Happy Martyrs and Sacrifice Day!

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Happy Martyrs and Sacrifice Day!

Bodie Hodge, M.Sc., B.Sc., PEI

Biblical Authority Ministries, December 29, 2025 (Donate)

And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. (Matthew 16:18, ESV)

Today is the fourth day of Christmas. The purpose of this holiday is to remember the Christians who have been exiled, murdered, and persecuted for their faith. In a sense it is like our modern “Memorial Day” and “Veteran’s Day” all wrapped up together, but for the “soldiers” of Christ.

As Christ marches forward in victory many have been killed along the way. We think back to the early days of the church and persecution that occurred then. Stephen, was martyred in the book of Acts (e.g., Acts 7:59).

Many Christians, like Paul and Peter, were beaten, stoned, imprisoned and/or killed for their faith. The apostles of Christ were largely put to death in horrible ways. Then there were the purges of Emperor Nero and persecution by Emperor Domitian.

Paul and Silas imprisoned in Acts 16:19-24; Image requested by Bodie Hodge (ChatGPT)

Until the Edict of Toleration (AD 311) and Edict of Milan (AD 313), Christians severely suffered. But it didn’t stop it. For 1000 years, Christians have been attacked and put to death for their faith. Consider the famous book that documents massive numbers of martyrs through the centuries: Foxes Book of Martyrs.

During the Reformation, many Christians were killed, one needs to simply consider the history of the Huguenots (French Protestants). And even today, Christians are slaughtered in Nigeria and arrested and silenced in the United Kingdom for their faith. In the USA, Christians are dragged into court for following their religion (e.g., Jack, the baker, Phillips). Even I’ve been persecuted in various ways.

This is time a to pray for the leaders of the local church, whether pastoral, elders, deacons, or even for those in parachurch ministries, missions organizations, and evangelists. You may never know the extent of persecution they receive behind the scenes.

In the past, many used to give gifts as a tradition to the pastoral leaders on Martyrs and Sacrifice Day as way of encouraging them to stand firm and be bold for Christ in the midst of all the trials and tribulation that they face. But also do not forget to pray for those who do the persecuting—pray that they repent and received Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. (Matthew 5:44, ESV)

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Bodie Hodge, Ken Ham's son in law, has been an apologist since 1998 helping out in various churches and running an apologetics website. He spent 21 years working at Answers in Genesis as a speaker, writer, and researcher as well as a founding news anchor for Answers News. He was also head of the Oversight Council.  

Bodie launched Biblical Authority Ministries in 2015 as a personal website and it was organized officially in 2025 as a 501(c)(3). He has spoken on multiple continents and hosts of US states in churches, colleges, and universities. He is married with four children. 

 

Revelation Day 25

Who is the lawless one/Man of Lawlessness (2 Thessalonians 2:8-9) and antichrist(s) (1 John 2:18-22, 1 John 4:3, 2 John 1:7)?

Day 25

B. Hodge, M.Sc., B.Sc., PEI

Biblical Authority Ministries, June 18, 2020 (Donate)

Many equate the lawless one with “The Antichrist” (and even the beast of Revelation). Though, this is not without warrant as the man of lawlessness would be an antichrist by definition.

Antichrists

It was John that mentioned antichrist(s) exclusively (1 John 2:18-22; 1 John 4:3; 2 John 1:7). An antichrist is anyone who denies that Jesus is the Christ or that Christ has not come in the flesh; in their denial of the Son, they also deny the Father (1 John 2:22, 1 John 4:3). According to John, the spirit of the antichrist was already in the world (1 John 4:3) in his day.

Many had reported to John that the antichrist was coming and John pointed out that it was the last hour and many antichrists had already come/appeared. Perhaps they had missed or overlooked them. So what we can learn is that there are many antichrists and perhaps one specific one is in mind in this passage. So, the man of sin was an antichrist with little doubt.

Man of Lawlessness/Man of Sin

In 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12, Paul points out that the “man of sin” or “lawless one” was being restrained, would be revealed, would fall away, and be destroyed.  It was clearly a man living at the time of Paul’s writing (vs. 6-7) and the coming of the Lord (in judgment which happened in A.D. 70)[1] would not occur until these things Paul penned had come to pass. This limits the man of lawlessness to a timeframe prior to A.D. 70.

