in pain to be delivered. And there appeared another wonder in heaven. And behold, a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his head. And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and it cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born. And she brought forth a man-child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron. And her child was caught up unto God and to his throne. And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days. And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon fought and his angels, and prevailed not, neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent called the devil and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world. He was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now has come salvation and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ. For the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony. and they love not their lives unto the death. Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and of the sea! For the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time. And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man-child. And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time from the face of the serpent. And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood. And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth. And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with a remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. Let's ask the Lord's blessing on his work. Our Father, as we come to thee tonight, we are thankful indeed for our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. We are grateful that we can come in knowledge of the provision that he has made for our salvation, for the glorious gift of eternal life that is available to each one of us. We know, Father, that had it not been for this There would be no cause for this meeting this evening. There would be no cause for Bibles or for churches anywhere throughout the world. But we're grateful that you have seen fit to reveal yourself through this wonderful person of thy son, the Lord Jesus Christ. That he is indeed the one mediator between God and man. And we praise you that tonight in the light of these things, we can come with full knowledge of what it means to be children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. We are looking to you now to give us the understanding that we need as Thy children, to learn more of Thee as we see it revealed here in the Word. We ask Thee, Father, to give us the grace to humble ourselves before the truth as it is in Christ Jesus, and to be willing to walk each day realizing that it is out of weakness that we are made strong. We pray these things in Jesus' name. Amen. We began in our last studies together here in the book of the Revelation to note some of the great volume of Bible symbolism that's contained here in the twelfth chapter of the book of the Revelation. We noted that the symbols of the Bible are never something that God has given as a base for building doctrine. They're simply designed to encourage us in our study of the Word of God that we might learn to compare scripture with scripture. and that we might know what it means to receive a blessing as we see the teaching of the Word of God confirmed as we study together in this manner. We've seen also how these things add great beauty and character and power to the Word of God. How the symbols of the Bible are to God's Word what the symbols of nature are to his works. God, of course, could have made all the leaves turn black in the fall of the year. But that wouldn't have been too interesting, would it? He could have made all the flowers of spring be gray instead of the many colors that they are. But our God is a God of beauty. He's one of mystery. He's one of character. And we see this revealed not only in his works around us here in the world, but we see them right here in the Word of God. These symbols speak to our hearts much the same way as the beautiful things of nature speak to the hearts of man. The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament showeth his handiwork. And we see his glory also revealed right here within the pages of his work. There are so many things in nature that are beyond the understanding of man. They are clothed in beauty, they are clothed in mystery, and they are things that man is unable to understand no matter how much he searches, no matter how hard he tries. And the very same thing is true with some portions of the Word of God, because just as the Apostle Paul said, how unsearchable are his judgments and his ways past finding out. There are many things that are just too high for us here within the Word of God, things that we'll never plumb the depths of or understand the height of as long as we're studying the Bible together. These symbols of the Bible are something that mock the unbeliever. They come to these pages and they see them set down there and they see things that are hard to be understood, especially with the mind of a natural man. And so they take the book of the Revelation and they brand it as a dark book, a mysterious book, one that is unknowable by human knowledge. And of course this is true. It's only those who have been enlightened with the understanding of the Spirit of God that can understand the depth of the teaching of the Bible. The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him. Neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. So when we come to know the Lord Jesus, we can come and enjoy these things together. We can come and stand amazed at the fact that the God of mysteries has brought light and spiritual knowledge to our sin-darkened hearts. And by comparing Scripture with Scripture, we can understand many of the symbols that are given to us here within the pages of the Word of God. Now, we've studied briefly in the beginning of this twelfth chapter of Revelation, and we've found the woman clothed with the sun, as we see her in the first verse, to be the nation of Israel. We see her clothed with the divine protection of the son of righteousness, the Lord Jesus Christ. We've seen also that under her feet is the moon, symbolizing the Church. And this pictures to us the superiority of Israel's earthly glory compared to that of the Church. We