Having found nothing in the New Testament that irrefutably contradicts the Harmony of Revelation, let us now turn to the Old Testament.
Unfortunately, Old Testament prophecies are even more difficult to interpret properly than are New Testament prophecies. This is because most of the prophecies in the Old Testament occur in "buckshot" fashion, scattered piecewise throughout the writings with little or no regard to chronology or to the distinction between literal and spiritual matters.
Therefore, we would be wise to try to develop some type of guideline to help us recognize when to interpret such prophecies literally, when to interpret them spiritually, when to retain the apparent chronology, and when to ignore that chronology. Otherwise, we surely will be accomplishing little more than stumbling in the dark -- basing our decisions on nothing more than individual opinions and/or personal feelings.
But how can we develop such guidelines? How can we possibly learn to interpret Old Testament prophecies correctly?
Perhaps the New Testament provides us with the answer we need. After all, numerous prophecies of the Old Testament were fulfilled in New Testament times. Why not look at how Christ and the New Testament saints interpreted these Old Testament prophecies? Perhaps that will show us how other Old Testament prophecies ought to be interpreted.
Unfortunately, Christ and the early saints did not seem to follow any clear, distinctive guidelines when interpreting Old Testament prophecies. For example, many Old Testament prophecies were fulfilled quite literally (compare MIC 5:2 with MAT 2:6-8); others were fulfilled only in the spiritual sense (compare ISA 8:14, 28:16 with ROM 9:32-33); and others were said to have been fulfilled even when the original scriptures were taken out of context (compare HOS 11:1 with MAT 2:14). The guiding principle seems to have been that the CORRECT interpretation was recognized only through SPIRITUAL HINDSIGHT.
But even biblically-assisted hindsight is not always enough to guarantee a proper interpretation of prophetic scriptures. Many Old Testament prophecies are so obscure that even when interpreted by other biblical passages and viewed through historical hindsight they are still difficult to understand.[1]
The Old Testament prophets, looking forward through the centuries, often failed to recognize the distinction between different events of the future. A vivid illustration of this principle is the lack of distinction made by Joel concerning (1) the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost at the beginning of the Church Age, (2) the wonders in the heavens preceding the second coming of Christ, and (3) the mode of salvation provided by the first coming of Christ. (Compare JOE 2:28-32 with ACT 2:14-21, REV 6:12-17, and ROM 10:9-15.)
Consequently, there is great danger in using Old Testament scriptures to develop a scenario of future events. Indeed, it is precisely because they had constructed such a scenario regarding their coming Messiah that the first century Jews failed to recognize him when he did come. The consequence of this mistake has haunted Israel for more than nineteen centuries.
So what should we do when interpreting Old Testament prophecies? And what guidelines should we follow to help keep us from falling into the same trap as the Jews?
I would suggest that we go back to the basics:
First, let us recognize that the Bible is Truth. It has no errors except those that are introduced through our own ignorance and our own biased interpretations. Therefore, it is our responsibility to discern what God really means in each of the various passages. Indeed, we must be willing to set aside our own preconceptions and search for God's revelations.
Second, let us recognize that many scriptures have more than one correct, yet completely different meaning. Indeed, it is through this multi-meaning capability that the Holy Spirit is able to use the same scripture to reveal different truths to different people at different times.
Third, let us recognize that the literal interpretation of a passage is almost always one of the correct possibilities. In other words, the apparent or obvious meaning of a scriptural passage is usually one of the ways God intended for it to be interpreted. Therefore, whenever an Old Testament prophecy includes such words as "forever," "eternal," "everlasting," "never ending," etc., we can be fairly confident that that prophecy pertains to events and conditions in the NEW universe, the one that lasts forever, rather than this OLD universe, which will pass away.
Fourth, let us recognize that Truth is Truth, whether applied to this universe or to the next. There are universal, spiritual truths within most scriptures that are valid beyond any literal truths that may or may not be present. This means that we should never be satisfied with a literal interpretation of scripture when the truth it reveals also applies to the spiritual realm. Therefore, we can be confident that many of the prophecies and promises that pertain to the physical Israel (the Jews) are just as applicable to the spiritual Israel (the Church).
And fifth, let us recognize that some scripture will never be understood except through hindsight or through the direct revelation of God. Therefore, we can invent all kinds of eschatological models (pre-, post-, a-, and/or others) and argue them until Christ returns; but only after his return can we be certain which, if any, of them is correct in the sight of God.
These five guidelines are fairly well defined. Unfortunately, they still are not adequate to guarantee a proper interpretation of all Old Testament prophecies.
But fortunately, such a guarantee is not necessary for our purpose. We do not have to show that the one “correct” interpretation of Old Testament prophecies is consistent with the harmonistic viewpoint. All we need to do is show that one of the many “acceptable” interpretations is consistent. In other words, we can assume that the Harmony of Revelation is true and use that information to help guide us in our interpretation of the Old Testament prophecies. If the interpretation we eventually develop is unreasonable, then we can conclude that harmonism is invalid. But if the resulting interpretation is plausible, we can conclude that harmonism is credible.
Of all the books in the Old Testament, Daniel most closely resembles Revelation. Both books contain the same type of visions; both embrace the same sort of symbolism; and both describe the same future events.
Because of this extreme similarity, one would expect the prophecies of Revelation to correlate more closely with those of Daniel than with any other book of the Old Testament. Therefore, let us begin our survey of Old Testament prophecies by looking at the last, the longest, and the most detailed vision of Daniel:
DAN 10:
1 In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia a thing was revealed unto Daniel, whose name was called Belteshazzar; and the thing was true, but the time appointed was long: and he understood the thing, and had understanding of the vision.
2 In those days I Daniel was mourning three full weeks.
3 I ate no pleasant bread, neither came flesh nor wine in my mouth, neither did I anoint myself at all, till three whole weeks were fulfilled.
4 And in the four and twentieth day of the first month, as I was by the side of the great river, which is Hiddekel;
5 Then I lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and behold a certain man clothed in linen, whose loins were girded with fine gold of Uphaz:
6 His body also was like the beryl, and his face as the appearance of lightning, and his eyes as lamps of fire, and his arms and his feet like in colour to polished brass, and the voice of his words like the voice of a multitude.
7 And I Daniel alone saw the vision: for the men that were with me saw not the vision; but a great quaking fell upon them, so that they fled to hide themselves.
8 Therefore I was left alone, and saw this great vision, and there remained no strength in me: for my comeliness was turned in me into corruption, and I retained no strength.
9 Yet heard I the voice of his words: and when I heard the voice of his words, then was I in a deep sleep on my face, and my face toward the ground.
