Interesting part of an E-mail

[Gwizz]

Part of an Interesting e-mail I received from a friend.

"The following verse is from the Koran, (the Islamic Bible)

Koran ( 9:11 ) - For it is written that a son of Arabia would awaken a fearsome Eagle. The wrath of the Eagle would be felt throughout the lands of Allah and lo, while some of the people trembled in despair still more rejoiced; for the wrath of the Eagle cleansed the lands of Allah;

And there was peace.
(Note the verse number!) Hmmmmmmm?!"

[Hawk]

I don't know about the Islamic Bible but in the Christian Bible, the eagle is the United States.

[Redband]

Another false one.

http://www.snopes.com/politics/war/quran911.asp

[Wolverine@MSU]

I don't know about the Islamic Bible but in the Christian Bible, the eagle is the United States.

I was unaware of the fact that the United States existed when the Bible was written.

[Hawk]

I was unaware of the fact that the United States existed when the Bible was written.

It didn't. Referring to the US as the eagle is part of a prophecy.

Thanks for checking Snopes Redband. I generally do that. I guess I got a little lazy last night.

[Wolverine@MSU]

Referring to the US as the eagle is part of a prophecy.

Referring to the US as the eagle is someone's interpretation of the symolism in a prophesy. The eagle is (was) also the symbol of the Russian and Austrian empires (and probably others, including Imperial Rome), so it could just as well refer to them couldn't it?

[Hawk]

I'm trying to find that reference. I'll get back to you on this.
Sorry! I don't know the Bible as good as I should.

[Gwizz]

I remember the eagle of some prophesy being referenced as being the USA.

True "....the eagle is someone's interpretation of the symolism in a prophesy."

Over time, the bible has been interpreted in many different ways. All we have to do is look at how many different churches we have where people must use blind faith to fortify their different beliefs for the same verse.

It looks like the quote I posted is not a fact but a fabrication THAT HAS BEEN AROUND FOR A WHILE. Anyway it was interesting.

[Grandma Ruth]

Hope you don't mind an interloper in this essentially Christian discussion, but wasn't the eagle the symbol of Nazi Germany? A much better candidate for being an evil empire than the US, I would think!

[Hawk]

Referring to the US as the eagle is someone's interpretation of the symolism in a prophesy. The eagle is (was) also the symbol of the Russian and Austrian empires (and probably others, including Imperial Rome), so it could just as well refer to them couldn't it?

I thought Russia was the bear.
Anyway, I emailed a friend of mine who is a little more knowledgeable of this stuff. Below is a quote from his first reply.

I read the thread and the guy is right that it will be somebody's interpretation of Eagle which assigns it to the US. You may want to point the person to the video series as well. Irwin's best explaining his own theories. The verse which I can't recall at the moment refers to the Eagle pulling away from the Lion. The Lion like Eagle could represent a multitude of nations but most believe it refers to England. With the Eagle pulling away from the Lion (being separated when they were originally attached) is how Irwin proposes its the United States. All this is part of the series of scriptures which John recalls seeing a great beast. A beast in the Bible usually refers to great kingdoms. The countries your poster mentioned are true I guess but none of them are great kingdoms. That would be my answer to the fella but then I'm not scholarly when it comes to prophecy. All this is pretty new to me too and probably to most people since it's only recently much of what is written can be interpreted. But it's still interpretations, so that guy is right.

What he's referring to when he says 'since it's only recently much of what is written can be uninterpreted' is from Daniel 12:9, that says;

And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.

Here's the scriptures from the Bible I was thinking about. They're from Daniel 7:3-5

3 Four great beasts, each different from the others, came up out of the sea.

4 "The first was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. I watched until its wings were torn off and it was lifted from the ground so that it stood on two feet like a man, and the heart of a man was given to it.

5 "And there before me was a second beast, which looked like a bear. It was raised up on one of its sides, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. It was told, 'Get up and eat your fill of flesh!'

And here's another quote from that same friend from a second email.

