A Prophetic Outline of History

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In lesson 1 you learned how an end-time empire, called “Babylon” in the book of Revelation, began to emerge in Europe on October 1, 1982. According to the prophecy in Daniel 4, this end-time power is growing out of the roots of ancient Babylon.

Just what is the connection between this end-time European superpower and the ancient city of Babylon?

The answer may surprise you.

The early chapters of the book of Genesis tell the story of how the world before the Flood became “filled with violence” and “every product of the thoughts of [man’s] heart was only evil all the day” (Genesis 6:5, 13).

God wiped away this violent, rebellious society with the Flood and began a new age with Noah and his family.

As civilization began to develop again after the Flood, a man named Nimrod began to gain power and influence over the people. He established the world’s first kingdom after the Flood at Babylon:

And Cush had Nimrod. He began to be a mighty man on the earth. He was a mighty hunter in front of the Eternal. Therefore it is said, “like Nimrod, a mighty hunter in front of the Eternal.” And the beginning of his kingdom was Babylon… (Genesis 10:8-10)

Somehow, Nimrod must have understood that in order to unite humanity under his leadership, the people would need:

1. a common goal, and
2. a common religion

For the common goal, Nimrod invited the people to join together in an ambitious project to build a great city. This city, Babylon, would be the capital of Nimrod’s universal government.

For the common religion, Nimrod could not allow the worship of the true God. Nimrod wanted to be “in front of the Eternal”—to have more power and influence than God. So, he either established his own religion, or took advantage of false religious traditions that were already developing. At the center of Babylon, the people began building a temple that would be the center of this universal religion.

Here is the Bible’s account of the origin of Babylon, from Genesis 11:1-9:

And the whole earth had one language and one vocabulary. And it was as they traveled from the east, they found a valley in the land of Shinar, and they lived there. And they said to one another, “Come, let’s make bricks, and bake them thoroughly.” And for them brick was like stone, and tar was like mortar. And they said, “Come, let’s build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the sky, and let’s make a name for ourselves, so we won’t be scattered abroad on the face of the whole earth.”

And the Eternal came down to see the city and the tower, which the sons of men were building. And the Eternal said, “Look! One people, and one language for all of them, and they start to do this! And now nothing that they plan to do will be held back from them. Come, let’s go down, and mix up their language there, that they will not understand one another’s language.” So the Eternal scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they stopped building the city. Therefore its name was called Babylon, because there the Eternal mixed up the language of all the earth. And from there, the Eternal scattered them abroad on the surface of all the earth.

In the Akkadian language, the name for Babylon is “Bab-El,” which means “gate of god.” The tower at the center of Babylon was a temple that reached the sky. At the top of this “gateway to heaven” the king and priests could supposedly communicate with the gods. This was an effective way for the political and religious leaders to maintain control over the general population, which did not have direct access to the gods.

In Hebrew, Babylon is “Bavel,” which sounds similar to a word that means “to mix up.” At Babylon God mixed up the languages and put an end to Nimrod’s attempt to unite the whole world under his rule. However, as all the ethnic groups of the world dispersed from Babylon, they took the ideas they had learned at Babylon about religion and government with them.

Nimrod went on to establish several other cities, founded on the same model:

The beginning of his kingdom was Babel, Erech, Akkad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar. From that land he went to Assyria, and built Nineveh… (Genesis 10:10, 11)

From history we know the first world empire was the Akkadian Empire. This empire was followed by the Assyrian Empire, which was replaced by the Babylonian Empire. All three empires began in cities that were originally founded by Nimrod. All three empires carried on the same religious traditions that began at Babylon. From the original city of Babylon, founded by Nimrod, down to the Babylonian Empire ruled by Nebuchadnezzar the Great, there was one consistent stream of political and religious history.

From Nebuchadnezzar to Our Day

In Daniel 2, we find a key prophecy that foretold the course of world history from the Babylonian Empire ruled by Nebuchadnezzar, down to the end-time Babylon that is developing in Europe today.

In Daniel 2, Daniel retells and explains a dream that King Nebuchadnezzar had. Here is the dream, from Daniel 2:31-35:

“You, O king, saw, and look! There was one great statute. This statute, which was large, and whose brightness was excellent, stood in front of you, and its appearance was terrifying. As for this statute, its head was of fine gold, its chest and its arms of silver, its belly and its thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet part of iron, and part of clay.

