The Final Prophecy: It Is Done
The continuity of story and characters in the Biblical record, one story written to the same people from Genesis to Revelation, does not preclude the absence of other story lines. One of those story lines is the image of the great seven-headed beast first mentioned in Daniel chapter 2. It began in the year 602 BCE with Babylon. The seven heads of this beast are seven empires or kingdoms; “five are fallen, one is, and one is yet to come.” It is after the return of Christ, and this final seventh head, which will emerge more than a thousand years in our future, that the heavens and the Earth as we know them will pass away. There will be a new heaven and Earth, and as the new Jerusalem comes down out of heaven from God, on that day, our Lord GOD will say, “It is done.”
As this event occurs at least 1000 years in our future, we’ve not written about the seventh and final head of this great image with seven heads and ten horns. But as we have articles regarding the sixth head, touching on the seventh head is a logical step to fill in the details of the big picture.
Daniel’s image had a head of gold and its feet were of iron and clay. This is a different description than the beast with seven heads and ten horns, although the image in Daniel is part of this seven-headed beast. The “five are fallen” in Revelation 17 is a reference to Daniel’s great image. The head of fine gold, Babylon was followed by the Persian’s arms of silver, the Greek’s belly and thighs of brass, the Roman’s legs of iron, and the Ottoman’s feet part of iron and clay. [Dan. 2:31, 32; see chapter five, The Blind Man’s Elephant for details, now a complimentary PDF on our Home page]. Babylon the Great of Revelation is head number six. Head seven, the last head of the beast is Gog and Magog. Start to finish, these seven heads from Babylon to Gog and Magog cover a period of about 3700 years of history in the Biblical record.
One key point needs to be made here in reference to Gog and Magog. It is important to keep in mind that the seventh head, Gog and Magog, emerges after the return of Christ and the completion of the Millennium, not before. Some historians and scholars, when examining the prophecies of Daniel, Ezekiel and Revelation, have confused the description of Gog, the seventh head, with the sixth head, the emerging empire of Edom, when describing the Khazar/Jews/Zionists, as "... tall, with red-hair, ruddy-faced and blue-eyes ..." In the Biblical record, Esau/Edom is described as being red, rough, hairy all over like a garment. [See Gen. 25:25-27, Esau was brother to Jacob/Israel; also the Feature articles The Little Horn: First Century Antichrist, Isaiah 63: Big Brother, and Is the US And (UK) In End-times Bible Prophecy?]. When the Millennium or the one thousand years of peace has ended, and after Gog's “little season” or time has passed, God’s plan, the kosmos in Greek, and misunderstood famously as "mankind" or "the inhabited planet" in John 3:16, will have been completed. Hence, it is done. [See the Feature article, Mirror, Mirror On The Wall].
“It is done” in Greek is one word, ginomai. It means to come into existence, a beginning, as we read above with the new heaven and Earth. But it also means to be finished as with our current heavens and Earth. In Hebrew, it is one word as well, hayah, and has the same meaning. When God said to Moses, I AM that I AM [Exd. 3:14], I AM is the word hayah. As we’ll read later, this is the same as God saying, I AM, Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. The plan of God is full circle.
As we read in both Ezekiel and in Revelation, “it is done” refers to the same “it is finished” event. It is the end of these heavens and Earth including the remembrance of all the renowned men and events of mankind’s history, the wars, the times of peace, the lofty monuments, the mighty cities, and empires crumbled into the dust of the earth, all that has taken place from the time of creation in Genesis to the end of the Millennium and the seventh head of the beast. Metaphorically, it is the end of the final act of the play on this mortal stage we call “Life.” And when it is done, “God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain, for the former things are passed away.” [Rev. 21:4].
As we noted, “It is done” also marks a grand new beginning. A new heaven and Earth. “And I saw a new heaven and a new Earth: for the first heaven and the first Earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven ….” [Rev. 21:1, 2; see the Sneakers article, No More Oceans]. We can read more about this in Revelation chapters 21 and 22.
Even our 24 hour days have this pattern of ginomai, it is done. A day ends at sunset and a new one begins. The creation in Genesis began in darkness, and light came out of the darkness. So it is that Biblical days begin with darkness, and at dawn, light comes out of the darkness. In one sense, this is a daily metaphor for mankind coming out of the darkness of this world and into the light of the kingdom of God. [1 John 1:5]. And so are, it appears, days beginning and ending in the dark at midnight for our world today.
But for this article, we are looking at the events that lead up to “It is done.” It started with the great image, initially described by Daniel, and later by John in Revelation as the beast with seven heads and ten horns. Daniel, as noted above, focuses on the first five of these heads as described in Daniel chapter two. John, on the other hand, focuses on end-time events with heads six and seven. The sixth head of the beast is Edom. [See the Feature articles, Isaiah 63: Big Brother and Obadiah And The Prophetic Parable Of The Tares; also the Sneakers article, One World Peace And Security]. The seventh head is Gog and Magog. These last two heads of the beast are separated by the Millennium, the thousand years of rest and peace, which is depicted by the weekly sabbath day. [See 2 Pet. 3:8; also chapter seven, The Hijacked Elephant]. It is the kingdom of heaven on Earth, ruled over by Christ at the end of Edom’s sixth head and the seventh seal and seven trumpets. [See Rev. 8].
As we read in Revelation, “And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, and cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.” [Rev. 20:1-3].
Before we go further, it might be useful to recap our Biblical big picture. Most of us should be familiar with Genesis, “In the beginning ….” If not, it’s probably good to read it again to refresh one’s memory. The majority of the book of Genesis is about Abraham and his descendants, Isaac and Israel. In fact, the last twenty chapters center on the life of Israel’s son Joseph, father of the kingly line of the House of Israel, which today is Ephraim, Great Britain, and Manasseh, the US. [See Gen. 48].
Israel had 12 sons that over time grew into nations. The nations of Israel had three kings, Saul, descended from Benjamin, David and Solomon, descended from Judah, before all the nations of Israel were split into two houses. These are the House of Judah and the House of Israel. The House of Judah was comprised of Israel’s son Judah and his descendants. Ten other sons of Israel comprised the House of Israel, whose first king was Jeroboam, a descendant of Ephraim. [See 1 Kng. 11:31]. The descendants of Levi were the priesthood to both houses, which began with Moses and Aaron. [c]. All Israel has not been united since that time and won’t be again until Christ’s return. [See Eze. 37:15-28].
The nations of the House of Israel were divorced from God and taken captive by the Assyrians beginning in 732 BCE. [See the Feature article, Damascus A Heap Of Ruins]. They remained in this condition until the first century when Christ redeemed our ancestors. [Mat. 15:24, Luke 1:68; also see the Feature article, What Exactly Is The Gospel?].
