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The Fowl of The Air

[Study Aired April 12, 2026]

What is signified by “the fowls of the air?”

This study concerns the prophecy of Matthew 24, specifically verse 28:

Mat 24:28  For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together.

I take this title from the Lord’s words in Mark 4:

Mar 4:4  And it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up.

What is Christ telling us when He makes this statement concerning such an obvious truth about what eagles do?

We’re going to answer that question in this study. The spiritual significance of flesh being consumed by the fowls of the air will take up most of our Bible study because our carnal-minded flesh is just naturally and by default subject to all the lies, false doctrines and deceptions with which “the prince of the powers of the air” (Eph 2:2) has deceived the whole world (Rev 12:9).

Christ’s first words to His disciples makes this clear:

Mat 24:1 And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple.
Mat 24:2 And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.

When you read the Bible, you see the words in front of you and think of the temple that they were standing in front of and how huge the stones are. They are huge stones, and it is a wonder how they actually got those stones there. What’s in your mind is the physical, but, I am telling you as Christ tells you later in this chapter, “Let him that reads understand.” When you hear ‘There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down” this is not talking about the stones of the temple to you or me as God’s elect. This is talking about what’s in our lives. If we don’t see these spiritual truths behind these physical letters, then we are not getting anything out of what Christ says later in this chapter.

Let me go back to make this point.

Mat 21:44 And whosoever shall fall on this stone [Christ] shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.

These are the stones in the temple that we need to be thinking of.

Mat 24:3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world (age- Greek: aion)?

I want you to notice that this is not addressed to the multitudes. The Matthew 24 prophecy, according to the gospel of Mark, was addressed privately to just four of the Lord’s apostles:

Mar 13:3  And as he sat upon the mount of Olives over against the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately,
Mar 13:4  Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign when all these things shall be fulfilled?
Mar 13:5  And Jesus answering them began to say, Take heed lest any man deceive you:
Mar 13:6  For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.

This prophecy was originally addressed to but four of the apostles and notice that in Mark’s account the first words out of Christ’s mouth is a warning against the work of ‘eagles eating carcasses’ and function of ‘the birds of the air.’ What you are about to hear is something that a few people got to hear at the time it was first revealed. What is being said here, once again, is talking about the end of my age and your age, not the end of someone else’s age. It has to be applied personally and inwardly.

Mat 24:4-5 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.

If you think Christ was speaking to these four disciples about events 2,000 years in the future then please explain this verse to me:

Mat 24:34  Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.

There are many people who come in Jesus Christ’s name and who teach about Jesus Christ and who do many wonderful works in the name of Jesus Christ, but they don’t have one bit of use for the words of Jesus Christ.

Luk 6:46 And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?

This is who Jesus Christ is talking about here. He’s not talking about the occasional person who claims to be ‘Jesus Christ’ like Sun Yung Moon. He’s talking about “many” people, and many means the majority. Most people will come in Christ’s name, saying that He is Christ and will deceive most people; in other words, the Christian religion. Let’s just call things what they are.

Mat 24:6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.

Once again, let me say it again so we can stay focused: Christ intended for us to apply all of this inwardly. Realize that this is talking to all of us including me. I, Mike Vinson, have been deceived; Mike Vinson was taken into the Babylonian system of the Christian religion that claims to know Christ and does many wonderful works in his name. Mike Vinson was deceived, he was one of the many deceived, and if you don’t see that these words also apply to you, then you are probably going to go to church every Sunday thinking you are not deceived.

Mat 24:7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.
Mat 24:8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.
Mat 24:9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake.

“They shall deliver you up… and shall kill you.” Why would “all nations” hate a dead man? It is after you begin to die to the flesh that you begin to be hated. They will ‘deliver you up to be afflicted’ and will kill you. That’s good! That’s the best thing that happens to you when you begin to die.

Mat 24:10-11 And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.

Who is he talking about here? Heathen people? No, the many people who are deceived thinking they know Christ. That’s what we are talking about. Christ is talking about people who have been called, who have accepted him, who come in His name, do many wonderful works and deceive people. At that point, many are offended and betray one another and hate one another.

Mat 24:12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.

This is many coming in Christ’s name, saying they are following Christ, using Christ’s name, claiming they love Christ’s name and doctrine and they deceive many, most, the majority. That’s the litmus test right there, because God is love. While you can talk love all day, it is hard to live love, it is hard to turn the other cheek. You can’t do it. It takes Jesus Christ in you to do it. This is what separates the called from the chosen, this verse:

Mat 24:13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

Nobody is saved right now. We are in the process of being converted, but being converted is not saved. “He that endures to the end shall be saved.” When they are resurrected, they are saved. You are converted, you are living a good Christian life, but read Ezekiel 3, and it will come right out and tell you, no matter how good a life you live, if you turn your back on it at the end, all your good works account for nothing. No matter how evil you have been, if you turn from your evil works, all your evil works count for nothing. It is what you do at the end that counts. The workers that came in at the last hour received their wages before the people who had been there working all day, doing the same works as the other people.

If you have the love of Christ, you are not the least bit perturbed at what God does. All things are of God to you. He could give the house away, and you would say “Amen, Father!”

Mat 24:14  And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.
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:)

What does Matthew 24:14 mean to you? Does it mean that the churches of Babylon have to get the gospel preached in Europe, Asia, Africa and South America and the whole world? That’s been done for years. The gospel has been preached in all the continents of all the world for many years. If you still think that nations and kingdoms of Matthew 24 are outward nations, then you are apt to also think of the abomination of desolation is also outward and it will take place in some outward temple in some outward nation. That is how the whole world thinks of this prophecy. The churches of this world teach that Matthew 24 and the book of Revelation are both speaking of ‘end time events.’ They teach that all these things are yet future and are ‘out there’ somewhere in Europe or in the middle east. Most Christian ministers teach that the abomination of desolation will occur in a future temple yet to be built in Jerusalem. If indeed that is what you believe, then you don’t understand verse 15 at all:

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:)

“Whoso reads, let him understand” reveals that very few will understand what “the abomination that maketh desolate” means. “Whoso readeth let him understand” is telling us that only those who are “given ears that hear, and eyes that see” will understand. It is all to be understood as a message to the spirit within those who are given the spirit. God is spirit, and all that we see and touch is His way of getting through to us what is going on in the powers and principalities we are really wrestling against. These verses tell us about how the Lord communicates with His spirit within us:

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

1Co 2:12  Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.
1Co 2:13  Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. [spiritual words]
1Co 2:14  But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

The Greek actually reads “comparing spiritual with spiritual.” The word ‘things’ is added by the translators.

What did Christ tell us about His words:

Joh 6:63  It is the spirit that quickeneth [G2227: ‘zoopoieo’, to make alive]. ; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life [G2222: ‘Zoe’, life].

With the understanding that the Lord’s words “are spirit” let’s ask, “What does the holy place mean?” “The holy place” is you; it is your heart and your mind; that is ‘the holy place.’ We are very clearly informed that spiritually speaking, which is what Christ tells us His Words are, “you are the temple of God.” The holy place is “the holy of holies” in the second room of the temple. It is the last room into which only the high priest was permitted to enter, and that was only once in the year on the day of atonement:

Heb 9:7  But into the second went the high priest alone once every year [On the day of atonement, Lev 16:16-17], not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people:

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

Paul repeats this revolutionary Truth three chapters later in this same epistle and then again in his second epistle to this church:

1Co 6:19  What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?

2Co 6:16  And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

What is ‘the abomination of desolation?’ It is “the beast… the man of sin [you and me] the son of perdition [our dying old man] who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sits in the temple of God [“which temple ye are”], showing himself that he is God.” “The abomination that makes desolate” is you and me ruling in our own lives; it is our ‘beast’ within, empowered by the great red dragon, (Rev 13:2) having you and me for lunch, eating the dust that we are. That is the abomination of desolation. If you are given to see that “ye are the temple of God” and that you are also the man of sin sitting on God’s own throne within His own dwelling place, His own temple, then you can also see clearly that when Christ speaks of the gospel of the kingdom being preached in all the nations, this is also an inward statement speaking of all the powers and principalities within you, and within me, within each of us. Then you will see that beast, that man of sin, sitting on the throne in your heart, doing what he wants and never having lost a battle:

Rev 13:2  And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.

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

Once you see the inward application of scripture, then you finally have a handle on who “the man of sin” is.

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

What Paul told these Thessalonians when he was with them was the same thing he told the Corinthians when he was with them… “Know you not that ye are the temple of God…” (1Co 3:15-16)

Now we can finally understand that what Christ taught His disciples in Matthew 13 was preparing them to understand His prophecy in Matthew 24:

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.

Continuing on in Matthew 13 where Christ is explaining how we are to understand His words in Matthew 24 and everywhere else:

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 [spiritually], and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear [spiritually], and have not heard them.
Mat 13:18 Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower.
Mat 13:19 When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and [spiritually] understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one [“the fowls of the air”, (Mar 4:4)], and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side.

What is he talking about here? How does this have an inward application? Let’s let Christ finish what He is telling us here in Matthew 13 so we can apply the principles He is giving us here to what He tells us later in Matthew 24:

Mat 13:20 But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it;
Mat 13:21 Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.
Mat 13:22 He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.

‘He that received seed into stony places, receives it with joy, yet has no root in himself’ and does not ‘endure to the end’ when persecution comes because of the word, and he also who received the seed among the thorns is choked by the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and becomes unfruitful. What Christ is telling us here in Matthew 13 is just confirming what Christ had already taught us in:

Mat 7:13  Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:
Mat 7:14  Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

“Few there be that find it” here in Matthew 7 is the same message Christ is giving to us in the parable of the sower in Matthew 13 where He tells us that it is not given to the multitudes of Christians who come to Him to understand the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven:

Mat 13:10  And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto [the multitudes] in parables?
Mat 13:11  He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you [the “few… that find it”] to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them is it not given. [the “many there be which go in… the broad way”]

With this knowledge that few are given to understand Christ’s spiritual words let’s return to His words in Matthew 24:

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:)
Mat 24:16  Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:
Mat 24:17  Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house:
Mat 24:18  Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.
Mat 24:19  And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!
Mat 24:20  But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:
Mat 24:21  For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
Mat 24:22  And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.

If this is not to be applied internally and spiritually, then how can it have any application for that time? Where was the abomination of desolation and the great tribulation 2,000 years ago? Why would Christ say, ‘Woe unto them that are with child and to them that give suck in those days’? It should be clear to all of us that Christ does not think any less of a pregnant woman nor a suckling child than He thinks of you and me.

If you don’t see this internally and spiritually, then you will never understand the book of Revelation. The book of Revelation says “the time is at hand [to] read, hear and keep the saying of the prophecy of this book.”

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

Both Matthew 24 and the book of Revelation prophesy about a ‘great tribulation’ and ‘earthquakes’ and all kinds of trials and plagues. Both tell us that these prophecies “are at hand” and both tell us these things will be fulfilled in “this generation… for the time is at hand.” Revelation 1:3 is exactly what Christ says here in Matthew 24:

Mat 24:34  Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.
Mat 24:35  Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.

Once you accept that everything Christ prophesied came to pass in that generation, and that ‘His Words do not pass away’ but continue to be fulfilled in every generation since those words were first spoken… once you are given to accept that as a truth, not to be negotiated, then you will understand why Jesus Christ says so many times in the book of Revelation, ‘I am he that is, was and will be.’ Once you get a handle on the ‘is, was and will be,’ nature of Christ’s Words, then the word of God opens up to you in a way that it will never be understood otherwise.

‘But for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened’ (Mat 24:22). How does that apply generation by generation? Right here it is:

1Co 10:13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

1Pe 1:5  Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
1Pe 1:6  Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:
1Pe 1:7  That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:

That’s the days being shortened so the elect can “bear it.” If Jesus Christ is not in us, if He Himself is not living in us daily, and the days are not being shortened so we can bear it in our flesh, nobody would make it, no flesh would be saved alive.

Right at this juncture in your walk, when you are beginning to see that you are in Babylon:

Mat 24:23 Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not.

Don’t believe it! All this talk about a secret rapture is a bunch of lies.

Mat 24:24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs [G4592: ‘semeion’] and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.

That Greek word ‘semeion’, translated as ‘signs’ here in Matthew 24:24 is the same Greek word translated as ‘miracles’ in Revelation 13:

Rev 13:14  And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles [G4592: ‘semeion’] 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.

Spiritual gifts are not a synonym for the love of God or the fruits of the spirit. Spiritual gifts do not signify a mature son of God. The immature disciples of Christ were given to cast out demons and heal the sick long before they were even converted:

Luk 10:9  And heal the sick that are therein, and say unto them, The kingdom of God is come nigh unto you.

Luk 10:17  And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name.

Luk 22:32  But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.
Luk 22:33  And he said unto him, Lord, I am ready to go with thee, both into prison, and to death.
Luk 22:34  And he said, I tell thee, Peter, this day, before that the cock shall crow thou shalt thrice deny that thou knowest me.

Here is a Biblical Truth which is understood by very few. Paul tells us the church at Corinth “came behind in no gift”, and yet he tells them they are “yet carnal… babes in Christ”:

1Co 1:4  I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ;
1Co 1:5  That in every thing ye are enriched by him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge;
1Co 1:6  Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you:
1Co 1:7  So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ:

Skipping ahead to chapter three:

1Co 3:1  And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ.
1Co 3:2  I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able.
1Co 3:3  For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?
1Co 3:4  For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal?

God’s elect mature sons know the difference between gifts of the spirit and fruits of the spirit. You cannot and will not have “the fruits of the spirit” if Christ is not living His life in you. You will not and cannot, love your enemy without Christ being in you.

We will pause this study on “the fowls of the air” at this point and finish it in our next study.

]]> “But godliness with contentment is great gain” Part 2 https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/but-godliness-with-contentment-is-great-gain-part-2/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=but-godliness-with-contentment-is-great-gain-part-2 Thu, 14 Aug 2025 04:55:54 +0000 https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/?p=33845 Audio Download

“But godliness with contentment is great gain” Part 2

(Pro 17:8-17)

[Study Aired August 14, 2025]

Pro 17:8  A gift is as a precious stone in the eyes of him that hath it: whithersoever it turneth, it prospereth.
Pro 17:9  He that covereth a transgression seeketh love; but he that repeateth a matter separateth very friends.
Pro 17:10  A reproof entereth more into a wise man than an hundred stripes into a fool.
Pro 17:11  An evil man seeketh only rebellion: therefore a cruel messenger shall be sent against him.
Pro 17:12  Let a bear robbed of her whelps meet a man, rather than a fool in his folly.
Pro 17:13  Whoso rewardeth evil for good, evil shall not depart from his house.
Pro 17:14  The beginning of strife is as when one letteth out water: therefore leave off contention, before it be meddled with.
Pro 17:15  He that justifieth the wicked, and he that condemneth the just, even they both are abomination to the LORD.
Pro 17:16  Wherefore is there a price in the hand of a fool to get wisdom, seeing he hath no heart to it?
Pro 17:17  A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.

God knows how to incentivize His children and keep us in a place of godliness with contentment which is great gain.

These two short Psalms when read side by side witness to this truth that it is the Lord who is making us “to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters” and in doing that we find ourselves at peace and no longer wanting (Psa 23:1-6, Psa 1:1-6). These sections of scripture will give us a good backdrop regarding the proverbs will be looking at.

Psa 23:1  A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
Psa 1:1  Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.

Psa 23:2  He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
Psa 1:2  But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.

Psa 23:3  He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
Psa 1:3  And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

Psa 23:4  Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Psa 1:4  The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.

Psa 23:5  Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
Psa 1:5  Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.

Psa 23:6  Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.
Psa 1:6  For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.

The next several proverbs we’re looking at have a focus on how to walk circumspectly and remain in those green pastures, where our hearts can be guarded and where great spiritual gain is had, along with the precious commodity of His peace which passes all understanding will be found (Php 4:4-7).

