**The following article was written in 1996, but certainly seems as relevant now as then.
Israel, Earth's Lightning Rod (Part 1) - Zola Levitt
Israel is the most important country in the world today. From a secular viewpoint, it is situated on the land bridge between the Asian and African continents, and it represents an island of democracy in an ocean of dictatorships. It is America's key ally in the Eastern hemisphere. Economically, it is quite a power for its size, having an economy ten times the size of that of Egypt, Jordan and Syria put together! Politically, it is front-page news almost every day. The unbelieving world is indeed interested in Israel.
But for believers, its significance is beyond measure. The premillennial view of Scripture reveals that all believers will spend a thousand years in Israel with their King, and this could happen seven years from today! In the Second Coming, our Lord will not return to just any country, but as a matter of fact, "his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east" (Zech. 14:4). He will reign on the throne of David from Jerusalem, ruling a world of believing nations. We who have trusted Him for our salvation will rule with Him. The Bride of Christ will become the Queen of the Kingdom to come.
But before all of those happy events, there is the day of God's wrath to contend with - "the time of Jacob's trouble" (Jer. 30:7). Little Israel is involved in close to 100% of End Times prophecy.
The Tribulation period, the 70th week of Daniel, will transpire when the Antichrist makes a peace covenant with the nation of Israel. That simple statement has been uttered for quite a few years, but we happen now to live in a time when people are riding up on a constant basis with peace treaties for Israel to sign. This mere fact by itself is grounds to suppose that the time is very short before the entrance of the one who will ultimately betray Israel and the world. The improvement in the Antichrist's treaty, compared to today's peace agreements, is probably the guarantee he can give of Israel's security, presumably by his ten-nation confederacy in western Europe. He will be able to provide close-in land, sea and air defenses. Another attractive feature may be the seven-year span of the treaty, and possibly permission for Israel to rebuild its temple at last. Whatever the terms of the treaty, the Antichrist would be clearly recognizable to Bible readers by his lavish promises of peace on earth. This will be a false peace, of course, but are we not living in an age of false peace agreements? As we look at a world containing Chechnya, Bosnia, Lebanon, Ireland and South Africa, to mention a few smoldering fires, we hear of peace agreements being signed and abrogated all the time. It is actually rather remarkable to compare our times with the biblical descriptions of the Tribulation period. (This is to say nothing of the famines, pestilences, earthquakes, wars and rumors of wars, offenses, betrayals, etc., spoken of by the Lord in His Olivet discourse [Matthew 24], which is also addressed to Israel [see verses 13, 15, and 16].)
Where Israel is concerned, an uneasy peace will obtain for three and a half years, at which time the Antichrist will sense the Jewish people's suspicions of him, and will attempt to assert his authority. He will do no less than call himself the God of Israel, or in Paul's words, "Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshiped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God" (2 Thes. 2:3-4). Our Lord Himself, along with the prophet Daniel, foresaw the cataclysmic effects of this spiritual excess: "When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) then let them which be in Judea flee into the mountains" (Matt. 24:15-16). In all probability, the Jewish people will bolt, having mistrusted the Antichrist right along. (Some teach that the Israeli leaders will accept him as a Messiah when he first comes. I do not believe they are that credulous. Having had bitter experience with false Messiahs in the past, they are far more careful than that. And after all, when the real Messiah presented Himself, they largely did not accept Him either.)
To continue our schedule of Tribulation-period events, we have the mobilization of the world's armies, and particularly that of the King of the East and his force of 200-million men-at-arms, according to Revelation 9:16. It seems that the second half of the Tribulation is devoted to preparing for Armageddon, the world having heard enough of the Antichrist's peace plans. Perhaps when the Israelis bolt, the Chinese and the others who are watching come to the conclusion that the Antichrist is not God after all, but is actually quite vulnerable. Since he controlled the world, then those who defeat him might control the world as well. And so the fight commences as the King of the East's army literally marches to Armageddon, robbing, raping and pillaging as they go through the eastern hemisphere.
Where does a 200-million-man army march? Anywhere it likes. And so the Antichrist's forces from western Europe and theater nations designated as the King of the North and the King of the South, arm to meet this invader in that quiet, level valley in Israel surrounding the hill "called in the Hebrew tongue Har Megiddo (Armageddon)" (Rev. 16:16). The rest of the Tribulation period is the story of battles at Armageddon and Jerusalem, about which the Lord sadly observed, "And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved" (Matt. 24:22).
The Lord's arrival at this point is, of course, the Second Coming, which initiates the thousand- year Kingdom in Israel. His first act is to judge the nations of the earth as to whether they are sheep or goats; that is, whether each citizen had a saving faith or not. He sets up a throne of judgment and utilizes as His standard - and note again here the importance of Israel - "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me" (Matt. 25:40). Most intensively "my brethren" refers to the Jewish people, or at least to the 144,000 "of all the tribes of the children of Israel" of Revelation 7:4. Outlawed, they still testified of Christ in the world, despite the Antichrist's reign, and those who helped them, fed them, clothed them, visited them in prison, as the passage urges, demonstrate that they are sheep. Those who did not help them are goats and are bound with Satan for the duration of the thousand-year Kingdom.
If churches today who care little about Israel were put to the test of these Tribulation-period believers, one wonders if they would qualify as sheep under the Lord's standards. One can only hope that believers in this age of relative freedom, prevalence of Bibles in many translations, and no Antichrist in power to contend with, would at a minimum be able to meet the test of the Tribulation period believers.
When the sheep have joined with the Old Testament saints and the church, the Kingdom has its population and it begins in earnest. It will last a thousand years, and while there will be some sin and some mischief in the world, it will be an upside-down society compared with what we have today. To believe in the King, who may be seen in Jerusalem from year to year, at least on the Feast of Tabernacles (Zech. 14:16-19), will be the choice of the vast majority of the world. The unbelievers in the Kingdom (the descendants of those who survived the Tribulation in their natural bodies and came directly to the Kingdom - the children of the "sheep," as it were), will be as those born of Adam. They will have a choice between belief and unbelief, but those who choose the latter will be bound by the onerous laws of the Sermon on the Mount: "If thy right eye offend thee . . . if thy right hand offend thee . . ." (Matt. 5:29-30). It is at that time that the meek shall inherit the earth, and those who mourn will rejoice.
With that summation of upcoming events, we can begin to consider Israel as we see it today: as a harbinger of prophetic fulfillment.
Israel, Earth's Lightning Rod (Part 2) - Zola Levitt
Israel Today
Writing about Israel at any given time is very difficult because that nation is in a constant state of change. Anyone who has visited the place will testify to the almost electrifying atmosphere in the streets, and the sense of spiritual forces, potential physical danger, and unmitigated energy that simply permeate the air in that unique place.
After thinking about this chapter for a full year and collecting notes, I realize that a book could well be written, rather than just a chapter, on this particular year in Israel. Three events, especially, seem to stand out as regarding prophecy. They are the assassination of Prime Minister Rabin; the sudden acceleration of terrorism in the spring of 1996; and the election of Binyamin Netanyahu, which seemed to surprise everyone but those familiar with the Israeli population and their concerns.
(The global news-media bias against Israel and in favor of various Arab schemes and causes has given many people a false picture of the Holy Land. The Arabs, 200 million in number, are cast as the underdog to the 4-1/2 million Israelis; and the Palestinians, the perpetrators of terrorism, are considered the victims in the press and electronic coverage. With the media, the U.S. administration, and almost everyone else rooting for Prime Minister Shimon Peres and the "peace process," the world was shocked when the Israeli population elected Netanyahu.
But this was easy to understand from the streets of Israel. The population was simply worried about giving away land to people who seemed to have no intention of making peace. The media was dishonest enough to call the election "razor-thin" and "hairline," when actually the Jewish vote put Netanyahu ahead 56% to 44%. The vote of the Israeli Arabs, a monolithic one in favor of Peres, made the election seem close in the pure numbers, but ought not to be taken seriously as valid balloting in a democracy. No Arab nation is now, or has ever been, a democracy, and Arab people pretty much vote as a bloc or as they are told to vote.)
Regarding the first of the history-making events of the past year, the Rabin assassination, I looked back at our ministry's coverage of that event. We were certainly asked a host of questions about what really happened and how we felt about it. I devoted my December 1995 personal letter to responding to those questions.
At this time, looking back on the assassination, it has seemed to militate toward the End Times in a very direct way. We might describe the subsequent chain of events as follows: Peres takes over the government and accelerates the peace process; the people of Israel polarize and the "right wing" is accused of causing the assassination; the Palestinians also divide, with those not in favor of the peace process heightening their terrorist activities; the bombing of buses in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv causes a majority of the Jewish population to swing toward the right; Netanyahu wins the election.
At the time of this writing, there is an uneasy silence in Israel, with both sides (the Israelis and the Palestinians) waiting to see what the policies of the new government really will be. The way in which this militates toward the Tribulation period is that the policies Netanyahu chooses to embrace could have the potential to bring on real conflict - a true shooting war. That is, if he refuses to go ahead with the peace process, the Palestinians will sooner or later escalate the terrorism until life in Israel becomes unbearable. They might also consider that they have enough of an excuse to attack Israel, with the help of Syria or whomever, and they would most likely have world opinion on their side.
World opinion is created by the aforementioned media bias, which is invariably anti-Israel these days.
If, on the other hand, Netanyahu goes ahead with the peace process and step-by-step gives Israel over to the Palestinians, the Israelis would find themselves on a relatively narrow coastal strip facing the populous West Bank high ground in the center of the country. The Palestinians would then be in a position to launch an attack against a much smaller Israel, which the Israelis might choose to repulse with nuclear weaponry.
Thus, in either case, the so-called peace process leads ultimately to war. Or then again, it might lead to the brink of war, giving the Antichrist his cue to enter the negotiations with his own "superior" peace plan. One can imagine the beleaguered Israelis, realizing that the use of nuclear materials in so small a space would be almost as dangerous to themselves as to their enemy, contemplating what to do and glad to have an alternative of a seven-year peace plan.
I am purely speculating on the scenario that will bring the Antichrist on stage at last, but the peace process in Israel is extremely suggestive of the administration of the Antichrist. It bears all his characteristics: it is anti-Israeli, it is a false peace, and it leads ultimately to war.
I have touched on the media bias that has given Israel an undeservedly bad reputation in the minds of today's generation. We must bear in mind that most of the people alive today did not witness the founding of Israel, nor did they live as adults through the period when a young and brave Israel of kibbutzim and defensive wars sustained itself and grew into the nation it is today. Rather, university-age students and even Baby Boomers are conscious only of a strong Israel and its opposition to the Arabs. That unfortunate opposition means that petro-dollars and Israel are on opposite sides of an ongoing debate.
Should we support our sister democracy with whatever blemishes it may have, or should we favor the Arabs and maintain an inexpensive, steady flow of oil to run our civilization? The media, like any other business, give their best customers the most courtesy, and they are utterly ruled by oil money. The advertising of cars, plastics, gasoline, cosmetics, and a thousand other petroleum products, supports the for-profit media enterprises we mistakenly assume are neutral in their reportage. Obviously, they follow an invariably pro-oil-money line. The Arabs have even gone so far as to purchase certain news agencies, including the United Press International, in order to more effectively manage the news we get.
I have personally had the experience of speaking to newspaper editors who would not even correct misreported facts in Arab-released news; they simply accused me of bias. I pointed out to the foreign editor of the Dallas Morning News that the paper had reported violence in Manger Square in Bethlehem in December 1994, while my tour group, which stood in the square the whole evening, had seen no violence whatsoever. I also commented that the Morning News was running an Arab news release from Cairo, and they might want to correct their errors. I was told that the editor understood my bias. I replied that it was not a matter of bias but of eyewitness testimony, and that the Morning News was not reporting the facts. I asked if, since they had an Arab writer, did they perhaps have any Jewish editors to look at the copy and see if it was at least accurate. To that, the editor answered, "I consider that a racist question."
David Bar-Illan, executive editor of the Jerusalem Post, reported that the New York Times, "the newspaper of record," reported an influx of 200,000 Palestinians from Kuwait into Gaza during the Persian Gulf War. Nothing of the kind happened at all, but that august newspaper refused to print a retraction or even look into the matter, and this important misinformation is now there to be read by future generations as presumably a reason why the Palestinians needed more land. The news on television networks is equally biased. I personally find very repugnant the reportage of Mike Wallace, Robert Novak, Anthony Lewis, Thomas Friedman and Bob Simon. They can all be counted on to criticize Israel virtually 100% of the time. They are also all Jews, though they might not like that fact to be generally known.
Jerusalem is a particular bone of contention right now, and that is how the prophets portrayed it in the End Times. Jerusalem is the most wonderful city in the world, not only in its beauty, but also in its significance. The prophets picture the Millennial House of the Lord there on Mount Moriah, where the old temples of God once stood.
The book of Revelation also continues the career of Jerusalem beyond the kingdom and into eternity: "And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband" (Rev. 21:1-2).
But Zechariah also chronicles tougher times for Jerusalem before all that good news, and I'm afraid we are now living in that turbulent period. "And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it" (Zech. 12:3). This is a case where what once was a prophecy to be interpreted, is now daily news that anyone can see. Jerusalem and, indeed, all of Israel are becoming the center of the earth and the focus of all nations. The current peace process, which is still on track even after the recent assassination, prophetically will lead to that "covenant with death and hell" (Isaiah 28:15) warned about in prophetic Scripture. The Antichrist will eventually arrive with his seven-year treaty, and that will be the beginning of the end.
Israel, Earth's Lightning Rod (Part 3) - Zola Levitt
An ironic and rather sad feature of the worldwide notoriety of Jerusalem and Israel is that a major part of the church, the body of believers who will live there during the coming thousand-year kingdom, is largely oblivious to the significance of ongoing events. The denominational churches see nothing of spiritual import going on in Israel. Only Bible readers are aware of the repercussions of recent events.
Indeed, Israel attracts violent reactions the way a lightning rod attracts lightning, and that is in keeping with prophecy. Practically the whole world is unified in its desire to force Israel to bow to this awful "peace process," and this shows the widespread lack of understanding of the times. False peace will be the theme of the coming Tribulation period, and we have obviously entered an era of false peace today. Yitzhak Rabin was a fine gentleman and a good soldier, but the peace agreement he set in motion will not last because it is not God's peace in God's timing. Ultimately, all the world's peacemaking will be done by that "Dark Prince," of whom Daniel, the clear-eyed forecaster of the End Times, remarks, "He shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many" (Dan. 8:25). Our times parallel such warnings in Scripture as those who cry "peace, peace; when there is no peace" (Jeremiah 6:14), and "for when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape" (I Thes. 5:3).
In the interviews that our ministry collected in Israel for our Jerusalem 3000 television series, a number of spokesmen - believers and unbelievers, Jews and Palestinians - clarified all of the above. It is obvious from all that they told us that virtually no one believes in this "peace process" with all his heart. But according to their various motives, it is a means to an end for the Palestinians - the end of Israel - and for the Israelis it is a hope for the end of terrorism. For the American government, it is good PR, and for the United Nations, a sort of victory. For those who are Biblically informed, it is the end of the age.
