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The following is an updated, expanded version of an article which I originally wrote twenty-one years ago in the Spring of 1997. I trust that it will be a blessing to my brothers and sisters in the faith.

Many people today are familiar with the writings -- commonly known as the "Quatrains" -- of the noted sixteenth century French physician, Nostradamus. Michel Nostradamus -- who some people view as a psychic -- lived during the dangerous time of the Inquisition. This was a dark period in European history during which time the Roman Catholic Church resorted to every means possible -- including horrible practices of torture -- in order to supposedly exorcise the demons from those people who refused to embrace Roman Catholicism as the so-called "one true faith", and the only religion ordained by, blessed by, and recognized by God. It was because of these conditions that Nostradamus shrouded his Quatrains in deep symbolism; thus making them just as mysterious and esoteric as the Revelation of Saint John the Divine.

According to what I have read, Michel Nostradamus was heavily involved with the occult, including astrology, as well as the theosophy of the Kabbalah. It has also been said that he took mind-enhancing drugs, for the explicit purpose of heightening his ability to make intimate contact with the Spirit World. It is this contact which is claimed to have resulted in what are said to be prophetic dreams and visions concerning the future. Originally written in French, the Quatrains, as well as various interpretations of their meanings, have now been translated into a variety of languages. Likewise, movies and videos have been made regarding Nostradamus' work. As of this current writing, the most highly acclaimed books which have been published regarding the interpretations of the Quatrains, is a series written by New Age author, Dolores Cannon. Using various so-called "channelers", who allegedly made contact with the spirit of Nostradamus, as well as with some of his contemporary associates, Dolores Cannon produced the series "Conversations With Nostradamus", which supposedly contains the proper interpretations of the Quatrains.

Now, being deeply interested in Bible prophecy and futuristic events, I invested some time in reading some of the original Quatrains, as well as various summaries of, and excerpts from, Cannon's "Conversations With Nostradamus". While I find Nostradamus' predictions interesting and quite intriguing, I must also confess that I have a few reservations which are difficult for me to simply ignore or dismiss. For the record, allow me to state that this impression was formed, not so much from reading an English translation of the Quatrains, as it was from the interpretations which were provided by Cannon and others.

If one were to go by those interpretations alone, it would appear that Michel Nostradamus was a false prophet. But the problem as I see it, is that we don't have the man here today to tell us exactly what he meant by his Quatrains. All we have are the interpretations of those people who have tried to understand them, and they vary widely in their opinions. In fact, some time ago, there was a rumor floating around on the Internet whereby certain people were crediting Michel Nostradamus with having predicted the events of 9/11 in one of his Quatrains.

So, as I was saying, being as we don't have Nostradamus here with us today in order to explain his writings more clearly to us, calling him a false prophet may be unjustified, and perhaps even a bit premature. I am sure that you will agree with me when I say that accusing a person of something based upon second-hand knowledge, or someone else's understanding of their work, is not really a fair practice.

While Michel Nostradamus did credit God for his prophetic ability -- and I've read where he is said to have relied in part upon the Holy Scriptures in order to better understand his visions -- nevertheless, I have also noticed that at the same time, in several places in his letters, he refers to "the gods", instead of to the one true God. While one may argue that the plural form of the Hebrew word "el" -- that is, "elohim" -- is used in the Old Testament when referring to God, the fact that Nostradamus would write "the gods", does make me wonder if perhaps he didn't find himself caught in a dilemma when it came to his personal beliefs.

In other words, I question whether Nostradamus was trying to maintain a balance in his faith in the one true God, while at the same time, he was not willing to forsake the works of darkness in which he had become involved; that is to say, witchcraft, drugs, the Kabbalah, etc. The Scriptures make it very clear that the Children of Light cannot be involved in the works of darkness. In fact, the Bible advises us to flee from them. Consider the following example verses:

"Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?"


"Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!"


"The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light."


"For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light . . . And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them."


"Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."


"Neither give place to the devil."


"And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved."


"Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:"


"But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness."


