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Revelation's Antichrist Attack

Revelation’s Antichrist Attack

Daniel 7:25 He shall speak great words against the Most High, shall persecute the saints of the Most High, and shall intend to change times and law. Then the saints shall be given into his hand for a time and times and half a time.

A constitution is the underlying foundation of governance in any government. The American Constitution was a unique and important epoch in history; but even before the American Constitution, an even more just and fair constitution existed. It is the constitution of heaven. The Psalmist declares, “Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne; mercy and truth go before your face.” (Psalm 89:14). The government of God is founded upon His righteousness and justice, and mercy and truth issue from His throne, but a terrible attack was foretold. An attack upon the constitution of heaven! This attack is leveled by what it commonly referred to as the antichrist. Bible prophecy reveals that this apostate power would intentionally seek to alter the Law of God. The Law of God, which is the underlying foundation of the entire universe, would be assaulted. Who is this power that attacks the constitution of heaven, and when and why did this attack take place? To understand these points, we must get the entire context of the prophecy.

Prophetic Symbols: Beasts, Water & Wind

Nearly fifty years after the dream given to Nebuchadnezzar, Daniel, no longer a despised young Israelite captive but recognized as a wise and experienced counselor, receives a dream from the God of heaven. Not now is the wealth and splendor of the world depicted by an entrancing image, but four beasts arise from the strife of the Great Sea (Mediterranean Sea).

Daniel 7:1-3 In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream and visions of his head while on his bed. Then he wrote down the dream, telling the main facts. Daniel spoke, saying, “I saw in my vision by nigh, and behold, the four winds of heaven were stirring up the Great Sea. And four great beasts came up from the sea, each different from the other.

Daniel 7:17, 23 Those great beasts, which are four, are four kings which arise out of the earth... Thus he said: “The fourth beast shall be a fourth kingdom on earth, which shall be different from all other kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, trample it and break it in pieces.”

A symbol in Bible prophecy that is repeatedly used is that of a beast. You can see four fierce beasts in Daniel 7. Two domestic beasts attack and subdue in Daniel 8. Then in Revelation are seen a dragon, a seven headed leopard-like beast, a lamb-like beast speaking like a dragon and then a scarlet colored beast. (Revelation 12, 13 & 17) What do all these beasts mean? Surely there is a reason that God has employed beasts over and over again in prophecy. The answer is found in Daniel 7:17, 23; the four beast represented four kings, or kingdoms. Thus the Bible explains a very important repeated symbol: a beast equals a kingdom or nation. So these four great beasts are four kingdoms that were to arise.

Revelation 17:15 And he said to me, “The waters which you saw, where the harlot sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues.

Another symbol introduced in the first few verses of Daniel 7 is that of water. The word picture is four winds blowing upon the sea and four great beasts arising up from it. What does this water represent? This is clearly answered: water represents multitudes of people. So you have four empires arising one after another from the teeming multitudes of civilization.

Jeremiah 25:32, 33 Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Behold, disaster shall go forth from nation to nation, and a great whirlwind shall be raised up from the farthest parts of the earth. And at that day the slain of the Lord shall be from one end of the earth even to the other end of the earth. They shall not be lamented, or gathered, or buried; they shall become refuse on the ground.”

The third symbol introduced is that of wind—four great winds striving upon the Great Sea when these four diverse beasts come up on each other’s heals. When comparing wind in the scriptures, we find that almost always it is associated with strife, war, death, etc. So upon the tempestuous sea of civilization with the winds of war and strife blowing around, four empires emerge from this cradle of civilization which exercise universal dominion upon the earth. What is so significant about these four nations, and what message is God attempting to teach us?

The First Kingdom: Babylon 605 – 539 BC

Daniel 7:3 The first was like a lion, and had eagle’s wings. I watched till its wings were plucked off; and it was lifted up from the earth and made to stand on two feet like a man, and a man’s heart was given to it.

Habakkuk 1:8 Their horses also are swifter than leopards, and more fierce than evening wolves. Their chargers charge ahead; their cavalry comes from afar, they fly as the eagle that hastens to eat.

