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Europe In Bible Prophecy?
This chapter of the Book of Signs goes into the alleged Biblical end-times prophecies concerning Europe in Bible prophecy. If we can show that these prophecies are not about Europe, then all the modern-day applications in this chapter will collapse. So, we will go through these Scriptures in context and see what they teach. This chapter in The Book Of Signs contains teaching that is the most tragic teaching that well-meaning Christian people put into Scripture, but more on that further down…
The Book of Signs builds its view of Europe in Bible prophecy on Daniel’s interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream found in Daniel Chapter Two. I won’t quote the entire chapter here, but it would be good to pause and read it now. I agree with Dr. Jeremiah’s assessment of the first four kingdoms. The head of gold was Babylon, followed by the Medo-Persians, who were conquered by the Greeks under Alexander the Great, which brings us to the Roman legs of iron. As far as I know, all Christian commentators agree with this. Where the disagreement comes is in the feet of iron and clay.
Europe In Bible Prophecy?
And the fourth kingdom shall be as strong as iron, inasmuch as iron breaks in pieces and shatters everything; and like iron that crushes, that kingdom will break in pieces and crush all the others. Whereas you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; yet the strength of the iron shall be in it, just as you saw the iron mixed with ceramic clay. And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly fragile. As you saw iron mixed with ceramic clay, they will mingle with the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, just as iron does not mix with clay. Dan. 2:40-43, NKJV
According to Daniel, there is to be yet another division in the Roman Empire, symbolized by its feet and ten toes. Daniel foretells a time when the Roman Empire will consist of ten kingdoms or leaders. Since the downward movement from one section of the statue to the next represents the passage of time, the “feet and toes” stage must follow the “legs” stage. But we find nothing in history that corresponds to a tenfold Roman coalition. That shows us that this fifth and final feet-and-toes-stage kingdom is yet to perform its prescribed role in human history. Jeremiah, David . The Book of Signs (p. 22). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.
This fourth kingdom - the Roman kingdom - begins as strong as iron, crushing all nations before it. There is nothing in the Scripture itself that suggests there is any break between the iron legs and the iron and clay feet/toes. Each of the other kingdoms followed successively.
The fact that iron is in the feet and toes shows a continuation. As the Scripture says, this fourth kingdom begins strong but becomes compromised and weakened. We know by the time of Jesus, the Republic of Rome was ruled by emperors. Citizenship was being granted to foreign cities or people who had done excellent service for Rome [they will mingle with the seed of men]. We know during the time of Paul that citizenship could be bought [Act 22:28]. The introduction of the Imperial Cult, foreign religions and cultures all weakened the Empire, making it partly strong and partly weak.
The ten toes represent 10 Roman provinces at the time of Christ. They may refer to specific provinces and their leaders, or in a symbolic book, they may represent the governing authority that Rome exercised through its provinces. Ten is the symbolic number of government.
This being the case, we do not have to look for a ‘rebirth’ of the Roman Empire in modern Europe in Bible prophecy. To even make a supposed connection between the feet and toes and Europe in Bible prophecy, it would need to be shown from Scripture that there is a break between the legs and the feet. No such ‘gap’ is there. No empire before it had a ‘rebirth,’ and there is no Biblical reason to suppose the Roman Empire would have one.
Europe In Bible Prophecy:
The Covenant
Now we come to what I think is the most tragic thing that well-meaning Christians do to the Word of God.
“And after the sixty-two weeks
Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself;
And the people of the prince who is to come
Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary.
The end of it shall be with a flood,
And till the end of the war desolations are determined.
Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week;
But in the middle of the week
He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering.
And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate,
Even until the consummation, which is determined,
Is poured out on the desolate.” Dan. 9:26-27, NKJV
Israel will sign a treaty with the Antichrist, and this treaty will be forged to last for a “week”—in prophetic language, a “week of years,” or seven years. Jeremiah, David. The Book of Signs (p. 28). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.
The Book Of Signs assumes that this covenant is made between a future AntiChrist and the nation of Israel. But let us examine the Scriptures. We will look at this through a series of questions and answers.
Who is the subject of the sentence in Verse 26? The Messiah.
Since the Messiah is the subject of the sentence in Verse 26, grammatically, who should the ‘he’ of verse 27 refer to? The Messiah.
Did Jesus come to confirm a covenant with Israel? Yes.