"But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:"


"If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:"


The Bible also strongly advises us against becoming involved in witchcraft and divination; which is basically what Michel Nostradamus was doing when he stared into a bowl of water he would place upon a three-legged stool, in order to allegedly concentrate his visionary powers. Is this not what fortune tellers do when they gaze into their crystal balls in order to supposedly divine the future? Again, following are some example verses for your consideration:

"Regard not them that have familiar spirits, neither seek after wizards, to be defiled by them: I am the LORD your God."


"And the soul that turneth after such as have familiar spirits, and after wizards, to go a whoring after them, I will even set my face against that soul, and will cut him off from among his people."


"There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer."


"And he caused his children to pass through the fire in the valley of the son of Hinnom: also he observed times, and used enchantments, and used witchcraft, and dealt with a familiar spirit, and with wizards: he wrought much evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger."


"Moreover the workers with familiar spirits, and the wizards, and the images, and the idols, and all the abominations that were spied in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, did Josiah put away, that he might perform the words of the law which were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the LORD."


"And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead?"


"And the spirit of Egypt shall fail in the midst thereof; and I will destroy the counsel thereof: and they shall seek to the idols, and to the charmers, and to them that have familiar spirits, and to the wizards."


"But these two things shall come to thee in a moment in one day, the loss of children, and widowhood: they shall come upon thee in their perfection for the multitude of thy sorceries, and for the great abundance of thine enchantments . . . Stand now with thine enchantments, and with the multitude of thy sorceries, wherein thou hast laboured from thy youth; if so be thou shalt be able to profit, if so be thou mayest prevail. Thou art wearied in the multitude of thy counsels. Let now the astrologers, the stargazers, the monthly prognosticators, stand up, and save thee from these things that shall come upon thee."


"Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God."


So as you can plainly see, the Lord is very much against his children becoming involved in witchcraft, divination, sorcery and other works of darkness, and there is clearly no place for them in the Kingdom of God either, because they are an abomination to Him.

As I was saying, I find these facts concerning Nostradamus rather disturbing, as there is no mention in the Bible of the Prophets of old having to rely upon any kind of outside catalyst or stimulus in order to receive their visions and prophecies. They usually say "I was in the spirit" or "I was caught up in the spirit", or they use similarly descriptive words. Exactly how the Prophets achieved this elevated state, we honestly don't know, but I seriously doubt that they took drugs, or stared into a bowl of water as Nostradamus is said to have done. My opinion is that if a person relies upon any means, other than being overcome by the Spirit of God, then at the very least, we should investigate the source of their visions and prophecies, regardless of how accurate or factual they may prove to be. Let us not forget that Satan is a liar and a deceiver. The Bible also refers to him as a false angel of light. He is also well-versed in both the Bible and the future of the world; so it would be quite easy for him to pass on such knowledge to one of his servants. Consider the following verses:

". . . He [Satan] was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it."


"For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works."


Because of these questionable factors which are associated with Michel Nostradamus, I advise my readers to maintain a degree of caution, should they decide to actually read any of his works. How much more should this apply to any New Age interpretations of his Quatrains? Jesus' warnings regarding false prophets and false messiahs, that are found in Matthew twenty-four, as well as other warnings regarding spiritual deception that are found in the New Testament, should all be taken very seriously. Again, allow me to share the following verses with you for your prayerful consideration:

"Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;"


"For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;"


"For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect."


"That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:"


"Be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines. For it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace; not with meats, which have not profited them that have been occupied therein."


Another point that's also disturbed me for quite some time, is the clear absence of any mention of Jesus Christ in the writings of Nostradamus. Perhaps he does mention the Lord somewhere in his Quatrains, but there is no such mention of Jesus in the interpretations of the man's work which I have read. If they are accurate interpretations -- and there is obviously room for doubt -- then it leads me to personally conclude that the predictions of Nostradamus are closely aligned with New Age beliefs.

As I point out in other articles and series, New Age beliefs tend to discuss soon-coming cataclysmic changes to the Earth, and to the people of Earth, which will be followed by a new Golden Age of peace. We are given the impression by the New Age interpretation of the Quatrains of Nostradamus that, just as humanity has brought the coming cataclysms upon ourselves through our own foolishness, in the same manner, through our own good works, and spiritual evolution -- or "ascension" to a higher spiritual vibration, as some New Agers refer to it -- we will be able to rectify our wrongs, and usher in the Golden Age.

