The Spiritual Significance of Numbers – The Number Seven

Completion Especially of Judgment

[Study Aired January 25, 2026]

Seven days are required to complete the weekly cycle.

If the number six signifies an unpurified and incomplete creature, then the number seven signifies a creature which is being purified by the fiery Word of God and is being completed by entering into the same rest Christ has entered. That explains why we are told in Genesis 2 the Lord will end the work He is making on “the seventh day.”

Gen 2:2  And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.

Genesis 2:2 informs us that it takes “the seventh day [for God to] end His work…” The physical realm is just a temporary, yet essential predecessor to the spiritual realm. Here are two verses which make this Truth clear to us:

1Co 15:46  Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.

2Co 4:18  While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.

The holy spirit confirms this doctrine in the book of Hebrews:

Heb 4:1  Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it.

What does “enter into His rest” mean? Does it mean to keep and observe the seventh day sabbath? That was certainly all it meant under the law of Moses. What does “the seventh day” signify under ‘the law of Christ’ (Gal 6:2)? Does refraining from labor for 24 hours on the seventh day of the week complete and purify a man? Of course not! Refraining from labor on the sabbath does not change any man’s heart. This is the spiritual meaning of “entering into His rest”:

Heb 4:10  For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his.
Heb 4:11  Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.

Keeping an outward sabbath, or any “day, month, time or year” (Gal 4:9-10), is “mine own righteousness, which is of the law [of Moses]” (Php 3:9). ‘Ceasing from our own works’, our own “righteousness which is according to the law” is “the righteousness which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith” (Php 3:9).

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?  [What are these “weak and beggarly elements” which keep us from “being known of God? Here they are:]
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.

The “labor” of entering into the Lord’s rest is a matter of “ceasing from our own works” and “laboring” to do the works of Christ. Our works are very much connected to our reward.

Rev 14:13  And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.

Works do not save us, but Christ repeatedly made it clear that our works are connected to our reward.

Mat 5:11  Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
Mat 5:12  Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

When we perform good works in secret, seeking no recognition from men, the Lord promises to reward us openly:

Mat 6:1  Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven.
Mat 6:2  Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
Mat 6:3  But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth:
Mat 6:4  That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.

A spirit which does what it does simply to please God is that spirit which is “entering into the Lord’s rest” because such a spirit realizes the truth of these words:

Php 2:12  Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
Php 2:13  For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

Our ‘work’, our ‘fear and [our] trembling”… what we ‘will to do’, and what we ‘do’ are all “Christ working in us both to will and to do of His good pleasure.”

It is of utmost importance that we understand that the verbs of Genesis 1:27 are in the qal stem signifying the incomplete nature of what the Lord is in the process of doing to complete His creation and create a “new man.”

Here again is that verse:

Gen 1:27  So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

All three times the verb ‘created’ appears in this verse it is in the qal stem. This is what we are told of this ‘qal stem’:

“The Qal stem in Biblical Hebrew is not inherently past, present, or future.  Instead, it expresses aspect—specifically, whether an action is complete (perfect) or incomplete (imperfect)—rather than tense.

“Thus, the Qal stem’s meaning depends on aspect and context, not a fixed time frame.” (End Quote)

I then inquired if Biblical Hebrew has past, present and future tenses, and this was the answer I was given:

“Biblical Hebrew does not have past, present, and future tenses in the same way that English does. Instead, it operates on an aspect-based system, distinguishing between completed actions (Perfect) and incomplete or ongoing actions (Imperfect), rather than strict chronological time.

“This aspectual system means that temporal meaning is derived from context, not from the verb form alone.  As such, the same verb form can be translated as past, present, or future depending on the situation. This is why scholars emphasize that Biblical Hebrew verbs are better understood in terms of action completion rather than fixed time markers.

“Bottom line: While Biblical Hebrew can be translated using past, present, and future tenses, it does not grammatically encode time in the same way. Its core system is based on aspect—whether an action is completed or not—making it fundamentally different from Indo-European languages like English.” (End Quote)

Knowing what we have just read, and knowing that “flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God” (1Co 15:50), and knowing that “we were called in Christ before the world began” (2Ti 1:9, Tit 1:2), we now know beyond any doubt that the first man Adam was never intended to be the completion of the Lord’s creation:

1Co 15:50  Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.

2Ti 1:9  Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,

Tit 1:2  In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;

If indeed “flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God”, and if indeed “our calling… was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began”, then it does not take a rocket scientist to understand that “the first man Adam” the vessel of clay which was “marred in the Potter’s hand” (Jer 18:4) was never intended to be the finished product as Babylon teaches the first man Adam was. Indeed, the present incomplete status of mankind is exactly what we are told was the purpose of God for this present evil age all along:

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.
Ecc 3:19  For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all is vanity.
Ecc 3:20  All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again.

Jer 18:4  And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it [qal stem, ‘is making it’] again another vessel [“the new man”], as seemed good to the potter to make it.

1Co 15:44  It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.
1Co 15:45  And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit.
1Co 15:46  Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.
1Co 15:47  The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.
1Co 15:48  As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly.
1Co 15:49  And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.
1Co 15:50  Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.
1Co 15:51  Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
1Co 15:52  In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
1Co 15:53  For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
1Co 15:54  So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.
1Co 15:55  O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?

2Co 5:17  Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

Eph 4:24  And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.

Both verbs in Ephesians 4:24, ‘put on’ and ‘is created’ are in the aorist tense which functions in the same way as the Hebrew ‘qal stem’ which we just discussed.

The only thing that was ever intended to be in the image of God was ‘the new man which is in Christ’:

Col 3:9  Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man [‘the first Adam’] with his deeds;
Col 3:10  And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:

Death and the grave are associated with the corruptible, incomplete vessel of clay which is “marred in the hand of the Potter” and which the Potter is in the process of “making it again as it seemed good to the Potter to make it.” When He is finished with making mankind in the form He has intended to make it “from the beginning of the world” it will require that all men of all time must enter into His rest. The way we enter into His rest is by ceasing from our own works on “the seventh day”, as the apostle Paul reveals in the book of Hebrews:

Heb 4:4 For he spake in a certain place of the seventh [day] on this wise, And God did rest the seventh day from all his works.
Heb 4:5 And in this [place] again, If they shall enter into my rest.
Heb 4:6 Seeing therefore it remaineth that some must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief:
Heb 4:7  Again, he limiteth a certain day, saying in David, To day, after so long a time; as it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
Heb 4:8  For if Jesus had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day.
Heb 4:9  There remaineth therefore a rest [“from (our) own works”, (Heb 4:10)] to the people of God.
Heb 4:10  For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his.
Heb 4:11  Let us labour therefore to enter into that [spiritual] rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.

2) The completion of the first Adam

Lamech’s generation is the completion of mankind before the flood. Lamech was Noah’s father. Lamech’s generation, in type, completed the rule of rebellious mankind. This fact is signified by Lamech’s age, 777. Three sevens signify the process of judging incomplete mankind.

(3) The completion of the rulership of incomplete mankind and the judgment of incomplete mankind in the flood is signified by Lamech’s age at the time of his death:

Gen 5:28 And Lamech lived an hundred eighty and two years, and begat a son:
Gen 5:29 And he called his name Noah, saying, This same shall comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands, because of the ground which the LORD hath cursed.
Gen 5:30 And Lamech lived after he begat Noah five hundred ninety and five years, and begat sons and daughters:
Gen 5:31 And all the days of Lamech were seven hundred seventy and seven years: and he died.

The seventh from Adam was used by God to prophesy of the completion of the rule of the first Adam:

Jud 1:14 And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints,

3) The judgment of all of mankind

The judgment of Jericho typifies the judgment of all mankind. Here is how that judgment was announced.

Jos 6:4 And seven priests shall bear before the ark seven trumpets of rams’ horns: and the seventh day ye shall compass the city seven times, and the priests shall blow with the trumpets.

Jos 6:6 And Joshua the son of Nun called the priests, and said unto them, Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the LORD.

Jos 6:8 And it came to pass, when Joshua had spoken unto the people, that the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams’ horns passed on before the LORD, and blew with the trumpets: and the ark of the covenant of the LORD followed them.

Jos 6:13 And seven priests bearing seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the LORD went on continually, and blew with the trumpets: and the armed men went before them; but the rereward came after the ark of the LORD, the priests going on, and blowing with the trumpets.

Seven priests with seven trumpets? Does this sound familiar? These same “seven trumpets” are mentioned in the New Testament:

Heb 11:30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, after they were compassed about seven days.

Rev 8:2 And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets.

Rev 8:6 And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound.

Who are these angels?

Rev 19:10 And I fell at his [the angels] feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See [thou do it] not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

Rev 22:8 And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things.
Rev 22:9 Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God.

Rev 1:3 Blessed [is] he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.

Rev 1:6 And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him [be] glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

Rev 5:10 And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

The above verses are written to those who ‘have eyes to see and to read, and are given ears to hear (they that hear the words of this prophecy)’ what God is saying to them.

It is crucial to understand that the Greek word translated as ‘keep’ in Revelation 1:3 is G5083, ‘tereo’, and this is what it means:

G5083

τηρέω
tēreō
tay-reh’-o

From τηρός teros (a watch; perhaps akin to G2334); to guard (from loss or injury, properly by keeping the eye upon; and thus differing from G5442, which is properly to prevent escaping; and from G2892, which implies a fortress or full military lines of apparatus), that is, to note (a prophecy; figuratively to fulfil a command); by implication to detain (in custody; figuratively to maintain); by extension to withhold (for personal ends; figuratively to keep unmarried): – hold fast, keep (-er), (ob-, pre-, re) serve, watch.

Total KJV occurrences: 75

4) Complete Corruption of Mankind

The adversary is tasked with the complete corruption of the Lord’s creatures, and that corruption is described as seven times “more wicked than” he was to begin with:

Mat 12:43 When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none.
Mat 12:44 Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth [it] empty, swept, and garnished.
Mat 12:45 Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation.

The beast which signifies all of mankind is described in type as having “seven heads”:

Rev 13:1 And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.

Here is why  this “beast… [has]seven heads”:

Rev 12:3 And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.

The ‘father’ of the beast with seven heads is this ‘great red dragon’ the devil:

Good or evil, the principle by which we understand the invisible realm is the same:

Rom 1:20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:

5) Complete Judgment of God’s Elect and of the Church Requires Three Sevens

Rev 1:4 John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne;

Heb 11:30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, after they were compassed about seven days.

Rev 1:20 The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches.

What is the message to the church through the seven angels? That message is given in three stages, signifying the fact that the whole book of Revelation is revealing the process of our judgment. The first stage is:

1) Seven seals

Rev 5:1 And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals.
Rev 5:2 And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof?
Rev 5:3 And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon.
Rev 5:4 And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon.
Rev 5:5 And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.

Seven seals reveals this book is completely sealed away from the understanding of the natural man. The second stage of our judgment is the seventh seal which consists of:

2) seven trumpets:

Rev 8:1 And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour.
Rev 8:2 And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets.
Rev 8:3 And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer [it] with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.
Rev 8:4 And the smoke of the incense, [which came] with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand.
Rev 8:5 And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast [it] into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake.
Rev 8:6 And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound.

The seventh trumpet is:

3) Seven angels with seven vials to be fulfilled in the lives of all who are given to stand on the sea of glass:

Rev 15:1 And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God.

Rev 15:6 And the seven angels came out of the temple, having the seven plagues, clothed in pure and white linen, and having their breasts girded with golden girdles.

Who is it who opens the eyes and ears of God’s elect?

Rev 21:9 And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb’s wife.

It is “one of the angels which had the seven last plagues which shows us our judgment. Here is who that angel signifies:

Rev 19:10  And I fell at his feet to worship him [“The angel which showed me these things”, (Rev 22:8-9)]. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

Rev 22:8  And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things.
Rev 22:9  Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God.

These ‘seven angels’ are each of us as we give to each other “that which every joint supplies” (Eph 4:15-16) and as we ‘fill up in our bodies that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ for His body’s sake, which is the church’ (Col 1:24).

“The testimony of Jesus Christ which is the spirit of prophecy is how we nurture and feed each other, and that spiritual nourishment is signified by the number seven:

6)  Complete Nourishment is signified by the number seven:

Bread is a type of God’s Word:

Mat 15:34 And Jesus saith unto them, How many loaves have ye? And they said, Seven, and a few little fishes.
Mat 15:36 And he took the seven loaves and the fishes, and gave thanks, and brake them, and gave to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude [This is the channel of God’s Truth].

7) God’s Truth is complete, and it is inexhaustible:

Mat 15:37 And they did all eat, and were filled: and they took up of the broken meat that was left seven baskets full.

Mar 8:20 And when the seven among four thousand, how many baskets full of fragments took ye up? And they said, Seven.

8) Our Forgiveness Must Be Complete or the Lord will judge us as we judge others:

Mat 18:21 Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?
Mat 18:22 Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven. [Complete and total forgiveness knowing that even the offences are “of the Lord”, (Pro 16:1, 16:4)]
Mat 18:23 Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants.
Mat 18:24 And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed him ten thousand talents.
Mat 18:25 But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made.
Mat 18:26 The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.
Mat 18:27 Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt.
Mat 18:28 But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellowservants, which owed him an hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took [ him] by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest.
Mat 18:29 And his fellowservant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.
Mat 18:30 And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt.
Mat 18:31 So when his fellowservants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told unto their lord all that was done.
Mat 18:32 Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me:
Mat 18:33 Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee?
Mat 18:34 And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him.
Mat 18:35 So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses. [“Forgive… seventy times seven”, vs 22]

“The sum of Thy Word” adds “if he repent”, as both of these servants did at first:

Luk 17:3  Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him.
Luk 17:4  And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him.

We must never let anyone lead us to believe that God’s grace and His forgiveness comes without repentance and “fruit meet for repentance”. It most assuredly does not.

Mat 3:8  Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance:

Revelation 13:1-2 Part 1, Who is the Beast?

[Study Aired Janary 3, 2025]

Rev 13:1 And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.
Rev 13:2 And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as [the feet] of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.

Introduction

By now we should all have learned that we are the ones who “live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God, that all things present and things to come are ours, and that we are blessed if we are given to read, hear and keep the things written in this book” (Mat 4:4, 1Co 3:21-22, Rev 1:3).

Mat 4:4  But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

1Co 3:21  Therefore let no man glory in men. For all things are yours;
1Co 3:22  Whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours;

Rev 1:3  Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.

By now we should realize that John is seeing this entire vision as he looks behind himself and sees what God is doing, has done and is continuing to do in his own life, as “the revelation of Christ” is being revealed within him, John, who signifies you and me and all of our “fellowservants who keep the sayings of this book” (Rev 19:10 and 22:8-9).

Rev 19:10  And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am [I signfy] thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

Rev 22:8 And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things.
Rev 22:9 Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God.

It is you and I who see these things and immediately tend to worship the messenger instead of God.

Let us remember that this chapter concerning the beast within us, the previous chapter concerning the woman and the manchild and their relationship with the great red dragon, along with the next two chapters, are all “the days of the seventh trumpet when he shall begin to sound” (Rev 10:7).

Rev 10:7  But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.
Rev 10:8  And the voice which I heard from heaven spake unto me again, and said, Go and take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel which standeth upon the sea and upon the earth.
Rev 10:9  And I went unto the angel, and said unto him, Give me the little book. And he said unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey.
Rev 10:10  And I took the little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.
Rev 10:11  And he said unto me, Thou must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings.

This is that excruciating time in our lives leading up to the fulfilling of the great day of God’s wrath, which is poured out on all of our unrighteousnesses and ungodlinesses.

Rom 1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;

Rev 15:7  And one of the four beasts gave unto the seven angels seven golden vials full of the wrath of God, who liveth for ever and ever.
Rev 15:8  And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled.

“Holding truth in unrighteousness” is the very function of Babylon the great, out of whom we must all come. ‘Holding the Truth in unrighteousness’ is holding Christ’s name, proclaiming His Truth and at the same time proclaiming that disobedience to His doctrine is Godly. The ministers of Babylon are quick to tell you to ‘Love your enemies’, but they add to the Lord’s words… ‘Unless he means you bodily harm, in which case you can blow him away to the glory of God’. The ministers of Babylon are quick to tell you that you, “Thou shalt not bear false witness”, but with the same forked tongue they will tell you it is just fine to lie to your child if it is a national tradition, and tell that child that Santa comes down the chimney and leaves gifts to good children.

When you and I refuse to follow the traditions of men, then we are in the process of coming out of Babylon, and we can expect to be “hated of all men”:

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.

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.

So we will ask once more: if we are to “read, hear, and keep the things written therein” (Rev 1:3), then how do we keep these first two verses of Rev 13? To answer that question we will have to know what is signified in these two verses. So let us ask…

… What is meant by “standing on the sand of the sea”?

If this really is John as the symbol of all of us who read, hear, and keep the things written in this book, then it truly is instructive that he sees himself, at this point as “standing on the sand of the sea”. ‘Sand’, according to our Lord, is very unstable and never to be relied upon as a foundation for anything.

Mat 7:26 And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:
Mat 7:27 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.

So the “sand of the sea” is the symbol of each of us when we have heard Christ’s words but simply did not see the need to “tremble before [them]”. The “sand of the sea” and standing or building on that sand, is you and me when we consider obedience to every word of God to be fanatical and impractical in a world that completely ignores the words of God.

To whom will God reveal Himself, and where is the place of His rest?

Isa 66:1 Thus saith the LORD, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: where is the house that ye build unto me? and where is the place of my rest?
Isa 66:2 For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the LORD: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.
Isa 66:3 He that killeth an ox is as if he slew a man; he that sacrificeth a lamb, as if he cut off a dog’s neck; he that offereth an oblation, as if he offered swine’s blood; he that burneth incense, as if he blessed an idol. Yea, they have chosen their own ways, and their soul delighteth in their abominations.
Isa 66:4 I also will choose their delusions, and will bring their fears upon them; because when I called, none did answer; when I spake, they did not hear: but they did evil before mine eyes, and chose that in which I delighted not.
Isa 66:5 Hear the word of the LORD, ye that tremble at his word; Your brethren that hated you, that cast you out for my name’s sake, said, Let the LORD be glorified: but he shall appear to your joy, and they shall be ashamed.

So John “standing upon the sand of the sea” is in type you and me when we “Hear the sayings of Christ and do them not”. “Standing upon the sand of the sea” is “choosing our own ways and delighting in our abominations and doing evil before God’s eyes and choosing that in which God does not delight”. Standing on sand is asking what is permissible (what’s the least I can get by with?) instead of what is commendable and in complete accord with the word of God. That is where we are when this beast is revealed to us as coming up out of the sea.

Rev 13:1  And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.

As always we need to know where these verses of Revelation derive their force and power. Once we see where they obtain their force and power, then we will see that all the beasts of the Old Testament become one single beast in the New Testament. If we are given to understand that mankind himself is that beast, then we will know that what applies to the verses from which these verses come applies to each of us individually before God. That is what is meant by “comparing spiritual things with spiritual” (1Co 2:13-14). Instead of seeing the people and events of the Old Testament as mere historical events and people, we see every person and event as what is, what was and what will be taking place in our lives.

So do the scriptures really reveal that mankind is a beast? What do the scriptures actually teach?

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.

Let us ask a simple question. Where else in scripture are we told that something rises up out of the sea? Here is the answer to that question.

Isa 63:11 Then he remembered the days of old, Moses, and his people, saying, Where is he that brought them up out of the sea with the shepherd of his flock? where is he that put his holy Spirit within him?

In light of what we learned about the woman who was given the two wings of a great eagle to fly into the wilderness last week, could this beast actually be you and me as we are being brought up out of the sea into the wilderness to rebel against the very Savior who is delivering us? Is that possible? Here are God’s own words concerning you and me as His firstborn and as His first fruits:

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.

That is indeed what we all do. Where do we go from the wilderness? We enter into the land of promise. It flows with “milk and honey”, but there is no mention of the “strong meat of the word” in the “land flowing with milk and honey”:

Exo 33:1  And the LORD said unto Moses, Depart, and go up hence, thou and the people which thou hast brought up out of the land of Egypt, unto the land which I sware unto Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, saying, Unto thy seed will I give it:
Exo 33:2  And I will send an angel before thee; and I will drive out the Canaanite, the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite:
Exo 33:3  Unto a land flowing with milk and honey: for I will not go up in the midst of thee; for thou art a stiffnecked people: lest I consume thee in the way.
Exo 33:4  And when the people heard these evil tidings, they mourned: and no man did put on him his ornaments.
Exo 33:5  For the LORD had said unto Moses, Say unto the children of Israel, Ye are a stiffnecked people: I will come up into the midst of thee in a moment, and consume thee: therefore now put off thy ornaments from thee, that I may know what to do unto thee.
Exo 33:6  And the children of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments by the mount Horeb.
Exo 33:7  And Moses took the tabernacle, and pitched it without the camp, afar off from the camp, and called it the Tabernacle of the congregation. And it came to pass, that every one which sought the LORD went out [“of her” (Rev 18:4)] unto the tabernacle of the congregation, which was without the camp [out of Babylon].

The scriptures make clear that we do not naturally want to follow the messengers of God. We prefer to return to Egypt. Do we return to Egypt as we want? No, we will not go back to Egypt. Even at this early stage we are told that we will eventually go into Babylon until God sees fit to deliver us from there. It is right here in the same context of Hosea 11, and for those who are given to receive it, it is in the very next verses.

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 [The rebellious churches of Babylon] shall be his king, because they refused to return [“They refused to… tremble at My words”].
Hos 11:6 And the sword shall abide on his cities, and shall consume his branches, and devour them, because of their own counsels.

“Our own counsel” means we do what we want to do in direct opposition to God’s counsel and what God wants us to do. “Their own counsel” is hearing what Christ’s says in His Word, and “doing them not”. That is the spiritual meaning of “standing upon the sand of the sea”.

Why does this beast have “seven heads and ten horns”, just like the great red dragon of chapter twelve?

