Rev 11: 15-19, Part 1 – The Seventh Trumpet

[Study Aired Nov 10, 2024]

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.
Rev 11:16  And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God,
Rev 11:17  Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned.
Rev 11:18  And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.
Rev 11:19  And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.

Introduction

There is an emphasis on this seventh trumpet which we have not seen on any of the other seals or trumpets and which will not be seen in any of the coming seven plagues. Except for this seventh trumpet, all the seals, trumpets, and vials are all introduced and then immediately described. Here are a couple examples each of both the seals and the trumpets:

Here are the first two seals:

Rev 6:1  And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see.
Rev 6:2  And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.
Rev 6:3  And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see.
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.

Here are the first two trumpets:

Rev 8:6  And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound.
Rev 8:7  The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up.
Rev 8:8  And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood;

That is the way all the seals and the trumpets are introduced, all except this seventh trumpet. Like Joshua’s seventh trumpet, this ‘seventh trumpet’ is much more productive than all the previous six trumpets. Here is that contrast in the story of Joshua’s seven trumpets as Israel terrifies Jericho for seven days:

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.
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.

This is the only part of this revelation of Jesus Christ which is first alluded to with great anticipation in chapter ten:

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.

Then it is introduced and announced a second time here in chapter 11, but this introduction and announcement is separated from the complete revelation of the details of this seventh trumpet by chapters 12-15. We will not see what this seventh trumpet actually is until we get to chapter 16 where the seven vials which fill up the wrath of God begin to be poured out upon the Lord’s elect. So, this grand introduction is separated from the chapter which describes its actual fulfillment by five whole chapters – chapters 11-15. Why is this seventh trumpet given such a magnificent and portentous introduction? It is because of what this trumpet portends. Look at what we are told occurs at the sounding of this trumpet:

The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ;

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.

As always, this is to be viewed primarily with spiritual “eyes within”. The primary meaning of this verse to those who would “read, hear and keep the things written in the words of this prophecy” has to do with the destruction of the kingdom of the beast and the kingdom of the “man of sin” who sits on the throne of God within the hearts and minds of God’s elect. While it may sound like this is an instantaneous event, the campaign of the land by Joshua and Israel, along with the fact that there are five whole chapters between “the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound” (Rev 10:7), and the description of the seven last plagues which fill up the wrath of God in chapter 16 demonstrates clearly that this trumpet and the things that it portends are a process of which the “begins to sound” of this seventh trumpet is merely the beginning. “The seventh angel sounded” is in the aorist tense. “There were great voices in heaven” is in the aorist tense, and “The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord and His Christ” is also in the aorist tense. What that tells us is that this seventh trumpet, which is the seven last plagues which fill up the wrath of God against our rebellious, self-righteous old man is the process of the decrease and daily death of our old “man of sin” and the birth and increase and life of our “second man Adam… Christ within us, the hope of glory”.

Col 1:26  Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:
Col 1:27  To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:

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.

While the natural man sees the story of the fall of Jericho as a lesson in the history of Joshua’s and Israel’s conquest of the land, the mind of the spirit sees that story as the commencement of the campaign of entering into “the kingdom of God within you” through much tribulation, chastening and scourging, which will on a daily basis eventually effectuate the destruction of our old man by decreasing the giants in the land, which ‘land’ signifies our hearts and minds within our ‘vessels of clay’ earthly bodies.

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
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.

The whole of Babylon recognizes that Israel’s journey out of Egypt is a type and a shadow signifying the Lord’s people coming out of this world of sin. The churches of Babylon understand the crossing of the Red Sea and the Jordan River, signify our baptism into the death of Christ and our own dying to sin. But that is as far as they can go. They have not been given to see that the giants in the land are a type of persistent sin in our lives, with which we were not prepared to do battle when we first came out of Egypt. This is to be a long and drawn out battle, to be fought in the land of promise.

Exo 23:30 By little and little I will drive them out from before thee, until thou be increased, and inherit the land.

Deu 7:22  And the LORD thy God will put out those nations before thee by little and little: thou mayest not consume them at once, lest the beasts of the field increase upon thee.

“Until you be increased” means until “Christ in you…” is increased to begin to rule over all of the enemies of the Lord’s people. Here is this same spiritual statement in the New Testament:

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

1Co 15:31  I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.

So the sounding of these seven trumpets is our introduction to the beginning of the campaign of the land in which Christ must increase as the giants within us are decreased and destroyed “by little and by little”. These trumpets are not at the end of this campaign, they are at the beginning, right after we have come out of the wilderness of Babylon and have begun to subdue the land of promise. Notice the “seven trumpets” in each account:

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.

Who do these “seven priests” symbolize? They symbolize the seven priests who are also called “seven angels” here in the book of the revelation of Jesus Christ. Where are these seven angels called priests? Here are the verses which make that clear:

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 19:10  And I fell at his feet to worship him [“One of the seven angels”]. 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.

Where are these seven angels called priests? They are called priests with seven trumpets in Joshua 6:4. These seven angels tell us they signify our fellowservants, they tell us they signify our brothers and them which keep the sayings of this book, but where are they called priests? Here is where they are called priests. Here is who the seven priests with seven trumpets in Jos 6 foreshadow and symbolize.

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.

Only those who are given “a new name” are aware of that name, and only those who are these seven angels are aware that they are God’s seven priests with seven trumpets. It is we who are fellowservants who are keeping the things written in the book of this prophecy:

Rev 2:17  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.

Rev 3:12  Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.

The word ‘kingdoms’ in Revelation 11:15 is the Greek word ‘basileia’. It is Strong’s number G932, and we are told in Strong’s that it comes from G935. It appears in the New Testament 164 times, and the King James Concordance has it translated in the singular 158 of those 164. I have 28 English translations on my e- sword, and of those 28 only five use the plural here in this verse. All the other 23 have this in the singular.

In Rev 18 we have both G932 and G935 in the same verse, so we will look at that verse to get a sense of how this word ‘basileia’ is to be understood.

Rev 17:18  And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth [932] over the kings [935] of the earth.

Here G932 is translated ‘reigns.’ So it appears that the thought of this verse in Rev 11:15 is that the reigning or rulership this world has become the reigning and rulership of our Lord and His Christ. Adhering to Rev 1:3 telling us to “keep the things written therein”, this verse is nothing less than another way of saying what these verses tell us:

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

Col 1:26  [Even] the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:
Col 1:27  To whom God would make known what [is] the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:

Our Lord and His Christ

“Our Lord and His Christ” are right now sitting together on the throne of God because Christ has taken His proper position on His throne in the heavens in our hearts and minds. Of course it is all the work of God, but it is He who has declared that we are seated with Him on His throne, ruling the kingdoms of this world.

Eph 2:6  And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly [places] in Christ Jesus:

Here is Eph 2:6 in the International Standard Version:

Eph 2:6 raised us up with him, and seated us with him in the heavenly realm in Christ Jesus, (ISV)

Where is Christ seated?

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.

What a great and precious promise we are now granted, in Christ. We are, even now, in earnest, overcomers in Christ who can sit with Christ on His Father’s throne in the heavenly realm, and “the kingdoms of this world are even now, in earnest, become the kingdoms of our Lord and His Christ”, because He is now living His life within us, “His Christ”, and He has subdued, and is now reigning over, the kingdom of this world within us.

This phrase “His Christ” refers to those who Christ has anointed and sent forth just as His Father anointed and sent Him forth. Christ’s Father sent Him to be the savior of this world, and Christ has sent us forth to do the same job.

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.

Here are Christ’s own words concerning our calling.

Joh 20:21  Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.

Christ was with His Father even while He was on this earth, just as we are seated with Him in His Father’s throne while we are on this earth.

Joh 3:12  If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?
Joh 3:13  And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.

It is while we are in these clay vessels that we possess this treasure in earnest. It is while we are in these vessels of clay that we are seated with Christ in His Father’s throne in earnest, and it is in these earthen vessels that we are given to rule this kingdom in earnest, “that the power may be of God, and not of us.”

Eph 1:12  That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.
Eph 1:13  In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
Eph 1:14  Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

Luk 22:29 And I appoint [present tense] unto you a kingdom, as my Father hath appointed [aorist] unto me;

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

This is all accomplished through Christ being in us and living His life of being rejected and persecuted within our flesh. This is the secret which has been, and is still, hidden from all the generations of mankind, except for those “His saints” in whom Christ dwells.

Col 1:26  Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:
Col 1:27  To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:

What does “Christ in you” mean? This is what that means. It is two verses earlier.

Col 1:24  Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:

Like our own Savior, we too, are called to “fall into the ground and die, to die daily, to be buried with Him in baptism, and to be raised up together with Him to be sent forth as His Father has sent Him to becomes “saviors upon Mount Zion…”

Oba 1:21  And saviours shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the LORD’S.

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.

“The kingdom shall be the Lord’s”, but Christ is now “both Lord and Christ”.

Act 2:36  Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.

That is a very important verse of scripture, because Christ is now “both Lord and Christ” signifies that through Christ that we too, are ‘Christed’ and are His anointed, “His Christ”. The Lord has told us that He has sent us just as His Father sent Him. Since His Father gave Him a kingdom and since His Father sent Christ to be the Savior of this world, Christ in turn has given us a kingdom and has sent us to be “Saviors upon Mount Zion”. That is why we read that “the kingdom of this world is become the kingdom of our Lord and His Christ”, and that is why we see the phrase “His Christ” three times in the New Testament.

Act 4:26  The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ.

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.

Rev 12:10  And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.

The point that is being made is the preeminence of this seventh trumpet. If we do not live out these plagues of this trumpet in this age we will not be in the first resurrection:

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.

“NOW is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God and the power of His Christ”. This inheritance is all ours even now in down payment form:

Eph 1:14  Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

In our next study we will concentrate on the urgency of living out this seventh trumpet:

Mat 24:32  Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh:
Mat 24:33  So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.
Mat 24:34  Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.

Rev 12:10  And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.

Jer 48:32-47  Yet Will I Bring Again the Captivity of Moab in the Latter Days

[Study Aired August 21, 2022]

Jer 48:32  O vine of Sibmah, I will weep for thee with the weeping of Jazer: thy plants are gone over the sea, they reach even to the sea of Jazer: the spoiler is fallen upon thy summer fruits and upon thy vintage.
Jer 48:33  And joy and gladness is taken from the plentiful field, and from the land of Moab; and I have caused wine to fail from the winepresses: none shall tread with shouting; their shouting shall be no shouting.
Jer 48:34  From the cry of Heshbon even unto Elealeh, and even unto Jahaz, have they uttered their voice, from Zoar even unto Horonaim, as an heifer of three years old: for the waters also of Nimrim shall be desolate.
Jer 48:35  Moreover I will cause to cease in Moab, saith the LORD, him that offereth in the high places, and him that burneth incense to his gods.
Jer 48:36  Therefore mine heart shall sound for Moab like pipes, and mine heart shall sound like pipes for the men of Kirheres: because the riches that he hath gotten are perished.
Jer 48:37  For every head shall be bald, and every beard clipped: upon all the hands shall be cuttings, and upon the loins sackcloth.
Jer 48:38  There shall be lamentation generally upon all the housetops of Moab, and in the streets thereof: for I have broken Moab like a vessel wherein is no pleasure, saith the LORD.
Jer 48:39  They shall howl, saying, How is it broken down! how hath Moab turned the back with shame! so shall Moab be a derision and a dismaying to all them about him.
Jer 48:40  For thus saith the LORD; Behold, he shall fly as an eagle, and shall spread his wings over Moab.
Jer 48:41  Kerioth is taken, and the strong holds are surprised, and the mighty men’s hearts in Moab at that day shall be as the heart of a woman in her pangs.
Jer 48:42  And Moab shall be destroyed from being a people, because he hath magnified himself against the LORD.
Jer 48:43  Fear, and the pit, and the snare, shall be upon thee, O inhabitant of Moab, saith the LORD.
Jer 48:44  He that fleeth from the fear shall fall into the pit; and he that getteth up out of the pit shall be taken in the snare: for I will bring upon it, even upon Moab, the year of their visitation, saith the LORD.
Jer 48:45  They that fled stood under the shadow of Heshbon because of the force: but a fire shall come forth out of Heshbon, and a flame from the midst of Sihon, and shall devour the corner of Moab, and the crown of the head of the tumultuous ones.
Jer 48:46  Woe be unto thee, O Moab! the people of Chemosh perisheth: for thy sons are taken captives, and thy daughters captives.
Jer 48:47  Yet will I bring again the captivity of Moab in the latter days, saith the LORD. Thus far is the judgment of Moab.

Sibmah is an area of Moab known for its vineyards and for the treading of its grapes. Jazer is similar to Sibmah and has already been broken and destroyed by the Babylonians. “Thy plants” signify the people and doctrines of Sibmah which have held dominion over us for so long and are now being judged and destroyed by the spoiler.

Jer 48:32  O vine of Sibmah, I will weep for thee with the weeping of Jazer: thy plants are gone over the sea, they reach even to the sea of Jazer: the spoiler is fallen upon thy summer fruits and upon thy vintage.

As we saw with the stories of Abraham mourning the loss of Ishmael and King David mourning the death of King Saul, it is proper that we never rejoice when we see our enemy fall, and that we mourn with those who mourn.

Gen 17:18  And Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might live before thee!

2Sa 1:17  And David lamented with this lamentation over Saul and over Jonathan his son:
2Sa 1:18  (Also he bade them teach the children of Judah the use of the bow: behold, it is written in the book of Jasher.)

Rom 12:15  Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.