Zacharias’ prophecy about Jesus…
To perform the mercy promised to our fathers
And to remember His holy covenant,
The oath which He swore to our father Abraham:
To grant us that we,
Being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
Might serve Him without fear,
In holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life. Luke 1:72-75, NKJV
But He [Jesus] answered and said, “I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” Matt. 15:24, NKJV
And He said to them, “This is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many. Mark 14:24, NKJV
In the middle of the ‘week’ [seven-year period], did Jesus ‘bring an end to sacrifice and offering’? All the sacrifices of the Old Testament were looking forward to what Jesus - the Ultimate Sacrifice - would accomplish on the cross. After 3 1/2 years of intensive ministry, Jesus gave up His life on the cross. He caused the sacrifice and offerings to stop. Although they continued to be offered until the temple was destroyed in AD 70, as far as the Father and true believers were concerned, they had no value. The True and Permanent Sacrifice had been made.
The martyrdom of Stephen likely marked the end of this ‘week.’ After that, the Gospel began to go worldwide, and soon the Gentiles would be welcomed in.
When they heard these things they became silent; and they glorified God, saying, “Then God has also granted to the Gentiles repentance to life.”
Now those who were scattered after the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, preaching the word to no one but the Jews only. Acts 11:18-18, NKJV
The tragedy of this book, and thousands like it, is that it takes the beautiful, holy, redeeming sacrifice of Jesus and lays it at the feet of the AntiChrist. Words fail me as to how repulsive that must be to our Father.
Did abominations and desolations follow? Within 40 years [one generation] of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the heathen Roman armies had trampled Israel [an abomination to the Jews], destroying it and killing over a million Jews. The city of Jerusalem and the Temple were razed to the ground.
Europe In Bible Prophecy:
The Kingdom Of God
…but such a kingdom has not been suddenly crushed as Daniel 2 indicates it will be. The Roman Empire of Jesus’ day did not end suddenly. It gradually declined over many centuries until the western part, the Western Roman Empire, fell in AD 476, and the eastern part, the Byzantine Empire, fell in AD 1453. We must conclude, then, that some form of the Roman Empire must emerge in the end times, for, according to Daniel, it will be in place prior to the coming of Christ to reign over the earth. Jeremiah, David. The Book of Signs (p. 23). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.
The Book Of Signs acknowledges, as all Christians do, that the rock that rolled into the statue and demolished it is the Kingdom of God. The problem arises over the timing of the Kingdom. This chapter proposes that the Kingdom of God has not come because the Roman Empire was not instantly destroyed. Suppose the Kingdom of God did arrive at the resurrection of Jesus and the infilling with the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost. In that case, everything written in this chapter of The Book Of Signs about Europe in Bible prophecy in Daniel Chapters 2, 7 and 9 is meaningless.
So when did the Kingdom of God arrive, and did it destroy the Roman Empire? What does the Scripture say?
But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you. Or how can one enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house. Matt. 12:28-29, NKJV
Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.” Mark 1:14-15
And He said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you that there are some standing here who will not taste death till they see the kingdom of God present with power.” Mark 9:1, NKJV
Assuredly, I [Jesus] say to you, I will no longer drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.” Mark 14:25, NKJV
So when they had appointed him a day, many came to him at his lodging, to whom he explained and solemnly testified of the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus from both the Law of Moses and the Prophets, from morning till evening. Acts 28:23, NKJV
for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. Rom. 14:17, NKJV
These Scriptures [and others] testify to the present reality of the Kingdom of God. Who are you going to believe?
But Rome wasn’t instantly destroyed…
Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed together, and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors; the wind carried them away so that no trace of them was found. And the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth. Dan. 3:35, NKJV
There is no claim here that Rome would be instantly destroyed. The stone grew into a mountain. Growth takes time. The parables of Jesus confirm this. The seed grows slowly into a great tree [Matt. 13:31-32]. The leaven slowly works its way through the loaf [Matt. 13:33]. Neither Jesus nor any other Biblical person seemed to expect instant growth. Look around the world today. Over half the world’s population claims to be Christian. Where is the Roman Empire? Forever smashed. When God smashes something, it cannot be put back together.
Needless to say, if these Scriptures in Daniel were really prophetic of the work of Christ and the events surrounding His life, then all these applications to modern Europe in Bible prophecy and the alleged AntiChrist fall flat.
Return To The Book Of Signs.
Other Reading
Who Are The People Of The Prince?
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