Corresponding with the head of gold in the metallic image of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, is a majestic lion. The lion even today is considered to be the king of beasts. As the royal lion struts among the trees and grasses of African wildlife, so a regal kingdom would arise and win the admiration of its peers. Just as Daniel revealed to Nebuchadnezzar that the first world dominating kingdom was Babylon (Daniel 2:38), so this golden lion aptly fits the bill. Nebuchadnezzar had built Babylon to be an impregnable fortress which the wealth of the world flowed into and adorned. This self-contained capital in the desert loomed high against any would-be invader. With the great river Euphrates running through the center, a constant water supply was assured. Care had been taken to store provisions of food that would last for years. With walls higher than any man could mount or catapult could cast, it seemed as if this city would stand forever, but prophecy had revealed another fate. Wings can readily be found to represent speed, which is readily understood today. If we desire to get some place fast, we fly. So this lion hastened to the prey with wings of an eagle, but alas even this cunning swiftness was not to last. Its wings were plucked off from it and it was to fall the fate as foretold in the metal man of Daniel 2.

Although Nebuchadnezzar had established what He hoped to be an impregnable metropolis, the prophecy gave a different scenario. The wings of the lion were taken from it; and instead of the prowess and cunning of a lion, he stands up and becomes vulnerable like a man. Its weakness is exposed and the city built to withstand all attacks, succumbs to the pride and vanity of the natural heart thus preparing the way for the second empire to arise.

The Second Kingdom: Medo–Persia 539 – 331 BC

Daniel 7:4 And suddenly another beast, a second, like a bear. It was raised upon one side, and had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth, And they said thus to it: ‘Aries, devour much flesh!’

The strong arms and chest of silver find their fit parallel in the brute strength of the ravenous bear. A description of a bear, not endowed with the cunning and majesty of the lion, but strong and virtually unconquerable, fits the Medo-Persians to a tee. The kingdoms of Media and Persia united to subjugate the provinces of Lydia and Egypt and finally Babylon (the three ribs in the mouth of the ravenous bear). One of Babylon’s feast days to their god was the fatal night that brought an end to the magnificent empire of Babylon. Cyrus of the Persians was camped outside of Babylon, but why should they care? They had food and water for years and who could penetrate those massive walls? So, instead of being watchful and guarded, they threw an enormous feast of drunkenness and debauchery. That very night Cyrus turned the waters of the mighty Euphrates, filling a large reservoir prepared for just that purpose and night, thus lowering the water level sufficiently to march underneath the city into the very heart of Babylon. He still would have been powerless to enter Babylon unless the gates to the city had been left open. The most phenomenal thing about this incident is that the God of heaven had predicted, one hundred and fifty years before he was even born, even giving his name, that Cyrus would conquer Babylon in exactly this way . The strong, lumbering bear of Medo-Persia had now won its place as absolute ruler of the world and the winged lion passed off the scene.

Isaiah 44:27, 28; 45:1 Who says to the deep, “Be dry! And I will dry up your rivers;” Who says of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and he shall perform all My pleasure”?… To Cyrus, whose right hand I have held—to subdue nations before him and loose the armor of kings, to open before him the double doors, so that the gates will not be shut.”

The Third Kingdom: Greece 331 – 168 BC

Daniel 7:5 After this I looked, and there was another, like a leopard, which had on its back four wings of a bird. The beast also had four heads, and dominion was give to it.

Not a lion nor a bear, but beast like has never walked the earth before now arises from the sea. A leopard with four heads and four wings. As a lion evokes visions of beauty and majesty and as the bear brings thoughts of strength and power, so the leopard’s distinguishing feature is its speed. A leopard is neither strong nor powerful, but cunning and swift it is. Add the ability of flight and the leopard becomes a super-sonic beast. Wings are a fit symbol of speed in the Bible. (Habakkuk 1:8; Exodus 19:4) History reveals the incredible accuracy of prophecy. The youthful Greek general, Alexander the Great, with fifty thousand men conquered the Persian military might of a million men. On the fields of Arbela, Darius king of the Persians, sent word to say, “You can be the king of the West, and I’ll be the king of the East.” Alexander the Great retorted, “As there is not room for two suns in the sky, there is not room for you and I.” And he totally defeated Darius, with one man to every twenty of Darius’s. From there he went to conquer the entire known world from Greece to India in about eight years. They marched incessantly, conquering and conquering. They stopped only because it seemed like there was no one left to conquer and his soldiers threatened mutiny. “Dominion was given” to the swift leopard with four wings of a bird and the powerful bear took its place in the annals of history.

