The Last Few Coats of Paint . . . - Jack Kinsella - www.omegaletter.com

“But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.” (Daniel 12:4) The vision and prophecy given to Daniel is to be fulfilled at the ‘time of the end’.

The angel says at that time that people will be traveling back and forth on the earth (‘to and fro’) at a time of exponentially increasing knowledge.

We live in a time when information is coming at us so fast that we even have a phrase to describe it -- information overload.

Throughout history, new discoveries have come slowly – Noah, Paul and Columbus all sailed in ships. From Noah’s time to that of Columbus, the most notable technological improvement was the addition of sails.

The personal computer was introduced to the public twenty-two years ago. It is the world’s youngest antique.

Today, if you go in to a computer store to buy a new computer, adding the four year extended warranty is a waste of money. A four-year-old computer isn’t worth as much as the price of the warranty.

Today’s brand-new computer probably won’t run 2007’s software anyway. According to Moore’s Law of Computing, computer processor capacity will double every eighteen months. So today’s 3gigabyte CPU will be competing four years from now with a 30 gigabyte CPU or larger.

Computers will be ten times smarter in just four years. As a consequence, so will we. Ten years from now, who can imagine what computers will be able to figure out?

So, since the signs given to Daniel are taking place before our very eyes, we know that the end time prophecies found in the scriptures are for today. Furthermore, we can now understand the end time prophecies as never before, since the end time prophecies were sealed up until the time of the end; that is, the understanding of these prophecies was kept a secret until now.

Amos 3:7-8 says, "Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets. . .The lion hath roared, who will not fear? the Lord GOD hath spoken, who can but prophesy?"

God intended for us to know what He has planned to do before He does it. It is His Signature, sealing His Word for eternity.

Prophecy is given so that when it does happen we will know that God was in control all the time, so we can have confidence when all the rest of the world sees is chaos.

2 Pet 3:3-4 “Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.”

No generation in history needs the Bible more, and no generation in history has eye witnessed more man-made miracles, signs and wonders than this one.

In this generation, calling down ‘fire from heaven’ is a more a technological miracle than a supernatural one. It is to this specific generation that the prophecies are addressed. Consequently, it is this generation whose attention is most closely focused on the books of Daniel and the Revelation. And not just by the professing church -- that's where most of the scoffers are.

Look at all the movies about the end times. They are not being produced by believers for believers, but by Hollywood for unbelievers. Hollywood believes in prophecy, it just doesn't believe in God. The same can be said for many unbelievers.

To them, its a parlor trick, but to us, it is the power of God. "For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God." (1 Corinthians 1:18)

Prophecy is the ONE miracle no human being can recreate with technology. Conseqently, prophecy is given to that one generation who needs it the most.

Matt 24:36-39 tells us, “But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.”

No one knows the exact day and hour, but we can know when His return is near. The unbelievers of Noah's day were taken unawares, but Noah was not surprised. Noah knew one hundred and twenty years beforehand that the flood was coming.

Noah did not know the exact day of the flood; but when Noah finished building the ark, he knew the flood was near.

We also see the construction process for the last days ark coming to an end.

Prophecy is not given to remain a secret forever, but at the proper time God gives understanding to those who will take notice and believe.

You are an example of fulfilled prophecy for the last days. You are one of the 'watchmen on the wall' that Scripture anticipated and Bible scholars have awaited for centuries.

"But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman's hand." (Ezekiel 33:6)

Sir Isaac Newton, in addition to being one of the world's greatest scientific minds, was also a devout believer who was a careful student of Bible prophecy.

He wrote four hundred years ago, that, "About the time of the end, a body of men will be raised up, who will turn their attention to the prophecies, in the midst of much clamor and opposition."

The Omega Letter exists because I don't want to stand before the Bema Seat and explain to Jesus why I kept silent when I saw the sword coming. You subscribe to the Omega Letter for much the same reason.

The Bible says the last days' Church will have watchmen appointed, and scoffers (both saved and unsaved) that will require warning.

Only a tiny fraction of the overall Church sees the sword coming. The rest continue to scoff. And they will, until the Rapture. But they will still be there to hear the trumpet when it sounds.

1 Thessalonians 4:15 tells us, “For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.”

Not every Christian knows the signs of the times. Just as not every Christian has a burden for the lost. It is a unique spiritual gifting. By definition, since this is a subscriber-based and member-supported ministry, you also share that gift, that burden for the lost, and that sense of urgency.

That is why we come together in the forums. To counsel and encourage each other as we struggle with the weight of that burden. And find ways to make it lighter by sharing the load. And to get a deeper understanding so we are prepared 'to give reason of the hope that is in us.'

It is important to understand that end time prophecies are written from the perspective of Israel and Jerusalem, but given to the Church as an early warning system.

The Tribulation is the Time of Jacob’s Trouble and has no relationship with the Church. But we can see from this side of the Rapture, the Tribulation looming on the other side.

One can tell a storm is coming by watching the gathering clouds. You needn't wait for the rain, if you can read the signs.

The blossoming of the fig tree has to do with the Jews, and the generation of the end that Jesus mentioned is a generation of Jews. He was speaking to Jews. The Church wasn't born until Pentecost. There were no Christians before the Crucifixion and Resurrection. Even Peter denied the Lord before the Church Age.

So, the countdown began with the restoration of Israel on May 14, 1948.

Jesus said that, "this generation will not pass away until all these things take place". This can only mean that some of the people of that generation will still be alive when Jesus returns at the end of the tribulation.

We know the length of a generation from Scripture. Somewhere between the extremes of 20 and 120 years.

Psalms 90:10 gave the median age of a generation, “The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labour and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away.”

Genesis 5 limits a lifespan to 120 years, which is about the age of the oldest human being recorded by Guiness.

But the normal ‘strong’ man can expect to live only 80 years, according to the word of God. That also corresponds to latest life expectancy figures for anyone born in this generation.

Taken together, the Scriptures suggest that every Jew who was twenty years old and older and was in the land of Israel on May 14, 1948, is part of the end time generation. And some of them will still be living when the Lord returns at the end of the Tribulation Period as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

The generation begins with adulthood, at age twenty. The youngest of the adult males who was twenty years old on May 14, 1948 will be eighty years old in the spring of 2009; therefore, the strongest members of the end time generation may not live beyond the year 2009.

But, since Jesus said no man could count the day or the hour, it is possible that members of the end-time generation could live forty years past that. The Lord said only that we would know the general time.

No matter how long the last generation lives, one thing is certain, we are now living in the last generation. That means there are people alive today who can be certain they will never die, in the conventional sense.

"He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." (John 1:11-13)

Jesus came to the Jews at His first Advent, and they rejected him, opening the door to the Gentiles for salvation. Consequently, Gentiles receive the Spirit of Adoption, whereby we cry, "Abba" (Romans 8:15)

That is a very important word picture for us to understand. Under Jewish law, a natural parent can disown a child. But an adopted child cannot be disowned or disinherited, since the adoptive parent made a deliberate choice. And the term, "Abba" is a term of endearment roughly equivalent to "Daddy." 'Abba' is what Israeli children call their Dads to this day.

All those who believe in Him are born again, they are made a new creation, they are no longer a child of Adam but they are now a adopted child of God. A child who cannot be 'unadopted' since, in God's economy, He has chosen us, rather than the other way around.

"Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you . . " (John 15:16) ". . .but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you." (John 15:19)

"According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:" (Ephesians 1:4)

"But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light." (1 Peter 2:9)

Our salvation is a gift of grace, not of works, lest any man should boast. It is faith that saves us, and that faith is itself a gift of God. The Scriptures promise that when Jesus Christ returns at the Rapture, He will take us to be with Himself and we will be with Him forever.

“In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” (John 14:2-3)

The construction project is almost completed. A couple more coats of paint . . and soon the Master Builder will Personally welcome us Home!

How cool is that?

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The Plot Thickens (Part 1 - by Ron Graff and Lambert Dolphin

Not All the Jews Flee to Edom

A day of the LORD is coming when your plunder will be divided among you. I will gather all the nations to Jerusalem to fight against it; the city will be captured, the houses ransacked, and the women raped. Half of the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be taken from the city. Then the LORD will go out and fight against those nations, as he fights in the day of battle. (Zechariah 14:1-3)

These verses lead us up to the Battle of Armageddon which will be discussed in the next chapter. Jerusalem appears to have been occupied by "foreign armies" from the mid-point of the Tribulation when Antichrist sets up "The Abomination of Desolation"--until the great battle at the end of the Tribulation. According to the above text half of the city will go into exile and the other half will remain.