But let’s consider the very basis of the name: “lawless” one. Who was the only person in the known world at the time of Paul’s writing to the Thessalonians who was not bound to any law? It was the emperor of Rome (i.e., the beast of Revelation). Such a ruler was the law, or more appropriately, above the law and acted as such. Of course, this is inherently a rebellion against God and His Law (1 Timothy 1:9-11). But this makes the emperor a man of sin, since he opposed the law of God.

The identity of the man of lawlessness would be another name for that of Nero Caesar (Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus) who reigned from A.D. 54-68 to be precise, whose actions were actually quite favorable to Christians initially. Paul even appealed to Caesar in Rome, to which, he was acquitted (beginning in Acts 25:11) by Nero. Even Christians were in Nero’s own household (Philippians 4:22).

There was a change in Nero, where his rage turned against Christians in A.D. 64. He blamed them for burning Rome, though it was likely set by Nero himself, as attested to by several including Tacitus, a senator and historian of Rome. Keep in mind that the mind of an unbeliever is blinded and not able to discern a proper understanding of biblical things (e.g., John 12:40, Romans 1:18-28, Romans 11:7-25, 2 Corinthians 3:7-16, 2 Corinthians 4:4, Ephesians 4:17-19, Titus 1:15-16, 2 Timothy 2:23-26).

Paul was again imprisoned and ultimately killed by Nero in A.D. 68 by being beheaded as afforded from testimony such as early Christian historian Eusebius.[2] After killing Peter and Paul and many other Christians in violent and unspeakable ways, this set the stage for both Roman persecution of the church and unleashed the Jewish persecution to be unrestrained by Rome as well. He was permitted to do this for 42 months (Revelation 13:5). Nero committed suicide later in A.D. 68 (after Paul was killed) after three and half years (interestingly, this is 42 months) of intense blasphemies and persecution; and so he was destroyed.

Nero was in the world at the time, being restrained, revealed, fell away, and was destroyed. Nero’s comparison with the description of the man of lawlessness is striking.

Re-read 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12.

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[1] Note the recipients of the letter knew that the coming of the Lord was not the end of the world/last day for they were already distressed that the coming had already taken place! And clearly, the world hadn’t ended. It is in the context of judgment as many other “comings” of the Lord. 

[2] Eusebius, Hist, Eccles. lib. ii. cap. 25

Revelation Day 23

Who is the beast? And whose number is 666? 

Day 23

B. Hodge, M.Sc., B.Sc., PEI

 Biblical Authority Ministries, June 16, 2020 (Donate)

Read Daniel 7.

The four beasts are empires as Daniel pointed out. As history unfolded, they were:

1.     Babylonian Empire

2.     Media-Persian Empire

3.     Greek Empire

4.     Roman Empire

The first beast was Babylon with which Daniel was currently familiar and living during.Then he point out that the second beast is of Media and Persia (Daniel 8:20). The third beast is Greece and the horn between the eye of that third beast was its first King and then Greece would break into four kingdoms after this king (Daniel 8:21-22). True to the prophecy, Alexander the Great conquered and rose in power to form the Grecian Empire. Due to his early death, the Greek Empire broke into four parts (1) Seleucid Asia, (2) Ptolemaic Egypt, (3) Lysimachus Thrace, and (4) Macedonia-Greece), none with power that Alexander had. 

The fourth beast encompassed them all. The beast during the writing of the book of John is the Roman Empire (the fourth beast of Daniel, Daniel 7:23). Christ lived under this beast and the Jews swore allegiance to the beast over the Kings of Kings, Jesus Christ (John 19:12-15).  The Empire of Rome devoured all these other kingdoms and though we know its provinces, Rome's power extended far beyond by controlling trade to India and China. Even unconquered lands like Scotland and Germany were influenced by Rome to such a degree that the Latin alphabet of Rome still dominates their lands today. Interestingly, even the Romans were familiar with the Americas about 2,000 years ago after a Roman shipwreck in Nova Scotia, Canada was discovered, among other Roman relics being found in pre-colonial archaeological digs.  