This unusual leopard had not only four wings, but four heads, as well. Heads in Bible prophecy, like beasts and horns, can represent kings or kingdoms (Revelation 17:9, 10). Four kings of divisions were to arise from the universal scepter of Alexander the Great. After conquering nearly the entire world, Alexander the Great was unable to conquer himself. With no more territory to add to his realm, he became absorbed in feasting, drinking and reveling. After one of these riotous nights, he was stricken with fever and never rose from his bed. Being of young man in his early thirties, he had no grown heir to take the throne, so his strongest generals resolved to hold his kingdom until their general’s son was grown. As could be surmised, with several ambitious generals holding the territory of the kingdom, the purpose did not last long. They began fighting one another seeking to get more territory for themselves. Within a short period the numerous generals were reduced to four holding the then four divisions of Alexander’s mammoth conquests. These four generals were Cassander, Lysimachus, Seleucus and Ptolemy, exactly corresponding with the four heads of the once cunning and swift leopard.

The Fourth Kingdom: Rome 168 BC – AD 476

Daniel 7:7 After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong. It had huge iron teeth; it was devouring, breaking in pieces, and trampling the residue with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns.”

As the fourth beast arose from the sea, Daniel could find no resemblance to liken it to. It was totally different from any beast or depiction than he had ever seen. So, lacking a descriptive animal, he refers to it as “dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong” beast. This beast was not majestic like the lion nor was it fast like the leopard, but it had iron-like, brute strength. Similar to the legs of iron to which it corresponded, this beast “had huge iron teeth.” No better description could have been given than the cruel and tyrannical rule of Rome for over six hundred years. As the Word of God had declared, “that kingdom will break in pieces and crush all the others” (Daniel 2:40), so the Roman armies from Pompey and through the Caesars subjugated the kingdoms around them. In the words of Julius Caesar, “Veni, vidi, vici.” Rome came, she saw and she conquered. It was Rome that called Joseph and Mary to make the journey to Bethlehem. It was Rome that killed all the babies in Bethlehem. It was Rome that crucified Jesus. It was Rome that put her seal on Jesus’ tomb. It is from Rome that we have the legacy of our months of July and August, from Julius and Augustus Caesar. And it bore sway over the entire world, just as God had predicted. The historian of the Roman Empire, Edward Gibbon, saw an exact fulfillment of the metallic image of Daniel 2 when he said: “The arms of the Republic [Rome], sometimes vanquished in battle, always victorious in war, advanced with rapid steps to the Euphrates, the Danube, the Rhine and the ocean; and the images of gold, or silver, or brass, that might serve to represent the nations and their kings, were successively broken by the iron monarchy of Rome.” Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, vol. 3, ch. 38, pg. 634. Rome, the fourth world empire to rule the world, matched the descriptions given hundreds of years before in God’s Word perfectly. The harsh, cruel strength of the iron legs and the non-descript beast which was to “devour the whole earth, trample it and break it in pieces.” (Daniel 7:23)

Ten Horns: a Division

Daniel 7:23, 24a Thus he said: “The fourth beast shall be a fourth kingdom on earth, which shall be different from all other kingdom, and shall devour the whole earth, trample it and break it in pieces. The ten horns are ten kings who shall arise form this kingdom.”

Naturally our human expectation would be that a fifth world empire would arise and conquer the existing power of Rome, just as the lion had fallen to the bear and the bear to the leopard and so on, but this is not what God’s prophetic eye saw. Instead of a fifth world power arising, God predicted a breakup, a fragmentation of the legs of iron, a division into the ten horns or ten kings. Was this fulfilled?

From the years AD 351 until AD 476, barbarian tribes swept across Western Europe, carving a portion of the once mighty Roman Empire for themselves. There were the Anglo-Saxons who went to the shores of England, the Franks who established France, the Alemanni who built Germany, the Burgundians, Vandals, Ostrogoths, Suevi, Heruli, Lombards and the Visigoths—ten in number. Bible prophecy had predicted that the fourth world empire would collapse into ten inferior kingdoms, and now we look on as history stamps its approval upon the “prophetic word made more sure” (II Peter 1:19) given one thousand years before it occurred. The next events foretold in prophecy astonished Daniel even more and became the focal point of his fascinating dream.

The Antichrist Arises!

Daniel 7:8, 23-25 I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them, before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots. And there in this horn, were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking pompous words.... Thus he said: “The fourth beast shall be a fourth kingdom on earth, which shall be different from all other kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, trample it and break it in pieces. The ten horns are ten kings who shall arise from this kingdom. And another shall rise after them; he shall be different from the first ones, and shall subdue three kings. He shall speak pompous words against the Most High, shall persecute the saints of the Most High, and shall intend to change times and law. Then the saints shall be given into his hand for a time and times and half a time.”

I John 2:18, 19 Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour. They went out form us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us: but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us.

