Daniel 12:

Reading #418  The special resurrection

Having been left last week with the knowledge that the king of the north will be upset by a call from God’s people near the end of time, we carry on now and find that the result of that cry will be “a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation”.

Gabriel said:

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Daniel 12:

1 And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great Prince which stands for the children of your people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time:

and at that time your people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book [of life].

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Gabriel is here explaining that after the loud cry, Michael (the Son of God) will stop doing His ministration in the heavenly sanctuary, and commence the final part of the cleansing of the sanctuary.  There will be mercy no longer, only pure judgment, for every case will have been decided and all those alive upon the earth will have reached the point of no return.  It will be with a sad heart that Christ will have to turn from the rejecters of His grace, but it will be mingled with the joy of knowing that a few have been delivered. 

The “time of trouble” (aka the seven last plagues), will then commence, the first four on all the world, but in various locations at various times, otherwise no one would survive to the second coming.  This could take some time, but they will not be recognised for what they are because they are the LAST of many other preceding plagues which have caused havoc in the world. 

Here are the first four of the seven LAST plagues:

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Revelation 16:

1 And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, “Go your ways, and pour out the vials [bowls] of the wrath of God upon the earth”.

2 And the first went, and poured out his vial [bowl] upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous [loathsome and stinking] sore upon [some of] the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon [some of] them which worshipped his image.

3 And the second angel poured out his vial [bowl] upon the sea; and it became as the blood of a dead man; and every living soul died in the sea [where this happened].  

4 And the third angel poured out his vial [bowl] upon the rivers and fountains of [fresh] waters; and they became blood.

5 And I heard the angel of the waters say, “You are righteous, O LORD, which are, and were, and shall be, because You have judged thus. 6 For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and You have given them blood to drink; for they are worthy”. 7 And I heard another out of the altar say, “Even so, LORD God Almighty, true and righteous are Your judgments”.

8 And the fourth angel poured out his vial [bowl] upon the sun; and power was given to him to scorch men with fire. 9 And men were scorched [burned and blistered] with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which has power over these plagues: and they repented not to give Him glory.

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The fact that in the third plague some fresh water will become as blood (undrinkable) reminds us of one of the plagues which fell on Egypt just prior to the exodus.  Exodus 7:17-21.  (We should note that in the next verse in that story, the Egyptian magicians were able to duplicate this feat, for the same satanic power was working through them.)  However, the people survived because they were able to get clean water by digging wells near the river and finding earth-filtered water. “And all the Egyptians dug round about the river for water to drink; for they could not drink of the water of the river”. Exodus 7:24.

At that time the Son of God was trying to show the Egyptians what happens when He is no longer allowed to exercise protection.  He was NOT the cause of the plagues, but was actually manifested in BETWEEN them, holding the next one at bay!  The plagues came because the Egyptians rejected His protection step by step.  When His people responded to His plea after the third plague, they were no longer affected by them, and when some Egyptians did the same later after the fifth plague, they were likewise covered.  Exodus 8:22-23; 9:18-26.  It’s the same in the last days – God is not the cause of the last plagues any more than He is the cause of any plague.  He does only positive things, not negative ones.  Paul wrote, “For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by us, even by me and Silas and Timothy, was not ‘yes and no’, but in Him was ‘yes’ [only].  For all the promises of God in Him are ‘yes’, and in Him ‘Amen’, to the glory of God by us”.  2 Corinthians 1:19-20. So, while the rejecters are feeling the effects of the plagues, the people who accept will be “delivered” and be as safe as Noah was in the ark. (It was a bumpy ride though!) 

Right at this point Gabriel makes a very interesting statement.

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Daniel 12:

2 And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.

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Here he mentions a resurrection – not of a multitude as we would expect – but of “many”.  And he tells us that some will be good guys, and some not!  This is not the resurrection which will take place at the second coming for that applies only to the “blessed and holy” (Revelation 20:6).  It is a special event some time BEFORE the second advent. 

We have two promises in the Bible which refer to this occasion. 

The first statement tells us that the overcomers who lived and died in the time since 1844, and who published the good news of a soon-coming second advent, shall be resurrected to see it happen.  (Those who have not died in that time, the last generation of Christians, will naturally be there also.)

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Revelation 14:

13 And I heard a voice from heaven saying to me, “Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the LORD from henceforth: Yea, says the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them”.