The House of Judah was taken captive by the Babylonians about 605 BCE. Babylon was the first head the image of the beast as mentioned earlier in Daniel chapter two. Daniel also described the four empires of the image that followed Babylon in consecutive order over a period of 2500 years or so. [For the exact timing of these five kingdoms and relevant prophecies, see chapter five, The Blind Man’s Elephant].
The House of Judah remained captives to the Persian Empire, the “arms of silver” of the great image, which is head number two of the beast in Revelation, until Cyrus the Great’s vision from God. He released those of Judah, after seventy years of captivity, to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple. This second temple never had the Ark of the Covenant. [See Rev. 11:19]. Alexander’s Greek Empire supplanted the Persians. And the Romans, who were the fourth head of the seven-headed beast, supplanted the Greeks. During the rise of the Roman Empire, Edom gained dominion over the House of Judah, and it remains so today. [Dan. 7:20-22; see the Feature article, The Little Horn: First Century Antichrist].
It was during the fourth head of the beast that Christ redeemed the House of Israel in the first century. The western “leg of iron” of the Roman Empire, according to historians, ended in 476 CE when Romulus Augustus was deposed. The territory of the western leg eventually became much of the land comprising many of the ten nations of Israel today as delineated in Genesis 49. [See the prophecy in Dan. 7:23, 24].
The Ottoman’s supplanted the Byzantine Empire, the eastern Roman Empire, in 1453 CE in Constantinople. The Ottomans were the fifth head of the beast, the one with the ten toes prophecy in Daniel, [again, see chapter five, The Blind Man’s Elephant for details]. They remained in power until 1918. This was the year Daniel’s prophecy of the image came to an end exactly as prophesied in 602 BCE. The great image, the first five heads of the beast, was put to an end by the sons of Joseph, Ephraim, England and by Manasseh, the US. [See the Feature article, Is The US (And UK) In End-times Bible Prophecy? also Rev. 17:10]. Out of what became British [House of Israel] Palestine, the House of Judah formed the nation-state of Israel. [See the Feature article, Ten Horns, Ten Nations]. There are ten sons of Israel forming nations today according to Israel's prophecy concerning his sons in the last days.
Since 1918 until present day, the sixth head of the beast, Edom, has not officially made its appearance. [See the Feature article, Isaiah 63: Big Brother for details]. When the sixth head Babylon the Great does emerge, it will last for 42 months until just prior to Christ’s return. Satan will be put away and Christ will make a new covenant with the Houses of Judah and Israel, joining them again as one nation. The remnant left over from the “Apocalypse,” the 144,000 of the twelve nations of Israel [Rev. 7] will be gathered from around the world to inhabit the land of Israel and rebuild the cities. The world will know peace for 1000 years.
At the end of the 1000 years, Satan is loosed for a little time. This is when the seventh and final head of the beast will emerge. When the final head of the beast, Gog and Magog, is destroyed, then these heavens and Earth shall pass away. This will be the time of the great resurrection, Judgment Day as it is referred to in Christianity. Then there will be a new heaven and Earth, and God shall dwell on that Earth. ”And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.” [Rev. 21:3; see the Feature articles, Heaven Can Wait and Heaven Can Wait II].
Our story comes full circle from the original heavens and Earth in Genesis, to their destruction, to the new heavens and Earth in Revelation. As Isaiah noted, “For behold I [the LORD] create new heavens and a new Earth; and the former shall not be remembered, nor come to mind.” [Isa. 65:17; see the Feature article, The Good News Colour Revolution].
While the book of Daniel, chapter 2 concerns itself with the first five heads of the beast, the great image, it isn’t until the book of Revelation that we have the first mention of seven heads altogether. “And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon [Satan, who gives his power to these heads, Rev. 13:2], having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.” [Rev. 12:3]. “And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns [Greek, keras], and upon his ten horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the names of blasphemy.” [Rev. 13:1]. The crowns represent kings or rulers meaning they are or were kingdoms.
The seven heads are those named above and the ten horns are the ten nations of Israel mentioned in Genesis 49. These ten horns have crowns meaning they are ten kingdoms or nations of Israel today. For example, Great Britain and the US are the sons of Joseph in chapter 49. The Germanic people are descendants of Benjamin. Joseph and Benjamin have the same mother, Israel’s wife Rachel. Reuben is France by Israel’s wife Leah.1
The heads of the beast have the name of blasphemy [Greek, blasphemia, slander, impious and reproachful speech] “ … speaking marvelous things against the God of gods ….” [Dan. 11:36]. We read of the seven heads and ten horns in Revelation 17 too. In verse 7 it reads, “I will tell you the mystery of the woman and the beast that carries her which has seven heads and ten horns.” The woman here is the city of Jerusalem. From the time of the first beast Babylon when Judah was taken captive, through the Ottomans, the fifth head, Jerusalem, despite a temporary victory during the Crusades, did not return to the control of Israel. As we mentioned, by the end of WW1, Jerusalem came under the auspices of the British via the League of Nations, and the surrounding region was known as the British Mandate for Palestine. As mentioned in the Feature article, Obadiah And The Prophetic Parable Of The Tares, the sixth head will occupy Jerusalem and the land of Israel. And as we’ll read, the seventh head will surround Jerusalem at the end of the Millennium with its armies, but will be destroyed by God.
It says in the prophecy of Ezekiel, “And you [Gog and Magog] shall say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages [Israel]; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates, to take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn your 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.
“Therefore, son of man, [meaning Ezekiel] prophesy and say unto Gog, Thus says the Lord GOD; in that day when my people of Israel dwell safely, shall you not know it? And you shall come from your place out of the north parts, you, and many people with you, all of them riding upon horses, a great company, and a mighty army: and you shall come up against my people of Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days [meaning just prior to the end of these heavens and Earth here], and I will bring you against my land, that the heathen may know me, when I shall be sanctified in you, O Gog, before their eyes.
“And it shall come to pass at the same time when Gog shall come against the land of Israel, says the Lord GOD, that my fury shall come up in my face. For in my jealousy in the fire of my wrath have I spoken, Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel; 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. [This is a different earthquake than that which precludes the end of the sixth head in Rev. 6].
“And I will call for a sword against him throughout all my mountains, says the Lord GOD: every man's sword shall be against his brother. 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. 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.” [See Eze. 38:11-23].
The fate of Gog and Magog continues in Ezekiel chapter 39. “Therefore, you son of man, prophesy against Gog, and say, Thus says the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against you, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal: and I will turn you back, and leave but the sixth part of you, and will cause you to come up from the north parts, and will bring you upon the mountains of Israel: and I will smite your bow out of your left hand, and will cause your arrows to fall out of your right hand. You shall fall upon the mountains of Israel, you, and all your bands, and the people that are with you: I will give you to the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured. [Again, this is a different reference than Rev. 19, which precedes the return of Christ].
