The Book of Revelation: Jesus’ End-Time Battle Plan for the Church

INTERNATIONAL HOUSE OF PRAYER KC – MIKE BICKLE

FORERUNNER CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP

The Book of Revelation: Jesus’ End-Time Battle Plan for the Church

 
I.    THE BOOK OF REVELATION: JESUS’ END-TIME BATTLE PLAN FOR THE CHURCH
 

A.    The Book of Revelation reveals the glory of Jesus (Rev. 1:1) and His dramatic plan to transition the earth to the age-to-come. There will be unique dynamics in the generation Jesus returns that are absolutely necessary in preparing the nations for His return. These events require our deep involvement. Thus, Jesus gives us the details which are essential to equip us to fully participate.
 
B.    There are 4 parts in the structure of Revelation. The 4th part has 5 chronological sections in which the events occur in sequential order. There are 7 main symbols in the Book.
 
C.    The main theme of Revelation is Jesus’ return to earth to rule all the nations. His End-Time battle plan is to physically destroy all the evil governments on earth by releasing His judgments on them during the Great Tribulation as described in Rev. 6-19.
 
D.    As the Book of Acts describes the power of the Holy Spirit that was released through the early Church so the Book of Revelation describes the power of the Holy Spirit that will be released through the End-Time Church. I refer to Revelation as the “End-Time Book of Acts”. It is a “canonized prayer manual” that informs us of the ways in which Jesus will manifest His power.
 
E.    As Moses released God’s judgments on Pharaoh by prayer (Exodus 7-12), so the Church will release the Great Tribulation judgments on the Antichrist by prayer. The miracles and judgments in Exodus and Acts will be multiplied and released worldwide through prayer. The greatest demonstrations of power in history will be openly manifest by Jesus and Satan (Rev. 12:9; 13:2).
 
18 I will build My Church, and the gates of Hades (authority of hell) shall not prevail against it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. (Mt. 16:18-19)
 
F.    Revelation is Jesus’ battle plan to allow the sin in man’s heart to fully come to the surface and then to drive evil off the planet through the praying Church. These judgment events do not happen to us as helpless victims of Satan but are released through us as participants with Jesus. Jesus’ judgments are released to remove all that hinders love. He is at war to have His wedding.
 
G.    The 7 main symbols: all events and numbers in Revelation are to be taken in their plain meaning (literal) unless specifically indicated not to (Rev. 1:20; 5:6; 11:8; 12:1, 3, 9; 17:7, 9, 15-18, etc.)
 
1) Dragon: is symbolic of Satan (Rev. 12:3, 4, 7, 9, 13, 16, 17; 13:2, 4; 16:13; 20:2)
 
2) First Beast: is symbolic of the Antichrist (Rev. 13; 14:9-11; 17:3-17; 19:19-21; 20:4, 10)
 
3) Another Beast: is symbolic of the False Prophet called “another Beast” just once (Rev. 13:11)
 
4) Seven Heads: are 7 empires from history that persecuted Israel (Egypt, Assyria, Babylon,
     Persia, Greece, Rome, revived Roman Empire of Dan. 2:41-42; 7:7; Rev. 12:3; 13:1; 17:3-16)
 
5) Ten Horns: represents a 10-nation confederation that serves the Antichrist (Rev. 17:12-13)
 
6) Harlot Babylon: will be a worldwide demonically inspired religious and economic system
     based in the re-built city of Babylon, near Baghdad in Iraq (Rev. 17-18; Jer. 50-51)
 
7) Woman and Male-child (Jesus): is the faithful remnant of Israel throughout history (Rev. 12)
 

II.    STRUCTURE OF REVELATION: 4 PARTS AND 5 SECTIONS (IN THE 4TH PART)
 

Rev. 1      Pt. 1 John’s CALLING to prophesy about the End-Times: John gave 18 truths about Jesus’ majesty that formed the way he prophesied about the End-Times, which are meant to equip us.
 
Rev. 2-3    Pt. 2 Jesus gave 7 LETTERS to 7 churches: the instructions Jesus gave to these 7 churches about overcoming sin give us practical insight into what we must also overcome today.
 
Rev. 4-5   Pt. 3 Jesus takes the SCROLL: contains the earth’s title deed and His battle plan to cleanse it.
 
Rev. 6-22   Pt. 4 Jesus’ BATTLE PLAN: includes Great Tribulation judgments against the Antichrist. Jesus reveals His main storyline of love to cleanse the earth of evil. His battle plan here is seen in 5 Chronological sections that describe events that unfold in sequential order.
                          Each section is followed by an Angelic explanation to help us understand that section.