We saw in our studies in chapter 12 that this beast and the great red dragon were nothing less than father and son.

Joh 8:44 Ye [“Jews which believe on Me… but do not do as I say”, Luk 6:46] 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.

Can we “look behind us” and see that we all “walked according to the prince of the power of the air… our father the devil”, and that we were all “the children of disobedience”, before we become the children of God.

Eph 2:2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
Eph 2:3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.

This beast here in Daniel is the spiritual composite within us of all the nation empires of the Old Testament. All of those Old Testament empires are nothing more than the single offspring of the first Adam, whose carnal minded flesh is signified here by ‘the sea’ here in Revelation 13. It is only here in the New Testament that the spirit reveals, for the first time, that from God’s spiritual perspective, everything that was in Adam is revealed to be within each and every one of his children. The result of this revelation is that we find all of the Old Testament empires and the beastly symbols of those empires all wrapped up into one composite beast within each and every one of us. Notice how the four beast empires of Daniel 7 compare to the four features of the single beast of Revelation 13. This is not just coincidence. What we are being told is everything that is in Adam is in all of of his children, including “the fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly… the dragon gave him his power and seat and great authority”. Notice the correlation between Daniel 7 and Revelation 13.

Here are the four beasts of Daniel:

Dan 7:3 And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another.
Dan 7:4 The first was like a lion, and had eagle’s wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man’s heart was given to it.
Dan 7:5 And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up itself on one side, and [it had] three ribs in the mouth of it between the teeth of it: and they said thus unto it, Arise, devour much flesh.
Dan 7:6 After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; the beast had also four heads; and dominion was given to it.
Dan 7:7 After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it [was] diverse from all the beasts that [were] before it; and it had ten horns.

“It had ten horns”. Here in these five verses we have four beasts, one of which has four heads. That means we have four beasts with seven heads total.

There is no description given of the fourth beast except to say that it was dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns. Who is this fourth beast? Why is it different from the other three? Where else in all of scripture do we read of any creatures which have “seven heads and ten horns”? It is only here in Revelation 12 and 13. Here is the answer to all of those questions:

Rev 12:3 And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.

Exactly who do the scriptures reveal this great red dragon to be? The scriptures leave no room for speculation:

Rev 12:9 And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

So as we have already established in our studies in chapter 12, this great red dragon is “that old serpent called the Devil and Satan”.

Now look at the spiritual offspring of this great red dragon, and notice how much the spiritual son is the reflection of his spiritual “father the devil”.

Rev 13:1 And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.
Rev 13:2 And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as [the feet] of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.

In Daniel 7 we have the same lion, leopard and bear, but in Daniel we are told that the fourth beast has the teeth of a devouring lion, even as we are told that “the fourth beast differs from the other three beasts”. This fourth beast is said to be “dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that [were] before it; and it had ten horns.

Were it not for the 12th chapter of Revelation, we would never know that this fourth beast is “our [first spiritual] father the devil”, and that the beast here in chapter thirteen is merely his spiritual seed and his offspring with the same spiritual “seven heads and ten horns”.

Why seven heads?

The reason there are seven heads here in Revelation and in Daniel tells us what the number seven always tells us. What we are being told when we read that this beast that comes up out of the sea has seven heads is that this is a complete and mature beast, and we are now dealing with the revelation of Adam in his full bloom. Notice what we read of the four beasts with seven heads in Daniel:

Dan 7:7 After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it [was] diverse from all the beasts that [were] before it; and it had ten horns.
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.
Dan 7:9 I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment [was] white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne [was like] the fiery flame, [and] his wheels [as] burning fire.
Dan 7:10 A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.
Dan 7:11 I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld [even] till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame.
Dan 7:12 As concerning the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away: yet their lives were prolonged for a season and time.
Dan 7:13 I saw in the night visions, and, behold, [one] like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.
Dan 7:14 And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion [is] an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom [that] which shall not be destroyed.

This prophecy here in Daniel 7 takes us all the way to the day of the judgment of this beast. “I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld [even] till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame”. This is the day of judgment we are now in, but here in Daniel this is all “sealed up”, and we are told that it is not to be understood until “the time of the end”, the time of judgment and the time when “the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame.”

Dan 12:4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.

Dan 7:11 I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld [even] till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame.

1Pe 4:12 Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you:

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?

Well, we happen to be those upon whom “the ends of the ages have come”. It is we who are living in the time when “many are running to and fro, and knowledge is being increased” in this “time of the end”.

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

There it is! Christ is the “ends of the age”, and He was not accessible to those of Daniel’s generation, but He is accessible to us.

Rev 1:8 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.

We will pause here and in our next study we will learn why Daniel was told to “seal up the book” while John, here in Revelation is told “Seal not the book”.

Ezekiel 34:17-31 The Shepherds of Israel – Part II

[Study Aired October 21, 2024]

INTRODUCTION

In today’s study, we shall continue the second part of Ezekiel chapter 34. The first part of this chapter dealt with the shepherds of Israel who were feeding themselves, instead of the flock of the Lord under their care. As a result, the Lord’s children are scattered, that is, they wander about like lost sheep without a shepherd.

Today’s study focuses on the Lord coming to us to separate us from the flock of cattle and to make us lie in green pastures as He leads us besides the still waters.

Psa 23:1  A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
Psa 23:2  He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
Psa 23:3  He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
Psa 23:4  Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Psa 23:5  Thou preparest table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
Psa 23:6  Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

The Lord also assures us that He is the good shepherd after the order of David who will make a covenant of peace with us. The latter part of the study reveals what this covenant of peace entails.

The Lord will Judge Between Cattle and Cattle

Eze 34:17  And as for you, O my flock, thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I judge between cattle and cattle, between the rams and the he goats. 

The flock of the Lord consists of the ninety-nine sheep which have no need of repentance and the one sheep which has gone astray that knows her situation and therefore becomes repentant. We, the Lord’s elect are the one-sheep that went astray. The ninety-nine sheep represent Babylon or the physical churches of this world signified by the Pharisees and scribes that need no repentance.

Luk 15:3  And he spake this parable unto them (Pharisees and scribes), saying,
Luk 15:4  What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?
Luk 15:5  And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing.
Luk 15:6  And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost.
Luk 15:7 I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.

The word “judge” by implication, means to vindicate or punish according to Strong’s Dictionary. Judging between cattle and cattle and between the rams and the he-goats in verse 1 therefore means justifying the righteous and condemning the wicked as indicated in the following verses:

Deu 25:1  If there be a controversy between men, and they come unto judgment, that the judges may judge them; then they shall justify the righteous, and condemn the wicked.

Deu 1:16  And I charged your judges at that time, saying, Hear the causes between your brethren, and judge righteously between every man and his brother, and the stranger that is with him.

The Lord is the one who is vindicating us, His elect, even though we went astray at a certain stage of our walk with Him. This vindication is at the expense of our brothers and sisters in Babylon who think they are righteous and need no repentance.

Rom 11:30  For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief:
Rom 11:31  Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.
Rom 11:32 For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.

Eze 34:18  Seemeth it a small thing unto you to have eaten up the good pasture, but ye must tread down with your feet the residue of your pastures? and to have drunk of the deep waters, but ye must foul the residue with your feet? 

This verse is another way of saying that after we have received the gold and silver which signify the truth of His words, when we started walking with the Lord, we turn around and use His gold and silver to make images of men. The images of men means the false doctrines of man’s wisdom and tradition. In other words, the good pasture that we have eaten in verse 18 represents the truth of the Lord’s words and trampling our feet on the pastures means having human imprint on the truth of His words which means churning up false doctrines of man’s wisdom and tradition. That is what characterized our walk in the churches of this world.

Again, drinking from the deep water in verse 18 refers to taking in clean water which symbolizes the truth of the word of the Lord, and muddying the water with our feet means turning the truth of the Lord’s words into false doctrines of man’s wisdom and tradition. As a result, we have sacrificed the Lord’s sons and daughters or His elect to be devoured by the enemy. In the sight of the Lord, this is a grievous offence.

Eze 16:13  Thus wast thou decked with gold and silver; and thy raiment was of fine linen, and silk, and broidered work; thou didst eat fine flour, and honey, and oil: and thou wast exceeding beautiful, and thou didst prosper into a kingdom.
Eze 16:14  And thy renown went forth among the heathen for thy beauty: for it was perfect through my comeliness, which I had put upon thee, saith the Lord GOD.
Eze 16:15  But thou didst trust in thine own beauty, and playedst the harlot because of thy renown, and pouredst out thy fornications on every one that passed by; his it was.
Eze 16:16  And of thy garments thou didst take, and deckedst thy high places with divers colours, and playedst the harlot thereupon: the like things shall not come, neither shall it be so.
Eze 16:17  Thou hast also taken thy fair jewels of my gold and of my silver, which I had given thee, and madest to thyself images of men, and didst commit whoredom with them,
Eze 16:18  And tookest thy broidered garments, and coveredst them: and thou hast set mine oil and mine incense before them.
Eze 16:19  My meat also which I gave thee, fine flour, and oil, and honey, wherewith I fed thee, thou hast even set it before them for a sweet savour: and thus it was, saith the Lord GOD.
Eze 16:20  Moreover thou hast taken thy sons and thy daughters, whom thou hast borne unto me, and these hast thou sacrificed unto them to be devoured. Is this of thy whoredoms a small matter?

Eze 34:19  And as for my flock, they eat that which ye have trodden with your feet; and they drink that which ye have fouled with your feet. 
Eze 34:20 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD unto them; Behold, I, even I, will judge between the fat cattle and between the lean cattle. 

As we have indicated, the trodden food and water with our feet refers to the false doctrines of man’s wisdom and tradition which was what we ate and drank during our sojourn in the churches of this world. As a result, we became food for the beasts of the field. That is to say that we became dominated by our flesh or our old man who is powered by the devil. Since we have been chosen by God before the foundation of this world, the Lord comes to us in the fulness of time to vindicate us through His judgement of our old man. This is what it means to judge between the fat cattle and the lean cattle, indicated in verse 20. The lean cattle refers to us, His elect and the fat cattle signifies our brothers and sisters in Babylon who seem to be spiritually rich or fat in this life but are spiritually lean.

Psa 37:20  But the wicked shall perish, and the enemies of the LORD shall be as the fat of lambs: they shall consume; into smoke shall they consume away.

This reminds me of Joseph’s dream where the lean-fleshed cattle ate up the fat-fleshed cattle. This signifies that as the lean-fleshed cattle of the Lord (the Lord’s elect), we shall dominate, that is rule over our brothers and sisters in Babylon who represent the fat-fleshed cattle, in the fulness of time.

Gen 41:17  And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, In my dream, behold, I stood upon the bank of the river:
Gen 41:18  And, behold, there came up out of the river seven kine, fatfleshed and well favoured; and they fed in a meadow:
Gen 41:19  And, behold, seven other kine came up after them, poor and very ill favoured and leanfleshed, such as I never saw in all the land of Egypt for badness:
Gen 41:20  And the lean and the ill favoured kine did eat up the first seven fat kine:
Gen 41:21 And when they had eaten them up, it could not be known that they had eaten them; but they were still ill favoured, as at the beginning. So I awoke.

It is insightful to note that in Genesis 41:21, the lean-fleshed cattle were not looking different even after they had eaten up the fat-fleshed cattle. This is to let us know that even though we are called and chosen of the Lord (lean cattle), and therefore we are destined to rule over our brothers and sisters in Babylon (fat cattle), our current situation does not depict our rulership status as we still grapple with the evil experience (judgement) the Lord has given to us in this life.

Ecc 1:13  And I gave my heart to seek and to investigate by wisdom concerning all which is done under the heavens. It is an evil task God has given to the sons of men, to be afflicted by it.

Eze 34:21  Because ye have thrust with side and with shoulder, and pushed all the diseased with your horns, till ye have scattered them abroad; 
Eze 34:22 Therefore will I save my flock, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between cattle and cattle.

Verse 21 is telling us that the fat cattle push the skinny ones with their sides and shoulders. When we were in Babylon as the Lord’s elect, we were dominated by the fat sheep of Babylon as we were blown by every wind of doctrine propagated by these fat cattle in Babylon. It is instructive to note in verse 21 that the diseased are pushed about with the horns of the fat ones until they scattered abroad. The horns here symbolize the strength the Lord has given to the churches of this world to scatter us as diseased cattle by every wind of doctrine in Babylon.

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;

This strength that the Lord has given to the fat cattle of Babylon through their horns is to ensure that ‘hearing we shall hear and not understand and seeing we shall see and not perceive’. As a result, we become scattered or divided by doctrine. The various denominations and church systems of this world therefore attest to the fact that the flock of the Lord are scattered.

Isa 6:9  And he said, Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not.
Isa 6:10  Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed.
Isa 6:11  Then said I, Lord, how long? And he answered, Until the cities be wasted without inhabitant, and the houses without man, and the land be utterly desolate,
Isa 6:12 And the LORD have removed men far away, and there be a great forsaking in the midst of the land.

In our time in Babylon, we were also scattered as the Lord’s elect until the Lord came to us with the spirit of His mouth and His brightness to judge between cattle and cattle as indicated in verse 22. The Lord coming to us is to save us through His judgement and as a result, vindicates us from the other cattle of the Lord ‘who need no repentance’. We were therefore the fat cattle whom the Lord is sending leanness to us through His judgement.

Isa 10:16  Therefore shall the Lord, the Lord of hosts, send among his fat ones leanness; and under his glory he shall kindle a burning like the burning of a fire.

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:

Eze 34:23  And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. 
Eze 34:24 And I the LORD will be their God, and my servant David a prince among them; I the LORD have spoken it. 

Our deliverance from the physical churches of this world implies the coming of the Lord’s elect into the church of the firstborn or the assembly of the Lord where we are shepherded by our Lord Jesus Christ, symbolized here in verse 23 as the Lord’s servant David. It is the Lord who comes to us with His words as we are fed by His words through what every joint supplies.

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:

It is in the church of the firstborn or the elect that the Lord raises ministers of the gospel to perfect us as we come into the unity of the faith such that we no longer are tossed about by every wind of doctrine.

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.

The Lord Jesus Christ, symbolized in both verses 23 and 24 by David, is the good shepherd or the prince among us who ensures that we are well fed such that we lack nothing. It is our Lord who makes us to rest in Him, as He feeds us in the green pastures and causes us to drink the still waters.

Psa 23:1  A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
Psa 23:2  He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
Psa 23:3  He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
Psa 23:4  Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Psa 23:5  Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
Psa 23:6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

The Lord’s Covenant of Peace

Eze 34:25  And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause the evil beasts to cease out of the land: and they shall dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods. 

The Lord’s making with us the covenant of peace implies that what He has said, He will surely bring to completion.  This is the covenant of peace that the Lord has made with us, His elect:

Heb 6:16  For men verily swear by the greater: and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife.
Heb 6:17  Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath:
Heb 6:18  That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us:
Heb 6:19  Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil;
Heb 6:20 Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an high priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.

It is worth noting that this covenant of peace entails the Lord causing the evil beasts to cease out of our land. In other words, the Lord shall destroy our old man or flesh such that we shall not be dominated by it. This is a process which takes a lifetime and it is accomplished through the judgement of our old man which causes us to learn righteousness.

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.

Psa 119:67  Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now have I kept thy word.

Psa 119:71 It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes.

Our walk in this world is like walking through the wilderness. Here in verse 25, the Lord’s covenant of peace is assuring us that we shall dwell safely in the wilderness such that we shall be able to sleep in the woods and not worry about any beast devouring us. Being able to dwell safely in this life means trusting in the Lord with all our hearts and not leaning on our own understanding. That is what makes the Lord our refuge and fortress. We can see that all of this is the work of the Lord. Being able to sleep in the woods means resting in the Lord which implies having the confidence that what He has started in us, He shall bring to completion.

Psa 91:1  He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
Psa 91:2  I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.
Psa 91:3  Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.
Psa 91:4  He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.
Psa 91:5  Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day;
Psa 91:6  Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.
Psa 91:7  A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.
Psa 91:8  Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.
Psa 91:9  Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation;
Psa 91:10  There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.
Psa 91:11  For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.
Psa 91:12  They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.
Psa 91:13  Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.
Psa 91:14  Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.
Psa 91:15  He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.
Psa 91:16 With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.

Heb 4:9  There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.
Heb 4:10  For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his.
Heb 4:11 Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.

Php 1:6  Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:

Eze 34:26 And I will make them and the places round about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in his season; there shall be showers of blessing. 

Here in this verse, the Lord is assuring us of being a blessing. What does it mean to be a blessing? In the Bible, the first time that the Lord said that someone will be a blessing was the case of Abraham when the Lord visited him to tell him to leave his country and kindred and go to the land of Canaan.

Gen 12:1  Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee:
Gen 12:2  And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:

Later, the Lord appeared to Abraham to assure him of his descendants inheriting the land by making a covenant with him. This implies that being a blessing entails being a possessor of the land of promise. Abraham being a blessing therefore means that it was through his walk of faith that ensured that the people of Israel were able to possess the land of Canaan.

Gen 28:3  And God Almighty bless thee (Jacob), and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a multitude of people;
Gen 28:4  And give thee the blessing of Abraham, to thee, and to thy seed with thee; that thou mayest inherit the land wherein thou art a stranger, which God gave unto Abraham.

As we are aware, the land signifies our bodies which we must possess to qualify us to offer our bodies as living sacrifices to the Lord. The Lord telling us that we shall become a blessing therefore implies that it is as we overcome the flesh and take possession of our bodies that we shall be a blessing to the whole world. Our walk of faith to overcome the flesh and possess our bodies will pave the way for all humanity to be blessed as they also overcome the old man.

In verse 26, we are also told that the places round about the Lord’s hill shall also become a blessing.  The Lord’s hill refers to the assembly of the Lord’s elect which is a blessing to us as we receive from what every joint supplies.

The showers coming down in its season means that we shall receive the truth of the word of the Lord at the appropriate time of the Lord which is the acceptable year of the Lord for our lives.

Isa 61:1  The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;
Isa 61:2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;

Eze 34:27  And the tree of the field shall yield her fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase, and they shall be safe in their land, and shall know that I am the LORD, when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and delivered them out of the hand of those that served themselves of them. 

We were those who served themselves of the people of the Lord during our time in the physical churches of this world. It is when we have broken the bands of the yoke of Babylon that we can experience the yielding of the fruit of the tree of the field as well as the increase of the earth. The tree of the field is man’s life as shown in the following verse:

Deu 20:19  When thou shalt besiege a city a long time, in making war against it to take it, thou shalt not destroy the trees thereof by forcing an axe against them: for thou mayest eat of them, and thou shalt not cut them down (for the tree of the field is man’s life) to employ them in the siege:

The tree of the field yielding her fruit therefore means that we shall produce fruit in our due season. That means that we shall produce the fruit of the spirit in our lives at the appointed time of the Lord. The earth refers to us, the Lord’s people. The earth yielding her increase therefore means that we shall bear the fruit of the spirit. Bearing fruit is through the Lord’s judgement of our old man or flesh. It is through this judgement experience that we shall come to know the Lord. This judgement of the Lord takes place in our lives after we leave Babylon.

Eze 34:28  And they shall no more be a prey to the heathen, neither shall the beast of the land devour them; but they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid. 

When we are privileged to be judged in this life, we no longer become prey to the heathen and the beast of the land. The heathen and the beast of the land are the same and refer to our old man or our flesh. The judgement of the Lord destroys the influence of the flesh or the old man in our lives as we learn righteousness and therefore we are no longer afraid of the flesh. That is when we shall dwell safely in the secret place of the most high as we abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

Psa 91:1  He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
Psa 91:2  I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.

Eze 34:29  And I will raise up for them a plant of renown, and they shall be no more consumed with hunger in the land, neither bear the shame of the heathen any more. 
Eze 34:30  Thus shall they know that I the LORD their God am with them, and that they, even the house of Israel, are my people, saith the Lord GOD. 
Eze 34:31  And ye my flock, the flock of my pasture, are men, and I am your God, saith the Lord GOD. 

Here in verse 29, the Lord is saying that He will give us a place that is known for its good crops so that we will no longer experience hunger in the land and bear the shame of the heathen. Bearing the shame of the heathen means living according to the standards of this world. Spiritually, what the Lord is telling us is that He will not only open our eyes and ears to understand the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but also give us the power to live according to His words. That is what will make us not bear the shame of the heathen. Verse 29 is therefore the same as Revelation 9:13-14 where we are given to hear the voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God as we are loosed from the great river Euphrates (false doctrines).

Rev 9:13  And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God,
Rev 9:14 Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates.

It is as we are loosed from the river Euphrates that we come to see who the Lord is. That is when our understand is deepened to appreciate that we are indeed the spiritual house of Israel, that is, the Lord’s elect, and also the sheep of His pasture!!

Rom 11:33  O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!
Rom 11:34  For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor?
Rom 11:35  Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again?
Rom 11:36 For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory forever. Amen.

The Book of Daniel – Dan 7:8-28  I considered the horns

[Study Aired April 11, 2024]

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. 
Dan 7:9  I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire.
Dan 7:10  A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.
Dan 7:11  I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame.
Dan 7:12  As concerning the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away: yet their lives were prolonged for a season and time.
Dan 7:13  I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.
Dan 7:14  And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed. 
Dan 7:15  I Daniel was grieved in my spirit in the midst of my body, and the visions of my head troubled me.
Dan 7:16  I came near unto one of them that stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me, and made me know the interpretation of the things. 
Dan 7:17  These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth.
Dan 7:18  But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever.
Dan 7:19  Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast, which was diverse from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails of brass; which devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet; 
Dan 7:20  And of the ten horns that were in his head, and of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows. 
Dan 7:21  I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them; 
Dan 7:22  Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom. 
Dan 7:23  Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces. 
Dan 7:24  And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings. 
Dan 7:25  And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.
Dan 7:26  But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end. 
Dan 7:27  And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.
Dan 7:28  Hitherto is the end of the matter. As for me Daniel, my cogitations much troubled me, and my countenance changed in me: but I kept the matter in my heart.

