The Prophetic significance of the Reformation The Historicist Interpretation of Prophecy
If I am correct about the importance of the Reformation I would expect it to be referred to in biblical prophecy, and this is the genius of the historicist interpretation of prophecy. In chapters 10,11,12 and 13 of Revelation there is a clear reference to a dark period of church history in which the saints suffer severe persecution over a prolonged period of time – for example chapter 13:10 states that 'he who leads into captivity shall go into captivity; he who kills with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience of the saints.' Likewise, in Daniel 7 a dark period is referred to in verse 21 where it states, 'The same horn was making war against the saints, and prevailing against them'. Later on at the close of verse 25 it states, 'the saints shall be given into his hand for a time and times and half a time'. Here we are first introduced to the biblical timetable of 3½ years (time = 1 year, times =2 years, ½time =½ a year) which is reproduced in Revelation Chapter 13:5 as 42 months – this equals 3½ years. This same period of time is referred to in Revelation 12:6 as 1260 days and Revelation 11:2 as 42 months. You could argue, as the futurists do, that this refers to a literal 3½ years, but to be more consistent, considering these passages are in prophetic code, it is wiser to presume these days represent years. For example in Numbers 14:34 God ascribes for each day the spies spent in Canaan, a year in the wilderness. Similarly in Ezekiel Chapter 4:6 God describes how each day Ezekiel lies on his side represents one year of captivity. This year/day principle is also used in Daniel Chapter 9 explaining how the 70 weeks equals 490 years from the rebuilding of Jerusalem to the death of the Messiah. Therefore, using this principle, the period being referred to in Daniel 7 and Revelation 11,12 and 13 would be about 1260 years in duration. If we now return to the history of the Roman Empire, we will remember that the chief cause of the corruption of the church was it being too closely allied to the Roman state after the arrival of Constantine (though we noted the effects of this were to some extent mitigated during the Dark Ages due to the chaos and instability of Europe); but once the Middle Ages started the power and corruption of the church became pronounced and those who questioned her authority were dealt with severely. This state of affairs was not brought to an end until the 16th century with the Reformation – a period of between 1200 and 1300 years after Christianity became the official state religion – the time span repeatedly referred to in Daniel and Revelation.
Further confirmation that these events are what the prophecies of Daniel 7 and Revelation 11,12 and 13 are referring to can be seen in the description of the beasts. If we compare the 4th beast of Daniel 7 with the beast in Revelation 13 they both have 10 horns and the same animals are referred to - a Lion, a Bear and a Leopard. Therefore, if both beasts are the same, then we must assume that Revelation 13 is referring to some aspect of the Roman empire that continued after its fall in the west. It is interesting to note that in Revelation 13:3 the beast is described as having previously received a mortal wound – referring to the fact that the Roman empire appeared to have been destroyed in the 5th century, but instead it reconstituted itself, so that Western Europe during the Middle Ages saw itself as the heir to the Roman empire. This was classically seen in the crowning of Charlemagne by the Pope in 801AD as the first Holy Roman Emperor. The construction of European Christendom after the collapse of the Roman empire then explains the 10 horns that represent the 10 kingdoms Western Europe maintained during this period - a rare example in history of kingdoms co-existing alongside each other, never being able to destroy each other, and supposedly united in Christian brotherhood for over 1000 years. This then makes sense of the comments made in Daniel 2:42-43 which describes the 10 toes of the statue as being iron mixed with clay therefore 'the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly fragile'. Verse 43 refers to their supposed unity, but in truth, lack of unity. So whereas the legs of Daniel 2 refer to the Roman empire in all its strength, the toes refer to European Christendom that followed on from the fall of Rome, but which owed its spiritual and political origins to the old Roman empire; hence it being treated as one and the same beast in Daniel 7.