noted also how this woman, this nation of Israel, is crowned with a crown of twelve stars. The stars representing messengers, whether they be angel or human. But here they are human messengers. These 12 stars would speak to us, I believe, of the 12 tribes of Israel who were God's messengers in the days of the Old Testament. They would speak to us of the 12 apostles of Israel who were God's messengers in the New Testament. They would speak to us of the 12,000 from each tribe during the tribulation period, which are going to compose the 144,000 witnesses who will be God's messengers in that hour. They also speak to us of the twelve apostles again in the millennium, because according to Matthew 19, 28, during this thousand-year reign of the Lord Jesus, they are going to sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. Now this is the crown of Israel's glory, her position as a messenger to mankind with the good news of her King, the Lord Jesus Christ. Israel's purpose and grace has always been that of telling forth the Messiah, the coming one, who is to be the Redeemer not only of Israel, but of those who would put their faith and trust in him. We saw another symbol here in verse 3, a great red dragon. And we noted how 13 times in the book of Revelation we find the devil under this symbol of the dragon, the number 13 being the number of rebellions. And we noted also how this 9th verse identifies him very clearly. And the great dragon was cast out. That old serpent, called the devil and Satan, was deceived with the whole world. There is more symbolism, as we noted here in this 3rd verse. And there appeared another wonder in heaven, and behold, a great red dragon, having seven and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads. The devil here has seven heads with crowns upon them, and ten horns with no crowns. Notice what we read in Revelation 13, verse 1. And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy." So here we see the beast, the devil's representative, having seven heads with no crowns and ten horns with crowns. A comparable situation, the same symbols, but a shift in the emphasis. From Revelation 12 to what we see in Revelation 13. I notice what we read in Revelation 13, verse 2. And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority. And I saw one of his heads, as it were, wounded to death. And his deadly wound was healed, and all the world wondered after the beast. And they worshipped the dragon, which gave power unto the beast. And they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? Who is able to make war with him? So here we are seeing something of the characters that are going to be on the stage here in these closing hours of man's history before the Lord Jesus comes to set up his kingdom. we see that the motivating power behind these things is going to be the great red dragon, that old serpent, the devil and Satan that deceiveth the whole world. He's the one who ultimately is going to be worshipped. And he's going to be giving power to this beast, to this individual as we see it here, who also is represented as having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. We see that this individual is going to get his power and his seat and his great authority from the devil, from this great red dragon that we've encountered here in Revelation chapter 12 and verse 3. All right, so we're talking here about seven heads and ten horns. These are the symbols that we're trying to discover. First of all, we want to try to understand what the heads symbolize to us. Let's turn, if you will, to Revelation 17. Notice what we read in the 9th verse. And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sitteth." So here we see that we have a picture of seven mountains on which the woman is sitting. In an earlier message we turn to this chapter to see that this is one of the three prominent women in the Bible. This is the one representing the unsaved Gentile nations. Mystery, Babylon the Great, the mother of harlots and abominations of the earth. And we see in verse 9, here is the mind which hath wisdom, the seven heads or seven mountains on which the woman sitteth. Now the head in the Bible over and over again symbolizes authority. And this is exactly what we are seeing here. We are talking about Rome, the city of seven hills. That's what they taught me in the 6th and 7th grade. The seven heads are seven mountains, or hills, on which the woman sitteth. Now look what we read in Revelation 17, verse 10. And there are seven kings. Five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come. And when he cometh, he must continue a short space. and the beast that was and is not, even he is the eighth and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition." That's not too easy to understand, is it? But the point is, we're talking here about seven forms of government or authority in connection with the Roman Empire. We can see that much. We're talking about the seven heads, the seven kings. seven forms of government, seven symbols of authority in connection with the Roman Empire. Now we're going to be studying this more as we come to it. But what about the ten horns? Notice what we read here in the twelfth verse of the same seventeenth chapter of Revelation. And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet, but received powers, kings one hour with the beast. These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast." So here we are talking about the symbol of ten kingdoms, ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet, but are going to receive power for a short period of time with the beast, during this tribulation All right, now all these things are put to us in this way because of representation that we find elsewhere in the Word of God. Let's turn, if you will, to Daniel, chapter 2. Now, it's impossible to understand what's going on here in this portion of the book of the Revelation without comparing it to the things spoken by the prophet Daniel. Here in Daniel chapter 2, the story is that King Nebuchadnezzar has had a dream, trying to find somebody to interpret it for him. His own interpreters can't do any good, so he calls on Daniel. And this is where we take up the narrative in the 36th verse of Daniel chapter 2. This is the dream, and we will tell the interpretation thereof before