The Fulfillment of Biblical Prophecy

7/27/2019 The Fulfillment of Biblical Prophecy

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The outline we will be following for this discussion is as follows:

1) The Rebirth of Israel as a Nation

2) Daniel's 70 Weeks Prophecy

3) The Succession of World Governments

4) The Rise of Antiochus Epiphanes IV

5) Miscellaneous

ISRAEL TO BECOME A NATION IN ONE DAY

PROPHECY: "Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen such things? Can a country be born in a day or a nation be brought forth in a

moment? Yet no sooner is Zion in labor than she gives birth to her children." Isaiah 66:8

FULFILLMENT: We've all heard the expression, Rome wasn't built in a day yet this verse, while confessing the absurdity of a nation being

formed in one day, promises that Israel would again become a nation. The passage in Isaiah leaves no room for doubt as to what this

prophecy indicates. It specifically compares Israel (Zion) to a woman in labor and clearly states the nation's rebirth will occur within a day. As

promised, Israel did indeed become a united, sovereign nation for the first time since the days of King Solomon in just one day: May 15, 1948.Throughout history, it has never been known for a people to have been dispersed for millenniums and to later become united with their

culture, religion, and language intact. Even more exciting, Christian apologist Grant Jeffrey discovered passages that revealed when this would

happen...

Skeptic Interjection: Doesn't the context of this passage refer to Israel during the Messianic kingdom?

Answer: The last several chapters in Isaiah refer to the Messianic era and the events leading up to that period. The rebirth of Israel is often

used by eschatologists to show that we are either in or rapidly approaching the end-times. Though the 66th chapter of Isaiah clearly describes

the earthly reign of the Messiah, it also speaks of the preceding world events.

THE PRECISE YEAR FORETOLD

PROPHECY 1: "And this whole land shall be a desolation and astonishment. And these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years."

Jeremiah 25:11

PROPHECY 2: "Lie also on your left side, and lay the iniquity of the house of Israel upon it. According to the number of days that you lie on it,

you shall bear their iniquity. For I have laid on you the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, 390 days so you shall bear

the iniquity of the house of Israel. And when you have completed them, lie again on your right site. Then you shall bear the iniquity of the

house of Judah for 40 days. I have laid on you a day for each year." Ezekiel 4:4-6

Jeremiah prophesied the Babylonian captivity would last exactly 70 years. Both biblical and secular history show Babylon captured Israel in the

spring of 606 B.C. and the captivity ended exactly 70 years later in the spring of 536 B.C. However God gave the prophet Ezekiel (a

contemporary of Jeremiah) a vision that would extend much farther into the future:

The verse preceding the commandment to Ezekiel (Ezekiel 4:3) clearly states this prophecy will be a sign to Israel. Verse 6 explains that each

of the 430 days (390 days for Israel plus 40 days for Judah) represent one year. However, at the end of the 70 year captivity we know only a

portion of the exiled Jews decided to give up their homes in Babylon to commit to the exhausting task of returning to and rebuilding Israel. The

captives who did remember their former home were now over 70 years old. Those born into captivity, had no attachments to the old ways of

their people and opted to stay in pagan Babylon.

We see in the above verses that God told Ezekiel the Jews would suffer for their iniquity for a total of 430 years. Since they already served 70

years under Babylonian captivity, this still left a total of 360 years to suffer the judgment that God had decreed. Yet history shows that after

both 360 and 430 years, the Israelites still had no homeland. The Bible makes it clear

this is because the Israelites did not repent after the 70 year captivity and continued in their disobedience against God.

In the 26th chapter of Leviticus, God lists blessings and judgments for Israel based on their obedience and disobedience. In this one passage

alone, God tells the Israelites four times that if after receiving judgment the people still do not repent for their sins, God will multiply or

extend the original punishment by seven times:

“And after all this, if you do not obey Me, then I will punish you seven times more for your sins.” Leviticus 26:18



Because the Jews did not repent and turn to God after their captivity, the 360 remaining years would be multiplied by seven, equaling a total of

2,520 biblical years the Jews would be left without an independent nation. But in order to examine this prophecy, we need to understand the

difference between biblical and solar years. In the past, men have measured the years by seasons and lunar cycles consisting of 30 days each

month. Today, we know the earth completes its revolution around the sun every 365.25 days. But a Biblical, or prophetic , year lasts 360 days.