Php 4:4  Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.
Php 4:5  Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.
Php 4:6  Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
Php 4:7  And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Pro 17:8  A gift is as a precious stone in the eyes of him that hath it: whithersoever it turneth, it prospereth.
Pro 17:9  He that covereth a transgression seeketh love; but he that repeateth a matter separateth very friends.

The “precious stone” being talked about in our first proverb is Jesus Christ the pearl of great price (Mat 13:46, 2Co 4:7). Potentially that pearl or at least the name of it can be misappropriated and used as an instrument of bribing and controlling those who we try to rule over in our flesh as the Nicolaitan spirit did within us in our former conversation (Isa 4:1, Rev 2:6, Eph 4:22-24). The name of Christ, his name sake, his mind, his words, are not known by the world, but blessed are our eyes and ears if we have been given this “precious stone” “which no man [carnal man] knoweth saving he that receiveth it.”(Rev 2:17).

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.

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.

What we should be doing Lord willing with this “precious gift” is to not neglect so great a salvation, stirring up that gift within us (Heb 2:3) and showing fervent love toward one another that will “covereth a transgression” (1Pe 4:8).

Heb 2:3  How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;

1Pe 4:8  And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.

We are washing each other with the word to that end that the bride can be without spot or wrinkle (Luk 7:44, Eph 5:26-27), and this section of the proverb, “but he that repeateth a matter separateth very friends” is the exact opposite of what we have been called to do for each other (Rom 6:3, Jas 5:11, 1Pe 3:8, 1Pe 4:8).

Rom 6:3  Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?

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.

1Pe 3:8  Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous:

1Pe 4:8  And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.

Pro 17:10  A reproof entereth more into a wise man than an hundred stripes into a fool.
Pro 17:11  An evil man seeketh only rebellion: therefore a cruel messenger shall be sent against him.

King David and King Saul are examples of the positive and negative first and second man Adam within us. David was tender hearted, however when he sinned he sinned big, typifying our coming to see we are ‘the man’, ‘the chief of sinners’ (2Sa 12:7). As a type of the elect, the reproof of the Lord who is the wise man entered into David as a man after God’s own heart,”A reproof entereth more into a wise man than an hundred stripes into a fool” (Act 13:22).

Act 13:22  And when he had removed him, he raised up unto them David to be their king; to whom also he gave testimony, and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfil all my will.
Act 13:23  Of this man’s seed hath God according to his promise raised unto Israel a Saviour, Jesus:(Gal 3:16, Oba 1:21)

God is showing mercy to the elect in this age, and it is “his goodness” that is leading us unto repentance through judgement that comes upon the body of Christ first (1Pe 4:17). God’s elect are the first fruits of His harvest who are given a tender heart, or a humble and contrite heart from God that is needed to fulfill all His will in our lives, and not our own (Luk 22:42, 1Jn 4:17).

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

Rom 11:22  Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in his goodness: otherwise thou also shalt be cut off.

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

Prior to being given that new heart we were the evil man whose day of evil was created by God for our good (Pro 16:4), when He sent a “cruel messenger” to humble us dead in our tracks, and do away with the fool within us whose carnal heart will only learn by doing hard time, “an hundred [10×10] stripes into a fool”, and even still that correction did not bring about a new creation, as we remained with uncircumcised hearts before the Lord until he came to destroy that hardness by the brightness of His coming (Act 9:4, Rom 11:22, 2Th 2:8).

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:

Pro 17:12  Let a bear robbed of her whelps meet a man, rather than a fool in his folly.
Pro 17:13  Whoso rewardeth evil for good, evil shall not depart from his house.

This proverb demonstrates why we must pray every day, “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen”. In order to avoid ‘fools in their folly’, we must be led by God’s spirit (Rom 8:14) and grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and saviour who knew how to answer and deal with every adversarial situation that was written in his book (1Jn 4:17).

Our goal by the grace of God is best expressed and reached by maturing into a life that is walking circumspectly in this age and living by these words of God, Lord willing:(Mat 10:16-17, Col 2:8, 2Ti 2:24-26, Jas 5:19-20).

Mat 10:16  Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.
Mat 10:17  But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues;

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

2Ti 2:24  And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient,
2Ti 2:25  In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth;
2Ti 2:26  And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.

Jas 5:19  Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him;
Jas 5:20  Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins. [this exercise is given to God’s elect so that in time we will be used to judge all the world and cover “a multitude of sins”, the innumerable multitude of (Rev 7:9)!]

In order to overcome, we must stop “reward[ing] evil for good”. Every evil spirit can be overcome as we grow in having a diligent heart and witness the spiritual increase that comes from God (2Pe 1:5-9, 1Co 3:6-7). It is counterintuitive to the world, but we know the only one who is going to see evil depart from his house is the one who will never have the sword depart from his house in this age, meaning the word of God that keeps us on a straight and narrow path that is not overcome by evil but overcomes evil with good (2Sa 12:10, Rom 12:21).

2Pe 1:5  And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
2Pe 1:6  And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
2Pe 1:7  And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.
2Pe 1:8  For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
2Pe 1:9  But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.

2Sa 12:10  Now therefore the sword shall never depart from thine house; because thou hast despised me, and hast taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be thy wife.

Pro 17:14  The beginning of strife is as when one letteth out water: therefore leave off contention, before it be meddled with.
Pro 17:15  He that justifieth the wicked, and he that condemneth the just, even they both are abomination to the LORD.

We can’t be respecters of persons who justify the wicked and condemn the just for our own advantage. Christ was our example in that regard, of not being a respecter of persons and by His faith we can do the same (Act 10:34, 1Jn 4:17, Jas 2:1).

Act 10:34  Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons:

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. (“no respecter of persons”)

Jas 2:1  My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons.

Christ knew there was no good thing in flesh including His own flesh, and with that perspective, and the spirit of God without measure, Christ was able to never walk with strife, and left off contention knowing that vengeance was God’s and all that anyone could do and can do is already ordained of God (Eph 1:11, Joh 19:11).

Eph 1:11  In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

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

Conversely we all at first justify our own wicked hearts and condemn the just, meaning we condemn Christ, and that self-righteous and misaligned spirit is an abomination to the LORD, “even they both are abomination to the LORD”, which he is going to burn out of the elect first, in this age. Pilate was not the one who dragged Christ into this situation wanting him tried and convicted and wanting the guilty Barabbas to be set free, and the innocent killed. At first glance it appears that Pilot did not do this: “He that justifieth the wicked, and he that condemneth the just, even they both are abomination to the LORD”, and it even says “from thenceforth Pilate sought to release him: but the Jews cried out, saying, If thou let this man go, thou art not Caesar’s friend: whosoever maketh himself a king speaketh against Caesar”. Pilate who had the ‘lesser’ sin of not delivering Christ, caved in to the crowd being a people pleasing politician. Peter and all the disciples did the same thing, betraying Christ, telling us that we are all guilty of the death of Christ, and no one is exempt from this truth while we are being controlled by our yet carnal hearts.

We don’t want to be self-righteous then and turn around and say, well at least I wouldn’t have been the one who delivered Christ, or I wouldn’t have done what Judas did, I didn’t have “the greater sin” (Mat 23:29-30, Luk 11:50-51). No, we are to seriously take heed to verse 14 and understand that “Pro 17:14  The start of an argument is like a water leak— so stop it before real trouble breaks out. ” (CEV), even while knowing that all things are of God.

Pro 17:16  Wherefore is there a price in the hand of a fool to get wisdom, seeing he hath no heart to it?

Getting wisdom is getting Christ, understanding how he is the Way, the Life and the Truth, but if we are not diligent and have “no heart”, we will try to obtain Christ in a fleshly manner, “a price in the hand of a fool to get wisdom”, another way of saying these verses, (Act 8:18-21, Isa 4:1).

Act 8:18  And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money,
Act 8:19  Saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost.
Act 8:20  But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money.
Act 8:21  Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God.

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.

Pro 17:17  A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.
Pro 17:17 The close associate keeps friendship at all times, And a brother is born to share distress.” (CLV)

Christ calls us His friends (Joh 15:13-17), and “a friend loves at all times”, and if Christ is in us we are brothers in arms who are “born to share distress”.  We are to carefully, by the grace and faith of Christ, count the cost (Luk 14:28-30), knowing that ours is a narrow path of tribulation that leads to the Way, the Truth and the Life that will set us free if we are granted to continue in the Truth, and know and acknowledge the great debt that has been paid on our behalf (Joh 8:31-32 , Luk 7:40-50).

Luk 7:40  And Jesus answering said unto him, Simon, I have somewhat to say unto thee. And he saith, Master, say on.
Luk 7:41  There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty.
Luk 7:42  And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most?
Luk 7:43  Simon answered and said, I suppose that he, to whom he forgave most. And he said unto him, Thou hast rightly judged.
Luk 7:44  And he turned to the woman, and said unto Simon, Seest thou this woman? I entered into thine house, thou gavest me no water for my feet: but she hath washed my feet with tears, and wiped them with the hairs of her head.
Luk 7:45  Thou gavest me no kiss: but this woman since the time I came in hath not ceased to kiss my feet.
Luk 7:46  My head with oil thou didst not anoint: but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment.
Luk 7:47  Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.
Luk 7:48  And he said unto her, Thy sins are forgiven.
Luk 7:49  And they that sat at meat with him began to say within themselves, Who is this that forgiveth sins also?
Luk 7:50  And he said to the woman,[the church the body of Christ] Thy faith hath saved thee;[1Jn 5:4, Rom 3:27, Eph 2:8] go in peace.

 

]]> Study of the Book of Kings – 2Ki 16:1-20  “Bring no more vain oblations;  incense is an abomination unto me” https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/study-of-the-book-of-kings-2ki-161-20-bring-no-more-vain-oblations-incense-is-an-abomination-unto-me/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=study-of-the-book-of-kings-2ki-161-20-bring-no-more-vain-oblations-incense-is-an-abomination-unto-me Thu, 12 Jan 2023 16:21:41 +0000 https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/?p=26954 2Ki 16:1-20  “Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me”
[Study Aired January 12, 2023]

2Ki 16:1  In the seventeenth year of Pekah the son of Remaliah Ahaz the son of Jotham king of Judah began to reign.
2Ki 16:2  Twenty years old was Ahaz when he began to reign, and reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem, and did not that which was right in the sight of the LORD his God, like David his father.
2Ki 16:3  But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, yea, and made his son to pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the heathen, whom the LORD cast out from before the children of Israel.
2Ki 16:4  And he sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places, and on the hills, and under every green tree.
2Ki 16:5  Then Rezin king of Syria and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to war: and they besieged Ahaz, but could not overcome him.
2Ki 16:6  At that time Rezin king of Syria recovered Elath to Syria, and drave the Jews from Elath: and the Syrians came to Elath, and dwelt there unto this day.
2Ki 16:7  So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglathpileser king of Assyria, saying, I am thy servant and thy son: come up, and save me out of the hand of the king of Syria, and out of the hand of the king of Israel, which rise up against me. 
2Ki 16:8  And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in the house of the LORD, and in the treasures of the king’s house, and sent it for a present to the king of Assyria.
2Ki 16:9  And the king of Assyria hearkened unto him: for the king of Assyria went up against Damascus, and took it, and carried the people of it captive to Kir, and slew Rezin.
2Ki 16:10  And king Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglathpileser king of Assyria, and saw an altar that was at Damascus: and king Ahaz sent to Urijah the priest the fashion of the altar, and the pattern of it, according to all the workmanship thereof. 
2Ki 16:11  And Urijah the priest built an altar according to all that king Ahaz had sent from Damascus: so Urijah the priest made it against king Ahaz came from Damascus. 
2Ki 16:12  And when the king was come from Damascus, the king saw the altar: and the king approached to the altar, and offered thereon.
2Ki 16:13  And he burnt his burnt offering and his meat offering, and poured his drink offering, and sprinkled the blood of his peace offerings, upon the altar.
2Ki 16:14  And he brought also the brasen altar, which was before the LORD, from the forefront of the house, from between the altar and the house of the LORD, and put it on the north side of the altar.
2Ki 16:15  And king Ahaz commanded Urijah the priest, saying, Upon the great altar burn the morning burnt offering, and the evening meat offering, and the king’s burnt sacrifice, and his meat offering, with the burnt offering of all the people of the land, and their meat offering, and their drink offerings; and sprinkle upon it all the blood of the burnt offering, and all the blood of the sacrifice: and the brasen altar shall be for me to enquire by.
2Ki 16:16  Thus did Urijah the priest, according to all that king Ahaz commanded.
2Ki 16:17  And king Ahaz cut off the borders of the bases, and removed the laver from off them; and took down the sea from off the brasen oxen that were under it, and put it upon a pavement of stones.
2Ki 16:18  And the covert for the sabbath that they had built in the house, and the king’s entry without, turned he from the house of the LORD for the king of Assyria.
2Ki 16:19  Now the rest of the acts of Ahaz which he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
2Ki 16:20  And Ahaz slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David: and Hezekiah his son reigned in his stead.

God’s word as shown in these verses (Isa 1:13-22, 1Pe 1:12-16) contrast so starkly with what king Ahaz did during his reign, which was in contrast to what Hezekiah the next ruling king of Judah would do for the nation of Judah. These verses in Isaiah (Isa 1:13-19) point to the reality of what must happen now in the lives of all those who are being dragged to Christ in this life (Joh 6:44). The verses in Peter’s writings confirm how we are to present our lives as a living sacrifice before God (Rom 12:1-2), bringing forth good fruit, meet unto repentance (Mat 3:8).

Isa 1:13  Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me; the new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with; it is iniquity, even the solemn meeting. 
Isa 1:14  Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hateth: they are a trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them.
Isa 1:15  And when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from you: yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear: your hands are full of blood. [Ahaz]
Isa 1:16  Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil;
Isa 1:17  Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.
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.
Isa 1:19  If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: [Hezekiah]

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. 
1Pe 1:13  Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;
1Pe 1:14  As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance:
1Pe 1:15  But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; 
1Pe 1:16  Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.

Such an extreme turnabout from dark to light in character is shown from Ahaz to the next ruling king Hezekiah, typifying how we go from the corruptible seed of our father the devil to become an incorruptible holy seed in the hands of the Creator (1Pe 1:23).

1Pe 1:23  Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth forever. 

What manifested in the life of Ahaz demonstrates the depth of depravity that our flesh can go to without God in our lives, as opposed to Hezekiah’s life that is typical of those who are called and chosen in this life and given power over the powers and principalities which we will wrestle against all our lives, becoming more than conquerors through Christ our head (Rom 8:37).

Rom 8:37  Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.

This seems to be the lowest point for Judah’s history in regard to the depraved way in which the people conducted themselves under the rulership of Ahaz. Their idolatrous lifestyle of the day is typical of our own lives, our own former conversation (Eph 2:2) that was full of our own idolatry until Christ, typified by Hezekiah, came in and began to tear all those idols down. This chapter of kings is like a pinnacle of evil, a ‘fullness-of-the-sins-of-the-Amorites’ moment in time, that is going to bring about great correction on the nation of Judah (Gen 15:16).

Multiple times we hear this well-repeated verse throughout the book of kings, “And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, as his fathers had done: he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin,” which sins of Jeroboam led to worse sins in the lives of all those who embraced them. Those sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat were just as potentially prevalent in the heart of Adam as they are in the hearts of those who claim to know Christ as Adam and Eve did, but who are yet with hearts and minds that cannot be obedient to the commandments of God (Luk 6:46). God allows for this ebb and flow of evil, but the truth is the heart was always deceitful and desperately wicked (Jer 17:9) along the way from Adam on. It is only through Christ, typified by Hezekiah, that we can begin to truly lay our lives down in His service and no longer “Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me; the new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with; it is iniquity, even the solemn meeting” of Isaiah 1:13.

