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the United States, put it succinctly:
"H istory is bul lhe unrolled scroll of
prophecy."
Cenluries in advance of their ac–
tual fulfillment, the ancient inspired
prophecies of the Bible out lined a
definite, unmistakable progression
of world empires, beginning with
the Babylonian and continuing
through the subsequent Medo-Per–
sian, Greco-Macedonian, and Re–
man empires and beyond.
Additional prophecies foretold the
fa tes of numerous other major cities
and nations. In a ll cases, the pages
of history have confirmed the unerr–
ing accuracy of these pro¡;>hecies.
The eighth chapter of Dañiel -
written sorne 200 years before lhe
time of Alexander the Great - is a
remarkable illustrative example of
prophecy become history. In it.
Daniel describes a slruggle - then
two centuries distant - between the
Medo-Persian empire and Greece,
predicling two great Grecian victo–
ríes (Alexander's triumphs at Issus
- 333 B.C. - and at Gaugamela -
331 B.C.), the final collapse of Per–
sia, the untimely death of Alexan–
der, and the division of his kingdom
among his four generals - all of
which later carne 10 pass exactly as
foretold!
Moreover, Alexander himself -
at one of those rare, faleful mo–
ments in history - may have ac–
tually seen those very prediclions as
he was in the process of fulfilling
them! The first century A.D. Jewish
historian Josephus records in his
Antiquities of the Jews
(XI, VIII , 5)
thal in 332 B.C. Alexander the
Great, on a campaign through Pal-
The
PLAIN TRUTH
January
1977
estine, met personally with Jaddua,
the Jewish High Priest. "And when
the book of Daniel was shewed him,
wherein Daniel declared that one of
the Greeks should destroy the em–
pire of the Persians, he [Aiexander]
supposed that himself was the per–
so n intended, and ... he was
glad."
Josephus a lso records that Cyrus
the Great - whose conquest of
Babylon was foretold by the
prophet lsaiah nearly 200 years be–
fare it happened - may likewise
have read the prophecy regarding
his role in rebuildmg the temple in
Jerusalem (lsa. 44:28).
Conference In Heaven
1
nterestingly, the Bible records an
example of an actual conference in
heaven at which was discussed the
best manner of influencing a crucial
historical event! Undoubtedly, sim–
ilar conferences have been held fre–
quently throughout history.
The question at hand
(1
Kings
22) was how to influence Ahab -
the most wicked of all the kings of
ancient Israel - lo go to battle
against the Syrians, a battle in
which he would surely be killed.
With a host of angels gathered
around him, God, according to this
account, asked for advice: " 'Who
will entice Ahab 10 go and die at
Ramoth-gilead?' Various sugges–
tions were made, until one angel ap–
proached the Lord and said,
'I'll
do
it! ' ' How?' the Lord asked. And he
replied, ' 1 will go as a lying spir it in
the mouths of al! his prophets' "
(1 Kings 22:20-22 ,
The Living
Bible).
So God allowed lhe angel 10
inftuence Ahab's pagan prophets to
~
falsely assure Ahab that he would
'§
be viclorious in the war.
.:::
On 1he day of battle, however, 1he
!
powerful Syrian army - as God in-
l
tended - easi ly defeated the Israel- ;,;
ites. During the fighting, "someone
~
shot an arrow at random and it
~
struck King Ahab between the
t
joints of his armor" (v. 34) - similar
a
to the account of Harold's death at
g
.:::
the fateful Battle of Hastings sorne
~
2,000 years later.
a
The Bible also records other su- o
pernatural tactics used frequently
~
throughout history, such as God's
~
destroying the ships of Tars hish
~
with an east wind (Psalm 48:7) and
l!!
!l
his sending a great storm to rout the
«:
Philistine armies preparing for
battle against the Israeli tes
(1
Sam.
7: lO).
Prophecies for Toda
y
But is God still directing the affairs
of nations
today
-
in the fast–
moving world ofthe mid-1970s?
Amazingly, sorne 90% of Bible
prophecy is
yet to be fulftlled!
Is it
Iogical , then, to believe that these
prophecies would ignore the major
power centers of today- the United
States, the British Commonwealth,
Westero Europe, the Middie East,
the Soviet Union?
God is stiU
very
active in world
affairs - possibly now more than
ever before! Write for our two re–
vealing free booklets,
How to Un–
derstand Prophecy
and
The United
States and British Commonwealth in
Prophecy,
for a fascinating look at
what lies in store for the world in
the years just ahead.
O
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