The Book of Daniel – Number One Hundred Twelve

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Unveiling the Prophetic Symbolism of Ishmael: From Archer to Sealer of the 144,000

 

Key Takeaways

The biblical narrative of Ishmael, the son of Abraham, unfolds into a rich tapestry of prophetic symbolism, echoing through history to reveal profound truths about the unfolding of divine judgment and the sealing of God’s chosen ones. Genesis 21:20 describes Ishmael as growing up in the wilderness and becoming skilled in archery, a symbol that intertwines with the prophecies of Jeremiah and Revelation. Through Ishmael’s story, intertwined with the prophecies of Revelation, particularly Revelation 18, a complex narrative emerges, depicting the rise and fall of nations, the proclamation of divine vengeance, and the sealing of God’s faithful. This article delves into the layers of prophetic significance surrounding Ishmael’s journey, connecting his archery skills to themes of warfare, divine judgment, and the sealing of the 144,000.

• Ishmael’s Archery as a Symbol of Warfare:
  • Ishmael’s proficiency in archery, as mentioned in Genesis 21:20, serves as a symbol of warfare and of Executive Judgment against Rome.
  • The imagery of archers is invoked in Jeremiah 50:28-29, calling for divine vengeance upon Babylon, echoing Ishmael’s role in executing judgment.
• The Symbolism of Islam and Jealousy:
  • Ishmael’s exclusion from the inheritance and subsequent expulsion, as recounted in Genesis, lays the groundwork for the prophetic motivation of Islam.
  • Jealousy over inheritance rights becomes a recurring theme in Islamic history, influencing its prophetic trajectory towards warfare.
• Prophetic Periods and Sealing of the 144,000:
  • The sealing of the 144,000 is intricately linked to specific prophetic periods, such as the one from August 11, 1840, to October 22, 1844, marking the pouring out of the latter rain.
  • Habakkuk chapter two and Revelation’s prophecies converge to illustrate the sealing period, emphasizing the importance of understanding historical parallels and divine timing.
• Interpretation of Prophetic Time Periods:
  • The prophetic periods outlined in Revelation, such as the one hundred and fifty years and three hundred and ninety-one years, serve as markers for significant events in history, including the rise and fall of empires.
  • The interconnectedness of these time periods underscores the meticulous design of prophecy and its fulfillment in historical events.
• Alpha and Omega Signatures in Prophetic History:
  • Prophetic lines, from the first to the second Woes, bear the signature of Alpha and Omega, symbolizing the completeness and continuity of divine design.
  • The beginning and ending of prophetic periods, marked by significant figures like Mohammed I and Mohammed II, reflect the divine orchestration of history.
• Relevance to Contemporary Understanding:
  • Understanding the prophetic symbolism surrounding Ishmael’s journey sheds light on contemporary events and their alignment with biblical prophecy.
  • The call to discern the signs of the times and heed the message of divine judgment and sealing resonates with modern-day believers, urging them to prepare for the culmination of prophetic history.

This exploration of Ishmael’s archery and its prophetic implications unveils a tapestry of divine design, weaving together themes of warfare, judgment, and sealing, resonating across millennia and inviting contemporary believers to discern the signs of the times:

 

And God was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer. Genesis 21:20.

 

Ishmael became an archer, which is a symbol of warfare, and a symbol of the executive judgment which is brought against Rome.

The voice of them that flee and escape out of the land of Babylon, to declare in Zion the vengeance of the Lord our God, the vengeance of his temple. Call together the archers against Babylon: all ye that bend the bow, camp against it round about; let none thereof escape: recompense her according to her work; according to all that she hath done, do unto her: for she hath been proud against the Lord, against the Holy One of Israel. Jeremiah 50:28, 29.

 

The archers recompense Babylon according to her work, and that recompense begins at the soon-coming Sunday law, with the second voice of Revelation chapter eighteen, when the progressive executive judgment of Babylon begins.

And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities. Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double. How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow. Revelation 18:4–7.