So Rome is without a doubt, the beast in question. See also: Revelation 17:7-10; 13:1-7, 13:18. But individually, the head/king of the empire is also the specific beast in charge (Daniel 7:17). At the time, this is Nero, the first major Roman persecutor of the Christians after the resurrection and in vicious ways no less (more on this in a moment). Revelation 17:9-10:

"Here is the mind which has wisdom: The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits." There are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, and the other has not yet come. And when he comes, he must continue a short time. (NKJV)

Roman Emperors:

1.     Julius Caesar 48 B.C. – 44 B.C. (murdered by Senators, the name Caesar is the standard name given to subsequent emperors[1])

2.     Augustus 31 B.C. – A.D. 14

3.     Tiberius A.D. 14-37

4.     Caligula Gaius A.D. 37-41

5.     Claudius A.D. 41-54

6.     Nero (arguably led the most viscous persecution/tribulation to the church ever with Peter and Paul even being executed) A.D. 54-68

7.     Galba (short reign of only 6 months) A.D. 68-69

8.     Otho A.D. 69

9.     Vitellius A.D. 69

10.  Vespian A.D. 69-79

11.  Titus A.D. 79-81

12.  Domitian A.D. 81-96

Nero was the sixth emperor (five had fallen before him) and the emperor that came after him reigned only a short time.[2] At the time of the apostles, who would wage a war against Rome (Revelation 13:4)? It would be almost ludicrous. The only one capable of war against Rome is God. And yet, there was severe persecution by Nero (Rome) and the Jews (Israel) on Christians, who are the very "sons of God" (Galatians 3:26).

Revelation 17:7-9 point out that that the beast being ridden by the harlot sits on seven hills/mountains (Remember the Jews of Jerusalem with the High Priest said to Christ Himself that they were aligned with the head of the beast, Caesar—John 19:15). Rome is the only famed city of antiquity that sits on seven hills. The Roman Empire was that beast.

Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666. (NKJV, Revelation 13:18)

In ancient times, it was common that letters were assigned a numerical value. Some people would even go by their number such as Octavius (which means 8th) as their name. Regarding 666, Neron Caesar (Hebrew spelling and popularly attested to in archaeology) is the one specified.  Jastrow’s Lexicon of the Talmud: Nrwn Qsr (Neron Caesar) = 666 (n=50; r=200, w=6, n=50, q=100, s=60, r=200) affirms this addition. 

This is a human number since it pertains to a man, the head of the beast and the persona of the beast at the time. Even money bore his image that you used to buy and sell things.

Nero is the lawless one (no authority over him and he could do what he wanted) and initially was being held back (even Paul appealed to him and Nero set him free the first time, Paul’s allusion to one of his releases is in 2 Timothy 4:14-17; see also Revelation 13:2) and had Christians in his own household (Philippians 4:22) but after some time he turned on Christians even killing Paul and Peter and did unspeakable crimes against Christians when he was no longer held back.  

Rome was that fourth beast and Nero, the head of the beast, is a striking fit—they were persecuting the saints terribly (Daniel 7:21-22, 7:25). But it does call for wisdom to understand. 

Read Revelation 13 

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[1] The name Caesar also became the name of kings after this including variation such as Kaisers, Tsar, Cisar, Kesar, etc.)

[2] If someone argues that you can’t begin with Julius Caesar as the first emperor of Rome, the date is still prior to A.D. 7-0 as four emperors reigned in A.D. 69. 

Revelation Day 8

When is the tribulation to take place? Were the churches that John was writing to undergoing persecution, suffering, and tribulation as well?

Day 8

B. Hodge, M.Sc., B.Sc., PEI

Biblical Authority Ministries, May 25, 2020 (Donate)

Many places in Revelation indicate the churches were already undergoing tribulation and suffering: Revelation 2:9-10; 3:9-10; 6:9-11; 11:7-18; 12:10; 13:10; 14:11-13; 16:5-6; 17:6; 18:20-24; 19:2; 20:4-6.

According to John, he is living in the tribulation as of the writing of the book of Revelation (Revelation 1:9). Furthermore, Jesus previously told the disciples in Matthew 24:9 that they will be delivered “up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake.”

And so this confirms that the apostles, such as John, will be in it. John was banished to Patmos (where he wrote Revelation) for Christ’s name’s sake (Revelation 1:9). Peter and Paul were killed by the Roman emperor, Nero, per early Christian historian Eusebius (II.25).

Mark 13:19-24 also confirms that disciples will be in the tribulation. Even Paul informed those at Thessalonica that the tribulation would come and had forewarned them. He writes to them while they were undergoing it (1 Thessalonians 3:1-6). So this should call into question the interpretation that the recipients of the letter of Revelation would have had in mind a tribulation in the far future.

Read Revelation 10:11-18:24. (Yes again, this seems like a lot to read but remember once again, it is only a small part of a letter—Day 26 will help explain some of the imagery here but I wanted you to have an initial read in preparation.)

