Should Christians Celebrate Halloween?

I feel very much compelled to post one final article regarding Halloween in order to admonish and encourage those dear brethren perhaps not fully convinced of its spiritual danger. This issue seems to come up over and over in discussion amongst God's people. Prompting this posting was a visit to a local Walmart last Friday where I was shocked to see two full aisles dedicated to Halloween accoutrements with all of darkness that goes along with it all. As I went to the greeting card aisle to select a “thank you” card, I was shocked to see one entire section of Halloween holiday greeting cards. I never imagined such a thing growing up.

Take note that Halloween is the most important day of the year for Satanists, according to the late Anton LaVey the founder and “high priest” of the Church of Satan. Participation is tantamount to endorsement.

Anton LaVey himself declared that he took joy, great joy, in Christians who take part in the tradition, saying: “I am glad that Christian parents let their children worship the devil at least one night out of the year. Welcome to Halloween.” LaVey’s statement is corroborated by a former Satanist who said that when you dress up even as an angel or a mermaid for Halloween you play right into Satan’s hand by association. No genuinely born-again believer can honestly declare that Halloween glorifies God in any possible way. No possible way! I have been criticized, sometimes angrily, by some brethren when I lovingly, with all longsuffering and doctrine, try to warn them about the spiritual dangers of Halloween. It is anti-Christ and dangerous to the spiritual welfare of precious little children. Participation constitutes the appearance of evil from which the believer is to abstain (I Thessalonians 5:22).

Included here is a quote from a tract identifying the origins of Halloween:

. . .Unlike many other holidays such as Thanksgiving and Christmas, Halloween has no origins in Christianity. Halloween is unmistakably pagan in its origin, its symbols, and in the ways people celebrate it.

What Does the Bible Say?

Both the Old and New Testaments explicitly forbid God's people to become involved in witchcraft, spiritism, and the demonic. Consider these Old Testament prohibitions:

Deuteronomy 18:9-13- When thou art come into the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of those nations. There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD: and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee. Thou shalt be perfect with the LORD thy God.

• Thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of those nations [the heathen].

• There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, [child sacrifice, exposing children to heathen worship, the demonic and occult].

• or that useth divination [delves into fortune-telling or occult knowledge of the future],

• or an observer of times [interprets omens or tells the future by astrology],

• or an enchanter [one who casts spells or practices the magic arts],

• or a witch [one who practices sorcery, a spiritist],

• or a charmer [one who casts spells],

• or a consulter with familiar spirits [a medium, one who consults demons or evil spirits for guidance],

• or a wizard [a spiritist, one who seeks knowledge from the unseen world],

• or a necromancer [one who calls up and consults the dead for guidance and secret knowledge].

I Chronicles 10:13- So Saul died for his transgression which he committed against the LORD, even against the word of the LORD, which he kept not, and also for asking counsel of one that had a familiar spirit, to enquire of it;

The observance of Halloween with its focus on death, witches, luck, and foretelling the future, links one to the very things the Scripture forbids. At best, seemingly ‘innocent’ Halloween practices weaken one's position against the occult, and at worst, they openly invite the demonic.

The New Testament condemns witchcraft as one of the works of the flesh that God will judge.

"Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God” (Galatians 5:19-21).

The conversion of the heathen in the Book of Acts brought conviction against heathen and occult practices. The new believers wanted nothing to do with the practices from which God had delivered them.

"And many that believed came, and confessed, and shewed their deeds. Many of them also which used curious arts brought their books together, and burned them before all men: and they counted the price of them, and found it fifty thousand pieces of silver. So mightily grew the word of God and prevailed” (Acts 19:18-20).

How might God bless if Christians today would rid themselves of all the pagan customs of our society?

The Christian's Response

Bible-believing Christians certainly do not want to become involved in occult practices or Satan worship. Yet many professing Christians unthinkingly allow their children to dress as witches, ghosts, or even devils and take them out to trick-or-treat. How many churches hold Halloween parties or sponsor haunted houses to keep the kids out of trouble? How can Christian and pagan customs mix so freely?

Some may argue, “But we don't worship Samhain or devils at Halloween. We do not believe in witches anymore. These things do not mean what they used to. Now Halloween is just a time of harmless fun for the children.”