Although there are several verses that demonstrate this, let’s use Genesis 7:11 as compared to Genesis 8:4 and Genesis 7:24 as compared to

Genesis 8:3. These verses list the number of months and days Noah endured the flood. The 150 days the flood waters existed lasted exactly

five months from the 17th day of the 2nd month, to the 17th day of the 7th month, resulting in 30 days per month, or 360 days a year.

We now know:

The Babylonian captivity ended in spring of the year 536 B.C.

The Israelites were to suffer 360 more years without a homeland.

Due to their disobedience, their judgment was extended to 2,520 years.

To calculate the prophecy, we need to perform the following steps:

To convert our 2,520 prophetic years into calendar years, we multiply 2,520 by the 360 days of the prophetic year. Our answer is

907,200 days. We then divide 907,200 days by 365.25 (the length of a solar year). Our answer is 2,483 calendar years.

We now want to subtract the year 536 B.C. (the year in which the Babylonian captivity ended) from our 2,483 years (keeping in mind

there is no year 0 A.D.) Our answer is 1948- indeed, the year Israel was reinstated as a nation.

THE REGATHERING OF THE ISRAELITES

PROPHECY: "The hand of the Lord was upon me and He set me in the middle of a valley full of bones. I saw a great many bones on the floor

of the valley, bones that were very dry. Then He said to me, 'Prophesy to these bones and say to them, 'I will make breath enter you and you

will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin. I will put breath in you, and you will

come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.' And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came

together, bone to bone. I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them. Then He

said to me, 'Prophesy to the breath and say to it, 'This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe into

these slain, that they may live.' So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them. They came to life and stood up on their

feet—a vast army."

"Then He said to me: 'Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, 'Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone. We are

cut off.' Therefore prophesy and say to them: 'I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them. I will bring you back to the land of

Israel. Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken, and I have done it. Son of man, take a stick of wood and write on it: Belonging to

Judah and the Israelites associated with him. Then take another stick of wood, and write on it: Ephraim's stick, belonging to Joseph and all the

house of Israel associated with him. Join them together into one stick so that they will become one in your hand. I will take the Israelites out of

the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from all around and bring them back into their own land. I will make them one nation in

the land, on the mountains of Israel. There will be one king over all of them and they will never again be two nations or be divided into two

kingdoms."

Note: Due to the length of this prophecy I paraphrased the content but the full context may be found in Ezekiel 37.

The above prophecy contains two parts: the physical reinstatement of Israel as a nation (which occurred in 1948) and a spiritual revival that

will occur in the future (during the Messianic kingdom). Again, no room is left for interpretation as we are specifically told the bones represent

Israel. God reveals to Ezekiel the precise circumstances as to how this will occur:

The dispersed Israelites (the dry bones) will physically be brought back to their nation. This is represented by the restructuring of the

bones with tendons, flesh, and skin.Israel will be a united kingdom. Israel had previously been divided into a northern and southern kingdom (Israel and Judah). God is

promising that once Israel is restored, it will be one nation (one stick). In 1948, Israel indeed became a united nation for the first time

in approximately 3000 years.

Still to come: Now that Israel has been physically restored, God promises a spiritual revival during the Messianic era.

Once again, we have never seen a regathering of a nation where the religion, language, and culture withstood the test of time. The Jewish

dispersion began with the Roman invasion in 70 A.D. Almost 2,000 years later, they were restored as a united nation.

NOTE: This prophecy is discussed in depth (complete with skeptic interjections) in this article concerning the Messianic prophecies (See: The

Messianic Timing). This is simply the "Cliff notes" version.

