Ezekiel 33:21–33 The City of Jerusalem Had Been Captured

[Study Aired October 7, 2024]

INTRODUCTION

Today’s study is about the condition of those who were left as remnants after the invasion of Jerusalem by the Chaldeans and the desire of these remnants to inherit the land which they believed they, as descendants of Abraham, were entitled to it. The Lord’s response through Ezekiel was that they were not worthy of the inheritance of Abraham because of their sins.

The rest of the chapter focuses on the unwillingness of the people of Israel to obey the word of the Lord proclaimed by Ezekiel. The Lord also promised that everything that He has said through Ezekiel shall come to pass in the fulness of time. That is what will make the people of Israel recognize that a prophet has indeed been among them.

Eze 12:21  And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
Eze 12:22  Son of man, what is that proverb that ye have in the land of Israel, saying, The days are prolonged, and every vision faileth?
Eze 12:23  Tell them therefore, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will make this proverb to cease, and they shall no more use it as a proverb in Israel; but say unto them, The days are at hand, and the effect of every vision.
Eze 12:24  For there shall be no more any vain vision nor flattering divination within the house of Israel.
Eze 12:25  For I am the LORD: I will speak, and the word that I shall speak shall come to pass; it shall be no more prolonged: for in your days, O rebellious house, will I say the word, and will perform it, saith the Lord GOD. 

The Report from a Fugitive

Eze 33:21  And it came to pass in the twelfth year of our captivity, in the tenth month, in the fifth day of the month, that one that had escaped out of Jerusalem came unto me, saying, The city is smitten. 

The number ‘twelve’ is the number of Christ. It also means foundation. That of the number ‘ten’ signifies the completeness or fulness of the flesh. The number ‘five’ is a symbol of grace through faith. ‘On the fifth day of the tenth month in the twelfth year of the captivity of the Lord’s people’ signifies that it is when the sins of our flesh have reached their fulness or become complete during our time in the physical churches of this world, or Babylon, that Christ comes to us with His judgement (grace) to begin the walk of faith as we leave behind the Law of Moses. That is the time that we escape from Jerusalem as fugitives when we become aware that the city is smitten or taken. What this implies is that our exit from Babylon is when we come to the realization that the city of Jerusalem is smitten or the churches of this world are under the dominion of the evil one.

This brings to mind Psalm 124 where the Lord has caused us to escape as fugitives from the snare of the fowler as follows:

Psa 124:1  A Song of degrees of David. If it had not been the LORD who was on our side, now may Israel say;
Psa 124:2  If it had not been the LORD who was on our side, when men rose up against us:
Psa 124:3  Then they had swallowed us up quick, when their wrath was kindled against us:
Psa 124:4  Then the waters had overwhelmed us, the stream had gone over our soul:
Psa 124:5  Then the proud waters had gone over our soul.
Psa 124:6. Blessed be the LORD, who hath not given us as a prey to their teeth. 
Psa 124:7 Our soul is escaped as a bird out of the snare of the fowlers: the snare is broken, and we are escaped. 
Psa 124:8  Our help is in the name of the LORD, who made heaven and earth.

The snare of the fowler in Psalm 124 refers to the attractiveness of the churches of this world and their false doctrines. These false doctrines refer to the waters which overwhelmed us including the stream and the proud waters which went over our soul in Psalm 124:4-5.

Our exit from Babylon is initiated by the Lord coming to us with the Spirit of His mouth and His brightness. That is when we come to see who the harlot woman really is. That is the time that we begin to understand the spiritual meaning of the Lord’s words.

2Th 2:7  For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: 

Rev 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. 
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.

The Lord Opened Ezekiel’s Mouth to Speak

Eze 33:22  Now the hand of the LORD was upon me in the evening, afore he that was escaped came; and had opened my mouth, until he came to me in the morning; and my mouth was opened, and I was no more dumb.   

The news that the city of Jerusalem is smitten is not good news to hear when we have spent all our time in the city and are therefore in love with the city or Babylon. As shown in verse 22, the Lord prepares our hearts before we are given to receive such news. The hand of the Lord being upon Ezekiel, a type of the Lord’s elect, in the evening before the fugitive came with the news, was to prepare him for the message from the fugitive who represents the Lord’s elect.

Psa 10:17  LORD, thou hast heard the desire of the humble: thou wilt prepare their heart, thou wilt cause thine ear to hear:

1Ch 29:18  O LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, our fathers, keep this forever in the imagination of the thoughts of the heart of thy people, and prepare their heart unto thee:

The man who fled from Jerusalem to meet Ezekiel in the morning signifies the Lord leading us from Babylon to meet the Lord’s elect. The morning represents the time that the morning star, who is Christ, comes to us with His words. That is when we hear the mysteries of the kingdom of the Lord spoken to us by His elect symbolized here by Ezekiel. The time that Ezekiel was made dumb was when he was with the exiled people of Israel who in this case represent Babylon, since the word of truth would not have profited them.

Eze 3:26  And I will make thy tongue cleave to the roof of thy mouth, that thou shalt be dumb, and shalt not be to them a reprover: for they are a rebellious house.

Psa 39:9  I was dumb, I opened not my mouth; because thou didst it.

The fugitive, who represents the Lord’s elect, hearing the word of the Lord from Ezekiel, confirms the fact that we speak wisdom to them who are mature, that is, the Lord’s elect. It is instructive to note that the Lord gave a sign to Ezekiel that when he sees a man who has escaped from Jerusalem, then he shall speak. That is to suggest that the words of the Lord are for the Lord’s elect in this age.

