The first time I ever drove a car into a city, it was in Eureka, California in 1972,
and I had a $140 check I had to cash. I was scared to be in the "big city", so I
kept the doors locked on my old beat-up Ford Station Wagon, and actually wondered if I
should have brought a gun in case I got robbed.
It was bad enough that at the age of 16, I only looked about 10 or 12. I remember
pulling into a gas station to fill up, and the attendant wouldn't take the money until the
police arrived to check my ID. Yep, I was a true small town country boy.
By the time I got to Brooklyn, I had been in large cities a great deal more, so the
idea of basic safety and my ability to navigate had subsided. Still, I had heard all the
news reports about muggings and all, so I had the doors locked on the car. My dog was big
and had a deep bark, so I felt a whole lot safer, despite the fact that I knew hew
wouldn't hurt a flea.
The first thing I liked about New York was the fact that you could get Chinese food
delivered 24 hours a day. Laundry too. And they'd stop by and pick up other stuff for you
too, like candy bars, magazines and milk. For a guy like me, that was pretty great.
I had always pictured myself in a penthouse in Manhattan, writing music like Hugh
Prestwood, a song writer who wrote some of the prettiest music Michael Johnson ever
played. Songs like "It Must Be You", "That's That" and "The Moon
is Still Over Her Shoulder".
So far, this isn't about New York, but it's kind of how I saw it turning out for me. I
never really believed I was good enough to be a headline act. And, working in computers
was always a sure thing and decent money.
In fact, Marsha, my business manager told me it would be impossible to get an employer
to make a job commitment to me unless I was physically in the city. So, just to have fun,
I submitted my resume to a few places while still in Yosemite, and had 2 firm offers
within hours, and a third probable working for the Port Authority in the Word Trade
Center. They told me to call them as soon as I got into town.
Marsha was a pretty good business person. One of the companies called once to see if I
was available to talk, and she told them I was so busy that it would cost them $50 just to
make an appointment. Stranger yet, they paid it. But, I made her give them a refund.
But, to be honest, I've done a lot of things and have/had a good reputation, so I never
really had much trouble getting in doors with my resume. As much as what I'm writing makes
me seem pretty footloose and fancy-free, the truth is, most people who know me in business
know me as a very serious and competent professional. And, true, a bit eccentric.
The second day I was there, Marsha said she had it set up for me to go to some
restaurant in Queens to give a seminar on the internet. The internet was still a
pretty new thing, so educating people about its possibilities was perfectly in order. I
put on my best suit, the same best suit I own now, packed up the computer and away we
went. The funny thing was, when we got there, she said I didn't need the computer. I
thought that was kind of weird. But, she was the business manager.
The next thing I know, I'm sitting at a table in an outside courtyard with a young
couple who wanted me to give them a psychic reading for $50. I didn't want to offend
anyone, so I just said "Okay". She and I had NEVER talked about me having any
such abilities. And it wasn't like I had done anything like that before.
I looked at the man, and asked him, "Are you going on a vacation for a
while?" The truth was that I saw him in a small room with a locked door.
He said, "You're the psychic, you tell me". I looked at him, and looked at
her, and said, "Okay".
I said, "It looks to me like you're going to prison, and the only chance you have
of staying out is having your aunt in New Jersey sell the red pickup so you can pay your
attorney. Otherwise you'll be there for 5 years. The good news is, your girlfriend is a
teacher, and learning to do tax preparation, and she'll be waiting for you when you get
out. The important thing is that you have to control your temper."
Apparently, I nailed it. Suddenly, there was a long line of people waiting to have
their fortunes told. I told Marsha never to put me in that position again. That was
strange.
After that, she took me around to various small business owners, and I helped them
figure out what they needed to know to put in accounting systems and web sites so they
could expand their businesses and compete with other larger companies. That was the whole
reason I got into computers in the first place. My fascination with computers has always
been about what was possible when people could put them to use.
I didn't live in Brooklyn for a long time. But, visiting those businesses, even the
moments in that small restaurant, began to give me a sense of something I really missed.
So I'm going to tell you what it was that I loved so much.
There's this thing called community that, anymore, seems to be defined by legal
geographic boundaries instead of people with like interests and values. It's no wonder
there is so much struggle between people throughout the cities of the world. We've all
been searching for the answers to what's right and wrong, how to dress, what it means to
have cars of a certain size and class, instead of their utility.
