Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. 2 Tim. 2:15

King James AV1611

 
 

Mystery of The Ages
Mystery of The Ages© -is a book written by Dr. James Modlish
-reprinted here with the author's permission-




THE TRIBULATION


INTRODUCTION: The emphasis of the Bible during the Church Age is on a man, but a God man, God made manifest in the flesh, the Lord Jesus Christ. The emphasis of the Tribulation is also upon a man, but this man will be Satan made manifest in the flesh or Satan incarnate, the Antichrist.

In (1 Tim. 3:16) Christ is spoken of as the "Mystery of Godliness." That is, that He was God manifest in the flesh. How did He become "manifest in the flesh"? By being born of the Virgin Mary by the Holy Spirit. Thus, it was that Jesus was the "Son of God", (Lk. 1:35).

In (2 Thess. 2:7), the Antichrist is referred to as "the mystery of iniquity." As Christ was born of a virgin by the Holy Spirit, so Antichrist must be born of a woman by Satan. Hence, Gen. 3:15 comes into full light, "I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between "thy seed" and "her seed". The woman's seed was Christ, then the Serpent's seed must be Antichrist.

By closely comparing scripture with scripture it can be readily seen that the Antichrist will be none other than Judas Iscariot.

Consider the following facts:

[1]. Jesus called Judas a devil - (Jn. 6:70,71)

[2]. Jesus called Judas the "Son of perdition" - (Jn. 17:12)

[3]. Paul refers to the Antichrist as "the Son of perdition" - (2 Thess. 2:3)

[4]. Perdition is a place - (Rev. 17:8,11)

[5]. Judas went to his own place - (Acts 1:25)

[6]. According to (Rev. 17:8) the beast or Antichrist is someone who:

  1. "was"

  2. "is not" (at the time John was writing)

  3. "shall ascend out of the bottomless pit"

  4. "go into perdition"

 

I. THE CHARACTER OF THE ANTICHRIST

He will be a "composite" man. One who embraces in his character the abilities and powers of Nebuchadnezzar, Xerxes, Alexander the Great and Caesar Augustus. He will have the marvelous gift of attracting unregenerate men, and the irresistible fascination of his personality, his versatile attainments, superhuman wisdom, great administrative and executive ability, along with his powers as a consummate flatterer, a brilliant diplomatist, and a superb strategist, will make him the most conspicuous and prominent of men. All these gifts will be conferred on him by Satan, whose tool he will be, and who will thus make him the Superman.

He will pose as a great humanitarian, the friend of men, and the special friend of the Jewish race, whom he will persuade that he has come to usher in the "Golden age" as pictured by the prophets, and who will receive him as their Messiah.

He will intoxicate men with a strong delusion and his never varying success. And when he shall be slain and rise again he will have lost none of these powers, but will be in addition the embodiment of all kinds of wickedness and blasphemy.

(See Dan. 7:25; 8:25; 11:36; 2 Thess. 2:3-9). Because he will come in peace, he is pictured on the white horse in (Rev. 6). Of course this is an imitation of Christ in (Rev. 19).

II. THE REIGN OF THE ANTICHRIST

He shall reign for seven years, or during the whole of Daniel's "Seventieth Week."

"And he shall confirm the Covenant with many for ONE WEEK (Daniel's Seventieth week) and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease." (Dan. 9:27)

After the Church has been caught out the Jews will be gathered back to their own land unconverted. About this time ten of the Nations occupying the territory of the old Roman Empire will enter into a Federation. Among the Ten Kings of those nations will arise the Antichrist. He will soon prove himself to be a Great Ruler and will be made PRESIDENT. The Government will be a Democratic Monarchy.

The President will make a "Covenant" with the Jewish people. It may be a Covenant restoring to them their own land. Whatever its character, the Prophet Isaiah speaks of it as a "Covenant With Death and Hell." (Isa. 28:15)

For 3 1/2 years the President of the Federation will keep the Covenant. Then he will break it. For the balance of his reign, 3 1/2 years, he will cause an awful persecution of the Jews, called "The Great Tribulation."

