2. Worship of the ‘image’

worship image 2.pdf

The trace in Scripture that leads to the worship of the ‘image’ of the beast:
HCSB (Revelation 13:14-15) 14 … telling those who live on the earth to make an image of the beast who had the sword wound yet lived. 15 ….so that the image of the beast could both speak and cause whoever would not worship the image of the beast to be killed.
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In the previous article, we spoke about the idolatry in the first Christian communities.
Jesus warned of idolatry in the Pergamus community which was a reflection of the history of Balaam and Balak, king of Moab, to deceive the people of Israel in those days.
Jesus also warned of idolatry in the community of Thyatira as a reflection of Jezebel, the wife of King Ahab of the northern ten-tribe kingdom of Israel. Jezebel was at that time an unscrupulous worshiper and prophetess of Baal and Astarte, and who imposed the worship of these in Israel.

How did history go on with the northern ten-tribe kingdom of Israel and with the house of Jehu, king of Israel?

The theme of this writing is; idolatry and the exile of Samaria, followed by the exile of Judah and the visions in exile of Daniel.

NKJV (2 Kings 10:31-32) 31 But Jehu took no heed to walk in the law of the Lord God of Israel with all his heart; for he did not depart from the sins of Jeroboam, who had made Israel sin. 32 In those days the Lord began to cut off parts of Israel; and Hazael conquered them in all the territory of Israel….. (Hazael was king of Syria, see 1 Kings 19:15)

The sins of Jeroboam were – as also mentioned in the previous article – according to 1 Kings 12:28 the institution of golden calf worship by Jeroboam in the ten-tribe kingdom of Israel.

NKJV (2 Kings 17:1-3) 1 In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah, Hoshea the son of Elah became king of Israel in Samaria, and he reigned nine years. 2 And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, but not as the kings of Israel who were before him. 3 Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up against him; and Hoshea became his vassal, and paid him tribute money.

Hosea, who ruled from Samaria, was conquered by Assyria and had to pay an annual estimate. Samaria belonged, as known, to the northern ten-tribe kingdom of Israel.
But Hosea did not want to pay the annual estimate to Assyria anymore. Thereupon Assyria invaded Samaria and many Samaritans were taken in exile to Assyria in 722 BC.:

NKJV (2 Kings 17:6-8,12) 6 In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria took Samaria and carried Israel away to Assyria, and placed them in Halah and by the Habor, the River of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes. 7 For so it was that the children of Israel had sinned against the Lord their God, who had brought them up out of the land of Egypt, from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and they had feared other gods, 8 and had walked in the statutes of the nations whom the Lord had cast out from before the children of Israel, and of the kings of Israel, which they had made…..12 for they served idols, of which the Lord had said to them, “You shall not do this thing.”
NKJV (2 Kings 17:17) 17 And they caused their sons and daughters to pass through the fire, practiced witchcraft and soothsaying, and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke Him to anger.
NKJV (1 Kings 14:23, 24) 23 For they also built for themselves high places, sacred pillars, and wooden images on every high hill and under every green tree. 24 And there were also perverted persons in the land. They did according to all the abominations of the nations which the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel.

These kinds of bad things, such as temple prostitution, fortune-telling and child sacrifices, were strictly forbidden by God (YHWH) but were striking aspects of the Baal worship:

NKJV (Deuteronomy 18:10-11) 10 There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, 11 or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead.
NKJV (Deuteronomy 23:17) 17 “There shall be no ritual harlot of the daughters of Israel, or a perverted one of the sons of Israel.

After the Assyrian siege of the city of Samaria, many were deported from the land of Samaria, and later new residents from other countries were sent to the cities of Samaria:

NKJV (2 Kings 17:24) 24 Then the king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Cuthah, Ava, Hamath, and from Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel; and they took possession of Samaria and dwelt in its cities.
NKJV (Psalms 106:34-38) 34 They did not destroy the peoples, Concerning whom the Lord had commanded them, 35 But they mingled with the Gentiles And learned their works; 36 They served their idols, Which became a snare to them. 37 They even sacrificed their sons And their daughters to demons, 38 And shed innocent blood, The blood of their sons and daughters, Whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan; And the land was polluted with blood.