10 And, behold, an hand touched me, which set me upon my knees and upon the palms of my hands.
11 And he said unto me, O Daniel, a man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak unto thee, and stand upright: for unto thee am I now sent. And when he had spoken this word unto me, I stood trembling.
12 Then said he unto me, Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words.
13 But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia.
14 Now I am come to make thee understand what shall befall thy people in the latter days: for yet the vision is for many days.
15 And when he had spoken such words unto me, I set my face toward the ground, and I became dumb.
16 And, behold, one like the similitude of the sons of men touched my lips: then I opened my mouth, and spake, and said unto him that stood before me, O my lord, by the vision my sorrows are turned upon me, and I have retained no strength.
17 For how can the servant of this my lord talk with this my lord? for as for me, straightway there remained no strength in me, neither is there breath left in me.
18 Then there came again and touched me one like the appearance of a man, and he strengthened me,
19 And said, O man greatly beloved, fear not: peace be unto thee, be strong, yea, be strong. And when he had spoken unto me, I was strengthened, and said, Let my lord speak; for thou hast strengthened me.
20 Then said he, Knowest thou wherefore I come unto thee? and now will I return to fight with the prince of Persia: and when I am gone forth, lo, the prince of Grecia shall come.
21 But I will shew thee that which is noted in the scripture of truth: and there is none that holdeth with me in these things, but Michael your prince.
DAN 11:
1 Also I in the first year of Darius the Mede, even I, stood to confirm and to strengthen him.
2 And now will I shew thee the truth. Behold, there shall stand up yet three kings in Persia; and the fourth shall be far richer than they all: and by his strength through his riches he shall stir up all against the realm of Grecia.
3 And a mighty king shall stand up, that shall rule with great dominion, and do according to his will.
4 And when he shall stand up, his kingdom shall be broken, and shall be divided toward the four winds of heaven; and not to his posterity, nor according to his dominion which he ruled: for his kingdom shall be plucked up, even for others beside those.
5 And the king of the south shall be strong, and one of his princes; and he shall be strong above him, and have dominion; his dominion shall be a great dominion.
6 And in the end of years they shall join themselves together; for the king's daughter of the south shall come to the king of the north to make an agreement: but she shall not retain the power of the arm; neither shall he stand, nor his arm: but she shall be given up, and they that brought her, and he that begat her, and he that strengthened her in these times.
7 But out of a branch of her roots shall one stand up in his estate, which shall come with an army, and shall enter into the fortress of the king of the north, and shall deal against them, and shall prevail:
8 And shall also carry captives into Egypt their gods, with their princes, and with their precious vessels of silver and of gold; and he shall continue more years than the king of the north.
9 So the king of the south shall come into his kingdom, and shall return into his own land.
10 But his sons shall be stirred up, and shall assemble a multitude of great forces: and one shall certainly come, and overflow, and pass through: then shall he return, and be stirred up, even to his fortress.
11 And the king of the south shall be moved with choler, and shall come forth and fight with him, even with the king of the north: and he shall set forth a great multitude; but the multitude shall be given into his hand.
12 And when he hath taken away the multitude, his heart shall be lifted up; and he shall cast down many ten thousands: but he shall not be strengthened by it.
13 For the king of the north shall return, and shall set forth a multitude greater than the former, and shall certainly come after certain years with a great army and with much riches.
14 And in those times there shall many stand up against the king of the south: also the robbers of thy people shall exalt themselves to establish the vision; but they shall fall.
15 So the king of the north shall come, and cast up a mount, and take the most fenced cities: and the arms of the south shall not withstand, neither his chosen people, neither shall there be any strength to withstand.
16 But he that cometh against him shall do according to his own will, and none shall stand before him: and he shall stand in the glorious land, which by his hand shall be consumed.
17 He shall also set his face to enter with the strength of his whole kingdom, and upright ones with him; thus shall he do: and he shall give him the daughter of women, corrupting her: but she shall not stand on his side, neither be for him.
18 After this shall he turn his face unto the isles, and shall take many: but a prince for his own behalf shall cause the reproach offered by him to cease; without his own reproach he shall cause it to turn upon him.
19 Then he shall turn his face toward the fort of his own land: but he shall stumble and fall, and not be found.
20 Then shall stand up in his estate a raiser of taxes in the glory of the kingdom: but within few days he shall be destroyed, neither in anger, nor in battle.
21 And in his estate shall stand up a vile person, to whom they shall not give the honour of the kingdom: but he shall come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries.
22 And with the arms of a flood shall they be overflown from before him, and shall be broken; yea, also the prince of the covenant.
23 And after the league made with him he shall work deceitfully: for he shall come up, and shall become strong with a small people.
24 He shall enter peaceably even upon the fattest places of the province; and he shall do that which his fathers have not done, nor his fathers' fathers; he shall scatter among them the prey, and spoil, and riches: yea, and he shall forecast his devices against the strong holds, even for a time.
25 And he shall stir up his power and his courage against the king of the south with a great army; and the king of the south shall be stirred up to battle with a very great and mighty army; but he shall not stand: for they shall forecast devices against him.
26 Yea, they that feed of the portion of his meat shall destroy him, and his army shall overflow: and many shall fall down slain.
27 And both these kings' hearts shall be to do mischief, and they shall speak lies at one table; but it shall not prosper: for yet the end shall be at the time appointed.
28 Then shall he return into his land with great riches; and his heart shall be against the holy covenant; and he shall do exploits, and return to his own land.
29 At the time appointed he shall return, and come toward the south; but it shall not be as the former, or as the latter.
30 For the ships of Chittim shall come against him: therefore he shall be grieved, and return, and have indignation against the holy covenant: so shall he do; he shall even return, and have intelligence with them that forsake the holy covenant.
31 And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate.
32 And such as do wickedly against the covenant shall he corrupt by flatteries: but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits.
33 And they that understand among the people shall instruct many: yet they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days.
34 Now when they shall fall, they shall be holpen with a little help: but many shall cleave to them with flatteries.
35 And some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make them white, even to the time of the end: because it is yet for a time appointed.
36 And the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done.
37 Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all.
38 But in his estate shall he honour the God of forces: and a god whom his fathers knew not shall he honour with gold, and silver, and with precious stones, and pleasant things.
39 Thus shall he do in the most strong holds with a strange god, whom he shall acknowledge and increase with glory: and he shall cause them to rule over many, and shall divide the land for gain.
40 And at the time of the end shall the king of the south push at him: and the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over.
41 He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown: but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon.
42 He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape.
43 But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps.
44 But tidings out of the east and out of the north shall trouble him: therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many.
45 And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him.
DAN 12:
1 And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.
2 And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
3 And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.
4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.
