chapter nine The Beast from the Sea
So, who is the “first beast” of Revelation 13 and what is his mark?
It might come as a surprise to some of you that the answer to the first question was given to us over 400 years ago by the protestant reformers, the forefathers of our protestant churches.
Protestant reformers, including John Wycliffe, Martin Luther, John Calvin, Thomas Cranmer, John Thomas, John Knox, Roger Williams, Cotton Mather, Jonathan Edwards, and John Wesley, as well as most Protestants of the 16th–18th centuries, felt that the early church had been led into great apostasy by the Papacy and clearly identified the Church of Rome as the “little horn” of Daniel 7:8, the “first beast” of Revelation 13 and indeed the very seat of the antichrist.
As a counter to the protestant reformation, the Papacy established the Jesuit Order to infiltrate protestant churches and confuse their doctrines.
Preterism and Futurism, which places the antichrist historically in the past or obscurely somewhere in the future, were derived from Jesuit writings (wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesuits) to oppose the scriptural truth that the Papacy, the system of the Roman Catholic Church, is indeed the “beast” that will force worship upon the world.
The abundance of scriptural support that identifies the Papacy as such gives me no need to delve into a biblical study as to the Papacy’s identity (although, I do encourage you to take the time to study, if you are not yet clear on this matter). Rather I’d like to move forward and look at how prophecy is now unfolding and what the Bible tells of the implications of such a truth. Sadly, many Christians have chosen to forget this truth, some have never known this truth and some, namely the Jesuits, are working desperately hard to keep this truth from Christians.
“For now we see through a glass, darkly…” 1 Corinthians 13:12
There is much we may never know until we see God face-to-face. However, biblical prophecy fulfilled in history such as Daniel’s 70-week prophecy pointing us to Christ’s baptism and ministry, or the fall of Jerusalem in 70AD, are major testimonial “rocks” that build both our faith in Scripture and guides our understanding as to where we currently stand in time. One particular prophecy, that has been unfolding over the last 2500 years, should draw our attention, as its fulfilment is upon us.
Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, had a dream of a “great image” and “the form thereof was terrible” (Dan 2:31). This “great image” or “statue” tells us of the historic progression of the nations, starting with the fall of Babylon in 539 B.C and ending with the return of Christ, represented as a stone “cut out of the mountain without hands” (Dan 2:45).
Nebuchadnezzar’s “image”, along with Daniel’s visions of the “four beasts” of chapter seven, present to us the succession of four kingdoms...
Babylon: represented by “head of gold’ (Dan 2:38), as a “lion” with “eagle’s wings” (Dan 7:4)
Medo-Persia: represented by “chest and arms of silver” (Dan 2:32), “like to a bear” (Dan 7:5)
Greece: represented by “belly and thighs of bronze” (Dan 2:32), “like a leopard” (Dan 7:6)
Rome: represented by “legs of iron” (Dan 2:33), “dreadful and terrible” (Dan 7:7)
Nebuchadnezzar’s “image” then transitions to “feet and toes, part of potters' clay, and part of iron” (Dan 2:41), representing Rome-divided, or what we would know as Europe today. It’s worth noting here that, just as feet often have ten toes, the Council of Europe was founded in 1949 by ten countries, Belgium, Denmark, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherland, Norway, Sweden, and the United Kingdom (https://www.britannica.com/topic/Council-of-Europe).
In Daniel chapter seven, we see the “little horn”, representing the Papacy, coming up through the “fourth beast” of Rome, plucking up “by the roots” (Dan 7:8) three kingdoms as the Papacy came to power...
“And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.” Daniel 7:24
History tells us of the ten kingdoms that arose from the Roman Empire, seven of which developed into the countries of modern Western Europe: Visigoths/Spain, Anglo-Saxons/England, Franks/France, Alemani/Germany, Burgundians/Switzerland, Lombards/Italy, Suevi/Portugal……
...and 3 were “subdued”.
