Ezekiel 31:1–18 Pharoah Shall Be Slain

[Study Aired September 9, 2024]

Introduction

Today’s study continues with the prophecy against Egypt with focus on Pharoah, the King of Egypt. As we have indicated in previous studies, Pharoah represents our old man or flesh. Today’s study compares Pharoah to the Assyrian who is likened to a cedar of Lebanon.

As we are aware, the Bible is full of metaphors and sometimes it compares our walk with the Lord with the growth of trees. A metaphor is a figure of speech that implicitly compares two unrelated things, typically by stating that one thing is another. For example, we, His elect, are likened to palm trees and cedars of Lebanon.

Psa 92:12  The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. 
Psa 92:13  Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God.
Psa 92:14 They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing;

The house of the Lord is the same as the courts of our God. These verses therefore show us that it is when we are given to come into the assembly of the Lord’s elect, that is the house of the Lord, that we grow spiritually like trees as a result of what every joints supplies, that is, the water of the word.

Heb 12:22  But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, 
Heb 12:23  To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, 
Heb 12:24  And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.
Heb 12:25 See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven:  

Eph 4:11  And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
Eph 4:12  For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
Eph 4:13  Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:
Eph 4:14  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;
Eph 4:15  But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:
Eph 4:16 From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.   

Our growth spiritually, is dependent on our fellowship with our brothers and sisters as we all grow together in the unity of the faith. This unity of the faith means that we all have the same mind of Christ.

1Co 1:10  Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. 

This dependence of our spiritual growth based on the fellowship of our brothers and sisters is given a witness in Proverbs which says that He who finds a wife, finds a good thing and obtains favor from the Lord. The wife here signifies the bride of Christ who represents the fellowship of the Lord’s elect.

Pro 18:22  Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favour of the LORD. 

The favor of the Lord here is being given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God which comes through being part of the bride, that is, finding a wife.

In Today’s study, the focus is on the cedars of Lebanon. To understand our discussion for today, we need to know some basic characteristics of cedars of Lebanon. They grow up to 120 feet tall (about 10-12 story buildings) and their branches are wide-spreading (about 30-50 feet from its truck). They are known in Biblical times as the kings of trees. They cast down their roots as deeply as is their heights upward.

Hos 14:5  I will be as the dew unto Israel: he shall grow as the lily, and cast forth his roots as Lebanon.

According to Jamieson, Fausset and Brown Commentary, his roots as Lebanon means the roots of the trees of Lebanon especially cedars. A tree with deep roots is able to survive in all kinds of conditions. Apostle Paul used this to tell us to be rooted and grounded in God’s love. In other words, we must be rooted and grounded in the resources the Lord provides for us because He loves us.

Eph 3:17  That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, 
Eph 3:18  May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;
Eph 3:19 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.

The Assyrian Compared to Cedars of Lebanon

Eze 31:1  And it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the third month, in the first day of the month, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, 
Eze 31:2 Son of man, speak unto Pharaoh king of Egypt, and to his multitude; Whom art thou like in thy greatness? 

The number eleven signifies the ruin and disintegration of the perfection of the flesh and that of the number three is about the process of spiritual maturity through judgement. The number one shows us that everything is of God. With this in mind, the eleventh year in the third month of the first day of the month in which the word of the Lord came to Ezekiel in verse 1 signifies the coming of the Lord to His elect to start the process of spiritual maturity through His judgement of our old man or flesh.  This process entails the ruin and disintegration of our flesh. The time that our Lord comes to us with His judgement is when our sins have reached their fulness. In this case, the sins of Pharoah the King of Egypt, who represents our flesh or old man has become complete. In the Book of Revelation, it is when the sins of Babylon have reached their fulness or become complete is the time that the Lord shall come to judge her.

Rev 18:5  For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.
Rev 18:6  Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double.
Rev 18:7  How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.
Rev 18:8 Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her.

In verse 2, Pharoah refers to our old man or our flesh and his multitude represent the people of this world who are dominated by the flesh including our brothers and sisters in the churches of this world. It is this multitude that do evil as they are dominated by the flesh. 

Exo 23:2  Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil; neither shalt thou speak in a cause to decline after many to wrest judgment:

Exo 12:38  And a mixed multitude went up also with them; and flocks, and herds, even very much cattle.

Here in verse 2, the Lord wants to show us the dominance and the destruction of our old man by seeking a comparison with one of the greatest empire in ancient times – the Assyrian empire. By comparing our old man or flesh (Pharoah) to the Assyrian empire, the Lord is showing us how He has resourced our flesh or old man to dominate us until the set time that He has appointed, to come and deal with him. In Second Thessalonians, Paul shows us how our old man or flesh has flourished as he dominates or is worshipped by every human being until the set time that the Lord has appointed, where He comes and deal with him with the spirit of His mouth and His brightness.

2Th 2:3  Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
2Th 2:4  Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. 
2Th 2:5  Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?
2Th 2:6  And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.
2Th 2:7  For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
2Th 2:8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

Rev 13:4  And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?

Eze 31:3  Behold, the Assyrian was a cedar in Lebanon with fair branches, and with a shadowing shroud, and of an high stature; and his top was among the thick boughs. 
Eze 31:4  The waters made him great, the deep set him up on high with her rivers running round about his plants, and sent out her little rivers unto all the trees of the field. 
Eze 31:5 Therefore his height was exalted above all the trees of the field, and his boughs were multiplied, and his branches became long because of the multitude of waters, when he shot forth. 

In verse 3, the Assyrian is compared with a cedar in Lebanon. In the Bible, those who are rich or kings use cedar to build houses to live in. In this case, cedars of Lebanon represent our tabernacle or our flesh or bodies since we, His elect, are spiritually rich in Christ. Since the Assyrian in verse 3 was likened to a cedar of Lebanon, it implies that the Assyrian represent our flesh or old man.

2Sa 7:2  That the king said unto Nathan the prophet, See now, I dwell in an house of cedar, but the ark of God dwelleth within curtains.

2Sa 7:7  In all the places wherein I have walked with all the children of Israel spake I a word with any of the tribes of Israel, whom I commanded to feed my people Israel, saying, Why build ye not me an house of cedar?

Son 1:17  The beams of our house are cedar, and our rafters of fir.

Here in verse 3, the Lord is showing us that our old man or flesh is like a cedar of Lebanon with a shadowing shroud, high stature and its top being among the thick bough. This implies that our flesh or old man is a formidable force to deal with and it is only in Christ that we can win the victory over him.

