The False Prophet - Ellis Skolfield (free)

[Pete]

There is no book more important for a Christian to read, to understand the content of this forum, and the state of this world today, than The False Prophet. It is absolutely free, and fun to read too!

The False Prophet
Ellis Skolfield has written about the central role of Islam in the end-times for over 27 years.
Free book in several languages:
http://www.beholdthebeast.com/the_false_prophet.htm
Read for free directly in HTML:
http://www.beholdthebeast.com/contents_tfp.htm
Hard copies:
http://www.ellisskolfield.net/books

[Eric Chambers]

Great book and have read it several times!!

[caracasmc]

This material is new for me but very interesting.  A couple things I have questions about is that in regards to the book of Revelation, Ellis seems to spiritualize most of it, ie; the harps, bowls, trumpets, etc but yet then he chooses certain elements to say are real and natural events.  I wonder how he decides what is meant to be a spiritual revelation and what is meant to be taken in the natural realm.  Who decides which parts to take spiritually and which to take as natural events?  That was odd to me.  For instance, the battle of Armageddon is a spiritual battle, but the hail storms are rockets raining down on Israel.  How do we know which are in the spirit and which are in the natural?

Can someone comment on that. 

[Peter]

This material is new for me but very interesting.  A couple things I have questions about is that in regards to the book of Revelation, Ellis seems to spiritualize most of it,......

You will understand that isn't true as you read on.

...... ie; the harps, bowls, trumpets, etc but yet then he chooses certain elements to say are real and natural events.

Revelation, after chapter 3 is a prophetic vision. Dreams and visions in prophecy are written in figurative language. Generally the definitions of the figures are explained elsewhere in scripture. Like the leopard, bear and lion, for example.
http://islamchristianforum.com/index.php?topic=12.0

I wonder how he decides what is meant to be a spiritual revelation and what is meant to be taken in the natural realm.  Who decides which parts to take spiritually and which to take as natural events?

Scripture does. Prophetic visions have their own language. If you try to take it half literally and half figuratively, it would be like trying to get a point across to a German when you only speak half the words in German and speak the other half in English.

Also you will find that The False Prophet employs a hermeneutically sound approach.

That was odd to me.  For instance, the battle of Armageddon is a spiritual battle, but the hail storms are rockets raining down on Israel.

That was a speculation. But the fact is that rockets are not hail stones, are they? He saw that as another figure. I view the fire coming down from the sky perhaps as something like bombs in Iraq, but it could also be a reference to something as simple as catapulted fireballs which date at least as early as the Crusades.
The figurative language of dreams and visions can and does have literal fulfillment.

Don't get distracted by smaller details, but start with the big concepts first, and then work your way down to them.
Secondly, the biggest mistake that futurists make is contradicting portions of scripture that ARE NOT open to interpretation, with interpretations of figurative language from dreams and visions in prophecy that are WIDELY open to interpretation.
http://islamchristianforum.com/index.php?topic=103.0

How do we know which are in the spirit and which are in the natural?
Can someone comment on that.  

It would save a lot of time if you finish the book first. It is a brick by brick empirical argument that must be judged completely on it's own merit.
It is within an entire context - the continuous-historic or as Ellis says linear-historic context - so you will not get very far if you try to wring it through the filter of futurist or preterist eschatology.
http://islamchristianforum.com/index.php?topic=14.0

Also it's good to become familiar with the roots of your current view.
http://islamchristianforum.com/index.php?topic=499.0

I believe that if you read The False Prophet with and open mind - as a child - and don't carry any doctrinal baggage into it, you will be as blessed by it as the rest of us. Every day after the truth of scripture becomes evermore apparent.

[resistingrexmundi]

I believe that if you read The False Prophet with and open mind - as a child - and don't carry any doctrinal baggage into it, you will be as blessed by it as the rest of us. Every day after the truth of scripture becomes evermore apparent.

Please heed Peter's words on this. I was a card carrying futurist for many years. I read and re-read those left behind books over and over again. I had read older books like 666 and 1000 before those. And you know what happened? I found that as I read scripture I began to read into it what I had learned, not from scripture, but from those novels. WHY? Because that was what everyone was saying. Fortunately my father planted the first few seeds of doubt in my mind at a young enough age that I was able to come out of that doctrine.

I am beginning to believe there has been special effort made spiritually to keep people from reading this book. I have friends and family members who are dedicated Christians and normally would read anything I recommended. But not this book. It isn't because of theological differences it is , "Well I had this to do today." or " I had to go there today." excuse after excuse, and none of them good. This has been going on for the better part of a year. This may not seem that odd to you  but it is extremely odd to me because never before have I encountered this from them. So please read it in its' entirety and do not skip around. It is important to understand the foundational concepts before you get to the more interprative stuff. You will find that Ellis is very careful to seperate speculation from biblical fact.

God bless

[Peter]

I am beginning to believe there has been special effort made spiritually to keep people from reading this book. I have friends and family members who are dedicated Christians and normally would read anything I recommended. But not this book. It isn't because of theological differences it is , "Well I had this to do today." or " I had to go there today." excuse after excuse, and none of them good. This has been going on for the better part of a year.

That is interesting. My sister and her husband had the book in their possession for over a year before reading it, even though they weren't married to any particular eschatology, but once she did finally read it it set them both on fire!
She's going around passing out books now.
But even though she had TONS of time on her hands, she didn't get around to reading it. I think you're right. The enemy at work.

[Peter]

Well I made a mess of that. I split only your post, rather than having it include resisting's post.

I thought it would make a good thread on it's own. I will move it to the "continuous historic" section.

I moved it to this link.  
http://islamchristianforum.com/index.php?topic=1289.0

[PeteWaldo]

bump