January 4, 2026: A Deep-Dive into Ezekiel and Revelation: Gog and Magog

“After many days thou [Gog of Magog] shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.” (Ezekiel 38:8)

Gog and Magog in the Book of Ezekiel

The Scriptures above were given by God to a prophet named Ezekiel. Ezekiel was a priest who was given visions from God to speak not to just Israel or Judah, when they were a divided nation and Israel had been taken into captivity by Assyria and Judah by Babylon; no, he was to speak the words to the whole house of Israel. Before God gave Ezekiel the words to speak to them, God showed Ezekiel His glory, and I believe God did that so that Ezekiel would know beyond the shadow of a doubt that what he was going to see and hear was absolutely from God.

There is much talk and speculation in the Bible prophecy community in our world today regarding the battle of Gog and Magog that is written about both in the book of Ezekiel in chapters 38 and 39 and in chapter 20 of the book of Revelation. Many people in the prophecy community believe that we are on the verge of the start of this battle that is described in Ezekiel chapters 38-39. I admit that I used to believe this myself, after primarily listening to what others had to say about it, instead of reading the Scriptures for myself. When I believed this, however, there was one thing that always stood out to me and that was God’s repetitive phrase in Ezekiel 38 of Israel dwelling safely, and as I found out while writing this devotional, in other chapters of Ezekiel.

Once I began not only reading the Bible for myself, but also studying it at a much deeper level, and reading the other chapters in Ezekiel that lead up to chapters 38 and 39, I no longer believe that we are on the verge of seeing this battle begin. No, instead, I believe that it will occur after the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble and the second coming of Jesus Christ, and sometime during the early years of Jesus’ 1,000-year reign on earth. I believe that God, in His perfect word, has given us subtle hints to this that many overlook, or, perhaps, do not want to see because it doesn’t fit their agenda. I believe this is true of some people who call themselves pastors.

In this devotional message, I want to dig deep into God’s word and examine thoroughly what it says about the events leading up to Gog and Magog and what the landscape of the world will look like, especially in Israel, at the time it will happen. So, let’s get started.

First, I want to note that there are many similarities between what God showed the prophet Ezekiel and what God showed the apostle John in the book of Revelation. I believe the book of Ezekiel is an Old Testament preview of what is written about in the book of Revelation. While some of the Scriptures in Ezekiel have been fulfilled, I believe that some are yet to be fulfilled, and some are dual-fulfillment prophecies. Many Scriptures from Revelation are also included in the book of Ezekiel. Let us read first some of what God showed to Ezekiel so that Ezekiel would know that he was hearing from God Himself.

God showed Ezekiel a great cloud of fire, and in the midst of it was a color of amber, with four living creatures that came out of it. The four living creatures are very similar to what John the apostle saw when he was taken up to heaven through an open door and saw four beasts, which he wrote of in the book of Revelation. In both Ezekiel and Revelation, the four living creatures/beasts each have four faces. Ezekiel 1:10 and Revelation 4:7 describe the four faces as the face of a man, a lion, an ox/calf, and an eagle. Ezekiel 1:6 says each living creature had four wings, but Revelation 4:8 says they had six wings. Ezekiel chapter 10 seems to describe these same living creatures but refers to them as “cherubims.” Ezekiel 10:14 says that each cherubim had four faces of a cherub, a man, a lion, and an eagle. Thus in Ezekiel 10, there was not a cherub that had the face of an ox/calf, as was described in Ezekiel 1:10 and Revelation 4:7. Ezekiel describes how the living creatures moved by something described as a wheel within a wheel that seemed to be attached to the living creatures in some manner. John did not write about this in the book of Revelation. I do not know the reason for the differences. However, we do know that both Ezekiel and John saw them around the throne of God.

Let us read further of what is written about these living creatures/cherubim and where both Ezekiel and John saw them. Ezekiel wrote what he saw and heard in the firmament that was over their heads, which is similar to what John saw when he was taken up to heaven. Let us read both accounts:

“Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river of Chebar, that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.” (Ezekiel 1:1)

“And the likeness of the firmament [expanse] upon [above] the heads of the living creature was as the colour of the terrible [an awesome] crystal, stretched forth over their heads above.” (Ezekiel 1:22)

“And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal: and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four beasts [living creatures] full of eyes before [in front] and behind.” (Revelation 4:6)

“And there was a voice from the firmament that was over their heads, when they stood, and had let down their wings. And above the firmament that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone: and upon the likeness of the throne was the likeness as the appearance of a man above upon it. And I saw as the colour of amber, as the appearance of fire round about within it, from the appearance of his loins even upward, and from the appearance of his loins even downward, I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and it had brightness round about. As the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness round about. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell upon my face, and I heard a voice of one that spake.” (Ezekiel 1:25-28)

“And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks [lampstands]; and in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps [chest] with a golden girdle [band]. His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire; and his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned [were refined] in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters. And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp two-edged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength. And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last: I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.” (Revelation 1:12-18)

“After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter. And immediately I was in the spirit [or Spirit]: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne. And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine [sardius] stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight [appearance] like unto an emerald.” (Revelation 4:1-3)

“And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.” (Revelation 4:5)

Another similarity between Ezekiel and Revelation is the eating of a little book:

“But thou, son of man, hear what I say unto thee; Be not thou rebellious like that rebellious house: open thy mouth, and eat that I give thee. And when I looked, behold, an hand was sent unto me [stretched out to me]; and, lo, a roll [scroll] of a book was therein; and he spread it before me; and it was written within and without: and there was written therein lamentations, and mourning, and woe. Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, eat that thou fondest; eat this roll, and go speak unto the house of Israel. So I opened my mouth, and he caused me to eat that roll. And he said unto me, Son of man, cause thy belly to eat [feed thy belly], and fill thy bowels [stomach] with this roll that I give thee. Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness. And he said unto me, Son of man, go, get thee unto the house of Israel, and speak with my words unto them.” (Ezekiel 2:8-3:4)

“So the spirit lifted me up, and took me away, and I went in bitterness, in the heat [or anger] of my spirit: but the hand of the LORD was strong upon me.” (Ezekiel 3:14)

“And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire: and he had in his a little book open: and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth [land].” (Revelation 10:1-2)

“And the voice which I heard from heaven spake unto me again, and said, Go and take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel which standeth upon the sea and upon the earth. And I went unto the angel, and said unto him, Give me the little book. And he said unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey. And I took the little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter. And he said unto me, Thou must prophecy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings.” (Ezekiel 10:8-11)

I believe that there are many similarities between the books of Ezekiel and Revelation because God wants us to know that just as what Ezekiel prophesied long before it happened came true, so will the prophecies of John the apostle come true.

Returning to Ezekiel, God then gave some specific instructions to him that, to us, may seem very odd. However, we have to remember that God’s ways are not our ways, and His thoughts are not our thoughts. (Isaiah 55:8-9) God told Ezekiel to take a tile, which the King James Version (KJV) of the Bible indicates is a clay tablet, and lay it before him. Ezekiel was to make a model of the city, including Jerusalem, and cause it to come under siege, including having battering rams come against it. He was to take an iron plate and set it before him and the city. God said the city would be besieged, and “This shall be a sign to the house of Israel.” (Ezekiel 4:3)

God then said this to Ezekiel:

“Lie thou also upon thy left side, and lay thy iniquity of the house of Israel upon it: according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon it thou shalt bear their iniquity. For I have laid upon thee the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days: so shalt thou bear the iniquity of the house of Israel. And when thou hast accomplished them, lie again on thy right side, and thou shalt bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days: I have appointed thee each day for a year [a day for each year].” (Ezekiel 4:4-6)

The sum of 390 days plus 40 is 430 days. Notice that God told Ezekiel that the number of days he was to lie on his left and right side represented the number of days of Israel and Judah’s iniquity, respectively: “For I have laid upon thee the years of their iniquity,“ and “I have appointed thee each day for a year.” Thus, the 430 days represent 430 years. Where else in the Bible does it refer to 430 years? It is in the book of Exodus. I do not think this is any coincidence that God had Moses bring the people out of Egypt by God’s mighty hand after they had lived there for 430 years in bondage:

“Now the sojourning [time of stay] of the children of Israel, who dwelt in Egypt, was four hundred and thirty years. And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, even the selfsame day it came to pass, that all the hosts of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt.” (Exodus 12:40-41)

God then told Ezekiel to take certain types of food with him, such as wheat and barley, and that he was to use dung from man, meaning human feces, to make a fire and use the food and make make cakes that he may eat. Ezekiel, being a priest and having found this very disturbing, cried out to the Lord, and God told Ezekiel that he could use cow dung instead for the fire. God also gave Ezekiel instructions on how much food he was to eat each day. God told him how much water he was to drink each day, which was a sixth part of a hin, which is a little less than a quart. I believe God was intentional when He told Ezekiel to drink a sixth part, for six represents the number of man. Let us read something else that is very interesting to me, which I did not catch at first but only after re-reading it:

“Take thou also unto thee wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentiles, and millet, and fitches [spelt], and put them in one vessel, and make thee bread thereof, according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon thy side, three hundred and ninety days shalt thou eat thereof. And thy meat [food] which thou shalt eat shall be by weight, twenty shekels a day: from time to time shalt thou eat it.” (Ezekiel 4:9-10)

Did you notice that God did not tell Ezekiel to eat during the 40 days he was to lie on his right side? It seems God wanted Ezekiel to fast for 40 days while he was bearing the iniquity of Judah, which is of importance for a number of reasons. The number 40 is very significant in the Bible. Let us read some examples of its usage in the Bible:

• Genesis 7:4, the Great Flood: God sent rain on the earth for 40 days and 40 nights.

• Genesis 50:3, Embalming of Jacob, the Patriarch of Israel: Joseph commanded the Egyptian physicians to embalm his father, Jacob, who was the father of the twelve tribes of Israel, a process which took 40 days.

• Exodus 24:18, Moses goes up to Mount Sinai: God called Moses up to Mount Sinai to give him the law and tables/tablets of stone containing the Ten Commandments (Exodus 24:12). Moses was on the mountain 40 days and 40 nights. After God told Moses to go down the mountain and back to his people, Moses saw the people worshipping a golden calf that Moses’ brother Aaron had made at the urging of the people. In horror upon seeing this, Moses through down the tablets, breaking them.

• Exodus 34:1, God calls Moses up to Mount Sinai again: God told Moses to cut out two more tables of stone so that He could write upon them the same Ten Commandments that were on the first two tables of stone. Moses again went up on Mount Sinai and was there 40 days and 40 nights, and fasted during that same time. (Exodus 34:28)

• Numbers 13:25, Twelve Spies search the land of Canaan: God told Moses to send one man from each of the twelve tribes of Israel to spy out the land of Canaan. They returned after 40 days, with only two spies having a good report, and they were Caleb, of the tribe of Judah, and Hoshea, whom Moses gave the name of Joshua, of the tribe of Ephraim.

• Numbers 14:33, God told Israel they would wander for 40 years: God told Israel that because of their doubt in Him to bring them into Canaan they spied out the land, only their children under 20 years old would be allowed to enter. Caleb and Joshua, who had had a good report of the land, would also enter the land. God told those 20 years and older that they would wander in the wilderness for 40 years, one year for each day the twelve spies spied out the land.

• Jonah 3:4, Jonah proclaimed coming judgment upon Nineveh: Because its wickedness had reached God, God told Jonah to go and tell Nineveh that in 40 days, He would overthrow the city. The men of the city and its king believed God and turned from their wickedness.

• Matthew 4:2, Jesus tempted by the devil: Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, where He fasted 40 days and 40 nights. The devil came and tempted Him three times, and each time, Jesus quoted Scripture to him. Notice the second time Satan tempted Jesus, the devil/Satan quoted Scripture, which is from Psalm 91:11-12. May this be a warning to us that even Satan, and those who follow him, quote Scripture, in order to deceive. Also notice the third time Satan tempted Jesus, that Jesus did not dispute the fact that Satan is the ruler of the kingdoms of this current world. This is why Jesus later said to Pontius Pilate after the chief priests had delivered Jesus to him to be crucified, when Pilate asked Jesus what had He done to cause His own nation and chief priests to want Him to be crucified: “My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence.” (John 18:36) Let us read about the three times Satan tried to tempt Jesus:

• “And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” (Matthew 4:4)

• “Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, and saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt [test] the Lord thy God.” (Matthew 4:7)

• “Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; and saith unto him, All these things will I give to thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence [Away with you], Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.” (Matthew 4:10)

• Acts 1:3, Jesus showed Himself alive to His apostles for 40 days after His resurrection: Luke the apostle wrote that after Jesus was resurrected and before He ascended to heaven, “To whom also he shewed [presented] himself alive after his passion [suffering] by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God; and, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.” (Acts 1:3-5)

It is also interesting to note that during the 390 days that Ezekiel was to lie on his left side, he was to eat a measurement of 20 shekels of food per day. 20 shekels is the same measurement, which was a measurement of silver, that Joseph’s brothers sold him to the Ishmaelites because they were jealous of Joseph. (Genesis 37:28)

Now, let us read some key verses from the book of Ezekiel regarding God’s reasons for judging Israel:

“And he [God] said unto me, Son of man, stand upon thy feet, and I will speak unto thee. And the spirit entered into me when he spake unto me, and set me upon my feet, that I heard him that spake unto me. And he said unto me, Son of man, I send thee to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that hath rebelled against me: they and their fathers have transgressed against me, even unto this very day. For they are impudent children and stiff hearted. I do send thee unto them; and thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD. And they, whether they will hear, or whether they will forebear, (for they are a rebellious house,) yet shall know that there hath been a prophet among them. And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns be with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions: be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house. And thou shalt speak my words unto them, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear: for they are most rebellious.” (Ezekiel 2:1-7)

“Then he said unto me, The iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceeding great, and the land is full of blood [bloodshed], and city full of perverseness: for they say, The LORD hath forsaken the earth, and the LORD seeth not. And as for me also, mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity, but I will recompense their way [repay their deeds] upon their head.” (Ezekiel 9:9-10)

“How weak is thine heart, saith the Lord GOD, seeing thou doest all these things, the work of an imperious whorish woman; in that thou buildest thine eminent place in the head of every way, and makest thine high place in every street; and hast not been as an harlot, in that thou scornest hire; but as a wife that committeth adultery, which taketh strangers instead of her husband! They give gifts to all whores: but thou gives thy gifts to all thy lovers, and hirest them, that they may come unto thee on every side for thy whoredom.” (Ezekiel 16:30-33)

“As I live, saith the Lord GOD, Sodom thy sister hath not done, she nor her daughters, as thou hast done, thou and thy daughters. Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. And they were haughty, and committed abomination before me: therefore I took them away as I saw good. Neither hath Samaria committed half of thy sins; but thou hast multiplied thine abominations more than they, and hast justified thy sisters in all thine abominations which thou hast done. Thou also, which hast judged thy sisters, bear thine own shame for thy sins that thou hast committed more abominable than they: they are more righteous than thou: yea, be thou confounded also, and bear thy shame, in that thou hast justified thy sisters.” (Ezekiel 16:48-52)

In Ezekiel chapter 8, God showed him the abominations that were being committed by Israel and Judah in God’s own house, the Temple in Jerusalem, by the elders of the house of Israel. In Ezekiel 8:14, God showed Ezekiel the Jewish women even crying for a Sumerian false god of fertility called Tammuz, as well as men worshipping the sun. These are people who should have known better. They should have known that they are only to worship God, but they did not listen to God’s commandments to them, with the first being “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.” (Exodus 20:3) God told Ezekiel that He will judge His people for the abominations they have committed against Him in His own house, the Temple of God:

“And he brought me to the door of the court; and when I looked, behold a hole in the wall. Then said he unto me, Son of man, dig now in the wall: and when I had digged in the wall, behold a door. And he said unto me, Go in, and behold the wicked abominations that they do here. So I went in and saw; and behold every form of creeping things, and abominable beasts, and all the idols of the house of Israel, pourtrayed upon the wall round about. And there stood before them seventy men of the ancients [elders] of the house of Israel, and in the midst of them stood Jaazaniah the son of Shaphan, with every man his censer in his hand; and a thick cloud of incense went up. Then said he unto me, Son of man, hast thou seen what the ancients of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in the chambers of his imagery [room of his idols]? for they say, The LORD seeth us not; the LORD hath forsaken the earth. He said also unto me, Turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations that they do. Then he brought me to the door of the gate of the LORD’s house which was toward the north; and, behold there sat women weeping for Tammuz.” (Ezekiel 8:7-14)

“Then he said unto me Hast thou seen this, O son of man? turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations than these. And he brought me into the inner court of the LORD’s house, and, behold, at the door of the temple of the LORD, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of the LORD, and their faces toward the east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east.” (Ezekiel 8:15-16)

“Then he said unto me, Hast thou seen this, O son of man? Is it a light [trivial] thing to the house of Judah that they commit the abominations which they commit here? for they have filled the land with violence, and have returned to provoke me to anger: and, lo, they put the branch to their nose. Therefore will I also deal in fury: mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity: and though they cry in mine ears with a loud voice, yet will I not hear them.” (Ezekiel 8:17-18)

Ezekiel chapter 9 tells us that God sent six men with slaughter weapons to execute God’s wrath on those who committed abominations against Him. One of the six men was clothed in linen and had a writer’s ink horn by his side. This man with the inkhorn was told by God to go into Jerusalem and set a mark on the foreheads of the men who sighed and cried for the abominations being committed against God. I believe this is God marking or sealing His people to save them from His wrath. This seems to be saying either the same thing or something very similar to what is written in the book of Revelation. Let us compare the Scriptures from Ezekiel and Revelation:

“He cried also in mine ears [hearing] with a loud voice, saying, Cause them that have charge over the city to draw near, even every man with his destroying [deadly] weapon in his hand. And, behold, six men came from the way of the higher [upper] gate, which lieth [faces] toward the north, and every man a slaughter weapon in his hand [with his battle axe]; and one man among them was clothed with linen, with a writer’s inkhorn by his side: and they went in, and stood beside the brasen altar. And the glory of the God of Israel was gone up from the cherub, whereupon he was, to the threshold of the house [The Temple]. And he called to the man clothed with linen, which had the writer’s inkhorn by his side; and the LORD said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set [put] a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for [over] all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof.” (Ezekiel 9:1-4)

“And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor any tree. And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads. And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children [sons] of Israel.” (Revelation 7:1-4)

“And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit. And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit. And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power. And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads.” (Revelation 9:1-4)

In the Scriptures from Revelation 7, it goes on to list the twelve tribes of Israel from which 12,000 men from each tribe will be sealed. These are the twelve tribes, whose names are written in the Greek text: Juda, Reuben, Gad, Aser, Nephthalim, Manasses, Simeon, Levi, Issachar, Zabulon, Joseph, and Benjamin.

Then in Ezekiel 9, God told Ezekiel what would happen to the rest of the people. Notice God told Ezekiel that God’s judgment would begin at His sanctuary, meaning His temple, with the elders, those men who should have known God and His commandments. Notice also that God said not to harm any man who had His mark:

“And to the others he said in mine hearing [my ears], Go ye after him through the city, and smite [kill]: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity: slay utterly [to destruction] old and young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men [elders] which were before the house [temple]. And he said unto them, Defile the house [temple], and fill the courts with the slain: go ye forth. And they went forth, and slew in the city.” (Ezekiel 9:5-7)

Notice that in Ezekiel 9:1-4, God instructs the man clothed with linen to seal with His mark the men who sigh and cry because of all the sinful abominations that were being committed in the city. This is a perfect example of how God protects those who have faith in Him and have not gone by the way of the sinful, even when they are living in the midst of them. This reminds me of when God saved Lot and his family before He destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. The apostle Peter wrote of this in his second epistle. May we, who are believers in Jesus Christ, remember this as we sigh and cry over the abominations being committed against God in our wicked and evil world in which we live:

“And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow [to destruction], making them an ensample unto those that after [afterward] should live ungodly; and delivered just Lot, vexed [oppressed] with the filthy conversation [conduct] of the wicked: (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed [tormented] his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;) The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished…” (2 Peter 2:6-9)

Ezekiel is so torn up about what God is telling him about Israel’s judgment and what Ezekiel saw in his vision, that he cried out to God:

“And it came to pass, while they were slaying them, and I was left [left alone], that I fell upon my face, and cried, and said, Ah Lord GOD! wilt thou destroy all the residue [remnant] of Israel in thy pouring out of thy fury upon Jerusalem? Then said he unto me, The iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceeding great, and the land is full of blood [bloodshed], and the city full of perverseness: for they say, The LORD hath forsaken the earth [land], and the LORD seeth not. And as for me also, mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity, but I will recompense their way [repay their deeds] upon their head. And, behold, the man clothed with linen, which had the inkhorn by his side, reported the matter, saying, I have done as thou has commanded me.” (Ezekiel 9:8-11)

I honestly do not know if Ezekiel is describing something that has already happened, but I do believe it is describing something that is yet to happen, and that is during the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, which has not happened yet. There are some people who believe this happened the first time when the Babylonians destroyed the first Temple and Jerusalem, and that very well may be true. However, I believe the greater fulfillment is yet to come.

Let us read what God had previously told Ezekiel as written in Ezekiel chapter 6. God told Ezekiel to speak to the mountains of Israel and tell them that God would bring a sword upon them and destroy their high places where the children of Israel worshipped their false gods. I believe that God, through Ezekiel is literally speaking to the literal mountains in Israel, and it is not a case where the mountains are some representation of the rulers of Israel. Let us read some of what God told Ezekiel to say to the mountains of Israel in chapter 6:

“And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, set thy face toward the mountains of Israel, and prophesy against them, and say, Ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord GOD; Thus saith the Lord GOD to the mountains, and to the hills, to the rivers [ravines], and to the valleys; Behold, I, even I, will bring a sword upon you, and I will destroy your high places [sacred places for pagan worship]. And your altars shall be desolate, and your images [incense altars] shall be broken: and I will cast down your slain men before your idols. And I will lay the dead carcases of the children of Israel before their idols; and I will scatter your bones round about your altars. In all your dwellingplaces the cities shall be laid waste [in ruins], and the high places shall be desolate; that your altars may be laid waste and made desolate, and your idols may be broken and cease [ended], and your images may be cut down, and your works may be abolished. And the slain shall fall in the midst of you, and ye shall know that I am the LORD.” (Ezekiel 6:1-7)

Though God said He will make the mountains of Israel desolate and fill them with the dead bodies of the children of Israel who will choose to worship false gods instead of the one true God, He also said that He would leave a remnant of Israel that will be scattered among the nations:

“Yet will I leave a remnant, that ye may have some that shall escape the sword among the nations, when ye shall be scattered through the countries. And they that escape of you shall remember me among the nations whither they shall be carried captives, because I am broken with [crushed by] their whorish [adulterous] heart, which hath departed from me, and with their eyes, which go a whoring [played the harlot] after their idols: and they shall loathe themselves for the evils which they have committed in all their abominations. And they shall know that I am the LORD, and that I have not said in vain that I would do this evil [bring this calamity] unto them.” (Ezekiel 6:8-10)

In Ezekiel chapter 11, God continues to show Ezekiel the sins and abominations that Israel is committing against Him. God shows Ezekiel twenty five men at the Temple. Among the men are two men, one named Jaazaniah the son of Azur, and one named Pelatiah the son of Benaiah, who are princes of the people and who “devise mischief [iniquity], and give wicked counsel in this city.” (Ezekiel 11:2) God told Ezekiel to tell these men about the wickedness that God saw them do in the city and how God would execute judgments. However, God would bring them out of Jerusalem and deliver them to strangers and judge them in the border of Israel (Ezekiel 11:5-11). Once again, Ezekiel cried out to God, and once again, God promised hope for Ezekiel and for the children of Israel. However, for those whose heart it turned against God and whose heart desires detestable things and abominations against God, He will bring judgment upon their heads:

“And it came to pass, when I [Ezekiel] prophesied, that Pelatiah the son of Benaiah died. Then fell I down upon my face, and cried with a loud voice, and said, Ah Lord GOD! wilt thou make a full end of the remnant of Israel? Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, thy brethren, even thy brethren [relatives], the men of thy kindred, and all the house of Israel wholly, are they unto whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem have said, Get you far from the LORD: unto us is this land given in possession. Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Although I have cast them far off among the heathen [Gentiles], and although I have scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them as a little sanctuary [holy place] in the countries where they shall come. Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will even gather you from the people, and assemble you out of the countries where ye have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel. And they shall come thither, and they shall take away all the detestable things thereof and all the abominations thereof from thence. And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you [them]; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh; that they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God. But as for them whose heart walketh after the heart of their detestable things and their abominations, I will recompense their way [repay their deeds] upon their own heads, saith the Lord GOD.” (Ezekiel 11:13-21)

Thus, in the Scriptures we read from above, God will preserve a remnant of Israel that will be saved from destruction. I do not believe what is written above has already happened but is yet future. I believe it will only happen when Jesus Christ returns at the end of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble and replaces the stony heart of the surviving remnant of Israel with a new heart of flesh, and gives them a new Spirit within them. It is only at that time that Israel will no longer turn their hearts against God to worship false gods.

God also told Ezekiel in chapter 16 that He had not forgotten Israel and His covenant with them:

“Nevertheless I will remember my covenant with thee in the days of thy youth, and I will establish unto thee an everlasting covenant. Then thou shalt remember thy ways, and be ashamed, when thou shalt receive thy sisters, thine elder and thine younger: for I will give them unto thee for daughters, but not by thy covenant. And I will establish my covenant with thee; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: that thou mayest remember, and be confounded, and never open thy mouth any more because of thy shame, when I am pacified toward thee for all that thou hast done, saith the Lord GOD.” (Ezekiel 16:60-63)

Returning to what we read in Ezekiel chapter 6, I think it is important to note that it seems to connect to Ezekiel chapter 36 in that God is speaking to the mountains of Israel, where the first is a promise of desolation but the second is a promise of restoration. In Ezekiel 36:21-24, God tells the mountains of Israel that He will bring Israel back into their own land, not for Israel’s sake, but for His holy name’s sake:

“But I had pity [concern] for my holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the heathen [nations], whither they went. Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name’s sake, which ye have profaned among the heathen [nations], whither ye went. And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, saith the Lord GOD, when I shall be sanctified [hallowed] in you before their eyes. For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all the countries, and will bring you into your own land.” (Ezekiel 36:21-24)

God also told Ezekiel something similar in Ezekiel chapter 20, when God gave Ezekiel words to speak to certain elders of Israel:

“And ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I shall bring you into the land of Israel, into the country for the which I lifted up mine hand [took an oath] to give it to your fathers. And there shall ye remember your ways, and all your doings, wherein ye have been defiled; and ye shall lothe [despise] yourselves in your sight for all your evils that ye have committed. And ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I have wrought [dealt] with you for my name’s sake, not according to your wicked ways, nor according to your corrupt doings, O ye house of Israel, saith the Lord GOD.” (Ezekiel 20:42-44)

Before I move on to Ezekiel chapters 33-39, I want to strongly encourage you to read the entire book of Ezekiel for yourself, for it provides all of the context needed to understand what it written in Ezekiel chapters 33-39. Before taking a deep dive into those chapters, I want to say that I believe Ezekiel chapter 36 also speaks of the time when all the nations will be gathered in Israel against Jesus Christ at His second coming. Many times I have struggled to understand all of this because it goes against what I have heard repeatedly from modern prophecy teachers and pastors. I believe that the Holy Spirit has impressed upon me that I must slow down and not be in a hurry to write these devotional messages. He has impressed upon me to study His word, and let Him guide me into all truth and not rely on mere man for understanding. I have prayed to God to provide me with understanding through the power of the Holy Spirit and to write these devotionals not on my own, human and imperfect understanding of God’s word, but through the power of the Holy Spirit. I believe God has caused me to put away all that I have been taught by pastors and read in commentaries who speak about an imminent battle of Gog and Magog, and strictly focus on what the Bible says and how the Holy Spirit has explained it to me. Because I am human, I may not have everything correct, and if something happens that makes it clear that I was wrong, I will update the devotional and/or write another and state that. It is not my intention at all to mislead anyone.

The Scriptures in the book of Ezekiel are of critical importance in our world today. For many years I have believed that this battle is imminent because of the words of Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu telling the world of how close Iran is to building a nuclear bomb and listening to pastors telling me that Russia will align with Iran and others to invade Israel. Most recently, America bombed three Iranian nuclear sites on June 22, 2025 during Operation Midnight Hammer, and the speculation about the timing of Gog and Magog continues.

While the Scriptures do tell us that Iran, which is named in the Bible by its former name of Persia, will play a role in the battle of Gog and Magog, I do not believe this battle is imminent but is at least seven years away, with the second coming of Jesus Christ. However, because I do believe we are very close to the signing of the 7-year covenant with the many by the coming Antichrist, which begins the time of Jacob’s trouble, I want to discuss this 7-year time period in this devotional so that anyone reading this can decide for themselves if what we are being told is true or a cunningly devised lie to mislead people.

First, let us read how the prophet Jeremiah describes this coming time of Jacob’s trouble, which is from where it gets its name. While much of Jeremiah’s prophesies were fulfilled long ago, there are prophecies yet to be fulfilled, including regarding the time of Jacob’s trouble. Let us also read what Jesus Himself said about it. First, God gives good news to Israel and Judah that they won’t be exiled from their land forever but He will bring them back into the land He gave to their fathers. Then God tells them of their coming time of trouble. He also gives us a clue as to the timing of this coming time of trouble:

“The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, Thus speaketh the LORD God of Israel, saying, Write thee all the words that I have spoken unto thee in a book. For, lo, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will bring again the captivity of my [back from captivity my] people Israel and Judah, saith the LORD: and I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it. And these are the words that the LORD spake concerning Israel and Judah. For thus saith the LORD; We have heard a voice of trembling, of fear, and not of peace. Ask ye now, and see whether a man doth travail with child [male can give birth]? wherefore do I see every man with his hands on his loins, as a woman in travail [childbirth], and all faces are turned into paleness? Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble; but he shall be saved out of it. For it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will break his yoke from off thy neck, and will burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more serve themselves of him: but they shall serve the LORD their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up unto them. Therefore fear thou not, O my servant Jacob, saith the LORD; neither be dismayed, O Israel: for, lo, I will save thee from afar, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and shall be in rest, and be quiet, and none shall make him afraid. For I am with thee, saith the LORD, to save thee: though I make a full end of all nations whither I have scattered thee, yet will I not make a full end of thee: but I will correct thee in measure [justice], and will not leave thee altogether unpunished.” (Jeremiah 30:1-11)

“The fierce anger of the LORD shall not return, until he have done it, and until he have performed the intents of his heart: in the latter days ye shall consider it.” (Jeremiah 30:24)

Let us read some other Scriptures that speak of this coming time of trouble:

“The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up; his sin is hid. The sorrows of a travailing woman [woman in childbirth] shall come upon him: he is an unwise son; for he should not stay long in the place of the breaking forth [birth] of children.” (Hosea 13:12-13)

“And at that time [the time of the end, per Daniel 11:40] shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth [stands watch over] for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book, And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt [abhorrence].” (Daniel 12: 1-2)

Let us read some other verses that speak of this time of trouble, including those spoken by Jesus Christ Himself, when He spoke of the great tribulation, which is the last 3-1/2 years of the time of Jacob’s trouble, and which will happen after the antichrist commits the abomination of desolation in the Third Temple (Matthew 24:15):

“For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 24:21-22)

“And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the LORD, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein. And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try [test] them as gold is tried [tested]: they shall call on my name, and I will hear [answer] them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God.” (Zechariah 13:8-9)

Now, let’s dig into Ezekiel chapters 33-39.

• Ezekiel chapter 33: God is warning the people of Israel through the watchmen He has chosen, who is the prophet Ezekiel. God tells Ezekiel the words to speak to the “children of thy people,”meaning all of Israel, including Judah. God tells them that He will bring a sword upon the land and that He has set Ezekiel the prophet as a watchmen for them:

“Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, speak to the children of thy people, and say unto them, When I bring the sword upon a land, if the people of the land take a man of their coasts [territory], and set him for their watchman: if when he seeth the sword come upon the land, he blow the trumpet, and warn the people; then whosoever heareth the sound of the trumpet, and taketh not warning; if the sword come, and take him away, his blood shall be upon his own head. He heard the sound of the trumpet, and took not warning; his blood shall be upon him. But he that taketh warning shall deliver his soul [save his life]. 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. So thou, O son of man, I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore thou shalt hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me.” (Ezekiel 33:1-7)

God tells them that if the watchman warns them of a sword that comes upon the land and blows a trumpet to warn the people but the people do not listen to the watchman, then their blood is on their own hands and not on the watchman’s and they will die in their own iniquity/sin. However, if the watchman does not warn the people, then they will still die in their iniquity but God will require their blood at the watchman’s hand. There are watchmen in our world today who are warning the unsaved of the things that are to come, as prophesied about in the Bible, and how they must turn to Jesus Christ to be saved from their sins. Yet, the majority of the people who hear these warnings are ignoring the warnings, and their blood will be upon their own head.

God then said to Ezekiel:

“Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?” (Ezekiel 33:11)

God then tells Ezekiel that the house of Israel cannot possess the land when they are committing sinful acts against God, including going after false gods, committing abominations, and shedding blood. In Ezekiel 33:28-29, Ezekiel is to tell the people that the land and mountains of Israel shall be left desolate so that they will know that God is the LORD. This ties directly back to Ezekiel chapter 6 when God said desolation will come to the mountains of Israel. God also tells Ezekiel that though the people of Israel will hear the words that Ezekiel will tell them, they will not heed them, for their heart goes after their covetousness and not Him (Ezekiel 33:30-31). God ends chapter 33 with this promise:

“And when this cometh to pass, (lo, it will come,) then shall they know that a prophet hath been among them.” (Ezekiel 33:33)

• Ezekiel chapter 34: God is speaking to the shepherds of Israel: God has absolutely nothing good to say about the shepherds, the religious leaders, of Israel and pronounces woe upon them. God tells them it is because of them that the people have gone astray because the shepherds fed themselves and not the people, and the people became a prey. God tells them that they have not strengthened the weak, healed that which was sick, bound what was broken, brought back that which was lost, or sought after the lost, “but with force and with cruelty have ye ruled them.” (Ezekiel 34:4) God tells them that His sheep are scattered because they had no shepherd and they did not go searching for them. Can you see the contrast between these shepherds of Israel and the true Shepherd, Jesus Christ?

“I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.” (Jesus Christ; John 10:14-15)

“And Jesus departed from thence, and came nigh unto the sea of Galilee; and went up into a mountain, and sat down there. And great multitudes came unto him, having with them those that were lame, blind, dumb [mute], maimed, and many others, and cast them down at Jesus’ feet; and he healed them: insomuch that the multitude wondered [marvelled], when they saw the dumb to speak, the maimed to be whole, the lame to walk, and the blind to see: and they glorified the God of Israel.” (Matthew 15:29-31)

When John the baptizer was imprisoned by King Herod, John began to wonder if Jesus truly was the Messiah of whom the Scriptures foretold, and he sent to of his disciples to Jesus, “saying, Art thou he that should come [the coming one] or look we for another?” (Luke 7:19) Let us read after they asked Jesus that question:

“And in that same hour he [Jesus] cured many of their infirmities and plagues [afflictions], and of evil spirits; and unto many that were blind he gave sight. Then Jesus answering said unto them, Go your way, and tell John what things ye have seen and heard; how that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, to the poor the gospel is preached. And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.” (Luke 7:21-23)

The shepherds to whom Ezekiel was speaking to were not taking care of the sheep, the children of Israel, and they were not willing to die for them. No, only Jesus, the true and good Shepherd, would do this for them, for us. Consequently, God says He will require His flock at the shepherds’ hand and will stop them from feeding the flock and themselves, “for I will deliver my flock from their mouth, that they may not be meat [food] for them.” (Ezekiel 34:10). God then says that He will be the shepherd that seeks out His sheep:

“As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered; so will I seek out my sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day. And I will bring them out from the people, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their own land, and feed them upon the mountains of Israel by the rivers, and in all the inhabited places of the country.” (Ezekiel 34:12-13)

Notice above that God said He will deliver His people “where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day.” I believe this is referring to the 7-year time of of Jacob’s trouble, when Israel will be further scattered among the nations. This scattering is already happening. On November 23, 2025, The Times of Israel reported on a new study that “found that 27 percent of Israelis are considering moving out of the country, even though the majority of them believe mass emigration would be dangerous for the future of the state.” The study included both Arab Israelis and Jewish Israelis, of which 30% and 26%, respectively, said they were considering leaving the country, even though “they had no specific pull abroad - it was just a matter of getting out of the country.” (See: https://www.timesofisrael.com/some-1-in-4-israelis-considering-leaving-the-country-poll-finds/)

I believe the time of Jacob’s trouble/tribulation period is included in what is known as the Day of the Lord. The Scriptures above also refer to the Day of the Lord as “the cloudy and dark day.” It is at the end of it that Jesus will deliver them and bring them back into the land of Israel. God then says that He will set up one shepherd over them to feed them, and He will make a covenant of peace with them. I believe that the shepherd mentioned in the Scriptures above from Ezekiel 34:12-13 and in the Scriptures below is referring to Jesus the Christ. We read more about this shepherd in Ezekiel 34:23, where God tells us that He will set up one shepherd. In Ezekiel 34:28, God tells that His people “shall no more be a prey to the heathen” and that “they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid.” Thus, because of the words of God, I do not believe this is a representation of modern day Israel but it is a picture of the second coming of Christ. It is at that time when Jesus Himself will save the remnant of Israel, who will be scattered among the nations, and He will gather them back into the land He gave them. It is at that time that the land of Israel will thrive and be restored. It is only at that time that Israel will dwell safely in their land.

As we read in the Scriptures below, it mentions “my servant David.” I believe that God will resurrect King David, and he will be a prince among the people in Jerusalem. As we read in the Scriptures below from Ezekiel 34, God tells us three times that Israel will be dwelling safely when God brings them back into their land. When God repeats something, it is because He wants us to pay particular attention to what He is saying. The dwelling safely of Israel seems to be tied directly to the time when God will make a covenant of peace with them:

“Therefore will I save my flock, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between cattle and cattle [sheep and sheep]. And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. And I the LORD will be their God, and my servant David a prince among them; I the LORD have spoken it. And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause the evil [wild] beasts to cease out of the land: and they shall dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods.” (Ezekiel 34:22-25)

“And I will make them and the places round about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in his season; there shall be showers of blessing. And the tree of the field shall yield her fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase, and they shall be safe in their land, and shall know that I am the LORD, when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and delivered them out of the hand of those that served themselves of them [enslaved them].” (Ezekiel 34:26-27)

“And they shall no more be a prey to the heathen [for the nations], neither shall the beast of the land devour them; but they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid. And I will raise up for them a plant [garden] of renown, and they shall be no more consumed with hunger in the land, neither bear the shame of the heathen [Gentiles] any more.” (Ezekiel 34:28-29)

• Ezekiel chapter 35: God pronounces judgment upon Mount Seir. The land of this area was given to Jacob’s brother, Esau and his descendants, who were the Edomites and were later called the Idumeans. There has been a longstanding hatred of the Edomites against Jacob’s descendants, as God states in this chapter:

“Because thou hast had a perpetual hatred, and hast shed the blood of the children of Israel by the force of the sword in the time of their calamity, in the time that their iniquity had an end: therefore, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, I will prepare thee unto blood, and blood shall pursue thee: sith [since] thou hast not hated blood [or bloodshed], even blood shall pursue thee.” (Ezekiel 35:5-6)

“Because thou hast said, These two nations and these two countries shall be mine, and we will possess it; whereas [although] the LORD was there: therefore, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, I will even do according to thine anger, and according to thine envy which thou hast used out of [showed in] thy hatred against them; and I will make myself known among them, when I have judged thee. And thou shalt know that I am the LORD, and that I have heard all thy blasphemies which thou hast spoken against the mountains of Israel, saying, They are laid desolate, they are given us to consume.” (Ezekiel 35:10-12)

“As thou didst rejoice at the inheritance of the house of Israel, because it was desolate, so will I do unto thee: thou shalt be desolate, O mount Seir, and all Idumea [Edom], even all of it: and they shall know that I am the LORD.” (Ezekiel 35:15)

• Ezekiel chapter 36: God speaks to the mountains of Israel and proclaims that He will restore them. I am going to spend quite a bit of time discussing this chapter, as I believe it holds the key to understand the timing of when the battle of Gog and Magog discussed in chapters 38 and 39 will occur. In this chapter, God is primarily speaking to the mountains of Israel, but in verse 36:4, He is also addressing the hills, rivers or ravines, valleys, the desolate wastes, and the cities in Israel. I believe that God is literally speaking to the land, and not a figurative representation of the rulers of Israel or the people of Israel. I believe in this chapter, God has given us a clue as to the timing of when the land of Israel will be restored, and it has to do with the words “residue of the heathen.” Let us read in God’s word where He states this phrase three times:

“Therefore prophesy and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because they have made you desolate, and swallowed you up on every side, that ye might be a possession unto the residue of the heathen, and ye are taken up in the lips of talkers, and are an infamy of [slandered by] the people: therefore, ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord GOD; Thus saith the Lord GOD to the mountains, and to the hills, to the rivers [ravines], and to the valleys, to the desolate wastes, and to the cities that are forsaken, which became a prey and derision to the residue of the heathen that are round about; therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Surely in the fire of my jealousy have I spoken against the residue of the heathen, and against all Idumea [Edom], which have appointed [given] my land into their possession with the joy of all their heart [wholehearted joy], with despiteful [spiteful] minds, to cast it out for a prey.” (Ezekiel 36:3-5)

The “heathen” discussed in the Scriptures above refers to the Gentile/non-Jewish nations. The Strong’s Concordance defines the word ‘residue” as: (See: https://biblehub.com/hebrew/7611.htm)

“From sha'ar; a remainder or residual (surviving, final) portion -- that had escaped, be left, posterity, remain(-der), remnant, residue, rest.”

We must ask ourselves: from what has this residue or remnant escaped? Why did God refer to the nations as “the residue” and not just the heathen nations? I believe this is extremely important to understand the timing of Gog and Magog in Ezekiel 38-39. I believe there is another clue that God has given us. In verse 3, God tells us that “they,” meaning the heathen nations, have made the mountains of Israel desolate, and in verse 5 that they have given His land into their possession. Let us pause here for a moment. The people of Idumea were descendants of the Edomites. The Edomites were descendants of Esau, the brother of Jacob. It was Jacob who was chosen by God and whose name was changed by God to “Israel.” It was the descendants of Israel who would receive the land from God and not Esau, even though Esau was Jacob’s older brother, the one to whom the birthright is given. However, Esau sold his birthright to Jacob for a pot of red stew. I bring all of this up because it is very interesting to me that God mentions that it will be Idumea, along with the residue of the heathen, that takes God’s land for themselves.

Fast-forward to August 5, 2019, and who is mentioned by Israel as the “Head of Edom”? It is US President Donald J. Trump, and his name is mentioned in the context of Israel being able to build its Third Temple. (See: https://israel365news.com/332454/trump-initiate-building-third-temple-head-edom/) Add to that, another article from israel365news.com that speaks about Trump often being ridiculed for his “redness.” The article states that Rabbi Berger believes it is because Donald Trump is from Edom. The rabbi goes on further to say the Third Temple won’t be built by Jews but non-Jews. (See: https://israel365news.com/397766/midrash-hints-that-trump-will-return-glory-to-western-world-by-building-third-temple/) I simply cannot believe that it is just coincidence that God tells us in Ezekiel 36:5 that the residue of the heathen and all Idumea will give themselves His land with heartfelt joy, and as I write this, which has taken many days, Donald Trump is continuing his quest to create “peace” in the Middle East that includes “a credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood” in point #19 of Trump’s 20-point peace plan, which I will discuss further in this devotional. (See: https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5527504-read-gaza-strip-ceasefire-trump-israel/)

I absolutely do not believe it is merely coincidence that the presentation of this plan by Mike Waltz at the United Nations on November 17, 2025 was urged to be viewed not as a compromise but as “a covenant.”

I believe that the wording God used in Ezekiel 36:5 regarding the appointing of His land is referring to the confirmation of the“covenant with many for one week” that Daniel wrote about in Daniel 9:27. This covenant will be confirmed by the coming final antichrist with Israel and likely other nations. This covenant may be a land for “peace” covenant that is made with Israel and the nations surrounding her, perhaps in exchange for Israel being allowed to build their Third Temple.

We know that a third Jewish Temple must exist during the time of Jacob’s trouble because in Matthew 24:15, Jesus Himself referred to what Daniel the prophet said about it:

“And he [Antichrist] shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation [offering] to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.” (Daniel 9:27)

“When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand…” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 24:15)

The apostle Paul also wrote about this:

“Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin [Antichrist] be revealed, the son of perdition; who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.” (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4)

I believe the “residue of the heathen” mentioned three times in Ezekiel 36 refers to the nations that are left at the end of the time of Jacob’s trouble, when Jesus Himself will gather them together in the mountains of Israel, at Mount Megiddo, which also may be called the valley of Jehoshaphat, or the valley of Jezreel, where Jesus will bring judgment upon the nations and destroy them with the sword of His mouth. The book of Joel tells us:

“For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity [captives] of Judah and Jerusalem, I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead [enter into judgment] with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted [divided up] my land.” (Joel 3:1-2)

In Ezekiel 36:6, God tells the mountains of Israel, and again, God is literally speaking about the land itself in Israel - His land - that He will restore it after the residue of the nations have borne their own shame:

“Prophesy therefore concerning the land of Israel, and say unto the mountains, and to the hills, to the rivers, and to the valleys, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I have spoken in my jealousy and my fury, because ye have borne the shame of the heathen: Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; I have lifted up mine hand, Surely the heathen [nations] that are about you, they shall bear their [their own] shame. But ye, O mountains of Israel, ye shall shoot forth your branches, and yield your fruit to my people of Israel; for they are at hand [about to] come. For, behold, I am for you, and I will turn unto you, and ye shall be tilled and sown: and I will multiply men upon you, all the house of Israel, even all of it: and the cities shall be inhabited, and the wastes [ruins] shall be builded: and I will multiply upon you man and beast; and they shall increase and bring fruit: and I will settle you after your old estates [make you inhabited as in the former times], and will do better unto you than at your beginnings: and ye shall know that I am the LORD.” (Ezekiel 36:6-11)

There are many who believe that this regathering of the nation of Israel in the Scriptures above refers to the modern day nation of Israel that was created in 1948 after World War II. I used to believe that perspective as well. However, as I will discuss further, I do not believe that any longer, and it is because of what we previously read several times regarding God setting up one Shepherd over them, who will be Jesus Christ. In addition, we read several times where God tells us that Israel will be dwelling safely in their own land. As I previously mentioned, I believe this dwelling safely of the children of Israel in the land of Israel is directly tied to the covenant of peace that Jesus will make with them. Without His covenant of peace, there is no peace for Israel, no matter what Donald Trump, Benjamin Netanyahu, the United Nations, or any earthly man or organization believes.

Let us read some other Scriptures that God gave to Ezekiel to proclaim to the mountains and the land of Israel:

“Yea, I will cause men to walk upon you, even my people Israel; and they shall possess thee, and thou shalt be their inheritance, and thou shalt no more henceforth bereave them of men [their children]. Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because they say unto you, Thou land [You are a land which] devourest up men, and hast bereaved thy nations; therefore thou shalt devour men no more, neither bereave thy nations any more, saith the Lord GOD. Neither will I cause men to hear in thee the shame of the heathen [the taunts of the nations] any more, neither shalt thou bear the reproach of the people any more, neither shalt thou cause thy nations to fall [stumble] any more, saith the Lord GOD.” (Ezekiel 36:12-15)

There is no doubt in my mind that the Scriptures above are not speaking of modern day Israel, for modern day Israel is bereaved of its children with all of the wars that are being fought in and around it. Consider just the war that began on October 7, 2023 and all the bloodshed that has happened since then. Let’s continue reading:

“Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, when the house of Israel dwelt in their own land, they defiled it by their own way and by their doings: their way was before me a the uncleanness of a removed woman [woman in her customary impurity]. Wherefore I poured my fury upon them for the blood that they had shed upon the land, and for their idols wherewith they had polluted [defiled] it: and I scattered them among the heathen [nations], and they were dispersed through the countries: according to their way and according to their doings I judged them. And when they entered unto the heathen, whither they went, they profaned my holy name, when they said to them, These are the people of the LORD, and are gone forth out of his land.” (Ezekiel 36:16-20)

The Scriptures above tell us that when Israel dwelt in its land, they defiled it because of the blood they had shed upon it. Clearly, this tells us that Israel, like all the other nations, is not innocent and is sinful against God. God tells us that because of their sins against Him, He will take them out of their land and scatter them throughout the nations of the world. He also says He will pour out His fury upon Israel, and I believe this is speaking about the coming time of Jacob’s trouble. While many people would like to believe that during this time of trouble God will forget Israel, that is not true. God knows exactly who of the children of Israel are faithful to Him, and it is those whom He will preserve through their time of testing. Now, let us read God’s reasons for what He will do. I had previously included these Scriptures, but I think it is important that we read them again:

“But I had pity [concern] for mine holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the heathen, whither they went. Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name’s sake, which ye have profaned among the heathen, whither ye went. And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, saith the Lord GOD, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes. For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land.” (Ezekiel 36:21-24)

God clearly is not happy with Israel because, as He said in His own words, they have profaned His name among the Gentile/non-Jewish/heathen nations to whom they have been scattered. Thus, in order sanctify His holy name, and to make the nations know that He is the LORD, he is going to do something. That something is when He will take Israel out of those nations and bring them back into their own land. Again, I emphasize, that I do not believe this gathering of Israel by God back into their own land has not happened, and it did not happen in May 1948, and will only happen when Jesus Christ, their Messiah, will return at His second coming. Now, let us read what God tells Israel next:

“Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.” (Ezekiel 36:25-28)

Clearly, this has not happened after Israel was created in 1948, nor any time since then, and things are only heating up in Israel. Israel has not seen peace nor dwelled safely since it became a nation again in 1948. Though there are a small number of Jews who have turned to Jesus Christ as their Savior and Redeemer, as a nation, modern Israel is still in rejection of God’s only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, as their Messiah. Modern Israel is not looking to Him but to mere man to save them, and I would say in particular to Donald Trump, with some even calling him their “Messiah.”

Yes, God did allow the modern day nation of Israel to be created, with many Jews having moved there from other nations afterwards. Just as God has always promised He would, He did save a remnant of Jews in WWII, even though Hitler and his allies tried to eliminate them from the earth. I believe this rebirth of Israel must have happened in order for the prophetic events in the Bible that have not yet been fulfilled and which lead up to the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble and afterwards, to be fulfilled. This includes the confirming of the covenant with many, that I believe includes Israel, that is written about by Daniel the prophet in Daniel 9:27. The rebirth of Israel is 1948 must have happened in order for Israel to build a Third Temple in which the antichrist will commit the abomination of desolation that was prophesied by Daniel and specifically mentioned by Jesus Himself.

Now, let us continue reading from Ezekiel 36:

“I will also save you from all your uncleannesses: and I will call for the corn [grain], and will increase it, and lay no famine upon you. And I will multiply the fruit of the tree, and the increase of the field, that ye shall receive no more reproach of famine among the heathen. Then shall ye remember your own evil ways, and your doing that were not good, and shall lothe yourselves in your own sight for your iniquities and for your abominations. Not for your sakes do I this, saith the Lord GOD, be it known unto you: be ashamed and confounded for your own ways, O house of Israel.” (Ezekiel 36:29-32)

Let’s pause here for a moment. Modern Israel is just like every other country, and I would say even like the evil and corrupt USA, that has filled the world with its vile and disgusting abominations of sexual fornication, abortion, idolatry, rampant drug use in both legal and illegal drugs, and corrupt national and state governments.

“Thus saith the Lord GOD; In the day that I shall have cleansed you from all your iniquities, I will also cause you to dwell in the cities, and the wastes shall be builded. And the desolate land shall be tilled, whereas it lay desolate in the sight of all that passed by. And they shall say, This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden; and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are become fenced [fortified], and are inhabited. Then the heathen that are left round about you shall know that I the LORD build the ruined places, and plant that that was desolate: I the LORD have spoken it, and I will do it. Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will yet for this be inquired of by the house of Israel [also let the house of Israel inquire of me], to do it for them; I will increase them with men like a flock. As the holy flock [a flock for holy sacrifices], as the flock of Jerusalem in her solemn feasts [appointed feasts]; so shall the waste [ruined] cities be filled with flocks of men: and they shall know that I am the LORD.” (Ezekiel 36:33-38)

Notice the words above that I emphasized with bold font. Why does it say, “Then the heathen that are left round about you”? Why does it not just say “Then the heathen round about you”? Notice the difference? I believe it is a hint to us that something has happened, or will happen since I believe this is yet future, to the heathen nations around Israel. This is very similar to what I pointed out earlier when God stated three times in Ezekiel 36:3-4 “the residue of the heathen.” Let us look at the Strong’s Concordance for definitions of “are left”:

Strong’s: (See: https://biblehub.com/hebrew/7604.htm)

leave, be left, let, remain, remnant, reserve, the rest

A primitive root; properly, to swell up, i.e. Be (causatively, make) redundant -- leave, (be) left, let, remain, remnant, reserve, the rest.

Again, I believe God is being very intentional in the words He used, and it is that we will take note that He is referring to something that must have happened to the heathen/Gentile nations that results in only a remnant are left, and I believe that it is the time of Jacob’s trouble.

Thus, after having read and studied the Scriptures for myself vs. just listening to various opinions on it, I believe the timing of Gog and Magog must be after God puts Israel through the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, when at the end of it, Jesus will gather them back in the land of Israel and restores them and the land. Jesus will begin His 1,000-year reign on earth, and after some time, and I do not know how many years, Israel will finally be dwelling safely, and at that time, the battle of Gog and Magog will happen.

As I mentioned from the start, I wanted to discuss Gog and Magog because there are many people who believe that the timing of the Gog and Magog war is drawing very near, and may be even imminent. I used to believe that and have written about it previously. However, I have learned, through the leading of the Holy Spirit, not to follow what mere man says, and that includes pastors, but to follow what the Holy Spirit teaches me when I study God’s word for myself. For many years, Israel’s Prime Minister has been telling us that Iran is on the verge, within weeks, of creating a nuclear bomb, and I believed it. While I do not think Iran’s intentions towards Israel are good, I also do not trust the Israeli administration. I believe that it and the US administration have corrupted the Scriptures to promote an agenda that is not Biblical and which empowers themselves. I must admit that it has been difficult for me to go against what I have been taught by pastors for years. However, I have had many instances where pastors and teachers I have listened to previously have been corrupted and whose teachings were against what the word of God says. In the past year or so, I have begun praying every single day for God to let me not be deceived and to be able to discern the truth through the power of the Holy Spirit. We will see what happens in the future, but I sincerely believe that the alliance between Benjamin Netanyahu and Donald Trump is not a good one. Now, let’s move on to Ezekiel chapter 37.

• Ezekiel chapter 37: God speaks to both the dead of Israel and those alive who will have been scattered among the nations. I am going to spend a lot of time in this chapter, as I believe it is critical to understand who these dry bones represent and how and when they will be brought back to life. In this chapter, God, through Ezekiel, is speaking to the dry bones that are skeletons of people:

“The hand of the LORD was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the LORD, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones, and caused me to pass by them round about: and, behold, there were very many in the open valley; and, lo, they were very dry. And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord GOD, thou knowest. Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the LORD.” (Ezekiel 37:1-4)

I do not know which valley this is referring to as it does not tell us in the Scriptures. It may be the same valley as written about in Hosea 1:4-5, 11, which is the Jezreel valley, or the same place written about in the book of Revelation, which is Mount Megiddo, which overlooks the Jezreel valley, but I do not know that for certain.

The description in Ezekiel of God bringing alive of the dry bones also seems to have some parallels to what is written in the book of Isaiah chapter 26. Prior to these verses, God is telling Judah that there is hope for them and to trust in Him. He tells them of their coming time of trouble, as a woman in labor ready to give birth, and what they will say to Him:

“Like as a woman with child, that draweth near the time of her delivery, is in pain, and crieth out in her pangs [sharp pains]; so have been in thy sight, O LORD. We have been with child, we have been in pain, we have as it were brought forth [given birth to] wind; we have not wrought any deliverance in the earth; neither have the inhabitants of the world fallen.” (Isaiah 26:17-18)

Israel will be going through their time of trouble and will feel as a woman in childbirth but which hasn’t given birth to a child. As a woman who has gone through childbirth, when a woman is in active labor, she wants to give birth, she wants the pain to end. That is what Israel will say to God, as written above. Israel will look upon the earth and see the people, the inhabitants, still surviving. They will feel like they have no hope. Then God tells them this:

“Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of the herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead. Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast. For, behold, the LORD cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain.” (Isaiah 26:19-21)

Just as many years later after the prophet Isaiah wrote, through the power of the Holy Spirit, the dead body of Jesus would arise from His dead body, after He was crucified, gave up His life, and placed in a tomb for three days, so shall the bones of Israel arise when the earth casts them out. The words of Isaiah sound very similar to what is written in Ezekiel 37. Isaiah goes on to describe what seems to be a protection of the resurrected people of Judah while God sends His judgment upon the wicked inhabitants of the earth.

I want to discuss what Ezekiel saw in Ezekiel 37 regarding the dry bones. After seeing the dry bones, he describes them as skeletons that had no flesh on them. God then told him that He would put sinews, or tendons, and flesh upon them, and Ezekiel saw them being formed before his very eyes. However, Ezekiel saw that they had no breath or spirit in them. Let us read from Ezekiel 37:

“Then said he [God] unto me, Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Come from the four winds, O breath [spirit], and breathe upon these slain, that they may live. So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath [spirit] came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army. Then he said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel: behold, they say, Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost: we are cut off for our parts. Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. And ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves, and shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: then shall ye know that I the LORD have spoken it, and performed it, saith the LORD.”  (Ezekiel 37:9-14)

I want to pause here and consider what is said above, which is from verse 9. It says, “Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.” In verse 11 it says, “Then he said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel…”  I believe that God is making it clear that these are people who have died because God mentions bringing them up out of their graves four times. Again, when God repeats something, He wants us to pay particular attention to it. Let’s read again what God repeated four times:

“Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. And ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves, and shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: then shall ye know that I the LORD have spoken it, and performed it, saith the LORD” (Ezekiel 37:12-14)

I honestly do not know what all of this means, but clearly it seems to be a resurrection of the people of Israel who died specifically in a valley and who were slain, who did not die of natural causes. I do not know if this is correct, but perhaps it is those in Israel who will turn to Jesus Christ during their time of trouble and will be slain for their faith in Him by the antichrist and his false prophet. If it is, then I believe that it is separate from the remnant of Israel who will be saved alive, for we know that God has always preserved a remnant of His people, and will do so during the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble.

I also want to compare what is written in Ezekiel 37:9 regarding God commanding the four winds to breathe upon those who were slain, to what is written in Mark 13:27. In Mark, Jesus is telling His disciples about the signs of the end times and of His second coming:

“But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken. And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory. And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven.”  (Mark 13:2-27)

I do not know if what is written in Ezekiel 37:9-10 is referring to the same event written in Mark 13:27, but it seems there are parallels between the two.

Returning to Ezekiel 37, we also read that after God brings these dead bones back to life by having the four winds breathe into them, we are told that after God tells Ezekiel that these bones are the “whole house of Israel,” the bones tell God, “Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost: we are cut off for our parts.” (Ezekiel 37:11) I believe that the King James Version of the Bible’s translation of the latter part of the Scripture is not a good one. If we read the Hebrew, it says “ourselves we are cut off.” (See: https://biblehub.com/text/ezekiel/37-11.htm), and the NASB Lexicon says “we are completely cut off.” (See: https://biblehub.com/lexicon/ezekiel/37-11.htm) This may be alluding to the covenant that Israel will make with the final antichrist (Daniel 9:27) that will end up dividing the land that is God’s land, which He Himself gave to Israel. Further, the book of Joel says:

“I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead [enter into judgment] with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted [divided up] my land.” (Joel 3:2)

The dry bones which now have breath in them tell God that they have no hope. Next is the part, which we previously read above in Ezekiel 37:12-14, where God specifically tells these bones of Israel that He will open their graves and bring them out of their graves. We have to remember that God is first showing Ezekiel what He will do, and then God tells Ezekiel what he is to say to these bones. Remember, though this is yet future for us, it has already happened in the eyes of God. Thus, it is written in the past tense. I suspect that the bones feel they have no hope because the one in whom they will put their trust to save them and to make peace with them, who is the coming final antichrist, and with whom they will confirm a covenant, will fail them and turn upon them when he will desecrate the coming Third Temple. Again, we must remember that God’s word said these dry bones are those who were slain.

Starting In verse 14, God gives these bones new hope, and what I believe is a true hope. We previously read verse 14, but let’s read it again:

“And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: then shall ye know that I the LORD have spoken it, and performed it, saith the LORD.”  (Ezekiel 37:14)

God then tells Ezekiel to take two sticks, one for Judah and the children of Israel, and another stick for Joseph, the stick of Ephraim and for all the house of Israel, and join them together as one stick. God then tells Ezekiel what he is to say when the children of his people shall ask him to explain what is meant by the sticks:

“And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen [nations] whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land: and I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all.” (Ezekiel 37:19-22)

Many have said that this has already happened with the rebirth of Israel as a nation in May of 1948. However, I do not believe that it is the fulfillment of this prophecy. In fact, as of 2024, only 41.7% (7,153,000) of the world’s population of Jews live in Israel. America has the second-highest world population of Jews at 36.8% (6,300,000), primarily in New York (1,759,570 as of 2017) and California (1,230,540 as of 2017). The remaining 21.5% live in other countries, with the next largest percentage being only 2.6% (438,500) in France. (See: https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jewish-population-of-the-world) However, a different source, worldpopulationreview.com, shows that in 2025, the number of Jews living in America (7,460,600) now exceeds those living in Israel (7,427,000). (See: https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/number-of-jews-in-the-world) Regardless of which report is correct, it is clear that there is a large number of Jews living outside the modern nation of Israel.

As we previously read in chapter 36 when God told Ezekiel to speak to the house of Israel, God gave similar words to Ezekiel in chapter 37 to speak to them:

“Neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions: but I will save them out of all their dwellingplaces, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God. And David my servant shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them. And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, even they, and their children, and their children’s children for ever: and my servant David shall be their prince for ever.” (Ezekiel 37:23-25)

Clearly, this has not yet been fulfilled. Israel is still living in sin, just as all nations are living in sin. I do not know if, when God referred to David his servant being king over them is referring to Jesus, or if it is both Jesus as the Shepherd and King of kings, with a resurrected David being their prince. However, I do know that Jesus will rule and reign from Jerusalem, and that He is the true Shepherd of Israel. I also know that all will be resurrected to life, and that includes David, the man whom God said was after His own heart, and that he likely will play a key role in Israel. Notice again that God says that Israel will dwell in the land that He gave to Jacob, His servant, and that they will live there forever. Let us continue reading from Ezekiel 37, that describes the covenant of peace that He will make with Israel, which is similar to what we previously read in Ezekiel 34:25:

“Moreover I will make [establish] a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place [establish] them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore. My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And the heathen shall know that I the LORD do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.” (Ezekiel 37:26-28)

It is God Himself who will make an everlasting covenant of peace with them. No human man can bring everlasting peace to this world, including Donald Trump, who recently said he would bring “eternal peace in the Middle East.” (See: https://www.thenationalnews.com/news/us/2025/09/29/trump-netanyahu-middle-east-peace-plan/

I want us to read from Ezekiel chapter 13 that discusses what God tells Ezekiel to say to the prophets of Israel that relates to Israel entering into the land that God gave them:

“And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel that prophesy, and say thou unto them that prophesy out of their own hearts [inspiration], Hear ye the word of the LORD; thus saith the Lord GOD; Woe unto the foolish prophets, that follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing [no vision]! O Israel, thy prophets are like the foxes in the deserts. Ye have not gone up into the gaps [breaches], neither made up the hedge [built up a wall] for the house of Israel to stand in the battle in the day of the LORD. They have seen vanity and lying [futility and false] divination, saying, The LORD saith: and the LORD hath not sent them: and they have made others to hope that they would confirm the word. Have ye not seen a vain [futile] vision, and have ye not spoken a lying [false] divination, whereas ye say, The LORD saith it; albeit I have not spoken? Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because ye have spoken vanity, and seen [envisioned] lies, therefore, behold, I am against you, saith the Lord GOD. And mine hand shall be upon [against] the prophets that see vanity [futility], and that divine lies: they shall not be in the assembly of my people, neither shall they be written in the writing [record] of the house of Israel, neither shall they enter into the land of Israel; and ye shall know that I am the Lord GOD.” (Ezekiel 13:1-9)

Let us pause here for a moment and consider some of the things we just read from the Scriptures above. First, I want us to notice what I have put in bold text. While this prophecy has already been fulfilled when King Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Judah and Jerusalem and the First Temple, I believe, based on the leading of the Holy Spirit, that it will also have a dual fulfillment, with the second fulfillment happening during the Gog and Mag war described in Ezekiel 38-39. Second, God is speaking harsh words to those in Israel who call themselves prophets but were not called by God to prophesy. We know when it is God calls prophets to prophesy because the prophecies are written in His word and not in any extra-Biblical text. God even told these prophets that they will not be written in the record of the house of Israel and will not be allowed to enter into the land of Israel. Let us continue reading what else God says to these foolish prophets:

“Because, even because they have seduced my people, saying, Peace, and there was no peace; and one built up a wall, and, lo, others daubed [plastered] it with untempered morter [mud-plaster or whitewash].” (Ezekiel 13:10)

Notice how God calls out these foolish prophets who have deceived His people, telling them peace when there is no peace. Notice also that God specifically speaks of “a wall.” Notice that God doesn’t speak of the walls of Jerusalem or the walls of the First or Second Temple, where “wall” is plural; no, God is speaking of a singular wall. I do not believe that is coincidence, for in Jerusalem today, we have a singular wall in Jerusalem. This wall is known in Jerusalem as the Western Wall, and it is located on a place called The Temple Mount. Chabad.org says the wall itself actually was not part of the Second Temple but part of the Temple Mount retaining wall that was built by Herod the Great during an expansion of the Temple Mount and renovation of the Second Temple.  It further states, “Thus the Western Wall constitutes the closest possible point to the "Gateway to Heaven." The Second Temple was destroyed in 70 AD by the Romans, but as the referenced article below states, the Roman General named Titus who destroyed the Temple, left the wall standing “as a tribute to his power, a testament to the grandeur of the structures that he destroyed.” (See: https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/588219/jewish/Western-Wall-Kotel.htm)

Many Jews go to the Western Wall to pray. Dignitaries have also visited the wall, including not only Jews but also Gentiles including US Presidents. Donald Trump was the first sitting US President to visit it, and that happened on May 22, 2017. (See: https://www.timesofisrael.com/trump-makes-history-as-first-us-president-to-visit-western-wall/) Jews also write their prayers on paper and put them in the cracks and crevices of the wall. Because there are so many prayer notes of paper, twice a year they have to be cleaned out from the wall. (See: https://www.timesofisrael.com/purging-prayers-from-the-wall/) It is also a place where the Jews in Israel mourn, particularly on the 9th of Av, also referred to as Tisha B’Av. That is the day that many horrible things have happened to the Jewish people, including the destruction of both Temples. For more information, see: https://thekotel.org/en/wailing-wall-western-wall/ and https://thekotel.org/en/143442/.

There is something very interesting in what God said next, and that is that the wall will be destroyed. Notice also that it says it will be God Himself, not King Nebuchadnezzar, nor anyone else who will bring the wall down. Let us read what the Scriptures say:

“Say unto them which daub [plaster] it with untempered morter, that it shall fall: there shall be an overflowing shower; and ye, O great hailstones, shall fall; and a stormy wind shall rend it [tear it down]. Lo, when the wall is fallen, shall it not be said unto you, Where is the daubing [mortar or plaster] wherewith ye have daubed [plastered] it? Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; I will even rend it with a stormy wind in my fury; and there shall be an overflowing shower in mine anger, and great hailstones in my fury to consume it. So will I break down the wall that ye have daubed with untempered morter, and bring it down to the ground, so that the foundation thereof shall be discovered, and it shall fall, and ye shall be consumed in the midst thereof: and ye shall know that I am the LORD. Thus will I accomplish my wrath upon the wall, and upon them that have daubed it with untempered morter, and will say unto you, The wall is no more, neither they that daubed it; To wit, the prophets of Israel which prophesy concerning Jerusalem, and which see visions of peace for her, and there is no peace, saith the Lord GOD.” (Ezekiel 13:11-16)

The bringing down of the wall by God Himself seems to occur during the coming Day of the Lord, and God seems to relate it directly to Israel’s prophets who proclaim false prophecies and who claim peace where there is no peace. These false prophets have left Israel vulnerable, without protection, both spiritually and physically. Spiritually, the people are listening to false prophets speaking lies, and physically, they are trusting in a wall that was built on a foundation that isn’t strong and the wall was made with untempered mortar, making it susceptible to falling down or being brought down by an enemy. In the eyes of God, I believe, the strong foundation and wall that will not be brought down is Jesus the Christ. Let’s read about this again:

“Thus saith the Lord GOD; Woe unto the foolish prophets, that follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing! O Israel, thy prophets are like the foxes in the deserts. Ye have not gone up into the gaps, neither made up the hedge for the house of Israel to stand in the battle in the day of the LORD.” (Ezekiel 13:3-5)

Relating this to the world in which we live today, the religious and political rulers of Israel are not putting their faith and trust in Jesus to save them. To this day, they still reject Him as their Messiah, as their Savior. Thus, they have left Israel vulnerable to attack. I believe that in the words of Ezekiel chapter 13 that describe God bringing down a wall, it may well be that God is saying that these same people who go to the Western Wall and pray, including women as written about in Ezekiel 13:17-21, who bow their heads before the heavy stones on the wall and cry out loud, will see the wall torn by God and it will crumble down. God also says in verse 14 that not only the walls above ground will fall but also the foundation, “so that the foundation thereof shall be discovered, and it shall fall, and ye shall be consumed in the midst thereof: and ye shall know that I am the LORD.” (Ezekiel 13:14)

I believe there is another possibility of the wall that God spoke of in Ezekiel 13, and it is completely different one: Wall Street in New York City. I believe both the government and religious leaders in modern day Israel have increasingly put their faith and trust in the USA and its power and wealth in order to protect Israel from its neighbors that seek to destroy it. I believe that this has especially increased since Donald Trump became president, both in his first term and now in his second term. As I have said previously, many in Israel, including Jews in the US, are putting him on an almost Messiah-type pedestal. If there is one person in New York City that epitomizes wealth and power, it is Donald J. Trump. On November 21, 2025, The Hill posted an article titled “In the name of all things…Trump,” in which it stated, “Trump’s story is still evolving and could continue to evolve for decades, driven by his family’s relentless pursuit of wealth, fame and power.” (See: https://thehill.com/opinion/white-house/5615947-trump-airports-buildings-renaming/)

Wall Street is the financial hub of the USA, located in New York City. On November 12, 2025, Donald Trump held a White House dinner for Wall Street CEOs, including BlackRock CEO Larry Fink; Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon; Nasdaq chief Adena Friedman, all of whom are Jewish. (See: https://www.ft.com/content/97bf8c04-3d6c-477c-9f5f-e92786070a33 An article from January 20, 2025 from jfeed.com titled, “Donald Trump’s inner circle: Meet the Jewish Power Players” writes about the Jewish people Trump has surrounded himself with and who are of influence to him, including those in Wall Street. (See: https://www.jfeed.com/news-israel/sqe7fx)

Let us read about how Wall Street got its name, and the surprising fact that it had nothing to do with the current financial epicenter of America that it is today: (See: https://wallstreettimes.com/why-is-wall-street-called-wall-street-the-real-history/)

“In the heart of Lower Manhattan lies a short, narrow street that has come to symbolize the very essence of global finance, capitalism, and wealth: Wall Street. Its name is synonymous with the world’s most powerful banks, investment firms, and the New York Stock Exchange, yet its origins are far humbler—and more literal—than its modern reputation suggests. The story of why Wall Street is called Wall Street is a fascinating tale of early colonial defense, Dutch settlement, and the gradual evolution of a physical boundary into a financial mecca.

“This historical journey takes us back more than 350 years, to a time when New York City was a small Dutch settlement known as New Amsterdam. The street’s name is not a metaphor for a financial barrier or an economic fortress, but a direct reference to a tangible, defensive structure that once stood on its very location.

“The true history of Wall Street’s name begins in the 17th century when the area was a nascent colony under Dutch rule. In the 1650s, the Dutch settlers of New Amsterdam found themselves in a precarious position. The First Anglo-Dutch War was underway, and they feared an overland invasion from the nearby British colonies in New England. To protect their growing settlement, the colony’s director-general, Peter Stuyvesant, ordered the construction of a defensive wall.”

Thus, the Wall Street that we know today that lies in Manhattan began not as a place where it was all about finances and stock markets and the epicenter of the American economy. No, it began as a literal defensive wall of protection.

Below are several links to articles and a book that discuss just how much influence the Jewish people have had over Wall Street:

“Jewish influence on Wall Street is both profound and enduring. Jewish financiers and bankers have been instrumental in the development of the modern financial system. Figures like Goldman Sachs, founded by Marcus Goldman, and Lehman Brothers, established by Henry, Emanuel, and Mayer Lehman, are just two examples of Jewish-founded institutions that became cornerstones of American finance.

“The Jewish presence on Wall Street has extended beyond just founding companies. Many Jewish executives have led major financial institutions, shaping the direction of global markets.” (See: https://www.entrepreneursherald.com/blog/from-wall-street-to-silicon-valley-the-impact-of-jewish-entrepreneurs-on)

“Against the backdrop of the towering skyscrapers of Wall Street, stories of determination, innovation, and influence unravel. A narrative thread weaves through them – the impact of Jewish business leaders on America’s financial sector. From immigrant beginnings to seats in the boardrooms of the world’s largest financial institutions, the Jewish community’s contributions have helped shape the industry’s trajectory.” (See: https://jewishbusinessnews.com/2023/07/05/shalom-wall-street-the-influence-of-jewish-business-leaders-in-americas-financial-sector/)

“The Money Kings: The Epic Story of the Jewish Immigrants Who Transformed Wall Street and Shaped Modern America,” written by Daniel Schulman. Here is a link to an article from that book: https://static.moaf.org/docs/The%20Money%20Kings.pdf.

Thus, the actual physical location of Wall Street in Manhattan began as a defensive wall in the 17th century. Could this be the “wall” that God had the prophet Ezekiel write about (Ezekiel 13:11-16) and which God said He Himself will tear it down? Is there, perhaps, a connection between Wall Street and the Western Wall? Is it just by coincidence that the wall on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem is named the “Western Wall” and the “Wall Street” in which many have put their faith and trust in is located in the West, and not only the West but in the most powerful nation among the western nations? Is it possible that it is the wall that God is speaking about in Ezekiel 13 and that the plastering of the wall with untempered mortar is referring to the constant propping up of Wall Street and the stock market, in order to prevent its collapse?

Is it any coincidence that Wall Street has a massive 7,100 pound bronze sculpture of a bull, named Charging Bull? To anyone who knows their Bible, it brings to remembrance when, not long after Moses led Israel out of their bondage in Egypt by the power of God, known as the Exodus, while God was giving His Ten Commandments to Moses, the Israelites grew tired of waiting for Moses to come down from Mount Sinai and had his brother, Aaron, create a golden calf, which they worshipped and danced around.

I do not think these are just by-chance coincidences. I also know that the Jewish people have put a lot of faith and trust in Wall Street for their protection and defense of Israel. As the Bible tells us, they have committed spiritual harlotry against God, time and time again. I believe they, as well as many Americans, have built a false sense of security in Wall Street, and I believe it will lead not only to their own peril, but to all who put their faith and trust in money and power instead of in Jesus Christ.

Please do not misunderstand me, I do not hate the Jewish people. I love them, and am so very thankful to God that He chose them to bring His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to offer salvation to all who will believe in Him. I pray everyday for the people of Israel to turn to their Savior, for it is only in Him that salvation - and eternal peace - can be found. However, I am no longer willing to be blind and deaf as to what the Bible tells us about His people, and what is coming. There is a reason why God will put them through their 7-year time of trouble, and it is not because they are perfect and can do no wrong, which sadly, many American pastors seem to believe.

When Jesus came to earth the first time, Israel as a nation rejected its Messiah, Jesus the Christ, and instead put its faith and trust in foolish prophets and religious leaders. Israel has built and maintained a wall, whether it be the Western Wall in Jerusalem or Wall Street in New York City, that separates it from Jesus Christ. Their wall will not stand; it is a wall which will be brought down by God Himself. I believe this wall represents a stumbling block between them and God, and that stumbling block is Jesus. God gives us Scriptures directly linked to what is written about how Jesus is a sanctuary and a tried and precious corner stone, a sure foundation to those who put their faith and trust in Him alone to save them. However, to those who reject Him, He is a stone of stumbling, a stumbling block, including both houses of Israel and to the majority of the Gentiles alike:

“The stone which the builders refused [rejected] is become the head stone of the corner [chief corner stone]. This is the LORD’s doing [from the LORD]; it is marvelous in our eyes.” (Psalm 118:22-23)

“Sanctify the LORD of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread. And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offense [stumbling over] to both the houses of Israel, for a gin [trap] and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And many among them shall stumble, and fall, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken [captured].” (Isaiah 8:13-15)

“And Simeon blessed them, and said unto Mary his mother, Behold, this child is set [destined] for the fall and rising again of many in Israel; and for a sign which shall be spoken against; (Yea, a sword shall pierce through thy own soul also,) that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.” (Luke 2:34-35)

“Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner [chief corner stone]: this is the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes? Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof. And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder. And when the chief  priests and Pharisees had heard his parables, they perceived [knew] that he spake of them.” (Matthew 21:42-45)

“For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; but unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.” (1 Corinthians 1:22-24)

“Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect [chosen], precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded [put to shame]. Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed [rejected], the same is made the head of the corner [chief cornerstone], and a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.” (1 Peter 2:6-8)

In the Scriptures above from 1 Peter 2:6-8, Peter quoted what is written in Isaiah 28:16, which I have included below. Notice that the Scriptures from Isaiah 28 are directly linked to Israel making what God calls “a covenant with death.” I believe this is the covenant that Israel will confirm with the final antichrist that will last for a period of seven years (Daniel 9:27). I believe that it will be an expansion of the existing Abraham Accords, which will include Saudi Arabia. I believe as part of this expansion, Israel will agree to divide God’s land in Israel by establishing a Palestinian state. I suspect that it may include an agreement for Israel to build its Third Temple that well may be the reason why Israel will agree to confirm the covenant. I also believe that this confirming of the covenant is the one which God Himself will annul, as written about in Isaiah 28:14-18:

“Wherefore hear the word of the LORD, ye scornful men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem, Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves: therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste. Judgment [justice] also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place. And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden [trampled] down by it.” (Isaiah 28:14-18)

Notice in the Scriptures above that they compare those who put their faith and trust in Jesus, who is the precious corner stone, and they will not need to make haste, to hurry for fear of God’s judgment. But those who have rejected Jesus and instead put their faith and trust in lies, they will see God’s judgment. They will have no hiding place when they see the wind, great hailstones, and flooding waters sweeping away their refuge of lies. Is it possible that the Western Wall will be destroyed by God with wind, flooding rain, and great hailstones after Israel confirms its covenant of death with the final antichrist?

The words of Ezekiel 13:11-16 also remind me of the words Jesus spoke to His disciples and which are written in the book of Luke:

“And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like: he is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock. But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great.” (Jesus Christ; Luke 6:46-49)

The leaders in Israel today, both religious and government, are like those who built their house without a foundation, and that foundation is Jesus Chris. They are being deceived by a man who tells them what they want to hear but will soon turn against them. There is no earthly man who can bring peace to Israel. The only One who bring true and eternal peace is Israel's Shepherd, Jesus the Christ.

Let us read again the end of Ezekiel 37:

“Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place [establish] them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore. My tabernacle [dwelling place] also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And the heathen shall know that I the LORD do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.” (Ezekiel 37:26-28)

Notice that God tells us that His tabernacle shall be with them, in the midst of them, and will dwell with them forevermore. We read something similar to this in Hebrews chapter 9. This chapter explains why it was necessary for Jesus to come to the earth, and that is because the Law could not save anyone because no one is capable of keeping it; only Jesus can save us, and He is our perfect tabernacle:

“But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building [creation]; neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place [Most Holy Place], having obtained eternal redemption for us.” (Hebrews 9:11-12)

The book of Revelation speaks of this tabernacle of God, Jesus, dwelling with men after God creates a new heaven, a new earth, and a new Jerusalem:

“And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.” (Revelation 21:1-3)

“And  I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.” (Revelation 21:22)

It is at this time when Jesus will dwell among His people, and that includes all Gentiles who were saved by His precious and sinless blood, forevermore. This is when God’s sanctuary will be in the midst of them for eternity.

Before moving onto Ezekiel chapter 38, I want to discuss very prophetic events that have been in the news lately, and that is regarding President Trump’s 20-point peace plan between Israel and Gaza. Trump released his plan on September 29, 2025, and points 19 and 20 read as follows: (See: https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5527504-read-gaza-strip-ceasefire-trump-israel/)

Point 19: “While Gaza re-development advances and when the PA reform program is faithfully carried out, the conditions may finally be in place for a credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood, which we recognize as the aspiration of the Palestinian people.”

Point 20: “The United States will establish a dialogue between Israel and the Palestinians to agree on a political horizon for peaceful and prosperous co-existence.”

Then on Monday, November 17, 2025, the plan, which is officially titled “President Trump’s 20-point Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict,” was put forth by the United States by Ambassador Mike Waltz, U.S. Representative to the United Nations, in New York, as a draft resolution for vote. In his address to the UN, Mike Waltz stated: (See: https://usun.usmission.gov/explanation-of-position-before-the-vote-on-a-u-s-drafted-un-security-council-resolution-on-the-situation-in-the-middle-east/)

“And crucially, per the carefully negotiated language in the 20 Point Plan, this resolution charts a possible pathway for Palestinian self-determination, after the Palestinian Authority has completed the necessary reforms, where rocks will give way to olive branches and there is a chance to agree on a political horizon. It dismantles Hamas’ grip, it ensures Gaza rises free from terror’s shadow, prosperous and secure.”

“…The clock is ticking, like a time bomb. So, let us vote for this resolution not as a compromise, but as a covenant. For the children of Gaza. And for peace that endures. And for a Middle East reborn.”

I find it interesting that in his final words in his address to the UN, Mike Waltz specifically said that the UN should vote for the resolution “for the children of Gaza” but did not also say for the children of Israel.

The text of UN Resolution 2803 reads as follows regarding the two-state solution: (See: https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/full-text-us-resolution-gaza-approved-un-security-council)

“2. Welcomes the establishment of the Board of Peace (BoP) as a transitional administration with international legal personality that will set the framework, and coordinate funding, for the redevelopment of Gaza pursuant to the Comprehensive Plan, and in a manner consistent with relevant international legal principles, until such time as the Palestinian Authority (PA) has satisfactorily completed its reform program, as outlined in various proposals, including President Trump’s peace plan in 2020 and the Saudi-French Proposal, and can securely and effectively take back control of Gaza. After the PA reform program is faithfully carried out and Gaza redevelopment has advanced, the conditions may finally be in place for a credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood. The United States will establish a dialogue between Israel and the Palestinians to agree on a political horizon for peaceful and prosperous coexistence.”

The UN resolution was passed, with 13 countries, including the USA, UK, and France voting for it, none against it, and Russia and China abstaining. President Trump congratulated the world for the UN’s vote on his Truth Social account, and said the vote “will go down as one of the biggest approvals in the History of the United Nations, will lead to further Peace all over the World, and is a moment of true Historic proportion!” (See: https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5610135-trump-praises-un-gaza-rebuild/)

While Benjamin Netanyahu continues to oppose a two-state solution, time will tell if he continues with that stance. In the meantime as of November 15, 2025, he has received pressure from his far-right ministers to reject any proposal that would lead to Palestinian statehood. (See: https://www.timesofisrael.com/pms-far-right-allies-up-in-arms-over-us-plans-offer-of-path-to-palestinian-statehood/)

In a recent article from israel365news.com on October 31, 2025, though the author praised Donald Trump for many things, he also expressed caution for the recent world events regarding Gaza and Israel: (See: https://israel365news.com/413667/behind-the-scenes-with-president-donald-j-trump/)

“Israel is ‘not allowed’ to annex Judea and Samaria. Trump has said publicly that he will not permit it. This is a favor that Trump did on behalf of the Saudis and various other Gulf neighbors to get them on board with his peace plan.

“Trump, in principle, is not against Israel giving more land for peace (remember his original ‘Deal of the Century’), which is another reason why he stopped Israel’s annexation plans at the point above.

“The endgame of the current peace deal is to facilitate a Palestinian State in Gaza, the first step in effectively actualizing the Two-State solution. This is the only reason that all the Arab and Muslim states have pledged over 65 billion dollars to the restoration cause, and why Netanyahu wasn’t originally invited to the 2025 Egyptian Peace Summit in Sinai. He is no longer needed (as such). 

“Similarly, and for all intents and purposes, the upshot of Trump’s plan is that Gaza will eventually not belong to Israel anymore, even though technically Israel still retains sovereignty.”

The author ended the article with this statement: “Regarding President Donald J. Trump, an insider would say to move forward, but with an abundance of caution. Be cautiously optimistic…”

Donald Trump is now openly advocating for the two-state solution, which is the dividing of God’s land, the land that He gave to Israel. The land does not belong to Donald Trump, nor any politician for that matter, to give away; no, the land belongs to God, and He gave it to His people, Israel. Further, God did not give it to Israel so that Benjamin Netanyahu nor any Israeli politician to be used as a bargaining chip in order to obtain “peace.” This has been done in the past by Israeli politicians, to their own detriment.

US Senator Lindsay Graham also seeks to divide God’s land, and stated such on November 2, 2025 in his address to attendees of the Republican Jewish Coalition Summit: (See: https://themedialine.org/headlines/there-is-no-other-alternative-gop-senator-lindsey-graham-urges-israel-to-accept-2-state-solution/)

“Being pro-Israel means telling hard truths,” Graham said. “The only path that keeps Israel Jewish and democratic is a two-state framework, when the conditions are real.”

“There is no other alternative,” he said. “A one-state solution would either end Israel as a Jewish state or leave millions without rights, which the world will not accept. To be pro-Israel, you need to be honest with Israel.”

On November 18, 2025, Donald Trump met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, during which Trump agreed to sell F-35s, a US fighter jet, to Saudi Arabia. The USA also sells F-35s to Israel, and this agreement has drawn ire from some in Israel, including the Israel Defense Forces, which said “it would lose air superiority in the region.” (See: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/417952) It has also raised concern by some in the US military, fearing that the jets’ technology could fall into the hands of China. (See: https://thehill.com/policy/defense/5612954-trump-f35-saudi-arabia-deal/)

President Trump has long desired for Saudi Arabia to join his Abraham Accords. However, Prince Salman reiterated his country’s stance on this issue that it will not happen until there is a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians: (See: https://apnews.com/article/trump-saudi-arabia-crown-prince-mohammad-takeaways-38951aebe5ed6b3bb83530a94382ed82)

“We want to be part of the Abraham Accords, but we want also to be sure that we secure a clear path of two-state solution,” he said. “We’re going to work on that to be sure that we come prepared for the situation as soon as possible to have that.”

As I mentioned previously, I do believe we are drawing very near to the time when the covenant that Daniel the prophet wrote about in Daniel 9:27, which will not be a new covenant but a confirmation of a covenant, meaning that an existing covenant must be in place that will be confirmed or made greater. This very well could be the strengthening of the Abraham Accords. At some point, an agreement will be strengthened, and either as part of it or prior to it, an agreement will be made that divides God’s land. I say this because the Bible tells us that God’s land will be parted or divided up, and that is in the book of Joel.

The book of Joel tells us why God is going to enter into judgment with Israel’s enemies in the valley of Jehoshaphat: they will have scattered His people Israel among the nations and parted His land. I believe the gathering of nations in Joel 3 may refer to the same gathering of nations that will war against Jesus Christ at His second coming in a place called Armageddon (Revelation 16:16, 19:19). I believe this may also be the same place called the valley of Jezreel, written about in the book of Hosea (Hosea 1:5, 11).

I don’t think it is just coincidence that in Joel 3:4 it mentions both the land that is in the modern day Israel that currently is called “Palestine,” and also two cities called Tyre and Zidon, with the latter also called Sidon or Saida. The Hebrew Scriptures refer not to Palestine but to “Philistia.” (See: https://biblehub.com/text/joel/3-4.htm ) Philistia was the land of Israel’s enemies, the Philistines, and prior to that, the Canaanites. The land of the Canaanites was part of the Abrahamic covenant that God made unilaterally with Abram/Abraham. In this covenant that God Himself made, and Abram played no part in it as he was sleeping when God made the covenant. (Genesis 15:18-21) God had allowed the people in those lands to change their sinful ways for 400 years, but they did not. Thus, God allowed Israel to take the land from them:

“In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed [descendants] have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates: The Kenites, and the Kenizzites, and the Kadmonites, and the Hittites, and Perizzites, and the Rephaims, and the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.” (Genesis 15:18-21)

Philistia was comprised of five cities of Gaza, Ashkelon, Ashdod, Ekron, and Gad. Those cities, particularly Gaza, have made many headlines since October 7, 2023. I do not think it is any coincidence that Philistia/Palestine, Tyre, and Zidon/Sidon/Saida are mentioned in Joel 3:4 AND are currently making news headlines in 2025. We are seeing previews of things that will come in the last days before Jesus returns to earth to judge all the nations. First, let us read the Scriptures from Joel chapter 3:

“For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity [captives] of Judah and Jerusalem, I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead [enter into judgment] with them there for my people and my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted [divided up] my land. And they have cast lots for my people; and have given a boy for an harlot, and sold a girl for wine, that they might drink. Yea, and what have ye to do with me, O Tyre, and Zidon, and all the coasts of Palestine [Hebrew is “Philistia”]? will ye render me a recompense [Or retaliate against me]? and if ye recompense me, swiftly and speedily will I return your recompence [retaliation] upon your own head…” (Joel 3:1-4)

Let us read the recent headlines regarding Sidon. (See November 19, 2025 article, https://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-strikes-hamas-facility-near-lebanons-sidon-local-officials-say-13-killed/)

“The Israel Defense Forces carried out an airstrike Tuesday in the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp near the Lebanese coastal city of Sidon. The strike killed 13 people, according to Lebanese authorities.

“The IDF confirmed the strike, saying it targeted terror operatives at a Hamas training facility.”

Here are recent headlines regarding Tyre: (See November 6, 2025 article, https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/article-872952)

“The IDF confirmed carrying out an airstrike targeting Hezbollah infrastructure in the Lebanese city of Tyre on Thursday.

“According to the IDF, the site belonged to Hezbollah’s Construction Unit. It was used to manufacture equipment used by the terror group to rebuild its infrastructure that had been previously targeted and dismantled during the war.”

Before we move onto Ezekiel chapter 38, I want to summarize what I believe will happen before Ezekiel 38-39 happens, which is written about in the prior chapters. God promises Israel’s shepherds that He will bring judgment upon them, and that He will send His Shepherd, who is Jesus, to deliver His flock from their mouths. God told the children of Israel that if the watchman warns them of a sword coming upon the land and they ignore his warning, then their blood would be upon their own heads. The prophet Ezekiel was the watchman, and they did not heed his words. God also told the children of Israel that if they continue in their abominations and sins against Him, their land would be made desolate and their pomp/pride of their strength would cease. I believe this judgment that God spoke to them will happen during their 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble.

God also promises judgment to the residue/remnant of the heathen (non-Jewish) nations that will surround Israel at the end of the 7-year time of trouble. The residue of the heathen will have given God’s land “into their possession with the joy of all their heart, with despiteful minds, to cast it out for a prey.” The confirming of the covenant with many, which the Bible tells us will be for a period of 7-years, known as Israel’s 70th week (Daniel 9), is what begins the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble. I believe we are on the verge of the confirming of the covenant that will appoint or divide God’s land. Two-thirds of Israel will die during that time period, but God will save a one-third remnant. As written about in the book of Revelation, I believe it tells us that billions of people will die worldwide, as the final antichrist rules for a period of seven years. At the end of the seven years, the residue of the heathen will surround Israel, thinking they have defeated her.  It is then when God will make the heathen “bear their shame,” and it is when Jesus returns at His second coming and judges them, in the valley of Megiddo, or the valley of Jehoshaphat/Jezreel, or both.

Afterwards, Jesus will bring all of the surviving remnant of Israel back into their land, and the mountains of Israel will flourish. Jesus will begin His 1,000-year reign on earth, and He will cleanse the people of Israel from all their sins and give them a new heart and a new spirit. They will dwell in the land that God gave to their fathers. Jesus will make an everlasting covenant of peace with them. It will only be after this happens that Israel will be dwelling safely.

Three times in Ezekiel 34 God tells us that Israel will dwell safely. It also tells us the conditions that must exist in order for Israel to dwell safely:

1. Jesus will return and will be their Shepherd and God and will make a covenant of peace with them. (Ezekiel 34:25)

2. The trees and the land of Israel will yield her increase and Israel has been delivered out of the hand of those who enslaved them. (Ezekiel 34:27)

3. Israel shall not be a prey again to the heathen nations nor the beasts of the land. (Ezekiel 34:28)

It is only after these things happen that Israel will live in peace. Jesus will live in the midst of them. I believe, as I said previously, that this will happen after the tribulation period and sometime after Jesus’ second coming. I do not know how long it will be before the events in Ezekiel 38-39 will occur, but the key seems to be that Israel will be dwelling safely in their land and will not be prey to any nations. It is in Ezekiel 38-39 that we will read of an invasion that will be led by a person named Gog, of Magog, and his coalition of troops from specific nations.

I believe that Ezekiel chapter 36 tells us that there are two main outcomes of this coming invasion. These are also repeated in Ezekiel chapter 39:

• The remaining people of the heathen nations, those people left after the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble and after Jesus returns to judge all who come against Him, must know why God sent Israel into captivity, why He scattered His people. The heathen nations shall also know that Jesus is the LORD when He will execute judgment upon Gog and those allied with him, and Jesus will be sanctified/hallowed in Israel before the very eyes of the heathen nations. (Ezekiel 36:23, 39:27) I think the Hebrew Scriptures help us to understand this better than how it reads in the KJV:

“And I will sanctify My great name, which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned in their midst, and the nations shall know that I [am] Yahweh, says the Lord GOD, when I show My holiness in you before their eyes.” (Ezekiel 36:23)

• Israel must remember its own evil ways and shall loathe themselves for their sins and abominations. Israel will know that He is the LORD their God. They will know that it is He who caused them to go into captivity among the heathen nations, but who also gathered them into their own land, leaving none of them scattered among the nations. It is only when Israel will see with their own eyes that God is sanctified in them - in Israel - with many nations seeing it that they, Israel, will know that He, Jesus, is the Lord their God. (Ezekiel 36:31-32, 39:22, 28)

• Ezekiel chapter 38: In this chapter and in chapter 39, God is addressing someone named “Gog” from the land of Magog, who is “the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal.” (Ezekiel 38:2, 39:1) Many people believe this is speaking of Russia, but I do not know that for sure. God tells Gog of Magog that He will turn him around, put hooks in his jaws, and bring him and his army into the land of Israel. God specifically names the countries of Persia, which is modern day Iran, Ethiopia (Cush), Libya (Put), and Gomer and Togarmah, which many believe is Turkey, with all of their troops, and “many people with thee.” (Ezekiel 38:5-6). God also tells Gog that this will happen at a specific time and under a specific condition. I will discuss this further, but let’s read what God’s word says:

“After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against [on] the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste [long been desolate]: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.” (Ezekiel 38:8)

There are many people, including pastors and Biblical scholars, who believe that this attack will occur very close to the start of the time of Jacob’s trouble or sometime during it. There are also those who believe it will happen at the end of it. However, I believe it will happen sometime after the end of it, after Jesus’ second coming, and during the early part of His 1,000-year reign on earth. I say this because of the emphasis of God’s word in Ezekiel 38 that says three times that during that time, Israel will dwell safely.

In addition, in Ezekiel 34:23 and 37:24, it speaks of God setting up one shepherd over them, who will feed his flock, including his servant David. I believe this speaks to the time after Jesus’ second coming and begins His 1,000-year reign on earth. Jesus will make a covenant of peace with Israel (Ezekiel 34:23-28), and it will be at that time that Israel will dwell safely:

“And they shall no more be a prey to the heathen, neither shall the beast of the land devour them; but they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid.” (Ezekiel 34:28)

“And David my servant shall be my king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes and do them.” (Ezekiel 37:24-25)

I honestly do not know if this means it is Jesus and a resurrected David as king, or exclusively Jesus as the Shepherd, who is also called King of kings and Lord of lords. However, we can say that modern Israel is not walking in God’s judgments and observing His statutes (Ezekiel 37:24). Modern Israel is still defiling itself with idols and things detestable to God, and most importantly, Israel as a nation has rejected God’s only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, as its Savior and King. (Ezekiel 37:23) In Ezekiel 36:24-25, it says:

“For I will take you from among the heathen [nations], and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.” (Ezekiel 36:24-28)

Again, this absolutely has not happened in Israel and will not happen until Jesus returns, and the remnant of Israel that survives their time of trouble will mourn for Him and turn to Him and be saved. Jesus will bring them to their land that He gave them long ago. While some of the modern-day Jews in Israel may be part of this remnant, the Bible tells us that two-thirds of Israel will die during the time of Jacob’s trouble. At the end of the seven years, for the one-third remnant who survives, God’s spirit, the Holy Spirit, will be put within them. It is this saved remnant who will walk in His statutes during Jesus’ millennial reign on earth.

There are some who believe that this time of Israel dwelling safely in their land refers to the first 3-1/2 year time period that begins with the antichrist confirming the covenant with many. I have tried in my mind to try to make the Gog and Magog war written about in Ezekiel 38-39 fit prior to or during the time of Jacob’s trouble, but to me, it simply doesn’t fit because Israel will not be dwelling safely and without walls. I believe it is clear that Israel’s dwelling safely in their land will only happen when Jesus returns and brings all of Israel back into their land, cleanses them and gives them a new heart, and makes a covenant of peace with them. Any proclaimed “peace” prior to that is a false peace, and I believe that includes the first 3-1/2 years of covenant that will be confirmed by the coming final antichrist. When the antichrist commits the abomination of desolation 3-1/2 years into the covenant, Israel will flee for their lives and the world will be in complete chaos.