Obviously, Jerusalem will remain in contention for some time to come. At the time of this writing, the Netanyahu government has ordered all Palestinian offices in Jerusalem to be dismantled, in accordance with the Oslo agreements. The Palestinians were never authorized to place government offices in the Jewish capital, but they did so anyway; and the Peres government, despite many well-publicized threats, never closed these offices. I, myself, with my TV crew interviewed Faisal Husseini, the "Palestinian Representative for Jerusalem," in the Orient House, an Arab mansion dating from the past century that had been refurbished as a Palestinian governmental headquarters for receiving foreign dignitaries, many of whom have visited. I counted 25 "plainclothesmen" (thugs in jeans and T-shirts) surrounding the building and in the streets on all sides. For me, seeing such an ominous personality as Husseini seated in state in such surroundings felt like an eerie prediction of the Antichrist entering the Temple and declaring that he is the God of Israel!
Israel, the Churches, and the Seminaries Besides the media bias, there is a kind of theological bias against Israel going on in churches and seminaries today. The liberal churches have always been a lost cause so far as biblical study is concerned, and they, of course, are blissfully unaware of the relevance of Israel in prophecy, or of prophecy in general, for that matter. But I refer to Biblically-based churches and seminaries, who over time have seemed to change positions concerning Israel. Dallas Theological Seminary, Moody Bible Institute, and most of the other biblical seminaries admired the Israelis when they were heroes in the media in the great days of the Six Day War and the kibbutzim and so forth. But as the media bias turned against the Israelis, so it seemed did the seminaries and even some Bible churches. As I put it recently during a speaking engagement, my ministry started out explaining Israel to Christians, and now I'm having to defend Israel to Christians.
In reality, the Israelis have not changed, but some peculiar anti-Israel theologies have come down the road. "For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables" (2 Tim. 4:3-4). If we are to expect teachers who will just tickle the ears, we have plenty now.
The ultimate scriptural error is replacement theology, which seeks to establish that the church has replaced Israel. This is the reason for the departure of all of the liberal churches, including the Roman Catholic Church, from sound biblical understanding. It is madness to try to replace Israel in the Scriptures with a miscellaneous group of Gentile peoples scattered around the globe. If the church has replaced Israel in all of God's promises and covenants, then Israel no longer has a role in God's future plan. This would make nonsense out of such Bible passages as Romans 11:25-26, which states "that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved." If Israel is out of the picture, that verse should read "and so all the church shall be saved," which would be ludicrous because the church is composed of people who are already saved.
The original replacement theology was Islam, which sought to replace both Judaism and Christianity and thus take over the religious world. As a matter of fact, that statement should not be in the past tense, since that process is still going on with the Moslems. But in the Western world, we should be more alert than to put our Bibles away and follow in error some pastor or professor with anti-Israel or simply anti-Semitic biases. We will not take space here to analyze a bunch of odd doctrines, but will simply say that the Antichrist's religion is the final replacement theology. It will seek to dominate the entire religious and secular world, and even replace Almighty God Himself! Such contemporary doctrinal errors as "Kingdom Now," in which we need to elect the right officials in order to bring in the Kingdom by human endeavor, and "Progressive Dispensationalism," a teaching that mixes up the Church Age and the Millennial Kingdom, are ways of simply cutting Israel out of the picture and thus making the whole Bible nonsense.
The fact is, God chose one people, Israel, and has dealt through them since Abraham and will continue that dealing through them in the future. Thus when we read of the building of the Tower of Babel and the godless ways of mankind early on in Genesis, in the same chapter we see Terah and the birth of his son Abram. God's solution to mankind's apostasy seems to be the invention of a single people through whom all nations of the earth would be blessed (Gen. 12:3). He continued to deal with them through the long period of the Old Testament adventures until the coming of the Messiah, a Jew, who chose twelve Jewish disciples and twelve Jewish apostles. And likewise, as we have seen, He will choose again from among the Jews in order to have testifiers to Christ in the Tribulation period to come, namely the 144,000. If we interrupt that elegant design of four millennia with the idea that some global Gentile organization will take this mantle upon itself, we obviously interrupt a plan of great magnitude. When we teach that we can bring on the Kingdom ourselves without prayer or reference to Israeli affairs, as in Kingdom Now doctrines, we simply depart from God's plan. When we teach that Christ is already ruling in the Kingdom at this time (even though the Messiah Himself entreats us to pray "Thy Kingdom come"), we confuse dispensations. We are not exactly getting the cart before the horse, but we are putting the horse inside the cart and cannot move forward. Bringing the Kingdom into the Church Age, as Progressive Dispensationalism does, goes in the direction of Amillennialism, a doctrine that utterly denies the thousand-year Kingdom in Israel.
The Bible is basically the story of one people, the Jewish people. All of its writers cover-to-cover are Jews, Old Testament and New. The Messiah is a full-blooded Israeli Jew whose genealogies on both sides are presented in Scripture. (To show the extremes to which Islam seeks to replace Judaism and Christianity, consider Yassir Arafat's claiming that Jesus was "the first Palestinian revolutionary." He made this extraordinary statement in Bethlehem in December 1995 as the birthplace of Jesus Christ was calmly handed over to Moslems while the worldwide church remained asleep. Or consider the amazing claim by Hanan Ashrawi (a member of Arafat's cabinet) on The MacNeil-Lehrer Report that "Jesus Christ was a Palestinian prophet born in Bethlehem in my country." When Ms. Ashrawi, who claimed to be descended from the first Christians, was told that the original Christians were all Jews and that Jews never turn into Arabs, she was a bit confused; but this did not prevent her from being celebrated by the Episcopalian Church as a good Anglican in an article in their publication. Such muddling of theological doctrine and historical fact will play into the hands of the Antichrist, who will ultimately make the most fantastic of all claims, as we have mentioned. We are receiving a great deal of practice at believing total spiritual nonsense.
The problem with writing about prophecy is that one is not really a biblical prophet and can only speculate about world events. Israel indeed is a lightning rod for more than prophetic developments; it seems that the whole world is focused on that very tiny nation. The North Koreans mutter that something must be done about Israel, although it is doubtful that many of them could find it on a map. In Japan, where there are virtually no Jews, the Jews are blamed for problems with the economy. And on it goes. Indeed, Israel is the center of the nations, and in the Kingdom it will take its prophetic place as the head of the nations (Zech. 8:20-23).
But to recap what I have said about Israel in prophecy, I believe that the present climate of a false peace process will lead us down one of several possible roads to a Tribulation period situation. As to when this could happen, it is difficult to say; but in view of the very complete fulfillment of all of the Lord's prophecies in Matthew 24, the Olivet discourse, we could hardly expect so tense a situation to continue for, say, another 50 years. World attention tends to shift from place to place, and since it is currently on Israel, I cannot help having the feeling that this would be an elegant moment to conclude this age. Everything seems to be in the right place except for the entrance of the Antichrist with his peace covenant of seven years. It is hard to think of any other piece of the prophecy puzzle that is not either in position for the End Times, or on the verge so that it could rapidly fall into place.
Thus, I think that the Antichrist is alive today and mature, and calculating his entrance. And I think that the present climate of concern over the peace process can lead us very directly to that day of an offered contract that will start the Tribulation period.
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Posted 2/12/05
THE SOLEMN ASSEMBLY
Many call this last high day of the year, "The Last Great Day," because of John's words:
John 7:37 (KJS) In the last day, that great [day] of the feast, {Yahshua} stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.
The NIV refers to it as the "Closing Assembly." Scripture does not actually give the day a specific name.
In Leviticus it says: Lev 23:36 (KJS) Seven days ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto {[Yahweh]}: on the eighth day shall be a {set-apart assembly}unto you; and ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto {[Yahweh]}: it [is] a solemn assembly; [and] ye shall do no servile work [therein].
Scripture simply says, "on the eighth day." This would be the 22nd of Ethanim. It is described as a solemn assembly, in Hebrew () "ats-aw-raw," which means a "restrained assembly." Although the Hebrew people, then, probably didn’t know why the assembly was to be solemn, we now know because of John’s writing of Revelation that this day represents the Judgment day at the White Throne of chapter 20. Many will not make it into the kingdom; according to Matthew 7:14, it will be few.
Matt 7:13 (NIV) "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.
14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
This is, of course, sad even though we know Yahweh is just. Thus, the assembly is solemn reflecting on mankind in general. That last day will certainly not be a day of rejoicing as so many people go to their destruction. It is even referred to as "terrible:"
Joel 2:31 (KJS) The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of [Yahweh] come.
32 And it shall come to pass, [that] whosoever shall call on the name of [Yahweh] shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as [Yahweh] hath said, and in the remnant whom [Yahweh] shall call.
Reve 3:10 (NIV) Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world to test those who live on the earth.
11 I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.
12 Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of [Yahweh]. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of [Yahweh] and the name of the city of [Yahweh], the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from [Yahweh]; and I will also write on him my new name.
So, those who have endured and overcome, those whose names are found in the Book of Life on the day of Judgment, will rejoice after that Judgment Day and forever.
LAST DAY EVENTS
A review of events leading up to the White Throne Judgment would be appropriate at this time.
Due to occasional confusion between Second Coming and Final Judgment Scriptures, this review starts at the Second Coming, moves through the 1000 years, and covers the period surrounding the White Throne Judgment.
SECOND COMING:
Note how the descriptions of the coming by different authors, fill in the pieces of the picture:
Matt 24:27 (KJS) For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
Matt 24:30 (KJS) And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
Zech 14:4 (NIV) 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.
5... Then [Yahweh] {Son} my [Mighty One] {Eloha} will come, and all the [Set-apart] ones with him.
6 On that day there will be no light, no cold or frost. [So a time of year when frost is expected]
7 It will be a unique day, without daytime or nighttime--a day known to [Yahweh]. When evening comes, there will be light.
8 On that day ["during those days" - the 1000 years] living water will flow out from Jerusalem, half to the eastern sea and half to the western sea, in summer and in winter.
9 [Yahweh] will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one [Yahweh], and his name the only name.
10 The whole land, from Geba to Rimmon, south of Jerusalem, will become like the Arabah [desert]. But Jerusalem will be raised up and remain in its place, from the Benjamin Gate to the site of the First Gate, to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the royal winepresses.
11 It will be inhabited; never again will it be destroyed. Jerusalem will be secure.
12 This is the plague with which [Yahweh] will strike all the nations that fought against Jerusalem: Their flesh will rot while they are still standing on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongues will rot in their mouths.
13 On that day men will be stricken by [Yahweh] with great panic. Each man will seize the hand of another, and they will attack each other.
14 Judah too will fight at Jerusalem. The wealth of all the surrounding nations will be collected--great quantities of gold and silver and clothing.
15 A similar plague will strike the horses and mules, the camels and donkeys, and all the animals in those camps.
16 Then the survivors from all the nations that have attacked Jerusalem will go up year after year [mortals who continue into the 1000 years that precedes the Judgment] to worship the King, [Yahweh] Almighty, and to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles {Sukkot}.
1The 4:14 (NIV) …we believe that [Yahweh] will bring with [Yahshua] those who have fallen asleep in him.
15 According to the [Master’s] own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the [Master], will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.
16 For the [Master] himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of [Yahweh], and the dead in [Messiah] will rise first. {First Resurrection}
17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the [Master] in the air…
1Cor 15:22 (NIV) For as in Adam all die, so in [Messiah] all will be made alive. {First Resurrection}
23 But each in his own turn: [Messiah], the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him.
The above excerpts describe Messiah’s coming with his "Pure Ones." It seems to be on or just after Yom Teruah (Trumpets, Shouting, making sounds) with "the trumpet call of Yahweh." This also appears to be a time of the year with possible frost expected (probably at higher elevations), since we are told not to expect the normal daytime and nighttime, and then frost is mentioned as being absent. Also, the verses from Thessalonians and First Corinthians describe the First Resurrection.
THE 1000 YEARS:
When the Messiah comes, he will rule the earth for 1000 years. From those of the First Resurrection, judges (rulers, priests) will be made to reign with the Messiah. Since the dead in Messiah will rise (1 The 4:16), those left dead were not part of the body of Messiah. Perhaps all those risen, and changed, will be these judges (rulers, priests):
Reve 1:5 (KJS) And from [Yahshua Messiah], the faithful witness, the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood,
6 And hath made us kings and priests unto [Yahweh] his Father; to him [be] [esteem] and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
Revelation chapter 20 gives us much information about this 1000 year period:
Reve 20:4 (NIV) I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the [bodies] of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony for [Yahshua] and because of the word of [Yahweh]. They had not worshipped the beast or his image and had not received his mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with [Messiah] a thousand years.
5 (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection.
This agrees with and ties together the verses from Matthew 24, Zechariah 14, 1 Thessalonians 4, and 1 Corinthians 15.
Satan is also dealt with at the beginning of the 1000 years:
Reve 20:1 (NIV) And I saw an [messenger] coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain.
2 He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil [false accuser], or Satan [Ha Satan - the opponent], and bound him for a thousand years.
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.
So Satan has, from the fall of Adam, been deceiving the nations and people of the world. In fact, he reigns over the world or how could he have made this offer to the Messiah:
Luke 4:5 (NIV) The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world.
6 And he said to him, "I will give you all their authority and splendor, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to.
7 So if you worship me, it will all be yours."
This is why we see the corruption of our government leaders and the destruction of our constitution and our country. This is why we now openly here the phrase "New World Order," meaning the establishment of a one world government. We will probably see the ten horns of Daniel chapter 7 in our lifetime. Satan is deceiving the nations and people away from Yahweh and toward mysticism and the occult; that which worships him.
Those in the First Resurrection cannot be lost at the Judgment, the White Throne Judgment, on that "terrible" day.
Reve 20:6 (NIV) Blessed {Praised} and holy {set-apart} are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of [Yahweh] and of [Messiah] and will reign with him for a thousand years.
AT THE END OF THE 1000 YEARS:
It is quite interesting to think what it will be like to have Satan bound for 1000 years and not have the underlying agenda of an evil opponent deceiving the majority of people away from Yahweh and toward evil. No fear of a government oppressing you, or killing you, or prohibiting your worship of Yahweh. But then the opponent is let out to test the people of the world, and again many will side with him.
Reve 20:7 (NIV) When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison
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.
9 They marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of [Yahweh’s] people, the city he loves. But fire came down from heaven and devoured them.
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{*marked and remembered with dishonor for ever and ever}.
THE LAST GREAT DAY: THE JUDGMENT
Our review has now brought us up to the point symbolized by today’s solemn assembly, the Judgment Day. This is the day that ends all the centuries of suffering caused by the sin of Adam. This is the day that allows the beginning of the new Heaven, the new Earth, and the New Jerusalem. This is the day that allows the rewards to be given to the overcomers. But the day is a realization of failure for most of mankind, and it is therefore solemn as each person that has ever lived is judged.