“You shall fall upon the open field: for I have spoken, says the Lord GOD. 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. 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. Behold, it is come, and it is done [hayah], says the Lord GOD; this is the day whereof I have spoken.” [Eze 39:1-8].
The other two references to the day whereof our LORD has spoken are in Revelation. “And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done [ginomai].” The other is, “And he said to me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.” [Rev. 16:17, 21:6].
The statement, “the heathen shall know that I am the LORD” or that “they shall know that I am the LORD” occurs about sixty times in the book of Ezekiel. Ezekiel was sent to that rebellious House of Israel. [Eze. 3:1]. But the English phrase, I am the LORD, is just one word in Hebrew. It is the name Yehovah. Thus, in context of Ezekiel, it is saying that the House of Israel shall know Yehovah. And in regard to the heathens, they shall know Yehovah, the Holy One in Israel. And when you read the King James Version and see the capitalized word LORD, it is the Hebrew name of Yehovah.
A similar point is made in the book of Exodus, “And the LORD [Yehovah] said to Moses, Rise up early in the morning, and stand before the Pharaoh and say to him … For now I will stretch out my hand, that I may smite you and your people with pestilence, and you shall be cut off from the Earth. And in this very deed for this cause have I raised you up, to show my power in you, and that my name may be declared throughout all the Earth.” [Exd. 9:12, 15, 16]. The apostle Paul makes the same point in the book of Romans 9:17, but in the context of Jacob/Israel and Esau/Edom.
And not only is this point, they shall know Yehovah, made at the end of the seventh head of the beast, but also at the beginning of the beast with the first head, Babylon, although it was written in Aramaic rather than Hebrew. “ … to the intent that the living may know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He will ….” [Dan. 4:17].
When the day comes that “it is done,” no one will be able to claim ignorance, not Israel and not the heathen.
The name Gog is considered to be the name or title of an individual, and Magog the land or the inhabitants of the land. As Matthew Henry in his early 18th century commentary says, it is like saying the Pharaoh and the Egyptians. In the late 19th century JFB Commentary, “Gog--the prince of the land of Magog. The title was probably a common one of the kings of the country, as "Pharaoh" in Egypt. Chakan was the name given by the Northern Asiatics to their king, and is still a title of the Turkish sultan: "Gog" may be a contraction of this. In Ezekiel's time a horde of northern Asiatics, termed by the Greeks "Scythians," and probably including the Moschi and Tibareni, near the Caucasus, here ("Meshech … Tubal") undertook an expedition against Egypt [HERODOTUS, 1.103-106]. These names might be adopted by Ezekiel from the historical fact familiar to men at the time, as ideal titles for the great last anti-Christian [i.e., anti-Israel] confederacy. Magog-- ( Gen 10:2 1Ch 1:5 ). The name of a land belonging to Japheth's [one of Noah’s sons, Gen. 5:32] posterity. Maha, in Sanskrit, means "land." Gog is the ideal political head of the region.” A. R. Fausset, Jamieson, Fausset and Brown Commentary.
We have the parallel to Ezekiel’s prophecy in the prophecy written by John in the book of Revelation. “And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, and cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season." [Rev. 20:2, 3]. This is when the seventh head, Gog emerges.
However, at the end of the sixth head, Babylon the Great, and before the emergence of head seven, Gog and Magog, we have the return of Christ and the first resurrection. “And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that has part in the first resurrection: on such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.” [Rev. 20:1-6].
Here we see that those of the Christian age, who are chosen [Mat. 22:14], will be raised to immortality, reigning on Earth during the Millennium. But when the Millennium has ended, then Gog and Magog shall rise. What this tells us is that during the Millennium, when Christ returns and the nations of Israel are returned to their land, the heathen nations of the world will exist too as they do today. “And it shall come to pass, that everyone that is left of all the nations which came up against Jerusalem, [meaning God’s holy city, and by extension Israel, not Babylon the Great’s desecrated city], shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts [army] and to keep the feast of tabernacles.” [See Zec. 14-18; also chapter seven, The Hijacked Elephant].
“And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison and shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.” [Rev. 20:7-10].
It is after Gog and Magog are fallen that we have the great judgment day, when all mankind who have lived are raised up and judged according to their works. This fulfills the last of the annual high holy days in ancient Israel. [For more details, see chapter eight, The Last Great Day in The Hijacked Elephant; also the Book Excerpt, The Last Great Day].
“And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the Earth and heaven fled away; and there was no place found for them. And I saw a the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.”
“And the sea gave up her dead which were in it [before the Earth and heaven fled away]; and death and hell [Greek hades, meaning the grave, not the place of Dante’s inferno] delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.
“And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” [Rev. 20:11-15].
Those who suffer the second death cease to exist. They have not received the gift of the Spirit of God. Death is the Greek word, thanatos, which refers to the death of the mortal body. They are not tormented eternally by fire and flame as is the common misconception in Christianity due to the statement in Rev. 20:10 concerning Satan, who is an immortal [Greek, athanasia] or a spirit being.
However, for those found written in the book of life, it is the day spoken of by the apostle Paul. “Behold I show you a mystery … For this corruptible must put on incorruption. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality [athanasia], then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death where is your sting? O grave, where is your victory?” [1 Cor. 15:53-55].
This quote in Paul’s epistle is from Isaiah, where it reads, “He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the Earth, for the LORD [Yehovah] has spoken it.” [Isa. 25:8].
At the creation of man, Adam and Eve were placed in the garden in Eden with the tree of life that would have imparted immortality. [See Gen. 2:9, 3:22, 24]. Adam and Eve chose the wrong tree [See the Sneakers article, Bum’s Rush]. They chose the tree that brought death. From that beginning with the chance for immortality, we come full circle to a new Earth. We have a new beginning. Death is swallowed up and we have immortality, the water of life freely given to us.
And once the great judgment day is finished, “ … I saw a new heaven and a new Earth: for the first heaven and the first Earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away their tears from their eyes … And he said to me, It is done. [Hayah, Ginomai, a beginning and end]. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.” [Rev. 21:1-6].
As the apostle John wrote in the last chapter of Revelation, “And he [the angel] showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and the Lamb. In the midst of the street [of the new Jerusalem] of it, and on either side of the river was the tree of life, which bare twelve fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for healing of the nations [of Israel].” [Rev. 22:1, 2]. The continuity of story and characters in the Biblical record is one story, written to the same people from Genesis to Revelation, the twelve nations of Israel.