When God repeats words or phrases in His word, it is because He wants us to take special note of it. I believe that is why He repeats the phrase of Israel dwelling safely in their own land. Nations have always come against Israel, and that continues to this day, and it will only get worse until Jesus returns. Let us read some of those Scriptures that state this:

“Therefore will I save my flock, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between cattle and cattle [sheep and sheep]. And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. And I the LORD will be their God, and my servant David a prince among them; I the LORD have spoken it. And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause the evil [wild] beasts to cease out of the land: and they shall dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods. And I will make them and the places round about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower  to come down in his season; there shall be showers of blessing. And the tree of the field shall yield her fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase, and they shall be safe in their land, and shall know that I am the LORD, when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and delivered them out of the hand of those that served themselves of them [enslaved them]. And they shall no more be a prey to the heathen, neither shall the beast of the land devour them; but they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid.” (Ezekiel 34:22-28)

“After many days thou [Gog] shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against [on] the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.” (Ezekiel 38:8)

“Thus saith the Lord GOD; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time [on that day] shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought: And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely [securely], without walls, and having neither bars nor gates, to take a spoil [plunder], and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle [livestock] and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land.” (Ezekiel 38:10-12)

“Therefore son of man, prophesy and say unto Gog, Thus saith the Lord GOD; In that day when my people of Israel dwelleth safely, shalt thou not know it?” (Ezekiel 38:14)

“Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper [act wisely], and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely; and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.” (Jeremiah 23:5-6)

Did you read how many times God told us that Israel will be dwelling safely in their land? This certainly cannot be in the times in which we live, nor, I believe, in the first 3-1/2 years of the time of Jacob’s trouble. How could it be called the time of Jacob’s trouble if the first 3-1/2 years are peaceful? How could God call the covenant Israel will confirm with the antichrist and others “a covenant with death” if the first 3-1/2 years are peaceful? When God says that Israel will be dwelling safely in the land that He gave them, He means it.

As we read Ezekiel chapters 38 and 39, we must remember that God, through the prophet Ezekiel, is not speaking to Israel but to someone named Gog: “And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal…” Let us read the Scripture above from Ezekiel 38:8 again.:

“After many days thou [Gog] shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against [on] the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.” (Ezekiel 38:8)

There are several things written in Ezekiel 38:8 that I want to discuss. The first is the word “visited” in the first sentence. In the Hebrew, the word is “paqad.” It is defined as shown below. I think in this context, it means to muster. (See: https://biblehub.com/hebrew/6485.htm)

Paqad: To visit, attend to, muster, appoint, punish, care for

The second thing I want to mention about Ezekiel 38:8 is the phrase “in the latter years,” which is only used one time in the Bible. I think that this is extremely significant, considering that the Bible has many usages of “latter days,” “last days,” and “end times.” I think the phrase “in the latter years” may be a clue to us to denote a specific and unique time in which the events of Ezekiel 38-39 will happen. Let us look at the definition of “latter years” from the Strong’s Concordance:

Latter: “last, latter end time, hinder, uttermost, length, posterity, remnant, residue, reward (See: https://biblehub.com/hebrew/319.htm)

Years: “whole age, long, old, yearly” (See: https://biblehub.com/hebrew/8141.htm)

Could it mean this occurs at the end of the age when time exists, at the end of the whole age, and before we go into eternity, when time no longer exists? I believe the answer may be yes, and I believe it is sometime in the last 1,000 years of human history on earth, when Jesus will reign and before He destroys the heavens and earth and creates a new heaven, a new earth, and a new Jerusalem.

Let us consider something else about Ezekiel 38:8. In Ezekiel 38:8, the phrase “thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword.” I have struggled with the meaning of “brought back from the sword.” The Strong’s Hebrew definition of “brought back” means to “Return, turn back, restore, repent. (See: https://biblehub.com/hebrew/7725.htm). The book of Ezekiel has a chapter that specifically speaks of a sword - God’s sword - being brought upon the land of Israel because of its sin, and that is chapter 21. In that chapter, the word “sword” is used 16 times. Let us read the opening words of this chapter from God to the prophet Ezekiel:

“And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, set thy face toward Jerusalem, and drop thy word toward the holy places, and prophesy against the land of Israel, and say to the land of Israel, Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I am against thee, and will draw forth my sword out of his sheath, and will cut off from thee the righteous and the wicked.” (Ezekiel 21:1-3)

There is something very interesting in the words of this chapter, and I believe it speaks of Jesus. The verses are Ezekiel 21:10 and 27. Let us read from them and the prior verses so we have the context in which they are written, beginning with Ezekiel 21:4-10:

“Seeing then that I will cut off from thee the righteous and the wicked, therefore shall my sword go forth out of his sheath against all flesh from the south to the north: that all flesh may know that I the LORD have drawn forth my sword out of his sheath: it shall not return any more. Sigh therefore, thou son of man, with the breaking of thy loins [A breaking heart]; and with bitterness sigh before their eyes. And it shall be, when they say unto thee, Wherefore sighest thou? that thou shalt answer, For the tidings [Because of the news]; because it cometh: and every heart shall melt, and all hands shall be feeble, and every spirit shall faint, and all knees shall be weak as water: behold, it cometh, and shall be brought to pass, saith the Lord GOD. Again, the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus saith the LORD; Say, A sword, a sword is sharpened, and also furbished [polished]: it is sharpened to make a sore [dreadful] slaughter; it is furbished that it may glitter [flash]: should we then make mirth? it contemneth the rod [despises even the sceptre] of my son, as every tree [all wood].” (Ezekiel 21:4-10)

In the last part of the Scriptures above which I have put in bold font, I believe this passage of Scriptures is a dual fulfillment, with the first already having been fulfilled. I believe for the first fulfillment, the Scriptures are saying that the coming sword, which will be held in the hands of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, will destroy Judah and Jerusalem. Nebuchadnezzar would despise the rod of God’s Son, Jesus, who comes from the tribe of Judah, the nation that Nebuchadnezzar would invade and bring a sword upon. Remember, God told us way back in the book of Genesis that the scepter shall not depart from Judah. The book of Revelation confirms whom the One would be that would retain the scepter, meaning the Kingship. Notice also that in Genesis 49:9-10 that it says “unto him shall the gathering of the people be,” which in Hebrew means the obedience of the people:

“Judah is a lion’s whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped [crouches] down, he couched [lies down] as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up? The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering [obedience] of the people be.”  (Genesis 49:9-10)

“And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.” (Revelation 5:5)

I believe the second fulfillment of the Scriptures in Ezekiel 21:4-10 are speaking of the second coming of Jesus Christ and which is written about in Revelation 19. I believe there is another reference to Jesus in the Scriptures that follow:

“Thus saith the Lord GOD; Remove the diadem [turban], and take off the crown: this shall not be the same [nothing shall remain]: exalt him that is low, and abase him that is high. I will overturn [make it overthrown], overturn [overthrown], overturn, it: and it shall be no more [longer], until he come whose right it is; and I will give it him.” (Ezekiel 21:26-28)

I do not believe the meaning here is limited only to the time in which this was written, in the days when Babylon would come and destroy the First Temple and Jerusalem, but that it has a broader, future meaning. I say that because of what is written in bold text above. I believe the fact that God said He will “overturn” three times is significant. I do not know with certainty what God is saying that He will overturn, which also means to overthrow or to ruin, but it could possibly mean the time when the Jews are in Jerusalem and ruling it, and I believe it may relate to the Temples. We know that the First and Second Temples were built and destroyed, with the first being destroyed by Babylon in approximately 586 or 586 BC, and the second by the Romans in 70 AD. The Bible alludes to a Third Temple being built, because in Scripture, including Daniel and the gospels, it says that the one who will confirm a covenant with “the many,” which I believe includes Israel, and who will cause the sacrifice and offerings to cease and will commit the abomination of desolation that Jesus Himself spoke about (Matthew 24:15). This abomination of desolation will be committed by the final antichrist who will deceive and turn upon Israel. I believe it very well may end in the destruction of the Third Temple, which will be built sometime I believe in the very near future. I believe this is logical because we know that starting in Ezekiel chapter 40, it speaks of another Temple, which I believe will be the Fourth Temple, being built and which will exist during Jesus’ 1,000-year reign on earth. Jesus’ millennial kingdom reign will be followed by the creation of a new heaven, a new earth, and a new Jerusalem (Revelation 21:1-2), when there will be no temple, for Almighty God and Jesus will be the temple (Revelation 21:22)

Another possibility of what the reference to God overturning three times may be the three main Jewish diasporas. The first occurred during the time when Israel was divided into the Northern Kingdom and the Southern Kingdom. The Northern Kingdom was called Israel or Ephraim, had ten tribes, and the Southern Kingdom, called Judah, had the two tribes of Judah and Benjamin. The Northern Kingdom/Israel was conquered by Assyria in approximately 740 BC, and its people were taken into exile. In the Scriptures, God had warned the Israelites to change their ways and return to Him, but they ignored His warnings. The second occurred when King Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, conquered Judah and took their people captive to Babylon. God had also warned His people, but they too ignored His warnings. The third overturning came when Jerusalem was already under the rule of the Romans, and in 70 AD, Jerusalem and the Third Temple were destroyed, and more Jews left and were sold into slavery.

Regardless of what the repetition of “overturn” is referring to in Ezekiel 21:27, God tells us that it will be overturned and it “shall be no more, until he come whose right it is; and I will give it him.” I believe the words shown in bold font are clearly talking about the second coming of Jesus Christ, when He will save Israel and will rule and reign in Israel, Jerusalem, for 1,000 years.

Let us read some Scriptures that prophesy of the eternal reign of Jesus, with the first two being from the prophets Isaiah and Daniel, and the third Scripture is when the angel Gabriel speaks to Jesus’ mother Mary:

“For unto us a child is born, and unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.” (Isaiah 9:6-7)

“And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces [crush] and consume [put an end to] all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.” (Daniel 2:44)

“And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest [Most High]: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: and he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.” (Luke 1:30-33)

Thus, one possibility for the statement in Ezekiel 38:8 that says, “…thou [Gog] shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel” may be referring to the sword of the Assyrians, the Babylonians, and the Romans that resulted in the people of Israel and Judah to be exiled from the land that God gave them. Another, or an additional, possibility may be that it is referring to Jesus’ mouth being a sword. At His second coming, He will come on a white horse with the armies in heaven, wearing a robe dipped in blood (Revelation 19:11-14). The antichrist, false prophet, and all the people who are with them will be gathered together in a place called Armageddon, which in Hebrew is Mount Megiddo (Revelation 16:16), and they will be there to war against Jesus and His army. Jesus will slay with His mouth all of those who allied themselves with the antichrist and false prophet:

“And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon [Mount Megiddo].” (Revelation 16:16)

“And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture [robe] dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite [strike] the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture [robe] and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS. And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls [birds] that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God; that ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond [slave], both small and great. And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army.” (Revelation 19:11-19)

Jesus will then cast the antichrist and false prophet, who will both be alive, “into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.” (Revelation 19:21) For those people who were gathered with the antichrist and the false prophet to wage war against Jesus:

“And the remnant [rest] were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.” (Revelation 19:21)

Thus are the two possibilities I believe may explain what is meant by the phrase, “…brought back from the sword…” in Ezekiel 38:8. I do not know if I am correct or not this, but I think it is in the realm of the possible.

Now, let us return to the issue of Israel dwelling safely in their own land, the land that God gave them long ago. The book of Jeremiah also speaks of Jesus reigning upon the earth and Israel dwelling safely during this time. In chapter 23 of Jeremiah, it first discusses the corrupted pastors, which in the Hebrew is “ra`ah,” which means to shepherd. God called them out and pronounced judgment upon them. Let us read about what God says about them, and the timing of this judgment, which I do not believe has been fulfilled yet. Though Jeremiah’s words were written to the shepherds of Israel, who were the Jewish leaders in Judah at the time he wrote this, I most certainly believe his words were also written to the Jewish leaders who will be living in the years and days before Jesus returns to earth not as a Lamb but as the Lion of the tribe of Judah in order to execute judgment on a wicked and vile world, including the wicked and vile religious and governmental leaders in modern day Israel:

“Woe be unto the pastors [shepherds] that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! saith the LORD. Therefore thus saith the LORD God of Israel against the pastors [shepherds] that feed my people; Ye have scattered my flock, and driven them away, and have not visited [attended to] them: behold, I will visit upon you [attend to you for] the evil of your doings, saith the LORD. And I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries whither I have driven them, and will bring them again to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase. And I will set up shepherds over them which shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall they be lacking, saith the LORD. Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper [act wisely], and shall execute judgment and justice [justice and righteousness] in the earth [land]. In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS. Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that they shall no more say, The LORD liveth, which brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; but, The LORD liveth, which brought up and which led the seed of the house of Israel out of the north country, and from all countries whither I had driven them; and they shall dwell in their own land.” (Jeremiah 23:1-8)

Notice in the Scriptures above that it specifically links the ability for Israel to dwell safely in their own land to “In his days,” meaning the days when Jesus returns to earth, saves Israel, and takes His rightful and righteous reign on earth. It is referring to the time when King Jesus, “shall reign and prosper on the earth, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.” That did not happen at His first coming, it has not happened yet, but it WILL happen at His second coming.

I also want to discuss an older article from Israel365news.com that demonstrates just how much Israel supports Donald Trump, which I believe will lead to their own peril. The article connects Donald Trump to King David. (See: https://israel365news.com/323848/the-trump-king-david-connection-and-how-it-connects-with-abrahams-covenant/) The article is dated May 23, 2018 and is titled “The Trump-King David Connection and How it Connects with Abraham’s Covenant.” It discusses a Republican campaign event for Donald Trump when he ran for president the first time. The event occurred in Jerusalem in September 2016 and was “situated directly over the actual burial place of King David. Kever David, considered a holy site, is the entrance to a large complex of caves in which several kings and prophets were buried.” The article states:

“Rabbi Berger emphasized that the connection with King David not only helped Trump win the election but it also established the path that lies ahead for the US president.

“‘Donald Trump in Gematria (Hebrew numerology) equals 424, which is the same as Moshiach ben David (Messiah from the house of David),’ Rabbi Berger pointed out. ‘This certainly does not mean he will be the Messiah, but it indicates that he will play a role in preparing the way for the arrival of the Messiah. He clearly has this inclination. Why else would he have a campaign event overlooking the Temple Mount? No other presidential candidate has done this.’”

The article also discussed what is believed to be an end-of-days prophecy, linked to Genesis 15:11 when God made/cut a unilateral (meaning God Himself made it) covenant with Abram/Abraham. The prophesy is of an eagle that plays a role in the end of days, and how the eagle is prominent in the US presidential seal. Citing Rabbi Berger, the article further states:

“The eagle represents the House of David. The eagle was not permitted near the covenant with Abraham at the time, but in the end of days, the Messiah from the House of David will stand up before all the other nations and bring them to David’s city in order to complete the covenant with Abraham.”

I do not think it is by coincidence that Donald Trump has now been twice elected as US President, a nation which has the eagle as its national bird and prominently displayed on the Seal of the President. I do not think it is coincidence that during Donald Trump’s first administration, he established the Abraham Accords between Israel and several nations, and now, during his second administration, he seeks to increase the nations that have committed to these accords, strengthening or making them greater, if you will, including Saudi Arabia. However, Saudi Arabia has maintained its stance that it will not sign on to these accords until Israel agrees to a two-state solution with the Palestinians. While Benjamin Netanyahu continues to remain firm in his opposition to this, I do believe Israel will agree to it in the near future, though as of January 1, 2026, it has not. We must remember that when Israel says it is looking for the arrival of its Messiah, it is not looking for the second coming of Jesus Christ. No, it is looking for the one they call their Messiah, whom I believe is the antichrist.

I also want to mention something that I found very peculiar about Donald Trump, and it has to do with how he signed his tariff letters to the countries for whom he increased tariffs with the USA. Korea Times published the letter sent by Trump to the President of the Republic of Korea. What is odd about it is how Trump signed the letter: (See: (See: https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/southkorea/politics/20250708/full-text-us-president-donald-trumps-tariff-letter-to-president-lee-jae-myung)

“With best wishes, I am,

Sincerely,

[Signature]”

For anyone who knows their Bible, we know the significance of the words “I am.” I believe Donald Trump knew exactly what he was doing when he signed these letters in the way that he did, and that is to put himself on the same level as God.

Let us read just two instances where God refers to Himself as “I AM”:

“And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.” (Exodus 3:14)

“Jesus said unto them [the Jews], Verily, verily, I say unto, Before Abraham was, I am.” (John 8:58)

Now, let us continue reading from Jeremiah 23:

“Mine heart within me is broken because of the prophets; all my bones shake; I am like a drunken man, and like a man whom wine hath overcome, because of the LORD, and because of the words of his holiness. For the land is full of adulterers; for because of swearing [a curse] the land mourneth; the pleasant palaces of the wilderness are dried up, and their course is [course of life is] evil, and their force [might] is not right. For both prophet and priest are profane; yea, in my house have I found their wickedness, saith the LORD. Wherefore their way shall be unto them as slippery ways in the darkness: they shall be driven on, and fall therein: for I will bring evil [disaster] upon them, even the year of their visitation [punishment], saith the LORD. And I have seen folly [unsavouriness] in the prophets of Samaria; they prophesied in Baal, and caused my people Israel to err. I have seen also in the prophets of Jerusalem an horrible thing: they commit adultery, and walk in lies: they strengthen also the hands of evildoers, that none doth return from [turn back from] his wickedness: they are all of them unto me as Sodom, and the inhabitants thereof as Gomorrah. Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts concerning the prophets; Behold, I will feed them with wormwood, and make them drink the water of gall [bitter or poisonous water]: for from the prophets of Jerusalem is profaneness gone forth into all the land. Thus saith the LORD of hosts, Hearken not [Do not listen] unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you: they make you vain [worthless]: they speak a vision of their own heart, and not out of the mouth of the LORD. They say still [continually] unto them that despise me, The LORD hath said, Ye shall have peace; and they say unto every one that walketh after the imagination [stubbornness] of his own heart, No evil shall come upon you. For who hath stood in the counsel of the LORD, and hath perceived and heard his word? who hath marked his word, and heard it? Behold, a whirlwind of the LORD is gone forth in fury, even a grievous [violent] whirlwind: it shall fall grievously upon the head of the wicked. The anger of the LORD shall not return [turn back], until he have executed, and till he have performed the thoughts of his heart: in the latter days ye shall consider [understand] it perfectly.” (Jeremiah 23:9-20)

Let’s pause for a moment and consider God’s words that He gave to Jeremiah to speak. God is sending a warning to His people that He will not tolerate wickedness from those who are supposed to be the shepherds of Israel, the religious leaders, or from the regular people of Israel. Its wicked prophets of Jerusalem declare that they will have peace and that no evil shall come upon them, but God pronounces woe unto them, just as Jesus did when He spoke to the wicked scribes and Pharisees when they rejected Him at His first coming. Israel did not escape judgment then, and it certainly will not escape God’s coming judgment, in what I believe is the not-so-near future, when the time of Jacob’s trouble comes. Is there any difference in the false prophets of old in Jeremiah’s days and the false prophets now in Israel who declare peace when there is no peace? I believe the answer is a resounding “No!"

In the final sentence above from Jeremiah 23:9-20, Jeremiah tells the people that God’s anger will not turn back until He has executed it. Even though Jeremiah was speaking to the wicked shepherds of Israel at that time, I believe there is a clue in verse 20 that indicates he is also speaking about how Israel’s shepherds will be in the days before the time of Jacob’s trouble. There were wicked shepherds in Israel at that time, and there are wicked shepherds in modern day Israel, with their teachings from the Babylonian Talmud and their continued rejection of Jesus the Christ. Jeremiah, a true prophet and one called by God before God formed him in his mother’s womb (Jeremiah 1:5), tells them that in the latter days, they will consider or understand what he is saying perfectly.

Like Israel and Judah were in the days of Jeremiah, so too is modern day Israel in defiance of Almighty God, not only for their wickedness, but also because of their continued rejection of Jesus the Christ. Let us read further the words that God gave to Jeremiah to proclaim to His people, warning them of what happens when they listen to professing prophets whom God has not called to prophesy in His name:

“I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran: I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied. But if they had stood in my counsel, and had caused my people to hear my words, then they should have turned them from their evil way, and from the evil of their doings. Am I a God at hand, saith the LORD, and not a God afar off? Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the LORD. Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the LORD. I have heard what the prophets said, that prophesy lies in my name, saying, I have dreamed, I have dreamed. How long shall this be in the heart of the prophets that prophesy lies? yea, they are prophets of the deceit of their own heart; which think to cause my people to forget my name by their dreams which they tell every man to his neighbor, as their fathers have forgotten my name for Baal. The prophet that hath a dream, let him tell a dream; he that hath my word, let him speak my word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat? saith the LORD. Is not my word like as a fire? saith the LORD; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces? Therefore, behold, I am against the prophets, saith the LORD, that steal my words every one from his neighbour. Behold, I am against the prophets, saith the LORD, that use their tongues, and say, He saith. Behold, I am against them that prophesy false dreams, saith the LORD, and do tell them, and cause my people to err by their lies, and by their lightness [recklessness]; yet I sent them not, nor commanded them: therefore they shall not profit this people at all, saith the LORD. And when this people, or the prophet, or a priest, shall ask thee, saying, What is the burden [oracle or prophecy] of the LORD? thou shalt then say unto them, What burden? I will even forsake you, saith the LORD. And as for the prophet, and the priest, and the people, that shall say, The burden of the LORD, I will even punish [attend to] that man and his house. Thus shall ye say every one to his neighbour, and every one to his brother, What hath the LORD answered? and, What hath the LORD spoken? And the burden of the LORD shall ye mention no more: for every man’s word shall be his burden; for ye have perverted the words of the living God, of the LORD of hosts our God. Thus shalt thou say to the prophet, What hath the LORD answered thee? and, What hath the LORD spoken? But since ye say, The burden of the LORD; therefore thus saith the LORD; Because ye say this word, The burden of the LORD, and I have sent unto you, saying, Ye shall not say, The burden of the LORD; therefore, behold, I, even I, will utterly forget you, and I will forsake you, and the city that I gave you and your fathers, and cast you out of my presence: and I will bring an everlasting reproach upon you, and a perpetual shame, which shall not be forgotten.” (Jeremiah 23:21-40)

Before moving onto Ezekiel 39, I want us to read another Scripture in the book of Jeremiah where it directly links Israel dwelling safely to the second coming of Jesus Christ, when He will execute justice and take His reign upon earth. Though this was partially fulfilled when God, as He promised He would do, brought back the captives of Judah after they spent 70 years in captivity in Babylon, there is a fulfillment yet to come, at the second coming of Jesus Christ. Jesus IS the Branch of righteousness:

“Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will perform that good thing which I have promised unto the house of Israel and to the house of Judah. In those days, and at that time, will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David; and he shall execute judgment [justice] and righteousness in the land [earth]. In those days shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely: and this is the name wherewith she shall be called, The LORD our righteousness.” (Jeremiah 33:14-16)

In Israel today, we hear many times how if they do this, then they will have peace and safety, peace and security. However, God’s word is clear: peace and safety will only come to Israel when it finally turns to its Messiah, its Savior, Jesus Christ, which will happen at His second coming. Only then, will Israel dwell safely in their land, the land that God gave to them. Again, I think that is why God repeated this so many times in His word, so that we would know the timeframe, and that the timeframe is NOT now.

Continuing in Ezekiel 38, God gives us the reason why Gog and his troops will invade through the mountains of Israel. We previously read part of this but let us read it again:

“And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates, to take a spoil [plunder], and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle [livestock] and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land. Sheba, and Dean, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil? hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey [thine army to take booty]? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil?” (Ezekiel 38:11-13)

Thus, we just read that this Gog of Magog and all who are with him will invade Israel because they want to take what Israel will acquire, including gold, silver, and livestock.

Now, let us read about God’s reason for making this happen. Remember, that in verse 4 of chapter 38, God tells us that He will turn Gog around and put hooks in Gog’s jaws, and bring him forth to the mountains of Israel. I believe God does this because He knows Gog’s heart and that Gog will not change his stance on Israel and wants to invade Israel. Thus, God brings Gog to do what he wants to do. This reminds me of something similar in the book of Exodus with Pharaoh in Egypt, when he would not let God’s people go, for his heart was hardened against them.

Let us continue in Ezekiel 38:

“Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say unto Gog, Thus saith the Lord GOD; In that day when my people of Israel dwelleth safely, shalt thou not know it? And thou shalt come from thy place out of the north parts, thou, and many people with thee, all of them riding upon horses, a great company, and a mighty army: and thou shalt come up against my people of Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days, and I will bring thee against my land, that the heathen [nations] may know me, when I shall be sanctified [hallowed] in thee, O Gog, before their eyes.” (Ezekiel 38:14-16)

God is doing this so that the heathen, meaning non-Jewish, nations who will see what will happen to Gog and his troops, will KNOW Him. God will show Himself holy before the heathen nations’ eyes. Consider that for a moment. The vast majority of the nations in our world today not only do not know Him but reject Him altogether. Remember, I believe, based on my understanding of God’s word that the timing of the Gog and Magog events will happen 1) after the tribulation period, when many people will have died during the time of Jacob’s trouble, 2) after Jesus returns and judges the residue of the heathen at Armageddon, 3) after Jesus takes His rightful reign on earth, saves the remnant of Israel and brings ALL of them back into His land, the land He gave them long ago, 4) after the mountains of Israel flourish and will no longer be made desolate, and 5) after Israel will dwell safely in their land. Sometime after that, the events of Gog and Magog will happen because God wants the Gentiles nations to know Him and WHY He scattered Israel out of their land and among the heathen (nations) AND that He cleansed Israel from its sins and brought them back into His land. He wants the Gentile nations to know that His land is NOT their land and that He has not forgotten His people.

In Ezekiel 38:17, God asks Gog if he (Gog) is the one whom God has spoken of through His prophets long ago and how God would bring him him against Israel. Ezekiel 38:15 speaks of Gog coming from “thy place out of the north [far north] parts…” In Ezekiel 38:18-22, God tells Gog that He will bring His fury and the fire of His wrath upon Gog and his troops when they come upon the land of Israel. God says there will be a great shaking, a great earthquake, that will cause the mountains and every wall to fall down. God then tells Gog that all of his men will fight against one another with their swords. God will send pestilence, overflowing rain, great hailstones, fire, and brimstone upon them. God tells us a second time the reason for this:

“Thus will I magnify myself, and sanctify myself; and I will be known in the eyes of many nations, and they shall know that I am the LORD.” (Ezekiel 38:23)

• Ezekiel chapter 39: This chapter begins with God telling Gog again that He will turn him around and bring him from the far north and into the mountains of Israel. It seems that God may be telling us that Gog had been in one place and God will bring him into the mountains of Israel. God tells him that He will knock the weapons out of his hands, the bow in his left hand, and cause the arrows in his right hand to fall, and that Gog and all the people with him will be slain on the mountains of Israel. God will also let their bodies be eaten by every sort of bird of prey and the beasts of the field, which sounds very similar to what is written in book of Revelation 19:17 at Jesus’ second coming, when the nations are gathered against Him to make war with Him.

God also tells Gog that He will send a fire on Magog and on those who live securely in the coastlands, perhaps in the homelands of the allies of Gog. God then says this to Gog:

“So will I make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; and I will not let them pollute [profane] my holy name any more: and the heathen [nations] shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel. Behold, it is come [coming], and it is done [shall be done], saith the Lord GOD; this is the day whereof I have spoken.” (Ezekiel 39:7-8)

Now we read what happens after God slays Gog and all who are with him. This is where we read what I believes provides proof that this is not the same Gog and Magog written about in the book of Revelation. I will explain later why I believe that. God tells Ezekiel that the people who live in the cities of Israel shall gather all of the weapons that were used by Gog and his men and burn them with fire for seven years. (Ezekiel 39:9) The people are not to take any wood from the fields or cut down any trees from the forests to burn wood but are to burn only the weapons. They are also to plunder, take the wealth, of the nations who robbed them.

God then says He will give a burial place for Gog and his men, and it shall be called The valley of Hamon-gog, which means The Multitude of Gog. The people of Israel are to choose men that will search out the land for the bodies of Gog and his men and bury them  in the valley of Hamon-gog, and shall do so for seven months. This is the reason God tells them to do this:

“And seven months shall the house of Israel be burying of them, that they may cleanse the land. Yea, all of the people of the land shall bury them; and it shall be to them a renown the day that I shall be glorified, saith the Lord GOD.” (Ezekiel 39:12-13)

“And also the name of the city shall be called Hamonah [The Multitude]. Thus shall they cleanse the land.” (Ezekiel 39:16)

God then repeats what He said earlier, and it is very similar to what is written in Revelation 19, when He tells us will happen at Jesus’ second coming. With the sword of His mouth, Jesus will destroy all the wicked who are gathered against Him to make war. In both Ezekiel 39 and Revelation 19, there is a great sacrifice of Gog and his men of war and also their horses that will be devoured by all the birds and animals of the field. There is something very interesting that I did not catch until I had read it many times, and that is in verse 18:

“Ye shall eat the flesh of the mighty, and drink the blood of the princes of the earth, of rams, of lambs, and of goats, of bullocks, all of them fatlings of Bashan.”(Ezekiel 39:18)

All of the animals named above are animals used by the Jews, per God’s instructions to them in the book of Leviticus, to sacrifice to Him for atonement of sins. (See: https://biblehub.com/topical/naves/a/animals--offered_in_sacrifice.htm) I do not know if in this context that God is saying that Gog and all of his men who will die will be like the sacrificial animals that are used to atone for sins, or if these sacrificial animals will also die. Whichever it is, and it could be both, God tells the birds and the beasts of the field to eat this sacrificial meal that He has sacrificed for them.

Ezekiel 39:19 tells us the birds and animals to eat the flesh and drink the blood of Gog and his men who will be slain on the mountains of Israel. Remember that God said something similar in Ezekiel 39:4. I do not know if this eating of the dead men and animals’ flesh will occur before or after the people of Israel go and search for bodies and bury them in the valley of Hamon-gog. I do not know if what we read in Ezekiel 39:4 represents the same event that is written in Ezekiel 39:17-20. However, I do know without a doubt that it will happen in order to cleanse the land.

Next, we read God’s purpose in this war of Gog of Magog:

“And I will set my glory among the heathen [nations]; and all the heathen shall see my judgment that I have executed, and my hand that I have laid upon them. So the house of Israel shall know that I am the LORD their God from that day and forward. And the heathen shall know that the house of Israel went into captivity for their iniquity: because they trespassed against [were unfaithful to] me, therefore hid I my face from them, and gave them into the hand of their enemies; so fell they all by the sword. According to their uncleanness and according to their transgressions have I done unto them, and hid my face from them. Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Now will I bring again the captivity [bring back the captives] of Jacob, and have mercy upon the whole house of Israel, and will be jealous for my holy name; after that they have borne their shame, and all their trespasses whereby they have trespassed against me, when they dwelt safely in their land, and none made them afraid. When I have brought them again from the people [peoples], and gathered them out of their enemies’ lands, and am sanctified in them in the sight of many nations; then shall they know that I am the LORD their God, which caused them to be led into captivity among the heathen: but I have gathered them unto their own land, and have left none of them any more there. Neither will I hide my face any more from them: for I have poured out my spirit upon the house of Israel, saith the Lord GOD.” (Ezekiel 39:21-29)

I have struggled a lot to understand these verses, and whether they mean that after Jesus returns at His second coming, and while Israel was dwelling safely in their land, that Israel sinned and were exiled again. However, I do not believe that is the case. After reading this many times, and I believe given understanding through the Holy Spirit, I believe this is an explanation and a recall by God to Gog as to why He caused this to happen to His people. I believe it is to cause the heathen, meaning the Gentile nations, to know why God scattered His people, Israel, among the nations and that He did not forget them and brought them back into their own land and forgave them.

This may be an example for those Gentiles who survived the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, and also their children, and their children’s children, who will live during the 1,000-year reign of Jesus Christ, that demonstrates that rebellion, including against Israel, whom Jesus will have saved and put His Spirit within them, will not be tolerated by Him any longer, as it was prior to His second coming. God may be showing the Gentile nations what happens if they were to try and revolt against them or Him. God told us something similar previously in Ezekiel 36:

“Then the heathen [nations] that are left round about you shall know that I the LORD build [rebuilt] the ruined places, and plant that that was desolate: I the LORD have spoken it, and I will do it.” (Ezekiel 36:36)

The events written about in Ezekiel 38-39 also show Israel that God will never again let the heathen nations successfully attack them and uproot them from the land that He gave them. It will be then that Israel will KNOW that He is the Lord their God and won’t ever want to slip back into rebellion against Him. They will finally have a heart of flesh instead of a stony heart; they will have a heart for their Savior Jesus Christ. Hallelujah!!!

• Ezekiel chapters 40-48: Next, the prophet Ezekiel is given a vision and describes in detail the final Temple on earth. Some Bible scholars believe that the description of this Temple is unlike the first two Temples that were built. I believe the cleansing of the land that is written about in Ezekiel 39 is to prepare the land for the construction of this final Temple, and to make it holy, for the glory of the Lord will come into it. Let us read some of what Ezekiel saw:

“In the visions of God brought he me into the land of Israel, and set me upon a very high mountain, by which was as the frame of a city on the south. And he brought me thither, and, behold, there was a man, whose appearance was like the appearance of brass [bronze], with a line of flax in his hand, and a measuring reed; and he stood in the gate. And the man said unto me, Son of man, behold with thine eyes, and hear with thine ears, and set thine heart upon all that I shall shew thee; for to the intent [in order that] I might shew them unto thee art thou brought hither: declare all that thou seest to the house of Israel.” (Ezekiel 40:2-4)

“Afterward he brought me to the gate, even the gate that looketh toward the east: And, behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east: and his voice was like a noise of many waters: and the earth shined with his glory.” (Ezekiel 43:1-2)

Let us pause here for a moment and consider what Ezekiel saw and heard. I believe Ezekiel is speaking about Jesus. In the book of Revelation, which is the revelation of Jesus Christ as given to the apostle John, it opens with John being in the Spirit (Revelation 1:10) and seeing and hearing Jesus Christ, the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last (Revelation 1:10-11). The way John described what he saw when he saw Jesus is similar to how Ezekiel described what he saw:

“I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet, saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last…” (Revelation 1:10-11)

“And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven candlesticks [lampstands]; and in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps [chest] with a golden girdle [band]. His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire; and his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned [were refined] in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters. And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp two-edged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength. And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last: I am he that liveth, and was dead; and behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.” (Revelation 1:12-18)

I believe that Ezekiel and John saw the same man, who is Jesus Christ. I believe the prophet Daniel also saw Jesus in his visions:

“Then I lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and behold a certain man clothed in linen, whose loins were girded with fine gold of Uphaz: his body also was like the beryl, and his face as the appearance of lightning, and his eyes as lamps [torches] of fire, and his arms and his feet like in colour to polished brass [burnished bronze], and the voice of his words like the voice of a multitude.” (Daniel 10:5-6)

Let us continue reading from Ezekiel 43. In Ezekiel 43:3 tells us that what he saw is of the same vision he had and which he wrote about in chapter 1. He goes on to tell us what he saw regarding the Temple. Notice that similar to what the apostle John wrote in Revelation 4:1-2, Ezekiel is taken up in the Spirit:

“And the glory of the LORD came into the house [the temple] by the way of the gate whose prospect is toward [which faces] the east. So the spirit took [lifted] me up, and brought me into the inner court; and, behold, the glory of the LORD filled the house. And I heard him speaking unto me out of the house [the temple]; and the [a] man stood by me. And he said unto me, Son of man, the place of my throne, and the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel for ever, and my holy name, shall the house of Israel no more defile, neither they, nor their kings, by their whoredom [harlotry, unfaithful conduct], nor by the carcases of their kings in their high places. In their setting of their threshold by my thresholds, and their post [door post] by my posts, and the wall between me and them, they have even defiled my holy name by their abominations that they have committed: wherefore I have consumed them in mine anger. Now let them put away their whoredom, and the carcases of their kings, far from me, and I will dwell in the midst of them for ever.” (Ezekiel 43:4-9)

The remaining chapters of Ezekiel describe the details of the Temple, the keepers of it, the sacrifices and offerings that will be made in it to honor and worship God, and the division of God’s land to the twelve tribes of Israel. The Temple will be located in the middle of the land of Judah. (Ezekiel 48:8)

I believe that the last chapter of Zechariah confirms to us that there will be a final Temple, and that people will come to it to worship and honor God:

“And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles. And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain. And if the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, that have no rain; there shall be the plague, wherewith the LORD will smite [strike] the heathen that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles. This shall be the punishment of Egypt, and the punishment of all nations that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles. In that day shall there be upon the bells of the horses, HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD; and the pots in the LORD’s house shall be like the bowls before the altar. Yea, every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the LORD of hosts: and all they that sacrifice shall come and take of them, and seethe [cook] therein: and in that day there shall be no more the Canaanite in the house of the LORD of hosts.” (Zechariah 14:16-21)

This seems to speak of the final Temple described in the Ezekiel 40-48 that will exist after the land is cleansed after the events of Gog of Magog occur, during Jesus’ 1,000-year reign on earth. I do not believe this Temple would exist at the end of Jesus’ Millennial Kingdom because the Bible tells us that at the end His earthly reign, Jesus will create a new heaven, a new earth, and a new Jerusalem, and there will no longer be  a temple:

“And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.” (Revelation 21:22)

I also want to say that Zechariah 14 seems to be describing similar events as described in the book of Ezekiel, where Jesus returns and is made (“king over all the earth…) (Zechariah 14:9). It also says that the men of Israel will dwell in the land of Israel and that Jerusalem will be safely inhabited (Zechariah 14:11). Further, it describes a plague from God that will smite/strike all the people that have fought against Jerusalem by causing the attackers to turn on and kill each other. This is similar to what is written in Ezekiel 38:21. I do not know if what is written in Zechariah 14:12-13 it is in fact the same event as described in Ezekiel 38-39 but it has similarities to it:

“And I will call for a sword against him [Gog] throughout all my mountains, saith the Lord GOD: every man’s sword shall be against his brother. And I will plead against him [bring judgment to him] with pestilence and with blood; and I will rain upon him, and upon his bands [troops], and upon many people that are with him, an overflowing rain, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone.” (Ezekiel 38:21-22

“And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away [decay] while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes [sockets], and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth. And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult [panic] from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold [seize] every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour.” (Zechariah 14:12-13)

Gog and Magog in the Book of Revelation

Before ending this devotional, I want to briefly speak about the second time we read about Gog and Magog that is written about in the Bible, and it is in the book of Revelation. Before we read what it says, I want to emphasize that it clearly tells us that these events will happen after the 1,000-year reign of Christ on the earth. We must remember that Revelation 20:1-3 tells us that prior to Christ’s reign on earth, an angel will bind Satan and cast him into the bottomless pit during that entire 1,000-year reign of Christ. I think one reason for God doing this instead of just destroying Satan altogether is to demonstrate that even without Satan in the world in a time that Jesus is reigning, people who had not previously turned to Jesus Christ to save them before the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble began, but who survived it, will still sin. They may or may not turn to Jesus Christ during His 1,000-year reign. They likely will have children who may sin. All of these people will be living in their fleshly, non-glorified bodies. They will have no excuse for their sin, such as “the Devil made me do it” because the Devil/Satan and his influence won’t be present on earth during that time. No, it will show us that sin is within us, passed down to us by Adam and Eve, present within our DNA, and the only cure for it is to put our faith and trust in Jesus Christ. These may be the people who will participate in a final rebellion against God with Satan, as described below, when he is let out of the bottomless pit:

“And when the thousand years are expired [completed], Satan shall be loosed [released] out of his prison, and shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed [surrounded] the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever. And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.” (Revelation 20:7-21:3)

Previously, I thought that the reference to Gog and Magog from Revelation above may be the same as Gog of Magog written about in Ezekiel. However, what would be the purpose of cleansing the land, as described in Ezekiel 39, when God clearly tells us that He is going to destroy the earth and heavens after the millennial kingdom? Further, as we read previously, Revelation 21:22 tells us that there will be no temple on the new earth because “… the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.” I think the purpose of cleansing the land discussed in Ezekiel 39 is to prepare it for the final Temple on earth that will exist during Jesus’ Millennial Kingdom. Not only will Jews worship God in the Temple but also the saved Gentiles.

Another reason for my believing that the Gog and Magog of Revelation is different from that in Ezekiel is that in Revelation, it is not limited to specifically named countries as it is in Ezekiel but speaks to nations “which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog.” This is the last chance Satan will ever have to deceive people and cause them to spend their eternity with him in the lake of fire. Satan will deceive people from all over the world the earth because their hearts are turned against God, even though He will have reigned on earth for 1,000 years. Again, we must remember that during the Millennial Kingdom, there will exist people who survived the tribulation period and will not be in their glorified bodies but will be in their fleshly bodies, just as you and I who are alive on earth now are in our fleshly bodies. They will bear children, and their children will bear children, and they will not be saved unless they put their faith in Jesus to save them. Sadly, even though Jesus will once again be on the earth, but this time reigning as King of kings and Lord of lords, many will still reject Him, as they did at His first coming. It is these people who will be willfully deceived by Satan. Revelation 20:8 tells us there will be many of them: “the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.” They will gather with Satan in Jerusalem, “the beloved city,” where they will all be devoured by a fire from heaven sent by God.

In closing, I want to say that I have done my best, under the leading of the Holy Spirit, to understand God’s word regarding Gog and Magog. However, I may not have everything correct. Time will tell.

Below is a summary of what I believe is the possible order of events that are soon to come upon the entire earth:

• Antichrist confirms a 7-year covenant with many, which may include language that provides for a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine that will divide God’s land. I believe there will also be a provision that allows Israel to build its Third Temple, neither of which will be sanctioned/authorized by God. The language to establish a two-state solution and building of a Third Temple may also be something that is agreed upon prior to the confirming of the 7-year covenant, but if that happens, I believe the covenant will include language making these requirements for the covenant to go into effect. The confirming of this covenant begins the time of Jacob’s trouble.

• 3-1/2 years into Israel’s covenant with death, Antichrist commits the abomination of desolation in the Temple. Israel will finally see that they have been deceived by him, and they will flee into the mountains.

• At the end of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, Satan, the false prophet, and those who are allied with him will gather at Mount Megiddo (Armageddon), which I believe may also be the valley of Jehoshaphat that is written in Joel chapter 3. I believe Jerusalem will also be surrounded.

• Jesus will return at His second coming with His armies in heaven, which I believe includes believers in Him who have died and will have their glorified bodies. Jesus will destroy with the sword of His mouth all who are gathered against Him, and cast the antichrist and false prophet alive into the lake of fire.

• An angel will bind and cast Satan into the bottomless pit for 1,000 years.

• Jesus begins His 1,000-year reign on earth. He will gather all of Israel in their land and sprinkle clean water on them. He will give them a new heart and a new Spirit. It is at this time that Israel will dwell safely in their land. Jesus will save them from all their uncleanness and cause the land of Israel to flourish.

• The first resurrection happens, which Revelation 20:4 tells us is a resurrection of believers who died during the time of Jacob’s trouble and who refused to worship the antichrist/beast and did not take his mark/name/number. The Bible tells us that they will reign with Jesus for the 1,000-year time period. I believe this will also include the believers He will bring with Him.

• Some time probably early in the Millennial Kingdom, God turns Gog around and brings him and his troops into the mountains of Israel, where Gog will see Israel dwelling safely and decide to attack them for their wealth. Gog and his allies will be destroyed by God. All of the remaining heathen (Gentile) nations will see this and know why God allowed this to happen to Israel. Israel will see what God did to Gog and his allies, and Israel will remember their evil ways and will finally KNOW that He is the Lord their God from that day forward. God will be hallowed in Israel, and He will never hide His face from them anymore.

• Israel will burn the weapons of Gog and his allies for 7 years and bury their bodies for 7 months in order to cleanse the land and prepare it for the construction of the new and final Temple. The Temple will be built, and people will go and worship God in it, including all nations that came against Israel.

• At the end of the Millennial Kingdom, Satan will be let out of the bottomless pit. People who have not accepted Jesus as their Savior will choose to follow Satan. They will gather with Satan in Jerusalem, seeking to destroy it and the people. God will send fire down upon all the people joined with Satan, and the fire will devour them. God will cast Satan into the eternal lake of fire, and he will be tormented day and night and will never deceive anyone again. Satan will never be let out again.

• The second resurrection occurs, which I believe is everyone who died in their sins and who were not saved by their faith in God, including those who died in their sins prior to Jesus’ first coming. They will be judged by their works. Because their works cannot save them but only faith in God, their names will not be found in the book of life and they will all be cast into the lake of fire.

• God will create a new heaven and a new earth, and will destroy the current heavens and earth by fire. God will also create a new Jerusalem. God will dwell with all his people, all who put our faith and trust in Him, and He will be our God. There will be no temple, for Almighty God and Jesus are the temple.

Finally, I leave you with the words of the apostle John, and in agreement, I say, Maranatha! Come quickly, Lord Jesus!!!

“And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst [thirsts] come. And whosoever will [desires], let him take the water of life freely.” (Revelation 22:17)

October 1, 2025: Isaiah 49:26 - I Am the Mighty One of Jacob

“And I will feed them that oppress thee with their own flesh; and they shall be drunken with their own blood, as with sweet wine: and all flesh shall know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob.” - Isaiah 49:26

Little did I know that when I first began writing about the 49th chapter of Isaiah in May 2024, that it would take me this long to get through it. Praise God that He led me to write these devotional messages on it, for I have learned so much by doing an in-depth study of it, through the power of His Holy Spirit! I am blessed by Him to be able to share these devotionals. Though I may not have everything right about these devotionals, I am truly doing my best to read and study God’s word and write about how it relates to what is happening in our world that we live in. I am happy to share them with you, and I am sure it has been a struggle to get through them, given their increasing length.

As I begin writing this devotional message on July 19, 2025, much is happening in our world that truly seems to be aligning with Bible prophecy, particularly to what is described as the Day of the Lord, the 7-year time period known as the time of Jacob’s trouble, and also referred to as the tribulation period, with the last 3-1/2 years called the Great Tribulation. I truly believe we are just mere days away from the beginning of this time period, a time not ever known to mankind nor ever will be again. A time where men will want to die but will not be able to. A time when all who have put their trust in gold, silver, crypto currency, presidents, prime ministers, their preps, their underground bunkers, and in anything else, will learn that nothing came save them from the wrath of Almighty God. The only One who can save us from what is coming is Jesus Christ, and oh, how I pray that if you are reading this, that you are saved by putting your faith and trust in Him alone to save you. Only He can save you from your sins, and we are all sinners, each and every single one of us. We can never be “good” enough to save ourselves; only Jesus can save us. For those who do not believe this, who deny Jesus is the Christ, the Bible tells us that they are not only liars but are also antichrist:

“Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son. Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father: [but] he that acknowledgeth the Son hath the Father also.” (1 John 2:22-23)

Those who deny Jesus is the Christ are antichrist, a type of antichrist. The Strong’s Greek concordance tells us that an “antichrist” is “an adversary (or opponent) of the Messiah, the Anointed-One.” (See: https://biblehub.com/greek/500.htm) While they are not the coming final antichrist, who is also known as the beast of the sea, or the beast, in the book of Revelation, they are antichrist because they deny that Jesus is the Christ. The apostles John and Paul tell us that the final antichrist is still to come:

“Little children, it is the last time [hour]: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time [hour].” (1 John 2:18)

“Now we beseech [ask] you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand [had come]. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things? And now ye know what withholdeth [is restraining] that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery [hidden truth] of iniquity [lawlessness] doth already work: only he who now letteth will let [restrains will do so], until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that Wicked [Lawless One] be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit [breath] of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming. Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness [unrighteous deception] in [among] them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a [the] lie: that they all might be damned [condemned] who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” (2 Thessalonians 2:1-12)

The book of Revelation tells us some of the character traits of the final antichrist, who will be given power by Satan. Satan is called the “dragon” in this book:

“And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat [throne], and great authority. And I saw one of his heads as it were [if it had been] wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after [marvelled at] the beast. And they worshipped the dragon which gave power [authority] unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him? And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power given unto him to continue forty and two months. And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. If any man have an ear, let him hear. He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and faith of the saints.” (Revelation 13:1-10)

Notice in the Scriptures above (Revelation 13:5), that it says that the beast was given power, by the dragon/Satan, “to continue forty and two months.” However, when I looked up the word “continue” in the Greek, it does not say “continue.” This may be an incorrect translation of the King James Version (KJV) of the Bible. The Greek word is “poiēsai” and means “To make, to do, to act, to cause, to work.” (See: https://biblehub.com/greek/4160.htm) I do believe that this is referring to the last 3-1/2 years of the time of Jacob’s trouble. However, I do believe, as many other believers in Jesus Christ do, that this final antichrist is also mentioned in the book of Daniel, and it is he who will sign a covenant “with the many” for a period of one week, which is seven years. Thus, the antichrist comes onto the scene when he signs the covenant with the many for one week. This time period is also known as the “70th week,” which is the last seven years of the time period for Israel before Jesus Christ returns at His second coming:

“Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.” (Daniel 9:24)

As I previously mentioned, the seventieth week, or the last seven years, is the time period when the final antichrist will “confirm the covenant with many for one week,” (Daniel 9:27) which I believe includes, and is focused on, Israel. I also believe it will include Israel’s enemies. Daniel doesn’t tell us that the antichrist will make a covenant with the many but will confirm it. To confirm the covenant means to make it stronger; thus, a prior version of it must already exist. (See: https://biblehub.com/hebrew/1396.htm) I wrote about this in my prior devotional that I strongly believe it will be Donald J. Trump who will broker this confirming of the covenant, which will be a strengthening of the existing Abraham Accords. I do not know of anyone else who fits the criteria of the coming final antichrist except him. I do not know of anyone else in whom Israel will trust in confirming the Abraham Accords than Donald Trump.

While Donald Trump has spoken publicly about Jesus Christ, he has denied that he needs Jesus Christ to save him from all his sins. When he was asked by a CNN reporter if he ever asked God to forgive him of all his actions (sins), his response was: (See: https://www.cnn.com/2015/07/18/politics/trump-has-never-sought-forgiveness/)

“I am not sure I have. I just go on and try to do a better job from there. I don’t think so,” he said. “I think if I do something wrong, I think, I just try and make it right. I don’t bring God into that picture. I don’t.”

His words do not sound like someone who has accepted the fact that each and every single one of us is a sinner, and that we all need the Savior, Jesus Christ, to save us from our sins. This does not sound like a man who acknowledges that it is Jesus Christ alone who can save us and wash us clean of all our sins by His precious, sinless blood. There is absolutely nothing that we can do to save ourselves from our sins. There is no work good enough, or better enough, that can save us. If we deny this truth, then we are denying Jesus Christ, the Son of God, sent by God to save us from our sins. I believe Donald Trump’s words about Jesus Christ are just pandering to those who voted for him so that they will continue to support him and his policies. Let us compare Donald Trump’s thoughts about him not being a sinner in need of the Savior, to what Jesus Himself said about salvation:

“…Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (Jesus Christ; John 3:3)

“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light [the light] is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth [practises] evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds be reproved [exposed]. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.” (Jesus Christ; John 3:14-21)

“…I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” (Jesus Christ; John 14:6)

“For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son: that all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation [judgment]; but is passed from death unto life. Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live. For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given unto the Son to have life in himself; and hath given him authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of man.” (Jesus Christ; John 5:22-27)

“And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.” (Jesus Christ; John 6:40)

Let us read what else the Bible teaches about sin and salvation from it. It tells us that the Law, which God gave to His people, Israel, cannot save anyone, for we all fall short of it. In short, it means that we can never be “good enough” to save ourselves. That is why God sent Jesus Christ, to fulfill the Law, and that by His grace - not by good deeds or works - we are saved:

“And the Jews marvelled, saying, How knoweth this man letters, having never learned [studied]? Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me. If any man do his will, he shall know of [concerning] the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself. He that speaketh of himself seeketh his own glory: but he that seeketh his [God’s] glory that sent him [Jesus], the same is true, and no unrighteousness is in him. Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keepeth the law? Why go ye about to kill me?” (John 7:15-19)

“Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 5:17-18)

“Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God without [apart from] the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: for all have sinned, and come [fall] short of the glory of God; being justified freely [without any cost] by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation [mercy seat] through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; to declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.” (Romans 3:19-26)

“For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.” (John 1:17)

“Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved. For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.” (Romans 10:1-4)

“But what saith it? The word is nigh [near] thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed [put to shame]. For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” (Romans 10:8-13)

In the Scriptures above from Romans, and in the Scriptures below, the apostle Paul wrote about grace through faith, and that it is faith alone in Jesus and not good works that can save us. But Paul did not always believe this truth. Paul was a Jewish man and a Pharisee, a religious leader, who aggressively persecuted Christians until Jesus revealed Himself to Paul through a light shining from heaven one day when Paul was traveling on the road to Damascus. In fact, Paul was headed to Damascus to find Christians who were spreading the gospel, the good news of salvation of sins by faith in Jesus Christ. Paul wanted to hunt them down, bind them, and bring them back to Jerusalem. The Bible even tells us that Paul “was breathing out threatenings and slaughter [murder] against the disciples of the Lord.” (Acts 9:1) On the road to Damascus, Paul, who at that time was called “Saul,” was asked by Jesus this question: “Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?” (Acts 9:4). I think it is important to read Paul’s response to Jesus and what happened afterward:

“And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?” And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do. And the men which journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice, but seeing no man. And Saul arose from the earth; and when his eyes were opened, he saw no man: but they [the men who were with Saul] led him by the hand, and brought him into Damascus. And he was three days without sight, and neither did eat nor drink. And there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ananias; and to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here, Lord. And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and enquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul, of Tarsus: for, behold, he prayeth, and hath seen in a vision a man named Ananias coming in, and putting his hand on him, that he might receive his sight. Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man, how much evil [harm] he hath done to thy saints at Jerusalem: and here he hath authority from the chief priests to bind all that call on thy name. But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel: for I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name’s sake. And Ananias went his way, and entered into the house; and putting his hands on him said, Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the way as thou camest, hath sent me, that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost. And immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been [something like] scales: and he received sight forthwith [at once], and arose, and was baptized. And when he had received meat [food], he was strengthened. Then was Saul certain days with the disciples which were at Damascus.  And straightway he preached Christ in the synagogues, that he is the Son of God. But all that heard him were amazed, and said; Is not this he that destroyed them which called on this name in Jerusalem, and came hither for that intent, that he might bring them bound unto the chief priests? But Saul increased the more in strength, and confounded the Jews which dwelt at Damascus, proving that this is very Christ [this Jesus is the Christ].” (Acts 9:5-22)

If there was any Jewish man that the Jews did not expect to believe in Jesus, putting his faith and trust in Him alone to be saved, it very well could have been Paul. Before having his encounter with Jesus Christ on the road to Damascus, Paul persecuted Christians, who at that time were called people of “the way.” Paul even consented to the stoning death of Stephen, the first martyr of Christ (Acts 8:1). Paul was hated by the Jews and, as Jesus said would happen, he suffered many things because of his love for Jesus and for his faithfulness to Him. God protected Paul in many situations, for it was through Paul that the majority of the books of the New Testament were written through the power of the Holy Spirit. Let us read what Paul wrote about how we must be saved:

“And you hath he quickened [made alive], who were dead in trespasses and sins; wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: among whom also we all had our conversation [conducted ourselves] in times past in the lusts of our flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us [made us alive] together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: that in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not works, lest any man should boast.” (Ephesians 2:1-9)

Paul makes it very clear that good works cannot save us; rather, it is the free gift of God by His grace, through our faith in Jesus Christ alone. Can you imagine being saved by anything that we ourselves could do? Can you imagine what a brag fest that would be? It would be something like, “Well, I am saved because I went to college and received four degrees in theology.” “I am saved because I went to church every Wednesday and Sunday,” or “I tithed to my church and gave to the poor,” or maybe something like “I never had an evil thought cross my mind.” Did you notice a pattern there? It’s all about “I” and what “I” did, and not what Jesus did for us. It is only by putting our faith in Jesus’ precious and sinless blood and what He did for us that we can be saved from all of our sins. That is why Paul wrote “lest any man should boast,” because he knew that if we could save ourselves, we would brag about it, and that is pride. What does the Bible tell us about pride? God hates it. It was Satan’s pride that caused his fall. Isaiah 14 discusses the fall of Satan, also called “Lucifer”:

“How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides [lowest depths] of the pit.” (Isaiah 14:12-15)

When the final antichrist comes, and I do believe that time is coming very soon, he will be a boastful man, a man who likes to brag about himself. Daniel the prophet and the apostle Paul wrote about the coming final antichrist, who is also referred to by Daniel as the “little horn”:

“After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and broke in pieces, and stamped [trampled] the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse [different] from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns. I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things [pompous words].” (Daniel 7:7-8)

“And he shall speak great words [pompous words] against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think [intend] to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.” (Daniel 7:25)

“Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.” (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4)

The final antichrist, also called “the beast of the sea” and “the beast,” is described by John the apostle in chapter 13 of the book of Revelation. John explicitly tells us that it will be Satan, who in Revelation 12:9 is also called the dragon, the serpent, and the Devil, who will give power to the beast. I know we read this earlier in this devotional, but let’s read the words of John the apostle again:

“And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months. And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power [authority] was given him over all kindreds [tribes], and tongues, and nations. And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. If any man have an ear, let him hear.” (Revelation 13:5-9)

The Bible is clear that the coming antichrist will have a big mouth, he will be full of pride, he will blaspheme God, and he will make war with those who believe in Jesus Christ and have put their faith and trust in Him alone to save them. Antichrist will be allied with his sidekick, who is called the “beast of the earth” and the “false prophet.” The false prophet will require everyone to worship the antichrist/beast and to take something that identifies them as belonging to antichrist:

“And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon. And he exerciseth all the power [authority] of the first beast before him [in his presence], and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. And he doeth great wonders [signs], so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men, and deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had [was granted] power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live. And he had power to give life [breath] unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond [slave], to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: and that no man might buy or sell, save [except] he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.” (Revelation 13:11-18)

The Bible tells us that during Israel’s 70th week, the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, two-thirds of Israel will die, but God will save a one-third remnant of them. It will be that remnant who finally turns to Jesus, finally believing that He IS their Messiah that was written about in the Scriptures of old. He IS their Messiah whom the prophets wrote about long ago. Though the unholy trinity of Satan, the antichrist, and the false prophet will seek to destroy all of Israel, God will protect His remnant.

I think we are seeing the crescendo of the nations that will come against Israel in the last days before Jesus returns to earth. I believe we are on the cusp of Israel being strong-armed into signing the covenant that will end up dividing their land, the land that God gave to them but it is God who owns the deed to the land; it is His land. This covenant may be some version of Israel’s “Abraham Shield Plan,” which is an expansion of the existing Abraham Accords. Israel has created a website called “Coalition for Regional Security” (See: https://abrahamshield.org/en/) that describes its plan. I do not think it is any coincidence that on the main page of this site, it has six key principles for the plan. In the Bible, the number six (6) represents the number of man, and I think this fully demonstrates that Israel is depending on themselves and in men whom they believe they can trust in order to obtain “peace and security” with its neighbors, instead of depending on Almighty God. In June 2025, billboards were seen in Tel Aviv advertising this new plan, and who is placed in the middle of twelve men? It is none other than Donald Trump, with Benjamin Netanyahu on one side and the current Syrian president on the other side. (See: https://mronline.org/2025/07/08/the-abraham-shield-israels-new-blueprint-for-regional-control-after-gaza/)

It is during the time of Jacob’s trouble that God will eliminate all of Israel’s military might so that it will see that the only One who can protect them is Him. For far too long, Israel has made horrible deals with its enemies that have come back to haunt them, particularly when Israel has been willing to give up its land in order to obtain “peace,” such as what happened when it gave up its land in the Gaza Strip.

We are quickly approaching the time of Jacob’s trouble, also called the Day of the Lord, that includes the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, the second coming of Jesus Christ, and I believe it also includes the subsequent 1,000-year reign of Jesus Christ, followed by the time when He resurrects every single person who died in their sins and judges them, and they all will be cast into the eternal lake of fire.

During the time of Jacob’s trouble, the Gentile nations will surround Jerusalem, as we are told in the book of Zechariah:

“The burden of the word of the LORD for Israel, saith the LORD, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him. Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome [very heavy] stone for all people [peoples]: all that burden themselves with it [would heave it away] shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.” (Zechariah 12:1-3)

Let us pause here for a moment and consider what we just read. Now, compare that to what is being reported in the headlines recently. At the United Nations High-level International Conference regarding a two-state solution in New York City on July 28, 2025, let us read from the “OPENING SPEECH BY MR. JEAN-NOËL BARROT, MINISTER FOR EUROPE AND FOREIGN AFFAIRS, DURING THE PLENARY SESSION OF THE HIGH-LEVEL INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON THE PEACEFUL SETTLEMENT OF THE QUESTION OF PALESTINE AND THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE TWO-STATE SOLUTION”: (See: https://onu.delegfrance.org/the-prospect-of-two-states-whose-rights-are-recognized-and-respected-is-in)

“It is a call to the Israeli government. Listen to the indignation that is swelling around the world. Grasp the hand that is being offered to you to get out of this deadlock. Open your eyes to the aspirations of your neighbours to live in peace and security with you. Call a ceasefire. Lift the humanitarian blockade on Gaza. Lift the financial blockade on the Palestinian Authority. Abandon all annexation plans. That is in the interests of the Israel and its security.”

This call will only grow louder and wider in the world, and at some point, Israel is going to bend and will agree to this disastrous solution, which I believe is the confirmation of the covenant in Daniel 9:27. On August 7, 2025, Donald Trump stated on his TruthSocial account: (See: https://www.msn.com/en-us/politics/government/trump-says-all-must-join-abraham-accords-for-mideast-peace-now-that-iran-nukes-obliterated/ar-AA1K5qeZ)

“Now that the nuclear arsenal being ‘created’ by Iran has been totally OBLITERATED, it is very important to me that all Middle Eastern Countries join the Abraham Accords.

“This will insure PEACE IN THE MIDDLE EAST.”

The Bible makes it very clear that there will be no peace for Israel, and the world for that matter, until after Jesus returns at His second coming. And, that peace is only for those who have put their faith and trust in Him to save them; the Bible makes it clear that there will be no peace for the wicked. Wicked men and women are ruling and will continue to rule the world until Jesus returns, and there will be no peace for them:

“But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.” (Isaiah 57:20-21)

“The heathen are sunk down in the pit that they made: in the net which they hid is their own foot taken. The LORD is known by the judgment which he executeth: the wicked is snared in the work of his own hands. Higgaion. [Meditation] Selah. The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God. For the needy shall not always be forgotten: the expectation of the poor shall not perish for ever. Arise, O LORD; let not man prevail: let the heathen be judged in thy sight. Put them in fear, O LORD: that the nations may know themselves to be but men. Selah.” (Psalm 9:15-20)

We have seen this call for peace in the Middle East intensify after Israel’s Security Cabinet approved a controversial plan by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to go further into the Gaza Strip and seize Gaza City. This action was met with outcries against it, by both those living in and outside of Israel. We will see what the fallout is in the coming months, but thus far, there has been a massive outcry against Israel, and it continues to grow.

On July 25, 2025, ahead of the annual United Nations General Assembly on September 23, 2025, during which the concept of a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine was discussed, French President Emmanuel Macron announced that at the September meeting, France plans “to recognize a Palestinian State.” In addition, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said that Canada “supports a two-state solution which guarantees peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians.” (See: https://www.jns.org/un-two-state-solution-event-to-go-ahead-sans-us-israel/) As of September 13, 2025, 142 countries, including France and Canada, formally recognized Palestine as a state, with 10 opposed, including Israel and the USA. The 142 countries also support a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine. (See: https://forward.com/fast-forward/771238/un-general-assembly-palestine-gaza-israel/) As of September 25, Israel and the USA are not in agreement to the proposed two-state solution. Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the UN General Assembly on this subject on Friday, September 26, 2025, with nearly all of those present walked out.

If we believe the Bible is the word of God and what He says is true, and I truly do, we know that the world will come against Israel, and specifically Jerusalem, in the days, weeks, and months ahead. There is coming a time when the final antichrist will sign the “covenant with many” as written in Daniel 9:27, which I believe includes Israel. I also believe this is the “covenant with death” that is discussed in Isaiah 28:15-18 and which God will annul. I believe there will be intense pressure put on Israel, and it will come to a head when the USA stands with the many nations to support the two-state solution in order to bring “peace and security” to the world. During Donald Trump’s meeting with Arab leaders, Trump revealed what he is calling the “Trump 21-point plan for peace in the Middle East.” (See: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/us/trumps-grand-plan-for-israel-palestine-deal-21-point-gaza-peace-plan-hostage-release-palestinian-incentives-and-future-state-roadmap/articleshow/124180577.cms) On September 28, 2025, The Jerusalem Post reported that this plan includes: (See: https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-868776)

“Most significantly, the plan proposes a pathway toward the creation of a Palestinian state, conditional upon reforms and a successful reconstruction process.”

On Monday, September 29, 2025, Trump and Netanyahu gave a press conference together, during which Trump discussed his revised now 20-point plan named the “Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict.” Israel accepted the plan on Monday. However, Hamas has not yet responded to or accepted it as of September 30, 2025. The Times of Israel reported the following on Trump’s plan: (See: https://www.timesofisrael.com/trump-unveils-gaza-peace-plan-hailing-backing-from-israel-arab-and-muslim-states/)

“‘This is a big, big day, a beautiful day, potentially one of the great days ever in civilization,’ Trump declared at the start of his remarks. ‘I’m not just talking about Gaza… We’re talking about much beyond Gaza. The whole deal — everything getting solved. It’s called peace in the Middle East. So today is a historic day for peace.’”

“He highlighted the support he had received for the plan from the leaders of the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Jordan, Egypt, Turkey, Indonesia and Pakistan. ‘We’re relying on the countries that I named and others to deal with Hamas.’

“Those countries would ostensibly be part of the International Stabilization Force (ISF) that the Trump plan envisions will immediately deploy in Gaza once the deal comes into place. That force will train and provide support to vetted Palestinian police forces in Gaza, the plan states.”

The Times of Israel also included a report containing the full text of the press conference, during which Trump stated the following: (See: https://www.timesofisrael.com/the-closest-weve-ever-come-full-text-of-trump-netanyahu-statements-on-deal-to-end-gaza-war/?utm_source=article_hpsidebar&utm_medium=desktop_site)

“So today is a historic day for peace. Prime Minister Netanyahu and I have just concluded an important meeting on many vital issues, including Iran, trade, the expansion of the Abraham Accords, and most importantly, we discussed how to end the war in Gaza. But it’s just a part of the bigger picture, which is peace in the Middle East, and let’s call it eternal peace in the Middle East.”

How many times have we heard the world proclaim that if only Israel will give up more of the land that God gave to them, then will it have peace and security, peace and safety. However, God’s word is clear: peace and safety will only come to Israel when it finally turns to its true Messiah, Jesus the Christ, at His second coming.

While I do not know exactly how all of this will play out, I do know that Israel will go through their 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, and so will the rest of the world. However, at the end of it, Jesus will save a remnant of Israel. I also know that those who turn to Jesus Christ during this time, who likely will be martyred for their faith in Him, will spend their eternity with Jesus. The remnant of Israel that is saved won’t be saved by Benjamin Netanyahu, Donald Trump, Emmanuel Macron, or any other earthly man but God Himself:

“The LORD also shall save the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem do not magnify themselves against Judah. In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, and the angel of the LORD before them. And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.” (Zechariah 12:7-9)

“Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee. For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city. Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. And his feet shall stand in the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof [split in two] toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.” (Zechariah 14:1-5)

“And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one.” (Zechariah 14:9)

“And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; their flesh shall consume [decay] away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes [sockets], and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth. And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult [panic] from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold [seize] every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour. And Judah also shall fight at Jerusalem; and the wealth of all the heathen round about shall be gathered together, gold, and silver, and apparel, in great abundance. And so shall the plague of the horse, of the mule, of the camel, and of the ass, and of all the beasts that shall be in these tents [camps], as this plague. And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles.” (Zechariah 14:12-16)

Based on my understanding through the power of the Holy Spirit, I believe the above Scriptures are referring to the end of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble. During this 7-year time of trouble, those who have not been saved by putting their faith and trust in Jesus Christ, whose names are not written in the Lamb’s (Jesus’) book of life, will worship the antichrist, and they also will take his mark, his name, or the number of his name on their right hand or their forehead (Revelation 13). This will doom them forever, and they will spend their eternity in the lake of fire and brimstone because they will choose sin over salvation by Jesus Christ.

The antichrist will be so full of pride that he, the false prophet, and Satan will believe that they can win the war against Jesus, but they will not. The word of God tells us that they will lose the war against Him, when God Himself, Jesus the Christ, returns to earth at His second coming. As we previously read from Revelation chapters 16 and 19, they will gather against Jesus, believing they can destroy Him, there are similar Scriptures in the book of Joel chapter 3. However, as the prophet Joel tells us, it is God who will gather them. In Joel 3, the name of the place where God will gather them, valley of Jehoshaphat, is different than what is in the book of Revelation, Mount Megiddo. While I do not know exactly why this is and if they are in fact representing the same place, or if they are gathered in two different places, I do know that it is God who gathers them, and it is God who judges them, to their eternal peril. In fact, the name “Jehoshaphat” means Jehovah-judged. (See: https://biblehub.com/hebrew/3092.htm) Let us read that Scripture again from Joel that tells us what happens to those who part His land and let us read further what God says about this time that is coming:

“For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity [captives] of Judah and Jerusalem, I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead [enter into judgment] with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.” (Joel 3:1-2)

“Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles [nations]; Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near; let them come up: beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruning hooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong. Assemble yourselves, and come, all ye heathen [nations], and gather yourselves together round about: thither cause thy mighty ones to come down, O LORD. Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about. Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down; for the press [winepress] is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great. Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision. The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining [diminish their brightness]. The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the hope [a shelter] of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel. So shall ye know that I am the LORD your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more.” (Joel 3:9-17)

Notice in the Scriptures above from Joel 3:1-2 that God says that He will enter into judgment with all nations when He brings them to the valley of Jehoshaphat, for His people Israel, whom the nations have scattered and who have “parted my land.” The land of Israel was given to Israel by God, and it is no one’s land to part except His. May that be a cautionary word to all today who seek to divide His land, the land of Israel, including Benjamin Netanyahu, Donald Trump, Emmanuel Macron, and all world leaders who seek to divide it.

The above Scriptures from the book of Joel chapter 3 are similar in wording to what is written in the book of Revelation, when Jesus Christ takes His sickle and reaps the grapes of wrath upon a wicked and Christ-rejecting world:

“And I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters. And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture [full strength] into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: and the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. Here is the patience [steadfastness] of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.” (Revelation 14:6-12)

“And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle. And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe. And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped. And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle. And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe. And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. And the winepress was trodden [trampled] without [outside] the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs.” (Revelation 14:14-20)

“And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath.” (Revelation 16:19)

Let us read again from Revelation 19:15 how Jesus will tread the winepress at His second coming:

“And out of his [Jesus’] mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.” (Revelation 19:15)

Let us also read something I have included previously in other devotionals on Isaiah 49, and that is from Isaiah 63, which also speaks of Jesus treading the winepress on all who loved sin over salvation, darkness over light. Isaiah 63 is written in a question and answer format, where one is asking the question and the other, Jesus, is answering the questions. Jesus is the one that comes from Bozrah, and He alone will save the remnant of His people Israel:

“Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah? this that is glorious in his apparel, travelling in the greatness of his strength? I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save. Wherefore art thou red in thine apparel, and thy garments like him that treadeth in the winefat [winepress]? I have trodden the winepress alone; and of the people there was none with me: for I will tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my fury; and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments, and I will stain all my raiment. For the day of vengeance is in mine heart, and the year of my redeemed is come. And I looked, and there was none to help; and I wondered that there was none to uphold: therefore mine own arm brought salvation unto me; and my fury, it upheld me. And I will tread down the people in mine anger, and make them drunk in my fury, and I will bring down their strength to the earth.” (Isaiah 63:1-6)

In the book of Revelation, at Jesus’ second coming, we read about what will happen to the antichrist and the false prophet. It also tells us what will happen to all who follow them and are gathered with them to stand and make war against Jesus the Christ and His army with Him:

“And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him [Jesus] that sat on the horse, and against his army. And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast into a lake of fire burning with brimstone. And the remnant [rest] were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.” (Revelation 19:19-21)

God’s word is simply amazing to me in how it all fits together. Let us take a look back at some of the things Isaiah chapter 49 has taught us. Before I began this study in Isaiah 49, I had no idea that its verses spoke all about Jesus Christ, and not only His first coming but also His second coming. The verses tell us of how Jesus came to establish, or raise up, the tribes of Israel, and to restore the preserved, meaning the one-third remnant, of Israel. They also tell us that God planned all along for Jesus to offer salvation not only to Israel but also to the Gentiles, for God knew that Israel would reject their chosen one, their true Messiah. Let us look back at several of the Scriptures in Isaiah 49, and reflect on them. Let us see that the word of God is true, and that He wants us to read it for ourselves so that we can get to know Him better, and His plan of salvation for us.

Isaiah 49:1 tells us that God called Jesus from the womb and made mention of His name, which was fulfilled in the books of Matthew and Luke:

“Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise [as follows]: When as his mother Mary was espoused [betrothed] to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost. Then Joseph her husband, being a just [upright] man, and not willing to make her a publick example, was minded to put her away privily [secretly]. But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived [begotten] in her is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS [Saviour]: for he shall save his people from their sins. Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet [Isaiah, Isaiah 7:14], saying, Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is [is translated], God with us. Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife: and knew her not [kept her a virgin] till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS.” (Matthew 1:18-25)

“And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, to a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail [Rejoice], thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast [considered] in her mind what manner of salutation [greeting] this should be. And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: and he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.” (Luke 1:26-33)

Isaiah 49:2 tells us that God had hidden Jesus in the shadow of His (God’s) hand and in His quiver, and in fact, that is exactly what happened until the first coming of Jesus Christ; He was hidden and yet the Scriptures spoke volumes of Him, including in Isaiah 49. Isaiah 49:2 tells us that Jesus’ mouth was made like a sharp sword, and what does a sharp sword do? It cuts, it divides, and that is exactly what Jesus, the Word of God, does, for He gives people the truth. Sadly, most are offended by it, are cut to the heart by it, and in their stubbornness and pride of heart, they don’t want to believe it. This was true of those He came to save first, His own people, the people of Israel, and it is true for the majority of Israel today and for the entire world:

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.” (John 1:1-5)

“Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance [apart from] against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household. He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me. He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 10:34-39)

“For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12)

Isaiah 49;7 tells us that it is Jesus “whom man despiseth” and “whom the nation abhorreth.” There is such powerful truth in those words! Has there ever been a man more despised upon the earth than Jesus? Has His own nation, the nation He came to save first, the nation of Israel, abhorred anyone else more than Him? When Jesus came to earth at His first coming, the scribes and the Pharisees absolutely hated Him, and Jesus called them out for their hypocrisy, even pronouncing eight woes upon them for their love of themselves and their lack of humility and justice for the widows and the poor. Instead of recognizing Jesus for who He is, their Messiah, sent by God to save them from their sins, the scribes and Pharisees felt threatened by Jesus, and yet, Jesus had pity upon them and said to them:

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 23:37)

Because of their rejection of the truth of God, Jesus then proclaimed:

“Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 23:38-39)

Though Jesus told them that their house was left desolate, He also gave them hope, for He told them that there will be a day when they will see Him again, but it is conditional upon their turning to Him, in realizing that He IS their Messiah, their Deliverer and Redeemer. Sadly, modern day Israel is no different than the Israel that lived during Jesus’ first coming. I recently watched a video that compiled clips of different rabbis claiming that Donald Trump is their Messiah. (See: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmDPAsCS9kE). Israel365news.com reported way back on May 23, 2018 the following: (See: https://israel365news.com/323848/the-trump-king-david-connection-and-how-it-connects-with-abrahams-covenant/)

“Donald Trump in Gematria (Hebrew numerology) equals 424, which is the same as Moshiach ben David (Messiah from the house of David),” Rabbi Berger pointed out. “This certainly does not mean he will be the Messiah, but it indicates that he will play a role in preparing the way for the arrival of the Messiah. He clearly has this inclination. Why else would he have a campaign event overlooking the Temple Mount? No other presidential candidate has done this.”

This is certainly very concerning because Israel is not looking for their true Messiah, Jesus Christ, who has come first as the Lamb of God “which taketh away the sin of the world,” as spoken by John the baptizer in John 1:29, and will return the second time as KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS and will bring judgment upon every single person who chose to remain in their sin rather than accepting the free gift of salvation by Jesus’ sinless and precious blood. So who is Israel truly looking for? I believe they are looking for the coming final antichrist, the one who will come in his own name. Let us read what transpired between the Jews and Jesus when, on the sabbath day, Jesus healed a man that had a sickness for 38 years:

“The man departed, and told the Jews that it was Jesus, which had made him whole. And therefore [for this reason] did the Jews persecute Jesus, and sought to slay him, because he had done these things on the sabbath day. But Jesus answered them, My Father worketh hitherto, and I work. Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that God was his Father, making himself equal with God. Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things so ever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.” (John 5:15-19)

Let us read what else Jesus told them, and I think it relates directly to the Jewish rabbis in Israel today who reject Jesus Christ as their true Messiah and how they are so warmly embracing and accepting Donald Trump, even some calling him their Messiah, or at least the one whom they believe is preparing the way for the one whom they call their Messiah:

“Search [You search] the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. And [But] ye will not come to me, that ye might have life. I receive not honour from men. But I know you, that ye have not the love of God in you. I am come in my Father’s name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive.” (Jesus Christ; John 5:39-43)

Has there ever been a man who is adored by Israel and whose name is plastered all over the place than Donald Trump’s? Is he the man who comes in his own name and who is received by Israel? I believe all signs are pointing to a conclusive “yes.” I believe Israel is setting itself up to be deceived by the final antichrist, the one with whom they will sign what God calls “a covenant with death” in Isaiah 28:18.

While Isaiah 49:7 tells us long before Jesus came to earth the first time that the nation, meaning Israel, would abhor Him, Isaiah 49:13-15 tells us that there IS reason to rejoice. These Scriptures tell us that God will not forget His afflicted, the people of Israel, forever but “will have mercy upon his afflicted.” It tells us that though His people are as a woman who has forgotten her own sucking or nursing child, and has not had “compassion on the son of her womb,” He will not forget them.

Isaiah 49;6 tells us of His plan of restoration for Israel and also His plan of salvation for Gentiles, “I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.” This fact that Jesus is the Light was repeated in the New Testament, including in the books of Luke and John. The book of Luke gives us the account of an older man named Simeon, who had been waiting a long time for Messiah to come. Let us read of that account:

“And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him. And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. And he came by the Spirit into the temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him after the custom of the law, then took he him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said, Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: for mine eyes have seen thy salvation, which thou hast prepared before the face of all people; a light to lighten [bring revelation to] the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel.” (Luke 2:25-32)

John the baptizer made the following proclamations about Jesus, testifying that He is the Light of the world:

“There was a man sent from God, whose name was John [John was speaking of himself]. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. He [John] was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own [His own people, the Jews] received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power [the right] to become the sons [children] 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. And the Word was made flesh [became flesh], and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” (John 1:6-14)

There is soon coming a time when the whole house of Israel will go through a time that will leave them desolate, and not only them but the entire world, during the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble. It is the time when God takes His attention off of the Gentiles and turns His attention back to Israel. All the world will hate the Jews, and they will literally flee for their safety. As discussed previously in other Scriptures, Jerusalem will be surrounded by her enemies, and will be trampled upon by them.

“And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed [surrounded] with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh [near]. Then let them which are in Judaea flee to the mountains; and let them which are in the midst of it depart out; and let not them that are in the countries [country] enter thereinto. For these be the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled. But woe unto them that are with child [pregnant], and to them that give suck [are nursing], in those days! for there shall be great distress in the land, and wrath upon this people. And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden [trampled] down by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; men’s hearts failing for [from] fear, and for looking after [expectation of] those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.” (Jesus Christ; Luke 21:20-26)

Sometime before or during the 7-year period, Israel will build its Third Temple and will prepare and conduct sacrifices and offerings in it. At the midpoint of the 7-year covenant that the antichrist will make with the many, he will commit the abomination of desolation, as prophesied by Daniel and referenced by Jesus. It is when the antichrist goes to the Temple and declares himself to be God. It is at that time when the Jews will see that they have been deceived by him and will flee for their lives:

“And he [Antichrist] shall confirm the covenant [or a treaty] with many for one week [period of seven years]: and in the midst of the week [middle; 3-1/2 years into the treaty] he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation [offering] to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate [or desolator].” (Daniel 9:27)

“When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains: let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house: neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes. And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither the sabbath day: for then there shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s [chosen ones, the Jews] sake those days shall be shortened.” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 24:15-22)

“But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not, (let him that readeth understand,) then let them that be in Judaea flee to the mountains: and let him that is on the housetop not go down into the house, neither enter therein, to take any thing out of his house: and let him that is in the field not turn back again for to take up [get] his garment. But woe to to them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! And pray ye that your flight be not in the winter. For in those days shall be affliction [tribulation], such as was not from the beginning of the creation which God created unto this time, neither shall be. And except that the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh should be saved: but for the elect’s sake, whom he hath chosen, he hath shortened the days.” (Jesus Christ; Mark 13:14-20)

It is clear in the Scriptures above that when Jesus told His disciples these things, that He was speaking specifically about the Jews and not believers in Jesus Christ because He said for them, meaning the Jews, to pray that when the time comes for them to flee, to pray it is not in winter nor the sabbath day. As believers in Jesus Christ, we are not required to keep the sabbath day since Jesus fulfilled the Law and we are not under it but the New Covenant.

There is something very interesting in the three Scriptures above from the gospels of Luke, Matthew, and Mark, and that is that each one of them state, “then let them which are in Judaea flee to the mountains.” Thus, this implies that the Jews must be living in Judaea at the time that the abomination of desolation occurs. We are living in a time when the Jews are living in Judaea and Samaria, which is called “the west bank” by the secular world. From 1948 to 1967, Judaea was under the control of the country of Jordan. However, in 1967 Israel regained control of Judaea and Samaria in the 6-Day War: (See: https://israel365action.com/judea-and-samaria/what-is-the-history-of-judea-and-samaria/)

“In 1967, the Arab nations of Egypt, Syria and Jordan declared war on Israel. Miraculously, Israel defeated all of its enemies with a crushing victory that took only six days to complete. In addition to conquering the Golan Heights from Syria and the Sinai Desert from Egypt, Israel liberated the old city of Jerusalem and the regions of Judea and Samaria from Jordan. Israel’s triumph in the Six Day War marked a pivotal moment, restoring Jewish authority over the region for the first time since before the Temple’s destruction in 69 CE.”

In May of this year, Israel has approved 22 new towns in Judaea and Samaria, marking “the largest single settlement expansion since the Six-Day War in 1967.” (See: https://israfan.com/p/israel-approves-new-samaria-settlements) On August 20 of this year, Israel approved a project to further expand settlements in Judaea and Samaria. (See: https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-west-bank-e1-settlements-8a713939ee6f6552381246dacc8a1301) On September 2, 2025, The Jerusalem Post wrote an article titled “Netanyahu to hold talks over West Bank annexation in response to Palestinian state recognition.” (See: https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-866051) However, because of pressure by the United Arab Emirates, which are part of the Abraham Accords, which said it would said it would be “red line” for them, Netanyahu now has walked this plan back, at least for now. (See: https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-866308)

The September 2025 annual meeting of the United Nations General Assembly has once again drawn the world’s ire against Israel. Once again we hear the repeated calls to divide God’s land that He gave to Israel. Once again, we see the world’s attention focused on Israel. In what seems to have been a shock at least to some in Israel, Donald Trump made the following statement on September 25, 2025 regarding Israel’s annexation of Judea and Samaria: (See: https://www.timesofisrael.com/its-not-going-to-happen-trump-says-he-wont-allow-israel-to-annex-west-bank/)

“I will not allow Israel to annex the West Bank. It’s not going to happen,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office when asked to confirm reports that he assured Arab and Muslim leaders of that stance during a multilateral meeting held Tuesday on the UN General Assembly sidelines”

The article further states that he had spoken with Benjamin Netanyahu regarding this matter. I do not know what the consequences of this statement will by for the USA and Israel, but I do know this: the land of Judaea and Samaria is not Donald Trump’s land, it is God’s land. I pray for Donald Trump to realize that he is at war with what God says and for him to turn to Jesus Christ and be saved, not by any “good” deed that Donald Trump believes can save him, but because of what Jesus did for him and for us all. I also pray for God’s will to be done.

I believe, based on my understanding of the word of God, that we are drawing near to the end of the time of the Gentiles. This is referring to the time when no longer is the world ruled by the Gentiles. I believe prior to this, the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble will happen, and at the end of it, Jesus Christ returns at His second coming, destroys all who will come against Him, and saves the remnant of Israel. Jesus will then take His rightful and righteous reign upon the earth for 1,000 years:

“And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden [trampled] down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.” (Luke 21:24)

“For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits [opinion]; that blindness [hardening] in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: for this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins. As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching [concerning the] the election, they are beloved for the fathers’ sakes.” (Romans 11:25-28)

The prophet Daniel spoke about the kingdoms of the Gentiles being brought down once and for all, and that it will be God Himself that will break in pieces the kingdoms of the Gentiles. Daniel interpreted the Babylonian King, King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream in which the king had seen a great image of a man that had a head of gold, breast and arms of silver, belly and thighs of brass or bronze, legs of iron, and feet mixed of iron and clay. The king had dreamt that “a stone was cut out without hands” that broke into pieces the image. Daniel told him that the different parts of the image represented the kingdoms of the Gentiles, with King Nebuchadnezzar being the head of gold in the dream. Daniel also told him of a coming kingdom:

“And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break [or crush] in pieces and consume [or put an end to] all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever. Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass [bronze], the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure [trustworthy].” (Daniel 2:44-45)

Let us read other places in the Bible that describe this coming kingdom, which will end the times of the Gentiles, the ruling of the world by non-Jewish peoples, and when it will be Jesus Christ who will reign on earth:

“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son [Jesus] is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.” (Isaiah 9:6-7)

In Revelation 11:15-19, at the sounding of the seventh trumpet judgment, this was proclaimed:

“And the seventh angel sounded [blew his trumpet]; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever. And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God, saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned. And the nations were angry, and thy wrath [thine anger] is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth. And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament [covenant]: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.” (Revelation 11:15-19)

This coming kingdom of Jesus Christ will be put in place at the end of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, when Jesus Himself will tread the winepress upon the wicked and vile world and will save a one-third remnant of His people, Israel, who will realize that Jesus IS their Messiah and will turn to Him. That saved remnant of Israel will finally believe in Him and put their faith and trust in Him for their salvation. Jesus will also save those Gentiles who will turn to Him during the tribulation period. These Gentiles will become the children of Israel, who will have lost many of their own sons and daughters in their time of trouble. Isaiah 49 and many other Scriptures tell us that Israel will be gathered together in their own land, the land that God gave them. However, this gathering of Israel will be different from all prior times, for they will have been redeemed by their Saviour and Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob; no more will they turn to false gods and to religion. Hallelujah!

Because I believe we are so very close to the beginning of the time of Jacob’s trouble, I want us to read what happens at the end of it. I know that there are many believers in Jesus Christ who have not read the entire Bible for themselves, including the book of Revelation. In the event that any unbeliever is reading this, I want to include this information because it tells us what will happen to all unbelievers. Sadly, many pastors in the USA, and I suspect the world, do not preach about the future of all unbelievers. I don’t want to be like that, and I want to give them the truth. Thus, I want to end this devotional message, and my final devotional on Isaiah chapter 49, with the understanding of what happens at the end of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, which is followed by Satan being cast into the bottomless pit for the entire time of Jesus’ 1,000-year millennial reign on earth, and the blessed first resurrection of believers in Jesus Christ who died for their faith in Him. At the end of the 1,000 years, Satan will be let out of the bottomless pit for a little while, during which he will deceive the nations which will choose to follow him instead of Jesus. This will be humanity’s final test to see whom they will serve: God or Satan. This final rebellion against God will end with all who will follow Satan being destroyed, and Satan will be cast into the lake of fire, forever. This will be followed by the second resurrection, which will be a resurrection of all unbelievers, meaning those who chose to die in their sin rather than trusting in God for their salvation, and they will be judged by their works. Since no works can save us, they will all be found guilty because their names will not be written in the book of life. All of them will be cast into the lake of fire. Let us read about all of this from Revelation chapter 20:

“And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years. And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed [released] a little season [while]. And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. And when the thousand years are expired [completed], Satan shall be loosed [released] out of his prison, and he shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed [surrounded] the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever. And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every many according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” (Revelation 20)

This 1,000-year reign of Jesus Christ will be glorious, but it is not the end; no, it is just the beginning! We read in 2 Peter that though the current heavens and earth will be destroyed by fire, we have something much better to look forward to. Also notice what Peter first says, that God doesn’t want any to perish but that all would repent, meaning to turn from sin and turn to Him:

“But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness [conduct], looking for and hasting [hastening] unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness. Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.” (2 Peter 3:10-14)

Let us read what the apostle John saw when he was taken up to heaven and entered through a door and shown the things that would happen in the future. Before reading those Scriptures from Revelation 21, let us read what John saw and compare to what Jesus said about Himself:

“After this I looked, and behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.” (Revelation 4:1)

“Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.” (John 10:7-9)

“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” (John 14:6)

Jesus clearly told His disciples and all of us in His word that He alone is the door that we must enter through in order to have access to heaven and to be with God the Father. There is no other door; He, Jesus Christ, alone IS the door!

Now, let us read what John the apostle saw when he was taken up to heaven by the Spirit and which he wrote about in Revelation 21:

“And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven, saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst [who thirsts] of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. But the fearful [cowardly], and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers [sexually immoral], and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.” (Revelation 21:1-8)

In summary, based on studying the Scriptures for myself and putting out of my mind what I have heard pastors say, and strictly letting the Holy Spirit guide me into all truth, this is what I believe is the timeline:

• Antichrist signs the covenant with the many (Daniel 9:27), which begins Israel’s 70th week, also known as the time of Jacob’s trouble and the tribulation period. It lasts seven years. (Daniel 9:27), with the second half of it starting when the Antichrist commits the abomination of desolation (Daniel 9:27, Matthew 24:15), and ends after 1,290 days (Daniel 12:11). When the abomination of desolation occurs, God will protect a one-third remnant of Israel for 1,260 days (Revelation 12:6, 14).

• At the end of Israel’s 70th week, Jesus will physically return to earth where the Antichrist, the false prophet, and all who are allied with them against Jesus at Armageddon (Revelation 16:16). Jesus will destroy all of them with the sword of His mouth, and He will cast the Antichrist and false prophet, who are alive, into the lake of fire. This is when Jesus gathers all of His people back into the land of Israel, and Israel will mourn for Him and will realize that He truly IS their Messiah. Jesus will pour out His Holy Spirit upon them and sprinkle clean water upon them, cleansing them from all their sins. This is when God gives them a new heart and fills them with His Holy Spirit (Ezekiel 36:24-29). This is when God sets one Shepherd, Jesus, over them, who will feed them and make a covenant of peace with them. This is when Israel will dwell safely in their land. (Ezekiel 34:22-25). This is when they shall never again be a prey to the Gentile nations, whom God calls the heathen. (Ezekiel 34:28)

• An angel will cast Satan into the bottomless pit, from where he cannot escape, for 1,000 years.

• Jesus will take His righteous and glorious reign upon the earth. It is during this time that the land of Israel will flourish and God’s people will be restored (Ezekiel 34:26-29). The Gentile nations will also come to Israel and will become sons and daughters of Israel, who will lose many of their sons and daughters during their time of trouble (Isaiah 49:20-22). The Gentile kings and queens of the earth will honor Israel, for they will know that it was through Israel that Jesus Christ, their Redeemer, came forth (Isaiah 49:23). Rather than hating Israel, they will rejoice with her. (Isaiah 66:10-12).

• At the end of the 1,000-year reign of Jesus, Satan will be let out of the bottomless pit, and for one final time, he will “deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog.” (Revelation 20:7-9) This is when the last battle on earth will occur, and it is Satan who will lead it. Not surprisingly, people will turn from Jesus to believe the lies of Satan, just as what happened during Jesus’ first coming. However, fire will come down from God in heaven and will destroy them all. Satan will be cast into the lake of fire forever; he will never be let out and will never deceive anyone ever again. (Revelation 20:7-10)

• At the Great White Throne judgment, God will resurrect to life every single person who died in their sins, and they will all be found guilty because their names will not be found in the book of life. God will then cast them all into the lake of fire, forever.

• Jesus will destroy the current earth with fire and will create a new heaven, a new earth, and a New Jerusalem. (2 Peter 3:10-14, Revelation 21:1-2) All who were saved because of our faith in God will live there, for eternity, with God and we will know only pure joy and peace. (Revelation 21:3-7)

In the book of Revelation, the apostle John was shown what eternity will look like, for both those who put their faith and trust in the One true God to save them, and for those who reject God’s gift of salvation and who believe in anything and anyone else to save them, or who believe there is no God and they don’t need saving at all. For those who are saved by the precious blood of Jesus Christ, including those who lived in the Old Testament times prior to the first coming of Jesus Christ and who put their faith and trust in God to save them, our eternal future is when our true lives begin. It is when we are finally with our God, and He will be with us. Sin will never exist again, and no more will Satan be there to tempt us into sin. We will only know peace and joy, together with our brothers and sisters in our faith in Almighty God, forever.

Let us read again the last verse of Isaiah chapter 49, let us remember that there will come a time when no more will Israel be the scorn of nations, and no more will they turn away from God. There will be a remnant of Israel who will finally turn to Jesus Christ, their Messiah during their time of trouble, and He will bring bloodshed upon those who will seek to destroy them:

“And I will feed them that oppress thee with their own flesh; and they shall be drunken with their own blood, as with sweet wine: and all flesh know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob.” (Isaiah 49:26)

Though Israel must still go through their 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, a time of darkness never known to the entire world, may we remember that God is not finished with Israel. He will show mercy to those who turn to Him during their time of trouble, and He will turn the hands of those who come against His people on themselves. Those who come against Israel will not prevail. The surviving one-third remnant of Israel and believing Gentiles will rejoice together when Jesus Christ returns at His second coming, and many Gentiles will be gathered in the land of Israel, God’s land:

“Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall rise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side. Then thou shalt see, and flow [become radiant] together, and thine heart shall fear [swell with joy], and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces [wealth] of the Gentiles [nations] shall come unto thee.” (Isaiah 60:1-5)

“And the sons of strangers [foreigners] shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister unto thee: for in my wrath I smote [struck] thee, but in my favour have I had mercy on thee.” (Isaiah 60:10)

“Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations. Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings: and thou shalt know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob.” (Isaiah 60:15-16)

“Violence shall no more [longer] be heard in thy land, wasting [devastation] nor destruction within thy borders; but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise. The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the LORD shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory. Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the LORD shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended. Thy people also shall be all righteous: they shall inherit the land for ever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified. A little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation: I the LORD will hasten it in his [its] time.” (Isaiah 60:18-22)

I hope you have enjoyed this long journey as we did an in-depth study of Isaiah chapter 49. I have grown to love the writings of this prophet, and I can’t wait until I get to meet him when we are with Jesus in the new heaven, the new earth, and the new Jerusalem.

In closing, I pray for world leaders, including Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu, to know that they are fighting a war that has already been won by Jesus Christ. There is no earthly solution for a problem that has infected the entire world since the beginning: sin. The only solution to this is to turn our hearts to the Savior, Jesus Christ, and let Him wash us clean of all our sins with His precious and sinless blood. The war that is being fought between Israel and its enemies has been happening since God called Abram to leave his father’s house and go into the land of Canaan. God promised Abram. whom He would later call Abraham, that He would make a great nation out of him, and promised to make that nation a blessing to all families of the earth. (Genesis 12:3). It was through the union of Abram and his wife, Sarai, whom God would later call Sarah, that would bear a son named Isaac. Prior to Isaac being born, Abram had asked God to bless his son, Ishmael, who was born of the union of Abram and Sarai’s handmade, Hagar. However, God told Abram that His covenant He had made unilaterally, meaning by God Himself, while Abram was sleeping, was not with Ishmael but with the son who would be born from Abram and Sarai:

“And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed [descendants] after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to hy seed after thee. And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.” (Genesis 17:7-8)

“And Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might live before thee! And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed [descendants] after him. And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation. But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year.” (Genesis 18-21)

This war between Israel and its enemies will not be ended by Donald Trump, Benjamin Netanyahu, nor any other earthly man or woman; no, only God will end it, and He will do so in His perfect timing.

