The Abomination Of Desolation

Daniel 12 NIV The Abomination of Desolation

12 “At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. 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. 2 Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt. 3 Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever. 4 But you, Daniel, roll up and seal the words of the scroll until the time of the end. Many will go here and there to increase knowledge.”

Continued from Daniel 11

Anyone reading or studying Daniel 12 will notice that the language resumes from Daniel 11:45. This means that chapter 12 is a continuation of chapter 11, not a separate event. This Chapter is also continued in Revelations 12 and 13 by John the Apostle, where similar mistakes have been made during its interpretation. As I will show you, the fact that Revelations 12 and 13 calibrate and align themselves with Daniel 11 and 12 confirms the validity of the New Testament and the message of Christ and his Apostles. It affirms that Jesus is the Christ beyond any shadow of a doubt and that the bible is the word of God. 

As you can see, I have divided Chapter 12 into three sections, and there is a good reason for this. The Angel Gabriel gives a brief summary in the first section of how the events will play out in the last days. The thing with angelic language is that we have to be careful, as they tend to scatter their information among the prophets, so we must, for the most part, use scripture to interpret scripture. For example, in Daniel 11:1-3 The Angel Gabriel says that he supported Cyrus the Great of Persia (Septuagint) and that four more kings will come. The fourth will be the richest and stir up the kingdom of Greece. “Then a mighty king will arise, who will rule with great power and do as he pleases.”  This king was none other than Alexander the Great. The problem you might find here is that there were 12 kings that ruled Persia before Alexander rose up, four were mentioned, and that leaves eight that were not mentioned. Why did the Angel not mention them? That is because they are briefly and concisely going through events and only reveal the key parts that affect the historical timeline. These are the sort of things you must be careful of when interpreting prophecy, as the angels do not waste their time with idle chatter or matters that are insignificant. If we are not aware of this, we can fall into the sudden pitfalls of misinterpretation. 

DANIEL 12:1-4   Section 1

THE ANGEL GABRIEL SUMMARISES HISTORY

I will begin proving my point by quoting Luke 4:5-6  “The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. 6 And he said to him, “I will give you all their authority and splendor; it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. 7 If you worship me, it will all be yours.” In this scripture, you can see that Satan is saying to Jesus that all the kingdoms of the world have been given to him. We know that at that time, Rome was the ruling empire. The Bible tells you that great distress will happen that is unequal to anything that has ever happened since nations began. This is the same thing Jesus was talking about in Mark 13:14-25, Matthew 24:15-21, Luke 21:20-24. If we look at Revelations 12:7-9 

 “Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8 But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. 9 The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth and his angels with him.” 

When we take a closer look at this scripture, John gives us a magnified perspective of what happened when the Archangel Michael rose up. It tells us that the Archangel rose up after the resurrection and the fleeing Israelites, which would be after the events of 70 A.D as written in Daniel 9:26 “After the sixty-two ‘sevens,’ the Anointed One will be put to death and will have nothing. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed.”

So just before chapter 12, which starts with the beginning of the Angel Michael’s assault, we can confirm that the angel rose after Daniel 11:45, which tells us that the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great moved the capital of Rome to Constantinople in 330 A.D, which means that the war in heaven broke out then. The effect of this was as written in Revelations 12:7-9. So, what was the outcome of the Devil being defeated and losing his place? Western Rome was destroyed in 476 A.D, making way for another ruling power to take place. 

In Daniel 12:2, The angel Gabriel says that Daniel will rise up along with the wicked. We know this is an overview because of 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 which states the following,

16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.

And Revelations 20:5-6  again tells us, 

5 (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.

When combined with the apostles’ work, the scripture gives us the clarity we need to decipher the Book of Daniel fully. The dead in Christ are judged 1000 years earlier in what is called the first resurrection, so we know the Angel is skipping centuries in one paragraph. The two angels there began to question his explanation and asked him to break it down again so it could be understood, which takes us to section 2 of the scripture.

DANIEL 12:5-7 Section 2

THE TWO ANGELS WANT AN EXPLANATION

The two men (angels) appear, requesting more details of the first overview. The angel Gabriel breaks it down further by saying these things will be accomplished when all the people have been scattered for a time, time and half a time. This can be seen in the KJV and the Septuagint bibles. 

