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Our Mission: Revelation 14:6-12
If I Were Told the Future - Lesson 52
The
1290 Days
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Welcome to this lesson. Let's pray together:
Our Lord,
There are still two more great prophetic periods that we wish to understand: the 1290 days
and the 1335 days, both contained in the last chapter of the book of Daniel.
But we know that, without Your help, we cannot discover the secret of these prophecies.
This is why we humbly ask You to guide us, so that our understanding may be in accordance
with truth.
In Jesus Christ we pray.
Amen.
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Daniel 7:25
The saints shall be given into his hand for a time and times and half a time.
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Revelation 13:5,7
And he was given authority to continue for forty-two months.
(...)
And it was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them.
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With the words «a time and times and half a time», «forty-two months» (42 x 30 = 1260), or «1260 days», our last lesson showed us a 1260-year period of persecution, from A.D. 538 to 1798.
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Daniel 12:6-8
«How long shall the fulfillment of these wonders be?»
Then I heard the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, when he held
up his right hand and his left hand to heaven, and swore by Him who lives forever, that it
shall be for a time, times, and half a time; and when the power of the holy people has
been completely shattered, all these things shall be finished.
Although I heard, I did not understand.
Then I said, «My lord, what shall be the end of these things?»
----------------------------------------------------
When Daniel received once again the prophecy about this 1260-year
period of persecution against God's people, he did not understand its meaning.
So he asked for more information about it.
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Daniel 12:9,10
And he said,
«Go your way, Daniel, for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.
Many shall be purified, made white, and refined, but the wicked shall do wickedly; and
none of the wicked shall understand, but the wise shall understand.»
----------------------------------------------------
Then the angel told Daniel that the meaning of this prophecy
couldn't be understood before the «time of the end».
At that time, God would unseal the book, allowing only the wise to «understand» it.
But how can we get this understanding?
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Understanding is seeking to know God and to do His will:
«We know that the Son of God has come and has given us an
understanding, that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son
Jesus Christ.» (1 JOHN 5:20)
«From where then does wisdom come? And where is the place of understanding? (...) Behold,
the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to depart from evil is understanding.» (JOB
28:20,28)
«The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is
understanding.» (PROVERBS 9:10)
«Give me understanding, and I shall keep Your law.» (PSALM 119:34)
«For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to
ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual
understanding.» (COLOSSIANS 1:9)
«A man of understanding walks uprightly.» (PROVERBS 15:21)
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But rejecting God and His will is a serious lack of understanding:
«For My people are foolish, they have not known Me. They are
silly children, and they have no understanding.» (JEREMIAH 4:22)
«(...) having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because
of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardening of their heart.» (EPHESIANS
4:18)
«Whoever commits adultery with a woman lacks understanding; he who does so destroys his
own soul.» (PROVERBS 6:32)
«There is none who understands; there is none who seeks after God. They have all gone out
of the way.» (ROMANS 3:11,12)
«There is no wisdom or understanding or counsel against the Lord.» (PROVERBS 21:30)
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Daniel 12:11-13
From the time that the daily sacrifice is taken away, and the
abomination of desolation is set up, there shall be one thousand two hundred and ninety
days.
Blessed is he who waits, and comes to the one thousand three hundred and thirty-five days.
But you, go your way till the end; for you shall rest, and will arise to your inheritance
at the end of the days.
----------------------------------------------------
These are the last verses of the book of Daniel. Before leaving
Daniel, the angel gave him two last prophetic periods:
- the 1290 days;
- the 1335 days.
In this lesson, we will study the 1290 days.
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Daniel 12:11
From the time that the daily sacrifice is taken away, and the abomination of desolation is set up, there shall be one thousand two hundred and ninety days.
----------------------------------------------------
The prophecy of the 1290 days begins when «the daily sacrifice
is taken away», and ends when «the abomination of desolation is set up».
Indeed, some literal translations of the Bible (such as the «Young's Literal
Translation») indicate that these two events mark the beginning and the end of the period
of the 1290 days.
First, let's look at the starting point of the 1290 days.
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Daniel 12:11
From the time that the daily sacrifice is taken away, and the abomination of desolation is set up, there shall be one thousand two hundred and ninety days.
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Daniel 8:10,11
[The little horn] grew up to the host of heaven; and it cast down
some of the host and some of the stars to the ground, and trampled them.
He even exalted himself as high as the Prince of the host; and by him the daily sacrifices
were taken awayl.
----------------------------------------------------
The prophecy of the 1290 days begins when «the daily sacrifice
is taken away». By comparing this passage with the prophecy of Daniel 8, we discover that
this was the work of the power symbolized by the little horn.