I have included the following Scriptures from Psalm 2 in prior devotionals, but I believe it is fitting to include them again here, given the environment we are currently in a world that has many rulers saying they desire peace and safety, while at the same time are rejecting the everlasting covenant that God made with Israel and calling for Israel to divide further the land that is God’s land. The nations of the world want peace but reject Jesus Christ and what His word says. Let us read the words of warning God gave to the nations. I pray they heed them:

“Why do the heathen [Gentiles] rage, and the people imagine [plot] a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh; the Lord shall have them in derision. Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex [distress] them in his sore [deep] displeasure. Yet have I set [installed] my king upon my holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. Ask of me, and I shall give the heathen [nations or Gentiles] for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Thou shalt break them with a rod iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel. Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.” (Psalm 2)

July 18, 2025: Isaiah 49:24-25 - I Will Save Thy Children

“Shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the lawful captive delivered? But thus saith the LORD, Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered: for I will contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save thy children.” - Isaiah 49:24-25

Ever since God called Israel to be His special people to bring glory to Himself and to bring forth Messiah, Jesus Christ - the only one from whom salvation from sins can come - people have been trying to eliminate them. They kill them, they take their people captive, and this continues to this day, as we well know with some Israelis still being held captive by the militant group, Hamas since the horrible day of October 7, 2023. When God called Israel to be His people and before He brought them out of Egypt by His mighty hand and into the land that He was going to give them, He tells us in His own word that when He chose Israel, it wasn’t because of anything about them but about HIM:

“For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God: the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people [set apart] unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth. The LORD did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people: but because the LORD loved you, and because he would keep the oath which he had sworn unto your fathers, hath the LORD brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondmen [slavery], from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Know therefore that the LORD thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations; and repayeth them that hate him to their face, to destroy them: he will not be slack to him that hateth him, he will repay him to his face.” (Deuteronomy 7:6-10)

“Hear, O Israel, Thou art to pass over Jordan this day, to go in to possess nations greater and mightier than thyself, cities great and fenced [fortified] up to heaven, a people great and tall, the children of the Anakims, whom thou knowest, and of whom thou hast heard say, Who can stand before the children of Anak! Understand therefore this day, that the LORD thy God is he which goeth over before thee; as a consuming fire he shall bring them down before thy face: so shalt thou drive them out, and destroy them quickly, as the LORD hath said unto thee. Speak not thou in thine heart, after that the LORD thy God hath cast them out from before thee, saying, For [Because of] my righteousness the LORD hath brought me in to possess this land: but for the wickedness of these nations the LORD doth drive them out from before thee. Not for thy righteousness, or for the uprightness of thine heart, dost thou go to possess their land: but for the wickedness of these nations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee, and that he may perform [fulfill] the word which the LORD swore unto thy fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Understand therefore, that the LORD thy God giveth thee not this good land to possess it for thy righteousness; for thou art a stiffnecked [stubborn or rebellious] people.” (Deuteronomy 9:1-6)

God reminded them of the oath, the unconditional covenant, He had made with their forefathers, which originated with Abram, whom God renamed to Abraham; his son, Isaac, from his wife Sarah; and his son, Jacob, whom God renamed to Israel. It was from Jacob whom God raised the twelve tribes of Israel. It would be from one of these twelve tribes, the tribe of Judah, that the Lion of the tribe of Judah, Jesus Christ, would come and would be a blessing unto all families of the earth, for He offers salvation from sin by His precious blood:

“Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: and I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” (Genesis 12:1-3)

Ever since God called Israel to be a special people for Himself and that all families of the earth will be blessed through them, people have been trying to curse and eliminate them. I want to read from the book of Numbers when Balak, the king of Moab, saw the people of Israel as they were being led by Moses, having left Egypt many years prior, walking in the wilderness, before God would let them enter the Promised Land that He had given them when He made His unconditional covenant with Abraham. When the children of Israel came upon the land of the Amorites, they sent messengers to Sihon, their king, saying:

“Let me pass through thy land: we will not turn into the fields, or into the vineyards; we will to drink of the waters of the well: but we will go along by the king’s high way, until we be past thy borders.” (Numbers 21:22)

However, Sihon refused to let them pass through and instead gathered his people together and went to war against Israel. The people of Israel killed him and possessed all of their cities, including Heshbon, and all their villages. Balak had seen what had happened to Sihon. Balak had also seen that when Israel afterward went into the land of Bashan, Og, the king of Bashan, went with all of his people against Israel and what had happened to him and his people:

“And the LORD said unto Moses, Fear him not: for I have delivered him into thy hand, and all his people, and his land; and thou shalt do to him as thou didst unto Sihon king of the Amorites, which dwelt as Heshbon. So they smote [struck] him, and his son, and all his people, until there was none left him alive: and they possessed his land. And the children of Israel set forward, and pitched [camped] in the plains of Moab on this side Jordan by Jericho.” (Numbers 21:34-22:1)

Balak saw that the people of Israel were great in number, and knowing what had happening to the kings of Sihon and Og, he felt threatened by their presence. Balak sent his messengers to a man named Balaam, the son of Beor, who lived in Pethor, to hire him so that Balaam would put a curse on the people of Israel. While I have written about Balaam before in prior devotionals, there is a prophecy in Numbers that directly ties back to the prophecy that Jacob had made in Genesis, which we previously read about in my devotional on Isaiah 49:23. Thus, I again want to write about what transpired between Balak and Balaam. First, let us read that Balak decided to ally his land with the Midianites and send messengers to Balaam, who was a wicked prophet and a diviner. I encourage you to read an article from gotquestions.org that explains what divination is and that the Bible forbids us from practicing any form of it. (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/Bible-divination.html) Let us also read what Balak’s messengers said to Balaam when they came to him and brought with them rewards of divination, meaning they would give Balaam rewards if he did what Balak asked him to do, which was to curse the children of Israel:

“And Moab said unto the elders of Midian, Now shall this company lick up [consume] all that are round about us, as the ox licketh up the grass of the field. And Balak the son of Zippor was king of the Moabites at that time. He sent messengers therefore unto Balaam the son of Beor to Pethor, which is by the river [The Euphrates] of the land of the children of his people, to call him, saying, Behold, there is a people come out from Egypt: behold, they cover the face of the earth, and they abide over against [are settling next to] me: Come now therefore, I pray thee, curse me this people; for they are too mighty for me: peradventure [perhaps] I shall prevail, that we may smite them, and that I may drive them out of the land: for I wot [know] that he whom thou blessed is blessed, and he whom thou cursest is cursed. And the elders of Moab and the elders of Midian departed with the rewards of divination [diviner’s fee] in their hand; and they came unto Balaam, and spake unto him the words of Balak.” (Numbers 22:4-7)

Balaam told the men to stay the night there with him and that he would tell them what God would tell him to do. God then questioned Balaam about the men, and Balaam told Him why they had come and about Balak’s request of Balaam. Then:

“And God said unto Balaam, Thou shalt not go with them; thou shalt not curse the people: for they are blessed.” (Numbers 22:12)

Because I have written about this previously, I won’t go into all of the details about what transpired next, but I will discuss certain events that happened. The next morning, Balaam told the men that God refused to let him go with them. The men returned to Balak and told him what had happened. Balak then sent his men again to Balaam, but this time, they promised even more rewards to Balaam if he would curse the people of Israel. Balaam responded that even if Balak gave him his house full of silver and gold, he could not go beyond the word of God. However, as before, Balaam opened the door of temptation instead of shutting it, and had them spend the night with him so that he could again ask God what to do. Balaam knew what God had told him previously, which was not to go with the men, but in his heart, Balaam was hoping that God would change His mind. Let us read what happened next:

“And God came unto Balaam at night, and said unto him, If the men come to call thee, rise up, and go with them; but yet the word which I shall say unto thee, that shalt thou do.” (Numbers 22:20)

We are not told that the men did call upon Balaam, but he went with them anyway, riding upon his ass (donkey). This caused God to be very angry with him, and God sent His angel with his sword drawn to block the way of the ass. Balaam got mad at the ass and started hitting her. Then the ass started talking to him! “And the LORD opened the mouth of the ass, and she said unto Balaam, What have I done unto thee, that thou hast smitten me these three times?” (Numbers 22:28) What is even more strange is Balaam talked back to her! God sometimes uses everything He can to get our attention. God then opened Balaam’s eyes so that he could see “the angel of the LORD standing in the way, and his sword drawn in his hand: and he bowed down his head, and fell flat on his face.” (Numbers 22:31) The angel of the LORD asked Balaam why he had struck his ass three times and told Balaam that he was trying to stop him from going “because thy way is perverse [contrary] before me.” (Numbers 22:32) Balaam then acknowledged that he had sinned and said he did not know it was the angel who had blocked his way. He said he would return home if that is what he should do. Then:

“And the angel of the LORD said unto Balaam, Go with the men: but only the word that I shall speak unto thee, that thou shalt speak. So Balaam went with the princes of Balak.” (Numbers 22:35)

When Balaam arrived, Balak came out and met him and asked Balaam why he hadn’t come the first time that Balak had sent his men to get him:

“And Balaam said unto Balak, Lo, I am come unto thee: have I now any power at all to say any thing? the word that God putteth in my mouth, that shall I speak.” (Numbers 22:38)

The next day, Balak took Balaam to the high places of Baal, which is where Balak worshipped his false gods. Balaam told him to build seven altars and take seven oxen and seven rams. Then Balak was to take an ox and a ram and offer them on each one of the seven altars. “And Balaam said unto Balak, Stand by thy burnt offering, and I will go: peradventure [perhaps] the LORD will come to meet me: and whatsoever he sheweth me I will tell thee. And he went to an high place.” (Numbers 23:3) God did talk to Balaam and gave him the words to speak to Balak. Balaam then returned to Balak:

“And he took up his parable, and said, Balak the king of Moab hath brought me from Aram, out of the mountains of the east, saying, Come, curse me Jacob, and come, defy Israel. How shall I curse, whom God hath not cursed? or how shall I defy, whom the LORD hath not defied? For from the top of the rocks I see him, and from the hills I behold him: lo, the people shall dwell alone, and shall not be reckoned among the nations. Who can count the dust [dust cloud] of Jacob, and the number of the fourth part of Israel? Let me [my soul] die the death of the righteous, and let my last end by like his!” (Numbers 23:7:10)

Can you imagine the look on Balak’s face when he heard the words that Balaam had just spoken to him? Balak replied to Balaam, “…What hast thou done unto me? I took thee to curse mine enemies, and, behold, thou hast blessed them altogether.” (Numbers 32:11) Balaam reminded him that he could only speak the words that God gave him to speak. One would think that at this point, Balak would have given up on trying to bring a curse upon Israel, but he was only getting started. Balak told Balaam to go with him to a different high place of false god worship, where Balaam could see only the outer part of Israel and not all of the people of Israel, and that he could curse them there. Once again, seven altars were built and an offering of a bull and a ram were made on each altar. After the offering, Balaam told Balak to stay by the burnt offering while he would go and talk to God. Once again, God gave the words to Balaam to speak to Balak. Balaam returned to Balak a second time:

“And he took up his parable, and said, Rise up, Balak, and hear; hearken unto me, thou son of Zippor: God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good? Behold, I have received commandment to bless: and he hath blessed; and I cannot reverse it. He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither hath he seen perverseness [trouble] in Israel: the LORD his God is with him, and the shout of a king is among them. God brought them out of Egypt; he hath as it were the strength of a unicorn. Surely there is no enchantment [sorcery or enchantment] against Jacob, neither is there any divination [fortune-telling] against Israel: according to this time it shall be said of Jacob and of Israel, What hath God wrought! Behold, the people shall rise up as a great lion, and lift up himself as a young lion: he shall not lie down until he eat of the prey, and drink the blood of the slain.” (Numbers 23:18-24)

Though Balaam was a shady man, he did speak the truth of God and told Balak that God doesn’t go back on His word; He does what He says He will do. I want to pause here a little while to note that there are some exceptions to this truth, and that is when God tells us when we are sinning that He will send judgment upon us, but when we turn away from our sins and turn to Him, then He withholds the judgment that He had planned to put upon us. God promises judgment because of sin, but when a person or a group of people change their ways, God has, in several times in the Bible, withheld judgment, which we in our own understanding consider it as God repenting. One example is after Moses had led Israel out of Egypt, he had gone up to Mount Sinai to receive the Law from God and the two tablets, upon which the Ten Commandments had been engraved by the finger of God. After Moses had been on the mountain 40 days, the people of Israel grew restless and began to doubt God’s promises to them. They decided to make a golden calf and worship it instead of God. God was very angry with Israel, and He told Moses that He would destroy them and instead, would make a great nation of Moses. Before continuing with this example, I want to remind us that God knew that Israel would do what they did before they did it, and yet, God still created them to be His own special people. God knows the end from the beginning (Isaiah 46:10). Let us read what God said to Moses:

“And the LORD said unto Moses, Go, get thee down; for thy people, which thou broughtest out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves: they have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them: they have made them a molten calf, and have worshipped it, and have sacrificed thereunto, and said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which have brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. And the LORD said unto Moses, I have seen this people, and, behold, it is a stiffnecked [stubborn] people: now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may consume [destroy] them: and I will make of thee a great nation.” (Exodus 32:7-10)

Before continuing, let us ponder what we just read. I think, in a way, this was a test for Moses. Here was a man, who through the power of Almighty God, had just led God’s people out of Egypt through the miraculous crossing of the Red Sea, after having sent ten plagues upon the Pharaoh of Egypt. Now, here God was telling Moses that Israel had so quickly turned against Him by worshipping false gods. God had just told Moses that He wanted to destroy them and instead make of Moses a great nation. How many of us, myself included, would have said something like, “To heck with these people, for they have turned against You, O God! Destroy them!” I think many of us would in fact say something like that. How many of us would have been tempted into having a great nation be made from us instead? How many of us would have let our own ego and pride lead us and not our faith in God? Let us now read Moses’ response to God:

“And Moses besought the LORD his God, and said, LORD, why doth thy wrath wax hot against thy people, which thou hast brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power, and with a mighty hand? Wherefore should the Egyptians speak, and say, For mischief [harm] did he bring them out, to slay them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth? Turn from thy fierce wrath, and repent of this evil [relent from this harm] against thy people. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, thy servants, to whom thou swarest by thine own self, and saidst unto them, I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give unto your seed, and they shall inherit it for ever.” (Exodus 32:11-13)

Here was a humble man, reminding God of His promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Israel. This reminds me of what Jesus has done for us, being the mediator between us and God, as written by the apostle Paul in 1 Timothy 2:5-6, “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.” I think what Moses did on behalf of Israel is a picture of the coming Christ. Moses was willing to intervene for Israel, who had sinned against God, just as Jesus has intervened for us, even though we have all sinned against Him time and time again.

A second example of a time when God repented is written in the book of Jonah. Ninevah was the capital city of Assyria, and its people were extremely wicked, so much so that the book begins by saying:

“Now the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it [cry out]; for their wickedness is come up before me.” (Jonah 1:1-2)

The Ninevites were a long-time enemy of Israel. Gotquestions.org has an interesting article about the city. (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/Nineveh-in-the-Bible.html) The prophet Jonah knew all about Nineveh, and he did not want to go where God told him to go. He thought he could outsmart God, and instead of going to Nineveh, he boarded a ship headed for Tarshish. However, God sent a mighty and terrible wind that wreaked havoc on the ship and those on board it. When the people on the ship were full of fear and found Jonah sound asleep, they came confronted him:

“Then they said to him, Tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause this evil [trouble] is upon us; What is thine occupation? and whence comest thou? what is thy country? and of what people art thou? And he said unto them, I am an Hebrew; and I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, which hath made the sea and the dry land. Then were the men exceedingly afraid, and said unto them, Why hast thou done this? For the men knew that he fled from the presence of the LORD, because he had told them.” (Jonah 1:8-10)

Jonah told the people on board the ship that the reason the winds came was because he was on the ship, and in order for the winds to stop, they must throw him off the ship. They were hesitant at first and tried something else, but when that did not work and they feared for their lives, they reluctantly threw him off the ship and asked God to forgive them and not charge them with his death. The Bible tells us that the men feared God greatly and offered Him a sacrifice and made vows. (Jonah 1:16) Knowing that Jonah would be thrown off the ship, God had prepared a great fish, and it swallowed him up, “and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.” (Jonah 1:17) Jonah prayed to God during that time, probably with more fervor than he had ever prayed. Let us read what he prayed while in the belly of the fish:

“Then Jonah prayed unto the LORD his God out of the fish’s belly, and said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the LORD, and he heard [answered] me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and thou heardest my voice. For thou hadst cast me into the deep, in the midst of the seas; and the floods compassed me about: all thy billows and thy waves passed over me. Then I said, I am cast out of thy sight; yet I will look again toward thy holy temple. The waters compassed me about, even to the soul: the depth [deep] closed me round about, thy weeds were wrapped about my head. I went down to the bottoms of the mountains; the earth with her bars was about [closed behind] me for ever: yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption [the pit], O LORD my God. When my soul fainted within me I remembered the LORD: and my prayer came in unto thee, into thine holy temple. They that observe lying vanities [worthless idols] forsake their own mercy. But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the LORD.” (Jonah 2:1-9)

Jonah had been running from God, and God put him in a place where he could run no more. I must admit that I can empathize with Jonah because he had heard all about the wickedness of the Ninevites in Assyria, and he did not want to go there and speak against their wickedness. But God had called him to do that, and God would make sure that he did it, no matter what it took. I think out of all the accounts in the Bible, this one is probably one that people mock and scoff at the most. I ask them: is anything impossible for God, the One who created the heavens, the earth, and the seas and all that is in them? Was it too difficult for God to create a fish that swallowed Jonah up when he was thrown off the ship? Was it too difficult for God to keep Jonah alive in the belly of that fish for three days and nights? The answer is a resounding NO!

Jonah’s prayer is a perfect example of how no matter where we are and while we are still alive, God hears our prayers to Him and will save us. How many of us have felt like Jonah, as though we have been swallowed up in our sin, with the depths of the waters billowing over our heads? Like Jonah, how many of us during our own storms of life cried out to God to save us, and He did? How many of us realized that He is faithful and wants us to call out to Him so that He, and only He, can save us?

Notice in Jonah’s prayer that he said he would sacrifice to God “with the voice of thanksgiving,” and that is what God wants us to do. He doesn’t want our rituals; no, He wants to worship Him with our hearts and to be thankful to Him. God indeed heard Jonah’s prayer: “And the LORD spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.” (Jonah 2:10) God spoke to Jonah a second time and told him to go to Nineveh and tell them the words He would tell Jonah to speak to them. This time, Jonah obeyed God.

Upon arriving, Jonah said, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.” (Jonah 2:4) Surprisingly, at least to me, the people of Nineveh “believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them. For word came unto the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.” (Jonah 3:5-6) The king even caused not only the people to fast but also the animals, and the king told them:

“But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily unto God: yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands. Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?” (Jonah 3:8-9)

That is absolutely amazing to me that the entire Gentile city, including the king, turned away from their sins and turned to God. Let us read what happened next:

“And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not.” (Jonah 3:10)

Before continuing with another account of when God repented, I want to mention the repeated occurrence of the phrase “three days” in the Bible, including specifically and more narrowly, the phrase “three days and three nights.” There is a connection between the death of Jesus Christ and His resurrection and the account of Jonah. Before Jesus was crucified, He was speaking with scribes and the Pharisees, the Jewish religious leaders, who accused Jesus of casting out demons by Beelzebub, a Philistine false god, instead of by the Spirit of God. Let us read some of what transpired between Jesus and the scribes and Pharisees:

“O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things. But I [Jesus] say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned. Then certain of the scribes and of the Pharisees answered, saying, Master [Teacher], we would see a sign from thee. But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas [Greek for “Jonah”]: for as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly [belly of the great fish]; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: because they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and behold, a greater than Jonas is here.” (Matthew 13:

Because the scribes and Pharisees absolutely refused to believe that Jesus is the Son of God and is the Messiah whom God sent to offer salvation to them, He told them they would be judged on the day of judgment by what they said. When we refuse the free gift of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, we are judged for our works or our deeds, and that includes every evil word we have spoken. They asked Him for a sign, and Jesus told them the only sign was the sign of the prophet Jonah. That sign was that Jonah had warned the people of Nineveh that God’s judgment was going to fall upon them in forty days if they did not repent, and surprisingly, they did repent. However, the scribes and Pharisees that Jesus was speaking to had not repented, they failed to heed the sign God had given them long ago by the prophet Jonah, and they failed to heed the words of One greater than Jonah, the One they were speaking to: Jesus Christ. They were bringing judgment upon their own heads, for their pride was a huge stumbling block, like Mt. Everest, that was between them and Jesus. Just as the scribes and Pharisees let their pride keep them from putting their faith and trust in Jesus Christ to save them from their sins, so too do many people in our world today, both Jew and Gentile, let their pride keep them from being saved. It is so very sad to see this happen, but it is their choice, and Jesus Christ forces no one to believe in Him as their Savior.

I thank and praise God that He was willing to spare the Ninevites, who were extremely wicked, and that He is to this day willing to spare wicked people, myself included, from destruction if they will turn from their wicked ways and turn to Him! Let us read a similar statement regarding God being willing to repent from the destruction He was going to bring to the men of Judah and Jerusalem that the prophet Jeremiah spoke to the them, when God compared them to clay in the hands of God, as the potter:

“The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, Arise, and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause thee to hear my words. Then I went down to the potter’s house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels [Potter’s wheel]. And the vessel that he made of clay was marred [ruined] in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it. Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying, O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the LORD. Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel. At what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, and to pull down, and to destroy it; If that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them.” (Jeremiah 18:1-8)

God knows every single thing we will do before we do it, but He still gives us an opportunity to turn away from our sins and to turn to Him in faith and be saved. We are no different from the people of Israel, including Judah and Jerusalem, and the people of Nineveh, who worshipped false gods. While our sins may be different from theirs, we have ALL sinned, and we ALL need to turn from our sins and turn to God, the One true God, and believe in Him for salvation of our sins.

What Balaam said to Balak about God not repenting is true when the people refuse to turn from their wicked ways and refuse to turn to Him; they choose sin over God. Though Nineveh did turn from its sins and turned to God for 100 years after Jonah told them what God said to tell them, the people of Nineveh returned to their sin. At that point, God sent His righteous judgment upon them and sent Babylon to completely destroy the capital city of Assyria. Nahum wrote about it in the book of Nahum:

“The burden of Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite. God is jealous, and the LORD revengeth; the LORD revengeth [avenges], and is furious; the LORD will take vengeance on his adversaries, and he reserveth wrath for his enemies. The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the LORD hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet.” (Nahum 1:1-3)

“The LORD is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him. But with an overrunning [overflowing] flood he will make an utter end of the place thereof, and darkness shall pursue his enemies. What do ye imagine [conspire] against the LORD? he will make an utter end [end of it]: affliction shall not rise up the second time. For while they be folden [tangled] together as thorns, and while they are drunken as drunkards, they shall be devoured as stubble fully dry.” (Nahum 1:7-11)

Though they previously had been warned by God, the people of Nineveh returned to their wickedness. Consequently, they were destroyed in 612 BC. Per gotquestions.org: (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/Nineveh-in-the-Bible.html)

“Although Nineveh escaped destruction during the time of Jonah, a later generation still had to face a reckoning. The prophet Nahum prophesied of the destruction of the city because of the people’s evilness. Nahum’s predictions for Nineveh’s destruction came to pass when the Babylonians, Medes, and Scythians sacked the city in 612 BC. Nineveh’s walls had been breached by flood waters, allowing their attackers to enter the city. The city’s ruin was ultimately a product of God’s divine wrath (Nahum 1:8–10). The Lord declared judgment on the city because of Nineveh’s wickedness: “Woe to the city of blood, full of lies, full of plunder, never without victims!” (Nahum 3:1).”

In the words of warning from God, as spoken to the people of Nineveh by Nahum the prophet, I hear a lot of similarities between the characteristics of the people of Nineveh and the people of the United States. I fear that just as the people of Nineveh were full of vile and filth, so too have Americans become full of pride and arrogance in our filth and vileness, and I believe America is ripe for the judgment of Almighty God, just as He judged Nineveh. Let us read some of what Nahum wrote to Assyria, the capital city of Nineveh:

“Woe to the bloody city! it is all full of lies and robbery; the prey departeth not…” (Nahum 3:1)

“Because of the multitude of the whoredoms [harlotries, spiritual unfaithfulness] of the well-favoured [seductive] harlot, the mistress of witchcrafts [sorceries], that selleth nations through her whoredoms, and families through her witchcrafts. Behold, I am against thee, saith the LORD of hosts; and I will discover [lift] thy skirts upon [over] thy face, and I will shew the nations thy nakedness, and the kingdoms thy shame. And I will cast abominable filth upon thee, and make thee vile, and will set thee as a gazingstock [spectacle]. And it shall come to pass, that all they that look upon thee shall flee from thee, and say, Nineveh is laid waste: who will bemoan her? whence shall I seek comforters for thee?” (Nahum 3:4-7)

Returning to the account of Balaam and Balak and the words that Balaam spoke to Balak in Numbers 23:18-24, as Balaam correctly spoke to Balak, “Behold, I have received commandment to bless: and he hath blessed; and I cannot reverse it.” (Numbers 23:20) Balaam went on to say, “Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob, neither is there any divination against Israel: according to this time it shall be said of Jacob and of Israel, What hath God wrought!” (Numbers 23:23)

When Balak had sent his men to Balaam, Balak wanted Balaam to curse Israel and was willing to give him “rewards of divination” if he did so. What does this mean? First, we must understand the meaning of an enchanter and a diviner. An enchanter is one who cast spells or puts curses upon someone, and it is through the power of Satan and not of God. A diviner is one who looks to foresee the future through dark powers, through Satan and not of God. The Bible forbids the practices of enchantment and divination (Exodus 22:18, Leviticus 19:26, Deuteronomy 18:10). There were people back then who practiced these acts of occultism, and people still to this day are doing it. Some examples are fortune tellers, Tarot cards, the New Age Movement, and recently, it has infiltrated apostate churches and Bible study groups that use the enneagram personality test, that has its roots in occultism. Gotquestions.org has two good articles explaining enchantment and divination and how any why God forbids them. As they noted, oftentimes the usage of drugs or potions are used in a practice known as sorcery. The Greek word “pharmakeia” is translated to “sorcery,” and it is from the Greek word that we get the English word, “pharmacy,” which includes the manufacturing and dispensing of both illicit and prescribed drugs. As gotquestions.org notes, it is written in the book of Revelation that people refuse to repent from their sorceries (Revelation 9:21) and that Babylon is destroyed because she deceived all nations with her sorceries (Revelations 18:23) (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/Bible-enchantment.html, https://www.gotquestions.org/Bible-divination.html) God is very clear in His word that we are to avoid these things, and yet, people still to this day do not heed His words to us.

Returning to what Balaam said to Balak, God told Balaam to tell Balak that there is no enchantment or divination against Israel; there was no curse upon them. Instead, people should be saying of Jacob, meaning the people of Israel that the king of Moab had seen: “What hath God wrought!” The king of Moab should have been in awe of what God had done instead of trying to put a curse upon them and subsequently have them killed. But, that wasn’t the case with the king of Moab., and that certainly is not the case in our world today.

Balaam then told Balak something that I wrote about in my prior devotional from Isaiah 49:23. The words that Balaam spoke next to Balak were nearly the same words that Jacob spoke to his twelve sons before he died, and specifically to his son, Judah. Let us compare them to see the similarities between the two:

“Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise: thy hand shall be in the neck of thine enemies; thy father’s children shall bow down before thee. Judah is a lion’s whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped [crouches] down, he couched [lies down] as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up? The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be. Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass’s colt unto the choice vine; he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes: his eyes shall be red with wine, and his teeth white with milk (Genesis 49:8-12)

“Behold, the people shall rise up as a great lion, and lift up himself as a young lion: he shall not lie down until he eat of the prey, and drink the blood of the slain.” (Numbers 23:24)

I believe that these are prophecies that refer to the first coming of Jesus, His death, and His resurrection, when Jesus lifted up Himself, meaning He resurrected Himself. Jesus even said this would happen before it happened:

“And the Jews’ passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem, and found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting: and when he had made a scourge [whip] of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers’ money, and overthrew [overturned] the tables; and said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my Father’s house an house of merchandise. And his disciples remembered that it was written, The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up. Then answered the Jews and said unto him, What sign shewest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these things? Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear [raise] it up in three days? But he spake of the temple of his body. When therefore he was risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this unto them; and they believed the scripture, and the word which Jesus had said.” (John 2:13-22)

After Jesus resurrected Himself and walked and lived on the earth for 40 days, He ascended to heaven. I believe the latter part of the verses above from Genesis and Numbers are also prophecies that have not yet been fulfilled and will be fulfilled when Jesus returns to earth at the end of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, also known as the tribulation period. At that time, He will put an end to all wickedness upon the earth and destroy all the nations that come against Israel, and He will save the remnant of Israel. Afterwards, He will reign on earth from Jerusalem for 1,000-years with a rod of iron. There will be people who will survive the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble and who will live during the 1,000-year reign of Jesus and who will still sin. There will also be people who survive the tribulation period who do not believe in Jesus and follow false gods. However, because Jesus will be reigning, He simply will not tolerate sin at all, unlike how it is tolerated today. Consequently, it will be a time of rest (Hebrews 4:1-11). Let us read a little of how the Millennial reign of Jesus is described:

“But in the last days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established in [on] the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow unto it. And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. And he shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore. But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and none shall make them afraid: for the mouth of the LORD of hosts hath spoken it. For all people will walk every one in the name of his god, and we will walk in the name of the LORD our God for ever and ever. In that day, saith the LORD, will I assemble her that halteth [the lame], and I will gather her that is driven out [the outcast], and her that I have afflicted; and I will make her that halted [the lame] a remnant, and her that was cast far off [the outcast] a strong nation: and the LORD shall reign over them in mount Zion from henceforth, even for ever. And thou, O tower of the flock, the strong hold of the daughter of Zion, unto thee shall it come, even the first [former] dominion; the kingdom shall come to the daughter of Jerusalem.” (Micah 4:1-8)

In the latter part of what we just read, it tells us that a remnant of Israel, the outcast of the world, will be saved and will become a strong nation. There is something very interesting in what else these Scriptures say, and I believe we must look at the Hebrew text in order to fully understand and connect the meaning. In the Scriptures above it says, “In that day, saith the LORD, will I assemble her that halteth, and I will gather her that is driven out, and her that I have afflicted; and I will make her that halted a remnant, and her that was cast far off a strong nation.” (Micah 4:6-7) I was interested in what the words “halteth” and “halted” mean. The Authorized King James Version of the Bible that I have has a note that refers to these words as “the lame.” However, when you look at the Strong’s Hebrew text, it says this: (See: https://biblehub.com/hebrew/6760.htm)

“A primitive root: probably to curve; used only as denominative from tsela', to limp (as if one-sided) -- halt.”

After just having written about this in my prior devotional on Isaiah 49:23, I remember reading in Genesis 32 when Jacob was deeply worried about his coming reunion with his brother Esau, fearing that Esau might try to kill him and his family. While going to meet up with Esau, Jacob had sent all of his family and servants away from him, and he was left all alone one night. All night long, Jacob wrestled with God. It was there that Jacob saw God face to face, and he called the place “Peniel,” also spelled “Penuel,” which means “Face of God.” It was there that we read:

“And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day. And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched [struck] the hollow [socket] of his thigh [hip]; and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him. And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel [Prince with God]: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed. And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there. And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved. And as he passed over Penuel the sun rose upon him, and he halted upon his thigh [limped on his hip]. Therefore the children of Israel eat not of the sinew which shrank, which is upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day: because he touched [struck] the hollow of Jacob’s thigh in the sinew [muscle] that shrank.” (Genesis 32:24-32)

These passages of Scripture clearly connect what is written about in Micah 4:6-7 to Jacob. It was Jacob whom God renamed to “Israel,” and it was from Jacob that the twelve tribes of Israel would be born! Thus, there is no doubt at all that “the remnant” spoken of in Micah 4 is Israel. God’s word is simply amazing, and the more I study it, the more I am amazed at how it all connects! As Micah 4 tells us, it will be Jesus Christ who will save the remnant of Israel, who will be the outcast of the world; in Israel’s weakness, Jesus will make them strong.

There is another place in the Bible speaks of this that is similar to what is written in Micah 4:6-7 regarding Israel being “her that halteth,” and which connects to Genesis 32:24-32:

“In that day shalt thou not be ashamed for all thy doings [deeds], wherein thou hast transgressed against me: for then I will take away out of the midst of thee them that rejoice in thy pride, and thou shalt no more be haughty because of my holy mountain. I will also leave in the midst of thee an afflicted and poor [gentle and humble] people, and they shall trust in the name of the LORD. The remnant of Israel shall not do iniquity, nor speak lies; neither shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth: for they shall feed [feed their flocks] and lie down, and none shall make them afraid. Sing, o daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel; be glad and rejoice with all the heart, O daughter of Jerusalem. The LORD hath taken away thy judgments, he hath cast out thine enemy: the king of Israel, even the LORD, is in the midst of thee: thou shalt not see evil [fear disaster] any more. In that day it shall be said to Jerusalem, Fear thou not: and to Zion, Let not thine hands be slack [be weak]. The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest [quiet you] in his love. I will gather them that are sorrowful for the solemn [appointed] assembly, who are of thee, to whom the reproach of it was a burden. Behold, at that time I will undo [deal with all] that afflict thee: and I will save her that halteth, and gather her that was driven out; and I will get them praise and fame in every land where they have been put to shame. At that time will I bring you again, even in the time that I gather you: for I will make you a name and a praise among all people of the earth, when I turn back your captivity [return your captives] before your eyes, saith the LORD.” (Zephaniah 3:11-20)

There is something else that is interesting in Micah 5 that connects to the prophecy spoken of not only by Balaam in Numbers 23:24 but also Jacob regarding the people of Israel being a lion. Let us read from Micah 5:

“And the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many people as a dew from the LORD, as the showers upon the grass, that tarrieth not for man, nor waiteth for the sons of men. And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the Gentiles in the midst of many people as a lion among the beasts of the forest, as a young lion among the flocks of sheep: who, if he go through, both treadeth down, and teareth in pieces, and none can deliver. Thine hand shall be lifted up upon thine adversaries, and all thine enemies shall be cut off [destroyed].” (Micah 5:7-9)

Returning to Balaam and Balak, we can clearly see from Scripture how the prophecies of Balaam connect back to what Jacob had spoken to his son, Judah. Though Balaam was a wicked prophet, for he was motivated not by God but by money, he did in fact speak the truth of God. It was God’s will that Balaam would speak the truth, and God would not allow him to curse Israel. After Balaam spoke the words to Balak that we read about from Numbers 23:18-24, let us read what Balak then said to Balaam and Balaam’s response to him:

“And Balak said unto Balaam, Neither curse them at all, nor bless them at all. But Balaam answered and said unto Balak, Told not I thee, saying, All that the LORD speaketh, that I must do?” (Numbers 23:25-26)

Do you think that Balak finally realized that there was no way God would allow Balaam to curse Israel? That Balak would leave Balaam and go on his way? No, Balak was not ready to give up yet. This is what sin does: it makes you stupid. Instead of giving up, once again, he told Balaam to go with him to yet another high place of false god worship so that Balaam could curse Israel from there. Once again, Balaam told Balak to build seven altars and sacrifice a bull and a ram on each one of them. Once again, Balak did as Balaam instructed him to do. Then we are told that something different happened to Balaam that had not had happened the previous two times. I want to read and discuss Numbers chapter 24 in its entirety because it is profound in what it says:

“And when Balaam saw that it pleased the LORD to bless Israel, he went not, as at other times, to seek for enchantments [to use sorcery or enchantments], but he set his face toward the wilderness. And Balaam lifted up his eyes, and he saw Israel abiding in his tents according to their tribes; and the spirit of God came upon him. And he took up his parable, and said, Balaam the son of Beor hath said, and the man whose eyes are open [opened] hath said: He hath said, which heard the words of God, which saw the vision of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open: how goodly are thy tents, O Jacob, and thy tabernacles, O Israel! As the valleys are they spread forth, as gardens by the river’s side, as the trees of lign aloes which the LORD hath planted, and as cedar trees beside the waters. He shall pour the water out of his buckets, and his seed shall be in many waters, and his king shall be higher than Agag, and his kingdom shall be exalted. God brought him forth out of Egypt; he hath as it were the strength of an unicorn: he shall eat up the nations his enemies, and shall break their bones, and pierce them through with his arrows. He couched, he lay down as a lion, and as a great lion: who shall stir him up? Blessed is he that blesseth thee, and cursed is he that curseth thee.” (Numbers 24:1-9)

Once again, the words of Balaam and nearly the exact same words that Jacob spoke as he blessed his son Judah, the tribe from whom Messiah, Jesus Christ, would come! Once again, the words of Balaam did not curse Israel but blessed Israel. Continuing in Numbers 24:

“And Balak’s anger was kindled against Balaam, and he smote his hands together: and Balak said unto Balaam, I called thee to curse mine enemies, and, behold, thou hast altogether blessed them these three times. Therefore now flee thou to thy place: I thought to promote thee unto great honour; but, lo, the LORD hath kept thee back from honour. And Balaam said unto Balak, Spake I not also to thy messengers which thou sentest unto me, saying, If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go beyond the commandment of the LORD, to do either good or bad of mine own mind; but what the LORD saith, that will I speak? And now, behold, I go unto my people: come therefore, and I will advertise thee what this people shall do to thy people in the latter days. And he took up his parable, and said, Balaam the son of Beor hath said, and the man whose eyes are open hath said: He hath said, which heard the words of God, and knew the knowledge of the most High, which saw the vision of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open: I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite [shatter the forehead] of the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth [sons of tumult]. And Edom shall be a possession, Seir also shall be a possession for his enemies; and Israel shall do valiantly. Out of Jacob shall come he that shall have dominion [shall rule], and shall destroy him that remaineth in the city. And when he looked on Amalek, he took up his parable, and said, Amalek was the first of [among] the nations; but his latter end shall be that he perish for ever. And he looked on the Kenites, and took up his parable, and said, Strong is thy dwellingplace, and thou puttest thy nest in a rock. Nevertheless the Kenite shall be wasted, until Asshur shall carry thee away captive. And he took up his parable, and said, Alas, who shall live when God doeth this? And ships shall come from the coast of Chittim [Cyprus], and shall afflict Asshur, and shall afflict Eber, and he also shall perish for ever. And Balam rose up, and went and returned to his place: and Balak also went his way.” (Numbers 24:10-25)

Balaam was given the words of God to speak to Balak. Though he was a wicked prophet, he spoke the truth of God, and he foretold the coming of Jesus Christ, the Star out of Jacob and the Sceptre that would rise out of Israel. There is coming a day when Jesus will return to earth and destroy all who come against His people, Israel, and He will take dominion over the entire earth for 1,000 years, just as prophesied by Balaam. Again, the prophecies of Jacob to his son, Judah, mirror the prophecies spoken of by Balaam. Let us compare them:

“The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.” (Genesis 49:10)

“I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel.” (Numbers 24:17)

“Out of Jacob shall come he that shall have dominion, and shall destroy him that remaineth in the city.” (Numbers 24:19)

Finally, we read that Balak gave up his quest to have Balaam curse Israel, and he and Balaam departed ways. However, Balaam still wanted to obtain the rewards of divination that Balak had promised to give him if he cursed Israel. Because Balaam’s wicked heart cared more about his temporary comforts here on earth more than his eternal security in God, he found a different way to curse Israel, and that was through the daughters of Moab. It was not only the daughters of Moab, but also the Midianite women. We read about this in Numbers chapter 25:

“And Israel abode in Shittim, and the people began to commit whoredom [harlotry] with the daughters of Moab. And they called the people unto the sacrifices of their gods: and the people did eat, and bowed down to their gods. And Israel joined himself unto Baal-peor: and the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel. And the LORD said unto Moses, Take all the heads of the people, and hang them up before the LORD against the sun, that the fierce anger of the LORD may be turned away from Israel. And Moses said unto the judges of Israel, Slay ye every one of his men that were joined unto Baal-peor. And, behold, one of the children of Israel came and brought unto his brethren a Midianitish woman in the sight of Moses, and in the sight of all the congregation of the children of Israel, who were weeping before the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. And when Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose up from among the congregation, and took a javelin in his hand; and he went after the man of Israel into the tent, and thrust both of them through, the man of Israel, and the woman through her belly. So the plague was stayed from the children of Israel. And those that died in the plague were twenty and four thousand.” (Numbers 25:1-9)

We read in the book of Deuteronomy that at some point in time, God had commanded Moses not to go to war with the Moabites:

“And the LORD said unto me, Distress not the Moabites, neither contend with them in battle: for I will not give thee of their land for a possession; because I have given Ar unto the children of Lot for a possession.” (Deuteronomy 2:9)

This might explain why after the Moabite and Midianite women had seduced the men of Israel and God had ordered all the Israelite men who had sexual intercourse with them and worshipped their false gods to be killed, that God ordered Moses to avenge the children of Israel on the Midianites, to go to war with them, as opposed to the Moabites, as we read in the Scriptures below. Another possible reason may be that after his death, Moses was buried in the land of Moab and God did not want the land to be further defiled. Another possible reason might be that many years later, a woman named Ruth, a Moabite woman, would arise and who would be a descendant of Jesus. Whatever the reasons, God told Moses not to war with the Moabites, and Moses obeyed God.

“And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Avenge the children of Israel of the Midianites: afterward shalt thou be gathered unto thy people. And Moses spake unto the people, saying, Arm some of yourselves unto the war, and let them go against the Midianites, and avenge the LORD of Midian. Of every tribe a thousand, throughout all the tribes of Israel, shall ye send to the war. So there were delivered out of the thousands of Israel, a thousand of every tribe, twelve thousand armed for war. And Moses sent them to the war, a thousand of every tribe, them and Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, to the war, with the holy instruments, and the trumpets to blow in his hand.” (Numbers 31:1-6)

The men of Israel went to war the Midianites, and they killed all the men. They took the women and children captive, and plundered and burnt their cities. When they brought the Midianite captives to Moses and to Eleazar the priest, Moses was angry with them:

“And Moses said unto them, Have ye saved all the women alive? Behold, these caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to commit trespass against the LORD in the matter of Peor, and there was a plague among the congregation of the LORD. Now therefore kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman that hath known may by lying [intimately] with him. But all the women children, that have not known a man by lying with him, keep alive for yourselves.” (Numbers 31:15-17)

What is written above is hard to read regarding the killing of the male children. However, it demonstrates a couple of key points. God doesn’t play around when it comes to causing Israel to stumble in sin. Regarding the male children of the women, I am not God and I do not know His exact reasons for having them killed. However, I do know that God is only good. I surmise that it might be because if God spared them, as they grew, they would be very bitter for what God did to their fathers and mothers and very likely would have gone after Israel in revenge. Gotquestions.org has an article about this that I recommend reading. (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/Numbers-31-17-Midianites.html) I also recommend another of their articles that discusses the possible reasons as to why God spared the virgin women. (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/Midianite-virgins.html)

Balaam would not survive because of what he had done to the people of Israel. He was killed when God told Moses to go and avenge the children of Israel on the Midianites, who had allied themselves with the Moabites. The book of Joshua also records Balaam’s death:

“And they warred against the Midianites, as the LORD commanded Moses; and they slew all the males. And they slew the kings of Midian, beside the rest of them that were slain; namely, Evi, and Rekem, and Zur, and Hur, and Reba, five kings of Midian: Balaam also the son of Beor they slew with the sword.” (Numbers 31:7-8)

“Balaam also the son of Beor, the soothsayer [diviner] did the children of Israel slay with the sword among them that were slain by them.” (Joshua 13:22)

This is the account of Balaam. Though he spoke the truth of God because it was God Himself who would not let Balaam pronounce a curse upon the children of Israel whom He had delivered out of Egypt, in the end, the wicked prophet found himself accursed when his evil actions came back upon himself. If it were up to Balaam, he would have cursed the children of Israel with his mouth so that he could receive his reward from Balak. But God did not let him curse Israel. None of the riches he might have received by causing Israel to fall into sin could save him. This is just one account of how God Himself keeps His promises to save His children and brought His wrath upon them that caused them to sin. It is very interesting to me that the account of Balak and Balaam is not only mentioned numerous times in the Old Testament books of Numbers, Deuteronomy, and Joshua, but also several times in the New Testament. While Balak was clear in his intentions, which was to curse Israel when he was threatened by them when they came near to the border of Moab, Balam pretended to be following what God had told him to do, but in his heart he was motivated by money and not the intentions of God. In the end, Balaam found a way to curse Israel that caused many people to die, and he likely earned the diviner’s fee that he cherished more than he cherished God. While Balaam might have fooled Balak, he couldn’t fool God. God knew that in Balaam’s heart, he was still seeking a way to prosper himself, even if it meant cursing Israel. God knew that Balaam blessed Israel with his lips but secretly cursed them with his heart because of his desire to obtain wealth. Consequently, God saw to it that Balaam would be killed by the children of Israel. It seems to me that God is trying to tell us very clearly that those who seek to curse and destroy Israel will see themselves accursed and destroyed. I believe in our modern day, we have not only many Balaks who seek to curse Israel but also Balaams, who bless Israel with their mouths but inwardly curse Israel, including in many so-called churches, in the highest office in the USA and sadly, in Israel as well. Let us read the other mentions of Balaam in the Bible:

“An Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter into the congregation of the LORD; even to their tenth generation shall they not enter into the congregation of the LORD for ever: because they met you not with bread and with water in the way, when ye came forth out of Egypt; and because they hired against thee Balaam the son of Beor of Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse thee. Nevertheless the LORD thy God would not hearken unto Balaam; but the LORD thy God turned the curse into a blessing unto thee, because the LORD thy God loved thee.” (Deuteronomy 23:3-5)

“Balaam also the son of Beor, the soothsayer [diviner], did the children of Israel slay with the sword among them that were slain by them.” (Joshua 13:22)

“Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints. For there are certain men crept in unawares [unnoticed], who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ. I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not. And the angels which kept not their first estate [proper domain], but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day. Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication [sexual immorality], and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance [punishment] of eternal fire. Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities. Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about [discussed] the body of Moses, durst [dared] not bring against him a railing [reviling] accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee. But these speak evil of those things which they know not: but what they know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves. Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward [profit], and perished in the gainsaying [rebellion] of Core.” (Jude 11)

“And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges; I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even where Satan’s seat is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth. But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac [Greek spelling for Balak] to cast a stumblingblock [put an enticement to sin] before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication [sexual immorality]. So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes, which thing I hate. Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving [except] he that receiveth it.” (Jesus Christ; Revelation 2:12-17)

“The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished: but chiefly them that walk after [according to] the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government [authority]. Presumptuous are they, self-willed, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities [dignitaries]. Whereas angels, which are greater in power and might, bring not railing [reviling] accusation against them before the Lord. But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken [caught] and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption; and shall receive the reward [wages] of unrighteousness, as they that count it pleasure to riot in the day time. Spots they are and blemishes, sporting [revelling in] themselves with their own deceivings while they feast with you; having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling [enticing] unstable souls: an heart they have exercised [trained] with covetous practices; cursed children: which have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor [Beor], who loved the wages of unrighteousness; but he was rebuked for his iniquity: the dumb ass speaking with man’s voice forbad [restrained] the madness of the prophet. These are wells without water, clouds that are carried with a tempest; to whom the mist [gloom] of darkness is reserved for ever. For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean [indeed] escaped from them who live in error. While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in [into] bondage. For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them. But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.” (2 Peter 2:9-22)

In the New Testament Scriptures above, Jude, Jesus, and Peter are all speaking to professing believers in Jesus Christ. They are warning them, they are warning us, not to follow the way of Balaam, which was to profess God only with our lips but not with our hearts. It is sad to see that so many, many people in “churches” today are only seeking God because they want financial gain; they want the riches of this temporary world instead of the heavenly treasures of eternal life with Jesus. Time and time again, the Bible warns us to seek Him and not the things of this world. It clearly warns us about the love of money. Too many people in the world, and I would say especially in the USA that has grown accustomed to living in luxury, have put their faith and trust in Donald Trump to make them rich, to “Make America Great Again,” instead of realizing that the USA and our entire world is deep in sin and that we must turn away from sin and turn to Jesus Christ to avoid what the apostle Paul warns us about in the Scriptures below:

“But they that will be [desire to be] rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all [all kinds of] evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.” (1 Timothy 6:9-10)

There is another place in the Old Testament, also called the Hebrew Scriptures, that refer to the account of Balak and Balaam, and that is in the prophetic book of Micah, chapter 6. Before we read about that in chapter 6, As we read previously from Micah chapter 5 verses 7-9, God tells Israel that the remnant of Jacob will be surrounded by its enemies, whom Israel will defeat. However, they will not defeat them by their own power, for God will strip the remnant of Jacob of all its strength so that they must depend on Him on not on themselves. God also tells them that He will destroy all of Israel’s false gods:

“Thine hand shall be lifted up upon thine adversaries, and all thine enemies shall be cut off [destroyed]. And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD, that I will cut off [destroy] thy horses out of the midst of thee, and I will destroy thy chariots: and I will cut off the cities of thy land, and throw down all thy strong holds: and I will cut off witchcrafts out of thine hand; and thou shalt have no more soothsayers: thy graven images also will I cut off, and thy standing images out of the midst of thee: and thou shalt no more worship the work of thine hands. And I will pluck up thy groves [Asherim, Canaanite deities] out of the midst of thee: so will I destroy thy cities. And I will execute vengeance in anger and fury upon the heathen [nations], such as they have not heard [obeyed].” (Micah 5:9-15)

The days that are described above have not come yet, but they will. In modern day Israel, we see that Israel is not trusting in God, because Israel as a whole, as a nation, has rejected their Messiah, their Christ, Jesus, who came to earth to offer salvation first to Israel but was rejected by His own. Jesus then turned His attention to the Gentiles, the non-Jewish nations, to provoke Israel to jealousy until the fullness of the Gentiles comes in (Romans 11:11-27). As Israel has done many times over the span of time, it has turned away from God and is currently relying on its own power and strength. God clearly tells Israel in Micah chapter 5 that He will bring Israel to its knees, where it is no longer able to defend itself from its enemies that surround her. No longer will Israel be able to trust in its military might and strength, for it will all be brought to nothing. No longer will Israel turn to the USA to supply it with weapons, for God will destroy all of its military might. No longer will Israel be able to turn to its false gods, for God will destroy all of their false gods. It won’t be Israel that destroys their enemies; no, it will be God Himself. Now, let us read what God tells us in Micah chapter 6:

“Hear ye now what the LORD saith; Arise, contend thou [plead your case] before the mountains, and let the hills hear thy voice. Hear ye, O mountains, the LORD’s controversy [complaint], and ye strong foundations of the earth: for the LORD hath a controversy with his people, and he will plead with [bring charges against] Israel. O my people, what have I done unto thee? and wherein have I wearied thee? testify against me. For I brought thee up out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed thee out of the house of servants [bondage]; and I sent before thee Moses, Aaron, and Miriam. O my people, remember now what Balak king of Moab consulted [counselled], and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him from Shittim [Acacia Grove] unto Gilgal; that ye may know the righteousness of the LORD.: (Micah 6:1-5)

God clearly tells His people, the children of Israel, that He has a controversy with them and will bring charges against them. He asks them to tell Him what He did to them that caused them to act the way that they have. He reminds them that it was by His hand that He brought them out of bondage in Egypt, with Moses, Aaron, and Miriam leading the way. He asks them to remember that Balak had tried to curse them through the wicked prophet Balaam, but it was the words of Balaam, which were not spoken by his own will but by God’s will, that assured Balak that God would not curse His own people. God wants Israel, His own people, to hear His words, to ponder them, to consider them, and to turn to Him in faith, so that they may know His righteousness, and yet, time and time again, Israel has rejected Him.

Contrary to popular belief today, God has not cursed Israel, and God is not finished with Israel. As I continue writing this devotional message on June 13, 2025, in the early morning hours, Israel preemptively attacked Iran, fearing that Iran would use its nuclear weapons on Israel. As I write this, the world awaits the response of Iran, which has repeatedly vowed to destroy both Israel and the USA. On June 14, 2025, Iran has already sent at least two waves of missiles into Israel, with damage occurring in Tel Aviv. Iran has repeatedly vowed to destroy both Israel and the USA. Israel is promising more attacks against Iran if it continues to fire missiles into Israel. As I still continue writing and editing this devotional message, on June 22, 2025, Donald Trump ordered the US military to attack three of Iran’s nuclear sites. The next day, Iran attacked a US military base in Qatar with missiles, as well as sending more missiles into Israel. I believe this back-and-forth between Iran, Israel, and the USA is mostly political theater in order to create instability in the world, such as what happened during the Obama Administration during what is known as the “Arab Spring.” Global leaders want war, but pretend publicly that they want peace.

I believe there is quickly coming a time when the majority of the countries in the world will cry out for “peace and safety,” and intense pressure will be put upon Israel to agree to peace at any cost, not only with Iran but also with Hamas in the long Gaza war between it and Israel that began on October 7, 2023. I have already heard many world leaders say that Israel needs to end the war with Hamas, and on June 14, 2025 and many times since then, President Trump is saying that the war must end. To achieve this “peace,” I believe Israel will agree to divide its land, which is the land that God gave to Israel, not to any other nation on earth. On June 26, 2025, it was reported by the Times of Israel that Israel, “for its part, would express its support for a future two-state solution, conditioned on reforms made by the Palestinian Authority.” (See: https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/report-netanyahu-agreed-to-end-gaza-war-within-two-weeks-after-us-strike-on-iran/) We read about the consequences of those who divide God’s land, the land of Israel, in the book of Joel chapter 3:

“For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity [captives] of Judah and Jerusalem, I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into he valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead [enter into judgment] with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted [divided up] my land.” (Joel 3:1-2)

“Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles [nations]; Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near; let them come up: beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong. Assemble yourselves, and come, all ye heathen [nations], and gather yourselves together round about: thither cause thy mighty ones to come down, O LORD. Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about. Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down; for the press [winepress] is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great. Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision. The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining. The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the hope [a shelter] of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.” (Joel 3:9-16)

I believe what is being described above is what is the same description as what is known as the Battle of Armageddon that is described in Revelation 16:14-16 and Revelation 19:19, the time when Jesus Christ returns to earth to judge the world. At that time, the wicked kings and all their military and their military might, along with many people of the earth, will gather together with the final antichrist and his false prophet to war against Jesus Christ. They will be gathered together in a place called Mount Megiddo, also known as the Valley of Jehoshaphat, and it is also known as the Valley of Jezreel (Hosea 1:5). It is there that Jesus Christ will destroy them all with the sharp sword that will come out of His mouth.

As we read in the Scriptures above from Joel, God will not let those who divide His land go unpunished, and that includes even people from Israel who were in agreement to dividing God’s land. I believe that the current Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, does not have Israel’s best interest at heart, for he himself has supported the idea of a so-called “two-state solution,” which I believe will result in dividing God’s land. Both he and USA President Donald Trump have supported this idea as recently as June 26, 2025. (See: https://www.jfeed.com/news-israel/us-israel-peace-plan-gaza-abraham-accords, https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/report-netanyahu-agreed-to-end-gaza-war-within-two-weeks-after-us-strike-on-iran/, https://www.israelhayom.com/2025/06/26/trump-and-netanyahus-2-state-vision-gaza-wars-end-abraham-accords-expansion/). The article from JFeed.com had this to say about this horrible proposal:

“An Israeli analyst has pointed out that this is potentially the price Israel has to pay for Trump agreeing to bomb Iran. Obviously, it's too soon to tell what's coming, but anyone with even one brain cell will tell you the two- state solution is a horrific thing for Israel's future.”

I believe the two-state solution will happen, and I believe it will be President Trump that negotiates it, with Benjamin Netanyahu signing it. I believe it may be part of the strengthening of the Abraham Accords. When it is signed, I believe it will be the “covenant with death” prophesied by Isaiah in Isaiah 28:14-20. I suspect that as an incentive for Israel agreeing to “peace” with its neighbors and being willing to divide its land in a two-state solution, President Trump may negotiate the ability for Israel to build its Third Temple, something many Orthodox Jews have been wanting to do for decades. There are some very interesting indicators in Israel that seem to indicate that the building of the Third Temple is just on the horizon. One such report came out on June 29, 2025 from israel365news.com, with the headline, “For the First Time in 2,000 Years: Israeli Mill to Produce Semolina Kosher for Temple Offerings.” (See: https://israel365news.com/410068/for-the-first-time-in-2000-years-israeli-mill-to-produce-semolina-kosher-for-temple-offerings/)

Do not get me wrong and do not confuse my thoughts on Benjamin Netanyahu with my love for God’s people, Israel. While Israel is not perfect, and neither is any country in the world, it knows that it must defend itself or be annihilated. There has never been any country in the world, to my knowledge, that has been sought after for so long to destroy it. However, God will not let that happen. He has always preserved a remnant of Israel, including during World War II, when the satanic Adolf Hitler and his Nazi Party sought to eliminate the Jews. If Iran had its way, it would destroy Israel, and Israel knows that. I believe that Israel very much respects the American president, Donald Trump, and they demonstrated that time and time again during his first administration. Because of world pressure, and because of the Satanic agenda of the people who are really ruling the world behind the scenes and who follow Satan, I highly suspect that President Trump will force Israel into a 7-year covenant with its enemies, including Hamas and possibly Iran. I believe this covenant will be supported by the evil United Nations, but I think it will be President Trump who negotiates it with Israel. I say this because I do not believe Israel would trust anyone else, certainly not anyone from the United Nations. For anyone who knows their Bible, this means that I think Donald Trump will be the final antichrist. I am not God, and I do not know the future, and I could be wrong. All I am doing is reading and studying the Bible regarding the times in which we are in and the times that are coming. I see a lot of traits about him that, to me, seem to match what is written about the antichrist. I know that many people will disagree with me, and that is fine. I have not come to this conclusion flippantly and have researched and studied a lot on this subject. People are entitled to believe what they believe. If I am wrong and if I am still here, I will acknowledge my mistake.

This 7-year period for the covenant will be the time written about in the Bible that is known in the book of Daniel as the 70th week, also called the Day of the Lord, which will be the last seven years on earth before Jesus Christ returns. I believe it will begin when Israel will sign the 7-year covenant, as the apostle Paul also wrote about in 1 Thessalonians to believers in Jesus Christ:

“But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail [labour pains] upon a woman with child [pregnant woman]; and they shall not escape.” (1 Thessalonians 5:1-3)

“And he [antichrist] shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst [middle] of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.” (Daniel 9:27)

It was from Pastor JD Farag, who pastors a church in Hawaii, where I first learned that in Daniel 9:27 above, it says that the antichrist “shall confirm the covenant with many for one week.” Notice it does not say that he will make a covenant with many for one week. No, it says that the covenant will be confirmed. Thus, there must be an existing covenant in place already in order for it to be confirmed. When you look at the Hebrew for the source of the translated word of “confirm,” it is the word “wə-hiḡ-bîr.” Strong’s concordance defines this word to mean “exceed, confirm, be great, be mighty, prevail, put to more (strength), strengthen, be stronger, be valiant.” (See: https://biblehub.com/hebrew/1396.htm) I agree with Pastor JD that this confirming or strengthening of an existing covenant may very well be the strengthening of the Abraham Accords set in place by Donald Trump in his first administration. (See: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Abraham-Accords) I believe intense pressure from all over the world will continue to be put on Israel, and ultimately, Israel will agree to this covenant. As the apostle Paul wrote that when the people are saying “Peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh upon them,” I believe this begins the 7-year time of Jacob’s - which means Israel’s - trouble.

The Bible tells us that the time of Jacob’s trouble will be like birth pains that come upon a pregnant woman. However, it also tells us this of Israel:

“Before she travailed, she brought forth [gave birth]; before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child.” (Isaiah 66:7)

If you read the above verse too quickly, you might think that it is talking about the birth pains of Israel when she gave birth to Jesus Christ, but that is not what it is saying. It says “Before she travailed” and “before her pain came” she gave birth to Jesus Christ. Thus, the physical process of the young Jewish virgin, Mary, Jesus’ mother, giving birth to Him was not the time of travail that is discussed above; it is not the time of Jacob’s trouble. The travailing of Israel is her 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, the 70th week, referred to in Daniel 9:24-27. The book of Jeremiah describes what it will be like for Israel during this 7-year time period:

“The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, Thus speaketh the LORD God of Israel, saying, Write thee all the words that I have spoken unto thee in a book. For, lo, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will bring again the captivity of my [back from captivity my] people Israel and Judah, saith the LORD: and I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it. And these are the words that the LORD spake concerning Judah. For thus saith the LORD; We have heard a voice of trembling, of fear [dread], and not of peace. Ask ye now, and see whether a man doth travail with child [male can give birth]? wherefore do I see every man with his hands on his loins, as a woman in travail [childbirth], and all faces are turned into paleness? Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble; but he shall be saved out of it.” (Jeremiah 30:1-7)

I believe that this covenant spoken of by Daniel the prophet is the “covenant with death” written about in Isaiah 28 that God will disannul or cancel:

“Wherefore hear the word of the LORD, ye scornful men, that rule this people in Jerusalem. Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell, are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves: therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste. Judgment [Justice] also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet [make the measuring line]: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place. And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden [trampled] down by it. From the time that it goeth forth it shall take you: for morning by morning shall it pass over, by day and by night: and it shall be a vexation only [terror just] to understand the report. For the bed is shorter than that a man can stretch himself on it: and the covering narrower than that he can wrap himself in it. For the LORD shall rise up as in mount Perazim, he shall be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon, that he may do his work, his strange [awesome] work; and bring to pass his act, his strange [unusual] act. Now therefore be ye not mockers, lest your bands [bonds] be made strong: for I have heard from the Lord GOD of hosts a consumption [destruction], even determined upon the whole earth. Give ye ear, and hear my voice; hearken, and hear my speech.”( Isaiah 28:14-23)

God is specifically addressing the men who rule the people in Jerusalem, warning them, telling them in advance, of the covenant of death that they will agree to and that He will cancel, make void, that covenant. Instead of trusting in Almighty God, the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the precious cornerstone and the sure foundation, they are putting their trust in mere man. Their covering that they will seek from him will not completely cover them, and many of them will die in the upcoming time of Jacob’s trouble. In fact, the Bible tells us that two-thirds of the Jews will die. They reject God’s word that tells us that only Almighty God can completely cover us by His precious blood that He spilled on the cross for us, that we may believe in Him for our salvation, for our protection, for our everything:

“He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for [of] the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth [lays waste] at noonday. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked. Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; there shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear [lift] thee up in their hands, lest thou dash [strike] thy foot against a stone. Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder [cobra]: the young lion and the dragon [serpent] shalt thou trample under feet. Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him. With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.” (Psalm 91)

Sadly, most of Israel, including its political and religious leadership, and the majority of the Gentile world, have not put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ to save them. Thus, they will all go through the most horrific time on earth, the seven years of Jacob’s trouble.

As I said previously, Israel is not perfect, and the reason why God will put Israel through the time of Jacob’s trouble is to cause them to see that they have been living deep in sin, with the greatest sin of all being their wholesale rejection of His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, who came to earth nearly 2,000 years ago to offer salvation of sins to the Jews first, and then to the Gentiles. It won’t be just Israel, however, that goes through the time of Jacob’s trouble, also known as the tribulation period; no, it will be the entire world. After Israel as a nation rejected its Messiah, Jesus Christ, God tells us in His word through the apostle Paul that God then turned His attention to the Gentiles in order to provoke the Jews to jealousy. This time period will be complete when the fulness of the Gentiles has come in, meaning when God takes His attention off of the Gentiles and turns it back to Israel:

“What then? Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for; but the election [elect] hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded [hardened] (According as it is written, God hath given them the spirit of slumber [stupor], eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear;) unto this day. And David saith, Let their table be made a snare, and a trap, and a stumblingblock, and a recompense unto them: let their eyes be darkened, that they may not see, and bow down their back alway. I say then, Have they stumbled that they should fall? God forbid [Certainly not]: but rather through their fall [trespass] salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to jealousy. Now if the fall of them be the riches of the world, and the diminishing [failure] of them the riches of the Gentiles; how much more their fulness?” (Romans 11:7-12)

“For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits [opinion]; that blindness [hardening] in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.” (Romans 11:25)

In March 2022, the Jerusalem Post reported that of the Israelis living in Israel, only 2% are Christians and 80% of them are of Arab descent. (See: https://www.jpost.com/christianworld/article-698959). It is clear that modern day Israel as a nation is still in full rejection of Jesus Christ as its Messiah. Their hearts, as the apostle Paul wrote in the book of Romans, are hardened, and they have stumbled on the stumbling stone, which is Jesus Christ. Let us read more of what Paul wrote as to why God took HIs attention off of Israel and onto the Gentiles for a period of time, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. After that, God will turn His attention back to Israel in the time of Jacob’s trouble, referred to below as “a short work”::

“Esaias [Isaiah] also crieth concerning Israel, Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant shall be saved: for he [God] will finish the work, and cut it short in righteousness: because a short work will the Lord make upon the earth. And as Esaias said before, Except the Lord of Sabaoth had left us a seed, we had been [would have become] as Sodoma, and been made like unto Gomorrha. What shall we say then? That the Gentiles, which followed not after righteousness, have attained to righteousness, even the righteousness which is of faith. But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness. Wherefore [Why]? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumblingstone; As it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a stumblingstone and rock of offence: and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed [put to shame].” (Romans 9:27-33)

God has written in His word through the prophets, words of warning to His people Israel, about their sin and that they need to turn to Him with their hearts. Yet, time and time again, they have turned away from Him. While they may do good works and try and keep the law, they are not seeking Him with their hearts, for if they were, they would believe on His Son Jesus Christ to save them from all their sins. Now, let us read more of the reasons why God must put Israel through their time of trouble, and what will happen during that time. As I mentioned before, it won’t be just Israel that goes through this time of trouble, but the entire world that has rejected Jesus’ free gift of salvation, who chose sin over salvation:

“Therefore thou hast forsaken thy people the house of Jacob, because they be replenished from the east [are filled with eastern ways], and are soothsayers like the Philistines, and they please themselves in the children of strangers [clap or shake hands to make bargains with the children of foreigners]. Their land also is full of silver and gold, neither is there any end of their treasures; their land is also full of horses, neither is there any end of their chariots: their land also is full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made: and the mean man [people] boweth down, and the great man [each man] humbleth himself: therefore forgive them not. Enter into the rock, and hide thee in the dust, of fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty. The lofty [proud] looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day. For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low…” (Isaiah 2:6-12)

“And the loftiness [pride] of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day. And the idols he shall utterly abolish. And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth. In that day a man shall cast [cast away] his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which they made each for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats; to go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops [crags] of the ragged rocks, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when he arisen to shake terribly the earth. Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils: for wherein is he to be accounted of?” (Isaiah 2:17-22)

“For, behold, the Lord, the LORD of hosts, doth take away from Jerusalem and from Judah the stay and the staff [stock and the store, every support], the whole stay [supply] of bread, and the whole stay [supply] of water, the mighty man, and the man of war, the judge, and the prophet, and the prudent [diviner], and the ancient [elder], the captain of fifty, and the honourable [eminent in appearance] man, and the counsellor, and the cunning artificer [skillful artisan], and the eloquent orator.” (Isaiah 3:1-3)

“For Jerusalem is ruined [has stumbled], and Judah is fallen: because their tongue and their doings are against the LORD, to provoke the eyes of his glory. The shew of their countenance [look on their face] doth witness against them; and they declare their sin as Sodom, they hide it not. Woe unto their soul! for they have rewarded [brought] evil unto themselves. Say ye to the righteous, that it shall be well with him: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings. Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him: for the reward of his hands shall be given to him [done to him]. As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths. The LORD standeth up to please [contend], and standeth to judge the people. The LORD will enter into judgment with the ancients [elders or aged] of his people, and the princes thereof: for ye have eaten up the vineyard; the spoil of the poor is in your houses. What mean ye that ye beat my people to pieces, and grind the faces of the poor? saith the Lord God of hosts.” (Isaiah 3:8-15)

“The LORD’s voice crieth unto the city [Jerusalem], and the man of wisdom shall see thy name: hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it. Are there yet the treasures of wickedness in the house of the wicked, and the scant [short] measure that is abominable? Shall I count them pure with the wicked balances [scales], and with the bag of deceitful weights? For the rich men thereof are full of violence, and the inhabitants thereof have spoken lies, and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth. Therefore also will I make thee sick in smiting [by striking] thee, in [by] making thee desolate because of thy sins. Thou shalt eat, but not be satisfied; and thy casting down [hunger, emptiness, or humiliation] shall be in the midst of thee; and thou shalt take hold, but shalt not deliver; and that which thou deliverest will I give up to the sword. Thou shalt sow, but thou shalt not reap; thou shalt tread the olives, but thou shalt not anoint thee with oil; and sweet wine, but shalt not drink wine. For the statutes of Omri [the sixth king of the northern tribe of Israel, when Israel was a divided nation] are kept, and all the works of the house of Ahab, and ye walk in their counsels; that I should make thee a desolation, and the inhabitants thereof an hissing: therefore ye shall bear the reproach of my people.” (Micah 6:9-16)

“Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved. For I bear them record [witness] that they have a zeal of [for] God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.” (Romans 10:1-4)

“But I say, Did not Israel know? First Moses saith, I will provoke you to jealousy by them that are no people [not a nation], and by a foolish nation I will anger you. But Esaias [Greek for Isaiah] is very bold, and saith, I was found of them that sought me not; I was made manifest unto them that asked not after me. But to Israel he saith, All day long I have stretched forth my hands unto a disobedient and gainsaying [contrary] people.” (Romans 10:19-21)

Did you notice a common theme in some of the Scriptures above? Did you notice how many times that God mentions man’s pride, his worship of idols, including gold and silver, and man’s refusal to humble himself before God? During the time of Jacob’s trouble, mankind will be completely humbled and will be brought low before God. God will take away all that Israel and Judah have worshipped and have put their faith and trust in, all that they have depended on to save them, and they will be left with only God to protect them.

Let us read what else the prophet Micah said to the people of Jerusalem. After Donald Trump decided to bomb three Iranian nuclear sites on June 22, 2025, Benjamin Netanyahu applauded him for his actions. I believe that both of these men are deceitful and have brought judgment not only upon themselves, but upon their nations. We are one major and prophetic step closer to the beginning of the time of Jacob’s trouble, to the time when the Bible tells us, “when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail [labour pains] upon a woman with child [pregnant woman]; and they shall not escape.” (1 Thessalonians 5:3) I do not trust either of these men, and I believe everything that is happening is to bring about a new world order that the rich and powerful men having been working to bring about for decades. It is fueled by Satan and is in direct opposition to the one true God. Let us read the words of warning from Micah to the people who will be alive at that time, which I believe is the time that we are living in. Sadly, most do not read God’s word, and for those who do read, most do not heed it:

“Woe is me! for I am as when they have gathered the summer fruits, as the grapegleanings of the vintage: there is no cluster to eat: my soul desired the firstripe fruit. The good [faithful or loyal] man is perished out of the earth: and there is none upright among men: they all lie in wait for blood; they hunt every man his brother with a net. That they may do evil with both hands earnestly [successfully], the prince asketh, and the judge asketh for a reward [bribe]; and the great man, he uttereth his mischievous [evil] desire: so they wrap it up [scheme together]. The best of them is as a brier: the most upright is sharper than a thorn hedge: the day of thy watchmen and thy visitation [punishment] cometh; now shall be their perplexity. Trust ye not in a friend, put ye not confidence in a guide [companion]: keep [guard] the doors of thy mouth from her that lieth in thy bosom. For the son dishonoureth thy father, the daughter riseth up against her mother, the daughter in law against her mother in law; a man’s enemies are them en of his own house.” (Micah 7:1-6)

Before continuing in Micah 7, I wanted us to consider the attitudes of people that Micah described above are the attitudes and types of people we see in the world today. This is what happens when we reject salvation and choose sin instead; everything is rotten, to the core. The only thing left for God to do is to bring His judgment upon the world, as He did in the days of Noah. God gave every opportunity for the people to be saved, to get in the ark before the flood came. The people mocked and scoffed at Noah, saying something like, “Ha ha ha! You are a fool, the waters won’t overcome us!” Just as they were dead wrong then, so too are the people today who reject salvation from what is coming. For those of us who have put our faith and trust in Jesus Christ, we will be saved from what is coming, but those who have not, will not be saved from it.

As the Scriptures from Isaiah and Micah tell us about the children of Israel, that instead of worshipping the one true God, they worship the work of their own hands, their false gods, and they bow down and humble themselves before their false gods. Though the book of Isaiah was written approximately 2,800 years ago, the Scriptures apply to modern Israel today. The words prophesy of the Day of the Lord, which has not happened yet, but will. I believe the Day of the Lord begins when the coming final antichrist confirms “the covenant with the many,” (Daniel 9:27), which starts the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble. During that time, everyone who exalts himself, who is proud and arrogant, will be brought low.

There is a common theme in the Scriptures that describe what Israel and what the world will be like before the coming great and terrible Day of the Lord, including in Isaiah chapter 13. While Isaiah 13 speaks about a burden or prophecy against Babylon, which as prophesied by Isaiah, took the people of Judah captive for 70 years but was punished by God for “all their evil that they have done in Zion in your sight” (Jeremiah 51:24), I believe this is also a prophecy of the soon-coming time of Jacob’s trouble. In other words, I believe Isaiah chapter 13 is a dual prophecy. I believe the first fulfillment happened when the Medo-Persian Empire destroyed Babylon. I believe there is an even more important second fulfillment that is coming, and it directly relates to the Day of the Lord. I believe the Babylon that is written about in Isaiah 13 for the second fulfillment of prophecy is referring to “Mystery, Babylon” that is written about in the book of Revelation, including in Revelation 17:5. Let us read Isaiah 13:

“The burden of Babylon, which Isaiah the son of Amoz did see. Lift ye up a banner upon the high mountain, exalt the voice unto them, shake the [wave your] hand, that they may go into the gates of the nobles. I have commanded my sanctified [set apart or consecrated] ones, I have also called my mighty ones for mine anger, even them that rejoice in my highness [exaltation]. The noise of a multitude in the mountains, like as of a great people; a tumultuous noise of the kingdoms of nations gathered together: the LORD of hosts mustereth the host of the battle. They come from a far country, from the end of heaven, even the LORD, and the weapons of his indignation, to destroy the whole land. Howl ye; for the day of the LORD is at hand; it shall come as a destruction from the Almighty. Therefore shall all hands be faint, and every man’s heart shall melt: and they shall be afraid: pangs [sharp pains] and sorrows shall take hold of them; they shall be in pain as a woman that travaileth: they shall be amazed one at another; their faces shall be as flames. Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it. For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine. And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogance of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible [tyrants]. I will make man more precious [rare] than fine gold; even a man than the golden wedge of Ophir. Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place, in the wrath of the LORD of hosts, and in the day of his fierce anger. And it shall be as the chased roe [hunted gazelle], and as a sheep that no man taketh up [gathers]: they shall every man turn to his own people, and flee every one into his own land. Every one that is found shall be thrust through; and every one that is joined unto them shall fall by the sword. Their children also shall be dashed to pieces before their eyes; their houses shall be spoiled [plundered], and their wives ravished. Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them, which shall not regard [esteem] silver; and as for gold, they shall not delight in it. Their bows also shall dash the young men to pieces; and they shall have no pity on the fruit of the womb; their eye shall not spare children. And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees’ excellency, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall the shepherds make their fold there. But wild beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and owls shall dwell there, and satyrs [wild goats] shall dance there. And the wild beasts of the islands shall cry in their desolate houses, and dragons [jackals] in their pleasant palaces: and her time is near to come, and her days shall not be prolonged.” (Isaiah 13)

I think the reason why the Scriptures above tell us specifically that Babylon “shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation” is because God wants us to know that in the book of Revelation, it refers to “Mystery, Babylon,” it is not the the same Babylon that was written about in the Scriptures above in Isaiah 13. I believe the first fulfillment of Isaiah 13 regarding Babylon tells us that Babylon will not ever be rebuilt or inhabited again. However, in the book of Revelation, it tells us of something called “Mastery, Babylon.” I have listened to several pastors and others who believe that “Mystery, Babylon” will be a rebuilt Babylon, in the place where it used to be, which was in Mesopotamia, or modern day Iraq. However, I do not believe this is true because the Bible is clear that the old Babylon will not rise again. Jeremiah 51:58-64 says something similar:

“Thus saith the LORD of hosts; The broad walls of Babylon shall be utterly broken [laid bare], and her high gates shall be burned with fire; and the people shall labour in vain, and the folk in [nations because of] the fire, and they shall be weary. The word which Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah the son of Neriah, the son of Maaseiah, when he went with Zedekiah the king of Judah into Babylon in the fourth year of his reign. And this Seraiah was a quiet prince. So Jeremiah wrote in a book all the evil that should come upon Babylon, even all these words that are written against Babylon. And Jeremiah said to Seraiah, When thou comest to Babylon, and shalt see, and shalt read all these words; Then shalt thou say, O LORD, thou hast spoken against this place, to cut it off, that none shall remain in it, neither man nor beast, but that it shall be desolate for ever. And it shall be, when thou hast made an end of reading this book, that thou shall bind a stone to it, and cast it into the midst of Euphrates. And thou shalt say, Thus shall Babylon sink, and shall not rise from the evil that I will bring upon her: and they shall be weary. Thus far as the words of Jeremiah.” (Jeremiah 51:58-64)

Just as the Medo-Persian Empire destroyed Babylon, I believe that it very well may be that Iran and those who have allied with them, possibly Russia, China, Turkey, and other Middle Eastern nations, will destroy specifically New York City, which I believe is Mystery, Babylon, and likely other key cities in the USA. This will render Israel defenseless against its enemies since it no longer will have the military support of the USA. Israel will have to rely on God and Him alone to save her from destruction.

Just as Babylon stood out from all other kingdoms of its time, with its wealth and extravagant luxury, so too does the United States, which I believe perfectly fits the description of Babylon that is written about in the book of Revelation. The Bible tells us of this Mystery, Babylon:

“And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.” (Revelation 17:5)

I believe that since the last great empire, the Roman Empire, no other nation has existed that has lived in such opulence and luxury as the United States. I also do not believe that there has been such a nation that has committed such abominations not only in the USA, but which has spread its filth across the entire world. In addition, today, more than ever, the USA has become extremely prideful, with its current president being full of pride, never missing an opportunity to exalt himself and insult people who oppose him.

Returning to Israel, whether my beliefs about the events to come are correct or not, one thing is certain, Israel will not be eliminated; God will save a one-third remnant during the coming time of Jacob’s trouble. It will be this remnant of Israel who will finally turn to Jesus Christ, who is the branch of the LORD, after having gone through the refiner’s fire. In the end, Israel will come out refined as gold, with all impurities, with all their sin, removed and forgiven by Almighty God. In that day Israel will mourn when they look upon Jesus, the One whom they pierced, but Jesus will open a fountain of the water of life for forgiveness to His people Israel:

“In that day shall the branch of the LORD be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and comely [appealing] for them that are escaped of Israel [have survived]. And it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even every one that is written [recorded] among the living in Jerusalem: when the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood [bloodshed] of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning.” (Isaiah 4:2-4)

“The burden of the word of the LORD for Israel, saith the LORD, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him. Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it. In that day, saith the LORD, I will smite every horse with astonishment [confusion], and his rider with madness: and I will open mine eyes upon the house of Judah, and will smite every horse of the people [peoples] with blindness. And the governors of Judah shall say in their heart, The inhabitants of Jerusalem shall be my strength in the LORD of hosts their God. In that day will I make the governors of Judah like an hearth of fire among the wood, and like a torch of fire in a sheaf; and they shall devour all the people round about, on the right hand and on the left: and Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place, even in Jerusalem. The LORD also shall save the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem do not magnify themselves against [shall not become greater than that of] Judah. In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the LORD before them. And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness [grieve] for him, as one that is in bitterness [grieves] for his firstborn. In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadad-rimmon in the valley of Megiddon. And the land shall mourn, every family apart [by itself]; the family of the house of David apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Nathan apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Levi apart, another wives apart; the family of Shimei apart, and their wives apart; all the families that remain, every family apart, and their wives apart. In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness. And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, and they shall no more be remembered: and also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirits to pass out of [depart from] the land.” (Zechariah 12:1-13:2)

“And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the LORD, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein. And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try [test] them as gold is tried [tested]: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God.” (Zechariah 13:8-9)

As we remember what Isaiah chapter 49 tells us, many children of the remnant of Israel will die during their time of trouble, and God will give to Israel the sons and daughters of the saved Gentiles to be their sons and daughters. The sons and daughters of the Gentiles will be as flesh and blood children to the remnant of Israel, and God will save them. God will deliver them from the grip of the mighty and the terrible. God will war against those who are holding them captive.

After Jesus returns at His second coming at the end of the time of Jacob’s trouble, never again will Israel go through what it has gone through since October 7, 2023. On that day, Hamas came into the land of Israel and slaughtered many and took many of the people of Israel hostage, with approximately 53 still being held hostage as of June 21, 2025, the majority of which Israel believes are deceased. No more will Israel make unbalanced deals with those who take their people captive in order to release them, for it will be Almighty God who will save them.

As is written in Zechariah chapters 12 and 13 that we just read above, the last part of the book of Micah in chapter 7 gives hope for Israel. It tells them, and it tells the Gentiles, that there will be a remnant of Israel who will survive. They will be forgiven by Jesus Christ, who will be their Shepherd, who will be their God. No more will His people worship false gods and idols, no more will Israel put its faith and trust in themselves and not in God. Now, let us read what Micah wrote:

“Therefore I will look unto the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me. Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD shall be a light unto me. I will bear the indignation of the LORD, because I have sinned against him, until he plead my cause [case], and execute judgment [justice] for me: he will bring me forth to the light, and I shall behold his righteousness. Then she that is mine enemy shall see it, and shame shall cover her which said unto me, Where is the LORD thy God? mine eyes shall behold her: now shall she be trodden [trampled] down as the mire of the streets. In the day that thy walls are to be built, in that day shall the decree be far removed [decree go far and wide or boundary be extended]. In that day also he [the captives collectively] shall come even to thee from Assyria, and from the fortified cities, and from the fortress even to the river [The Euphrates], and from sea to sea, and from mountain to mountain. Notwithstanding the land shall be desolate because of them that dwell therein, for the fruit of their doings [deeds]. Feed [Shepherd] thy people with thy rod [staff], the flock of thine heritage, which dwell solitarily in the wood [woodland], in the midst of Carmel: let them feed in Bashan and Gildead, as in the days of old. According to the days of thy coming out of the land of Egypt will I shew unto him [The captives collectively] marvellous things. The nations shall see and be confounded at all [ashamed of] their might: they shall lay their hand upon their mouth, their ears shall be deaf. They shall lick the dust like a serpent, they shall move [crawl] out of their holes like worms of the earth: they shall be afraid of the LORD our God, and shall fear because of thee. Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by [over] the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy. He will turn again, he will have compassion on us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their [our] sins into the depths of the sea. Thou wilt perform [give] the truth to Jacob, and the mercy to Abraham, which thou hast sworn unto our fathers from the days of old.” (Micah 7:7-20)

I want to encourage my dear brothers and sisters in Christ to not lose hope, and let us be encouraged by all that we see happening in our world today. God told us in His word what would happen before it happens so that when we see it happening, we would recognize the signs and we would know just how close we are coming to the rapture of the church, when Jesus Christ calls up His bride, all believers in Him, to Himself in the clouds before the coming time of Jacob’s trouble. I know that not everyone who is saved by putting their faith and trust in Him believes in the pre-tribulation rapture, and I respect those who do not, for they are my fellow believers in Jesus Christ. While I am doing my best to understand the Bible through the leading of the Holy Spirit as I read and study His word, I may not have everything correct. It doesn’t matter if I am right or wrong about the rapture; what matters is that I am saved by the precious blood of Jesus Christ, if you are saved by His blood. I think as we get closer to the start of the time of Jacob’s trouble, God will unveil more of His word to us, and we will have a clearer understanding as to the times we are in. Let us read the words of encouragement written by the apostle Paul in 1 Thessalonians:

“But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep [died], that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. 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 [precede] them which are asleep [dead]. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump [trumpet] of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever [always] be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18)

“But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children [sons] of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober [self-controlled]. For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation. For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.” (1 Thessalonians 5:4-10)

I want to include a passage of Scripture from the book of Hosea chapter 6 that is very interesting to me:

“Come, and let us return unto the LORD: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten [stricken], and he will bind [bandage] us up. After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight. Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the LORD: his going forth is prepared [established] as the morning; and he shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth.” (Hosea 6:1-3)

After Jesus gave up His life on the cross, something very unusual happened, and that was the tearing of the temple veil. Is it possible that when Hosea wrote in the Scriptures above that God has torn and struck Israel, it is referring to the tearing of the Temple veil after Jesus gave up His life? We are told that before Jesus gave up His life on the cross, He was mocked by the chief priests, scribes, and elders. After Jesus gave up His life, the veil of the temple was torn or rent in two. Let us read some of what transpired before and after Jesus gave up His life on the cross:

“And sitting down they [the Roman soldiers] watched him there; and set up over his head his accusation written, THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS. Then were there two thieves crucified with him, one on the right hand, and another on the left. And they that passed by reviled [blasphemed] him, wagging their heads, and saying, Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross. Likewise also the chief priests mocking him, with the scribes and elders, said, He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him come down from the cross, and we will believe him. He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God. The thieves also, which were crucified with him, cast the same in his teeth. Now from the sixth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Some of them that stood there, when they heard that, said, This man calleth for Elias [Elijah the prophet]. And straightway one of them ran, and took a sponge, and filled it with vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink. The rest said, Let be, let us see whether Elias will come to save him. Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain [torn in two] from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent [split]; and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, and came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many. Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching [guarding] Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God.” (Matthew 27:36-54)

The veil of the temple was no ordinary curtain, and the tearing of it from top to bottom was nothing insignificant. Gotquestions.org has a good article that explains what the temple veil was, the significance of it, and its estimated height: (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/temple-veil-torn.html)

“During the lifetime of Jesus, the holy temple in Jerusalem was the center of Jewish religious life. The temple was the place where animal sacrifices were carried out and worship according to the Law of Moses was followed faithfully. Hebrews 9:1-9 tells us that in the temple a veil separated the Holy of Holies—the earthly dwelling place of God’s presence—from the rest of the temple where men dwelt. This signified that man was separated from God by sin (Isaiah 59:1-2). Only the high priest was permitted to pass beyond this veil once each year (Exodus 30:10; Hebrews 9:7) to enter God’s presence for all of Israel and make atonement for their sins (Leviticus 16).

“Solomon’s temple was 30 cubits high (1 Kings 6:2), but Herod had increased the height to 40 cubits, according to the writings of Josephus, a first-century Jewish historian. There is uncertainty as to the exact measurement of a cubit, but it is safe to assume that this veil was somewhere near 60 feet high. An early Jewish tradition says that the veil was about four inches thick, but the Bible does not confirm that measurement. The book of Exodus teaches that this thick veil was fashioned from blue, purple, and scarlet material and fine twisted linen.

“The size and thickness of the veil make the events occurring at the moment of Jesus’ death on the cross so much more momentous. “And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom” (Matthew 27:50-51a).

“So, what do we make of this? What significance does this torn veil have for us today? Above all, the tearing of the veil at the moment of Jesus’ death dramatically symbolized that His sacrifice, the shedding of His own blood, was a sufficient atonement for sins. It signified that now the way into the Holy of Holies was open for all people, for all time, both Jew and Gentile.”

Jesus came to earth and was crucified by His own because they rejected Him. We don’t know for sure, but it is estimated that He was crucified between 30-33 AD. If that is correct, then sometime around 2030-2033, Jesus will return. However, before that happens, the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble will take place. When Jesus returns, it will be approximately 2,000 years after He died. After that, He will reign on earth for a period of 1,000 years. It is during that time that Jesus will revive, or restore, His people, the surviving remnant of Israel. I believe this very well may be the third day that is written about in Hosea 6:1-3, which is the third day, or the third 1,000-year period, after Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension to heaven. It will be a time of rest for all of God’s children. It is then that humanity will live as God intended it to be in the Garden of Eden before the fall of Adam and Eve.

There are Scriptures that speak of entering into God’s rest, particularly in the book of Hebrews. Let us read some of them:

“Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession [confession], Christ Jesus; who was faithful to him that appointed him, as also Moses was faithful in all his house. For this man was counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as he who hath builded the house hath more honour than the house. For every house is builded by some man; but he that built all things is God. And Moses verily was faithful in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after; But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end. Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation [rebellion], in the day of temptation [trial] in the wilderness: when your fathers tempted [tested] me, proved me, and saw my works forty years. Wherefore I was grieved [angry] with that generation, and said, they do always err [go astray] in their heart; and they have not known my ways. So I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest.) Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. For we are made [have become] partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end; while it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation. For some, when they had heard, did provoke [rebel]: howbeit not all that came out of Egypt by Moses. But with whom was he grieved forty years? was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcases [corpses] fell in the wilderness? And to whom sware he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them that believed not? So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.” (Hebrews 3)

Before we read Hebrews 4, the author of Hebrews, whom many believe is the apostle Paul, reminded all of us that even though God brought His people - the children of Israel - through Moses, out of Egypt, not all of them entered into the Promised Land because of their rebellion against Him. In fact, no one 20 years of age or older entered into it and would die in the wilderness (Numbers 14:28-30). That generation of Israelites had hardened their hearts against God time and time again, and Paul warned us not to harden our own hearts against God. Hebrews chapter 3 closes with the warning to us, “So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.” (Hebrews 3:19) Now, let us read Hebrews chapter 4:

“Let us therefore fear, lest, a promised being left [remaining of] us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it. For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall [they shall not] enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world. For he spake in a certain place of the seventh day on this wise [in this way], and God did rest the seventh day from all his works. And in this place again If they shall [they shall not] enter into my rest. Seeing therefore it remaineth that some must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief: again, he limiteth [designates] a certain day, saying in David, To day, after so long a time; as it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts. For if Jesus [Joshua] had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day. There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his. Let us labour [be diligent] therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the example of unbelief. For the word of God is quick [living], and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of [able to judge] the thoughts and intents [intentions] of the heart. Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in [hidden from] his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do [must give account]. Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched [sympathize] with the feeling of our infirmities [our weaknesses]; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” (Hebrews 4)

In closing, we see how God will save His own. He will save a remnant of Israel, and He will save Gentile believers in Jesus Christ, who will be as flesh and blood children to the saved remnant who will lose their own children. It will be by the mighty hand of God - Jesus Christ - alone who saves them. At the end of the time of Jacob’s trouble, Jesus will begin His 1,000-year reign on earth, and we who have not hardened our hearts against Him, who have put our faith and trust in Him alone to save us, will enter into His rest, a time of peace on earth. Not only will Jesus be reigning as KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS, but Satan will be locked away in the bottomless pit during this time period. (Revelation 20:1-3) Oh, how I look forward to this time! I am so tired of hearing about wars, murder, deception, lies, chaos, and confusion as we try just to live our lives in these perilous times. My heart longs for Jesus, but let us not grow weary, for we can have rest in Him during these turbulent times, as we look forward to His second coming. Let us remember the words of Jesus Christ to us:

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of [from] me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 11:28-30) ✝️

May 27, 2025: Isaiah 49:23 (Part 7 of 7) - They Shall Bow Down to Thee

“And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.” - Isaiah 49:23

Note to readers: Because of the length of this devotional, I have decided to split it up into 7 parts. This is part 7. I also have a link that contains the entire devotional.

Let us continue reading what happened next:

“And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of them that searched the land, rent [tore] their clothes: and they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land. If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. Only rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence [protection] is departed from them, and the LORD is with us: fear them not. But all the congregation bade stone them with stones. And the glory of the LORD appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel. And the LORD said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke me? and how long will it be ere they believe me, for all the signs which I have shewed among them? “ (Numbers 14:6-11)

Moses continued leading the children of Israel but because of their rebellion against God, He caused them to wander in the land for 40 years, one year for each day they had spied the land. Except for Joshua and Caleb, God allowed only those younger than 20 years of age to enter it; all who had rebelled against God died off and did not enter the Promised Land. It would be Joshua who would lead Israel into the land and conquer it. When they had finally conquered it from the people whom God gave 400+ years to change their ways, we read this:

“And the LORD gave unto Israel all the land which he sware to give unto their fathers; and they possessed it, and dwelt therein. And the LORD gave them rest round about, according to all that he sware unto their fathers: and there stood not a man of all their enemies before them; the LORD delivered all their enemies into their hand. There failed not ought of any good thing which the LORD had spoken unto the house of Israel; all came to pass.” (Joshua 21:43-45)

Ah, now we have read about the Biblical patriarchs, how the twelve tribes of Israel came about, and how God had promised to give them His land, the land of Canaan, forever. We have seen how God keeps His promises. As the Scripture above says, not a word of God failed that He had spoken to Israel. We must remember this, for there are many things in the Bible that have not come to pass yet, but will, for God is a promise-keeper. I have learned so much by reading about this, and not just reading it, but studying it. Hallelujah! This brings us back to today’s Scripture in Isaiah 49:23. I want to compare the blessing of Isaac upon his son Jacob, whom the aged Isaac thought was Esau, in which he prophesied that nations would bow to him, to today’s Scripture verse:

“See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field which the LORD hath blessed: therefore God give thee of the dew of heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and plenty of corn [grain] and wine: let people [peoples] serve thee, and nations bow down to thee: be lord over thy brethren, and let thy mother’s sons bow down to thee: cursed be every one that curseth thee, and blessed be he that blesseth thee.” (Genesis 27:27-29)

“And kings shall be thy nursing [foster] fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.” (Isaiah 49:23)

Just as the promise of God went not to Abraham’s firstborn son, Ishmael, but to Isaac and his descendants, so too, was the promise of God not given to Isaac’s firstborn son, Esau, but to Jacob and his descendants. It would be through Jacob, whom God later called “Israel,” that the twelve tribes of Israel came about. It is through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that Messiah would come, the One whom the prophet Isaiah wrote about, and which I wrote about in earlier devotionals, from Isaiah 49d:6:

“And he [God, speaking to Jesus] said, It is a light thing that thou [Jesus] shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.” (Isaiah 49:6)

Because it was through the nation of Israel that Messiah would come, and He did and will come again a second time, Satan has tried to destroy Israel ever since God called it into existence. There has not been any other nation in the earth that has been so hated by mankind than Israel. Many nations have tried to eliminate it, and have failed every single time, for God has always preserved a remnant of Israel, just as He promised us in His word that He would do. That promise is still true to this day. There is soon coming the time in history when Israel will go through the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, when God turns His attention from the Gentile church and turns it back to Israel, during which God will judge Israel severely, as well as all nations for their rejection of Jesus Christ and choosing instead to remain in their sin. However, as God promised, God will refine Israel in the fire of testing and they will finally turn to Jesus Christ and believe on Him as their Messiah. It is this remnant of Israel - all of it - that will be saved. Israel will be protected by God Himself against all the nations who will once again seek to destroy Israel in Jerusalem. Finally, after the 7-years of tribulation upon the earth, Jesus will return to earth, with all believers in Him, and He will righteously reign on earth for 1,000 years. Israel will finally be gathered together in the land that God gave them long ago, and they will live in all of the land that He gave them, not just a small portion of it. People from the Gentile nations all around the world will come to Israel, and will bow down to the people of Israel, fulfilling Isaac’s prophecy to Jacob and Isaiah’s prophecy in Isaiah 49:23 and also in Isaiah chapters 60 and 55, for they will know that it was through Israel, the nation that suffered so much for so long, that Messiah came and saved them by His precious blood:

“And the sons of strangers [foreigners] shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister unto thee: for in my wrath I smote [struck] thee, but in my favor have I had mercy on thee. Therefore thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bring unto thee the forces [wealth] of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought [led in procession]. For the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish; yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted [ruined]. The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the fir tree, the pine tree, and the box [box tree] together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary; and I will make the place of my feet glorious. The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending [bowing] unto thee; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee, The city of the LORD, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel. Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations.” (Isaiah 60:10-15)

“Behold, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not, and nations that knew not thee shall run unto thee because of the LORD thy God, and for the Holy One of Israel; for he hath glorified thee.”  (Isaiah 55:5)

As the Scriptures in Isaiah 49:20-22 tell us, many of Israel’s sons and daughters will die in the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble. However, kings and queens of the Gentile nations will bring their own sons and daughters to Israel, who will be the children of Israel; all will be as one people, with our King of kings and Lord of lords reigning from Israel. Hallelujah!!!

“That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.” (Galatians 3:14)

“For ye are all the children [sons] of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond [slave] nor free, there is neither male nor female; for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” (Galatians 3:26-29)

The time period that Isaiah 49:23 speaks of will occur at the end of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, and it will be the remnant of Israel that will finally turn to their Messiah, Jesus Christ, their Deliverer and Redeemer. As God says in Isaiah 49:23, “and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me,” and in Isaiah 60:16, “Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings: and thou shalt know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob.” Not only will the Gentiles flow to the land of Israel, as their spiritual sons and daughters, in Christ, but they will also bring their wealth with them.