“You were looking until a stone was cut out without hands, and it struck the statute on its feet that were of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were broken in pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors. And the wind carried them away, and no place was found for them.

“And the stone that struck the statute became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.”

Then Daniel began to explain the meaning of the dream:

“You, O king, are king of kings, for the God of heaven has given you the kingdom, the power, the strength, and the glory. And wherever the children of men reside, the wild animals and the birds of the sky, He has given them into your hand, and has made you rule over them all. You are the head of gold.” (verses 37, 38)

The gold head of the image represented Nebuchadnezzar and his kingdom—the Babylonian Empire.

Daniel continued to explain the meaning of the other parts of the image:

“And after you, another kingdom will arise that is inferior to you; and another third kingdom of bronze, which will rule over all the earth.” (verse 39)

The image represented several future kingdoms. The chest and arms of silver represented the kingdom that would replace the Babylonian Empire. In 539 BC the Medes and Persians conquered the Babylonians, fulfilling the first prediction.

The belly and thighs of bronze represented a third kingdom. In 330 BC, Alexander the Great conquered the Persian Empire, beginning an era of Greek rule.

After Alexander’s death, his empire divided into several kingdoms. These Greek kingdoms continued until the arrival of the Romans. Daniel foretold that a fourth empire would come after the period of Greek rule:

“And the fourth kingdom will be strong as iron, because iron breaks in pieces and subdues all things; and as iron that crushes all these, it will break in pieces and crush.” (verse 40)

The fourth empire is the Roman Empire. As the Romans expanded beyond Italy, they gained control over the Greek kingdoms between 148 BC and 30 BC. A short time later, Rome controlled every land that touched the Mediterranean Sea. The Roman Empire was stronger than any empire before it. God accurately foretold that the Roman Empire would “break in pieces and crush all the others.”

The Roman period has continued for more than 2000 years—from the time Rome assimilated the Greek kingdoms until today. The modern European Union is a direct descendant of the ancient Roman Empire. Several non-EU nations, such as Russia, also trace their history back to Rome.

The central role of religion

One of the main reasons that the Roman period has survived until today has been the unifying force of religion.

When the Persians conquered Babylon, they allowed the religion of Babylon to continue. When Alexander the Great conquered the Persians, he recognized that the gods of Babylon and Egypt were essentially the same as the gods of the Greeks. The names of the gods were different, but their characteristics were the same. Alexander claimed to be a god himself, and he used religion blended with Greek culture to unite the vast territories he had conquered. When the Romans conquered the Greeks, they also recognized that their own gods were essentially the same as the gods of the Greeks.

Then Jesus Christ came and taught among the Jews. After His death, Christianity quickly began to spread throughout the Roman Empire. Most of those who practiced various forms of Christianity refused to worship the gods of the Romans.

Many in the Roman Empire considered Christians to be disloyal, because they refused to participate in the ceremonies of the government-sponsored religion. In 303 AD, the four emperors of the Roman Empire decided to put an end to Christianity. They ordered that all churches should be torn down, all Bibles should be burned, and that Christians must no longer assemble for worship. Christians who held positions in the government were dismissed. Household servants who persisted in Christianity were to become slaves.

Fierce persecution of Christianity continued for ten years. Many Christians were killed. In order to escape the oppression, many Christians abandoned their faith. For a time, it appeared that Christianity would be conquered. But while the persecution raged on, a civil war broke out among the emperors. Constantine, the son of one of the four original emperors, fought his way to victory over all of his rivals. In 324 AD, he became the sole ruler of the Roman Empire.

The victory of Constantine brought a dramatic change in policy. In 325 AD, Constantine issued an edict on religion, establishing Christianity as the favored religion of the Roman Empire. The same year Constantine assembled a church council to unify the factions of Christianity. At the council, the teachings of the dominant sect of Christianity were declared to be orthodox, and the teachings of other groups were condemned as heresies. Constantine became the protector of this universal church, and used the power of the Roman Empire to suppress heretics.

Suddenly, Christianity was transformed from a minor, persecuted religion into a powerful political force.