Eze 24:25  Also, thou son of man, shall it not be in the day when I take from them their strength, the joy of their glory, the desire of their eyes, and that whereupon they set their minds, their sons and their daughters,
Eze 24:26 That he that escapeth in that day shall come unto thee, to cause thee to hear it with thine ears? 
Eze 24:27  In that day shall thy mouth be opened to him which is escaped, and thou shalt speak, and be no more dumb: and thou shalt be a sign unto them; and they shall know that I am the LORD

Eze 33:23  Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, 
Eze 33:24  Son of man, they that inhabit those wastes of the land of Israel speak, saying, Abraham was one, and he inherited the land: but we are many; the land is given us for inheritance. 

As indicated in the previous studies, the word of the Lord coming to Ezekiel signifies the Lord coming to His elect with the spirit of His mouth and His brightness. What this means is that the Lord coming to His elect is to judge them for the destruction of their flesh. The coming of the Lord is also to illuminate His words so that we can understand the mysteries of the kingdom of God.

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: 

Verse 24 shows us our mindset when we were in the physical churches of this world, or Babylon. The ‘wastes of the land’ of Israel refer to the spiritual degradation state of our lives when we were living in Babylon. At that time, we thought we were Abraham’s seed and therefore we regarded the Lord’s promise to Abraham as His promise to us. This is the Lord’s promise to Abraham about the land of Canaan on the day the Lord made a covenant with him:

Gen 15:18  In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates: 

As the Lord’s elect, we are Abraham’s seed and therefore are recipients of the Lord’s promise to Abraham. Spiritually, the land here in Genesis 15:18 symbolizes our bodies which we must possess to please the Lord. It is insightful to note that Abraham was promised not only the land but the rivers of Egypt and that of Euphrates. This implies that possessing our bodies involves possessing the false doctrines of this world. That means not living according to these false doctrines.

In His life here on earth, the Lord demonstrated how we can overcome the pull of the flesh to possess our bodies by walking on the sea, which signifies the flesh of mankind. Peter, who is a symbol of the elect, followed His example and started walking on the sea initially, towards Jesus. However, when he became afraid when he saw the boisterous waves, he started to sink. Jesus saved him but questioned him for doubting.

Mat 14:23  And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone.
Mat 14:24  But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary.
Mat 14:25  And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea.
Mat 14:26  And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear.
Mat 14:27  But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.
Mat 14:28  And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water. 
Mat 14:29  And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus. 
Mat 14:30  But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. 
Mat 14:31  And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt? 

This whole episode is to demonstrate to us that our victory over the flesh is through faith, and the word of the Lord makes us aware that this faith is not ours but the Lord’s.

Gal 2:20  I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

In verse 24 of our study for today, the people of Israel who remained in the land after the Chaldean invasion thought that just because they were physically related to Abraham they are entitled to the land. In other words, our brothers and sisters in Babylon think that they are Abraham’s seed and therefore, they can possess their bodies. Their reliance on the law of Moses means that their walk is not that of faith and therefore they cannot possess their bodies, or overcome the flesh. The next verses show us why they are disqualified from receiving the promise of Abraham.

Eze 33:25 Wherefore say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Ye eat with the blood, and lift up your eyes toward your idols, and shed blood: and shall ye possess the land? 

Here in this verse, we are given a list of what we were doing in Babylon which disqualified us from receiving the land promised to Abraham or being given to possess our bodies as living sacrifices to the Lord. The first thing mentioned here is eating meat with blood in it. Eating meat with blood in it signifies imbibing false doctrines which causes us to hate our brothers and sisters. As Apostle John indicated, hating our brother or sister spiritually means committing murder. During our time in Babylon, we hated the Lord’s elect and therefore were guilty of the blood of Christ and His messengers.

Luk 11:49  Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they shall slay and persecute:
Luk 11:50  That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation; 
Luk 11:51  From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation. 

Looking for our idols for help means depending on our false doctrines which have become our idols of the heart and therefore prevent us from knowing our Lord Jesus Christ. No wonder we are deceived into thinking that we are Abraham’s seed and therefore we shall inherit the land.

Eze 14:3  Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their heart, and put the stumblingblock of their iniquity before their face: should I be enquired of at all by them? 
Eze 14:4  Therefore speak unto them, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Every man of the house of Israel that setteth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to the prophet; I the LORD will answer him that cometh according to the multitude of his idols;

Eze 33:26  Ye stand upon your sword, ye work abomination, and ye defile everyone his neighbour’s wife: and shall ye possess the land? 

The sword here is put in a negative context. The negative aspect of sword refers to words that are spoken which destroy us. The sword therefore refers to the lying words and false doctrines of the adversary.

2Ti 2:17  And their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus;
2Ti 2:18  Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some.   

Psa 64:2  Hide me from the secret counsel of the wicked; from the insurrection of the workers of iniquity:
Psa 64:3  Who whet their tongue like a sword, and bend their bows to shoot their arrows, even bitter words:

Standing upon our sword means relying on our false doctrines instead of the truth of the word of the Lord. In this case, our works become an abomination to the Lord. That is to say that we engage in idolatry, which means we worship another Jesus, instead of our Lord Jesus Christ.

2Co 11:3  But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
2Co 11:4  For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.

In verse 26, we are also guilty of defiling our neighbor’s wife. In the parable of the Good Samaritan, the Lord showed us who spiritually signifies our neighbor.

