Son of man, God ... has spoken .. what has God wrought? Behold, the people shall rise up as a great lion, and lift up ... as a young lion ... . Numbers 23:19,23,24.
For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Then shall you call upon me, and you shall go and pray unto me, and I will listen unto you. And you shall seek me, and find me, when you shall search for me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:11-13.

This says the Lord, "... I have loved you with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn you." Jeremiah 31:2,3.

But the priests said not, `Where is the Lord?' And they that handle the law knew me not: the pastors also transgressed against me, and the prophets prophesied by Baal, and walked after things that do not profit. Jeremiah 2:8.

So we know, the majority always criticized, belittled and questioned those that belief in the Lord God, for they said, the wise among us, say you are not there. Where are you?

I dwell in the high and holy place ... Isaiah 57:15.

And they, especially today, will deceive every one his neighbor, and will not speak the truth: they have taught their tongue to speak lies, and weary themselves to commit iniquity. Your habitation is in the midst of deceit; through deceit they (the majority in the world) refuse to know me, says the Lord. Jeremiah 9:5,6.

But know this (Matthew 24:43). See you not all these things? Well, I say to you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down. Matthew 24:2.

And ... the disciples came unto him privately, saying, `Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of your coming, and of the end of the world?' Matthew 24:3.

And so, the Bible traces for us quite clearly the events leading up to the coming of the Lord in power. He did this by beginning with explaining the succession of the empires of the world which will greatly influence His cause and His faithful people.

The Lord God showed these four empires several different ways to bring out their sequence and characteristics.

The `head of gold' is the same as the `lion', which is the Babylon of the time of Nebuchadnezzar and his successors from between 605 to 538 B.C.
The `chest of silver' is the same as the `bear standing on two feet and with three ribs in his mouth, for it was the dual empire of the Medes and Persians, of which the Persians became the mightier ones and the three ribs are three major powers of those days which they overcame, namely Babylon in 538 B.C., Lydia (Turkey) in 333 B.C. and Egypt in 550 B.C. After Egypt was overcome, the Persian army under Cambyses, on their way to the Oasis of Siwa vanished in 525 B.C. in the desert some 81 miles SE of Siwa, and only recently have remains been found which appeared to the discoverers as those of that Persian army. Apparently, in time, winds which had buried them for many years, also freed them once again as a witness to the truth of history.

While Babylon took Israel into captivity in 605 B.C. for 70 years, the Persian king freed them in 536 B.C. For we read, 3rd Decree: "Now this is the copy of the letter that the king Artaxerxes gave unto Ezra the priest, the scribe, even a scribe of the words of the commandments of the Lord, and of his statutes to Israel.
Artaxerxes, king of kings, unto Ezra the priest, a scribe of the law of the God of heaven, perfect peace, and at such a time. I make a decree, that all they of the people of Israel, and of his priests and Levites, in my realm, which are minded of their own freewill to go up to Jerusalem, go with thee." Ezra 7:11-13. The language indicates that they had agreed to taxation and in return received their freedom to build up Jerusalem and its temple once again.

After the head of gold, Babylon (Daniel 2:38), in a later prophecy identified as a lion (Dan. ) and the chest of silver, Persia - the bear and the ram (Dan. 7:5; 8:20), came the Greek empire - the leopard and/or the `he goat' (Dan. 7:6; 8:5,21) mostly that Greece under Alexander the Great, symbolized by the belly and thighs of brass. The sequence of these empires is explained in the Bible and they are identified by their names. The fourth kingdom, referred to as `the legs of iron', (Dn. 2:40) and as the terrible beast (Dn. 7:7) is also described as a horn waxing great out of the head of the `he goat' because that fourth power was greatly influenced by the type of paganism vexing Greece for a long time and which shaped the fourth empires (Rome's), own history for a long time.

Of course, for us today, the fourth empire's history of the terrible beast is of great importance for it shows how God sees its history and what will happen clear until the end of time. Therefore, it is our task to explain this to you as brief as possible, yet understandable at the same time.

First we want to say that, in God's view, it is of great importance how these empires influence his people, those who worship God in truth. That is shown numerous ways and times in the Bible, i.e. Daniel 7:14, 27; 8:24; 9:24-27; 10:14; 12:1.

So let us hasten and explain also how God has His prophets present world history not only through images of animals and beasts, but also pinpoints events by means of a prophetic time line so we may know exact years in which certain things occurred. This detailed time line has been graphed at this link. However, we show some smaller scale images as we go along. Our main scriptures are taken from the books of Daniel, Matthew, Luke and Revelation. So bear with us as we unfold the subject.