On the other hand, can any thoughtful Christian give a Scriptural reason for observing a holiday so steeped in paganism and witchcraft? With the modern resurgence of witchcraft and Satan worshipers who openly claim Halloween as their holiday, how can Christians observe it, even in fun?

"For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light: (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;) Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them” (Ephesians 5:8-11).

Note: I would highly recommend God’s people research the origin and history of Halloween.

 -Paul Mershon

The Book That Stands Alone

The Bible is one of the oldest known records of history in the world. If you thought the Bible was primarily a religious book, then you have never read it. It deals with the history of the world, the Jewish people, and the time of the early church. It contains prophecy about the future of the world, too.

It contains genealogies, heroism, conquests, failures, oppressions, and miracles. There's stories of ghosts, witches, giants, mutants, plagues, and destruction. It's written by poets, rebels, prophets, shepherds, kings, murderers, and slaves.

How did we get this book of history and prophecy? It took a divine hand, supernatural preservation, and the spiritual guidance of many different people in many different lands throughout time.

The oldest book in the Bible is Job, which is believed to be written some time after the flood, but before Moses wrote the Pentateuch, the first five books in the index of the Bible.

We are not entirely certain who wrote Job. Some believe it was written in the 5th Century BC. It could have been written and handed down through the generations, or it could have been told by God to Moses- it's a mystery, because only God Himself knows.

We do know that Moses is the author of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy, with the exception of the last 8 verses (documenting his death). This was written in the Hebrew of his day. 

From Joshua through Malachi, the Scriptures were written by leaders, scribes, seers or prophets, kings, and other men of God who were chosen by Him to record the important events of their day.

Because the lineage of the Jews copied, read, and often told stories from the Bible, their language has been the same since the time of Moses. Almost all of the books of the Old Testament originally were written in Hebrew, with the exception of Daniel. 

Daniel was written in two languages- chapters 1–6, written mostly in Aramaic, and chapters 7–12, written mostly in Hebrew. Because Daniel was a captive in Babylon, he was forced to learn their language, and when writing the history of his experiences, he wrote in the language of the Babylonians- Aramaic. When he was writing the visions that he received of God in the last half of the book, however, he wrote them in his native tongue- Hebrew.

From the time of Daniel, the land of Israel went through many different foreign occupations. From Babylon, to Media-Persia, to the ancient Greek kingdom, the Jewish people had to accommodate many different peoples and a variety of languages. From the third century BC until the time of Christ it was the Roman Empire who held power.

Koine Greek was the common form of Greek spoken and written during the Hellenistic period (323 BC - 31 BC), the Roman Empire (31 BC - c 395 AD) and the early Byzantine Empire (395 AD - 1453 AD).  It evolved from the spread of Greek following the conquests of Alexander the Great in the fourth century BC. 

Koine is also the language of the Septuagint (the 3rd century BC Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible), and is the original language in which the Christian New Testament and of most early Christian theological writing by the Church Fathers was written. In this context, Koine Greek is also known as "Biblical" Greek.

It is unclear whether Matthew and John, Hebrews, Peter, James, and Jude were originally written in Hebrew or Greek. But, the rest of the New Testament were written to Gentiles and therefore we know that they were written in the Koine Greek language.

Latin comes from the early people of Italy, who called their region Latium. By the 3rd century BC, Latin was the official language of the Roman Republic. It was used by the Roman administration as well as for law, politics, and religion. The location of the Roman Republic is currently known as Rome, Italy.

After the foundation of Rome in (753 BC) and its expansion, Latin prevailed as the main language in both speaking and writing within the limited borders of Italy and the surrounding areas, however most of the vast territory of the Roman Empire spoke Greek. 

In AD 395, during Theodosius I reign, the split between the Western part of the Roman empire and the Eastern part officially created two different empires. This division changed Roman life and government. There were now two emperors in each empire, and they governed independently. The capital of the Western Empire was Rome, and the capital of the Eastern Empire was Constantinople (modern day Istanbul).  Although they governed separately, their forms of government were similar and they enforced many of the same laws. However, as time went on their differences grew, mainly in the aspects of religion, language, and culture.

After the fall of the Western Roman Empire in AD 476, Greek became the language of administration in the Eastern Roman Empire (or Byzantine empire).

The Holy Roman Empire was an attempt to revive the Western Roman Empire, whose legal and political structure deteriorated during the 5th and 6th centuries. In AD 1054, The Holy Roman Empire was divided into Western Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy. 