1Co 15:57  But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Being a formidable force within us is another way of saying that our flesh or the beast within us is such that no one can make war with Him.

Rev 13:4  And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him? 

Verse 4 focuses on the deep or the waters that makes our old man great as he sent out his little rivers unto all the trees of the field. The deep refers to the sea of mankind. The waters refers to the false doctrines of human wisdom and tradition which come from the sea of human flesh which nourish all mankind (except the Lord’s elect), signified here by the trees of the field. Our flesh from which comes the waters that nourish all mankind is another way of saying that our old man or flesh or beast is worshipped by all mankind.

Rev 13:8  And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.    

Verse 5 is about how the height of the cedar tree is exalted above all the trees of the field and his branches are long because of the multitude of waters when it shoots up. As we are aware, it is Christ our Lord who is exalted above all humanity in the world. Verse 5 starts with “therefore”, meaning that it is the waters in verse 4 which causes our flesh or old man to be exalted, thinking that he is God. These waters refer to our false doctrines in our heavens which make us believe that we have our own freewill which is the prerogative of God alone. Thus, what is being said in verse 5 is that our flesh exalts himself to the status of God because he thinks he is the one in control of his own destiny.

2Th 2:3  Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
2Th 2:4  Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. 
2Th 2:5 Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?

Isa 14:13  For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: 
Isa 14:14  I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.
Isa 14:15 Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.

Eze 31:6  All the fowls of heaven made their nests in his boughs, and under his branches did all the beasts of the field bring forth their young, and under his shadow dwelt all great nations. 
Eze 31:7  Thus was he fair in his greatness, in the length of his branches: for his root was by great waters. 

All the fowls of heaven making their nests in his boughs in verse 6 signify the devil being the empowering force behind our old man or flesh.

Rev 13:4  And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?

The beasts of the field signifies our flesh. All the beasts of the field bringing forth their young under his branches means within us or out of our flesh comes forth false doctrines of man’s wisdom and tradition.

Act 20:30  Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. 

When we are dominated by the flesh or spiritually dead, then it means that we have been given over to the fowls of the air and the beasts of the field.

1Sa 17:44  And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field.

In verse 6, we are also told that it is under the shadow of our old man that all great nations dwell which means that everyone not born of God is under the sway of our flesh.

1Jn 5:4  For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.

1Jn 5:18 We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not.

Verse 7 continues the description of our flesh by indicating that our flesh or old man is like cedar which is big and beautiful with its many branches. This is because its roots reach down to many sources of water.  Just as all the good and evil things that were created by the Lord serve the very purpose for which they were created, our old man being beautiful means he serves the purpose for which it was created. Being big with many branches means our flesh has a dominant influence on people of the world except the Lord’s elect. This dominance over mankind is due to many waters or sea of flesh that he is in contact with. This many waters represent the false doctrines emanating from the sea of flesh. That means false doctrines of man’s wisdom and tradition.

Gen 1:31  And God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

Col 2:8  Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. 

Mar 7:7  Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. 
Mar 7:8  For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do.

Mar 7:13 Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye.

Eze 31:8  The cedars in the garden of God could not hide him: the fir trees were not like his boughs, and the chesnut trees were not like his branches; nor any tree in the garden of God was like unto him in his beauty. 
Eze 31:9  I have made him fair by the multitude of his branches: so that all the trees of Eden, that were in the garden of God, envied him. 
Eze 31:10 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because thou hast lifted up thyself in height, and he hath shot up his top among the thick boughs, and his heart is lifted up in his height; 

The reference to the garden of Eden in verses 8 and 9, where the cedar is distinct in terms of its beauty among all the trees is to let us know that the flesh or our old man was the epitome of the Lord’s creation. That is to say that the Lord’s hands specifically formed our flesh or old man to be the excellence of His creation, just as the Lord’s hands formed the crooked serpent.

Job 26:13  By his spirit he hath garnished the heavens; his hand hath formed the crooked serpent. 

In Isaiah 14:12, our old man or flesh is referred to as Lucifer, the son of the morning. The accolade “Lucifer” which means the shining one and son of the morning all describes our old man’s status as the excellency of the Lord’s creation. However, being worshipped by the whole world resulted in pride and therefore had to be brought down through the Lord’s judgement. This is all part of the Lord’s work as our flesh or the beast within was made to be taken and destroyed.

Isa 14:12  How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! 
Isa 14:13  For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:
Isa 14:14  I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.
Isa 14:15  Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.
Isa 14:16 They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms;

2Pe 2:12  But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption;

Jud 1:10 But these speak evil of those things which they know not: but what they know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves.

The Lord’s Judgement

Eze 31:11  I have therefore delivered him into the hand of the mighty one of the heathen; he shall surely deal with him: I have driven him out for his wickedness. 
Eze 31:12  And strangers, the terrible of the nations, have cut him off, and have left him: upon the mountains and in all the valleys his branches are fallen, and his boughs are broken by all the rivers of the land; and all the people of the earth are gone down from his shadow, and have left him. 
Eze 31:13 Upon his ruin shall all the fowls of the heaven remain, and all the beasts of the field shall be upon his branches: 

As indicated in verse 11, as a result of the wickedness of our old man or flesh, the Lord has come to judge him by giving him over into the hands of the mighty one of the heathens. The mighty one of the heathen signifies the devil whom the Lord has given over the kingdoms of this world. Thus, delivering our old man or flesh to the devil implies being judged, resulting in the death of our flesh or old man.  We must remember that the man who slept with his father’s wife and was therefore handed over to Satan was for the purpose of the destruction of his flesh.

1Co 5:3  For I verily, as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already, as though I were present, concerning him that hath so done this deed,
1Co 5:4  In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ,
1Co 5:5 To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.

In verse 12, the Lord will use foreigners from the most ruthless nation to judge our flesh. The instrument of judgement here is the sword which the Lord shall cause every man’s sword to be against his brother.

Eze 38:21 And I will call for a sword against him throughout all my mountains, saith the Lord GOD: every man’s sword shall be against his brother.

Jdg 7:22 And the three hundred [men with Gideon] blew the trumpets, and the LORD set every man’s sword against his fellow, even throughout all the host [of the Midianites]: and the host fled to Bethshittah in Zererath, and to the border of Abelmeholah, unto Tabbath.

As a result of the Lord’s judgement, its branches fell on the mountains and every valley with his broken branches falling into all the rivers of the land. In the Bible mountains and valleys can signify worship sites or the assembly of believers. This implies that it is through the assembly of the Lord’s elect and the word of the Lord that we come to see the destruction of our old man or flesh which prepares us to be manifested as the sons of God. That is what will result in the salvation of all humanity as the people of the earth come out of the shade of the flesh or old man.