The ‘summer fruits and…vintage’ of both Jazer and Sibmah are the fruits of her proud lies and false doctrines to which we have attached ourselves with so much pride that we of ourselves cannot humble ourselves to let go of their deadly affect upon us. Therefore:

Jer 48:33  And joy and gladness is taken from the plentiful field, and from the land of Moab; and I have caused wine to fail from the winepresses: none shall tread with shouting; their shouting shall be no shouting.

“Their shouting shall be no more shouting” is the same as saying:

Mat 6:22  The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.
Mat 6:23  But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!

Luk 11:34  The light of the body is the eye: therefore when thine eye is single, thy whole body also is full of light; but when thine eye is evil, thy body also is full of darkness.
Luk 11:35  Take heed therefore that the light which is in thee be not darkness.

If we think that darkness within us is light, then our shouting will not be shouting. Rather it will be weeping and mourning for the loss of the kingdom of our old man. Our own wickedness will correct us:

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

Moab within us claims he fears the Lord, yet he ignores the Lord’s word and the Lord’s ways.

As an example of light being darkness, anyone who thinks that the modern ‘Book of Jasher’ is anything but spurious heresy is in deep darkness while thinking they are in the light. When we read:

2Sa 1:18  (Also he bade them teach the children of Judah the use of the bow: behold, it is written in the book of Jasher.)

“…It is written in the book of Jasher” should never be understood and meaning ‘…it is written in the modern, spurious ‘book of Jasher’. The same goes for the Book of Enoch which is not in our view at this moment. For any who think the book of Jasher is authentic just take the time to read chapters 53-54 which purport to give us the story of Joseph and his brothers. The book of Jasher chapters 51-54 retell the story of Joseph’s brothers appearing before him in Egypt, and in this retelling, these chapters add much to “that which is written” in the True written word of God.

Here is a short cut and paste from chapter 51:

“37 And Joseph went out from them and came into the chamber, and wept a great weeping, for his pity was excited for them, and he washed his face, and returned to them again, and he took Simeon from them and ordered him to be bound, but Simeon was not willing to be done so, for he was a very powerful man and they could not bind him.
38 And Joseph called unto his mighty men and seventy valiant men came before him with drawn swords in their hands, and the sons of Jacob were terrified at them.
39 And Joseph said unto them, Seize this man and confine him in prison until his brethren come to him, and Joseph’s valiant men hastened and they all laid hold of Simeon to bind him, and Simeon gave a loud and terrible shriek and the cry was heard at a distance.
40 And all the valiant men of Joseph were terrified at the sound of the shriek, that they fell upon their faces, and they were greatly afraid and fled.
41 And all the men that were with Joseph fled, for they were greatly afraid of their lives, and only Joseph and Manasseh his son remained there, and Manassah the son of Joseph saw the strength of Simeon, and he was exceedingly wroth.
42 And Manassah the son of Joseph rose up to Simeon, and Manassah smote Simeon a heavy blow with his fist against the back of his neck, and Simeon was stilled of his rage.
43 And Manassah laid hold of Simeon and he seized him violently and he bound him and brought him into the house of confinement, and all the sons of Jacob were astonished at the act of the youth.” (End Quote)

I do not believe that I am the only one who hears “the voice of a stranger” in these words of this obviously spurious ‘book of Jasher’. According to this book, Judah took a stone ‘the weight of 400 shekels’ (ten pounds) and threw it up in the air with one hand and caught it with the other hand and then sat upon it and crushed it to powder. Then Joseph had Manasseh his son to do the same trick. Then Judah and Simeon threaten to destroy all of Egypt. Here is verse 35 of chapter 54:

“And Joseph was greatly afraid at the words of his brethren lest they should destroy Egypt…” (End Quote)

It is a book of total fantasy wrapped up in many verses taken right out of the Bible and millions of nominal Christians are deceived by such spurious heresy. Equally false stories abound throughout this book and throughout the equally spurious Book of Enoch. The books mentioned in scripture are not those which have been invented by unprincipled men to masquerade as books of scripture. Christ’s sheep know His voice, and none of these books, regardless of their antiquity, have the voice of Christ within them:

Joh 10:4  And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice.
Joh 10:5  And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.

As ‘proud Moab’ all our lying false doctrines are revealed for what they are, and yet it is proper that we mourn the death and destruction of Moab just as King David mourned the death of King Saul recounting King Saul’s many wonderful works:

2Sa 1:17  And David lamented with this lamentation over Saul and over Jonathan his son:
2Sa 1:18  (Also he bade them teach the children of Judah the use of the bow: behold, it is written in the book of Jasher.)
2Sa 1:19  The beauty of Israel is slain upon thy high places: how are the mighty fallen!
2Sa 1:20  Tell it not in Gath, publish it not in the streets of Askelon; lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice, lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph.
2Sa 1:21  Ye mountains of Gilboa, let there be no dew, neither let there be rain, upon you, nor fields of offerings: for there the shield of the mighty is vilely cast away, the shield of Saul, as though he had not been anointed with oil.
2Sa 1:22  From the blood of the slain, from the fat of the mighty, the bow of Jonathan turned not back, and the sword of Saul returned not empty.
2Sa 1:23  Saul and Jonathan were lovely and pleasant in their lives, and in their death they were not divided: they were swifter than eagles, they were stronger than lions.
2Sa 1:24  Ye daughters of Israel, weep over Saul, who clothed you in scarlet, with other delights, who put on ornaments of gold upon your apparel.
2Sa 1:25  How are the mighty fallen in the midst of the battle! O Jonathan, thou wast slain in thine high places.
2Sa 1:26  I am distressed for thee, my brother Jonathan: very pleasant hast thou been unto me: thy love to me was wonderful, passing the love of women.
2Sa 1:27  How are the mighty fallen, and the weapons of war perished!

Three times King David laments “How are the mighty fallen”, and he does so regarding the Lord’s rejected anointed.

King Saul has a closer relationship to Abraham’s seed than Moab has, nevertheless both are of Abraham’s family, and both must be judged. King Saul’s judgment will be more severe than Moab because he typifies those who were given more and therefore are expected to produce more:

Luk 12:47  And that servant, which knew his lord’s will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes.
Luk 12:48  But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.

We have “all sinned and come short of the glory of God”, and His fiery words will try every man’s work of what sort they are:

Rom 3:23  For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

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.

Jer 48:34  From the cry of Heshbon even unto Elealeh, and even unto Jahaz, have they uttered their voice, from Zoar even unto Horonaim, as an heifer of three years old: for the waters also of Nimrim shall be desolate.

Isaiah 15 contains this same lamentation for Moab and Zoar:

Isa 15:5  My heart shall cry out for Moab; his fugitives shall flee unto Zoar, an heifer of three years old: for by the mounting up of Luhith with weeping shall they go it up; for in the way of Horonaim they shall raise up a cry of destruction.

Zoar is the very city to which Moab’s father Lot, and his mother, Lot’s oldest daughter, and her younger sister, Lot’s two daughters fled before leaving Zoar to live in a cave:

Gen 19:15  And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city.
Gen 19:16  And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the LORD being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth, and set him without the city.
Gen 19:17  And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed.
Gen 19:18  And Lot said unto them, Oh, not so, my Lord:
Gen 19:19  Behold now, thy servant hath found grace in thy sight, and thou hast magnified thy mercy, which thou hast shewed unto me in saving my life; and I cannot escape to the mountain, lest some evil take me, and I die:
Gen 19:20  Behold now, this city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one: Oh, let me escape thither, (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live.
Gen 19:21  And he said unto him, See, I have accepted thee concerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow this city, for the which thou hast spoken.
Gen 19:22  Haste thee, escape thither; for I cannot do any thing till thou be come thither. Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar [meaning ‘little’].

Isa 15:6  For the waters of Nimrim shall be desolate: for the hay is withered away, the grass faileth, there is no green thing.
Isa 15:7  Therefore the abundance they have gotten, and that which they have laid up, shall they carry away to the brook of the willows.
Isa 15:8  For the cry is gone round about the borders of Moab; the howling thereof unto Eglaim, and the howling thereof unto Beerelim.
Isa 15:9  For the waters of Dimon shall be full of blood: for I will bring more upon Dimon, lions upon him that escapeth of Moab, and upon the remnant of the land.

“An heifer of three years old” is a mature cow with a strong voice, whose lowing can be heard by all who are anywhere near. The Lord Himself will bring ‘lions’ upon Moab in the form of the merciless Chaldeans.

Jer 48:35  Moreover I will cause to cease in Moab, saith the LORD, him that offereth in the high places, and him that burneth incense to his gods.

In terms to which we can relate, the Lord will cause all the holidays which were celebrated in the pagan ‘high places’ to no longer be tolerated, and the gods of the holidays of Moab will be destroyed. Chemosh will be destroyed and “caused to cease”.

Jer 48:36  Therefore mine heart shall sound for Moab like pipes, and mine heart shall sound like pipes for the men of Kirheres: because the riches that he hath gotten are perished.

Pipes were sounded at funerals and at times of great mourning, and Kirheres had been a very wealthy city which is now “perished” with all her riches. Our riches are our doctrines, and that is where our hearts are:

Mat 6:19  Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:
Mat 6:20  But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
Mat 6:21  For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

Jer 48:37  For every head shall be bald, and every beard clipped: upon all the hands shall be cuttings, and upon the loins sackcloth.

All these are rituals associated with a great mourning. Moab is so far from God that cuttings were common even though the Lord had told Israel:

Deu 14:1  Ye are the children of the LORD your God: ye shall not cut yourselves, nor make any baldness between your eyes for the dead.
Deu 14:2  For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God, and the LORD hath chosen thee to be a peculiar people unto himself, above all the nations that are upon the earth.

Jer 48:38  There shall be lamentation generally upon all the housetops of Moab, and in the streets thereof: for I have broken Moab like a vessel wherein is no pleasure, saith the LORD.
Jer 48:39  They [You and I] shall howl, saying, How is it broken down! how hath Moab turned the back with shame! so shall Moab be a derision and a dismaying to all them about him. [We come to loath our own shame (Eze 20:43)]
Jer 48:40  For thus saith the LORD; Behold, he shall fly as an eagle, and shall spread his wings over Moab.
Jer 48:41  Kerioth is taken, and the strong holds are surprised, and the mighty men’s hearts in Moab at that day shall be as the heart of a woman in her pangs.
Jer 48:42  And Moab shall be destroyed from being a people, because he hath magnified himself against the LORD.
Jer 48:43  Fear, and the pit, and the snare, shall be upon thee, O inhabitant of Moab, saith the LORD.
Jer 48:44  He that fleeth from the fear shall fall into the pit; and he that getteth up out of the pit shall be taken in the snare: for I will bring upon it, even upon Moab, the year of their visitation, saith the LORD.
Jer 48:45  They that fled stood under the shadow of Heshbon because of the force: but a fire shall come forth out of Heshbon, and a flame from the midst of Sihon, and shall devour the corner of Moab, and the crown of the head of the tumultuous ones.

“Fire shall come forth out of Heshbon” is the same prophecy Gideon’s son made against his brother, Abimelech, who was of the city of Shechem and who had slain 70 of his brothers, the sons of Gideon:

Jdg 9:20  But if not, let fire come out from Abimelech, and devour the men of Shechem, and the house of Millo; and let fire come out from the men of Shechem, and from the house of Millo, and devour Abimelech.

Jdg 9:23  Then God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem; and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech:

Jer 48:46  Woe be unto thee, O Moab! the people of Chemosh perisheth: for thy sons are taken captives, and thy daughters captives.

Chemosh is the god of the Moabites. This is what we read earlier in this same chapter:

Jer 48:7  For because thou hast trusted in thy works and in thy treasures, thou shalt also be taken: and Chemosh shall go forth into captivity with his priests and his princes together.

Chemosh has been letting Moab down for many years, including many years before Israel came up out of Egypt. This is what Moses had to say of Chemosh and his people, Moab:

Num 21:25  And Israel took all these cities: and Israel dwelt in all the cities of the Amorites, in Heshbon, and in all the villages thereof.
Num 21:26  For Heshbon was the city of Sihon the king of the Amorites, who had fought against the former king of Moab, and taken all his land out of his hand, even unto Arnon.
Num 21:27  Wherefore they that speak in proverbs say, Come into Heshbon, let the city of Sihon be built and prepared:
Num 21:28  For there is a fire gone out of Heshbon, a flame from the city of Sihon: it hath consumed Ar of Moab, and the lords of the high places of Arnon.
Num 21:29  Woe to thee, Moab! thou art undone, O people of Chemosh: he hath given his sons that escaped, and his daughters, into captivity unto Sihon king of the Amorites.
Num 21:30  We have shot at them; Heshbon is perished even unto Dibon, and we have laid them waste even unto Nophah, which reacheth unto Medeba.

Chemosh is called “the abomination of the Moabites when listing the gods to whom King Solomon built temples in Jerusalem:

1Ki 11:7  Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon.
1Ki 11:8  And likewise did he for all his strange wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods.

The Lord had given King Solomon more than He had given the Moabites; more riches, more knowledge and more carnal wisdom, and yet we read:

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.
1Ki 11:5  For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.
1Ki 11:6  And Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and went not fully after the LORD, as did David his father.

Moab is our proud flesh which is being judged in this age. King Solomon in his old age typifies those who become the same as King Saul who was the Lord’s rejected anointed, for whom it will be worse ‘in that day’ than it will be for Sodom:

Luk 10:10  But into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you not, go your ways out into the streets of the same, and say,
Luk 10:11  Even the very dust of your city, which cleaveth on us, we do wipe off against you: notwithstanding be ye sure of this, that the kingdom of God is come nigh unto you.
Luk 10:12  But I say unto you, that it shall be more tolerable in that day for Sodom, than for that city.