-The Heruli, who’s “independent kingdom was destroyed by the Longobards in the early 6th century AD”
-The Vandals, who’s “kingdom collapsed in the Vandalic War of 533–34, in which Emperor Justinian’s forces reconquered the province for the Eastern Roman Empire.”
-The Ostrogoths, whom Byzantine Emperor Justinian declared war on in 535 AD.
“These conquests strengthened the hand of the Papacy, which was established by the year 538 AD. In that year, Vigilus, the bishop of Rome, ascended the papal throne under the protection of the Roman general Belisarius. The date for the establishment of papal Rome as an independent power can thus be pinned at 538 AD.” amazingdiscoveries.org
It was Papal-Rome, a “diverse” power (Dan 7:24), with the union of church and state, that brought about the devastation of the dark ages. Through this power, the Church of Rome persecuted.
From 538 AD until receiving its “deadly wound” (Rev 13:3) in 1798, when Pope Pius VI was taken into captivity, for 1260 years through which God’s “two witnesses” testified “clothed in sackcloth” (Rev 11:3), Papal-Rome sat as an extension of the “fourth beast” (Dan 7:7) and indeed became the 5th kingdom in succession to the Roman Empire.
“And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space.” Revelation 17:10
These five fallen “kings” are the kingdoms of Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, Rome and Papal-Rome.
Each of these in themselves represent both a “king” and a “beast”, with the “fourth beast” of Rome being “dreadful and terrible” (Dan 7:7), and the fifth “king”, the “little horn” power, being the “beast” that raised “up out of the sea” (Rev 13:1), as the Papacy arose through the much-populated lands of Europe.
This fifth beast of the Papacy throughout the dark ages, rising as a “little horn” power (Dan 7:8) through the “fourth beast” of Rome, also embodies the characteristics of the preceding beasts of Greece, Medo-Persia and Babylon, as John describes...
“...the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.” Revelation 13:2
This beast that did “rise up out of the sea” (Rev 13:1) is both the fifth king “fallen” (Rev 17:10) and the “the beast that was” (Rev 17:11), for this beast received a “deadly wound” (Rev 13:3) in 1798, as the Papacy was stripped of its church and state power... as such, this beast currently...
“...is not...”Revelation 17:11
As with the “seven kings: five are fallen, and one is...” (Rev 17:10).
This king that “is”, at a time when the “beast that was” (the power given to the Papacy through the backing of Rome) currently “is not” (Rev 17:11), is the Papacy today - with world leader after world leader visiting the Vatican and singing the praises of the Pope, referring to him as “holy”, this sixth “king”, who holds the title of "Pontifex maximus", has been gathering protestant churches and governments of the world under his wing, in preparation for his successor...
“And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space.” Revelation 17:10
This 7th “king”, that has “not yet come”, is the Papacy in its final form as the “Church Universal”, as we previously discussed.
Through the spectacular events of the second trumpet (Rev 8:8), as “fire” falls “down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men”, deceiving “them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles” (Rev 13:13,14), the world will, in all probability, be convinced that they have witnessed God’s “glory and greatness” and heard Him speak “out of the midst of the fire”, as God spoke at Mount Sinai.
“And when they [two witnesses] shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them” Revelation 11:7
With such a magnificent event, possibly entailing a counterfeit “rapture”, the truth found in God’s Word will be utterly distorted and the world will be convinced to give power back to the Church. As such, the “beast that was” will rise once again, and for this “short space”, for 3 ½ years, God’s Truth, the Bible, will remain “dead” in the streets of this apostate church/governmental system prophesised as the “image to the beast” (Rev 13:14,15).
With no truth left in this religious-political system, this “Church Universal” known as “Babylon the great” (Rev 17:5) will become the “...habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird” (Rev 18:2), to which God pleads “Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues” (Rev 18:4).
Here in lies a mystery: “Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen...”