Before we get into our study, here’s a little snapshot of the history of Judah and king Ahaz taken from the web [Who was King Ahaz in the Bible? | GotQuestions.org] that will help us organize the historical details of this section of kings, as we learn how God’s hand worked all these events according to the counsel of his own will and for our admonition upon whom the end the age is come (Eph 1:11, 1Co 10:11). I want to draw our attention to this statement in regard to how the author of this article struggles with how evil Ahaz was, as opposed to his father before him, saying “so it is unclear why King Ahaz departed so completely from the teachings of the Lord.” The answer to God’s elect now is clear. It is God who caused this wickedness to become more pronounced in the life of Ahaz to demonstrate His sovereign power over the clay which we are, to make one a vessel of honor and another fitted to destruction (Rom 9:17-23).

Rom 9:17  For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth. 
Rom 9:18  Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth.
Rom 9:19  Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will?
Rom 9:20  Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?
Rom 9:21  Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour? (typified by the lives of Ahaz and Hezekiah in this section of kings)
Rom 9:22  What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction: 
Rom 9:23  And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory,

[Excerpt from Who was King Ahaz in the Bible? | GotQuestions.org]: 

2Ki 16:1  In the seventeenth year of Pekah the son of Remaliah AhazH271 the son of Jotham king of Judah began to reign. 
2Ki 16:2  Twenty years old was Ahaz when he began to reign, and reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem, and did not that which was right in the sight of the LORD his God, like David his father.

Pekah was in his 17th year of ruling Israel when king Ahaz came on the scene. Ahaz was 20 years old and reigned for 16 years in Jerusalem. We are told he did not right in the sight of the LORD his God, like David his father, and so these numbers take on a negative application telling us that it had been better for him to have never reigned in the first place (2Pe 2:21).

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.

The addition of Ahaz’s age when he began to rule at 20 years old and the length of his rule 16 years adds to 36 which numbers (3+6=9) adds up to the number of judgment (9) upon the flesh, (6) by way of a process (3).

Pekah being in his 17th year of reign when Ahaz begins his reign also adds to this story as (17) signifies the intent of all rulership which, in the positive, is to form the new creation, the new man which is the addition of (1+7=8), but that increase must come from God (1Co 3:6) and these stories are always to be understood as an admonition to which, Lord willing, we will take heed as we see the parable unfolding so we can be motivated to keep overcoming (2Pe 1:4). In the negative use, 17 points to upheaval and brokenness.

Gen 7:11 In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.

Gen 37:2  These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brethren; and the lad was with the sons of Bilhah, and with the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives: and Joseph brought unto his father their evil report.

God used this wicked king to accomplish His purpose of showing what was in the heart of the nation of Judah, telling us what is in the heart of all mankind until God begins to judge us and have those things burned out of our life (Jer 17:1-5, 1Pe 4:17). 

Jer 17:1  The sin of Judah is written with a pen of iron, and with the point of a diamond: it is graven upon the table of their heart, and upon the horns of your altars; [negative example of being bound to an altar of sin according to the counsel of God’s will]
Jer 17:2  Whilst their children remember their altars and their groves by the green trees upon the high hills. 
Jer 17:3  O my mountain in the field, I will give thy substance and all thy treasures to the spoil, and thy high places for sin, throughout all thy borders. 
Jer 17:4  And thou, even thyself, shalt discontinue from thine heritage that I gave thee; and I will cause thee to serve thine enemies in the land which thou knowest not: for ye have kindled a fire in mine anger, which shall burn for ever. 
Jer 17:5  Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD.

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?

We are being shown via king Ahaz’s bad example that we must be continually on our guard to follow Christ and to try the spirits whether they are of God or not (1Jn 4:1). This king’s actions were anything but godly. This was a time of judgment on Judah, now taking on a new elevated height, vis-a-vis wicked king Ahaz who was bent on deepening the nation’s idolatrous ways.

1Jn 4:1  Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. 

1Co 3:6  I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. 

2Pe 1:4  Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

We can lay hold of something with a righteous intent to serve others, or we can lay hold of something or touch something for our own selfish personal pleasurable interests (Heb 11:25). Such was the case with Ahaz who was meant to lay hold of the nation and become a curse to them by the things he did (Pro 29:2).

Pro 29:2  When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn.

In the positive use of taking hold of something, Jacob was inspired to take hold of Esau’s heel, typifying how God’s elect would be overcomers of our carnal fleshly nature typified by Esau. This overcoming was predestined before we were born and is made evident to God’s elect via this prophecy that tells us so in Romans 9:11.

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

As certain as the prophecy is that there is a remnant that will lay hold of the righteousness of Christ (Gen 25:26), so too, does the scripture reveal that the first man Adam will lay hold of holy things that will bring about their death (2Sa 6:6). It is the oxen, representing the beasts which mankind are, that causes the ark to be shaken and then steadied by the other beast, Uzzah, that leads to his death (Ecc 3:18).

Gen 25:26  And after that came his brother out, and his hand took holdH270 on Esau’s heel; and his name was called Jacob: and Isaac was threescore years old when she bare them.

2Sa 6:6  And when they came to Nachon’s threshingfloor, Uzzah put forth his hand to the ark of God, and took holdH270 of it; for the oxen shook it.

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

Ahaz  H271  ‘âchâz aw-khawz’

Strongs Definition:  — From H270; possessor; Achaz, the name of a Jewish king and of an Israelite: – Ahaz.  Total KJV occurrences: 41 

BDB Definition:  Ahaz = “he has grasped”
1) king of Judah, son Jotham, father of Hezekiah
2) a Benjamite, son of Micah, and great grandson of Jonathan
Part of Speech: noun proper masculine
A Related Word by BDB/Strong’s Number: from H270

2Ki 16:3  But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, yea, and made his son to pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the heathen, whom the LORD cast out from before the children of Israel.
2Ki 16:4  And he sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places, and on the hills, and under every green tree.

Notice how thoroughly corrupt this king was and how he used these evil practices of the heathen to keep control of the masses. It was “under every green tree” and in  “the high places, and on the hills” this all took place, typifying for us how these evil practices were steadily and healthily growing and being done in the high places and hills that represent our pride which causes us to hold fast to the practices of the heathen (Isa 57:3-5, Isa 57:7).

Isa 57:3  But draw near hither, ye sons of the sorceress, the seed of the adulterer and the whore.
Isa 57:4  Against whom do ye sport yourselves? against whom make ye a wide mouth, and draw out the tongue? are ye not children of transgression, a seed of falsehood, 
Isa 57:5  Enflaming yourselves with idols under every green tree, slaying the children in the valleys under the clifts of the rocks? 

Isa 57:7  Upon a lofty and high mountain hast thou set thy bed: even thither wentest thou up to offer sacrifice.

Sacrificing and burning incense in these places tells us that there was devotion to these idolatrous ways and an ungodly attachment to these wicked practices, regardless of the fact that the LORD had already “cast out from before the children of Israel” these evil practices. Walking in the ways of the kings of Israel symbolizes walking in our flesh and holding fast to the traditions of men and not God’s (Mar 7:7-8), even to the extent that Ahaz “made his son to pass through the fire,” which is symbolic for us today of how we offer up our children to the traditions of Baal found on an altar that has its origins in heathenism “Christmas, Easter, New Years, etc.” Without an experience of evil such as the one that Ahaz was bringing upon the nation of Judah, we have no way to compare the good fruit from the bad, and so God’s modus operandi for all of humanity is revealed to us in these verses (Rom 6:20-21, Rom 7:5-6, Ecc 1:13 [CLV], Jer 10:2).

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

Rom 6:20  For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness. 
Rom 6:21  What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death.

Rom 7:5  For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death.
Rom 7:6  But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter.

Ecc 1:13 I applied my heart to inquiring and exploring by wisdom concerning all that is done under the heavens: it is an experience of evil Elohim has given to the sons of humanity to humble them by it. [The experience of evil is the way that seems right to man and yet is inspired by the spirit of Satan that leads to death. (Pro 14:12)]

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

2Ki 16:5  Then Rezin king of Syria and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to war: and they besieged Ahaz, but could not overcome him.
2Ki 16:6  At that time Rezin king of Syria recovered Elath to Syria, and drave the Jews from Elath: and the Syrians came to Elath, and dwelt there unto this day.

Now God’s judgment and wrath was going to be poured out upon Judah by way of “Rezin king of Syria and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel“. Rezin is a gentile king who is the wicked sword in God’s hand that will be used (Psa 17:13) to chasten and scourge the nation of Judah for their idolatrous ways. Rezin “drave the Jews from Elath: and the Syrians came to Elath, and dwelt there unto this day” signifying our total inability to remain faithful even in times of trials and tribulations unless Christ is there. We reflected on the taking of Elath a couple of studies ago with King Azariah that is worth repeating here [taken from  Study of the Book of Kings – 2Ki 14:19-29]:

Both Pekah of Israel and Rezin of Syria came up against Judah to make war against Judah who “could not be overcome” at this time, but there were casualties (2Ch 28:5-8).

2Ch 28:5  Wherefore the LORD his God delivered him into the hand of the king of Syria; and they smote him, and carried away a great multitude of them captives, and brought them to Damascus. And he was also delivered into the hand of the king of Israel, who smote him with a great slaughter.
2Ch 28:6  For Pekah the son of Remaliah slew in Judah an hundred and twenty thousand in one day, which were all valiant men; because they had forsaken the LORD God of their fathers. 
2Ch 28:7  And Zichri, a mighty man of Ephraim, slew Maaseiah the king’s son, and Azrikam the governor of the house, and Elkanah that was next to the king. 
2Ch 28:8  And the children of Israel carried away captive of their brethren two hundred thousand, women, sons, and daughters, and took also away much spoil from them, and brought the spoil to Samaria.

This battle does not represent ‘spirit against flesh and flesh against spirit’ as much as it represents flesh against flesh and how every man will be against his neighbor (Mar 13:12, Eze 38:21, Isa 3:5), as God uses that divisiveness to His glory to chasten the nations in question.

However, without the mind of Christ, when someone is in such a battle it normally means the battle is going to continue and ‘unholy alliances’ are going to be made, to assure victory for one of the parties. In the end, more death and destruction unfolds (Russia and the Ukraine as a modern example of that principle). Such was the case here with Ahaz who saw the writing on the wall for the nation of Judah. In typical in-the-flesh fashion, instead of seeking God through a prophet of the times, Ahaz sought out a physical ally to help give him the upper hand in battle against “Rezin king of Syria and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel“. That aid came in the form of “Tiglathpileser king of Assyria” who consequently was very much an opportunist like Ahaz.

Mar 13:12  Now the brother shall betray the brother to death, and the father the son; and children shall rise up against their parents, and shall cause them to be put to death.

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

Isa 3:5  And the people shall be oppressed, every one by another, and every one by his neighbour: the child shall behave himself proudly against the ancient, and the base against the honourable.

2Ki 16:7  So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglathpileser king of Assyria, saying, I am thy servant and thy son: come up, and save me out of the hand of the king of Syria, and out of the hand of the king of Israel, which rise up against me.
2Ki 16:8  And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in the house of the LORD, and in the treasures of the king’s house, and sent it for a present to the king of Assyria.
2Ki 16:9  And the king of Assyria hearkened unto him: for the king of Assyria went up against Damascus, and took it, and carried the people of it captive to Kir, and slew Rezin. 

This alliance being forged with “Tiglathpileser king of Assyria” is purely a survival tactic of Ahaz who tries everything to get the king of Assyria on his side in this battle, reminding him that “I am thy servant and thy son” which he was not any more than king Pekah was the son of Rezin the king of Syria. It all demonstrates that desperate times call for desperate measures, and instead of doing the right thing and tearing down the idols within Judah, Ahaz digs in his heels and despises the chastening of the Lord in type and figure, building up his fleshly army to further preserve his idolatrous reign over Judah, at least that is his hope.

Ahaz does what he is good at doing best in bribing the king of Assyria, confident that money will talk, which it did. “And the king of Assyria hearkened unto him: for the king of Assyria went up against Damascus, and took it, and carried the people of it captive to Kir, and slew Rezin.” This misappropriation of the LORD’s gold and silver to further the conflict in the nation of Judah has become a theme for Ahaz. The silver in the LORD’s house typically represents repentance, and the gold in the LORD’s house is His words that have been tried in the fire and made pure. Ahaz instead uses those riches to further hold onto his fading empire that was full of idolatry, typifying for us how Babylon today has tainted all the doctrine of God leaving no stay of bread or water in the harlot system (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, [Mar 7:7-8]

2Ki 16:10  And king Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglathpileser king of Assyria, and saw an altar that was at Damascus: and king Ahaz sent to Urijah the priest the fashion of the altar, and the pattern of it, according to all the workmanship thereof. 
2Ki 16:11  And Urijah the priest built an altar according to all that king Ahaz had sent from Damascus: so Urijah the priest made it against king Ahaz came from Damascus. 
2Ki 16:12  And when the king was come from Damascus, the king saw the altar: and the king approached to the altar, and offered thereon. 
2Ki 16:13  And he burnt his burnt offering and his meat offering, and poured his drink offering, and sprinkled the blood of his peace offerings, upon the altar. 
2Ki 16:14  And he brought also the brasen altar, which was before the LORD, from the forefront of the house, from between the altar and the house of the LORD, and put it on the north side of the altar.

King Ahaz has victory on his side now, and instead of having a change of heart in regard to all the idolatry that has brought about this war, he reaches out to his priest Urijah to ask him to make a copy of the altar of Tiglathpileser that he is seeing in Damascus. This sending the fashion of the altar and the pattern of it, according to all the workmanship thereof, sounds a lot like, and is exactly the opposite actions of, these words which this unfaithful king could not implement for the nation of Judah found in Ezekiel 43:10-11.

Eze 43:10  Thou son of man, shew the house to the house of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities: and let them measure the pattern. [Christ the pattern]
Eze 43:11  And if they be ashamed of all that they have done, shew them the form of the house, and the fashion thereof, and the goings out thereof, and the comings in thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the laws thereof: and write it in their sight, that they may keep the whole form thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and do them.

How brazen can one man be (pun intended)! He not only comes back to offer polluted sacrifices with “his burnt offering and his meat offering, and poured his drink offering, and sprinkled the blood of his peace offerings, upon the altar,” he also altered the brazen altar’s position in the temple taking it “from between the altar and the house of the LORD” to “the north side of the altar.” Moving that “brasen altar” is symbolic of taking away from the word of God and when we do this, judgment is what is going to befall us (Rev 22:19, 1Co 4:6), which is why his actions led it to be put “on the north side of the altar” where judgment comes from (Jer 1:14).

Rev 22:19  And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.

1Co 4:6  And these things, brethren, I have in a figure transferred to myself and to Apollos for your sakes; that ye might learn in us not to think of men above that which is written, that no one of you be puffed up for one against another. 

All these unholy actions and false worship by Ahaz represent our former conversation, and admonish us today to continue to worship our heavenly Father in spirit and in truth (Eph 2:2, 1Co 10:11, Joh 4:24).

Eph 2:2  Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: 

Joh 4:24  God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

2Ki 16:15  And king Ahaz commanded Urijah the priest, saying, Upon the great altar burn the morning burnt offering, and the evening meat offering, and the king’s burnt sacrifice, and his meat offering, with the burnt offering of all the people of the land, and their meat offering, and their drink offerings; and sprinkle upon it all the blood of the burnt offering, and all the blood of the sacrifice: and the brasen altar shall be for me to enquire by.
2Ki 16:16  Thus did Urijah the priest, according to all that king Ahaz commanded.

It’s not enough that Ahaz himself is going to worship in this manner, but his evil communications, his way of life, is going to be shared with the rest of Judah and his plans executed by Urijah the priest.

In this instance Ahaz is akin to ‘another Jesus’ and Urijah to the ministers of Babylon who serve out many meaty lies with all the religious pomp and pageantry that you would expect from such a wealthy harlot system as Babylon (Rev 18:6-7).

Rev 18:6  Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double.
Rev 18:7  How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.

Jer 51:7  Babylon hath been a golden cup in the LORD’S hand, that made all the earth drunken: the nations have drunken of her wine; therefore the nations are mad. 

