If one (1) is the loneliest number, then all we need do is add (1 + 1) and we get companionship, contribution, and cooperation. Or, we may get contrast, competition, and even conflict.

Did you realize there are hundreds of expressions found in cute clichés or astute adages that contain the number two? If so, then you already know a thing or two. And you should go ahead and offer your two cents worth. Even if others disagree with you, at least they’ll know there’s two sides to every story.

On the other hand, be sure not to wear two hats. Because there’s no way that anyone can serve two masters (that’s straight from Scripture!). If you try, it may bring you down a notch or two.

You may be one of two peas in a pod but unless you’re truly honest and sincere with others, they may think of you as a goody two shoes.

Even if you don’t have two nickels to rub together and you can’t be in two places at once, the fact remains that a bird in hand is worth two in the bush.

Hope you had a little fun with just a few of the well-known two-frs, as a lead-in to some seriously significant sets of twos in Scripture.

Above all to remember:

Before we examine the ten most prominent pairs in Scripture, let’s briefly look at the one attribute of God (he has many) that is identified in twosomes. This dual dynamic is ascribed both to God and His Son, Messiah Jesus.

First and Last / Beginning and End / Alpha & Omega

Beginning with God the Father: “This is what the Lord says—Israel’s King and Redeemer, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies: ‘I am the First and the Last; there is no other God’” (Isaiah 44:6).

In the final revelation of himself, Jesus said to John: “…I am the First and the Last. I am the living one. I died, but look—I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and the grave” (Revelation 1:17-18).

Then in the last chapter of Revelation, Jesus (Son of God and God the Son) proclaims: “Look, I am coming soon … I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End” (Revelation 22:12-13).

First and Last and Beginning and End are two terms with the same meaning but articulated in different words for both emphasis and better understanding. First and Last express the everlasting existence of the Triune God—Father, Son, Holy Spirit. Which intriguingly conveys the concept that God is without beginning and without end. It is a statement of the Lord’s essence as found in his very name, Yahweh—I AM. Beginning and End reflect God’s eternal omnipotence in action, i.e. beginning all things and all things yielding (ending) to a New Beginning.

Alpha and Omega are dual titles that also mean first and last. The everlasting to everlasting existence of God the Father and God the Son are denoted by Alpha and Omega because the New Testament was written in Greek and they are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet.

Alpha is a transliteration of the Hebrew alphabet’s first letter … Aleph. And alphabet is a combination of aleph and bet, the first two letters of the Hebrew alphabet. As we know, the Old Testament was written in Hebrew.

Let’s look at the most significant pairs of people or events found in the two Testaments that comprise the awesome Word of God—the Bible.

(1) First & Second Creation of the Heavens and Earth

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1).

Did you miss that creation? Me, too! So did Adam and Eve. But they must have been astounded that everything they needed or wanted was there for them the moment they took their first breath.

However, we didn’t need to be there when, “…The Lord stretched out the heavens, laid the foundation of the earth, and formed the human spirit” (Zechariah 12:1).

Every person who ever lived knows in his/her heart of hearts that God (by very definition, God is the only God) exists. Why?

Because: “The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftmanship. Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make him known. They speak without a sound or word; their voice is never heard. Yet their message has gone throughout the earth, and their words to all the world” (Psalm 19:1-4).

We who know the Lord personally have been given eternal life because we simply placed our personal trust in the substitutionary sacrifice of Messiah Jesus for our sins. Consequently, we will have the awesome privilege of watching our Great God and Savior create the next universe.

Said John of Revelation: “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband” (Revelation 21:1-2, NASB).

This incredible extreme makeover will take place at the end of the Millennial Reign of Jesus who will graciously share his reign with born-again believers in Him.

Speaking of creation, husbands and wives, and twos, God’s marvelous plan for people (and animals) was male and female. For the two to become one and replenish the earth. Not male and male or female and female. But let’s move on.

(2) The First Adam & The Second Adam (The First Man & The Last Man)

“Then the Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground. He breathed the breath of life into the man’s nostrils, and the man became a living person” (Genesis 2:7).

The first reference to man is used generically of both Adam and Eve, as found in the 6^th day creation of the man. “Let us make human beings (man) in our image…” (Genesis 1:26). In the Hebrew, human beings (mankind) reads, adam which is the Hebrew word for man. Therefore, the (first) “man” is called by the word that represents his name—Adam.

Then in the next verse: “…In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them” (Verse 27).

Adam and Eve were the progenitors of everyone who has ever lived on this planet. Sadly, because they disobeyed God and suffered the penalty imposed by the Lord (death—physical separation of the body and spirit, and spiritual separation from God), their sin has infected every person born. Thus, everyone must die.

(See Eye of Prophecy article, Scripture Says Everyone Will Die / But What About the Rapture? Posted 6-23-18).

Fortunately, and fabulously, God provided a remedy through the Holy Spirit’s supernatural conception of the Virgin Mary, who gave birth to the Son of God and the Son of Man. Jesus was fully man and fully God.

He is the Second Adam (Last Adam)

“The Scriptures tell us, ‘The first man, Adam, became a living person.’ But the last Adam—that is, Christ—is a life-giving Spirit. What comes first is the natural body, then the spiritual body comes later. Adam, the first man, was made from the dust of the earth, while Christ, the second man, came from heaven” (I Corinthians 15:45-47).

Jesus is the divine substitute (stand-in) for and Savior of humanity—that inherited sin and death from the first man, Adam. Hence, Jesus is the Last Man (meaning the only one) who was totally sinless; the only person qualified to take our place and pay the penalty for our sins. In doing so, he undid all that the first man Adam had done.

“When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned…. Now Adam is a symbol, a representation of Christ, who was yet to come. But there is a great difference between Adam’s sin and God’s gracious gift… But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of forgiveness to many through this other man, Jesus Christ… Yes, Adam’s one sin brings condemnation for everyone, but Christ’s one act of righteousness brings a right relationship with God and new life for everyone” (Romans 5:12-18).

“So you see, just as death came into the world through a man, now the resurrection from the dead has begun through another man. Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life” (I Corinthians 15:21-22).

It was the ultimate two for the price of one. One once for all sacrifice (Jesus’s blood and life) to purchase: (1) Our Redemption; and our (2) Resurrection … eternal life in heaven.

Moreover, these two preeminent power points are only the beginning. Under each we could list privileges to, at the minimum, equal the number of letters (twenty-six) in the English alphabet; and probably do so in acrostic form. For example, under Redemption: Access to God’s presence directly. Under Resurrection: Abilities far beyond our mortal bodies. And so on.

(3) Birth & Rebirth of Israel

God accomplished the powerful plan of redemption through his Messiah (the Second Adam), God’s very own Son. But first things first. The ultimate Child of Promise, Messiah Jesus, would descend from the first child of promise—Isaac; son of Abraham and Sarah whom God selected to birth a specific people in a special land.

“The Lord had said to Abram, ‘Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. I will make you into a great nation … I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you” (Genesis 12:1-3).

After 400+ years of bondage in Egypt, Israel became a nation. Immediately after the final and most devastating of God’s plagues against Egypt (firstborn killed) we read: “That night the people of Israel left Rameses and started for Succoth. There were about 600,000 men, plus all the women and children” (Exodus 12:37).

Some say that Israel’s nationhood began 40 years later when they finally entered the Promised Land. Either way, God accomplished his plan for the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and they achieved their dream of freedom to worship and serve the living God as the nation of Israel.

In whatever country you live while reading this article, even if in Israel, you might ask, “What’s that got to do with me?”

According to the living God, it has everything to do with you (and me). No Israel, no Messiah. No Messiah, no redemption from sin and no eternal life in heaven. Israel’s place in history and its destiny concerns everyone’s destiny. Not the least of which is to equally unify two peoples into one.

From the birth of Israel came the birth of Messiah. From the birth (life, death, resurrection) of Messiah Jesus came the (spiritual) rebirth of all who believe and receive him as their Savior.

“For you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus… There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:26 & 28).

All the way back to Moses’ time, the Lord warned Israel that the pronounced privileges afforded her as God’s chosen people (to bring the light of God’s salvation to the whole world) came with great responsibility; to love the Lord and keep his commandments given to them through the Law and Sacrificial System for atonement. Although the Lord was longsuffering towards Israel (hundreds of years’ worth of patience), his people persistently abandoned him and would not return to him. Consequently, he banished them from the Promised Land; with, however, a promise that they would one day return in great numbers.

Some 2,500 years after the Babylonian captivity and 1,900 years after their second dispersion, Israel was reborn as a sovereign nation in a single day.

“Before the birth pains even begin, Jerusalem gives birth to a son. Who has ever seen anything as strange as this? Who ever heard of such a thing? Has a nation ever been born in a single day? Has a country ever come forth in a mere moment? But by the time Jerusalem’s birth pains begin, her children will be born. Would I ever bring this nation to the point of birth and then not deliver it?… No! I would never keep this nation from being born, says your God” (Isaiah 66:7-9).

You might again ask the question: “What’s that got to do with me?

Same answer: Everything. No rebirth of Israel, no return of Messiah to Jerusalem. No return, no hope of rescue from a world self-destructing now and even more so during the most horrific Tribulation of all time, culminating in the greatest battle of the ages … Armageddon.

Everyone who is the least bit concerned about what’s going on in today’s woeful world needs to think twice about such things. It would behoove us to pay close attention to what God himself has to say about our destiny, about eternal existence with him or apart from him. Particularly those truths and lessons that come in twos throughout history and prophetic events unfolding before our 21^st century eyes.

(4) Old Covenant (Law) & New Covenant (Grace)

Why did the Lord replace the Mosaic Covenant of the Law with a New Covenant? What was wrong with the Old Covenant itself?

First, a brief answer to that second question: Nothing!

The Covenant (agreement between God and his people) itself was impressive. After all, God himself created and then conveyed all features of that covenant to Moses, on behalf of the Jews individually and Israel nationally. You probably know the answer to the first question, but let’s read it directly from a prophetic promise in Scripture given some 600 years before the New Covenant of Grace would come … through the Mediator, Messiah Jesus.

“The day is coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah. This covenant will not be like the one I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand and brought them out of the land of Egypt. They broke that covenant, though I loved them as a husband loves his wife, says the Lord.

“But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel on that day, says the Lord. I will put my instructions deep within them, and I will write them on their hearts (instead of stone tablets). I will be their God and they will be my people.” (Jeremiah 31:31-33, parenthesis mine; italics to emphasize that it was the people who couldn’t and wouldn’t keep the covenant, thus a new relationship with God was necessary).

In his omniscient foreknowledge, God knew that no one (except His own Son) could keep His law without fail. Still, he gave his people ample time to prove otherwise. And He gives every person on earth the same opportunity—to demonstrate that they can satisfy his holy requirements by self-righteousness, i.e. intrinsic worth or good deeds outweighing the bad.

Have you? Can you? I certainly can’t. I have no righteousness of my own. Apart from Jesus Christ, I have no right standing with God. Messiah Jesus is my righteousness.

That’s why God sent his Son into this unrighteous world. “In those days and at that time I will raise up a righteous descendant from King David’s line. He will do what is just and right throughout the land. In that day Judah will be saved, and Jerusalem will live in safety. And this will be its (Israel) name: ‘The Lord is our Righteousness’” (Jeremiah 33:15-16, parenthesis mine).

So, what was the purpose of the Law?

“Why, then, was the law given? It was given alongside the promise (to Abraham) to show people their sins. But the law was designed to last only until the coming of the child who was promised…. Is there a conflict, then, between God’s law and God’s promises? Absolutely not! If the law could give us new life, we could be made right with God by obeying it. But the Scriptures declare that we are all prisoners of sin, so we receive God’s promise of freedom only by believing in Jesus Christ” (Galatians 3:19-22, parenthesis mine).

There is no conflict between God’s law and God’s grace (freely given promises); that is, unless we make (try to keep) the law as our source of redemption.

The Apostle Paul reminded all believers:

(5) First Advent & Second Advent of Messiah

They are called advents because they are extraordinary events encompassing Messiah Jesus’s arrivals or appearances. The first some 2,000 years ago, born in Bethlehem. As a teacher, he taught like no one before him or since; to prove his divinity, he performed miracles like no one before or since. But most of all Jesus came as a deliverer. Just as the Israelites were delivered (spared) from death by the blood of the Passover lambs, so Jesus came to this world as the Passover Lamb of God.

The death and burial of Messiah Jesus was the greatest sacrifice ever made by the highest price ever paid. And his resurrection sealed the deal!

“With his own blood—not the blood of goats and calves—he entered the Most Holy Place once for all time and secured our redemption forever” (Hebrews 9:12).

Jesus said that he came to fulfill the Law not to abolish it. He was referring to the Jewish festivals, to the requirements regarding the Temple and its instruments, and to the Levitical Sacrificial system—all of which were types or patterns of the New Covenant to come, and specifically to the mediator of that New Covenant, Messiah (Son of God). That which was replaced or cancelled in the Old Covenant is any misguided human effort to earn God’s approval by trying to keep all points of the law as a means of redemption.

“But now Jesus, our High Priest, has been given a ministry that is far superior to the old priesthood, for he is the one who mediates for us a far better covenant with God, based on better promises. If the first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no need for a second covenant to replace it. But when God found fault with the people, he said…” (Hebrews 8:6-8; (then the writer quotes the prophecy of the new covenant we previously read in Jeremiah).

This same Jesus will appear again—His Second Coming. But this time as the conquering King of all kings to rescue Israel from annihilation at the hands of Antichrist and his ten-nation coalition. This time as the judge of all ungodly unbelievers remaining on the earth. This time to right all wrongs done to Israel by separating the sheep nations from the goat nations.

“His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will make this happen!” (Isaiah 9:7).

(6) Israel—Two Exiles & Two Returns

The Lord disciplined Israel and Judah in several ways during their ongoing rebellion against him and blatant disregard of the true essence of the Mosaic Covenant. They relentlessly reduced the spirit of the Law to mere rituals. Their hearts were far from the Lord, to the point of vainly worshipping false non-existent gods. The ultimate punishment was Babylonian conquest of Judah and Jerusalem and the unthinkable destruction of Solomon’s Temple, then exile of survivors to Babylon. But only for 70 years, after which a remnant of Jews returned to Israel.

Only to be conquered again by the Romans in A.D. 70, with the rebuilt Temple destroyed and this time exiled to the four corners of the earth. And this time the reason was because they had rejected their Messiah, the very One who came to bring them the Kingdom of God on earth. A Kingdom that Jesus would have established had they believed and received him Savior and Lord.

Regrettably, God’s people didn’t learn their historical lesson: if they abandoned the Lord, He would abandon them and withdraw his protection of Israel as a nation. Consequently, they suffered even greater tragedies the second time, culminating in the horrific Holocaust.

“Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem. Tell her that her sad days are gone and her sins are pardoned. Yes, the Lord has punished her twice over for all her sins” (Isaiah 40:1-2, italics for emphasis). Please read Eye of Prophecy article: Double Israel’s Troubles & Double Her Blessings! Posted 8-13-16).

The Lord has kept his unconditional covenant with Abraham that Israel would always be a nation whose people would inhabit and occupy (in the positive connotation of the term) the Promised Land. A prophetic promise repeated by many Old Testament prophets. Such as:

“…Son of man, these bones represent the people of Israel… This is what the Sovereign Lord says: O my people, I will open your graves of exile and cause you to rise again. Then I will bring you back to the land of Israel” (Ezekiel 37:11-12).

Jews in modern-day Israel are a living testimony to the fulfillment of this and other prophecies like it.

(“I will bring my exiled people of Israel back from distant lands… They will plant vineyards and gardens; they will eat their crops and drink their wine” Amos 9:14)

(7) God Twice Dwelling Among His People

The Lord not only divinely delivered his people from abject slavery. He not only miraculously provided for them during their 40-year wandering in the wilderness—manna from heaven; meat from out of nowhere; water from rocks; clothes and sandals that never wore out. He also dwelt among his people!

His awesome presence was in the cloud by day and pillar of fire by night, guiding and protecting them. His glorious presence then entered the Holy of Holies of the tabernacle and later the magnificent Temple built by Solomon. Think about it! That’s nothing short of spectacular! The true and living God and Creator of a vast universe still too small to contain his glory, lived with men and woman and children.

“Then the cloud covered the Tabernacle, and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle. Moses could no longer enter the Tabernacle because the cloud had settled down over it, and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle” (Exodus 40:34-35).

Over 300 years later after the Temple was finished, we read:

“When Solomon finished praying, fire flashed down from heaven and burned up the burnt offerings and sacrifices, and the glorious presence of the Lord filled the Temple. The priests could not enter the Temple of the Lord because of the glorious presence of the Lord filled it. When all the people of Israel saw the fire coming down and the glorious presence of the Lord filling the Temple, they fell face down on the ground and worshipped and praised the Lord saying, ‘He is good! His faithful love endures forever!’” (II Chronicles 7:1-3).

Then about 370 years later, God’s glory departed from the Temple because of Judah’s detestable sins and how they had profaned the Temple. God’s glory returned briefly when His Son, Messiah Jesus taught and healed in and near the Temple and when he triumphantly entered Temple Mount through Jerusalem’s Eastern Gate on Palm Sunday (See last week’s Eye of Prophecy article: Jerusalem’s Mysterious Eastern Gate … Making Headlines).

But it didn’t end there. As it once was, so shall it be again. Once again Messiah Jesus will ascend Temple Mount through the Eastern Gate and the very presence of God (the Son) will dwell in Jerusalem during Jesus’s Millennial Reign on Earth. Followed by God the Father’s majestic glory filling the New Jerusalem. At which time all God’s people will echo the shout heard by John:

“…Look, God’s home is now among his people. He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever. And the one sitting on the throne said, ‘Look, I am making everything new! … It is finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega—the Beginning and the End…” (Revelation 21:3-6).

Next time, God’s presence with his people will be FOREVER!

(8) Two Destructions of Babylon

Both destructions are literal. With the 2^nd (still to come) also a judgment of the spiritual kingdom of darkness and false religions and humanistic philosophies birthed in Babylon, reproduced down through the ages, ending with Rome and the Roman Catholic Church. Each of Babylon’s falls are prophesied in Scripture.

In fact, every dramatic detail that pertains to God’s two-part plan for humanity is predicted in the Bible: (1) God’s chosen people inheriting and inhabiting the Promised Land in perpetuity; (2) Salvation to Jew and Gentile alike through the Jewish Messiah, Yeshua.

Nothing of any past, present, or future significance concerning the unfolding and fulfillment of these plans takes place without first being foretold.

“Indeed, the Sovereign Lord never does anything until he reveals his plans to his servants the prophets” (Amos 3:7).

The destruction of the mighty Babylonian Empire was predicted more than once by Isaiah (and other prophets) some 100 years before Babylon even rose to power! And, therefore, about 170 years before Babylon came crashing down, destroyed by the Mede/Persian empire. In fact, one of these prophecies even narrows it down to the very night that Babylon fell—as later foretold and witnessed by Daniel (Chapter 5; you remember … as shown by the below pictorial).

Said Isaiah: “Look! They are preparing a great feast. They are spreading rugs for people to sit on. Everyone is eating and drinking. But quick! Grab your shields and prepare for battle. You are being attacked!” (Isaiah 21:5).

Isaiah continues: “…Then the watchman said, ‘Babylon is fallen, fallen! All the idols of Babylon lie broken on the ground!’” (Verse 9).

The second judgment of Babylon will, of course, take place in the soon to come Great Tribulation. Time/space does not permit elaboration—including documentation to demonstrate that Babylon in Revelation is an encryption for Rome—except to quote one of God’s angels shouting:

“…Babylon is fallen—that great city is fallen! She has become a home for demons…” (Revelation 18:2).

You may want to read the entirety of Revelation 18 that contains graphic details of this fall, primarily as punishment for her many sins and evil deeds (Verse 5). Including, but not limited to: “In your streets flowed the blood of the prophets and of God’s holy people and the blood of people slaughtered all over the world” (Revelation 18:24).

The Babylonian Empire did not kill any of God’s prophets nor were any Jews murdered in Babylon itself. This is one of several reasons why the Great City of Revelation 17 and Babylon of Revelation 18 is Rome, not ancient Babylon that had already fallen beyond recovery.

See Eye of Prophecy trilogy, Shameful Saga of the Great City … Revelation 17; Cunning Makeover of the Great City … Revelation 17; Humiliating End of the Great City … Revelation 17. Posted 5-26, 6-2, & 6-9-18.

(9) Christ & His Antithesis, Antichrist

Two men couldn’t be more diametrically different. Complete opposites. We’re talking day and night; right and wrong; good and evil; truth and lies; life and death. One is the true Messiah; the other a counterfeit imposter empowered by Satan to accomplish Satan’s original agenda—to be like the Most High God.

Yet, it will be Antichrist’s (Nero) bodily return from the Abyss (Revelation 17:7-8) that will amaze many left behind at the Rapture, mesmerizing them to the point of worship. His reappearance after nearly 2,000 years will be considered a miracle of resurrection to exceed even that of Messiah Jesus. (This and much more is covered in my second book, Out of the Abyss. Also, in most Eye of Prophecy articles assigned to the category of Antichrist)

Here, the positional power and remarkable role of Jesus Christ as the First and Last is in stark contrast to his boastful counterfeit opposite. With Antichrist (Nero … born in A.D. 37) appearing on the scene just a few years after Jesus’s First Advent and Nero’s reappearance immediately after the Rapture just seven years before Jesus’s Second Advent will take place.

Though God will permit Satan and his man of sin great power and authority for 3 ½ years, ultimately neither will succeed in their vain attempt to be the First and the Last. That honor, privilege, and power belong exclusively and eternally to our Great God and His Messiah.

(10) Antichrist Nero & His Prototype Predecessor, Antiochus IV Epiphanes

A better characterization of this perfidious pair of malicious megalomaniacs would be that of a devilish duo.

However, because time/space has expired in this week’s article, I must ask you to wait until the next post to discover more about the sordid saga of these two tyrants who are linked together in one prophetic chapter of Scripture. Including some fascinating similarities between them.

Things to Ponder

These striking sets of two encapsulate God’s panoramic plans for humanity, plus his providential power, persistence, and patience to accomplish those plans.

In these pairs, we find one or more of the following: contrast, correlation, clarification, combination, correction, and culmination.

Over all, we find the magnificent Triune God, who is the First and Last, Beginning and End, Alpha and Omega. He is the One who has begun and will bring all things full circle to the way it was in the beginning … with a supernatural new beginning to the inevitable end.

It’s like the pictures we see literally and in our mind of the before and after.

He is a God of second chances; but we must accept Messiah Jesus as Savior while we’re alive on Planet Earth. After we die it’s too late.

*Permit me to close with an excerpt from the last pages of the final chapter of my novel, O Israel. The scene takes place about a year after the Rapture. It is a conversation between two of the main characters (who have accepted Messiah Jesus as Savior) as they stand on the Mount of Olives looking down on the rebuilt Temple.

“What are you thinking?” Netanya asked.

“What you and I talked about at the hospital. About the Garden of Eden, coming full circle, restoration.”

“I remember.”

“The circle is almost closed,” Barak said. “We were made in God’s image, which means that he made us perfect. How could a perfect God create something imperfect? Through the image he gave us, he offered us the choice to live forever. But we did the only thing he told us not to do; we used the free will he gave us to choose another image. We wanted an image that made us equal to him, one that no longer needed the holiness of the perfect image, one that made him in our image. And when we disobeyed a simple command, it distorted our true image. We killed the spirit inside us, and the outside died with it. The image became twisted, unholy, ungodly.

“But God would not leave it that way. He would restore the original created image. There was only one way to do that; a great debt had to be paid to remove the awful presence of sin that had changed and condemned the image. Who could pay such a debt? It had to be someone whose image had not changed, someone who was a perfect and visible image of God. And it had to be a man, because the purchase must be with blood. Life is in the blood. So, the Son of God became the Son of Man, and he was both at the same time.

“When we believe the Son for who he is and what he did, the original image is restored … That is full circle.”

“That was beautiful,” Netanya said… “Forever begins again, but in a new way. As good as it was in the beginning, I think it will be even better at the end of the age.”

“I’d go with that,” Barak said.

The horizon hid the sun. Netanya shivered when a strong gust chilled the air. He put his arm around her.

She looked lovingly into his eyes. “As it once was, so shall it be again.” (Pages 338-339).

“And He who sits on the throne said, ‘Behold, I am making all things new…’” (Revelation 21:5, NASB).