Reve 20:11 (NIV) Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them.
12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books.
13 The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades {the grave} gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done.
14 Then death and Hades {the grave} were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death.
15 If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
We remember that: Reve 20:6 (NIV) Blessed {Praised} and holy {set-apart} are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them. So we know that those of the First Resurrection, and those alive who were changed at Messiah’s coming, pass the Judgment and enter the Eternal Kingdom.
WHAT OF THE REST?
Those listed in the book of life are the righteous:
Psal 69:28 (NIV) May they be blotted out of the book of life and not be listed with the righteous.
1.) Those left asleep at the time of the First Resurrection were not in the body of Messiah, since the "dead in Messiah" were raised at this time. These will be raised in the second resurrection at the White Throne Judgment, and one would expect that their names are not in the book of life.
2.) It appears that those who worship the Beast, never had their names in the book of life:
Reve 13:8 (NIV) All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast--all whose names have not been written in the book of life belonging to the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world.
3.) Some, it seems could have had their names blotted out of the book of life (if they loose their righteousness):
Reve 3:5 (NIV) He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his [messengers].
4.) The overcomers that lived during the 1000 year period would have their names in the book of life, and would enter the Eternal Kingdom.
AFTER THE JUDGMENT
Now is the time for rejoicing, when you are in the kingdom; you know you have passed the Judgment.
But we are not there yet, and must not assume or take it for granted, lest we fail to overcome.
Paul said to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.
Let us at least take a peek into the kingdom:
Reve 21:1 (NIV) 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.
2 I saw the Holy{set-apart} City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from [Yahweh], prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.
3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of [Yahweh] is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and [Yahweh] himself will be with them and be their [Mighty One].
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."
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."
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.
7 He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his [Mighty One] and he will be my son.
www.TruthofYahweh.org
John 7:37 (KJS) In the last day, that great [day] of the feast, {Yahshua} stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.
The NIV refers to it as the "Closing Assembly." Scripture does not actually give the day a specific name.
In Leviticus it says: Lev 23:36 (KJS) Seven days ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto {[Yahweh]}: on the eighth day shall be a {set-apart assembly}unto you; and ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto {[Yahweh]}: it [is] a solemn assembly; [and] ye shall do no servile work [therein].
Scripture simply says, "on the eighth day." This would be the 22nd of Ethanim. It is described as a solemn assembly, in Hebrew () "ats-aw-raw," which means a "restrained assembly." Although the Hebrew people, then, probably didn’t know why the assembly was to be solemn, we now know because of John’s writing of Revelation that this day represents the Judgment day at the White Throne of chapter 20. Many will not make it into the kingdom; according to Matthew 7:14, it will be few.
Matt 7:13 (NIV) "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.
14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
This is, of course, sad even though we know Yahweh is just. Thus, the assembly is solemn reflecting on mankind in general. That last day will certainly not be a day of rejoicing as so many people go to their destruction. It is even referred to as "terrible:"
Joel 2:31 (KJS) The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of [Yahweh] come.
32 And it shall come to pass, [that] whosoever shall call on the name of [Yahweh] shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as [Yahweh] hath said, and in the remnant whom [Yahweh] shall call.
Reve 3:10 (NIV) Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world to test those who live on the earth.
11 I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.
12 Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of [Yahweh]. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of [Yahweh] and the name of the city of [Yahweh], the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from [Yahweh]; and I will also write on him my new name.
So, those who have endured and overcome, those whose names are found in the Book of Life on the day of Judgment, will rejoice after that Judgment Day and forever.
LAST DAY EVENTS
A review of events leading up to the White Throne Judgment would be appropriate at this time.
Due to occasional confusion between Second Coming and Final Judgment Scriptures, this review starts at the Second Coming, moves through the 1000 years, and covers the period surrounding the White Throne Judgment.
SECOND COMING:
Note how the descriptions of the coming by different authors, fill in the pieces of the picture:
Matt 24:27 (KJS) For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
Matt 24:30 (KJS) And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
Zech 14:4 (NIV) 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.
5... Then [Yahweh] {Son} my [Mighty One] {Eloha} will come, and all the [Set-apart] ones with him.
6 On that day there will be no light, no cold or frost. [So a time of year when frost is expected]
7 It will be a unique day, without daytime or nighttime--a day known to [Yahweh]. When evening comes, there will be light.
8 On that day ["during those days" - the 1000 years] living water will flow out from Jerusalem, half to the eastern sea and half to the western sea, in summer and in winter.
9 [Yahweh] will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one [Yahweh], and his name the only name.
10 The whole land, from Geba to Rimmon, south of Jerusalem, will become like the Arabah [desert]. But Jerusalem will be raised up and remain in its place, from the Benjamin Gate to the site of the First Gate, to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the royal winepresses.
11 It will be inhabited; never again will it be destroyed. Jerusalem will be secure.
12 This is the plague with which [Yahweh] will strike all the nations that fought against Jerusalem: Their flesh will rot while they are still standing on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongues will rot in their mouths.
13 On that day men will be stricken by [Yahweh] with great panic. Each man will seize the hand of another, and they will attack each other.
14 Judah too will fight at Jerusalem. The wealth of all the surrounding nations will be collected--great quantities of gold and silver and clothing.
15 A similar plague will strike the horses and mules, the camels and donkeys, and all the animals in those camps.
16 Then the survivors from all the nations that have attacked Jerusalem will go up year after year [mortals who continue into the 1000 years that precedes the Judgment] to worship the King, [Yahweh] Almighty, and to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles {Sukkot}.
1The 4:14 (NIV) …we believe that [Yahweh] will bring with [Yahshua] those who have fallen asleep in him.
15 According to the [Master’s] own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the [Master], will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.
16 For the [Master] himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of [Yahweh], and the dead in [Messiah] will rise first. {First Resurrection}
17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the [Master] in the air…
1Cor 15:22 (NIV) For as in Adam all die, so in [Messiah] all will be made alive. {First Resurrection}
23 But each in his own turn: [Messiah], the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him.
The above excerpts describe Messiah’s coming with his "Pure Ones." It seems to be on or just after Yom Teruah (Trumpets, Shouting, making sounds) with "the trumpet call of Yahweh." This also appears to be a time of the year with possible frost expected (probably at higher elevations), since we are told not to expect the normal daytime and nighttime, and then frost is mentioned as being absent. Also, the verses from Thessalonians and First Corinthians describe the First Resurrection.
THE 1000 YEARS:
When the Messiah comes, he will rule the earth for 1000 years. From those of the First Resurrection, judges (rulers, priests) will be made to reign with the Messiah. Since the dead in Messiah will rise (1 The 4:16), those left dead were not part of the body of Messiah. Perhaps all those risen, and changed, will be these judges (rulers, priests):
Reve 1:5 (KJS) And from [Yahshua Messiah], the faithful witness, the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood,
6 And hath made us kings and priests unto [Yahweh] his Father; to him [be] [esteem] and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
Revelation chapter 20 gives us much information about this 1000 year period:
Reve 20:4 (NIV) I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the [bodies] of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony for [Yahshua] and because of the word of [Yahweh]. They had not worshipped the beast or his image and had not received his mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with [Messiah] a thousand years.
5 (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection.
This agrees with and ties together the verses from Matthew 24, Zechariah 14, 1 Thessalonians 4, and 1 Corinthians 15.
Satan is also dealt with at the beginning of the 1000 years:
Reve 20:1 (NIV) And I saw an [messenger] coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain.
2 He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil [false accuser], or Satan [Ha Satan - the opponent], and bound him for a thousand years.
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.
So Satan has, from the fall of Adam, been deceiving the nations and people of the world. In fact, he reigns over the world or how could he have made this offer to the Messiah:
Luke 4:5 (NIV) The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world.
6 And he said to him, "I will give you all their authority and splendor, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to.
7 So if you worship me, it will all be yours."
This is why we see the corruption of our government leaders and the destruction of our constitution and our country. This is why we now openly here the phrase "New World Order," meaning the establishment of a one world government. We will probably see the ten horns of Daniel chapter 7 in our lifetime. Satan is deceiving the nations and people away from Yahweh and toward mysticism and the occult; that which worships him.
Those in the First Resurrection cannot be lost at the Judgment, the White Throne Judgment, on that "terrible" day.
Reve 20:6 (NIV) Blessed {Praised} and holy {set-apart} are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of [Yahweh] and of [Messiah] and will reign with him for a thousand years.
AT THE END OF THE 1000 YEARS:
It is quite interesting to think what it will be like to have Satan bound for 1000 years and not have the underlying agenda of an evil opponent deceiving the majority of people away from Yahweh and toward evil. No fear of a government oppressing you, or killing you, or prohibiting your worship of Yahweh. But then the opponent is let out to test the people of the world, and again many will side with him.
Reve 20:7 (NIV) When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison
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.
9 They marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of [Yahweh’s] people, the city he loves. But fire came down from heaven and devoured them.
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{*marked and remembered with dishonor for ever and ever}.
THE LAST GREAT DAY: THE JUDGMENT
Our review has now brought us up to the point symbolized by today’s solemn assembly, the Judgment Day. This is the day that ends all the centuries of suffering caused by the sin of Adam. This is the day that allows the beginning of the new Heaven, the new Earth, and the New Jerusalem. This is the day that allows the rewards to be given to the overcomers. But the day is a realization of failure for most of mankind, and it is therefore solemn as each person that has ever lived is judged.
Reve 20:11 (NIV) Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them.
12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books.
13 The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades {the grave} gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done.
14 Then death and Hades {the grave} were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death.
15 If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
We remember that: Reve 20:6 (NIV) Blessed {Praised} and holy {set-apart} are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them. So we know that those of the First Resurrection, and those alive who were changed at Messiah’s coming, pass the Judgment and enter the Eternal Kingdom.
WHAT OF THE REST?
Those listed in the book of life are the righteous:
Psal 69:28 (NIV) May they be blotted out of the book of life and not be listed with the righteous.
1.) Those left asleep at the time of the First Resurrection were not in the body of Messiah, since the "dead in Messiah" were raised at this time. These will be raised in the second resurrection at the White Throne Judgment, and one would expect that their names are not in the book of life.
2.) It appears that those who worship the Beast, never had their names in the book of life:
Reve 13:8 (NIV) All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast--all whose names have not been written in the book of life belonging to the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world.
3.) Some, it seems could have had their names blotted out of the book of life (if they loose their righteousness):
Reve 3:5 (NIV) He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his [messengers].
4.) The overcomers that lived during the 1000 year period would have their names in the book of life, and would enter the Eternal Kingdom.
AFTER THE JUDGMENT
Now is the time for rejoicing, when you are in the kingdom; you know you have passed the Judgment.
But we are not there yet, and must not assume or take it for granted, lest we fail to overcome.
Paul said to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.
Let us at least take a peek into the kingdom:
Reve 21:1 (NIV) 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.
2 I saw the Holy{set-apart} City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from [Yahweh], prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.
3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of [Yahweh] is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and [Yahweh] himself will be with them and be their [Mighty One].
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."
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."
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.
7 He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his [Mighty One] and he will be my son.
www.TruthofYahweh.org
Finding Christ In The Passover 4 Ending
Our Lord God considered it pertinent to consecrate every living being, from the firstborn of humans to the firstborn of the animals. “The Lord said to Moses: consecrate to me all the firstborn; whatever is the first to open the womb among the Israelites of human beings and animals, is mine,” Exodus 13:11. Moses helps us to gain insight by explaining to us why every firstborn was to be consecrated before the Lord. “When the Lord has brought you into the land of the Canaanites, as he swore to you and your ancestors, and has given it to you, you shall set apart to the Lord all that first opens the womb. All the firstborn of your livestock that are males shall be the Lord’s. But every firstborn donkey youshall redeem with a sheep; if you do not redeem it, you must break its neck.
Every firstborn male among your children you shall redeem.” “When in the future your child asks you, ‘What does this mean?’ you shall answer, ‘By strength of hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt, from the house of slavery. When Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the Lord killed all the firstborn in
the land of Egypt, from human firstborn to the firstborn of animals. Therefore I sacrifice to the Lord every male that first opens the womb, but every firstborn of my sons I redeem.’ It shall serve as a sign on your hand and as an emblem on your forehead that by strength of hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt,” Exodus 13:11-16. Paul the apostle knew and understood this application of the Messiah’s fulfillment and Paul attributed this prophecy to the Messiah. He ascribes Colossians 1:15 to Jesus: “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers all things have been created through him and for him.”
An interesting factor for us to consider is this. When the time came for the families to kill the Passover lamb, The Mishnah states: “They bring a spit of pomegranate wood and stick it through (the carcass) from the mouth to the buttocks (page 241, 7:1).” Additionally, The Complete Art Scroll Machzor, Pesach, agrees with The Mishnah. As the Messiah was pierced through for the transgressions of our sins, Isaiah chapter 53 explores the entire process of why He was pierced for our transgressions. Psalms 22:16: “They have pierced my hands and my feet.” Other translations render, “Like lions (they maul) my hands and feet.” This is a deliberate corruption of the Hebraic text and is not trustworthy. For more information about this topic go to Glenn Miller, a Christian Think Tank website,
http://www.christian-thinktank.com/ps22cheat.html
By Michael Jones
Every firstborn male among your children you shall redeem.” “When in the future your child asks you, ‘What does this mean?’ you shall answer, ‘By strength of hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt, from the house of slavery. When Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the Lord killed all the firstborn in
the land of Egypt, from human firstborn to the firstborn of animals. Therefore I sacrifice to the Lord every male that first opens the womb, but every firstborn of my sons I redeem.’ It shall serve as a sign on your hand and as an emblem on your forehead that by strength of hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt,” Exodus 13:11-16. Paul the apostle knew and understood this application of the Messiah’s fulfillment and Paul attributed this prophecy to the Messiah. He ascribes Colossians 1:15 to Jesus: “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers all things have been created through him and for him.”