5 Then I Daniel looked, and, behold, there stood other two, the one on this side of the bank of the river, and the other on that side of the bank of the river.
6 And one said to the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, How long shall it be to the end of these wonders?
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.
8 And I heard, but I understood not: then said I, O my Lord, what shall be the end of these things?
9 And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.
10 Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly: and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand.
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.
13 But go thou thy way till the end be: for thou shalt rest, and stand in thy lot at the end of the days.
This vision occurred during the reign of Cyrus after the Meads and Persians had conquered Babylon (10:1-4). It begins much like Revelation, with the appearance of a glorious "man" (10:5-6) revealing what will happen in the "latter days" (10:14) and includes certain background information before describing the revelation itself (10:7-11:1).
But Daniel's vision occurred centuries before John's; so more of its prophecies have already been fulfilled. In fact, the vision is a very good illustration of the general problems encountered when interpreting Old Testament prophecies. Through historical hindsight we can see how much of the prophecy has already been fulfilled, identify which part of the prophecy is yet to be fulfilled, observe how the prophecy blurs the distinction between past and future events, and understand how some portions of the prophecy are to be fulfilled more than once.
I do not pretend to be a professional historian, but according to the New Oxford Annotated Bible[2], the following description is an accurate account of the history pertaining to this vision of Daniel:
Cyrus was the Persian king who allowed the Jews to return to their homeland in 538 BC. His immediate successors were Cambyses, Darius I, and Xerxes I. Following them, Artaxerxes was probably the strongest and richest Persian king, while Darius III was the last (11:2).
Alexander the Great was the mighty king that conquered not only the Persians, but, by 332 B. C., conquered the Holy Land and eventually extended his kingdom as far as Egypt (11:3). He died in 323 BC without an heir and his kingdom was divided among his officers. The four most conspicuous of these leaders were Cassander, Lysimachus, Seleucus, and Ptolemy. The strongest two of these four were Ptolemy I, who reigned from the south in Alexandria, Egypt, and Seleucus I, who ruled from the north in Antioch, Syria (11:4). Their two great dynasties fought with each other for more than 200 years (11:5) until eventually the Romans conquered them both.
In about 250 BC Ptolemy II gave his daughter Bernice to Antiochus II. But Laodice, mother of Seleucus II, plotted and killed Bernice, her attendants, her child, and her husband (11:6). Later, Ptolemy III captured the fortress of Seleucia and brought back tremendous loot (11:7-8). Then in 242 B.C., Seleucus II invaded Egypt without success (11:9). His sons Seleucus III and Antiochus III were more successful in their war against Egypt (11:10). In retaliation, Ptolemy IV sent armies through Palestine and defeated Antiochus at Raphia, but Antiochus in turn crushed the Egyptians at Banias (11:11-13).
There were insurrections under Ptolemy V while he was a child (11:14) that allowed Antiochus III to conquer Palestine and invade Egypt, eventually sealing a peace agreement through a marriage between his daughter and the young Ptolemy (11:15-17).
Afterwards, Antiochus III tried to capture the coast lands of Asia Minor but was turned back by the Romans (11:18). On the way home he plundered the country side but died at Elymais (11:19).
Seleucus IV, his successor, sent Heliodorus, a tax collector, to Jerusalem to seize the temple treasure to help pay indemnity to the Romans. Heliodorus failed and died ingloriously (11:20).
The successor to Seleucus IV was Antiochus IV Epiphanies, who gained power through guile. He was contemptible (11:21). He invaded Palestine and, through an alliance, replaced the high-priest Onias III with Jason and allowed his troops to plunder the countryside (11:22-24). Then in 169 B.C. he invaded Egypt and captured Ptolemy VI (11:25-27). Troubles at home forced him to leave Egypt, and on the way home he plundered Jerusalem (11:28).
On his second campaign against Egypt, Epiphanes was turned back by the Roman ships from Cyprus (11:29-30). In 167 B.C., in rage and in an attempt to secure loyalty for himself and his gods, he set up an abomination of desolation by banning the practice of Judaism, establishing an altar to Zeus in the Temple, and even sacrificing swine on the altar (11:31). Some Hellenizing Jews, forsaking the covenant, sided with Epiphanes but the wise continued resisting, even though persecuted (11:32-33). With a little help from Mattathias and his son, Judas Maccabeus, the Jews eventually gained a period of independence (from 142 to 63 B.C.) until conquered by the Romans (11:34-35).
Forsaking the Tammuz-Adonis cult of his ancestors, Epiphanes elevated himself to the status of a god by claiming to be the "manifested" representative of the Greek god Zeus (11:36-39).
Up to this point the prophecy and chronology of the vision of Daniel has been completely and literally fulfilled in recorded history. But from this point on, the prophecy falls flat!
In Daniel 11:40-45, the prophecy goes on to predict that Ptolemy would provoke another war with Epiphanes leading to disastrous results: not only would Egypt be conquered but so would Libya to the west and Ethiopia to the south. On his way back home, Epiphanes would come to his end as he camped beside the holy mountain.
And continuing in Chapter 12 the prophecy goes on to say that immediately after the death of Epiphanes, there would be a period of great tribulation, a time of deliverance, a general resurrection, and a judgment leading to shame or to everlasting life (12:1-3).
It is easy to understand why the early Christians thought that the return of Christ was so eminent. Not only had Christ promised to return soon, but Old Testament prophecies, such as this one, predicted that the world would end at about this very time in history. The fact that the prophecies of Daniel had been fulfilled literally right up to the time of Christ convinced the early Christians that the rest of the prophecy would be fulfilled in a similar time frame.
But none of these later prophecies were ever fulfilled literally as predicted. Had they been, then the world would have ended somewhere around one or two hundred A.D. Obviously, that was not the case, or we would not be here today.
So what are we to conclude? That the first 90% of the vision was 100% correct and the last 10% was 100% wrong? That somewhere around the time of Christ, God suddenly decided to change his mind by making history deviate from his original plan as revealed to his prophet?
I think not.
No, the vision surely is 100% correct. But the past and the future are so intermingled in the vision that only the latter day saints will be able to untangle the parts.
At first glance, it would appear that there is an unjustified break in the continuity of the vision of Daniel right after Dan.11:39, for this is the point at which historical hindsight breaks down. But if we use the Harmony of Revelation as a guide and work backwards from the future, we can find a different point at which the continuity breaks down!
Specifically, we can use harmonistic eschatology to identify the "vile" king described in Daniel 11:21-45 as the Antichrist of the latter days. This means that everything following 11:21 must pertain to the future while everything before 11:39 pertains to the past. So in the vision of Daniel there are actually two points of discontinuity (verses 21 and 39) with the scripture lying between them constituting an overlap of past and future.