In Revelation chapter 18, we are told of the two final falls of Babylon. The first is Babylon’s final fall into apostasy, becoming “the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit” (Rev 18:2).
This first fall, as reasonably concluded, occurs at the second “trumpet” (Rev 8:8), as the world is convinced that they have witnessed God’s “glory and greatness” (Deut 5:24), reflective of God’s display at Mount Sinai, and are gathered together in the worship of the “image of the beast” (Rev 13:15).
“Come out of her, my people” Revelation 18:4
It is during this “short space” (Rev 17:10) of time that God’s Children will have their last opportunity to “come out” from this apostate church, from this “MOTHER OF HARLOTS” (Rev 17:5), before Jesus finally closes His intersession as High Priest and prepares to return as “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS” (Rev 19:16), as He declares...
“He who is unjust, let him be unjust still; he who is filthy, let him be filthy still; he who is righteous, let him be righteous still; he who is holy, let him be holy still.” Revelation 22:11
The second and final fall of “Babylon the great” (Rev 17:5) is her literal destruction, whereby “...she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her” (Rev 18:8). And although it is “God who judgeth her”, her destruction comes by the hands of the very beast she has been sitting “upon” (Rev 17:3).
“Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation;and a house divided against a house falleth.” Luke 11:17
As the “ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet” (Rev 17:12) take rise, they “...have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast” (Rev 17:13). As such, they prepare the arrival of Satan as Christ, the “eighth” king (Rev 17:11), and with the final rise of the “beast” power, these “ten horns which... are ten kings... shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire” (Rev 17:12,16).
“...for in one hour is she made desolate.” Revelation 18:19
These “ten kings... receive power as kings one hour with the beast” (Rev 17:12), and it is at this “hour”, this final “hour” that God has given Satan to reign upon the earth, that Satan demands to be worshipped directly.
At Satan’s final manifestation as Christ on earth, no longer will mankind be required to “worship the image of the beast” (Rev 13:15), but rather direct worship of Satan as Christ, the “eighth” king, for his final hour with his “beast” kingdom and its “ten kings”.
“And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.” Revelation 17:11
It’s at this final hour of Satan’s manifestation as Christ on earth, that Jesus ceases His intersession as High Priest, leaving Heaven along with all His Heavenly Host, to return as “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS” (Rev 19:16).
“And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour.” Revelation 8:1
It is at this moment in time, when Jesus has left His ministering role as High Priest in the Heavenly sanctuary to return, thus removing all restraints from Satan to rule on earth, that Paul’s inspired words are almost fulfilled...
“For the mystery of lawlessness already works. Only there is one who restrains now, until he is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming.” 2 Thessalonians 2:7,8
“And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark.. and it came to pass after seven days, that the waters of the flood were upon the earth.” Genesis 7:1,10 Noah and his family were sealed safely within the ark for 7 days before the floods came. As it was the Lord who shut them in (Gen 7:16), their protection from the flood was secure, while the fate of those outside, though unbeknownst to them for 7 days, was also sealed. Such is the close of probation...
“He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.” Revelation 22:11
Consider: If one prophetic day equals one literal year (360 days on Hebrew calendar), then one hour equates to 15 days. As such, a prophetic half an hour, which equates to 7.5 literal days, is suggestive of being 7 days, “about the space of half an hour”, that there will be “silence in heaven” (Rev 8:1).
7 days between Jesus closing probation, leaving the Heavenly sanctuary, and our final redemption. 7 days where we, like Noah in ‘type’, sit within the ark sealed by our “living God” (Rev 7:2,3), while Satan unleashes a time of trouble “such as was not since the beginning of the world” (Matt 24:21). 7 days in which God shall seal us in His protection so that we shall...
“...not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.” Psalms 91:5-8
Eventually, with Christ’s arrival to earth, these 7 long days will come to an end, cutting short Satan’s horrific “hour” reign on earth, and thus fulfilling God’s promise that “for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened” (Mat 24:22).✞------------------------------------
It might come as a surprise to some of you that the answer to the first question was given to us over 400 years ago by the protestant reformers, the forefathers of our protestant churches.