the King. Thou, O King, art a King of kings. For the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, strength, and glory. And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field, the fowls of the heaven, hath he given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou art this head of gold. Now King Nebuchadnezzar had seen a great image and it was made up of four distinct parts. We see it revealed here by the prophet Daniel. He's talking about this great image that was seen and speaking to King Nebuchadnezzar, the king over Babylon at that time, he says, Thou art this head of gold. In verse 39, And after thee shall arise another kingdom. inferior to thee, and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth. And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron, forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces, and subdueth all things, and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise." All right, now all we want to notice here is the fact that Daniel is prophesying to us about world empires. And when he comes down to this fourth empire, he's talking about what is known in literature as the Iron Kingdom, the Roman Empire. Now, notice what we read in verse 41, or verse 40 rather. Let's continue that again. And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron, for as much as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things, And as iron that breaketh all these shall it break in pieces and bruise. And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potter's clay and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided. But there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay. And as the toes of the feet were part of iron and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly broken. And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with my clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men, but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay. And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed." Here we see that Daniel is talking to King Nebuchadnezzar about a great image. He's talking about the fact that this image is made up of these different metals. He's talking about the gold, he's talking about the silver, he's talking about the brass, he's talking about the iron. But when he comes down to talking about this iron kingdom, the one symbolizing the Roman Empire, we see that as it progresses down toward the feet of the image, it gets weaker and weaker. There's division there. We see the iron mixed with miryc clay. We see weakness coming into this iron kingdom, until finally we come all the way down and there are ten toes sticking out on the feet of this image. Now these ten toes represent to us ten kings, as we saw there in the book of Revelation and as we'll see again in just a moment. The ten toes of this represent the kingdoms of the last days as a part of this Roman Empire. Now turn to Daniel chapter 7. Notice what we read in the first verse. In the first year of Belshazzar, king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream and visions of his head upon his bed. Then he wrote the dream and told the sum of the matters. Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of heaven strove upon the great sea. And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another. The first was like a lion and had eagle's wings. I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to it. And behold, another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up itself on one side, and it had three ribs in the mouth of it, between the teeth of it, and they said thus unto it, Arise, devour much flesh. After this I beheld, and another, like a leopard, which had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl. The beast had also four heads, and dominion was given to it. After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly, and it had great iron teeth, and it devoured and break in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it, And it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns. I considered the horns, and behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots. And behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking great things." So here we see another vision. connected with the last days. We see a situation that is very much comparable to the verses of the 13th chapter of the book of the Revelation, as we are going to be seeing when we get there. But notice that again as we come to this fourth beast in verse 7. After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly, and it had great iron teeth, the Iron Kingdom, the Roman Empire once again. And when we come down to the last words of that verse, we see, and it had ten horns, the same ten horns that we read about there in Revelation 12 and in Revelation 13. We're reading here about the little horn that came up among the ten, the very same as the beast that we noted there in the opening verses of Revelation 13. Now let's go back to Revelation 12. Now, as we compare scripture with scripture, we find the same types of symbols used here in the book of the Revelation and there in the book of Daniel, bringing to our attention the fact that the character of the devil and his outworkings in connection with the last days has to do with ten horns or ten toes. a ten-nation federation, a portion of the Roman Empire, operating in weakness as compared to the iron kingdom of before, and yet a revival just the same. We see in Revelation 13, verse 2, the beast that was like unto a leopard, and his feet like the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion. And we see set forth to us right here the same vision that Daniel had in chapter 7, all pointing us back to this one thought, that here in the last days, in the time of the revived Roman Empire, there is going to be a ten-nation federation. There is going to be a government segmented in ten parts in some form or fashion. Now, of course, God is not outlining the thing here for us in perfection. But it's interesting indeed that almost 2,000 years ago, Caesar's armies were together on a place called Capitoline Hill in Rome, the city of seven hills. And there on Capitoline Hill almost 2,000 years ago, the armies of Caesar set out to build the Roman Empire, to conquer the world. And in 1959, on