SEPTUAGINT LXX

7 And I heard the man clothed in linen, who was over the water of the river, and he lifted up his right hand and his left hand to heaven, and sware by him that lives forever, that it should be for a time of times and half a time: when the dispersion is ended they shall know all these things.

KING JAMES

7 And I heard the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, and sware by him that liveth for ever that it shall be for a time, times, and an half; and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished.

THE MESSAGE 

7 “The man dressed in linen, who straddled the river, raised both hands to the skies. I heard him solemnly swear by the Eternal One that it would be a time, two times, and half a time, that when the oppressor of the holy people was brought down the story would be complete.

Just to remind you that Jesus has also expressed this in Mark 13:14-25, Matthew 24:15-21, Luke 21:20-24. This gives you an idea of how masterful Jesus was in understanding the scriptures. Jesus described it as a great scattering once the Abomination of Desolation is set up. This section tells us that the great distress will be for a time times and half a time.

DANIEL 12:8-13 Section 3 

DANIEL REQUESTS A FURTHER EXPLANATION FOR THE ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION

In the third section, it is evident that Daniel did not understand the explanation given by the angel Gabriel to the two other angels. So he asked for clarification, marking the third time that the angel Gabriel had to explain it. The Angel Gabriel initially told him it did not concern him, but then further explained and instructed him to seal it for later days, providing him with dates. The prophecy was not intended for Daniel, and sometimes prophets receive words that they do not understand, much like the situation with Daniel. He was informed that it was for later days, and now those days have come for us to fully comprehend what the Angel Gabriel was communicating. Upon closer inspection, it is revealed that Gabriel is conveying that from the time the sacrifice was destroyed to the time the Abomination of Desolation was set up, there would be 1290 ancient years, not actual days. We will delve further into the reason for the use of years instead of days shortly. Gabriel then says, “Blessed are those who make it to the 1335 days.” So what Gabriel has just conveyed here is the time frame for when the great distress will commence and what “a time, times, and half a time” actually signifies.

Contrary to popular belief among biblical scholars, it is not 1260 days that they suggest. Within Christian communities, it is widely accepted that “a time” signifies one year, “times” signifies two years, and “half a time” signifies half a year. However, does this interpretation align with the angel’s intended message? It seems to conflict with the angel’s clear statement that the people would be scattered for that length of time, and then the power that scattered them would be broken. People often try to correlate the numbers mentioned in the Book of Revelations with those in the Book of Daniel using complex mathematics.

Biblical Prophecy Should Convict Unbelievers of Sin

Nonetheless, this approach does not yield any meaningful revelations, as the numbers are intended for different dates. As written in 1 Corinthians 14:24-25, when unbelievers hear the prophecies come to pass, they should be convinced and acknowledge that the living God is with you. However, how can we achieve this with prophecies that have not come to pass with insignificant and vague interpretations? It is not possible.

An interesting thing to note is that Jesus warned the lost tribes of Israel of a terrible time to come, but they were not a nation since the Assyrians had destroyed them in 720 B.C. So this terrible event that Jesus warned them about would happen to the people around them. So this means the ancient Jews and the lost tribes of Israel, whether they can be identified as such or not, will fall to this tremendous judgment. They did not need to be a reunified nation for it to come to pass. As the scripture declares quite plainly in Leviticus 26:33, “I will scatter you among the nations and will draw out my sword and pursue you. Your land will be laid waste, and your cities will lie in ruins.”  In Jeremiah 9:16, “I will scatter them among nations that neither they nor their ancestors have known, and I will pursue them with the sword until I have made an end of them.”

As you can see in the book of Jeremiah, and others, they are of mutual opinion that the Lord will find them and administer his judgement. This reveals how dreadfully terrible God’s judgment actually is. There is no escape, and what we are about to discover will make you feel like these people should have just been obedient, to begin with. All this trouble for the mistreatment of one another and submitting oneself to idols hardly seems like a transaction worth making, but it was made, and payment came in full.  Let’s now use the ancient calendar to analyse the numbers in Daniel 12:11-12. This is the same well-known formula employed to decipher the 70-week prophecy in Daniel Chapter 9, so decoding the book using the same formula is of the utmost justification. 

