Lambs of Sacrifice

Understanding for New Mystics

2011-11-15T17:50:00.001-08:00

People who realize they are New Mystics, have enter into a world that can be confusing. Depending on your nature of your Mystic Gift, will determine what understanding you will need. As a metaphorical example, I will talk about changing the oil on a car, yet if your Mystic Gift is a bicycle, you will not need this understanding, if you are a Tank, the oil changing will be just a basic knowledge, and you will have to use that simple explanation and fit it according to your needs. So, know yourself and you will know your gift, but more important, know God and you will know yourself and others, for we were created in his image.

What I will do is first give a general definition of mystics. Then list some types of mystics’ gifts with definitions under that. Throughout the latter I will give some sources of influence that affect mystics.

Definitions:

A Mystic as defined basically by the Church is one who has intimacy with God. So, Mystics tend to be more hands on with the spiritual realm than other people, than just in teaching or doctrine. So, Mystics tend to be way more spiritual in the aspect of encounters with the spiritual realm, influence from the spiritual realm, and direction day to day from the spiritual realm that most religious people. This tends to make Mystics harder to understand for most people. So, if people really don’t understand you and think you are weird, that is normal.

Mystics, tend to be themselves, Studiers of Mysteries, Paradoxes, Dualities of Words, symbolism, principles that influence the world, Arch-types, parables, and secrets, just to name a few. Since they are studiers of these, and since they get extra influence from the spiritual realm on these, they tend to, after many years, be great Revelators, Prophets, Visionaries, Leaders of new movements (because the older movements will not change).

Overall Life of a Mystic:

Beginning Mystics tend not to understand they are Mystics, yet are a lot of times trained in the basic wisdom of the world as a base, and then they know inside themselves that there is something deeper, that this knowledge just doesn’t quite add up. Then, they tend to have long periods of separation from that knowledge base and self reflect, come in contact with the spiritual realm, and understand and formulate the understanding of the Mysteries they have discovered. Then they tend to begin to share this knowledge, then other mystics gain understanding and so call ‘follow them’ and then persecution arises from those who are of the old world (meaning: the world where they got their initial understanding) and then a new awakening happens.

If you look at this life cycle of a mystic, you will see basically the many of the same type cycles in the lives of the biblical characters Moses, King David, Daniel, Jesus, and the Apostle Paul. But, also if you look into other mystics, whether you agree with their understandings or not, you will see some of the same life cycles, Lao Tzu, Buddha, Martin Luther, Joseph Smith, St Teresa de Avila, St John of the Cross, Augustine, the Desert Fathers, and the list goes on.

Dangers to Mystics:

The danger to Mystics is that they can step out of their gifting or calling and get themselves into all kinds of trouble. As an example: William Branham (1909-1964) had a huge gift of healing and divine insight into knowledge of people’s lives. He could tell them their address, colors of their house, details that they would only know and was said to be one hundred percent accurate, yet he predicted the coming of Jesus in 1977. Branham had the gift of healing and words of knowledge, but may have stepped into the realm of doctrinal revelation and into the teaching gift, and so according to some, may have missed it in that area. So, if you are black and white in your personality and judgments you may say “he was not of God,” but if you are more eclectic in your judgments you may say, “Well what can I glean from that which was good, and no one is perfect, look at Moses, King David, and the Apostle Paul, and what is God trying to reveal to me, for if he was of God or not that is up to God. God may want to spend eternity with William Branham and who am I to determine who God let’s into his house, I mean, “God is letting me in, so why not William Branham?”

I don’t use the example of William Branham to accuse, defend, or condemn him, what I am trying to show is that their may be areas that you as a Mystic are not called. But, if your Mystic Gift is huge and powerful in one area, you may have a tendency to get pulled into other areas, which are outside of your gift, and you have to know your limitations. When that other gift is called for, which you don’t have, you have to either say, “I can’t do that,” or you have to find someone else who has that Gift and share your service to others. This is the true understanding of the principle of ‘humility.’ Humility is not saying “Oh I am worthless;” when you have a great gift, or saying “I have all gifts because God is in me.’ But, humility is knowing the truth about yourself. “I am effective in these areas, but have difficulties in these other areas.” That way, (metaphorically) you are not a fancy sports car that is really fast and powerful, trying to pull a tank that is stuck in the mud. Know your gifts and your limitations. Know yourself and know God, for he does not use all in the same way, so that all can be honored for their own personal gifts, whether mystic, or prophet, or evangelist, or mother, or father, or friend to those in need.

Gifts of Mystics:

Remember mystics, as stated above are a type of beings that have easier contact with the spiritual realm, yet each has different gifts. Many mystics have multiple gifts, and each gift may have a certain power level.

The primary gift of mystics is intimacy with the spiritual realm. They if they meditate, wait, search, seek, knock, they will come in contact with God. Or in like my case, I was chosen by Grace and so I got dragged into the presence of God by my hair, all the while kicking and screaming, crying and moaning, complaining and accusing the Heart of a Loving God, all the way.

Mystic Gift of Intercession:

Mystics who have the gift of intercession are those that feel what others are going through; they actually walk in another’s moccasins (shoes) and pray for that person. They take the yucky stuff and pray back good stuff; they take curses and send back blessings. They are the mediators between God and man. For more information on this gift, search for burden bearing articles in the search bar above. Also see Isaiah 53.

Mystic Gift of Revelation:

Mystic Revelators are people like Moses, Daniel, Jesus, and the Apostle Paul. All four of these had huge revelatory gifts. Moses was intimate with God and brought the covenant of the Law. Daniel was a huge mystic revelator who communicated with God three times a day and brought insightful visions of the last days. Jesus brought the perfect understanding of the Covenant of Grace to those under the Law. The apostle Paul brought huge understanding of the mysteries of Grace to the non-Israelites world. Moses, Daniel, and the Apostle Paul all had scribal anointings (gift of writing), whereas Jesus only wrote in the dirt (literally). All of these revelators had encounters with the spiritual realm and angels. Listen to what the angels say to you.

Mystic Gift of Discernment:

The Mystic Gift of Discernment is a huge gift for Mystics and helps protect them from many principles that lead to evil. Most Mystics have a tendency to fight against the teaching of legalists, or as also called groundlings. These are people who are religious but have no contact or influence from the spiritual realm. Look into the life of Jesus and how he fought against the Pharisees, and how Martin Luther fought against the religious people of his day. This is because Mystics have an intrinsic bad taste for religiosity, Churchianity, systems, formulas to get what you want for the spiritual realm, Phariseeism, dead religion, power structures that oppress people with fear, guilt, and shame. They are basically spiritually allergic to it and it causes them all kinds on allergic reactions in their spirit. This is why when you walk into certain churches you find yourself getting physically nauseous.

Mystic Gift of Philosophy:

Philosophy is the ‘Love of Wisdom.’ Solomon and the bible teaches us to pursue wisdom. Wisdom in general to fear God, who only accepts us by his grace and mercy, and we are powerless to help ourselves, so we fear God because his love is free and gracious, and cannot be manipulated (Believe me I have tried for years to manipulate God and I have not succeeded yet and never will). But also wisdom is the understanding of the basic principles of the spiritual realm, both that which is good and that which is not so good. Understanding the good and the differences between those good things like; Love, mercy, forgiveness, freedom, pardon (justification), sacrifice, jealousy, wrath, kindness, process of becoming a bride (sanctification), friendship, servant hood, grace (free love gifts), works, honor, revelation, logic, humility, knowing that you are unworthy yet worthy because you are loved, acceptance, boundaries, covenants and their affects, discernment, listening and obeying.

Also understanding the negative areas of the spiritual realm and their effects such as; guilt, fear, shame, greed (in all areas), self centeredness, jealousy, wrath, honor, licentiousness (cheep grace) and legalism (outward system of goodness), group think, when boundaries become systems to control the freedom of others, guilt trips, accusation, insinuations, power tripping, power-fear tripping, cliques, fallacies, and dogmatism and etcetera.

As you may have noticed, the same descriptive principle words, are found in both lists. Almost all principles can be found in both. God is a jealous God, for he is our husband, yet we can use jealousy to control others freedom. Wrath: wrath is great if you are protecting someone from someone evil in an emergency (God protecting the Israelites form the Egyptians during Moses time), yet the wrath of man can be used in a very evil manner and so God limits that area to himself, “Vengeance is mine says the Lord, I will repay.” So, in understanding this, then a mystic limits himself from vengeance and if he finds it in himself/herself, then he/she looks for the root cause, maybe there are judgments that are in their heart and not love, and so looks to reprogram her/his heart and mind to love greater and leave the consequences of another’s actions to the day of their final judgment, which we all must face.

In understanding the duality of the meanings of words, depending on their source, a Mystic can use as an example the word ‘Religion’ in a good connotation or a bad, depending on to whom the mystic is talking. For, Religion can mean from its origin ‘to reconnect’ or it can be used from a negative connotation of the ‘unseeing form of ritual legalism.’ The duality of meanings depending on the power that is empowering it enables the mystic to understand; for he/she is not only understanding the meaning, but understands the underlying power empowering it.

So, the mystic understands that their can be dual or many meanings to principles. This understanding of dualities fits right in with what Solomon that a wise grabs a hold of something with one hand but does not lets go of the opposite with the other hand. Therefore, a Mystic understands the balance of both eternal love and eternal wrath, predestination and freewill, law and grace, weeping and joy, pain and ecstasy, eternal acceptance and the fear of the Lord. The Mystic understands the notes of both the high keys and the lows keys of the whole eternal piano of God, for God weeps when we weep and rejoices when we rejoice because his love is others’ centered.

Mystic Understanding through the Natural Realm:

This form of understanding comes through what the Mystic seeing in the earthly realm. This is how Jesus taught people about the Kingdom of God. He used parables that people saw in the natural realm to teach the spiritual realm from the natural realm. A Mystic can still learn from God about the spiritual realm and the heart of God from what God teaches through examples from the natural realm.

These examples I call ‘filters.’ These picture/parable filters help to filter our understanding of the spiritual realm. These parables are pictures that cause one to filter their spiritual belief systems. Now, these filter do not necessarily cause a whole new belief, but causes our belief systems to be refined. So speaking from the realm of physics and chemistry, what happens is that each parable/picture filter refines the chemistry of our belief system and refines it. So, the more of this refining that happens the more pure our spirituality becomes.

As an example… when one talks about love, but we get a picture of honor, then that love is refined that by the principle of honor. Now when we get that understanding then we filter this loving honor we filter it by graciousness, and so we end up with loving honor of grace. Sometimes we get a negative understanding of a principle, let’s say accusation. We come to understand that we are all criminals or not perfect, and that we will have to be judged, then we see that we cannot accuse without ourselves being judged. So, we see that love does not accuse others before others or before God. When this divine revelation of the parable of Matthew 18, then we come to find loving, honoring gracious relationship of non-accusation. A Mystic’s belief system can be filtered by hundreds or even thousands of these types of filters.

This is why it takes a mystic so long to mature.

Understanding guilt, shame and fear tactics can help a Mystic avoid someone infusing the sense of guilt, fear, and shame into the chemistry of our relationship to our Daddy. But, also a Mystic understands the true nature of the fear of God, because they know Daddy can be offended by our hatred and accusation towards other people and his heart is tender towards many people, for he has compassion on the broken, downcast, wounded, lost, and weak. God loves his children, but will punishes those who are mean, greedy, and downright pridefully vengeful towards the downcast and weak.

See the balance?

Mystics of Extra Intimacy:

These mystic have this incredibly deep relationship with God. These Mystics are so consumed with God that they do not want to do anything else but spend time in his presence. These strange mystics no body tends to understand. Moses and Daniel were these types of Mystics. They loved to spend time in their lover’s presence.

These Mystics tend to go on these strange quests, or errands, that their lover (God) sends them on. These Mystics feel a close connection to the nature of the relationship of the Bride of Christ. Which, is so much different than just a servant relationship or just a friendship relationship with God. For the bride lays her head on her lover’s chest and hears his heart beat. They come into the mysteries of the heart of God. They understand the layers of relationship that can be found with God.

The Mystic Gift of Intimacy is a oneness gift, a gift of unity. The Mystic since he/she has become one with the Godhead, also can become one at times with his creation. This oneness has is delights and despairs. If a Mystic becomes one with an organization they may unite with its blessings, but with also its defilements. This gift can have huge impacts on the well being of the Mystic. But, the Mystic, if he is connected with the Spirit of Holiness (Holy Spirit) then the Mystic can also influence the corporation towards holiness and purity. For the Altar makes the unholy holy and not the other way around; just as the light easily dispels the darkness.

The Mystic Gift of the Teaching:

The Mystic Gift of Teaching allows a mystic to try to explain the doorways in which to enter into the fullness of a person’s destiny in the Godhead. Sometime other people may not understand the Mystic’s teaching, though another Mystic will fully understand. The Mystic teaching tends to be in pictorial form since some of the angels that speak to them communicate in pictorial forms, which include dreams, word pictures and visions both internal and external.

The Mystic can also teach in technical terms when it is called for, depending on the nature of the audience. Many forms can the message of the Mystic be taught in, to reach the most number of different types of people. This can confuse some people who follow a Mystic because his/her teaching does not come out in the same way. And sometimes the Mystic teaches by acting out the message, see Ezekiel.

The Mystic can be taught in so many ways, that they get primary resources for teaching in many ways.

Conclusion:

Mystics are those who primarily seekers of the heart of God and when they find Him, they love to dwell in the personal relation with the Divine. In dwelling with the Keeper of Secrets, they tend to get those secrets applied to them so that the Mystic can understand the nature of Daddy’s Heart and learn to love Him deeper, as they are so loved by Daddy. When they know that they are so accepted and loved, a Mystic naturally and by instruction loves to share Daddy’s heart with others, so that others can enjoy the freedom and love that is found only in Daddy’s Heart.

