The following is originally published by Herescope and is republished here with permission:

In the context of the Jasher account, that story makes a whole lot more now sense doesn’t it? I mean think about it. Without Jasher, the story in Genesis 25 makes no sense at all.… After reading Jasher, you now completely understand what is going on and why. Esau had just killed the king of the world!By the way, the “valuable garments” that Nimrod had, “with which he prevailed over the whole land” were the original garments God made for Adam and Eve back in the garden… so here Esau has chopped off Nimrod’s head and stolen his “magic garments.” The rest of Nimrod’s “mighty men” were after him now. Esau came home famished from a very busy day! So, when Jacob says he wants his birthright, Esau basically said, “Look. What do I care about my birthright? I just killed King Nimrod! I’m a dead man. His warriors are probably coming for me as we speak. Just give me something to eat!” Esau was extremely vulnerable here and Jacob totally took advantage of the situation for his own selfish gain….The Fifth Trumpet blows, and the spirit of Apollyon (Apollo) ascends back into its former host body – Nimrod. Thus, empowered by the dragon himself, the Anti-Christ will rise. And his first order of business will be to kill the Two Witnesses! (p. 135, 258)[bold added]
(Rob Skiba, Babylon Rising, http://babylonrisingblog.com/PDF/Babylonrising.pdf)

The eschatological teachings of the postmodern evangelical church are in a state of revision and flux. It is no longer possible to categorize endtime teachings according to the old standard recognizable Postmillennialism, Amillennialism and Premillennialism. There are emerging permutations in these teachings, hybrid eschatologies that blend in New Ageevolutionary progression, quantum physics (including quantum spirituality), “incarnating” Christ, “Forerunner Eschatology,”science fiction, UFO lore, secret codes, and ancient pagan mythology, astrology and apocryphal writings. The result is a prophecy mish-mash. These strange new configurations of eschatology are apocalyptic in nature and go far beyond the descriptions found in Scripture alone. Postmodern endtime prophecy no longer reflects the humble Gospel message of salvation, nor does it find hope in the soon return of Jesus Christ.

There have been serious revisions to the classic Premilliennnial or Pre-Tribulation Rapture positions. These are such substantial changes as to render them barely recognizable. While many prominent evangelical prophecy teachers still profess a basic Premillennial view, in actuality many of them have mixed in extrabiblical teachings to such an extent that it substantially revises their position. Specifically, the Premillennial position has been added to with large amounts of extrabiblical material, especially including ancient apocryphal literature. This ancient apocalyptic literature serves as the foundation to all of their endtime scenarios. Building upon this unstable foundation the postmodern prophecy teachers add all sorts of other “spiritual” teachings.

The quotation at the top of this article is a perfect case in point. What started thirty years ago as intriguing speculations about difficult passages in the Bible has now turned into full-blown heresy. When prophecy leaders first began to examine apocryphal literature with curiosity, they cracked open the door to considering sources outside of Scripture. Little did they realize that within several decades a flood of occult teachings from the ancient pagan world would come pouring into the church. This ancient apocalyptic literature serves as an additional foundation for the endtime scenarios they create. It is no wonder that the History Channel’s miniseries version of The Bible can goes so far afield into fiction. After years of a steady diet of seeker-sensitive pap, people are desensitized, de-moralized, dumbed-down and don’t know their Holy Bible. And thus they are rendered receptive to these evocative enhancements to Scripture.

In the recently devised endtime scenarios there is a new focus. Attention is placed on cataclysmic events that include space aliens, Nephilim creatures, and other entities and deities – all of which are said to be coming to invade earth. Prophecy teachers are making extravagant claims about events they say will take place imminently. Some predicted dire cataclysms on 12-12-12. It didn’t happen, but that hasn’t deterred them from developing alternative future apocalyptic scenarios. The hype surrounding these proposed end-time scenarios is often accompanied by bizarre teachings borrowed directly from occult sources.[1]Prophecy has now turned speculative. That which stands written has turned into an apocalyptic wonderland. The novel apocalyptic teachers portray dramatic portents of doom and disaster that are far removed from plain Scripture. There seems to be an insatiable market for this kind of fear-mongering.