Here is the Lord’s conclusion after all this denunciation and destruction of Moab:

Jer 48:47  Yet will I bring again the captivity of Moab in the latter days, saith the LORD. Thus far is the judgment of Moab.

‘Bring Again The Captivity’

This phrase “bring again the captivity” is found in reference to several nations in scripture. It is most often mentioned in reference to Israel being brought back to their God, but it is also used in referring to other nations:

Jer 29:14  And I will be found of you [“captives from Jerusalem], saith the LORD: and I will turn away your captivity, and I will gather you from all the nations, and from all the places whither I have driven you, saith the LORD; and I will bring you again into the place whence I caused you to be carried away captive.

Jer 30:3  For, lo, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will bring again the captivity of my people Israel and Judah, saith the LORD: and I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it.

Jer 30:18  Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will bring again the captivity of Jacob’s tents, and have mercy on his dwellingplaces; and the city shall be builded upon her own heap, and the palace shall remain after the manner thereof.

Jer 31:23  Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; As yet they shall use this speech in the land of Judah and in the cities thereof, when I shall bring again their captivity; The LORD bless thee, O habitation of justice, and mountain of holiness.

Jer 33:11  The voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the voice of them that shall say, Praise the LORD of hosts: for the LORD is good; for his mercy endureth for ever: and of them that shall bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the LORD. For I will cause to return the captivity of the land, as at the first, saith the LORD.

Jer 48:47  Yet will I bring again the captivity of Moab in the latter days, saith the LORD. Thus far is the judgment of Moab.

Jer 49:6  And afterward I will bring again the captivity of the children of Ammon, saith the LORD.

Jer 49:39  But it shall come to pass in the latter days, that I will bring again the captivity of Elam, saith the LORD.

Eze 16:53  When I shall bring again their captivity, the captivity of Sodom and her daughters, and the captivity of Samaria and her daughters, then will I bring again the captivity of thy captives in the midst of them:

Eze 29:14  And I will bring again the captivity of Egypt, and will cause them to return into the land of Pathros, into the land of their habitation; and they shall be there a base kingdom.

Eze 39:25  Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Now will I bring again the captivity of Jacob, and have mercy upon the whole house of Israel, and will be jealous for my holy name;

Joe 3:1  For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem,

Amo 9:14  And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them.

Zep 3:20  At that time will I bring you again, even in the time that I gather you: for I will make you a name and a praise among all people of the earth, when I turn back your captivity before your eyes, saith the LORD.

Here we have 13 verses with the words ‘bring again the captivity’ in them. Of these 13 verses, 9 of them refer to the Lord’s people Israel. The remaining four refer to Moab, Ammon, Elam, and Egypt. Applying the principle of living by every word, we must acknowledge that Moab, Ammon, Elam, and Egypt are also within the first man Adam who is within every man, especially ourselves first and foremost. Like the seven churches with their various sins and transgressions, at the end of each admonition we are told:

Rev 2:7  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.

Rev 2:11  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.

Rev 2:17  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.

Rev 2:29  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

Rev 3:6  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

Rev 3:13  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

Rev 3:22  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

‘Hearing’ and ‘seeing’ are two ways of saying the same thing:

Mat 24:15  When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand: )

We simply cannot understand unless we are given eyes that see and ears that hear the mysteries of the kingdom of God:

Mat 13:9  Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.
Mat 13:10  And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables?
Mat 13:11  He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.
Mat 13:12  For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.
Mat 13:13  Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.
Mat 13:14  And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive:
Mat 13:15  For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.
Mat 13:16  But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.
Mat 13:17  For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men 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.

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

When Christ tells us “Many prophets and righteous men 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”, He is telling us that all the prophets and righteous men of the Old Testament weren’t even ministering to themselves. Instead, they were all ministering to us, and they “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”.

It is given to the apostle Peter to place our salvation in the period following Christ’s coming to die for our sins. For that reason, salvation was completely unavailable to anyone in the Old Testament until they come up in the great white throne judgment:

1Pe 1:9  Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.
1Pe 1:10  Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you:
1Pe 1:11  Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.
1Pe 1:12  Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.

The fact that the holy spirit tells us the Old Testament prophets prophesied of the grace that would come to us, “Not unto themselves, but unto us…” makes clear the primary meaning of that oft repeated phrase “bring again the captivity” refers first and primarily to those who are in Christ in this present time who will be revealed as “the manifestation of the sons of God” at the resurrection of life, which is also called “the… blessed and holy… first resurrection”, which “manner of time” is at the end of this dispensation of grace, and at the beginning of the thousand-year reign of “our Lord and His Christ… with a rod of iron”:

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.

Psa 2:8  Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession.
Psa 2:9  Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.

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 12:5  And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.

Rev 19:15  And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.

We live in faith those words are true, and we give our lives in service to the Truth of this promise:

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.

With all of this in mind it becomes clear that ‘bringing again the captivity of Moab’, yes, even ‘Moab’, applies primarily to the Lord’s elect first and foremost. It is our false God ‘Chemosh’, the man of sin within us, whom we worship, and who must be the first to die to himself. Through that death and destruction come forth unto life “more abundant” and not ‘bring again our captivity… with Sodom and her daughters’ (Eze 16:53) just to be “a base nation… there”.

Eze 29:14  And I will bring again the captivity of Egypt, and will cause them to return into the land of Pathros, into the land of their habitation; and they shall be there a base kingdom.

Therefore, in closing it is very important that we realize that ‘bringing again the captivity’ of some nations reveals the “manner of time”, and the glory of the particular resurrection which is under consideration (1Co 15:41-42).

1Co 15:41  There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars: for one star differeth from another star in glory.
1Co 15:42  So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption:

If Sodom is brought back from her captivity and also Samaria, and we are told that ‘Jerusalem and her daughters’ are among those of Sodom and her daughters, then that is a qualifying statement which tells us that this ‘Jerusalem’ is the ‘Jerusalem’ which is now and is in bondage with her children and who answers to Hagar the bondwoman and to her son “the son of the bondwoman” who will “not be made heir with the son of the free woman”.

To state this as clearly as possible:

Eze 16:53  When I shall bring again their captivity, the captivity of Sodom and her daughters, and the captivity of Samaria and her daughters, then will I bring again the captivity of thy captives in the midst of them: [“Thy captives” referring to “Jerusalem which now is and is in bondage with her children… not… made heirs with the children of the free woman” (Gal 4:30-31)]

Both the 144,000 firstfruits unto God and the Lamb and the great multitude which no man can number are brought again from their captivity and wash their robes white in the blood of the Lamb. However, the great multitude is not the firstfruits to God and the Lamb, and the great multitude which no man can number are instead “the rest of the dead” of:

Rev 20:4  And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them [144,000 firstfruits], 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 [verse 4] 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.

Here is the earlier prophecy of those who will reign with Christ for a thousand years:

Rev 2:26  And he that overcometh [in “this present time” Rom 8:18], 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.

It is the “firstfruits unto God and the Lamb” who will rule with Him a thousand years:

Rev 14:1  And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father’s name written in their foreheads.
Rev 14:2  And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps:
Rev 14:3  And they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth.
Rev 14:4  These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb.

These “firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb” are numbered as 144,000, to be contrasted with:

Rev 7:9  After this [After revealing to us the 144,000 firstfruits] I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;
Rev 7:10  And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb.
Rev 7:11  And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God,
Rev 7:12  Saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen.
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 [the great white throne judgment/lake of fire/second death], 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.

Being “before the throne of God” and sitting with Christ in His throne are two very distinct rewards, and it is our hope to be with, and sit with Christ in His Father’s throne and not suffer the loss of that blessing, while still being saved through the fire of His Word:

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

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.

We are the children of the freewoman, and those who are not the children of the freewoman will not be made heir of the kingdom of God which will reign over the kingdoms of the world for a thousand years and then “judge angels” in the great white throne judgment/lake of fire/second death.

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.

1Ki 14:1-31 “…He revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets” (Amo 3:7)

[Study Aired April 14, 2022]

1Ki 14:1  At that time Abijah the son of Jeroboam fell sick. 
1Ki 14:2  And Jeroboam said to his wife, Arise, I pray thee, and disguise thyself, that thou be not known to be the wife of Jeroboam; and get thee to Shiloh: behold, there is Ahijah the prophet, which told me that I should be king over this people. 
1Ki 14:3  And take with thee ten loaves, and cracknels, and a cruse of honey, and go to him: he shall tell thee what shall become of the child. 
1Ki 14:4  And Jeroboam’s wife did so, and arose, and went to Shiloh, and came to the house of Ahijah. But Ahijah could not see; for his eyes were set by reason of his age. 
1Ki 14:5  And the LORD said unto Ahijah, Behold, the wife of Jeroboam cometh to ask a thing of thee for her son; for he is sick: thus and thus shalt thou say unto her: for it shall be, when she cometh in, that she shall feign herself to be another woman. 
1Ki 14:6  And it was so, when Ahijah heard the sound of her feet, as she came in at the door, that he said, Come in, thou wife of Jeroboam; why feignest thou thyself to be another? for I am sent to thee with heavy tidings. 
1Ki 14:7  Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Forasmuch as I exalted thee from among the people, and made thee prince over my people Israel, 
1Ki 14:8  And rent the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave it thee: and yet thou hast not been as my servant David, who kept my commandments, and who followed me with all his heart, to do that only which was right in mine eyes; 
1Ki 14:9  But hast done evil above all that were before thee: for thou hast gone and made thee other gods, and molten images, to provoke me to anger, and hast cast me behind thy back: 
1Ki 14:10  Therefore, behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel, and will take away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as a man taketh away dung, till it be all gone. 
1Ki 14:11  Him that dieth of Jeroboam in the city shall the dogs eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the air eat: for the LORD hath spoken it. 
1Ki 14:12  Arise thou therefore, get thee to thine own house: and when thy feet enter into the city, the child shall die. 
1Ki 14:13  And all Israel shall mourn for him, and bury him: for he only of Jeroboam shall come to the grave, because in him there is found some good thing toward the LORD God of Israel in the house of Jeroboam. 
1Ki 14:14  Moreover the LORD shall raise him up a king over Israel, who shall cut off the house of Jeroboam that day: but what? even now. 
1Ki 14:15  For the LORD shall smite Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water, and he shall root up Israel out of this good land, which he gave to their fathers, and shall scatter them beyond the river, because they have made their groves, provoking the LORD to anger. 
1Ki 14:16  And he shall give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, who did sin, and who made Israel to sin. 
1Ki 14:17  And Jeroboam’s wife arose, and departed, and came to Tirzah: and when she came to the threshold of the door, the child died; 
1Ki 14:18  And they buried him; and all Israel mourned for him, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by the hand of his servant Ahijah the prophet. 
1Ki 14:19  And the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, how he warred, and how he reigned, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel. 
1Ki 14:20  And the days which Jeroboam reigned were two and twenty years: and he slept with his fathers, and Nadab his son reigned in his stead. 
1Ki 14:21  And Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was forty and one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the LORD did choose out of all the tribes of Israel, to put his name there. And his mother’s name was Naamah an Ammonitess. 
1Ki 14:22  And Judah did evil in the sight of the LORD, and they provoked him to jealousy with their sins which they had committed, above all that their fathers had done. 
1Ki 14:23  For they also built them high places, and images, and groves, on every high hill, and under every green tree. 
1Ki 14:24  And there were also sodomites in the land: and they did according to all the abominations of the nations which the LORD cast out before the children of Israel. 
1Ki 14:25  And it came to pass in the fifth year of king Rehoboam, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem: 
1Ki 14:26  And he took away the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king’s house; he even took away all: and he took away all the shields of gold which Solomon had made. 
1Ki 14:27  And king Rehoboam made in their stead brasen shields, and committed them unto the hands of the chief of the guard, which kept the door of the king’s house. 
1Ki 14:28  And it was so, when the king went into the house of the LORD, that the guard bare them, and brought them back into the guard chamber. 
1Ki 14:29  Now the rest of the acts of Rehoboam, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 
1Ki 14:30  And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all their days. 
1Ki 14:31  And Rehoboam slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David. And his mother’s name was Naamah an Ammonitess. And Abijam his son reigned in his stead. 

What God reveals to the prophets of old (Amo 3:7) is typical of what He reveals to the body of Christ today, and what is being revealed to God’s elect is that a trumpet, which represents God’s judgments, must be blown in the heavens of those who are being sanctified through judgment in this age (1Pe 4:17, 1Pe 4:12).

Amo 3:7  Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.

1Pe 4:17  For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God? 

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

That trumpet spoken of in the book of Amos represents the day of the Lord, and these verses (Amo 3:6-8, Amo 3:14-15) parallel very well with the events that are going to unfold now in the life of Jeroboam who represents the judgments and wrath of God which are being poured out upon our old man of sin who must be destroyed by the brightness of Christ’s coming into our heavens (2Th 2:8).

Amo 3:6  Shall a trumpet be blown in the city, and the people not be afraid? shall there be evil in a city, and the LORD hath not done it? 
Amo 3:7  Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets. 
Amo 3:8  The lion hath roared, who will not fear? the Lord GOD hath spoken, who can but prophesy? 

Amo 3:14  That in the day that I shall visit the transgressions of Israel upon him I will also visit the altars of Bethel: and the horns of the altar shall be cut off, and fall to the ground. 
Amo 3:15  And I will smite the winter house with the summer house; and the houses of ivory shall perish, and the great houses shall have an end, saith the LORD. 