Revelation Day 4

When was the book of Revelation written and does this relate to the seventy weeks of Daniel?

Day 4

B. Hodge, M.Sc., B.Sc., PEI

Biblical Authority Ministries, May 21, 2020 (Donate)

Typically, there are two basic dates that are given as answers to this question:

1.     The Late Date: A.D. 95-96

2.     The Early Date: Prior to A.D. 70 (more in alignment with about A.D. 64-68)

See Table 1: Millennial Views in Day 2 for who believes which. One can find a few within each camp who do not necessarily hold to these dates. The sources of these two dates for the writing of the book of Revelation comes from:

1: Irenaeus, a church father in the second century (A.D. 175-180) claiming the date of mid A.D 90s during the end of the reign of Emperor Domitian.[1]

2: It comes from Revelation 17:7-11 for the date prior to A.D. 70, having the sixth king of the beast (Rome) currently in power and that the Temple was mentioned in Revelation and not destroyed yet (e.g., Revelation 11:1-2)—which occurred in A.D. 70.  

The sixth emperor of Rome was Nero who killed himself in A.D. 68. The emperor who followed after reigned a very short time (about 7 months). Note the difference, one date comes from a man separated from the events and author of the book of Revelation and the other date comes from the pages of Scripture.

Read Daniel 9.

This topic relates to Daniel as well (Daniel 9:24-27). Specifically, the vision God gave him to build on Jeremiah’s vision (Daniel 9:2) of 70 years. Daniel was told 70 weeks. But what was a week? By the context of Jeremiah and Daniel, it was 70 “sevens” or 490 years to be precise. Then God would seal up vision and prophecy (Daniel 9:24) and desolations would occur in both the Holy City (that is, Jerusalem per Nehemiah 11:1, Isaiah 52:1), and the sanctuary (that is, the Temple; e.g., 1 Kings 6:19) per Daniel 9:26. 

The commencement of the 70 weeks begins when the decree is given to restore and rebuild Jerusalem (Daniel 9:25), which occurred in Ezra 1:1 fulfilling the prophecy in Isaiah 44:28 and ending Jeremiah’s 70 years of captivity. The end is when the Temple and Jerusalem were left desolate in A.D. 70 (Mark 13:14, Matthew 22:7, Luke 21:20). Consider that in the book of Revelation, the Temple was still standing (e.g., Revelation 11:1-2).

This gives a timeframe for when vision and prophecy would stop [and hence, there would be no more Scripture after that date (Daniel 9:24)]. This is further elucidated in Psalm 74.

Read Psalm 74:1-12

When Herod’s Temple (an expansion of the Second Temple/Zerubbabel’s Temple) was destroyed and things were smashed to pieces in the sanctuary and burned the Temple and its items were taken and destroyed. This was also when Judea was ravished with meeting places (synagogues) being obliterated. This fulfilled what is stated in Psalm 74:1-12 since there would no longer be any prophets after this desolation.

This is not in reference to the captivity, when the first Temple was destroyed since the items in the Temple were removed and carried away (2 Kings 24:11-13) [as opposed to being destroyed except the gold articles] by Nebuchadnezzar; and prophets, like Ezekiel, Daniel, Jeremiah, and Obadiah lived through this first destruction and continued prophesying in Babylon and Persia. Many items later returned to the Temple.

When the Temple and Jerusalem were left desolate in A.D. 70 with its articles destroyed or carried away and then destroyed, it would seal up vision and prophecy. Essentially, the canon of Scripture would be sealed from that point until Christ returns on that final day, the Second Coming (prophets and apostles were responsible for the prophetic Scripture through the Holy Spirit[2]). 

So Revelation, or any other book of Scripture, must have been written prior to this (A.D. 70) or they are not Scripture.[3] But they are Scripture so the conclusion is that Revelation, and any other New Testament book, must have been written prior to A.D. 70. These biblical evidences do not support the late date.

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[1] Irenaeus, Against Heresies, 5:30:3 ~A.D. 175–180; Although, there has been some dispute as to the meaning of the Greek phrase as to whether it referred to the vision or to John being around in the reign of Domitian. Most take it as the vision since church historian Eusebius (4^th century) took it that way. 

[2] Bodie Hodge, A Look at the Canon, Answers in Genesis, January 23, 2008, https://answersingenesis.org/the-word-of-god/a-look-at-the-canon/.

[3] Thus any alleged prophetic book that came after this such as the Koran, Book of Mormon, Watchtower publication and so on are not Scripture.