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Things to watch in September

There are reports of significant meetings going on in Jerusalem from September 4-23, 2016 between the leaders of different religions. This includes Pope Francis. However, I cannot find any site where Pope Francis is planning a visit to Jerusalem this year. So this is likely to be misinformation designed to stir up trouble and spread Elijah Fever.

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/17443

“There is also news coming out of Israel that a Kohen Gadol, or High Priest, has been selected to lead the sacrificial system. The last official High Priest appears to have served from 67-70 A.D., roughly around the time of the destruction of the Temple. This High Priest was the last of the Herodian dynasty of the Levitical Priesthood, known for being highly corrupt, especially under Caiaphas and his interaction with the Lord Jesus. This is a monumental appointment, showing the nearness of the Third Temple.

“This high priest might begin his services on September 4-5, 2016, according to an article posted to Breaking Israel News.” 

A Jewish high priest doing animal sacrifices would be the abomination of desolation, if they really did this. Yet such reports are designed to support the common Christian view that the Jews are Israel and that everyone should prepare for a return to the Old Covenant and the priesthood of Levi.

A year ago, on September 9, 2015, Pope Francis was tried in absentia by the Sanhedrin in Jerusalem for backing a Palestinian state.

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/17443

Are we now to believe that Pope Francis will be visiting the place where he was tried? There is something not quite right about all of this. It would be hard to hide a papal visit of any importance. If the idea is to create a one-world religion, as is claimed, it seems to me that this would be something the media would publicize with glee.

Furthermore, Pope Francis was in Rome on September 4 canonizing Mother Teresa. It is not likely that he would immediately fly to Jerusalem the same day to attend an ecumenical conference.

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2016/09/04/thousands-gather-for-canonization-mother-teresa.html

Nonetheless, many prophecy teachers in past centuries pointed to the year 2016 as the year when the Roman Church would fall. Here is a 15-minute video that documents 12 of those teachers from the 1700’s and 1800’s. Their view was based on the 1260-year cycle from 756 A.D. to 2016. The year 756 was the year of Pepin’s donation of land to the Vatican, giving the popes civil rule over the so-called “Papal States.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AkHpdMhn29Q&feature=youtu.be

I too wrote about Pepin’s donation in my commentary on Daniel: Prophet of the Ages. I included a whole section on this topic in Book 2, chapter 8.

My understanding is that Pepin made his agreement with the pope in 754, conquered the land in the next two years, and then finally gave it to the pope in 756. So 1260 years from these dates are 2014-2016. For this reason, 2016 is certainly a year to watch the Vatican and the actions of the current pope. And September/October are perhaps the most important months to watch in 2016.

If there is anything to the date of September 23, 2016, which is the supposed final day of this ecumenical council in Jerusalem, it may be connected to our Jubilee declaration in 1996. We made that declaration on September 23, 1996, precisely 20 years ago.

On another topic, I have talked about the 15-year Hezekiah extension cycle from 2001-2016. Perhaps the most important watch date is September 11. As I was studying the writings of Josephus yesterday, I came across one peculiar fact about the fall of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. that may be significant to 2016. Here is what Josephus writes:

“And thus was Jerusalem taken, in the second year of the reign of Vespasian, on the eighth day of the month Gorpieus [Elul].” (Wars of the Jews, VI, x, 1)

Gorpieus was the name of the Roman month corresponding to the Hebrew month of Elul. I was curious to know where the 8^th day of Elul fell in 2016. It is September 11, 2016 by the normal Jewish reckoning. Perhaps it is just a coincidence, but it could be significant.