September 24: TRAMPLED UNDERFOOT (part 1)
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. Daniel 11:31 *added by translators
The modus operandi of Satan is stamped upon both phases of Rome’s existence. In its first phase, its pagan phase, military forces were employed to bring the general population into submission. Roman soldiers were posted to “preserve the peace” (starting with the days of Pax Romana initiated by Augustus Caesar); conquered ones under the heavy “thumb” of the Caesars. The sight of armed soldiers at every turn had a powerful subduing effect on the population.
The second phase, or papal phase of Rome, bears strong similarities to the first, except that the forces...mustered are the armies of people submitted to the Roman church. The king of the North, from Daniel 11:16 and forward, parallels the little horn of chapters 7 and 8. This ruler utilizes the power of the state for both political and religious purposes: His power shall be mighty, but not by his own power (8:24).
How does the king of the North fulfill the prophecy to defile the sanctuary fortress, take away the daily, and place there the abomination of desolation? Earlier we are given a similar description of the little horn’s activities: it grew up to the host of heaven… cast down… to the ground, and trampled*… exalted himself as high as the Prince of the host… daily taken away… place of His sanctuary cast down… an army given over to the horn to oppose the daily… cast truth to the ground… and prospered… daily…transgression of desolation… both the sanctuary and the host to be trampled underfoot* (see 8:10-13).
Bear in mind that it is during the pagan phase of Rome that we transition from Old Testament to New Testament days. Jesus, after suffering a horrendous death on a Roman cross, but not for Himself (9:26) – beloved, He did it for us! – He arose victorious, also on our behalf, and ascended directly into His role as our Advocate, our heavenly High Priest: a Minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the Lord erected, and not man (Hebrews 8:2).
The papal phase of Rome obscures the heavenly sanctuary and replaces it with an earthly one that is decked in earthly riches (see Revelation 17:4), working to unite all people under a manmade system of laws and traditions concerning worship and daily life, ostensibly for the collective “good” of people and planet. Behind the mask of all these “good things” supposedly leading the world into “peace and unity” is Satan himself; he is operating to exalt himself as high as the Prince of the host (Jesus). It is Satan who is behind the daily taken away, represented in the sanctuary as bread (the Word of God for us to “eat” daily), the altar of incense, representing our daily prayers, and the seven-branch candlestick which always burns, representing our daily witness in the world for the sake of our loved ones, and strangers too—no one is excluded!
*If you refrain from trampling the Sabbath, from following your own pursuits on My holy day; If you call the Sabbath a delight, the LORD’s holy day glorious… I will make you ride upon the heights of the earth; I will nourish you with the heritage of Jacob… for the mouth of the LORD has spoken. Isaiah 58:13,14 (NABRE)