An interesting factor for us to consider is this. When the time came for the families to kill the Passover lamb, The Mishnah states: “They bring a spit of pomegranate wood and stick it through (the carcass) from the mouth to the buttocks (page 241, 7:1).” Additionally, The Complete Art Scroll Machzor, Pesach, agrees with The Mishnah. As the Messiah was pierced through for the transgressions of our sins, Isaiah chapter 53 explores the entire process of why He was pierced for our transgressions. Psalms 22:16: “They have pierced my hands and my feet.” Other translations render, “Like lions (they maul) my hands and feet.” This is a deliberate corruption of the Hebraic text and is not trustworthy. For more information about this topic go to Glenn Miller, a Christian Think Tank website,
http://www.christian-thinktank.com/ps22cheat.html
By Michael Jones
Finding Christ In The Passover Part Three
This is a final continuation of part 2. I need to make some more important quotes. This will help to make sense of the Eastern culture, during the time of the first century. They considered part of a day equivalent to the whole day. Here are some examples from ApologeticsPress.Org: “Three Days And Three Nights,” an
article written by Eric Lyons. Under the topic, Alleged Discrepancies, He states: “The Jerusalem Talmud quotes rabbi Eleazar Ben Azariah, who lived around A.D. 100, as saying: ‘A day and night are an Onah [a portioin of time] and the portion of an Onah is as the whole of it’ (from Jerusalem Talmud: Shabbath ix. 3, as quoted in Hoehner, 1974, pp. 248-249, bracketed comment in orig.). Azariah indicated that a portion of a twenty-four hour period could be considered the same ‘as the whole of it.’ Thus, in Jesus’ time He would have been correct in teaching that His burial would last ‘three days and three nights,’ even though it was not three complete 24-hour days.” http://www.apologeticspress.org/articles/570
“In the first century, any part of a day could be computed for the whole day and the night following it (cf. Lightfoot, 1979, pp. 210-211).” When selecting a sacrificial lamb for Passover, it is very important to go by the strict guidelines found in Exodus. “Your lamb shall be without blemish, a year old male,” Exodus 12:5. The Gospel of Luke 1:31 says, “And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus.” He was the sacrificial lamb. The book of Exodus places an important emphasis on not breaking any bones of the lamb before or after the sacrifice. In fact, Exodus 12:46 mentions: “It shall be eaten in one house; you shall not take any of the animal outside the house, and you shall not break any of its bones."John speaks of this prophetic event strongly, and gives this particular event over to Jesus the Christ.
“Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who had been crucified with him. But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs,” John 19:32. Verse 36, “These things occurred so that the scripture might be fulfilled None of his bones shall be broken.”
By Michael Jones
article written by Eric Lyons. Under the topic, Alleged Discrepancies, He states: “The Jerusalem Talmud quotes rabbi Eleazar Ben Azariah, who lived around A.D. 100, as saying: ‘A day and night are an Onah [a portioin of time] and the portion of an Onah is as the whole of it’ (from Jerusalem Talmud: Shabbath ix. 3, as quoted in Hoehner, 1974, pp. 248-249, bracketed comment in orig.). Azariah indicated that a portion of a twenty-four hour period could be considered the same ‘as the whole of it.’ Thus, in Jesus’ time He would have been correct in teaching that His burial would last ‘three days and three nights,’ even though it was not three complete 24-hour days.” http://www.apologeticspress.org/articles/570
“In the first century, any part of a day could be computed for the whole day and the night following it (cf. Lightfoot, 1979, pp. 210-211).” When selecting a sacrificial lamb for Passover, it is very important to go by the strict guidelines found in Exodus. “Your lamb shall be without blemish, a year old male,” Exodus 12:5. The Gospel of Luke 1:31 says, “And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus.” He was the sacrificial lamb. The book of Exodus places an important emphasis on not breaking any bones of the lamb before or after the sacrifice. In fact, Exodus 12:46 mentions: “It shall be eaten in one house; you shall not take any of the animal outside the house, and you shall not break any of its bones."John speaks of this prophetic event strongly, and gives this particular event over to Jesus the Christ.
“Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who had been crucified with him. But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs,” John 19:32. Verse 36, “These things occurred so that the scripture might be fulfilled None of his bones shall be broken.”
By Michael Jones
Finding Christ In The Passover Part Two
Matthew 27:45-50 states: “From noon on darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. And about three o’clock Jesus cried with a loud voice “Eli, Eli, Lema Sabachthani?” that is “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” From the book called, The 7 Festivals Of The Messiah, Ed Chumney’s goes onto mention: “The biblical day goes from evening to evening, from sundown to sundown, which is roughly 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. (Genesis [Bereishit] 1:5,8,13,19,23,31). The day (6:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.) is divided into two 12-hour periods. The evening runs from 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. The morning runs from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Each 12-hour period is divided into two smaller portions. From 6:00 a.m. to noon is the morning part of the day. From noon to 6:00 p.m. is the evening part of the day. The phrase, "between the evening" (from Exodus [Shemot] 12:6) refers to the period of the day that goes from noon to 6:00 p.m., which is exactly 3:00 p.m. This would be the ninth hour of the day,counting from 6:00 a.m.”
The Biblical Day
Evening Morning
|----------------------|--------------------------------|
6 p.m. 6 a.m. 6 p.m.
Morning Evening
|--------------|------------|
6 a.m. Noon 6 p.m.
|----------------------|----|
6 a.m. 3 p.m. 6 p.m.
|---------------------|
The 9th hour of the day = 3 p.m. Messianic Fulfillment. Yeshua died at the ninth hour of the day (Matthew [Mattityahu] 27:45-50). This would be exactly 3:00 p.m. (the ninth hour, counting from 6:00 a.m.).” Since we have designated a time of our Messiah’s death, now we can tackle it’s exact day our lamb of God was placed into the tomb.
The book of Jonah, has given us data of how long he was going to be in the belly of the fish and for how long Jesus was to be placed into the tomb. “The Lord provided a large fish to swallow up Jonah; and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. Jonah 1:17.” Matthew 12:40 gives us this beautiful Messianic fulfillment through telling us, “For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the
sea monster, so for three days and three nights the Son of man will be in the heart of the earth.”
Therefore, Matthew has given us an Hebraic time frame for us to work with. I will use the information below from a website named Hebrew for Christians, owned and operated by John J. Parsons and with the help of his friend Aaron Eby with this article.
Nisan 14 evening- Yeshua’s early Seder
Nisan 14 daytime- preparation day ( Luke 23:54; Mark 15:42). Pesach (Leviticus 23:5). Yeshua dies in the afternoon at the same time that the korban Pesach (Passover lamb) is sacrificed at the Temple, and is buried before evening (before Passover).
Nisan 15 evening- High Sabbath begins (the actual Seder night)
Nisan 15 daytime- High Sabbath
Nisan 16 evening- Weekly Sabbath begins
Nisan 16 daytime- Weekly Sabbath, waving of the omer
Nisan 17 evening- Yeshua raised from the dead at/after havdalah (at least before sunrise). Women purchase spices. Nisan 17 daytime- Women bring spices to the tomb early in the morning. Disciples encounter risen Messiah.
Note: a Jewish day starts at sundown!
For more of a detail Chart go to:
http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Spring_Holidays/First_Fruits/Reishit- Katzir.pdf
By Michael Jones
Each 12-hour period is divided into two smaller portions. From 6:00 a.m. to noon is the morning part of the day. From noon to 6:00 p.m. is the evening part of the day. The phrase, "between the evening" (from Exodus [Shemot] 12:6) refers to the period of the day that goes from noon to 6:00 p.m., which is exactly 3:00 p.m. This would be the ninth hour of the day,counting from 6:00 a.m.”
The Biblical Day
Evening Morning
|----------------------|--------------------------------|
6 p.m. 6 a.m. 6 p.m.
Morning Evening
|--------------|------------|
6 a.m. Noon 6 p.m.
|----------------------|----|
6 a.m. 3 p.m. 6 p.m.
|---------------------|
The 9th hour of the day = 3 p.m. Messianic Fulfillment. Yeshua died at the ninth hour of the day (Matthew [Mattityahu] 27:45-50). This would be exactly 3:00 p.m. (the ninth hour, counting from 6:00 a.m.).” Since we have designated a time of our Messiah’s death, now we can tackle it’s exact day our lamb of God was placed into the tomb.
The book of Jonah, has given us data of how long he was going to be in the belly of the fish and for how long Jesus was to be placed into the tomb. “The Lord provided a large fish to swallow up Jonah; and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. Jonah 1:17.” Matthew 12:40 gives us this beautiful Messianic fulfillment through telling us, “For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the
sea monster, so for three days and three nights the Son of man will be in the heart of the earth.”
Therefore, Matthew has given us an Hebraic time frame for us to work with. I will use the information below from a website named Hebrew for Christians, owned and operated by John J. Parsons and with the help of his friend Aaron Eby with this article.
Nisan 14 evening- Yeshua’s early Seder
Nisan 14 daytime- preparation day ( Luke 23:54; Mark 15:42). Pesach (Leviticus 23:5). Yeshua dies in the afternoon at the same time that the korban Pesach (Passover lamb) is sacrificed at the Temple, and is buried before evening (before Passover).
Nisan 15 evening- High Sabbath begins (the actual Seder night)
Nisan 15 daytime- High Sabbath
Nisan 16 evening- Weekly Sabbath begins
Nisan 16 daytime- Weekly Sabbath, waving of the omer
Nisan 17 evening- Yeshua raised from the dead at/after havdalah (at least before sunrise). Women purchase spices. Nisan 17 daytime- Women bring spices to the tomb early in the morning. Disciples encounter risen Messiah.
Note: a Jewish day starts at sundown!
For more of a detail Chart go to:
http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Spring_Holidays/First_Fruits/Reishit- Katzir.pdf
By Michael Jones
Finding Christ In The Passover Part one
I want to discuss the relevance of celebrating Passover (pesach) and, more importantly, how the Passover all points to Jesus. There is plenty of direct symbolism and in-depth meaning behind this Jewish celebration. It is important for Jewish people in this generation and in Biblical times to keep the Passover.
Exodus 12:11 says, “It is the Passover of the Lord.” It’s no wonder God told Moses in Exodus 12:24, “You shall observe this rite as a perpetual ordinance for you and your children.” Jesus the Christ explained to his disciples that his Passover with them in Jerusalem would be the last one that he would celebrate with them.
The Messiah expounds on it for them in Mark 14:25: “Truly I tell you I will never again drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom.” Where do we possibly begin to link the Passover to Jesus? First, God lays out His application for Moses and the Israelites, telling them when to have the Passover.
This pattern can be found in Exodus 12:2. “This month shall mark for you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year for you.” This means that the Hebrew date of Passover falls on the 14th of Nisan, which in the Gregorian calendar is the month of April. It is important to note that God, and not Moses, commanded the detailed regulations in how to pick the Passover lamb and when to kill it and how to prepare it.
Jewish law regulated picking a lamb out for your family to sacrifice. Since you could not take home just any lamb, the Priesthad to thoroughly inspect it for any kind of blot or blemish. Exodus 12:5: “Your lamb shall be without blemish.” In order for the Messiah to meet these criteria, He himself must pass this biblical command of Exodus 12:5, having no blot or blemish.
For us to start connecting Exodus 12:5 to Jesus, we should proceed to 1 Peter 1:19. “But with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without defect or blemish.” Here we really begin to start understanding who Jesus is from the Passover. Our next progression will be the exact timing of when to kill the Passover lamb, and what the bible has to say about this, and how to correlate it with Christ’s death.
“You shall keep it until the 14th day of this month, then the whole assembled congregation of Israel shall slaughter it at twilight,” Exodus 12:6. As this important festival came slowly together, on April 14th the entire
assembly of Israel congregated around the sacrificial lamb to be killed. While the entire assembly of Israel were to have been gathered that night for the Passover lamb, the same is true about Jesus, having a congregation of His own around Him.
“The kings of the earth took their stand and the rulers have gathered together against the Lord and against His Messiah. For in this city in fact both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the gentiles and the peoples of Israel, gathered together against your holy servant Jesus,” Acts 4:26-27. When the time came for all Israel to congregate around the Passover (pesach) lamb, God commanded a special, yet divine, designated area for the actual Passover to take place.
“You are not permitted to offer the Passover sacrifice within any of your towns that the Lord your God is giving you. But at the place that the Lord your God will choose as a dwelling for His name, only there shall you offer the Passover sacrifice, in the evening at sunset, the time of day when you departed from Egypt,” Deuteronomy16:5-6.
Under Jewish law, the Passover lamb was not to be killed inside the city and if it did occur by ignorance of the law or by not adhering to what God had said then the system would be invalid. This prophecy is brought forth into fruition with the Messiah being brought out of the city of Jerusalem. Hebrews 13:11-12 sheds light
for us to understand the sacrifice aspect of the Passover. “For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest as a sacrifice for sin are burned outside the camp. Therefore Jesus also suffered outside the city gate in order to sanctify the people by His own blood.”
By Michael Jones
Exodus 12:11 says, “It is the Passover of the Lord.” It’s no wonder God told Moses in Exodus 12:24, “You shall observe this rite as a perpetual ordinance for you and your children.” Jesus the Christ explained to his disciples that his Passover with them in Jerusalem would be the last one that he would celebrate with them.
The Messiah expounds on it for them in Mark 14:25: “Truly I tell you I will never again drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom.” Where do we possibly begin to link the Passover to Jesus? First, God lays out His application for Moses and the Israelites, telling them when to have the Passover.
This pattern can be found in Exodus 12:2. “This month shall mark for you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year for you.” This means that the Hebrew date of Passover falls on the 14th of Nisan, which in the Gregorian calendar is the month of April. It is important to note that God, and not Moses, commanded the detailed regulations in how to pick the Passover lamb and when to kill it and how to prepare it.
Jewish law regulated picking a lamb out for your family to sacrifice. Since you could not take home just any lamb, the Priesthad to thoroughly inspect it for any kind of blot or blemish. Exodus 12:5: “Your lamb shall be without blemish.” In order for the Messiah to meet these criteria, He himself must pass this biblical command of Exodus 12:5, having no blot or blemish.
For us to start connecting Exodus 12:5 to Jesus, we should proceed to 1 Peter 1:19. “But with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without defect or blemish.” Here we really begin to start understanding who Jesus is from the Passover. Our next progression will be the exact timing of when to kill the Passover lamb, and what the bible has to say about this, and how to correlate it with Christ’s death.
“You shall keep it until the 14th day of this month, then the whole assembled congregation of Israel shall slaughter it at twilight,” Exodus 12:6. As this important festival came slowly together, on April 14th the entire
assembly of Israel congregated around the sacrificial lamb to be killed. While the entire assembly of Israel were to have been gathered that night for the Passover lamb, the same is true about Jesus, having a congregation of His own around Him.
“The kings of the earth took their stand and the rulers have gathered together against the Lord and against His Messiah. For in this city in fact both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the gentiles and the peoples of Israel, gathered together against your holy servant Jesus,” Acts 4:26-27. When the time came for all Israel to congregate around the Passover (pesach) lamb, God commanded a special, yet divine, designated area for the actual Passover to take place.
“You are not permitted to offer the Passover sacrifice within any of your towns that the Lord your God is giving you. But at the place that the Lord your God will choose as a dwelling for His name, only there shall you offer the Passover sacrifice, in the evening at sunset, the time of day when you departed from Egypt,” Deuteronomy16:5-6.
Under Jewish law, the Passover lamb was not to be killed inside the city and if it did occur by ignorance of the law or by not adhering to what God had said then the system would be invalid. This prophecy is brought forth into fruition with the Messiah being brought out of the city of Jerusalem. Hebrews 13:11-12 sheds light
for us to understand the sacrifice aspect of the Passover. “For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest as a sacrifice for sin are burned outside the camp. Therefore Jesus also suffered outside the city gate in order to sanctify the people by His own blood.”
By Michael Jones
Is the Antichrist a Jew, Gentile, or Supernatural?