Protestant reformers, including John Wycliffe, Martin Luther, John Calvin, Thomas Cranmer, John Thomas, John Knox, Roger Williams, Cotton Mather, Jonathan Edwards, and John Wesley, as well as most Protestants of the 16th–18th centuries, felt that the early church had been led into great apostasy by the Papacy and clearly identified the Church of Rome as the “little horn” of Daniel 7:8, the “first beast” of Revelation 13 and indeed the very seat of the antichrist.
As a counter to the protestant reformation, the Papacy established the Jesuit Order to infiltrate protestant churches and confuse their doctrines.
Preterism and Futurism, which places the antichrist historically in the past or obscurely somewhere in the future, were derived from Jesuit writings (wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesuits) to oppose the scriptural truth that the Papacy, the system of the Roman Catholic Church, is indeed the “beast” that will force worship upon the world.
The abundance of scriptural support that identifies the Papacy as such gives me no need to delve into a biblical study as to the Papacy’s identity (although, I do encourage you to take the time to study, if you are not yet clear on this matter). Rather I’d like to move forward and look at how prophecy is now unfolding and what the Bible tells of the implications of such a truth. Sadly, many Christians have chosen to forget this truth, some have never known this truth and some, namely the Jesuits, are working desperately hard to keep this truth from Christians.
“For now we see through a glass, darkly…” 1 Corinthians 13:12
There is much we may never know until we see God face-to-face. However, biblical prophecy fulfilled in history such as Daniel’s 70-week prophecy pointing us to Christ’s baptism and ministry, or the fall of Jerusalem in 70AD, are major testimonial “rocks” that build both our faith in Scripture and guides our understanding as to where we currently stand in time. One particular prophecy, that has been unfolding over the last 2500 years, should draw our attention, as its fulfilment is upon us.
Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, had a dream of a “great image” and “the form thereof was terrible” (Dan 2:31). This “great image” or “statue” tells us of the historic progression of the nations, starting with the fall of Babylon in 539 B.C and ending with the return of Christ, represented as a stone “cut out of the mountain without hands” (Dan 2:45).
Nebuchadnezzar’s “image”, along with Daniel’s visions of the “four beasts” of chapter seven, present to us the succession of four kingdoms...
Babylon: represented by “head of gold’ (Dan 2:38), as a “lion” with “eagle’s wings” (Dan 7:4)
Medo-Persia: represented by “chest and arms of silver” (Dan 2:32), “like to a bear” (Dan 7:5)
Greece: represented by “belly and thighs of bronze” (Dan 2:32), “like a leopard” (Dan 7:6)
Rome: represented by “legs of iron” (Dan 2:33), “dreadful and terrible” (Dan 7:7)
Nebuchadnezzar’s “image” then transitions to “feet and toes, part of potters' clay, and part of iron” (Dan 2:41), representing Rome-divided, or what we would know as Europe today. It’s worth noting here that, just as feet often have ten toes, the Council of Europe was founded in 1949 by ten countries, Belgium, Denmark, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherland, Norway, Sweden, and the United Kingdom (https://www.britannica.com/topic/Council-of-Europe).
In Daniel chapter seven, we see the “little horn”, representing the Papacy, coming up through the “fourth beast” of Rome, plucking up “by the roots” (Dan 7:8) three kingdoms as the Papacy came to power...
“And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.” Daniel 7:24
History tells us of the ten kingdoms that arose from the Roman Empire, seven of which developed into the countries of modern Western Europe: Visigoths/Spain, Anglo-Saxons/England, Franks/France, Alemani/Germany, Burgundians/Switzerland, Lombards/Italy, Suevi/Portugal……
...and 3 were “subdued”.
