Category: Old Testament

Posted in Daniel, Revelation

The Beast

Posted on by Tom Flaherty

“The beast which you saw, once was, now is not, and will come out of the abyss and go to his destruction.” Revelation 17:8

In Daniel 7 the beast has its body destroyed and is thrown into the blazing fire when the Messiah returns to the earth. (Daniel 7:11; 13)   How can Vespasian be the beast when Jesus didn’t return to end his reign?  In fact, after the Jewish war ended Vespasian reigned six more years until his peaceful death in 79 AD.  How can he be the beast when everything that was supposed to happen to the beast didn’t happen to him?

Is it possible that the beast is both the one who appeared in history using Vespasian and the one who inspires and possesses a future anti-Christ?  The beast, according to the text above, is more than a human being; it is a creature of darkness that has been released in the past, now is restricted, and will be released again before the coming of Christ.

The Apostle John writes Revelation after one of the judgment events has already occurred in history (the fall of Jerusalem), and before the final one (after the second coming). John assures us that the beast who comes up out of the abyss, and once was (had already appeared), now is not (is not presently active in the world), yet will appear again before he is destroyed.  

What Daniel sees is a composite of both comings of the beast. Just like Old Testament prophecies about Jesus are sometimes confusing because they don’t distinguish or even see two comings of the Messiah; Daniel can’t see two comings of the beast.  He can only see what God shows him, so what he describes is everything that the beast will do until God destroys him.

In Daniel we’re told that after the beast changes Jewish law (Vespasian did this at the destruction of the temple), the saints will be placed under his control for a time, times, and half a time. (Daniel 7:25) This is a reference to his second appearance where John sees a future anti-Christ speaking “great blasphemies against God,” waging “war against God’s holy people and conquering them,” and being “given authority to do whatever he wants for forty-two months.” (Revelation 13:5-7)   Revelation 12:14 calls this same period, “time, times, and half a time,” the same words used in Daniel seven.

Posted in Daniel

The Little Horn

Posted on by Tom Flaherty

“While I was thinking about the horns, there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted before it.” Daniel 7:8  

“The ten horns are ten kings who will rule that empire.  Then another king will arise, different from the other ten who will subdue three of them.” Daniel 7:24-25

Almost all scholars identify the fourth beast of Daniel 7 as the Roman Empire who would have “iron teeth” (7:19) and would “devour the whole world, trampling and crushing everything in its path.” (7:23) What they disagree on is who the ten kings were and who the eleventh king was who began as a little horn.  Instead of trying to figure out when the ten successive kings begin, I propose we focus on how he comes to power.  He begins as “the little horn” and doesn’t become king until three of the other horns or kings are subdued before him.

Remarkably there is an event in our history that fits this description.  When Nero committed suicide in 68 AD, the leadership of the Roman Empire was up for grabs.  Sixty-nine AD has become known as the year of four emperors.  Galba, Otho, and Vitellius all seized control for a time but eventually they were subdued before Vespasian.  Vespasian began as Nero’s general (a little horn – a leader, but not a king) and was then the emperor for ten years after coming to power.  If he is the eleventh king all we need to do is count backwards to find the first.  Five of the kings have already been accounted for (Nero, Galba, Otho, Vitellius, and Vespasian), so who were the other six?

Before Nero was Claudius, then Caligula, before him was Tiberius (the emperor during Jesus’ ministry), then Augustus (emperor when Jesus was born), before him was Julius Caesar who wasn’t called an emperor but “Dictator”, and finally, before Caesar was Pompey, who wasn’t called emperor or dictator, but “Sole Counsel.”

Is there any logical reason why God would identify Pompey as the first of the eleven kings when there were many other Roman leaders before him?  There is. Israel did not belong to the Roman Empire until 63 BC when Pompey invaded Jerusalem and desecrated the temple.  He was the first leader (king) in Rome when God’s people, Israel, came under the rule of the Roman Empire.

Posted in Daniel, Mark, Matthew

Daniel’s Seventieth ‘Seven’ – Part Two

Posted on by Tom Flaherty

“He (a coming prince) will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’ In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.” Daniel 9:27

After the Messiah is put to death, Gabriel says “the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary and its end will come like a flood.” (Daniel 9:26) The next verse, quoted above, is a description of this event that will happen during the seventieth ‘seven.’ 