It is worth noting that in Daniel 2:44 we are told it is in the days of these kings that the Messiah will set up His kingdom. Likewise, it is in days of the ten horns that the Messiah will come on the clouds (Daniel 7:13). As a historical observation, the kingdoms of Europe have never been subjugated to an empire in all the 1500 years that have elapsed since the collapse of the western Roman Empire. The rest of the world has been subject to empires during this period, but not Western Europe. Ten kingdoms there shall be until the Messiah comes. No Napoleon, Philip II of Spain, Louis XIV or Hitler could alter that state of affairs (or for that matter Henry V at Agincourt - witness God raising up Joan of Arc to save France from subjugation to the English). It is unique in history for such a strange state of affairs to exist for so long; ten kingdoms, partly united and partly divided . (Even to this day we see this drama worked out in the European union. Admittedly there are a lot more than ten kingdoms now, but for most of the last 1500 years ten has been approximately the right number.) As you can see, I get quite excited by the historicist interpretation of prophecy as it fits so neatly the reality of history, and as a consequence, allows me to rejoice in a God who does things so powerfully and so well.
However, even if you are not persuaded by this approach, it is still useful to understand it, because the reformers of the 16th and 17th century saw the conflict they were involved in through this interpretation, and as a consequence they derived great strength and courage to face the heated conflicts of this period knowing that God had prophesied these things to the church. In its day the historicist interpretation of Daniel 2, Thessalonians 2, and Revelation gave the reformers an understanding that God had foreseen the wilderness years of the church during the Middle Ages, and that it was now time for the church to shake off its corruption and superstitions and return to core doctrines of justification by faith, scripture alone and the priesthood of all believers. This was a titanic struggle that gripped Europe for almost 200 years resulting in the Spanish Armada, the gunpowder plot, the 30 years war in Europe and contributed to the English Civil War.
Revelation - An Overall Outline of The Prophecy Chap 5-22
(Historicist Interpretation)
Revelation 5:1-7 & 6:1 Jesus is worthy to open the book with seven seals
Revelation 6:2-17 & 8:1-5 The seven seals are opened - these seals deal with the judgment and fall of Pagan Rome - Remember these seals are the prelude not the substance of the Prophecy.
First seal: Rev 6:1-2 The White Horse of conquest - the rapid expansion of the gospel.
Second seal: Rev 6:3-4 The Red Horse of civil war - all the Roman empire racked by Civil War.
Third seal: Rev 6:5-6 The Black Horse of famine - famine and shortage in the Roman Empire.
Fourth seal Rev6:7-8 The Pale Horse death - due to disease and famine the population of the Roman empire fell dramatically in the third century.
Fifth seal: Rev 6:9-11 The first martyrs - martyrdom and persecution under Pagan Rome.
Sixth seal: Rev 6:12-17 Great changes in the heavenlies and on the Earth - the end of pagan Rome the beginning of Christian Rome.
Seventh Seal: Rev 8:15 Silence in heaven and The Seven trumpets - a period of peace for the church from the time of Constantine to the end of the Western Empire.
Revelation Chapter 7 God's people are sealed - 144000 against the day of the great tribulation. There is also a great multitude who wear white garments having suffered during the great tribulation. A Remnant of Israel will believe - see Romans chapter 11:1-5. Also we see a preview of the multitude who suffer as a result of the coming apostasy of the Beast.
Revelation 8:7-9:31 The Seven Trumpets
First trumpet Rev 8:7 Hail and Fire on Earth, 1/3 trees and all grass destroyed - the invasion of the Goths AD410.
Second trumpet Rev 8:8-9 The sea becomes blood, 1/3 living sea creatures die and 1/3 ships destroyed - Invasion of the Vandals 429-455.
Third trumpet Rev 8:10-11 The star Wormwood falls to earth, 1/3 rivers become bitter and many die - Invasion of Attila the Hun 441-451.
Fourth trumpet Rev 8:12 One third of the sun moon and stars are darkened - the last Roman emperor of the West deposed 476.
Fifth trumpet Rev 9:1-12 Apollyon and the locusts from the pit result in darkness and pain - the rise of Islam (622) and the Saracen invasion which lasted 150 years.
Sixth trumpet Rev 9:13-21 The four angels of the Euphrates released - the great army of Horsemen leading to the fall of the Byzantine Empire and it's capital Constantinople under the Turkish Invasion 1057-1453.
Seventh Trumpet Rev 11:15-19 A time of rejoicing along with lightnings, earthquakes and hail - possibly the success of the Reformation.
Revelation 10 A mighty angel with seven Thunders which are to remain sealed. He had a little book possibly the printed Bible, and announced that the Seventh Trumpet would bring to completion God's mystery. The printed Bible made the Reformation successful because for the first time people could read the whole Bible in their own language and see the truth for themselves and since that day a door has been opened which no man can shut.
