Preterism, Futurism, Historicism 3 Schools of Interpretation

These 3 (some say there is 4) methods of interpreting prophecy will determine which conclusions you come to.
The 3 distinct schools of Biblical prophetic interpretation make a huge difference in our understanding of truth.
A close examination as to the origins of these different views shall undoubtedly uncover which position is correct.

The next post will explain them in a little detail.

PRAETERIST
The Praeterist maintains that the prophecies in Revelation have already been fulfilled-- that they refer chiefly to the triumph of Christianity over Judaism and paganism, signalized in the downfall of Jerusalem and of Rome.

FUTURIST
The Futurist interpreters refer all the books of Revelation, except the first three chapters, to events which are yet to come.

HISTORICISM
The Historical interpretation believes the Revelation a progressive history of the church from the first century to the end of time.

Which one are you using and is it correct?

How about go straight to the source, God Father and Son as Won (One) and get the whole truth in you
"God just loves us all" and respond, stop creating from cliff notes that become Doctrines and is not the resurrection given us to walk new in love to all thanks

Postmillennial partial preterist is the biblical model

You present a false trichotomy, and your categories are invalid because they are too narrowly or incorrectly defined. You note a possible fourth method but don't give any idea what it is.

If someone treats any of these as an exclusive lens through which they view Revelation, they will come to false conclusions. Instead, if someone is aware of these lenses and considers the text broadly in light of their ideas, they are more likely to come to sound conclusions. The former tendency is rife within the American church, where entire denominations require adherence to one and only one lens. It's well illustrated in this forum, where one believer condemns another over a difference of belief on this very-much secondary matter, as though one's interpretation of Revelation determines one's salvation. Frankly, that's blind, ignorant, and stupid.

Better that we do our own research and hold our conclusions lightly, being able to defend them but having no inclination to vehemence.

Awhile ago on the Kerygma thread Cam explained RV 1-3 as below, but not sure if any of these methods were involved.

1. the four living creatures in EZK 4:6 identified as referring to the cherubim in EZK 9&10, who resemble the seraphim mentioned in IS 6:2-4, who exclaimed "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty.

2. the seven spirits of God in EZK 5:6 identified as the spirits mentioned in IS 11:2,: "The Spirit of the Lord (1), of wisdom (2), of understanding (3), of counsel (4), of might (5), of the knowledge (6) and fear of the Lord (7).

3. the six seals in ch.6: I, RV 6:1-2: Rider with a bow on a white horse; II, v.3-4: Rider with a sword on a red horse; III v.5-6: Rider with scales on a black horse; IV v.7-8: Death on a pale horse followed by Hades; V v.9-11: martyrs were given white robes; VI v.12-14: an earthquake and heaven-shake caused people to seek shelter in caves.

4. the 144,000 in ch.7,

5. the 7th seal & six angels plus one in ch.8-9,

6. the mighty angel and little scroll in ch.10,

7. the two witnesses in ch.11,

8. the woman and the dragon in ch.12,

9. the two beasts in ch.13,

10. the six angels in ch.14,

11. the seven angels & plagues in ch.15,

12. the seven bowls in ch.16,

13. Babylon in ch.17 &18,

14. the war in ch.19, and

15. the thousand years in ch.20.

The true source is the bible alone
salvation is through Jesus alone

But I was asking through which method people are interpreting prophecy.

When people interpret prophecy through the wrong method, they are building on a foundation of sand. It will lead to error and take people away from the truth.

The truth will set you free.

i didn't give in depth definitions because i wanted to leave it open for your imput...

But i disagree that it is doesn't matter..... The understanding on these points of prophecy can change huge amounts of a persons belief and the whole revelation of Gods character can be distorted causeing people to miss the boat.

for example ..... the second chance doctrine.... if people believe they will get a second chance they may neglect to exercise faith today.

But we are told that today is the day of salvation.

Is there another way in which this order of events could take place? If it had already taken place in the past sometime, we would all be in another body already wouldn't we?

Matt 24
3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?

4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.

5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. 6And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. 8All these are the beginning of sorrows.

9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake. 10And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. 11 And many false prophets shall rise and shall deceive many. 12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. 13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.

15 When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand


Rev 11
3 And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth. 4 These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth. 5 And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed. 6 These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will.