Didn’t you love it when teachers began their next class with, “Let’s review….”

Seriously (well, maybe), they did you a favor. Especially if you daydreamed your way through the previous session or didn’t show up for class at all! Even if you read the textbook topic for that lesson and paid full attention, education experts agree that review and repetition is the best foundation of learning.

Whatever your view of review, let’s begin with … a (brief) review!

First, an excerpt quote from the beginning of last week’s Part I article:

“There are many reasons (two in particular) that elevate the Word of God light-years beyond all religious and philosophical systems and scripts. In italics for sheer emphasis:

“(1) The Bible contains not just one or two, but hundreds of fulfilled prophecies and dozens more awaiting fulfillment. (2) Multiple miracles to further prove that the God of the Bible is the only true and living God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

“…God the Father and God the Son (Messiah Jesus) point to divine prophecies and miracles as the acid test of Biblical accuracy and reliability. Essentially, the Lord is telling the world: If you don’t (want to) believe what I say, then look at the historical record of what I’ve done through miracles and fulfilled prophecy.”

Then, another quote from the final portion of last week’s article:

“…All Biblical prophecies (and miracles) are anything but ordinary. In fact, they are stunning, staggering, and spectacular. The time-dedicated prophecies are an extra special demonstration of God’s omnipotence and omniscience—knowing and declaring the end from the beginning.”

Before we examine four more Bible prophecies (chronological) that specify a set time of fulfillment, let’s review the first four:

(1) The Great Flood: Forty Days/Nights

(2) Israelites Under Egyptian Bondage: Four Hundred Years

(3) Wandering in the Wilderness: Forty Years

(4) Seven x Seven x Seven x Seven: 2,483 Years!

If you haven’t read last week’s article, then by all means….

Are There More Time Dedicated Prophecies Than the Eight Presented in These Two Articles?

Yes, there are. Here is another excerpt from Part I (in italics):

Regarding the hundreds of Biblical prophecies, there are only a few time-capsule forecasts involving specific dates or duration of fulfillment. Which, in that context of comparison, makes these prophecies unique. Although there are more than eight prophecies that specify a set period, the eight that we will look at are major events that apply comprehensively to Israel and/or the world at large. They are integral components of God’s magnificent plans for and interaction with his chosen people, the Jews; his special possession, Israel; and for all other peoples (Gentiles).

Two more reasons why I didn’t include more time-prophecies than just the eight identified: (1) Restraint of space even for a two-part article. (2) The two most well-known of these time-predicated prophecies are derived directly from dreams of Gentile rulers.

Although that doesn’t render those predictions any less significant, I selected the eight prophecies because six of them were given verbally by the Lord to Noah, Abraham, Moses (2), Jeremiah, and Ezekiel. The seventh given to Daniel by the angel Gabriel. And the eighth (New Testament prophecy) directly from Jesus.

Both prominent prophecies (omitted in our discussion) involved sets of seven years: (A) Joseph’s interpretation of Pharaoh’s dreams … seven years of plenty and seven years of famine in Egypt; (B) Daniel’s interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream in which the king would be stripped of his throne and live among the animals for seven years.

So, let’s pick it up with the fifth time-dedicated prophecy.

(5) The Babylonian Captivity: 70 Years

Prophecy: “This is what the Lord says: ‘You will be in Babylon for seventy years….’” (Jeremiah 29:10a).

Although both Isaiah and Jeremiah predicted Judah’s fate at the hands of the Babylonians decades before the first of three invasions, the precise length of Israel’s exile was announced a few years prior to the final conquest of 586 B.C. that resulted in the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple. In fact, Chapter 29:4-23 is a letter sent by Jeremiah (quoting God verbatim) to the first group of Jewish exiles in Babylon—which began in 605 B.C. including the deportation of the prophet Daniel and Israel’s King Jehoiachin. The second conquest occurred in 597 B.C.; Ezekiel was exiled to Babylon.

Immediately after God tells Jeremiah how long the captivity will last, we read one of the most beloved passages in all of Scripture:

Fulfillment: “So the message of the Lord spoken through Jeremiah was fulfilled. The land finally enjoyed its Sabbath rest, lying desolate until the seventy years were fulfilled, just as the prophet had said” (II Chronicles 36:21). *Note: I & II Chronicles were written approximately 430 B.C.

Following King Cyrus’ decree of 538 B.C., some of the exiled Jews returned to Israel. However, the seventy years wasn’t complete until the Temple was finally rebuilt in 516 B.C. After that, more Jews and/or their descendants came back to Israel.

Seventy is one of a few notable numbers in Scripture, a multiple of the most pivotal (by far) number of the Bible—the number Seven. Seventy (sets of seven) is the combination prophesied by Daniel that also specifies an exact number of years, albeit the final set (7 years) is still awaiting fulfillment, i.e. the Great Tribulation. The first increment of sixty-nine sets of seven will be examined shortly in the seventh of our eight time-dedicated prophecies.

Although not a prophecy as such, there are other significant seventies in Scripture. Please refer to Eye of Prophecy article: Daniel’s 70 Prophetic Weeks & The Number Seventy! (Posted 5-12-18).

Regarding the Babylonian Captivity, I cited the specified period of 70 years as found in Jeremiah 29:10. But I didn’t complete Verse 10. Here it is in its entirety:

“This is what the Lord says: ‘You will be in Babylon for seventy years. But then I will come and do for you all the good things I have promised, and I will bring you home again” (Jeremiah 29:10, italics for emphasis).

Question: Did the Lord bring them home again?

Answer: Yes, but only some (a minority) of the Jews returned from exile.

Next question: Has the Lord done for his people all the good things he promised.

Answer: Not yet. Not completely.

Historically, the answer to this question is obvious. Israel was conquered again, and the Jews again exiled (by the Romans)—this time to virtually all nations on earth and for what would be nearly 2,000 years. Plus, dozens of other Old Testament prophecies concerning extensive return of God’s people to the land that pertain to the end times (in which we are living), contrasted to the partial return of the Jews after the Babylonian Captivity.

A key component of this powerful and precious prophetic promise is found in the beginning words: “But then I will come and do for you…”

Although the (literal) coming of the Lord took place when Jesus was born of a Virgin in Bethlehem as the Messiah, it was just the beginning. But, oh what a beginning (redemption through the once for all sacrifice of God’s Son!) of the good things the Lord had promised.

Messiah’s first arrival could have been but wasn’t all the good things. Why? Because the Jews rejected Jesus as Messiah. Thus, the Lord’s ultimate promise would be delayed until Messiah’s (Second) Coming at which time he will “…do for you ALL the good things I have promised” (Jeremiah 29:10, emphasis added).

As he always does, the Lord kept his promise to limit Judah’s captivity at 70 years in Babylon. Soon afterward, the Jews who returned to Israel began to once again enjoy the Promised Land—but only partially and (because of their continued disobedience and apathy) temporarily.

Where is this leading? I’m glad you asked!

It’s leading right up to the present time.

Last May, Israel celebrated its 70^th anniversary as a reborn nation from the floods of exile and the fires of Nazi death camps. This in fulfillment of many prophecies concerning the FINAL and permanent return of the Jews to the Promised Land. At which time (soon afterward) the Lord will come and do for you (Israel) all the good things I have promised….

The literal return of Messiah (will come) is how and through whom the Lord will do all the good things he promised. Otherwise, God through Jeremiah only needed to say, I will do for you all the good things…

Is there a prophetic correlation between the 70 years of Israel’s exile in Babylon and the (ultimate) fulfillment of God’s promise to return his people to Israel, which began to take place 70 years ago? I would answer that question with a question: How could there not be?

The full passage (Jeremiah 29:10-14) establishes that link.

(Over the Old City of Jerusalem, one of many celebrations of Israel’s 70th anniversary as a Sovereign State)

In that regard, was it mere chance that the 2^nd Temple was destroyed in the year 70 A.D.? Exactly 586 years after the Temple was rebuilt in 516 B.C., having been destroyed in 586 B.C. Or that both temples were demolished on the same day of the Jewish calendar … 9^th of Av!

All of which is EXTRAORDINARY!

(6) Duration of Israel’s & Judah’s Sins: 390 Years & 40 Years

Prophecy: “Now lie on your left side and place the sins of Israel on yourself. You are to bear their sins for the number of days you lie there on your side. I am requiring you to bear Israel’s sins for 390 days—one day for each year of their sin. After that, turn over and lie on your right side for 40 days—one day for each year of Judah’s sin. Meanwhile, keep staring at the siege of Jerusalem. Lie there with your arm bared and prophesy her destruction” (Ezekiel 4:4-7).

Along with a couple of other prophets like Isaiah, Hosea, and Jeremiah; Ezekiel was instructed by God to do a few extraordinary (bordering on the bizarre) things to graphically reinforce some prophecies. They were visual object lessons for God’s people to get their attention that much more.

Likely, your first reaction would be: Isn’t the Lord referring to Israel’s and Judah’s past sin(s)? If so, how is this a prophecy, as such?

Once again, so good that you asked!

If you read last week’s article, you might recall that a few verses from Isaiah were quoted in which God declares that he is the only true God and only he can declare the end from the beginning. While also challenging fortune-tellers and man-made gods, idols, prophets, religions to do likewise; if they would be so presumptuous.

Here is one of those verses to answer the specific question (but also in general) of whether the Lord’s directives to Ezekiel—other than telling Ezekiel to continue prophesying of Jerusalem’s imminent destruction—was prophetic or not.

“Present the case for your idols, says the Lord. Let them show what they can do, says the King of Israel. Let them try to tell us what happened long ago so that we may consider the evidence. Or let them tell us what the future holds, so we can know what’s going to happen. Yes, tell us what will occur in the days ahead. Then we will know you are gods. In fact, do anything—good or bad! Do something that will amaze and frighten us. But no! You are less than nothing and can do nothing at all. Those who choose you pollute themselves” (Isaiah 41:21-24, italics for emphasis).

Before the Lord issues his challenge for the makers and followers of these false gods (idols) to “tell us what the future holds,” he dares them to: “try to tell us what happened long ago.” This was especially applicable to leaders and historians of one nation attempting to accurately tell their people what happened in and with other nations. But the Lord’s statement also applied within nations.

From God’s vantage point, remembering and correctly telling (100% accuracy) what happened long ago is as much a part of prophecy as is declaring the future. The Lord is referring to more than just history (historical events), as several past events have been recorded and dated by religious leaders and historians. He’s referring more so to cause and effect, i.e. how many years or length of time of what people have done in the past (especially as a nation) relate to what’s happening now or would happen in the future. Whether the people could or would realize any correlation; usually they can’t or don’t want to connect the dots. That’s primarily what the Lord meant when he said: so that we may consider the evidence.

This was particularly true in ancient times, when rulers of several nations (like Egypt) disallowed preservation (writings, pictographs) of bad times or failures during their reigns.

This was also the case with false prophets speaking for their (man-made) gods; who couldn’t or didn’t want to remember the cause and effect of past incidents, whether they were written down or not. Including their predictions that didn’t come to pass … which was most of the time! Come to think of it, even in our age of vast (finger-tip) knowledge and instant global communication, we’re not too adept at remembering why things happened.

Fulfillment: This is the passage that I haven’t written about before, mostly because I couldn’t (until recently … again with discernment from the Lord) match up the 40 years of Judah’s sin with a specified period in her history. But that’s because I was thinking in terms of the first part of God’s instructions to Ezekiel: lay on his left side for 390 days bearing Israel’s sins for 390 years. Which I had linked to Israel’s (northern kingdom) history, but only partially. We’ll get to that shortly.

*Note: It’s understood that the 390 years and 40 years are separate, yet uninterrupted segments of time. As opposed to increments (years) of both periods starting and stopping. For one thing, it’s clear that both sets of times began after Israel split into two kingdoms, as the Lord specifically cites both Israel (ten northern tribes) and Judah (two southern tribes) … not Israel as a (former) unified nation. For another thing, Ezekiel’s dramatic portrayal of these periods was consecutive—390 days on his left side, then 40 days on his right side. Not a few days, then stop, then start again.

In quick review of Israel’s history as a nation, she peaked as a world power during the glory years of King David and King Solomon. But that pinnacle lasted only 80 years. Judah’s prosperity, prominence, and existence as a nation would last longer than Israel’s; however, both kingdoms began to decline geographically, politically, militarily, economically, socially, and spiritually when they split apart after King Solomon died.

(Before Israel divided into two kingdoms, much of the surrounding land belonged to Israel. Gradually, these lands were retaken by Israel’s enemies)

Israel / Ten Northern Tribes: According to God, Israel’s sin (rebellion against God and against Israel’s God-appointed dynasty of kings through King David) continued 390 years. Would we, therefore, be able to match those years to a specific stage of Israel’s (ten northern tribes) history?

Answer: We sure can!

As follows:

Solomon’s reign ended in 930 B.C.

As with nearly all historical dynasties of kings (Biblical or secular), the succession dates of kings are listed consecutively. Thus, Solomon’s son, Rehoboam, began his reign over Judah in 930 B.C. as did Jeroboam I (historically or technically … but not actually) over the northern kingdom of Israel. Reason: the actual division into two kingdoms took several months as did the time for Jeroboam to travel back to Israel from his hiding place in Egypt. Then a few more weeks or months before, “…on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, a day that he himself designated, Jeroboam offered sacrifices on the altar of Bethel. He instituted a religious festival for Israel…” (I Kings 12:33).

That religious ritual was a direct violation of God’s commandments. Sacrifices were to be offered only in Jerusalem and only on days/months previously established by the Lord as found in the Law of Moses. This, then was the beginning of Israel’s (northern kingdom) blatant defiance of the Lord.

Although, the Bible doesn’t specify how much time elapsed from Solomon’s death to when Jeroboam assumed the throne of Israel, then offered these perverted sacrifices, the implied time is convincingly clear to be no more than two years. Probably more like 18 months.

Either way, I believe we can safely identify (sometime during) the year 928 B.C. as the beginning date of the 390-year period identified by the Lord to Ezekiel. Things in Israel deteriorated exponentially after that. None of Israel’s 20 kings (northern ten tribes) ever truly served the Lord, with the Biblical epitaph of these kings (also Judah’s kings) summarized in terms of whether they pleased the Lord or did evil in his sight. With Biblical evidence that as the kings went, so went the people.

Let’s do the math.

928 B.C. + 390 years arrives at the year 538 B.C.

What happened that year? King Cyrus, whose Mede/Persian Empire had defeated Babylonia the year before, issued a decree for Jews throughout his kingdom to return to Israel … not just the Jews in Babylon (see Ezra 1:1-4 & II Chronicles 36:22-23). This signaled the end of God’s indictment for Israel’s sins (390 years) as related directly to Ezekiel’s prophecy.

In that sense, the Lord’s parameter of 390 years was both past and future, as this revelation was given to Ezekiel in 593 B.C. It would be another 55 years before the 390 years ended.

Once again … extraordinary!

One more observation: Although Assyria conquered the ten northern tribes in 722 B.C., there were still descendent Jews from those tribes who remained in Israel proper. Some of them were exiled to Babylon along with the surviving Jews of the two southern tribes. However, it’s also evident that the Jews (still in Israel) from the northern tribes or those taken captive and resettled in other nations designated by Assyria continued to disobey the Lord and worship pagan idols. Thus, the period of their sins lasted until some Jews (from several tribes) began to return to Israel after Cyrus announced his decree.

Judah / Two Southern Tribes: What about the 40 years of Judah’s sins? For which Ezekiel was to lay on his right side to “bear those sins for 40 days, one day for each year.” Although I had ascertained the historical application of the 390 years time-lapse for Israel (except that 55 of these years were still future to Ezekiel), until recently I hadn’t made the connection to Judah.

There was also a total of 20 rulers (nineteen kings, one queen) who reigned in Judah. However, seven of them were good kings for most or all their reign, especially Hezekiah and Josiah. Even if we subtract the years of the faithful kings (and the corresponding loyalty of the two southern tribes of Judah to the Lord), the number of years in which Judah constantly sinned against the Lord was far more than forty years, i.e. from Solomon’s death to Ezekiel’s prophecy, let alone the additional years until Cyrus’s decree.

Why only 40 years for Judah? What 40 years? When? For what sin or sins? When, in fact, the 70-year exile to Babylon was the immediate proximate (cause and effect) punishment for Judah’s sin of disobedience and idolatry?

Like the proverbial light bulb or beacon suddenly flashing, it came to me … meaning discernment from the Lord. The 40 years didn’t apply to the past or present or even near future; it couldn’t because the years didn’t match up. Instead, it applied exclusively to the not-so-near future!

What extended future? When did the 40-year period begin? And what ended it?

Answer: The 40 years began when Israel (at that time composed mostly of Jews from the two southern tribes of Judah and Benjamin) completed their national denial of Jesus as Messiah that culminated in his arrest by the Jews and crucifixion by the Romans.

Jesus was crucified in A.D. 32.

As heartbreaking as that was, what came next was even worse.

Despite Jesus’s resurrection from the dead confirmed by hundreds of witnesses who saw him sometime during his 40 days on earth before he ascended to heaven, most of Israel still refused to accept him as Messiah. Jesus’s resurrection meant they had no reason (excuse) whatsoever to deny his Messianic divinity as the Son of God.

FORTY years later, the final demise of Judah took place when the Romans completed their campaign against Israel (beginning in A.D. 66) with the siege of Masada in late 72, early 73 A.D. Although the sack of Jerusalem and destruction of the 2^nd Temple took place in 70 A.D. there were still Jewish zealots who continued to resist Rome. Thus, in the context of Ezekiel’s prophecy, the fall of Masada would be the pivotal end-point to the 40-year period of Judah’s (most grievous of all) sin against the Lord.

During those 40 years, Israel (Judah) had every chance to scrutinize their Hebrew Scriptures. To, with an open mind and heart, clearly see that Jesus of Nazareth had fulfilled the Messianic prophecies. Including Daniel’s stunning disclosure that Messiah would be killed BEFORE the rebuilt temple was destroyed (Daniel 9:26). Sadly, they did not. They would not.

*Note: For those who subscribe to some Bible scholars’ proposal that Jesus was crucified closer to or in the year of A.D. 30, that’s okay; even though I’m convinced that Sir Robert Anderson’s calculations are accurate, as we shall soon see. If anyone prefers A.D. 30, then 40 years would elapse with the destruction of the Temple in A.D. 70. Either time-frame validates Ezekiel’s 40-year prophecy concerning Judah.

Another clarification came to me about the same time. I had sometimes wondered why the Lord constantly referred to Ezekiel as the son of man, when speaking to Ezekiel. That question was answered by linking it directly to this prophecy.

Not just the years, but the command for Ezekiel to bear the sins of Israel and Judah for the specified periods. Clearly, this was symbolic, as only Messiah could literally take the sins of Israel/Judah (and the whole world) upon himself, as previously prophesied by Isaiah and King David. Therefore, Ezekiel’s designation as the son of man was also prophetic.

What title did Jesus often use of himself when speaking not only to his disciples, but many others?

Correct: SON OF MAN!

How extraordinary is that!

(7) Jerusalem’s Walls Rebuilt to the Time of Messiah’s Coming: 483 Years

Prophecy: “Now listen and understand! Seven sets of seven plus sixty-two sets of seven will pass from the time the command is given to rebuild Jerusalem until a ruler—the Anointed One (Messiah)—comes….” (Daniel 9:25). *Note: One set of seven equals seven years.

Fulfillment: When Jesus triumphantly rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday… hailed as the Messiah by the people (Matthew 21:1-11).

As alluded to in last week’s article, this amazing insight had been given to Sir Robert Anderson, as contained in his book, The Coming Prince, published in 1894. Concerning the parallel between the 483 years of Daniel 9 and the 2,483 years (seven x seven x seven x seven) of Leviticus 26 covered in last week’s post, here is an excerpt from that article (in italics):

Anderson’s insight related to the prophesied time parameters of the first Advent of Messiah which resulted in Israel’s rejection of Jesus as the Messiah. Whereas, the Seven Times Over prophetic paradigm pertains to the physical return of the Jews to Israel—specifically the (time dedicated) end of Gentile dominance of the Jews in preparation for the Second Coming of Messiah Jesus.

Because space/time is limited, I’ll condense Anderson’s breathtaking disclosure by providing an excerpt from Eye of Prophecy article, An Incredible Time-Lapse Prophecy (Posted 1-18-14).

…Sir Robert Anderson calculated (with partial assistance from the Royal Observatory, Greenwich) the Julian date of King Artaxerxes edict to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem to have been March 14th, 445 BC. Furthermore, the Julian date for Jesus’s magnificent ride into Jerusalem was April 6th, 32 AD. By employing the Hebrew calendar, Sir Robert Anderson tallied 173,880 days had elapsed which is exactly 483 Jewish years!! Absolutely astounding! I repeat for emphasis: Incredible!!

Sir Robert Anderson factored in leap years and the 24 days from March 14th to April 6th. Some mathematicians/scholars determined that Anderson was two days off or so; but whether they’re right or Sir Robert was right, doesn’t matter all that much. The fact is: to calculate within two days, or two weeks, or two months, or even two years is remarkable. When you’re talking about 483 years, even a gap of two years still gives significant validation to the prophecy. Meaning that it’s not the God-given prophecy that’s a little off; rather, it might just be a slight miscalculation of what is a complex system of balancing two calendars over such a long period of time.

*Note: The well-known 70^th week is the seven years (Great Tribulation) of Daniel’s astounding prophecy. However, because it is part of that two-phase (total of) 490 years, I have not included it as a separate time-specified prophecy in today’s article.

You may also want to refer to Eye of Prophecy articles, The Most Panoramic Prophecy in the Bible, Part I & Part II (published 1-13 & 1-20-18). The prophecies found in Daniel 9:24-27 are discussed in detail, broken down into seven categorical events:

(1) The Seventy Weeks of Daniel; (2) Sixty-Nine Weeks to Messiah’s Arrival on Earth; (3) Messiah’s Death; (4) Soon After Messiah’s Death, a Ruler (Antichrist) Would Arise; (5) The Armies (Roman Legions) That Destroyed the 2^nd Temple Belonged to Nero Caesar; (6) Antichrist’s (the ruler) Seven-Year Treaty with Israel; (7) Antichrist Final Fate Sealed At the End of the Tribulation

(8) Resurrection of Messiah Jesus: In Three Days

Now, let’s look at the final prophecy that includes a specific time-lapse fulfillment. The length of time is known by virtually the whole world; however, many (even including some believers!) don’t know or have forgotten that Jesus, himself, predicted his death and his resurrection. And the precise length of time between the two!

Prophecy: “…He said to them, ‘The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of his enemies. He will be killed, but three days later he will rise from the dead’” (Mark 9:31).

Not once, not twice, but three times Jesus foretold his death and then his resurrection in three days. Not only that he would be betrayed into the hands of his enemies, but who would betray him … one of his own disciples—Judas Iscariot.

Not only that he would be killed, but by whom and what would happen before he was crucified.

“Listen, he said, we’re going up to Jerusalem, where the Son of Man will be betrayed to the leading priests and the teachers of religious law. They will sentence him to die and hand him over to the Romans. They will mock him, spit on him, flog him with a whip, and kill him, but after three days he will rise again” (Mark 10:33-34).

Jesus also prophesied (indirectly) of his death and resurrection to the Jewish religious leaders. However, because he knew they wouldn’t believe him or in him, Jesus used analogies: (A) The sign of Jonah—three days/nights in the belly of the great fish; (B) The Temple: if (when) torn down, he would rebuild it in three days—speaking of his death and bodily resurrection from the dead.

Just a few hours before he was falsely arrested, illegally tried, unjustly sentenced, mercilessly beaten, and cruelly nailed to the cross, Jesus explicitly explained the purpose for his suffering, death, and resurrection. None other than implementation of the New Covenant promised by God, his Father, through the prophet Jeremiah (Chapter 31).

After breaking bread with his disciples and comparing the bread to his broken body on the cross, we read what Jesus said next:

Fulfillment: “But very early on Sunday morning, the women went to the tomb… They found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. So they went in, but they didn’t find the body of the Lord Jesus. As they stood there puzzled, two men suddenly appeared to them, clothed in dazzling robes….

“Then the men asked, ‘Why are looking among the dead for someone who is alive? He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead! Remember what he told you back in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be betrayed into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, and that he would rise again on the third day’” (Luke 24:1-7).