Postscript To Prophecy
The articles we have posted in the Prophecy section, including this one, and chapters five and six in The Blind Man's Elephant, and The Hijacked Elephant paint the big picture and provide details of our story in the Biblical record from the creation of the heavens and Earth in Genesis to the new heavens and Earth in Revelation. They show us our place in the Biblical record and the prophecies, and the relevancy of our current events. We should understand who Christians are in the Biblical record, the House of Israel, and that the Jews descended Judah are the House of Judah. And we should know that it is our non-identical twin brother, Esau/Edom that is the root of the sixth empire, Babylon the Great now emerging on the world scene. And it all ties back into the birthright and inheritance. Israel has cast it away, while Edom diligently seeks that which it lost. We should understand what lies before us as nations, our punishment by the hand of God, and subsequently on Edom. By understanding the prophetic meaning of the holy days given to our ancestors, we know that there is a future day of atonement for all Israel. It is a reconciliation that will restore both houses of Israel into one nation, never to be divided again. This comes to fruition with ginomai, the end of the Christian age, the beginning of the 1000 years of peace and the first resurrection at Christ's return. [See The Hijacked Elephant for the prophetic relevancy of all the holy days in the plan of God; now a complimentary PDF book at the bottom of the Home page].
The Christian age is, beginning in the first century, a prelude to the first resurrection, when Christ harvests his first-fruits to immortality in the spirit. It includes all those called and chosen in the body of Christ [Rom. 12:3-8], who have been baptized and received the Spirit of God, that down payment of what we are to be. For those chosen, the second death has no power. As the apostle John told the ekklesia, "Behold what manner of love our Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knows us not, because it knew him not. Beloved, now we are the sons of God, and it does not appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him [see 1 Cor. 15:52]; for we shall see him as he is. And every man that has this hope in him purifies himself, even as he [our Lord] is pure." [1 John 3:1-3].
While the prophecies tell us what has been determined shall come to pass for the nations of Israel, as individuals, the ekklesia, we still have the opportunity to purify ourselves, to be counted worthy to escape this evil that is about to come upon our world. "Watch therefore, and pray always, that you may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man." [Luke 21:36]. But, the mere fact of knowing this, of understanding the prophecies is all vanity when we are missing one key ingredient. As the apostle Paul pointed out to the ekkelsia in Corinth, "And though I have the gift of prophecy and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge, and though I have all faith [pistis, a conviction of the truth] that so I could move mountains, and not have love, I am nothing." [1 Cor. 13:2].
The Greek word love used here is agape. It is a benevolence, an affection and good will that is Christian love. This is the love we must have in all that we do as Paul said. And if we stood outside a church at Easter, and asked those exiting, "Do you have Christian agape?" more than likely each person would answer in the affirmative. As a Christian, however, our agape must start with an unwavering love the truth of the word of God. Otherwise, we love a falsehood, a deceit as is the case with the Babylonian goddess Easter, which first century Christians did not celebrate. [See the Feature article, Easter, Babylon And The Antichrist].
And no matter how sincere our love is for a lie, it cannot be a Christian love because our Redeemer Jesus Christ is the Lord God of truth. [Psa. 31:5]. When we love God, we love the truth and vice versa. When we love the lie, our actions show we love the author of it. [John 8:44]. "For this lawlessness is already at work secretly, and it will remain secret until the one [our Lord] who is holding it back steps out of the way. Then the man of lawlessness will be revealed [Antichrist, Babylon the Great], but the Lord Jesus will kill him with the breath of his mouth and destroy him by the splendor of his coming. This man will come to do the work of Satan with counterfeit power and signs and miracles. He will use every kind of evil deception to fool those on their way to destruction, because they refuse to love and accept the truth that would save them. So God will cause them to be greatly deceived, and they will believe these lies. Then they will be condemned for enjoying evil rather than believing the truth." [2 Ths. 2:7-12, NLT].
Therefore, our knowing prophecy is nothing of itself. It will not save us. We need a Christian love of the truth. As John noted, " ... every man that has this hope [of eternal life as the sons of God] in him purifies himself ...." When purifying gold by fire [see Rev. 3:18], borax and soda ash are used to separate the gold from inferior metals and dross. The love of the truth of the word of God acts as our borax and soda ash, the catalyst that causes us to separate the truth from the deceits and lies, the impurities in our lives, allowing us to live a true Christian life. If we wish to push against the way our troubled world is headed, it begins within each of us as individuals. "Jesus said to him, You shall love the Lord your God [of truth] with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it, You shall love your neighbour as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." [Mat. 22:37-40]. Neither of these two great commandments mention knowledge of prophecy.
The Wicked one is restrained for now, but as Christ said, when the fig tree puts forth its leaves, summer is near. The prophecies have shown us what to look for leading up to the days of the sixth beast and the Antichrist. But without love, beginning with the love of the truth of the word of God, we are nothing before God. Knowledge of prophecy is nothing if we don't use this knowledge to put into daily practice the love of the truth. Lip service is a false savior. [See the Sneakers article, We Don't Believe You].
Many of our Feature articles deal with the non-prophectic aspects of the truth2 as do the articles in other sections including Sneakers as well as the chapters in the Elephant book trilogy. These chapters and articles are not as popular as the prophecy articles, which arouse our curiosity. But the prophecy articles do not require any effort on our part to grow in Godly love and truth in our lives, and thus, purify ourselves. More important, we must have a curiosity for living the truth in love. The other chapters and articles are far more valuable in terms of garnering the love of the truth that we might be saved. Understanding prophecies can be useful as a prod, motivating us in seeking the truth so we will grow in the fruits of the Spirit that bring us closer to God. [See Gal. 5:22-26; Eph. 5:8-14]. "... but, speaking the truth in love, we grow and increase becoming more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the ekklesia ...." [Eph. 4:15]. With a love of the truth, what we read in the Biblical record, the word of God, must be transferred into action in our daily lives for it to be of any value. [Read 2 Ths. 1].
Our square one is the love of the truth of the word of God. Putting the love of the truth into practice daily in our lives, we engender spiritual growth. And spiritual growth leads us to a true love of God, the brethren, and our fellow man, by purging the works of the flesh. And it's putting to work the love of the truth in our lives that we bear fruit as the ekklesia. Paul wrote to the Thessalonians about love for the word of God, "As you know how we exhorted and comforted and charged every one of you, as a father does his children, that you would walk worthy of God, who has called you to his kingdom [basileia, royal power, kingship] and glory. For this cause also we thank God without ceasing, because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you received it not as the word of men, but as it is, in truth the word of God, which effectively works [Greek, energeo] also in you that believe." [Greek, pisteuo, verb, belief, confidence in that which is true, from the root, pistis. 1 Ths. 2:11-13].
As Paul continued to the ekklesia in Thessalonica, "But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth, to which He called you by our gospel, for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ." [2 Ths. 2:13, 14]. Therefore, it is incumbent on us as members of the body of Christ to purify ourselves with the love of the truth, heeding the advice the apostle John gave the ekklesia near the end of the first century, "My little children, let us not love with words or talk, but in our actions and in truth." [1 John 3:18]. Therefore, brethren, is not the risk of loving the truth worth the promise of the word of God?