Long before God chose Israel to be the people from whom Messiah, Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, would come to earth the first time, He knew that Israel would sin against Him, many, many times. God knew they could never keep the Law that He had given them after He brought them out of Egypt, which is why He sent Jesus to earth: to offer salvation to ALL who will believe in Him:

“Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD: but this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts [mind], and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” (Jeremiah 31:31-34)

“And now, saith the LORD that formed me [Jesus] from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the LORD, and my God shall be my strength. And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth. Thus saith the LORD, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, to him [Jesus] whom man despiseth, to him whom the nation [Israel] abhorreth, to a servant of rulers, Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the LORD that is faithful, and the Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose thee. Thus saith the LORD, In an acceptable [a favourable] time have I heard thee, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee: and I will preserve thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, to establish [restore] the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages… ” (Isaiah 49:5-8)

“And he [Jesus] took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament [covenant] in my blood, which is shed for you.” (Luke 22:19-20)

Though many people in the world in which we live today might want to think that God has forgotten His promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and that the land that He gave to them long ago is not theirs, the Bible tells us otherwise, and the Bible is ALWAYS correct:

“Thus saith the LORD, which giveth the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, which divideth [disturbs] the sea when the waves thereof roar; The LORD of hosts is his name: If those ordinances depart from before me, saith the LORD, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me for ever. Thus saith the LORD; If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, saith the LORD. Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that the city shall be built to the LORD from the tower of Hananeel unto the gate of the corner. And the measuring line shall yet go forth over against it upon the hill Gareb, and shall compass about to [turn toward] Goath. And the whole valley of the dead bodies, and of the ashes, and all the fields unto the brook of Kidron, unto the corner of the horse gate toward the east, shall be holy unto the LORD; it shall not be plucked up, nor thrown down any more for ever.”  (Jeremiah 31:35-40)

“For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits [opinion]; that blindness [hardening] in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: for this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.” (Romans 11:25-27)

Let us read from the last chapter of the book of Isaiah, and what it says about Israel, Jesus, the time of Jacob’s trouble, and what happens after it:

“Hear the word of the LORD, ye that tremble at his word; Your brethren that hated you, that cast you out for my name’s sake, said, Let the LORD be glorified: but he shall appear to your joy, and they shall be ashamed. A voice of noise from the city, a voice from the temple, a voice of the LORD that rendered recompense to [fully repays] his enemies. Before she travailed, she brought forth [gave birth]; before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child. Who hath heard such a thing? who hath seen such things? Shall the earth be made to bring forth [give birth] in one day? or shall a nation be born at once? for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children. Shall I bring to the birth [time of birth], and not cause to bring forth [delivery]? saith the LORD: shall I cause to bring forth, and shut the womb? saith thy God. Rejoice ye with Jerusalem, and be glad with her, all ye that love her: rejoice for joy with her, all ye that mourn for her: that ye may suck [feed], and be satisfied with the breasts of her consolations [consolation of her bosom]; that ye may milk out [drink deeply], and be delighted with the abundance of her glory. For thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the Gentiles like a flowing stream: then shall ye suck [nurse or feed], ye shall be borne upon her sides, and be dandled upon her knees. As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you; and ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem. And when ye see this, your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like an herb [grass]: and the hand of the LORD shall be known toward his servants, and his indignation toward his enemies. For, behold, the LORD will come with fire, and with his chariots like a whirlwind, to render his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire. For by fire and by his sword will the LORD plead with all [judge all] flesh: and the slain of the LORD shall be many.” (Isaiah 66:5-16)

God tells us that Jesus will appear to Israel, the ones who were were hated, to their joy, and the ones who hated them will be ashamed and will receive God’s wrath upon them. Next, it talks about a woman travailing. The woman is Israel. Read closely what it says: “Before she travailed, she brought forth; before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child.” (Isaiah 66:7). Notice it says that before she travailed, she gave birth to a man child. Jesus Christ came to earth the first time as a human being, born of a virgin named Mary, who conceived Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit. As we know, this happened long ago, nearly 2,000 years ago. But the Scriptures say that before she travailed, she gave birth. This travailing is not speaking of the childbirth that Mary went through when she bore Jesus, the only begotten Son of God. No, this is speaking of the travailing of Israel, which happens after Jesus came to earth the first time. In the Scriptures above, Israel as a nation will not travail until it goes through the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble. This is the final seven years of human history before Jesus returns to earth the second time, when He will destroy everyone who will choose to remain in their sin rather than choosing to turn to Him to forgive them of their sins by His precious blood. Afterwards, Jesus will begin His 1,000-year reign on earth as King of kings and Lord of lords. Thus the “travailing” of the woman comes after she, Israel, gave birth to Jesus, in the time period known as the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble and the Day of the Lord:

“The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, Thus speaketh the LORD God of Israel, saying, Write thee all the words that I have spoken unto thee in a book. For, lo, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will bring again the captivity of my [back from captivity my] people Israel and Judah, saith the LORD: and I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it. And these are the words that the LORD spake concerning Israel and concerning Judah. For thus saith the LORD; We have heard a voice of trembling, of fear [dread], and not of peace. Ask ye now, and see whether a man doth travail with child [male can give birth]? wherefore do I see every man with his hands on his loins, as a woman in travail [childbirth], and all faces are turned into paleness? Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble; but he shall be saved out of it. For it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will break his yoke from off thy neck, and will burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more serve themselves of him [enslave them]: but they shall serve the LORD their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up unto them. Therefore fear thou not, O my servant Jacob, saith the LORD; neither be dismayed, O Israel: for, lo, I will save thee from afar, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and shall be in rest, and be quiet, and none shall make him afraid. For I am with thee, saith the LORD, to save thee: though I will make a full end of all nations whither I have scattered thee, yet will I not make a full end of thee: but I will correct thee in measure [justice], and will not leave thee altogether unpunished.” (Jeremiah 30:1-11)

“The lofty [proud] looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day. For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low…” (Isaiah 2:11-12)

“And the loftiness [pride] of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day. And the idols he shall utterly abolish. And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth [to make the earth tremble]. In that day a man shall cast [cast away] his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which they made each one for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats; to go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops of the ragged rocks, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth. Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils: for wherein is he to be accounted of [why should he be esteemed]?” (Isaiah 2:17-22)

In the Scriptures from Jeremiah 30 above, God is telling Israel that because of their sins against Him, He will cause them to undergo this time of Jacob’s trouble. However, God will save a one-third remnant of Israel, that He will put through the fire, to refine them as gold. (Zechariah 13:8-9) It will be this one-third remnant that returns to the land of Israel. No more will they be held captive by other nations and peoples, such as is even being down now by Hamas, and none shall make them afraid. Notice also that in the Scriptures above in Isaiah 2, it will not just be Israel that goes through the time of Jacob’s trouble, also called the tribulation period, but it will be everyone living on the earth at that time. God mentions the pride of men several times in the Scriptures above. God hates pride. It was pride that caused Satan’s fall; he wasn’t satisfied with all that God had given him, no, he wanted more and most importantly, he wanted to be like God. Are we not seeing people today, especially with those who call themselves “the elite,” who are never satisfied with all that they have and are trying to be like God, such as Bill Gates, Elon Musk, Donald Trump, and many others who want to be rulers of the world? If they do not turn to Jesus Christ and ask Him to forgive them of their sins, they are setting themselves up to brought down low, to be humbled by Almighty God Himself, and it won’t end well for them. I have included Psalm 2 before in prior devotionals but I want to include it again, for it is very relevant to this discussion:

“Why do the heathen [Gentiles] rage [throng tumultuously or restlessly] and the people imagine [plot] a vain [empty or worthless] thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed [Messiah, Christ], saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision. Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex [distress] them in his sore [deep] displeasure. Yet have I set [installed] my king upon my holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen [nations or Gentiles] for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel. Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son [An act of homage and submission], lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.” (Psalm 2)

I want to mention something else about Isaiah 66 verse 8, which says, “for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children.” Notice it is now plural, “children” instead of the singular “she was delivered of a man child” meaning Jesus, whom she, Israel, brought forth in verse 7. At the end of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, she will bring forth her children. These children are all believers in Jesus Christ, who are the spiritual sons and daughters of Israel mentioned in Isaiah 49:21-22. These sons and daughters will be given to Israel, who will have lost many of their own sons and daughters during the tribulation period. The Gentile nations’ kings and queens will come to Israel and will be the foster fathers and nursing mothers to these sons and daughters, and they will bow down to Israel, for they will know that it was through Israel that Messiah, our eternal King, has come. It will be at this time that the remnant of Israel will finally know their God, Jesus Christ; He will be their God, and they will be His people. No longer will Israel need to be ashamed of their sins, for Jesus will forgive them of all their iniquities:

“The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up [heal] the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; to proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; to appoint unto [console] them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified. And they shall build the old wastes [ruins], they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste [ruined] cities, the desolations of many generations. And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and the sons of the alien shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers. But ye shall be named the Priests of the LORD: men shall call you the Ministers [Servants] of our God: ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves. For your shame ye shall have double [double honour]; and for confusion they shall rejoice in their portion: therefore in their land they shall possess the double: everlasting joy shall be unto them. For I the LORD love judgment [justice], I hate robbery for [in] burnt offering; and I will direct their work in truth, and I will make [cut] an everlasting covenant with them. And their seed shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring among the people: all that see them shall acknowledge them, that they are the seed which the LORD hath blessed. I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with a robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels. For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations. For Zion’s sake will I not hold my peace [keep silent], and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth. And the Gentiles shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory: and thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of the LORD shall name. Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the LORD, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God. Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate: but thou shalt be called Hephzi-bah [My Delight is in Her], and thy land Beulah [Married]: for the LORD delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married. For as a young man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee: and as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee. I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace [keep silent] day nor night: ye that make mention of  [remember] the LORD, keep not silence, and give him no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth.” (Isaiah 61:1-62:7)

As we just read in the above Scriptures, it is God who has set watchmen over Israel, over Jerusalem, and it is God who will protect her and save a remnant of her in their time of trouble. This remnant will be the beautiful “crown of glory in the hand of the LORD, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God.” For those nations today, including many people in America, who believe that God is finished with Israel, I ask them again: have you read the Bible? God called Israel to be a special people to Him, and made an everlasting covenant with them. God chose them to be the people from whom Messiah would come, and He, Jesus Christ, did, and He is coming back a second time at the end of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, at which He will put an end to all who will choose sin over salvation. I believe that we are so very close to the start of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, also known as Daniel’s 70th week (Daniel 9:27), that will commence when one who will be the final antichrist makes a 7-year covenant (treaty) with”the many,” which I believe is Israel or at least includes Israel. On April 22, 2025, it was announced that a new proposal was set forth by Egypt and Qatar with the headline of “Report: Egypt and Qatar push bold 7-year truce in new ceasefire proposal”: (See: https://www.jfeed.com/news-israel/egypt-qatar-propose-bold-gaza-truce)

“Mediators from Egypt and Qatar have put forward a new ceasefire proposal aimed at ending the ongoing war in Gaza and securing the release of hostages, according to a report by the BBC citing a senior Palestinian Arab official involved in the talks. The proposed agreement reportedly includes a ceasefire lasting between five to seven years, the release of all Israeli hostages held by Hamas in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails, a formal end to the conflict, and a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip.”

I haven’t heard anything about the proposal since it was reported. Will something like what was proposed above eventually lead to the covenant that the coming final antichrist will make with Israel for one week, which is known in Israel to be a period of seven years, and which will begin the time of Jacob’s trouble? Time will tell. I do know this, that we are drawing oh, so near to the time in which the prophecies of Daniel, Isaiah, Zechariah and the other prophets that speak to the Day of the Lord and the time of Jacob’s trouble will be fulfilled. I don’t know exactly how they will be fulfilled but that they will be fulfilled. Things are happening so quickly around the world that it’s becoming very difficult to keep up. There are many, many pressures being put on people: economic, the threat of increasing capabilities with artificial intelligence, near constant bombarding of possible pandemics on the verge, apostate churches, the seemingly never-ending Israel-Gaza crisis, wars and rumors of wars around the world, increasing crime and corruption; to sum it up, it’s everything the Bible said would happen in the end times just before the time of Jacob’s trouble, the tribulation period, begins. If you have not accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior, I pray and I urge you to turn to Him, before it’s too late and you no longer have anymore time to decide. 🙏🏻 ✝️

May 26, 2025: Isaiah 49:23 (Part 6 of 7) - The Shall Bow Down to Thee

“And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.” - Isaiah 49:23

Note to readers: Because of the length of this devotional, I have decided to split it up into 7 parts. This is part 6. I also have a link that contains the entire devotional.

Jacob told Joseph that he was adopting Joseph’s two sons as his own. Jacob then told Joseph to bring his sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, to him so that he could bless them before he died. He told Joseph that he never thought he would see him again and yet, here he had not only seen Joseph but “God hath shewed me also thy seed.” (Genesis 48:11) Next, we read:

“And Joseph brought them [his two sons] out from between [beside] his knees, and he bowed himself with his face to the earth.” (Genesis 48:12)

I do not know if this is Jacob bowing to Joseph, in thankfulness to him for all he had done for him and blessing him with his two grandsons, or if it was Joseph bowing to Jacob, in an act of reverence to his father. I have read several commentaries, where some say it’s Joseph bowing and others say it’s Jacob. When it came time to bless his grandsons, because Jacob could not see, for his eyes were dim due to his age (Genesis 48:10), Joseph placed his sons so that the oldest, Manasseh, would be placed “toward Israel’s right hand” and Ephraim, the younger son was placed toward Jacob’s left hand. (Genesis 48:13) However, the Bible tells us:

“Israel stretched out his right hand, and laid it upon Ephraim’s head, who was the younger, and his left hand upon Manasseh’s head, guiding his hands wittingly [knowingly]; for Manasseh was the firstborn. And he blessed Joseph, and said, God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long unto this day, the Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth. And when Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand upon the head of Ephraim, it displeased him: and he held up his father’s hand, to remove it from Ephraim’s head unto Manasseh’s head. And Joseph said unto his father, Not so, my father: for this is the firstborn; put thy right hand upon his head. And his father refused, and said, I know it, my son, I know it: he also shall be great: but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his seed shall become a multitude of nations. And he blessed them that day, saying, In thee shall Israel bless, saying, God make thee as Ephraim and Manasseh: and he set Ephraim before Manasseh. And Israel said unto Joseph, Behold, I die: but God shall be with you, and bring you again unto the land of your fathers. Moreover I have given to thee one portion above thy brethren, which I took out of the hand of the Amorite with my sword and with my bow.” (Genesis 48:14-22)

No matter what Joseph wanted, God had led Jacob to bless Joseph’s youngest son, Ephraim, and not the elder son Manasseh. God doesn’t go by mankind’s plans but by His own plans, just as it had been foretold to Rebekah, Jacob’s mother that the elder son, Esau would serve the younger son, Jacob (Genesis 25:23). We also see this years later when God chose the young David, the youngest of all his brothers, to be anointed and who became King of Israel (1 Samuel 16:13). As the word of God tells us, God looks at the heart and not one’s outward appearance.

Before Jacob died, he called all of his sons to him, and said to them, “…that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the last days. Gather yourselves together, and hear, ye sons of Jacob; and hearken unto Israel your father.” (Genesis 49:1-2) He then told each of his twelve sons that which would come upon them. Gotquestions.org has a good summary of what Jacob told each of his twelve sons and the fulfillment of those prophecies. (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/Jacobs-prophecies.html) As gotquestions.org indicates, while Reuben was Jacob’s firstborn son, he gave up his birthright when he had sexual intercourse with Bilhah, his father’s concubine (Genesis 29:32, 49:3-4). Thus, the birthright was then passed to Jacob’s oldest son he had with his wife, Rachel, who was Joseph. Joseph received a double portion. Per gotquestions.org, when Israel received the territory in the Promised Land, Ephraim and Manasseh were named as two of the twelve tribes, with some Scriptures referring to the tribe of Ephraim as the tribe of Joseph. , and his two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, would be two of the twelve tribes of Israel. (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/twelve-tribes-Israel.html)

Returning to Jacob’s prophecies to his sons, I won’t list all of them, but I do want to us to read what Jacob said to Judah and to Joseph. First, let’s read what Jacob prophesied about his son Judah:

“Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise: thy hand shall be in [on] the neck of thine enemies; thy father’s children shall bow down before thee. Judah is a lion’ s whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped [crouches] down, he couched [lies down] as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up? The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering [obedience] of the people be. Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass’s colt unto the choice vine; he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes: his eyes shall be red with [darker than] wine, and his teeth white with [whiter than] milk.” (Genesis 49:8-12)

Jacob prophesied that of all of his sons, it would be Judah whom they would praise. It would also be from the tribe of Judah that Messiah would come, and not from the tribe of Joseph. I must admit that my first choice would have been Joseph and not Judah. While Messiah would not come through the lineage of Joseph, as we previously read, God had an amazing plan for Joseph. It would be through him that the lineage of His people would be preserved, for without Joseph, they would most likely have died from famine. By placing Joseph in a superior position in Egypt, second only to Pharaoh, God ensured that Joseph was able to save his family. Through them, and specifically from the tribe of Judah, the scepter, representing kingship and authority, would not depart, and that King is Jesus Christ. Jesus - the King of kings and Lord of lords, the Lion of the tribe of Judah - came to earth the first time, born of a virgin in Bethlehem Ephratah in Judah, offering salvation to all who believe in Him. As the Bible prophesies, He will come again, and the second time He comes, He will return in judgment of the world, and particularly Israel. It is at His second coming that Jesus will take His rightful reign upon the earth and will righteously rule from Israel with a rod of iron for 1,000-years:

“Now the sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel, (for he was the firstborn; but, forasmuch as he defiled his father’s bed, his birthright was given unto the sons of Joseph the son of Israel: and the genealogy is not to be reckoned after the birthright. For Judah prevailed above his brethren, and of him came the chief ruler; but the birthright was Joseph’s:)…” (1 Chronicles 5:1-2)

“Now gather thyself in troops, O daughter of troops: he hath laid siege against us: they shall smite the judge of Israel with a rod upon the cheek. But thou, Beth-lehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting [the days of eternity].” (Micah 5:1-2)

“…for thus it is written by the prophet, And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor [Ruler], that shall rule [shepherd] my people Israel.” (Matthew 2:5-6)

There is so much prophecy packed into the words that Jacob spoke to his son, Judah, including prophecies that have not happened yet, but will at some point in the future. One of the prophecies that has already been fulfilled is just absolutely beautiful. Let us read what Jacob said to Judah:

“The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering [obedience] of the people be. Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass’s colt unto the choice vine…” (Genesis 49:10-11)

This prophecy was repeated by the prophet Zechariah:

“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just [righteous], and having salvation; lowly [humble], and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.” (Zechariah 9:9)

Now let us read from the book of Matthew that describes how these prophecies from both Jacob and Zechariah were fulfilled. The account of Matthew describes what Jesus makes what is known as His triumphal entry into Jerusalem:

“And when they drew  night unto Jerusalem, and were come to Bethphage, unto the mount of Olives, then sent Jesus two disciples, saying unto them, Go into the village over against [opposite] you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose [untie] them, and bring them unto me. And if any man say ought [anything] unto you, ye shall say, The Lord hath need of them; and straightway he will send them. All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek [lowly], and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass. And the disciples went, and did as Jesus commanded them, and brought the ass, and the colt, and put on them their clothes, and they set him thereon.” (Matthew 21:1-7)

While we don’t know exactly when the book of Genesis was written, it is estimated to have been written between 1440-1400 BC. (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/when-was-Genesis-written.html). The book of Zechariah is estimated to have been written in two segments, between 520-470 BC. (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/Book-of-Zechariah.html) The book of Matthew is estimated to have been written between 55-65 AD. At His first coming, Jesus, the King of kings, came riding into Jerusalem not upon a horse, indicating He is a warrior, as many wanted him to do, but upon the colt, a young male donkey, indicating He is One who brings peace. The prophecy was fulfilled exactly as both Jacob and Zechariah prophesied. Also notice that Jacob said a foal, which is a young ass (donkey), and the foal would be a colt, indicating a male foal, would be bound not only to a vine but the choice vine. We likely wouldn’t know what that meant but Jesus Himself told us this:

“I am the true [genuine] vine, and my Father is the husbandman [vinedresser]. Every branch in me that bearers not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth [prunes] it, that it may bring forth more fruit. Now ye are clean through [because of] the word which I have spoken unto you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” (John 15:1-5)

The colt was untied from where it, and it and its mother donkey were taken to Jesus, who is the choice and true vine. The colt was in a sense bound to Jesus, as Jesus sat on the colt’s back, likely being led with some sort of bridle or rope.

I also want to write about what I believe is a prophecy from Jacob that has not been fulfilled yet and which is spoken in the book of Revelation. Let us read Jacob’s words and how I believe it is also written about in the prophetic books of Isaiah, Joel, and Revelation:

“…he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes:” (Genesis 49:11)

“Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah? this that is glorious in his apparel, traveling in the greatness of his strength? I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save. Wherefore art thou red in thine apparel, and thy garments like him that treadeth in the winefat? I have trodden the winepress alone; and of the people there was none with me: for I will tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my fury; and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments, and I will stain all my raiment. For the day of vengeance is in mine heart, and the year of my redeemed is come. And I looked, and there was none to help; and I wondered that there was none to uphold: therefore mine own arm brought salvation unto me; and my fury, it upheld me. And I will tread down the people in mine anger, and make them drunk in my fury, and I will bring down their strength to the earth.” (Isaiah 63:1-6)

“Let the heathen [nations] be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen [nations] round about. Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down; for the press [winepress] is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great. Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision. The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining. The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the hope of [a shelter] his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.” (Joel 3:12-16)

“And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast [the coming antichrist] and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture [full strength] into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: and the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.” (Revelation 14:9-11)

“And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle. And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe. And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped. And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle. And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe. And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. And the winepress was trodden without [outside] the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs.” (Revelation 14:14-20)

“And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture [robe] dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite [strike] the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture [robe] and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.” (Revelation 19:11-16)

Just as Jacob prophesied to Judah, it will be the Lion of the tribe of Judah, Jesus Christ, that will prevail and will loosen the 7-seals on the scroll written about in Revelation 5:5, that will begin the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, also known as the Day of the Lord. It will be Jesus who will “treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.” Jesus will give mankind every opportunity to turn to Him and be saved from the wrath that is to come. Mankind will have a choice: will they serve Satan and his antichrist, or will they serve Jesus Christ, Almighty God? The unbelieving world will reach the fullness of its wickedness, just as grapes reach their point of ripeness and are ready to be reaped, and it is at that point that Jesus will thrust in His sharp sickle and reap the earth. God’s word is simply amazing, and it all fits together, from the beginning in the book of Genesis, to the end in Revelation! God has told us His plan for mankind from the beginning to the end, even in the words that Jacob spoke to his son Judah, from whom the Lion of the tribe of Judah has come and will come again and reign as King of kings and Lord of lords.

Now, let us read Jacob’s blessing to his son Joseph, who had saved his family from death:

“Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well; whose branches run over the wall: the archers have sorely [bitterly] grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him: but his bow abode [remained] in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob; (from thence is the shepherd, the stone of Israel:) Even by the God of thy fathers, who shall help thee; and by the Almighty, who shall bless thee with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that lieth under [beneath], blessings of the breasts, and of the womb: the blessings of thy father have prevailed [excelled] above the blessings of my progenitors [ancestors] unto the utmost bound of the everlasting hills: they shall be on the head of Joseph, and on the crown of the head of him that was separate from his brethren.” (Genesis 49:22-26)

Jacob acknowledged that though Joseph was hated and attempts on his life had been made, Joseph remained strong, and that it was the God of Jacob who had strengthened him. It would be the same God who would continue to bless Joseph and his family with grandchildren and future generations of children. Though was separated from his family for much of his adult life, it was through Joseph’s authority as a leading ruler in Egypt, second only to Pharaoh, that Joseph was the one who decided to whom food would be sold during the 7-year famine. It was through Joseph, by the power of his Almighty God, that he was able to save not only Egypt but more importantly his family. Joseph truly was a fruitful bough. Jacob told his son that God had blessed him more than his forefathers, and that blessing was through his own twelve sons and his two grandchildren whom he had adopted from Joseph.

After Jacob prophesied to his twelve sons of what would happen to them in the last days, we are told:

“All these are the twelve tribes of Israel; and this is it that their father spake unto them, and blessed them; every one according to his blessing he blessed them.” (Genesis 49:28)

Jacob then commanded them that after he died, they were to bring his body back into the land of Canaan and have him buried in the field of Machpelah, which his grandfather, Abraham had purchased from Ephron the Hittite. It was in that field that Abraham and Sarah, his father and mother, Isaac and Rebekah, and his wife Leah were all buried. Jacob then died, and Joseph cried and kissed his father. He then commanded his Egyptian servants who were physicians to embalm Jacob, and they did. The Egyptians mourned for Joseph’s father: ”And forty days were fulfilled for him; for so are fulfilled the days of those which are embalmed: and the Egyptians mourned for him threescore and ten days.” (Genesis 50:3) After the mourning period, Joseph asked Pharaoh to let him honor his father’s command to go and bury him in the land of Canaan, and that he would return to Egypt afterward. Pharaoh granted Joseph’s request. Joseph went with a great company of Egyptian servants and elders, including elders of the house of Pharaoh, and his brothers and their adult sons, in chariots and on horses:

“And they came to the threshing floor of Atad, which is beyond Jordan, and there they mourned with a great and very sore [solemn] lamentation: and he made [observed] a mourning for his father seven days. And when the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, saw the mourning in the floor of Atad, they said, This is a grievous mourning to the Egyptians: where the name of it was called Abel-mizraim [Mourning of Egypt], which is beyond Jordan. And his sons did unto him according as he commanded them: for his sons carried him into the land of Canaan, and buried him in the cave of the field of Machpelah, which Abraham bought with the field for a possession of a burying place of Ephron the Hittite, before Mamre.” (Genesis 50:10-13)

It is profound that not only did Jacob’s family mourn him but also the Egyptians. They must have felt very much indebted to him, as the father of the one, Joseph, who saved them from death during the 7-year famine. So profound was the mourning of the Egyptians that even the Canaanites in the land of Canaan saw their great mourning and named the place where they saw them in the floor of Atad, “Abel-mizraim,” meaning the Mourning of Egypt.

After Joseph and his family buried their father in the place where Jacob had told them to bury him, they returned to Egypt. The realization of Jacob’s death soon hit his brothers, and once again, their fear of retaliation by Joseph began to fill them for what they had done to him long ago when he was still young. Instead of discussing this with their brother Joseph face-to-face, they did this:

“And they sent a messenger unto Joseph, saying, Thy father did command before he died, saying, So shall ye say unto Joseph, Forgive, I pray thee now, the trespass of thy brethren, and their sin; for they did unto thee evil: and now, we pray thee, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of thy father. And Joseph wept when they spake unto him. And his brethren also went and fell down before his face; and they said, Behold, we be thy servants.” (Genesis 50:16-18)

Joseph’s brothers clearly still feared what he might do to them, and that he only had not retaliated against them previously because their father was still alive. This is what sin and lack of trusting in God does to us: it makes us paranoid, so we are always on the lookout for something bad to come against us. Never once in the Bible does it tell us that Joseph sought to hurt or kill his brothers because they had sold him into slavery and had told their father that he had been killed. On the contrary, the Bible shows us that not only did Joseph not seek to hurt or kill them, but that he sought to save them and all of his family who were starving in Canaan. It only shows us the love of Joseph to his brothers. Once again, we see Joseph’s brothers bowing down to him, just as he had dreamt long ago would happen. Let us read Joseph’s response to his brothers:

“And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God? But as for you, ye thought [intended] evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive. Now therefore fear ye not: I will nourish [provide for] you, and your little ones. And he comforted them, and spake kindly unto them.” (Genesis 50:19-21)

Joseph knew that what they had done to him long ago was in fact intended for evil, to cause him harm, but God used it for good, which was to use the situation Joseph was in to save his family. By saving Joseph’s family, it would bring Messiah, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, at His first coming, and again at His future second coming. In a sense, the words of Joseph also remind me of the words of Peter, after he and the other apostles were filled with the Holy Spirit of God 50 days after Jesus resurrected and ascended to heaven. The apostle Peter had just healed a man who had been lame, unable to walk, from the time he was born, and people ran over to Peter and John in amazement:

“And when Peter saw it, he answered unto the people, Ye men of Israel, why marvel ye at this? or why look ye so earnestly [intently] on us, as though by our own power or holiness [godliness] we had made this man to walk? The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Son Jesus; whom ye delivered up, and denied him in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let him go. But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you; and killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses.” (Acts 3:12-15)

Like Joseph had done when he had spoken to his brothers, Peter acknowledged that evil had been done, which was when the Jews had Jesus crucified. Like Joseph, Peter acknowledged that it was by the power of God, and not of any power of their own, that had healed the lame man and more importantly, it was by the power of God that had resurrected Jesus Christ, the Prince of life. God knows the end from the beginning, and He knew that Joseph’s brothers would sell Joseph into slavery, but God used their evil act for good, just as many years later, God used the evil act of Israel, when they turned Jesus over to Pontius Pilate and demanded that He be crucified, not realizing that God would resurrect Jesus three days after Jesus gave up His life, and that through His precious, sinless blood, He would save many.

Joseph lived until the age of 110 years, seeing his grandsons born to his sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. Before he died:

“And Joseph said unto his brethren, I die [I am dying]: and God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land unto the land which he sware to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. And Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you, and ye shall carry up my bones from hence. So Joseph died, being an hundred and ten years old: and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt.” (Genesis 50:24-26)

Something I noticed in Genesis 50 after Joseph died is that it does not record that there was a mourning in Egypt for him, as there was for his father, Jacob. Perhaps there was and it is just not recorded. That seems very odd to me, considering it was Joseph who had correctly interpreted Pharaoh’s dreams, by the power of Almighty God, and through Joseph, Egypt had been saved from the famine. Maybe it was because Joseph had received much glory during his life in Egypt that God did not feel the need to write about any mourning for him.

Joseph’s life was a perfect example of a man who stayed with God his entire life, never turning from Him in the difficult times, and he had many difficult times in his life. He didn’t hold bitterness in his heart against his brothers. When he was reunited with them, he didn’t seek to kill them because of what they had done to him, and he could have easily had them killed. When the lustful Potiphar’s wife kept coming after him, he fled from her, giving us a perfect example of what we should do when temptation comes our way: flee from it! God used Joseph in a mighty way, with a single goal in mind: save the people of Israel from famine so that Messiah could come!

After Joseph died, the descendants of Jacob’s family, called Israel, that lived in Egypt grew mighty in numbers. By that time, all of Joseph’s brothers had also died and all of their generation, but the people of Israel had grown significantly in numbers, so much so that the new Pharaoh, who did not know Joseph, feared that Israel would come against Egypt and side with its enemies. Pharaoh decided to enslave the people of Israel, and he caused them much affliction. The book of Exodus, the second book of the Bible, tells us of how the people of Israel eventually left Egypt through the leading of another man whom God used in mighty ways, Moses. It would be Moses who would lead Israel out of Egypt after they had been there 430 years:

“Now the sojourning [time of stay] of the children of Israel, who dwelt in Egypt, was four hundred and thirty years. And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, even the selfsame day it came to pass, that all the hosts of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt.” (Exodus 12:40-41)

Once again, we see that God always fulfills His promises. God kept His promise He had made long ago to Abraham, then called Abram, that his descendants would be slaves in a foreign land for 400 years but would return to the land of Canaan. Before Israel left Egypt, God instituted the Passover. God had previously sent nine plagues upon Egypt, for Pharaoh would not release God’s people. God then prepared His people for the tenth plague, the death of all the firstborn, both humans and animals. God told Israel, “This month shall be unto you the beginning of the months: it shall be the first month of the year to you.” (Exodus 12:2) God told His people that on the tenth day, they were to take a male lamb without blemish, from sheep or goats, and keep it until the 14th day. On the evening of the 14th day, they must kill the lamb. God then told them:

“And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they shall eat it…and thus shall ye eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the LORD’s passover. For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD. And the blood shall be to you for a token [sign] upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the LORD throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever. Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses: for whosoever eateth leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul [person] shall be cut off [put away] from Israel.” (Exodus 12:7, 11-15)

The people of Israel did as God instructed them, and Pharaoh finally agreed to let God’s people go after his firstborn son died. In the institution of Passover, we see parallels to what Jesus Christ would go through when He came to earth as the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. How He would suffer, though He never sinned, be crucified, give up His life, be buried, but three days later, He rose again, was resurrected, and forty days later ascended to the right hand of God. It is only by His unblemished, perfect, and sinless blood that we can be saved from all our sins:

“Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest [revealed] in these last times for you, who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.” (1 Peter 1:18-21)

Through the power of Almighty God, Moses led the people out of Egypt by dividing the Red Sea, after which the sea swallowed up the Egyptians who were in pursuit of them. However, it would be another 40 years before the people of Israel would enter the Promised Land, the land that God had given to Abraham and his descendants long ago. Upon first arriving to the Promised Land, Israel had sent twelve spies into the land, who checked it out for 40 days. Ten spies came back with a bad report, saying the people were huge in size compared to them, but two spies, Joshua and Caleb, said they should go into the land. Let us read of the difference in the reports of the land between the ten men and the reports of Joshua and Caleb, how ten were fearful and did not trust in God and how Joshua and Caleb did not fear and did trust in God:

“And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron [Moses’ brother], and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilderness of Pagan, to Kaddish; and brought back word unto them, and unto all the congregation, and shewed them the fruit of the land. And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely [truly] it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it. Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there. The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the HIttites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan. And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess [take possession of] it; for we are well able to overcome it. But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we. And they brought up an evil [bad] report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up [devours] the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature. And there we saw the giants [Nephilim], the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight. And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night. And all the children of Israel murmured [grumbled] against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness! And wherefore hath the LORD brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt?  And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt. Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces [prostrated themselves] before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel.” (Numbers 13:26-14:5)

Here we see the children of Israel, who had just seen with their own eyes how Almighty God had sent ten plagues upon Egypt in order to cause Pharaoh to finally release them out of their bondage of 430 years, and how God had used Moses to divide the Red Sea and lead them through it, and bring them to the border of the Promised Land, and yet, how quickly their memories of this faded. Now, they could only see the giants in front of them, from the bad report of the ten men; they could not see the good report from Joshua and Caleb, who had remembered what God had just done for the children of Israel. Joshua and Caleb knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that God is bigger than any giant, and He is able to bring down the giants. But the children of Israel did not want to hear their report and did not want to follow the lead of Moses anymore. Instead, they wanted to put someone else in charge of them, a new captain, and bring them back into their bondage in Egypt. How absurd is that?! However, before we judge them too harshly, let us examine our own selves, myself included, and consider how many times has God brought us through something, and we knew that it was only by His awesome power that we got through it, only to be filled with fear when the next difficult time, the next crisis, arose in our own lives. How many times did we revert to fear, as did the children of Israel, instead of being filled with the faith of God in us and HIs promises to us, as Joshua and Caleb did? May we, myself included, be more like Joshua and Caleb.

May 25, 2025: Isaiah 49:23 (Part 5 of 7) - They Shall Bow Down to Thee

“And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.” - Isaiah 49:23

Note to readers: Because of the length of this devotional, I have decided to split it up into 7 parts. This is part 5. I also have a link that contains the entire devotional.

Next we read about Joseph and what happened after he was sold in Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and captain of the guard. God tells us in His word that He was with Joseph and prospered him in Potiphar’s house, so much so that Potiphar gave Joseph great responsibility over his house. As the overseer, Joseph was responsible not only for Potiphar’s house but for everything Potiphar had in the house and the field:

“And he left all that he had in Joseph’s hand [care]; and he knew not ought [anything] he had, save [except] the bread which he did eat. And Joseph was a goodly person, and well favoured [handsome in form and appearance].” (Genesis 39:6)

Potiphar was married, and his wife lusted after Joseph and came to him one day and said to him, “Lie with me.” (Genesis 39:7) Instead of agreeing to have sex with her, Joseph refused and told her that his master, meaning her husband, trusted in Joseph with everything he had and that he could not betray her husband by lying with her. Joseph said his master had not held anything back from him except his wife. Then Joseph said to her:

“…because thou art his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?” (Genesis 39:9)

Joseph acknowledged not only that it would be a wicked thing for him to sleep with his master’s wife, but also, and more importantly, that he would be sinning against God. How many people in our world today think about what sinning would do not only to them but also to people around them and how many actually fear God and what the consequences of their sin may be? Here we see that Joseph was a man of integrity, one who could be trusted. I think that is why God had given those dreams to Joseph when he was a young man. Potiphar’s wife did not like being rejected by Joseph. One day when she was alone in the house with Joseph, she took Joseph’s clothing and told him again to lie with her. This time, Joseph said nothing to her but fled the house, leaving his garment in her hand. She then went and told the men in the house, “See, he hath brought in an Hebrew unto us to mock [laugh at] us; he came in unto me to lie with me, and I cried with a loud voice: and it came to pass, when he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried, that he left his garment with me, and fled, and got him out.” (Genesis 39:14-15) When her husband came home, she told him the same thing. Potiphar then had Joseph put in prison and bound. However, as God had done when Joseph first came to Potiphar’s house, God showed mercy to Joseph. The ruler of the prison showed favor to Joseph and put him in charge of all the prisoners:

“The keeper of the prison looked not to any thing that was under his hand; because the LORD was with him [Joseph], and that which he did, the LORD made it to prosper.” (Genesis 39:23)

While Joseph remained in prison, the Pharaoh of Egypt was offended by his chief butler and chief baker. We aren’t told what had offended Pharaoh but only that he had them put into the same prison as Joseph. Joseph was still in charge of all the prisoners. One night, the butler and baker each dreamt a dream and woke up the next morning feeling dejected. Joseph noticed this and asked why they were so sad. They told him that they both had dreamt a dream and that there was no one there who could interpret what their dreams meant. Before continuing with this account of what happened next, I want to say that I am absolutely in awe of God’s word. I have heard that prophecy is pattern in the Bible, and it is true here, for what we read in Genesis is very similar to what is in the book of Daniel, and that is that God Himself gives the ability to interpret dreams to whom He chooses, to His people, which I will discuss further. Now, let us read Joseph’s response to them:

“…Do not interpretations belong to God?” (Genesis 40:8)

The chief butler told Joseph that he had dreamt about a vine that had three branches that budded and had blossoms bloom and then brought forth grapes. The butler dreamt that he had taken the grapes and squeezed the juice into Pharaoh’s cup, which he gave to Pharaoh. Joseph told the butler that the three branches represented three days, and that within three days, Pharaoh would free the butler from the prison and restore him to his position he once had in Pharaoh’s palace. He also asked the butler to remember him after he would be freed and to mention him to Pharaoh and bring him out of prison. Joseph also told the butler, “For indeed I was stolen away out of the land of the Hebrews: and here also have I done nothing that they should put me into the dungeon.” (Genesis 40:15) The chief baker then told Joseph that he had dreamt about three white baskets, meaning three baskets of white bread, on his head. He had dreamt that the top basket had all kinds of baked goods in it for Pharaoh and then the birds ate the baked goods while the basket was on his head. Joseph then told the baker that the baskets were three days and within three days, he would be killed by Pharaoh, who would hang him on a tree and the birds would eat his flesh. Three days later, it was Pharaoh’s birthday, and he took the chief butler and baker out of prison. As Joseph said would happen in the interpretation of their dreams, Pharaoh did indeed restore the butler to his prior position, and the butler gave the cup to Pharaoh, and Pharaoh did indeed hang the baker. Though the butler was restored, he did not remember Joseph but forgot him.

Two years went by and Joseph was still in prison. Pharaoh then dreamt a dream that troubled him when he woke up. He summoned the magicians and wise men to him and told them his dream, but none of them could interpret the dream. The chief butler then told Pharaoh that when he had been angry with him and the chief baker and had imprisoned them, they each had dreamt a dream. The butler told him there had been a young Hebrew man imprisoned with them who had interpreted the dreams and what the Hebrew had said would happen did come to pass. Pharaoh then summoned Joseph and told him he had dreamt a dream and had heard that Joseph could interpret dreams. Now, let us compare Joseph’s reply to Pharaoh to what Daniel the prophet many years later would tell the King of Babylon when the King sought someone to interpret his dream:

“…It is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace.” (Genesis 41:16)

“Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, The secret which the king hath demanded cannot the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, the soothsayers, shew [declare] unto the king; but there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets, and maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days.” (Daniel 2:27-28)

Both Joseph and Daniel knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that any ability they had to interpret dreams did not come of their own ability but by God alone. May we ourselves remember Joseph and Daniel when it comes to any ability that God has given us. Now, let us continue with Pharaoh’s dream. He dreamt of standing by a river and seeing seven fat, well-fed cows grazing in a meadow, and then he saw seven emaciated cows that came after them, such that he had never seen before in Egypt. He saw the emaciated cows eat the fat cows and afterwards, the emaciated cows still looked unchanged; they were that thin. Pharaoh had awakened from his dream and then dreamt another dream. This time, he saw seven heads of grain that came up from one stalk that were healthy, and then he saw seven withered and thin heads of grain that were blighted, badly damaged, by the east wind, that came up after them. He saw the thin and weak heads of grain devour the seven healthy heads of grain. Joseph then interpreted Pharaoh’s dream:

“And Joseph said unto Pharaoh, The dream of Pharaoh is one: God hath shewed Pharaoh what he is about to do. The seven good kine [cows] are seven years; and the seven good ears are seven years: the dream is one. And the seven thin and ill favoured kine that came up after them are seven years; and the seven empty ears blasted [blighted] with the east wind shall be seven years of famine. This is the thing which I have spoken unto Pharaoh: What God is about to do he sheweth unto Pharaoh. Behold, there come seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt: and there shall arise after them seven years of famine; and all the plenty shall be forgotten in the land of Egypt; and the famine shall consume the land; and the plenty shall not be known in the land by reason of that famine following; for it shall be very grievous. And for that the dream was doubled [repeated] unto Pharaoh twice; it is because the thing is established by God, and God will shortly bring it to pass.” (Genesis 41:25-32)

Joseph then proposed to Pharaoh that he appoint officers who would take a fifth part (20%) of the land during the plentiful seven years and the food grown in that 20% of land and store it in the cities. Thus, when the seven-year famine came, the people would have food to eat. Pharaoh and all his servants agreed with Joseph’s proposal. Then:

“And Pharaoh said unto his servants, Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is? And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Forasmuch as God hath shewed thee all this, there is none so discreet [as discerning] and wise as thou art: thou shalt be over [in charge of] my house, and according unto thy word shall all my people be ruled: only in the throne will I be greater than thou. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, See, I have set thee over all the land of Egypt. And Pharaoh took off his ring [signet ring] from his hand, and put it upon Joseph’s hand, and arrayed him in vestures [garments] of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck; and he made him to ride in the second chariot which he had; and they cried before him, Bow the knee: and he made him ruler over all the land of Egypt. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I am Pharaoh, and without thee [without your consent] shall no man lift up his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.” (Genesis 41:38-44)

Once again, but to an even greater extent, Joseph was given great responsibility, but this time it was under Pharaoh. It would be upon Joseph’s shoulders to ensure the food would be collected and stored during the coming seven years of plenty, and Joseph was ready to take on such a responsibility. Next, we are told that, just as had happened when the people living in Judah and Jerusalem were taken into captivity in Babylon by King Nebuchadnezzar, Pharaoh called Joseph by a different name, an Egyptian name of Zaphnath-paaneah, which the Authorized King James Version Bible that I have says “Probably Egyptian for God speaks and he lives.” (Genesis 41:45) Pharaoh also gave to Joseph a wife named Asenath, whose father was Poti-pherah, priest of On. We are told that at that time, Joseph was 30-years old. Joseph then went out to all of Egypt and gathered up the food which was to be stored during the 7-years of abundance. During this time, Joseph’s wife bore him two sons, whom Joseph named in a way that honored and thanked God:

“And Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh [Making Forgetful]: For God, said he hath made me forget all my toil, and all my father’s house. And the name of the second called he Ephraim [Fruitfulness]: For God hath caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction.” (Genesis 41:51-52)

Next came the 7-years of famine, and it was severe not only in Egypt but across all the earth. Joseph then opened the storehouses and sold the food to the Egyptians. In addition, all countries came to Egypt to buy food. The famine even stretched to where Joseph’s father and brothers still lived. Joseph’s father, Jacob had seen that Egypt had food and told his sons to go there to buy food so they would not die. Ten of Joseph’s brothers went, but Jacob kept Benjamin, the youngest son, home with him, for fear that something would happen to him, as it had happened to Joseph. Let us read what happened next:

“And Joseph was the governor over the land, and he it was that sold to all people of the land: and Joseph’s brethren [brothers] came, and bowed down themselves before him with their faces to the earth.” (Genesis 42:6)

Here were Joseph’s ten brothers bowing down before him. The same brothers who had mocked Joseph and hated him because of the dreams he had dreamt, and not only had his brothers mocked him but also his father, Jacob. It was his father who had mockingly asked Joseph if he, Joseph’s mother, and all his brothers should bow down to him. Little did they know then that Joseph’s dreams would come to pass. Joseph saw his brothers, but he acted as though he did not know them and spoke harshly to them. He asked them where they had come from and why they had come. Genesis 42:9 tells us, “And Joseph remembered the dreams which he dreamed of them, and said unto them, Ye are spies; to see the nakedness [exposed parts] of the land ye are come.” His brothers said no, that they were there to buy food and that they were honest men and not spies. They said they are twelve brothers, all the sons of one man who lives in Canaan, and that their youngest brother was with their father and one of their brothers was no more, meaning he had died. Joseph told them again that they were spies and in order to see Pharaoh, they must be tested to determine if they were telling the truth. He told them to send one of their brothers to their father to bring their youngest brother, while the rest of them would be imprisoned. He then put them all into prison for three days. It seems Joseph then had a change of heart:

“And Joseph said unto them the third day, This do, and live; for I fear God…” (Genesis 42:18)

Before we read what Joseph told them to do, I wanted to say that Joseph’s statement to them, “This do, and live; for I fear God” reminds me a lot of what Jesus told a man who was a lawyer who wanted to know what he should do in order to have eternal life. Let us read that account from the book of Luke:

“And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted [tested] him, saying, Master [Teacher], what shall I do to inherit eternal life? He [Jesus] said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou? And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself. And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live. But he, willing [wanting] to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour? And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment [clothing], and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him, and went to him, and bound [bandaged] up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And on the morrow [next day] when he departed, he took out two pence [money], and gave them to the host [innkeeper], and said unto him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee. Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.” (Luke 10:25-37)

Jesus showed the man that though the man who was from Jerusalem and went to Jericho was robbed and beaten, with even his clothes taken, and left for dead, was seen by people of his own faith, a priest and a Levite, they did not even attempt to help the man and merely walked to the other side of where he was, ignoring him in his time of need. However, it was the kindness and compassion of a Samaritan man who had helped him in his time of need and had shown him great mercy. I am reminded of this when I read Joseph’s words to his brothers. His own brothers had taken the coat of many colors his father had given him, thrown him into a pit with no water in it, and wanted to let him die in it, and that likely would have happened if his brother Judah hadn’t said they wouldn’t profit anything by letting him die and instead they sold Joseph to the Midianites. One of his brothers, Reuben, went away from his brothers and warned them not to shed Joseph’s blood. Reuben had intended to go back and get him out of the pit, but when he returned, his other brothers had already sold Joseph and he was gone. No mercy was shown to Joseph by his own brothers, and now Joseph, who was second in charge in Egypt and completely in charge of the food supply, had a decision to make: would he show his brothers mercy, though they had shown him none? It is clear by his words to his brothers that he would show them mercy because of what he said to them: “This do, and live; for I fear God.” Joseph knew that he was accountable to Almighty God, and he likely remembered all that God had done for him in his life, and that God had shown him mercy many times.

Joseph then told them to leave one of their brothers there in prison and for the nine other brothers to take food to their families in Canaan and to bring their youngest brother to him, and that they would not die. It was then they realized their guilt in what they had done to Joseph, their own brother:

“And they said one to another, We are verily guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the anguish of his soul, when he besought us, and we would not hear; therefore this distress is come upon us. And Reuben answered them, saying, Spake I not unto you, saying, Do not sin against the child [boy]; and ye would not hear? therefore, behold, also his blood is required. And they knew not that Joseph understood them; for he spake unto them by an interpreter. And he turned himself about [away] from them, and wept; and returned to them again, and communed [talked] with them, and took from them Simeon, and bound him before their eyes.” (Genesis 42:21-24)

Joseph then instructed his men to fill the sacks of the men of Canaan with grain, and to put the money they had brought to pay for the grain into their sacks, and to give them food for their trip back to Canaan. Joseph’s brothers then loaded the sacks onto their donkeys and left for their home. When they arrived at an inn to spend the night, one of his brothers opened a sack to get food to feed his donkey and saw that some of the money they had brought to pay for the food was in the sack! He told his brothers, and they all were afraid, and said, “What is this that God hath done unto us?” (Genesis 42:28) This is an example of what guilt does to us, when we know that we have done something wrong and we worry, we anticipate the consequences of our wicked actions. When the brothers arrived home, they told their father, Jacob all that had happened and that the ruler of the food supply, who unbeknownst to them was their brother Joseph, had told them to bring back their younger brother, Benjamin, to him, and then he would know that the brothers were honest men and not spies and he would allow them to trade in Egypt for food. As they emptied their sacks of grain, they realized that every brother had money in his sack, and they and their father were afraid. Jacob, however, did not agree to send his son, Benjamin, to Egypt. Reuben told his father that he could slay his own two sons if he did not return from Egypt with Benjamin. Jacob, thinking that, like Joseph, Reuben was also dead, was not willing to take a chance with Benjamin and thus did not agree to send him to Egypt.

Time went on, and Jacob and his family ran out of food. Jacob told his sons to return to Egypt and buy more food. Judah reminded him that they would not be able to buy food from the ruler unless they brought their brother, Benjamin to him. Jacob was upset at them that they had told the man about their brother, and they told him that the man had asked them about their family. They had told him, not knowing that he would want them to bring their brother to him. Judah told his father to send Benjamin with him so that they could go and buy food to save their family. If he did not bring his brother back, then he (Judah) would bear the blame forever. Finally, Jacob agreed and told them to take some of the best fruits, nuts, spices, balm, and myrrh to the man, along with double the money they had previously taken. Then Jacob told them:

“And God Almighty give you mercy before the man, that he may send away your other brother, and Benjamin. If I be bereaved of my children, I am bereaved.” (Genesis 43:14)

Jacob knew that he was at the point where he had to trust God, no matter the outcome. How many of us have ever been in a similar situation? I know I have, and it was a turning point in my life, one that I will never, ever forget. With Jacob in agreement, the nine brothers left for Egypt with their youngest brother, Benjamin, along with the gifts and money. They arrive in Egypt and went to see Joseph. When Joseph saw them, he told the ruler of his house to slay an animal for them to eat, and that they would eat lunch with him at noon. The man invited the brothers into Joseph’s house. However, instead of feeling comfortable about eating with him, the brothers were afraid that he was going to imprison them because of the money that had been put in their sacks when they left Egypt the first time. They decided to address the situation head-on. When they got to Joseph’s house, they told the steward about the money they had found in their sacks when they returned home and that they had brought the money back to return it. They also said they had brought more money to buy more food. The steward then told them:

“…Peace be to you, fear not: your God, and the God of your father, hath given you treasure in your sacks: I had your money. And he brought Simeon out unto them.” (Genesis 43:23)

We know that in Genesis 42:25, Joseph had commanded that his brothers’ money be put in their backs before they had returned to their home in Canaan, but here was his steward saying he had their money. Whatever his reason for doing it, it was God that made it happen; thus, the steward spoke the truth. All of Joseph’s brothers’ worrying had been for nothing, for he had intentionally returned their money to them before they left Egypt the first time. How many of us have worried about something that we needn’t worry about? Here was an Egyptian who was telling them about their God - Almighty God - who had given them back their money. Joseph’s steward then brought them into Joseph’s home, and he washed their feet and fed their donkeys. Let us read what happened next:

“And when Joseph came home, they brought him the present which was in their hand into the house, and bowed themselves to him to the earth. And he asked them of their welfare, and said, Is your father well, the old man of whom ye spake? Is he alive? And they answered, Thy servant our father is in good health, he is yet alive. And they bowed down their heads and made obeisance [prostrated themselves]. And he lifted up his eyes, and saw his brother Benjamin, his mother’s son, and said, Is this your younger brother, of whom ye spake unto me? And he said, God be gracious unto thee, my son.” (Genesis 43:26)

Finally, Joseph was able to see his younger brother, Benjamin. Joseph was filled with so much love in his heart for Benjamin that he left the room and went to his chamber and wept, for his brothers still did not know that he was their brother Joseph. He washed his face and returned to his brothers, for it was time to eat. The Hebrew brothers ate separately from the Egyptians, for we are told it was an abomination to the Egyptians to eat with Hebrews. Joseph gave five times the serving of food to Benjamin than he did to the other brothers. Joseph then told the steward of the house to fill the men’s sacks with as much food as they would hold and to put the men’s money they had brought with them back into the sacks. Joseph also told his steward to put his (Joseph’s) silver cup into Benjamin’s sack. In the early morning, the brothers left for their home with their sacks of food and their donkeys. Now Joseph wanted to test his brothers, for still they had not recognized him as their brother, and he told his steward to go and follow after the men and when he caught up to them, he was to say to them, “Wherefore have ye rewarded [repaid] evil for good? Is not this it in which my lord drinketh, and whereby indeed he divineth [practises divination]? ye have done evil in so doing.” (Genesis 44:4-5)

The steward did as Joseph commanded him. When he caught up to the brothers, he asked them what Joseph had told him to ask them. The brothers asked him why he would ask them such a thing, and said they had returned the money they had previously found in their sacks the first time and asked him why would they steal from his lord’s house silver or gold. They told him that if the cup was found in any one of the sacks, then the one who has the sack should die and they would be his lord’s slaves. The steward said to them that if the cup is found in a sack, the one whose sack it was would be his slave but the other brothers would be blameless. He then searched the brothers’ sacks, starting from the oldest brother to the youngest brother, and he found the cup in Benjamin’s sack. His brothers then tore their clothes, and they returned to Egypt. Judah and his brothers fell before Joseph, who asked them why did they do what they had done. Judah replied to Joseph, saying:

“…What shall we say unto my lord? what shall we speak? or how shall we clear ourselves? God hath found out the iniquity of thy servants: behold, we are my lord’s servants, both we, and he also with whom the cup is found.” (Genesis 44:16)

Joseph replied by saying that only Benjamin, the one in whose sack the cup was found, needed to stay and be his servant and the rest of his brothers could leave. Judah then pleaded with Joseph and told him that it would literally kill his father if Benjamin remained with Joseph as his servant, for Benjamin was the only surviving son that remains from his mother. Judah told Joseph of how Jacob had reluctantly agreed to let Benjamin come with them the second time in order to buy food and save their family. Judah then asked Joseph to let him remain as his servant and let Benjamin return to his father. Joseph had reached the point that he could no longer conceal his identify from his brothers. He was torn up inside seeing the anguish his brothers were going through and that they loved their father. Finally, he told the Egyptians who were with him to leave the room, and he was left alone with his brothers. Joseph cried out loud and the Egyptians in his house heard him. Joseph then said to his brothers:

“…I am Joseph; doth my father yet live? And his brethren could not answer him; for they were troubled by his presence. And Joseph said unto his brethren, Come near to me, I pray you. And they came near. And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt. Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life. For these two years hath the famine been in the land: and yet there are five years, in the which there shall neither be earing [plowing] nor harvest. And God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity [remnant] in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God: and he hath made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt. Haste ye, and go up to my father, and say unto him, Thus saith thy son Joseph, God hath made me lord of all Egypt: come down unto me, tarry [delay] not: and thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen, and thou shalt be near unto me, thou, and thy children, and thy children’s children, and thy flocks, and thy herds, and all that thou hast: and there will I nourish [provide for] thee; for yet there are five years of famine; lest thou, and thy household, and all that thou hast, come to poverty. And, behold, your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Benjamin, that it is my mouth that speaketh unto you. And ye shall tell my father of all my glory in Egypt, and of all that ye have seen; and ye shall haste and bring down my father hither. And he fell upon his brother Benjamin’s neck, and wept; and Benjamin wept upon his neck. Moreover he kissed all his brethren, and wept upon them: and after that his brethren talked with him.” (Genesis 45:3-14)

What an amazing account we just read of how God works in our lives! First, Joseph told his brothers not to be angry with themselves because they had sold him because God had used their actions to preserve life, to preserve the lineage of Jacob. God sees what we cannot see, and God knows what we cannot know. God knew before Jacob and his sons were even born that it would be through Jacob that Messiah would eventually come, and God made that possible through Joseph. It was Joseph who would be sold and taken to Egypt, where God would prosper him in all he did, even in the times of his bondage in prison. It was God who would ensure that Jacob’s family would not die of starvation during the 7-year famine, and He did that through Joseph. Joseph could have been bitter and could have hated his brothers for what they did to him. He could have had them killed or permanently imprisoned. He could have said something like “let them starve, for they cared nothing about me,” but he didn’t. He wasn’t out for vengeance; no, because he loved them and he showed mercy to them. Though he did not reveal himself to them when they came to Egypt the first time, it was because he was testing them. Through this testing, he saw that they truly loved their father Jacob, and also their youngest brother Benjamin. Joseph saw that Judah had told Jacob that he would take the blame forever if anything happened to Benjamin, and that Judah was also willing to give up his life and be Joseph’s servant so that Benjamin could be returned to Jacob. Joseph also knew and plainly stated that it was God who used him in order to preserve their family line, and he knew that because he had remembered his dreams that he had dreamt of his brothers and his family. Through Joseph’s difficult times in his life, we have a lesson that we can learn from him, and that is to trust in God no matter what happens in our lives. Things may happen to us that we don’t understand why they are happening, but we must trust that there is a greater purpose that God has for us, one that is beyond what our eyes can see and beyond which our minds can comprehend.

As I am editing above what I wrote previously, I realize that the same words also could apply to Jesus Christ. The first time He came to earth, His own brethren, the ones He came to save - the Jews - betrayed Him. They mocked and scoffed at Him. While Jesus never Himself outright said to the Jews who did not believe in Him as their Messiah, their Savior, that He is the Messiah, He did agree in at least two instances with two people who were seeking their Messiah. One instance is the Samaritan woman at the well, whom we read about earlier, said she knew that Messiah, who is called Christ, was coming and when He does, He would tell them all things. Jesus responded to her, saying, ”I that speak unto thee am he.” (John 4:25) A second time was when Jesus asked His disciples, “Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?” They said that some people say He is John the Baptist, some Elijah, some Jeremiah, while others said He is one of the prophets. Jesus then asked them, “But whom say ye that I am?” Peter, being full of faith in Jesus said, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (Matthew 16:13-16) Jesus responded to Peter, who was called “Simon,” saying:

“…Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.” (Matthew 16:17)

Like Joseph had tested his brothers and didn’t tell them who he was, Jesus didn’t just come outright and tell people who He is but instead waited to see if they were looking for the Christ to come, and if they believed in Him as the Messiah, the Christ. Just as Joseph saved not only Egypt, but more importantly, his own family line, during the 7-year famine, Jesus will save a one-third remnant of the Jews during the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble. Just as Joseph had to suffer all that He did in order to save his family line and to bring glory to God, so too did Jesus suffer all that He did to save His people, which are not just the Jews but all people who put our faith and trust in Him to save us, and to bring Him glory. As Joseph revealed himself when his brothers came to him a second time, so too when Jesus comes to earth the second time, He will reveal Himself to His brethren, the remnant of Israel. As Joseph showed love, grace, and mercy towards his brothers when he revealed to them that he was their brother, instead of holding the remnant of Israel accountable for all that they did to Him, Jesus will show them love, grace, and mercy when they realize who He is and that they had had Him crucified:

“And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirt of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness [grieves] for his firstborn. In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadad-rimmon in the valley of Megiddo.” (Zechariah 12:10-11)

Returning to Joseph, in Genesis 45:16, we read that the Egyptian servants in Pharaoh’s house heard that the men who had come from Canaan were Joseph’s brothers and that it pleased not only them but also Pharaoh:

“And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Say unto thy brethren, This do ye; lade [load] your beasts, and go, get you unto the land of Canaan; and take [bring] your father and your households, and come unto me: and I will give you the good of the land of Egypt, and ye shall eat the fat [best] of the land. Now thou art commanded, this do ye; take you wagons out of the land of Egypt for your little ones, and for your wives, and bring your father, and come. Also regard not your stuff; for the good of all the land of Egypt is yours.” (Genesis 45:17-20)

Joseph did as Pharaoh commanded him to do, and he also gave his brothers changes of clothing. However, to Benjamin he gave 300 pieces of silver and five changes of clothing. His brothers left Egypt, and when they arrived at their home in Canaan, they told their father that his son, their brother, Joseph was alive! They told him not only was he alive, but he was governor over all the land of Egypt. Scripture tells us that Jacob did not believe them. They then told him the words of Joseph and showed him the wagons Joseph had sent to bring Jacob to him. After seeing all that Joseph had sent:

“And Israel said, It is enough; Joseph my son is yet alive: I will go and see him before I die. And Israel took his journey with all that he had, and came to Beer-sheba, and offered sacrifices unto the God of his father Isaac. And God spake unto Israel in the visions of the night, and said, Jacob, Jacob. And he said, Here am I. And he said, I am God, the God of thy father: fear not to go down into Egypt; for I will there make of thee a great nation: I will go down with thee into Egypt; and I will also surely bring thee up again: and Joseph shall put his hand upon thine eyes [will close your eyes when you die].” (Genesis 45:28-46:4)

Almighty God had just reiterated to Jacob the promise He had previously made to Jacob’s grandfather, Abraham, and to his father, Isaac, which was that He would make their descendants into a great nation. Now God was telling Jacob to go into Egypt but that he would bring him up again, meaning that God would bring Jacob and his descendants back into the land of Canaan that He had given them. Genesis 46:8-27 tells us the names of each son and Jacob’s daughter, Dinah, and the names of all of their sons who came with Jacob to Egypt, for a total of 70 people. Jacob then sent Judah to Joseph to direct him to the land of Goshen.

“And Joseph made ready his chariot, and went up to meet Israel his father, to Goshen, and presented himself unto him; and he fell on his neck, and wept on his neck a good while. And Israel said unto Joseph, Now let me die, since I have seen thy face, because thou art yet alive.” (Genesis 46:29-30)

The words that Jacob spoke to his son, Joseph remind me of the words spoken by a man named Simeon many years later when he finally saw the face of his Savior, Jesus Christ, when He was brought to the temple by Joseph and Mary:

“And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him. And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. And he came by the Spirit into the temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him after the custom of the law, then took he him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said, Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: for mine eyes have seen thy salvation, which thou hast prepared before the face of all people; a light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel.” (Luke 2:25-32)

What a wonderful reunion that must have been for Jacob and Joseph! God had made it possible for Jacob to be reunited with his beloved son in a way that no one would have possibly expected. Joseph then told his family that he would go tell Pharaoh that his family had arrived and that from the time of their birth, they have been shepherds and that they brought their flocks with them. He said that when Pharaoh calls them to him and asks them what is their occupation, they should tell him the truth so that they could live in the land of Goshen. Joseph said that every shepherd was considered an abomination to the Egyptians, and Goshen would be a place where they could dwell. Joseph then went to Pharaoh and told him that his family had arrived. He also took five of his brothers to Pharaoh, who asked them what was their occupation, and they told him they were shepherds and had brought their flocks because the land where they lived was barren. Pharaoh told Joseph to let his family dwell in the best of the land of Egypt in Goshen. Pharaoh also told Joseph to let his brothers be rulers over Pharaoh’s cattle, as well as their own flocks. Joseph then presented Jacob to Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. Pharaoh asked Jacob how old he was, and Jacob answered that “few and evil” were his days, and that he had not lived as long as his fathers (Genesis 47:9). Jacob’s father, Isaac was 180-years old when he died (Genesis 35:28) and Abraham was 175-years old (Genesis 25:7). Clearly and understandably, Jacob’s life was deeply affected after his other sons had told him that Joseph had died and Jacob had been separated from him for all those years.

Joseph took his father and his brothers to the best of the Egyptian land, “in the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had commanded.” (Genesis 47:11). As Joseph had correctly interpreted Pharaoh’s dream, the famine continued in Egypt and in Canaan, and it grew even more severe. It was so severe that the people of Egypt and Canaan spent all the money they had to buy grain from Joseph on behalf of Pharaoh. When they ran out of money, they sold all their livestock for grain. When they had no more money or livestock, they sold their land and themselves to be servants to Pharaoh in exchange for seed to sow, except for the priests who retained their land, as they were given a ration of food by Pharaoh to eat. Joseph also had the people move from the rural areas into the cities. Joseph told them to sow the seed and that a fifth part, or 20%, of whatever they reaped must be given to Pharaoh, in addition to making it a law. The Bible tells us:

“And Israel dwelt in the land of Egypt, in the country of Goshen; and they had possessions therein, and grew, and multiplied exceedingly. And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years: so the whole age of Jacob was an hundred forty and seven years. And the time drew night that Israel must die: and he called his son Joseph, and said unto him, If now I have found grace in thy sight, put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh, and deal kindly and truly with me; bury me not, I pray thee, in Egypt: But I will lie with my fathers, and thou shalt carry me out of Egypt, and bury me in their buryingplace. And he said, I will do as thou hast said. And he said, Swear unto me. And he swore unto him. And Israel bowed himself upon the bed’s head.” (Genesis 47:27-31)

What Jacob had Joseph do when he had Joseph put his hand under Jacob’s thigh was the ancient Hebrew way of a man making an oath to another man. Gotquestions.org has an article that explains this further. (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/hand-under-thigh.html) Jacob wanted to be taken back to the land of Canaan after he died, and Joseph took an oath, promising he would do that for his father.  Some time later, it was told to Joseph that his father was sick, and he took his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, and went to see Jacob:

“And Jacob said unto Joseph, God Almighty appeared unto me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and blessed me, and said unto me, Behold, I will make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, and I will make of thee a multitude of people; and will give this land to thy seed [descendants] after thee for an everlasting possession. And now thy two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, which were born unto thee in the land of Egypt before I came unto thee into Egypt, are mine; as Reuben and Simeon; they shall be mine. And thy issue [offspring], which thou begettest after them, shall be thine, and shall be called after the name of their brethren in their inheritance.” (Genesis 48:3-6)

May 23, 2025: Isaiah 49:23 (Part 4 of 7) - They Shall Bow Down to Thee

“And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.” - Isaiah 49:23

Note to readers: Because of the length of this devotional, I have decided to split it up into 7 parts. This is part 4. I also have a link that contains the entire devotional.

Now, let us return to Jacob. Genesis 29:11 states, “And Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice, and wept.” Clearly, Jacob was happy to be there, having arrived at his uncle Laban’s house. Jacob told Rachel who he was, and she went and told her father, Laban. It was there that Jacob would realize that his uncle Laban was a lot like himself. Laban had two daughters, the oldest being Leah and the youngest was Rachel. Jacob liked Rachel, and she was the one whom Jacob had seen first when he arrived in Haran. After Jacob stayed at Laban’s house for a month:

“And Laban said unto Jacob, Because thou art my brother [family], shouldest thou therefore serve me for nought [nothing]? tell me, what shall thy wages be? And Laban had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. Leah was tender eyed [delicate or soft]; but Rachel was beautiful and well favoured [of form and appearance]. And Jacob loved Rachel; and said, I will serve thee seven years for Rachel thy younger daughter. And Laban said, It is better that I give her to thee, than that I should give her to another man: abide with me.” (Genesis 29:14-19)

Thus, Laban and Jacob made an agreement that Jacob would serve Laban seven years and then Laban would give Rachel’s hand in marriage to Jacob. After the seven years had passed, Laban made a feast with Jacob and all the men there. However, in the evening when it was dark, Laban brought not his youngest daughter, Rachel to Jacob but his oldest daughter, Leah, without Jacob realizing it was Leah. They had sexual intercourse that night, and in the morning, Jacob realized that it wasn’t Rachel but Leah. Jacob then confronted Laban:

“…What is this thou hast done unto me? did not I serve with thee for Rachel? wherefore then has thou beguiled [deceived] me?” (Genesis 29:25)

Jacob must have felt like his father Isaac had felt when Jacob had deceived him into believing that he was Esau in order to receive his father’s blessing. Let us read Laban’s response to Jacob:

“And Laban said, It must not be so done in our country [place], to give the younger before the firstborn. Fulfil her week, and we will give thee this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years. And Jacob did so, and fulfilled her week: and he gave him Rachel his daughter to [as] wife also.” (Genesis 29:26-28)

When Laban had given Leah to Jacob, Laban had given one of his handmaids, Zilpah, to Leah. When Laban gave Rachel to Jacob, Laban also gave to Rachel his handmaid Bilhah. Finally, Jacob was with the wife he loved, Rachel, and they had sexual intercourse. Jacob stayed there another seven years. What followed was a sad story of how Leah loved her husband Jacob but he loved Rachel. At that time, Leah was the only daughter who conceived children with Jacob. She felt unloved, and God had opened her womb, but Rachel was not able to conceive. Rachel envied her sister because she was able to give her husband children but Rachel was not able to. Like his grandmother, Sarah had done with Abraham and her handmaiden, Rachel told Jacob to have sexual intercourse with her handmaiden, Bilhah. Then Leah also had Jacob have sexual intercourse with her handmaiden, Zilpah. Ultimately, Rachel was able to conceive and bore Jacob two sons. It was as though Leah and Rachel were in a competition as to who could have the most children between themselves and their handmaidens. All of this is detailed in Genesis 29:31-30:24. Ultimately, Jacob had twelve sons and one daughter. I have listed by their birth order their names and the Scripture references below. I have put in bold font the names of the twelve sons who were born to Jacob:

1-Reuben (Leah’s firstborn son; Genesis 29:32); 2-Simeon (Leah’s second son; Genesis 29:33); 3-Levi (Leah’s third son; Genesis 29:34); 4-Judah (Leah’s fourth son; Genesis 29:35); 5-Dan (Bilhah’s first son; Genesis 30:4-6); 6-Naphtali (Bilhah’s second son; Genesis 30:7-8); 7-Gad (Zilpah’s first son; Genesis 30:9-11); 8-Asher (Zilpah’s second son; Genesis 30:12-13); 9-Issachar (Leah’s fifth son; Genesis 30:17-18); 10-Zebulun (Leah’s sixth son; Genesis 30:19-20); 11-Dinah (Leah’s only daughter; Genesis 30:21); 12-Joseph (Rachel’s first son; Genesis 30:22-24); 13-Benjamin (Rachel’s second son; Rachel died after giving birth; Genesis 35:17-18)

When I first read this, it was surprising to me to know the details about how Jacob had twelve sons. I naively thought that everyone in the Bible must have been perfect in their ways in order for God to use them. However, we see time and time again that God knows that we are not perfect and yet, He still uses us to accomplish His plan for mankind and for His glory. I am thankful for the honesty in God’s word. Oftentimes in historical records, humans try to cover up the sordid details and make people look much better than they truly were, but God doesn’t do that. He shows us that even though we may not be perfect, if we are faithful to Him, He can still use us in many ways, just as He did with Jacob.

After Rachel’s first son, Joseph was born, Jacob went to Laban and asked him to let him, his wives, and his children leave so that he could finally return to his father’s house. Once again, Laban resisted Jacob and asked him to stay longer because he knew that God had blessed him after Jacob came. He told Jacob to name his price to stay and he would pay it. Jacob responded by saying:

“Thou shalt not give me any thing: if thou wilt do this thing for me, I will again feed and keep thy flock: I will pass through all thy flock to day, removing from thence all the speckled and spotted cattle [sheep], and all the brown cattle among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats: and of such shall be my hire [these shall be my wages]. So shall my righteousness answer for me in time to come, when it shall come for my hire [about my wages] before thy face: every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and brown among the sheep, that shall be counted stolen with me. And Laban said, Behold, I would it might be according to thy word.” (Genesis 30:31-34)

Thus, Laban agreed to give all the speckled, spotted, and brown sheep and goats to Jacob, which apparently were fewer in kind than the other colors of sheep, thus the deal would seemingly benefit Laban. Genesis 30:35-36 tells us that Laban took the speckled, spotted, and brown sheep and cattle and gave them to his sons. Laban then went a distance of three days’ journey away from Jacob, while Jacob fed the rest of Laban’s flocks, meaning those that weren’t speckled, spotted, and brown. We read how Jacob did something with rods of green poplar, hazel, and chestnut trees and peeled the bark to create white streaks in them. Then he took the rods and put them in the gutters of the watering troughs, for he believed this would result in the solid color sheep and cattle breeding and producing speckled, spotted, and brown offspring, and that is exactly what happened. There is in fact a type of sheep called the “Jacob sheep.” (See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacob_sheep) Jacob also used the rods for the stronger females and not for the weaker females. We are told in Genesis 30:43 that Jacob “increased exceedingly, and had much cattle, and maidservants, and menservants, and camels, and asses [donkeys].”

Jacob heard Laban’s sons complaining that Jacob had taken away all that belonged to Laban and had gotten all the wealth. Jacob also noticed that Laban did not look at him with favor as he previously did. Next, we are told:

“And the LORD said unto Jacob, Return unto the land of thy fathers, and to thy kindred; and I will be with thee.” (Genesis 31:3)

Jacob then called Rachel and Leah to him and told them that he could see that their father was unhappy with him and that he had deceived Jacob but God prevented him from hurting Jacob. Jacob told them that God has been with him. He then told them of a dream he had dreamt:

“And it came to pass at the time that the cattle [flocks] conceived, that I lifted up mine eyes, and saw in a dream, and, behold, the rams which leaped upon the cattle [flocks] were ringstraked [streaked], speckled, and grisled [gray-spotted]. And the angel of God spake unto me in a dream, saying, Jacob: And I said, Here am I. And he said, Lift up now thine eyes, and see, all the rams which leap upon the cattle are ringstraked, speckled, and grisled: for I have seen all that Laban doeth unto thee. I am the God of Beth-el, where thou anointedst the pillar, and where thou vowedst a vow unto me: now arise, get thee out of this land, and return unto the land of thy kindred.” (Genesis 31:10-13)

Rachel and Leah said there was no inheritance left for them at their father Laban’s house. They told Jacob “For all the riches which God hath taken from our father, that is ours, and our children’s: now then, whatsoever God hath said unto thee, do.” (Genesis 31:16) Jacob then took his wives, children, servants, and all his goods and flocks and left for the land of his father, Isaac, in the land of Canaan. Afterwards, Laban went to shear his sheep, not knowing that Jacob, Rachel, Leah, and his grandchildren had left. Without telling Jacob, Rachel had taken with her the idols/false gods of her father Laban. Three days later, Laban found out that Jacob and his family had left. Laban took men with him and pursued Jacob and his family. Seven days later they came upon Jacob and his family. “And God came to Laban the Syrian in a dream by night, and said unto him, Take heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad.” (Genesis 31:24) When Laban came to Jacob, he asked him why he had left secretly and had not allowed Laban to kiss his daughters and grandchildren and say goodbye to them. He told Jacob he could hurt him but God had told him in a dream the night before not to speak either good or bad to Jacob. He also asked Jacob why he had stolen his gods. Jacob told him that he had left secretly because he was afraid that Laban would take Rachel and Leah by force from him. Regarding the stolen gods, Jacob told Laban, “With whomsoever thou findest thy gods, let him not live: before our brethren discern [identify] thou what is thine with me, and take it to thee. For Jacob knew not that Rachel had stolen them.” (Genesis 31:32) Laban then went and searched Jacob’s tent, then Leah’s tent, and the two maidservant’s tents but did not find the gods. He then went into Rachel’s tent:

“Now Rachel had taken the images [household idols], and put them in the camel’s furniture [saddle], and sat upon them. And Laban searched all the tent, but found them not. And she said to her father, Let it not displease my lord that I cannot rise up before thee; for the custom of women is upon me. And he searched, but found not the images.” (Genesis 31:35)

By this time, Jacob was furious and confronted Laban and told him that he had served him twenty years, and yet it wasn’t enough for Laban. Jacob said if it wasn’t for God’s provision, he would have nothing:

“Except the God of my father, the God of Abraham, and the fear of Isaac, had been with me, surely thou hadst sent me away now empty. God hath seen mine affliction and the labour of my hands, and rebuked thee yesternight.” (Genesis 31:42)

Laban responded by saying that Leah and Rachel, his grandchildren, and the flocks were all his, and everything that Jacob saw was also his but what could he do to his daughters and grandchildren. He then proposed to make a covenant with Jacob, and Jacob agreed. Laban told Jacob not to afflict his daughters or take any other wives besides them, and that God was a witness of their agreement. They set a pillar before them and each swore to God not to pass over the pillar. Jacob then offered a sacrifice and called his brethren to eat bread together. The next morning, Laban kissed his daughters and grandchildren goodbye and blessed them, and then went back to his home.

Next, we read that Jacob went on his way and that angels of God met him. “And when Jacob saw them, he said, This is God’s host [camp]: and he called the name of that place Mahanaim [Double Camp].” (Genesis 32:2). Jacob then decided that he wanted to reconcile with his brother Esau. He sent messengers to Esau, “…unto the land of Seir, the country [field] of Edom.” (Genesis 32:3) He told them to tell Esau that he had lived with Laban until now and that he now has livestock and servants and hopes that Esau will forgive him. The messengers went to Esau and returned to Jacob. They told him that they did meet with Esau, who came with 400 men to meet them. Upon hearing the number of men Esau had, Jacob was filled with fear. He then came up with a plan to protect himself and his family. He divided the people with him into two camps, in case Esau struck one of them, the other would escape. Jacob prayed to God to deliver him from the hand of his brother, for he feared Esau would come and kill him, his wives, and their children. He repeated to God the words He had said to Jacob in a dream after Jacob had obeyed his father Isaac and went to his uncle Laban’s house to take a wife there:

“O God of my father, Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, the LORD which saidst unto me, Return unto thy country, and to thy kindred, and I will deal well with thee: I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which thou hast shewed unto thy servant; for with my staff I passed over this Jordan; and now I am become two bands. Deliver me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother Esau: for I fear him, lest he will come and smite [attack] me, and the mother with the with children. And thou saidst, I will surely do thee good, and make thy seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.” (Genesis 32:9-12)

Jacob spent the night there and decide to give as a present much of his livestock to his brother Esau. Jacob gave the livestock to his servants and told them to go before him in multiple droves, or groups, leaving space between the droves. He told them that when Esau would see and come to them, they were to tell him that the livestock are a present to him from his brother Jacob. Then, still in fear of his brother and his possible retaliation against him, Jacob sent his wives and children away from him, until finally Jacob was left all alone:

“And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking [dawn] of the day. And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched [struck] the hollow [socket] of his thigh [hip]; and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him. And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel [Prince with God]: for as a prince hast thou power with God [for you have struggled with God] and with men, and hast prevailed. And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there. And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel [Face of God]: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved. And as he passed over Penuel [Face of God] the sun rose upon him, and he halted upon his thigh [limped on his hip]. Therefore the children of Israel eat not of the sinew [muscle] which shrank, which is upon the hollow [socket] of the thigh [hip], unto this day: because he touched [struck] the hollow of Jacob’s thigh in the sinew that shrank.” (Genesis 32:24-32)

How many of us have been in a situation like Jacob’s above, where we are wrestling with our fear, doing all that we can in our fallen human nature to protect ourselves, ending up all alone with only God by our side?Like Jacob, how many of us have wrestled with God, not wanting to surrender to Him? It literally came to the point in Jacob’s life that God had to wrestle with Jacob all night long, with God striking Jacob’s hip and making it come out of the socket. Still, Jacob did not let go of Him until God blessed him. God gave him a new name, the name of Israel, and then God blessed him. Jacob came to the realization that he wasn’t wrestling with a man but he had wrestled with God. Let us read again from the prior Scripture I included above and how Jacob had addressed God when he asked God to deliver him from the hand of his brother Esau: “O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac…” (Genesis 32:9) Notice that Jacob did not say “O my God,” no, Jacob at that point did not consider God to be his God. But after Jacob wrestled with God Himself and had met Him face to face, now, He was his God. Jacob acknowledged this by naming the place where he had wrestled as Peniel, also spelled Penuel, which meant “Face of God.” How many of us have had a moment like that where our lives were forever changed after God met with us in our own lives, when it was only Him and us, and we came out of it knowing Him as our God? I had a moment like that, and it changed me forever.

After Jacob wrestled with God and received His blessing, he opened his eyes and saw his brother, Esau, and the 400 men, coming with him. Jacob then took Leah and her children and his wife Rachel and her children, and the handmaids and their children and put them into groups, with the first group being the handmaidens, then Leah, and Rachel toward the back:

“And he [Jacob] passed over before them, and bowed himself to the ground seven times, until he came near to his brother. And Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck, and kissed him: and they wept. And he lifted up his eyes, and saw the women and the children; and said, Who are those with thee? And he said, The children which God hath graciously given thy servant.” (Genesis 33:3-4)

Though Jacob had feared that his brother Esau would want to kill him, that did not happen. Instead, Esau ran to meet him and embraced Jacob. Jacob’s wives and children and their maidservants and their children also came and met Esau and they all bowed to him. Then Esau asked Jacob:

“What meanest thou by all this drove [company] which I met? And he [Jacob] said, These are to find grace [favour] in the sight of my lord. And Esau said, I have enough, my brother; keep that thou hast unto thyself. And Jacob said, Nay, I pray thee, if now I have found grace in thy sight, then receive my present at my hand: for therefore I have seen thy face, as though I had seen the face of God, and thou wast pleased with me. Take, I pray thee, my blessing that is brought to thee; because God hath dealt graciously with me, and because I have enough [all]. And he urged him, and he took it. And he [Esau] said, Let us take our journey, and let us go, and I will go before thee.” (Genesis 33:8-12)

It seems that Jacob had become a changed man after his encounter with God. Jacob acknowledged that it was God who had dealt graciously to him and had allowed Esau to forgive him. Jacob wanted to give Esau the present of livestock, and Esau agreed to take them. Jacob didn’t need all of the livestock that he had and wanted to give a large portion of it to Esau. Finally, Jacob was content with what he had. There are two lessons we can learn from Jacob, and  the first is that after we ourselves meet God, we should begin to see a change in our lives. We will still make mistakes and sin, but we should begin to live our lives in a way that glorifies God. The second is that we should acknowledge that it is God who has given us grace and not anything we did or could ever do.

Esau volunteered to go with Jacob to where he was going. However, perhaps because Jacob was still a little leery of his brother and not sure if he would yet still retaliate against him, Jacob told him to go on without him because his young children and young livestock would need to take it slow. Esau went on his way to Seir. However, instead of meeting Esau in Seir, Jacob took his family and they went "“to Shalem, a city of Shechem, in the land of Canaan,” (Genesis 33:18) where he bought a piece of land from the children of Hamor, Shechem’s father. Jacob erected an altar and called it El-elohe-Israel, which means God, the God of Israel (Genesis 33:20).

Jacob’s only daughter, Dinah, whose mother was Leah, went out to see the women of the land, and she was raped by Shechem, Hamor’s son. Genesis 34:3 tells us that he was attracted to her, loved her and spoke kindly to her afterwards, and told his father to get her so he could marry her. Jacob found out that Shechem had raped her but didn’t say or do anything about it until his sons came back from the field. Hamor then came to talk with Jacob. In the meantime, Jacob’s sons found out what had happened to their sister and were grieved and very angry. Hamor then talked with them and told them how his son longed for Dinah and that he prayed they would give her to be his wife. He also said to Jacob’s sons:

“And make ye marriages with us, and give your daughters unto us, and take our daughters unto you. And ye shall dwell with us: and the land shall be before you; dwell and trade ye therein, and get you [acquire] possessions therein. And Shechem said unto her father and unto her brethren, Let me find grace [favour] in your eyes, and what ye shall say unto me I will give. Ask me never [ever] so much dowry [bride-price] and gift, and I will give according as ye shall say unto me: but give me the damsel to wife [as a wife].” (Genesis 34:9-12)

We are told in Genesis 34:13 that Jacob’s sons “answered Shechem and Hamor his father deceitfully because he had defiled Dinah their sister.” They told Shechem and his father Hamor that they could not give their sister to one who is uncircumcised. Jacob’s sons then told them that if they and every male would circumcise themselves, then they would give their daughters to them and receive their daughters and would become one people. Otherwise, they would take Dinah and leave. Hamor and Shechem then went and told all of the men of their people what Jacob’s sons had proposed and said it would be good for them because of all the livestock and goods that Jacob and his family had. The men agreed, and all of them were circumcised. On the third day after they had been circumcised and were in pain, two of Jacob’s sons, Simeon and Levi, killed all the men with a sword, and then went and killed Hamor and Shechem and took their sister Dinah from Shechem’s house. They then plundered the city and took all their livestock. They also took the women and the children captive. Next we read what Jacob said when he found out what had happened:

“And Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, Ye have troubled me to make me to stink [obnoxious] among the inhabitants of the land, among the Canaanites and the Perizites: and I being few in number, they shall gather themselves together against me, and slay me; and I shall be destroyed, I and my house. And they said, Should he deal with our sister as with an harlot?” (Genesis 34:30-31)

Next we are told that God then spoke to Jacob and told him to go to Beth-el, where Jacob had gone to when he had fled from his brother Esau. Jacob did as God told him to do, and Jacob told his family:

“…Put away the strange [foreign] gods that are among you, and be clean [purify yourselves], and change your garments; and let us arise, and go up to Beth-el; and I will make there an altar unto God, who answered me in the day of my distress, and was with me in the way which I went. And they gave unto Jacob all the strange gods which were in their hand, and all their earrings which were in their ears; and Jacob hid them under the oak which was by Shechem.” (Genesis 35:2-4)

Regarding the foreign gods that are mentioned above, I don’t know if these belonged to the women and children of Shechem that were taken into captivity and/or if they belonged to some of Jacob’s own family members or servants. However, we do know that when Rachel had left her father Laban’s house with Jacob and her sister Leah, Rachel had taken some of her father’s images or idols, false gods, (Genesis 31:19) and had hidden them under the camel’s saddle. The Bible does not tell us that Jacob knew about these idols of Rachel’s. However, he is aware now of these false gods, and he told all who were with them to leave them behind.

As Jacob and all who were with him journeyed, “…the terror of God was upon the cities that were found about them, and they did not pursue after the sons of Jacob.” (Genesis 35:5) They arrived at Beth-el, in Canaan, and Jacob built an altar there and called it El-beth-el, which means God of the House of God. Next we are told:

“And God appeared unto Jacob again, when he came out of Padan-aram, and blessed him. And God said unto him, Thy name is Jacob: thy name shall not be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name: and he called his name Israel. And God said unto him, I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins; and the land which I gave Abraham and Isaac, to thee I will give it, and to thy seed after thee will I give the land. And God went up from him in the place where he talked with him.” (Genesis 35:9-13)

God confirmed what He had previously told Jacob, that his name would no longer be called Jacob but “Israel.” God also confirmed His promise to Abraham and Isaac and now to Jacob that He would make of him a great nation and many nations. I don’t know why God confirmed it to Jacob, but perhaps it was because Jacob had doubt in his mind, just as he had doubted whether his brother Esau had forgiven him. I know in my own life that when God has called me to do something and I begin to do it, I oftentimes wonder if I am doing what God called me to do. When God has confirmed to me that it is what He wants me to do, then it helps me to remove the doubt that I had and to trust in Him.

God also told Jacob that kings would be his descendants. God reconfirmed that He was giving to him the land that he had given to his father, Isaac, and to his grandfather, Abraham. Though many people in the world today want us to believe that God did not give the land to Israel, the Bible clearly tells us otherwise. After God spoke to him, Jacob set a pillar of stone where God had talked to him and poured a drink offering and oil upon it.

After leaving Beth-el, they were nearing a place Ephrath, which we are told in Genesis 35:19, “which is Beth-lehem,” that Rachel was in hard labor with her second son. Rachel’s midwife told Rachel, “Fear not; thou shalt have this son also.” (Genesis 35:17) Rachel did have her son, but because Rachel was dying, she named him Ben-oni, which means Son of My Sorrow. However, Jacob called him Benjamin, which means Son of the Right Hand. Rachel passed away, and Jacob set a pillar on her grave, which the Bible tells us is still standing to this day (Genesis 35:20). There are a couple of things I want to mention before continuing in Genesis 35. The first is that the Beth-lehem Ephrath that is mentioned in Genesis 35:16 and 19 is the same town of Bethlehem Ephratah that was prophesied by the prophet Micah as the town from which Messiah would come. Micah prophesied that Messiah would be great upon the earth. This prophesy will be fulfilled after the coming 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, when Jesus, Messiah, will bring back the remnant of Israel, whom He will save during their time of trouble, into their land. It will be at that time that Jesus will finally be great upon all the earth:

“But thou, Beth-lehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting. Therefore will he give them up, until the time that she which travaileth hath brought forth: then the remnant of his brethren shall return unto the children of Israel. And he shall stand and feed [shepherd his flock] in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God: and they shall abide: for now shall he be great unto the ends of the earth.” (Micah 5:2-4)

The second thing I want to mention is that this is not the last time we read of Rachel. The prophet Jeremiah wrote of her when he prophesied that the captives of Israel, who were conquered and taken to Babylon for a period of seventy years, would return to their land and that Jerusalem and the temple would be rebuilt. They would have again have hope:

“Thus saith the LORD; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rahel [Rachel] weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not. Thus saith the LORD; Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears: for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the LORD; and they shall come again from the land of the enemy. And there is hope in thine end [thy future], saith the LORD, that thy children shall come again to their own border.” (Jeremiah 31:15-17)

Jeremiah’s prophecy above was a dual prophecy, with the first fulfillment being when Israel returned from Babylon to Israel after 70 years. We are told in Matthew how this prophecy was also fulfilled a second time. After Jesus was born in Bethlehem, the puppet king of Israel, King Herod, had wise men of the east come to him and ask him, “Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.” (Matthew 2:2). Herod told them to go and search for this child so that he could worship Him. However, that is not what Herod wanted to do. The wise men did go to Jesus but were warned by God in a dream not to return to Herod, and they obeyed God. Joseph, Jesus’ step-father, was warned by an angel in a dream that he must take his family to Egypt because Herod wanted to destroy the child, and Joseph did as he was told. King Herod feared that his power as king was threatened by this child, and Herod sought to kill him:

“Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked [deceived] of the wise men, was exceeding wroth [angry], and sent forth, and slew all the children [male children] that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts [districts] thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy [Jeremiah] the prophet, saying, In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not.” (Matthew 2:16-18)

I can’t even imagine the sorrow and anguish of all of the mothers of those male babies that had been killed, all because Herod felt his power and authority were threatened by Jesus. He had all of those poor children killed, and by the power of Almighty God, Jesus was saved. Time and time again, mankind has tried to stop the plan of God from being carried out, and the source of these attempts is Satan. Satan did not want Jesus Christ to come to earth the first time, and he certainly does not want Jesus to return to earth at His second coming. Satan is doing everything in his power to stop that. Time and time again, Satan’s wrath has come against the Jews and also against Christians. However, as the Bible tells us in the book of Revelation, Satan will not prevail.

Now, let us return to Genesis chapter 35. It is there that for the first time, we read of Jacob being referred to in the Bible by his new name of “Israel.” Though God had previously told Jacob that he was giving him a new name of “Israel” in Genesis 32:28, this was the first time that He had referred to Jacob as “Israel”:

“And Israel journeyed, and spread his tent beyond the tower of Edar [or Eder]. And it came to pass, when Israel dwelt in that land, that Reuben went and lay with Bilhah his father’s concubine: and Israel heard it.” (Genesis 35:21-22)

Reuben, who was Jacob’s firstborn son, had committed a horrible deed against his father by having sexual intercourse with his father’s concubine. We don’t read about any action or reprimand Jacob took against Reuben until when Jacob was dying and prophesied to his twelve sons of what would happen to them in the last days, he had this to say to his oldest son:

“Reuben, thou art my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength, the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power: unstable as water, thou shalt not excel; because thou wentest up to the father’s bed; then defiledst thou it: he went up to my couch.” (Genesis 49:3-4)

As we have read, Jacob and his family traveled a lot during his many journeys. I was interested in seeing where he went, and found this link that shows possible routes of Jacob’s many travels: https://i.pinimg.com/736x/40/49/24/404924225d1be52de535d3a76ebb46cd.jpg

In Genesis 35:27-29, Jacob, along with his family and all that he had, finally returned to his father, Isaac, in Hebron, “where Abraham and Isaac had sojourned.” Isaac died at the age of 180 years, and Jacob and Esau buried him. Long ago, after Jacob had left his father’s house, fleeing from Esau, to go to his uncle Laban’s house, the vow that Jacob had made with God had come to pass. Let us read it again:

“And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, so that I come again to my father’s house in peace; the shall the LORD be my God…” (Genesis 28:20-21)

God was with Jacob the entire time during all of his travels and fed and protected him, and God had brought Jacob back to his father’s house in peace.

Before we read about what happened next to Jacob, let us read what God’s word says about his brother, Esau:

“And Esau took his wives, and his sons, and his daughters, and all the persons of his house, and his cattle, and all his beasts [animals], and all his substance [goods], which he had got in the land of Canaan; and went into the country from the face of [away from the presence of] his brother Jacob. For their riches were more than that they might [possessions were too great for them to] dwell together; and the land wherein they were strangers could not bear [support] them because of their cattle. Thus dwelt Esau in mount Seir: Esau is Edom.” (Genesis 36:6-8)

Though Jacob and Esau had made amends with one another, Esau’s descendants would be the peoples known as the Edomites, and they would constantly be at war with the Israelites. The prophets Jeremiah and Obadiah prophesied destruction for the Edomites, which later became the Idumaeans. Let us read Obadiah’s prophecy:

“And the house of Jacob shall be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame, and the house of Esau for stubble, and they shall kindle in them, and devour them; and there shall not be any remaining [survivor] of the house of Esau; for the LORD hath spoken it.” (Obadiah 18)

Gotquestions.org has an article that describes what eventually happened to the Edomites. (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/Edomites.html)

There is much more to write about how the nation of Israel was created by God, and before returning the focus to today’s Scripture from Isaiah 49:23, I wanted to write about Jacob and his twelve sons and how they became the twelve tribes of Israel. I am absolutely fascinated by God’s word, and it is critical to understand how the nation of Israel came about and the reason why in order to understand what is happening in our world today, because it all centers around Israel.

After returning to his father, Isaac’s land in Canaan and after Isaac died, Jacob and his family lived there. Genesis 37:2 tells us that one day, Joseph, Jacob’s oldest son from his beloved wife Rachel, who was 17-years old at that time, was feeding the flock with brothers when he gave a bad report of them to his father. Afterwards we are told:

“Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat [tunic] of many colours. And when his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably unto him. And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet the more. And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed: For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance [bowed down] to my sheaf. And his brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed reign over us? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us? And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words. And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance [bowed down] to me. And he told it to his father, and to his brethren: and his father rebuked him, and said unto him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth? And his brethren envied him; but his father observed the saying [kept the matter in mind].” (Genesis 37:3-11)

Having a sibling of my own, I am sure it must have hurt Joseph’s brothers that they could clearly see that their father Jacob, now called Israel, loved Joseph more than he loved them, especially when Jacob made a special coat for Joseph. Because of this, they hated Joseph, and things only worsened after Joseph dreamt the two dreams and then told his family about the dreams, which were not well-received, even by Jacob.

Joseph’s brothers left to go feed their father’s flock in Shechem. Israel told Joseph to go and check on his brothers and the sheep. Joseph did as Israel told him to do, and Joseph came across a man and asked him if he had seen his brothers. He told Joseph they had gone to Dothan, and Joseph went there. Joseph’s brothers saw him coming, and called him a “dreamer” to themselves. They plotted to kill him and throw him into a pit:

“And Reuben heard it, and he delivered him out of their hands; and said, Let us not kill him. And Reuben said unto them, Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness, and lay no hand upon him; that he might rid [deliver] him out of their hands, to deliver him to his father again.” (Genesis 37:21-22)

Hoping they would agree with him and throw Joseph in the pit, Reuben intended to go back later and save Joseph and take him back to their father. When Joseph came to them, they took of his coat of many colors and threw into the pit, which had no water in it. They then ate a meal together and saw a group of Ishmeelites coming with their camels to sell their goods in Egypt. Judah asked his brothers what would it profit them if they killed their brother and hid his blood, and said they should sell him to the Ishmeelites. Like his brother Reuben, he didn’t want to kill Joseph and said, “…let not our hand be upon him; for he is our brother and our flesh.” (Genesis 37:27) His brothers agreed, and they sold Joseph for twenty pieces of silver. The Ishmeelites then took Joseph to Egypt. Upon returning to the pit, Reuben, who had not been with his brothers when they sold Joseph, saw the empty pit and he tore his clothes in grief. The brothers then killed a goat and dipped Joseph’s coat in the blood. They returned home to their father and showed him the coat and asked if he knew if it was Joseph’s coat. Israel recognized it as his son’s and said that a wild animal had surely killed Joseph and torn him into pieces. Israel tore his clothes in grief and mourned many days for his son. All of his other children tried to comfort him, but he refused and said, “For I will go down into the grave unto my son mourning. Thus his father wept for him. (Genesis 37:35). Next, we are told that the Midianites sold Joseph to Potiphar, who was an officer and captain of the guard of the Pharaoh of Egypt. Before we read more about that, the Bible tells us about Israel’s son Judah.

We are told that after the brothers sold Joseph to the Ishmeelites, who took him to Egypt and sold him to Potiphar, that one of the brothers, Judah, went away from his brothers and apparently remained there and made a friend named Hirah, who was an Adullamite. Judah married a daughter of a Canaanite man whose name was Shuah, and they had three sons named Er, Onan, and Shelah. Time passed, and Judah found a wife named Tamar for his oldest son, Er. The Bible tells us that Er “was wicked in the sight of the LORD; and the LORD slew [killed] him.” (Genesis 38:7) As was tradition during that time, Judah told his middle son to take his brother’s wife and marry her so that she could have a child. However, Onan did not obey God, which displeased God and He killed Onan as well. Judah then told Tamar to go to her father’s house until his youngest son Shelah grew up and could marry her. Tamar did go to her father’s house, and in the meantime, Judah’s wife died and he mourned. He decided to go visit his friend Hirah who lived in Timnath. Tamar heard what happened to Judah, and she decided to go to Timnath and disguise herself as a prostitute, “for she saw that Selah was grown, and she was not given unto him to wife.” (Genesis 38:14) Judah saw her but did not know she was his daughter-in-law because she had hid her face with a veil. Judah went to her and asked her to let him have sex with her. She asked him what would he give her, and he said he would send her one of his goats. She asked him to give her his signet, bracelets (cord), and staff as a pledge for the goat, and he agreed. They had sexual relations, and Judah left, still not knowing it was Tamar. Judah returned to his friend, Hirah, who then took the goat and went and looked for Tamar to give it to her. He asked some men if they had seen a harlot, and they said there was not one in that place. Hirah returned and told Judah that he could not find the harlot. Three months later, Judah heard it said, “Tamar thy daughter in law hath played the harlot; and also, behold, she is with child by whoredom [harlotry]. And Judah said, Bring her forth, and let her be burnt.” (Genesis 38:24) Let us read what happened next:

“When she was brought forth, she sent to her father in law, saying, By the man, whose these are, am I with child: and she said, Discern, I pray thee, whose are these, the signet, and bracelets, and staff. And Judah acknowledged them, and said, She hath been more righteous than I; because that I gave her not to Shelah my son. And he knew her again no more.” (Genesis 38:26)

I must admit that when I first read this, I thought to myself, how could this possibly be the son of Israel, from whom Messiah would come, the lion of the tribe of Judah? It was only when I read it again that I realized a couple of things. The first is that when God came down to earth as a human being, Jesus, He would be formed in the womb of His mother by God, where God provided the seed through the Holy Spirit and the woman, Mary, conceived by the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit upon her. Both Jesus’ step-father Joseph and His mother Mary have the lineage of Judah in their bloodlines. Ever since Adam and Eve sinned in the garden of Eden, sin has been passed down to mankind, and that includes sin in the man Judah. However, God chose Judah to be the son out of Jacob’s twelve sons, from whom Jesus would come. Secondly, we see here how Judah could have denied that the items that Tamar had as proof of the man who impregnated her were his, but instead of denying them, he acknowledge them as his own. We also have his admittance of his guilt in not giving his youngest son, Shelah to Tamar to be her husband, as Judah had previously told her he would do. We also read that Judah even said that she was more righteous than he was. We are also told that after all of this happened, Judah did not know her again, meaning he did not have sexual relations with her anymore. I love the fact that instead of leaving out these not-so-favorable accounts of history, the Bible includes them, and it shows the sin of humanity but how God can still show grace to those who admit their mistakes, as Judah did.

The Bible goes on to tell us that Tamar was pregnant with twin boys. When Tamar was in labor, one of the twins put out his hand and Tamar’s midwife put a scarlet thread on his hand to denote which son would be delivered first, which one would have the birthright. However, the baby went back inside the womb and the other baby came out first:

“…and she [the midwife] said, How hast thou broken forth? this breach be upon thee: therefore his name was called Pharez [Breach or breakthrough]. And afterward came out his brother, that had the scarlet thread upon his hand: and his name was called Zarah [Zerah].” (Genesis 38:29-30)

It is from the lineage of Pharez (Phares in the Greek) that Jesus Christ would come, as documented in Matthew 1:3 and Luke 3:33. The account of the twins of Tamar reminds me of the twin boys that Rebekah had, where Jacob, the younger son, would be the one to be blessed by his father Jacob instead of Esau.

May 22, 2025: Isaiah 49:23 (Part 3 of 7) - They Shall Bow Down to Thee

“And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.” - Isaiah 49:23

Note to readers: Because of the length of this devotional, I have decided to split it up into seven parts. This is part 3. I also have a link that contains the entire devotional.

Many years prior, Isaac’s father Abraham, who was still called Abram at that time, had gone with his wife Sarai and family to Egypt because there was a famine in the land in which they lived. Because Sarai was a beautiful woman and fearing that the Egyptians would want to take her and kill him, Abram asked Sarai to tell them that she was his sister. She did, and Pharaoh brought her into his house and treated Abram well because of her. However, God sent plagues upon Pharaoh because of Sarai, and Pharaoh went to Abram and asked why he had told him Sarai was his sister and not his wife, which caused the plagues to be sent. Abram told him because he feared for his life. Pharaoh told Abram to go get his wife and leave, and they did and took all of their belongings. (Genesis 12:9-20) In another instance when Abraham and Sarah came to the land of Gerar, they came to Abimelech, the king of Gerar, and once again, Abraham said Sarah was his sister instead of his wife, and Abimelech took Sarah. God appeared to him in a dream and told him he would be a dead man because the woman he took was married. Abimelech told God that he did not know she was married and that Abraham had said she was his sister. God also told him:

“And God said unto him in a dream, Yea, I know that thou didst this in the integrity of thy heart; for I also withheld thee from sinning against me: therefore suffered I thee not to touch her. Now therefore restore the man his wife; for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for thee, and thou shalt live: and if thou restore her not, know thou that thou shalt surely die, thou, and all that are thine.” (Genesis 20:6-7)

Abimelech then told all his servants what happened, and he also called Abraham to him and asked him why he had done this to him. As before, Abraham told him why, and Abimelech not only gave Sarah back to Abraham but also gave him livestock and menservants and womenservants and told them:

“…Behold, my land is before thee: dwell where it pleaseth thee.” (Genesis 20:15)

Abraham then prayed to God, and God healed Abimelech, his wife and maidservants, of whose wombs God had closed because of Sarah.