_11 And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days. 12 Blessed is he that waiteth, and cometh to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days._

The Calculation For The Abomination Of Desolation

Let us start from 1290 Days and transform them from ancient 360-day years to Modern 365.25 years.  

Time Prophesied, multiplied by, Babylonian years (360 days a year)= Total amount of 24 hr Days for the time prophesied. We divide that total amount into our calendar of 365.24 days a year to reveal how many modern years the total amount of days would calculate or slot into. In this case, it is 1271 modern years. 

Here’s a simple layout.

1290 Multiplied by 360= 464,400, then divided by 365.25 equals 1271 Modern years

The Abomination of Desolation

Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, destroyed the first temple in 587 B.C. Now remember, when we are dealing with years Before Christ (B.C), it is a countdown, so we can’t simply add the years on. We have to take the years off. So, we begin by subtracting 587 B.C. from our modern years, and we are left with 684 A.D.  Again, I am compelled to remind you that we must add one year because the historians didn’t allow a year for year zero on the Gregorian calendar. When we add one year to complete the calculation, it brings us to 685 A.D. So what happened in 685 A.D? 

• Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan I became the leader of the Umayyad caliphate.
• He collected seven years of taxes from Egypt to fund the building of the Dome of the Rock. 
• Construction of the Dome of the Rock is said to have started in 687/88 and was finally completed in 692. This satisfies Daniel 9:27
• The Umayyad caliphate was the second Islamic caliphate in civil war (fitnah).
• In seven years (692), he unified the Islamic community and completed the Dome of the Rock. This satisfies Daniel 9:27 ( Also called the “Year of Unity” in Islamic tradition)

Written Rejection Of the Divinity of Christ inscribed on The Dome of the Rock

33. “So peace is upon me the day I was born, and the day I die, and the day I shall be raised alive!” 34. Such is Jesus, son of Mary. It is a statement of truth, about which they doubt. 35. It is not befitting to (the majesty of) Allah that He should take himself a child. Glory be to Him! When He determines a matter, He only says to it, “Be”, and it is.

— Quran, 19:33–35

These points are well-known historical facts that can be easily accessed, and they happened over 1000 years after they were foretold in the Book of Daniel. The Book of Daniel was found among the Dead Sea Scrolls, which date back to the 3rd century B.C. to the 1st Century A.D., hundreds of years before Islam.

The accuracy of the dates, accompanied by historical facts, reveals the footprint of divine engineering in the structure of our history. 

Now we come to the second number, 1335, which is “a time, times and half a time.” Let us examine this number by translating it into the modern calendar.

1335 multiplied by 360 = 480600 then divided by 365.25 equals 1,315 Modern years

We end up with the number 1315. Now, in the words of Jesus, “When you see the thing standing in the place, it should not be.” If we add 1315 years to 692 A.D, when the Dome of the Rock was completed, we come to 2007. What happened in 2007? Mauritania was the last place in the world to criminalise the Arab Slave trade it was also the last place to abolish slavery in 1981. The scripture says his power will be broken, and this event qualifies for that. This is not the end of slavery, as it is still illegally practised, but the legal power has been stripped. This was a significant blow to the Muslim Arab slave trade. You can see that the bible is expressing that this is the worst thing to ever happen since the beginning of nations. We can see evidently that the bible is telling us that the tribes of Israel will fall to this terrible industry and be scattered to the four winds of heaven until the Lord gathers them. After this, we could ask ourselves a few inner questions.

1. What are the chances that this could happen, and Could it be just a chance? 
2. If this was not the Muslim arab slave trade, was God aware that it could be mistaken for it? 
3. Can this discovery help us unlock the mystery behind Revelations 12, 13 and other chapters? 
4. Can this kind of interpretation of prophecy remove the veil between God and man and was it intended for that purpose?

In order for us to take this seriously, the other prophecies foretold must align with historical events that relate to what we have discovered. Otherwise, this could be dismissed as nothing short of, an amazing coincidence. 

Why are the days, years?