There’s absolutely no way that a mere man could have known for sure (or at all) that he would be arrested, tried, and put to death; let alone all the particulars of what many call the Passion of The Christ. Do you know of any other person in history who not only foretold the details of his death, but confidently claimed that he would rise from the dead? And when! And did!

I’ll give you hint. There aren’t any. But you knew that!

Things to Ponder

The resurrection of Messiah Jesus is the crowning achievement of Biblical prophecy and is also the mightiest miracle of all. It is: Extra extraordinary!

“…For the essence of prophecy is to give a clear witness for Jesus” (Revelation 19:10b). That’s because Jesus IS the essence of prophecy.

Said the Apostle Peter after healing a crippled man: “…Do you want to know how he was healed? Let me clearly state to all of you and to all the people of Israel that he was healed by the powerful name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, the man you crucified but whom God raised from the dead. For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures where it says, ‘The stone that you builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’

“There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:9-12).

“…Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said” (I Corinthians 15:3-4).

All subsequent prophecies in the New Testament, including the book of Revelation, focus on Messiah Jesus. Especially his magnificent return—preceded seven years by the Rapture and the subsequent Great Tribulation—to set things right in this wrong, weary, and wicked world of ours.

“…All glory to him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by shedding his blood for us. He has made us a Kingdom of priests for God his Father. All glory and power to him forever and ever! Amen.

“Look! He comes with the clouds of heaven. And everyone will see him—even those who pierced him. And all the nations of the world will mourn for him. Yes! Amen!” (Revelation 1:5-7).

Jesus is Risen!

 

No religions, nor their gods, nor their religious writings can hold a candle to the Triune God and His Word as contained in the Book of all books … the Bible.

In it is found the creation of the universe and all life, the origin of sin, and God’s remarkable plan of redemption for humanity through the Jewish Messiah, Jesus. And much more; such as the very purpose for our existence.

Questions asked and answered in the Holy Bible: Who and what we are … saved or unsaved? Why we are here … to live for God or for the world? Where we will spend eternity … heaven or hell?

There are many reasons (two in particular) that elevate the Word of God light-years beyond all religious and philosophical systems and scripts. In italics for sheer emphasis:

(1) The Bible contains not just one or two, but hundreds of fulfilled prophecies and dozens more awaiting fulfillment. (2) Multiple miracles to further prove that the God of the Bible is the only true and living God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Man-made religions and their leaders dare not boast of prophecies and miracles. Why? The answer is exceptionally easy and profoundly plain: Because they can’t prophecy with even 10% achievement, let alone 100% accuracy as does the Bible. Neither their gods nor their prophets have performed miracles anything like what is found in Scripture. Or really anything at all.

God the Father and God the Son (Messiah Jesus) point to divine prophecies and miracles as the acid test of Biblical accuracy and reliability. Essentially, the Lord is telling the world: If you don’t (want to) believe what I say, then look at the historical record of what I’ve done through miracles and fulfilled prophecy.

God issues a challenge to the prophets, religious leaders, idols (gods) of all the religions of the world:

“Present the case for your idols, says the Lord. Let them show what they can do, says the King of Israel. Let them try to tell us what happened long ago so that we may consider the evidence. Or let them tell us what the future holds, so we can know what’s going to happen. Yes, tell us what will occur in the days ahead. Then we will know you are gods. In fact, do anything—good or bad! Do something that will amaze and frighten us. But no! You are less than nothing and can do nothing at all. Those who choose you pollute themselves” (Isaiah 41:21-24).

*Note: The Lord even gives these (bogus) prophets, psychics, and idols (gods) some leeway by daring them to predict what would happen just days ahead. In contrast to the Lord’s prophecies that came to pass days, but also weeks, months, years, decades, centuries, and even millennia later!

In like manner, Messiah Jesus said: “Don’t believe me unless I carry out my Father’s work. But if I do his work, believe in the evidence of the miraculous works I have done, even if you don’t believe me. Then you will know and understand that the Father is in me, and I am in the Father” (John 10:37-38).

By the time Jesus made this statement, he had already performed numerous miracles. Shortly thereafter, he raised Lazarus from the dead in front of many witnesses! That miracle alone was proof positive that Jesus is who he said he was: Messiah, the Son of God. Despite the indisputable evidence of seeing for themselves or receiving first-hand accounts from others, many (including most of the religious leaders) still would not believe in him. Not even after Jesus, himself, arose from the dead!

See Eye of Prophecy article: There’s Resurrection; And There’s Resurrection! (Posted 3-19-16).

Eight Extraordinary Prophecies with A Specified Time of Fulfillment

Extraordinary: “Going beyond what is usual, regular, or customary; exceptional to a very marked extent…” (Webster’s Dictionary). Somewhere along the way, extra ordinary became a single word.

Synonyms: remarkable, amazing, wonderful, exceptional, surprising, uncommon, special.

By very definition, all Biblical prophecies are extraordinary.

Putting it another way: There is no such thing as an ordinary Biblical prophecy. Each prophecy is a miracle in and of itself when it comes to pass. Such as the prophetic rebirth of Israel against any and all (natural or ordinary) odds. No nation or virtually extinct language has ever been restored like the State of Israel and its national language, Hebrew.

Can, then, Biblical prophecies be pondered as ordinary? After a fashion, yes. But only because there are so many of them! Thus, even though Bible prophecies are exceptional (only God could do this), by sheer number they are or become usual, regular, and even customary.

I fully realize: To call or even consider some miracles or prophecies in Scripture extraordinary is to relegate others to the status of ordinary. That, to do so, would be mostly a matter of subjective selection of some as more uncommon than others. Meaning that we all probably have our favorites. Like, perhaps, the miracle of the sun standing still for Joshua and the armies of Israel. Or the prophecy/miracle that Messiah would be born of a Virgin.

Or (for personal reasons) my favorite miracle of Jesus: the feeding with only a handful of bread/fish of the five thousand men and then four thousand men … plus woman and children present at both spectacular events. With twelve baskets leftover in the first miracle—representing the twelve Jewish disciples, as that miracle was done in Israel. And seven baskets left over after the second feeding—representing God’s divine number for the whole world, as that miracle was accomplished in Gentile territory.

(With five loaves and two fish, Jesus did this!)

All prophecies (or miracles) are astonishing, but some seem a bit more special (uncommon) because they demonstrate and confirm even more the absolute sovereignty and incomparable power of our God. For me, they are the prophecies in which an actual time period is identified, later confirmed by either calendar dates or the predicted interval of a set time.

As already inferred: concerning the dynamics of Biblical eschatology, there’s no such thing as an ordinary prophecy. But if there were, then the eight prophecies examined in this week’s and next week’s article might very well be considered extra ordinary.

Regarding the hundreds of Biblical prophecies, there are only a few time-capsule forecasts involving specific dates or duration of fulfillment. Which, in that context of comparison, makes these prophecies unique. Although there are more than eight prophecies that specify a set period, the eight that we will look at are major events that apply comprehensively to Israel and/or the world at large. They are integral components of God’s magnificent plans for and interaction with his chosen people, the Jews; his special possession, Israel; and for all other peoples (Gentiles).

They will be presented in chronological order of when the prophecy was made.

All but one has been covered to some extent or another in a few prior Eye of Prophecy articles. The one not discussed until now was one that the Lord provided discernment as to its time-related application and meaning only recently. I’ll identify it as such when we get there.

So, buckle up your prophetic seat belts and enjoy this (dare I say) extraordinary journey; with each milepost prophecy along the way marked with the expected time of arrival. As your tour-guide, I’m obligated to offer some relevant commentary on the sights!

(1) The Great Flood: Forty Days/Nights

God advised Noah that he would destroy the entire earth and all living things some 120 years before it happened … length of time for Noah to build the ark. After Noah finished the ark, the Lord specifically told Noah when the rains would begin and how long they would last.

Prophecy: “Seven days from now I will make the rains pour down on the earth. And it will rain for forty days and forty nights, until I have wiped from the earth all the living things I have created” (Genesis 7:4).

Fulfillment: “After seven days, the waters of the flood came and covered the earth. When Noah was 600 years old, on the seventeenth day of the second month, all the underground waters erupted from the earth, and the rain fell in mighty torrents from the sky. The rain continued to fall for forty days and forty nights” (Genesis 7:10-12, italics for emphasis. Assuming the day the rains began matches up with the Hebrew calendar later given by God to Israel, the flood would have begun sometime in April or May of our Gregorian calendar).

The Bible is one Book composed of 66 separate books that declare God’s attributes, plans, and truth. Yet, it is also a history book that contains extraordinary details regarding people, places, events, numbers, and times; unlike and/or far surpassing other (so-called) sacred writings. The Genesis account of the Great Flood specifies on what day the rains began, how long they lasted, how many days the water receded until the ark came to rest on Mount Ararat, and how much time elapsed until Noah and his family left the ark.

To me, that is EXTRAORDINARY.

(Truly, a global flood. Again, displaying the amazing details of Scripture, we read: “Finally the water covered even the highest mountains on the earth, rising more than twenty-two feet above the highest peaks” (Genesis 7:19-20).

(2) Israelites Under Egyptian Bondage: Four Hundred Years

Prophecy: “Then the Lord said to Abram, ‘You can be sure that your descendants will be strangers in a foreign land, where they will be oppressed as slaves for 400 years. But I will punish the nation that enslaves them, and in the end they will come away with great wealth’” (Genesis 15:13-14).

Fulfillment: At the end of ten miraculous powerful plagues that devastated Egypt, especially the final judgment (firstborn son of all Egyptians killed), we read: “The Lord caused the Egyptians to look favorably on the Israelites, and they gave the Israelites whatever they asked for. So they stripped the Egyptians of their wealth!” (Exodus 12:36).

The Exodus (including Passover)! An astounding event that all Jews, nearly all Christians, and even millions of unbelievers know of.

Then we read: “The people of Israel had lived in Egypt for 430 years. In fact, it was the last day of the 430^th year that all the Lord’s forces left the land” (Exodus 12:40-41).

Please refer to Eye of Prophecy article: Countdown to Armageddon … End of the Fourth 400-Year Era (Posted 7-29-17). Which begins with a review of the significance of the number four in Scripture, then the multiples of four—forty and four hundred as relates to pivotal Biblical time-frames of history.

Regarding the 430 years contrasted to the 400 years foretold by the Lord, here is an excerpt from that article (in italics):

God’s prophecies always come true. Although it would take another 30 years or so to prepare Moses and the people (including the time of the plagues and actual deliverance), the fact remains that it was 400 years from the peak time that Jacob’s and Joseph’s descendants prospered in Egypt to when God called Moses to deliver his people.

Although not a prophecy in terms of time, there was a subsequent period known as the 400 silent years, in which God did not speak to his people, i.e. between Old Testament and New Testament times. *Note: Did you know (most don’t) that the Lord did warn Israel of this time—which turned out to be 400 years—when he would be silent toward Israel?

Read with me:

“The time is surely coming, says the Sovereign Lord, when I will send a famine on the land—not a famine of bread or water but of hearing the words of the Lord. People will stagger from sea to sea and wander from border to border searching for the word of the Lord, but they will not find it” (Amos 8:11-12).

The last prophet of that time was Malachi whose book was written approximately 430 B.C.—an additional 30 years of preparation for another deliverer to come to Israel … Messiah Jesus. The same time frame as the 430 years to the Exodus, led by Moses.

For identification and analysis of the other two 400-year periods, you’ll need to read the above listed Eye of Prophecy article.

(3) Wandering in the Wilderness: Forty Years

Prophecy: “Because your men explored the land for forty days, you must wander in the wilderness for forty years—a year for each day, suffering the consequences of your sins. Then you will discover what it is like to have me for an enemy” (Numbers 14:34).

Fulfillment: “Normally it takes only eleven days to travel from Mount Sinai to Kadesh-barnea, going by way of Mount Seir. But forty years after the Israelites left Egypt, on the first day of the eleventh month (January or February), Moses addressed the people of Israel, telling them everything the Lord had commanded him to say” (Deuteronomy 1:2-3, parenthesis mine).

The Book of Deuteronomy is a condensed summary of Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers. After Moses died, the triumphant entrance of God’s chosen people into the Promised Land began at Jericho under Joshua’s leadership.

Although it was closer to 38 ½ years from the time the Lord penalized his people to the time they finally arrived at the threshold of the Promised Land (again), the Lord gave them credit for their time spent in the wilderness between the Exodus and their refusal to enter the Promised Land the first time. It would be like giving a convicted criminal credit for time served prior to his sentencing.

You remember: The Israelite spies, one from each of the twelve tribes, spent 40 days in the Promised Land scouting out its inhabitants and abundance. Ten of the twelve gave the people an unwarranted pessimistic report that their enemies would be too strong for them. Only Joshua and Caleb were confident that the Lord would help them defeat the Canaanites. The ultimate sin of the people was refusing to trust the Lord—despite the multiple miracles God had performed before, during, and after the Exodus.

This was the third time in which the number 40 bore great significance. It was and would be representative of a period of trial, testing, and (most of all) preparation for something better to come. The second time-frame of forty (days) occurred when Moses received the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai. Later, Elijah would spend 40 days/nights fleeing from Ahab and Jezebel on his way to Mount Sinai. And, of course, Jesus sojourned in the wilderness for 40 days/nights preparing for his magnificent ministry on earth.

(4) Seven x Seven x Seven x Seven: 2,483 Years!

Prophecy: “However, if you do not listen to me or obey all these commands, and if you break my covenant by rejecting my decrees, treating my regulations with contempt, and refusing to obey my commands, I will punish you. I will bring sudden terrors upon you…” (Leviticus 26:14-16a).

Moses continues with God’s prophetic warning: “And if, in spite of all this, you still disobey me, I will punish you seven times over for your sins” (Leviticus 26:18).

Seven times over is the verdict three more times, with the degree of punishment increasing in each set of sevens. With description of the fourth and final set the most lengthy and severe.

“If in spite of all this you still refuse to listen and still remain hostile toward me, then I will give full vent to my hostility. I myself will punish you seven times over for your sins” (Verses 27-28).

God’s punishment of his people would culminate in the harshest and most unfathomable fate imaginable to Israel: “Yes, I myself will devastate your land, and your enemies who come to occupy it will be appalled at what they see. I will scatter you among the nations and bring out my sword against you. Your land will become desolate, and your cities will lie in ruins. Then at last the land will enjoy its neglected Sabbath years…” (Leviticus 26:32-34a).

Fulfillment: This uninterrupted punishment (essentially that of God withdrawing his protection of Israel) finally ended with the stunning Israeli victory in the June 1967 Six-Day War. Jerusalem was reclaimed, as was all Jewish land not under Israeli jurisdiction at the time, i.e. Gaza Strip, Judea/Samaria, Sinai Peninsula, and the Golan Heights.

Unfortunately (except for the Golan Heights), the entire Gaza Strip, most of Judea/Samaria including much of the eastern part of Jerusalem, and the Sinai Peninsula were returned to Jordanian, Palestinian, or Egyptian administrative control. But that will soon change when all the Promised Land is restored to God’s people; to include the foreigners living there … those who acknowledge Israel’s statehood sovereignty and the God of Israel.

Following the Babylonian captivity, only a relatively small proportion of Jews returned to Israel, first under Zerubbabel, then Ezra. Sadly, the spiritual revival of the people didn’t last long, despite the rebuilt Temple or when the walls of Jerusalem were restored under Nehemiah’s leadership a few decades later.

However, God’s presence (Shekinah glory) never returned to the rebuilt Temple, Israel had no more kings, and for four hundred years no prophets chosen by the Lord. The Jews were directly or indirectly ruled by the Persians, the Greeks, and finally the Romans. Many were still in exile and there was no significant interruption of foreign nations’ dominance of Israel—excepting the brief time of the Maccabees.

(Depiction of God’s Shekinah glory beginning to leave Solomon’s Tempe. Ezekiel 10:22-23)

Things got worse, culminating in the greatest calamity of that time—Roman conquest of Israel, complete obliteration of the 2^nd Temple, ruthless slaughter of nearly one million Jews, and dispersion of most surviving Jews to the four corners of the earth. Only to be exceeded by an even greater tragedy—the unthinkable Holocaust during World War II.

Although the seven times over (four times successively) prophecy in Leviticus doesn’t identify days or years as such, it is nonetheless a time-dedicated forecast of exactly how long Israel would remain under Gentile domination, to complete the Lord’s discipline of his people and nation. In October 2006, when the Lord focused my attention on this unusual (unique, because it’s in the book of Leviticus), prophecy—for that’s exactly what it is—I proceeded to do the math of seven times seven (four times) … translated into years! Where the calculation led me was nothing short of stunning.

After inception of the Eye of Prophecy website, I consolidated this amazing prophecy and its fulfillment in a trilogy of articles, Seven Times Seven (to the 4^th power), posted 1-25, 2-1, & 2-8-14. Providing detailed analysis of Leviticus Chapter 26 in conjunction with the lapse of time beginning with the rebuilt Temple in 516 B.C. … the official end of the Babylonian captivity. You may want to read those articles; also, the one that follows … The Omega Generation (posted 2-15-14).

I later realized that the Lord’s disclosure of the meaning or application of this phenomenal hidden gem of prophecy was in the same vein of what Sir Robert Anderson had “discovered” (discernment from the Lord applicable to Daniel 9:25-26) and later published in his book, The Coming Prince (1894).

Anderson’s insight related to the prophesied time parameters of the first Advent of Messiah which resulted in Israel’s rejection of Jesus as the Messiah. Whereas, the Seven Times Over prophetic paradigm pertains to the physical return of the Jews to Israel—specifically the (time dedicated) end of Gentile dominance of the Jews in preparation for the Second Coming of Messiah Jesus.

I’m not comparing myself to Sir Robert Anderson, especially concerning the widespread impact of his discernment and subsequent book compared to the (relatively limited) public awareness of the Seven times over prophecy. Except, perhaps, for one parallel: Until later in life both of us were professional investigators. Sir Robert as a Scotland Yard detective. Myself as an insurance investigator, after retiring from the claims department of a major insurance company and starting my own business in 1995—Integrity Claim Service, ending in 2012.

Here is an excerpt from the beginning of the first Seven Times Seven article, Part I (in italics).

Who would ever imagine that the Old Testament Book of Leviticus would be the source of any of God’s prophecies let alone a prediction that is incredibly precise by virtue of a continuous “seven times over” chronological cycle that has a specific beginning and ending date? Leviticus is a book of the Mosaic Law that recorded God’s decrees, regulations, and commands to Israel; regarding (universal) moral standards, national ceremonial laws, atoning sacrifices, and celebratory annual festivals. Prophetic things are normally found in the books written by Jewish Prophets, e.g. Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, some of the Psalms, and more. But Leviticus?

…First, let’s examine the text to establish two important premises: (1) God’s specific instructions and conditions to Israel were, in fact, prophetic (both as a promise and warning); (2) the real-life and real-time fulfillment of the conditional promises/warnings occurred during a specified period of Israel’s history that is also an integral part of world history.

After explaining from the text of Leviticus 26 and other Scriptural examples or principles that the seven times over (four successive periods) is NOT referring to the severity of God’s punishment of Israel, I wrote:

With that in mind, there is an even stronger and more compelling reason that the seven-times over doesn’t apply to or represent in any way the severity factor or degree of punishment. If you read the passage carefully, here’s what you will find: Each time (phase’s one through four) that God identifies the punishment to be experienced by Israel, the punishments themselves ARE more severe. In other words, the severity factor is built-in to each of the four phases of discipline, as they become progressively more severe, one through four. With, by far, the most severe that of being completely conquered, destroyed, and exiled to other countries by their conquerors in the fourth set of the seven times over punishments. With the corresponding result that there would be absolutely no purpose or reason for the Lord to metaphorically describe the successive phases of punishments in terms of seven-times over. Because the text is very clear that each discipline, in and of itself, becomes progressively worse.

So what does the seven times paradigm represent or mean? Then it came to me; that is the Lord showed it to me. The express purpose for seven times over pertains to one and only one element: TIME. (As in chronological years of history).

Then the following excerpts from Part II of the Seven Times Seven Trilogy:

Because the people didn’t by any stretch of the imagination continually seek the Lord when they journeyed back to Israel (referring to the Babylonian captivity) the seven times over paradigm began again. This time it would be continuous, leading all the way to and through the greatest horror of all … the Holocaust of the 20th century. There would be no stoppage of the increments of punishment until all four phases had run their course. In fact, the seven times syndrome contained a mathematically measured built-in period of time, with a beginning and an end.

Leading to the fascinating conclusion based on Israel’s history into the 20^th century.

And, so the seven times over sequence had begun again. This time the prophetic march of time relentlessly continued unabated and uninterrupted. If, however, the seven times over to the 4th power represents a measurable period, then it must come to an end. That’s what occurred to me that night in October 2006. Although I didn’t know where it would lead me (what year in history), I realized that God was telling Moses and the people that the seven times seven model necessitated and would, in fact, unfold according to an exact prophetic timeline. Moreover, the formula was built into the prophecy: 7 x 7 x 7 x 7. When this prophetic paradigm reached its measurable deadline, Israel’s punishment would also reach its predetermined limit; and they would no longer be under Gentile domination!

A Phenomenal Finding (Let’s do the Math)!

Calculations: 7 x 7 x 7 x 7 equals 2,401 (years). Remember the premise: This prophecy is a specific time-lapse utilization of sevens that can be measured in years, in a very similar manner to the Daniel Chapter 9 prophecy. We must now convert the 2,401 years to Jewish years.

Roman to Jewish calendar: 2,401 years x 365 Roman calendar days = 876,365 days. Dividing 876,365 by 360 Jewish calendar days = 2,434 years Jewish years. (We’re rounding this off, because we’re only interested in the year, unlike the exact day(s) of the Daniel prophecy).

Jubilee Years: Again, we need to remember that the ultimate criteria that God used to preclude or preempt any excuses or rationalization of the people was the Sabbatical rest of the land. But we also need to include all Jubilee years, which was a 50-year cycle of freedom from debt, servitude, and resting the land from crop planting. Because of space/time restraints, I didn’t cover this, but it can be found in Leviticus Chapter 25. Because the Israelites also failed to keep the Jubilee requirements, this would be a central part of God’s formula for discipline.

So, we divide 2,434 Jewish years by 50 and we get 49 (rounded off) Jubilee years….

We add 2,434 years + 49 (Jubilee) years. The sum of these two: 2,483 (years).

The Astonishing Result: 2,483 years minus 516 BC (we must subtract BC years from the total) leads us to the year: 1967! Or 1,967 years AD plus 516 years BC is a total of 2,483 years.

In Part III of the Seven Times Seven trilogy, I discussed the 1967 War; but also provided more validation of the Seven Times Seven paradigm by doing the math on the third set of sevens (7 x 7 x 7), converting Jewish years to the Gregorian calendar. Which leads precisely to 168-167 B.C. when Antiochus IV Epiphanes conquered Israel. Yet, as horrible as that time was for the Jews, it didn’t lead to expulsion of the Jews from Israel. That wouldn’t happen until Phase 4 of the seven times over punishment was underway which included the Roman sack of Jerusalem in A.D. 70, resulting in exile of the Jews—the core of the 4^th seven times over discipline.

What happened to the Jews at the hands of Antiochus IV is exactly what Phase 3 of the Seven times over punishment calls for in Leviticus. To wit: “I will send armies against you to carry out the curse of the covenant you have broken … you will handed over to your enemies. I will destroy your food supply…” (Leviticus 26:25-26).

Between the Babylonian conquest of Judah and Antiochus IV invasion, no armies had marched against Israel. Nor were the Jews “handed over to their enemies” until that time.

Once again, an amazing association of historical events/years to the seven times seven prophecy.

Things to Ponder

Although all the Lord’s prophecies (promises) are powerful and profound, those that contain actual years from prediction to fulfillment are extra ordinary … extraordinary!

In fact, extraordinary doesn’t completely capture or characterize them. I chose that word for the reasons given earlier in this article, i.e. the comparison between ordinary and extra ordinary. All Biblical prophecies (and miracles) are anything but ordinary. In fact, they are stunning, staggering, and spectacular. The time-dedicated prophecies are an extra special demonstration of God’s omnipotence and omniscience—knowing and declaring the end from the beginning.

Says God the Father to all who doubt who he is and what he can do: “Consult together, argue your case. Get together and decide what to say. Who made these things known so long ago? What idol ever told you they would happen? Was it not I, the Lord? For there is no other God but me, a righteous God and Savior. There is none but me. Let all the world look to me for salvation! For I am God; there is no other” (Isaiah 45:21-22).