Returning to Isaac, like his father had done twice before, Isaac deceived the men in Gerar and told them that Rebekah was his sister and not his wife. They lived there a long time until one day, Abimelech, king of the Philistines, saw Isaac caressing her and he knew that she was not Isaac’s sister. He called Isaac to him and asked him why he had lied to him. Like his father had done twice before, Isaac told him he lied because he was afraid they would kill him because they would want his wife. Abimelech then told all of his people not to touch Isaac or Rebekah or his people would be killed. They did leave them alone, and Isaac’s wealth increased 100 times in one year and even more so over time. He became so wealthy that the Philistines envied him and filled the wells that Abraham’s servants had dug long ago with dirt to force them out. Abimelech told Isaac to leave them, “for thou art much mightier than we.” (Genesis 26:16) Isaac took his family and all that he had and moved to the valley of Gerar. Isaac and his servants dug new wells of water. However, two times the other people that also lived there claimed that the water was theirs and quarreled with him. Finally, he moved a third time and no one argued with him about the water. He named the well “Rehoboth,” which means “Spaciousness,” and said, “For now the LORD hath made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.” He then went to Beersheba and God appeared to him that night and told him:

“I am the God of Abraham thy father: fear not, for I am with thee, and will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for my servant Abraham’s sake. And he builded an altar there, and called upon the name of the LORD, and pitched his tent there: and there Isaac’s servants digged a well.” (Genesis 26:24-25)

Did you notice that God told Isaac not to fear? I think God was preparing him for what would happen next. God also reconfirmed His covenant that He had made with Abraham, Isaac’s father. Next, Abimelech, the man who previously had told Isaac and his family to leave, came with his friend and the chief captain of his army, to where Isaac and his family now lived. That must have been a bit unnerving for Isaac, and I believe that is why God told him not to fear. Let us read what happened next:

“And Isaac said unto them, Wherefore ye come to me, seeing ye hate me, and have sent me away from you? And they said, We saw certainly that the LORD was with thee: and we said, Let there be now an oath betwixt us, even betwixt us and thee, and let us make a covenant [treaty] with thee; that thou wilt do us no hurt [harm], as we have not touched thee, and as we have done unto thee nothing but good, and have sent thee away in peace: thou art now the blessed of the LORD. And he made them a feast, and they did eat and drink. And they rose up betimes [early] in the morning, and sware one to another: and Isaac sent them away, and they departed from him in peace. And it came to pass the same day, that Isaac’s servants came, and told him concerning the well which they had digged, and said unto him, We have found water. And he called it Shebah [Oath or Seven]: therefore the name of the city is Beer-sheba [Well of the Oath or Well of the Seven] unto this day.” (Genesis 26:27-33)

Abimelech and his friend, and his chief captain of the army had seen how the Lord God was with Isaac and had blessed him. It appears fear had been in them and they were concerned what God might do to them. Thus, they wanted to make a peace treaty with Isaac, and Isaac did so.

In Genesis 26:34-35, we are told what Esau, Isaac and Rebekah’s oldest son did:

“And Esau was forty years old when he took to wife Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Bashemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite: which were a grief of mind unto Isaac and to Rebekah.” (Genesis 26:34-35)

The next thing we read in the Bible about Isaac is that he was old in age and could not see, and he called Esau to him and told him he wanted to bless him before he died. He told Esau to go in the field and hunt venison for him and cook it for him, and then he would bless Esau. Before reading what transpired, let us first remember what had happened to Rebekah when she was still pregnant with her twin boys, Esau and Isaac:

“And the children struggled together within her; and she said, If it be so [well], why am I thus? And she went to enquire of the LORD. And the LORD said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger.” (Genesis 25:22-23)

Because God knows everything, including things that will happen before they happen, He knew that it would not be the oldest son that would be blessed by Isaac but the youngest son, and that the oldest son would serve the younger son. That is exactly what happened. Let us read how it came to fruition. When Rebekah heard that Isaac wanted to bless Esau, she told Jacob about it and told him to go kill two goats and she would cook them and then Jacob could bring the food to Isaac. Jacob then told his mother that Esau was hairy and that Isaac would know he was not Esau and “I shall seem to him as a deceiver; and I shall bring a curse upon me, and not a blessing.” (Genesis 27:12) Rebekah took Esau’s clothing and goat skins and had Isaac put them on his hands and neck in case Isaac would touch his son. She gave Jacob the food, and he went in to see his father. His father recognized that it was not Esau when Jacob spoke to him and said, “who art thou, my son?” Jacob told him he was Esau and that he had brought the savory food that he liked. Isaac asked him to come near to him so he could feel him. Isaac said, “The voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau. And he discerned [recognized] him not, because his hands were hairy, as his brother Esau’s hands: so he blessed him.” (Genesis 27:13-23) Isaac kept having doubts that the son speaking to him was Esau, but after he felt his hands, he asked Jacob to bring the food, and Isaac ate it. He asked Jacob to come kiss him, and when Jacob came near, he smelled the clothing, which was Esau’s, and recognized it as Esau’s. Isaac then blessed Jacob and said:

“See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field which the LORD hath blessed: therefore God give thee of the dew of heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and plenty of corn [grain] and wine: let people [peoples] serve thee, and nations bow down to thee: be lord over thy brethren, and let thy mother’s sons bow down to thee: cursed be every one that curseth thee, and blessed be he that blesseth thee.” (Genesis 27:27-29)

The words of Isaac above are a prophecy given to him by God that has not fully happened yet but will happen in the future. The prophecy was reiterated in Isaiah 49:23, and it will come to pass. Before discussing this prophecy further, let’s read about what happened after Isaac had unknowingly blessed his younger son, Jacob. Let us also remember that God knew this would happen before it happened, and it was God’s plan all along that the elder would serve the younger. I am taking this deep-dive into the history of Jacob and his family because it is through the lineage of Jacob that Messiah would come.

Immediately after Isaac blessed Jacob, Esau, who had no idea what had just happened, came in from hunting. He cooked the venison he had gotten and brought it to his father. He told his father it was ready for him to eat and asked him to bless him. Isaac, being confused, asked who he was, and Esau told him he was his firstborn son, Esau. Isaac told him he had already eaten the venison and had blessed him who had brought it. Esau then let out a great and bitter cry and told his father to bless him too. Isaac told Esau that his brother had deceived him into blessing him. Esau then said that Jacob was rightly named, for his name means “supplanter,” and he had supplanted him twice, the first time when he took away his birthright. However, we must remember that Esau’s birthright meant nothing to him, for he was quick to give it away for a bowl of red stew. God knew this about Esau, and that is why God did not let Esau be blessed by Isaac. Esau asked his father again to bless him too and started to weep again:

“And Isaac his father answered and said unto him, Behold, thy dwelling shall be the fatness of the earth [of the fertility], and of the dew of heaven from above; and by thy sword shalt thou live, and shalt serve thy brother; and it shall come to pass when thou shalt have the dominion [become restless], that thou shalt break his yoke from off thy neck.” (Genesis 27:39-40)

Esau then planned in his heart to kill Jacob after his father died. He also told his mother what he planned to do. Rebekah told Jacob that his life was in danger and told him to leave and go to her brother, Laban’s house in Haran, until Esau’s temper would cool off and he would come to his senses. She told Jacob she would notify him when it was safe to come home. However, before Jacob left, Isaac called him to him. Isaac commanded Jacob not to marry a Canaanite woman, and instead, to go to his mother’s brother’s house and marry one of his daughters. Isaac then told Jacob:

“And God Almighty bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a multitude of people; and give thee the blessing of Abraham, to thee, and to thy seed with thee; that thou mayest inherit the land wherein thou art a stranger, which God gave unto Abraham.” (Genesis 28:3-4)

Next we are told that upon hearing the blessing that Isaac gave to Jacob and his commandment not to marry a Canaanite woman, Esau, after having already married a Canaanite woman named Judith, decided to rebel against his father and marry another Canaanite woman:

“And Esau, seeing that the daughters of Canaan pleased not Isaac his father; then went Esau unto Ishmael, and took unto [in addition to] the wives which he had Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael Abraham’s son, the sister of Nebajoth, to be his wife.” (Genesis 28:8-9)

It seems that Esau was quick to act on impulse, to react quickly based on feelings instead of thinking things through and what the consequences of his actions might be. I believe it’s yet another reason as to why God did not choose Esau to receive the blessing that normally the eldest son would receive from his father.

I am spending time on the account of the lineage of the Israeli people because in order to understand what is going on in our world today, we must know our history. We must know and understand that God called His people, Israel, to be separate and apart from the rest of the world, for it is through the nation of Israel that all nations will be blessed through Jesus Christ, who many years later after Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, would come and offer salvation first to His own people, Israel, and then to the rest of the world, the Gentiles, after His own rejected Him. Now, let us continue reading from Genesis 28:11-22 that describes what happened after Jacob left his father’s house in Beer-sheba and was going to his uncle Laban’s house in Haran:

“And he lighted upon [came to] a certain place, and tarried [stayed] there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it. And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I am the LORD God of Abraham thy father; and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed [descendants]; and thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of. And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not. And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful [awesome] is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven. And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it. And he called the name of that place Beth-el [House of God]: but the name of that city was called Luz at the first. And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, so that I come again to my father’s house in peace; then shall the LORD be my God: and this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God’s house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth [a tithe] unto thee.” (Genesis 28:11-22)

In his dream, God told Jacob that He would bring him back into the land where Jacob had laid his head to sleep, the land that He had promised to give Abraham, Jacob’s grandfather and Abraham’s descendants. It was then that Jacob realized the power of God, saying to himself, “Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not.” (Genesis 28:16). Jacob continued on his way to Haran and drew near to his uncle Laban’s house:

“And he looked, and behold a well in the field, and, lo, there were three flocks of sheep lying by it; for out of that well they watered the flocks: and a great stone was upon the well’s mouth. And thither were all the flocks gathered: and they rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the sheep, and put the stone again upon the well’s mouth in his place. And Jacob said unto them, My brethren, whence be ye? And they said, Of Haran are we. And he said unto them, Know ye Laban the son of Nahor? And they said, We know him. And he said unto them, Is he well? And they said, He is well: and, behold, Rachel his daughter cometh with the sheep. And he said, Lo, it is yet high day [early in the day], neither is it time that the cattle should be gathered together: water ye the sheep, and go and feed them. And they said, We cannot, until all the flocks be gathered together, and till they roll the stone from the well’s mouth; then we water the sheep. And while he yet spake with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep: for she kept them. And it came to pass, when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother, that Jacob went near, and rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the flock of Laban his mother’s brother. And Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice, and wept.” (Genesis 29:2-11)

In the above Scriptures we read of when Jacob first saw Rachel, who was taking care of her father’s sheep. However, I believe there is a deeper meaning to the Scriptures above, and it relates to Israel and Jesus Christ. We are told that Jacob first saw three flocks of sheep lying by a well. I don’t think it’s coincidence that it specifically says Jacob saw three flocks of sheep. I explain below why I believe three flocks are mentioned and what they represent. We are also told that normally all of the flocks would be gathered by the well and then the stone would be rolled away from the well in order to give water to all of them. Jacob then asked the men that he saw in the field where they were from. When they said they were from Haran, he asked if they knew Laban and if he was well, and they said yes, they knew him and that he was well. They then told Jacob that Laban’s daughter was coming with the sheep. Then Jacob said something that struck me as a little odd. Here Jacob, who had just met these men, began to tell them that they should water Rachel’s sheep and then go and feed them. However, they told him that it wasn’t time yet, for they would wait until all of the flocks would be gathered together and then they would roll the stone from well’s mouth and water all of the sheep. Then something happened that, to me, was very significant, and that was when Jacob went and rolled the stone away and watered the sheep that Leah was tending, which belonged to her father Laban. Now, this is what I believe this may be the deeper meaning of what is written in Genesis 29:2-11, and I believe it is a foreshadowing of the first and second comings of Jesus Christ. It is through the lineage of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that Messiah, Jesus Christ, would come.

In Genesis 29:2-11, we are first told that normally the shepherds wait until all of the sheep are gathered together in the field before they are watered. Let us contrast that to what happened when Jesus came to earth the first time. When He came the first time, He came to offer salvation to His own, the people of the twelve tribes of Israel, most rejected Him, but some did believe in Him, including some people who were not Jewish, including the Samaritan woman, whom He met at Jacob’s well. Jesus came upon her and asked her to give Him a drink of water:

“Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans. Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water? Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle [livestock]? Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: but whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well [fountain] of water sprinkling up into everlasting life. The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw.” (John 4:9-15)

Next, Jesus then told the woman to go call her husband, and she told him she had no husband. She must have been shocked that Jesus then said to her that she told the truth and that she had had five husbands previously and the man she was currently with was not her husband. She responded by saying, “Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet.” (John 4:19) Let’s read what happened next:

“Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things. Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he.” (John 4:20-25)

Here Jesus was speaking to a woman that the Jews at that time would never think of speaking to, for she was a Samaritan woman, meaning she was half Jewish and half Assyrian, and was shunned by the Jews. But Jesus did speak to her, and He also told her that only He can give her living water. He also told her that He IS the Christ.

Now, returning to what I believe the Scriptures from Genesis 29:2-11 represent. I believe the three flocks of sheep that Jacob saw are represented as follows:

1. The first flock represents all those who believed in Jesus at His first coming, which included some Jews and, as we read above, those who are a mixed race of Jews, including the Samaritans. We also have Biblical accounts of Gentiles, non-Jews, who believed in Jesus at His first coming and before His death and resurrection. Jacob made sure this first flock of sheep, which belonged to Laban and were kept by Rachel, were watered. Jacob was acting as a good shepherd of the sheep and made sure that this flock was watered. Just as Jacob rolled a stone away in order to water the sheep, acting as a shepherd to the sheep, a stone was rolled away at Jesus’ tomb after the third day of Jesus’ death. Jesus, who is THE Good Shepherd, was not found in the tomb, for He had resurrected to life, and it is He who gives living water freely to anyone and everyone who believes in Him. As Jacob watered this first flock of sheep, Jesus didn’t wait to give living water to those who believed in Him at His first coming.
   “Then said Jesus unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.” (John 10:7-11); “I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep. And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold [flock], and one shepherd.” (John 10:14-16)

2. The second flock represents primarily the Gentiles who have been saved after Jesus’ ascension to heaven after His first coming and who will be saved up until the end of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble. This represents the time of the Gentiles as discussed by the apostle Paul in Romans 11:25.

3. The third flock represents the one-third remnant of the Jews that will be saved by Jesus Himself at His second coming after the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble. This is discussed in Zechariah 13:8-9.

It is interesting to me that Jacob first saw Rachel in the field, when she came with her father’s sheep to a well to water them. In a similar circumstance, Abraham’s servant first saw Rebekah at a well drawing water, and Rebekah eventually married Isaac, Abraham’s son and Jacob’s father. Many years later, it would also be at a well that Moses would see the seven daughters of Jethro, the priest of Midian, drawing water from a well to water their father’s flock. The shepherds would drive the women away, but Moses would help the women and water their flock. Moses would go on to marry one of the daughters, Zipporah. (Exodus 2:15-21). Water represents life, and without it, our physical lives would end. Living water represents spiritual life, and as Jesus told the Samaritan woman at the well, only Jesus Christ can give it:

“In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly [heart] shall flow rivers of living water.” (John 7:37-38)

May 21, 2025: Isaiah 49:23 (Part 2 of 7) - They Shall Bow Down to Thee

“And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.” - Isaiah 49:23

Note to readers: Because of the length of this devotional, I have decided to split it up into seven parts. This is part 2. I also have a link that contains the entire devotional.

God had compassion on both Hagar and her son and provided water for them, saving their lives. We read in Genesis 25:12-17 about Ishmael and how, as God promised (Genesis 17:20), he would have twelve sons, whom the Bible calls “twelve princes according to their nations.” (Genesis 25:16) Ishmael would live to be 137-years old before he would die. It is interesting to me that both Ishmael and Jacob, who would be Isaac’s son, had twelve sons, but Jacob’s twelve sons would become the twelve tribes of Israel.

It is interesting to note that in Genesis chapter 21, God never refer’s to Hagar’s son by his name of “Ishmael”; rather, He refers to him as her son or Abraham’s son. I suspect that is because God wanted to differentiate clearly between Isaac and Ishmael: Ishmael was not to be the heir of Abraham; he was not to be the recipient of the covenant that God had made with Abraham and his descendants. The mocking that Ishmael did toward Isaac and his family has never ceased. To this day, there is hatred not only from the descendants of Ishmael but from much of the world, toward the descendants of Isaac. This hatred seems to be coming to a boiling point, so much so, that Israel may be ready to make a covenant with the one who promises to bring peace but in fact, seeks only their destruction.

Returning to what happened after Hagar and Ishmael left, we read something shocking. after waiting so long to have children and finally having had his son Isaac with his wife, Sarah, one day God said to Abraham:

“Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.” (Genesis 22:2)

Did you notice that in the above Scripture verse, God referred to Isaac as Abraham’s “only son”? That is because in God’s eyes, only Isaac was Abraham’s true son, the son whom God had promised and miraculously provided between an old man and an old woman, who was way past her childbearing age. Ishmael had been born by sinful human intervention and not according to the promise of God. Ishmael had been born because Sarah had grown inpatient as she waited for God to act. Instead of remaining steadfast in the promise of God to him to provide a son, Abraham had agreed with her and had sexual relations with Hagar. Thus, God wanted to know whether Abraham truly trusted in Him, and God was going to test him. There are many similarities between what followed next and when Jesus Christ came to earth the first time and was crucified, and because of that, I want to read the relevant Scriptures in their entirety. Let us read what happened next:

“And Abraham rose up early in the morning , and saddled his ass [donkey], and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave [split] the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him. Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off. And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you. And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together. And Isaac spoke unto his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering? And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together. And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood. And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son. And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I. And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me. And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son. And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovah-jireh [The LORD Will Provide or See]: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the LORD it shall be seen. And the angel of the LORD called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time, And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the LORD, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: that in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed [descendants] as the stars of heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies: and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed: because thou hast obeyed my voice. So Abraham returned unto his young men, and they rose up and went together to Beer-sheba; and Abraham dwelt at Beer-sheba.” (Genesis 22:3-19)

After waiting so long to have Isaac, here was Abraham, willing to sacrifice his beloved son because he trusted in God’s promises to him. God had told Abraham that of his seed, he would make a great nation and that it would be through his son, Isaac. Thus, Abraham trusted that even if he were to sacrifice his own son, God would fulfill his promises to him. We read about Abraham’s faith in God in the New Testament book of Hebrews, in what is known as the “Hall of Faith” chapter. The chapter opens with these words:

“Now faith is the substance [realization] of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good report. Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed [prepared] by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear [are visible].” (Hebrews 11:1-3)

In order to have true faith, we must trust in God, even when we can’t see things with our own eyes and we can’t understand the ways of God in our own minds. Abraham had trusted in God when He had told Abraham to leave his father’s house and go into a land that God would show him. Abraham likely had never been to that land and knew not what lied ahead of him, but he took his wife, his nephew, Lot, and all that he had and moved to that land, as God had commanded him. Abraham could have ignored God’s commandments to him and refused to go, but he didn’t; he had faith in God:

“By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went [where he was going].” (Hebrews 11:8)

Though Sarah had stumbled and sinned when she grew impatient and decided to take matters into her own hands, God forgave her, and miraculously enabled her to conceive a child by her husband, Abraham. Sarah, too is mentioned in the hall of faith:

“Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of [bore] a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised. Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable.” (Hebrews 11:11-12)

If Isaac had been born of a man and a woman of childbearing ages, it would not have been anything special. However, Isaac was born of a man who, as the Scripture reads above, was good as dead, and a woman who was approximately 50 years past her childbearing age when bore Isaac at age 90. This clearly illustrates to us that God doesn’t work in the natural but in the supernatural. God truly is in the business of working miracles, with the purpose of bringing glory to Himself, for He is God and there is no other. We are to give glory to Him and to no other.

Now, let us read what is written about Abraham’s faith when he was tested by God to sacrifice his son, Isaac:

“By faith Abraham, when he was tried [tested], offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure [figurative sense].” (Hebrews 11:17-19)

In the Scriptures from Genesis 22, can you see the parallels between Abraham and Isaac and God the Father and Jesus Christ? Just as Abraham offered up his only begotten Son, so too, did God the Father, when He offered up Jesus Christ. Just as God spared Isaac from being sacrificed and provided a lamb, so too, did God provide the Lamb of God as a sacrifice to spare all who believe in Jesus Christ. Just as Isaac had to carry the wood on which he would be sacrificed, so too did Jesus carry the wooden cross, on which He would be sacrificed. Gotquestions.org has an article that lists other parallels. (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/Abraham-Isaac.html) Clearly, God was showing us a picture of Jesus Christ in the book of Genesis, long before Jesus would come to earth the first time, and would be rejected by His own people, crucified, give up His life on a cross, but would be resurrected to life three days later, and ascend to heaven 40 days thereafter.

As Hebrews 11 attests to, if our faith is only in what we can see with our own eyes, it is not faith but it is only trusting in the known. Faith is obeying God’s commandments to us, even when we don’t understand why, even when it makes no sense to us. Faith in God is trusting in the unknown circumstances, and knowing that the One we know, Almighty God, knows what we cannot know, and that He has a plan for us and for our lives, just as He did with Abraham and Sarah. May we live by our faith in God and not by our sight.

Sarah would die before Abraham, at the age of 127 years.  When Isaac was of marrying age, Abraham didn’t want him to marry a Canaanite woman but a woman of the land where his father’s family lived, before God brought him to the land of Canaan. Abraham made an oath with his lead servant to go to the land of his father and find a woman who would marry Isaac:

“And the servant said unto him, Peradventure [perhaps] the woman will not be willing to follow me unto this land: must I needs bring [take] thy son again unto the land from whence thou camest? And Abraham said unto him, Beware thou that thou bring [take] not my son thither again. The LORD God of heaven, which took me from my father’s house, and from the land of my kindred, and which spake unto me, and that sware unto me, saying, Unto thy seed [descendants] will I give this land; he shall send his angel before thee, and thou shalt take a wife unto my son from thence. And if the woman will not be willing to follow thee, then thou shalt be clear from this my oath: only bring [take] not my son thither again.”  (Genesis 24:5-8)

Abraham made it clear that if a woman was found but was not willing to leave the land where she lived and come to the land where Isaac was, then Abraham’s servant would have fulfilled his duty to Abraham. Abraham was clear that Isaac must remain in the land that God gave to Abraham and his descendants and not to go and live in the land where Abraham used to live.

The servant took men with him and ten camels, and they went to the land of Abraham’s father’s house, to the city of Nahor in Mesopotamia. Before going into Nahor, the servant came to a well of water outside the city, where the women went to draw water. He then “made his camels kneel down” (Genesis 24:11). The servant then prayed to God and asked for a sign: that when he would ask a woman to give him a drink of water and if she did and also offered to provide water to his camels, then “let the same be she that thou hast appointed for thy servant Isaac; and thereby shall I know that thou hast shewed kindness unto my master.” (Genesis 24:14) Before he had finished speaking this prayer to God, a woman named Rebekah came to the well “who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham’s brother, with her pitcher on her shoulder.” (Genesis 24:15) Thus, she was the great-niece of Abraham and second cousin to Isaac. Rebekah not only gave water to the servant but also to his camels. The servant then wondered if this truly was the woman that God wanted Isaac to marry. The servant then gave her a golden earring and two bracelets of gold for her hands and asked her whose daughter she was, and she told him. He asked her if her father had room in his house for him and his men to lodge in. She told him who her father was and that they had enough room and food for him. What did the servant do next?

“And the man bowed down his head, and worshipped the LORD. And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of my master Abraham, who hath not left destitute [forsaken] my master of his mercy and his truth: I being in the way, the LORD led me to the house of my master’s brethren.” (Genesis 24:26-27)

The servant knew that it was only by the power of Almighty God that He had led him to his master, Abraham’s family, and he gave thanks to God. May we remember to give thanks to God for the prayers He answers in our own lives and acknowledge who He is, that He is God and there is none else and none like Him. (Isaiah 46:9)

Rebekah then went to her house to tell her family about all that had happened, including her brother, Laban. Laban ran out to meet the servant at the well, and Laban invited him to come into their home and to shelter and feed his camels. The servant and his men fed their camels, washed their feet, and came into their house. They offered to feed the servant a meal, but he told them he would not eat until he told them why he had come. He told him about his master Abraham and why he had sent him, and how he had prayed to God for a sign so that he would know whom would be the woman God chose to be Isaac’s wife. The servant then said that after he had come upon Rebekah, who offered to provide water to him and his camels:

“And I bowed down my head, and worshipped the LORD, and blessed the LORD God of my master Abraham, which had led me in the right [true] way to take my master’s brother’s daughter unto his son. And now if ye will deal kindly and truly with my master, tell me: and if not, tell me; that I may turn to the right hand, or to the left.” (Genesis 24:48-49)

Let us read what happened next:

“Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, The thing proceedeth from the LORD: we cannot speak unto thee bad or good. Behold, Rebekah is before thee, take her, and go, and let her be thy master’s son’s wife, as the LORD hath spoken. And it came to pass, that, when Abraham’s servant heard their words, he worshipped the LORD, bowing himself to the earth. And the servant brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment [clothing], and gave them to Rebekah: he gave also to her brother and to her mother precious things.” (Genesis 24:50-53)

When it was time for the servant and the men who were with him to leave, Rebekah’s brother and mother asked the servant to let Rebekah stay at least ten days, but he told them not to delay him so that he could return to his master. Laban and his mother then asked Rebekah to see if she was ready to leave, and Rebekah told them, “I will go.” (Genesis 24:58) Rebekah and her nurse were ready to leave with the servant and his men, but before they left:

“And they blessed Rebekah, and said unto her, Thou art our sister, be thou the mother of thousands of millions, and let thy seed [descendants] possess the gate of those which hate them. And Rebekah arose, and her damsels, and they rode upon the camels, and followed the man: and the servant took Rebekah, and went his way.” (Genesis 24:60)

Little did they know but when they blessed Rebekah, their words that they spoke, specifically, “and let thy seed possess the gate of those which hate them” were the same words that the angel of the LORD had spoken to Abraham, when Abraham was willing to sacrifice his only son, Isaac: “and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies.” (Genesis 22:17) Thus, we can clearly see that it would be through Isaac and his wife Rebekah that the promise of God to Abraham would be fulfilled.

Rebekah was willing to give up everything she had known all of her life to go and marry a man she didn’t even know, nor had never met. Though her mother and brother wanted her to stay longer, she was ready to go, without even any hesitation. It reminds me of another account in the Bible when Jesus came to earth the first time and began preaching and choosing His apostles:

“From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand [near]. And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers. And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. And they straightway left their nets, and followed him.” (Matthew 4:20)

Rebekah’s words also remind me of the account of Ruth in the book of Ruth. Ruth was from Moab, and she married an Israelite son. Her father-in-law was Elimelech, and her mother-in-law was Naomi, and they lived in the country of Moab. Elimelech and Naomi had left their homeland of Judah due to famine and had moved to Moab. Naomi also had another son who was married to another Moabite woman named Orpah. Elimelech had died prior to his two sons being married to the two Moabite women. Sometime later, Naomi’s two sons also died, leaving just Naomi and her two daughters-in-law. Upon hearing that the famine in Judah was over, Naomi decided to return to their. On their way to Judah, Naomi thanked her daughters-in-law for dealing kindly with her family and herself and told them that they should return to their people, for she was too old to marry again and bear children and have sons whom they could marry. Orpah and Ruth wept for their mother-in-law. Orpah decided to leave, but Ruth clung to Naomi, and then:

“And she [Naomi] said, Behold, thy sister in law is gone back unto her people, and unto her gods: return thou after thy sister in law. And Ruth said, Intreat me not [urge me not] to leave thee, or to return from [turn back] following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou longest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God: where thou diest, I will die, and there will I be buried: the LORD do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me.” (Ruth 1:15-17)

Ruth would go on to marry Boaz, who was a family member of Naomi’s deceased husband, Elimelech. Boaz was very wealthy and purchased all that Elimelech owned, including Ruth. Boaz and Ruth’s son, whose name was Obed, would become the father of Jesse, King David’s father. It would be through the line of David that Messiah, Jesus the Christ, would come, and He too, like David, was born in Bethlehem Ephratah. Here we see that although Ruth was a Moabitess, because of her faithfulness to the one true God, He used her in a mighty way:

“And Boaz said unto the elders, and unto all the people, Ye are witnesses this day, that I have bought all that was Elimelech’s, and all that was Chilean’s and Mahlon’s [Elimelech’s two deceased sons], of the hand of Naomi. Moreover Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, have I purchased to be my wife, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance, that the name of the dead be not cut off from among his brethren, from the gate of his place: ye are witnesses this day. And all the people that were in the gate, and the elders, said, We are witnesses. The LORD make the woman that is come into thine house like Rachel and like Leah, which two did build the house of Israel: and do thou worthily in Ephratah, and be famous in Bethlehem: and let thy house be like the house of Pharez, whom Tamar bare unto Judah, of the seed [offspring] which the LORD shall give thee of this young woman. So Boaz took Ruth, and she was his wife: and when he went in unto her, the LORD gave her conception, and she bare a son. And the women said unto Naomi, Blessed be the LORD, which hath not left thee this day without a kinsman [redeemer], that his name may be famous in Israel. And he shall be unto thee a restorer of thy life, and a nourisher of thine old age: for thy daughter in law, which loveth thee, which is better to thee than seven sons, hath born him. And Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse unto it. And the women her neighbours gave it a name, saying, There is a son born to Naomi; and they called his name Obed: he is the father of Jesse, the father of David. Now these are the generations of Pharez: Pharez begat Hezron, and Hezron begat Ram, and Ram begat Amminadab, and Amminadab begat Nahshon, and Nahshon begat Salmon [Salmah], and Salmon begat Boaz, and Boaz begat Obed, and Obed begat Jesse, and Jesse begat David.” (Ruth 4:9-22)

In all three of these accounts of Rebekah, Simon (Peter) and Andrew, and Ruth, we see that they were willing to give up everything and to trust in God and to go where He was leading them. These are three wonderful examples of how we should live our lives, as believers in Jesus Christ.

Returning to Rebekah, she and her nurse, the servant, and his men, after leaving Rebekah’s home, drew near to the place where Isaac lived. Isaac was in the field meditating, and he looked and saw the camels coming. Rebekah saw him and asked the servant who the man was, and the servant told her it was Isaac. She came off the camel and met Isaac, who took her into his mother’s tent. Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah to be his wife and he loved her. The Bible also tells us that “Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.” (Genesis 24:67) Isaac and Rebekah wanted to have children but she was barren, unable to have children. Isaac then pleaded with God, and sometime later, Rebekah conceived. The Bible tells us:

“And the children struggled together within her; and she said, If it be so [well], why am I thus? And she went to enquire of the LORD. And the LORD said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger. And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb. And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau [Hairy]. And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau’s heel; and his named was called Jacob [Supplanter or Deceitful, lit. One Who Takes the Heel]: and Isaac was threescore years old when she bare them.” (Genesis 25:22-26)

The boys grew, and Esau was a skilled hunter and loved being outdoors, whereas his brother Jacob was a mild man who dwelled in tents. The Bible tells us “Isaac loved Esau because he did eat of his venison: but Rebekah loved Jacob.” (Genesis 25:28) One day when Esau was out in the field, he came in the house and was feeling faint. Jacob had cooked a red stew, and Esau asked Jacob to give him some of the red stew because he was feeling faint. The Bible tells us of Esau, “therefore was his name called Edom [Red].” (Genesis 25:30). Instead of just giving Esau some of the stew, Jacob proposed a trade for it:

“And Jacob said, Sell me this day thy birthright. And Esau said, Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me? And Jacob said, Swear to me this day; and he swore unto him: and he sold his birthright unto Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage [stew] of lentiles; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: thus Esau despised his birthright.” (Genesis 25:31-34)

We have two very different types of personalities here. First, we have Esau, who was being very dramatic because he was hungry, even claiming he was going to die if he didn’t eat some of the stew. We have on the other hand, Jacob, who instead of just giving his brother some of the stew, took advantage of the situation in order to get something he wanted, something very important, and that was Esau’s birthright as the eldest son of Isaac. Birthright is very important in the Bible. There is a good article from gotquestions.org that explains it (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/birthright-Bible.html), but in summary, when the father of a family dies, the oldest son assumes his authority and responsibilities, and the oldest son also received a double portion of the father’s belongings. In the times that Esau and Jacob lived, they knew the importance of birthright. However, Esau desired more to fill his stomach with food than to receive his birthright from his father, which he would have to wait to receive until his father Isaac died; Esau wanted things immediately and didn’t want to wait a period of time to receive his birthright. He did not take his birthright status seriously. In a sense, Esau was living in a fast-food mentality, whereas Jacob was looking at the big picture. How many people today are living like Esau, with their minds focused on the here-and-now rather than looking at the big picture, looking at their eternity?

Next, we are told that there was a famine in the land in which Isaac and his family lived, and Isaac went to the king of the Philistines, king Abimelech, in Gerar:

“And the LORD appeared unto him, and said, Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of: sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father; and I will make thy seed [descendants] to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these countries [lands]; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.” (Genesis 26:2-5)

God had reiterated to Isaac the covenant that He had made with his father, Abraham. Isaac did as God commanded him to do and did not go into the land of Egypt but lived in the land of Gerar.

May 20, 2025: Isaiah 49:23 (Part 1 of 7) - They Shall Bow Down to Thee

“And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.” - Isaiah 49:23

Note to readers: Because of the length of this devotional, I have decided to split it up into seven parts. This is part 1. I also have a link that contains the entire devotional.

The Scriptures above describe a time that is coming that will happen after the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, during which time God will judge Israel for its disobedience to Him and their rejection of His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. During this 7-year time period, also known as the tribulation period, God will also judge all of the nations of the world who, like Israel, also will choose to remain in their sin instead of accepting Jesus’ free gift of salvation of sins. During this time period, God will preserve a one-third remnant of Israel, who will be put through the fire but will come out refined as gold. Afterwards, Israel will finally be gathered together in the land that God gave them, and He will replace the sons and daughters that they will lose during their time of trouble, and those sons and daughters will be from the Gentile/non-Jewish nations. This whole chapter of Isaiah is specifically speaking of Jesus and His coming redemption of Jacob and Israel, I want to take the time to study about the nation of Israel and how it came about with the Biblical patriarchs, beginning with Abraham, his son Isaac, his son Jacob, and his sons that became the twelve tribes of Israel. Thus, I will be doing a deep-dive into their family history. Are you ready? Let’s begin our study of the patriarchs of Israel.

Long ago before the time of Isaiah the prophet, the Bible tells us in Genesis about a promise that God had made to a man named Abram, who was 75-years old at the time and was married to his wife, Sarai, who was 65-years old. They were living with Abram’s family in his father Terah’s, house in a land called Haran. When Terah died, something happened:

“Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: and I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: and I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. So Abram departed, as the LORD has spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran. And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother’s son, and all their substance [possessions] that they had gathered, and the souls [people] that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came. And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Sichem [or Shechem], unto the plain of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land. And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed [descendants] will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him.” (Genesis 12:1-7)

In the promise of God to Abram above, God told Abram that He would make of him a great nation, meaning Abram would have many descendants, i.e., children, that would be born of him and Sarai. However, years passed by and they were both getting up in age and still they had no children. Growing impatient, Abram asked God if one who was named Eliezer, who was a servant born in his house, should be his heir because God had not given him any children yet. However, God told him no, Eliezer was not his heir, and God reconfirmed what He had previously told Abram, even saying to Abram:

“And he [God] brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell [count] the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness. And he said unto him, I am the LORD that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give thee this land to inherit it. And he said, Lord GOD, whereby shall I know that I shall inherit it?” (Genesis 15:5-8)

God then reconfirmed his covenant with Abram by a blood covenant, as described in Genesis 15:9-21. A blood covenant was normally performed by two parties; however, the blood covenant that God made with Abram was sealed by God Himself, for He had put Abram into a deep sleep before God sealed the covenant. Thus, God made this covenant by Himself; it is a unilateral, unconditional covenant. It was when God made this blood covenant with Abram that this happened:

“And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years; and also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance [possessions]. And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace [die and join your ancestors]; thou shalt be buried in a good old age. But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full [complete].” (Genesis 15:13-16)

God told Abram that his descendants would be slaves in a foreign nation for 400 years and God would judge that nation. God also told Abram that after 400 years, his descendants would come to the land that God gave to Abram and his descendants, the land of Canaan. God was going to wait 400 years for the Amorites, the people living in the land of Canaan, to change their wicked and evil ways, before God would bring Abram’s descendants into the land. Because God knows all things, He knew that the Amorites would not change their ways. Thus, He was giving it to Abram and his future descendants for an everlasting possession. That is exactly what happened, and we will read about what happened prior to that in Egypt with Abram’s great-grandson, Joseph.

When Abram and Sarai had lived in the land ten years and still had no heir, no child of their own, Sarai decided to take matters into her own hands and told Abram he should have have sexual intercourse with her handmaid, Hagar, in order to produce an heir. Hagar got pregnant, and afterwards, she despised Sarai. Let us read what happened next:

“And Sarai said unto Abram, My wrong be upon thee: I have given my maid into thy bosom; and when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her eyes: the LORD judge between me and thee. But Abram said unto Sarai, Behold, thy maid is in thy hand; do to her as it pleaseth thee. And when Sarai dealt hardly [harshly] with her, she fled from her face [presence].” (Genesis 16:5-6)

This is a perfect example of what happens when we ignore God’s promises and commands to us and decide not to trust in Him but to take matters into our own hands; we mess things up, big time. This is what happens when we don’t want to wait on God and we want things to be done according to our own timeline. Let us finish reading about what happened with Hagar:

“And the angel of the LORD found her by a fountain [spring] of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur. And he said, Hagar, Sarai’s maid, whence camest thou? and whither wilt thou go? And she said, I flee from the face of my mistress Sarai. And the angel of the LORD said unto her, Return to thy mistress, and submit thyself under her hands. And the angel of the LORD said unto her, I will multiply thy seed [descendants] exceedingly; that it shall not be numbered for multitude. And the angel of the LORD said unto her, Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael [God hears]; because the LORD hath heard thy affliction. And he will be a wild man; his hand will be against every man, and every man’s hand against him; and he shall dwell in the presence of his brethren. And she called the name of the LORD that spake unto her, Thou God seest me: for she said, Have I also here looked after [seen the back of] him that seeth me? Wherefore the well was called Beer-lahai-roi [Well of the One Who Lives and Sees Me]; behold, it is between Kadesh and Bered. And Hagar bare Abram a son: and Abram called his son’s name, which Hagar bore, Ishmael. And Abram was fourscore and six [86] years old, when Hagar bare Ishmael to Abram.” (Genesis 16:7-16)

13 years later, when Abram was 99-years old (Genesis 17:1), God appeared again to Abram, reconfirming His promise to Abram that He would not only make of him a great nation but many nations:

“And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God [El Shaddai]; walk before me, and be thou perfect [blameless]. And I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly. And Abram fell on his face: and God talked with him, saying, as for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations. Neither [no longer] shall thy name any more be called Abram [Exalted Father], but thy name shall be Abraham [Father of a Multitude]; for a father of many nations have I made thee. And I will make thee exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed [descendants] after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.” (Genesis 17:1-8)

God told Abram that He would multiply him tremendously so that he would be a father of many nations. God also stated that the covenant He was making with Abram was an everlasting covenant, meaning it could not ever be broken. God also told Abram that the land He was going to give to Abram and his descendants would be theirs forever. It wouldn’t matter if Abram and his seed were disobedient to God, and they were disobedient to Him and still are today; no, the land would always be theirs, for it is “an everlasting possession.” There was nothing conditional about these covenants that God had made with Abram. God also changed Abram’s name accordingly. Next, God then made a covenant that required Abraham, and notice that this is the first time that God used the new name He gave to Abram, and his descendants to keep:

“And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in [throughout] their generations. This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised. And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token [sign] of the covenant between me and you. And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every man [male] child in your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any stranger, which is not of thy seed. He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised: and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant. And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul [person] shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant.” (Genesis 17:9-14)

Next, God then spoke to Abraham about his wife:

“And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah [Princess] shall her name be. And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of [by] her: yea, I will bless her; and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of people shall be of her.” (Genesis 17:15-16)

Can you imagine that you are Abraham, who is 99-years old, and here God is telling you that you and your wife, who is 89-years old, are going to have a son? What would your response be? I can’t even imagine a woman who is that age having the strength not only to be able to endure the demands of pregnancy but also to deliver a child. But with Almighty God, there is nothing impossible for Him to do, for He created the heavens, the earth, the seas, and all that is in them, including mankind. What do you think Abraham’s response was to God? Would it be similar to yours and mine? Let’s read what he said to God:

“Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear?” (Genesis 17:17)

I absolutely love the Bible’s honesty, and how it doesn’t try to make people seem perfect and always trusting in God. Though we should always trust in God, God knows that we are humans and prone to sin and trying to do things our way. He also knows that we think in terms of our own ability and not His. God has told us:

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: so shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:8-11).

Still thinking in his own limited human ability and still doubting what God had just told him - that he and Sarah would have a son in a year’s time - Abraham came up with a plan to make this happen and told it to God:

“And Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might live before thee!” (Genesis 17:18)

Abraham was telling God that the son He spoke of would be Ishmael and not a biological son born of him and Sarah, for Abraham was not thinking in the way that God thought but in his own human, limited way. God then told Abraham:

“And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed [descendants] after him. And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation. But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year. And he left talking with him, and God went up from Abraham.” (Genesis 17:19-22)

God was making it very clear to Abraham that it would be the son who could come from the biological union of Abraham and Sarah who would be the heir and the one with whom the covenant with God would be established, and the son would be named “Isaac.” God made it clear that His covenant was not with the son whose name was Ishmael, who was born of Abraham and Hagar. Abraham then did as God commanded him and had all males in his household, including himself, circumcised.

Next we are told in Genesis 18:

“And the LORD appeared unto him in the plains of Mamre: and he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day. And he lift up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood by him: and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself toward [to] the ground., and said, My Lord, if now I have found favor in thy sight, pass not away [on by], I pray thee, from thy servant…” (Genesis 18:1)

Abraham obviously was honoring to these men to the extent that he bowed to them. I agree with gotquestions.org (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/three-men-Genesis-18.html) that one of the three men was either God taking on the appearance of a man, a theophany, or it was Jesus Himself, a Christophany, which is Jesus appearing in His pre-incarnate body. In the book of Revelation whenever John fell down on his knees to worship an angel, he is told not to worship him but to “Worship God.” (Revelation 19:10 and 22:9) Thus, if all three of these men were angels, I do not think they would have allowed Abraham to worship them and would have told him to worship God, as the angels in Revelation told John. I also believe with the referenced article that the other two men were angels, per Genesis 19:1.

Abraham invited them to wash their feet, rest, and eat with him. He had Sarah makes cakes for them and he had a calf killed and cooked for them. Then we are told:

“And they said unto him, Where is Sarah thy wife? And he said, Behold, in the tent. And he said, I will certainly return unto thee according to the time of life; and, lo, Sarah thy wife shall have a son. And Sarah heard it in the tent door, which was behind him.” (Genesis 18:9-10)

Clearly, this is God talking to Abraham, for it is God Himself who came and visited Sarah after she bore Isaac, which we’ll read about in a minute. Let us read what happened next:

“Now Abraham and Sarah were old and well stricken in age; and it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women [Sarah had passed the age of childbearing]. Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, After I am waxed [grown] old shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also? And the LORD said unto Abraham, Wherefore did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I of a surety bear a child, which am old? Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son. Then Sarah denied, saying, I laughed not; for she was afraid. And he said, Nay; but thou didst laugh.” (Genesis 18:11-15)

I must admit, after having gone through childbirth myself, I can’t even imagine having a child at 90-years old and my reaction may well have been the same as Sarah’s. Did you notice that it says she laughed “within herself,” meaning not out loud? However, God knows everything about us, including the thoughts we think in our minds. God asked Abraham why she did it, and I’m guessing Abraham didn’t even try to answer that question. I love God’s next statement to him: “Is anything too hard for the LORD?” No, there is nothing too hard, nothing impossible for God; He is Almighty God! If he wanted to have a woman bear a child at 90-years old, He would make it happen. Did you catch that Sarah denied that she laughed and that God called her out and told her she did laugh. God sees, hears, and knows everything we do, before we even do it, and He made that known to her.

Before continuing on with Abraham and Sarah, I want to mention something else, and that is that the three men also warned Abraham that He was going to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah because of their grievous sins:

“And the LORD said, Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous; I will go down now, and see whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it, which is come unto me; and if not, I will know. And the men turned their faces from thence, and went toward Sodom: but Abraham stood yet before the LORD. And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked? Peradventure [suppose] there be fifty righteous within the city: wilt thou also destroy and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are therein? That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that be far from thee: Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right? and the LORD said, If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.” (Genesis 18:20-26)

Abraham then asked God if He would spare the place for 45, then 40, 30, 20, and finally then 10 righteous people, would He still destroy the place. God said He would not in each case. However, as you may know, God did destroy both Sodom and Gomorrah, meaning there were not even ten righteous people in those places. We can tell from God’s conversation with Abraham that Abraham had a heart for people who were righteous and did not want them destroyed. Now, we know that every single person alive is a sinner, but here Abraham was referring to certain people as “righteous,” who were separate and apart from the “wicked.” It tells us that though we may live in a wicked place, and many of us, it not all of us, do, it is still possible that there be righteous people living there, people who are appalled with what is happening in their town and city. Abraham asked God if He would spare the righteous from His judgment, saying, “Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” That is a very bold question that Abraham asked God. God’s answer to Abraham is an example of how God is willing to delay or stop His judgment from happening if there are righteous people still present. This reminds me of when God told Abraham that his descendants would be slaves in a foreign land for 400 years before they would come again to the land of Canaan that He was giving to Abraham and his descendants because “the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full [complete].” (Genesis 15:16) God was giving the Amorites a very long time to either turn from their wicked ways or until there was not anyone left who was not wicked. This reminds me of another statement of God through the apostle Paul, and that is way forward in time in the book of Romans:

“For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness [hardening] in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.” (Romans 11:25)

I believe the fullness of the Gentiles Paul spoke about in the above Scriptures refers to the time after Jesus came to earth the first time, offering salvation first to His own people, the Jews, who as a nation rejected Him, after which He turned His attention and message of salvation to the Gentiles. We have been in that time ever since. I believe the fullness of the Gentiles will happen when God sees that the people on the world at that time will have been given the chance to turn to Jesus and be saved and who have not done so. It will be at that time that He will turn His attention back to the Jews and the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble will happen. During that time, God will send a series of judgments not only upon the Jews but upon the entire unbelieving world. Until then, God is delaying His judgment to give people time to turn to Him and be saved. I personally do believe, based on Scripture, that people can and will be saved during the time of Jacob’s trouble, but it likely will cost them their physical lives here on earth; they will be martyred because of their faith in Jesus. Again, we can clearly see that God is not quick to judge; no, He delays His judgment in order to give us time to change our sinful ways and turn to Him.

Now, let us return to Abraham and Sarah. As He promised He would, God did appear to Sarah after she bore her and Abraham’s son, Isaac:

“And the LORD visited Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did unto Sarah as he had spoken. For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him. And Abraham called the name of his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah are to him, Isaac. And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac, being eight days old, as God had commanded him. And Abraham was an hundred years old, when his son Isaac was born unto him. And Sarah said, God hath made me to laugh, so that all that hear will laugh with me. And she said, Who would have said unto Abraham, that Sarah should have given children suck [nurse children]? for I have born him a son in his old age.” (Genesis 21:1-7)

On the day that Isaac was born, Sarah indeed saw with her own eyes that nothing was too hard for God. Abraham named the son, “Isaac,” which literally means “laughter.” Lest we ourselves sometimes doubt that God has forgotten about us, we who love Him and who are called according to His purpose, let us remember that God does things according to His ways, which are not our ways, and according to His timing, which is always perfect.

Isaac grew, and on the day he was weaned from his mother, Sarah, Abraham made a great feast. Next we are told that Sarah saw the son of Hagar, who was the Egyptian handmaiden that had born the son to Abraham, was mocking them:

“Wherefore she [Sarah] said unto Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac. And the thing was very grievous [distressing] in Abraham’s sight because of his son. And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called. And also of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is thy seed [descendant]. And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle [skin] of water, and gave it unto Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child [youth], and sent her away: and she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Beer-sheba.” (Genesis 21:10-14)

Again, God made it clear to Abraham that, though Abraham grieved over the situation between his wife Sarah and his son from Hagar, he was not to be the heir of Abraham and that it was Isaac who would be his heir. God told Abraham to listen to his wife, and he did, and sent Hagar and her son away. After traveling sometime, Hagar ran out of water for her son and she put him under one of the shrubs and went away from him, not wanting to see her son die. After she cried out and wept:

“And God heard the voice of the lad; and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said unto her, What aileen thee, Hagar? fear not; for God hath heard the voice of the land where he is. Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him in [with] thine hand; for I will make him a great nation. And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle [skin] with water, and gave the lad drink. And God was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer. And he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran: and his mother took him a wife out of the land of Egypt.” (Genesis 21:17-20)

May 20, 2025: Isaiah 49:23 (Full Devotional) - They Shall Bow Down to Thee

“And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.” - Isaiah 49:23

Note to readers: Because of the length of this devotional, I have decided to split it up into seven parts. I will also have a link that contains the entire devotional.

The Scriptures above describe a time that is coming that will happen after the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, during which time God will judge Israel for its disobedience to Him and their rejection of His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. During this 7-year time period, also known as the tribulation period, God will also judge all of the nations of the world who, like Israel, also will choose to remain in their sin instead of accepting Jesus’ free gift of salvation of sins. During this time period, God will preserve a one-third remnant of Israel, who will be put through the fire but will come out refined as gold. Afterwards, Israel will finally be gathered together in the land that God gave them, and He will replace the sons and daughters that they will lose during their time of trouble, and those sons and daughters will be from the Gentile/non-Jewish nations. This whole chapter of Isaiah is specifically speaking of Jesus and His coming redemption of Jacob and Israel, I want to take the time to study about the nation of Israel and how it came about with the Biblical patriarchs, beginning with Abraham, his son Isaac, his son Jacob, and his sons that became the twelve tribes of Israel. Thus, I will be doing a deep-dive into their family history. Are you ready? Let’s begin our study of the patriarchs of Israel.

Long ago before the time of Isaiah the prophet, the Bible tells us in Genesis about a promise that God had made to a man named Abram, who was 75-years old at the time and was married to his wife, Sarai, who was 65-years old. They were living with Abram’s family in his father Terah’s, house in a land called Haran. When Terah died, something happened:

“Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: and I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: and I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. So Abram departed, as the LORD has spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran. And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother’s son, and all their substance [possessions] that they had gathered, and the souls [people] that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came. And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Sichem [or Shechem], unto the plain of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land. And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed [descendants] will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him.” (Genesis 12:1-7)

In the promise of God to Abram above, God told Abram that He would make of him a great nation, meaning Abram would have many descendants, i.e., children, that would be born of him and Sarai. However, years passed by and they were both getting up in age and still they had no children. Growing impatient, Abram asked God if one who was named Eliezer, who was a servant born in his house, should be his heir because God had not given him any children yet. However, God told him no, Eliezer was not his heir, and God reconfirmed what He had previously told Abram, even saying to Abram:

“And he [God] brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell [count] the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness. And he said unto him, I am the LORD that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give thee this land to inherit it. And he said, Lord GOD, whereby shall I know that I shall inherit it?” (Genesis 15:5-8)

God then reconfirmed his covenant with Abram by a blood covenant, as described in Genesis 15:9-21. A blood covenant was normally performed by two parties; however, the blood covenant that God made with Abram was sealed by God Himself, for He had put Abram into a deep sleep before God sealed the covenant. Thus, God made this covenant by Himself; it is a unilateral, unconditional covenant. It was when God made this blood covenant with Abram that this happened:

“And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years; and also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance [possessions]. And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace [die and join your ancestors]; thou shalt be buried in a good old age. But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full [complete].” (Genesis 15:13-16)

God told Abram that his descendants would be slaves in a foreign nation for 400 years and God would judge that nation. God also told Abram that after 400 years, his descendants would come to the land that God gave to Abram and his descendants, the land of Canaan. God was going to wait 400 years for the Amorites, the people living in the land of Canaan, to change their wicked and evil ways, before God would bring Abram’s descendants into the land. Because God knows all things, He knew that the Amorites would not change their ways. Thus, He was giving it to Abram and his future descendants for an everlasting possession. That is exactly what happened, and we will read about what happened prior to that in Egypt with Abram’s great-grandson, Joseph.

When Abram and Sarai had lived in the land ten years and still had no heir, no child of their own, Sarai decided to take matters into her own hands and told Abram he should have have sexual intercourse with her handmaid, Hagar, in order to produce an heir. Hagar got pregnant, and afterwards, she despised Sarai. Let us read what happened next:

“And Sarai said unto Abram, My wrong be upon thee: I have given my maid into thy bosom; and when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her eyes: the LORD judge between me and thee. But Abram said unto Sarai, Behold, thy maid is in thy hand; do to her as it pleaseth thee. And when Sarai dealt hardly [harshly] with her, she fled from her face [presence].” (Genesis 16:5-6)

This is a perfect example of what happens when we ignore God’s promises and commands to us and decide not to trust in Him but to take matters into our own hands; we mess things up, big time. This is what happens when we don’t want to wait on God and we want things to be done according to our own timeline. Let us finish reading about what happened with Hagar:

“And the angel of the LORD found her by a fountain [spring] of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur. And he said, Hagar, Sarai’s maid, whence camest thou? and whither wilt thou go? And she said, I flee from the face of my mistress Sarai. And the angel of the LORD said unto her, Return to thy mistress, and submit thyself under her hands. And the angel of the LORD said unto her, I will multiply thy seed [descendants] exceedingly; that it shall not be numbered for multitude. And the angel of the LORD said unto her, Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael [God hears]; because the LORD hath heard thy affliction. And he will be a wild man; his hand will be against every man, and every man’s hand against him; and he shall dwell in the presence of his brethren. And she called the name of the LORD that spake unto her, Thou God seest me: for she said, Have I also here looked after [seen the back of] him that seeth me? Wherefore the well was called Beer-lahai-roi [Well of the One Who Lives and Sees Me]; behold, it is between Kadesh and Bered. And Hagar bare Abram a son: and Abram called his son’s name, which Hagar bore, Ishmael. And Abram was fourscore and six [86] years old, when Hagar bare Ishmael to Abram.” (Genesis 16:7-16)

13 years later, when Abram was 99-years old (Genesis 17:1), God appeared again to Abram, reconfirming His promise to Abram that He would not only make of him a great nation but many nations:

“And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God [El Shaddai]; walk before me, and be thou perfect [blameless]. And I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly. And Abram fell on his face: and God talked with him, saying, as for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations. Neither [no longer] shall thy name any more be called Abram [Exalted Father], but thy name shall be Abraham [Father of a Multitude]; for a father of many nations have I made thee. And I will make thee exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed [descendants] after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.” (Genesis 17:1-8)

God told Abram that He would multiply him tremendously so that he would be a father of many nations. God also stated that the covenant He was making with Abram was an everlasting covenant, meaning it could not ever be broken. God also told Abram that the land He was going to give to Abram and his descendants would be theirs forever. It wouldn’t matter if Abram and his seed were disobedient to God, and they were disobedient to Him and still are today; no, the land would always be theirs, for it is “an everlasting possession.” There was nothing conditional about these covenants that God had made with Abram. God also changed Abram’s name accordingly. Next, God then made a covenant that required Abraham, and notice that this is the first time that God used the new name He gave to Abram, and his descendants to keep:

“And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in [throughout] their generations. This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised. And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token [sign] of the covenant between me and you. And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every man [male] child in your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any stranger, which is not of thy seed. He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised: and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant. And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul [person] shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant.” (Genesis 17:9-14)

Next, God then spoke to Abraham about his wife:

“And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah [Princess] shall her name be. And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of [by] her: yea, I will bless her; and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of people shall be of her.” (Genesis 17:15-16)

Can you imagine that you are Abraham, who is 99-years old, and here God is telling you that you and your wife, who is 89-years old, are going to have a son? What would your response be? I can’t even imagine a woman who is that age having the strength not only to be able to endure the demands of pregnancy but also to deliver a child. But with Almighty God, there is nothing impossible for Him to do, for He created the heavens, the earth, the seas, and all that is in them, including mankind. What do you think Abraham’s response was to God? Would it be similar to yours and mine? Let’s read what he said to God:

“Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear?” (Genesis 17:17)

I absolutely love the Bible’s honesty, and how it doesn’t try to make people seem perfect and always trusting in God. Though we should always trust in God, God knows that we are humans and prone to sin and trying to do things our way. He also knows that we think in terms of our own ability and not His. God has told us:

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: so shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:8-11).

Still thinking in his own limited human ability and still doubting what God had just told him - that he and Sarah would have a son in a year’s time - Abraham came up with a plan to make this happen and told it to God:

“And Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might live before thee!” (Genesis 17:18)

Abraham was telling God that the son He spoke of would be Ishmael and not a biological son born of him and Sarah, for Abraham was not thinking in the way that God thought but in his own human, limited way. God then told Abraham:

“And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed [descendants] after him. And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation. But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year. And he left talking with him, and God went up from Abraham.” (Genesis 17:19-22)

God was making it very clear to Abraham that it would be the son who could come from the biological union of Abraham and Sarah who would be the heir and the one with whom the covenant with God would be established, and the son would be named “Isaac.” God made it clear that His covenant was not with the son whose name was Ishmael, who was born of Abraham and Hagar. Abraham then did as God commanded him and had all males in his household, including himself, circumcised.

Next we are told in Genesis 18:

“And the LORD appeared unto him in the plains of Mamre: and he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day. And he lift up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood by him: and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself toward [to] the ground., and said, My Lord, if now I have found favor in thy sight, pass not away [on by], I pray thee, from thy servant…” (Genesis 18:1)

Abraham obviously was honoring to these men to the extent that he bowed to them. I agree with gotquestions.org (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/three-men-Genesis-18.html) that one of the three men was either God taking on the appearance of a man, a theophany, or it was Jesus Himself, a Christophany, which is Jesus appearing in His pre-incarnate body. In the book of Revelation whenever John fell down on his knees to worship an angel, he is told not to worship him but to “Worship God.” (Revelation 19:10 and 22:9) Thus, if all three of these men were angels, I do not think they would have allowed Abraham to worship them and would have told him to worship God, as the angels in Revelation told John. I also believe with the referenced article that the other two men were angels, per Genesis 19:1.

Abraham invited them to wash their feet, rest, and eat with him. He had Sarah makes cakes for them and he had a calf killed and cooked for them. Then we are told:

“And they said unto him, Where is Sarah thy wife? And he said, Behold, in the tent. And he said, I will certainly return unto thee according to the time of life; and, lo, Sarah thy wife shall have a son. And Sarah heard it in the tent door, which was behind him.” (Genesis 18:9-10)

Clearly, this is God talking to Abraham, for it is God Himself who came and visited Sarah after she bore Isaac, which we’ll read about in a minute. Let us read what happened next:

“Now Abraham and Sarah were old and well stricken in age; and it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women [Sarah had passed the age of childbearing]. Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, After I am waxed [grown] old shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also? And the LORD said unto Abraham, Wherefore did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I of a surety bear a child, which am old? Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son. Then Sarah denied, saying, I laughed not; for she was afraid. And he said, Nay; but thou didst laugh.” (Genesis 18:11-15)

I must admit, after having gone through childbirth myself, I can’t even imagine having a child at 90-years old and my reaction may well have been the same as Sarah’s. Did you notice that it says she laughed “within herself,” meaning not out loud? However, God knows everything about us, including the thoughts we think in our minds. God asked Abraham why she did it, and I’m guessing Abraham didn’t even try to answer that question. I love God’s next statement to him: “Is anything too hard for the LORD?” No, there is nothing too hard, nothing impossible for God; He is Almighty God! If he wanted to have a woman bear a child at 90-years old, He would make it happen. Did you catch that Sarah denied that she laughed and that God called her out and told her she did laugh. God sees, hears, and knows everything we do, before we even do it, and He made that known to her.

Before continuing on with Abraham and Sarah, I want to mention something else, and that is that the three men also warned Abraham that He was going to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah because of their grievous sins:

“And the LORD said, Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous; I will go down now, and see whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it, which is come unto me; and if not, I will know. And the men turned their faces from thence, and went toward Sodom: but Abraham stood yet before the LORD. And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked? Peradventure [suppose] there be fifty righteous within the city: wilt thou also destroy and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are therein? That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that be far from thee: Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right? and the LORD said, If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.” (Genesis 18:20-26)

Abraham then asked God if He would spare the place for 45, then 40, 30, 20, and finally then 10 righteous people, would He still destroy the place. God said He would not in each case. However, as you may know, God did destroy both Sodom and Gomorrah, meaning there were not even ten righteous people in those places. We can tell from God’s conversation with Abraham that Abraham had a heart for people who were righteous and did not want them destroyed. Now, we know that every single person alive is a sinner, but here Abraham was referring to certain people as “righteous,” who were separate and apart from the “wicked.” It tells us that though we may live in a wicked place, and many of us, it not all of us, do, it is still possible that there be righteous people living there, people who are appalled with what is happening in their town and city. Abraham asked God if He would spare the righteous from His judgment, saying, “Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” That is a very bold question that Abraham asked God. God’s answer to Abraham is an example of how God is willing to delay or stop His judgment from happening if there are righteous people still present. This reminds me of when God told Abraham that his descendants would be slaves in a foreign land for 400 years before they would come again to the land of Canaan that He was giving to Abraham and his descendants because “the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full [complete].” (Genesis 15:16) God was giving the Amorites a very long time to either turn from their wicked ways or until there was not anyone left who was not wicked. This reminds me of another statement of God through the apostle Paul, and that is way forward in time in the book of Romans:

“For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness [hardening] in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.” (Romans 11:25)

I believe the fullness of the Gentiles Paul spoke about in the above Scriptures refers to the time after Jesus came to earth the first time, offering salvation first to His own people, the Jews, who as a nation rejected Him, after which He turned His attention and message of salvation to the Gentiles. We have been in that time ever since. I believe the fullness of the Gentiles will happen when God sees that the people on the world at that time will have been given the chance to turn to Jesus and be saved and who have not done so. It will be at that time that He will turn His attention back to the Jews and the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble will happen. During that time, God will send a series of judgments not only upon the Jews but upon the entire unbelieving world. Until then, God is delaying His judgment to give people time to turn to Him and be saved. I personally do believe, based on Scripture, that people can and will be saved during the time of Jacob’s trouble, but it likely will cost them their physical lives here on earth; they will be martyred because of their faith in Jesus. Again, we can clearly see that God is not quick to judge; no, He delays His judgment in order to give us time to change our sinful ways and turn to Him.

Now, let us return to Abraham and Sarah. As He promised He would, God did appear to Sarah after she bore her and Abraham’s son, Isaac:

“And the LORD visited Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did unto Sarah as he had spoken. For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him. And Abraham called the name of his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah are to him, Isaac. And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac, being eight days old, as God had commanded him. And Abraham was an hundred years old, when his son Isaac was born unto him. And Sarah said, God hath made me to laugh, so that all that hear will laugh with me. And she said, Who would have said unto Abraham, that Sarah should have given children suck [nurse children]? for I have born him a son in his old age.” (Genesis 21:1-7)

On the day that Isaac was born, Sarah indeed saw with her own eyes that nothing was too hard for God. Abraham named the son, “Isaac,” which literally means “laughter.” Lest we ourselves sometimes doubt that God has forgotten about us, we who love Him and who are called according to His purpose, let us remember that God does things according to His ways, which are not our ways, and according to His timing, which is always perfect.

Isaac grew, and on the day he was weaned from his mother, Sarah, Abraham made a great feast. Next we are told that Sarah saw the son of Hagar, who was the Egyptian handmaiden that had born the son to Abraham, was mocking them:

“Wherefore she [Sarah] said unto Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac. And the thing was very grievous [distressing] in Abraham’s sight because of his son. And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called. And also of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is thy seed [descendant]. And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle [skin] of water, and gave it unto Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child [youth], and sent her away: and she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Beer-sheba.” (Genesis 21:10-14)

Again, God made it clear to Abraham that, though Abraham grieved over the situation between his wife Sarah and his son from Hagar, he was not to be the heir of Abraham and that it was Isaac who would be his heir. God told Abraham to listen to his wife, and he did, and sent Hagar and her son away. After traveling sometime, Hagar ran out of water for her son and she put him under one of the shrubs and went away from him, not wanting to see her son die. After she cried out and wept:

“And God heard the voice of the lad; and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said unto her, What aileen thee, Hagar? fear not; for God hath heard the voice of the land where he is. Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him in [with] thine hand; for I will make him a great nation. And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle [skin] with water, and gave the lad drink. And God was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer. And he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran: and his mother took him a wife out of the land of Egypt.” (Genesis 21:17-20)

God had compassion on both Hagar and her son and provided water for them, saving their lives. We read in Genesis 25:12-17 about Ishmael and how, as God promised (Genesis 17:20), he would have twelve sons, whom the Bible calls “twelve princes according to their nations.” (Genesis 25:16) Ishmael would live to be 137-years old before he would die. It is interesting to me that both Ishmael and Jacob, who would be Isaac’s son, had twelve sons, but Jacob’s twelve sons would become the twelve tribes of Israel.

It is interesting to note that in Genesis chapter 21, God never refer’s to Hagar’s son by his name of “Ishmael”; rather, He refers to him as her son or Abraham’s son. I suspect that is because God wanted to differentiate clearly between Isaac and Ishmael: Ishmael was not to be the heir of Abraham; he was not to be the recipient of the covenant that God had made with Abraham and his descendants. The mocking that Ishmael did toward Isaac and his family has never ceased. To this day, there is hatred not only from the descendants of Ishmael but from much of the world, toward the descendants of Isaac. This hatred seems to be coming to a boiling point, so much so, that Israel may be ready to make a covenant with the one who promises to bring peace but in fact, seeks only their destruction.

Returning to what happened after Hagar and Ishmael left, we read something shocking. after waiting so long to have children and finally having had his son Isaac with his wife, Sarah, one day God said to Abraham:

“Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.” (Genesis 22:2)

Did you notice that in the above Scripture verse, God referred to Isaac as Abraham’s “only son”? That is because in God’s eyes, only Isaac was Abraham’s true son, the son whom God had promised and miraculously provided between an old man and an old woman, who was way past her childbearing age. Ishmael had been born by sinful human intervention and not according to the promise of God. Ishmael had been born because Sarah had grown inpatient as she waited for God to act. Instead of remaining steadfast in the promise of God to him to provide a son, Abraham had agreed with her and had sexual relations with Hagar. Thus, God wanted to know whether Abraham truly trusted in Him, and God was going to test him. There are many similarities between what followed next and when Jesus Christ came to earth the first time and was crucified, and because of that, I want to read the relevant Scriptures in their entirety. Let us read what happened next:

“And Abraham rose up early in the morning , and saddled his ass [donkey], and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave [split] the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him. Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off. And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you. And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together. And Isaac spoke unto his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering? And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together. And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood. And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son. And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I. And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me. And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son. And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovah-jireh [The LORD Will Provide or See]: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the LORD it shall be seen. And the angel of the LORD called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time, And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the LORD, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: that in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed [descendants] as the stars of heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies: and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed: because thou hast obeyed my voice. So Abraham returned unto his young men, and they rose up and went together to Beer-sheba; and Abraham dwelt at Beer-sheba.” (Genesis 22:3-19)

After waiting so long to have Isaac, here was Abraham, willing to sacrifice his beloved son because he trusted in God’s promises to him. God had told Abraham that of his seed, he would make a great nation and that it would be through his son, Isaac. Thus, Abraham trusted that even if he were to sacrifice his own son, God would fulfill his promises to him. We read about Abraham’s faith in God in the New Testament book of Hebrews, in what is known as the “Hall of Faith” chapter. The chapter opens with these words:

“Now faith is the substance [realization] of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good report. Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed [prepared] by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear [are visible].” (Hebrews 11:1-3)

In order to have true faith, we must trust in God, even when we can’t see things with our own eyes and we can’t understand the ways of God in our own minds. Abraham had trusted in God when He had told Abraham to leave his father’s house and go into a land that God would show him. Abraham likely had never been to that land and knew not what lied ahead of him, but he took his wife, his nephew, Lot, and all that he had and moved to that land, as God had commanded him. Abraham could have ignored God’s commandments to him and refused to go, but he didn’t; he had faith in God:

“By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went [where he was going].” (Hebrews 11:8)

Though Sarah had stumbled and sinned when she grew impatient and decided to take matters into her own hands, God forgave her, and miraculously enabled her to conceive a child by her husband, Abraham. Sarah, too is mentioned in the hall of faith:

“Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of [bore] a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised. Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable.” (Hebrews 11:11-12)

If Isaac had been born of a man and a woman of childbearing ages, it would not have been anything special. However, Isaac was born of a man who, as the Scripture reads above, was good as dead, and a woman who was approximately 50 years past her childbearing age when bore Isaac at age 90. This clearly illustrates to us that God doesn’t work in the natural but in the supernatural. God truly is in the business of working miracles, with the purpose of bringing glory to Himself, for He is God and there is no other. We are to give glory to Him and to no other.

Now, let us read what is written about Abraham’s faith when he was tested by God to sacrifice his son, Isaac:

“By faith Abraham, when he was tried [tested], offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure [figurative sense].” (Hebrews 11:17-19)

In the Scriptures from Genesis 22, can you see the parallels between Abraham and Isaac and God the Father and Jesus Christ? Just as Abraham offered up his only begotten Son, so too, did God the Father, when He offered up Jesus Christ. Just as God spared Isaac from being sacrificed and provided a lamb, so too, did God provide the Lamb of God as a sacrifice to spare all who believe in Jesus Christ. Just as Isaac had to carry the wood on which he would be sacrificed, so too did Jesus carry the wooden cross, on which He would be sacrificed. Gotquestions.org has an article that lists other parallels. (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/Abraham-Isaac.html) Clearly, God was showing us a picture of Jesus Christ in the book of Genesis, long before Jesus would come to earth the first time, and would be rejected by His own people, crucified, give up His life on a cross, but would be resurrected to life three days later, and ascend to heaven 40 days thereafter.

As Hebrews 11 attests to, if our faith is only in what we can see with our own eyes, it is not faith but it is only trusting in the known. Faith is obeying God’s commandments to us, even when we don’t understand why, even when it makes no sense to us. Faith in God is trusting in the unknown circumstances, and knowing that the One we know, Almighty God, knows what we cannot know, and that He has a plan for us and for our lives, just as He did with Abraham and Sarah. May we live by our faith in God and not by our sight.

Sarah would die before Abraham, at the age of 127 years. When Isaac was of marrying age, Abraham didn’t want him to marry a Canaanite woman but a woman of the land where his father’s family lived, before God brought him to the land of Canaan. Abraham made an oath with his lead servant to go to the land of his father and find a woman who would marry Isaac:

“And the servant said unto him, Peradventure [perhaps] the woman will not be willing to follow me unto this land: must I needs bring [take] thy son again unto the land from whence thou camest? And Abraham said unto him, Beware thou that thou bring [take] not my son thither again. The LORD God of heaven, which took me from my father’s house, and from the land of my kindred, and which spake unto me, and that sware unto me, saying, Unto thy seed [descendants] will I give this land; he shall send his angel before thee, and thou shalt take a wife unto my son from thence. And if the woman will not be willing to follow thee, then thou shalt be clear from this my oath: only bring [take] not my son thither again.” (Genesis 24:5-8)

Abraham made it clear that if a woman was found but was not willing to leave the land where she lived and come to the land where Isaac was, then Abraham’s servant would have fulfilled his duty to Abraham. Abraham was clear that Isaac must remain in the land that God gave to Abraham and his descendants and not to go and live in the land where Abraham used to live.

The servant took men with him and ten camels, and they went to the land of Abraham’s father’s house, to the city of Nahor in Mesopotamia. Before going into Nahor, the servant came to a well of water outside the city, where the women went to draw water. He then “made his camels kneel down” (Genesis 24:11). The servant then prayed to God and asked for a sign: that when he would ask a woman to give him a drink of water and if she did and also offered to provide water to his camels, then “let the same be she that thou hast appointed for thy servant Isaac; and thereby shall I know that thou hast shewed kindness unto my master.” (Genesis 24:14) Before he had finished speaking this prayer to God, a woman named Rebekah came to the well “who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham’s brother, with her pitcher on her shoulder.” (Genesis 24:15) Thus, she was the great-niece of Abraham and second cousin to Isaac. Rebekah not only gave water to the servant but also to his camels. The servant then wondered if this truly was the woman that God wanted Isaac to marry. The servant then gave her a golden earring and two bracelets of gold for her hands and asked her whose daughter she was, and she told him. He asked her if her father had room in his house for him and his men to lodge in. She told him who her father was and that they had enough room and food for him. What did the servant do next?

“And the man bowed down his head, and worshipped the LORD. And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of my master Abraham, who hath not left destitute [forsaken] my master of his mercy and his truth: I being in the way, the LORD led me to the house of my master’s brethren.” (Genesis 24:26-27)

The servant knew that it was only by the power of Almighty God that He had led him to his master, Abraham’s family, and he gave thanks to God. May we remember to give thanks to God for the prayers He answers in our own lives and acknowledge who He is, that He is God and there is none else and none like Him. (Isaiah 46:9)

Rebekah then went to her house to tell her family about all that had happened, including her brother, Laban. Laban ran out to meet the servant at the well, and Laban invited him to come into their home and to shelter and feed his camels. The servant and his men fed their camels, washed their feet, and came into their house. They offered to feed the servant a meal, but he told them he would not eat until he told them why he had come. He told him about his master Abraham and why he had sent him, and how he had prayed to God for a sign so that he would know whom would be the woman God chose to be Isaac’s wife. The servant then said that after he had come upon Rebekah, who offered to provide water to him and his camels:

“And I bowed down my head, and worshipped the LORD, and blessed the LORD God of my master Abraham, which had led me in the right [true] way to take my master’s brother’s daughter unto his son. And now if ye will deal kindly and truly with my master, tell me: and if not, tell me; that I may turn to the right hand, or to the left.” (Genesis 24:48-49)

Let us read what happened next:

“Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, The thing proceedeth from the LORD: we cannot speak unto thee bad or good. Behold, Rebekah is before thee, take her, and go, and let her be thy master’s son’s wife, as the LORD hath spoken. And it came to pass, that, when Abraham’s servant heard their words, he worshipped the LORD, bowing himself to the earth. And the servant brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment [clothing], and gave them to Rebekah: he gave also to her brother and to her mother precious things.” (Genesis 24:50-53)

When it was time for the servant and the men who were with him to leave, Rebekah’s brother and mother asked the servant to let Rebekah stay at least ten days, but he told them not to delay him so that he could return to his master. Laban and his mother then asked Rebekah to see if she was ready to leave, and Rebekah told them, “I will go.” (Genesis 24:58) Rebekah and her nurse were ready to leave with the servant and his men, but before they left:

“And they blessed Rebekah, and said unto her, Thou art our sister, be thou the mother of thousands of millions, and let thy seed [descendants] possess the gate of those which hate them. And Rebekah arose, and her damsels, and they rode upon the camels, and followed the man: and the servant took Rebekah, and went his way.” (Genesis 24:60)

Little did they know but when they blessed Rebekah, their words that they spoke, specifically, “and let thy seed possess the gate of those which hate them” were the same words that the angel of the LORD had spoken to Abraham, when Abraham was willing to sacrifice his only son, Isaac: “and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies.” (Genesis 22:17) Thus, we can clearly see that it would be through Isaac and his wife Rebekah that the promise of God to Abraham would be fulfilled.

Rebekah was willing to give up everything she had known all of her life to go and marry a man she didn’t even know, nor had never met. Though her mother and brother wanted her to stay longer, she was ready to go, without even any hesitation. It reminds me of another account in the Bible when Jesus came to earth the first time and began preaching and choosing His apostles:

“From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand [near]. And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers. And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. And they straightway left their nets, and followed him.” (Matthew 4:20)

Rebekah’s words also remind me of the account of Ruth in the book of Ruth. Ruth was from Moab, and she married an Israelite son. Her father-in-law was Elimelech, and her mother-in-law was Naomi, and they lived in the country of Moab. Elimelech and Naomi had left their homeland of Judah due to famine and had moved to Moab. Naomi also had another son who was married to another Moabite woman named Orpah. Elimelech had died prior to his two sons being married to the two Moabite women. Sometime later, Naomi’s two sons also died, leaving just Naomi and her two daughters-in-law. Upon hearing that the famine in Judah was over, Naomi decided to return to their. On their way to Judah, Naomi thanked her daughters-in-law for dealing kindly with her family and herself and told them that they should return to their people, for she was too old to marry again and bear children and have sons whom they could marry. Orpah and Ruth wept for their mother-in-law. Orpah decided to leave, but Ruth clung to Naomi, and then:

“And she [Naomi] said, Behold, thy sister in law is gone back unto her people, and unto her gods: return thou after thy sister in law. And Ruth said, Intreat me not [urge me not] to leave thee, or to return from [turn back] following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou longest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God: where thou diest, I will die, and there will I be buried: the LORD do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me.” (Ruth 1:15-17)

Ruth would go on to marry Boaz, who was a family member of Naomi’s deceased husband, Elimelech. Boaz was very wealthy and purchased all that Elimelech owned, including Ruth. Boaz and Ruth’s son, whose name was Obed, would become the father of Jesse, King David’s father. It would be through the line of David that Messiah, Jesus the Christ, would come, and He too, like David, was born in Bethlehem Ephratah. Here we see that although Ruth was a Moabitess, because of her faithfulness to the one true God, He used her in a mighty way:

“And Boaz said unto the elders, and unto all the people, Ye are witnesses this day, that I have bought all that was Elimelech’s, and all that was Chilean’s and Mahlon’s [Elimelech’s two deceased sons], of the hand of Naomi. Moreover Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, have I purchased to be my wife, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance, that the name of the dead be not cut off from among his brethren, from the gate of his place: ye are witnesses this day. And all the people that were in the gate, and the elders, said, We are witnesses. The LORD make the woman that is come into thine house like Rachel and like Leah, which two did build the house of Israel: and do thou worthily in Ephratah, and be famous in Bethlehem: and let thy house be like the house of Pharez, whom Tamar bare unto Judah, of the seed [offspring] which the LORD shall give thee of this young woman. So Boaz took Ruth, and she was his wife: and when he went in unto her, the LORD gave her conception, and she bare a son. And the women said unto Naomi, Blessed be the LORD, which hath not left thee this day without a kinsman [redeemer], that his name may be famous in Israel. And he shall be unto thee a restorer of thy life, and a nourisher of thine old age: for thy daughter in law, which loveth thee, which is better to thee than seven sons, hath born him. And Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse unto it. And the women her neighbours gave it a name, saying, There is a son born to Naomi; and they called his name Obed: he is the father of Jesse, the father of David. Now these are the generations of Pharez: Pharez begat Hezron, and Hezron begat Ram, and Ram begat Amminadab, and Amminadab begat Nahshon, and Nahshon begat Salmon [Salmah], and Salmon begat Boaz, and Boaz begat Obed, and Obed begat Jesse, and Jesse begat David.” (Ruth 4:9-22)

In all three of these accounts of Rebekah, Simon (Peter) and Andrew, and Ruth, we see that they were willing to give up everything and to trust in God and to go where He was leading them. These are three wonderful examples of how we should live our lives, as believers in Jesus Christ.

Returning to Rebekah, she and her nurse, the servant, and his men, after leaving Rebekah’s home, drew near to the place where Isaac lived. Isaac was in the field meditating, and he looked and saw the camels coming. Rebekah saw him and asked the servant who the man was, and the servant told her it was Isaac. She came off the camel and met Isaac, who took her into his mother’s tent. Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah to be his wife and he loved her. The Bible also tells us that “Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.” (Genesis 24:67) Isaac and Rebekah wanted to have children but she was barren, unable to have children. Isaac then pleaded with God, and sometime later, Rebekah conceived. The Bible tells us:

“And the children struggled together within her; and she said, If it be so [well], why am I thus? And she went to enquire of the LORD. And the LORD said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger. And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb. And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau [Hairy]. And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau’s heel; and his named was called Jacob [Supplanter or Deceitful, lit. One Who Takes the Heel]: and Isaac was threescore years old when she bare them.” (Genesis 25:22-26)

The boys grew, and Esau was a skilled hunter and loved being outdoors, whereas his brother Jacob was a mild man who dwelled in tents. The Bible tells us “Isaac loved Esau because he did eat of his venison: but Rebekah loved Jacob.” (Genesis 25:28) One day when Esau was out in the field, he came in the house and was feeling faint. Jacob had cooked a red stew, and Esau asked Jacob to give him some of the red stew because he was feeling faint. The Bible tells us of Esau, “therefore was his name called Edom [Red].” (Genesis 25:30). Instead of just giving Esau some of the stew, Jacob proposed a trade for it:

“And Jacob said, Sell me this day thy birthright. And Esau said, Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me? And Jacob said, Swear to me this day; and he swore unto him: and he sold his birthright unto Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage [stew] of lentiles; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: thus Esau despised his birthright.” (Genesis 25:31-34)

We have two very different types of personalities here. First, we have Esau, who was being very dramatic because he was hungry, even claiming he was going to die if he didn’t eat some of the stew. We have on the other hand, Jacob, who instead of just giving his brother some of the stew, took advantage of the situation in order to get something he wanted, something very important, and that was Esau’s birthright as the eldest son of Isaac. Birthright is very important in the Bible. There is a good article from gotquestions.org that explains it (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/birthright-Bible.html), but in summary, when the father of a family dies, the oldest son assumes his authority and responsibilities, and the oldest son also received a double portion of the father’s belongings. In the times that Esau and Jacob lived, they knew the importance of birthright. However, Esau desired more to fill his stomach with food than to receive his birthright from his father, which he would have to wait to receive until his father Isaac died; Esau wanted things immediately and didn’t want to wait a period of time to receive his birthright. He did not take his birthright status seriously. In a sense, Esau was living in a fast-food mentality, whereas Jacob was looking at the big picture. How many people today are living like Esau, with their minds focused on the here-and-now rather than looking at the big picture, looking at their eternity?

Next, we are told that there was a famine in the land in which Isaac and his family lived, and Isaac went to the king of the Philistines, king Abimelech, in Gerar:

“And the LORD appeared unto him, and said, Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of: sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father; and I will make thy seed [descendants] to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these countries [lands]; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.” (Genesis 26:2-5)

God had reiterated to Isaac the covenant that He had made with his father, Abraham. Isaac did as God commanded him to do and did not go into the land of Egypt but lived in the land of Gerar.

Many years prior, Isaac’s father Abraham, who was still called Abram at that time, had gone with his wife Sarai and family to Egypt because there was a famine in the land in which they lived. Because Sarai was a beautiful woman and fearing that the Egyptians would want to take her and kill him, Abram asked Sarai to tell them that she was his sister. She did, and Pharaoh brought her into his house and treated Abram well because of her. However, God sent plagues upon Pharaoh because of Sarai, and Pharaoh went to Abram and asked why he had told him Sarai was his sister and not his wife, which caused the plagues to be sent. Abram told him because he feared for his life. Pharaoh told Abram to go get his wife and leave, and they did and took all of their belongings. (Genesis 12:9-20) In another instance when Abraham and Sarah came to the land of Gerar, they came to Abimelech, the king of Gerar, and once again, Abraham said Sarah was his sister instead of his wife, and Abimelech took Sarah. God appeared to him in a dream and told him he would be a dead man because the woman he took was married. Abimelech told God that he did not know she was married and that Abraham had said she was his sister. God also told him:

“And God said unto him in a dream, Yea, I know that thou didst this in the integrity of thy heart; for I also withheld thee from sinning against me: therefore suffered I thee not to touch her. Now therefore restore the man his wife; for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for thee, and thou shalt live: and if thou restore her not, know thou that thou shalt surely die, thou, and all that are thine.” (Genesis 20:6-7)

Abimelech then told all his servants what happened, and he also called Abraham to him and asked him why he had done this to him. As before, Abraham told him why, and Abimelech not only gave Sarah back to Abraham but also gave him livestock and menservants and womenservants and told them:

“…Behold, my land is before thee: dwell where it pleaseth thee.” (Genesis 20:15)

Abraham then prayed to God, and God healed Abimelech, his wife and maidservants, of whose wombs God had closed because of Sarah.

Returning to Isaac, like his father had done twice before, Isaac deceived the men in Gerar and told them that Rebekah was his sister and not his wife. They lived there a long time until one day, Abimelech, king of the Philistines, saw Isaac caressing her and he knew that she was not Isaac’s sister. He called Isaac to him and asked him why he had lied to him. Like his father had done twice before, Isaac told him he lied because he was afraid they would kill him because they would want his wife. Abimelech then told all of his people not to touch Isaac or Rebekah or his people would be killed. They did leave them alone, and Isaac’s wealth increased 100 times in one year and even more so over time. He became so wealthy that the Philistines envied him and filled the wells that Abraham’s servants had dug long ago with dirt to force them out. Abimelech told Isaac to leave them, “for thou art much mightier than we.” (Genesis 26:16) Isaac took his family and all that he had and moved to the valley of Gerar. Isaac and his servants dug new wells of water. However, two times the other people that also lived there claimed that the water was theirs and quarreled with him. Finally, he moved a third time and no one argued with him about the water. He named the well “Rehoboth,” which means “Spaciousness,” and said, “For now the LORD hath made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.” He then went to Beersheba and God appeared to him that night and told him:

“I am the God of Abraham thy father: fear not, for I am with thee, and will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for my servant Abraham’s sake. And he builded an altar there, and called upon the name of the LORD, and pitched his tent there: and there Isaac’s servants digged a well.” (Genesis 26:24-25)

Did you notice that God told Isaac not to fear? I think God was preparing him for what would happen next. God also reconfirmed His covenant that He had made with Abraham, Isaac’s father. Next, Abimelech, the man who previously had told Isaac and his family to leave, came with his friend and the chief captain of his army, to where Isaac and his family now lived. That must have been a bit unnerving for Isaac, and I believe that is why God told him not to fear. Let us read what happened next:

“And Isaac said unto them, Wherefore ye come to me, seeing ye hate me, and have sent me away from you? And they said, We saw certainly that the LORD was with thee: and we said, Let there be now an oath betwixt us, even betwixt us and thee, and let us make a covenant [treaty] with thee; that thou wilt do us no hurt [harm], as we have not touched thee, and as we have done unto thee nothing but good, and have sent thee away in peace: thou art now the blessed of the LORD. And he made them a feast, and they did eat and drink. And they rose up betimes [early] in the morning, and sware one to another: and Isaac sent them away, and they departed from him in peace. And it came to pass the same day, that Isaac’s servants came, and told him concerning the well which they had digged, and said unto him, We have found water. And he called it Shebah [Oath or Seven]: therefore the name of the city is Beer-sheba [Well of the Oath or Well of the Seven] unto this day.” (Genesis 26:27-33)

Abimelech and his friend, and his chief captain of the army had seen how the Lord God was with Isaac and had blessed him. It appears fear had been in them and they were concerned what God might do to them. Thus, they wanted to make a peace treaty with Isaac, and Isaac did so.

In Genesis 26:34-35, we are told what Esau, Isaac and Rebekah’s oldest son did:

“And Esau was forty years old when he took to wife Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Bashemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite: which were a grief of mind unto Isaac and to Rebekah.” (Genesis 26:34-35)

The next thing we read in the Bible about Isaac is that he was old in age and could not see, and he called Esau to him and told him he wanted to bless him before he died. He told Esau to go in the field and hunt venison for him and cook it for him, and then he would bless Esau. Before reading what transpired, let us first remember what had happened to Rebekah when she was still pregnant with her twin boys, Esau and Isaac:

“And the children struggled together within her; and she said, If it be so [well], why am I thus? And she went to enquire of the LORD. And the LORD said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger.” (Genesis 25:22-23)

Because God knows everything, including things that will happen before they happen, He knew that it would not be the oldest son that would be blessed by Isaac but the youngest son, and that the oldest son would serve the younger son. That is exactly what happened. Let us read how it came to fruition. When Rebekah heard that Isaac wanted to bless Esau, she told Jacob about it and told him to go kill two goats and she would cook them and then Jacob could bring the food to Isaac. Jacob then told his mother that Esau was hairy and that Isaac would know he was not Esau and “I shall seem to him as a deceiver; and I shall bring a curse upon me, and not a blessing.” (Genesis 27:12) Rebekah took Esau’s clothing and goat skins and had Isaac put them on his hands and neck in case Isaac would touch his son. She gave Jacob the food, and he went in to see his father. His father recognized that it was not Esau when Jacob spoke to him and said, “who art thou, my son?” Jacob told him he was Esau and that he had brought the savory food that he liked. Isaac asked him to come near to him so he could feel him. Isaac said, “The voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau. And he discerned [recognized] him not, because his hands were hairy, as his brother Esau’s hands: so he blessed him.” (Genesis 27:13-23) Isaac kept having doubts that the son speaking to him was Esau, but after he felt his hands, he asked Jacob to bring the food, and Isaac ate it. He asked Jacob to come kiss him, and when Jacob came near, he smelled the clothing, which was Esau’s, and recognized it as Esau’s. Isaac then blessed Jacob and said:

“See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field which the LORD hath blessed: therefore God give thee of the dew of heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and plenty of corn [grain] and wine: let people [peoples] serve thee, and nations bow down to thee: be lord over thy brethren, and let thy mother’s sons bow down to thee: cursed be every one that curseth thee, and blessed be he that blesseth thee.” (Genesis 27:27-29)

The words of Isaac above are a prophecy given to him by God that has not fully happened yet but will happen in the future. The prophecy was reiterated in Isaiah 49:23, and it will come to pass. Before discussing this prophecy further, let’s read about what happened after Isaac had unknowingly blessed his younger son, Jacob. Let us also remember that God knew this would happen before it happened, and it was God’s plan all along that the elder would serve the younger. I am taking this deep-dive into the history of Jacob and his family because it is through the lineage of Jacob that Messiah would come.

Immediately after Isaac blessed Jacob, Esau, who had no idea what had just happened, came in from hunting. He cooked the venison he had gotten and brought it to his father. He told his father it was ready for him to eat and asked him to bless him. Isaac, being confused, asked who he was, and Esau told him he was his firstborn son, Esau. Isaac told him he had already eaten the venison and had blessed him who had brought it. Esau then let out a great and bitter cry and told his father to bless him too. Isaac told Esau that his brother had deceived him into blessing him. Esau then said that Jacob was rightly named, for his name means “supplanter,” and he had supplanted him twice, the first time when he took away his birthright. However, we must remember that Esau’s birthright meant nothing to him, for he was quick to give it away for a bowl of red stew. God knew this about Esau, and that is why God did not let Esau be blessed by Isaac. Esau asked his father again to bless him too and started to weep again:

“And Isaac his father answered and said unto him, Behold, thy dwelling shall be the fatness of the earth [of the fertility], and of the dew of heaven from above; and by thy sword shalt thou live, and shalt serve thy brother; and it shall come to pass when thou shalt have the dominion [become restless], that thou shalt break his yoke from off thy neck.” (Genesis 27:39-40)

Esau then planned in his heart to kill Jacob after his father died. He also told his mother what he planned to do. Rebekah told Jacob that his life was in danger and told him to leave and go to her brother, Laban’s house in Haran, until Esau’s temper would cool off and he would come to his senses. She told Jacob she would notify him when it was safe to come home. However, before Jacob left, Isaac called him to him. Isaac commanded Jacob not to marry a Canaanite woman, and instead, to go to his mother’s brother’s house and marry one of his daughters. Isaac then told Jacob:

“And God Almighty bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a multitude of people; and give thee the blessing of Abraham, to thee, and to thy seed with thee; that thou mayest inherit the land wherein thou art a stranger, which God gave unto Abraham.” (Genesis 28:3-4)

Next we are told that upon hearing the blessing that Isaac gave to Jacob and his commandment not to marry a Canaanite woman, Esau, after having already married a Canaanite woman named Judith, decided to rebel against his father and marry another Canaanite woman:

“And Esau, seeing that the daughters of Canaan pleased not Isaac his father; then went Esau unto Ishmael, and took unto [in addition to] the wives which he had Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael Abraham’s son, the sister of Nebajoth, to be his wife.” (Genesis 28:8-9)

It seems that Esau was quick to act on impulse, to react quickly based on feelings instead of thinking things through and what the consequences of his actions might be. I believe it’s yet another reason as to why God did not choose Esau to receive the blessing that normally the eldest son would receive from his father.

I am spending time on the account of the lineage of the Israeli people because in order to understand what is going on in our world today, we must know our history. We must know and understand that God called His people, Israel, to be separate and apart from the rest of the world, for it is through the nation of Israel that all nations will be blessed through Jesus Christ, who many years later after Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, would come and offer salvation first to His own people, Israel, and then to the rest of the world, the Gentiles, after His own rejected Him. Now, let us continue reading from Genesis 28:11-22 that describes what happened after Jacob left his father’s house in Beer-sheba and was going to his uncle Laban’s house in Haran:

“And he lighted upon [came to] a certain place, and tarried [stayed] there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it. And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I am the LORD God of Abraham thy father; and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed [descendants]; and thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of. And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not. And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful [awesome] is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven. And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it. And he called the name of that place Beth-el [House of God]: but the name of that city was called Luz at the first. And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, so that I come again to my father’s house in peace; then shall the LORD be my God: and this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God’s house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth [a tithe] unto thee.” (Genesis 28:11-22)

In his dream, God told Jacob that He would bring him back into the land where Jacob had laid his head to sleep, the land that He had promised to give Abraham, Jacob’s grandfather and Abraham’s descendants. It was then that Jacob realized the power of God, saying to himself, “Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not.” (Genesis 28:16). Jacob continued on his way to Haran and drew near to his uncle Laban’s house:

“And he looked, and behold a well in the field, and, lo, there were three flocks of sheep lying by it; for out of that well they watered the flocks: and a great stone was upon the well’s mouth. And thither were all the flocks gathered: and they rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the sheep, and put the stone again upon the well’s mouth in his place. And Jacob said unto them, My brethren, whence be ye? And they said, Of Haran are we. And he said unto them, Know ye Laban the son of Nahor? And they said, We know him. And he said unto them, Is he well? And they said, He is well: and, behold, Rachel his daughter cometh with the sheep. And he said, Lo, it is yet high day [early in the day], neither is it time that the cattle should be gathered together: water ye the sheep, and go and feed them. And they said, We cannot, until all the flocks be gathered together, and till they roll the stone from the well’s mouth; then we water the sheep. And while he yet spake with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep: for she kept them. And it came to pass, when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother, that Jacob went near, and rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the flock of Laban his mother’s brother. And Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice, and wept.” (Genesis 29:2-11)

In the above Scriptures we read of when Jacob first saw Rachel, who was taking care of her father’s sheep. However, I believe there is a deeper meaning to the Scriptures above, and it relates to Israel and Jesus Christ. We are told that Jacob first saw three flocks of sheep lying by a well. I don’t think it’s coincidence that it specifically says Jacob saw three flocks of sheep. I explain below why I believe three flocks are mentioned and what they represent. We are also told that normally all of the flocks would be gathered by the well and then the stone would be rolled away from the well in order to give water to all of them. Jacob then asked the men that he saw in the field where they were from. When they said they were from Haran, he asked if they knew Laban and if he was well, and they said yes, they knew him and that he was well. They then told Jacob that Laban’s daughter was coming with the sheep. Then Jacob said something that struck me as a little odd. Here Jacob, who had just met these men, began to tell them that they should water Rachel’s sheep and then go and feed them. However, they told him that it wasn’t time yet, for they would wait until all of the flocks would be gathered together and then they would roll the stone from well’s mouth and water all of the sheep. Then something happened that, to me, was very significant, and that was when Jacob went and rolled the stone away and watered the sheep that Leah was tending, which belonged to her father Laban. Now, this is what I believe this may be the deeper meaning of what is written in Genesis 29:2-11, and I believe it is a foreshadowing of the first and second comings of Jesus Christ. It is through the lineage of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that Messiah, Jesus Christ, would come.

In Genesis 29:2-11, we are first told that normally the shepherds wait until all of the sheep are gathered together in the field before they are watered. Let us contrast that to what happened when Jesus came to earth the first time. When He came the first time, He came to offer salvation to His own, the people of the twelve tribes of Israel, most rejected Him, but some did believe in Him, including some people who were not Jewish, including the Samaritan woman, whom He met at Jacob’s well. Jesus came upon her and asked her to give Him a drink of water:

“Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans. Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water? Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle [livestock]? Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: but whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well [fountain] of water sprinkling up into everlasting life. The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw.” (John 4:9-15)

Next, Jesus then told the woman to go call her husband, and she told him she had no husband. She must have been shocked that Jesus then said to her that she told the truth and that she had had five husbands previously and the man she was currently with was not her husband. She responded by saying, “Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet.” (John 4:19) Let’s read what happened next:

“Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things. Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he.” (John 4:20-25)

Here Jesus was speaking to a woman that the Jews at that time would never think of speaking to, for she was a Samaritan woman, meaning she was half Jewish and half Assyrian, and was shunned by the Jews. But Jesus did speak to her, and He also told her that only He can give her living water. He also told her that He IS the Christ.

Now, returning to what I believe the Scriptures from Genesis 29:2-11 represent. I believe the three flocks of sheep that Jacob saw are represented as follows:

1. The first flock represents all those who believed in Jesus at His first coming, which included some Jews and, as we read above, those who are a mixed race of Jews, including the Samaritans. We also have Biblical accounts of Gentiles, non-Jews, who believed in Jesus at His first coming and before His death and resurrection. Jacob made sure this first flock of sheep, which belonged to Laban and were kept by Rachel, were watered. Jacob was acting as a good shepherd of the sheep and made sure that this flock was watered. Just as Jacob rolled a stone away in order to water the sheep, acting as a shepherd to the sheep, a stone was rolled away at Jesus’ tomb after the third day of Jesus’ death. Jesus, who is THE Good Shepherd, was not found in the tomb, for He had resurrected to life, and it is He who gives living water freely to anyone and everyone who believes in Him. As Jacob watered this first flock of sheep, Jesus didn’t wait to give living water to those who believed in Him at His first coming.

   “Then said Jesus unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.” (John 10:7-11); “I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep. And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold [flock], and one shepherd.” (John 10:14-16)

2. The second flock represents primarily the Gentiles who have been saved after Jesus’ ascension to heaven after His first coming and who will be saved up until the end of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble. This represents the time of the Gentiles as discussed by the apostle Paul in Romans 11:25.

3. The third flock represents the one-third remnant of the Jews that will be saved by Jesus Himself at His second coming after the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble. This is discussed in Zechariah 13:8-9.

