Foretold: Today’S News Yesterday from Daniel the Prophet

By Dr. Fred Holtzman and Ed Rodgers

So many things happen every day that we just cant understand. Many people are turning to the Bible for answers to explain the strange and inexplicable events of our day.

Foretold: Todays News Yesterday from Daniel the Prophet provides the prophetic framework into which these events can be inserted and interpreted. Authors Ed Rodgers and Dr. Fred Holtzman propose these events simply reflect a much larger drama unfolding in the unseen world. Foretolds unique perspective allows you to experience Daniels revelations as he puts the pieces together to make sense of the enigmatic prophecies with which he has been entrusted.

Join Daniel as he tells his story from his vantage point in heaven. Share the thrill of seeing the rich treasures and promises of his ancient and mysterious prophecies unlocked and unsealed in your day. Learn why God chose to use him in such amazing ways, and how you can follow in the footsteps of one of the Bibles most extraordinary heroes. In Foretold, youll find hope firmly resides in the knowledge that every current and future event is already recorded in a very special book in heaven.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Mar 13, 2015
• ISBN: 9781490870175

Dr. Fred Holtzman

Ed Rodgers, the author of eleven books, is a teacher with Ambassadors for Christ, International, and an area representative for Christian Friends of Israel, Jerusalem. Dr. Fred Holtzman, a Jewish believer in Jesus, holds a ThM, MS, and doctorate. He is an adjunct professor at CES and a biblical curator with Docent.

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Copyright © 2015 Ed Rodgers & Dr. Fred Holtzman.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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ISBN: 978-1-4908-7018-2 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4908-7019-9 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4908-7017-5 (e)

WestBow Press rev. date: 06/17/2015

Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Prologue

1 - Captives

2 - Tested

3 - King of the World

4 - Transformed

5 - The Flaming River

6 - Touched by an Angel

7 - Alexander’s Revenge

8 - Oblivious

9 - Mercy at Last?

10 - Three More Years

11 - Messiah

12 - Vindicated

13 - The Answer

14 - The Book of Truth

15 - Keep Digging

16 - The Seventieth Week

17 - Sovereign

18 - In Your Day

19 - Confession

20 - The Outpouring

21 - The Strategy

22 - The Unsealing

23 - For Your Instruction

24 - Looking Back

Epilogue

Appendix A Defending Prophecy

Appendix B Boanthropy

Appendix C Judgment

Supplement A The Seventy Weeks of Daniel

Supplement B The Rapture—When?

Supplement C The Desire of Women

Supplement D The Fulfillment of the Prophecies of Daniel 11

Supplement E Evidence for a Ruler Named Darius the Mede

About the Authors

Endnotes

Acknowledgments

This has indeed been a labor of love by many people other than the two of us as authors. We are grateful to our wives, Dee and Andrea, other family members, and many friends who have spent countless hours editing, correcting, and offering suggestions. Just as in the abundance of counselors there is victory, we have learned that in the abundance of willing eyes and hearts there is excellence.

Introduction

The purpose of the book you are holding is twofold. It is primarily about how a proper understanding of the prophetic mysteries God gave to Daniel can open the door to a better understanding of the chaotic and frightening times in which we live. It is also about the remarkable transformation that took place in the life of a young Jewish boy taken captive into Babylon twenty-five hundred years ago. He consistently responded in a godly manner to everything God entrusted to him—heavenly revelations, mysterious visions, and faith-testing trials. The good news for us is that by responding in a godly, Daniel-like manner to the things God entrusts to us, the result can be a corresponding supernatural metamorphosis leading to spiritual maturity, godliness, and an unshakable peace, regardless of what is going on around us. Daniel’s journey was arduous and often painful, but ultimately it filled him with ecstatic joy. We should expect nothing less from our own personal journeys. This book, therefore, is about how ordinary people like us can experience God’s highest desires for us by being wholly dedicated to daily reflecting the glory of God, just as Daniel did as he accurately interpreted God’s revelations.