II John 7 For many deceiver have gone out into the world who do not confess Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.

II Thessalonians 2:3, 4 Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.

Not another beast is seen, but a horn arising from the head of the fourth beast. This horn is not like any other horns, though; it has eyes and an active mouth! It is clear by comparing this passage with other scriptures that this is none other than the antichrist. By studying the evolution and development of this little horn, it will be seen when and where this infamous power is to arise.

#1 – The Antichrist is not a single man, but many.

I John 2:18 Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour.

Many people think that the antichrist is some future man to arise who will rule with a despotic hand, but prophecy does not reveal such a picture. Prophecy predicts that there were to be many antichrists, not just one.

#2 – The Antichrist is a political power.

Daniel 7:8 I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them, before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots. And there in this horn, were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking pompous words.

It is very important to note that the antichrist is a horn. A horn in Bible prophecy is representative of a king or kingdom (see Dan. 7:24). The antichrist is not an evil man, but an entire kingdom similar to the other ten horns (which have now become the nations of Europe). This fact can be clearly seen from John’s writing in which he unequivocally states that there are many more than just one antichrist. The antichrist is not a man, but a system and political power that exalts itself above the God of heaven.

#3 – The Antichrist is to arise from Rome.

By a careful review of Daniel’s dream, it is self-evident where the antichrist was to arise from. The little horn clearly comes up from the fourth beast, which can be none other than Rome. The antichrist could not arise from South America, the United States or some other place. The antichrist must arise from the fourth beast, Rome, or it does not match the Biblical criteria. Not only must it arise from Rome, but it was to “come up among” the other ten horns. It was to arise from the ten tribes that Rome was broken up into.

#4 – The Antichrist arrives shortly after the break-up of Rome.

Daniel 7:23, 24 Thus he said: “The fourth beast shall be a fourth kingdom on earth, which shall be different from all other kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, trample it and break it in pieces. The ten horns are ten kings who shall arise from this kingdom. And another shall rise after them; he shall be different from the first ones, and shall subdue three kings.”

This clear prophecy even gives the general time for the antichrist to appear upon the scene. This antichrist power must come up after the other ten tribes, but not too far afterward, for the prophecy states that it must uproot three of the tribes. The mighty Roman Empire was broken up into ten different Germanic tribes from AD 351 – AD 476. So the Antichrist had to arise shortly after AD 476. This does not mean that it did not exist beforehand, but that it was to arise to political authority sometime after AD 476. To look for him before Christ came is like searching for a snorkeling beach in Siberia—you just won’t find it. Neither will it do to look way into the future some thousand plus years, for then it could not have arisen from the shambles of Rome, either. Sometime right around AD 476, you will find the arrival of the antichrist. So this power was to come somewhere from the territory which Rome was broken up into (i.e. western Europe or northern Africa) and was to arise to power after the division of Rome, but not far afterward, for it was going to conquer three kingdoms that arose from Rome.

#5 – The Antichrist begins small, but becomes a world power.

Daniel 7:20 And about the ten horns that were on its head, and about 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.

At the beginning of its reign, it was described as a “little horn,” but through the course of time he became “greater than his fellows” (fellow horns, or kingdoms). This European religious-political power was to begin its career dwarfed by the other kingdoms, but that was to change. Not only was it going to subdue three of the original ten tribes, but it was also to become greater than the other horns and exercise dominion over them. The Antichrist was going to begin as a small religious power, but grow to involvement in politics, even to the point of uprooting three of the other horns. This was not all, though. It was to become great and become a world power.

#6 – The Antichrist speaks blasphemy against the God of heaven.

Daniel 7:25 He shall speak pompous words against the Most High, shall persecute the saints of the Most High, and shall intend to change times and law. Then the saints shall be given into his hand for a time and times and half a time.”

This power was also going to speak blasphemous words against the God of heaven, even claiming to be God and to persecute the faithful people of God. It is no wonder that this power is referred to in Scripture as an antichrist power. There is no doubt about the religious nature of this power as he was to blaspheme the God of heaven.

#7 – The Antichrist was to persecute God’s people.

War was to be declared by this power upon the people of God. No wonder God must intervene on the behalf of His faithful people.

#8 – The Antichrist had apostolic origins and was to continue till Jesus comes again.

II Thessalonians 2:3, 4, 7, 8 Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshipped, so that he sits as God in temple of God, showing himself that he is God… For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of his mouth and destroy with the brightness of his coming.

