Did God Destroy Pompeii ? - Prophecy In The News Magazine - August 2010

August 2010 $2.95 U.S. ($4.25 Canada)INSIDE THIS ISSUEDid God Destroy Pompeii? . . . . . . 3The July/August 2010 issue of Biblical Archeological Review magazine posed the question, “Did the people of the first century P. O. Box 7000Oklahoma City, OK 73153believe that God destroyed the Roman seaside city of Pompeii in Dr. J. R. Church, EditorA. D. 79, as revenge for the Roman destruction of Jerusalem and Gary Stearman, Associate EditorHerod’s Temple nine years before?” Also, Antiochus IV Epiphanes Volume 30 • Number 8 • August 2010died near Babylon, saying that God had brought a dreadful disease SUBSCRIPTION RATES:upon him because of his ill treatment of the Jews. God had prom- U. S.: $34.95 - 1 yearised Abraham that He would curse those who curse the Jews. Toll-Free Telephone: 1-800-475-1111Fax: (405) 636-1054Daniel Reveals the Bloodline of the Antichrist . . . . . 6Find Prophecy in the News on the Worldwide Web! Daniel’s visions reveal little-known and often overlooked facts http://www.prophecyinthenews.comabout the future Antichrist. Daniel does not use the term that was coined by John in his epistles. Instead, Daniel calls him a “little horn” and a “prince that shall come.” However, Daniel reveals a lot more about the bloodline of the Antichrist than any other book Page 3 . . . in the Bible. Find out where the Antichrist will come from in this Did God Destroy Pompeii?powerful study of Daniel and second-century theologians. By J. R. ChurchEdom: The Great Prophecy . . . . . . 8Gary Stearman has some thoughts about Esau’s posterity. Esau was the twin brother of Jacob. But unlike most twins, Esau har-Page 6 . . . boured a supreme hatred for his brother that lasted for centuries. The prophets have said that Edom will be Israel’s enemy until Daniel Reveals the Bloodline of the Antichristthe last days. Rabbis have written that Edom is Rome. Is that the case? Or, do we look for another arch-enemy of the Chosen By J. R. ChurchPeople?What’s in a Name? . . . . . . 14Page 8 . . . President Obama offered a suggestion to Israeli Prime Min-ister Netanyahu, as to why he is not well thought of in Israel. Edom: The Great ProphecyHe said, “...some of it may just be the fact that my middle name By Gary Stearmanis Hussein, and that creates suspicion.” He should have given a moment’s thought as to how that must have sounded to the Prime Minister of Israel. Without realizing it, he was accusing the Jews of race hatred. Gary Stearman has the story. Page 14 . . . What’s in a Name?The Transgenic Nightmare of the Human/Animal Hybrid . . . . . . 15Gary writes about a new novel that tells the story of an African By Gary Stearmangirl, who is discovered to be a humanzee — half human and half bonobo chimpanzee. Though this is only a fictional novel, it is creating a mindset for future acceptance of such experiments. Page 15 . . . Bob’s Corner . . . . . . 17The Transgenic Nightmare of Bob Ulrich reviews a new book by Douglas Woodward, enti-the Human/Animal Hybridtled: Decoding Doomsday. This 400-page book covers the 2012 Mayan prophecies and many other prognosticators down through By Gary Stearmanhistory. According to Bob, it is a fascinating read.Eschatology 101 (Chapter Eight) . . . . . . 33Page 33 . . . This chapter covers the subject: “Moses and the Dispensa-tions.” J. R. Church shows that Moses ascended Mount Sinai Eschatology 101 (Chapter Eight)seven times and through those events, Moses portrayed the seven dispensations — from Innocence to the Kingdom. Prophetically, By J. R. ChurchMoses became a type of the Messiah, even to the point of pre-senting himself as a sacrifice on behalf of his people, and there-after, receiving “grace” from God. 2 Prophecy in the NewsFind us on the Internet - www.prophecyinthenews.comAncient Divine Judgments Did God Destroy Pompeii?By J. R. ChurchIn August, A.D. 79, Italy’s famous vol-cano, Mount Vesuvius, erupted. It rained fire upon nearby cities, destroying the fa-mous seaside city of Pompeii and killing many of Rome’s aristocracy, including politicians who lived in private villas in the plush resort community. Other nearby cities, including Hercu-laneum and Stabia, were also destroyed. The Roman historian, Seneca, wrote that the quakes lasted for several days. Oddly enough, the city was destroyed nine years, almost to the day, after the Ro-man legions destroyed Jerusalem and burned Herod’s Temple. Hershel Shanks, editor of Biblical Archeological Review magazine (July/August 2010 issue), raised