These new residents brought their own religion and brought their own gods.
The Samaritans had relations with the new residents.
Also in His days on earth, Jesus did not consider the ‘mixed’ Samaritans as pure Jews:

NKJV (Matthew 10:5-6) 5 These twelve Jesus sent out and commanded them, saying: “Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the Samaritans. 6 But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
NKJV (2 Kings 17:18) 18 Therefore the Lord was very angry with Israel, and removed them from His sight; there was none left but the tribe of Judah alone.

But as we shall see, unfortunately, idolatry was also practiced in the southern two-tribe kingdom of Judah.

The idolatry in Judah and the subsequent exile of Judah

The following warning had God YHWH given to the children of Israel:

NKJV (Deuteronomy 28:58-59,64) 58 “If you do not carefully observe all the words of this law that are written in this book, that you may fear this glorious and awesome name, THE LORD YOUR GOD, 59 then the Lord will bring upon you and your descendants extraordinary plagues–great and prolonged plagues–and serious and prolonged sicknesses… 64 “Then the Lord will scatter you among all peoples, from one end of the earth to the other, and there you shall serve other gods, which neither you nor your fathers have known–wood and stone.

God had no choice, the kingdom of Judah, just like Samaria, had fallen into great sin:

NKJV (2 Kings 17:19-20) 19 Also Judah did not keep the commandments of the Lord their God, but walked in the statutes of Israel which they made. 20 And the Lord rejected all the descendants of Israel, afflicted them, and delivered them into the hand of plunderers, until He had cast them from His sight.
NKJV (Jeremiah 32:35) 35 And they built the high places of Baal which are in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire to Molech, which I did not command them, nor did it come into My mind that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin.’ (the valley of the Son of Hinnom is situated south of Jerusalem, also called Gehenna)

Manasseh, a king of the two-tribe nation of Judah who did evil

NKJV (2 Kings 21:1-6) 1 Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned fifty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hephzibah. 2 And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, according to the abominations of the nations whom the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel. 3 For he rebuilt the high places which Hezekiah his father had destroyed; he raised up altars for Baal, and made a wooden image, as Ahab king of Israel had done; and he worshiped all the host of heaven and served them. 4 He also built altars in the house of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, “In Jerusalem I will put My name.” 5 And he built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the Lord. 6 Also he made his son pass through the fire, practiced soothsaying, used witchcraft, and consulted spiritists and mediums. He did much evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke Him to anger.

Manasseh even built idol altars in God’s temple and – by his moon god and stars idolatry – made God very angry. When Manasseh died, Ammon (his son) became king. Ammon did what was bad in God’s eyes and was killed by his servants. His son Josiah then became king of Judah. (2 Kings 21: 19-26)

Finally a king who did good, King Josiah of Judah

NKJV (2 Kings 23:24-27) 24 Moreover Josiah put away those who consulted mediums and spiritists, the household gods and idols, all the abominations that were seen in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, that he might perform the words of the law which were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the Lord. 25 Now before him there was no king like him, who turned to the Lord with all his heart, with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the Law of Moses; nor after him did any arise like him. 26 nevertheless the Lord did not turn from the fierceness of His great wrath, with which His anger was aroused against Judah, because of all the provocations with which Manasseh had provoked Him. 27 And the Lord said, “I will also remove Judah from My sight, as I have removed Israel, and will cast off this city Jerusalem which I have chosen, and the house of which I said, ‘My name shall be there.’ “

King Josiah of Judah was killed by the pharaoh of Egypt. (2Kings 23:29)
God’s wrath did not turn away from Judah because of the gross idolatry of Manasseh.

Jehoahaz, son of Josiah, became king of Judah
Joahaz, the son of Josiah, became the next king of Judah, but he again did evil in God’s eyes:

NKJV (2 Kings 23:32-34) 32 And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers had done. 33 Now Pharaoh Necho (of Egypt) put him in prison at Riblah (Syria) in the land of Hamath, that he might not reign in Jerusalem; and he imposed on the land a tribute of one hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold. 34 Then Pharaoh Necho made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in place of his father Josiah, and changed his name to Jehoiakim. And Pharaoh took Jehoahaz and went to Egypt, and he died there.

Jehoahaz had died, Jehoiakim (Eliakim) another son of Josiah became the new king of Judah

NKJV (2 Kings 23:35,37) 35 So Jehoiakim gave the silver and gold to Pharaoh; but he taxed the land to give money according to the command of Pharaoh; he exacted the silver and gold from the people of the land, from every one according to his assessment, to give it to Pharaoh Necho.….. 37 And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers had done.

