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Email: <lelgee@voicenet.com>Copyright © L. L. Griffith, 1996. ISBN 0-929554-06-X. This document may be reproduced in whole or in part provided that this copyright notice is reproduced on each copy made.
There has been much controversy in the Protestant churches of America, since the days of Israel's revival as a nation in 1948, about the manner in which the book of THE REVELATION OF JESUS CHRIST should be interpreted. Generally, in the majority of these churches the chief interpretation is the one known as the continuous historical view. Increasingly since 1948, this view is being challenged by diligent Bible students, who contend that the things written in the book surely apply to the days yet to come upon Israel, and has nothing to do with "the Church" or with its past, "continuous" historical times.
Consequently with some Bible believers, any person who challenges the continuous historical view is automatically labelled - without a hearing - as belonging to the old school of apocalyptic interpretation known as futurist; and therefore, is Catholic in view and heretic to "the faith" of Abraham. Does such kind of accusation ever arise from a right position of knowledge and understanding?
If the time of "the last days" is not already set in motion:
This expectation is not dictated by any "Church" but by sound reasoning of the evidence of prophecies received from within the Holy Scriptures, per 2 Peter 1:20-21, which says:
"...No prophecy of Scripture is of its own loosing - for not by the will of man was prophecy at any time brought, but the holy men of God spoke under the Holy Spirit." No holy prophet was the originator of the words which were released under his hand. The reception of every utterance of God was committed to him - "brought" - under the power of the holy spirit of the Almighty God!
...God loosed His Word over the prophets for them to speak. Epilusis, No. 1955; [epiluo, No. 1956] is not a word which acceptably defines interpretation, as some are wrongly led to believe through a deviant use of this verse.
...Interpretation of words is hermeenuo, No. 2059; from which comes hermeneutics, "the science or art of interpretation, especially of the Scriptures."
...The craft of hermeneutics - "the science or art" - is used for wresting words through the will of deceitful men.
...Only God looses His Word over His holy prophets for them to speak; no man speaks for God until so commissioned as an holy prophet.
Many writings of the histories of the nations are unreliable. The researcher cannot verify these writings, except by appeal to another history. Names of rulers and the dates of their reigns are often in conflict. Historians disagree with one another. Facts of history are not reported in concise manner. Histories are revised in their own days in order to show men and events in their best light, rather than in the stark reality of their occurrence. "All men are liars..." Egyptian chronology is suspect; names removed from inscriptions. Certain works of Josephus are said to be biased toward Rome's view. Other examples could be mentioned. All they manage to do is to obscure and to cast doubt upon the Word of God. The fact remains that many late historical writers did not verify their writing with the Holy Scriptures.
Revealed prophecy alone confirms the Word of God as truth. Profane histories do not qualify as a foundation for the exposition of Bible truth. The great power of a liar is that he has the facility to wrest the truth a little in order to sway his hearers toward the deceit of a much greater lie to come. In Matthew 10:16 the Lord cautioned his twelve chosen ones, thus: "Lo, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves. Be ye therefore wise as the serpent and harmless as the dove." The wisdom of the serpent is the perceptive subtlety of its thought processing in the discernment of the spirit. The wisdom of Christ does no harm through its working because the holy spirit prevails over wise discernment.
In the days of the apostle Paul (before Jerusalem's destruction), he warned, "For I know this, that after my departure (from Ephesus) grievous wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from your own, men will rise up speaking perverted things to draw away the disciples after themselves. Wherefore, watch..," per Acts 20:29-30.
The many ought to exercise the process of their mind's thinking - but with the harmlessness of the dove's spirit - in order to deal with the subtlety advanced in all interpretation - including this one - of DANIEL, THE REVELATION and other Scriptures. Read (and practice) Hebrews 5:14; 12:7-13. Be on guard against false teachings!
The elect of God have been soundly warned beforehand - especially concerning the "great tribulation" of the last days - to beware of seducing spirits, "for there shall arise false messiahs and false prophets and will do" (give; make) "great signs and wonders so as to mislead if possible even the elect," per Matthew 24:21-24; Mark 13:14-23. "Seeing is believing," they will say. Any man who is called of God who believes that it is impossible that he might be deceived in his view of prophecy is hardly a humble spirited man; for with God all things are possible, even the deception of a man who is right in his own eyes.
The meek of the early "church" of Jesus Christ were taught to recognize the Enemy of Israel and to recognize the enemies of Christ; and within themselves, the guile of the Adversary and of its false teachers. The faithful teachings of Christ and his apostles cannot be "changed" except by the false teacher who lies against the truth, preaching "another gospel."
The perverted Christain apostasy from God, confirmed by Constantine as the Roman world's state religion, remains well entrenched today. Among its devices to deceive are writings which are made to look like the true work of (alleged) Christian men, but their writings indeed are not. Such "angels of light" have been very adept throughout historical times at transforming written 'devices' of history into instruments of "truth."
Even many among the elect of Christ are deceived by writings of Bible commentary - even though the writings which lead the mind away from the Scriptures are easily distinguished from a book of the Bible which speaks truthfully about prophecy.
There is much time spent over negative writings that are published and read among brethren, with an unceasing controversy centering around the "continuous historical" interpretation of the book of THE REVELATION OF JESUS CHRIST. Such negativity does not feed the flock. It causes the hungry sheep to turn aside to find the more suitable pasture. Any interpretation of apocalyptic prophecy that hints of a future outcome tomorrow is almost automatically labelled as evil and its author labeled as an heretic.