THE TIMING OF THE MESSIAH FORETOLD

PROPHECY: “Seventy weeks are determined for your people and for your holy city... Know therefore and understand this: from the

issuing of the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Messiah the Prince, there shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks... After

sixty-two weeks the Messiah shall be cut off... And the people of the ruler who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary... Then he

shall confirm a covenant with many for one week...” Daniel 9:24-27

FULFILLMENT: This prophecy is known as Daniel’s 70 weeks prophecy . Biblical scholars agree the interpretation of the word week represents

seven years. This comes from the Hebrew word for week (shabua) which literally means seven. So seven sets of seven (49 years) added to

sixty-two sets of seven (434 years) added to one seven (7 years) gives us a total of 490 years. God reveals to Daniel 483 years would pass

between the decree to rebuild Jerusalem and the Messiah's death.

We see in the second chapter of Nehemiah it was in the month of Nisan in the 20th year of King Artaxerxes when Nehemiah petitioned the king

to rebuild Jerusalem. Artaxerxes agreed to issue him a letter of approval to rebuild the city. From history, we know Artaxerxes ascended the

throne in 465 B.C., making 444 B.C. the 20th year of his reign.

Our prophecy in Daniel tells us there will be 483 prophetic years between the decree to restore Jerusalem and the death of the Messiah. We

now know:

A prophetic year is equivalent to 360 days.

There will be 483 prophetic years between the decree to rebuild Jerusalem and the execution of the Messiah.

The decree to rebuild Jerusalem was issued in 444 B.C.

Jesus was crucified in approximately 33 A.D.

The solar-year difference between 444 B.C. and 33 A.D. is 476 years (Remember, there was no year 0 A.D. so our answer is not 477

years).

Using this information, we can show how Daniel was able to precisely predict the year of the coming Messiah:

Since our difference between 444 B.C. and 33 A.D. is in modern solar years, we will need to convert the amount into prophetic years by

multiplying our 476 solar-year difference by 365.25 days (the amount of time it takes our earth to fully revolve around the sun). We get173,859 days as our answer.

Now take our 173,859 days and divide it by 360 to reach the amount of prophetic years. Our answer is 483 years.

Just like Daniel prophesied.

THE PROPHECY OF FOUR STATUES

PROPHECY: "You looked, Oh king, and there before you stood a large statue, an enormous dazzling statue, awesome in appearance. The head

of the statue was made of pure gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly

of baked clay." Daniel 2:31-33

Daniel then goes on to interpret the dream:

"You are the head of gold. After you, another kingdom will rise, inferior to yours. Next, a third kingdom, one of bronze, will rule over the whole

earth. Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron- for iron breaks and smashes everything- and as iron breaks things to pieces, so it

will crush and break all the others. Just as you saw that the feet and toes were partly of baked clay and partly of iron, so this will be a divided

kingdom; yet it will have some strength of iron in it, even as you saw the iron mixed with clay. As the toes were partly iron and partly clay, to

this kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle. And just as you saw the iron mixed with baked clay, so the people will be a mixture and

will not remain united, any more than iron mixes with clay.” Daniel 2:38-41

FULFILLMENT: The above verses describe the dream of King Nebuchadnezzar, the ancient king of Babylon, which was interpreted by the

prophet Daniel. The Bible clearly states that this dream is a reference to a procession of earthly kingdoms:

Babylon was the statue’s golden head, meaning that it would be greater than the other kingdoms.

The next kingdom was represented by a chest and arms of silver, signifying it would be a lesser kingdom than Babylon.

The third kingdom would be represented by bronze and would be considered something of a one world government.

The fourth kingdom is represented by iron and clay, signifying it will be an unstable government: strong, yet weak due to its divided

people.

As history shows, Daniel correctly predicted the order of the four kingdoms. However, not only was he able to list the future kingdoms, he was

also able to describe them in vivid detail. The following lists the sequence of the kingdoms, references in Daniel which describes the kingdoms

in detail, and what actually happened in history:

The present golden kingdom represented the Neo-Babylon Empire of 605-539 B.C. "...You are the head of gold." Soon after the death

of Nebuchadnezzar, the kingdom of Babylon quickly began its decline.