7 And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them. 8 And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified. 9 And they of the people and kindreds and tongues and nations shall see their dead bodies three days and an half, and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves. 10 And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented them that dwelt on the earth.

11 And after three days and an half the Spirit of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them which saw them. 12 And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them.

13 And the same hour was there a great earthquake, and the tenth part of the city fell, and in the earthquake were slain of men seven thousand: and the remnant were affrighted, and gave glory to the God of heaven.

14The second woe is past; and, behold, the third woe cometh quickly.

15 And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and He shall reign for ever and ever.



2 Thess 2
1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, 2That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. 3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; 4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.

8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming: 9 Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders



Rev 19
11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and He that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He doth judge and make war. 12 His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. 13 And He was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and His name is called The Word of God. 14 And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. 15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and He shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. 16 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.

17 And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God; 18 That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great.

19 And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army.

20 And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone. 21 And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.



TBC

Satan Bound the Thousand Years

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

4 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. 5 But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.


7 And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, 8 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. 9 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. 10 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.


11 And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. 12 And I saw 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. 13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. 14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.


Rev 21
1 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. 2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 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. 4 And 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.

The basic tenets of Futurism are:
• Antichrist is an individual who will appear at the end of the world just before the Second Coming of Christ.
• The evil deeds of the Antichrist have to do with the Jews rather than the Gentiles. In fact, the Antichrist will sit in a rebuilt Jerusalem Temple.
• Antichrist will rule for a period of 1260 literal days.
• The fourth kingdom of Daniel 7 was not the Roman Empire and therefore the ten horns were not fulfilled in the Roman Empire. The fourth kingdom will be established upon the earth at some future period.

If only people would look at history and see what and where these donctrines started.... We can look at what Nebuchadnezzar had once tried to do in Daniel 3, that is, rewrite the prophetic scenario which God had previously appointed and revealed. The final fulfillment of the story of Daniel 3 is found in Revelation 13:11-18.
The Protestant Reformers almost unanimous viewed prophecy through study and the revelation of the holy Spirit. they gave their lives to uphold these beliefs.
But like nebuchadnezzar someone didn't like the interpretation of prophecy.. They were in control and powerful but all prophecy pointed to them as the antichrist. So like nebuchadnezzar they tried to build an image of complete gold.... and Change the Times.

The Protestant reformers held the almost unanimous view that the Papacy was the predicted Antichrist of Bible prophecy. They shared several theological concepts:
• The fourth beast of Daniel 7 is a symbol of the Roman Empire.
• The “restrainer” in II Thessalonians 2 is also the Roman Empire.
• The Antichrist is not an individual, but rather a succession of popes who, taken together, constitute an apostate religious system.
• The time periods in symbolic prophecy are to be understood figuratively, not literally.
• The “temple” in which the Antichrist sits is not the literal Jerusalem temple but rather the Christian Church.
• The word “Antichrist” does not denote a blasphemous individual who openly denies and defies God but rather one who opposes Christ by posing as the Vicar of Christ.
• Though not unanimous, most Protestant reformers believed that the little horn of Daniel 7 represents the Roman Catholic papal system.
• The Protestant Reformers frequently remarked that the “Man of Sin,” the “little horn,” “the beast,” “the abomination of desolation,” and “the harlot” all represented the Roman Catholic papacy.

When we think of the Protestant Reformation, expressions such as sola scriptura (Scripture alone), sola fide (faith alone) and sola gratia (grace alone) come to mind. However, all these “solas” grew out of a realization that the Roman Catholic system was the predicted Antichrist of Bible prophecy. You see, the Protestant Reformers knew for certain that in the prophetic flow of time, the lion (Babylon), the bear (Persia), the leopard (Greece), and the dragon (Rome) had already ruled the world. They also knew that Rome had been divided into ten kingdoms when the barbarians carved up the empire. They knew all too well that the predicted Antichrist was to arise among these ten kingdoms of 7 Western Europe. They saw clearly and distinctly that they were living in the time period of the little horn.
The historicist hermeneutical method made it quite simple. A correct understanding of Bible prophecy gave them the unmistakable mandate to unmask this system which had usurped the prerogatives of Christ and adulterated the truth of God!!