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

2Ki 16:17  And king Ahaz cut off the borders of the bases, and removed the laver from off them; and took down the sea from off the brasen oxen that were under it, and put it upon a pavement of stones. 
2Ki 16:18  And the covert for the sabbath that they had built in the house, and the king’s entry without, turned he from the house of the LORD for the king of Assyria. 

These next actions are just more of the same defiling of the temple of God we have seen unfolding, and we know that everyone who does this, which is all mankind in their appointed time, is going to be destroyed (1Co 3:17).

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

Ahaz, who represents our carnal first man Adam, has no problem misappropriating any part of the temple of God, in service, in offering, in taking away, or adding; it’s basically a free for all for the first man Adam.

In this instance he “cut off the borders of the bases, and removed the laver from off them; and took down the sea from off the brasen oxen that were under it, and put it upon a pavement of stones,” which symbolizes taking away the means by which we can be washed with the word of God. Having no borders is an expression of lawlessness, no restrictions, eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we die (1Co 15:32).

1Co 15:32  If after the manner of men I have fought with beasts at Ephesus, what advantageth it me, if the dead rise not? let us eat and drink; for to morrow we die.

Removing the laver is removing an implement that was used to wash the sacrifices, meaning the word of God would be taken away which is what this imagery symbolizes (Eph 5:26). 

Eph 5:26  That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,

Taking down “the sea from off the brasen oxen that were under it, and put it upon a pavement of stones” is symbolic of taking our minds off of the heavenly things which are above (Col 3:2-4) where we come boldly before the throne of grace to obtain help in time of need. Putting God’s word in a place that is stony represents how we prevent the word from growing because of our carnal behavior (Heb 4:16, Mat 13:5).

Col 3:2  Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.
Col 3:3  For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.
Col 3:4  When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.

Heb 4:16  Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

Mat 13:5  Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth: [the earth is the church (Jer 22:29)]

Taking it away from the oxen is symbolic of taking the word of God away from the strength of Christ, which is found in the elect who make up the church and are symbolized by those twelve oxen that hold up “the sea,” representing the sea of humanity who God’s pillars will be used to hold up and lead unto salvation (Isa 30:20, Oba 1:21). 

Isa 30:20  And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity, and the water of affliction, yet shall not thy teachers be removed into a corner any more, but thine eyes shall see thy teachers:

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.

What Ahaz did here was no small feat as we consider the size of this brazen altar which was now no longer elevated but put down on the ground, on the stony earth from where Christ was raised so we could be washed by our high priest of all our iniquities (Rom 4:25). All of this moving around and shifting of this and that in the temple reminds us of how industrious Babylon has been and how effectively the word of God has been hidden by the millions of lies that exist within her walls (Rev 9:2).

Rom 4:25  Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification. 

Rev 9:2  And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit.

The last defilement of the temple that is spoken of being done by Ahaz is this one, “the covert for the sabbath that they had built in the house, and the king’s entry without, turned(H5437 as in changed or altered) he from the house of the LORD for the king of Assyria.” This symbolizes what Babylon has done to Christ, who is our Sabbath, our covering, and the only door by which we can enter into life. We all in our appointed time moved that door to a place that suited our carnal reasoning so that the “the king of Assyria,” who represents Satan, could come and go as he pleases in what is supposed to be a most holy place that is not defiled in any way (1Co 4:6).

1Co 4:6  And these things, brethren, I have in a figure transferred to myself and to Apollos for your sakes; that ye might learn in us not to think of men above that which is written, that no one of you be puffed up for one against another.

2Ki 16:19  Now the rest of the acts of Ahaz which he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 
2Ki 16:20  And Ahaz slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David: and Hezekiah his son reigned in his stead. 

2Ch 28:27  And Ahaz slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city, even in Jerusalem: but they brought him not into the sepulchres of the kings of Israel: and Hezekiah his son reigned in his stead. 

These verses (1Co 3:18-19) are really apropos in regard to the life of Ahaz, which represents our carnal first man Adam who will not sleep with the kings but rather die and be buried without inheriting the kingdom of God. The wisdom of the world is what produces our foolish actions which don’t accord with God’s will that tells us to stop doing that, come out of her my people, and “Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me” (Isa 1:13).

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

1Co 3:19  For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, He taketh the wise in their own craftiness. 
1Co 3:20  And again, The Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wise, that they are vain.

Isa 1:12  When ye come to appear before me, who hath required this at your hand, to tread my courts?
Isa 1:13  Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me; the new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with; it is iniquity, even the solemn meeting. 
Isa 1:14  Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hateth: they are a trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them. 
Isa 1:15  And when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from you: yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear: your hands are full of blood.
Isa 1:16  Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil;
Isa 1:17  Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow [Jas 1:27, Heb 11:26].
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. 

]]> Daniel – Dan 11:25-45  He Shall go Forth with Great Fury to Destroy…Yet He Shall Come to His End https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/daniel-dan-1125-45-he-shall-go-forth-with-great-fury-to-destroyyet-he-shall-come-to-his-end/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=daniel-dan-1125-45-he-shall-go-forth-with-great-fury-to-destroyyet-he-shall-come-to-his-end Mon, 21 Feb 2022 13:33:33 +0000 https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/?p=25292 Audio Download

Dan 11:25-45  He Shall go Forth with Great Fury to Destroy…Yet He Shall Come to His End

[Study Aired February 21, 2022]

Dan 11:25  And he shall stir up his power and his courage against the king of the south with a great army; and the king of the south shall be stirred up to battle with a very great and mighty army; but he shall not stand: for they shall forecast devices against him. 
Dan 11:26  Yea, they that feed of the portion of his meat shall destroy him, and his army shall overflow: and many shall fall down slain. 
Dan 11:27  And both these kings’ hearts shall be to do mischief, and they shall speak lies at one table; but it shall not prosper: for yet the end shall be at the time appointed. 
Dan 11:28  Then shall he return into his land with great riches; and his heart shall be against the holy covenant; and he shall do exploits, and return to his own land. 
Dan 11:29  At the time appointed he shall return, and come toward the south; but it shall not be as the former, or as the latter. 
Dan 11:30  For the ships of Chittim shall come against him: therefore he shall be grieved, and return, and have indignation against the holy covenant: so shall he do; he shall even return, and have intelligence with them that forsake the holy covenant. 
Dan 11:31  And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate. 
Dan 11:32  And such as do wickedly against the covenant shall he corrupt by flatteries: but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits. 
Dan 11:33  And they that understand among the people shall instruct many: yet they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days. 
Dan 11:34  Now when they shall fall, they shall be holpen with a little help: but many shall cleave to them with flatteries. 
Dan 11:35  And some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make them white, even to the time of the end: because it is yet for a time appointed. 
Dan 11:36  And the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done. 
Dan 11:37  Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all. 
Dan 11:38  But in his estate shall he honour the God of forces: and a god whom his fathers knew not shall he honour with gold, and silver, and with precious stones, and pleasant things. 
Dan 11:39  Thus shall he do in the most strong holds with a strange god, whom he shall acknowledge and increase with glory: and he shall cause them to rule over many, and shall divide the land for gain. 
Dan 11:40  And at the time of the end shall the king of the south push at him: and the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over. 
Dan 11:41  He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown: but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon. 
Dan 11:42  He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape. 
Dan 11:43  But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps. 
Dan 11:44  But tidings out of the east and out of the north shall trouble him: therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many. 
Dan 11:45  And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him. 

This second part of Daniel chapter 11 continues with the struggle between the kings of the South and the North, with Israel caught in between. The last few verses of the chapter are focused on the end of the Greek empire and the desecration of the temple in Jerusalem resulting in the abomination of desolation. In the previous review, we ended with the introduction of Antiochus Epiphanes, who became king of the North. He was not a legitimate heir to the throne but was able to acquire an army and take the throne by force in 187 BC. He seemed to have a special vendetta against Jerusalem. He was a thug and a madman.

Dan 11:21  And in his estate shall stand up a vile person, to whom they shall not give the honour of the kingdom: but he shall come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries. 
Dan 11:22  And with the arms of a flood shall they be overflown from before him, and shall be broken; yea, also the prince of the covenant.
Dan 11:23  And after the league made with him he shall work deceitfully: for he shall come up, and shall become strong with a small people. 
Dan 11:24  He shall enter peaceably even upon the fattest places of the province; and he shall do that which his fathers have not done, nor his fathers’ fathers; he shall scatter among them the prey, and spoil, and riches: yea, and he shall forecast his devices against the strong holds, even for a time.

Inwardly, Antiochus represents the raging beast within us which stops at nothing in defiling the temple of God which is our bodies. As stated in verse 24 that the king shall devise plans against strongholds, but only for a time, the stronghold is Christ, and the reign of the old man or beast in our lives is limited.

Dan 11:25  And he shall stir up his power and his courage against the king of the south with a great army; and the king of the south shall be stirred up to battle with a very great and mighty army; but he shall not stand: for they shall forecast devices against him. 
Dan 11:26  Yea, they that feed of the portion of his meat shall destroy him, and his army shall overflow: and many shall fall down slain. 
Dan 11:27  And both these kings’ hearts shall be to do mischief, and they shall speak lies at one table; but it shall not prosper: for yet the end shall be at the time appointed.
Dan 11:28  Then shall he return into his land with great riches; and his heart shall be against the holy covenant; and he shall do exploits, and return to his own land.

Antiochus invaded Egypt in 169 BC. The king of Egypt was young and inexperienced, relying on advisors who did not serve him well, and he was defeated. In negotiations, neither king was honorable. Antiochus left Egypt the victor. On his way home, he looted the temple in Jerusalem and stationed a garrison there. He also defiled the temple by sacrificing unclean animals there.

Inwardly, we are just like the king of the South under assault by the king of the North, Antiochus. The beast within, empowered by the evil one, overcame us by desecrating our temple, which is our bodies. The statement in verse 26 that they that feed of the portion of his (the king of the South) meat shall destroy him is to let us know that the desecrating of our temple is the result of what we and our advisors in Babylon were feeding on, that is, the lies of the evil one. This is confirmed in verse 27 where both the king of the South and the king of the North spoke lies at one table. During our sojourn in Babylon, our father was the devil, so all that we knew were the lies of the devil.

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.

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.

Verse 28 states that the king of the North shall be against the holy covenant, and he shall do exploit. This is rendered in a simpler version of the word of Christ as follows:

Dan 11:28  Then the king of the north will return to his country with great treasures. But on the way, he will attack the religion of God’s people and do whatever else he pleases. (CEV)

To attack the religion of God’s people is to infuse lies regarding the word of Christ such that we do not see the glorious light of Christ.

2Co 4:4  In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

Dan 11:29  At the time appointed he shall return, and come toward the south; but it shall not be as the former, or as the latter. 
Dan 11:30  For the ships of Chittim shall come against him: therefore he shall be grieved, and return, and have indignation against the holy covenant: so shall he do; he shall even return, and have intelligence with them that forsake the holy covenant.

Outwardly, this prophecy was fulfilled as follows: After returning home, Antiochus decided to invade the South again. He was met by the Romans, who told him to “cease and desist.” He had no choice but to comply, but the incident left him completely humiliated, which seemed to make him more intent on violence against the people of God.

Inwardly, we experience the wrath of the devil as he realizes that his dominion over us is coming to an end. Just like Antiochus who realized that his kingdom expansion was coming to an end because of the rising power of the Romans, and therefore unleashed his fury on the people of God, the devil’s fury against us during the final stages of our sojourn in Babylon is intensified, and we become worse off as we imbibe every flood of false doctrines that he releases.

Rev 12:12  Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.

Rev 12:15  And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood. 
Rev 12:16  And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth. 

During our time in Babylon, we were the earth that swallowed up every flood cast out from the mouth of the serpent.

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

Dan 11:31  And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate. 
Dan 11:32  And such as do wickedly against the covenant shall he corrupt by flatteries: but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits.

Outwardly, in his second attempt to loot the temple, Antiochus tried to buy off Jewish officials, and he stopped the daily sacrifices, but this time he was met by Jewish resistance. The Maccabean Revolt ensued in 167 BC.

Inwardly, our time in Babylon is characterized by the desecration of our temple which is our bodies. The climax of this desecration is when we begin to see the man of sin sitting in the temple of God and declaring himself as God. This is the abomination of desolation spoken by Daniel and by the Lord Jesus Christ.

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. 

Mat 24:15  “So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), 
Mat 24:16  then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 
Mat 24:17  Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house, 
Mat 24:18  and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. 
Mat 24:19  And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! 
Mat 24:20  Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. 
Mat 24:21  For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. 
Mat 24:22  And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short. 
Mat 24:23  Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. 
Mat 24:24  For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. 
Mat 24:25  See, I have told you beforehand. 
Mat 24:26  So, if they say to you, ‘Look, he is in the wilderness,’ do not go out. If they say, ‘Look, he is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. 
Mat 24:27  For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 
Mat 24:28  Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather. (ESV)

It is when we see this abomination of desolation or the man of sin or the old man sitting in our temple that Christ comes with His brightness which is His word to destroy it.

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 brightness of His coming is the fire of the word of the Lord which brings about the persecution and tribulation in our lives. This judgment is not a one-time event. It is a process of a lifetime which culminates in the great tribulation which is the seven plagues in the Book of Revelation.

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

As Jesus told us, when we see this abomination of desolation, we must flee from Judea to the mountains (Mat 24:16). Judea here represents the apostate churches of this world or Babylon, which we must leave. Fleeing to the mountains means taking refuge in the Lord who is in the midst of His elect as the mountains here represent Christ and where we offer sacrifices pleasing to the Lord.

Rev 18:4  And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.

Eze 20:40  For in mine holy mountain, in the mountain of the height of Israel, saith the Lord GOD, there shall all the house of Israel, all of them in the land, serve me: there will I accept them, and there will I require your offerings, and the firstfruits of your oblations, with all your holy things.

Verse 17 of Matthew chapter 24 says that those who are on the housetop should not go into the house to take anything from it. This is another way of saying that we are not to return to Babylon to carry along its false doctrines because of the judgment we may go through. The house here represents the apostate churches, and the housetop are those who have just escaped from the churches of this world as shown in the following verses:

Pro 21:9  It is better to dwell in a corner of the housetop, than with a brawling woman in a wide house.

Pro 25:24  It is better to dwell in the corner of the housetop, than with a brawling woman and in a wide house.

In verse 18 of Matthew 24, the man in the field must not turn back to take his cloak. As we are aware, the field is the world and so when Christ comes to us to judge us because of our worldliness, we must let go of our own righteousness. The women who are pregnant in verse 19 of Matthew 24 refer to Babylon who is revealed in the Book of Revelation as being pregnant with the manchild. Those nursing infants refer to our carnal state when the Lord comes to us with His brightness.

Rev 12:1  And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars: 
Rev 12:2  And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered. 

Verse 20 of Matthew 24 says that our flight should not be in the winter or the sabbath when the Lord comes to us in judgment. Negatively, the winter represents the period when we have become a prey of the beasts of the earth. This is the period when we are completely overcome by the beast within us. Our flight not being on the sabbath refers to the period in our lives when we have not found rest in Christ.

Isa 18:6  They shall be left together unto the fowls of the mountains, and to the beasts of the earth: and the fowls shall summer upon them, and all the beasts of the earth shall winter upon them.

Heb 4:4  For he spake in a certain place of the seventh day on this wise, And God did rest the seventh day from all his works. 
Heb 4:5  And in this place again, If they shall enter into my rest. 
Heb 4:6  Seeing therefore it remaineth that some must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief:

In conclusion, the Lord is telling us of the circumstances at the time we are given to know the abomination of desolation in our lives.

Another rendition of Daniel chapter 11 verse 32 in a simpler English is as follows:

With smooth words [of flattery and praise] he will turn to godlessness those who [are willing to] disregard the [Mosaic] covenant, but the people who [are spiritually mature and] know their God will display strength and take action [to resist]. (AMP)

On one hand, we were those who did wickedly against the covenant and were corrupted by flatteries.

