Old Document Review 'The prophecy of Saint Severus'

This ancient document forms part of the Mirabilis liber, a collection of prophecies that was published in 1522, however this fourth section of the prophecies is believed to have originally been a 4th century composition or a 15th century composition with some confusion over who the author might be.

This set of prophecies is unlike anything I have read, and is somewhat disjointed in ways.  In places it mentions things such as 'the Church that shall be called diabolical' which could easily relate to modern time Catholic priest scandals, and there is also a reference to the 'time of the giants' which would suggest that the author would have considered other ancient texts about the giants as being the truth such as The Book of Giants and The Book of the Bee.

There is a long and specific prophecy in relation to the city of Ravenna (Italy), the author calls it the 'city of philosophers, built by the children of Noah', yet there will be a great struggle over this place, and indeed in history there has been struggles over Ravenna; with it being at points belonging to the Roman Catholic Empire and at other points it belonged to Italy and has switched between them many times.

However, despite the name, there is the possibility that this prophecy is actually talking about New York, it is called 'city of the peoples and of riches' yet its enemy shall rise and 'shall take into the air' and then says that 'The towers that are your joy shall fall into the dust'.  Could this very clear prophecy actually be predicting the 9/11 attacks?

Either way this moment in time is seen as a turning point leading to battles and wars that have not been seen since the beginning of the world, yet that faith and unity will be reborn in Ravenna (or New York) and the enemies of the Christians will be destroyed until the times of the Antichrist.

To read more about the other prophecies in the Mirabilis liber CLICK HERE

Old Document Review 'Book of the Bee'

The Book of the Bee is a collection of theological and historical texts compiled by Solomon of Akhlat in the thirteenth century(est1222). The book consists of 55 chapters discussing various topics including the creation, heaven and earth, the angels, darkness, paradise, Old Testament patriarchs, New Testament events, lists of kings and patriarchs, and the final day of resurrection.

I have to say upon the reading of this book I am very intrigued as its like it gives partial history that complies with the Bible yet it gives additional information on many topics. For example Chapter XXXII is a history on how all the prophets died, listing some as dying in peace and others who were killed or assassinated. This is strange to me because when I researched the biblical perspective of the 12 minor prophets, very little is actually known about many of them, so, this collection of histories of their demise is very interesting to me and I wonder where the original content comes from. It may be that the author collected various beliefs or maybe he simply published a copy of some earlier document concerning the prophets.

In many places this book attempts or succeeds to fill in the missing facts from the Bible, including for example the details of the wise men who came to visit Jesus after his birth, this document names 12 kings who made the journey to visit him (please note the bible does not provide a quantity of visitors only that there were three gifts).

I have had my own theory about the authorship of Revelations for a while now knowing that there was still some debate on the matter. In Chapter XLVIII it is said when the disciple was on Patmos that he himself had a disciple called John who later became the bishop of Ephesus, and that he was the author of the Book of Revelations and that everything he had written down he had heard from John the disciple.

Furthermore there is a chapter dedicated to the end of times and another dedicated to the Antichrist, yet these are written with the ideal that there will be peace after tribulations, that cities will be rebuilt and everything will continue on except in peace.

Prophet Zephaniah (est640-609BC)

Prophet Name:

Zephaniah, related to the Royal line, meaning ‘The Lord protects’, according to the Book of the Bee he was of the tribe of Simeon and died in peace in his own land

Mission/Message:

Zephaniah’s mission was to disclose God’s coming judgement and to speak about ‘the day of the Lord’.

Documentation:

Due to Zephaniah’s social position he would have been very knowledgeable of the political issues of the time, and was probably familiar with the writings of Isaiah and Amos. The book itself is believed to have been written after 640 but before 627.

Occupation:

Not known for sure but we know he was related to the royal line.

Best known for:

-Prediction of the Day of the Lord

Attributes of his personality:

He was of ruling class, in his twenties when he began to prophesy

Supernatural Aspects:

It says that the ‘word of God came to him’. His prophecies come across as if God revealed things to him first and then he spoke about it to others. This is slightly different to others who said directly as if God was speaking to them in present tense.

Examples of prophecies:

-The Day of the Lord

-The destruction of the world

End Times Prophecies:

This book is full of end time prophecies; death of men and birds and fish, destruction of the economy, houses and land not liveable (maybe nuclear contamination), a day of darkness, a time when wealth is worth nothing, the whole world consumed, streets deserted, cities destroyed

Prophet Zechariah (est520-480BC)

Prophet Information:

Zechariah, meaning ‘the Lord remembers’, according to the Book of the Bee he died at a great age and was buried beside Haggai

Mission/Message:

Zechariah’s mission was very similar to Haggai’s mission. Both were concerned with spiritual renewal of the returned exiles as well as the need for the temple to be re-built.

