Subtitle: A fig tree does not represent the state of Israel.
I have told that I believe in Nostradamus, and I have no reason to be shame of it. Many people -- both Christians and new-agers -- believed that Jesus will come back by the year 2000. They were all wrong. But Michael Jordan wrote a book "Nostradamus and the Next Millenium" in 1998 and in this book he clearly stated that Nostradamus did not predict the end of the world for the year 1999. Even new-agers misunderstood Nostradamus with purpose when they explained that the last world-scale war will erupt in 1999. In their site, chrystallinks.com, they have still the false explanation, that the new era will begin in the year 2000:
"This is why, before and after these revolutions in various countries,
the rains will be so diminished and such abundance of fire and fiery missiles
shall fall from the heavens that nothing shall escape the holocaust. And
this will occur before the last conflagration [1999]... For before war
ends the [twentieth] century and in its final stages [1975-99] it will
hold the century under its sway. Some countries will be in the grip of
revolution for several years, and others ruined for a still longer period.
And now that we are in a republican era, with Almighty God's aid, and before
completing its full cycle, the monarchy will return, then the Golden Age
. For according to the celestial signs, the Golden Age shall return..."
Thus, we can say that Nostardamus is enemy for new-agers as well as
for those Christians who predicted the rapture for the year 1999-2000,
or Dominionists who predicted that there will be a large Christian revival
before Jesus comes back. Quite contrary, Nostradamus said, that bloodshed
does not cease before Lord Jesus establishes his Millenial Kingdom. And
this is exactly what Jesus predicted, too, in Matthew 24:6-13. Here, I
must stress that Nostradamus did believe in real Millenial Kingdom, while
some extreme Lutherans believe only in symbolical Kingdom.
Nostradamus said, that Adam was created in 4173 B.C. He also said,
that the resurruction of dead bodies takes place when the seventh millenium
is coming; in other words, 7,000 years after Adam's creation -- that is
the year 2827. In another place, Nostradamus says that the world will end
in the year 3797; so, we can count on that the resurrection of dead bodies
takes place between 2797 and 2827 A.D.
When the resurrection of dead bodies takes place? Many people who believe in pre-tribulation rapture, say that the rapture takes place in Revelation 4:1. I say that this is totally nonsense. The resurrection takes place when the last trumpet sounds (1 Korinthians 15.52). I believe that this trumpet is same as the seventh trumpet in Revelation 10:7. This is the event when Jesus comes back to earth and the dead bodies resurrect. I also believe that there is a "secret" rapture before that event; Revelation 7:9-17 and Matthew 24:27-51 explain this "secret" rapture. I say "secret" because this rapture is not so secret after all! When this "secret" rapture takes place, people in the world can clearly see Jesus' face in the sky (Matthew 24:30).
So, the resurrection will take place in 2797-2827 A.D. From this information, is it possible to know how many years earlier this "secret" rapture takes place, or, how many years earlier the Lamb opens the first seal? The answer is "no". Many people believe that the timeline between the first seal and battle of Armageddon is seven years. I don't believe this and I will say why. For example, in Revelation 6:12 (sixth seal) there takes place so huge earthquake that sun darkenes. Why the sun darkenes? Because of volcano eruptions. I believe that in this moment, the North-American plate will collapse. And, if there will rise no much ash into the atmosphere that the sun darkenes, it will take several years or several decades before the sun returns to normal. The sun must be returned to normal by forth trumpet (Revalation 8:12) because now it darkenes again, and by forth vial (Revelation 16:8) because now it turns very hot. Thus, if the second seal (Revelation 6:4) is same as Third World War, then it will probably take place much earlier than the resurrection, perhaps dosents or hundreds of years earlier.
In the beginning, I said that Christians were wrong because they believed that Jesus comes back in 1999-2000. Perhaps the Illuminati really wanted to create the New World Order by that year, but they couldn't because it was not God's wish. Perhaps Cutting Edge and other ministries have helped to transfer the birth of NWO to the distant future, because now average people know too much about their plans. We should also remember the words of Jesus Chist in Matthew 25:5: All of the ten virgins fell into sleep! They fell into sleep because Jesus didn't come as soon as they thought. Now, people believe that Jesus will come back by the year 2028 (or 2047) because Hal Lindsey has popularized his theory: the fig tree represents the state of Israel and that tree got leaves (Matthew 24:32) in 1948 when Israel was re-established (or alternatively in 1967); further, Mr. Lindsey believes that the genaration is 80 years (Matthew 24:32). However, the fig tree can not represent the state of Israel, because, in Matthew 21:19, Jesus curses the fig tree, and says: "Let no fruit grow on you ever again." We know that Israel will became fertile in the future, Romans 11:25-27:
"For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this
mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in
part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come
in. And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: "The Deliverer will
come out of Zion, And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob; For this
is My covenant with them, When I take away their sins."
The tree which represents Israel is a wild olive tree (Romans 11:17-24):
"And if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild
olive tree, were grafted in among them, and with them became a partaker
of the root and fatness of the olive tree, do not boast against the branches.
But if you do boast, remember that you do not support the root, but the
root supports you. You will say then, 'Branches were broken off that I
might be grafted in.' Well said. Because of unbelief they were broken off,
and you stand by faith. Do not be haughty, but fear. For if God did not
spare the natural branches, He may not spare you either. Therefore consider
the goodness and severity of God: on those who fell, severity; but toward
you, goodness, if you continue in His goodness. Otherwise you also will
be cut off. And they also, if they do not continue in unbelief, will be
grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. For if you were cut
out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and were grafted contrary
to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these, who are
natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree?"
Conclusion
Nostradamus has not been totally correct with his predictions, but
there has been so many things, he has known, concerning the future that
we should not despise his predictions, even though he disagrees with some
Bible scholars.
Finally, Perhaps Michel Nostradamus has been Christian and saved, after all. He burned occult books! This is what he wrote to his son, César:
"For by the latter, with the help of inspiration and divine revelation,
and continual calculations, I have set down my prophecies in writing. Fearing
lest this occult philosophy be condemned, I did not therefore wish to make
known its dire import; also fearful that several books which had lain hidden
for long centuries might be discovered, and of what might become of them,
after reading them I presented them to Vulcan. [i.e. burned them]. And
while he devoured them, the flame licking the air gave out such an unexpected
light, clearer than that of an ordinary flame and resembling fire from
some flashing cataclysm, and suddenly illumined the house as if it were
caught in a furnace. Which is why I reduced them to ashes then, so that
none might be tempted to use occult labours in searching for the perfect
transmutation, whether lunar or solar, of incorruptible metals."
Pasi Toivonen
Mänttä
FINLAND
email: patato@mantta.fi
web-site: http://www.mantta.fi/~patato/index.html