TIME OF THE END!

11- None to Help

by Jeff Pippenger

AND he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him." Daniel 11:45.

This verse describes where the king of the north comes to his end. Although the King James Version implies that the Papacy is in the glorious, holy mountain, several other translations indicate that the verse might better be translated to indicate that the Papacy places his palatial tabernacles (war tents) between the seas and the holy mountain:

"And he shall pitch his palatial tents between the seas and the glorious holy mount (Zion); yet he shall come to his end with none to help him." Daniel 11:45, Amplified Version. (All emphasis supplied unless otherwise noted.)

"And he shall plant the tents of his palace between the seas and the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and no one will help him." Daniel 11:45, New King James Version. See also the American Standard Version and Young's Literal Translation.

The "glorious holy mountain," is God's church, according to the following verses:

"And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem." Isaiah 2:2-3.

The "seas" are the people of the world:

"And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues." Revelation 17:15.

One of the questions most often raised about Daniel 11:40-45, is whether or not the glorious, holy mountain of verse 45 is the same as the glorious land of verse 41. Let us compare them. Both symbols contain the adjective translated as "glorious," but, if we drop the word "glorious" from both phrases, we see a distinction made between a land and a mountain.

The land of verse 41 is where God's people and truth were placed in order to facilitate the proclamation of the final message of warning. The church which was raised up to proclaim this message is the holy mountain of verse 45. Both are "glorious," in their own way, but a church and the country where the church was raised up are two different entities, though they are closely related.

This verse describes when humanity will finally be divided into two groups. The Papacy is portrayed as being in the middle ground between these two groups of people, for the Papacy has been the primary object used by Satan to prevent the people of the world from hearing the last message of warning. With the Papacy's position in the middle, the people who reject the last message of warning are on one side while God's people stand on the other:

"There are only two classes in the world today, and only two classes will be recognized in the judgment--those who violate God's law, and those who keep His law. Two great opposing powers are revealed in the last great battle. On one side stands the Creator of heaven and earth. All on His side bear His signet. They are obedient to His commands. On the other side stands the prince of darkness, with those who have chosen apostasy and rebellion." Review and Herald, May 7, 1901.

Daniel 11:45 describes the dividing line for humanity illustrated by the palatial tents of the man of sin. On one side are those who reflect the man of sin's character of self-exaltation, while on the other side we see those who reflect the self-sacrificing love of Jesus, their King. In this verse the fundamental principle of the mystery of iniquity--self-exaltation--is symbolized by the king of the north defiantly planting his palatial war tents in full view of the universe, and proclaiming himself king of those represented by the seas, while also preparing to destroy those who make up the glorious, holy mountain. At the height of this arrogant act, the king of the north comes to his end--and none shall help him.

In the Hebrew lexicon found in Strong's Exhaustive Concordance, we find the following definitions, which may help us understand some of the key words of verse 45:

"plant--5193: a primitive root; properly to strike in, i.e. fix; specifically to plant (literally or figuratively):--fasten, plant (-er).

"tabernacles--168: from 166; a tent (as clearly conspicuous from a distance):--covering, (dwelling) (place), home, tabernacle, tent.

"166: a primitive root; to be clear:--shine.

"palace--643: apparently of foreign derivation; a pavilion or palace-tent:--palace."

The action of placing oneself between a message of God and its intended recipients is used in verse 45, and is also a common illustration in the Spirit of Prophecy:

"Though being unable to expel God from His throne, Satan has charged God with satanic attributes and has claimed the attributes of God as his own. He is a deceiver, and through his serpentine sharpness, through his crooked practices he has drawn to himself the homage which man should have given to God, and has planted his satanic throne between the human worshiper and the Divine Father." Manuscript Releases, vol. 7, 215.

"Just prior to the coming of the Son of man, there is--and has been for years--a determination on the part of the enemy to cast his hellish shadow right between man and his Saviour." Manuscript Releases, vol. 6, 7.

"He, the great Teacher, was in the world; He was the light of the world; but Satan interposed his hellish shadow between Him and the souls whom Christ came to save." The Signs of the Times, March 20, 1901.

"We entreat of you who oppose the light of truth, to stand out of the way of God's people. Let Heaven-sent light shine forth upon them in clear and steady rays." Review and Herald, May 27, 1890.

"Let no one run the risk of interposing himself between the people and the message of Heaven. The message of God will come to the people; and if there were no voice among men to give it, the very stones would cry out." Counsels to Writers and Editors, 38.

"The Sabbath is the Lord's test, and no man, be he king, priest, or ruler, is authorized to come between God and man." Testimonies, vol. 9, 234.