Documentation:

The book of Zechariah is traditionally thought to have been authored by the prophet, although some readers believe that there are stark differences between the first and second half of the book and therefore must have been written by two authors. It is possible that Zechariah had just written each part of the book at different stages of his life.

Occupation:

A priest and a prophet

Best known for:

-The re-building of the temple, continuing the work of Haggai

-A detailed prediction of the Messiah (his personality, the betrayal, the crucifixion)

Attributes of his personality:

When visions are revealed to him he requests more details or an explanation, this might be so that he can analyse the meanings. He was a deep thinker.

Supernatural Aspects:

It says that the ‘word of God came to him’. He had many night visions; the book includes a series of eight visions, in these visions he would see the Lord or angels and be able to talk with them. He also speaks of angels waking him from sleep in order to reveal things to him.

Examples of prophecies:

-The prediction of the coming Messiah and detailed descriptions of him

-Apocalyptic prophecies

-The prediction of the siege of Jerusalem

End Times Prophecies:

In chapter 11, the author speaks of a ‘false shepherd’ which some believe to represent a recent church leader as many of the verses of prophecy can be linked to him.

Prophet Obadiah (est605-585BC)

Prophet Information:

Obadiah, which means “servant of the Lord”, according to the Book of the Bee he was from the country of Shechem and was a captain over fifty soldiers until he became a disciple of Elijah and became worthy of prophecy, later he died in peace

Mission/Message:

Obadiah’s message was to announce the coming destruction of Edom, the Edomites were related to the Israelites yet they had not helped when Israel was being destroyed, and they gloated over their own security.

Documentation:

The authors name is given as Obadiah however the date and place of the book is still debated. There are some parallels between the book of Jeremiah and this book, which some have suggested points to either a common source for their material. It is possible that they lived at the same time and were in some way interdependent on each other, but there are no records of this.

Best known for:

-Announcement of the coming destruction of Edom

Attributes of his personality:

Very little can be found due the shortness of the book, however it is recorded that he was possibly sent out to destroy Elijah and the prophets, but instead helped them and as a reward received the gift of prophecy.

Supernatural Aspects:

The book mentions a vision, and also the author speaks as if God had spoken directly to him

Examples of prophecies:

-The destruction of Edom

-The notion of the Deliverer

End Times Prophecies:

The establishment of the ‘Lord’s kingdom’ or the Israel state.

Prophet Nahum (est663-612BC)

Prophet Information:

Nahum, meaning “comfort”, according to the Book of the Bee he was from the city of Elkosh and was of the tribe of Simeon, died in peace and was buried in his own country.

Mission/Message:

Nahum’s mission was to portray God as one who gives refuge to those who trust in Him and as one who will not let the guilty go unpunished. In particular Nahum spoke and prophesised about the coming destruction of Nineveh, and that this would give comfort to Judah.

Documentation:

The book contains details of the vision of Nahum. The estimates of dating this book come from the events mentioned in the book. It was after the fall of Thebes in 663 and before the destruction of Nineveh in 612.

Occupation:

Unknown but his hometown was named Elkosh (location also unknown)

Best known for:

-Announcement of the coming destruction of Nineveh

Attributes of his personality:

The type of works used in the book show intense descriptions and vocabulary, the writing is poetic yet features many rhetorical questions. He was a deep thinker and analyst.

Supernatural Aspects:

The book is a vision, but it differs in the fact that other prophets would say “The Lord says” whereas Nahum describes “The Lord will” or “The Lord is”. This would give a general picture that Nahum knew the mind of God whereas others heard the words of God.

Examples of prophecies:

-The destruction of Nineveh

End Times Prophecies:

There is a possibility that the second chapter is talking about Israel being restored after ‘destroyers have laid them waste’ meaning the Israel state after the Second World War. It goes on to mention about an army in red or scarlet, which could represent a country that uses predominantly red on their flag.

Prophet Micah (est750-686BC)

Prophet Information:

Micah, according to the Book of the Bee he was of the tribe of Ephraim and was slain by Joram the son of Ahab

Mission/Message:

Micah switches between messages of doom and messages of hope. His message also declares that there will be a Messiah from the line of David.

Documentation:

The author is unknown but believed to be Micah himself. The writings bear some resemblance to that of Isaiah with the difference being that Micah had less knowledge of Jerusalem’s political scene.