The Jews who will remain in Jerusalem, and elsewhere in Israel during the second half of the tribulation, will be ignoring the warning of Jesus given some 2000 years earlier. These Jews in fact will stay--and will maintain their secular, apostate, stance opposing the God of their forefathers, and continuing to stumble over their own cornerstone, Yeshua (Romans 9:32). God will continue to warn them through a new generation of prophets. Their message will be like that of Jeremiah at the time of the Babylonian captivity. At that time, when Nebuchadnezzar pillaged Israel, remnants led by Daniel and Ezekiel had escaped to Babylon where they enjoyed God's protection and blessing. God clearly spoke to the Jewish people urging them to go to Babylon. Jeremiah's warnings went unheeded in Jerusalem, yet God did not leave Himself without a witness in the capital. Most of those who remained in Jerusalem died in the terrible destruction of 586 BC. The glorious Temple of Solomon was pillaged, burned and destroyed on the 9th of Av. Jeremiah was taken by rebellious countrymen to Egypt where he was soon martyred, according to tradition.

Two Fearless Witnesses on the Temple Mount

At the mid-point of the Tribulation period Jesus will call his faithful remnant to flee Jerusalem and hide in the desert place, and he will place two powerful witnesses on public display in Jerusalem. For a full three and a half years they will speak to the nation and to the world of impending judgment. In spite of the enormously hostile environment of Jerusalem in that Day, these bold spokesman for the Lord will be kept safe until their mission is accomplished.

Revelation, Chapter 11, gives us details concerning two special servants God sets before His nation during the final turbulent months just prior to the return of Messiah in power and glory:


I was given a reed like a measuring rod and was told, "Go and measure the temple of God and the altar, and count the worshipers there. But exclude the outer court; do not measure it, because it has been given to the Gentiles. They will trample on the holy city for 42 months.

And I will give power to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth." These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. If anyone tries to harm them, fire comes from their mouths and devours their enemies. This is how anyone who wants to harm them must die. These men have power to shut up the sky so that it will not rain during the time they are prophesying; and they have power to turn the waters into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they want.

Now when they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up from the Abyss will attack them, and overpower and kill them. Their bodies will lie in the street of the great city, which is figuratively called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified.

For three and a half days men from every people, tribe, language and nation will gaze on their bodies and refuse them burial. The inhabitants of the earth will gloat over them and will celebrate by sending each other gifts, because these two prophets had tormented those who live on the earth.

But after the three and a half days a breath of life from God entered them, and they stood on their feet, and terror struck those who saw them. Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, "Come up here." And they went up to heaven in a cloud, while their enemies looked on. At that very hour there was a severe earthquake and a tenth of the city collapsed. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the survivors were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.

The second woe has passed; the third woe is coming soon. (Revelation 11:1-14)

This parenthetical section in the above passage describes Two Witnesses who are given supernatural power to prophesy, to perform miracles and to speak the truth boldly without fear of being captured or killed for a period of 1260 days, which is the same length of time as the 42 months of verse 2 in this same chapter. The 42 months, in turn, is the same as3 1/2 years, the exact duration of the second half of the Tribulation. This also corresponds to the period of Antichrist's reign in chapter 13, verse 5.

The identity of these two is not certain, but they could be Enoch and Elijah since these are the two people who were taken to heaven without dying (See Genesis 5:24 and 2 Kings 2:11). Since it is "appointed for men to die once..." (Hebrews 9:27), God may be planning to send these two back to conclude their life's work in this striking manner, and to die. Elijah was, of course, a prophet and it is said of Enoch that he prophesied also (Jude 14).

It is also possible that they will be Moses and Elijah since these were the two who appeared with Jesus in His transfiguration (Matthew 17:3). If this is the case, they would represent the two Old Testament periods of The Law and The Prophets. Moses did die, but he was with God alone when he it happened, and was personally buried by God (Deuteronomy 34:1-8). He was considered the greatest of prophets (Deuteronomy 34:10).

These Two Witnesses are identified as "two olive trees." This is reminiscent of the imagery in Zechariah's prophecy of two olive trees which automatically supplied oil continuously to the Golden lampstand in the Temple (Zechariah 4:1-14). The meaning given in the passage is that the work of rebuilding the Temple in Zerubabbel's days was "Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' says the LORD of hosts." (Zechariah 4:6) Likewise, though enemies are arrayed against God in the last days, His purposes will prevail by the power of His Holy Spirit.

The miraculous powers which these two demonstrate will be very much like the miracles performed by Moses and Elijah (Exodus chapters 4 through 12; 1 Kings 17:1,7; 18:1,19-45; 2 Kings 1:10-14). This is another indication that the Two Witnesses could be Moses and Elijah.

When their work is finished, God will allow them to be put to death. The place of their death will be Jerusalem, probably on the Temple Mount. The City gretly loved by God is known for killing the prophets (Matthew 23:37). On his way to be crucified, Jesus remarked that God's prophets were always killed in Jerusalem!

Spiritually speaking, Jerusalem can be compared to Sodom and Egypt, immoral places which were condemned by the Lord. Ungodly people rejoice at their death because they had stood against all their evil deeds.

After three and a half days, the Two Witnesses will be raised from the dead and caught up to heaven when they heard the words from heaven, "Come up here." The Rapture of the church happens at the beginning of The Tribulation, but this event toward the end of these seven years is similar, and may even be representative of what happens to the believing martyrs of this period of time.

The Plot Thickens (Part 2) - by Ron Graff and Lambert Dolphin

Disasters of the Great Tribulation

There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilence in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven. (Luke 21:11)

A great amount of attention is focused on the skies in our times. There are several reasons for this. Scientific advances in observation technologies have allowed us to learn much more about our space neighbors. We now know much more about the existence and orbits of small objects which could come near, or even strike the Earth.

Our own ventures into space are a second major reason for this interest. In our generation we have placed so many objects into orbit above us that it is almost impossible to track all of the functioning and non-functioning satellites.

Asteroids

About 5,000 asteroids are known to exist, and it is believed that there are as many as 30,000 of them in our Solar System. 1,600 of these are watched carefully. Most of them are controlled by Jupiter. About 40 of them are known to intersect the Earth's orbit.

The Asteroid belt, where most of them are found is between Mars and Jupiter.

In 1937 the asteroid Hermes came very close to earth. It passed within 500,000 miles, only twice the distance between the Earth the Moon. This is a "near miss." Our gravitational pull can affect something coming this close.

In 1989 an asteroid that was 5 miles in diameter came dangerously close. It will pass again some time after the turn of the century.

Russell Chandler, former religion editor for the Los Angeles Times, reports in his book called Doomsday, that


On March 23, 1989, a half-mile-wide asteroid flew through Earth's path at forty-six thousand miles an hour. Nobody saw it coming. A scientific team convened by Congress a year later noted that"the Earth had been at that point only six hours earlier." Had it struck the Earth, it would have caused a disaster unprecedented in human history.

Some asteroids we know about are:

Ceres - largest known - 488 miles diameter Pallas - 379 miles diameter Vesta - 336 miles diameter Junu - 120 miles diameter Icarus - 1 mile diameter: a "small flying mountain."

In the Book of Revelation one often reads about a "falling star." The Greek word for star is aster. This word is the basis for "Esther" and "asteroid."

Scientists have often suggested that an earlier collision with an asteroid may have caused mass extinction and the onset of an ice age. However, a literal interpretation of the Book of Genesis would suggest these events were caused by the great flood of Noah's days.

Meteors and Meteorites

These are "boulder-sized" asteroids. The largest one discovered was about 70 tons. They are often called "shooting stars," since they leave bright streaks in the atmosphere as they burn up. Those that do not completely burn up before hitting the earth are called meteorites.

One hit Arizona in prehistoric times causing a crater 4,100 feet across and 600 feet deep! About 500 of them strike the earth each year. About 120 impact sites are known.

Comets

We hear of comets occasionally, such as Haley's Comet, The Swift Tuttle Comet, and more recently, The Hale-Bopp Comet.

In 1994, Shoemaker-Levey 9, a comet with 21 fragments collided with Jupiter from July 16 through 22. The speed of this "comet train" was 37 miles per second (133,200 mph). This is 60 times the speed of an average bullet! (The energy carried by a moving object is proportional to the velocity squared!) At comet speed, one could go from New York to Los Angeles in 1 minute and 22 seconds. The first chunk of this comet hit Jupiter with a force of perhaps a million hydrogen bombs. It was photographed by powerful telescopes on earth which showed that it caused a mushroom cloud of gas nearly 1000 miles into space, and left a dark splotch, half the size of Earth.

The combined size of the 21 pieces was between 1/2 mile and 2 1/2 miles in diameter. The combined energy could be 20 million megatons (compare the largest bomb ever made: the Soviet's 58 megaton behemoth)! This total impact of Shoemaker-Levey 9 was greater than the combined force of all nuclear devices ever made.