We spend out time disliking our bodies, and so, spend a great amount of time decorating
them, fixing them and making them what they're not in order to give the appearance of
greatness and splendor, all the while wishing we could simply be accepted for what we are,
without constantly being judged by other people - the ultimate "don't judge a book by
its cover" paradox. One of my favorite bumper stickers says "Behold, the day of
non-judgementalism is coming".
Some of that is a good thing. It is most certainly true that our bodies are the vessels
of our spirits, that care should be taken to nourish and strengthen them. But, it's the
spirit that matters most. The part of us that holds and shares the joy of living and
giving to others. Think of how good it feels, more than anything else, when you are put in
the position of helping someone else, and know that it has made a positive difference.
I remember one night while studying the Bible reading about what comprises grace. We
believe that grace is the ability to act cool and calm under pressure, to be gracious to
other people - nice and generous - to our peers and those in need. To be one of those
"cool people" that everyone wants to be like. In most ways, there's nothing
wrong with that, except that people believe it's something to work toward, instead of the
truth - which is that we're all really like that naturally. Grace is not a skill. It's a
state of being.
Grace is something we're born with. Grace is the inner satisfaction with the knowledge
that each of us is complete and whole, that we love ourselves and have an appreciation of
the diversity for the people and other beings around us. And, grace is an expression of
the peace instilled in us by God at birth, long before the world begins to tell us that is
has expectations of us to be anything but who we are, as God made us and intended us to
be.
One day, I was driving down the road, I think it was in Queens, and my dog Barney was
sitting on the passenger side of the car as he always did, and this man yells out to me
"Hey, put a seatbelt on your dog, he'll thank you for it."
My first thought, of course, was "Oh, oh, I've run into some weirdo who's going to
kill me because I haven't put a seatbelt on my dog, of all things." It actually
scared me, so I immediately put the seatbelt on Barney, and made sure the man saw me do
it. I looked over at him, as if to get his approval. He just sort of saluted me, like
tipping his hat, and smiled and drove on.
I started laughing. Here, I thought this man was being hostile, but the truth was, he
just cared that my dog was safe. He was trying to help me, and there I was, afraid at any
moment that I was going to be attacked, that I was in danger. Nothing could have been
further from the truth. But, because of all the violence we see on TV, the reports we hear
on the news, the commercials that try to tell us what we should do to be better people, we
go around in the world thinking that it just isn't possible to be good enough, and the
world is dangerous, even though we're all born as incredibly great people.
In business, some people think I'm intimidating because I walk around departments with
this serious look on my face. I suppose they think it's judgmental and domineering and
such. And then, the next minute, they'll see me with my arms spread out like wings,
soaring and flying around like what some people might call "a nut".
One time, in a record and car stereo store I was managing, I was doing a tough
negotiation with a customer who wanted a car stereo for next to nothing. I was being
pretty tough with him. When that customer finally left, a man walks up to me and says he
likes the way I move and talk, and he'd like to take a picture of me, in any pose of my
choice. My first thought was "That's kind of weird". But, then, I thought it was
quite a compliment, and that if it gave him something to remind him of a good experience,
then it was a good thing. So, I sat down on the floor and posed like James Taylor on his
Gorilla album cover, sort of like the picture of an ape in the lotus position with his
hands on top of his head. Go figure. He got his picture, I got a laugh out of it, and
positive things were generated. I decided that it didn't matter whether I understood it or
not. It didn't harm anything. It was kind of fun.
One day, in Brooklyn, I had taken Marsha to a therapists' house. We had had a silly
argument about I don't remember what. In the course of the argument, she said "I'm
making myself sick worrying about it". I said to her, "Well, it sounds to me
like the first thing you have to do is stop making yourself sick, and then the other
issues will take care of themselves." That remark ended the argument, and she called
the doctor.
I had a car, she didn't. So, I took her to the appointment. It was a beautiful day, so
I got out of the car, Barney on his leash, and sat on a bench and watched as members of
the Hassidic community made their way to worship, as well as a crew trimming the bushes
and cleaning the walkways across the street.
At one point, I saw this guy with an orange safety vest walk across the street and come
straight toward me. I thought "Oh, oh. I must be violating some rule or
something". Kind of when I learned about pooper scooping the hard way, when someone
got angry at me while taking Barney for a walk one night before going to bed.