1 These designations are not hard and fast on an individual level, but are meant to delineate general national identities.
2 A few non-prophetical articles that are helpful in laying the Biblical foundation of the truth are: The Tale of Two Covenants, We're Abraham's Seed and Heirs, What Exactly Is The Gospel? and the Sneakers article, We Don't Believe You.
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“And he said to me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.”
As this event occurs at least 1000 years in our future, we’ve not written about the seventh and final head of this great image with seven heads and ten horns. But as we have articles regarding the sixth head, touching on the seventh head is a logical step to fill in the details of the big picture.
Daniel’s image had a head of gold and its feet were of iron and clay. This is a different description than the beast with seven heads and ten horns, although the image in Daniel is part of this seven-headed beast. The “five are fallen” in Revelation 17 is a reference to Daniel’s great image. The head of fine gold, Babylon was followed by the Persian’s arms of silver, the Greek’s belly and thighs of brass, the Roman’s legs of iron, and the Ottoman’s feet part of iron and clay. [Dan. 2:31, 32; see chapter five, The Blind Man’s Elephant for details, now a complimentary PDF on our Home page]. Babylon the Great of Revelation is head number six. Head seven, the last head of the beast is Gog and Magog. Start to finish, these seven heads from Babylon to Gog and Magog cover a period of about 3700 years of history in the Biblical record.
One key point needs to be made here in reference to Gog and Magog. It is important to keep in mind that the seventh head, Gog and Magog, emerges after the return of Christ and the completion of the Millennium, not before. Some historians and scholars, when examining the prophecies of Daniel, Ezekiel and Revelation, have confused the description of Gog, the seventh head, with the sixth head, the emerging empire of Edom, when describing the Khazar/Jews/Zionists, as "... tall, with red-hair, ruddy-faced and blue-eyes ..." In the Biblical record, Esau/Edom is described as being red, rough, hairy all over like a garment. [See Gen. 25:25-27, Esau was brother to Jacob/Israel; also the Feature articles The Little Horn: First Century Antichrist, Isaiah 63: Big Brother, and Is the US And (UK) In End-times Bible Prophecy?]. When the Millennium or the one thousand years of peace has ended, and after Gog's “little season” or time has passed, God’s plan, the kosmos in Greek, and misunderstood famously as "mankind" or "the inhabited planet" in John 3:16, will have been completed. Hence, it is done. [See the Feature article, Mirror, Mirror On The Wall].
“It is done” in Greek is one word, ginomai. It means to come into existence, a beginning, as we read above with the new heaven and Earth. But it also means to be finished as with our current heavens and Earth. In Hebrew, it is one word as well, hayah, and has the same meaning. When God said to Moses, I AM that I AM [Exd. 3:14], I AM is the word hayah. As we’ll read later, this is the same as God saying, I AM, Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. The plan of God is full circle.
As we read in both Ezekiel and in Revelation, “it is done” refers to the same “it is finished” event. It is the end of these heavens and Earth including the remembrance of all the renowned men and events of mankind’s history, the wars, the times of peace, the lofty monuments, the mighty cities, and empires crumbled into the dust of the earth, all that has taken place from the time of creation in Genesis to the end of the Millennium and the seventh head of the beast. Metaphorically, it is the end of the final act of the play on this mortal stage we call “Life.” And when it is done, “God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain, for the former things are passed away.” [Rev. 21:4].
As we noted, “It is done” also marks a grand new beginning. A new heaven and Earth. “And I saw a new heaven and a new Earth: for the first heaven and the first Earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven ….” [Rev. 21:1, 2; see the Sneakers article, No More Oceans]. We can read more about this in Revelation chapters 21 and 22.
Even our 24 hour days have this pattern of ginomai, it is done. A day ends at sunset and a new one begins. The creation in Genesis began in darkness, and light came out of the darkness. So it is that Biblical days begin with darkness, and at dawn, light comes out of the darkness. In one sense, this is a daily metaphor for mankind coming out of the darkness of this world and into the light of the kingdom of God. [1 John 1:5]. And so are, it appears, days beginning and ending in the dark at midnight for our world today.
But for this article, we are looking at the events that lead up to “It is done.” It started with the great image, initially described by Daniel, and later by John in Revelation as the beast with seven heads and ten horns. Daniel, as noted above, focuses on the first five of these heads as described in Daniel chapter two. John, on the other hand, focuses on end-time events with heads six and seven. The sixth head of the beast is Edom. [See the Feature articles, Isaiah 63: Big Brother and Obadiah And The Prophetic Parable Of The Tares; also the Sneakers article, One World Peace And Security]. The seventh head is Gog and Magog. These last two heads of the beast are separated by the Millennium, the thousand years of rest and peace, which is depicted by the weekly sabbath day. [See 2 Pet. 3:8; also chapter seven, The Hijacked Elephant]. It is the kingdom of heaven on Earth, ruled over by Christ at the end of Edom’s sixth head and the seventh seal and seven trumpets. [See Rev. 8].
As we read in Revelation, “And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, and cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.” [Rev. 20:1-3].
Before we go further, it might be useful to recap our Biblical big picture. Most of us should be familiar with Genesis, “In the beginning ….” If not, it’s probably good to read it again to refresh one’s memory. The majority of the book of Genesis is about Abraham and his descendants, Isaac and Israel. In fact, the last twenty chapters center on the life of Israel’s son Joseph, father of the kingly line of the House of Israel, which today is Ephraim, Great Britain, and Manasseh, the US. [See Gen. 48].
Israel had 12 sons that over time grew into nations. The nations of Israel had three kings, Saul, descended from Benjamin, David and Solomon, descended from Judah, before all the nations of Israel were split into two houses. These are the House of Judah and the House of Israel. The House of Judah was comprised of Israel’s son Judah and his descendants. Ten other sons of Israel comprised the House of Israel, whose first king was Jeroboam, a descendant of Ephraim. [See 1 Kng. 11:31]. The descendants of Levi were the priesthood to both houses, which began with Moses and Aaron. [c]. All Israel has not been united since that time and won’t be again until Christ’s return. [See Eze. 37:15-28].
The nations of the House of Israel were divorced from God and taken captive by the Assyrians beginning in 732 BCE. [See the Feature article, Damascus A Heap Of Ruins]. They remained in this condition until the first century when Christ redeemed our ancestors. [Mat. 15:24, Luke 1:68; also see the Feature article, What Exactly Is The Gospel?].
The House of Judah was taken captive by the Babylonians about 605 BCE. Babylon was the first head the image of the beast as mentioned earlier in Daniel chapter two. Daniel also described the four empires of the image that followed Babylon in consecutive order over a period of 2500 years or so. [For the exact timing of these five kingdoms and relevant prophecies, see chapter five, The Blind Man’s Elephant].