 
The 5 Chronological Sections: tell us what happens to the Antichrist’s followers in 21 judgment events (7 seals, 7 trumpets, 7 bowls). These intensify in severity as they unfold.
 
The 5 Angelic Explanations: function as a parenthesis, putting the storyline on “pause”. They answer questions arising from the chronological sections: Why is God’s wrath so severe? What will happen to us? Angels explain to John what happens to God’s people including what Jesus will do to help us and what the Antichrist will do to persecute us.
 

Rev. 6            Chronological section #1: the SEAL JUDGMENTS against the kingdom of darkness.
Rev. 7           Angelic Explanation #1: we receive PROTECTION from judgments and falling away.
 
Rev. 8-9       Chronological section #2: the TRUMPET JUDGMENTS against the Antichrist’s empire.
Rev. 10-11   Angelic Explanation #2: we receive DIRECTION by great increase of prophetic ministry.
 
Rev. 11:15-19 Chronological section #3: the SECOND COMING PROCESSION and the Rapture.
                         The 7th and Last Trumpet (1 Cor. 15:52; Rev. 10:7; 1 Thessalonians 4:16): Jesus replaces all governmental leaders on earth in a hostile takeover. In His Procession, Jesus first travels across the sky to rapture the saints (every eye sees Him; Rev. 1:7), then through the land of Edom (modern day Jordan; Isa. 63:1-6) then into Jerusalem to the Mount of Olives. 

Rev. 12-14    Angelic Explanation #3: the CONFRONTATION against the saints by the Antichrist’s system and persecutions requires that all his governments be taken over. Satan is on earth.
 
Rev. 15-16   Chronological section #4: the BOWL JUDGMENTS destroy evil infrastructures in society
Rev. 17-18   Angelic Explanation #4: the SEDUCTION of Babylon’s evil religion will permeate and infiltrate all the structures of society, requiring that Babylon be totally destroyed. 
 
Rev. 19-20   Chronological section #5: Jesus’ TRIUMPHAL ENTRY to Jerusalem (Rev. 19:11-21:8 )
Rev. 21-22   Angelic Explanation #5: the RESTORATION of all things Acts 3:21 (Rev. 21:9-22:5)

 

 

Learn more at: http://www.ihop.org

The Origin of The BIBLE

ORIGINS of the BIBLE

 

All right, I know! Someone is going to say that I haven’t recorded everything about every book. Then I’ll hear that there are all these secret societies that chose these writings and altered them for just their own causes. Phooey! There are too many people watching these hell-ywood movies like DaVinci Code and, although it was a great adventure story, National Treasure. Sorry, but as cool as it would be that there are hidden secrets and the one guy who no one would suspect as a hero is about to discover them all as he brazenly escapes certain doom!- That’s all for the movies. In the Bible, many did not escape their doom. Disciples were killed for what they preached. If they were going to take out the things that made the church look bad, they missed a few things. The truth is, the Bible is a history book, and its events actually happened.

 

Moses is believed to have written Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy (although there is some question to his authorship of Deuteronomy). These were written approx. 1500 years before Jesus.

David wrote 500 years later, or 1000 years before Jesus (approx).

The written Hebrew alphabet is proven to be at the very least 3000 years old.

(More on Biblical authors below.)

 

One of the greatest confusions stems from the fast that, in the days of the Old Testament, authors didn’t write chronologically. They would instead tell story by story, not in a “day by day” arrangement. That’s why it seems to be out of order sometimes. Let me give an example. I’m Justin, my dad is Tom and my grandpa is Dave. Back then, they would tell Dave’s entire story, from beginning to end, possibly including the birth of Tom. Then they would tell Tom’s story. After writing about Tom from birth to death (or current), they would go back and write about Justin’s birth and life. Since I’m still alive, the story would bring us up to the end of the point the author wants to make. So if you just read along line by line, you’d think quite often that you missed something, like the fact that Adam and Eve had other kids than Cain and Abel. Genesis 3 is about Adam and Eve’s life. Genesis 4 is about Cain and Abel. Then in chapter 5, we learn (verse 4) that they had “other sons and daughters”. Later in the Old Testament, it gets even more confusing if you don’t know how to look at it.

 

 

 By Jesus’ day, the Old Testament was translated into Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic. In the Hebrew, there were no vowels. You would have had to know what to put where. For example, “Shlm” would be the way to write “Shalom”. The writings were copied carefully, and were put into the area’s common language. As a result, the one copying would often take notes. Quite often these notes or commentaries would accompany the actual letter or scroll. These commentaries are believed to be responsible for the few typographical errors or slights when someone from the New Testament quoted the Old Testament. The New Testament writers and speakers often had to go by the four different common languages/ dialects in which the scrolls were written. In each respective language, they were VERY careful to write l-e-t-t-e-r by l-e-t-t-e-r.