Eze 6:3 Say this, ‘You mountains of Israel, listen to the word of the Almighty LORD! This is what the Almighty LORD says to the mountains and hills and to the ravines and valleys: I am going to attack you with a sword and destroy your worship sites.

Rom 8:19  For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. 
Rom 8:20  For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope,
Rom 8:21 Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.

In verse 13, we are told that on its fallen trunk dwell all the birds of heaven and on its branches are all the beasts of the field. It is as we are judged that we come to see that our old man received his power from the devil. We also come to realize that we are indeed beast before our Lord.

Psa 73:22  So foolish was I, and ignorant: I was as a beast before thee. 

Ecc 3:18  I said in mine heart concerning the estate of the sons of men, that God might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are beasts. 

Rev 13:4  And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?

Eze 31:14  To the end that none of all the trees by the waters exalt themselves for their height, neither shoot up their top among the thick boughs, neither their trees stand up in their height, all that drink water: for they are all delivered unto death, to the nether parts of the earth, in the midst of the children of men, with them that go down to the pit. 

As we have indicated, trees represent people. The judgement of the Lord together with His elect during the lake of fire age shall result in the salvation of all people of every age. This judgement shall destroy the pride in man and everything that mitigate against the rule of Christ in the lives of all humanity. It shall also destroy all the false doctrines of man’s wisdom and tradition which is signified here in verse 14 by the stopping of the flow of the many water sources. The old man of every man or woman shall be destroyed completely as symbolized by the trees being given over to death.

1Ti 4:9  This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation.
1Ti 4:10 For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe.        

1Ti 2:3  For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour;
1Ti 2:4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.  

In this age however, it is only the Lord’s elect that are being judged to become saviors of all mankind as judgement shall be given to them to judge the human race from every generation.

1Pe 4:17  For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God? 
1Pe 4:18 And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?

1Co 6:2  Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? 
1Co 6:3 Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?

Rev 20:4  And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.

Eze 31:15 Thus saith the Lord GOD; In the day when he went down to the grave I caused a mourning: I covered the deep for him, and I restrained the floods thereof, and the great waters were stayed: and I caused Lebanon to mourn for him, and all the trees of the field fainted for him.

Here in verse 15, we are being told that the judgement of our old man or flesh as the Lord’s elect is an evil experience as we mourn during this process of His judgement. That is why the two witnesses in the Book of Revelation were clothed in sackcloth to symbolize the mourning of the Lord’s elect as we go through the Lord’s judgement in this age.

Rev 11:3  And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth. 

Verse 15 emphasizes the benefits of the Lord’s judgement as the Lord destroys all the false doctrines in our heavens by covering the waters from the sea and holding back the rivers to stop the many water sources from flowing in our hearts and minds.

Verse 15 also indicates that all those in Lebanon shall mourn the destruction of our flesh. Lebanon means white. On a positive note, white refers to the light of the truth of the word of the Lord. In other words, it is those whose garments are being made white who are given to know the truth of the Lord’s words. Thus, Lebanon being caused to mourn our old man’s destruction means that the Lord’s elect shall mourn as we go through the Lord’s judgement of our old man.

Ecc 9:8  Let thy garments be always white; and let thy head lack no ointment.   

Isa 1:18  Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

Rev 19:8  And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

In verse 15, we are made aware that all the trees of the field faint for the destruction of our old man. The word “faint” used in verse 15 means mourning according to Strong’s Dictionary. The trees of the field refers to all humanity who are not given to know Christ in this age. This implies that all humanity shall also mourn the death of their old man as they go through the Lord’s judgement during the lake of fire age.

Eze 31:16  I made the nations to shake at the sound of his fall, when I cast him down to hell with them that descend into the pit: and all the trees of Eden, the choice and best of Lebanon, all that drink water, shall be comforted in the nether parts of the earth. 
Eze 31:17  They also went down into hell with him unto them that be slain with the sword; and they that were his arm, that dwelt under his shadow in the midst of the heathen. 
Eze 31:18 To whom art thou thus like in glory and in greatness among the trees of Eden? yet shalt thou be brought down with the trees of Eden unto the nether parts of the earth: thou shalt lie in the midst of the uncircumcised with them that be slain by the sword. This is Pharaoh and all his multitude, saith the Lord GOD. 

It is instructive to note that in verse 16, the nations shall shake at the sound of the destruction of our old man. The nations mentioned here refers to non-Hebrew people. In other words, those who are not the Lord’s elect. The word “shake” is used most of the time in the Bible to indicate the Lord’s judgement as shown in the following verses:

Hag 2:7  And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the LORD of hosts. 

Joe 3:16  The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.

The nations shaking at the noise of the destruction of the old man of the Lord’s elect therefore implies that the judgement of the Lord’s people or elect shall have repercussions on the rest of humanity as the Lord’s elect are being prepared to judge all humanity. In verse 16, the judgement of all humanity is what will result in the comforting of all trees of Eden, the choicest and the best of Lebanon as they all shall drink the water of life. All the trees of Eden, together with the choicest and the best of Lebanon refers to all humanity of God’s creation.

Rev 22:1  And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.
Rev 22:2 In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.

Verse 17 continues with the judgement of all humanity as it states that they (the nations) had gone down in the grave with the tree which represents our flesh or old man. All those who live in the tree’s shadow represent all those who are dominated by the flesh. They shall be judged by the Lord as indicated by their scattering among the nations.

In verse 18, we are made aware that Pharoah is the cedar of Lebanon who represents our flesh or old man and that the judgement of our flesh will surely be carried out by the Lord to lay waste our old man. This is to assure us that what the Lord has begun in us, He is able to bring to completion as He makes us His vessels of honor.

May His name be praised. Amen!!

In Hosea 11:5:  He shall not return to the land of E​gypt, but the Assyrian will be his king because E​gypt) refused to return. What exactly does that mean?

Thanks, R____

Hi R____,

You ask what this verse means:

Hos 11:5  He shall not return into the land of Egypt, but the Assyrian shall be his king, because they refused to return.

What we are being told is that once Christ begins to give us an unsettled and uncomfortable spirit of conviction of how we have given our lives over to the desires​ of our flesh and after He has begun to drag us out of our sinful ways, then, if indeed He is dragging us to Himself, we will never again be allowed to return to that completely carnal way of life. Instead we will begin to see that we still fall short in our daily lives and to sooth our conscience,​ we will begin attending a church which is nothing less than one of the 40,000 plus daughters of the great whore of Revelation 17-18.