Jud 1:16  These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their own lusts; and their mouth speaketh great swelling words, having men’s persons in admiration because of advantage.

As we grow in obedience, we become strong and are able to resist the devil as he flees from us. This is the time in our lives when we do exploits, that is, we are able to resist the devil through Christ.

Jas 4:7  Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Dan 11:33  And they that understand among the people shall instruct many: yet they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days. 
Dan 11:34  Now when they shall fall, they shall be holpen with a little help: but many shall cleave to them with flatteries. 
Dan 11:35  And some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make them white, even to the time of the end: because it is yet for a time appointed. 
Dan 11:36  And the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done. 
Dan 11:37  Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all. 
Dan 11:38  But in his estate shall he honour the God of forces: and a god whom his fathers knew not shall he honour with gold, and silver, and with precious stones, and pleasant things. 
Dan 11:39  Thus shall he do in the most strong holds with a strange god, whom he shall acknowledge and increase with glory: and he shall cause them to rule over many, and shall divide the land for gain.

Outwardly, the revolt met with mixed success and mixed support among the Jewish populace with some help from Rome — which later became an occupying power. Antiochus did whatever he wanted. He even proclaimed himself to be a god by taking the title Epiphanes. He chose the Sabbath as a day to worship him. He went far beyond his predecessors in arrogance. He relied on his own financial and military might.

Internally, our own effort to overcome the beast would not yield any success, as the beast represented here by Antiochus is empowered by the Lord to overcome us for a period of time signified by forty-two months.

Rev 13:4  And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him? 
Rev 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. 
Rev 13:6  And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. 
Rev 13:7  And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. 
Rev 13:8  And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

Dan 11:40  And at the time of the end shall the king of the south push at him: and the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over. 
Dan 11:41  He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown: but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon. 
Dan 11:42  He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape. 
Dan 11:43  But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps. 
Dan 11:44  But tidings out of the east and out of the north shall trouble him: therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many. 
Dan 11:45  And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him. 

Outwardly, most of chapter 11 is focused on Antiochus Epiphanes, but he is only one king of the North among many. The event recorded from verses 40 to 45 refers to Antiochus’s successor (Antiochus V) and the end of the Greek Empire. The Romans who conquered Syria became the new “king of the North” and then went on to defeat the Greek king in Egypt (the king of the South) and the rest of the Mediterranean world, ultimately destroying the temple in Jerusalem in AD 70. Yet even the mighty Roman Empire fell and could not be helped.

As we have indicated in the previous review of this chapter, the time of the end is the time when the ends of the world are come. We, the elect, are the ones upon whom the time of the end is come as our world has come to an end. This means that what is written in chapter 11 is specifically referring to us.

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

Verses 40 to 45 relate to the coming of the Roman empire which took control of many countries including Jerusalem. As we learned from Nebuchadnezzar’s dream in Daniel chapter 2, the Roman empire is the final worldly empire before Christ comes with His kingdom to destroy it and establishes the kingdom of this world as the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ. As we are aware, the number four means the whole of the matter under discussion. Thus, the fourth kingdom of the Roman empire to succeed the Greek empire represents the whole of the kingdoms of this world. This fourth kingdom of the Roman Empire is symbolized by iron. On a negative note, iron refers to us being instruments of death while in Babylon.

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. 

Getting to the end of our sojourn in Babylon, we become murderers just as our father the devil is a murderer.

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

In the final analysis, we become worse off in Babylon as demonstrated by the physical destruction of Jerusalem by the Roman empire in AD 70. In other words, the habitation of the Lord within us becomes occupied by the beast, signified by Jerusalem being destroyed. However, Christ brings us to this deplorable state so that we can see clearly the abomination of desolation or the beast occupying the place of Christ in our hearts and minds. The revealing of this abomination of desolation ushers in the coming of Christ with His brightness in our lives to destroy the beast or the Roman empire so that the kingdom of our Lord is established in our hearts and minds. Later, this kingdom will be outward when the kingdoms of this world becomes the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ.

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

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:

]]> Gospels in Harmony – The Abomination of Desolation https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/gospels-in-harmony-the-abomination-of-desolation/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=gospels-in-harmony-the-abomination-of-desolation Tue, 10 Aug 2021 21:01:45 +0000 https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/?p=24109

Gospels In Harmony – The Abomination of Desolation

Mat 24:15-28, Mar 13:14-23, Luk 21:20-24

[Study Aired August 10, 2021]

Mar 13:14a But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, 
Mat 24:15 stand in the holy place, 
Mar 13:14b where it ought not, (let him that readeth understand,)
Luk 21:20 And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh.
Luk 21:21 Then let them which are in Judaea flee to the mountains; and let them which are in the midst of it depart out; and let not them that are in the countries enter thereinto.
Luk 21:22 For these be the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled.
Mar 13:15 And let him that is on the housetop not go down into the house, neither enter therein, to take any thing out of his house:
Mar 13:16 And let him that is in the field not turn back again for to take up his garment.
Mat 24:19 And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!
Mat 24:20 But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:
Mat 24:21a For then shall be great tribulation, 
Luk 21:23 and wrath upon this people.
Luk 21:24 And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled,
Mat 24:21b and such as was not since the beginning of the world, 
Mar 13:19b the creation which God created unto this time, neither shall be.
Mar 13:20 And except that the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh should be saved: but for the elect’s sake, whom he hath chosen, he hath shortened the days.
Mat 24:23 Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not.
Mat 24:24a For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders;
Mar 13:22 to seduce,
Mat 24:24b insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.
Mat 24:25 Behold, I have told you before.
Mat 24:26 Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.
Mat 24:27 For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
Mat 24:28 For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together.

Our last study the disciples asked the following questions:

Mar 13:3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives over against the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately,
Mar 13:4 Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign when all these things shall be fulfilled?

Christ continues to answer these questions in our verses in this study:

Mar 13:14a But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, 
Mat 24:15 stand in the holy place, 
Mar 13:14b where it ought not, (let him that readeth understand,)

Mark 13:4 “Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign when all these things shall be fulfilled?” According to Daniel the prophet, which Christ is referencing, here are the answers.

Dan 8:13 Then I heard one saint speaking, and another saint said unto that certain saint which spake, How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot?

Dan 9:24-27 Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy. Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.

Dan 11:31 And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate.

Dan 12:10-11 Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly: and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand. And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days.

The time and sign is when “the daily sacrifice shall be taken away” and “the abomination that maketh desolate set up”. What is “the daily sacrifice”?

Num 28:1-4 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Command the children of Israel, and say unto them, My offering, and my bread for my sacrifices made by fire, for a sweet savour unto me, shall ye observe to offer unto me in their due season. And thou shalt say unto them, This is the offering made by fire which ye shall offer unto the LORD; two lambs of the first year without spot day by day, for a continual burnt offering. The one lamb shalt thou offer in the morning, and the other lamb shalt thou offer at even;

Two lambs without spot burnt by fire; one in the morning and the other in the evening are the daily sacrifice.

Two lambs without spot burnt by fire represent the witness of Christ and his christs being a sacrifice for the world.

Eph 5:1-2 Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.

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

Heb 10:1-18 For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins. But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins. Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me: In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure. Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God. Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law; Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second. By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins: But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God; From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool. For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified. Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that he had said before, This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them; And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more. Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin.

What is “the abomination that maketh desolate set up”? Here is Strong’s definition of abomination.

“The abomination that maketh desolate set up” an idol being placed within the temple of God. Paul explains what this is.

2Th 2:1-4 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. 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; 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.

“Let him that readeth understand”. When we are given the ability to recognize that we have been set up in the temple of God and worship ourselves as a god, our understanding begins. First, we are sent into Babylon which is where the daily sacrifice ends by being convinced we have to save ourselves. We were being told that Christ died for us, and there is nothing else that must take place except that you must do “good works” to keep your salvation. Being carnal babes in Christ we do not see the need to be judged and die daily. We believe by doing the rituals of whatever form of “christianity” we believe, it will save us.

Christ continues to tell us what we must see to understand when the time of all these things is near.

Luk 21:20 And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh.

Jerusalem being compassed with armies spiritually speaking is the people of God being overcome by the false doctrines of Babylon, and any truth that was present is polluted. At this point, idols of the heart control us.

Isa 3:1-8 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, The mighty man, and the man of war, the judge, and the prophet, and the prudent, and the ancient, The captain of fifty, and the honourable man, and the counsellor, and the cunning artificer, and the eloquent orator.

Everything we thought we had is gone, except we want to use the name of Christ to take away our shame. The problem is we want to have our idols of the heart that Babylon has convinced us are the treasures of God.

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.

Psa 79:1 A Psalm of Asaph. O God, the heathen are come into thine inheritance; thy holy temple have they defiled; they have laid Jerusalem on heaps.

Next, we are told what to do, where to go and why it is happening.

Luk 21:21 Then let them which are in Judaea flee to the mountains; and let them which are in the midst of it depart out; and let not them that are in the countries enter thereinto.
Luk 21:22 For these be the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled.

Here is what is written.

Zec 14:1 Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee. For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city. Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.

This all happens when Christ calls us out of Babylon. As we know, we are first put into Babylon in order to be called out.

Rev 18:1-5 And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory. And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.

Next, we are warned, just as Lot was warned, to not return or look back.

Mar 13:15 And let him that is on the housetop not go down into the house, neither enter therein, to take any thing out of his house:
Mar 13:16 And let him that is in the field not turn back again for to take up his garment.

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. 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. 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.

There is nothing in the “house” (Churches of Babylon) that is worthy of keeping. The garments (our righteousnesses) are to also be left behind.

Mat 24:19 And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!
Mat 24:20 But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:
Mat 24:21a For then shall be great tribulation…
Luk 21:23 …and wrath upon this people.

These represent the called and chosen but who cannot endure until the end and will be treated as those condemned in the church of Thyatira.

Mat 24:13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

Rev 2:18-23 And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira write; These things saith the Son of God, who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass; I know thy works, and charity, and service, and faith, and thy patience, and thy works; and the last to be more than the first. Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols. And I gave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented not. Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds. And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works.

Only the elect are given to repent of their deeds. Next, Christ explains that the elect during this age will have their old man killed by the sword, the word of God, and will remain in the world until the time of the Gentiles be fulfilled.

Luk 21:24 And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled,
Mat 24:21b …and such as was not since the beginning of the world,
Mar 13:19b …the creation which God created unto this time, neither shall be.
Mar 13:20 And except that the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh should be saved: but for the elect’s sake, whom he hath chosen, he hath shortened the days.

These days are shortened for the elect by the first resurrection.

Joh 5:25-29 Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live. For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself; And hath given him authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of man. Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, 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.

1Co 15:21-24 For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming. Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.

Once we have been given the ability to “come out of her” we are cautioned to aware of the false Christs and prophets.

Mat 24:23 Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not.
Mat 24:24a For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders…
Mar 13:22 …to seduce…
Mat 24:24b …insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.
Mat 24:25 Behold, I have told you before.
Mat 24:26 Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.

We must try the spirits to see if they are of God. The elect cannot be deceived. Christ is not in the desert where there is no water, and he does not hide from His elect.

1Jn 4:1-3 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.

Here are the last verses of the study.

Mat 24:27 For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
Mat 24:28 For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together.

Christ appears in a moment, bright and powerful, and fills our heavens with light. He brings the eagles to devour our old man. As in the story of David and Goliath, our Lord will destroy the abomination of desolation with each of us.

1Sa 17:44 And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field. Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. This day will the LORD deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. And all this assembly shall know that the LORD saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the LORD’S, and he will give you into our hands.

We will end this study with Psalms 79.

How Long, O Lord?

Psa 79:1-13 A Psalm of Asaph. O God, the heathen are come into thine inheritance; thy holy temple have they defiled; they have laid Jerusalem on heaps. The dead bodies of thy servants have they given to be meat unto the fowls of the heaven, the flesh of thy saints unto the beasts of the earth. Their blood have they shed like water round about Jerusalem; and there was none to bury them. We are become a reproach to our neighbours, a scorn and derision to them that are round about us. How long, LORD? wilt thou be angry for ever? shall thy jealousy burn like fire? Pour out thy wrath upon the heathen that have not known thee, and upon the kingdoms that have not called upon thy name. For they have devoured Jacob, and laid waste his dwelling place. O remember not against us former iniquities: let thy tender mercies speedily prevent us: for we are brought very low. Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of thy name: and deliver us, and purge away our sins, for thy name’s sake. Wherefore should the heathen say, Where is their God? let him be known among the heathen in our sight by the revenging of the blood of thy servants which is shed. Let the sighing of the prisoner come before thee; according to the greatness of thy power preserve thou those that are appointed to die; And render unto our neighbours sevenfold into their bosom their reproach, wherewith they have reproached thee, O Lord. So we thy people and sheep of thy pasture will give thee thanks for ever: we will shew forth thy praise to all generations.

]]> The Book of Jeremiah – Jer 5:1-13 They Have Refused to Receive Correction https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/the-book-of-jeremiah-jer-51-13-they-have-refused-to-receive-correction/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=the-book-of-jeremiah-jer-51-13-they-have-refused-to-receive-correction Sun, 14 Mar 2021 00:36:26 +0000 https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/?p=23244 https://www.dropbox.com/s/ft9khfsei9y3h7a/20210314-Study_Mike-Vinso.m4a?raw=1

Jer 5:1-13 They Have Refused to Receive Correction

[Study Aired March 14, 2021]

Jer 5:1  Run ye to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, and see now, and know, and seek in the broad places thereof, if ye can find a man, if there be any that executeth judgment, that seeketh the truth; and I will pardon it.
Jer 5:2  And though they say, The LORD liveth; surely they swear falsely.
Jer 5:3  O LORD, are not thine eyes upon the truth? thou hast stricken them, but they have not grieved; thou hast consumed them, but they have refused to receive correction: they have made their faces harder than a rock; they have refused to return.
Jer 5:4  Therefore I said, Surely these are poor; they are foolish: for they know not the way of the LORD, nor the judgment of their God.
Jer 5:5  I will get me unto the great men, and will speak unto them; for they have known the way of the LORD, and the judgment of their God: but these have altogether broken the yoke, and burst the bonds.
Jer 5:6  Wherefore a lion out of the forest shall slay them, and a wolf of the evenings shall spoil them, a leopard shall watch over their cities: every one that goeth out thence shall be torn in pieces: because their transgressions are many, and their backslidings are increased.
Jer 5:7  How shall I pardon thee for this? thy children have forsaken me, and sworn by them that are no gods: when I had fed them to the full, they then committed adultery, and assembled themselves by troops in the harlots’ houses.
Jer 5:8  They were as fed horses in the morning: every one neighed after his neighbour’s wife.
Jer 5:9  Shall I not visit for these things? saith the LORD: and shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
Jer 5:10  Go ye up upon her walls, and destroy; but make not a full end: take away her battlements; for they are not the LORD’S.
Jer 5:11  For the house of Israel and the house of Judah have dealt very treacherously against me, saith the LORD.
Jer 5:12  They have belied the LORD, and said, It is not he; neither shall evil come upon us; neither shall we see sword nor famine:
Jer 5:13  And the prophets shall become wind, and the word is not in them: thus shall it be done unto them.

The first verse of this fifth chapter of Jeremiah reveals that the story of the destruction of Sodom is a type of the destruction of our hypocritical, self-righteous old man, typified first by Jerusalem and then by Babylon.

Jer 5:1  Run ye to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, and see now, and know, and seek in the broad places thereof, if ye can find a man, if there be any that executeth judgment, that seeketh the truth; and I will pardon it.

Let us compare this verse to what the Lord promised Abraham concerning Sodom:

Gen 18:32  And he said, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak yet but this once: Peradventure ten shall be found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for ten’s sake.