Jesus said that this “abomination of desolation,” spoken by Daniel the prophet (Matthew 24:15) would be fulfilled in the generation that He lived in.  “Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.” (Mark 13:30) 

Many commentators don’t believe the seventieth ‘seven’ occurred in Jesus’ generation so they put it off until the generation before the Lord’s return.  They treat the fall of Jerusalem as a foreshadowing of the events that will happen again before the coming of the Lord which is why so many are certain the Jewish temple has to be rebuilt. But all this is conjecture and not in the text.  In Mark’s gospel only one question is asked and it’s about the destruction of the temple (not about His coming or about the end times) and the sign they should look for: “the abomination of desolation.” (Mark 13:14)

Yesterday we looked at what actually happened in their generation and the abomination that was set up in the destroyed temple.  Now let’s reread Daniel’s seventieth ‘seven’ in light of this history: 

“And he (Vespasian) will make a firm covenant with many (Galilean Jews) for one ‘seven.’ (The war went from 66-73 AD)  In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. (The temple was destroyed at the three and a half year mark, so sacrifices could no longer be made.) And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation (the Roman ensign was sacrificed to where the temple had been), until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.”  Daniel’s seventieth ‘seven’ was fulfilled in the first century, just like Jesus said it would be.

Posted in Daniel

The First Sixty-nine ‘Sevens’

Posted on by Tom Flaherty

“Seventy ‘sevens’ are decreed for your people and your holy city…“Know and understand this: From the time the word goes out to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One, the ruler, comes, there will be seven ‘sevens,’ and sixty-two ‘sevens’…After the sixty-two ‘sevens,’ the Anointed One will be put to death and will have nothing.” Daniel 9:24-26

 One of the most remarkable prophecies of the Old Testament is found in Daniel 9:24-27.  The seventy years of captivity in Babylon are finished, so Daniel is praying for the deliverance from their exile when the angel Gabriel appears to him and gives the message above.  After telling about the first 69 ‘sevens’ he describes the 70th ‘seven’ but makes it clear that there will be a gap – Messiah will be “put to death and have nothing” after the 69 ‘sevens,’ but before the 70th seven.  The seven ‘sevens’ and the sixty-two ‘sevens’ are consecutive and are only split up so Daniel will know how long it will take to restore and rebuild the Jerusalem – 49 years (seven ‘sevens’).  The 62 ‘sevens’ or 434 years immediately follow the 49 after which Messiah will be put to death and have nothing.  Forty-nine and 434 equals 483 years – not solar years which we use today, but the 360 day lunar years they used then.

 We find the decree Gabriel references in the book of Nehemiah.  Nehemiah is the Persian king Artaxerxes’ cupbearer and he is sad because “the city, the place of my father’s tombs, lies desolate and its gates have been consumed by fire.” (2:3)  So in Artaxerxes 20th year, in the month of Nisan (April), a decree is made to rebuild the city. (2:1-9)

 Artaxerxes began his reign in 465 BC (Encyclopedia Britannica), so his 20th year would be 445 BC according to our calendar (444 BC because Daniel used accessional dating to count his reign).  To convert from lunar to solar we begin by figuring out how many days there are in 483 lunar years: 483 times 360 equals 173,880 days.  Then we divide 173,880 by 365.242 (the days in a solar year) to determine the number of solar years so we can get a date that corresponds to our dates in history – it comes to 476 solar years.  So when we start the prophetic clock in 444 BC and  begin with the first 444 years we come to 1 AD because there is no year “0”. (The year after 1 BC is 1 AD)  That leaves 32 (476 minus 444 equals 32) years which when added to 1 AD brings us to 33 AD.  The Messiah would die after the 69 sevens – the time most scholars give for Jesus’ death is Passover of 33 AD.

Posted in 2Corinthians, Daniel, Jeremiah, Luke, Mark, Matthew

Two Events of Judgment

Posted on by Tom Flaherty

“Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.  Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.  But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.  For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah.”  Matthew 24:34-37

 I have come to believe that Jesus is describing two events of judgment in His discourse on the future (Matthew 24; Mark 13; Luke 17 and 21) and that they are very different to prepare for.

One event, the destruction of Jerusalem, will happen in their lifetime, or their “generation.”  It is a time of God’s wrath on the Jewish people for rejecting Christ (Luke 21:22-24); it will feature an abomination of desolation being set up in the holy place (Matthew 24:15); and  it will be horrible but “cut short,” otherwise all of the Jewish elect would be wiped out.

