Ten United Nations Will Rise to Power in the Middle East
Jesus Will Return as He Promised.
But there are other prophetic events that must happen first.
The Book of Daniel tells the reader about a ten-horned kingdom that comes into power in the last days. Many engaged Bible prophecy students believe this ten-horned kingdom will come to power after the return of Christ.
I believe the Bible shows it will occur before His return. I should clarify though, before going further. There are two events we should consider. There is the rapture of the Church and the second coming of Christ. Those are two separate events that take place during the last days. This article covers Daniel’s chapter seven, verses 7 to 22. Neither the rapture nor the second coming are part of the primary topics of this passage but they are important side issues. I won’t cover them here other than to say that I believe the rapture and the second coming will take place after the ten-horned beast kingdom arises to power in the Middle East.
The Ten-horned Beast in the Middle East?
The location of this ten-horned beast is a subject of much debate also. I will skip that for now also but I do take the position that it will come to power in the Middle East, not Europe as many suggest.
Daniel, the prophet, rose to a position of influence in the Babylonian kingdom after a unique beginning. He and some Jewish friends were taken captive from Israel while they were young boys. They were groomed to become a part of a group of ‘wise men’ who were called upon to give counsel to the king.
Daniel’s position among the ranks of those ‘wise men’ soared when he was the only one who could interpret a strange dream the king had. As we covered in the discussion in chapter two of Daniel, he told the king the meaning of his scary dream. This is when the prophet, king, and really all of the prophetic scholars were introduced to a succession of four kingdoms that would eventually lead to the crowning of Jesus as King of the world. I’m getting ahead of myself, but this is where we first learn about four succeeding kingdoms, with the fourth getting replaced by the kingdom of God on earth.
Jesus did not set up His kingdom
When Jesus came to earth as a baby, grew to be a man, accomplished great miracles, and challenged the Jewish leadership, many thought he would set up His kingdom then. That was never God’s plan. First Jesus had to accomplish the impossible. He came to make eternal life possible for the whole of selfish humanity. He accomplished that on the cross and sealed the deal by rising from the dead.
The hard part was done so he left earth to return to heaven with His Heavenly Father. He is waiting until the appointed time for that return.
His disciples watched him slowly rise into the sky and disappear behind the clouds. An angel told his awestruck followers to get busy building the church because Jesus would return at a later date.
Acts 1:11
“Men of Galilee,” they said. “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”
So Peter, James, John, and the other disciples did get busy building the church. They endured severe persecution, were scattered throughout the known world, and took with them the stories of Christ’s life and death.
And they waited for His return, telling others to do the same.
Less than two thousand years later, we still wait, but God’s timing is still on track. Only a little bit longer and the clouds will give way to His return. The prophecy proponents have been wrong for many years. His disciples thought He was past due. Many others have thought so also, but His timing is perfect and we need to study what the Bible says and stop making bold false claims. He will return but only when everything is ready.
Dan 7:15-16
I, Daniel, was grieved in my spirit within my body, and the visions of my head troubled me. I came near to one of those who stood by and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me and made known to me the interpretation of these things:
Was grieved in my spirit:
What Daniel saw was tearing away at his soul. I believe he knew what it meant but it was hard for him to believe that God would allow this. This is a similar reaction we see in many of God’s prophets. Habakkuk was one such prophet who marveled that God would allow His people to suffer at the hands of evil conquerors. We all wish God would act more quickly. At times we beg Him to take us out of discomfort immediately, but that is not how life works. That is part of our growing process.
God is gracious and caring but allows humanity to fall to the bottom of the ‘pit of despair before the rescue comes. In this case, Daniel was seeing God’s people endure its most severe test. But he was seeing it in the future. He was like others who wondered if God’s people would survive.
I came near to one:
I believe it is safe to assume this “one” spoken of was an angelic being. Daniel saw and spoke to several angels in his lifetime. Angels are not chubby little baby angels with cute little wings. They are magnificent creatures who exist in a world or dimension we can only imagine. The Bible tells us we will sometimes interact with them unknowingly. Wow, that’s cool!
The angels (the good ones) serve the Lord and help minister to humanity.
Hebrews 1:13-14
The Supremacy of the Son
…13And to which of the angels did God ever say: “Sit at My right hand until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet”? 14 Are, not the angels ministering spirits, sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?
Daniel did what we all would have done if we could muster the courage. He walked over and asked. “What does this mean?”