 

Ishmael and his mother Hagar had been restrained from inheriting the right of the first born, and were cast out. Thus, jealousy became the prophetic motivation of Islam, and warfare their prophetic occupation. The first mention includes the restraint imposed upon Ishmael and his mother by Sarah, and their “restraint” became a primary prophetic characteristic of Islam throughout God’s word, and history. Ishmael’s descendants were to be wild men, whose hand was against every man, and their wild attribute is represented by the wild Arabian ass, of the horse family. Thus, the Islamic warfare of the first and second Woes, is represented as warriors riding upon angry horses.

Islam is the message of the latter rain, and it is only fitting that the three Woes represent three specific prophetic lines, for the methodology of the latter rain is “line upon line.”  When the prophetic characteristics of the first two lines are brought together, they establish the line of the third Woe. All three prophetic lines illustrate the period of the sealing of the one hundred and forty-four thousand. Those three lines represent the period of the pouring out of the latter rain, for the latter rain began to sprinkle when the third Woe arrived on September 11, 2001.

“The latter rain is to fall upon the people of God. A mighty angel is to come down from heaven, and the whole earth is to be lighted with his glory.” Review and Herald, April 21, 1891.

 

The period of the sealing was also represented by the period that began on August 11, 1840 and ended with the arrival of the third angel on October 22, 1844. That period of time was also represented in Habakkuk chapter two. The Millerite history fulfilled Habakkuk chapter two, and in so doing it began when the angel descended on August 11, 1840, and it ended when the third angel arrived on October 22, 1840.

Habakkuk chapter two identifies that at the end of the vision, the vision would “speak.” In verse three of Revelation chapter ten, the angel cried (spoke) with a loud voice, and on October 22, 1844 the same angel swore (spoke) that “time should be no longer.” Habakkuk’s watchman in verse one of chapter two, is located at August 11, 1840, for it is then that the watchmen lift up their voices.

In the rebellion of 1888, which Sister White identifies as representing the angel of Revelation eighteen that was to lighten the earth with His glory, the watchmen (Jones and Waggoner) lifted up their “voices” as a trumpet, to show God’s people their transgressions, for their message was the message to Laodicea. On September 11, 2001, which was typified by the history of 1888, the Lord led His last day people back to Jeremiah’s old paths, where the watchmen were not hearkened to. The descent of the angel marks the prophetic arrival of the watchmen.

The “voice” that arrived on August 11, 1840, was delivered through the watchmen, and Jeremiah was told that if he would return to his faith and trust in God after his disappointment that he would become God’s mouth. When the vision that had tarried finally arrived on October 22, 1844, it “spoke.” The period of Habakkuk chapter two, which was fulfilled in Millerite history, illustrates the period of the sealing of the one hundred and forty-four thousand.

It is essential to recognize that August 11, 1840 through to October 22, 1844 illustrates the sealing of the one hundred and forty-four thousand, which is the period where the latter rain is poured out. It is essential for the latter rain message is to be identified by the methodology of “line upon line.” The special period which is the sealing of the one hundred and forty-four thousand is repeatedly represented in the prophetic lines, and this is so in Habakkuk two, which Sister White directly identifies as being fulfilled in Millerite history. She also repeatedly teaches that Millerite history is repeated in the history of the one hundred and forty-four thousand.

“Interwoven with prophecies which they had regarded as applying to the time of the second advent was instruction specially adapted to their state of uncertainty and suspense, and encouraging them to wait patiently in the faith that what was now dark to their understanding would in due time be made plain.

“Among these prophecies was that of Habakkuk 2:1–4: ‘I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what He will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved. And the Lord answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry. Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.’

“As early as 1842 the direction given in this prophecy to ‘write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it,’ had suggested to Charles Fitch the preparation of a prophetic chart to illustrate the visions of Daniel and the Revelation. The publication of this chart was regarded as a fulfillment of the command given by Habakkuk. No one, however, then noticed that an apparent delay in the accomplishment of the vision—a tarrying time—is presented in the same prophecy. After the disappointment, this scripture appeared very significant: ‘The vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry. . . . The just shall live by his faith.’