The Antichrist power was already at work in Paul’s day (about AD 51), and would continue until Jesus’ coming. This power, although already at work, was restrained. Rome was in one of its strongest eras and nothing could arise until it was taken out of the way, but as soon as it was taken away, the antichrist would rise and continue until Jesus comes in the clouds of glory. This power was also to sit in the temple (church by New Testament terminology, Ephesians 2:19-22) claiming to be God. The beast was to derive its power from the demise of the Caesars, all the while sitting in the church and claiming to be God.

#9 – The Antichrist was to attempt to change God’s holy Law.

The boldest and most blasphemous of all marks was that it was to attack the constitution of heaven. It was to “intend to change times and law.” An attempt was to be made to rewrite the constitution of the eternal throne, a blasphemous act indeed.

Identifying the Antichrist

What power could this be? It is a religious-political power arising somewhere in Europe, but whose authority eventually extends over the entire world. A power that was to begin small, but was going to grow to power until it was stronger than those around it. It is a power that was going to persecute Christians for religious reasons. It is a power that would claim to be God and claim to be able to forgive sins. A power that was beginning to develop in Paul’s time, but was to endure until Jesus comes in all His glory. It is a power that was to sit in the church, and was to arise to power after the decline of the Caesars of pagan Rome. What power could this be? There is only one that matches the description.

“To the succession of the Caesars came the succession of the Pontiffs in Rome. When Constantine left Rome he gave his seat to the Pontiff.” Labanca, Professor of History at the University of Rome.

“The popes filled the place of the vacant emperors at Rome, inheriting their power, their prestige, and titles from paganism. Constantine left all to the bishop of Rome. The papacy is but the ghost of the deceased Roman Empire, sitting crowned upon its grave.” Stanley’s History, page 40.

Before going any further, it should be noted that we must not have any animosity toward any person or any group of people. The Lord Jesus loves every single person on this earth and gave His life for each one; and we need to have that same love for every single individual regardless of their race, background, or religious persuasion. At the same time that we are to love everyone, we must not be ignorant of what Bible prophecy teaches. If the Bible points out a counterfeit system as the beast power, we must be willing to acknowledge the fact and speak the truth, but always in love (Ephesians 4:15). We are not referring to people or personalities, but a system—a system that Bible prophecy identifies as the beast power. With this understood, if we are going to be faithful to the Bible, there is only one power in all the world that matches the identifying points of the beast. It is none other than the Papacy of Rome. Paul wrote that a power would rise to prominence after the pagan Roman emperors were taken out of the way, and that the pagan Roman Caesar’s would give their power and authority to this new power. Roman Catholic historians themselves acknowledge this undeniable fact.

Every identifying point must match, though, or this is not the power pointed out by prophecy. It is as if we were putting together a puzzle. A piece might be found that is a perfect fit on three sides, but if it doesn’t fit the fourth side, it isn’t the right piece. If there were even a piece that fit perfectly on all four sides, but did not match the color scheme, it would be the wrong piece. So if the power that we are beginning to identify as the antichrist does not match all of the identifying points, we must keep looking for the true antichrist; but if each and every point matches exactly, there can be no doubt that we have discovered the beast power of prophecy.

The Papacy, or this medieval church of the dark ages matches every point that we have covered and all forty or fifty found in prophecy. There is no question that it is not just a man, but a religious-political power or system. It is indeed a “horn” and that is “different from the first ones.”

The fact that it arose from Rome cannot be obscured. It still retains the name of its origins in its title—the Church of Rome. It indeed came “up among them.” Without a doubt, the medieval church arose from the very heart of the Roman Empire, Rome itself.

The Little Horn was to arise after the division of the Roman Empire (AD 476) and to uproot three of the ten tribes that divided the Roman Empire. One of the ten tribes, the Heruli, had a different belief on the Godhead than the medieval church. Besides that, they reigned in Italy and would give the papacy no political dominion. The elections of the popes even had to be approved by Odoacer, king of the Heruli. So, in 493, through the instigation of the papacy, the Ostrogoths drove the Heruli out of Italy: and thus the first of the three tribes were uprooted. Another Arian tribe, the Vandals, from the vicinity of Carthage, northern Africa, posed a threat to the politically emerging Papacy. Under the direction of Rome, Justinian, emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire from Constantinople, sent his general Belisarius and took Carthage in 533, and the Vandals disappeared from history—“plucked up.” Theodoric king of the Ostrogoths (the third and final tribe), also an Arian power in Italy, believed in and granted religious liberty to all. Justinian would have none of that. In the name of the “true faith” (Catholicism), he again sent out Belisarius, who through the treason of the Catholic clergy and laity, entered Rome in AD 536. The Ostrogoths tried to reconquer their territory, but in AD 538 they retreated from Rome to Ravena. Belisarius followed them and conquered their last stronghold; the power of the Ostrogoths was broken. The medieval church had, for the first time in its history, gained temporal dominion. In AD 538, the Papacy became, not just a church, but also a political power, or a “horn.” The prophecy had been exactly fulfilled.