The King James, which Irwin uses mostly, uses the word plucked instead of torn. He says if you think in terms of Great Britan being the Lion and the Revolution War, the colonies were ripped away from England (so to speak). Then with the rest of verse Irwin uses the illustration how when people think of the US, they think of it as Uncle Sam or a man on two feet given a heart as Uncle Sam is the embodiment of the US. Now keep in mind the Book of Revelation echoes these same beastly characters but it doesn't go into the detail of this like Daniel does. You have to piece together both Daniel and Revelation to get the big picture of what may take place in the End Times we speak of. Anyway, this is why I say it's best to just have the guy watch the video because Irwin describes this stuff pretty effectively. One last thing. The US being or not being in the Book of Revelation is fairly irrelevant to the message of the End Times. Like the Bear, the Lion and whatever, these kingdoms happen and they become intertwined of the doings that lead up to the ultimate day the Lord returns. So tell the fella that the focus isn't going to be on what the US does or doesn't do, but that it has a part in the last days. Sometimes people think of prophecy for prophecy sake like it's going to tell you your future. That's not what the books of the Bible do. They speak to what is to come. So it was never a big deal to me if the US was in the Bible or not. But to Irwin it is and his reasoning seems plausible.

The Irwin guy and the video he's referring to can be found at this link. Video
It's the first video in the series, just in case you're interested.

Bottom line Wolvy, it's a whole lot of text to say you're right, for the most part. I guess it depends on how someone wants to interpret it.

[Hawk]

Looks like you and I were posting at the same time Ruth.

[Canadian Viking]

I'm trying to find that reference. I'll get back to you on this.
Sorry! I don't know the Bible as good as I should.

Probably none of us know the Bible as well as we should. It is the pursuit of a lifetime. I'm curious about that reference when you find it, as I'm sure I heard or read that idea somewhere years ago, too. I'ld like to revisit the issue and see what I think of that particular interpretation now that I'm older.

[Hawk]

I'm trying to find that reference. I'll get back to you on this.
Sorry! I don't know the Bible as good as I should.

Probably none of us know the Bible as well as we should. It is the pursuit of a lifetime. I'm curious about that reference when you find it, as I'm sure I heard or read that idea somewhere years ago, too. I'ld like to revisit the issue and see what I think of that particular interpretation now that I'm older.

It's part of that long winded post of mine above.

[AZ Rail Rat]

I was a "Jesus Freak" back in the days when Hal Lindsey came out with "The Late Great Planet Earth". In fact, I and others hung around a Baptist preacher who went to seminary with him.

Hal said in the late '60s Jesus would come back and Armageddon would come in 1984 (or so). Everything he said (interpreted for us) made perfect sense to me, then. In 1984, when it did not come to pass, he said (in another book) it would be 199x . . . something. In 199x he said (in another book, on television and now on line) it would be . . . .

At his current accuracy rate, Hal will be meeting Jesus "up there" long before seeing him return down here.

I think Sam Kinison was right (paraphrased - not exact quote):
"Jesus has ALREADY 'come again' . . . He is in the heart of EACH AND EVERY Believer! Look there . . . not up in the sky."

[Hawk]

Hope you don't mind an interloper in this essentially Christian discussion, but wasn't the eagle the symbol of Nazi Germany? A much better candidate for being an evil empire than the US, I would think!

I guess Nazi Germany could be another interpretation but there's a lot of folks out there (even a bunch in the US) that think the US is the Evil Empire.
Who's to say?

I think Sam Kinison was right (paraphrased - not exact quote):
"Jesus has ALREADY 'come again' . . . He is in the heart of EACH AND EVERY Believer! Look there . . . not up in the sky."

That makes a lot of sense. I do believe in the Second Coming though. I guess if you're a true believer in Christ the details really don't matter.

[AZ Rail Rat]

I guess if you're a true believer in Christ the details really don't matter.

That's why I turned my focus to thinking about the "here and now" instead of what might be.

I'm waiting for 2012 - - - It will make Y2K look like a buffalo bull fart!

[Hawk]

I'm waiting for 2012 - - - It will make Y2K look like a buffalo bull fart!

[WPandP]

Correct me if I am wrong, but...

Wasn't Y2k actually a buffalo bull fart?

[Hawk]

Y2K was a whoopie cushion.

[wsherrick]

The eagle is the symbol for Rome and in the context of prophecy, it represents Rome as the area that encompassed the original Roman Empire, i.e. the North of Africa, the Near East and the Continent of Europe.