Personally, I find these abrupt discontinuities to be somewhat disturbing, particularly since there is nothing in the vision itself to justify the breaks. Unlike Revelation, which has natural breaks between the seven accounts, the last vision of Daniel appears to be completely continuous. The only way to identify these two unnatural breaks is through historical hindsight and harmonistic foresight. In my opinion, this simply is not a very satisfactory picture of what a vision from God ought to be like.
But wait! The discontinuity after verse 39 is not as absolute as it first appears. For even though Epiphanes did not conquer Northern Africa, Rome did. And Rome, also a northern kingdom, derived its heritage from Greece. So, through the Romans, the prophecy of Daniel 11:40-45 WAS fulfilled -- in a general and blurred sense (with the blurring increasing toward the end of the chapter).
Similarly, if we recognize that our whole Western civilization, now extending throughout most of the civilized world, also derives its heritage from the ancient Greeks, then we can see that the prophecies preceding verse 21 could also be interpreted as the historical development of our entire Western culture -- in a general and blurred sense.
In other words, there is a fading into the future before verse 21 and a fading out of the past after verse 39 while the scripture between 21 and 39 belongs to both future and past. Therefore, instead of two unjustified discontinuities in the vision, what we really find is a perfect blending of the past and the future through the specific events and the general principles common to both.[3]
This is a beautiful concept, but does it really work? Does the future we deduce from this blending of times agree with the future deduced from the Harmony of Revelation? Let's find out:
As mentioned previously, the future becomes clear with the identification of the Antichrist in verses 21-45. In Daniel 11:21-28 we see a description of Wednesday, the Day of Sin, as he rises to power. The picture is the same as that predicted by the Harmony of Revelation. The Antichrist begins small and gains power through deceit, initially encountering little opposition (11:21-24). Later, all opposition, including that of Christians (prince of the covenant) will be crushed while the Antichrist gains economic power and rewards his supporters richly (11:23-24). Once established, he will conquer through war as he continues to persecute the saints (11:25-28).
In Daniel 11:32-39 we see the character of his reign. He will corrupt the unfaithful with flattery, but persecute the faithful saints until they are purged and refined (11:32-35). He will do his own will, exalt himself, blaspheme God, and prosper till the "wrath has been accomplished" (11:36-37). He shall honor a god of fortress (government), rule over many, and divide the land for gain (11:38-39).
In Daniel 11:29-31, 40-45 we see a description of Thursday, the Day of Death. It begins with rebellion by the "king of the South" (11:40). The Antichrist will retaliate with little success (11:29-30) and in rage vent his fury against Jerusalem, defiling the sanctuary, taking away the daily sacrifices, and placing there the abomination of desolation (11:30-31,41). He shall have partial success in reestablishing his former empire (11:41-43) but still will have trouble on all sides (11:44). So he goes out with great fury to destroy and annihilate many, eventually consolidating his forces around Jerusalem where he comes to his end (11:44-45).
Daniel 12:1-3 progresses from Thursday to Friday to Saturday. It describes the severity of the Day of Death. It mentions the deliverance of God's people, the resurrection of the dead, the opening of the books, and the judgment that occurs on the Day of the Lord. And it points out the fact that the righteous will shine like the stars forever and forever throughout the Day of Eternity.
The rest of the vision of Daniel (12:4-13) gives additional information about the time and purpose of the prophecy. The following observations are particularly interesting:
(1) During the latter days, there will be extensive travel and an explosion in knowledge (12:4). This is a clear sign of our time.
(2) No one will understand Daniel's vision except those who are wise and live during the end times (12:4,9-10). Therefore, today's Christians could well be the ones who finally do understand the vision of Daniel, and the Revelation to John as well.
(3) As predicted by the Harmony of Revelation, Thursday, the Day of Death, will last 3.5 years. More specifically, there will be "a time, times, and half a time" (3.5 years) or 1290 days (3.5 years) from the time the abomination of desolation is set up until Satan has finished crushing the power of the holy people (12:7,11).
This last condition will be met either when the Antichrist is victorious over the saints or when Satan can deceive the nations no longer, i.e. either when the two Witnesses are killed or when they are resurrected. In either case, Satan shall have finished crushing the power of the holy people by the time the two Witnesses rise from the dead and the Jews as a nation are converted. Since this occurs at the end of the Day of Death while the abomination of desolation is set up at the beginning, then the Day of Death must last about 3.5 years.
(4) Christ will return approximately 45 days (1335 - 1290) after the two Witnesses are resurrected (12:11-12). During this time the Antichrist will mobilize all his forces, surround the city of Jerusalem, and prepare to attack in the Battle of Armageddon. This will be a very frightening six weeks for Christians everywhere, particularly those in Israel, but all who remain until the end will be raptured to meet their Lord coming in the clouds of the sky.
(5) Isn't it interesting that Daniel does not use the name "Israel" when referring to the "people of God?" Nor does John generally do so in his Revelation. This is what allows the same prophecy to pertain both to the Jews of the past and the Christians of the future. It is just one more example of the timelessness of the visions and one more indication that the harmonistic interpretation is correct.
(6) The last verse (12:13) provides assurance that Daniel will be resurrected "at the end of the days." When this is considered along with Daniel 12:2, we again get the distinct impression that there will be a general resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked at the consummation of the ages at the Return of Christ. I will not repeat here the arguments given previously on this topic, but it is interesting to note that verse 2 states that "many" rather than "all" who have died will rise at that time. This suggests that others are raised at other times as required by the Harmony of Revelation.
Therefore, this account of the end times perfectly parallels the seven accounts found in the book of Revelation. Like the prophecy of Christ (MAT 24, Luke 21), it fully supports the eschatology derived from the Harmony of Revelation.
Having seen how Daniel's last vision fits into history and correlates with the Harmony, let us do the same with his preceding vision (DAN 9:20-27). This vision takes place during the first year of "Darius the Mead," king of Babylon, when Daniel was pondering Jeremiah's prophecy of 70 years of Babylonian captivity (JER 25:11,12; 29:10).
DAN 9:
20 And whiles I was speaking, and praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the LORD my God for the holy mountain of my God;
21 Yea, whiles I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation.
22 And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, O Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding.
23 At the beginning of thy supplications the commandment came forth, and I am come to shew thee; for thou art greatly beloved: therefore understand the matter, and consider the vision.
24 Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.
25 Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.