As the Roman Church was integrated into the Roman Empire, its structure became a reflection of the Empire. Many religious elements from the Roman Empire were blended into the church. For example, as Emperor, Constantine held the title “pontifex maximus” (the greatest priest), the head of the Roman religion. This title now belongs to the Pope. Constantine also established Sunday as a day of rest in the Empire.

Christianity has helped carry on the structure and traditions of the Roman Empire through periods of political weakness and division.

Legs represent two parts

As the image in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream had two legs of iron, the Roman Empire has always had two parts. For example, from the early days of the Empire, Latin was the language of the West, and Greek was the language of the East.

The division of the Roman Empire between East and West became greater during the reign of Emperor Constantine. In 330 AD, Constantine chose the city of Byzantium, in the East, as the second capital of the Empire, and called it “New Rome.” The city was also called Constantinople. Today it is Istanbul.

From 395 onward, two emperors ruled the two halves of the Roman Empire. The two halves of the Empire remained connected in many ways, but over time they grew more and more separate. In 1054 AD, the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches separated from each other, increasing the division between the two legs of the Roman Empire.

Constantinople continued to be the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire for more than a thousand years. During that time, the Eastern Roman Empire spread Orthodox Christianity and Roman tradition to tribes within and beyond its borders. The Ottoman Turks finally captured Constantinople in 1453 and killed the last emperor. But this was not the end of the eastern leg of the Roman Empire.

In 1469, Pope John II suggested that Ivan III, the Grand Prince of Russia, marry Sophia Palaiologina, the niece of the last Byzantine Emperor. They were married in 1472. They were the grandparents of Ivan IV “the Terrible.” Ivan the Terrible was the first to claim the title of “Tsar of all Russia.” The title Tsar is just the Russian form of Caesar, the title of the Roman Emperors since Julius Caesar.

The Eastern Orthodox Church has also continued to carry on the Roman traditions and Roman identity in the East. Today, Vladimir Putin, the president of Russia calls himself the protector of the Eastern Orthodox Church, and works closely with Patriarch Kirill, the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church. One reason Putin gave for the Invasion of Ukraine in 2022 was the need to reunite the Ukrainian Orthodox Church with the Russian Orthodox Church (the Ukrainian Church became independent from Moscow in 2019). As you can see, the countries of Eastern Europe are still guided by Orthodox Christianity, an institution of the Eastern Roman Empire. These countries in Eastern Europe are one of the legs in the prophecy of Daniel 2.

The Western Leg

The institutions of the Western Roman Empire have also continued to this day. Roman emperors continued to rule in the West until 476 AD. In 476 a Germanic king replaced the last emperor in the West, but that was not the end of the Western Empire. Germanic tribes had already been settling in the Western Roman Empire for a hundred years. Many of these germanic tribes had already adopted Christianity and Roman customs, and some had adopted the language of the Romans.

One of these German tribes, the Franks, started to become the leading power at this time. In 496, King Clovis I converted to Catholicism, and soon after, many of the Franks followed. Over time the Franks established a large kingdom in the area of modern France and Germany. In 732 the Frankish leader Charles Martel defeated invading Muslims and helped prevent them from conquering Europe. Later Charles Martel’s son—Pepin—helped fight against Rome’s enemies, and received the title “Protector of the Romans.”

Pepin’s son Charlemagne expanded the Frankish kingdom into Northern Italy and continued to help the Popes in Rome. In the year 800, the Pope crowned Charlemagne “Emperor of the Romans.” At first the emperor in the East was upset, but eventually the emperor in Constantinople recognized Charlemagne as co-emperor. This was the beginning of the Holy Roman Empire, a continuation of the western leg of the Roman Empire.

Over time the Kingdom of the Franks divided. The western kingdom of the Franks developed into France, while the eastern kingdom of the Franks (modern Germany, Northern Italy, and several smaller areas) became the Holy Roman Empire. For several hundred years, the emperors of the Holy Roman Empire and the Roman Catholic Popes were some of the most influential people in Western Europe. The last powerful leader of the Holy Roman Empire was Emperor Charles V, who ruled the Holy Roman Empire from 1519 to 1556. He also ruled the huge Spanish Empire (including parts of America), southern Italy, Austria, and many other territories. In 1556 Charles V gave the Holy Roman Empire and Austria to his brother and the Spanish Empire to his son. By that time, the Spanish Empire had become the leading power in Europe. Spain continued to be the leading power until 1585, when the nations of Northwestern Europe began to rise. By 1659, France had become the clear leader among the nations of the world.