“Whose appearance was greater than his fellows.” (Daniel 7:20). Although the medieval church’s beginnings were small, it definitely became greater than the other horns. Its lands were dispersed through all of Europe; it exacted taxes from the other countries, claimed the right to dispose kings and rulers, and, on more than one occasion, did.

The Antichrist is described as persecuting the people of God, and when the records of history are cracked, it is readily seen that millions of Christians died for no other crime than having a Bible or keeping the Sabbath. The medieval church has been responsible for more deaths than Hitler and Stalin combined. An estimated fifty million Christians lost their lives during the period of Papal supremacy. In March of 2000, Pope John Paul II publicly asked forgiveness for the wrongs committed by some Catholics. The Columbus Dispatch, March 13, 2000, commented, “The church burned heretics at the stake during the Inquisition. Armies of the faithful slaughtered Muslims during the Crusades. And during the Holocaust, some Catholics [Pope Pius XII being one of them] stood silent in the face of Nazi genocide.”

There is no question about the eighth point of having apostolic origins and continuing until Jesus comes again. In any church book the claim will be made that Peter was the founder of this medieval church (that claim is questionable to say the least), and this medieval church still exists with us yet today.

The Constitution Attacked

The most blasphemous of all was the attack made upon the constitution of heaven. It is a very serious charge indeed, when an assault is made upon an earthly constitution, but when the entire government of heaven is at stake, it becomes one of the highest crimes possible. Yet, this is exactly what the prophecy has predicted. God revealed that the Antichrist would intend to change times and law. This intentional change would be a part of God’s law dealing with time. You can look at every one of the commandments, but there is only one that deals with time. It is wrong anytime to steal, commit adultery, take God’s name in vain, etc., but there is one commandment in particular that deals with time. The only commandment dealing with time is the fourth or Sabbath commandment. This commandment specifies that there is a certain time that it is correct to do certain things and there is a time which Jesus has asked us not to. Has this commandment been attacked, thus fulfilling this identifying mark of attacking the constitution of heaven? There is no doubt that someone has been tampering with God’s holy Law, and God has said that He would not. As we study from the Bible, we clearly see that there His Sabbath is on the seventh day or Saturday, but most seem to think it is on Sunday. When and how did this change in the thought process come? When was the attack made against the constitution of heaven?

The First Day of the Week in History

The earliest historical records bear sway that Sunday was a universal day for worship, but not for the worship of the God of heaven, but for the worship of the Sun. This is why it still bears the name of “Sunday” today. For this there are numerous historical records.

“Sabbath… A Hebrew word signifying rest … Sunday was a name given by the heathens to the first day of the week, because it was the day on which they worshipped the sun.” Bible Encyclopedia, John Eadie, D.D., LL.D., pg. 561.

“The retention of the old pagan name of Dies Solis, for Sunday, is in a great measure owing to the union of Pagan and Christian sentiment with which the first day of the week was recommended by Constantine to his subjects Pagan and Christian alike, as the ‘venerable day of the sun.’” History of the Eastern Church, 184.

This sun worship had become almost universal. It is very clear that the sun was worshipped in ancient Egypt. You can see the sun being worshipped in Babylon. In Persia it gained even greater prominence with Mithraism. Although many historians think that worship of the moon came first, there is no doubt that sun worship became the predominant worship around the world.

“In ancient Babylonia the sun was worshipped from immemorial antiquity.” The Worship of Nature, vol. 1, James G. Brazer, pg. 529

“Then the earth became a goddess fertilized by the hot rays, and men worshiped the great orb as the father of all things living. From this simple beginning sun-worship passed down into the pagan faiths of antiquity, and many a later god was only a personification of the sun. Anaxagoras was exiled by the learned Greeks because he ventured the guess that the sun was not a god, but merely a ball of fire, about the size of the Peloponnesus.” Our Oriental Heritage, Will Durant, pg. 59, 1954, Simon & Schuster.