One writer said that such a comet train hitting the Earth could incinerate whole countries and produce a dust cloud that would bring on nuclear winter. It would kill millions, or perhaps billions, of people.

In 1908 a comet in Siberia flattened the surrounding forests for 40 miles, and could be felt more than 100 miles away. Pressure waves from this event were recorded in London.

Ecological Issues

Many of the ecological problems of our age are related to the skies. Some of these are: Depletion of the Ozone layer and the resultant increase in Ultra Violet Rays reaching the Earth. Nuclear Radiation from bombs, power plants and satellites.

Space Junk falling every few days from old satellites and their rocket boosters.

Acid Rain which is a result of dangerous chemicals in the air.

UFOs

The current interest in UFO's may be setting us up for great deception. There is great interest in the Roswell, New Mexico stories, and accounts of the findings of the Air Force's Project Blue Book, which supposedly give some credence to the existence of these objects.

And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendor of his coming.

The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, and in every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie. (2 Thessalonians 2:8-11)

Some prophecy scholars think that the belief in UFOs might cause Antichrist to use them as an explanation of the disappearance of Christians during the Rapture. Some New Age practitioners are already suggesting that extraterrestrials might someday "cleanse" the Earth of troublemakers. Interest in such UFOs goes in cycles. There is a current rise in interest, and several recent movies about UFO's.

In any event, the end of the age will be a time of unprecedented deception. Satan's power to imitate and counterfeit the miracles of God will increase and in those days separating the real from the counterfeit will become increasingly more difficult.

The Plot Thickens (Part 3) - by Ron Graff and Lambert Dolphin

The Seven Trumpets

The First Trumpet - Scorching of the Earth

The first angel sounded his trumpet, and there came hail and fire mixed with blood, and it was hurled down upon the earth. A third of the earth was burned up, a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up. (Revelation 8:7)

The events of the previous section, the Seven Seals, were events caused by human activity and natural, earthly disasters. This next series brings what might be called supernatural judgments. The first three appear to be the result of asteroids, meteorsor comets. These are also natural, but in the sense that they are divinely directed judgments on the earth, they have a supernatural element. There seems to be a progression of disasters from space: first hail and fire mixed with blood, then what seemed like a large mountain, and later, a "star."

It should be noted that these trumpet judgments could be caused by a nuclear war just as well. Hal Lindsey thinks it is more likely that the events of this chapter are the result of nuclear activity than supernatural activity; that they are the result of man's evil actions once the restraining hand of God is removed. As mentioned before, some scholars expect the war of Ezekiel 38 and 39 at the beginning of the Tribulation, and some expect it to occur at the end. In any case, the language of these two chapters clearly describes God raining "fire" down from heaven on Israel's invaders from the North and also upon the "coastlands," or the "remote continents."

The first catastrophe in this series could also be caused by a comet or by very severe weather conditions. Comets are made of ice which would provide the water for hail. It would first vaporize, then perhaps, depending on other weather conditions descend to earth as hail. This sudden intrusion of a comet could cause extreme world-wide storms. The blood might be caused by animals being sucked up by waterspouts and tornadoes. And the fire could be extraordinary displays of lightning, which, in turn, couldstart forest fires in many places.. All of these events have happened before, but never to the extent of this plague, burning up one third of the earth's vegetation!

The Second Trumpet - Slaughter in the Sea

The second angel sounded his trumpet, and something like a huge mountain, all ablaze, was thrown into the sea. A third of the sea turned into blood, a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed. (Revelation 8:8-9)

This judgment could be caused by an asteroid plunging into the sea. Icarus, one of the smaller asteroids known to us is about one mile in diameter and is sometimes described as a small flying mountain. Other asteroids may be as large as Ceres, which is about 480 miles in diameter. Even a small asteroid crashing into one of our oceans would cause utter devastation. The fiery impact would burn and crush all life in a large portion of the ocean, and the resulting tidal waves would be beyond comprehension. These waves could capsize ships in every direction for hundreds of miles.

The Third Trumpet - Souring of the Water

The third angel sounded his trumpet, and a great star, blazing like a torch, fell from the sky on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water--the name of the star is Wormwood. A third of the waters turned bitter, and many people died from the waters that had become bitter. (Revelation 8:10-11)

As we now know, a star is a large body of burning gases. Our own Sun is a comparatively small star, though it is 860,000 miles in diameter, compared to the Earth's diameter of 7,900 miles. The largest known star was recently identified as "The Pistol Star." It is said to be ten million times brighter than our Sun, and is big enough to fill the orbit of Earth. It unleashes as much energy in six seconds as our Sun does in one year!

This means, of course, that a star can not "fall" to the Earth, though the Earth could presumably "fall" into the Sun. However, the Greek word for star is aster, from which we get our word asteroid and the name "Esther." Thus, it is not a star as we know it, but a large asteroid that is in view here. As in the previous plague, the asteroid strikes earth, but, in this case, on land, causing widespread destruction and poisoning of the waters in a large area.

A "Falling Star" can also describe one of the angels, as in Revelation 9:1. In this judgment it seems more reasonable to expect an asteroid than an angel.
 

The Plot Thickens (Part 4) - by Ron Graff and Lambert Dolphin

The Fourth Trumpet - Smiting of the Planets

The fourth angel sounded his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of them turned dark. A third of the day was without light, and also a third of the night.

As I watched, I heard an eagle that was flying in midair call out in a loud voice: "Woe! Woe! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the trumpet blasts about to be sounded by the other three angels!" (Revelation 8:12-13)

This judgment affects the entrance of light from space. The amount of light from the sun, moon and stars is diminished by one third. This could be a description of what, in our generation, has been called "nuclear winter." One of the most serious side-effects of a nuclear war would be the wide-spread burning of cities and forests and the resulting soot and smoke reaching the stratosphere. This diminishing of the Sun's radiation could cause the average temperature of the Earth to cool between 18 and 36 degrees, resulting in crop failures and great ecological damage. Alternatively, we cannot rule out that the actual light and heat output from the sun might be diminished by God during this judgment of mankind.

The eagle flying through the heavens with a message of woe is most likely a symbolic image of an angelic being. The three-fold repetition of "woe" is a Biblical way of intensifying the terrible nature of the impending doom soon to follow.

In Revelation 4:7 one of the faces of the Four Living Creatures was the face of an eagle. The message is a warning of the dreadful nature of the next three trumpet judgments.

The Fifth Trumpet - Striking by Locusts

The Diabolical Pit

The fifth angel sounded his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen from the sky to the earth. The star was given the key to the shaft of the Abyss. When he opened the Abyss, smoke rose from it like the smoke from a gigantic furnace. The sun and sky were darkened by the smoke from the Abyss. (Revelation 9:1-2)

In this case the falling star is actually an angelic being. Satan fits this description best since He was created as the Anointed Cherub, a position of prominence among the angels (Ezekiel 28:14 Isaiah 14:4-17 and Ezekiel 28:12-19 are addressed to earthly rulers, but obviously refer to Satan's own history and work since he controlled the human rulers. Isaiah 14:12 says "How you have fallen from heaven, O star of the morning, son of the dawn! You have been cut down to the earth, you who have weakened the nations!"

The Dragon of Revelation 12 is the Devil, another name for Satan (v.9). He is seen there sweeping away a third of the stars (angels) of heaven, and waging war against God, then being cast out of heaven (vv. 7-9, 12-13).

Satan is given the key, presumably from Jesus Christ, who, according to Revelation 1:18 holds the keys of death and Hades. This key to the Abyss might well be one of these keys.

The Demonic Plague - Their Actions

And out of the smoke locusts came down upon the earth and were given power like that of scorpions of the earth. They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any plant or tree, but only those people who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads. They were not given power to kill them, but only to torture them for five months. And the agony they suffered was like that of the sting of a scorpion when it strikes a man. During those days men will seek death, but will not find it; they will long to die, but death will elude them. (Revelation 9:3-6)

Once the Abyss, or Bottomless Pit is opened, its demonic inhabitants are set loose for the purpose of torturing people. Like locusts, they are numerous and destructive. Like scorpions, they inflict pain. But they are not allowed to kill. Here, as in the whole book of Revelation, God's sovereignty is seen. He sets the limits of what is permitted. (Job 2:6; 1 Corinthians 10:13)

Those who have the seal of God on their foreheads can not be harmed by these demonic mutations. Some take this to mean all believers, since we are sealed by the Holy Spirit (2 Corinthians 1:22; Ephesians 1:13; 4:30). However, it probably refers to the 144,000 servants of God from Revelation 7:3 who are marked or sealed on their foreheads before any further plagues were permitted.

The pain inflicted by this judgment is so severe that men who are afflicted would rather die than suffer the continuous torment (five months), but they are not allowed to take the easy course of death. This length of time may be allowed by God to give men the opportunity to repent, though it appears from the last verses of this chapter that none of them do (Revelation 9:19-20). Those who have hardened their heart against God would probably not even repent in hell itself.