The first seven verses of chapter 7 reveal the marred vessel of Adam which is broken into four distinct beasts; the fourth beast being the composite beast that is further developed and explained in the thirteenth chapter of the book of Revelation. The number four represents the whole of humanity, and to make this point clear, the four beasts in chapter 7 are associated with the four sections of Nebuchadnezzar’s statue from his dream, which also represent the whole beastly nature of humanity throughout history (Ecc 3:18-19, 4=the whole).

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.
Ecc 3:19  For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all is vanity.

This last section of chapter 7 of Daniel explains in prophetic words how the Lord is going to use the church to uproot all these beasts through the church that must first be judged and be made ready to carry out the work God has set before them throughout the thousand-year reign and right into the great white throne judgment (Rev 20:6, Rev 20:11-12).

Rev 20:6  Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. 

Rev 20:11  And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.
Rev 20:12  And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

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.

Nebuchadnezzar’s dream identified the beast (which is mankind) via the statue (Dan 2:31), and Daniel’s dream further identifies the beast and in more detail explains how the beast, the carnal nature of man, is will be destroyed and made anew (Jer 18:4). In Nebuchadnezzar’s dream the statue is destroyed by a stone that hits the feet (Dan 2:34), and in Daniel’s dream the means by which all those empires or nations within us are going to be rooted up (Mal 4:1) or destroyed is explained with the prophetic dream of Daniel.

Jer 18:4  And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.

Mal 4:1  For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.

Daniel is said to yet be considering the horns, meaning he does not truly understand what these horns represent spiritually (1Co 2:14), however a physical representation is given to him. The statement, “I considered the horns“, reminds us that Daniel prophesied not to himself but to those who have been given to read, hear, and keep the sayings of the prophecies (Rev 1:3) that reveal the gospel of Jesus Christ (1Co 10:11, 1Pe 1:12).

1Co 2:14  But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. 

Daniel considering the horns (“I considered the horns“) is another way of saying he was contemplating who can make war with the beast, with the horns of these beasts (Rev 13:4, Rev 17:14), and as he was contemplating the power of these horns, “there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots.“

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?

Rev 17:14  These shall make war with the Lamb [all these horns within us], and the Lamb shall overcome them: (Rom 7:24-25) for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful (Rev 1:3, Mar 13:13).

The three horns that are uprooted represent the judgment which must come upon all flesh and starts with the elect (1Pe 4:17). God’s judgment unfolds in the elect’s lives as a result of our hope of glory within (Col 1:27) who has the power to set us free from sin (Joh 8:36) as He uproots those three horns in our heavens by means of a process of judgment [3 horns] that we experience within our heavens so we can learn of His righteousness. The little horn which comes up and is more stout represents our own iniquities, our own backslidings, and wickedness that will chasten us (Jer 2:19), as we’re put through a process of judgment. Our own self-righteousness is the most stout and enduring sin which we must battle every second of our life, and God will use our weakness, our naturally wretched self-righteous condition to chasten us, and judge us day in and day out (Isa 64:6). 

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 a bitter, that thou hast forsaken Jehovah thy God, and that my fear is not in thee, saith the Lord, Jehovah of hosts.

Rom 7:24  O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? 
Rom 7:25  I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.

Isa 64:6  But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

The basest metal of the statue in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream is the fourth part, and the most corrupt compilation of the beast in Daniel chapter seven is the fourth description, and these thoughts tie into why this fourth horn is the stout one in relation to the other three. It is so powerful because it represents man’s belief in his free moral agency (self-righteousness – Isa 64:6), that God will use to chasten him, just as Joseph’s brothers had to endure for the longest time until they came to see in type and shadow that God was sovereign over all and that all of their actions were truly ordained by God – both the good and the evil. The future events of Gog and Magog are also ordained by God to show mankind that He has always been sovereign over every beastly thought and action of mankind and every righteous thought and action that was from Him as well (Isa 26:9, Php 3:9, Gen 50:20, Isa 45:7, Pro 16:4).

Php 3:9  and be found in him, not having a righteousness of mine own, even that which is of the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith:

Gen 50:20  And as for you, ye meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.

Isa 45:7  I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.

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

The description of this little horn (“and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things“) is most pronounced in the fourth empire which is the feet of miry clay mixed with iron of Nebuchadnezzar’s statue (Dan 2:41) that is exceeding dreadful and will exact judgment upon all the world. The fourth horn represents the basest parts of humanity that want to control everything and have dominion over all, claiming themselves to be gods in the temple [self-righteousness]. This point becomes very clear at the end of chapter 7 by the controlling actions of the little horn (Dan 7:25).

Dan 7:25  And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.

The Lord will bring an end to the man of perdition on the throne of every man’s heart. That process as we know begins with the house of God and culminates for God’s people in verse 27 when “the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High [first resurrection], whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him” (Dan 7:26-27).

Dan 7:9   I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire.
Dan 7:10  A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.

Verse 8 (Dan 7:8) speaks about judgment that comes upon the world to which only the elect respond with a sighing-and-crying attitude spoken of in Ezekiel 9:4 and Isaiah 57:15 as God works within our hearts and minds in this age (1Pe 4:17) so we learn to not despise this judgment from God (Rom 2:4), a judgment that sets the stage for these following verses, (Dan 7:9-12), that declare how the church will then be sent out to judge the nations after we have been judged (Rev 2:10) and made ready to do the work of the Lord.

Eze 9:4  And the LORD said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof. 

Isa 57:15  For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.

Rom 2:4  Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? 

Rev 2:10  Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.

After God’s judgment is completed upon the elect, expressed with this statement, “till the thrones were cast down“, then “the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire“, which represents the glorified Christ on this earth and the body of Christ, “his wheels as burning fire” that will rule nations from afar (Mic 4:3).

Mic 4:3  and he will judge between many peoples, and will decide concerning strong nations afar off: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.

Dan 7:11  I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame. 
Dan 7:12  As concerning the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away: yet their lives were prolonged for a season and time.

Daniel describes the judgment which he sees upon the elect with these words, “I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, (aorist event Rev 6:11) and given to the burning flame.” This statement shows clearly that the elect experience the same fire as the rest of humanity first (1Pe 4:12) and then the rest of humanity in the lake of fire, second death (Rev 20:14-15).

Rev 6:11  And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled. 

1Pe 4:12  Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you:

Rev 20:14  And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 
Rev 20:15  And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. 

The statement, “As concerning the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away: yet their lives were prolonged for a season and time“, speaks of the rest of humanity who during the thousand-year reign of the saints “had their dominion taken away” because the kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord and His Christ (Rev 11:15). Their lives were prolonged “for a season and time” and then the time of Gog and Magog unfolds leading up to the second resurrection, great white throne judgment (Rev 20:8). The physical death of all the nations with fire that comes down and destroys them (Rev 20:9) is the natural event that precedes the spiritual death (1Co 15:46) of everyone’s old man in the lake of fire.

Rev 20:8  And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. 
Rev 20:9  And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.

Dan 7:13  I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.
Dan 7:14  And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed. 

The one “like the Son of man” in verse 13 is not Christ but rather the elect who are coming with the clouds of heaven, “and came to the Ancient of days [Christ], and they brought him near before him.” The clouds bring the clouds toward “the Ancient of days” reminding us we are our brother’s keeper and that we follow each other as we follow Christ in one another, the clouds infolding on themselves (1Co 11:1, Eze 1:4).

1Co 11:1  Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ. 

Eze 1:4  And I looked, and, behold, a whirlwind came out of the north, a great cloud, and a fire infolding itself, and a brightness was about it, and out of the midst thereof as the colour of amber, out of the midst of the fire.

What we are reading in this verse is that the Father gives Christ and His Christ this reward of rulership: “And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed” (Isa 9:7).

Isa 9:7  Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.

Dan 7:15  I Daniel was grieved in my spirit in the midst of my body, and the visions of my head troubled me.
Dan 7:16  I came near unto one of them that stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me, and made me know the interpretation of the things.
Dan 7:17  These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth.
Dan 7:18  But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever.

Daniel has now mentioned multiple times how he was “grieved in my spirit in the midst of my body, and the visions of my head troubled me” as a prophet of God who is desirous to know the things of the Lord (Luk 10:24) which is a shadow of the longsuffering, persistent and patient spirit God must give to the elect so they may understand and hold fast to the mysteries of the kingdom of God (Rev 3:11), keeping under ourselves in this life and not taking anything for granted (1Co 9:27, Jas 5:7-11).

Luk 10:24  For I tell you, that many prophets and kings have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.

Rev 3:11  I come quickly: hold fast that which thou hast, that no one take thy crown. 

1Co 9:27  But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway. 

Jas 5:7  Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. 
Jas 5:8  Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh. 
Jas 5:9  Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: behold, the judge standeth before the door. 
Jas 5:10  Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience.
Jas 5:11  Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.

Just prior to having these things interpreted for Daniel, he says “I came near unto one of them that stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me, and made me know the interpretation of the things.” That “one of them that stood by” who answered Daniel represents how the manifest knowledge of God is made known by the church (Eph 3:10).

Eph 3:10  To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,

John’s experience described in the book of Revelation (Rev 7:13-15) shows the end result of the “great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth.“

Rev 7:13  And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?
Rev 7:14  And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
Rev 7:15  Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. 

The elect will take the kingdom, meaning those great beasts, which are four, and the four kings, which represent all of humanity who will be overcome, first within ourselves through Christ (Rev 7:1-12), as our hope of glory. Then the saints will rule the kingdoms of this world outwardly, “But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever” (Rev 7:13-15, Rev 3:9, Rev 3:21-22). 

Rev 3:9  Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee.

Rev 3:21  To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.
Rev 3:22  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

Dan 7:19  Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast, which was diverse from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails of brass; which devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet; 
Dan 7:20  And of the ten horns that were in his head, and of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows.
Dan 7:21  I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them;
Dan 7:22  Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom. 

The “fourth beast” is the composite beast that represents all mankind (Dan 7:7), and this beast “was diverse from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails of brass; which devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet“ (Dan 7:19). The parallel representation of this beast is the fourth kingdom on the statue of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream in Daniel 2:40-41.

Dan 7:19  Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast, which was diverse from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails of brass; which devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet;

Dan 2:40  And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise. 
Dan 2:41  And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters’ clay, and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay.

The feet of that statue have a head that controls them, which is what Daniel 7:20 shows us. “And of the ten horns that were in his head, and of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows” (Dan 7:20). In the midst of those three horns there is “even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows.” That horn prevails against the elect, but they will overcome and endure until the end, “Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom” [herein lies the patience and faith of the saints being described].

Dan 7:20  and concerning the ten horns that were on its head, and the other horn which came up, and before which three fell, even that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake great things, whose look was more stout than its fellows.

Dan 7:23  Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces. 
Dan 7:24  And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings. 
Dan 7:25  And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.

Herein lies the patience and faith of the saints with these three verses (Dan 7:23-25), which conclude by telling us that the little horn that shall subdue the three kings is going to try the patience and faith of the saints of the most high “and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time“. Whatever this changing of times and laws involves, we know it will be a demonstration of Satan’s power troddening underfoot the elect for “a time and times and the dividing of time” (Luk 21:24, Rev 11:2, Rev 2:10), which is another way of saying 1260 days, or three and a half years, which is the time of our being witnesses (Rev 11:3) to these things. We are sore-pressed but not overcome, in other words (Luk 24:48, Rev 11:8, 2Co 4:8-11, Rom 8:37).

Luk 21:24  And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led captive into all the nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.

Rev 11:2  And the court which is without the temple leave without, and measure it not; for it hath been given unto the nations: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months.

Rev 2:10  Fear not the things which thou art about to suffer: behold, the devil is about to cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days. Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee the crown of life.

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

Luk 24:48  Ye are witnesses of these things.

Rev 11:8  And their dead bodies lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified.

Dan 7:26  But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end.
Dan 7:27  And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him. 

“But the judgment shall sit” reminds us that it is God’s good pleasure to give us the kingdom (Luk 12:32) and that the gates of hell won’t prevail against the church (Mat 16:18, Mat 24:24).

“And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him” brings to mind (Rev 11:15).

Rev 11:15  And the seventh angel sounded; and there followed great voices in heaven, and they said, The kingdom of the world is become the kingdom of our Lord, and of his Christ: and he shall reign for ever and ever.

Dan 7:28  Hitherto is the end of the matter. As for me Daniel, my cogitations much troubled me, and my countenance changed in me: but I kept the matter in my heart.

Daniel cannot understand what these interpretations mean without the spirit of God, and even with many of the details being interpreted, his “cogitations much troubled me, and my countenance changed in me.“

Keeping the matter on his heart (“but I kept the matter in my heart“) is a shadow of how the elect church starts off, not knowing all that we need to know but are still persuaded and convinced to keep these matters on our hearts, patiently waiting for the Comforter to lead us into all truth (Joh 2:17, Joh 14:25-26). Those words of Daniel were also symbolized by Mary, who is a type of the elect church (Luk 2:19).

Joh 2:17  And his disciples remembered that it was written, The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up. 

Joh 14:25  These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you.
Joh 14:26  But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

Luk 2:19  But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.

Today is our day (Psa 118:24), the day of the Lord, which is the time God has ordained for the elect to consider all these horns, “I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn.“

Psa 118:24  This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.

Zec 1:1-21  “For when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness”

[Study Aired June 1, 2023]

Zec 1:1  In the eighth month, in the second year of Darius, came the word of the LORD unto Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo the prophet, saying, 
Zec 1:2  The LORD hath been sore displeased with your fathers. 
Zec 1:3  Therefore say thou unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Turn ye unto me, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will turn unto you, saith the LORD of hosts. 
Zec 1:4  Be ye not as your fathers, unto whom the former prophets have cried, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Turn ye now from your evil ways, and from your evil doings: but they did not hear, nor hearken unto me, saith the LORD. 
Zec 1:5  Your fathers, where are they? and the prophets, do they live for ever? 
Zec 1:6  But my words and my statutes, which I commanded my servants the prophets, did they not take hold of your fathers? and they returned and said, Like as the LORD of hosts thought to do unto us, according to our ways, and according to our doings, so hath he dealt with us. 
Zec 1:7  Upon the four and twentieth day of the eleventh month, which is the month Sebat, in the second year of Darius, came the word of the LORD unto Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo the prophet, saying, 
Zec 1:8  I saw by night, and behold a man riding upon a red horse, and he stood among the myrtle trees that were in the bottom; and behind him were there red horses, speckled, and white. 
Zec 1:9  Then said I, O my lord, what are these? And the angel that talked with me said unto me, I will shew thee what these be. 
Zec 1:10  And the man that stood among the myrtle trees answered and said, These are they whom the LORD hath sent to walk to and fro through the earth.
Zec 1:11  And they answered the angel of the LORD that stood among the myrtle trees, and said, We have walked to and fro through the earth, and, behold, all the earth sitteth still, and is at rest. 
Zec 1:12  Then the angel of the LORD answered and said, O LORD of hosts, how long wilt thou not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which thou hast had indignation these threescore and ten years? 
Zec 1:13  And the LORD answered the angel that talked with me with good words and comfortable words. 
Zec 1:14  So the angel that communed with me said unto me, Cry thou, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; I am jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great jealousy. 
Zec 1:15  And I am very sore displeased with the heathen that are at ease: for I was but a little displeased, and they helped forward the affliction. 
Zec 1:16  Therefore thus saith the LORD; I am returned to Jerusalem with mercies: my house shall be built in it, saith the LORD of hosts, and a line shall be stretched forth upon Jerusalem. 
Zec 1:17  Cry yet, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; My cities through prosperity shall yet be spread abroad; and the LORD shall yet comfort Zion, and shall yet choose Jerusalem. 
Zec 1:18  Then lifted I up mine eyes, and saw, and behold four horns. 
Zec 1:19  And I said unto the angel that talked with me, What be these? And he answered me, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem. 
Zec 1:20  And the LORD shewed me four carpenters. 
Zec 1:21  Then said I, What come these to do? And he spake, saying, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, so that no man did lift up his head: but these are come to fray them, to cast out the horns of the Gentiles, which lifted up their horn over the land of Judah to scatter it. 

Zechariah’s^H2148 name means “Jah has remembered” and he is the son of Berechiah^H1296 whose name means “blessing of Jah” who is the son of Iddo^H5714 whose name means “timely“.

Historically, the remnant of Judah that was taken into captivity, as we just read about in the last few chapters of 2 Kings, are now come out of this place that typifies spiritual bondage for us in the churches of this world (2Co 6:17), to learn of God’s faithfulness toward His little remnant, the elect of God whom He has remembered [Zechariah’s^H2148] and who are blessed to come to know Him [Berechiah^H1296] in this age, at a perfectly appointed time [Iddo^H5714] (Gal 4:2  Joh 6:44, Mat 22:14). 

A look at where this book was written in the chronology of the scriptures: Chronology of the Prophets in the Old Testament – Bible History (bible-history.com)

Gal 4:1  Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all; 
Gal 4:2  But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father.

When we read of such conditional statements as this in the book of Zechariah, “Therefore say thou unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Turn ye unto me, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will turn unto you, saith the LORD of hosts” (Zec 1:3), we are also reminded as God’s weak of the world, unnatural branch (Rom 11:24), that those conditions can only be met within us through Christ, not by might or power but by God’s holy spirit, in other words (Zec 4:6). That is the message the elect are given to see in His word and be admonished from Genesis to Revelation, being blessed to know that there is a dragging that is occurring in our lives (Joh 6:44), as we are judged in this age, believing that all things are for our sakes and there is one event unto all men, which event is that judgment which has begun at the house of God (Ecc 9:1-3, 1Pe 4:17). 

Joh 6:44  No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.

With these principles in mind, we can read the book of Zechariah which points to many Messianic prophecies and learn how they apply to Christ and His Christ (1Jn 4:17). The end of the book of Zechariah reveals a time that typifies when God’s elect will have gone on to perfection in the first resurrection to become the vessels of honor whom He will use to bring salvation to the rest of the world. 

Zec 14:20  In that day shall there be upon the bells of the horses, HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD; and the pots in the LORD’S house shall be like the bowls before the altar. Zec 14:21  Yea, every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the LORD of hosts: and all they that sacrifice shall come and take of them, and seethe therein: and in that day there shall be no more the Canaanite in the house of the LORD of hosts.

In order to get to this place of being God’s kings and priests typified by those bowls before the altar, there must be a lifetime of much tribulation and carrying of our own cross as we die daily, so we can enter into the temple of God permanently, in a moment and in a twinkling of an eye at the last trump (Rev 15:8, 1Co 15:52). The bowls symbolize where the wrath of God is stored up and poured out upon all unrighteousness of men (Rom 1:18) and the book of Zechariah reveals the inspired order in which all mankind’s heavens will be judged, each man in his own order (1Co 15:23-24).

Rev 15:8  And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled.

Rom 1:18  For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven [Heb 9:23] against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; 

Zec 4:6  Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts. 

1Co 15:23  But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.
1Co 15:24  Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.

Zec 1:1  In the eighth month, in the second year of Darius, came the word of the LORD unto Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo the prophet, saying, 
Zec 1:2  The LORD hath been sore displeased with your fathers.

These first verses set the stage for us with both the names and numbers involved to tell us where this prophetic book of Zechariah is going to be pointing. It is in “the eighth month, in the second year of Darius, came the word of the LORD unto Zechariah” because the new man, represented by the “eighth month“, can only begin to be formed in us by our hearing the true witness of Jesus Christ “in the second year of Darius” when the word of the Lord came “unto Zechariah.” Darius is a Persian king who represents our fleshly minds against which we will to be witnessed [“in the second year“], where we are told that the LORD has been sore displeased.

In the prophetic timeline of the “great image” revealed to Daniel and spoken to king Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 2:31-35, there is a progression of the judgment of our old man or “image of the beast” (Rev 13:15) represented by the nation of Persia whose king was Darius who comes after king Nebuchadnezzar.

There is an inward application of this statute that applies to those who are being judged in this age (1Pe 4:17), and there is a dispensational application of this “great image” and an historical application, which is the natural revealing of these nations and places and their relationships one to another that precedes the spiritual meaning (1Co 15:46). God blesses His children to come to see and understand how these nations and beasts, to which we are likened, apply to their lives today (1Co 10:11, Rom 1:20). 

‘The dream is one’ principle is in play (Gen 41:25) where we learn of the four beasts in the seventh chapter of Daniel, the first “like a lion” representing Babylon, out of which we come, and then Persia the bear being the second beast (Dan 7:4-5). Then the last two beasts are described showing us the whole [4] representation of our beastly nature which must be judged.

Zechariah is the servant of the Lord who comes to declare what God thinks of this marred-in-the-hand-of-the-Potter beast (Jer 18:4) and declares “The LORD hath been sore displeased with your fathers.”

All these beasts represent specific nations in history with their rulers who have been given their power from Satan to rule and reign, as he is the god of this world (2Co 4:4), that God ordained to rule over the nations exactly in the manner which He purposed from the foundation of the world according to the counsel of His own will for our sakes, revealing what is in every man who needs to be judged (Rev 13:2, Eph 1:11, 2Co 4:15).

Dan 2:31  Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible. 
Dan 2:32  This image’s head was of fine gold [Babylon], his breast and his arms of silver [Persia], his belly and his thighs of brass [Greece], 
Dan 2:33  His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay [Rome]. 
Dan 2:34  Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. 
Dan 2:35  Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away [2Th 2:8], that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth. [The stone (representing Christ and His Christ) fills the whole earth because of the judgment that has taken place]

2Co 4:15  For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.

Zec 1:3  Therefore say thou unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Turn ye unto me, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will turn unto you, saith the LORD of hosts. 
Zec 1:4  Be ye not as your fathers, unto whom the former prophets have cried, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Turn ye now from your evil ways, and from your evil doings: but they did not hear, nor hearken unto me, saith the LORD. 
Zec 1:5  Your fathers, where are they? and the prophets, do they live for ever? 
Zec 1:6  But my words and my statutes, which I commanded my servants the prophets, did they not take hold of your fathers? and they returned and said, Like as the LORD of hosts thought to do unto us, according to our ways, and according to our doings, so hath he dealt with us. 