Luk 10:36  Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? 
Luk 10:37  And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise. 

From the parable, we can see that our neighbor is one who has shown us mercy. We know that it is our Lord Jesus Christ who has shown us mercy and therefore is our neighbor. Defiling our neighbor’s wife is therefore doing evil to the Lord’s bride. This is the same as what happened in the Corinthian church where a man defiled his father’s wife.

1Co 5:1  It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father’s wife.
1Co 5:2  And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you.

We are therefore not different from this man. In our time in Babylon, we polluted the Lord’s elect who were captives in Babylon with false doctrines. The Lord is therefore asking us whether we really deserve to possess the land, or our bodies, in view of our sins during this time of our walk in Babylon.

The Remnants Shall be Judged

Eze 33:27  Say thou thus unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; As I live, surely they that are in the wastes shall fall by the sword, and him that is in the open field will I give to the beasts to be devoured, and they that be in the forts and in the caves shall die of the pestilence. 

In view of our sins as described in the preceding verses, we are to face the Lord’s judgement. Here in verse 27, the Lord is applying His judgement tools to correct us. These tools are ‘the sword’, ‘pestilence’ and ‘noisome beasts’. If we continue to remain in the ruined cities or Babylon, then we shall fall by the sword, that is, be deceived by false doctrines. The open fields represent the world. If we continue to conform our lives according to the standards of this world, then we shall be devoured by the beasts of the field. That is to say that we shall live according to the dictates of our flesh. The ‘caves and forts’ in verse 27 symbolize anything that we depend on or hide in. These shall be taken away by the Lord through pestilence.

‘Pestilence’ comes from the Hebrew word “deber” which means ‘murrain’ or ‘plague’. ‘Murrain’ means ‘destruction’, and the only place that the word was used in the Bible was in the fifth plague in Egypt when there was widespread destruction of cattle of the Egyptians:

Exo 9:1  Then the LORD said unto Moses, Go in unto Pharaoh, and tell him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me.
Exo 9:2  For if thou refuse to let them go, and wilt hold them still,
Exo 9:3  Behold, the hand of the LORD is upon thy cattle which is in the field, upon the horses, upon the asses, upon the camels, upon the oxen, and upon the sheep: there shall be a very grievous murrain.

The Lord uses pestilence when we have gotten far away from Him. For example, when the children of Israel were in Egypt, the Lord used pestilence to get their attention. The Lord’s use of pestilence means that the people of Israel were given over to the devil, which in this case was represented by Pharoah who caused the people of Israel to be under great affliction.

Lev 26:25  And I will bring a sword upon you, that shall avenge the quarrel of my covenant: and when ye are gathered together within your cities, I will send the pestilence among you; and ye shall be delivered into the hand of the enemy.

Exo 1:8  Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph.

Exo 1:11  Therefore they did set over them taskmasters to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh treasure cities, Pithom and Raamses.

Exo 1:14  And they made their lives bitter with hard bondage, in the  morter, and in brick, and in all manner of service in the field: all their service, wherein they made them serve, was with rigour.

Exo 3:7  And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows;

When the Lord got the people of Israel’s attention, He came to help them as the people drew closer to the Lord. Today, the Lord still uses pestilence to get our attention when we have drifted far from Him. For example, in the Corithian church, Paul gave over the man who slept with his father’s wife to the devil so that he may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.

Eze 33:28  For I will lay the land most desolate, and the pomp of her strength shall cease; and the mountains of Israel shall be desolate, that none shall pass through. 
Eze 33:29  Then shall they know that I am the LORD, when I have laid the land most desolate because of all their abominations which they have committed. 

Verses 28 and 29 continues with the Lord’s judgment of our old man, or flesh. When a land is laid desolate, all kinds of wild animals roam about looking for something to devour. When our bodies, which are represented by the land, are not being offered as a living sacrifices, holy and acceptable to the Lord, then our bodies are dominated by our flesh that is empowered by the devil. In this case, our bodies can be described as being “desolate”. The “pomp of the strength of the land ceasing” means that our old man, or flesh, shall be destroyed through the Lord’s judgement. The “mountains of Israel” are places of idol worship which refers to the idols of false doctrines in our hearts and minds. It is in our hearts and minds, which is the seat of the our old man, who thinks that he is God. The judgement of the Lord, therefore, cleanses our hearts and minds such that “the none” can pass through. That is to say that the flesh cannot dominate us again.

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

In verse 29, we can see that the Lord’s judgement results in us coming to know Him.

Our Inability to Obey the Word of the Lord

Eze 33:30  Also, thou son of man, the children of thy people still are talking against thee by the walls and in the doors of the houses, and speak one to another, everyone to his brother, saying, Come, I pray you, and hear what is the word that cometh forth from the LORD. 
Eze 33:31  And they come unto thee as the people cometh, and they sit before thee as my people, and they hear thy words, but they will not do them: for with their mouth they shew much love, but their heart goth after their covetousness. 

These verses show us our state when we were in the physical churches of this world or Babylon. We desire to hear the word of the Lord, but to do according to what we hear, is the problem. We therefore worship the Lord with our mouth but our hearts were far away from Him.

Isa 29:13  And the Lord said: “Because this people draw near with their mouth and honor me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me, and their fear of me is a commandment taught by men,
Isa 29:14  therefore, behold, I will again do wonderful things with this people, with wonder upon wonder; and the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the discernment of their discerning men shall be hidden.”