Their Appearance

The locusts looked like horses prepared for battle. On their heads they wore something like crowns of gold, and their faces resembled human faces. Their hair was like women's hair, and their teeth were like lions' teeth. They had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the thundering of many horses and chariots rushing into battle. They had tails and stings like scorpions, and in their tails they had power to torment people for five months. (Revelation 9:7-10)

Further information is given about these malignant creatures. Each description is symbolic of some aspect of their power and activity.

They are like horses prepared for battle: descriptive of strength. They seem to have crowns of gold, standing for power and authority, yet limited by God that they may not kill their victims. Human faces imply intelligence. Hair like a woman's hair would be totally unnatural for insect-like monsters and would add to the confusion about their nature. The lion's teeth picture ferocity, breastplates of iron show that they are invincible. Like normal locusts, they have wings. Wings symbolize mobility and speed. Because of their extraordinary powers, their sound in flight is loud and terrifying, like horses and chariots in battle.

The Destructive Potentate

They had as king over them the angel of the Abyss, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek, Apollyon. The first woe is past; two other woes are yet to come. Revelation 9:11-12

Perhaps the most terrifying aspect of this fifth trumpet judgment is that these monstrosities are actually the demons which have been imprisoned in the Abyss (Luke 8:31; Jude 6).They have a leader of their fallen ranks, named Abaddon, or "Destroyer." This is a Hebrew word which is used in connection with hell, and normally refers to it as the place of destruction (Job 26:6; Proverbs 15:11; 27:20). It occurs only here as the name of a person. Apollyon is the exact Greek equivalent of the same name. This name is found only here.

The Sixth Trumpet - Slaying of One-third of the Population

The sixth angel sounded his trumpet, and I heard a voice coming from the horns of the golden altar that is before God. It said to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, "Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates."

And the four angels who had been kept ready for this very hour and day and month and year were released to kill a third of mankind. The number of the mounted troops was two hundred million. I heard their number. The horses and riders I saw in my visionlooked like this: Their breastplates were fiery red, dark blue, and yellow as sulfur. The heads of the horses resembled the heads of lions, and out of their mouths came fire, smoke and sulfur.

A third of mankind was killed by the three plagues of fire, smoke and sulfur that came out of their mouths. The power of the horses was in their mouths and in their tails; for their tails were like snakes, having heads with which they inflict injury. The rest of mankind that were not killed by these plagues still did not repent of the work of their hands; they did not stop worshipping demons, and idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone and wood--idols that cannot see or hear or walk. Nor did they repent of their murders, their magic arts, their sexual immorality or their thefts. (Revelation 9:9-13)

The Sixth Trumpet is also the Second Woe. It is a judgment of terrible magnitude. It begins with the release of four evil angels (demons) from the area of the Euphrates River, the approximate location of the early evil empires of Babylon, Medo-Persia, and Assyria. They are allowed to kill a third of the people on the Earth. They accomplish this is by mobilizing a force of 200 million soldiers. It is only in recent times that it would be conceivable to raise an army of that size. Today China has that many people who could serve as soldiers.

Each of these 200 million troops has equipment resembling modern weaponry, with fire, smoke and sulfur coming out of their mouths. They employ horses, symbolic of modern tanks, with "tails" able to inflict injury.

Even after all the agony and death inflicted by these judgments, the survivors are not willing to repent or to stop worshipping demons and idols. There is a process of hardening one's heart. It is illustrated in the case of Pharaoh during the days of Moses. He hardened His heart repeatedly. As a result, God actually hardened it more (Exodus 8:19, 32; 9:12,34; 10:1).

This hardening is explained in Romans 1:21-32. It starts with a conscious decision not to honor God, but to honor themselves instead. This results in idolatry. Idolatry in our age can take many forms. The word means "to worship what can be seen." Some practice idolatry in the ancient way of venerating a man-made image of something that represents their false god. In New Age religious thought there is worship of the creation itself, such as "Mother Earth," or use ofsacred objects, such as crystals. Other people, who do not consider themselves religious at all, often venerate material possessions: in essence, worshipping materialism and wealth.

Idols are not devoid of power to influence men, the Apostle Paul tells us that demonic, destructive powers come into play when we give ourselves to any master except Yeshua.

Do I mean then that a sacrifice offered to an idol is anything, or that an idol is anything? No, but the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, not to God, and I do not want you to be participants with demons. (1 Corinthians 10:19-20)

God is not willing that any should perish (2 Peter 3:9), but when man's rebellion has reached a certain point, He "gives them over" to their lusts and degrading passions.

Since the Trumpet judgments appear to take place during the Great Tribulation, the second half of the seven years of the Tribulation, these people will have received the Mark of The Beast, which is the unforgivable act of worship of Antichrist.(Revelation 14:9-11; 20:4). This also helps to explain why none of them are willing to repent.

The Seventh Trumpet - Sovereignty of God

The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said: "The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever."

And the twenty-four elders, who were seated on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshipped God, saying: "We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, the One who is and who was, because you have taken your great power and have begun to reign. The nations were angry; and your wrath has come. The time has come for judging the dead, and for rewarding your servants the prophets and your saints and those who reverence your name, both small and great--and for destroying those who destroy the earth."

Then God's temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a great hailstorm. (Revelation 11:15-19)

The Seventh Trumpet, like the Seventh Seal, does not introduce an activity on earth, but looks to Heaven in anticipation of the next series of events. In this case, the next step is God taking His great power and beginning to reign on earth. This last trumpet introduces the events leading up to the Battle of Armageddon.

The great earthquake mentioned in this passage is probably the same earthquake that marks the Sixth Seal (Rev. 6:12-17), the last of the Seven Trumpets (Rev. 11:19), and the last of the Seven Bowls of wrath (Rev. 16:18-21)--which all run in parallel. (See also Ezekiel 38:19-20 and Zechariah 14:4-5). Many Bible scholars hold that all these scriptures are homing in on one or possibly a connectedseries of great cataclysmic earthquakes that punctuate the end of the age, the open return of Messiah and the dawning of the Millennial age. Not only does the city of Jerusalem suffer great damage from this earthquake, but "the cities of the nations fall," "And every island fled away, and no mountains were to be found; and great hailstones, heavy as a hundred-weight, (75 pounds) dropped on men from heaven, till men cursed God for the plague of the hail, so fearful was that plague." according to Revelation 16:19, 20.

As the time approaches for Christ to return, it is also nearing the time for judging the dead and rewarding the faithful (Chapters 20 and 21).

The next few chapters explain important aspects of the total story, but they cannot be taken strictly in chronological order. They focus on particular topics, some of which we have already considered: Israel (Chapter 12), Antichrist and the Mark of the Beast (Chapter 13), the 144,000 sealed ones (chapter 14) (See 144000.), preparations for judgment (Chapters 14-15), and then the Seven Vials (Chapter 16) which are poured out in rapid succession, culminating in Judgment of Babylon (Chapters 17 and 18), the Battle of Armageddon, and the glorious return of Christ as King of Kings and Lord of Lords (Chapter 19).

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What Is This World Coming To? - Jack Kinsella - www.omegaletter.com
A high-school coach in Cold Sprin, Minnesota is being hailed a 'hero' for his part in stopping a fifteen year-old boy from continuing a high school shooting spree. Stearns County Sheriff John Sanner said the suspect and one of the wounded boys are in 9th grade - about 13 or 14 years old.
The coach walked up to the boy who then pointed the gun at him. Fortunately for the coach, when he ordered the shooter to put down the gun, he did.
But the tragedy wasn't over yet. Two teens were shot before the coach stopped the shooting.
The first emergency medical technician on the scene discovered the most seriously wounded student, who died at the scene, was his 17-year-old son.
Assessment:
'What is this world coming to?' is a question that gets asked thousands of times a day, in the thousands of places whenever something like this hits the news.
This particular story went around the world, having been reported in newspapers from Singapore to Australia. And everywhere where it was reported, the same question comes up -- 'what IS this world coming to?'
Of course, WE know what this world is coming to.
The Bible explains that, ". . . in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God . . ." (2 Timothy 3 1-4)
The study of Bible prophecy is, to most people, 'gloom and doom' that they just aren't interested in hearing. They miss the point. The chaos of this generation is actually cause for celebration.
What terrifies the world comforts the Christian who understands that Scripture is unfolding before their eyes in this generation. To the Christian, it is evidence that God remains on the Throne, and that His Word will not return to Him void.
School shootings are unique to this generation, and as this generation begins to wind down, they grow almost as common as schoolyard fights.
We know what this world is coming to, and it is our responsibility before God to answer that question.
"But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear." (1 Peter 3:15)
Besides, the real question isn't, 'what is this world coming to?' but rather, 'Who is coming to this world?' That is the reason for the hope that is in you, as it is the reason for the hope that is in me.
Jesus is coming. The signs are all around us.
Tell somebody.