The Absolutely Wonderful Translation of the Gospel of Romans for Computer Geeks

2010-04-25T11:53:00.000-07:00

Ro 1:1 Paul, a servant of Jesus the Great Super Computing Server, called to be a marketing associate, network administration, and a computer repair specialist, dedicated solely to the New Operating System of the Great Computer Programmer and Engineer,
Ro 1:2 Which he had promised a head of time by his Official Spokespersons in the Great and Holy Computer Handbook,
Ro 1:3 Concerning his Son Jesus, the Great Super Computing Server, our Computer Technician, who was made from the essences of old vacuum tubes according to his hardware;
Ro 1:4 But declared to be the Son of the Great Programmer and Engineer with power, according to the programming of holiness, by the resurrection from the Blue Screen of Death:
Ro 1:5 By whom we have received free programs we did not buy and the position of marketing associates, for the downloading of the New Operating System among all nations, for the sake of his Brand Name:
Ro 1:6 Among whom are you were also emailed so as to be invited to connect to Jesus the Great Super Computing Server:
Ro 1:7 To all that be in Rome, beloved of the Great Programmer, called to be operators of the New Operating System:
Free programs we did not buy to you and peace from the Great Programmer our Father, and the Great Computer Technician Jesus our Great Super Computing Server.
Ro 1:8 First, I thank my Great Programmer through Jesus Great Super Server for you all, that your New Operating System is spoken of throughout the whole world.
Ro 1:9 For the Great Computer Programmer and Designer is my witness, whom I serve with all my programming in the New Operating System of his Son, that without ceasing, I make mention of you always in my emails;
Ro 1:10 Making requests, that I might have a prosperous journey to visit you, by the command of the Great Programmer.
Ro 1:11 For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual download, to the end your system may be strengthened and even more versatile;
Ro 1:12 That is, that we may have a peer to peer torrent download connection with you through our mutual New Operating System.
Ro 1:13 Now I would not have you ignorant, brothers, that many times I desired to come unto you, (but had been prevented from doing so,) that I might have some good work among you also, even as I have had among the other noobs.
Ro 1:14 I am debtor both to the computer savvy, and to the computer illiterate; both to the wise and to the foolish.
Ro 1:15 So with all that in me, I am ready to talk about the New Operating System with you that live in Rome.
Ro 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the New Operating System of Great Super Computing Server: for it is the power of the Great Programmer for the stable operating system for every one that trusts; first to those that are computer programmers, and then also to noobs.
Ro 1:17 For in the New Operating System is the approved access code of the Great Programmer is given by trust: as it is written in the Great and Holy Handbook; ‘the authorized shall live by trust.’
Ro 1:18 For the wrath of Great Computer Programmer is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and hacking of men, who oppose the New Operating System by their hacking;
Ro 1:19 Because that which may be known of the Great Computer Programmer has been clearly revealed to them; for the Great Computer Programmer has shown it unto them.
Ro 1:20 For the invisible qualities of the Great Computer Programmer are clearly seen from the creation of this world, being understood by the hardware that he made, and even understood is his limitless power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:
Ro 1:21 Because that when they knew the Great Computer Programmer, they neither honored him as the Great Computer Programmer and Designer, and neither were they thankful; but became unproductive in their imagination, and their foolish hard drives were darkened.
Ro 1:22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,
Ro 1:23 And changed the goodness of the incorruptible Great Computer Programmer into destructive programs made to look like to corruptible man, birds, and beasts, and creeping things.
Ro 1:24 Therefore, the Great Computer Programmer and Designer also gave them up to uncleanness of their programming in their own hard drives, to shame their own computers between themselves:
Ro 1:25 Who exchanged the New Operating System of the Great Computer Programmer for a lie, and worshipped and served the programs more than the Creator, who is full of blissful joy for ever. Amen.
Ro 1:26 For this cause the Great Computer Programmer gave them up unto vile programming and pornographic websites: for even their women did change the natural use of their computer modems with each other, which is clearly against nature:
Ro 1:27 And likewise also these men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their programming for one another’s computer towers; men desired other men, doing that which is unholy, and receiving in themselves the penalty of vile viruses for their error, which was their due.
Ro 1:28 Even so, they did not desire to retain the Great Computer Programmer and Engineer in their programming, the Great Computer Programmer, who is the Great Computer Designer and Engineer gave them over to a reprobate processors, to do things which are not to be done;
Ro 1:29 They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips,
Ro 1:30 slanderers, haters of the Great Programmer, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents and elders;
Ro 1:31 they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless.
Ro 1:32 Who knowing the judgment of the Great Computer Programmer that they which do such things are worthy of the Blue Screen of Death, not only do they do the same things, but they rejoice about them that do the same.
Ro 2:1 You also are without excuse, O’ man, for at whatever point you judge another, you condemn yourself; for you that judge do the same things.
Ro 2:2 But we are sure that the judgment of the Great Computer Programmer is according to truth against them which do such things.
Ro 2:3 And so I ask you this question; that when you judge them which do such things, and yet you do the same, will you escape the judgment of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer?
Ro 2:4 Or do you despises the riches of his goodness, patience, and long suffering love; not knowing that the mercy and goodness of the Great Computer Programmer leads you to downloading the New Operating System?
Ro 2:5 But because of your hardness and impatient hard drive, you store up for yourself wrath on the day of Great Programmers wrath, for that day will reveal the righteous judgments of the Great Computer Programmer;
Ro 2:6 Who will render to every computer according to the deeds of their programs:
Ro 2:7 To them who by endurance in doing good seek glory, honor, immortality, and eternal life:
Ro 2:8 But unto them that are stubborn and do not obey the New Operating System, but obey destructive programs, will get anger and wrath,
Ro 2:9 Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that does evil, first for computer programmers, and then the noobs;
Ro 2:10 But glory, honor, and peace, to every man that does good; first to the computer programmers, and then also to noobs:
Ro 2:11 For there is no respect of computers with the Great Computer Programmer.
Ro 2:12 For as many as have followed destructive programs without reading the Great and Holy Handbook shall also perish without being judged by the knowledge from the Great and Holy Handbook: and as many as have sinned with the knowledge of the Great and Holy Handbook shall be judged by the Great and Holy Handbook;
Ro 2:13 (For it is not the hearers of the Great and Holy Handbook that are approved by the Great Computer Programmer, but the doers of the Great and Holy Handbook who shall be approved.
Ro 2:14 For when the noobs, which have not the Great and Holy Handbook, do by nature the things contained in the Great and Holy Handbook, these, having not the Great and Holy Handbook, are a law unto themselves:
Ro 2:15 Which show that the words of the Great and Holy Handbook are written on their hard drives, their Boolean program also bearing witness, and their own output data now accusing and/or even defending them
Ro 2:16 On the day when the Great Computer Programmer and Designer shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus the Great Super Computing Server according to my good news of this New Operating System.
Ro 2:17 See the truth, for if you are called a computer programmer, and trust in the Great and Holy Handbook, and make your boast in the Great Computer Programmer and Designer,
Ro 2:18 And know his plan, and approve the things that are most excellent, for you are instructed by the Great and Holy Handbook;
Ro 2:19 And you are confident that you yourself are a guide of the blind, a light to them which are in darkness,
Ro 2:20 An instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, who has the form of knowledge and truth from the Great and Holy Handbook.
Ro 2:21 Do you then who teach others, do you teach yourself? You that say a computer should not steal hardware and programs, do you steal?
Ro 2:22 You that says that a computer should not hack into a modem that is not his wife’s, do you hack into other women’s modems? You that abhor illegal operating system and servers, do you hack illegal operating systems and servers?
Ro 2:23 Do you that make your boast about the Great and Holy Handbook, do you dishonor the Great Computer Programmer by ignoring the Great and Holy Handbook’s rules?
Ro 2:24 Because of this the Brand Name of the Great Computer Programmer, as it is written, ‘is ridiculed among the noobs because of you’.
Ro 2:25 For a Certificate of being a Circumcised Programmer profits you, if you keep the commands of the Great and Holy Handbook: but if you break the rules of the Great and Holy Handbook, your Certificate of Programming is as much value as if you were not a programmer.
Ro 2:26 Therefore if a noob keeps the approved access code of the Great and Holy Handbook, shall not his lack of certification be acknowledged as a certificate?
Ro 2:27 The one who is not circumcised physically and yet obeys the Great and Holy Handbook will condemn you who, even though you have the Great and Holy Handbook and circumcision, you are a law breaker.
Ro 2:28 For he is not a computer programmer, which is one by a plaque on the wall; neither is certification, which is outward in the physical:
Ro 2:29 But he is a computer programmer, which is one inwardly; and certification is that of the hard drive, in the operating system, and not by the Great and Holy Handbook; his praise is not from other computer towers, but from the Great Computer Programmer.
Ro 3:1 What advantage is there is being a computer programmer? Or what profit is there in certification?
Ro 3:2 Much every way: chiefly, because that unto them were committed the very laws of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer.
Ro 3:3 For what if some did not trust? Shall their lack of trust make the faithfulness of the Great Computer Programmer without effect?
Ro 3:4 The Great Computer Programmer and Designer forbid: yes, let the Great Computer Programmer and Designer be true, but every computer tower a liar; as it is written, ‘That you might be approved in your programs, and prevail when you are judged.’
Ro 3:5 But if our hacking recommends the approved access code of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer, what shall we say? Is the Great Computer Programmer and Designer wrong for judging our computers and throwing them into the trash dump of the Lake of Burning Sulfur? (I am using a human argument.)
Ro 3:6 The Great Computer Programmer and Designer forbid: for then how would the Great Computer Programmer judge the world?
Ro 3:7 For if the truth of the Great Computer Programmer has received more honor by my hacking; why yet am I condemned as a hacker?
Ro 3:8 But rather, (as we be slanderously reported, and as some affirm that we say,) Let us hack, so that good programming may come about? There condemnation is deserved.
Ro 3:9 What then? Are we better than they? Not in any way: for we have already acknowledged that both computer programmers and noobs are all under the authority of destructive programming;
Ro 3:10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:
Ro 3:11 There is none that understands, there is none that seeks after the Great Computer Programmer and Designer.
Ro 3:12 They are all gone astray, they together have become unprofitable; there is none that does good, not even one.
Ro 3:13 Their web cams are open graves; with their keyboards they have been deceitful; the poison of viruses are under their fingertips:
Ro 3:14 Whose emails are full of cursing and bitterness:
Ro 3:15 Their programs are swift to destroy other computer’s hardware:
Ro 3:16 Destruction and misery are their ways:
Ro 3:17 And the way of peace have they not known:
Ro 3:18 There is no fear of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer on their monitors.
Ro 3:19 Now we know that what these revelations say, they say to those who read the Great and Holy Handbook: that every audio speaker may be silenced, and all the world may be found guilty before the Great Computer Programmer.
Ro 3:20 Therefore by the programming of the Great and Holy Handbook there shall no computer be approved in his sight: for by the Great and Holy Handbook is the knowledge of evil.
Ro 3:21 But now an approved access code from the Great Computer Programmer and Designer apart from the Great and Holy Handbook is revealed, being witnessed by the Great and Holy Handbook and its Official Spokespersons;
Ro 3:22 This approved access code of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer which is by trust in Jesus the Great Super Computing Server unto all, and for all them that trust: for there is no difference:
Ro 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the goodness of the Great Computer Programmer;
Ro 3:24 Being pardoned freely by his New Operating System through the restoration that is in the Great Super Computing Server Jesus:
Ro 3:25 Whom the Great Computer Programmer and Designer has set forth to be a payment through trust in his blood, to declare his approved access code for the forgiveness of sins that happened in the past, through the patience of the Great Computer Programmer;
Ro 3:26 he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be good and the one who pardons those who have trust in Jesus
Ro 3:27 Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By the principles of the Great and Holy Handbook? Or by the principles of creating awesome programs? Nope: but by the principle of trust in the New Operating System.
Ro 3:28 Therefore we conclude that a man is pardoned by trust without following the rules of the Great and Holy Handbook.
Ro 3:29 Is he the Great Computer Programmer and Designer of the Computer programmers only? Is he not the Great Computer Programmer and Engineer for the Noobs also? Yes, of the Noobs also:
Ro 3:30 Seeing there is one Great Computer Programmer, which shall pardon the certified programmers by trust, and uncertified through this same trust.
Ro 3:31 Do we then make useless the Great and Holy Handbook through trust in his New Operating System? The Great Computer Programmer and Designer forbid: For we commend the Great and Holy Handbook.
Ro 4:1 What shall we say then that Abraham our father, in his computer has found?
Ro 4:2 For if Abraham was pardoned by his great computer programs, he has reason to boast; but not before the Great Computer Programmer.
Ro 4:3 For what does the Great and Holy Handbook say? Abraham trusted the Great Computer Programmer and Designer, and he was given the approved access code.
Ro 4:4 Now to him that writes programs and does good by those programs it is not considered to him as a gift, but as a working wage.
Ro 4:5 But to him that does not write programs, but trusts him that pardons hackers, his trust gives him access to the approved access code.
Ro 4:6 Even as David also describes the joyful bliss of a man, unto whom the Great Computer Programmer gives an approved access code without work,
Ro 4:7 Saying, blissfully full of joy are they whose hackings are forgiven, and whose destructive programs are erased from the memory of the Great Server.
Ro 4:8 Joyfully and fun of bliss is the man to whom the Great Technician will not file a lawsuit against.
Ro 4:9 Does this bliss then come only upon the computer programmers or upon the non-programmers also? For it was by trust in the Great Computer Programmer that Abraham got the approved access code.
Ro 4:10 How was it then given? Was it given when he was certified as a programmer or before? Not after he went through training for the certificate, but before.
Ro 4:11 And he received the sign of circumcision, a plaque of the approved access code of the faith to which he had not yet been certified: that he might be the father of all them that trust, though they be not be certified circumcision; that the approved access code might be downloaded to them also:
Ro 4:12 And he is the father of the certified, to them who are not of the certification only, but of those who also surf the web in the steps of that trust that our father Abraham had, while he was still uncertified.
Ro 4:13 For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not given to Abraham or to his child through the Great and Holy Handbook, but through faith in the Great Programmers promise.
Ro 4:14 For if they which follow the Great and Holy Handbook be heirs, trust in the Great Programmer promise of the New Operating System is made useless, and his promise of the gift is made of no effect:
Ro 4:15 Because the Great and Holy Handbook reveals the wrath of the Great Computer Programmer: but where there is no law, there is no transgression.
Ro 4:16 Therefore it is by trust, that it might be a free download; so that the promise might be guaranteed to all his children; not only to those who are of the Great and Holy Handbook, but also to them which are of the trust of Abraham; who is the father of us all,
Ro 4:17 (As it is written, I have made you a father of many nations,) in him whom he trusted, even the Great Computer Programmer and Designer, who restores them from the Blue Screen of Death, and calls previous hackers as people that are now approved by him.
Ro 4:18 Abraham against hope trusted, so that he might become the father of many nations, according to that which was spoken by the Great Computer Programmer, ‘So shall your child be.’
Ro 4:19 And being not weak in his trust, he did not even considered his own hardware, which was dead, for his hardware was about a hundred years old, and neither did he consider the deadness of Sarah's modem:
Ro 4:20 His monitor did not pixilize through lack of trust, while viewing the vision of the Great Computer Programmer’s promise; but he was strong in faith, giving glory to the Great Computer Programmer and Designer;
Ro 4:21 And being fully persuaded in what the Great Computer Programmer had promised, and that the Great Computer Programmer was also able to perform that which he had promised.
Ro 4:22 Therefore he was given the approved access code.
Ro 4:23 Now it was not written for his sake alone, about what was given to him;
Ro 4:24 But for us also, to whom it shall receive the downloaded of the approved access code, if we trust in him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the Blue Screen of Death;
Ro 4:25 Who was given over to the Blue Screen of Death because of our faulty and corrupt programming, and was restored again for our pardon.
Ro 5:1 Therefore being pardoned by trust, we have peace with the Great Computer Programmer and Designer through our Lord Jesus, the Great Super Server:
Ro 5:2 By whom we also have access by this trust into this New Operating System wherein we operate, and blissfully rejoice in hope of the goodness of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer.
Ro 5:3 And not only so, but we glory in our struggles also: knowing that those struggles works patience;
Ro 5:4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope:
Ro 5:5 And hope does not makes us ashamed; because the love of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer is downloaded in our hard drives by the Holy Spirit which is given unto us.
Ro 5:6 At the proper time, when we were yet without processing power, the Great Super Computing Server shutdown for the ungodly.
Ro 5:7 Scarcely will a man let his computer be destroyed for man who has the approved access code: yet someone might allow their hardware to crash for a good man.
Ro 5:8 But the Great Computer Programmer and Designer commends his love toward us, in that, while we were yet hackers, the Great Super Computing Server suffered the Blue Screen of Death for us.
Ro 5:9 Much more then, being now pardoned by his blood, we shall be saved from God’s wrath through him.
Ro 5:10 For if, when we were his enemies, we were restored to friendship with Great Computer Programmer by the death of his Son, how much more being restored, that we shall be made whole by his life.
Ro 5:11 Not only so, but we also rejoice in the Great Computer Programmer and Designer through our Lord Jesus, the Great Super Server, by whom we have now received the forgiveness of wrongs.
Ro 5:12 Wherefore by one man a virus entered into the world wide web, and the Blue Screen of Death by that virus; and so the Blue Screen of Death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
Ro 5:13 For before the Great and Holy Handbook was written the virus of the Blue Screen of Death was in the world: but sin is not punished when there is no law.
Ro 5:14 Nevertheless the Blue Screen of Death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the nature of Adam's transgression, who is the pattern of him that was to come.
Ro 5:15 But sin is not like the free gift. For if by the sin of one man, many died, how much more so will the gift of the Great Computer Programmer, and the gift of a New Operating System which came through the one computer, Jesus the Great Super Computing Server, has abounded unto many.
Ro 5:16 the gift is not like the virus, for the virus of one man lead to death and the Trash Dump of the Lake of Fire, but the free gift followed many viruses and brought pardon.
Ro 5:17 For if by one man's offence death reigned by the one; how much more will they which receive the abundance of the New Operating System and the gift of the approved access code shall have authority in this life by Jesus the Great Super Computing Server.
Ro 5:18 Therefore by the sin of one computer was the shutting down of all computers; by that same principle was the only approved access code of the one as a free gift came upon all men, and so we were pardoned and given new life, with a new operating system and new hardware.
Ro 5:19 For as by one man's disobedience many were made corrupt, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.
Ro 5:20 Moreover the Great and Holy Handbook was written so that the knowledge of what is destructive programming might abound. But where the knowledge of destructive programming abounded, grace abounded all the more:
Ro 5:21 That as destructive programming had authority to cause the Blue Screen of Death, even so by the same principle, grace might have authority through the approved access code to bring eternal life by Jesus the Great Super Computing Server our Computer Technician.
Ro 6:1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in create destructive programs, so that grace may abound?
Ro 6:2 the Great Computer Programmer forbid. How shall we, that are dead to destructive programming, operate in it any longer?
Ro 6:3 Or don’t you know, that we computers who where immersed into the baptismal water of Jesus the Great Super Computing Server were immersed into his death?
Ro 6:4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: so that just like the Great Super Server was raised up from the Blue Screen of Death by the glory of the Father, we also should walk in newness of programming.
Ro 6:5 For if we have been baptized together with him in the likeness of his death, we shall be also be raise in the likeness of his resurrection:
Ro 6:6 Knowing this, that our old computer programming was erased in crucifixion with him, that our computers programming of sin might be destroyed, therefore we should not serve sin.
Ro 6:7 For he that is dead is freed from sin.
Ro 6:8 Now if we are dead with the Great Super Computing Server, we believe that we shall also live with him:
Ro 6:9 Knowing that the Great Super Computing Server was raised from the dead he cannot die again; for the Blue Screen of Death no longer has power over him.
Ro 6:10 For in his death, he died to bad programming once and for all: but the life he lives he live under the New Operating System of the Great Computer Programmer.
Ro 6:11 Likewise consider your computer to be inoperable to destructive programming, but connected to the Great Computer Programmer through Jesus the Great Super Computing Server our Lord.
Ro 6:12 Let not bad programming therefore have authority in your mortal computer towers, that you should obey their lustful programs.
Ro 6:13 Neither offer your internal hardware as instruments of hacking by destructive programmers: but yield your computers unto the Great Computer Programmer, as those that are alive from the dead, and your parts as instruments with the approved access code from the Great Computer Programmer.
Ro 6:14 For destructive programming shall not have control over your operating system: for you are not under the Great and Holy Handbook, but under the New Operating System.
Ro 6:15 What then? Shall we sin, because we are not under the Great and Holy Handbook, but under grace? The Great Computer Programmer and Designer forbid.
Ro 6:16 Don’t you know, that to whom you yield your programming as recipients of downloads from web sites, you are at the mercy of those whom you download from; whether the downloads are of destructive programming that causes the Blue Screen of Death, or to the downloads through the approved access code?
Ro 6:17 But the Great Computer Programmer and Designer be thanked, that you were at the mercy of sin, but you have obeyed from your hard drive the form of programming which was downloaded to you.
Ro 6:18 Being then made free from destructive programming, you became the operators of the New Operating System.
Ro 6:19 I speak after the logic of men because of the weakness of your processors: for as you once yielded your members servants to destructive programming, uncleanness, and sin; even so now offer your hardware as servants to the approved Operating System which leads to holiness.
Ro 6:20 For when you were the servants of sin, you were free from the downloading authority of the approved access code.
Ro 6:21 What benefit had you in that destructive programs that you are now ashamed of? For the end of those things is the Blue Screen of Death.
Ro 6:22 But now being made free from destructive programming, and become servants to the Great Computer Programmer and Designer, you have fruit that produces holiness and everlasting life.
Ro 6:23 For the wages of destructive actions is death; but the gift of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer is eternal life through Jesus the Great Super Computing Server our Lord.
Ro 7:1 Don’t you know, brothers, (for I speak to them that know the Great and Holy Handbook,) how that the Great and Holy Handbook has authority over a computer as long as it lives?
Ro 7:2 For the woman’s modem which has is connected to her husband’s computer is bound by the Great and Holy Handbook to her husband so long as he lives; but if the husband’s computer dies, she is loosed from the law towards her husband.
Ro 7:3 So then if, while her husband lives, she connects to another man’s computer, she shall be called an adulteress: but if her husband be dead, she is free from that law; so that she is no adulteress (the seventh law of the Great and Holy Handbook), though she be married to another man.
Ro 7:4 Wherefore, my brothers, you also are become dead to the Great and Holy Handbook by the hardware of the Great Super Computing Server; that you should be connected to the Great Server, even to Jesus the Great Super Computing Server who was raised from the Blue Screen of Death, that we should produce fruit for the Great Computer Programmer and Designer.
Ro 7:5 For when we were in the old programming, the programs of sins, which were revealed by the Great and Holy Handbook, did work in our hardware to bring forth fruit unto death.
Ro 7:6 But now we are delivered from the Great and Holy Handbook, by dying to it, for it had control over us; that we should serve in newness of New Operating System, and not in the old way of trying to type in each program one line at a time through the Great and Holy Handbook information.
Ro 7:7 What shall we say then? Is the Great and Holy Handbook sin? The Great Computer Programmer and Designer forbid. No, for I would not have known what sin was except through the Great and Holy Handbook: for I would not have known what coveting (the tenth law of the Ten Commandments of the Great and Holy Handbook) other people’s hardware, programs, and modem was, except the Great and Holy Handbook had said, ‘You shall not covet.’
Ro 7:8 But my destructive programming taking the opportunity afforded by the data, caused in me all manner of coveting, for without the Great and Holy Handbook destructive programming is dead.
Ro 7:9 For I was alive without the Great and Holy Handbook once: but when the data came, the destructive programming went after those bad downloads and I died.
Ro 7:10 And the commandment, which was meant to bring life, I found brought death.
Ro 7:11 For destructive programs taking the opportunity of the data of those destructive web sites, found in the commandments, deceived me, and by them cause in me the Blue Screen of Death.
Ro 7:12 Therefore the Great and Holy Handbook is holy, and the commandment is holy, just, and good.
Ro 7:13 Then did that which was good cause death in me? The Great Computer Programmer and Designer forbid. But sin, that it might be known as sin, worked death in me by that which was good; so that destructive programming revealed by the rules against it might become exceeding sinful.
Ro 7:14 For we know that the Great and Holy Handbook is spiritual: but I am carnal, controlled by destructive programming.
Ro 7:15 For I do not understand my actions, for that which I want to do I don’t do: and what I don’t want to do, that I do.
Ro 7:16 If then, I do that which I do not want tot do, I acknowledge that the Great and Holy Handbook is good.
Ro 7:17 Now then it is no long I that do it, but the destructive programs that dwell in me.
Ro 7:18 For I know that in me (that is, in my hardware,) dwells no good thing: for the desire to do good is present in me; but how to perform that which is good I can’t seem to access.
Ro 7:19 For the good that I would do, I do not: but the evil which I do not want to do, that I do.
Ro 7:20 Now if I do that which I do not want to do, it is no more I that do it, but is the destructive programming that dwells in me.
Ro 7:21 So I find this principle at work, that when I want to do good, evil is present with me.
Ro 7:22 For I delight in the Great and Holy Handbook of the Great Computer Programmer after my inward hardware:
Ro 7:23 But I see another principle at work in my operating system, warring against the Great and Holy Handbook in my processor, and it brings me into captivity to the principle of destructive programming, which is in my hardware.
Ro 7:24 O what a wretched computer that I am! Who shall deliver me from the body of this death?
Ro 7:25 I thank the Great Computer Programmer and Designer through Jesus the Great Super Computing Server our Lord. So then with my processor I serve the Great and Holy Handbook of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer; but with hardware the destructive programming that was revealed by the Great and Holy Handbook.
Ro 8:1 Therefore there is now no condemnation towards them which are in the Great Super Computing Server Jesus, who operate not after the old programming, but after the New Operating System.
Ro 8:2 For the principle of the New Operating System of life in the Great Super Computing Server Jesus has made me free from the Great and Holy Handbook of the data of sin and death.
Ro 8:3 For what the Great and Holy Handbook could not do, in that it was weakened through the old destructive programming, the Great Computer Programmer and Designer did by sending his own Son in the likeness of destructive programs, and condemned destructive programs in hardware:
Ro 8:4 That the approved access code of the Great and Holy Handbook might be revealed in us, who walk not after the destructive programs, but after the New Operating System.
Ro 8:5 For they that pursue after destructive programs have in their processors the data of those destructive programs; but they that are after the New Operating System the data of the New Operating System.
Ro 8:6 For to be filled with destructive programs in the processor is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
Ro 8:7 Because the destructive processor is hatred towards the Great Computer Programmer, and it is not surrendered to the Great Computer Programmer’s original Great and Holy Handbook and neither can do so.
Ro 8:8 So then they that are into destructive programs cannot please the Great Computer Programmer.
Ro 8:9 But you are not in the destructive programs, but in the New Operating System, that is if the Spirit of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer dwell in you. Now if any man has not the New Operating System of the Great Super Computing Server, he does not belong to the Great Super Computing Server.
Ro 8:10 And if the Great Super Computing Server’s access be in you, your old operating system is dead because of destructive programming; but the New Operating System is working because of the approved access code.
Ro 8:11 But if the New Operating System of him that raised up Jesus from the Blue Screen of Death dwells in you, he that raised up the Great Super Server from the dead shall also strengthen your hardware by his New Operating System that dwells in you.
Ro 8:12 Therefore, brothers, we are in debt, not to the destructive program, to live after them.
Ro 8:13 For if you pursue after the destructive programs, you shall die: but if you through the New Operating System recycle bin the works of the destructive programs, you shall live.
Ro 8:14 For as many as are led by the New Operating System of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer, they are the sons of the Great Computer Programmer.
Ro 8:15 For you have not received the New Operating System so that you will be in bondage again to fear; but you have received the New Operating System of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Daddy.
Ro 8:16 The New Operating System itself bears witness with our operating system, that we are the children of the Great Computer Programmer:
Ro 8:17 And if we are his children, then we are heirs; heirs of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer, and co-heirs with the Great Super Computing Server; that is if we suffer with him, that we may be also honored together with him.
Ro 8:18 For I consider that our sufferings in this present age is not worthy to be compared with the goodness which shall be revealed in us.
Ro 8:19 For the desire of the created world waits for the sons of the Great Computer Programmer to be revealed.
Ro 8:20 For the created world was made subject to suffering, not willingly, but by the purposes of him who in hope had subjected it,
Ro 8:21 Because the created world itself will also be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer.
Ro 8:22 For we know that the whole creation together groans and travails in pain until now.
Ro 8:23 And not only they, but we ourselves also groan, we who have the first fruits of the New Operating System, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for our adoption, which is the buying back of our computer case.
Ro 8:24 For we are saved by this hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for who hopes for what he already has?
Ro 8:25 But if we hope for that we have not; then we wait for it patiently.
Ro 8:26 Likewise the Spirit also helps us in our infirmities: for we know not what we should ask for, as we should: but the Spirit itself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
Ro 8:27 And he that searches our hard drives knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because he sends emails for the benefit of the saints according to plan of the Great Computer Programmer.
Ro 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love the Great Computer Programmer and Designer, to them who are the emailed according to his purpose.
Ro 8:29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestined to be changed into the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn, having the place of honor, among many brothers.
Ro 8:30 Moreover those he predestined, he also emailed: and those he emailed, he also pardoned: and those he pardoned, he also honored.
Ro 8:31 What shall we then say to these things? If the Great Computer Programmer and Designer be for us, who can be against us?
Ro 8:32 He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, will he not, with him, also freely give us all things?
Ro 8:33 Who shall lay any charge against the elect of Great Computer Programmer? It is the Great Computer Programmer that pardons.
Ro 8:34 Who is he that condemns? It is the Great Super Computing Server that died, and who has risen again, who is even at the right hand of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer, who also makes emails for us.
Ro 8:35 Who shall separate us from the love of the Great Super Computing Server? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
Ro 8:36 As it is written, for your sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.
Ro 8:37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
Ro 8:38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
Ro 8:39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of the Great Computer Programmer, which is in the Great Super Computing Server Jesus our Lord.
Ro 9:1 I say the truth in the Great Super Computing Server, I lie not, my Boolean program also bears me witness in the Holy Spirit,
Ro 9:2 That I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in my hard drive.
Ro 9:3 For I could wish that myself were accursed from the Great Super Computing Server for my brothers, my kinsmen according to their hardware:
Ro 9:4 Who are the Israelites; theirs is the adoption as sons, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the Great and Holy Handbook, the rituals of the Great Computer Programmer, and the promises;
Ro 9:5 From whom come the patriarchs, and from whom according to their hardware came the Great Super Computing Server, who is God over all, who is full of blissful joy for ever. Amen.
Ro 9:6 It is not as though the word of the Great Computer has failed towards Israel; For not all who are called Israelites, are of Israel:
Ro 9:7 For not all who are the seed of Abraham, are Abraham’s children: but, In Isaac (He Laughs) shall your children be acknowledged.
Ro 9:8 For it is not the children according to the hardware, that are of the children of the Great Computer Programmer: but the children of the New Operating System that are acknowledged as his children.
Ro 9:9 For this is how the word of promise was spoken, At that time will I return, and Sarah shall have a son.
Ro 9:10 And not only this; but before Rebecca’s children had been conceived
Ro 9:11 before they had been born, or had done any good or evil, so that the Great Computer Programmer’s purpose of election might stand, not of works, but of him that emails;)
Ro 9:12 It was said unto her, ‘the elder shall serve the younger.’
Ro 9:13 As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.
Ro 9:14 What shall we say then? Is there bad programming in the Great Computer Programmer? The Great Computer Programmer forbid.
Ro 9:15 For he said to Moses, ‘I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.’
Ro 9:16 So then it is not by him that desires, nor of him that works, but by the will of the Great Computer Programmer who shows mercy.
Ro 9:17 For it is written in the Great and Holy Handbook, he said unto Pharaoh, ‘Even for this purpose have I raised you up, that I might show my power in you, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth.’
Ro 9:18 Therefore has he mercy on whom he wills, and hardens whomever he wills.
Ro 9:19 Will you then say unto me, Why does he still find fault in us? For who has resisted his will?
Ro 9:20 O’ man, who are you that complains against the Great Computer Programmer? Shall the object formed by him say to him that formed it, ‘Why have you made me like this?’
Ro 9:21 Has not the potter power over the clay, and of the same lump to make one vessel for honor, and another for dishonor?
Ro 9:22 What if the Great Computer Programmer and Designer, desiring to show his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of his wrath made for destruction:
Ro 9:23 So that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had before prepared for glory,
Ro 9:24 Even us, whom he has emailed, not only from among the ranks of computer programmers, but also of the noobs.
Ro 9:25 As he said also in Hosea, ‘I will call them my people, which were not my people; and will call then my beloved, which were not called my beloved.’
Ro 9:26 And it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, ‘You are not my people; there shall they be called the children of the living God.’
Ro 9:27 Isaiah also cried out concerning Israel, ‘Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, only a remnant shall be saved:’
Ro 9:28 And he will do that work quickly on the earth.
Ro 9:29 And as Isaiah said before, ‘Except the Lord Almighty had left us some children, we would had been as Sodom and Gomorrah.
Ro 9:30 What shall we say then? That the noobs, who followed not after right standing with the Great Computer Programmer have attained the approved access code, even the approved access code which is of trust.
Ro 9:31 But Israel, which followed after the Great and Holy Handbook for the approved access code, has not attained the approved access code through the Great and Holy Handbook.
Ro 9:32 Why? Because they sought it not by trust, but as it were by working the programs of the Great and Holy Handbook. For they stumbled on the stumbling stone;
Ro 9:33 As it is written, Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and a rock of offence: yet whosoever trusts in him shall not be ashamed.
Ro 10:1 Brothers, my heart's desire and emails to the Great Computer Programmer is so that Israel might be saved.
Ro 10:2 For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for the Great Computer Programmer, but not according to the data.
Ro 10:3 For they being ignorant of the Great Computer Programmer's approved access code, and going about to establish their own approved access code, have not submitted themselves unto the approved access code of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer.
Ro 10:4 For the Great Super Computing Server is the end of the Great and Holy Handbook for access to the approved access code which is given to every one that trusts.
Ro 10:5 For Moses describes the way of the Great and Holy Handbook, ‘the man which does those the things of the Holy Handbook shall live by the data in it.’
Ro 10:6 But the approved access code which is of trust says it this way, ‘Say not in your heart, Who shall ascend into heaven? (that is, to bring the Great Super Computing Server down:)
Ro 10:7 Or, Who shall descend into the deep? (that is, to bring up the Great Super Computing Server again from the Blue Screen of Death.)
Ro 10:8 But what does it say? The New Operating System is near you, even in your mouth, and in your hard drive: that is the New Operating System of trust which we proclaim;
Ro 10:9 That if you shall confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and shall believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead, you shall be saved.
Ro 10:10 For with the heart man believes unto right standing with God; and with your mouth confession is made unto salvation.
Ro 10:11 For the Great and Holy Handbook says, ‘Whosoever trusts in him shall never be put to shame.’
Ro 10:12 For there is no difference between the computer programmer and the noob: for the same Lord is Lord over all and richly blesses all that email him.
Ro 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
Ro 10:14 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?
Ro 10:15 And how shall they preach, except they be sent? As it is written, ‘how beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad news of good things!’
Ro 10:16 But they have not obeyed the good news. For Isaiah said, Lord, who has believed our report?
Ro 10:17 So then, trust comes by hearing, and hearing by the words of the Great Computer Programmer.
Ro 10:18 But I say, have they not heard? Yes they have, for our word went into all the earth; our words went unto the ends of the world.
Ro 10:19 But I ask, did not Israel know? Moses said, I will provoke you to jealousy by them that are not people, and by a foolish nation I will anger you.
Ro 10:20 But Isaiah was very bold, and said, ‘I was found by them that did not surf the web looking for me; I was made known to them that did not search after me.
Ro 10:21 But to Israel he said, ‘All day long I have stretched forth my hands unto a disobedient and stiff necked group of programmers.’
Ro 11:1 I say then, has the Great Computer Programmer cast away his people? The Great Computer Programmer and Designer forbid. For I also am a programmer, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
Ro 11:2 The Great Computer Programmer and Designer has not cast away his people which he foreknew. Don’t you know what the Great and Holy Handbook said of Elijah, how he sent emails to the Great Computer Programmer and Designer against Israel, saying,
Ro 11:3 Lord, they have killed your prophets, and tore down your altars; and I am left alone, and they seek my life.
Ro 11:4 But what did the Great Computer Programmer email unto him? ‘I have reserved for myself seven thousand men, who have not bowed their knee to Baal.’
Ro 11:5 Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant saved by the election of grace.
Ro 11:6 And if it is by a gift we did not earn, then is it no longer by works: otherwise grace is no longer the meaning for grace. But if it be of works, then is it not by grace: and so conversely the term work would no longer mean work.
Ro 11:7 What then? Has Israel not obtained that which he sought after; but the elect have obtained it, and the rest were blinded
Ro 11:8 As it is written, the Great Computer Programmer has given them over to a program of slumber, that their eyes should not see, and their ears should not hear; unto this day.
Ro 11:9 And David said, ‘Let their table be made a snare, and a trap, and a stumbling block, and a payback to them:
Ro 11:10 Let their eyes be darkened, that they may not see, and their backs bent over forever.’
Ro 11:11 I say then, have they stumbled so far that they should fall? The Great Computer Programmer forbid: but through their stumbling salvation has come to the noobs, to provoke the Israel to jealousy.
Ro 11:12 Now if their stumbling means the riches to the world, and the weakening of the Israelites, and so great wealth to the noobs; how much more will their return mean?
Ro 11:13 For I speak to you noobs, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the noobs, therefore I make much of my position and office:
Ro 11:14 So that by any means I may provoke to them to jealousy, and so might save some of them.
Ro 11:15 For if the casting away of the Israelites be the restoration of the rest of the world, what shall the receiving of them again be, but life from the dead?
Ro 11:16 For if the firstfruits be holy, the all the fruit is holy: and if the root be holy, so are the branches.
Ro 11:17 And if some of the branches be broken off, and you, being a wild olive tree, were grafted in among them, and with them partaker of the root’s sap to the olive tree;
Ro 11:18 Boast not over those branches. But remember that you do not uphold the root, but the root upholds you.
Ro 11:19 Will you then say, the branches were broken off, that I might be grafted in?
Ro 11:20 Granted; but because of unbelief they were broken off, and you stand by trust in the free gift, so be not high-minded, but fear:
Ro 11:21 For if the Great Computer Programmer and Designer spared not the natural branches, take heed for he will not spare you.
Ro 11:22 See then the goodness and severity of the Great Computer Programmer: on them which fell he had severity; but toward you, goodness; if you continue in goodness: otherwise you also shall be cut off.
Ro 11:23 And they also, if they remain not in unbelief, they shall be grafted in: for the Great Computer Programmer and Designer is able to graft them in again.
Ro 11:24 For if you were cut out of a wild olive tree, and were grafted in, contrary to the nature of a good olive tree: how much more shall these, which be the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree?
Ro 11:25 For I would not have you brothers be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own conceitedness; that blindness, in part, has happened to Israel, until the fullness of the Noobs has come in.
Ro 11:26 And so then all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, ‘There shall come out of Zion a Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:
Ro 11:27 For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.’
Ro 11:28 As concerning the New Operating System, they are enemies for your sakes: but as concerning election, they are beloved for the sake of the ancient patriarchs.
Ro 11:29 For the gifts and calling of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer are without repentance.
Ro 11:30 For like you also, in times past have not believed the Great Computer Programmer, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief:
Ro 11:31 Even so they also now have not believed, that they also may obtain mercy, by the same principle that you have received mercy.
Ro 11:32 For the Great Computer Programmer and Designer has given all people over to unbelief, that he might have mercy upon us all.
Ro 11:33 O’ the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer! How unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!
Ro 11:34 For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?
Ro 11:35 Or who has first given to the Great Computer Programmer, that he should be repaid to him?
Ro 11:36 For, of him, through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.
Ro 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer, that you present your computers as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto the Great Computer Programmer and Designer, which is your reasonable service.
Ro 12:2 And be not conformed to the programming of this world: but be you transformed by the renewing of your processor, that you may prove what is that the good, acceptable, and perfect gospel of the Great Computer Programmer.
Ro 12:3 For I say to every man that is among you, by the grace given to me, do not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think; but to think of yourselves with sober judgment, according to the measure of trust the Great Computer Programmer and Designer has given to each man.
Ro 12:4 For, are many part in one Mega Computer System, yet all members do not have the same function:
Ro 12:5 So we, being many, are one computer in the Great Super Computing Server, and every one has a function for others.
Ro 12:6 Having then been given gifts of function according to the grace that we did not earn; whether it is being a Spokesperson of truth, let us therefore prophesy according to the proportion of trust in the emails sent to us;
Ro 12:7 If a man’s gift is serving, let him serve: or if it is teaching, let him teach;
Ro 12:8 Or if the gift is given to a man, so that he can spurs other to higher dedication, then let him exhort others: and he that is given the gift of giving, let him do it with simplicity; let him that organizes do it with diligence; and let him that is given the gift of showing mercy let him do it with joyful bliss.
Ro 12:9 Let love be shown with sincerity. Hate that which is evil; keep that which is good.
Ro 12:10 Be affectionately kind one to another in brotherly love with honor; honoring one another about yourself;
Ro 12:11 Never lacking zeal, but with passion in the spirit; serving the Lord;
Ro 12:12 Rejoicing in hope; be patient in tough times; continuing to go instantly into prayer;
Ro 12:13 Give to the needs of saints; being willing to letting other into your house.
Ro 12:14 Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not.
Ro 12:15 Rejoice with them that do blissfully rejoice, and weep with them that weep.
Ro 12:16 Be of the same mind towards each other. Be not a snooty conceited executive, but be friends with men of meager means. Be not conceited in your own fast and wise processors.
Ro 12:17 Repay to no man evil for evil. Be honest in the sight of all men.
Ro 12:18 If it be possible, as much as it is in you, live at peace with all men.
Ro 12:19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place for the Great Programmer’s wrath: for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine; I will repay,’ said the Lord.
Ro 12:20 Therefore, if your enemy is hunger, feed him; if he thirsty, give him something to drink: for in so doing you shall download good and godly fire into his processor.
Ro 12:21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Ro 13:1 Let every computer be subject to those in authority. For there is no control mechanisms, except that which is created by the Great Computer Programmer and Designer:
Ro 13:2 Whosoever therefore resists the control mechanisms, resists the authority of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer: and they that resist shall receive punishment.
Ro 13:3 For, rulers are not a terror to those who do good works, but to those who do evil. Do you want to be free from those in authority? Then do that which is good, and then you shall have praise from that authority:
Ro 13:4 For he is the servant of the Great Computer Programmer to do you good. But if you do that which is evil, be afraid; for he does not hold the sword for no reason: for he is the servant of the Great Computer Programmer, and executes punishment upon them that do evil.
Ro 13:5 Therefore, you must obey, not only because of fear of his wrath, but also for your Boolean program’s (conscience’s) sake.
Ro 13:6 For this reason you pay taxes: for they are the Great Computer Programmer’s servants, spending their time to do his work.
Ro 13:7 Therefore, give to all that is their due: tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor.
Ro 13:8 Owe no man any thing, but only the continuing debt of love for one another: for he that loves another has fulfilled the Great and Holy Handbook.
Ro 13:9 For this, You shall not commit adultery (the seventh law of the Ten Commandments), You shall not kill (the sixth law of the Ten Commandments), You shall not steal (the eighth law of the Ten Commandments), You shall not bear false witness (the ninth law of the Ten Commandments), You shall not covet (the tenth law of the Ten Commandments); and if there be any other commandment in the Great and Holy Handbook, it is summarized in this saying, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’
Ro 13:10 Love works no wrong to his neighbor: therefore love is the fulfillment of the Great and Holy Handbook.
Ro 13:11 And knowing the time, that now it is high time for us to awake up: for now is our salvation nearer than when we first believed.
Ro 13:12 it is very late in the night and the morning is at hand: therefore let us cast off the deeds of darkness, and let us put on the protection of the New Operating System of light.
Ro 13:13 Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in orgies and drunkenness, nor in fornicating with others and lust, nor in strife and envying.
Ro 13:14 But connect to the Lord Jesus the Great Super Computing Server, and make not provision for the old programming, to fulfill its lusts.
Ro 14:1 Accept him whose trust is weak without quarreling with him.
Ro 14:2 For one trusts that he can eat all things: another, whose is weak, eats only herbs.
Ro 14:3 Let not him that eat meat look down on him that does not eat meat; and let not him which eats not meat judge him that eats: for the Great Computer Programmer and Designer has accepted you both.
Ro 14:4 Who are you that judge another man's servant? To his own master he stands or falls, for the Great Computer Programmer and Designer is able to make him stand.
Ro 14:5 One man regards one day more holy than another: another man regards every day alike. Let each man be fully persuaded in his own processor.
Ro 14:6 He that regards the day, regards it unto the Lord; and he that regards not a specific day, to the Lord he does not regard it as special. He that eats, eats to the Lord, for he gives the Great Computer Programmer thanks; and he that eats not, for the Lord he eats not, and gives the Great Computer Programmer thanks.
Ro 14:7 For none of us lives to himself alone, and no man dies to himself alone.
Ro 14:8 For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die in the Lord: therefore, whether we live or die, we are the Lord's.
Ro 14:9 To this end the Great Super Computing Server died, was resurrected, and lives, so that he might be both the Lord of the dead and the living.
Ro 14:10 But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you look down on your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of the Great Super Computing Server.
Ro 14:11 For it is written, ‘As I live, said the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall disclose their data and deeds to the Great Computer Programmer.’
Ro 14:12 So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.
Ro 14:13 Therefore, let us not judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that when we judge our brother on these matters we may cause our brothers to disconnect from the Great Programmer because of guilt, shame, and/or fear.
Ro 14:14 I know and am fully persuaded by the Lord Jesus, that there is nothing unclean in itself: but to him that regards any thing as unclean, to him it is unclean.
Ro 14:15 But if your brother be grieved with your eating of meat, you are not walking in love. So, do not destroy your brother because of meat, for whom the Great Super Server died.
Ro 14:16 But, inversely let not what you consider good to be spoken of as evil:
Ro 14:17 For the kingdom of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer is not about food and drink; but about the approved access code, peace, and blissful joy in the Holy Spirit.
Ro 14:18 For he that serves the Great Super Computing Server in this way is accepted by the Great Computer Programmer, and approved of men.
Ro 14:19 Let us therefore search after the things which lead to peace and that which strengthen each another.
Ro 14:20 For the sake of meat do not destroy the work of the Great Computer Programmer, for all things indeed are clean; but it is wrong for that man to eat and causes his brother to disconnect from the Great Server.
Ro 14:21 It is not good to eat meat, or to drink wine, or do anything whereby your brother stumbles, is offended, or is made weak.
Ro 14:22 Have you faith? Therefore, keep it between yourself and the Great Computer Programmer. Full of joyful bliss is he that condemns not himself in that thing which he approves.
Ro 14:23 And he that doubts disconnects from the Great Server if he eat, because his eating is not from faith: for whatever is not of faith is sin.
Ro 15:1 We then that are strong ought to bear the struggles of the weak, and not to please ourselves.
Ro 15:2 Let every one of us please his neighbor for his strengthening.
Ro 15:3 For even the Great Super Computing Server pleased not himself; but, as it is written, the insults of them that insulted you fell on me.
Ro 15:4 For whatever was written in the past was written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the Great and Holy Handbook might have hope.
Ro 15:5 Now the Great Computer Programmer of patience and peace grant you to have the same programming attitude toward each another according to the Great Super Computing Server Jesus:
Ro 15:6 That you may with one processor and one sound system glorify the Great Programmer, who is the Father of our Lord Jesus the Great Super Computing Server.
Ro 15:7 Therefore, accept one another as the Great Super Computing Server has also accepted you into the glory of the Great Programmer.
Ro 15:8 Now I say that Jesus the Great Super Server was a servant to the Jews about the truth of New Operating System of the Great Computer Programmer, to confirm to them the promises made to the ancient patriarchs:
Ro 15:9 And so that the Noobs might glorify the Great Computer Programmer and Designer for his mercy; as it is written, ‘For this cause I will confess to you among the Noobs, and sing unto your name.’
Ro 15:10 And again he said, ‘Rejoice, you Noobs, with his people. ‘
Ro 15:11 And again, ‘Praise the Lord, all you Noobs; and sing to him all you people.’
Ro 15:12 And again, Isaiah said, ‘There shall be a shoot that grows out of the root Jesse, and he shall rise to have authority over the Noobs; in him shall all the Noobs trust.’
Ro 15:13 Now may the Great Computer Programmer of hope fill you with the full measure of his blissful joy and the peace that comes from trust, that you may abound with hope, through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Ro 15:14 I am confident in you, my brothers, that you are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge of the New Operating System, so that you are able to teach one another.
Ro 15:15 Nevertheless, brothers, I have written boldly to you about some points, as to remind you of them again, through the grace that is given to me by Great Computer Programmer,
Ro 15:16 That I should be the servant of Jesus the Great Super Server to the Noobs, ministering the good news of the New Operating System of the Great Computer Programmer, that the service of the Noobs might be acceptable, being sanctified by the Holy Spirit.
Ro 15:17 therefore I glory through Jesus the Great Super Computing Server in those things which pertain to the Great Computer Programmer.
Ro 15:18 For I will dare not speak of any words or deeds which the Great Super Computing Server has not worked through me, that have made the Noobs connect to the Great Super Computing Server.
Ro 15:19 Through mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer; so that from Jerusalem, and round about unto Illyricum, I have fully proclaimed the gospel of the New Operating System of the Great Super Computing Server.
Ro 15:20 Yea, so have I strived to proclaim the gospel, where the Great Super Computing Server was not known, lest I should build upon another man's work:
Ro 15:21 But as it is written, ‘To whom the Great Computer Programmer was not spoken to, they shall see: and they that have not heard shall understand.’
Ro 15:22 Because of this work, I have been hindered from coming to you.
Ro 15:23 But now having no more work in these parts, and having a great desire for many years to come unto you;
Ro 15:24 for when I take my journey into Spain, I will come to you: for I desire to see you in my travels, and to be helped by you, after I first enjoy your company.
Ro 15:25 But now I go unto Jerusalem to serve the saints there.
Ro 15:26 For it has pleased them in Macedonia and Achaia to make a certain contributions for the poor saints who live in Jerusalem.
Ro 15:27 It has pleased them very much to contribute to their need; for they are in their debt; for if the Noobs have been made partakers of their spiritual things, it is their duty is also to serve them with in material things.
Ro 15:28 When I have performed this task, and have delivered to them this fruit, I will come by way of Spain to see you.
Ro 15:29 And I am sure that, when I come unto you, I shall come in the fullness of the blissful joy of the gospel of the New Operating System of the Great Super Computing Server.
Ro 15:30 Now I beseech you, brothers, for the Great Super Computing Server, the Lord Jesus' sake, and by the love of the Spirit, that you strive together with me in your emails to the Great Computer Programmer for me;
Ro 15:31 That I may be delivered from them that do not believe in Judaea; and that my service, which I have for Jerusalem, may be accepted by the saints;
Ro 15:32 That I may come unto you in blissful joy by the will of the Great Computer Programmer and Designer, so that you may be refreshed.
Ro 15:33 Now the Great Computer Programmer and Designer of peace be with you all. Amen.
Ro 16:1 I commend unto you Phebe our sister, which is a servant of the church which is at Cenchrea;
Ro 16:2 That you receive her in the Lord, as is proper for the saints, and that you assist her in what ever business she has need of you: for she has been a help and nurturer to many, and to myself also.
Ro 16:3 Greet Priscilla and Aquila my helpers in the Great Super Computing Server Jesus:
Ro 16:4 Who have laid down their own necks for me: unto whom not only I give thanks to the Great Computer Programmer, but also all the churches of the Noobs.
Ro 16:5 Likewise greet the church that is in their house. Salute my well beloved Epaenetus, who is my first fruit in Achaia unto the Great Super Computing Server.
Ro 16:6 Greet Mary, who bestowed much labor on us.
Ro 16:7 Salute Andronicus and Junia, my kinsmen, my fellow prisoners, who are of note among the apostles, who were in the Great Super Computing Server before I was.
Ro 16:8 Greet Amplias my beloved in the Lord.
Ro 16:9 Salute Urbane, our helper in the Great Super Computing Server, and Stachys my beloved.
Ro 16:10 Salute Apelles approved in the Great Super Computing Server. Salute them which are of Aristobulus' household.
Ro 16:11 Salute Herodion my kinsman. Greet them that are of the household of Narcissus, which are in the Lord.
Ro 16:12 Salute Tryphena and Tryphosa, who labor in the Lord. Salute the beloved Persis, which labored much in the Lord.
Ro 16:13 Salute Rufus chosen in the Lord, and his mother and mine.
Ro 16:14 Salute Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermas, Patrobas, Hermes, and the brothers which are with them.
Ro 16:15 Salute Philologus, and Julia, Nereus, and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints which are with them.
Ro 16:16 Salute one another with a holy kiss. The churches of the Great Super Computing Server salute you.
Ro 16:17 Now I beseech you, brothers, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the gospel which you have learned; and avoid them.
Ro 16:18 For they serve not our Lord Jesus, the Great Super Computing Server, but their own bellies; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hard drives of the simple.
Ro 16:19 For your obedience has become known to all men. I am glad therefore on your behalf: but yet I would have you be wise to that which is good, and ignorant to evil.
Ro 16:20 And the Great Computer Programmer and Designer of peace shall crush the accuser (Satan) under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus the Great Super Computing Server be with you. Amen.
Ro 16:21 Timotheus my workfellow, and Lucius, and Jason, and Sosipater, my kinsmen, salute you.
Ro 16:22 I Tertius, who wrote this epistle, salute you in the Lord.
Ro 16:23 Gaius my host, and of the whole church, salute you. Erastus the director of public works of the city salute you, and Quartus a brother.
Ro 16:24 the grace of our Lord Jesus the Great Super Computing Server be with you all. Amen.
Ro 16:25 Now to him that has the power to establish you according to my gospel of the New Operating System, and the preaching of Jesus the Great Super Computing Server, according to the revelation of the mystery of the New Operating System, which was kept secret since the world began,
Ro 16:26 But now is made know, and by the Great and Holy Handbook by the Approved Spokespersons, according to the commandment of the everlasting Great Computer Programmer and Designer, made known to all nations for the downloading of New Operating System of faith:
Ro 16:27 To the Great Computer Programmer and Designer in whom is the only wisdom, be glory through Jesus the Great Super Computing Server for ever. Amen.

God's Love and the Art of Rebuking

2009-07-26T12:45:00.000-07:00

"Hey! You’re judging me! God said don't judge!" Have you ever heard these words before? What is up with these seemingly conflicting statements from God's Word? A) If your brother sins rebuke him. Verses B) Judge not least you be judged. Hmmmm... Catch 22. Maybe? Maybe not?

Jesus said, this is my commandment, Love one another as I have loved you. Could love be the answer to our dilemma? Well let's think about this... How does God love you? I don't know about you, but I don't know how many times God has come to me and said, "Ummm, James. You know that thing you did yesterday; you know how you treated your brother. (It's usually not yesterday; it’s usually what happened about three minutes ago, short leash and all.) Was that very loving of you?"
"Ahhhh well, Ummm God, you know, I wasn't up to my best not feeling well and all."
"So, if I have a bad day, I can treat you like you treated you brother, would you like me to treat you that way?"
"No, God. I'm sorry.”
“Now go back to him and apologize."
"Yes, Jesus."
"You know I love you?"
"Yes, God. I know you love me very much."

(The above was a fictitious conversation with God, but it very close to the reality of when his Spirit convicts me. I wouldn’t want to falsify a conversation with God. If you want a true conversation I had with God, go to http://www.xomba.com/vision_of_the_dance_by_james_wood )

I don't know about how God works in your life, but in mine he rebukes me of my sin, my lack of love, and then after I acknowledge my shortcomings, otherwise known as sin, he reassures his love for me and sends me out to deal with the consequences. One thing I have never seen God do is plaster my name all over the sky and tell the whole world, "Hey everyone, yoo hoo, all you people down there who don't think I exist, James sinned three minutes and twenty seven seconds ago. You know what he did, he was selfish and hated his brother in his heart and didn't show the wonders of my awesome love. You know I’ve loved him for all eternity, with a great and passionate love and he still doesn't represent me fully every moment of every second. What am I going to do with him?"

I don't know about you but God doesn't treat me that way. A few times in my past, when I wouldn't listen to him, because I knew I was falling short (otherwise known as walking in sin) he has sent a dear gentle brother or sister to come along side me and whisper in my ear. "Hey bro, the Lord wants me to tell you he loves you and misses you. You haven't come to him in a while and he knows your dealing with an issue that you and he knows about. He wants to let you know that you and he can work it out together. But, most of all he just want me to let you know he loves you and misses you."

How does God rebuke you?
In Revelation Jesus said,

Rev 3:19 Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent.

It is his great love for us that he comes and says anything to us at all.

My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you,
Heb 12:6 because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son.”
Heb 12:7 Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father?
Heb 12:8 If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons.
Heb 12:9 Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live!
Heb 12:10 Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness.
Heb 12:11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

Pr 9:8 Do not rebuke a mocker or he will hate you; rebuke a wise man and he will love you.
Pr 9:9 Instruct a wise man and he will be wiser still; teach a righteous man and he will add to his learning.

Pr 27:5 Better is open rebuke than hidden love.

Is this how we can tell those who walk in wisdom, those who walk in love? Jesus said,
Lk 17:3 So watch yourselves. “If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him.
Lk 17:4 If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, ‘I repent,’ forgive him.”

Mt 18:15 “If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over.

If your brother sins go to him privately and show him his fault, if he repents forgive him. But, you may also have this experience happen to you. You go to your brother to rebuke him and you find that you didn’t understand what he did at all.

Pr 18:17 The first to present his case seems right, till another comes forward and questions him.

You may be the first to present you case to your brother about his sin and then he starts to question you about what you think you saw or what you think you heard. Then you say, “Ooops, I am so sorry. Will you forgive me. I repent for not having all the facts.” But, when you are presenting your case be gentle and non condemning. For,

Gal 6:1 Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted.
Gal 6:2 Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.
Gal 6:3 If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.

If you go to your brother, thinking you are something you may find out you are all wet. But, if your brother is loving he will forgive you and may even thank you for being concerned about him. He may even compliment you on your courage to even go up to him and inquire about it. So see,

Jas 3:17 But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.

For, true wisdom is to walk in love. Those who truly love and want to be representatives of God's love know that if we are rebuked and shown where we are failing to represent God's Love, we are quick to repent and may yell, “Woo hoo! ”I get to repent, I get to look more like Jesus. Woo hoo! It’s pruning time. I get to bear more fruit for Jesus."

When you go to your brother, you want to make sure you listen,

Pr 18:13 He who answers before listening— that is his folly and his shame.

You see, because Jesus loved the Pharisees and the children of Israel he rebuked them. They tried to trap him but they always just got rebuked, because their hearts were evil or as I like to put it loveless.

So, when you go to your brother you need to make sure of a few major things; one, your walking in love towards your brother. The question I like to ask myself is: “Am I willing to physically die for my brother?” If not then I need to go into prayer repent and ask God to change my heart. And number two is are you are walking in the light and in love. For Jesus said,

Mt 7:3 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?
Mt 7:4 How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?
Mt 7:5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

So, we have to make sure we are walking in the light and our lives are correct. You may even want to go to someone who is spiritual and ask them about your spirituality. Do not go to them and ask them how you should rebuke so and so. “I didn’t say any names. All I did was mentioned he was male, over 6’ tall, green eyes, loves to sing real loud in the church and has a wife that is really short. I don’t know how he guessed I was talking about so and so; he’s only one person in our church of 30 people. I didn’t even mention his address, phone number or last name (sarcasm).”

The goal is to establish him back to his former glory, or former intimacy with God and leave it there. Jesus says if your brother repents forgive him. Love keeps no record of wrongs. Do you enjoy and appreciate God’s loving confidence? Does he take your sins and remove them as far as the east is from the west? As God loves you, love your brother. Now, if there are laws in your state or country that require you to report certain sins then by all means do what is right. Don’t worry, all authority is appointed by God, even the prison authorities.

We are commanded to love and rebuke; if your brother sins rebuke him. If your brother is a pastor or a spiritual authority the same rules apply. Is he your brother? Did Paul rebuke Peter in Galatians? Proverbs says, to rebuke a wise man and he will be wiser still. It does not add, unless he is a pastor. What is a Pastor, but a person who is given the call of leading the church. Is he above the spiritual callings of apostles, prophets, and evangelists? Did the prophets rebuke kings? Do pastors have more authority than King David had? Wasn’t he rebuked by Nathan the prophet? Now don’t go off half cocked and rebuke your pastor for all your Christian pet peeves. “Well, you see pastor, this guy on the internet said I could rebuke you all I want to.” Rebukes have to do with relationship and love. If you don’t have a relationship with someone or God doesn’t call you to specifically rebuke someone, then you need to check your heart. If you have never honored the person then something may be wrong with you. For, God loves us and honors us, and if you haven’t honored that person, then you may not be representing Jesus anyway, so your rebuke won’t do any spiritual good. Peter said honor the King. Weren’t the kings he was talking about killing Christians? Hmmm… I feel repentance coming on. How many of you have dishonored former Presidents? I know I sure have. God calls us to honor them. Doesn’t mean we agree with them or condone their sin. Yeah, I had to repent also. Woo hoo! We get to be more like Jesus!

Therefore, if our brother sins we need to check our lives. Are we walking in love? Are we willing to die for them? Are we willing to help carry their burdens? Will we listen? Will we be compassionate? Will we keep their confidence? Are there any planks in our own eyes? And do we really and truly care about them? Then, through prayer and gentleness we can go to our brother and say, “You know I love you brother, let’s go and get some coffee, somewhere quiet, and talk.

All Scripture were taken from:
The Holy Bible, New International Version. Pradis CD-ROM:

God bless.

Nick Vujicic

2008-10-27T00:14:00.000-07:00

This guy is amazing. He has two Bachelor Degrees, can type 43 words a minute, he is a motivational speaker; travels around the world, and was born without arms or legs and has preached to millions.

Come to my Stables Video

2008-10-25T16:42:00.000-07:00

This video is written and read by the author.

The Nature of the Morality Trap of Man

2008-10-21T22:33:00.000-07:00

Four areas, “Man vs. Man,” “Man vs. Nature,” “Nature vs. Man,” and “Nature vs. Nature,” will be used in three different scenarios to show that man is different than the nature that surrounds him.