Mat 15:7  You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said:
Mat 15:8“This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; 
Mat 15:9  in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.” 

During this period of our walk with the Lord in Babylon, we were the four angels bound by the river Euphrates. In other words, we were captives of the false doctrines of man’s wisdom and tradition, which is represented by the river Euphrates that nourished Babylon. No wonder we were not able to worship the Lord acceptably in Babylon.

Psa 137:1  By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion.
Psa 137:2  We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof.
Psa 137:3  For there they that carried us away captive required of us a song; and they that wasted us required of us mirth, saying, Sing us one of the songs of Zion.
Psa 137:4  How shall we sing the LORD’S song in a strange land? 

In the fulness of time, the Lord gave the command for us to be loosed from the river Euphrates so that we can hear the voice coming from the four horns of the golden altar which is before the Lord. What this means is that we are given the strength of the Lord to be able to do according to what we hear from His words.

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. 
Rev 9:15  And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men.

Eze 33:32  And, lo, thou art unto them as a very lovely song of one that hath a pleasant voice, and can play well on an instrument: for they hear thy words, but they do them not. 
Eze 33:33  And when this cometh to pass, (lo, it will come,) then shall they know that a prophet hath been among them. 

These verses continue to let us know our deplorable state in the churches of this world. Here in verse 32, the Lord is saying that during this stage of our walk in Babylon, when we hear from the Lord’s elect represented here by Ezekiel, we regard them as nothing more than singers with beautiful voices who sing love songs, or musicians with instruments. We listen to their words but we do not do them. Jesus, in His ministry here on earth, also said the same thing about us during this period of our walk in Babylon, in another way as follows:

Mat 11:15  He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.
Mat 11:16  But whereunto shall I liken this generation? It is like unto children sitting in the markets, and calling unto their fellows,
Mat 11:17  And saying, We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned unto you, and ye have not lamented.
Mat 11:18  For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He hath a devil.
Mat 11:19  The Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners. But wisdom is justified of her children.

From the Lord’s words, we can see that the reason we were not able to do what we hear was simply because we did not have the power to carry them out until we are loosed from the river Euphrates. In the fulness of time, we, as the Lord’s elect, are given the power to understand the words of the Lord’s elect and to do them. That is when we come to realize who really are the Lord’s elect, signified here as a prophet in verse 33. It is this time of our walk with Christ that we are able to say, “blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord”.

Mat 23:37  O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!
Mat 23:38  Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.
Mat 23:39  For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

May the Lord be praised for opening our eyes to see and ears to hear the mysteries of the kingdom of the Lord!! Amen!!

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Awesome Hands – part 137

Ye murmured in your tents”

July 1, 2018

Today’s study finds us starting the book of Deuteronomy. As it has been with all of the awesome hands series, we will be look at each time the word hand or hands is mentioned within the book.

For this study, our first mention of the word hand comes as we read how the Israelites are told to search out the land and to go in and possess the land.

Deu 1:20  And I said unto you, Ye are come unto the mountain of the Amorites, which the LORD our God doth give unto us.
Deu 1:21  Behold, the LORD thy God hath set the land before thee: go up and possess it, as the LORD God of thy fathers hath said unto thee; fear not, neither be discouraged.
Deu 1:22  And ye came near unto me every one of you, and said, We will send men before us, and they shall search us out the land, and bring us word again by what way we must go up, and into what cities we shall come.
Deu 1:23  And the saying pleased me well: and I took twelve men of you, one of a tribe:
Deu 1:24  And they turned and went up into the mountain, and came unto the valley of Eshcol, and searched it out.
Deu 1:25  And they took of the fruit of the land in their hands, and brought it down unto us, and brought us word again, and said, It is a good land which the LORD our God doth give us.

It is easy to read this story and immediately imagine that the Israelite spies were spying on a land, saw the land was “good” and then reporting back to Moses what was found. This did happen this way, but there is a lot more than meets the eye on what we are being told spiritually.

Christians today are promised a land, but we too REFUSE to possess it. We certainly know in this body of believers, that the Lord is workings ALL THINGS, but why is it that we too murmur against the Lord when He tells us to possess the land that He has set before us?

For myself, I see myself on the page when He tells me to “fear not, NEITHER BE DISCOURAGED”.

I find it interesting that the Lord sends His spies to the valley of Eshcol, or the valley of “cluster” (H812).

H812
'eshkôl
BDB Definition:
Eshcol = “cluster”
1) an area of Hebron, the valley of Eshcol
2) an Amorite, the brother of Mamre, dwelling in Hebron
Part of Speech: noun proper locative, masculine
A Related Word by BDB/Strong’s Number: the same as H811

This Hebrew word is the same as H810 according to the BDB.

H811
'eshkôl
BDB Definition:
1) cluster
1a) of grapes
1b) of flowers (metaphor of lover)
Part of Speech: noun masculine
A Related Word by BDB/Strong’s Number: probably prolonged from H810
Same Word by TWOT Number: 178

When you follow the word path all the way to it’s conclusion, we see that the BDB says that H811 is “probably prolonged from H810”.

H810

'eshek
eh'-shek
From an unused root (probably meaning to bunch together); a testicle (as a lump): - stone.
Total KJV occurrences: 1

H810
'eshek
Total KJV Occurrences: 1
stones, 1
Lev_21:20

When we look at the only time this root of “Eshcol” is used, we find a very interesting set of verses.