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The Spiritual Road Map to Middle East Peace - By Chris Mitchell
    The Road Map sets up a current day drama between the ancient covenants and modern day diplomacy.
CBN.com – JERUSALEM — On April 30th of this year, The Quartet: the United States, the European Union, the United Nations and Russia, introduced a diplomatic plan to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. They called it the "Road Map." But many believing Jews and Christians are raising serious objections to the road map — objections based on the Bible.
After Saddam Hussein was ousted from power in Iraq last spring, President Bush turned his foreign policy attention to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and endorsed the two-state solution of the Road Map.
This summer, the Road Map virtually imploded under the weight of more deadly suicide bombings, the resignation of Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas, and Yasser Arafat's refusal to give up power. Still, just three weeks ago, the President said he stands by his plan for a two-state solution.
"I still believe strongly that two states living side by side in peace is a hopeful vision for the Middle East. The Road Map is still there. The fundamental question is whether or not people, peaceful people, will be on that road," Bush said on September 10.
But Stan Goodenough, editor of an internet news service called "Jerusalem NewsWire," said, "The Madrid Conference, Oslo 1, Oslo 2 and the Road Map. It's all the same thing — it's a land for peace process."
Goodenough reported from the 1991 Madrid Peace Conference when the first President Bush and Secretary of State James Baker initially promoted the concept of "land for peace."
"Madrid was the first ‘land for peace’ conference. But Israel was expected to give not just any part of its land, but actually the core of the Biblical land of Israel, the places where, for example, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are buried, where Joseph's mother Rachel died, where Joseph himself was buried, where Abraham built all his altars to the Lord," Goodenough explained. "All these parts of the land of Israel that are actually central to the Jewish worldview, to the Jewish faith, actually to give it up means actually to cut themselves off from part of their history."
The land Israel is expected to give up in the Road Map for a future Palestinian state is known around the world as the West Bank. But in the Bible, the land is called Judea and Samaria and contains most of the Bible's most important landmarks like Hebron, Bethlehem, Beth El and Shiloh.
CBN News visited Shiloh, the place where Joshua set up his capital and divided the land between the twelve tribes of Israel. This is the place where Hannah prayed to the Lord for a son, and within these walls, Samuel ministered. It is also the place where the Ark of the Covenant resided for 369 years.
"Shiloh is the spiritual, geographic and political heartland. It's the heart of the land of Israel," said David Rubin, a spokeman for the Jewish community of Shiloh in the heart of Samaria. He believes the biblical implications of today's Road Map are clear.
"The only Road Map, legitimate Road Map is a Road Map of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob," he said. "If we look at that hill and the road going north from here, that is ‘the Road of the Patriarchs. The Road of the Patriarchs is the path that the Patriarchs took when they were travelling the land of Israel… So you're talking about the biblical heartland here. And anyone who talks about giving up the Biblical heartland is going against the Bible. Is going against God's Word. I can't put it any clearer than that."
Tom Hess, author of God's Abrahamic Covenants with Israel, said, "These are the very places where God made covenant with Abraham and promised the land to the Jewish people."
Hess says these covenants are vital to understand current events. "To understand the Middle East and God's prophetic purposes for the Middle East, we have to understand the covenants God made with Abraham and the altars that Abraham built with God and made covenant with him, or we will never understand the Middle East from God's perspective," he said.
Abraham built those altars throughout the land of Israel. He built one near here in Bethel. This is where Jacob saw the ladder going up to heaven in a dream, when God promised the land to him and his descendants. If the Road Map is implemented, much of this land might become part of a Palestinian state. But according to the Bible, this land has a very specific purpose.
Hess believes today’s diplomatic efforts contradict the Bible. "They're saying if they divide up the land of Israel and establish a Palestinian state, that this will bring peace. But the Bible says in the book of Joel, it says that God will bring judgment against those who divide up the land of Israel," he said.
Yet Hess says the covenants also hold a blessing for the Palestinians. "The Palestinians will find blessings coming to them like they can not imagine if the God of Israel… if they embrace the Jewish people and if they bless them and if they stop violence and start blessing," Hess said.
Goodenough said, "My understanding of God's Word is that He is restoring the Jewish people to this Land, to the entire Land of Israel and very specifically, according to the Prophet Ezekiel to the 'so-called' occupied territories… That He is restoring them here in a physical sense, bringing them from the four corners of the earth to this Land in order to meet with them, in order to have a reunion with them, a spiritual reunion."
It is a physical restoration that began more than 100 years ago and continues today.
Ron Nachman is the mayor of Ariel, and he is part of that Jewish restoration to the land. Looking out over Ariel, he said, "Today we have 18,000 people as I told you. The university, on the other side is the hotel, and different schools and everything there, and over there is the industrial park."
Nachman established the city of Ariel 25 years ago with only two tents. Now it is the largest Jewish community in Samaria.
"I think the prophecy that is mentioned in the Bible that ‘I will bring the Jewish people from the northern countries’ — it's exactly what's happening," Nachman said. "Over 50 percent of the city of Ariel, over 9,000 people came from the former Soviet Union. And they said in the Bible, ‘And they will come and plant vineyards on the mountains of Samaria.’ That's exactly what we are doing, planting vineyards in the mountains of Samaria."
The Road Map sets up a current day drama between the ancient covenants and modern day diplomacy.
Goodenough said, "All these ‘land for peace’ processes have been trying to reverse the process of this physical restoration. Now if the Bible says that the Jews are coming back here, that God is bringing them back here, to bring them back to this Land in order to meet with them, then in a very real sense the international community and the Word of God are on a collision course with each other. And one of them is going to give way, and I know in my spirit which one it is. It's not going to be the Word of God."