It all just sounds so dire, and it is for the old man within us, but God encourages the body to exhort one another daily “lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin” (Heb 3:12-13) as we die daily and overcome sin through Christ who gives us the power to endure His judgments and make sense of the fiery trials and much tribulation we are promised through this life (Act 14:22).

This time of great trial upon Jeroboam and his family and the nation of Israel symbolizes the fiery trials of our life in this age of judgment that is upon God’s elect (1Pe 4:17), and yet there is always hope being shown in the midst of these tragic events that were befalling Israel, expressed through the life of king David who typifies Christ “and yet thou hast not been as my servant David, who kept my commandments, and who followed me with all his heart, to do that only which was right in mine eyes“. So we look to Christ today (Heb 12:1-2) with the confidence that He is the one who is raising these storms in our lives, or blowing the trumpet in the city, that brings us to see the evil in our city which causes us to fear God. This fear is a good thing because then we will cry out and are heard as a result of that Godly fear which God is working within His workmanship that we are (Heb 5:7, Eph 5:30, Eph 2:10). God is showing us through this story of Israel and Judah’s division what great division and sickness there is when Christ is not on the throne of our hearts ruling and reigning as He ought (Isa 1:5-6).

Heb 12:1  Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,
Heb 12:2  Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. 

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, and was heard in that he feared; 

Eph 5:30  For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. 

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.

Below are some inspired examples of how the word exhort is used in God’s word.  All of these profitable words (2Ti 3:16) have been given to the body of Christ today so that we don’t lose heart and start to despise prophecy, and this is truly an ongoing work in the lives of those who are being saved through Christ. It is tragic what befalls mankind throughout history, and perilous times are going to come to a crescendo for this world which we are told to understand (2Ti 3:1). We must remember that and not despise prophecy which can shine for us as a light in a dark place (2Pe 1:19). This happens within us when we are blessed to see how all these prophecies that involve lying and betrayal and murder and covetousness are all for our sakes and reveal to us how God can cause circumstances in our lives that require His judgment which will bring about the peaceable fruit of righteousness in the end (Job 2:10, Ecc 7:8, Mat 28:20, Jer 29:11).

Job 2:10  But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips. 

Ecc 7:8  Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.

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 29:11  For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

How we can help each other reach that expected end:

Heb 3:12  Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.
Heb 3:13  But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. 

Act 2:38  Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. 
Act 2:39  For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call. 
Act 2:40  And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation.

1Th 5:14  Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly, comfort the feebleminded, support the weak, be patient toward all men.

Act 14:22  Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God. 

1Ti 2:1  I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men.

2Ti 4:2  Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. 

Tit 2:6  Young men likewise exhort to be sober minded.

Jud 1:3  Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints. 

2Pe 1:19  We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: 

Isa 45:19  I have not spoken in secret, in a dark place of the earth: [Amo 3:7] I said not unto the seed of Jacob, Seek ye me in vain [1Co 15:58]: I the LORD speak righteousness, I declare things that are right [Jer 29:11].

All prophecy that is being revealed to the body of Christ today is given to us via the one true Prophet of Israel who all these other prophets only typify. That prophet of course is Christ who edifies, exhorts and comforts us (1Co 14:3) through God’s spirit which is working in the body of Christ “to the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God, according to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord:” (Eph 3:10-11, Rom 8:28).

Rom 8:28  And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

Christ in us, our hope of glory within (Col 1:27), inspired these words John uttered as a messenger or angel of God which we all are to each other: “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 19:10)

1Ki 14:1  At that time Abijah the son of Jeroboam fell sick. 
1Ki 14:2  And Jeroboam said to his wife, Arise, I pray thee, and disguise thyself, that thou be not known to be the wife of Jeroboam; and get thee to Shiloh: behold, there is Ahijah the prophet, which told me that I should be king over this people. 
1Ki 14:3  And take with thee ten loaves, and cracknels, and a cruse of honey, and go to him: he shall tell thee what shall become of the child. 
1Ki 14:4  And Jeroboam’s wife did so, and arose, and went to Shiloh, and came to the house of Ahijah. But Ahijah could not see; for his eyes were set by reason of his age.

Nothing is hidden from God and nothing is hidden from God’s elect that needs to be revealed from our Father (Heb 4:13), and this is especially true regarding judgment as God knows how to search our reins and try us to see what is within us (Psa 26:2, Psa 139:23-24).

Heb 4:13  Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.

Psa 26:2  Examine me, O LORD, and prove me; try my reins and my heart. 

Psa 139:23  Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: 
Psa 139:24  And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. 

This sickness of Jeroboam’s son was used by the Lord to bring Jeroboam into judgment for all the evil that he had done in his life. When we first go into Babylon we think that our many wonderful works can cover our transgressions and unchanged hearts. That is what this veiled disguise of Jeroboam’s wife represents who is wearing her own clothes and eating her own food even while she seeks out the counsel of God via the prophet at her husband’s bequest (Isa 4:1). Her own food is represented by the fleshly number ten so it is “ten loaves, and cracknels, and a cruse of honey” that are sent to find out the truth of the matter in regard to what is going to happen to her son who represents the false doctrines that are in the house of Jeroboam (Psa 144:11, Eph 4:14). Going to Shiloh represents going into Babylon where we do encounter kings and prophets who desire to see what we see but they cannot (Luk 10:24). Ahijah is just such a prophet who has been correct in past prophecies (1Ki 11:29-39), and so Jeroboam believes that whatever this prophet says is going to come to pass (Deu 18:22). Another witness that Ahijah was able to prophesy truthfully is given to us in the statement: “But Ahijah could not see; for his eyes were set by reason of his age.” It is with age, or by reason of use (Heb 5:14) we could say, that we gain the ability to see truth which happens as a result of our confession to God that we are blind and in continual need of His healing typified by Ahijah (Joh 9:41, Mar 2:17).

Heb 5:14  But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. 

Joh 9:41  Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth. 

Mar 2:17  When Jesus heard it, he saith unto them, They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.

1Ki 14:5  And the LORD said unto Ahijah, Behold, the wife of Jeroboam cometh to ask a thing of thee for her son; for he is sick: thus and thus shalt thou say unto her: for it shall be, when she cometh in, that she shall feign herself to be another woman.
1Ki 14:6  And it was so, when Ahijah heard the sound of her feet, as she came in at the door, that he said, Come in, thou wife of Jeroboam; why feignest thou thyself to be another? for I am sent to thee with heavy tidings.

This is the confirmation given to us that nothing is hidden from God who reveals to the prophet via the holy spirit what is coming, and the prophet wastes no time in addressing this lying spirit by asking, “Why feignest thou thyself to be another? for I am sent to thee with heavy tidings.” This situation is reminiscent of Ananias and Sapphira who had this lying spirit that resulted in death that created fear in the church as a result of what God caused to be manifest in the lives of Ananias and Sapphira for our sake (Act 5:11).

Act 5:11  And great fear came upon all the church, and upon as many as heard these things. 

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. 

1Ki 14:7  Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Forasmuch as I exalted thee from among the people, and made thee prince over my people Israel,
1Ki 14:8  And rent the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave it thee: and yet thou hast not been as my servant David, who kept my commandments, and who followed me with all his heart, to do that only which was right in mine eyes; 
1Ki 14:9  But hast done evil above all that were before thee: for thou hast gone and made thee other gods, and molten images, to provoke me to anger, and hast cast me behind thy back: 

Keeping in remembrance that Israel represents Aholah and Judah Aholibah (Eze 23:4), when we read these verses we can see that God is showing us, through Jeroboam and his reign, what we do when we become independent of our Head, represented by Judah. It’s not that Judah is better than Israel. To the contrary, as we will see they are both wicked and ruled by wicked idolatrous kings, which shows us that when we initially come out  of ‘Babylon’ or ‘Jerusalem below’, God does not give us the ability to properly rule and reign over our heavens, and that is reflected in our earth, our bodies. As a result of that we reflect a spirit of ‘greasy grace’ which is what Jeroboam’s reign typifies. He was going to do what he wanted with the rulership that was given to him, just like Solomon and just like Rehoboam. The only difference now with Jeroboam and Rehoboam as opposed to Solomon is that these two kings have become two-fold more the child of hell that Solomon was (Mat 23:14-16), and show us the natural state of affairs for our old man who must wax worse and worse before being destroyed.

This separation of Israel and the judgment that must come upon both nations is typical of how God is going to ultimately reconcile all the world making the body and the head one, but only after it has been divided. The old man-head is Judah and the old man-body is Israel in other words, and the new man-Head is Christ the lion of the tribe of Judah, and the new Body is the Israel of God, the elect of God (Rev 5:5, Gal 6:16).

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.

Gal 6:16  And as many as walk according to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God. 

1Ki 14:10  Therefore, behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel, and will take away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as a man taketh away dung, till it be all gone.

1Ki 14:11  Him that dieth of Jeroboam in the city shall the dogs eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the air eat: for the LORD hath spoken it.
1Ki 14:12  Arise thou therefore, get thee to thine own house: and when thy feet enter into the city, the child shall die. 

This is a prophecy of what will happen to us when our old man enters into the city, Shiloh, which represents in the positive sense coming before Christ. It’s not a pretty picture God paints, as nothing is hidden from Him who drags us to Christ (Joh 6:44), and this is done for the express purpose of bringing “evil upon the house of Jeroboam“. This is what must happen to our old man as described in these graphic details that just tell us flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God and how God has very little regard for flesh: “Therefore, behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel, and will take away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as a man taketh away dung, till it be all gone.” What we are shown is that nothing will be left of our old man, nothing in our heavens and nothing in our earth, “Him that dieth of Jeroboam in the city shall the dogs eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the air eat: for the LORD hath spoken it.” This is what is required in order for all things to become new in Christ, and so we are told, “Arise thou therefore, get thee to thine own house: and when thy feet enter into the city, the child shall die.” It is only when we are raised in heavenly places that this destruction can begin of our old man, symbolized by the child that shall die (2Sa 12:13-14, Eph 2:6).

2Sa 12:13  And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against the LORD. And Nathan said unto David, The LORD also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die.
2Sa 12:14  Howbeit, because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the LORD to blaspheme, the child also that is born unto thee shall surely die.

Eph 2:6  And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

1Ki 14:13  And all Israel shall mourn for him, and bury him: for he only of Jeroboam shall come to the grave, because in him there is found some good thing toward the LORD God of Israel in the house of Jeroboam.
1Ki 14:14  Moreover the LORD shall raise him up a king over Israel, who shall cut off the house of Jeroboam that day: but what? even now. 
1Ki 14:15  For the LORD shall smite Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water, and he shall root up Israel out of this good land, which he gave to their fathers, and shall scatter them beyond the river, because they have made their groves, provoking the LORD to anger. 
1Ki 14:16  And he shall give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, who did sin, and who made Israel to sin. 

All the world in time, Israel in type, will lament the death of the old man symbolized by this child of Jeroboam, and God will provide the means for us to endure that death and put it behind us via the “king over Israel” who represents Christ who is the righteous reed (Rev 21:15-16) who knows how to execute judgment in the earth stated this way: “For the LORD shall smite Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water, and he shall root up Israel out of this good land, which he gave to their fathers, and shall scatter them beyond the river, because they have made their groves, provoking the LORD to anger.“

What a telling statement for us! God will “give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, who did sin, and who made Israel to sin.” God is showing us through this example of disobedience in the life of Jeroboam that his sins affected the whole nation of Israel. All the world, in other words, can be affected by the sins of any other person, and this is very clear for the body of Christ as a little leaven can leaven the whole lump (Gal 5:9). We are being admonished through this story to examine ourselves and to understand that our actions have consequences not just for ourselves but for the entire body of Christ. When we sin, it is against God, against His workmanship which we are (Gal 6:7-8, Gen 39:9, Heb 12:15).

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. 

Gen 39:9  There is none greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou art his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God? 

Heb 12:15  Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;

1Ki 14:17  And Jeroboam’s wife arose, and departed, and came to Tirzah: and when she came to the threshold of the door, the child died;
1Ki 14:18  And they buried him; and all Israel mourned for him, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by the hand of his servant Ahijah the prophet.

It is at “the threshold of the door” that God’s chastening grace puts to death our false doctrines represented by the death of the child (Eze 43:8, Zep 1:8-17), and the threshing floor is analogous to an area where God’s saving grace unfolds in the life of those who are being crushed in this life under the great millstone, Jesus Christ (Mat 21:44). He is working all these events as a great stone from heaven who is destroying the image of the beast that we all naturally start off as (Dan 2:34, Ecc 3:18).

Eze 43:8  In their setting of their threshold by my thresholds, and their post by my posts, and the wall between me and them, they have even defiled my holy name by their abominations that they have committed: wherefore I have consumed them in mine anger. 

Zep 1:8  And it shall come to pass in the day of the LORD’S sacrifice, that I will punish the princes, and the king’s children, and all such as are clothed with strange apparel. 
Zep 1:9  In the same day also will I punish all those that leap on the threshold, which fill their masters’ houses with violence and deceit. 

Zep 1:16  A day of the trumpet and alarm against the fenced cities, and against the high towers. 
Zep 1:17  And I will bring distress upon men, that they shall walk like blind men, because they have sinned against the LORD: and their blood shall be poured out as dust, and their flesh as the dung. 

Mat 21:42  Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read in the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner: this is the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes? 
Mat 21:43  Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof.
Mat 21:44  And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.

What this story of Jeroboam’s son dying tells us is that this child within us must die as a seed in order for life to come out of that experience of death: “And they buried him; and all Israel mourned for him, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by the hand of his servant Ahijah the prophet.” (Joh 12:24)

Joh 12:24  Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.
Joh 12:25  He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.