The battle of Karkemish
The Battle of Karkemish was a battle between the Egyptian army and the Babylonians under Nebuchadnezzar. The battle took place at the border of Syria at the Euphrates river in +/- 605 BC. and was a decisive victory for Babylon on the Egyptian army, which suffered a heavy defeat there. Judah then became indebted to Babylon instead of to Egypt.

NKJV (2 Kings 24:1) 1 In his days Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up, and Jehoiakim became his vassal for three years. Then he (Jehoiakim) turned and rebelled against him.

The first of the series of exiles around 605 BC.

NKJV (Daniel 1:1-3,6) 1 In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. 2 And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, with some of the articles of the house of God, which he carried into the land of Shinar to the house of his god; and he brought the articles into the treasure house of his god. 3 Then the king instructed Ashpenaz, the master of his eunuchs, to bring some of the children of Israel and some of the king’s descendants and some of the nobles,….. 6 Now from among those of the sons of Judah were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.

Jehoiakim (Eliakim) died and Jehoiachin (his son) became king of Judah

NKJV (2 Kings 24:6-7,9) 6 So Jehoiakim rested with his fathers. Then Jehoiachin his son reigned in his place. 7 And the king of Egypt did not come out of his land anymore, for the king of Babylon had taken all that belonged to the king of Egypt from the Brook of Egypt to the River Euphrates. …..9 And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father had done.

The second series of exiles around 596 BC.

NKJV (2 Kings 24:10-15,17) 10 At that time the servants of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up against Jerusalem, and the city was besieged. 11 And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came against the city, as his servants were besieging it. 12 Then Jehoiachin king of Judah, his mother, his servants, his princes, and his officers went out to the king of Babylon; and the king of Babylon, in the eighth year of his reign, took him prisoner. 13 And he carried out from there all the treasures of the house of the Lord and the treasures of the king’s house, and he cut in pieces all the articles of gold which Solomon king of Israel had made in the temple of the Lord, as the Lord had said. 14 Also he carried into captivity all Jerusalem: all the captains and all the mighty men of valor, ten thousand captives, and all the craftsmen and smiths. None remained except the poorest people of the land. 15 And he carried Jehoiachin captive to Babylon. The king’s mother, the king’s wives, his officers, and the mighty of the land he carried into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon. …. 17 Then the king of Babylon made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin’s uncle, king in his place, and changed his name to Zedekiah.

Zedekiah (Mattaniah), the last king of Judah in the line of David

NKJV (2 Chronicles 36:12-13) 12 He (Zedekiah) did evil in the sight of the Lord his God, and did not humble himself before Jeremiah the prophet, who spoke from the mouth of the Lord. 13 And he also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear an oath by God; but he stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against turning to the Lord God of Israel.
NKJV (2 Kings 25:1,6-7) 1 Now it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem and encamped against it; and they built a siege wall against it all around.… 6 So they took the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah, and they pronounced judgment on him. 7 Then they killed the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, put out the eyes of Zedekiah, bound him with bronze fetters, and took him to Babylon.

The temple of Jerusalem, the place of worship, destroyed around 586 BC.

NKJV (2 Kings 25:9-10,13-15) 9 He burned the house of the Lord and the king’s house; all the houses of Jerusalem, that is, all the houses of the great, he burned with fire. 10 And all the army of the Chaldeans who were with the captain of the guard broke down the walls of Jerusalem all around.…. 13 The bronze pillars that were in the house of the Lord, and the carts and the bronze Sea that were in the house of the Lord, the Chaldeans broke in pieces, and carried their bronze to Babylon. 14 They also took away the pots, the shovels, the trimmers, the spoons, and all the bronze utensils with which the priests ministered. 15 The firepans and the basins, the things of solid gold and solid silver, the captain of the guard took away.
NKJV (2 Chronicles 36:18-19) 18 And all the articles from the house of God, great and small, the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the king and of his leaders, all these he took to Babylon. 19 Then they burned the house of God, broke down the wall of Jerusalem, burned all its palaces with fire, and destroyed all its precious possessions.

With the devastation of the temple around 586 BC. was also the third and final series of exiles:

NKJV (2 Kings 25:11) 11 Then Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive the rest of the people who remained in the city and the defectors who had deserted to the king of Babylon, with the rest of the multitude.

The warnings by the prophet Jeremiah in Jerusalem prior to the exile

NKJV (Jeremiah 25:11-12) 11 And this whole land shall be a desolation and an astonishment, and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years. 12 ‘Then it will come to pass, when seventy years are completed, that I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation, the land of the Chaldeans, for their iniquity,’ says the Lord; ‘and I will make it a perpetual desolation.