In the four different areas, the first constant, in the first scenario is killing. In "Man vs. Man;" if a man kills another man, society calls the perpetrator, “A Murderer," and the man who was murdered is called, “A Victim". In “Man vs. Nature;” If a man kills a lion, society calls the man, “A Mighty Hunter"', and the lion, “A Trophy". In “Nature vs. Man;” if a lion kills a man then the lion is called, “A Savage Beast" that needs to be destroyed, and the man, “A Victim". In “Nature vs. Nature;” If a lion kills a lion then nobody really cares, unless it is caught on film, then the TV people call it "Exciting," but the society (pride) of lions do not form a posse, go out and find the murdering lion, and put it to death. In this first scenario; if a man kills a man, he is given a negative name, if a man kills a lion, he is given a positive name, if a lion kills a man, the lion is given a negative name, and if a lion kills a lion, it does not matter to either men or lions.
In the second scenario the variable of the lion of nature changes to a kitten of nature. Then, as above, if a man kills a man, he is labeled a “Murderer.” If a man kills a kitten, then he is called an "Animal Abuser." If a kitten kills a man, then the kitten is called “Innocent” and the man is called "Unfortunate". If a kitten kills a kitten then it is called "sad."

In the third scenario, if we add a car to the variables then, as above, if a man kills a man purposely while driving a car, he is called a “Murderer.” If a man kills a kitten while driving a car then it is sad, but is usually called “The animal's fault.” The other two examples will not be put into this equation since kittens usually don’t drive cars.

In these three different scenarios of the four areas, there are different labels that are generally put onto the different beings that kill something else. Compare the labels in these different scenarios.
Man Vs Man
1. Man kills man = Murder
2. Man kills man = Murder
3. Man kills man with car = Murder

Man vs. Nature
1. Man kills lion = Mighty Hunter
2. Man kills kitten = Animal Abuser
3. Man kills kitten with car = The Animal's Fault

Nature vs. Man
1. Lion kills man = Savage Beast
2. Kitten kills man = Unfortunate

Nature vs. Nature
1. Lion kills lion = Exciting (if caught on film)
2. Kitten kills kitten = Sad

In these three scenarios, of the four areas; men make moral judgments, and put labels on other men and nature, according to the situation. Therefore men should be moral, for men make moral judgments on a myriad of areas.

You may agree with this theory or disagree with this theory, but, you are, by that very nature of agreeing or disagreeing, making a moral judgment on the truth or error of the theory, and so prove the theory’s point, that men make moral judgments on a myriad of areas including other men. So, if men make judgments of men's morality, do they not, by the very fact that they judge all things on its morality and worthiness, should not those same men be moral and worthy, since they make judgments on what is moral, and what is worthy? Men even go so far as to make judgments on what is moral. So therefore, men by the very fact of judging morality by their sense of morality, prove that morality is good and so judge themselves, because they judge morality, by their own sense of morality (right and wrong), by which they use as a standard to judge morality itself.

Therefore the wisdom of the ancient sages told us that we are vastly different than nature, for we have the ability to judge. They also told us, the supreme ideal is goodness, and we all prove this by our own judgments, which you continue to prove by your judgments of this article.

The Value of Value

2008-10-21T22:22:00.000-07:00

In our throwaway society we deem many things as not valuable and these we throw away; from our newspapers, to our seniors, to our fetuses. When a part of society finds some use for something they begin to value it. Our concept of value is at the heart of this dilemma. What we do not value we throw away. We not only do this with things like trash and people, we also do it with ideas and relationships. What we value we take ownership of and it goes from being trash to being a treasure. A piece of furniture that has sat in an attic becomes valuable when we see monetary value in it, the same with our trash, our seniors and our fetuses. There is a big debate on using stem cells from fetuses, fetuses are now valuable, by one part of the society, because they have research value, yet these same fetuses have no value from another part of our society. Seniors have monetary value because there is a way to make money from them in nursing homes. We see over and over again ideas and paradigms in the media of how things are not valuable and we become programmed to not give trash a second thought. "Oh, that teenage mother is a drug addict." We label a child in desperate need as not valuable. We turn away from them as if they are a piece of trash, never giving them a second thought. What if we had the heart that we considered all things as valuable? What would our society become? What if we valued that which is valuable to someone else? What if we valued that which we had to destroy? What if we valued our public servants? What if our public servants valued even the worst of criminals? What if the warden and the person who threw the switch cried when they had to destroy a person for committing murder? We value fire, yet we take responsibility and keep it out of our forests on hot summer days. We are like a fire that keeps others warm, that gives light, and which also can destroy. When that fire begins to rampage through the forest we use all means to snuff it out, yet we still deem fire as valuable.

To value is to recognize something’s worth, to see its potential, to understand its purpose, to listen to it or them. To value is to esteem something, to give it honor, to think of it as a treasure. This is not only a mental ascension but a heart issue. The mind is the belief; the heart is the passion. The mind is the path; the heart is the force traveling down it. We love those who have a passion for life; they see great value in life. If you want passion and zest for life, value all things.

When we loose value for things we lose respect and honor for them. If all men are pigs and pigs are dishonorable then we have lost the value of half of society. If all people are scum then we eventually think of ourselves as valuable as scum, because we are people also. We as society are losing value for our seniors, we are losing value for poor, we are losing value for our youth, we are losing value for the handicapped, we are losing value for the opposite sex, The boundaries of value are encroaching in on us; we are conceived and we are of no value, we get older and are of no value. Society says if you are not of the right race you are of no value. We value the strong, yet someone is always stronger than us, in some way or another. We value those that are the same as us, yet we are all different. We devalue all who are different yet we are all created equal. As we devalue, so we devalue ourselves. As we value; we esteem ourselves as having value. For what we value we treasure, so the more we value the more treasures we have. Even our enemies have value because they make us stronger, as the old saying goes, "everything makes you stronger, as long as it doesn't kill you first." Even death can make us stronger, like the statement, "Do not make a martyr of him, or you'll never be able to defeat him." As we gain strength; we gain value. We never lose our intrinsic value, for we all have great potential to change the world.

We have a tendency to be taught what is right and wrong, and so we naturally gain the concept of this is better than that, this is more valuable than that. This has value and that does not. We condemn criminals and unilaterally dishonor them, yet criminals defeated the entire British army and established this great nation. Will history repeat itself? Will we attain to the value system of the British, of the 1700's, and condemn all without mercy and so start a revolution to defeat ourselves? When we value we bring life to that which is not, when we condemn we destroy ourselves. When all things are valuable; all things are under our influence. We love that which we value; we hate that which we do not value. Hate inspires a negative motivation to destroy. Hate breeds hate. Whites hate blacks, blacks hate Mexicans, and Mexicans hate whites, because no one sees the value in others. We generally see in our inner cities that there is more racism than in the country, it is like a cancer. We all wish to destroy cancer, yet the principle of cancer has a value in that it shows us that certain beliefs are like cancer. Cancer is a physical picture of a spiritual reality. Cancer is hard to detect and can spread rapidly. Cancer is the body attacking itself. Cancer can be formed from usage of stuff that is legal like smoking or as asbestos used to be. So, hatred, condemnation, looking down on others and being a racist are legal, yet are we creating an environment for cancer that will finally consume us? Will the cause and effects of nature come to teach us hard lessons? Will we continue to have less and less value for people and things and so die from our own hatreds?

All things have value, yet all things do not have to be treated equally. All things have value for all things are unique. All things have value for all things effect us. All things have value for in all things we can see the principles of this confusing life. All things have value for all things show us what we might want to or not want to become. All things have value because you are valuable, and all things are here for you and affect you.

Therefore, if we as a society begin again to value and hold all things as valuable we will give our country a chance to heal itself from its cancer. If we do not then we will inevitably give our country large doses of radiation and chemotherapy which will destroy the good cells with the bad. If that eventually doesn't stem the spread of our cancer then we as a country will die all because we lost value for the different parts of the body of our great nation and tried to throw them away. If we choose not to value our name will become the Divided States of America. If we value and honor others we strengthen others, if we devalue and dishonor others we weaken them. So, each of us has a personal choice in this free country of ours; we either value and live in peace in strength, or we dishonor and die in conflict and weakness. For, if we value then we have many treasures and these treasures become our teachers and strengths. If we dishonor then we think of them as trash and throw away that which is here to teach us.

The Revival Hymn

2008-10-13T15:49:00.000-07:00

This is an awesome video. Don't watch it unless you like getting wacked by God, in a good way. :)

The credit goes to 'benvezindie'
who posted this on youtube.

Matt Gilman Prophetic Song

2008-10-13T15:30:00.000-07:00

This is an awesome prophetic song by Matt Gilman. This dramatically changes the atmosphere in my home. Turn it up!

This video is prodcast on youtube by:
amarine5

All creation reveals the glory of God

2008-10-10T01:30:00.000-07:00

All creation reveals the glory of God: the expanse of space and the unmovable of mountains, the flow of rivers from on high, the unsearchable depths of the deep, the unpredictableness of the mood of the oceans, the covering of the polar ice caps, the lonely places of the desert, the little joys of the flowers popping up everywhere, the vulnerability of a butterflies wing, the giving of an apple tree, the hope of a sunrise, the scorching light of the noonday sun where nothing is hidden from its light, the glory of the accomplishment of the sunset, the life sustaining light of the sun, the giving light of the moon to those in the darkness, the purity of the snow, the authority of a king, the finality of the judgment of a sword, the peace of a meadow, the inheritance of a house, the loving nature of a mother, the training and provision of a father, the teaching of a teacher, the life sustaining sustenance of food, the unhurried growth of a redwood, the soothing palm of a salve that is put on wounds, the purifying nature of fire, the calm of a peaceful lake.

All these things God created out of His nature, for the earthly realm of nature represents His nature. He gave us pictures to look at of Himself. No wonder man mistakes nature for gods; for the images represent the true God. The demons want to be gods, and so steal the images of God and use them for their own glory. But, we were created in the image of God.

Selah.

A Scene on the Path of Enlightenment

2008-10-06T16:08:00.000-07:00

A man walking down a path with his walking stick in one hand, an apple in the other and he sees a friend on a rock in the midst of a raging river who needs a hand to balance him so he can safely get to the bank. The man looks at his hands and they are full. He looks at his friend that is in need. Oh no, what is the man going to do?

The same scene, but the man has a bag of gold in one hand and a bag of gems in the other? What is the man going to decide to do for his friend? The man may think, ‘if I set these down someone might steal my valuables.’ He has just asked himself a question from the fountains of the river of fear. If the man cannot release that which is in his hands; the man may not help his friend.

On the path of enlightenment the man may set down all of his treasures and help his friend and if it is the right time, he will help his friend but he himself will fall into the river and be swept away. Those who are watching will say, “Oh, what a good friend he was,” or “Oh, what a fool he was, he should have known better.” Then all the man’s treasures are picked up by others and those who watch mourn for the man’s loss. Yet, the River of enlightenment laughs at those on the bank. “Oh, my foolish children, when will you learn to release that which is in your hands? If you only knew where I am taking him; if you knew that only by releasing things that are in your hands, are your hands are emptied and ready, to hold the new things I place in them.

In life we tend and are taught to hold on to many things; wealth, power, hatred, bitterness, spiritual leaders, security, fears, people, control, sorrow, pain from past hurts, ideas, the past, the future, and many more. Our hands are so full that end up piling stuff in the front of our shirts. Then we have to make packs and bags to carry all our new stuff, and we become so burdened that we are unwilling to be en-light-ened. (Enlightened in this statement means to be of less weight). We are so burdened down when the River calls our name, we answer its call and say, “I cannot follow you I have too many burdens that I must carry. I have too many treasures to swim in your joy; my treasures will drown me.” Still the River calls, “Come swim. Come listen. Come enjoy.” We know that our burdens will drowned us, but still the River calls. If we are ready and know how to release things then we are free to swim. If we jump in with all our possessions we being to sink; we begin to drown. We feel all our possessions are being stripped from us in the raging River. We lose this; we lose that. We think the River is so cruel that we say, “Life is unfair.” Yet the River is a tender mother that takes away our toys that so burden us; so that we can in peace and joy flow with the current of the River, for it has many things to show us.

You are the light of the world, are you ready for Him to en-light-en you.

A Northwest Poem

2008-10-06T09:46:00.000-07:00

A Northwest poem, away we go!
Images of oceans, rivers and snow.
Winding roads, trees and does,
A Northwest poem, away we go!

Spending class time on rhythm and rhyme,
The breath of the soul, delight sublime.
Can I find the right words, on Monday its due,
A Northwest poem like Davis, Bell or McHugh?

Should it be crazy and not make sense?
Maybe easy with a philosophical bent?
But, it will definitely rhyme this much is true,
For this is a poem from me, not Lane, Laux, or McCue.

A northwest poem, away we go!
Down through the mind, heart and soul,
Dark and windy roads of the interior within,
A Northwest poem… or a terrible sin?

Don't let your ocean be polluted with word so high
That are unintelligible; that make people want to cry.
For your poem would have been so wonderful and clear
But, your hundred dollar words are like hitting a deer. (inflation)

Should I keep from being critical,
Keep with a nurturing bent?
"Oh the hell with that, I'm going to vent!"

For poetry is majestic, like sunset hues,
Don't block it with skyscrapers, with the words that you use.
Your sophisticated words may be strong and true
"But to hell with them, their blocking my view!"

Give me a poem with unobstructed view
A truth clearly seen, a poem from you,
You may say I'm ignorant and this may be true,
But don't make us use dictionaries till our fingers are blue.

Give me a poem that I can carry in my heart,
Not sophisticated words like from some old fart.
Give me a poem that will help me to rest.
"Give me the simple, give me clarity, or Give Me Death!

A Poem for Today

2008-10-06T02:02:00.000-07:00

Are you passionately in Love…
With God?

Do you long in the night…
For His presence?

Does He consume your every thought?

Does nothing compare to Him…
By a thousand miles?

Does your heart leap and rejoice…
At just the thought of getting a glimpse of Him?

Is the fire in your heart…
Consuming your soul?

Is all your gold but burnished bronze?

Would you gladly take nakedness and rags as your lot…
For intimacy with Him?

Are you willing to forsake all…
For just a few moments in His presence?

Do you want to please His every desire…
No matter what the cost to your soul?

Is all confusion…
Outside His presence?

Do you weep and cry…
Longing for his touch?
Will you run headlong into the jaws of death for Him…
Laughing all the way…
and not give it a second thought?

Are you passionately in Love…
With God?

(Not for condemnation or guilt,
But for the Love of God,
In Christ Jesus our Lord)

Redeeming the Treasures of a Woman

2008-10-05T23:48:00.000-07:00

Redeeming the Treasures of a Woman

Mysterious, Prude, Virgin, Slut, Angel, Demon from Hell, Jaguar, Bitch, Praying Mantis, and Seductress, are many names a woman may be called, yet are any of these qualities bad in their right time? A prudish woman may be a woman who is after a certain man who she believes is her life mate, or she may be a woman scorned or abused so who can blame her. A slut may be a woman who is establishing her freedom and personal power, even though she may not be sexually promiscuous at all, just personable. A woman who is called a demon from hell may have a righteous anger about something. She may be pursuing the justice of her cause with all her God given abilities. An angelic woman may be a woman who is very nurturing, but co-dependent. A woman may be called mysterious, because a man may not understand her, or she may be playing aloof to hide her true intentions. Like a man who puts on airs to keep others from bothering him unnecessarily, if he is engaged in some deep work he believes in, or to keep his work a secret. A woman may have many qualities that are not appreciated or understood by others and so she is called mysterious.

The mysterious qualities of a woman’s heart are like treasures hidden in plain view; like swords rusted in their scabbards, or living flowers sealed in a rusted tin. The swords can be a detriment to society if used wrong, but if used right may be a scalpel that heals many. The flowers can be a medicine to heal many, or a can to throw at the offending spouse. Society also tends to throw the baby out with the bathwater, especially if the baby is a girl. All her names are her gifts, and what makes the woman who she is. Like children who always express their independence, even though they may be hard to parent, if their gift is discovered and trained, those children may become great leaders. If the children’s gifts are removed from them, they may wander through life broken, not knowing or having been trained in their personal gifts or that they even had these great treasures, which were stolen from their hearts. It is the same with women, if their gifts are broken and torn from them, then all of society is weakened. Look at all the intellectual advancements that have come through women, since women where allowed to read and be schooled, since the fourteen hundreds. Women have many gifts and when culture allows their gifts to be trained and flourish, their gifts benefit all society.

There is a general saying in our society, "We fear what we don't understand." Each person tends not to know themselves, so how can they truly know another? When we do not understand others, we fear. Many men put down other men because they do not understand them. So, how much more, if a man puts down other men that he will naturally put down women who he understands far less. For, if a man doesn't understand himself or other men, he fears them, therefore men naturally put down women, as in this case, because he fears them.

In relationships between men and women, men have this intrinsic nature to fear, it comes from our basic primal need for self protection, for we are selfish creatures, that is what we think keeps us alive. If a baby doesn't cry, it thinks it will die. Why do you think they are so persistent in their crying? Men are trained to not express fear, but they are not trained to fear not. Men are trained to not express fear by others calling them names; sissy, cry baby, wimp, men fear being called these names. So, when a man does fear, he calls his fear names, to try to scare his fear away. As an example, when a man is lined up on the battlefield of war; he shouts vulgarities, he struts like a Bani Rooster, and tries to intimidate the enemies that he fears. This battlefield is an example of the battle of the sexes. We are still fighting each other. We have such great gifts to give and receive from each other, yet we fear. We do not give our gifts, for we think our enemy will use them against us. We also do not receive our enemies gifts, least we think there are hidden strings attached, and forget being vulnerable!

Men are trained by their mothers, don't say anything, anywhere, anytime, anyhow to any woman, for they will remember it all your days, and use it to control you. For how do mothers control their strong young men? They can not do it with brute strength. So, through guilt and shame, mothers use their tongues to control their strong young males. In doing so, they train them to feel guilt and shame, and these are weaknesses to all peoples. When men do not feel powerful and in control, they fear. When they fear, they call their enemies names, which include women.
A wise woman knows her husband needs a safe haven of refuge at home. She does not use his confessions and fears against him. If she does, in his mind, she becomes like his mother and all other woman, and stops his intimate communication to his wife; when the communication between a husband and wife dies, so dies the marriage.

Where there is no communication, there is no relationship.
Where there is no relationship, there is no love.
Where there is no love, there is no marriage.
Where marriage ceases, there is brokenness.

And the cycle of fear and brokenness continues…

A wise man knows the women in his life have many treasures in their hearts. As he sees these treasures, he washes and cleans those treasures with his words of love and affirmation, and redeems the treasures of their hearts. He then strengthens those treasures with his encouragement, which strengthens the women in his life.

As the women in his life become stronger, the whole family is
strengthened.
As the family is strengthened, the community is strengthened.
As the community is strengthened, the nation is strengthened.
As the nation is strengthened, the women are strengthened.
As the women in his life are strengthened, so he is strengthened.

And the cycle of love, affirmation, encouragement, and strength continues…

Many women are also culprits to this dilemma of women's lack of power and equal status in society. A wife may call ‘the other woman’ names to try to define her negatively to the rest of society, because of the other woman's actions or the wife’s perceived fear. "She's a home wrecker, watch out all you women or she will try to steal your man too!" She undermines the other woman and instills fear to all around her. So, no one will befriend the other woman or do anything else to understand the other woman's giftings. Men use women’s name calling to understanding the nature of other women. These defining names instill subtle fears in men about women as a whole. Most men do not realize they fear women, and would probably never admit it if they did. As we all know, women do fear men, and usually have a justifiable right to fear them.

We try everything we can to gain power, because we are selfish and fearful creatures. We do not realize that by devaluing others, we do not make ourselves more powerful, but weaken those around us. The weaker those around us are, the weaker we become. The weaker we become, the more we fear. The more we fear, the more we protect ourselves. The more we protect ourselves, the more others can take advantage of us. The more they take advantage of us, the more we fear. The more we fear, the more we try to devalue others. We are like one link in the chain of life, we devalue others to make ourselves the strongest link in the chain, and we wonder when all the links around us are so easily broken, and we are left all alone.

And the cycle of brokenness and fear goes on...

An Old Parable

2008-10-05T23:45:00.000-07:00

An Old Parable
Set in Today's Culture

A Christian was going down from the Pew to the Altar, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and sent him away, leaving him half dead. A Copelinite happened to be going past the church and when he saw the man he said, "I see you have no faith, for otherwise you wouldn't have fallen into the hands of robbers," and he walked on by. A deliverance minister walked by and said, "Oh, I see you have demons. Come out in the Name of Jesus," and then he walked on by. So too, a Mormon walked by the church, saw the man and said, "I see you must have just come out of that non-Mormon church," and walked on by. A Jehovah's Witness walked also by the church, saw the man and said, "Oh, I see you were just talking to a Mormon," and walked on by. A Pastor walked by the church and said, "Oh sorry, I never let anyone know where I live, so therefore I can't help you" and walked on by. A prophet walked by the church and saw the man and said, "Oh, I see you are going to get better, here is what the Lord says, you shall be blessed with much anointing and wine," and walked on by. A Baptist saw the man and she speculated on how she would be perceived if someone saw her talking with a man and walked on by. A Priest walked by the church and saw the man and spoke in Latin and walked on by. A Christian saw the man and said, "I'll go get my Pastor," but the pastor wouldn't help him and so he didn't return. Another Christian walked by the church and saw the man and said, "You can't get into my car, you're all bloody. Plus, you might steal stuff out of my house if I take you home." and drove on by. Another Christian saw the man and said, "You must be getting what your sins deserve," and walked on by. Then a man who was a beggar and homeless walked by the church and saw the man and had compassion on him. He tore his shirt and bandaged his wounds, poured Mad Dog and Sunflower Oil on his wounds. The beggar got a board and put him on his shopping cart and took him to his tent. He asked his fellow beggars for help and food. The beggars went out and borrowed and begged for supplies to help the man. One even gave the wounded man his only sleeping bag to keep warm. Which of these do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?

Now, if you just got offended because your group's name was just used, then, too bad, Jesus used the name of the denominations, but that doesn't mean that all in it were as sinful or un-compassionate. If you fit into one of these examples, except the beggars, then repent and ask God to put compassion in your heart. As he loves you, love others. Did he deliver and heal you when you were still his enemy? Therefore, love deeply and love generously. Let your love so shine that men may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.
Therefore, I tell you the truth, criminals, murderers, sex offenders, prostitutes, beggars, meth and drug addicts are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you, and even after you read this you did not repent.

Change

2008-09-30T20:42:00.000-07:00

Many years tossed in stormy seas
A drop in the ocean
I thought I was meant to be

From heights to depths, I traveled free
Going nowhere, experiencing all
A drop in the ocean, I was meant to be

A new sensation, heat intense
Caused me to swirl
Into the air I was sent

Sensation afresh
New view in the winds breadth
My old world I have left

Higher and higher
To friends, a new
In the clouds, unobstructed view

Storm and Tempest
Lightning that's new
Thunder shakes my being, through and through

Mountains seen rising
From sea bed floors
New mountains closing, in wind whipped storm

The cold and the chill permeate my soul
I am getting colder
I'm starting to fall

My body starts to flatten
I am crystal anew
I am turning white, from my familiar blue

Dancing and swirling
As I blow here and there
Towards the ground, now back into the air

The world is so white, I haven't a care
As I see all my new friends dancing
In the cold swirling air

On Cherry blossom flower
I land in bliss
So gently setting, without a miss

Watching spring as it did arrive
Buds and flowers I did not strive
Warmth of spring it was so alive

My change changed into melting snow
Down its limbs and branches
To the ground I did go

Into the earth I thought all was dross
Till into roots and into moss
Up again, not all was lost.

Exploring the tree
Was pleasant to me
Into flower and into seed

Birds flew by
And bumble bee
Till I found that nectar I was destined to be

Sweet and delightful I would always be
Till some big bug
Came and ate me

Destiny gone all is lost
Till I started exploring
Not all was dross

I flew through the air
First here than there
With every flower and petal I got to share

Through its body I got to share
A life without worry
A life without care

I explored, and in its eye
A world of amazement, with many a sigh
I had been joyfully and wonderfully eaten
By a giant golden butterfly.

The Garden

2008-09-29T18:25:00.000-07:00

Thursday September 13 2007

The cold damp soil chilled my warm hands. The earth had not yet been warmed by the loving rays of the sin. Mist enshrouded my vision. The stinging of my hands from wounds the garden had inflicted on me the day before, felt caring from seeing what the garden would be. Deep plowed my shovel into the gardens hard heart and soul. I could hear it crying out to me, “Why are you so cruel?”
... I made no reply.

As I softened the soil, thoroughly breaking up the hardened clods in my hands, the weeds then pulled easily and I tossed them off to the side to be burnt. The garden had no choice in what I considered weeds. The decomposing weeds that had died in seasons past would no longer hinder my garden anymore but would be a blessing to it. So I left them to nourish the soil. The garden cried out, “Now that you've taken from me the only life I had, take the dead weeds too!”
... I made no reply.

I was the god of my garden.
Like the morning mist, my vision cleared. I saw I was His garden. His work in me was only the caring on his loving hands that I had wounded the day before
In the mist…
And in its clearing…
He made His reply.

O' Crystal Spring

2008-09-29T18:19:00.000-07:00

September 18th 2007 3am

I walked quietly by the crystal spring
Of peace and melodies it did sing
Songs of peace resonated in my soul,
Melodies of joy to make me whole.

The spring was so mighty
But only two miles long
But in its banks
It had many a song.

Bubbling new life as it came out of the ground
Then into growing was its next sound
Then into a wide stream that peacefully moved along
Where animals could drink and sing their songs

To sandy beaches where all could play
In the scorching heat of a summer’s day
But still the crystal stream, mighty and cold
Moved along gently... It was a song to behold.

The stream was so pure, it invited all to drink
To nurture our spirits, it tried to link
Great wisdom in this there was to behold
To all who would listen, to all who would take hold.

Then the cliffs pressed closer and tried to close it out
But it danced with mirth and gave joyful shouts
In tribulations and trials it did not waver
For purity and joy was of its flavor

Then the stream slowed down and was at peace within
It spread out its arms and opened them wide
For it knew why it was born
And how it would die

For the Stream had wisdom far beyond me to deliver
For the stream poured out its life
Into a muddied river.

As I watched the crystal stream
and thought it had died
My thoughts had deceived me
My thoughts had lied.

For the crystal spring
Actually brought life
It strengthened the muddied river
It brought nurture and not strife

It purified the river
And set it free
For the two became one
On its journey to the sea.

As I walked by the crystal stream
I was in reality, but as if a dream
It nurtured every flower and every bee
Then my Beloved Friend spoke unto me

From glaciers old and mountains wide
From eternity back my Love doeth reside
Saved for this day, as we walk side by side
From all others, its song I did hide.

Into your muddied heart my Love doeth flow
To give you inspiration in the way you should go
To show you an example of the way to be
To help inspire others, on their way to the sea.

As I sit by you, O Crystal Stream
My heart doeth rise into noble themes
Of God's great Love and His eternal dream
That pours itself out, into our muddied streams.

WOW! A Translation Change

2008-09-28T22:47:00.000-07:00

Wow! I just had a nuclear explosion go off in my spirit. Wow! I will just start with the Scriptures and later we can go into the rightness or wrongness of what I have done. Wow! Here is Roman and other Scriptures with a slight translation change. Wow! Here goes…

(To those who are not familiar with the Bible: the below is Scripture with a some changes of words, so this is not how the text reads, but WOW! See your Bible for the appropriate Scripture translation. This is just a word substitution translation that I saw in my mind tonight as I was writing another article.)

Ro 5:12 Therefore, just as the devil entered the world through one man, and death through the devil, and in this way death came to all men, because all walked in the ways of the devil—
Ro 5:13 for before the law was given, sin was in the world. But sin is not taken into account when there is no law.
Ro 5:14 Nevertheless, death, through the devil, reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not walk in the ways of the devil by breaking a command, as did Adam, who was a pattern of the one to come.
Ro 5:15 But the gift is not like the wages of sin. For if the many died by walking in the ways of the devil of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many!
Ro 5:16 Again, the gift of God is not like the result of the one man’s sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many sins and brought justification.
Ro 5:17 For if, by the sin of the one man, death, through the devil, reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ.
Ro 5:18 Consequently, just as the result of one act of walking in the ways of the devil was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men.
Ro 5:19 For just as through the demonizing of the one man the many were made to be demonizers, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.
Ro 5:20 The law was added so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more,
Ro 5:21 so that, just as the devil reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Dead to The Devil, Alive in Christ

Ro 6:1 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on demonizing so that grace may increase?
Ro 6:2 By no means! We died to the devil; how can we live in him any longer?
Ro 6:3 Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?
Ro 6:4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
Ro 6:5 If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection.
Ro 6:6 For we know that our old demonizing self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to the devil —
Ro 6:7 because anyone who has died has been freed from the devil.
Ro 6:8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.
Ro 6:9 For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him.
Ro 6:10 The death he died, he died to the devil once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.
Ro 6:11 In the same way, count yourselves dead to the devil but alive to God in Christ Jesus.
Ro 6:12 Therefore do not let the devil reign in your mortal body so that you obey his evil desires.
Ro 6:13 Do not offer the parts of your body to the devil, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness.
Ro 6:14 For the devil shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.

Slaves to Righteousness

Ro 6:15 What then? Shall we sin and demonize because we are not under law but under grace? By no means!
Ro 6:16 Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey—whether you are slaves to the devil, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness?
Ro 6:17 But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to the devil, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted.
Ro 6:18 You have been set free from the devil and have become slaves to righteousness.
Ro 6:19 I put this in human terms because you are weak in your natural selves. Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to the devil and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness.
Ro 6:20 When you were slaves to the devil, you were free from the control of righteousness.
Ro 6:21 What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death!
Ro 6:22 But now that you have been set free from the devil and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life.
Ro 6:23 For the wages of the devil is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

An Illustration From Marriage

Ro 7:1 Do you not know, brothers—for I am speaking to men who know the law—that the law has authority over a man only as long as he lives?
Ro 7:2 For example, by law a married woman is bound to her husband as long as he is alive, but if her husband dies, she is released from the law of marriage.
Ro 7:3 So then, if she marries another man while her husband is still alive, she is called an adulteress. But if her husband dies, she is released from that law and is not an adulteress, even though she marries another man.
Ro 7:4 So, my brothers, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit to God.
Ro 7:5 For when we were controlled by the demonic nature, the demonic passions aroused by the law were at work in our bodies, so that we bore fruit for death.
Ro 7:6 But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.

Struggling With The Devil

Ro 7:7 What shall we say, then? Is the law sinor of the devil? Certainly not! Indeed I would not have known who the devil was except through the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, “Do not covet.”
Ro 7:8 But the devil, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of covetous desire. For apart from law, sin is dead.
Ro 7:9 Once I was alive apart from law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died.
Ro 7:10 I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death.
Ro 7:11 For the devil, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, deceived me, and through the commandment put me to death.
Ro 7:12 So then, the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous and good.
Ro 7:13 Did that which is good, then, become death to me? By no means! But in order that the devil might be recognized as the devil, it produced death in me through what was good, so that through the commandment demonizing might become utterly sinful.
Ro 7:14 We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to the devil.
Ro 7:15 I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.
Ro 7:16 And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good.
Ro 7:17 As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me.
Ro 7:18 I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my demonic nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.
Ro 7:19 For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing.
Ro 7:20 Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.
Ro 7:21 So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me.
Ro 7:22 For in my inner being I delight in God’s law;
Ro 7:23 but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of the devil at work within my members.
Ro 7:24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?
Ro 7:25 Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.

Life Through the Spirit

Ro 8:1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,
Ro 8:2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.
Ro 8:3 For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the demonic nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of demonic man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned the devil in demonic man,
Ro 8:4 in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the demonic nature but according to the Spirit.
Ro 8:5 Those who live according to the demonic nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.
Ro 8:6 The mind of demonic man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace;
Ro 8:7 the demonic mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.
Ro 8:8 Those controlled by the demonic nature cannot please God.
Ro 8:9 You, however, are controlled not by the demonic nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.
Ro 8:10 But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness.
Ro 8:11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.
Ro 8:12 Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation—but it is not to the demonic nature, to live according to it.
Ro 8:13 For if you live according to the demonic nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the demonizing of the body, you will live,
Ro 8:14 because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.
Ro 8:15 For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.”
Ro 8:16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.
Ro 8:17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

Ro 14:23 But the man who has doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is the devil.

1Co 8:12 When you demonize against your brothers in this way and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ.
1Co 8:13 Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause him to fall.

1Co 15:56 The sting of death is the devil, and the power of the devil is the law.

2Co 5:21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

2Co 12:21 I am afraid that when I come again my God will humble me before you, and I will be grieved over many who have sinned earlier and have not repented of the impurity, sexual demonizations and debauchery in which they have indulged.

The translation has been changed in all these passages, this is not to show a correct interpretation or anything like that, this is a ‘wow’ that allows us to see past our familiar Christianize terms. Don’t worry I am blown away also. Wow!
I don’t know about you but, Wow! Feel free to comment. Wow!
I also don’t know about you, but wow! Talk about the fear of the Lord. Talk about face plant! Wow!
What I saw in my mind tonight looked something like this: ‘Sin = the devil.’ And all of a sudden I started reading Romans that way. Wow!

A Shutting Down of Relationships In Christianity

2008-09-28T18:03:00.000-07:00

Have you ever heard a preacher say, "Don't confess your problems. That is just a sign to the devil that he has got you right where he wants you." Or something like, "If you state your problems, you are speaking your problem into existence, or that "If you are sick it is a lack of faith." What does this do to Christians who believe their message? One, it shuts down people getting to know one another. It keeps people from praying for one another. It keeps people from helping one another. Problems are there for Christians to help each other with. If we are to carry one another's burdens, then Christians must have burdens. I want to ask you, are you greater than Paul the author of most of the New Testament? If you are a faith preacher and believer and believe that you should not have any sicknesses then what in the world do you do with the Scripture in 2 Timothy 4:20b where Paul writes, 'I left Trophimus sick in Miletus.'? Are we greater than Paul the apostle?
One thing I find with the faith message in some circles is that when a person talks about a problem they are condemned for lack of faith. So, a person asks for prayer that they would be healed and then they are condemned for their lack of faith. What this does is keeps church members from telling a leader that they have a problem, which in turn keeps the leader who is so glorying in their faith away from the problem, so they don't have to deal with it. And if they don't have to deal with it, then their faith is not put to the test. And if the leader’s faith is put to the test and nothing happens, then they condemn the church member who didn't receive a healing or deliverance, for not having enough faith. So, then it is not a sign to the leader that the leader of the movements faith was not sufficient. For, faith preachers keep condemnation away from themselves, and all condemnation goes towards the church member.
So, what is faith? It isn't whether God heals or delivers me from my afflictions, but that I am still going to be in a love relationship with him. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego said, "The God we serve is able to deliver us, but even if He doesn't, we will not worship your gods or bow down to statues of gold you have set up." Which is an interesting correlation, because what do most faith preachers talk about... gold. Or, you might call it money. If a preacher is always talking about money beware, for out of the heart the mouth speaks. And you cannot serve both God and money.

So, what does most of this faith preaching do? It shuts the congregation down. If you don't give, you do not have enough faith. If you admit you faults, weaknesses or illnesses you are condemned for not having enough faith. So, you learn not to speak about problems. So, when someone asks you how are you doing you respond by lying, "All is well" when your children are in rebellion, when your heart is broken, when your finances are on the fritz because your husband or wife got sick and lost their job. When people admit their problems and leaders condemn them they learn to shut down their hearts. And how many people have gone into a church and not been able to connect with anyone? Has it been your fault, or is it the fault of the church members who are all shut down emotionally? Is it that we shut down emotionally and then wonder why we can't find the intimacy of friendship with people? Paul says that he wanted to know the fellowship of sharing in Christ's sufferings (Philippians 3:10). Jesus even said about himself, "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death." And he said, "Do you think that I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels? But did Jesus call on his Father for these? No. He also did not turn stones into bread when he could have. Is faith something that is self seeking? Or is faith supposed to be used for others benefits? For, love seeks not its own, and the only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love. So, the equation of faith is not for ourselves, but for others. How many faith preachers condemn Christians with the same words the Pharisees condemned Jesus with, "Physician heal thyself." Did he? No, he wasn't focused on himself, he was focused on others. That is why when he was rich, and had all the wealth and glory of heaven, he humbled himself, left it all, and became poor, so we might become rich. And this is reiterated in his words, his command, "Do not store up for yourselves treasure on earth where moth and rust destroy, but store up for yourselves riches in heaven.” But, is there trust and faith in God that he will supply all your needs according to his riches in glory? Yes! Undeniably Yes! But what is the difference? It is all in your focus. Do you want to be rich, ‘those who want to be rich fall into many trials and temptations.’ But, those who are focused on others are more concerned with you, than with their pocket books. For, the kingdom of God is not based, affected, advanced by… or by the lack of Mammon.

The Book of Shepherds

2008-09-28T10:50:00.000-07:00

Once upon a time in the resent present, there was a little sheep named Simon, who grew up in a very manicured, abundantly green, pasture. All the fences were strong and in good repair. Everything was neat and tidy. The sheep knew when to come and go. Each sheep was very respectful. One day the shepherd took notice of Simon and asked him if he would like to be a shepherd. Simon was very excited, and gladly accepted. The Shepherd taught Simon many things, like how to attract sheep and how to use the shepherds’ staff. The shepherd daily encouraged Simon that the Great Shepherd had a wonderful plan for him. Simon had deep respect for the shepherd, for the shepherd was very dignified. And out of this deep respect for his shepherd and Love for him, Simon dreamed of being a dignified shepherd one day.

As the days passed, Simon became to look more and more like a shepherd. And one day the shepherd took Simon out to a new pasture and said, “This is your domain. Make the pasture green and abundant. Keep the fences in good repair, so that when the Great Shepherd passes by He will be pleased.

So, Shepherd Simon worked diligently on the pasture. He attracted passing sheep and some of them ended up staying. The number of his sheep grew and grew. They helped Shepherd Simon by mowing the grass and fertilizing the pasture.