Best known for:

-Prediction of the capture of Samaria, which happened later in his lifetime

Attributes of his personality:

Micah was an opinionated observer of the society around him, and he spent time pointing out how God hates idolatry, injustice, rebellion and ritualism. His prophecies show both tenderness, but they also show threatening language.

Supernatural Aspects:

It is mention how the “word of God” came to him. His prophecies follow the format of pointing out social injustices followed by what the Lord had to say about it, so he must have been able to speak with God.

Examples of prophecies:

-The destruction of Samaria

-The prediction of the Messiah and the birthplace where he would be born

End Times Prophecies:

-In Chapter two, it mentions that when the church will not prophesy, that there will be someone called “the breaker” who will be broken away from the church yet devoted to God and that he will become a leader that will lead people out of spiritual confusion to avoid destruction. Interestingly enough, if you link this with predictions of Daniel who mentions a Michael (of which has several meanings: ‘Who is like God?’ The name also means ‘leadership’). Could the Michael and ‘the breaker’ be one in the same?

Prophet Malachi (est440-430BC)

Prophet Information:

Malachi, meaning ‘my messenger’, according to the Book of the Bee he was nicknamed 'angel' because of his good looks.  He had two brothers Nathaniel and Josiah.  It is said that he was buried in the Tomb of the Prophets in Israel.

Mission/Message:

Malachi’s mission is more of reassurance and warning for the people of Jerusalem not to give up and that the day of the Lord will come. Malachi also condemned several sins in the same way Nehemiah did when he returned to the city.

Documentation:

There is some doubt over the prophet’s name, as messenger was a general term used to describe priests and prophets; however there is a likelihood that this was his name also. Malachi’s book is the last book of the twelve Minor Prophets (although some claim Joel came later)

Occupation:

A priest and a prophet

Best known for:

-Announcing the Day of the Lord is coming

Attributes of his personality:

Sarcasm features in the book as well as repetition.

Supernatural Aspects:

It says that the ‘word of God came to him’ and that he was an oracle.

Examples of prophecies:

-The prediction of the coming Day of the Lord

-The prediction of John the Baptist

End Times Prophecies:

Malachi mentions that God will send the prophet Elijah, which could represent John the Baptist (who was said to be like Elijah) or a reference to the prophets mentioned in the book of revelations. He also mentions how the Day of the Lord will ‘burn like a furnace’ and all evil-doers will be destroyed.

Prophet Jonah (est775-785BC)

Prophet Information:

Jonah son of Amittai, his name means “dove”, according to the Book of the Bee he was from Gath-hepher, which is near to Gaza and the sea coast.

Mission/Message:

To travel to Nineveh (a place of great menace to Israel) and proclaim to them of their imminent disaster, according to the Book of the Bee he moved away after he had prophesied to Assyria until he met with Elijah's widow and he decided to return to Judea, he was buried in the cave of Kainan.

Documentation:

The author of the book of Jonah is unknown however it is traditionally thought to be Jonah himself who wrote it. The book itself is very narrative in comparison to other books of prophecies which has led some to believe that it is not historical. There is also debate over when it was written, some say after 612B.C and others say it was written after the times of Amos but before the invasion of the Assyrians.

Best known for:

-Running away from God and ending up being thrown off a boat and swallowed by a great fish, which spat him out onto land three days later.

Attributes of his personality:

Low self-esteem (believing he could not accomplish God’s mission for him), stubborn and flawed (lying to the sailors of the boat), possibly suicidal (“better for me to die” and “I am angry enough to die”)

Supernatural Aspects:

It says that the “word of God came to him”, speaking as if God spoke directly to him. The provision of a vine to grow from nothing and give him shelter from the sun

Examples of prophecies:

-His job was to go and ask the people of Nineveh to turn from their ways in order to avoid disaster and they did what was asked, and they were saved which made Jonah angry for Nineveh was a great menace to Israel.

End Times Prophecies:

There are no direct prophecies about the end times, or about the Day of the Lord. However, there is the distinct lesson that a sinful person can turn from his wicked ways and be forgiven, which is something that many people may draw upon during the end times.

Prophet Hosea (est750-715BC)

Prophet Information:

Hosea son of Beeri, of the tribe of Issachar and was from the town of Be'elmath, according to the Book of the Bee he died in peace and was buried in his own land, yet modern beliefs is that he was buried in the cemetery of Safed

Mission/Message:

Hosea’s mission from God was to have a relationship with his wife that was similar to God’s relationship with Israel, Hosea seen Israel’s main problem as a failure to acknowledge God.