Dan 7:17-18
Four kings/kingdoms are conquered by God; their kingdoms are given to the people of God.
Those great beasts, which are four, are four kings which arise out of the earth. “But the saints of the Most-High shall receive the kingdom, and possess the kingdom forever, even forever and ever.”
Those great beasts, which are four, are four kings which arise out of the earth:
In chapter two of Daniel, this succession of kings and kingdoms was seen in the form of a statue. In this chapter, we see the same kingdoms but they are revealed from God’s perspective as beasts that have power over God’s chosen nation of Israel. (That’s a very hot topic we will cover in other articles.)
The very important point we should see is that God’s Kingdom immediately follows the demise/devastation of the fourth beast kingdom. God’s Kingdom is in power in Heaven but not on earth. Those who suggest otherwise have a very low standard for what God’s Kingdom will be like. Jesus can and does reign as King in the heart of a child of God but He is still waiting for the appointed time to reign as King over the earth.
The beast-kingdoms arise out of the earth. Christ’s Kingdom will arise from Heaven when he cleans things up after returning from beyond the clouds.
The Lamb and the Lion
Jesus, the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, will return as a roaring lion to claim the crown others have tried to hold. Only One can have the rule over the people of God. Jesus, at His return, will crush the fourth kingdom and set things right. That fourth kingdom will have ten leaders/crowns. Daniel saw this in his vision. (Revelation 5:5). Jesus, the Lamb of God slain for the world, will take power as the King of beasts. (Revelation 5:5-6 and 5:8-10).
The saints of the Most-High shall receive the kingdom:
When the fourth beast-kingdom is crushed, God’s people receive the kingdom.
I’ll repeat my point; God’s Kingdom on earth has not been established yet. In the hearts of believers, yes, but not over the realm of nations. That time is set in the future, but it is certain to come to pass.
So, if the fourth kingdom is a coalition of ten nations united under one rulership, this group of ten nations will rise to power before the return of Christ. It will also rise to power before the rapture of the church. It has to, I will explain why as we go farther into the Book of Daniel.
When the fourth kingdom is defeated Jesus takes power and gives the kingdom to the saints–God’s people.
Those who follow God now will rule with Christ.
Dan 7:19-22
Then I wished to know the truth about the fourth beast, which was different from all the others, exceedingly dreadful, with its teeth of iron and its nails of bronze, which devoured, broke in pieces, and trampled the residue with its feet; and the ten horns that were on its head, and the other horn which came up, before which three fell, namely, that horn which had eyes and a mouth which spoke pompous words, whose appearance was greater than his fellows. I was watching, and the same horn was making war against the saints, and prevailing against them, until the Ancient of Days came, and a judgment was made in favor of the saints of the Most-High, and the time came for the saints to possess the kingdom.
I wished to know the truth about the fourth beast:
There has been a lot of interest in these four beast-kingdoms over the years. Daniel saw these visions, they were hundreds of years before Jesus came to earth as a baby. That was two thousand years ago, so we’ve had about two thousand and several hundred years to speculate about their identity. We still struggle to pin down who the fourth beast is. Rome, the popular choice among many prophecy students and teachers is wrong. People will almost literally light their hair on fire with rage if it’s suggested that Rome is not the fourth beast.
Well get your matches–Rome is not the fourth beast.
Exceedingly dreadful, with its teeth of iron and its nails of bronze:
The fourth beast, whoever it is, will be very dreadful and terrifying. Nations will challenge it but face the immense power of its military might. And it will be challenged though and that presents another problem for many prophecy teachers today. It will have devastating power but not all-powerful. It won’t rule the entire world, just affect the entire world. That’s another light-your-hair-on-fire point of contention. We will discuss that also in later articles.
The Conspicuous Horn
The conspicuous horn, Daniel saw troubled him and challenged his skills at interpretation. It’s interesting to note that he was very adept at understanding these dreams and visions but this stumped him.
The horn is the last world ruler. It’s the Antichrist. The last one who tries to rule in God’s stead. The evil ruler will openly attack the saints of God, using the power of his armies which ten nation-states provide him. When you read “saints,” don’t think of priestly people wearing fancy robes. Think of poor desperate Christians trying to escape tyrannic rulers who hate God’s children and who only desire to love their neighbor as themselves.
When will the end of days begin? Below are some books to consider on that subject.
Can we know the season of Christ’s Return?
Let me know what you think.