9/8/10
By Bill Salus
When determining the true content of the false covenant of Daniel 9:27 it proves helpful to determine the origin of the Antichrist. Will he be a Jew, Gentile, or a Supernatural being like an Alien or Nephilim as some have recently proposed?
Up until the time of Abraham there were no Jews, all of mankind was Gentile. Abraham, the ancient Hebrew patriarch, fathered the Jewish race through his son Isaac, grandson Jacob, and great grandsons Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebulun, Joseph, and Benjamin.
According to Deuteronomy 7:6 the Lord formed this unique ethnicity from Abraham’s loins for His exclusive divine purposes. One of which, we are informed in Ezekiel 38:8 and 39:7, is to uphold His holy name through; for the watchful eyes of the international community in the latter years. Many eschatologists believe the prophecies of Ezekiel 38 & 39 are about to find final fulfillment, making current events involving Israel and the Jewish people extremely important.
If the Antichrist is Jewish, the content of the false covenant might favor Israeli covenantal claims made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. These claims include Promised Land extending into Gaza, the West Bank, Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia according to Genesis 15:18.
Additionally, the pages of the false covenant might grant Israel the ability to build their third Jewish Temple upon its former site in the world’s most controversial holy city of Jerusalem. Presently, the preponderance of Muslims vehemently opposes this prospect, claiming Jerusalem is Islam’s third holiest city behind Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia. However, blueprints, Levite priests, and ceremonial religious instruments for the construction and operation of this prophesied coming Temple are already being assembled by several religious Jewish organizations.
Is the Antichrist a Jew?
One of the best research works addressing the subject of the origin of the Antichrist was performed by Dr. David Reagan of Lamb and Lion Ministries. He questioned eleven end time’s experts in a series of interviews, which aired on his Christ in Prophecy TV show in May of 2009, regarding this topic. The manuscript for the segment addressing whether or not the Antichrist is a Jew or Gentile can be obtained here:
In a nutshell the Reagan study concluded with seven no’s to the Antichrist being a Jew, one yes, one could be, one maybe, and one he will be a Jewish - Muslim. In Reagan’s closing summary, he concurred with the seven who suggested the Antichrist will be a Gentile rather than a Jew. Thus, there were eight out of twelve experts agreed upon the Gentile descent of the coming apocalyptic world leader called the Antichrist.
Had I been among those interviewed, I would have concurred with the eight favoring the Gentile Antichrist. Additionally I would have added an argument to theirs given below:
The Gentile Antichrist Arguments
1. Antichrist will be a Gentile of Roman origin. Dr. Arnold Fruchtenbaum brought this argument forward by quoting Daniel 9:26-27. Similarly, I wrote an article called, “Does Daniel Debunk the Assyrian Antichrist,” that agrees with his conclusion.
2. Antichrist will command worldwide attention. Don McGee states, “For a Jew to be in that position (commanding worldwide attention) would be a very, very long shot.” Don also suggests the Antichrist will not be associated with Judaism, Islam, or any other religion apart from the one he “institutes for himself.” This is determined by Daniel 11:37.
3. A Jew won’t make treaties with Jews. Ed Hindson points this out and goes on to remind us that the Antichrist will be an unbeliever according to Daniel 11:37.
4. Antichrist will lead the final great Gentile world empire. Dr. Mark Hitchcock firmly points this out. He declares this would be “inconsistent for a Jew.” Hitchcock argues this keeps in stride with “the other empires in Daniel 2 and Daniel 7, the leaders of those were all Gentiles.”
5. The Antichrist prototype was Antiochus Epiphanes, a Gentile. Dr. Mark Hitchcock aptly points this commonly taught fact out. Epiphanes was the ruler of the Greek - Seleucid Empire that oppressed the Jews between 171-164 BC.
6. The Antichrist rises out of the Gentile world. Several of the experts interviewed, including Hitchcock, brought forward the Revelation 13:1 argument, which identifies the Antichrist as the “Beast” rising out of the “Sea.” The scholarly consensus is the Sea in Revelation 13:1 represents the Gentile world.
7. The Jews will never accept the Antichrist as their Messiah. Dr. Reagan makes this statement in his closing arguments. He qualifies this by stating “In fact we are specifically told that when the Antichrist reveals himself in the middle of the Tribulation and claims to be god the Jews will be horrified and will totally reject him causing him to turn on them in fury and launch an attempt to annihilate them.” He goes on to distinguish between the possibility that the Antichrist may become the ‘Political Savior” of the Jews, but never their “Spiritual Savior.”
8. The Jews will never be offered the “Mark of the Beast.” This point was not brought up in the Reagan interviews; however, Dr. Arnold Fruchtenbaum makes this important point elsewhere in his teachings available though Ariel Ministries. This fact also identifies the Antichrist as a Gentile. One can safely conclude that if the Antichrist was a Jew, the Jews would be among the recipients of the benefits of his cashless Mark of the Beast program alluded to in Revelation 13:14-18.
The Antichrist Seeks Jewish Genocide Making Him a Gentile
Although the arguments above strongly suggest the Antichrist will be a Gentile, the one not listed that I believe most compelling is that he orchestrates the final genocidal campaign against the Jewish Race. Zechariah 13:8 points out the Antichrist will be responsible for the deaths of two-thirds of the Jewish population in the land of Israel during the Tribulation period. Many scholars suggest that totals several million more than were killed by Hitler during the Holocaust.
The repeated Gentile genocidal attempts targeted at the Jews remain atop the list of humanities worst historical crimes against the will of God. The Egyptians, Persians, Romans, and Germans all attempted to destroy the Jewish Race. Deuteronomy 32:10 and Zechariah 2:8 identify the Jews as the “apple of God’s eye.” The destruction of the Jews is the scheming of Satan and the Antichrist is his seed according to Genesis 3:15 and Revelation 13:4.
The plan of Satan is to prove God is a promise breaker, a liar, with a flawed covenant making character. If Satan can accomplish this he justifies his and his fallen angelic cohorts' rebellious campaign against God and His perfect divine will. Satan has clearly evidenced throughout human history that his modus operandi is to discredit God by killing Abraham’s Jewish descendants.
In Genesis 13:15, 22:17 and elsewhere God promised Abraham descendants forever. If there are no more Jews, then God is in breach of His covenant with Abraham. Furthermore, the promise of eternal security for all believers, justified by the similar faith of Abraham can be questioned. (Romans 4 and Galatians 3)
Therefore the Antichrist will be a Gentile; otherwise Satan must also execute him alongside his Jewish brethren. I’ve often wondered why Satan, supposedly so cunning, decided to even have a “seed.” Had he not, he could have discredited God right out the Genesis 3:15 garden gate. The Lord prophesied the coming of Satan’s seed and the bruising of Messiah’s heel by that seed. Should no satanic seed come, then the God of the Bible would be an obvious liar for prophesying such a future fictitious event. To the contrary, the satanic seed is coming and may be birthed already.
The Jewish Antichrist Arguments
The arguments for the Antichrist being a Jew can be found in the Reagan project referenced above. There are a few who believe that John 5:43 and Daniel 11:37 point to the Antichrist being a Jew. However, the Reagan study evidences that the arguments for a Gentile Antichrist far outweigh those of a Jewish Antichrist.
The Supernatural Alien (Nephilim) Antichrist Argument
Interestingly, there are some scholars suggesting since the Antichrist is the “seed of Satan,” who according to 2 Thessalonians 2:9-10 rises to power supernaturally, that he might not be human at all. They, suggest Christ’s prophecy in Matthew 24:37 and Luke 17:26 comparing the end time’s to the “days of Noah,” should be taken literally.
Genesis 6:4 informs us that there were unnatural offspring called the Nephilim, inhabiting the earth during the days of Noah. If this relatively new argument has merit it adds an interesting twist to what the true content of the false covenant may be.
Posted by AUTHOR / LECTURER at 5:45 PM
By Bill Salus
When determining the true content of the false covenant of Daniel 9:27 it proves helpful to determine the origin of the Antichrist. Will he be a Jew, Gentile, or a Supernatural being like an Alien or Nephilim as some have recently proposed?
Up until the time of Abraham there were no Jews, all of mankind was Gentile. Abraham, the ancient Hebrew patriarch, fathered the Jewish race through his son Isaac, grandson Jacob, and great grandsons Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebulun, Joseph, and Benjamin.
According to Deuteronomy 7:6 the Lord formed this unique ethnicity from Abraham’s loins for His exclusive divine purposes. One of which, we are informed in Ezekiel 38:8 and 39:7, is to uphold His holy name through; for the watchful eyes of the international community in the latter years. Many eschatologists believe the prophecies of Ezekiel 38 & 39 are about to find final fulfillment, making current events involving Israel and the Jewish people extremely important.
If the Antichrist is Jewish, the content of the false covenant might favor Israeli covenantal claims made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. These claims include Promised Land extending into Gaza, the West Bank, Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia according to Genesis 15:18.
Additionally, the pages of the false covenant might grant Israel the ability to build their third Jewish Temple upon its former site in the world’s most controversial holy city of Jerusalem. Presently, the preponderance of Muslims vehemently opposes this prospect, claiming Jerusalem is Islam’s third holiest city behind Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia. However, blueprints, Levite priests, and ceremonial religious instruments for the construction and operation of this prophesied coming Temple are already being assembled by several religious Jewish organizations.
Is the Antichrist a Jew?
One of the best research works addressing the subject of the origin of the Antichrist was performed by Dr. David Reagan of Lamb and Lion Ministries. He questioned eleven end time’s experts in a series of interviews, which aired on his Christ in Prophecy TV show in May of 2009, regarding this topic. The manuscript for the segment addressing whether or not the Antichrist is a Jew or Gentile can be obtained here:
In a nutshell the Reagan study concluded with seven no’s to the Antichrist being a Jew, one yes, one could be, one maybe, and one he will be a Jewish - Muslim. In Reagan’s closing summary, he concurred with the seven who suggested the Antichrist will be a Gentile rather than a Jew. Thus, there were eight out of twelve experts agreed upon the Gentile descent of the coming apocalyptic world leader called the Antichrist.
Had I been among those interviewed, I would have concurred with the eight favoring the Gentile Antichrist. Additionally I would have added an argument to theirs given below:
The Gentile Antichrist Arguments
1. Antichrist will be a Gentile of Roman origin. Dr. Arnold Fruchtenbaum brought this argument forward by quoting Daniel 9:26-27. Similarly, I wrote an article called, “Does Daniel Debunk the Assyrian Antichrist,” that agrees with his conclusion.
2. Antichrist will command worldwide attention. Don McGee states, “For a Jew to be in that position (commanding worldwide attention) would be a very, very long shot.” Don also suggests the Antichrist will not be associated with Judaism, Islam, or any other religion apart from the one he “institutes for himself.” This is determined by Daniel 11:37.
3. A Jew won’t make treaties with Jews. Ed Hindson points this out and goes on to remind us that the Antichrist will be an unbeliever according to Daniel 11:37.
4. Antichrist will lead the final great Gentile world empire. Dr. Mark Hitchcock firmly points this out. He declares this would be “inconsistent for a Jew.” Hitchcock argues this keeps in stride with “the other empires in Daniel 2 and Daniel 7, the leaders of those were all Gentiles.”
5. The Antichrist prototype was Antiochus Epiphanes, a Gentile. Dr. Mark Hitchcock aptly points this commonly taught fact out. Epiphanes was the ruler of the Greek - Seleucid Empire that oppressed the Jews between 171-164 BC.
6. The Antichrist rises out of the Gentile world. Several of the experts interviewed, including Hitchcock, brought forward the Revelation 13:1 argument, which identifies the Antichrist as the “Beast” rising out of the “Sea.” The scholarly consensus is the Sea in Revelation 13:1 represents the Gentile world.
7. The Jews will never accept the Antichrist as their Messiah. Dr. Reagan makes this statement in his closing arguments. He qualifies this by stating “In fact we are specifically told that when the Antichrist reveals himself in the middle of the Tribulation and claims to be god the Jews will be horrified and will totally reject him causing him to turn on them in fury and launch an attempt to annihilate them.” He goes on to distinguish between the possibility that the Antichrist may become the ‘Political Savior” of the Jews, but never their “Spiritual Savior.”
8. The Jews will never be offered the “Mark of the Beast.” This point was not brought up in the Reagan interviews; however, Dr. Arnold Fruchtenbaum makes this important point elsewhere in his teachings available though Ariel Ministries. This fact also identifies the Antichrist as a Gentile. One can safely conclude that if the Antichrist was a Jew, the Jews would be among the recipients of the benefits of his cashless Mark of the Beast program alluded to in Revelation 13:14-18.
The Antichrist Seeks Jewish Genocide Making Him a Gentile
Although the arguments above strongly suggest the Antichrist will be a Gentile, the one not listed that I believe most compelling is that he orchestrates the final genocidal campaign against the Jewish Race. Zechariah 13:8 points out the Antichrist will be responsible for the deaths of two-thirds of the Jewish population in the land of Israel during the Tribulation period. Many scholars suggest that totals several million more than were killed by Hitler during the Holocaust.
The repeated Gentile genocidal attempts targeted at the Jews remain atop the list of humanities worst historical crimes against the will of God. The Egyptians, Persians, Romans, and Germans all attempted to destroy the Jewish Race. Deuteronomy 32:10 and Zechariah 2:8 identify the Jews as the “apple of God’s eye.” The destruction of the Jews is the scheming of Satan and the Antichrist is his seed according to Genesis 3:15 and Revelation 13:4.
The plan of Satan is to prove God is a promise breaker, a liar, with a flawed covenant making character. If Satan can accomplish this he justifies his and his fallen angelic cohorts' rebellious campaign against God and His perfect divine will. Satan has clearly evidenced throughout human history that his modus operandi is to discredit God by killing Abraham’s Jewish descendants.
In Genesis 13:15, 22:17 and elsewhere God promised Abraham descendants forever. If there are no more Jews, then God is in breach of His covenant with Abraham. Furthermore, the promise of eternal security for all believers, justified by the similar faith of Abraham can be questioned. (Romans 4 and Galatians 3)
Therefore the Antichrist will be a Gentile; otherwise Satan must also execute him alongside his Jewish brethren. I’ve often wondered why Satan, supposedly so cunning, decided to even have a “seed.” Had he not, he could have discredited God right out the Genesis 3:15 garden gate. The Lord prophesied the coming of Satan’s seed and the bruising of Messiah’s heel by that seed. Should no satanic seed come, then the God of the Bible would be an obvious liar for prophesying such a future fictitious event. To the contrary, the satanic seed is coming and may be birthed already.
The Jewish Antichrist Arguments
The arguments for the Antichrist being a Jew can be found in the Reagan project referenced above. There are a few who believe that John 5:43 and Daniel 11:37 point to the Antichrist being a Jew. However, the Reagan study evidences that the arguments for a Gentile Antichrist far outweigh those of a Jewish Antichrist.