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     November 1, 2003

Daniel's 70 Weeks - Ikvot ha'Mashiach
Seventy weeks are determined upon your people and your Holy City to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most Holy. Know and understand this: From the issuing of the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until The Anointed One the Ruler comes there will be seven weeks and sixty two weeks. It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench but in times of trouble. After the sixty two weeks the Anointed One will be cut off and have nothing. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue till the end and desolations have been decreed. He will confirm a covenant with many for one week. In the middle of the week he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on a wing of the Temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation until the end that is decreed is poured out on him (Daniel 9:24-27).
No prophecy in all of Scripture is more critical to our understanding of the end times than these four verses. A few basic clarifications are in order first, then we'll interpret the passage verse by verse. The Hebrew word translated weeks (or sevens) refers to a period of 7 years, like our word decade refers to a period of 10 years. It literally means "a week of years." So 70 weeks is 70 X 7 years or 490 years. This period is divided into two parts, 7 weeks or 49 years and 62 weeks or 434 years. Let's begin.
Seventy weeks are determined upon your people and your Holy City to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most Holy (place) (9:24). These 6 things would be accomplished for Daniel's people (Israel) and Daniel's Holy City (Jerusalem) during a specified period of 490 years. I've inserted the word "place" after Holy at the end of the verse to clarify the fact that it refers to the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem.
Know and understand this: From the issuing of the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until The Anointed One the Ruler comes there will be seven weeks and sixty two weeks. It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench but in times of trouble (9:25). Here is a clear prophecy of the timing of the First Coming. When this message was given to Daniel by the angel Gabriel, Jerusalem had lain in ruin for nearly 70 years and the Jews were captive in Babylon. Counting forward for 62 + 7 periods of 7 years each from a future decree freeing the Jews and giving them permission to restore and rebuild Jerusalem they should expect the Messiah. That's a total of 483 years. The Jews were freed a few years later, but According to Nehemiah 2:1 the actual decree to rebuild Jerusalem was given in the first month of the 20th year of his reign by King Artaxerxes of Persia (March of 445 BC on our calendar). Exactly 483 years later Lord Jesus rode in to Jerusalem on a donkey to shouts of "Hosanna", on the only day in His life He permitted His followers to proclaim Him as Israel's King. The Hebrew in 9:25 calls Him Messiah the Prince, denoting the fact that He was coming as the Anointed Son of the King and was not yet crowned King Himself.
After the sixty two weeks the Anointed One will be cut off and have nothing. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue till the end and desolations have been decreed (9:26).
At the end of this 2nd period their Messiah King would be executed (literally destroyed in the making of a covenant) having received none of the honor, glory and blessing the Scriptures promised Him, and the people of a ruler yet to come would destroy Jerusalem and the Temple. The Israelites would be scattered abroad and peace would elude the world. We all know that Jesus was crucified, establishing the New Covenant in the process, and 35 years later the Romans put the torch to the city and the Temple destroying both. Surviving Jews were forced to flee for their lives and in the ensuing 2000 years I don't believe a single generation has escaped involvement in a war of some kind.
And then something strange happened: The Heavenly clock stopped. 69 of the 70 weeks had passed and all that was prophesied to happen during those 483 years had come to pass but there was still one week (7 years) left. There are hints in the Old Testament that the clock had stopped several times before in Israel's history when for one reason or another they were out of the land. And in the New Testament we're also given hints that while God is dealing with the Church, time ceases to exist for Israel (Acts 15:13-18). But the clearest indication is that the events foretold in Daniel 9:27 simply haven't happened yet.
He will confirm a covenant with many for one week. In the middle of the week he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on a wing of the Temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation until the end that is decreed is poured out on him (Daniel 9:27). Here is the missing 70th week, but before we try to understand it let's recall a rule of grammar that will help make our interpretation correct. The rule is this: Pronouns refer to the closest previous noun. "He" being a personal pronoun refers to the closest previous person, in this case the "ruler who will come." So a ruler who will come from among the old Roman Empire (European Union?) will confirm a 7 year treaty with Israel that permits them to build a Temple and re-instate their Old Covenant worship system. 3 1/2; years later he will violate this treaty by setting up an abomination that causes the Temple to become desolate putting an end to their worship. This abomination brings the wrath of God down upon him and he will be destroyed.
The most obvious way in which we know these things haven't happened is that the Jewish Old Covenant worship system requires a Temple and there hasn't been one since 67 AD when the Romans destroyed it. Some say this prophecy was fulfilled during the Roman destruction but most believe it's yet future partly because of the term Abomination that causes Desolation. It's a specific insult to God that has happened only once previously. Antiochus Epiphanes, a powerful Syrian king, had attacked Jerusalem and entered the Temple area. There he had sacrificed a pig on the Temple altar and erected a statue of the Greek god Zeus with his own face on it in the Holy Place. He then required everyone to worship it on pain of death. This rendered the Temple unfit for worshiping God and so incensed the Jews that they revolted and defeated the Syrians. This event is recorded in Jewish history (1st Maccabees) where it's called the Abomination that caused Desolation. The subsequent cleansing of the Temple is celebrated to this day in the Feast of Hanukkah.
Paul warned us that in the latter days a world leader will become so powerful that he will exalt himself above everything that is called god or is worshipped and will stand in the Temple proclaiming himself to be God (2 Thes 2:4). In Rev 13:14-15 we're told that he'll have a statue of himself erected and require everyone to worship it on pain of death. In Matt 24:15-21 Jesus says that the Abomination that causes Desolation spoken of by Daniel will kick off the Great Tribulation, a period of time 3 1/2; years long that coincides with the last half of the 70th week. The similarities between this coming event and the one from history being so obvious, most scholars are persuaded that one points to the other since nothing in the intervening years fits so completely.
Soon And Very Soon
Perhaps because of a devastating war in the Middle East, a new leader will soon emerge on the scene. With great personal charisma and a plan end to all wars, he will captivate and control the world. Since all true believers will have recently disappeared from Earth, he'll have no trouble persuading most remaining inhabitants that he is the promised Messiah, the Prince of Peace. He will astound and amaze them all with feats of diplomacy and conquest, even performing the supernatural. But when he claims to be God, all hell will break loose on Earth and 3 1/2; years of the most terrible times mankind has ever known will threaten their very existence. Before that can happen the real Prince of Peace will return and overthrow this imposter. He will set up His kingdom on earth, a kingdom that will never be destroyed nor left to another. Having given His life to finish transgression, put an end to sin, atone for wickedness and bring in everlasting righteousness, and having fulfilled all Biblical vision and prophecy, He will anoint the most Holy Place and receive all the honor, glory and blessing the Scriptures promised Him. Israel will finally have her Kingdom restored and will live in peace with God in her midst, and you and I as the bride of the Christ will rule and reign with Him forever. You can almost hear the footsteps of the Messiah.

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Job's Story: Part 1-3 - by Jack Kelley - www.gracethrufaith.com

The Bible Thru the Eyes of its Writers (What they might have been thinking?)

I come from the land of Uz, a large territory east of the Jordan, opposite what is now the Nation of Israel. The area was named after a son of Seir of the Horite people, who shared the land with Esau's clans during the time Jacob and his family were returning to Canaan after their long stay in Paddan Aram. Today this land belongs partly to Jordan and partly to Syria. While my story appears well into the first third of books in the Bible, it's actually the first one ever published, done so by Joseph while he was Prime Minister of Egypt. In many ways our stories are similar, and I guess he thought that reading about my experiences would be helpful to others in times of trouble.

While not part of the people who would eventually come into a national covenant with God, I certainly was one of His followers, and always tried my best to obey His laws. You must remember that in the beginning, everyone alive knew the LORD and understood His requirements. It was only gradually that people began going off on their own, rebelling against Him and inventing false gods and counterfeit religions in their vain attempts to replace Him. No one can live without God so if you reject the real one, you have to come up with a false one. (It's also important to remember that the truth always precedes the lie, or else how would you know the difference? Every successful false religion has always used a grain of truth to attract people, and then played on their ignorance to promote the lies that lead them astray.)

So I was one who had stayed with the Truth, obeying God's laws and living in ways that were pleasing to Him. There was even a time when I believed I was doing a pretty good job of it, and it's that kind of thinking that got me into trouble. As the LORD Himself would later reveal to me, it started like this.

One day in Heaven, God summoned all his angels to give their reports, and among them was the one we call Satan, the first to rebel against God. Satan had illegally gained possession of Earth by deceiving Adam and Eve, and has been actively engaged in stealing the rest of God's creation, humanity, ever since. He's the real source of all false religions, author of all their lies. If nothing else, my story will show you how ingenious his plans are for stealing us away from God, and how well they work.

When He asked Satan what he'd been doing and was told he'd been roaming around on Earth, God asked if he'd run across me. He told Satan I was the most righteous man on the whole planet.

Well this made me an enemy of Satan's and so he told God that the only reason I obeyed Him was because of all the blessings I'd received. In truth I was a wealthy man, with a large and loving family, and huge herds of animals. In essence Satan said I was obedient because it was profitable. "Take away his possessions," he said, "And then we'll see how faithful he is." And so God agreed, on the condition that I not be harmed.

Satan lost no time at all. In the span of one short day, all my herds and all my children were taken from me. I was devastated but intellectually at least, my faith in God wasn't shaken. "I came into this world with nothing and that's the way I'll leave it. The LORD has given and the LORD has taken away," I reasoned, "Blessed be the Name of the LORD."

But how could God permit this? That's always the first question people ask. And sadly they often conclude that either God loves us enough to keep us from harm but lacks the power, or else he has the power but doesn't love us. I now know what an arrogant self-centered conclusion that is even though at the time I considered it myself.

As I was soon to learn, it's not our righteousness that protects us from the forces of evil, but God's Grace. Moreover, in my righteousness I had become self-righteous, a grievous sin made all the more so by my unwillingness to admit it. Had I been truly righteous (only one man has ever been so in all creation) God, who is neither arbitrary nor capricious, could not have permitted Satan to afflict me. As it was, even though by God's account I was the most righteous man on Earth, my unconfessed sin left me exposed, and the LORD needed to take some drastic action to get my attention before I became totally insufferable. Satan was simply a convenient, if unknowing, tool in His hand.

When I adopted a philosophical response to my great loss, the LORD knew it would take another attack to force me into reality, and so He agreed to let Satan afflict me personally, requiring only that he stop short of taking my life. Now even my wife, seeing me in my agony said, "Are you still holding on to your integrity? Curse God and die."

Please understand this. The LORD takes no pleasure in seeing us afflicted, but my sin gave Satan an opening the LORD was required by His own law to permit. He is absolutely just in these matters, as I was to learn in no uncertain terms, and any attempt to justify ourselves only serves to condemn Him. Another sin.

As the Apostle Paul would one day say, "There is no one righteous, not even one." That's not a New Testament idea by the way; he was quoting Isaiah 64:6. And John agrees. "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us" (1 John 1:8). The only difference between you who live after the cross and we who lived before it, is that the penalty for your sins is already paid. This allows God's Grace to flow ever more abundantly since the cross has reconciled us to Him (Col. 1:19-20). You have only to ask for forgiveness to receive it and be restored immediately to righteousness (I John 1:9).

Now don't get me wrong. We're all still responsible for our behavior and must expect to bear the physical and spiritual consequences of our actions. It's just that consignment to Hell is no longer one of the consequences for any who accept the pardon He's provided, and purification from all our unrighteousness is as easy as asking. For all who ask will receive, all who seek will find, and to all who knock the door will be opened. Praise the LORD.

