A brief overview of the ancient world empires, some of which confirm the prophecies of the Bible, illustrates the papacy’s quest for power, culminating in its monopoly power during the Dark Ages. The fatal problem is that hardly anyone has this Roman ecclesiastical power in their sights.
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The Bible proves history.
In Daniel, chapters 2 and 7, the course of the alternating kingdoms, or empires, is clearly shown. Daniel, during his time in exile in Babylon, wrote his book in the 6th century BC (Info).
In Daniel 2, the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar had a dream that he couldn’t explain. Daniel knew the answer. The statue that appeared in the dream had a head of gold, a breast and arms of silver, a belly and thighs of bronze (ore), iron thighs (legs), and feet of a mixture of iron and clay. Daniel explained the meaning.
The golden head describes the current Babylonian empire. Then, symbolized by the silver breast and arms, a next empire follows. This will be replaced by a new empire, symbolized by the bronze belly and thighs. This is followed by a new empire, represented by the two iron legs. Finally, a power will appear, symbolized by the feet of iron and clay.
The Beasts in Daniel 7
Daniel received a vision, which he recorded in chapter 7. Four different animals, or beasts, appeared one after the other.
- A lion with eagle wings
- A bear, slightly raised on one side, with three ribs in its mouth
- A panther with four bird-like wings and four heads
- A fearsome and destructive creature with iron teeth and ten horns. Another horn grew, throwing out three of the previous horns. The tall horn has human eyes and a large mouth, and speaks great things.
Further prophetic clues are also provided in Daniel, chapter 8.
Historically Attested World Empires
Just as Daniel predicted the succession of various empires after the Babylonian Empire, history also confirms this. The Babylonian Empire fell overnight. It was replaced by the Medo-Persian Empire. It was succeeded by the Greek Empire. This, in turn, was overrun by the Roman Empire. Thus, it is obvious that the various metals of the statue and the successive beasts that appear describe the individual, named empires.
- Gold, lion with eagle wings – Babylon
- Silver, bear – Medo-Persia
- Bronze, panther with four wings and four heads – Greece
- Iron, beast with iron teeth – Roman Empire
The big mouth after the Roman Empire
The meaning of the small horn with human eyes and the large horn that emerged from the fourth beast with iron teeth is also not difficult to interpret. A glance at the history books shows that with the demise of the (Western) Roman emperor, the state and ecclesiastical power of the papacy rose. This is simply the unalterable course of history. Under the scepter of the papacy, the “Holy Roman Empire” followed, as well as the expansion of its sphere of influence across the entire planet.
Even without delving into the details described by the Bible, the simple sequence of historically verifiable world powers proves that the horn can only refer to the papacy. The new (old) world power emerged from the Roman Empire. The horn is not a new beast, but a component of the last beast: the Roman Empire, with only a church in its luggage, which was declared to be Christianity. More detailed descriptions can be found here and here.
For many centuries, the papacy achieved primarily political monopoly power. The pope, residing as the Roman emperor, had primacy over all kings and emperors. The pope appointed and deposed princes. The customary cross on the royal crown indicates who the real “boss” is: the one who calls himself the earthly representative of Christ (Info).
Temporary Disempowerment of the Papacy
The Papacy lost this state power in 1798. Until then, people had suffered under the tyranny of power, with its seat (still) in Rome. The seamless interplay between church and state was ended. This was a profound turning point for the Papacy, which is described in Revelation 13 as the “mortal wound” inflicted by the beast from the sea (Info).
The distinctive characteristics of the Roman Church include, among other things, its ruthless persecution of people and ethnic groups who refused to obey the teachings of this power. A historical fact that may be denied or simply forgotten, but it does not change the trail of blood left by this ecclesiastical institution.
“And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth.” (Revelation 18:24).
Dependent on State Cooperation
Even on its own, the small Papal States, or the Vatican today, were hardly able to put their megalomania into practice. This always required the state power of those who had submitted to the Papacy and recognized it as primate. This is precisely the fusion between church and state.