Next you will see how the Roman church changed the times and adulterated the way people look at prophecy.....

Wouldn't the fact that only some of the dead rise (1 Thess 4 and 1 Corinth 15) at the 2nd Advent show us there are no second chances? It is not until after the GWTJ of those dead do the rest of the dead stand at the GWTJ.

16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:

52In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.


The Final Judgment

11 And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. 12 And I saw 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.

Where did these 'dead' come from if not at the 2nd Advent? since they aren't shown to come from these places at this time

13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. 14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.



7 And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: 8 (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds 9The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:



For those who are saved, there is the Judgment seat of Christ, not the GWTJ


"There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." Romans 8:1 KJV

John 5:24 - Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on Him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.


questions to consider
What is the Lords Day for if not to 'save' those who didn't get a chance at salvation during this age? Why all the priests and judges reigning with Christ all that time? Who would the priests be priests to, if not the dead? Why would Satan be bound and then loosed again, if not for testing? If not the dead getting their names in the book of life at the end of the Lords Day then who is?

It appears that the opening post of this thread is not an attempt to have an honest discussion of the various hermeneutical approaches to all prophecy, but is a pretext for promoting a specific interpretation of the Revelation that I'm pretty sure will make Sunday worship the mark of the beast..

Let’s take a look at the writings of several of these Reformers in order to ascertain their understanding of the Antichrist. Much of this material is taken from Leroy Edwin Froom’s monumental work, The Prophetic Faith of our Fathers .

• John Wycliffe (1324-1384). In chapter 2 of his book De Papa , Wycliffe affirms that “the pope is antichrist here in earth.” In Wycliffe’s day two rival popes were vying for the throne and, according to Wycliffe, they were both “two halves of Antichrist, making up the perfect Man of Sin between them.” Speaking about the papacy, Wycliffe asked: “Why is it necessary in unbelief to look for another Antichrist? In the seventh chapter of Daniel, Antichrist is forcefully described by a horn arising in the time of the fourth kingdom. . . .wearing out the saints of the most high.” Wycliffe also wrote the book, The Mirror of Antichrist , where he repeatedly refers to the pope as the Antichrist.

• John of Oldcastle (1360-1417). John, who was also known as Lord Cobham, was knight of Herefordshire and a prominent follower of Wycliffe. He unequivocally stated: “But as touching the Pope and his Spirituality, I owe them neither suit nor service, for so much as I know him by the Scriptures to be the great Antichrist, the Son of Perdition, the open Adversary of God, and the Abomination standing in the holy place.”

• Matthias of Janow (died in 1394). Matthias came to be known as the Bohemian Wycliffe. He received his doctorate from the University of Paris and in 1381 became the canon in the Cathedral of Prague. His writings paved the way for the Hussite movement. Janow based his conclusions about the Antichrist on II Thessalonians 2, Daniel 7 and Revelation 13 and 17. Here is one of his statements: “The Antichrist has already come. He is neither Jew, pagan Saracean nor worldly tyrant, but the ‘man who opposes Christian truth and the Christian life by way of deception;—he is, and will be, the most wicked Christian, falsely styling himself by that name, assuming the highest station in the church, and possessing the highest consideration, arrogating dominion over all ecclesiastics and laymen;’ one who, by the working of Satan, assumes to himself power and wealth and honor, and makes the church, with its goods and sacraments, subservient to his own carnal ends.”....

• John Huss (1369-1415). In the Bohemian language the name “Huss” means “goose”. Huss finished his studies at the University of Prague where he later lectured. He was ordained a priest in 1400 and was martyred for his faith in 1415. Notice the following statements by Huss: “I beseech you in Christ Jesus, with all your fellow-members of the University, to be prepared for a battle; for the reconnoitres of Antichrist have already begun, and the fight will soon follow. The Goose also must needs flap his wings against the wings of Behemoth, and against his tail, which always conceals the abomination of the beast Antichrist. .. The Lord shall destroy the head and the tail—that is, the Pope and his prophets, masters, doctors, priests, who under the false pretext of sanctity conceal the abomination of the beast. Pray, what greater abomination can there be than a harlot who should parade herself and offer herself publicly? Yes, there is the still greater abomination of the beast sitting in a place of honor and offering himself for worship to all corners, as though he were God: ready to sell whatever a man may wish to buy in matters spiritual. Yea, he sells what he doth not possess. ..... “Surely now the wickedness, iniquity, and baseness of Antichrist has been revealed in the Pope and his associates in the Council:

• William Tyndale (1484-1536). Tyndale, who was educated at Oxford and Cambridge was the first to translate the New Testament from Greek to English. He was despised by the Roman Catholic Church. Notice the following two quotations from his pen: “The pope’s forbidding matrimony, and to eat of meats created of God for man’s use, which is devilish doctrine by Paul’s prophecy. . . .are tokens good enough that he is the right antichrist, and his doctrine sprung of the devil.” “The apostles were clear-eyed, and espied antichrist at once, and put him to flight, and weeded out his doctrine quickly. But when charity waxed cold, and the preachers began to seek themselves, and to admit glory and honor of riches, then antichrist disguised himself after the fashion of a true apostle, and preached ‘Christ wilily, bringing in now this tradition, and now that, to darken the doctrine of Christ; ......

• Martin Luther (1483-1546). The life of Luther is well known so we will concern ourselves only with his comments about the identity of the Antichrist. We will begin with a letter which he wrote to Spalatin on February 24, 1520: “I am practically cornered, and can hardly doubt any more, that the Pope is really the Antichrist, whom the world expects according to a general belief, because everything so exactly corresponds to the way of his life, action, words, and commandments.” When Luther wrote his book, To the German Nobility , his friends, fearing for his safety, asked him to suppress it. To this request Luther replied: “We here are of the conviction that the Papacy is the seat of the true Antichrist. . . . personally I declare that I owe to the Pope no other obedience than that to Antichrist.” Two months after Luther made this statement, his book, On the Babylonian Captivity of the Church [notice that he is referring to the papacy as Babylon], was published. In it, Luther spoke of the papacy as “nothing else than the kingdom of Babylon and of very Antichrist. . . . For who is the man of sin and the son of perdition, but he who by his teaching and his ordinances increases the sin and perdition of souls in the church; while he yet sits in the church as if he were God? All these conditions have now for many ages been fulfilled by the papal tyranny.” In 1540, Luther wrote: “Oh, Christ, my Lord, look down upon us and bring upon us thy day of judgment, and destroy the brood of Satan in Rome. There sits the Man, of whom the apostle Paul wrote (2 Thessalonians 2:3, 4) .....

• John Purvey (1354-1428), who was a close associate of John Wycliffe, published a commentary on the Apocalypse in 1390 based on Wycliffe’s sermons. Over one hundred years later, a copy of this book came into the hands of Martin Luther who was so impressed by it that he reprinted it in Wittenberg in 1528 describing it as “a Commentary on the Apocalypse Written 100 Years Ago.” Purvey’s Commentarius in Apocalypsin [Commentary on the Apocalypse] was prefaced by this impressive statement by Martin Luther: “This preface, noble reader, you may understand was written by us for this reason—that we might make known to the world that we are not the first who interpret the Papacy as the kingdom of Antichrist.

• Nicolaus von Amsdorf (1483-1565)

• Philipp Melanchthon (1497-1560).

• Ulrich Zwingli (1484-1531)

• John Calvin (1509-1564)

• John Knox (1505-1572)

• Heinrich Bullinger (1504-1575) was Zwingli’s intimate friend and succeeded him as chief pastor of the Zurich Cathedral in 1531. Notice his clear and forthright comment on the identity of the Antichrist: “By the little horn many understand the kingdom of Mohammed, of the Saraceans and of the Turks. But when the apostolic prophecy in Second Thessalonians 2 is more carefully examined, it seems that this prophecy of Daniel and that prophecy of the apostle belong more rightly to the kingdom of the Roman pope, which kingdom has arisen from small beginnings and has increased to an immense size.”

• Nicholas Ridley (1500-1555).