As for me, the LORD still had much to teach me, and through me, you. Remember what one of your modern day humorists, Mark Twain, had to say. "The only time experience is the best teacher is when it was somebody else's experience." Please learn from mine. More next time.

Job's Story: Part 2 - by Jack Kelley - www.gracethrufaith.com

The Bible Thru the Eyes of its Writers (What they might have been thinking?)

So there I was, sitting on the ground scraping at the case of boils that had broken out all over my body, lamenting my great loss. All I owned stolen from me, and my children killed when the house they were partying in collapsed on them. With seven sons and three daughters there was a birthday almost every month and it was their habit to celebrate them together. They happened to be at one of these celebrations when Satan attacked and killed them all.

Even in this I maintained my philosophical frame of mind saying, "Shall we accept good from God and not trouble?" (Job 2:19) At least in saying this I didn't sin, but God knew the hidden thoughts of my heart. He knew that I believed I didn't deserve to have these things happen to me. After all I wasn't some blatant public sinner, openly violating His law. I hadn't learned yet that one of the worst sins we can commit is to convince ourselves that we're not sinners, and that even though we look for all the world to be good and kind and just, our inner selves are rife with sin. It's our nature, inherited from our father Adam, and it's as natural to us as breathing.

Well, when three of my best friends heard what had happened they hurried over to console me. They were shocked to see me, and for seven days and seven nights we all sat there in the dirt not saying a word as the awful reality of recent events in my life sank in.

Finally I spoke up, cursing the day I was born and pouring out all the anguish I felt. This released my friends to speak as well, and let me tell you a few things about that. It's human nature to reason through difficult things and find justification for them in our own minds, so I shouldn't be too harsh in my criticism. Suffice it to say that these friends of mine summarized the three major components of humanism in their reasoning; human experience, human tradition, and human merit. All are wrong in their conclusions and false in their logic, since they all contend that man must do things to earn God's favor and therefore suffering is a sign of His displeasure. The over riding problem with the humanist view is that we see the world the way we are, not the way it is. All of our perceptions are distorted either by our experience, our traditions, or our presumed merit. I learned from this encounter not to ever again ask my friends for their opinions, but to join me in asking God for His. As He was soon to show me, only God's opinion is free of human distortion and therefore void of any gap between perception and reality.

Elephaz the Temanite sprinkled his opinion with phrases like "I have observed" and "I myself have seen" in an effort to lend credibility to his view that the law of cause and effect could be applied to my situation. Correct my behavior, he reasoned, and change the outcome. Interestingly, he wasn't far off the mark, but his error was in telling me to evaluate my actions when it was my motives that needed examination. His advice had the effect of wounding me with false accusation. I was doing good things to earn my position before God, and in his observation my tragedy proved it wasn't enough. He had seen others punished for their foolishness and disobedience, and so I must be suffering a similar fate.

Well this made me feel even worse, and the question "With friends like this who needs enemies?" came to mind. I was actually on the brink of suicide, not knowing if I could go on another day, and he's telling me I'm not measuring up.

Then Bildad the Shuhite put in his two cents worth, wasting neither time nor words. "Your children sinned, and God punished them with death," he said, (Job 8:4) "and it's been that way since the beginning of time." He suggested I search our history. Every time man departed from God the end result was the same; judgment. But I was being given another chance. Learn from the past and make myself blameless and upright. Succeed where others had failed and God would be pleased with me.

I could accept the logic of his position. History was on his side, and my children were sinners. I had prayed for them on many occasions (Job 1:5). But how does a mortal man become righteous before God? This was a question Peter would ask the Lord many years later. "With man it is impossible," the Lord replied, "But not with God. All things are possible with God." (Mark 10:27) Of course I hadn't learned this yet. But I would.

For now I could only reason that if someone who had tried to please God as hard as I had could suffer like this, what hope is there for anyone? In my self pity I cried out to God to show me where I had failed. I simply could not understand what I had done to deserve such treatment, when it seemed that others around me got away with much worse crimes against Him. Surely He knew I wasn't as bad as them. It just wasn't fair! Again I cursed the day I was born.

Zophar the Naamathite weighed in. My third so-called friend said he wished God would speak to me, and then maybe I could understand the simplicity of it. If I deserved better I would receive better! "Devote your heart to Him and stop sinning. Then you'll be able to hold your head up high, and put all this behind you." (Job 11:13-16)

By now I had really had it with this group. Didn't they think I knew all this? Did they really believe they were that much smarter than me? They seemed to have forgotten I had a relationship with God. I spoke with Him and He answered, and now I was the laughingstock of all who knew me. Criminals in our land were more secure than I was, and even the animals in the fields knew that God had done this to me.

I was done listening to these "friends." God owed me an explanation and I was going to get it! He knew I trusted in him, and even if He killed me I would place my hope in Him. Surely we could discuss this face to face without these friends of mine presuming to speak for Him. Let Him speak for Himself. I wasn't afraid to defend myself before Him. He could even bring witnesses against me if He wanted. I knew that if given half a chance I could vindicate myself.

I said, "Man is more like a flower than a tree in that his days are numbered and when he lies in death is no more. But even a tree that's been cut down can grow again and with a little water will bud and put forth shoots. If God is so mad at me then let him kill me so I can lie in my grave till He gets over it. Then He'll miss me and long to hear the sound of my footsteps. Then when He calls I'll answer and he'll forget all about my so-called sins. That'll teach Him to think twice before punishing someone who doesn't deserve it."

The truest things are often said in the heat of passion, and I'll be darned if my little tirade wasn't a pretty good summary of God's plan for man. He's even gone so far as to arrange the death of His own Son as a means to getting over His anger. Someday soon now He will call and when He does, we'll all answer. And when we rise from the grave to join Him in His Kingdom, we'll find He's forgotten all about our sins just like I predicted. More next time.
 

Job's Story: Part 3 - by Jack Kelley - www.gracethrufaith.com

The Bible Thru the Eyes of its Writers (What they might have been thinking?)

King Solomon would one day write, "Respect for the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and training."(Prov. 1:7) Ever notice how the lack of knowledge rarely prevents people from expressing an opinion? In fact some of the most opinionated people I've met have been the least knowledgeable.

For example my "friend" Eliphaz now launched into a scathing attack against me, basing it on the so-called wisdom of man. He claimed it proved beyond a shadow of doubt that the wicked are always punished in this world, in effect trying to convince me that the good guys always win and the bad guys always lose. If I'm losing, his reasoning went, then I must be one of the bad guys. "God doesn't even trust His angels," he claimed, "And if even the heavens are not pure how much less so is man who is vile and corrupt?" (Job 15:15) It was another vain attempt to motivate me to do a better job of earning my position before God.

At least on one point he was right. Man is vile and corrupt. And since that's true, then who doesn't deserve punishment? We should all be sitting in the dust with nothing, like I was. We shouldn't be shocked and surprised when bad things happen, we should be surprised when they don't!

But in the way of man, Eliphaz was differentiating between himself and me. He wasn't suffering, so by his reasoning he must be righteous. Applying the wisdom of man in the world imputes righteousness to the fortunate, and there's the flaw. It's not our righteousness that protects us, it's God's grace. True wisdom always justifies God and condemns self! Man's wisdom justifies self and condemns God.

But I myself was contaminated with this false wisdom. I felt that the LORD had turned me over to the Evil One without justification. And while I sat in the dust wrapped in sackcloth, my eyes red from weeping, I still contended that my hands were clean and my motives pure.

The ancients had long taught of a Redeemer Who would come from the very throne of God, so I knew I had an intercessor in Heaven, an Advocate who was my Friend and who would plead with God on my behalf. Centuries later, the Apostle Paul would identify this intercessor as our Lord Jesus Who is always at the right hand of the Father pleading for us (Rom. 8:34-35). Problem was, he hadn't died for me yet, and so there were limits on God's Grace that only His death could remove. You who live after the cross simply have no idea how much different things are now that God is free to love you without restraint. Sure the world is still an evil place, and still under the control of the Evil One. But as sin has increased, Grace has increased even more, sparing you from the awful judgments due an unbelieving and disobedient people. Even the best of you is guilty of sins folks in my day never considered.

Your age is far more advanced in science and technology than mine, but don't ever make the mistake of thinking that you're spiritually more aware as well. The opposite is true. As man has become more self reliant, his understanding of and respect for his Creator has diminished accordingly, until there are many in your day who see no need for God at all, and some who even think they are God. This attitude has eased the restraints on evil until behavior that's common in your day even for comparatively moral and upright people would have been unthinkable in mine. Man has not evolved from my time to yours. Man has devolved. It's the predictable and dreadful outcome of his desire to be free from accountability to his Creator.