-The Heruli, who’s “independent kingdom was destroyed by the Longobards in the early 6th century AD”
-The Vandals, who’s “kingdom collapsed in the Vandalic War of 533–34, in which Emperor Justinian’s forces reconquered the province for the Eastern Roman Empire.”
-The Ostrogoths, whom Byzantine Emperor Justinian declared war on in 535 AD.
“These conquests strengthened the hand of the Papacy, which was established by the year 538 AD. In that year, Vigilus, the bishop of Rome, ascended the papal throne under the protection of the Roman general Belisarius. The date for the establishment of papal Rome as an independent power can thus be pinned at 538 AD.” amazingdiscoveries.org
It was Papal-Rome, a “diverse” power (Dan 7:24), with the union of church and state, that brought about the devastation of the dark ages. Through this power, the Church of Rome persecuted.
From 538 AD until receiving its “deadly wound” (Rev 13:3) in 1798, when Pope Pius VI was taken into captivity, for 1260 years through which God’s “two witnesses” testified “clothed in sackcloth” (Rev 11:3), Papal-Rome sat as an extension of the “fourth beast” (Dan 7:7) and indeed became the 5th kingdom in succession to the Roman Empire.
“And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space.” Revelation 17:10
These five fallen “kings” are the kingdoms of Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, Rome and Papal-Rome.
Each of these in themselves represent both a “king” and a “beast”, with the “fourth beast” of Rome being “dreadful and terrible” (Dan 7:7), and the fifth “king”, the “little horn” power, being the “beast” that raised “up out of the sea” (Rev 13:1), as the Papacy arose through the much-populated lands of Europe.
This fifth beast of the Papacy throughout the dark ages, rising as a “little horn” power (Dan 7:8) through the “fourth beast” of Rome, also embodies the characteristics of the preceding beasts of Greece, Medo-Persia and Babylon, as John describes...
“...the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.” Revelation 13:2
This beast that did “rise up out of the sea” (Rev 13:1) is both the fifth king “fallen” (Rev 17:10) and the “the beast that was” (Rev 17:11), for this beast received a “deadly wound” (Rev 13:3) in 1798, as the Papacy was stripped of its church and state power... as such, this beast currently...
“...is not...”Revelation 17:11
As with the “seven kings: five are fallen, and one is...” (Rev 17:10).
This king that “is”, at a time when the “beast that was” (the power given to the Papacy through the backing of Rome) currently “is not” (Rev 17:11), is the Papacy today - with world leader after world leader visiting the Vatican and singing the praises of the Pope, referring to him as “holy”, this sixth “king”, who holds the title of "Pontifex maximus", has been gathering protestant churches and governments of the world under his wing, in preparation for his successor...
“And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space.” Revelation 17:10
This 7th “king”, that has “not yet come”, is the Papacy in its final form as the “Church Universal”, as we previously discussed.
Through the spectacular events of the second trumpet (Rev 8:8), as “fire” falls “down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men”, deceiving “them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles” (Rev 13:13,14), the world will, in all probability, be convinced that they have witnessed God’s “glory and greatness” and heard Him speak “out of the midst of the fire”, as God spoke at Mount Sinai.
“And when they [two witnesses] shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them” Revelation 11:7
With such a magnificent event, possibly entailing a counterfeit “rapture”, the truth found in God’s Word will be utterly distorted and the world will be convinced to give power back to the Church. As such, the “beast that was” will rise once again, and for this “short space”, for 3 ½ years, God’s Truth, the Bible, will remain “dead” in the streets of this apostate church/governmental system prophesised as the “image to the beast” (Rev 13:14,15).
With no truth left in this religious-political system, this “Church Universal” known as “Babylon the great” (Rev 17:5) will become the “...habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird” (Rev 18:2), to which God pleads “Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues” (Rev 18:4).
Here in lies a mystery: “Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen...”
In Revelation chapter 18, we are told of the two final falls of Babylon. The first is Babylon’s final fall into apostasy, becoming “the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit” (Rev 18:2).
