Nostradamus : Prophet Of God Or Messenger Of Satan? Pt 1

NOSTRADAMUS : PROPHET OF GOD OR MESSENGER OF SATAN? PT 1

Copyright 1994 - 2008 Endtime Prophecy Net

Last Updated : July 23, 2006

Roman Catholic Inquisition, Nostradamus The Occult And Drugs,
Quatrains Of Nostradamus, Dolores Cannon, Conversations With
Nostradamus, Giving Nostradamus The Benefit Of The Doubt,
Why "Gods" And Not God?, Flee From Works Of Darkness, Avoid
Witchcraft And Divination, Endtime Deceivers False Prophets
And False Angels Of Light, Absence Of Christ's Second Coming
New Age Deception, A Golden Age Of Peace Without Christ?,
Battle Of Armageddon, Failed Pope Assassination Prophecy Of
Nostradamus, St. Malachy Prophecy And The 112 Papal Mottoes,
Cardinal Jean-Marie Lustiger And Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger,
Political And Religious Manipulation Behind KJV Translation
God's Truth Prevails In Spite Of Human Error And Manipulation

The following is an updated and expanded version of an
article I originally wrote over seven years ago in February
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
referred to as the "Quatrains", of the noted sixteenth
century French physician, and alleged psychic, Nostradamus.
Michel Nostradamus lived during the dangerous time of the
Inquisition; a dark period in European history during which
the Roman Catholic Church resorted to every means possible,
including horrible practices of torture, in order to exorcise
the demons from those who refused to embrace Catholicism as
the only true religion ordained by and blessed of God. It
was because of these conditions that Nostradamus shrouded
his writings 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 Kabala. 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.

Being deeply interested in Endtime and futuristic events, I
have taken the time to read 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 these alone, it would appear
that Michel Nostradamus was a false prophet. 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 who have tried to understand
them, and they vary widely in their opinions. In fact, just
recently, there was a rumor floating around on the Internet
whereby certain people were crediting Michel Nostradamus
with having predicted 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 have 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 his letters, he refers in several places to
"the gods", instead of to the one true God. While one may
argue that the plural of the Hebrew "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 he was trying to maintain a balance in his faith in
the one true God, but without really forsaking the works of
darkness in which he had become involved; that is to say,
witchcraft, drugs, the kabala, etc. The Bible makes it very
clear that the Children of Light cannot be involved in the
works of darkness. In fact, it 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?"
2 Corinthians 6:14, KJV

"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!"
Isaiah 5:20, KJV

"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."
Romans 13:12, KJV

"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."
Ephesians 5:8, 11, KJV

"Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and
he will flee from you."
James 4:7, KJV

"Neither give place to the devil."
Ephesians 4:27, KJV

"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."
John 3:19-20, KJV

"Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath
translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:"
Colossians 1:13, KJV

"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."
1 Thessalonians 5:4-5, KJV

"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:"
1 Peter 2:9, KJV

"If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in
darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:"
1 John 1:6, KJV

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."
Leviticus 19:31, KJV

"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."
Leviticus 20:6, KJV

"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."
Deuteronomy 18:10-11, KJV

"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."
2 Chronicles 33:6, KJV

"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."
2 Kings 23:24, KJV

"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?"
Isaiah 8:19, KJV

"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."
Isaiah 19:3, KJV

"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."
Isaiah 47:9, 12-13, KJV

"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."
Galatians 5:19-21, KJV

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 coming 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, 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 view 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 question 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."
John 8:44, KJV

"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."
2 Corinthians 11:13-15, KJV

Because of these questionable factors which are associated
with Michel Nostradamus, I advise everyone to maintain a
very cautious approach, should they decide to read any of
his works; and how much more should this apply to any New
Age interpretations of his Quatrains? Jesus' warnings found
in Matthew twenty-four regarding false prophets and false
messiahs, as well as a number of other warnings regarding
Endtime deception 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;"
1 Timothy 4:1, KJV

"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;"
2 Timothy 4:3, KJV

"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."
Matthew 24:24, KJV

"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:"
Ephesians 4:14-15, KJV

"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."
Hebrews 13:9, KJV

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

As I have stated before, New Age beliefs tend to discuss
soon-coming cataclysmic changes, 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
we have 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 like to call it, and
perhaps even with a little help from some alien intervention,
which New Agers refer to as the "Space Brothers", we will be
able to rectify our wrongs, and usher in the Golden Age.

This entire concept seems contrary to the Scriptures, which
clearly state that it is only Christ's Second Coming which
will serve as the necessary catalyst in order to bring about
these much-needed changes. According to the Scriptures, it
is Jesus Christ Himself who will destroy the Antichrist, the
Beast, and the False Prophet, as well as their ungodly army
of earthly followers, at the great Battle of Armageddon, as
we see here:

"And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the
mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and
out of the mouth of the false prophet. For they are the
spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the
kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to
the battle of that great day of God Almighty . . . And he
gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew
tongue Armageddon."
Revelation 16:13-14, 16, KJV

"And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he
that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in
righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a
flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had
a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was
clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is
called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven
followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white
and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that
with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them
with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the
fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his
vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND
LORD OF LORDS. And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and
he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly
in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together
unto the supper of the great God; That ye may eat the flesh
of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty
men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them,
and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and
great. And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and
their armies, gathered together to make war against him that
sat on the horse, and against his army. And the beast was
taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles
before him, with which he deceived them that had received
the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image.
These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with
brimstone. And the remnant were slain with the sword of him
that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his
mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh."
Revelation 19:11-21, KJV