It is almost certain that both Daniel and Ezekiel heard about Jeremiah in their early years, when he prophesied his warning messages in Jerusalem.
Ezekiel also lived in exile in Babel, near the river Kebar. (Ezekiel 1: 3)
With the wrath of God (YHWH) and the exile, also came the message of hope and consolation from God for the Jewish people.
Ezekiel had the message that their exile, their captivity, would be converted – in the future – into freedom under a Prince of Peace:

NKJV (Ezekiel 34:22-24) 22 therefore I will save My flock, and they shall no longer be a prey; and I will judge between sheep and sheep. 23 I will establish one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them–My servant David. He shall feed them and be their shepherd. 24 And I, the Lord, will be their God, and My servant David a prince among them; I, the Lord, have spoken.
NKJV (Ezechiël 36:24-26) 24 For I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land. 25 Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. 26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.

Daniel’s visions and the explanation of these

With the last king Zedekiah, king of Judah, the royal line of David also stopped.
However, in the Scriptures it is said that the throne of David would be forever:

NKJV (2 Samuel 7:16) 16 And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever.”

Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, had a dream of a terrifying image.
Daniel explained the dream of Nebuchadnezzar to him:

NKJV (Daniel 2:31-33) 31 “You, O king, were watching; and behold, a great image! This great image, whose splendor was excellent, stood before you; and its form was awesome. 32 This image’s head was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, 33 its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay.

The image that Nebudkadnezzar saw in his dream was of gold, silver, bronze, iron, and iron with clay. Daniel had identified the world powers, of which Babylon symbolized the head of gold. The silver that symbolized the Medes-Persians. The bronze that symbolized the Greek empire. And the iron which symbolized the Roman Empire. There were also feet of iron and clay and ten toes of iron and clay. All these world powers or kingdoms would come, starting with Babylon in the days of the last king of Judah, Zedekiah, until the God of heaven would bring forth an everlasting kingdom that would crush all these kingdoms:

NKJV (Daniel 2:37-44) 37 You, O king, are a king of kings. For the God of heaven has given you a kingdom, power, strength, and glory; 38 and wherever the children of men dwell, or the beasts of the field and the birds of the heaven, He has given them into your hand, and has made you ruler over them all–you are this head of gold. 39 But after you shall arise another kingdom inferior to yours; then another, a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth. 40 And the fourth kingdom shall be as strong as iron, inasmuch as iron breaks in pieces and shatters everything; and like iron that crushes, that kingdom will break in pieces and crush all the others. 41 Whereas you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; yet the strength of the iron shall be in it, just as you saw the iron mixed with ceramic clay. 42 And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly fragile. 43 As you saw iron mixed with ceramic clay, they will mingle with the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, just as iron does not mix with clay. 44 And in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.

The Roman Empire was depicted as iron, it was also the most ruthless of all those empires that had existed before this empire.
(For the aforementioned empires, see also: 1. Images https://www.dojc.nl/?p=462&lang=en)
For further information concerning the Roman Empire according to Revelation;
(see also: 2. The 6th king, the Roman Republic https://www.dojc.nl/?p=466&lang=en)

The legs of the statue were of iron, but the feet of iron and clay and thus consist of two ingredients, which cannot be mixed, which can only stick together.
The Roman Empire ceased to exist a long time ago. What then is meant by ‘again’ an empire (the feet) that is symbolized by iron, but now mixed with clay?
As for this new empire of iron, but now mixed with clay (the feet of iron with clay), there is also spoken of in Revelation. From a head or world power that reappears, has been healed and has come back to life:

NKJV (Revelation 13:3) 3 And I saw one of his heads as if it had been mortally wounded, and his deadly wound was healed.…..
(see also: 4. Curing one of the heads of the beast https://www.dojc.nl/?p=488&lang=en)

The curing of this head can be explained in such a way that imperialism (the expansion of power by the Roman Empire) was picked up by colonization after many centuries by the Western countries (the former West Roman Empire). The aforementioned feet-rich now appears to be, in these days, the American empire, a former Western colony.
This world power derives his power from a huge military potential with a military base in many locations in a worldwide network. The US has – as a war industry – a gigantic military industrial complex.
(see also: 3. The seventh king, the American Empire https://www.dojc.nl/?p=486&lang=en)

What will be the characteristic of the feet-empire of iron and clay?
The text in Daniel 2:41 says (41 Whereas you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; yet the strength of the iron shall be in it, just as you saw the iron mixed with ceramic clay).