The Supernatural Alien (Nephilim) Antichrist Argument
Interestingly, there are some scholars suggesting since the Antichrist is the “seed of Satan,” who according to 2 Thessalonians 2:9-10 rises to power supernaturally, that he might not be human at all. They, suggest Christ’s prophecy in Matthew 24:37 and Luke 17:26 comparing the end time’s to the “days of Noah,” should be taken literally.
Genesis 6:4 informs us that there were unnatural offspring called the Nephilim, inhabiting the earth during the days of Noah. If this relatively new argument has merit it adds an interesting twist to what the true content of the false covenant may be.
Posted by AUTHOR / LECTURER at 5:45 PM
Yom Kippur: 365 Days of Repentance
David Brickner
Jews for Jesus
CBN.com – We are drawing to the end of a time the Jewish calendar refers to as the "Days of Awe," that ten-day period that begins with Rosh Hashanah, the Festival of Trumpets, and ends with Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. From the blast of the ram's horn last Wednesday evening until it sounds again before sundown this Saturday, the people of Israel have been called to focus on repentance from sin. But most Jews—indeed, most people—are unclear about what is meant by sin. Nor are we very comfortable speaking of sin and repentance—and so the days between the two holidays are often neglected or ignored.
Yet the Jewish Scriptures, particularly the book of Psalms, can be a tremendous guide to true repentance. Perhaps that is why the Psalms, most notably Psalm 51, are part of the Jewish liturgy during this season. If we only paid attention, we would discover that repentance is not an occasional requirement, or even an annual appointment for ten days on the calendar. For the follower of God, repentance is to be a lifestyle, 365 days a year.
King David wrote Psalm 51 after the prophet Nathan had confronted him with his sin: adultery with Bathsheba and the covered-up murder of her husband Uriah. In repenting for these terrible sins, David exhibits an amazing comprehension of the nature of God, the nature of sin and the nature of true repentance. If we can learn these important truths from David's plaintive plea, we will find that repentance can indeed become a year-round lifestyle that will lead us to spiritual health and blessing.
The foundation of genuine repentance begins with a deep understanding of the nature of God. People fail to repent and fail to live a life of repentance because they have a false understanding of who God is. They either see Him as a judgmental tyrant out to exact vengeance or a benevolent and kindly old man who appears indifferent to the moral condition of His own children.
As we look at Psalm 51 a beautiful, full-orbed picture of God begins to emerge. David asks God to act "according to lovingkindness and tender mercies." He asks God to act according to His true character, knowing that God is first of all consistent.
Malachi 3:6 tells us:
For I am the LORD, I do not change; therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob.
God does not need to be convinced, placated or cajoled into forgiving us. We don't have to wonder what kind of mood God is in before we approach Him. We can rely upon Him to act in accordance with His nature each and every time—He is like clockwork—or rather, clockwork is like Him!
It is the goodness of God that leads us to repentance, and if we make repentance a daily discipline we will experience His goodness in this way each day.
The foundation of genuine repentance continues with a deep understanding of the nature of sin. A second reason people fail to repent and fail to live a life of repentance is a false or incomplete understanding of sin. One prevalent misconception of sin limits it to only the grossest forms of deviancy—the evil we can all acknowledge in the worst of criminals but don't see in ourselves. Others regard sin as more pervasive but shrug it off as mere mistakes that we all make. They fail to understand how deadly sin is.
Psalm 51 shows how David's view of God has deeply informed his understanding of sin. David is graphic in explaining the nature of his sin, but notice that nowhere does he mention the details of his own sinful behavior. How does he describe sin? Transgressions: the crossing of a boundary; iniquity: missing the mark. It all relates to standards far beyond himself, standards that point back to God and His perfections.
Sin is first and foremost a rebellion against the very nature of God, a shaking of our fist at the heavens. Augustine explained sin as believing the lie that we are self-created, self-dependent and self-sustained. We might speak words of acknowledgment about God, but when we fail to acknowledge who God is with our trust and obedience, we miss the mark. That is sin.
Two men were trying to escape from an erupting volcano. As they ran from the molten rock they found their only path blocked by another river of boiling hot lava. One man was old and infirm while the other was young and healthy. With a running start the older man tried to leap across the river of fire to safety. He only managed to get a few feet before falling into the bubbling mass. The younger man, with far greater strength and skill catapulted himself much farther. He nearly made it, but still missed the mark and shared the fate of the first man. It didn't matter how much farther he went than his companion. Missing the mark by any degree meant perishing in the burning lava. Understanding the nature of sin, of missing the mark, is one of the keys to repentance.
The third reason I believe people fail to repent and fail to live a life of repentance is a false or incomplete understanding of what repentance truly is. Once again, David's view of God and of sin very deeply informed his understanding of repentance. It is not a matter of fearing the consequences of getting caught; it is not embarrassment, shame or self-loathing; it is not even genuine regret over hurting someone. While David probably experienced all those things, his repentance went much deeper because he understood something of the nature of God, and that he had done something odious in the sight of the One who created and sustained him. Because he understood something of the true nature of sin, he could only cry out for mercy.
The cry for mercy comes from someone who has no more tricks up his sleeve. David recognized that he had no basis of appeal, no merit to claim, no leg up to hope for more favorable treatment. In his cry we hear a combined a sense of desperation and resignation. I have nothing else to hope in other than the mercy of God. David is aware of the record of his sin, a catalog of debt, and he pleads as he cries out to the Lord, "Blot out my transgressions." But once again, because he understands the nature of God, there is also a note of hope.
When was the last time a preacher challenged you to repent? While it is not a politically correct message, it is one that we see over and over in Scripture. Noah's message from the steps leading up to the ark was not, "Something good is going to happen to you." Jeremiah was not thrown into the pit for preaching, "I'm okay; you're okay." Daniel did not go into the lion's den for telling people, "Think positive." John the Baptist was not beheaded because he preached, "Smile, God loves you." The two prophets of the tribulation will not be killed for preaching, "God is in His heaven and all is right with the world." The prophetic message of all these godly people, whether in word or deed was simple: Repent.
And David is confident, as one who has heard and responded to the call to repent, that as he proclaims the message to others, people will respond; "And sinners shall be converted to You." We must have that same confidence as God's people.
The rabbis have taught that David's sin was so heinous that had he been confronted immediately by Nathan, his life would have been forfeited, because only death could atone for David's sin. But you remember the story. Bathsheba gave birth to a son, and that son became ill and died. So the rabbis have taught that David's son died in his place. About this they are correct—but they have the wrong son. Y'shua (Jesus) is referred to as the son of David over and over, for that is one of His Messianic titles. His sacrifice once for all for sin is how David ultimately found his forgiveness and it is how all of us can find ours, 365 days a year.
Colossians 2:14 tells us that Jesus,
... wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.
Hallelujah!
Christianity's Jewish Roots
More from Spiritual Life
Learn more about Christianity's Jewish roots at the Jews for Jesus Web site
© Jews for Jesus. All rights reserved. Used with permission.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
David Brickner is the Executive Director of the best known Jewish evangelism agency in the world, Jews for Jesus. With branches in eleven countries including Israel, Jews for Jesus is known for its forthright evangelistic approach in major Jewish population centers around the world. A Jewish believer in Jesus himself, David has been in ministry for over thirty years and has appeared many times on secular television and radio programs to make the case for Jews believing Jesus including the internationally-syndicated program Larry King Live. Biblically conservative, as well as contemporary and engaging, he is a sought after speaker for major pulpits and conferences. He is the author of numerous published articles as well as four books including his latest, Christ in the Feast of Pentecost.
Jews for Jesus
CBN.com – We are drawing to the end of a time the Jewish calendar refers to as the "Days of Awe," that ten-day period that begins with Rosh Hashanah, the Festival of Trumpets, and ends with Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. From the blast of the ram's horn last Wednesday evening until it sounds again before sundown this Saturday, the people of Israel have been called to focus on repentance from sin. But most Jews—indeed, most people—are unclear about what is meant by sin. Nor are we very comfortable speaking of sin and repentance—and so the days between the two holidays are often neglected or ignored.
Yet the Jewish Scriptures, particularly the book of Psalms, can be a tremendous guide to true repentance. Perhaps that is why the Psalms, most notably Psalm 51, are part of the Jewish liturgy during this season. If we only paid attention, we would discover that repentance is not an occasional requirement, or even an annual appointment for ten days on the calendar. For the follower of God, repentance is to be a lifestyle, 365 days a year.
King David wrote Psalm 51 after the prophet Nathan had confronted him with his sin: adultery with Bathsheba and the covered-up murder of her husband Uriah. In repenting for these terrible sins, David exhibits an amazing comprehension of the nature of God, the nature of sin and the nature of true repentance. If we can learn these important truths from David's plaintive plea, we will find that repentance can indeed become a year-round lifestyle that will lead us to spiritual health and blessing.
The foundation of genuine repentance begins with a deep understanding of the nature of God. People fail to repent and fail to live a life of repentance because they have a false understanding of who God is. They either see Him as a judgmental tyrant out to exact vengeance or a benevolent and kindly old man who appears indifferent to the moral condition of His own children.
As we look at Psalm 51 a beautiful, full-orbed picture of God begins to emerge. David asks God to act "according to lovingkindness and tender mercies." He asks God to act according to His true character, knowing that God is first of all consistent.
Malachi 3:6 tells us:
For I am the LORD, I do not change; therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob.
God does not need to be convinced, placated or cajoled into forgiving us. We don't have to wonder what kind of mood God is in before we approach Him. We can rely upon Him to act in accordance with His nature each and every time—He is like clockwork—or rather, clockwork is like Him!
It is the goodness of God that leads us to repentance, and if we make repentance a daily discipline we will experience His goodness in this way each day.
The foundation of genuine repentance continues with a deep understanding of the nature of sin. A second reason people fail to repent and fail to live a life of repentance is a false or incomplete understanding of sin. One prevalent misconception of sin limits it to only the grossest forms of deviancy—the evil we can all acknowledge in the worst of criminals but don't see in ourselves. Others regard sin as more pervasive but shrug it off as mere mistakes that we all make. They fail to understand how deadly sin is.
Psalm 51 shows how David's view of God has deeply informed his understanding of sin. David is graphic in explaining the nature of his sin, but notice that nowhere does he mention the details of his own sinful behavior. How does he describe sin? Transgressions: the crossing of a boundary; iniquity: missing the mark. It all relates to standards far beyond himself, standards that point back to God and His perfections.
Sin is first and foremost a rebellion against the very nature of God, a shaking of our fist at the heavens. Augustine explained sin as believing the lie that we are self-created, self-dependent and self-sustained. We might speak words of acknowledgment about God, but when we fail to acknowledge who God is with our trust and obedience, we miss the mark. That is sin.
Two men were trying to escape from an erupting volcano. As they ran from the molten rock they found their only path blocked by another river of boiling hot lava. One man was old and infirm while the other was young and healthy. With a running start the older man tried to leap across the river of fire to safety. He only managed to get a few feet before falling into the bubbling mass. The younger man, with far greater strength and skill catapulted himself much farther. He nearly made it, but still missed the mark and shared the fate of the first man. It didn't matter how much farther he went than his companion. Missing the mark by any degree meant perishing in the burning lava. Understanding the nature of sin, of missing the mark, is one of the keys to repentance.
The third reason I believe people fail to repent and fail to live a life of repentance is a false or incomplete understanding of what repentance truly is. Once again, David's view of God and of sin very deeply informed his understanding of repentance. It is not a matter of fearing the consequences of getting caught; it is not embarrassment, shame or self-loathing; it is not even genuine regret over hurting someone. While David probably experienced all those things, his repentance went much deeper because he understood something of the nature of God, and that he had done something odious in the sight of the One who created and sustained him. Because he understood something of the true nature of sin, he could only cry out for mercy.
The cry for mercy comes from someone who has no more tricks up his sleeve. David recognized that he had no basis of appeal, no merit to claim, no leg up to hope for more favorable treatment. In his cry we hear a combined a sense of desperation and resignation. I have nothing else to hope in other than the mercy of God. David is aware of the record of his sin, a catalog of debt, and he pleads as he cries out to the Lord, "Blot out my transgressions." But once again, because he understands the nature of God, there is also a note of hope.
When was the last time a preacher challenged you to repent? While it is not a politically correct message, it is one that we see over and over in Scripture. Noah's message from the steps leading up to the ark was not, "Something good is going to happen to you." Jeremiah was not thrown into the pit for preaching, "I'm okay; you're okay." Daniel did not go into the lion's den for telling people, "Think positive." John the Baptist was not beheaded because he preached, "Smile, God loves you." The two prophets of the tribulation will not be killed for preaching, "God is in His heaven and all is right with the world." The prophetic message of all these godly people, whether in word or deed was simple: Repent.
And David is confident, as one who has heard and responded to the call to repent, that as he proclaims the message to others, people will respond; "And sinners shall be converted to You." We must have that same confidence as God's people.
The rabbis have taught that David's sin was so heinous that had he been confronted immediately by Nathan, his life would have been forfeited, because only death could atone for David's sin. But you remember the story. Bathsheba gave birth to a son, and that son became ill and died. So the rabbis have taught that David's son died in his place. About this they are correct—but they have the wrong son. Y'shua (Jesus) is referred to as the son of David over and over, for that is one of His Messianic titles. His sacrifice once for all for sin is how David ultimately found his forgiveness and it is how all of us can find ours, 365 days a year.
Colossians 2:14 tells us that Jesus,
... wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.
Hallelujah!
Christianity's Jewish Roots
More from Spiritual Life
Learn more about Christianity's Jewish roots at the Jews for Jesus Web site
© Jews for Jesus. All rights reserved. Used with permission.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
David Brickner is the Executive Director of the best known Jewish evangelism agency in the world, Jews for Jesus. With branches in eleven countries including Israel, Jews for Jesus is known for its forthright evangelistic approach in major Jewish population centers around the world. A Jewish believer in Jesus himself, David has been in ministry for over thirty years and has appeared many times on secular television and radio programs to make the case for Jews believing Jesus including the internationally-syndicated program Larry King Live. Biblically conservative, as well as contemporary and engaging, he is a sought after speaker for major pulpits and conferences. He is the author of numerous published articles as well as four books including his latest, Christ in the Feast of Pentecost.
"Yeshua Is Our Sukkot Sukkah"
— Parashah Sukkot Chol HaMoed
Torah: Shemot (Exodus) 33:12 — 34:26
Haftarah: Ezekiel 38:18 — 39:16
"YESHUA IS OUR SUKKAH" This week's Parashah is not a text following the yearly chronological reading order, but a special text due to the Sukkot festival. Passover and Sukkot always have a special reading within the festival because both consist of eight days and, therefore, include a Shabbat.
What it is interesting about this week's reading is that it talks about a very unusual "sukkah" or covering, and that is God's hand.
"And Yehovah said to Moshe, 'I will do this thing also that you have spoken; for you have found favor in My sight, and I know you by name.' And he said, 'I beg You, show me Your glory.' And He said, 'I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the Name Yehovah before you; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy.' And He said, 'You can not see My face; for no man shall see Me and live.' And Yehovah said, 'Behold, there is a place by Me, and you shall stand upon a rock. And it shall come to pass, while My glory passes by, that I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and will cover [sakoti] you with My hand while I pass by'" - Exodus 33:17-22.