• John Hooper (1495-1555) was Bishop of Gloucester from 1551-1554. He was martyred for his faith. He spoke strong words about the identity of the Antichrist: 13 “If godly Moses and his brother Aaron never acclaimed this title [to be God’s vicar and lieutenant] in the earth, doubtless it is a foul and detestable arrogancy that these ungodly bishops of Rome attribute unto themselves to be the heads of Christ’s church. . . . “Because God hath given this light unto my countrymen, which be all persuaded (or else God sent them to be persuaded!), that the Bishop of Rome, nor none other is Christ’s vicar upon the earth, it is no need to use any long or copious oration: it is so plain that it needeth no probation: the very properties of Antichrist, I mean of Christ’s great and principal enemy, are so openly known to all men that are not blinded with the smoke of Rome, that they know him to be the beast that John describeth in the Apocalypse.” “Of that wicked and pestilent see and chair in Rome, which is indeed the very whore of Babylon.....

• Thomas Cranmer (1489-1556) was for a time archbishop of Canterbury. In several statements he identifies the papacy as the Antichrist: “And as for the pope, I refuse him as Christ’s enemy and antichrist, with all his false doctrine.”

• John Bradford (1510-1555)

• John Jewel (1522-1571)

• John Napier (1550-1617)

• John Wesley (1703-1791). Wesley, the great founder of Methodism, states concerning the papacy: “He is in an emphatical sense, the Man of Sin, as he increases all manner of sin above measure. And he is, too, properly styled the Son of Perdition, as he has caused the death of numberless multitudes, both of his opposers and followers. . .”

they are all pointing in the same dirrection.... more on the next page with the sources...

Continuing to look at the writings of several of these Reformers in order to ascertain their understanding of the Antichrist.


• Isaac Newton
Let’s take a look at how some of the great leaders of Protestantism in the New World understood the identity of the Antichrist.
• Samuel Lee (1625-1691) was a learned minister from New Bristol, Rhode Island. He affirmed: “It is agreed among all maintainers of the Evangelical Church that the Roman Pontiff is Antichrist.”

• Roger Williams (1603-1683), who lived in the early Colonial period, was a staunch defender of civil and religious freedom. He had to flee the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the dead of winter because he believed in the strict separation of church and state. In fact, the “wall” metaphor can 16 be traced back to Roger Williams long before it was used by Thomas Jefferson. Notice his view of the Antichrist: “Antichrist (by the helpe of Civill Powers) hath his prisons, to keep Christ Jesus and his members fast: such prisons may well be called Bishops prisons, the Popes, the Devils prisons: These inquisition houses have ever been more terrible then the Magistrates.”

• Cotton Mather (1663-1728) in his book, Fall of Babylon , remarks: “Is the Pope of Rome to be looked upon as The Antichrist, whose coming and reigning was foretold in the ancient oracles? The oracles of God foretold the rising of an Antichrist in the Christian church; and in the Pope of Rome, all the characteristics of that Antichrist are so marvelously answered that if any who read the Scriptures do not see it, there is a marvelous blindness upon them.”

• Samuel Cooper (1725-1783) "If Antichrist is not to be found in the chair of St. Peter, he is nowhere to be found.”

Let us take a look at several great confessions of faith which identify the Papacy as the Antichrist:

• The Presbyterian confession of faith: “There is no other head of the church but the Lord Jesus Christ, nor can the pope of Rome in any sense be head thereof, but is that antichrist, that man of sin and son of perdition that exalteth himself in the church against Christ and all that is called God.”

• A homily of the Church of England or Anglican Church: “He ought therefore rather be called Antichrist, and the successor of the Scribes and Pharisees, than Christ’s vicar or St. Peter’s successor”

• Lutheran confession of faith: “The Pope is the very Antichrist, who exalteth himself above, and opposeth himself against Christ, because he will not permit Christians to be saved without his power, which, nevertheless, is nothing, and is neither ordained nor commanded by God.”

• The Irish Articles of Religion of 1615: “The Bishop of Rome is so far from being the supreme head of the universal Church of Christ, that his works and doctrines do plainly discover him to be that man of sin, foretold in the holy Scriptures, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth, and abolish with the brightness of His coming.”