The message of our heavenly Father never changes because God does not change (Mal 3:6), and that message is, “Turn ye unto me, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will turn unto you, saith the LORD of hosts” telling those who have been given eyes to see and ears to hear (Mat 13:16) that we need to know we are in a spiritual battle requiring our whole-hearted devotion to Him as we seek the kingdom of God first and His righteousness (Mat 6:33). If that desire is not there, which is of God, He will not turn to us. However, if Christ is working in us both to will and to do of His good pleasure, then we will turn to Him and work out our own salvation with fear and trembling, glorifying God in this dispensation of grace (Php 2:12-14, Jas 4:7, Col 1:27-29, 2Co 6:2, Joh 1:17).

Jas 4:7  Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 
Jas 4:8  Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.
Jas 4:9  Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness.

Col 1:29  Whereunto I also labour, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily.

2Co 6:2  (For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.) 

Joh 1:17  For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.

Our “fathers” of old who did not hearken to the Lord “unto whom the former prophets have cried” represent our carnal hearts that rejected the message of God at first, and it is only by the death of that old man we become the spiritual fatherless and the widow of James 1:27 who now, by the grace and faith of Christ (Eph 2:8), can take heed to the warnings being given from Christ through the church so that we “Turn ye now from your evil ways, and from your evil doings.” Without God’s goodness and longsuffering spirit working in our lives (Rom 2:4) we also would “not hear, nor hearken unto me, saith the LORD.”

Those prophets of old are dead, “Your fathers, where are they? and the prophets, do they live for ever?” However, the typical words of eternal life they pronounced live on (Joh 6:68), and we are to consider how patiently they bore that message for our sakes, some even to death to demonstrate how nothing can separate us from the love of God working within the lives of His people today (Rom 8:35, Rom 5:10), and how we must bear our cross today in order for the life of Christ to manifest within the body of Christ (Jas 5:10, 2Co 4:10).

Joh 6:68  Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.

Jas 5:10  Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience. 

2Co 4:10  Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.

Lessons will be learned for ‘our fathers of old’ who ‘came out of captivity’ typifying what God has started in the elect’s life. They tell us that although something is being learned, this does not mean there is a change of heart: “But my words and my statutes, which I commanded my servants the prophets, did they not take hold of your fathers? and they returned and said, Like as the LORD of hosts thought to do unto us, according to our ways, and according to our doings, so hath he dealt with us” (Zec 1:6).

The nations coming to see that God is a just God who judges us so that we reap what we sow, is only typical of the real deliverance from sin that can only come through Jesus Christ (Joh 8:36). Knowing that “according to our ways, and according to our doings, so hath he dealt with us” does not bring about a changed heart, just as the rod of iron the saints rule with throughout the symbolic thousand-year period will not change anyone’s heart. However, people will learn that what they sow they will reap, and God’s judgments will be executed on the earth (Ecc 8:11, Isa 26:9).

Ecc 8:11  Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil. 

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.

Zec 1:7  Upon the four and twentieth day of the eleventh month, which is the month Sebat, in the second year of Darius, came the word of the LORD unto Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo the prophet, saying,

The word of the LORD comes to “Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo the prophet” on the 24th day of the 11th month, which is the month Sebat^H7627, in the second year of Darius. These numbers and names once again set the stage for us regarding what the Lord wants us to know is unfolding at this point in the story. 

We already know that this is about judgment upon the nation of Judah, who typifies the body of Christ, and have looked at these names “Zechariah’s^H2148 (Jah has remembered), Berechiah^H1296 whose name means “blessing of Jah“, Iddo^H5714 whose name means “timely” which remind us God has an appointed time to judge all matters.

The time that the word of the Lord comes to Zechariah is a witness to that point. The goal of having a proper foundation in Christ is witnessed by the number 24, which is 2×12=24, and the 11th month reminds us where we are before we can come to obtain a sure foundation founded upon Christ. That foundation is accomplished by “Sebat”^H7627 in the second year of Darius, which witnesses to the reality that it takes a rod of iron to bring about that transition from 11 to 12 (Act 14:22).

H7627 shebâṭ  Sebat = “a rod”
1) 11th month in the post-exilic Jewish calendar corresponding to Jan or Feb

Zec 1:8  I saw by night, and behold a man riding upon a red horse, and he stood among the myrtle trees that were in the bottom; and behind him were there red horses, speckled, and white. 
Zec 1:9  Then said I, O my lord, what are these? And the angel that talked with me said unto me, I will shew thee what these be. 
Zec 1:10  And the man that stood among the myrtle trees answered and said, These are they whom the LORD hath sent to walk to and fro through the earth.

Christ is the one who rides the red horse into our lives as we see through a glass darkly in the night (1Co 13:12) “I saw by night.

Excerpt from “Horse” (iswasandwillbe.com): “Christ is the red horse rider. Christ tells us plainly that it is He who has come to take peace away from the earth. It is Christ who rides the red horse through our lives.

Mat 10:34  Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. [What does the ‘red horse’ rider carry with him?]

Rev 6:4  And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword.** [end quote]

He is the one who causes us to stand, only made possible because He is in the midst of the myrtle trees, which trees represent men (Mar 8:24), specifically the body of Christ in these verses (Neh 8:15, Isa 41:19, Isa 55:13) who know their marred condition, represented by “red horses [Adam; that is without peace], speckled [marred/sin], and white [leprous in the negative sense]” that will be brought into subjection to the rider, Jesus Christ (2Co 10:5).

The horses being “behind him” assures us that we will be more than conquerors through Christ. By His power we will be able to put behind us all our childish and sinful ways, gaining dominion over them through Christ, going onto perfection on the third day (1Co 13:11, Rom 6:14, Luk 13:32).

1Co 13:11  When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things. 

Rom 6:14  For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. 

Luk 13:32  And he said unto them, Go ye, and tell that fox, Behold, I cast out devils, and I do cures to day and to morrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.

Christ stands among the myrtle trees as the means by which we can bear fruit through the vine (Joh 15:5), which is only possible with God’s spirit being within us (Rev 22:1-2, Gen 3:8, Rev 2:7, Rom 8:9). When Christ is in our midst, we have the power to be witnesses in this world (Rev 11:3) in which we live and are coming out of at the same time (1Co 5:9-10, 2Co 6:17).

We are sent, each one of us in that sense, as apostles^G652 (which word means “sent”), “These are they whom the LORD hath sent to walk to and fro through the earth“, as Christ was sent of His Father (Joh 20:21, 1Jn 4:17) to witness God’s righteousness to this world, the exact opposite of what Satan has been sent to do (Job 1:7, Job 2:2, Gen 3:9). God’s absolute power over the light and darkness, and the peace and evil (Amo 3:6) that He has created, is being demonstrated by both the elect being sent into this world as well as Satan (Job 2:6-7), each fulfilling God’s purpose as He works all things according to the counsel of His own will (Isa 45:7, Eph 1:11).

1Co 13:12  For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. 

2Co 10:5  Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

Those trees are “in the bottom” revealing that God calls and works with the weak of the world, those who are in the bottom, “the foolish things of the world to confound the wise” (1Co 1:26-27). What is behind the rider represents what God is giving us the power to overcome in our lives through Christ. As mentioned above, the speckled horse and the white horse represent the spotted flesh that cannot inherit the kingdom of God [speckled horse (Jud 1:23)] and leprous condition of our flesh [negative use of white] that also cannot inherit the kingdom. Through Christ we are more than conquerors who can put off that flesh and inherit eternal life (Rom 8:35-37).

Jud 1:23  And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh.

Rom 8:35  Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 
Rom 8:36  As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.
Rom 8:37  Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.

It takes the angel of the Lord, the messengers of God, who represent the church, the body of Christ (Col 1:24) to understand the interpretation of this vision of the horses, “Then said I, O my lord, what are these? And the angel that talked with me said unto me (Eph 3:10), I will shew thee what these be.“

The man (1Ti 2:5) who stood among the myrtle trees typifies Christ who is our mediator who is able to give us dominion over these powerful beasts that represent our carnal beastly minds (Ecc 3:18) against which we can only make war through Christ (Php 2:12-13, Rev 13:4).

1Ti 2:5  For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;

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?

Zec 1:11  And they answered the angel of the LORD that stood among the myrtle trees, and said, We have walked to and fro through the earth, and, behold, all the earth sitteth still, and is at rest.
Zec 1:12  Then the angel of the LORD answered and said, O LORD of hosts, how long wilt thou not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which thou hast had indignation these threescore and ten years? 

As we walk “to and for through the earth” we see that “all the earth sitteth still, and is at rest“, and we bring this report to our Lord as we sigh and cry for the abominations of the world which has found its rest in fleshly pursuits (1Co 15:32, Mat 10:39, Eze 9:4) and not in Christ who is the one with whom God’s elect labor to enter into a relationship, so that we can have true Godly rest in Him (Heb 4:11).

Heb 4:11  Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.

The angel of the Lord, who represents the elect, then says, “Then the angel of the LORD answered and said, O LORD of hosts, how long wilt thou not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which thou hast had indignation these threescore and ten years?” That question of the angel is the same one that is posed by the angel in Revelation 6:9-11 which reads, “And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held: And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.” 

God’s elect know that the world must be judged and understand that judgment begins at the house of God, which judgment is described for us as God’s “indignation these threescore and ten years”. Seventy years of judgment tells us that God’s judgment must be complete upon the body of Christ in order for us to enter into the temple of God in the fullness of that relationship at the first resurrection or last trump (Rev 8:6, Rev 15:8). Because God sees the body of Christ as one body, with one spirit, this statement, “And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled” tells us that God knows those who are His, and that we need to possess our souls patiently as God brings the entire body of Christ to a place of maturity where we are made ready for the wedding supper. All those who have physically died in Christ are represented by those symbolic voices crying these words from the grave, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?” even as we groan within ourselves the same prayer to our Father (Rom 8:22-24).

Rom 8:22  For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.
Rom 8:23  And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. 
Rom 8:24  For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?

Zec 1:13  And the LORD answered the angel that talked with me with good words and comfortable words.
Zec 1:14  So the angel that communed with me said unto me, Cry thou, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; I am jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great jealousy. 
Zec 1:15  And I am very sore displeased with the heathen that are at ease: for I was but a little displeased, and they helped forward the affliction. 

The world is helping “forward the affliction” that is coming upon it as God has ordained evil men to wax worse and worse at the end of the age (2Ti 3:13). Without God opening our heavens, we cannot understand that He is the one who is working every aspect of the evil within the city (Isa 45:7, Amo 3:6). God comforts those whom He is dragging to Himself in this age with true prophecy which is 1 Corinthians 14:3. That prophecy is the words God manifests in the church via His messengers, “the LORD answered the angel that talked with me with good words and comfortable words.” While God is speaking these comforting words to the body of Christ, we are not to neglect the command of God to, “Cry thou, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; I am jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great jealousy.“

God is jealous over the bride of Christ with a great jealousy, and yet the afflictions, persecutions, tribulation and suffering we must endure are needful for the body of Christ to mature and be made ready in the Lord so that no man takes our crown (Rev 3:11). God is using all of the creation in the way that He has ordained to move His plan forward, and He tells us, “I am very sore displeased with the heathen that are at ease: for I was but a little displeased, and they helped forward the affliction” which makes our fleshly minds go to the verses in Romans 9:18-22 which ask the question, “Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will?” Why is He “sore displeased” if He’s the one who created the conditions. “Why is He setting us up for failure?” our carnal hearts cry.

Rom 9:18  Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth. 
Rom 9:19  Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will? 
Rom 9:20  Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?
Rom 9:21  Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour? 
Rom 9:22  What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction:

Zec 1:16  Therefore thus saith the LORD; I am returned to Jerusalem with mercies: my house shall be built in it, saith the LORD of hosts, and a line shall be stretched forth upon Jerusalem. 
Zec 1:17  Cry yet, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; My cities through prosperity shall yet be spread abroad; and the LORD shall yet comfort Zion, and shall yet choose Jerusalem. 

These two verses can be summarized with what is written in Isaiah 9:6-8. Christ is the “line” that “shall be stretched forth upon Jerusalem.” That line represents the judgments in our lives that are symbolized by the plummet line in the hand of Zerubbabel, who is a type of Christ [God’s Word] who measures or judges us today against that word (Zec 4:10). The bride being made ready for Christ is possible by the “mercies” of God who sends Christ into our lives, returning to “Jerusalem” above (Gal 4:26), so that His “house“, which we are, can be built (1Co 3:16). 

Isa 9:6  For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
Isa 9:7  Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this. 
Isa 9:8  The Lord sent a word into Jacob, and it hath lighted upon Israel. 

Zec 4:10  For who hath despised the day of small things? for they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the eyes of the LORD, which run to and fro through the whole earth.

The “My cities through prosperity shall yet be spread abroad” is speaking of how the word of God will be prospered in the earth during the thousand-year reign (Hab 2:14, Isa 26:9) of the saints, even as it is increasing in the body of Christ today (2Pe 3:18). The difference between learning of God’s judgments and actually being changed by those judgments is only finalized in the great white throne judgment for the rest of the world. There is knowledge being disseminated throughout the thousand-year reign, but it is not a period or dispensation of grace, seeing the spirit of God is still not within humanity to bring about that inward change of heart (Rom 8:9).

Hab 2:14  For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.

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. 

Rom 8:9  But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.

Zec 1:18  Then lifted I up mine eyes, and saw, and behold four horns.
Zec 1:19  And I said unto the angel that talked with me, What be these? And he answered me, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem. 
Zec 1:20  And the LORD shewed me four carpenters. 
Zec 1:21  Then said I, What come these to do? And he spake, saying, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, so that no man did lift up his head: but these are come to fray them, to cast out the horns of the Gentiles, which lifted up their horn over the land of Judah to scatter it. 

The four horns represent the whole resurrected body of Christ, and we only see that body when we look to our head, Jesus Christ, who guides and directs the body, and so we have that first thought being introduced, “Then lifted I up mine eyes, and saw, and behold four horns” (Psa 121:1-2).

Psa 121:1  A Song of degrees. I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.
Psa 121:2  My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth.

God’s elect are represented in this section of His word as “four horns” which symbolize the complete power God will use to judge the world with a rod of iron during the thousand-year reign. The number ‘thousand’ correlates with “Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem“, three places connected to the people of God; in this case the whole world being judged [10x10x10=1000]. 

The judgment which comes from God’s word being in the earth will not return void and will be skillfully placed [carpenters] throughout the earth so that the witness of His truth will be complete (Isa 55:11). The function of those horns is to scatter the “scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.” Three places are mentioned as this scattering represents the destroying of Babylon’s false religions through a process of judgment [3] that will unfold with a rod of iron, which we know represents God’s unchanging word. 

Isa 55:11  So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

The “four carpenters” of verse 20 are the same as the “four horns” of verse 18, and it is the angel of God, the messengers, that make up the body of Christ who are commissioned to be “the horns which have scattered Judah, so that no man did lift up his head: but these are come to fray them, to cast out the horns of the Gentiles, which lifted up their horn over the land of Judah [representing God’s elect in this instance] to scatter it.“

The goal of God’s elect as those carpenters is “come to fray^H2729 them, to cast out^{H3034 (H853)} the horns of the Gentiles” – meaning we are taking away the power of the world that has been against Christ and His Christ “which lifted up their horn over the land of Judah to scatter it” (Joh 19:11).

Joh 19:11  Jesus answered, Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above: therefore he that delivered me unto thee hath the greater sin.

“No man did lift up his head” (vs 21) because false religions won’t be allowed on the earth, but neither will the world have the ability to, “Then lifted I up mine eyes, and saw, and behold four horns” of verse 18. which is first given to God’s elect to do.

H2729 Fray chârad
BDB Definition:
1) to tremble, quake, move about, be afraid, be startled, be terrified
1a) (Qal)
1a1) to tremble, quake (of a mountain)
1a2) to tremble (of people)
1a3) to be anxiously careful
1a4) to go or come trembling (with preposition)
1b) (Hiphil)
1b1) to cause to tremble
1b2) to drive in terror, rout (an army)

H3034 to cast out yâdâh
BDB Definition:
1) to throw, shoot, cast
1a) (Qal) to shoot (arrows)
1b) (Piel) to cast, cast down, throw down
1c) (Hiphil)
1c1) to give thanks,, laud, praise
1c2) to confess, confess (the name of God)
1d) (Hithpael)
1d1) to confess (sin)
1d2) to give thanks

A Related Word by BDB/Strong’s Number: a primitive root; used only as denominative from H3027

H3027  yâd
BDB Definition:
1) hand
1a) hand (of man)
1b) strength, power (figuratively)
1c) side (of land), part, portion (metaphorically) (figuratively)
1d) (various special, technical senses)
1d1) sign, monument
1d2) part, fractional part, share
1d3) time, repetition
1d4) axle-trees, axle
1d5) stays, support (for laver)
1d6) tenons (in tabernacle)
1d7) a phallus, a hand (meaning unsure)
1d8) wrists

The hope-filled imagery of “four carpenters” tells us that God is building something with the church being in the earth as the resurrected body of Christ (Col 1:24). However, it is in stages, and these prophetic words of Zechariah in this first chapter we’ve examined point to that beginning stage for humanity as their power to worship false Gods is taken away, and they learn of God’s righteousness through His judgments in the earth (Isa 26:9), eventually having that faith tried in the lake of fire in the second resurrection where all of humanity will have their minds purified through the great white throne judgment as opposed to the rod of iron judgment throughout the reign of the saints that does not change the heart of mankind without God’s spirit within (Rom 8:9).

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.

The Book of Joshua – Part 6: ‘The Irony of the Moon Standing Upon a Moon’ for its Destruction – Joshua 6:1-17

[Study Aired March 25, 2023]

In the last study, we reviewed Israel crossing the Jordan and erecting two memorials for the house of Israel’s presence and for any who enquired. One was on the west bank of the Jordan, and the other was in the midst of the Jordan.

The relatively small, yet strongly walled, city of Jericho now confronts Israel’s growing strength through miracle empowerment. As with Israel, our successes, trials and sufferings teach us humility and deep respect for our Lord. A
miraculous win over our small trials likewise empowers us to forge ahead and, disappointedly, can cause us to be puffed up with a sense of having arrived at a full understanding.

For now, Israel is taking baby steps at confronting her enemies and learning the vital principle of trusting in her Lord’s strength to fight her battles. Her physical battles are our daily spiritual battles.

Jos 6:1 Now Jericho was straitly shut up because of the children of Israel: none went out, and none came in.
Jos 6:2 And the LORD said unto Joshua, See, I have given into thine hand Jericho, and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valour.
Jos 6:3 And ye shall compass the city, all ye men of war, and go round about the city once. Thus shalt thou do six days.
Jos 6:4  And seven priests shall bear before the ark seven trumpets of ram’s horns: and the seventh day ye shall compass the city seven times, and the priests shall blow with the trumpets.
Jos 6:5 And it shall come to pass, that when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when ye hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city shall fall down flat, and the people shall ascend up every man straight before him.
Jos 6:6 And Joshua the son of Nun called the priests, and said unto them, Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the LORD.
Jos 6:7 And he said unto the people, Pass on, and compass the city, and let him that is armed pass on before the ark of the LORD.
Jos 6:8 And it came to pass, when Joshua had spoken unto the people, that the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams’ horns passed on before the LORD, and blew with the trumpets: and the ark of the covenant of the LORD followed them.
Jos 6:9 And the armed men went before the priests that blew with the trumpets, and the rereward came after the ark, the priests going on, and blowing with the trumpets.
Jos 6:10  And Joshua had commanded the people, saying, Ye shall not shout, nor make any noise with your voice, neither shall any word proceed out of your mouth, until the day I bid you shout; then shall ye shout.
Jos 6:11  So the ark of the LORD compassed the city, going about it once: and they came into the camp, and lodged in the camp.
Jos 6:12  And Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of the LORD.
Jos 6:1  And seven priests bearing seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the LORD went on continually, and blew with the trumpets: and the armed men went before them; but the rereward came after the ark of the LORD, the priests going on, and blowing with the trumpets.
Jos 6:14 And the second day they compassed the city once, and returned into the camp: so they did six days.
Jos 6:15 And it came to pass on the seventh day, that they rose early about the dawning of the day, and compassed the city after the same manner seven times: only on that day they compassed the city seven times.
Jos 6:16 And it came to pass at the seventh time, when the priests blew with the trumpets, Joshua said unto the people, Shout; for the LORD hath given you the city.
Jos 6:17 And the city shall be accursed, even it, and all that are therein, to the LORD: only Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all that are with her in the house, because she hid the messengers that we sent.

The Body of Christ is well versed, knowing that in Joseph’s dream, his ten brothers represented the stars, the coming nation of Israel, and the sun represented Issac, their father, and the moon, Rebecca, their mother.

Gen 37:8 And his brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed reign over us? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us? And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words.
Gen 37:9 And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me.
Gen 37:10 And he told it to his father, and to his brethren: and his father rebuked him, and said unto him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to theeto the earth?

In the preceding studies in Joshua, we saw that the meaning of Jericho means “Moon”. How ironic that the developing Woman, the church in the wilderness represented as the ‘Moon’, will stand upon the ‘bowed down’ walls and city of Jericho, the figurative mother ‘Moon’ and one of the heathen nations for whom Israel became a lover.

Jos 6:1 Now Jericho was straitly shut up because of the children of Israel: none went out, and none came in.

Today, the rejected anointed Moon of Babylonian Christianity is “shut up” and darkens the word of God anytime we ingest her spirit of a different Jesus. Her iniquities are sealed for judgment at the time of her end on the eighth day; she is the negative of the Lord’s little flock who likewise is shut up where nobody other than those the Lord chooses can go out or come in to gain the Lord’s truths (Mar 4:11-12).