After Artaxerxes, the Persian king, had issued his 3rd decree in 457 B.C., the captive Israelites were free to return back to their homeland and Jerusalem. Their they began repairing the city walls and rebuild the Temple. The number of this prophecy are found in Daniel chapter 8 and 9. They consist of the starting point of this prophecy, the year the decree was given to rebuild Jerusalem and the temple, which is 457 B.C. and the next span of time is the year the construction were finished enough to restart priestly services in the Temple again, which took 7 prophetic weeks. In the Lord's own wisdom He kind of hid some of His plans so only those who really wanted to be faithful to God and understand these prophecies would be able to discover their meaning. That is why the Jews themselves never could figure them out, not only because how they were given in the books of the prophets of the Lord God, but also, because they had rejected Jesus Christ as the Messiah completely and these prophecies rotate around what Jesus would do, and therefore the post-Christ Jewish leaders pronounced a curse on those who would study these prophecies, particularly those in the Book of Daniel.

But for us, we may know the true meaning for God has it revealed so we may know. The key to interprete these time prophecies is to realize, that in prophecy, one day stands for one year. That interpretative key is found two times in the Bible.

In Numbers 14:34, "After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye shall know my breach of promise."

In Ezekiel 4:4-6, "Lie thou also upon thy left side, and lay the iniquity of the house of Israel upon it: according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon it thou shalt bear their iniquity. For I have laid upon thee the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days: so shalt thou bear the iniquity of the house of Israel. And when thou hast accomplished them, lie again on thy right side, and thou shalt bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days: I have appointed thee each day for a year."

Let us give the prophetic number is Daniel chapter 9 first.

1. The 70 weeks. 70 weeks have 490 days = 490 years; from 457 B.C. to 34 A.D.
   
2. The seven weeks = 49 days = 49 years from 457 to 408 B.C.
   
3. Add to the seven weeks the three score and two weeks = 7 weeks + 62 weeks = 69 weeks = 483 years, from 457 to 27 A.D., the year Jesus was baptized and started His Messianic minstry.
   
4. Jesus would confirm the covenant for one week = 7 years. His ministry, starting with His baptism in 27 A.D. lasted half a week, until 31 A.D., the year He was crucified, and a grace period for the Jewish people to come to their senses and seek forgiveness for their sins, would last another 3 ½ day/years up to 34 A.D. when Stephen's sermon to the Jews was God's last appeal to the Jews as a nation, to repent. However, the people rejected what Stephen preached and stone him to death, thus sealing the fate of their nation. The doom came some 36 years later, according to the longsuffering, patient, mercy of God in 70 A.D. when the Roman armies under Emperor Titus destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple.
   
5. The only other numeric time span is given in Daniel 8:14. They are the 2300 days = 2300 years, which reach from 457 B.C. to 1844 A.D. in order to explain what? - In order to explain what the High Priestly ministry of Jesus would accomplish in the sanctuary in heaven, of which the Temple in Jerusalem was so to speak a copy on a small scale. This is important for the priestly services, the blood offerings of animals and other things, symbolized what it would take to redeem mankind from the planet where Satan gained a foothold long ago.

Having briefly characterized the four kingdoms leading up to the Roman Empire and the prophetic timeline, we ought to detail some more the fourth beast, the Roman Empire and how it influenced what God would do to save as many as possible from this world.

The Roman Empire has four stages:

1. The Imperial period.
   
2. The Ecclesiastical (religious) Period>
   
3. The little horn stage, and
   
4. the final little horn stage.

The imperial period is that of the kings and emperors of Rome which spans the years from ca. 168 B.C. to 476 A.D. when Romulus Augustulus abdicated the throne and the bishop of Rome assumed his powers and that of the church in forming the papacy.

That act was against what God teaches in the Bible, for God's word, and Jesus confirm it, says, "My kingdom is not of this world." John 18:36.

That tells us nothing in the Bible are idle words which we can safely ignore. We must take it as a whole, to help us understand what God is telling to all the world.

God's plan for the world is opposite of what man desires. Man wants to rule over all the people, God does to. Man wants to rule with an iron hand, make slaves of the multitudes to serve a few that are selected and rich. God wants our service of love for His goodness, grace and mercy. He wants to set the captives free and bring salvation to all who will accept it and love Him.