26 And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.
27 And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.
In the vision, Daniel is told that there will be "seventy sevens" for Daniel's people to get right with God. If the unit of time is assumed to be one year, as generally is supposed, then this means that the Jews had 490 years to stop sinning, to get saved, to attain everlasting life, to complete the prophecies, and to receive Jesus Christ as Lord (9:24).
More specifically, there would be 49 years (seven sevens) plus 434 years (sixty-two sevens) for a total of 483 years from the command to rebuild Jerusalem until the Messiah was to come and be slain for the sins of others (9:25-26). This leaves a final 7 years before the 490 years were complete. In other words, the 490 years of the prophecy were broken down into three distinct intervals: the first 49 years, the middle 434 years, and the last 7 years.
At the beginning of the last 7 years (one seven), a "prince who is to come" would make a covenant with many, but after 3.5 years he would bring an end to sacrifice and offering, set up an abomination, and cause desolation until the consummation of the ages (9:26-27).
This vision of Daniel, like the last, is almost impossible to understand without historical hindsight and harmonistic foresight. So let us begin by taking a quick glance back into recorded history.
|
Year |
Description of Event |
Reference |
|
597 B.C. |
First Deportation of Jews to Babylon |
2KI 24 |
|
587 |
Second Deportation |
2KI 25 |
|
538 |
Cyrus (Darius the Mede) conquers Babylon, lets Jews return to build temple |
EZR 1:1 |
|
521 |
Darius I lets Jews continue building temple |
EZR 5 |
|
445 |
Artaxerxes I lets Jews rebuild walls of Jerusalem |
NEH 1:1 |
|
398 |
Artaxerxes II lets Ezra return to purify Jews |
EZR 7:7 |
|
2 |
Christ is Born[4] |
MAT 2 LUK 1 |
|
32 A.D. |
Crucifixion and resurrection of Christ |
MAT 27-28 |
From this table we can see that historically there were:
59 years (597-538) from the first Babylonian deportation until the first group of Jews were allowed to return home;
47 years (445-398) from the decree to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem until Ezra returned to purify the nation; and
429 years (398 B.C. - 32 A.D.) from Ezra's return until Christ was crucified.
In other words, historically, there were 59 years of Jewish captivity by the Babylonians instead of the 70 predicted by Jeremiah. But if we remember that biblical numerology interprets 70 years as "a complete number of decades," then we can see that 59 years is really an appropriate fulfillment of that prophecy.
Similarly, we find that there were literally 47 years instead of the predicted 49 years in the first "seven sevens" of Daniel's vision. Again the match is close, but we can't help but wonder why these "seven sevens" were distinguished from the other "sixty-two sevens." Why didn't the vision simply specify "sixty-nine sevens" instead?
Why? Because "seven sevens" means a "fully completed" interval of time. But what was fully completed during this period of history? Well, for one thing, the Old Testament! Events after this time are not recorded in the Old Testament.
Another thing fully completed during this period was the cleansing of the Jewish nation! Prior to this time the Jewish people were invariably going after other gods and worshipping idols. After this time they never again worshipped any God but the Lord. Of course, the cleansing was not to "everlasting righteousness," but it was a major step "to finish transgression, to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity" (9:24).
And a third thing fully completed during this "seven sevens" were the streets and the walls of Jerusalem, even in troublesome times (9:25) (NEH 6:15).
As far as the middle "sixty-two sevens" are concerned, we find literally 429 years instead of the predicted 434 years between the cleansing of the nation and the death of Christ. Considering the length of the time interval, this prediction was remarkably accurate. But why should the vision focus on the "cutting off" of the Messiah rather than the "coming?"
Why? Because it is through his death, not his birth, that atonement was made for our sins. His death is the focal point of the Gospels and the focal point of this prophecy.
This is also the point at which the prophecy breaks down. Just like Daniel's last vision, there is a break between past and future. Here, though, there seems to be no overlap, but rather a complete discontinuity; because the vision itself suggests that the last "seven" will be different from all the others.
How long will this "seven" last? Considering the accuracy of the other predictions, I would say very close to seven literal years.
When do these seven years take place? The Harmony of Revelation supplies the answer: The events depicted in this part of the vision precisely match the seven years associated with the reign of the Antichrist. Although the description is sketchy, we still can recognize the 3.5 years of Sin followed by the abomination of desolation and the 3.5 years of Death followed by the final consummation of sinful mankind (9:26-27).
What does this last "seven" of the "seventy" mean? Obviously, a "complete number of years." But what is complete? Everything listed at the beginning of the vision -- everything from everlasting righteousness, to fulfilled prophecy, to the anointing of the Most High!
In this vision, we again see a double prophecy of the coming of the Jewish Messiah. Through historical hindsight we see the first coming in the first sixty-nine sevens and through harmonistic foresight we see the second coming after the last seven. The Jews missed the first one when Christ came as a suffering Servant. They won't miss the second when he comes as Lord of Lords!
Daniel, of course, is not the only book of the Old Testament that prophesies about the latter days. Ezekiel also contains many such prophecies. One of these in particular sheds considerable light on the outcome of the Battle of Gog and Magog, mentioned only briefly in Revelation.[5]
EZE 38:
1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, set thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him,
3 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal:
4 And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws, and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:
5 Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet:
6 Gomer, and all his bands; the house of Togarmah of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee.
7 Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them.
8 After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.
9 Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou, and all thy bands, and many people with thee.
10 Thus saith the Lord GOD; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought:
11 And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates,
12 To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land.
13 Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil? hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil?
14 Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say unto Gog, Thus saith the Lord GOD; In that day when my people of Israel dwelleth safely, shalt thou not know it?
15 And thou shalt come from thy place out of the north parts, thou, and many people with thee, all of them riding upon horses, a great company, and a mighty army:
16 And thou shalt come up against my people of Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days, and I will bring thee against my land, that the heathen may know me, when I shall be sanctified in thee, O Gog, before their eyes.
17 Thus saith the Lord GOD; Art thou he of whom I have spoken in old time by my servants the prophets of Israel, which prophesied in those days many years that I would bring thee against them?
18 And it shall come to pass at the same time when Gog shall come against the land of Israel, saith the Lord GOD, that my fury shall come up in my face.
19 For in my jealousy and in the fire of my wrath have I spoken, Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel;
20 So that the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the field, and all creeping things that creep upon the earth, and all the men that are upon the face of the earth, shall shake at my presence, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the steep places shall fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground.
21 And I will call for a sword against him throughout all my mountains, saith the Lord GOD: every man's sword shall be against his brother.
22 And I will plead against him with pestilence and with blood; and I will rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many people that are with him, an overflowing rain, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone.
23 Thus will I magnify myself, and sanctify myself; and I will be known in the eyes of many nations, and they shall know that I am the LORD.
