The Fourth Empire of Daniel 7 Begins and Ends with Mars (Part Two)
In the End Times, Expect War
You are not going to hear this message from most pulpits today, but if we are remotely serious about what the Bible tells us about the End Times, we must brace for war. Jesus leaves no room for any other conclusion. While teaching His disciples upon the Mount of Olives, Jesus prophesies that global war marks the beginning of the final birth pains.
“This must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom… All these are but the beginning of the birth pains.”
If you think the Olivet Discourse is the only place the Bible says global war is the kick-off for the final birth pains of this age, consider the first two seals recorded in Revelation chapter 6. The breaking of the first seals are the starting point of everything that follows thereafter. What are the first two seals that begin the End Time drama? The first seal reveals the world will be subdued. The second seal is the war that follows.
Seal One: “I looked, and behold, a white horse! And its rider had a bow, and a crown was given to him, and he came out conquering, and to conquer.”
Seal Two: “Out came another horse, bright red. Its rider was permitted to take peace from the earth”
Is it really surprising that war would be a primary characteristic of the End Times when Apollyon, The Destroyer is involved? After all, war is his thing. When the Dragon comes to earth as the Beast, he brings war with him. Apollyon means “destroyer”, and what better mechanism for destruction than war?
In part one of this blog series, I attempted to identify Mars as the father of the final empire of this age. In Daniel chapter seven, the prophet has vision of 4 empires that will rule the world until Jesus returns. Those four empires are Nebuchadnezzar’s Babylon, Cyrus’ Persia, Alexander’s Greece, and Mars’ Rome. But who is Mars? It’s a tall order but I want to argue that behind the curtain of obscure mythology hides the profile of Apollyon. In other words, my aim is to prove that Apollyon is Mars cloaked in ancient myth.
WHO IS THIS MASKED MYTH?
According to ancient mythology, Mars is the father of Rome. Let’s drill down on this character a bit. Mars is the Roman spin on the Greek god Ares. The Romans really liked Ares but didn’t like the bad rap the Greeks gave him. Like many other things, the Romans just took what they liked from the Greek Pantheon and changed what they didn’t like. So they spruced up the god of war to make him a bit more respectable. After all we wouldn’t want the protector of the city to be a humiliating failure right? The Romans weren’t above putting lipstick on a pig.
If we shelve the Roman spin for a minute and just concentrate on the OG god of war, Ares, we will find a cleaner profile of the deity.
Ares is where the Romans got Mars. So just who is Ares? Beginning with the name of Ares you can get a pretty good idea of where I am going with this. His name means the one that brings ruin through a curse. Sound like anyone we know??? Like…. idk… Apollyon? Ares means “Bringer of Ruin.” Apollyon means “The Destroyer.” Too much too soon? Okay let’s consider some other aspects of the Ares myth.
If that profile doesn’t ring a bell… let’s revisit the profile of Apollyon corresponding to the list above:
“The great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan” - Rv 12:9
“‘An enemy has done this.” - Mt 13:28
“He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years” - Rv 20:2
“The beast that I saw was like a leopard… One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound” - Rv 13:2
See number one
“I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven” - Luke 10:18
“Behold, a fourth beast, terrifying and dreadful and exceedingly strong. It had great iron teeth…” - Daniel 7:7
The profile of Ares is the profile of Apollyon. Their names essentially mean the same thing. Their stories are eerily similar. One is a myth. The other is the reality behind the myth. To get the truest picture of this entity we must solely rely on the Bible.
What were we talking about again? Oh yeah… that’s right… we are talking about the king of Rome. No man claims this title. It belongs to an immortal known by the Romans as Mars, known by the Greeks as Ares, and known in the Bible as Apollyon.
Mars is the Roman version of Ares. While the Greeks despised the god of war, the Romans modified his image and made him the protector of the city. It was Mars that fathered Romulus, the man after which Rome gets its name. Mars is the symbolic father of Rome. This symbolic myth points toward a spiritual entity that largely shares the same profile. The Bible calls him Apollyon. The Greeks called him Ares, and the Romans called him Mars. The ancient Roman belief that Mars fathered the Roman Empire is essentially implying the Devil is the spiritual entity buried at the root of the Roman Empire. Rome begins with Mars.
The Devil goes by many names, and while somewhat obscured by the darkened lens of ancient mythology, the profile is yet clear. The fallen deceiver, associated with the serpent and dragon, the enemy of God and man, is destined to enter the fray of battle against mortals and suffer a severe wound only to be ultimately thrown into the Lake of Fire. This is the entity that Daniel saw in Babylon 2500 years ago. The same entity John saw on Patmos.
Apollyon, the god of war, come to earth.
Thus we have established the Four Beasts of Daniel Chapter Seven:
Nebuchadnezzar’s Babylonian Empire
Cyrus’ Persian Empire
Alexander’s Greco Empire
Apollyon’s Roman Empire