Chapter 23

The Attack of the “Little” Big Horn

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: it devoured and brake 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 man, and a mouth speaking great things (Daniel 7:7-8).

Considering, the vital Gospel truths contained in the annual Sabbaths, the rich blessings to be gained from walking in harmony with Elohim’s expressed will, the importance of living according to the commands given in the Torah, and the promise of eternity with Elohim which is extended to the obedient faithful, one may well wonder why these teachings are largely unknown today. How has this volume of timely truth been largely forgotten in the contemporary Christian world? Most Christians don’t know truths like:

  • The Torah is the written transcript of Elohim’s character and was given to bless mankind.
  • The teachings of the Torah serve as a wall of protection against the onslaughts of Satan.
  • The seventh day is the Sabbath, which Elohim blessed.
  • Keeping the annual holy days prepares us for the final events of the last days.

Yet, Christ, knew and taught these things. Y’shua and His apostles kept the whole Torah, including the holy days listed in the statutes. In fact, the Bible demonstrates that the early Christians were teaching the importance of keeping all the commandments and statutes into the first century C.E. What happened to this light? How is it that most Christians have never heard that the Law of Elohim is both the Commandments AND the statutes? How is it that the world is largely unaware of the true Sabbath AND the annual holy days?

Only Satan would have a motive for attacking the expressed will and ways of Elohim. It takes no rocket scientist to detect Satan’s work in shutting out this great light, intending that not one soul would be ready to receive the seal of Elohim. By enticing mankind to shun Elohim’s will, the devil hopes that all will be found worthy to receive the mark of the Beast. Satan’s power is certainly behind the attack against the Law and the Sabbath truth. His demonic work was accomplished through an earthly power predicted to arise among the ten horns of the dragon-like beast. Daniel described this power prophetically as a “little horn” with a human face and a demonic message.

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 man, and a mouth speaking great things (Daniel 7:8).

Later in the seventh chapter of Daniel, clues to characteristically identify this little horn and his message are prophetically presented:

Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces. And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another (the little horn) shall rise after them (the ten horns); and he shall be diverse (different) from the first (the original ten horns or ten kings), and he shall subdue three kings (three horn powers will be broken by the little horn’s rise to power). And he shall speak great (abominable) words against the most High (Elohim), and shall wear out the saints of the most High (will be a persecutor of Elohim’s people), and think to change times (“sacred feasts and holy days” – see the Amplified Bible translation of this text) and laws (Elohim’s laws): and they (Elohim’s people) shall be given into his (the little horn power’s) hand until a time and times and the dividing of time (this is a 3½ year period of time – as will be shown later) (Daniel 7:23-25).

In Daniel’s prophetic record, there are six identifying characteristics describing the little horn power. By carefully examining these six specific traits, we will Biblically distinguish the earthly power bearing these prophetically defined qualities. These are the six identifying factors:

  • The predicted time of the little horn’s rise to power may be used to identify it.
  • The geographic location of the little horn (prophesied as being from “among” the ten horns) may be used to identify the little horn.
  • The prophesied nature of the little horn may be used to identify it.
  • The Bible foretold what would be the little horn’s attitude toward Elohim’s Law.
  • Its predicted attitude toward true Christians may be used to identify the little horn.
  • The length of time the Bible foretold the little horn would be allowed to rule may be used to identify it.

The first means of identifying the little horn power, thus, is the time it rises to power. Daniel refers to the ten horns as representing ten kings. (See Daniel chapter 7.) An earthly king stands for a political power. Recorded in Daniel chapter two, the prophet’s vision of an image is very helpful in placing these ten political powers in a Biblical time-line.

In the second chapter of Daniel, king Nebuchadnezzar dreamed of an image. Through the power of Elohim, Daniel later revealed to this Babylonian king that the image of his vision is a prophecy of the earthly kingdoms that would successively arise until the Second Coming of Christ (as is prophesied in the great stone which breaks the image at the end of the vision). /

The power of the Little Horn in Daniel chapter seven is the same power, which will hold sway over the earth during the time of the feet of the prophetic image. The ten toes of the Daniel two image correspond to the ten horns from Daniel seven. Thus, by carefully identifying each kingdom and placing it within a historical timeline, we may accurately define the time of the Little Horn’s rise to power.