“All Israel” within us will initially mourn the loss of “houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name’s sake” that we have forsaken in order to hold onto the words of eternal life (Joh 6:68), and if God will give us the strength through Christ to endure those losses (Php 4:13) and put them in perspective as nothing (Php 3:8) compared to the glory that will be revealed to us (Rom 8:18), it will be because God has ordained that in our lives to His glory to be overcomers through Christ (Mat 19:26-30)).

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.

Mat 19:26  But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible. 
Mat 19:27  Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore? 
Mat 19:28  And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 
Mat 19:29  And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name’s sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life. 
Mat 19:30  But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.

1Ki 14:19  And the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, how he warred, and how he reigned, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.
1Ki 14:20  And the days which Jeroboam reigned were two and twenty years: and he slept with his fathers, and Nadab his son reigned in his stead. 

This verse 19 could read: ‘the rest of the acts of our old man, how we warred against God’s spirit, and how our flesh had dominion over us are all documented as a witness against the unconverted kings of Israel within us.’ One day that is what Jeroboam and his wife will intimately come to know of their lives representing our Adamic struggles that can only be conquered through Christ (Rom 8:37). Jeroboam’s reign is a witness of our old man who must die and sleep with our fathers, and so we read: “And the days which Jeroboam reigned were two and twenty years.” The cycle of sin just continues on in our life until the son of God sets us free, which is an ongoing dying daily process (Joh 8:36), and so we see his son Nadab^H5070 who would now reign “in his stead” have a name that represents the unchanged spirit of Jeroboam’s lineage that is going to continue to use their liberties in rulership as an occasion for their own flesh (Gal 5:13), which is what we do until we don’t, through Christ.

Gal 5:13  For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.

H5070
nâdâb
naw-dawb’  

From H5068; liberal; Nadab, the name of four Israelites: – Nadab.

H5068 
nâdab
naw-dab’

A primitive root; to impel; hence to volunteer (as a soldier), to present spontaneously: – offer freely, be (give, make, offer self) willing (-ly).

1Ki 14:21  And Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was forty and one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the LORD did choose out of all the tribes of Israel, to put his name there. And his mother’s name was Naamah an Ammonitess. 
1Ki 14:22  And Judah did evil in the sight of the LORD, and they provoked him to jealousy with their sins which they had committed, above all that their fathers had done.
1Ki 14:23  For they also built them high places, and images, and groves, on every high hill, and under every green tree. 
1Ki 14:24  And there were also sodomites in the land: and they did according to all the abominations of the nations which the LORD cast out before the children of Israel. 

Both Jeroboam and Rehoboam do not figuratively inherit the kingdom as they represent our old man in his most depraved state, and so we read first of Jeroboam: “But hast done evil above all that were before thee” (1Ki 14:9), and then of Rehoboam who was the king of Judah: “Judah did evil in the sight of the LORD, and they provoked him to jealousy with their sins which they had committed, above all that their fathers had done.” How can they both be “above all“? Who is the worst here? What we are being shown is that we are all the chief of sinners (1Ti 1:15), and there is no contradiction being made. Both the head is sick (Judah), and the body, from the foot to the head, is sick as well. In other words, “This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief” applies to us all.

Isa 1:5  Why should ye be stricken any more? ye will revolt more and more: the whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint. 
Isa 1:6  From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment. 

The Lord is the one who sought the occasion against Rehoboam’s^H7346 flesh, and we only need look at the names and their definitions mentioned in 1 Kings 14:21 to understand why it was inevitable that they would “built them high places, and images, and groves, on every high hill, and under every green tree.” The outward manifestation of this idolatrous controlling spirit, which God will burn out of all mankind in time, has fruits that are demonstrated in (1Ki 14:24) which reads: “And there were also sodomites in the land: and they did according to all the abominations of the nations which the LORD cast out before the children of Israel.“

H7346
rechab‛âm 
rekh-ab-awm’

From H7337 and H5971; a people has enlarged; Rechabam, an Israelite king: – Rehoboam.

H7337
râchab 
raw-khab’

A primitive root; to broaden (intransitively or transitively, literally or figuratively): – be an en- (make) large (-ing), make room, make (open) wide.

Mat 23:5  But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments,
Mat 23:6  And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues,
Mat 23:7  And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi.
Mat 23:8  But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren.

It was purposed of the Lord to have Rehoboam reign “forty and one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the LORD did choose out of all the tribes of Israel, to put his name there.” This choosing of the Lord was for our sakes to remind us that we all start off as Rehoboam, wanting to control everything, which is all that the man of sin within us knows. The ‘forty one’ represents not just tribulation but tribulation-plus-one seeing this corrupt king who represents the man of sin in us is going to be rooted out and exposed by the day of the Lord, which the ‘one’ added to ‘forty’ represents. ‘Seventeen’ years shows the same principle, seven being the complete judgment upon our flesh by way of the day of the Lord which is what must happen in order for the new man to be formed (1+7=8).

Rehoboam’s mother’s name was “Naamah^H5279 an Ammonitess^H5984” telling us that Rehoboam was born of the pleasures of sin for a season, shapen in iniquity in other words as we all our (Heb 11:25, Psa 51:5) and revealing to us that we all must be in bondage to sin until we are dragged to Christ. We then spend the rest of our time in this life fulfilling these words by the grace through faith process we’ve been called to “Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season.”

H5279 
na‛ămâh 
nah-am-aw’

Feminine of H5277; pleasantness; Naamah, the name of an antediluvian woman, of an Ammonitess, and of a place in Palestine: – Naamah.

H5277
na‛am 
nah’-am

From H5276; pleasure; Naam, an Israelite: – Naam.

H5984
‛ammônı̂y 
am-mo-nee’

Patronymic from H5983; an Ammonite or (adjectively) Ammonitish: – Ammonite (-s).

H5983 
‛ammôn
am-mone’

From H5971; tribal, that is, inbred; Ammon, a son of Lot; also his posterity and their country: – Ammon, Ammonites.

Heb 11:25  Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season.
Heb 11:26  Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward. 

1Ki 14:25  And it came to pass in the fifth year of king Rehoboam, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem: 
1Ki 14:26  And he took away the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king’s house; he even took away all: and he took away all the shields of gold which Solomon had made. 
1Ki 14:27  And king Rehoboam made in their stead brasen shields, and committed them unto the hands of the chief of the guard, which kept the door of the king’s house. 
1Ki 14:28  And it was so, when the king went into the house of the LORD, that the guard bare them, and brought them back into the guard chamber. 

It is the faith of Christ that is represented by the “shields of gold“, and when it is taken away from us as it was with Rehoboam, the truth is replaced with the lies of the devil “in their stead brasen shields”, showing what happens to us when we trust in our flesh and not in God, who is our buckler and shield (Psa 35:2-3). Satan is the one God causes to take away even that which we thought we had and gives it to another (Mat 25:29). This is part of the chastening grace of God we experience in this life typified by Shishak, a type of Satan that buffets us exactly to the degree God knows our old man needs: “And it came to pass in the fifth year of king Rehoboam, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem.” (1Co 5:5, 2Co 12:7)

Mat 25:29  For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.

1Co 5:5  To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.

2Co 12:7  And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. 

Psa 35:2  Take hold of shield and buckler, and stand up for mine help. 
Psa 35:3  Draw out also the spear, and stop the way against them that persecute me: say unto my soul, I am thy salvation.

Rehoboam did not just experience the gold shields taken away that represent the faith of Christ, figuratively Shishak took away the whole stay of bread and the whole stay of water: “he took away the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king’s house; he even took away all.” (Isa 3:1)

Isa 3:1  For, behold, the Lord, the LORD of hosts, doth take away from Jerusalem and from Judah the stay and the staff, the whole stay of bread, and the whole stay of water, 

In their stead, Rehoboam replaced the shields of gold with brasen shields and “committed them unto the hands of the chief of the guard, which kept the door of the king’s house“, showing us that in type and shadow his faith stood in the wisdom of men and not in the power of God (1Co 2:5). These orders and actions of Rehoboam, “And it was so, when the king went into the house of the LORD, that the guard bare them, and brought them back into the guard chamber” is another way of saying the Lord was not building this house or guarding it, seeing it was the arm of man that was protecting it and not the living God (Psa 127:1).

1Co 2:5  That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. 

Psa 127:1  A Song of degrees for Solomon. Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.

1Ki 14:29  Now the rest of the acts of Rehoboam, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 
1Ki 14:30  And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all their days.
1Ki 14:31  And Rehoboam slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David. And his mother’s name was Naamah an Ammonitess. And Abijam his son reigned in his stead.

The chapter ends by revealing that “the rest of the acts of Rehoboam, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?“, and in Jeroboam’s case we read: “And the days which Jeroboam reigned were two and twenty years: and he slept with his fathers, and Nadab his son reigned in his stead.” The “chronicles of the kings of Judah” are part of the oracles of God as opposed to Jeroboam of whose death and burial we are told, “and he slept with his fathers.” We’re not comparing Rehoboam and Jeroboam whose flesh cannot inherit the kingdom of God, and so it reads of Rehoboam the same way as it did with Jeroboam: “Rehoboam slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David.” There is one important detail to notice however, and that is that Rehoboam’s lineage is connected to Christ as he was buried in “the city of David“, and Jeroboam has no claim to this Jewish lineage as a reminder to us that salvation is typically of the Jews (Rom 3:1-2, Rom 2:29). Again Rehoboam and Jeroboam were both carnal kings with carnal predecessors, “And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all their days” symbolizing for us that the spirit is against the flesh and the flesh is against the spirit (Gal 5:17).

Rehoboam’s mother’s name was Naamah, who was an Ammonitess, and 1 Kings 14:30 in the PNBkjv shows the typical origins of Rehoboam’s flesh and blood that reveals to us how God sees us before we ‘come out of her my people’, as being seduced by the pleasures of this world, being spiritually blind inbreds who are of our father the devil who is the god of this world who rules over the sea of humanity negatively.

1Ki 14:31  And Rehoboam slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David. And his mother’s name was Naamah an Ammonitess. And Abijam his son reigned in his stead. 

1Ki 14:31 and (the people grow) slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of (beloved). And his mother’s name was (pleasantness) an (inbred). And (my father’s sea) his son reigned in his stead. [PNBkjv]

We started our study today by considering the title “Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets” (Amo 3:7), and the way God does this is by giving us His spirit that opens our blinded eyes, giving us the ability to compare spiritual with spiritual using the physical (1Co 2:13).

Dan 7:9-28  And the Kingdom and Dominion Shall be Given to the Saints of the Most High

[Study Aired January 3, 2022]

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. 

This part of the chapter shows us that, through Christ, we have been given the dominion to overcome everything that opposes and exalts itself against the knowledge and growth of Christ in our lives.

Mat 28:18  And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.

Joh 16:33  These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

Today’s study also explains the meaning of Daniel’s vision regarding the four beasts which he saw. However, the explanation of the vision given to Daniel pertains to the vision’s outward manifestation. Daniel, like all the prophets of the Old Testament, was not given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven.

Dan 12:9  And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.

1Pe 1:10  Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you:
1Pe 1:11  Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.
1Pe 1:12  Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.

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.

Before we can understand this verse, we need to know what had taken place earlier. Daniel had a vision, and he saw four beasts. The fourth beast was diverse from the other three and had ten horns which we understood to represent ten kings. The ten kings are the ruling false doctrines in our heavens which resist the word of God when it comes to us. It is when the seat or thrones of these ten kings or horns, or the ruling false doctrines in our heavens are cast down, that we see Christ as the Ancient of Days coming to sit in the throne of our hearts. The term “the Ancient of Days” is a way of describing our Lord Jesus Christ as the beginning and the end. It is another way of saying:

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.

The garment of the Ancient of Days being white as snow represents Christ being clothed in the righteousness of His Father. As our Lord comes to take His seat within our hearts, we are also given the righteousness of 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.

The hair of our Lord being like pure wool is to let us know that our Lord coming into our lives is for the purpose of delivering us from our sins to clothe us with His righteousness.

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

His throne being like the fiery flame and His wheels as burning fire shows us that our Lord’s coming into our lives to take His seat in the throne of our hearts is through judgment.

Rev 19:11  Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war.

2Co 5:10  For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil. (ESV)

This vision of the Ancient of Days is the same as the revelation of Jesus Christ to John on the Island of Patmos.

Rev 1:12  And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks;
Rev 1:13  And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle.

Rev 1:14  His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire;
Rev 1:15  And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters.

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.

The fiery stream issuing from before the Ancient of Days is the fire of the word of Christ which judges us and, as a result, is able to give us an inheritance among them that are sanctified. This fiery stream is the same as the pure river of water of life emanating from the throne of God and of the Lamb.

Act 20:32  And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified.

Rev 22:1  And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.

Thousands and thousands ministering to Christ are the elect who speak this fiery word of God to one another. As we minister the word of God to one another, we are actually ministering to our Lord.

Mat 25:37  Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?
Mat 25:38  When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?
Mat 25:39  Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?
Mat 25:40  And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

The other group of ten thousand times ten thousand represents those who are not given in this life to become part of the elect. This includes all humanity except the elect. This group standing before the Lord to be judged indicates that all humanity will be saved through judgment, as the purpose of judgment is to bring righteousness.

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.
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.

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.

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.

As we indicated in the previous review, the horn that was speaking great words, on a positive note, is the eighth horn which represents a new beginning or the new man.

In this horn were eyes like the eyes of man and a mouth speaking great things (Dan 7:8). What this means is that with the coming of the new man in our lives comes the opening of our eyes to see the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven and to make known or speak about the great and mighty things the Lord is doing.