Said, Jesus, the Son of God: “Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me” (John 14:1, NASB).

Also,

Don’t miss next week’s article when the last three of the seven time-dedicated prophecies will be presented. To include more details of Sir Robert Anderson’s dramatic discernment of Daniel 9:25-26.

Also, an intriguing 430-year parcel of time broken down into 390 years and 40 years found in Ezekiel … the one that I haven’t written about before.

Followed by the eighth prophecy, a time-dedicated prediction found in the New Testament, one that signaled the beginning of the New Covenant.

Puzzling Paradox is an understatement. It is a pendulum swinging so swiftly to either side that it appears to hover in the middle of the 21st Century spotlight. One side of the pendulum is perplexing and pernicious; the other side profound and perceptive.

On the one hand, hundreds of millions mostly from Islamic blocs but also some Western nations continue to harbor and express hostility toward the Jews and Israel. On the other hand, many governments including a few Muslim regimes have recently extended olive branches to Israel in abrupt U-turn fashion.

Hardly a day goes by without some media reference to what politicians, military personnel, sport and entertainment celebrities, socioeconomic pundits, and common citizens the world over are saying about Israel … good or bad.

But that’s exactly what the Bible predicted long ago. In the end times, focus on Israel will be contentious and continuous.

The following is an excerpt from Eye of Prophecy article: Global Obsession with Jerusalem … In Biblical Proportions! Posted 1-6-18. *Note: Not until I elected to refer to that article in this week’s post, did I realize that it, too, was the first article of the year. I suppose it’s fitting to cite it in the opening article of a brand-new year—2019.

Happy New Year!

As follows (in italics):

As the first Eye of Prophecy article for a new year, there is no more fitting topic than the world’s fanatical focus on the tiny state of Israel, smaller in population than many cities on earth. It is political, racial, religious, and social OCD (Obsessive/Compulsive Disorder) on steroids and on a truly global scale. Since her rebirth as a sovereign state in 1948, no nation on earth has received more world-wide attention as has Israel. It is mind-boggling. We only need to look at the United Nations—to which virtually every nation on earth belongs— to confirm that this obsession is not an exaggeration.

Among other matters, that post commented on the relentless UN resolutions against Israel. Continuing:

No matter the ideology—whether eastern mysticism or western pragmatism, whether religious or non-religious, whether political or apolitical—there is a convergence of world opinion that something must be done about Israel … good, bad, or somewhere in between. Nations are taking sides for or (mostly) against Israel with such a powerful polarity that they will not allow Israel to determine her own destiny.

…This ambivalent, puzzling disposition of nations toward Israel is exactly what Scripture said would happen, especially when the Gog/Magog coalition invades Israel. This massive campaign led by Russia, Iran, and Turkey (all three of which have a military presence in Syria right next door to Israel) will occur not long after the Rapture.

Concerning Israel: even before 2018 there had been a remarkable diplomatic shift of several nations from animosity to amiability, but it has accelerated rapidly during the past year. This administrative friendliness toward Israel is mostly superficial and self-serving; nonetheless, it is a dramatic departure from prior demonizing and delegitimizing of Israel. At the same time, many people of those nations continue to denigrate Israel and Jews outside of Israel.

Let’s look at a recent incident that reflects this baffling fluctuation towards Israel, i.e. antagonistic personal attitudes vs. favorable governmental dispositions.

Stepping on the Israeli Flag

This past Sunday, officials of Israel’s Embassy in Jordan filed a protest over Jordan’s Information Minister Jumana Ghuneimat deliberately stepping on Israel’s Star of David Flag, which occurred on 12-27-18. The flag had been painted on the threshold to Jordan’s Trade Union building, along with foot prints designed to entice (test) employees and visitors. Would they deliberately follow the foot-prints or walk around the flag?

The incident was initially reported by the Associated Press. According to a subsequent article posted on the United with Israel website: “Jordan Prime Minister Omar Razzaz reportedly knew about the flag and the controversy it might generate and entered the building using a side door.”

But not Information Minister Ghuneimat; with the clear connotation that she intentionally defaced the flag which obviously shouldn’t have been painted on the floor in the first place.

The article also quoted Jordan’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Majed Qatarneh’s response to the Israeli complaint: “The Israeli side was informed that the building is a private one and the minister (Ghuneimat) entered it from a main entrance for an official meeting. We have emphasized that we respect the peace treaty with Israel.”

The article also states, “Ghuneimat was lauded on social media in Arabic as a hero.”

In the greater context of problems that plague the Middle East and the fact that this incident garnered little international attention, many might say: “What’s the big deal? Doesn’t this incident pale in comparison to everything else going on in Israel and the Middle East?” Such as the incessant Palestinian attacks against Israelis, that recently intensified as detailed in last week’s Eye of Prophecy article: Palestinian Terrorism & UN Resolutions / Neither Will Defeat Israel.

First: Only two Arab/Muslim nations have a treaty in place with Israel which includes recognition of Israel; those two nations are Egypt and Jordan. No other Muslim nation officially acknowledges Israel as a sovereign state. And many non-Muslim nations barely tolerate Israel’s existence.

Second: Without Israel’s next-door presence and assistance, Jordan would be less successful economically and much less secure militarily against some Muslim countries at odds with Jordan, such as Iran. Israel’s strong objection to the desecration of the Israeli flag by a Jordanian official is a reminder that Israel has done as much or more for Jordan than any other nation, even though Jordan was once an avowed enemy of Israel.

In the context of this week’s article, our focus is on the opposite reactions between most Jordanians and Jordan’s government; indicative of what’s happening all over the world, particularly in the Middle East.

Jordanian government officials placated Israel with assurance that they still, “respect the peace treaty with Israel.” Which, if you think about it, is (oddly) a disproportionate response than would otherwise be expected to a relatively isolated—perhaps even innocuous—incident.

On the other hand, Jordanians and Palestinians in Jordan widely voiced their personal approval of this government official’s deliberate affront to Israel. Thus, there was a strong contrast between Jordan’s political posture of respecting Israel and Jordan’s personal (social) preference of degrading Israel.

In nearly every Islamic country that has a 50%+ Muslim population majority (52 such nations) and in many non-Islamic nations, the greater populace despises Jews and loathes Israel. With major media sources like The New York Times skewing Israel’s image in favor of Muslim narratives. This in stark contrast to:

Israel’s Diplomatic Advances

Due largely to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s initiative and diplomatic skills, Israel has recently experienced remarkable success in international relations, especially in 2018—via personal meetings between Netanyahu and heads of state all over the globe.

Prime Minister Netanyahu most recently met with Brazil’s President-Elect Jair Bolsonaro, who had promised that Brazil’s embassy in Tel Aviv would be moved to Jerusalem. As had Guatemala’s Prime Minister earlier in 2018 in support of US President Trump’s accelerated relocation of the US Embassy to Jerusalem on May 14^th, 2018—to coincide with Israel’s 70^th statehood anniversary. Israel is in discussion with several other countries regarding the move of their embassies to Jerusalem. One of them has pledged such a move—Honduras.

(Benjamin Netanyahu With Jair Bolsonaro–to the right)

Brazil’s newly elected President expressed his and his government’s about face view of Israel: “I will move the embassy to Jerusalem. It’s not a question of if, just a question of when.”

Brazil is the 5^th largest country in the world.

Primarily through Netanyahu’s efforts, Israel also has established political and economic interaction with several Eastern European countries and strengthened previous ties with prominent Western European countries such as Great Britain, France, Germany, and Italy. He has met with Prime Ministers and Presidents of African nations some of which are predominately Muslim, and not that long ago traveled to the Gulf State nation of Oman and met with Sultan Qaboos Bin Said. And with leaders of India, China, and Japan.

There is a strong rumor that he may also touch base with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. It’s no secret that Saudi Arabia’s Islamic government is (unofficially for now) courting Israel’s favor, as both countries consider Iran as their main enemy.

As much or more than any Israeli, Prime Minister Netanyahu was responsible for the recent completion of the Israel-Italy-Greece-Cypress deal that will undertake a massive engineering project to build a sub-ocean pipeline from Israel’s huge natural gas deposits in the Mediterranean Sea to the coastal mainline of these countries. (See Eye of Prophecy article: Gog, Magog and Leviathan, posted 1-3-15; regarding these huge natural gas deposits in Israeli waters coveted by Russia).

(Named “Leviathan”; One of four natural gas rigs off the coast of Israel)

In summary, I’ll quote US Ambassador to Israel, David Friedman: “The world now sees Israel through a new lens. Diplomatic and strategic relationships that were unthinkable a decade ago are emerging in Africa, Asia, the Middle East and South America.” (I would also add Central America and Eastern Europe to that list).

For the most part, the world referred to by Ambassador Friedman consists of governments and their leaders who, for various reasons, see Israel in a different light. But not necessarily many of their people.

Administrations of successful nations (success loosely defined as varying degrees of freedom and a relative level of prosperity) are attracted to other thriving nations. Former adversaries have begun to recognize Israel’s startling advancements in technology, agriculture, medicine, and communication. In 2018 Israel realized a record $110 billion in exports. A nation that, despite seemingly endless turmoil with its non-citizen Palestinian residents, saw the largest increase in tourism during 2018 and another 30,000 Jews immigrating to Israel—mostly from Russia (10,500) and even from the United States and Canada (3,550).

Since Israel’s statehood in 1948, some 3.5 million Jews have made Aliyah, 42% of the Jewish population in Israel.

Said Jewish Agency Chairman Isaac Herzog: “Every Jew who comes to Israel and establishes a home here completes another piece of the wonderful mosaic of the Jewish people in their historic homeland.”

This vacillation between growing governmental favoritism toward Israel and a large part of their populace still denigrating Israel and Jews in general (antisemitism) is both bewildering and unprecedented. Nevertheless, it is precisely as Scripture characterizes the time just before the seven-year treaty between Antichrist (Nero) and Israel, followed shortly by the Gog/Magog invasion of Israel. Both events will take place soon after the Rapture, which means that what’s happening regarding Israel’s newfound status in the world is yet another sign that the last days are upon us.

However, there are a handful of nations whose current hostility toward Israel encompasses both their people and their government. Of those countries, the most prominent are Iran and Turkey—two main members of the soon to come Gog/Magog coalition.

The Astonishing Return of a Roman Emperor Who Will Orchestrate a Stunning Treaty

Very soon after the Rapture, Antichrist (Nero) will reappear to the amazement of those left behind. I have written extensively about this in my second book, Out of the Abyss and most Eye of Prophecy articles in the category of Antichrist. According to Daniel 9:27, the Antichrist will orchestrate a seven-year peace treaty between Israel and her enemies. This treaty will be almost as astounding as Nero’s return from the grave (Abyss). It will be an agreement that the entire world sought after but couldn’t achieve just a short time before.

I’m convinced that even President Trump’s “deal of the century” (whenever his staff reveals it, as it has again been delayed due to early Israeli elections to be held April 9, 2019) between Israel and the Palestinians will fail. It will be rejected by one or both sides; if accepted, it will fall apart soon thereafter. Scripture is clear that it will be Antichrist who arranges this (seven-year) treaty; albeit it one that Nero himself will break.

There are two main reasons why Nero will accomplish what no one else has.

First Reason: The return of a man from a 2,000-year old grave (actually from the Abyss) will generate instant awe and adulation from billions. While simultaneously diverting their attention from the post-Rapture chaos over the departure of hundreds of millions from the planet and focusing on (what to the world will be) a god-like man to whom they will listen and yield their allegiance.

“The beast you saw was once alive but isn’t now. And yet he will soon (abruptly) come up out of the bottomless pit and go to eternal destruction. And the people who belong to this world … will be amazed at the reappearance of this beast who had died” (Revelation 17:8).

*The Antichrist beast had already lived and died before John wrote the book of Revelation!

While some are still processing the incredible return of a Roman Emperor—trying to decide if he’s for real and just how much loyalty to give him—Nero will do what no one has done since King David of old.

Except for those who will see through this Messiah-imposter and not be so amazed by his reappearance (because they knew who he would be ahead of time!), the world-at-large will be dumbfounded by this impossible treaty. If Nero (anyone) could single-handedly bring peace between Jew and Arab (the essence of the treaty) and an unheard-of calm in the Middle East, then peace would be possible throughout the earth. For there could be no greater treaty than between the longest lasting foes known to mankind … Jews and Arabs.

Second Reason: As the theme of this week’s article indicates, there will be a leftover (between pre-Rapture and post-Rapture) global atmosphere of increased cooperation between Israel and several Gentile governments, including some Muslim countries.

Without this reduced (not eliminated) hostility, even a man returning from the grave couldn’t bridge the chasm between Jew and Arab/Muslim. Since Israel’s rebirth as a nation, no one has come close to resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict—let alone a treaty between Israel and multiple Islamic and non-Muslim nations generally unfavorable toward Israel. Because it is so inexplicable and implausible, only the Lord in all his sovereignty could prepare Israel and the nations (then giving temporary authority to Satan and his false messiah) for such a treaty.

Nero was idolized by most Roman citizens during his tenure as Emperor. However, he fell out of favor with the Roman Senate later in his reign (54-68 A.D.) because of his preference for Greek culture and entertainment, instead of his duties as Caesar as well as his excesses … foremost of which was wholesale murder of Christians. Even after his mysterious death and burial, the common people revered him; to the extent that many believed he hadn’t died or would somehow return from the grave to resume the Pax Romana (world peace, Roman style) that Nero promoted. This belief persisted for some 400 years and historically has even been labeled: Nero Redivivus Legend. (Several Eye of Prophecy articles have explained this phenomenon, particularly, The Legendary Return of Nero, posted 4-4-15).

Several historians consider Nero’s greatest geopolitical achievement to be that of negotiating a treaty.

The following is an excerpt from Out of the Abyss … can the number of the beast be solved, 666? (In italics):

Of all things, it was a treaty that Nero engineered between Rome and Parthia that helped endear him to the Roman Senate, the Roman Legions and the Roman citizens. Rome and Parthia had been at war until 63 A.D…. Suffice to say that this peace deal was a substantial victory for Nero, both politically and socially. His popularity increased dramatically….

After the Rapture… Most Arabs and many Jews will be among the left behind. The world will be ripe for conciliation, for unity, for peace, for order. Nero will capitalize on this pandemonium by orchestrating a treaty, one that will allow the Jewish Temple to be built…. I use the word orchestrating, because one of Nero’s talents was that of arranging and synchronizing things, such as a group of people with dissident views or like a musical play, of which he wrote and performed several—in Greek.

And, who in the world is going to argue with a man who returns to the earth after a two-thousand-year absence? With regard to the sack of Jerusalem in 70 A.D., all Nero need say is that the Roman Generals went way too far. He will probably remind tribulation Jews that he died in 68 A.D., two years before the Roman Legions destroyed the Temple. That he had not intended for the Jews to be exiled from Judea or for the Temple to be destroyed…

He will also placate the Arabs, telling them that if there is a god to follow or worship, Allah would be that god. He will remind the Jews and Arabs that his hostility as a Roman Emperor was rightfully and justifiably directed against the Christians—those narrow minded, bigoted, self-righteous hypocrites whose disappearance has done mankind a favor by cleansing the earth of religious intolerance.

If you like, you could come up with any number of lies that a resurrected Nero will fabricate and foist on Israel and the nations. But the bottom line is that untold millions will follow him for the same reason that many have followed Jesus Christ. RESURRECTION FROM THE DEAD (Pages 179-180).

Did you know that Parthia was one of several provinces in the ancient Persian Empire … what is today’s Khorasan region of northeastern Iran? After Cyrus the Great (the same ruler who permitted the Jews to return to Israel and rebuild Solomon’s Temple, just as God said would happen 150 years earlier), defeated the mighty Babylonian Empire and then the Empire of the Medes, who were initially aligned with Persia, Parthia acknowledged him as supreme ruler.

Later Parthia revolted against Persian King Darius I, and subsequently surrendered to Alexander the Great who conquered the Persian Empire. Eventually, Parthia also defied Rome. Overall, this mini-empire lasted from 227 B.C. to 224 A.D.

With exception of the wicked Persian official Haman (whose genocide plot against the Jews was short-lived … see the Book of Esther), by and large, ancient Persia and Parthia were sympathetic toward the Jews. You may also recall that another Persian King, Artaxerxes, allowed his Jewish cup-bearer, Nehemiah, to return to Israel and rebuild Jerusalem’s walls.

Not so with today’s Persia … Iran!

Today’s Persia has vowed to annihilate Israel, in the same fashion and with the same vile rhetoric as forecasted by Scripture. For example: “They devise crafty schemes against your people; they conspire against your precious ones. ‘Come,’ they say, ‘let us wipe out Israel as a nation. We will destroy the very memory of its existence’” (Psalm 83:3-4).

The Psalmist goes on to list several ancient nations/peoples that wanted to accomplish this diabolical objective, a sinister plot that is just as prevalent in today’s world. With, however, the contemporary (end times) paradox that some governments have attempted to placate Israel, despite the Anti-Semitic disposition of many of their people.

Iran and most of its people detest the Jews and hate the very existence of Israel. Iranian military leaders and government officials (all the way up to the Ayatollah Khomeini) have sworn to destroy Israel … the sooner the better. On several occasions, Khomeini has issued threats like the one he made public a few months ago, saying: “Israel is a malignant cancerous tumor in the west Asian region that has to be removed and eradicated. It is possible, and it will happen.”

There is no rational reason why Iran should want Israel and the Jews destroyed. It is nothing more than irrational Anti-Semitism, exhibited in different degrees by people the world over. It arises from the deeper desire to eliminate any influence of the Judeo/Christian heritage; a revolt against and replacement of the true and living God with man-made gods, religions, and agnostic state autocracies, e.g. communism and fascism.

“Why are the nations so angry? Why do they waste their time with futile plans? The kings of the earth prepare for battle; the rulers plot together against the Lord and against his anointed one. ‘Let us break their chains,’ they cry, ‘and free ourselves from slavery to God.’

“But the one who rules in heaven laughs. The Lord scoffs at them. Then in anger he rebukes them, terrifying them with his fierce fury. For the Lord declares, ‘I have placed my chosen king on the throne in Jerusalem, on my holy mountain’” (Psalm 2:1-6).

Israel’s Peace Treaty That Will Imperil Her Survival

The Gog/Magog invasion of Israel encompassing several nations including Iran and Turkey, spearheaded by Russia will be a direct result of Israel’s seven-year treaty. Here’s why … God addressing Gog/Magog:

“Get ready; be prepared! Keep all the armies around you mobilized, and take command of them… In the distant future you will swoop down on the land of Israel, which will be enjoying peace after recovering from war and after its people have returned from many lands to the mountains of Israel” (Ezekiel 38:7-8).

We are the generation of that distant future!

Russia, Iran, and to a lesser extent Turkey have been entrenched in Syria, adjacent to Israel, for the past 3-4 years. Their armies are mobilized! Israel has recovered from four conventional wars with Arab nations (1948, 1956, 1967, & 1973) and is currently enjoying a measure of international peace unmatched since a few years before Ezekiel penned this extraordinary prophecy!

Continuing in Ezekiel:

“This is what the Sovereign Lord says: At that time evil thoughts will come to your mind, and you will devise a wicked scheme. You will say, ‘Israel is an unprotected land filled with unwalled villages! I will march against her and destroy these people who live in such confidence! I will go to those formerly desolate cities that are now filled with people who have returned from exile in many nations. I will capture vast amounts of plunder, for the people are rich with livestock and other possessions now. They think they whole world revolves around them!’” (Ezekiel 38:10-12).

Israel will be confident … overconfident and under prepared; thus, caught off guard because of the 7-year peace treaty arranged by Antichrist Nero. However, this invasion won’t come from Nero and his ten-nation coalition, as he will still be in the process of consolidating and strengthening his regime. He will sit idly by and wait to see what happens. If Israel is destroyed, so much the better. Other nations will do to Israel what he planned to do … later.

*Note: Because the United States will be decimated by loss of millions of believers at the Rapture (and to a lesser extent Canada and Australia), America and other nations will not be able to defend Israel; as would be the case if Israel was invaded by a huge army right now. Some of these (can’t do anything about it) nations will be part of Nero’s empire (Eye of Prophecy article: “One Ring to Rule Them All…” posted 11-21-15).

Although Israel’s reaction time would be swift and her defense formidable, it won’t matter how militarily strong she is. The Gog/Magog alliance will be far too powerful, in terms of soldiers and armament. But that won’t matter either. Because God’s sovereign plan for the unfolding of Tribulation events is that: (1) His power and glory will be revealed early in the Tribulation by the most astounding victory in the annals of warfare. One that won’t require Israelis to lift a military finger against Gog/Magog. Israel’s real war of survival will take place near the end of the 7-year Tribulation against Antichrist’s ten-nation empire and the Kings of the East … Daniel 7 & 11, Zechariah 12 & 14, Revelation 16 & 17.

(2) Against that subsequent end-of-the-tribulation invasion, the Jews must fight; and fight they will—furiously and ferociously. That is when Messiah Jesus will return to the Mount of Olives to do battle alongside his chosen people. Culminating a short time later with his majestic descent from heaven (along with all believers) to Megiddo … Revelation 19. (See Eye of Prophecy article, Armageddon & Messiah’s Return … An Amazing Sequence of Events! (2-3-18).

A Recent Iranian Boast

In a long-line of Iranian threats and taunts against Israel, Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Haqdi, deputy commander of the Iranian Republican Guard (supposedly an elite force within Iran’s military) said in a recent interview that Saudi Arabia’s military pales in comparison to Iran’s … that Iran could easily destroy it. He then bragged that Iran would also destroy all American military bases in the region if the United States attacked Iran in any way.

Who knows, he may be right on these two counts, especially if President Trump follows through with his decision to withdraw American special forces in Syria.

This arrogant general finished the interview by turning his attention to Israel (as would be expected). He crowed that Israel will, “be destroyed and wiped out … the Zionists annihilated and destroyed.”

(Typical signs displayed in Iran)

He boasted that he personally will raise the Iran Islamic Revolution flag in Jerusalem!

Might he be right about that prediction?

If you said, “No, not even close!” you would be 100% correct. Neither he nor any other Iranian (or Russian or Turk) will step foot in Jerusalem waving their national flag!

Why?

Because the Lord says so.

“…When Gog invades the land of Israel, my fury will boil over! In my jealousy and blazing anger, I promise a mighty shaking in the land of Israel on that day… all the people on earth will quake in terror at my presence. Mountains will be thrown down; cliffs will crumble; walls will fall to the earth … Your men will turn their swords against each other. I will punish you and your armies with disease and bloodshed; I will send torrential rains, hailstones, fire, and burning sulfur! In this way, I will show my greatness and holiness, and I will make myself known to all the nations of the world. Then they will know that I am the Lord” (Ezekiel 38:18-23).

There’s more. And its graphic!

“You and your army and your allies will all die on the mountains. I will feed you to the vultures and wild animals. You will fall in the open fields … And I will rain down fire on Magog and on all your allies who live safely on the coasts…” (Ezekiel 39:4-6).

Then the passage dramatically declares that the people of Israel will gather the armaments of these defeated nations; the material will be used as fuel that will last Israel seven years! Which is another reason to place this invasion early in the Tribulation. Along with the descriptive evidence that the supernatural disasters previously cited are nearly identical to the 6^th & 7^th seal judgments and the 1^st and 2^nd Trumpet judgments of Revelation. Refer to Eye of Prophecy article: Stunning Catastrophes of the Tribulation / Their Timing and Purpose, 11-4-17.

Reading on:

“And I will make a vast graveyard for Gog and his hordes … east of the Dead Sea…. It will take seven months for the people of Israel to bury the bodies and cleanse the land. Everyone in Israel will help, for it will be a glorious victory for Israel when I demonstrate my glory on that day, says the Sovereign Lord. After seven months, teams of men will be appointed to search the land for skeletons to bury….” (Ezekiel 39:11-14).

In this most lop-sided victory in the archives of military conflict, the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) won’t need to fire a single shot. God will do it all! The only thing Israel need do is to pick up the pieces … literally.

Summary

At a time of unparalleled post-Rapture peace between Israel and her enemies (already in the making), Russia, Iran, Turkey and smaller nations will move against Israel. In fact, that (false) peace treaty will be the match that ignites this first major assault against Israel during the Great Tribulation. One, however, in which God alone will strike back; the first time he will do so since one of his angels killed 185,000 Assyrian solders in a single night (701 B.C.).

