490
years allotted for Israel
Before
I start going over Revelation chapter six I really should give you some
background on the entire subject. Revelation chapters six to nineteen
is the seven year tribulation but this has not happened yet on earth. The
parenthetical chapters are not necessarily written in chronological order.
These seven years will be very intense to the point that no other time frame in
history will be able to compare to this period because this is the
wrath of God being poured on this planet. Revelation chapter nineteen
culminates in the personal visible return of Jesus Christ to this earth to
reclaim it as His own possession. These seven years are a time
period of suffering and sorrow. If Jesus Christ did not return in the
second coming at the end of the tribulation nobody would be left on earth.
We
are living in these final moments of the age of grace and a trained eye can see
the setting in the form of current events for the seven year tribulation
period. The twentieth century is the first to see the fulfillment of these
prophecies. Many newspaper articles witness to the beginning of the fulfillment
of many of these prophecies. There have been so many confirmations of what the
Bible teaches regarding this subject so we know the world is close to this time
period; however, it is very difficult to understand time on this side
but Christians that grasp the meaning of this subject know we are
close to the day of the Lord.
There
is at least two questions that I will put on the table. Why does there have to
be a seven year tribulation on this earth and how can we know it will last for
seven years? We observed several reasons for this in Revelation chapter five.
Jesus Christ has to revoke the authority of Satan who took control of the earth
from Adam. The second reason is to judge an exceedingly sinful world.
We
need to go to Daniel 9:24 - 27 to see evidence that the tribulation period
will be seven years. (24) "Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people
and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of
sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting
righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most
Holy. (25) Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the
commandment to restore and to build Jer'sa - lem unto the Mes - si'ah the
Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be
built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. (26) And after threescore
and two weeks shall Mes - si'ah be cut off, but not for Himself: and the people
of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the
end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are
determined. (27) And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and
in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to
cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate,
even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the
desolate." Daniel 9: 24 - 27.
Very
few people in the history of all mankind were able to understand every part of
this passage; therefore, do not get all bend and out of shape if you are not
part of the very limited number of people. Let me explain in general terms that
Daniel set forth a divinely ordained time frame of seventy weeks to eventually
be fulfilled for the primary purpose of reaching out to an unregenerate world
through His chosen people the Jews. The seventy weeks are a divine time clock
which is the equivalent of 490 years. It is possible that this started with the
Persian King Artaxerxes Longimanus when he gave the Jewish people
permission to leave their Babylonian captivity to restore and rebuild the city
of Jerusalem which may have started in April of 445 B.C.
Daniel
prophesied that after sixty nine weeks or 483 years to the very day Jesus
Christ Himself would be put to death. Within forty years of this event Titus
and the Roman legions destroyed the city of Jerusalem and tore down their
Temple. After the 69th week or 483 years was finished notice there is still
seven years. The nation of Israel did reject Jesus Christ so a time interlude
has been taking place in this age of grace and the spotlight of God turned
to a group made up of Jews and Gentiles better known as the Church. According
to Daniel 9:24 - 27 God intends to give the Jewish people seven more years
because that is what is left for them in their allotment. This time frame will
allow God to finish the purpose for which God called them as a chosen race. In
the seven year tribulation period they will be the primary witnesses to the
whole world. I am not at Revelation chapter seven yet but God will obviously
lay His hand on the 144,000 Jews who will make up for the failure of Israel to
preach the message of the Messiah. I need to make one more point because before
God can shift His emphasis back to Israel the Church must be taken out of the
world. We would be in the way of the plan of God for a new dispensation called
the kingdom age. The age of grace will be finished at the rapture of the
church.
In
Revelation chapter six the apostle John was shown the sobering judgments of God
which begins the seven year countdown until Jesus Christ returns back to earth.
There are seven seal judgments, seven trumpet judgments and seven bowls full of
the wrath of God. Each judgment seems to get progressively worse than the
previous unleashing of the anger of God. This continues up to Revelation
chapter nineteen.