Documentation:

Hosea is identified as the first of the twelve Minor Prophets and is the only prophet to come from the Northern kingdom of Israel, the book of Hosea is dated by reference to the current kings of Judah; the author of the book is unknown.

Best known for:

-His dramatic relationship with his adulterous wife.

Attributes of his personality:

He was obedient to God’s commands. He had the ability to rebuke his wife in a harsh way, but similarly to take her back in a loving and supportive way. This would point at a man that is slow to anger (his wife bore three children before he rebuked her) yet someone that considers the person not just by their actions, and therefore takes his wife back if she promises not to be with another man again.

Supernatural Aspects:

It says that the “word of God came to him”, and it is said also that “the Lord began to speak through him”

Examples of prophecies:

-He told people about God’s opinion of their way of life, opinions about the kings and foretold their destruction and repentance

-Ch6 verse two it mentions references which could easily be linked to the death of Jesus or the tearing of the old covenant and the making of the new covenant.

End Times Prophecies:

Although some theorists have taken words from Hosea’s prophecies in an attempt to apply them to modern times, my belief is that they applied to his times, and the coming invasion of the northern kingdom.

Prophet Habakkuk (est640-598BC)

Prophet Information:

Habakkuk, according to the Book of the Bee he was from the land of Zoar and of the tribe of Simeon, also that he brought food to Daniel in the lions den, he was stoned to death by Jews in Jerusalem

Mission/Message:

Habakkuk was different to the other twelve Minor Prophets in that he wrote no oracle addressed directly at Israel, instead his book is like a debate between himself and God. This is supposed to be symbolic of the general feelings felt by those like him at the time.

Documentation:

The book seems like it is just a personal record between a man and God, but it could represent how the godly felt at the time about what was happening around them. The book itself is generally dated to 605 B.C. Habakkuk is also mentioned in the book Bel and the Dragon as being the person who ministered to Daniel whilst in the lions den, but this is not seen as historical. He is also mentioned in Lives of the Prophets, saying that he was born to a Shunamite woman with Elisha's blessing.

Occupation:

Unknown but there are musical notations in the book, which would give rise to the belief that he was knowledgeable in music.

Best known for:

-Prediction of the coming Babylonian invasion

Attributes of his personality:

Strong faith in religious traditions, he wrote with clearness and great feeling, and displays his trust and belief in God

Supernatural Aspects:

The book describes a relationship between the prophet and God, one where Habakkuk complains and gets his answers until finally he is happy and fully understands God’s will and accepts it.

Examples of prophecies:

-The invasion by Babylonians

-The punishment of the Babylonians

End Times Prophecies:

There is some debate about the first section of Chapter two where some believe it is talking about the anti-christ and the end times yet the traditionalists believe that it is merely talking about the fact that, even though the punishment of the Babylonians will come, that they will have to wait for the vision to come true, and they did have to wait 66 years.

Prophet Amos (est760-750BC)

Prophet Information:

Amos from the land of Tekoa, according to the Book of the Bee a priest of Bethel tortured him and afterwards killed him.

Mission/Message:

His overall mission was a call for social justice, emphasizing God’s forgiveness on the repentant and judgement on the unfaithful.  He traveled through the Northern Kingdom of Israel, in particular visited the cities of Samaria and Bethel.

Documentation:

The book of Amos was written at a time of prosperity of the Northern and Southern kingdoms and before the Assyrian captivity, and therefore it is believed that Amos’s years of ministry were from 760 to 750 B.C. during the reign of Uzziah (792-740 B.C.)

Occupation:

Amos was a shepherd of Tekoa; it is unclear if he was just a hired hand, or the owner of the herds. However it is clear that he was knowledgeable with words and with history and therefore he was probably not a peasant.

Best known for:

-Travelling to the Northern Kingdom (Israel) to give a message in a time of prosperity that the immorality and corruption had not gone unnoticed by God

Attributes of his personality:

A simple and humble man, in Chapter eight he is confronted by people telling him to go back to where he had come from, and he replies that he is not a prophet just a shepherd that has been sent by God to give a message. In another version he says "I am not a prophet nor a son of a prophet".

Supernatural Aspects:

In his verses of prophecies, he talks as if God speaks directly to him revealing things in imagery and words.

Examples of prophecies:

-Prediction of the invasion of the Northern kingdom by the Assyrians (722-721 B.C.)

-Prediction that the people of Israel will be exiled to all nations but they will be planted in a land of their own

-Prediction of the coming Messiah

End Times Prophecies:

-The Day of the Lord will come

-A day of darkness not light, pitch black without a ray of sunshine