PROPHECY XXVI. Descriptive character of the powers that will compose the Antichristian confederacy-The progress of Antichrist to Palestine. -His overthrow there-The restoration of Judah during a time of great trouble at the close of the 1260 years. Dan. ii. 40. The fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things and, as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise. 41. And, whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potter's clay and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided: but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with the miry clay. 42. And, as the toes of the feet were part of iron and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly broken. 43. And, whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay. 44. And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever: 45. Forasmuch as thou sawest-34.-till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. 35. Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone, that smote the image, became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth. vii. 7. After this I saw in the night-visions, and, behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it and it was diverse from all the beasts that went before it; and it had ten horns. 8. I considered the horns. : and behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and behold, in this horn there were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking great things. 9. I beheld, till the thrones were set, and the ancient of days did sit:-10.-the judgment was set, and the books were opened. 11. I beheld then, because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame-23. The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and brake it in pieces. 24. And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise behind them, and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings. 25. And he shall speak great words by the side of the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the Most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time, and times, and the dividing of a time. 26. But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume, and to destroy it unto the end. 27. And the kingdom, and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High; whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him. Rev. xiii. 1. And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy-3. And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed; and all the world wondered after the beast-5. And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to practise forty and two months. 6. And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. 7. And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations-10. He, that leadeth into cap tivity, shall go into captivity: he, that killeth with the sword, must be killed with the sword. 11. And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon. 12. And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. 13. And he doeth great wonders, that he may make fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men. 14. And he deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast, saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image for the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live. 15. And he had power to give life unto the beast's image, that the beast's image should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the beast's image should be killed. 16. And he caused all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: 17. And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. 18. Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast. For it is the number of a man. And his number is 666. xvii. 1. And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore, that sitteth upon many waters: 2. With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornications. 3. So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet-coloured beast full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. 4. And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand, full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication: 5. And upon her forehead was a name written, Mystery, Babylon the great, the mother of harlots and abominations of the earth. 6. And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and, when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration. 7. And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns. 8. The beast, that thou sawest, was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the abyss, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is. 9. And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth. 10. And they are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and, when he cometh, he must continue a short space. 11. And the beast, that was, and is not, even he is that eighth king, and yet is of the seven; and he goeth into perdition. 12. And the ten horns, which thou sawest, are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings in one season with the beast. 13. These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast. 14. These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings; and they that are with him are called, and faithful and chosen. 15. And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples and multitudes, and nations and tongues. 16. And the ten horns, which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and shall burn her with fire: 17. For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled. 18. And the woman, which thou sawest, is that great city which reigneth over the kings of the earth. Dan. xi. 36. And (after the second persecution of the men of understanding, or the era of the Reformation) a king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god; and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods; and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that, that is determined, shall be done. 37. Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, nor him who is the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above them all. 38. Yet, when he is established in power, he shall honour tutelary gods together with a god; even, together with a god whom his fathers knew not, he shall honour them with gold, and silver, and precious stones, and pleasant things: 39. And he shall practice prosperously. Unto the upholders of his tutelary gods, together with the foreign god whom he shall acknowledge, he shall multiply glory: and he shall cause them to rule over many; and he shall divide the land among them, selling it for a price. 40. And at the time of the end a king of the south shall butt at him: and a king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships. Yet he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow, and pass over. 41. He shall enter also into the glorious land; and many countries shall be overthrown: but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon. 42. He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape; 43. But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps. 44. But tidings out of the east and out of the north shall trouble him: therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and to devote many to utter destruction under the pretext of religion. 45. And he shall plant the curtains of his pavilion between the seas in the glorious holy mountain: yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him. xii. 1. And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book. 2. And many that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake; some to |