The House of Judah remained captives to the Persian Empire, the “arms of silver” of the great image, which is head number two of the beast in Revelation, until Cyrus the Great’s vision from God. He released those of Judah, after seventy years of captivity, to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple. This second temple never had the Ark of the Covenant. [See Rev. 11:19]. Alexander’s Greek Empire supplanted the Persians. And the Romans, who were the fourth head of the seven-headed beast, supplanted the Greeks. During the rise of the Roman Empire, Edom gained dominion over the House of Judah, and it remains so today. [Dan. 7:20-22; see the Feature article, The Little Horn: First Century Antichrist].
It was during the fourth head of the beast that Christ redeemed the House of Israel in the first century. The western “leg of iron” of the Roman Empire, according to historians, ended in 476 CE when Romulus Augustus was deposed. The territory of the western leg eventually became much of the land comprising many of the ten nations of Israel today as delineated in Genesis 49. [See the prophecy in Dan. 7:23, 24].
The Ottoman’s supplanted the Byzantine Empire, the eastern Roman Empire, in 1453 CE in Constantinople. The Ottomans were the fifth head of the beast, the one with the ten toes prophecy in Daniel, [again, see chapter five, The Blind Man’s Elephant for details]. They remained in power until 1918. This was the year Daniel’s prophecy of the image came to an end exactly as prophesied in 602 BCE. The great image, the first five heads of the beast, was put to an end by the sons of Joseph, Ephraim, England and by Manasseh, the US. [See the Feature article, Is The US (And UK) In End-times Bible Prophecy? also Rev. 17:10]. Out of what became British [House of Israel] Palestine, the House of Judah formed the nation-state of Israel. [See the Feature article, Ten Horns, Ten Nations]. There are ten sons of Israel forming nations today according to Israel's prophecy concerning his sons in the last days.
Since 1918 until present day, the sixth head of the beast, Edom, has not officially made its appearance. [See the Feature article, Isaiah 63: Big Brother for details]. When the sixth head Babylon the Great does emerge, it will last for 42 months until just prior to Christ’s return. Satan will be put away and Christ will make a new covenant with the Houses of Judah and Israel, joining them again as one nation. The remnant left over from the “Apocalypse,” the 144,000 of the twelve nations of Israel [Rev. 7] will be gathered from around the world to inhabit the land of Israel and rebuild the cities. The world will know peace for 1000 years.
At the end of the 1000 years, Satan is loosed for a little time. This is when the seventh and final head of the beast will emerge. When the final head of the beast, Gog and Magog, is destroyed, then these heavens and Earth shall pass away. This will be the time of the great resurrection, Judgment Day as it is referred to in Christianity. Then there will be a new heaven and Earth, and God shall dwell on that Earth. ”And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.” [Rev. 21:3; see the Feature articles, Heaven Can Wait and Heaven Can Wait II].
Our story comes full circle from the original heavens and Earth in Genesis, to their destruction, to the new heavens and Earth in Revelation. As Isaiah noted, “For behold I [the LORD] create new heavens and a new Earth; and the former shall not be remembered, nor come to mind.” [Isa. 65:17; see the Feature article, The Good News Colour Revolution].
While the book of Daniel, chapter 2 concerns itself with the first five heads of the beast, the great image, it isn’t until the book of Revelation that we have the first mention of seven heads altogether. “And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon [Satan, who gives his power to these heads, Rev. 13:2], having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.” [Rev. 12:3]. “And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns [Greek, keras], and upon his ten horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the names of blasphemy.” [Rev. 13:1]. The crowns represent kings or rulers meaning they are or were kingdoms.
The seven heads are those named above and the ten horns are the ten nations of Israel mentioned in Genesis 49. These ten horns have crowns meaning they are ten kingdoms or nations of Israel today. For example, Great Britain and the US are the sons of Joseph in chapter 49. The Germanic people are descendants of Benjamin. Joseph and Benjamin have the same mother, Israel’s wife Rachel. Reuben is France by Israel’s wife Leah.1
The heads of the beast have the name of blasphemy [Greek, blasphemia, slander, impious and reproachful speech] “ … speaking marvelous things against the God of gods ….” [Dan. 11:36]. We read of the seven heads and ten horns in Revelation 17 too. In verse 7 it reads, “I will tell you the mystery of the woman and the beast that carries her which has seven heads and ten horns.” The woman here is the city of Jerusalem. From the time of the first beast Babylon when Judah was taken captive, through the Ottomans, the fifth head, Jerusalem, despite a temporary victory during the Crusades, did not return to the control of Israel. As we mentioned, by the end of WW1, Jerusalem came under the auspices of the British via the League of Nations, and the surrounding region was known as the British Mandate for Palestine. As mentioned in the Feature article, Obadiah And The Prophetic Parable Of The Tares, the sixth head will occupy Jerusalem and the land of Israel. And as we’ll read, the seventh head will surround Jerusalem at the end of the Millennium with its armies, but will be destroyed by God.
It says in the prophecy of Ezekiel, “And you [Gog and Magog] shall say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages [Israel]; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates, to take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn your 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.
“Therefore, son of man, [meaning Ezekiel] prophesy and say unto Gog, Thus says the Lord GOD; in that day when my people of Israel dwell safely, shall you not know it? And you shall come from your place out of the north parts, you, and many people with you, all of them riding upon horses, a great company, and a mighty army: and you shall come up against my people of Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days [meaning just prior to the end of these heavens and Earth here], and I will bring you against my land, that the heathen may know me, when I shall be sanctified in you, O Gog, before their eyes.
“And it shall come to pass at the same time when Gog shall come against the land of Israel, says the Lord GOD, that my fury shall come up in my face. For in my jealousy in the fire of my wrath have I spoken, Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel; 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. [This is a different earthquake than that which precludes the end of the sixth head in Rev. 6].
“And I will call for a sword against him throughout all my mountains, says the Lord GOD: every man's sword shall be against his brother. 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. 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.” [See Eze. 38:11-23].
The fate of Gog and Magog continues in Ezekiel chapter 39. “Therefore, you son of man, prophesy against Gog, and say, Thus says the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against you, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal: and I will turn you back, and leave but the sixth part of you, and will cause you to come up from the north parts, and will bring you upon the mountains of Israel: and I will smite your bow out of your left hand, and will cause your arrows to fall out of your right hand. You shall fall upon the mountains of Israel, you, and all your bands, and the people that are with you: I will give you to the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured. [Again, this is a different reference than Rev. 19, which precedes the return of Christ].
“You shall fall upon the open field: for I have spoken, says the Lord GOD. 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. 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. Behold, it is come, and it is done [hayah], says the Lord GOD; this is the day whereof I have spoken.” [Eze 39:1-8].
The other two references to the day whereof our LORD has spoken are in Revelation. “And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done [ginomai].” The other is, “And he said to me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.” [Rev. 16:17, 21:6].