If I have understood these interpretations of the Quatrains
of Nostradamus in the proper manner, then they attribute the
downfall of this ungodly trio to military defeats and other
earthly forces. Christ's Return and the Battle of Armageddon
are not even mentioned. This clear lack of a Second Coming
really sticks out like a sore thumb in my view, and should
serve as a strong warning to my fellow believers in Christ.
While the "prophecies" of Michel Nostradamus may strongly
support Biblical Endtime events in certain areas, such as by
cryptically describing the rise of the Beast, the dangerous
situation in the Middle East, the worldwide computerized
credit system known as the Mark of the Beast, etc., I fail
to understand his reasons for not mentioning that it is the
invasion of the Godly forces from Heaven, which will put an
end to the Satan-Beast-False Prophet trio, and not just a
natural progression of earthly political and military
events.

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 I write this, it is now November of 2004;
and while he is very advanced in age, and suffering from
various ailments which are common to men of his age, Pope
John Paul II is still alive.

According to the controversial prophecy of one St. Malachy,
following John Paul II, there are only going to be two more
Popes in the Vatican before the final collapse of the Roman
Catholic Church occurs. According to the information I have
read, some people believe that the seventy-eight year old
Archbishop of Paris, Cardinal Jean-Marie Lustiger, will be
next to sit on the so-called "chair of Saint Peter", and he
will likewise be assassinated. As an interesting side note,
the very outspoken Lustiger is the only Catholic prelate in
modern times who was born a Jew. Lustiger also happens to be
very pro-Israel, and he maintains a very close relationship
with the current Pope. The only reason why Cardinal Lustiger
might not become the next Pope, would be if the ailing John
Paul II were to continue to hang on to life, in spite of his
failing health, so that Lustiger simply becomes too old, and
thus would not be able to adequately fulfill the duties of
the papal office. John Paul II is now eighty-four years old.

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 oues in multis tribulationibus : quibus transactis
ciuitas septicollis diruetur, & Iudex tre mÃ¯Â¿Â½dus iudicabit po
pulum 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 said that Peter the Roman will totally compromise with
the Beast. In fact, those who have interpreted the Quatrains
of Nostradamus, claim that this final Pope will be the False
Prophet mentioned in the Book of Revelation. There has also
been talk that Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger of Germany, the
high-profile, outspoken Prefect of Congregation for Doctrine
of the Faith, whose job it is to safeguard the purity of
Roman Catholic doctrine around the world, may also play a
pivotal role in Endtime events. All I can say is, thus far,
it appears that these interpreters have had a rather poor
track record. As I noted a moment ago, Pope John Paul II is
now eighty-four years old. He obviously cannot last much
longer. That being the case, we shouldn't have to wait much
longer in order to determine how accurate these so-called
interpreters have been. They've already struck out with
John Paul II; will the same occur with the remainder of
their predictions?

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 the true author?

Is there any truth to this Nostradamus/Malachy mystery? I
honestly don't know; but as I have already stated, time will
be the best tester of Michel Nostradamus and his Quatrains.
As I have already stated, 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 who
have misinterpreted his works? If Nostradamus hadn't been so
fearful of the Inquisition, perhaps we would have a better
idea of what he truly meant, and we could thus make a better
evaluation regarding the validity and accuracy of his work.

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 my article "The History Of The
Authorized KJV Bible", what we read today is the result of
various collations, translations and interpretations. The
purity and accuracy of our modern Bible, in large part, has
thus been determined by the original translators, such as
Desiderius Erasmus, William Tyndale, Coverdale, et al, the
governmental authorities of that time, and the powerful
religious authorities as well.

While it may surprise some of my readers that I would even
say this, (as it might appear that I am detracting from the
Bible), it may very well be that as a result of the power
each of these parties wielded over the translation process,
the Word and the prophecies we have received today, may very
well 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've
explained in the aforementioned series, as well as in such
articles as "The Lamb Of God Was A Goat", I feel that this
may indeed be the case with the beloved KJV Bible, which I
highly respect, and have used for well over thirty years. I
tend to think that it is a much more radical book that we
realize, because those in power at the time, both political
and religious authorities, had the interpretations of some
areas toned down so-to-speak, so that they wouldn't be quite
so radical, quite so offensive, quite so contradictory to
the established beliefs which were dominant at the time, and
more acceptable to the general populace, as well as to the
sensitive king, that being King James.

Before moving on in our discussion, allow me to add a degree
of balance to my previous statements, lest anyone reading
this article form an erroneous opinion. As I also point out
in my series "In Defense Of The KJV Bible", while I am not
ignorant of the fact that the KJV Bible has been the object
of personal prejudice, as well as political and religious
manipulation, I am also equally convinced that the purposes
of God have not been defeated; and that in spite of man's
much tampering with God's Holy Word, God is still much more
powerful than man; and He has preserved the most important
essence of His Word, including the Message of Salvation, as
well as the prophecies, for we modern-day readers. As some
of my readers will also know, it has also been my regular
practice for a number of years now, that whenever I am in
doubt, or curious about something, I always refer to the
Hebrew and Greek lexicons, in order to better understand a
certain passage or group of verses. I don't always just take
things at face value, because the translators of the Bible,
as God-fearing as they may have been, were still humans
prone to error, whether it was intentional or not.

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 Christ's Return 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.

Go To Part Two . . .