A Two-Fold Prophecy of Daniel Regarding the End Times

The the book of Daniel we read that the angel spoke to Daniel and said:

“But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book,
even to the time of the end:
many shall run to and fro, and
knowledge shall be increased.” Daniel 12:4

The angel was saying that this portion of the book of Daniel was not going to be understood “until the time of the end.” Could it be that WE are now in these “End Times”, and the seal on the book is beginning to crack, and the prophecy that lies therein can be understood by millions around the world?  Indeed, if we consider the evidence, it is becoming clear to all that the two aspects of this prophecy are now becoming true. The two vital components in this prophecy given by the angel to Daniel are:

1. That “many shall run to and fro”
2. “Knowledge shall be increased”.

I submit to you for your consideration that we are living in the End Times when the two aspects of this prophecy are being fulfilled before our very eyes.

Daniel’s Prophecy is Being Fulfilled NOW!

Fulfilled: The Prophecy that “Many Shall Run To and Fro“

This prophecy is about travel, and how in the end times “many shall run to and fro” – in other words, travel will be common among many, and they shall “run” or travel is such a way that has never happened before.

Let’s look at the fulfillment of this prophecy. At the time of Daniel the prophet, travel was primarily by foot, with only the wealthy able to afford a horse, donkey, or animal drawn carriage. As a result, few traveled, and even those that could were not able to travel frequently, or very far. Travel was limited to getting to the next village, or town – perhaps at most a few hundred miles, Even Jesus traveled no more that a few hundred miles about Israel during His time on earth.

Travel has increase exponentially since the time of Daniel. We no longer travel by foot, but by many other forms – horse, wagon, chariot, then in the 1800’s travel began using trains, automobiles, and eventually planes and jet aircraft. And indeed “many”, in contrast to the past few, and running “to and fro” throughout the earth! 

Travel Has Radically Increased for Many Just in the Last 100 years

In the past 200 years, the modes of travel have multiplied, the speed by which we travel has rocketed, the distance that people are able to travel has radically increased, and the types of people that can now afford to travel “to and fro” has mushroomed from only the wealthy to include just about anyone.

Travel 700 BC – 1900 AD: By foot, horse, chariot or carriage

Travel was only done as necessary. Only the wealthy could afford travel for pleasure. Most travel was done by foot, or by horse, chariot or carriage if you had one.

Travel in the Year 1900: by Horse and Buggy

120 years ago, if you wanted to get around with a small group, you needed a horse and buggy. Think about that. 120 years is nothing in the grand scheme of things. And this primary mode of transportation continued into the early 1900’s in most regions of the world, when a new for of transport made its debut:  the automobile!

The Automobile Revolutionizes Transportation

At first, only the wealthy could afford automobiles. But then Henry Ford developed the “Model T”, and soon the masses across the globe began their journey “to and fro” via the automobile.  Photo by Valdemaras D, Pexels

Travel in the 1910: Advanced to automobiles, and ocean liners able to cross an ocean

The only way for travelers to cross oceans in 1912 was to board an ocean liner, like the Titanic pictured above. On land, horse was still the only real means of travel, though that would begin to change drastically later in the decade thanks to Henry Ford and his revolutionary mass production techniques.

Travel in the 1920s: Trains became the rage, allowing people to travel more often and more easily

Trains were all the rage in the 1920s; particularly in Europe. Lavish cabin cars and a full suite of dining services were offered to first-class passengers. Even those who sat in common seats enjoyed roomed to breathe coupled with nice amenities and decadent services befit of the times.

 

Travel in the 1930: the airplane Arrives

Welcome to the age of the airplane! Thanks to an explosion of innovation and government regulation, commercial air travel starts to become accessible to the masses in the 1930s.

Travel in the 1940s and 50s: Driving became the Primary Method of Travel

Thanks to a variety of government programs and investments in our nation’s infrastructure, driving was the preferred method of travel throughout much of the 1940s. For the first time ever, cars became a staple of the American dream.

America’s love for cars never truly faded after the 1940’s, but early the 1950’s, advancements in technology made flying cheaper, and more accessible, than ever before.

Knowing this, Americans fell in love with flying again, and as you can see from the video real, it was a very different experience than what we know today.

The 1960s – 1980s: Flying Literally Took Off, Tourism Exploded

Welcome to the Golden Age of Flying! Never before has flying been cooler, and unless something drastically changes, never again will flying be as cool as it was in the 1960s. Sure, plane tickets may have cost about 40 percent more than they would today, but who cares? You enjoyed open cabin designs, swanky service, lounge chairs, couches, full-scale food and beverage options and all the cigarette smoke you can handle. If it sounds like a party in the sky, that’s because it often was.