This first fall, as reasonably concluded, occurs at the second “trumpet” (Rev 8:8), as the world is convinced that they have witnessed God’s “glory and greatness” (Deut 5:24), reflective of God’s display at Mount Sinai, and are gathered together in the worship of the “image of the beast” (Rev 13:15).
“Come out of her, my people” Revelation 18:4
It is during this “short space” (Rev 17:10) of time that God’s Children will have their last opportunity to “come out” from this apostate church, from this “MOTHER OF HARLOTS” (Rev 17:5), before Jesus finally closes His intersession as High Priest and prepares to return as “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS” (Rev 19:16), as He declares...
“He who is unjust, let him be unjust still; he who is filthy, let him be filthy still; he who is righteous, let him be righteous still; he who is holy, let him be holy still.” Revelation 22:11
The second and final fall of “Babylon the great” (Rev 17:5) is her literal destruction, whereby “...she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her” (Rev 18:8). And although it is “God who judgeth her”, her destruction comes by the hands of the very beast she has been sitting “upon” (Rev 17:3).
“Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation;and a house divided against a house falleth.” Luke 11:17
As the “ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet” (Rev 17:12) take rise, they “...have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast” (Rev 17:13). As such, they prepare the arrival of Satan as Christ, the “eighth” king (Rev 17:11), and with the final rise of the “beast” power, these “ten horns which... are ten kings... shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire” (Rev 17:12,16).
“...for in one hour is she made desolate.” Revelation 18:19
These “ten kings... receive power as kings one hour with the beast” (Rev 17:12), and it is at this “hour”, this final “hour” that God has given Satan to reign upon the earth, that Satan demands to be worshipped directly.
At Satan’s final manifestation as Christ on earth, no longer will mankind be required to “worship the image of the beast” (Rev 13:15), but rather direct worship of Satan as Christ, the “eighth” king, for his final hour with his “beast” kingdom and its “ten kings”.
“And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.” Revelation 17:11
It’s at this final hour of Satan’s manifestation as Christ on earth, that Jesus ceases His intersession as High Priest, leaving Heaven along with all His Heavenly Host, to return as “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS” (Rev 19:16).
“And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour.” Revelation 8:1
It is at this moment in time, when Jesus has left His ministering role as High Priest in the Heavenly sanctuary to return, thus removing all restraints from Satan to rule on earth, that Paul’s inspired words are almost fulfilled...
“For the mystery of lawlessness already works. Only there is one who restrains now, until he is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming.” 2 Thessalonians 2:7,8
“And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark.. and it came to pass after seven days, that the waters of the flood were upon the earth.” Genesis 7:1,10 Noah and his family were sealed safely within the ark for 7 days before the floods came. As it was the Lord who shut them in (Gen 7:16), their protection from the flood was secure, while the fate of those outside, though unbeknownst to them for 7 days, was also sealed. Such is the close of probation...
“He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.” Revelation 22:11
Consider: If one prophetic day equals one literal year (360 days on Hebrew calendar), then one hour equates to 15 days. As such, a prophetic half an hour, which equates to 7.5 literal days, is suggestive of being 7 days, “about the space of half an hour”, that there will be “silence in heaven” (Rev 8:1).
7 days between Jesus closing probation, leaving the Heavenly sanctuary, and our final redemption. 7 days where we, like Noah in ‘type’, sit within the ark sealed by our “living God” (Rev 7:2,3), while Satan unleashes a time of trouble “such as was not since the beginning of the world” (Matt 24:21). 7 days in which God shall seal us in His protection so that we shall...
“...not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.” Psalms 91:5-8
Eventually, with Christ’s arrival to earth, these 7 long days will come to an end, cutting short Satan’s horrific “hour” reign on earth, and thus fulfilling God’s promise that “for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened” (Mat 24:22).✞------------------------------------