Let us note that in these two passages from the book of Daniel, the word «sacrifice(s)»
does not appear in the original text. We will keep this word for the purpose of this
lesson. But we must keep in mind that it is possible that the «daily» might designate
something other than the «daily sacrifice(s)». It could designate, for example, the
political power here on earth, transferred, willingly or not, from one empire to another.
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Daniel 8:11,12
[The little horn] exalted himself as high as the Prince of the
host; and by him the daily sacrifices were taken away, and the place of His sanctuary was
cast down.
Because of transgression, an army was given over to the horn to oppose the daily
sacrifices; and he cast truth down to the ground.
----------------------------------------------------
As we have seen in our preceding lessons, this little horn
symbolizes the Church of Rome. [In a future lesson, we will study in detail how the Church
of Rome corresponds with all the characteristics of the little horn.]
This church, which became a political power in A.D. 538, attacked the daily sacrifice, and
took it away. How did this happen?
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Daniel 8:11,12
He exalted himself as high as the Prince of the host; and by him
the daily sacrifices were taken away, and the place of His sanctuary was cast down.
Because of transgression, an army was given over to the horn to oppose the daily
sacrifices; and he cast truth down to the ground.
----------------------------------------------------
In 538, the Church of Rome introduced itself as being the
official representative of God on earth.
In this way, it robbed Jesus, the Prince of the host, of the acknowledgement of His daily
work of intercession in the heavenly sanctuary.
This is how the Church of Rome took away the daily sacrifice, marking the starting point
of the 1290 days.
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Revelation 13:5,6
He was given authority to continue for forty-two months.
Then he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God.
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Revelation 11:2
They will tread the holy city under foot for forty-two months.
----------------------------------------------------
During the following 1260 years (42 prophetic months), from 538
to 1798, the Church of Rome, which had now entered the political field, presented itself
as God's representative on earth, mediator between God and men.
These claims directly attacked Jesus' work of intercession in the heavenly sanctuary.
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Matthew 22:21
[Jesus] said to them,
«Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are
God's.»
----------------------------------------------------
The arrival of the Church of Rome on the political scene in 538
laid the foundation for union between Church and State.
And such a union, which still exists today, has always borne very bad fruit, such as
intolerance and persecution which marked the 1260-year reign of the Church of Rome.
Jesus knew the dangers of uniting Church and State, and this is why He always commanded
that they be kept separate.
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Daniel 12:11
From the time that the daily sacrifice is taken away, and the abomination of desolation is set up, there shall be one thousand two hundred and ninety days.
----------------------------------------------------
The first reign of the Church of Rome, which lasted 1260 years,
came to an end in 1798, exactly as foretold, as we have seen in our preceding lessons.
So, to complete the period of 1290 days, we could believe that we only have to add 30
years to 1798, thus leading to 1828.
However, if we carefully examine the context of the 1290 days' prophecy, we will see that
we must not fall into this trap. Let's now look at this context.
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Daniel 12:8,9,11,12
Although I heard, I did not understand. Then I said, «My lord,
what shall be the end of these things?»
And he said, «(...) From the time that the daily sacrifice is taken away, and the
abomination of desolation is set up, there shall be one thousand two hundred and ninety
days.
Blessed is he who waits, and comes to the one thousand three hundred and thirty-five
days.»
----------------------------------------------------
First, we notice that the 1290 days and the 1335 days were given
following a question from Daniel, who did not understand the answer to another question
which was asked earlier in the same chapter.
What was that first question?
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Daniel 12:6,7
«How long shall the fulfillment of these wonders be?»
Then I heard the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, when he held
up his right hand and his left hand to heaven, and swore by Him who lives forever, that it
shall be for a time, times, and half a time; and when the power of the holy people has
been completely shattered, all these things shall be finished.
----------------------------------------------------
So, that first question was: «How long shall the fulfillment of
these wonders be?»
That question is identical to the one Daniel asked later, that is, «What shall be the end
of these things?» (Daniel 12:8).
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Daniel 12:6
How long shall the fulfillment of these wonders be?
----------------------------------------------------
In fact, this question follows the great vision of Daniel chapter
11, which we began to study in the lesson «Daniel 11:
The Perfect Portrait».
In a future lesson, we will see that the second part of the vision of Daniel chapter 11
presents the apostate church's misdeeds, first during the Middle Ages, and then at the
time of the end.
Interestingly, the answer to the question «How long shall the fulfillment of these
wonders be?» also presents these two periods during which the Church of Rome reigns.
Let's now study the content of this answer.
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Daniel 12:7
[The man clothed in linen] swore by Him who lives forever, that it shall be for a time, times, and half a time; and when the power of the holy people has been completely shattered, all these things shall be finished.
