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# The Book of Daniel - Number One-Hundred and Eighty-Eight

Kitabu cha Danieli - Nambari Mia Moja Themanini na Nane

From Raphia to Panium: Unveiling the Prophetic Significance of Ancient Battles

Kutoka Raphia hadi Panium: Kufunua Umuhimu wa Kinabii wa Vita vya Kale

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Jeff Pippenger

Published

April 18, 2024

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The Battle of Raphia and the Battle of Panium are two distinct historical events that occurred in different periods and contexts, but they both have significance in the history of ancient Judea and its surrounding regions. The Battle of Raphia took place in 217 BC. The Battle of Panium occurred in 200 BC between the Seleucid kingdom (king of the north) and the Ptolemaic kingdom (king of the south). These two battles are identified in verses eleven through fifteen of Daniel chapter eleven. These two battles preceded the Maccabean Revolt in 167 BC.

Vita vya Raphia na Vita vya Panium ni matukio mawili tofauti ya kihistoria yaliyotokea katika vipindi na muktadha tofauti, lakini vyote vina umuhimu katika historia ya Yudea ya kale na maeneo yanayoizunguka. Vita vya Raphia vilifanyika mwaka 217 KK. Vita vya Panium vilitokea mwaka 200 KK kati ya Ufalme wa Seleukia (mfalme wa kaskazini) na Ufalme wa Waptolemaio (mfalme wa kusini). Vita hivi viwili vinatambuliwa katika aya za kumi na moja hadi kumi na tano za sura ya kumi na moja ya kitabu cha Danieli. Vita hivi viwili vilitangulia Uasi wa Wamakabayo mwaka 167 KK.

The Battle of Panium took its name from the nearby geographical feature, Mount Panium, where the conflict occurred. The name Panium is derived from the Greek god Pan, to whom a temple was there dedicated. The site was known as Panium due to its association with worship of Pan. The temple complex was often referred to as the Sanctuary of Pan, emphasizing its role as a place of religious devotion and worship dedicated to the god Pan. The term “Nymphaeum” refers to a monument or shrine dedicated to water nymphs in ancient Greek and Roman religion. The temple complex at Panium included a grotto and natural spring, which were believed to be inhabited by nymphs, and thus it was sometimes referred to as the Nymphaeum of Panium.

Vita vya Panium vilipata jina kutokana na kipengele cha kijiografia kilicho karibu, Mlima Panium, ambako mapigano yalitokea. Jina Panium linatokana na mungu wa Kigiriki Pan, ambaye hekalu liliwekwa wakfu kwake hapo. Eneo hilo lilijulikana kama Panium kutokana na uhusiano wake na ibada ya Pan. Kompleksi ya hekalu hilo mara nyingi iliitwa Patakatifu pa Pan, ikisisitiza jukumu lake kama mahali pa kujitoa kidini na ibada iliyotolewa kwa mungu Pan. Neno "Nymphaeum" linarejelea mnara au patakatifu lililowekwa wakfu kwa nimfi wa maji katika dini za kale za Kigiriki na Kirumi. Kompleksi ya hekalu huko Panium ilijumuisha pango na chemchemi ya asili, ambazo ziliaminika kukaliwa na nimfi, na hivyo wakati mwingine ilirejelewa kama Nymphaeum la Panium.

After the city was rebuilt and expanded by Herod Philip, son of Herod the Great, it was known as Caesarea Philippi in honor of the Roman Emperor Caesar Augustus and Herod Philip himself. The temple complex was an important religious center within this city.

Baada ya mji kujengwa upya na kupanuliwa na Herode Filipo, mwana wa Herode Mkuu, ulijulikana kama Kaisarea Filipi kwa heshima ya Kaizari wa Roma Augusto na Herode Filipo mwenyewe. Eneo la mahekalu lilikuwa kituo muhimu cha kidini ndani ya mji huu.

During the reign of Emperor Augustus, the temple was rededicated or renamed in honor of Augustus, reflecting the imperial cult and the integration of Roman religious practices into the local religious landscape. The area near the ancient city of Caesarea Philippi, where the temple of Pan was located, was sometimes referred to as the “Gates of Hell” or the “Gates of Hades.”

Wakati wa utawala wa Kaisari Augusto, hekalu liliwekwa wakfu upya au kubadilishwa jina kwa heshima ya Augusto, likionyesha ibada ya kifalme na ujumuishaji wa desturi za kidini za Kirumi ndani ya mazingira ya kidini ya eneo hilo. Eneo karibu na mji wa kale wa Kesarea Filipi, ambako hekalu la Pan lilikuwa, wakati mwingine liliitwa "Milango ya Kuzimu" au "Milango ya Hadesi."