The statement, “the heathen shall know that I am the LORD” or that “they shall know that I am the LORD” occurs about sixty times in the book of Ezekiel. Ezekiel was sent to that rebellious House of Israel. [Eze. 3:1]. But the English phrase, I am the LORD, is just one word in Hebrew. It is the name Yehovah. Thus, in context of Ezekiel, it is saying that the House of Israel shall know Yehovah. And in regard to the heathens, they shall know Yehovah, the Holy One in Israel. And when you read the King James Version and see the capitalized word LORD, it is the Hebrew name of Yehovah.
A similar point is made in the book of Exodus, “And the LORD [Yehovah] said to Moses, Rise up early in the morning, and stand before the Pharaoh and say to him … For now I will stretch out my hand, that I may smite you and your people with pestilence, and you shall be cut off from the Earth. And in this very deed for this cause have I raised you up, to show my power in you, and that my name may be declared throughout all the Earth.” [Exd. 9:12, 15, 16]. The apostle Paul makes the same point in the book of Romans 9:17, but in the context of Jacob/Israel and Esau/Edom.
And not only is this point, they shall know Yehovah, made at the end of the seventh head of the beast, but also at the beginning of the beast with the first head, Babylon, although it was written in Aramaic rather than Hebrew. “ … to the intent that the living may know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He will ….” [Dan. 4:17].
When the day comes that “it is done,” no one will be able to claim ignorance, not Israel and not the heathen.
The name Gog is considered to be the name or title of an individual, and Magog the land or the inhabitants of the land. As Matthew Henry in his early 18th century commentary says, it is like saying the Pharaoh and the Egyptians. In the late 19th century JFB Commentary, “Gog--the prince of the land of Magog. The title was probably a common one of the kings of the country, as "Pharaoh" in Egypt. Chakan was the name given by the Northern Asiatics to their king, and is still a title of the Turkish sultan: "Gog" may be a contraction of this. In Ezekiel's time a horde of northern Asiatics, termed by the Greeks "Scythians," and probably including the Moschi and Tibareni, near the Caucasus, here ("Meshech … Tubal") undertook an expedition against Egypt [HERODOTUS, 1.103-106]. These names might be adopted by Ezekiel from the historical fact familiar to men at the time, as ideal titles for the great last anti-Christian [i.e., anti-Israel] confederacy. Magog-- ( Gen 10:2 1Ch 1:5 ). The name of a land belonging to Japheth's [one of Noah’s sons, Gen. 5:32] posterity. Maha, in Sanskrit, means "land." Gog is the ideal political head of the region.” A. R. Fausset, Jamieson, Fausset and Brown Commentary.
We have the parallel to Ezekiel’s prophecy in the prophecy written by John in the book of Revelation. “And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, and cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season." [Rev. 20:2, 3]. This is when the seventh head, Gog emerges.
However, at the end of the sixth head, Babylon the Great, and before the emergence of head seven, Gog and Magog, we have the return of Christ and the first resurrection. “And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that has part in the first resurrection: on such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.” [Rev. 20:1-6].
Here we see that those of the Christian age, who are chosen [Mat. 22:14], will be raised to immortality, reigning on Earth during the Millennium. But when the Millennium has ended, then Gog and Magog shall rise. What this tells us is that during the Millennium, when Christ returns and the nations of Israel are returned to their land, the heathen nations of the world will exist too as they do today. “And it shall come to pass, that everyone that is left of all the nations which came up against Jerusalem, [meaning God’s holy city, and by extension Israel, not Babylon the Great’s desecrated city], shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts [army] and to keep the feast of tabernacles.” [See Zec. 14-18; also chapter seven, The Hijacked Elephant].
“And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison and shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.” [Rev. 20:7-10].
It is after Gog and Magog are fallen that we have the great judgment day, when all mankind who have lived are raised up and judged according to their works. This fulfills the last of the annual high holy days in ancient Israel. [For more details, see chapter eight, The Last Great Day in The Hijacked Elephant; also the Book Excerpt, The Last Great Day].
“And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the Earth and heaven fled away; and there was no place found for them. And I saw a the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.”
“And the sea gave up her dead which were in it [before the Earth and heaven fled away]; and death and hell [Greek hades, meaning the grave, not the place of Dante’s inferno] delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.
“And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” [Rev. 20:11-15].
Those who suffer the second death cease to exist. They have not received the gift of the Spirit of God. Death is the Greek word, thanatos, which refers to the death of the mortal body. They are not tormented eternally by fire and flame as is the common misconception in Christianity due to the statement in Rev. 20:10 concerning Satan, who is an immortal [Greek, athanasia] or a spirit being.
However, for those found written in the book of life, it is the day spoken of by the apostle Paul. “Behold I show you a mystery … For this corruptible must put on incorruption. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality [athanasia], then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death where is your sting? O grave, where is your victory?” [1 Cor. 15:53-55].
This quote in Paul’s epistle is from Isaiah, where it reads, “He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the Earth, for the LORD [Yehovah] has spoken it.” [Isa. 25:8].
At the creation of man, Adam and Eve were placed in the garden in Eden with the tree of life that would have imparted immortality. [See Gen. 2:9, 3:22, 24]. Adam and Eve chose the wrong tree [See the Sneakers article, Bum’s Rush]. They chose the tree that brought death. From that beginning with the chance for immortality, we come full circle to a new Earth. We have a new beginning. Death is swallowed up and we have immortality, the water of life freely given to us.
And once the great judgment day is finished, “ … I saw a new heaven and a new Earth: for the first heaven and the first Earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away their tears from their eyes … And he said to me, It is done. [Hayah, Ginomai, a beginning and end]. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.” [Rev. 21:1-6].
As the apostle John wrote in the last chapter of Revelation, “And he [the angel] showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and the Lamb. In the midst of the street [of the new Jerusalem] of it, and on either side of the river was the tree of life, which bare twelve fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for healing of the nations [of Israel].” [Rev. 22:1, 2]. The continuity of story and characters in the Biblical record is one story, written to the same people from Genesis to Revelation, the twelve nations of Israel.
Postscript To Prophecy
The articles we have posted in the Prophecy section, including this one, and chapters five and six in The Blind Man's Elephant, and The Hijacked Elephant paint the big picture and provide details of our story in the Biblical record from the creation of the heavens and Earth in Genesis to the new heavens and Earth in Revelation. They show us our place in the Biblical record and the prophecies, and the relevancy of our current events. We should understand who Christians are in the Biblical record, the House of Israel, and that the Jews descended Judah are the House of Judah. And we should know that it is our non-identical twin brother, Esau/Edom that is the root of the sixth empire, Babylon the Great now emerging on the world scene. And it all ties back into the birthright and inheritance. Israel has cast it away, while Edom diligently seeks that which it lost. We should understand what lies before us as nations, our punishment by the hand of God, and subsequently on Edom. By understanding the prophetic meaning of the holy days given to our ancestors, we know that there is a future day of atonement for all Israel. It is a reconciliation that will restore both houses of Israel into one nation, never to be divided again. This comes to fruition with ginomai, the end of the Christian age, the beginning of the 1000 years of peace and the first resurrection at Christ's return. [See The Hijacked Elephant for the prophetic relevancy of all the holy days in the plan of God; now a complimentary PDF book at the bottom of the Home page].