So, he comes over, and asks me if he could pet my dog. I said of course, that Barney
would love it because he loves people. And, the man sat down and proceeded to lavish
Barney with all kinds of affection.
I just smiled, and asked if he had a dog.
He told he did when he was a child, but, he never had a place to keep a dog properly
since then, but always wished he could get one again. Barney was one of those dogs that
truly loved people, and people really loved him, so they spent some time sharing the love
they had for each other. It was really neat to watch.
The man said "Where are you from? You don't seem like a New Yorker."
I told him it was true. I was born in California - San Francisco. Lived in East Palo
Alto til the age of 6, then Santa Cruz and Northern California. I had lived in Texas for a
short time, Oregon, Atlanta, Washington State. Told him I had traveled across the states
quite a bit. And, that I had just moved to New York from Yosemite. That got his attention.
He said "Oh, I always wished I could go there. I've heard it's beautiful."
I told him it was. And I told him a number of stories about the adventures Barney and I
had there, from hiking to "Barney-Fishing", swimming in the lakes, and just
sitting in awe at the beauty of the mountains. The altitude was such that I'd sit on the
back porch and look at the stars and see shooting stars every 5 minutes or so. It was
truly awesome.
I told him about the night I was driving down the road and saw two military jets
playing tic-tac-toe in the sky with their after-burners - I swear to God it happened. I
pulled over at one point so I could make sure to see who won.
I reminded him it was never too late to go there. I told him there was a whole world of
beauty that most people never see, and that as much as it may have caused me to get into
difficult situations at times, and how much I'd love to settle down someday and raise a
family like anyone else, that I wouldn't trade the chances and experiences I'd had for
anything. Yosemite was one of my favorites.
Then, I asked him about these Hassidic people, and why they were just in one part of
town, and why there were all the distinct boroughs - and my real question was whether or
not the distinct sections caused people to be closer or more separate.
He proceeded to tell me that sometimes it caused friction, but the truth was, it really
was that way because people of similar interests sort of grouped together in order to
support each other in practicing particular religious disciplines, various cultures like
Hispanics and Blacks and such, and that it was really good because that way they didn't
lose their heritage and they were more able to raise families with the kinds of values and
traditions that they valued most. He said, it was sort of separate, but mostly, it was
true community.
I thought, here's this guy working for the parks department, kind of a rough exterior
and that wonderful direct way of speaking that I love so much about New Yorkers - most
people would have thought he was just some common guy with little to offer, teaching me
about something that I now cherish as a bit of a cause to generate for other people and
myself - the essence of community. God provided this man to me - he was, in essence
an oracle.
Real community is a beautiful thing. It's like having a huge family to share your life
with. People who accept you for what you are, help you when you're in need, and who allow
you to give to them in whatever way they need and when you need it - even when you don't
want them to.
I find that most interesting because, in my recent studies, God informed me that he
never intended for there to be churches and boroughs and such. He says that His plan was
for all people to share the world as equals, sharing all they had and the gifts and
blessings of the world with each other freely.
But, with the corruption caused by those "Elders of Zion", and the enslavement of the
Jews way back in Biblical times, it became necessary for people to band together for
safety, and so their values and heritage would not be lost.
The Jews, in particular, were forced to create synagogues because, otherwise, if they
gathered at each other's houses to worship and share their experiences, it would
cause them to be visible as belonging to a particular sect or group of individuals who
were in dissent of the ruling powers, and, because they were a small group of individuals,
it would make them vulnerable to violence and ridicule, sometimes even arrest.
By creating the synagogues, it made a statement to the world. A statement of solidarity
- like a force to be reckoned with and a determination to carry on , as well as a
political force with power. The addage "there's safety in numbers" certainly
explains what was provided at synagogues while worshippers practiced their faiths and
perpetuated their cultures and heritage.
Of course, as time went on, it was people with different opinions and ulterior motives
who generated rules and dogmas that caused division between the various groups, which has
ultimately accounted for all the Holy Wars throughout history. It was all these groups
believing their ways were right, and others were wrong, and just like my original fear of
New York, generated irrational fear and hatred, and caused people to treat each other with
ridicule and violence in every form - verbally and with weapons.
[Tower of Power, "Digging on James Brown" - "The
more things change, the more they stay the same..."]
One night I was studying the Bible and thought, if you look at the way political
parties work, you could easily make the case that the political system in the United
States, as well as most countries, is actually just religious factions having a war
against each other in order to dominate and force each other into complying with their
version of the "right way" for people to be.