In Israel’s litany of battles and wars, rarely does God alone defeat Israel’s enemies without Israel needing to fight at all. In fact, there are only two in the Old Testament. Three if we include parting of the Red Sea and drowning of all the Egyptians who vainly pursued the Israelites at Pharaoh’s order. However, at the time of the Red Sea miracles, Israel didn’t have an army as such.

Here is an excerpt from Eye of Prophecy article: Stand Still & Watch God Fight For Israel! Posted 7-30-16.

As we’ve seen: God’s victorious rout of Israel’s enemies in the time of Jehoshaphat and Hezekiah was nothing short of stunning….

Against Gog and Magog, the Lord doubles down. He strikes this massive alliance of several nations—what presumably will be hundreds of thousands or even millions of troops aligned against Israel—by turning the forces of nature against them and causing their troops to turn on each other.

Yes, this will be the third time in the chronicles of warfare that God alone will destroy Israel’s enemies without the Jews needing to fight at all. As with Jehoshaphat and his people, the Israelis will simply, “stand still and watch the Lord’s victory.” As did Sennacherib in Hezekiah’s time, all of Israel will watch Gog (if he survives) flee the scene with the proverbial “tail between his legs.”

(Depiction of Angel Slaying the Assyrians)

Yet, the staggering death toll (in just a few hours) of 185,000 Assyrian soldiers in 701 B.C. will be dwarfed by the incredible devastation wreaked on the Gog/Magog armies. Just like the Assyrians never set foot in Jerusalem in Hezekiah’s time, neither will Gog and his allies reach the Holy City.

Which, in turn, will be exponentially eclipsed by the apocalyptic casualties inflicted by Jesus himself against the massive armies of Antichrist, the Far East, and other nations who would dare to join them in this final futile attempt of evil triumphing over good.

With a combination of symbolism (grapes, winepress) and the literal results, we read what will happen at Armageddon:

“The grapes were trampled in the winepress outside the city, and blood flowed from the winepress in a stream about 180 miles long and as high as a horse’s bridle” (Revelation 14:20).

Things to Ponder

“…The world has now become the Kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign forever and ever” (Revelation 11:15).

This announcement that God and His Messiah had begun to reign comes just before the 7^th Trumpet judgment.

Then later in the chapter: “…It is time to destroy all who have caused destruction on the earth” (Revelation 11:18).

The 7^th Trumpet judgement and even more destructive seven bowls of God’s final wrath were yet to be poured out on an evil world, with these judgments of mind-boggling magnitude directed almost exclusively at Antichrist Nero and his empire.

“And I heard a voice from the altar, saying, ‘Yes, O Lord God, the Almighty, your judgments are true and just’” (Revelation 16:7).

Ultimately, the only way to bring everlasting peace to this wicked world is by an all-out righteous war. No negotiation; no appeasement; no containment; no partial or temporary victory. Only total triumph over evil and those who embody it.

“Then I saw heaven opened, and a white horse was standing there. Its rider was named Faithful and True, for he judges fairly and wages a righteous war” (Revelation 19:11).

All praise, honor, and glory to the King of all kings.

He is our Prince of peace!

Wars; rumors of war; natural and man-made disasters; political, entertainment, and holiday events; exceptional economic fluctuations; lifestyles of the rich and famous; personal milestones—all captivate our interest.

However, for sheer suspense concerning innocence or guilt, right or wrong, and even life or death decisions, hardly anything arrests our attention like a sensational trial that grips an entire nation … indeed, the whole world. Some of which have long-term repercussions.

In the United States, we’ve come to call some of these historical trials: “The Trial of the Century.” It doesn’t matter that, by definition, there can only be one trial of the (a) century. Any court drama that grabs national and sometimes international headlines can be granted that title.

We are mesmerized by high-profile trials because it’s not our fate that hangs in the balance. We even get to choose sides. We reach our own verdict of guilty or innocent and impose our own sentence on the accused, sometimes before the trial begins. Some rely on the facts; others on the personalities involved. Some people like loopholes, others do not. Some put themselves in the place of the accused, or a witness, or a jury member, or prosecutor, or defense attorney, or judge. What would we do and say?

Top 10 Trials of the 20^th Century

That is the title of an article posted online at the website of History Lists. The list was not necessarily arranged according to the author’s opinion as to the historical rank of the trials, i.e. from ten to one in prominence. Some of these were:

• The Scopes Monkey Trial (1925): Should evolution be taught in the public schools of Tennessee as opposed to Biblical creation? Evolution lost that battle. Nowadays in most public-school systems, the Biblical account of creation cannot be taught—only evolution.
• The Rosenberg Trial (late 1940s): Husband/wife Julius & Ethel Rosenberg found guilty and executed (1953) for treason, i.e. espionage in passing secret documents on the atomic bomb to the Soviet Union. The Rosenberg’s maintained their innocence; claiming that they were arrested and convicted because they were Jewish.
• The Nuremberg Trials (1945-46): Twenty-four Nazi leaders such as Herman Goering and Rudolph Hess tried for war crimes and crimes against humanity. Three were acquitted; twelve found guilty and executed; seven convicted and sentence to life or lengthy imprisonment.
• Lindbergh Kidnapping Trial (1932): 20-month old son of famous aviator Charles Lindbergh kidnapped and murdered by Bruno Hauptmann. Although the title had been casually used before, this case was constantly referred to as, “The Trial of the Century.” Decades after Hauptmann was convicted and executed, legitimate questions arose as to his innocence.
• O.J. Simpson Murder Trial (1995): Another trial with racial overtones. Many African-Americans wanted him to be acquitted even before the trial began. Americans were glued to this televised trial in the same fashion as a miniseries or a daily soap-opera. Hardly any other sensationalized trial generated such agony or ecstasy at the verdict.

Two trials of the 21^st century also garnered international headlines: The Michael Jackson Trial of 2005. And Saddam Hussein’s capture and trial, 2004-2006.

(Charles Lindbergh & his son)

Top Ten Historical Trials That Shook the World

The above titled article authored by Matt Hayes and Igor Itkin, posted on 11-13-2012, can be found in the on-site location of ListVerse.com. The authors expanded the Trial of the Century concept to the top ten trials throughout history. However, this list ranks the ten trials, “that shook the world” in order of prestige, counting down from ten to the one most notable of all. These ten and dozens more can be found on other internet websites.

The authors cite a common denominator for all ten … that of an injustice against the accused. Whether these top ten were chosen because of that injustice or whether the outcome of the trials just happened to include an unjust verdict is difficult to ascertain. Yet one fact stands out: They did shake the very fabric of society at the time, with some of those repercussions continuing to our post-modern world.

Only six of them will be presented … each identified by its’ number rank.

Number Ten – Salem Witch Trials (1692): A few movies and T.V. programs have been aired and numerous books and articles have been written about this infamous trial.

Number Nine – Alfred Dreyfus Trial (1894): Many allege that anti-Semitism motivated the wrongful arrest, trial, and conviction of this Jewish official for alleged treason against France. Several years later, Dreyfus was exonerated on all charges.

Number Eight – Martin Luther’s Trial (1521): Charged with heresy, Luther was imprisoned and excommunicated. He escaped prison and remained in hiding for most of his life. His courage to confront the hierarchy of Roman Catholicism was the foundation of the Protestant Reformation back to the basic truths of the Christian message: Salvation by grace through faith in Christ’s substitutionary sacrifice alone … not by membership in or keeping of unbiblical sacraments of a church organization.

Number Three – Joan of Arc Trial (1431): Another notorious trial of heresy with the Catholic Church verdict of guilty and execution by burning her alive at the stake.

Number Two – Trial of Socrates (399 B.C.): Accusations of corrupting social and moral values.

Number One – Crucifixion Trial of Jesus Christ (around 30 A.D.): Whether a believer in Messiah Jesus or a religious or secular unbeliever, billions were and still are familiar with what is undeniably (in terms of both human and divine impact) the most famous trial of all time.

(Depiction of Martin Luther on trial)

Introduction to the Three Greatest Trials of All Time

The crucifixion of Messiah Jesus ended the first of the three greatest trials of the ages. The other two have not yet taken place. But they, too, will surpass all other court cases because, like the trial of Jesus, each of them directly involves God. Each one was prophesied in the Bible long before the occurrence. Each marks the end and then a new beginning of three epic periods of God’s providential interaction with humanity. They will determine the destiny of all nations and peoples.

The trial of Jesus marked the end of the Old Covenant of Law and beginning of the New Covenant Age of Grace. It is the only event in history in which God, himself, was on trial … literally, not symbolically. The very Son of God (Second Person of the Triune God) stood accused. In the next two monumental court hearings soon to come, many people will be on trial.

Class action trials, so to speak.

The second trial will take place at the end of the Great Tribulation just before the magnificent Millennial Reign of Messiah Jesus begins. In fact, he will be the judge. The verdict of this trial will be imposed on nations of the earth which oppressed and persecuted Jews all over the earth during the final generation of the last days in which we are now living … particularly during the Tribulation period.

The third and final trial of all time will include all raised to life unbelievers, those who are the unforgiven. It will take place at the end of the Millennium … the trial to end all trials. For this will be the beginning of ETERNITY. A glorious timeless and trial-less existence in heaven and the New Jerusalem for all of God’s people.

First Trial: Arrest, Interrogation, Verdict, and Execution of Messiah Jesus

To say that the trial of Jesus Christ was unique (one of a kind) would be the understatement of “the century.” Of any century. Indeed, it was God on trial; for a radical reason with far-reaching, everlasting results.

With his illegitimate arrest, illegal trial, and unwarranted crucifixion, Jesus Christ not only stood trial for mankind; he also suffered the penalty of a sentence for every person who ever lived.

“For the wages of sin is death… (both physical and spiritual)” (Romans 6:23a, parenthesis mine).

However, a verdict that can be overturned by a once for all pardon of sin and guilt (spiritual death—eternal separation from God;) if we only believe and receive the one Person who took that sin and guilt for us … Messiah Jesus.

“…but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:23b).

He is the just for the unjust, the righteous for the unrighteous, the innocent for the guilty.

Here are some of the other remarkable differences in the trial of Jesus:

Predicted Hundreds of Years Before It Happened (In Parenthesis, O.T. & N.T. Passages)

The birth, life, death, crucifixion, and resurrection of the Messiah was prophesied dozens of times in the Old Testament. All fulfilled in decisive detail by Jesus of Nazareth. None more so than his trial—from the time he was arrested to when he arose from the grave.

Including but not limited to: rejection by his own people (Isaiah 53:3 … John 1:11); betrayal by a friend—one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot (Psalm 41:9 … Mark 14:17-20); beaten viciously (Micah 5:1 … Mark 15:19); silent before his accusers (Isaiah 53:7 … Matthew 27:12-14); unjustly tried and condemned (Isaiah 53:8 … Matthew 27:1-2); nails driven into his hands and feet (Psalm 22:16 … Matthew 27:35); dice thrown for his garments (Psalm 22:18 … John 19:23-24); given vinegar and gall (Psalm 69:21 … John 19:28-29); buried in a rich man’s tomb (Isaiah 53:9 … Luke 23:50-56). And of course, his resurrection (Psalm 16:10 … Luke 24:1-7, 47).

Prophesied by Jesus, Himself

As recorded in the Gospels, at least three times Jesus predicted his death at the hands of his enemies. How could he have known with any degree of certainty that this would happen, let alone with the details he gave, unless he was the divine Son of God? In the first of these, we read: “The Son of Man must suffer many terrible things… He will be rejected by the elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of religious law. He will be killed, but on the third day he will be raised from the dead” (Luke 9:22).

By that time, Jesus’s disciples, as well as thousands of the common people and many of the religious leaders, had heard of or had seen first-hand his tremendous teaching and magnificent miracles. Many believed in Him. Yet most still would not accept him as the Messiah, the Son of God. Despite the irrefutable evidence, they chose not to believe. Jesus knew they would reject him, and he knew that the result of that rejection would cost him his life.

Yet, the prophetic announcement was just one of several distinctive features of Jesus’s trial.

Jesus’s Trial from Beginning to End Was Illegal

It’s one thing to accuse and try an innocent person. Sadly, that happens. Even worse: when the innocent is found guilty for any number of reasons, such as inaccurate testimony—either deliberate or inadvertent. In that regard Jesus’s trial was not unique.

However, it’s a seriously different matter when the trial itself is illegal.

Jesus was tried in the middle of the night which was a violation of Jewish law. The Jewish Sanhedrin and its High Priest Caiaphas knew this. They also knew that for serious charges an accused must be brought to the High Council’s regular chambers; they tried Jesus in Caiaphas’ home.

(Jesus and the Sanhedrin, from the movie Jesus of Nazareth)

False witnesses were produced. Normally Jewish trials involved a sophisticated protocol of screening witnesses to assure that true justice would prevail. Nor was a prisoner to be struck or physically assaulted during a trial. In short, the entire trial was conducted surreptitiously without due process, a violation of the Law of Moses that the Jewish officials were so keen to enforce.

Because the religious leaders wanted to kill Jesus (knowing they needed permission from the Romans) before the Sabbath began, they circumvented all the Law’s procedures and principles. To the point where the Sanhedrin elected to cut to the chase and bluntly asked Jesus, “Tell us, are you the Messiah…?” (Luke 22:67; Matthew’s Gospel includes, “…Messiah, the Son of God”).

Jesus was then handed over to the Roman governor Pontius Pilate who further interrogated him. All born-again believers know (or should know) as do millions of unbelievers that Pilate knew Jesus was innocent of the crime of treason (the bogus reason given by the Jews, because they knew a religious violation of the Law of Moses was not a concern to the Romans). Moreover, Pilate could have released Jesus instead of Barabbas according to an annual tradition of freeing one Jewish prisoner on Passover. Do you know or remember what Pilate said and did after he capitulated to the demands of the Jews to crucify Jesus?

“Pilate saw that he wasn’t getting anywhere and that a riot was developing. So he sent for a bowl of water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, ‘I am innocent of this man’s blood. The responsibility is yours!’ And all the people yelled back, ‘We will take responsibility for his death—we and our children!’” (Matthew 27:24-25).

Not only were the Jews responsible for Jesus’s unjust death, so were the Romans (Gentiles). The Jews had the first chance to release Jesus, and the Romans had the last chance. Both were complicit in his death, as are we all.

Thank God! The story doesn’t end there.

“But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!) (Ephesians 2:4-5, parenthesis in the text).

The Accused’s Right to Defend Himself; Jesus Was Silent Before His Accusers

The rule of law both civil and criminal (patterned after traditional Jewish law) was ingrained in the Roman Empire. Everyone had the right to a trial and to innocence until proven guilty. In today’s world all democratic nations are founded on this principle.

Would the accused (especially if they’re innocent) remain silent in their defense? At the very least the accused would seek a lawyer or advocate to speak for them.

Concerning the Messiah, Isaiah wrote: “He was oppressed and treated harshly, yet he never said a word. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter. And as a sheep is silent before the shearers, he did not open his mouth. Unjustly condemned, he was led away” (Isaiah 53:7-8a).

In answer to the confrontational demand as to whether he was the Messiah, Jesus did speak. He also answered Pontius Pilate’s question as to whether he was the King of the Jews. Essentially, that’s all Jesus said. Isaiah’s prophesy of the Messiah being silent was a direct reference to the critical component of Jewish law … those accused had the right to speak, or to be spoken for by an advocate. To include as much evidence and time reasonably needed to establish that defense.

Jesus could have responded with a long dissertation demonstrating why he was, in fact, Messiah? He could have quoted passage after prophetic passage in the Old Testament, then cited (for example) three dozen miracles he had performed. Then asserted his rights that the “court” bring in some of those he had miraculously healed from crippling deformities and diseases. He could have produced proof that he was born in Bethlehem as prophesied by the prophet Micah; not in Nazareth as mistakenly assumed by the religious leaders. That he was a direct descendant of King David from the tribe of Judah. And he could have summoned Lazarus to testify that Jesus had raised him from the dead!

In that regard, Jesus did not by any stretch of the imagination offer a defense, let alone extensive evidence that he could have presented. His only reply was that of answering the crucial question of his Messiahship.

Here is part of Yeshua’s response to the Sanhedrin:

“…If I tell you, you won’t believe me. And if I ask you a question, you won’t answer. But from now on the Son of Man will be seated in the place of power at God’s right hand.

“They all shouted, ‘So you are claiming to be the Son of God?’

“And he replied, ‘You say that I am.’” (Luke 22:67-70).

Thus, Jesus was agreeing with them; he was, indeed, The Messiah—the Son of God.

Concerning the question(s) he could have asked them as well as their unbelief, he had already posed several probing questions to the religious leaders during his ministry that they could not answer. In fact, they were dumbfounded at his astounding questions and answers. That’s why the religious leaders were so jealous of Jesus. They also were envious of the common people’s responses to what Jesus said and did. For example: “When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, for he taught with real authority—quite unlike their teachers of religious law” (Matthew 7:28-29).

(Please see Eye of Prophecy article, The Incomparable Power and Authority of Jesus Christ; posted 5-28-16).

Jesus also declined to defend himself in front of Pontius Pilate. Neither Pilate nor any other Roman official or court of law could imagine anyone not speaking up in their defense, especially when the accused’s life hung in the balance.

(Jesus before Pilate, from the movie, The Passion of the Christ. Barabbas is portrayed on the right)

As with the Jewish leaders, the only response Jesus gave concerned Pilates’s question, “…Are you the king of the Jews?”

Part of Jesus’s reply was, “My Kingdom is not an earthly kingdom. If it were, my followers would fight to keep me from being handed over to the Jewish leaders. But my Kingdom is not of this world … You say I am a king. Actually, I was born and came into this world to testify to the truth. All who love the truth recognize that what I say is true” (John 18:33-37).

Indeed, the offense for which the Jewish leaders tried Jesus was part of the Mosaic Law that warranted the death penalty, i.e. claiming not only to be Messiah, but (even more blatant to the religious leaders) saying that he was God’s Son. Though Jesus was completely man, he was also fully God. Therein lies the rub. If he was exclusively a human being, then he would have been guilty of the charge.

That was/is the crux of the matter. For two reasons: (1) The Hebrew Scriptures unequivocally state that the Messiah is divine (Isaiah 9, Micah 5, other passages). This fact was missed, dismissed, or erroneously explained away by many Jewish rabbis—then and now. Considering Jesus’s claim to be the (divine) Messiah, the very Son of God, the Jewish leaders and people should have closely examined their Scriptures to at least give him the benefit of the doubt. (2) This benefit of the doubt was denied outright despite the extraordinary evidence that Jesus had performed many miracles, not just one or two. For example, would they have believed Lazarus’ testimony? Perhaps. Would it have made a difference? No.

Jesus knew that the hearts of his accusers were rock-hard; their eyes irreversibly blind; ears irrevocably deaf. No matter if or how he defended himself, he would have been condemned. He didn’t speak a word in his defense. The only words he spoke affirmed the accusations.

What other trial in history resulted in the execution (and an excruciating inhumane one at that) of someone who was found innocent by the ruling court?! And this someone wasn’t just some-one. He was and is the Messiah, the Son of God. He is Lord and Savior for those who believe in Him.

Our Redeemer lives!

Jesus Stood Trial and Died Voluntarily

Jesus said: “I am the good shepherd… So I sacrifice my life for the sheep (referring to Israel, the lost sheep). I have other sheep, too, that are not in this sheepfold (Gentiles). I must bring them also. They will listen to my voice, and there will be one flock with one shepherd… I sacrifice my life so I may take it back again. No one can take my life from me. I sacrifice it voluntarily. For I have the authority to lay it down when I want to and also to take it up again. For this is what my Father has commanded” (John 10:14-18, parenthesis mine).

Although Jesus knew precisely what would happen, he did nothing to orchestrate the sequence of events relating to his trial and crucifixion. As the Son of Man, he left that to the inexplicable, incomparable sovereignty of his Father, Almighty God.

As a man, he even asked his Father if there could be another way to accomplish God’s plan of redemption. Do you remember what he said in the Garden of Gethsemane shortly before he was arrested?

“Abba! Father! All things are possible for You; remove this cup from Me; yet not what I will…. (Mark 14:36, NASB). Go ahead and finish Jesus’s words.

Yes, Jesus voluntarily laid down his life. As the Son of God, at any time he could have stopped what was happening to and around him.

Eternal praise to our God and His Messiah that this did not happen! All glory to Yeshua who did not send a legion of angels to annihilate those who had arrested him in the garden! Everlasting gratitude to our Lord for not saying I’ve had enough and stepping down from the cross! All power and dominion to the Son of Man for arising from the grave and conquering death once and for all! Go ahead, say it aloud with me. Amen! (Out of the Abyss, page 219)

Just after he was nailed to the cross, with incredible love even for those who crucified him, we read these stirring words:

Just before Jesus died on the cross, he uttered these amazing words that would forever change the course of history: “It is finished!” (John 19:30).

Those words meant the debt of sin had been paid once and for all.

It was a trial unlike any other before or since; the trial of a lifetime … yours, mine, everyone who has ever lived on this planet. One that determined our destiny of eternal life or death, depending on what we decide about Jesus—who he is and why he died. An unjust trial and sentence willingly endured by Messiah Jesus. His was the greatest sacrifice ever made by the highest price ever paid.

Second Trial: Judgment of the Nations / Trial of the Sheep and Goats

To some extent or another, several prior Eye of Prophecy articles have addressed God’s two universal plans for humanity: (1) Individual redemption for all—Jew and Gentile alike—who place their trust in the only source of salvation, the Jewish Messiah for all people. The final trial/judgment for all people who have died without acknowledging Jesus as Lord and Savior will take place at the end of the Millennium. That is the 3^rd greatest trial of the ages, which will be discussed shortly.

(2) God’s second plan is Israel. It is tied into the first … salvation would come through the Jews and the nation of Israel, specifically through the Messiah. God’s Covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob first and foremost guaranteed that the Promised Land of Israel would always be the permanent inheritance (possession) of their descendants, the Jews. All nations of the earth that bless Israel will be blessed. Those countries that denigrate and delegitimize Israel would be severely punished (Genesis 12).

The final phase of this punishment will take place during the Tribulation culminating in the 2^nd greatest trial in human history at the end of the Tribulation. This is commonly referred to as the separation of the Sheep and the Goats, as announced directly by Jesus. It will usher in his Millennial Reign.

Those who survive the Great Tribulation will stand before Jesus Christ, separated into nations or ethnic groups that supported Israel (the sheep) and those that fought against Israel (the goats).

Prior to this trial, God will have already destroyed the coalition of Gog/Magog nations in the early part of the Tribulation. Then Messiah Jesus will crush the ten-nation coalition led by Antichrist (Nero) near the very end of the Tribulation … Armageddon. (See Eye of Prophecy articles: End of the World Events … In Chronological Order, posted 2-25-17; and Armageddon & Messiah’s Return … An Amazing Sequence of Events, 2-3-18).

“But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered in his presence, and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left” (Matthew 25:31-33).

In the rest of that chapter, Jesus explains the explicit criteria for this trial and the verdict.

Concerning the sheep who generously help the Jews:

(Matthew 25:40)

The brothers and sisters of Jesus are his Jewish kinsfolk in the flesh.

For those in the goat nations, it will be just the opposite. Their hostility toward God’s chosen people will result in: “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life” (Verse 46).

Judgment of unbelievers alive at the end of the Tribulation will be based primarily on their (national) treatment of Israel, as such treatment was though they had done it (good or bad) for Jesus himself—Israel’s King. Both the (sheep/goat) trial of the nations and the Tribulation pre-trial destruction of the armies of these anti-Semitic nations are found in several Old Testament prophecies. Such as:

“I will gather the armies of the world into the valley of Jehoshaphat. There I will judge them for harming my people, my special possession, for scattering my people among the nations, and for dividing up my land” (Joel 3:2).

“The day is near when I, the Lord, will judge all godless nations! As you have done to Israel, so it will be done to you. All your evil deeds will fall back on your own heads” (Obadiah 1:15).

Right in the middle of the well-known prophecy that depicts the four Gentile world kingdoms, and the little horn’s (Antichrist Nero) sudden appearance (reappearance or return from the Abyss as found in Revelation 17) at the outset of the Tribulation, Daniel switches to a stunning vision of the Messiah:

“As my vision continued that night, I saw someone like a son of man coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient One and was led into his presence. He was given authority, honor, and sovereignty over all the nations of the world, so that people of every race and nation and language would obey him. His rule is eternal—it will never end. His kingdom will never be destroyed” (Daniel 7:13-14, italicized to emphasize that Jesus will divinely judge and rule over nations).