A noteworthy feature is the inclusion of apocalyptic America scenarios that drum up hysteria about how our nation will be ruined. This is actually a potent form of operant conditioning – the trigger creates a panic reaction; people want to “do” something to “fix” things before America is doomed. Create the crisis, propose the solution. Thus, drummed-up fear renders people more susceptible to potent solutions such as Dominionismor spiritual warfare. The focus is no longer on teaching the Gospel to those who are lost – a message of conviction and truth that would have a real and lasting impact on the terrible morals of our land’s inhabitants. Evangelicals are no longer “Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ,” (Titus 2:13).

Current Illustrations of Apocalyptic Hype
Biblical prophecy is being reinvented, changed over to apocalyptic scenarios. These predictions are characterized by sensationalism, bold and sweeping claims, wild speculations, vivid imagery and fantasy, and reliance upon extrabiblical and occult sources. Below are some examples.

In Doug Woodward’s 2012 book, Power Quest Book Two: the Ascendancy of Antichrist in America, in the section titled, “America’s Role in Eschatology—Rethinking the Standard Scenario,” he states what he means by “rethinking” prophecy. Woodward speculates:

…Christianity is an apocalyptic religion.……I have concluded that America is a major player, if not THE player in the ascending of the notorious figure the Bible calls, Antichrist…Many believe as I do now that America will play a vital role in the ‘end-times’ scenario… it is time to question certain core elements of the ‘traditional apocalyptic scenario’ that dispensationalists espouse; specially the place of America in Bible prophecy.

…I complete our study with a homily on why America is this Babylon.

…Furthermore, we have ultimately made the impossible probable. America—the land of the free and home of the brave—appears ready to become theinitial seat of power for the Beast of Revelation…the personage ofAntichrist appears destined to be revealed in America, pushing the world to the brink of the war to end all wars.[2] [bold added]

Jonathan Cahn… has recently written a best-selling book, The Harbinger: the Ancient Mystery that Holds the Secret of America’s Future, which delivers a remarkable prophetic message…. If we do not heed the harbinger,if we ignore the ‘omen’ singed into our mind’s eye on that September morn in 2001, we will experience an even more complete and utter destruction.[3] [emphasis added]

Tom Horn relies heavily on additions to Scripture, reinterpreting God’s Word to fit his extreme endtime notions. In his book,Nephilim Stargates: the Year 2012 and the Return of the Watchers, Horn explains a supposed end-times prophecy and “sign unto the Lord” regarding the return of fearsome “Nephilim.” Note how Horn borrows from occult sources for information about the Great Pyramid, and see how far these conclusions veer away from the plain Scripture in Rev. 21:16:

Not long ago a man whom I have come to know as a friend wrote a book called The Nephilim and the Pyramid of the Apocalypse. Patrick Heron published his study after delving into the history of the pyramids, seeking to explain who built the structures, how they acquired such mathematical and astronomical knowledge, and what advanced technology was used in the construction. The answer he came up with was astonishing: the pyramids were built by the Nephilim….The Great Pyramid was the only “pillar” standing on the border dividing Lower and Upper Egypt in Isaiah’s day, but why would the prophet point to it as a Last Days sign unto the Lord? Patrick answered me with the “shape” of things to come. He believes New Jerusalem is pyramidal, as opposed to cubic in shape, and that Watchers conveyed this design to the Nephilim following what they had seen in heaven.[4] [bold added]

Another case in point is an exchange that took place between radio host Derek Gilbert and author L.A. Marzulli at the “2012 Prophecy Summit” in Branson, Missouri regarding the time of the Lord’s return. A recurrent theme in all their apocalyptic scenarios is the return of Nephilim creatures, an idea extracted from ancient apocryphal literature. Notice how boldly these men go beyond Scripture in their speculations:

GILBERT:  Let me play devil’s advocate, so to speak, for a moment. Ah, there’s a parallel verse to the Matthew 24 verse—Luke 17:28. Ah, and it says, they were eating and drinking, marrying, being given in marriage—very similar to what you read in Matthew 24—till the day that Noah entered the ark and the Flood came and destroyed them all. Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot, they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, but on the day that Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulphur rained from heaven and destroyed them all. So it will be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed.Jesus didn’t specifically mention the Nephilim return…. He didn’t specifically say, ‘just as it was when the giants were roaming the land,’…He seems to indicate, and there are those who will interpret it this way, that what He meant was people just weren’t paying attention. They were running about, doing their thing, not paying attention to spiritual matters and suddenly, destruction comes down… So what then is it about Matthew 24 and Luke 17 that convinces you that what Jesus really meant was something He didn’t specifically say—was talking about the presence of Nephilim in the land in those days?