Latin eventually rises to replace Greek after the Byzantine Empire fell to the Turks in AD 1453. This was due largely to the control brought on by religious dominance. There was a good deal of appropriation, especially when the Roman Catholics. The need to control sacred writings and more that were all in Greek brought about the mass translation of the Greek civil and religious documents into Latin.

Ecclesiastical Latin refers to the styles used by the writers of the Roman Catholic Church; the term 'Vulgar Latin' was used to differentiate the common language of the people.

The Vulgate is largely the work of Jerome who, in 382, had been commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise the Old Latin gospels used by the Roman Church. Jerome chose to make a new translation of the Old Testament while working from Hebrew Masoretic text. However, he used the Old Latin, instead of the Greek to translate the New Testament. He finished in AD 405. The Vulgate was to become the Catholic Church's officially promoted version of the Bible declared at the Council of Trent (1545 - 1563 AD).

Jerome could not fully capture the participial nuances of the Koine Greek New Testament. Instead he resorted to using many more words than necessary that often complicated the text. 

None of the original books of the Bible were ever written in Latin. They are written in the language of the people who would be reading them- Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek.

The Textus Receptus, or the “received text” as it is also known, was translated by Erasmus in the 15th Century AD. He compiled the New Testament books from Greek manuscripts which became the first published Greek New Testament.

Since all of Erasmus' Greek manuscripts dated from the 12th century or later, many modern scholars consider his text to be of subpar quality. But you have to consider that writings of the apostles would presumably have been written on papyrus or parchment, since they were the easiest and cheapest to acquire. These letters would be copied by others on the same readily available materials down through the centuries. The old, worn out copies would be disposed of and replaced with the new copies. 

There are no original Hebrew scrolls written by Moses. The psalms of David are not the actual psalms written by his hand. Neither would you find the letters written by Paul himself anywhere in this present world. Everything we have in our Bibles today comes from copies of the originals, not the originals themselves, as they have been lost to time and history. 

The Dead Sea Scrolls, which were found by an Arab shepherd boy in 1947 in the Qumran caves near Jericho, Israel, actually agree with the King James Bible translation. This fact makes them unattractive to scholars desiring to retard the KJV translation. So, other than commenting on the irony of the way in which they were found, they are largely ignored.

The KJV translation authorized by King James in 1604 was done by six committees composed of 47 scholar: three assigned to work on the Old Testament, two on the New Testament, and one on the Apocrypha. 

Because we no longer possess the original biblical texts as written by authors like Moses, Jeremiah, John, and Paul, the scholars used all available materials to discern as accurately as possible what the originals said. They sifted through mountains papyri, scrolls, fragments on parchment and vellum, manuscripts, various translations in different languages, and literally millions of quotations from early church fathers who cited Scripture in their writings. Th​ese were mainly written in Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek, and Latin, although early translations in ancient languages like Coptic, Syriac, Ge’ez, and Gothic must also be consulted. 

The New Testament was guided by using the Textus Receptus Greek texts. For the Old Testament, the Masoretic Hebrew and Aramaic text was used, and for the Apocrypha, the Greek Septuagent text was used primarily. 

Once the work of the committees was completed, two members from each committee met for the final review before publication. This work took them seven years from beginning to printing. Scholars agree, that this large group of men, with diverse resources, produced a better version of the English Bible in its entirety than had previously been available.

It is a book of history, prophecy, and power. Its pages reveal the creation of the world, the beginning of the Jewish nation, and the predictions of our future. It shows the state of humanity, the fate of our souls, and the presented choice that could change our futures.  Its powerful, majestic style has made it a literary classic, and the only book in the world that can tell you where you come from, why you are here, and what will happen to you after you die.

Origins Of The Middle East Conflict

The Bible tells us that God promised Abraham a piece of land for his descendants. Jews, Christians, and Muslims agree on this.

Genesis 13:14-17- And the LORD said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward: For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever. And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered. Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee.

Genesis 17:7-8- And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.

Where the problem comes is which descendant was this promised to?

Abraham had two sons. One son by his wife Sarah who was named Isaac. And another son by a woman that wasn’t his wife and that son’s name was Ishmael.