Abraham was taking full advantage of the Lord’s mercy and patience because this request was anything but “this once”. Abraham had started with “[If] there be fifty righteous within the city…”

Gen 18:23  And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked?
Gen 18:24  Peradventure there be fifty righteous within the city: wilt thou also destroy and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are therein?
Gen 18:25  That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that be far from thee: Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?
Gen 18:26  And the LORD said, If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.

Abraham then pleaded for the Lord to spare Sodom for the sake of forty-five, then forty, then twenty and finally he stopped at ten.

The Lord knew there were not even ten righteous men in Sodom. Only Lot and his two daughters were spared out of Sodom and all the cities of the plain:

Gen 19:29  And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities in the which Lot dwelt.

The Lord also knows that He will not “find a man… that executes judgment [and] seeks Truth” even as He promises to pardon it if there is but one man. He knows there is not one man in Babylon, backslidden Jerusalem, (Isa 1:21) because every man who is “executing judgment and seeking the Truth has “come out of her”:

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

Babylon will not “acknowledge [her] transgressions”. Christ drags us out just as He dragged Lot and His daughters out of Sodom. Babylon is self-righteous and rebellious to the end:

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.

Nothing had changed from the days of Jeremiah to the writing of the Revelation of Jesus Christ:

Jer 5:2  And though they say, The LORD liveth; surely they swear falsely.

These verses describe each of us when we are in Babylon. We claim His name and say, “The Lord lives,” but we refuse to ‘eat His meat or wear His apparel’:

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.

Seven signifies completion. The apostasy of the church is complete, and the seven churches of Asia demonstrate that point (Rev 1:4). The complete apostasy of the Christian church is signified by “the seven churches of Asia” fulfilling this prophecy here in Jeremiah. We are informed there is not one man in ‘Jerusalem’ (Babylon) who ‘executes judgment or seeks the Truth’.

Many wonderful works, casting out devils, and writing and singing many wonderful, inspiring songs, means nothing if we refuse of be obedient to our Husband:

Mat 7:21  Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
Mat 7:22  Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
Mat 7:23  And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

Such is the mind of the great harlot because this is the spirit of the Lord’s estranged wife at this time:

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.

At this stage of our “experience of evil” (Ecc 1:13), we believe in the lie of the ten-second sinner’s prayer. We believe that if we simply claim the name of Christ, include His name in our songs of praise to Him, do lots of good works for others, then our doctrine, our food and our clothing will be accepted of Him and certainly will not separate us from Him. However, our Husband is having no part of that mindset, and regardless of how many good works we perform in His name and how many very inspiring songs we write and sing which say, “The LORD liveth,” if we do not have and live by His doctrines the truth remains “surely we swear falsely” (Jer 5:2), and in the time of our judgment these are the words we will hear:

Mat 7:23  And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

This is who we are before we are humbled and brought to see our own self-righteous nakedness and shame. The very definition of self-righteousness is to ‘glory in our shame’, as the Pharisee looking down on the publican:

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

We are all self-righteous by nature. Therefore, we all just naturally glory in our own shameful self-righteousness.

Php 3:19  Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.)

There is a time in our lives when we glory in our ‘shameful’ self-righteousness just as the world glories in its abominations. Nevertheless, Truth is always the Truth and as the parable of the Pharisee and the publican demonstrates, self-righteousness is the most egregious of all sins, and no circumstance can change that fact. Self-righteousness blinds us to the Lord’s chastening hand in our lives.

Jer 5:3  O LORD, are not thine eyes upon the truth? thou hast stricken them, but they have not grieved; thou hast consumed them, but they have refused to receive correction: they have made their faces harder than a rock; they have refused to return.

“You have stricken them” is speaking of you and me. In Babylon we live the life of a hypocritical, self-righteous harlot while we blindly live and teach others to live lives which blatantly disobey and disrespect the Lord and His doctrines. While we are in the clutches of this great whore’s church doctrines, our Babylonian leaders have much more influence over us than the words of God in “that which is written”:

1Co 4:6  Now these things, brothers, I applied to myself and Apollos for your sakes, so that in us ye might learn not to think above that which is written, so that ye may not be puffed up, one over the one against the other. (ACV)

A “face harder than a rock” is the mind of an extremely self-righteous stubborn man or a spiritual harlot. It is common in many of the churches to belittle scripture as mere ‘ink on paper, nowhere near as powerful or reliable as the work of the holy spirit’. This doctrine teaches that the holy spirit can and does supersede scripture.

Of course, the Truth is that all this doctrine accomplishes is to place the man of sin in the temple of God proclaiming himself and his “above that which is written” thoughts and commandments superior to “that which is written”. When we given over to that lie, we simply nullify “that which is written”, placing ourselves in the temple of God, and telling the Lord “we will eat our own meat and wear our own apparel”.

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.

Christ Himself sees no such dichotomy between the written word and the spirit, as He makes clear when He tells us:

Joh 6:63  It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the [“that which is written”] words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.

Paul tells us the same thing in these written words concerning “that which is written”:

Heb 4:12  For the word [“that which is written”] of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

The “that which is written” words of God “are spirit and they are life”. They are far more reliable than the so-called words of the holy ghost proceeding out of the mouths of men which directly contradict “that which is written”. There has never yet been a secular trial or a ‘trying of the spirits’ (1Jo 4:1) without referring to “that which is written” (1Co 4:6).

We are told to “Try the spirits to see whether they are of God”:

1Jn 4:1  Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.

All who minimize the written Word as mere “ink on paper” have nothing with which to “try the spirits”, and they now have no anchor to keep them from being swept out into the merciless sea of false doctrines.

Eph 4:14  That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;

Here is what the Lord said of His own harlot wife while speaking to the prophet Ezekiel:

Eze 3:9  As an adamant harder than flint have I made thy forehead: fear them not, neither be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house.

The Lord repeats this description of our deep-seated rebellion against Him and His way in:

Zec 7:12  Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant stone, lest they should hear the law, and the words which the LORD of hosts hath sent in his spirit by the former prophets: therefore came a great wrath from the LORD of hosts.

These verses are just another way of saying, “They have refused to receive correction: they have made their faces harder than a rock; they have refused to return.” (Isa 5:3)

It is very instructive for us to know that the word translated as ‘adamant’ (H8068, shamiyr) in Ezekiel and Zechariah is most often translated as ‘briers’:

‘Briers and thorns’ throughout scripture typify lying, self-righteous, false doctrines.

Isa 10:17  And the light of Israel shall be for a fire, and his Holy One for a flame: and it shall burn and devour his thorns and his briers in one day;

Jer 5:4  Therefore I said, Surely these are poor; they are foolish: for they know not the way of the LORD, nor the judgment of their God.
Jer 5:5  I will get me unto the great men, and will speak unto them; for they have known the way of the LORD, and the judgment of their God: but these have altogether broken the yoke, and burst the bonds.

It was “the great men” who ‘broke the yoke’ and actually took the lead in inciting the entire nation to reject their own Savior:

Psa 2:1  Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?
Psa 2:2  The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying,
Psa 2:3  Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us.

It was the chief priests, who were Sadducees, and the Pharisees, “the great men” of Christ’s day, who set aside their differences to unite in their utter hatred of “the Lord and His Christ”, and until this very day it is the religious leaders of this world who incite us to turn our backs on the Word of God.

It is just such spiritual fornication which gives the Lord the occasion He is seeking to judge us and drag us out of Babylon and then use us to judge Babylon. This is what we read of this ongoing process later in this same prophecy:

Jer 25:34  Howl, ye shepherds, and cry; and wallow yourselves in the ashes, ye principal of the flock: for the days of your slaughter and of your dispersions are accomplished; and ye shall fall like a pleasant vessel.
Jer 25:35  And the shepherds shall have no way to flee, nor the principal of the flock to escape.
Jer 25:36  A voice of the cry of the shepherds, and an howling of the principal of the flock, shall be heard: for the LORD hath spoiled their pasture.

Jer 5:6  Wherefore a lion out of the forest shall slay them, and a wolf of the evenings shall spoil them, a leopard shall watch over their cities: every one that goeth out thence shall be torn in pieces: because their transgressions are many, and their backslidings are increased.

This “lion… wolf” and “leopard” are all one and the same “beast” [with] ten horns” which the Lord is sending “to fulfil His will” and to judge His harlot wife:

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

This entire prophecy of Jeremiah is addressed to the same harlot churches to which the entire book of Revelation is addressed. That includes Revelation chapters 17-18 which concern themselves with the judgment of this great whore who rules over all the kings of the earth:

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

‘The merchants of the earth’ are the Babylonian ministers who ‘peddle the gospel’.

2Co 2:17 For we are not as the majority, who are peddling the word of God, but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God in Christ, are we speaking. (CLV)

The pardon of our sins is always accompanied by the chastening wrath of our Lord:

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.

That is how we are pardoned. It is the chastening grace of God that leads us to repentance:

Jer 5:7  How shall I pardon thee for this? thy children have forsaken me, and sworn by them that are no gods: when I had fed them to the full, they then committed adultery, and assembled themselves by troops in the harlots’ houses [Babylonian harlot churches].

Being “fed to the full” in this verse refers to living with a hedge about us in an outward sense. It is the Lord’s chastening grace which brings us to repentance:

Tit 2:11  For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,
Tit 2:12  Teaching [G3811: paideuo, chastening] us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;

It is good to have all our physical needs met, but without trials, flesh simply cannot appreciate mercy, and being corruptible flesh, we become corrupt:

Jer 5:8  They were as fed horses in the morning: every one neighed after his neighbour’s wife.

Fidelity is not a natural human trait. Infidelity comes to us all as naturally as breathing and as naturally as turning our back on our Lord. Our own self-righteousness and our own false doctrines are spiritual adultery. Self-righteousness is the worst most insidious form of infidelity because it denies that our righteousness is of Christ.

Rom 3:22  Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:

1Co 1:30  But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:

We cannot rebel against the powers that be in heaven or on earth and expect to get by without being punished for our insubordination. God will avenge Himself of our transgressions against Himself:

Rom 12:19  Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.

In writing those words, Paul was simply aware of the scriptural doctrine of God’s vengeance against the  kingdom of our rebellious old man which our next verse demonstrates:

Jer 5:9  Shall I not visit for these things? saith the LORD: and shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?

“Vengeance is mine saith the Lord” answers that question, and while there are many verses which demonstrate the Lord’s wrath against our rebellious old man, I will add one more:

Rev 6:9  And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held:
Rev 6:10  And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?
Rev 6:11  And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.

This is the Lord’s ‘judgment and vengeance’:

Jer 5:10  Go ye up upon her walls, and destroy; but make not a full end: take away her battlements; for they are not the LORD’S.

Walls symbolize spiritual defense, and “her walls” (the walls of Babylon) provide no defense at all against the judgments of the truths of the Words of the Lord. “They are not the Lord’s… battlements”, they are lies and self-righteous false doctrines against which the Lord will be avenged:

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

Rev 18:9  And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning,
Rev 18:10  Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come.

This “mighty city”, [this] whore is being burned up within us at this very moment, and she is also being hated and made desolate and naked and having her flesh eaten and being burned up with the fires of this prophecy outwardly at this very moment. You and I reading these words and applying them where they belong, both within and outwardly, are breathing out spiritual fire which is at this very moment producing “the smoke of her burning”. I will quote the first verse of our next study to make this point:

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.

“But make not a full end” refers to the fact that the Lord always leaves Himself “a remnant … [in] this present time”, who are “the first to believe” on Him, and upon whom He first pours out the bowls of His “judgment and vengeance”.

Isa 1:9  Except the LORD of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as Sodom, and we should have been like unto Gomorrah.

“We” are the “souls… under the altar… their fellowservants also and their brothers, that should be killed as they were”. We are this “very small remnant” who are the “first” to be shown the Lord’s mercy at “this present time”. If we “endure to the end”, we are the channel through which the Lord will redeem all the rest of mankind:

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.
Rom 11:30  For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief:
Rom 11:31  Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.
Rom 11:32  For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.
Rom 11:33  O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!

Eph 1:11  In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
Eph 1:12  That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.

The Lord’s “ways… His… unsearchable judgments [are indeed] past finding out” for our natural man, “but God has revealed them unto us by His spirit”:

1Co 2:9  But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him [Obey him (1Jo 5:2)].
1Co 2:10  But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.

What are “the deep things of God”? They are “His unsearchable judgments and His ways…” (Rom 11:33), with which we concern ourselves in all our studies of His Words.

Before we were dragged and judged for our transgressions, we first lived out these words:

Jer 5:11  For the house of Israel and the house of Judah have dealt very treacherously against me, saith the LORD.
Jer 5:12  They have belied the LORD, and said, It is not he; neither shall evil come upon us; neither shall we see sword nor famine:

“They have belied the Lord [by saying] It is not He; neither shall evil come upon us…” is telling us that we taught the Lord will not judge us through the seven bowls that fill up His wrath against our Babylonian transgressions. Whether the false doctrines of a secret rapture or a place of safety, we have all believed and taught that the Lord’s wrath is only for those wicked people ‘out there’ somewhere. The wicked who must endure the wrath of God are anyone else but ourselves until our eyes and ears are opened to see that “every man’s works shall be tried by fire” (1Co 3:13) and that “no man can enter the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels are fulfilled” (Rev 15:8).

Many years back while working as a team with a brother who later separated himself from us, I read an entry on his web page forum which stated, “I do not like listening to anything Mike Vinson writes because all he ever talks about is judgment.” Reading that statement had the Lord’s desired effect on me. It did not make me deny that the Lord does indeed judge us, and I did not deny that He takes His vengeance upon the kingdom of our old man, but He also never fails to remind us:

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

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

Having part in the first resurrection is the greatest honor the Lord bestows upon any man. That first resurrection is “the marriage supper of the Lamb” of which we are again informed:

Rev 19:9  And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.

Even the great harlot, in her attempt to paint herself and make herself beautiful for her lovers, has over the years begun to speak less about her monstrous false doctrine of a day of judgment which condemns the vast majority of mankind to an eternity of excruciating physical pain in physical flames of physical fire.

Jer 5:13  And the prophets shall become wind, and the word is not in them: thus shall it be done unto them.

The brother with whom I worked so closely for several years had “the light that was in [him made] darkness”, and he literally screamed at me these very words, “I will not have you telling these babes in Christ that they must endure the seven last plagues of the wrath of God!!!”

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!

It was clear to me at that point that my dear brother was given to fulfill these prophetic words of Isaiah, Jeremiah’s predecessor:

Isa 30:8  Now go, write it before them in a table, and note it in a book, that it may be for the time to come for ever and ever:
Isa 30:9  That this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the LORD:
Isa 30:10  Which say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits:
Isa 30:11  Get you out of the way, turn aside out of the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us.

My partner in the gospel had come to identify with the man who had written in on his website forum. He, too, was tired of hearing about a most essential element of our salvation – the element of God’s fiery judgment which brings us to repentance and teaches us righteousness:

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

Rom 2:4  Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God [His chastening grace, His judgments] leadeth thee to repentance?

When a prophet is deceived, he is deceived by the Lord Himself, and “Who can make straight that which the Lord has made crooked?”

Ecc 7:13  Consider the work of God: for who can make that straight, which he hath made crooked?

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.

Most Christians think those are two verses which do not belong in the Bible. They think in that way because “the Lord [has] deceived [them]”, and they have been given by the Lord “eyes that see but cannot perceive and ears that hear but do not understand”:

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:

Let us, on the other hand, greatly rejoice in these words:

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.