The next silver kingdom represented the inferior Medo-Persian Empire established by Cyrus in 539 B.C. "Your kingdom is divided and

given to the Medes and Persians." History shows that Cyrus overthrew the Babylonian empire and immediately set up the Medo-PersianEmpire.

The bronze kingdom represented the Greek Empire established by Alexander the Great in 330 B.C. "...Then a mighty king will appear

who will rule with great power and do as he pleases. After he has appeared, his empire will be broken up and parceled out toward the

four winds of heaven. It will not go to his descendants..." History proves Daniel to be correct by showing that upon the death of

Alexander the Great, his kingdom did not go to his heirs but instead was divided among his four generals.

The fourth iron empire would become the Roman Empire which began around 67 B.C. "As iron breaks things to pieces, so it will crush

and break all the others. Just as you saw that the feet and toes were partly of baked clay and partly of iron, so this will be a divided

kingdom." Just like Daniel prophesied and as history shows, the Roman Empire did indeed control the world such as no kingdom had

ever done before. However, just as iron and clay are unstable when mixed together, the Roman Empire was filled with multiculturalism

and division.

Biblical scholars believe that the kingdom of iron and clay is also symbolic of the end time’s one-world government that the future anti-christ

will establish. Daniel’s prophecy goes on to say that a giant rock which is not man-made (representing God’s kingdom) will overthrow this

kingdom of iron and clay to set up a heavenly reign on the earth. This prophecy is retold in the Book of Revelation.

THE PROPHECY OF FOUR BEASTS

PROPHECY: "Four great beasts, each different from the others, came up out of the sea. The first was like a lion and it had the wings of aneagle. I watched until its wings were torn off and it was lifted from the ground so that it stood on two feet like a man and the heart of a man

was given to it. And there before me was a second beast which looked like a bear. It was raised up on one of its sides, and it had three ribs in

its mouth between its teeth. It was told, ‘Get up and eat your fill of flesh!’ After that, I looked and there before me was another beast, one that

looked like a leopard. And on its back it had four wings like those of a bird. This beast had four heads and it was given authority to rule. After

that, in my vision at night, I looked and there before me was a fourth beast- terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron

teeth. It crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts and it had ten

horns." Daniel 7:3-7

FULFILLMENT: Daniel, like Nebuchadnezzar, had his own vision about the four earthly kingdoms. He directly interprets the creatures as

governments in Daniel 7:17: The four great beasts are four kingdoms that will rise from the earth . These kingdoms are described as coming

out of the sea which is a prophetic metaphor for a large group of people. Thus, these will be worldly governments as opposed to God’s holy

reign at the end of the age.

Since we went over in detail the translation of these four kingdoms above, let's briefly analyze Daniel’s vision:

The lion with wings represented the Neo-Babylonian Empire. The tearing off of its wings represents the mental illness that overtook

Nebuchadnezzar later in his life.

The bear raised up on one side represents the Medo-Persian Empire, with Persia being the dominating force over Media. The three ribs

in its mouth could possibly represent its conquests of Babylon, Lydia, and Egypt.

The leopard, an animal known for its speed, and the four wings represent the swiftness to which Alexander ascended to power. The

creature’s four heads represent the four kingdoms that his empire was separated into upon his death.

The fourth beast, with iron teeth, represents the Roman Empire and is a possible reference to the future kingdom of the coming Anti-

Christ.

The following prophecies are taken from Daniel 11:5-32. Daniel was able to accurately foresee the events centuries in advance which led to

the rise of Antiochus with amazing precision.

PROPHECY: "The king of the South will become strong, but one of his commanders will become even stronger than he and will rule his own

kingdom with great power."

FULFILLMENT: The first king of the South is Ptolemy I Soter of Egypt. The commander is Seleucus I Nicator.