Please see Eye of Prophecy article, Messiah’s Ascension & Coronation … Seen Long Before It Happened! Posted 5-27-17.

And the oft-quoted passage: “I will make Jerusalem like an intoxicating drink that makes the nearby nations stagger when they send their armies to besiege Jerusalem and Judah. On that day I will make Jerusalem an immovable rock. All the nations will gather against it to try to move it, but they will only hurt themselves” (Zechariah 12:2-3).

Third Trial: The Great White Throne Judgment

The Great White Throne Judgement was discussed in a very recent Eye of Prophecy article; however, with emphasis on the resurrection of dead unbelievers, only to face their eternal fate. (Resurrections / How Many Will There Be? One, Two, or Could There Be Three? Posted 10-27-18).

This final trial, verdict, and sentence is profoundly personal and permanent as found in Revelation 20:11-15, in contrast to the more corporate punishment of the sheep/goat nations which pertains to the treatment of Israel and the Jews. It ends the Millennial era and initiates the age of Eternity.

One of the exceptional features of this trial is that the verdict is not directly based on the offenses (sin) of those being judged … all unbelievers. Yes, you read that right.

Here is what all unbelievers are being judged by: “…And all were judged according to their deeds” (Revelation 20:13). It doesn’t say according to their sins. In fact, some of these acts were undoubtedly good deeds. Unless done from strictly a selfish motive or gain, no good deed or work (objectively defined by all involved) is a sin.

They were “judged” (measured or cross-examined) on the only defense that unbelievers can and will offer. This argument is based on the most perfidious perception and malignant misconception ever befallen humanity. Which is: The good things I’ve done should be given greater weight than the wrong things.

But the actual sentence (Lake of Fire) was based on something much more comprehensive, one with eternal consequences, which we will see in a moment.

During their life on this earth, what all the unsaved ultimately want to be measured by is their accomplishments, mainly through “good works” which they will try to argue should be enough to merit God’s approval. That will be their defense before Almighty God, who will not beg to disagree during this trial. That disagreement had already been unequivocally quantified:

“For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood…” (Romans 3:23-25).

God is both just and fair. He will allow unbelievers at this final trial to be judged (measured) by their works. If anyone can prove to Him that their deeds are enough to earn and reach God’s perfect standard of righteousness, then they’re home free. Or are they?

“No one is righteous—not even one” (Romans 3:10). None of us has any innate or earned righteousness of our own.

“…The Lord is Our Righteousness” (Jeremiah 33:16).

Thus, Messiah Jesus is the ultimate test of those on trial before the Great White Throne of Father God.

When the people asked Jesus what they could or should do to perform works acceptable to God, Jesus summarized the whole basis for right standing with God (righteousness) with these words: “This is the only work God wants from you. Believe in the one he has sent” (John 6:29).

Therefore, the final sentence (Lake of Fire) of all unbelievers is based on what they did or didn’t do about Jesus—who had already been judged by God for their sins and the penalty thereof. That is why we read:

“And anyone whose name was not found recorded in the Book of Life was thrown into the lake of fire” (Revelation 20:15). The unbelievers standing on trial before God had not accepted the only remedy that could have pardoned them from their sins … trust in the sacrificial death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Jesus holds the keys of death and the grave (Revelation 1:18). He conquered death when he arose from the grave. Only Jesus can unlock the door (prison) of physical and spiritual death.

He is the Book of Life. He said, “I am the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25).

He also said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).

Summary

The Great White Throne passage doesn’t specify just how this trial will unfold. Will the Lord “cross-examine” every unbeliever one at a time? Though speculation, I would suggest that God will extend the opportunity to all those who want to speak up in their own defense to present their case. Most will simply remain silent, knowing the futility of their defense. Certainly some of the religious among them will step forward to remind the Lord of the great things they did for him.

Everything except the most important … to acknowledge and accept Jesus as their personal Savior. Only then, after it’s too late, will they bow their knee and confess with their mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:10-11).

Jesus mentions them: “Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. On judgment day (Great White Throne Judgment) many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’ But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws’” (Matthew 7:21-23, italics for emphasis, parenthesis mine).

And what is the “will of my Father” referred to by Jesus? We’ve already read that: Believe in the one (Jesus) whom God sent.

Things to Ponder

Nobody needs to be tried as a goat or according to their works. No one need be sentenced to the worst fate imaginable—eternal separation from God in the Lake of Fire. A guilty verdict that could have been set aside with the right answer to the life-changing, destiny-altering question posed in Jesus’s deposition of all people. One that must be answered in this life-time on earth.

“But who do you say I am?

“Simon Peter answered: ‘You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God’” (Matthew 16:15-16).

God loves you. Jesus died for you.

Say, “yes,” to him before it’s too late.

The Incomparable Influence of One Man

No other person on the face of the earth has impacted humanity like Jesus of Nazareth. He altered the keeping of time itself and changed the course of history.

Who else healed deadly diseases instantly with a touch or a command; made the lame to leap, the dumb to speak, the deaf to hear, the blind to see, and the dead to rise. And in whose name, his disciples did the same.

Miracles that proved Jesus is who he said he is: God’s Incarnate Son.

His phenomenal Virgin birth into this world and stunning resurrection from a sacrificial death are still celebrated every year by billions, even those who have never received him as their Savior and Lord.

The Christian faith is global … crossing national, social, and racial lines. No other creed on earth claims followers from virtually every nation; religions are restricted mostly to ethnic groups or within the confines of certain countries. But then the Christian faith is not a religion or cult. It is a personal relationship with our Lord and Savior Messiah Jesus.

No other belief system offers a Savior as the exclusive source of salvation, nor do their followers want one. Because that would mean the principles and procedures demanded by their dogmas or religious leaders or philosophical pundits need not be kept and membership in their organization would be unnecessary. If a Redeemer was necessary to do for them what they could not do for themselves, it would mean that the adherents were incapable of earning their god’s favor or meriting eternal life or experiencing a high enough level of self-enlightenment. Which, in turn, would insinuate that their belief system was flawed.

In one of several spectacular visions that John recorded in the book of Revelation, we read this about Jesus Christ and his remarkable redemption for mankind that is truly universal in scope.

“…You are worthy to take the scroll and break its seals and open it. For you were slaughtered, and your blood has ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. And you have caused them to become a Kingdom of priests for our God. And they will reign on the earth. Then I looked again, and I heard the voices of thousands and millions of angels… And they sang in a mighty chorus:

‘Worthy is the Lamb who was slaughtered—to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing’” (Revelation 5:9-12).

This powerful passage is looking back with deep indebtedness to Messiah’s First Advent (appearance); and looking forward triumphantly to his Second Advent (return appearance). Both Advents are the heart and soul of the Christian faith—a New (and better) Covenant birthed from a Judaic Old Testament heritage which also experienced appearances of the Messiah.

(Jesus came first as the sacrificial Lamb of God for redemption. He will return as the Lion from the Tribe of Judah to rule and reign on the earth)

God’s Interaction with People Through the Ages

In last week’s article, we looked at some extraordinary events in which God the Father not only spoke to, but appeared to men, specifically Abraham and Moses. However, when the Lord manifested himself he always concealed his glory (essence of pure light and holiness) mainly through fire or dense clouds. Purpose of which was to protect the on-looker.

We also examined an event in which the Lord appeared up-close and personal to Jacob and even wrestled with him. With convincing evidence that this man was the Lord but could not have been God the Father for the two reasons given: (1) God is Spirit only; (2) unless the Lord veils his glorious presence, no one can look on him and survive.

It was one of several Old Testament events in which the Lord appeared as a man, with the default conclusion that this man could only have been the 2^nd Person of the Trinity, God’s Son, Messiah Jesus. There is no one thing that Judaism takes issue with more than the Christian belief that God has a Son, and his Son was (Virgin) born as a human being. Non-Messianic Jews, both observant and secular, do not believe in the Triune God, despite the Hebrew Scriptures plainly stating that God has a Son.

Messiah Jesus’s pre-birth Epiphanes were prototype previews to prepare the Jews (and Gentiles) for his once-for-all arrival as God the Son in human form. Immanuel … God with us! To overlook or dismiss these marvelous manifestations is to miss the Old Testament revelations of the Pre-Incarnate Messiah—who was, who is, and who is to come again. Whom God’s angels jubilantly heralded at the appointed time in history:

The Jewish author begins the book of Hebrews with:

“Long ago God spoke many times and in many ways to our ancestors through the prophets. And now in these final days, he has spoken to us through his Son. God promised everything to the Son as an inheritance, and through the Son he created the universe. The Son radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character of God, and he sustains everything by the mighty power of his command. When he had cleansed us from our sins, he sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God in heaven. This shows that the Son is far greater than the angels, just as the name God gave him is greater than their names.” (Hebrews 1:1-4).

Just a brief commentary on that magnificent passage before we examine some of the Pre-Incarnate appearances of Messiah Jesus.

• The many ways in which God spoke to Old Testament men and women included visions, dreams, audible voice, tangible manifestations of his glory (shrouded to protect those to whom he appeared), through his messengers the angels. AND in human form of God the Son.
• Through the prophets refers not only to God speaking directly to the prophets, but also the prophets’ inspired written record of God’s words to our ancestors. Meaning the ancestors of 1^st century Jews, some of whom were not prophets.
• All of which prepared the way for God’s “final days” revelation of himself directly through His Son. The final days apply to the last age or epoch of God’s interaction with humanity via the New Covenant that the Lord promised through Jeremiah. It is the Age of Grace, in which we are still living; one that will lead directly to the soon-to-come Day of the Lord and Kingdom of God on earth.
• What makes this revelation of God through Jesus Christ different than the Pre-Incarnate appearances of Messiah? Answer: It is permanent, in that the Son of God was born as Jesus of Nazareth, who is still alive; having risen from the dead! He is the eternal God/Man radiating God’s own glory and expressing the very character of God.

That is why God the Father’s last appearance was to the prophet Ezekiel, a younger contemporary of Jeremiah, through whom God had announced the New Covenant. Later, we’ll look at Ezekiel’s exceptional encounter with the Lord.

After Malachi there were no more prophets, until God spoke to John the Baptist over 400 years later. Said John the Baptist about the Incarnate Christ:

“I saw the Holy Spirit descending like a dove from heaven and resting upon him. I didn’t know he was the one (meaning to begin with), but when God sent me to baptize with water, he told me, ‘The one on whom you see the Spirit descend and rest is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ I saw this happen to Jesus, so I testify that he is the Chosen One of God’” (John 1:32-34, italics for emphasis, parenthesis mine).

Do you remember what God proclaimed at Jesus’s baptism in an audible voice for all to hear?

Correct: “…You are my beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased” (Luke 3:22, NASB).

Though Jesus is God the Son, he lived and spoke as the Son of Man; to validate his appearance to and existence in the world was that of flesh and blood. That he came to do the will of his Father, not the least of which was his excruciating death on the Cross for your sins and mine.

John the Baptist also said this about Jesus:

Just a brief pause to more fully express my love for Messiah Jesus and never-ending appreciation for what he did on the Cross. If you are a child of God, I think the following excerpt from my second book, Out of the Abyss will also be meaningful to you. Referring to Satan’s temptation of Jesus in the wilderness and what is called the Passion of the Christ (in italics):

Yet, it was the temptation scene that dealt the first Messianic blow to Satan’s plans, because that was the devil’s first opportunity to create an antichrist right then and there; to, in one fell swoop, twist and turn the true Messiah into Satan’s messiah.

Eternal praise to our God and his Messiah that this did not happen! All glory to Yeshua who did not send a legion of angels to annihilate those who had arrested him in the garden! Everlasting gratitude to our Lord for not saying I’ve had enough and stepping down from the cross! All power and dominion to the Son of Man for arising from the grave and conquering death once and for all! Go ahead, say it aloud with me. Amen! (page 219).

Examples of Messiah’s Pre-Incarnate Appearances

Time/space only permits examination of a few. Two others were covered in last week’s article: (1) Jacob realized that the man he wrestled with was the Lord. The primary purpose: to confirm God’s perpetual covenant made with Jacob’s father Isaac and grandfather Abraham by blessing Jacob.

(2) The appearance of the Lord as a man to Abraham and Sarah along with two angels in the form of men. Purpose of which was to reaffirm God’s guaranty that Sarah would conceive and bear the promised child Isaac … fathered by Abraham, as opposed to Ishmael through Hagar.

Nothing short of astonishing is that the ultimate Promised Child (Messiah Jesus) through Isaac was the very one who appeared to Abraham that day!

These events also were detailed in a previous Eye of Prophecy article, Does God Really Have a Son? Part II (Posted 11-7-15). A third Pre-Incarnate manifestation of God the Son in that article will be the first of the examples presented in this week’s post. I’m using that episode again because it was the first appearance of God (the Son) as man to more than just one or two people at a time. Though the description in Exodus Chapter 24 is brief, it is nonetheless electrifying. Here is an excerpt from the above-mentioned article (in italics):

Moses & The Seventy Elders

Did you know that the Ten Commandments (along with other features of the Mosaic Law) had been given directly by God to Israel even before Moses ascended Mt. Sinai and received the stone tablets upon which the “finger of God” wrote the Ten Commandments? You can read about that in Exodus Chapter 20. In fact, when God delivered the Commandments to the people, his thunderous voice so frightened them that they pleaded with Moses: “…You speak to us, and we will listen. But don’t let God speak directly to us, or we will die!” (Exodus 20:19).

Prior to that God had given explicit instructions to Moses that the people were not to ascend Mt Sinai or even touch the mountain—upon the pain of death. But then the Lord made a temporary exception that Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and seventy of Israel’s elders could accompany Moses in a climb up the mountain; for the express purpose of meeting with God to worship him and to celebrate the Covenant that all the people had agreed to, “…do everything the Lord has commanded” (Exodus 24:3). Listen to the short, but stunning description of what transpired:

“Then Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel climbed up the mountain again. There they saw the God of Israel. Under his feet there seemed to be a surface of brilliant blue lapis lazuli, as clear as the sky itself. And though these nobles of Israel gazed upon God, he did not destroy them. In fact, they ate a covenant meal, eating and drinking in his presence!” (Exodus 24:9-11).

Later, God again veiled his presence in a dense cloud of fire and smoke on the mountain. God called (and spoke) to Moses from within that cloud.

Although Moses doesn’t provide a detailed description of “The God of Israel” in this scene, it is fully obvious that who/what they saw was a man… Why can I say that? Because the passage says, “under his feet…” with the clear connotation that they were the feet of a man….

Yet we also know that Moses, himself, was not allowed to look on (the face of) God directly. That fact is inescapably evident from the equally well-known story of what happened when Moses subsequently pleaded with God to, “…show me your glorious presence” (Exodus 33:18).

Why would God make an exception and allow Moses and a group of more than seventy Israelites to stare directly at him and survive? …Or a better question: Was it an exception at all?

There is only one explanation.

Which is the same answer for all the Old Testament appearances of God in human form: It is not God (Spirit) the Father, but rather God the Son who physically appeared to Abraham, to Jacob, to Moses and the elders. And later to Joshua, Gideon, Daniel, Zechariah, and others. Then to arrive for the final time in human form as Jesus of Nazareth…. With the providential purpose to demonstrate that God would appear in human flesh once and for all.

Purpose/Timing of Messiah’s Appearance on Mount Sinai: To ratify and celebrate the Covenant of the Law that included the Jewish festivals and Levitical sacrificial system. Which would be a foreshadow pattern of a far better Covenant, mediated by the heavenly High Priest who came to earth and provided the final (perfect) sacrifice of all time as God’s Son Incarnate. Messiah Jesus was the one man who would perfectly keep and faithfully fulfill the Law of Moses. How appropriate for God’s Son to meet with Moses and the elders on this momentous occasion!

Gideon and Samson

Those who have read the book of Judges know that between Israel’s previous national leader Joshua and Israel’s first king Saul, God chose eleven men and one woman (Deborah) over a period of about 300 years to rescue Israel from her enemies; whom God had allowed to conquer portions of the Promised Land because of Israel’s disobedience. For two of these judges (Othniel & Jephthah) we read that, “The Spirit of the Lord came upon him,” and “At that time the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah” (Judges 3:10 & 11:29, respectively).

Yet regarding Gideon directly and Samson indirectly, something even more dramatic occurred. Most Jews and born-again believers, but also secular Jews and millions upon millions of Gentile unbelievers know at least something about Gideon and/or Samson.

Concerning Gideon, what was that saga? Correct: Gideon twice testing the Lord’s promise through the wool fleece. Also, the Lord whittling Gideon’s army from 32,000 to 10,000 men; then down to 300 elite warriors.

And Samson? An even easier answer: His supernatural strength to (for a time) bring an entire nation to its knees. Philistia—the Philistines, Israel’s archenemy. Until that is: he let Delilah cut his hair. Even then, the Lord returned Samson’s strength to him one last time. With each of his hands pushing against a pillar, Samson brought down a pagan temple, killing more Philistines as he died than when he lived.

Yet, I would venture to say that most people, including observant Jews (even Rabbis) and Christian students of Scripture pay little attention to who it was that appeared and what took place when these two Jewish heroes were chosen to deliver Israel.

Gideon

Beginning with: “The Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight. So the Lord handed them over to the Midianites for seven years” (Judges 6:1).

As the Israelites did before and would happen after Gideon’s tenure as Israel’s 5^th judge: “When they cried out to the Lord because of Midian, the Lord sent a prophet to the Israelites…” (Verses 7-8).

Followed by the Lord reminding his people that even though He had delivered them from Egyptian slavery, they still followed pagan gods and would not listen to him (Verses 8-10).

Abruptly, God ends his verbal chastisement of the people with a promise to mercifully rescue Israel yet again, this time through Gideon; with a dynamically different beginning to this deliverance. You may want to read the entire account, as only a portion will be provided for sake of time/space:

“Then the angel of the Lord came and sat beneath the great tree at Ophrah … Gideon was threshing wheat at the bottom of a winepress…. The angel of the Lord appeared to him and said, ‘Mighty hero, the Lord is with you!’” (Judges 6:11-12, emphasis added to show that “the” angel of the Lord appeared as opposed to an angel).

Following Gideon’s response, we read, “Then the Lord turned to him and said, ‘Go with the strength you have, and rescue Israel from the Midianites. I am sending you!’” (Verse 14). The Lord also said, “…I will be with you…” (Verse 16). *Note: The Lord would use (enhance) whatever courage and initiative Gideon possessed to accomplish a stunning victory over the Midianites.

In this astonishing appearance of the Lord to Gideon, it’s crystal clear that he is not God the Father. Instead, it was a man (the angel of the Lord … also referred to as the Lord) who “sat beneath the great tree…” and spoke with Gideon face to face. None other than the Pre-Incarnate Son of God.

During this opening scene (even before Gideon twice asked God for more signs … the fleece), Gideon also asked for a sign. Here’s what happened after Gideon asked the Lord to wait while he prepared an offering:

“Then the angel of the Lord touched the meat and bread with the tip of the staff in his hand, and the fire flamed up from the rock and consumed all he had brought. And the angel of the Lord disappeared. When Gideon realized that it was the angel of the Lord, he cried out, ‘Oh, Sovereign Lord, I’m doomed! I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face!’” (Judges 6:21-22).

Do you see what’s going on here? Like those before him, Gideon knew that no one could meet with God “face to face” and live. Whom they described as the angel of the Lord, or a man, or the Lord, or even as God; because they didn’t yet grasp that God also was appearing to them as the 2^nd Person of the Trinity—Messiah Incarnate. Nor did God expect them to know at that time. The Father was preparing them and their descendants for the permanent arrival of his Son in the flesh.

However, by the time the entire Old Testament had been written, the people could and should have made the general composite connection of these appearances to the coming Messiah. Then, specifically after Jesus was born of a Virgin (conceived by the Holy Spirit) and indisputably provided first-hand evidence of his divinity (profound teaching, powerful miracles) neither Jews nor Gentiles to this very day have a valid reason for their unbelief. There are only inexcusable excuses. Especially after Messiah Jesus arose from the dead.

Samson

God’s choice of Samson to be Israel’s 12^th Judge also began with the angel of the Lord appearing. But not directly to Samson; instead to his mother (before Samson was born) and then to his mother and father together. The following verses are enough to show that it was a phenomenal appearance of God’s Son, the Incarnate Messiah.

“The woman ran and told her husband. ‘A man of God appeared to me! He looked like one of God’s angels, terrifying to see… he didn’t tell me his name” (Judges 13:6, italics for emphasis to verify that the person she saw was a man, whose majestic form she could only describe as an angel of God, of which there’s no record that she had ever seen an angel before).

Later, when her husband, Manoah, also met the Man of God and asked him to reveal his name, the Man replied: “Why do you ask my name? … It is too wonderful for you to understand” (Judges 13:18).

(Who else had asked the man who appeared to him for his name, with the Pre-Incarnate Son of God effectively inferring it wasn’t yet time to know his name? Answer: Jacob).

Continuing with the passage: “The angel of the Lord did not appear again to Manoah and his wife. Manoah finally realized it was the angel of the Lord, and said to his wife, ‘We will certainly die, for we have seen God!’” (Verse 21-22, emphasis added).

His wife wisely replied that if the Lord had intended to kill them he wouldn’t have accepted their offering. As with Gideon the Lord consumed their offering with fire, but also disappeared just like he did in front of Gideon.

Purpose/Timing of Messiah’s Appearance to Gideon and Samson’s Parents

Returning to Messiah’s Pre-Incarnate appearance to Gideon:

“It is all right, the Lord replied. Do not be afraid. You will not die. And Gideon built an altar to the Lord there and named it Yahweh-Shalom (which means ‘The Lord is peace’)” (Judges 6:23-24, parenthesis in the text).

Almost always when the Bible speaks of peace in Israel (and the whole world) it is in the immediate context of the Messiah. For it is only the Son of God, Messiah Jesus who will finally rescue and save Israel (and the whole world from extinction during the Tribulation). Who will establish God’s Kingdom on earth—a kingdom of justice, righteousness, and shalom … peace.

The immediate purpose for the Messiah’s Pre-Incarnate appearances to Gideon and Samson’s parents was to demonstrate that he would (through these two judges) deliver his people and restore peace again to Israel. He can do such things against all odds, i.e. Gideon’s 300 men against a vast army, or with just one man’s supernatural strength against an entire nation—Samson.

The period of the Judges was a representative forerunner of the subsequent era in Israel’s history with no kings and/or prophets—all the way from Malachi to the present time. Interrupted by the appearance of the Incarnate Messiah himself (Jesus) who would have rescued Israel from Rome had his people not rejected him. They were managed by governors and religious leaders … as it was in the period of the Judges. Even during Israel’s two exiles (Babylonian for 70 years and Diaspora for 1,900 years) Jews sometimes served in high-profile positions as advisors, assistants, administrators, and ambassadors … as did Daniel and Nehemiah.

So, too, modern-day Israel is led by (elected) officials but with one major difference—as a sovereign state reborn from the floods of dispersion and the fires of Nazi death camps. A nation and people now defended by a mighty military … the Israeli Defense Force. Still, the principle is like the time of the Judges. Israel’s sovereign protection is ultimately through God the Father … not by military might alone. And her redemptive rescue (past and future) through the angel of the Lord—God’s Son, the Incarnate Messiah Jesus. With Israel’s final restoration, both physical and spiritual, achieved by that same Messiah upon his return … Israel’s final king, the King of all kings!

Ezekiel’s Remarkable Meetings with God the Father and God the Son

One of the most astounding appearances of God the Father was his last, when Ezekiel gazed upon God’s glory more than once. What made these events even more amazing is that both the Father and the Son (Pre-Incarnate Messiah) were there! It is another familiar passage of Scripture, to include the four angelic Cherubim—the same living beings seen by John as described in the book of Revelation.

In his initial appearance to Ezekiel, God called him to be a prophet. Ezekiel (at the age of 30) even gives us the place and date on which his prophetic ministry began … calculated to be July 31, 593 B.C.

Wrote Ezekiel: “…while I was with the Judean exiles beside the Kebar River in Babylon, the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God” (Ezekiel 1:1).

The second appearance took place on September 17, 592 B.C, about six years before the Babylonian Empire destroyed Jerusalem and Solomon’s Temple. During this gap of a little over a year between visions, the Lord instructed Ezekiel—who had been taken captive in Nebuchadnezzar’s second invasion of Israel—to warn Judah of its final destruction, which occurred in 586 B.C.