Remember
at this point the apostle John is completely overwhelmed by the revelations of
Jesus Christ as Creator and Savior of mankind. As the seven seals are opened
and the wrath of God is poured out on earth the vision of Jesus Christ switches
from Savior to Judge or from the Lamb to Lion. When the apostle John saw
these judgments this probably brought grief and terror to his spirit.
Let
me go over Revelation 6:1 - 2. (1) "AND I saw when the Lamb opened
one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four
beasts saying, Come and see. (2) And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he
that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him:" Revelation 6:
1 - 2. The command "Come" in verse one is translated go. The four
beasts are servants of Jesus Christ and they are given the command for the
action to start. He instructs the rider on the white horse to begin his mission
of conquest on this earth. Notice in verse two ... "he that sat on him had
a bow" ... but he is not a capital H. Why -- because "he" is not
Jesus Christ. Who is the rider on the white horse? It is the antichrist
himself.
A
white steed stood for conquest. When a victor triumphantly entered a new and
conquered kingdom he would ride on a white horse. Notice in these verses
the antichrist carries with him the bow of a warrior which may mean he has
control over the weapons of war. He also has a crown on his head because
he is in the process of conquering more and more of the people living on earth.
His goal is to cause the whole world to claim him as sovereign. At this
particular starting point of the seven year tribulation period the world will
be set up in such a way where he will be able to accomplish this because
at the rapture of the church which took place in Revelation 4: 1 - 2 the
world is in total chaos. The restraining power who is the Holy Spirit has been
removed from planet earth at the very moment of the rapture of the church. What
better time to conquer when the world is in complete confusion and chaos.
He
will be personally indwelt by Satan and will have spiritual magnetism in his
personality and much of the world will worship him. If you ever read Revelation
chapter thirteen notice there will be two people with very striking
personalities. One will be a religious leader and the other will be a political
leader. The political leader is the one spoken of in Revelation 6: 1 - 2. This
man is probably alive at this very moment. This man who will have a very
charismatic personality is presented as the very first judgment of God upon a
Christ rejecting world. The 70th week of Daniel or the last 7 years in the 490
years allotted for Israel will start when the antichrist confirms a 7 year
peace covenant with Israel and the Arab world. Daniel does not say he will sign
the covenant but he does confirm an already documented peace treaty. Much
of the world will see him as the Savior because of the false miracles they
will see as divine so the deception will be a curse. There is more in the book
of Revelation describing his incredible ability to conquer with his conquests
but his methods in Revelation chapter six do not seem to include open
warfare since peace is not removed from the earth until the second seal is
opened.
"Little
children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come,
even now are there many antichrists;" 1 John 2:18. The apostle
John talks about this subject in another book and writes about the spirit
of antichrist which refers to demonic forces behind antichristian teaching and
activity ultimately leading to the actual antichrist. The apostle John is
speaking of those mini antichrists in his day that were in the local church and
were not true believers in Christ. In fact they were against the Son
of God. They denied the reality of the incarnation of Christ and His relationship
to the Father.
In
Revelation 6:2 the Bible says a crown was given unto him but "And I
looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son
of man, having on His head a golden crown, and in His hand a sharp
sickle." Revelation 14:14. We can accept the true Messiah who is
Jesus Christ or we can accept the false messiah. We can believe the Bible
or we can believe some false antichrist theory that has absolutely nothing to
do with the Son of God. Revelation 6:2 also says the antichrist went forth
conquering and to conquer but my Bible says, "And I saw heaven opened, and
behold a white horse; and He that sat upon him was called Faithful and True,
and in righteousness He doth judge and make war." Revelation 19:11. The
true Conqueror is Jesus Christ and I am not interested in believing some
copycat that is filled with evil. In righteousness He doth judge and make war.
The false is evil but the true is Righteous and Pure.
If
you do not know the Righteous and Pure now may be a good time to accept Jesus
Christ into your heart as your personal Savior and Lord by repenting of all
your sins and inviting the Son of God into your life. I do not know what side
of the fence you are reading this article (before or after the rapture) but
Jesus Christ Himself is always the answer. Flee from deception of any
kind.
God
bless you,
Bob
D.
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