Sometime in the 1970s, we begin to notice a shift away (though slightly at this time) from flying being a luxurious endeavor. More and more airlines started to modify seat configurations to fit an increased number of people on every flight. This trend would continue and still continues in some cases today.

In the 1980s, flying was more affordable to the average American family than it ever was before. Airlines continued adding seats, which drove individual ticket prices down but also reduced the amount of passenger space given to travelers.  Photo by Carlos Pernalete Tua, Pexels. 

Air Travel in the 1990s to the 2000s Mushroomed

Economy seats rule the sky’s and smoking is no longer allowed on airplanes. Flying becomes the new normal for Americans in the 1990s. Airport security changed drastically after the events on 9/11/01, and flying has never been the same. In addition, more and more airlines started to squeeze all the juice they could from the lemon, so economy seating exploded, making it easier for the average American to enjoy a more luxurious traveling experience.

Travel Today in 2022 is Widespread, Available to Millions

Today travel is widespread, and available to even the poorest of people. Bus travel is common in most regions, relieving people of having to walk. Motor scooters are common, as are automobiles. And the price of an airline ticket to travel to far away places is not beyond the reach of most people (except in the poorest of countries).

So the “many” part of this prophecy has been fulfilled in the past 100 years, and the “to and fro” part has been as well – since traveling to distant parts of the globe in not beyond the means on many people. This prophecy could not have been fulfilled until this very century – another significant piece of evidence that we are living in the End Times.

Fulfilled: The Prophecy that “Knowledge Shall be Increased“

The primary application of “knowledge increased” is in reference to people understanding the prophecies of the book of Daniel, however, many Bible scholars believe that this prophecy also applies to an increasing knowledge of science, medicine, travel, and technology.

For thousands of Years, Knowledge was Chiseled on Rock, or Written on Parchment

Three thousand years BC the Egyptians were chiseling their knowledge on the walls of temples, and writing it on parchment paper.  The Sumerians, living about the same time, did likewise.  Capturing knowledge was done on parchment scrolls during the Old Testament period, onto about the time of Christ.  In the first few centuries AD, “codices” or bound books started to become available.

Capturing knowledge, whether biblical or general, for storage and dissemination was tedious and time consuming.  Scribes were employed, schooled, and had to be extremely accurate. Very few people could read, and the powers that were in place often wanted it that way.

A breakthrough came in the Middle  ages, with the invention of the “printing press”. Around A.D. 1436 a German businessman named Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press with movable type. And the first book Mr. Gutenberg printed was a Bible. Due to this history-altering invention, slowly but surely copies of God’s sacred Word began to multiply, and the process of translating the Bible into different languages also increased.  The printing press also made possible the cost effective printing of newspapers, pamphlets, and books for the masses.  Knowledge began to grow and increase dramatically.. 

The Dawn of the “information Age”

We are now living in “The Information Age” making this sign seem even more obvious. Even the most skeptical mind must admit that knowledge is exploding in all directions. It is said that 80% percent of the world’s total knowledge has been brought forth in the last decade and that 90% percent of all the scientists who have ever lived are alive today.

Advancement of Knowledge through the Development of Science in the 1600’s

Of course the practice of science goes back thousands of years, to the Mayas in central America, who practiced astronomy and searched the heavens for signs.  The Egyptian studied the stars as well.  The Greeks advanced science with such famous thinkers as Aristotle, Plato and Socrates.  But the origin of the modern scientific method occurred in Europe in the 1600s: involving (1) a chain of research events from Copernicus to Newton, which resulted (2) in the gravitational model of the solar system, and (3) the theory of Newtonian physics to express the model (Source: Springerlink) 

The formal practice of science was further advanced by Sir Francis Bacon. According to Wikipedia, Francis Bacon (1561–1626) came to the conclusion that the methods employed and the results attained were alike erroneous; he learned to despise the current Aristotelian philosophy. He believed philosophy must be taught its true purpose, and for this purpose a new method must be devised. Bacon attempted to describe a rational procedure for establishing causation between phenomena based on induction. Bacon’s induction was, however, radically different than that employed by the Aristotelians. As Bacon put it, Bacon’s method relied on experimental histories to eliminate alternative theories.