As you can see, this is very much a humanistic approach to our problems, exactly as I describe in the series entitled "John Lennon's Imagine and Secular Humanism". Of course, as you may already know, certain New Agers also insist that we will receive some special assistance from our so-called alien "Space Brothers", who according to New Age advocates, are even now intervening in the affairs of humankind from behind the scenes. In short, many people who embrace these New Age beliefs, promote alien intervention as the solution, and not Divine Intervention from God as the Bible indicates.

Clearly, this entire concept is contrary to the Scriptures, which plainly state that it is only by spiritual rebirth through faith in Jesus Christ, and the direct intervention of God Himself in the affairs of our world, which will serve as the necessary catalyst in order to bring about changes to the people of Planet Earth. In contrast, if I have properly understood the dubious interpretations of the Quatrains of Nostradamus by Dolores Cannon's team, then they attribute the downfall of the rise of evil in this world to military defeats and other earthly forces. There is nothing about God. It is all about human intervention, which is a very humanistic approach. As I said, this lack of any mention of Divine Intervention really sticks out like a sore thumb in my view, and it should serve as a strong warning to other believers in Christ.

Another factor which seems to cast a shadow of doubt upon the "prophecies" of Michel Nostradamus, are some blatant inaccuracies; at least according to the interpretations of his Quatrains which I have read. Accordingly, Pope John Paul II was to have died during the early part of 1996, slain by an assassin. As we all know, this did not happen, and Pope John Paul II died as a result of complications in his old age in 2005, nine years later.

According to the controversial prophecy of one St. Malachy, following John Paul II, there were only going to be two more Popes before the final collapse of the Roman Catholic Church occurs. According to online information I read several years ago, some RCC insiders were convinced that the Archbishop of Paris, Cardinal Jean-Marie Lustiger, was going to be next to sit on the so-called "chair of Saint Peter". It was likewise predicted, according to some interpretations, that Lustiger would also be assassinated. As we all know, this prediction also failed. Lustiger died at the age of eighty in 2007.

Not only that, but two years earlier, in April of 2005, then Cardinal, Joseph Ratzinger of Germany, became Pope Benedict XVI, following the death of Pope John Paul II. Please see my article "Cardinal Ratzinger's Rebellion" for more information regarding this Pope. Benedict's pontificate endured for seven years until February of 2013, at which time he chose to step down, or abdicate.

In his prophecy. St. Malachy also states that the final Pope will be called Peter the Roman. His motto, in Latin, states as follows, according to the original 1595 text:

----- Begin Quote -----

"In psecutione extrema S.R.E. sedebit Petrus Romanus, qui pascet oves in multis tribulationibus: quibus transactis civitas septicollis diruetur, et Iudex tremendus iudicabit populum suum. Finis."

----- End Quote -----

The previous text can be loosely translated into English as meaning the following:

"In extreme persecution, the seat of the Holy Roman Church will be occupied by Peter the Roman, who will feed (lead) the sheep through many tribulations, at the term of which the city of seven hills will be destroyed, and the formidable Judge will judge his people. The End."

It is claimed in some Futurist corners -- which I personally no longer embrace -- that this Peter the Roman will totally compromise with the Endtime global leader known as the Beast. In fact, those people who have interpreted the Quatrains of Nostradamus, claim that this final Pope will be the False Prophet -- who is mentioned in the thirteenth chapter of the Book of Revelation -- who will work together with the Beast. Is there any truth to their claims? Not as far as I can tell. It seems to me that these New Age interpreters have had a rather poor track record. In my view, it certainly does not inspire much confidence in any of their other predictions or interpretations.

More to the point, following the abdication of Pope Benedict XVI, as we all know, in March of 2013, Jorge Mario Bergoglio was voted in by the College of Cardinals as Pope Francis. So today as I write this, he has been the Pope for exactly five years. Now, obviously, his name is not Peter, so this is clearly yet another fail on the part of the interpreters of both the prophecies of Nostradamus and St. Malachy. Oddly enough, in recent years, I have come across certain online information where diehard believers in these "prophecies" have tried to find a way to relate Pope Francis to the name Peter. I think it is time for everyone to realize that all of this nonsense is simply bogus; unless you believe that Pope Francis is the final Pope, and that the Roman Catholic Church will soon be destroyed. I see no evidence of that happening any time soon, in spite of all of the pedophilia allegations. The RCC has weathered the storm for centuries, and they will probably continue to weather it.