A ‘whore’ is an unfaithful wife, and that is what every church organization with a statement of beliefs and a 501-C-3 tax status is. Christ is not an ‘organization’. Rather, Christ is a living organism dwelling within everyone who He is calling out of organized religion to do the things He tells us to do.

Luk 6:46  And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?
Luk 6:47  Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like:
Luk 6:48  He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock.
Luk 6:49  But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great.

There is not one church or one minister in a thousand who does not teach you to get out and vote and join the military and defend your family and your country. There is not one church which does not teach you to defend yourself at all costs. I am no fool. I know it is naturally impossible to be obedient to these words of Christ:

Mat 5:38  Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth:
Mat 5:39  But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.
Mat 5:40  And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloke also.
Mat 5:41  And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.
Mat 5:42  Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away. 
Mat 5:43  Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.
Mat 5:44  But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; 

All of these are “the things that I say”, and they are literally impossible for our natural man to do. But “Christ in [us]” can do all things:

Php 4:13  I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

Christ twice tells us:

Mat 20:16  So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.

Mat 22:14  For many are called, but few are chosen.

“Few” is defined for us in these words in answer to His disciples’ question, “What will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”

Mat 24:36  But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.
Mat 24:37  But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. [8 people saved out of possibly many ​millions.]
Mat 24:38  For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,
Mat 24:39  And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

Luk 17:32  Remember Lot’s wife. [Three out of “Sodom… and all the cities of the plain”]
Luk 17:33  Whosoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it.

Luk 18:8  I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?

That is the meaning of not returning to Egypt, but being given over to the Assyrians, who are the same people as the Babylonians who carried Israel off into captivity.

We are warned:

Rev 18:4  And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.
Rev 18:5  For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.

“Babylon the great,​ the mother of harlots and of the abominations of the earth” is not just Christendom. It includes Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism and all the religions ​of this world. That includes secularism and atheism, which “worship and serve the creature rather than the Creator”.

It is only when we “come out of [Babylon]” that we can begin to truly know Christ and His Father, which is eternal life.

Joh 17:3  And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

I hope this helps you to see the spiritual message in these words:

Hos 11:5  He shall not return into the land of Egypt, but the Assyrian shall be his king, because they refused to return.
Hos 11:6  And the sword shall abide on his cities, and shall consume his branches, and devour them, because of their own counsels.
Hos 11:7  And my people are bent to backsliding from me: though they called them to the most High, none at all would exalt him.

YbiC, Mike

The Prophecy of Isaiah - Part 76 Discussion

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 Isa 20:1-6 How Shall We Escape From The King of Assyria?

Isa 20:1  In the year that Tartan came unto Ashdod, (when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him,) and fought against Ashdod, and took it;
Isa 20:2  At the same time spake the LORD by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, Go and loose the sackcloth from off thy loins, and put off thy shoe from thy foot. And he did so, walking naked and barefoot.
Isa 20:3  And the LORD said, Like as my servant Isaiah hath walked naked and barefoot three years for a sign and wonder upon Egypt and upon Ethiopia;
Isa 20:4  So shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians prisoners, and the Ethiopians captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, even with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt.
Isa 20:5  And they shall be afraid and ashamed of Ethiopia their expectation, and of Egypt their glory.
Isa 20:6  And the inhabitant of this isle shall say in that day, Behold, such is our expectation, whither we flee for help to be delivered from the king of Assyria: and how shall we escape?

We now have the king of Assyria right back in his voracious ways, in this next chapter after the Lord Himself called Assyria the "blessed... work of My hands".

Isa 19:24 In that day shall Israel be the third with Egypt and with Assyria, even a blessing in the midst of the land:
Isa 19:25 Whom the LORD of hosts shall bless, saying, Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of my hands, and Israel mine inheritance.

And what is 'the king of Assyria doing here in this chapter? He is conquering and plundering "the Egyptians... and the Ethiopians", Israel's only hope of being saved from the king of Assyria.

Assyria and Egypt will both be saved through the lake of fire. But in the mean time both are used as instruments in the Lord's hand. Egypt symbolizes our flesh, the world within us which wants us to depend upon her for our well being, while Assyria, symbolizes the rod of the Lord's indignation against both Israel and Egypt. (Isa 10:5)

That is the message of our study today. Our old man is sacrificed for the salvation of our new man:

Isa 20:1  In the year that Tartan came unto Ashdod, (when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him,) and fought against Ashdod, and took it;
Isa 20:2  At the same time spake the LORD by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, Go and loose the sackcloth from off thy loins, and put off thy shoe from thy foot. And he did so, walking naked and barefoot.
Isa 20:3  And the LORD said, Like as my servant Isaiah hath walked naked and barefoot three years for a sign and wonder upon Egypt and upon Ethiopia;
Isa 20:4  So shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians prisoners, and the Ethiopians captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, even with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt.

The first thing to notice is that God always first warns us, then admonishes us to repent, before He pours out His judgments and His wrath upon the kingdom of our rebellious old man. Just as He first warned Adam and Eve of the consequences of disobedience, so also the fall of Ashdod was a warning to Judah and Jerusalem, the Old Testament types of you and me, the Lord's rebellious apostatized people, that their own judgment was very near.

Spiritually Egypt and Ethiopia symbolize and typify the rebellious Adamic flesh into which we are all born. Egypt and Ethiopia, in these verses, typify "all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life." It is our own flesh and our own wisdom and  our own understanding upon which we just naturally depend to get us through every trial of life. For this reason we are told:

Pro 3:5  Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
Pro 3:6  In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
Pro 3:7  Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.

1Jn 2:16  For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
1Jn 2:17  And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

Leaning on our own understanding and being wise in our own eyes is symbolized by our hope in the Ethiopians as our expectation and Egypt as our glory. It is a recipe for disaster because "The inhabitant of this isle" in verse six symbolizes apostate Israel, who as "types of us" (1Co 10:6), has turned her back on her true and only Savior and is now depending upon her own flesh and the things of this world for deliverance and for salvation.

The first Christian martyr, Stephen, just before his stoning, tells us this about ourselves:

Act 7:41  And they made a calf in those days, and offered sacrifice unto the idol, and rejoiced in the works of their own hands.
Act 7:42  Then God turned, and gave them up to worship the host of heaven; as it is written in the book of the prophets, O ye house of Israel, have ye offered to me slain beasts and sacrifices by the space of forty years in the wilderness?