The more you study what's really going on, it's exactly what's happening, though it
violates the intent of God for free will to unite all people of the world from the joy of
liberty and spiritual grace.
I found it even more interesting when I consider another fact. I was incredibly angry
back in 2001 when I moved to Washington State to "get away from it all" and try
to figure out how I would reconcile all the bad things that have happened to me, and how I
could still find a way to do good in the world. Based on even more study, I began to
compare it to the way St. Benedict went into a cave for 3 years to decide what to do about
himself and the world.
I decided that I would use all the anger and rage inside of me in order to begin a
campaign of political activism, much of it aimed at causing other people to take action,
and a great deal of it aimed at mounting well organized attacks on the news media in order
to force them to tell more of the truth of what was going on in the world, and to get them
to stop emphasizing violence and things that caused division between people.
The strangest thing was, they actually began to comply in their own ways. I said mean
and nasty things about them, used foul language, harassed them with email and all kinds of
things I'd be ashamed for you to know. I did it in ways I knew would reach into their
psyches - after all, I knew something about media people. Part of what made it hard to do
was the fact that, in truth, I considered myself one of them in a way, having been in
broadcasting and all. I hated myself even more for doing it. But it seemed to be working.
The song "Mean Old Man" by James Taylor, on the "October Road"
album quite accurately describes the kind of person I was being toward everyone in my life
because I was so intent on finding a way to alter the course of events, and the way
communications were being used to lead us down a path that was to be accepted due to
political deception..
At one point, I was watching a broadcast where they displayed a verse from the book of
St. Matthew, Matthew 24, about false prophets and things that would occur in the end of
days. So, I read it, and it launched my entire study of the Bible and religion and
historical religious figures.
Matthew 24:6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars; see that ye be not
troubled: for all these things must pass, but the end is not yet.
7: For nation shall rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be
famines and pestilences, and earthquakes in diverse places
8: All these are the beginning of sorrows.
9: Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be
hated of all nations for my name's sake. (in the name of God and Christianity)
10: And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one
another.
11: And many false prophets shall rise, and deceive many
12: And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold
13: But he that should endure until the end, the same shall be saved
14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto
all nations: and then shall the end come.
15:When ye therefore shall see the abomination (in the holy places, the churches) of
desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place
16: Then let them which be in Judea flee into the mountains
17:Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any things out of his
house
18: Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes
19: And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!
20: But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day
21: For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the
world to this time, no, nor ever shall be
22: And except those days be shortened, there should be no flesh saved: but for the
elects' sake, those days shall be shortened
23 Then if any man shall be shown unto you, Lo here is Christ, or there: believe it not
24: For their shall arise false Christs and false prophets, and shall shew great signs
and wonders: in so much that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect
25 Behold, I have told you before
26: Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold he is in the desert, go not forth.
Behold he is in the secret chambers, believe it not
27 For as the lightning cometh out of the east and shineth even unto the west so shall
also be the coming of the son of man be
28: For wheresover the carcass is, there will the eagles be gathered together. (eagles
refers to fighter planes of the United States)
29: Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the
moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the
heavens shall be shaken.
I read Luke and Mark and so much more, and finally got around to reading Ezekiel and
began questioning whether I really was the "Son of Man", the guy the Bible
talked about and who I thought I may be from the time I was very young. I realized I was
doing everything it described. I can't ignore what I've seen, in the past, in the
present and in the future. But, the last thing I'd want to be is a false prophet, someone
who misleads people regarding Christian or religious doctrine. So, I remain open to
another possible explanation, despite the evidence and occurances.
Isaiah 30:27 - Behold, the name of the Lord cometh from afar, burning with anger, and
the burden thereof is heavy: his lips are full of indignation, and his tongue as a
devoring fire.
28 - And his breath, as an overflowing stream, shall reach to the midst of the neck, to
sift the nations with the sieve of vanity: and there shall be a bridle in the jaws of the
people, causing them to err.
29 - Ye shall have a song, as in the night when a holy solemnity is kept; and gladness
of heart, as one who goeth with a pipe to come into the mountain of the Lord, to the
Mighty One of Israel.
30 - And the Lord shall cause his glorious voice to be heard, and shall show the
lighting down of his arm, with the indignation of His anger, and with the flame of the
devouring fire, with scattering, and tempest and hailstones.