The Christian age is, beginning in the first century, a prelude to the first resurrection, when Christ harvests his first-fruits to immortality in the spirit. It includes all those called and chosen in the body of Christ [Rom. 12:3-8], who have been baptized and received the Spirit of God, that down payment of what we are to be. For those chosen, the second death has no power. As the apostle John told the ekklesia, "Behold what manner of love our Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knows us not, because it knew him not. Beloved, now we are the sons of God, and it does not appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him [see 1 Cor. 15:52]; for we shall see him as he is. And every man that has this hope in him purifies himself, even as he [our Lord] is pure." [1 John 3:1-3].
While the prophecies tell us what has been determined shall come to pass for the nations of Israel, as individuals, the ekklesia, we still have the opportunity to purify ourselves, to be counted worthy to escape this evil that is about to come upon our world. "Watch therefore, and pray always, that you may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man." [Luke 21:36]. But, the mere fact of knowing this, of understanding the prophecies is all vanity when we are missing one key ingredient. As the apostle Paul pointed out to the ekkelsia in Corinth, "And though I have the gift of prophecy and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge, and though I have all faith [pistis, a conviction of the truth] that so I could move mountains, and not have love, I am nothing." [1 Cor. 13:2].
The Greek word love used here is agape. It is a benevolence, an affection and good will that is Christian love. This is the love we must have in all that we do as Paul said. And if we stood outside a church at Easter, and asked those exiting, "Do you have Christian agape?" more than likely each person would answer in the affirmative. As a Christian, however, our agape must start with an unwavering love the truth of the word of God. Otherwise, we love a falsehood, a deceit as is the case with the Babylonian goddess Easter, which first century Christians did not celebrate. [See the Feature article, Easter, Babylon And The Antichrist].
And no matter how sincere our love is for a lie, it cannot be a Christian love because our Redeemer Jesus Christ is the Lord God of truth. [Psa. 31:5]. When we love God, we love the truth and vice versa. When we love the lie, our actions show we love the author of it. [John 8:44]. "For this lawlessness is already at work secretly, and it will remain secret until the one [our Lord] who is holding it back steps out of the way. Then the man of lawlessness will be revealed [Antichrist, Babylon the Great], but the Lord Jesus will kill him with the breath of his mouth and destroy him by the splendor of his coming. This man will come to do the work of Satan with counterfeit power and signs and miracles. He will use every kind of evil deception to fool those on their way to destruction, because they refuse to love and accept the truth that would save them. So God will cause them to be greatly deceived, and they will believe these lies. Then they will be condemned for enjoying evil rather than believing the truth." [2 Ths. 2:7-12, NLT].
Therefore, our knowing prophecy is nothing of itself. It will not save us. We need a Christian love of the truth. As John noted, " ... every man that has this hope [of eternal life as the sons of God] in him purifies himself ...." When purifying gold by fire [see Rev. 3:18], borax and soda ash are used to separate the gold from inferior metals and dross. The love of the truth of the word of God acts as our borax and soda ash, the catalyst that causes us to separate the truth from the deceits and lies, the impurities in our lives, allowing us to live a true Christian life. If we wish to push against the way our troubled world is headed, it begins within each of us as individuals. "Jesus said to him, You shall love the Lord your God [of truth] with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it, You shall love your neighbour as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." [Mat. 22:37-40]. Neither of these two great commandments mention knowledge of prophecy.
The Wicked one is restrained for now, but as Christ said, when the fig tree puts forth its leaves, summer is near. The prophecies have shown us what to look for leading up to the days of the sixth beast and the Antichrist. But without love, beginning with the love of the truth of the word of God, we are nothing before God. Knowledge of prophecy is nothing if we don't use this knowledge to put into daily practice the love of the truth. Lip service is a false savior. [See the Sneakers article, We Don't Believe You].
Many of our Feature articles deal with the non-prophectic aspects of the truth2 as do the articles in other sections including Sneakers as well as the chapters in the Elephant book trilogy. These chapters and articles are not as popular as the prophecy articles, which arouse our curiosity. But the prophecy articles do not require any effort on our part to grow in Godly love and truth in our lives, and thus, purify ourselves. More important, we must have a curiosity for living the truth in love. The other chapters and articles are far more valuable in terms of garnering the love of the truth that we might be saved. Understanding prophecies can be useful as a prod, motivating us in seeking the truth so we will grow in the fruits of the Spirit that bring us closer to God. [See Gal. 5:22-26; Eph. 5:8-14]. "... but, speaking the truth in love, we grow and increase becoming more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the ekklesia ...." [Eph. 4:15]. With a love of the truth, what we read in the Biblical record, the word of God, must be transferred into action in our daily lives for it to be of any value. [Read 2 Ths. 1].
Our square one is the love of the truth of the word of God. Putting the love of the truth into practice daily in our lives, we engender spiritual growth. And spiritual growth leads us to a true love of God, the brethren, and our fellow man, by purging the works of the flesh. And it's putting to work the love of the truth in our lives that we bear fruit as the ekklesia. Paul wrote to the Thessalonians about love for the word of God, "As you know how we exhorted and comforted and charged every one of you, as a father does his children, that you would walk worthy of God, who has called you to his kingdom [basileia, royal power, kingship] and glory. For this cause also we thank God without ceasing, because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you received it not as the word of men, but as it is, in truth the word of God, which effectively works [Greek, energeo] also in you that believe." [Greek, pisteuo, verb, belief, confidence in that which is true, from the root, pistis. 1 Ths. 2:11-13].
As Paul continued to the ekklesia in Thessalonica, "But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth, to which He called you by our gospel, for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ." [2 Ths. 2:13, 14]. Therefore, it is incumbent on us as members of the body of Christ to purify ourselves with the love of the truth, heeding the advice the apostle John gave the ekklesia near the end of the first century, "My little children, let us not love with words or talk, but in our actions and in truth." [1 John 3:18]. Therefore, brethren, is not the risk of loving the truth worth the promise of the word of God?
1 These designations are not hard and fast on an individual level, but are meant to delineate general national identities.
2 A few non-prophetical articles that are helpful in laying the Biblical foundation of the truth are: The Tale of Two Covenants, We're Abraham's Seed and Heirs, What Exactly Is The Gospel? and the Sneakers article, We Don't Believe You.
NLT- Holy Bible, New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
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“And he said to me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.”