1Ch 17:19  O LORD, for thy servant’s sake, and according to thine own heart, hast thou done all this greatness, in making known all these great things.

2Ki 8:4  And the king talked with Gehazi the servant of the man of God, saying, Tell me, I pray thee, all the great things that Elisha hath done.

It is these great words of the Lord that destroy or slay the beast within us. This is affirmed by the statement that the beast’s body is destroyed and given to the burning flames. The burning flames are the fire of the word of God which destroys the raging beast within.

Jer 5:14  Therefore thus says the LORD, the God of hosts: “Because you have spoken this word, behold, I am making my words in your mouth a fire, and this people wood, and the fire shall consume them.

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.

This verse is written to let us know that when this evil beast within is revealed, the Lord comes with His brightness to take away the dominion of the beast.

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:

The lives of the beasts being prolonged for a season and a time means that the taking away of the dominion of the beasts is a process which lasts for a period of time that the Lord had appointed. This period of time is signified by a season and a time.

Ecc 3:1  To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

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.

One like the Son of Man is Jesus Christ, and the clouds of heaven represent His elect. As we have indicated earlier, the Ancient of Days is also our Lord Jesus Christ. So, what is being said here in verses 13 and 14 is that if we are blessed to be part of the first resurrection, then our Lord Jesus will lead us to Himself, and we shall be given the kingdoms of this world to rule for a symbolic thousand years.

Mat 26:64  Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.

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.

Verses 13 and 14 of Daniel chapter 7 are therefore to show us the reward for overcoming the composite beast powered by the devil.

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.

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.

These verses are to remind us that at certain periods of our lives, we were ignorant and lacked understanding of the words of the Lord, just like the Ethiopian eunuch. That is the period during which we grieve in our spirit like Daniel because we were not given to understand His words.

Joh 8:43  Why do ye not understand my speech? even because ye cannot hear my word.

In the fullness of time, however, the Lord leads us to His angels (our brothers and sisters who are called and chosen) to open our eyes to understand the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven. For example, Paul was also blind spiritually for a period of time in which he thought he understood the Lord’s words. It was not until the Lord sent Ananias that Paul, who used to be called Saul, started to see or understand the mysteries of the kingdom.

Act 9:9  And he was three days without sight, and neither did eat nor drink.
Act 9:10  And there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ananias; and to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here, Lord.
Act 9:11  And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and enquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul, of Tarsus: for, behold, he prayeth,
Act 9:12  And hath seen in a vision a man named Ananias coming in, and putting his hand on him, that he might receive his sight.
Act 9:13  Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done to thy saints at Jerusalem:
Act 9:14  And here he hath authority from the chief priests to bind all that call on thy name.
Act 9:15  But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel:
Act 9:16  For I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name’s sake.

Dan 7:17  These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth. 

The number four deals with the whole issue under consideration. In this case, therefore, the four beasts represent the whole of everything that resists the Lord’s words that rises from within us. The fourth beast making up part of the four beasts has ten horns as shown in Daniel 7:7.

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.

As we indicated in the previous review, the ten horns are ten kings. The mention of the number four of the kings refers therefore to the whole or all of the kings, which in this case are equal to 10.  These four kings signify the whole of the ruling doctrines within us which resist the word of God when it comes to us. In verse 13 of Revelation 17, we are told that the ten kings, or the whole of the kings, have one mind of giving their power and strength to the beast which in this case is the dragon or Satan. This means that the aim of these ruling false doctrines in our lives is to make us servants of the devil or our father. As we are aware, at a certain stage of our walk, the devil was indeed our father until Christ came to us with the brightness of His coming.

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.

Joh 8:44  Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

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.

In this dispensation, the kingdom of God is within. In a time to come, the kingdom of God will be outward as the kingdoms of this world will become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ. The saints taking the kingdom, therefore, means that the elect will overcome the beast within to possess the kingdom of God within.

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.

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;

The fourth beast is significantly different from all the other beasts and is characterized by ten horns. This description is the same as the dragon with seven heads and ten horns in Revelation 12:3. So, the fourth beast here represents the dragon, also known as Satan.

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 dragon’s most effective instrument as shown in verse 7 is his iron teeth which devours its prey and breaks them into pieces. The teeth of the dragon symbolize the sword, which is the lying words and false doctrines.

Pro 30:14  There is a generation, whose teeth are as swords, and their jaw teeth as knives, to devour the poor from off the earth, and the needy from among men.

Its teeth are described as that of iron because iron is an instrument of death. In other words, the dragon’s iron teeth signify the lying words and false doctrines which result in our spiritual destruction or death.

Num 35:16  And if he smite him with an instrument of iron, so that he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death.

By his iron teeth, the Devil has deceived the whole world including us at a certain stage of our walk with Christ.

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.

The Devil stamping his feet on the residue symbolizes the bruising of the heels of the elect. The bruising of his heels means that the devil will influence our walk with Christ. The bruising of the head has to do with the elect overcoming the evil one.

Gen 3:15  And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.

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.

As we have said earlier, the ten horns symbolize the ten kings, which in turn stands for the ruling doctrines within us which resist the word of God when it comes to us. In the previous study, we mentioned that the other horn that came up is not the eleventh horn, as the sum of God’s words shows us there are only ten horns of the beast. However, this horn is actually the eighth as its appearance resulted in the plucking up of three of the horns, leaving only seven horns together with this new little horn as the eighth. The number eight stands for new beginning or the new man, and so this little horn represents the new man.

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.

The three horns plucked up by the roots is to let us know that it is through the process of judgment that the horn representing all that resists the Lord in our lives is pulled down. This judgment is effectuated through the fire of the word of God in the mouth of His elect.

Jer 1:9  Then the LORD put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the LORD said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.
Jer 1:10  See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant.

In this horn were eyes like the eyes of man and a mouth speaking great things. What this means is that with the coming of the new man in our lives comes the opening of our eyes to see the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven and to make known or speak about the great and mighty things the Lord is doing for us, the elect first and later the rest of mankind.

Mat 13:11  He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.
Mat 13:12  For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.

Mat 13:16  But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.
Mat 13:17  For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men 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.

1Ch 17:19  O LORD, for thy servant’s sake, and according to thine own heart, hast thou done all this greatness, in making known all these great things.

2Ki 8:4  And the king talked with Gehazi the servant of the man of God, saying, Tell me, I pray thee, all the great things that Elisha hath done.

Dan 7:21  I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them;

Here we are looking at a negative application of this horn, that is, the horn making war with the saints and prevailing against them. Another place where the scriptures say the same thing is in Revelation chapter 11:7.

Rev 11:7  And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them.

So, we can say that the horn here is the same as the beast within us. All of God’s elect or saints had been overcome by this beast within them at a certain time of their walk with Christ, including us until Christ came to us with the brightness of His coming.

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.

Inwardly, this verse is showing us that the words in the mouth of the elect are what judges the beast within and causes us to possess the kingdom within. Outwardly, when Christ comes, that will be the time when the elect will be given rulership over the kingdoms of this world. This shall be followed by judgment of all humanity except the elect who had been judged first. The judgment shall be executed by Christ and His elect.

Rev 11:15  Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.”

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.

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.

As indicated in the introductory part of this study, Daniel, being part of the prophets of the Old Testament, is not given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven. The interpretation of his vision by an angel therefore pertains to the outward manifestation of the vision. As we are aware, the fourth beast represents the fourth kingdom. The number four as we have explained earlier has to do with the whole issue under consideration. So, what is being said here is that the whole, or all, of the kingdoms of this world are furthering the course of the evil one, or the fourth beast, which results in all humanity becoming worse off.

Going back to Nebuchadnezzar’s dream in Daniel chapter 2, we realized that the fourth kingdom is the Roman empire which was diverse from all kingdoms and is described as follows:

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.
Dan 2:42  And as the 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 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.

We should take note that this Roman empire comes just before Christ comes to set up His kingdom. Although the Roman empire is no more, its effect is still being felt all over the world, and so technically, we are still in the Roman empire age. This means that we are basically at the end of the ages when Christ’s coming is at the door!!

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.

As we indicated earlier, the horn and the beast are interchangeable as they play the same role as shown below:

Dan 7:21  I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them;

Rev 11:7  And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them.

Verse 25 says the same as what is said in Revelation 13:5.

Rev 13:5  And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.

The statement that they shall be given into his hands until a time and times and the dividing of time is the same as being given power to continue for forty and two months. The great words against the most High are the great swelling words of man’s wisdom spoken by these false men of God, which make us worse off than when we started our journey with Christ.

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

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.

Dan 7:26  But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end.

This verse is making us aware that it is through the judgment of God’s elect that the dominion of the beast within us is destroyed. This judgment is the fire of the word of God which destroys the beast.

1Pe 4:17  For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?
1Pe 4:18  And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?
1Pe 4:19  Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator.

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.

Again, we are being assured by the fact that, if we overcome the beast within, we are ensured of reigning with Christ.

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.

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. 

A simpler rendition of the verse above is as follows:

Dan 7:28  Here is the end of the matter. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts much troubled me, and my countenance was changed in me: but I kept the matter in my heart. (ASV)

This verse is another way of saying the following:

1Pe 1:10  Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you:
1Pe 1:11  Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.
1Pe 1:12  Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.

Therefore, we must not take for granted our eyes seeing and our ears hearing!!

2Pe 1:19  We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:

May the Lord grant us the grace to continue to pay heed to this sure word of prophecy until the day dawns and the day star rises in our hearts!! Amen!!

Jdg 12:1-15 Wherefore…Thou Fight Against the Children of Ammon, and Didn’t Call us to go With Thee?

[Study Aired June 21, 2021]

Jdg 12:1  And the men of Ephraim gathered themselves together, and went northward, and said unto Jephthah, Wherefore passedst thou over to fight against the children of Ammon, and didst not call us to go with thee? we will burn thine house upon thee with fire. 
Jdg 12:2  And Jephthah said unto them, I and my people were at great strife with the children of Ammon; and when I called you, ye delivered me not out of their hands. 
Jdg 12:3  And when I saw that ye delivered me not, I put my life in my hands, and passed over against the children of Ammon, and the LORD delivered them into my hand: wherefore then are ye come up unto me this day, to fight against me? 
Jdg 12:4  Then Jephthah gathered together all the men of Gilead, and fought with Ephraim: and the men of Gilead smote Ephraim, because they said, Ye Gileadites are fugitives of Ephraim among the Ephraimites, and among the Manassites. 
Jdg 12:5  And the Gileadites took the passages of Jordan before the Ephraimites: and it was so, that when those Ephraimites which were escaped said, Let me go over; that the men of Gilead said unto him, Art thou an Ephraimite? If he said, Nay; 
Jdg 12:6  Then said they unto him, Say now Shibboleth: and he said Sibboleth: for he could not frame to pronounce it right. Then they took him, and slew him at the passages of Jordan: and there fell at that time of the Ephraimites forty and two thousand. 
Jdg 12:7  And Jephthah judged Israel six years. Then died Jephthah the Gileadite, and was buried in one of the cities of Gilead. 
Jdg 12:8  And after him Ibzan of Bethlehem judged Israel. 
Jdg 12:9  And he had thirty sons, and thirty daughters, whom he sent abroad, and took in thirty daughters from abroad for his sons. And he judged Israel seven years. 
Jdg 12:10  Then died Ibzan, and was buried at Bethlehem. 
Jdg 12:11  And after him Elon, a Zebulonite, judged Israel; and he judged Israel ten years. 
Jdg 12:12  And Elon the Zebulonite died, and was buried in Aijalon in the country of Zebulun. 
Jdg 12:13  And after him Abdon the son of Hillel, a Pirathonite, judged Israel. 
Jdg 12:14  And he had forty sons and thirty nephews, that rode on threescore and ten ass colts: and he judged Israel eight years. 
Jdg 12:15  And Abdon the son of Hillel the Pirathonite died, and was buried in Pirathon in the land of Ephraim, in the mount of the Amalekites. 

The second section of Judges Chapter 11 concerns the vow that Jephthah made, and as a consequence he had to sacrifice his daughter to the Lord. We came to the understanding that as human beings, we are not to vow simply because we do not control our own destiny. It is the Lord who causes us both to will and do His pleasure and so it is only Him who has the capacity to make a vow. 

Php 2:13  For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

The whole story about Jephthah making a vow is for us to appreciate how our Lord has sworn by Himself to deliver us from our enemies within and to bless us. 

Heb 6:13  For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself,
Heb 6:14  Saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee.
Heb 6:15  And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise.
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;

Jephthah’s daughter’s willingness to be sacrificed for the defeat of the Ammonites speaks of our Lord’s ultimate sacrifice for us when He died on the cross for our victory. 

Isa 53:6  All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
Isa 53:7  He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.
Isa 53:8  He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.
Isa 53:9  And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
Isa 53:10  Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.
Isa 53:11  He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.

Jephthah’s daughter’s request to go up and down the mountains to bewail her virginity for two months symbolizes our Lord Jesus stripping off His glory to take up His cross of suffering while here on earth bearing witness to the truth. 

Luk 9:23  And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.
Luk 9:24  For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.

As He is, so are we here on earth. We, too, like the daughter of Jephthah and our Lord Jesus Christ, must bewail our virginity for two months by taking up the cross and following our Lord Jesus in our lives here on earth as we bear witness to the truth.

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.

Today’s review is in two parts.  The first part is to bring to our attention one of the cardinal dangers we face as His elect as we walk with Christ. The second part deals with the various judges who judged Israel for various periods.