It is interesting to me that Jacob first saw Rachel in the field, when she came with her father’s sheep to a well to water them. In a similar circumstance, Abraham’s servant first saw Rebekah at a well drawing water, and Rebekah eventually married Isaac, Abraham’s son and Jacob’s father. Many years later, it would also be at a well that Moses would see the seven daughters of Jethro, the priest of Midian, drawing water from a well to water their father’s flock. The shepherds would drive the women away, but Moses would help the women and water their flock. Moses would go on to marry one of the daughters, Zipporah. (Exodus 2:15-21). Water represents life, and without it, our physical lives would end. Living water represents spiritual life, and as Jesus told the Samaritan woman at the well, only Jesus Christ can give it:

“In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly [heart] shall flow rivers of living water.” (John 7:37-38)

Now, let us return to Jacob. Genesis 29:11 states, “And Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice, and wept.” Clearly, Jacob was happy to be there, having arrived at his uncle Laban’s house. Jacob told Rachel who he was, and she went and told her father, Laban. It was there that Jacob would realize that his uncle Laban was a lot like himself. Laban had two daughters, the oldest being Leah and the youngest was Rachel. Jacob liked Rachel, and she was the one whom Jacob had seen first when he arrived in Haran. After Jacob stayed at Laban’s house for a month:

“And Laban said unto Jacob, Because thou art my brother [family], shouldest thou therefore serve me for nought [nothing]? tell me, what shall thy wages be? And Laban had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. Leah was tender eyed [delicate or soft]; but Rachel was beautiful and well favoured [of form and appearance]. And Jacob loved Rachel; and said, I will serve thee seven years for Rachel thy younger daughter. And Laban said, It is better that I give her to thee, than that I should give her to another man: abide with me.” (Genesis 29:14-19)

Thus, Laban and Jacob made an agreement that Jacob would serve Laban seven years and then Laban would give Rachel’s hand in marriage to Jacob. After the seven years had passed, Laban made a feast with Jacob and all the men there. However, in the evening when it was dark, Laban brought not his youngest daughter, Rachel to Jacob but his oldest daughter, Leah, without Jacob realizing it was Leah. They had sexual intercourse that night, and in the morning, Jacob realized that it wasn’t Rachel but Leah. Jacob then confronted Laban:

“…What is this thou hast done unto me? did not I serve with thee for Rachel? wherefore then has thou beguiled [deceived] me?” (Genesis 29:25)

Jacob must have felt like his father Isaac had felt when Jacob had deceived him into believing that he was Esau in order to receive his father’s blessing. Let us read Laban’s response to Jacob:

“And Laban said, It must not be so done in our country [place], to give the younger before the firstborn. Fulfil her week, and we will give thee this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years. And Jacob did so, and fulfilled her week: and he gave him Rachel his daughter to [as] wife also.” (Genesis 29:26-28)

When Laban had given Leah to Jacob, Laban had given one of his handmaids, Zilpah, to Leah. When Laban gave Rachel to Jacob, Laban also gave to Rachel his handmaid Bilhah. Finally, Jacob was with the wife he loved, Rachel, and they had sexual intercourse. Jacob stayed there another seven years. What followed was a sad story of how Leah loved her husband Jacob but he loved Rachel. At that time, Leah was the only daughter who conceived children with Jacob. She felt unloved, and God had opened her womb, but Rachel was not able to conceive. Rachel envied her sister because she was able to give her husband children but Rachel was not able to. Like his grandmother, Sarah had done with Abraham and her handmaiden, Rachel told Jacob to have sexual intercourse with her handmaiden, Bilhah. Then Leah also had Jacob have sexual intercourse with her handmaiden, Zilpah. Ultimately, Rachel was able to conceive and bore Jacob two sons. It was as though Leah and Rachel were in a competition as to who could have the most children between themselves and their handmaidens. All of this is detailed in Genesis 29:31-30:24. Ultimately, Jacob had twelve sons and one daughter. I have listed by their birth order their names and the Scripture references below. I have put in bold font the names of the twelve sons who were born to Jacob:

1-Reuben (Leah’s firstborn son; Genesis 29:32); 2-Simeon (Leah’s second son; Genesis 29:33); 3-Levi (Leah’s third son; Genesis 29:34); 4-Judah (Leah’s fourth son; Genesis 29:35); 5-Dan (Bilhah’s first son; Genesis 30:4-6); 6-Naphtali (Bilhah’s second son; Genesis 30:7-8); 7-Gad (Zilpah’s first son; Genesis 30:9-11); 8-Asher (Zilpah’s second son; Genesis 30:12-13); 9-Issachar (Leah’s fifth son; Genesis 30:17-18); 10-Zebulun (Leah’s sixth son; Genesis 30:19-20); 11-Dinah (Leah’s only daughter; Genesis 30:21); 12-Joseph (Rachel’s first son; Genesis 30:22-24); 13-Benjamin (Rachel’s second son; Rachel died after giving birth; Genesis 35:17-18)

When I first read this, it was surprising to me to know the details about how Jacob had twelve sons. I naively thought that everyone in the Bible must have been perfect in their ways in order for God to use them. However, we see time and time again that God knows that we are not perfect and yet, He still uses us to accomplish His plan for mankind and for His glory. I am thankful for the honesty in God’s word. Oftentimes in historical records, humans try to cover up the sordid details and make people look much better than they truly were, but God doesn’t do that. He shows us that even though we may not be perfect, if we are faithful to Him, He can still use us in many ways, just as He did with Jacob.

After Rachel’s first son, Joseph was born, Jacob went to Laban and asked him to let him, his wives, and his children leave so that he could finally return to his father’s house. Once again, Laban resisted Jacob and asked him to stay longer because he knew that God had blessed him after Jacob came. He told Jacob to name his price to stay and he would pay it. Jacob responded by saying:

“Thou shalt not give me any thing: if thou wilt do this thing for me, I will again feed and keep thy flock: I will pass through all thy flock to day, removing from thence all the speckled and spotted cattle [sheep], and all the brown cattle among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats: and of such shall be my hire [these shall be my wages]. So shall my righteousness answer for me in time to come, when it shall come for my hire [about my wages] before thy face: every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and brown among the sheep, that shall be counted stolen with me. And Laban said, Behold, I would it might be according to thy word.” (Genesis 30:31-34)

Thus, Laban agreed to give all the speckled, spotted, and brown sheep and goats to Jacob, which apparently were fewer in kind than the other colors of sheep, thus the deal would seemingly benefit Laban. Genesis 30:35-36 tells us that Laban took the speckled, spotted, and brown sheep and cattle and gave them to his sons. Laban then went a distance of three days’ journey away from Jacob, while Jacob fed the rest of Laban’s flocks, meaning those that weren’t speckled, spotted, and brown. We read how Jacob did something with rods of green poplar, hazel, and chestnut trees and peeled the bark to create white streaks in them. Then he took the rods and put them in the gutters of the watering troughs, for he believed this would result in the solid color sheep and cattle breeding and producing speckled, spotted, and brown offspring, and that is exactly what happened. There is in fact a type of sheep called the “Jacob sheep.” (See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacob_sheep) Jacob also used the rods for the stronger females and not for the weaker females. We are told in Genesis 30:43 that Jacob “increased exceedingly, and had much cattle, and maidservants, and menservants, and camels, and asses [donkeys].”

Jacob heard Laban’s sons complaining that Jacob had taken away all that belonged to Laban and had gotten all the wealth. Jacob also noticed that Laban did not look at him with favor as he previously did. Next, we are told:

“And the LORD said unto Jacob, Return unto the land of thy fathers, and to thy kindred; and I will be with thee.” (Genesis 31:3)

Jacob then called Rachel and Leah to him and told them that he could see that their father was unhappy with him and that he had deceived Jacob but God prevented him from hurting Jacob. Jacob told them that God has been with him. He then told them of a dream he had dreamt:

“And it came to pass at the time that the cattle [flocks] conceived, that I lifted up mine eyes, and saw in a dream, and, behold, the rams which leaped upon the cattle [flocks] were ringstraked [streaked], speckled, and grisled [gray-spotted]. And the angel of God spake unto me in a dream, saying, Jacob: And I said, Here am I. And he said, Lift up now thine eyes, and see, all the rams which leap upon the cattle are ringstraked, speckled, and grisled: for I have seen all that Laban doeth unto thee. I am the God of Beth-el, where thou anointedst the pillar, and where thou vowedst a vow unto me: now arise, get thee out of this land, and return unto the land of thy kindred.” (Genesis 31:10-13)

Rachel and Leah said there was no inheritance left for them at their father Laban’s house. They told Jacob “For all the riches which God hath taken from our father, that is ours, and our children’s: now then, whatsoever God hath said unto thee, do.” (Genesis 31:16) Jacob then took his wives, children, servants, and all his goods and flocks and left for the land of his father, Isaac, in the land of Canaan. Afterwards, Laban went to shear his sheep, not knowing that Jacob, Rachel, Leah, and his grandchildren had left. Without telling Jacob, Rachel had taken with her the idols/false gods of her father Laban. Three days later, Laban found out that Jacob and his family had left. Laban took men with him and pursued Jacob and his family. Seven days later they came upon Jacob and his family. “And God came to Laban the Syrian in a dream by night, and said unto him, Take heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad.” (Genesis 31:24) When Laban came to Jacob, he asked him why he had left secretly and had not allowed Laban to kiss his daughters and grandchildren and say goodbye to them. He told Jacob he could hurt him but God had told him in a dream the night before not to speak either good or bad to Jacob. He also asked Jacob why he had stolen his gods. Jacob told him that he had left secretly because he was afraid that Laban would take Rachel and Leah by force from him. Regarding the stolen gods, Jacob told Laban, “With whomsoever thou findest thy gods, let him not live: before our brethren discern [identify] thou what is thine with me, and take it to thee. For Jacob knew not that Rachel had stolen them.” (Genesis 31:32) Laban then went and searched Jacob’s tent, then Leah’s tent, and the two maidservant’s tents but did not find the gods. He then went into Rachel’s tent:

“Now Rachel had taken the images [household idols], and put them in the camel’s furniture [saddle], and sat upon them. And Laban searched all the tent, but found them not. And she said to her father, Let it not displease my lord that I cannot rise up before thee; for the custom of women is upon me. And he searched, but found not the images.” (Genesis 31:35)

By this time, Jacob was furious and confronted Laban and told him that he had served him twenty years, and yet it wasn’t enough for Laban. Jacob said if it wasn’t for God’s provision, he would have nothing:

“Except the God of my father, the God of Abraham, and the fear of Isaac, had been with me, surely thou hadst sent me away now empty. God hath seen mine affliction and the labour of my hands, and rebuked thee yesternight.” (Genesis 31:42)

Laban responded by saying that Leah and Rachel, his grandchildren, and the flocks were all his, and everything that Jacob saw was also his but what could he do to his daughters and grandchildren. He then proposed to make a covenant with Jacob, and Jacob agreed. Laban told Jacob not to afflict his daughters or take any other wives besides them, and that God was a witness of their agreement. They set a pillar before them and each swore to God not to pass over the pillar. Jacob then offered a sacrifice and called his brethren to eat bread together. The next morning, Laban kissed his daughters and grandchildren goodbye and blessed them, and then went back to his home.

Next, we read that Jacob went on his way and that angels of God met him. “And when Jacob saw them, he said, This is God’s host [camp]: and he called the name of that place Mahanaim [Double Camp].” (Genesis 32:2). Jacob then decided that he wanted to reconcile with his brother Esau. He sent messengers to Esau, “…unto the land of Seir, the country [field] of Edom.” (Genesis 32:3) He told them to tell Esau that he had lived with Laban until now and that he now has livestock and servants and hopes that Esau will forgive him. The messengers went to Esau and returned to Jacob. They told him that they did meet with Esau, who came with 400 men to meet them. Upon hearing the number of men Esau had, Jacob was filled with fear. He then came up with a plan to protect himself and his family. He divided the people with him into two camps, in case Esau struck one of them, the other would escape. Jacob prayed to God to deliver him from the hand of his brother, for he feared Esau would come and kill him, his wives, and their children. He repeated to God the words He had said to Jacob in a dream after Jacob had obeyed his father Isaac and went to his uncle Laban’s house to take a wife there:

“O God of my father, Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, the LORD which saidst unto me, Return unto thy country, and to thy kindred, and I will deal well with thee: I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which thou hast shewed unto thy servant; for with my staff I passed over this Jordan; and now I am become two bands. Deliver me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother Esau: for I fear him, lest he will come and smite [attack] me, and the mother with the with children. And thou saidst, I will surely do thee good, and make thy seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.” (Genesis 32:9-12)

Jacob spent the night there and decide to give as a present much of his livestock to his brother Esau. Jacob gave the livestock to his servants and told them to go before him in multiple droves, or groups, leaving space between the droves. He told them that when Esau would see and come to them, they were to tell him that the livestock are a present to him from his brother Jacob. Then, still in fear of his brother and his possible retaliation against him, Jacob sent his wives and children away from him, until finally Jacob was left all alone:

“And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking [dawn] of the day. And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched [struck] the hollow [socket] of his thigh [hip]; and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him. And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel [Prince with God]: for as a prince hast thou power with God [for you have struggled with God] and with men, and hast prevailed. And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there. And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel [Face of God]: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved. And as he passed over Penuel [Face of God] the sun rose upon him, and he halted upon his thigh [limped on his hip]. Therefore the children of Israel eat not of the sinew [muscle] which shrank, which is upon the hollow [socket] of the thigh [hip], unto this day: because he touched [struck] the hollow of Jacob’s thigh in the sinew that shrank.” (Genesis 32:24-32)

How many of us have been in a situation like Jacob’s above, where we are wrestling with our fear, doing all that we can in our fallen human nature to protect ourselves, ending up all alone with only God by our side?Like Jacob, how many of us have wrestled with God, not wanting to surrender to Him? It literally came to the point in Jacob’s life that God had to wrestle with Jacob all night long, with God striking Jacob’s hip and making it come out of the socket. Still, Jacob did not let go of Him until God blessed him. God gave him a new name, the name of Israel, and then God blessed him. Jacob came to the realization that he wasn’t wrestling with a man but he had wrestled with God. Let us read again from the prior Scripture I included above and how Jacob had addressed God when he asked God to deliver him from the hand of his brother Esau: “O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac…” (Genesis 32:9) Notice that Jacob did not say “O my God,” no, Jacob at that point did not consider God to be his God. But after Jacob wrestled with God Himself and had met Him face to face, now, He was his God. Jacob acknowledged this by naming the place where he had wrestled as Peniel, also spelled Penuel, which meant “Face of God.” How many of us have had a moment like that where our lives were forever changed after God met with us in our own lives, when it was only Him and us, and we came out of it knowing Him as our God? I had a moment like that, and it changed me forever.

After Jacob wrestled with God and received His blessing, he opened his eyes and saw his brother, Esau, and the 400 men, coming with him. Jacob then took Leah and her children and his wife Rachel and her children, and the handmaids and their children and put them into groups, with the first group being the handmaidens, then Leah, and Rachel toward the back:

“And he [Jacob] passed over before them, and bowed himself to the ground seven times, until he came near to his brother. And Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck, and kissed him: and they wept. And he lifted up his eyes, and saw the women and the children; and said, Who are those with thee? And he said, The children which God hath graciously given thy servant.” (Genesis 33:3-4)

Though Jacob had feared that his brother Esau would want to kill him, that did not happen. Instead, Esau ran to meet him and embraced Jacob. Jacob’s wives and children and their maidservants and their children also came and met Esau and they all bowed to him. Then Esau asked Jacob:

“What meanest thou by all this drove [company] which I met? And he [Jacob] said, These are to find grace [favour] in the sight of my lord. And Esau said, I have enough, my brother; keep that thou hast unto thyself. And Jacob said, Nay, I pray thee, if now I have found grace in thy sight, then receive my present at my hand: for therefore I have seen thy face, as though I had seen the face of God, and thou wast pleased with me. Take, I pray thee, my blessing that is brought to thee; because God hath dealt graciously with me, and because I have enough [all]. And he urged him, and he took it. And he [Esau] said, Let us take our journey, and let us go, and I will go before thee.” (Genesis 33:8-12)

It seems that Jacob had become a changed man after his encounter with God. Jacob acknowledged that it was God who had dealt graciously to him and had allowed Esau to forgive him. Jacob wanted to give Esau the present of livestock, and Esau agreed to take them. Jacob didn’t need all of the livestock that he had and wanted to give a large portion of it to Esau. Finally, Jacob was content with what he had. There are two lessons we can learn from Jacob, and the first is that after we ourselves meet God, we should begin to see a change in our lives. We will still make mistakes and sin, but we should begin to live our lives in a way that glorifies God. The second is that we should acknowledge that it is God who has given us grace and not anything we did or could ever do.

Esau volunteered to go with Jacob to where he was going. However, perhaps because Jacob was still a little leery of his brother and not sure if he would yet still retaliate against him, Jacob told him to go on without him because his young children and young livestock would need to take it slow. Esau went on his way to Seir. However, instead of meeting Esau in Seir, Jacob took his family and they went "“to Shalem, a city of Shechem, in the land of Canaan,” (Genesis 33:18) where he bought a piece of land from the children of Hamor, Shechem’s father. Jacob erected an altar and called it El-elohe-Israel, which means God, the God of Israel (Genesis 33:20).

Jacob’s only daughter, Dinah, whose mother was Leah, went out to see the women of the land, and she was raped by Shechem, Hamor’s son. Genesis 34:3 tells us that he was attracted to her, loved her and spoke kindly to her afterwards, and told his father to get her so he could marry her. Jacob found out that Shechem had raped her but didn’t say or do anything about it until his sons came back from the field. Hamor then came to talk with Jacob. In the meantime, Jacob’s sons found out what had happened to their sister and were grieved and very angry. Hamor then talked with them and told them how his son longed for Dinah and that he prayed they would give her to be his wife. He also said to Jacob’s sons:

“And make ye marriages with us, and give your daughters unto us, and take our daughters unto you. And ye shall dwell with us: and the land shall be before you; dwell and trade ye therein, and get you [acquire] possessions therein. And Shechem said unto her father and unto her brethren, Let me find grace [favour] in your eyes, and what ye shall say unto me I will give. Ask me never [ever] so much dowry [bride-price] and gift, and I will give according as ye shall say unto me: but give me the damsel to wife [as a wife].” (Genesis 34:9-12)

We are told in Genesis 34:13 that Jacob’s sons “answered Shechem and Hamor his father deceitfully because he had defiled Dinah their sister.” They told Shechem and his father Hamor that they could not give their sister to one who is uncircumcised. Jacob’s sons then told them that if they and every male would circumcise themselves, then they would give their daughters to them and receive their daughters and would become one people. Otherwise, they would take Dinah and leave. Hamor and Shechem then went and told all of the men of their people what Jacob’s sons had proposed and said it would be good for them because of all the livestock and goods that Jacob and his family had. The men agreed, and all of them were circumcised. On the third day after they had been circumcised and were in pain, two of Jacob’s sons, Simeon and Levi, killed all the men with a sword, and then went and killed Hamor and Shechem and took their sister Dinah from Shechem’s house. They then plundered the city and took all their livestock. They also took the women and the children captive. Next we read what Jacob said when he found out what had happened:

“And Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, Ye have troubled me to make me to stink [obnoxious] among the inhabitants of the land, among the Canaanites and the Perizites: and I being few in number, they shall gather themselves together against me, and slay me; and I shall be destroyed, I and my house. And they said, Should he deal with our sister as with an harlot?” (Genesis 34:30-31)

Next we are told that God then spoke to Jacob and told him to go to Beth-el, where Jacob had gone to when he had fled from his brother Esau. Jacob did as God told him to do, and Jacob told his family:

“…Put away the strange [foreign] gods that are among you, and be clean [purify yourselves], and change your garments; and let us arise, and go up to Beth-el; and I will make there an altar unto God, who answered me in the day of my distress, and was with me in the way which I went. And they gave unto Jacob all the strange gods which were in their hand, and all their earrings which were in their ears; and Jacob hid them under the oak which was by Shechem.” (Genesis 35:2-4)

Regarding the foreign gods that are mentioned above, I don’t know if these belonged to the women and children of Shechem that were taken into captivity and/or if they belonged to some of Jacob’s own family members or servants. However, we do know that when Rachel had left her father Laban’s house with Jacob and her sister Leah, Rachel had taken some of her father’s images or idols, false gods, (Genesis 31:19) and had hidden them under the camel’s saddle. The Bible does not tell us that Jacob knew about these idols of Rachel’s. However, he is aware now of these false gods, and he told all who were with them to leave them behind.

As Jacob and all who were with him journeyed, “…the terror of God was upon the cities that were found about them, and they did not pursue after the sons of Jacob.” (Genesis 35:5) They arrived at Beth-el, in Canaan, and Jacob built an altar there and called it El-beth-el, which means God of the House of God. Next we are told:

“And God appeared unto Jacob again, when he came out of Padan-aram, and blessed him. And God said unto him, Thy name is Jacob: thy name shall not be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name: and he called his name Israel. And God said unto him, I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins; and the land which I gave Abraham and Isaac, to thee I will give it, and to thy seed after thee will I give the land. And God went up from him in the place where he talked with him.” (Genesis 35:9-13)

God confirmed what He had previously told Jacob, that his name would no longer be called Jacob but “Israel.” God also confirmed His promise to Abraham and Isaac and now to Jacob that He would make of him a great nation and many nations. I don’t know why God confirmed it to Jacob, but perhaps it was because Jacob had doubt in his mind, just as he had doubted whether his brother Esau had forgiven him. I know in my own life that when God has called me to do something and I begin to do it, I oftentimes wonder if I am doing what God called me to do. When God has confirmed to me that it is what He wants me to do, then it helps me to remove the doubt that I had and to trust in Him.

God also told Jacob that kings would be his descendants. God reconfirmed that He was giving to him the land that he had given to his father, Isaac, and to his grandfather, Abraham. Though many people in the world today want us to believe that God did not give the land to Israel, the Bible clearly tells us otherwise. After God spoke to him, Jacob set a pillar of stone where God had talked to him and poured a drink offering and oil upon it.

After leaving Beth-el, they were nearing a place Ephrath, which we are told in Genesis 35:19, “which is Beth-lehem,” that Rachel was in hard labor with her second son. Rachel’s midwife told Rachel, “Fear not; thou shalt have this son also.” (Genesis 35:17) Rachel did have her son, but because Rachel was dying, she named him Ben-oni, which means Son of My Sorrow. However, Jacob called him Benjamin, which means Son of the Right Hand. Rachel passed away, and Jacob set a pillar on her grave, which the Bible tells us is still standing to this day (Genesis 35:20). There are a couple of things I want to mention before continuing in Genesis 35. The first is that the Beth-lehem Ephrath that is mentioned in Genesis 35:16 and 19 is the same town of Bethlehem Ephratah that was prophesied by the prophet Micah as the town from which Messiah would come. Micah prophesied that Messiah would be great upon the earth. This prophesy will be fulfilled after the coming 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, when Jesus, Messiah, will bring back the remnant of Israel, whom He will save during their time of trouble, into their land. It will be at that time that Jesus will finally be great upon all the earth:

“But thou, Beth-lehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting. Therefore will he give them up, until the time that she which travaileth hath brought forth: then the remnant of his brethren shall return unto the children of Israel. And he shall stand and feed [shepherd his flock] in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God: and they shall abide: for now shall he be great unto the ends of the earth.” (Micah 5:2-4)

The second thing I want to mention is that this is not the last time we read of Rachel. The prophet Jeremiah wrote of her when he prophesied that the captives of Israel, who were conquered and taken to Babylon for a period of seventy years, would return to their land and that Jerusalem and the temple would be rebuilt. They would have again have hope:

“Thus saith the LORD; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rahel [Rachel] weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not. Thus saith the LORD; Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears: for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the LORD; and they shall come again from the land of the enemy. And there is hope in thine end [thy future], saith the LORD, that thy children shall come again to their own border.” (Jeremiah 31:15-17)

Jeremiah’s prophecy above was a dual prophecy, with the first fulfillment being when Israel returned from Babylon to Israel after 70 years. We are told in Matthew how this prophecy was also fulfilled a second time. After Jesus was born in Bethlehem, the puppet king of Israel, King Herod, had wise men of the east come to him and ask him, “Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.” (Matthew 2:2). Herod told them to go and search for this child so that he could worship Him. However, that is not what Herod wanted to do. The wise men did go to Jesus but were warned by God in a dream not to return to Herod, and they obeyed God. Joseph, Jesus’ step-father, was warned by an angel in a dream that he must take his family to Egypt because Herod wanted to destroy the child, and Joseph did as he was told. King Herod feared that his power as king was threatened by this child, and Herod sought to kill him:

“Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked [deceived] of the wise men, was exceeding wroth [angry], and sent forth, and slew all the children [male children] that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts [districts] thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy [Jeremiah] the prophet, saying, In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not.” (Matthew 2:16-18)

I can’t even imagine the sorrow and anguish of all of the mothers of those male babies that had been killed, all because Herod felt his power and authority were threatened by Jesus. He had all of those poor children killed, and by the power of Almighty God, Jesus was saved. Time and time again, mankind has tried to stop the plan of God from being carried out, and the source of these attempts is Satan. Satan did not want Jesus Christ to come to earth the first time, and he certainly does not want Jesus to return to earth at His second coming. Satan is doing everything in his power to stop that. Time and time again, Satan’s wrath has come against the Jews and also against Christians. However, as the Bible tells us in the book of Revelation, Satan will not prevail.

Now, let us return to Genesis chapter 35. It is there that for the first time, we read of Jacob being referred to in the Bible by his new name of “Israel.” Though God had previously told Jacob that he was giving him a new name of “Israel” in Genesis 32:28, this was the first time that He had referred to Jacob as “Israel”:

“And Israel journeyed, and spread his tent beyond the tower of Edar [or Eder]. And it came to pass, when Israel dwelt in that land, that Reuben went and lay with Bilhah his father’s concubine: and Israel heard it.” (Genesis 35:21-22)

Reuben, who was Jacob’s firstborn son, had committed a horrible deed against his father by having sexual intercourse with his father’s concubine. We don’t read about any action or reprimand Jacob took against Reuben until when Jacob was dying and prophesied to his twelve sons of what would happen to them in the last days, he had this to say to his oldest son:

“Reuben, thou art my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength, the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power: unstable as water, thou shalt not excel; because thou wentest up to the father’s bed; then defiledst thou it: he went up to my couch.” (Genesis 49:3-4)

As we have read, Jacob and his family traveled a lot during his many journeys. I was interested in seeing where he went, and found this link that shows possible routes of Jacob’s many travels: https://i.pinimg.com/736x/40/49/24/404924225d1be52de535d3a76ebb46cd.jpg

In Genesis 35:27-29, Jacob, along with his family and all that he had, finally returned to his father, Isaac, in Hebron, “where Abraham and Isaac had sojourned.” Isaac died at the age of 180 years, and Jacob and Esau buried him. Long ago, after Jacob had left his father’s house, fleeing from Esau, to go to his uncle Laban’s house, the vow that Jacob had made with God had come to pass. Let us read it again:

“And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, so that I come again to my father’s house in peace; the shall the LORD be my God…” (Genesis 28:20-21)

God was with Jacob the entire time during all of his travels and fed and protected him, and God had brought Jacob back to his father’s house in peace.

Before we read about what happened next to Jacob, let us read what God’s word says about his brother, Esau:

“And Esau took his wives, and his sons, and his daughters, and all the persons of his house, and his cattle, and all his beasts [animals], and all his substance [goods], which he had got in the land of Canaan; and went into the country from the face of [away from the presence of] his brother Jacob. For their riches were more than that they might [possessions were too great for them to] dwell together; and the land wherein they were strangers could not bear [support] them because of their cattle. Thus dwelt Esau in mount Seir: Esau is Edom.” (Genesis 36:6-8)

Though Jacob and Esau had made amends with one another, Esau’s descendants would be the peoples known as the Edomites, and they would constantly be at war with the Israelites. The prophets Jeremiah and Obadiah prophesied destruction for the Edomites, which later became the Idumaeans. Let us read Obadiah’s prophecy:

“And the house of Jacob shall be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame, and the house of Esau for stubble, and they shall kindle in them, and devour them; and there shall not be any remaining [survivor] of the house of Esau; for the LORD hath spoken it.” (Obadiah 18)

Gotquestions.org has an article that describes what eventually happened to the Edomites. (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/Edomites.html)

There is much more to write about how the nation of Israel was created by God, and before returning the focus to today’s Scripture from Isaiah 49:23, I wanted to write about Jacob and his twelve sons and how they became the twelve tribes of Israel. I am absolutely fascinated by God’s word, and it is critical to understand how the nation of Israel came about and the reason why in order to understand what is happening in our world today, because it all centers around Israel.

After returning to his father, Isaac’s land in Canaan and after Isaac died, Jacob and his family lived there. Genesis 37:2 tells us that one day, Joseph, Jacob’s oldest son from his beloved wife Rachel, who was 17-years old at that time, was feeding the flock with brothers when he gave a bad report of them to his father. Afterwards we are told:

“Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat [tunic] of many colours. And when his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably unto him. And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet the more. And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed: For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance [bowed down] to my sheaf. And his brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed reign over us? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us? And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words. And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance [bowed down] to me. And he told it to his father, and to his brethren: and his father rebuked him, and said unto him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth? And his brethren envied him; but his father observed the saying [kept the matter in mind].” (Genesis 37:3-11)

Having a sibling of my own, I am sure it must have hurt Joseph’s brothers that they could clearly see that their father Jacob, now called Israel, loved Joseph more than he loved them, especially when Jacob made a special coat for Joseph. Because of this, they hated Joseph, and things only worsened after Joseph dreamt the two dreams and then told his family about the dreams, which were not well-received, even by Jacob.

Joseph’s brothers left to go feed their father’s flock in Shechem. Israel told Joseph to go and check on his brothers and the sheep. Joseph did as Israel told him to do, and Joseph came across a man and asked him if he had seen his brothers. He told Joseph they had gone to Dothan, and Joseph went there. Joseph’s brothers saw him coming, and called him a “dreamer” to themselves. They plotted to kill him and throw him into a pit:

“And Reuben heard it, and he delivered him out of their hands; and said, Let us not kill him. And Reuben said unto them, Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness, and lay no hand upon him; that he might rid [deliver] him out of their hands, to deliver him to his father again.” (Genesis 37:21-22)

Hoping they would agree with him and throw Joseph in the pit, Reuben intended to go back later and save Joseph and take him back to their father. When Joseph came to them, they took of his coat of many colors and threw into the pit, which had no water in it. They then ate a meal together and saw a group of Ishmeelites coming with their camels to sell their goods in Egypt. Judah asked his brothers what would it profit them if they killed their brother and hid his blood, and said they should sell him to the Ishmeelites. Like his brother Reuben, he didn’t want to kill Joseph and said, “…let not our hand be upon him; for he is our brother and our flesh.” (Genesis 37:27) His brothers agreed, and they sold Joseph for twenty pieces of silver. The Ishmeelites then took Joseph to Egypt. Upon returning to the pit, Reuben, who had not been with his brothers when they sold Joseph, saw the empty pit and he tore his clothes in grief. The brothers then killed a goat and dipped Joseph’s coat in the blood. They returned home to their father and showed him the coat and asked if he knew if it was Joseph’s coat. Israel recognized it as his son’s and said that a wild animal had surely killed Joseph and torn him into pieces. Israel tore his clothes in grief and mourned many days for his son. All of his other children tried to comfort him, but he refused and said, “For I will go down into the grave unto my son mourning. Thus his father wept for him. (Genesis 37:35). Next, we are told that the Midianites sold Joseph to Potiphar, who was an officer and captain of the guard of the Pharaoh of Egypt. Before we read more about that, the Bible tells us about Israel’s son Judah.

We are told that after the brothers sold Joseph to the Ishmeelites, who took him to Egypt and sold him to Potiphar, that one of the brothers, Judah, went away from his brothers and apparently remained there and made a friend named Hirah, who was an Adullamite. Judah married a daughter of a Canaanite man whose name was Shuah, and they had three sons named Er, Onan, and Shelah. Time passed, and Judah found a wife named Tamar for his oldest son, Er. The Bible tells us that Er “was wicked in the sight of the LORD; and the LORD slew [killed] him.” (Genesis 38:7) As was tradition during that time, Judah told his middle son to take his brother’s wife and marry her so that she could have a child. However, Onan did not obey God, which displeased God and He killed Onan as well. Judah then told Tamar to go to her father’s house until his youngest son Shelah grew up and could marry her. Tamar did go to her father’s house, and in the meantime, Judah’s wife died and he mourned. He decided to go visit his friend Hirah who lived in Timnath. Tamar heard what happened to Judah, and she decided to go to Timnath and disguise herself as a prostitute, “for she saw that Selah was grown, and she was not given unto him to wife.” (Genesis 38:14) Judah saw her but did not know she was his daughter-in-law because she had hid her face with a veil. Judah went to her and asked her to let him have sex with her. She asked him what would he give her, and he said he would send her one of his goats. She asked him to give her his signet, bracelets (cord), and staff as a pledge for the goat, and he agreed. They had sexual relations, and Judah left, still not knowing it was Tamar. Judah returned to his friend, Hirah, who then took the goat and went and looked for Tamar to give it to her. He asked some men if they had seen a harlot, and they said there was not one in that place. Hirah returned and told Judah that he could not find the harlot. Three months later, Judah heard it said, “Tamar thy daughter in law hath played the harlot; and also, behold, she is with child by whoredom [harlotry]. And Judah said, Bring her forth, and let her be burnt.” (Genesis 38:24) Let us read what happened next:

“When she was brought forth, she sent to her father in law, saying, By the man, whose these are, am I with child: and she said, Discern, I pray thee, whose are these, the signet, and bracelets, and staff. And Judah acknowledged them, and said, She hath been more righteous than I; because that I gave her not to Shelah my son. And he knew her again no more.” (Genesis 38:26)

I must admit that when I first read this, I thought to myself, how could this possibly be the son of Israel, from whom Messiah would come, the lion of the tribe of Judah? It was only when I read it again that I realized a couple of things. The first is that when God came down to earth as a human being, Jesus, He would be formed in the womb of His mother by God, where God provided the seed through the Holy Spirit and the woman, Mary, conceived by the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit upon her. Both Jesus’ step-father Joseph and His mother Mary have the lineage of Judah in their bloodlines. Ever since Adam and Eve sinned in the garden of Eden, sin has been passed down to mankind, and that includes sin in the man Judah. However, God chose Judah to be the son out of Jacob’s twelve sons, from whom Jesus would come. Secondly, we see here how Judah could have denied that the items that Tamar had as proof of the man who impregnated her were his, but instead of denying them, he acknowledge them as his own. We also have his admittance of his guilt in not giving his youngest son, Shelah to Tamar to be her husband, as Judah had previously told her he would do. We also read that Judah even said that she was more righteous than he was. We are also told that after all of this happened, Judah did not know her again, meaning he did not have sexual relations with her anymore. I love the fact that instead of leaving out these not-so-favorable accounts of history, the Bible includes them, and it shows the sin of humanity but how God can still show grace to those who admit their mistakes, as Judah did.

The Bible goes on to tell us that Tamar was pregnant with twin boys. When Tamar was in labor, one of the twins put out his hand and Tamar’s midwife put a scarlet thread on his hand to denote which son would be delivered first, which one would have the birthright. However, the baby went back inside the womb and the other baby came out first:

“…and she [the midwife] said, How hast thou broken forth? this breach be upon thee: therefore his name was called Pharez [Breach or breakthrough]. And afterward came out his brother, that had the scarlet thread upon his hand: and his name was called Zarah [Zerah].” (Genesis 38:29-30)

It is from the lineage of Pharez (Phares in the Greek) that Jesus Christ would come, as documented in Matthew 1:3 and Luke 3:33. The account of the twins of Tamar reminds me of the twin boys that Rebekah had, where Jacob, the younger son, would be the one to be blessed by his father Jacob instead of Esau.

Next we read about Joseph and what happened after he was sold in Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and captain of the guard. God tells us in His word that He was with Joseph and prospered him in Potiphar’s house, so much so that Potiphar gave Joseph great responsibility over his house. As the overseer, Joseph was responsible not only for Potiphar’s house but for everything Potiphar had in the house and the field:

“And he left all that he had in Joseph’s hand [care]; and he knew not ought [anything] he had, save [except] the bread which he did eat. And Joseph was a goodly person, and well favoured [handsome in form and appearance].” (Genesis 39:6)

Potiphar was married, and his wife lusted after Joseph and came to him one day and said to him, “Lie with me.” (Genesis 39:7) Instead of agreeing to have sex with her, Joseph refused and told her that his master, meaning her husband, trusted in Joseph with everything he had and that he could not betray her husband by lying with her. Joseph said his master had not held anything back from him except his wife. Then Joseph said to her:

“…because thou art his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?” (Genesis 39:9)

Joseph acknowledged not only that it would be a wicked thing for him to sleep with his master’s wife, but also, and more importantly, that he would be sinning against God. How many people in our world today think about what sinning would do not only to them but also to people around them and how many actually fear God and what the consequences of their sin may be? Here we see that Joseph was a man of integrity, one who could be trusted. I think that is why God had given those dreams to Joseph when he was a young man. Potiphar’s wife did not like being rejected by Joseph. One day when she was alone in the house with Joseph, she took Joseph’s clothing and told him again to lie with her. This time, Joseph said nothing to her but fled the house, leaving his garment in her hand. She then went and told the men in the house, “See, he hath brought in an Hebrew unto us to mock [laugh at] us; he came in unto me to lie with me, and I cried with a loud voice: and it came to pass, when he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried, that he left his garment with me, and fled, and got him out.” (Genesis 39:14-15) When her husband came home, she told him the same thing. Potiphar then had Joseph put in prison and bound. However, as God had done when Joseph first came to Potiphar’s house, God showed mercy to Joseph. The ruler of the prison showed favor to Joseph and put him in charge of all the prisoners:

“The keeper of the prison looked not to any thing that was under his hand; because the LORD was with him [Joseph], and that which he did, the LORD made it to prosper.” (Genesis 39:23)

While Joseph remained in prison, the Pharaoh of Egypt was offended by his chief butler and chief baker. We aren’t told what had offended Pharaoh but only that he had them put into the same prison as Joseph. Joseph was still in charge of all the prisoners. One night, the butler and baker each dreamt a dream and woke up the next morning feeling dejected. Joseph noticed this and asked why they were so sad. They told him that they both had dreamt a dream and that there was no one there who could interpret what their dreams meant. Before continuing with this account of what happened next, I want to say that I am absolutely in awe of God’s word. I have heard that prophecy is pattern in the Bible, and it is true here, for what we read in Genesis is very similar to what is in the book of Daniel, and that is that God Himself gives the ability to interpret dreams to whom He chooses, to His people, which I will discuss further. Now, let us read Joseph’s response to them:

“…Do not interpretations belong to God?” (Genesis 40:8)

The chief butler told Joseph that he had dreamt about a vine that had three branches that budded and had blossoms bloom and then brought forth grapes. The butler dreamt that he had taken the grapes and squeezed the juice into Pharaoh’s cup, which he gave to Pharaoh. Joseph told the butler that the three branches represented three days, and that within three days, Pharaoh would free the butler from the prison and restore him to his position he once had in Pharaoh’s palace. He also asked the butler to remember him after he would be freed and to mention him to Pharaoh and bring him out of prison. Joseph also told the butler, “For indeed I was stolen away out of the land of the Hebrews: and here also have I done nothing that they should put me into the dungeon.” (Genesis 40:15) The chief baker then told Joseph that he had dreamt about three white baskets, meaning three baskets of white bread, on his head. He had dreamt that the top basket had all kinds of baked goods in it for Pharaoh and then the birds ate the baked goods while the basket was on his head. Joseph then told the baker that the baskets were three days and within three days, he would be killed by Pharaoh, who would hang him on a tree and the birds would eat his flesh. Three days later, it was Pharaoh’s birthday, and he took the chief butler and baker out of prison. As Joseph said would happen in the interpretation of their dreams, Pharaoh did indeed restore the butler to his prior position, and the butler gave the cup to Pharaoh, and Pharaoh did indeed hang the baker. Though the butler was restored, he did not remember Joseph but forgot him.

Two years went by and Joseph was still in prison. Pharaoh then dreamt a dream that troubled him when he woke up. He summoned the magicians and wise men to him and told them his dream, but none of them could interpret the dream. The chief butler then told Pharaoh that when he had been angry with him and the chief baker and had imprisoned them, they each had dreamt a dream. The butler told him there had been a young Hebrew man imprisoned with them who had interpreted the dreams and what the Hebrew had said would happen did come to pass. Pharaoh then summoned Joseph and told him he had dreamt a dream and had heard that Joseph could interpret dreams. Now, let us compare Joseph’s reply to Pharaoh to what Daniel the prophet many years later would tell the King of Babylon when the King sought someone to interpret his dream:

“…It is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace.” (Genesis 41:16)

“Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, The secret which the king hath demanded cannot the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, the soothsayers, shew [declare] unto the king; but there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets, and maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days.” (Daniel 2:27-28)

Both Joseph and Daniel knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that any ability they had to interpret dreams did not come of their own ability but by God alone. May we ourselves remember Joseph and Daniel when it comes to any ability that God has given us. Now, let us continue with Pharaoh’s dream. He dreamt of standing by a river and seeing seven fat, well-fed cows grazing in a meadow, and then he saw seven emaciated cows that came after them, such that he had never seen before in Egypt. He saw the emaciated cows eat the fat cows and afterwards, the emaciated cows still looked unchanged; they were that thin. Pharaoh had awakened from his dream and then dreamt another dream. This time, he saw seven heads of grain that came up from one stalk that were healthy, and then he saw seven withered and thin heads of grain that were blighted, badly damaged, by the east wind, that came up after them. He saw the thin and weak heads of grain devour the seven healthy heads of grain. Joseph then interpreted Pharaoh’s dream:

“And Joseph said unto Pharaoh, The dream of Pharaoh is one: God hath shewed Pharaoh what he is about to do. The seven good kine [cows] are seven years; and the seven good ears are seven years: the dream is one. And the seven thin and ill favoured kine that came up after them are seven years; and the seven empty ears blasted [blighted] with the east wind shall be seven years of famine. This is the thing which I have spoken unto Pharaoh: What God is about to do he sheweth unto Pharaoh. Behold, there come seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt: and there shall arise after them seven years of famine; and all the plenty shall be forgotten in the land of Egypt; and the famine shall consume the land; and the plenty shall not be known in the land by reason of that famine following; for it shall be very grievous. And for that the dream was doubled [repeated] unto Pharaoh twice; it is because the thing is established by God, and God will shortly bring it to pass.” (Genesis 41:25-32)

Joseph then proposed to Pharaoh that he appoint officers who would take a fifth part (20%) of the land during the plentiful seven years and the food grown in that 20% of land and store it in the cities. Thus, when the seven-year famine came, the people would have food to eat. Pharaoh and all his servants agreed with Joseph’s proposal. Then:

“And Pharaoh said unto his servants, Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is? And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Forasmuch as God hath shewed thee all this, there is none so discreet [as discerning] and wise as thou art: thou shalt be over [in charge of] my house, and according unto thy word shall all my people be ruled: only in the throne will I be greater than thou. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, See, I have set thee over all the land of Egypt. And Pharaoh took off his ring [signet ring] from his hand, and put it upon Joseph’s hand, and arrayed him in vestures [garments] of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck; and he made him to ride in the second chariot which he had; and they cried before him, Bow the knee: and he made him ruler over all the land of Egypt. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I am Pharaoh, and without thee [without your consent] shall no man lift up his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.” (Genesis 41:38-44)

Once again, but to an even greater extent, Joseph was given great responsibility, but this time it was under Pharaoh. It would be upon Joseph’s shoulders to ensure the food would be collected and stored during the coming seven years of plenty, and Joseph was ready to take on such a responsibility. Next, we are told that, just as had happened when the people living in Judah and Jerusalem were taken into captivity in Babylon by King Nebuchadnezzar, Pharaoh called Joseph by a different name, an Egyptian name of Zaphnath-paaneah, which the Authorized King James Version Bible that I have says “Probably Egyptian for God speaks and he lives.” (Genesis 41:45) Pharaoh also gave to Joseph a wife named Asenath, whose father was Poti-pherah, priest of On. We are told that at that time, Joseph was 30-years old. Joseph then went out to all of Egypt and gathered up the food which was to be stored during the 7-years of abundance. During this time, Joseph’s wife bore him two sons, whom Joseph named in a way that honored and thanked God:

“And Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh [Making Forgetful]: For God, said he hath made me forget all my toil, and all my father’s house. And the name of the second called he Ephraim [Fruitfulness]: For God hath caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction.” (Genesis 41:51-52)

Next came the 7-years of famine, and it was severe not only in Egypt but across all the earth. Joseph then opened the storehouses and sold the food to the Egyptians. In addition, all countries came to Egypt to buy food. The famine even stretched to where Joseph’s father and brothers still lived. Joseph’s father, Jacob had seen that Egypt had food and told his sons to go there to buy food so they would not die. Ten of Joseph’s brothers went, but Jacob kept Benjamin, the youngest son, home with him, for fear that something would happen to him, as it had happened to Joseph. Let us read what happened next:

“And Joseph was the governor over the land, and he it was that sold to all people of the land: and Joseph’s brethren [brothers] came, and bowed down themselves before him with their faces to the earth.” (Genesis 42:6)

Here were Joseph’s ten brothers bowing down before him. The same brothers who had mocked Joseph and hated him because of the dreams he had dreamt, and not only had his brothers mocked him but also his father, Jacob. It was his father who had mockingly asked Joseph if he, Joseph’s mother, and all his brothers should bow down to him. Little did they know then that Joseph’s dreams would come to pass. Joseph saw his brothers, but he acted as though he did not know them and spoke harshly to them. He asked them where they had come from and why they had come. Genesis 42:9 tells us, “And Joseph remembered the dreams which he dreamed of them, and said unto them, Ye are spies; to see the nakedness [exposed parts] of the land ye are come.” His brothers said no, that they were there to buy food and that they were honest men and not spies. They said they are twelve brothers, all the sons of one man who lives in Canaan, and that their youngest brother was with their father and one of their brothers was no more, meaning he had died. Joseph told them again that they were spies and in order to see Pharaoh, they must be tested to determine if they were telling the truth. He told them to send one of their brothers to their father to bring their youngest brother, while the rest of them would be imprisoned. He then put them all into prison for three days. It seems Joseph then had a change of heart:

“And Joseph said unto them the third day, This do, and live; for I fear God…” (Genesis 42:18)

Before we read what Joseph told them to do, I wanted to say that Joseph’s statement to them, “This do, and live; for I fear God” reminds me a lot of what Jesus told a man who was a lawyer who wanted to know what he should do in order to have eternal life. Let us read that account from the book of Luke:

“And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted [tested] him, saying, Master [Teacher], what shall I do to inherit eternal life? He [Jesus] said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou? And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself. And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live. But he, willing [wanting] to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour? And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment [clothing], and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him, and went to him, and bound [bandaged] up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And on the morrow [next day] when he departed, he took out two pence [money], and gave them to the host [innkeeper], and said unto him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee. Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.” (Luke 10:25-37)

Jesus showed the man that though the man who was from Jerusalem and went to Jericho was robbed and beaten, with even his clothes taken, and left for dead, was seen by people of his own faith, a priest and a Levite, they did not even attempt to help the man and merely walked to the other side of where he was, ignoring him in his time of need. However, it was the kindness and compassion of a Samaritan man who had helped him in his time of need and had shown him great mercy. I am reminded of this when I read Joseph’s words to his brothers. His own brothers had taken the coat of many colors his father had given him, thrown him into a pit with no water in it, and wanted to let him die in it, and that likely would have happened if his brother Judah hadn’t said they wouldn’t profit anything by letting him die and instead they sold Joseph to the Midianites. One of his brothers, Reuben, went away from his brothers and warned them not to shed Joseph’s blood. Reuben had intended to go back and get him out of the pit, but when he returned, his other brothers had already sold Joseph and he was gone. No mercy was shown to Joseph by his own brothers, and now Joseph, who was second in charge in Egypt and completely in charge of the food supply, had a decision to make: would he show his brothers mercy, though they had shown him none? It is clear by his words to his brothers that he would show them mercy because of what he said to them: “This do, and live; for I fear God.” Joseph knew that he was accountable to Almighty God, and he likely remembered all that God had done for him in his life, and that God had shown him mercy many times.

Joseph then told them to leave one of their brothers there in prison and for the nine other brothers to take food to their families in Canaan and to bring their youngest brother to him, and that they would not die. It was then they realized their guilt in what they had done to Joseph, their own brother:

“And they said one to another, We are verily guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the anguish of his soul, when he besought us, and we would not hear; therefore this distress is come upon us. And Reuben answered them, saying, Spake I not unto you, saying, Do not sin against the child [boy]; and ye would not hear? therefore, behold, also his blood is required. And they knew not that Joseph understood them; for he spake unto them by an interpreter. And he turned himself about [away] from them, and wept; and returned to them again, and communed [talked] with them, and took from them Simeon, and bound him before their eyes.” (Genesis 42:21-24)

Joseph then instructed his men to fill the sacks of the men of Canaan with grain, and to put the money they had brought to pay for the grain into their sacks, and to give them food for their trip back to Canaan. Joseph’s brothers then loaded the sacks onto their donkeys and left for their home. When they arrived at an inn to spend the night, one of his brothers opened a sack to get food to feed his donkey and saw that some of the money they had brought to pay for the food was in the sack! He told his brothers, and they all were afraid, and said, “What is this that God hath done unto us?” (Genesis 42:28) This is an example of what guilt does to us, when we know that we have done something wrong and we worry, we anticipate the consequences of our wicked actions. When the brothers arrived home, they told their father, Jacob all that had happened and that the ruler of the food supply, who unbeknownst to them was their brother Joseph, had told them to bring back their younger brother, Benjamin, to him, and then he would know that the brothers were honest men and not spies and he would allow them to trade in Egypt for food. As they emptied their sacks of grain, they realized that every brother had money in his sack, and they and their father were afraid. Jacob, however, did not agree to send his son, Benjamin, to Egypt. Reuben told his father that he could slay his own two sons if he did not return from Egypt with Benjamin. Jacob, thinking that, like Joseph, Reuben was also dead, was not willing to take a chance with Benjamin and thus did not agree to send him to Egypt.

Time went on, and Jacob and his family ran out of food. Jacob told his sons to return to Egypt and buy more food. Judah reminded him that they would not be able to buy food from the ruler unless they brought their brother, Benjamin to him. Jacob was upset at them that they had told the man about their brother, and they told him that the man had asked them about their family. They had told him, not knowing that he would want them to bring their brother to him. Judah told his father to send Benjamin with him so that they could go and buy food to save their family. If he did not bring his brother back, then he (Judah) would bear the blame forever. Finally, Jacob agreed and told them to take some of the best fruits, nuts, spices, balm, and myrrh to the man, along with double the money they had previously taken. Then Jacob told them:

“And God Almighty give you mercy before the man, that he may send away your other brother, and Benjamin. If I be bereaved of my children, I am bereaved.” (Genesis 43:14)

Jacob knew that he was at the point where he had to trust God, no matter the outcome. How many of us have ever been in a similar situation? I know I have, and it was a turning point in my life, one that I will never, ever forget. With Jacob in agreement, the nine brothers left for Egypt with their youngest brother, Benjamin, along with the gifts and money. They arrive in Egypt and went to see Joseph. When Joseph saw them, he told the ruler of his house to slay an animal for them to eat, and that they would eat lunch with him at noon. The man invited the brothers into Joseph’s house. However, instead of feeling comfortable about eating with him, the brothers were afraid that he was going to imprison them because of the money that had been put in their sacks when they left Egypt the first time. They decided to address the situation head-on. When they got to Joseph’s house, they told the steward about the money they had found in their sacks when they returned home and that they had brought the money back to return it. They also said they had brought more money to buy more food. The steward then told them:

“…Peace be to you, fear not: your God, and the God of your father, hath given you treasure in your sacks: I had your money. And he brought Simeon out unto them.” (Genesis 43:23)

We know that in Genesis 42:25, Joseph had commanded that his brothers’ money be put in their backs before they had returned to their home in Canaan, but here was his steward saying he had their money. Whatever his reason for doing it, it was God that made it happen; thus, the steward spoke the truth. All of Joseph’s brothers’ worrying had been for nothing, for he had intentionally returned their money to them before they left Egypt the first time. How many of us have worried about something that we needn’t worry about? Here was an Egyptian who was telling them about their God - Almighty God - who had given them back their money. Joseph’s steward then brought them into Joseph’s home, and he washed their feet and fed their donkeys. Let us read what happened next:

“And when Joseph came home, they brought him the present which was in their hand into the house, and bowed themselves to him to the earth. And he asked them of their welfare, and said, Is your father well, the old man of whom ye spake? Is he alive? And they answered, Thy servant our father is in good health, he is yet alive. And they bowed down their heads and made obeisance [prostrated themselves]. And he lifted up his eyes, and saw his brother Benjamin, his mother’s son, and said, Is this your younger brother, of whom ye spake unto me? And he said, God be gracious unto thee, my son.” (Genesis 43:26)

Finally, Joseph was able to see his younger brother, Benjamin. Joseph was filled with so much love in his heart for Benjamin that he left the room and went to his chamber and wept, for his brothers still did not know that he was their brother Joseph. He washed his face and returned to his brothers, for it was time to eat. The Hebrew brothers ate separately from the Egyptians, for we are told it was an abomination to the Egyptians to eat with Hebrews. Joseph gave five times the serving of food to Benjamin than he did to the other brothers. Joseph then told the steward of the house to fill the men’s sacks with as much food as they would hold and to put the men’s money they had brought with them back into the sacks. Joseph also told his steward to put his (Joseph’s) silver cup into Benjamin’s sack. In the early morning, the brothers left for their home with their sacks of food and their donkeys. Now Joseph wanted to test his brothers, for still they had not recognized him as their brother, and he told his steward to go and follow after the men and when he caught up to them, he was to say to them, “Wherefore have ye rewarded [repaid] evil for good? Is not this it in which my lord drinketh, and whereby indeed he divineth [practises divination]? ye have done evil in so doing.” (Genesis 44:4-5)

The steward did as Joseph commanded him. When he caught up to the brothers, he asked them what Joseph had told him to ask them. The brothers asked him why he would ask them such a thing, and said they had returned the money they had previously found in their sacks the first time and asked him why would they steal from his lord’s house silver or gold. They told him that if the cup was found in any one of the sacks, then the one who has the sack should die and they would be his lord’s slaves. The steward said to them that if the cup is found in a sack, the one whose sack it was would be his slave but the other brothers would be blameless. He then searched the brothers’ sacks, starting from the oldest brother to the youngest brother, and he found the cup in Benjamin’s sack. His brothers then tore their clothes, and they returned to Egypt. Judah and his brothers fell before Joseph, who asked them why did they do what they had done. Judah replied to Joseph, saying:

“…What shall we say unto my lord? what shall we speak? or how shall we clear ourselves? God hath found out the iniquity of thy servants: behold, we are my lord’s servants, both we, and he also with whom the cup is found.” (Genesis 44:16)

Joseph replied by saying that only Benjamin, the one in whose sack the cup was found, needed to stay and be his servant and the rest of his brothers could leave. Judah then pleaded with Joseph and told him that it would literally kill his father if Benjamin remained with Joseph as his servant, for Benjamin was the only surviving son that remains from his mother. Judah told Joseph of how Jacob had reluctantly agreed to let Benjamin come with them the second time in order to buy food and save their family. Judah then asked Joseph to let him remain as his servant and let Benjamin return to his father. Joseph had reached the point that he could no longer conceal his identify from his brothers. He was torn up inside seeing the anguish his brothers were going through and that they loved their father. Finally, he told the Egyptians who were with him to leave the room, and he was left alone with his brothers. Joseph cried out loud and the Egyptians in his house heard him. Joseph then said to his brothers:

“…I am Joseph; doth my father yet live? And his brethren could not answer him; for they were troubled by his presence. And Joseph said unto his brethren, Come near to me, I pray you. And they came near. And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt. Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life. For these two years hath the famine been in the land: and yet there are five years, in the which there shall neither be earing [plowing] nor harvest. And God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity [remnant] in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God: and he hath made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt. Haste ye, and go up to my father, and say unto him, Thus saith thy son Joseph, God hath made me lord of all Egypt: come down unto me, tarry [delay] not: and thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen, and thou shalt be near unto me, thou, and thy children, and thy children’s children, and thy flocks, and thy herds, and all that thou hast: and there will I nourish [provide for] thee; for yet there are five years of famine; lest thou, and thy household, and all that thou hast, come to poverty. And, behold, your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Benjamin, that it is my mouth that speaketh unto you. And ye shall tell my father of all my glory in Egypt, and of all that ye have seen; and ye shall haste and bring down my father hither. And he fell upon his brother Benjamin’s neck, and wept; and Benjamin wept upon his neck. Moreover he kissed all his brethren, and wept upon them: and after that his brethren talked with him.” (Genesis 45:3-14)

What an amazing account we just read of how God works in our lives! First, Joseph told his brothers not to be angry with themselves because they had sold him because God had used their actions to preserve life, to preserve the lineage of Jacob. God sees what we cannot see, and God knows what we cannot know. God knew before Jacob and his sons were even born that it would be through Jacob that Messiah would eventually come, and God made that possible through Joseph. It was Joseph who would be sold and taken to Egypt, where God would prosper him in all he did, even in the times of his bondage in prison. It was God who would ensure that Jacob’s family would not die of starvation during the 7-year famine, and He did that through Joseph. Joseph could have been bitter and could have hated his brothers for what they did to him. He could have had them killed or permanently imprisoned. He could have said something like “let them starve, for they cared nothing about me,” but he didn’t. He wasn’t out for vengeance; no, because he loved them and he showed mercy to them. Though he did not reveal himself to them when they came to Egypt the first time, it was because he was testing them. Through this testing, he saw that they truly loved their father Jacob, and also their youngest brother Benjamin. Joseph saw that Judah had told Jacob that he would take the blame forever if anything happened to Benjamin, and that Judah was also willing to give up his life and be Joseph’s servant so that Benjamin could be returned to Jacob. Joseph also knew and plainly stated that it was God who used him in order to preserve their family line, and he knew that because he had remembered his dreams that he had dreamt of his brothers and his family. Through Joseph’s difficult times in his life, we have a lesson that we can learn from him, and that is to trust in God no matter what happens in our lives. Things may happen to us that we don’t understand why they are happening, but we must trust that there is a greater purpose that God has for us, one that is beyond what our eyes can see and beyond which our minds can comprehend.

As I am editing above what I wrote previously, I realize that the same words also could apply to Jesus Christ. The first time He came to earth, His own brethren, the ones He came to save - the Jews - betrayed Him. They mocked and scoffed at Him. While Jesus never Himself outright said to the Jews who did not believe in Him as their Messiah, their Savior, that He is the Messiah, He did agree in at least two instances with two people who were seeking their Messiah. One instance is the Samaritan woman at the well, whom we read about earlier, said she knew that Messiah, who is called Christ, was coming and when He does, He would tell them all things. Jesus responded to her, saying, ”I that speak unto thee am he.” (John 4:25) A second time was when Jesus asked His disciples, “Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?” They said that some people say He is John the Baptist, some Elijah, some Jeremiah, while others said He is one of the prophets. Jesus then asked them, “But whom say ye that I am?” Peter, being full of faith in Jesus said, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (Matthew 16:13-16) Jesus responded to Peter, who was called “Simon,” saying:

“…Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.” (Matthew 16:17)

Like Joseph had tested his brothers and didn’t tell them who he was, Jesus didn’t just come outright and tell people who He is but instead waited to see if they were looking for the Christ to come, and if they believed in Him as the Messiah, the Christ. Just as Joseph saved not only Egypt, but more importantly, his own family line, during the 7-year famine, Jesus will save a one-third remnant of the Jews during the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble. Just as Joseph had to suffer all that He did in order to save his family line and to bring glory to God, so too did Jesus suffer all that He did to save His people, which are not just the Jews but all people who put our faith and trust in Him to save us, and to bring Him glory. As Joseph revealed himself when his brothers came to him a second time, so too when Jesus comes to earth the second time, He will reveal Himself to His brethren, the remnant of Israel. As Joseph showed love, grace, and mercy towards his brothers when he revealed to them that he was their brother, instead of holding the remnant of Israel accountable for all that they did to Him, Jesus will show them love, grace, and mercy when they realize who He is and that they had had Him crucified:

“And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirt of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness [grieves] for his firstborn. In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadad-rimmon in the valley of Megiddo.” (Zechariah 12:10-11)

Returning to Joseph, in Genesis 45:16, we read that the Egyptian servants in Pharaoh’s house heard that the men who had come from Canaan were Joseph’s brothers and that it pleased not only them but also Pharaoh:

“And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Say unto thy brethren, This do ye; lade [load] your beasts, and go, get you unto the land of Canaan; and take [bring] your father and your households, and come unto me: and I will give you the good of the land of Egypt, and ye shall eat the fat [best] of the land. Now thou art commanded, this do ye; take you wagons out of the land of Egypt for your little ones, and for your wives, and bring your father, and come. Also regard not your stuff; for the good of all the land of Egypt is yours.” (Genesis 45:17-20)

Joseph did as Pharaoh commanded him to do, and he also gave his brothers changes of clothing. However, to Benjamin he gave 300 pieces of silver and five changes of clothing. His brothers left Egypt, and when they arrived at their home in Canaan, they told their father that his son, their brother, Joseph was alive! They told him not only was he alive, but he was governor over all the land of Egypt. Scripture tells us that Jacob did not believe them. They then told him the words of Joseph and showed him the wagons Joseph had sent to bring Jacob to him. After seeing all that Joseph had sent:

“And Israel said, It is enough; Joseph my son is yet alive: I will go and see him before I die. And Israel took his journey with all that he had, and came to Beer-sheba, and offered sacrifices unto the God of his father Isaac. And God spake unto Israel in the visions of the night, and said, Jacob, Jacob. And he said, Here am I. And he said, I am God, the God of thy father: fear not to go down into Egypt; for I will there make of thee a great nation: I will go down with thee into Egypt; and I will also surely bring thee up again: and Joseph shall put his hand upon thine eyes [will close your eyes when you die].” (Genesis 45:28-46:4)

Almighty God had just reiterated to Jacob the promise He had previously made to Jacob’s grandfather, Abraham, and to his father, Isaac, which was that He would make their descendants into a great nation. Now God was telling Jacob to go into Egypt but that he would bring him up again, meaning that God would bring Jacob and his descendants back into the land of Canaan that He had given them. Genesis 46:8-27 tells us the names of each son and Jacob’s daughter, Dinah, and the names of all of their sons who came with Jacob to Egypt, for a total of 70 people. Jacob then sent Judah to Joseph to direct him to the land of Goshen.

“And Joseph made ready his chariot, and went up to meet Israel his father, to Goshen, and presented himself unto him; and he fell on his neck, and wept on his neck a good while. And Israel said unto Joseph, Now let me die, since I have seen thy face, because thou art yet alive.” (Genesis 46:29-30)

The words that Jacob spoke to his son, Joseph remind me of the words spoken by a man named Simeon many years later when he finally saw the face of his Savior, Jesus Christ, when He was brought to the temple by Joseph and Mary:

“And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him. And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. And he came by the Spirit into the temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him after the custom of the law, then took he him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said, Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: for mine eyes have seen thy salvation, which thou hast prepared before the face of all people; a light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel.” (Luke 2:25-32)

What a wonderful reunion that must have been for Jacob and Joseph! God had made it possible for Jacob to be reunited with his beloved son in a way that no one would have possibly expected. Joseph then told his family that he would go tell Pharaoh that his family had arrived and that from the time of their birth, they have been shepherds and that they brought their flocks with them. He said that when Pharaoh calls them to him and asks them what is their occupation, they should tell him the truth so that they could live in the land of Goshen. Joseph said that every shepherd was considered an abomination to the Egyptians, and Goshen would be a place where they could dwell. Joseph then went to Pharaoh and told him that his family had arrived. He also took five of his brothers to Pharaoh, who asked them what was their occupation, and they told him they were shepherds and had brought their flocks because the land where they lived was barren. Pharaoh told Joseph to let his family dwell in the best of the land of Egypt in Goshen. Pharaoh also told Joseph to let his brothers be rulers over Pharaoh’s cattle, as well as their own flocks. Joseph then presented Jacob to Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. Pharaoh asked Jacob how old he was, and Jacob answered that “few and evil” were his days, and that he had not lived as long as his fathers (Genesis 47:9). Jacob’s father, Isaac was 180-years old when he died (Genesis 35:28) and Abraham was 175-years old (Genesis 25:7). Clearly and understandably, Jacob’s life was deeply affected after his other sons had told him that Joseph had died and Jacob had been separated from him for all those years.

Joseph took his father and his brothers to the best of the Egyptian land, “in the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had commanded.” (Genesis 47:11). As Joseph had correctly interpreted Pharaoh’s dream, the famine continued in Egypt and in Canaan, and it grew even more severe. It was so severe that the people of Egypt and Canaan spent all the money they had to buy grain from Joseph on behalf of Pharaoh. When they ran out of money, they sold all their livestock for grain. When they had no more money or livestock, they sold their land and themselves to be servants to Pharaoh in exchange for seed to sow, except for the priests who retained their land, as they were given a ration of food by Pharaoh to eat. Joseph also had the people move from the rural areas into the cities. Joseph told them to sow the seed and that a fifth part, or 20%, of whatever they reaped must be given to Pharaoh, in addition to making it a law. The Bible tells us:

“And Israel dwelt in the land of Egypt, in the country of Goshen; and they had possessions therein, and grew, and multiplied exceedingly. And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years: so the whole age of Jacob was an hundred forty and seven years. And the time drew night that Israel must die: and he called his son Joseph, and said unto him, If now I have found grace in thy sight, put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh, and deal kindly and truly with me; bury me not, I pray thee, in Egypt: But I will lie with my fathers, and thou shalt carry me out of Egypt, and bury me in their buryingplace. And he said, I will do as thou hast said. And he said, Swear unto me. And he swore unto him. And Israel bowed himself upon the bed’s head.” (Genesis 47:27-31)

What Jacob had Joseph do when he had Joseph put his hand under Jacob’s thigh was the ancient Hebrew way of a man making an oath to another man. Gotquestions.org has an article that explains this further. (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/hand-under-thigh.html) Jacob wanted to be taken back to the land of Canaan after he died, and Joseph took an oath, promising he would do that for his father. Some time later, it was told to Joseph that his father was sick, and he took his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, and went to see Jacob:

“And Jacob said unto Joseph, God Almighty appeared unto me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and blessed me, and said unto me, Behold, I will make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, and I will make of thee a multitude of people; and will give this land to thy seed [descendants] after thee for an everlasting possession. And now thy two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, which were born unto thee in the land of Egypt before I came unto thee into Egypt, are mine; as Reuben and Simeon; they shall be mine. And thy issue [offspring], which thou begettest after them, shall be thine, and shall be called after the name of their brethren in their inheritance.” (Genesis 48:3-6)

Jacob told Joseph that he was adopting Joseph’s two sons as his own. Jacob then told Joseph to bring his sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, to him so that he could bless them before he died. He told Joseph that he never thought he would see him again and yet, here he had not only seen Joseph but “God hath shewed me also thy seed.” (Genesis 48:11) Next, we read:

“And Joseph brought them [his two sons] out from between [beside] his knees, and he bowed himself with his face to the earth.” (Genesis 48:12)

I do not know if this is Jacob bowing to Joseph, in thankfulness to him for all he had done for him and blessing him with his two grandsons, or if it was Joseph bowing to Jacob, in an act of reverence to his father. I have read several commentaries, where some say it’s Joseph bowing and others say it’s Jacob. When it came time to bless his grandsons, because Jacob could not see, for his eyes were dim due to his age (Genesis 48:10), Joseph placed his sons so that the oldest, Manasseh, would be placed “toward Israel’s right hand” and Ephraim, the younger son was placed toward Jacob’s left hand. (Genesis 48:13) However, the Bible tells us:

“Israel stretched out his right hand, and laid it upon Ephraim’s head, who was the younger, and his left hand upon Manasseh’s head, guiding his hands wittingly [knowingly]; for Manasseh was the firstborn. And he blessed Joseph, and said, God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long unto this day, the Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth. And when Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand upon the head of Ephraim, it displeased him: and he held up his father’s hand, to remove it from Ephraim’s head unto Manasseh’s head. And Joseph said unto his father, Not so, my father: for this is the firstborn; put thy right hand upon his head. And his father refused, and said, I know it, my son, I know it: he also shall be great: but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his seed shall become a multitude of nations. And he blessed them that day, saying, In thee shall Israel bless, saying, God make thee as Ephraim and Manasseh: and he set Ephraim before Manasseh. And Israel said unto Joseph, Behold, I die: but God shall be with you, and bring you again unto the land of your fathers. Moreover I have given to thee one portion above thy brethren, which I took out of the hand of the Amorite with my sword and with my bow.” (Genesis 48:14-22)

No matter what Joseph wanted, God had led Jacob to bless Joseph’s youngest son, Ephraim, and not the elder son Manasseh. God doesn’t go by mankind’s plans but by His own plans, just as it had been foretold to Rebekah, Jacob’s mother that the elder son, Esau would serve the younger son, Jacob (Genesis 25:23). We also see this years later when God chose the young David, the youngest of all his brothers, to be anointed and who became King of Israel (1 Samuel 16:13). As the word of God tells us, God looks at the heart and not one’s outward appearance.

Before Jacob died, he called all of his sons to him, and said to them, “…that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the last days. Gather yourselves together, and hear, ye sons of Jacob; and hearken unto Israel your father.” (Genesis 49:1-2) He then told each of his twelve sons that which would come upon them. Gotquestions.org has a good summary of what Jacob told each of his twelve sons and the fulfillment of those prophecies. (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/Jacobs-prophecies.html) As gotquestions.org indicates, while Reuben was Jacob’s firstborn son, he gave up his birthright when he had sexual intercourse with Bilhah, his father’s concubine (Genesis 29:32, 49:3-4). Thus, the birthright was then passed to Jacob’s oldest son he had with his wife, Rachel, who was Joseph. Joseph received a double portion. Per gotquestions.org, when Israel received the territory in the Promised Land, Ephraim and Manasseh were named as two of the twelve tribes, with some Scriptures referring to the tribe of Ephraim as the tribe of Joseph, and his two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, would be two of the twelve tribes of Israel. (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/twelve-tribes-Israel.html)

Returning to Jacob’s prophecies to his sons, I won’t list all of them, but I do want to us to read what Jacob said to Judah and to Joseph. First, let’s read what Jacob prophesied about his son Judah:

“Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise: thy hand shall be in [on] the neck of thine enemies; thy father’s children shall bow down before thee. Judah is a lion’ s whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped [crouches] down, he couched [lies down] as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up? The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering [obedience] of the people be. Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass’s colt unto the choice vine; he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes: his eyes shall be red with [darker than] wine, and his teeth white with [whiter than] milk.” (Genesis 49:8-12)

Jacob prophesied that of all of his sons, it would be Judah whom they would praise. It would also be from the tribe of Judah that Messiah would come, and not from the tribe of Joseph. I must admit that my first choice would have been Joseph and not Judah. While Messiah would not come through the lineage of Joseph, as we previously read, God had an amazing plan for Joseph. It would be through him that the lineage of His people would be preserved, for without Joseph, they would most likely have died from famine. By placing Joseph in a superior position in Egypt, second only to Pharaoh, God ensured that Joseph was able to save his family. Through them, and specifically from the tribe of Judah, the scepter, representing kingship and authority, would not depart, and that King is Jesus Christ. Jesus - the King of kings and Lord of lords, the Lion of the tribe of Judah - came to earth the first time, born of a virgin in Bethlehem Ephratah in Judah, offering salvation to all who believe in Him. As the Bible prophesies, He will come again, and the second time He comes, He will return in judgment of the world, and particularly Israel. It is at His second coming that Jesus will take His rightful reign upon the earth and will righteously rule from Israel with a rod of iron for 1,000-years:

“Now the sons of Reuben the firstborn of israel, (for he was the firstborn; but, forasmuch as he defiled his father’s bed, his birthright was given unto the sons of Joseph the son of Israel: and the genealogy is not to be reckoned after the birthright. For Judah prevailed above his brethren, and of him came the chief ruler; but the birthright was Joseph’s:)…” (1 Chronicles 5:1-2)

“Now gather thyself in troops, O daughter of troops: he hath laid siege against us: they shall smite the judge of Israel with a rod upon the cheek. But thou, Beth-lehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting [the days of eternity].” (Micah 5:1-2)

“…for thus it is written by the prophet, And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor [Ruler], that shall rule [shepherd] my people Israel.” (Matthew 2:5-6)

There is so much prophecy packed into the words that Jacob spoke to his son, Judah, including prophecies that have not happened yet, but will at some point in the future. One of the prophecies that has already been fulfilled is just absolutely beautiful. Let us read what Jacob said to Judah:

“The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering [obedience] of the people be. Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass’s colt unto the choice vine…” (Genesis 49:10-11)

This prophecy was repeated by the prophet Zechariah:

“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just [righteous], and having salvation; lowly [humble], and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.” (Zechariah 9:9)

Now let us read from the book of Matthew that describes how these prophecies from both Jacob and Zechariah were fulfilled. The account of Matthew describes what Jesus makes what is known as His triumphal entry into Jerusalem:

“And when they drew night unto Jerusalem, and were come to Bethphage, unto the mount of Olives, then sent Jesus two disciples, saying unto them, Go into the village over against [opposite] you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose [untie] them, and bring them unto me. And if any man say ought [anything] unto you, ye shall say, The Lord hath need of them; and straightway he will send them. All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek [lowly], and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass. And the disciples went, and did as Jesus commanded them, and brought the ass, and the colt, and put on them their clothes, and they set him thereon.” (Matthew 21:1-7)

While we don’t know exactly when the book of Genesis was written, it is estimated to have been written between 1440-1400 BC. (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/when-was-Genesis-written.html). The book of Zechariah is estimated to have been written in two segments, between 520-470 BC. (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/Book-of-Zechariah.html) The book of Matthew is estimated to have been written between 55-65 AD. At His first coming, Jesus, the King of kings, came riding into Jerusalem not upon a horse, indicating He is a warrior, as many wanted him to do, but upon the colt, a young male donkey, indicating He is One who brings peace. The prophecy was fulfilled exactly as both Jacob and Zechariah prophesied. Also notice that Jacob said a foal, which is a young ass (donkey), and the foal would be a colt, indicating a male foal, would be bound not only to a vine but the choice vine. We likely wouldn’t know what that meant but Jesus Himself told us this:

“I am the true [genuine] vine, and my Father is the husbandman [vinedresser]. Every branch in me that bearers not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth [prunes] it, that it may bring forth more fruit. Now ye are clean through [because of] the word which I have spoken unto you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” (John 15:1-5)

The colt was untied from where it, and it and its mother donkey were taken to Jesus, who is the choice and true vine. The colt was in a sense bound to Jesus, as Jesus sat on the colt’s back, likely being led with some sort of bridle or rope.

I also want to write about what I believe is a prophecy from Jacob that has not been fulfilled yet and which is spoken in the book of Revelation. Let us read Jacob’s words and how I believe it is also written about in the prophetic books of Isaiah, Joel, and Revelation:

“…he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes:” (Genesis 49:11)

“Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah? this that is glorious in his apparel, traveling in the greatness of his strength? I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save. Wherefore art thou red in thine apparel, and thy garments like him that treadeth in the winefat? I have trodden the winepress alone; and of the people there was none with me: for I will tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my fury; and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments, and I will stain all my raiment. For the day of vengeance is in mine heart, and the year of my redeemed is come. And I looked, and there was none to help; and I wondered that there was none to uphold: therefore mine own arm brought salvation unto me; and my fury, it upheld me. And I will tread down the people in mine anger, and make them drunk in my fury, and I will bring down their strength to the earth.” (Isaiah 63:1-6)

“Let the heathen [nations] be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen [nations] round about. Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down; for the press [winepress] is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great. Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision. The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining. The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the hope of [a shelter] his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.” (Joel 3:12-16)

“And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast [the coming antichrist] and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture [full strength] into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: and the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.” (Revelation 14:9-11)

“And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle. And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe. And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped. And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle. And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe. And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. And the winepress was trodden without [outside] the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs.” (Revelation 14:14-20)

“And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture [robe] dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite [strike] the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture [robe] and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.” (Revelation 19:11-16)

Just as Jacob prophesied to Judah, it will be the Lion of the tribe of Judah, Jesus Christ, that will prevail and will loosen the 7-seals on the scroll written about in Revelation 5:5, that will begin the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, also known as the Day of the Lord. It will be Jesus who will “treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.” Jesus will give mankind every opportunity to turn to Him and be saved from the wrath that is to come. Mankind will have a choice: will they serve Satan and his antichrist, or will they serve Jesus Christ, Almighty God? The unbelieving world will reach the fullness of its wickedness, just as grapes reach their point of ripeness and are ready to be reaped, and it is at that point that Jesus will thrust in His sharp sickle and reap the earth. God’s word is simply amazing, and it all fits together, from the beginning in the book of Genesis, to the end in Revelation! God has told us His plan for mankind from the beginning to the end, even in the words that Jacob spoke to his son Judah, from whom the Lion of the tribe of Judah has come and will come again and reign as King of kings and Lord of lords.

Now, let us read Jacob’s blessing to his son Joseph, who had saved his family from death:

“Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well; whose branches run over the wall: the archers have sorely [bitterly] grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him: but his bow abode [remained] in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob; (from thence is the shepherd, the stone of Israel:) Even by the God of thy fathers, who shall help thee; and by the Almighty, who shall bless thee with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that lieth under [beneath], blessings of the breasts, and of the womb: the blessings of thy father have prevailed [excelled] above the blessings of my progenitors [ancestors] unto the utmost bound of the everlasting hills: they shall be on the head of Joseph, and on the crown of the head of him that was separate from his brethren.” (Genesis 49:22-26)

Jacob acknowledged that though Joseph was hated and attempts on his life had been made, Joseph remained strong, and that it was the God of Jacob who had strengthened him. It would be the same God who would continue to bless Joseph and his family with grandchildren and future generations of children. Though was separated from his family for much of his adult life, it was through Joseph’s authority as a leading ruler in Egypt, second only to Pharaoh, that Joseph was the one who decided to whom food would be sold during the 7-year famine. It was through Joseph, by the power of his Almighty God, that he was able to save not only Egypt but more importantly his family. Joseph truly was a fruitful bough. Jacob told his son that God had blessed him more than his forefathers, and that blessing was through his own twelve sons and his two grandchildren whom he had adopted from Joseph.

After Jacob prophesied to his twelve sons of what would happen to them in the last days, we are told:

“All these are the twelve tribes of Israel; and this is it that their father spake unto them, and blessed them; every one according to his blessing he blessed them.” (Genesis 49:28)

Jacob then commanded them that after he died, they were to bring his body back into the land of Canaan and have him buried in the field of Machpelah, which his grandfather, Abraham had purchased from Ephron the Hittite. It was in that field that Abraham and Sarah, his father and mother, Isaac and Rebekah, and his wife Leah were all buried. Jacob then died, and Joseph cried and kissed his father. He then commanded his Egyptian servants who were physicians to embalm Jacob, and they did. The Egyptians mourned for Joseph’s father: ”And forty days were fulfilled for him; for so are fulfilled the days of those which are embalmed: and the Egyptians mourned for him threescore and ten days.” (Genesis 50:3) After the mourning period, Joseph asked Pharaoh to let him honor his father’s command to go and bury him in the land of Canaan, and that he would return to Egypt afterward. Pharaoh granted Joseph’s request. Joseph went with a great company of Egyptian servants and elders, including elders of the house of Pharaoh, and his brothers and their adult sons, in chariots and on horses:

“And they came to the threshing floor of Atad, which is beyond Jordan, and there they mourned with a great and very sore [solemn] lamentation: and he made [observed] a mourning for his father seven days. And when the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, saw the mourning in the floor of Atad, they said, This is a grievous mourning to the Egyptians: where the name of it was called Abel-mizraim [Mourning of Egypt], which is beyond Jordan. And his sons did unto him according as he commanded them: for his sons carried him into the land of Canaan, and buried him in the cave of the field of Machpelah, which Abraham bought with the field for a possession of a burying place of Ephron the Hittite, before Mamre.” (Genesis 50:10-13)

It is profound that not only did Jacob’s family mourn him but also the Egyptians. They must have felt very much indebted to him, as the father of the one, Joseph, who saved them from death during the 7-year famine. So profound was the mourning of the Egyptians that even the Canaanites in the land of Canaan saw their great mourning and named the place where they saw them in the floor of Atad, “Abel-mizraim,” meaning the Mourning of Egypt.

After Joseph and his family buried their father in the place where Jacob had told them to bury him, they returned to Egypt. The realization of Jacob’s death soon hit his brothers, and once again, their fear of retaliation by Joseph began to fill them for what they had done to him long ago when he was still young. Instead of discussing this with their brother Joseph face-to-face, they did this:

“And they sent a messenger unto Joseph, saying, Thy father did command before he died, saying, So shall ye say unto Joseph, Forgive, I pray thee now, the trespass of thy brethren, and their sin; for they did unto thee evil: and now, we pray thee, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of thy father. And Joseph wept when they spake unto him. And his brethren also went and fell down before his face; and they said, Behold, we be thy servants.” (Genesis 50:16-18)

Joseph’s brothers clearly still feared what he might do to them, and that he only had not retaliated against them previously because their father was still alive. This is what sin and lack of trusting in God does to us: it makes us paranoid, so we are always on the lookout for something bad to come against us. Never once in the Bible does it tell us that Joseph sought to hurt or kill his brothers because they had sold him into slavery and had told their father that he had been killed. On the contrary, the Bible shows us that not only did Joseph not seek to hurt or kill them, but that he sought to save them and all of his family who were starving in Canaan. It only shows us the love of Joseph to his brothers. Once again, we see Joseph’s brothers bowing down to him, just as he had dreamt long ago would happen. Let us read Joseph’s response to his brothers:

“And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God? But as for you, ye thought [intended] evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive. Now therefore fear ye not: I will nourish [provide for] you, and your little ones. And he comforted them, and spake kindly unto them.” (Genesis 50:19-21)

Joseph knew that what they had done to him long ago was in fact intended for evil, to cause him harm, but God used it for good, which was to use the situation Joseph was in to save his family. By saving Joseph’s family, it would bring Messiah, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, at His first coming, and again at His future second coming. In a sense, the words of Joseph also remind me of the words of Peter, after he and the other apostles were filled with the Holy Spirit of God 50 days after Jesus resurrected and ascended to heaven. The apostle Peter had just healed a man who had been lame, unable to walk, from the time he was born, and people ran over to Peter and John in amazement:

“And when Peter saw it, he answered unto the people, Ye men of Israel, why marvel ye at this? or why look ye so earnestly [intently] on us, as though by our own power or holiness [godliness] we had made this man to walk? The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Son Jesus; whom ye delivered up, and denied him in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let him go. But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you; and killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses.” (Acts 3:12-15)

Like Joseph had done when he had spoken to his brothers, Peter acknowledged that evil had been done, which was when the Jews had Jesus Christ crucified. Like Joseph, Peter acknowledged that it was by the power of God, and not of any power of their own, that had healed the lame man and more importantly, it was by the power of God that had resurrected Jesus Christ, the Prince of life. God knows the end from the beginning, and He knew that Joseph’s brothers would sell Joseph into slavery, but God used their evil act for good, just as many years later, God used the evil act of Israel, when they turned Jesus over to Pontius Pilate and demanded that He be crucified, not realizing that God would resurrect Jesus three days after Jesus gave up His life, and that through His precious, sinless blood, He would save many.

Joseph lived until the age of 110 years, seeing his grandsons born to his sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. Before he died:

“And Joseph said unto his brethren, I die [I am dying]: and God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land unto the land which he sware to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. And Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you, and ye shall carry up my bones from hence. So Joseph died, being an hundred and ten years old: and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt.” (Genesis 50:24-26)

Something I noticed in Genesis 50 after Joseph died is that it does not record that there was a mourning in Egypt for him, as there was for his father, Jacob. Perhaps there was and it is just not recorded. That seems very odd to me, considering it was Joseph who had correctly interpreted Pharaoh’s dreams, by the power of Almighty God, and through Joseph, Egypt had been saved from the famine. Maybe it was because Joseph had received much glory during his life in Egypt that God did not feel the need to write about any mourning for him.

Joseph’s life was a perfect example of a man who stayed with God his entire life, never turning from Him in the difficult times, and he had many difficult times in his life. He didn’t hold bitterness in his heart against his brothers. When he was reunited with them, he didn’t seek to kill them because of what they had done to him, and he could have easily had them killed. When the lustful Potiphar’s wife kept coming after him, he fled from her, giving us a perfect example of what we should do when temptation comes our way: flee from it! God used Joseph in a mighty way, with a single goal in mind: save the people of Israel from famine so that Messiah could come!

After Joseph died, the descendants of Jacob’s family, called Israel, that lived in Egypt grew mighty in numbers. By that time, all of Joseph’s brothers had also died and all of their generation, but the people of Israel had grown significantly in numbers, so much so that the new Pharaoh, who did not know Joseph, feared that Israel would come against Egypt and side with its enemies. Pharaoh decided to enslave the people of Israel, and he caused them much affliction. The book of Exodus, the second book of the Bible, tells us of how the people of Israel eventually left Egypt through the leading of another man whom God used in mighty ways, Moses. It would be Moses who would lead Israel out of Egypt after they had been there 430 years:

“Now the sojourning [time of stay] of the children of Israel, who dwelt in Egypt, was four hundred and thirty years. And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, even the selfsame day it came to pass, that all the hosts of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt.” (Exodus 12:40-41)

Once again, we see that God always fulfills His promises. God kept His promise He had made long ago to Abraham, then called Abram, that his descendants would be slaves in a foreign land for 400 years but would return to the land of Canaan. Before Israel left Egypt, God instituted the Passover. God had previously sent nine plagues upon Egypt, for Pharaoh would not release God’s people. God then prepared His people for the tenth plague, the death of all the firstborn, both humans and animals. God told Israel, “This month shall be unto you the beginning of the months: it shall be the first month of the year to you.” (Exodus 12:2) God told His people that on the tenth day, they were to take a male lamb without blemish, from sheep or goats, and keep it until the 14th day. On the evening of the 14th day, they must kill the lamb. God then told them:

“And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they shall eat it…and thus shall ye eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the LORD’s passover. For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD. And the blood shall be to you for a token [sign] upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the LORD throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever. Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses: for whosoever eateth leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul [person] shall be cut off [put away] from Israel.” (Exodus 12:7, 11-15)

The people of Israel did as God instructed them, and Pharaoh finally agreed to let God’s people go after his firstborn son died. In the institution of Passover, we see parallels to what Jesus Christ would go through when He came to earth as the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. How He would suffer, though He never sinned, be crucified, give up His life, be buried, but three days later, He rose again, was resurrected, and forty days later ascended to the right hand of God. It is only by His unblemished, perfect, and sinless blood that we can be saved from all our sins:

“Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest [revealed] in these last times for you, who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.” (1 Peter 1:18-21)

Through the power of Almighty God, Moses led the people out of Egypt by dividing the Red Sea, after which the sea swallowed up the Egyptians who were in pursuit of them. However, it would be another 40 years before the people of Israel would enter the Promised Land, the land that God had given to Abraham and his descendants long ago. Upon first arriving to the Promised Land, Israel had sent twelve spies into the land, who checked it out for 40 days. Ten spies came back with a bad report, saying the people were huge in size compared to them, but two spies, Joshua and Caleb, said they should go into the land. Let us read of the difference in the reports of the land between the ten men and the reports of Joshua and Caleb, how ten were fearful and did not trust in God and how Joshua and Caleb did not fear and did trust in God:

“And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron [Moses’ brother], and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilderness of Pagan, to Kaddish; and brought back word unto them, and unto all the congregation, and shewed them the fruit of the land. And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely [truly] it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it. Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there. The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the HIttites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan. And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess [take possession of] it; for we are well able to overcome it. But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we. And they brought up an evil [bad] report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up [devours] the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature. And there we saw the giants [Nephilim], the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight. And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night. And all the children of Israel murmured [grumbled] against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness! And wherefore hath the LORD brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt? And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt. Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces [prostrated themselves] before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel.” (Numbers 13:26-14:5)

Here we see the children of Israel, who had just seen with their own eyes how Almighty God had sent ten plagues upon Egypt in order to cause Pharaoh to finally release them out of their bondage of 430 years, and how God had used Moses to divide the Red Sea and lead them through it, and bring them to the border of the Promised Land, and yet, how quickly their memories of this faded. Now, they could only see the giants in front of them, from the bad report of the ten men; they could not see the good report from Joshua and Caleb, who had remembered what God had just done for the children of Israel. Joshua and Caleb knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that God is bigger than any giant, and He is able to bring down the giants. But the children of Israel did not want to hear their report and did not want to follow the lead of Moses anymore. Instead, they wanted to put someone else in charge of them, a new captain, and bring them back into their bondage in Egypt. How absurd is that?! However, before we judge them too harshly, let us examine our own selves, myself included, and consider how many times has God brought us through something, and we knew that it was only by His awesome power that we got through it, only to be filled with fear when the next difficult time, the next crisis, arose in our own lives. How many times did we revert to fear, as did the children of Israel, instead of being filled with the faith of God in us and HIs promises to us, as Joshua and Caleb did? May we, myself included, be more like Joshua and Caleb.

Let us continue reading what happened next:

“And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of them that searched the land, rent [tore] their clothes: and they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land. If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. Only rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence [protection] is departed from them, and the LORD is with us: fear them not. But all the congregation bade stone them with stones. And the glory of the LORD appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel. And the LORD said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke me? and how long will it be ere they believe me, for all the signs which I have shewed among them? “ (Numbers 14:6-11)

Moses continued leading the children of Israel but because of their rebellion against God, He caused them to wander in the land for 40 years, one year for each day they had spied the land. Except for Joshua and Caleb, God allowed only those younger than 20 years of age to enter it; all who had rebelled against God died off and did not enter the Promised Land. It would be Joshua who would lead Israel into the land and conquer it. When they had finally conquered it from the people whom God gave 400+ years to change their ways, we read this:

“And the LORD gave unto Israel all the land which he sware to give unto their fathers; and they possessed it, and dwelt therein. And the LORD gave them rest round about, according to all that he sware unto their fathers: and there stood not a man of all their enemies before them; the LORD delivered all their enemies into their hand. There failed not ought of any good thing which the LORD had spoken unto the house of Israel; all came to pass.” (Joshua 21:43-45)

Ah, now we have read about the Biblical patriarchs, how the twelve tribes of Israel came about, and how God had promised to give them His land, the land of Canaan, forever. We have seen how God keeps His promises. As the Scripture above says, not a word of God failed that He had spoken to Israel. We must remember this, for there are many things in the Bible that have not come to pass yet, but will, for God is a promise-keeper. I have learned so much by reading about this, and not just reading it, but studying it. Hallelujah! This brings us back to today’s Scripture in Isaiah 49:23. I want to compare the blessing of Isaac upon his son Jacob, whom the aged Isaac thought was Esau, in which he prophesied that nations would bow to him, to today’s Scripture verse:

“See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field which the LORD hath blessed: therefore God give thee of the dew of heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and plenty of corn [grain] and wine: let people [peoples] serve thee, and nations bow down to thee: be lord over thy brethren, and let thy mother’s sons bow down to thee: cursed be every one that curseth thee, and blessed be he that blesseth thee.” (Genesis 27:27-29)

“And kings shall be thy nursing [foster] fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.” (Isaiah 49:23)

Just as the promise of God went not to Abraham’s firstborn son, Ishmael, but to Isaac and his descendants, so too, was the promise of God not given to Isaac’s firstborn son, Esau, but to Jacob and his descendants. It would be through Jacob, whom God later called “Israel,” that the twelve tribes of Israel came about. It is through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that Messiah would come, the One whom the prophet Isaiah wrote about, and which I wrote about in earlier devotionals, from Isaiah 49d:6:

“And he [God, speaking to Jesus] said, It is a light thing that thou [Jesus] shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.” (Isaiah 49:6)

Because it was through the nation of Israel that Messiah would come, and He did and will come again a second time, Satan has tried to destroy Israel ever since God called it into existence. There has not been any other nation in the earth that has been so hated by mankind than Israel. Many nations have tried to eliminate it, and have failed every single time, for God has always preserved a remnant of Israel, just as He promised us in His word that He would do. That promise is still true to this day. There is soon coming the time in history when Israel will go through the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, when God turns His attention from the Gentile church and turns it back to Israel, during which God will judge Israel severely, as well as all nations for their rejection of Jesus Christ and choosing instead to remain in their sin. However, as God promised, God will refine Israel in the fire of testing and they will finally turn to Jesus Christ and believe on Him as their Messiah. It is this remnant of Israel - all of it - that will be saved. Israel will be protected by God Himself against all the nations who will once again seek to destroy Israel in Jerusalem. Finally, after the 7-years of tribulation upon the earth, Jesus will return to earth, with all believers in Him, and He will righteously reign on earth for 1,000 years. Israel will finally be gathered together in the land that God gave them long ago, and they will live in all of the land that He gave them, not just a small portion of it. People from the Gentile nations all around the world will come to Israel, and will bow down to the people of Israel, fulfilling Isaac’s prophecy to Jacob and Isaiah’s prophecy in Isaiah 49:23 and also in Isaiah chapters 60 and 55, for they will know that it was through Israel, the nation that suffered so much for so long, that Messiah came and saved them by His precious blood:

“And the sons of strangers [foreigners] shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister unto thee: for in my wrath I smote [struck] thee, but in my favor have I had mercy on thee. Therefore thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bring unto thee the forces [wealth] of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought [led in procession]. For the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish; yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted [ruined]. The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the fir tree, the pine tree, and the box [box tree] together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary; and I will make the place of my feet glorious. The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending [bowing] unto thee; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee, The city of the LORD, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel. Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations.” (Isaiah 60:10-15)

“Behold, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not, and nations that knew not thee shall run unto thee because of the LORD thy God, and for the Holy One of Israel; for he hath glorified thee.” (Isaiah 55:5)

As the Scriptures in Isaiah 49:20-22 tell us, many of Israel’s sons and daughters will die in the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble. However, kings and queens of the Gentile nations will bring their own sons and daughters to Israel, who will be the children of Israel; all will be as one people, with our King of kings and Lord of lords reigning from Israel. Hallelujah!!!

“That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.” (Galatians 3:14)

“For ye are all the children [sons] of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond [slave] nor free, there is neither male nor female; for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” (Galatians 3:26-29)

The time period that Isaiah 49:23 speaks of will occur at the end of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, and it will be the remnant of Israel that will finally turn to their Messiah, Jesus Christ, their Deliverer and Redeemer. As God says in Isaiah 49:23, “and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me,” and in Isaiah 60:16, “Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings: and thou shalt know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob.” Not only will the Gentiles flow to the land of Israel, as their spiritual sons and daughters, in Christ, but they will also bring their wealth with them.

Long before God chose Israel to be the people from whom Messiah, Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, would come to earth the first time, He knew that Israel would sin against Him, many, many times. God knew they could never keep the Law that He had given them after He brought them out of Egypt, which is why He sent Jesus to earth: to offer salvation to ALL who will believe in Him:

“Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD: but this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts [mind], and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” (Jeremiah 31:31-34)

“And now, saith the LORD that formed me [Jesus] from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the LORD, and my God shall be my strength. And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth. Thus saith the LORD, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, to him [Jesus] whom man despiseth, to him whom the nation [Israel] abhorreth, to a servant of rulers, Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the LORD that is faithful, and the Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose thee. Thus saith the LORD, In an acceptable [a favourable] time have I heard thee, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee: and I will preserve thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, to establish [restore] the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages… ” (Isaiah 49:5-8)

“And he [Jesus] took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament [covenant] in my blood, which is shed for you.” (Luke 22:19-20)

Though many people in the world in which we live today might want to think that God has forgotten His promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and that the land that He gave to them long ago is not theirs, the Bible tells us otherwise, and the Bible is ALWAYS correct:

“Thus saith the LORD, which giveth the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, which divideth [disturbs] the sea when the waves thereof roar; The LORD of hosts is his name: If those ordinances depart from before me, saith the LORD, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me for ever. Thus saith the LORD; If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, saith the LORD. Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that the city shall be built to the LORD from the tower of Hananeel unto the gate of the corner. And the measuring line shall yet go forth over against it upon the hill Gareb, and shall compass about to [turn toward] Goath. And the whole valley of the dead bodies, and of the ashes, and all the fields unto the brook of Kidron, unto the corner of the horse gate toward the east, shall be holy unto the LORD; it shall not be plucked up, nor thrown down any more for ever.” (Jeremiah 31:35-40)

“For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits [opinion]; that blindness [hardening] in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: for this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.” (Romans 11:25-27)

Let us read from the last chapter of the book of Isaiah, and what it says about Israel, Jesus, the time of Jacob’s trouble, and what happens after it:

“Hear the word of the LORD, ye that tremble at his word; Your brethren that hated you, that cast you out for my name’s sake, said, Let the LORD be glorified: but he shall appear to your joy, and they shall be ashamed. A voice of noise from the city, a voice from the temple, a voice of the LORD that rendered recompense to [fully repays] his enemies. Before she travailed, she brought forth [gave birth]; before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child. Who hath heard such a thing? who hath seen such things? Shall the earth be made to bring forth [give birth] in one day? or shall a nation be born at once? for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children. Shall I bring to the birth [time of birth], and not cause to bring forth [delivery]? saith the LORD: shall I cause to bring forth, and shut the womb? saith thy God. Rejoice ye with Jerusalem, and be glad with her, all ye that love her: rejoice for joy with her, all ye that mourn for her: that ye may suck [feed], and be satisfied with the breasts of her consolations [consolation of her bosom]; that ye may milk out [drink deeply], and be delighted with the abundance of her glory. For thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the Gentiles like a flowing stream: then shall ye suck [nurse or feed], ye shall be borne upon her sides, and be dandled upon her knees. As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you; and ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem. And when ye see this, your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like an herb [grass]: and the hand of the LORD shall be known toward his servants, and his indignation toward his enemies. For, behold, the LORD will come with fire, and with his chariots like a whirlwind, to render his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire. For by fire and by his sword will the LORD plead with all [judge all] flesh: and the slain of the LORD shall be many.” (Isaiah 66:5-16)

God tells us that Jesus will appear to Israel, the ones who were were hated, to their joy, and the ones who hated them will be ashamed and will receive God’s wrath upon them. Next, it talks about a woman travailing. The woman is Israel. Read closely what it says: “Before she travailed, she brought forth; before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child.” (Isaiah 66:7). Notice it says that before she travailed, she gave birth to a man child. Jesus Christ came to earth the first time as a human being, born of a virgin named Mary, who conceived Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit. As we know, this happened long ago, nearly 2,000 years ago. But the Scriptures say that before she travailed, she gave birth. This travailing is not speaking of the childbirth that Mary went through when she bore Jesus, the only begotten Son of God. No, this is speaking of the travailing of Israel, which happens after Jesus came to earth the first time. In the Scriptures above, Israel as a nation will not travail until it goes through the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble. This is the final seven years of human history before Jesus returns to earth the second time, when He will destroy everyone who will choose to remain in their sin rather than choosing to turn to Him to forgive them of their sins by His precious blood. Afterwards, Jesus will begin His 1,000-year reign on earth as King of kings and Lord of lords. Thus the “travailing” of the woman comes after she, Israel, gave birth to Jesus, in the time period known as the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble and the Day of the Lord:

“The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, Thus speaketh the LORD God of Israel, saying, Write thee all the words that I have spoken unto thee in a book. For, lo, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will bring again the captivity of my [back from captivity my] people Israel and Judah, saith the LORD: and I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it. And these are the words that the LORD spake concerning Israel and concerning Judah. For thus saith the LORD; We have heard a voice of trembling, of fear [dread], and not of peace. Ask ye now, and see whether a man doth travail with child [male can give birth]? wherefore do I see every man with his hands on his loins, as a woman in travail [childbirth], and all faces are turned into paleness? Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble; but he shall be saved out of it. For it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will break his yoke from off thy neck, and will burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more serve themselves of him [enslave them]: but they shall serve the LORD their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up unto them. Therefore fear thou not, O my servant Jacob, saith the LORD; neither be dismayed, O Israel: for, lo, I will save thee from afar, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and shall be in rest, and be quiet, and none shall make him afraid. For I am with thee, saith the LORD, to save thee: though I will make a full end of all nations whither I have scattered thee, yet will I not make a full end of thee: but I will correct thee in measure [justice], and will not leave thee altogether unpunished.” (Jeremiah 30:1-11)

“The lofty [proud] looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day. For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low…” (Isaiah 2:11-12)

“And the loftiness [pride] of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day. And the idols he shall utterly abolish. And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth [to make the earth tremble]. In that day a man shall cast [cast away] his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which they made each one for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats; to go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops of the ragged rocks, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth. Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils: for wherein is he to be accounted of [why should he be esteemed]?” (Isaiah 2:17-22)

In the Scriptures from Jeremiah 30 above, God is telling Israel that because of their sins against Him, He will cause them to undergo this time of Jacob’s trouble. However, God will save a one-third remnant of Israel, that He will put through the fire, to refine them as gold. (Zechariah 13:8-9) It will be this one-third remnant that returns to the land of Israel. No more will they be held captive by other nations and peoples, such as is even being down now by Hamas, and none shall make them afraid. Notice also that in the Scriptures above in Isaiah 2, it will not just be Israel that goes through the time of Jacob’s trouble, also called the tribulation period, but it will be everyone living on the earth at that time. God mentions the pride of men several times in the Scriptures above. God hates pride. It was pride that caused Satan’s fall; he wasn’t satisfied with all that God had given him, no, he wanted more and most importantly, he wanted to be like God. Are we not seeing people today, especially with those who call themselves “the elite,” who are never satisfied with all that they have and are trying to be like God, such as Bill Gates, Elon Musk, Donald Trump, and many others who want to be rulers of the world? If they do not turn to Jesus Christ and ask Him to forgive them of their sins, they are setting themselves up to brought down low, to be humbled by Almighty God Himself, and it won’t end well for them. I have included Psalm 2 before in prior devotionals but I want to include it again, for it is very relevant to this discussion:

“Why do the heathen [Gentiles] rage [throng tumultuously or restlessly] and the people imagine [plot] a vain [empty or worthless] thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed [Messiah, Christ], saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision. Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex [distress] them in his sore [deep] displeasure. Yet have I set [installed] my king upon my holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen [nations or Gentiles] for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel. Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son [An act of homage and submission], lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.” (Psalm 2)

I want to mention something else about Isaiah 66 verse 8, which says, “for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children.” Notice it is now plural, “children” instead of the singular “she was delivered of a man child” meaning Jesus, whom she, Israel, brought forth in verse 7. At the end of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, she will bring forth her children. These children are all believers in Jesus Christ, who are the spiritual sons and daughters of Israel mentioned in Isaiah 49:21-22. These sons and daughters will be given to Israel, who will have lost many of their own sons and daughters during the tribulation period. The Gentile nations’ kings and queens will come to Israel and will be the foster fathers and nursing mothers to these sons and daughters, and they will bow down to Israel, for they will know that it was through Israel that Messiah, our eternal King, has come. It will be at this time that the remnant of Israel will finally know their God, Jesus Christ; He will be their God, and they will be His people. No longer will Israel need to be ashamed of their sins, for Jesus will forgive them of all their iniquities:

“The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up [heal] the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; to proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; to appoint unto [console] them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified. And they shall build the old wastes [ruins], they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste [ruined] cities, the desolations of many generations. And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and the sons of the alien shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers. But ye shall be named the Priests of the LORD: men shall call you the Ministers [Servants] of our God: ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves. For your shame ye shall have double [double honour]; and for confusion they shall rejoice in their portion: therefore in their land they shall possess the double: everlasting joy shall be unto them. For I the LORD love judgment [justice], I hate robbery for [in] burnt offering; and I will direct their work in truth, and I will make [cut] an everlasting covenant with them. And their seed shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring among the people: all that see them shall acknowledge them, that they are the seed which the LORD hath blessed. I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with a robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels. For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations. For Zion’s sake will I not hold my peace [keep silent], and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth. And the Gentiles shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory: and thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of the LORD shall name. Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the LORD, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God. Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate: but thou shalt be called Hephzi-bah [My Delight is in Her], and thy land Beulah [Married]: for the LORD delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married. For as a young man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee: and as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee. I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace [keep silent] day nor night: ye that make mention of [remember] the LORD, keep not silence, and give him no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth.” (Isaiah 61:1-62:7)

As we just read in the above Scriptures, it is God who has set watchmen over Israel, over Jerusalem, and it is God who will protect her and save a remnant of her in their time of trouble. This remnant will be the beautiful “crown of glory in the hand of the LORD, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God.” For those nations today, including many people in America, who believe that God is finished with Israel, I ask them again: have you read the Bible? God called Israel to be a special people to Him, and made an everlasting covenant with them. God chose them to be the people from whom Messiah would come, and He, Jesus Christ, did, and He is coming back a second time at the end of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, at which He will put an end to all who will choose sin over salvation. I believe that we are so very close to the start of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, also known as Daniel’s 70th week (Daniel 9:27), that will commence when one who will be the final antichrist makes a 7-year covenant (treaty) with”the many,” which I believe is Israel or at least includes Israel. On April 22, 2025, it was announced that a new proposal was set forth by Egypt and Qatar with the headline of “Report: Egypt and Qatar push bold 7-year truce in new ceasefire proposal”: (See: https://www.jfeed.com/news-israel/egypt-qatar-propose-bold-gaza-truce)

“Mediators from Egypt and Qatar have put forward a new ceasefire proposal aimed at ending the ongoing war in Gaza and securing the release of hostages, according to a report by the BBC citing a senior Palestinian Arab official involved in the talks. The proposed agreement reportedly includes a ceasefire lasting between five to seven years, the release of all Israeli hostages held by Hamas in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails, a formal end to the conflict, and a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip.”