Revelation 11:1-14 The second woe - which is the treading underfoot of the outer court of the temple for 1260 days or 42 months - also the period of time given to the two witnesses who are eventually killed by the Beast and raised up after 3 and 1/2 Days. Using the year day interpretation of Prophecy, 1260 days refers to 1260 years which is the period of spiritual apostasy and darkness that started in 254 when Cyprian was the first Bishop of Rome to say that he was successor to Peter and entitled to precedence over Christendom. By 1514 the fifth Lateran Council declared the following about Pope Leo the tenth ‘the whole body of Christendom is now to be subjected to its head that is to thee’. Exactly three-and-a-half years later Luther nailed his 95 theses to a Wittenberg church door - the Reformation had begun - the witnesses had risen from the dead. The Witnesses were those small bands of true believers, like God's 7000 in Elijah's time, who would not bow their knee to Baal e.g. the Waldensians. The 1260 years can also be traced from 607 when emperor Phocus allowed Boniface to be called ‘Universal Bishop’. Then in 1870 the Pope was stripped of all his lands.
Revelation 12 A woman clothed the sun gives birth to a man child who was to rule all Nations with a rod of iron and that child is taken up to heaven. Then there is a Dragon with 7 heads, 10 horns and 7 crowns wanting to destroy the child but is frustrated, so after being thrown out of heaven he persecutes the woman for 1260 days. This is possibly one of the most difficult passages to interpret because while it is obvious that the man child is Jesus, by the title he is given and that the Dragon is Satan in the guise of the Roman Empire, it is not clear who the woman is - probably this is the true Church of God which is the true Israel before the cross, and the true church after cross. This chapter also refers to a period of persecution lasting 1260 years, which suggests it is referring to the same period of time as Chapter 11 and Chapter 13.
Revelation 13 The Dragon gives power authority and his throne to the Beast with seven heads, ten horns and 10 crowns. This beast is given authority for 42 months and he successfully makes war against the Saints. The second beast is the lamb who has two horns who persuades men and women to worship the first beast. In chapters 11,12 and 13 we have a common reference to a period of persecution lasting 1260 years, therefore they are describing the same event. Chapter 11 describes it from the perspective of the true church and the faithful two witnesses. Chapter 12 from the perspective of heaven and the Dragon being cast out. Chapter 13 from the perspective of the world and the apparent victory of the beast over the Saints during this period. The two beasts represent the papacy and the Roman Catholic church of the middle ages and it's increasingly cruel suppression of the true Saints or it could represent Europe (the beast) and the church the lamb - this would make more sense since in chapter 17 the beast is clearly Europe and the papacy is the woman - likewise in Daniel 7 the final beast is Europe and the papacy is the little horn (in Daniel 2 Europe is represented as the ten toes).
Revelation 14 Three Angels appear, the first brings the everlasting gospel, the second announces The Fall of Babylon (papal Rome), the third declares the judgment of God against those who worship the Beast. The Reformation brought back the clear preaching of the gospel and ushered in the ultimate destruction of Roman Catholic Europe - see 2 Thessalonians 2:8 ‘the man of sin will be consumed by the breath of his mouth’ which is the word of God. In chapter 14 reference is also made to the Patience of the Saints. Probably this is meant to encourage those who turned to the Protestant faith in continental Europe during the Reformation yet suffered renewed persecution including the counter-reformation of the late 16th and early 17th centuries. Another comment found in chapter 14 is ‘blessed are the dead their works will follow them’. Interestingly after the counter-reformation has been exhausted the work of God will henceforth never have to face another apostasy of the severity and nature of the great apostasy so new movements of this period will live beyond the death of their founders such as Methodism and the Salvation Army, unlike medieval attempts to reform the church which quickly became corrupted soon after the death of their founder. Finally, in chapter 14 we hear about the two sickles and the two harvests. The Son of Man reaps the gospel harvest - in the last 200 years there's been an explosion of missionary work and the church has spread all over the world. However the other sickle is the Wrath of God - likewise over the last 200 years since the French Revolution there has been a marked increase in the number of bloody world wars and revolutions.
