Jeremiah 49:19-21 “Behold, he shall come up like a lion from the pride of the Jordan against the strong habitation: for I will suddenly make them run away from it; and whoso is chosen, him will I appoint over it: for who is like me?and who will appoint me a time? And who is the shepherd that will stand before me? Therefore hear ye the counsel of Jehovah, that he hath taken against Edom; and his purposes, that he hath purposed against the inhabitants of Teman: Surely they shall drag them away, even the little ones of the flock; surely he shall make their habitation desolate over them. The earth trembleth at the noise of their fall; there is a cry, the noise whereof is heard in the Red Sea.”
Jeremiah 50:44-46 “Behold, the enemy shall come up like a lion from the pride of the Jordan against the strong habitation: for I will suddenly make them run away from it; and whoso is chosen, him will I appoint over it: for who is like me? and who will appoint me a time?: and who is the shepherd that can stand before me? Therefore hear ye the counsel of Jehovah, that he hath taken against Babylon; and his purposes, that he hath purposed against the land of the Chaldeans: Surely they shall drag them away, even the little ones of the flock; surely he shall make their habitation desolate over them. At the noise of the taking of Babylon the earth trembleth, and the cry is heard among the nations.”
Comment: Note here that the verses pertaining to the fall of Babylon are identical to those of the prophecies against Edom. The only difference in the end result is the area that is affected. From Jeremiah 49:18 we realize that the destruction of Edom, like that of Babylon, has not happened, because there are people still living there; Edom is not yet like the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. It is possible that the events of these two prophecies transpire at the same time, as the Scriptures seem to connect these two passages with their wording. Israel is promised areas of land after the fall of Babylon that they do not enjoy today. For this to become a reality, a restructuring of the Middle East must take place.
Revelation 13:1-3 “and he stood upon the sand of the sea. And I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns, and seven heads, and on his horns ten diadems, and upon his heads names of blasphemy. And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his throne, and great authority. And I saw one of his heads as though it had been smitten unto death; and his death-stroke was healed: and the whole earth wondered after the beast.”
Comment: The ten horns hate the whore, which is Babylon. They make her desolate and burn her with fire (Revelation 17:16). The ten horns have not received their kingdoms yet (Revelation 17:12). “And the ten horns that thou sawest are ten kings, who have received no kingdom as yet; but they receive authority as kings, with the beast, for one hour.” This same beast receives a mortal wound to one of its seven heads. It should be noted that the beast is in its near completed form when this happens. The seven heads and ten horns are in place, thus it could be any one of the seven that receives the mortal wound. We also know this beast is Israel’s number one enemy. It is only through God’s protection that Israel is allowed to survive.
Isaiah 48:5-6 “therefore I have declared it to thee from of old; before it came to pass I showed it thee; lest thou shouldest say, Mine idol hath done them, and my graven image, and my molten image, hath commanded them. Thou hast heard it; behold all this; and ye, will ye not declare it? I have showed thee new things from this time, even hidden things, which thou has not known.”
Comment: God’s deliverance is prophesied to them, but they have not heard it. God’s prophecies are given to Israel so that when they are fulfilled, Israel will not be able to claim victory through her own strength. Thus, it is possible that the mortal wound to the beast is mentioned in the prophecies, but we just haven’t seen the connection yet. Israel is told of her deliverance in the context of the fall of Babylon.
Jeremiah 49:34-39 “The word of Jehovah that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning Elam, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying, Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: Behold, I will break the bow of Elam, the chief of their might. And upon Elam will I bring the four winds from the four quarters of heaven, and will scatter them toward all those winds; and there shall be no nation whither the outcasts of Elam shall not come. And I will cause Elam to be dismayed before their enemies, and before them that seek their life; and I will bring evil upon them, even my fierce anger, saith Jehovah; and I will send the sword after them, till I have consumed them; and I will set my throne in Elam, and will destroy from thence king and princes, saith Jehovah. But it shall come to pass in the latter days, that I will bring back the captivity of Elam, saith Jehovah.”
Comment: This is another one of the prophecies written in the same style as those about Babylon that has no clear fulfillment, yet Elam is there in the latter days. Could it be that these prophecies that are written with the same style as that of Babylon happen at the same time? A possible explanation of this prophecy could be as follows: Babylon is destroyed by a massive atomic bomb. The wind carries the radioactive debris eastward over Elam, which is current day Iran. The people living there are contaminated. To get the necessary medical attention they will be sent to every country of the world. They will continue to die because they were exposed to radiation. However, after time has passed people will be allowed to return to their homes when the radiation is no longer a threat. A king is raised up (the little horn), before which three other kings fall. This prophecy could be a description of the mortal wound to one of the heads of the end-time beast.
Summary: The Mortal Wound
The Scriptures are clear that certain events will happen. God does not give all the exact details, as mankind would, then seek to change them. The mortal wound to one of the heads of the beast will identify the end-time beast. God has given various prophecies concerning those countries that are clearly part of the Nebuchadnezzar image. Interestingly, some of these have no historical record of having been completed. This is especially true in the prophecy of Elam, yet, at the same time, Elam is there in the latter days.
God tells Israel, in the context of the fall of Babylon, of their deliverance ahead of time, so when it comes to pass they will not be able to say they were delivered by their own strength. In Revelation, Chapter 17 we are told Babylon rides on the end-time beast. However this beast is not in its final form. Its 10 horns have not yet received kingdoms, but receive authority as kings, nonetheless. Also, it does not yet have a mortal wound to one of the heads. The 10 horns hate Babylon and expose her and burn her with fire. My conclusion is that the fall of Babylon causes the mortal wound to the former kingdom of Persia (Iran). It will also remove the power against Israel from the surrounding countries.