In verses sixteen through nineteen of Daniel chapter eleven, the three geographical areas of conquest are represented that pagan Rome was to overcome in order to be established as the fourth kingdom of Bible prophecy and the king of the north in the chapter, are represented. In verse sixteen, the Roman general Pompey is identified as conquering Syria in 65 BC, and then Jerusalem in 63 BC. Verses seventeen through nineteen identify Julius Caesar’s conquering of Egypt, the third of the three obstacles. The Battle of Actium in 31 BC, marks the beginning of the three hundred and sixty years that pagan Rome would rule supremely in fulfillment of verse twenty-four, of Daniel chapter eleven.

Katika mistari ya kumi na sita hadi kumi na tisa ya Danieli sura ya kumi na moja, yanawakilishwa maeneo matatu ya kijiografia ambayo Roma ya kipagani ilipaswa kuyateka ili kujiimarisha kama ufalme wa nne wa unabii wa Biblia na kama mfalme wa kaskazini katika sura hiyo. Katika mstari wa kumi na sita, jemadari wa Kirumi Pompey anatambuliwa kuwa aliteka Siria mwaka 65 K.K., kisha Yerusalemu mwaka 63 K.K. Mistari ya kumi na saba hadi kumi na tisa inabainisha ushindi wa Julius Caesar dhidi ya Misri, kikwazo cha tatu kati ya vitatu. Vita vya Actium mwaka 31 K.K. vinaashiria mwanzo wa miaka mia tatu na sitini ambayo Roma ya kipagani ingetawala kwa enzi kuu, katika utimilifu wa mstari wa ishirini na nne wa Danieli sura ya kumi na moja.

In verse twenty the reign of Augustus Caesar is marked, and in that history, Jesus was born. Then in verses twenty-one and twenty-two the wicked Tiberius Caesar’s reign is identified, thus marking the crucifixion of Christ. In verse twenty-three, the league which the Maccabean Jews entered into with pagan Rome is marked, and thus the flow of history that began in verse eleven is halted, and the historical narrative drops back to the period of 161 BC to 158 BC.

Katika aya ya ishirini, utawala wa Kaisari Augusto umeainishwa, na katika historia hiyo, Yesu alizaliwa. Kisha katika aya ya ishirini na moja na ishirini na mbili, utawala wa Kaisari Tiberio mwovu umeainishwa, na hivyo kuashiria kusulubiwa kwa Kristo. Katika aya ya ishirini na tatu, muungano ambao Wayahudi wa Wamakabayo waliingia nao na Roma ya kipagani umeainishwa, na hivyo mtiririko wa historia ulioanza katika aya ya kumi na moja unasitishwa, na simulizi la kihistoria linarudi nyuma hadi kipindi cha mwaka 161 KK hadi 158 KK.

Verse twenty-three represents the line of the Maccabees, and though it does not provide all the details of their prophetic line, the record of history does. In 217 BC, the Battle of Raphia took place, and in the aftermath a child king left Egypt vulnerable. As the Seleucid and Greek kings made plans to deal with the child king in the year 200 BC, Rome inserted itself into the history and became the defender of the Egyptian child king. In the same year the Battle of Panium took place. Then in 167 BC the guerilla warfare of the Maccabees, began.

Aya ya ishirini na tatu inawakilisha ukoo wa Wamakabayo, na ingawa haitoi maelezo yote ya mfuatano wao wa kinabii, kumbukumbu za historia hufanya hivyo. Mnamo mwaka 217 KK, Vita vya Rafia vilitokea, na baada ya hapo mfalme mtoto aliiacha Misri ikiwa wazi kwa mashambulizi. Wakati wafalme wa Seleukidi na wa Kigiriki walipokuwa wakipanga jinsi ya kumshughulikia yule mfalme mtoto mnamo mwaka 200 KK, Roma iliingilia kati na kuwa mtetezi wa mfalme mtoto wa Misri. Katika mwaka huohuo, Vita vya Panium vilitokea. Kisha mnamo 167 KK, vita vya msituni vya Wamakabayo vilianza.

The Maccabean revolt began in Modein in 167 BC, and it consisted of the Maccabees not only engaging against the Seleucid Empire, but also engaging the Jews that they had determined were in alliance with the Seleucids. The revolt was religiously motivated, and it was carried out against an internal and external enemy. In 164 BC the Maccabees rededicated the Temple, and this event is commemorated by the Jewish celebration of Hanukkah. In that year the infamous Antiochus Epiphanes died. Then from 161 BC to 158 BC the “league” of verse twenty-three was entered into with Rome.