1Co 10:6 Now these things became types of us, for us not to be lusters after evil things, (CLV)

Deu 4:19  And lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven, and when thou seest the sun, and the moon, and the stars, even all the host of heaven, shouldest be driven to worship them, and serve them, which the LORD thy God hath divided unto all nations under the whole heaven.

Before we come to know The True Shepherd we are "the nations under the whole heaven". It is we to whom the worship of the sun, moon, and stars, has been divided.  The worship and service we render to those heavenly bodies is accomplished by keeping the "days, months, times and years [of] the traditions of men" in every society on earth. Societies absolutely insist that their citizens participate. The pressure to partake is irresistible. Never mind, they insist, these holy spirit inspired words:

Gal 4:9  But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage?
Gal 4:10  Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years.
Gal 4:11  I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labour in vain.
Gal 4:12  Brethren, I beseech you, be as I am; for I am as ye are: ye have not injured me at all.

"In all your ways acknowledge Him" (Pro 3:6) means that we should have His word directing our every move, and His Word does not sanction the observance of the traditions of men:

Col 2:7  Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.
Col 2:8  Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

"As you have been taught" tells us that Paul spoke the same thing to these Colossians that he had taught to the Galatians. The Greek word translated "rudiments of the words" here is the same Greek word translated as "weak and beggarly elements" in Galatians 4. It is the Greek word 'stoicheion', and this is how Strong's defines this word:

G4747
στοιχεῖον
stoicheion
stoy-khi'-on
Neuter of a presumed derivative of the base of G4748; something orderly in arrangement, that is, (by implication) a serial (basal, fundamental, initial) constituent (literally), proposition (figuratively): - element, principle, rudiment.

The way 'stoicheion' is used in Galatians 4 and Colossians 2 speaks of the "basal, fundamental arrangement" of the "elements of this world". This pull of  our flesh to fit into society is symbolized by "Egypt [our] glory".

When we look at the base G4748 this what we see:

G4748
στοιχέω
stoicheō
stoy-kheh'-o
From a derivative of στείχω steichō̄ (to range in regular line); to march in (military) rank (keep step), that is, (figuratively) to conform to virtue and piety: - walk (orderly).

This base of 'stoicheion' is 'stoicheo', and of the five times it appears in the New Testament, it is always translated with the English word 'walk' as in:

Gal 5:25  If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk [stoicheo] in the Spirit.

So both words mean the same thing. They both mean to conform to the accepted principles we are expected to uphold, whether it is the principles of the doctrine of Christ or the principles of "the elements of this world [and] the traditions of men".

It always helps us to better understand a word when we see it used in both its positive and its negative applications. Galatians 4 and Colossians 2 both demonstrate the negative application of this Greek word 'stoicheion'. Both of those scriptures admonish us against conforming to the world's accepted principles of submitting to, conforming to, and participating in the observance of the days, months, times and years of the traditions of men.

Here is an example of its positive application:

Heb 5:12  For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles [G4747: 'stoicheion', basal, fundamental...arrangement] of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.

Romans 14:1 tells to bear with the weak in faith who can "eat [only] herbs" and who "esteems one day above another". We are told "let every man [weak and strong in the faith] be fully persuaded in his own mind." Romans 14 also lets us know that it is those who are:

Rom 14:1  Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations.
Rom 14:2  For one believeth that he may eat all things: another, who is weak, eateth herbs.
Rom 14:3  Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not; and let not him which eateth not judge him that eateth: for God hath received him.
Rom 14:4  Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand.
Rom 14:5  One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.
Rom 14:6  He that regardeth the day, regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard it. He that eateth, eateth to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks; and he that eateth not, to the Lord he eateth not, and giveth God thanks.

Any "weak in the faith... babe in Christ" (1Co 3:1-4) can esteem birthdays, anniversaries, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas, Easter and Halloween, and fit right in with the traditions of men. It requires being very strong in the faith to "regard not the day... unto the Lord".

So what are the strong in the faith to do with the weak in the faith? These are our instructions for how we are to treat those who are not yet given the strength to "regard not the day... unto the Lord":

Rom 15:1  We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves.
Rom 15:2  Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification.
Rom 15:3  For even Christ pleased not himself; but, as it is written, The reproaches of them that reproached thee fell on me.
Rom 15:4  For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.
Rom 15:5  Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus:
Rom 15:6  That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Rom 15:7  Wherefore receive ye one another, as Christ also received us to the glory of God.

Christ died for us "while [we] were yet in [our] sins" (Eph 2:1-5). The least we can do is to be patient with those who are "weak in the faith... esteem[ing] one day above another". Nevertheless, nothing said in Romans 15 contradicts Romans 14:1, and it is incumbent upon "We which are strong" never to permit "them that are weak in the faith... to [engage in] doubtful disputations" about already established discernments and already established Biblical doctrine, such as Galatians 4:1-10 and Colossians 2:8-22.

The vast majority of ancient Israel's history was spent desiring to be like the nations about them and living in total rebellion against their own marriage covenant which required fidelity to their Husband, Christ, and to His laws. Here is how Christ portrays Israel's history:

Mat 23:37  O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!

The martyr Stephen said this just before he was stoned to death:

Act 7:51  Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.
Act 7:52  Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? and they have slain them which shewed before of the coming of the Just One; of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers:

In this chapter of Isaiah Christ is telling Israel, a type of us, that the time has come for them to be punished for their infidelity. As we have seen, Assyria is the symbol for "the rod of [His] indignation".

Isa 10:3  And what will ye do in the day of visitation, and in the desolation which shall come from far? to whom will ye flee for help? and where will ye leave your glory?
Isa 10:4  Without me they shall bow down under the prisoners, and they shall fall under the slain. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.
Isa 10:5  O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger, and the staff in their hand is mine indignation.
Isa 10:6  I will send him against an hypocritical nation, and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge, to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets.

"The people of [Christ's] wrath" is us, if we are "the house of God" in this age, because His judgment "begins at the house of God" (1Pe 4:17). This judgment begins with Christ revealing our own nakedness to us. Let's put Isaiah's words together with the words that say the same thing in the book of Revelation.