Israel, being the Woman, is clothed in the sun of the milk of the word and, standing on the symbolic Moon of Jericho and soon her heathen sisters, is given the power and strength of her Lord to lay flat the strong man’s walls that without the Lord’s miracles, would strike fear in her heart. (Rev 12:1-6, Mar 3:27, Mat 12:29). Ultimately, she becomes a strong man in harmony with her Lord with her enemies under her feet.

Psa 19:1 To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. The heavens declare the glory of God; and the expanse proclaims His handiwork.
Psa 19:2 Day to day pours forth speech, and night to night reveals knowledge.
Psa 19:3 There is no speech nor are there words; their voice is not heard.
Psa 19:4 Their line has gone out through all the earth and their words to the end of the world. In them He has set a tabernacle for the sun, [The Bride is the Tabernacle of the Lord, the Son]
Psa 19:5 and he comes forth as a bridegroom from his canopy; he rejoices as a strong man to run a race.

1Jn 4:17 Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.

The Woman with the Moon under her feet becomes equal in Christ, the strong man, in rulership, not headship, as Joseph was made equal in rulership under Pharaoh’s headship (Genesis 41). So is the Bride of Christ being made to rule all of Egypt within and rout her enemies, starting with the Moon of Jericho, a small representation of the developing Great Whore of lying wonders.

Jos 6:2 And the LORD said unto Joshua, See, I have given into thine hand Jericho, and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valour.
Jos 6:3 And ye shall compass the city, all ye men of war, and go round about the city once. Thus shalt thou do six days.
Jos 6:4 And seven priests shall bear before the ark seven trumpets of rams’ horns: and the seventh day ye shall compass the city seven times, and the priests shall blow with the trumpets.

By our Lord’s power and might alone, we are given to rule over Satan and his demons symbolised as the King of Jericho and his mighty men of valour (Eph 6:12, Jam 4:7, Luk 10:17).

Luk 10:17 And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name.
Luk 10:18 And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven.
Luk 10:19 Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.
Luk 10:20 Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven.

The significance of Israel’s men of war, once each day marching behind the Priests carrying the Ark of the Lord for six days, represents our flesh (666) for six thousand years torturously living our ways. Even though our trials and heartaches are of the Lord, and we flip-flop between loving and rejecting him, the arduous process, as it will be for Israel, is to teach us to trust in God. Knowing the end of the saga from personal experience, the Body of Christ knows that we are doomed to fail in our battles unless the Lord is going before us on every occasion.

Exo 20:8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
Exo 20:9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:

The number 7 mentioned three times is significant since it represents completion, especially judgment. The Lord’s Elect alone is the first, as symbolised by Israel, to work six days depending upon their Lord, and not knowing how He will perform His miracles of conversion for Him to give them possession of Him on the seventh day depicted as Jericho’s fall, the small beginnings of many larger deaths within.

To the Amorites inhabiting Jericho (Jos 5:1), their initial intrigue must have turned into derision for this parade of ‘fools’ marching around their walls each day, and then contempt with underlying foreboding when the memory of Israel’s previous accomplishments come to mind. It mirrors the Body of Christ’s experiences with our brothers and sisters in Babylon as they deride our Christ-given understanding when they all parrot, ‘We are already saved, Christ did it all on the cross, and we don’t have to lift a finger.’

Psa 44:13 Thou makest us a reproach to our neighbours, a scorn and a derision to them that are round about us.
Psa 44:14 Thou makest us a byword among the heathen, a shaking of the head among the people.
Psa 44:15 My confusion is continually before me, and the shame of my face hath covered me,
Psa 44:16 For the voice of him that reproacheth and blasphemeth; by reason of the enemy and avenger.

Jos 6:5 And it shall come to pass, that when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when ye hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city shall fall down flat, and the people shall ascend up every man straight before him.

Individually, we are watchmen upon the wall of our city, the New Jerusalem within. Hearing the sound of the trumpet in us and behind us reminds us to call on the Lord to deliver us from our insidious trials and others we see approaching. If we deliberately reject the still, small voice behind us (in our minds), our blood will be upon our heads since we know the Lord’s will and don’t live it.

The people of Jericho represent the world who will see and tremble at Christ’s Christs ruling with the “great shout” of the rod of iron in the One Thousand-Year reign. The people will tremble, and their stubborn walls of self-righteousness will fall flat. Yet, they are not given to repent and appease Israel (the Christs) before they come to rule the world’s city within on the Seventh Day.

In fact, all the people of Jericho with the exception of Rahab and her family, who represent the Elect, the faithful city that too was a harlot, die, as does all flesh die at the end of the One Thousand-Year reign.

Eze 33:4 Then whosoever heareth the sound of the trumpet, and taketh not warning; if the sword come, and take him away, his blood shall be upon his own head.
Eze 33:5 He heard the sound of the trumpet, and took not warning; his blood shall be upon him. But he that taketh warning shall deliver his soul.
Eze 33:6 But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman’s hand.

Mar 3:29 but whoever may speak evil in regard to the Holy Spirit hath not forgiveness—to the age, but is in danger of age-during judgment; (YLT)

Jos 6:6 And Joshua the son of Nun called the priests and said to them, Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests carry seven rams’ horns in front of the ark of Jehovah.
Jos 6:7 And he said to the people, Pass on, and go around the city. And let him who is armed pass on in front of the ark of Jehovah.
Jos 6:8 And it happened when Joshua had spoken to the people, the seven priests bearing the seven rams’ horns passed on before Jehovah and blew the rams; horns. And the ark of the covenant of Jehovah followed them.
Jos 6:9 And the armed men went before the priests who blew with the rams’ horns. And the gathering [H622 – “rereward” gathering; company] army came after the ark, as the priests were going on and blowing with the rams’ horns.

Rom 8:31 What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?

That understanding of Romans 8:31 is a foundational rock impacting everything we do in becoming as He is. Plain and simple, if Christ is for us, who can be against us? The vital element identifies the Ark, Christ, as the hidden-in-plain-sight weapon for the entire procession to march around Jericho.

Neither the Israelites nor we should be concerned about how our Lord will demonstrate His power over our enemies as we learn to not be timid when facing difficult trials.

Psa 18:2 The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.

Psa 75:10 All the horns of the wicked also will I cut off; but the horns of the righteous shall be exalted.

A beast’s horns signify and identify the strength (H7161) of his power.

While most rams’ horns, as opposed to an ox’s, are not deadly in a fight, they still signify strength, and since the Priests are using the seven horns as instruments for sound, their sound announces the coming destruction of Babylon within, and beginning with the Lord’s Passover.

The order of the procession marching around Jericho is this:
Verse 7, first, armed Israelites go before all. Secondly, the seven priests bearing the seven ram’s horns; thirdly, the Ark of the Covenant of God, Verse 8, and bringing up the rear in fourth place is a representative of the whole (Number 4), or camp of Israel named as “rereward” (KJV) H622 – meaning, gathering; company.

For the Body of Christ’s spiritual understanding, we must be armed with all the vital tools of Christ to fight our enemy, having total trust in the Lord to win the battle. We most certainly pick up our spiritual sword of Christ by his word as we strike our enemies within and without anyone enquiring to receive that sword. As such, we all spiritually perish by His sword that ironically gives life.

Mat 26:51 And, behold, one [Peter] of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword, and he struck a servant of the high priest and cut off his ear.
Mat 26:52 Then Jesus said to him, Put up your sword again into its place; for all who take the sword shall perish with a sword.
Mat 26:53 Do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He shall presently give Me more than twelve legions of angels?
Mat 26:54 But how then shall the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must be so?
Mat 26:55 In that hour Jesus said to the crowds, Have you come out in order to take Me with swords and clubs, as against a thief? I sat daily with you, teaching in the temple, and you did not lay hands on Me.
Mat 26:56 But all this happened that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled. Then all the disciples fled, forsaking Him.

The Elect of God is those named “let him who is armed” pass on in front of the Ark of God. We know that many Christians claim the Lord’s name and are armed, yet, unwittingly, by a “different Jesus”.

Seven Priests who spiritually go before Israel (Babylonian Christianity within and without) blow the trumpet of war. That is precisely what the Body of Christ has been doing since His death on the cross to all who are given eyes that see and ears that hear those trumpets.

Next comes the armed people of Israel who “pass on” and encompass the city.

The spiritual order of the physical procession is this:
1. Since Christ’s death, the spiritually armed Christians who hold the word of God unrighteously have born the cross in the heat of the day.
2. The Seven Priests bearing the Seven Rams’ horns were originally part of the body of Israel but sanctified to primarily blow the horns within and not to their brethren; they represent Christ’s Church today. Their brothers and sisters in Babylonian Christianity do not hear neither can they receive their testimony.
3. Thirdly, the Christs bearing Christ, the Ark of the Covenant, are of Israel, but much later, and following Israel becoming a harlot, they come out of her to
remain as the Lord’s chosen few to be his Heavenly Jerusalem above, his Bride.
4. Following behind is harlot Christianity and the mighty mixed multitude of the entire world together in the Resurrection to Judgement, commonly known as the Second Resurrection.

One thing we always noticed in the WCG as we headed off into the night to do the traditions of men at Passover was the incredible sight of a beautiful full moon. Again, how ironic that Israel, who came out of Egypt on a full moon, is now destroying the little city-moon of Jericho. Israel is effectively destroying a part of the Whore (Moon) that Israel is to become since the Canaanites are within and were never entirely routed from her land.

Jos 6:10 And Joshua had commanded the people, saying, Ye shall not shout, nor make any noise with your voice, neither shall any word proceed out of your mouth, until the day I bid you shout; then shall ye shout.
Jos 6:11 So the ark of the LORD compassed the city, going about it once: and they came into the camp, and lodged in the camp.
Jos 6:12 And Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of the LORD.
Jos 6:13 And seven priests bearing seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the LORD went on continually, and blew with the trumpets: and the armed men went before them; but the rereward came after the ark of the LORD, the priests going on, and blowing with the trumpets.
Jos 6:14 And the second day they compassed the city once, and returned into the camp: so they did six days.

Today for the Lord’s Church, his people, for the symbolic six days (correspondingly six thousand years for the world of humanity) armed with seven rams’ horns, blow their sound within as they work with the Ark of the Lord in their midst to kill their enemies within. During this time, the Lord’s little flock does not proselyte by raising their voice to instruct anyone other than those whom the Lord drags to his Body. His Church alone hears the sound of the ram’s horn within to avoid Satan’s devices.

The six days precede the Sabbath on the Seventh-day and herald the beginning of the Lord’s Feasts that outline the plan of God for the salvation of all mankind, as seen in the book of Leviticus 23.

The Lord’s people encompass their enemies within for six days while hearing their Lord’s warning horn reminding them that the battle is the Lord’s for the coming destruction of their enemies. Marching around the cities “once” daily is required once the enemy is identified, and then its battle is handed to the Lord.

Heb 9:27 And as it is appointed to men once to die, but after this the judgment,
Heb 9:28 so Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many. And to those who look for Him He shall appear the second time without sin to salvation.
Heb 10:1 For the Law which has a shadow of good things to come, not the very image of the things, appearing year by year with the same sacrifices, which they offer continually, they are never able to perfect those drawing near.
Heb 10:2 For then would they not have ceased to be offered? Because the worshipers, when they had been once for all purged, would have had no more conscience of sin.
Heb 10:3 But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again of sins every year.
Heb 10:4 For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.

Once we have identified our sins, we aim not to repeat them with impunity. However, our Lord knows our frailty and that repeating them is exactly what we will do. Yet, we need a good conscience, with our entire hearts to die daily until the Lord destroys those tenacious sins, each day until the Seventh Day when we receive the fullness of our redemption in Christ. The process is to patiently possess Christ within us, knowing that our Lord will forgive seventy times seven the same sin as we forgive our brothers.

Pro 24:16 for a just one falls seven times, and rises up again; but the wicked shall fall into evil.

1Pe 3:15 but sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and be ready always to give an answer to everyone who asks you a reason of the hope in you, with meekness and fear;
1Pe 3:16 having a good conscience, that while they speak against you as evildoers they may be shamed, those falsely accusing your good behavior in Christ.

The Elect of God alone get up early to prepare their household spiritual food. It is given to them to die daily, having marched around their cities once each day while remaining in the Babylonian Israel camp.

Joh 17:14 I have given them Your Word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
Joh 17:15 I do not pray for You to take them out of the world, but for You to keep them from the evil.
Joh 17:16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
Joh 17:17 Sanctify them through Your truth. Your Word is truth.
Joh 17:18 As You have sent Me into the world, even so I have sent them into the world.
Joh 17:19 And I sanctify Myself for their sakes, so that they also might be sanctified in truth.

Jos 6:15 And it came to pass on the seventh day, that they rose early about the dawning of the day, and compassed the city after the same manner seven times: only on that day they compassed the city seven times.

It is on the Seventh Day, the Old Covenant’s Sabbath, that to us is Christ, that our work is completed in the meaning of the number seven ~ completion, especially for judgment. The Seventh Day represents His Elect, the Bride of Christ, marrying her Lord having had all her sins of the previous six days judged and forgiven.

Jer 29:10 For thus says the LORD: After seventy years are completed at Babylon, I will visit you and perform My good word toward you, and cause you to return to this place.
Jer 29:11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.

Rev 11:15 And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever. [The ages of the ages. The thousand years and the lake of fire/ second death]

Jos 6:16 And it came to pass at the seventh time, when the priests blew with the trumpets, Joshua said unto the people, Shout; for the LORD hath given you the city.
Jos 6:17 And the city shall be accursed, even it, and all that are therein, to the LORD: only Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all that are with her in the house, because she hid the messengers that we sent.

The Israelites are having a lesson in faith and trust in God for their salvation by His strong hands while under the works of the law. That foundational physical lesson to be learned by the Israelites is for our spiritual understanding that is wonderfully easy when we learn to acknowledge our sins and trust in our Lord to do His marvellous life-changing works within.

Gal 3:10 For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.
Gal 3:11 But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith.
Gal 3:12 And the law is not of faith: but, The man that doeth them shall live in them.
Gal 3:13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:
Gal 3:14 That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

The Body of Christ shouts within and audibly with each other daily as we joyfully bear our Lord aloft by His word for the King He is. She was once Rabab, the harlot, and she and her household were saved ahead of her brethren.

Jer 31:6 For there shall be a day, that the watchmen upon the mount Ephraim shall cry, Arise ye, and let us go up to Zion unto the LORD our God.
Jer 31:7 For thus saith the LORD; Sing with gladness for Jacob, and shout among the chief of the nations: publish ye, praise ye, and say, O LORD, save thy people, the remnant of Israel.

1Th 4:16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
1Th 4:17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
1Th 4:18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

Each of us was hidden by our spiritual Rahab in Christ as we diligently searched the word of God daily, judging the Jericho moon within. Having found Jericho brazenly naked and a precursor to Babylon, we were protected and hidden by Rahab, a type of the Lord’s Church who, by His faith, makes for us a way of escape from the world (Revelation 18).

Col 3:1 If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God.
Col 3:2 Be mindful of things above, not on things on the earth.
Col 3:3 For you died, and your life has been hidden with Christ in God.
Col 3:4 When Christ our Life is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.
Col 3:5 Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness (which is idolatry),
Col 3:6 on account of which things’ sake the wrath of God is coming on the sons of disobedience,
Col 3:7 among whom you also once walked, when you lived in these.
Col 3:8 But now also put off all these things: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, shameful speech out of your mouth.
Col 3:9 Do not lie to one another, having put off the old man with his deeds
Col 3:10 and having put on the new, having been renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him,

Sadly, and for our benefit, Israel is only beginning to be the Lord’s first wife who became a harlot, out of whom came His Elect, the Bride. She becomes the final and glorious ‘Moon’ standing on the remnants of herself represented by Jericho. Jericho is the diminutive prototype of the coming massively larger ‘Moon’ of Babylon, the mother of harlots, the great prostitute.

Rev 12:1 And there appeared a great sign in the heavens, a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon was under her feet, and a crown of twelve stars on her head.

Rev 17:1 And one of the seven angels who had the seven vials came and talked with me, saying to me, Come here, I will show you the judgment of the great harlot sitting on many waters,
Rev 17:2 with whom the kings of the earth committed fornication, and became drunk with the wine of her fornication, those inhabiting the earth.
Rev 17:3 And he carried me away into a desert by the Spirit. And I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet-colored beast, filled with names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
Rev 17:4 And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet. And she was gilded with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication.
Rev 17:5 And on her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.

What an astonishing adventure the Lord has given His Elect, beginning with a small win over little Jericho as He gently ramps up our trials for a staggeringly beautiful end.

Jer 29:11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace,

Exodus 30:1-16  The Making of the Incense Altar and the Atonement Offering

[Study Aired December 19, 2022]

Exo 30:1  And thou shalt make an altar to burn incense upon: of shittim wood shalt thou make it. 
Exo 30:2  A cubit shall be the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof; foursquare shall it be: and two cubits shall be the height thereof: the horns thereof shall be of the same. 
Exo 30:3  And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold, the top thereof, and the sides thereof round about, and the horns thereof; and thou shalt make unto it a crown of gold round about. 
Exo 30:4  And two golden rings shalt thou make to it under the crown of it, by the two corners thereof, upon the two sides of it shalt thou make it; and they shall be for places for the staves to bear it withal. 
Exo 30:5  And thou shalt make the staves of shittim wood, and overlay them with gold.
Exo 30:6  And thou shalt put it before the vail that is by the ark of the testimony, before the mercy seat that is over the testimony, where I will meet with thee.
Exo 30:7  And Aaron shall burn thereon sweet incense every morning: when he dresseth the lamps, he shall burn incense upon it. 
Exo 30:8  And when Aaron lighteth the lamps at even, he shall burn incense upon it, a perpetual incense before the LORD throughout your generations. 
Exo 30:9  Ye shall offer no strange incense thereon, nor burnt sacrifice, nor meat offering; neither shall ye pour drink offering thereon. 
Exo 30:10  And Aaron shall make an atonement upon the horns of it once in a year with the blood of the sin offering of atonements: once in the year shall he make atonement upon it throughout your generations: it is most holy unto the LORD. 
Exo 30:11  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 
Exo 30:12  When thou takest the sum of the children of Israel after their number, then shall they give every man a ransom for his soul unto the LORD, when thou numberest them; that there be no plague among them, when thou numberest them. 
Exo 30:13  This they shall give, every one that passeth among them that are numbered, half a shekel after the shekel of the sanctuary: (a shekel is twenty gerahs:) an half shekel shall be the offering of the LORD. 
Exo 30:14  Every one that passeth among them that are numbered, from twenty years old and above, shall give an offering unto the LORD. 
Exo 30:15  The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when they give an offering unto the LORD, to make an atonement for your souls.
Exo 30:16  And thou shalt take the atonement money of the children of Israel, and shalt appoint it for the service of the tabernacle of the congregation; that it may be a memorial unto the children of Israel before the LORD, to make an atonement for your souls.

Today’s study focuses on the altar of incense and the atonement offering. In order to understand the spiritual significance of the altar of incense, we will trace our steps from the entrance of the tabernacle to the Holy of Holies. We start our journey into the Holy of Holies as we enter the tabernacle courtyard to offer sacrifice to the Lord for our sins. It is worth noting that it was only Israelites who could enter the courtyard of the tabernacle. These Israelites represent our lives in Babylon. We enter the courtyard to offer sacrifice to the Lord at the altar in the courtyard. This sacrifice is Christ whose blood cleanses us from our sins. However, we go back to become worse off as a result of the false doctrines we receive in Babylon or the physical churches of this world. 

Heb 9:13  For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh,
Heb 9:14  how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.

2Pe 2:18  For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error.
2Pe 2:19  While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage.
2Pe 2:20  For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. 
2Pe 2:21  For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them. 
2Pe 2:22  But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.

However, if we are granted to become priests in this life, then we are given to know our spiritual poverty which grants us access to the laver in the courtyard which holds water for our ceremonial cleansing. As we are aware, water represents the word of God and so at this stage of our lives, we are given to begin to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God. This is accompanied by our trials and tribulations because of the word we have received. These fiery trials cause us to learn righteousness.

Eph 5:26  That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,
Eph 5:27  That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.

Mat 13:21  Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended. 

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.

Learning righteousness through our trials and tribulations is what grants us the grace to be able to put on our priestly garments which reflect the righteousness of the saints. Putting on these priestly garments is the same as putting on Christ. 

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. 

Rom 13:14  But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.

Once we have put on the priestly garments, we have access to the holy place of the Tent of Meeting to commune with the Lord which is symbolized by the offering of incense at the incense altar in the Holy Place. 

Rev 15:8  And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled.

As we know, the temple is our bodies where the Lord dwells. As we are cleansed through the words of the Lord which bring about our fiery trials, our hearts and mind becomes a holy place for the Lord to dwell in. It is within our hearts and minds that we are building this altar of incense before the Lord. We, therefore, have this treasure in the earthen vessel of our flesh.

2Co 4:7  But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.

Today’s study will show us how we can build this altar of incense within us.

Exo 30:1  And thou shalt make an altar to burn incense upon: of shittim wood shalt thou make it.

In Scripture, incense is often associated with prayer. David prayed, “May my prayer be set before you like incense.” In his vision of heaven, John saw that the elders around the throne “were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people.” In the Gospel according to Luke, as Zechariah the priest was offering incense in the temple, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside. The altar of incense then, can be seen as a symbol of the prayers of God’s people. Our prayers ascend to God as the smoke of the incense ascending to God in the sanctuary.

Psa 141:2  Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense; and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.

Rev 8:5 And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.

Rev 8:3  And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. 

Luk 1:9  According to the custom of the priest’s office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. 
Luk 1:10  And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incense.

So, the instructions about the making of an altar of incense are basically to show us how we can communicate with the Lord. The altar of incense is required to be made of shittim wood which comes from acacia. Apart from the fact that acacia wood grows wild in the desert, it is considered incorruptible. It is very dense and resistant both to disease and insects, just like cedar. What this means is that to be effective in communicating with the Lord, we must know that it is all the work of the Lord and that we do not contribute anything to this just as the Lord cares for acacia wood in the desert. Since we do not bring anything to the table, our prayers before the Lord must be accompanied with a heart that is humble and grateful for being counted worthy to come before His presence. That is what the story of the two gentlemen who went to pray teaches us.