Is the American Empire, the feet of iron and clay, a divided empire and does it have anything of the hardness of iron?
Just as the Roman empire (of iron) was ruthless, so ruthless is the American Empire in world events with their warfare, as now being present in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria.
The US has approximately 900 military bases worldwide and military personnel in 130 countries:
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2011/sep/14/ron-paul/ron-paul-says-us-has-military-personnel-130-nation/

Is it also a divided empire?
In the used Scripture is spoken of iron ‘mixed with clay’.
According to Scripture, ‘clay’ stands for the common people:

NKJV (Isaiah 64:8) 8 But now, O Lord, You are our Father; We are the clay, and You our potter; And all we are the work of Your hand.
NKJV (Job 33:6) 6 Truly I am as your spokesman before God; I also have been formed out of clay.

From Daniel 2:40 (and like iron that crushes, that kingdom will break in pieces and crush all the others) it appears that the iron, the rulers and the elite, desire power, that they are greedy and unloving. And from Daniel 2:43 (they will mingle with the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another) it appears that it concerns human choices, that are very different.
The American elite of billionaires has the Mainstream Media in their hands and can use their reporting, to mislead the population. (such as reports about the war in Iraq because of ‘weapons of mass destruction’ or about the situation in Libya and Syria) On the other hand, they are so smart, to the few media, which they have no influence on, to call these media ‘fake news’.
http://www.investmentwatchblog.com/inequality-crisis-un-warns-40m-in-poverty-u-s-most-unequal-developed-nation/

The American people are capitalist, selfish and greedy in their own way, but are empowered (with their democratic rights) and can make their voices heard.
But the population is by no means so ruthless, greedy and loveless all their authoritarian leaders, bankers, intelligence services and elite, and that divides the American empire.
The American people themselves are completely financially squeezed by their own empire with its precious military industry:
https://poverty.ucdavis.edu/faq/what-current-poverty-rate-united-states

The text in Daniel 2:42 (And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly fragile) is about the rise of the ten-toes empire in the last days.
Just as the American empire is a greedy and loveless power, so will the empire of the ten toes of iron and clay also be a greedy and loveless empire that is ruthless and does not take the population into account.
According to our research in Revelation, it consists of the 8th world power, the empire that was and is not, a financial empire, with the 10 uncrowned kings of the central banks:

NKJV (Revelation 17:7-8,11) 7 …I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and the ten horns. 8 The beast that you saw was, and is not, and will ascend out of the bottomless pit and go to perdition. ….11 And the beast that was, and is not, is himself also the eighth, and is of the seven, and is going to perdition.

The beast named in the foregoing scripture is the scarlet beast that carries the harlot.
This 8th world power itself determines the financial rules and has the world economically in its grip, because almost all central banks are linked to the BIS-Bank, the secret bank in Basel, which – so to speak – controls the global money-world.
The ten toes-empire of iron and clay (Daniel 2:44) is described in Revelation as the scarlet beast with the woman on the back, full of blasphemous names and this is the empire of the central banks, the 10 kings of the 8th empire that was and is not:

NKJV (Revelation 17:11-12) 11 And the beast that was, and is not, is himself also the eighth, and is of the seven, and is going to perdition. 12 The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have received no kingdom as yet, but they receive authority for one hour as kings with the beast.

These 10 kings will receive 1 biblical hour of royal power. (Rev.17: 12)
(see also: 10. The 8th kingdom, the 10 kings https://www.dojc.nl/?p=503&lang=en)

Why is this empire then so ruthless but fragile (Daniel 2:42)?
They drag the whole world into their banker’s tricks with interest levied on fiat money, money that is not covered by gold or other value and can easily be ‘printed or generated’.
In 2008, the greedy system nearly fell apart. The banks were saved with huge amounts of money.
The Quantitative-Ease programs (buying up government bonds or debts) are also very questionable, because which family man would privately make many more debts as a solution to get his debts in the grip? The empire of central bank is also fragile, because buying up debts cannot continue indefinitely, or translated, cannot continue to make the rich even richer.
It is as Lord Jacob Rothschild (of the exorbitant rich family) expressed it in mid-2016:
“This Is The Greatest Experiment In Monetary Policy In The History Of The World”

In the end, the central bank’s bill will go to the ordinary people, ordinary people nowadays already do not receive interest on their saving accounts and when the Quantitative-Ease programs will be reduced and the stock market will go down because of bankruptcy of companies (now with the easy money still on the leg), then the pension funds – who invest on the stock market – get into trouble.
As far as love of money and covetousness (of the current financial system) are concerned, the Scripture says:

NKJV (Matthew 6:24) 24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.
NKJV (Matthew 19:24) 24 And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

Mammon means money or wealth.
‘Love of money or covetousness’ is equated with idolatry in Scripture:

NKJV (Colossians 3:5) 5 Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.

