Keys to Prophecy: 3

THE THIRD KEY TO PROPHECY IS TIMELINE

In Bible prophecy and history, great lengths of time will span a few verses. Revelation 12 has a compressed timeline spanning 6,000 years of past, present and future. The interval of time between Genesis 1:1 and 1:2 is at least 13 Bilion years or so. The key to understanding prophecy is to recognize when events have already occurred or if they will occur in the future. Also, understanding that hundreds or thousands of years can span over just a few verses is also essential to remember as one studies prophecy. Another important key to prophecy is to understand that every time a new event is introduced it may also change the perspective (timewise). As an example, Revelation 12 will be highlighted because it covers pre-history, current history and near future in a little over a dozen verses.

Just as Daniel gives a prophetic milestone list, so does Revelation. Revelation 12 is the key to understanding prophecy in its entirety because it takes a time break and begins with what started everything in the first place. Revelation 12 is a record of past events up to the present and the near future, Revelation 13 explains what happens in the near future.

Revelation Chapter 12 begins a new perspective of the vision. Chapter 11 just ended with the Return of Christ. Chapter 12 gives another overview going all the way back to the original war of the angels.

Revelation 12
1 And a great sign was seen in the heaven, a woman arrayed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars,
2 and being with child she doth cry out, travailing and pained to bring forth.
See Stars and Moon represent Israel. See Genesis 37:8-10

This shows the birth of Christ (in the past)

3 And there was seen another sign in the heaven, and, lo, a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his head seven diadems,
4 and his tail doth draw the third of the stars of the heaven, and he did cast them to the earth;

Another event is now introduced. This event introduces the dragon and the part he plays in Bible history and prophecy. The description of the dragon pulling one third of the stars from the sky is a reference to Satan deceiving one third of the angles to rebel and join in what is called the war of the angels. This event occurred shortly before Genesis 1:2

and the dragon did stand before the woman who is about to bring forth, that when she may bring forth, her child he may devour;
5 and she brought forth a male child, who is about to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, and caught away was her child unto God and His throne,

More history. This shows how Satan inspired King Herod to kill all of the baby boys under the age of two in an attempt to kill the infant messiah. God intervened and Christ fulfilled his mission and is now at the right hand of the father

6 and the woman did flee to the wilderness, where she hath a place made ready from God, that there they may nourish her -- days a thousand, two hundred, sixty.

In just two verses, the scriptures goes from the past (Birth of Christ) to the near future (When the Elect are taked to a place of safety for 3 1/2 years). Some Christians believe this refers to the rapture. Others believe a physical place of safety somewhere on Earth.

7 And there came war in the heaven; Michael and his messengers did war against the dragon, and the dragon did war, and his messengers,
8 and they did not prevail, nor was their place found any more in the heaven;
9 and the great dragon was cast forth -- the old serpent, who is called `Devil,' and `the Adversary,' who is leading astray the whole world -- he was cast forth to the earth, and his messengers were cast forth with him.
Young's Literal Translation.

Now the vision flashes back again to the War of the Angels before Genesis 1:2. The reason we know this, is because Satan and his angels were cast to the Earth before the time of Adam. If this wasn't a flash back in time, then that would mean the Devil and his angels have been in heaven all this time, including now, and we know that is not the case.

Prophecies in the Old Testament don't usually go back and forth like this in the same chapter. However, this moving viewpoint through history and future events is common throughout Revelation. The rule of thumb for OT prophecies is to look for a possible time switch at a chapter break. Somtimes the time switch occurs where there are obvious subject breaks within a chapter. It takes other scriptures within the Bible to make sure one can tell when events are occurring. This is covered in Keys to Prophecy 4.

10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:
"Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God,
and the authority of his Christ.
For the accuser of our brothers,
who accuses them before our God day and night,
has been hurled down.
11 They overcame him
by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony;
they did not love their lives so much
as to shrink from death.
12 Therefore rejoice, you heavens
and you who dwell in them!
But woe to the earth and the sea,
because the devil has gone down to you!
He is filled with fury,
because he knows that his time is short."

This Angelic commentary covers from the War of the Angels to the End Time Tribulation.

13 When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child.
14 The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the desert, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent's reach.
15 Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river, to overtake the woman and sweep her away with the torrent.
16 But the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that the dragon had spewed out of his mouth.
17 Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to make war against the rest of her offspring--those who obey God's commandments and hold to the testimony of Jesus.