the question of Nine years after the Romans destroyed Jerusalem and burned Herod’s Temple, whether, in the first Mount Vesuvius exploded and destroyed the seaside cities of Pompei , Herculaneum century, it was be- and Stabia. There are at least two ancient accounts of people who thought that God lieved to be God’s revenge. Did the people had destroyed Rome’s aristocracy because of Jerusalem. It seemed appropriate. of that generation see it as God’s judg- earth [Mt. Vesuvius] in the land of Italy, in the rain of fire on Pompeii.” ment? reaches to broad heaven it will burn many First, Shanks quoted from Dio Cassius, Antiochus IV Epiphanescities and destroy men. Much smoking author of Roman History, who described ashes will fill the great sky, and showers The Syrian ruler who erected a statue of in detail the fire and smoke of Mount Ve- will fall from heaven like red earth. Know Zeus on the Temple Mount and sacrificed suvius. Then he quoted from the writings then the wrath of the heavenly God.” a pig on the sacrificial altar, also received of Pliny the younger, who told about the Shanks felt that this oracle reflected the divine punishment for touching Jerusalem. death of his uncle, Pliny the Elder, on feeling of many first-century people that Rabbis say that he committed the “abomi-board a ship that tried to escape the rain of God had judged Rome for destroying Je- nation of desolation” predicted by Daniel fire and lava. rusalem — the apple of God’s eye. Shanks the prophet. The Maccabean revolt, which But the thought that God had poured fire also wrote:followed the Syrian desecration of the upon the Roman villas in revenge for their “After the destruction, the site was sub- Temple, went on for three years, finally burning Jerusalem led him to Book 4 of ject to looting. And people who had man- driving out the Syrian army in December the Sibylline Oracles. This ancient writ- aged to flee came back to see whether they of 165 B.C. ing was the work of an aged Greek woman could retrieve some of their possessions. Antiochus was in the Persian capital of who uttered ecstatic prophecies that were One such person came back to a house in Ecbatana when word reached him about composed around the years of the destruc- an area of Pompeii, designated today as the Jewish victory. He was so angry, he tion of Jerusalem and the subsequent vol- Region 9, Insula 1, House 26. After hav- commanded his chariots to go full speed, canic explosions of Mount Vesuvius. She ing walked through the desolation of the bragging that he would make Jerusalem a wrote:city, he looked about and saw nothing but graveyard. Bishop James Ussher, in An-“An evil storm of war will also come destruction, where once there had been nals of the World, wrote:upon Jerusalem from Italy, and it will sack buildings and beautifully frescoed walls. “Scarcely had these proud words left the great Temple of God ... A leader of Disconsolate and aghast, he picked up a Antiochus’ mouth, when he was struck Rome [Titus] will come ... who will burn piece of charcoal and scratched on the wall with an incurable disease in the bowels the Temple of Jerusalem with fire [and] at in large black Latin letters:and extreme pains. Although his body the same time slaughter many men and de-“SODOM GOMOR [RAH]. was quite sick, his mind was still sharp. stroy the great land of the Jews.... When a “As he saw it, the divine punishment of Still breathing out this threats against the firebrand, turned away from a cleft in the these two cursed Biblical cities was echoed Jews, he ordered his chariot driver to in-Find us on the Internet - www.prophecyinthenews.comProphecy in the News 3Find us on the Internet - www.prophecyinthenews.comcrease his pace. It happened that he fell out of his chariot on this fast journey. He was badly hurt, his whole body was bruised and his limbs put out of joint. After he was taken up from the ground, he was carried about on a horse litter. Worms bred so fast in his body, that whole streaks of flesh sometimes dropped from him. While he was still alive in such a pitiful state and because of his stench, none could endure to carry him and he became offensive to his whole army. He was forced to stop his journey to Babylon and to stay at Tabis, a town of Persia. He continued bedridden for many days, and pined away.”Ussher continued: “Antiochus Epiphanes gave up any hope of recovering. He called his friends to him and publicly acknowl-edged that all these miseries had happened to him because of the harm he had done to the Jews. Now, to his great grief, he had to die in a strange land. When he could no longer endure his own smell, he said, ‘It is appropriate to be subject to God and a man who is mortal should not proudly think of himself as if he were God.’ Mount Vesuvius looms in the background and the excavated ruins of Pompeii stand “In this prayer to God, he vowed that he in the foreground as a testament to the judgment of God upon a society who destroyed would allow the people of Jerusalem and Jerusalem and burned Herod’s Temple in A.D. 70. all other Jews everywhere the free use of est attempts at destroying the Jews. But in their own constitutions, and that, in the the end, Hitler brought the German nation Eye to Eyefuture, they should enjoy the freedom of down to ruin and died at his own hands in The second book that documents the being able to live by their own laws and a lonely bunker beneath the rubble of his judgment of God on America for turning customs. He promised he would beautify own making. against Israel is entitled, Eye to Eye, by the temple with the rarest of gifts and re-Modern Proofs of God’s Judgment William (Bill) Koenig. He is the director store all the holy vessels. The costs of the of Koenig’s International News in Wash-sacrifices would be defrayed from his own Since the early 1990s, leaders of nations ington, DC. Bill Koenig documents how treasure and he himself would also become have set about to divide the Holy Land the U.S. has suffered major catastrophes on a Jew. He promised to go through all the and its capital city, Jerusalem. After each the very same day or within 48 hours of a inhabited world and declare the power of publicized attempt to discredit the Jew- U.S. president applying pressure on Israel God.... So in the 149th year of the kingdom ish people in favor of a Palestinian state, to trade her land for promises of “peace.” of the Greeks, Antiochus died a miserable natural disasters swept over the world with death in a strange land on the mountains of apocalyptic overtones. The Israel OmenParata near Babylon.”Three books have been written in recent The latest book to address the subject of History attests to the fact that God does years that offer proof of God’s anger over God’s revenge is The Israel Omen by Da-not let anybody get away with touching the world’s efforts to divide the nation of vid Brennan. This book considers a series the Chosen People, the holy city of Jeru- Israel and establish a Palestinian state. of destructive events, connected by a com-salem and the Temple Mount. As America Has Done to Israel mon thread. Brennan tells how the global Haman, The Agagitepolitical crisis is part of a 2,500 year-old The first book on this subject was writ- prophetic curse that has begun to unfold. The Book of Esther tells the story of an ten by John McTernan. In As America Has Since 1991, catastrophes have lined up evil bureaucrat, whose family lineage went Done to Israel, the author shows a direct with that ancient prophetic warning. back to Agag, king of Edom, and Amalek, correlation between the alarming number The identity of a current-day group of son of Esau, twin brother of Jacob. Haman of massive disasters striking America and four world powers (the U.S., the UN, Eu-plotted the destruction of all Jews and built our leaders pressuring Israel to surrender rope and Russia) was biblically foretold a gallows, upon which he planned to hang her land for peace. Costing hundreds of and warned of 2,500 years ago. The for-Mordechai. In the end, however, he and lives and causing hundreds of billions of bidden action in which this group of four his sons were hanged on that same gal- dollars worth of damage, dozens of disas- is engaged, actually brought to life a pro-lows. God will not let anybody get away ters — including earthquakes, raging fires, phetic promise of God’s judgment. with touching His Chosen People. hurricanes, floods, and tornadoes — have These three books are offered in this History is littered with the ruins of hit America, and always within a few days issue of Prophecy in the News magazine. those who have tried to destroy the Jew- of putting pressure on Israel. The proof They prove God’s promise to Abraham ish people. The holocaust of the Jews at lies on the side of biblical threats that God that He will bless those who bless the Jews the hands of Adolf Hitler is one of the lat- will curse anyone who curses the Jews. and curse those who curse the Jews. u4 Prophecy in the News4 Prophecy in the NewsFind us on the Internet - www.prophecyinthenews.com