Here again is Isaiah:

Isa 20:2  At the same time spake the LORD by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, Go and loose the sackcloth from off thy loins, and put off thy shoe from thy foot. And he did so, walking naked and barefoot.
Isa 20:3  And the LORD said, Like as my servant Isaiah hath walked naked and barefoot three years for a sign and wonder upon Egypt and upon Ethiopia;

And this is the book of Revelation:

Rev 3:17  Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:
Rev 3:18  I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.
Rev 3:19  As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.

The fact Isaiah was instructed to expose his own nakedness for three years tells us the process of judgment has begun at the house of God. [Link to the study on the number three.]

The phrase "At the same time" refers to the time that the king of Assyria fought against and took Ashdod. The king of Assyria had already come up against King Ahaz and had placed him and his people under tribute.

2Ki 16:8  And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in the house of the LORD, and in the treasures of the king's house, and sent it for a present to the king of Assyria.

Babylon, the king of Assyria, is called "the great city wherein our Lord was crucified", revealing that Babylon is the Lord's own people (Rev 11:8). Israel, as a type of us, was already naked and yet refused to acknowledge her own nakedness, telling herself:

Rev 18:7  How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.
Rev 11:8  And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified.

It is the blindness and stubbornness of His own people, you and me, which gives the Lord the excuse He is seeking to destroy the kingdom of our old man within us, and to show us our own spiritually naked condition.

Isa 20:4  So shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians prisoners, and the Ethiopians captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, even with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt.

If we think this twentieth chapter of Isaiah is simply a history lesson, then it has no personal application. This is not just a history lesson, rather:

1Co 10:11  Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.

At the appointed time, we are brought to see our own nakedness, and we are made to acknowledge that there is no way to avoid the destruction which is staring us in the face:

Isa 20:5  And they shall be afraid and ashamed of Ethiopia their expectation, and of Egypt their glory.
Isa 20:6  And the inhabitant of this isle shall say in that day, Behold, such is our expectation, whither we flee for help to be delivered from the king of Assyria: and how shall we escape?

"This isle" is us, those whom the Lord is judging in this age. This all happened to Israel, to Ethiopia and to Egypt, as a "type of us", and it is all "written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages are come."

1Co 10:6 Now these things became types of us, for us not to be lusters after evil things. (CLV)

Up to this time our own pride, our own flesh, has been our "expectation" and our "glory", and we have indeed been "lusters after evil things". We actually think we can deliver ourselves from the judgment of the kingdom of our old man. It is our old man, the beast within us, who is symbolized in this passage by Ethiopia and by Egypt, both of which had been very formidable powers at their own appointed times. "Their expectation [and] their glory" is our own 'expectation... and... glory', as the Lord's apostatized people. But now "the great day of His wrath is come, and who shall be able to stand?"

Rev 6:17  For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?

Revelation 17 portrays our beast within us, and all of his allies within us, as "ten kings" who will agree to give their power to the beast and to go to war with the Lamb. The number 'ten' in scripture signifies the epitome and the perfection of our corruptible, dying flesh: Link to the study on the number 10.

Rev 17:12  And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.
Rev 17:13  These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.
Rev 17:14  These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.

"These shall make war with the Lamb" tells us that judgment has come upon us and that the destruction of the kingdom of our old man is at hand, because "the Lamb shall overcome them: for He is Lord of lords and King of kings, and they that are with Him are called, and chosen, and faithful." They are not just called and chosen, but those who are with the Lamb are "called, and chosen, and [they are also] faithful [to the end]", which is required of those who will rule with Christ in His kingdom:

Mat 10:21  And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death.
Mat 10:22  And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.

The fact that we are now granted to be "ashamed of Ethiopia [our] expectation, and of Egypt [our] glory", and the fact that we now are saying, "Behold, such is our expectation, whither we flee for help to be delivered from the king of Assyria: and how shall we escape?" tells us that we have been brought to accept the fact that our old man has no way of escaping from, or being delivered from, the king of Assyria. We have been brought to accept the destruction of the kingdom of our old man and to see that allying ourselves with our own flesh was a very dear mistake because:

2Ki 18:21  Now, behold, thou trustest upon the staff of this bruised reed, even upon Egypt, on which if a man lean, it will go into his hand, and pierce it: so is Pharaoh king of Egypt unto all that trust on him.

Isa 36:6  Lo, thou trustest in the staff of this broken reed, on Egypt; whereon if a man lean, it will go into his hand, and pierce it: so is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all that trust in him.

King David tells us the same thing in these words:

Psa 146:3  Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help.
Psa 146:4  His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish.
Psa 146:5  Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the LORD his God:

Egypt and its king, Pharaoh, symbolize our corruptible flesh. It is inevitable that we will seek to Egypt as our ally against the judgment the Lord has placed in "the rod of His indignation... the King of Assyria." When we do so, we become the enemies of Christ, and we are actually going to war against Christ. But "the Lamb... is Lord of lords, and King of kings", and He will judge us and He will send us into Babylonian captivity, before He brings us "out of her" and before He will overcome and utterly destroy the kingdom of our old man. It has proceeded out of the mouth of God, and we will live by these words:

Hos 11:1  When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt.
Hos 11:2  As they called them, so they went from them: they sacrificed unto Baalim, and burned incense to graven images.
Hos 11:3  I taught Ephraim also to go, taking them by their arms; but they knew not that I healed them.
Hos 11:4  I drew them with cords of a man, with bands of love: and I was to them as they that take off the yoke on their jaws, and I laid meat unto them.
Hos 11:5  He shall not return into the land of Egypt, but the Assyrian shall be his king, because they refused to return.
Hos 11:6  And the sword shall abide on his cities, and shall consume his branches, and devour them, because of their own counsels.

But it is all "working together for good to them who [have been dragged to] love God, and who are the called according to His purpose" (Rom 8:28).

So the gospel of Jesus Christ really is good news for all men because He came into this world to judge it:

Joh 9:39  And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.
Joh 9:40  And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also?
Joh 9:41  Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.

Only a "few... firstfruits" are given to be faithful to the end in this age, but in the Lord's time "all in Adam [will] be made alive... in Christ" (1Co 15:22), and then all mankind will say together:

Isa 26:8  Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O LORD, have we waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee.
Isa 26:9  With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.