The deeper we dug into the life of Daniel, the more amazing things we discovered: prophecies that pointed to the very day in which we are living, mysterious and misunderstood prophecies that have recently begun to be unsealed as we draw ever closer to Daniel’s seventieth week. The unexpected and exciting discoveries we made, plus the unique approach we took, combined to make Foretold quite distinct from the vast array of other books on Daniel. They have provided a wealth of information, and we had no intention of simply adding to that body of knowledge. More information is the last thing our culture needs. Most of us receive more than we can possibly absorb or use. To echo Solomon’s words, there is no end to the making of many books, and much study is exhausting to the body; there is nothing new under the sun.¹

While accurate information is essential and foundational, God gave us His Word to provide us with something far greater than information. His goal is transformation. He intended His living, effective, and penetrating Word to engender life-altering changes in our thoughts and emotions—changes that would empower us to truly live lives worthy of our calling. This is exactly what we found in the life of Daniel. Beyond the bizarre images and the profound prophecies is a story of a radically changed life. Daniel’s unwavering faith and singular devotion to his God are unparalleled. Every trial he encountered made him stronger. Through every difficulty he faced, God was honored and Daniel’s faithfulness to the Lord’s thoughts and ways was affirmed.

The more we studied the book of Daniel, the more impressed we were with the man, and the more our admiration grew, the more we wanted to be like him. We wanted to know how he stayed so focused on the right things, no matter what. We wanted our lives to reflect the same courage, faith, and loyalty Daniel consistently displayed. We wanted to know what was in Daniel that prompted the living God to use this Jewish captive so mightily. Whatever that was, we wanted it for ourselves, and we wanted to share it with you.

It soon occurred to us that the best way to learn the secret of Daniel’s life was to relive it, to take on the persona of Daniel himself as he experienced everything from being taken captive to his last days on earth. We would recount the biblical book of Daniel from Daniel’s point of view. In Foretold, Daniel is, in effect, writing his memoirs from heaven. He is looking back on his life and sharing his thoughts and feelings as he recalls them. We will, therefore, attempt to see everything through his eyes, sharing in his moments of sadness and distress, yet also exhilaration and elation. The biblical book of Daniel will become an exciting adventure novel with all the mystery and suspense one could desire.

We will also experience Daniel’s revelations as he puts the pieces together in his mind, making sense of the enigmatic prophecies with which he has been entrusted. While he looks back from heaven, we will share his excitement as he recounts watching the fulfillment of his prophecies before his eyes. We will be swept away with him when he shares the thrill of seeing the rich treasures and promises of his mysterious prophecies unlocked as the ancient seals are removed in our day. We will realize that we are living in one of the most exciting times in history during which his prophecies are being diligently studied and scrutinized. Due to unparalleled access to resources and the means to utilize them, unimaginable in earlier times, the secrets sealed within these predictions are being released. They are being penetrated and grasped with far greater insight, breadth, and depth as the end draws near just as was predicted.² We will come to understand that the unsealing of many of Daniel’s prophecies is offering answers to questions scholars have been asking for centuries. As never before, unprecedented results await those who take advantage of the powerful research tools available today, diligently emulating Solomon’s quest to know, to investigate, and to seek wisdom and an explanation.³

This confirmation that current trends in our world in many ways parallel the end times of which Daniel wrote convinced us that our culture needs a book like this now more than ever. People are increasingly realizing that we are witnessing a series of developments that in many ways parallel biblical scenarios of the last days. Even those who have no interest in religion or the Bible are beginning to sense that life as they used to know it is coming to an end. Many people are seeing some parts of their lives being turned upside down by forces beyond their control. The incomes they once enjoyed are no longer there. The security they took for granted has vanished. Political parties are more polarized than ever. Traditional values are coming under attack in our postmodern world. In more and more countries, radical Islam is flexing its muscles. Global events are unraveling what was once tightly woven together. The conclusion: the world is falling apart. Was Chicken Little right? Is the sky falling? If it is, we need more than information. We need to be transformed into individuals with the character, tenacity, and steadiness of Daniel—people who are able to thrive in the midst of chaos—people who understand the prophecies and have prepared themselves for what lies ahead.

In the little bird’s day, folks weren’t impressed by his declaration of what was about to befall them, and they had a good reason to ignore him. Getting hit on the head by an acorn isn’t quite the same as a falling sky. Besides, they weren’t accustomed to getting their prophecy from poultry. Today we know better … or do we? People who have been warning the world of the biblical version of the sky falling (impending judgment) have been ignored too. Just as our feathered friend lost credibility because he mistook the meaning of an event, many self-proclaimed Bible prognosticators have lost credibility for doing the very same thing. Despite clear indications from the Scriptures that no one knows the day or hour, there’s always someone attempting to predict the date of the rapture or the day the world will end. All such efforts are seen by some as more evidence that all prophecy experts are as reliable and realistic as Chicken Little. We hope this book proves that when it comes to prophecy, diligent research instead of making our best guess yields amazing and trustworthy results.