In the previous article we discussed Daniel 11:44, and the reaction of the king of the north to the message of Christ's righteousness, as symbolized by the "tidings" which come from the "east and north." That verse identified the fear and anger of the northern king as he recognized the loud-cry message. As he launches forth to "destroy and make away many," probation closes and the world has been divided into two classes. Verse 45 continues the description by portraying this division, but it also uses prophetic symbols which point to Armageddon, described in Revelation 16.

Between the Seas

East of the Mediterranean Sea, southwest of the Sea of Galilee, and north of the Dead Sea is Meggido. About 35 miles south of Meggido is Jerusalem, while just about 10 miles northwest of Meggido, we find Mount Carmel. Between Megiddo and Jerusalem is Mount Gerizim and Ebal, the mountains of cursing and blessing. In this geographical setting we see the final end of the Papacy set forth symbolically in Daniel 11:45. The Biblical history of these locations is abundant with information symbolically pointing to the battle which ends with the second coming of Christ.

Most Bible commentators locate the king of the north, in Daniel 11:45, in the very middle of this Old Testament geography. This geographic symbolism is, of course, identifying the battle of Armageddon found in Revelation 16. We must be consistent with our application of prophetic rules, and, although the allusion to Megiddo is easily seen in Daniel 11:45, we must continue to seek to find the spiritual location of this verse--not the literal.

In Catholicism, Protestantism, and even in Adventism today, we find men interpreting this verse as literal Israel. The geographical and historical information contained within this verse is describing where the entire world is spiritually located when the battle of Armageddon gets underway. To identify the glorious, holy mountain as literal, modern Jerusalem would be inconsistent with the previous five verses, for they have all been understood in their modern, spiritual setting. If one chooses to identify the glorious, holy mountain in this verse as present-day Jerusalem, then consistency in prophetic application demands that all the symbols in this sequence should have literal counterparts. This is not possible, for Edom of verse 41 no longer exists as a nation or as a people.

If we were to review this presentation of Daniel 11:40-45 from the first article which began in January 1996 until this final article, we would find that we have consistently applied the symbolic (spiritual) application to the figures and symbols, in agreement with the understanding that these events occur after the cross.

A Wake-up Call

We also have seen that the sequence of conquests by the Papacy as it returns to its "former position of power," is the same sequence set forth in the book of Revelation. We also identified this sequence as an accurate repetition of the "history" portrayed in Daniel 11:30-35, which Sister White identified as a pattern by which to compare the final events recorded in Daniel 11.

While noting that the last scenes of prophecy would address the man of sin, we also identified that within the books of Daniel and the Revelation there would be "an increase of knowledge" which would "prepare God's people to stand" in these last days, and that this increase of knowledge would include a knowledge about "the man of sin." Not only did we establish some of the connections between these verses with the book of Revelation, but the prevailing theme of these verses can easily be verified by the events which are transpiring in the world today. We considered that our greatest need as God's people is for revival and reformation, and we noted that Sister White said this needed revival would come from an understanding found in the prophecies of Daniel and Revelation.

We began this study by comparing the events set forth in the first chapter of Testimonies, volume 9, and found there that Sister White identified these final events with the fulfillment of Daniel 11. More sobering though is that as Sister White pointed to these final events of Daniel 11, she then stated that "the final movements will be rapid ones." Brothers and Sisters, the final, rapid events portrayed in Daniel 11:40-45 began to unfold 7 years ago in 1989 with the collapse of the Soviet Union. It is high time that we awaken to the signs of the times!

"But there is a day that God hath appointed for the close of this world's history. 'This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.' Matthew 24:14. Prophecy is fast fulfilling. More, much more, should be said about these tremendously important subjects. The day is at hand when the destiny of every soul will be fixed forever. This day of the Lord hastens on apace. The false watchmen are raising the cry, 'All is well'; but the day of God is rapidly approaching. Its footsteps are so muffled that it does not arouse the world from the deathlike slumber into which it has fallen. While the watchmen cry, 'Peace and safety,' 'sudden destruction cometh upon them,' 'and they shall not escape' (1 Thessalonians 5:3);'for as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth.' Luke 21:35. It overtakes the pleasure-lover and the sinful man as a thief in the night. When all is apparently secure, and men retire to contented rest, then the prowling, stealthy, midnight thief steals upon his prey. When it is too late to prevent the evil, it is discovered that some door or window was not secured. 'Be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.' Matthew 24:44. People are now settling to rest, imagining themselves secure under the popular churches; but let all beware, lest there is a place left open for the enemy to gain an entrance. Great pains should be taken to keep this subject before the people. The solemn fact is to be kept not only before the people of the world, but before our own churches also, that the day of the Lord will come suddenly, unexpectedly. The fearful warning of the prophecy is addressed to every soul. Let no one feel that he is secure from the danger of being surprised. Let no one's interpretation of prophecy rob you of the conviction of the knowledge of events which show that this great event is near at hand." Fundamentals of Christian Education, 335-336.

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