 

In 1947, the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. One of them was the entire book of Isaiah. This was an opportune time to test what so many critics had claimed. Was the Bible changed over the years? Had we bent the stories to suit the church’s desire? Was there a massive conspiracy to cover up a secret religion? When comparing the newly discovered treasure to the Holy Bible in every church pew, there were only 11 differences. Seven of them were a different way to spell a word. The other four were minor typographical errors that didn’t change the meaning of a single thing. All the years of accusation would be put to rest. (At least until the next generation of blind-hearted deceived unbelievers.)

 

Joshua is traditionally, thought by many scholors, believed to have authored his own book. There are, however, other possibilities. Considering that the book describes Joshua’s death at the end, and includes in the middle (specifically Joshua 15:13-19; cf. Judges 1:1, 9-15) an incident the occurred after Joshua’s death, we need to explore other options. There are references to “we” and “us” in Joshua 5:1 and 5:6 perhaps suggests an eyewitness to the events was the author of the book, such as a close companion or scribe- something to that effect. The book would thus date to either the 15th or 13th century BC, depending, again, upon exactly when the Exodus from Egypt occurred. Either someone close to Joshua wrote for him, thereby they would know the events of his death, or Joshua was co-authored, and someone else filled in the pieces after Joshua’s death. The only other possibility is that Joshua prophecied, or was shown, the events of his demise prior to their occurrence.

The following are widely debated or simply unknown:

Judges (c. 10th century BC)

Ruth (c. 10th century BC)

1-2 Samuel (8th-6th century BC)

1-2 Kings (6th-5th century BC)

1-2 Chronicles (400 BC would be the earliest possible date for composition)

Esther (5th century BC)

Job (c. 10th century BC at the earliest)

Lamentations traditionally ascribed to Jeremiah the prophet. There is, however, little in the book itself suggesting who the author might be, other than that he is obviously an eyewitness to the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians (c. 586 BC).

Psalms, the longest “book” of the Bible, is actually a compilation of many authors’ work. A conglomerate written by numerous people, the authorship of individual psalms, as attributed by their titles, breaks down as follows (of the 150 psalms, 116 are provided with a title):

Moses – Psalm 90

Heman the Ezrahite – Psalm 88

Ethan the Ezrahite – Psalm 89

Solomon – Psalm 72, 127

David (73 times) – Psalms 3-9, 11-32, 34-41, 51-65, 68-70, 86, 103, 108-110, 122, 124, 131, 133, 138-145

Asaph (12 times) – Psalms 50, 73-83

Sons of Korah (9 times) Psalm 42, 44-45, 47-49, 84-85, 87

Author unknown – (49 times) the remainder

The Septuagint (an early Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible from around 200 BC) gives some additional authorship identification, as follows:

Jeremiah – Psalm 137

Haggai and Zechariah – Psalms 146-147

Ezra – Psalm 119

Hezekiah (15 times) Psalms 120-134

Though the titles prefaced to the Psalms clearly date back before 200 BC (since they appear in the Septuagint, along with the extras that translation gives), how authoritative they are is subject to much debate.

The psalms, based on the authorship attributions, would then date between the 15th century (or 13th, depending on the time of the Exodus) and the 5th century, by which time the book probably took the form it currently has.

Proverbs- Again, the book is a composite, so far as authorship is concerned.

1:1-24:22 is attributed to Solomon (thus dating to the 900’s BC)

24:23-34 are attributed to “the wise”

25:1-29:27 are attributed to Solomon, but were collected and recorded by “Hezekiah’s men”.

30:1-33 is attributed to Agur

31:1-31 is attributed to Lemuel

Ecclesiastes is attributed to Solomon by some. If that is the case, the book dates to the 900’s BC. Others would argue for an unknown author, and put the date of composition around 390 BC.

Ezra-Nehemiah. They are treated as a single book in the Talmud, Josephus, and the Canon of Melito (AD 171). They are also treated as a single book in the Masoretic Text (traditional Hebrew Bible).

The author of the book of Ezra-Nehemiah is unknown, though Ezra’s chapters 7-9 apparently were written by Ezra, since they are in the first person. The account in chapters 1-6 is compiled from records, including decrees (1:2-4; 6:3-12), genealogies and name lists (2), and letters (4:7-22; 5:6-17). There are two sections that have been preserved in Aramaic (4:8-6:18 and 7:12-26). Aramaic was the diplomatic language during this period. Sources for the section labeled “Nehemiah” in our text include what appear to be memoirs of Nehemiah, written in the first person: Nehemiah 1:1-7:73a; 11:1-2; 12:31-43: 13:4-31. The date of the final composition of the book is generally accepted as being sometime during the 4th century BC.