Under the unction of the Holy Spirit, Daniel defined the golden head of the Daniel-two-image as the kingdom of Babylon, ruled by Nebuchadnezzar at that time.

This is the dream and… the interpretation thereof… Thou, O king (Nebuchadnezzar), art a king of kings: for the Elohim of heaven hath given thee a kingdom (Babylon), power, and strength, and glory. And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and 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 (Daniel 2:36-38).

The value of the solid gold head indicated that Babylon’s rule would be an absolute autocracy over the then-known world. However, just as the golden head of the image gave way to the silver chest, the glorious power of Babylon would come to an end. Babylon’s autocratic reign lasted from about 606 B.C.E. until 538 B.C, when the Medo-Persian Empire brought Babylon’s supremacy to an end.

Babylon has been prophetically identified as the golden head; therefore, Medo-Persia must have been represented in the silver chest and arms of the image, as it was the power that conquered Babylon. With nobles equal to the king in all but office, Persia was a monarchial oligarchy. Considering the two arms of the image, Daniel revealed to Nebuchadnezzar that the Power to follow Babylon was to be a dual one. It is an historical fact that the Medes and the Persians comprised the Medo-Persian Empire. Thus, every aspect of Daniel’s prophecy was fulfilled. This silver Empire lasted from 538 B.C.E. until 336 B.C.E., when Alexander the Great overthrew Medo-Persia, bringing Greece to power.

The brass hips and thighs of Nebuchadnezzar’s image prophetically represented the Grecian rule. Greece dominated the world until she was vanquished by her Roman successor in 62 B.C.E.

Prophetically proclaimed to be the last of the kingdoms to hold absolute power over the then-known world, pagan Rome ruled with a democratic imperialism dependent upon her military might. Thus, the reign of pagan Rome was represented in the Daniel two image as a rule of “iron.”

Daniel chapter two next proclaims the end of global domination by a united power. After the legs of iron, no other single material is represented in the image. The feet and toes to follow the Roman legs were prophetically described as “iron” and “clay.” Thus, the power of Rome would not be utterly broken, but would continue to hold sway until the end of time.

And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters' 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 miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another (become completely united in global domination as the previous kingdoms were), even as iron is not mixed with clay (Daniel 2:41-43).

Because of this prophecy, those who read and understood the Bible in the early 1900’s were comforted in the knowledge that Adolph Hitler could never force his influence upon the whole world, as he desired. He had come upon the scene of earth’s history after the time of the pure metals. Never again would there be a globally dominating Nebuchadnezzar or Alexander the Great. The feet were of iron and clay, which Elohim foretold would “not” be “mixed.”

In the prophecy of Daniel chapter seven, the Bible indicates that the Little Horn would rise after the breakup of the Roman Empire, the Roman legs (see Daniel 2) having come to an end. In addition, the Scriptures foretell that as it rose to power, the Little Horn would uproot three of the ten horn-kingdoms, which preceded it.

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 man, and a mouth speaking great things. And of the ten horns that were in his head, and of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows. I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them; and the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings (Daniel 7:8, 20-21, 24).

History records that when pagan Rome had run its course, its “iron” power was succeeded by Papal Rome. In Daniel chapter two, Papal Rome is the form of Romish power that is present in the statue’s iron and clay feet. “Out of the ruins of political Rome, arose the great moral Empire in the ‘gian form’ of the Roman Church” (A.C. Flick, The Rise of the Mediaeval Church, 1900, p 150).

The revelation that the Little Horn power would be a religious and a civil power fulfills the Biblical prophecy that “…he (the Little Horn) shall be diverse (different) from the first (previous kingdoms)...” (Daniel 7:24).