So far the ten-toes empire of iron and clay (Daniel 2:42).
The empire with the feet of iron and clay (the American empire), lives again in the footsteps of the Roman empire, but then this Empire, the feet of iron and clay, will be crushed by ‘the Stone’, that represents God’s kingdom. And everything that has belonged to the described world powers will be like chaff on the threshing floor. Then God’s Kingdom (the Stone) will be restored in the line of David by the King Jesus:

NKJV (Daniel 2:34-35) 34 You watched while a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. 35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed together, and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors; the wind carried them away so that no trace of them was found. And the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.

The horn which had eyes and a mouth speaking great

NKJV (Daniel 7:1, 3) 1 In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream and visions of his head while on his bed. Then he wrote down the dream….3 And four great beasts came up from the sea, each different from the other.

The vision of Daniel has much in common with the dream of Nebuchadnezzar of a terrifying image.
Daniel now saw a lion, with wings of an eagle, a bear, a leopard, and a fourth animal:

NKJV (Daniel 7:7-8, 11, 19) 7 After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong. It had huge iron teeth; it was devouring, breaking in pieces, and trampling the residue with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns. 8 I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them, before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots. And there, in this horn, were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking pompous words…… 11 “I watched then because of the sound of the pompous words which the horn was speaking; I watched till the beast was slain, and its body destroyed and given to the burning flame….. 19 Then I wished to know the truth about the fourth beast, which was different from all the others, exceedingly dreadful, with its teeth of iron and its nails of bronze, which devoured, broke in pieces, and trampled the residue with its feet;

The animal had large iron teeth. Iron was the hallmark of the Roman Empire.
In Daniel 2:40 (and like iron that crushes, that kingdom will break in pieces and crush all the others) is written almost the same as in Daniel 7:19 (with its teeth of iron and its nails of bronze, which devoured, broke in pieces, and trampled the residue with its feet).
Then, the animal is killed (Daniel 7:11). A few verses further, in Daniel 7: 13-14, is spoken of the coming of God’s kingdom:

NKJV (Daniel 7:13-14) 13 “I was watching in the night visions, And behold, One like the Son of Man, Coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, And they brought Him near before Him. 14 Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, That all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, Which shall not pass away, And His kingdom the one Which shall not be destroyed.

The description of the killing of the animal, immediately followed by the coming of God’s kingdom, indicates that the description is set in the last days, in the feet-empire of iron with clay. The small horn with a mouth speaking great, thus concerns the same period.

How the little horn can be identified, who had eyes and a mouth speaking pompous words

For an answer to the question of who the horn is with eyes like human eyes and a mouth speaking pompous words (Daniel 7: 8), we will take the book of Revelation.
We know that the false prophet is the wild beast with two horns from Revelation.
This is shown by the signs that he performs, as described in Revelation:

NKJV (Revelation 13:11,13) 11 Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon…….13 He performs great signs,….
NKJV (Revelation 19:20) 20 Then the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence, by which he deceived those…….
(See also: NEWS 2. The false prophet https://www.dojc.nl/?p=3041&lang=en)

There will now follow more points about this little horn, where is written about in Daniel.
According to our research, they all concern the false prophet in the last days.
A number of visions describe exactly the same about the false prophet, so judge yourself:

The little horn has a separate place between the kings of the last world power, the US
Dan.7:8 and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them (among the kings)

A mouth speaking pompous words and profanity
Dan.7:8 in this horn, were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking pompous words.
Rev. 13:11 Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon.

Three kings will be killed
Dan.7:8 before whom three of the first horns were plucked out
Dan.7:24…. And shall subdue three kings.