Froom Summarizes the Historical Evidence It is clear that from the 14th till the 18th centuries, the incriminating finger of Bible prophecy was squarely pointed at the Bishop of Rome as the predicted Antichrist of Scripture. After presenting an impressive mass of evidence from the original sources, Froom concludes:

“In Germany, Switzerland, France, Denmark, Sweden, England, and Scotland there had been simultaneous and impressive declarations by voice and pen that the Papacy was the specified Antichrist of prophecy. The symbols of Daniel, Paul, and John were applied with tremendous effect. Hundreds of books and tracts impressed their contention upon the consciousness of Europe. Indeed, it gained so great a hold upon the minds of men that Rome, in alarm, saw that she must successfully counteract this identification of Antichrist with the Papacy, or lose the battle.”
Bear in mind that those who pointed the finger at the Papacy as the great Antichrist were highly educated. Most were experts in Hebrew, Greek and Latin. Many reached their own conclusions independently of others. Their works were saturated with quotations from Daniel 7 (the little horn), Revelation 13 (the beast), Revelation 17 (the harlot), II Thessalonians 2 (the Man of Sin), and Matthew 24 (the Abomination of Desolation). Their testimony was unanimous and covered the entire European Continent.


For those that want quotes .... Take the time to read them all in detail....

5Ibid., p. 395. ..Leroy Edwin Froom. The Prophetic Faith of our Fathers (Washington, D. C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1946), volume 2, pp. 52, 49. ..7 Froom, PFF , volume 2, p. 55. 40 41 ..Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 88. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 40. ... Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 40. ... Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 117. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, pp. 118-119. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 357. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 357. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 255. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 256. .. Martin Luther, First Principles, pp. 196, 197. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 281. .. Martin Luther, The Works of Martin Luther, volume 2, p. 385. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, pp. 94-95. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 305. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 288. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, pp. 334-335. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 436. .. Quoted in Ralph Woodrow, Great Prophecies of the Bible, p. 161. .. John Knox, The Zurich Letters, p. 199. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 423. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 344. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 368. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 368. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 382. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 383. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 391. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 392. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 394. .. Thomas Cranmer, Works, volume 1, pp. 62, 63. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 378. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 379. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 407. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 410. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 410. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 459. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 461. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 461. .. Quoted in Albert Close, Antichrist and His Ten Kingdoms (London: Thynne and Company, 1917), p. 110. .. Sir Isaac Newton, Observations Upon the Prophecies (London: 1831 edition), p. 75. .. Samuel Lee, The Cutting Off of Antichrist, p. 1. .. Froom, PFF, volume 1, p. 51. .. Froom, PFF, volume 3, p. 113. .. Samuel Cooper, A Discourse on the Man of Sin, p. 12. .. The Westminster Confession of Faith, Section 6, chapter 25. .. “Homilies,” part 3, Homily of Obedience, (Cambridge: Corrie, 1850), p. 114. .. The Smalcald Articles. .. Article 80 of the Irish Articles of Religion of 1615. Quoted in Froom, PFF, volume 2, p. 553. .. Article 31 of the Confession of Faith adopted in 1603 in the Synod held at Gap, under the leadership of Henry IV of France. .. Froom, PFF, volume 2, pp. 484-485.

The quotes above were all from Histoicists and this is important in understanding the next point.

The Papacy knew it could triumph only by turning away the incriminating finger of Bible prophecy. But, how could it do this when the evidence was so compelling? The Papacy realized that in order to succeed, it must change the hermeneutical method Protestants had used to interpret prophecy. Only by overturning the hermeneutical method of historicism could the Papacy deflect the accusing finger!! And the Papacy laid out a carefully devised plan to do just this!!

St. Ignatius of Loyola founded the Society of Jesus (also known as the Jesuits). Besides providing the papacy with a formidable secret police force, the Jesuits also trained an elite of theological scholars whose avowed purpose was to overthrow Protestantism. In fact, in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, there is a statue of Loyola trampling Protestants underfoot!!
Loyola’s Jesuit Order soon spawned two able scholars whose views would at last arrest and reverse the Protestant Reformation.

This is the tragic story of how futurism and preterism can into the world and has courupted almost every protestant church.

1 In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon Daniel had a dream and visions of his head upon his bed: then he wrote the dream, and told the sum of the matters. 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.



The four winds of heaven STROVE...wouldn't that come AFTER the 4 angels who were holding them back had released them?

1519 giach - to burst forth, to break out
Meaning: to rush forth


which doesn't take place until

Rev 7
1 And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree. 2 And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, 3 Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.
???



Back to Dan 7

3 And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another.

It seems to me to be all of them at the same time, although different one from another.