Uasi wa Wamakabi ulianza huko Modein mwaka 167 K.K., nao ulihusisha Wamakabi si kupambana na Ufalme wa Waseluki tu, bali pia kupambana na Wayahudi ambao waliwahukumu kuwa washirika wa Waseluki. Uasi huo ulihamasishwa kidini, na ulitekelezwa dhidi ya adui wa ndani na wa nje. Mwaka 164 K.K. Wamakabi walilitia wakfu upya Hekalu, na tukio hili huadhimishwa na Sikukuu ya Kiyahudi ya Hanukkah. Mwaka huo huo Antiochus Epiphanes mwenye sifa mbaya alikufa. Kisha kuanzia 161 K.K. hadi 158 K.K., kulifanyika “muungano” wa aya ya ishirini na tatu na Roma.

The only direct reference to the Maccabees, their revolt and their league with Rome, is found in verse twenty-three, but the history of the dynasty, called the Hasmonean Dynasty began at Modein in 167 BC, and continued to the time of the cross. The final representatives of the Hasmonean Dynasty were the Pharisees of Christ’s time period. Therefore, there is a prophetic line of the history of apostate Judaism as represented by the Maccabees which began in 167 BC at the revolt of Modein, which ends in verses twenty-one and twenty-two when Jesus was crucified.

Marejeo ya moja kwa moja pekee kwa Wamakabayo, uasi wao na muungano wao na Roma, yanapatikana katika msitari wa ishirini na tatu, lakini historia ya nasaba, iitwayo Nasaba ya Hasmonea, ilianza huko Modein mwaka 167 K.K., na ikaendelea hadi wakati wa kusulubiwa. Wawakilishi wa mwisho wa Nasaba ya Hasmonea walikuwa Mafarisayo wa nyakati za Kristo. Kwa hiyo, kuna mfululizo wa kinabii wa historia ya Uyahudi uliopotoka kama unavyowakilishwa na Wamakabayo, ulioanza mwaka 167 K.K. katika uasi wa Modein, na unaomalizika katika mistari ya ishirini na moja na ishirini na mbili wakati Yesu aliposulubiwa.

Their history reached a turning point in verse sixteen, when Rome, for the first time, through Pompey, conquered Jerusalem. His primary motivation for bringing the destruction upon Jerusalem at that time was a dispute among two factions of the Hasmonean Dynasty. From that point in time (63 BC), Judah was under Roman rule. The Hasmonean Dynasty of the Maccabees begins prophetically at the battle of Modein in 167 BC, then is placed under subjection to Rome in 63 BC. Soon after the beginning of that history the Maccabees initiated and entered into a league with Rome from 161 BC to 158 BC. They were in subjection to Rome from 63 BC until the cross and the ultimate destruction of Jerusalem in the year 70.

Historia yao ilifikia hatua ya mgeuko katika aya ya kumi na sita, wakati Roma, kwa mara ya kwanza, kupitia Pompey, iliiteka Yerusalemu. Nia yake kuu ya kuiletea Yerusalemu uharibifu wakati huo ilikuwa mzozo kati ya makundi mawili ya Nasaba ya Hasmonean. Kuanzia wakati huo (63 BC), Yuda ilikuwa chini ya utawala wa Kirumi. Nasaba ya Hasmonean ya Maccabees inaanza kinabii katika vita vya Modein mwaka 167 BC, kisha ikawekwa chini ya utawala wa Kirumi mwaka 63 BC. Muda mfupi baada ya mwanzo wa historia hiyo, Maccabees walianzisha na wakaingia katika muungano na Roma kuanzia 161 BC hadi 158 BC. Walikuwa chini ya utawala wa Kirumi kuanzia 63 BC hadi msalaba na uharibifu wa mwisho wa Yerusalemu mwaka 70.

The prophetic line of the Maccabees is the line of apostate Judaism, and it therefore typifies the line of apostate Protestantism. From the Battle of Panium until the Sunday law of verse sixteen the prophetic events of 200 BC, 167 BC, 164 BC, and the league from 161 BC to 158 BC will be repeated in the history of apostate Protestantism. These waymarks will occur in the history of the eighth president who is of the seven in advance of the Sunday law. 200 BC represents the external line of the Republican horn in relation to 167 BC, representing the internal line of the apostate Protestant horn.

Mkondo wa kinabii wa Wamakabayo ni mkondo wa Uyahudi wa ukengeufu, na hivyo unaakilisha mkondo wa Uprotestanti wa ukengeufu. Kuanzia Vita vya Panium hadi sheria ya Jumapili ya aya ya kumi na sita, matukio ya kinabii ya mwaka 200 KK, 167 KK, 164 KK, na muungano kuanzia 161 KK hadi 158 KK yatarudiwa katika historia ya Uprotestanti wa ukengeufu. Alama hizi za njia zitatokea katika historia ya rais wa nane aliye wa wale saba, kabla ya sheria ya Jumapili. Mwaka 200 KK unawakilisha mkondo wa nje wa pembe ya chama cha Republican; na 167 KK unawakilisha mkondo wa ndani wa pembe ya Uprotestanti wa ukengeufu.