The following passages demonstrate that both God the Father and Son were present in these two majestic manifestations to Ezekiel, the second of which was a detailed account of God’s Shekinah glory (presence) leaving Solomon’s Temple.

God the Father: Confirming it was the Father because his glory was (similar to Moses) enshrouded by, “…a huge cloud that flashed with lightning and shone will brilliant light. There was fire inside the cloud, and in the middle of the fire glowed something like gleaming amber” (Ezekiel 1:4).

Then in the second incident we read: “Suddenly, the glory of the God of Israel was there, just as I had seen it before in the valley” (Ezekiel 8:4).

Before God’s presence departed from the Temple, we read, “Then the glory of the Lord rose up from above the cherubim and went over to the door of the Temple. The Temple was filled with this cloud of glory, and the courtyard glowed brightly with the glory of the Lord” (Ezekiel 10:4).

God the Son: In these startling scenes there is someone else that Ezekiel beholds. Our first clue is Ezekiel 1:4, already quoted, where he sees in the magnificent cloud of fire and light, “something like gleaming amber.”

Then, he beholds the source of this gleaming amber.

“Spread out above them (the cherubim) was a surface like the sky, glittering like crystal” (Ezekiel 1:22, parenthesis mine).

“Above this surface was something that looked like a throne made of blue lapis lazuli (remind you of Moses and the seventy elders seeing that same kind of beauty). And on this throne high above was a figure whose appearance resembled a man. From what appeared to be his waist up, he looked like gleaming amber, flickering like a fire. And from his waist down, he looked like a burning flame, shining with splendor. All around him was a glowing halo, like a rainbow shining in the clouds on a rainy day. This is what the glory of the Lord looked like to me. When I saw it, I fell face down on the ground…” (Ezekiel 1:26-28, parenthesis mine).

In the subsequent episode, Ezekiel again saw the cherubim, the glory of the Lord, and this (same) man whom Ezekiel also described as a burning flame from the waist down and gleaming amber from the waist up (Ezekiel 8:2).

Later, the man appears once again with the Lord (the Father). Ezekiel writes: “Then the glory of the God of Israel rose up from between the cherubim, where it had rested, and moved to the entrance of the Temple. And the Lord called to the man dressed in linen who was carrying the writer’s case” (Ezekiel 9:3).

God the Father spoke to Ezekiel on subsequent occasions, as well as other contemporary and post-exile prophets but he did not appear to them. However, the Pre-Incarnate Christ continued his appearances up to the time of Malachi, again to Ezekiel on April 28^th, 573 B.C. The setting was Ezekiel’s vision of what would be (in the end times Tribulation) another Temple. In this vision from God, Ezekiel again saw, “…a man whose face shone like bronze standing beside a gateway entrance. He was holding in his hand a linen measuring cord and a measuring rod” (Ezekiel 40:3).

Purpose/Timing of Messiah’s Appearances to Ezekiel

To prepare Israel for the Old Covenant yielding to the New Covenant prophesied by Jeremiah a few years earlier. Exemplified by the fact that the Lord’s glory (presence) had left the Temple and wouldn’t reappear until (in the form of) the Messiah would arrive as prophesied by Isaiah and other prophets. But only for a short time, because the 2^nd Temple would also be destroyed (foretold by Daniel, also by Messiah Jesus) and the Temple would then be embodied as Messiah himself.

Jesus is the heavenly Temple, of which the earthly tabernacle and temple were but patterns. With the 3^rd person of the Triune God, the Holy Spirit, indwelling all believers in Messiah. Concerning Jewish and Gentile believers alike: “Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself. We are carefully joined together in him, becoming a holy temple for the Lord” (Ephesians 2:20-21).

Individually, believers are:

That’s why both God the Father and God the Son appeared to Ezekiel! For Israel to carefully consider and prayerfully ponder how much better the New Covenant would be. Even more important: to recognize the Messiah of that New Covenant when he arrived as God (the Son) Incarnate.

Still, the Lord gave his people another 600 years or so to prove to themselves and to him that they could keep the Law of Moses as what they perceived to be their source of right standing with God. Which they couldn’t or wouldn’t … nor their ancestors or descendants, right up to this day.

One day soon all that will change. The tens of thousands of Messianic Jews on this planet will become millions upon millions. For you see it won’t be long until, “…all Israel will be saved. As the Scriptures say, ‘The one who rescues will come from Jerusalem, and he will turn Israel away from ungodliness. And this is my covenant with them, that I will take away their sins’” (Romans 11:26-27).

That began when the Incarnate Son of God died on the cross and three days later arose from the dead. And now our generation has experienced the rebirth of national Israel, with the return of Messiah as imminent as ever before. To rescue the remnant of Jews from the Antichrist and Gentile nations during the Great Tribulation and restore Israel spiritually to her God.

All who have believed and received Messiah Jesus as personal Savior will see him as he really is: fully glorified as he was in Old Testament times and on the Mount of Transfiguration.

We will see him as John saw him: “…He was wearing a long robe with a gold sash across his chest. His head and his hair were white like wool, as white as snow. And his eyes were like flames of fire. His feet were like polished bronze refined in a furnace, and his voice thundered like mighty ocean waves… And his face was like the sun in all its brilliance” (Revelation 1:13-16).

John continues: “When I saw him, I fell at his feet as if I were dead. But he … said, ‘Don’t be afraid! I am the First and the Last'” (Revelation 1:17).

And then Jesus said:

Things to Ponder

Of Jesus, the Apostle John wrote under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1, NASB).

“And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw his glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14, NASB).

There are other Pre-Incarnate appearances of Messiah Jesus. Like the episodes we’ve examined, each was for a special reason. With the ultimate purpose: To demonstrate that neither Judaism nor the Jews should be surprised, dismayed, or even insulted that Jesus of Nazareth claimed to be the Son of God. For at least three reasons:

First: the Hebrew Scriptures irrefutably declare that God has a Son. Second: This Son is the Messiah, because the Bible is equally transparent that Messiah would be divine (Isaiah 9 and other passages). Third: Jesus fulfilled all Messianic prophecies in meticulous detail.

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). And then he said, “…Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father!” (John 14:9).

The Jewish Apostle Paul, who saw the risen Christ after Jesus had ascended to heaven, boldly and beautifully proclaims: “Christ is the visible image of the invisible God…” (Colossians 1:15).

And, “For God in all his fulness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross” (Verse 19-20).

Do you really want to know the Lord and his great love for you? Do you understand God’s only requirement for your redemption?

“Jesus told them, ‘This is the only work God wants from you: Believe in the one he has sent” (John 6:29).

Do you believe Jesus? Do you believe in Jesus?

Then open the door of your heart and invite him to be your Savior and Lord. If you do, God will immediately give you eternal life, because:

“…this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have God’s Son does not have life (I John 5:11-12).

High Holy Days

It’s too early to wish you a Merry Christmas, so I won’t! Although it’s just a matter of a few short weeks before Christmas merchandising begins.

The month of Kislev (November/December) is also when Hanukkah, the Feast of Dedication is celebrated on the Jewish calendar. As important as Hanukkah and Purim (February) are to Israelis and Jews the world over, neither is one of the seven festivals ordained by God in the Torah.

For Judaism and Jews, even the secular among them, four of these festivals bear more significance than the others: Passover, Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot.

Passover is observed during the month of Nisan (March/April). The Christian counterpart is Good Friday and Easter Sunday—when the Passover Lamb of God, Messiah Jesus was slain for the sins of the world, then arose from the dead three days later to seal the New Covenant God made with Israel almost 2,000 years ago. The other three commemorations take place in the Hebrew month of Tishrei (September/October … occasionally into early November), making it the single-most important month of the year for Jews … the High Holy Days.

Rosh Hashana—Jewish (civil) New Year Feast of Trumpets, Tishrei 1.

Yom Kippur—Day of Atonement, Tishrei 10.

Sukkot—Feast of Tabernacles, Tishrei 15-21.

Then one extra-day called Simchat Torah that means Rejoicing in the Torah, which is all the Hebrew Scriptures, but more specifically (especially for Orthodox Jews) the five books of Moses and The Law.

Today’s Eye of Prophecy article posted on September 29^th is the 6^th day of the Feast of Tabernacles, the 20^th day of Tishrei. This is also the time of year in which many Christian scholars (me included) believe that Messiah Jesus was born. Some narrowing it down to the seven-day Festival of Tabernacles.

(Jews celebrating Feast of Tabernacles in a Sukkah, a makeshift hut or tent)

Whatever month/day a person is born is important to them … it’s their birthday!

On a brief personal note, this time of the year is meaningful to me for another reason: my birthday was yesterday, September 28^th. Long before learning what day on the Hebrew calendar I was born; my favorite numbers were and still are three and seven. My email address contains those numbers … 773. When I discovered my Hebrew calendar birthdate, those numbers became even more relevant (for me). I was born on the 3^rd day of Tishrei, the seventh month of the religious (original) Hebrew calendar. And in a Hebrew year that contains two sevens (as does the current Jewish year … 5779).

Jesus’s exact birth date would be great to know. Yet, it is not as imperative (to know) as is remembrance of the fact that he came into this world and why. Sadly, many who honor the Christmas season don’t know why Jesus was born and/or ignore the reason in favor of just celebrating the season. For example: among other magnificent names and titles ascribed to him (such as found in Isaiah 9:6-7), the coming Messiah would be Immanuel—God with us.

“As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. ‘Joseph, son of David,’ the angel said, ‘do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.’

“All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord’s message through his prophet: ‘Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means God is with us’” (Matthew 1:20-23, quoting Isaiah 7:14).

Messiah would literally “tabernacle” among his people.

No Sacrificial Offerings … No Redemption

Notably, the Feast of Tabernacles is the final of the seven ordained feasts which makes it exceptional for that reason alone. Sukkot brings together the six previous festivals of the year by remembering everything the Lord did for his people before, during, and after the Exodus. Beginning with Abraham, God manifested himself (appeared), then dwelt among them in the Tabernacle’s Holy of Holies and later the Temple, from the time of Moses to the time of Ezekiel … approximately 700 years.

First, the Lord redeemed his people physically from Egyptian slavery and spiritually from themselves—through the atoning sacrifice of the Passover Lambs. He provided everything they needed in preparation for their entrance into the Promised Land (given to them as a perpetual inheritance) to serve him and to be a conduit of God’s Word and the light of his salvation to all people.

In spectacular fashion, he gave them the Law of Moses with universal moral decrees found in the Ten Commandments (written by the finger of God on stone tablets) as well as civil and ceremonial regulations. Included in the Covenant of the Law was the (mandatory) Levitical sacrificial system; on-going atonement for sins of commission and omission—individually and as a nation. Setting apart Israel from the pagan nations that idolized many man-made gods, whose standards or lack thereof resulted in self-absorption, immorality, slavery to sin and to each other (tyranny).

(Scene from Movie, The Ten Commandments)

Judaism continues to adhere to the Law of Moses as the ultimate means of redemption, despite the loss of the Temple and the all-important sacrificial system. That is the subject of the last two Eye of Prophecy articles: God’s New Covenant with Israel … Minus the Temple, Part I & II, posted 9-8 & 9-15-18.

It’s good that many Jews continue to observe the festivals enacted by their (and our) Creator—the God of the universe; also called the Holy One of Israel, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. From the Patriarchs came the Promised Child to bring salvation to the Jew first, then to the Gentiles.

Yet, they keep these festivals without the required sacrifices, most notably Passover, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot. Why? Because they are in denial that Messiah has already come; that the New Covenant promised through Jeremiah arrived two thousand years ago with the birth, life, crucifixion, burial, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. That his sacrifice was the once-for-all redemption for sin, freely given to all Jews and Gentiles who would believe and receive him as personal Savior.

The substitutionary sacrifice of God’s Son, Messiah Jesus, not only ended the repeated offerings for atonement, it solved the otherwise unsolvable dilemma of (practicing) Judaism. As first expressed in Eye of Prophecy trilogy Where is the Temple? (Posted 11-29-14 through 12-13-14). And repeated in the articles listed above. As follows:

No Temple, no sacrificial offerings. No sacrifices, no atonement forgiveness of sins. No forgiveness, no redemption. No redemption, no right standing with God.

Except for tens of thousands of Messianic Jews around the world, to this day Judaism cannot or will not make the cause and effect connection between rejection of their Messiah Savior to the subsequent loss of the Temple and sacrificial system. Even though both Daniel and Jesus foretold these ominous events and in the order of their occurrence: Messiah would be killed, then Jerusalem and the Temple destroyed (Daniel 9 and Matthew 23-24).

This week’s article and next week’s sequel will examine one other point of denial or dismissal, one that comes in two parts:

(1) Judaism’s denial that Jesus is the Son of God or even that God has a Son, with a corresponding conclusion that Messiah is not divine. As alluded in several Eye of Prophecy articles and thoroughly covered in two articles (Does God Really Have A Son? Part I & II posted 10-31 & 11-7-15): not just the New Testament, but the Old Testament emphatically and incontrovertibly declare that God does, in fact, have a Son. That the Son is also God, with compelling evidence that God’s Son is the Messiah; therefore, the Messiah is of divine origin.

Although there are more, the most recognizable passages are: Psalm 2 & 110; Micah 5; Isaiah 9. With, of course, New Testament Scriptures identifying Jesus of Nazareth as the Son of God, e.g. Matthew 1, Luke 2, John 1, Colossians 1, Hebrews 1, and many other passages, not the least of which is John 3:16. Plus, the historical fact that Jesus precisely fulfilled dozens of Old Testament prophecies concerning the Messiah. All in keeping with crystal clear testimony that the true and living God is one God in Three Persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—as found in several portions of Scripture.

Beginning with Genesis in which the Lord says, “…Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us…” (Genesis 1:26, emphasis added). Culminating with the last book of the Bible: Revelation—in which God, the Holy Spirit, and Jesus Christ (the Son) are all mentioned.

(2) Accordingly, most Jews, even those knowledgeable in the Hebrew Scriptures, have overlooked, minimized, or dismissed altogether several amazing Old Testament events that had one thing in common: In addition to God’s appearances to people (in other than bodily form), the Lord ALSO appeared on select occasions as a man. What has been termed: Pre-Incarnate Appearances of Messiah Jesus.

It’s not just non-Messianic Jews. Many students, teachers, and commentators of the Bible don’t always grasp or differentiate between the distinct ways in which God communicated or interacted directly with people in Old Testament times. Meaning which Person of the Godhead—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit appears and/or speaks to someone (however, with consensus that the Holy Spirit never appeared, rather He “came upon” people or inspired the writers of Scripture). Or the difference between an angel of the Lord and the Angel of the Lord who manifested themselves in human form on special occasions.

I suppose an Orthodox rabbi would respond: If Christians would simply discard their belief that God has a Son and the Holy Spirit is not the third Person of the (non-existent) Trinity, then there wouldn’t be any confusion over the Lord’s palpable appearances to people.

That skeptical viewpoint is precisely the point (theme) of this and next week’s article that begs the question: How does one explain those differences considering what Scripture plainly teaches about God (the Father)? To wit: God is Spirit; moreover, no man or woman can look on God and live to tell about it. In many of the Lord’s manifestations as a man, the person or people to whom he appeared voiced relief that they did not die from that direct encounter with the Lord. Why did they not die when they knew from even before Moses’ era that a face to face (so to speak) meeting with God would be fatal?

We’ll look at both types of the Lord’s astounding appearances; this week focusing on God the Father’s direct meeting with people. (Plus, a third means of God’s indirect interaction with people through angels). With an emphasis next week on the powerful Pre-Incarnate Epiphanes of the Son of God—Messiah Jesus.

God (the Father) Speaking and/or Appearing to People

Normally these engagements were with the Patriarchs—Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—or God’s prophets; in visions or dreams or audibly (or personally!).

Regarding the non-tangible events, the Bible is not always clear whether God the Father spoke to someone externally (audibly) or they internally processed the Lord’s message through inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Nor does that really matter, as Scripture plainly indicates the person heard precisely what God was saying, sometimes answering back. Frequently, the Lord conversed in the first person … I, my, me. God even spoke to a child, although the child didn’t at first know that it was the Lord speaking to him. Do you know the name of that child?

Correct: Samuel. Who would grow up to be one of Israel’s greatest prophets.

Beginning with Adam and Eve, who experienced first-hand the awesome presence of God in the Garden of Eden; with the obvious implication that the Lord spoke with them from the time they were created, though they could not see him. Obvious, because right after they sinned against God, we read the following with the clear connotation that Adam and Eve weren’t at all surprised that the Lord showed up and spoke to them. In fact, they foolishly hid themselves thinking the Lord wouldn’t find them.

“When the cool evening breezes were blowing, the man and his wife heard the LORD God walking about in the garden. So they hid from the LORD God among the trees. Then the LORD God called to the man, ‘Where are you?’ He replied, ‘I heard you walking in the garden, so I hid. I was afraid because I was naked.’ ‘Who told you that you were naked?’ the Lord God asked…” (Genesis 3:8-11).

You probably know the entirety of that scene, one that changed mankind’s destiny; yet one that God would remedy with his awesome plan of redemption and restoration.

Later the Lord spoke audibly to Cain. Do you know or remember the reason? Hint: It had to do with the first murder in the world.

Next up was Noah and again the subject was sin and wickedness, but not Noah’s.

“So God said to Noah, ‘I have decided to destroy all living creatures, for they have filled the earth with violence. Yes, I will wipe them all out along with the earth! Build a large boat…’” (Genesis 6:13-14a). Before, during, and after the Great Flood, the Lord spoke to Noah several times.

In the post-Flood era, Abram (God later changed his name to Abraham) was the next person with whom God spoke: “The LORD had said to Abram, ‘Leave your native country … and go to the land that I will show you’” (Genesis 12:1, capitals in the text as in many other passages because it was YHWH, himself speaking).

Whenever LORD is capitalized in Scripture (over 6,000 times), it is a substitute for Yahweh, God’s Holy Name … I AM.

In the next five verses of Chapter 12, we read that Abram obeyed the Lord and journeyed to this land, called Canaan at the time. Later we’re told that Abraham’s faith in God and obedience to what the Lord told him to do was “credited to Abraham as righteousness;” right standing with God—forever (Genesis 15:6). It is this same faith (trust) that is the basis of redemption for all people—first in God’s promise of the Promised Child (through Isaac), then in the Promised Child, himself—Messiah Jesus whom God sent at his appointed time in history.

Some forget that Abram and his family (virtually all the people of his time) worshipped many gods … polytheistic. I’ve convinced that one of the reasons—most likely the main or only reason—that Abraham believed it was, in fact, the LORD (the true and living God) who had graciously chosen him to be the progenitor of a nation in a land promised to Abraham and his descendants was because God spoke to him. No other (man-made, non-existent) god had ever spoken to anyone. They can’t … they’re not real. However, hundreds of times we read in the Bible that, “God said.” Or, “I, the Lord, have spoken.”

Soon after Abraham and his family (including Lot) arrived in Canaan, something even more breathtaking took place—though most people including observant Jews and even we believers in Yeshua tend to take for granted. We do so because we read that God spoke to people so often, which is amazing enough; but is not quite the same thing as what comes next in Abraham’s life.

“Then the LORD appeared to Abram and said, ‘I will give this land to your descendants.’ And Abram built an altar there and dedicated it to the LORD, who had appeared to him” (Genesis 12:7, italics for emphasis). Where and why did Abram build an altar? He built it there because the LORD appeared to him (there).

Astounding! God appeared to Abraham, but not bodily. Otherwise Scripture (as it does in many scenes in which the Lord shows himself in person as the Preincarnate Christ) would have said so. Nor does that chapter tell us how the Lord’s appearance was manifested. Later, however, when the Lord appeared again to confirm His covenant with Abram, God’s presence was revealed in a “flaming torch” (Genesis 15:17).

And, of course, many—both believers and unbelievers—know that God tangibly appeared to Moses in/from a blazing bush. A bush that burned without being consumed; the purpose of which was to protect Moses from God’s glory. Even then, Moses could only get so close to the bush. Obviously, this was no ordinary fire. Nor any ordinary god!

“There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a blazing fire from the middle of the bush… When the LORD saw Moses coming to take a closer look, God called to him from the middle of the bush, ‘Moses! Moses!’

‘Here I am!’ Moses replied.

‘Do not come any closer,’ the Lord warned. ‘Take off your sandals, for you are standing on holy ground. I am the God of your father—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ When Moses heard this, he covered his face because he was afraid to look at God” (Exodus 3:2-6).

Before Moses knew that it was the Lord God talking to him from the fire, he began by saying, the angel of the Lord (appeared to him).

The word angel means messenger. That is what angels are: messengers and agents of God who speak and act on behalf of the Lord. In just a few seconds, Moses knew full well that it was God himself who was there, speaking to him … not one of God’s angels. This is one time when the angel of the Lord turned out to be God. However, notice that God wasn’t there in bodily form, another indication that it was God the Father who met with Moses.

Face to Face

God spoke with and appeared to Moses far more than any other person in history. So much so, Scripture tells us in the context of Moses’ eulogy: “There has never been another prophet in Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face” (Deuteronomy 34:10).

When the Lord summoned Moses’ brother and sister (Aaron and Miriam) to stand in front of him alongside Moses, he admonished them for challenging Moses’ authority: “And the Lord said to them, ‘Now listen to what I say: If there were prophets among you, I, the Lord, would reveal myself in visions. I would speak to them in dreams. But not with my servant Moses. Of all my house, he is the one I trust. I speak to him face to face … He sees the Lord as he is…” (Numbers 12:6-8).

However, whether these face-to-face encounters were on Mt. Sinai or at/in the Tabernacle or elsewhere, Scripture is abundantly clear that God’s presence (his holy, brilliant, lethal light… as he is) was veiled by a dark cloud or fie. Why? Because no man can look directly at God and survive.

In the scene just described, the Lord told them to meet him at the Tabernacle. “Then the Lord descended in the pillar of cloud and stood at the entrance of the Tabernacle. ‘Aaron and Miriam!’ he called, and they stepped forward” (Numbers 12:5).

As many people know, it was in a pillar of cloud by day and pillar of fire by night through which God (his very presence) led his people for forty years in the wilderness.

The one time that God permitted Moses to look at God’s unshielded glory, he was not allowed to look at God straight on.

“Moses responded, ‘Then show me your glorious presence.’ The Lord replied, ‘I will make all my goodness pass before you, and I will call out my name, Yahweh, before you … But you may not look directly at my face, for no one may see me and live … As my glorious presence passes by, I will hide you in the crevice of the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will remove my hand and let you see me from behind. But my face will not be seen’” (Exodus 33:18-23).

*Note: God the Father is Spirit … always has been, always will be. That’s why he sometimes used anthropomorphic terms, ascribing human features to himself, i.e. hand, face.

(God’s glory passing in front of Moses took place when Moses climbed Mount Sinai to receive the Ten Commandments on stone the second time)

From Abraham’s time (even before God told/reminded Moses) those who subsequently believed in the Lord—including the entire nation of Israel during Moses’s ministry and thereafter—knew that no one could look on the LORD and live to tell about it.

Thus, Scripture is unequivocally clear that whenever God’s actual (proximate) presence appeared to people, his glory (the very essence/holiness of God) was concealed in some fashion. For example, when the Lord met with Job, he spoke and protected Job from God’s glory through a whirlwind.

God the Father’s manifested appearances ended with the prophet Ezekiel, who witnessed “the glory of the LORD” depart from Solomon’s Temple, even before the Temple was destroyed some six years later. At the beginning of his ministry, Ezekiel witnessed God’s glory that radiated from within, “…a huge cloud that flashed with lightning and shone with brilliant light. There was fire inside the cloud, and in the middle of the fire glowed something like gleaming amber” (Ezekiel 1:4).

Yet, there are several other events in which the Lord appeared to someone as a man. Was this man, God? Answer: Yes and no. Yes, he was God. No, he was not God the Father. He was God the Son. The Bible is not contradicting itself, as Scripture is equally transparent that God is Three in One.

In the remainder of today’s article and in the entirety of next week’s sequel, we’ll look at some of these remarkable occurrences. Beginning with one of the most well-known stories in the Bible. Talk about “face to face!” This encounter was so up-close and personal that the person touched God.

I’m thinking that some of you already know which one.