We are told in (Rev. 13:3), that one of the "SEVEN HEADS," or "KINGS," received a deadly wound. Which one is not stated. The inference is that it is the last, for the Beast has all of his "HEADS" before one of them is wounded. In (Rev. 17:11) he is called the Beast that WAS, and IS NOT even he is the "EIGHTH," and is of the "SEVEN," and goeth into PERDITION. The only clear explanation of this passage is that the "SEVENTH HEAD" - THE ANTICHRIST, is the one who receives the "deadly wound," probably at the hand of an assassin, and as his body is lying in state prepared for burial, he rises from the dead (Rev. 13:14) and thus becomes the "EIGHTH" though he is of the "SEVEN." By this resurrection of the Antichrist, Satan imitates the Resurrection of Christ and makes the world "wonder after the Beast" (Rev. 13:3), and this adds to his prestige and power. If this happens at the "Middle of the Week," at the time the Dragon is cast out of Heaven, it will account for the great change that takes place in the Antichrist, for before receiving his "deadly wound" he will be sweet and lovable, but after his resurrection or recovery he becomes Devilish, the result of the Dragon incarnating himself in him. It is at this time that he breaks the Covenant with the Jews and desecrates the Temple by setting up the "Abomination of Desolation" which is an "Idol Image" of himself - the "DESOLATOR."

III. THE ANTICHRIST'S PROPHET

Satan is the "God of this World." (Age.) (2 Cor. 4:4)

As the God of this world (Age), he aims to "ape" God. As God sent His Son (Jesus) into the world, so Satan shall send Antichrist into the world. As God was in Christ, so Satan will incarnate himself in Antichrist.

A. Christ has a Church - the "Ecclesia," Antichrist will have a church, the "Synagogue of Satan." (Rev. 2:9; 3:9)
B. Christ will have a Bride, the "Church," (Eph. 5:25-27); Antichrist will have a bride, the "Mystic Harlot Church." (Rev. 17:1-16)
C. Christ has a Cup, "The Communion Cup," (1 Cor. 10:16; 11:25); Antichrist has a cup, the "Cup of Devils." (1 Cor. 10:21)
D. Christ's earthly ministry lasted for three and a half years, and Satan shall reign in Antichrist for the same length of time.
E. Christ died at the age of thirty-three years, and for ought we know Antichrist shall be smitten at the same age; the age at which Alexander the Great, the "Great Horn" of the He-Goat, died.
F. The Godhead is a Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and Satan proposes, as the "God of this Age," to manifest himself as a Trinity. In contradistinction to the Divine Trinity we call this manifestation a SATANIC TRINITY.

The members of it are -

[1]. "The Dragon" - the Anti-GOD"
[2]. "The Beast" - the "Anti-CHRIST.
[3]. "The False Prophet" - the "Anti-Spirit."

Again the "Antichrist" is to be a KING and rule over a KINGDOM. He will accept the "Kingdom of this world" that Satan offered Christ, and that Christ refused. (Matt. 4:8-10) He will also EXALT himself, and claim to be God. (2 Thess. 2:4) But the "False Prophet" is not a King, He does not exalt himself, he exalts the "First Beast" (Antichrist). His relation to the "First Beast" is the same as the Holy Spirit's relation to Christ. He causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the "First Beast." He also has power to give life, and in this he imitates the Holy Spirit. And as the followers of Christ are sealed by the Holy Spirit until the "Day of Redemption" (Eph. 4:30); so, the followers of Antichrist shall be sealed by the False Prophet until the "Day of Perdition." (Rev. 13:16-17)

The False Prophet will be a "Miracle Worker". While Jesus was a "miracle worker," He did all His mighty works in the "power" of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 10:38) Among the miracles that the False Prophet will perform, he will bring down FIRE FROM HEAVEN. As we have seen under the work of the "Two Witnesses," (Rev. 11:1-14) there will probably be a "FIRE-TEST" between Elijah and the False Prophet, and the test as to who is God of Mount Carmel will be repeated. That Satan, who will then energize the False Prophet, can do this is clear from Job 1:16, where Satan, having secured permission from God to touch all that Job had, brought down "fire from heaven" and burned up Job's sheep and servants.

The False Prophet then commands the people to make an "IMAGE OF THE BEAST."




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