These waymarks are essentially hidden within the historical line of the Hasmonean Dynasty, but none-the-less form part of the hidden history of verse forty of Daniel eleven. It is a line that is part of the “that portion of the prophecy of Daniel relating to the last days.”

Alama hizi za njia kimsingi zimefichwa ndani ya mfululizo wa kihistoria wa Nasaba ya Hasmonea, lakini hata hivyo ni sehemu ya historia iliyofichwa ya aya ya arobaini ya Danieli sura ya kumi na moja. Ni mfululizo ulio sehemu ya "sehemu ile ya unabii wa Danieli inayohusu siku za mwisho."

The fact that Judaism celebrates Hanukkah in memory of the revolt of the Maccabees, does not define the Maccabees as righteous. Due to rebellion the shekinah never returned to the temple that was rebuilt after the captivity of seventy years. The final prophetic message came through Malachi roughly two centuries before the Maccabees. The history of the Maccabees identifies that they allowed their political leaders to also function as high priest, the very sin that the Egyptian Ptolemy attempted, and that King Uzziah also attempted. Tradition identifies that God intervened to prevent Ptolemy from the sacrilegious action, and God’s word identifies directly that God did intervene when king Uzziah attempted to perform the work of the priest and king. The final fruit of their dynasty was the Pharisees. There is no reason to conclude the Maccabees were a symbol of righteousness, in spite of the historical reverence modern Judaism’s Jews may hold to.

Ukweli kwamba Uyahudi husherehekea Hanuka kwa kumbukumbu ya uasi wa Wamakabeo, hauwafanyi Wamakabeo kuwa wenye haki. Kwa sababu ya uasi, Shekina haikuwahi kurudi katika hekalu lililojengwa upya baada ya utekwa wa miaka sabini. Ujumbe wa mwisho wa kinabii ulipitia kwa Malaki takriban karne mbili kabla ya Wamakabeo. Historia ya Wamakabeo inaonyesha kwamba waliwaruhusu viongozi wao wa kisiasa pia wahudumu kama Kuhani Mkuu, dhambi ileile ambayo Ptolemy wa Misri alijaribu kufanya, na ambayo Mfalme Uzia pia alijaribu. Mapokeo yanaeleza kwamba Mungu aliingilia kati kumzuia Ptolemy asifanye kitendo hicho cha kukufuru, na Neno la Mungu linaonyesha moja kwa moja kwamba Mungu aliingilia kati wakati mfalme Uzia alipojaribu kufanya kazi ya kuhani na mfalme. Tunda la mwisho la nasaba yao lilikuwa Mafarisayo. Hakuna sababu ya kuhitimisha kwamba Wamakabeo walikuwa kielelezo cha haki, licha ya heshima ya kihistoria ambayo Wayahudi wa Uyahudi wa kisasa wanaweza kuwa nayo.

The Protestant reformation began in the time of Luther, and it was a progressive development. It was not a new tradition, for Jesus and His disciples were Protestants, it was an awakening to the darkness of the history where Luther and other reformers were awakened. The climax of that progressive reformation was the Millerite movement. God did not only need to awaken the early reformers to the sins of Babylon, but He intended to bring them into the full understanding of His law, and His work in the heavenly sanctuary. On April 19, 1844 the Protestants rejected the increasing light of the reformation and became apostate Protestantism.

Mageuzi ya Kiprotestanti yalianza wakati wa Luther, na yalikuwa mchakato wa hatua kwa hatua. Hayakuwa jadi mpya, kwa kuwa Yesu na wanafunzi Wake walikuwa Waprotestanti; yalikuwa mwamko kutoka katika giza la historia, ambapo Luther na wanamageuzi wengine waliamshwa. Kilele cha mageuzi hayo ya hatua kwa hatua kilikuwa harakati ya Wamilleri. Mungu hakuwa na haja tu ya kuwaamsha wanamageuzi wa awali kuhusu dhambi za Babeli, bali alikusudia kuwaleta katika uelewa kamili wa sheria Yake, na kazi Yake katika patakatifu pa mbinguni. Tarehe 19 Aprili 1844, Waprotestanti walikataa mwanga uliokuwa ukiongezeka wa mageuzi hayo na wakawa Uprotestanti waasi.

The faithful Millerites then were “given the mantle” and directed into the Most Holy Place to finish the work to become mature Protestant Christians. In 1863 those who had been given the mantle, through disobedience, set aside the mantle of Protestantism, and took the mantle of Laodicea. In the final period of the sealing of the one hundred and forty-four thousand, which began twenty-two years after September 11, 2001, in 2023, the Lion of the tribe of Judah is unsealing the truths that fill up the hidden history of verse forty of Daniel chapter eleven, which is the history from the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1989 unto the soon coming Sunday law. In doing this, He has unsealed the history of apostate Judaism as a symbol of apostate Protestantism.