It is an inconsistent logic that accepts "continuous history" as fact, but denies the "future" in spirit. The day of the LORD will come.
The strong of the flock may well fend for themselves, but the weaker surely fall prey to the unsuitable pasture where the "beasts" and those of the "dragon" mind lurk. Much deceptive writing is not "harmless as the dove" when read by the hungry sheep. Their hearts are discouraged by the long and seemingly interminable waiting which is projected by the "continuous history" proponents who think they hold the only "correct view" to consider. These bad shepherds are at fault for not providing a more suitable pasture which is only found in the Word of God. Yet not one can deny that the second coming of the Lord is a future event.
This being so, the event is "to come," and very close, almost upon us, an event that is prophesied to occur quite rapidly and suddenly. Furthermore "the season" of the prophecy of the Lord's apocalypse is just as clearly stated as a time which is described as "near." There is no way that one individual can watch for all the predicted things to happen within his lifetime unless all "the signs" of the Lord's coming occur within the near time of "this generation [which] shall not pass" from his range of vision. The season is both "near" and close to the time of the midnight cry: "Wake up, he's coming!"
This writer challenges any person to prove that all of the Scriptural signs of the Lord's coming and of his revelation are not truly applicable to the times of one "generation."
How can the signs of the Lord's second coming be recognized when there is no consensus of opinion about "the signs," and only appeal to the traditions of certain men who have established their own ideas, and to profane history which supposedly supports their ideas in these last days? Many of their supposed signs cannot even be identified as happening within the lifetime of a man. The Lord himself in the Gospel accounts gave the means to identify the singular signs of his coming, but many are taught that those words are only symbolic; (not applicable to reality in this world age) for the "continuous historical" view relates all the signs of the Lord's apocalypse to common, past history of times before Israel was reborn as a nation.
How can "the dragon" stand before "the woman" - the wife who forsook her Lord - who is about to be delivered with vengeance, if current signs showing Zion's progress in delivery of "the children" have only just begun since 1948 A.D.? (Whereas, O.T. prophecy is full of information telling of Zion's deliverance at "the end," and in "the day" of the LORD's judgment of the people He has "married"). The reproach of Zion's longtime barrenness and widowhood will not be remembered after her deliverance, per Isaiah 54:1-17 and Isaiah 52:1-15. This is Bible truth, not ersatz food delivered by the devil's deceit from a "continuous historical" writing.
Up to this day Israel has not accepted God as her "husband," and has even rejected the Son of man who was sent to her and who so longed to take Jerusalem under his wing. The nation for the most part still has forsaken God, although it can be seen that the LORD is still working on behalf of "Ammi," His people, per Jeremiah 31:1-2, and Israel, per Isaiah 54:1-5.
Where are current signs of the "strife" which brings "the dragon" and its bodies, typed and shadowed in the beasts, up out of "the land?" Already the signs leading to the coming "strife" are plainly evident - according to O.T. prophecies - in the various northern nations above the River Euphrates and in those too which touch the eastern Mediterranean world.
Are there no signs which tell the world that the Papacy is actively working in both the political and the religious spheres to enlarge its hold upon the nations to increase hostility against the Jew? Can any man show that the Treaty of Rome is not the Antichrist's document designed so as to lead to the persecution and destruction of the state of Israel and the Jews?
Is there a Phinehas? Is there a Gideon? Is there a Daniel, a Noah, a Job out there, who has the ability and the courage of his conviction in Jesus Christ to face the Enemy with the Truth? Every man who calls himself a Christian ought to examine himself to see if he indeed is in "the faith." Did not Jesus Christ himself ask - per Luke 18:8 after posing the parable about the widow's begging for vengeance to his hearers - "Nevertheless, the Son of man having come, will he indeed find 'the faith' upon the Land/earth?"
Where is the answer to "the souls" who cry out, "Until when, O Master holy and true, do you not judge and avenge our blood upon those who dwell upon the Land?"
How long shall it be until it is said to "them that were slain for the Word of God and for the testimony which they held" that they should "rest yet for a little time, until even their fellow servants and their brethren should be killed as they were?" Why are these dead told to wait for those yet living to be slain "as they were"? What length is the "little time" which intervenes until the "wait" is over?
These questions shall be fully answered only in the coming days, as events unfold that bring about more killing in Israel, to pour out the blood of those yet living, as indicated by this prophecy. The day of God's vengeance against all nations which have persecuted and killed the Jews is certainly a day which is to come quickly.
It is a forlorn conclusion to realize that of "the virgins," fully half of the number seems to be composed of foolish men.
A righteous faith in God and Jesus Christ without its practical physical outworking is a dead faith; and worthy of the same judgment.
Are there few, or many, who now look for the LORD to come with vengeance against the Enemy?
Is "the faith" to be found in the land/earth when the Lord returns?
Daniel's book of prophecy is used as a basis for the "continuous historical" view, because in Chapter Twelve, the text contains those words and phrases which are variously shown in the same related manner in the book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ, the 1,260 days. To destroy the understanding of the last days in Daniel's prophecy also serves to destroy the understanding of the "days" in the Revelation. The Lord said, "He that readeth (Daniel), let him understand." Therefore, let us proceed to understand Daniel's book of prophecy as the Lord forewarned his disciples concerning the last battle for Jerusalem.