I realized that the very people who I had been so persistently attacking and
criticizing were actually trying to inform me, to relieve my pain and empower me to be who
I was destined to be, the best I could be, regardless of who I turned out to be. But they
weren't coddling me in any way. I continued to curse them and attack them. A very human
thing to do.
When I wrote the things I wrote in the preface of this book, about the Democrats and
George W. Bush mocking me and using my ideas while I continued to live in the squalor and
pain of my poverty and thwarted burning desire to make a difference in the world - well,
let's just say some people didn't like it very much. They thought I hated them, and didn't
appreciate what they had given me. In my weblogs, I asked them to be patient, because in
the unfolding of all this, I had something powerful to say about it. So, they trusted me -
a little anyway.
In a seminar I took one time, I had a great, tough instructor. She always used to yell
"What's the matter with you people? You're being offered the keys to the Kingdom, and
the best you can do is go kicking and screaming all the way to heaven."
The point is this: despite all my fear in New York, despite all the anger and rage I
had inside me, despite all the people I've hurt in order to do good in the world, the very
people who I was making out the bad guy - were doing everything they possibly could in
order to help me, despite myself. I only realized this a few days ago. Though I have to
say, for the record, that they don't yet fully understand what I've been trying to share
with them. I'll take responsibility for that, too. They should also take responsibility.
While it's true that a person who speaks must take responsibility for delivering a
message accurately, it's also true that those who choose to listen should take the
responsibility to be sure they actually hear the message that was intended, and not simply
their interpretaion. The difference shows up in the final results of their efforts. It's
the old addage that the end is dependent upon the beginning.
The Democrats (and Republicans) I blasted for "stealing my ideas" -
they used my ideas because they actually had faith in what I was trying to teach them and
the messages and issues I presented, and of course, we don't agree on everything, and
that's a good thing.. Ultimately, they taught me the greatest lesson of my life. I can
only wonder what they have learned, since I perceive their interpretations are incorrect,
and they do not communicate with me in a way that allows for certainty of the intended
communication.
That lesson was simple: Despite all of my pain and expressions that hurt people, the
truth is, the whole world is willing to help you, whether you know it or not. People have
so much love in their hearts: there are few people who actually want to harm others. Those
who tend to hold you back are afflicted with evil - they themselves are not evil - they're
every bit as much hurt and angry and defensive and trying to survive as someone like me
when I was in the heat of my pain.
Even when you don't understand why they do what they do. Even when they're wrong. All
you have to do is have the tiniest bit of faith, and allow them to help you. People want
to help you. They want you to succeed. It's one of God's mysterious ways.
"You don't always get what you want. But if you try sometimes, you'll get what you
need." If you allow it [Thanks to the Rolling Stones.]
And all the defensiveness in the world that you encounter is an equal but opposite
reaction to your own offenses. It reminded me of that teacher in the seminar saying, when
things go wrong and people treat you badly, consider who you're being that people
would respond to you that way.
It's like New York. There I was, thinking I was providing something to the people I met
with to help. And yet, the greatest lessons I learned came from people who most people
would consider unworthy, unqualified or beneath them. Or those you think are your enemies
who are merely practicing tough love, whether you like it or not.
Those people to whom I expressed my hate: if it wasn't for them, I probably wouldn't be
writing this to you today. Another song on the October Road albums that expresses this
sentiment is called "Whenever You're Ready". James Taylor has always been my
favorite prophet.
But, there's more about New York that's even more important than all of this. It has to
do with why the Jews are God's chosen people. And that's what we'll explore next.
Just make one promise to yourself about all this: if you allow God's plan to work in
your life, and accept that in truth, he has provided all the beings, all the people in the
world to empower you as nurturers and empowerers, you'll find yourself living in a world
of joy.
It won't always be easy, and there may be hard lessons to learn. But if you allow it,
and learn and give what there is to learn and give, somehow, in God's mysterious ways, are
the things you need to know to have your life work out.
God says there's one more thing I need to say about this: we all do things we regret.
We do things that hurt people whether we really mean to or not. Just like how God requests
that we pray to Him and ask forgiveness, it's always important to make sure that those you
hurt or cheat or lie to know that you honestly are sorry, that you have remorse and that
you'll do your best to not repeat the same mistakes.
It's a hard promise to keep, one that I, too, am unable to keep because I'm very human
and I get hurt and respond in hurtful ways. But it's so important to tell people in your
life, and God, that you're sorry and will try to not do it again. But, only say it if you
mean it. If you don't it will be apparent. Don't lie about it.