Wamileraiti waaminifu wakati huo “walikabidhiwa joho” na kuelekezwa kuingia katika Patakatifu pa Patakatifu ili kukamilisha kazi ya kuwa Wakristo Waprotestanti waliokomaa. Mwaka 1863 wale waliokuwa wamepewa joho, kwa kutotii, waliweka kando joho la Uprotestanti, wakachukua joho la Laodikia. Katika kipindi cha mwisho cha kutiwa muhuri kwa wale elfu mia moja arobaini na nne, ambacho kilianza miaka ishirini na miwili baada ya Septemba 11, 2001, mwaka 2023, Simba wa kabila la Yuda anazifunua kweli zinazojaza pengo la historia iliyofichwa ya mstari wa arobaini wa Danieli sura ya kumi na moja, ambayo ni historia kutoka kusambaratika kwa Umoja wa Kisovyeti mwaka 1989 hadi sheria ya Jumapili inayokuja karibuni. Kwa kufanya hivyo, Ameifunua historia ya Uyahudi ulioasi kama ishara ya Uprotestanti ulioasi.

Both lines of God’s apostate people, whether those of literal Judah or spiritual Judah (both glorious lands), end at the conquering of Jerusalem, the former in 63 BC, and the latter at the soon coming Sunday law. Both lines represent warfare that is motivated by misguided religious convictions. Both lines represent a warfare against the religious philosophies of Greece, and both lines end up with the apostates being in subjection to Rome. I identify the three battles of verse forty representing the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1989, the Ukraine War, and Panium at the Sunday law for the purpose of identifying a distinction between those three battles and the three world wars.

Mistari yote miwili ya watu wa Mungu waliopotoka, iwe ya Yuda halisi au ya Yuda wa kiroho (nchi zote mbili za utukufu), inaishia katika kutekwa kwa Yerusalemu; ya kwanza mnamo 63 KK, na ya pili katika sheria ya Jumapili inayokuja karibuni. Mistari yote miwili inawakilisha vita vinavyochochewa na imani potovu za kidini. Mistari yote miwili inawakilisha vita dhidi ya falsafa za kidini za Kigiriki, na yote miwili huishia kwa waliopotoka kuwa chini ya utawala wa Roma. Ninatambua vita vitatu vya aya ya arobaini vinavyowakilisha kusambaratika kwa Umoja wa Kisovyeti mwaka 1989, Vita vya Ukraine, na Panium wakati wa sheria ya Jumapili, kwa kusudi la kutofautisha kati ya vita hivyo vitatu na vita vya dunia vitatu.

> “God’s word has given warning of the impending danger; let this be unheeded, and the Protestant world will learn what the purposes of Rome really are, only when it is too late to escape the snare. She is silently growing into power. Her doctrines are exerting their influence in legislative halls, in the churches, and in the hearts of men. She is piling up her lofty and massive structures in the secret recesses of which her former persecutions will be repeated. Stealthily and unsuspectedly she is strengthening her forces to further her own ends when the time shall come for her to strike. All that she desires is vantage ground, and this is already being given her. We shall soon see and shall feel what the purpose of the Roman element is. Whoever shall believe and obey the word of God will thereby incur reproach and persecution.” The Great Controversy, 581.

> "Neno la Mungu limetoa onyo la hatari inayokaribia; onyo hili likipuuzwa, ulimwengu wa Waprotestanti utajifunza makusudi halisi ya Roma ni yapi, tu wakati ambapo itakuwa imechelewa mno kukwepa mtego. Anazidi kujijengea mamlaka kimyakimya. Mafundisho yake yanatia ushawishi katika kumbi za kutunga sheria, katika makanisa, na katika mioyo ya watu. Anajenga kwa wingi majengo yake marefu na makubwa, katika maficho ya siri ambamo mateso yake ya zamani yatarudiwa. Kwa siri na bila kushukiwa anaimarisha majeshi yake ili kuendeleza malengo yake mwenyewe wakati utakapowadia wa kupiga shambulio. Anachotaka ni tu nafasi ya upendeleo, na hiyo tayari anapewa. Hivi karibuni tutaona na tutahisi kusudi la kipengele cha Kirumi ni nini. Yeyote atakayeamini na kutii neno la Mungu kwa njia hiyo atapata shutuma na mateso." The Great Controversy, 581.

From verse ten, which identifies the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1989, unto the Battle of Panium in verse fifteen, the papacy has been “strengthening her forces to further her own ends when the time shall come for her to strike.” These verses identify the prophetic circumstances that are the “snare” that has been prepared by the papacy, which will be impossible to “escape.” In the final engagement, represented by the Battle of Panium, the image of the beast will be formed in the United States. The formation of that image is the final test for God’s people of the last days.