Astronomy Explores the Skies, Relativity Theory Advanced

It was in the 1920s that Edwin Hubble pointed his telescope to the skies, and discovered that the universe was expanding (by virtue of the “red shift” he made note of). About this same time, Albert Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity was being published, a theory which advanced the idea that time, space and matter are all related, and had a beginning (popularly known as the “Big Bang” theory). Science was proving that the universe was not always as it is today – it indeed had a beginning, a “creation event”.

The Invention of the Computer, and Explosion of Knowledge since the 1950s

Large mainframe computers came on the scene in the late 1940’s and 50’s, to advance the war effort, and to assist in speeding calculations. Mainframe’s were followed by mini-computers in the 1970s, Personal Computer’s in the 1980s, and cell phones and other handheld devices in the 1990’s and into the 2,000s. Software, combined with these high speed calculators, has impacted every aspect of life in the past 70 years, literally transforming society through the increase in knowledge..

Knowledge is increasing like never before. On November 23, 2018, an op-ed entitled, “Knowledge doubles almost every day, and it’s set to increase,” was published online by the Digital Journal. In that article, Feras A. Batarseh of the London School of Economics points out:

Until year 1900, human knowledge approximately doubled every century. However, by 1950 human knowledge doubled every 25 years. In 2000, human knowledge would double every year. Now, our knowledge is almost doubling every day. (3)

Databanks of information are stored in data warehouses by large companies such as Google, Amazon, Microsoft and IBM. These massive data store houses hold “petabytes” of information, and with applications such as Google and other “search engines”, people can get almost instant answers on nearly any subject (except of course where security is concerned, and privacy laws prevent the sharing of such information).

This applies to both Biblical knowledge, as well as general knowledge.  Billions of people now have access to God’s written word, the Bible, thanks to automated printing presses, and bible societies that are lending a helping hand is getting the Scriptures out to billions around the world. When you factor in wireless communication, and the Internet, one can truly say that God’s Word is now available to just about everyone across the planet.  For example, Bible “Apps” can be downloaded to cell phones, and the Bible can be read on one’s phone in many different languages.  So knowledge of God’s Word has truly been “greatly increased”, and the words of this prophecy are no longer “sealed up”. Photo by Alena Darmel , Pexels. 

This literally means that Biblical knowledge, and knowledge in general, has increased like never before in history; strong evidence that this second aspect of the prophecy is now fulfilled. The words of the prophecy were to be sealed up until the time of the end. and then the angel added:

“None of the wicked shall understand,” said a holy angel sent from God,
“but the wise shall understand” (Dan. 12:10).

Are You Among the Wise? What is Your Decision?

This End Times prophecy is now coming true, indicating that we are in fact in the End Times.  The Lord Jesus is going to come back, you can bank on it.  Jesus said “when you see these signs, know that my coming is near, and I am even at the door”. Don’t be caught unprepared! 

The message is clear from the Bible:  Repent of your sins, and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ to be saved. Good works won’t save you, since even our best works are as “filthy rags” to a Holy God.  Other gods won’t save, as there is only one true, all powerful, all mighty God who exists in a complex unity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit:  The Father, the Alpha, the Creator; the Son who gave His life for human kind, the Redeemer and Image of the invisible God; and the Holy Spirit, the person that fills each believer who accepts Jesus, empowering them to live a godly life.

You were made for a purpose, and your daily walk with  Jesus will help you come to realize His purpose in your life and fulfill it.  If you don’t have a relationship with the living Lord, you can!  Give Jesus a  chance!  Don’t put it off.  Allow Him to come into your life and make you “a new creation”!   You have nothing to loose everything to gain.  Here is a  link to Billy Graham’s web site that can show you how you can invite Jesus into  your life and be the creation He has always intended you to be …

Take Me to Steps to Peace With God ==>  http://www.billygraham.org/SH_StepsToPeace.asp

Sources:

Prophecy News Watch: https://www.prophecynewswatch.com/article.cfm?recent_news_id=4358

Final Events of Bible Prophecy: https://www.finalevents.com/Event1/Sign10.asp?p=O

Skyscanner.com: https://www.skyscanner.com/tips-and-inspiration/how-travel-has-changed-in-the-past-100-years

Wikipedia: History of the Scientific Method – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_scientific_method

Destiny Image: Increase of Knowledge and Lack of Wisdom in the Last Days – https://www.destinyimage.com/blog/steve-wohlberg-an-increase-of-knowlege-in-the-last-days