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The seven/eight Nations of Prophecy


Rev 17:10-11
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.
And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.

As we begin our study of the "nations of prophecy," we need to keep in mind that none of the nations before the flood or after the flood prior to Israel's inception are in this list. Only the nations which play a major role in the existence of Israel, the seed of Abraham, are included in these nations. In fact, the list is even more exclusive: i.e., it only includes the nations key to her existence while the Word of God is in her charge.

I

~The first of the five powers that had already fallen in John's day was Egypt. Egypt was blessed of God because of the Hebrew lad Joseph and because it had blessed and sustained Abraham's seed via Isaac through an awful time of drought (See Genesis 30-Exodus1) . However, succeeding generations of Egyptians (and Hebrews) forgot God's blessings; and the Hebrews became the objects of hatred and cruelty. God called Moses to deliver His chosen people from that bondage and He personally brought judgment upon the Egyptians (See Exodus chapters 1-14.).

II

~The second of the five powers that had already fallen in John's day was Israel itself. The nation of Israel became great under King David and during the reign of David's son Solomon, all of its neighboring kingdoms gave homage to this nation "blessed of God." However, under succeeding kings, the Hebrews soon forgot their God Who had made them great and they went whoring after the false gods of the nations around them. The Hebrews began bickering and fighting among themselves and eventually the nation was divided into two parts: the ten tribes of the northern part called themselves Israel and the two tribes of the south were known as Judah. After their division Judah had 8 kings out of a total of 20 that feared God and tried to lead their nation accordingly, but all of the kings of the ten northern tribes walked in the ways of unrighteousness. Consequently, the 10 tribes of Israel were taken captive by Assyria around 720 BC. However, prophetically speaking, the Hebrew nation was not considered to be defunct until the two tribes of Judah were taken captive by the Babylonian Empire around 590 BC, and this after the rule of 4 succeeding kings that were very evil.

~The third of the five powers that that had already fallen in John's day was the Babylonian Empire. The Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar was God's tool of judgment on backsliding Judah; however, Nebuchadnezzar was a just man and God blessed him because he was considerate of Abraham's offspring. The following passages,taken from dreams and visions in the book of Daniel, deal with King Nebuchadnezzar and his son Belshazzar.

 

Dan 2:30-38
30... this secret is not revealed to me [Daniel] for [any] wisdom that I have more than any living, but for [their] sakes [i.e., the king's magicians who were to be killed because they couldn’t reveal the dream and its interpretation] that shall make known the interpretation to the king, and that thou mightest know the thoughts of thy heart.

31 Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness [was] excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof [was] terrible.

32 This image's head [was] of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass,

33 His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay.

34 Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet [that were] of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces.

35 Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.

36 This [is] the dream; and we will tell the interpretation thereof before the king.

37 Thou, O king, [art] a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory.

38 And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath he given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou [art] this head of gold...

  

In the 5th chapter of Daniel, we read were Belshazzar, the king of Babylon after his father Nebuchadnezzar, insulted the God of the Hebrews by taking the vessels dedicated for use in the their temple and drinking from them at a drunken party. While this sacrilege was being committed, the fingers of a man's hand appeared out of nowhere and wrote a message on the wall. Belshazzar was very disturbed and sent for his magicians to interpret the message. They could not and the king was very disturbed to say the least. When the queen learned of his plight, she suggested that he call Daniel in to give him the interpretation. The king sent for Daniel and asked him to interpret the writing.

Let's pick up on Daniel's discourse beginning at Daniel 5:22.

22 And thou his son, O Belshazzar, hast not humbled thine heart, though thou knewest all this; [i.e., Daniel's interpretation of his father's dream and their fulfillment]
23 But hast lifted up thyself against the Lord of heaven; and they have brought the vessels of his house before thee, and thou, and thy lords, thy wives, and thy concubines, have drunk wine in them; and thou hast praised the gods of silver, and gold, of brass, iron, wood, and stone, which see not, nor hear, nor know: and the God in whose hand thy breath [is], and whose [are] all thy ways, hast
thou not glorified:
24 Then was the part of the hand sent from him; and this writing was written.
25 And this [is] the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.
26 This [is] the interpretation of the thing: MENE; God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it.
27 TEKEL; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting.
28 PERES; Thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Although King Nebuchadnezzar feared and worshipped God, those who followed him didn't, and because of their evil ways, God brought down the Babylonian Empire. Sadly, for the most part, the Hebrew children adopted their ways. However, there was a remnant of Abraham's seed zealous of God's ways and God heard them and touched the heart of Cyrus, the conquering king of Persia. We read of this in Ezra 1:1-2.

Ezra 1
1 Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying,
2 Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, The LORD God of heaven hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth; and he hath charged me to build him an house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. (cf. II Chr. 36:22-23; Isa. 44:28; Isa 45:1)

IV

~The fourth of the five powers that that had already fallen in John's day was the Median-Persian Empire. The Median-Persian reign was prophesied in Daniel's book.