Kuanzia aya ya kumi, inayotambua kusambaratika kwa Umoja wa Kisovieti mnamo 1989, hadi Vita vya Panium katika aya ya kumi na tano, upapa umekuwa “ukiimarisha majeshi yake ili kuendeleza malengo yake binafsi wakati utakapofika wa kushambulia.” Aya hizi zinatambua hali za kinabii zinazounda “mtego” uliotayarishwa na upapa, ambao haitawezekana “kuuepuka.” Katika mapambano ya mwisho, yanayowakilishwa na Vita vya Panium, sanamu ya mnyama itaundwa Marekani. Kuundwa kwa sanamu hiyo ndio jaribio la mwisho kwa watu wa Mungu wa siku za mwisho.

> “The Lord has shown me clearly that the image of the beast will be formed before probation closes; for it is to be the great test for the people of God, by which their eternal destiny will be decided. … In Revelation 13 this subject is plainly presented; [Revelation 13:11–17, quoted].

> Bwana amenionyesha waziwazi kwamba sanamu ya mnyama itaundwa kabla mlango wa rehema kufungwa; maana itakuwa jaribu kuu kwa watu wa Mungu, ambalo kwa njia yake hatima yao ya milele itaamuliwa. ... Katika Ufunuo 13 jambo hili limewasilishwa waziwazi; [Ufunuo 13:11-17, imenukuliwa].

> “This is the test that the people of God must have before they are sealed. All who proved their loyalty to God by observing His law, and refusing to accept a spurious sabbath, will rank under the banner of the Lord God Jehovah, and will receive the seal of the living God. Those who yield the truth of heavenly origin and accept the Sunday sabbath, will receive the mark of the beast.” Manuscript Releases, volume 15, 15.

> Hili ndilo jaribio ambalo watu wa Mungu lazima wapitie kabla ya kutiwa muhuri. Wote waliothibitisha uaminifu wao kwa Mungu kwa kuitii sheria yake, na kukataa kukubali sabato bandia, watasimama chini ya bendera ya Bwana Mungu Yehova, nao watapokea muhuri wa Mungu aliye hai. Wale wanaoacha ukweli wa asili ya mbinguni na kukubali sabato ya Jumapili, watapokea alama ya mnyama. Manuscript Releases, juzuu ya 15, 15.

The formation of the image of the beast is represented by the period when the league of Rome was entered into. The Protestant horn of the United States became the daughters of Rome in 1844, and the beginning of their history is repeated at the end of their history when they once again determine to imitate their mother.

Kuundwa kwa picha ya mnyama huwakilishwa na kipindi muungano wa Roma ulipoingiwa. Pembe ya Kiprotestanti ya Marekani ikageuka kuwa mabinti wa Roma mnamo mwaka 1844, na mwanzo wa historia yao unarudiwa mwishoni mwa historia yao wanapodhamiria tena kuiga mama yao.

> “I saw that the two-horned beast had a dragon’s mouth, and that his power was in his head, and that the decree would go out of his mouth. Then I saw the Mother of Harlots; that the mother was not the daughters, but separate and distinct from them. She has had her day, and it is past, and her daughters, the Protestant sects, were the next to come on the stage and act out the same mind that the mother had when she persecuted the saints. I saw that as the mother has been declining in power, the daughters had been growing, and soon they will exercise the power once exercised by the mother.

> Niliona kwamba mnyama mwenye pembe mbili alikuwa na kinywa cha joka, na kwamba nguvu zake zilikuwa katika kichwa chake, na kwamba amri ingetoka kinywani mwake. Kisha nikamwona Mama wa Makahaba; kwamba mama hakuwa binti zake, bali alikuwa tofauti na ametengwa nao. Alikuwa na wakati wake, nao umepita, na binti zake, yaani madhehebu ya Kiprotestanti, walikuwa wafuatao kuja jukwaani na kutekeleza nia ile ile ambayo mama alikuwa nayo alipowatesa watakatifu. Niliona kwamba kadiri mama alivyozidi kudhoofika kwa nguvu, binti zake walikuwa wakikua, na hivi karibuni watatumia ule uwezo ambao mama aliwahi kuutumia.

> “I saw the nominal church and nominal Adventists, like Judas, would betray us to the Catholics to obtain their influence to come against the truth. The saints then will be an obscure people, little known to the Catholics; but the churches and nominal Adventists who know of our faith and customs (for they hated us on account of the Sabbath, for they could not refute it) will betray the saints and report them to the Catholics as those who disregard the institutions of the people; that is, that they keep the Sabbath and disregard Sunday.