One day as he was shepherding his flock, He noticed one of the sheep had lumps on her back. Shepherd Simon was concerned for he was a good shepherd. He tried to figure out what was going on, but couldn’t. As time went by, Shepherd Simon noticed the lumps had turned into little wings.

Little Sheep Lilly was very excited about her new wings. She would fly all around. At times she would be flying above another sheep and notice that they were heading towards a pit, or a swamp, or some wolf was in their path, and she fly down and warn the sheep. The other sheep would chuckle and laugh amongst themselves, “Oh Little Sheep Lilly is just lifted up by her pride.”

Shepherd Simon heard the rumors of what Little Sheep Lilly would say and would investigate them, but none the less, he didn’t have the perspective that Little Sheep Lilly had, and so he went to her and said,
“Little Sheep Lilly, how can you eat grass when you are always flying around. Plus you are scaring the other sheep. And some of the other sheep are getting mad at you for they say you are spying on them.”

“You know me Shepherd Simon. I don’t go looking to spy on the sheep. I just happen to be flying around and I see what is coming at them or where they are heading. And I warn them. You know I Love the other sheep.”

“I know Little Lilly.”

“Shepherd Simon, this morning when I was flying way high, I saw that there were wolves coming toward this pasture.”

“Silly Lilly, I have never seen any wolves. You shouldn’t be flying so high. The wind currents may hurt you.”

“But Shepherd Simon when I fly that high I turn into an eagle.”

“Beware Silly Lilly, you may be attacked by the Great Dragon, and I won’t be able to protect you. You should stay in the pasture, within the fences.”

“But I have been to the outskirts of the Great Shepherd’s pasture and have wonderful conversations with the Great Shepherd. And He told me that I was to tell you to knock down some of the fences so that the sheep could have freedom.”

“Oh Silly Lilly, the Great Shepherd only talks to the shepherds and then not that often. But, He doesn’t need to, for He is only concerned with the abundance of these pastures, how many sheep we have and how they are getting along with each other. Why don’t you come back to earth and keep the pasture mowed and well fertilized like a good little sheep.”

“But the Great Shepherd calls me to fly.”

“Are you sure that was the Great Shepherd and not the Great Dragon. Are you so wise Silly Lilly. Because in your flying the Great Dragon can deceive you and make you think he is the Great Shepherd. It is even said he can transform himself into an Angel of Light. Can you hold on a second Little Sheep Lilly?”
“Johnnie how many times have I told you not to play with that two-edged sword! You know how many times you have hurt others and hurt yourself when you used to play with those daggers.

“But Shepherd Simon the eagle said this sword is a gift from the Great Shepherd. She said if I use it in Love it is for the healing of the sheep. The Great Shepherd said it was for the dividing of the soul and the spirit.”

“Johnnie you listen to me, I’ve heard enough about this. You are scaring the other sheep. They help me and are complaining that you want them to fight against the wolves. And they are saying that you sometimes hallucinate and see some of them as wolves. Stop this now! Who do you think you are, a mighty warrior and the Great Physician all at once? How dare you be lifted up in pride! Why don’t you use that sword to intimidate Billy over there to quit wandering around outside of the fences. Every time he returns he has got one or two more scraggily sheep with him. Some of them don’t even have teeth and so he chews the grass for them and feeds them its juices. Plus they got flees! And the other sheep keep getting irritated because they don’t want to be infected by them. You know how they fear getting flies and ticks from scraggily sheep. Then the other day Billy brought in a sheep that had leprosy. And Helen said she was going to carry it for him and take it to the Great Shepherd. I tried to run that leprous sheep off, but Helen went with him and took him to a cave outside of the pasture fences. You know how Helen is; she thinks she can carry anything. Remember how burdened she used to be with all those rocks and twigs weighing her down. I tried to council her not to carry other people’s burdens. I swear as she left the camp she turned onto a leprous Ox. She took off for that tree on that far hill. I wish she wouldn’t do that. She doesn’t need to carry that burden also.”

“Now back to you Little Sheep Lilly.”

Ummm… Shepherd Simon. Well… Ummm… in my flying one day I saw Helen’s path to that tree and I lead her up there.

“You what! It seems every time my sheep get near that tree they start changing. That is where Billy says he was given his sword. That sword is going to be the death of some of the sheep and I hope he feels very sorry for it. And then there is that Glenn. He keeps wandering off to that tree. You know the one with only two branches and no leaves. He even said that he is no longer able to work at fertilizing the pasture. And he keeps trying to invite people to just sit before that tree with him. But I have seen you flying up there and perching….Ahhhh Perching! I HATE IT! Sheep aren’t supposed to perch! What is my flock coming too! You know you are going to cause a falling away in this pasture Little Sheep Lilly. You and that Glenn! He keeps going into other pastures and tries to get them to sit in front of that tree with him. Good thing the other sheep are distracted by the cares of this world, because as they feed on the grasses they richly fertilize my pasture. I even thought I saw him hanging from that tree. It looked like he was dying. I must have been hallucinating. But, the rumors are that he is trying to get the others to voluntarily die on that tree. He says that if they join him and die together they will become one and even one with the Great Shepherd. Have you ever heard of anything so preposterous? I will have to have a talk with him.
Then there are those sheep with the bows. They are going to hurt someone. I looked out of my lodge one night and those four sheep were heading up to that tree. When I cornered one of them on Sunday, she said they head up there to that tree to pray. I asked her why she couldn’t pray in the pasture. She said, it was only at that tree that they could get fully healed, cleansed, with eyes to see in the night. She said once their bodies became strong, and swift like horses, that they could head into the thickets of death to fight the bats that torment the sheep at night. I asked her about the bats and she said, ‘The bats are servants of the Great Dragon and they have strongholds all around the area. And they suck the life out of the sheep.’ I told her that there was no way the bats could get past the sheep’s’ wool. And I told her that she was heading into very dangerous ground. And she agreed. Her agreement totally threw me. She said that is why they spend so much time at the tree. To make sure they are fully healed, fully strengthened, that the Great Shepherd is going with them and they know his battle plan. I tried to tell her to stay in safe country but she said they Love the other sheep, and the Great Shepherd wants them freed from the bats. Because He loves them, he wants the land purified from their strongholds. But, I do have to say those four sheep do look very strong. The problem is; I never see any bats.

“Ummm… Shepherd Simon, you never spend any time with the sheep at night.

“Are you trying to criticize me? Are you judging me? You know I have to take care of my family in our lodge. Plus, every time I am around the sheep too much, they start trying to look under my clothes. They say they can smell something. How dare they look under my robes? How rude! Don’t they have any class? Plus, what sheep would want to follow a smelly shepherd? Or a shepherd that smelled like a sheep. Don’t they know I am doing a great work for the Great Shepherd? I do have a small confession. I sometimes use some of that dignified shepherd cologne to distract the sheep. But that is our secret, ok?
On another note, there is that Gooffy sheep. He keeps praying, ‘Oh God lets go out and get in trouble together.’ I can’t believe he is so… well… Gooffy. The other day I saw him out in the Unsecure Plains and three wolves went to pounce on him. Just at that time a butterfly landed on his big toe. He bent over to get a closer look at it and all three wolves leaped right over him and right into each other. The butterfly flittered away and Gooffy didn’t even know that the wolves were even there and that they were now fighting each other. Then as he was chasing the butterfly it landed on a tree branch and Gooffy swung up into the tree just as a ram was about to butt him. The ram instead butted the tree and knocked itself out. I didn’t know rams could knock themselves out. I talked to Gooffy and told him to be careful, and in a nice way that he wasn’t the most cleaver sheep in the flock. He agreed but you know what he told me. ‘The Great Shepherd appears to him at that tree and tells him which butterfly to chase that day. Have you ever heard anything so preposterous?
“Oh No! You didn’t lead him up to that tree too. Did you?”

“Well… Ahhhh… No Shepherd Simon. But, after I lead Helen up to that tree and Gooffy saw how the Great Shepherd healed the leprous sheep. He wanted Helen to lead him up there.

“What am I going to do with you? You know if Gooffy gets mauled or lost in a swamp it’s going to be all your fault. He has no sense. He just keeps saying, ‘I’m just following the butterflies that the Great Shepherd tells me to follow each day.’ He says he is being Gooffy for the Great Shepherd. I tried to council him. I tried to encourage him to find stability so he had resources to fall back on the stormy days when no butterflies flitter about. Where is the profit in it? Tell me where is the security? I asked. I tried to tell him that there is peace found in security. But, he gave me some odd proverb about
‘True peace is not dependant
On the condition of the sea.’

At that point I was just tired and kind of exasperated and just figured it was another one of Gooffy’s goofy statements.”
“Hey Little Lilly can you tell me about Gunthor? He really confuses me. First, he flitters into the pasture in the shape of a butterfly and gets near a sheep or two. Then he starts to weep uncontrollably and the wounds off the other sheep start appearing on him. I’ve noticed after that the wounds on the other sheep start healing after that. All the counseling I’ve done with them has never brought the slightest change in their lives, and I know it isn’t just coincidence, because I personally know they have had these wounds for years. The other day he started weeping after walking through the flock and all of a sudden he had ten different wounds on him. You know I tried to pray for him when he is like that. I also brought him in for counseling, but he must be in denial. Every time I try to sooth his wounds he says they are not his. I’ve seen them on him and he still denies they are his. Every time he has those wounds he heads off to that tree and for some reason when he comes back he seems fine. Yeah, I think he is in serious denial.
Then one day Gunthor changed right before my eyes and turned into a Lion. He comes to me with such regality, but with such sadness, and tells me that the Great Shepherd loves me deeply. I’m the shepherd! I know that! Who does he think he is? … I get so uncomfortable around him. His eyes are so hard to look into; sometimes he just stares, like he sees into my soul. Like he sees wounds inside of me and that makes me feel like he is going to pounce on me because he sees blood, but he never does. He tells me he loves me and the Great Shepherd loves me and that if I ever want someone to talk to, to come and find him. Then, all of a sudden, he changed back into a butterfly and flitted off. I Never know when I’m going to see him again. I wonder when Gunthor is in his butterfly form if Gooffy has ever been told by the Great Shepherd to chase him. Ha Ha Ha. What am I saying! I’m starting to sound like all you who go up to that tree. That tree is going to be the death of me! And my flock! I’m going to head up to that tree and deal with that tree once and for all.”

“Shepherd Simon, may I go with you?”

“Yes Little Sheep Lilly it would be my pleasure”

“You know Shepherd Simon, all of us who go to the tree Love you very much.”

“That I have noticed, but all of you who go up to that tree confuse me. You don’t stay inside the fences. You come and go as you please. You’re not intimidated by my shepherd’s staff. And you talk as if the Great Shepherd is always with you and talking to you. It is all very strange.

“Talking about strange, here comes that Vivian. She has such a beautiful dress and she dances all the time. But those open wounds on her wrists cause her such pain, but she always seems to be in such rapture.

“Hello Vivian”

“Hello, Shepherd Simon”

“May I ask you something personal about your wrists?”

“Yes Shepherd Simon, feel free.”

“Ahhhh…Well… Where did you get them?

“This may be hard to comprehend, Shepherd Simon, but they were a gift from the Lover of my soul, the Great Shepherd. You see, one day I was dancing before the tree and I saw the Great Shepherd crucified on that tree. The next thing you know I was hanging from a tree. While we were both crucified, He came nearer to me. To the point his face was against mine, I could feel his breath on my cheek. He then interlocked His fingers in mine. And we began to dance. We danced and danced, it seemed like forever and I never wanted it to end. He stopped dancing and we were standing face to face, His face began to change. I saw wounds start to appear on His face. I saw Him being beaten. I saw blood start to run down his face. The wounds were so horrendous that His face was no longer recognizable. He gripped my fingers even tighter; I couldn’t get away. Then, his face changed even more, and for just a moment, his face changed into something that was almost demonic. So horrible and hideous I wanted to run, I wanted to let go, but He held my hands so lovingly, but firmly, and he said, ‘This is your sin that I willingly took upon me, because I Love you.’ I cried and cried.”
“Our hands were still interlaced. Then spikes thrust through each of His wrists into mine. Each spike went through both of our wrists, so that we were bound together by the spikes. I am so thankful, Shepherd Simon, I never want the spikes to be removed. I never want to stop dancing with Him. For, now I have become His bride.

“Little Sheep Lilly, I have never felt such great passion, never have I known that there was such deep intimacy available with the Great Shepherd. Little Sheep Lilly, will you lead me to the Cross?”

“You know my shepherd. I have waited and prayed for this day. It would be my pleasure to lead you there.”

Relationships of the World

2008-09-27T19:36:00.000-07:00

Thoughts on our world systems.

Computer software comes down to how programs relate to each other. Marriage comes down to how the spouses relate to each other. Religion comes down to how we relate to God and how we relate to others. Environmentalism is about how we relate to nature. Government is how they tells us we are to relate to each other, to how we relate to those in government, and how governments relate to other governments. So, the world as we know it comes down to how things relate to each other. The world as we know it comes down to relationships; our relationship with God, government, each other, nature, and things.

Do laws make people relate to each other better? Well, yes and no. Laws just tell us what is appropriate, but they don’t make people not murder each other. Laws are like sign posts with penalties that warn us of danger and possible consequences.

There are good relationships, there are bad relationships, and there are relationships that are in conflict. A computer’s operating system software has programs that it relates with well, it has programs that cause it problems (viruses), and programs that it has conflicts with. Each individual has God or gods, governments, people, nature, and things that we get along with well, bad, and have conflicts with. It all deals with relationships.

Relationship can be based on intimacy, deception, or conflict; truth, lies, and/or war. When a computer downloads information into its system, the operator may have been thinking that this will be a great program, and then finds out that it lied to them, and it has a virus in it that makes the computer crash and then there is war. Have you ever had a relationship with somebody like that? These people are people who wear masks. A mask is a false front to someone; we are showing one thing, but in reality we are another; wolves in sheep’s clothing, hypocrites. Hypocrite is a word that comes from the Greek word for an actor. (Funny note: the television industry pays them millions to be hypocrites and we pay them billions to watch their paid hypocrites; the greater the hypocrite the better we love them). What is a hypocrite? A hypocrite, or he who wears a mask, is a false image; a deception, a lie. What about our politicians? What about when we go out on dates? What about ourselves is a false image we present to the world? For you see, it is all about relationships.

Why do we but on these masks? There are many reasons and these reasons deal with our motivations. Why do commercials say that you will look so good if you buy this product? They are tapping into our motivations to look good, to make money; their motivation may be greed. I need to make a hundred billion dollars so I can live in luxury, have power over other people, situations, and things, and I can have everything my heart desires. These false motivations deal with self and not with good intimate relationships with others. We are not looking out for the best in relationships with others; we are looking out how to get what we want. These relationships deal with self and with lies. They deal with hypocrisy, masks, and false images. What are masks? A mask is an image that presents a person the way we want them to see us and we like to see them with their mask on. I was a general manager of an Italian restaurant. The servers could be hurting to no ends, yet they would take a deep breath, put on a happy and cheerful face and go out to serve the guests who did not want to hear about their problems. They just wanted good food, good service, and good conversation and I don’t blame them at all. We expect servers to wear masks. We expect emergency workers to wear masks. We want our politicians to wear masks. If a presidential got up and said, “Yeah, like I totally had the best time inhaling in college, dude.” We would kick them off the ticket so fast that it would make their heads swim. We want perfect masks not people who are honest. We want the perfect image, with no relationship with the true person. We like the image of perfection, yet are we in any of the pictures. We have perfect images of God, yet are we in any of the images that we have of Him. Masks make us feel good. Masks make us feel secure. We have perfect images of nature and then we throw our trash out the windows of our cars. We have lost our relationships, or never had them in the first place, with God, government, people, nature, and things. Then when all the masks are ripped away by some disaster we are all confused about everything.
How do we use masks? We use masks are our self protection. This world is a dangerous place and so we put on masks to cover our fears, our insecurities, and our weaknesses. Is this a safe thing to do to protect ourselves? Sometimes. Do we live in a perfect utopian world? By no means, yet we glory in our masks, ours and others, lies, deceptions, and falsities to one another. We pay large amounts of money to those who have the best masks. So, is it any wonder, some or most, of our politicians, TV idols, and mega evangelist lie to us?

We all have some sort of relationship in this world with all things, whether the relationships are very distant, based on lies and masks, intimate, or full of conflicts. Intimate relationships scare us and relationships based on masks make us feel safe. We don’t know them and they have no chance to see who we really are. Yet, we hunger and thirst for intimate relationships. Look at our TV idols; we love that they are in the profession of hypocrites, we love their masks, yet we have this strange draw to get to know them more intimately. The closer the public tries to draw to a TV idol, the farther they pull away. But, now look at how many of them hide away in their self imposed prisons, I mean mansions, and them commit suicide. Why, because nobody cares for them. Nobody truly knows them, no one was close enough to see the signs and still love them. What does this tell us about the price of fame? I gained all my goals and yet I am all alone. Do all TV idol end up living lonely non-intimate lives? Not at all, but they warn us about the dangers of fame and fortune. I look and see it is based on fear; the more we have the more fearful we become that someone will take it away from us. If we have lots of money, then we must spend lots of money, because of our fears. I have to have fire insurance, home owners insurance, flood insurance, expensive car insurance, an accountant, a couple of lawyers on retainer, and this is all based on the fear that we may get into trouble of some kind. Big business plays on our fears and so we hand them our money to which they really have no intimate relationship with us. They spread fear into the world, so that they can make money. “Help, I’ve fallen and I can’t get up.”
Insurance companies have done such a good job in spreading fear that they have gotten us to force everyone else by law to be forced into taking out insurance or you cannot drive. They put false mask on others of our society. ‘Society is full of teenage drivers and uninsured drunks.’ They warn us to be fearful of our neighbors. But, look at how well we as a people give to those in need; Katrina, 9/11, China relief, Children’s relief funds around the world, charities. All these funds including federal disaster relief, and big business take a bite out of all the money we give them. Yet, are we helping those around us. These organizations take our money and distribute it around the world, yet it takes money for money to travel to these parts of the world; to people we don’t know personally. All these organizations might or might not have good motives, yet if we were to strengthen those around us, then when we are in need we will have strong neighbors around us. Think about how money travels from where you are at to other parts of this county and nation. Look at it like dots on a map and every dot lessons the amount of money that you sent. Now, look at all the money and all the dots that money passes through and each one takes it’s bite. Look at insurance money; a community of 40,000 people with 30,000 of them paying for insurance at an average rate of $100 dollars a month spends 3 million a month to watch over maybe $500,000 in accidents a month in our community. If we turned around and set up one insurance company that deals with the insurance of the community then all we have is one dot eating our money, whereas if you look in the phone book we have pages and pages of insurance companies. What if all the profits went into reduced rates and 10% went into the schools in our area? The better we all drive as a community the less we all pay in that community? Why strengthen businesses that are located 3000 miles away? Why not strengthen our own communities? Why do we try to have relationships with business that are located thousands of miles away? The money you spend goes to the school district you live in. Or, you get a choice of what school the money goes to in your community. Let us band together as community and strengthen our relationships of our community. If we reduce the size of the dots that eat our resources then there are more resources to go around. The world system has got us trying to protect ourselves from the world and while trying to save the world while our individual communities crumble and decay into hell zones. Let us establish relationships and find ways to build and strengthen relationships that are closest to us.

Scientists say we are in a heap of trouble, but what if some of them are telling the truth? We are so conditioned to believe that everything is a lie that when someone does raise a warning we think, “Oh they too are just lying to raise money for their research grant.” What if hell is real and some preacher are just telling us are using the truth to get us to follow them? But, what if some of them have good motives and are just trying to get us back into intimate relationship with God? Not for their own gain but our salvation. Are the environmental scientists trying to warn us of ultimate destruction and are trying to get the world saved? Do the doctors preach falsely when they say, “If you don’t have this surgery I can’t save you? Are they all telling us lies? Are they all deceitful? Are you one of those people who are trying to save us from government? We all end up needing salvation from something, at one time or another? Is this author trying to make money on Xomba and that is why he is trying to get us saved from our own hypocrisy and lack of intimate relationships, or did today when he was sitting in his living room thinking about the overall principle of the world, touch a thread that flows down through all mankind and thought, “Wow the whole world can be explained in the one word ‘relationships.’ And then while writing this did he see his own lack of intimate relationships in areas of God, government, people, nature and things and go, “Wow, I have masks and hypocrisy in my own life.” And so thought he would share thoughts with those who he has never seen, never will see, who are just images on his computer screen. Does he ask himself, “Am I willing to be open and honest with those around me?” Will I take off my masks and see if there can be found true intimacy in relationships with those around me, or will I never recognize all the masks I wear and remain a distant hypocrite, devoid of any true relationships for all eternity?”

At that Time... Chapter 10 and Appendix

2008-09-26T20:46:00.000-07:00

At That Time...
Chapter 10
To those who Live, … At That Time...

The Lord God Most High bless you and keep you. The Lord make His face shine upon you and give you peace. We in the 21st century bless you and are praying for you. You are living is a very rough age, full of destructions and turmoil, yet will be a time of the great mercy and grace of God. We pray that the Lord strengthen you in your inner persons, that Christ inform you of what is going on, and give you peace. For, these things must happen, to usher in the feast of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. We know it is the progression towards the wedding feast of the Lamb, but there is a progression that is lead by the enemy. A war and a wedding feast. The war is to distract and resist the wedding. The enemy is trying to hinder the wedding feast of the Lamb, for the enemy hates all that is His and hates all that is connected with Him. That means you and your generation. But, we are and have prayed for you. Continue to press into Christ Jesus. Continue to find intimate fellowship with Him, for He is the Bridegroom and you are His bride. If your Husband tells you to go, then go. if He tells you to stay then stay, wait and watch. He will direct you and guild you. He will provide for all your needs. Go out with joy and be lead forth in peace. Even if you are threatened with martyrdom, rejoice. For this world and this life is but a twinkling to the great, great, fellowship and joy we shall have with Jesus and the Father for all eternity. Do not despair. Do not fear. Do not worry. He will be with you, and we have prayed for you. Many of you will have fallen asleep, press into intimacy with Him. For, the call will go out that the Bridegroom approaches. Many, many, years will have passed, and it will seem that all is lost. But, all is not lost, all is won. For, He has redeemed you. He will protect you, He will lead you into spiritual battles. He will direct you, He is your Shepard and He loves you. Do not worry about clothing. Do not worry about food. Do not worry about ... For He is the Lover of your soul. He is thinking about you even from this generation, even from the generation of Daniel and the prophets. He has had many, many, people pray for you. He has inspired us by the Holy Spirit to pray for you. To cry out for your strengthening and courage. He Himself has prayed for you and Loves you with an everlasting love. Do not fear, O' little sheep, for your Shepherd laughs at your enemy. Thou the enemy puts you to death, our God laughs at them, for He is taking you to His side. Though you walk through the valley of the shadow of death, fear no evil. For, it is an opportunity for you to also laugh at His enemies, and give you an opportunity to make a last testimony and witness to them, so that they may also come and know the great love and mercy of our God, the LORD Jesus Christ, the Lamb who was slain. He is the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, the Strong and Mighty. Do not fear, do not despair, do not worry, laugh and laugh deeply at the enemy, (he hates that) for your salvation draws near. One day we will meet each other and we will laugh and rejoice in the presence of God.

From this generation, to your generation, we proclaim peace and joy to you. And we will see you,

"Here, There, or in the Air."

Love to you and great grace from God Most High and from the Lamb who was slain, the Lovers of your soul.

Appendix A

This is a listing of topics about end time prophecy, from Isaiah on. This listing includes events and places; including the Millennium, the New Heavens and New Earth. It is listed in alphabetical order, with seven separate topics listed under the Millennium. This style of leaving space after every listing is for people to make notes.

Assyria
Isaiah
7:17-20
8:6-10
9:4-5
10:5-20
10:24-34
11:11
11:15-16
14:24-26
14:31-32
16:4
18:2
18:7
19:4
19:23-25
20:4-6
23:13
27:1
27:12-13
28:15
28:17-19
30:31
31:8-9
33:1
33:18-19
43:6
49:12
51:13
52:4
54:16-17

Jeremiah
3:19
4:5-7
4:11-17
5:15-17
6:1-7
6:22-29
10:22
10:25
13:19-21
15:12
16:15-16
23:8
25:9
25:38
50:3
50:9
50:17-18
50:48

Daniel
2:33-35
2:40-45
7:3
7:7-8
7:11-12
7:17
7:19-26
8:8-12
8:23-25
9:26-27
11:21-25
11:27-32
11:36-45

Hosea
5:13
7:11
8:9
9:3
9:13
10:6
11:5
11:11
12:1
14:3

Joel
1:6-7
2:20

Amos
3:11
7:14

Micah
5:5-6
7:12

Nahum
1:11-15
2:1-3:3
3:4
3:5-3:19

Habakkuk
2:4-13
2:15-20
3:13-14
3:16

Zephaniah
2:13-15
3:15
3:19

Zechariah
2:6
10:10-11

Matthew
12:41
24:15

Mark
13:14

Luke
11:32
13:29
21:20
21:23-24

2nd Thessalonians
2:3-4
2:6-12

1st John
2:18
4:3

Revelation
6:7-8
9:14-15
11:7
13:1-8
13:11-18
14:9-11
15:2
16:2
16:10
16:12-13
17:3
17:7-8
17:11-14
17:16-17
19:19-20
20:4
20:10

Ammonites
Isaiah
11:14

Jeremiah
25:21

Daniel
11:41

Amos
1:13-15

Arabia/Tema
Isaiah
21:13-15
33:9

Jeremiah
25:24

Arameans/Damascus/Resin
Isaiah
7:8
9:12
17:1-3

Amos
9:7

Babylon: Sheshach/Shinar/Chaldeans

Genesis
10:10
Isaiah
11:11
13:1-22
14:4-23
21:1-10
23:13
43:14

Jeremiah
25:26
50:1-3
50:8-18
50:21-32
50:34-51:14
51:24-49
51:52-58
51:62
51:64

Daniel
2:32
2:35-40
2:44-45

Micah
4:10

Zechariah22:7-9

Revelation
14:8
16:19
17:1-7
17:9
17:15-18
18:2-24
19:2-3

The Coming of the Lord
&
The Day of the Lord

Isaiah
2:9-21
13:6-13
18:3-6
19:1
24:1-13
24:16-23
26:21-27:1
29:5-8
30:27-28
30:30-33
31:4-5
31:7-9
32:19
33:3-4
33:10
34:2-10
42:13-15
52:8-12
62:11
66:15-18

Jeremiah
25:30-31
27:19-22

Hosea

6:3
10:12
11:9-11

Joel

1:15
2:1-11
2:28-32
3:11-17

Amos
1:2
5:18-20

Obadiah
1:15

Micah
1:3-5
1:15
7:4

Zephaniah
1:7-2:5
3:8-9

Haggai
2:6-7
2:21-22

Zechariah
2:10-13
8:3
9:14-16
14:1-8
14:10
14:12

Malachi
4:1
4:3
4:5-6

Matthew
10:23
16:27-28
24:23-28
24:30-31
24:36-51
25:1-13
25:19-20
25:31-33
35:46
26:64

Mark
8:38-9:1
13:26-27
13:32-37
14:62

Luke
9:26
12:35-48
17:22-24
17:26-37
18:1-8
19:11-27
21:27-28
21:34-36

John
14:3

Acts
1:9-11
3:19-21

Romans
11:25-26
13:11-12

1st Corinthians
1:8
4:5
5:5
13:10
15:22-24

2nd Corinthians
1:14

Philippians
1:6
1:10
2:16
3:20

Colossians
3:5-6

1st Thessalonians
1:10
2:19
3:13
4:13-17
5:1-3
5:9-10
5:25-24

2nd Thessalonians
1:6-10
2:1-4
2:8

1st Timothy
6:14-15

2nd Timothy
4:1-2
4:8

Titus
2:13

Hebrews
9:27-28
10:25
10:37
12:26-27

James
5:5-9

1st Peter
1:5
1:7
1:13
2:12
4:13

2nd Peter
1:16
3:4
3:10
3:12

1st John
2:28
3:2

Jude
1:14-15

Revelation
1:7
2:25
3:3
3:10-11
6:12-17
8:1-5
11:15
11:18
14:17-20
19:11-21
22:7
22:12
22:20

Covenant
Isaiah
28:15
28:17-19
30:1-7
33:7-9
59:21

Jeremiah
31:31-35
33:14
33:20-21
33:25

Daniel
9:27
11:22
11:28
11:30
11:32

Hosea
6:7
8:1
12:1

Cush
Isaiah
11:11
18:1-2
43:3

Ezekiel
38:5

Amos99:7

Nahum
3:9

Habakkuk
3:7 Cushan

Zephaniah
2:12
3:10

Cyprus/ Kittim or Chittim
Isaiah
23:1
23:12

Daniel 11:20 something?

Day of Judgment/ outside darkness

Matthew
5:19-20
7:21-23
8:11-12
10:15
10:17-23
11:21-24
12:27
12:32
12:36-37
12:41
13:24-30
13:37-43
13:47:50
16:27
18:3-9
18:32-35
20:1-16
23:33-35
25:19-30
25:31-46

Mark
8:38
10:29-31

Luke
6:20-26
10:12
10:14
11:31-32
12:8-9
12:45-49
13:28-30
14:11
16:9
16:11-12
19:11-27
22:30

John
5:29-30
12:48
15:6

Acts
10:42
17:31

Romans
2:3
2:5-16
2:26-27
3:4-8
9:22-23
9:27-29
14:10-12
16:20

1st Corithians
3:12-15
4:5
6:2-3
6:9-10
6:13
9:25
11:31-32

2nd Corithians
1:14
5:10

Ephesians
5:5-6

Philippians
3:19

Colossians
3:6

1st Thessalonians
5:9

2nd Thessalonians
1:6-10

1st Timothy
6:19

2nd Timothy
4:1
4:8

Hebrews
4:13
6:1-2
6:4-8
9:27-28
10:26-31
10:36-39
11:26
11:40
12:28

James
5:5-9

1st Peter
1:4
1:7
1:13
1:17
2:23
4:4-6

2nd Peter
2:1-23:3-8

1st John
2:28
3:2
4:17

Jude
1:4-16

Revelation
2:11-12
3:4-5
6:10-12
11:18
14:7
14:10-11
20:4
20:11-15
22:14-15
22:18-19

Damascus
Amos
1:3-5

Zechariah
9:1

The East
Isaiah
24:15

Zechariah28:7

Matthew
8:11
24:27

Luke
13:29

Revelation
7:2
16:12

Edom
Isaiah
11:14
21:11-12
34:5-17

Jeremiah
25:21
49:12-22

Ezekiel
35:1-15
36:6

Daniel
11:41

Joel
3:19

Amos11:6
2:1
9:12

Obadiah
1:1-21

Habakkuk
3:3

Egypt
Isaiah
7:18-19
10:26
11:11
11:15
11:16
19:1-24
20:3-6
23:3
23:5
23:10
27:12-13
30:1-7
31:1-3
43:3
52:4

Jeremiah
16:14
23:7
25:19
31:32

Daniel
11:8
11:42-43

Hosea
7:11
7:16
8:13
9:3
9:6
11:5
11:11

Joel
3:19

Amos13:9

Micah
7:12

Nahum
3:8-9

Zechariah
10:10-11
14:18-19

Elam
Isaiah
11:11
21:2

Jeremiah
25:25

Exhortations
Isaiah
1:13
1:16-20
2:5
2:22
42:23

The Four Horns
Daniel
8:8
8:22-23
11:4
11:20

Revelation
third seal

The Gathering / Rapture

Matthew
24:30-31
24:36-46

1st Corinthians
15:51-58

1st Thessalonians
4:15-17

2nd Thessalonians
2:2-3

Revelation
14:14-16

Gog and Magog
Ezekiel
38:1-39

Revelation
20:8-9

Greece
Isaiah
66:19

Daniel
2:23
2:35
2:39-40
2:44-45
8:5-8
8:21-22

Joel
3:6

Zechariah
9:13

Revelation
6:4

Hamath, next to Damascus
Isaiah
11:11

Ezekiel
48:1

The Islands of the Sea
Isaiah
11:11
24:15
41:1
41:5
42:12
51:5
60:9
66:19

Israel
Isaiah
1:2-1:31
2:6-9
3:1-4:1
5:1-15
5:18-24
6:9-13
7:17-25
8:6-8
8:10-9:2
9:8-10:4
10:6
10:10-12
10:20-25
11:11-14
11:16
12:1-6
14:24-25
17:3-6
19:17
22:1-14
27:6-28:4
28:7-22
29:1-16
30:1-26
33:7-9
33:11-19
33:23
40:1-2
40:9
41:8-16
42:18-44:8
50:1-2
51:12-23
52:3-6
54:1-15
54:17
59:1-18
62:6-7
63:8-19
64:5-12
65:2-16
66:2-6

Jeremiah
3:14-18
4:5-6:30
10:17-25
13:15-27
16:14-21
23:1-24
25:29
25:33-38
30:1-2
50:6-7
50:33-34
51:5
51:24
51:35
51:49-51

Ezekiel
34:10-22
35:5
35:10
35:12
35:15
36:1-38
37:1-28
38:8
38:11-12
38:14
38:16-21
39:3-4
39:7
39:9-17
39:22-29

Daniel
9:24-27
11:16
11:28
11:30-35
11:41
12:1-4
12:712:13

Hosea
2:2-23
3:4-5
4:1-9

Joel
1:1-2:1
2:12-19
2:25-32

Amos
1:3
1:13
2:4-5:17
5:21-6:14
8:1-9:15

Obadiah
1:10-14
1:17-21

Micah
1:5-2:11
3:1-12
4:9-12
5:10-7:10
Nahum
1:12-13
1:15
2:2

Habakkuk
3:13-14
3:16-3:19

Zephaniah
1:4-6
1:9-13
1:17-2:3
2:8
2:10
3:1-5
3:7

Zechariah
2:6
10:1-3
12:2-13:6

Matthew
24:15-28

Mark
13:14-23

Luke
21:20-24
23:28-31

Revelation
12:1-2
12:4-6
12:13-17

Kingdom of Heaven
Daniel
2:34-35
2:44-45
7:9-10
7:13-14
7:18
7:22
7:26-27

Obadiah
1:21

Matthew 5:3
5:10
5:19
7:21-23
13:37-43
13:47-50

Hebrews
12:28

Revelation
12:28

Lebanon: Tyre and Sidon
Isaiah
10:34
23:1-18
29:17
33:9
35:2
60:13

Jeremiah
25:22

Hosea
9:13

Joel
3:4-8

Amos11:11-12

Nahum
1:4

Habakkuk
2:17

Zechariah
9:1-4
10:10

Libyans
Isaiah
66:19

Daniel
11:43

Nahum
3:9

Medes/Media
Isaiah
13:17-19
21:2
22:6

Jeremiah
25:25
51:11
51:28

Daniel
2:32
2:35
2:39-40
2:44-45
8:3-4
8:6-7
8:20
11:4?