Dan 8:
1 In the third year of the reign of king Belshazzar a vision appeared unto me, [even unto] me Daniel, after that which appeared unto me at the first.

2 And I saw in a vision; and it came to pass, when I saw, that I [was] at Shushan [in] the palace, which [is] in the province of Elam; and I saw in a vision, and I was by the river of Ulai.

3 Then I lifted up mine eyes, and saw, and, behold, there stood before the river a ram which had [two] horns: and the [two] horns [were] high; but one [was] higher than the other, and the higher came up last.

4 I saw the ram pushing westward, and northward, and southward; so that no beasts might stand before him, neither [was there any] that could deliver out of his hand; but he did according to his will, and became great.

5 And as I was considering, behold, an he goat came from the west on the face of the whole earth, and touched not the ground: and the goat [had] a notable horn between his eyes.

6 And he came to the ram that had [two] horns, which I had seen standing before the river, and ran unto him in the fury of his power.

7 And I saw him come close unto the ram, and he was moved with choler against him, and smote the ram, and brake his two horns: and there was no power in the ram to stand before him, but he cast him down to the ground, and stamped upon him: and there was none that could deliver the ram out of his hand.

8 Therefore the he goat waxed very great: and when he was strong, the great horn was broken; and for it came up four notable ones toward the four winds of heaven...

...20 The ram which thou sawest having [two] horns [are] the kings of Media and Persia.

Although the Medo-Persian Empire was raised by God and its first king was zealous for the LORD, the rulers who followed him rejected God and His ways. Jesus Himself in one of His theophanies (His Old Testament visits in His New Testament body) told Daniel of their rebellion.

Dan 10:13
But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia.

(We should note that the only reason anyone can resist the Lord Jesus is because He does all that He can to honor the free will He gave to man--and because great is His love and His mercy for the man He created.)

The Medo-Persian Empire fell to Alexander the Great and the Grecian Empire.

V

~The fifth of the five powers that that had already fallen in John's day was the Grecian (Greek) Empire. Alexander the Great finished the conquest started by his father Philip and the Grecian Empire replace the rule of the Medo-Persian Empire. The rise of the Grecian Empire was prophesied in the two following passages from the Book of Daniel

Dan 8:
2 And I saw in a vision; and it came to pass, when I saw, that I [was] at Shushan [in] the palace, which [is] in the province of Elam; and I saw in a vision, and I was by the river of Ulai.
3 Then I lifted up mine eyes, and saw, and, behold, there stood before the river a ram which had [two] horns: and the [two] horns [were] high; but one [was] higher than the other, and the higher came up last.
4 I saw the ram pushing westward, and northward, and southward; so that no beasts might stand before him, neither [was there any] that could deliver out of his hand; but he did according to his will, and became great.
5 And as I was considering, behold, an he goat came from the west on the face of the whole earth, and touched not the ground: and the goat [had] a notable horn between his eyes.
6 And he came to the ram that had [two] horns, which I had seen standing before the river, and ran unto him in the fury of his power.
7 And I saw him come close unto the ram, and he was moved with choler against him, and smote the ram, and brake his two horns: and there was no power in the ram to stand before him, but he cast him down to the ground, and stamped upon him: and there was none that could deliver the ram out of his hand...
...15
And it came to pass, when I, [even] I Daniel, had seen the vision, and sought for the meaning, then, behold, there stood before me as the appearance of a man.
16 And I heard a man's voice between [the banks of] Ulai, which called, and said, Gabriel, make this [man] to understand the vision.
17 So he came near where I stood: and when he came, I was afraid, and fell upon my face: but he said unto me, Understand, O son of man: for at the time of the end [shall be] the vision.
18 Now as he was speaking with me, I was in a deep sleep on my face toward the ground: but he touched me, and set me upright.
19 And he said, Behold, I will make thee know what shall be in the last end of the indignation: for at the time appointed the end [shall be].
20 The ram which thou sawest having [two] horns [are] the kings of Media and Persia.
21 And the rough goat [is] the king of Grecia: ...		 Dan 10:
7 And I Daniel alone saw the vision: for the men that were with me saw not the vision; but a great quaking fell upon them, so that they fled to hide themselves.
...
10 And, behold, an hand touched me, which set me upon my knees and [upon] the palms of my hands.
11 And he said unto me, O Daniel, a man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak unto thee, and stand upright: for unto thee am I now sent. And when he had spoken this word unto me, I stood trembling.
12 Then said he unto me, Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words.
13 But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood* me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia.
14 Now I am come to make thee understand what shall befall thy people in the latter days: for yet the vision [is] for [many] days.
(*It should be noted that man can only withstand the Son of God because He honors the free will He gave man and because He is a God of love and mercy.)

Dan 10:15
And when he had spoken such words unto me, I set my face toward the ground, and I became dumb.
...
18 Then there came again and touched me [one] like the appearance of a man, and he strengthened me,
19 And said, O man greatly beloved, fear not: peace [be] unto thee, be strong, yea, be strong. And when he had spoken unto me, I was strengthened, and said, Let my lord speak; for thou hast strengthened me.
20 Then said he, Knowest thou wherefore I come unto thee? and now will I return to fight with the prince of Persia: and when I am gone forth, lo, the prince of Grecia shall come.