> Niliona kwamba kanisa la jina tu na Waadventista wa jina tu, kama Yuda, wangesaliti sisi kwa Wakatoliki ili kupata ushawishi wao wa kuja kupingana na kweli. Kisha watakatifu watakuwa watu wasiojulikana, wanaojulikana kidogo kwa Wakatoliki; lakini makanisa na Waadventista wa jina tu wanaojua imani na desturi zetu (maana walituchukia kwa sababu ya Sabato, kwa kuwa hawakuweza kuipinga) watawasaliti watakatifu na kuwaripoti kwa Wakatoliki kama wale wanaopuuzia maagizo ya watu; yaani, kwamba wanashika Sabato na kupuuza Jumapili.

> “Then the Catholics bid the Protestants to go forward, and issue a decree that all who will not observe the first day of the week, instead of the seventh day, shall be slain. And the Catholics, whose numbers are large, will stand by the Protestants. The Catholics will give their power to the image of the beast. And the Protestants will work as their mother worked before them to destroy the saints. But before their decree bring or bear fruit, the saints will be delivered by the Voice of God.” Spalding and Magan, 1, 2.

> Ndipo Wakatoliki watawataka Waprotestanti wasonge mbele, na watoe amri kwamba wote watakaokataa kuishika siku ya kwanza ya juma badala ya siku ya saba wauawe. Na Wakatoliki, ambao idadi yao ni kubwa, watasimama pamoja na Waprotestanti. Wakatoliki wataipa picha ya mnyama mamlaka yao. Na Waprotestanti watafanya kama mama yao alivyofanya kabla yao ili kuwaangamiza watakatifu. Lakini kabla amri yao haijazaa matunda, watakatifu wataokolewa kwa Sauti ya Mungu. Spalding na Magan, 1, 2.

In the passage there are two groups of “nominal,” which means “in name only,” that betray God’s faithful ones to the Catholics. Ellen White’s understanding of nominal churches and nominal Adventists is different than what they actually represent in the last days, for her understanding of a “nominal Adventist,” would have represented a Christian who professed to believe in the return of Christ. But the prophets speak more for the last days, than the days in which they lived, and a “nominal Adventist,” in the last days represents the Laodicean Seventh-day Adventist church, and the nominal churches are the descendants of those who became the daughters of Rome in 1844.

Katika kifungu hiki kuna makundi mawili ya “wenye jina tu,” ambayo humaanisha “kwa jina tu,” yanayowasaliti waaminifu wa Mungu na kuwakabidhi mikononi mwa Wakatoliki. Uelewa wa Ellen White kuhusu makanisa ya jina tu na Waadventista wa jina tu ni tofauti na kile wanachowakilisha katika siku za mwisho, kwa kuwa uelewa wake wa “Mwadventista wa jina tu” ungemwakilisha Mkristo anayekiri kuamini kurudi kwa Kristo. Lakini manabii husema zaidi kuhusu siku za mwisho kuliko siku walizoishi, na “Mwadventista wa jina tu” katika siku za mwisho anawakilisha Kanisa la Waadventista Wasabato la Laodikia, na makanisa ya jina tu ni wazao wa wale waliogeuka kuwa binti za Roma mnamo mwaka 1844.

Seventh-day Adventists will hate the “obscure people,” who are God’s true representatives for they “cannot refute the Sabbath truth,” which represents the Sabbath of the land resting. The Seventh-day Adventist church professes to uphold the seventh-day as the day of worship, but in the last days the Sabbath they can not refute is the “seven times,” of Leviticus twenty-six, which was the first foundation truth they rejected in 1863.

Waadventista wa Sabato watawachukia ‘watu wasiojulikana sana,’ ambao ni wawakilishi wa kweli wa Mungu, kwa kuwa ‘hawawezi kuupinga ukweli wa Sabato,’ unaowakilisha Sabato ya nchi, yaani kupumzika kwa nchi. Kanisa la Waadventista wa Sabato linadai kushikilia siku ya saba kuwa siku ya ibada, lakini katika siku za mwisho Sabato ambayo hawawezi kuipinga ni ‘mara saba’ ya Walawi ishirini na sita, ambayo ilikuwa kweli ya msingi ya kwanza waliyoikataa mwaka 1863.

The passage that we are now addressing is identifying the prophetic dynamics associated with the history that begins at the soon coming Sunday law, but the final testing history that follows the Sunday law is first accomplished within the United States. At the Sunday law the United States will force the entire world to erect an image to the beast, but before they accomplish that work, they will have erected an image to the beast in the United States.

Kifungu tunachokishughulikia sasa kinatambulisha mienendo ya kinabii inayohusishwa na historia itakayoanza wakati wa sheria ya Jumapili inayokuja karibuni, lakini historia ya mwisho ya majaribu inayofuata sheria ya Jumapili kwanza hutekelezwa ndani ya Marekani. Wakati wa sheria ya Jumapili, Marekani italazimisha ulimwengu wote kusimamisha sanamu ya mnyama, lakini kabla haijakamilisha kazi hiyo, itakuwa tayari imesimamisha sanamu ya mnyama nchini Marekani.