That is our study for today. Here are the verses for our next study:

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.
Jer 5:15  Lo, I will bring a nation upon you from far, O house of Israel, saith the LORD: it is a mighty nation, it is an ancient nation, a nation whose language thou knowest not, neither understandest what they say.
Jer 5:16  Their quiver is as an open sepulchre, they are all mighty men.
Jer 5:17  And they shall eat up thine harvest, and thy bread, which thy sons and thy daughters should eat: they shall eat up thy flocks and thine herds: they shall eat up thy vines and thy fig trees: they shall impoverish thy fenced cities, wherein thou trustedst, with the sword.
Jer 5:18  Nevertheless in those days, saith the LORD, I will not make a full end with you.
Jer 5:19  And it shall come to pass, when ye shall say, Wherefore doeth the LORD our God all these things unto us? then shalt thou answer them, Like as ye have forsaken me, and served strange gods in your land, so shall ye serve strangers in a land that is not yours.
Jer 5:20  Declare this in the house of Jacob, and publish it in Judah, saying,
Jer 5:21  Hear now this, O foolish people, and without understanding; which have eyes, and see not; which have ears, and hear not:
Jer 5:22  Fear ye not me? saith the LORD: will ye not tremble at my presence, which have placed the sand for the bound of the sea by a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass it: and though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not prevail; though they roar, yet can they not pass over it?
Jer 5:23  But this people hath a revolting and a rebellious heart; they are revolted and gone.
Jer 5:24  Neither say they in their heart, Let us now fear the LORD our God, that giveth rain, both the former and the latter, in his season: he reserveth unto us the appointed weeks of the harvest.
Jer 5:25  Your iniquities have turned away these things, and your sins have withholden good things from you.
Jer 5:26  For among my people are found wicked men: they lay wait, as he that setteth snares; they set a trap, they catch men.
Jer 5:27  As a cage is full of birds, so are their houses full of deceit: therefore they are become great, and waxen rich.
Jer 5:28  They are waxen fat, they shine: yea, they overpass the deeds of the wicked: they judge not the cause, the cause of the fatherless, yet they prosper; and the right of the needy do they not judge.
Jer 5:29  Shall I not visit for these things? saith the LORD: shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
Jer 5:30  A wonderful and horrible thing is committed in the land;
Jer 5:31  The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the end thereof?

]]> Teacher’s Choice – Mat 24:1-51 “This Generation Shall not Pass, Till all These Things be Fulfilled” – Part 2 https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/teachers-choice-mat-241-51-this-generation-shall-not-pass-till-all-these-things-be-fulfilled-part-2/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=teachers-choice-mat-241-51-this-generation-shall-not-pass-till-all-these-things-be-fulfilled-part-2 Tue, 20 Aug 2019 00:02:03 +0000 http://www.iswasandwillbe.com/?p=19247 Mat 24:1-51 “This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled” – Part 2
[A study on Matthew 24 verses 10-15 – Study aired August 19, 2019]

Mat 24:10  And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. 
Mat 24:11  And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. 
Mat 24:12  And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. [2Co 4:4, many X 4 the whole world 1Jn 5:19]
Mat 24:13  But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. 
Mat 24:14  And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come. 
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 [Rev 1:3], let him understand🙂

What must be fulfilled in the generation God is judging is described within the verses of Matthew 24:1-51, and this specific part of scripture that was written for the sake of God’s elect who are the generation to which Christ is referring (Mat 24:34), like all scripture, “is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.”

Mat 24:34  Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled. 

2Ti 3:16  All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 

What must be “fulfilled” in this generation is described for us in Colossians 1:24 and accomplished by our hope of glory within Who can give us the ability to drink the cup of His suffering (Col 1:27). Matthew 24 just expands for us what that affliction is and tells us what we can expect to see unfold in the lives of those in whom God is working both to will and to do of His good pleasure (Php 2:13).

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: 

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:

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

Mat 24:10. And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.

The first nine verses of Matthew 24, as we discussed in part one of this mini-series, has our Lord setting the stage for His disciples, explaining to them what is going to happen to the temple which, at this point, they did not know was referring to them (Mat 24:2, 1Co 3:16).

Mat 24:2. And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.

Everything Christ spoke in this parable has to do with what is going to happen to the elect inwardly, and the outward manifestation of those spiritual events within are going to become more and more evident without, culminating in outward events in the physical earth that, had God not intervened, no flesh would be saved alive (Mat 24:22).

God’s word is written for the body of Christ, and because God’s spirit is in His people inwardly, no flesh is going to be saved alive so we can be in that blessed and holy first resurrection where flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom. Outwardly, in time, it is also true that no flesh will be saved alive. So this is a matter of timing, and God has determined “the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation” of all nations of men within and without including those who were predetermined from the foundation of the world to be in the first resurrection (Act 17:26).

God’s children are reading scripture with the understanding that the words were written to comfort and assure that it is His good pleasure to give us the kingdom of God even in troubled times (Dan 9:24-27, Col 1:24), and the spirit bears witness that we are His children, and this gives us great hope to have this manner of love bestowed upon us (Rom 8:16, 1Jn 3:1).

The troubled times are primarily for our carnal spirits which must be destroyed. As the old man decreases within us the new man is going to increase, John being a perfect type of this relationship happening in the body of Christ in this generation today and all the generations of those who have had God’s spirit within them since Pentecost (Joh 3:30, 1Pe 1:12, Jas 5:10). The two are working in conjunction with each other; the light and the darkness (Isa 45:7), the spirit against the flesh (Gal 5:17) which God is fashioning as the master Potter who is working the light and darkness to bring good. God has ordained that the flesh that is against the spirit is going to cause us to fall from time to time, less and less as we mature, but a complete seven times of falling nevertheless, which falling and getting up is all working according to the counsel of His own will (Eph 1:11).

Even though Paul could never have conceived in the early-goings of his being humbled by the hand of God, regardless of what he perceived in His yet carnal mind, he was sealed by the Lord to do the work God had ordained for him to do from the foundation of the world. He was meant to be part of that manchild that makes up the body of Christ (Eph 2:10). God would now work on Paul’s life and does in each of the elect’s lives through a lifetime of much tribulation, ultimately delivering us from this body of death through death (Rom 14:8, Php 1:21).

Php 1:21  For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

When we are exasperated with ourselves and our own wretchedness which God shows is within us (Rom 7:24-25), we experience this inward conflict of “then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another” our flesh being exposed for its weak and marred condition that cannot stand for Christ. We can be easily beset by the sin that is being shown us (Heb 12:1), but we must not despise His goodness which is leading us to repentance to see these things (Rom 2:4). That is the needful work taking place in the body of Christ, in the church, so that “except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened”.

That shortening of days in our life as His children is in fact the quick work God is doing in our life that is a vapor before Him (Rom 9:28, Jas 4:14), and the physical creation will literally not be destroyed because of the elect — for our sakes. This physical event reveals how we will not only save the world from destruction outwardly in that day, but also their soulishness in the lake of fire (Rom 1:20). God will use the physical creation as long as He deems it necessary, and its total destruction will happen at a time appointed of the Father as well, symbolizing that no flesh can inherit the kingdom.

Notice in verse one of Matthew 24:1 that it is the disciples who “came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple”, and we know they came to him by our Father dragging them to Christ just as he does all the elect who are being dragged to Christ to be judged in this age (Joh 6:44, 1Pe 4:17). Being dragged to Christ does not preclude that you are going to be judged, or that you are one of God’s elect, but if God continues to drag us to His son then we will be disciples indeed. If we truly hear the voice of the true Shepherd we will be encouraged by the prophecies that speak of the certainty of His power to deliver us and keep us bound to the altar as His living sacrifices in this age.

Joh 8:31  Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
Joh 8:32  And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

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

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

All of these verses in (Revelation 22:6-9, which we’ve been recently discussing as the body of Christ, are the quick work, the things “which must shortly be done“. It is as has been recently demonstrated with scripture, speaking of an aorist, ongoing event, because it applies to, “This generation [that] shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.” It is speaking of the very real struggles the new creation of Christ within us must go through so we can identify with the truth that only Christ can be Christ within these earthen vessels (Rom 8:9), and that it is the light of Christ coming out of us, assuring us that nothing can separate us from the love of God which must mature and grow in stature just as Christ himself did (Luk 2:52, 1Jn 4:17).

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

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; 

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

The struggle is real for our spirit, so much so that we being like Christ in this flesh are being heard because we fear to disappoint our Father and are having to die daily, or resist sin unto the shedding of blood as He did (1Jn 4:17, Heb 12:4). That is how armed we must make ourselves, and if need be Christ will give us the power to even drink a cup as deep and foreboding as the one that he drank (1Pe 4:1).

1Pe 4:1  Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin; 
1Pe 4:2  That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God.

All our struggles as one body are different and yet working together for good (Rom 8:28) and are being accomplished as an act of love toward all the world, toward all those who are in hard bondage today, with any plethora of problems that exist in the flesh (Joh 3:16). We can show no greater love today to our neighbor than to lay down our life now and through Christ, which is what we have been called to do, and can do and will do, if He has us in His hand (Joh 15:13, Joh 10:28).

Joh 3:16  For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Joh 15:13  Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. 

Joh 10:28  And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.

There’s nothing good in the flesh, and no part of that flesh can inherit the kingdom, not just the physical body of flesh, but especially the vain thoughts and imaginations of our hearts which must be pulled down by the brightness of His coming that is going to overcome the man of sin who wants to overcome but cannot and which law in our members keeps us in the bondage of sin (Joh 8:36, Rom 7:23-25).

Christ Himself said there is none good, no not one in the flesh, but what is good is the good work that God is doing within the lives of those who are being built up as a new temple in the Lord, living stones, even as the old temple is being torn down. None of this is linear, and there is a building of the new man and a tearing down of the old man who is learning obedience by the things that he suffers (Heb 5:8).

Both are incomplete, the old man is not completely destroyed until his last breath, and the new man cannot go unto perfection until the third day. These verses in Luke speak of both those parts in us.

Luk 13:32  And he said unto them, Go ye, and tell that fox, Behold, I cast out devils, and I do cures to day and to morrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.
Luk 13:33  Nevertheless I must walk to day, and to morrow, and the day following: for it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem.

Mat 24:11. And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.
Mat 24:12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.
Mat 24:13. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. [Php 4:13]

These next three verses explain what must be contended with by all mankind in time (Rev 19:20), and the only way we can be among those who “endure unto the end” is through Christ who is that strong man in our lives (Col 1:27, Mar 3:27) who is able to bind the many false prophets which deceive the many nations within us, and can overcome the self-righteousness “iniquity” that naturally abounds in our hearts.

Rev 19:20  And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone. 

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:

Mar 3:27  No man can enter into a strong man’s house, and spoil his goods, except he will first bind the strong man; and then he will spoil his house.

The love of God would wax cold within us (Mat 24:12) if it were not for God showing mercy to us in this age (Rom 11:30-31). That mercy is given to the disciples indeed who continue in the word of God, these are “the same shall be saved” who are being spoken of in this 13th verse and who will one day show the same mercy to the rest of God’s creation.

Rev 19:20  And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.

Mat 24:14  And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come. 
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 [Rev 1:], let him understand)

For those to whom God has ordained to know the true gospel, to read, hear, and keep the sayings of the prophecy (Rev 1:3), an ending is going to come within “and then shall the end come“, and that ending is talking about the end of the old man, the destruction of the man of perdition by the brightness of Christ’s coming (2Th 2:3-6).

However, there must be a “witness unto all nations” given to each of us within, and that is why we are angels unto one another who witness for three and a half years as the two witnesses to the world within each of our lives, pouring out those seals trumpets and vials upon each other so that we can be cleansed and sanctified by the word of God (Joh 17:17) that is represented by those judgments (Rev 16:1-21). As God’s two witnesses we will also cast bread upon the water that will come back in many days when the day of visitation comes upon the rest of the world in the great white-throne judgment (1Pe 2:12-14).

1Pe 2:12  Having your conversation honest among the Gentiles: that, whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation.
1Pe 2:13  Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme;
1Pe 2:14  Or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well.

The bread we cast today for the body of Christ, can only be received by Christ giving us entreatable hearts which are likened unto a child (Mat 18:3, Isa 66:2). We are being witnessed to today, and that witness comes from Jesus Christ in each of us causing us to “see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet“. So, when you know you are the man, there should be only one place you want to stand now, “stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth [Rev 1:3], let him understand)“. That holy place is where the elect come together often and are being healed and strengthened so that we can endure until the end and be saved Lord willing in this age (Mal 3:16, Heb 10:25).

Mal 3:16  Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name. 

Heb 10:25  Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

]]> Will God Have Mercy on The Man Used As Antichrist? https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/will-god-have-mercy-on-the-man-used-as-antichrist/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=will-god-have-mercy-on-the-man-used-as-antichrist Wed, 21 Dec 2016 23:32:21 +0000 http://www.iswasandwillbe.com/?p=13044

Mike,

Please tell me: Will God have mercy on the man used as antichrist?

Assuming that the Antichrist is still God’s creation (by-proxy), then does this entity have any free will to choose its own destiny? I mean that’s a pretty bad deck to be dealt to be created for the sole purpose of eventually being tormented in Hell for eternity.

Plus, if the Antichrist’s sole purpose is to provide a catalyst for the end-times, and eventual golden age of Christianity, does that not mean that in its ‘evil’ it would be just as holy as Christ? Is this man antichrist beyond saving as he is a victim of just being born.

Here’s some more questions…

1# Is the Antichrist a human with a soul to be saved?

2# Is there anyway that God has a plan to save him?

3# Is the antichrist a fallen angel?

I will look for your reply.

Thank You,

J____

Hi J____,

Thank you for your question concerning the antichrist.

This “man of sin, the son of perdition” is not some end-time person or any particular man. According to the scriptures, “the last times” and “the AntiChrist” have both been around from the beginning of the church of Christ, and there were, and still are, many such antichrists:

Mat 24:34 Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.
Mat 24:35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.

The ends of the world [Greek: ‘aion’ – age] began in the days of the apostles, and we are still living in the end of the world [age]:

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

1Jn 2:18 Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.

So do not fall for this false doctrine which has deceived the whole Christian world; that ‘Antichrist’ is some person ‘out there’. Antichrist is not some person in Rome or in the Middle East who will set himself up in some future temple as God and will demand all men worship him as God. Concerning “the abomination of desolation”, Christ made the statement ‘let him that reads understand’:

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:)

The abomination of desolation takes place within the holy place within the temple of God, and Paul made clear that the temple is within those who know Christ and His Father:

Joh 4:21 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father.
Joh 4:23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
Joh 4:24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

The holy spirit informs us of where we are to worship God in spirit and in truth and what is His true temple:

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

And that is exactly where “the man of sin” resides. The same apostle who wrote 1Co 3:16-17 is the same apostle, inspired by the same holy spirit, who tells the Thessalonians:

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

The god of every man is just naturally “his own belly”, and what he himself wants in this world. That is who the ‘antichrist’ is, and that is where he “sits in the temple of God”.

I hope this helps you to understand the spiritual meaning of “the antichrist, the abomination of desolation, and the man of sin”. Here is a link to a series of studies which will give you a much better foundation upon which to develop your understanding of the plan that God has and is working out with and within His creation: The Biblical Overview of The Plan of God, Part 1 That is a series of studies which will prompt you to click the word ‘here’ in blue at the end of each study.

God will, in His time, have mercy upon the antichrist in every generation of men since Adam:

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

But not all are saved at the first resurrection when Christ returns to rule this world for “a thousand years. Rather:

1Co 15:23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.

Your brother in Christ,

Mike

]]> Awesome Hands – part 37: “The land of our Fathers” https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/ah_p37_the-land-of-our-fathers/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=ah_p37_the-land-of-our-fathers Sat, 17 Aug 2013 15:27:18 +0000 http://www.iswasandwillbe.com/?p=1307 Audio Links

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Awesome Hands – Part 37

“ The land of our Fathers”

The walk the Lord places His people in is holy ground, a “holy walk”. The Way the Lord sends us on is very narrow, but it isn’t given to us alone to have to bear the “burden” which we find ourselves in.

Christ tells us His yoke is easy and His burden is light.

Mat 11:27 All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him.
Mat 11:28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
Mat 11:29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
Mat 11:30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

As we explore the story of how God is working with Joseph and his family and by extension, “us” His chosen people, we know that Christ has promised that He will be with us during whatever it is He causes to happen in our lives.