EZEKIEL 4:1-8 NIV

 “You also, son of man, take a clay tablet and lay it before you, and portray on it a city, Jerusalem. 2 Lay siege against it, build a siege wall against it, and heap up a mound against it; set camps against it also, and place battering rams against it all around. 3 Moreover take for yourself an iron plate, and set it as an iron wall between you and the city. Set your face against it, and it shall be besieged, and you shall lay siege against it. This will be a sign to the house of Israel.

4 “Lie also on your left side, and lay the iniquity of the house of Israel upon it. According to the number of the days that you lie on it, you shall bear their iniquity. 5 For I have laid on you the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days; so you shall bear the iniquity of the house of Israel. 6 And when you have completed them, lie again on your right side; then you shall bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days. I have laid on you a day for each year.

7 “Therefore you shall set your face toward the siege of Jerusalem; your arm shall be uncovered, and you shall prophesy against it. 8 And surely I will restrain you so that you cannot turn from one side to another till you have ended the days of your siege.

After King Solomon’s reign, Israel split into two nations. The northern kingdom retained the name Israel, while the southern kingdom was called Judah. Both nations sinned against God. The northern kingdom was destroyed by the Assyrians, and later, Judah was besieged by Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, in 587 B.C.

Around the time of the siege in 587 B.C., the Lord spoke to Ezekiel, instructing him to lie down on one side for the sins of Israel and then on the other for the sins of Judah. God told Ezekiel to lie on one side for Israel’s sins for 390 days and then on the other for 40 days for the sins of Judah. This indicates that the Lord quantified the sins of both territories. He said it was for a sign and that each day should be for a year.

The Greek Septuagint’s account of the same chapter presents significantly different numbers, which has puzzled and divided many biblical scholars.

EZEKIEL 4:1-8 GREEK SEPTUAGINT LXX

Upon reading the same verses, you can clearly see a difference In the Greek Septuagint version  

But which version is correct? Many scholars have been confused by this. It is worth noting that the Greek Septuagint is a much older version of the Bible and was around over two centuries before Jesus was born. The New Testament apostles are often found quoting from it word for word, but this is not so with the Masoretic text. The Masoretic text was completed in the tenth century after Christ.

Masoretic text (Most common Bibles today)

• Israel’s sins were represented by 390 days, which reflected the years they had been in sin.
• Judah was forty years which also represented the years they were in sin
• Combined, they were 430 years worth of sin for the Israelites as one whole nation.

The Greek Septuagint LXX

• Israel’s sins were represented by 150 days, which reflected the years they had been in sin.
• Judah remained the same and was for forty years which also represented the years they were in sin
• Combined, they were 190 years worth of sin for the Israelites as one whole nation.

It Must Make Sense

We only have to prove Israel’s charge for sin as both texts agree on the number for Judah. The southern kingdom of Judah lasted for 350 years, the northern kingdom of Israel existed for 208-210 years before the Assyrians destroyed it. I would argue that God would not charge them for 390 years worth of sin, seeing that they did not exist for that long, and it conflicts with the nature of a just God. However, the Septuagint charge of 150 years is reasonable and makes sense. Therefore, we will work with the Septuagint’s numbers in our next interpretation of the scriptures.  

The numbers were given to Ezekiel as a sign, and they measured their sins combined. God has quantified Israel’s sins as a nation and given Ezekiel the combined number of 190 days, which are the years the children of Israel have sinned against him. This is essential because what we are going to do next will show you the importance of these numbers. 

I WILL PUNISH YOU FOR YOUR SINS SEVEN TIMES OVER!

LEVITICUS 26:18-28

The Terrible Number Of The Great Dispersion

In this chapter of Leviticus, the Lord says that for disobedience, he will punish Israel seven times over for their sins. We have just seen in Ezekiel that God gave him 190 days for their sins. We also know that a time, times, and half a time is the number 1335, so let’s take that number and break it into seven pieces. 

1335 divided by 7 = 190.7

The Ezekiel Conversion

So, we can see the number of the Great Dispersion on the scales of Moses and Ezekiel. In conclusion, we can see that if the Lord had told Ezekiel that each day was equal to a year, and those days fit the number of 1335 when divided by 7, then it is made clear that the suffering should be for 1335 ancient years, which is 1315 when converted to our modern calendar. We are able to convert and understand that the days are years because of the prophet Ezekiel.  

