Since I love prophecy and how it all ties into the current times and events of the world, and most people seem to be as interested as I am, I’m writing this book to summarize all I’ve learned about biblical prophecy and help others understand the truth of God’s Word. I don’t take the credit for anything in this book. I have studied a few different people’s ideas on prophecy and biblical theology, and many of the words in this book are taken right out of other men’s mouths, but the bible is the ultimate authority on truth so we’ll be studying the words of God more than anything.
I must stress, right at the start here, that fulfilled prophecy cannot be fully realized for what it is until it has happened. There are many biblical prophecies that have already come to pass, but there are many that are coming to pass right now. We cannot know for sure what we’re seeing until the events have come to conclusion. That being said, there is so much compelling evidence and so many clues that it’s almost impossible not to see it for what it is today. Prophecy is coming to pass right before our eyes and today we are living in the times that God spent about 25% of the words in the bible to tell us about. He wanted us to know when the time was right, at the time of the end, and we are there!
The second book of this book, however, is taken directly from the bible and there is no guesswork involved at all. God is very specific about truth and has written His Word for us to understand fully if we love the truth and seek it with all our heart. And, the most important thing to remember is: Understanding prophecy is not important to your salvation, but understanding the truth is the most important thing in the world!
The second book of this little book is the book I wish I had when I began my journey with God. There are so many religions out there and they all teach something different, even the “Christian” churches can teach some significant differences even though they profess to believe the same thing. What is the truth? We will explore that in this little book.
Much of the text in this book will be direct quotes from the Bible with explanations and commentary to help the reader understand the meaning. The Bible is the only real truth, so we should never stray from its pages. While I research with several versions of the Bible and use Greek/Hebrew dictionaries, I use the King James Version of the Bible for accuracy and truth. Some people don’t realize just how many changes are made in the translations of some of the different Bible versions that completely change the meaning of God’s Word and even though they may be easier to understand, they are not accurate. The King James Bible is the most accurate translation we have, period. Many people think that the King James Bible is so far from the original text that it cannot be accurate, but the opposite is the reality. It is only two steps from the original text. The original Old Testament Hebrew was translated into what is called the Masoretic Text by a group of Jews known as the Masoretes and that text was used to create the English translation. The New Testament is translated into English based on the Textus Receptus which was compiled by Dutch Catholic scholar Desiderius Erasmus. While some people argue that this is still not good enough, the important thing to remember is that God preserved His word for us and He didn't give us a book that we cannot understand. 2 Tim 3:16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
I hope that this little book will inspire readers to do what I did when I had so many questions and got so many different answers. I started reading the Bible for myself! I began by reading the entire New Testament from front to back, then moving to the Old Testament. I definitely don’t want you to take my word for anything said in this little book. But I don’t want you to go out and take another man’s word for it either! Trust in the Word and ONLY in the Word of God! Finding a minister or pastor who knows God is very important, but make sure he is teaching the truth! I only say this because I trusted a pastor who misled me and did not teach the truth. I’m just grateful that God showed me His truth! It could have meant terrible consequences for me if I had not sought out God and His truth on my own.
My recommendation for reading this little book is to have your Bible out and read the passages that I quote from as you read through these pages.
Much of the prophecy discussed in this book is taken from the Endtime Ministries study materials. If you want to study prophecy in detail, I recommend the Endtime prophecy series, “Understanding the Endtime: Level One” from Endtime Ministries as a great place to start! They are easy to find: www.endtime.com or 1-800-endtime. The founder and teacher of Endtime, Irvin Baxter, has been studying prophecy for about 40 years, and has been blessed with understanding and knowledge beyond any I have otherwise seen!
For the best reading experience, please read this book in order. There are some subjects that are built upon from previous chapters, so if you skip around it might not make as much sense to you as it would otherwise. Enjoy!