MARZULLI:  Well, the question is, when in that passage, who is ‘the they’? Who is ‘the they’ that are eating and drinking?… When we read in Genesis 6, ‘the they’ are not human beings. It says, ‘the sons of God saw the daughters of man,’ it’s referring to the B’nai HaElohim—which are the fallen angels! ‘They’ were eating and drinking and given in marriage. And that’s why I believe this is, this is what’s coming. This is what’s coming on the earth. In fact in some ways, it’s already here.[5] [bold added]

Author Douglas Hamp, during this same roundtable discussion, actually includes space aliens in his science fiction view of the Lord’s return. In his discussion of Revelation 19, notice how boldly he tosses in a few new doctrines to create an apocalyptic scenario involving warfare:

HAMP: I actually think it’s going to be something like this: that we’re going to have sort of a good alien and bad alien kind of thing. And the so-called good aliens will be those that will get there first, and they’re saying, ‘you know what, people of the world? You should be glad that we got here first. Cause there’s a hostile alien force that’s hot on our tracks. They’re going to be here in about seven years. And if we get busy, and, ah, get to work, and start making you guys into Nephilim, then we can overcome them. And, uh, so you need to be changed, because when they come, they’re going to try to take away your way of life. They’re going to try to stop you from having all that fun. And we can overcome them together.’[6] [bold added]

How do these men arrive at such preposterous prophetic scenarios? Doug Hamp claims biblical support for his strange ideas from 2 Peter and Jude, but in reality he extrapolates this from ancient extrabiblical apocryphal sources. During the same roundtable discussion, Hamp adds to Jesus’ statement ‘as it was in the days of Noah’ by claiming that there will be a “hybrid race” on earth. Note his use of apocryphal sources:

HAMP:  And then if you go and look at every ancient commentator—especially the Jewish ones. They unanimously talk about how in Genesis Chapter 6 that it was fallen angels that came down and had relations with women. Ah, if you go look at Philo here, Mr. Allegory himself. And yet he says it was the fallen angels that came and had relations—he says that the Nephilim were the procreation of two natures, that is, angels and women. He makes it very, very clear. Josephus says essentially the same thing. We see the Genesis apocrypha. We see the Targamim, the Aramaic Targamim…. Whoa! Seriously, this is pretty scary because that means that fallen angels are gonna come down, and they’re gonna create a hybrid race, just like it was in the days of Noah.[7]Rob Skiba, whose quote is at the top of this article, acknowledges his use of ancient writings outside the Canon of Holy Scripture[8] and has also written about an apocalyptic America:

While I do believe that the Holy Bible is Divinely inspired and written by men, I do not necessarily hold to the idea that only the 66 books we now have in our (Protestant) bibles are the sole Divinely inspired books of antiquity.[9][bold added]

America, we need to wake up! There is an evil agenda at work, and our country is leading the way in making it happen. As I said before, I now strongly believe that America’s sole purpose has been to bring about the rise of Babylon and the return of the Antichrist!…

Indeed, I believe the United States is destined to be the driving force behind the resurrection of Nimrod.[10]

The Original Apocalyptic Source Material

These postmodern prophecy masters borrow heavily from ancient apocryphal writings to make their case. What are these writings? What is their history? How do they alter biblical prophecy? Dr. Martin Erdmann in his classic work The Millennial Controversy in the Early Church (Wipf & Stock, 2005),[11] delineates the differences between prophecy and apocalyptic teachings in the early church.[12] The decline in interest in prophetic literature within the Scriptures alone led to a rise in interest in an apocalyptic sourced outside of the Canon.[13] In his book Dr. Erdmann explains the difference between biblical prophecy and the apocalyptic:

The apocalyptic message itself could take on bizarre forms of thoroughly symbolic content. Its frequent use of the most graphic language to describe the calamitous occurrences of the end times is one of its strongest characteristics. That is exactly where the genre of the apocalyptic eschatology diverges most noticeably from the literary form of the prophetical writings. If the latter had taken up, among other themes, the climactic grand finale of world history merging into the eternal kingdom of God, the former was exclusively interested in the cataclysmic unravelling of those events. To portray the eschatological consummation of world history in the form of visionary revelation was the all-consuming concern of the apocalyptic writers….History, as it was understood by the prophets, was leading up to a final consummation. These visionaries were grounded in the past, lived in the present, and looked forward to the future. Hence their message was not purely a prediction of future events, but a “trumpet call” to turn “the house of Jacob” from sin and rebellion (Is. 58:1) and to incite them to righteous living (Is. 33:15). More than once they had to pronounce the impending execution of God’s severe judgment, because the Israelites were not willing to heed the call for repentance (Is. 65:2-7). As this judgment came, the prophets were confronted with the plight of national disintegration during the Assyrian and Babylonian captivity. Yet, they had not lost hope in a restored national identity, preceded by a renewed spiritual awakening, and the return to the land of their ancestors. Therefore, the consequences of God’s judgment on an apostate Jewish nation, forcing it to carve out an existence in exile away from its own native country, did not diminish the prophets’ faith in God’s promises of calling the Gentile nations to account for their treacherous acts against the Israelites. This was, however, only part of their message. The prophets were pointing to another universal judgment and future deliverance of the Jews from their dispersion among all the nations to be accomplished by the Messiah himself (Je. 23:5-8). His intervention on behalf of the exiled Israelites would be on a much bigger scale. He would bring them back from the four corners of the earth to the Promised Land (Is. 11:10-12) and establish his glorious kingdom (Is. 65:8-25). If the prophets were speaking about the future, it was with this hope of salvation for the nation of Israel in mind. Thus, their prophecies were firmly rooted on the basis of a unique relationship with a covenant-keeping God who would fulfill his promises in the future just as he had done in the past. The prophetic literature, therefore, stands out as a monument of divine faithfulness, turning the fate of the exiled Israelites and re-establishing them as a religious community in the land of Palestine under divine blessing and authority.

The apocalyptists departed from this tradition of the prophets. They left the sound foundation of historical perspective and developed an eschatological philosophy instead. They did not entirely lose the prophetic character of their message inherited from the Hebrew Bible, but modified its form and content under the impression of different historical conditions and the influence of other spiritual conceptualizations.(MC, pp. 8-9) [bold added]

Dr. Erdmann presents the dilemma of the early Church Fathers. Would they choose biblical prophecy alone? Or would they choose to integrate extrabiblical sources to add to their prophetic scenarios? And how would this create apocalyptic visions in excess of simple biblical revelation?

If the apocalyptic was different from, and yet similar to, the prophetic books a decision had to be reached in regard to its inspiration and authority. Was it a message given by divine revelation and thus constituting another portion of God’s word, as the apocalyptic writers insinuated? Or was it only part of a particular collection of religious literature, profitable to read, but not to be taken too seriously? Its canonical value lay in the air and needed to be addressed. (MC, pp. 9-10) [bold added]

Prophecy often served as a starting point. But it was added to. Dr. Erdmann explains that “the most prominent characteristic of the apocalyptic is its appropriation of prophetic themes, which are then further developed into something quite different from the original source of inspiration.” These prophecies

“cannot be called “apocalyptic” in the sense that the name can be applied to books like Daniel and its successors, but it can be said that they contain the “stuff” from which apocalyptic is made – the notion of divine transcendence, the development of angelology, fantastic symbolism, cosmic imagery, the use of foreign mythology, reinterpretation of prophecy, the visionary form of inspiration, a distinctly literary form, cataclysm and judgment, the Day of the Lord, the destruction of the Gentiles, the Coming of the Golden Age, the messianic deliverer and the resurrection of the dead. When at last the historical conditions for growth were right, these seeds rapidly grew into full flower in the colourful and diverse literature of Jewish apocalyptic.”(MC, p.6)[14]“…apocalyptic is not a substitute for prophecy but a readaptation and development of the same message for a new historical situation – prophecy in a new idiom.”(MC, p. 9)[15]