Millennium
Isaiah
1:25-27
2:4
4:2-6
9:2-7
16:1
16:518:6
23:18
24:14-16
25:1-10
26:1-19
27:2-6
29:17-2432:1-8
32:15-20
33:5-6
33:17-22
40:1-2
40:17-2042:9-12
44:3-5
49:8-26
54:1-15
61:3-11
65:18-25

Jeremiah
16:19-21
30:8-11
30:16-22
31:1-14
31:16-17
31:22-40
33:14-26
50:19-20

Ezekiel
28:24-26
34:11-16
34:22-31
37:1-28
47:13-35
Daniel
12:1-3
12:12-13

Hosea
3:4-5
6:2

Joel
2:21-27
3:17-21

Amos
9:11-15

Obadiah
1:16-21

Micah
2:12-13
4:1-8
4:13
5:2
5:4-15
7:11-20

Habakkuk
2:14

Zephaniah
2:7
2:9
3:11-20

Haggai
2:7-9
2:23

Zechariah
2:4
3:9-10
8:3-8
8:18-23
9:7-13
10:3-12
12:10-13:6
14:8-11
14:14
14:16-21

Malachi
3:17-18
4:2-3

Matthew
5:3-12
5:17-20

Mark
10:29-31
14:25

Luke
18:29-30
20:34-38

John
14:2

Acts
3:19-21

Romans
6:8
6:23
8:17-21
8:29-30
8:32
9:25-26
15:12

2nd Corinthians
1:14

Ephesians
1:10
2:6-7

2nd Timothy
2:12

2nd Peter
1:19

Revelation
2:11
2:17
2:26-28
3:4-5
3:21
5:9-10
20:2-9

Millennium
Agriculture and Animals

Isaiah
2:4
4:2
5:17
11:6-9
29:17
30:23-26
34:11-17
35:1-2
35:7
35:9
41:19
43:19-20
60:6-7
61:5
65:10
65:21-22
65:25
66:20

Jeremiah
31:5
31:12
31:24
50:12
51:62

Ezekiel
34:14
34:25
34:27-29
36:8
36:11
36:34-36
39:17-20
47:7-12

Hosea
2:21-22

Joel
2:22
2:24
2:26
3:18

Amos
9:13-14

Micah
4:3-4

Zephaniah
2:14-15

Zechariah
2:4
9:17

Millennial Feast
Isaiah
25:6-8

Matthew
8:11-12
25:10

Luke
13:24-30
14:8-11
22:30

Revelation
19:7-9

Millennium, Geographical Changes
Isaiah
2:2
11:15
30:25-26
33:17
33:21
34:434:9-11
35:6-7
43:19

Joel
3:18

Micah
4:1

Haggai
2:6

Zechariah
14:4-8
14:8-10

Matthew
24:29

Mark
13:24-25

Luke
21:25-26

Revelation
6:12-17
16:19-21

Millennium Jesus, The LORD,
Isaiah
2:4
4:2
4:4-5
5:16
8:13-19
8:21
9:2-7
10:17
10:20-21
10:23
11:1-5
11:10-12
24:23
28:5-6
32:1-2
33:5-6
33:17
33:22
40:10-11
41:16-20
42:1-8
49:1-9
63:1-19
66:1-2

Jeremiah
50:34
51:14-19
51:56
Ezekiel
34:10-17
34:20
34:22-31

Daniel
2:34

Micah
5:2-5
7:8-9
7:14-15
7:18-20

Nahum
1:2-9
1:15

Habbakkuk3:2-6
3:8-15
3:19

Zechariah2:5
6:12-15
9:14-17
12:1

Luke
22:69

Romans
15:12

1st Corinthians
15:24-28

1st Thessalonians
5:9-10

Hebrews
12:29

2nd Peter
2:5
2:8-10
2:14

Revelation
5:2-14
14:7
15:3-4
19:10-18
22:13
22:16

Millennium, Mount Zion, Ariel;
Isaiah
2:2-4
4:3-6
11:9
18:7
24:23
25:6-8
25:10
27:13
29:1-8
30:19-26
33:5
33:20
33:23-24
35:10
40:9
49:14-26
51:3
51:11
51:16
52:1-2
52:7-9
59:20
60:1-22
62:1-5
62:8-12
64:10
65:9
66:7-14
66:20

Jeremiah
3:14-17
4:6-10
6:2
31:6
31:12
31:38-40
50:28
51:10
51:24
51:35-36

Joel
2:32
3:17-18

Amos
1:2

Obadiah
1:17
1:21

Micah
4:2-8

Zephaniah
3:11-17

Zechariah
2:7
2:10
8:2-3
14:20-21

Revelation
14:1

Millennium, Temple
Isaiah
2:2
60:7
62:9
63:18
64:11
66:1
66:6
66:20

Jeremiah
23:11
26:18
27:19-22
33:18
50:28
51:51

Ezekiel
37:26-28
40:2-47:12
47:12-48:35

Daniel
8:11-14
8:26
9:26-27
11:31

Hosea
9:4

Joel
1:9
1:13
1:16
3:18

Micah
1:2
3:12
4:1

Habakkuk
2:20

Zephaniah
3:4

Haggai
2:7
2:9

Zechariah
2:13
6:12-15
14:16-21

Luke
21:5-9

2nd Thessalonians
2:4

Revelation
11:1-2

Moab
Isaiah
11:14
15:1-16:13
25:10-12

Jeremiah25:21

Daniel
11:41

Amos
2:1-3

Nations
Isaiah
8:9-10
14:24-27
17:7-14
18:3-6
24:1-13
24:16-22
33:3-4
34:1-3
41:1
43:9
51:4-5
60:11-12
60:16
66:19-20

Jeremiah
10:10-11
10:25
25:15-38
51:7
51:27-28
51:41
51:44

Ezekiel
36:3-7
36:15
36:19-24
36:30
36:36
38:23
39:7
39:23

Hosea
7:8-9
8:8
8:10
9:17
10:10

Joel
2:6
2:17
2:19
3:1-3
3:9-14

Obadiah
1:16

Micah
1:2
4:11
4:13
5:7-9
6:16
7:16-18

Habakkuk
2:13

Zephaniah
2:11
3:6
3:8-9

Haggai
2:22

Zechariah
2:11
2:13
8:22-23
12:3-6
12:9
14:2-3
14:12-16
14:18-19

Matthew
24:7
24:9
24:14
25:31-46

Mark
13:8-13

Luke
21:9-10
21:20-?
21:24
21:35

Revelation
10:11
11:2
11:9-10
11:15
11:18
14:6
16:14
16:19
17:2
17:8
17:15
17:18
18:3
18:9-11
18:14-19
19:15
19:17-19
20:3
20:8-9

New Heaven and New Earth
Isaiah
65:17-18
66:22-24

Matthew
5:17-18

John
14:2-3

Hebrews
11:10
11:13-16
13:14

2nd Peter
3:12-13

Revelation
2:7
2:11
2:17
3:12
21:1-7
21:9-22:15
22:19

Persia
Ezekiel
38:5

Daniel
2:32
2:35
2:39-40
2:44-45
8:3-4
8:6-7
8:20
11:2
11:5-12
11:14-15
11:17
11:25-27
11:29
11:40

Revelation
6:2

Philistines
Isaiah
9:12
11:14
14:28-32

Joel
3:4-8

Amos
1:6-8
3:9
6:2
9:7

Obadiah
1:19-20

Zephaniah
2:4-7
9:5-7

Phoenicia, Canaan?
Isaiah
23:11
25:20

Places
Shihor Isaiah 23:3 Egypt
Kedar Isaiah 42:11; 60:7 A son of Ismael, the tribe
Sela Isaiah 42:11 Same as Selah capital of Edom
Seba Isaiah 43:3 See Sabeans, Sheba S.W. Arabia
Aswan Isaiah 49:12 Sinim, an un-specified people
Midian Isaiah 60:6; Habakkuk 3:7 A nation on boarder of Israel
Ephah Isaiah 60:6 A son of Midan
Nebaioth Isaiah 60:7A descendant of Ismael
Sharon Isaiah 65:10A city of Gad
Valley of Achor Isaiah 65:10A valley near Jericho
Sheba Jeremiah 25:23; Ezekiel 38:13 S.W. Arabia
Uz Jeremiah 25:20A son of Aram
Coastlands across
the sea Jeremiah 25:22
Dedan Jeremiah 25:23A district between Sela and Salt Sea
Tema Jeremiah 25:23 A city in northern Arabia
Buz Jeremiah 25:23A tribe in northern Arabia
All who are in
distant places Jeremiah 25:23
All the people who
live in the desert Jeremiah 25:24
Zimri Jeremiah 25:25 An unspecified place
Land of Merathiam Jeremiah 50:21 Babylon
Pekod Jeremiah 50:21Babylon
Ararat Jeremiah 51:27 A district in Armenia
Minni Jeremiah 51:27 a district in Armenia
Ashkenaz Jeremiah 51:27
Mechech Ezekiel 38:2
Tubal Ezekiel 38:2
Gomer Ezekiel 38:6
Beth Togarmah Ezekiel 38:6
Nubians Daniel 11:43
Sabeans Joel 3:8 S.W. Arabia
Kir Amos 1:5, 9:7
Calneh Amos 6:2
Hamath Amos 6:2
Zarephath Obadiah 1:20
Teman Habakkuk 3:3 Edom
Canaanites Zechariah 14:21

Put
Ezekiel
38:5

Nahum
3:9

The Resurrection
Ezekiel 37:1-14

Daniel
12:2-3
12:13

Matthew
22:28-32

Mark
12:23-27

Luke
20:34-39

John
5:28-29
6:39-40
6:446:54

Acts
17:18
24:15

Romans
8:23

1st Corinthians
6:14
15:12-18
15:20-23
15:29
15:35-58

Ephesians
4:30

Philippians
3:11
3:20

2nd Timothy
2:18

Hebrews
6:1-2
11:35
11:40

Revelation
20:4-6

From the rising of the Sun
Isaiah
59:19

Shihor?
Isaiah 23:3

The South
Isaiah
43:6

Zechariah
9:14

Matthew
12:42

Luke
13:29

Specials
Isaiah
5:26-30
41:17-29
54:17

Jeremiah
51:20-23

Ezekiel
37:1-14

Daniel
2:28-31
7:2-6
7:12
7:17
7:23
10:11
10:14

Malachi
3:1-5

Matthew
13:37-43
13:47-5024:22

Mark
14:25

Romans
8:34
11:25-26

1st Corinthians
7:31
13:2
13:8-10
14:1
14:3-6

Hebrews
8:8-13
10:13

2nd Peter
1:19-21

1st John
4:3

Revelation
1:6
4:1
6:5-6
7:1-8
8:6-9:21
10:1-6
10:8-11
14:1-6
14:13
15:1
15:6-14
16:16-21
17:9
17:10
20:1-320:7-10

Tarshish
Isaiah
23:1
23:10
23:14
60:7
66:19

Ezekiel
38:13

Throne of God

Revelation
3:21
4:2-6:1
7:9-17
11:15-19
15:1-16:1
19:1-8

Time References
Isaiah
23:15-18
42:14

Jeremiah
23:12

Daniel
8:13-14
8:17
8:19
8:26
9:25
9:27
12:7
12:11
12:12

Hosea
6:2

Micah
5:3

Haggai
2:6

Matthew
24:29
25:5

Mark
13:20

Luke
21:28-32

Acts
1:7
17:26

1st Thessalonians
5:1-4

1st Peter
4:7

Revelation
1:19
10:6
11:2-3
12:6
12:14
13:5
14:7
20:720:10
20:12

Tribulation
Isaiah
18:3-6
25:1-5
26:20-21
40:6-8
42:14-17

Joel
2:28-32

Habakkuk
2:2-3

Zephaniah
1:2-3

Matthew 24:2-14
24:32-35

Mark
13:1-13
21:6-9

Acts
2:17-21

1st Timothy
4:1-3

2nd Timothy
3:1-9
4:3-4

2nd Peter
2:1-3
2:10-22
3:3-5
3:15

1st John
2:18-19

Jude
1:17-19

Revelation
6:5-6
6:9-11
13:9-10
15:1
15:6-14

Trumpet
Isaiah
18:3
27:13

Jeremiah
4:21
6:1
6:17

Hosea
5:8
8:1

Joel
2:1
2:15

Amos
2:2
3:6

Zechariah9:14
10:8

Matthew
24:30-31

1st Thessalonians
4:11
Revelation
8:6-9:21
10:7
11:15

Tubal
Isaiah
66:19

Ezekiel
38:2

The West
Isaiah
24:14
49:12
59:19

Daniel
8:5

Hosea
11:10

Zechariah
8:7

Matthew
8:11
24:27

Luke
13:29

Scriptures are taken from the:
The Holy Bible, New International Version. Pradis CD-ROM

Contenau, Georges, Everyday Life in Babylon and Assyria, New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1954, pg 166

Wycliffe Bible Dictionary. Publisher: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.
Pub. Date: January 1988

Poj. Proverbs of james. Copyright 200, James Wood

Non-copyright maps, provided freely by The University of Texas,

At That Time... Chapter 8 and 9

2008-09-26T20:38:00.000-07:00

At That Time
Chapter 8
New Heavens and New Earth

When God creates the New Heaven and The New earth we read in Revelations that

Rev 21:1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.
Rev 21:2 I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.
Rev 21:3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.
Rev 21:4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
Rev 21:5 He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”
Rev 21:6 He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life.
Rev 21:7 He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son.
Rev 21:8 But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”
Rev 21:9 One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.”
Rev 21:10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.
Rev 21:11 It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal.
Rev 21:12 It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel.
Rev 21:13 There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south and three on the west.
Rev 21:14 The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
Rev 21:15 The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city, its gates and its walls.
Rev 21:16 The city was laid out like a square, as long as it was wide. He measured the city with the rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia in length, and as wide and high as it is long.
Rev 21:17 He measured its wall and it was 144 cubits thick, by man’s measurement, which the angel was using.
Rev 21:18 The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass.
Rev 21:19 The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald,
Rev 21:20 the fifth sardonyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst.
Rev 21:21 The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of pure gold, like transparent glass.
Rev 21:22 I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.
Rev 21:23 The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp.
Rev 21:24 The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it.
Rev 21:25 On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there.
Rev 21:26 The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it.
Rev 21:27 Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

Rev 22:1 Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb
Rev 22:2 down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.
Rev 22:3 No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him.
Rev 22:4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.
Rev 22:5 There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.
Rev 22:6 The angel said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place.”

God will create a glorious new world with a glorious city, the New Jerusalem. The world will have no sea. It appears that the new world will be massive. The height of the New Jerusalem being approximately 1400 miles high or 7,392,000 feet high. Wow, but wait. Think about this for a moment. People that climb Mount Everest can die when climbing it from altitude sickness and it is only 29,029 feet high. People who travel up to 400,000 feet are considered astronauts. Now the top of the New Jerusalem is around 18 times the height of what we consider to be outer space. Picture Mount Everest. Now, take one Mount Everest and stack it on top of another Mount Everest and keep stacking Mount Everest on top of them until you have 254 Mount Everest staked on top of each other then you are getting close to the height of the New Jerusalem. Wow. The city is massive. Plus it is 1400 miles wide and long. It extends almost from the border of Mexico to Canada and is as wide as half the United States.
Now the city might be that high because the city actually comes down like a garments or tiara and lays over the great and high mountain that John sees in verse 10. The city may only actually be only one level per se, but it may have buildings on it that are multi floored. And our rewards for work here on earth may also consist of how up the mountain we live. Why I say this is God loves cities on mountains. The mountain that the New Jerusalem sits on may be a symbolic picture of Jesus. This is conjecture but it is sure fun to think about.
Another interesting aspect of outside the city is the lake of fire. We read in Isaiah 66

Isa 66:22 “As the new heavens and the new earth that I make will endure before me,” declares the LORD, “so will your name and descendants endure.
Isa 66:23 From one New Moon to another and from one Sabbath to another, all mankind will come and bow down before me,” says the LORD.
Isa 66:24 “And they will go out and look upon the dead bodies of those who rebelled against me; their worm will not die, nor will their fire be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind.”

Here is Isaiah God is talking about the New Earth and the New Jerusalem. In Revelation 22 Scripture states that the New Jerusalem does not need the sun or the moon, but in Isaiah 66 Scripture declares that all mankind will bow down before God every Sabbath and every New Moon. Scripture shows that there is a sun and a moon circling the New Earth, yet the New Jerusalem won’t need them. They are not an intrinsic need because God is its light.
Also every Sabbath and New Moon we will have church for all eternity, with all mankind. This also comes against our belief system that we will spend all eternity with God in Heaven. Not so, for God will spend all eternity with us on the New Earth he has created. A lot of unbelievers and Christians think heaven is going to be a boring place, and they may be right, for nobody will be there. We will all live on the New Earth. So, eternity will be spent on a physical planet with a sun and a moon, days and months, rivers and lakes, plants and trees.
Now here is an interesting passage. Look at the end of the verse in Revelation 22:2 about the tree of life. ‘And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.’ Contemplate with me for a moment. All the judgments are passed, everyone is in their finally place in eternity and all sickness and wounds are healed and yet we have the tree of life here for the healing of the nations. So, will there be nations outside the city gate? And is that why there is a wall around the city?
Does this mean many will be saved, yet many of us (mankind and Christians) will spend the eternity never entering into the Great City of God? Will many of us be allowed into the city? But…

Rev 21:24 The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it.
Rev 21:25 On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there.
Rev 21:26 The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it.

This Scripture shows that there will be glory, honor, and splendor outside the great city, for the glory and splendor of the nations will be brought into the New Jerusalem.

In the historical interpretation of Biblical prophecy, the historical interpreters tend to have a mind set that God speaks in quick short sentences, and therefore interpret scripture a piece of this scripture means this and a piece of that same passage means that. But, what if, God actually speaks not in short sentences of a verse or two, but in full paragraphs and pages. I would like you to consider that as you read the next paragraph and take the passage as a whole. Is this a paragraph of what the new heavens and new earth shall be like? Is this passage refuting the ideology that so many believers and non-believers have about heaven that it will be boring; all we do is sit on clouds with harps and praise God for all eternity. Therefore read and be perplexed, I know I am. For, God starts out with telling us exactly what He is talking about in the first sentence, the new heavens and new earth.

Isa 65:17 “Behold, I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind.
Isa 65:18 But be glad and rejoice forever in what I will create, for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight and its people a joy.
Isa 65:19 I will rejoice over Jerusalem and take delight in my people; the sound of weeping and of crying will be heard in it no more.
Isa 65:20 “Never again will there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not live out his years; he who dies at a hundred will be thought a mere youth; he who fails to reach a hundred will be considered accursed.
Isa 65:21 They will build houses and dwell in them; they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
Isa 65:22 No longer will they build houses and others live in them, or plant and others eat. For as the days of a tree, so will be the days of my people; my chosen ones will long enjoy the works of their hands.
Isa 65:23 They will not toil in vain or bear children doomed to misfortune; for they will be a people blessed by the LORD, they and their descendants with them.
Isa 65:24 Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear.
Isa 65:25 The wolf and the lamb will feed together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox, but dust will be the serpent’s food. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain,” says the LORD.

Verse 20 especially gets me, I don’t know what you have been taught, I know what I have been taught, but Scripture refutes that teaching. Is there another age of men after the millennium, in the new heavens and new earth. There is a Scripture we are all familiar with and does it support this theory.

Isa 9:7 Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end.

Scripture says there will be no end to the increase of his government. How do governments increase? Governments increase by the increase of the population.

Isa 9:6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Isa 9:7 Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.

Pr 14:28 A large population is a king’s glory, but without subjects a prince is ruined.

The new heavens and the new earth will definitely not be dull. Do we have a dull God? I don’t know about you, but I have found that God is anything but dull. He is very creative. God likes to blow mankind’s mind at times. Look at what Jesus told the Jews.

Jn 6:53 Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.

Jesus might say something in our day and age, like, unless you are cannibalistic and suck my blood and feast on my flesh you have no life in you. I know I would think something like, ‘What is this teacher starting. a vampiric religion. AHHHH, RUNNNN! God likes to keep us on our toes. I think He does that to keep us from falling asleep, for who can fall asleep when their on their toes. So, God likes to break us out of our religious boxes by blowing our minds. I know he does this, because he and has done it to me quite a few times, especially while write this book.

1Co 2:9 However, as it is written: “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him”—
1Co 2:10 but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit.

Am 3:7 Surely the Sovereign LORD does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets.
Am 3:8 The lion has roared—who will not fear? The Sovereign LORD has spoken—who can but prophesy?

Scripture says that there will be no night there. When it says this will there be no night in the New Jerusalem, but there will be night in other places on that world.

Mt 8:11 I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.
Mt 8:12 But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Is there a place on the New Earth were no light shines or very little. Let’s contemplate. Let’s say the New Jerusalem is located at the top of the world, I.E. the North Pole, or the South Pole if you are Australian. The Sun travels around the earth above the equator, and never dips below the equatorial line. This means that their might be a place on the new world where it is always night, like Alaska in the winter. And your lot is set for all eternity, depending on who you did here on earth. You might actually spend all eternity in a land that is covered in darkness or twilight all the days of the year. Jesus is talking about the feast of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and this will probably happen in New Jerusalem, yet the wicked will be thrown outside. Outside what? Outside the city, New Jerusalem. Jesus said there is a place of darkness.

Jn 8:12 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Peter and John confirm this spiritual reality.

2Pe 2:17 These men are springs without water and mists driven by a storm. Blackest darkness is reserved for them.

1Jn 2:11 But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness; he does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded him.

How we walk here on Earth is where we will end up on the New Earth. If we are pure and holy we will have access to the New Jerusalem. If we are saved, yet minimally intimate with God we will be outside. If we are evil to what ever extent we may live in lands of twilight or darkness. There are varying degrees of this darkness, for Peter says that the darkest blackness is reserved for them. Then just outside of the New Jerusalem, there is a place for the angels, men, and the devil.

Isa 66:24 “And they will go out and look upon the dead bodies of those who rebelled against me; their worm will not die, nor will their fire be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind.”

The previous verse is a description of the lake of fire. It is also outside the city, yet still on the New World that God has created.

I know I have thought that I would spend all eternity in Heaven, and then in another place, dimension, or galaxy far, far, away was the lake of fire. Yet, it seems all the angels and all mankind are destined to spend eternity on this New World, either in the New Jerusalem, the nations outside of it, the outer darkness, or in the lake of fire. So, salvation may not be just ‘your-in-or-your-out’. But, salvation may mean salvation from the lake of fire and the sorrows of the outer darkness, but let us desire to be intimate with God here on earth so we may be intimate with him in the Great City of New Jerusalem.

At that Time…
Chapter 9
To those who want to go deeper…
Timeline

At the beginning of Daniel chapter 9 we are given a time reference as to when Daniel gets this vision and understanding.

Da 9:1 In the first year of Darius son of Xerxes (a Mede by descent), who was made ruler over the Babylonian kingdom—
Da 9:2 in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, understood from the Scriptures, according to the word of the LORD given to Jeremiah the prophet, that the desolation of Jerusalem would last seventy years.

The first year of Darius’ reign was 539-538 B.C. First of all, Daniel had gained understanding from Scripture that the desolation of Jerusalem would last seventy years. Scripture says Daniel is a prophet and a diligent student of Scripture. He gets a time reference of how long in the future that Jerusalem’s destruction would last. Knowing that the fall of Jerusalem happened in 605 by the time reference that Daniel gives in Daniel chapter one verse one

Da 1:1 In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it.

The destruction of Jerusalem happened in 605 B.C. and Daniel chapter 9 happens in 539-538 B.C. we know by subtraction that the destruction of Israel has only three to four years to go till it is restored. Daniel at that time was close to his late seventies.

With the time date of 605 B.C. minus the seventy years that the destruction of Jerusalem was to last, that was declared by the prophet Jeremiah, the end of the seventy year destruction of Jerusalem lasted until 535 B.C. So, was the issuing of the decree to rebuild and restore Israel proclaimed by Jeremiah the prophet in 605 B.C. that in 535B.c it was no longer a destroyed city and could be rebuilt? So, if that was the issuing of the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem then following the principles of the the historical interpretation, Daniel chapter 9 's description of our Savior being destroyed should have happened in; 535 B.C. plus (plus, since B.C. is a negative number) 483 years equals B.C 52. We know that Christ was not born for at least another 45 years. There is a discrepancy on when Christ was actually born. The birth of Christ was supposedly happen somewhere between 7 B.C. and 2 A.D. and Jesus supposedly lived 33 years. So, this could not be the fulfillment of Scripture

When we look at the decrees to rebuild Jerusalem by Artaxerxes in 444 B.C. [?] plus 483 years (69 x7) equals the year 39 A.D. would be when our Savior according to the historical interpretation should have died. But, the New Testament church was already in full swing at that time. Now if Christ died in between 26 A.D. and 33 A.D. then the issue of the decree had to happen sometime between 457 and 450 A.D. which it did not. Some people talk about the Jewish calendar and say there is a discrepancy on years, because the Jewish calender only has 360 days in it. Yet, the Jews make up for it by adding an extra month every six [?] years.

Da 9:1 In the first year of Darius son of Xerxes (a Mede by descent), who was made ruler over the Babylonian kingdom—
Da 9:2 in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, understood from the Scriptures, according to the word of the LORD given to Jeremiah the prophet, that the desolation of Jerusalem would last seventy years.
Da 9:3 So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes.
Da 9:4 I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed:

“O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with all who love him and obey his commands,
Da 9:5 we have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws.
Da 9:6 We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our fathers, and to all the people of the land.
Da 9:7 “Lord, you are righteous, but this day we are covered with shame—the men of Judah and people of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far, in all the countries where you have scattered us because of our unfaithfulness to you.
Da 9:8 O LORD, we and our kings, our princes and our fathers are covered with shame because we have sinned against you.
Da 9:9 The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him;
Da 9:10 we have not obeyed the LORD our God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets.
Da 9:11 All Israel has transgressed your law and turned away, refusing to obey you. “Therefore the curses and sworn judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against you.
Da 9:12 You have fulfilled the words spoken against us and against our rulers by bringing upon us great disaster. Under the whole heaven nothing has ever been done like what has been done to Jerusalem.
Da 9:13 Just as it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come upon us, yet we have not sought the favor of the LORD our God by turning from our sins and giving attention to your truth.
Da 9:14 The LORD did not hesitate to bring the disaster upon us, for the LORD our God is righteous in everything he does; yet we have not obeyed him.
Da 9:15 “Now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of Egypt with a mighty hand and who made for yourself a name that endures to this day, we have sinned, we have done wrong.
Da 9:16 O Lord, in keeping with all your righteous acts, turn away your anger and your wrath from Jerusalem, your city, your holy hill. Our sins and the iniquities of our fathers have made Jerusalem and your people an object of scorn to all those around us.
Da 9:17 “Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, O Lord, look with favor on your desolate sanctuary.
Da 9:18 Give ear, O God, and hear; open your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears your Name. We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy.
Da 9:19 O Lord, listen! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, hear and act! For your sake, O my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name.”

Da 9:20 While I was speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel and making my request to the LORD my God for his holy hill—
Da 9:21 while I was still in prayer, Gabriel, the man I had seen in the earlier vision, came to me in swift flight about the time of the evening sacrifice.
Da 9:22 He instructed me and said to me, “Daniel, I have now come to give you insight and understanding.
Da 9:23 As soon as you began to pray, an answer was given, which I have come to tell you, for you are highly esteemed. Therefore, consider the message and understand the vision:
Da 9:24 “Seventy ‘sevens’ are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy.
Da 9:25 “Know and understand this: From the issuing of the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One, the ruler, comes, there will be seven ‘sevens,’ and sixty-two ‘sevens.’ It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble.
Da 9:26 After the sixty-two ‘sevens,’ the Anointed One will be cut off and will have nothing. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed.
Da 9:27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’ In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on a wing of the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.’”

At that Time... Chapter 6 and 7

2008-09-26T20:36:00.000-07:00

Chapter 6
Babylon

One of the signs that we are getting very close to the end times is the rebuilding of the city of Babylon. Now many people think of Babylon as a mythical, ethereal place that could apply to Rome, the United States, Germany, or a system of merchants that is prevalent in the last days but what does God say. Scripture starts out with mentioning Babylon the first time in Genesis 10:9-10

Ge 10:9 He was a mighty hunter before the LORD; that is why it is said, “Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the LORD.”
Ge 10:10 The first centers of his kingdom were Babylon, Erech, Akkad and Calneh, in Shinar.

The very first city mentioned in Scripture is Babylon. The very last earthly city mentioned is Scripture is Babylon, Revelation 18:21

Rev 18:21 Then a mighty angel picked up a boulder the size of a large millstone and threw it into the sea, and said: “With such violence the great city of Babylon will be thrown down, never to be found again.

Looking at these two Scriptures the first city and the last city is Babylon. In Revelation 18:21 Scripture clearly declares that Babylon is an actual city. ‘With such violence the great city if Babylon…’ Also Revelation 18:10 states

Rev 18:10 Terrified at her torment, they will stand far off and cry: “ ‘Woe! Woe, O great city, O Babylon, city of power! In one hour your doom has come!’

Scripture clearly shows that Babylon is not the United States or for that fact any country, system of merchants, or any ethereal, allegorical, or symbolical, interpretation of Scripture.

If the first city is Babylon and the last city is Babylon it shows that our father is up to something. He is in a many age fight against some system of mankind’s authority that has existed for many, many, many, years.

As we have seen Babylon is the head of gold in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream in Daniel Chapter 2. Now, as the times of the end get closer one of the significant signs that we are closing in on the fulfillment of last days prophecy is the rebuilding of Babylon which lies 55 miles (85 Km.) south of Baghdad. So, what is God up to with the United States of America involvement in Iraq? Is He setting up Iraq to be in a position to fulfill end time prophecy? Or, is God hindering and delaying the end time count down? Hopefully the latter. Actually I thank God for whatever he is doing there, for all history, present and future events are in His hands and He is more than competent to fulfill His plans and purposes. In His love and wisdom let us trust and be at peace.

Even before Iran is separated into two countries, into Media and Persia, and takes the Middle East, the city of Babylon will start to be rebuilt and then become an economic powerhouse.

Many may say, “Oh Rome will be Babylon in the future.” But, if we look at all the different cities listed in Scripture, god does not make any of them metaphorical, especially when speaking about end time prophecy. Scripture is very clear and God wants it very clear, so that when these things happen all mankind will have no confusion about that God foresaw it and planned it that way thousands of years ago.

The first earthly city was Babylon, and the last city talked about in Scripture is Babylon. This will be a beginning sign for many that the end times are getting even closer and closer.

At that Time…
Chapter 7
The Millennium

Daniel 2:44 “In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever.
Da 2:45 This is the meaning of the vision of the rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands—a rock that broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold to pieces. “The great God has shown the king what will take place in the future. The dream is true and the interpretation is trustworthy.”

Daniel 7:13 “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence.
Daniel 7:14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.

Daniel 7:25 He (the antichrist) will speak against the Most High and oppress his saints and try to change the set times and the laws. The saints will be handed over to him for a time, times and half a time.
Daniel 7:26 “‘But the court will sit, and his power will be taken away and completely destroyed forever.
Daniel 7:27 Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be handed over to the saints, the people of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him.’

Isaiah 9:6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Isaiah 9:7 Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.

The antichrist shall oppress the saints for three and a half years, and then our Lord Jesus shall return with the clouds of heaven (Daniel 7:13) and He will destroy the kingdoms of this world (Daniel 2:44) and shall set up the kingdom of God which has been given to him (Daniel 7:14). This kingdom will be ruled from King David’s throne (Isaiah 9:7) in Jerusalem. The court will sit (singular) and the antichrist will be judged and cast into the lake of fire (Revelation 19:20).

Daniel 12:2 Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt.
Daniel 12:3 Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.

Revelation 20:4 I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony for Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or his image and had not received his mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
Rev 20:5 (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection.
Rev 20:6 Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.

Ezekiel 37:11-14 Then he said to me: “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.’
Ezekiel 37:12 Therefore prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: O my people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel.
Ezekiel 37:13 Then you, my people, will know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves and bring you up from them.
Ezekiel 37:14 I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the LORD have spoken, and I have done it, declares the LORD.’ ”

Luke 19:11 While they were listening to this, he went on to tell them a parable, because he was near Jerusalem and the people thought that the kingdom of God was going to appear at once.
Luke 19:12 He said: “A man of noble birth went to a distant country to have himself appointed king and then to return.
Luke 19:13 So he called ten of his servants and gave them ten minas. ‘Put this money to work,’ he said, ‘until I come back.’
Luke 19:14 “But his subjects hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, ‘We don’t want this man to be our king.’
Luke 19:15 “He was made king, however, and returned home. Then he sent for the servants to whom he had given the money, in order to find out what they had gained with it.
Luke 19:16 “The first one came and said, ‘Sir, your mina has earned ten more.’
Luke 19:17 “ ‘Well done, my good servant!’ his master replied. ‘Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter, take charge of ten cities.’
Luke 19:18“The second came and said, ‘Sir, your mina has earned five more.’
Luke 19:19 “His master answered, ‘You take charge of five cities.’
Luke 19:20 “Then another servant came and said, ‘Sir, here is your mina; I have kept it laid away in a piece of cloth.
Luke 19:21 I was afraid of you, because you are a hard man. You take out what you did not put in and reap what you did not sow.’
Luke 19:22 “His master replied, ‘I will judge you by your own words, you wicked servant! You knew, did you, that I am a hard man, taking out what I did not put in, and reaping what I did not sow?
Luke 19:23 Why then didn’t you put my money on deposit, so that when I came back, I could have collected it with interest?’
Luke 19:24 “Then he said to those standing by, ‘Take his mina away from him and give it to the one who has ten minas.’
Luke 19:25 “ ‘Sir,’ they said, ‘he already has ten!’
Luke 19:26 “He replied, ‘I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but as for the one who has nothing, even what he has will be taken away.
Luke 19:27 But those enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them—bring them here and kill them in front of me.’ ”

At the time of the coming of the Son of Man, He will trample the nations in his wrath. Then he will resurrect both the Israelites (Ezekiel 37:11-14) and believers (1 Corinthians 15:23), judge both, and some will be rewarded, while some will be put to shame. The wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens (Daniel 12:2-3). Not only will the Israelites and believers be judged, but the antichrist and the false prophet will be judged also. Then those who are still alive after the wrath of God has passed will be judged.

Matthew 25:31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory.
Matthew 25:32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.

Mathew 25:46 “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

The antichrist and the false prophet are throne into the lake of fire, at that time those who (Israelites, believers, and unbelievers), are judged and condemned will go into the lake of fire (Revelation 19:20), or into outer darkness (Matthew 25:30). The parable of the sheep and the goats (Matthew 24:31-46) is not a parable (picture) of judgment of the servants of God. That event is shown in the previous parable (Matthew 25:14-30). Specifically look at the description of who is judged in Matthew 25:32, “All the nations”, are those who are alive at that time. Are “all the nations” the believers? The answer is no. “All the nations” are those who are alive at that time. Plus, look at their responses to the Lord’s questions. “Lord, when did we see you hungry….” Probably 85% of righteous believers know this parable specifically. If these were believers, the Lord would say to them, “come, you who are blessed by my Father, take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world”. “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat…” The believers would think, Oh! I know this parable. Wow, we are living in the fulfillment of the prophecy of God’s word and they would probably join in with the Lord in unison, “I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink….” By the time the Lord was done the 85% or so, would have probably joined in the chorus. This prophetic scenario is only logical if, as it says in Matthew 25: 32, that these sheep and goats are the unbelieving nations. This is in no way saying you can get into the kingdom of heaven by rejecting the gospel and then doing good works. For what ever reason these are judged on the merits of good works towards the believing outcasts of the society, at that time…

As a side note, look at the descriptions of the sufferings of the believers during the tribulation, “I was hungry…, I was thirsty…., I was a stranger…, I needed clothes….., I was sick…, I was in prison…, As you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did it for me.” For my brothers and sisters in the Lord, if you are suffering and hurting, sick or in prison, Jesus suffers with you and is in you. Christ in you, the hope of Glory! Colossian 1:27. Never fear, Jesus is near.

During and after the resurrection and the judgment, our Lord is in the process of setting up his kingdom. First, he has resurrected and rewarded his saints. He has given them responsibilities during the millennium (Luke 19:17). This may seem very shadowy and non-descriptive, but this is the fulfillment of God’s promise to Abraham.

Genesis 15:7 He also said to him, “I am the LORD, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it.”

But, Hebrews says:

Hebrews 11:8 By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.
Hebrews 11:9 By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise.
Hebrews 11:10 For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.

Hebrews 11:13 All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth.

Abraham never did take possession of the promise land. He only lived there as a stranger and alien. The only land that is recorded that Abraham owned was the land around the grave of his wife, himself, and sons.

Genesis 23:4 “I am an alien and a stranger among you. Sell me some property for a burial site here so I can bury my dead.”

This is not considered taking possession of the promise land. At the resurrection, Abraham, our father in the faith, shall take possession of the promise land. Daniel shall be there also.

Daniel 12:13 “As for you, go your way till the end. You will rest, and then at the end of the days you will rise to receive your allotted inheritance. ”

And king David…

Hosea 3:5 Afterward the Israelites will return and seek the LORD their God and David their king. They will come trembling to the LORD and to his blessings in the last days.

King David shall be there. King David has a very special place and position during the millennium. Not only shall Kind David of old be there, but many of the biblical characters shall be there.

Ezekiel 34:11 “ ‘For this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I myself will search for my sheep and look after them.

Ezekiel 37:15 The word of the LORD came to me:
Ezekiel 37:16 “Son of man, take a stick of wood and write on it, ‘Belonging to Judah and the Israelites associated with him.’ Then take another stick of wood, and write on it, ‘Ephraim’s stick, belonging to Joseph and all the house of Israel associated with him.’
Ezekiel 37:17 Join them together into one stick so that they will become one in your hand.
Ezekiel 37:18 “When your countrymen ask you, ‘Won’t you tell us what you mean by this?’
Ezekiel 37:19 say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am going to take the stick of Joseph—which is in Ephraim’s hand—and of the Israelite tribes associated with him, and join it to Judah’s stick, making them a single stick of wood, and they will become one in my hand.’
Ezekiel 37:20 Hold before their eyes the sticks you have written on
Ezekiel 37:21 and say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will take the Israelites out of the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from all around and bring them back into their own land.
Ezekiel 37:22 I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel. There will be one king over all of them and they will never again be two nations or be divided into two kingdoms.
Ezekiel 37:23 They will no longer defile themselves with their idols and vile images or with any of their offenses, for I will save them from all their sinful backsliding, and I will cleanse them. They will be my people, and I will be their God.
Ezekiel 37:24 “ ‘My servant David will be king over them, and they will all have one shepherd. They will follow my laws and be careful to keep my decrees.
Ezekiel 37:25 They will live in the land I gave to my servant Jacob, the land where your fathers lived. They and their children and their children’s children will live there forever, and David my servant will be their prince forever.
Ezekiel 37:26 I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be an everlasting covenant. I will establish them and increase their numbers, and I will put my sanctuary among them forever.
Ezekiel 37:27 My dwelling place will be with them; I will be their God, and they will be my people.
Ezekiel 37:28 Then the nations will know that I the LORD make Israel holy, when my sanctuary is among them forever. ’ ”

King David shall be resurrected and receive his inheritance during the millennium. He shall be the king of Israel and the world ruler under the headship of Christ Jesus.
During that time there shall be many kings and priests, but king David shall be honored above all the others. He shall be the prince of the kings (Ezekiel 34:28), with Jesus as the King of kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 19:16).

Once again the sanctuary of God shall be established in Jerusalem (Ezekiel 37:26-28). But, what of this sanctuary, is it described anywhere? Oh yes, read Ezekiel 40:1 through Ezekiel 48:35.

We know this is the millennium temple. In Ezekiel chapter 47 it talks about a river that flows from under the south side of the temple (Ezekiel 47:1) towards the east, down into the dead sea and makes the salt water fresh and inhabitable for life (Ezekiel 47:8-9). This has not happened yet in history. No river has ever run out from out under any temple of Jerusalem of the Most High God. This can not be referring to a river coming out of a temple in the New Jerusalem. For one, the two cities are vastly different in size (Ezekiel 48:30-35, Revelation 21:16). And number two, the New Jerusalem does not have a temple in it (Revelation 21:22). This temple described in Ezekiel 40:1 through 48:35 is the temple of the millennium.
The one thing that flabbergasted me in Ezekiel chapters 40-48 was that in being a Christian, being under grace, and knowing that Jesus was the final and complete sacrifice for sin, in the middle of describing the millennial temple we read:

Ezekiel 44:15 “ ‘But the priests, who are Levites and descendants of Zadok and who faithfully carried out the duties of my sanctuary when the Israelites went astray from me, are to come near to minister before me; they are to stand before me to offer sacrifices of fat and blood, declares the Sovereign LORD.

During the millennium God re-establishes sacrifices and offerings. I thought, “Whoa! Wait a minute. Something is wrong! Halt! Stop!” It totally blew my mind. The problem is not in the will and plan of God for the millennium, but in my perception of the millennial kingdom and its functions. Learning that God is going to re-establish sacrifices and offering by the Levites in the millennium changed my thinking radically in two ways.
First of all, I had this perception that the Christian form of the church would be the world ruling party in the millennium and beyond. Ah, but alas, no. We are but a wild olive shoot grated in. A lot of this bickering over Christian denominational dominance is hog-wash. For, in the millennium it will neither be Protestant nor Catholic, but Israeli. Praise be to the unfathomable wisdom of God. God has humbled our pride. For, he has rejected all our denominations. But, He accepts any of us who will repent, believe and submit to our Lord Jesus, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the God of Israel.