As you begin, understand that we are taking some liberties in our attempt to make the book of Daniel come alive. Of course, we can’t know Daniel’s thoughts, but we can paint a realistic picture based on what we do know about him and his character. Likewise, we can’t know the details of his life in Babylon when the Bible only provides limited information, but we can paint a reasonable historical picture based on what we have learned from it and other sources.

Our purpose in having Daniel comment from his heavenly perspective after his death is simply to create a scenario in which we can identify with Daniel as he takes a big-picture approach to what he has written. The story you are about to read will make more sense if you understand that the chapters in the biblical book of Daniel are not in chronological order. Our book rearranges the chapters so that the action from one chapter to the next is in the order as the events actually occurred.

As we studied Daniel’s life and prophecies in an attempt to make them both come alive, we discovered things we had never seen before, things that gave us hope, things that gave us direction, and things that led us deeper into the heart of God. When we finished, we realized that we knew too much to ever go back to where we had been. We must get a grip, hang on, and enjoy the ride. We hope your journey with Daniel will be as transforming for you as it has been for us.

Prologue

I had no intention of writing a book. From the day we arrived in Babylon, astonishing, profound, and life-changing things just started to happen, and I decided to write about them in a scroll. It grew to include accounts of dreams and visions, conversations I had with God and angels, prophetic wisdom that flowed from God through me, and a lot of things that would remain mysteries, enigmas, and puzzles until now, the transitional period that will see the coming of the King of Israel—the Son of David—and His Kingdom. As I was recording them, I had no idea that the words were to become part of God’s sacred Scriptures. I simply knew that what I was experiencing and learning was important for my people and needed to be preserved. By the time I reached the end, however, I knew God had used me to record something really special—a panoramic view of the history of my people from my days in Babylon, through the rise and fall of kings and kingdoms, to the coming of our anointed King and our promised Kingdom and beyond. Of course this history was yet future. He who knows the end from the beginning, the one who sees all things as history, had provided a prophetic outline of things to come. Most of the biblical prophecy found in the rest of the Holy Scriptures fits into the time line He provided to all humanity through my writings.

As the story begins, the teachings from my parents could no longer remain merely wise and enlightened principles or concepts. The new life that had been thrust upon me forced me to make them real. My beliefs and my faith were challenged on a daily basis. The principles I had been taught night after night before going to bed would have to sustain me. I was about to learn the difference between knowledge and wisdom as well as the difference between knowing about God and knowing Him personally. I was about to discover if I really knew what it was to trust in God.

From the moment I received my first prophetic vision, I knew God was up to something big. I realized that my relocation to Babylon wasn’t the result of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. I soon realized that God had safely brought me and my three friends to Babylon for a very specific purpose. Identifying that purpose took a while. Actually, it took my entire life. There were so many twists and turns that only toward the end of our lives was there any predictability. For the most part, every day was a new walk of faith. As often as we could, we reminded each other of the vow we had made to remain faithful to our God. None of us wanted to be the first to break it.

When I look back on what God brought us through, I’m humbled and honored to have played a role in the remarkable story of our sovereign God. Over and over again, He showed His complete control over everything—fire, lions, armies, you name it. Nothing can change what He has determined—no force, no amount of evil, no cunning plan, not even Satan. Yet there is so much more. Since He is a loving and compassionate God, we have hope. Do you get it? Hope. Real hope—the confident expectation that what is written in heaven will certainly come to pass. It is this living hope that undergirds every prophecy that flowed from my lips. My desire is that you will come to understand that the Ancient of Days, the Lord God Almighty, wants the best for you. He warns you, disciplines you, and redirects you for your own good. This truth lies behind the message of every one of God’s prophets.

No one was more surprised than I was when God used me in some astounding ways to make His plans for the world known. The first time it happened, it frightened me. Words and thoughts were coursing through me, clearly not emanating from my mind. They were flowing like a raging river from some deep cavern within me, unfaltering and unstoppable. I knew the Spirit of the living God had taken control of my entire being. It wasn’t me speaking. It was God Himself! Usually I understood what I was saying, but not always. Some prophecies were baffling and beyond my comprehension. They were sealed, intended by God to remain a mystery until the day of understanding arrived. My friend, you are living in that day!

My hope is that as you learn to accurately interpret the previously sealed prophecies God entrusted to me, you will be transformed as I was into a trusting servant of the most high God—a diligent student who has learned the ways of the Lord and is committed to walking in them, understanding the times in which you live, and embracing the challenges that God has prepared for you.