I did a study awhile back, http://www.iswasandwillbe.com/awesome-hands-part-120-brokenhanded/, which covered these verses due to having the word “brokenhanded” contained in them, but the concept of “broken stones” is just as applicable.

Lev 21:16  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
Lev 21:17  Speak unto Aaron, saying, Whosoever he be of thy seed in their generations that hath any blemish, let him not approach to offer the bread of his God.
Lev 21:18  For whatsoever man he be that hath a blemish, he shall not approach: a blind man, or a lame, or he that hath a flat nose, or any thing superfluous,
Lev 21:19  Or a man that is brokenfooted, or brokenhanded,
Lev 21:20  Or crookbackt, or a dwarf, or that hath a blemish in his eye, or be scurvy, or scabbed, or hath his stones broken;
Lev 21:21  No man that hath a blemish of the seed of Aaron the priest shall come nigh to offer the offerings of the LORD made by fire: he hath a blemish; he shall not come nigh to offer the bread of his God.
Lev 21:22  He shall eat the bread of his God, both of the most holy, and of the holy.
Lev 21:23  Only he shall not go in unto the vail, nor come nigh unto the altar, because he hath a blemish; that he profane not my sanctuaries: for I the LORD do sanctify them.

In the above mentioned study I write, “At first glance, the verses we are going to cover today do appear to be very cold-hearted of the Lord. After all, who needs mercy more than those who have afflictions of which they themselves have NOT caused to happen to themselves?”

What an “earth shattering” concept! I then write about these verses, “Simply put, and expressed by the Lord, no one with a blemish is permitted to approach the altar of the Lord! Anyone with a blemish is not even allowed to go in unto the vail because they have a blemish.

I wonder who, among all human beings, do not have a blemish? Of course, there are some folks out there that may be great physical specimens from among humanity but even they have physical blemishes.

However, I think anyone in the body of Christ will be quick to realize that this has much more to do with spiritual blemishes than those who have natural oddities or “blemishes”.

In truth, the only ones that can have the Lord truly bring forth life in them are those who KNOW who they are.”

Getting back to the verses for today, why would it be significant that the Lord causes Moses to tell the spies to search out the land, and they land they search out is the “valley of Eshcol”?

Notice what the spies bring back as “proof” of the land.

Deu 1:25  And they took of the fruit of the land in their hands, and brought it down unto us, and brought us word again, and said, It is a good land which the LORD our God doth give us.

As I alluded to in my previous study on the root of this word Eskcol, the “land” and the “fruit” of the land, has much more to do with spiritual types than it does with the physical land they were in search of.

The Lord promised a land flowing with milk and honey to the Israelites, and this is a land which has many good fruits. However, the land itself is very deceiving because the land is occupied and POSSESSED!

Deu 1:26  Notwithstanding ye would not go up, but rebelled against the commandment of the LORD your God:
Deu 1:27  And ye murmured in your tents, and said, Because the LORD hated us, he hath brought us forth out of the land of Egypt, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us.
Deu 1:28  Whither shall we go up? our brethren have discouraged our heart, saying, The people is greater and taller than we; the cities are great and walled up to heaven; and moreover we have seen the sons of the Anakims there.
Deu 1:29  Then I said unto you, Dread not, neither be afraid of them.
Deu 1:30  The LORD your God which goeth before you, he shall fight for you, according to all that he did for you in Egypt before your eyes;
Deu 1:31  And in the wilderness, where thou hast seen how that the LORD thy God bare thee, as a man doth bear his son, in all the way that ye went, until ye came into this place.
Deu 1:32  Yet in this thing ye did not believe the LORD your God,
Deu 1:33  Who went in the way before you, to search you out a place to pitch your tents in, in fire by night, to shew you by what way ye should go, and in a cloud by day.
Deu 1:34  And the LORD heard the voice of your words, and was wroth, and sware, saying,
Deu 1:35  Surely there shall not one of these men of this evil generation see that good land, which I sware to give unto your fathers,

There is such a wealth of spiritual riches contained within these verses if only we could take ahold of it and hold onto it for spiritual life!

Listen to the spirit within the Israelites and hear it echo within your own hearts and minds. “You murmured in your tents and said Because the LORD hated us, he hath brought us forth out of the land of Egypt, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us.”

How unbelieving can we be? Well, this isn’t just the Israelites, but this is you and I at our appointed time.

The rebellion against the commandment of the Lord is that thy DID NOT BELIEVE the Lord their God!

The Lord has guided us and directed us all the days of our lives, yet we rebel. He has searched out a place in His kingdom for us to pitch our tents, IN FIRE BY NIGHT, to show us the WAY WE SHOULD GO, but we rebel.

Why do we do such a thing? Well, it is because we are carnal, and we are of mankind. We are corrupted, but that is NOT the end of the story.

It is while we were in this corrupted state, while in BONDAGE, that the Lord came into Egypt to FREE US, and all He asks of us is to REMEMBER this. He didn’t free us to then LEAVE US TO DEATH! He freed us to lead us to LIFE, to lead us the way to the promised land of LIFE in His kingdom.

Notice, the spies take fruit OUT of the land and say the land is “good land”. What if, we can apply what we have learned from Jesus Christ in the New Testament and discover that it is what we take INTO the land that matters and not what we take OUT of it.

Spiritually speaking, the rebellion of the Israelites and their judgment for rebellion is shown to us in the type and shadow of being denied entry.