Apocryphal writings are considered to be a genre of literature. As literature they are interesting, but they were not included in the canon of Scripture for many reasons. A list of the “specific elements of apocalyptic literature” includes:

more or less cyclical understanding of history, prophecy about the end times, pessimistic perspective of the world, dualism, images of doom and salvation, esoteric knowledge about supernatural events in correspondence with revelations about the future and extraordinary visions, recorded in written documents, bizarre imagery.Jewish apocalyptic is further characterized by accounts of visual or oral revelations, which, by depicting scenes of heavenly journeys or dialogues, frequently employ symbols, metaphors, and pictures. These visions were, in most cases, delivered by a heavenly messenger, like an angel, and received by the authors themselves, or, at times, by persons closely associated with them. (MC, p. 13)

A standard list of the apocalyptic literature includes many of the books cited by Tom Horn and his prophecy associates as foundational to their revised eschatologies:

D. S. Russell, in The Method and Message of Jewish Apocalyptic, pp. 37f., lists seventeen apocalyptic books: The Book of Daniel (canonical); I Enoch1-36, 37-71, 72-82, 83-90, 91-108 (a composite work, with the oldest part written c. 120 B.C.); The Book of Jubilees; The Sibylline Oracles, Book III;The Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs (probably first century A.D., though others date them earlier; the apocalyptic parts are in the Testaments attributed to Levi and Naphtali); The Psalms of Solomon; The Assumption of Moses (written about the beginning of the Christian era); The Martyrdom of Isaiah; The Life of Adam and Eve, or The Apocalypse of Moses (of uncertain date; contains little apocalyptic); The Apocalypse of Abraham;The Testament of Abraham; II Enoch, or The Book of the Secrets of Enoch;The Sibylline Oracles, Book IV; II Esdra (= 4 Ezra) (the best specimen of a theological apocalypse); II Baruch, or The Apocalypse of Baruch (dating from the beginning of the second century A.D.; though written originally in Hebrew or Aramaic it is preserved only in Syriac); III Baruch; The Sibylline Oracles, Book V (all of them non-canonical). (MC, p. 10)[16] [bold added]

Dr. Erdmann takes note of the specific milieu of Jewish apocalyptic literature in the early centuries before and after the time of Christ. The fact that this milieu can be perceived as very similar politically and religiously to our own time period draws obvious parallels to the sudden and dramatic rise in the use of apocalyptic sources to supplement biblical prophecy.

The uniqueness of a particular type of literature can often be traced back to the penetrating atmosphere of a special historical milieu. For three hundred years the Jewish nation experienced a continuous drama of oppression and warfare which produced a climate of religious fanaticism and mystical imagination. Thus the emergence of Jewish apocalyptic must be seen against the background of political oppression and religious persecution.(MC, p. 14)The Jews were challenged by a set of historical-theological problems which… are mainly responsible for the formulation of apocalyptic literature. They can be summarized as follows: (1) the emergence of a “righteous remnant” who maintained loyalty to the law over against the prevailing mood of compromise; (2) the problem of evil in the sense that even when Israel was apparently keeping the law she was undergoing suffering and national abuse; and (3) the cessation of prophecy at the very time when the people needed a divine explanation for their historical plight. The purpose of apocalyptic literature was intended to provide an answer to those vexing questions and pressing problems. Why were the righteous still living in a world of suffering, why was the promised Golden Age not yet in sight? (MC, p. 20)

Are we entering a similar time period of “religious fanaticism” accompanied by “mystical imagination”? It surely seems so. Perhaps this is what the Bible means when it says that a “time will come” when people will have “itching ears” and do not want to hear “sound doctrine” but rather follow after teachers that feed their “lusts.” (1 Tim. 4:3)