Genesis 16:1-2, 15- Now Sarai Abram's wife bare him no children: and she had an handmaid, an Egyptian, whose name was Hagar. And Sarai said unto Abram, Behold now, the LORD hath restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go in unto my maid; it may be that I may obtain children by her. And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai. And Hagar bare Abram a son: and Abram called his son's name, which Hagar bare, Ishmael.

Genesis 21:1-3- And the LORD visited Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did unto Sarah as he had spoken. For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him. And Abraham called the name of his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah bare to him, Isaac.

God told Abraham that the promise would go through his son Isaac and not his son Ishmael.

Genesis 21:9-13- And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, which she had born unto Abraham, mocking. Wherefore she said unto Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac. And the thing was very grievous in Abraham's sight because of his son. And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called. And also of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is thy seed.

God promised Abraham that He would make a nation out of Ishmael. This people would be a wild nation that would fight against everyone! This was a prophecy told directly to Hagar about her unborn child.

Genesis 16:10-12- And the angel of the LORD said unto her, I will multiply thy seed exceedingly, that it shall not be numbered for multitude. And the angel of the LORD said unto her, Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael; because the LORD hath heard thy affliction. And he will be a wild man; his hand will be against every man, and every man's hand against him; and he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.

Since then, the descendants of these two boys have been fighting. According to Islamic tradition, the Muslims came from the 12 tribes (sons) of Ishmael. The descendants of Ishmael want the land that God promised to Abraham through Isaac.

Genesis 25:12-16- Now these are the generations of Ishmael, Abraham's son, whom Hagar the Egyptian, Sarah's handmaid, bare unto Abraham: And these are the names of the sons of Ishmael, by their names, according to their generations: the firstborn of Ishmael, Nebajoth; and Kedar, and Adbeel, and Mibsam, And Mishma, and Dumah, and Massa, Hadar, and Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah: These are the sons of Ishmael, and these are their names, by their towns, and by their castles; twelve princes according to their nations.

But the story doesn’t end there.

Isaac, Abraham and Sarah's child, had two sons. One was named Esau and the other was named Jacob.

Genesis 25:20,21,24-26- And Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah to wife, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Padanaram, the sister to Laban the Syrian. And Isaac intreated the LORD for his wife, because she was barren: and the LORD was intreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived. And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb. And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau. And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called Jacob: and Isaac was threescore years old when she bare them.

God selected the promise to continue through Jacob, who was later renamed Israel. Then the descendants of the 12 sons of Jacob (who was called Israel at that time) became known as the 12 tribes of Israel. This story is pretty complicated and is found in Genesis 29-31, with the last son's birth recorded in Genesis 35.

I Chronicles 2:1-2- These are the sons of Israel; Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun, Dan, Joseph, and Benjamin, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher.

Esau’s descendant’s became known as the Edomites. This is detailed upon in Genesis 36.

I Chronicles 1:35- The sons of Esau; Eliphaz, Reuel, and Jeush, and Jaalam, and Korah.

According to Psalm 137:7 the Edomites went against Israel. And according to Jeremiah 49:7–22, God said that he will bring disaster on them and make them an object of horror.

God has said that the Promised Land would go to Israel's lineage, and He also gave Esau's family a place in the region.

Deuteronomy 2:4-5- And command thou the people, saying, Ye are to pass through the coast of your brethren the children of Esau, which dwell in Seir; and they shall be afraid of you: take ye good heed unto yourselves therefore: Meddle not with them; for I will not give you of their land, no, not so much as a foot breadth; because I have given mount Seir unto Esau for a possession.

So the whole Jew-Muslim conflict is just one big family feud because they cannot agree to live according to God’s plan and instead all want the promised land. These other sons have banded together for generations to try to wipe the Jewish people off that land.

Psalm 83:2-8- For, lo, thine enemies make a tumult: and they that hate thee have lifted up the head. They have taken crafty counsel against thy people, and consulted against thy hidden ones. They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance. For they have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee: The tabernacles of Edom, and the Ishmaelites; of Moab, and the Hagarenes; Gebal, and Ammon, and Amalek; the Philistines with the inhabitants of Tyre; Assur also is joined with them: they have holpen the children of Lot. Selah.

This is where the entire thing began. It's a family fued over who should actually get the promise of physical land given by God to Abraham and his lineage. It's been going on for millennia, and it won't end until Christ returns and stops it.