Luk 18:9  And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: 
Luk 18:10  Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. 
Luk 18:11  The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.
Luk 18:12  I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.
Luk 18:13  And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. 
Luk 18:14  I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbled himself shall be exalted.

Exo 30:2  A cubit shall be the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof; foursquare shall it be: and two cubits shall be the height thereof: the horns thereof shall be of the same. 
Exo 30:3  And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold, the top thereof, and the sides thereof round about, and the horns thereof; and thou shalt make unto it a crown of gold round about. 

The shape of the altar of incense was to be a square. This implies that from whatever situation we find ourselves as a priest of the Lord, we must offer prayers to the Lord. That is another way of saying that men must always pray and not faint.

Luk 18:1  And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;

There is a horn at each of the four corners of the square-shaped altar of incense. Horns symbolize strength. This is to let us know that our strength to resist the devil is through prayers. As He is, so are we. Jesus was strengthened when He prayed. In the same way, we are also strengthened to overcome temptation when we pray.

Luk 22:40  And when he was at the place, he said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation.
Luk 22:41  And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,
Luk 22:42  Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.
Luk 22:43  And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him.

Mat 26:41  Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. 

Eph 3:14  For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 
Eph 3:15  Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,
Eph 3:16  That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;

The fact that the altar of incense must be overlaid means that to become a house of prayer, we must be refined just like gold refined in the fire. As we are aware, if we are to become a house of prayer, then Jesus has to come into our temple to drive away all that offends with a scourge of small cords. The scourging signifies our fiery trials or the refining process of gold which cleanses us to become a house of prayer. 

Job 23:10  But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold. 

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.  

Joh 2:13  And the Jews’ passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem,
Joh 2:14  And found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting: 
Joh 2:15  And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers’ money, and overthrew the tables; 
Joh 2:16  And said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my Father’s house an house of merchandise. 

Mat 21:13  And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.

Exo 30:4  And two golden rings shalt thou make to it under the crown of it, by the two corners thereof, upon the two sides of it shalt thou make it; and they shall be for places for the staves to bear it withal. 
Exo 30:5  And thou shalt make the staves of shittim wood, and overlay them with gold.

Rings of gold were attached to the altar so that it could be carried about with acacia wood poles that were slipped through the rings. The altar of incense was placed before the veil that separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies. In Ezekiel chapter 1, the living creatures who represent the elect, have wheels which are rings full of eyes. These living creatures represent the elect. The two rings of gold are therefore the elect who serve as witness of Christ. 

Eze 1:15  Now as I beheld the living creatures, behold one wheel upon the earth by the living creatures, with his four faces. 
Eze 1:16  The appearance of the wheels and their work was like unto the colour of a beryl: and they four had one likeness: and their appearance and their work was as it were a wheel in the middle of a wheel. 
Eze 1:17  When they went, they went upon their four sides: and they turned not when they went. 
Eze 1:18  As for their rings, they were so high that they were dreadful; and their rings were full of eyes round about them four.

The staves are long rods of wood which pass through the rings to make it easier to carry the altar. The function of the staves suggests that spiritually, they represent the spirit of the Lord which helps us bear Christ wherever we go. These staves are made from shittim wood and therefore are not of man’s origin but of the Lord. The staves being in the rings means the promise of the comforter being within us to lead us into all truth so we can have the mind of Christ and therefore “carry” Christ wherever we go.

Joh 14:16  And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; 
Joh 14:17  Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.
Joh 14:18  I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.

Exo 30:6  And thou shalt put it before the vail that is by the ark of the testimony, before the mercy seat that is over the testimony, where I will meet with thee.

As we indicated, the altar of incense was placed before the veil that separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies, where the mercy seat of the ark of the testimony was placed. It is in the Holy of Holies that the Lord meets with us before the mercy seat. The veil represents the flesh of Christ and therefore represents our flesh as well. It is when our flesh is done away with that we can meet and commune with the Lord in our hearts and mind.

Heb 10:20  By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh;

It is through being wounded by our fiery trials that this veil of the flesh is gradually taken away from us. In the Song of Solomon, it is the watchmen that took away the veil from us. These watchmen, or the keepers of the walls, are the Lord’s elect, and it is the words of the Lord that come out from us that wounds us. What this means is that through what every joint supplies, our veils are removed. 

Son 5:7  The watchmen that went about the city found me, they smote me, they wounded me; the keepers of the walls took away my veil from me.

Exo 30:7  And Aaron shall burn thereon sweet incense every morning: when he dresseth the lamps, he shall burn incense upon it. 
Exo 30:8  And when Aaron lighteth the lamps at even, he shall burn incense upon it, a perpetual incense before the LORD throughout your generations. 

Aaron was instructed to burn incense on the altar each morning and at twilight, every day, as a regular offering to the Lord. The fire used to burn the incense was always taken from the altar of burnt offering outside the sanctuary.

Lev 16:12  And he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the LORD, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the vail:

As we have indicated, sweet incense represents our prayers. The lamps symbolize the word of the Lord.

Psa 119:105  NUN. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.

Burning incense in the morning and evening means that we should always pray and not faint and that our prayers and the word of the Lord must go together.  It also means that the basis of our prayers must be in line with the word of the Lord.

Luk 18:1  And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;

Exo 30:9  Ye shall offer no strange incense thereon, nor burnt sacrifice, nor meat offering; neither shall ye pour drink offering thereon.

If our prayers are not guided by the word of the Lord, then we are offering strange incense before the Lord. When we are given to false doctrines, our offering of incense, burnt offering, meat offering or drink offering become an abomination to the Lord. These instructions were not heeded by Aaron’s sons as they performed their priestly duty before the Lord. Nadab and Abihu offered strange fire before the Lord and as a result, died before Him.

Lev 10:1  And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the LORD, which he commanded them not. 
Lev 10:2  And there went out fire from the LORD, and devoured them, and they died before the LORD.

This was written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. We must therefore not be carried away by divers and strange doctrines.

Heb 13:9  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.

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.

Exo 30:10  And Aaron shall make an atonement upon the horns of it once in a year with the blood of the sin offering of atonements: once in the year shall he make atonement upon it throughout your generations: it is most holy unto the LORD. 

Aaron here represents the Lord Jesus Christ who atoned for our sins with His own blood.

Heb 9:11  But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building;
Heb 9:12  Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.
Heb 9:13  For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh:
Heb 9:14  How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
Heb 9:15  And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.

As we are aware, our bodies are the temple of the living God which is being purged by the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.

1Co 3:16  Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
1Co 3:17  If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

Heb 9:22  And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.
Heb 9:23  It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.
Heb 9:24  For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us:
Heb 9:25  Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others;
Heb 9:26  For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.
Heb 9:27  And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:
Heb 9:28  So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.

Exo 30:11  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
Exo 30:12  When thou takest the sum of the children of Israel after their number, then shall they give every man a ransom for his soul unto the LORD, when thou numberest them; that there be no plague among them, when thou numberest them.
Exo 30:13  This they shall give, every one that passeth among them that are numbered, half a shekel after the shekel of the sanctuary: (a shekel is twenty gerahs:) an half shekel shall be the offering of the LORD.
Exo 30:14  Every one that passeth among them that are numbered, from twenty years old and above, shall give an offering unto the LORD.
Exo 30:15  The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when they give an offering unto the LORD, to make an atonement for your souls.
Exo 30:16  And thou shalt take the atonement money of the children of Israel, and shalt appoint it for the service of the tabernacle of the congregation; that it may be a memorial unto the children of Israel before the LORD, to make an atonement for your souls.

A simpler rendition of these verses is as follows:

Exo 30:11  And the Lord said to Moses, 
Exo 30:12  When you are taking the number of the children of Israel, let every man who is numbered give to the Lord a price for his life, so that no disease may come on them when they are numbered. 
Exo 30:13  And this is what they are to give; let every man who is numbered give half a shekel, by the scale of the holy place: the shekel being valued at twenty gerahs: this money is an offering to the Lord. 
Exo 30:14  Everyone who is numbered, from twenty years old and over, is to give an offering to the Lord. 
Exo 30:15  The man of wealth is to give no more and the poor man no less than the half-shekel of silver, when the offering is made to the Lord as the price for your lives.
Exo 30:16  And you are to take this money from the children of Israel to be used for the work of the Tent of meeting, to keep the memory of the children of Israel before the Lord and to be the price of your lives. (BBE)

The question is, “Who were those being counted?” They were male Israelites who were twenty years old and above as stated in verse 14. Being twenty years is a symbol of being ready to go to war in our heavens. This means that those who are being counted represent the elect who are ready to war or are warring against the flesh. We must remember that women in Israel were not counted. The reason is simple: In the sight of the Lord, there is only one woman (one church) who is the bride of Christ. That is why women are not counted. In Babylon, however, there are several women who are not part of the commonwealth of Israel. All these, show us the privilege we have received of being part of the bride of Christ.

Num 1:20  And the children of Reuben, Israel’s eldest son, by their generations, after their families, by the house of their fathers, according to the number of the names, by their polls, every male from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war;

Num 1:22  Of the children of Simeon, by their generations, after their families, by the house of their fathers, those that were numbered of them, according to the number of the names, by their polls, every male from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war;

Another question to ask is, “Why would Moses count the Israelites?” It is because the Lord wants to demonstrate to us His ability to keep us safe in this life irrespective of the circumstances in which we find ourselves. This is alluded to in verse 12 when the Lord asked Moses to let those counted give back to the Lord for keeping them safe.

Exo 30:12  Find out how many grown men there are in Israel and require each of them to pay me to keep him safe from danger while you are counting them. (CEV)

In numbers, after the men of war were counted, none was found missing!! Indeed, the Lord is able to keep us from falling and to preserve us faultless until that day!!

Num 31:49 and said to Moses, “Your servants have counted the men of war who are under our command, and there is not a man missing from us.”

In view of the Lord’s preservation, which is because of His mercies, what shall we render unto Him? That is the import of Verse 13. We are to give back to the Lord for His mercies toward us. In verse 13 and 15, everybody, irrespective of whether one is rich or poor, offers the same amount of money – half shekels to the Lord.  The giving of the shekels here represents the giving of our lives to the Lord. Remember that both Jesus and Joseph were exchanged for money. What this means is that we are to offer ourselves wholly to the Lord as living sacrifices, holy and acceptable to the Lord in view of His mercies towards us.

Psa 116:12  What shall I render unto the LORD for all his benefits toward me?
Psa 116:13  I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the LORD. 
Psa 116:14  I will pay my vows unto the LORD now in the presence of all his people. 
Psa 116:15  Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints. 
Psa 116:16  O LORD, truly I am thy servant; I am thy servant, and the son of thine handmaid: thou hast loosed my bonds. 
Psa 116:17  I will offer to thee the sacrifice of thanksgiving, and will call upon the name of the LORD.

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. 
Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Gen 37:28  Then there passed by Midianites merchantmen; and they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmeelites for twenty pieces of silver: and they brought Joseph into Egypt.

Mat 26:15  And said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him [Jesus] unto you? And they covenanted with him [Judas] for thirty pieces of silver.

It is insightful to note that Psalm 116:15 shows us that the death of the Lord’s saints is precious in His eyes. The death here refers to being dead to the flesh. It is when we are dying to the flesh that we can offer ourselves as a living sacrifice to the Lord. That is the sacrifice of thanksgiving mentioned here in Psalm 116:17 which is pleasing to the Lord.

In the sight of the Lord, every elect offers the same thing – our bodies as a living sacrifice. That is why in the body of Christ, there is no hierarchy. That is why the Lord hates the Nicolaitan doctrine of Babylon. Of course, we do have leaders, but they are there to serve, instead of being served.  Because we all offer the same thing, that is why the reward we are to receive is also the same for every elect!! We need to also note that the atonement offering collected was used for services of the tabernacle. As we offer ourselves as living sacrifices, we are able to be part of what every joint supplies in the church.

May the Lord grant us the grace to offer ourselves as living sacrifices to Him in view of His mercies towards us!! Amen!!

[Study Aired October 9, 2022]

Jer 51:1  Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will raise up against Babylon, and against them that dwell in the midst of them that rise up against me, a destroying wind;
Jer 51:2  And will send unto Babylon fanners, that shall fan her, and shall empty her land: for in the day of trouble they shall be against her round about.
Jer 51:3  Against him that bendeth let the archer bend his bow, and against him that lifteth himself up in his brigandine: and spare ye not her young men; destroy ye utterly all her host.
Jer 51:4  Thus the slain shall fall in the land of the Chaldeans, and they that are thrust through in her streets.
Jer 51:5  For Israel hath not been forsaken, nor Judah of his God, of the LORD of hosts; though their land was filled with sin against the Holy One of Israel.
Jer 51:6  Flee out of the midst of Babylon, and deliver every man his soul: be not cut off in her iniquity; for this is the time of the LORD’S vengeance; he will render unto her a recompence.
Jer 51:7  Babylon hath been a golden cup in the LORD’S hand, that made all the earth drunken: the nations have drunken of her wine; therefore the nations are mad.
Jer 51:8  Babylon is suddenly fallen and destroyed: howl for her; take balm for her pain, if so be she may be healed.
Jer 51:9  We would have healed Babylon, but she is not healed: forsake her, and let us go every one into his own country: for her judgment reacheth unto heaven, and is lifted up even to the skies.
Jer 51:10  The LORD hath brought forth our righteousness: come, and let us declare in Zion the work of the LORD our God.
Jer 51:11  Make bright the arrows; gather the shields: the LORD hath raised up the spirit of the kings of the Medes: for his device is against Babylon, to destroy it; because it is the vengeance of the LORD, the vengeance of his temple.
Jer 51:12  Set up the standard upon the walls of Babylon, make the watch strong, set up the watchmen, prepare the ambushes: for the LORD hath both devised and done that which he spake against the inhabitants of Babylon.
Jer 51:13  O thou that dwellest upon many waters, abundant in treasures, thine end is come, and the measure of thy covetousness.
Jer 51:14  The LORD of hosts hath sworn by himself, saying, Surely I will fill thee with men, as with caterpillers; and they shall lift up a shout against thee.
Jer 51:15  He hath made the earth by his power, he hath established the world by his wisdom, and hath stretched out the heaven by his understanding.
Jer 51:16  When he uttereth his voice, there is a multitude of waters in the heavens; and he causeth the vapours to ascend from the ends of the earth: he maketh lightnings with rain, and bringeth forth the wind out of his treasures.

Here’s the New Testament version of the message of this 51^st chapter of Jeremiah:

Rev 18:1  And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven [“A destroying wind”], having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory.
Rev 18:2  And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. [The habitation of every false doctrine].
Rev 18:3  For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her,  and the merchants of the earth [the holy men of every religion] are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.
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.
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. [The same spirit identified within the church of Laodicea:  (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 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.
Rev 18:9  And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning,

The fall of Babylon is said to be “sudden” in Jeremiah 51:8. The words used to convey this thought in Revelation 18 is “in one day” in verse Rev 18:8, and “in one hour” in these verses:

Rev 18:10  Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come.

Rev 18:17  For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off,

Rev 18:19  And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas, that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.

Jer 51:1  Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will raise up against Babylon, and against them that dwell in the midst of them that rise up against me, a destroying wind;

Verse 1 tells us that “the Lord… will raise up… a destroying wind… against them that… rise up against me”, and those who do so are identified as “Babylon”, a type of ‘Mystery Babylon’. As we have seen in earlier studies, all men are in covenant with God via the Noahic covenant, and we are told that Mystery Babylon rides on a beast which is defined as “all nations… and the kings of the earth”. They have all committed spiritual fornication with this “great whore that sits upon many waters”, which waters are defined as “many… peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues”:

Rev 17:1  And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:

Rev 17:15  And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.

Unlike the judgments of ancient Israel, Judah, by physical Babylon, and even physical Babylon, by the kings of the Medes and Persians, those whom the Lord sends to destroy Mystery Babylon are not identified as any particular nation, and yet we are plainly told that John is being shown “the judgment of the great whore that sits upon many waters” (Rev 17:1).

The Lord revealed to us that this great whore is none other than His own unfaithful wife… spiritual “Judah and Jerusalem”:

Rev 17:1  And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of  the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:
Rev 17:2  With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.
Rev 17:3  So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.

Every word of the revelation of Jesus Christ is based upon revelations found in the Old Testament, which reveals that this “great whore” is no one else than the Lord’s unfaithful wife:

Isa 1:1  The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.

Isa 1:21  How is the faithful city become an harlot! It was full of judgment; righteousness lodged in it; but now murderers.

The death of His saints is the same phraseology used to describe Mystery Babylon:

Rev 18:24  And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth.

Christ Himself identifies Mystery Babylon with this statement:

Luk 13:33  Nevertheless I must walk to day, and to morrow, and the day following: for it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem.
Luk 13:34  O Jerusalem, Jerusalem [“Mystery Babylon the Great”], which killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee; how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not!

Just as Adam and Eve had a relationship with Christ before they became “the seed of… the serpent” by being obedient to the words of the serpent and by disobeying the words of the Lord commanding them not to eat of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, so were Judah and Jerusalem in a marriage covenant with the Lord before they also became a great whore by breaking covenant with their husband, Christ, when they forsook the Lord and became a seed of evildoers, provoking the Lord to anger:

Rom 6:16  Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?

Jer 51:2  And will send unto Babylon fanners, that shall fan her, and shall empty her land: for in the day of trouble they shall be against her round about.
Jer 51:3  Against him that bendeth let the archer bend his bow, and against him that lifteth himself up in his brigandine: and spare ye not her young men; destroy ye utterly all her host.
Jer 51:4  Thus the slain shall fall in the land of the Chaldeans, and they that are thrust through in her streets.

When the Lord says the time of judgment has come, He brings it to pass. He can do that because the very hearts of all men are in His hand:

Rev 17:16  And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.
Rev 17:17  For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled.

The Lord is calling His elect to come out of this great harlot system which He is judging. Physical Israel, and all physical religions, are all ‘risen up against the Lord’, and He is in the process of judging them all. However, His judgments must “first… begin at the house of God”, the spiritual seed of Abraham, His very elect:

Gal 3:29  And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

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?

‘Them that obey not the gospel of God’ are “all nations and the kings of the earth” who are all guilty of committing fornication with the ‘great whore’.

Rev 18:3  For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth [false, greedy ministers] are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.

If this harlot sits upon “all nations… and kings of the earth”, who then does the Lord use to accomplish the judging of this great harlot system? When Jerusalem forsook the Lord and became this harlot, the Lord sent Nebuchadnezzar, the king of physical Babylon, to judge His people. When the time was accomplished for Babylon to be judged, the Lord sent Cyrus, the king of the Medes and Persians to judge and destroy Babylon. The king of Greece is sent to judge Persia, and Rome is sent to judge the heirs of heirs of Alexander’s Greek empire. This is all revealed in Daniel’s revelation of King Nebuchadnezzar’s disturbing dream which Nebuchadnezzar could not remember. The significance of the symbols of the great image of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream with a head of gold, arms and shoulders of silver, a belly and thighs of brass and the legs of iron and the feet and toes part of iron and part of clay, identify how the Lord used each succeeding nation to judge its predecessor.

Let’s carefully notice the reason the holy spirit gives for giving this dream to King Nebuchadnezzar:

Dan 2:30  But as for me [Daniel], this secret [Hebrew H7328: raz, mystery] is not revealed to me for any wisdom that I have more than any living, but for their sakes that shall make known the interpretation to the king, and that thou mightest know the thoughts of thy heart.

Here is Strong’s definition of this Hebrew word, ‘raz’:

H7328
רָז
râz
rawz
(Chaldee); from an unused root probably meaning to attenuate, that is, (figuratively) hide; a mystery: – secret.

“But for their sakes that shall make known the interpretation to the king” means the Lord gave this dream to Nebuchadnezzar and those who make the interpretation of the Lord’s word to us:

Rev 19:9  And he [“one of the seven angels which had the seven vials”] saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God [Rev 22:6].
Rev 19:10  And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

Rev 17:1  And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:

Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of all the nations which would rule this world was given to him “for their sakes that shall make known the interpretation to the king” of the kingdom of our old man, as the book of Revelation twice reveals:

Rev 22:6  And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true [Rev 19:9]: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be done.
Rev 22:7  Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book.
Rev 22:8  And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things.
Rev 22:9  Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God.
Rev 22:10  And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand.

What the spirit is telling us in…

Dan 2:30  But as for me [Daniel], this secret [Hebrew H7328: raz, mystery] is not revealed to me for any wisdom that I have more than any living, but for their sakes that shall make known the interpretation to the king, and that thou mightest know the thoughts of thy heart.

…It takes Christ in His Christ to show us the thoughts of our old man and make known the interpretation of all the types, shadows and symbols He uses to reveal Himself and His mind to “the king” – to you and to me.

The great whore of Revelation 17 is called “Mystery Babylon the Great”:

Rev 17:3  So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
Rev 17:4  And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:
Rev 17:5  And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.

This woman is “the great whore… [and] in the spirit [she is] in… the wilderness”. This “great whore” is a harlot because she is the Lord’s unfaithful, apostate wife. Like Jezebel, the queen of Israel, she is much more attached to the mind and customs of this world than she is to the people who are faithful to the Lord. Like Jezebel this great harlot system is seeking to destroy any who are faithful to the Lord and His doctrines, as the very next verse reveals:

Rev 17:6  And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.

Just as it was in the days of Jezebel, when she was seeking to destroy Elijah and all the prophets of the Lord, the Lord still has a remnant who are coming out of this great harlot and are willing to die daily with their Lord. It is only those who come out of the Lord’s apostate harlot wife, who will be given to become his spotless virgin wife, the true “Israel of God”:

2Co 11:2  For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.

