding back. Judgment is an allowing of man to reap what he’s sown. Man’s been packin’ a powder keg ever since he first thumbed his nose at God. God’s just saying enough, let’s light the fuse and see how that works out for ya.
Also interesting is the end of the book of Daniel. I like Daniel, I picture him as being kinda nosey with God. Throughout his book we see him pondering on the future of things and ever pestering God to know more, and God responds time and again with visions and dreams of it. At the end of the book Daniel has been really pushing to see more and more, and in a vision takes advantage of his position in the heavenlies to venture a look down upon things he wasn’t supposed to see. He is told to seal up what he saw ‘until the time of the end’. Is it possible that Daniel was taking advantage of God’s hospitality and sneaking a peek at the things John would later see and record in Revelation? What a guy...
Also worth a look at is the proportions of the judgments. We are told that when Satan fell he took 1/3rd of the heavenly host with him, and many of the tribulation judgments we see affect 1/3rd groupings. For you numerologists.
Wow. War. Death. Famine. Pestilence. Lawlessness. All kinds of madness and mayhem. If the Tribulation is a time of judgment against man, do God’s people go through it ? What about it Lord, Will we go through the Tribulation?
[HR][/HR][1] Dan 9
[2] Daniel 7 to the end of the book
[3] 13
[4] Rev 14:9-11