Merely placing Papal Rome in the scene at the time in which the Little Horn was prophetically to arise, is certainly not enough evidence to identify this horn as the Papacy. We must also study each of the Little Horn’s remaining characteristics. If all of the six, previously-listed, identifying factors points to the Papacy, we may then be certain that the Little Horn is indeed Papal Rome. We will then examine the weight of evidence to determine whether or not each of the Little Horn’s characteristics is an accurate depiction of Papal Rome. History records that it came to power after the fall of pagan Rome, thus placing Papal Rome clearly into the timeframe of the feet (see Daniel 2).

Continuing with our historic timeline, we reach the period of the ten toes, on Nebuchadnezzar’s image. These ten toes represent the same ten kingdoms, as are represented in the ten horns in Daniel chapter seven. At this point, the only Biblical clue we have which places the power of Rome in the time of “toes,” is the fact that the feet are constructed of iron (representing Rome in some form) and clay.

Ending the period of the iron legs, the Pagan Roman Empire fell in 476 C.E. When the Roman Empire came to an end, ten nations arose within continental Europe. History records that these ten kingdoms were the: Vandals, Ostrogoths, Visigoths, Heruli, Suevi, Lombards, Burgundians, Alemanni, Franks and the Bavarians. These ten kingdoms are also the ten horns, out of which the Little Horn would come.

/ Incidentally, we can identify the Little Horn as a European power by the fact that its predeces-sors were European, out of which the Little

Horn was prophesied to Rise. A map of the ancient Babylonian Empire clearly indicates that this fought-over and dominated turf was the region we now call Europe and Asia Minor.

When Papal Rome came to power in 538 C.E., three of the ten barbarian kingdoms were indeed uprooted. These three uprooted kingdoms were: the Heruli, the Ostrogoths, and the Vandals. As such, not a trace of these three uprooted horns remained. History tells it as follows:

The conquest against the three horns began in 487 C.E. After fifty years, Rome quelled the Heruli, who were never again to rise as a nation. The first of the three horns had been uprooted. "By mid 6th century they (the Heruli) vanished from history" (Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1990 edition, art. Heruli). Thus fell the first of the three horns, leaving no national roots behind.

The Roman armies, lead by, Emperor Justinian’s general, Belisarius, conquered the Vandals in 536 C.E. "After this," the Encyclopaedia Britannica, (1963 edition, Vol. 22, p. 973), reports, "the Vandals disappeared from history." The second horn had been uprooted just two years prior to Pope Vigilius assuming the title of Universal Bishop, which Emperor Justinian had accorded by declaring him "head of all the holy churches."

But a third horn, the Ostrogoths, still held a stranglehold on Italy, preventing the full rise of Papal Rome. In 538 C.E. Justinian’s forces evicted the Ostrogoths from Rome. So crushing was their defeat that the Ostrogoths, like the two kingdoms before them, “were extinct before 554 C.E.” (Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1990 edition, art. Goths), completely uprooted through the rise of the Little Horn, just as the Bible prophesied in Daniel chapter seven.

Having shown that the Little Horn was to be a civil and a religious power, arising out of the kingdoms of Europe, we will now address its attitude toward Elohim. Daniel foretold that the Little Horn power would “speak great words” against Elohim. (See Daniel 8:8-25.) The “great words” the Little Horn speaks are words, which the Bible says would exalt the horn power above Elohim! It was to be a message of blasphemy.

And the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the Elohim of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done. (Daniel 11:36).

And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months. And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against Elohim, to blaspheme His name… (Revelation 13:5-6).

The Bible teaches that the term “blasphemy” is applied to one who wrongly claims to be Elohim. If a mortal claims a power belonging only to Elohim, that mortal is guilty of blasphemy. In the Jewish system, blasphemy was a crime worthy of death by stoning. This is why the Jews picked up stones to kill Christ when He made the claim to be one with YHWH. Christ was clearly claiming the status of Elohim. In His case, it was certainly not blasphemy to claim to be Elohim. However, the Jews did not accept that He was the true Messiah.