Expecting the Little Horn aka: Antichrist? Not so fast!

 The Fourth Kingdom - the Kingdom of Antichrist, the King's Image and the Beast:  

   Before the Antichrist can waltz out on the world stage and fill the role of global dictator, several things must be in place; Daniel's fourth beast kingdom must be in position of global dominance and, ten kings must rise out of this kingdom. 

   There are two prophetic portrayals of the fourth kingdom found in Daniel; the fourth beast of ten horns: Daniel 7:7-25 and the feet and toes of iron and shard clay: Daniel 2:40--45. The fourth beast, is the kingdom from where the little horn rises from - making the fourth kingdom, the antichrist kingdom. The fourth beast parallels the feet and toes of iron and shard clay, indicating that the tribulation kingdom rises in the latter days, after the time period of the legs of iron has been fulfilled. 

   Nebuchadnezzar, ruled the entire middle east from Babylon. This kingdom was given to him by the God of heaven: Daniel 2:37-38, also Jeremiah 27:6-7. The King was plagued by a dream that haunted his waking hours and he tossed and turned in his bed. Nebuchadnezzar, the prideful king worried about the future of his kingdom and what would become of it in the latter days: Daniel 2:28,29; 4:20. The dream image reveals the answers. 

   The dream was prophetic in nature, presenting a futuristic timeline of the Babylon kingdom. The image not only foretold of two additional kingdoms, one of silver and one of brass, that would rise to rule the middle east but, it foretold the prophesied fall of Babylon, and the rise of a fourth kingdom in the latter days, the feet and toes of iron and clay. 

   There are four kingdoms but five time periods in Daniel 2, implicating that the time period that falls between the third kingdom and the fourth, fulfill the prophecy of the fall of Babylon. (2,565- 2,349 years so far) The focus of the dream image revolves around the desire of the king to know what will become of his kingdom in the latter days.... placing the entire focus of Daniel 2, on Babylon. 

Babylon the Great: Rome or Babylon?

   The prophecy of Revelation 17 details a great city, metaphorically depicted as a woman, who sits in the wilderness with her companion; a beast with seven heads and ten horns. The woman, dressed in scarlet and purple is a bastion of spiritual depravity, who has kingship over the kings of the earth in the last days. She is economically corrupt, a habitation of foul spirits, regulating a religious merchant system of buying and selling. 

   During the time period of great tribulation, those who wonder after the beast: R 13:3b; 17:8b, will bow in submission before its image, its name, or the number of the name of it, and receive a mark. The mark is worn on the right hand or the forehead, granting special privileges to buy and sell: 13:15-17. Those who refuse this global ordinance will be killed. 

   The woman, that great city who rules over the kings of the earth, will be a global economic powerhouse, regulating the flow of merchandise tied to the global spiritual harlotry of buying and selling: 17:1; 18:3,11-19. And, for this harlotry, she faces judgement.

   ...  Babylon the great was remembered before God, to give her the cup of the wine of His fierce wrath: Revelation 16:19b

    John is in the midst of great tribulation, serving as a witness, watching it unfold,  when an Angel appears. The Angel arrives to explain why Babylon has been singled out by God for judgement. The Angel shows John the judgement of the woman arrayed in scarlet and purple, adorned with the riches of the world. The name written upon her forehead:  Babylon the Great indicates a middle eastern location, in the heart of the ancient Babylonian kingdom. In order for a judgement to occur, there needs to be a merchant city in the land of Shinar, the land between the rivers, the ancient Babylonian kingdom. 

   The Bible details a great city which will exist in the future. But over the course of history,  Babylon has been removed from prophecy, and exchanged with Rome. Not only has Babylon been replaced with Rome, but, the entire middle east has been replaced by Europe. 

   Somewhere down the line, Babylon was replaced by Rome; removing the prophetic significance of Babylon in the last days.