With the latest attempts by the Obama administration to make peace in the middle east, those who watch the current events around the world in anticipation of the coming of Jesus become very excited. Whether or not the current effort will be successful at securing a seven year peace treaty as described in the Book of Daniel chapter 9, remains to be seen.
There are many articles on the internet referencing the fact that Obama has shown signs of being either the antichrist himself or like the antichrist. This writer would not go so far to make either of those statements as neither of these possibilities are clear at the present time. No one really knows that a particular aspect of Bible prophecy has been fulfilled until after the fact. We know that in the last days before the seven year tribulation begins, there will be a great move in the middle east similar to the current effort, that will ensue into a seemingly miraculous set of events, finally bringing peace to the decades long struggle.
According to the Bible, part of the peace process will be that Israel will be allowed to rebuild the third temple on the very same site as the former two temples. In order to do this, the muslim world would need to allow the construction of the temple next to the existing dome of the rock. Today no one but a muslim can even approach the temple mount. To allow any Israeli to begin a jewish house of worship next to their revered mosque would be of epic importance. Never the less, we know that when this final seven years do begin, midway into the seven year tribulation, an event will happen that will set into motion the final 21 plagues of the Book of Revelation and bring the return of Jesus to the earth with His church to set up a one thousand year kingdom of righteousness. Then at the three and one half year mark of the seven year peace agreement, a statue of antichrist will be placed in the holy of holies in the new temple and it will come to life. A command will be given to worship the new world ruler as God, who will be the antichrist. Jesus called this event the “Abomination of Desolation in Matthew chapter 24.
Paul wrote to the Thessalonian church and told them that concerning the coming of Jesus to the earth, that before Jesus returns with His church, “The day of the Lord” will come in which the “man of sin”, the “son of perdition” will enter the temple in Jerusalem exalt himself as God.
2 Thessalonians 2:1-4 Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come. 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,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 Revelation chapter 13, we learn that at the midway point of the seven year tribulation an attempt will be made on the life of the new world ruler and he will be killed and miraculously return to life. In response to this, a statue of him will be made and placed in the temple where it will come to life. The statue will command those who dwell on the earth to worship the new leader and take his mark as a sign of worship and allegiance to him.
Revelation 13:14-18 And he deceives those who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who was wounded by the sword and lived. He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed. He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666.
It because of the abomination of desolation that the horrific judgments in the book of Revelation begin at chapter 6, verse 2. When the antichrist makes his command for worship of himself, Jesus will begin to pour out His wrath on those who dwell on the earth. How will these events be set into motion? How will we be able to identify whether this current attempt at peace in the middle east is “The Peace Plan” spoken of by Daniel in chapter 9 of his prophecy?
In the Bible, there is often a earlier fulfillment and a later fulfillment of a particular prophecy.
An example of this is found in Luke chapter 4. Jesus returns to Nazareth to teach in the synagogue as the guest speaker for that particular day. He is handed the scroll of the prophet Isaiah and begins to expound on that this section of prophecy. As Jesus begins to speak of this prophecy He reveals to us that there are both an earlier and later fulfillment of what Isaiah originally recorded.
Luke 4:14-21 Then Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region. And He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all. So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read. And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written: “The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed; Luke 4:19 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD.” Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”
If you compare what Jesus said in Luke chapter 4 to what Isaiah wrote seven hundred years before, you will be surprised to find that Jesus stopped mid sentence when he read Isaiah’s worlds. Here is the text that Jesus read from in the book of Isaiah:
Isaiah 61:1 “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, Because the LORD has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn, To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified.”
Notice that Jesus stops at “To proclaim the acceptible year of the Lord…” Isaiah wrote: “ The acceptable year of the LORD, And the day of vengeance of our God…”
Why did Jesus leave out “The day of vengeance of our God?” Because in His first coming to earth, Jesus did not come to bring “The day of vengeance of our God”. In His first appearance Jesus came to proclaim “The acceptable year of the Lord.” When Jesus removes His church before the seven year tribulation begins, He will then proclaim “The day of Vengeance of our God.”
In Jesus first arrival on earth, He came to offer His life in exchange for all of us. His first coming was “The acceptable year of the Lord. Jesus came as “The Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” He submitted Himself to the Father in every respect as He took the punishment, the insults and false accusations. Because Jesus was representing all of us at the place of judgement, He said nothing when accused of things He had not done because in representing us, there is no excuse that we can offer to God for our sin except, “Lord be merciful to me a sinner.”
When Jesus returns to the earth with His church at the end of the seven year tribulation, He will not be coming as the meek and lowly Lamb and allow sinners to suffer violence against Him once again. He will slay all those who appose Him with the very words from His mouth. Jesu is not coming again as a Lamb, He will arrive as a Lion, “King of Kings and Lord of Lords. This second arrival at the end of the seven year tribulation will be to bring the second part of Isaiah’s prophecy; “The day of Vengeance of our God.”
This amazing occurrence in Nazareth where Jesus read the scroll of Isaiah, demonstrates to us how a single line of the prophetic word can be broken into two events, being fulfilled thousands of years apart.
In the prophecy of the “Abomination of desolation” spoken of by Jesus in Matthew chapter 24 that will occur at the midway point of the seven year tribulation, we also see an earlier and later fulfillment of this prophecy. First by Antiochus Epiphanes in 167 B.C. when he set up an altar to Zeus in the second temple in Jerusalem and sacrificed a pig on that altar. Secondly, by the antichrist during the midway point of the seven year tribulation period. Clearly the first appearance of Antiochus Epiphanes was not the intended complete fulfillment of that prophecy that Jesus described. In the context of Matthew chapter 24, Jesus is speaking of events that will happen in “The Last Days” of the earth, during the final seven years when Jesus will pour out His wrath on the earth and Billions will die.
I am making these points that very often a prophecy has an earlier and a later fulfillment because it very well may be possible that Obama’s serious attempt at securing peace in the middle east may be the earlier fulfilment of Daniel 9:24, while very soon afterwards, the actual antichrist will make the seven year peace plan and complete the abomination of dessolation.
We will watch with great interest what transpires between president Obama’s pressure to make peace now and whether or not his coming peace plan will be the seven year plan spoken of by Daniel, or a precursor to an future fulfillment. Whatever the outcome, we live in the most exciting days of human history. All of the final events of the Book of Revelation as well as the remaining unfulfilled prophecies of the Bible are about to take place.
If suddenly we hear of a news report that a peace plan has been reached in Israel that will last for seven years, all of us will know then who the antichrist is and that the Rapture is about to happen and the terrible seven year tribulation will begin shortly thereafter.
We live in exciting days indeed!
Rob Robinson
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