Apocalyptic Scenarios or Biblical Prophecy?
Modern-day prophecy teachers have changed their mode of operation in the past several decades. Formerly they focused on biblical prophecy by comparing Scripture to the unfolding of international events. And indeed there are astonishing comparisons and indicators that the endtimes predicted by biblical prophets are upon us. Sadly, many prophecy teachers were not content to stay within the confines of Scripture. Some created apocalyptic fictions, including science fiction. Others chased after international crises, trying to make them fit prophetic scenarios. Many profited from making dramatic predictions of dire disasters. Through all this saints became addicted to the adrenaline-charged briefings issued by these doomsday profiteers. Today this sort of apocalyptic hype has almost completely overtaken the formerly biblical prophecy conference circuit, publishing houses, radio shows and media outlets. It is nearly impossible to find plain, humble biblical prophecy that points people to Jesus Christ.

Apocalyptic scenarios sell. No wonder there is a temptation toenhance Scripture with extrabiblical and alternative future scenarios. Postmodern teachers are rapidly leaving Sola Scriptureto add in mystical components, and the prophecy circuit teachers are no exception. Dr. Erdmann warned that there is an inherent “suggestive power” in apocalyptic literature and that it has a “potency to arouse mass-excitement [which] instead of being diminished, proved to become only stronger in the inevitable case of delayed fulfillment.”(MC, p. 15) We have also warned about the potent occult power of the imagery embedded in many of these cataclysmic predictions.

Reliance upon ancient apocryphal literature has been taken to extremes. Some prophecy teachers even make rather odd claims such as this one by Gary Stearman, a self-described “apocalyptist”[17]:

Enoch walked with God, and he was basically transformed. He was metamorphosed into a glorified being. And God took him to heaven. He didn’t die. But you know, when you read about the Book of Enoch, he took an amazing journey, and then he came back and recorded what he saw.And what he saw was the future of mankind.[18] [bold added]

Stearman is not the first to make such a claim, as evidenced by Dr. Erdmann’s scholarly discussion of how the authorship of the apocryphal works was deceptively attributed:

The authors were writing often under the cloak of a pseudonym in seeking to appropriate the spiritual authority of a religious predecessor for their own works. The authorship of the apocalyptic writings was often attributed to those great men of Jewish history, who like Abraham, Moses and Ezra, were held in such high esteem that supposedly anything coming from their pens would be regarded as being of high quality and divine origin. The deliberate use of this method by the apocalyptists has been explained in numerous ways. It has been described as a justifiable procedure in communicating a new message from God in a time when prophecy had ceased to exist and a strict adherence to the legal code had become the norm of Jewish orthodoxy. Some scholars see it as a means of protection which the apocalyptists utilized for themselves to prevent any possible reprisals from the civil authorities; others, that it grew out of a heightened interest in Jewish history. Probably all those factors played a role to a certain degree. (MC, p. 13-14)[19]

But we are not left without hope. Jesus told His church what we need to know about His second coming: “We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed…  For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.”(2 Peter 1:19a, 21)

Apocalyptic Syncretism
The classic Premillennial eschatological position previously focused exclusively on the imminent return of Jesus Christ, His Second Coming. And the traditional prophecy teachers once focused on warning believers to prepare their hearts and to not be deceived during these “perilous times” (1 Tim. 3:1). They exhorted believers to warn their family and friends by spreading the Gospel of Salvation message while there was yet time. The focus was on Jesus. Not cataclysms, not Nephilim, not space aliens nor Mayan prophecies. Just Jesus. It didn’t make a difference whether or not America was in Bible prophecy, because Jesus was coming back quickly and the message was about salvation of the lost. The endtime church was charged with spreading the Gospel and doing acts of kindness and mercy while awaiting expectantly for Jesus’s imminent return when HE would rule and reign on earth.

The church today has shifted from biblical prophecy over to an apocryphal eschatology that bears only faint resemblance to Scripture. By borrowing heavily from an entire library of ancient and modern extrabiblical and pagan literature, the prophecy experts of our day have now corrupted beyond recognition the simple, humble, basic biblical message of the blessed hope of Jesus’ coming. Most of these men do not say they are replacing the Bible, but they definitely admit that they are adding to Scripture.