EZE 39:
1 Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog, and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal:
2 And I will turn thee back, and leave but the sixth part of thee, and will cause thee to come up from the north parts, and will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel:
3 And I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy right hand.
4 Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands, and the people that is with thee: I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured.
5 Thou shalt fall upon the open field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.
6 And I will send a fire on Magog, and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD.
7 So will I make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; and I will not let them pollute my holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.
8 Behold, it is come, and it is done, saith the Lord GOD; this is the day whereof I have spoken.
9 And they that dwell in the cities of Israel shall go forth, and shall set on fire and burn the weapons, both the shields and the bucklers, the bows and the arrows, and the handstaves, and the spears, and they shall burn them with fire seven years:
10 So that they shall take no wood out of the field, neither cut down any out of the forests; for they shall burn the weapons with fire: and they shall spoil those that spoiled them, and rob those that robbed them, saith the Lord GOD.
11 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will give unto Gog a place there of graves in Israel, the valley of the passengers on the east of the sea: and it shall stop the noses of the passengers: and there shall they bury Gog and all his multitude: and they shall call it The valley of Hamon-gog.
12 And seven months shall the house of Israel be burying of them, that they may cleanse the land.
13 Yea, all the people of the land shall bury them; and it shall be to them a renown the day that I shall be glorified, saith the Lord GOD.
14 And they shall sever out men of continual employment, passing through the land to bury with the passengers those that remain upon the face of the earth, to cleanse it: after the end of seven months shall they search.
15 And the passengers that pass through the land, when any seeth a man's bone, then shall he set up a sign by it, till the buriers have buried it in the valley of Hamon-gog.
16 And also the name of the city shall be Hamonah. Thus shall they cleanse the land.
17 And, thou son of man, thus saith the Lord GOD; Speak unto every feathered fowl, and to every beast of the field, Assemble yourselves, and come; gather yourselves on every side to my sacrifice that I do sacrifice for you, even a great sacrifice upon the mountains of Israel, that ye may eat flesh, and drink blood.
18 Ye shall eat the flesh of the mighty, and drink the blood of the princes of the earth, of rams, of lambs, and of goats, of bullocks, all of them fatlings of Bashan.
19 And ye shall eat fat till ye be full, and drink blood till ye be drunken, of my sacrifice which I have sacrificed for you.
20 Thus ye shall be filled at my table with horses and chariots, with mighty men, and with all men of war, saith the Lord GOD.
21 And I will set my glory among the heathen, and all the heathen shall see my judgment that I have executed, and my hand that I have laid upon them.
22 So the house of Israel shall know that I am the LORD their God from that day and forward.
23 And the heathen shall know that the house of Israel went into captivity for their iniquity: because they trespassed against me, therefore hid I my face from them, and gave them into the hand of their enemies: so fell they all by the sword.
24 According to their uncleanness and according to their transgressions have I done unto them, and hid my face from them.
25 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Now will I bring again the captivity of Jacob, and have mercy upon the whole house of Israel, and will be jealous for my holy name;
26 After that they have borne their shame, and all their trespasses whereby they have trespassed against me, when they dwelt safely in their land, and none made them afraid.
27 When I have brought them again from the people, and gathered them out of their enemies' lands, and am sanctified in them in the sight of many nations;
28 Then shall they know that I am the LORD their God, which cause them to be led into captivity among the heathen: but I have gathered them unto their own land, and have left none of them any more there.
29 Neither will I hide my face any more from them: for I have poured out my spirit upon the house of Israel, saith the Lord GOD.
The Ezekiel account begins (38:1-17) with a prophecy against Gog who amasses his forces against the peaceful, recently regathered nation of Israel during the latter days. It continues (38:18-39:6) with the utter destruction of Gog by God through supernatural earthquakes, rain, hailstones, fire, and brimstone. And it concludes (39:7-29) with a cleansing of the land and the eternal salvation of Israel.
You will notice that this account of the battle of Gog and Magog is perfectly consistent with that of the Harmony of Revelation except for one thing. There is nothing in the book of Revelation that remotely suggests a cleanup period following the battle.
Revelation 20 shows that the battle of Gog and Magog occurs immediately after the millennium and before the great white throne judgment while the other parallel accounts (REV 6:14-17, 14:17-20, 16:13-21, 19:11-21) support the conclusion that this battle ends with the coming of Christ and the destruction of the world. Only Revelation 19:17-21 suggests that the earth endures after the battle for any appreciable length of time. But this one reference, brief as it is, shows that the Harmony does agree with Ezekiel in that the earth survives the battle of Gog long enough for the birds and beasts to eat their fill of the flesh of the slain.
Exactly how long the earth endures is not specified, but certainly the earth survives for at least a matter of hours in order for the frightened animals to approach the dead bodies and finish eating. Ezekiel goes on to say that the house of Israel takes seven months to bury the dead (39:12) and seven years to consume the weapons as fuel (39:9). So whether it be several hours, seven months, or seven years, the point is that the planet earth (along with its animals and vegetation) survives the battle of Gog and Magog.
This survival raises several questions: Who is left on earth at this time? How long are they left here? Where is Christ at this time? Where is sin? Is this the beginning of the New Earth? Of the traditional Millennium?
The answers to some of these questions may be obvious from the harmonistic point of view, but the answer to others depends upon how one interprets the meaning and the purpose of the cleanup itself.
For example, one way to interpret the cleanup is figuratively. According to this interpretation, no literal cleanup takes place at all. The purpose of the prophecy is not to suggest that an actual cleanup takes place after the battle but to emphasize the extreme devastation that occurs during the battle.
The prophecy is saying that the destruction is so great that under normal circumstances the birds and beasts could have eaten their fill, the survivors would have needed seven months to bury the dead, and the cities could have used the weapons as fuel for seven years. But as far as the earth and the rest of this physical universe are concerned, they are consumed by the same fire that comes down from heaven to destroy sinful mankind.
Another way to interpret the prophecy is to assume that the Ezekiel passage should be taken symbolically. Then "seven months" would mean "a complete number of months" and "seven years" would mean "a complete number of years."
In this case, a literal cleanup would take place, but it would last only long enough to complete the task. As Christ advances across the world destroying sinful mankind, his servants might follow along behind him restoring the earth as they go. Or the restoration could all take place after Christ has finished his visitation of mankind. In either case, whether the cleanup takes place during or after the destruction, and whether it requires seconds, days, months, or years, the point is that the whole cleanup takes place so fast that the subsequent destruction of the earth still occurs immediately after the return of Christ.
Now as to why God would want to cleanse the earth immediately before destroying it, I have absolutely no idea. It seems much more logical to me to assume that the earth is allowed to endure long after the cleanup takes place. In other words, the earth and this universe might be allowed to continue existing even until the natural close of this age.