As the nations of Northwestern Europe rose to lead the world, the Western Roman Empire did not disappear. In fact, there have been several attempts to create a new empire in Europe that would become the leading world power. But so far, these attempts have not succeeded.

The first attempt was by Napoleon. In 1788, unrest began to spread through France, leading to the French Revolution in 1789. The French Revolution was a chaotic disaster. In 1799, Napoleon Bonaparte seized power and immediately began conquering Europe, with dreams of ruling an empire. Napoleon was actually of Italian descent. He had been born in Corsica 15 months after France had bought the island. As a child, he hated France. But as an adult, he used the French army to pursue his dream of world domination.

Within a few years, Napoleon controlled most of Western Europe. Napoleon divided and ended the Holy Roman Empire. However, his own empire carried on the traditions of Rome. In 1804, in the presence of the Pope, he crowned himself Emperor of the French. The next year he crowned himself King of Italy with the same iron crown that was used to crown Emperor Charlemagne. When Napoleon’s son was born, Napoleon called him the King of Rome. But, in 1814, Napoleon was defeated.

Adolph Hitler led the second major attempt to create a world-ruling empire in Europe. From 1933 to 1945, Hitler tried to create a new German Empire. He said his empire would rule Europe for 1000 years—just like the Holy Roman Empire had lasted for 1000 years until Napoleon. Hitler joined with Benito Mussolini, the dictator of Italy, who also wanted to recreate the old Roman Empire. Hitler conquered almost all of Europe before he was defeated in World War II.

The Modern Revival of the Roman Empire

After World War II, European countries have been rebuilding the Roman Empire through economic and political agreements. In 1957 six countries (Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg) signed the Treaty of Rome, which created the European Economic Community (EEC). In 1993, the Maastricht Treaty transformed the EEC into the European Union (EU). The EU now includes most of the countries of Europe.

Europeans know that they are making Europe like the old Roman Empire. For the first time since the old Roman Empire, people easily cross borders and use the same money almost everywhere in Europe. The countries in the European Union are becoming more and more connected into one system.

In Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, the image had “feet partly of iron and partly of clay” (Daniel 2:33). The feet represent the empire that will exist during the last part of the Roman period. Daniel explains the meaning of the mixture of iron and clay: “As you saw iron mixed with ceramic clay, they will mingle with the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, just as iron does not mix with clay” (verse 43).

Europe is already a mixture of many different ethnic groups that, like iron and clay, do not naturally mix together. The book of Revelation shows that, for a short time, all the nations of the whole world will be united into this European-led World Empire (Revelation 13:7). This end-time empire will certainly be like a mixture of iron and clay.

“Whereas you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; yet the strength of the iron will be in it, just as you saw the iron mixed with ceramic clay. And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, so the kingdom will be partly strong and partly fragile” (verses 41, 42).

Events That Will Happen Soon

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 created a renewed sense of unity and purpose for the countries of Europe. Germany finally decided to become a military power again. Europe will continue to rise until it dominates the world. But the nations of Northwestern Europe will not be part of this final empire. The United Kingdom has already left the EU. They, and the other Israelite nations will collapse as the European Empire is transforming into it’s final, world-ruling form.

Just as the image in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream had 10 toes, the final configuration of this World Empire will be led by 10 world leaders, under a World Emperor from Europe. You will learn more about this World Empire in lesson 10.

What will happen to this World Empire? In Nebuchadnezzar’s dream a stone hit the feet and completely destroyed the whole image:

“You watched while a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed together…the wind carried them away so that no trace of them was found. And the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth” (verses 34, 35)

Daniel explains the meaning of this stone in verse 44:

“And in the days of these kings [the 10 toes] the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed; and the kingdom will not be left to other people; it will break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it will stand forever.”

The stone represents the Kingdom of God. Daniel predicted that the fourth kingdom in the dream will continue until God destroys it.  Just as God foretold, the Roman period has continued until our time. The traditions of Rome have never been destroyed.

Soon God will completely destroy this Roman system, and every human government, and will replace them with the Kingdom of God, which will fill the whole earth (verse 35). But that is a story for another lesson.

Next Lesson: Do You Make These 5 Mistakes When You Study Prophecy?

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