Jdg 12:1  And the men of Ephraim gathered themselves together, and went northward, and said unto Jephthah, Wherefore passedst thou over to fight against the children of Ammon, and didst not call us to go with thee? we will burn thine house upon thee with fire. 

As God’s elect, the biggest challenge we face is how to win this war against the flesh or the beast within as we walk with Christ here on earth. In other words, it is how to walk in the spirit and not fulfill the desires of the flesh. 

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.
Gal 5:18  But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.

Being led by the spirit is what wins the war.  It is when our eyes start seeing and our ears start hearing the word that we are being led by the spirit, and it is only in this way that we come out of the law – that is, overcome the flesh or the old man.

Another present danger we face as God’s elect is the heresies which rear their heads within the church of the first born. From verse 1 here, we see that the men of Ephraim were not happy that Jephthah did not consult them before going to war with the Ammonites. These men from Ephraim signify part of the commonwealth of God’s people who rise from within to confuse the people of God with heresies. They said to Jephthah that they will burn his house with fire. As we are aware, the positive application of fire is the word of God.  The negative application of fire is heresies. So what we are being told here is that within us will come men whose words are heresies which will destroy (burn down) the temple of God within us if not checked. 

Jer 5:14  Wherefore thus saith the LORD God of hosts, Because ye speak this word, behold, I will make my words in thy mouth fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them.

Paul warned us of this in his farewell speech to the elders of Ephesus when he visited them for the last time. 

Act 20:28  Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.
Act 20:29  For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.
Act 20:30  Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.

What the men of Ephraim said to Jephthah is the same as what Korah and the two hundred and fifty princes of the people of Israel said to Moses. 

Num 16:2  And they rose up before Moses, with certain of the children of Israel, two hundred and fifty princes of the assembly, famous in the congregation, men of renown:
Num 16:3  And they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said unto them, Ye take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the LORD is among them: wherefore then lift ye up yourselves above the congregation of the LORD?

“Ye take too much upon you” here in Numbers 16:3 is the same as saying, “Why go to war with the Ammonites without involving us?” The purpose for all these heresies among us is that God wants to make it clear to us who are the called according to His purpose.

1Co 11:19  For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you.

In another spiritual perspective, the men of Ephraim can also signify Babylon. Our brothers in Babylon think they represent God here on earth and must be consulted on all spiritual matters here on earth. Babylon used to be our mother when we started our walk with Christ.

Jdg 12:2  And Jephthah said unto them, I and my people were at great strife with the children of Ammon; and when I called you, ye delivered me not out of their hands. 

This verse is to make it clear to us that this war with our flesh or old man must be fought individually. Our fellowshiping does provide us with the weapons to win this war, but this great strife against the Ammonites (our flesh) must be fought within by each of us alone. The statement “when I called you, ye delivered me not out of their hands” means that those who introduce heresies from within cannot help us to win the war with the flesh. It also means that when we were in Babylon, we thought that the church would help us to win this war, but rather, our servitude under the flesh became entrenched. 

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.

Jdg 12:3  And when I saw that ye delivered me not, I put my life in my hands, and passed over against the children of Ammon, and the LORD delivered them into my hand: wherefore then are ye come up unto me this day, to fight against me? 

It was when our Lord Jesus came to us that we realized we cannot be helped by these heretics from within or the church system of this world, and therefore we make this statement, “And when I saw that ye delivered me not, I put my life in my hands.” This statement is another way of saying that we should work out our own salvation with fear and trembling. Of course, on our own, we can do nothing, but it is only through the enabling power of our Lord Jesus Christ that we can become victors. 

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.

Jdg 12:4  Then Jephthah gathered together all the men of Gilead, and fought with Ephraim: and the men of Gilead smote Ephraim, because they said, Ye Gileadites are fugitives of Ephraim among the Ephraimites, and among the Manassites.

Gathering together all the men of Gilead is the same as making known to the saints issues of controversy or heresies introduced from within by members of the church, just as Paul and Barnabas brought the issue of circumcision to the attention of the apostles and elders of the church in Jerusalem. 

Act 15:1  And certain men which came down from Judaea taught the brethren, and said, Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved.
Act 15:2  When therefore Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and disputation with them, they determined that Paul and Barnabas, and certain other of them, should go up to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this question.

Act 15:6  And the apostles and elders came together for to consider of this matter.

The statement “Ye Gileadites are fugitives” signifies that we have escaped from these heretics, or from Babylon, as a bird out of the snare of the fowlers.  

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.

Jdg 12:5  And the Gileadites took the passages of Jordan before the Ephraimites: and it was so, that when those Ephraimites which were escaped said, Let me go over; that the men of Gilead said unto him, Art thou an Ephraimite? If he said, Nay;

The whole war with the Ephraimites is based on the crossing of the river Jordan. In other words, the whole controversy with the Ephraimites is about the word of God. We, the Gileadites (the elect), must be able to take possession of the crossing of the Jordan. Taking possession of the crossing of the Jordan is being able to understand the whole counsel of the word of God. That is the only way we may be able to fight or separate ourselves from the Ephraimites or Korah and the two hundred and fifty elders.

Act 20:20  And how I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but have shewed you, and have taught you publickly, and from house to house,
Act 20:21  Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.

Act 20:27  For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.

Jdg 12:6  Then said they unto him, Say now Shibboleth: and he said Sibboleth: for he could not frame to pronounce it right. Then they took him, and slew him at the passages of Jordan: and there fell at that time of the Ephraimites forty and two thousand.

What we speak is what shows whether we are of Christ or not. Jesus said that by their fruits, we shall know them who are of the world. The fruits here are what comes out of a man, and it can be what we speak or what we do. That is how the “Ephraimites” among us are revealed – that is, by what they say. In this context, the Ephraimites are revealed by their inability to pronounce well the word “Sibboleth”. 

Mat 7:15  Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
Mat 7:16  Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?
Mat 7:17  Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.
Mat 7:18  A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.
Mat 7:19  Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
Mat 7:20  Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.

1Jn 4:5  They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them.
1Jn 4:6  We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.

1Co 2:6  Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought:
1Co 2:7  But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:

1Co 2:15  But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man.

Verse 6 of Hebrews 6 is a solemn warning to us of what happens if we end up introducing heresies among us after hearing the word of God. That is the same as bearing thorns and briars after receiving the rain which is the word of God.

Heb 6:4  For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,
Heb 6:5  And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,
Heb 6:6  If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.
Heb 6:7  For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God:
Heb 6:8  But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned.

In the case of Korah and the two hundred and fifty elders who rose up against Moses, they were swallowed by the earth, and fire finally consumed them. To be swallowed by the earth means to become consumed by the Babylonian doctrines which result in spiritual death.  It is the same as being in outer darkness and awaiting the lake-of-fire judgment, which is the fire that will consume all that offends in all humanity.

Num 16:28  And Moses said, Hereby ye shall know that the LORD hath sent me to do all these works; for I have not done them of mine own mind.
Num 16:29  If these men die the common death of all men, or if they be visited after the visitation of all men; then the LORD hath not sent me.
Num 16:30  But if the LORD make a new thing, and the earth open her mouth, and swallow them up, with all that appertain unto them, and they go down quick into the pit; then ye shall understand that these men have provoked the LORD.
Num 16:31  And it came to pass, as he had made an end of speaking all these words, that the ground clave asunder that was under them:
Num 16:32  And the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up, and their houses, and all the men that appertained unto Korah, and all their goods.
Num 16:33  They, and all that appertained to them, went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed upon them: and they perished from among the congregation.
Num 16:34  And all Israel that were round about them fled at the cry of them: for they said, Lest the earth swallow us up also.
Num 16:35  And there came out a fire from the LORD, and consumed the two hundred and fifty men that offered incense.

Although we speak this way, we are assured by Paul that we have better things that accompany our salvation.

Heb 6:9  But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, and things that accompany salvation, though we thus speak.
Heb 6:10  For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.
Heb 6:11  And we desire that every one of you do shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end:
Heb 6:12  That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

Jdg 12:7  And Jephthah judged Israel six years. Then died Jephthah the Gileadite, and was buried in one of the cities of Gilead.

Jephthah judging Israel for six years is to tell us that the rule of Jephthah was not according to the spirit but is fleshly, as the number six is the number of man. The fleshly rule is being governed by the law of sin and death which cannot save us but is an experience of evil to bring us to Christ. 

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

As indicated in a previous review, the name Jephthah means “He will open”. So Jephthah represents our Lord Jesus. Jephthah’s judgment of Israel for six years therefore refers to our lives when we were under the law of sin and death before Christ came to us to open our eyes to see and ears to hear.

The rest of Chapter 12 of Judges deals with the rule of various judges which tells us of the various stages of our walk with Christ here on earth as follows:

Jdg 12:8  And after him Ibzan of Bethlehem judged Israel. 
Jdg 12:9  And he had thirty sons, and thirty daughters, whom he sent abroad, and took in thirty daughters from abroad for his sons. And he judged Israel seven years. 
Jdg 12:10  Then died Ibzan, and was buried at Bethlehem. 

The rule of Ibzan is to demonstrate to us the complete life (the number seven means complete) of an elect. According to Strong, the name Ibzan means ‘splendid’. Indeed the life of an elect is wonderful. The rule of Ibzan is therefore to tell us the splendid end of the elect.

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.

Both Joseph and David became kings at the age of thirty. The number thirty therefore symbolizes the time that our new man starts to reign in our lives as our old man has commenced the dying process. So the fact that Ibzan had thirty sons and thirty daughters is to tell us that Christ has started His work in us to judge us first in this life by beginning the process of putting the old man to death for the birth of the new man who is to reign in our lives. Outwardly, the rule of Ibzan is to tell us that the elect will reign over the world when the kingdoms of this world becomes the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ.

Gen 41:46  And Joseph was thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from the presence of Pharaoh, and went throughout all the land of Egypt.

2Sa 5:4  David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years.

Num 4:23  From thirty years old and upward until fifty years old shalt thou number them; all that enter in to perform the service, to do the work in the tabernacle of the congregation.

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.

Jdg 12:11  And after him Elon, a Zebulonite, judged Israel; and he judged Israel ten years. 
Jdg 12:12  And Elon the Zebulonite died, and was buried in Aijalon in the country of Zebulun. 

After Ibzan came Elon who judged Israel for ten years. The number ten signifies the fullness of the flesh. What is significant here is that Elon was a Zebulonite. The blessing that Jacob pronounced to the Zebulonites is this:

Gen 49:13  “Zebulun shall dwell at the shore of the sea; he shall become a haven for ships, and his border shall be at Sidon.” (ESV)

What therefore the rule of Elon symbolizes is that we spend a certain period of our lives manifesting the fullness of the flesh, which is the same as dwelling at the shore of the sea. However, this experience of evil is not in vain.  It is when we are dwelling at the shore of the sea that we see the beast rise up within us. In other words, that is when we see ourselves as the greatest of sinners, which eventually leads to our salvation.

Rev 13:1  And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads.
Rev 13:2  And the beast that I saw was like a leopard; its feet were like a bear’s, and its mouth was like a lion’s mouth. And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority.
Rev 13:3  One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth marveled as they followed the beast.

Jdg 12:13  And after him Abdon the son of Hillel, a Pirathonite, judged Israel.
Jdg 12:14  And he had forty sons and thirty nephews, that rode on threescore and ten ass colts: and he judged Israel eight years.
Jdg 12:15  And Abdon the son of Hillel the Pirathonite died, and was buried in Pirathon in the land of Ephraim, in the mount of the Amalekites.

The name Abdon, according to Strong, means “Servitude”. He judged Israel for a period of eight years. Abdon came from Pirathon which means ‘chieftaincy’, and the number eight, on a positive note, means new beginnings or the new man. So what we are being told in these verses is that after we come to see who we really are at the end of the reign of Elon, we then come to serve Christ under the reign of the new man after the image of Christ. This will ultimately result in our reign (Chieftaincy) with Christ when the kingdoms of this world become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ.

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.

Jer 7:1-17 Part 1, Pray Not for This People

[Study Aired April 11, 2021]

Jer 7:1  The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
Jer 7:2  Stand in the gate of the LORD’S house, and proclaim there this word, and say, Hear the word of the LORD, all ye of Judah, that enter in at these gates to worship the LORD.
Jer 7:3  Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, Amend your ways and your doings, and I will cause you to dwell in this place.
Jer 7:4  Trust ye not in lying words, saying, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, are these.
Jer 7:5  For if ye throughly amend your ways and your doings; if ye throughly execute judgment between a man and his neighbour;
Jer 7:6  If ye oppress not the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, and shed not innocent blood in this place, neither walk after other gods to your hurt:
Jer 7:7  Then will I cause you to dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers, for ever and ever.
Jer 7:8  Behold, ye trust in lying words, that cannot profit.
Jer 7:9  Will ye steal, murder, and commit adultery, and swear falsely, and burn incense unto Baal, and walk after other gods whom ye know not;
Jer 7:10  And come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, We are delivered to do all these abominations?
Jer 7:11  Is this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, even I have seen it, saith the LORD.
Jer 7:12  But go ye now unto my place which was in Shiloh, where I set my name at the first, and see what I did to it for the wickedness of my people Israel.
Jer 7:13  And now, because ye have done all these works, saith the LORD, and I spake unto you, rising up early and speaking, but ye heard not; and I called you, but ye answered not;
Jer 7:14  Therefore will I do unto this house, which is called by my name, wherein ye trust, and unto the place which I gave to you and to your fathers, as I have done to Shiloh.
Jer 7:15  And I will cast you out of my sight, as I have cast out all your brethren, even the whole seed of Ephraim.
Jer 7:16  Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make intercession to me: for I will not hear thee.
Jer 7:17  Seest thou not what they do in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem?