When the `little horn' power had achieved the pinnacle of its power in 538 A.D., and the throne of the Emperors became that of the pope, this power would rule and practice deceit and use crafty methods, to achieve its goals to rule over every soul on earth, for 1260 days (= 1260 years), from 538 + 1260 to 1798, the year the pope was taken prisoner by General Berthier of Emperor Napoleon and put in a French prison where he died. This was done, to stop the terrible influence of Rome which had for centuries ruled the nations, the masses of people with an iron hand, killing some 50 million people because they believed differently, and dictated to the kings, and France finally said, Enough is enough, and they took the top man of the Vatican prisoner, thinking his church was doomed and dead. But, lo, and behold, it was to be only a wounding of the papacy, not a permanent, fatal wound. And today we see how that same power has returned to rule the world again by the secret of its power.

The Bible puts it this way,

"Behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots ... (three, the 3 red ones, out of ten horns were plucked up. These 10 nations were those in the map.): and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things. (The horn has a mouth and eyes, therefore it is a succession men who are represented for it reigns for 1260 years.)
Next follows a Judgment Scene which takes place in heaven where God is: I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.
End of the Judgment Scene.
Continuation of what the horn power does. I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame. As concerning the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away: yet their lives were prolonged for a season and time.
The horn/beast power has been judged, found guilty, and will eventually be destroyed when God executes his judgment against it at the end of time.
Now follows another scene taking place in heaven. I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.
End of this scene.
Back to the earthly level; the reaction of Daniel. I Daniel was grieved in my spirit in the midst of my body, and the visions of my head troubled me. I came near unto one of them that stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me, and made me know the interpretation of the things.
God in His mercy sends an angel to explain to Daniel the meaning of what he saw. These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth. But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever. Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast, which was diverse from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails of brass; which devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet; And of the ten horns that were in his head, and of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows.
The explanation zeros in on this horn power. I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them;
Here the angel refers to the persecution of all those Bible believing Christians who did not accept the apostate religion of the papacy which was more like baptized paganism, and so the Vatican killed all those who disagreed with her, revealing that it was of a Satanic character, for the Bible says not to kill - murder, Exodus 20:13; and not to do violence to no man, Luke 3:14.
Back to the heavenly level. Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom. Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces. And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.
Once again the division of the Roman Empire into ten divisions at first, then three nations were destroyed, and seven remained - the countries of Europe, which later changed again into ten nations, the ten toes in the statue Daniel saw.
And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time. But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end." Daniel 7:8-26.

At the very end of time, Jesus Christ, who defeated Satan and sin at the Cross, will reign and all the saints of God will be resurrected and reign with Him, because they were found worthy in the heavenly, investigative judgment - which examines the heavenly books of record - and have now a place in heaven and eternal life in God's Kingdom.

Zeroing in on the Details of the Last Days.

Dear reader, we have arrived at the threshold of the events which characterize the last days before Jesus comes again in His glory, that of His Father and that of all the holy angels to end the reign of sin.

Now it is the most important for each person on earth to decide who they want to worship, fallable man and his artifices or the only true God in Heaven.

How can we tell who it is we worship?

The deciding criteria is what do you live up to, the Law of God or the multitude of laws of man only, especially where they conflict with God's Law, the 10 commandments in Exodus chapter 20?

1. Not to worship other gods, ........................ 6. Not to kill.
   
2. Not to worship idols. ................................. 7. Not to commit adultery.
   
3. Not to take God's name in vain. ................. 8. Not to steal.
   
4. Remember to keep the Sabbath day holy. .. 9. Not to bear false witness, do not lie.
   
5. To honor your parents. ............................ 10. Not to covet, be greedy, of things which are not yours.

What do these laws really mean?