“A portion of Ezekiel’s prophecy also was a source of strength and comfort to believers: ‘The word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Son of man, what is that proverb that ye have in the land of Israel, saying, The days are prolonged, and every vision faileth? Tell them therefore, Thus saith the Lord God. . . . The days are at hand, and the effect of every vision. . . . I will speak, and the word that I shall speak shall come to pass; it shall be no more prolonged.’ ‘They of the house of Israel say, The vision that he seeth is for many days to come, and he prophesieth of the times that are far off. Therefore say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; There shall none of My words be prolonged any more, but the word which I have spoken shall be done.’ Ezekiel 12:21–25, 27, 28.” The Great Controversy, 391–393.

 

The Millerites not only saw themselves fulfilling the parable of the ten virgins, and Habakkuk chapter two, but they were also led to see that the history where they were fulfilling these prophecies, was also Ezekiel’s identification of that very same history, where “the effect of every vision,” was to be fulfilled. The line of history that represents the sealing of the one hundred and forty-four thousand is where the effect of every vision is fulfilled!

The lines which represent the period of the latter rain and the sealing of the one hundred and forty-four thousand are brought together to establish that prophetic history invariably possess the signature of Alpha and Omega.

Millerite history begins with the voice of the angel of Revelation ten, and ends with the same voice. September 11, 2001 begins with the first voice of Revelation chapter eighteen, and ends with the second voice of Revelation chapter eighteen. Habakkuk chapter two, begins with the voice of the watchmen, and ends with the voice of Jeremiah’s watchman. The first Woe begins with Mohammed, and ends with Mohammed II. The second Woe begins with the release of the four angels of Islam and ends with the restraint of Islam.

The methodology that is the latter rain is Isaiah’s “line upon line” methodology, and the lines that are brought together to identify and establish the message of the latter rain invariably contain the signature of Alpha and Omega. The first Woe of Revelation chapter nine, begins with Mohammed and ends with Mohammed II. The period is divided into two types of warfare, the first being disorganized attacks upon Rome that began in earnest with Abubakar, and then a period of one hundred and fifty years where the first organized warfare of Islam was accomplished.

The one hundred and fifty years is represented by the time prophecy of “five months”. The second Woe also possesses a time prophecy which is three hundred and ninety-one years and fifteen days. Therefore, since the prophetic structure of the first and second Woes identify the ending with the beginning, it contains a division between the sealing, and a specific period of time, The sealing process is represented at the beginning of the history of the first Woe, and it is represented at the ending of the second Woe.

What follows the sealing of verse four, in the first Woe, is the “five months” (one hundred and fifty years). The five months is identified twice, once in verse five and again in verse ten. What precedes the sealing process of August 11, 1840 to October 22, 1844 in the second Woe is the prophecy of the “hour, day, month, and year” (three hundred and ninety-one years and fifteen days), of verse fifteen. Together in one continuous line the fifth and sixth Trumpets begin and end with an illustration of the sealing process.

As two lines, applied “line upon line” they identify a beginning and ending marked by Mohammed the first and Mohammed the second. “Line upon line,” they identify two distinct periods in each line, that is produced by each line possessing a time prophecy. In the history of the first Woe, Islam was to “hurt” Rome, and in the second Woe, it was to “kill” Rome. The first Woe was a warfare of spears, swords and arrows, and the second Woe introduced gunpowder as the weaponry.

“VERSE 10. And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months. 11. And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.

“Thus far, Keith has furnished us with illustrations of the sounding of the first five trumpets. But we must now take leave of him, and proceed to the application of the new feature of the prophecy here introduced; namely, the prophetic periods.

“Their Power Was to Hurt Men Five Months.—1. The question arises, What men were they to hurt five months?—Undoubtedly the same they were afterward to slay (see verse 15); ‘The third part of men,’ or third of the Roman empire,—the Greek division of it.

“2. When were they to begin their work of torment? The 11th verse answers the question.

“(1) ‘They had a king over them.’ From the death of Mohammed until near the close of the thirteenth century, the Mohammedans were divided into various factions under several leaders, with no general civil government extending over them all. Near the close of the thirteenth century, Othman founded a government which has since been known as the Ottoman government, or empire, which grew until it extended over all the principal Mohammedan tribes, consolidating them into one grand monarchy.