The established prophetic year is one day for a 360-day year. Now, we can understand from our examination of Ezekiel chapter 4 why we use the day for a year, as our interpretation is justified, but how does the church justify what is called a prophetic year without understanding what chapter 4 of Ezekiel was all about? This question remains a mystery. 

Now I would encourage you to read the whole of Leviticus 26, and you will see that the Lord describes the horrors of the Muslim Arab Slave trade with Great Accuracy. Another interesting thing to note is that the prophets Daniel and Ezekiel were contemporaries, both living during the Babylonian exile in the 6th century B.C. We can clearly see that the Lord was talking to the two of them in different ways about the same event that was going to take place. Also, Ezekiel was told to lie down and portray the destruction of Jerusalem, which is where we take the date from to calculate the rise of Abd al-Malik and the Dome of the Rock. This cannot be a mere coincidence!

25 He will speak out against the Most High and oppress the saints of the Most High, intending to change the appointed times and laws; and the saints will be given into his hand for a time, and times, and half a time.

DANIEL 7:25 Septuagint LXX

The Bible here is telling you about Islam. The Book of Daniel, in its prophetic imagery, reveals that four great nations are going to rule—one after the next. We know the order of those nations are Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome. But after Rome or rather during its rule, another nation rises up—one that seeks to change the times and laws of the entire region. This nation, people or religion according to the scripture, will thrive off slavery, and the holy people will succumb to it until the Lord returns. 

So, we have identified the Arab slave trade, but does this satisfy the criteria we have accumulated through the ancient prophets? The answer is a resounding yes!

1. It will be spoken of and confirmed in the book of the prophet Daniel (Matt 24:15, Mark 14:15) 
2. It will be a challenging time for pregnant women & nursing mothers  (Matt 24:19, Mark 14:17) 
3. Something will happen when this thing is standing in the place it should not be (Matt 24:15, Mark 14:15) 
4. Jesus says that this will be in fulfilment of what has been written and declared so that we can find evidence in the prophets (Luke 21:22)
5. Jesus tells his people to leave and never return. The true Israelites had to leave that region.  (Matt 24:16-18, Mark 14:14-17) 
6. The days will be shortened because of his people, the elect they will not return until the angels gather them from the 4 winds of heaven (Matt 24:31, Mark 14:27) 
7. A time of distress will appear in mankind that will never be equalled again. (Matt 24:21, Mark:14:19, Luke 21:24, )
8. to complete their transgression and atone for wickedness (Daniel 9:24)
9. The Abomination that causes desolation will be built within a specific 7 years (Daniel 9:27)
10. The man that builds it will unify a people under one covenant during the 7 years (Daniel 9:27)
11. It will be destroyed at the end of time, so it will last a very long time. (Daniel 9:27)
12. The world will not remember who the Hebrews were or that they were even in the land of Israel (Deuteronomy 28:64, 32:26)
13. The time of the distress will fit a multiple of 7 times their sin. (Leviticus 26)
14. The people were traded for wine and prostitutes (Joel 3:3)
15. The twelve tribes will be restored soon after the time of Distress (Jubilees 1:15, Ezekiel 37:23, 
16. The great scattering will last a time, times and half a time (Daniel 12:7)
17. It will seem like the Almighty hates these people 
18. They will be defeated by their enemies in wars until they become a thing of horror. Deuteronomy 28:25
19. They will be unsuccessful in everything they do. Deuteronomy 28:29
20. Their wives/partners will be sexually abused. The rape of the nation will show up in the D.N.A of the Descendants  Deuteronomy 28:30
21. Possessions will be stolen and given to their enemies, Deuteronomy. 28:30
22. Their children will be given to other Nations, and they will be powerless to stop this. Deuteronomy 28:32/41
23. Foreign nations will eat most of what their labour and land produce. Deuteronomy 28:33
24. They will only know cruelness and oppression all the days of their lives. Deuteronomy 28:33
25. The Lord will drive them and the king they set over themselves to an unknown nation as captives (this cannot be Babylon as the Hebrews knew Babylon) Deuteronomy 28:36
26. They will worship other Gods as captives. Deuteronomy 28:36
27. They will become a byword and a thing of ridicule. Deuteronomy 28:37
28. The locust will eat their produce. Meaning nothing will come of the work of their hands. Deuteronomy 28:38
29. Other foreigners will do better and lend to them  Deuteronomy 28:43-44
30. A yoke will be put on their necks until they are destroyed as a nation and people Deuteronomy 28:48
31. The Lord will bring nations far away they have not known, whose languages they will not understand; they will take everything from them Deuteronomy 28:49-52
32. Their marriages and families will suffer breakdown Deuteronomy 28: 54/56
33. They will be uprooted from the land promised to them Deuteronomy 28:63
34. They will be terrified in the lands of their exile Deuteronomy 28: 65-67
35. They will be sent back to slavery in ships Deuteronomy 28:68