And tell them you love them, often.
This is one of the few ways we have to repair relationships and cancel out the hate in
the world that is generated by defensiveness about our errant ways. Do this in the same
way and for the same reasons God created this world, this heaven on earth that He gave us.
Do it in order to give love. Do everything in order to give love. It's the only thing
that's real. As Carole King sang "everything else is illusion".
After all, is there anything else you really want?
Another passage of the Bible that is important to the end of days is
Isaiah 24:5 The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof;
because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting
covenant.
Revelation 3:19: Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and
the things which shall be hereafter.
Daniel 11:7 But out of a branch of her roots shall one stand up in his estate which
shall come with an army and shall enter into the fortress of the king of the north, and
shall deal against them, and shall prevail
8: And shall also carry captives into Egypt their gods with their princes, and with
their precious vessels of silver and gold, and he shall continue more years than the king
of the north.
9: So the king of the south shall come into his kingdom and shall return into his own
land
10: But his sons shall be stirred up, and shall assemble a multitude of of great
forces: and one shall certainly come, and overflow, and pass through: then shall he return
and be stirred up, even to his fortress
11: And the king of the south shall be moved with choler, and shall come forth
and fight with him, even with the king of the north and he shall set forth a great
multitude, but the multitude shall be given into his hand.
12: And when he hath taken away the multitude, his heart shall be lifted up: and he
shall cast down ten thousands: but he shall not be strengthened by it
13 For the king of the north shall return, and shall set forth a multitude greater than
the former, and shall certainly come after certain years with a great army and with much
riches
18: After this shall he turn his face unto the isles (nations) and shall take many: but
a prince for his own behalf shall cause the reproach offered to him to cease: without his
own reproach he shall cause it to turn upon him
19: Then he shall turn his face toward the fort of his own land: but he shall stumble
and fall, and not be found
20: Then shall stand up in his estate a raiser of taxes in the glory of the kingdom:
but within few days he shall be destroyed, neither in anger nor in battle
21: And in his estate shall stand a vile person, to whom they shall not give the honor
of the kingdom: but he shall come in peaceably and obtain the kingdom by flatteries
22: And with the arms of a flood shall they be overflown from before him, and shall be
broken; yea, also the prince of the covenant
23: And after the league made with him, he shall work deceitfully: for he shall come
up, and shall become strong with a small people
24: He shall enter peaceably even upon the fattest places of the province: and he shall
do that which his fathers have not done, nor his fathers' fathers; he shall scatter among
them the prey, and spoil and riches:yea and he shall forecast his devices against the
strong holds, even for a time
36: And the king shall do according to his will: and he shall exalt himself, and
magnify himself above every God and shall speak marvelous things against the God of gods
and shall prosper 'til the indignation be accomplished:for that that is determined
shall be done.
37: Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard
any god:for he shall magnify himself above all.
38: But in his estate shall he honor the God of forces: and a God whom his
fathers knew not shall be honor with gold and silver and with precious stones, and
pleasant things
39: Thus shall he do in the most strong holds with a strange god whom he shall
acknowledge and increase with glory : and he shall cause them to rule over many, and shall
divide the land for gain.
40: And at the time of the end shall the king of the south push at him:and the king of
the north shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and
with many ships: and he shall overflow and pass over.
41: He shall enter into the glorious land and many countries shall be overthrown: but
these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab and the chief of the children of
Ammon
42 He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries:and the land of Egypt shall
not escape.
43 But he shall have the power over the treasures of gold and silver and over all the
precious things of Egypt: And the Libyans and Ethiopians shall be at his step.
44: But tidings out of the east and out of the north shall trouble him: therefore he
shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many.
45: And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious
holy mountain: yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him.
Daniel 12:7 And I heard the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the
river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven and swear by him that
liveth forever it shall be for a time, times and a half. and when he shall have
accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished.
10:Many shall be purified and made white, and tried: but the wicked shall do wickedly
and none of the wicked shall understand.
11: And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away and the abomination
that maketh desolate set up there shall be a thousand two hundred and 90 days.
12: Blessed is he that waiteth and cometh to the thousand three hundred and 5 and 30
days
13: But go thou thy way til the end be: for thou shalt rest, and stand in thy lot at
the end of the days.