2Pe 3:14  Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.

Gal 6:15  Certainly, it doesn’t matter whether a person is circumcised or not. Rather, what matters is being a new creation.
Gal 6:16  Peace and mercy will come to rest on all those who conform to this principle. They are the Israel of God. (GWV)

Only the faithful “are counted for the seed”:

Rom 9:6  Now it is not as though God’s word has failed. Clearly, not everyone descended from Israel is part of Israel
Rom 9:7  or a descendant of Abraham. However, as Scripture says, “Through Isaac your descendants will carry on your name.”
Rom 9:8  This means that children born by natural descent from Abraham are not necessarily God’s children. Instead, children born by the promise are considered Abraham’s descendants. (GWV)

It is “children born by the promise” who are the spiritual subject of our next verse:

Jer 51:5  For Israel hath not been forsaken, nor Judah of his God, of the LORD of hosts; though their land was filled with sin against the Holy One of Israel.

The Lord’s own people are those who first reject Him and who will be the first to be judged in this present time. The Lord’s very elect are no better or worse than any other men of themselves. They are simply those who He has elected to be His:

Rom 9:11  (For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth)

That is the only reason any of us come out of apostate Jerusalem, “Mystery Babylon the Great”. Those who are granted “according to election” to ‘come out of her’ will be the first to be judged in this present time and to be reunited with their True Husband, Christ:

Jer 3:14  Turn, O backsliding children, saith the LORD; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family [“a remnant”], and I will bring you to Zion:
Jer 3:15  And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding. [“Make known the interpretation to the king…”, Dan 2:30]

Jer 51:6  Flee out of the midst of Babylon, and deliver every man his soul: be not cut off in her iniquity; for this is the time of the LORD’S vengeance; he will render unto her a recompence.

The Lord’s admonition to us is to “Come out of her, my people”:

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.
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.

The only difference between Jeremiah 51:6 and Revelation 18:4-6 is that Revelation 18 gives us more details of the Lord’s vengeance which He will render unto her. We receive double according to our works. Revelation chapters 17 and 18 are just a broad scale recapping of chapters 15-16, which go into much greater detail of “the seven last plagues” which the Lord’s “vengeance [and] His recompense” entails for our personal, inward, self-righteous rebellion against Him and His doctrines.

Rev 15:1  And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God.

Rev 15:5  And after that I looked, and, behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened:
Rev 15:6  And the seven angels came out of the temple, having the seven plagues, clothed in pure and white linen, and having their breasts girded with golden girdles.
Rev 15:7  And one of the four beasts gave unto the seven angels seven golden vials full of the wrath of God, who liveth for ever and ever.

Rev 16:1  And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth.

Jeremiah 51 typically complements the words of Revelation and reminds us that Babylon is nothing more than an instrument in the Lord’s hand. Jeremiah helps us to see how a sovereign God uses Babylon as His cup. It is He who gives this great harlot the commission to pour out her spiritual fornications upon all nations and the kings of the earth.

Rev 17:4  And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:
Rev 17:5  And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
Rev 17:6  And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.

Jer 51:7  Babylon hath been a golden cup in the LORD’S hand, that made all the earth drunken: the nations have drunken of her wine; therefore the nations are mad.
Jer 51:8  Babylon is suddenly fallen and destroyed: howl for her; take balm for her pain, if so be she may be healed.
Jer 51:9  We would have healed Babylon, but she is not healed: forsake her, and let us go every one into his own country: for her judgment reacheth unto heaven, and is lifted up even to the skies.

“We would have healed Babylon”, but the Lord has no intention of doing so. Our natural inclination is to want to preserve the kingdom of our old man. Ishmael, as “the son of the bondwoman”, Hagar, typifies the kingdom of our flesh, but our flesh is also a physical descendant of Abraham, and even Abraham was very reluctant to part with his own flesh:

Gen 17:15  And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall her name be.
Gen 17:16  And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of people shall be of her.
Gen 17:18  And Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might live before thee!

We are all, by nature loathe to deny our own flesh. The Lord simply assured Abraham that Ishmael would indeed “multiply exceedingly… and… make him a great nation”. Ishmael is indeed a great nation which “persecuted Him that was born after the spirit” and the Lord told Abraham that His covenant would only be with the son who was “born after the spirit”, and the Lord insisted that “the son of the bondwoman shall not be made heir with the son of the freewoman”:

Gal 4:25  For this Agar [Hagar] is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children.
Gal 4:26  But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all.
Gal 4:27  For it is written, Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; break forth and cry, thou that travailest not: for the desolate hath many more children than she which hath an husband.
Gal 4:28  Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise.
Gal 4:29  But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now.
Gal 4:30  Nevertheless what saith the scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman.
Gal 4:31  So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free.

As surely as Sarah and Abraham had nothing to do with the miraculous birth of their son Isaac, in like manner, we have absolutely nothing to do with our own election:

Jer 51:10  The LORD hath brought forth our righteousness: come, and let us declare in Zion the work of the LORD our God.

We are the Lord’s spiritual ‘Zion’ which He has chosen as His dwelling place:

Psa 9:11  Sing praises to the LORD, which dwelleth in Zion: declare among the people his doings.

Zion and Jerusalem are used interchangeably in scripture because Mount Zion is within Jerusalem. Therefore, it is no contradiction when we read:

Psa 135:21  Blessed be the LORD out of Zion, which dwelleth at Jerusalem. Praise ye the LORD.

The Lord does not dwell in physical Jerusalem. He dwells in “Jerusalem above which is the mother of us all”.

Gal 4:26  But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all.

The word ‘above’ is not a geographic word as it is used here. It is a spiritual word which is “as high above our thoughts as the heavens are above the earth”:

Isa 55:9  For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

“Jerusalem above” is the mind of Christ and His thoughts within His elect in which He even now dwells.

Mat 28:20  Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

Jer 51:11  Make bright the arrows; gather the shields: the LORD hath raised up the spirit of the kings of the Medes: for his device is against Babylon, to destroy it; because it is the vengeance of the LORD, the vengeance of his temple.
Jer 51:12  Set up the standard upon the walls of Babylon, make the watch strong, set up the watchmen, prepare the ambushes: for the LORD hath both devised and done that which he spake against the inhabitants of Babylon.

All our efforts to spiritually hold onto Ishmael and Esau are to no avail when “the Lord raises up a destroying wind against all of her lies within us (Jer 51:1). When His time to destroy Mystery Babylon comes, He will destroy her and all she stands for within us and dispensationally when He decides it is time.

Jeremiah 51:12 is the natural reaction of our flesh. Like Joseph’s brothers, we just naturally believe we can thwart the Lord’s words and keep them from coming to pass:

Gen 37:18  And when they saw him afar off, even before he came near unto them, they conspired against him to slay him.
Gen 37:19  And they said one to another, Behold, this dreamer cometh.
Gen 37:20  Come now therefore, and let us slay him, and cast him into some pit, and we will say, Some evil beast hath devoured him: and we shall see what will become of his dreams.

Mat 21:37  But last of all he sent unto them his son, saying, They will reverence my son.
Mat 21:38  But when the husbandmen saw the son, they said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and let us seize on his inheritance.
Mat 21:39  And they caught him, and cast him out of the vineyard, and slew him.

Jer 51:13  O thou that dwellest upon many waters, abundant in treasures, thine end is come, and the measure of thy covetousness.

Mystery Babylon also “dwells upon many waters”:

Rev 17:1  And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:

These same “many waters” upon which this great whore sits, are also revealed in verse three to be the same as “a scarlet coloured beast”:

Rev 17:3  So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.

Both symbols (the ‘many waters’ and ‘a scarlet colored beast’) are clarified as representing the flesh of all men:

Rev 17:15  And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.

Jeremiah and the book of Daniel both tell us that the Medes and Persians were the Lord’s hand to accomplish the destruction of physical Babylon, but neither Daniel nor the book of Revelation, name any one nation as the Lord’s instrument for bringing about the destruction of Mystery Babylon. Because all men are under the Noahic covenant, Mystery Babylon is therefore the symbol for all the religions which have been given to rule over “all nations… and the kings of the earth” (Rev 18:3). Instead of any particular nation, we are told that all flesh, the very beast itself, and the very waters on which the great whore sits, will be the instrument of the Lord’s judgment upon Mystery Babylon. The scarlet-colored beast and the waters upon which Mystery Babylon sits and dominates the whole world are both symbolized by the ten toes on Nebuchadnezzar’s image in Daniel 2 and by the ten horns on the beast upon which the great whore also sits, which will revolt against her and destroy her:

Rev 17:11  And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.
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.
Rev 17:15  And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.

The Lord makes no excuses for His part in the destruction of Mystery Babylon within and without. This is the only reason the ten horns do what they do:

Rev 17:16  And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.
Rev 17:17  For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled.
Rev 17:18  And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.

Jeremiah gives us the very same message in these words:

Jer 51:14  The LORD of hosts hath sworn by himself, saying, Surely I will fill thee [Babylon] with men, as with caterpillers; and they shall lift up a shout against thee.
Jer 51:15  He hath made the earth by his power, he hath established the world by his wisdom, and hath stretched out the heaven by his understanding.
Jer 51:16  When he uttereth his voice, there is a multitude of waters in the heavens; and he causeth the vapours to ascend from the ends of the earth: he maketh lightnings with rain, and bringeth forth the wind out of his treasures.

All of this is the Lord’s judgment of Babylon, and the Lord tells us that He uses the ten horns on the beast and the ten toes of Nebuchadnezzar’s image to effect His judgment upon Mystery Babylon.

The negative application of the number ten signifies Adamic flesh in its full bloom and at its zenith. Here is the study on the number ten: The Significance of the Number Ten

The timing given in Daniel 2 reveals that Daniel 2 includes the time of the judging of Mystery Babylon:

Dan 2:41  And whereas thou sawest the feet and [ten] toes, part of potters’ clay, and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay.
Dan 2:42  And as the [ten] toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken.
Dan 2:43  And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay.
Dan 2:44  And in the days of these [ten] kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.
Dan 2:45  Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.

These verses verify the revelation that all flesh will rebel against the religions of this world and will be used of the Lord to judge Mystery Babylon:

Jer 51:1  Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will raise up against Babylon, and against them that dwell in the midst of them that rise up against me, a destroying wind;
Jer 51:2  And will send unto Babylon fanners, that shall fan her, and shall empty her land: for in the day of trouble they shall be against her round about.

I will conclude with the words with which the Lord told us to petition our heavenly Father “When [we] pray” (Mat 6:7):

Mat 6:9  After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
Mat 6:10  Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

1Ki 11:1-4 “Teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom”

[Study Aired March 10, 2022]

1Ki 11:1  But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites; 
1Ki 11:2  Of the nations concerning which the LORD said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love. 
1Ki 11:3  And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart. 
1Ki 11:4  For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father. 

With God’s mercy in our life we can apply our hearts unto wisdom and number our days.

Psa 90:12  So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.

Solomon ruled as king over all Israel for forty years (1Ki 11:42), and in the end it was revealed that he was not given to apply his heart unto wisdom as king David in type and shadow did.

1Ki 11:42  And the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years.

1Ki 11:4  For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father.

The Godly wisdom was there in Solomon’s life at one point, and we could say in type and shadow that he had “tasted of the heavenly  gift” of Hebrews 6:4, but he was corrupted by his love for “many strange women” (1Ki 11:1) which we know represents churches where false doctrines reside turning our hearts away from the Lord if God allows this. It was these actions that caused Solomon to stop applying his heart to wisdom, unlike David who typifies the elect who are chastened and scourged by a sword that does not depart from his house or our house, which house represents the temple we are (2Sa 12:10, Heb 12:6, 1Co 3:16). Solomon, on the other hand, was brought into this bondage of ungodly relationships by loving the world, represented by “the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites.” (1Jn 2:15-17, Php 3:7-8)

1Ki 11:1  But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites;

1Jn 2:15  Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 
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.

[“I will be with thee, and build thee a sure house, as I built for David” (1Ki 11:38) is a promise by God whose conditions can only be met through Christ, and so, although a sure physical house was built for Solomon, the spiritual house, the temple of God which was his body, was corrupted by “the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.” In the positive, Solomon can and does represent the elect during the thousand-year reign who will rule over the riches of mankind’s kingdoms (Rev 11:15), the silver and gold and ivory as well as the ape and peacock of  (1Ki 10:22) that was brought to Solomon from afar. However, in the negative all these physical liberties given to Solomon corrupted him and caused him to forget God’s commands preventing him from continuing in those things which were required of him as king. Thus, he lost sight, at least in type and shadow, of Christ’s words in Luke 12:15: “And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.” This brings to mind what God tells us will naturally happen to all of us unless the Lord continues to keep us humble in this life, and we know these events of Solomon’s life were written for our sakes upon whom the end of the world are come (Deu 8:10-11, 1Co 10:11)].

Php 3:7  But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ.
Php 3:8  Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, [Mat 10:39]

[If God gives us the ability to continue in the truth (Joh 8:31-32, Php 2:12-13) and value the eternal words of God more than anything in this life, we will join each other in this comparative statement Paul was inspired to write telling us as the body of Christ we will lose all things, (Rev 2:10)  in order to gain the life of Christ, which cannot happen without going through much tribulation and persecution and fiery trials. Despite all of that affliction and suffering, we will be shown to be more than conquerors through Him (Rom 8:38-39) as a result of being given to endure unto the end (Php 2:13) as we keep our eyes on Christ who promises “I will give thee a crown of life” as a result of our working out our own salvation with fear and trembling as we press toward “the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus” (Php 3:14)]

King David, like Solomon, also reigned forty years (1Ki 2:11) and both time periods represent the much tribulation and many trials [40] that we must endure in order to be in that blessed and holy first resurrection (2Ti 2:12). Solomon can be seen as our old man who must decrease, while David can represent the new man, Christ in us, as our hope of glory whom God promises will increase  and will not deny Himself in that process of overcoming within us (Joh 3:30, 2Ti 2:13).

Joh 3:30  He must increase, but I must decrease. 

2Ti 2:12  If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us: 
2Ti 2:13  If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful [Christ in us (Col 1:27)]: he cannot deny himself. 

It takes both forty years, however, in order to create the new man represented by the number eighty (forty plus forty). This brings us back to Psalm 90:1-13 where we read of “a prayer of Moses the man of God” that explains what God does within those eighty typical years of our life and how he uses forty of them to destroy the man of sin within us, represented by Solomon [40 year reign] and builds up the new man represented by king David [40 year reign].

Psa 90:1  A Prayer of Moses the man of God. Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations. 

Psa 90:10  The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength [Php 4:13] they be fourscore years [80 years], yet is their strength labour and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away.

When we read this section of scripture (1Ki 11:1-43), if we keep this principle in mind that both David and Solomon are within us, then we will get the message of the books of Kings and every book of the bible that is admonishing the body of Christ to hold fast to our crown and be confident “that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Rev 3:11, Rev 2:10, Php 1:6, Gal 5:1, Php 4:1). Here is that prayer of Moses which in type and shadow reveals the certainty of God’s deliverance in the life of those who have His spirit, that enables us to go through the fiery trials of this life that will refine the gold and silver of God’s word within us.

Psa 90:1  A Prayer of Moses the man of God. Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations [thinking within] .
Psa 90:2  Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God [Eph 1:4]. 
Psa 90:3  Thou turnest man to destruction; and sayest, Return, ye children of men. 
Psa 90:4  For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the night [2Pe 3:8]. 
Psa 90:5  Thou carriest them away as with a flood; they are as a sleep: in the morning they are like grass which groweth up. 
Psa 90:6  In the morning it flourisheth, and groweth up; in the evening it is cut down, and withereth. 
Psa 90:7  For we are consumed by thine anger, and by thy wrath are we troubled.
Psa 90:8  Thou hast set our iniquities before thee, our secret sins in the light of thy countenance. 
Psa 90:9  For all our days are passed away in thy wrath: we spend our years as a tale that is told.

[All of these verses we’ve read (Psa 90:3-9) are the narrative that leads up to the passage that reveals the new man that is formed through a lifetime of much tribulation]

Psa 90:10  The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years [80], yet is their strength labour and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away [Job 5:7, Jas 4:14]. 
Psa 90:11  Who knoweth the power of thine anger? even according to thy fear, so is thy wrath [Rom 11:22, Act 10:35, Ecc 12:13]. 
Psa 90:12  So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom [Rom 2:13].
Psa 90:13  Return, O LORD, how long? and let it repent thee concerning thy servants. 
Psa 90:14  O satisfy us early with thy mercy; that we may rejoice and be glad all our days. [Rom 11:5, Rom 11:11, Rom 11:20-26, Rom 11:31-32] 
Psa 90:15  Make us glad according to the days wherein thou hast afflicted us, and the years wherein we have seen evil. 

Rev 3:11  Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown. 

Rev 2:10  Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life. 

Php 1:6  Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ [“I will give thee a crown of life“]:

Gal 5:1  Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. 

Php 4:1  Therefore, my brethren dearly beloved and longed for, my joy and crown, so stand fast in the Lord, my dearly beloved.

This section of scripture in the book of Timothy admonishes the body of Christ as to what we should and shouldn’t do in our service to God and will help brighten our understanding of what God is teaching us through this section of 1 Kings where we learn that Solomon’s heart became corrupted by “his wives [who] turned away his heart after other gods” so that he “was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father.” So we are admonished today to cry out to God as Christ did (Heb 5:7) and fear Him and ask Him to “teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.”

1Ti 6:1  Let as many servants as are under the yoke count their own masters worthy of all honour [Rom12:1], that the name of God and his doctrine be not blasphemed [Php 3:14-15, 1Jn 1:7]. 
1Ti 6:2  And they that have believing masters, let them not despise them, because they are brethren; but rather do them service, because they are faithful and beloved, partakers of the benefit. These things teach and exhort [Christ is our believing master (Joh 13:13-15, Luk 6:46)]. 
1Ti 6:3  If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness; 
1Ti 6:4  He is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strifes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings, 
1Ti 6:5  Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself. 
1Ti 6:6  But godliness with contentment is great gain. 
1Ti 6:7  For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. 
1Ti 6:8  And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. 
1Ti 6:9  But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. 
1Ti 6:10  For the love of money^{G5365 G5366 [rich young ruler (Mat 19:21)]} is the root [“a” root not “the” root – see most other translations] of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

[“For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father.“]

1Ti 6:11  But thou, O man of God, flee these things; [“Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches” (Pro 30:8)] and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness [“feed me with food convenient for me” (Pro 30:8)]. 
1Ti 6:12  Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses. [flee fornication (1Co 6:18), flee idolatry (1Co 10:14), flee youthful lusts (2Ti 2:22)]
1Ti 6:13  I give thee charge in the sight of God, who quickeneth all things [Joh 6:63, Joh 6:68], and before Christ Jesus, who before Pontius Pilate witnessed a good confession; 
1Ti 6:14  That thou keep this commandment without spot, unrebukeable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ: 

Heb 5:7  Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, [Rom 6:23] and was heard in that he feared; 

1Ki 11:1  But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites;

God has called His children to overcome all these “strange women” which the wretchedness of our flesh could not begin to overcome except the Lord deliver us (Rom 7:24-25, Joh 8:36), and so we are admonished to flee all these ‘women’ that represent churches: “the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites” knowing that it is Christ in us who is giving us the power to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling as we overcome through Him (Php 2:12-14).

Rom 7:24  O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? 
Rom 7:25  I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin. 

Joh 8:36  If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed. 

Php 2:12  Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. 
Php 2:13  For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. 
Php 2:14  Do all things without murmurings and disputings: 

Together “with the daughter of Pharoah”^H6547 (Rev 17:1-5), these women typify the fleshly parts of Babylon within me that must be destroyed by the brightness of Christ’s coming which will destroy (2Th 2:3-7) the part of my heart that is yet being held captive by her lies, as Solomon in type and shadow was experiencing  (2Co 6:17-18).

Rev 17:1  And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters: [“the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites“]
Rev 17:2  With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.
Rev 17:3  So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: [We all go into Babylon and by God’s grace come out of her (2Co 6:17)] and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. 
Rev 17:4  And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:

[flee fornication (1Co 6:18),  flee idolatry (1Co 10:14),  flee youthful lusts (2Ti 2:22)]

2Co 6:17  Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,
2Co 6:18  And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. 

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.

Rev 17:5  And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. 

• Moabites,H4125  H4124 [spiritually learning the way of the heathen (Jer_10:2) typifies this incestuous spirit of H4124 where we have children with our father the devil’s children while in Babylon]

• Ammonites,H5984  H5983

• Edomites,H130  H123

• Zidonians,H6722  H6721 – H6679 – H6718 [negative use of fishers of men, hunters of men]

• Hittites;H2850  H2845  H2865 [where God’s spirit is there is liberty (2Co 3:17) but without his spirit we see what the foundation of all these Babylonian woman or churches is founded upon having no stay of bread or water (Isa 3:1, Jas 3:16, 2Ti 4:18)].

H2865 châthath  khaw-thath’

A primitive root; properly to prostrate; hence to break down, either (literally) by violence, or (figuratively) by confusion and fear: – abolish, affright, be (make) afraid, amaze, beat down, discourage, (cause to) dismay, go down, scare, terrify.  Total KJV occurrences: 48

Links to other studies on the spiritual significance of these peoples:

• Ammonites and Moabites
• Edomites
• Zidonians
• Hittites

How blessed we are to have God’s love shed abroad in our hearts (Rom 5:5-6, 1Jn 4:17-19) to overcome that confusion and fear, that violence to God’s word in Babylon that while it is abiding in our heavens beats down Christ and discourages us, and dismays us and scares us and terrifies us until the appointed time that God says enough (2Th 2:3, 2Th 2:6).

Rom 5:5  And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. 
Rom 5:6  For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. 

1Jn 4:17  Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world. 
1Jn 4:18  There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. 
1Jn 4:19  We love him, because he first loved us. 

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; [when God says enough]

2Th 2:6  And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.