PROPHECY: "After some years, they will become allies. The daughter of the king of the South will go to the king of the North to make an

alliance, but she will not retain her power, and he and his power will not last. In those days, she will be handed over, together with her royal

escort and her father and the one who supported her."

FULFILLMENT: Bernice, the daughter of Ptolemy II Philadelphus, married Antiochus II Theos (the king of the North) who divorced his

previous wife, Laodice, to marry her. After the death Ptolemy II, Laodice killed Bernice, Antiochus, and their son.

PROPHECY: "One from her family line will arise to take her place. He will attack the forces of the king of the North and enter his fortress. He

will fight against them and be victorious."

FULFILLMENT: The one from her family line is Bernice’s brother, Ptolemy III Euergetes of Egypt who won a victory over the king of the

North, Seleucus II Callinicus.

PROPHECY: "He will also seize their gods, their metal images, and their valuable articles of silver and gold and carry them off to Egypt. For

some years, he will leave the king of the North alone"

FULFILLMENT: Ptolemy III did in fact take both the Syrian and Egyptian treasure previously taken by the Persian King Cambyses when he

conquered Egypt in 525 B.C. Ptolemy III then returned to Egypt and refrained from any further attacks.

PROPHECY: "Then the king of the North will invade the realm of the king of the South but will retreat to his own country."

FULFILLMENT: To recoup his losses, Seleucus tried to invade Egypt but failed miserably and was forced to return home.

PROPHECY: "His sons will prepare for war and assemble a great army which will sweep on like an irresistible flood and carry the battle as far

as his fortress. Then the king of the South will march out in a rage and fight against the king of the North, who will raise a large army, but it

will be defeated. When the army is carried off, the king of the South will be filled with pride and will slaughter many thousands, yet he will not remain triumphant."

FULFILLMENT: The two sons of Seleucus II were Seleucus III Ceraunus and Antiochus III the Great. Antiochus II was defeated by Ptolemy

IV Philopater with the loss of almost 10,000 Syrian soldiers at the Raphian fortress in southern Palestine.

PROPHECY: "The invader will do as he pleases. No one will be able to stand against him. He will establish himself in the Beautiful Land and will

have the power to destroy it."

FULFILLMENT: Antiochus III attacked Egypt in 200 B.C. but was crushed by the king of the South, Ptolemy V Epiphanes. Antiochus conquered

Sidon and by 197 B.C., had taken control of Palestine.

PROPHECY: "He will determine to come with the might of his entire kingdom and will make an alliance with the king of the South. And he will

give him a daughter in marriage in order to overthrow the kingdom, but his plans will not succeed or help him. After this, he will turn back

toward the fortresses of his own country but will stumble and fall to be seen no more."

FULFILLMENT: Antiochus III made a peace treaty with Egypt in 194 B.C. and gave his daughter Cleopatra I as a wife to Ptolemy V. Antiochus

III moved north but was defeated in Asia Minor in 190 B.C. He was later killed upon attempting to plunder the pagan temple of Elymais.

PROPHECY: "His successor will send out a tax collector to maintain the royal splendor. In a few years, however, he will be destroyed, yet not

in anger or in battle." FULFILLMENT: Seleucus IV Philopater was killed by Heliodorus, his own finance minister who had arranged the murder.

PROPHECY: "He will be succeeded by a contemptible person who has not been given the honor of royalty. He will invade the kingdom when its

people feel secure and will seize it through intrigue."

FULFILLMENT: The preceding verses have all been leading up to the arrival of this "contemptible person" who would come to be Antiochus IV

Epiphanes, the brother of Seleucus IV. He stole the throne that rightfully belonged to the son of Seleucus IV.

PROPHECY: "Then an overwhelming army will be swept away before him. Both it and a prince of the covenant will be destroyed."

FULFILLMENT: Antiochus murdered the prince of the covenant Onias, the high priest, in 170 B.C.