We left off in the last study learning that Joseph’s families’ occupation is that of being shepherds.

Gen 46:31 And Joseph said unto his brethren, and unto his father’s house, I will go up, and shew Pharaoh, and say unto him, My brethren, and my father’s house, which were in the land of Canaan, are come unto me;
Gen 46:32 And the men are shepherds, for their trade hath been to feed cattle; and they have brought their flocks, and their herds, and all that they have.
Gen 46:33 And it shall come to pass, when Pharaoh shall call you, and shall say, What is your occupation?
Gen 46:34 That ye shall say, Thy servants’ trade hath been about cattle from our youth even until now, both we, and also our fathers: that ye may dwell in the land of Goshen; for every shepherd is an abomination unto the Egyptians.

Learning that the shepherds are an abomination unto the Egyptians should be not be unfamiliar to our spiritual understanding and knowledge of Christ considering it is the Lord that has sent us among His enemies and causes us to be the “stench of death” to them.

2Co 2:14 Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.
2Co 2:15 For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish:
2Co 2:16 To the one we are the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things?
2Co 2:17 For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God: but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God speak we in Christ.

As we are going to see in Gen 47, the Lord shows us tremendous grace by blessing us while we have a war going on in our spiritual heavens.

“Five men presented unto Pharaoh”

Gen 47:1 Then Joseph came and told Pharaoh, and said, My father and my brethren, and their flocks, and their herds, and all that they have, are come out of the land of Canaan; and, behold, they are in the land of Goshen.
Gen 47:2 And he took some of his brethren, even five men, and presented them unto Pharaoh.
Gen 47:3 And Pharaoh said unto his brethren, What is your occupation? And they said unto Pharaoh, Thy servants are shepherds, both we, and also our fathers.
Gen 47:4 They said moreover unto Pharaoh, For to sojourn in the land are we come; for thy servants have no pasture for their flocks; for the famine is sore in the land of Canaan: now therefore, we pray thee, let thy servants dwell in the land of Goshen.

As we are given to see ourselves in these stories, we can see that the types and shadows given are for our admonition.

We are sent as Jesus the Christ to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, but we soon find out that in the entirety of “the world”, we have no pasture for our flocks.

In other words, within the context of “the land we dwell in,” there is nowhere for us to live, graze, and rest. The Lord provides us a place by creating in us a dwelling place of “drawing near” to Him.

This may seem far- fetched to some, but even Christ came preaching the same thing from the beginning of His ministry.

Mat 4:16 The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up.
Mat 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
Mat 4:18 And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers.
Mat 4:19 And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.

As we walk in the valley of the shadow of death in this age, we know the Lord walks with us. The very rest He gives us is found while we dwell in the land of our enemies, while being in the land of Goshen.

Gen 47:5 And Pharaoh spake unto Joseph, saying, Thy father and thy brethren are come unto thee:
Gen 47:6 The land of Egypt is before thee; in the best of the land make thy father and brethren to dwell; in the land of Goshen let them dwell: and if thou knowest any men of activity among them, then make them rulers over my cattle.

Gen 47:6 The landH776 of EgyptH4714 is beforeH6440 thee; in the bestH4315 of the landH776 make(H853) thy fatherH1 and brethrenH251 to dwell; H3427 in the landH776 of GoshenH1657 let them dwell: H3427 and ifH518 thou knowestH3045 any menH376 of activity H2428 among them, then makeH7760 them rulersH8269 over myH5921 H834 cattle. H4735

H2428
chayil

khah’- yil

From H2342; probably a force, whether of men, means or other resources; an army, wealth, virtue, valor, strength: – able, activity, (+) army, band of men (soldiers), company, (great) forces, goods, host, might, power, riches, strength, strong, substance, train, (+) valiant (- ly), valour, virtuous (- ly), war, worthy (- ily).

H2342

chu l ch yl

khool, kheel

A primitive root; properly to twist or whirl (in a circular or spiral manner), that is, (specifically) to dance, to writhe in pain (especially of parturition) or fear; figuratively to wait, to pervert: – bear, (make to) bring forth, (make to) calve, dance, drive away, fall grievously (with pain), fear, form, great, grieve, (be) grievous, hope, look, make, be in pain, be much (sore) pained, rest, shake, shapen, (be) sorrow (- ful), stay, tarry, travail (with pain), tremble, trust, wait carefully (patiently), be wounded.

Total KJV Occurrences:68

pain, 6

Isa_13:8, Isa_26:17-18 (2), Jer_30:23, Eze_30:16, Mic_4:10

formed, 5

Deu_32:18, Job_26:5, Job_26:13, Psa_90:2, Pro_26:10

forth, 4

Pro_8:24-25(2), Isa_45:10, Isa_66:8

brought, 3

Pro_8:24-25(2), Isa_45:10

pained, 3

Joe_2:4-6(3)

calve, 2

Job_39:1, Psa_29:9

fall, 2

Jer_23:19, Jer_30:23

fear, 2

1Ch_16:30, Psa_96:9

grieved, 2

Est_4:4, Jer_5:3

grievous, 2

Psa_10:5, Jer_23:19

shaketh, 2

Psa_29:8(2)

stayed, 2

Gen_8:10, Lam_4:6

travail, 2

Isa_23:4, Isa_54:1

travailed, 2

Isa_66:7-8(2)

tremble, 2

Psa_114:7, Jer_5:22

trembled, 2

Psa_97:4, Hab_3:10

wounded, 2

1Ch_10:3(2)

abide, 1

Hos_11:6

afraid, 1

Psa_77:16

anguish, 1

Deu_2:25

bare, 1

Isa_51:2

bring, 1

Isa_66:8

dance, 1

Jdg_21:21

danced, 1

Jdg_21:23

driveth, 1

Pro_25:23(2)

great, 1

Eze_30:16

grievously, 1

Jer_23:19

hope, 1

Lam_3:26

look, 1

Job_20:21

made, 1

Job_15:7

patiently, 1

Psa_37:7(2)

rest, 1

2Sa_3:29

shapen, 1

Psa_51:5

sorrow, 1

Jer_51:29

sorrowful, 1

Zec_9:5

tarried, 1

Jdg_3:25

travaileth, 1

Job_15:20

trust, 1

Job_35:14

wait, 1

Psa_37:7

waited, 1
Mic_1:12

For sake of time in this study, I will get to the “root” of what “men of activity” are, for this is what Pharaoh commands Joseph to seek out.

Psa 114:7 Tremble, thou earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob;

Jer 5:22 Fear ye not me? saith the LORD: will ye not tremble at my presence, which have placed the sand for the bound of the sea by a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass it: and though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not prevail; though they roar, yet can they not pass over it?

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

Deu 32:17 They sacrificed unto devils, not to God; to gods whom they knew not, to new gods that came newly up, whom your fathers feared not.
Deu 32:18 Of the Rock that begat thee thou art unmindful, and hast forgotten God that formed thee.

Mic 4:10 Be in pain, and labour to bring forth, O daughter of Zion, like a woman in travail: for now shalt thou go forth out of the city, and thou shalt dwell in the field, and thou shalt go even to Babylon; there shalt thou be delivered; there the LORD shall redeem thee from the hand of thine enemies.

What we are being told by the Lord our God is that He has set into motions all of the events in our lives, both “good and bad” so that we can BRING FORTH FRUIT meet for repentance.

The reason He sends us into Egypt, into Babylon, is so that in GREAT PAIN and LABOUR we can be DELIEVERED by the “birth of the new man”.

Joh 16:20 Verily, verily, I say unto you, That ye shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice: and ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy.
Joh 16:21 A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world.
Joh 16:22 And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you.

The Pharaoh (God the Father) tells Joseph (Christ His Son) to seek out “any men of activity”, and those “men” are, we ….. “us”….. the sons of God, to look after His flock.
“And they will be known by their fruits……”

“Unless a grain of wheat fall, it cannot bring forth 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.
Mat 7:21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

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.
Joh 12:26 If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour.

The “men of activity” of which we are sent to “set over” the “cattle of the Pharaoh” are those who do the will of the Father and the will of the Father is:

Joh 4:23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
Joh 4:24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

Christ is Truth.

Joh 14:5 Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?
Joh 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
Joh 14:7 If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.

Joh 16:13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

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

The darkness that Joseph’s family was rescued from came in the form of a very grievous famine that gripped the entire world. Now, as they are being rescued and the will of the king is being revealed unto them, they are being told how to perform the work for which they are made to do.

Eph 5:8 For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light:
Eph 5:9 (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;)
Eph 5:10 Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord.
Eph 5:11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.

The “blessings of Pharaoh”

Gen 47:7 And Joseph brought in Jacob his father, and set him before Pharaoh: and Jacob blessed Pharaoh.
Gen 47:8 And Pharaoh said unto Jacob, How old art thou?
Gen 47:9 And Jacob said unto Pharaoh, The days of the years of my pilgrimage are an hundred and thirty years: few and evil have the days of the years of my life been, and have not attained unto the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their pilgrimage.
Gen 47:10 And Jacob blessed Pharaoh, and went out from before Pharaoh.
Gen 47:11 And Joseph placed his father and his brethren, and gave them a possession in the land of Egypt, in the best of the land, in the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had commanded.
Gen 47:12 And Joseph nourished his father, and his brethren, and all his father’s household, with bread, according to their families.
Gen 47:13 And there was no bread in all the land; for the famine was very sore, so that the land of Egypt and all the land of Canaan fainted by reason of the famine.

What we are discussing in this study is the Truth that the “days of our pilgrimage” are no different in how few they are and how much evil they contain. Truly, there is “one event unto all”.

However, the true blessing of our pilgrimage is that while we are “here”, we are given the best of the land. We have been made a covenant with the Lord.

We are given a promise that we will go to the promised land, but while there we will STILL have to “fight giants and have war.” However, in this war, we will be given victory while in this age and in the ages to come.

How does this play itself out?

Gen 47:14 And Joseph gathered up all the money that was found in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, for the corn which they bought: and Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh’s house.
Gen 47:15 And when money failed in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came unto Joseph, and said, Give us bread: for why should we die in thy presence? for the money faileth.
Gen 47:16 And Joseph said, Give your cattle; and I will give you for your cattle, if money fail.
Gen 47:17 And they brought their cattle unto Joseph: and Joseph gave them bread in exchange for horses, and for the flocks, and for the cattle of the herds, and for the asses: and he fed them with bread for all their cattle for that year.
Gen 47:18 When that year was ended, they came unto him the second year, and said unto him, We will not hide it from my lord, how that our money is spent; my lord also hath our herds of cattle; there is not ought left in the sight of my lord, but our bodies, and our lands:
Gen 47:19 Wherefore shall we die before thine eyes, both we and our land? buy us and our land for bread, and we and our land will be servants unto Pharaoh: and give us seed, that we may live, and not die, that the land be not desolate.
Gen 47:20 And Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh; for the Egyptians sold every man his field, because the famine prevailed over them: so the land became Pharaoh’s.
Gen 47:21 And as for the people, he removed them to cities from one end of the borders of Egypt even to the other end thereof.

What is being described to us in detail here is that the Lord has a plan, a process for how He achieves His will in us to “bear fruit of the spirit in all goodness and righteousness and truth”.

The Lord first requires anything that we have “gained” to be given to Him. In other words, He takes all the “filthy lucre” and replaces it will His “goods”.

He then requires that which get us wealth and money in the first place, and that is all of “out cattle”.

The last thing remaining is that the Lord requires all of us…. all of the land, our very bodies, all of us.

He then places us where He can sustain us. Remember, Joseph (Christ) stored all the food in the cities. So, in type and shadow, the Lord brings us to where He can look over us, into the cities He has “built up”.

Gen 41:48 And he gathered up all the food of the seven years, which were in the land of Egypt, and laid up the food in the cities: the food of the field, which was round about every city, laid he up in the same.

Rev 21:2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

Rev 21:10 And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,

Remember, this is a process for everyone, and we all go through this same process. Additionally, there are those who have simply gone before us in this process and have “grown daily”, Christ increasing in them, who are the “pillars of the temple” and partake of the altar.

These are the clouds we saw last week which “a voice from a mountain comes from”. There are the “kings and priests” the Lord is training up!

Gen 47:22 Only the land of the priests bought he not; for the priests had a portion assigned them of Pharaoh, and did eat their portion which Pharaoh gave them: wherefore they sold not their lands.

This is simply telling us that these priests have no need to “sell their land” because their land was ALREADY GIVEN to them for a POSSESSION.

1Co 9:13 Do ye not know that they which minister about holy things live of the things of the temple? and they which wait at the altar are partakers with the altar?
1Co 9:14 Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel.

1Ti 5:17 Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour, especially they who labour in the word and doctrine.
1Ti 5:18 For the scripture saith, Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn. And, The labourer is worthy of his reward.

The reward the “priests” have is that of Christ in US, our hope and glory!

Rev 1:5 And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood,
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 1:7 Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.

Gal 6:6 Let him that is taught in the word communicate unto him that teacheth in all good things.
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.
Gal 6:9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
Gal 6:10 As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.

2Th 3:7 For yourselves know how ye ought to follow us: for we behaved not ourselves disorderly among you;
2Th 3:8 Neither did we eat any man’s bread for nought; but wrought with labour and travail night and day, that we might not be chargeable to any of you:
2Th 3:9 Not because we have not power, but to make ourselves an ensample unto you to follow us.
2Th 3:10 For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat.

Before we are given “the land” and a portion with our “Pharaoh the King”, we first must sell all that we have for a pearl of great price!

Gen 47:23 Then Joseph said unto the people, Behold, I have bought you this day and your land for Pharaoh: lo, here is seed for you, and ye shall sow the land.
Gen 47:24 And it shall come to pass in the increase, that ye shall give the fifth part unto Pharaoh, and four parts shall be your own, for seed of the field, and for your food, and for them of your households, and for food for your little ones.
Gen 47:25 And they said, Thou hast saved our lives: let us find grace in the sight of my lord, and we will be Pharaoh’s servants.
Gen 47:26 And Joseph made it a law over the land of Egypt unto this day, that Pharaoh should have the fifth part; except the land of the priests only, which became not Pharaoh’s.

When this pattern is followed (and it is always followed by His elect due to God working it all) we will “find grace” in the sight of the Lord and we will grow and prosper.

Gen 47:27 And Israel dwelt in the land of Egypt, in the country of Goshen; and they had possessions therein, and grew, and multiplied exceedingly.
Gen 47:28 And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years: so the whole age of Jacob was an hundred forty and seven years.
Gen 47:29 And the time drew nigh that Israel must die: and he called his son Joseph, and said unto him, If now I have found grace in thy sight, put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh, and deal kindly and truly with me; bury me not, I pray thee, in Egypt:

Christ will give Israel life from the “valley of the shadow of death” which Egypt and Babylon represent.

Putting the hand under the thigh represents the covenant or oath that takes places while making this gesture. Abraham, “the father of the faithful,” fashions this covenant because He knows that our marriage is to our Lord and of His people and not to those of whom we find ourselves living amongst.

Gen 24:1 And Abraham was old, and well stricken in age: and the LORD had blessed Abraham in all things.
Gen 24:2 And Abraham said unto his eldest servant of his house, that ruled over all that he had, Put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh:
Gen 24:3 And I will make thee swear by the LORD, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell:
Gen 24:4 But thou shalt go unto my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son Isaac.

In other words, we are the bride of Christ and we have a country we are seeking, which is the country of “our Fathers.” Christ promises to deliver us there.

Gen 47:29 And the time drew nigh that Israel must die: and he called his son Joseph, and said unto him, If now I have found grace in thy sight, put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh, and deal kindly and truly with me; bury me not, I pray thee, in Egypt:
Gen 47:30 But I will lie with my fathers, and thou shalt carry me out of Egypt, and bury me in their burying place. And he said, I will do as thou hast said.
Gen 47:31 And he said, Swear unto me. And he sware unto him. And Israel bowed himself upon the bed’s head.

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