THE BIBLE & ROME: THE HERODS
(Message by Tanny Keng)
1. The Bible And Rome
a) In the four centuries between the Bible’s two Testaments, Persia gave way to Greece, and Greece to Rome. World empires rise and fall, but God’s unfolding plan approached its climax: God was about to set up "a kingdom which cannot be shaken" (Hebrews 12:28) — a worldwide, powerful, spiritual empire.
b) Rome, the kingdom represented by the legs and feet of iron and clay in the image of Daniel 2, came to power in the century before Christ. Antiochus Epiphanes failed to maintain Greece's power. Rome by its iron rule brought peace across the world, and made "the fields white unto harvest" for the coming of the Son of God, the preaching of the gospel, and the kingdom of heaven. On the other hand, Rome was a beast, and would bring tribulation to the promised kingdom of heaven just as former empires had brought it to the Jews. The book of Revelation depicts Rome as the archetypal enemy of God's people.
2. The Herods
a) Herod the Great, the son of Antipater, was made king of the Jews by the Romans, and reigned from 37 BC to just after the birth of Jesus. This Herod rebuilt Zerubbabel's temple —bigger and more beautiful (Matthew 24:1,2, John 2:20). This Herod tried to eliminate Christ by infanticide (Matthew 21-23, Luke 1:5). There were other Herods following him. For example, Herod Antipas who killed John the Baptist (Matthew 14), Herod Agrippa I who was eaten by worms (Acts 12), and his son Herod Agrippa II before whom Paul made his defense (Acts 25-26).
The End ...
1. The Bible And Rome a) In the four centuries between the Bible’s two Testaments, Persia gave way to Greece, and Greece to Rome. World empires rise and fall, but God’s unfolding plan approached its climax: God was about to set up "a kingdom which cannot be shaken" (Hebrews 12:28) — a worldwide, powerful, spiritual empire.
b) Rome, the kingdom represented by the legs and feet of iron and clay in the image of Daniel 2, came to power in the century before Christ. Antiochus Epiphanes failed to maintain Greece's power. Rome by its iron rule brought peace across the world, and made "the fields white unto harvest" for the coming of the Son of God, the preaching of the gospel, and the kingdom of heaven. On the other hand, Rome was a beast, and would bring tribulation to the promised kingdom of heaven just as former empires had brought it to the Jews. The book of Revelation depicts Rome as the archetypal enemy of God's people.
2. The Herods
a) Herod the Great, the son of Antipater, was made king of the Jews by the Romans, and reigned from 37 BC to just after the birth of Jesus. This Herod rebuilt Zerubbabel's temple —bigger and more beautiful (Matthew 24:1,2, John 2:20). This Herod tried to eliminate Christ by infanticide (Matthew 21-23, Luke 1:5). There were other Herods following him. For example, Herod Antipas who killed John the Baptist (Matthew 14), Herod Agrippa I who was eaten by worms (Acts 12), and his son Herod Agrippa II before whom Paul made his defense (Acts 25-26).
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