14 And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud One sat like to the Son of man, having on His head a golden crown, and in His hand a sharp sickle. 15 And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to Him that sat on the cloud, “Thrust in Your sickle, and reap: for the time is come for You to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe”.

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Earlier in The Revelation John had been told about the fate of those who had been involved in the Son of man’s crucifixion.

He wrote: “Behold, He comes with clouds; and every eye shall see Him, and they also which pierced Him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of Him.  Even so, Amen”.  Revelation 1:7.

Jesus had promised His persecutors that they would see His coming. “Again the high priest asked Him, and said to Him, ‘Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?’  And Jesus said, ‘I am: and you shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven’.” Mark 14:61-62.  This was what Gabriel was telling Daniel.  These two groups receive a special reward based on their works.  To the one it will be a time of great joy: to the other, of exceeding despair.

(The last three of the seven plagues fall within a very short space of time, but we can look at that when we get to The Revelation.)

Gabriel continues:

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Daniel 12:

3 And they that be wise [during the last days] shall shine as the brightness of the firmament [like the sun]; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever. 

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That cry from the “Israel of God” (the “wise” ones) which causes the persecution, will result in many seeing the error of their ways, repenting, and accepting the gift of God at the last hour.  Like the thief on the cross, they will be destined to be with Him in Paradise, but most are likely to die before that, for it will be a time of religious persecution like no other.  Maddened by the darkness in their minds as the Spirit has to leave them, and goaded on by Satan and his followers, the rejecters of God’s mercy will have no mercy for those whom they see as the cause of their problems.  The LAST plagues are just that, the tail end of a long time of misery during which many of God’s people will have died as martyrs.

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Revelation 6:

9 And when He had opened the fifth seal [around 1517], I saw under the altar the souls of them that were [being] slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held: 10 and they cried with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O LORD, holy and true, do You not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?”

11 And white robes were given to every one of them [in the time of the judgment, 1844 onwards]; and it was said to them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brothers [and sisters], that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled”.

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In a very picturesque way (dead men and women do NOT talk, or lie under the altar of dedication), the Spirit of God warns us that there will be martyrs in the last days just as there were in the times of the Reformation.  Their question gives us the timeline.  They “ask” how long they are to remain dead, and when would they be avenged.  They were told that it would not be for long, just “a LITTLE” season, but that they would have to wait till all those who also would choose to die for the LORD had done so.  In the meantime, the first judgment commenced and they were “found worthy” of receiving the permanent wedding garment.  Luke 20:35.

Here’s a description of the time of trouble:

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Luke 21:

25 And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars [physical signs]; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; 26 men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken [there will be physical signs followed by spiritual ones].

27 And then [after that] shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 

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Jesus says, “And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draws nigh”. Luke 21:28.

Then Gabriel said:

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Daniel 12:

4 But [in the meantime] you, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: [then] many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased. 

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Because of the length of time from when these words were spoken, to their fulfilment in all the world, Daniel was told that his book would be “sealed”.

But ALL scripture is for our profit (2 Timothy 3:16), therefore this was not part of the Son of God’s plan.  It was because God’s people, as well as the sanctuary, were to be “trodden under foot” “by reason of [their] transgression” that the book was “shut up”.  Daniel 8:13-14; 12.  Even during the period men call The Reformation, from 1517 to 1798, there were none to whom the Spirit could impart the knowledge contained in Daniel’s book. God says of the professed Christians of that time, “you have a name [among men] that you live, but are dead [in My sight]”.  Revelation 3:1. However, since 1844, many of God’s saints have “run to and fro” in the Bible, “here a little, there a little” and the plan of redemption has become much clearer.

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Daniel 12:

5 Then I Daniel looked, and, behold, there stood other two, the one on this side of the bank of the river, and the other on that side of the bank of the river.  6 And one said to the Man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, “How long shall it be to the end of these wonders?”

7 And I heard the Man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, when He held up His right hand and His left hand to heaven, and swore by Him that lives for ever that it shall be for a time, times, and an half;

and when he [Satan] shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished.

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Daniel’s attention was taken back to the river where he saw an angel standing on the land on either side of the channel, and Christ still standing over the water protecting His people.  When the vital question was asked, the answer was clear.  Christ said that it would be for 1260 years, AND

till the real people of God in the last days were “scattered”.