1. Commandment: The first commandment is about loyalty to God. In it the Creator of the universe asks us to demonstrate our love for Him by having no other gods. That is why Jacob told the people to `put away their foreign gods,' and thereby purify and cleanse themselves from this sin, Genesis 35:2-4.
2. Commandment: The Second Commandment is about worship. God prohibits the worship of images, of bowing before a carved statue or pictures. It asks us to put away saint worship and all "foreign gods," Genesis 31:19-34. That idol worship was known to be sinful in the days of Jacob is related to us in Genesis 35:2.
3. Commandment: The third commandment is about reverence. God instructs us to respect His holy name and not to use it in vain. Pharaoh scoffed at the authority of God's name The Lord eventually destroyed him because of the hardness of his heart, Exodus 5:2; 14:27,28.
4. Commandment: The Fourth Commandment is about sanctification and relationship. God instructs His people to "remember" the Sabbath day to set it apart for holy purposes to draw nearer to Him. God initiated the Sabbath day at Creation, blessing and sanctifying the seventh day as He makes it clear that He expected continual observance. It is meant to be a bulwark against apostasy. The colored words represent the seal of God: His title `The Lord', his office `made' indicating He was the `Creator', his realm `heaven and earth', the whole universe. The Seal of the President of the United States also contains these three identifications: `George Washington', `President' of the `United States of America'; his name, title and realm. Therefore, the fourth commandment proclaims on which day and who it is we are to worship, the Creator God, Lord of the whole universe. [See also Leviticus 23:3]
5. Commandment: The Fifth Commandment is about respect of parental authority. God instructs us to show love for our parents by honoring them, Genesis 37:28-35; 50:15-17.
6. Commandment: The Sixth Commandment is about respect for human life. God instructs us to demonstrate love, not hatred to others by not committing murder, Gen. 4:8-13. All acts of injustice that tend to shorten life; the spirit of hatred, envy, anger and revenge, or the indulgence of any passion that leads to injurious acts toward others, or causes us even to wish them harm (for "whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer"); a selfish neglect of caring for the needy or suffering; all self-indulgence or unnecessary deprivation or excessive labor that tends to injure health--all these are, to a greater or lesser degree, violations of the sixth commandment. - Not only that, this commandment also means we must actively love our enemies.
7. Commandment: This Seventh Commandment is about purity in relationships. It forbids not only acts of impurity, but sensual thoughts and desires, or any practice that tends to excite them. Purity is demanded not only in the outward life but in the secret intents and emotions of the heart. Christ, who taught the far-reaching obligation of the law of God, declared the evil thought or look to be as truly sin as is the unlawful deed.
8. Commandment: The Eighth Commandment is about honesty. God instructs us not to steal. Both public and private sins are included in this prohibition. The eighth commandment condemns manstealing and slave dealing, and forbids wars of conquest. It condemns theft and robbery. It demands strict integrity in the minutest details of the affairs of life. It forbids overreaching in trade, and requires the payment of just debts or wages. It declares that every attempt to advantage oneself by the ignorance, weakness, or misfortune of another is registered as fraud in the books of heaven.
9. Commandment: The Ninth Commandment is about truthfulness. God instructs us not to lie or deceive others. Jesus Christ proclaimed Satan as the "father of lies," John 8:44. False speaking, lying, in any matter, every attempt or purpose to deceive our neighbor, is here included. An intention to deceive is what constitutes falsehood. By a glance of the eye, a motion of the hand, an expression of the countenance, a falsehood may be told as effectually as by words. All intentional overstatement, every hint or insinuation calculated to convey an erroneous or exaggerated impression, even the statement of facts in such a manner as to mislead, is falsehood. This precept forbids every effort to injure our neighbor's reputation by misrepresentation or evil surmising, by slander or tale bearing. Even the intentional suppression of truth, by which injury may result to others, is a violation of the ninth commandment. {Proverbs 12:22} The Apostle Paul puts liars on the same list as those who "kill their fathers and mothers," "murderers," immoral men," and "kidnappers." 1.Tim. 1:9,10. People who are liars do not trust other people for they assume they are liars just like themselves. Lying causes serious damage to yourself for you know you are one. Lying destroys our relationship with God. - This commandment also means that we must love the truth since at the end many will be deceived by lies (Matth. 24:24; 2.John 7). Loving the truth means we must search for it (Jh. 5:39; Acts 17:11; Ps. 25:5), value it (Mt. 13:44), let it transform our lives (Gal. 5:7; Rom. 2:8) and be eager to share it with unfeigned love (1.Pet. 1:22; Joh. 18:37; Acts 1:8). - At the end, God's people will have no lie in their mouth, Rev. 14:5.
10. Commandment: The Tenth Commandment is about contentment. God instructs us not to covet - because He knows it can entrap us into even greater sins. This commandment, therefore, strikes at the very root of all sins, prohibiting the selfish desire, from which springs the sinful act. He who in obedience to God's law refrains from indulging even a sinful desire for that which belongs to another will not be guilty of an act of wrong toward his fellow creatures. {Luke 12:15} - People who get their happiness from things always have to keep moving on from thing to thing as they pursue their coveted items. That is why coveting is idolatry (Col. 3:5) which is about a type of worship. While the 2nd commandment tells us that we should not make things more important than God, the 10th tells us not to make things more important than people. It forbids us to put our selfish desires above the rights of others or to value people and things in terms of the benefit we can get from them.