Now, in case you are wondering how St. Malachy fits into our current discussion concerning the Quatrains of Nostradamus, allow me to offer a brief explanation. You see, some people are convinced that his prophecy, which involved one hundred and twelve papal mottoes written in Latin, was not written by St. Malachy at all. One of the theories is that this list of one hundred and twelve Popes, who were not named by name, but who were only described by their mottoes, was actually construed by Michel Nostradamus. They claim that Nostradamus purposely attributed the prophecy to Malachy, because he was afraid of being persecuted by the Roman Catholic Church, for having dared to foretell of the destruction of the Roman Catholic Church. Remember; this was during the time of the Inquisition. It is also interesting to note that prior to 1595, the prophecy of St. Malachy was unknown. Does this fact point to Nostradamus as being its true author?

Is there any truth to this Nostradamus/Malachy mystery? I honestly do not know. As I have already pointed out, the dilemma we face here is this: Should we forthrightly accuse Michel Nostradamus of being a false prophet, or should we attach this label to those people who have misinterpreted his works? If Nostradamus had not been so fearful of the Inquisition, perhaps we would have a better idea of what he actually meant, and we could thus make a better evaluation regarding the validity and accuracy of his work. For now, the best advice that I can offer you, in addition to the previous verses which I shared with you, would be the following:

"Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them."


"And when this cometh to pass, (lo, it will come,) then shall they know that a prophet hath been among them."


"But the prophet, which shall presume to speak a word in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die. And if thou say in thine heart, How shall we know the word which the LORD hath not spoken? When a prophet speaketh in the name of the LORD, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the LORD hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him."


You may also want to consider reading my article "Office of a Prophet", and similar articles which deal with the subject of spiritual deception.

If you stop to think about it, we find ourselves in somewhat of a similar position when it comes to the Bible. We English speakers are at a clear disadvantage here. Why? Because we were not personally or directly involved in the events which influenced and shaped the translation of each Book, nor in the decisions which resulted in which Books were accepted as a part of the Canon. In fact, we don't even have second-hand knowledge. As I point out in articles such as "History of the Authorized King James Bible", what we read today is the result of various collations, translations and, in fact, interpretations. In other words, the purity and accuracy of our modern Bible, in large part, has thus been determined by the original translators. These include Desiderius Erasmus, William Tyndale, Coverdale, et al, as well as the government authorities of that time, and the very powerful religious authorities of that time as well.

While it may surprise some of my readers that I would even say this -- as it may appear that I am detracting from the Bible -- it may very well be that as a result of the power and influence that each of these parties wielded during the translation process, the Scriptures and the prophecies that we have received today, may be heavily adulterated. In other words, some of them may no longer be as pure, and their true meanings may have been lost for intentional or unintentional reasons. As I explain in the aforementioned series, as well as in such articles as "The Lamb of God Was a Goat", "Is the KJV Bible the Inerrant Word of God?" and "In Defense of the KJV Bible", I feel that this may indeed be the case with the beloved KJV Bible, which I highly respect, and have used for about forty-seven years now.

In short, I suspect that the Bible may be a much more radical Book that we realize, but those people who were in power at the time -- both political and religious authorities -- had the interpretations of some areas toned down so-to-speak, so that they would not be quite so radical, so offensive, or so contradictory to the established beliefs which were dominant at that time in history in England, and also more acceptable to the general populace, as well as to King James.

As we conclude this discussion in part two, we will apply my previous comments to the Quatrains of Nostradamus, as well as more closely examine the practice of channeling. Also to be discussed will be true Prophets versus the inaccuracy of false prophets, America's generation of false shepherds, New Age influence on the American West Coast, charismatics and the practice of necromancy, possible motivations behind the omission of Jesus Christ in the Quatrains, seeing what we want to see, our hunger to know the unknown, controlling our own destinies, trusting God for the future, my personal position concerning the Quatrains, being persuaded in our minds, and a series of questions which can be applied as a litmus test. I trust that you will join me.

Please go to part two for the conclusion of this article.

⇒ Go To The Next Part . . .

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