However, their FRUIT or SEED was NOT denied!

Deu 1:36  Save Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him will I give the land that he hath trodden upon, and to his children, because he hath wholly followed the LORD.
Deu 1:37  Also the LORD was angry with me for your sakes, saying, Thou also shalt not go in thither.
Deu 1:38  But Joshua the son of Nun, which standeth before thee, he shall go in thither: encourage him: for he shall cause Israel to inherit it.
Deu 1:39  Moreover your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, and your children, which in that day had no knowledge between good and evil, they shall go in thither, and unto them will I give it, and they shall possess it.

See, it is not what ENTERS a man that defiles him, but it is what is already there from WITHIN that defiles him.

When talking about the land, we are talking about US.

Mar 7:14  And when he had called all the people unto him, he said unto them, Hearken unto me every one of you, and understand:
Mar 7:15  There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are they that defile the man.
Mar 7:16  If any man have ears to hear, let him hear.

The “fruit” that is already in us, before the Lord goes before us to show us the WAY to the promised land, and to lay it out before us to take ahold of, is CORRUPT fruit of the flesh and carnal mind.

It is “of man”.

However, the fruit that we want to produce comes only by way of the Lord GIVING it to us.

You might be saying to yourself that the Lord GAVE the promised land to the Israelites, but the truth is that the Lord gives the land to the FAITHFUL. He gives it to those who BELIEVE. Those that believe are GIVEN their BELIEF.

Deu 1:32  Yet in this thing ye did not believe the LORD your God,

Deu 1:36  Save Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him will I give the land that HE HATH TRODDEN UPON, and to his children, because he hath wholly followed the LORD.

The land that is given to us is the land that is PLACED under our feet with OUR BELIEF that the Lord will DELVIER the LAND to us.

So, again what land are we talking about? It is a land full of giants and “evil” fruit because “by their fruits you shall know them.

Listen to how Timothy describes this.

2Ti 1:5  When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also.
2Ti 1:6  Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up THE GIFT OF GOD, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands.
2Ti 1:7  For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
2Ti 1:8  Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God;
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,
2Ti 1:10  But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel:

It is for the purpose and grace of God that He has freed us form Egypt and He wants us to remember that it is HIS WORKS that have laid out the way before us of which we are to go into the promised land and possess it.

HAVE FAITH.

Eph 2:8  For by grace are ye saved THROUGH FAITH; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Eph 2:9  Not of works, lest any man should boast.
Eph 2:10  For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto GOOD WORKS, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

Remember that land Caleb had trodden upon? How does one “trod” any land without WALKING on it?

It is through FAITH that we do anything, and it is a gift of God.

Rom 6:20  For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness.
Rom 6:21  What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death.
Rom 6:22  But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.
Rom 6:23  For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The fruit unto holiness we have now is that which has been gifted to us.

How then does this manifest itself in our lives practically?

Well, how does the Lord think about things? After all, His ways and thoughts are above our ways and thoughts.

Isa 55:8  For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.
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.

Again, I ask how do we LIVE BY FAITH and how does that manifest itself in our lives practically?

We live AS IF a THING is ALREADY accomplished!

Isa 55:10  For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:
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 Lord has PROMISED us OUR LAND, the LAND He has MOLDED for YOUR TAKING!

He has prepared it for the day of your arrival to it, but your arrival to it is with the FRUIT OF HIM IN YOU!

Rom 4:12  And the father of circumcision to them who are not of the circumcision only, but who also walk in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham, which he had being yet uncircumcised.

Rom 4:16  Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all,
Rom 4:17  (As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were.
Rom 4:18  Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations, according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be.
Rom 4:19  And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara's womb:

Whenever we have any thing we are dealing with in our lives, we should walk by Faith. Walking by Faith is an ACTION. It is an act of doing that which we BELIEVE is TRUE.

We do those things were are not as though they were!

What do I mean by that? I could give many examples, but I will give an easy one.

When the housing bubble happened in the USA in 2008, my wife and I came into hard times like a lot of people did. We eventually were brought to the point that we could not keep our first home.

We had only been there a few years, but the set of events we found ourselves in with me being laid off, and us spending all of our savings on the purchase of our home, had us struggling to the state of losing everything.

Well, we continued to believe that the Lord had us there for a reason, and He would deliver us a way out. How this practically worked is multifaceted, but one way in which this played out practically is how we continued to build our credit back up.

It wasn’t back to where it needed to be, but we LIVED as if it were. We continued to work hard, paid our bills on time, saved money, and day by day, month by month and year by year we did what was required to get us back to where we wanted to be.

Eventually, we were able to purchase our current home and reap the benefits of those day by days and week by weeks.

We lived in FAITH that the Lord would provide for us as He saw fit.

We also knew and believed that the Lord works all things after the counsel of His own will, and it just happens that the Lord blessed us in this way. We lived our lives as if we had already arrived at our goals, so that when they did happen, we were already COMFORTABLE with it being a reality.

No matter what issues we have, we as children of God must LIVE as if the Lord has already done the thing He has promised will happen.

In the context of the study today, we must realize that the Lord promises us the promised land, but that is only half the battle so to speak. We must be willing, by Faith, to go in to possess it.

Whatever demons or giants we face, we must kick out the possessors and go in and possess the land ourselves! Live as if you have ALREADY conquered those things that need conquering in your life.

That does mean we do not need to actually CONQUER the giants, but BELIEVE they are conquered before the war has ever begun.