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Captives

We Knew It Was Coming

We really weren’t surprised when it happened. We knew that sooner or later, something like this was coming. Our parents had diligently taught us the words of the prophets of Israel. The prophets had warned that because of the kingdom of Judah’s rebellion against God, one day judgment would come. However, nothing could have prepared us for the terror that engulfed our beautiful city when Nebuchadnezzar and his army marched up the valley and approached Jerusalem’s walls. Somehow, the Babylonian king seemed to know that with a few valiant exceptions, the residents of Jerusalem and all of Judah wouldn’t put up much of a fight.

I was so thankful I was not alone when it happened! Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah had just met me at our secret hiding place—a small cave that nature had carved out of the rock outcropping a stone’s throw behind Mishael’s home. We met there as often as possible. It wasn’t much of a cave, but in our young minds it was a fortress. I was the last to arrive when the noise reached our ears. I’ll never forget the events of that horrifying day. The details are indelibly etched in my mind.

The strange sky the previous evening told us that something gruesome was on the horizon. A red sky at night usually means fair weather the following day. This sky, however, was almost bloodred. Instead of offering a pleasant preview of the upcoming day, it seemed to be shouting a warning. Did anyone else have the same response, or were we the only ones? We had no way of knowing, but to us the message was clear and powerful: something horrible was on the way.

It began as a low rumble. Hananiah stopped whittling the wooden carving he had been working on intermittently over the past week—a gift for his younger brother’s upcoming birthday. He shot a quizzical look at me. I nodded that I had heard it too. We all stopped what we were doing and stood still, trying to make sense of the strange sound that had interrupted the tranquility of the day. That’s when it hit us. The sky’s warning was coming true. Suddenly, the mood in our tiny rock fortress changed. Without saying a word, we each knew what the others were wondering. Was this the day of judgment we knew was coming?

Gradually, the rumbling grew into a vast array of unrecognizable but gruesome sounds. Like a giant wave it swept toward us, engulfing everything in its path. Suddenly, it seemed to my young ears that a new sound was bellowing from within the wave, as if an enormous, dreadful monster had emerged from the deep, lumbering toward us in its quest for human blood. I looked at the others. Their expressions told me that their imaginations were getting the best of them too. They looked like I felt. I had to think. I had to stay calm, which was difficult because my heart was racing, seemingly out of control. I was finding it hard to breathe. The air seemed as though the life had been sucked out of it and replaced by a deathly staleness. We didn’t try to hide the reality of the moment. We were terrified!

I tried to focus on what was really happening. Oh, it was a monster all right—the Babylonian army. Once it entered the city, the carnage began. Within minutes, the noise level had noticeably increased. Instinctively, I placed my hands over my ears, as did my three friends. This, however, was insufficient to mask what had become very identifiable sounds: clomping hooves of snorting horses, clanging swords, screaming mothers, crying children, and the agonizing cries of the wounded and dying. By then the noise was deafening. From the opening of our rock fortress overlooking the city, we could see people running frantically in all directions in futile attempts to escape. The dust of battle was swirling everywhere, barely obscuring the carnage and devastation that filled the city. We stood motionless, afraid to move. Within minutes, our world had been turned upside down. We all looked at one another. Without saying a word, we knew what our next move would be. As if on cue, we all raced toward our homes and the safety and comfort of our parents’ arms.

Mother was frantically waving me into the back room as I reached our modest home. My family was all there, safe and sound for the moment. We huddled together amid the items in our tiny storage room, holding on to one another with a death grip. Father was praying. I remember his words to this day: The Lord is our rock and our salvation. Hear us, O Lord. Deliver us from those who do iniquity. Save us from these men of bloodshed! Over and over he repeated these words until the inevitable happened.

We heard a soldier enter the house. He yelled something in a language we could not understand, but I had an idea what he was saying. We were too frightened to speak or to move. If God was to deliver us, He would have to perform a miracle. Suddenly, the door flew open with a force that nearly pulled it from its hinges. Before us stood what seemed like a giant of a man dressed for battle and holding a sword and a shield. Setting down his shield, he grabbed us and pulled us into the light. For what seemed like an eternity, he just stared at us. Then he fixed his gaze on me. Mother was hysterical. She was screaming, Not Daniel! Don’t take my baby! No! No! She seemed to know what was about to happen and so did I. Instinctively, I grabbed an armful of scrolls that were stacked beside me. The next thing I knew, I has being escorted out the door of our home. It was the last time I saw my family.

Nebuchadnezzar was prepared for anything. He had already conquered cities and peoples much stronger than those of Judah. Our massive walls and gates proved ineffective in protecting us from his sophisticated weaponry and massive army. It didn’t take long for it all to be over. Not the physical destruction. The