Song of Songs is attributed to Solomon, which would place its date of composition in the 900’s BC.

 

The following are attributed to the person from whom they are named:

Isaiah; it consists several oracles given by him over several years (740-690 BC). Its final form as we have it (assuming a single, unitary authorship to the book) would thus be sometime during the 7th century BC.

Jeremiah, who lived from about 627 to 580 BC.

Ezekiel, who was born around 622 BC. Based on internal dating, the book covers the time from about 593 through about 570 BC.

Daniel, and thus would have been written sometime between 605 BC and about 530 BC.

Hosea. His prophesies cover the period from 753-715 BC.

Joel. The date of the book is uncertain, with dates ranging from the early pre-exilic (800’s BC) to late post-exilic period (500-400 BC).

Amos. Dates between 767 and 753 BC.

Obadiah. Dates between 847 and 841 BC.

Jonah. Dates to the 700’s BC.

Micah. Dates between 740 and 695 BC.

Nahum. Two different dates are generally accepted as possibilities for Nahum’s ministry: 661-612 BC or 722-701 BC.

Habakkuk. Dates to sometime between 612 and 587 BC.

Zephaniah. Dates sometime during the reign of Josiah (640-609 BC)

Haggai. It is possible to date his prophesies very exactly (since he gave us the precise day he uttered his prophesies):

1:1 August 29, 520 BC

1:15 September 21, 520 BC

2:19-20 December 18, 520 BC

Zechariah. Chapters 1-8 are attributed to Zechariah and can be dated precisely.

1:1 October, 520 BC

1:7 February 15, 519 BC

7:1 December 7, 518 BC

Chapters 9-14 were not written by Zechariah and cannot be easily dated. That they were not written by Zechariah is clear from both internal and external evidence. 9-11 were written by Jeremiah, according to Matthew 27:9-10, which quotes Zechariah 11:12-13 and attributes it to Jeremiah. The date would then be sometime between 627 and 580 BC. Chapters 12-14 are titled “an oracle” and are attributed to no one.

Malachi. Based on Mark 1:2-3, the book called “Malachi” was apparently actually written by Isaiah, since there the author of Mark quotes from “Malachi” but attributes it to Isaiah. The title “Malachi”, taken from 1:1 is simply the Hebrew phrase “my messenger”, and the word is so translated in 3:1. The date of the book would then be sometime between 740 and 690 BC.

 

 

The New Testament:

All four gospels were written by the person whose name they bear.

Matthew was originally written in Hebrew, not Greek as much of the rest of the New Testament. Also by Jewish tradition, the vowels were still excluded from Lord or God, and still today many orthodox Jews write those words as “L-rd” and “G-d”. This practiced was continued so as not to desecrate His name. Jesus died by 32 (possibly 33) A.D. By 50 A.D., Matthew had been translated at least three times, into three different languages.

Mark’s gospel was written and copied so much that it was often included in non-Christian collections, such as the Dead Sea Scrolls. This all happened within 18 years.

Luke was the author of his gospel and the book of Acts. Since the book of Acts was written afterward, and since Acts was apparently written before Paul’s execution during the reign of Nero, the book of Luke is apparently relatively early, perhaps before AD 60. Luke does refer to his gospel account in the book of Acts.

John- Attributed to John, the apostle of Jesus. Probably composed between AD 85 and 90, though some scholars have suggested dates as early as AD 66 and as late as AD 110. John’s gospel, along with his 1^st, 2^nd, and 3^rd letters, as well as the book of Revelation (all attributed to him), are probably the only books of the Bible not written by 66 A.D.

Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, 1 and 2 Timothy. Titus, Philemon all written by Paul between 50 and 67 A.D.

Hebrews – Traditionally Paul has been given credit for the book, though there is little in the book to suggest that he is the author, since it was written anonymously. Written as early as AD 60, but certainly written before the destruction of Jerusalem AD 70.

James, Peter and Jude all wrote the books that contain their names.

 

Notice how many of these writing recount first-hand knowledge. These aren’t campfire legends that someone’s great-great-grandkids decided would be “neat” to have in writing. These were testimonies from the hands of the people who experienced it. So many overlooked facts could only have been recounted by those who were present. For example, in John 12:3 “Mary then took a pound of very costly perfume of pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped His feet with her hair; and the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.” John was obviously present when this occurred, or how would he know the strength of the perfume’s fragrance?

 

Many historians hold to the belief that it was the Christians who first used books. They had many writings from different sources. Some, like the letters o John and Jude, are very short and would only contain a small page, not enough for an entire scroll. Christians bound the paper together on one side, using yarn or string or some kind of lacing. Thus was born the book.