Count the cost and know the Lord has given you the funds to achieve victory.

If all else fails, and you find you are still lacking faith, PRAY for MORE and we will pray with you!

Cleanse that “dumb spirit” as if it were already removed!

Mar 9:17  And one of the multitude answered and said, Master, I have brought unto thee my son, which hath a dumb spirit;
Mar 9:18  And wheresoever he taketh him, he teareth him: and he foameth, and gnasheth with his teeth, and pineth away: and I spake to thy disciples that they should cast him out; and they could not.
Mar 9:19  He answereth him, and saith, O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him unto me.
Mar 9:20  And they brought him unto him: and when he saw him, straightway the spirit tare him; and he fell on the ground, and wallowed foaming.
Mar 9:21  And he asked his father, How long is it ago since this came unto him? And he said, Of a child.
Mar 9:22  And ofttimes it hath cast him into the fire, and into the waters, to destroy him: but if thou canst do any thing, have compassion on us, and help us.
Mar 9:23  Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.
Mar 9:24  And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.

Notice, the boy was NEVER destroyed, but was PRESERVED so that the Lord could one day, on this day, come and DELIVER HIM.

Mar 9:28  And when he was come into the house, his disciples asked him privately, Why could not we cast him out?
Mar 9:29  And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting.

Pray, fast and LIVE as if the Lord has already delivered you from the land which you are to possess.

Soon, you will find that the land has been delivered into your hand and is trodden under your feet.

Greetings Mike in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,

It’s been a long time since I emailed, but I am back now.

Can you please explain the spiritual significance of Deuteronomy chapters 12 and 13. Exactly what is God trying to say to me? I know some time ago in my time of prayer I sensed that the Lord was saying it is my season of territory expansion. But I know that He has to expand my spiritual territory first before my physical territory, so that I can be able to handle the weight of the physical territory

And now, The Lord led me to this scripture in my time of prayer recently. Hope to hear from you soon.

Regards,

N____

Hi N____,

It is good to hear from you again.

It is especially good to be able to answer this question for you.

You ask:

Can you please explain the spiritual significance of Deuteronomy chapters 12 and 13. Exactly what is God trying to say to me?

What the Lord is telling us in Deuteronomy 12-13 is to “possess the land”, and in doing so we are to make no alliances with the inhabitants of the land, but rather “destroy everything that breaths” within the land.

Deu 20:16 But of the cities of these people, which the LORD thy God doth give thee for an inheritance, thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth:
Num 33:53 And ye shall dispossess the inhabitants of the land, and dwell therein: for I have given you the land to possess it.
Deu 1:8 Behold, I have set the land before you: go in and possess the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give unto them and to their seed after them.
Deu 1:21 Behold, the LORD thy God hath set the land before thee: go up and possess it, as the LORD God of thy fathers hath said unto thee; fear not, neither be discouraged.
Deu 2:24 Rise ye up, take your journey, and pass over the river Arnon: behold, I have given into thine hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land: begin to possess it, and contend with him in battle.

“Contend with him in battle” because “I have given [ him] into thy hand”.

“The land” is nothing physical, the things that “breath” are not physical things, and the battle in which we are contending is “not against flesh and blood” as it was in the types and shadows of Deu 12-13 and 20.

Deu 12:1 These are the statutes and judgments, which ye shall observe to do in the land, which the LORD God of thy fathers giveth thee to possess it, all the days that ye live upon the earth.
Deu 12:2 Ye shall utterly destroy all the places, wherein the nations which ye shall possess served their gods, upon the high mountains, and upon the hills, and under every green tree:
Deu 12:3 And ye shall overthrow their altars, and break their pillars, and burn their groves with fire; and ye shall hew down the graven images of their gods, and destroy the names of them out of that place.
Deu 12:4 Ye shall not do so unto the LORD your God.

“You shall not do so unto the Lord your God”, means that we are to “learn not the way of the heathen”, and we are not to follow after the ways of the heathen among whom we live, because we are now contending with “spiritual wickedness in the heavens” of our hearts and minds, even though what is in our heart is always manifested in our way of life.

So we are told:

Jer 10:2 Thus saith the LORD, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at them.

Eph 6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

The word ‘places’ is not in the Greek in Eph 6:12, and the word ‘high’ is translated from the Greek word ‘epouranios’, which appears often, but in this verse translated simply as ‘heaven’, ‘heavenly’ or ‘celestial’. This word appears 20 times in the New Testament Greek. This one verse is the only time it is translated as ‘high places’, and it should simply read ‘in the heavens’ of our hearts and minds.

A very great part of “the rulers of darkness of this world” are the very “ways of the heathen” which we have “learned” and have adopted as our own in all of the holidays of the western societies. We tell our children lies in the name of Christ during Christmas and Easter, and we dress them up as little devils at halloween, and tell ourselves that we are not “learning the ways of the heathen”, and we are not doing so “unto the Lord [ our] God”.

One of the main reasons given in scripture for our Lord’s condemnation by the church of His day is the fact that He “esteemed every day alike”, and in the process of establishing His New Covenant, His New Testament, He rejected the very days He Himself had given to Israel in the form of the weekly Sabbath and the annual holy days of the Jews.