I haven’t heard anything about the proposal since it was reported. Will something like what was proposed above eventually lead to the covenant that the coming final antichrist will make with Israel for one week, which is known in Israel to be a period of seven years, and which will begin the time of Jacob’s trouble? Time will tell. I do know this, that we are drawing oh, so near to the time in which the prophecies of Daniel, Isaiah, Zechariah and the other prophets that speak to the Day of the Lord and the time of Jacob’s trouble will be fulfilled. I don’t know exactly how they will be fulfilled but that they will be fulfilled. Things are happening so quickly around the world that it’s becoming very difficult to keep up. There are many, many pressures being put on people: economic, the threat of increasing capabilities with artificial intelligence, near constant bombarding of possible pandemics on the verge, apostate churches, the seemingly never-ending Israel-Gaza crisis, wars and rumors of wars around the world, increasing crime and corruption; to sum it up, it’s everything the Bible said would happen in the end times just before the time of Jacob’s trouble, the tribulation period, begins. If you have not accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior, I pray and I urge you to turn to Him, before it’s too late and you no longer have anymore time to decide. 🙏🏻 ✝️

March 11, 2025: Isaiah 49:21-22 - Who Hath Begotten Me These?

“Then shalt thou say in thine heart, Who hath begotten me these, seeing I have lost my children, and am desolate a captive, and removing to and fro? and who hath brought up these? Behold, I was left alone; these, where had they been? Thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I will lift up mine hand to the Gentiles, and set up my standard to the people: and they shall bring thy sons in their arms, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders.” - Isaiah 49:21-22

As previously discussed in my devotional messages for Isaiah 49, during the coming 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, also known as the last week of the 70-weeks prophecy of Daniel in Daniel chapter 9, and which is also known as the “tribulation period,” with the last 3-1/2 years referred to as the “great tribulation,” Israel and the rest of the world will go through a period of hell on earth, the worst time in human history. As the Bible tells us, during this period, two-thirds of Israel will die, but God Himself will save a one-third remnant:

“And it shall come to pass, that in all the land saith the LORD, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein. And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try [test] them as gold is tried [tested]: they shall call on my name, and I will hear [answer] them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God.” (Zechariah 13:8-9)

It will be this one-third remnant that sees the abomination of desolation that was prophesied by Daniel the prophet and was referenced by Jesus when He told His apostles what would be the signs of the end of the age and of His second coming. It is when the final antichrist, with whom Israel will confirm a seven-year covenant or treaty because they will think that he is their friend and ally who wants to bring them “peace and safety,” shows his true colors and will show himself as “God” in the coming third Jewish temple (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4). At that time, Israel will see that they have been duped and deceived, and they will run for their lives to the mountains, seeking protection. Let us read what Jesus said of this coming time:

“When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whosoreadeth, let him understand:) then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains: let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house: neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes. And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck [who are nursing babies] in those days! But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day: for then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s [chosen ones’] sake those days shall be shortened.” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 24:15-22)

Notice that Jesus not only referenced the prophecy of Daniel but He specifically was speaking to the people, i.e., the Jews, living in Judaea, which in our world today is spelled “Judea.” Jesus also told them to pray that this event does not occur on the sabbath day, providing further evidence that he was speaking specifically to the Jews who will be alive at this coming time. During this coming time of Jacob’s trouble, this will be the Jews that reject Jesus Christ as their Messiah, the only begotten Son of God. Modern day Judea, as well as Samaria, are in an area in which many Gentiles/non-Jews today refer to as the “West Bank.” It is this remnant of Jews that will flee to the mountains during the last half of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble and will be protected by God. I believe this is also mentioned in Revelation 12:6, 14-17.

As you may know, I believe that the Bible tells us that before the coming antichrist confirms the 7-year covenant with the many, Jesus Christ will call up His bride to Him in the clouds, where the bride is everyone, both dead and alive, who has put their faith and trust in Him to save them (1 Thessalonians 4:15-18). Thus, the Jews that will remain after the rapture of the church will be those who had not turned to Him prior to the rapture, which represents the majority of the Jewish population. Those left on the earth after the rapture will also include all unbelieving Gentiles, representing the majority of the non-Jewish population. I must admit, however, that God’s word is very complex and I do not know with 100% certainty that my understanding of the rapture is accurate. I am doing my best, with the leading of the Holy Spirit, to understand God’s word.

Let us read what is written in Revelation 12 that also describes what Jesus spoke about when He said that after the Jews in Judea see the abomination of desolation, they will flee to the mountains. In the Scriptures below, the “woman” is Israel because it is from Israel that Jesus Christ, the man child, is the One who will rule all nations with a rod of iron. After Jesus died and resurrected three days later, He ascended to heaven, where He sits on the throne at the right hand of God. I encourage you to read Revelation 12:1-4 that speaks of Satan, the dragon, trying to kill Jesus after He was born, which did happen when King Herod Agrippa I, who was known as “Herod the Great” and the “King of the Jews,” killed all of the boys ages two and under when he sought to kill Jesus because he was threatened when he had heard the wise men proclaiming that the One called the King of the Jews had been born (Matthew 2). Interestingly, King Herod Agrippa I was an Idumean and Edomite. The Edomites were descendants of Esau, the twin brother of Jacob. The Bible tells us in Genesis 25:25 that Esau was red and hairy when he was born, and that is why they named him Esau. Though Esau was the firstborn son of Isaac, he sold his birthright to his younger twin brother, Jacob, for a pot of red stew. God later changed Jacob’s name to “Israel.” I write more about Edom later in this devotional, and I have also written something that I believe relates to all of this that is happening now in our world and that I believe is prophetic.

Let us read Revelation 12:5-6:

“And she [the woman, Israel] brought forth a man [male] child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne. And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore [sixty] days.” (Revelation 12:5-6)

The 7-year covenant that Israel will confirm with the antichrist as described in Daniel 9:27 is based on the Biblical Jewish year, which was 360 days. 360 days times 7 years is a total of 2,520 days. When the antichrist commits the abomination of desolation, it will be 3-1/2 years, or halfway, into the covenant, which is 1,260 days (2,520 / 2). Revelation 12 then speaks again of the woman, Israel, fleeing to the mountains:

“And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and a half a time, from the face of the serpent [Satan]. And the serpent cast [spewed] out of his mouth water as a flood [a river of water] after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood. And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth. And the dragon [Satan] was wroth [enraged] with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.” (Revelation 12:14-17)

It is Jesus Christ who protects those will flee from Judea to the mountains after the abomination of desolation happens. I do not know with certainty that will only be those in Judea who will flee to the mountains or will include other Jews in Israel.

Notice in the above Scriptures that Satan will send a flood as he tries to destroy the woman but the earth will protect her. Notice also that it says that Satan was enraged and that he “went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.” I do not know if this is strictly speaking of the rest of the Jewish remnant that will live somewhere other than Judea and who won’t flee to the mountains but will turn to Jesus Christ and believe on Him as their Messiah or if this is speaking about everyone who will turn to Jesus Christ during the time of Jacob’s trouble, and Satan will make war with them. I lean toward it being just the other Jews who turn to Jesus Christ because Revelation 12:17 says Satan will “make war with the remnant of her seed,” where “seed” is her offspring.

I want to write about what the Bible says about Jesus when He will protect Israel in the wilderness. I have heard it said before that when the Jews in Judea will flee to the wilderness, that the “wilderness” is speaking of Petra in Jordan. However, I recently read the Scriptures in Isaiah 63 that speak of Jesus coming from Edom, and specifically from Bozrah. Edom means “red.” Bozrah was the capital city of Edom and not far from Petra. Bozrah means “to gather” or “to fortify.” (See: https://biblehub.com/hebrew/1224.htm) There is also reference to Bozrah in the book of Micah that speaks of this gathering of the remnant of Israel in Bozrah, where Bozrah is defined as “an enclosure, sheep fold.” (See: https://biblehub.com/hebrew/1223.htm) Let us read Micah 2:12-13 first:

“I will surely assemble, O Jacob, all of thee; I will surely gather the remnant of Israel; I will put them together as the sheep of Bozrah [of the flock], as the flock in the midst of their fold [pasture]: they shall make a great noise by reason of the multitude of men. The breaker [one who breaks open] is come up before them: they have broken up [out], and have passed through the gate, and are gone out by it: and their king shall pass before them, and the LORD on the [at] head of them.” (Micah 2:12-13)

Isaiah chapter 63 is a question-and-answer passage, where one is asking the questions, perhaps the prophet Isaiah on behalf of Israel, and Jesus Christ is providing the answers. Jesus tells the one asking questions that He has executed His righteous judgment on a wicked and rebellious world, and that also includes the people of Israel who rejected Him and were not protected by Him, the Good Shepherd, in Bozrah, the fortified sheepfold. Isaiah brings to remembrance the times that Jesus had protected Israel. Isaiah speaks of Jesus’ loving kindnesses and the goodness He has shown to the house of Israel. Let us read Isaiah 63:

“Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah? this that is glorious in his apparel, travelling in the greatness of his strength? I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save. Wherefore art thou red in thine apparel, and thy garments like him that treadeth in the winefat [winepress]? I have trodden the winepress alone; and of the people there was none with me: for I will tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my fury; and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments, and I will stain all my raiment. For the day of vengeance is in mine heart, and the year of my redeemed is come. And I looked, and there was none to help; and I wondered that there was none to uphold: therefore mine own arm brought salvation unto me; and my fury, it upheld me. And I will tread down the people in mine anger, and make them drunk in my fury, and I will bring down their strength to the earth. I will mention the loving kindnesses of the LORD, and the praises of the LORD, according to all that the LORD hath bestowed on us, and the great goodness toward the house of Israel, which he hath bestowed on them according to his mercies, and according to the multitude of his lovingkindnesses. For he said, Surely they are my people, children that will not lie: so he was their Saviour. In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old. But they rebelled, and vexed [grieved] his holy Spirit: therefore he was turned to be their enemy, and he fought against them. Then he remembered the days of old, Moses, and his people, saying, Where is he that brought them up out of the sea with the shepherd of his flock? where is he that put his holy Spirit within him? That led them by the right hand of Moses with his glorious arm, dividing the water before them, to make himself an everlasting name? That led them through the deep, as an horse in the wilderness, that they should not stumble? As a beast goeth down into the valley, the Spirit of the LORD caused him to rest: so didst thou lead thy people to make thyself a glorious name. Look down from heaven, and behold from the habitation of thy holiness and of thy glory: where is thy zeal and thy strength, the sounding of thy bowels [yearning of thy heart] and of thy mercies toward me? are they restrained? Doubtless thou art our father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not: thou, O LORD, are our father, our redeemer; thy name is from everlasting. O LORD, why hast thou made us to err [stray] from thy ways, and hardened our heart from thy fear? Return for thy servants’ sake, the tribes of thine inheritance. The people of thy holiness have possessed it but a little while: our adversaries have trodden down thy sanctuary. We are thine: thou never barest rule over them; they were not called by thy name.” (Isaiah 63)

Notice in the above Scriptures that it says, “Doubtless thou art our father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not: thou, O LORD, are our father, our redeemer; thy name is from everlasting.” I understand this to mean that this remnant of Jews that is protected by Jesus and who has turned to Him - accepted Him as their Redeemer and Savior - and their fellow Jews do not acknowledge them because they, who represent the two-thirds remnant, will have not turned to Jesus in belief.

In Isaiah chapter 65, Jesus tells Isaiah that He is sought by a nation that didn’t ask for Him, where that nation represents all the Gentiles who have trusted in Him for their salvation. Jesus contrasts this with the nation of Israel, whom He describes as “a rebellious people” and describes the sins of those in Israel who have forsaken Him. Consequently, He won’t forgive them because they will choose to remain in sin and He will destroy them. However, Jesus tells us that He will save His elect, the remnant of Israel, whom He also calls His servants. There is a back-and-forth discussion, where Jesus describes the consequences of the disobedient and who forsook Him and contrasts that with the blessings of those who are His servants. Jesus will destroy the former and save the latter. Let us read some from Isaiah 65:

“I am sought of them that asked not for me; I am found of them that sought me not: I said, Behold me, behold me, unto a nation that was not called by my name. I have spread out my hands all the day unto a rebellious people, which walketh in a way that was not good, after their own thoughts; a people that provoketh me to anger continually to my face; that sacrificeth in gardens, and burneth incense upon altars of brick; which remain [sit] among the graves, and lodge in the monuments [tombs], which eat swine’s flesh, and broth of abominable [unclean] things is in their vessels; which say, Stand by thyself, come not near to me; for I am holier than thou. These are a smoke in my nose [cause my wrath to smoke], a fire that burneth all the day. Behold, it is written before me: I will not keep silence, but will recompense, even recompense into their bosom, your iniquities, and the iniquities of your fathers together, saith the LORD, which have burned incense upon the mountains, and blasphemed me upon the hills: therefore will I measure their former work into their bosom. Thus saith the LORD, As the new wine is found in the cluster, and one saith, Destroy it not; for a blessing is in it: so will I do for my servants’ sakes, that I may not destroy them all. And I will bring forth a seed out of Jacob, and out of Judah an inheritor of my mountains: and mine elect shall inherit it, and my servants shall dwell there. And Sharon shall be a fold of flocks, and the valley of Achor a place for the herds to lie down in, for my people that have sought me. But ye are they that forsake the LORD, that forget my holy mountain, that prepare a table for that troop [a pagan deity], and that furnish the drink offering unto that number [Number or Destiny, a pagan deity]. There will I number you to [for] the sword, and ye shall all bow down to the slaughter: because when I called, ye did not answer; when I spake, ye did not hear; but did evil before mine eyes, and did choose that wherein I delighted not.” (Isaiah 65:1-12)

“And ye shall leave your name for a curse unto my chosen: for the Lord GOD shall slay thee, and call his servants by another name…” (Isaiah 65:15)

Returning to what is written previously above in Isaiah chapter 63, in the book of Revelation, there are parallel Scriptures regarding Jesus treading the winepress with no people helping Him. Revelation also tells us how the blood of the people - all who will remain steadfast in their rejection of His free gift of salvation, choosing to remain in their sins, and will side with the Wicked One - will be sprinkled upon His garments:

“And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle. And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe. And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped. And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle. And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe. And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. And the winepress was trodden without [outside] the city [Babylon], and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs.” (Revelation 14:14-20)

“And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture [robe] dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine line, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite [strike] the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture [robe] and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.” (Revelation 19:11-16)

It is Jesus who will judge not only Israel but also the entire world for its wickedness. Jesus will judge them because they will choose to remain in their sins rather than turning to Him and be washed clean of all sins by His precious and glorious blood. It is Jesus who will protect the remnant of Israel in Bozrah from the nations that seek to destroy it.

There is another passage of Scripture regarding Jesus defending Israel in Bozrah, and that is from Isaiah 34:

“Come near, ye nations, to hear; and hearken, ye people: let the earth hear, and all that is therein; the world, and all things that come forth of it. For the indignation of the LORD is upon all nations, his fury upon all their armies: he hath utterly destroyed them, he hath delivered them to the slaughter. Their slain also shall be cast out, and their stink shall come up out of their carcases, and the mountains shall be melted with their blood. And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree. For my sword shall be bathed in heaven: behold, it shall come down upon Idumea [Edom], and upon the people of my curse, to judgment. The sword of the LORD is filled with blood, it is made fat [overflowing] with fatness, and with the blood of lambs and goats, with the fat of the kidneys of rams: for the LORD hath a sacrifice in Bozrah, and a great slaughter in the land of Idumea [Edom]. And the unicorns [wild oxen] shall down with them, and the bullocks with the bulls; and their land shall be soaked with blood, and their dust made fat [saturated] with fatness. For it is the day of the LORD’s vengeance, and the year of recompences for the controversy [cause] of Zion.” (Isaiah 34:1-8)

“Seek ye out of the book of the LORD, and read: no one of these shall fail, none shall want her mate: for my mouth it hath commanded, and his spirit it hath gathered them. And he hath cast the lot for them, and his hand hath divided it unto them by line [with a measuring line]: they shall possess it for ever, from generation to generation shall they dwell therein.” (Isaiah 34:16-17)

In summary, it is Jesus who will come from Edom, with His garments dyed red from the blood of those He will slay at His second coming, in the day of vengeance, and the year of His redeemed. Now, I included all of that because of something I read recently that may relate to all of this. Before getting to that, let me say that modern day Israel, as a nation, is not looking for the second coming of Jesus Christ because they rejected Him at His first coming. Instead, they are looking for the coming of the one whom they believe is their “Messiah,” who in reality is a false Messiah, and the one whom the Bible teaches is the final antichrist in the book of Revelation.

The end times are all about Israel. We currently are living in a time period when God temporarily turned His attention off of Israel, because Israel rejected His only begotten Son, Jesus the Christ, and turned it to the Gentiles, to offer salvation to them. As the apostle John wrote, who also wrote the book of Revelation, Jesus offered salvation first to the Jews, and when they rejected Him, He turned His message of salvation to the Gentiles/non-Jews:

“He [Jesus] was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own [His own things or domain], and his own [His own people] received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power [the right] to become the sons [children] 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 1:10-13)

The apostle Paul also wrote about this:

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek [Gentile]. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.” (Romans 1:16-17)

I want to discuss Daniel’s 70-weeks’ prophecy further. Before doing so, let us learn what the Bible tells us about Daniel. Long ago, Daniel, a young man, likely in his teens, and his three friends were taken from where they lived in Judah into captivity in Babylon when King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon besieged Jerusalem. Many years later when the Medo-Persian Empire conquered Babylon, Daniel was reading from the book of Jeremiah the prophet. Jeremiah had prophesied that the Jews from Judah who were taken into captivity in Babylon would be set free after seventy years. After Daniel read that prophecy, he prayed a beautiful prayer to God, acknowledging his sin and the sins of his fellow people from Judah and he asked God to forgive them. (Daniel 9:1-19). While Daniel was praying his prayer, he saw the angel Gabriel, whom Daniel referred to as a man and who was the same man who had given Daniel a prior vision (Daniel 8). Gabriel then gave Daniel the 70-weeks prophecy in Daniel 9:21-27. Let us read of Daniel’s 70-weeks prophecy from the book of Daniel:

“Seventy weeks [seventy sevens] are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy [Holy of Holies].” (Daniel 9:24)

Let us pause here and consider what Daniel wrote. The seventy weeks are based on a “week” being a period of seven years. Thus, 70 weeks equals 70 x 7 years, which equals 490 years. At the end of this period of 70 weeks, which is focused on Daniel’s people, Israel, and the holy city, which is Jerusalem, Jesus Christ will return at His second coming to put an end to sin and reconcile iniquity. He will bring in everlasting righteousness. In addition, all vision and prophecy will be sealed up, for they won’t be needed anymore. Continuing in Daniel 9:

“Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince [Jesus Christ] shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks [7 weeks + 62 weeks = 69 weeks]: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off [suffer the death penalty], but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. ” (Daniel 9:25-26)

There is a good article from gotquestions.org that explains the 70-weeks prophecy. It explains how and when the above prophecy was fulfilled: (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/seventy-weeks.html)

“Gabriel said the prophetic clock would start at the time that a decree was issued to rebuild Jerusalem. From the date of that decree to the time of the Messiah would be 483 years. We know from history that the command to “restore and rebuild Jerusalem” was given by King Artaxerxes of Persia c. 444 B.C. (see Nehemiah 2:1-8).

”The first unit of 49 years (seven “sevens”) covers the time that it took to rebuild Jerusalem, “with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble” (Daniel 9:25). This rebuilding is chronicled in the book of Nehemiah.

”Converting the 360-day year used by the ancient Jews, 483 years becomes 476 years on our solar calendar. Adjusting for the switch from B.C. to A.D., 476 years after 444 B.C. places us at A.D. 33, which would coincide with Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem (Matthew 21:1–9). The prophecy in Daniel 9 specifies that, after the completion of the 483 years, “the Anointed One will be cut off” (verse 26). This was fulfilled when Jesus was crucified.

”Daniel 9:26 continues with a prediction that, after the Messiah is killed, “the people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary.” This was fulfilled with the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70. The “ruler who will come” is a reference to the Antichrist, who, it seems, will have some connection with Rome, since it was the Romans who destroyed Jerusalem.”

We are living in the period of time between the 69th week and 70th week of Daniel’s 70-weeks’ prophecy, the last seven years of Daniel’s prophecy. We have been in that gap ever since Jesus Christ was crucified. The 70th week has not started yet, but Daniel 9:27 tells us when that 70th week will happen:

“And he shall confirm the covenant [or a treaty]with many for one week: and in the midst [middle] of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation [offering] to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and the determined shall be poured upon the desolate [Or desolator].” (Daniel 9:27)

The “he” who is spoken of above is referring to the prior paragraph in Daniel 9:26, and that is “the people of the prince that shall come.” We know that it was the Romans that destroyed Jerusalem and the second Jewish Temple in 70 AD. Daniel 9:26 tells us that the prince that is to come will come from the people that destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple. Thus, the prince that is to come will in some way be associated with Rome. This is the one who is referred to in the Bible by various names, including the son of perdition, the lawless one, antichrist, the beast of the sea, and the beast. I also believe that “the Assyrian” referenced in Micah 5:5 is likely referring to this same one that will be the final antichrist.

Now, I say all of this because of something that I read recently, and it comes from Israel. Again, remember that the 70-weeks prophecy is all about Israel, to turn them from their sin and to turn them to Jesus. The Bible tells us that it is a one-third remnant of Israel who will turn to Him during the time of Jacob’s trouble. Now, let me discuss what I read that came out of Israel. Let me preface this by saying that I don’t know what percentage of Israelis support what this article says, but it is very interesting to say the least. The article is from November 11, 2024 from israel365news.com, just six days, hmm, interesting number, after the re-election of Donald Trump on November 5. The article cites Rabbi Yosef Berger’s thoughts based on the Jewish Midrash, which is part of the Mishnah, the Jewish oral law, on Donald Trump’s reelection in 2024, and how he believes the Midrash “hints” of Trump’s potential for building the third Jewish Temple: (See: https://israel365news.com/397766/midrash-hints-that-trump-will-return-glory-to-western-world-by-building-third-temple/)

“As the spiritual descendant of Rome, the nation that destroyed the Second Temple, Trump has the potential to do a tikkun, fixing the sin of Rome, and returning the glory to Western society.

““Trump’s election is a necessary element of the geula (redemption) and a sign that the moshiach (messiah) is imminent,” Rabbi Berger said. “That is why Donald Trump in Gematria (Hebrew numerology) equals 424, which is the same as Moshiach ben David (Messiah from the house of David),” Rabbi Berger pointed out. “This certainly does not mean he will be the Messiah, but it indicates that he will play a role in preparing the way for the arrival of the Messiah. He clearly has this inclination.”

“Rabbi Berger cited another midrash that hinted at Trump’s purpose. 

“‘Trump is from Edom, Rabbi Berger said. Edom, literally ‘red,’ is the nation descended from Biblical Esav, the twin brother of Jacob, also known as Israel,” Rabbi Berger said. “Edom became Rome, which became Christianity, which became Western civilization,” Rabbi Berger said. “Trump is often ridiculed for his redness. Yaakov tricked Yitzchak and was blessed as the firstborn. Esav’s blessing was to serve Yaakov (Genesis 27:37). Edom, the Western world, can only be blessed through blessing Yisrael. 

““Just like the Second Temple, the Third Temple will be built by non-Jews,” Rabbi Berger said. “This will only be fully revealed after Trump fulfills this role.””

I have written about this in a prior devotional, but I want to mention it again, and it’s another statement from the same article referenced above. First, let’s read what else it says about Donald Trump:

“Rabbi Berger cited the medieval commentator, Rashi, who stated (Daniel 12:12) that moshiach will be revealed, concealed, and then revealed again. This was also stated in Midrash Rabbah (Bamidbar 11:3):

““Rabbi Berachia in the name of Rabbi Levi said: Just like the first redeemer, Moshe, revealed himself to the Jews and then concealed himself, similarly the final redeemer will reveal himself and then conceal himself, and then return and reveal himself again”

““Like Cyrus, God put Donald Trump in power in order to build the Temple and pave the way for moshiach,” Rabbi Berger said. “Like Moses, Trump began as part of the common people, was revealed in his first success entering the White House, but was then hidden.”

““Like Moses, now that Trump has been revealed for the second time, he will fulfill his ultimate function,” Rabbi Berger said.”

I have a KJV Bible, and its Daniel 12:12 verse reads, “Blessed is he that waiteth, and cometh to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days.” According to mayimachronim.com, it explains the belief that the “final redeemer” will be revealed, concealed, and revealed again. (See: https://www.mayimachronim.com/the-concealment-of-mashiach/)

There is something eerily similar to what was cited in the article above, and it is in the book of Revelation. In Revelation, it is referring to the beast of the sea, the final antichrist:

“And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns. The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition [destruction]: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder [marvel], whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is. And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth. And there are seven kings: five are [have] fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space [time]. And the beast that was and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition [destruction].” (Revelation 17:7-11)

If I am understanding the Scriptures above correctly, they sound a lot like what the midrash states. The Jewish moshiach is one whom the Jews believe is their messiah. They also believe their redeemer will be a human being and not God. (See: https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/4350289/jewish/15-Moshiach-Facts-Every-Jew-Should-Know.htm) Let’s compare the two:

Midrash: moshiach will be revealed, concealed, and then revealed again

Revelation 17: the beast that was, and is not, and yet is

We must remember that as of the old days, today’s Jews are not looking for Jesus Christ. As written in Isaiah 49, Jesus tells us that God hid Him “in the shadow of his hand” before He came to earth the first time:

“Listen, O isles [coastlands], unto me: and hearken, ye people, from far; the LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name. And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in his quiver hath he he hid me; and said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.” (Isaiah 49:1-3)

God hid Jesus all over the Old Testament Scriptures. However, anyone who reads and studies God’s word, and not a corrupted version of it, will begin to see that it is all about Jesus Christ. The Old Testament Scriptures prophesy His first and second comings, His millennial reign, and His eternal reign in a new heaven, a new earth, and a new Jerusalem.

As Isaiah 49:1-3 above tells us, God hid Jesus before He came to earth the first time. As we have read in prior devotional messages, and will again later in this devotional, God told Jesus that He sent Him not only “to restore the preserved of Israel” but also to “give thee for a light to the Gentiles.” (Isaiah 49:6). As these Scriptures tell us, Jesus was hidden, then came to earth the first time as God’s suffering servant to offer salvation to the Jews, who rejected Him and then He offered salvation to the Gentiles. Jesus left the earth when He ascended to heaven to sit at the right hand of God, where He has been for nearly, 2000 years. At His second coming, Jesus will return to earth. However, this time, He will come as the Lion of the tribe of Judah to execute His righteous wrath on a wicked and evil world and to turn the surviving remnant of Jews to Him. No, the Jews in our world today are looking for a false messiah, and the Bible tells us this false messiah will be the beast/antichrist. He will be a human being who will likely appear to be a friend of Israel and will confirm the covenant with many, which promises them “peace and safety” in the midst of turmoil in the Middle East. Lest we think it’s okay to hate the Jews, we must also remember that the Bible tells us that God has blinded them in part until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in (Romans 11:25). If it weren’t for their rejection of Jesus Christ, He would not have turned His attention to the Gentiles to offer us, who are not Jewish, salvation of our sins as well, until such time He turns His attention back to the Jews.

Returning to the comments from the rabbis in the previously referenced article from Israel 365 news about God putting Donald Trump in power to build the third Temple, I do not know for a fact that Donald Trump supports the building of it. However, if his past and current actions toward Israel are any indication, I believe he does. It was recently reported that his Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth called in 2018 for the third Temple to be built at Al-Aqsa. (See: https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/new-us-defence-secretary-called-building-third-temple-jerusalem)

It is very interesting and curious to me that the article I mentioned previously above is referring to Trump as “a spiritual descendant of Rome” and that Edom became Rome, “which became Christianity” and how Trump, can “fix the sin of Rome” by allowing Israel to build its third Temple. The article quotes Rabbi Berger as saying, “Edom, the Western world, can only be blessed through blessing Yisrael.” The Bible does tell us in Genesis 12:1-3:

“Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: and I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: and I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee; and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” (Genesis 12:1-3)

Thus, it is true that any nation that blesses Israel will be blessed. However, while Donald Trump has done some good things for Israel, I believe he has also cursed Israel because of his desire to divide its land, both in his first and current administrations. In his first administration, his “deal of the century” that he proposed between Israel and Palestine which was rejected by the Palestinians, would have divided Israel. Now, just days into his second administration, he has stated that the United States will take over Gaza and “own it.” That is not blessing Israel, it is cursing it. I believe Israel is being willfully deceived by Donald Trump, the one who they see as the spiritual descendant of Edom who will allow them to build their third Temple. I also believe Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s current prime minister, is also cursing Israel if he were to allow this to happen, and it does seem that he is supporting Trump’s intentions about Gaza.

It’s interesting to me that the Bible tells us that Jesus Christ, their rejected Messiah, will come from Edom “with dyed garments from Bozrah” after Jesus Himself defends His own people who will finally turn to Him during the midpoint of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble. They will be the remnant of Jews who will be saved by Jesus Christ Himself during the time of Jacob’s trouble.

We must remember that when Jesus was here the first time and was preaching and teaching, His harshest words which He spoke were to the Jewish religious leaders at that time, who were the scribes and Pharisees:

“Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples, saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat: all therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after [according to] their works: for they say, and do not. For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne [hard to bear], and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers. But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments, and love the uppermost rooms [place of honour] at feasts, and the chief [best] seats in the synagogues, and greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi. But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master [Leader or Teacher], even Christ; and all ye are brethren. And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven. But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased [humbled]; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted [lifted up].” (Matthew 23:1-12)

Jesus was in the temple when He spoke these words, as per Matthew 24:1. He told the multitude and His disciples how the scribes and the Pharisees told the people to do certain things but they themselves did not do them. The scribes and the Pharisees enjoyed the best of things and put on displays to get the honor of the people. Jesus told them not to be called Rabbi and Father, but both the Jews and Catholics have disregarded Jesus’ words to them. Jesus told them that the One who is greatest among them “shall be your servant” and was speaking about Himself, whom God sent to the world first as His suffering servant. He warned them that whosoever exalts themselves will be humbled and that the humble will be exalted.

In Matthew 23:13-29, Jesus further called out the Jewish religious leaders for their hypocrisy, saying to them seven times, “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!” and one time, “Woe unto you, ye blind guides.” With each proclamation to them, He told them the reasons why he was calling them hypocrites and blind guides, and it was a long list. Jesus even said to them:

“Ye serpents, ye generation [brood or offspring] of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell? Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city: that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar. Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 23:33-39)

Again, the Jewish religious and political leaders in modern day Israel are not looking for Jesus, their true Messiah, but are looking for the coming of the false messiah. They are trusting and believing in mere man. They believe that Donald Trump is their friend and ally, when I believe he is the complete opposite.

Recently, an AI-generated video titled “Gaza 2025…What’s Next?” was released by two men from Israel who now live in the USA, and which Donald Trump posted on social media, including Truth Social. The Tribute India reported: (See: https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/world/trump-shares-ai-video-of-gaza-transformation-showcasing-his-golden-statue-with-will-set-you-free-song/)

“The video representing 'Trump's Gaza', presents scenes of skyscrapers and children looking up to the sky as dollar bills rain down. Elon Musk appears eating hummus on the beach in Gaza, and a boy can be seen holding a golden balloon depicting Trump's face. The video also represents a larger-than-life statue of Donald Trump in gold, with people looking up to him.”

“In the video, a song can be heard in the backdrop, whose lyrics go, "Donald Trump will set you free, bringing the life for all to see, no more tunnels, no more fear, Trump's Gaza is finally here. Trump's Gaza is shining bright, golden future, a brand new life. Feast and dance; the deed is done. Trump Gaza number one."“

When it was first released, it was not clear if the video was created by someone in Donald Trump’s administration or by someone else, but the fact remains that Donald Trump shared it on his social media accounts, including his own Truth Social. Then on February 28, 2025, the two creators of the video came forward and said that it was created “as satire” and that they don’t want to be part of a “propaganda machine.” (See: https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/internet/trump-gaza-ai-video-propaganda-machine-rcna194097) Whatever this is, the video contains a golden statue of Donald Trump towering over Gaza, bringing to remembrance for many Christians who know their Bible, the golden statue built by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. The king required everyone to worship the statue or they would be thrown into the fiery furnace. (Daniel 3:1-7) The imagery in the video is unmistakable in its comparison to the Babylonian golden statue in the book of Daniel. I have yet to see any Israeli articles making this comparison of the golden statue of Trump in the video to the golden statue of Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar. Neither The Times of Israel nor Israel 365 News mentioned the statue similarities in their articles about the video. In addition to the golden statue of Donald Trump towering over Gaza, the video also shows small golden statues of Trump for sale in a shop (See: https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/trump-gaza-number-one-president-shares-ai-video-reimagining-strip-as-glitzy-beachfront-haven/, https://israel365news.com/400699/trump-shares-ai-vision-of-gaza-gop-supports-israeli-sovereignty-in-judea-and-samaria-and-idf-targets-hezbollah-in-lebanon/)

Why would Donald Trump want to share a video in which its song lyrics mimic what the Bible says about Jesus? Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, and no one comes to the Father but by Him (John 14:6). It is Jesus who told us that only He, as the only begotten Son of God, can set us free from sin:

“Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin. And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever. If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” (John 8:34-36)

It is Jesus who tells us we must be born again in order to have new life and to enter heaven when we die:

“There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: the same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born? Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.” (John 3:1-7)

The Bible tells us clearly that when Jesus Christ gave up His life on the cross, saying, “It is finished,” having never sinned once and yet paid the price to redeem all sins for those who believe in Him as our Savior, it is He and He alone who gives us new life:

“When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar [sour wine], he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head and gave up the ghost [His spirit].” (John 19:30)

“If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” (John 8:36)

“Therefore as by the offense [one false step] of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. For as by one man’s [Adam] disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one {Jesus Christ] shall many be made righteous.” (Romans 5:18-19)

It is only by believing in Jesus Christ to forgive us of all our sins, setting us free from them, that we can enter the kingdom of heaven, which is described in the book of Revelation as having the light of Jesus to illuminate it. After Jesus returns at His second coming and reigns upon the earth for 1,000 years, He will destroy the current heavens and earth by fire and will create a new heaven, a new earth, and a new Jerusalem. Jesus will dwell with all who believed in Him, forever. The holy city of the New Jerusalem will be filled with gold:

“And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write, for these words are true and faithful. And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.” (Revelation 21:5-6)

“And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal …” (Revelation 21:10-11)

“And the building [construction] of the wall of it was jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass.” (Revelation 21:18)

“…and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.” (Revelation 21:21)

“And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten [illuminate] it, and the Lamb [Jesus Christ] is the light thereof.”( Revelation 21:23)

If I were Donald Trump, I would have never shared the video on social media, for it is blasphemy to worship anything or anyone else but God. I believe Donald Trump knew exactly what he was doing when he shared the video, and that was to elevate himself to the level of God.

I want to talk about something else regarding President Trump, and that is a poem that he read during his 2016 and 2024 election campaigns. The poem was written by civil rights activist Oscar Brown Jr in 1963. It was also made into a song and was sung by Al Wilson in 1968. Trump read the poem at his election rallies, including as recently as March 2024, “despite a cease and desist letter.” The song is about a woman who takes in a half-frozen snake, takes care of it and nurtures it back to health, only to have the snake bite her with its poisonous venom. Trump recited the poem in order to indicate his stance on illegal immigration. (See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Snake_(song)) You can read the full lyrics of the poem/song here: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/the-snake-song-lyrics-trump-b2464914.html Here is part of the lyrics from the poem. You can watch a video of Trump reciting the poem here: https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/watch-donald-trump-and-the-snake/

“I saved you, I saved you, I saved you,” cried that woman.
“And you’ve bit me, heavens why?
You know your bite is poisonous and now I’m going to die.”
“Oh shut up, silly woman,” said the reptile with a grin.
“You knew damn well I was a snake before you took me in.”

I think there is something more sinister to Trump’s recitation of this poem/song, and it reminds me of the serpent (Satan) and Eve in the garden. Let’s read what the Bible says of the serpent, who deceived Eve into eating the fruit of the one tree God had commanded her husband, Adam, not to eat of. It is in these Scriptures where we read that God then put enmity, or mutual hatred, between the seed of the serpent and the seed of the woman. Women have eggs and not seed; only men have seed. We know that this is speaking of Jesus Christ, who would be born from a woman, with the seed provided by the Most High (Luke 1:35) and that Satan would war against Jesus and would bruise His heel but Jesus will bruise His head:

“Now the serpent was more subtil [cunning] than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made.” (Genesis 3:1)

“And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled [deceived] me, and I did eat. And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: and I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it [he] shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” (Genesis 3:13-15)

With Donald Trump’s recitation of this poem/song many times at his campaign rallies, I think there is also a veiled hidden meaning, where the “woman” is Israel. I believe a clue to this is in the lyrics of the poem when it says the woman took the snake into her home and “She wrapped him up all cozy in a curvature of silk and then laid him by the fireside with some honey and some milk.” “Milk and honey” is widely known to describe the land that God promised to bring Israel to after He would have Moses lead His people out of Egypt:

“And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows [pain]; and I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hives, and the Jebusites.” (Exodus 3:7-8)

On February 17, 2025, less than a month after the inauguration of Donald Trump’s second, non-consecutive term as president of the United States, an article was posted on Israel National News with the title, “Why did God save Trump?” Let’s read some of what the article says, in which the author of the article, Diane Bederman, explains why she believes God saved Donald Trump from an “assassination” attempt on July 13, 2024, and I put that in quotes because I believe it was all staged. In the article, she quotes Rabbi Pinchas Winston, “Trump is a catalyst, the spark that history needs to change direction. The world is volatile, and Trump is lighting a fire”: (See: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/404041)

“Why did God save Trump? We know He did because the bullet grazed Trump’s ear instead of killing him. It was so close one can only believe that Hand of God was directly involved.”

She further quotes Rabbi Winston:

“Trump is a warrior for the Jewish people and the state of Israel. No other non-Jew has stood up for Israel the way Donald Trump defends and protects her. He stands with Israel as she fights two wars; one on the ground against barbarians, and one in the air waves – the war of words, the propaganda war. While most of the world calls for the erasure of Israel by standing with Hamas and those who scream “Palestine will be free from the river to the sea,” Trump declares Israel from the river to the sea and the end of Gaza as we know it.

“Donald Trump is a true mensch and if God is looking for the one to do repentance for Esau, he could be the man.”

She also quotes Rabbi Yekutiel Fish:

“Everyone is focused on Gaza, but that is only one part of the end-of-days agenda, which has the Jews living in Israel’s prophesied borders. The Torah explicitly includes Gaza. What Trump is doing is cleaning out Gaza of all the haters of Israel. They cannot be in Israel after the Messiah comes. After the Messiah, the only people who can be in the Biblical borders of Israel are those who believe He is One and His name is One. This will include Gaza, half of Lebanon, and much of Jordan.”

“And we see that we are almost there. Syria fell. Lebanon is half gone. Gaza is ripped up. The stage is nearly set for Messiah. But how can the Palestinian Arabs be here when we go to greet the Messiah? The Messiah needs someone to take care of this, and in this case, it is Donald Trump. Trump is merely carrying out the final tasks needed before Messiah is revealed.””

I think it’s a fair assessment to say that many in Israel are embracing Donald Trump, perhaps even more so since the events of July 13, 2024. I believe that Israel is deceived and is setting itself up for devastation, just as the woman in the poem took in the snake that bit her with its poisonous venom. Israel is not trusting in Jesus Christ, who is God, but in human men, and particularly one man to protect her and save her from destruction from its enemies. If one truly cares about Israel, one would not seek to divide the land that God gave her.

I have written all of this because I truly believe we are so very close to the rapture of the church and the start of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, which will commence when the one who will be the final antichrist will confirm the covenant with “the many,” which I believe includes Israel. I’m not sure if it includes other countries besides Israel since the Bible does not tell us, but time will tell.

You may think that my thoughts on Donald Trump indicate that I have “Trump Derangement Syndrome.” However, that is not true. I voted for him twice, in the 2016 and 2020 elections. However, after the worldwide COVID deception that began in America and his support of the “vaccines” and most importantly, his support of his so-called “peace” deals that would divide the land of Israel, and especially with his recent statements about owning and taking over Gaza, my eyes have been opened to his true intentions, which I believe are not good. They aren’t good for Israel, they’re not good for America, and they’re not good for the world. I am done choosing between “the lesser of two evils.” Both sides are corrupt. My hope is not in any politician; my hope is in Jesus Christ alone. Sadly, I have seen so many people who are ignoring what he did in first administration and to me, they seem to be under some delusion, similar to what the Bible tells us in 2 Thessalonians 2:10-11 will happen after the man of sin, the son of perdition, the final antichrist, will be revealed (2 Thessalonians 2:3).

Now, returning to today’s Scripture verses in Isaiah 49:21-22, at the end of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, Jesus will return to earth with His armies in heaven. I believe the armies in heaven includes all the saints (1 Thessalonians 3:13), who is everyone who put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ for their salvation, both those who were raptured alive and those who had died in their faith. Jesus will save the remnant of Israel, and slay with the sword of His mouth all of the nations that will gather and fight against Him. After Jesus casts the antichrist and false prophet into the lake of fire and brings Israel back into her land that God gave her, He will also give her new children to replace the children she lost. These children will be the sons and daughters of the Gentiles, who will also have put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ, and who will come to Israel to honor her. The remnant of Israel will ask Jesus,“Behold, I was left alone; these, where had they been?” Jesus will tell them that their sons and daughters are from the Gentiles. As God tells us many times in His word, including in Isaiah 49:6, He sent Jesus not only to save a remnant of Israel but also “as a light to the Gentiles” so that salvation can be offered to everyone, not just to Israel:

“And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel; I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.” (Isaiah 49:7)

Isaiah chapter 60 also includes a passage of Scripture very similar to Isaiah 49:21-22:

“Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side. Then thou shalt see, and flow together [become radiant], and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged [swell with joy]; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces [wealth] of the Gentiles [nations] shall come unto thee.” (Isaiah 60:1-5)

“Surely the isles [coastlands] shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy sons from far, their silver and their gold with them, unto the name of the LORD thy God, and to the Holy One of Israel, because he hath glorified thee. And the sons of strangers [foreigners] shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister unto thee: for in my wrath I smote thee, but in my favour have I had mercy on thee.” (Isaiah 60:9-10)

Jesus Christ offers salvation to ALL who believe in Him and who call on Him to save them, and this extends to EVERYONE who will turn to Him during the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble. Read the words of the Scriptures below, as God calls the people of Israel to Him. Notice that He tells them that nations that they don’t know will run to them because of Him:

“Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness [abundance]. Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David. Behold, I have given him for a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the people. Behold, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not, and nations that knew not thee shall run unto thee because of the LORD thy God, and for the Holy One of Israel; for he hath glorified thee.” (Isaiah 55:1-5)

In the above Scriptures, God is also telling Israel about Jesus, who had not yet come in the flesh but would in the future. All of the Old Testament Scriptures testify of Jesus. When Jesus came to earth the first time to offer salvation first to the Jews, He referenced the Old Testament Scriptures, including the ones above:

“In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly [heart] shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.) Many of the people therefore, when they heard this saying, said, Of a truth this is the Prophet. Others said, This is the Christ. But some said, Shall Christ come out of Galilee? Hath not the scripture said, That Christ cometh out of the seed of David, and out of the town of Bethlehem, where David was? So there was a division among the people because of him. And some of them would have taken him; but no man laid hands on him. Then came the officers to the chief priests and Pharisees; and they said unto them, Why have ye not brought him? The officers answered, Never man spake like this man. Then answered them the Pharisees, Are ye also deceived? Have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed on him?” (John 7:37-47)

At Jesus’ first coming, the Jews should have recognized Jesus as their Messiah, the Christ, the only begotten Son of God, but their hardness of heart prevented the majority of them from believing the truth, just as prophesied by Jeremiah:

“O LORD, the hope of Israel, all that forsake thee shall be ashamed, and they that depart from me shall be written in the earth, because they have forsaken the LORD, the fountain of living waters.” (Jeremiah 17:13)

Jesus Christ IS the witness and He IS the leader and commander to the people spoken of above in Isaiah 55:1-5, as also written in the books of Daniel and Revelation:

“Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.” (Daniel 9:25)

“And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten [born] of the dead, and the prince of [ruler over] the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood and hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds [the tribes] of the earth shall wail [mourn] because of him. Even so, Amen. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.” (Revelation 1:5-8)

In the Scriptures below, I believe Jesus was telling those who rejected Him and who sought to kill Him would be the same in heart as the ones who will accept the coming antichrist. Jesus words applied not only to that generation of Jews who were alive when Jesus was here at His first coming, but they also apply to those who are alive now:

“And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape [form]. And ye have not his word abiding in you: for whom he hath sent, him ye believe not. Search [you search] the Scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. And [but] ye will not come to me, that ye might have life. I receive not honour from men. But I know you, that ye have not the love of God in you. I am come in my Father’s name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive.” (John 5:37-43)

I believe we are drawing very near to the start of the time of Jacob’s trouble. Israel is not seeking Jesus Christ, who comes in His Father’s name. Modern Israel, in our world today, still has not turned to Jesus, the only begotten Son of God, and continues to reject Him. I believe it very well may be this generation of Jews alive today who will receive the one who comes in his own name, the antichrist, to their peril and destruction. However, as God also tells us in His word, Jesus Christ will save a remnant of Israel, those who will believe on Him.

Returning to Isaiah 55, God is telling His people to seek Him while He may be found and turn to Him. He is telling them these things because He wants them to be saved. His words also ring true to the Gentiles. The apostle Paul reminded us in the book of Romans that no one who believes in Jesus, referred to as the “stumblingstone and “rock of offence,” will be put to shame. May we read and heed His words today, before it’s too late.

“Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: so shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of field shall clap their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the LORD for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.” (Isaiah 55:6-13)

“But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness. Wherefore [Why}? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumblingstone; As it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a stumblingstone and rock of offence: and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed [put to shame].” (Romans 9:31-33)

In closing, let us read and heed the apostle Paul’s words of warning to us:

“Now we beseech you, brethren, by [concerning] the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and by [concerning] our gathering together unto him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand [had come]. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things? And now ye know what withholdeth [is restraining] that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery [hidden truth] of iniquity [lawlessness] doth already work: only he who now letteth will let [restrains will do so] until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that Wicked [Lawless One] be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit [breath] of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness [unrighteous deception] in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: that they all might be damned [condemned] who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.. But we are bound [under obligation] to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth: whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle. Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts, and establish you in every good word and work.” (2 Thessalonians 2:1-17) 🙏🏻 ✝️

February 22, 2025: Isaiah 49:19-20 - Give Place to Me that I May Dwell

“For thy waste and thy desolate places, and the land of thy destruction, shall even now be too narrow by reason of the inhabitants, and they that swallowed thee up shall be far away. The children which thou shalt have, after thou hast lost the other, shall say again in thine ears, The place is too strait for me: give place to me that I may dwell.” - Isaiah 49:19-20

Note to readers: This has been a very time consuming and difficult devotional message to write. It has taken me from January 19 to February 22, 2025 to write it. I have discussed this more below, and wanted to say that I have gone back and forth, adding more information to it as recent critical world events have happened. I also want to warn you that if you are not a fan of studying a lot of different Scriptures, this devotional message is not for you. As I write these devotionals, I go where I believe the Holy Spirit leads me, and oftentimes it means leaving the current Scriptures I am focusing on to read other Scriptures that relate to them. Sometimes, that means studying a lot of other Scriptures. I can tell you with absolute certainty that because I have gone where the Spirit has led me since November 2022, when I believe He called me to progress from studying the milk of the word to really dig in and study the meat of it, letting the Holy Spirit guide me in to all truth by searching many Scriptures in both the Old and New Testaments, I have learned so much, much more than I ever did when I sat in a church building for 9+ years listening to a pastor preach and teach and give me his opinion of Scripture. I have also increased my knowledge and understanding of the Scriptures by not relying on any Bible commentaries to teach me but to rely solely on the Holy Spirit, as I believe the Spirit instructed me to do sometime in 2024. It is definitely more work because I have to do the searching in the Bible myself, but wow, what a difference it has made for me, not only in understanding the Scriptures but in also retaining what I have read. The Holy Spirit truly is the best teacher we could ever have. Hallelujah! Finally, Luke wrote in Acts 17:10-11, I strongly encourage you to search the Scriptures for yourself:

“And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews. These were more noble [fair-minded] than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.” (Acts 17:10-11)

Also, I wanted to say that this devotional focuses on the land of Israel, the land that God gave to Israel long ago. As I continue writing on February 19, a month later, I realize now that as I was writing about God’s land as discussed in Isaiah 49:19-20, a firestorm has occurred in the world, especially in the Middle East, during this time, and it continues to this day. As written in 2 Timothy 3:1-9, the days in which we live truly seem to be the perilous times that the apostle Paul said would come in the last days before Jesus Christ returns to judge a wicked and evil world and to turn His attention back to Israel, in the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble. I cannot impress upon you enough that if you do not know Jesus Christ as your Savior, I pray that you turn to Him today, that you turn from your sin and accept Him in your heart as your Savior and let Him cleanse you from all your sins by His sinless, precious blood. The world is about to enter into the darkest and most evil times ever known to mankind. Jesus Christ Himself told us in His word, the Bible, that if God did not limit this time period to seven years, no flesh would be saved (Matthew 24:22). Do not ignore that small voice that is saying to you, “Something is wrong, something is terribly wrong with the world.” Turn to Jesus today.

Now, let’s get started on this in-depth study of Isaiah 49:19-20 and God’s land. As I discussed in my prior devotional on Isaiah 49:17-18, there is coming a time when Israel’s enemies will no longer be a threat to her, and Israel will be gathered together in the land that God gave them. This gathering will not just be a gathering of the remnant of Israel whom God will protect during the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, but it will also include non-Jewish (Gentile) believers in Jesus Christ . To accommodate this gathering of both Jewish and the Gentiles that will come to Israel, the land that Israel currently is in will be expanded to include all of the land God gave to Israel, which Israel has never inhabited. However, before this happens, Israel will literally go through a time of hell on earth, a time called the time of Jacob’s trouble (Jeremiah 30:7), when the land will be made desolate and will be destroyed. Only a remnant of Israel will survive and will lose most of her children. However, in Isaiah 49:19-20, God gives Israel hope. Before we discuss that, let us examine the details of these Scriptures to understand how and why this desolation and destruction will come upon not only Israel, but also the entire world. Let us start at the beginning, when God gave the land - His land - to Israel.

The Bible tells us the borders of the land that God gave Israel. The first mention of these borders was when God made a unilateral covenant with Abram, whom God would later rename to “Abraham.” It was God Himself who made the covenant with Abram while Abram was in a deep sleep, as described in Genesis chapter 15. Before we read about that covenant, it’s important to remember the promise God had made to Abram:

“Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: and I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” (Genesis 12:1-3)

Abram obeyed God, and when he was 75-years old, he took his wife, Sarai, his nephew, Lot, and all his belongings, and went to the land of Canaan, where the Canaanites were:

“And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed [descendants] will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him.” (Genesis 12:7)

Some time later, which some estimate to be approximately ten years, Abram and Sarai still had not had a child of their own, and Abram told God that someone else, someone who wasn’t his own flesh and blood son, would be his heir. It was during this time that God reiterated His promise to Abram and made his unilateral covenant with him. God also told Abram that something would happen first to his descendants before they would come to the land that God was giving him. Let us read all of Genesis chapter 15 that describes the events that took place:

“After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward. And Abram said, Lord GOD, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward [heir] of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus? And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir. And, behold, the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir. And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell [count] the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness. And he said unto him, I am the LORD that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give thee this land to inherit it. And he said, Lord GOD, whereby shall I know that I shall inherit it? And he said unto him, Take me an heifer of three years old, and a she goat of three years old, and a ram of three years old, and a turtledove, and a young pigeon. And he took unto him all these, and divided them [cut them in two] in the midst [middle], and laid each piece one against [opposite] another: but the birds divided he not. And when the fowls [vultures] came down upon the carcases, Abram drove them away. And when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and, lo, an horror of great darkness fell upon him. And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years; and also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance [possessions]. And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace; thou shalt be buried in a good old age. But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full [complete]. And it came to pass, that, when the sun went down, and it was dark, behold a smoking furnace, and a burning lamp that passed between those pieces. In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed [descendants] have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates: the Kenites, and the Kenizzites, and the Kadmonites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Rephaims, and the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.” (Genesis 15:1-21)

Did you catch the significance of what God did when He made His covenant with Abram? He didn’t bring Abram to a table and have him sit and listen while God told him that He was given him the land and then have Abram sign on the dotted line to acknowledge what God was giving him and his descendants. Further, the tradition of making a covenant at that time was that both parties of the covenant would pass between the two sides of the carcasses in order to enact the covenant. No, after having Abram take the split carcasses of the three-year old heifer, goat, and ram and lay them opposite each other, God put Abram in a deep sleep. While Abram was asleep, God told Abram that his descendants would first would be strangers in a land that was not theirs and they would serve those people, meaning they would be their slaves, whom we know was Egypt, but after 400 years, 430 years total, God would bring severe judgment upon Pharaoh and Egypt, and Israel would be set free. God told Abram that not only would his descendants be set free but they would bring many possessions with them. God also told Abram that something was conditional upon Abram’s descendants returning to the land where he was, and that was the iniquity of the Amorites being full or complete. God would give the Amorites 430 years to turn from their sins before bringing the Israelites into their land. God Himself alone passed between the carcasses, thus sealing the covenant He Himself made with Abram; Abram had done nothing except to sleep. God then reiterated His covenant He had previously made with Abram and told him that He was giving the land “from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates” to Abram’s descendants.

The covenant of God giving them the land was unconditional and has not been nullified, contrary to what most of the world believes. However, God did tell Israel that if they did not obey His commandments to them, then He would vomit them out of the land, as He did to the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaims, Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites, and Jebusites. God would not allow His people to commit the same sins as the Egyptians committed, nor the same sins of the people whom God would take the land from because He does not allow a double-standard. No, He called His people, Israel, to be set apart from all other nations, for out of Israel would all nations be blessed, and that blessing is through their Messiah who would come, Jesus the Christ.

Let us read God’s words of warning He spoke to his servant Moses when Moses was bringing Israel out of Egypt into the Promised Land:

“And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, I am the LORD your God. After the doings of [what is done in] the land of Egypt, wherein ye dwelt, shall ye not do: and after the doings of the land of Canaan, whither I bring you, shall ye not do: neither shall ye walk in their ordinances. Ye shall do my judgments, and keep mine ordinances, to walk therein: I am the LORD your God. Ye shall therefore keep my statutes, and my judgments: which if a man do, he shall live in [by] them: I am the LORD.” (Leviticus 18:1-5)

“Defile not ye yourselves in any of these things: for in all these the nations are defiled which I cast out before you: and the land is defiled: therefore do I visit [bring judgment for] the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land itself vomiteth out her inhabitants. Ye shall therefore keep [obey] my statutes and my judgments, and shall not commit any of these abominations; neither any of your own nation, nor any stranger that sojourneth among you: (For all these abominations have the men of the land done, which were before you, and the land is defiled;) that the land spue not you out also, when ye defile it, as it spued out the nations that were before you. For whosoever shall commit any of these abominations, even the souls [persons] that commit them shall be cut off [put to death] from among their people. Therefore shall ye keep mine ordinance, that ye commit not any one of these abominable customs, which were committed before you, and that ye defile not yourselves therein: I am the LORD your God. And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Ye shall be holy: for I the LORD your God am holy.” (Leviticus 18:24-19:2)

“Observe and hear all these words which I command thee, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee for ever, when thou doest that which is good and right in the sight of the LORD thy God. When the LORD thy God shall cut off the nations from before thee, whither thou goest to possess them, and thou succeedest [displace] them, and dwellest in their land; take heed to thyself that thou be not snared [ensnared] by following them, after that they be destroyed from before thee; and that thou enquire not after their gods, saying, How did these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise. Thou shalt not do so unto the LORD thy God: for every abomination [everything detestable] to the LORD, which he hateth, have they done unto their gods; for even their sons and their daughters they have burnt in the fire to their gods. What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish [take away] from it.” (Deuteronomy 12:28-32)

As the Bible tells us, Israel has disobeyed God’s commandments to them many times. As a loving Father to them, He has had to discipline them, oftentimes severely. Consequently, God has taken Israel out of its land several times, but He has always allowed a remnant of Israel to return, and that includes the modern day nation of Israel. If God truly were finished with Israel, He would not have allowed a remnant of Jews to return to the land that they are in today. However, the remnant that did return to the land are, overall, living in sin and in rejection of His Son Jesus Christ. I truly believe that it is this remnant who will soon go through the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, also called the Day of the Lord. All of the nations will come against Israel, and it will be God Himself who will save a remnant of Israel. The book of Zephaniah is just one of the many books of the Bible that discusses the Day of the Lord. I want to take a deep-dive into Zephaniah chapters 1 and 2. Let us read what is has to say about it:

“The great day of the LORD is near, it is near, and hasteth [hurries] greatly, even the voice of the day of the LORD: the mighty man shall cry there bitterly. That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness [devastation] and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, a day of the trumpet and alarm against the fenced [fortified] cities, and against the high towers.” (Zephaniah 1:14-16)

Let us pause here just a moment on that last sentence. In the Bible, numbers are important, and I believe they mean something to God. For example, in the Bible we see the numbers 40, 12, 7, and 10 used many times. I believe that both the number 7 and the number 11 are represented in the last sentence of the Scriptures above. According to several websites, including biblestudy.org, the number 7 represents completeness and perfection. (See: https://www.biblestudy.org/bibleref/meaning-of-numbers-in-bible/7.html). I believe this is reflected as follows in Zephaniah 1:15-16:

1: That day [the great day of the LORD]; 2: Day of wrath; 3: Day of trouble; 4: Day of wasteness; 5: Day of darkness; 6: Day of clouds; 7: Day of the trumpet

Notice there are references to seven “days” in Zephaniah 1:15-16. This is the same number of days that God took to create everything, as described in Genesis, and that includes the seventh day when “God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.” (Genesis 2:2-3)

According to several websites, including biblestudy.org, the number 11 represents “disorder, chaos, and judgment.” (See: https://www.biblestudy.org/bibleref/meaning-of-numbers-in-bible/11.html). I believe this is reflected as follows in Zephaniah 1:15-16:

1: Day of wrath; 2: Day of trouble; 3: Distress; 4: Day of wasteness [or devastation]; 5: Desolation; 6: Day of darkness; 7: Gloominess; 8: Day of clouds; 9: Thick darkness; 10: Day of the trumpet; 11: Alarm against the fenced cities and high towers

This makes sense and is very fitting considering that this time period is known as the time of Jacob’s trouble and the tribulation period. I think there may be a sort of cause and effect at work as well. Look at how this is worded in the Scriptures from Zephaniah 15-16:

1: “That day,” meaning the great day of the LORD is or causes wrath; 2: Trouble causes distress; 3: Devastation causes one to be desolate, making one feel abandoned; 4: Darkness causes gloominess; 5: Clouds cause thick darkness; 6: A trumpet sound, in this case God’s trumpet, causes alarm, even against the powerful and fortified cities.

Just as in the book of Joshua, when the trumpets were sounded as a battle cry before Joshua and his men took the fortified city of Jericho, so will the trumpets sound as a battle cry of the LORD when He executes His judgment upon the nation of Israel and also the entire world. Just as there were seven trumpets sounded at the battle of Jericho, we are also told in Revelation 8-11 that there will be seven trumpet judgments. It is also very interesting to me that Zephaniah says “the day of the trumpet,” where “trumpet” is singular. Perhaps this may well be in alignment with one passage of Scripture that supports the pre-tribulation rapture, meaning those who have put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ for their salvation are caught up to Jesus Christ in the clouds before the day of the LORD, the wrath of God, begins upon the entire earth:

“But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep [are dead], that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even as them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. 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 [precede] them which are asleep [dead]. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump [trumpet] of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18)

“But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction comes upon them, as travail [labour pains] upon a woman with child [pregnant woman]; and they shall not escape. But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children [sons] of light, and the children [sons] of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation. For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Thessalonians 5:1-9)

I want to add that in the Scriptures above from 1 Thessalonians 5:1-9, re-read the words in the first set of bolded text. I believe that this relates to the “covenant of death” that Israel will sign with the antichrist and they will declare “peace and safety,” believing that the antichrist will protect them and that they will finally have peace with their neighbors. I think it may also be the rest of the entire unbelieving world who will make this declaration, believing that there will finally be peace in the Middle East. Imagine the headlines that will appear when this covenant is signed. However, God’s word says that “sudden destruction comes upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.” I’ve also heard quite a few pastors pointing out there is a clear distinction between the “they” and the “ye, brethren.” The Day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night to the unbelieving world because they haven’t been reading God’s word - all of it, which includes the New Testament - and how it gives warning after warning after warning of the coming of the Day of the Lord, and the time of Jacob’s trouble/tribulation period. Had they read it, they wouldn’t be caught by surprise, like a thief in the night that robbed their house. However, for the “ye, brethren” who have read God’s word and are looking for Jesus’ return, noticing the signs of the end that He told we would see as His second coming draws close, they won’t be caught off guard. It is the brethren, all believers in Jesus Christ, who have not been appointed to wrath and will be caught up to Jesus in the clouds before the start of the tribulation period.

The book of Joel, chapter 2, also describes the beginning or the start of the day of the Lord:

“Blow ye the trumpet [ram’s horn] in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh [now] at hand; a day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations.” (Joel 2:1-2)

Joel chapter 2 verses 3-11 go on to describe what I believe is at least one of the 21 judgments from God in the book of Revelation, specifically the fifth trumpet judgment that is described in Revelation 9:1-12. I encourage you to read them.

Now, let us continue reading from Zephaniah chapter 1:

“And I will bring distress upon men, that they shall walk like blind men, because they have sinned against the LORD: and their blood shall be poured out as dust, and their flesh as the dung [refuse]. Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD’s wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make a speedy riddance [end] of all them that dwell in the land.” (Zephaniah 1:17-18)

No matter how wealthy any person may be, there will be absolutely nothing that will be able to stop what is coming upon mankind when the Day of the Lord, the time of Jacob’s trouble, happens. Silver and gold will be absolutely worthless. Their stumbling block, meaning the thing that made them stumble or sin, which is their love of money, will not be able to save them from the coming wrath of Almighty God. Ezekiel 7:19 tells us something similar:

“They shall cast their silver in the streets, and their gold shall be removed [like refuse]: their silver and their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the LORD: they shall not satisfy their souls, neither fill their bowels [stomachs]: because it is the stumblingblock of their iniquity.” (Ezekiel 7:19)

Now, let us read from Zephaniah chapter 2:

“Gather yourselves together, yea, gather together, O nation not desired [undesirable]; before the decree bring forth [is issued], before the day pass as the chaff, before the fierce anger of the LORD come upon you, before the day of the LORD’s anger come upon you. Seek ye the LORD, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgment [upheld his justice]; seek righteousness, seek meekness [humility]: it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the LORD’s anger.” (Zephaniah 2:1-3)

Before continuing in Zephaniah, I want you to notice, which is why I used the bold font above, that God tells HIs people that He wants them to gather together, and He tells us the specific timing of when they are to gather, and that is before the Day of the Lord. Four separate times did He tell them to do this before it comes to pass. I think the fact that God said “before” four separate times is significant. I think the timing of their gathering together may represent when they are gathered together again in Israel at a time that is very near to the coming Day of the Lord. I believe this gathering together of Israel is referring to May 14, 1948, when Israel was reborn as a nation. While the intents of the people who caused this to happen may not have been for good reason, I believe God allowed this to happen to move us closer to His time clock, when Jesus will return at His second coming. Since Israel was reborn, more Jews have left their homes from other countries around the world and have been gathering together in Israel. The timing of this gathering together prior to the four “before” statements that are written in Zephaniah 2:2, may, and I emphasize “may,” as I do not know this with certainty, relate to the opening of the first four seal judgments that begin the Day of the Lord. These first four seal judgments are also known as the four horsemen, which the world has often called “The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse” in the book of Revelation, chapter six. Let’s discuss this a bit.

The apostle John was exiled on the Greek island of Patmos when he was given the Revelation of Jesus Christ to write. Let us read what John tells us in Revelation 4:1-11:

“After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter. And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne. and he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine [sardius] stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight [appearance] like unto an emerald. And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold. And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God. And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal: and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four beasts full of eyes before [in front] and behind. And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle. And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come. And when those beasts give glory and honour and thanks to him that sat on the throne, who liveth for ever and ever, the four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.” (Revelation 4:1-11)

In the Scriptures above, John told us many things, including that there were four beasts around the throne. There is a very similar description of them in the book of Ezekiel, chapter 1. I have not included that chapter here, but I highly encourage you to read it for yourself. Both John and Ezekiel tell us that one beast was like a lion, one like a calf, one had the face of a man, and one was like flying eagle. I wasn’t going to write anything else about these beasts, but I was walking the other day and the Holy Spirit impressed upon me that these four beasts represent Jesus Christ, who is God, in four different ways:

1-Lion: First and foremost, Jesus is the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David (Revelation 5:5). The lion represents His divinity and kingship/authority. Jesus, who came to earth first time as the Lamb of God, as God manifest in the flesh, and as God’s suffering servant, has prevailed and is the KINGS OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS. {Revelation 19:16) It is in Genesis 49 when Jacob, the father of the twelve sons representing the twelve tribes of Israel, speaks to them before his death and tells them, “that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the last days.” It is there that we first read of how the tribe of Judah is represented as a lion and from whom Messiah, the King of kings and Lord of lords, would come. I have read Genesis 49:8-12 before, but this time, I read it as though my eyes were opened to all the truth and prophecy within it, and I am in complete awe of the power of my God. Included in these verses are prophecies of how Jesus would bow His head when He gave up His life on the cross, would die, and would be raised up, would go up to heaven. It also prophecies of what is known as Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem when Jesus, who called Himself “the true vine,” (John 15:1) rode on an ass’/donkey’s colt (Matthew 21:1-7), and His coming judgment upon the earth and the reaping of the grapes of wrath, where the wrath of God is taking all the sin of the world, the people who have rejected Jesus’ free gift of salvation and chose their sin, which has reached its fullness, like overripe grapes, and presses it into the winepress, squeezing out the blood, as winepress squeezes the wine from the grapes. (See also Isaiah 63:3-6, Revelation 14:19-20, and Revelation 19:15):

“Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise: thy hand shall be in [on] the neck of thine enemies; thy father’s children shall bow down before thee. Judah is a lion’s whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped [crouched] down, he couched [lies down] as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up? The sceptre [a symbol of kingship] shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be. Binding his foal [donkey] unto the vine, and his ass’s [donkey’s] colt unto the choice vine; he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes: his eyes shall be red with [darker than] wine, and his teeth white with [whiter than] milk.” (Genesis 49:8-12)

2-Calf: Translated from Greek, this means a young heifer or bull. When God confirmed His unconditional covenant with Abram, He used five sacrificial animals, and the first one named was a heifer. It is through Abram, whom God would later rename to Abraham, that began the Jewish nation, from whom the Son of God would descend. In addition, each year on the Jewish Day of Atonement, the high priest would sacrifice a young bull, or calf, without blemish, and sprinkle its blood on the Ark of the Covenant, to atone for himself, his family, and for the sins of the people (Leviticus 4:3, 16:3, 11, 14). However, Jesus came to atone for the sins of all people once and for all. His perfect and sinless blood that was spilled on the cross provided forgiveness of sins for all people who believe in Him:

“Behold, my servant shall deal prudently; he shall be exalted and extolled [lifted up], and be very high. As many were astounded at thee; his visage [appearance] was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men; so shall he sprinkle many nations; the kings shall shut their mouths at him: for that which had not been told them shall they see; and that which they had not heard shall they consider.” (Isaiah 52:13-15)

3-Face of a Man: This represents God in the flesh, Jesus as the Son of Man:

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

“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” (John 3:14-18)

4-Eagle: When Moses was leading God’s people out of their 430-year time of bondage in Egypt, it was God who bore or sustained them on eagles’ wings. It will be God Himself who will bring her into a place during the last 3-1/2 years of the time of Jacob’s trouble to protect her from the final antichrist:

“Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare [sustained] you on eagles’ wings, and brought you unto myself.” (Exodus 19:4)

“And to the woman [I believe this to be Israel] were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.” (Revelation 12:14)

In Revelation 5, John tells us that he saw in the right hand of the One sitting on the throne a book or a scroll that had writing on the outside and the inside and it was sealed with seven seals. He saw a strong angel who asked, “Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof?” (Revelation 5:2) John tells us that no man was found worthy, not in heaven, nor in the earth, nor under the earth, and then John wept, a lot. Then this happened:

“And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed [overcome] to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof. And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth. And he came and took the book [scroll] out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne.” (Revelation 5:5-7)

In Revelation 6, John tells us that he saw the Lamb, Jesus Christ, opening each of the seven seals on the scroll, where each opening of the seal is a judgment on the earth from God. For each of the first four seals, not for the entire seven seals, one of the four beasts tells John to “Come and see” after the seals are opened. In addition, John tells us that for each of the first four seals, he sees a rider on a horse. The colors of the horses are white, red, black, and pale. The last horse’s color in Greek is “chlóros” and it means pale green or sickly, such as the color of death. The opening of the first four seal judgments represent the beginning of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble.

In summary, I have given a possibility as to the timing of when this gathering together of Israel may happen, which I believe is not referring to any other time in Israel’s history but is referring to the time when we are at the door, on the verge, of the start of the Day of the Lord.

Now, let us continue reading what God tells us next in Zephaniah 2. I have also included what I believe are parallel passages in Joel 2. As in Zephaniah 1, God tells His people what is going to come upon them and then warns them to turn to Him BEFORE it happens. God is giving His people a final warning to humble themselves and turn to Him with all their heart BEFORE the start of the Day of the Lord:

“Seek ye the LORD, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgment [upheld his justice]; seek righteousness, seek meekness [humility]: it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the LORD’s anger.” (Zephaniah 2:3)

“Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning: and rend [tear]your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil [relents from doing harm]. Who knoweth if he will return and repent [turn and relent], and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the LORD your God? Blow the trumpet in Zion, sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly: gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the elders, gather the children, and those that suck the breasts: let the bridegroom go forth of his chamber, and the bride out of her closet [dressing room].” (Joel 2:12-16)

There is something very intriguing in the last part of Zephaniah 2:3 that reads “it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the LORD’s anger” and the last sentence of Joel 2:12-16 above that reads “let the bridegroom go forth of his chamber, and the bride out of her closet.”. Is this a hidden passage, a hint, referring to the rapture of the church that I believe is described in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4? Let us read that again:

“For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump [trumpet] of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-18)

We know from other Scriptures in the Bible that Jesus IS the bridegroom, and that He currently sits at the right hand of God. Is Joel 2 referring to the time when Jesus will leave the place where He currently is, His chamber, to descend from heaven and call up to Himself His bride, which is all who believe in Him, both those who have already died and those who will be alive at the time this happens? The bride currently is making herself ready; she is in her dressing room until such time her bridegroom calls her to Himself, where she will be in heaven, hidden during the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble on earth. Is this what Zephaniah 2:3 and Joel 2:16 are referring to? I believe it is a strong possibility. Let us read what Jesus told His disciples sometime before He was crucified:

“Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions [dwellings]: 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 14:1-3)

Is this where the bride of Christ will reside in heaven during the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, when the wrath of God is being executed upon the entire earth? Chapter 19 of the book of Revelation tells us what happens at the end of that period, right before the second coming of Jesus Christ:

“And after these things I heard a great voice of much people [a great multitude] in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God: for true and righteous are his judgments: for he hath judged the great whore [harlot], which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her [shed by her] hand. And again they said, Alleluia. And her smoke rose up for ever and ever. And the four and twenty elders and the four beasts fell down and worshipped God that sat on the throne, saying, Amen; Alleluia. And a voice came out of the throne, saying, Praise our God, all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, both small and great. And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice [sound] of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.” (Revelation 19:1-9)

After having looked way forward into the future in the book of Revelation, let us continue reading what is written in Zephaniah chapter 2. Before we do so, let me say that I do not know exactly how and when this is all going to play out, and am just doing my best, through the leading of the Holy Spirit, to understand what is written in the Scriptures. I think that as time goes on, the picture will become clearer, as happens many times with prophecy, as more pieces of the puzzle are revealed. Having said that, I do not believe that the events written in Zephaniah 2:4-15 have already happened and are prophecies of things to come. There are some very interesting things written in Zephaniah 2, as well as Zechariah 9 that seem to align with what began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas attacked Israel and the subsequent actions taken by Israel, particularly in the Gaza Strip but also on its northern border with Lebanon. Now, let us continue reading in Zephaniah 2:

“For Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ashkelon a desolation: they shall drive out Ashdod at the noon day, and Ekron shall be rooted up. Woe unto the inhabitants of the sea coast, the nation of the Cherethites! the word of the LORD is against you; O Canaan, the land of thy Philistines, I will even destroy thee, that there shall be no inhabitant. And the sea coast shall be dwellings and cottages for shepherds, and folds for flocks. And the coast shall be for the remnant of the house of Judah; they shall feed thereupon [feed their flocks there]: in the houses of Ashkelon shall they lie down in the evening: for the LORD their GOD shall visit them [intervene for them], and turn away their captivity [return their captives].” (Zephaniah 2:4-7)

Let us stop here for a moment and read the Scriptures above again, particularly this: “For Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ashkelon a desolation: they shall drive out Ashdod at the noon day, and Ekron shall be rooted up.” These four cities go back all the way to the time when God was bringing His people out of Egypt and into the Promised Land, the land that God had promised to Israel 430 years prior when He made His unconditional covenant with Abraham. After Moses died, God used Joshua to bring Israel into the land that He had given them. When Joshua was old and had already conquered many of the Canaanite cities, God told Joshua to go in and possess these cities of the Philistines and a fifth, which was the land of Gath, where the Gittites lived:

“Now Joshua was old and stricken in years; and the LORD said unto him, Thou art old and stricken in years, and there remaineth yet very much land to be possessed. This is the land that yet remaineth: all the borders of the Philistines, and all Geshuri, from Sihor, which is before Egypt, even unto the borders of Ekron northward, which is counted to the Canaanite: five lords of the Philistines; the Gazathites, and the Ashdothites, the Eshkalonites, the Gittites, and the Ekronites…” (Joshua 13:1-3)

The five cities of the Philistines above are Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron, which is modern day Qiryat Ekron or Kiryat Ekron. Gath is where the giant Goliath lived when David killed him. While the Philistine inhabitants were temporarily driven out of the land that God gave Israel, they were not permanently driven out, and God’s warning to Israel has come to pass, repeatedly, and still to this day. Gotquestions.org has a good article on this:

“Ekron, an ancient Philistine city, is first mentioned in Joshua 13:2–3, “This is the land that remains: all the regions of the Philistines and Geshurites, from the Shihor River on the east of Egypt to the territory of Ekron on the north, all of it counted as Canaanite though held by the five Philistine rulers in Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath and Ekron; the territory of the Avvites.”The cities mentioned in this text—including Ekron—were the five major Philistine cities. Philistia of old was situated along the Mediterranean coast, which is now modern-day Israel and the Gaza strip. The Philistines were long enemies of ancient Israel.”

God had previously told Moses:

“But if ye will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you; then it shall come to pass, that those which ye let remain of them shall be pricks [irritants] in your eyes, and thorns in your sides, and shall vex [harass] you in the land wherein ye dwell. Moreover it shall come to pass, that I shall do unto you, as I thought to do unto them.” (Numbers 33:55-56)

Israel did not fully drive out the inhabitants, and God’s warning to them above did come true. When Israel was reborn as a nation on May 14, 1948, its borders did not include what is referred to as the Gaza Strip. However, in 1967 during the 6-Day War, Israel gained control of it. Although the Gaza Strip was under the control of Israel, only 8,000 Jews in a population of 1+ million lived in the Gaza Strip prior to 2005. (See: https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/israels-disengagement-from-gaza-in-2005/) Instability and violence existed in the Gaza Strip. Consequently, in 2005 in an effort to obtain peace with its neighbors in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli Knesset approved the Gaza Disengagement Plan, that resulted in all Israelis being evacuated from Gaza, some by force, from the 21 Jewish settlements and military posts. However, instead of obtaining peace, Israel saw increased violence from its neighbors in the Gaza Strip. Fast forward to October 7, 2023 when Hamas attacked Israel in what Hamas referred to as “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood.” I have written more about the paraglider attacks later in this devotional. (See: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/map-images-israel-gaza-strip-hamas/)

“Communities in southern Israel, near the Gaza Strip, were targeted by Hamas gunmen who broke through the border barricades or infiltrated by boat or paragliders.”

Per Britannica.com: (See: https://www.britannica.com/event/Israel-Hamas-War)

“Israel-Hamas War, war between Israel and Palestinian militants, especially Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), that began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas launched a land, sea, and air assault on Israel from the Gaza Strip. The October 7 attack resulted in more than 1,200 deaths, primarily Israeli citizens, making it the deadliest day for Israel since its independence. More than 240 people were taken hostage during the attack.”

Did the prophecy in Zephaniah 2:4 come to pass after Israel’s subsequent retaliation against and war with Hamas, which continued until just recently, when a tenuous ceasefire deal was implemented on January 19, 2025? Is this a fulfillment of this prophecy or is it just a foreshadow of what is to come? There is also another very interesting prophecy, this time in the book of Zechariah, that seems to have been at least partially fulfilled, that relates to Zephaniah 2. While studying Zechariah 9, it occurred to me that there also seems to be a different prophecy that may have been fulfilled on August 4, 2020. Let us read from Zechariah 9:

“The burden of the word of the LORD in the land of Hadrach, and Damascus shall be the rest [resting place] thereof: when the eyes of man, as of all the tribes of Israel, shall be toward the LORD. And Hamath also shall border thereby; Tyrus, and Sidon, though it be very wise. And Tyrus did build herself a strong hold, and heaped up silver as the dust, and fine gold as the mire of the streets. Behold, the Lord will cast her out, and he will smite her power in the sea; and she shall be devoured with fire. Ashkelon shall see it, and fear; Gaza also shall see it, and be very sorrowful, and Ekron; for her expectation shall be ashamed [was dried up]; and the king shall perish from Gaza, and Ashkelon shall not be inhabited. And a bastard [mixed race] shall dwell in Ashdod, and I will cut off the pride of the Philistines.” (Zechariah 9:1-6)

I want to discuss what I believe are two separate prophecies, beginning with what God said about Tyrus. In His word, Almighty God, the God of Israel, told us what is going to happen to Tyrus. Tyrus is also known as Tyre. Modern day Tyre is in Lebanon, approximately 46 miles from Beirut. An article from Gotquestions.org (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/Tyre-in-the-Bible.html) states that Tyre was completely destroyed in 1291 by the Saracens, and in 1894, only about 200 people lived there. Modern day Lebanon began rebuilding Tyre, and currently approximately 135,000 people live there. Is it possible that the borders of ancient Tyre are within the modern day city of Beirut and not where modern day Tyre exists? It is only approximately 46 miles from Beirut to modern day Tyre. Up until not too long ago, Beirut was a very prosperous city. In fact, a 1964 article from Time magazine wrote about its staggering wealth: (See: https://time.com/archive/6832355/middle-east-beirut-the-suez-of-money/)

“Lying fat and silky beneath the Mediterranean sun, Beirut is an oasis of prosperity in the Arab Middle East.

“Tiny Lebanon’s flamboyant capital sprouts new buildings like palm trees, boasts more Mercedeses than mullahs, lures thousands of tourists and happily shares its year-round sunshine with courtesans in bikinis as well as desert Arabs in burnooses. But Beirut’s most beneficent climate is the climate of trade, the heritage of its Phoenician forebears. In the Levantine landscape nothing seems to grow faster or greener than the city’s banks.

“Beirut is the world’s newest and fastest-rising financial center. In the last decade it has expanded its banking business by 1,000% — and it shows no signs of slowing. Climbing above its clangorous, double-parked streets are more than 100 banks, including 41 foreign branches and offices as diverse as Moscow’s Narodny Bank and the Bank of America. Since July, Manhattan’s Morgan Guaranty and Irving Trust have both leased offices in Beirut. The First National Banks of Boston and Chicago are negotiating to open outlets, and another 13 banks have recently been incorporated.”

However, due to the country’s civil war from 1975-1990 and the governments taking on a tremendous amount of debt, Lebanon, and Beirut in particular, found itself in deep economic trouble. This economic strain was intensified on August 4, 2020, several months into the time period when the majority of the world was on lockdown due to COVID-19. On this day, an explosion occurred in Beirut that not only shook the city to its core but also was felt throughout Lebanon and in many places in the Middle East. Wikpedia.com writes of the explosion: (See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2020_Beirut_explosion)

“On 4 August 2020, a large amount of ammonium nitrate stored at the port in Beirut, Lebanon exploded, causing at least 218 deaths, 7,000 injuries, and US$15 billion in property damage, as well as leaving an estimated 300,000 people homeless. A cargo of 2,750 tonnes of the substance (equivalent to around 1.1 kilotons of TNT) had been stored in a warehouse without proper safety measures for the previous six years after having been confiscated by Lebanese authorities from the abandoned ship MV Rhosus. A fire in the same warehouse preceded the explosion.

“The blast was so powerful that it was felt throughout Lebanon. It was also felt in Turkey, Syria, Palestine, Jordan, Israel, and parts of Europe, and was heard in Cyprus, more than 240 km (150 mi) away. It was detected by the United States Geological Survey as a seismic event of magnitude 3.3 and is considered one of the most powerful non-nuclear explosions on record. It was powerful enough to affect Earth's ionosphere.[1][2][3]The blast was also the largest single-fired ammonium nitrate explosion in history.[4]”

BBC.com showed stunning images before and after the explosion. (See: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-53680772) On August 3, 2023, three years after the explosion, it was reported that “the port itself has made a significant comeback following the fatal catastrophe, currently operating at near-full capacity. But obstacles that are stalling its full revival remain, observers said, among them public sector corruption and Hizbullah's continued obstruction of the post-blast investigation.” (See: https://almashareq.com/en_GB/articles/cnmi_am/features/2023/08/03/feature-01) On March 13, 2024, the Associated Press (AP) reported that “Lebanese and French officials put forward a plan for reconstruction and reorganization of the port Wednesday.” (See: https://apnews.com/article/beirut-port-reconstruction-plan-france-415b95004a8e914ce53400900fa7392a) As far as I can tell, while the Beirut Port is open and operating, 4-1/2 years late, it still is not operating at the capacity it was prior to August 4, 2020.

One year after the Beirut explosion, on August 3, 2021 ABC news wrote an article titled, “Beirut was the 'Paris of the Middle East'. Now it's in the midst of one of the world's worst economic collapses in 150 years.” The article described the challenges of living in a post-prosperity country. (See: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-08-04/lebanons-collapse-continues-one-year-after-beirut-blast/100343112) Add to the Lebanese economic woes, the port explosion, and Lebanon’s entry into the Hamas war against Israel, when Iranian-backed Hezbollah launched rockets and artillery into Israel on October 8, 2023 (See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel–Hezbollah_conflict_(2023–2024), Lebanon continues to fall apart. Iran and Hezbollah continue to seek the destruction of Israel, of whom Iran has referred to as the “Little Satan” since 1979. On January 4, 2025, nowlebabonon.com wrote an article titled, "Lebanon in 2025: A Tough Road Ahead.” (See: https://nowlebanon.com/lebanon-in-2025-a-tough-road-ahead/) With these events, have we seen the prophecy in Zechariah 9:3-4 fulfilled? I believe we may well have.

Now, let us focus on Zechariah 9:5-6. Let us read not only them but also verses 3-4 again:

“And Tyrus did build herself a strong hold, and heaped up silver as the dust, and fine gold as the mire of the streets. Behold, the Lord will cast her out, and he will smite her power in the sea; and she shall be devoured with fire. Ashkelon shall see it, and fear; Gaza also shall see it, and be very sorrowful, and Ekron; for her expectation shall be ashamed; and the king shall perish from Gaza, and Ashkelon shall not be inhabited. And a bastard [mixed race] shall dwell in Ashdod, and I will cut off the pride of the Philistines.” (Zechariah 9:3-6)

With satellite TV, many people in the world saw with their own eyes the Beirut port explosion. It was compared to a nuclear bomb being detonated because of the mushroom cloud that appeared after the explosion. Not only was the explosion felt around many parts of the world, but it was also seen by many parts of the world, including in Israel and Gaza. In the Scriptures above, there seems to be a prophecy that may be connected to the timing of 2020 Beirut port explosion. I do not believe these prophecies were previously fulfilled because of what else is stated in Zechariah 9. I believe that the Beirut port explosion and the prophecy of Gaza are connected together because of the short duration of time that happens between the two events. I believe they are connected in time together through this prophecy: “and the king shall perish from Gaza, and Ashkelon shall not be inhabited.” I believe the prophecy of the king perishing from Gaza may have been fulfilled on October 17, 2024. It was on that day that CNN, among many other news agencies, reported “Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar killed in Gaza, Israeli military says.” Israel has stated that he was the mastermind behind the October 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas on Israel. Sinwar was the leader of Hamas in Gaza since 2017; he was like a king to Gaza, and he was killed in Gaza and not in some other location. (See: https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/17/middleeast/israel-hamas-leader-yahya-sinwar-gaza-intl/index.html)

Now, let us return to Zephaniah 2:4-5. Let us read those Scriptures again:

“For Gaza shall be forsaken and Ashkelon a desolation: they shall drive out Ashdod at the noon day, and Ekron shall be rooted up. Woe unto the inhabitants of the sea coast, the nation of the Cherethites! the word of the LORD is against you; O Canaan, the land of the Philistines, I will even destroy thee, that there shall be no inhabitant.” (Zephaniah 2:4-5)

Have we not seen at the very least a partial fulfillment of these prophecies in the war between Hamas and Israel that reached a monumental tipping point on October 7, 2023 and resulted in Israel bombing Gaza to the extent that it seems to meet the description of what is written in the above prophecy from Zephaniah 2? I believe the entire land area of the five ancient cities of the Philistines was affected by this war, the land in whom the inhabitants would be a thorn in the side of Israel, as God told Moses would happen in Numbers 33:55. One Israeli news site wrote of Ashkelon on November 2, 2023: (See: https://www.israel21c.org/in-ashkelon-its-a-choice-between-fight-or-flight/)

“About 40% of Ashkelon’s 162,000 residents are sheltering elsewhere, as the coastal haven feels more like a horror movie during the war.

“At home in Ashkelon, “I could not believe the intensity of the explosions, the booms. It looked like the set of a movie with charred cars, the smell of fire, toxic fumes from Israel’s shelling of Gaza. Our supermarket was blown up. Even the national park was on fire,” says Tali, referring to the archeological park with 5,000-year-old artifacts.

“You feel the ground shaking. You could jump out of your skin when you feel the boom of David’s Sling [missile defense system]. I even heard machine-gun fire of infiltrators. I don’t watch scary movies, yet I was in the middle of one.” 

Fast-forward to February 2025 when it seems the entire world is focused on Gaza and what to do with it. Enter American president Donald Trump, who entered his second, non-consecutive term as president on January 20, 2025, who put intense pressure on Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reach a ceasefire deal with Hamas. Israel did reach a deal, which I believe is a disastrous deal for Israel, that brokers the gradual release of the hostages, mostly Israelis, that were taken by Hamas in exchange for many prisoners being held by Israel, including some who participated in the October 7, 2023 attacks on Israel. I believe this deal will come back to haunt Israel in the future. Then on January 25, 2025, President Trump made the remarks below while traveling on Air Force One, as reported by Newsweek (See: https://www.newsweek.com/donald-trump-faces-backlash-gaza-clean-out-plan-2020977)

“Donald Trump is facing backlash after he suggested Saturday "we just clean out" the Gaza Strip, with critics accusing the president of supporting ethnic cleansing.

“Speaking on Air Force One, Trump told reporters that Egypt and Jordan should accept the Palestinian refugees who would be displaced by the plan.

"You're talking about probably a million and a half people, and we just clean out that whole thing and say, 'You know, it's over,'" Trump said.

“In a 20-minute question-and-answer session with reporters, Trump suggested a "clean out" of Palestinians from Gaza. "But it's literally a demolition site right now," the president said. "Almost everything's demolished, and people are dying there. So, I'd rather get involved with some of the Arab nations, and build housing in a different location, where they can maybe live in peace for a change."

On January 30, 2025 Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff remarked after his trip to the Middle East about the devastation in Gaza: (See: https://www.axios.com/2025/01/30/gaza-rebuilding-plans-trump-administration)

“White House envoy Steve Witkoff told Axios in an interview at the end of his trip to the Middle East that rebuilding Gaza could take between 10 and 15 years.

“What was inescapable is that there is almost nothing left of Gaza," Witkoff told Axios.

"People are moving north to get back to their homes and see what happened and turn around and leave ... there is no water and no electricity. It is stunning just how much damage occurred there," he said.”

Add to that, President Trump made a proposal when he met with Benjamin Netanyahu on February 4, 2025 that I believe was like a 10.0+ magnitude earthquake that shook the Middle East to its core. The Associated Press wrote in a February 6, 2025 news article: (See: https://apnews.com/article/israel-trump-gaza-netanyahu-169d497ac07760ccb9724bef5982338a)

“President Donald Trump’s plan to seek U.S. ownership of the Gaza Strip and move out its population infuriated the Arab world. It stunned American allies and other global powers and even flummoxed members of Trump’s own party. The reaction in Israel was starkly different.

“In a joint Washington news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday, Trump said he envisioned the U.S. taking control of the Gaza Strip, having its people relocate to other places and rebuilding the war-battered coastal enclave into the “Riviera of the Middle East.”

“The proposal sparked outrage in the Middle East, including in Egypt and Jordan, two close U.S. allies at peace with Israel that Trump has suggested take in the Palestinians.”

Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal certainly was not expected, and it remains to be seen what happens with the land of Gaza. Could it be that he made such a radical proposal that sent shockwaves around the political world, especially in the Middle East, so that he could follow-up with a softer proposal, the long-discussed, two-state solution, his former “deal of the century” that was rejected in January 2020 by then Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, that might well be accepted now by both parties and favored by the Middle East? Time will tell, but I believe, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that everything is being set up for the “covenant of death” spoken of in Isaiah 28 and the “covenant with many” spoken of by Daniel in Daniel 9:26-27.

This covenant will be made by the coming final antichrist “with many,” which I believe includes Israel, for a period of seven years. I believe Israel will agree to this covenant because, as we have seen in years prior, increasing pressure has been, and will continue to be put on Israel, to give up more of its land in exchange for “peace.” However, as we have seen in the past, when Israel has given up the land that God gave them long ago, it never receives peace and only more attacks. Because Israel is not looking for its Messiah, Jesus Christ, to save them, who came the first time as God’s suffering servant and will return as the Lion of the tribe of Judah in judgment, but instead they are looking for one whom they will perceive to be their messiah and they will agree to this covenant. Their rejection of Jesus as their Messiah will cause them to be deceived by the one who declares “peace and safety” and who will break the covenant 3-1/2 years into it when he commits the abomination of desolation, which Jesus Himself spoke about in Matthew 24:15. The signing of this covenant will begin the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble. Let us read what both Daniel 9:26-27 and Isaiah 28 say about this covenant:

“…and the people of the prince [final antichrist] that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. And he shall confirm the covenant [or treaty] with many for one week [a period of 7 years]: and in the midst [middle] of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation [offering] to cease, and for the overspreading of the abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.” (Daniel 9:26-27)

“Wherefore hear the word of the LORD, ye scornful men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem. Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves: therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste. Judgment [justice] also will I lay to the line [make the measuring line], and righteousness to [to be] the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place. And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down [trampled] by it. From the time that it goeth forth it shall take you: for morning by morning shall it pass over, by day and by night: and it shall be a vexation only [terror just] to understand the report.” (Isaiah 28:14-19)

Regarding the prophecies in Daniel 9:26-27 above, Roman emperor Titus conquered Jerusalem and destroyed the second Jewish temple in 70 AD. Thus, it is believed that the final antichrist will be a descendant of the Roman Empire, which had both western and eastern legs. Daniel 9:27 tells us that he, the final antichrist, will confirm a covenant or treaty with “the many for one week.” Notice it doesn’t say he will make or initiate a covenant but will confirm it. Thus, it seems this covenant or treaty must already be in place. Strong’s Lexicon defines this word in Hebrew as “To prevail, to be strong, to be mighty.” (See: https://biblehub.com/hebrew/1396.htm). Thus, it seems to indicate that an existing covenant will be made stronger or will be expanded. I believe “the many” definitely includes Israel, whether it be with many in Israel or it be with Israel and other nations. I say that because in Isaiah 28, God tells the rulers in Jerusalem “your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it.” Could it be that the making stronger of this covenant is referring to the expansion of the Abraham Accords that was orchestrated under the first Trump administration in 2020 between Israel and its Arab neighbors of the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Morocco? Could this expansion of the covenant to make it greater or stronger include the two-state solution that has been pushed for so long? Saudi Arabia has said repeatedly in the past that it won’t sign on to the Abraham Accords, thus normalizing ties with Israel, unless there is a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians in Gaza. Saudi Arabia reiterated its stance on February 5, 2025 after Donald Trump made his stunning proposal regarding taking over Gaza: (See: https://thehill.com/policy/international/5128091-saudi-arabia-donald-trump-gaza-strip-israel/)

“Saudi Arabia reasserted its support for an independent state for Palestinians and warned it would not forge diplomatic relations with Israel after President Trump floated the U.S. taking over the Gaza Strip. 

““The kingdom of Saudi Arabia also stresses what it had previously announced regarding its absolute rejection of infringement on the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, whether through Israeli settlement policies, annexation of Palestinian lands or efforts to displace the Palestinian people from their land,” Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement released Wednesday morning local time, just hours after Trump made the surprising remarks regarding the future of the territory. 

“Saudi Arabia was one of many U.S. allies that rejected Trump’s suggestion that America “take over” war-ravaged Gaza and reaffirmed its support for a two-state solution in the region.”