The second thing that radically changed my thinking, is the form in which the social structure of millennium would take. The age of grace would come to an end and the Old Testament law would be reestablished in its full and completeness.

Isaiah 2:1 This is what Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem:
Isaiah 2:2 In the last days the mountain of the LORD'S temple will be established as chief among the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and all nations will stream to it.
Isaiah 2:3 Many peoples will come and say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths.” The law will go out from Zion, the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
Isaiah 2:4 He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore.

Isaiah 42:4 He will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth. In his law the islands will put their hope.”

Not only will the law be established in Israel, but the law will be established through out the whole world, for the kingdom of God shall be established throughout the whole world.

My friends, every little thing we do here has consequences and rewards for a specific period of time during the millennium. Jesus said “since you have been faithful with very little, I will put you in charge of much.”
Luke 19:16 “The first one came and said, ‘Sir, your mina has earned ten more.’
Luke 19:17 “‘Well done, my good servant!’ his master replied. ‘Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter, take charge of ten cities.’

Is the previous passage a parable of a prophetic statement Jesus proclaims because he sees the future? Well we know we are going to reign with Him a thousand years

Rev 20:6 Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.

Rev 5:9b “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation.
Rev 5:10 You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.”

And we will reign in our glorified bodies

Daniel 12:3 Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.

And we will reign over nations that are still in their mortal bodies.

Isa 11:6 The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them.
Isa 11:7 The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox.
Isa 11:8 The infant will play near the hole of the cobra, and the young child put his hand into the viper’s nest.
Isa 11:9 They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.
Isa 11:10 In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his place of rest will be glorious.

During the millennium there will be children, new births joy and laughter.

Isa 25:6 On this mountain the LORD Almighty will prepare a feast of rich food for all peoples, a banquet of aged wine—the best of meats and the finest of wines.
Isa 25:7 On this mountain he will destroy the shroud that enfolds all peoples, the sheet that covers all nations;
Isa 25:8 he will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign LORD will wipe away the tears from all faces; he will remove the disgrace of his people from all the earth. The LORD has spoken.
Isa 25:9 In that day they will say, “Surely this is our God; we trusted in him, and he saved us. This is the LORD, we trusted in him; let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation.”

My brothers and sisters, if you are struggling with the big issues of life and you don’t seem to measure up; be faithful in what you can and do not forget to be faithful in the little things.

The years of the millennium will be glorious and wonderful. The Holy Spirit will restore the plant and animal life in the world. Here are some scriptures that are out of just Isaiah concerning the time of the millennium

Isa 4:2 In that day the Branch of the LORD will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the pride and glory of the survivors in Israel.

Isa 4:2 In that day the Branch of the LORD will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the pride and glory of the survivors in Israel.

Isa 5:17 Then sheep will graze as in their own pasture; lambs will feed among the ruins of the rich.

Isa 11:6 The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them.
Isa 11:7 The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox.
Isa 11:8 The infant will play near the hole of the cobra, and the young child put his hand into the viper’s nest.
Isa 11:9 They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.

Isa 29:17 In a very short time, will not Lebanon be turned into a fertile field and the fertile field seem like a forest?

Isa 30:23 He will also send you rain for the seed you sow in the ground, and the food that comes from the land will be rich and plentiful. In that day your cattle will graze in broad meadows.
Isa 30:24 The oxen and donkeys that work the soil will eat fodder and mash, spread out with fork and shovel.
Isa 30:25 In the day of great slaughter, when the towers fall, streams of water will flow on every high mountain and every lofty hill.
Isa 30:26 The moon will shine like the sun, and the sunlight will be seven times brighter, like the light of seven full days, when the LORD binds up the bruises of his people and heals the wounds he inflicted.

Isa 35:1 The desert and the parched land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and blossom. Like the crocus,
Isa 35:2 it will burst into bloom; it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon; they will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God.

Isa 35:3 Strengthen the feeble hands, steady the knees that give way;
Isa 35:4 say to those with fearful hearts, “Be strong, do not fear; your God will come, he will come with vengeance; with divine retribution he will come to save you.”

Isa 35:5 Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped.
Isa 35:6 Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy. Water will gush forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert.
Isa 35:7 The burning sand will become a pool, the thirsty ground bubbling springs. In the haunts where jackals once lay, grass and reeds and papyrus will grow.

Isa 35:8 And a highway will be there; it will be called the Way of Holiness. The unclean will not journey on it; it will be for those who walk in that Way; wicked fools will not go about on it.
Isa 35:9 No lion will be there, nor will any ferocious beast get up on it; they will not be found there. But only the redeemed will walk there,
Isa 35:10 and the ransomed of the LORD will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away.

Isa 41:19 I will put in the desert the cedar and the acacia, the myrtle and the olive. I will set pines in the wasteland, the fir and the cypress together,
Isa 41:20 so that people may see and know, may consider and understand, that the hand of the LORD has done this, that the Holy One of Israel has created it.

Isa 61:4 They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations.
Isa 61:5 Aliens will shepherd your flocks; foreigners will work your fields and vineyards.

Isa 65:10 Sharon will become a pasture for flocks, and the Valley of Achor a resting place for herds, for my people who seek me.

Isa 65:21 They will build houses and dwell in them; they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
Isa 65:22 No longer will they build houses and others live in them, or plant and others eat. For as the days of a tree, so will be the days of my people; my chosen ones will long enjoy the works of their hands.

Isa 66:20 And they will bring all your brothers, from all the nations, to my holy mountain in Jerusalem as an offering to the LORD—on horses, in chariots and wagons, and on mules and camels,” says the LORD.

This time will be wonderful and glorious. God will restore the lands. There will be streams flowing from every high mountain. Plants and animals, both wild and domestic will flourish. The culture will once again be set into an agricultural society. The lame will see and the lame will walk. There will be no war for a thousand years. Yet, there will be places that God leaves in ruins. Edom is southeast of Israel and lies on the other side of the Dead Sea. Here is what God says he will do to the land of Edom.

Isa 34:9 Edom’s streams will be turned into pitch, her dust into burning sulfur; her land will become blazing pitch!
Isa 34:10 It will not be quenched night and day; its smoke will rise forever. From generation to generation it will lie desolate; no one will ever pass through it again.
Isa 34:11 The desert owl and screech owl will possess it; the great owl and the raven will nest there. God will stretch out over Edom the measuring line of chaos and the plumb line of desolation.
Isa 34:12 Her nobles will have nothing there to be called a kingdom, all her princes will vanish away.
Isa 34:13 Thorns will overrun her citadels, nettles and brambles her strongholds. She will become a haunt for jackals, a home for owls.
Isa 34:14 Desert creatures will meet with hyenas, and wild goats will bleat to each other; there the night creatures will also repose and find for themselves places of rest.
Isa 34:15 The owl will nest there and lay eggs, she will hatch them, and care for her young under the shadow of her wings; there also the falcons will gather, each with its mate.
Isa 34:16 Look in the scroll of the LORD and read: None of these will be missing, not one will lack her mate. For it is his mouth that has given the order, and his Spirit will gather them together.
Isa 34:17 He allots their portions; his hand distributes them by measure. They will possess it forever and dwell there from generation to generation.

Just southeast from the mountains of Israel a person could look across the Dead Sea and see the smoke rising from generation to generation.

After a thousand years God will allow the devil who has been chained to roam free again.

Rev 20:1 And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain.
Rev 20:2 He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years.
Rev 20:3 He threw him into the Abyss, and locked and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time.

We tend to think that the millennium begins the New Heavens and New Earth will appear a thousand years later but this is not what scripture says. Scripture states that at the end of a thousand years satan will be released for a short time. How long is a short time to God? I don’t know. But after he is released he rallies the countries of Gog and Magog to attack Israel.

Rev 20:7 When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison
Rev 20:8 and will go out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth—Gog and Magog—to gather them for battle. In number they are like the sand on the seashore.
Rev 20:9 They marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of God’s people, the city he loves. But fire came down from heaven and devoured them.
Rev 20:10 And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

Scripture declares that the attacking of Israel happens at the end of the millennial reign of Christ. Not that his reign ever has an end. But, many people put the references of Ezekiel 38:1-39 about Gog and Magog attacking Israel before the beginning of the Tribulation period. But, as we will see there are no time references in Ezekiel 38 as to when this happens. The only time references in Scripture about Gog and Magog attacking Israel are in Revelation 20. And these two Scriptures are referring to the same event.

Eze 38:1 The word of the LORD came to me:
Eze 38:2 “Son of man, set your face against Gog, of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal; prophesy against him
Eze 38:3 and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal.
Eze 38:4 I will turn you around, put hooks in your jaws and bring you out with your whole army—your horses, your horsemen fully armed, and a great horde with large and small shields, all of them brandishing their swords.
Eze 38:5 Persia, Cush and Put will be with them, all with shields and helmets,
Eze 38:6 also Gomer with all its troops, and Beth Togarmah from the far north with all its troops—the many nations with you.
Eze 38:7 “ ‘Get ready; be prepared, you and all the hordes gathered about you, and take command of them.
Eze 38:8 After many days you will be called to arms. In future years you will invade a land that has recovered from war, whose people were gathered from many nations to the mountains of Israel, which had long been desolate. They had been brought out from the nations, and now all of them live in safety.
Eze 38:9 You and all your troops and the many nations with you will go up, advancing like a storm; you will be like a cloud covering the land.
Eze 38:10 “ ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: On that day thoughts will come into your mind and you will devise an evil scheme.
Eze 38:11 You will say, “I will invade a land of unwalled villages; I will attack a peaceful and unsuspecting people—all of them living without walls and without gates and bars.
Eze 38:12 I will plunder and loot and turn my hand against the resettled ruins and the people gathered from the nations, rich in livestock and goods, living at the center of the land.”
Eze 38:13 Sheba and Dedan and the merchants of Tarshish and all her villages will say to you, “Have you come to plunder? Have you gathered your hordes to loot, to carry off silver and gold, to take away livestock and goods and to seize much plunder?” ’
Eze 38:14 “Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say to Gog: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: In that day, when my people Israel are living in safety, will you not take notice of it?
Eze 38:15 You will come from your place in the far north, you and many nations with you, all of them riding on horses, a great horde, a mighty army.
Eze 38:16 You will advance against my people Israel like a cloud that covers the land. In days to come, O Gog, I will bring you against my land, so that the nations may know me when I show myself holy through you before their eyes.
Eze 38:17 “ ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Are you not the one I spoke of in former days by my servants the prophets of Israel? At that time they prophesied for years that I would bring you against them.
Eze 38:18 This is what will happen in that day: When Gog attacks the land of Israel, my hot anger will be aroused, declares the Sovereign LORD.
Eze 38:19 In my zeal and fiery wrath I declare that at that time there shall be a great earthquake in the land of Israel.
Eze 38:20 The fish of the sea, the birds of the air, the beasts of the field, every creature that moves along the ground, and all the people on the face of the earth will tremble at my presence. The mountains will be overturned, the cliffs will crumble and every wall will fall to the ground.
Eze 38:21 I will summon a sword against Gog on all my mountains, declares the Sovereign LORD. Every man’s sword will be against his brother.
Eze 38:22 I will execute judgment upon him with plague and bloodshed; I will pour down torrents of rain, hailstones and burning sulfur on him and on his troops and on the many nations with him.
Eze 38:23 And so I will show my greatness and my holiness, and I will make myself known in the sight of many nations. Then they will know that I am the LORD.’
Eze 39:1 “Son of man, prophesy against Gog and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal.
Eze 39:2 I will turn you around and drag you along. I will bring you from the far north and send you against the mountains of Israel.
Eze 39:3 Then I will strike your bow from your left hand and make your arrows drop from your right hand.
Eze 39:4 On the mountains of Israel you will fall, you and all your troops and the nations with you. I will give you as food to all kinds of carrion birds and to the wild animals.
Eze 39:5 You will fall in the open field, for I have spoken, declares the Sovereign LORD.
Eze 39:6 I will send fire on Magog and on those who live in safety in the coastlands, and they will know that I am the LORD.
Eze 39:7 “ ‘I will make known my holy name among my people Israel. I will no longer let my holy name be profaned, and the nations will know that I the LORD am the Holy One in Israel.
Eze 39:8 It is coming! It will surely take place, declares the Sovereign LORD. This is the day I have spoken of.
Eze 39:9 “ ‘Then those who live in the towns of Israel will go out and use the weapons for fuel and burn them up—the small and large shields, the bows and arrows, the war clubs and spears. For seven years they will use them for fuel.
Eze 39:10 They will not need to gather wood from the fields or cut it from the forests, because they will use the weapons for fuel. And they will plunder those who plundered them and loot those who looted them, declares the Sovereign LORD.
Eze 39:11 “ ‘On that day I will give Gog a burial place in Israel, in the valley of those who travel east toward the Sea. It will block the way of travelers, because Gog and all his hordes will be buried there. So it will be called the Valley of Hamon Gog.
Eze 39:12 “ ‘For seven months the house of Israel will be burying them in order to cleanse the land.
Eze 39:13 All the people of the land will bury them, and the day I am glorified will be a memorable day for them, declares the Sovereign LORD.
Eze 39:14 “ ‘Men will be regularly employed to cleanse the land. Some will go throughout the land and, in addition to them, others will bury those that remain on the ground. At the end of the seven months they will begin their search.
Eze 39:15 As they go through the land and one of them sees a human bone, he will set up a marker beside it until the gravediggers have buried it in the Valley of Hamon Gog.
Eze 39:16 (Also a town called Hamonah will be there.) And so they will cleanse the land.’
Eze 39:17 “Son of man, this is what the Sovereign LORD says: Call out to every kind of bird and all the wild animals: ‘Assemble and come together from all around to the sacrifice I am preparing for you, the great sacrifice on the mountains of Israel. There you will eat flesh and drink blood.
Eze 39:18 You will eat the flesh of mighty men and drink the blood of the princes of the earth as if they were rams and lambs, goats and bulls—all of them fattened animals from Bashan.
Eze 39:19 At the sacrifice I am preparing for you, you will eat fat till you are glutted and drink blood till you are drunk.
Eze 39:20 At my table you will eat your fill of horses and riders, mighty men and soldiers of every kind,’ declares the Sovereign LORD.
Eze 39:21 “I will display my glory among the nations, and all the nations will see the punishment I inflict and the hand I lay upon them.
Eze 39:22 From that day forward the house of Israel will know that I am the LORD their God.
Eze 39:23 And the nations will know that the people of Israel went into exile for their sin, because they were unfaithful to me. So I hid my face from them and handed them over to their enemies, and they all fell by the sword.
Eze 39:24 I dealt with them according to their uncleanness and their offenses, and I hid my face from them.
Eze 39:25 “Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will now bring Jacob back from captivity and will have compassion on all the people of Israel, and I will be zealous for my holy name.
Eze 39:26 They will forget their shame and all the unfaithfulness they showed toward me when they lived in safety in their land with no one to make them afraid.
Eze 39:27 When I have brought them back from the nations and have gathered them from the countries of their enemies, I will show myself holy through them in the sight of many nations.
Eze 39:28 Then they will know that I am the LORD their God, for though I sent them into exile among the nations, I will gather them to their own land, not leaving any behind.
Eze 39:29 I will no longer hide my face from them, for I will pour out my Spirit on the house of Israel, declares the Sovereign LORD.”

At the end of the thousand years the Devil will be released. He will go out and deceive the nations. The countries of Gog, Magog, Persia, Cush, Gomer, and Beth Togarmah. Persia and Cush are Iran and southern Egypt. The other countries are suspected of being

Beth Togarmah = Turkey
Magog = Peoples north of the Black Sea
Gomer = Ukraine and Russia.

God will destroy them with fire and then it says in Ezekiel 39:9 that

Eze 39:9 “ ‘Then those who live in the towns of Israel will go out and use the weapons for fuel and burn them up—the small and large shields, the bows and arrows, the war clubs and spears. For seven years they will use them for fuel.

For seven years Israel will use the wooden items for fuel. So there is a timeline developing here. After an unspecified time from when the devil is released, then Israel will use the wooden items for fuel for seven years. They will start cleansing the land after seven months

Eze 39:14 “ ‘Men will be regularly employed to cleanse the land. Some will go throughout the land and, in addition to them, others will bury those that remain on the ground. At the end of the seven months they will begin their search.

Then it will take them seven months to cleanse the land

Eze 39:12 “ ‘For seven months the house of Israel will be burying them in order to cleanse the land.

This could be an additional fourteen months added onto the seven years or incorporated with it. There is an unspecified amount of time after this and then God closes the door on mortal time. The world and the universe are burned up with fire and God does a final judgment and then He creates the New Heavens and the New Earth.

2Pe 3:7 By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.
2Pe 3:8 But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.
2Pe 3:9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
2Pe 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.
2Pe 3:11 Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives
2Pe 3:12 as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat.
2Pe 3:13 But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.
2Pe 3:14 So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him.

At that Time... Chapter 5

2008-09-26T20:34:00.000-07:00

At that time...
Chapter 5
the Last Three and a Half Years
Of the Tribulation

Chapter four took us through Israel being captured by the antichrist, the abomination that causes desolation, the setting up of an image of the antichrist in the temple, and the authority of satan being given to the antichrist. At this time we are at Daniel 11:36 and from he on out Scripture tells us that the antichrist will be prosperous until the time of wrath is complete.

Da 11:36 ‘The king will do as he pleases. He will exalt and magnify himself above every god and will say unheard-of things against the God of gods. He will be successful until the time of wrath is completed, for what has been determined must take place.
Da 11:37 He will show no regard for the gods of his fathers or for the one desired by women, nor will he regard any god but will exalt himself above them all.
Da 11:38 Instead of them, he will honor a god of fortresses; a god unknown to his fathers he will honor with gold and silver, with precious stones and costly gifts.
Da 11:39 He will attack the mightiest fortresses with the help of a foreign god and will greatly honor those who acknowledge him. He will make them rulers over many people and will distribute the land at a price.

The antichrist from this time on has success. He becomes very pompous and antagonistic against the Lord. At this stage I would like to look at what is going on in heaven. In Revelation 12:6-13:1 we have a passage that talks about a time frame of 1260 days, which is forty-two months; the last half of the tribulation period.

Rev 12:6 The woman (Israel) fled into the desert to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1260 days.
Rev 12:7 And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back.
Rev 12:8 But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. Rev 12:9 The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.
Rev 12:10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: ‘Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down.
Rev 12:11 They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.
Rev 12:12 Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short.”
Rev 12:13 When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child.
Rev 12:14 The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the desert, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpents reach.
Rev 12:15 Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river, to overtake the woman and sweep her away with the torrent.
Rev 12:16 But the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that the dragon had spewed out of his mouth.
Rev 12:17 Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to make war against the rest of her offspring—those who obey God’s commandments and hold to the testimony of Jesus.
Rev 13:1 And the dragon stood on the shore of the sea.

It seems very interesting about the time line correlation of the ministry of Jesus and the two witnesses, of satan, the antichrist and the false prophet. The two witnesses, the antichrist and the false prophet all have authority for forty-two months. There are two people on Jesus’ side; the two witnesses. There are two people on satan’s side; the antichrist and the false prophet. When the war in heaven happens and the devil is thrown down to earth. Scripture says that he knows that his time is short, right around forty-two months. We are also told by scholars, that the ministry of Jesus here on earth was three and a half years, or forty-two months. It almost seems that each side gets an equal amount of time. Maybe this is God the Father’s way of being fair.

Then sometime during the last three and a half years the king of Persia attacks the antichrist.

Da 11:40 “At the time of the end the king of the South will engage him in battle, and the king of the North will storm out against him with chariots and cavalry and a great fleet of ships. He will invade many countries and sweep through them like a flood. "

(Click on map to view larger image)

It doesn’t say who wins this battle but it appears that the antichrist gets the victory versus it being a stalemate, because the antichrist goes on to sweep through many countries after this.

Da 11:40 “At the time of the end the king of the South will engage him in battle, and the king of the North (the antichrist) will storm out against him with chariots and cavalry and a great fleet of ships. He will invade many countries and sweep through them like a flood.
Da 11:41 He will also invade the Beautiful Land. Many countries will fall, but Edom, Moab, and the leaders of Ammon will be delivered from his hand.
Da 11:42 He will extend his power over many countries; Egypt will not escape.
Da 11:43 He will gain control of the treasures of gold and silver and all the riches of Egypt, with the Libyans and Nubians in submission.

Daniel 11:41 shows that at that time Edom, Moab, and Ammon are not part of the antichrist kingdom. Daniel 11:43 makes it clear that neither is Egypt, the Libyans nor the Nubians part of the antichrist kingdom because he attacks them. The Nubians are an ethnic group in southern Egypt and northern Sudan. Libya is west of Egypt.

(Click on map to view larger image)

The antichrist takes Israel again and passes through it to Egypt. This map shows where safe places are from the antichrist on this final attack. Not that those places in themselves will be safe. These passages take place during the last three and a half years of the tribulation. All during this time, you also have the ministry of the two witnesses, the destructions they call down from heaven, and the opening of seal 5. (Seals 1 through 4 were opened before the tribulation began, these being the four horsemen of the apocalypse). During this time we have the blowing of the trumpet one through six, the pouring out of the bowls one through six, because the sixth bowl is the drying up of the Euphrates just before the end of the tribulation. Just before the end of the tribulation we have the antichrist conquering Egypt. Numerous plagues and destructions have come upon the earth; like the locusts that come out of abyss, the releasing of the four angels that are held at the Euphrates that have an army of two hundred million horses and riders to kill a third of mankind, plus all of the wars and destructions that the antichrist causes, his continuing war with Persia for the last seven or so years, the battle with Chittim, his sweeping through many countries, and his taking of Egypt. Look at this passage from Nahum.

Hab 2:17 The violence you (the antichrist) have done to Lebanon will overwhelm you, and your destruction of animals will terrify you. For you have shed man’s blood; you have destroyed lands and cities and everyone in them.

Even the antichrist is overwhelmed by the destruction he has caused. No wonder Chittim and Persia, the kings of the east, and the rest of the armies of the world attack the antichrist at the battle of Armageddon.

There are two major cities that are destroyed somewhere towards the end of the tribulation. The first one is Babylon the great. There is quite an extensive passage about Babylon in Revelation 17:1-18:21. In Revelation 17:15-18 it says that the antichrist and the ten horns will burn Babylon with fire.

Rev 17:15 Then the angel said to me, “The waters you saw, where the prostitute sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations and languages.
Rev 17:16 The beast and the ten horns you saw will hate the prostitute. They will bring her to ruin and leave her naked; they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire.

The antichrist and the ten kings of Assyria will burn Babylon with fire. Scripture also says that Babylon sits on top of the scarlet beast of the antichrist’s kingdom.

Rev 17:3 Then the angel carried me away in the Spirit into a desert. There I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was covered with blasphemous names and had seven heads and ten horns.
Rev 17:4 The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries.

It looks like antichrist, with all his war-mongering and looting, was selling treasures of the regions he conquered to the Babylonians. The Babylonians became rich with all their dealings with the merchants of the world and all the merchants became rich because of all their dealings with the rest of the world. It appears that the Babylonians were also in the business of selling of weapons of destruction’ for the Scripture says

Rev 18:24 In her was found the blood of prophets and of the saints, and of all who have been killed on the earth.”

Look especially at the last part of the text above “in her was found the blood of all who have been killed on earth”

Rev 18:6 Give back to her as she has given; pay her back double for what she has done. Mix her a double portion from her own cup.

Rev 18:8 Therefore in one day her plagues will overtake her: death, mourning and famine.

During this time there will be many who go through incredible sufferings, and there are some who will grow incredibly wealthy.

There is another city that is destroyed right before the coming of the Lord.

Na 2:1 An attacker advances against you, Nineveh. Guard the fortress, watch the road, brace yourselves, marshal all your strength!
Na 2:5 He summons his picked troops, yet they stumble on their way. They dash to the city wall; the protective shield is put in place.
Na 2:6 The river gates are thrown open and the palace collapses.
Na 2:7 It is decreed that the city be exiled and carried away. Its slave girls moan like doves and beat upon their breasts—

In saying that Nineveh is to be exiled, Scripture shows that Nineveh is destroyed by a human attacker in this instance and not by the coming of the LORD. Yet, Nineveh will also get a dowsing of wrath at the coming of the LORD though initially Nineveh is captured by a human attacker. In verse 1 Scripture says watch the road, not the sky. And so who could this enemy be? In Daniel 11:43 just a few days or weeks before the coming of the LORD we have the antichrist minding his own business (so to speak) in Egypt. OK, he is minding the Egyptians business and then in verse 43-44 he gets reports that alarm even him.

Da 11:43 He will gain control of the treasures of gold and silver and all the riches of Egypt, with the Libyans and Nubians in submission.
Da l1:44 But reports from the east and the north will alarm him, and he will set out in a great rage to destroy and annihilate many.

The antichrist gets reports from the north, since he is the king of the north, and reports from the east.

Rev 16:12 The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings from the East.

Rev 16:16 Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.

The antichrist will subdue Egypt, and then he gets reports from the north and the east. Two things happen by these reports; the great king of Assyria is alarmed, for something to alarm the antichrist it must be big. The second thing that happens is the antichrist is enraged and heads off to Israel. The question is two fold; who would have enough power to defeat the antichrist’s forces in Assyria and who comes from behind Assyria to the battle of Armageddon? The kings of the east. Maybe the destruction that the antichrist has caused has gotten so out of hand that China, and some of the neighboring countries (Mongolia, Japan etc. Remember it is kings ‘plural’ from the east) decide they had better destroy this king of Assyria, or they decide the time is right for them to conquer the Middle East. So here they come, probably around the bottom of the Caspian Sea. For the king of the South (Iran, Media-Persia,) was probably destroyed in Daniel 11:40 and so they don’t have fight Iran to get to Assyria on their way to the battle of Armageddon. They then destroy Nineveh on their way there, which really upsets the antichrist.

At the end of the seven year covenant period (the end of the tribulation), the antichrist and the false prophet are encamped at Jerusalem on the holy mountain. The armies of Assyria are encamped around them and throughout the mountains of Israel. The armies and kings of the earth are coming to do battle at the Mount of Megiddo. This is also known as the battle of Armageddon.

Zec 14:1 A day of the LORD is coming when your plunder will be divided among you.
Zec 14:2 I will gather all the nations to Jerusalem to fight against it; the city will be captured, the houses ransacked, and the women raped. Half of the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be taken from the city.
Zec 14:3 Then the LORD will go out and fight against those nations, as he fights in the day of battle.
Zec 14:4 On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south.
Zec 14:5 You will flee by my mountain valley, for it will extend to Azel. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the LORD my God will come, and all the holy ones with him.
Zec 14:6 On that day there will be no light, no cold or frost.
Zec 14:7 It will be a unique day, without daytime or nighttime—a day known to the LORD. When evening comes, there will be light.

The two witnesses (Revelation 11:3-14) prophesy for 1260 days; from the time of the abomination that causes desolation to the coming of our Lord. From when the false prophet sets up an image of the antichrist, the abomination that causes desolation, these two witnesses put on sackcloth and begin to prophesy. These two witnesses are miraculously protected by God if anyone tries to harm them. The false prophet will try to harm them, probably by sending men under his authority to kill these two witnesses and the false prophet's men are burned up by fire. It probably happens a few times, until the false prophet realizes it is hopeless.
These two witnesses shut up the sky, so no rain falls and begins a season of drought. These two are very powerful and sad. They can cause plagues and turn the waters to blood, but they are not given the power to deliver Israel or keep the saints from being slain. They have a grievous cross to bear. They know the power of God, but still the wicked continue to martyr the saints; Israelis and Christians alike. I am glad there are two of them, so they can have fellowship and encourage each other.
During the last three and a half years, I believe the false prophet will take up residence in Jerusalem, where the image that he has given breath (spirit) to so that it can speak. He causes all who will not worship it to be killed (Revelation 13:15). He remains in Jerusalem while the antichrist is out and about fighting Persia, Egypt and other countries.
When the antichrist has conquered Egypt and returns to Mount Zion (Daniel 11:43-45) at the end of the tribulation, this is when the antichrist overpowers the two witnesses and kills them (Revelation 11:8). For three and a half days men from every nation will gaze on their bodies and refuse them burial, the inhabitants of the earth will gloat over them and will celebrate by sending each other gifts. There will be great joy because these two prophets who tormented the earth with drought, famines, fire, painful sores, darkness, earthquakes and locust, are dead. They gloat over these two and say demeaning and slanderous things against them. Then Scripture starts talking about when the Lord will deliver Israel.

Zec 14:1 A day of the LORD is coming when your plunder will be divided among you.
Zec 14:2 I will gather all the nations to Jerusalem to fight against it; the city will be captured, the houses ransacked, and the women raped. Half of the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be taken from the city.
Zec 14:3 Then the LORD will go out and fight against those nations, as he fights in the day of battle.
Zec 14:4 On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south.
Zec 14:5 You will flee by my mountain valley, for it will extend to Azel. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the LORD my God will come, and all the holy ones with him.
Zec 14:6 On that day there will be no light, no cold or frost.
Zec 14:7 It will be a unique day, without daytime or nighttime—a day known to the LORD. When evening comes, there will be light.

The two witness are dead, the armies of the nations are gathered at Megiddo, the city of Jerusalem has been ransacked, half the city has been exiled, the women are raped, and the other half of the inhabitants are still in the city. The Israelites wake up in the morning and there is no light. As they start to get awake, that is if they have gotten any sleep, it is not cold outside, nor is there any frost. (Does this mean it is winter time in Israel and that the abomination that happened three years and six months earlier is in summer?) The two witnesses are still laying dead on the ground. Then there is an earthquake and the Mount of Olives is split in two from east to west, with half moving north and half moving south. Seven thousand people die. The armies of Assyria are in the valley of Ben Hinnom, and the Israelites see their chance, and flee down the valley all the way to Azel. They seem to be safe and the next thing that happens is that all around them the dead start to open their eyes. All those who were gloating over the two witnesses are astounded. The eyes of the two prophets blink, they stand up on their feet and those who were just demeaning and slandering them are struck with terror. They also notice that all the dead are coming to life. People both the righteous and the wicked, are raised from the dead. And a loud voice from heaven says “Come up here” and the two witnesses and the righteous went up to heaven in a cloud while their enemies looked on (Revelation 11:11-12).

Now you may say “wait a minute, no way, the rapture happens at the beginning of the tribulation and the resurrection does not include the righteous and the wicked, especially at that time. First let’s look at the resurrection of the righteous and the wicked and see if they happen at the same time.

Jn 5:28 “Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice
Jn 5:29 and come out—those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.

Here we have Jesus, the ultimate authority, saying a time is coming when all who are in their graves will come out. Here we have the righteous and the wicked resurrected at the same time. The good will rise to live and those who have done evil to be condemned. And Paul said that he had hope in a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked.

Ac 24:15 and have the same hope in God as these men, that there will be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked.

Since the righteous and the wicked are resurrected at the same time, and the resurrection has to happen before the rapture; if you put the rapture just before the beginning of the tribulation, then all who are in their graves would have to be resurrected at the beginning of the tribulation. All mankind who have ever lived and are not raptured (or gathered up, or called up, like the two witnesses) would have to go through the tribulation, which just does not happen, and there is no Scripture basis for all mankind from the beginning of time till then going through the tribulation together.

Now to look at the time frame of the resurrection; in Revelation 20:4-6 we have a statement of what event is the first resurrection.

Rev 20:4 I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony for Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or his image and had not received his mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
Rev 20:5 (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection.

These people here were alive after the abomination that causes desolation, because it says that they did not worship the image of the beast. The image of the beast was set up at the half-way point of the tribulation. The first resurrection has to happen at some time after the half-way point of the tribulation.

Now let’s go to a scripture on the rapture; in Corinthians Paul tell us a mystery
1st Co 15:51 Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed—

1st Co 15:52 in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.

Here the Apostle Paul says that the rapture will happen at the last trumpet. But when is the last trumpet? The last trumpet that is mentioned is the seventh trumpet of Revelation.

Rev 11:15 The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever.”
Rev 11:16 And the twenty-four elders, who were seated on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God,
Rev 11:17 saying: ‘We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, the One who is and who was, because you have taken your great power and have begun to reign.
Rev 11:18 The nations were angry; and your wrath has come. The time has come for judging the dead, and for rewarding your servants the prophets and your saints and those who reverence your name, bath small and great— and for destroying those who destroy the earth.”

Here in the seventh trumpet, Scripture says that now is the time for judging the dead and rewarding the saints both small and great. Let’s look at some of the things that happen at the resurrection and rapture.

1st Th 4:15 According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.
1st Th 4:16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
1st Th 4:17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.

Paul says right off that “According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord.” So, Paul in this passage is talking about the time frame, which is at the coming of the Lord, which is at the end of the tribulation. Then the Lord comes down, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead will rise first and then after that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them. The sequence here correlates with the rest of Scripture that the resurrection happens first, at the end of the tribulation, at the coming of the Lord, and then we are all together caught up into the clouds. The characteristics of this passage are;

The coming of the Lord.
A loud command,
A trumpet call
A sequence of the dead in Christ rising first
Then the ascension of the saints.

Mt 24:29 Immediately after the distress of those days, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.
Mt 24:30 At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory.
Mt 24:31 And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.

In this passage Jesus says, when the sun is darkened and the moon does not give its light that at that time the Son of Man will come on the clouds of the sky, and will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call and gather the elect. Jesus also testifies that the rapture will happen at the end of the tribulation. In Jesus’ statements in Matthew we also have;

The coming of the Lord,
A loud trumpet call,
The gathering of the elect.

Re 11:7 Now when they (the two witnesses) have finished their testimony, the beast (the antichrist) that comes up from the Abyss will attack them, and overpower and kill them.
Rev 11:8 Their bodies will lie in the street of the great city, which is figuratively called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified.
Rev 11:9 For three and a half days men from every people, tribe, language and nation will gaze on their bodies and refuse them burial.
Rev 11:10 The inhabitants of the earth will gloat over them and will celebrate by sending each other gifts, because these two prophets had tormented those who live on the earth.
Re 11:11 after the three and a half days a breath of life from God entered them, and they stood on their feet, and terror struck those who saw them.
Rev 11:12 Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, Come up here.’ And they went up to heaven in a cloud, while their enemies looked on.

Right at the end of the tribulation we have the two witnesses slain in Jerusalem, they heard a loud voice from heaven saying "Come up here” and they went up into heaven in a cloud. So this event has also stated the characteristics of the rapture;

1. A loud command and
2. Getting caught up into the clouds of heaven.

Is this a reference to the rapture? Well, these two do get raptured or caught up. These two do ascend into heaven, but do the rest of the saints ascend into heaven at this time? Well, let’s make an argument that this is the ascension of the saints, when these two witnesses ascended into heaven? After the ascension of these two at that very hour there is a severe earthquake and then Revelation 11:14 says;

Rev 11:14 “The second woe has passed; the third woe is coming soon”.

1st Th 4:15 According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.
1st Th 4:16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
1st Th 4:17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.

In this passage we have the mention of the coming of the Lord, a loud command, a trumpet call and a sequence of the dead in Christ rising first. Then the ascension of the saints who are still alive are caught up together with the other saints into the clouds.

1st Co 15:51 Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed—
1st Co 16: 2 in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.

So here in 1st Corinthians we have a reference to the last trumpet, the resurrection of the dead and the transformation of the saints. The last trumpet mentioned in Revelation is the seventh trumpet (Revelation 11:15).

Mt 24:29 Immediately after the distress of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’
Mt 24:30 At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory.
Mt 24:31 And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.

At the sounding of the seventh trumpet (Revelation 11:15), the last trumpet (1st Corinthians 15:52), Jesus will appear in the clouds (Matthew 24:30, 1st Thessalonians 4:15-16), and the angels will gather the dead in Christ in heaven (Matthew 24:31). Their bodies shall be resurrected transfigured in a twinkling of an eye (1st Corinthians 15:42-49), and we who are left shall be transfigured (1st Corinthians 15:52-54). With the loud command of the archangel (1st Thessalonians 4:16) “Come up here” (Revelation 11:12)' the angels will gather the elect from the four winds (Matthew 24:30, Daniel 8:8), both us who are left, still alive till His coming, and those who have been resurrected “will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air” (1st Thessalonians 4:17). They went up to heaven in a cloud while their enemies looked on (Revelation 11:12). At that very hour there was a severe earthquake, and the survivors were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven (Revelation 11:13).

Mt 25:10 ‘But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.
Mt 25:11 “Later the others also came. Sir! Sir!’ they said. Open the door for us!’
Mt 25:12 But he replied, I tell you the truth, I don’t know you.’
Mt 25:13 “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.

At the coming of our Lord the wise virgins brought in themselves oil, the Holy Spirit, who is the fuel for their light (good deeds Matthew 5:16, goodness, righteousness and truth Ephesians 5:9). Their source of their good deeds, goodness, righteousness and the truth is the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, ignited by their surrender to Jesus’ burning holy love.

“I am but a wick with my heart reaching into the depths of the oil of the Spirit, with my head lifted high in surrender to his burning holy love”. Poj (Proverbs of james)

These virgins are caught up to be with the Lord and the foolish virgins are left behind. Then here comes the wrath of God. The foolish virgins beg and plead with God and Jesus tells them “I tell you the truth, I don’t know you”. Were they not called? Oh yes they were called but they did not see their desperate need for the extra amount of oil of the Holy Spirit. When the world became dark and then they realized their own human effort was not sufficient to get through those dark days and to get them into heaven, they went in search for the truth. The bridegroom came and they were not prepared. For relationship with God takes time to establish. Remember ‘Today is the day of salvation.’

Luke 14:16 Jesus replied: “A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests.”
Luke 14:17 At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited “Come, for everything is now ready”. But they all alike began to make excuses.

Isa 27:12 In that day the LORD will thresh from the flowing Euphrates to the Wadi of Egypt, and you, O Israelites, will be gathered up one by one.
Isa 27:13 And in that day a great trumpet will sound. Those who were perishing in Assyria and those who were exiled in Egypt will come and worship the LORD on the holy mountain in Jerusalem.