PROPHECY: "After coming to an agreement with him, he will act deceitfully, and with only a few people he will rise to power. When the richest

provinces feel secure, he will invade them and will achieve what neither his fathers nor his forefathers did..."

FULFILLMENT: Antiochus made treaties with other nations through intrigue and deceit. He supported Ptolemy Philometor against Ptolemy

Euergetes for selfish reasons and made unexpected attacks on rich cities in times of peace.

PROPHECY: "With a large army he will stir up his strength and courage against the king of the South. The king of the South will wage war with

a large and very powerful army but he will not be able to stand because of the plots devised against him. The king of the North will return to

his own country with great wealthy..."

FULFILLMENT: Antiochus' attacks on Egypt were successful due to his deceitful campaigns of turning certain leaders against other leaders.

Because of this tactic, he was able to plunder Egypt and return home with great wealth.

PROPHECY: "...But his heart will be set against the holy covenant. He will take action against it and then return to his own country."

FULFILLMENT: Antiochus developed a hatred of the Jewish people and their law ( the holy covenant ). He believed Greek culture was superior

to all others and despised the Jews for their religion, language, and customs.

PROPHECY: "At the appointed time he will invade the South again, but this time the outcome will be different from what it was before. Ships of

the western coast lands will oppose him and he will lose heart..."

FULFILLMENT: Antiochus invaded Egypt again but this time was unsuccessful when the ships of the western coast lands defeated him.

PROPHECY: "His armed forces will rise up to desecrate the temple fortress and will abolish the daily sacrifice. Then they will set up the

abomination that causes desolation."

FULFILLMENT: Antiochus marched into Jerusalem, desecrated the temple by offering a pig on the temple alter, stopped the daily sacrifices,

and set up an image of the Greek god Zeus.

PROPHECY: "Then he will turn back and vent his fury against the holy covenant. He will return and show favor to those who forsake the holy

covenant. With flattery he will corrupt those who have violated the covenant, but the people who know their God will firmly resist him."

FULFILLMENT: Antiochus persecuted the Jews until many finally submitted themselves to Greek culture and religion. Though the persecution

continued, the faithful Jews under the leadership of Judas Maccabeus waged warfare against him. Due to the resistance, Antiochus finally

retreated and the temple was restored.

CONCLUSION: This detailed prophecy served as a warning to future Jews that a tyrant would eventually appear on the scene. This tyrant was

Antiochus IV Epiphanes, as history shows.

Skeptic Interjection: Could the Daniel have been written after these events or could this account have been added to the existing text?

Answer: The Book of Daniel is one of the most heatedly debated books of the Bible due to its prophetic accuracy. I have heard a few critics

say that to accept an early authorship of Daniel would be to accept the existence of the Christian God. Because the detailed predictions were

fulfilled to the letter, some believe these events were recorded as history instead of prophecy. Because we will be discussing the Book of

Daniel in the future, we'll briefly touch on some of the points which provide evidence that a 6th century B.C. dating for these passages is

possible. Though the above prophecies were completed with the rise of Antiochus, Daniel uses the tyrant to allude to a ruler that will arise in

the distant future (believed to be the end-times Anti-Christ). When we read further into the book of Daniel, we can see that the ruler

mentioned in Daniel 11:36-45 and Daniel 8:9-12 does not fit Antiochus for a number of reasons:

Antiochus did not "magnify himself above every god" nor did he "forsake the gods of his fathers." On the contrary, his main purpose in

persecuting the Jews was to force them to accept the Greek gods.

1.

Antiochus did not destroy the temple. Though he desecrated the temple, it is was not destroyed until 70 A.D. It is also believed the

Jewish temple will one day be rebuilt in the end times.

2.

The future tyrant is described as showing no regard [desire] for women. Some interpret this passage as referring to a homosexual

while others feel the anti-Christ's lust for power will override his physical desires. But from what we know about Antiochus, neither of

these descriptions are applicable.

3.

Antiochus' military conquests do not match the feats described of the future ruler.4.