We will stop here for now, and we will cover these verses in our next study:

Isa 21:1  The burden of the desert of the sea. As whirlwinds in the south pass through; so it cometh from the desert, from a terrible land.
Isa 21:2  A grievous vision is declared unto me; the treacherous dealer dealeth treacherously, and the spoiler spoileth. Go up, O Elam: besiege, O Media; all the sighing thereof have I made to cease.
Isa 21:3  Therefore are my loins filled with pain: pangs have taken hold upon me, as the pangs of a woman that travaileth: I was bowed down at the hearing of it; I was dismayed at the seeing of it.
Isa 21:4  My heart panted, fearfulness affrighted me: the night of my pleasure hath he turned into fear unto me.
Isa 21:5  Prepare the table, watch in the watchtower, eat, drink: arise, ye princes, and anoint the shield.
Isa 21:6  For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Go, set a watchman, let him declare what he seeth.
Isa 21:7  And he saw a chariot with a couple of horsemen, a chariot of asses, and a chariot of camels; and he hearkened diligently with much heed:
Isa 21:8  And he cried, A lion: My lord, I stand continually upon the watchtower in the daytime, and I am set in my ward whole nights:
Isa 21:9  And, behold, here cometh a chariot of men, with a couple of horsemen. And he answered and said, Babylon is fallen, is fallen; and all the graven images of her gods he hath broken unto the ground.
Isa 21:10  O my threshing, and the corn of my floor: that which I have heard of the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, have I declared unto you.

Greetings, Mike,

I just want to know the Spiritual significance of the Assyrian in the bible or Spirit of Assyria/ King of Assyria, what it is, how it operates and all that.

Thank you so much for taking time to always respond to my questions. I learn a lot.

God bless,

N____

Hi N____,

Thank you for your question.

You say:

“I just want to know the Spiritual significance of the Assyria[ns] in the bible or Spirit of Assyria/ King of Assyria; what it is, how it operates and all that.”

Assyria is the country to whom God sent the prophet Jonah. The capital of Assyria was Nineveh. Jonah preached to Nineveh and its king and its people repented. The way the book of Jonah ends is with Jonah upset with God for saving Nineveh. We will see in a moment what that means, but first let me answer your question concerning the spiritual significance of Assyria.

It will help us to understand the spiritual significance of Assyria if we can first understand that both Nineveh and Babylon are in the land of Assyria. Both countries were used by God to punish His own rebellious people. The kingdom of northern Israel was first carried away captive by the Assyrian king of Nineveh whose name was Tiglathpileser. Just a few years later Nineveh was conquered by the Babylonians. Shortly after the Babylonians conquered Nineveh, they expanded the borders of their empire by conquering the southern nation of Judah, which was also carried away captive by Nebuchadnezzar. Just like the king of Nineveh, Nebuchadnezzar was dealt with by God, through the prophet Daniel, and he too, was converted and proclaimed the God of Daniel to be the only God.

Here are the accounts of the conversions of both of these kings and their kingdoms:

Jon 3:3 So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceeding great city of three days’ journey.
Jon 3:4 And Jonah began to enter into the city a day’s journey, and he cried, and said, Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.
Jon 3:5 So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.
Jon 3:6 For word came unto the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.
Jon 3:7 And he caused it to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing: let them not feed, nor drink water:
Jon 3:8 But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily unto God: yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands.
Jon 3:9 Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?
Jon 3:10 And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not.

“The people of Nineveh [and] the king of Nineveh… turn[ed] every one from his evil way, and from the violence that [was] in their hands” and God received their repentance. But this is what happened with Jonah when God saved Nineveh from utter destruction. This is how the book of Jonah ends:

Jon 4:1 But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry.
Jon 4:2 And he prayed unto the LORD, and said, I pray thee, O LORD, was not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I fled before unto Tarshish: for I knew that thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest thee of the evil.
Jon 4:3 Therefore now, O LORD, take, I beseech thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live.
Jon 4:4 Then said the LORD, Doest thou well to be angry?
Jon 4:5 So Jonah went out of the city, and sat on the east side of the city, and there made him a booth, and sat under it in the shadow, till he might see what would become of the city.
Jon 4:6 And the LORD God prepared a gourd, and made it to come up over Jonah, that it might be a shadow over his head, to deliver him from his grief. So Jonah was exceeding glad of the gourd.
Jon 4:7 But God prepared a worm when the morning rose the next day, and it smote the gourd that it withered.
Jon 4:8 And it came to pass, when the sun did arise, that God prepared a vehement east wind; and the sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he fainted, and wished in himself to die, and said, It is better for me to die than to live.
Jon 4:9 And God said to Jonah, Doest thou well to be angry for the gourd? And he said, I do well to be angry, even unto death.
Jon 4:10 Then said the LORD, Thou hast had pity on the gourd, for the which thou hast not laboured, neither madest it grow; which came up in a night, and perished in a night:
Jon 4:11 And should not I spare Nineveh, that great city, wherein are more than sixscore thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand; and also much cattle?

The book of Jonah ends with Jonah reproving God for saving Nineveh.

Now here is the conversion of Nebuchadnezzar and the kingdom of Babylon:

Dan 4:30 The king spake, and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honour of my majesty?
Dan 4:31 While the word was in the king’s mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, saying, O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken; The kingdom is departed from thee.
Dan 4:32 And they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field: they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and seven times shall pass over thee, until thou know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will.
Dan 4:33 The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar: and he was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagles’ feathers, and his nails like birds’ claws.
Dan 4:34 And at the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most High, and I praised and honoured him that liveth for ever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation:
Dan 4:35 And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?
Dan 4:36 At the same time my reason returned unto me; and for the glory of my kingdom, mine honour and brightness returned unto me; and my counsellors and my lords sought unto me; and I was established in my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added unto me.
Dan 4:37 Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase.

Again there is a great lesson in the conversion of these two Babylonian kings, which we will discuss after we discover the spiritual significance of both Assyria and Babylon, who are really both the same peoples, and as we see above, are both used to give us the same spiritual lesson.

Before these kings and their kingdoms are saved this is how they are used in God’s service. This is the spiritual significance of the Assyrians and the Babylonians who are also Assyrians:

Isa 10:1 Woe unto them that decree unrighteous decrees, and that write grievousness which they have prescribed;
Isa 10:2 To turn aside the needy from judgment, and to take away the right from the poor of my people, that widows may be their prey, and that they may rob the fatherless!
Isa 10:3 And what will ye do in the day of visitation, and in the desolation which shall come from far? to whom will ye flee for help? and where will ye leave your glory?
Isa 10:4 Without me they shall bow down under the prisoners, and they shall fall under the slain. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.
Isa 10:5 O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger, and the staff in their hand is mine indignation.
Isa 10:6 I will send him against an hypocritical nation, and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge, to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets.
Isa 10:7 Howbeit he meaneth not so, neither doth his heart think so; but it is in his heart to destroy and cut off nations not a few.

