July 20: PROPHETIC PARALLEL #11
And he [the beast out of the sea] was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to continue for forty-two months. Revelation 13:5
The rampage of the Roman beast out of the sea (v.1) is limited by our sovereign God. Our opening verse leads up to the inflicting of the beast’s “mortal wound” (v.3). The period of forty-two months references a literal one thousand two hundred and sixty years of papal supremacy that began in the year 538 and ended in 1798. The authority that he was given during that time was exercised through the issuing of commands to the military power of the nations of divided Rome (symbolized by the ten toes of Daniel 2:42) for the enforcement of his religious dogmas. This is how the monarchies of divided Rome paid homage to the Roman universal church. Daniel wrote: Because of transgression, an army was given over to the horn to oppose the daily…* (Daniel 8:12). The words “to continue” in our opening verse refer to making war with the saints (see Revelation 13:7), for a limited time.
The eleventh parallel between Revelation 13 and the closing verses of Daniel is that the timing of the wound to the papacy exactly corresponds with the end of the forty-two months of Dark Ages papal dominion. This wound also marks the beginning of the time of the end, the era in which we now live. Daniel wrote: At the time of the end the king of the South shall attack him (Daniel 11:40a), “him” meaning the king of the North who had held sway for one thousand two hundred and sixty years.
As a reminder, this period is named seven times in the Scriptures: three times as a time and times and half a time (Daniel 7:25; 12:7; Revelation 12:14), twice as one thousand two hundred and sixty days (Revelation 11:3; 12:6), and twice as forty-two months (Revelation 11:2; 13:5). The day/year principle of Bible prophecy applies to each listing (see Numbers 14:34; Ezekiel 4:6; Luke 13:32). The Lord knows that if we comprehend the significance of this period, we will be better equipped to stand firm (see Revelation 6:17) in the truth during the troublous times just ahead (Matthew 24:21).
Soon the papacy’s deadly wound will be fully healed. Christ’s followers are to be “about our Father’s business” (see Luke 2:49; John 9:4) of being messengers of the everlasting gospel (Revelation 14:6-12) to a hurting world, pointing people to the transforming power that brings marvelous hope for the eternal future as we anticipate His return.
I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. 2 Timothy 4:1
*When Daniel referred to the daily in Daniel 8:11,12,&13, he was thinking of the Holy Place of the tabernacle where the table of showbread, the altar of incense, and the seven-branch candlestick were located. These things supplied a visual reminder of essential practices that sustain a relationship with the Lord: His written word (the bread of life), prayer (a sweet fragrance to the Lord), and witnessing (letting your light shine so that others may know Him). Daniel lived and breathed his close relationship with his God, even in the midst of Babylonian and Persian cultures. These three practices open the way for the New Covenant (see Jeremiah 31:31-33; Hebrews 8:10-12; 10:15-18): He writes His holy law – the foundation of His throne – upon our hearts.