> “As America, the land of religious liberty, shall unite with the Papacy in forcing the conscience and compelling men to honor the false sabbath, the people of every country on the globe will be led to follow her example.” Testimonies, volume 6, 18.

> “Wakati Marekani, nchi ya uhuru wa kidini, itakapoungana na Upapa katika kulazimisha dhamiri na kuwalazimisha watu kuiheshimu sabato ya uongo, watu wa kila nchi ulimwenguni wataongozwa kufuata mfano wake.” Ushuhuda, juzuu ya 6, 18.

> “Foreign nations will follow the example of the United States. Though she leads out, yet the same crisis will come upon our people in all parts of the world.” Testimonies, volume 6, 395.

> "Mataifa ya kigeni yatafuata mfano wa Marekani. Ijapokuwa yeye ndiye anayeongoza, mgogoro uleule utawapata watu wetu katika sehemu zote za dunia." Ushuhuda, juzuu ya 6, 395.

The great test for the people of God, occurs before the Sunday law, for at the Sunday law probation closes for Seventh-day Adventists. The test is represented as the formation of the image of the beast, and the image of the beast is the combination of Church and State, with the Church in control of the relationship. Just as the Protestants became a daughter of Rome in 1844, and a daughter is the image of her mother, the apostate Protestants will accomplish a parallel work in the last days, for Jesus always illustrates the end of a thing with the beginning of a thing.

Jaribu kuu kwa watu wa Mungu hutokea kabla ya sheria ya Jumapili, kwa maana katika sheria ya Jumapili mlango wa rehema unafungwa kwa Waadventista Wasabato. Jaribu hilo linaonyeshwa kama kuundwa kwa picha ya mnyama, na picha ya mnyama ni muungano wa Kanisa na Serikali, huku Kanisa likidhibiti uhusiano huo. Kama vile Waprotestanti walivyokuwa binti wa Roma mwaka 1844, na binti ni picha ya mama yake, Waprotestanti waliopotoka watafanya kazi iliyo sambamba katika siku za mwisho, kwa kuwa Yesu daima huonyesha mwisho wa jambo kwa mwanzo wake.

The history represented by the “league” of verse twenty-three of Daniel chapter eleven, represented a professed apostate people of the glorious land reaching out to form a union with Rome. 161 BC to 158 BC represents the formation of the image of the beast that culminates at the Sunday law.

Historia inayowakilishwa na "agano" la mstari wa ishirini na tatu wa sura ya kumi na moja ya Danieli, iliwakilisha watu wanaodai kuwa wa imani lakini waliopotoka wa nchi tukufu waliokuwa wakijitahidi kuunda muungano na Roma. Miaka ya 161 KK hadi 158 KK inawakilisha uundaji wa sanamu ya mnyama unaokamilika katika sheria ya Jumapili.

We will continue this study in the next article.

Tutaendelea na utafiti huu katika makala ijayo.

> “But what is the ‘image to the beast’? and how is it to be formed? The image is made by the two-horned beast, and is an image to the beast. It is also called an image of the beast. Then to learn what the image is like and how it is to be formed we must study the characteristics of the beast itself—the papacy.

> Lakini “sanamu kwa mnyama” ni nini? Na itaundwaje? Sanamu hiyo hufanywa na mnyama mwenye pembe mbili, nayo ni sanamu kwa yule mnyama. Pia huitwa sanamu ya mnyama. Basi, ili kujua sanamu hiyo ilivyo na jinsi itakavyoundwa, ni lazima tuchunguze sifa za mnyama huyo mwenyewe—upapa.

> “When the early church became corrupted by departing from the simplicity of the gospel and accepting heathen rites and customs, she lost the Spirit and power of God; and in order to control the consciences of the people, she sought the support of the secular power. The result was the papacy, a church that controlled the power of the state and employed it to further her own ends, especially for the punishment of ‘heresy.’ In order for the United States to form an image of the beast, the religious power must so control the civil government that the authority of the state will also be employed by the church to accomplish her own ends.” The Great Controversy, 443.

> "Kanisa la mapema lilipoharibika kwa kuiacha unyofu wa Injili na kukubali ibada na desturi za kipagani, lilipoteza Roho na nguvu za Mungu; na ili kudhibiti dhamiri za watu, lilitafuta uungwaji mkono wa mamlaka za kiraia. Matokeo yake yakawa upapa, kanisa lililodhibiti nguvu za dola na kuzitumia kuendeleza malengo yake mwenyewe, hasa kwa kuadhibu 'uzushi.' Ili Marekani iunde mfano wa yule mnyama, mamlaka ya kidini lazima yadhibiti serikali ya kiraia kiasi kwamba nguvu za dola pia zitatumiwa na kanisa kutimiza malengo yake mwenyewe." Pambano Kuu, 443.

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