There it is. There is the spiritual significance of the Assyrians and of the Babylonians. “The staff in their hand is… the rod of [God’s] anger… the staff in their hand is [God’s] indignation”.

In spiritual terms, Assyria and Babylon are both used of God to keep us captive in false doctrines which keep us blinded from the doctrines of Christ, while at the same time oppressing us and punishing us for our own submission to the false doctrines of Babylon which deny the doctrines of Christ and “decree unrighteous decrees, and write grievousness which they have prescribed”:

Isa 10:1 Woe unto them that decree unrighteous decrees, and that write grievousness which they have prescribed;
Isa 10:2 To turn aside the needy from judgment, and to take away the right from the poor of my people, that widows may be their prey, and that they may rob the fatherless!

This is exactly what the doctrines of Babylon produce within us when we prescribe such grievous decrees as eternal torment in literal flames of fire, and use such false and grievous decrees to extort from widows and rob from those who do not know our loving heavenly Father, “the fatherless”, whose only father is the devil himself.

This is what Christ had to say to the children of the very same people to whom Isaiah 10 is addressed, “to the Jews which believed on Him” but who at the same time wanted to stone Him:

Joh 8:31 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
Joh 8:32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
Joh 8:33 They answered him, We be Abraham’s seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?
Joh 8:34 Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.
Joh 8:35 And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever.
Joh 8:36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.
Joh 8:37 I know that ye are Abraham’s seed; but ye seek to kill me, because my word hath no place in you.
Joh 8:38 I speak that which I have seen with my Father: and ye do that which ye have seen with your father.
Joh 8:39 They answered and said unto him, Abraham is our father. Jesus saith unto them, If ye were Abraham’s children, ye would do the works of Abraham.
Joh 8:40 But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham.
Joh 8:41 Ye do the deeds of your father. Then said they to him, We be not born of fornication; we have one Father, even God.
Joh 8:42 Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me.
Joh 8:43 Why do ye not understand my speech? even because ye cannot hear my word.
Joh 8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He 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.

So Assyria and Babylon, spiritually are those who the Lord uses to punish us for our own rebellions against Him. The fact is that Abraham himself was called out of Assyria and Babylon, from “Ur of the Chaldees”. That again is a type of where we all come from spiritually, We are all first carried away to Babylon before we are delivered of that corruption. It is Babylon and its heartless ministers who are used of God to bring us to our wits’ end before we are given to see where we are and to repent of all of her doctrines and to begin to “come out of her” (Rev 18:4) Those Jews who believed on Christ had no idea that it was actually in their hearts to stone their own savior:

Joh 7:19 Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keepeth the law? Why go ye about to kill me?
Joh 7:20 The people answered and said, Thou hast a devil: who goeth about to kill thee?

So it is with you and me at first. We don’t even know that we have been harboring hatred towards others and are therefore murderers in the eyes of God:

1Jn 3:15 Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.

We are all guilty of hating our brother at some time. Babylon teaches us to do so when it partakes in the affairs of this age and encourages its victims to go to war against their own brothers and to fight for God and country. We have all been part of that system and we have all witnessed how the shepherds of Babylon will steal from the windows and the fatherless, and yet that entire system is nothing more or less that the rod of God’s indignation upon us while we are in that rebellious and stubborn part of our “experience of evil… which the Lord [Himself] has given to the sons of men to humble [us]”.

Ecc 1:13 I applied my heart to inquiring and exploring by wisdom concerning all that is done under the heavens: it is an experience of evil Elohim has given to the sons of humanity to humble them by it.

Psa 90:3 Thou turnest man to destruction; and sayest, Return, ye children of men.

Pro 16:4 The LORD hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil.

Isa 63:17 O LORD, why hast thou made us to err from thy ways, and hardened our heart from thy fear? Return for thy servants’ sake, the tribes of thine inheritance.

It is all of God who is “working all things after the counsel of His own will”. (Eph 1:11)

But now I want to return to the spiritual significance of the conversion of the king of Nineveh and all of his kingdom, and the conversion of Nebuchadnezzar and the king of Babylon and all of his kingdom. The spiritual significance of the conversion of these kings and their kingdoms is the inevitable, predestinated salvation of all who are in Adam:

1Co 15:22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.

This is the true gospel of the kingdom of God! And it permeates scripture from Genesis to Revelation:

Gen 4:6 And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?
Gen 4:7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.

2Sa 14:14 For we must needs die, and are as water spilt on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again; neither doth God respect any person: yet doth he devise means, that his banished be not expelled from him.

Joh 3:17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

1Co 3:15 If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.

1Ti 2:3 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour;
1Ti 2:4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

Isa 46:10 Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:

1Ti 4:9 This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation.
1Ti 4:10 For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe.
1Ti 4:11 These things command and teach.

2Pe 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

1Jn 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

So in the end the kings of Assyria and Babylon are spiritual types of our evil, old man who God uses to correct us when we rebel against Him and His law and His commandments:

Jer 2:19 Thine own wickedness shall correct thee, and thy backslidings shall reprove thee: know therefore and see that it is an evil thing and bitter, that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, and that my fear is not in thee, saith the Lord GOD of hosts.

The principalities and powers within us are the kingdoms which the Old Testament kings of Nineveh and Babylon typify. God uses the wicked men within us as His own rod, and His own sword, to correct us and to reprove us.

Psa 17:13 Arise, O LORD, disappoint him, cast him down: deliver my soul from the wicked, which is thy sword:

After God has used the wicked nations and principalities within us to correct and to reprove us, then he will set about to save us from our old, dying condition and composition, by the destruction of those things within us which are enmity against him and His doctrines and His commandments:

Jer 30:11 For I am with thee, saith the LORD, to save thee: though I make a full end of all nations whither I have scattered thee, yet will I not make a full end of thee: but I will correct thee in measure, and will not leave thee altogether unpunished.

Here is the spiritual fulfillment of this verse in the New Testament:

1Co 3:13 Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is.
1Co 3:14 If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.
1Co 3:15 If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.

I hope all these verses have served to help you to see the spiritual significance of who the kings of Assyria and of Babylon are, and I pray that you are also given to see that like Jonah, the self-righteous Pharisee within us all does not want to share the love of our heavenly Father with mere Ninevites, who represent the Gentiles to whom Christ has come and who also represent all men whom He is in the process of saving.

Your brother who is grateful that God “will have all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the Truth, (1Ti 2:4)

Mike