The Secret Place (video sermon)

One Day (poem)

 "Some simple tasks we do below

Will one day be no more,

For heaven won't require them

For what God has in store.

There'll  be no need for scrubbing

There'll be no clothes to fold,

Cause we won't need a clothesline

As we walk the streets of gold.

Some days earth seems so tiresome

Our labors wear us down

But we won't take them with us-

We'll trade them for a crown.

One day we'll see our loved ones

We never more will roam

And won't our hearts be joyful

When the Savior takes us home." 

by Sherry Minnix Hefner

Mama Bear Apologetics book review

 When we have our babies, something lights inside us that drives us to protect and nurture them. We make certain that all of their physical needs are taken care of. As they age, we tackle their educational needs- first numbers and colors, then the alphabet and reading, and so on. But what about their spiritual needs?

Many of us think that taking our kids to church and making sure they go to a christian school is enough. Plenty of us aim to ensure that our children accept Christ as their Savior so that we know their souls are bound for heaven. Sadly, many parents stop there. It's not until our children are grown and living in the world rejecting christian faith that we realize there was a greater need in this area.

Mama Bear Apologetics has you examining at this portion of your child's development. It's a book that encourages you to see where many christian children have been led astray and helps to open your eyes to all the different ways the world tries to sway their hearts.

I think any mother or father, for that matter, will benefit from reading and utilizing the information given in this book, especially if their children are getting a public school education.

For more information and resources, check out the author's webpage- Mama Bear Apologetics.

You Are Always Good (song)

The Image, The Beasts, And The Prophecy of Daniel

 Reading through the Bible, you come across a lot of prophesy. Probably the most known is about Nebuchadnezzar's dream of the image in Daniel 2.

Daniel 2:31-35- Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible. This image's head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass, His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay. Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.

Fortunately for us, most of this prophesy was revealed by Daniel himself.

Daniel 2:36-45- This is the dream; and we will tell the interpretation thereof before the king. Thou, O king, art a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory. And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath he given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou art this head of gold. And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee, and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth. And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise. And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters' clay, and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay. And as the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken. And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay. And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever. 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; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.

The first thing to notice is that while the materials get stronger the further down you go, they also decrease in value. I believe this is important. I'm not certain if they decrease in value because the area they rule over is smaller, or what the reason for that is. But it's possible that they increase in strength because their hold lasts longer. These are "world" powers that were conquered by the next incoming power.

The head of gold was Nebuchadnezzar's kingdom. His seat of power was in Babylon of the Chaldean Empire. The capital city, Babylon, was located along the Euphrates River in modern day Iraq.

The next empire was Media-Persia. This were the arms of silver. Notice, two arms were two distinct kingdoms who co-ruled, switching the ruling party between the two during their time in power. Daniel lived to see the end of the Babylonian/ Chaldean Empire and the rise of the Meidian-Persian empire. He even prophesied about them in Daniel 8 as the Ram with two horns. This empire was mainly in modern day Iran.

Daniel 8:20- The ram which thou sawest having two horns are the kings of Media and Persia.

The third kingdom of brass was Greece. This kingdom came to power under Alexander the Great. He is also foretold in Daniel 8 as the goat with one notable horn that becomes four horns. Alexander's kingdom goes to his four generals, who battle until one rises to power.

Daniel 8:21-22- And the rough goat is the king of Grecia: and the great horn that is between his eyes is the first king. Now that being broken, whereas four stood up for it, four kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not in his power.

This fourth kingdom of iron is the Roman Empire. The ruling government when the Lord Jesus Christ was born. These were the legs of iron. What must be realized is that something interesting happens here. 

The governmental Roman Empire becomes the Papal Roman Empire. And just like the two arms of Media Persia, the legs are two separate limbs. During the first millenium, something happens to the Papal Roman Empire. A split occurs into the Roman Catholics Church of the West, and the Greek Orthodox Church of the East.

These two religious powers have some similarities and some differences, but the most notable thing is they push a form of religion that doesn't preach salvation by faith in Christ alone.

In Daniel 8, it's foretold that one of those horns will bring forth the AntiChrist.

Daniel 8:8-12- Therefore the he goat waxed very great: and when he was strong, the great horn was broken; and for it came up four notable ones toward the four winds of heaven. And out of one of them came forth a little horn, which waxed exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the pleasant land. And it waxed great, even to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and of the stars to the ground, and stamped upon them. Yea, he magnified himself even to the prince of the host, and by him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of his sanctuary was cast down. And an host was given him against the daily sacrifice by reason of transgression, and it cast down the truth to the ground; and it practised, and prospered.