 

Before 100 A.D., all churches shared the attitude to what was considered Scripture. There were four gospels. This is the earth number (see my post, Numbers in the Bible- What do they mean? ) There are four “corners” of the earth, four seasons, four winds (north, south, east, west), four faces on the creature in Ezekiel. It made sense that there should be four gospels.

 

In the terror of a book-made-movie, The DaVinci Code, the characters mention a meeting between church officials, who decided what the Bible would or wouldn’t say. That’s half true. The meetings that took place, there were actually several, were usually to discuss doctrinal interpretations. How do we define the gift of tongues? Baptism of water, or of Spirit, or both? Can we eat pork or has that law been eradicated? True, the discussion of books to be included was at first an important part of the dialogue. When it did come up, there were rules in place to determine that no false information was entered into Holy writings.

To be considered a part of the Bible, the writing had to be from either 1.) A direct disciple of Jesus, or 2.) A direct disciple of a direct disciple of Jesus. This way, the author would always be able to honestly say, “I saw it,” or “My teacher saw it.” No one would be able to say, “My neighbor’s cousin heard from a friend that Jesus could fly.” That wouldn’t be good enough. It HAD to be a 1^st hand experience, or learned from the one who had the 1^st hand experience. That is why so many other books were not included in the Bible. No conspiracy, just an issue of credibility.

 

The only books not accepted into the collection by 100 A.D. were Hebrew, 2^nd Peter, 2^nd & 3^rd John, and Jude. All but Hebrews because they were so little. The church leaders wondered, “Why would God say so little at once?” They were all ultimately accepted, despite their sizes, because God can deliver a message of any size He wants. Hebrews was accepted because they believed it to be from Paul.

 

There are 14 books called Apocrypha. These are books accepted by the Roman Catholic Church. These are not in the Christian Bible, only in Catholic editions. None of these books were referenced or quoted by Jews, apostles, or any other early church leaders before their induction. They are considered by most to be extra-Biblical, and therefore not considered as Holy Scripture.

 

Jude and James are the only exceptions to the “1^st hand apostle” rule. James was a leader of the Jerusalem church. He is actually mentioned earlier, in Acts 15:13, which says, “After they had stopped speaking, James answered, saying, ‘Brethren, listen to me.’” And in verse 20, James even suggests to his fellow council that, instead of troubling Gentiles who turn Christian, they write to the Gentiles about the things of God to encourage them. Thus, he was familiar to both Paul and Barnabas, and had already been mentioned in other Scripture.

Jude, a form of the Hebrew name for Judah or Judas, was quite a common Jewish name. There are generally two possibilities considered as author of the short letter. They are 1.) Judas the apostle (not Judas Iscariot; See Luke 6:16). 2.) Judas, the brother of the Lord. (See Matthew 13:55; Mark 6:3) The latter is more likely. So, while Jude was not a disciple of Jesus Christ, he was probably his brother, born of Mary and Joseph.

 

By AD 500, the Bible was translated into over 500 languages. By 600, only 1 was allowed by the “official” Catholic church, and that was the Latin Bible. Anyone caught using any other translation, not ordained by the Roman Catholic church, was subject to death.

 

Needless to say, but there were many who did not follow the Catholic Church’s teaching, and so went their own ways. They continued to use other Bibles, but it remained that the Latin was by far the most common. It wasn’t until the 1500’s that the first official English Bible was translated. Whatever translation, whatever language, the Bible had remained in tact for centuries. Its text endured for at least 2,500 years. Sadly, there are many “newer religions” that have translated the Bible for their own purposes, agendas and doctrines. This is one thing I beg you to beware of. Do not take the words of Holy Scripture lightly, but instead meditate on their meaning and prayerfully endeavor to understand what the Lord is speaking to you.

Happy reading. Be blessed.

 

Numbers in the Bible- What do they mean?

With all the buzz about the “Mark of the Beast”, and his number, 666, many have been getting curious about numerology. Make no mistake, though. The Antichrist will not be so easy to find that we just count the letters in his name. We won’t go, “Oh, three names, six letters each. Must be the Antichrist!” Not so. The number 666 will most likely be the numerical value of the total of the Hebrew letters to his name, or his names’ meanings.

I’d like to take this opportunity to explain briefly the meaning and significance of certain numbers in Scripture. This isn’t the popular number crunching nonsense that says you can add up numbers and find your true love or your winning lottery ticket combo or your fortune. That type of belief is actually sin. But God has given a specific meaning to certain numbers, and used those numbers at precise times. God created the earth in six days and rested on the seventh. Many believe He was foreshadowing the world’s time-line. The Bible tells us that one day is like a thousand years and a thousand years as one day to the Lord. So the model of Creation is a prophecy toward the 6000 years, or 6 “days”, earth has, with the 7th “day”, or last 1000 years being the reign of Christ on earth. This is just a detail of one example of the use God has for numbers. Here, now, is a list of numbers, their significance, a few examples and other verses where they are used. There are MANY more than I have listed, but this is a good sample to give you the idea.