This emerging hybrid eschatology becomes part of the endtime scenario that Jesus and His apostles warned precisely against. By mixing in ancient and modern extrabiblical and pagan teachings, modern prophecy teachers have actually created a new ecumenism. They have broadened the parameters of Christian spirituality to include all religions of the world, past or present. In the guise of investigating ancient “sacred” or “inspired” texts, they add in occult elements to biblical prophecy. Thus creating an endtime syncretism where all of the world’s religions can unite around apocalyptic cataclysmic scenarios not found in Scripture.

Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord….
Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts:
for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.
(James 5:7a,8)

For ye have need of patience,
that, after ye have done the will of God,
ye might receive the promise.
For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come,
and will not tarry. (Hebrews 10:36-37)

Endnotes:
[1] Pastor Larry DeBruyn succinctly summed up this apocryphal prophecy agenda in his critical article on Herescope, January 28, 2013: “For reason of angel-alien-watchers cohabitating somewhere with human females, a whole new DNA-altered-trans-human-hybrid species is arising, a new nephilim that will corrupt, if it has not already done so, human life on this planet in such a widespread fashion that God will have to wipe out the world again as He did in the days of Noah.” From his article: “’Babylon Rising” and Canon in Crisis: Apocrypha, Pseudepigrapha, Fresh Revelations, and an ‘Open’ Canon,” http://herescope.blogspot.com/2013/01/babylon-rising-and-canon-in-crisis.html
[2] S. Douglas Woodward, Power Quest Book Two: The Ascendancy of Antichrist in America, Prologue: “America’s Role Eschatology—Rethinking the Standard Scenario,” Faith Happens Publishing, Woodinville, WA, 2012, pp. xvi-xli.
[3] Ibid, pg. 362. Peter Goodgame further promotes these ideas and related themes in his 2012 book (published by Tom Horn), The Second Coming of the Antichrist.
[4] Thomas R. Horn, Nephilim Stargates: the Year 2012 and the Return of the Watchers, Anomalos Publishing, Crane, MO, 2007, pp. 45-46. Scripture clearly refutes Heron’s faulty belief Revelation 21:16 says, “The city [the New Jerusalem] is laid out as a square, and its length is as great as the width; and he measured the city with the rod, fifteen hundred miles; its length and width and height are equal.” A “square” is NOT pyramidal. John’s description clearly describes a cube. See also Tom Horn’s NewsWithViews 2007 article, “Talk of Apocalypse from US President Down,” describing Patrick Heron’s book Apocalypse Soon (published by Horn).
[5] Partial transcript of a roundtable discussion between Doug Hamp, Rob Skiba and L.A. Marzulli moderated by P.I.D. radio host, Derek Gilbert at the Prophecy Summit 2012 in Branson, Mo. The audio was accessed on Hamp’s website, “L.A. Marzulli, Rob Skiba, and Douglas Hamp discuss Nephilim at Prophecy Summit 2012”, posted Aug. 19, 2012, quotes taken from the 13:12-15:56 minute mark; See: http://www.douglashamp.com/l-a-marzulli-rob-skiba-and-douglas-hamp-discuss-nephilim-at-prophecy-summit-2012/.
[6] Ibid, Hamp’s quotes taken from the 30:18-30:45 minute mark.
[7] Ibid, Hamp’s quotes taken from the 8:37-9:40 minute mark.
[8] For more on Rob Skiba, see Pastor Larry DeBruyn’s article “’Babylon Rising” and Canon in Crisis: Apocrypha, Pseudepigrapha, Fresh Revelations, and an ‘Open’ Canon,” Herescope, January 28, 2013, http://herescope.blogspot.com/2013/01/babylon-rising-and-canon-in-crisis.html
[9] Emphasis added, Rob Skiba II, Babylon Rising: And The First Shall Be The Last, 2011. Online at: (http://www.seedtheseries.com/blog/PDF/BabylonRising.pdf) 275 pages.
[10] Ibid, chapter 4, http://babylonrisingbooks.com/PDFs/Chapter4_OneNationReduced.pdf
[11] Martin Erdmann, The Millennial Controversy in the Early Church (Wipf & Stock, 2005). Hereafter the quotations from this book will be designated as MC followed by the page number. We are grateful to Dr. Erdmann for permitting the Discernment Research Group to use such lengthy excerpts from his book.