Thomas Aquinas’s Views
This desired cooperation between church and state is also illustrated by the “opinion” of one of the most important theologians within the Roman Catholic Church, Thomas Aquinas. He wrote in his work “Summae Theologiae” (Question 10, Article 8):
“There are some unbelievers such as the Gentiles and the Hebrews who have never accepted the Christian faith. These should in no way be forced to believe … Appropriate force may be used by the faithful to prevent them from interfering with the faith through blasphemy or evil inducements or open persecution. This is the reason that Chrstians often make war on unbelievers, not to force them to believe, but to prevent them from interfering with the Christian faith. However, there are other unbeleivers, such as heretics and all apostates who once accepted and professed the faith. These are to bei compelled, even by physical force, to carry out waht they promised and to hold waht they once accepted.“
The “promise” and “acceptance” of which Thomas Aquinas fantasizes actually applies to every infant baptized within the purview of this power.
Execution is necessary
Thomas Aquinas weighs in on how to deal with heretics in his work. On the one hand, he emphasizes that the apostles also showed mercy, but the statement in Titus 3:10-11 was crucial for Aquinas in establishing the Church’s approach to heretics (Article 3, Should Heretics Be Tolerated?):
“I answer that, With regard to heretics two points must be observed:
one, on their own side; the other, on the side of the Church. On their own side there is the sin, whereby they deserve not only to be separated from the Church by excommunication, but also to be severed from the world by death. For it is a much graver matter to corrupt the faith which quickens the soul, than to forge money, which supports temporal life. Wherefore if forgers of money and other evil-doers are forthwith condemned to death by the secular authority, much more reason is there for heretics, as soon as they are convicted of heresy, to be not only excommunicated but even put to death.“
Keeping Your Hand In Innocence
What you don’t want to do yourself, because you want to present your own hands in innocence and don’t want your thick ruby rings tainted, must be done by someone else. This is also the logical consequence described by Thomas Aquinas when dealing with heretics.:
“On the part of the Church, however, there is mercy which looks forward to the wayfarer’s conversion, which is why it does not condemn immediately, but ‘after the first and second admonition,’ as the Apostle instructs: afterward, when he is.” Yet stubbornly the Church no longer hopes for his conversion, but hopes for the salvation of others by excommunicating him and separating him from the Church, and moreover by handing him over to the secular court, so that he may thereby be cut off from the world by death.“
History will repeat itself
The recovery of lost tyrannical power, of course in the “name of Christ,” is the highest goal of the papacy. To achieve this goal, various “ecclesiastical special units” are hard at work. These include, in particular, the Jesuit Order, Opus Dei, the Order of Malta, and the Knights of Columbus. There are also other organizations, all of which, however, have the Jesuits and their jet-black robes at their head. The “wound will be healed,” as described in the Bible, Revelation 13.
The papacy, consisting of state and church, will regain its former power. This time, even on a greater scale than was the case in the dark Middle Ages. The state power necessary for this, in order to be able to impose its own desires on people, has long been at the ready and has also been diligently fulfilling the wet dreams of the papacy (Info).
The methods used to achieve this (temporary) goal are beyond the bounds of a healthy, let alone Christian, mind. The “genius” is actually that almost the entire Christian world, as well as secular people, are looking toward the Middle East and observing what is happening there, in light of the supposed biblical prophecies. The prophecies seem to be coming true, especially with regard to Israel. Words like “elite,” “shadow government,” “oligarchs,” etc. are being thrown around. The “usual suspects” are always in their sights and are always presented, named by name.
This sleepwalking is primarily fueled by the erroneous doctrine of a “pre-rapture” before a time of tribulation, which a future Antichrist will trigger while “sitting in the temple of God” (Info).
Rome not under suspicion at all
But who’s looking to Rome? Who even has this “eccentric carnival club with a moralizing grandpa at its head” on the list of the world’s great movers and shakers? The opposite of even a preliminary suspicion is true. The Pope, already being discussed as the honorary head of all churches, is actually seen as the moral authority. And this only on the ecclesiastical side, because the state power behind it is concealed behind a wall of smokescreens.
There are “ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but they have the power of kings for one hour with the beast,” according to Revelation 17:12. The beast, the (state) papacy, and ten figures who act like kings and will surrender their kingdom and rule to the beast. This would put the papacy back at the top of the “kings of the earth,” highly official. Whether “one hour” is to be seen prophetically—that would be 15 days—or in some other form is rather irrelevant. However, it makes it clear that this period will be very short.
Then what Daniel spoke of in chapters 2 and 7 will come to pass:
“Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold” (Daniel 2:45)
“But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end.” (Daniel 7:26).
And announced again in the Book of Revelation:
And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.
Revelation 19:20
Bible verses from King James Version (1611)