1= Primary number, signifying, absolute singleness.

    One God, One Creator, One Way (Jesus), “there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live.” (1 Corinthians 8:5-7) “There is only One who is good.”(Matthew 19:17) “since there is only one God, who will justify…”(Romans 3:30) “There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy…”(James 4:12)

The word “ONE” shows up 2207 times in the NIV Bible, 2369 in NASB, and 2304 in the NKJV Bible.

 

2= The number of witnesses and support. 

    Two angels at Sodom, 2 cherubim on the Ark of Covenant, 2 tablets for 10 commandments, 2 witnesses during tribulation, see Gen 1:16; 19:1; Exod 25:22; 31:18; Deut 17:6; Matt 26:60; Num 14:6; Josh 2:1; Eccl 4:9; Luke 10:1; 24:4; Acts 1:10; Heb 6:18; Rev 11:3

 

3= The number of unity, accomplishment and the universe.

     Noah’s 3 sons, Israel’s 3 yearly feasts, Jonah in the fish for 3 days, Christ dead for 3 days, 3 areas to the tabernacle (inner and outer court, Holy of Holies),

Gen 6:10; Josh 1:11; Exod 23:14, 17; Judges 7:22; Ezra 10:9; Neh 2:11; Esther 4:16; Jonah 1:17; Luke 13:7; 22:61; John 2:19; Acts 9:9; 10:13; 1 Cor 13:13; 1 John 5:7-8; Rev. 21:13;

 

4= An earth-related number.

     4 directions- north, south, east, west; 4 seasons- summer, winter, fall, spring; 4 gospels- Matthew, Mark, Luke, John; 4 earthly kingdoms (Dan7:3), 4 kinds of spiritual soil (Matt 13), 4 horsemen of the Tribulation (Rev 6)

 

5= The number of grace.

     Benjamin’s portion 5 times larger (Gen 43:34), 5 Levitical offerings (Lev 1-5), 5 Israelites to chase 100 enemies (Lev 26:8), David took 5 stones to slay Goliath (1 Samuel 17:40), 5 wise and 5 unwise virgins (Matt 25:2), 1 Kings 7:39, 49; 2 Kings 25:19; 1 Chron 2:4,6; Isaiah 19:18; Matt 14:13, 17, 19, 21; Matt 25:20; John 4:18;

 

6= The number of man.

     Six days of creation (Gen 1:31), Six cities of refuge (Numbers 35:6), Israel marched around Jericho 6 times (Josh6:3), Goliath 6 cubits tall (1 Sam 17:4), Nebuchadnezzar’s statue was 60 cubits by 6 cubits (Dan 3:1), The number of the Antichrist is 666 (Rev 13:18), Jeremiah 34:14; Ezekiel 4:11; 9:2; Matthew 17:1; 27:45; Luke 11:37-52; John 2:6; Acts 11:12; Rev 4:8

 

7= The number of God, of divine perfection.

      God rested on the 7^th day (Gen 2:2), God’s Word is as silver purified 7 times (Psalm 12:6), Jesus taught to forgive 70 times 7 (Matt 18:22),  Seven miracles in the Gospel of John, Seven branches on the candlesticks, John wrote to seven churches (Rev1:4), Dan 9:24;  Rev 1:12,16; 5:1; 8:2

 

8= The new beginning number.

      8 saved from the flood (Gen 7:13, 23), Circumcision on the 8^th day (Gen 17:12), Thomas saw Jesus 8 days after the resurrection (John 20:26), Judges 12:14; 1 Samuel 17:12; 2 Kings 22:1; 1 Chronicles 27:11; 2 Chronicles 21:5; Ezekiel 40:8-9, 31, 34, 37, 41; Luke 9:28;

 

9= means the fullness of blessing.

     The fruit of the Spirit is ninefold (Gal 5:22-23), Sarah was 90 at the birth of Isaac (Gen 17:17), and there are 18 [9×2]gifts of the Spirit (Rom 12:1; 1 Cor 12; Eph 4)

 

10= Human government number.

      10 commands given to men at Mt. Sinai (Exod 20), The revived Roman empire will have 10 nations (Dan 7:24; Rev 17:12), The northern kingdom had 10 tribes (1 Kings 11:31-35), the local government of 10 men decided Ruth’s fate (Ruth 4:2), Josh 15:57; 21:26; Judges 12:11; 17:10; Ruth 4:2; 1 Kings 6:23-26; 11:35; Job 19:3; Jeremiah 42:7; Daniel 1:12-15; Matthew 25:1; Luke 17:11-12; Rev 17:12

 

12= The divine government number.