Mat 12:1 At that time Jesus went on the sabbath day through the corn; and his disciples were an hungred, and began to pluck the ears of corn, and to eat.
Mat 12:2 But when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto him, Behold, thy disciples do that which is not lawful to do upon the sabbath day.
Mat 12:3 But he said unto them, Have ye not read what David did, when he was an hungred, and they that were with him;
Mat 12:4 How he entered into the house of God, and did eat the shewbread, which was not lawful for him to eat, neither for them which were with him, but only for the priests?
Mat 12:5 Or have ye not read in the law, how that on the sabbath days the priests in the temple profane the sabbath, and are blameless?
Mat 12:6 But I say unto you, That in this place is one greater than the temple.
Mat 12:7 But if ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless.
Mat 12:8 For the Son of man is Lord even of the sabbath day.
Joh 5:18 Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that God was his Father, making himself equal with God.

The “esteem[ ing] of one day above another” (Rom 14:9), is called “bondage [ to] weak and beggarly elements” in these verses:

Gal 4:9 But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage?
Gal 4:10 Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years.
Gal 4:11 I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labour in vain.
Col 2:8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after [ the example of] Christ.

To this day, anyone who attempts to follow in Christ’s steps will be ostracized and cast out of the synagogues of this world, for the ‘sin’ of “esteeming every day alike”, in a society which is in bondage to the observance of pagan “days, months, times and years”.

Job 23:11 My foot hath held his steps, his way have I kept, and not declined.
Psa 37:31 The law of his God is in his heart; none of his steps shall slide.
Psa 85:13 Righteousness shall go before him; and shall set us in the way of his steps.
1Pe 2:21 For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:

Observing the customs of the heathen around them was Israel’s most addictive sin which constantly came between them and their God, just as it does to this very day.

1Kg 12:32 And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the feast that is in Judah, and he offered upon the altar. So did he in Bethel, sacrificing unto the calves that he had made: and he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places which he had made.

This is “the sins of Jereboam the son of Nebat” which are so often referenced in the Old Testament.

1Ki 16:26 For he walked in all the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and in his sin wherewith he made Israel to sin, to provoke the LORD God of Israel to anger with their vanities.
1Ki 16:31 And it came to pass, as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that he took to wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Zidonians, and went and served Baal, and worshipped him.
1Ki 21:22 And will make thine house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah, for the provocation wherewith thou hast provoked me to anger, and made Israel to sin.
1Ki 22:52 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the way of his father, and in the way of his mother, and in the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin:

This is what Israel wanted, and that is what God’s people want to this very day, but God says it is an abomination to Him. Do we really believe we can do the exact same thing and not “make Israel to sin, [ and] provoke the Lord to anger”?

Deu 12:29 When the LORD thy God shall cut off the nations from before thee, whither thou goest to possess them, and thou succeedest them, and dwellest in their land;
Deu 12:30 Take heed to thyself that thou be not snared by following them, after that they be destroyed from before thee; and that thou enquire not after their gods, saying, How did these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise.
Deu 12:31 Thou shalt not do so unto the LORD thy God: for every abomination to the LORD, which he hateth, have they done unto their gods; for even their sons and their daughters they have burnt in the fire to their gods.

“You shall not do so unto the Lord your God”, and yet that is exactly what orthodox Christianity has done and is doing to this very day. They have adopted the “ways of the heathen” and claim they are “doing so unto the Lord [ their] God”.

Chapter 13 continues that same theme but adding to that theme the revelation that God Himself will given false prophets the power to deceive us if we do not have a love of His word which supersedes our love of “the ways of the heathen”. God Himself will give false prophets the ability to foretell the future, but then also tell us not to walk in the customs of the heathen for no other reason than to show us just how weak we are:

Deu 13:1 If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder,
Deu 13:2 And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them;
Deu 13:3 Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the LORD your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul.
Deu 13:4 Ye shall walk after the LORD your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto him.
Deu 13:5 And that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams, shall be put to death; because he hath spoken to turn you away from the LORD your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed you out of the house of bondage, to thrust thee out of the way which the LORD thy God commanded thee to walk in. So shalt thou put the evil away from the midst of thee.

In Christ we are to “love our enemies [ and] turn to him the other cheek also”. Nevertheless this is how we are now to deal with such false prophets who would have us to forsake our own Lord in exchange for avoiding persecution in a heathen society which still uses the name ‘Christian’:

Mat 18:15 Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother.
Mat 18:16 But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.
Mat 18:17 And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican.

Paul reiterates this same process:

Tit 3:10 A man that is an heretick after the first and second admonition reject;
Tit 3:11 Knowing that he that is such is subverted, and sinneth, being condemned of himself.

“We who are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak” who “eats herbs, [and] esteems one day above another”. We all are in the process of living our lives after the traditions of men when we first hear about the True Shepherd. The Lord received us “while we were yet sinners”, but He commands us to “come out of her my people, that you partake not of her sins” (Rev 18:4), and we are told to “receive… them that are weak in the faith”, but in the very same verse we are told that “We that are strong” are not to permit “them that are weak in the faith” to ‘argue about discernments’. The King James says “not to doubtful disputations”, but that is not what the Greek says.

Rom 14:1 Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations [ not to arguing about discernments].

So we let those who are still observing days continue to do so, as long as they are not attempting to argue that following the traditions of men is ‘the strong meat of the Word’. If that were so, then Christ most certainly would not have left us the pattern of breaking the weekly sabbath (Mat 12:1-8 and Joh 5:18).

1Pe 2:21 For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:

I hope that I have given you a better understanding of how we are called to “possess the land which the Lord has given [ us].” We do so by following His example and walking in His footsteps.

Your brother in Christ,

Mike