  The rescue for the church at this time is to flee Jerusalem when you see these things happening.  “All these things” were to be expected within their generation and they would be as visible as a fig tree budding indicating that summer is near.  There will be a fulfillment of  “all that is written” (Luke 21:22), a reference to Daniel’s seventieth ‘seven’ (Daniel 9:27), and Jeremiah’s allusion to a time of Jacob’s trouble. (Jeremiah 30:7)

   The second event Jesus describes is not just in Judea, it’s world-wide (Luke 21:35); Jesus doesn’t know when it’s going to happen; the elect don’t have to flee, they are taken; and there are no signs to prepare for it, so people have to live ready.  This coming event is not a judgment on the Jews for rejecting Christ (that already happened in the destruction of Jerusalem), but on the Gentiles who have rejected Christ. (Luke 21:24) 

 By the end of their generation this second judgment will be imminent, or “at the door,” (Matthew 24:33-34) because it will occur immediately after Jesus appears in the clouds.  We are now living between the first and second judgment events in a time of God’s favor. (2Corinthians 6:2)  This is the time to respond to God’s salvation!

Posted in Colossians, Isaiah, John, Philippians

Are You Willing?  

Posted on by Tom Flaherty

“If you are willing and obedient you will eat the best from the land.” Isaiah 1:19

A minister in the 1950’s was complaining to God saying, “God, you said if I was willing and obedient, I would eat the best of the land and I’ve been obedient.”

He had been a pastor when God told him to start traveling because he wasn’t really a pastor, he was a prophet and a teacher. Even though it was difficult to leave the security of a pastorate, he obeyed God. The problem was that he wasn’t making it. His shoes were worn out, his wife and kids were barely surviving, and there was constant financial pressure on his home. All this when he had only obeyed God and stepped out in faith.

The Lord answered this man with a whisper: “You’ve been obedient, but you haven’t been willing.” When he told this story, he said that he instantly became willing in response to God’s prompting, and it started to change everything in his life.

Did you know you can be obedient and not be willing? You can do the will of God and carry out your responsibilities as “have tos,” but that’s not good enough for God. He only releases His full blessing over us when we “want to.” It’s not enough for Him that we serve Him; He wants us to be happy about it.

The sweet Spirit of God was given so we would have both power to God’s will as well as the “want to.” Philippians 2:13 says, “It is God who works in you to will (the want to) and to act (the power to do) according to His good purpose.”

The way we change all of the “have tos,” in our lives into “want tos,” is by embracing the cross and doing them for God instead of for man. Jesus said that no one took His life from Him; “I lay it down of my own accord.” (John 10:18). You and I have the choice of resenting our “have tos,” or of making them “want tos,” by doing them for God.

How we do what we do changes everything and puts us in the place of God’s full blessing. “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” (Colossians 3:23-24).

Posted in Malachi, Revelation

No Compromise

Posted on by Tom Flaherty

“Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, because the time is near. Let him who does wrong continue to do wrong; let him who is vile continue to be vile; let him who does right continue to do right; and let him who is holy continue to be holy.” Revelation 22:10-11

Why is God telling those who do wrong to continue to do wrong? Shouldn’t He tell them to repent? He’s not writing to those who are in the world in this book, but to “His servants” (Revelation 1:1) who are living in a culture of compromise and will be tempted to backslide.

The message of this passage could be paraphrased like this: “Don’t plan on the people around you changing – they might not. Instead, make sure you don’t change and give in to the culture of compromise around you. Be separate in your desire and make sure the pursuit of your life is different from the worldly people around you.”

This text is from the last chapter of the New Testament and is amazingly close to another passage in the last book of the Old Testament. “‘They will be mine’, says the Lord Almighty, ‘on the day when I make up My treasure possession. I will spare them, just as in compassion a man spares his son who serves him. And you will again see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who don’t.’” (Malachi 3:17-18)

Whatever else you do, choose to live holy before the God who saved you and before the generation around you. Make sure you don’t just believe differently, but actually live differently. Anything less is deception.

Posted in Galatians, Psalms

What Happened?

Posted on by Tom Flaherty

What has happened to all your joy?” Galatians 3:15

Joy is a good measure of our Christianity because true joy is only found in the presence of God. (Psalm 16:11) Apparently the early joy the Galatian church experienced had faded. In the text above, Paul is bringing this fact to their attention so he can get to the source of the problem.