Out of one of these religions will come a man that is used by Satan to gather the world into one global community, and then will be possessed by Satan and try to destroy the Jews and anyone who stands against him.

Daniel 8:23-26- And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up. And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people. And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand. And the vision of the evening and the morning which was told is true: wherefore shut thou up the vision; for it shall be for many days.

Daniel also tells us that this part won't happen for a very long time.

During this reign, he will be joined by 10 kings. Five from western civilization and five from eastern civilization. The toes that are mingled with the seed of women are mutants who rule beside the AntiChrist. "They" are something different than what Daniel had encountered.

Christ himself tried to warn people that "They" would be part of the system of the end times.

Luke 17:26-30- And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man. They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all. Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed. 

"They" were the reason God destroyed the world in the flood.

Genesis 6:1-2,4- And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose. There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown.

"They" were also the reason God destroyed Sodom and Gomhorrah. Their sin of homosexuality was not the reason He rained fire down on them, even though it is an abomination to Him. It's because the people were actively looking to mate with angelic beings.

Genesis 19:1-5- And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground; And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you, into your servant's house, and tarry all night, and wash your feet, and ye shall rise up early, and go on your ways. And they said, Nay; but we will abide in the street all night. And he pressed upon them greatly; and they turned in unto him, and entered into his house; and he made them a feast, and did bake unleavened bread, and they did eat. But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter: And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them.

"They" will show up again before the Tribulation period. "They" will be old enough to rule and reign with the AntiChrist.

There is one more revelation in Daniel that I think is important to bring into this picture. This vision occurs during the "legs of iron" and it leads up to the reign of the AntiChrist, basically setting the stage.

Daniel 7:3-8- And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another. The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to it. And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up itself on one side, and it had three ribs in the mouth of it between the teeth of it: and they said thus unto it, Arise, devour much flesh. After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; the beast had also four heads; and dominion was given to it. After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns. I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things.

These four beasts precede the AntiChrist.

The first is a lion with eagle's wings. Many people believe that this is England. attributed the provenance of the most ancient parts of the statue to Assyria, Sassania, Greco-Bactria, medieval Venice, and various other cultures. Winged gilded lion of St Mark was taken by Napoleon from Venice and set up in France in the late 1700's. When England destroyed Napoleon's hold of the region, they took this winged lion back to London in the early 1800's.

This lion of Daniel had its wings plucked and was made to stand like a man with a human heart. The Lion of England is one of the oldest and most iconic royal beast in heraldic art, used on the shield of England since the twelfth century. It's usually depicted on its two back feet with the shield in its front paws. The wings being ripped off could depict its dwindling global dominion.

The second is a bear with three ribs in its mouth. The bear is one of the most common figures associated with Russia. The Russian bear is a national personification for Russia, used in cartoons, fairy tales, and dramatic plays since at least the 17th century.

The three ribs, I believe, are three countries that Russia is actively engaged in trying to conquer. In my opinion, this would be Georgia, Crimea, and the Ukraine.

The third is a chimera of a beast. A leopard with four wings. I personally think this may be America. America is a melting pot of different cultures, nationalities, and peoples. Like the leopard has a white belly and a yellow back with black spots- Caucasian, Oriental, and African.

The four wings are still a mystery to me. It could be that they follow the same ideology as England, and these are places which are under the United States dominion.

The last beast comes right before the AntiChrist, and is what the AntiChrist comes from. It's dreadful and terrible with iron teeth. The Man of Sin uses the mutants to encourage his policies; the AntiChrist will use the mutants to enforce his policies.

It's important to remember that when the Man of Sin shows up, he is simply a politician sold out to the devil. There are plenty of them all around the world. Which country he comes from is not known, but the Bible makes it clear that he will be an Assyrian Jew. He will rise to power by promising peace, and he may indeed get some of the wars to cease. He will be assassinated, and then rise again proclaiming that he is the promised Messiah. It is at this point that he will become the AntiChrist.

There is so much more in both the Old Testament and the New Testament, but this is just my brief understanding of the image, the beasts, and the prophecy found in the book of Daniel.