If this be the case, then a few billion years from now, as our sun billows out to the red giant stage, the earth naturally would be destroyed by fire even while experiencing the other natural disasters mentioned in the biblical prophecies. Still, these billions of years would be but an instant in the sight of God so that all of these events would take place in one day; namely, during the Day of the Lord following the return of Christ and before the resurrection of the dead.
But if this be the case, why would God have the saints cleanse the earth at all? Nature itself would clean up the mess eventually. So what if it takes hundreds or thousands of years, or even millions of years for natural forces to obliterate completely the scars of the battle? Even this duration is but an instant of geological time and of God's time. Why not let nature perform the cleanup?
Do you suppose it is because nature didn't make the mess?
Perhaps in the sight of God it is only fitting that Christ and his followers perform the cleanup since it is Christ who vented the destruction.
Of course, Jesus could cleanse the whole earth with a single word from his mouth, just as he slew the wicked with the sword from his mouth, but maybe the saints want to be more than just spectators of the second coming. And since it is not their place to take vengeance upon the wicked or to capture Satan and his hosts, perhaps their contribution is to clean up the consequences of the sins their species committed. Indeed, it is only right for humans to restore the earth as much as possible to the condition it was in before they perverted it with their sins.
Again, whether this cleanup takes days, months, or years is not the point. What matters is that when the saints finally leave this planet forever, they leave it the way God intended it to be from the very beginning: clean and beautiful.
But wait a minute. A cleanup such as this cannot really "purify" the earth. Simply burying the dead and repairing the devastation of war cannot eliminate all of the consequences of the sins of mankind. No amount of rearrangement of the components of this sin-stained planet can ever do that. The earth will always bear some evidence of the presence of its sinful past. It will NEVER be completely free from the stain of sin. Indeed, that is why the New Earth will be created.
But before the New Earth ever comes into being, this present earth must completely pass away (REV 21:1). So do not get the mistaken impression that this cleanup somehow converts the old earth into the New Earth.
Nevertheless, the cleanup does reveal some important truths about eternal life:
First, it shows that eternal life is not static or boring. We will NOT sit around forever playing harps in the clouds ruling over others as they wait on us hand and foot. This passage shows that even before the New Universe begins we will be busy doing our part to see that God's will is done on earth as it is in heaven.
Second, the cleanup shows that our resurrected bodies are REAL. Like the body of Jesus, they have the capacity to interact with this physical world. They can touch and be touched. They can breath this air, manipulate this environment, and even live on this planet for an extended period of time.
Third, like the body of Jesus, our resurrected bodies are not intended to remain here forever. Whether or not we can come and go from heaven during this cleanup period or whether we can walk through closed doors, as Christ did after his resurrection, the passage does not say. Nor does it specify how long we will remain on this planet after the cleanup task is completed. Nor does it say whether or not we will be allowed to visit this and/or other planets in the universe after that time. But scriptures do assert that the resurrected body is eternal and meant to leave this planet for a better place (1CO 15:37-50). Indeed, it is clear that this planet's environment cannot be made as magnificent as our resurrected bodies are designed to inhabit.
Even though the cleansed earth cannot be the New Earth, it does sound a lot like the traditional concept of the millennial earth. Indeed, we see that immediately following the return of Christ the resurrected saints live in perfect harmony on this planet for a prolonged period of time. Could this not be the millennium envisioned by premillennialists?
No, it could not.
There are major differences between this cleanup period and the traditional concept of the millennium:
In the first place, there is no hint that the cleanup will last 1000 years. Seven years is the longest time mentioned for the cleanup.
In the second place, only the regenerated saints in their resurrected bodies will be present. No fleshly bodies survive Christ's second coming; so no unregenerated children are born during the cleanup period.
In the third place, Satan is not released to tempt anyone after the cleanup is over. He is cast into the lake of fire.
All of these conclusions follow from the fact that the battle of Gog occurs AFTER the millennium, not before (REV 20). The battle of Gog is the LAST battle in history, not the one that ushers in an earthly millennial kingdom.
Therefore, the cleanup mentioned in Ezekiel presents no greater problem to harmonistic eschatology than it does to any other theory of eschatology consistent with Revelation 20, whether that theory be pre-, post-, a-, or whatever.
In fact, the harmonistic interpretation of Revelation provides a more satisfactory explanation of this cleanup period than most other interpretations of Revelation. The reason is that the Harmony identifies Revelation 19:17-18,21 as part of the cleanup mentioned in Ezekiel. This brief scripture shows that the Harmony of Revelation is consistent with Ezekiel's prophecy of the cleanup. But it also demonstrates that this cleanup is not very important in God's sight. For, had God considered the cleanup performed by the saints to be of eternal significance, surely he would have mentioned it at least once in his accounts of the complete, seven-fold Revelation to John.
Indeed, for that very same reason, we can assert that it is equally unimportant whether the Day of the Lord lasts hours, days, months, years, or billions of years. What IS important is that sometime after the cleanup following the battle of Gog, the dead are raised. Then comes the Judgment.
From the eschatological point of view, one of the most disturbing passages in the Bible occurs in Isaiah Chapter 65:
ISA 65:
17 For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.
18 But be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy.
19 And I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in my people: and the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of crying.
20 There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed.
21 And they shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them.
22 They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: for as the days of a tree are the days of my people, and mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.
23 They shall not labour in vain, nor bring forth for trouble; for they are the seed of the blessed of the LORD, and their offspring with them.
24 And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.
25 The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent's meat. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the LORD.
This passage begins innocently enough with a description of the new universe (65:17-19). This description is so similar to that depicted in Revelation 21 that there can be little doubt but that they are talking about the same thing.
But beginning with verse 20, Isaiah's prophecy deviates considerably from the eternity described in Revelation. Oh, the situation pictured by Isaiah certainly is "heavenly" when compared to our present world, but it does not even begin to portray the perfection of the eternal kingdom as depicted in Revelation. Indeed, Isaiah's prophecy seems to fit the semi-heaven of the traditional concept of a millennium on this earth rather than the ultimate-heaven of the new earth. And I am sure that dedicated premillennialists will stand convicted that this scripture proves that their eschatology is superior to that of the harmonists.
But it doesn't. For, if one equates the pseudo-heaven of verses 20-25 with an earthly millennium, then one must conclude that this millennium occurs on the NEW earth described in verses 17-19 not on the OLD earth that has passed away!