They were still living; they were still religious; and maybe even still zealous for the faith, but the joy was gone. What happened? Have you ever been there? Still doing what you’re supposed to be doing, but over time, losing the heartfelt energy that comes from the joy of the Lord?

Paul identifies the freedom the gospel brings as the source of releasing God’s joy, and the loss of that freedom as the block to it. Jesus came to free them from the slavery of a performance identity, so they could know what it is to be the beloved children of God. (Galatians 4:6-7)

They knew this joy once but are now being seduced by teachers who are preaching a different gospel. The gospel these teachers are promoting makes more sense because it involves them keeping more rules and “earning their keep” instead of the free gift of grace through faith alone. Paul exposes the deception and calls them to return to the true gospel and to stand firm in it. The central verse of Galatians is chapter five, verse one: “It was for freedom that Christ set you free. Stand firm therefore in your freedom and do not be enslaved again by a yoke of bondage.”

Do you know you’re a beloved child of God with the full rights of an heir of God? (Galatians 4:6) If you understand the gospel correctly it should make you laugh. Paul says that we, like Isaac (whose name means laughter), were born of a promise. (Galatians 4:28) Sinners deserving death were saved, not by any work of their own, but just by believing God’s love and promise to us in Christ!

May God restore to each of us the joy of our salvation and may that joy overflow to all those who are around us every day.

Posted in Psalms

Preparing the Way 

Posted on by Tom Flaherty

“He who sacrifices thank offerings honors Me, and he prepares the way so that I may show him the salvation of God.” Psalm 50:23

It is easy to give to a grateful person and difficult to give to one that takes what you do for granted. Many years ago now our great Aunt Ruth decided to disperse some of her enormous estate. From the money she gave her sister, our grandmother, $100 was sent to me and to each one of my five siblings. I had never met Aunt Ruth but I was very excited about the $100 because at the time I was a broke college student. With the money there was a note from my mom that said to be sure to send Aunt Ruth a thank you note.

I was thankful and certainly planned on sending a note, but it just never happened. Sometimes stopping to say thank you is just unintentionally forgotten because of our busy lives that are always rushing to the next thing. Well it turns out that none of my siblings ended up sending Aunt Ruth a thank you note either, except for my sister Sheila. Sheila didn’t just send a note, she wrote a letter, detailing what she was doing with the generous gift sent to her. A month later, Sheila received a second check for $100 directly from Aunt Ruth. None of the rest of us got one. We certainly didn’t deserve a second check, in fact, we hadn’t deserved the first one.

And that’s how it is with God’s blessings as well. Sometimes I think it helps to remember that we are owed nothing, and that every blessing that comes to us is because of God’s generous love. He doesn’t want us to live in guilt because of His gifts, but He does want us to be thankful. The only sacrifice a thank offering requires is the time it takes to stop and reflect on our blessings. It won’t only honor God, it also prepares the way for His continued blessings.

Posted in Philippians, Psalms

The Sacrifice of Thanksgiving

Posted on by Tom Flaherty

“He who sacrifices thank offerings honors Me, and he prepares the way so that I may show him the salvation of God.” Psalm 50:23

Sometimes it’s a sacrifice to give thanks. Maybe it’s because things aren’t going well right now, or because God hasn’t done the big thing you’re asking Him to do. Yet the word of God encourages us to give thanks even when we’re not in the mood, and it still honors Him. My number one defense against discouragement is thanksgiving. When I find myself down I will recount God’s blessings starting with salvation, then family, health, job, and every blessing I can think of. It’s difficult to be both depressed and thankful at the same time.

Thanksgiving brings us quickly into God’s Presence. “I will enter His gates with thanksgiving in my heart…” (Psalm 100:4) No wonder our sacrifice of thanksgiving prepares the way for God’s salvation. Think about human relationships. Isn’t it easy to give to a thankful person and hard to give to someone who takes you and your gifts for granted? I think it’s the same way for God. He encourages us to pray when we are anxious about anything and “with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” (Philippians 4:6) Before we have even received what we are praying for, we are to give thanks. For what? How about for the last time God answered your prayer, or for who God is and that He even cares about our needs, or for the promises He has given that we can believe and pray back to Him as we ask.

The word says that after we turn our anxiety into prayer with thanksgiving, “the peace of God which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:7) I wonder if thanksgiving is the key to breaking through to peace. Prayer without thanksgiving can actually just be worrying in front of God. Thanksgiving brings in an element of faith and victory even if we haven’t seen the answer yet.