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It takes a very srtrong imagination to wrest the scriptures to fit this account. The only way to make the scriptural prophecies even appear to match up to the historical accounts, is to ignore most of the details of the prophecy allegedly having been fulfilled.
Dan 8:8 Therefore the male goat grew very great; but when he became strong, the large horn was broken, and in place of it four notable ones came up toward the four winds of heaven. (Alexander the Great and his four generals)
Dan 8:9 And out of one of them came a little horn which grew exceedingly great toward the south, toward the east, and toward the Glorious Land.
Dan 8:10 And it grew up to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and some of the stars to the ground, and trampled them.
Dan 8:11 He even exalted himself as high as the Prince of the host; and by him the daily sacrifices were taken away, and the place of His sanctuary was cast down.
(Antiochus commanded that the sacrifices be stopped. He also took the implements of temple worship and the altar of burnt offering.)
Dan 8:12 Because of transgression, an army was given over to the horn to oppose the daily sacrifices; and he cast truth down to the ground. He did all this and prospered.
Dan 8:13 Then I heard a holy one speaking; and another holy one said to that certain one who was speaking, "How long will the vision be, concerning the daily sacrifices and the transgression of desolation, the giving of both the sanctuary and the host to be trampled underfoot?"
Dan 8:14 And he said to me, "For two thousand three hundred days; then the sanctuary shall be cleansed."
(Antiochus stopped the sacrificial system for over three years. This is confirmed by Josephus. The sanctuary was cleansed and rededicated by the Maccabees. Hanukkah celebrates the rededication of the temple.)
Dan 8:15 Then it happened, when I, Daniel, had seen the vision and was seeking the meaning, that suddenly there stood before me one having the appearance of a man.
Dan 8:16 And I heard a man's voice between the banks of the Ulai, who called, and said, "Gabriel, make this man understand the vision."
Dan 8:17 So he came near where I stood, and when he came I was afraid and fell on my face; but he said to me, "Understand, son of man, that the vision refers to the time of the end."
Dan 8:18 Now, as he was speaking with me, I was in a deep sleep with my face to the ground; but he touched me, and stood me upright.
Dan 8:19 And he said, "Look, I am making known to you what shall happen in the latter time of the indignation; for at the appointed time the end shall be.
Dan 8:20 The ram which you saw, having the two horns—they are the kings of Media and Persia.
Dan 8:21 And the male goat is the kingdom of Greece. The large horn that is between its eyes is the first king. (The king of Greece was Alexander the Great.)
Dan 8:22 As for the broken horn and the four that stood up in its place, four kingdoms shall arise out of that nation, but not with its power.
(After Alexander died his kingdom was divided up among four of his generals. This fact can be confirmed by any good book on ancient history.)
Dan 8:23 "And in the latter time of their kingdom, When the transgressors have reached their fullness, A king shall arise, Having fierce features, Who understands sinister schemes.
(Antiochus came up out of the Selucid kingdom. He was a master of deceit.)
Dan 8:24 His power shall be mighty, but not by his own power; He shall destroy fearfully, And shall prosper and thrive; He shall destroy the mighty, and also the holy people.
(During 167 BC Antiochus killed thousands of Jews living in Jerusalem.)
Dan 8:25 "Through his cunning He shall cause deceit to prosper under his rule; And he shall exalt himself in his heart. He shall destroy many in their prosperity. He shall even rise against the Prince of princes; But he shall be broken without human means.
(Antiochus was not killed by humans, but by disease.)
Dan 8:26 "And the vision of the evenings and mornings Which was told is true; Therefore seal up the vision, For it refers to many days in the future."
The Jews of Jesus time understood this perfectly, since they celebrated Hanukkah every year as found in John 10:22.
They would have viewed this prophecy by Daniel and fulfillment by Antiochus as one of the greatest proofs that God's Word is the truth, and some of us deny it in order to make our modern doctrine work.
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As usual, you diverted the subject from what was under discussion, which was an alleged fulfillment of "end time" prophecy in the last half of the first century, to a discussion of events had taken place several hundred years earlier.
The events you speak of were most certainly not a fulfillment of the prophecies about the abomination of desolation, for that was still future when Jesus spoke of it in Matthew 24:15.
From post 155:I spoke of what we know, not of what we surmise.
Are you saying People in General are incapable of sinning without Satan influencing or deceiving them somehow?
We used to call that "Flip Wilson Theology"...
Such might be lost on the Millennial set tho...
Understanding the CONTEXT of Rev 20 was the SOULS of the Saints
is not a new understanding.... it is the TRADITIONAL Amillennial teaching.
Why would you say it is a "whopper" when it is a TRADITIONAL teaching
of early Christians (both Catholic and Protestant)?
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Well, best I can tell, the church, and it's leadership, was in deep trouble before the 1st century came to a close. If you think that statement is ridiculous, then maybe a quick read of the letters to the 7 churches in The Revelation might clarify it for you. Throw in the letters to Corinth also. Relying on what the early church taught does not make that strong of a case for correct doctrine. Jesus had some very choice words for those that relied on tradition.
No, we are quite capable of sinning on our own. But, for instance, the 20th century was the most terrible century in terms of death, mayhem, and destruction that has happened, it would be logical to assume that Satan is still out and about.
One thing for certain, the world is not getting more Christ like.
If you think that statement is ridiculous, then maybe a quick read of the letters to the 7 churches in The Revelation might clarify it for you.
Parousia, you honestly believe the planet is better off than 2000 years ago? Did you skip those parts about the Inquisition, the Dark Ages, and the 20th Century in your history classes? In the latter case, more people were killed in the 20th Century than in any century preceding it. Even the Roman Emperors, combined, did not slaughter as many people as Stalin or Mao did individually, and Hitler (a Catholic who has never been excommunicated to this very day) was a choir boy in terms of killing compared to those two evil tyrants. And the organized Church has been guilty of slaughtering many folks as well over the last 2 millennia. The organized church has a dismal track record. Not just Catholics, though I pile them in with the organized church reference.
Christ can only return "as a thief" to those that are not expecting Him.
Christ can only return "as a thief" to those that are not expecting Him.
Since, as far as I can tell, you apparently don't take those letters literally, as having any direct application to those 1st century congregations, you might pick something else to support your claim...
Unless you do take them literally?
Cured Polio Lately? Why yes, we have.
Did your mother Die in Childbirth? Not likely.
Is any nation in the west at war with another western nation?
That stopped as recent at the 80's...
And if Death rate is your measuring stick, Antibiotics alone have saved more lives than were killed by Hitler, Stalin & Mao etc.. Combined....
and that's just Antibiotics... Chemotherapy, Radiation & Surgical advances for cancer have grown exponentially and continue on that trend... mental health treatment and understanding has only grown... the raw metrics for a world that is getting better and better are definable, recordable and demonstrable.
Does it ebb and flow... of course, but Christianity is in it's infancy... imagine what this world will look like after 2000 more years of victory? or 20,000?
Actually, the premil doctrine hangs on about a fifth of the Bible. Although Revelation 20:2-7 is the only place where the length of the coming earthly kingdom is stated to be a thousand years, close to a fifth of the entire Bible is devoted to doctrine about this future earthly kingdom, or to the events leading up to its formation.The whole Premill doctrine hangs on ignoring "the time of the judgment of the dead" in Revelation 11:18 and insisting that the Book of Revelation is in chronological order, which it is not.
Christ returns "as a thief" at Armageddon, in Revelation 16:15-16, and He also returns in Revelation 19.
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