after the fall of the pagan Roman Empire (after 476 AD) - Man, you have a lot of historical errors bottled in one place
- Rome was no longer page in 476 AD. As of 378 AD Christianity was the state religion
- The Roman empire didn't fall in 476 AD -- it fell in 1453 AD
three of the ten kingdoms the Roman Empire collapsed into -- Again, man the number of errors here is incredible - both historical and biblical - historically the Roman Empire collapsed in 1453, it didn't collapse into kingdoms, but was conquered wholly by the Ottoman empire. Or perhaps you mean the Western half of the empire - and err. no, it didn't collapse into 10 kingdoms. here's the state of the erstwhile roman lands in 500 AD
You see ten kingdoms here???
and biblically - read Dan 7 8 I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things. and Dan 7:24 "He shall be different from the former ones and shall put down three kings" --> what is the HEBREW word used here for kings? It is "melek" - which translates as ROYAL, not necessarily king
This fits Nero who murdered Claudius, Agrippina and Britannicus.
What nine characteristics help us to identify the little horn power?
Location: out of 4th beast and among the ten horns (v.8) - The Papacy arose out of Rome among the ten tribal divisions of Rome
Timing: after the ten were established (v.8) - the Papacy became a political power by decree of the Roman emperor Justinian in AD 538 which was after the emergence of the ten tribal divisions that emerged as the Roman Empire fell apart in AD 476.
Uprooted three of the ten horns (v.8) - As the Papacy came to prominence, it influenced Pagan Roman armies to destroy three of the tribes which opposed its Christian doctrines. These three were the Vandals, Ostrogoths, and Heruli. The last of these was destroyed in AD 538 when Justinian’s decree went into effect.
Eyes and mouth of a man (v.8) - the Papacy has a man as its visible head.
Persecutes the saints (v.21, 25) - Ever hear of the Papal persecution during the dark ages - Inquisition, etc. More than 50 million Protestant Christians tortured and killed by the Catholic Church.
Different from the other ten horns (v.24) - the Papacy was a religio-political entity different from the kingdoms before it.
Speak out against God (v.8, 11, 20, 25) - Verse 8 says it will utter boastful or blasphemous things. One quote of many like it from Prompta Bibliothea Canonica Juridicia Moralis Theologica appearing in the Catholic Encyclopedia Volume VI, pp. 25-29, “The Pope is of so great dignity, and so exalted, that he is not a mere man, but as it were, God and the Vicar of God. The Pope is, as it were, God on earth, chief king of kings, having plentitude of power.”
Little Horn attempts to change God’s times and laws (v.25) - The Papacy deleted the second commandment of the Decalogue on idolatry, changed the Sabbath to Sunday in favour of sun worship and divided the tenth commandment on coveting into two parts to get back to Ten Commandments.
Have power for a time, times, and half a time (or three and a half years, forty two months, or 1260 days - see Revelation 12:6, 14) (v.25) - Applying the prophetic day for year principle established in Numbers 14:34 and Ezekiel 4:6 that equals 1260 years. The Papacy lasted in primary power from AD 538 to 1798 in which year Napoleon’s general Berthier marched into Rome, deposed the Pope, and carried him into exile where he died.