According to the video below, three kings or presidents who opposed a private central bank were murdered, because they were against the usury profits of the central bankers:
U.S. Presidents Who Advocated A Publicly-Owned Central Bank
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B74SDHYo1L0

16e president Abraham Lincoln – Greenbacks ; killed in 1865
20e president James Garfield – Banking Statement ; killed in 1881
35e president JF Kennedy – execution order 1110 ; killed in 1963

NKJV (Daniel 7:19-22, 24-26) 19 Then I wished to know the truth about the fourth beast …. 20 and the ten horns that were on its head, and the other horn which came up, before which three fell, namely, that horn which had eyes and a mouth which spoke pompous words, whose appearance was greater than his fellows. 21 I was watching; and the same horn was making war against the saints, and prevailing against them, 22 until the Ancient of Days came, and a judgment was made in favor of the saints of the Most High, and the time came for the saints to possess the kingdom….24 The ten horns are ten kings Who shall arise from this kingdom. And another shall rise after them; He shall be different from the first ones, And shall subdue three kings. 25 He shall speak pompous words against the Most High, Shall persecute the saints of the Most High, And shall intend to change times and law. Then the saints shall be given into his hand For a time and times and half a time. 26 ‘But the court shall be seated, And they shall take away his dominion, To consume and destroy it forever.

He exercises all power before the eyes of the current world power and will perform great signs
Dan. 7:19 which was different from all the others, exceedingly dreadful
Dan.7:24 He shall be different from the first ones
Rev. 13:12 And he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence, and causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast (now the world power USA)…
Rev. 13:13 He (the beast with two horns that stands for the false prophet) performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men.

The false prophet will kill the two holy prophets
Dan.7:25 Shall persecute the saints of the Most High (the two witnesses)
Dan. 8:24 He shall destroy the mighty, and also the holy people

Rev.11:7 the beast that ascends out of the bottomless pit (the false prophet) will make war against them, overcome them, and kill them. (the two witnesses Rev.11:3-12)
(see News Letters 3. The two witnesses https://www.dojc.nl/?p=3139&lang=en)

He will seek to introduce Sharia laws with their own time or calendar
Dan.7:25 And shall intend to change times and law
(The Islamic calendar begins with the year in which the emigration of Mohammed from Mecca to Medina took place, around mid-July 622 AD, in Islam the year zero AH (Anno Hegirae)
As far as Islam is concerned, we will come back to this, later in the article.

The false prophet will be destroyed by God
Dan.7:26 And they shall take away his dominion, To consume and destroy it forever.
Dan. 8:25 … But he shall be broken without human means.
Rev. 19:20 Then the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet,…These two were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone.

NKJV (Daniel 8:1,16-17,23-25) 1 In the third year of the reign of King Belshazzar a vision appeared to me–to me, Daniel–after the one that appeared to me the first time. ….. 16 And I heard a man’s voice between the banks of the Ulai, who called, and said, “Gabriel, make this man understand the vision.” 17 So he came near where I stood, and when he came I was afraid and fell on my face; but he said to me, “Understand, son of man, that the vision refers to the time of the end.” … 23 “And in the latter time of their kingdom, When the transgressors have reached their fullness, A king shall arise, Having fierce features, Who understands sinister schemes. 24 His power shall be mighty, but not by his own power; He shall destroy fearfully, And shall prosper and thrive; He shall destroy the mighty, and also the holy people. 25 “Through his cunning He shall cause deceit to prosper under his rule; And he shall exalt himself in his heart. He shall destroy many in their prosperity. He shall even rise against the Prince of princes; But he shall be broken without human means.

The false prophet appears after the apostasy
Dan. 8:23 When the transgressors have reached their fullness, A king shall arise, Having fierce features
2 Thess. 2:3 … for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition,….

THE false prophet will be served by Satan in the last hour
Dan. 8:24 His power shall be mighty, but not by his own power
Rev. 13:11 Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon.

The adversary, who exalts himself above all that is called God
Dan. 8:25 He shall even rise against the Prince of princes…
2 Thess. 2:4 who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. …

In Daniel are written, according to our research, more points about this ‘small’ horn, whose appearance in the end was greater than his fellows. (Dan 7:20)
But again, form your own opinion whether that is the case:

The despicable, ruthless king
The description of this despicable king is remarkable:

Daniel 11:21 And in his place shall arise a vile person, to whom they will not give the honor of royalty; but he shall come in peaceably, and seize the kingdom by intrigue.
This despicable person has all the characteristics of the false prophet, he is not a real king of the USA, but is as a kind of king with royal power.