Both John the Baptist and Christ addressed their words directly to those who had no eyes to see or ears to hear:

Mat 3:7  But when he [“John the Baptist” (vs 1)] saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?

Christ repeated this same charge against the religious leaders of His day who had just accused Him of casting out devils “by Beelzebub”:

Mat 12:34  O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.

Mat 23:33  Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?

“The damnation of hell” here is not the death of the old man which produces “the resurrection of life”. The Greek word translated as ‘hell’ here in Matthew 23 is G1067 (gehenna) which is, according to Christ, “the resurrection to damnation”:

Joh 5:27  And hath given him [Christ and His 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  [G2920: krisis, judgment].

Here in John 5:29 we have the only two resurrections mentioned anywhere in scripture. The first one is to life, and the last one is to judgment.

How can we be sure that “the damnation of hell”, better translated as “the judgment of gehenna”, is “the resurrection of damnation”? We can know this for certain because of what Christ says in:

Mat 25:31  When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:
Mat 25:32  And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:
Mat 25:33  And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.
Mat 25:34  Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
Mat 25:35  For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:
Mat 25:36  Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.
Mat 25:37  Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?
Mat 25:38  When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?
Mat 25:39  Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?
Mat 25:40  And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.
Mat 25:41  Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:
Mat 25:42  For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:
Mat 25:43  I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.
Mat 25:44  Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?
Mat 25:45  Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.
Mat 25:46  And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

This “separating of the sheep” who are told “Come ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom” takes place at the beginning of the thousand-year reign of Christ as we are told in:

Rev 20:1  And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.
Rev 20:2  And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,
Rev 20:3  And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.
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 [“Ye blessed of My Father” (Mat 25:34)] 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.

There we have it. There is a “blessed… first resurrection” with the reward of a “glorious… crown of life”, for those who “die in the Lord” in “this present time”. It is only those who first “die in the Lord” in “this present time”, and are being judged at “this present time” (Rom 8:18), who are given that “blessed and holy [reward of] having part in the first resurrection”:

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.

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.

To those who are given eyes that see and ears that hear these verses reveal there are two deaths, two judgments and two resurrections. The first death is a “blessed… death” (Rev 14:13) with a symbolic thousand-year reign dividing the first death from “the second death” (Rev 20:5-6), and there are two resurrections, the one preceding the other, with a symbolic thousand years dividing those two resurrections (Rev 20:5-6). There are two judgments. The first judgment is “[now] on the house of God… [in] this present time”, and the second is the “great white throne… judgment” which takes place “when the thousand years are finished” (Rev 20:5 and 11). These scriptures very clearly say “Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord… [and are being judged in] this present time”, and they tell us that the ‘goats’ who die in this present time are “ye cursed” who will be raised up in “the resurrection of judgment” which occurs only “when the thousand years are finished” (Rev 20:5):

Mat 25:31  When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:
Mat 25:32  And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:
Mat 25:33  And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.

Mat 25:41  Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:

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 [G2920: krisis, judgment].

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?

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.

The separation of two resurrections by a symbolic thousand years is not clearly revealed in the gospels. “The resurrection of life and… the resurrection of judgment” are both named in John 5:29.  The thousand-year reign, separating the two resurrections is revealed in the twentieth chapter of the book of Revelation.

Matthew 25:31-41 does reveal that “the throne of His glory” continues throughout the rewarding of the sheep at the first resurrection. It continues throughout the judgment of the cursed goats in the lake of fire.

Those who are being judged in this present time are raised up in “the first resurrection”. This is the resurrection which Christ called “the resurrection of life” (Joh 5:29, Rev 20:6). It follows that since there are only two resurrections in scripture, and since it is only the ‘sheep’ who are given a kingdom at the first resurrection, which takes place at the beginning of the thousand-year reign, then it must be “the goats”, who consist of any and all the rest of mankind who are not in that “blessed and holy… first resurrection”. It is “the goats” who will be raised from the dead in the great white throne judgment, many of whom will be told “depart from me, ye cursed, into eonian fire prepared for the devil and his angels”.

“Many prophets and righteous men have desired to see [the] things which [we] see, and have not seen them” (Mat 13:17):

Mat 13:16  But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.
Mat 13:17  For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men 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.

These “prophets and righteous men” will also have to wait until the white throne judgment to see and hear the things we are already privileged to see and hear. We can be sure this is the case because we are told that “he that is least in the kingdom of God is greater than… John [the Baptist], and we are told that no Old Testament prophet was greater than John:

Luk 7:28  For I say unto you, Among those that are born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist: but he that is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.

“He that is least in the kingdom of God is greater than [John]”, excludes John from ruling with Christ in His thousand-year reign.

“The word… from the Lord” here in Jeremiah 7 is the same ‘Lord’ with the same message we are given in Matthew 25 concerning the judgment of the same people. Jeremiah was just several hundred years earlier:

Jer 7:1  The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
Jer 7:2  Stand in the gate of the LORD’S house, and proclaim there this word, and say, Hear the word of the LORD, all ye of Judah, that enter in at these gates to worship the LORD.

As we will see here is Jeremiah 7, the Lord is separating the sheep from the goats. The “sheep” are the “one from a nation and two from a family” which we read about earlier in this prophecy:

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, and I will bring you to Zion:

Throughout scripture, ‘Zion” typifies the Lord’s elect. It typifies “the sheep” who are separated from the goats, given a kingdom and called “ye blessed of My Father” and who will then become the “saviors” of all the rest of mankind:

Psa 74:2  Remember thy congregation, which thou hast purchased of old; the rod of thine inheritance, which thou hast redeemed; this mount Zion, wherein thou hast dwelt.

Oba 1:21  And saviours shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the LORD’S.

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

On the other hand, we quote Jeremiah 22:29 quite often to demonstrate that the word ‘earth’ symbolizes the Lord’s own people who are estranged from Him through their sins and transgressions. Here is the Lord pleading with His own estranged people:

Jer 22:29  O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD.

Knowing that the ‘earth’ symbolizes the Lord’s own people who love to wear His name but despise having to wear His apparel or eat His food (Isa 4:1), helps us to understand who the second beast of Revelation 13 is:

Rev 13:11  And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.

A beast that appears to be a lamb but speaks as a dragon is the same as a whore who wants her Husband’s name but refuses to wear His apparel or eat His bread, the bread of life:

Isa 4:1  And in that day seven women shall take hold of one man, saying, We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel: only let us be called by thy name, to take away our reproach.

These “seven women” who will not eat the Lord’s bread or wear His apparel are the symbols of the seven churches of Revelation 2 and 3. Those seven churches, with all their sins and transgressions, just like the seven women of Isaiah 4, think they are “rich and increased with goods and in need of nothing” (Rev 3:17). The Truth is that they “are wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked”, and they are the whore in the wilderness of Revelation 17-18.

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:

No whore thinks of herself in those terms. This is how you and I, the Lord’s own whoring people, think before we are dragged out of her:

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.

That is a perfect inspired description of how we as the beast that ‘comes up out of the earth… [which looks] like a lamb… [but] speaks as a dragon’ thinks of himself. We are filled with self-righteous pride, and it is all by the Lord’s design and “after the counsel of His own will” (Eph 1:11):

Rev 13:13  And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,
Rev 13:14  And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.
Rev 13:15  And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.
Rev 13:16  And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:

This beast that comes up out of the earth is the “earth, earth, earth” of Jeremiah 22:29, and just see to whom this entire chapter is specifically addressed:

Jer 22:1  Thus saith the LORD; Go down to the house of the king of Judah, and speak there this word,
Jer 22:2  And say, Hear the word of the LORD, O king of Judah, that sittest upon the throne of David, thou, and thy servants, and thy people that enter in by these gates:

That is right! The ‘earth’ is the symbol for the Lord’s own special people who are called by His name but will not wear His apparel nor eat His bread. Now let’s put this introduction of chapter 22 right beside the introduction to this seventh chapter:

Jer 7:1  The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
Jer 7:2  Stand in the gate of the LORD’S house, and proclaim there this word, and say, Hear the word of the LORD, all ye of Judah, that enter in at these gates to worship the LORD.

The only difference is not really a difference at all. Chapter 22 adds “the king of Judah, that sits upon the throne of David”, but both chapters are addressed to “thy people who enter by these gates”. Inasmuch as “King David” typifies and represents the people over whom the Lord has made Him ruler, these two chapters are addressed to the same people. They are addressed primarily to you and me, and they are also addressed to all who claim to be “in Christ… to take away [their] shame”.

Now notice that the message to us is the same in both chapters:

Jer 7:3  Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, Amend your ways and your doings, and I will cause you to dwell in this place.
Jer 7:4  Trust ye not in lying words, saying, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, are these.

“The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, are these” is using the Lord’s name to take away our reproach, while committing blatant adultery and teaching false doctrines which directly contradict the doctrines of our own Husband, but the Lord will always have a remnant who will come out of this world, and will come out of Babylon.

Jer 7:5  For if ye throughly amend your ways and your doings; if ye throughly execute judgment between a man and his neighbour;
Jer 7:6  If ye oppress not the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, and shed not innocent blood in this place, neither walk after other gods to your hurt:

Compare these words to chapter 22:

Jer 22:3  Thus saith the LORD; Execute ye judgment and righteousness, and deliver the spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor: and do no wrong, do no violence to the stranger, the fatherless, nor the widow, neither shed innocent blood in this place.
Jer 22:4  For if ye do this thing indeed, then shall there enter in by the gates of this house kings sitting upon the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, he, and his servants, and his people.

“Executing judgment between a man and his neighbor” here in chapter 7 is the same as “executing judgment and righteousness” in chapter 22.

However, we must also notice the big “For if…” in both chapters. It is always “If ye do this thing… then…” I will bless you:

Jer 7:7  Then will I cause you to dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers, for ever and ever.

Jer 22:4  For if ye do this thing indeed, then shall there enter in by the gates of this house kings sitting upon the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, he, and his servants, and his people.

Our salvation is not contingent upon our good works, but it is contingent upon the workmanship of Christ who has “created us unto good works”, and that is simply what the scriptures teach:

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.

We simply cannot read verses 8-9 and not read the next verse. To do so is “rebellion [which] is as the sin of witchcraft”. To stop here and make a doctrine of ‘no works… Christs did it all for us on the cross’ is exactly what King Saul did when he brought King Agag and the best of the cattle back to offer them to the Lord after the Lord had told him to kill everything that breathed. King Saul cherry picked the Word of God, and he feared the people more than he feared the Lord. Like the seven adulterous women of Isaiah 4:1 he thought he had the right to obey the Lord as He saw fit, and if his way of serving the Lord meant that he would have to ignore some of the Lord’s words, then so be it. That fearful and rebellious spirit cost him the kingdom, and that rebellious spirit will also cost us the kingdom.

Here now is the next verse:

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.

We really can tell a tree by its fruits:

Mat 7:16  Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?

Mat 7:20  Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.

All the Lord’s spiritual blessings will be preceded by obedience to His Words. He does not tolerate any spirit of disobedience or rebellion. The only way we will know the Lord is if we seek Him with our whole heart:

Jer 29:13  And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

To the Lord, making light of His word and disobeying Him by picking for ourselves which of His Words we will keep and obey is nothing less than “rebellion [and it] is as the sin of witchcraft and Idolatry”, and it will rob us of our crown of life. This is what Samuel told King Saul when King Saul attempted to justify his fear of the people and his rebellion against the commandment of the Lord:

1Sa 15:23  For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.

A prime example of this idolatrous spirit is when we say we are obedient to the Lord even as we blatantly disobey His commandments concerning how we are to keep false teachings and the sins of witchcraft, rebellion, and idolatry out of our midst. The story of how King Saul attempted to twist the Lord’s words to his own liking is the same message the Lord has for us in Ezekiel 14:

Eze 14:1  Then came certain of the elders of Israel unto me, and sat before me.
Eze 14:2  And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
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 14:5  That I may take the house of Israel in their own heart, because they are all estranged from me through their idols.
Eze 14:6  Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Repent, and turn yourselves from your idols; and turn away your faces from all your abominations.
Eze 14:7  For every one of the house of Israel, or of the stranger that sojourneth in Israel, which separateth himself from me, and setteth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to a prophet to enquire of him concerning me; I the LORD will answer him by myself:
Eze 14:8  And I will set my face against that man, and will make him a sign and a proverb, and I will cut him off from the midst of my people; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
Eze 14:9  And if the prophet be deceived when he hath spoken a thing, I the LORD have deceived that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand upon him, and will destroy him from the midst of my people Israel.
Eze 14:10  And they shall bear the punishment of their iniquity: the punishment of the prophet shall be even as the punishment of him that seeketh unto him;

We have all had idols of our hearts, but that was before we were “enlightened and had tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and had tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come.” If the Lord deceives us after experiencing all those blessings, then these are His words concerning all such men:

Heb 6:4  For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,
Heb 6:5  And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,
Heb 6:6  If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; [They “find no place of repentance” (Heb 12:17)] seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.
Heb 6:7  For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God:
Heb 6:8  But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned [in the lake of fire].

We will stop here for now, and next week we will pick up our study of this commandment, “Pray not for this people”. In our next study we will discuss the spiritual significance of why this commandment is repeated three times in this prophecy of Jeremiah.

Here are those three scriptures for your consideration until next week:

Jer 7:16  Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make intercession to me: for I will not hear thee.

Jer 11:14  Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up a cry or prayer for them: for I will not hear them in the time that they cry unto me for their trouble.

Jer 14:11  Then said the LORD unto me, Pray not for this people for their good.