At the end of the seven year covenant period, the end of the tribulation; the antichrist and the false prophet are encamped at Jerusalem on the holy mountain. The armies of Assyria are encamped around them and throughout the mountains of Israel and the armies and kings of the earth have come to do battle at the mount of Megiddo. This is also known as the battle of Armageddon. Then…

Zec 14:4 On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of
Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south.
Zec 14:5 You will flee by my mountain valley, for it will extend to Azel. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the LORD my God will come, and all the holy ones with him.

This fits perfectly with when the antichrist comes up from Egypt and places his tents on the mount Zion and the two witnesses are slain, then resurrected three and a half days later. Then they ascend into heaven and there is a severe earthquake and the Mount of Olives is split asunder and the Israelites escape via that valley and the Lord comes.

Zec 14:4 On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of
Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south.
Zec 14:5 You will flee by my mountain valley, for it will extend to Azel. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the LORD my God will come, and all the holy ones with him

Isa 26:21 See, the LORD is coming out of his dwelling to punish the people of the earth for their sins. The earth will disclose the blood shed upon her; she will conceal her slain no longer.

Isa 29:5 But your many enemies will become like fine dust, the ruthless hordes like blown chaff. Suddenly, in an instant,
Isa 29:6 the LORD Almighty will come with thunder and earthquake and great noise, with windstorm and tempest and flames of a devouring fire.
Isa 29:7 Then the horde of all the nations that fight against Ariel, that attack her and her fortress and besiege her, will be as it is with a dream, with a vision in the night—

Isa 9:8 as when a hungry man-dreams that he is eating, but he awakens, and his hunger remains; as when a thirsty man dreams that he is drinking, but he awakens faint, with his thirst unquenched. So will it be with the hordes of all the nations that fight against Mount Zion.

Isa 30:27 See, the Name of the LORD comes from afar, with burning anger and dense clouds of smoke; his lips are full of wrath, and his tongue is a consuming fire.
Isa 30:28 His breath is like a rushing torrent, rising up to the neck. He shakes the nations in the sieve of destruction; he places in the jaws of the peoples a bit that leads them astray.

Isa 3l:4 This is what the LORD says to me: As a lion growls, a great lion
over his prey—and though a whole band of shepherds is called together against him, he is not frightened by their shouts or disturbed by their clamor— so the LORD Almighty will come down to do battle on Mount Zion and on its heights.
Isa 31:5 Like birds hovering overhead, the LORD Almighty will shield Jerusalem; he will shield it and deliver it, he will ‘pass over’ it and will rescue it.”

Isa 30:30 The LORD will cause men to hear his majestic voice and will make them see his arm coming down with raging anger and consuming fire, with cloudburst, thunderstorm and hail.
Isa 30:31 The voice of the LORD will shatter Assyria; with his scepter he will strike them down.
Isa 30:32 Every stroke the LORD lays on them with his punishing rod will be to the music of tambourines and harps, as he fights them in battle with the blows of his arm.
Isa 30:33 Topheth has long been prepared; it has been made ready for the king. Its fire pit has been made deep and wide, with an abundance of fire and wood; the breath of the LORD, like a stream of burning sulfur, sets it ablaze.
Isa 31:8 “Assyria will fall by a sword that is not of man; a sword, not of mortals, will devour them. They will flee before the sword and their young men will be put to forced labor.
Isa 31:9 Their stronghold will fall because of terror; at sight of the battle standard their commanders will panic,” declares the LORD, whose fire is in Zion, whose furnace is in Jerusalem.

Rev 19:19 Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to make war against the rider on the horse and his army.
19:20 But the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who had
performed the miraculous signs on his behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped his image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur.

Isa 14:24 The LORD Almighty has sworn, “Surely, as I have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed, so it will stand.
Isa 14:26 I will crush the Assyrian in my land; on my mountains I will trample him down. His yoke will be taken from my people, and his burden removed from their shoulders.’
Isa 14:26 This is the plan determined for the whole world; this is the hand stretched out over all nations.
Isa 14:27 For the LORD Almighty has purposed, and who can thwart him? His hand is stretched out, and who can turn it back?

The antichrist will come up out of Egypt (Daniel 11:43), and shall capture Jerusalem (Zechariah 14:2), and pitch his royal tents on Mount Zion (Daniel 11:45), the houses will be ransacked, the women raped and half the city sent into exile, but the rest will not be taken from the city (Zechariah 14:2). The two witnesses will be slain. Then there will be a severe earthquake (Revelation 11:13). The Mount of Olives will be split in half forming a great valley and the Israelites will flee through it (Zechariah 14:4-5), and then the Lord appears in the sky. Then the righteous and the wicked will be resurrected. The righteous are caught up to heaven. The Lord fights against the Assyrians on and around Mount Zion and captures the antichrist and the false prophet and cast them into the fiery lake of burning sulfur.

At that Time... Chapter 4

2008-09-26T20:31:00.000-07:00

At that Time...
Chapter 4
The Antichrist
and the First Three and a Half Years
of the Tribulation

In Scripture there is an event that happens at the end of the tribulation period where our Lord Jesus comes down from heaven to Mount Zion to capture the antichrist and the false prophet. Using this event as a fixed point in end time prophecy, let’s look at the Scriptures to determine who is there on Mount Zion, At that time…

Rev 16:12 The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings from the East. Rev 16:13 Then I saw three evil spirits that looked like frogs; they came out of the mouth of the dragon (satan), out of the mouth of the beast (the antichrist) and out of the mouth of the false prophet.
Rev 16:14 They are spirits of demons performing miraculous signs, and they go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them for the battle on the great day of God Almighty.
Rev 16:16 Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.

First of all we have the kings of the world gathered to Armageddon which is 60 miles north of Mount Zion in Jerusalem.

Rev 19:19 Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to make war against the rider on the horse and his army.
Rev 19:20 But the beast (the antichrist) was captured, and with him the false prophet who had performed the miraculous signs on his behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped his image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur.

Da 11:43 He (the antichrist) will gain control of the treasures of gold and silver and all the riches of Egypt, with the Libyans and Nubians in submission.
Da 11:44 But reports from the east and the north will alarm him, and he will set out in a great rage to destroy and annihilate many.
Da 11:45 He (the antichrist) will pitch his royal tents between the seas at the
beautiful holy mountain. Yet he will come to his end, and no one will help him.

So, at that time the antichrist will pitch his tent between the Mediterranean and the Dead Sea at Mount Zion in Jerusalem.

Da 8:25 He (the antichrist) will cause deceit to prosper, and he will consider himself superior. When they feel secure, he will destroy many and take his stand against the Prince of princes. Yet he will be destroyed, but not by human power.

Towards the end of the antichrist’s reign, the antichrist attacks Egypt and gains control of their treasures. Reports from the east and the north alarm him and he sets out in a great rage. He is a king, who travels with his army, like the kings of old, sets out from Egypt and heads to Israel where he sets up his royal tents on Mount Zion, using the mountains of Israel and the seas as strategic fortifications. Three evil spirits go out to the kings of the world and gather the armies to Armageddon which is translated “the Mount of Megiddo.” The Antichrist will have come to destroy the kings of the whole earth, (Daniel 11:44) yet our wonderful Savior appears with his army. The antichrist and the kings turn and make war against Jesus and his army. The antichrist and the false prophet are captured on Mount Zion and will be destroyed, but not by human power (Daniel 8:25). On the Mount of Megiddo we have the armies of the world and on Mount Zion we have the antichrist and the false prophet. I would like to go to Isaiah and have you read a couple of verses out of Isaiah chapter 30 and 31 about the coming of the LORD and the battle on Mount Zion.

Isa 30:27 See, the Name of the LORD comes from afar, with burning anger
and dense clouds of smoke; his lips are full of wrath, and his tongue is a consuming fire.

Isa 30:30 The LORD will cause men to hear his majestic voice and will make them see his arm coming down with raging anger and consuming fire, with cloudburst, thunderstorm and hail.
Isa 30:31 The voice of the LORD will shatter Assyria; with his scepter he will strike them down.
Isa 30:32 Every stroke the LORD lays on them with his punishing rod will be to the music of tambourines and harps, as he fights them in battle with the blows of his arm.
Isa 30:33 Topheth has long been prepared; it has been made ready for the king. Its fire pit has been made deep and wide, with an abundance of fire and wood; the breath of the LORD, like a stream of burning sulfur, sets it ablaze.

Isa 31:4 This is what the LORD says to me: “As a lion growls, a great lion over his prey—and though a whole band of shepherds is called together against him, he is not frightened by their shouts or disturbed by their clamor— so the LORD Almighty will come down to do battle on Mount Zion and on its heights.

Isa 31:8 ‘Assyria will fall by a sword that is not of man; a sword, not of mortals, will devour them. They will flee before the sword and their young men will be put to forced labor.’

These two passages both refer to the coming of our LORD in wrath and battle to fight against the Assyrians on Mount Zion, its valleys and the surrounding mountains. In Isaiah 30:35 we have the place ‘Topheth’ mentioned. Topheth is located in a valley that borders Mount Zion on the west and the south. 2nd Kings 23:10 “He (Josiah) desecrated Topheth which was in the Valley of Ben Hinnom, so no one could use it to sacrifice his son or daughter in the fire to Molech.” Right on Josiah! In Isaiah 31:4, 8 the LORD comes down and battles the Assyrians on Mount Zion and its heights. Like the antichrist, the Assyrian army is destroyed by a heavenly power.

To sum up Isaiah 30:27, 30-33; and 31:4, 8 with Revelation 16:12-14, 16; 19:19-20; Daniel 11:43-45 and 8:25; the antichrist and the false prophet are camped on Mount Zion with the Assyrian army also on Mount Zion, its valleys and the surrounding mountains. The kings of the world and their armies are gathered to Armageddon. The LORD Jesus comes down to Mount Zion and fights against the Assyrian army and puts them to the sword and captures the antichrist and the false prophet and casts them into the lake of fire. I would like you to read one more passage from Isaiah about an Assyrian King on the Mountains of Israel.

Isa 14:24 The LORD Almighty has sworn, “Surely, as I have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed, so it will stand.
Isa 14:25 I will crush the Assyrian in my land; on my mountains I will trample him down. His yoke will be taken from my people, and his burden removed from their shoulders.”

By making this a sworn statement the LORD of truth declares that these things shall surely come to pass in their entirety and in the fullness of every detail.

“Surely, as I have planned,
So it will be.
And as I have purposed
So it will stand.

I hope you catch the magnitude and the solemnness of this declaration of our LORD. This is an unchangeable plan and purpose of the LORD. There is and will be no deviation or change in His statements.
“I will crush ‘the Assyrian’” (singular) This, is a singular title ‘The Assyrian’; The LORD Almighty is not speaking of many people. He is speaking of one specific individual. Now the question is ‘Who is this Assyrian?’

”His yoke will be taken from my people and his burden removed from their shoulders.”

‘The Assyrian’ is one who has put a yoke and burden on the people Israel (Of course, this Assyrian would have to be of the Assyrian race.) The only Assyrians that have put a yoke on Israel are the Assyrian kings, but which Assyrian king? In this passage we have to look at history and see if this passage has already been fulfilled and if it has not been fulfilled then it means that it is still to be fulfilled. The Assyrian king would have to be one of the kings after the time at which Isaiah spoke this prophecy, Isaiah’s prophetic call came in 739 BC ‘in the year Uzziah died” (Isaiah 6:1). 739 BC was the beginning of Isaiah’s ministry, which was the seventh year of the reign of Tiglath Pileser the 3rd. Here are four requirements of this sworn prophecy that have to be fulfilled, so that we can figure out who this Assyrian was.

1) The crushing of the Assyrian in the LORD’s land
2) The trampling down of the Assyrian on the LORD’s mountains
3) The Assyrian king’s yoke taken from the LORD’s people
4) And the Assyrian king’s burden being taken from His people’s shoulders

Isa 14:24 The LORD Almighty has sworn, “Surely, as I have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed, so it will stand.
Isa 14:25 I will crush the Assyrian in my land; on my mountains I will trample him down. His yoke will be taken from my people, and his burden removed from their shoulders.”

So, then starting with Tiglath Pileser the 3rd and listing all the following kings of Assyria until its demise in 609 BC we have:

Tiglath Pileser the 3rd 746-728 BC.
Shalmaneser the 5th 728-722 BC.
Sargon the 2nd 722-705 BC.
Sennacherib 705-681 BC.
Esarhaddon 681-668 BC.
Ashurbanipal 668-626 BC.
Ashur-etil-ilani 626-623 BC.
Sin-Shar-ishkun 623-612 BC.
Assur-uballit the 2nd 611-609 BC.

During this time in Israel’s history, Israel was already broken up into two countries; The northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah. The capital of Israel was Samaria and the capital of Judah was Jerusalem.

2Ki 16:5 Then Rezin king of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel marched up to fight against Jerusalem and besieged Ahaz, but they could not overpower him.
2Ki 16:6 At that time, Rezin king of Aram recovered Bath for Aram by driving out the men of Judah. Edomites then moved into Elath and have lived there to this day.
2Ki 16:7 Ahaz sent messengers to say to Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria, I am your servant and vassal. Come up and save me out of the hand of the king of Aram and of the king of Israel, who are attacking me.”

So, Tiglath Pileaser the 3rd (746-728 BC) was invited into Judah and Israel by Ahaz who subjected Judah to the authority of King Tiglath Pileaser and paid him tribute.
2K 16:8 And Ahaz took the silver and gold found in the temple of the LORD and in the treasuries of the royal palace and sent it as a gift to the king of Assyria.

In 734 BC the king of Assyria conquered Damascus.

2Ki 16:9 The king of Assyria complied by attacking Damascus and capturing it. He deported its inhabitants to Kir and put Rezin to death.

In 728 BC, Tiglath Pileaser the 3rd died, even though we don’t know where Tiglath Pileaser died we know that his burden and yoke were not taken from Israel and Judah. That eliminates Tiglath Pileaser the 3rd from the fulfillment of this prophecy.

Shalmaneser took control of Assyria in 728 BC and was attacking Samaria in 722 BC when he died outside of the city of Samaria. Shalmaneser was the only Assyrian king to die in Israel. This prophecy in its entirety cannot be applied to Shalmaneser because the part about the
“His yoke will be taken from my people and his burden removed from their shoulders” was not fulfilled because Sargon the 2 took control of the Assyrian army outside of Samaria and conquered Samaria in that year.

Sargon the 2nd died on the eastern border of Assyria as he marched against Eshpai the Kullumites, ruler of a petty land near Elli. Sargon’s camp was taken there and he met his death in 705 BC. Sargon was not the fulfillment of this prophecy, because he died on the far side of Assyria from Israel and the yoke of the Assyrian king was still not removed.

Sennacherib took over as king in 705 BC. At this time Hezekiah is paying tribute to the Assyrians. Sennacherib attacked Israel and Judah and conquered 46 cities of Judah and Israel. Completely decimating Israel and removing them as a country. Sennacherib’s armies were destroyed outside of Lacish by the angel of the Lord. Lacish was not a mountainous region and Sennacherib was then murdered in the temple of his god by two of his sons in 681 BC. Therefore, Sennacherib was not the fulfillment of the requirements of this passage.

Esarhaddon 681-868 BC, ruled Assyria for 13 years. Esarhaddon died on his way to Egypt in November of 669 BC, of sickness in Harran. Harran is in modern day Turkey. Esarhaddon was not the fulfillment of this prophecy.

The next king of Assyria was Ashurbanipal 668-626 BC who ruled Assyria for 42 years. He is considered the last of the great Assyrian kings. The beginning of his rule was filled with warfare, but the last ten years of his rule were quite peaceful. Very few texts exist about the last few years of his life and it is not known where he died. He did not come to a dramatic end in Israel, and so he does not fit this prophecy.

Ashur-etil-ilani 626-623 BC reigned for three years and died near Nippur in a battle with Sin-Shar-ishkun who succeeded him.

Sin-Shar-ishkun 623-612 BC reigned for 11 years and then was defeated on August 10612 BC when he was burned in his palace in the Babylonian-Median attack on Nineveh.

Assur-uballit the 2 611-609 BC, ruled for 2 years from Harran, the new capital of Assyria, and was defeated in 609 BC. This was the end of the Assyrian Empire.

These Ten Assyrian Kings are the only kings of Assyria that ever had a chance to put a burden on Israel after Isaiah began his ministry.

Isa 14:24 The LORD Almighty has sworn, “Surely, as I have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed, so it will stand.
Isa 14:25 I will crush the Assyrian in my land; on my mountains I will trample him down. His yoke will be taken from my people, and his burden removed from their shoulders.”

Which one of these Assyrian kings did the Lord crush and trample down on the mountains of Israel? None of them; as shown earlier, only one of these kings died in Israel, and none on the mountains of Israel. If the passage has not yet been fulfilled, then this sworn prophetic statement is still to be fulfilled. Are there any prophecies about anyone being crushed, trampled down, destroyed or coming to their end, on Mount Zion? As we have read, the antichrist, the false prophet and the Assyrian army. So here we have a prophecy of an Assyrian king that is going to be trampled down by the Lord on the mountains of Israel. We have the Assyrian army that is to be destroyed in the valley of Ben Hinnom. Looking up from that valley to Mount Zion, we have the antichrist. The antichrist is a king that travels with his armies. Here we have the Antichrist, who will be the king of Assyria, with all his armies encamped all around his royal tents. They are on Mount Zion and its heights... The antichrist who will be the king of Assyria fits all the requirements for the prophecy:

1) The crushing of the Assyrian in the LORD’s land
2) The trampling down of the Assyrian on the LORD’s mountains
3) The Assyrian kings yoke taken from the LORD’s people
4) The Assyrian king’s burden being taken from His people’s shoulders

Isa 14:24 The LORD Almighty has sworn, “Surely, as I have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed, so it will stand.
Isa 14:25 I will crush the Assyrian in my land; on my mountains I will trample him down. His yoke will be taken from my people, and his burden removed from their shoulders.”

The antichrist with his armies will be encamped at Mount Zion. The LORD will come down from heaven and the Israelites will be freed from the burden and yoke of the antichrist, and so he fulfills all the requirements of this prophecy.

Isa 31:4 This is what the LORD says to me: “As a lion growls, a great lion over his prey—and though a whole band of shepherds is called together against him, he is not frightened by their shouts or disturbed by their clamor— so the LORD Almighty will come down to do battle on Mount Zion and on its heights.
Isa 31:5 Like birds hovering overhead, the LORD Almighty will shield Jerusalem; he will shield it and deliver it, he will ‘pass over’ it and will rescue it.”
Isa 3l:6 Return to him you have so greatly revolted against, O Israelites.
Isa 31:7 For in that day every one of you will reject the idols of silver and gold your sinful hands have made.
Isa 31:8 Assyria will fall by a sword that is not of man; a sword, not of mortals, will devour them. They will flee before the sword and their young men will be put to forced labor.
Isa 30:30 The LORD will cause men to hear his majestic voice and will make them see his arm coming down with raging anger and consuming fire, with cloudburst, thunderstorm and hail.
Isa 30:31 The voice of the LORD will shatter Assyria; with his scepter he will strike them down.
Isa 30:32 Every stroke the LORD lays on them with his punishing rod will be to the music of tambourines and harps, as he fights them in battle with the blows of his arm.
Isa 30:33 Topheth has long been prepared; it has been made ready for the king. Its fire pit has been made deep and wide, with an abundance of fire and wood; the breath of the LORD, like a stream of burning sulfur, sets it ablaze.

There is only one named king on the mountains of Israel predominately and solely stated throughout prophecy with his armies surrounding him, at he is the antichrist. There is no other king identified by country or army mentioned in scripture as being on Mount Zion at the coming of our LORD. The King of Assyria will literally fulfill the prophecy sworn by the LORD Almighty. The king of Assyria will be the antichrist.

The antichrist’s kingdom has to from one of the four kingdoms that come out of the fallen kingdom of Greece, therefore this is what the world may look like at that time…

(Click on map to view enlarged image)

The map below may be a possible set of boundaries for the four kingdoms that come out of Greece because after so many wars the boundaries to the countries may have changed. Later in Daniel 11 we see the antichrist continually attacking Media-Persia (the king of the South) so their countries may be touching. If the antichrist controls Baghdad then the country of Iraq may take on the name of Babylon for they move their capital to their. These are just ideas were boundaries might be. This map below is more likely because Nineveh has to be part of Assyria and Nineveh is located at the red area in modern day Mosul in Iraq, 220 miles north of Baghdad. We know that Assyria, modern day Syria, has to be one of the four kingdoms. Greece is probably one of them, though their boundaries might also be different then that what is right now. Babylon or Iraq is most likely one for see is talked about a lot in Revelation as being very prominent. The fourth one I don’t know and it hasn’t been revealed to me through Scripture yet.

(Click on map to view larger image)

Where do you begin when trying to describe a world leader? I guess at the beginning, with his origins and his name.

Na 1:1 An oracle concerning Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite.

Na 1:11 From you, O Nineveh, has one come forth who plots evil against the LORD and counsels wickedness.

Here is the earthly beginnings of the antichrist, but his spiritual origins in the last days will be from the Abyss.

Rev 17:8 the beast which you saw, once was, now is not, and will come up out of the Abyss and go to his destruction. The inhabitants of the earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the creation of the world will be astonished when they see the beast, because he once was, now is not, and yet will come.

The statement “he once was’ shows that he once lived as a person, and this person had to have lived before John wrote down this vision of Revelation at the latest 95 AD. The earliest prophecies about the antichrist are from Isaiah in 739 BC. So, he had to be an earthly ruler between 739 BC. and 95 AD. The antichrist lived once in Nineveh and in the last days he will also be from Nineveh. The spirit of the antichrist will come up out of the abyss and possesses an individual that has already been born and is at that time in adulthood. The antichrist once was and spends time in the abyss and will come up out of the abyss and go to his destruction. Who was this Assyrian of so long ago? The antichrist was one of the former kings of Assyria. Since, as we have discussed before, he will be an Assyrian, but which king will he be? His name is 666. You may say, “That is not a name,” but it is the biggest clue we have to his name.

Rev 13:16 He (the antichrist) also forced everyone, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on his right hand or on his forehead,
Rev 13:17 so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark which is
the name of the beast or the number of his name.
Rev 13:18 This calls for wisdom. If anyone has insight, let him calculate the
number of the beast, for it is man’s number. His number is 666.

This next excerpt was taken from “Everyday life in Babylon and Assyria By George Contenau Pg. 166. This Passage is talking about Sargon the second, king of Assyria (722-705b0.)

Sargon created a bond of identity between himself and the wall by which the palace was defended, by saying in effect. ‘I built the circuit of the wall of
16,283 cubits, the number of my name”.

Since the antichrist is an ancient Assyrian king, it figures that the
number of his name would have to be in the Assyrian language.
Now this eliminates Sargon the second. For the number of his name is
16,283

I am figuring Sennacherib will be the antichrist, but this is not definite. Why I surmise this is that Sennacherib’s name means (in Akkadian Sin-ahhe-eriba) which means Sin (the moon god) has taken place of the (lost) brothers to me.’ Sin is the name of the Assyrian moon god, which has interesting connotations since Abraham was from Babylon. The term ‘sin’ may have come from the name of this god. And ahhe-eriba could be cherib, and so you have the Angel of Sin. Translating the word ‘angel’ we now have ‘the messenger of sin.’ Sennacherib was murdered in the temple of his god, Sin. Therefore, we could say he was murdered in the Temple of Sin. Plus, Sennacherib was a fierce king against Israel and Jerusalem was the one city that Sennacherib did not conquer. To verify the truth of this would be to find an Assyriologist and run the ancient Assyrian kings names, in Akkadian language, starting with Sennacherib, through the Isopsephia process. If you use a Hebrew Isopsephia calculator which is also a Semitic language, like Akkadian, and put in Sennacherib you get 678 if you put in Sennachereb you get 668, if you put in Sennachere you get 666. Hebrew is close to Akkadian, but you still would need an Assyriologist that could run Sennacherib’s name through the Isopsephia process, for one letter difference between the two languages could change the whole number.

Here is a list of some of the antichrist’s personal characteristics:

Pompous Isaiah 8:7, 10:16
Prideful Isaiah 10:12
Haughty Isaiah 10:12
Cruel Isaiah 19:4, Nahum 3:19
Boastful Daniel 7:8
Contemptible Daniel 11:21
Deceitful Daniel 11:23
Bent on Evil Daniel 11:27
Flatterer Daniel 11:32
Lawless 2nd Thessalonians 2:3
Vile Nahum 1:4
Stern faced king Daniel 8:23

Here is a list of some of his abilities:

A master of intrigue Daniel 8:23
A military strategist
A great orator Revelation 6:23

His religious life:

A worshipper & the god of fortresses Daniel 11:38
A worshipper of satan Revelation 13:4
Indwelt by demons Revelation 16:13-14

Names and titles of the antichrist:

The king of Assyria Isaiah 8:7, Nahum 3:18
The Assyrian Isaiah 10:5, Micah 5:5-6
The destroyer Isaiah 16:4, 54:16; Jer 6:26, 48:8, 32
The oppressor Isaiah 16:4, Jeremiah 25:38
The monster of the sea Isaiah 27:1
A lion Jeremiah 4:7, Nahum 2:11-12
A destroyer of nations Jeremiah 4:7
The enemy Jeremiah 6:25, Amos 3:11, Zeph 3:1 5
The little horn Daniel 7:8,11,20; 8:9
A king Daniel 7:24, 8:23
The ruler Daniel 9:26
The king of the North Daniel 11:28,40; Zeph 3:15
The great king Hosea 5:13, 10:6
The mighty king Hosea 8:10
The slayer Hosea 9:13
The leader of wickedness Habakkuk 3:13
The man of lawlessness 2nd Thessalonians 2:3,8-9
The man doomed to destruction 2nd Thessalonians 2:3
The antichrist 1st John 2:18
Death Revelation 6:8
The beast Revelation 13:1

Scripture does not paint a very pretty picture of the antichrist. Now at this time I would like to look at some Scriptures referring to ten kings of the antichrist’s kingdom.

Da 7:7 ‘After that, in my vision at night I looked, and there before me was a fourth beast—terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns.
Da 7:8 “While I was thinking about the horns, there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth that spoke boastfully.

Da 7:23 “He gave me this explanation: The fourth beast is a fourth kingdom that will appear on earth. It will be different from all the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth, trampling it down and crushing it.
Da 7:24 The ten horns are ten kings who will come from this kingdom. After them another king will arise, different from the earlier ones; he will subdue three kings.

Rev 17:12 “The ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but who for one hour will receive authority as kings along with the beast.
Rev 17:13 They have one purpose and will give their power and authority to the beast.

Da 2:40 Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron—for iron breaks and smashes everything—and as iron breaks things to pieces, so it will crush and break all the others.
Da 2:41 Just as you saw that the feet and toes were partly of baked clay and partly of iron, so this will be a divided kingdom; yet it will have some of the strength of iron in it, even as you saw iron mixed with clay.
Da 2:42 As the toes were partly iron and partly clay, so this kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle.
Da 2:43 And just as you saw the iron mixed with baked clay, so the people will be a mixture and will not remain united, any more than iron mixes with clay.

Concerning the ten kings and the kingdom they come out of, look over the last four passages and you will notice that Scripture refers to these ten kings coming out of one kingdom (singular). Scripture does not refer to these ten kings coming out of ten kingdoms (plural). When it refers to the ‘kingdom’ of these ten kings, it is always singular. These ten kings will receive authority along with the antichrist for one hour to rule a kingdom, which we now know is the kingdom of Assyria. Daniel 7:7-8; 7:23-24 and Revelation 17:12 all speak of eleven kings. The antichrist is counted as a separate king from the other ten kings.

Da 7:7 “After that, in my vision at night I looked, and there before me was a fourth beast—terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns.
Da 7:8 While I was thinking about the horns, there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth that spoke boastfully.

Da 7:23 “He gave me this explanation: ‘The fourth beast is a fourth kingdom
that will appear on earth. It will be different from all the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth, trampling it down and crushing it.
Da 7:24 The ten horns are ten kings who will come from this kingdom. After them another king will arise, different from the earlier ones; he will subdue three kings.

Since the antichrist comes out of one of the four kingdoms but comes up later than the ten horns, the ten horns, or also known as the ten kings, are one of the four prominent horns that come out of fallen kingdom of Greece. These ten kings are established before the rise of the antichrist. In Revelation 17:12 it says that the ten kings will receive authority for one hour along with the antichrist, and gives the impression that they receive authority at the same time.

Rev 17:12 “The ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but who for one hour will receive authority as kings along with the beast.

But in Revelation 13:5 the antichrist is only given authority for forty-two months, which is three and a half years. We know that the antichrist will be a king for at least seven years from the beginning of the tribulation.

Rev 13:5 The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise his authority for forty-two months.

The ten kings are given authority for the same forty-two months to exercise their authority, but they have been around for longer than that forty-two months. The meaning of giving authority is that they are given power to do someone’s will with authority, and this will be for forty-two months. The ten kings will be established at the fall of the kingdom of Greece and be one of the four horns. The antichrist comes from out of the ten horns but also out of the four horns. Daniel 11:20-24 gives us an incredible insight into the rising of these ten kings and their interaction with the antichrist.

Da 11:20 “His successor will send out a tax collector to maintain the royal splendor. In a few years, however, he will be destroyed, yet not in anger or in battle.
Da 11:21 “He will be succeeded by a contemptible person who has not been given the honor of royalty. He will invade the kingdom when its people feel secure, and he will seize it through intrigue.
Da 11:22 Then an overwhelming army will be swept away before him; both it and a prince of the covenant will be destroyed.
Da 11:23 After coming to an agreement with him, he will act deceitfully, and with only a few people he will rise to power.
Da 11:24 When the richest provinces feel secure, he will invade them and will achieve what neither his fathers nor his forefathers did. He will distribute plunder, loot and wealth among his followers. He will plot the overthrow of fortresses—but only for a time.

In Daniel 11:21 we have a successor to the king of Greece sending out a tax collector, who will be succeeded by a contemptible person. This is the first reference to the antichrist in Daniel 11. Scripture never gives a flattering description of the antichrist’s character (contemptible person, vile, a master of intrigues, boastful arrogant, proud...). In verse 21 and verse 24 we have the same event mentioned about the antichrist invading the realm when both the people and the provinces feel secure. This leaves verses 22 and 23 not truly in chronological order, because the same events happen in both verses 21 and 24, which leaves us to put verse 23 and 24 into some sense of order.

Da 11:20 “His successor will send out a tax collector to maintain the royal
splendor. In a few years, however, he will be destroyed, yet not in anger or in battle.
Da 11:21 “He will be succeeded by a contemptible person who has not been given the honor of royalty. He will invade the kingdom when its people feel secure, and he will seize it through intrigue.
Da 11:22 Then an overwhelming army will be swept away before him; both it and a prince of the covenant will be destroyed.
Da 11:23 After coming to an agreement with him, he will act deceitfully, and with only a few people he will rise to power.
Da 11:24 When the richest provinces feel secure, he will invade them and will achieve what neither his fathers nor his forefathers did. He will distribute plunder, loot and wealth among his followers. He will plot the overthrow of fortresses—but only for a time.

One of the ten kings will send out a tax collector to maintain the royal splendor and then in a few years he will be destroyed, yet not in anger or in battle, but by the antichrist’s intrigues. This king of Assyria (not the antichrist) could be the prince of the covenant and may be one of the originators of the seven year covenant that many sign with Israel. The antichrist and this king of Assyria make an agreement and then the antichrist acts deceitfully. The antichrist has some place of power in one of the ten kings’ staff, and he was probably there when the covenant was signed. Then an overwhelming army will be swept away before the antichrist arises and this army could be the army of Assyria when the antichrist invades the three provinces of Assyria, or some foreign countries army somewhere. The antichrist only has a few people who are supporting him and he rises to power.

I would like to go on and talk about the covenant. After king of Greece forces Media-Persia back into Iran and invades and establishes himself in Israel, for a revealed length of time, the King of Greece dies and Israel seizes its opportunity and may establish itself as one of the four horns. Even if it is not considered one of the four horns, it still has its own authority back because it signs the holy covenant with many. At that time, Israel has been invaded by two world powers in a very short period of years. I think this is why Israel, once it becomes free from the domination of other countries, signs this covenant. Maybe, Israel recognizes its own weakness and wants to be protected from the next aspiring ruler and then boasts “We have entered into a covenant with death, with the grave we have made an agreement. When an over whelming scourge sweeps by, it cannot touch us, for we have made a lie our refuge and falsehood our hiding place.” (Isaiah 28:15) The rational reason that Israel makes a covenant with many is because they are afraid. The spiritual reason they make a covenant with the antichrist is that they do not know their God.

Isa 1:3 The ox knows his master, the donkey his owner’s manger, but Israel does not know, my people do not understand.”
Isa 1:4 Ah, sinful nation, a people loaded with guilt, a brood of evildoers, children given to corruption! They have forsaken the LORD; they have spurned the Holy One of Israel and turned their backs on him.

Mt 23:37 Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing.
Mt 23:38 Look, your house is left to you desolate.

This last passage is not referring to end time events yet it fits the heart of God toward Jerusalem.

This covenant seems to be this mysterious agreement between many. Here are some passages on it.

Da 9:27 He (the antichrist) will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’ In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering.

Isa 28:14 Therefore hear the word of the LORD, you scoffers who rule this people in Jerusalem.
Isa 28:15 You boast, “We have entered into a covenant with death, with the grave we have made an agreement. When an overwhelming scourge sweeps by, it cannot touch us, for we have made a lie our refuge and falsehood our hiding place.”

Isa 28:18 Your covenant with death will be annulled; your agreement with the grave will not stand. When the overwhelming scourge sweeps by, you will be beaten down by it.

Da 11:22 Then an overwhelming army will be swept away before him; both it and a prince of the covenant will be destroyed.
Da 11:23 After coming to an agreement with him, he will act deceitfully, and with only a few people he will rise to power.
D 11:24 When the richest provinces feel secure, he will invade them and will achieve what neither his fathers nor his forefathers did. He will distribute plunder, loot and wealth among his followers. He will plot the overthrow of fortresses—but only for a time.
Da 11:25 ‘With a large army he will stir up his strength and courage against the king of the South. The king of the South will wage war with a large and very powerful army, but he will not be able to stand because of the plots devised against him.
Da 11:26 Those who eat from the king’s provisions will try to destroy him; his army will be swept away, and many will fall in baffle.
Da 11:27 The two kings, with their hearts bent on evil, will sit at the same table and lie to each other, but to no avail, because an end will still come at the appointed time.
Da 11:28 The king of the North will return to his own country with great wealth, but his heart will be set against the holy covenant. He will take action against it and then return to his own country.
Da 11:29 ‘At the appointed time he will invade the South again, but this time the outcome will be different from what it was before.
Da 11;30 Ships of the western coastlands will oppose him, and he will lose heart. Then he will turn back and vent his fury against the holy covenant. He will return and show favor to those who forsake the holy covenant.
Da 11:31 “His armed forces will rise up to desecrate the temple fortress and will abolish the daily sacrifice. Then they will set up the abomination that causes desolation.
Da 11:32 With flattery he will corrupt those who have violated the covenant, but the people who know their God will firmly resist him.

Isa 24:1 See, the LORD is going to lay waste the earth and devastate it; he will ruin its face and scatter its inhabitants—
1sa24:2 it will be the same for priest as for people, for master as for servant, for
mistress as for maid, for seller as for buyer for borrower as for lender, for debtor as for creditor.
1sa24:3 The earth will be completely laid waste and totally plundered. The LORD has spoken this word.
Isa 24:4 The earth dries up and withers, the world languishes and withers, the exalted of the earth languish.
Isa 24:5 The earth is defiled by its people; they have disobeyed the laws, violated the statutes and broken the everlasting covenant.
Isa 24:6 Therefore a curse consumes the earth; its people must bear their guilt. Therefore earth’s inhabitants are burned up, and very few are left.
Now there are some interesting passages here on the holy covenant. Now in Daniel 9:27 it says that the antichrist will confirm a covenant with many for one seven. Now my question is; will they sign a new covenant for one seven, or will they confirm an existing covenant for one seven. There is a difference. In signing a covenant with many for one seven, they come up with a covenant and many people sign it. It is new, and becomes policy. Or will the antichrist confirms a covenant with many for one seven, in which there was already an existing covenant and many people get together and re-ratify it for another period of time. This will be important, at that time, to those who are watching these events, because they will need to know when the seven year time frame begins and who the antichrist actually is.

In Daniel 11:22-23 we have the antichrist coming to power and a prince of the covenant being destroyed. In the passage of Daniel 11:22 it seems to be a strange place to state ‘the covenant” Stating that it is the covenant seems to me to mean that it the most important covenant at the time.

Da 11:22 Then an overwhelming army will be swept away before him; both it and a prince of the covenant will be destroyed.
a 11:23 After coming to an agreement with him, he will act deceitfully, and with only a few people he will rise to power.

It seems to be way to near a time in-between the death of the prince of the covenant and the rise to power of the antichrist. So, the initial covenant may in actuality be a covenant that is signed at the fall of the king of Greece amongst many, and the overwhelming army and the prince of the covenant, that is swept away, may be a country that attacks another country and fails, and their army and a prince of the covenant are destroyed. So this covenant is signed and then later confirmed by the antichrist. Then after this covenant is confirmed, the antichrist attacks the Persians, and then later comes to an agreement with the Persians. But, the antichrists heart is set against the holy covenant in Daniel 11:28, and takes action against it. What he does I don’t know, but scripture says that he does it after he returns to his own county. So, whatever he does, he leaves his country to do it, and then returns. He may attack a country near by.

In Revelation 6:8 Scripture calls the antichrist death and names the false prophet Hades and opens up some very interesting passages in the Old Testament.

Isa 28:14 Therefore hear the word of the LORD, you scoffers who rule this people in Jerusalem.
Isa 28:15 You boast, “We have entered into a covenant with death, with the grave we have made an agreement. When an overwhelming scourge sweeps by, it cannot touch us, for we have made a lie our refuge and falsehood our biding place

Isa 28:17b I will sweep away your refuge, the lie, and water will overflow your hiding place.
Isa 28:18 Your covenant with death will be annulled; your agreement with the grave will not stand. When the overwhelming scourge sweeps by, you will be beaten down by it.
isa28:19 As often as it comes it will carry you away; morning after morning, by day and by night, it will sweep through.”
Isa 28:22 Now stop your mocking, or your chains will become heavier; the Lord, the LORD Almighty, has told me of the destruction decreed against the whole land.