      There were 12 tribes of Israel (Revelation 7), There were 12 apostles (Matthew 10), There will be 12 gates at New Jerusalem (Rev 21), Gen 25:16; 35:22; 49:28; Numbers 1:44; 7:84, 87; 2 Kings 21:1; Ezekiel 43:16; Luke 2:42;

 

30= Associated with sorrow and mourning.

       Israel mourned 30 days after Aaron’s death (Numbers 20:29), Israel mourned Moses 30 days (Deut 34:8), Prayer prohibited for 30 days (Daniel 6:7, 12), Judas betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver (Matthew 26:15; 27:3), Gen 41:46; Numbers 4; Judges 10:4; 12:9; 14:19; 1 Samuel 13:1; 2 Kings 18:14; Esther 4:11; Proverbs 22:20; Jeremiah 38:10; Zechariah 5:2; Luke 3:23; John 2:6

 

40= The number for testing and trial.

      It rained for 40 days and 40 nights during the Flood (Gen 7:4), Moses spent 40 years in the desert (Exodus 3), Israel spied out the land for 40 days (Numbers 13:25), Moses spent 40 days on Mt. Sinai (Exodus 24:18), Israel wandered the desert for 40 years (Numbers 14:33), Goliath taunted Israel for 40 days (1 Samuel 17:16), Jonah preached to Nineveh for 40 days (Jonah 3:4), Jesus spent 40 days fasting in the desert (Matthew 4:2), There were 40 days between the resurrection and the ascension of Christ (Acts 1:3), Genesis 25:20; 26:24; Exodus 16:25; Joshua 4:13; Judges 8:28; 1 Samuel 4:18; 1 Kings 11:42; 19:18; 2 Kings 8:9; 2 Chronicles 24:1; Psalm 95:10; Ezekiel 29:11-13; Acts 23:12-13, 21

 

50= Associated with celebration and ceremony.

      The Feast of Weeks was 50 days after Passover (Lev 23:15-16), The 50^th year was to be a jubilee for Israel (Lev 25:10), Absalom appointed 50 men to run before him(2 Sam 15:1), Pentecost occurred 50 days after Christ’s resurrection (Acts 2), Gen 7:24; Numbers 4; 8:25; 1 Kings 1:5; 18:4; 2 Kings 1:9-13; 2 Chron 3:9; Nehemiah 5:17; Luke 9:14-15; Acts 19:19

 

70= Associated with human committees and judgment.

      The Sanhedrin was made up of 70 men. Moses appointed 70 elders (Numbers 11:16), Tyre judged for 70 years (Isaiah 23:15), Israel spent 70 years in Babylon (Jeremiah 29:20), the desolation of Jerusalem would last 70 years (Daniel 9:2), Jesus appointed 70 disciples (Luke 10:1, 17), Numbers 11:16, 24-25; Deut 10:22; Judges 8:30; 9:5; 2 Kings 10:1; Ezekiel 8:11; Daniel 9:20, 24; Zechariah 1:2; 7:5; Matthew 18:22; Acts 23:23

The Mission- What will you do?

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Now, wasn’t that worth Scrolling down here?

The End? Let’s review.

There are a lot of prophecies about the end. Here I have put together just some of them, broken into categories. You decide for yourself if they have come true yet, either in part or in whole. And don’t forget to comment your thoughts below!

 

1But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. 2People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, 4treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— 5having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them. -2Timothy 3:1-5

9“When you hear of wars and revolutions, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.” 10Then he said to them: “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 11There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven.” 25“There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea.–Luke 21:9-11, 25

21For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again. 22If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened. 36“No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 37As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; -Matthew 24:21-22, 36-38

There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people—everyone whose name is found written in the book—will be delivered. –Daniel 12:1

See, the LORD is going to lay waste the earth and devastate it; he will ruin its face and scatter its inhabitants. The earth will be completely laid waste and totally plundered. The LORD has spoken this word. So will it be on the land among the nations as when an olive tree is beaten, or as when gleanings are left after the grape harvest. -Isaiah 24:1, 3, 13

WARS:

6You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8All these are the beginning of birth pains. –Matthew 24:6-8

9 Proclaim this among the nations:
       Prepare for war!
       Rouse the warriors!
       Let all the fighting men draw near and attack.