The entire world had become infected with the worship of the created (the sun) instead of the Creator (the God of heaven). Their universal day of worship was on the day of the sun, the first day of the week, which we commonly call Sunday today. Thus the entire world was deceived and transgressing the Law of God; the entire world, except a small nation—the nation of Israel. God had called this nation to stand apart from the pagan practices of the world as an example. Yet, they did not withstand the influences of Sun worship. The enticing attractions of sun worship allured them, too.

Ezekiel 8:16 So He brought me into the inner court of the LORD’S house; and there, at the door of the temple of the LORD, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men with their backs toward the temple of the LORD and their faces toward the east, and they were worshiping the sun toward the east.

Ezekiel 20:21 Notwithstanding, the children rebelled against Me; they did not walk in My statutes, and were not careful to observe My judgments, ‘which, if a man does, he shall live by them’; but they profaned My Sabbaths. Then I said I would pour out My fury on them and fulfill My anger against them in the wilderness.

They turned to the east, worshiping the sun, and forgot the Sabbath of the Lord. It was the worst of all the abominations revealed to Ezekiel. It was because they had forgotten the Sabbaths of the Lord that they were exiled to Babylon (Jeremiah 17:27). It was hard to stand alone against the rest of the world, but this is exactly what the God of heaven called His people to do. He called upon them to worship the Creator on His Sabbath day, not to compromise with the pagan world around them and mix sun worship with the worship of the God of heaven.

Early Christians and the Sabbath

In the early Christian church, the Sabbath was sacredly kept. In the entire New Testament, there is not one allusion to Sunday being kept as a religious day. There is no record of a change ever taking place and history still reveals that it was the seventh-day Sabbath that was observed in the early church.

“Rev. Joseph Bingham, M.A. says: ‘The ancient Christians were very careful in the observation of Saturday, or the seventh day, which was the ancient Jewish Sabbath. Some observed it as a fast, others as a festival; but all unanimously agreed in keeping it as a more solemn day of religious worship and adoration….’ Antiquities of the Christian Church, vol. II, Book XX, chap. 3, sec. 1, pp. 1137, 1138, London: 1852

Bishop Jeremy Taylor says: ‘The primitive Christians did keep the Sabbath of the Jews; … therefore Christians, for a long time together did keep their conventions upon the Sabbath, in which some portions of the law were read: and this continued till the time of the Laodicean council; which also took care that the reading of the Gospels should be mingled with their reading of the law.’ ‘The Whole Works’ of Jeremy Taylor, vol. IX, p. 416 London: 1822….

Dr. T. H. Morer (a Church of England divine) says: ‘The primitive Christians had a great veneration for the Sabbath, and spent the day in devotion and sermons. And it is not to be doubted but they derived this practice from the apostles themselves, as appears by several scriptures to that purpose.’ ‘Dialogues on the Lord’s Day’ p. 189. London: 1701.” Quoted in Facts of Faith, Christian Edwardson, pp. 69, 70, Southern Publishing Association, 1943.

The Subtle Change

Acts 20:29, 30 For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves.

Paul warned that from the New Testament church itself errors and heresies would spring up. He likened the false apostles to savage wolves. Wecan see in the records of history this very event transpiring.

“John Dowling, D. D., says: ‘There is scarcely anything which strikes the mind of the careful student of ancient ecclesiastical history with greater surprise, than the comparatively early period at which many of the corruptions of Christianity, which are embodied in the Romish system, took their rise’–‘History of Romanism,’ Book II, chap. 1, par. 1, p. 65….

“Mr. Cumont says further: ‘The ecclesiastical authorities purified in some degree the customs which they could not abolish.’ ‘The pre-eminence assigned to the dies Solis [Sunday] by Mithraism also certainly contributed to the general recognition of Sunday as a holiday [among Christians].’–‘Astrology and Religion Among the Greeks and Romans,’ pp. 171, 162, 163. New York:1912.” Quoted in Facts of Faith, Christian Edwardson, pg. 82, 83, Southern Publishing Association, 1943.

As there was strong persecution taking place against the Jews, some compromising church leaders thought it would be advantageous to distance themselves from the Jews by observing a different day. It would only be natural to keep the day that all the pagans did, thus making it easier for them to “embrace” Christianity. Thus man attempted to change the plainest precept in the Ten Commandment Law. The Constitution of heaven was attacked.

“Rev. William Frederick likewise states the same historic fact: ‘The Gentiles were an idolatrous people who worshiped the sun, and Sunday was their most sacred day. Now, in order to reach the people in this new field, it seems but natural, as well as necessary, to make Sunday the rest day of the church. At this time it was necessary for the church to either adopt the Gentiles’ day or else have the Gentiles change their day. To change the Gentiles’ day would have been an offence and stumbling block to them. The church could naturally reach them better by keeping their day. There was no need in causing an unnecessary offence by dishonoring their day’–‘Sunday and the Christian Sabbath,’ pp. 169, 170; quoted in Signs of the Times, Sept. 6, 1927.