Of course, the premillennialist could assert that this passage is not chronological or that verses 17-20 should be interpreted figuratively rather than literally in order to fit their eschatology.[6] But the harmonist could just as easily counter this argument by asserting that the passage IS chronological or that verses 20 and 23 should be interpreted figuratively rather than literally in order to fit their eschatology. So in truth, both the premillennial and the harmonistic theories have difficulty with this scripture. In fact, any eschatology which envisions eternal life on the new earth has difficulty with this scripture.
So what should we do? How can we reconcile this prophecy of Isaiah with other prophecies that predict eternal life on the new earth? Obviously, by interpreting one part or the other figuratively. But which part?
Well, the choice is yours, and I'm sure your personal eschatology will guide you in your decision. But for the sake of argument, try to put aside your personal bias about the latter days and ask yourself how you would interpret this scripture had you lived in Isaiah's time.
I dare say that you would tend to take everything literally, at least as literally as you could. You would picture a new world similar to, yet different from, this one where joy, life, labor, prayer, and nature are all on a higher plane than we can imagine.
But isn't this exactly what the Harmony of Revelation predicts? Indeed, the only real problem with Isaiah's prophecy is that his imagination simply did not go far enough. In Isaiah's day children often died in infancy; he imagined a world where they lived a hundred years; the reality is that the children of the kingdom of heaven will live forever. In Isaiah's day people built houses which others plundered; he imagined a world where labor was not in vain; the reality is that we will inherit a mansion already prepared for us. In Isaiah's day prayers often went unanswered; he imagined a world where God would answer before being asked; the reality is that we will lack nothing so there will be no need to ask. In Isaiah's day animals often killed; he imagined a world where they lived in harmony; the reality is that they will even worship God.
Another scripture that apparently supports premillennialism over harmonism occurs in Zechariah Chapter 14:
ZEC 14:
16 And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles.
17 And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain.
18 And if the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, that have no rain; there shall be the plague, wherewith the LORD will smite the heathen that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles.
19 This shall be the punishment of Egypt, and the punishment of all nations that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles.
20 In that day shall there be upon the bells of the horses, HOLINESS UNTO The LORD; and the pots in the LORD'S house shall be like the bowl's before the altar.
21 Yea, every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the LORD of hosts: and all they that sacrifice shall come and take of them, and seethe therein: and in that day there shall be no more the Canaanite in the house of the LORD of hosts.
This passage suggests that (1) some human beings survive Armageddon, (2) some of these refuse to worship at Jerusalem, (3) these rebels are punished, and (4) sacrifices are still being made. None of these are consistent with harmonistic eschatology.
How is it possible for a harmonist to reconcile this scripture?
By considering its context! Look at the rest of the chapter:
ZEC 14:
1 Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee.
2 For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
3 Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.
4 And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.
5 And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.
6 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the light shall not be clear, nor dark:
7 But it shall be one day which shall be known to the LORD, not day, nor night: but it shall come to pass, that at evening time it shall be light.
8 And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be.
9 And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one.
10 All the land shall be turned as a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem: and it shall be lifted up, and inhabited in her place, from Benjamin's gate unto the place of the first gate, unto the corner gate, and from the tower of Hananeel unto the king's winepresses.
11 And men shall dwell in it, and there shall be no more utter destruction; but Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited.
12 And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth.
13 And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour.
14 And Judah also shall fight at Jerusalem; and the wealth of all the heathen round about shall be gathered together, gold, and silver, and apparel, in great abundance.
15 And so shall be the plague of the horse, of the mule, of the camel, and of the ass, and of all the beasts that shall be in these tents, as this plague.
In verses 1-2 we see that the Antichrist gathers his international forces and devastates Jerusalem at the beginning of the Day of Death. In verses 3-7 we see the destruction accompanying the return of Christ; in verses 8-11 we see Christ reigning in the eternal kingdom; and in verses 12-15 we return to the destruction accompanying Christ's return. Therefore, verses 16-21 must refer to the events following Christ's return.
According to the Harmony of Revelation, these events are (1) the Judgment and (2) the Eternal Kingdom. Can we find these events in this passage?
Yes.
Verse 16 says that those who are left will worship the King at Jerusalem. The Harmony says the saved will worship Christ at the New Jerusalem.
Verses 17-19 say that whoever refuses to worship the King shall have no rain. The Harmony says those who rejected God will be cast into the lake of fire.
Verses 20-21 say that everything will be holy to the Lord. The Harmony says that in the eternal kingdom everything will be holy to the Lord.
And as far as sacrifices are concerned, verse 21 says absolutely nothing about ANIMAL sacrifices. There are many other kinds of sacrifices that Christians make unto the Lord. So, if these sacrifices (whatever they may be) are acceptable in the sight of God, then there is absolutely nothing in this passage that contradicts the Harmony of Revelation.
Obviously, I could continue quoting scripture after scripture, trying to reconcile each of them with the Harmony of Revelation, but I think you get the picture. The vast majority of biblical prophecies, if not all, are, or can be rationalized to be, consistent with the harmonistic view of eschatology. So rather than bore you with numerous repetitions of the same arguments, let me suggest that you, who are still searching for the truth in this matter, do the analysis yourselves.
Work the exercises at the end of this book yourself[7] and then start reading the Bible from beginning to end to see if you can find any prophecy that irrefutably contradicts the Harmony. If you do, please let me know. So far I haven't found one.
[1]For example, Daniel, in Chapter 7 of his book, records a vision of four beasts which represent four kingdoms now long gone whose identities are still in question today. For you who are interested, Exercise 13 in Appendix G explores this topic in more detail.
[2]The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocrypha, copyright 1991 by Oxford University Press, Inc., 200 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016.
[3]This blending of two prophecies into one prophecy is similar to the blending of the two matrices into one matrix (as discussed in Appendix F). By recognizing that the one matrix is really two blended together, we can gain a complete picture of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. By recognizing that the one prophecy is really two blended together, we gain a complete picture of the future from Daniel's perspective.
[4] Until recently most modern historians believed that Christ was born in 5 B.C. But recent evidence, both historical and astronomical, has begun to challenge this belief, causing some historians to conclude that Christ was actually born in 2 B.C. My own research on the Christmas Star has convinced me that this 2 B.C. date is correct. However, assuming that Christ was born in 5 B.C. and died in 29 A.D. makes little or no significant difference in the above conclusions.
[5]Specifically the battle of Gog and Magog is mentioned in Rev. 20:8-9.
[6]In other words, the "new" of verse 17 really means that after the clean-up following Armageddon the earth is "like new" and the "forever" of verse 18 and the "no more" of verse 19 both really mean "for 1000 years."
[7]Appendix G, Exercises 12 through 26 contain additional examples of Old Testament prophecies pertaining to the last days.