Dan. 11:31 And forces shall be mustered by him, and they shall defile the sanctuary fortress; then they shall take away the daily sacrifices, and place there the abomination of desolation.
Christians are God’s temple at the end time. (1 Corinthians 3: 16-17) Just as the Roman invasion force destroyed the temple in the 1st century, so will bring – in the end times – the 8th kingdom (the 10 uncrowned kings) of the central banks an economic disaster and will Christians be persecuted by the false prophet and will no longer be able to preach. (Hebrews 13:15 – the ever-recurring sacrifice is taken away) The devastating abomination, the mark – not being able to buy or sell – will be forced upon them. (Rev. 13: 15-17)

Dan. 11:32 Those who do wickedly against the covenant he shall corrupt with flattery; but the people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits.
True Christians will not accept the mark because it is the worship of the image of the wild beast (Rev. 14: 9-10); then he, the false prophet, will approach Christians by flattery, by deception, by promising things (1John 4: 1-3), and he will persecute the faithful unmercifully.

Dan. 11:33 And those of the people who understand shall instruct many; yet for many days they shall fall by sword and flame, by captivity and plundering.
The two witnesses’ prophecy means a worldwide preaching. After this prophecy has ended after 3.5 years, the disciples of Jesus will be severely persecuted. (Matthew 24: 9-10)

Dan. 11:34-35 34 Now when they fall, they shall be aided with a little help; but many shall join with them by intrigue. 35 And some of those of understanding shall fall, to refine them, purify them, and make them white, until the time of the end; because it is still for the appointed time.
Christians will be refined in the end times, they have to prove their loyalty. Fellow Christians, who are causing stumbling blocks, will form an ordeal. (Romans 16: 17-18)

Dan. 11:36 Then the king shall do according to his own will: he shall exalt and magnify himself above every god, shall speak blasphemies against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the wrath has been accomplished; for what has been determined shall be done.
NKJV (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4) 3 Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, 4 who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.

Dan. 11:37 He shall regard neither the God of his fathers nor the desire of women, nor regard any god; for he shall exalt himself above them all.
He will not regard the gods of his fathers, he will be THE antichrist.
According to both ‘Strong’s Concordance’ and ‘Vine’s Expository Dictionary’, antichrist means ‘against Christ’ or ‘instead of Christ’.
He will deny both God the Father YHWH and the Son of God, Jesus:

NKJV 1 John 2: 18-19, 22) 18 Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour. 19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us…. 22 Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son.

The false prophet will have great kinship or sympathy with Islam, but also wants to be worshiped himself. (see the following explanation of Dan 11: 38-39)
‘He will not pay attention to the desire of the women’ according to our research concerns the rights of women in Islam:
A woman in Islamic law inherits only half of what a man inherits.
In a court, the testimony of 2 women is equal to that of 1 man.
Girls who are married off at a very young age, polygamy, women who may be cast away by their husbands whenever they want, female circumcision, mandatory headscarves and have to wear special clothing. A Muslim man may marry a Christian or Jewish woman, but a Muslim woman may not. Sharia laws also prohibit women from singing or dancing in public.

Dan. 11:38 But in their place he shall honor a god of fortresses; and a god which his fathers did not know he shall honor with gold and silver, with precious stones and pleasant things.
The god of fortresses or strongholds in the end-time is the god of false reasoning, because strongholds or forts are false arguments according to Paul:

NKJV (2 Corinthians 10:3-5) 3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,

‘The god which his fathers did not know’ is the Mesopotamian god Allah, all along the Scriptures are gold and silver objects, which served for idolatry.

Dan. 11:39 Thus he shall act against the strongest fortresses with a foreign god, which he shall acknowledge, and advance its glory; and he shall cause them to rule over many, and divide the land for gain.
He will make fortified fortresses – false reasoning – together with an unknown or foreign god, what is again based on the Qur’an, the Mesopotamian god Allah.
The Main Stream Media and socialist politics support Islam unconditionally.
Kings (Islamic) who will support him will receive land and power as a reward, it is an extension of Islam.

According to our research, Islam becomes the dominant world religion, because the false prophet will accomplish that according to Daniel 11:39. For Christians, someone’s background does not matter. Christians search people who are open to worship the only true God (YHWH):

NKJV (John 4:23) 23 But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.

So far this part about the exile of Samaria, the exile of Judah and the visions of Daniel. In the following article we will further discuss Islam and the antichrist, the false prophet.

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