Many traditional Christians, both black and white, may struggle to accept this because, although there were Europeans taken into slavery for a time during the Arab slave trade, it was black Africans who were taken for the full duration of it. The Bible talks favourably in prophecy about those Europeans, which we will look into later or you can look at the Fifth Seal in this post

You Just Can’t Be Serious

Therefore, the Bible indicates that the Children of Israel fled into Africa, where they were later scattered to the world’s four corners. They intermingled with and lived among the Africans and were eventually enslaved. Many historical accounts support the presence of the Children of Israel in Africa.

In future chapters, we will interpret John’s visions in the book of Revelation, which suggests that the children of Israel succumbed to the trans-Atlantic slave trade and were handed over to the Europeans. We will delve into why that happened, exploring quotes and eyewitness accounts of medieval historians, travellers, and, most importantly, the Bible.

Divine Punishment!

I have to admit that this may come as a shock to most Christians and have a significant impact on them, but these claims are backed up by hard-proven facts, and Jesus himself spoke about this. We see what God’s divine punishment looks like firsthand without anyone telling us it never existed or it didn’t happen. The effects it has are not just a story in a book we can imagine in our minds. We get to see the generations of lives that were ruined by such tremendous and dreadful power. It brings a better understanding of the word from a dying Jesus on the cross: “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.”  This tells you that Jesus knew how devastating the Lord’s wrath could be, and rather than asking God to avenge him, he begged for the forgiveness of his enemies. Would we do the same if we knew how bad God’s judgment could be? Would we pray for the forgiveness of our enemies? Jesus, in his wisdom, has instructed us to do so. I believe that level of destruction should compel us to preach and reach as many souls as possible with this gospel with whatever little time we have left. We can see how devastating the judgment is; we have books and eyewitness accounts of events and stories that have been passed down by our families. Today many people seem to mock God and blaspheme his name, but if they were aware that it takes time for him to react and, when he does, how devastating and unstoppable the judgment could be, would they take more responsibility over their words and actions? Would your fellow man rebuke you from offending the Lord for the sake of the nation or a people? The Muslim arab slave trade is a reminder of a horrifying judgement of what happens when the protective presence of God has departed from us. The Lord’s warning should be treated with absolute fear and respect.

In the age that Jesus the messiah walked the earth, did the world know who he was? Would they have crucified him if they knew? The disciples knew he was the messiah before his crucifixion, but did they know he was God in the flesh? Obviously, after the resurrection, it is recorded in John 1:10 “He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him.” The secrecy surrounding Jesus’ identity was essential for him to fulfil his mission. Some may argue that if his followers had known his true identity, he might not have been able to reach the cross, thus failing to redeem humanity. Revealing his identity could have sparked a massive rebellion against Rome at the time. Could the case be made for the demise of the ancient Israelites? If the world had known who they were would an attempt be made to save them? Was this attempt made with the modern state of Israel? So, in order to fulfil the ancient prophecy, were the ancient Israelites stripped of their identity, culture, and home, and was the surrounding world stripped of all memory of them? This seems to be the case in Deuteronomy 32:26, where it says, “I said I would scatter them and erase their name from human memory,” and other supporting scriptures.

It would seem that most prophecies depend on the ignorance of the world and religious communities to fulfil their purpose. We could explore this even further: If the Muslims knew that the Bible spoke about their impending demise and the Dome of the Rock, would it have been completed? So, I think we can clearly grasp the point being made here.