----------------------------------------------------
Since the papacy has two distinct reigns, the answer to the
question «How long shall the fulfillment of these wonders be?» indicates that there will
be two ends:
- In 1798, after a first reign of 1260 years (3½ times).
- Then, after a second and last reign: «when the power of the holy people
has been completely shattered, all these things shall be finished.»
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Daniel 12:11
From the time that the daily sacrifice is taken away, and the abomination of desolation is set up, there shall be one thousand two hundred and ninety days.
----------------------------------------------------
The 1290 days, which also answer the question «What shall be the
end of these things?», therefore concern the years of the Roman Church's reign.
So, at the interruption of its first reign in 1798, the course of the 1290 days was also
interrupted, and will resume only when the Church of Rome comes back in force.
Besides, the book of Revelation confirms the importance of this interruption. Let's look
at the following verses.
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Revelation 13:1,3
And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, having seven heads
and ten horns. (...)
I saw one of his heads as if it had been mortally wounded, and his deadly wound was
healed.
And all the world marveled and followed the beaste.
----------------------------------------------------
The book of Revelation describes the political power of the Roman
Church as a beast rising up out of the sea (we will see why in a future lesson).
Then, just like the book of Daniel, Revelation indicates that the beast's reign will be
interrupted: «I saw one of his heads as if it had been mortally wounded.»
But its «deadly wound» will be healed, and the beast will enter into a second reign,
during which the whole world will admire it.
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Revelation 17:8
The beast that you saw was, and is not, and will ascend out of
the bottomless pit and go to perdition.
And those who dwell on the earth will marvel, whose names are not written in the Book of
Life from the foundation of the world, when they see the beast that was, and is not, and
yet is.
----------------------------------------------------
A few chapters farther, Revelation takes up the symbol of the
beast, and indicates once again that:
- «the beast was» (first reign);
- «and is not» (interruption of its reign);
- «and will ascend» (second reign).
Following this pattern, we must also interrupt the course of the 1290 days in A.D. 1798.
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Daniel 12:11
From the time that the daily sacrifice is taken away, and the abomination of desolation is set up, there shall be one thousand two hundred and ninety days.
----------------------------------------------------
Now, here is the crucial question: When must we consider the
Church of Rome to have entered into its second reign?
To help us answer this question, let's linger a few moments over the words «the
abomination of desolation».
This expression describes the work of two oppressors of God's people:
- first, the Roman Empire;
- and then, the Roman Church.
Let's look first at the application of these words concerning the Roman Empire.
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Daniel 9:26,27 (New International Version)
The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and
the sanctuary. (...)
He will set up an abomination that causes desolation.
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Matthew 24:15,16
Therefore when you see the «abomination of desolation», spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (whoever reads, let him understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.
----------------------------------------------------
The «abomination of desolation» first describes the destruction of Jerusalem and its temple by the Roman armies led by general Titus in A.D. 70.
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Daniel 8:12,13
Because of transgression, an army was given over to the horn to
oppose the daily sacrifices; and he cast truth down to the ground. He did all this and
prospered.
Then I heard a holy one speaking; and another holy one said to that certain one who was
speaking,
«How long will the vision be, concerning the daily sacrifices and the transgression of
desolation?»
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Daniel 11:31
And forces shall be mustered by him, and they shall defile the sanctuary fortress; then they shall take away the daily sacrifices, and place there the abomination of desolation.
----------------------------------------------------
But the «abomination of desolation» also has a spiritual application, pointing to the successor of the Roman Empire: the Church of Rome.
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Matthew 23:37,38
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones
those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen
gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!
See! Your house is left to you desolate.
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Revelation 11:2
They will tread the holy city under foot for forty-two months.
----------------------------------------------------
In fact, just as the Roman Empire literally trod under foot Jerusalem, the holy city, in A.D. 70, the Roman Church has spiritually trod under foot the heavenly holy city, by attacking God and His people, during the 1260 years (42 months) of its first reign.
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Daniel 9:26,27 (New International Version)
The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and
the sanctuary. (...)
He will set up an abomination that causes desolation.
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Daniel 8:11
He even exalted himself as high as the Prince of the host; and by him the daily sacrifices were taken away, and the place of His sanctuary was cast down.
----------------------------------------------------
Just as the Roman Empire literally attacked the earthly sanctuary in A.D. 70, the Church of Rome, by its false doctrines and arrogant claims, has spiritually attacked the heavenly sanctuary during the 1260 years of its first reign.
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Revelation 17:1,2,4,5
«Come, I will show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits
on many waters, with whom the kings of the earth committed fornication, and the
inhabitants of the earth were made drunk with the wine of her fornication.» (...)