This time the the timeline goes all the back to right after the war of the Angels to the Tribulation. Note: Revelation 12 covers a 6,000 time period, not once but more than once. Without understanding this important key to prophecy, (Time compression and flashbacks) this chapter is impossible to understand. This particular chapter does it more than any other prophetic chapter in the Bible. This is why I used this chapter to demonstrate and explain the principal.

Keys To Prophecy: 4

Prophetic Holy Days

Keys To Prophecy: 1

Keys To Prophecy: 2

Watch the Main Page for any announcements concerning updates to this section.

REFERENCES

Angels and the War of the Angels

The Angels are eternal beings. The fallen angels will end up in Tartaroo sooner or later for eternity.

2 Peter 2:4 ... God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment;

Jude 1:6 And the angels who did not keep their proper domain, but left their own abode, He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day;

In the mean time, since God gave the Angels free will, God has to let the pattern play out or the gift of free will was false. God did prevent them from winning the war, and God is now allowing 6,000 years to allow mankind to experience the fruit of sin and evil before bringing the rest of the 1,000 years of Christ where mankind will experience the fruit of righteousness and obedience to God's law. In the long run, all of creation will benefit of seeing the folly and vanity of evil.

-+ Quick Notes concerning the war of the angels as noted in other religions. -+

In the Kena Upanishad, you will find that the Divine Mother shed wisdom on Indra and the gods and said that the gods were able to defeat the demons only with the help of the power of the Supreme Lord.

There is mention of a similiar being in Hindu literature by the name of Nahusa who was a being of great power who was Lord of the Earth but wanted to become the Lord of Heaven but fell from grace and was sent back to earth in the form of a snake*.

*Sounds a lot like the serpent in Genesis.
----

-= Biblical Proof of the War of Angels =-

Christ said:
Luke 10:18 And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven


SATAN
2 Corinthians 4:4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

Q: We know Satan is the god of this world otherwise he couldn't have tempted Jesus on the mount. So why did God allow Satan to maintain his rule and authority after the rebellion.

A: When God was dealing with Israel during the time of King Saul, after Saul disobeyed God, God cursed him so that none of his sons would become Kings, but allowed Saul to continue as King for decades before David took over.

Until someone is qualified to take over the office God allows them to continue in the office in hopes they will repent. The repentance of Satan is still possible but most improbable. You must remember, Satan has only 6,000 years of rule as a rebellious decieving spirit. Because Christ qualified to replace Satan, soon he will return and continue to repair the damage caused by Satan. In contrast, Lucifer ruled for millions, possibly billions of years on the planet before then. From that perspective, God is giving Satan a weeks warning.

Also, the plan of God now has as a permanent part of history what the results of sin are, 6,000 years of history when its all said and done.

See the Plan of God.


And from Ezekial we read
Ezekiel 28:12 .."`You were the model of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.
13 You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone adorned you: ruby, topaz and emerald, chrysolite, onyx and jasper, sapphire, turquoise and beryl. Your settings and mountings were made of gold; on the
day you were created they were prepared.
14 You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you. You were on the holy mount of God; you walked among the fiery stones.
15 You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created till wickedness was found in you.
16 Through your widespread trade you were filled with violence, and you sinned. So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God, and I expelled you, O guardian cherub, from among the fiery stones.
17 Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor. So I threw you to the earth; I made a spectacle of you before kings.

Isaiah 14:12 How you have fallen from heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations!
13 You said in your heart, "I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain.
14 I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High."

And in Revelations we read....

Revelation 12
3 And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.
4 And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born.
5 And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.


...
7 And there came war in the heaven; Michael and his messengers did war against the dragon, and the dragon did war, and his messengers,
8 and they did not prevail, nor was their place found any more in the heaven;
9 and the great dragon was cast forth -- the old serpent, who is called `Devil,' and `the Adversary,' who is leading astray the whole world -- he was cast forth to the earth, and his messengers were cast forth with him.

Keys To Prophecy: 4

Prophetic Holy Days

Keys To Prophecy: 1

Keys To Prophecy: 2

Keys To Prophecy: 3

Keys To Prophecy: 4

Rebellion of Lucifer

Scientific Evidence of the War of the Angels

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