In summary, if the author of Daniel had been recording history instead of prophecy, he certainly had his facts skewed. The author clearly uses

Antiochus as a foreshadowing of this end-times ruler but history makes it certain that many prophecies were not fulfilled at the time.

THE RISE OF KING CYRUS

PROPHECY: "Who says of Cyrus, 'He is my shepherd and will accomplish all that I please. He will say of Jerusalem, 'Let it be rebuilt,' and of

the temple, 'Let its foundations be laid.'" Isaiah 44:28

PROPHECY: "This is what the Lord says to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of to subdue nations before him and to strip

kings of their armor, to open doors before him so that gates will not be shut." Isaiah 45:1

Isaiah was able to foresee the reign of King Cyrus 150 years before he was born and was able to describe him by name.

THE SURVIVAL OF GOD'S WORD

PROPHECY: "Heaven and Earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away." Mark 13:31

FULFILLMENT: Jesus proclaimed this very bold statement approximately 2000 years ago. His words could have easily passed into obscurity

yet the Scriptures have survived immense persecution throughout history. From ancient Roman emperors to modern communist countries,

enemies have tried to ban, seize, burn, and destroy the Holy Scriptures. What other author, philosopher, or orator in history has made such

a confident claim and come to be correct? No other book even begins to compare to the Bible in terms of circulation, distribution, and

number of translation.

THE ENEMIES OF ISRAEL

PROPHECY: "See how your enemies are astir, how your foes rear their heads. With cunning they conspire against your people. They plot

against those you love. Come, they say, let us destroy them as a nation that the name of Israel be remembered no more. With one mind

they plot together. They form an alliance against you. The tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites, of Moab and the Hagrites, Gebal, Ammon, and

Amalek, Philistia, with the people of Tyre. Even Assyria has joined them to lend strength to the descendants of Lot." Psalms 83:2-8

FULFILLMENT: Three thousand years ago, King David, the author of the Psalms, prophesied that once Israel was reborn as a nation, it

would immediately be surrounded by enemies. David even went on to name the countries that would declare themselves enemies of Israel.

Though these verses use ancient titles, these countries today include the Arab nations of Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Syria.

THE FALL OF TYRE

PROPHECY: Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against you Tyre and I will bring many nations against you, like the sea

casting up its waves. They will destroy the walls of Tyre and pull down her towers. I will scrape away her rubble and make her a bare rock.

Out in the sea she will become a place to spread fishnets, for I have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord. She will become plunder for the

nations, and her settlements on the mainland will be ravaged by the sword. From the north I am going to bring against Tyre

Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, king of kings, with horses and chariots, with horsemen and a great army. He will ravage your settlements

on the mainland with the sword. They will plunder your wealth and loot your merchandise. They will break down your walls and demolish

your fine houses and throw your stones, timber and rubble into the sea. I will make you a bare rock, and you will become a place to spread

fishnets. You will never be rebuilt, for I the Lord have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord. This is what the Sovereign Lord says: When I

make you a desolate city, like cities no longer inhabited, and when I bring the ocean depths over you and its vast waters cover you. I will

bring you to a horrible end and you will be no more. You will be sought, but you will never again be found, declares the Sovereign Lord."

Note: The full context of the above passage is the entire chapter of Ezekiel 26 (it has been paraphrased due to its length).

The ancient city of Tyre was a prominent center of commerce. Because of its hostility towards the Jews, God promised the city would come

to ruin under in the following fashion:Instead of suffering an immediate destruction, the demise of Tyre is compared to the waves of the sea. In other words, the city

would gradually be destroyed over time (as compared to a sudden destruction like Sodom and Gomorrah).

The city would be ruined by a succession of invasions and wars with various kingdoms. The first blow indeed came in the form of the

Babylonian invasion lead by Nebuchadnezzar in 6th century B.C., followed by the siege led by Alexander the Great in 4th century B.

C., and ultimately the Muslim invasion of the 13th century A.D.

These series of invasions eventually lead to Tyre's destruction.







Documents

The Fulfillment of Biblical Prophecy