That man of sin is revealed through the chastening and scourging God gives His children the ability to endure, and it is through that correction, through that suffering, we learn obedience (Heb 12:6, Heb 5:7).

Heb 12:6  For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. 

Heb 5:7  Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death,[Rom_6:23] and was heard in that he feared;

1Ki 11:2  Of the nations concerning which the LORD said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love.

In type and shadow, Solomon was not just thinking above what was written (1Co 4:6), which is always the starting point of any of our divergent paths which take us away from God’s word (Jas 1:15, Gen 3:6), but he was getting right in bed with those he ought not have. By these actions he was shedding abroad his perverted sense of what love was in the lives of all these women, committing for our sake spiritual fornication before God to remind us not to lust after these things “as they also lusted” (1Co 10:5-6). Solomon demonstrated how our flesh wants to take occasion with the liberty God gives us, and instead of ‘coming out of her my people’ “Of the nations concerning which the LORD said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you“, Solomon went in to them and they in unto him resulting in his reaping what God said he would sow if he did this, “Surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love.“

1Ki 11:3  And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart.
1Ki 11:4  For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father.

Solomon’s heart was turned away from God, and the numbers in these verses reveal the beastly nature of man that has seven heads and ten horns (Rev 13:1):  “Seven hundred wives” who were “princesses” and “three hundred concubines.” God is showing us through these ordained scenarios of Solomon’s life what we are before God comes in and starts to destroy the man of sin within us, the beast with seven heads and ten horns. Seven hundred wives and three hundred concubines gives us the grand total of our fleshly relationship in Babylon 1000 that must be judged and destroyed by the brightness of Christ’s coming into our heavens (2Pe 3:8).

Rev 13:1  And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. 

2Pe 3:8  But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

Solomon’s actions in this verse (1Ki 11:4) typify someone operating in their flesh and not in the spirit (Gal 5:16-21): “For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father.” He was not being portrayed as someone who was fighting the good fight of faith as his father king David had done, whose life typifies the fruits of righteousness that come about as a result of being “a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfil all my will” (1Ti 6:12, Act 13:22, Gal 5:22-26).

Gal 5:16  This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. 
Gal 5:17  For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. 

1Ti 6:12  Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses. 

Act 13:22  And when he had removed him, he raised up unto them David to be their king; to whom also he gave testimony, and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfil all my will. 

Gal 5:22  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 
Gal 5:23  Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. 
Gal 5:24  And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

As we get older we can either see our old man perish and our new man thrive (2Co 4:16, Psa 92:13-15), or we can see our old man negatively thrive and whatever relationship we had with Christ fall apart and come short (Eze 18:24, Heb 4:1). That is the major lesson we are to take from the life of Solomon who started off very strong in God’s service but became distracted and took his eyes off of the mark of the prize of the high calling in Christ (1Co 9:24-25, Php 3:14-15). These things “happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come” (1Co 10:11).

2Co 4:16  For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, [1Co 15:31] yet the inward man is renewed day by day.

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; 
Psa 92:15  To shew that the LORD is upright: he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him. 

Eze 18:24  But when the righteous turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and doeth according to all the abominations that the wicked man doeth, shall he live? All his righteousness that he hath done shall not be mentioned: in his trespass that he hath trespassed, and in his sin that he hath sinned, in them shall he die [Rom 6:1-5].

Heb 4:1  Let us therefore fear [Heb 5:7], lest a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it. 

1Co 9:24  Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. 
1Co 9:25  And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things [Luk 21:19]. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. 

Php 3:14  I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
Php 3:15  Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you. 

Solomon, in type and shadow, was not able to handle the truth, as the riches of God’s word were only residing in him superficially and became choked by the cares of this world (Mar 4:3-7). The lesson for God’s people is to pray for a greater sense of urgency as we near the end of this age praying for each other that our faith fail not (Luk 22:32) and that we might receive the blessing of having an “honest and good heart” upon which God can “Teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom” (Mar 4:8-9, Luk 8:15).

Luk 22:32  But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.

Mar 4:3  Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower to sow: 
Mar 4:4  And it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up. 
Mar 4:5  And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth: 
Mar 4:6  But when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away. 
Mar 4:7  And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit. 
Mar 4:8  And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased [1Co 3:6]; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred. 
Mar 4:9  And he said unto them, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. 

Luk 8:15  But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart [1Co 2:16], having heard the word, keep it [Rev 1:3], and bring forth fruit with patience [1Co 9:27, Luk 21:19].

Jer 15:1-9  I Will Destroy My People, Since They Return Not From Their Ways

[Study Aired August 8, 2021]

Jer 15:1  Then said the LORD unto me, Though Moses and Samuel stood before me, yet my mind could not be toward this people: cast them out of my sight, and let them go forth.
Jer 15:2  And it shall come to pass, if they say unto thee, Whither shall we go forth? then thou shalt tell them, Thus saith the LORD; Such as are for death, to death; and such as are for the sword, to the sword; and such as are for the famine, to the famine; and such as are for the captivity, to the captivity.
Jer 15:3  And I will appoint over them four kinds, saith the LORD: the sword to slay, and the dogs to tear, and the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the earth, to devour and destroy.
Jer 15:4  And I will cause them to be removed into all kingdoms of the earth, because of Manasseh the son of Hezekiah king of Judah, for that which he did in Jerusalem.
Jer 15:5  For who shall have pity upon thee, O Jerusalem? or who shall bemoan thee? or who shall go aside to ask how thou doest?
Jer 15:6  Thou hast forsaken me, saith the LORD, thou art gone backward: therefore will I stretch out my hand against thee, and destroy thee; I am weary with repenting.
Jer 15:7  And I will fan them with a fan in the gates of the land; I will bereave them of children, I will destroy my people, since they return not from their ways.
Jer 15:8  Their widows are increased to me above the sand of the seas: I have brought upon them against the mother of the young men a spoiler at noonday: I have caused him to fall upon it suddenly, and terrors upon the city.
Jer 15:9  She that hath borne seven languisheth: she hath given up the ghost; her sun is gone down while it was yet day: she hath been ashamed and confounded: and the residue of them will I deliver to the sword before their enemies, saith the LORD.

Moses and Samuel were as close to the Lord as one could be in the Old Testament. The Lord spoke with Moses as a friend:

Exo 33:11  And the LORD spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend. And he turned again into the camp: but his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, departed not out of the tabernacle.

Samuel was the last judge of Israel, and was accepted by all as a prophet of the Lord:

1Sa 3:19  And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground.
1Sa 3:20  And all Israel from Dan even to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the LORD.

Our study today begins with these somber words of warning:

Jer 15:1  Then said the LORD unto me, Though Moses and Samuel stood before me, yet my mind could not be toward this people: cast them out of my sight, and let them go forth.
Jer 15:2  And it shall come to pass, if they say unto thee, Whither shall we go forth? then thou shalt tell them, Thus saith the LORD; Such as are for death, to death; and such as are for the sword, to the sword; and such as are for the famine, to the famine; and such as are for the captivity, to the captivity.

This is the message of:

Rev 22:10  And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand.
Rev 22:11  He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.

Both these prophecies are simply saying:

Mat 6:10  Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

That is what Christ told us to say when we pray to our heavenly Father. The prophets who prophesy things the Lord did not send them to prophesy do not want to hear a word about the Lord’s judgments upon their “smooth things” prophecies and their lying false doctrines. So, they will not pray as the Lord has instructed us to pray:

Mat 6:5  And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
Mat 6:6  But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.
Mat 6:7  But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.

“The kingdom of God is within [us]” if Christ is living His life within us:

Luk 17:20  And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation:
Luk 17:21  Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.

1Co 3:16  Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?

1Co 3:17  If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

Christ never sought to be prominent. He simply sought to please His Father:

Joh 8:49  Jesus answered, I have not a devil; but I honour my Father, and ye do dishonour me.
Joh 8:50  And I seek not mine own glory: there is one that seeketh and judgeth.

The spirit of a false prophet is without exception a very proud spirit which seeks the recognition and approbation of men. This is what the apostle John had to say about one of the early apostates of the New Testament church:

3Jn 1:9  I wrote unto the church: but Diotrephes, who loveth to have the preeminence among them, receiveth us not.

3Jn 1:10  Wherefore, if I come, I will remember his deeds which he doeth, prating against us with malicious words: and not content therewith, neither doth he himself receive the brethren, and forbiddeth them that would, and casteth them out of the church.

This self-righteous, very proud spirit was at work upon the whole New Testament church before the death of the twelve original apostles. However, God’s judgments are, and always have been, working to demonstrate His power and His judgments upon the kingdom of our old man. We may fool men, but we do not for one second deceive the Lord:

Gal 6:7  Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
Gal 6:8  For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.

We “who have the firstfruits of the spirit” know that “all things are of God”, including the fact that the Lord “makes us to err from His ways and hardens our hearts from His fear”:

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.

1Co 8:6  But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him.

2Co 5:18  And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;

The answer to Isaiah’s question, “Why have you made us to err from your ways”, is found in these verses:

Jdg 14:4  But his father and his mother knew not that it was of the LORD, that he sought an occasion against the Philistines: for at that time the Philistines had dominion over Israel.

Rom 9:13  As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated [“being not yet born” vs 11].

Rom 9:14  What shall we say then? Is there  unrighteousness with God? God forbid.
Rom 9:15  For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
Rom 9:16  So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.
Rom 9:17  For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth.
Rom 9:18  Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth.
Rom 9:19  Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will?
Rom 9:20  Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?
Rom 9:21  Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?
Rom 9:22  What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction:
Rom 9:23  And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory,
Rom 9:24  Even us, whom he hath called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?

The Lord is “working all things after the counsel of His own will” to show His wrath against all flesh which was never intended to inherit His kingdom. That flesh prays to Him only to be seen of men, while this is what we are exhorted of the Lord:

Mat 6:8  Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.
Mat 6:9  After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
Mat 6:10  Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

God’s name is “hallowed” when we acknowledge that He makes us to err from His ways, and then He drags us to Himself, after He reveals to us just how corrupt our flesh is:

1Co 15:50  Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.

Revealing the corruption of our flesh to us is accomplished only through His judgments, and the Lord’s Word reveals that He is right now judging His elect, and He will judge all the rest of mankind at the great white throne judgment.

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?

Christ promised those who followed Him in “this present time” (Rom 8:18), that they would rule and reign with Him in His kingdom on this earth:

Rev 2:26  And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:
Rev 2:27  And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father.

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.
Rev 20:5  But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.
Rev 20:6  Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

Peter asks, “…what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?” Here is the answer to Peter’s question:

Rev 20:11  And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.
Rev 20:12  And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.
Rev 20:13  And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them:  and they were judged every man according to their works.

From these verses we can see that only those who are being judged in “this present time”, will be in “the first resurrection… ruling and reigning with Him a thousand years” (Rev 20:6). Christ called the first resurrection “the resurrection of life”:

Joh 5:27  And hath given him [Christ] authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of man.
Joh 5:28  Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,
Joh 5:29  And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.

Rom 8:18  For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
Rom 8:19  For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God [At “the resurrection of life… the first resurrection”].

When the thousand years are finished, then all the nations rebel against the rod of  iron of  the Lord’s elect, and they are all destroyed by “fire… from  heaven”:

Rev 20:7  And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,
Rev 20:8  And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.
Rev 20:9  And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. [“The nations in the four quarters of the earth… the number of whom is as the sand of the sea”]
Rev 20:10  And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever [eons of the eons, the time needed to judge “every man… and angels” (1Co 6:3)].

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? [‘This present time’ (Rom 8:18)]

All the rest of mankind who are not in “the resurrection of life… the first resurrection”, will be judged in the great white throne judgment/lake of fire/second death. This ‘judgment’ or this ‘death’ is the judgment of all whose names were not in the book of life. This ‘death’ is the second group to die to their old man, just as we are doing in “this present time… judgment… on the house of God” (1Pe 4:17). All whose names are in the book of life, are being judged “in this present time”, and we will rule with Christ for a thousand years. All the rest of mankind will be judged in the lake of fire/second death at the white throne judgment. This is “the end of them that obey not the gospel of God” (1Pe 4:17).

The ‘fire’ of the ‘lake of fire’ is the same ‘fire’ which “will try every man’s works, [including] “the house of God [of] this present time”:

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 [“Every man” in both resurrections and in both judgments… will be tried by the ‘fire’ of the Word of God (Jer 14:5). The judgment which “is now on the house of God” and the judgment of the “great white throne/lake of fire/ second death”, is effectuated by the same ‘fire… (but) each in his own order” (1Co 15:23)].
1Co 3:14  If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward [“Rule and reign with Christ for a thousand years… judge angels [at the great] white throne judgment”].
1Co 3:15  If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss [Miss out on “the marriage supper of the Lamb, a crown of life which entitles him to rule with Christ a thousand years and then “judge angels” in the great white throne judgment/lake of fire/second death]: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.

The scriptures go overboard to inform us of the fact that God is in the process of saving “all in Adam”. Here are but a few of the verses which boldly state this irrefutable Truth:

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

1Ti 2:4  Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

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 [not ‘exclusively’] of those that believe.

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.

Self-righteous mankind would rather make God out to be a hate-filled monster, who will burn his adversaries in eternal torment, than to acknowledge:

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.

1Ti 2:4  Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

It is argued by those who are under the influence of the lying spirit of “free moral agency” that the word ‘will’ in 1 Timothy 2:4 would be better translated as ‘desires all men to be saved”. The argument is that our fabled ‘free will’ is capable of thwarting what God desires for us. If we were to agree that the word ‘desire’ would be better, what then do we make of this verse of scripture?

Job 23:13  But he is in one mind, and who can turn him? and what his soul desireth, even that he doeth.

Later the Lord reveals just how deeply His sovereignty extends into His relationship with His creatures:

Pro 16:1  The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, is from the LORD.

“The preparations of our heart”, the forming of a thought is “from the Lord”, and a couple of verses later this depth of His sovereign work with mankind is again proclaimed:

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

“All things… even the wicked” are made for the Lord’s “experience of evil” which He has given us to humble us before Himself. This truth relieves us all of a very great burden which is based upon the lie that God has given mankind a will that is free from any influence from Him.

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.

Our old man always prefers church doctrine to these wonderful Truths, and therefore the Lord…

Jer 15:3  …will appoint over them four kinds, saith the LORD: the sword to slay, and the dogs to tear, and the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the earth, to devour and destroy.

These “four kinds [are] appointed over us” to humble us (Ecc 1:13), to bring us to our wits’ end (Psa 107:27) and to drag us to Himself (Joh 6:44).

Here is Strong’s definition of the Hebrew word translated as ‘kinds’ in this verse:

H4940
מִשְׁפָּחָה
mishpâchâh
mish-paw-khaw’
From H8192 (compare H8198); a family, that is, circle of relatives; figuratively a class (of persons), a species (of animals) or sort (of things); by extension a tribe or people: – family, kind (-red).

With the exception of this third verse here in chapter 15, and…

Gen 8:19  Every beast, every creeping thing, and every fowl, and whatsoever creepeth upon the earth, after their kinds, went forth out of the ark.

Except for these two verses, this word is consistently translated as either ‘family’ or ‘kindred’ in their singular or plural forms.

What this tells us is that each of these ‘kinds’ is a ‘family’ of judgments, and the fact that there are four of them indicates that ‘the whole’ of the kingdom of our old  man will be destroyed with the whole of these four families of judgments.

Jer 15:4  And I will cause them to be removed into all kingdoms of the earth, because of Manasseh the son of Hezekiah king of Judah, for that which he did in Jerusalem.

Manasseh is considered to be the most wicked king of all the kings of Judah. He was the son of the most righteous king of Judah, King Hezekiah:

Jer 15:5  For who shall have pity upon thee, O Jerusalem? or who shall bemoan thee? or who shall go aside to ask how thou doest?

We are all brought to our “wits’ end” by the Lord Himself:

Psa 107:24  These see the works of the LORD, and his wonders in the deep.
Psa 107:25  For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof.
Psa 107:26  They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble.
Psa 107:27  They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits’ end.

The Lord Himself brings us to a time when it seems that all our family and friends all turn their backs on us when we need them most. They may not do so overtly, but they will not tolerate the doctrine of Christ in our mouths. The Lord Himself forsakes us “for a moment”:

Isa 54:7  For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee.
Isa 54:8  In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the LORD thy Redeemer.

The Lord tells Jeremiah the same thing He told Isaiah about how He is dealing with His elect:

Jer 15:6  Thou hast forsaken me, saith the LORD, thou art gone backward: therefore will I stretch out my hand against thee, and destroy thee; I am weary with repenting.
Jer 15:7  And I will fan them with a fan in the gates of the land; I will bereave them of children, I will destroy my people, since they return not from their ways.

The Lord takes complete responsibility for the destruction of the corrupt flesh of His people for their rebellious, wicked ways. “I will destroy my people” are the Lord’s own words, and that is exactly what He does to the old man within His very elect.

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:

Our salvation hinges upon the dying of our old man, just as Christ had to die daily and literally.

Jer 15:8  Their widows are increased to me above the sand of the seas: I have brought upon them against the mother of the young men a spoiler at noonday: I have caused him to fall upon it suddenly, and terrors upon the city.

As our judgment begins, the Lord removes our spiritual ‘husbands’ and renders us as spiritual ‘widows’ with no leadership and no head:

Rom 7:1  Know ye not, brethren, (for I speak to them that know the law,) how that the law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth?
Rom 7:2  For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband.
Rom 7:3  So then if, while her husband liveth, she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress: but if her husband be dead, she is free from that law; so that she is no adulteress, though she be married to another man.
Rom 7:4  Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.

1Co 11:3  But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.

As our judgment begins, and we begin to “come out of her…” our flesh then turns on our spiritual ‘mother’, ‘Babylon the great’, and we “spoil [her] at noonday”. This very same destruction of our harlot mother by our rebellious flesh is described in the book of Revelation in these words:

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.
Rev 17:15  And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.
Rev 17:16  And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.
Rev 17:17  For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled.
Rev 17:18  And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.

The number ‘ten’ signifies the perfection of corruptible flesh at its peak of power in our lives. Here is a link to a study on the spiritual significance of the number ten:

The Number Ten

Isaiah makes clear who this harlot is. She is identified in the first chapter of his prophecy:

Isa 1:1  The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.

“Judah and Jerusalem” signify the Lord’s own elect who have “left [their] first love” and have turned their back on their true spiritual husband and committed spiritual adultery and spiritual fornication with many others, and the Lord calls a spade a spade:

Isa 1:21  How is the faithful city become an harlot! it was full of judgment; righteousness lodged in it; but now murderers.

Spiritual ‘murder’ and ‘beheading’ is defined Biblically in these words:

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

Using that spiritual definition, combined with the physical murder committed by the religions of mankind against each other, man’s religion has killed more that all the atheistic communist governments of the past century combined, and the Lord will avenge His elect of those who have physically and spiritually murdered and beheaded them since the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ:

Rev 6:9  And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held:
Rev 6:10  And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?

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.

These two verses are speaking of the same people. They are the Lord’s elect who were “slain [and] beheaded for the witness of Jesus and for the word of God”.

This destruction of the great harlot of the religions of mankind in rebellion against Christ and His Father is accomplished inwardly in everyone who is dragged out of the grasp of that great whore. However, there is always an outward, climactic, dispensational fulfillment to the words of prophecy, and we are all witnessing the secular humanists within this great harlot turning against her, destroying her with fire and eating her flesh:

Rev 17:16  And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.
Rev 17:17  For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled.

Our last verse of our study for today is just an earlier version of Revelation 17:16-17:

Jer 15:9  She that hath borne seven languisheth: she hath given up the ghost; her sun is gone down while it was yet day: she hath been ashamed and confounded: and the residue of them will I deliver to the sword before their enemies, saith the LORD.

The Lord’s elect are the latter-day temple in which He now dwells, and the temple in which the Adversary dwells is His latter-day people, who are being destroyed by the ten horns which are “on the beast”. They are the negative application of the words, “Come out of her My people”, and they will “eat her flesh and burn her with fire”, just as we are being tried with fire as we eat the flesh of Christ.

Joh 6:51  I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.
Joh 6:52  The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat?
Joh 6:53  Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.
Joh 6:54  Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.
Joh 6:55  For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.
Joh 6:56  He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.
Joh 6:57  As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me.
Joh 6:58  This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.

That is our study for today and these are our verses for our next study:

Jer 15:10  Woe is me, my mother, that thou hast borne me a man of strife and a man of contention to the whole earth! I have neither lent on usury, nor men have lent to me on usury; yet every one of them doth curse me.
Jer 15:11  The LORD said, Verily it shall be well with thy remnant; verily I will cause the enemy to entreat thee well in the time of evil and in the time of affliction.
Jer 15:12  Shall iron break the northern iron and the steel?
Jer 15:13  Thy substance and thy treasures will I give to the spoil without price, and that for all thy sins, even in all thy borders.
Jer 15:14  And I will make thee to pass with thine enemies into a land which thou knowest not: for a fire is kindled in mine anger, which shall burn upon you.
Jer 15:15  O LORD, thou knowest: remember me, and visit me, and revenge me of my persecutors; take me not away in thy longsuffering: know that for thy sake I have suffered rebuke.
Jer 15:16  Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O LORD God of hosts.
Jer 15:17  I sat not in the assembly of the mockers, nor rejoiced; I sat alone because of thy hand: for thou hast filled me with indignation.
Jer 15:18  Why is my pain perpetual, and my wound incurable, which refuseth to be healed? wilt thou be altogether unto me as a liar, and as waters that fail?
Jer 15:19  Therefore thus saith the LORD, If thou return, then will I bring thee again, and thou shalt stand before me: and if thou take forth the precious from the vile, thou shalt be as my mouth: let them return unto thee; but return not thou unto them.
Jer 15:20  And I will make thee unto this people a fenced brasen wall: and they shall fight against thee, but they shall not prevail against thee: for I am with thee to save thee and to deliver thee, saith the LORD.
Jer 15:21  And I will deliver thee out of the hand of the wicked, and I will redeem thee out of the hand of the terrible.