“(2) The character of the king. ‘Which is the angel of the bottomless pit.’ An angel signifies a messenger, a minister, either good or bad, and not always a spiritual being. ‘The angel of the bottomless pit,’ or chief minister of the religion which came from thence when it was opened. That religion is Mohammedanism, and the sultan is its chief minister. ‘The Sultan, or grand Seignior, as he is indifferently called, is also Supreme Caliph, or high priest, uniting in his person the highest spiritual dignity with the supreme secular authority.’—World As It Is, p.361.

“(3) His name. In Hebrew, ‘Abaddon,’ the destroyer; in Greek, ‘Apollyon,’ one that exterminates, or destroys. Having two different names in two languages, it is evident that the character, rather than the name of the power, is intended to be represented. If so, as expressed in both languages, he is a destroyer. Such has always been the character of the Ottoman government.

“But when did Othman make his first assault on the Greek empire?—According to Gibbon, Decline and Fall, etc., ‘Othman first entered the territory of Nicomedia on the 27th day of July, 1299.’

“The calculations of some writers have gone upon the supposition that the period should begin with the foundation of the Ottoman empire; but this is evidently an error; for they were not only to have a king over them, but were to torment men five months. But the period of torment could not begin before the first attack of the tormentors, which was, as above stated, July 27, 1299.

“The calculation which follows, founded on this starting-point, was made and published in a work entitled, Christ’s Second Coming, etc., by J. Litch, in 1838.

“‘And their power was to hurt men five months.’ Thus far their commission extended, to torment by constant depredations, but not politically to kill them. ‘Five months,’ thirty days to a month, give us one hundred and fifty days; and these days, being symbolic, signify one hundred and fifty years. Commencing July 27, 1299, the one hundred and fifty years reach to 1449. During that whole period the Turks were engaged in an almost perpetual warfare with the Greek empire, but yet without conquering it. They seized upon and held several of the Greek provinces, but still Greek independence was maintained in Constantinople. But in 1449, the termination of the one hundred and fifty years, a change came, the history of which will be found under the succeeding trumpet.” Uriah Smith, Daniel and Revelation, 505–507.

 

Uriah Smith is citing Josiah Litch’s calculation of the one hundred and fifty years, which when concluded, represents a starting point for three hundred and ninety-one year and fifteen-day prophecy in the next Trumpet. Commenting on Litch’s prediction concerning these two connected time prophecies Sister White recorded:

“In the year 1840 another remarkable fulfillment of prophecy excited widespread interest. two years before, Josiah Litch, one of the leading ministers preaching the second advent, published an exposition of Revelation 9, predicting the fall of the Ottoman Empire. According to his calculations, this power was to be overthrown . . . on the 11th of August, 1840, when the Ottoman power in Constantinople may be expected to be broken. And this, I believe, will be found to be the case.’

“At the very time specified, Turkey, through her ambassadors, accepted the protection of the allied powers of Europe, and thus placed herself under the control of Christian nations. The event exactly fulfilled the prediction. When it became known, multitudes were convinced of the correctness of the principles of prophetic interpretation adopted by Miller and his associates, and a wonderful impetus was given to the advent movement. Men of learning and position united with Miller, both in preaching and in publishing his views, and from 1840 to 1844 the work rapidly extended.” The Great Controversy, 334, 335.

 

The first and second Woes are connected by two interconnected time prophecies. The first Woe, begins with an illustration of the sealing and the second Woe, ends with the history of August 11, 1840 until the sounding of the seventh trumpet on October 22, 1844, which is also an illustration of the sealing. The beginning and ending bear the signature of Alpha and Omega, because, as with the history in which Christ confirmed the covenant for a week, the period is divided into two parts. The first period begins with the first Mohammed, and ends with the second Mohammed. The second period begins with “a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God,” and it ends with “voice” of Christ, swearing “by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein, that there should be time no longer.”

We will continue this study in the next article.

“Any question that Satan can arouse in the mind to create doubt in regard to the grand history of the past travels of the people of God will please his satanic majesty and is an offense to God. The tidings of the Lord’s soon coming in power and great glory to our world is truth, and in 1840 many voices were raised in its proclamation.” Manuscript Releases, volume 9, 134.