[12] See Dr. Erdmann’s article “The Emerging Galactic Religion: Science Fiction and the Rise of Technocratic Posthumanism” on Herescope, 2/28/13, http://herescope.blogspot.com/2013/02/the-emerging-galactic-religion.html Also see his “AFTERWORD,” as part of the Herescope article “Doomsday Datesetters: 2012,” 6/10/11, http://herescope.blogspot.com/2011/06/doomsday-datesetters-2012.html
[13] There are Scriptures that are apocalyptic in their message, but they should not to be confused with apocalyptic messages from extrabiblical sources. Dr. Erdmann explains in footnote 1 to his chapter 1 (p. 21) that: It might be helpful to the following general discussion about the apocalyptic literature to look at the different rendering in the English language of the Greek word “apokalypsis” (and its cognate verb “apokalypto“): 1. a divine revelation of certain supernatural secrets frequently through visions, e.g. Ps. 97:2; Dn. 2:19, 22, 28; Is. 56:1; Rom. 16:25; Gal. 1:12; 2. in the eschatological sense of the disclosure of secrets belonging to the last days, e.g. Rom. 8:19; 1 Cor. 1:7; 2 Thes. 1:7; 2:8; 1 Pet. 1:7, 13; 4:13; 3. to reveal (disclose, bring to light) e.g. Mt. 10:26; Lk. 12:2; Jn. 12:38, Rom. 1:17,18; Commonly, however, the emphasis of “apokalypsis”, as it is used in both the LXX and the New Testament, lies on its particular meaning of a supernatural unveiling of divine mysteries, especially as it relates to the unveiling of hidden truths about the kingdom of God to his people (primary source: Bauer, Arndt, Gingrich, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament, 2 ed., The University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1958).
[14] This is a quotation from D.S. Russell, The Method and the Message of Jewish Apocalyptic, SCM Press LTD, London, 1964, p. 91.
[15] Ibid, p. 92.
[16] In private correspondence with Dr. Erdmann he elaborated: Some of the apocryphal letters were partially influenced by the Jewish Apocalyptic Literature, but they were written in circles which propagated Gnostic religiosity. Thus other pagan influences came into play as well such as Neoplatonism (3^rd century A.D.), Pythagoreanism http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pythagoreanism, Zoroastrianism http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoroastrianism, mystery cults (Serapis )http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serapis, Magna Mater http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cybele, Eleusian Mysteries http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eleusinian_Mysteries, Cult of Mitrash, etc. and other influences from Greek philosophy and Christianity.
[17] Gary Stearman, “Are You an Apocalypticist?” Prophecy in the News, 2/1/13,http://www.prophecyinthenews.com/are-you-an-apocalypticist/
[18] Gary Stearman interview Tom Horn. Transcribed from “Enoch and the Ancients with Tom Horn,” Prophecy in the News broadcast, Dec. 11. 2012. http://www.prophecyinthenews.com/enoch-and-the-ancients-with-tom-horn/
[19] In private correspondence, Dr. Erdmann clarified the differences between pseudo-epigraphical and apocryphal writings:  “Works which carry a name of a well-known Old Testament patriarch or prophet, NT apostle or Christian leader (Barnabas), etc. as the author but are fakes. The alleged authors didn’t write them (this was done to give the work some credibility). These can be works written during time of the OT or NT.” Apocryphal works are not necessarily pseudo-epigraphical, but “some of the apocrypha are pseudo-epigraphical such as the Epistle of Barnabas. These are works written in the 2 century A.D. or later. Some of them (Epistle of Barnabas, Didache, etc.) are not necessarily heterodox, but they didn’t belong to the Canon.”

This article was a joint project of the Discernment Research group, with special assistance from Dr. Martin Erdmann, Gaylene Goodroad and Sarah H. Leslie.
Graphic image from: http://www.wallpaperbeautiful.com/Abstract/Arts/outer_space_planets_fire_cosmos_apocalypse_rim_artwork_1920x1080_wallpaper_12858

Further reading

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