After this encounter God reveals to Moshe His Thirteen Attributes: 1) Mercy; 2) Divine Mercy; 3) Power; 4) Compassionate; 5) Gracious; 6) Long Suffering; 7) Abundant in Kindness; 8) Truth; 9) Preserver of Kindness for thousands; 10) Forgiving iniquity; 11) Forgiving transgression; 12) Forgiving sin; 13) Who cleanses.
Indeed we have a God who calls us by name and who shows us mercy and grace, who forgives our sins and declare us clean because of the cover of the blood of Messiah. God sent His Son to tabernacle among us — (John 1:14), and by His sacrifice on the cross to cover our iniquities, thus the Sukkah we build at the Sukkot festival not only represents the temporality of our existence and our dependence on God, but also represents Yeshua who humbled Himself as a lowly Sukkah and was born to humanity for the specific purpose to cover our sins in order to restore the fellowship with our God. We cannot come in the presence of a Holy God and live without this cover. We cannot be pure on our own and His Holiness would consume us. Prayer, penitence and charity are not enough; atonement is only made by shedding of blood.
In the B'rit Chadashah Luke, the physician, has given us a thorough account of the birth of Messiah. Luke wrote the gospel and the book of Acts that we might know the exact truth about what happened. He starts the gospel with the narration of the events of the birth of Yochanan the cousin of Yeshua.
In Luke chapter 1 we read about Z'kharyah who was of a priestly order and who, in keeping with the timing of various priestly divisions, served in the Temple. His division was called 'Aviyahu.' These divisions were established back in 1 Chronicles chapter 24, and the priests always served at their appointed time up until the destruction of the Temple. The time of Z'kharyah's service gives us the starting point of the events to follow. Z'kharyah and his wife Elisheva were advanced in years and Elisheva was barren. While serving in the Temple an angel appears and tells him about the son that he would have through Elisheva and that this son, who would be called Yochanan, would be the forerunner of the Messiah who will call Yisrael back to God.
Now, the order of division which Z'kharyah was of and was performing the priestly service in the Temple was the eighth order out of twenty four divisions. Each division served for approximately 15 days, or half a month, in the Temple each year. Therefore, the order of Aviyahu served in the second part of the fourth month. Z'kharyah and Elisheva were at the Temple in the fourth month of the Hebrew calendar. The first month of the Hebrew year is not Tishrei. Tishrei, according to the Torah is the seventh month (Leviticus 23:34). The first month of the Hebrew year is called Aviv (Exodus 12:2 and 13:4), and, therefore, the fourth month is Tammuz. Tammuz comes out in our present day Gregorian calendar as June/July.
Z'kharyah and Elisheva returned home after his priestly service was completed and Elisheva became pregnant. Elisheva conceived the child that the angel Gavriel had promised. When they had returned home was in the beginning of the fifth month which is called Av. Nine months later, naturally, Yochanan was born.
Continuing in the same chapter of Luke we hear the angel Gavriel speaking to Miryam and telling her that not only will she bear the Son of God but that her relative Elisheva had conceived in her old age and is now in her sixth month: So we can draw the conclusion that this was happening in the month of Tevet, Elisheva's sixth month of pregnancy, so Yochanan would be six months older than Yeshua.
Therefore, Yeshua being conceived towards the end of the month of Tevet (December/January), was born nine months later, towards the end of the month of Tishrei (September/October), the seventh month, the month in which we celebrate the High Holidays, the Yomim Noraim, which now can take in a greater meaning when we understand its fulfillment in the very birth of the Messiah Himself. The second part of the month is when Sukkot, or the Feast of Booths, takes place. Chag HaSukkot is celebrated from the fifteenth through the twenty second of the month of Tishrei.
We, in Messianic Judaism, believe that all Jewish Holy Days are about the Messiah, therefore, the fulfillment of the meaning of Chag HaSukkot, the Feast of Booths is that Yeshua came humbly to His people, He became a very approachable King, the Word became flesh and tabernacled among us (John 1:14). When we can fully realize what it means, that the Word became flesh and tabernacled among us, we will understand that God became a man and humbled Himself so that any one of us, no mater how sinful, how lowly we have become, could become His intimate companion and receive the salvation given by His atoning sacrifice on the cross.
This is the good news, and that should be indeed a reason to rejoice at this High Holy Days season. This is the season to proclaim the birth of our Messiah, God's covering hand of mercy. Hag sameah Sukkot.
Shabbat joy, peace and blessings! Shabbat Shalom!
"You search the Scriptures because you think in them you have eternal life. It is these that bear witness of Me [Yeshua]" John 5:39
Torah: Shemot (Exodus) 33:12 — 34:26
Haftarah: Ezekiel 38:18 — 39:16
"YESHUA IS OUR SUKKAH" This week's Parashah is not a text following the yearly chronological reading order, but a special text due to the Sukkot festival. Passover and Sukkot always have a special reading within the festival because both consist of eight days and, therefore, include a Shabbat.
What it is interesting about this week's reading is that it talks about a very unusual "sukkah" or covering, and that is God's hand.
"And Yehovah said to Moshe, 'I will do this thing also that you have spoken; for you have found favor in My sight, and I know you by name.' And he said, 'I beg You, show me Your glory.' And He said, 'I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the Name Yehovah before you; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy.' And He said, 'You can not see My face; for no man shall see Me and live.' And Yehovah said, 'Behold, there is a place by Me, and you shall stand upon a rock. And it shall come to pass, while My glory passes by, that I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and will cover [sakoti] you with My hand while I pass by'" - Exodus 33:17-22.
After this encounter God reveals to Moshe His Thirteen Attributes: 1) Mercy; 2) Divine Mercy; 3) Power; 4) Compassionate; 5) Gracious; 6) Long Suffering; 7) Abundant in Kindness; 8) Truth; 9) Preserver of Kindness for thousands; 10) Forgiving iniquity; 11) Forgiving transgression; 12) Forgiving sin; 13) Who cleanses.
Indeed we have a God who calls us by name and who shows us mercy and grace, who forgives our sins and declare us clean because of the cover of the blood of Messiah. God sent His Son to tabernacle among us — (John 1:14), and by His sacrifice on the cross to cover our iniquities, thus the Sukkah we build at the Sukkot festival not only represents the temporality of our existence and our dependence on God, but also represents Yeshua who humbled Himself as a lowly Sukkah and was born to humanity for the specific purpose to cover our sins in order to restore the fellowship with our God. We cannot come in the presence of a Holy God and live without this cover. We cannot be pure on our own and His Holiness would consume us. Prayer, penitence and charity are not enough; atonement is only made by shedding of blood.
In the B'rit Chadashah Luke, the physician, has given us a thorough account of the birth of Messiah. Luke wrote the gospel and the book of Acts that we might know the exact truth about what happened. He starts the gospel with the narration of the events of the birth of Yochanan the cousin of Yeshua.
In Luke chapter 1 we read about Z'kharyah who was of a priestly order and who, in keeping with the timing of various priestly divisions, served in the Temple. His division was called 'Aviyahu.' These divisions were established back in 1 Chronicles chapter 24, and the priests always served at their appointed time up until the destruction of the Temple. The time of Z'kharyah's service gives us the starting point of the events to follow. Z'kharyah and his wife Elisheva were advanced in years and Elisheva was barren. While serving in the Temple an angel appears and tells him about the son that he would have through Elisheva and that this son, who would be called Yochanan, would be the forerunner of the Messiah who will call Yisrael back to God.
Now, the order of division which Z'kharyah was of and was performing the priestly service in the Temple was the eighth order out of twenty four divisions. Each division served for approximately 15 days, or half a month, in the Temple each year. Therefore, the order of Aviyahu served in the second part of the fourth month. Z'kharyah and Elisheva were at the Temple in the fourth month of the Hebrew calendar. The first month of the Hebrew year is not Tishrei. Tishrei, according to the Torah is the seventh month (Leviticus 23:34). The first month of the Hebrew year is called Aviv (Exodus 12:2 and 13:4), and, therefore, the fourth month is Tammuz. Tammuz comes out in our present day Gregorian calendar as June/July.
Z'kharyah and Elisheva returned home after his priestly service was completed and Elisheva became pregnant. Elisheva conceived the child that the angel Gavriel had promised. When they had returned home was in the beginning of the fifth month which is called Av. Nine months later, naturally, Yochanan was born.
Continuing in the same chapter of Luke we hear the angel Gavriel speaking to Miryam and telling her that not only will she bear the Son of God but that her relative Elisheva had conceived in her old age and is now in her sixth month: So we can draw the conclusion that this was happening in the month of Tevet, Elisheva's sixth month of pregnancy, so Yochanan would be six months older than Yeshua.
Therefore, Yeshua being conceived towards the end of the month of Tevet (December/January), was born nine months later, towards the end of the month of Tishrei (September/October), the seventh month, the month in which we celebrate the High Holidays, the Yomim Noraim, which now can take in a greater meaning when we understand its fulfillment in the very birth of the Messiah Himself. The second part of the month is when Sukkot, or the Feast of Booths, takes place. Chag HaSukkot is celebrated from the fifteenth through the twenty second of the month of Tishrei.
We, in Messianic Judaism, believe that all Jewish Holy Days are about the Messiah, therefore, the fulfillment of the meaning of Chag HaSukkot, the Feast of Booths is that Yeshua came humbly to His people, He became a very approachable King, the Word became flesh and tabernacled among us (John 1:14). When we can fully realize what it means, that the Word became flesh and tabernacled among us, we will understand that God became a man and humbled Himself so that any one of us, no mater how sinful, how lowly we have become, could become His intimate companion and receive the salvation given by His atoning sacrifice on the cross.
This is the good news, and that should be indeed a reason to rejoice at this High Holy Days season. This is the season to proclaim the birth of our Messiah, God's covering hand of mercy. Hag sameah Sukkot.
Shabbat joy, peace and blessings! Shabbat Shalom!
"You search the Scriptures because you think in them you have eternal life. It is these that bear witness of Me [Yeshua]" John 5:39
The Four Cups Of Passover In The New Testament
There are four promises in Exodus 6:6-7, which are related to the Passover. These four promises are thoroughly expressed through the four cups of Passover found in the New Testament. Before I discuss in greater detail about these four cups and their actual meanings, I want to talk about communion.
Have you ever thought about where communion comes from? The church has practiced communion for many ages. The Lord has instituted what the church has done many centuries before, which is partaking of the bread and wine in remembrance of what our Lord Jesus has done on the cross.
If you look closer into the passages of Luke 22:17, Luke 22:42-44, and Matthew 26:28-29, there is a connection between communion and Passover. Though churches call Passover communion, in proper term it should be called Passover,since the Passover cup is a crucial cup for Jewish Passover. In Luke 22:17-19, “Then taking a cup of wine, he made the b’rakhah (Blessing(s) and said, ‘Take this and share it among yourselves. For I tell you that from now on, I will not drink the fruit of the vine until the Kingdom of God comes.’ Also, taking a piece of matzah (unleavened bread), he made the b’rakhah; (Blessing(s) broke it, gave it to them and said, ‘This is my body, which is being given for you; do this in memory of me.
”Hence,when we are celebrating the Passover or communion we are in unity“ remembering” Jesus the Messiah. The four promises in relation to the four Passover cups is quite relevant even in communion, but let us remember these promises which God instituted in both the Old Testament and the New Testament are the promises He has already fulfilled to the Jewish people.
Here they are in order:
Exodus 6:6-7
A. I am the Lord; I will free you from the forced labor of the Egyptians.
B. Rescue you from their oppression.
C. I will redeem you with an outstretched arm with great judgments.
D. I will take you as my people and I will be your God.
Therefore, we now have an outline to work with in explaining these four cups of the New Testament Passover from Exodus. The first cup Jesus Christ explains to us is the cup of Sanctification or in Hebrew called the Kiddush (sanctify) cup. In Luke 22:17, “Then, taking a cup of wine, He made the B’rakhah (Blessing) and said, ‘Take this and share it among yourselves.”This particular form of prayer is possibly close to the original prayer which Jesus the Messiah prayed. In Hebrew, the prayer reads: Baruch atah Adonai, Elohenu Melach ha-olam, borae pree hagafen.
Now, I will break the sentence structure down for my audience so it can be easily pronounced. Ba-rukh A-tak A-do-nai E-lo-hey-nu Me-lekh ha-‘olam bo-rey pri ha- ga-fen. In English, it says; Blessed are you, O Lord our God, Ruler of the Universe, who created the fruit of the vine.
1. The Kiddush cup means“s an ctification .” This word should have a sobering effect on us believers for it is a reminder to us that Jesus Christ shed His blood for humanity. There is a unique, but parallel pattern you will begin to see unfold throughout the four Passover cups. When the Messiah prays for each of the
Passover cups, take note that these are not random prayers. Each of those prayers has a special meaning and a connection to each of the four cups. You may now be asking yourself how Exodus 6:6-7 correlates to the text of Luke 22:17.
In this story, God says, “I am the Adonai; I will free you from the forced labor of the Egyptians.”Here therein lies a special word in the contextual story. The key word in this story is“free.” We have read that the God of the Hebrew people freed them of their burdens and bondages. Even in our generation, sometimes we as humans can be wrapped up in our own burdens of life and bondages this world has. In fact, these same burdens and bondages the Hebrew people had under Pharaoh is a resemblance of our own sins. Before we even existed, our sinful state was presented at the Cross, through the “sanctification” of His blood. He atoned for our sins so that we can experience the forgiveness of our unrighteousness through His death on
the cross. This was at the very heart of Jesus Christ’s first coming.
2. The second Passover cup is called Plagues. Another name for it is “the cup of wrath,” which finds its origin in Exodus 6:6-7. God is deeply moved by His people that are bound in Egypt, so God speaks to Moses and says, “I will rescue you from their oppression.”Elohim speaks fondly and lovingly about His servants as He speaks collectively for the nation of Israel. During the celebration of Passover with Jesus and the disciples, Exodus 12:12-13 makes mention of the curses of the second cup. “For that night, I will pass through the land of Egypt and kill all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both men and animals; and I will execute judgment against all the gods of Egypt; I am Adonai. The blood will serve you as a sign marking the houses where you are when I see the blood, I will pass over you when I strike the land of Egypt, the death blow will not strike you.”
This cup reveals God’s direct involvement in delivering His people from Pharaoh. During the Passover, the cup of wrath (plagues) is not to be drunk at all, but rather the contents are poured onto the table while the ten plagues are recited during the Passover meal. Whenever you recite the ten plagues of Egypt, it helps you to
remember how God protected His people. This was also evident when God instructed them to place the lamb’s blood on all three sides of the doorpost. Exodus 12:7, “They are to take some of the blood and smear it on the two sides and top of the door-frame at the entrance of the house.”The blood protected and saved God’s people from the wrath of the death angel, which was to kill all firstborn of every humankind and animal.