that very same hill, Capitoline Hill, and Rome, the city of seven hills, six statesmen met there to form the common market. The revived Roman Empire, what is no doubt the beginnings of exactly what we are reading about right here in Revelation 12 and 13, and Daniel 2 and Daniel 7. Ten men didn't meet. That's going to come later. The number was six. Because the word of God says, here is wisdom, let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast. For it is the number of a man, six, six, six. You see, six in the Bible is the number of man. That's why there were six men meeting in the city of Seven Hills, on the very same hill where this iron kingdom began. to form the beginning of this ten-nation federation, which is going to comprise this ten-horned thrust of the dragon as the revived Roman Empire in its quest for world dominion here in the last days. As we see it here in the symbolism of Revelation 12 and verse 3, in the past the crown has been on the heads. It has been on the forms of government. This has been Satan's principal means of operation. But in the future, here in Revelation 13, the crowns will be moved to the ten horns, to the governments themselves, for the devil's final thrust in this matter of world domination. As we are going to see in upcoming studies, this drive for world government in a total sense will never be attained. Satan will be working toward a one world But it will never be actualized because, as we read just a few moments ago, in the days of these kings, these ten horns, in the days of these kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom. It will never be destroyed. It is going to be the kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ. So we read in Revelation 12 and verse 3, and there appeared another wonder in heaven. And behold, a great red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his head. And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth." So here we encounter stars again. Now remember we were talking, as we noted in the first verse, how the stars in the Bible symbolize messengers, whether angel or This time they are angels. We see them here in symbol form connected with the fall of Satan. In Job 38, verse 7, we read of a time when all the morning stars sang together and the sons of God shouted for joy. According to Isaiah 14, one of these stars in this angelic host was Lucifer, son of the This same glorious angel Lucifer, because pride was found in his heart, was cast down. He became a fallen angel. He became the great red dragon, that old serpent, the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world. But when he fell, he didn't fall alone, because as we see it right here in this fourth verse, with his tail, he drew one-third of the other angels with him, one-third of these other messengers from heaven, and he cast them to the earth. Now again, we have a symbol, the tail. The tail in the Bible symbolizes baseness and crudeness and inferiority, and that's exactly what we see here. It was with the wickedness of Satan, with his crudeness and baseness, that he drew these other angels after him when he fell as an angel of light. Now let's turn for just a moment, if you will, to Exodus chapter 4, and we'll see something about that there. Exodus chapter 4, notice what we read in the first verse. And Moses answered and said, he's speaking to God, But behold, they will not believe me, nor hearken unto my voice. For they will say, The Lord hath not appeared unto thee. And the Lord said unto him, What is that in thine hand? And he said, A rod. And he said, Cast it on the ground. And he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent. And Moses fled from before. And the Lord said unto Moses, Put forth thine hand, and take it by the tail. And he put forth his hand, and caught it. And it became a rod in his hand. Now, this is a good example of how throughout the word of God the symbols fit together. Everything in here ties together if we just had sense enough to understand it. If we had the spiritual insight to see how all these various parts fit. But here we see again this symbol of the tail. And we see Moses. And we see a rod becoming a serpent. And then the serpent becoming a rod. Now Stephen, speaking in his sermon in Acts chapter 7, said this. speaking about Moses. He said, This is that Moses which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me. Him shall ye hear. Now, he was talking about the Lord Jesus Christ. A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me. Him shall ye hear. So the Lord Jesus was a prophet like unto Moses. And whenever we see Moses here in the Old Testament scriptures, not only is he a man, not only is he a historical reality, but he is also a type or a symbol of the Lord Jesus Christ, a prophet like unto Moses. Now, we see prefigured right here what's going to happen in the case of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus, as God's true prophet in the tribulation period is going to take that old serpent, the devil and Satan, by his tail, by the very baseness, by the very crudeness that motivates him. And it's going to become a rod in his hand. The Lord Jesus is not going to do anything to people here in the tribulation period, even though all judgment has been committed into the hands of the Son. He's going to use the wickedness and the vileness of the devil himself and turn it upon the people of this earth in judgment. He's going to lay hold upon the tail of the serpent. It's going to become a rod in his hand as he rules the nations with a rod of iron. As like a vessel of a potter, he's going to break them to shivers. Notice what we read back in Revelation chapter 12. In the 4th verse, "...and his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and he cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman, which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born. And she brought forth a man-child," there's the Lord Jesus, "...who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron." Perfect symbolism. The iron kingdom of the Roman Empire is going to become a rod in the hand of God's prophet, the Lord Jesus Christ. And he's going to use that very rod, he's going to use the baseness, the wickedness of the devil himself, to chastise the people of this world in judgment. Rule the nation with a