[She had] in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the filthiness of her
fornication.
And on her forehead a name was written: «Mystery, Babylon the great, the mother of
harlots and of the abominations of the earth.»
----------------------------------------------------
But the «abomination» also refers to the second reign of the
Church of Rome, symbolized here by a harlot called Babylon.
This harlot, in the last days, makes all the nations drunk with the wine of her
abominations.
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Revelation 17:2,4
The kings of the earth committed fornication [with the great
harlot], and the inhabitants of the earth were made drunk with the wine of her
fornication. (...)
[She had] in her hand a golden cup full of abominations.
----------------------------------------------------
So, 30 years after the beginning of the Roman Church's second
reign, adding to the 1260 years of the first reign to complete the 1290 years, we must
find an event linked with the «abomination», that is, the alliance between the apostate
Church and the nations intoxicated with her wine.
Now, to all serious students, we will submit two hypotheses.
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Daniel 12:11
From the time that the daily sacrifice is taken away, and the abomination of desolation is set up, there shall be one thousand two hundred and ninety days.
----------------------------------------------------
The first hypothesis considers that the second reign of the Roman
Church began in 1929, the year when it recovered its political power by the Lateran
treaty, and was given rulership over the state of Vatican.
By adding the remaining 30 years of the 1290 years, we get to 1959: in that year, Pope
John XXIII surprised the whole world by calling the Second Vatican Council, which began in
1962, aiming at unifying all the churches through a worldwide ecumenical effort.
Thus was set up «the abomination of desolation».
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Revelation 9:1,3-5
The fifth angel sounded. (...)
Then out of the smoke locusts came upon the earth. (...)
They were commanded not to harm the grass of the earth, or any green thing, or any tree,
but only those men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.
They were not given authority to kill them, but to torment them for five months.
----------------------------------------------------
The second hypothesis takes into account the five prophetic
months of the fifth trumpet, during which the Church of Rome, wounded but alive, had no
more influence over the nations.
In our lesson «The Locusts from the Bottomless Pit»,
we saw that these 150 years (five prophetic months) took place between 1798 and 1948.
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Revelation 9:5
They were not given authority to kill them, but to torment them for five months.
----------------------------------------------------
In 1948, after the 150 years of torment, the Church of Rome began
to regain its influence on the nations with the creation of the World Council of Churches,
which prepared the way for its efforts to unify all the religions of the world.
By adding the remaining 30 years of the 1290 years, we get to 1978, the year when Pope
John Paul II was elected.
This pope is the one who gave ecumenism its greatest expansion; he was also the first, in
1986, to gather representatives of all the great religions of the world.
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Revelation 13:3
I saw one of his heads as if it had been mortally wounded, and
his deadly wound was healed.
And all the world marveled and followed the beast.
----------------------------------------------------
This second hypothesis must not be dismissed too quickly.
Indeed, prophecy seems to attach more importance to the fact that the Roman Church
regained its influence on the nations from 1948 onward («all the world marveled and
followed the beast»), after the 150 years of torment described in the fifth trumpet, than
to the simple fact that the Church recovered its political power in 1929, without having
any real influence before 1948.
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Daniel 12:4,9,10
But you, Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book until the
time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase. (...)
Go your way, Daniel, for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.
Many shall be purified, made white, and refined, but the wicked shall do wickedly; and
none of the wicked shall understand, but the wise shall understand.
----------------------------------------------------
Let's remember that other hypotheses could be put forward.
Most certainly, as the return of Jesus draws near, «knowledge shall increase», and «the
wise shall understand».
So let's persevere in our study, asking the Holy Spirit to enlighten us!
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Daniel 12:11,12
From the time that the daily sacrifice is taken away, and the
abomination of desolation is set up, there shall be one thousand two hundred and ninety
days.
Blessed is he who waits, and comes to the one thousand three hundred and thirty-five days.
----------------------------------------------------
Our study of the 1290 days now allows us to look into the 1335
days. This prophetic period will be the subject of our next lesson.
Meanwhile, we invite you to probe this prophecy for yourself, in a spirit of prayer, so
that the Spirit of God may bring you to better understand the meaning of these 1335 days.
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Let's pray together:
Father,
This command was given to Daniel: «But you, Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book
until the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase.»
(Daniel 12:4)
We are now living in this time of the end, and, just as foretold, You reveal more and more
clearly the meaning of Your prophetic Word.
May Your Spirit continue to make our knowledge increase, so that we may better prepare
ourselves for the events preceding the glorious return of Your Son Jesus Christ. In His
name we pray.
Amen.
The test of Lesson 52 is waiting for you!