Well these friends of mine seemed determined to go on confessing my sins while I begged them to show even a little pity. I was wronged, unjustly accused and punished, and no one seemed to care. I was embarrassed, dishonored, and abandoned. Even my employees no longer obeyed me, and my wife detested me. As the Lord Jesus would one day say to His disciples, "There will come a time when those who attack you will think they're doing God a favor." I sure could understand that feeling.

But often in our darkest hours, the Lord brings clarity and insight. And so it was with me. As everything on earth was taken away, I began to understand I had a Friend in Heaven that I could neither leave nor lose. He would not forsake me.

"I know that my Redeemer lives," I declared, "And that in the end He will stand upon the Earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God. I myself will see Him with my own eyes -- I and not another. How my heart yearns within me." (Job 19:25-27) Even if my punishment killed me, I would live again and stand face to face with God in peace and harmony!

Some say that this was the earliest declaration of the bodily resurrection of man. I honestly don't know. But for me it was a truth emblazoned as if in fire in the sky. No matter what happened to me here in this evil place where calamity befalls the just and the unjust seemingly without rhyme or reason, there is a place where hope prevails and where we'll be free from uncertainty. And one day soon now, our Father in Heaven will send His Son to collect His own and take us there. And so shall we ever be with the Lord. No wonder you call it our Blessed Assurance. How my heart yearns within me.

Even so, I was still angry and still insistent on my day in court. As they say, "Be careful what you pray for, you just might get it." The LORD would grant me an audience in due time. But I still had much to learn, and He wasn't done using my friends to teach us all. More next time.

Job's Story: Part 4 Job 20-26 - by Jack Kelley - www.gracethrufaith.com

The Bible Thru the Eyes of its Writers (What they might have been thinking?)

Round and round we went; these three friends and me, the discussion becoming less diplomatic and the accusations less subtle with each turn. They were determined to convince me that I was some great sinner who deserved what I had gotten, and I was just as determined to convince them of my righteousness. Finally it was obvious to all of us that we'd come to an impasse.

Then a young man who'd been standing on the sidelines listening spoke up. He said his name was Elihu, a Hebrew word meaning "He is my God." He was the son of Barakel whose name means "God blesses." Elihu was obviously angry with me for asserting my own righteousness and also with my friends for failing to persuading me otherwise, condemning both God and me in the process. Being younger than the rest of us, he had held his tongue out of respect, but now seeing that we had exhausted all our arguments, he took a deep breath and joined our conversation.

He paid due homage to our greater maturity, saying that while he'd been listening for some time he'd kept quiet out of respect for our presumed wisdom. But then he reminded us that true wisdom comes not from the advanced years of the speaker but from the Spirit of God dwelling within him.

Then he politely but clearly rebuked my friends for failing to prove me wrong, and informed them that he would now do so. He wouldn't be using their tired old arguments, he said, but would use mine, turning my own words against me.

"You have said in my hearing," he began, "That you are pure and without sin, clean and free from guilt, and yet God has found fault with you. But I tell you that in this you are wrong."

Then he told me that God speaks to us in many ways, warning us of the dangers of our attitudes and actions in dreams and visions as well as through others. The problem is that we often don't perceive it. When push comes to shove He'll even use the calamity that is the consequence of our behavior to chasten us. But if even one angel in Heaven intercedes for us, having seen a spark of repentance, He'll restore us. He does this so that in our relief we'll extol God's greatness and mercy proclaiming to our brothers, "I didn't get what I deserve!" where before we had complained. "I don't deserve what I'm getting." All I had accomplished by my loud complaints and protestations of innocence was to condemn God!

"Far be it from God to do evil," Elihu said. "It's unthinkable that He would do wrong, that the Almighty would pervert justice. He's the one protecting you from the judgment you deserve. If He decided to withdraw that protection every single person on Earth would immediately perish. To your sin of self-righteousness you've added rebellion against God's justice. You should be tested to the utmost for answering God like a wicked man. He doesn't need to convene a court and hear witnesses to determine if you're guilty. He sees every move you make and hears even the thoughts of your heart. There's nothing you can do that escapes His notice and nowhere you can hide that He can't see."

"You complain that the wicked prosper while you get punished, in effect saying, 'What's in it for me to be righteous?' but let me ask you this. What's in is for God? How do you hurt Him by sinning? And how do your good deeds help Him? Is He not God whether you're good or evil? Do you think you have anything He needs? Your sin only hurts you and your good deeds only benefit those few recipients around you (Job 35:8). Your belief that you can affect the Creator of the Universe on His Throne in Heaven one way or another is simply another sign of your arrogance and pride."

"But by His actions He is wooing you from the jaws of distress to a spacious place free from restriction. Are you naive enough to believe that no matter how much wealth you acquire, it would be sufficient to gain entry into such a place without Him? He loves you enough to go to any length to bring you there, not because you have anything He needs, and not because your absence would somehow deprive Him, but because He knows how much being there would bless you."

Where did this guy come from? Though young in years, he certainly had things pegged when it came to our position before God. His claim that one perfect in knowledge was among us, and that his knowledge had come from afar has led many who have read this account through the years to wonder if Elihu wasn't sent straight from the Throne of God Himself! Maybe he was the angel mediator he had spoken of, or even our Great Intercessor, the Son of God.

Regardless of who he was, all my friends had done was make me angry but this kid's words had pierced my very soul and I could tell by the way he was spinning up that he was far from finished. Little did I know that my comeuppance was just beginning. When he was done the LORD Himself would have a turn. Well, I can't say I didn't ask for it. Stick around. It's always fun to see someone else get theirs.
Job's Story: Conclusion, Job 37-42 - by Jack Kelley - www.gracethrufaith.com

The Bible Thru the Eyes of its Writers (What they might have been thinking?) conclusion

When my three so-called friends had lit into me, it served only to polarize our discussion and make me mad. Elihu, though much younger, at least proved that he was wise beyond his years. But now my direct appeal to the LORD was coming and it would be nothing like the display of righteous indignation I had rehearsed in my mind.

He wasted no time in niceties. "Who is this that darkens my counsel with words without knowledge?" He demanded. "Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me."

Then with eloquence only the Almighty can muster, and sarcasm enough to rip even the strongest of men to shreds He compared His skills and ability, His wisdom and experience to mine. Needless to say I came out on the short end of that one, and wound up being put firmly in my tiny little place in the grand scheme of things.

Then He demanded of me, "Will the one who contends with the Almighty correct him? Let him who accuses God answer him!"

Meekly I answered the LORD: "I am unworthy-how can I reply to you? (I put my hand over my mouth.) I spoke once, but I have no answer – twice, but I will say no more."

Then the LORD spoke to me again. "Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me. "Would you discredit my justice? Would you condemn me to justify yourself?"

Well that was the heart of the matter wasn't it? Because when confronting the Almighty there are only two alternatives; condemn Him to justify yourself, or condemn self and justify Him. And of the two which is correct? Is the infallible, all knowing God ever wrong, standing in need of correction from fallen, sinful man? Get real! I was devastated, totally without merit or position before Him, and painfully aware of the incredible patience He had shown by just agreeing to answer me. Talk about embarrassing!

Humbly I replied to the LORD. "I know that You can do all things; no plan of Yours can be thwarted. You asked, 'Who is this that obscures my counsel without knowledge?' Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know."

"You said, 'Listen now, and I will speak; I will question you, and you shall answer Me.' My ears had heard of You but now my eyes have seen You. Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes."

When you go from an intellectual understanding of the existence of God, as I had just done, to an emotional experience of His Presence, your perspective changes. It 's hard to explain. Suddenly I felt so small and insignificant, and His Presence so overwhelming. My emotional state was one of intense regret, shame and sorrow for the trouble I had caused Him.

In his infinite love He wiped all that away and filled my heart with gratitude for our relationship. Not that I would want to repeat them, but the painful lessons I had learned now seemed worthwhile. Then He chastised my three friends for misrepresenting Him in their criticism of me. (In all His correction, He had neither humiliated nor condemned me like they had.) He said He would have me offer an intercessory prayer so that He wouldn't have to deal with them according to their folly. This was to show them that while they were out of His favor, I was not. I prayed and they were forgiven.

In the aftermath of my object lesson the LORD made me prosperous again, and as that happened all the friends and relatives who had abandoned me reappeared to congratulate me on regaining my former stature. Isn't that the way of friends? I lived for another 140 years, had seven sons and three daughters and twice the herds and flocks as before.

Nowhere in all the land were there found women as beautiful as my daughters, and in an act of love unheard of in those days, I granted them an inheritance along with their brothers. All in all, I lived to see my children and their children to the fourth generation, a great honor in my time, and a sure sign of the LORD's blessing.

I never forgot my experience in getting to really know the LORD; and His words still ring in my ears. "Would you discredit my justice? Would you condemn me to justify yourself?" I hope that in hearing my story you will always remember them as well. May He continue to bless you as you walk in His ways.

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