 10 Beat your plowshares into swords
       and your pruning hooks into spears.
       Let the weakling say,
       “I am strong!” -Joel 3:9-10

9“When you hear of wars and revolutions, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.” 10Then he said to them: “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. –Luke 21:9-10

DEPARTURE FROM CHRISTIANITY:

3For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. -2 Timothy 4:3-4

10At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other. –Matthew 24:10

1The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. -1 Timothy 4:1

…be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men and fall from your secure position. -2 Peter 3:17

PERSECUTION OF CHRISTIANS:

Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. –Matthew 24:9

Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and persecution… -Hebrews 10:33

10Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11“Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. –Matthew 5:10-12

…they will lay hands on you and persecute you. –Luke 21:12

Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. –Revelation 2:10

 

ABORTION (SLAUGHTER OF INNOCENT):

…they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. –Romans 1:31

3without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, 4treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God -2 Timothy 3:3-4

Upon You I was cast from birth; You have been my God from my mother’s womb. –Psalm 22:10

Behold, children are a gift of the LORD, The fruit of the womb is a reward. –Psalm 127:3

For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother’s womb. –Psalm 139:13

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you… -Jeremiah 1:5

 

VOLCANIC ACTIVITY:

…smoke rose from it like the smoke from a gigantic furnace. The sun and sky were darkened by the smoke from the Abyss. –Revelation 9:2

…There was a great earthquake. The sun turned black like sackcloth made of goat hair, the whole moon turned blood red. –Revelation 6:12

EARTHQUAKES:

At that very hour there was a severe earthquake and a tenth of the city collapsed. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the survivors were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven. -Revelation 11:13

There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven –Luke 21:11

…the foundations of the earth shake. 19 The earth is broken up, the earth is split asunder, the earth is thoroughly shaken. –Isaiah 24:18-19

Then there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder and a severe earthquake. No earthquake like it has ever occurred since man has been on earth, so tremendous was the quake. –Revelation 16:18

FIRES:

8Therefore in one day her plagues will overtake her: death, mourning and famine. She will be consumed by fire, for mighty is the Lord God who judges her.  9“When the kings of the earth who committed adultery with her and shared her luxury see the smoke of her burning, they will weep and mourn over her. 18When they see the smoke of her burning, they will exclaim, ‘Was there ever a city like this great city?’ –Revelation 18:8-9, 18

The first angel sounded his trumpet, and there came hail and fire mixed with blood, and it was hurled down upon the earth. A third of the earth was burned up, a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up.  –Revelation 8:7

TROPICAL STORMS/ HURRICANES & FLOODS:

There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea. –Luke 21:25

See, the storm of the LORD will burst out in wrath, a driving wind swirling down on the heads of the wicked. –Jeremiah 30:23

The floodgates of the heavens are opened, -Isaiah 24:18

 

INCREASE IN KNOWLEDGE AND TRAVEL:

“But as for you, Daniel, conceal these words and seal up the book until the end of time; many will go back and forth, and knowledge will increase.” -Daniel 12:4

 

INSTANT COMMUNICATION AROUND THE WORLD:

“And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophecy for twelve hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth.  When they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up out of the abyss will make war with them, and overcome them and kill them.  And their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which mystically is called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified.  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 11:3, 7-10

 

 

I also reccomend this site. See: (re: end time and “global warming”. Actually makes sense!) http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.globalwarmingandthebible.com/images/EndOfTheWorld.jpg&imgrefurl=http://globalwarmingandthebible.com/%3Fpage_id%3D2&h=139&w=185&sz=41&hl=en&start=62&sig2=DxQpagFQ6NQ3TZ1SUBs_0w&um=1&usg=__owjdJ9bGJ3iibbVwz6CKDZaaLb4=&tbnid=v8fUhFECf7RE9M:&tbnh=77&tbnw=102&ei=s8fVSPWtDpLIhgKf6L3MDA&prev=/images%3Fq%3D%2522smoke%2Bfrom%2Bthe%2Babyss%2522%2BRevelation%2Bimage%26start%3D54%26ndsp%3D18%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26rlz%3D1T4DKUS_enUS272US272%26sa%3DN

 

Verses Used: Joel 3; 2 Timothy 3:1-5; 4:1-4; Matthew 24:1-11, 32-38; Genesis 6:1, 11-13; 4:22; Daniel 12:1, 4; Romans 1:31; Revelation 3; 9:1-2, 20-21; 6:2-12; 14:20; 11:13; 16:3, 18, 21; 8:7-9; 18:8-9, 18; Luke 21:25;

“The End?” Bible Study and all images prepared by Justin Lessard. Email: ferventservant1@hotmail.com

Web: https://justinlessard.wordpress.com & http://www.myspace.com/justinlessard

If you wish to use this for a study, all I ask is that you leave the credit info lines, including the name, email, & web address, above. Also, leave me a comment so I know if its useful to you. Thanks.