In the four centuries between the two Testaments of the Bible, Persia gave way to Greece, and Greece gave way to Rome.
Rome is the kingdom of iron represented by the legs and feet of the dream image in Daniel 2. Rome rose to power in the century before Christ. It’s rise started with the failure of Antiochus Epiphanes 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 a great enemy of God’s people.
The Main Point
God’s plan draws near to a climax as prophecy continues to unfold in fulfillment. World empires come and go, but God is about to set up "a kingdom which cannot be shaken"-- a worldwide spiritual empire.
The Bible and Rome
Judas Maccabeus.
The desolation of the temple by Antiocus Epiphanes, (see previous lesson) and attempts to force the Jews to defile themselves, eventually led to a revolt. Mattathias the priest began it. After him, Judas Maccabeus carried on the wars of rebellion. He sought God’s help and gained victory. In 164 BC the Jews were able to cleanse their temple, reinstated true worship, and celebrate with a Feast of Dedication which, like the Purim of Esther’s time, was added to the Jewish calendar of feasts (Jhn 10:22). The promise that "the holy place will be properly restored" was fulfilled (Dan 8:14).
The Apocrypha.
In the time between the two Testaments of the Bible, certain writings were made which some people regard as inspired holy scripture, and which some versions of the Bible include. However, these writings are not universally accepted . One example is, the 1st and 2nd books of Maccabees. These record the adventures of Judas Maccabeus (mentioned above)and his brothers.
The Herods.
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. Herod the Great tried to eliminate Christ by infanticide (Mtt 21-23; Lke 1:5). [There were other Herods following him. For example, Herod Antipas who killed John the Baptist (Mtt 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)].
A New Temple.
Herod the Great rebuilt Zerubbabel’s temple -bigger and more beautiful (Mtt 24:1,2; Jhn 2:20).
Interesting Times.
The century before Christ was that in which Cleopatra, Julias Caesar, Brutus, Cassius, Mark Antony, and so on, were doing the things they are famous for. Incidentally, our calendars today have two months, July and August, named after two Roman Caesars of the time -Julias and Augustus (the latter is mentioned in Luke 2:1).
The Beasts of Revelation
The Roman empire rose to power in the century before Christ. It was in power during the life of Christ. It continued to rule the world in the days of the early church. Rome is an outstanding example of what is represented in the Book of Revelation as the Dragon, the Beasts, the False Prophet, and the Mother of Harlots (Rev 12:17). Before the empire was 100 years old it had not only crucified the Son of God but had begun persecuting the Christians, putting many to death because they would not worship false gods, not least among those gods being the Roman Caesar himself. Toward the end, the Roman empire became "Christian". But this state religion was a travesty characterised by hypocrisy and corruption. That false church has lived on long after the political empire died.
The Number of the Beast
The famous number 666 (Rev 13:18), may be recognised as representing Rome and its Caesar. The Romans had their peculiar way of writing numbers. Anyone familiar with the Roman number system knows that the number 666, when written the Roman way, DCLXVI, forms a pattern. It is the set of numerals under 1000in descending order:D=500, C=100, L=50,X=10, V=5, I=1(they add up to 666). Because the number converts to a special and significant Roman numeral, it cleverly identifies the Beast as Roman. The descending order of the numerals, and the fact that they are inferior (below 1000) is a nice touch of symbolism too. Note that the number 666 is not meant to be interpreted by numerology or in any magical manner.
The Spirit of Antichrist
The Roman empire eventually fell, but the spirit of antichrist that drove it in the time of the early Christians, (1Jn 2:18) continues to be very present in the world today. Thus, the unfolding of prophecy surrounding the time of Christ and the early Christians, still has much relevance to the entire Christian era -even in the present time, and in the future right up until the second coming of Christ.