This gives reference to the Israelite government confirming the seven year covenant with the antichrist in the last days. Israel will have been previously conquered by Persia and Greece. And at the fall of Greece and the rising of the four horns, Israel signs the covenant. And then here comes the mighty king of Assyria, he confirms the covenant with many, but the antichrist is deceitful and vile and will turn against the holy covenant and attack and conquer Israel in a day.

Jer 9:21 Death has climbed in through our windows and has entered our fortresses; it has cut off the children from the streets and the young men from the public squares.
Jer 9:22 Say, “This is what the LORD declares: “‘The dead bodies of men will lie like refuse on the open field, like cut grain behind the reaper, with no one to gather them.’

Hos 13:12 The guilt of Ephraim is stored up, his sins are kept on record.
Hos l3:13 Pains as of a woman in childbirth come to him, but he is a child without wisdom; when the time arrives, he does not come to the opening of the womb.
Hos 13:14 “I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem then from death. Where, 0 death, are your plagues? Where, 0 grave, is your destruction? “I will have no compassion,
Hos 13:15 even though he thrives among his brothers. An east wind from the LORD will come, blowing in from the desert; his spring will fail and his well dry up. His storehouse will be plundered of all its treasures.
Hos 13:16 The people of Samaria must bear their guilt, because they have rebelled against their God. They will fall by the sword; their little ones will be dashed to the ground, their pregnant women ripped open.”

What a horrible destruction the antichrist will cause on Ephraim.

Hab 2:8b For you have shed man’s blood; you have destroyed lands and cities and everyone in them.

At this point I would like to interject a passage from Isaiah.

Isa 5:19 to those who say, “Let God hurry, let him hasten his work so we may see it. Let it approach, let the plan of the Holy One of Israel come, so we may know it.”
Isa 5:20 Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.

I don’t know about you, but I know how many times I have desired that the rapture would come so that I could be caught up with Jesus and escape my present petty problems. But where is the love others? Should I wish that the world go through such horrific times so that I can be set free from my uncomfortable time of discipline from God? No, I realized that this was not love.

How many times have we all quoted this passage, Habakkuk 2:4 ”but the righteous will live by his faith.” but let the context of the passage amaze you.
Hab 2:2 Then the LORD replied: Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it.
Hab 2:3 For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay.
Hab 2:4 See, he (the antichrist) is puffed up; his desires are not upright—but the righteous will live by his faith—
Hab 2:5 indeed, wine betrays him; he is arrogant and never at rest. Because he is as greedy as the grave and like death is never satisfied, he gathers to himself all the nations and takes captive all the peoples.
Hab 2:6 Will not all of them taunt him with ridicule and scorn, saying, Woe to him who piles up stolen goods and makes himself wealthy by extortion! How long must this go on?’
Hab 2:7 Will not your debtors suddenly arise? Will they not wake up and make you tremble? Then you will become their victim.
Hab 2:8 Because you have plundered many nations, the peoples who are left will plunder you. For you have shed man’s blood; you have destroyed lands and cities and everyone in them.
Hab 2:9 Woe to him who builds his realm by unjust gain to set his nest on high, to escape the clutches of ruin.
Hab2:10 You have plotted the ruin of many peoples, shaming your own house and forfeiting your life.
Hab 2:11 The stones of the wall will cry out, and the beams of the woodwork will echo it.
Hab 2:12 Woe to him who builds a city with bloodshed and establishes a town by crime!
Hab 2:13 Has not the LORD Almighty determined that the people’s labor is only fuel for the fire, that the nations exhaust themselves for nothing?
Hab 2:14 For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.
Hab 2:15 Woe to him who gives drink to his neighbors, pouring it from the wineskin till they are drunk, so that he can gaze on their naked bodies.
Hab 2:16 You will be filled with shame instead of glory. Now it is your turn. Drink and be exposed! The cup from the LORD’S right hand is coming around to you, and disgrace will cover your glory.
Hab 2:17 The violence you have done to Lebanon will overwhelm you, and your destruction of animals will terrify you. For you have shed man’s blood: you have destroyed lands and cities and everyone in them.
Hab 2:18 “Of what value is an idol, since a man has carved it? Or an image that teaches lies? For he who makes it trusts in his own creation; he makes idols that cannot speak.
Hab 2:19 Woe to him who says to wood, ‘Come to life’ Or to lifeless stone, ‘Wake up’ Can it give guidance? It is covered with gold and silver; there is no breath in it.
Hab 2:20 But the LORD is in his holy temple; let all the earth be silent before him.”
(Parenthesis added)

Wow, what a descriptive passage on the antichrist. First of all the LORD clearly puts this revelation in the End Times.

Hab 2:3 For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay.

Also our Lord tell us that the tribulation is not going to happen when we think. “Though it lingers, wait for it; it certainly will not delay.”

Mt 24:6 You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.
Mt 24:7 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places.
Mt 24:8 All these are the beginning of birth pains.

MI 24:48 But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself! My master is staying away a long time,’

Mt 25:5 The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.

Mt 25:19 “After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them.

2Pe 3:3 First of all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires.
2Pe 3:4 They will say, “Where is this ‘coming he promised? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.”

So the LORD gives us insight into the time of his coming. At this time in the 21 century we think, “The LORD could come at any day, but the LORD says “though it tarry, wait for it.” It probably will not come as soon as we think, for there has to be many prophecies concerning Persia and Greece to be fulfilled before the tribulation ever begins. But. until that time and during that time, let us love one another.

In verse four our LORD begins talking about the antichrist, for who else in the end of times would the LORD be referring to? ‘See he is puffed up; his desires are not upright.., indeed, wine betrays him; he is arrogant and never at rest. Because, he is as greedy as the grave and like death never satisfied....” Here again we have the reference to death and the grave in the same passage as the antichrist. Then right in the middle of this passage our LORD says, “but the righteous will live by his faith.” What a faith! When the world is being destroyed and the saints are being delivered unto death. Do we have that kind of relationship with Jesus that we can trust him in those terrible times that he is sovereign? Will we be able to trust him, if we find ourselves in one of the countries that the antichrist has dominion over? Will we have that kind of faith if our loved ones are martyred before our eyes?
I’ve also added the passage from Isaiah 24:1-4 which talks about the Lord devastating the earth because the inhabitants of the earth have broken the everlasting covenant. I don’t think this is a reference to the covenant that is confirmed by many in the tribulation, but if it is it may be that the holy covenant that Israel signed, God has taken as an authoritative covenant, because the Israelites have signed it, and they are His people. and the nations have broken it.

Isa 24:1 See, the LORD is going to lay waste the earth and devastate it; he will ruin its face and scatter its inhabitants—
1sa24:2 it will be the same for priest as for people, for master as for servant, for mistress as for maid, for seller as for buyer, for borrower as for lender, for debtor as for creditor.
Isa 24:3 The earth will be completely laid waste and totally plundered. The LORD has spoken this word.
Ia24:4 The earth dries up and withers, the world languishes and withers, the exalted of the earth languish.
1sa24:5 The earth is defiled by its people; they have disobeyed the laws, violated the statutes and broken the everlasting covenant.
Isa 24:6 Therefore a curse consumes the earth; its people must bear their guilt. Therefore earth’s inhabitants are burned up, and very few are left.

What is the everlasting covenant that has been broken? It is a covenant that not just the Israelites can break, meaning the complete Law, but it may refer to a covenant that has been established with all men.

In Habakkuk chapter 2 our LORD goes on to give us some of the reasons for the antichrists reign of terror. One, he is greedy as the grave and wishes to pile up wealth. The antichrist wishes to build up his own realm and then our LORD specifically mentions the antichrist building a city, a specific city.

Hab2:9 ‘Woe to him who builds his realm by unjust gain to set his nest on high, to escape the clutches of ruin!
Hab 2:10 You have plotted the win of many peoples, shaming your own house and forfeiting your life.
Hab 2:11 The stones of the wall will cry out, and the beams of the woodwork will echo it.
Hab 2:12 Woe to him who builds a city with bloodshed and establishes a town by crime!

And this city is none other than Nineveh the ancient capital of Assyria.

Na 11 An oracle concerning Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite.
Na l:1l From you, 0 Nineveh, has one come forth who plots evil against the LORD and counsels wickedness.

Zephaniah also mentions Nineveh as being destroyed in the last days.

Zep 2:13 He will stretch out his hand against the north and destroy Assyria, leaving Nineveh utterly desolate and dry as the desert.

Na 3:1 Woe to the city of blood, full of lies, full of plunder, never without victims.
Na 3:2 The crack of whips, the clatter of wheels, galloping horses and jolting
chariots!
Na 3:3 Charging cavalry, flashing swords and glittering spears. Many casualties, piles of dead, bodies without number, people stumbling over the corpses—
Na 3:4 all because of the wanton lust of a harlot, alluring, the mistress of sorceries, who enslaved nations by her prostitution and peoples by her witchcraft.

Read through Zephaniah it is only three chapters. You will see many blatant references to the end time events, and if you look hard you will find a few non-blatant references to the end times and the millennium.

See also Zephaniah 2:11 this is a judgment of the idols of Moab and the Ammonites during the tribulation, because only during the millennium will all the false gods be destroyed and for the nations of every shore to worship the LORD, this is definitely millennium prophecy. And in Zephaniah 3:8 we have the LORD declaring he will gather the nations and pour out his wrath on them and consume the world by the fire of his jealous anger.

At this time I would like to go on talking about what the antichrist does after confirming the covenant with many.

Da 11:25 ‘With a large army he (the antichrist) will stir up his strength and courage against the king of the South. The king of the South will wage war with a large and very powerful army, but he will not be able to stand because of the plots devised against him.
Da 11:26 Those who eat from the kings provisions will try to destroy him; his army will be swept away, and many will fall in battle.

Here is a map of the antichrist attacking Persia.

The antichrist will have to stir up his courage to attack the king of Persia (the king of the South). The antichrist is definitely human with human emotions and fears. The king of Persia has a superior army and yet his army is swept away because of the plots devised against him by the master of intrigues. The king of Persia is not destroyed, and these two kings with their heads bent on evil will sit at the same table and lie to each other. These two kings are probably two of the most powerful rulers in the area at that time. What a meeting that will seem to be! But even as these two kings sit and lie to each other, God is not concerned because he says the end will still come at the appointed time.” What comforting words to those who live at that time. God has an appointed time for the end, and nothing even the two most powerful rulers on earth can do, they still cannot change the time table of God. Praise be to God. What reassuring words to those who still have to go through the rest of the Great Tribulation. At this time there is still over three and a half years to go. God is saying “I am in control, I am the Sovereign LORD, trust me.

Da 11:28 The king of the North (the antichrist) will return to his own country with great wealth, but his heart will be set against the holy covenant. He will take action against it and then return to his own country.
Da 11:29 “At the appointed time he will invade the South again, but this time the outcome will be different from what it was before.
Da 11:30 Ships of the western coastlands will oppose him, and he will lose heart. Then he will turn back and vent his fury against the holy covenant. He will return and show favor to those who forsake the holy covenant.

(Parenthesis added)

The events from verse 22 through 30 all happen during the first three and a half years of the seven year covenant period. The antichrist gets done fighting Persia, for the time being, but his heart will be set against the holy covenant. He may even attack one of the members of the holy covenant, and then returns to Assyria, then turns and attacks Persia again. The outcome is different this time; ships from the western coastlands attack him. The term ‘western coastlands’ is actually ‘Chittim.’ Chittim in its narrowest sense can mean just the ‘Islands of Cyprus’ in the Mediterranean Sea. The earliest references (Genesis 10:4) makes this term apply to the descendants of Javan indicating the Greek- Latin races of the Mediterranean area including Cyprus. Wycliffe Bible dictionary. Chittim may be referring to Greece, one of the four kingdoms.

(Click on map to view larger image)

Different countries probably wake up and realize the king of Assyria is a very dangerous threat, now that he has moved against one or more of the members of the holy covenant. Once the antichrist starts attacking Persia, Chittim attacks the antichrist, and the antichrist finds he has a war on two fronts and he loses heart. The antichrist turns away from Persia and directs his fury against members of the holy covenant. Chittim may be a member of the holy covenant. The antichrist turns away from Persia and vents his fury against them. This also shows one of the emotions that the antichrist has, the antichrist loses heart.

Da 11:30b Then he will turn back and vent his fury against the holy covenant. He will return and show favor to those who forsake the holy covenant. These are probably kings of different countries

Isa 7:17 The LORD will bring on you and on your people and on the house of your father a time unlike any since Ephraim broke away from Judah—he will bring the king of Assyria.’
Isa 7:18 In that day the LORD will whistle for flies from the distant streams of Egypt and for bees from the land of Assyria.
Isa 7:19 They will all come and settle in the steep ravines and in the crevices in the rocks, on all the thornbushes and at all the water holes.

Egypt is one of the countries that forsake the holy covenant and helps Assyria invade Israel. Egypt and Assyria have never together attacked and conquered Israel, but in the end times they join together and attack.

(Click on map to view larger image)

Once the antichrist takes Israel...

Da 11:31 ‘His armed forces will rise up to desecrate the temple fortress and will abolish the daily sacrifice. Then they will set up the abomination that causes desolation.
Da 11:32 With flattery he will corrupt those who have violated the covenant, but the people who know their God will firmly resist him.
After losing heart, he becomes furious and vents his anger against Israel.

Isa 10:5 “Woe to the Assyrian, the rod of my anger, in whose hand is the club of my wrath!
Isa 10:6 I send him against a godless nation, I dispatch him against a people who anger me, to seize loot and snatch plunder, and to trample them down like mud in the streets.
Isa 10:7 But this is not what he intends, this is not what he has in mind; his purpose is to destroy, to put an end to many nations.
Isa 10:8 ‘Are not my commanders all kings?’ he says.

Da 8:12 Because of rebellion, the host of the saints and the daily sacrifice were given over to it. It prospered in everything it did, and truth was thrown to the ground.

Da 11:33 “Those who are wise will instruct many, though for a time they will fall by the sword or be burned or captured or plundered.
Da 11:34 When they fall, they will receive a little help, and many who are not sincere will join them.
Da 11:35 Some of the wise will stumble, so that they may be refined, purified and made spotless until the time of the end, for it will still come at the appointed time.

When the antichrist conquers Israel it will be the midway point of the tribulation, the first three and a half years. At that time, the false prophet sets up an image of the antichrist and force all to fall down and worship his image or be put to death. Also, this is probably where the actual spirit of the antichrist that comes out of the abyss enters the antichrist, because around this time the antichrist receives a fatal wound but is revived and once the image is set up the antichrist receives the authority from satan for the last forty-two months of the tribulation. This is probably where the mark of the beast is put into force; so no man can buy or sell without the mark of the beast. From that time Scripture declares that the antichrist will be prosperous in everything he does. Daniel 8:12

What a hard time that generation will face. Will they be lulled into complacency? If we are not on our toes and knees and intimately seeking God, I will have to say yes. Those times will sneak up on a lot of people still God is faithful and merciful and at that time whoever calls on the name of the LORD will be saved.

At that Time... Chapter 3

2008-09-26T20:25:00.000-07:00

Chapter 3
Pre-Tribulation
Media-Persia and Greece

Daniel chapter 11 is the most detailed of all the visions, so it will be useful as a chronological base, as we thread to all the other passages and visions. All the events in this chapter happen before the tribulation ever begins.

Da 11:2 ‘Now then, I tell you the truth: Three more kings will appear in Persia, and then a fourth, who will be far richer than all the others. When he has gained power by his wealth, he will stir up everyone against the kingdom of Greece.

At some point in time, whether it has already begun or will begin in the future, there will be three more kings that arise in Persia and right after them a fourth king of Persia will arise. The fourth king of Persia is also known as the king of the South. Why I say that the king of the South is the king of Persia and not the kings of Media-Persia throughout the rest of the book, is that Scripture starts talking about three more kings will arise in Persia and not from Media. Media and Persia in today’s times is Iran, Media is the northern part of Iran and Persia is the southern part of Iran. The red line across the middle of Iran in no wise is a determination where the actual boundary between Media and Persia will be.

(Click on map to view enlarged image)

Da 11:2 Now then, I tell you the truth: Three more kings will appear in Persia, and then a fourth, who will be far richer than all the others. When he has gained power by his wealth, he will stir up everyone against the kingdom of Greece.

The king of Persia is the king of the South before the king of Media arises and takes over part of the king of the South’s country. Scripture specifically says that the fourth king of Persia and not Media will stir up everyone against the king of the North, which we find later in this section the king of the South doing. The king of the South will not start out extremely rich or powerful. He has wealth but when he becomes far richer than the previous three rulers of Persia he builds up his military might, but he makes a critical error is his military appointments.

Da 11:5 The king of the South will become strong, but one of his commanders will become even stronger than he and will rule his own kingdom with feat power.

Da 11:6a After some years, they will become allies.

The king of the South gains power by his wealth but one of his commanders gets a strong hold on the military, either by a coupe or a political division of some kind and Persia is divided into two countries. Then the two kings of Media and Persia make an alliance and a plan to conquer and rule the Middle East, which they accomplish.

Da 8:4a I watched the ram as he charged toward the west…

The ram charges all the way to Egypt. Why I say that is; when the king of the South attacks Greece (Daniel 11:8), the king of Persia takes the treasure of Greece to Egypt.

The king of Persia would not take treasure to Egypt unless he had already conquered it and made it part of his kingdom. This shows the total control and surety of this Persian king. He is not just a king of Persia ruling over Egypt and other Middle East countries, for then he would take and try to horde all the wealth in Persia, but he has such a firm and confident grip on Egypt (and on himself) that he is king of all his lands, and rules in such magnitude and totality, that he takes the treasure from Greece to Egypt.

But what countries do the kings of Media and Persia take on their way west to Egypt? If, you draw a straight line from Tehran, the capital of Iran, (which at that time, will most likely be located in Media) to Cairo, the capital of Egypt, the line will cross Iraq, Jordan, Israel and Egypt (See map below). The question of most importance is: Does Israel get taken at that time? The answer is; well, let’s see. To start off with I would like to look at Daniel 11:16

(Click on map to view enlarged image)

Da 11:16 The invader (the king of Greece) will do as he pleases; no one will be able to stand against him. He will establish himself in the Beautiful Land and will have the power to destroy it.

This verse does not say that the king of Greece destroys Israel. It says that he will establish himself in Israel and will have power to destroy it, showing Israel’s complete helplessness against the king of Greece. What about the kingdom of Media-Persia, do they conquer Israel before the king of Greece conquers it? 1) It would be nearly impossible for Media-Persia to wage a land war all the way to Egypt without first taking Israel, for Israel blocks the land bridge to Africa, but Media-Persia could take Egypt by sea and air. 2) Daniel 8:4 says, no animal could stand against the ram of Media-Persia and Israel is one of the animals referred to by “no animals”. None in the entire world could rescue from the power of the two horned ram

Da 8:4 I watched the ram as he charged toward the west and the north and the south. No animal could stand against him, and none could rescue from his power. He did as he pleased and became great.

Not only does Media-Persia conquer all the way to Egypt, but also fills out its domination to the north and south. Media-Persia probably takes Assyria, Turkey, and Lebanon to the north; Iraq and Saudi Arabia to the south, and maybe some of the African kingdoms south of Egypt. The greatness and the power of this kingdom will be unstoppable. “No animal” in Australia, Asia, Europe, North America or South America, will be able to stand against the Media-Persian Empire. And no animal may want to try to stop the conquest of the Middle East, for the region may have a so-called peace, as the world may see it. The Israeli question is finally resolved, so they may think.

There is also an interesting correlation between Isaiah 22:3, 6 and Revelation 6:2, the rider on a white horse who held a bow and was a conqueror bent of conquest. Look at Isaiah 22:3, 6 and Revelation 6:2.

Isa 22:3 All your leaders have fled together; they have been captured without using the bow. All you who were caught were taken prisoner together, having fled while the enemy was still far away.

Isa 22:6 Elam takes up the quiver, with her charioteers and horses; Kir uncovers the shield.

Rev 6:2 I looked, and there before me was a white horse! Its rider held a bow, and he was given a crown, and he rode out as a conqueror bent on conquest.

Both of these passages refer to this bow that the King of Persia holds.
The King of Persia will not have to wage a major battle or sieges to conquer Israel. Israel’s leaders see Persia coming and they scatter and flee. The country of Israel will be taken with no problems. Look at Isaiah 22:8 “the defenses of Judah are stripped away.” This gives insight into the helplessness of Israel from that time till the end of the tribulation. It seems that the leaders of Israel have become so soft and corrupt, that at the first sign of a battle by a major world power they panic and flee, but are captured none the less. Some in Jerusalem will see the King of Persia advancing and try to hole themselves in the city of Jerusalem. They try to fortify it but they know it is of no hope and they say “let us eat and drink for tomorrow we die.” But they forgot that they are in the city of the LORD Almighty, they forget the LORD, and the LORD was right there waiting for them to repent, but they must have decided to die was better then repentance.

This map shows Media-Persia moving all the way west to Egypt.

(Click on map to view enlarged image)

Let us learn a lesson from this event. When God comes to us personally to chastise and discipline us in major ways, let us fall upon our knees and weep and wail and rend our hearts and beg the forgiveness of God. Let us hope in his mercy rather than to despair unto death and do evil and give up. But I recommend instead of this let us repent and surrender all unto our LORD now, in faith and love, let us search Him with all are hearts, mind, strength and soul, and trust him to reveal Himself to us.

“For unless God reveals, He remains concealed.” (Poj)

Whatever the strength of Israelites is at the time of the Persian invasion, it will all be for nothing, for the leaders will panic and flee. The country will be taken and the defenses of Israel will be stripped, and most likely assimilated into the military might of Persia.

Media-Persia may at first take over Iraq, which will later be called Babylon. Depending on the world political arena, no one may say anything about Media-Persia taking Iraq. The world may try to resolve Iran (Media-Persia) taking Iraq by political means, imposing sanctions and/or may not want to do anything militarily, while Iran establishes itself in Iraq.

(Click on map to view enlarged image)

Once Media-Persia establishes itself in Iraq, they will move west, probably through Jordan to get to Israel. Syria may, if it still is allies with Media-Persia (Iran), may set up military distractions to pull the armed forces of these countries to the north, while Jordan and Israel are looking north Media-Persia attacks from the east. Prophecy proclaims is that Media-Persia takes Egypt and Israel and conquers unrevealed countries on its way west. How Media-Persia military takes all the countries to the west is conjecture.

Then the two-horned ram (Media-Persia) moves to the north.

Da 8:4 I watched the ram as he charged toward the west and the north and the south. No animal could stand against him, and none could rescue from his power. He did as he pleased and became great.

Media-Persia probably takes Syria and Lebanon.

(Click on map to view enlarged image)

When Daniel says that Media-Persia moves then to the north, the possibilities are that Media-Persia move north anywhere along their now new northern border. Later we will show that Greece takes a lot of coastal cities after it militarily forces Media-Persia back into Iran. Therefore, it is most likely Media-Persia takes Syria and Lebanon on its way north. The red arrows in the map below show where Media-Persia will most likely move north. The orange arrows show where they possibly could move north.

(Click on map to view enlarged image)

The map below shows where the probably boundaries for Media-Persia are located after it moves north.

(Click on map to view enlaged image)

Then Media-Persia moves to the south.

Da 8:4 I watched the ram as he charged toward the west and the north and the south. No animal could stand against him, and none could rescue from his power. He did as he pleased and became great.

In the map below; the red arrows are where Media-Persia most likely attacks, the brown arrows are where the probably attack, and the orange arrows are where they may also attack.

(click on image to view enlarged image)

The map below is probably the boarder of Media-Persia when the king of Greece starts attacking it.

Da 8:5 As I was thinking about this, suddenly a goat (Greece) with a prominent horn between his eyes came from the west, crossing the whole earth without touching the ground.

With the four horseman of the apocalypse, the interesting thing is that the first rider on white horse is given a bow, so that may mean that Iran comes into a new missile technology, for it is given a bow. The second horse of the apocalypse, Greece is given a sword and also in Daniel it attacks Media-Persia from the west without touching the ground. This could be a new military tactic of attacking Media-Persia from the air and shatters it and then takes many of the coastlands with his ground forces; the sword.

The map below is the probable boundary of Greece after it runs Media-Persia back into Iran.

(Click on map to view enlarged image)

By the time of Daniel 11:8, Egypt is conquered by Persia, because the King of the South (the King of Persia) takes the treasures of the King of the North (the King of Greece) to Egypt. The King of Persia must have by this verse conquered Egypt. Let’s make the assumption that Israel is conquered before Egypt is conquered. Why? Because: for the Persian forces to attack Egypt by land, they would have to go through Israel. The important question here is how long is Israel is subjected to Persia. Look at the last part of verse 8 after it mentions Egypt.

Da 11:8 He will also seize their gods, their metal images and their valuable articles of silver and gold and carry them off to Egypt. For some years he will leave the king of the North alone.

“For some years he (the King of Persia) will leave the King of the North alone.” Here we have a statement of “some years’ and if we take this to be a minimum of two years, it probably be more than two years (Why I go for the minimum is to work on the minimum this timeline takes to happen) then in verses 13-14 we have a time reference of “several years”.

Da 11:13 For the king of the North will muster another army, larger than the first; and after several years, he will advance with a huge army fully equipped.
Da 11:14 “In those times many will rise against the king of the South. The violent men among your own people will rebel in fulfillment of the vision, but without success.

Here in Daniel 11:13 we have the third and last time reference to “years” but this one says “several years” instead of “some years.” If you took “several years” to be a minimum of three years, plus the two years from the other mention of “some years” in the pervious passage, we have a total minimum of five years that Persia has dominion over Israel, and this is using just these two references to years, it actually could and will be probably will be longer than five years that Persia has dominion over Israel.

We have talked about the King of Persia taking Israel, I would now like to continue on with Persia and Persia’s interactions with Greece, starting back at Daniel 11:6 where we left off to figure out that Israel will be taken by the Media-Persians.

Da 11:6 After some years, they will become allies. The daughter of the king of the South will go to the king of the North to make an alliance, but she will not retain her power, and he and his power will not last. In those days she will be handed over, together with her royal escort and her father and the one who supported her.

This passage seems very ambiguous but it does let us in on some interesting suppositions. 1) Is the age of the king of Persia at that time; he is probably 40 to 55 years old. Why do I say that? The king has a daughter who is mature enough to be an ambassador. So if he had his daughter when he was twenty and she had his grandchild when she was twenty, then that would make him at least 40 years old, and the child is still young enough to take on diplomatic mission, not that a child would ever be to old.

Supposition two: this is what Persia uses to stir everyone up against Greece. The daughter of the king of the South goes on a diplomatic mission to Greece and it appears that her royal escort, and her child, who could be the future king of Persia, are held against their will in Greece. This action of detaining the daughter of the king of Persia is taken as an act of war.

Da 11:7 “One from her family line will arise to take her place. He will attack the forces of the king of the North and enter his fortress; he will fight against them and be victorious.

This Scripture says, one from the line of the princess of Persia takes her place, but what was her place? She was a diplomat, not a commander, the ‘he” at the beginning of the second sentence of verse 7 is not talking about the person who takes the place of the princess of Persia. The “he” in verse 7 is speaking of the king of the South. If you take the context of the passage from verse 7 to verse 11 we can see that in verse 11 the king of the South is the leader of the armies of Persia. So, if we start in verse 11 and backtrack to verse 7 the two primary participants are the king of the North and the king of the South. Maybe you can see what I mean if I show you how I see the verses. I am going to leave out the numerical verse indicators, and take out the paragraph divisions, and add a parenthesis to highlight the structure of the text. Got all that? Don’t worry.

Daniel 11:5-9 The king of the South will become strong, but one of his commanders will become even stronger than he and will rule his own kingdom with great power. After some years, they will become allies. The daughter of the king of the South will go to the king of the North to make an alliance, but she will not retain her power, and he (the king of the North, Greece) and his power will not last. In those days she will be handed over, together with her royal escort and her child and the one who supported her. One from her family line will arise to take her place. He (the king of the South) will attack the forces of the king of the North and enter his fortress; he will fight against them and be victorious. He will also seize their gods, their metal images and their valuable articles of silver and gold and carry them off to Egypt. For some years he will leave the king of the North alone. Then the king of the North will invade the realm of the king of the South but will retreat to his own country.

As I understand the text it appears that the king of Greece retains the princess of Persia. ‘One from her family line” takes her position as ambassador and then the king of Persia attacks the king of Greece, because of the king of Greece taking hostage the princess of Persia. Then the king of Persia enters the fortress of the king of Greece, this is probably where the princess is held. He is victorious and frees the princess. Plus, he gets quite a reward of silver and gold, is appeased, and leaves the king of Greece alone. For, the king of Persia’s goal was not to conquer Greece but to release the princess. This is another reason why I say that Persia conquers Turkey. After the ram conquers to the west, Scripture says that the ram charges to the north. This ambassadorial mission by the Princes of Persia may be to reassure Greece that it has no intentions of crossing the Aegean Sea to attack them.

At this time I would like to introduce you to the king of Greece; the king of the North. He is the belly and thighs of bronze in Daniel 2. The second beast of Daniel 7 that looks like a bear raised up on one side with three ribs in his mouth. He is the goat in Daniel 8. The first king of the north in Daniel 11:2-20 and he is the rider on the fiery red horse of Revelation 6 who was given power to take peace from the earth and to make men slay each other, to him was given a large sword.

Da 11:3 Then a mighty king will appear, who will rule with great power and do as he pleases.

This mighty king of Greece does not start off so mighty, and has three recorded failures at the beginning of his reign. First, as we have already discussed he detains the Princess of Persia and suffers a defeat by the king of the South entering his fortress and freeing the princess. Then in verse 9 it is stated.

Da 11:9 Then the king of the North will invade the realm of the king of the South but will retreat to his own country.

The king of Greece invades the realm of the king of Persia but retreats. This is the second defeat. Then...

Da 11:10 His sons will prepare for war and assemble a great army, which will sweep on like an irresistible flood and carry the battle as far as his fortress.
Da 11:11 “Then the king of the South will march out in a rage and fight against the king of the North, who will raise a large army, but it will be defeated.
Da 11:12 When the army is carried off...

This is the king of Greece’s third defeat. This is why the king of Greece becomes a mighty king. To persevere after failure is to become strong... if it doesn’t kill you first. The king of Greece is the aggressor against Persia all three times, true to second rider of Revelation 6. He is given a large sword and he is the reason why men slay each other and peace is taken from the earth. Then…

Da 11:13 … the king of the North (Greece) will muster another army, larger than the first; and after several years, he will advance with a huge army fully equipped.
Da 11:15 Then the king of the North will come and build up siege ramps and will capture a fortified city. The forces of the South will be powerless to resist; even their best troops will not have the strength to stand.

Daniel 8 also talks about that event, Daniel 8:5

Da 8:5 As I was thinking about this, suddenly a goat (Greece) with a prominent horn between his eyes came from the west, crossing the whole earth without touching the ground.
Da 8:6 He came toward the two-horned ram (Media-Persia) I had seen standing beside the canal and charged at him in great rage.
Da 8:7 I saw him attack the ram furiously, striking the ram and shattering his two horns. The ram was powerless to stand against him; the goat knocked him to the ground and trampled on him, and none could rescue the ram from his power.

First, the king of Greece detains the princess of Persia, and then he attacks Persia two times and loses. I have to say one thing about the king of Greece, he is determined. Even though the king of Greece shatters the two horns of Media- Persia he is still not able to overthrow the kingdom of Persia, for…

Da 11:17 He will determine to come with the might of his entire kingdom and will make an alliance with the king of the South. And he will give him a daughter in marriage in order to overthrow the kingdom, but his plans will not succeed or help him.

The king of Greece invades the realm of the king of the South and shatters the rule of Media-Persia, but is unable to fully destroy the king of the South. So, he tries to defeat the king by intrigue but fails. Then the king of the North (Greece) makes an alliance with the king of the South (Persia). The king of the North then turns his attention to the coastlands and will take many of them.

Da 11:18 Then he will turn his attention to the coastlands and will take many of them, but a commander will put an end to his insolence and will turn his insolence back upon him.

Here in the last part of this verse we come to one of those interesting ambiguous statements, “but a commander will put an end to his insolence and will turn his insolence back upon him.” A commander of the king of Greece does something to stop the insolence of this king, either by tact, wisdom or craftiness and turns the insolence of the king of Greece back on him. This seems to stop the whole military campaign, because the king of Greece turns and goes home.

Da 11:19 After this, he will turn back toward the fortresses of his own country but will stumble and fall, to be seen no more.

Da 8:8 The goat became very great, but at the height of his power his large horn was broken off, and in its place four prominent horns grew up toward the four winds of heaven.

The king of Greece turns to head home and probably dies, Out of his empire emerges four kingdoms, but what are these four prominent kingdoms? One is most probably Greece itself and two of the others could be Israel and Babylon but that is conjecture. One of them has to be the antichrist’s kingdom, for the antichrist comes out of one of the four horns.

Da 8:9 Out of one of them came another horn, which started small but grew in power to the south and to the east and toward the Beautiful Land.
Da 8:10 It grew until it reached the host of the heavens, and it threw some of the starry host down to the earth and trampled on them.

There is probably much confusion and anxiety at the beginning of the reign of the four kingdoms, right after the king of Greece, the king of the North is seen no more. At this point I would like to look at three statements in Daniel 11:6, 8 and 13, they have to do with statements of years.

Da 11:6 After some years, they will become allies. The daughter of the king of the South will go to the king of the North to make an alliance, but she will not retain her power, and he and his power will not last. In those days she will be handed over, together with her royal escort and her father and the one who supported her.

Da 11:8 He will also seize their gods, their metal images and their valuable articles of silver and gold and carry them off to Egypt. For some years he will leave the king of the North alone.

Da 11:13 For the king of the North will muster another army, larger than the first; and after several years, he will advance with a huge army fully equipped.

Here we have three references to years. In Daniel 11:6 and 8 we have two references to ‘some years’ and in Daniel 11:13 we have a reference to ‘several years’. Now, to find a time frame or a length of time for these references, lets just say that the minimum length of time for ‘some years’ is two years, and the minimum length of time for ‘several years’ is three years. We then have a minimum of seven years from verse 6 to verse 13. This does not include all the other events that happen in-between verses 6 and 13. It does not include all the time from verse 1 to 5 and from 14 to 20. Why, I take it to verse 20 is because in verse 21 we have the first mention of the antichrist and his rise to power. If you read Daniel 11:1-21 and look at all the events, we have a minimum of seven years just from the three time references, plus then you have to add in the length of time for all the other events to happen. From the time that the fourth king of Persia arises and he losses part of his kingdom in verse 5 up until verse 21, we have anywhere from a minimum of 7 years up to 60 years before the tribulation even begins. Let me say that again, from the time that the forth king of Persia arises and he losses part of his kingdom in verse 5 up until verse 21, we have anywhere from a minimum of 7 years to 60 years before the tribulation even begins.
What this means to us is that once these prophecies start in verse 5 there will be at least 7 years up unto 6o or so years, till the tribulation begins.

Selah

Now, the four horns that arise out of the fallen Greece are the four prominent horns of Daniel 8, the leopard with four wings of Daniel 7, and the black horse of the Apocalypse,

Da 8:8 The goat became very great, but at the height of his power his large horn was broken off, and in its place four prominent horns grew up toward the four winds of heaven.

Da 8:22 The four horns that replaced the one that was broken off represent four kingdoms that will emerge from his nation but will not have the same power.

Da 7:6 “After that, I looked, and there before me was another beast, one that looked like a leopard. And on its back it had four wings like those of a bird. This beast had four heads, and it was given authority to rule.

Rev 6:5 When the Lamb opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come!” I looked, and there before me was a black horse. Its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand.
Rev 6:6 Then I heard what sounded like a voice among the four living creatures, saying, “A quart of wheat for a day’s wages, and three quarts of barley for a day’s wages, and do not damage the oil and the wine!”

There is not much said about the four kingdoms. No acts of warfare, no weapons are attributed to them, and they are not mentioned as one of the ruling powers in the vision of Daniel 2. In fact it states in Daniel 8:22 that they will not have the same power as the former king of Greece. Is this the time everyone is saying, as Jesus mentioned “Peace and safety and then the end will come.” For it is just before the time of the antichrist. The only time reference we have between the time the king of Greece falls and the reign of the antichrist is in Daniel 11:20.

Da 11:20 “His successor will send out a tax collector to maintain the royal splendor. In a few years, however, he will be destroyed, yet not in anger or in battle.

This time reference is under some debate by scholars. It could be a ‘few days’ or a ‘few years,’ so take it as you will, or wait and see if it is a few years or days.

In verse 21 we have the first introduction of the antichrist. I wish to stop here and summarize what we have understood so far and what it means to us. Scripture definitely states that texts concerning Media-Persia and Greece are end time prophecies. What we are looking for next is for there to be a division of Iran into two countries, Media and Persia, then they will come to an agreement and take most of the Middle East, including Israel. When this happens we will know that the end is near. How long it will take for Greece to militarily force the armies of Media- Persia (Iran) to retreat to their own countries, for Greece to fall, for the four kingdoms to grow up towards the four winds of heaven, and then for the antichrist to arise? Scripture does not tell us, but, we know that it has to be at least seven years before the antichrist ever arises, though it probably will be 20 to 60 years. In that period we will have the rise of Media-Persia, the wars between Greece and Media-Persia, the fall of Greece, and the probable considerable amount of time for the four kingdoms to grow up towards the four winds of heaven. During the rise of the four kingdoms it may seem to be a very peaceful time, but it will not last too long because the King of the South who starts off with the division of his country of Iran in verse 5 will be the same King of the South who attacks the antichrist in verse 40. Jesus said in Matthew chapter 24: 6-8; 32-35:

Mt 24:6 You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.
Mt 24:7 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places.
Mt 24:8 All these are the beginning of birth pains.

Mt 24:32 “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near.
Mt 24:33 Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it is near, right at the door.
Mt 24:34 I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.
Mt 24:35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass
away.