END OF TIME PROPHECIES 153

The beast from the sea                         Revelation 13v1-10                        part 6/

His audacity.

The culmination of all sin in one man, and pervading throughout his evil empire, this show of pride is such as has never been seen before; it is the same sin which brought down Satan, and it is written  that   "pride goeth before destruction and an haughty spirit before a fall." Proverbs 16v18.  Daniel describes this man in chapter 8v25   "he shall magnify himself in his heart and by peace shall he destroy many: he shall also stand against the prince of princes, but he shall be broken without hand."    For a man to think that he can oppose the Almighty and to persuade all his followers to do the same, takes some level of audacity that beggars belief, but scripture states it in its raw form.

• Psalm 2v1-4   "Why do the nations rage and the people imagine a vain thing?   The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord, and against His anointed saying, let us break their bands asunder and cast away their chords from us.   He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision."
• Daniel 7v8     "Behold in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things."
• Daniel 7v11    "I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake.  Here we have unbridled boasting from a mere human being.
• Daniel 7v20   "The horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows."     A man with proud talk and proud looks.
• Daniel 7v23    "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 break it in pieces."
• Daniel 7v23   "And he shall speak great words against 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 time."
• 2nd Thessalonians 2v3-4    "Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come except there come a falling away first, and the man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God."  The Pharaohs of Egypt before him, the heads of all the empires, particularly Rome, acted as if they were God and promoted themselves as such.   Only the audacity of this man will outdo even them.
• Daniel 11v36     "And the 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." 

This is where sin will lead, and God will allow it to show to the world the absolute folly of opposing God.     Let us all in reading these dark passages take upon ourselves that lowliness of mind that becomes all human beings who are utterly dependent on God for life and breath and all things.