At this point, we are entering into that "dark spot" between the Old and New Testaments; and it is hard to put a finger on any one reason that God allowed the Roman Government to conquer the Grecian Empire. We do know that during this period, "every man did what was right in his own eyes"; and perhaps God could find no faith to honor or no zeal to undergird. In Romans Paul tells us that all governments are of God, so whatever His reason, God saw fit to raise up the Roman Empire. In retrospect we can see that God took advantage of the time and sent His Son to the earth during the Roman rule when it was said that "every road led to Rome."

VI

Rev 17:10-11
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.
And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth,
and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.
___________________________________________________

~The sixth power of prophecy, the "one" that "is" at the time John wrote the Book of Revelation, was the Roman Empire. Neither Rome or the Roman Empire is mentioned in the Old Testament; and consequently, there is little factually known about its history during Old Testament times. However, though not mentioned by name, its importance as a "prophetic power" is prophesied in the Book of Daniel.

Dan 7:
2 Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea.
3 And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another.
4 The first [was] like a lion, and had eagle's wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to it.
5 And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up itself on one side, and [it had] three ribs in the mouth of it between the teeth of it: and they said thus unto it, Arise, devour much flesh.
6 After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; the beast had also four heads; and dominion was given to it.
7 After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it [was] diverse from all the beasts that [were] before it; and it had ten horns.
8 I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn [were] eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things.
9 I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment [was] white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne [was like] the fiery flame, [and] his wheels [as] burning fire.
10 A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.
11 I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld [even] till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame.
12 As concerning the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away: yet their lives were prolonged for a season and time.
13 I saw in the night visions, and, behold, [one] like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.
14 And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion [is] an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom [that] which shall not be destroyed.
15 I Daniel was grieved in my spirit in the midst of [my] body, and the visions of my head troubled me.
16 I came near unto one of them that stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me, and made me know the interpretation of the things.
17 These great beasts, which are four, [are] four kings, [which] shall arise out of the earth.
18 But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever.
19 Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast, which was diverse from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth [were of] iron, and his nails [of] brass; [which] devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet;
20 And of the ten horns that [were] in his head, and [of] the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even [of] that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look [was] more stout than his
fellows.
21 I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them;
22 Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom.
23 Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.
24 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.
25 And he shall speak [great] words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.
26 But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy [it] unto the end.
27 And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom [is] an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and
obey him.
28 Hitherto [is] the end of the matter. As for me Daniel, my cogitations much troubled me, and my countenance changed in me: but I kept the matter in my heart.

Unlike the other empires, prophetically speaking, the Roman Empire was not brought down by another worldly power. This is because the nations of prophecy are those nations that play an important role in Israel's existence while she has control of the Word of God. However, Israel lost that control during the time of the Roman Empire because she rejected Christ Jesus, her Messiah. And she not only lost control of the Word of God, but she has been in the outer darkness of her dispersion among the Gentiles ever since. The conditions will not be right for another "nation of prophecy" to arise until the Church is raptured and Israel is once again the only body of believers left that embrace the Word of God. This brings us to the seventh and eight "kingdoms of prophecy."

Rev 17:10-11
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.
And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth,
and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.
__________________________________________________

Daniel speaks of the other who is not yet come, who when he comes, must continue for only a short space: i.e., the end-time beast of the first 1/2 of Daniel's 70th Week at the end of our age. Below are two passages from the Book of Daniel that prophesy the seventh king: the first "beast" of prophecy.

 

This passage in Daniel chapter 7 speaks of an end-time beast coming out of the 10 kingdoms that will arise out of what was the old Roman Empire. As you read, notice that the underlined words give us to know that this "beast" will be given his power at the end of our age before the Kingdom Age begins.

Dan 7:
7 After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it [was] diverse from all the beasts that [were] before it; and it had ten horns.
8 I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn [were] eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things.
9 I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment [was] white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne [was like] the fiery flame, [and] his wheels [as] burning fire.
10 A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.
11 I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld [even] till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame...

...19 Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast, which was diverse from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth [were of] iron, and his nails [of] brass; [which] devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet;
20 And of the ten horns that [were] in his head, and [of] the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even [of] that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look [was] more stout than his fellows.
21 I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them;
22 Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom.
23 Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.
24 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.
25 And he shall speak [great] words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.
26 But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy [it] unto the end.

 

Rev 13:
1 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, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.
2 And 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.
3 And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.
4 And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who [is] like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?
5 And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty [and] two months.
6 And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.
7 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.
8 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
9 If any man have an ear, let him hear.

Not only will the beast be cast into hell, but so will the dragon, Satan, for the duration of the 1,000 years of peace of the Kingdom Age.

Rev. 20:
1And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.
2And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,
3And 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.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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