“Thomas H. Morer makes a similar acknowledgement. He says: ‘Sunday being the day on which the Gentiles solemnly adored that planet, and called it Sunday, . . · the Christians thought fit to keep the same day and the same name of it, that they might not appear causelessly peevish, and by that means hinder the conversion of the Gentiles, and bring a greater prejudice than might be otherwise taken against the gospel.’ –‘Dialogues on the Lord’s Day,’ p. 23. London:1701.

“The North British Review gives the following reasons for the Christians’ adopting the heathen Sun-day: ‘That very day was the Sunday of their heathen neighbors and respective countrymen, and patriotism gladly united with expediency in making it at once their Lord’s day and their Sabbath .... Paul warned that from the New Testament church itself errors and herThat primitive church, in fact, was shut up to the adoption of the Sunday, until it became established and supreme, when it was too late to make another alteration.’–Vol. XVIII, p. 409. Edinburgh:Feb., 1853.” Quoted in Facts of Faith, Christian Edwardson, pg. 83, 84, Southern Publishing Association, 1943.

In the Council of Laodicea, this change became a part of the official church record: “Christians shall not Judaize and be idle on Saturday [Greek sabbaton, the Sabbath] but shall work on that day; but the Lord’s day they shall be especially honour, and, as being Christians, shall, if possible, do no work on that day. If, however, they are found Judaizing, they shall be shut out from Christ.”

Thus it began that as apostasy grew in the medieval church, the Sabbath was gradually dropped for the day which all the pagans around them were keeping. The church compromised and thus departed from God as Israel of old did. This change is still acknowledged today.

“The church took the pagan philosophy and made it the buckler of faith against the heathen. She took the pagan Roman Pantheon, temple of all the gods, and made it sacred to all the martyrs; so it stands to this day. She took the pagan Sunday and made it the Christian Sunday. She took the pagan Easter and made it the feast we celebrate during this season… The sun was a foremost God with heathendom. Hence, the Church, would seem to have said, ‘Keep that old pagan name. It shall remain consecrated, sanctified.’ And thus, the pagan Sunday, dedicated to Balder, became the Christian Sunday, sacred to Jesus.” Catholic World (March 1894), pages 58, 809.

“Have you any other way of proving that the church has power to institute festivals of precept? Had she not such power, she could not have done that in which all modern religionists agree with her;—she could not have substituted the observance of Sunday, the first day of the week, for the observance of Saturday the seventh day, a change for which there is no Scriptural authority.” A Doctrinal Catechism, Stephen Keenan, pg. 174.

“The church, after changing the day of rest from the Jewish Sabbath of the seventh day of the week to the first made the Third Commandment refer to Sunday as the day to be kept holy as the Lord’s Day.” The Catholic Encyclopedia, vol. 4, pg. 153.

“You may read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation and you will not find a single line authorizing the sanctification of Sunday. The Scriptures enforce the religious observance of Saturday.” Faith of our Fathers, Cardinal James Gibbons, pg. 561.

This change is still acknowledge by Protestants today.

“There is no scriptural evidence of the change of the Sabbath institution from the seventh to the first day of the week… Of course, I quite well know that Sunday did come into use in early Christian history as a religious day, as we learn from the Christian Fathers and other sources. But what a pity that it comes branded with the mark of paganism, and christened with the name of the sun god, when adopted and sanctified by the papal apostasy, and bequeathed as a sacred legacy to Protestantism!” Dr. Edward T. Hiscox, author of The Baptist Manual, in a paper read before a New York minister’s conference held November 13, 1893.

The fact comes down to us today. What will we do about it? The seventh-day Sabbath has never been changed in the Bible. God does not change. (Malachi 3:6) Jesus does not change. (Hebrews 13:8) The apostles did not change it. (Acts 5:29) It was the medieval church of the dark ages that attempted to attack the constitution of heaven. This attack is still with us today. The change has become so hoary with age that few of us think anything about it, but here it stands in prophecy, revealing to us our need to follow Jesus all the way. If we truly accept Jesus as our Lord, then we are going to follow and obey Him. If we accept the antichrist power as lord, then we will follow and obey it. Who is your Lord? Who are you going to obey?

Joshua 24:15 And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.