rod of iron. But as we see here in the fourth verse, his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born. And we've seen how this speaks to us of what we read in the second chapter of Matthew, as the nation of Israel was bringing forth the man-child, the Lord Jesus Christ. Herod, the king, was one of the heads of the dragon, and he was standing there with the decree to slay all the babies from two years old and under in Bethlehem and in all the coasts thereof. trying to devour this man-child, the Lord Jesus Christ, as soon as he was born. But it didn't work. She brought forth a man-child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron, and her child was caught up unto God and to his throne. Now here we see that God passes completely over the earthly life of Jesus in this narrative. We see him caught up to God and to his throne. This speaks, of course, in one sense, of the ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ. This man, when he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. He was called up to God and to his throne when his work was done. This can speak to us also of the rapture. Because many times we see the Lord Jesus in the Bible pictured as the head of the body, the Church. We read in the Word of God that we as believers are already glorified in the sight of God. We're seated in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. So this could be not only the ascension of the head, but the catching up of the whole body to God and to his throne. But at any rate, this whole dispensation of grace has passed over, and for a very good reason, because this is Jewish ground here. We're talking about God's purposes concerning the nation of Israel. And that's why we read in the 6th verse, "...and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand, two hundred, and threescore days." Now, 1260 days is half of the Tribulation period. There are 30 days in the prophetic month in the Bible and 360 days in the prophetic year. So this is three and a half years, the last half of the seven years of Tribulation. The Great Tribulation, as the Lord Jesus called it. Now, according to Matthew 24, this scene of Israel, the woman, fleeing into the wilderness where she had a place prepared of God, has to do with this last three and a half years, the Great Tribulation. We read in Matthew 24, 16, Then let them which be in Judea flee to the mountains. Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take anything out of his house. Neither let him which is in the field turn back to take his clothes. And then he says this, For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world of this time, nor ever shall be. For twelve hundred and sixty days, for three and a half years, the last half of the tribulation period is going to be known as the great tribulation. because it's going to far surpass any tribulation that has ever come in any way, shape, or form upon the people of this world. Now, this is a time to be ready, because we're standing at this moment on the threshold of these things of which we've been speaking. At any moment, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, the Bible says, the Lord Jesus could descend from heaven to catch away his And this time of trouble would begin, this time upon the earth when men's hearts are going to fail them for fear, for looking after the things that are coming upon the earth. Now more than ever before in all of man's history is a time when people need to know the Lord Jesus as their Savior. Because you know it was one thing to live and die and go on out into eternity lost. a hundred years ago, or five hundred years ago, or a thousand years ago, but it's something else again to face what the Lord Jesus himself called tribulation the great. Tribulation the great. A great tribulation such as was not since the beginning of the world of this time, nor ever shall be. And this is the very thing that's going to come upon the inhabitants of the earth. upon all those who have never come to know the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior. Now I hope tonight that you understand the simplicity of the gospel message, how that Jesus has died on the cross for your sins, how that he was buried, how that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures. And it's upon the basis of this sacrifice that we must be saved. It's upon trusting in that precious blood alone, apart from anything that man can do. that we must have hope of eternal life. We're not looking to go to heaven because there's anything in us, because there's anything in this church, or anything in man, or anything in anything that man can do, but because the Lord Jesus has paid it all. He bore our sins in his own body on the tree. And the Word of God promises that if we'll come to him acknowledging our sinfulness, Asking him to forgive our sins and to come into our heart by faith, he'll do just that. Upon the merits of the Lord Jesus, and nothing that we can do. And tonight can be the night when that happens to you, if it's never happened before. Let's bow our heads in prayer. Our fathers, we've gathered tonight to study these things together. We realize that we have indeed looked at things that are hard to be understood. Now we do pray that you will take them and impress them upon the minds and hearts of thy people. That as we go further in this study of these things together, that it might become abundantly clear that you have indeed set forth a program of prophecy that's beyond the imagination of man. We can see here the intricacies of history, of government, of the spiritual working of Satan and the powers of darkness is just beyond human understanding. We realize when we see these things that we are dealing with a foe that is indeed powerful. Fathers, we come next week to consider the war in heaven. We pray that we might understand the desperate need to depend fully and completely upon the Lord Jesus Christ, realizing that we have no power of our own to stand against this adversary. as one who is out to doom and damn the souls of men forever. Father, we are thankful that we can escape not only the powers of darkness, but the power of the wickedness of our own heart by simply coming to the Lord Jesus and trusting him as our only hope for everlasting life. We pray these things in Jesus' name. Amen.