Read with me a portion of this extraordinary episode: “This left Jacob all alone in the camp, and a man came and wrestled with him until the dawn began to break…. Then the man said, ‘Let me go, for the dawn is breaking!’

But Jacob said, ‘I will not let you go unless you bless me.’

‘What is your name?’ the man asked.

“He replied, ‘Jacob.’

‘Your name will no longer be Jacob,’ the man told him. ‘From now on you will be called Israel, because you have fought with God and with men and have won.’

‘Please tell me your name,’ Jacob said.

‘Why do you want to know my name?’ the man replied. Then he blessed Jacob there.

“Jacob named the place Peniel (which means ‘face of God’), for he said, ‘I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been spared’” (Genesis 32:24-30, parenthesis in the text).

There’s no doubt whatsoever: Jacob knew that this mysterious man was God. Who but the Lord had the authority to change Jacob’s name to Israel or Abram’s name to Abraham, or Sarai to Sarah? Who but God had the sovereign power to bless Jacob, thus confirming God’s covenant with Abraham, then Isaac, then Jacob. A covenant that would create an entire nation, a nation that would be called Israel. In the context of when this scene took place, it’s also deductively evident that Jacob wanted the man’s (God’s) immediate blessing to spare Jacob from the wrath of his brother Esau, whom he would meet that very day.

What Jacob didn’t know, nor others who had subsequent encounters with the Lord in human form during Old Testament times: this man with whom he wrestled was the Incarnate Son of God. The God/man who could have easily defeated Jacob in a minute but wanted to test Jacob’s perseverance to obtain the blessing. The same man who would arrive once-for-all as Mary’s child—the Son of God, Son of David, and Son of Man (Messiah) to establish God’s New Covenant with Israel. A Covenant that would also extend to Gentiles who believed and received this man as their Lord and Savior.

That’s why Messiah (Jesus) didn’t reveal his name to Jacob. His entrance into the human race that he created, permanently taking on human form and bearing a human name (in addition to all his divine titles) wouldn’t take place until the appointed time, over a thousand years later.

God Interaction Directly with People Via His Angels—angelic beings

In lieu of God the Father or God the Son (whose description is sometimes the angel of the Lord, as opposed to an angel), some of the Lord’s messages to or actions on behalf of people came through angels. With these angels appearing either as a man or in their actual angelic form (heavenly beings/bodies), depending on the situation.

One example of angels in the form of men were the two who met with Abraham and Sarah. Along with a third man, who was clearly the Lord himself—the 2^nd Pre-Incarnate appearance of Christ to Abraham. The first being that of Melchizedek. (See Eye of Prophecy article, Melchizedek … A Man of Mystery! Posted 3-3-18).

Abraham knew convincingly that this third man was the LORD, because he called him by that very title. And exclaimed during his intercession for Lot and his family: “…Should not the Judge of all the earth do what is right?” (Genesis 18:25).

An example of angels materializing (crossing dimensions) in their created form is first found in the book of Genesis following God’s indictments against Adam and Eve. “So the Lord God banished them from the Garden of Eden … After sending them out, the Lord God stationed mighty cherubim to the east of the Garden of Eden. And he placed a flaming sword that flashed back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life” (Genesis 3:23-24).

(See Ezekiel Chapters 1 & 10 & Revelation 4, for description of Cherubim–living beings–which are somewhat accurately depicted in this painting)

One other well-known scene is that of angels (as angels) descending and ascending on Jacob’s stairway or ladder; a real occurrence but experienced as a dream or what could be termed a vision while asleep … rather than a fully conscious (awake) encounter. Also, when Gabriel approached Daniel in real-time and place and conveyed to him some of the most astonishing end-times revelations found in the Bible (see Daniel 8 & 9).

Something I hadn’t fully realized until writing this article: There aren’t that many instances in the Old Testament in which angels appear to men in their angelic form. At least not compared to the number of Pre-Incarnate appearances of Messiah Jesus. However, there are several angelic appearances in the New Testament, including Gabriel to Mary to announce that through her the Messiah would be conceived by the Holy Spirit. And before that, Gabriel’s announcement in the Temple’s Holy of Holies to Zechariah that he and his wife Elizabeth (in their old age) would conceive a son whose name would be John (the Baptist).

And not the least of which are angels appearing at the birth of Jesus, in his anguish in the Garden of Gethsemane, at his resurrection, and immediately after his ascension back to heaven.

“So they went in (to the tomb), but they didn’t find the body of the Lord Jesus. As they stood there puzzled, two men suddenly appeared to them, clothed in dazzling robes. The women were terrified and bowed with their faces to the ground. Then the men asked, ‘Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is alive? He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead!’” (Luke 24:3-6).

Although appearing as men, their dazzling attire left no doubt that they were angels.

He is risen, indeed!

Things to Ponder

Yeshua never sinned. He perfectly kept and faultlessly fulfilled the Law of Moses. Thus, he alone qualified as the once for all substitutionary offering to atone for our rebellion against God. The Father accepted that incredible sacrifice; the innocent for the guilty, just for the unjust, righteous for the unrighteous and will pardon the penalty of sin (eternal death—separation from God) for all who believe and receive His Son as personal Savior.

From the time when Jesus of Nazareth came into this world and altered time itself (B.C. to A.D.), the greater majority of people have refused to believe that Jesus is both man and God.

Yet unbelieving Gentiles ascribed human characteristics to their pagan gods, e.g. Zeus, Venus, Mars. Modern-day comic-book (and other genre) movies do the same thing. Both super heroes and super villains are imbued with supernatural powers, able to transform themselves into whatever suits the writer’s and director’s fancy and whatever entices audiences. With an underlying implication that is anything but subtle: these characters possess God-like features in the flesh. But when it comes to the real thing, the real-deal; so many dismiss and even ridicule any thought that God would become man through the Son.

Most Jews to this day believe it’s an anathema to claim that God has a Son; thus, except for Messianic Jews, they do not believe that the coming Messiah (for believers, His return) is Divine.

As we’ve seen and will see more of next week, this conflicts with the indisputable evidence found in the Hebrew Scriptures: God appeared to men not only as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, but also in the form of a man. When that happened, the people whom the man met in person recognized that they had come “face-to-face” with God. Yet, this man couldn’t have been God, the Father, because God is Spirit, and no one can look on him and live. Moreover, when God the Father (his glory) did appear before men, it was never in bodily form.

Why is it so difficult to apprehend and accept clear Biblical truth that God is one God in Three Persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit? Especially when we see perceptible examples (albeit not totally adequate to explain the Trinity) in nature. Such as water in three forms—liquid, ice, and gas. Or the essence of the sun itself, visible only by its burning rays (light) and felt only by its heat.

“Christ is the visible image of the invisible God…” (Colossians 1:15).

The people involved in these direct Old-Testament encounters didn’t realize at the time that their face to face meeting with the Lord was the 2^nd Person of the Godhead, the coming Messiah. Nonetheless, by the time the entire Old Testament was written, all of God’s people could have and should have known that the man who appeared personally to some of their ancestors was Divine—the Lord. Just as King David said he was.

While teaching in the Temple, Jesus presented David’s astounding proclamation regarding the Son of God (Psalm 110) as a question … a probing challenge. In doing so, he identified all three Persons of the Godhead:

“…Why do the teachers of religious law claim that the Messiah is the son of David? For David, himself, speaking under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, said, ‘The LORD said to my Lord, Sit in the place of honor at my right hand until I humble your enemies beneath your feet.’ Since David himself called the Messiah, ‘my Lord,’ how can the Messiah be his son?’” (Mark 12:35-37).

Jesus’s question was rhetorical. The answer was obvious. David had already announced that God has a Son (Psalm 2). And this Son (of David) was also David’s Lord, as much as “the LORD” (God the Father) was David’s Lord.

Though David’s Lord was a descendant of David, he also preexisted David. As the prophet Micah later said: “But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village among all the people of Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel will come from you, one whose origins are from the distant past…. And he will be the source of peace” (Micah 5:2 & 9).

Messiah Jesus said the same thing regarding himself and Abraham. “Jesus answered, ‘I tell you the truth, before Abraham was even born, I AM!’” (John 8:58).

Don’t miss next week’s sequel. More of God’s physical appearances to people will be identified, some of which even ardent students of Scripture sometimes fail to recognize as the Pre-Incarnate Messiah (Jesus).

Hopefully, with two significant results: (1) To demonstrate especially to the Jews and Judaism that these appearances were a prototype preview to prepare 1^st century Jews (and Gentiles) for the stunning reality of God in human form—in the person of God’s Son. (2) The correlation of these encounters to God’s choice of Israel and the Jews to accomplish his magnificent plan for them, for the entire human race.

Judaism Is Still in Denial … Of What & Why?

The good news about the Good News (Gospel) is that tens of millions of Gentiles and tens of thousands of Jews have accepted Messiah Jesus as their personal Savior and Lord in just the past 50 years or so.

The not-so-good news: Despite the stark reality that the Temple and the Levitical Sacrificial System ceased to exist in 70 A.D., most Jews hold on to some form of Judaism—Ultra-Orthodox, Orthodox, Conservative, Reformed, Liberal, or even secular (Jewish identity without religious overtones). Yet, there’s no workable way to circumvent the fact that Old Testament sacrifices (in and near the Tabernacle, then later the Temple) were an integral feature of the Law of Moses—required by the Lord as the Hebrew Scriptures explain in extraordinary detail.

Contemporary Judaism is still in denial that without sacrificial shedding of blood there can be no atonement for sin. Thus, redemption (of which they’re never sure of) for today’s Jews involves a variety of practices, principles, and promises that not all Rabbis agree on, i.e. those which are essential or just recommended. Such as observing Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement … a few days from now on September 19th) for sins to be forgiven and for each Jew to remain inscribed in the Book of Life. However, the Biblical Day of Atonement required animal sacrifice (as did all the other sacred festivals) plus the Scapegoat on Yom Kippur. See Eye of Prophecy article: Yom Kippur / With or Without Atonement? Posted 10-15-16.

Even more consequential: Denial that the New Covenant prophesied by Jeremiah has already come to pass; two thousand years ago, when Israel’s Messiah was crucified (shedding his blood), buried, but then arose from the dead. A once-for-all sacrifice to permanently replace the Levitical system as the ultimate avenue of atonement.

Through the ages, God’s punishment of his special possession Israel and his chosen people the Jews has been severe. For the very reason that they are his chosen people. To whom much is given, much is required. To the extent that some Jews have said (paraphrasing): “Do we have to be so chosen!” Or, in one of my favorite films (top five), Fiddler on the Roof; the main character’s playful (yet solemn) request of God. Said Tevye, the milkman:

“I know, I know. We are Your chosen people. But, once in a while, can’t you choose someone else?!”

(Scene from Fiddler on the Roof, released in 1971; Tevye–played by actor Topol–in the foreground)

So, too, were God’s bountiful blessings equally serious (generously good, sincerely special) in prospering and protecting Israel when they as a nation trusted Him to provide their needs and obeyed his commandments, all of which were fair and just.

In Leviticus Chapter 26, we find the blessings of God for obedience; but also, four phases of God’s (seven-times over) punishment of Israel for disobedience … each stage harsher than the one before. With, however, the same reason for God’s increasingly tough discipline of his people: “And if, In spite of all this, you still disobey me (verse 18); If even then you remain hostile toward me and refuse to obey me (verse 21); And if you fail to learn the lesson and continue your hostility toward me (verse 23); If in spite of all this you still refuse to listen and still remain hostile toward me” (verse 27).

The final consequence was, by far, the worst: “I will scatter you among the nations… Your land will become desolate and your cities will lie in ruins” (Leviticus 26:33).

That is precisely what happened some 600 years later when Assyria conquered and exiled Israel’s ten northern tribes; only after several prophets warned Israel to return to the Lord. Warnings that fell on deaf ears. Then 136 years later, Babylon crushed the remaining two southern tribes (Judah and Benjamin), utterly demolished Solomon’s Temple, and marched most of the survivors to Babylonia.

Nonetheless, through the prophet Jeremiah, God promised that the exiled punishment of the southern kingdom would last only 70 years, which is exactly the lapse between Judah’s deportation to Babylon and completion of the 2^nd Temple in 516 B.C. In his mercy, God had given his people another chance to trust, and obey him. Which they did … sort of, intermittently and only for a few decades.

By 400 B.C., they had (as a nation … most Jews) again abandoned the Lord in heart and spirit, having become legalistic. Not sincerely loving and faithfully following the Lord; rather that of lip service through rote sacrifices based more on pagan-like superstitions and wrong suppositions (just do the sacrifices and God is obligated to protect and prosper us). See the book of Malachi. Followed by 400 years of silence until the Lord spoke to Israel once again, stirred the people’s conscience, and prepared the way for Messiah through John the Baptist.

The Jewish leaders sent priests and Temple assistants to interrogate John.

“…Are you the Prophet we are expecting?”

“No.”

“Then who are you? We need an answer for those who sent us. What do you have to say about yourself?”

“John replied in the words of the prophet Isaiah: ‘I am a voice shouting in the wilderness. Clear the way for the Lord’s coming!’” (John 1:21-23).

“The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, ‘Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. He is the one I was talking about when I said, A man is coming after me who is far greater than I am, for he existed long before me’” (John 1:29-30, also see Micah 5:2).

Not Once, But Twice

Then in 70 A.D. the unthinkable happened. For a second time—incredibly on the same calendar day (9^th of Av) when Solomon’s Temple was demolished—the 2^nd Jewish Temple was destroyed.

Once again, the Jews were evicted from the Promised Land of Israel, this time by the Romans. As they eventually realized: this dispersion would be far more austere and longer-lasting than their first exile. God’s discipline administered seven-times over continued until the Gentile domination of the Jews (which was the means of chastisement) would come to an end. Which took place in the miraculous Six-Day War of 1967; Jerusalem was liberated, and the Holy City reunited with the Holy Land of reborn Israel.

Moses wrote about this more devastating exile, as also contained in Leviticus 26. From this additional prophetic description, it’s evident that the Lord is not restricting Israel’s punishment to what would inevitably happen to them at the hands of the Assyrians and Babylonians.

“And for those of you who survive, I will demoralize you in the land of your enemies. You will live in such fear that the sound of a leaf driven by the wind will send you fleeing. You will run as though fleeing from a sword, and you will fall even when no one pursues you… You will die among the foreign nations and be devoured in the land of your enemies. Those of you who survive will waste away in your enemies’ lands because of their sins and the sins of their ancestors” (Leviticus 26:36-39).

In conclusion of this long-term punishment, the Lord states: “…At last the people will pay for their sins, for they have continually rejected my regulations and despised my decrees” (Verse 43, italics for emphasis).

From the passage and in historical hindsight, we know that this scattering among the nations was different than (in addition to) the Babylonian captivity for at least two reasons: (1) Length of time vastly longer than the 70-year Babylonian captivity. However, encoded in Leviticus 26 was the precise duration of this discipline, discernible only by realization that the seven times over (four separate phases) represented an actual measurement of time. (Please see Eye of Prophecy trilogy: Seven Times Seven to the 4^th Power, followed by The Omega Generation. Posted 1-25-14 through 2-15-14).

(2) Harshness of the punishment that exceeded anything experienced during the seven decades in Babylon. During the Babylonian exile, the Jews were treated with relative kindness by their captors. The Babylonians certainly did not demoralize their Jewish captives. Nor in their captivity were they devoured by the Babylonians, i.e. deprived of property, persecuted, or randomly killed just because they were Jews, or killed at all. Nor did the Jews (other than growing older) “waste away” in Babylon.

Not so after the Diaspora inflicted by the Romans. Jews were banished to multiple countries (that part of Leviticus says, many nations as opposed to just one nation—which would be Babylon). Although some prospered, for nearly 2,000 years they collectively were mocked, bullied, harassed, oppressed, mistreated, and murdered in the aggregate millions by Muslims, Crusaders, Eastern European and Russian pogroms, Inquisitions, and the most horrendous of all—the Holocaust.

As painful as it is, God’s chosen people the Jews must ask themselves: Why did the second destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple result in a bitterer and longer (by far) punishment than the exile to Babylon? For that matter, what might the Jews have done so wrong in the first century that would result in God withdrawing his protection of them, and for so long.

Many Jewish scholars (rabbis) contend that the factional disunity among 1^st century Jews is what (exclusively) caused their demise. However, that same kind of dissension existed before the Babylonian captivity. Furthermore, the Old Testament prophets are clear that it was Israel’s defiance of God and rejection of his prophets (messages) that led directly to the nation’s punishment at the hands of Babylon; not internal disunity—which was only a by-product of disobedience. It was also rejection of God’s final Prophet, greater even than Moses, that precipitated the devastating Diaspora at the hands of the Romans. This Prophet was also Israel’s final High Priest and ultimate King. He was none other than the long-awaited Messiah.

(Depicts Roman destruction of 2nd Jewish Temple & Jerusalem)

Moreover, what are the repercussions absent their Temple and the Levitical Sacrificial System? If Judaism is to be practiced properly as found in the Law of Moses, these (and other) questions need to be addressed with a great deal of uniformity among today’s Jews … which they have not.

Is There a Correlation Between Israel’s Rejection of the New Covenant & the Loss of the 2^nd Temple?

The answer is Biblically and historically crystal clear: because Israel as a whole (although thousands did believe) rejected their Messiah … Jesus of Nazareth. This was even more evident after the Temple was destroyed, because they had missed or ignored Daniel’s prophecy that not only would it be razed again, but Messiah would arrive before the Temple’s demolition.

Here is an excerpt from Eye of Prophecy article: Who is Messiah? (Posted 3-29-14; also detailed in a few subsequent articles).

“After this period of sixty-two sets of seven, the Anointed One (Messiah) will be killed, appearing to have accomplished nothing, and a ruler will arise whose armies will destroy the city and the Temple….” (Daniel 9:26).

This verse is quoted mostly for the benefit of God’s chosen people, the Jews, but also for Gentile unbelievers. Even if you ignore or overlook the historical evidence of Jesus’s claims to be the Messiah (Son of God), his teachings, his miracles, and his awesome, miraculous resurrection from the dead, this prophecy in Daniel came to pass in its totality when the Roman Generals Vespasian and Titus attacked Israel and Jerusalem under the direct orders of Nero Caesar. Of equally profound significance: this passage tells us that the Messiah will be killed BEFORE Jerusalem and the Temple are destroyed. If you have any regard for historical facts whatsoever; and especially if you are a Jew that believes that the Torah … for Christians what is called the Old Testament … is the Word of the true and living God, then you must agree that Messiah, himself, arrived on the scene of history before 70 AD.

In the Eye of Prophecy trilogy: Where is the Temple? (published 11-29 through 12-13-14), a thematic premise based on God’s Law given through Moses was stated and amplified in all three articles. As follows:

No Temple, no sacrificial offerings. No sacrifices, no atonement forgiveness of sins. No forgiveness, no redemption. No redemption, no right standing with God.

Here is an excerpt from Part I of that trilogy, which prefaced that premise (in italics):

But with this article … meant to dutifully challenge (with consideration, courtesy, respect, and even reverence) the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob with a poignant but probing question: Where is the Temple?

What happened to it? How can any Jew embrace and practice Judaism without the ancient sacrifices, which is the fundamental reason the Tabernacle and then the Temple was built in the first place? Did the loss of the Temple affect the very core of the Jewish faith? If so, how and to what extent? …has God also done away with the very heart of his redemptive plan for mankind through Israel—reconciliation and salvation by the sacrificial shedding of blood?

Where is the Temple? isn’t meant to be answered by a literal location. Because we know that the Temple isn’t (anywhere). It’s gone. But why? Was there a more far-reaching purpose why God allowed the Temples to be obliterated? …Who, if anyone; or what, if anything, has replaced the Temple for two thousand years?

In short, how can the Jewish faith function without adhering to the entire Mosaic Law; which clearly was an equally balanced two-tier foundation of: (1) Obedience to God’s Word … pillars of laws, commands, decrees, regulations. (2) Sacrificial Offerings … the cornerstones of atonement by, blessing from, and relationship with God … how (else) can a Jew or anyone be reconciled to God?

The answer is found in the New Covenant; however, to this day most Jews still deny that it has arrived. Although the 9^th of Av is still mourned by millions of Jews, implications over loss of the Temple are not written about or discussed much at all even among observant Jews. Both religious and secular Jews long for Messiah to come, to bring about Israel’s final redemption, yet they differ as to what that redemption is or how and why it will come about. Nor is there much interest or effort in Judaism to match up this redemption with the New Covenant announced by Jeremiah.

(Please see the second-most visited Eye of Prophecy article to date: Where is Messiah … Is He Already Here? Posted 6-25-16).

The first century Apostle Paul—a devout Jewish Pharisee whose life was dramatically changed by his personal encounter with the risen Christ—passionately wanted his people to realize that the New Covenant had arrived. Wrote Paul:

“Dear brothers and sisters, the longing of my heart and my prayer to God is for the people of Israel to be saved. I know what enthusiasm they have for God, but it is misdirected zeal. For they don’t understand God’s way of making people right with himself. Refusing to accept God’s way (the New Covenant), they cling to their own way of getting right with God by trying to keep the law (Old Covenant). For Christ has already accomplished the purpose for which the law was given. As a result, all who believe in him are made right with God” (Romans 10:1-4, parenthesis mine).

Here is an excerpt from Part III of Where is the Temple? (In italics):

The Lord fully understands the natural bent of mankind: That of trying to earn God’s favor, trying to merit salvation and eternal life by performance, by innate worth, by good works; instead of simply agreeing with God and accepting his grace … the wonderful, matchless gift of God’s own Son as a substitutionary sacrificial payment for all the wrong things we have done.

Thus, God gave the Law for two reasons: (1) as dependable as the conscience of man can sometimes be, it is not constantly adequate or endlessly reliable to unerringly distinguish right from wrong. Hence, it was necessary to establish universally objective moral and spiritual laws (summarized in the Ten Commandments) so that no one would excuse immoral behavior by saying they didn’t know it was (for example) wrong to steal. (2) To give men and women every chance possible to earn their salvation by obeying these laws perfectly. But because no one has ever kept the Law in every point, the Law ended up sentencing us to everlasting death.

How sadly ironic: the only thing earned is physical and then spiritual death (separation from God forever). “For the wages of sin is death….” (Romans 6:23a).

As asked and answered by Paul, “Why, then was the law given? It was given alongside the promise to show people their sins. But the law was designed to last only until the coming of the child who was promised….” (Galatians 3:19) Paul goes on to identify this ultimate child of promise as Messiah Jesus.

Things to Ponder

Summarily revisiting the first heading of this week’s article: Judaism Is Still in Denial … Of What & Why?

Of what? Of the overwhelming evidence that the New Covenant (of Grace)—implemented when Messiah Jesus died on the cross and arose from the dead—was providentially connected to and resulted in the subsequent destruction of the Temple, because God’s people rejected their Messiah.

Why (still in denial)? Because Judaism still clings to the Law of Moses as the ultimate means of redemption, despite the cessation of the Old Covenant sacrificial system.

Yet, we must not as many have done—particularly through the insidious Replacement Theology that falsely claims the Christian church has replaced Israel physically—ever stop longing and praying for Israel’s final redemption. Beginning with one Jewish heart at a time, culminating with the entire remnant of Israel being saved.

“Did God’s people stumble and fall beyond recovery? Of course not! They were disobedient, so God made salvation available to the Gentiles. But he wanted his own people to become jealous and claim it for themselves. Now if the Gentiles were enriched because the people of Israel turned down God’s offer of salvation, think how much greater a blessing the world will share when they finally accept it” (Romans 11:11-12).

Again, the Apostle Paul says: “For since their rejection meant that God offered salvation to the rest of the world, their acceptance will be even more wonderful. It will be life for those who were dead!” (Romans 11:15).

*Footnote: Eye of Prophecy articles that have two or more parts (published in successive weeks) are normally planned. But not all of them. Originally this week’s article was not intended to be in two parts. As the author, it’s sometimes difficult to choose between the better continuity of one article (read in its entirety) that perhaps is too long. Versus extending the topic over two (or more) articles with the undesirable possibility that only one of them will be read.

I’ve chosen the two-part option with optimistic expectation that you won’t miss next week’s article. To even more fully grasp this all-important subject of salvation to the Jew first that is so intricately linked to what they think and have done about the loss of the Jewish Temple and Old Covenant Sacrificial system of atonement. And most of all: whether they recognize that their Messiah has already come as Savior, sent by his and the Father’s great love for his people (and the whole world). And will soon return … this time as King and Judge.