He did not say when that would be!

This is another reference to the second time of persecution by Satan and his followers, and its result.  Sadly, not all will die for the glory of God, for many professed Sabbath-keeping Christians will be found worshipping the gods of the nations.

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Amos 8:

11 Behold, the days come, says the LORD GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD: 12 and they [the rejecters] shall wander from sea to sea [from church to church], and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find it [they have been in the habit of reading it, but now it makes no sense to them].

13 In that day shall the fair virgins and young men [of professed Israel] faint for thirst [lack of the Spirit’s guidance].

14 They that swear by the sin of Samaria [those who worship the golden calf of brute strength, Hosea 8:3-7, and are impatient with the Sabbath hours, verse 5],

and say, “Your god, O Dan, lives”;

and, “The manner [the way] of Beersheba lives”;

even they shall fall, and never rise up again.

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(Remember our principle – the geographic names of the past are symbolic of worldwide systems today.)

Dan is the tribe which is NOT mentioned as part of the 144,000. (Revelation 7:4-8.)  They established the northernmost city of God’s people in Canaan. However, they took a renegade Levite and his graven image captive when they set up their capital city.  Judges 17:10-13; 18:1-31.  In effect, they set up their own religious system in opposition to God’s, which was at Shiloh in the south.  They were a leading part of the northern kingdom of Israel, the ten tribes which later left God and disappeared from sacred history.

Beersheba was the southernmost place in Judah where Abraham had made a covenant with Abimelech. Genesis 21:28-34.  “From Dan even to Beersheba” was a saying which meant the whole of the Promised Land. 2 Samuel 3:10.

Abraham made a peace agreement with a Philistine, which on the surface, looks to be a good thing.  But we have been told to have no RELIGIOUS       dealings with those who follow the way of Satan, and especially should we heed this in these last days of the conflict. (2 Corinthians 6:14.) We are to treat them courteously, of course, and endeavour to show them the error of their ways, but should ALWAYS remember that until they are changed, they are the enemies of God, and therefore our enemies.  We don’t hate them, but they will hate us when the occasion arises.  The tendency to look with favour upon those who call themselves Christians, but refuse to obey His commandments, will result in great sorrow to many real Christians in the days that lie ahead.  Babylon and her daughters are false prophets!

Beersheba is also the place in the wilderness where Elijah requested that he might die! (1 Kings 19:3-8.)  However, the LORD fed him there twice before sending him on his way to Mount Sinai, where he learnt to listen to the “still small voice”.  This is what He says today: “For thus says the LORD to the house of Israel, Seek you Me, and you shall live: but seek not Bethel [the house of God], nor enter into Gilgal [the place of circumcision], and pass not to Beersheba [the desire to die]: for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Bethel shall come to nought.  Seek the LORD, and you shall live; lest he [Satan] break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and devour it, and there be none to quench it in Bethel”.  Amos 5:4-6.

There will be no safety in church organisations or in rituals in those days, only one-on-one with the Son of God.

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Daniel 12:  

8 And I heard, but I understood not: then said I, “O my LORD, what shall be the end of these things?” 9 And He said, “Go your way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. 10 Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly: and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand.

11 “And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that makes desolate set up [508AD], there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days. [508AD + 1290 = 1798.] 12 Blessed is he that waits, and comes to the thousand three hundred and thirty-five days. [508AD + 1335 = 1844.]  13 But go you your way till the end be: for you shall rest, and stand in your lot at the end of the days”.

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Poor Daniel!  He just could not believe what he was hearing, even though it came direct from the lips of his LORD and His messenger.  Gabriel comforted him and us with two more time prophecies, which help to confirm our understanding of the timeline. (These two statements may have another meaning, but if so, I don’t know what it is.)

Bye for now, Ron

 P. S.  Christ's lessons were not a new revelation, but old truths which He Himself had originated and given to those who chose to follow Him, and which He came to earth to rescue from the error under which they had been buried.  He Himself was the great centre of light and truth, but His instruction to the Jewish people was a new revelation to them.  Maybe they are to us too?

 Some of the comments in these readings are adapted from books in my library.    No recognition is given because they are not intended as authorities, but are used because they express my understanding clearly.   All the ideas expressed in these readings, right or wrong, are my own.

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