This particular cup also represents the anguish Jesus Christ went through at the Garden of Gethsemane. In Luke 22:42-43, Jesus kneels and prays to the heavenly father and says, “Father, if you are willing, take this cup away from me; still, let not my will but yours be done.’ There appeared to him an angel from heaven giving Him strength, and in great anguish He prayed more intensely, so that his sweat became like drops of blood falling to the ground.”As we see in this story, the Messiah asked for this cup of wrath to be taken away from Him. However, we know in order for the prophecies to be fulfilled, God could not take away the cup of wrath from His Son.
This starting point in the Garden of Gethsemane lead up to a dramatic and heart- breaking event - the Crucifixion. Christ had such perseverance through a horrific tribulation of wrath. Our Messiah is our definite Savior, who’s blood protected us and saved us from spiritual death.
3. The cup believers partake of during Communion, or the Lord’s Supper, is really called the cup of Redemption. This cup is identified in the text of Exodus 6:6-7, “I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments.”This context above can be found in the story of Exodus 12:13. The theme is about the blood being placed on the doorpost of each Hebrew house. In addition, the second theme is about Egypt being judged by God through the ten plagues.
Exodus 12:13, “The blood will serve you as a sign marking the houses where you are; when I see the blood, I will pass over you when I strike the land of Egypt, the death blow will not strike you.” The blood the Hebrew people placed on all three sides of the doorposts of their houses was a symbolization of Jesus Christ. In the book of John, we find the character of John mentioning, “Look! God’s lamb! The one who is taking away the sin of the world!”Jesus is the Passover lamb. The cup that believers drink from is in the passages of Luke 22:20.
“This cup is the New Covenant, ratified by my blood which is being poured out for you.”During the night of the Passover, the cup Jesus told His disciples to drink from was the cup of Redemption. Something very intriguing happened that night. Jesus Christ did not drink of this cup spoken of in the book of Matthew and in the book of Luke. The book of Matthew clearly states in chapter 26:29, “I tell you, I will not drink this ‘fruit
of the vine again until the day I drink new wine with you in my Father’s Kingdom.”
Then the book of Luke reveals in chapter 22:15-16, “And He said to them, ‘I have really wanted so much to celebrate this Seder (Passover), with you before I die! For I tell you, it is certain that I will not celebrate it again until it is given its full meaning in the Kingdom of God.”Then the Lamb of God reiterates in Luke 22:18, “For I tell you that from now on, I will not drink the ‘fruit of the vine’ until the Kingdom of God comes.”
As we approach our final Passover cup, let us keep in remembrance that which Christ our savior did on the cross for humankind. Our final Passover cup is known as “the cup of praise”; another important name for it is “the cup of the kingdom.”
In the book of Matthew, we find in verse 30, chapter 26, “When they had sung the hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.”This is practiced even today. After the Passover meal, a hymn is sung. In Hebrew, it is called “Hallel,” which is translated as praise. This hymn is not just a song they actually made up. It finds its origins in Psalms 136:
• Give thanks to Adonai, for he is good, for his grace continues forever.
• Give thanks to the God of gods, for his grace continues forever.
• Give thanks to the Lord of lords, for his grace continues forever;
• To him who alone has done great wonders, for his grace continues forever;
• to him who skillfully made the heavens, for his grace continues forever;
• to him who spread out the earth on the water, for his grace continues forever;
• to him who made the great lights, for his grace continues forever;
• the sun to rule the day, for his grace continues forever;
• the moon and stars to rule the night, for his grace continues forever;
• to him who struck down Egypt’s firstborn, for his grace continues forever;
• and brought Isra’el out from among them, for his grace continues forever;
• with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, for his grace continues forever;
• to him who split apart the Sea of Suf, for his grace continues forever;
• and made Isra’el cross right through it, for his grace continues forever;
• but swept Pharaoh and his army into the Sea of Suf, for his grace continues forever;
• to him who led his people through the desert, for his grace continues forever;
• to him who struck down great kings, for his grace continues forever;
• yes, he slaughtered powerful kings, for his grace continues forever;
• Sichon king of the Emori, for his grace continues forever;
• And ‘Og king of Bashan, for his grace continues forever;
• Then he gave their land as a heritage, for his grace continues forever;
• To be possessed by Isra’el his servant, for his grace continues forever;
• Who remembers us whenever we are brought low, for his grace continues forever;
• And rescues us from our enemies, for his grace continues forever;
• Who provides food for every living creature, for his grace continues forever;
• Give thanks to the God of heaven, for his grace continues forever.
Jesus Christ and His disciples were singing this very song as they were walking to the Mount of Olives. The Mount of Olives is known as the oil press, and there are some good reasons why it is called that. When the Lamb of God was praying to His father to take the cup of wrath away from Him, Jesus Christ started to sweat drops of blood. This was His first pressing. His second pressing would be when Judas Iscariot handed the Messiah to the Romans and they did all sorts of horrible things to Jesus before His crucifixion. Then, the actual crucifixion that took place was Jesus Christ’s last and final pressing. Matthew 26:50, “But Jesus, again crying out in a loud voice, yielded up his spirit.”Isaiah chapter 53:5, “But he was wounded because of our crimes, crushed because of our sin.”Yet, He lovingly and willfully gave up His life for all of us.
Written by Michael Jones
Have you ever thought about where communion comes from? The church has practiced communion for many ages. The Lord has instituted what the church has done many centuries before, which is partaking of the bread and wine in remembrance of what our Lord Jesus has done on the cross.
If you look closer into the passages of Luke 22:17, Luke 22:42-44, and Matthew 26:28-29, there is a connection between communion and Passover. Though churches call Passover communion, in proper term it should be called Passover,since the Passover cup is a crucial cup for Jewish Passover. In Luke 22:17-19, “Then taking a cup of wine, he made the b’rakhah (Blessing(s) and said, ‘Take this and share it among yourselves. For I tell you that from now on, I will not drink the fruit of the vine until the Kingdom of God comes.’ Also, taking a piece of matzah (unleavened bread), he made the b’rakhah; (Blessing(s) broke it, gave it to them and said, ‘This is my body, which is being given for you; do this in memory of me.
”Hence,when we are celebrating the Passover or communion we are in unity“ remembering” Jesus the Messiah. The four promises in relation to the four Passover cups is quite relevant even in communion, but let us remember these promises which God instituted in both the Old Testament and the New Testament are the promises He has already fulfilled to the Jewish people.
Here they are in order:
Exodus 6:6-7
A. I am the Lord; I will free you from the forced labor of the Egyptians.
B. Rescue you from their oppression.
C. I will redeem you with an outstretched arm with great judgments.
D. I will take you as my people and I will be your God.
Therefore, we now have an outline to work with in explaining these four cups of the New Testament Passover from Exodus. The first cup Jesus Christ explains to us is the cup of Sanctification or in Hebrew called the Kiddush (sanctify) cup. In Luke 22:17, “Then, taking a cup of wine, He made the B’rakhah (Blessing) and said, ‘Take this and share it among yourselves.”This particular form of prayer is possibly close to the original prayer which Jesus the Messiah prayed. In Hebrew, the prayer reads: Baruch atah Adonai, Elohenu Melach ha-olam, borae pree hagafen.
Now, I will break the sentence structure down for my audience so it can be easily pronounced. Ba-rukh A-tak A-do-nai E-lo-hey-nu Me-lekh ha-‘olam bo-rey pri ha- ga-fen. In English, it says; Blessed are you, O Lord our God, Ruler of the Universe, who created the fruit of the vine.
1. The Kiddush cup means“s an ctification .” This word should have a sobering effect on us believers for it is a reminder to us that Jesus Christ shed His blood for humanity. There is a unique, but parallel pattern you will begin to see unfold throughout the four Passover cups. When the Messiah prays for each of the
Passover cups, take note that these are not random prayers. Each of those prayers has a special meaning and a connection to each of the four cups. You may now be asking yourself how Exodus 6:6-7 correlates to the text of Luke 22:17.
In this story, God says, “I am the Adonai; I will free you from the forced labor of the Egyptians.”Here therein lies a special word in the contextual story. The key word in this story is“free.” We have read that the God of the Hebrew people freed them of their burdens and bondages. Even in our generation, sometimes we as humans can be wrapped up in our own burdens of life and bondages this world has. In fact, these same burdens and bondages the Hebrew people had under Pharaoh is a resemblance of our own sins. Before we even existed, our sinful state was presented at the Cross, through the “sanctification” of His blood. He atoned for our sins so that we can experience the forgiveness of our unrighteousness through His death on
the cross. This was at the very heart of Jesus Christ’s first coming.
2. The second Passover cup is called Plagues. Another name for it is “the cup of wrath,” which finds its origin in Exodus 6:6-7. God is deeply moved by His people that are bound in Egypt, so God speaks to Moses and says, “I will rescue you from their oppression.”Elohim speaks fondly and lovingly about His servants as He speaks collectively for the nation of Israel. During the celebration of Passover with Jesus and the disciples, Exodus 12:12-13 makes mention of the curses of the second cup. “For that night, I will pass through the land of Egypt and kill all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both men and animals; and I will execute judgment against all the gods of Egypt; I am Adonai. The blood will serve you as a sign marking the houses where you are when I see the blood, I will pass over you when I strike the land of Egypt, the death blow will not strike you.”
This cup reveals God’s direct involvement in delivering His people from Pharaoh. During the Passover, the cup of wrath (plagues) is not to be drunk at all, but rather the contents are poured onto the table while the ten plagues are recited during the Passover meal. Whenever you recite the ten plagues of Egypt, it helps you to
remember how God protected His people. This was also evident when God instructed them to place the lamb’s blood on all three sides of the doorpost. Exodus 12:7, “They are to take some of the blood and smear it on the two sides and top of the door-frame at the entrance of the house.”The blood protected and saved God’s people from the wrath of the death angel, which was to kill all firstborn of every humankind and animal.
This particular cup also represents the anguish Jesus Christ went through at the Garden of Gethsemane. In Luke 22:42-43, Jesus kneels and prays to the heavenly father and says, “Father, if you are willing, take this cup away from me; still, let not my will but yours be done.’ There appeared to him an angel from heaven giving Him strength, and in great anguish He prayed more intensely, so that his sweat became like drops of blood falling to the ground.”As we see in this story, the Messiah asked for this cup of wrath to be taken away from Him. However, we know in order for the prophecies to be fulfilled, God could not take away the cup of wrath from His Son.
This starting point in the Garden of Gethsemane lead up to a dramatic and heart- breaking event - the Crucifixion. Christ had such perseverance through a horrific tribulation of wrath. Our Messiah is our definite Savior, who’s blood protected us and saved us from spiritual death.
3. The cup believers partake of during Communion, or the Lord’s Supper, is really called the cup of Redemption. This cup is identified in the text of Exodus 6:6-7, “I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments.”This context above can be found in the story of Exodus 12:13. The theme is about the blood being placed on the doorpost of each Hebrew house. In addition, the second theme is about Egypt being judged by God through the ten plagues.
Exodus 12:13, “The blood will serve you as a sign marking the houses where you are; when I see the blood, I will pass over you when I strike the land of Egypt, the death blow will not strike you.” The blood the Hebrew people placed on all three sides of the doorposts of their houses was a symbolization of Jesus Christ. In the book of John, we find the character of John mentioning, “Look! God’s lamb! The one who is taking away the sin of the world!”Jesus is the Passover lamb. The cup that believers drink from is in the passages of Luke 22:20.
“This cup is the New Covenant, ratified by my blood which is being poured out for you.”During the night of the Passover, the cup Jesus told His disciples to drink from was the cup of Redemption. Something very intriguing happened that night. Jesus Christ did not drink of this cup spoken of in the book of Matthew and in the book of Luke. The book of Matthew clearly states in chapter 26:29, “I tell you, I will not drink this ‘fruit
of the vine again until the day I drink new wine with you in my Father’s Kingdom.”
Then the book of Luke reveals in chapter 22:15-16, “And He said to them, ‘I have really wanted so much to celebrate this Seder (Passover), with you before I die! For I tell you, it is certain that I will not celebrate it again until it is given its full meaning in the Kingdom of God.”Then the Lamb of God reiterates in Luke 22:18, “For I tell you that from now on, I will not drink the ‘fruit of the vine’ until the Kingdom of God comes.”
As we approach our final Passover cup, let us keep in remembrance that which Christ our savior did on the cross for humankind. Our final Passover cup is known as “the cup of praise”; another important name for it is “the cup of the kingdom.”
In the book of Matthew, we find in verse 30, chapter 26, “When they had sung the hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.”This is practiced even today. After the Passover meal, a hymn is sung. In Hebrew, it is called “Hallel,” which is translated as praise. This hymn is not just a song they actually made up. It finds its origins in Psalms 136:
• Give thanks to Adonai, for he is good, for his grace continues forever.
• Give thanks to the God of gods, for his grace continues forever.
• Give thanks to the Lord of lords, for his grace continues forever;
• To him who alone has done great wonders, for his grace continues forever;
• to him who skillfully made the heavens, for his grace continues forever;
• to him who spread out the earth on the water, for his grace continues forever;
• to him who made the great lights, for his grace continues forever;
• the sun to rule the day, for his grace continues forever;
• the moon and stars to rule the night, for his grace continues forever;
• to him who struck down Egypt’s firstborn, for his grace continues forever;
• and brought Isra’el out from among them, for his grace continues forever;
• with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, for his grace continues forever;
• to him who split apart the Sea of Suf, for his grace continues forever;
• and made Isra’el cross right through it, for his grace continues forever;
• but swept Pharaoh and his army into the Sea of Suf, for his grace continues forever;
• to him who led his people through the desert, for his grace continues forever;
• to him who struck down great kings, for his grace continues forever;
• yes, he slaughtered powerful kings, for his grace continues forever;
• Sichon king of the Emori, for his grace continues forever;
• And ‘Og king of Bashan, for his grace continues forever;
• Then he gave their land as a heritage, for his grace continues forever;
• To be possessed by Isra’el his servant, for his grace continues forever;
• Who remembers us whenever we are brought low, for his grace continues forever;
• And rescues us from our enemies, for his grace continues forever;
• Who provides food for every living creature, for his grace continues forever;
• Give thanks to the God of heaven, for his grace continues forever.
Jesus Christ and His disciples were singing this very song as they were walking to the Mount of Olives. The Mount of Olives is known as the oil press, and there are some good reasons why it is called that. When the Lamb of God was praying to His father to take the cup of wrath away from Him, Jesus Christ started to sweat drops of blood. This was His first pressing. His second pressing would be when Judas Iscariot handed the Messiah to the Romans and they did all sorts of horrible things to Jesus before His crucifixion. Then, the actual crucifixion that took place was Jesus Christ’s last and final pressing. Matthew 26:50, “But Jesus, again crying out in a loud voice, yielded up his spirit.”Isaiah chapter 53:5, “But he was wounded because of our crimes, crushed because of our sin.”Yet, He lovingly and willfully gave up His life for all of us.
Written by Michael Jones
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