Revelation 15 We are introduced to the seven angels with the seven last plagues - the scene is set for the final act of the drama.
Revelation 16 The seven bowls of the wrath of God against European Christendom.
First Bowl Rev 16:2 Poured on the earth, foul sores on those who worshipped the beast. The age of reason makes Christianity odious - especially in France.
Second Bowl Rev 16:3 Poured on the sea, it becomes as blood, every sea creature dies. From the 18th century the British control the seas, thus ending the power of the Beast at sea.
Third Bowl Rev 16:4-7 Poured on the rivers, they become as blood. The great continental wars often fought in Germany, Austria and Italy 1792-1815.
Fourth Bowl Rev 16:8-9 Poured on the sun, which scorched men with fire and they cursed God - no repentance.
Fifth Bowl Rev 16:10-11 Poured on to the throne of the beast. Darkness and pain and the blasphemed God - no repentance. The territorial fall of Papal Rome 1870.
Sixth Bowl Rev 16:12-16 Poured on the river Euphrates preparing a way for the kings of the East. Also three frogs that gather kings and peoples to the battle of Armageddon. The three frogs are the jingoistic press that helped create the atmosphere needed for WW1 to take place and one of the great battles of WW1 took place in 1918 at Megiddo where the Turkish army was destroyed. This effectively brought to an end the Ottoman Empire that controlled the region around the Euphrates. Also of interest is that the origins of the reconstituted state of Israel can be traced back to this period with the Balfour declaration in 1917. This might explain the curious comment we find in v15 where Jesus reminds the reader of His imminent return. Also v15 seems to be very similar to Rev 3:18 where Jesus rebukes the Laodicean church for being naked because it has become lukewarm due to its great wealth. It can be observed that from the end of WW1 individual wealth increases massively and alongside that personal morality takes a nosedive also the church in the west becomes increasingly lukewarm - one of the classic side-effects of increased material wealth.
Seventh Bowl Rev 16:17-21 Poured on the air. Great earthquakes, hail from heaven and they blasphemed God - possibly WW2
Revelation 17 - The woman on the beast and its interpretation. In this situation the woman is the pope and the beast is European Christendom. The woman is called Babylon the Great - interestingly the name pontiff, one of the titles of the pope, comes from the title of the chief Babylonian priest and was adopted by the popes in 378 three years after the Christian emperor Gratian renounced it because of its pagan overtones. For 1000 years the papacy claimed to rule over Christendom but eventually as prophesied the kings of Europe rose up and devoured the harlot - verse 16.
Revelation 18 ‘Babylon is fallen’ and her great judgment. To some extent this has already happened with Napoleon imprisoning the pope, followed in 1870 when the popes lost all their secular territory - however there could still be a further and fuller fulfillment of this prophecy.
Revelation 19:1-9 Rejoicing at the fall of Babylon and rejoicing at the imminent prospect of the marriage of the Lamb.
Revelation 19:11-16 The Word of God on a white horse leading the army of God.
Revelation 19:17-18 An angel inviting the birds of heaven to the supper of the great God.
Revelation 19:19 The armies of the beast and the kings of the earth gathered to make war against the ‘Word of God’ and His armies. The beast and the false prophet are captured and thrown into the lake of fire and the armies are destroyed. (This appears to be the final battle at the time of the second coming - see Zechariah 12-14)
Revelation 20:1-3 Satan bound for one thousand years. This is often referred to as the Millennial age of Christ’s rule on earth as opposed to the New Heavens and the New Earth of Rev 21 & 22. Some commentators in the past have likened this 1000 years to the sabbath day of creation. If we accept that one day is as 1000 years then the 6000 years of human history that leads up to the millennium can also be likened to the 6 days of creation.
Revelation 20:4-6 The millennial reign of Christ with the saints who suffered during the great apostasy - the first resurrection.
Revelation 20:7-10 The final Satanic battle at the end of the Millennium. This passage seems to make reference to Ezekiel 38 and 39. Which is interesting as many people use this as a prophecy relating to the second coming whereas John seems to put it at the end of the Millennial age.
Revelation 20:11-15 Awful judgment!
Revelation 21:1-22:5 New Heaven and New Earth at last - no more suffering - no more sin - eternal fellowship with God - this sounds very good.
Revelation 22:6-21 A series of statements