What will be the event that causes Israel to once again divide its land in order to seek what it perceives as peace with its neighbors? If you read the text of the 2020 Abraham Accords, the word “peace” is all throughout it, including in the opening paragraph: (See: https://www.timesofisrael.com/full-text-of-the-abraham-accords-signed-by-israel-the-uae-and-bahrain/)

“We, the undersigned, recognize the importance of maintaining and strengthening peace in the Middle East and around the world based on mutual understanding and coexistence, as well as respect for human dignity and freedom, including religious freedom.”

The Bible tells us that peace in the world is not possible without Jesus Christ. That is true for the Jewish nation of Israel, and that is true for all nations. The Bible tells us that the world is not going to get better but it is going to get increasingly worse until the second coming of Jesus Christ. It simply is not possible to have peace in a sinful world; only will the second coming of Jesus Christ bring true peace, when He judges the world in His righteousness.

Before continuing, I wanted to emphasize again that I don’t have all the answers, and I don’t know precisely how all of this will play out. However, I do know this: God’s word is true, and what He says is going to happen, will happen. We know there will be a 7-year covenant that the coming final antichrist will confirm with Israel. We know there will be a third Jewish temple built sometime between now and the 3-1/2 year time period after antichrist confirms the covenant, because we are told by God in His word that at the time, the final antichrist will “cause the sacrifice and the oblation [offering] to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation…” (Daniel 9:27) The Jews only sacrifice and bring offerings in their temple and not in a synagogue, and they have not done so since the second temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD. Thus, there has to be a third temple built in order for the antichrist to make such sacrifices and offerings cease. Jesus spoke of this event that will happen, “When ye therefore see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place (whoso readeth, let him understand:)” (Matthew 24:15). 2 Thessalonians gives us more information about what the “abomination of desolation” means:

“Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition [antichrist]; who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.” (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4)

Let us read further what Donald Trump stated during his February 4, 2025 press conference with Benjamin Netanyahu: (See: https://nationalpost.com/news/world/israel-middle-east/donald-trump-benjamin-netanyahu-israel-gaza)

“The U.S. will take over the Gaza Strip and we will do a job with it, too.

“We’ll own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site, level the site and get rid of the destroyed buildings, level it out. Create an economic development that will supply unlimited numbers of jobs and housing for the people of the area. Do a real job, do something different.”

Donald Trump proposed that the Palestinians be relocated to other countries, including Jordan and Egypt, while the USA takes over Gaza, cleans it out, and makes it a “beautiful” place for the “world’s people” to live there. Let us read his response when a reporter asked him if the Palestinians would be allowed to return there: (See: https://nationalpost.com/news/world/israel-middle-east/donald-trump-benjamin-netanyahu-israel-gaza)

“Question: Just a follow-up on what you were saying about the Gazans leaving Gaza going to other countries. One, where exactly are you suggesting that they should go? And two, are you saying they should return after it’s rebuilt? And if not, who do you envision living there?

“Donald Trump: I envision a world — people living there, the world’s people. I think you’ll make that into an international, unbelievable place. I think the potential in the Gaza Strip is unbelievable. And I think the entire world, representatives from all over the world will be there and they’ll —

“Question: (Inaudible) Palestinians?

“Donald Trump: And they’ll live there. Palestinians also. Palestinians will live there, many people will live there. But they’ve tried the other and they’ve tried it for decades and decades and decades. It’s not going to work. It didn’t work. It will never work. And you have to learn from history. History has — you know, you just can’t let it keep repeating itself.

“We have an opportunity to do something that could be phenomenal. And I don’t want to be cute. I don’t want to be a wise guy. But the Riviera of the Middle East, this could be something that could be so -

“This could be so magnificent. But more importantly than that is the people that have been absolutely destroyed that live there now can live in peace in a much better situation because they are living in hell. And those people will now be able to live in peace. We’ll make sure that it’s done world class.

“It will be wonderful for the people. Palestinians, Palestinians mostly we’re talking about. And I have a feeling that despite them saying no, I have a feeling that the king in Jordan and that the general president — but that the general in Egypt will open their hearts and will give us the kind of land that we need to get this done, and people can live in harmony and in peace.”

However, in an interview on Fox News on February 10, 2025, Trump then contradicted what he previously said on February 4, 2025: (See: https://www.foxnews.com/media/trump-says-gaza-strip-united-states-real-estate-development-future; for the interview with Bret Baier, listen to the 19-minute mark here: https://www.foxnews.com/video/6368624897112)

““When asked whether Palestinians would have a right to return to Gaza, the 47th president answered that they wouldn't because they "will have much better housing." 

“"Much better – in other words, I’m talking about building a permanent place for them," he told Baier on "Special Report."“

Further, when Donald Trump met on February 11, 2025 with King Abdullah II of Jordan, he made the following statements regarding his prior comments on “owning” Gaza: (See: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-gaza-palestine-takeover-buy-plan-b2696377.html)

““We're going to have Gaza. We don't have to buy. There's nothing to buy. We will have Gaza,” he said when asked about his prior statement about purchasing the long-occupied piece of land.

““We're going to take it, we're going to hold it, we're going to cherish it. We're going to get it going eventually, where a lot of jobs are going to be created for the people in the Middle East. It's going to be for the people in the Middle East,” he added.”

Those statements are simply stunning. If Donald Trump truly meant what he said, these words don’t sound like the words of a president of a country that once was a democratic republic but the words of a dictator. Let’s pause here for a moment. What is the definition of a “dictator?” Merriam-webster.com includes as its first definition, “a person granted absolute emergency power.” Oxford English Dictionary (oed.com) defines it as “An absolute ruler of a state, esp. one whose rule displaces that of a democratic government.” (See: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dictator, https://www.oed.com/search/dictionary/?scope=Entries&q=dictator). In the USA, we have seen presidents rule by executive order (EO) rather than going through Congress, with Franklin D. Roosevelt enacting the most EOs during his four terms in office, during which time World War II took place. While Donald Trump did not enact in his first term near the number of EOs that FDR did, and it’s not a good comparison anyways to compare four years in office with 12+ years of FDR that served, it is worrisome to me, to say the least, that Donald Trump would make the statement that he did regarding Gaza, particularly because this is God’s land that we are talking about, the land that He gave Israel. Donald Trump entered his second term in 2025 declaring several national emergencies, including those for Energy (EO 14156), the southern border (EO 14194), the designation of cartels and other organizations as foreign terrorist organizations (EO 14157), and for tariffs on Mexico, Canada, and China (See: https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2025/02/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-imposes-tariffs-on-imports-from-canada-mexico-and-china/). Regarding the energy emergency declaration, Trump made a statement that I believe could be a major step toward ensuring the soon-coming mark of the beast system will have all the power it needs to restrict all buying and selling of every single person on earth: (See: https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/5103917-trump-ai-power-centers-energy-emergency-declaration/)

“President Trump said Thursday that he will use his energy emergency declaration to approve power stations for artificial intelligence (AI) centers.

Is this just the beginning of more to come? Let us not forget that on March 13, 2020, he declared COVID-19 a national emergency. I don’t think I need to say anything more about that. Trump continues to magnify himself, and on February 19, 2025, he posted both on Truth Social, owned by him, and on X with the official White House account, a picture that is a mockup of a Time magazine cover with a crown placed upon his head and the words “Long live the king.” The tweet said, “"CONGESTION PRICING IS DEAD. Manhattan, and all of New York, is SAVED. LONG LIVE THE KING!" (See: https://www.politico.com/news/2025/02/19/donald-trump-king-imagery-021013)

I believe that for a long time, we have seen two political sides in America, where outwardly each side opposes the other, but they are secretly working together with the same goal in mind, and it’s not good for the American citizens and it’s not good for the world. Time will tell.

Returning to President Trump’s statements about Gaza, did he make such radical statements about his plan for it in order to force the remaining leaders in Gaza into a “two-state solution” that they and their predecessors have rejected for decades? On February 18, 2025, there is news that Saudi Arabia is leading an effort with other Arab nations to put together their own plan for the Gaza Strip as an alternative to Trump’s plan. Can you see the entire world focused on Israel? It’s not going to get better; it will only intensify in the coming days.

Whichever plan is accepted, because of the time we are at in history, I believe it will result in Israel’s land being divided, and Israel will sign a 7-year covenant with the one who later will be revealed as the final antichrist. Again, I have never seen Israel - or the world for that matter - so ready, so ripe for the coming antichrist. I don’t know if it’s President Trump or someone who arises after him, but I can tell you that Israel is looking at him in a way that is eerie. During his first administration, they compared him with the Persian King Cyrus. It was Cyrus, whom God named in the book of Isaiah 150 years before Cyrus was even born, who freed the Jews after their 70 years of captivity in Babylon, when the Medo-Persian Empire defeated the Babylonian Empire. God called King Cyrus “his anointed” and called him not only to free the Jews but to allow them to return to Jerusalem and rebuild their temple, the second temple. King Cyrus even provided the funding for the rebuilding of the Jewish Temple from the king’s treasury. All of this was fulfilled as per God’s prophetic word. In 2018, the Jewish revived Sanhedrin, also called the “Nascent Sanhedrin,” even minted a silver half shekel with King Cyrus’ and Donald Trump’s profile on it. (See: https://israel365news.com/321845/sanhedrin-temple-movement-issue-silver-half-shekel-images-trump-cyrus/) To compare Donald Trump to King Cyrus is to be deceived. God did not call Cyrus to divide God’s land; no, he called him to return His people to Israel in the land that He gave them and allow them to build their second temple. In both his first and now early in his second term, Donald Trump is seeking to divide God’s land.

Anyone who seeks to divide the land of Israel, whether it be Donald Trump, Benjamin Netanyahu, the Arab nations, or anyone else, is not a friend of Israel. It doesn’t matter the motive of the dividing of the land, to seek peace, for the Bible tells us there is no peace without Jesus Christ. Let us remember that Gaza is part of the land that God Himself gave to Israel long ago, and if Donald Trump does in fact decide to take it, he is dividing God’s land, and that won’t end well for him or for the USA. The Bible tells us that there is coming a day, at the end of 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, that God will gather all nations that have scattered His people Israel and divided His land. It also tells us that at His second coming, Jesus Christ will enter into judgment with them. (Joel 3:1-2).

On February 11, 2025, events in the world are happening so quickly now that I can’t keep up. The tenuous ceasefire deal that Israel and Hamas had in place since January 19, 2025 is now in jeopardy as of Monday, February 10, 2025, when Hamas announced it was going to delay the release of additional hostages because it says Israel was violating the terms of the ceasefire agreement. (See: https://www.npr.org/2025/02/10/nx-s1-5292218/hamas-israeli-hostage-gaza-delay) President Trump then responded by saying: (See: https://www.politico.com/news/2025/02/10/hamas-hostages-trump-00203487 )

“President Donald Trump said Monday that “all hell is going to break out” and that the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas should be terminated if Hamas doesn’t release the remaining hostages by midday on Saturday.

““If they’re not returned — all of them, not in dribs and drabs, not two and one and three and four and two — by Saturday at 12 o’clock,” Trump said. “And after that, I would say, all hell is going to break out.”

“Trump added that it’s ultimately up to Israel to decide, but that “Hamas will find out” if the deadline isn’t met. He also said “we’ll see what happens,” when asked if he can rule out U.S. involvement once midday Saturday arrives.”

With all the back-and-forth between Hamas, Trump, and Israel, on Saturday, February 15, 2025 Hamas released three more hostages, with a little over two weeks left in the remaining first phase of the ceasefire. (See: https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-war-news-ceasefire-hostages-02-15-2025-22a2d731961eb766e6c7914cb84e3990)

So what do we do with all of this? Besides the obvious of waiting and watching to see what happens next, we must remember that during the 7-year tribulation period, God will pour out His judgment not only on disobedient Israel but also on the entire sin-filled world that rejects Jesus Christ’s free gift of salvation and chooses to remain in sin. This will be the most horrific time in human history, and the Bible tells us that if God didn’t limit it to seven years, no human beings would survive. During this time, people will need to decide if they are for God or if they are against Him. Will they turn to Jesus and likely be martyred for their faith in Him, or will they take the mark/name/number of the beast, the one who will be the final antichrist.

Just like in every other country in our world today, there are many in Israel that are corrupt. I think there is much more to the events of October 7, 2023 that are made known to the general public. I’ve read reports that Israel was warned at least days in advance that the attacks were going to take place. In addition, I’ve read that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) took hours to respond to the attacks. I’ve read that people, including Benjamin Netanyahu, have compared the October 7, 2023 attacks to America’s 9/11 attacks. Just as the Holy Spirit impressed upon me that there was more to 9/11 than what we were told, that there was something not right about the virus in March 2020 and the subsequent “vaccines” for it, the Holy Spirit has impressed upon me that there is more to the events of October 7 than are being reported. During the October 7 attacks, Hamas used paragliders to attack Israel. Did you know that The Economist magazine illustrated this in its December 22, 2012 issue with the title “A rough guide to Hell”? (See: https://www.economist.com/weeklyedition/2012-12-22). You cannot tell me that this is just coincidence. I believe every bit of this was planned, and at the least, certain high-level leaders in Israel looked the other way to let it happen, or at the worst, they were a part of it in order to accomplish what they want to bring in. I believe this is true for 9/11 and also for COVID. We may not see all that there is to these three events, and likely many more horrific events that have occurred, and more to come, but Almighty God knows, and God sees, and God will judge all involved.

As the Bible tells us, for far too long, Israel has not listened to God and has not looked to Him for her salvation, even having rejected God’s only Son, Jesus Christ, whom God sent to Israel because its shepherds, its religious leaders, were ignoring their flocks, their people, and were serving only themselves. God’s own people rejected their own Son, Jesus Christ, their Messiah, and they are still looking for the one whom they call “Messiah” to bring them peace but who really will be the final antichrist. Are we seeing the build-up to the events when Israel will be ready to make greater/stronger the covenant with the one who will be the final antichrist? I believe the answer is a definitive “yes.” I am not saying Donald J. Trump is the final antichrist, but he definitely has antichrist-like qualities and at the very least, he is paving the way for antichrist to step on the scene. There are even people in the USA and in Israel who seem to be worshipping him, and that is very troubling. I personally think he is a great deceiver, and I trust neither him nor anyone in his administration. They do not have the everyday citizen’s best interest at heart, and I believe they certainly do not have the best interest of Israel at heart. Anyone who seeks to divide the land of Israel, the land that is God’s land, who chose to give it to Israel, will be judged severely by God. Donald Trump is seeking to divide God’s land. God did not give the disputed land to the Palestinians. God did not give the land to Donald Trump. God gave the land to Israel, forever.

In addition to the ceasefire agreement Israel has with Hamas, it also has a ceasefire agreement with Lebanon after Hezbollah attacked Israel from the north in Lebanon in solidarity with Hamas on October 7, 2023. The ceasefire was brokered by the USA in November, ending a year of war between Israel and Hezbollah, during which 60,000 Israelis left their homes in northern Israel. The Trump administration denied Israel’s request to extend the deadline a second time that was set by the USA for Israel to withdraw from Lebanon. Per the Times of Israel: (See: https://www.timesofisrael.com/us-said-denying-israels-request-to-further-push-off-deadline-for-lebanon-withdrawal/)

“The report said that Israel has reiterated to the US its claim that the Lebanese Army is not effectively deployed in south Lebanon, as the terms of the ceasefire said it would, and is not preventing Hezbollah from reorganizing. Israel has warned that Hezbollah aims to return to the border area as soon as IDF troops depart.”

CNN reported on February 18, 2025 that while Israel had withdrawn most of its troops, it left some troops in southern Lebanon as a guard against the nearby northern Israeli communities. (See: https://www.cnn.com/2025/02/17/middleeast/israel-lebanon-ceasefire-withdrawal-latam-hnk-intl/index.html)

Is Israel being set up on multiple fronts for an even bigger attack by her neighbors that hate and despise her? We know this IS coming because the Bible tells us it’s going to happen during the time of Jacob’s trouble:

“The burden of the word of the LORD for Israel, saith the LORD, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him. Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.” (Zechariah 12:1-3)

Earlier in the book of Zechariah, in Zechariah 9:9, it contains the prophecy of Messiah, who came to earth the first time as their King, who is humble and brings salvation. Let us read that prophecy that was fulfilled at Jesus’ first coming (Matthew 21:1-9). Let us also remember the very similar prophecy spoken of by Jacob to his son Judah in Genesis 49:8-12:

“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just [righteous], and having salvation; lowly [humble], and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.” (Zechariah 9:9)

However, the Jews did not want a humble King. They wanted a King who would conquer Rome so that they would not be under their rule, and they rejected Jesus, who came first as God’s suffering servant to offer salvation of sins, as their Messiah.

As Zechariah 9:10-17 prophecies, as well as other books of the Bible, Jesus will remove all strength and power from Israel during the time of Jacob’s trouble so that they are not able to defend themselves. Today, Israel has a mighty defense and intelligence system, including the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), the Mossad, and the Iron Dome and David’s Sling air defense systems. However, during the time of Jacob’s trouble, God’s word tells us that all of this will be brought to nothing. As God has done before, including during the time of the Exodus, He will remove all power from Israel so that they cannot rely on anyone or anything else to save them during the tribulation period. They won’t be able to make deals with their enemies to save them. They won’t be able to look to their allies to save them. Only God Himself will be their defender, and He will make them mighty against their enemies through His power and might and nothing else. God will also destroy every false god that Israel has trusted in:

“And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim [another name for Israel], and the horse from Jerusalem, and the battle bow shall be cut off: and he [Jesus] shall speak peace unto the heaven [nations]: and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth. As for thee also, by [because of] the blood of thy covenant I have sent forth thy prisoners out of the pit wherein is no water. Turn you to the strong hold, ye prisoners of hope: even to day do I declare that I will render [restore] double unto thee; when I have bent Judah for me, filled the bow with Ephraim, and raised up thy sons, O Zion, against thy sons, O Greece, and made thee as the sword of a mighty man. And the LORD shall be seen over them, and his arrow shall go forth as the lightning: and the Lord GOD shall blow the trumpet, and shall go with whirlwinds of the south. The LORD of hosts shall defend them; and they shall devour, and subdue with sling stones; and they shall drink, and make a noise as through wine; and they shall be filled like bowls, and as the corners of the altar. And the LORD their God shall save them in that day as the flock of his people: for they shall be as the stones [jewels] of a crown, lifted up as an ensign upon his land. For how great is his goodness, and how great is his beauty! corn shall make the young men cheerful, and new wine the maids.” (Zechariah 9:10-17)

“And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the Gentiles in the midst of many people as a lion among the beasts of the forest, as a young lion among the flocks of sheep: who, if he go through, both treadeth down, and teareth in pieces, and none can deliver. Thine hand shall be lifted up upon thine adversaries, and all thine enemies shall be cut off [destroyed]. And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD, that I will cut off [destroy] thy horses out of the midst of thee, and I will destroy thy chariots: and I will cut off the cities of thy land, and throw down all thy strong holds: and I will cut off witchcrafts [sorceries] out of thine hand; and thou shalt have no more soothsayers: thy graven [carved] images also will I cut off, and thy standing images [sacred pillars] out of the midst of thee; and thou shalt no more worship the work of thine hands. And I will pluck up thy groves [Canaanite deities] out of the midst of thee: so will I destroy thy cities. And I will execute vengeance in anger and fury upon the heathen [nations], such as they have not heard [obeyed].” (Micah 5:8-15)

Those who rely on anything or anyone else but Him during this time will not survive. This will be a final time of testing for Israel. It will be a time when they will be brought through the fire. No longer will God tolerate Israel’s worship of other gods, and He will destroy everything having to do with them. Let us read what the prophet Isaiah wrote to his fellow Jews about the things that will happen in the last days, during the Day of the Lord, the period of time that begins with the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble and at the end of which Jesus returns to destroy all wickedness upon the earth and righteously reigns for 1,000 years:

“The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem. And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.” (Isaiah 2:1-2)

“O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of the LORD. Therefore thou hast forsaken thy people the house of Jacob, because they be replenished from the east [are filled with eastern ways], and are soothsayers like the Philistines, and they please themselves in the children of strangers [clap or shake hands to make bargains with the children of foreigners].” (Isaiah 2:5-6)

Let us pause here for a moment and consider what Isaiah wrote in the Scriptures above. God showed the prophet Isaiah of what was to come in the last days. Isaiah was warning the people that they needed to stop following the world that worships false gods, to stop acting like the world, and to “walk in the light of the LORD.” Then in verse 6, Isaiah switches from speaking to the house of Jacob to speaking to God, acknowledging to Him that he understands why God had forsaken His people, the house of Jacob. Are we not seeing the house of Jacob today still making deals or bargains or deals with foreigners today, particularly in their pursuit of “peace,” which has never happened and to this day? Israel will never achieve peace until they turn to Jesus Christ, the Son of God whom they rejected.

Let us continue reading what Isaiah wrote:

“Their land also is full of silver and gold, neither is there any end of their treasures; their land is also full of horses, neither is there any end of their chariots: their land also is full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that their own fingers have made: and the mean man [people] boweth down, and the great man [each man] humbleth himself: therefore forgive them not.” (Isaiah 2:7-9)

In the last days before the Day of the Lord, Israel will live in abundance and will be mighty in its defense systems. They will also be full of idol worship, and I believe that can include worshipping themselves and their own power, which they believe they have built themselves. When I first read the Scriptures above, I didn’t understand the last part of it. After re-reading it, I understood the meaning, and that is instead of people humbling themselves and bowing down to the one true God, Almighty God, they are bowing down and worshipping false gods. That will be particularly true in the days of the time of Jacob’s trouble, when everyone will have to take the mark - the number or the name of the beast/antichrist - and will be required to worship the antichrist. Let us continue reading in Isaiah chapter 2 that describes what will come during the time of Jacob’s trouble, the tribulation period:

“Enter into the rock, and hide thee in the dust, for fear of [from the terror of] the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty. The lofty [proud] looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day. For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low: and upon all the cedars of Lebanon, that are high and lifted up, and upon all the oaks of Bashan, and upon all the high mountains, and upon all the hills that are lifted up, and upon every high tower, and upon every fenced [fortified] wall, and upon all the ships of Tarshish, and upon all pleasant pictures [beautiful sloops]. And the loftiness [pride] of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day. And the idols he shall utterly abolish. And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth. In that day a man shall cast his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which they made each one for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats; to go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops of the ragged rocks, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth. Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils: for wherein is he to be accounted of [why should he be esteemed]?” (Isaiah 2:10-22)

All I can say of the Scriptures above is woe upon all who reject Jesus Christ and put their faith and trust in anyone or anything but Him to save them! Isaiah writes of the judgment of God that is coming upon the earth and how all the money in the world will not save anyone. Isaiah writes of how the prideful will be brought low and how God alone will be exalted in that day. To me, the last sentence of the Scriptures above is very telling from modern-day Israel’s standpoint, especially with how they are viewing Donald Trump. It reminds of how Benjamin Netanyahu is buddying up to him and is even willing to divide the land that God gave to Israel and let Donald Trump take over Gaza and, in his own words, “own it,” to Israel’s own peril. Let us read some recent headlines from Israel about Donald Trump and how they cannot praise him enough:

“'Israel Heritage Foundation Awards Trump ‘Crown of Jerusalem’” (July 16, 2023; See: https://www.jns.org/us-news/donald-trump/23/7/16/302653/)

“Sanhedrin Letter to Trump: “You have been elected to fulfill a heavenly mission”” (February 14, 2025; See: https://israel365news.com/400368/sanhedrin-letter-to-trump-you-have-been-elected-to-fulfill-a-heavenly-mission/)

“Netanyahu praises Trump as ‘Israel’s greatest friend’ to ever be president” (February 8, 2025; See: https://thehill.com/policy/international/5134621-netanyahu-praises-trumps-as-israels-greatest-friend-to-ever-be-president/)

“Religious Zionist Rabbis bless Trump as ‘God’s Messenger’” (February 14, 2025; See: https://israel365news.com/400378/religious-zionist-rabbis-bless-trump-as-gods-messenger/)

“Trump’s Gaza Plan is ‘The Final Task Before Messiah’” (February 5, 2025; See: https://israel365news.com/400058/kabbalist-trumps-gaza-plan-the-final-task-before-messiah/)

In the link to the second article above regarding the Sanhedrin’s letter to President Trump, the Nascent Sanhedrin praised him for creating a White House Faith Office which will be led by “Pastor” Paula White-Cain, who preaches a prosperity gospel, a false gospel. This “faith” office has nothing to do with true faith in Jesus Christ, for His word prohibits women from becoming pastors and gives the reason why (1 Timothy 2:12-14). The fact that Donald Trump chose her to lead this position shows that he either does not know God’s word or is in blatant rebellion against it. The bottom line is that President Trump can’t save Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu can’t save Israel, the Jewish religious leaders can’t save Israel; only Jesus Christ can save Israel, and only Jesus Christ can save sinners.

Stunning isn’t a strong enough word to describe these headlines above and they just keep coming. There is another stunning statement that was made by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Trump’s pick for the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), who said this at his February 13, 2025 swearing in ceremony: (See: https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2025/02/13/robert_f_kennedy_jr_at_swearing_in_i_have_prayed_to_end_the_childhood_chronic_disease_epidemic_god_sent_me_president_trump.html)

“"For 20 years I've gotten up every morning on my knees and prayed that God would put me in a position where I can end the childhood chronic disease epidemic in this country," Kennedy said. "On August 23rd of last year, God sent me President Trump."

““President Trump has promised that he's going to restore America's strength, but we can't be a strong nation if we have a weak citizenry. If people are sick, 60% of our people are sick, 77%, as President Trump mentioned, if our children cannot qualify for military service. And we need a man on a white horse now.””

The last sentence, to me, is very eerie and very telling. While many may believe that Kennedy’s statement about the white horse may be his way of saying that we need a “good guy” to come in and save the day, I believe there is something much more sinister to it, and it is straight out of the last book of the Bible, the book of Revelation. With the insanity we are seeing in our world today, especially in the USA, with many people seeming to worship Donald Trump as a god, it would not surprise me if RFK, Jr. was comparing Donald Trump to Jesus coming down from heaven, riding on a white horse, when He returns at His second coming. For those of us who have eyes to see and ears to hear, I see his mentioning of needing “a man on a white horse now” as the first rider on a horse, in what is known as the “four horsemen of the apocalypse” as I wrote about earlier. Let’s read about the first horseman, and notice that he rides on a white horse:

“And I saw when the Lamb [Jesus] opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise [sound] of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see. And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.” (Revelation 6:2)

What I am going to say next is something I first heard about from a pastor I have listened to online for many years, JD Farag, and he discussed it a while ago after COVID happened. He mentioned that in Revelation 6:2, the word “bow” is from the Greek word “toxon.” It is from this word that we get the English words “toxin” and “toxic.” Per the Strong’s Lexicon, “toxon” means: (See: https://biblehub.com/greek/5115.htm)

“In the New Testament, the Greek word "τόξον" (toxon) is used to refer to a bow, a weapon used for shooting arrows. It symbolizes warfare, conflict, and sometimes divine judgment. The bow is often associated with a warrior or conqueror, emphasizing strength and power.”

It is interesting that God’s word only mentions this rider having a “bow” but no arrows, or at least that is how it was translated to English. However, the fact that the Greek word “toxon” is used seems to imply that there is something more than just this rider having a bow and it is something that would be used against people in order to conquer them. What does a bow do? It is used to shoot something, an arrow, at people. Sometimes, it is a poisoned arrow. Below is what the Saturday Evening Post wrote about this subject: (See: https://www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2019/03/in-a-word-how-english-got-intoxicated/)

“The ancient Greek archer’s tool of war was the toxon, a word for both bow and arrow. To make their weapon deadlier, archers dipped their arrow tips in poison. Toxikon was the word for a poison-tipped arrow, but over time, the word came to refer to the poison itself. By the time the word was adopted into Latin as toxicum, it had shrugged off its ballistic origins and just meant ‘poison.’”

The other interesting thing that JD Farag pointed out regarding the rider of the white horse in Revelation 6:2 is the statement “and a crown was given unto him.” Many people might mistake this rider of the white horse as Jesus Christ because of the crown. However, no one gives Jesus Christ crowns; He just has them because He is Almighty God. He didn’t earn them. JD Farag pointed out that the word “corona” also means “crown.” In fact, Terence Chorba of the CDC published an article in September 2020 that described how the coronavirus looks like a crown with spikes. (See: https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/26/9/ac-2609_article#;) Add to this the recent headline that I mentioned previously of the Israel Heritage Foundation awarding the “crown of Jerusalem” to Donald Trump on July 16 2023.

I am not one that believes in coincidence, and I find it very interesting that under the first administration of President Trump COVID-19 happened and virtually the entire world was locked down to “flatten the curve” and now we are in the second administration of Donald Trump. We have a man, RFK, Jr. who once was very vocal and outspoken against vaccines, particularly the COVID-19 vaccines, now doing a 180-degree turn and supporting them. Not only is he supporting them, he is now the man in charge of the HHS and will oversee the CDC, FDA, and NIH. He was even called out during his Senate confirmation hearings for his prior stance on vaccines. (See: https://time.com/7210943/rfk-confirmation-hearing-vaccines/) So what changed? It wasn’t just RFK, Jr. who changed his stance on this subject but also Elon Musk, back in April of 2021. (See: https://futurism.com/neoscope/elon-musk-covid-vaccines-good; https://thehill.com/changing-america/well-being/prevention-cures/547163-after-controversial-statements-elon-musk-comes/) So what changed? If you ask me, it was all planned, for years. I believe vaccines will be enforced like we have never seen before, and they will be enforced digitally and through artificial intelligence. I believe we are seeing the beast/antichrist system prophesied of in Revelation 13 being set up literally before our very eyes, and that the enforcement of vaccines will be part of this system. We saw a dry run of it during COVID-19, and it’s not going to go away.

One final thing I’ll say about all of this is what is written in Revelation 18:23. I wrote about this in-depth in my November 15, 2024 devotional when I compared the similarities of America to Babylon the Great in Revelation 17-18. Here is what Revelation 18:23 says:

“And the light of a candle [lamp] shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived.” (Revelation 18:23)

The English word “sorceries” is translated from the original Greek word “pharmakeia” from where we get the English word of “pharmacy.” I truly believe that the deception that is written about in Revelation 18:23 refers to the deception by America, under the first Trump administration, and he knew full well what he was doing when he deceived all nations with the manmade COVID-19 “pandemic.” Prior to COVID, never before was virtually the entire world been locked down and told to stay six feet (why the number six?), to mask up, and not live our normal lives. We were also told to take their COVID “vaccines” that were developed under Donald Trump’s much-touted “Operation Warp Speed” program, led by Dr. Anthony Fauci. I believe many of the so-called vaccines were in fact the toxons that are mentioned in Revelation, and have killed and seriously injured many millions of people, with the full numbers of death and injuries being hidden from the public. On February 20, 2025 it was reported that Yale University researchers, as part of a small study, have identified a rare syndrome, “Post-vaccination syndrome” or “PVS” that can result after vaccine. (See: https://www.medpagetoday.com/neurology/generalneurology/114306) I strongly believe we are seeing the tip of the iceberg of injuries and deaths as a result of these so-called “vaccines.”

“The most frequent symptoms reported by those with post-vaccination syndrome were excessive fatigue (85%), tingling and numbness (80%), exercise intolerance (80%), brain fog (77.5%), difficulty concentrating or focusing (72.5%), trouble falling or staying asleep (70%), neuropathy (70%), muscle aches (70%), anxiety (65%), tinnitus (60%), and burning sensations (57.5%).”

“"My clinical impression is that post-vaccination syndrome is real," he observed. "Collectively, my impression is that this adds to the growing body of literature and clinical experience suggesting that in rare cases, mRNA-based COVID vaccines can induce immune, autoimmune, viral reactivation, and other perturbations in susceptible individuals."“

I believe all of this was done to set the stage to bring in the mark of the beast system. I believe America is leading the world in bringing in the beast system, and it will happen at a rapid pace, or to use a phrase Donald Trump used, at “Warp Speed.” Elon Musk and the techno giants are working with Trump to implement the system that will be driven by artificial intelligence. Why? Because I believe they serve a false god, Lucifer, and have been willingly deceived by him. As the Bible tells us, the one true God, Almighty God, the mighty One of Jacob will succeed and they will fail, to their own eternal peril.

I’ll say it again: I have never seen the world so ready, so ripe, for the final antichrist to make his entrance upon the world scene. Yes, there have been many final antichrist candidates in the past, with the one standing out the most to me would be Adolf Hitler in his Satanic attempt to kill all the Jews, but this time I believe it’s very different. This time, we have Israel literally fawning after President Trump, and they are also looking to him to enable them to build their third Jewish temple. I have not read the first article that is from israel365news.com dated August 5, 2019 unto now and all I can say is it is STUNNING! Let’s read some of that first: (See: https://israel365news.com/332454/trump-initiate-building-third-temple-head-edom/)

“Jewish sources hint that the alliance between the U.S and Israel is the prophetic end-of-days coming together of Esav and Jacob as a prelude to the building of the Third Temple. Some experts believe that President Trump fulfills many of the requirements for the leader of Edom that will make this happen.

“Two weeks ago, two religious Jews appeared before Rabbi Cham Kanievsky, one of the most influential rabbis of this generation. The emissaries reportedly bore an inquiry from President Trump, asking when the Moshiach (Messiah) will arrive. The rabbi avoided answering the question, asking instead when the American Jews will come to live in Israel.

“Many were skeptical of the story, rejecting the idea that Trump, a Christian, would inquire from a Jewish rabbi concerning the Messiah. But Trump, as the non-Jewish leader of the U.S., has a prophesied role to play in the building of the Temple and it was for this reason he inquired. Trump wanted to know when he will be called upon to perform this role.”

Now, let us read from their most recent article from November 11, 2024: (See: https://israel365news.com/397766/midrash-hints-that-trump-will-return-glory-to-western-world-by-building-third-temple/)

“Rabbi Yosef Berger revealed some amazing aspects of Donald Trump’s victory in the recent US Presidential election, most notably his potential role in building the Third Temple. As the spiritual descendant of Rome, the nation that destroyed the Second Temple, Trump has the potential to do a tikkun, fixing the sin of Rome, and returning the glory to Western society.”

““Trump’s election is a necessary element of the geula (redemption) and a sign that the moshiach (messiah) is imminent,” Rabbi Berger said. “That is why Donald Trump in Gematria (Hebrew numerology) equals 424, which is the same as Moshiach ben David (Messiah from the house of David),” Rabbi Berger pointed out. “This certainly does not mean he will be the Messiah, but it indicates that he will play a role in preparing the way for the arrival of the Messiah. He clearly has this inclination.”

“Just like the Second Temple, the Third Temple will be built by non-Jews,” Rabbi Berger said. “This will only be fully revealed after Trump fulfills this role.”

In an earlier article from January 19, 2018, israel365news.com reported more stunning statements that were made by a Jewish rabbi about Donald Trump: (See: https://israel365news.com/321325/whats-connection-biblical-esau-president-trump/)

“President Donald Trump is a reincarnation of the Biblical Esau, son of Isaac and Rebecca, according to Torah scholar and international speaker Rabbi Mendel Kessin.

“At a talk in Jerusalem that lasted well over two hours, Rabbi Kessin laid out his Bible-based case that Trump has a singular role to play in preparing the world for redemption. He did not claim that Trump is the Messiah, though Rabbi Kessin said, “Trump is a messianic figure,” meaning he is connected to the process of moving redemption forward.”

“Rabbi Kessin began his talk by quoting the verse from the Bible that speaks about the two nations that Rebecca had in her womb. One was Jacob, who, through his 12 sons, was the ancestor of the Jewish people.

“The other nation in Rebecca’s womb came from Esau, who, as Rabbi Kessin explains, “became Edom, which became Rome, which became Christianity, which became Western civilization.” In Genesis 25:23, it is written, “And the older shall serve the younger.” The older is a reference to Esau and the younger to Yaakov. Though they were twins, Esau emerged first, as is plainly stated in Genesis.”

In another headline that seems to make the building of the third Jewish temple come to fruition sooner than you may think and that is the requirement of a red heifer to be sacrificed for the construction of the temple. It appears there are still candidates that remain of the red heifers that were brought to Israel from Texas. In a February 16, 2025 article, La Croix International reported that Hamas apparently cited this as a justification for its October 7, 2023 attacks on Israel. (See: https://international.la-croix.com/world/in-jerusalem-the-red-heifer-worries-religious-and-political-leaders)

“Rumors of a potential sacrifice of a red cow, necessary for the construction of a third Jewish temple in Jerusalem, have stirred up the internet and religious leaders.”

“The massacres of October 7, referred to as "Al-Aqsa Flood" by Hamas, made the defense of the holy site a part of its rhetoric and unexpectedly brought the red heifer back into the spotlight. Hamas spokesperson Abu Obeida mentioned the cows in a statement justifying the attacks on the occasion of the 100th day of war in Gaza: the "aggression reached its peak against Al-Aqsa" with "the arrival of the red cows as the implementation of a detestable religious myth intended to aggress the sentiments of an entire nation."“

Trump’s now-appointed Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth gave a speech in 2018 in Jerusalem during which he supported the building of the third temple on the Temple Mount, as reported by the Times of Israel. (See: https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/trumps-nominee-for-pentagon-chief-suggested-new-temple-could-be-built-on-temple-mount/) I believe the third Jewish temple will be built during Donald Trump’s second administration. I believe the allowance/permission of the building of this temple will likely be stipulated in the terms of the covenant that will be confirmed with Israel in order to achieve “peace and safety” in the Middle East.

Now, given the zeal with which rabbis in Jerusalem have expressed regarding Donald Trump’s role in building the third Jewish temple in Jerusalem and Trump apparently expressing his desire to fulfill this role, if the aforementioned August 5, 2019 article from israel365news.com is true (See: https://israel365news.com/332454/trump-initiate-building-third-temple-head-edom/), then is it possible that all of the events of the Gaza Strip are being done purposely in order to clear it out, remove and relocate to other countries everyone who currently still resides there, as Trump proposed, and relocate the Al-Aqsa Mosque that currently sits on the Jewish Temple Mount to the cleared-out Gaza Strip? I know this may sound like a radical possibility, but that is what it seems Donald Trump is all about: radical change. Consider two news reports from not so long ago that may support this possibility. The first is an article that was reported from the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) in November 2020. It reported that a Saudi Arabian lawyer named Osama Yamani made some surprising claims that Al-Aqsa is not located in Jerusalem but in “the vicinity of Mecca in the Arabian Peninsula.” (See: https://www.memri.org/reports/article-saudi-daily-quranic-al-aqsa-may-not-be-jerusalem-all-arabian-peninsula) i24News, an Israeli-based news channel also reported on his statements: (See: https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/middle-east/1605438896-saudi-lawyer-claims-al-aqsa-mosque-s-true-location-is-not-in-jerusalem)

“Writing in Saudi news outlet Okaz, Osama Yamani maintained that the mosque - which is one of the world's most ancient permanent Islamic buildings, having been completed in 705 CE - is actually located in Al Ju'ranah, near Mecca in Saudi Arabia, cited Israeli outlet, Israel Hayom.

“Yamani explained that: "There are stories influenced by political considerations that served the purposes of that time, and sometimes claims are made that they have nothing to do with faith or following religious dictates."“

The other news report was reported by Arab News Japan on June 25, 2022 that stated that at that time, the Al-Aqsa Mosque was in danger of collapsing if the excavations continued. (See: https://www.arabnews.jp/en/middle-east/article_74858/) There have been continued reports, if one can trust the sources, that the digging that started in 2022 has continued, even in 2025. Could it be that if the digging continues, it will damage it to an extent that results in its collapse and a proposal is put forth to move it to the Gaza Strip, with possibly other Muslim countries coming forward in support of Yamani’s claims in order to make the proposal acceptable? If that happens, it would result in Israel being able to build their third temple on the Temple Mount? I believe all of this is a possibility. Time will tell.

We know that the majority of Israel is not looking for the second coming of Jesus Christ because they rejected Him as their Messiah when He came the first time. Thus, when they reference their coming “Messiah,” they are looking for the one whom Christians, and God’s word tells us, is really the final antichrist. However, we must be cautious in our attitude towards the Jews because as the apostle Paul told us in Romans 11, and which was prophesied by the prophet Isaiah, “blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.” Let us read first the prophecy of Isaiah:

“For the LORD hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed your eyes: the prophets and your rulers, the seers hath he covered. And the vision [whole vision] of all is become unto you as the words of a book [scroll] that is sealed, which men deliver to one that is learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I cannot; for it is sealed: and the book is delivered to him that is not learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I am not learned. Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught” (Isaiah 29:10-12)

It is God Himself who has caused Israel’s blindness. In Isaiah’s prophecy above, it is specifically addressed to Jerusalem. God gave them the single vision of Isaiah that was written and yet, their religious leaders could not read it and believe it. Because they did not draw near to God with their hearts and only gave Him lip service with their mouths, they could not see all the prophecies about the first coming of Messiah, Jesus Christ, which were later fulfilled with 100% accuracy. Now, let’s read what the apostle Paul said of the Jews’ blindness in part:

“What then? Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for; but the election [elect] hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded [hardened] (According as it is written, God hath given them the spirit of slumber [stupor], eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear;) unto this day. And David saith, Let their table be made a snare, and a trap, and a stumblingblock, and a recompense unto them: let their eyes be darkened, that they may not see, and bow down their back alway.” (Romans 11:7-10)

“For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits [opinion]; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion [Zion] the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: for this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.” (Romans 11:25-27)

If you believe that every word of the Bible is true, then you believe that all of the events prophesied in the Bible will come to pass, and that includes the rise of the final antichrist, the confirming of a covenant between him and Israel that begins the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, at the end of which Jesus Christ alone will save all of the one-third remnant of Jews, who will realize their sin of rejecting Him as their Messiah and finally turn to Him.

Now, let us return to the book of Isaiah and read how it also prophesies that the Lord Jesus will remove all strength and every support from Jerusalem and Judah, and that they will need to choose whether they will be with Him or against Him. They will need to decide if they are going to rely on mere man and his inability to save them or will they rely on Jesus Christ alone to save them:

“For, behold, the Lord, the LORD of hosts, doth take away from Jerusalem and from Judah the stay and the staff [stock and the store, every support], the whole stay [supply] of bread, and the whole stay [supply] of water, the mighty man, and the man of war, the judge, and the prophet, and the prudent [diviner], and the ancient [elder], the captain of fifty, and the honourable [eminent in appearance], and the counsellor, and the cunning artificer [skillful artisan], and the eloquent orator. And I will give children [boys] to be their princes, and babes [capricious ones] shall rule over them. And the people shall be oppressed, every one by another, and every one by his neighbour: the child shall behave himself proudly against the ancient, and the base [despised] against the honourable. When a man shall take hold of his brother of the house of his father, saying, Thou hast clothing, be thou our ruler, and let this ruin be under thy hand: in that day shall he swear, saying, I will not be an healer; for in my house is neither bread nor clothing: make me not a ruler of the people. For Jerusalem is ruined [has stumbled], and Judah is fallen: because their tongue and their doings are against the LORD, to provoke [rebel against] the eyes of his glory. The shew of their countenance [look on their faces] doth witness against them; and they declare their sin as Sodom, they hide it not. Woe unto their soul! for they have rewarded [brought] evil unto themselves. Say ye to the righteous, that it shall be well with him: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings. Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him: for the reward of his hands shall be given [done to] him. As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err [lead you astray], and destroy the way of thy paths. The LORD standeth up to plead [contend], and standeth to judge the people.” (Isaiah 3:1-13)

During the time of Jacob’s trouble, God’s Son, Jesus Christ opens the seven seals on the scroll described in the book of Revelation that begins the 7-year series of judgments not only on Israel but on the entire unbelieving world. Again, it is during that time when the land of israel will be made desolate, and two-thirds of the Jews will die. However, one-third of them, the remnant of Israel, will survive and will be saved because they will call upon Jesus, their Messiah, to save them; they are the ones called “righteous” in the Scriptures above. We are only made righteous through our faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is called the Branch of the Lord several times in the Bible, including in the passage of Scripture below. He will save the remnant of Israel, and He will destroy all nations that come against her:

“In that day shall the branch of the LORD be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and comely [appealing] for them that are escaped of Israel [have survived]. And it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even every one that is written [recorded] among the living in Jerusalem: when the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood [bloodshed] of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning.” (Isaiah 4:2-4)

“And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the LORD, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein. And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try [test] them as gold is tried [tested]: they shall call on my name, and I will hear [answer] them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God.” (Zechariah 13:8-9)

“But I will have mercy upon the house of Judah, and will save them by the LORD their God, and will not save them by bow, nor by sword, nor by battle, by horses, nor by horsemen.” (Hosea 1:7)

“And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.” (Zechariah 12:9)

Zephaniah 2:8-14 describes how God will bring to nothing the nations that threaten Jerusalem and the borders of Judah. Let us read what verses 10-11 state:

“This shall they have for their pride, because they have reproached and magnified [made arrogant threats] against the people of the LORD of hosts. The LORD will be terrible [awesome] unto them: for he will famish [reduce to nothing] all the gods of the earth; and men shall worship him, every one from his place, even all the isles of the heathen.” (Zephaniah 2:10-11)

For anyone alive today who thinks that Israel is not corrupt, let us read what God has to say about them. I’ll say it again, I do not trust Benjamin Netanyahu, and I believe there is more to the October 7, 2023 attacks in Israel than we are being told. That being said, God knows what happened. God has seen Israel go through periods of obedience and disobedience, and modern-day Israel is no different. However, this last time of judgment during the time of Jacob’s trouble, God will put Israel through a refining fire that will end with the remnant that remains finally turning to Jesus Christ and believing on Him as their Messiah.

The last verse of chapter 2 and chapter 3 of the book of Zephaniah ends with a description of why God will judge Judah, and particularly God’s holy city of Jerusalem that has made itself filthy, polluted, and oppressing and which has not obeyed His voice. But God doesn’t leave them without hope: there will be an end to the time of Jacob’s trouble, when He will remove all iniquity from His remnant, and He will be their God and they will be His people. Let us read the entirety of chapter 3:

“Woe to her that is filthy [rebellious] and polluted, to the oppressing city! She obeyed not the voice; she received not correction; she trusted not in the LORD; she drew not near to her God. Her princes within her are roaring lions; her judges are evening wolves; they gnaw not the bones till the morrow [they leave not a bone till morning]. Her prophets are light [insolent] and treacherous persons: her priests have polluted [profaned] the sanctuary, they have done violence to the law. The just LORD is in the midst thereof; he will not do iniquity: every morning doth he bring his judgment [justice] to light, he faileth not; but the unjust knoweth no shame. I have cut off the nations: their towers are desolate [fortresses are devastated]; I made their streets waste [desolate], that none passeth by: their cities are destroyed, so that there is no man, that there is none inhabitant. I said, Surely thou wilt fear me, thou wilt receive instruction [correction]; so their dwelling should not be cut off, howsoever I punished them [despite everything for which I punished her]: but they rose early, and corrupted all their doings [deeds]. Therefore wait ye upon me, saith the LORD, until the day that I rise up to the prey: for my determination is to gather the nations, that I may assemble the kingdoms, to pour upon them mine indignation, even all my fierce anger: for all the earth shall be devoured with the fire of my jealousy. For then will I turn [restore] to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the LORD, to serve him with one consent [accord]. From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia my suppliants [worshippers], even the daughter of my dispersed, shall bring mine offering. In that day shalt thou not be ashamed for all thy doings [deeds], wherein thou hast transgressed against me: for then I will take away out of the midst of thee them that rejoice in thy pride, and thou shalt no more be haughty because of my holy mountain. I will also leave in the midst of thee an afflicted and poor [gentle and humble] people, and they shall trust in the name of the LORD. The remnant of Israel shall not do iniquity, nor speak lies; neither shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth: for they shall feed and lie down [feed their flocks], and none shall make them afraid. Sing, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel; be glad and rejoice with all the heart, O daughter of Jerusalem. The LORD hath taken away thy judgments, he hath cast out thine enemy: the king of Israel, even the LORD, is in the midst of thee: thou shalt not see evil [fear disaster] any more. In that day it shall be said to Jerusalem, Fear thou not: and to Zion, Let not thine hands be slack [be weak]. The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest [quiet you] in his love, he will joy over thee with singing. I will gather them that are sorrowful for the solemn [appointed] assembly, who are of thee [among you], to whom the reproach of it was a burden. Behold, at that time I will undo all [deal with all] that afflict thee: and I will save her that halteth [the lame], and gather her that was driven out; and I will get [give] them praise and fame in every land where they have been put to shame. At that time will I bring you again, even in the time that I gather you: for I will make you a name [fame] and a praise among all people of the earth, when I turn back your captivity [return your captives] before your eyes, saith the LORD.” (Zephaniah 3:1-20)

Israel’s enemies will finally be gone, eliminated, and Israel will live in peace and safety in the land that God gave them long ago when He made His unconditional covenant with Abraham. This will happen during the 1,000-year reign of Jesus Christ after He returns to earth at His second coming. Though Israel will have had many of her children die during the time of Jacob’s trouble, she will again have sons and daughters. However, these children will be the children of the Gentile nations that will also survive the 7-year tribulation period and who will turn to Jesus Christ and believe in Him as their Savior. Because there will be so many, the children will even say that they need more room, more land in Israel for them to dwell in it.

At the end of the 1,000 years, Jesus will resurrect every person who has ever died. At the great white throne judgement, He will judge them all, and everyone who died in their sin and whose names will not be found in the book of life will be found guilty and will be cast into the lake of fire for eternity. Then Jesus will destroy the current heavens and earth, and He will create a new heaven, a new earth, and a new Jerusalem. All believers in Jesus Christ will live together, with no separation between Jew and Gentile, in true peace and safety with Jesus Christ our Savior, forever and ever. The land of Israel will never see violence again:

“Violence shall no more [longer] be heard in thy land, wasting [devastation] nor destruction within thy borders; but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise. The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the LORD shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory. Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the LORD shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended. Thy people also shall be all righteous: they shall inherit the land for ever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified. A little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation: I the LORD will hasten it in his time.” (Isaiah 60:18-22)

The land that is in such dispute today, the land of the Gaza Strip will belong to Israel, not to Donald Trump, and not to America. Contrary to his statements that Gaza will be turned into the “Riviera of the Middle East,” God says otherwise, and God’s word is true. Let us read what God says about Gaza. I have included Scriptures I previously mentioned in order to provide the context as to whom God is referring to regarding the “sea coast,” which specifically is the land from the five ancient cities of the Philistines, which is located in the Gaza Strip:

“For Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ahskelon a desolation: they shall drive out Ashdod at the noon day, and Ekron shall be rooted up. Woe unto the inhabitants of the sea coast, the nation of the Cherethites! the word of the LORD is against you; O Canaan, the land of the Philistines, I will even destroy thee, that there shall be no inhabitant. And the sea coast shall be dwellings and cottages for shepherds, and folds for flocks. And the coast shall be for the remnant of the house of Judah; they shall feed thereupon [feed their flocks there]: in the houses of Ashkelon shall they lie down in the evening: for the LORD their GOD shall visit them [intervene for them], and turn away their captivity [return their captives].” (Zephaniah 2:4-7)

Finally and in closing, I cannot urge you strongly enough that if you have not accepted Jesus Christ in your heart as your Savior, to do so today and not wait another moment. The days we are living in are filled with darkness that is disguised as a false light to deceive those that don’t know Jesus as their Savior. Deception is at an all-time high, and many people are being deceived by the lies of the wicked one, Satan. Jesus loves you and doesn’t want you to spend your eternity in hell. That is why He came to earth the first time to offer salvation to all who will believe in Him as their Savior. While He came to earth the first time as the suffering servant and the Lamb of God, He won’t return as a Lamb. When He returns, He will come back as the Lion of the tribe of Judah and will execute His righteous judgment on a wicked and evil world, and billions of people will die because they will still reject Him as their Savior. Don’t be one of them. Turn to Jesus Christ today and be saved from all your sins and from the hell on earth that is coming soon. ✝️

January 18, 2025: Isaiah 49:17-18 - Lift Up Thine Eyes Round About, and Behold!

“Thy children shall make haste; thy destroyers and they that made thee waste shall go forth of thee. Lift up thine eyes round about, and behold: all these gather themselves together, and come to thee. As I live, saith the LORD, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all, as with an ornament, and bind them on thee, as a bride doeth.” - Isaiah 49:17-18

In these written passages of Scripture, through His prophet Isaiah, God tells us that there is coming a time when the enemies of Israel will be gone, and Israel’s children will come to her. As God told us in Isaiah 49:1-6, He sent His son Jesus Christ, whom God sent at Jesus’ first coming to earth, to be His servant:

“…to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.” (Isaiah 49:6)

The Scriptures from Isaiah 49:17-18 that I am focusing on in this devotional speak of a future time when the remnant of Israel that will be saved through the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble and who will finally turns to Jesus Christ and believes on Him as their Messiah, will be gathered together in Israel, the land that God gave them long ago. No longer will Israel’s enemies be a threat to them, for Isaiah tells us, “thy destroyers and they that made thee waste shall go forth of thee,” meaning Israel’s enemies will go away from them.

Ever since God called Israel to be a nation set apart for Him, Israel has been at war. Time and time again, the nations of the world have tried to eliminate Israel, but God has always preserved a remnant of Israel in order to accomplish His plan for humanity. As I discussed most recently in the last devotional on Isaiah 49:14-16, the source of this hatred is Satan. Satan believes that if he can wipe Israel off the face of the earth, then Jesus will not return to earth a second time to restore Israel (Zechariah 13:8-14:21) and that Jesus will not cast Satan into the eternal lake of fire and brimstone, even though the Bible clearly tells us this will happen (Revelation 20:10), no matter how many times Satan tries to stop God’s plan. In our modern world in which we live today, Satan is still influencing wicked men and women to try and eliminate Israel. They chip away at her borders, decreasing the size of the land that God gave them, with the goal of making Israel unable to defend herself. If these men and women would only read and believe God’s word, the Bible, they would know with certainty that God is not finished with Israel, and that there is coming a day, as Isaiah told us, that the enemies of Israel will be gone from them, and all of the Jews will be gathered in their land in Israel. This regathering of the Jews in Israel most recently began in 1948, when the state of Israel was reborn after World War II. However, though many Jews are back in their land, they are not gathered in belief of Jesus Christ as their Messiah. It will only be after the time of Jacob’s trouble when they are gathered in belief, having finally accepted Jesus as their Redeemer. From that time forward, no more will God remember Israel’s sins against Him. No more will He have to discipline her because of her disobedience against Him, when she turned away from Him and turned to false gods and worshipped idols. No, this final gathering of Israel in her own land will be different, and all of God’s creation will rejoice. No longer will the world hate Israel but will bow down to her, for it was through Israel that Messiah, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, came, who provides redemption of sins to all who believe in Him.

As we will read more about in a future devotional in Isaiah 49:20-23, it won’t just be the believing Jews that will come to Israel, but also people from all the Gentile nations who have also put their faith and trust in Jesus to save them. Let us read one of those Scriptures, Isaiah 49:22:

“Thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I will lift up mine hand [make an oath] to the Gentiles, and set up my standard [banner] to the people: and they shall bring thy sons in their arms, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders.” (Isaiah 49:22)

As the apostle Paul wrote about, when one becomes a believer in Jesus Christ, there is no longer any separation between Jew nor Gentile:

“For ye are all the children [sons] of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek [Gentile], there is neither bond [slave] nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ’s then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” (Galatians 3:26-29)

It is these who have the right to be called the sons, or the children, of God. Contrary to popular belief, we are not all children of God just because we are human beings. The Bible clearly tells us that only those who have been saved by putting our faith and trust in Jesus Christ to save us from all our sins are called sins, or children, of God:

“In the beginning was the Word [Jesus Christ], and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended [apprehended] it not. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John [John the Baptist, Jesus’ cousin]. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own [His own things or domain], and his own [His own people] received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power [the right] to become the sons [children] 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 1:1-13)

There is coming a time when God will restore Israel, and they and many who believe in His Son, Jesus Christ, will gather together in Israel. Let us read from Isaiah 54 about this coming beautiful time:

“Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the LORD. Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations [thy dwellings]: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes; for thou shalt break forth [expand] on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited.” (Isaiah 54:1-3)

Before continuing in Isaiah 54, notice in the Scriptures above that God is saying that Israel will expand the territory of its land, for it will not only be the Jews who will return to the land, but it will also be the Gentiles who will come to the land of Israel to live there and bring honor and glory to Almighty God, the mighty One of Jacob. The once desolate cities will now be inhabited by both Jews and Gentiles who believe in Jesus Christ as their Savior. Continuing in Isaiah 54:

“Fear not; for thou shalt not be ashamed: neither be thou confounded; for thou shalt not be put to shame: for thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood any more. For thy Maker is thine husband; the LORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called. For the LORD hath called thee as a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, and a wife of youth, when thou wast refused, saith thy God. For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee.” (Isaiah 54:4-7)

No longer will Israel bear the shame that she bore many times when she turned away from God and turned to idols and false gods and worshipped them instead of the one true God, when she acted as a harlot, a prostitute. No longer will she feel as if she had no husband, as if she was a widow, which Israel brought upon herself when God had to discipline her for her sins. The book of Hosea writes of this time when God restores her:

“Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her. And I will give her her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope: and she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt.” (Hosea 2:14-15)

I believe that in Hosea 2:14-15 above, there is a prophecy of the coming 7-year period known as the time of Jacob’s trouble, the last seven years of human history before Jesus returns to earth at His second coming. During this time period, God will turn His attention back to Israel, and He will send a series of 21 judgments upon the earth, which are detailed in the last book of the Bible, the book of Revelation. It is during this time that not only Israel but the entire earth will undergo a time that has never been experienced upon earth, nor never will again. It is a time when the final antichrist will reign upon the earth, and the Jews and every person alive will need to decide if they will worship him or worship God. It is God giving humanity a final seven years to decide if they are for Him or against Him, and the choice each person makes will determine where they will spend their eternity. At the beginning of this time, Israel will make a 7-year covenant with the one who will be the final antichrist, though they will not know it at that time. Instead, they will make the covenant thinking that he will bring peace and safety to Israel. Once again, Israel will not look to Almighty God for their protection but to a false god, as they have done so many times before. During the halfway point of this 7-year period of tribulation, the antichrist will reveal who he really is when he will desecrate the coming third Jewish temple, which I believe will be built during Donald Trump’s second presidential term. It will be at that point that the surviving Jews in Israel will realize they have been deceived by Satan and that the one whom they thought was their friend is really their adversary. They will then flee to the mountains. Jesus Himself spoke of this event, which is referred to and prophesied by the prophet Daniel as “the abomination of desolation,” when the antichrist reveals who he really is. Gotquestions.org has a good article about this at https://www.gotquestions.org/abomination-desolation.html. Jesus also told us how horrific the final 3-1/2 years of the time of Jacob’s trouble is going to be:

“When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains: let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house: neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes. And woe unto them that are with child [pregnant], and to them that give suck [who are nursing babies] in those days! But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day; for then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s [chosen ones] sake those days shall be shortened.” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 24:15-22)

It is during this horrific time that a one-third remnant of Jews will finally see that Jesus Christ IS their Messiah and will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and will turn to Him in belief. During the last half of this time period, which is known as the Great Tribulation, God will protect this remnant of Israel and feed her:

“And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore [sixty] days.” (Revelation 12:6)

“And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.” (Revelation 12:14)

Notice in Hosea 2:14-15 God compared this time when He will provide for Israel when she is in the wilderness, as He provided for her when she left Egypt. During Israel’s exodus from Egypt, God not only provided nourishment to Israel but also protected her.

There is also something interesting in what God said about the valley of Achor in Hosea 2:14-15. The valley of Achor is also mentioned in Joshua 7, when before the Israelites defeated the city of Jericho, God had commanded them not to keep any of the spoils of war but to destroy all but the silver, gold, bronze, and iron, which would be put into God’s treasury. However, after Israel defeated Jericho by the power of God, a man named Achan disobeyed God and kept a cloak, gold, and silver. Joshua did not know this had happened, and when he and his men went into the town of Ai to capture it, they were defeated. Joshua appealed to God, for Joshua did not understand why God would allow them to be defeated. God told him it was because one of his men had disobeyed Him, and consequently, it had brought destruction upon them. God told Joshua to remove from among him what was devoted to destruction. God would not allow Israel to commit sin against Him and then go and defeat their enemies. Let us read God’s words to Joshua when Joshua had asked God why He had allowed them to be defeated at Ai:

“And the LORD said unto Joshua, Get thee up; wherefore liest thou upon thy face? Israel hath sinned, and they have also transgressed my covenant which I commanded them: for they have even taken of the accursed thing [things devoted to the LORD], and have also stolen, and dissembled [deceived] also, and they have put it even among their own stuff. Therefore the children of Israel could not stand before their enemies, but turned their backs before their enemies, because they were accursed [devoted to destruction]: neither will I be with you any more, except ye destroy the accursed from among you. Up, sanctify [consecrate] the people, and say, Sanctify yourselves against to morrow: for thus saith the LORD God of Israel, There is an accursed thing in the midst of thee, O Israel: thou canst not stand before thine enemies, until ye take away the accursed thing from among you. In the morning therefore ye shall be brought according to your tribes: and it shall be, that the tribe which the LORD taketh shall come according to the families thereof; and the family which the LORD shall take shall come by households; and the household which the LORD shall take shall come man by man. And it shall be, that he that is taken with the accursed thing shall be burnt with fire, he and all that he hath: because he hath transgressed [overstepped] the covenant of the LORD, and because he hath wrought folly [done a disgraceful thing] in Israel. (Joshua 7:10-15)

The next day, Joshua did as God had commanded him, and it was revealed that a man named Achan from the tribe of Judah was the one who had committed this sin against God. “And Joshua said unto Achan, My son, give, I pray thee, glory to the LORD God of Israel, and make confession unto him; and tell me now what thou hast done; hide it not from me.” (Joshua 7:19) Achan confessed his sin against God, and told Joshua where he had hidden the things he had kept. As instructed by God, Joshua took Achan, all of his family members, and all of his animals and property, and brought them to the valley of Achor:

“And Joshua said, Why hast thou troubled us? the LORD shall trouble thee this day. And all Israel stoned him with stones, and burned them with fire, after they had stoned them with stones. And they raised over him a great heap of stones unto this day. So the LORD turned from the fierceness of his anger. Wherefore the name of that place was called, The valley of Achor [trouble], unto this day.” (Joshua 7:25-26)

What we have just read may seem harsh to us, but God had to deal with Israel’s sin then and there, for if He allowed it to continue, Israel would not have become a nation and would have been further defeated by her enemies, as they were at Ai. God would not allow Israel to be a corrupt nation and to defeat her enemies, for then they would not be a nation chosen by God to be set apart from the world, but would be like the corrupt world. I think there also may be some significance that Achan was from the tribe of Judah, the tribe from which Messiah would come. Because of Achan’s sins against God, the place where he was buried is called the valley of Achor, or the valley of Trouble. Fast-forward to the coming 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, which I believe is prophesied of in Hosea 2:14-15, I do not think it is any coincidence that Hosea mentioned the valley of Achor as being a door of hope. When Israel sees the abomination of desolation committed by the antichrist and realizes that she has been following a false god and that Jesus IS their Messiah and flees to the wilderness and is protected by God during their time of trouble, they will see a door of hope, and Jesus IS that door:

“Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.” (John 10:7-9)

I believe this is confirmation that Hosea 2:14-15 is a prophecy of the time of Jacob’s trouble. Without Jesus, there is no hope. That is why God must allow Israel to go through this time of Jacob’s trouble so that they can see that He alone is their hope, and He is their Messiah. Let us read further what is written in Hosea 2:

“And it shall be at that day, saith the LORD, that thou shalt call me Ishi [My Husband]; and shalt call me no more Baali [My Master]. For I will take away the names of Baalim [false gods] out of her mouth, and they shall no more be remembered by their name.” (Hosea 2:16-17)

It will be at that time that Israel will call God her “Husband” and not her “Master.” As a bride truly loves her husband, so will Israel love and obey God and will no longer speak of and worships false gods, nor remember them. This has never happened to Israel, for she has always turned to false gods, and is still doing that today and, as a nation, is still in full rejection of Jesus Christ. I believe Hosea 2:16-17 is speaking of a specific day, which I believe is called the Day of the Lord, which refers to the time of Jacob’s trouble and at the end of it, Jesus will return to earth a second time and put an end to all wickedness upon the earth. It is also when the coming antichrist and the false prophet will be cast into the eternal lake of fire (Revelation 19:20), and Satan will be bound and cast into the bottomless pit for a period of 1,000 years. This 1,000-year time period will be the millennial reign of Jesus Christ, when He will reign with a rod of iron from Jerusalem, the Holy City. I believe Hosea wrote of this time in the Scriptures below. Because Jesus will be reigning, there will be no more war; there truly will be peace and safety upon the earth. The animal kingdom will also be like it was in the days of Adam and Eve, when they did not fear mankind, and the earth will give forth its food for her. God will finally be Husband to His beloved Israel, and she will be His bride. No longer will she play the role of harlot that she did so many times when she committed adultery against Him and turned from Him and turned to false gods. He will be her God, and she will be His people. These passages from Hosea are a beautiful love letter from God to His people, Israel.

“And in that day will I make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven, and with the creeping things of the ground: and I will break [shatter] the bow and the sword and the battle out of the earth, and will make them to lie down safely. And I will betroth thee unto me for ever; yea, I will betroth thee unto me in righteousness, and in judgment [justice], and in lovingkindness, and in mercies. I will even betroth thee unto me in faithfulness: and thou shalt know the LORD. And it shall come to pass in that day, I will hear [answer], saith the LORD, I will hear the heavens, and they shall hear the earth; and the earth shall hear [answer] the corn, and the wine, and the oil; and they shall hear Jezreel [God will sow]. And I will sow her unto me in the earth; and I will have mercy upon her that had not obtained mercy; and I will say to them which were not my people, Thou art my people; and they shall say, Thou art my God.” (Hosea 2:18-23)

Before continuing in Isaiah 54, let us read from Isaiah 62 that also speaks of the time when Israel will no longer be called “Forsaken” but will be righteous in God and will shine in His glory and light:

“For Zion’s sake will I not hold my peace [keep silent], and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth. And the Gentiles shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory: and thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of the LORD shall name. Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the LORD, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God. Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate: but thou shalt be called Hephzi-bah [My Delight is in Her], and thy land Beulah [Married]: for the LORD delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married. For as a young man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee: and as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee.” (Isaiah 62:1-5)

Let us continue reading in Isaiah 54 when God tells Israel that though He has had to discipline her because of her disobedience to Him, He has not forgotten her and will restore her:

“In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the LORD thy Redeemer. For this is as the waters of Noah unto me: for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be wroth [angry] with thee, nor rebuke thee. For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the LORD that hath mercy on thee.” (Isaiah 54:8-10)

Here is another instance I believe where the Scriptures are referring to the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, when we know, as the Bible tells us, that two-thirds of the Jews will die, for they will continue in their rejection of Jesus Christ as their Messiah. However, the one-third remnant who will turn to Him, will make it through their time of trouble through God’s protection and provision. I believe the Scriptures above may coincide with what is written in the book of Revelation that describes just one of the 21 judgments of God that will occur during this time period:

“And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; and the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs [drops its late figs], when she is shaken of a mighty wind. And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman [slave], and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; and said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: for the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?” (Revelation 6:12-17)

Let us continue reading from Isaiah 54:

“O thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will lay thy stones with fair colours [colourful gems or antimony], and lay thy foundations with sapphires. And I will make thy windows of agates [pinnacles of rubies], and thy gates of carbuncles [crystal], and all thy borders of pleasant [precious] stones. And all thy children shall be taught of the LORD; and great shall be the peace of thy children. In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression; for thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall not come near thee.” (Isaiah 54:11-14)

I believe the Scriptures above are looking far forward into time, when the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble will have ended, Jesus returns to earth and destroys all wickedness, reigns for 1,000 years from Jerusalem, and after which He resurrects all who have died in their sins and rejected His free gift of salvation and casts them all into the eternal lake of fire. Afterwards, the current earth and heavens will be burned with fervent heat (2 Peter 3:12), and Jesus will create a new heaven, a new earth, and a new Jerusalem. I believe the Scriptures above are parallel Scriptures to what is written in the book of Revelation, chapter 21 that describe the beautiful holy city, New Jerusalem:

“And the building [construction] of the wall of it was jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass. And the foundations of the city were garnished [adorned] with all manner of precious stones.” (Revelation 21:18-19)

Now, let us finish reading Isaiah 54:

“Behold, they shall surely gather together, but not by me: whosoever shall gather together against thee shall fall for thy sake. Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument [or weapon] for his work; and I have created the waster [destroyer] to destroy. No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of [from] me, saith the LORD.” (Isaiah 54:15-17)

I think there are several possibilities as to the timing that the Scriptures above are addressing. Two are from Zechariah 12 and 14, both of which refer to the second coming of Jesus Christ. I believe those two chapters also refer to the Scriptures in Revelation that prophesy of Jesus’ second coming. Revelation 16:16 tells us that God will gather together the nations that come against Him at a place called Armageddon, or Mount Megiddo. Revelation 19:11-21 describe those nations that will be struck down by Jesus at His second coming with the sharp sword of His mouth. The reason I do not think Isaiah 54 is referring to any of the prophecies in those Scriptures is because Isaiah tells us that those who come against God’s children will be destroyed by fire. We can deduce this by the wording that is used: “Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy.” (Isaiah 54:16) I believe this refers to stoking the fire to make it very hot to burn completely, and God will destroy those who gather against His children. Instead, I believe Isaiah 54 that speaks of the nations which are gathered together not by God but by something else and are burned in judgment is referring to Revelation 20:7-10. These Scriptures are describing what happens at the end of the 1,000-year millennial reign of Jesus. At the beginning of His reign, an angel will bind Satan and cast him into the bottomless pit for the entire 1,000 years. After which, Satan will be let out of the pit. As he has always done, he will go and deceive the nations. Then,, Satan will gather those who will side with him, and believe it or not, there will be people who will turn against Jesus and align themselves with Satan, and they will surround God’s children at Jerusalem, referred to as the “beloved city.” However, God will destroy by fire all who are aligned with Satan. Let us read the Revelation 20 passage below:

“And when the thousand years are expired [completed], Satan shall be loosed [released] out of his prison. And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed [surrounded] the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast [antichrist] and false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.” (Revelation 20:7-10)

As the last part of the Scriptures above tells us, this will finally be the end of Satan, also called the devil. Never again will he gather people who reject God in order to torment God’s children. The unholy trinity that is going to come during the time of Jacob’s trouble - Satan, the final antichrist, and the false prophet - will be cast into the lake of fire and will remain there forever, in torment, because they hated God and His people. It is at that time that the current heavens and the earth will be dissolved with fire and God will create a new heaven, a new earth, and a new Jerusalem. This is what ALL believers in Jesus Christ have to look forward to, and oh, what an amazing site it will be to behold!

I know that many times when writing these devotionals, I have looked both forward and backwards in the Scriptures to give you the deeper meanings behind the Scriptures. I want you to know that I believe this is due to the guiding of the Holy Spirit, and I believe this is critical, for many Christians do not study the Bible at a deeper level. In order to fully understand the word of God, we must search the Scriptures, both in the Old Testament and in the New Testament, for they truly are connected to one another. As I have learned since I believed the Holy Spirit impressed upon me in November 2022 that I was to study His word at a much deeper level, the entire Bible is about Jesus Christ; there are literally prophecies of Him in every book. The Holy Spirit has opened my eyes to this truth, and it is amazing to me that when I read prophecies of Him in the Old Testament, I have seen many times how they connect to the New Testament Scriptures. The entire Bible gives believers in Jesus Christ hope for the future, even when, and especially when, our world is growing darker and more evil. It reveals and confirms for us that this world is not our true Home, but it is a temporary stopping place on our way to eternity. Jesus Christ IS our hope, and the book of Revelation especially shows us what our true Home will be like. I praise God that He has given us His word so that we can keep our eyes on Him and not on this world that is literally passing away before our very eyes.

Returning to today’s Scriptures in Isaiah 49:17-18, God is telling us that the Jews will return to Israel, to the land that God gave them. However, as we will read about later in Isaiah 49:22-23, the Gentile believers in Christ will also come to Israel. Let us read Isaiah 49:18 again:

“Lift up thine eyes round about, and behold: all these gather themselves together, and come to thee. As I live, saith the LORD, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all, as with an ornament, and bind them on thee, as a bride doeth.” (Isaiah 49:18)

The Scriptures above speak to the bride of Christ, who are all the believers in Jesus Christ, and they will gather in Israel. Through His precious blood, Jesus has saved His bride, and cleanses her by the power of His word, the Bible, so that she is made her ready for her Husband. This will include Jewish people who accept Jesus Christ as their Messiah during the time of Jacob’s trouble and who are protected by Him:

“Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body. Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing. Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; that he might sanctify [set it apart] and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself. For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church: for we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh. This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church. Nevertheless let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself; and the wife see that she reverence [respects] her husband.” (Ephesians 5:22-33)

“Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and thy glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side. Then thou shalt see, and flow together [become radiant], and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged [swell with joy]; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces [wealth] of the Gentiles [nations] shall come unto thee.” (Isaiah 60:1-5)

The believing Jews will then be one with their fellow believers in Jesus Christ from the Gentile nations, whom God calls their new sons and daughters. Israel will be adorned with them as a bride. All believers in Jesus Christ are His bride, and this includes those who will be caught up to Jesus Christ in the rapture of the church prior to the start of the time of Jacob’s trouble/tribulation period. It also includes those who will turn to Him and be saved during the tribulation period, including the remnant of Jews who are saved.

Revelation 19 speaks of the marriage supper of the Lamb, the time when Jesus’ bride will be married to her husband, a beautiful time of celebration. There are some believers who think this marriage supper will occur in heaven during the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble and before Jesus’ second coming to earth. If that is correct, then those in attendance will be those believers in Jesus Christ who previously died and also those who remain alive when they are raptured/caught up to Him in the clouds (1 Thessalonians 4:16-18). Some also believe that all who died in their faith in God prior to the first coming of Jesus Christ, referred to as “Old Testament saints,” will also attend the marriage supper of the Lamb. Gotquestions.org has an article about the marriage supper (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/marriage-supper-Lamb.html) I do not know the timing of this with certainty, but what I do know is the marriage supper of the Lamb will happen, when Jesus the groom will be married to His bride. Let us read what the Scriptures say:

“And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice [sound] of many waters, and as the voice [sound] of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour [glory] to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white [bright]: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.” (Revelation 19:6-9)

After the creation of the new heaven, a new earth, and a new Jerusalem, never again will Israel, particularly Jerusalem, be threatened again with destruction, for her Husband, Jesus Christ, will reign forever more in eternity, and sin will be no more:

“Violence shall no more be heard in thy land, wasting [devastation] nor destruction within thy borders; but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise. The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the LORD shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory. Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the LORD shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended. Thy people also shall be all righteous: they shall inherit the land for ever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified. A little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation: I the LORD will hasten it in his [its] time.” (Isaiah 60:18-22)

“Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper [act wisely], and shall execute judgment and justice [justice and righteousness] in the earth [land]. In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS. Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that they shall no more say, The LORD liveth, which brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; but, The LORD liveth, which brought up and which led the seed of the house of Israel out of the north country, and from all countries whither I had driven them; and they shall dwell in their own land.” (Jeremiah 23:5-8)

“And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal…” (Revelation 21:10-11)

“And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten [illuminate] it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it. And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there. And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it. And there shall be in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh [causes an] abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.” (Revelation 21:22-27)

“And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve: and they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads. And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle [lamp], neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.” (Revelation 22:3-5)

Oh, how I look forward to the time when Jesus will return to earth and put an end to all wickedness and evil. I know this means that many people will die, and I pray for them, that before He returns, they will turn to Him and be saved. I pray that they would see that we are all sinners in need of Jesus Christ to save us, to redeem us, from all our sins. I pray that Israel would stop pursuing false gods and stop looking to mere man to save them, for I know they will soon look to the final antichrist to save them. Not only will he not save them, he will seek their utter destruction. I know all of this is coming, because the Bible tells us it is going to happen, and I believe it’s going to happen sooner than we may expect. I also know that before Jesus returns, He will have given mankind every chance to turn to Him and be saved from spending their eternity in hell. Sadly, I know that most people will reject His precious free gift, for as He told us:

“Enter ye in at the strait [narrow] gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: because strait [how narrow] is the gate, and narrow [difficult or confined] is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 7:13-14)

I look forward to the time when all believers in Christ will be together, both Jews and Gentiles. I look forward to the time when Israel, particularly Jerusalem, will dwell safely in the land, all the land, that God gave them, never to be threatened again by those who seek their destruction. I look forward to the time when I will see my beloved Savior, Jesus Christ, with my own eyes, and I will dwell in His house forever. Let us finish reading from Isaiah 62, and let us all proclaim what is written in Revelation 22:17, and hear the words of Jesus in Revelation 22:20 and consider, are we ready to see Him, either as one whose sins who have been washed clean by His precious blood, or as one who has rejected His gift of salvation, to our own peril:

“I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace [keep silent] day nor night: ye that make mention of [remember] the LORD, keep not silence, and give him no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth. The LORD hath sworn by his right hand, and by the arm of his strength, Surely I will no more give thy corn to be meat [grain to be food] for thine enemies; and the sons of the stranger [foreigner] shall not drink thy wine, for the which thou hast labored: but they that have gathered it shall eat it, and praise the LORD; and they that have brought it together shall drink it in the courts of my holiness. Go through, go through the gates; prepare ye the way of the people; cast up [build up], cast up the highway; gather out the stones; lift up a standard [banner] for the people. Behold, the LORD hath proclaimed unto the end of the world, Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation cometh; behold, his reward is with him, and his work [recompense] before him. And they shall call them, The holy people, The redeemed of the LORD: and thou shalt be called, Sought out, A city not forsaken.” (Isaiah 62:6-12)

“And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst [thirsts] come. And whosoever will [desires], let him take the water of life freely.” (Revelation 22:17)

“He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.” (Revelation 22:20-21) ✝️

December 31, 2024: Isaiah 49:14-16 - The Lord Will Not Forget His People

“But Zion said, The LORD hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me. Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven [inscribed] thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.” - Isaiah 49:14-16

In these passages of Scripture from the Old Testament book of Isaiah, we read how Zion, meaning the people of Israel, the children of God, and the holy city of Jerusalem in the land of Israel, proclaimed to Isaiah the prophet that God had forgotten them, even after Isaiah had told them that God would send His servant, whom we know now is Jesus the Christ, to “raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel.” God also told them that He was sending His servant to be “a light to the Gentiles” so that He would be “my salvation unto the end of the earth.” (Isaiah 49:6) Let us remember where Israel was at this time and what had happened to them.

Though a once unified nation, the nation of Israel increasingly began to worship false gods and did not obey God’s commands to them. Thus, God caused the nation of Israel to split into two nations after the death of King David’s son Solomon. The nation was divided into the northern nation of Israel and the southern nation of Judah. Israel, the northern kingdom, had ten of the twelve tribes of Israel, and Judah had two tribes, Judah and Benjamin. God had previously warned Israel not to commit sexual fornication with pagan women because they would turn their hearts against Him and cause them to worship false gods and commit abominations. However, King Solomon did not heed God’s words:

“But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites; of the nations concerning which the LORD said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave [clung] unto these in love. And he had seven hundred wives, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart. For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with [at peace with] the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father. For Solomon went after Ashtorreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom [or Molech] the abomination of the Ammonites. And Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and went not fully after the LORD, as did David his father. Then did Solomon build an high place [a place for pagan worship] for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon. And likewise did he for all his strange wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods.” (1 Kings 11:1-8)

Let us read what Solomon used to be like before he corrupted himself and disobeyed God’s commandments to him. Sometime after Solomon became king, God appeared to him in a dream at night:

“In Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night: and God said, Ask what I shall give thee. And Solomon said, Thou hast shewed unto thy servant David my father great mercy, according as he walked before thee in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with thee; and thou hast kept for him this great kindness, that thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. And now, O LORD my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in. And thy servant is in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude. Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?” (1 Kings 3:5-9)

When the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream and asked him what should God give him, Solomon humbled himself, referring to himself as a little child, and out of all the things he could have asked God to give him, he asked that God would give him an understanding heart so that he could judge the people with discernment. Next, let us read God’s response to his request:

“And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing. And God said unto him, Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life; neither hast asked riches for thyself, nor hast asked the life of thine enemies; but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern judgment [justice]; behold, I have done according to thy words: lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart; so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee. And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches, and honour: so that there shall not be any among the kings like unto thee all thy days. And if thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days.” (1 Kings 3:10-14)

God not only told Solomon that He would give him what he asked for, but He would also give to him what he did not ask for, and that is exactly what God did. God blessed Solomon tremendously, as we are told in 1 Kings 10:23-24:

“So king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth for riches and for wisdom. And all the earth sought to [sought the presence of] Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart.” (1 Kings 10:23-24)

It was not King David but King Solomon whom God instructed to build the magnificent first Jewish temple in honor of God and which would house the Ark of the Covenant. When the building of it was complete:

“Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, unto king Solomon in Jerusalem, that they might bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the city of David, which is Zion. And all the men of Israel assembled themselves unto king Solomon at the feast in the month Ethanim [September or October], which is the seventh month.” (1 Kings 8:1-2)

King Solomon then prayed to God. Let us read part of his prayer to God:

“And he said, LORD God of Israel, there is no God like thee, in heaven above, or on earth beneath, who keepest covenant [keeps your covenant] and mercy with thy servants that walk before thee with all their heart: who hast kept with thy servant David my father that thou promisedst him: thou sparest also with thy mouth, and hast fulfilled it with thine hand, as it is this day. Therefore now, LORD God of Israel, keep with thy servant David my father that thou promisedst him, saying, There shall not fail thee a man in my sight to sit on the throne of Israel; so that thy children take heed to their way, that they walk before me as thou hast walked before me. And now, O God of Israel, let thy word, I pray thee, be verified, which thou sparest unto thy servant David my father.” (1 Kings 8:23-26)

Solomon was referring to the words that God had given to Nathan the prophet to speak to Solomon’s father, King David. God had told David that the throne of his kingdom would last forever:

“And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build an house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom for ever. I will be his father, and he shall be my son. If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men: but my mercy shall not depart away from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee. And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever. According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David.” (2 Samuel 7:2-17)

This is a two-part prophecy that speaks both of David’s son Solomon, whom God would chasten because of Solomon’s sins against Him, but God would have mercy upon him. More importantly, it is a prophecy of the coming Son of God, also called the Son of David, who is Jesus the Christ, whose kingdom will last forever.

Let us read more from Solomon’s prayer to the house of Israel:

“Hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and do according to all that the stranger calleth to thee for: that all people of the earth may know thy name, to fear thee, as do thy people Israel; and that they may know that this house, which I have builded, is called by thy name. If thy people go out to battle against their enemy, whithersoever thou shalt send them, and shall pray unto the LORD toward the city which thou hast chosen, and toward the house that I have built for thy name: then hear thou in heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their justice. If they sin against thee, (for there is no man that sinneth not,) and thou be angry with them, and deliver them to the enemy, so that they carry them away captives unto the land of the enemy, far or near; yet if they shall bethink themselves [come to themselves] in the land whither they were carried captives, and repent, and make supplication unto thee in the land of them that carried them captives, saying, We have sinned, and have done perversely, we have committed wickedness; and so return unto thee with all their heart, and with all their soul, in the land of their enemies, which led them away captive, and pray unto thee toward their land, which thou gavest unto their fathers, the city which thou hast chosen, and the house which I have built for thy name: then hear thou their prayer and their supplication in heaven thy dwelling place, and maintain their cause [justice], and forgive thy people that have sinned against thee, and all their transgressions wherein they have transgressed against thee, and give them compassion before them who carried them captive, that they may have compassion on them: for they be thy people, and thine inheritance, which thou broughtest forth out of Egypt, from the midst of the furnace of iron: that thine eyes may be open unto the supplication of thy servant, and unto the supplication of thy people Israel, to hearken unto them in all that they call for unto thee. For thou didst separate them from among all the people of the earth, to be thine inheritance, as thou sparest by the hand of Moses thy servant, when thou broughtest our fathers out of Egypt, O Lord GOD.” (1 Kings 8:43-53)

That is an amazing prayer from King Solomon! He rightfully acknowledged that when God’s people sin against Him and have done perverse and wicked acts, God would chasten them by allowing them to be taken captive by their enemies to foreign lands. However, God would have mercy upon His people if they come to their senses while in the foreigner’s land and acknowledge their sin to God and return to Him “with all their heart, and with all their soul.” (1 Kings 8:48) Solomon also rightfully acknowledged that God did not call His people to be like the rest of the world; rather, He called them to be separate, apart from it, to be His inheritance. Solomon’s words to Israel also ring true to all of God’s children who are saved by putting our faith and trust in Jesus Christ to save us from all our sins. We are not to be like the rest of the world but are to separate from it.

Sometime later, the Lord appeared to Solomon a second time to give him another warning. Let us read what God said to him this time:

“And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the house [Temple], and the king’s house, and all Solomon’s desire which he was pleased to do, that the LORD appeared to Solomon the second time, as he had appeared unto him at Gibeon. And the LORD said unto him, I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, that thou hast made before me: I have hallowed [sanctified] this house, which thou hast built, to put my name there for ever; and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually. And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments: then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I promised to David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel. But if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods, and worship them: then will I cut off [destroy] Israel out of the land which I have given them; and this house, which I have hallowed for my name, will I cast out of my sight; and Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all people: and at this house, which is high, every one that passeth by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss; and they shall say, Why hath the LORD done thus unto this land, and to this house? And they shall answer, Because they forsook the LORD their God, who brought forth their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have taken hold upon other gods, and have worshipped them, and served them: therefore hath the LORD brought upon all them this evil.” (1 Kings 9:1-9)

God reiterated to Solomon the promise He had made to Solomon’s father, King David, that God would establish the throne of David’s kingdom forever. King David wasn’t perfect, and we know that after God had made the promise to him, David would later commit a great sin against God when he slept with a married man’s (Uriah) wife (Bathsheba), got her pregnant, and had Uriah put on the front lines of battle knowing that he would be killed, and he was. After David had done that, God sent Nathan the prophet to call David’s sin out to him:

“…Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, I anointed thee king over Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul; and I gave thee thy master’s [Saul, the former king of Israel] house, and thy master’s wives into thy bosom, and gave thee the house of Israel and Judah; and if that had been too little, I would moreover have given unto thee such and such [much more] things. Wherefore hast thou despised the commandment of the LORD, to do evil in his sight? thou hast killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon. Now therefore the sword shall never depart from thine house; because thou hast despised me, and hast taken the wife of Uriah, the Hittite to be thy wife.” (2 Samuel 12:8-10)

Through Nathan’s words, David realized that God had given him everything he wanted and yet, it wasn’t enough. David realized that he had destroyed Uriah, not only by taking his life but also by taking the only one he had, which was his wife, whom Uriah had deeply loved. David realized he had sinned against God, and he confessed his sin to God. Because God is loving and merciful and He knew that David was truly sorry for his sin - not just because he was caught in his sin - God forgave David. However, Nathan also told David because of the sin David had committed against God, which David’s enemies could use to blaspheme God, that the child Bathsheba was pregnant with, would not survive, and that is what happened. (2 Samuel 12) In his despair, David wrote Psalm 51, a beautiful song to God, in which he asks God to “create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right [steadfast] spirit within me.” (Psalm 51:10) Let us read this psalm in its entirety:

“Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me. Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified [be found just] when thou speakest, and be clear [blameless] when thou judgest. Behold, I was shapen [brought forth] in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom. Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Make me to hear joy and gladness; that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice. Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free [generous] spirit. Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee. Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, thou God of my salvation: and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness. O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise. For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion: build thou the walls of Jerusalem. Then shalt thou be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness, with burnt offering and whole burnt offering: then shall they offer bullocks upon thine altar.” (Psalm 51)

The account of David and the sin that he committed shows us that we all sin, even those we perceive as “the best of us,” and that we are all in need of the Savior to save us from our sins, that we cannot save ourselves. It also shows that we must not remain in our sin, and that we must turn away from our sin and turn to God. David did acknowledge his sin against God. He asked God to have mercy on him by washing him clean of his sins, to give him a new heart, and to help him remain steadfast in Him. David serves as a model for all we who call ourselves believers in Jesus Christ. As God so many times in His word tells His people to do, so HIs words ring true to all of us today:

“Therefore say thou unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Turn [return] ye unto me, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will turn [return] unto you, saith the LORD of hosts.” (Zechariah 1:3)

Returning to the Scriptures above from 1 Kings 9:1-9, God clearly warned Solomon that if he or his children started disobeying Him and started worshipping other gods, false gods, then God would take them out of His land, God’s land, and God would destroy the temple that Solomon had built. However, this did not negate the promise that God had made to David, that through David, his kingdom would last forever, for it is a prophecy of a kingdom that truly will reign forever, and that is of Jesus Christ’s kingdom, King Jesus, who would come to earth from heaven and be born as a human from the lineage of King David.

While Solomon had once prayed his beautiful and true prayer after the building of the temple, he did not heed his own words he had prayed to God, nor did he heed the warning God had given him. Unlike when his father David had fallen into sin, when Solomon fell into sin, he did not repent of it and turn back to God. Like God had done with his father David, God had blessed Solomon tremendously. Solomon had all that any man could want, and yet it wasn’t enough. However, unlike his father David, Solomon did not admit his sin to God and repent of it, but he kept on sinning in disobedience to God. Solomon is an example of all the very wealthy people in our world today who are never satisfied with what they have and who have turned to false gods and have committed abominations. Because of Solomon’s sins against God and his worship of false gods, God became angry with Solomon and told him what was going to happen to him as a result of his flagrant disobedience to Him:

“And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the LORD God of Israel, which had appeared unto him twice, and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which the LORD commanded. Wherefore the LORD said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee [you have done this], and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend [tear away] the kingdom from thee and will give it to thy servant. Notwithstanding in thy days I will not do it for David thy father’s sake: but I will rend it out of the hand of thy son. Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe to thy son for David my servant’s sake, and for Jerusalem’s sake which I have chosen.” (1 Kings 11:9-13)

Let us read from 1 Kings of this dividing of Israel, which, as God said would happen in the Scriptures above (1 Kings 11:11), began with a servant of King Solomon’s named Jeroboam:

“And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valor: and Solomon seeing the young man that he was industrious, he made him ruler over all the charge [labour force] of the house of Joseph. And it came to pass at that time when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way; and he had clad himself with a new garment; and they two were alone in the field: and Ahijah caught the new garment that was on him, and rent [tore] it in twelve pieces: and he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces: for thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend [tear] the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee: (but he shall have one tribe for my servant David’s sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel:) because that they have forsaken me, and have worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon, and have not walked in my ways, to do that which is right in mine eyes, and to keep my statutes and my judgments, as did David his father. Howbeit I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand: but I will make him prince all the days of his life for David my servant’s sake, whom I chose, because he kept my commandments and my statutes: but I will take the kingdom out of his son’s hand, and will give it unto thee, even ten tribes. And unto his son will I give one tribe, that David my servant may have a light [lamp] alway before me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen me to put my name there. And I will take thee, and thou shalt reign according to all that thy soul desireth, and shalt be king over Israel. And it shall be, if thou wilt hearken unto all that I command thee, and wilt walk in my ways, and do that is right in my sight, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did; that I will be with thee, and build thee a sure house, as I built for David, and will give Israel unto thee. And I will for this afflict the seed of David, but not for ever.” (1 Kings 11:28-39)

After King Solomon died and his son, Rehoboam, became king of Israel, Jeroboam and all of Israel came to Rehoboam to protest that his father Solomon had ruled them with a mighty and burdensome hand and asked Rehoboam to rule them with a lighter hand and then they would serve him. Rehoboam asked them to wait for three days before he would answer them, during which time he sought counsel from the elders, who advised him to listen to the people. However, he disregarded their advice and sought counsel from the younger men, who advised him to rule the people with an even harsher hand than his father Solomon. Rehoboam decided to heed the advice of the younger men, and three days later he addressed Jeroboam and the people of Israel:

“…My father made your yoke heavy, and I will add to your yoke: my father also chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions [scourges with points].” (1 Kings 12:14)

The Bible tells us why Rehoboam made this decision:

“Wherefore the king hearkened not unto [did not listen to] the people; for the cause was from the LORD, that he might perform his saying, which the LORD spake by Ahijah the Shilonite unto Jeroboam the son of Nebat.” (1 Kings 12:15)

The people of Israel did not like Rehoboam’s response to them, and they said to Rehoboam:

“What portion have we in David? neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse: to your tents, O Israel: now see to thine own house, David. So Israel departed unto their tents.” (1 Kings 12:16)

The majority of Israel rebelled and rejected Rehoboam as their king and chose Jeroboam as their king instead. Only the people in Judah decided to follow Rehoboam. The Bible tells us, “But as for the children of Israel which dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them.” (1 Kings 12:17) When King Rehoboam came to Jerusalem, he gathered 180,000 fighting men from the tribe of Judah and also from the tribe of Benjamin, with the intent of going to fight against the ten tribes of Israel that had rebelled against him and to bring them back into his kingdom. However, God intervened:

“But the word of God came unto Shemaiah the man of God, saying, Speak unto Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and unto all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the remnant of the people, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Ye shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren the children of Israel: return every man to his house; for this thing is from me. They hearkened therefore to the word of the LORD, and returned [turned] to depart, according to the word of the LORD.” (1 Kings 12:22-23)

Thus, we see now how and why the once unified kingdom of Israel became two kingdoms, the northern kingdom with ten tribes, and the southern kingdom with two tribes. It is from the remnant of the people of the southern tribe of Judah that Messiah, Jesus Christ, would later come.

Jeroboam, the first king of the northern kingdom of Israel, was the first of many wicked kings. His evil leadership began when he worried that if the people under his rule went to worship and sacrifice at Solomon’s temple in Jerusalem, they would turn against him and would instead follow Rehoboam, king of Judah. Ignoring the words that God had previously spoken to him through the prophet Ahijah, and in clear disobedience to Almighty God, he made two golden calves for the people to worship instead of worshipping God:

“Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. And he set the one in Beth-el, and the other put he in Dan. And this thing became a sin: for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan. And he made an house of [shrines on the] high places, and made priests of the lowest of the people, which were not of the sons of Levi. And Jeroboam ordained [instituted] a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the feast that is in Judah, and he offered upon the altar. So did he in Beth-el, sacrificing unto the calves that he had made: and he placed in Beth-el the priests of the high places which he had made. So he offered upon the altar which he had made in Beth-el the fifteenth day of the eight month, even in the month which he had devised of his own heart; and ordained a feast unto the children of Israel: and he offered upon the altar, and burnt incense.” (1 Kings 12:28-33)

Jeroboam had told the people that it was too much trouble for them to continue going to Jerusalem to sacrifice at the Temple, even though they had been doing that ever since it was built, and the people went along with it. Instead of worshipping the one true God, the mighty one of Israel, they worshipped two golden calves made from human hands. Jeroboam even went so far as telling them that it was the golden calves which were the gods that had brought them out of Egypt! And yet, the people went along with his lies and did not rebel against him. That is what disobedience to God does to people: it makes them stupid!

Beginning with Jeroboam, the northern kingdom of Israel would have only evil kings, and it would be taken by the Assyrians into captivity in 722 BC. While the southern kingdom of Judah did have several kings who started and ended good - Asa, Jehoshaphat, Jotham, Hezekiah, and Josiah - the rest were evil. Biblegateway.com has a very informative chart that shows the kings and prophets of Israel and Judah. (See: https://www.biblegateway.com/learn/bible-101/kings-prophets-israel-judah/)

Consequently, God sent the Babylonian king, Nebuchadnezzar, to conquer Judah, burn Solomon’s temple and destroy Jerusalem, and take many of the people of Judah captive to Babylon for a period of seventy years. God did exactly as He had told Solomon He would do. Remember, God had appeared to Solomon a second time when God told Solomon He had heard his prayer to Him after Solomon had built the temple. God had warned Solomon of the consequences if he or his children turned from Him to worship other Gods. Let us read God’s words to him again:

“But if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods, and worship them: then will I cut off [destroy] Israel out of the land which I have given them; and this house, which I have hallowed for my name, will I cast out of my sight; and Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all people: and at this house, which is high, every one that passeth by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss; and they shall say, Why hath the LORD done thus unto this land, and to this house? And they shall answer, Because they forsook the LORD their God, who brought forth their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have taken hold upon other gods, and have worshipped them, and served them: therefore hath the LORD brought upon them all this evil.” (1 Kings 9:6-9)

After Solomon ignored God’s words and committed sexual fornication with pagan women and he began to worship and sacrifice to their false gods, God had told Solomon that He would tear the kingdom of Israel from him when Solomon’s son would reign. All of God’s words to Solomon came to pass. The once unified kingdom of Israel was divided, and the northern kingdom of Israel was taken captive to Assyria, and the southern kingdom of Judah was taken into captivity by Babylon. The glorious temple built by Solomon in Jerusalem was burned to the ground, and Jerusalem was destroyed, just as God had told Solomon said would happen. May this serve as an example to all of us: God means what He says; what He says He will do, He will do. God did promise judgment to Solomon, and judgment came. Because of His promise to Solomon’s father, David, God told Solomon He would not to tear away the kingdom while Solomon was king but during the reign of his son. However, God would keep part of the kingdom under control of Solomon’s son. Let us read God’s words to Solomon again:

“Notwithstanding in thy days I will not do it for David thy father’s sake: but I will rend [tear] it out of the hand of thy son. Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe to thy son for David my servant’s sake, and for Jerusalem’s sake which I have chosen.” (1 Kings 11:12-13)

These words of God to Solomon were confirmation of the words God had spoken to his father David when he was king of Israel. Let us read those words again because they should remind us that God has no forgotten His people Israel:

“And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build an house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom for ever. I will be his father, and he shall be my son. If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes [strokes] of the children of men…” (2 Samuel 7:12-14)

That is exactly what happened. David’s son Solomon became king, and he built the first Jewish temple for God. Even though God warned him not to, Solomon did commit iniquity when he had sexual intercourse with foreign women and worshipped and sacrificed to their false gods. Consequently, God did chasten Solomon by allowing Israel to be divided under the reign of his son, Rehoboam. Not only was Israel divided, but both kingdoms, the northern and southern kingdoms, were conquered and taken captive into the foreign lands of “children of men” in Assyria and Babylon. However, God did save a remnant of the kingdom, from whom the throne of David’s kingdom would be established forever, and that remnant is the tribe of Judah, from whom Messiah would come. Let us read again the rest of what God had promised to David:

“But my mercy shall not depart away from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee. And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever. According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David.” (2 Samuel 7:15-17)

Let us also read King David’s response to God’s words that were spoken to him through Nathan the prophet:

“Then went king David in, and sat before the LORD, and he said, Who am I, O Lord GOD? and what is my house, that thou hast brought me hitherto? And this was yet a small thing in thy sight, O Lord GOD; but thou hast spoken also of thy servant’s house for a great while to come. And is this the manner of man, O Lord GOD? And what can David say more unto thee? for thou, Lord GOD, knowest thy servant. For thy word’s sake, and according to thine own heart, hast thou done all these great things, to make thy servant know them. Wherefore thou art great, O LORD God: for there is none like thee, neither is there any God beside thee, according to all that we have heard with our ears. And what one nation in the earth is like thy people, even like Israel, whom God went to redeem for a people to himself, and to make him a name, and to do for you great things and terrible i[awesome], for thy land, before thy people, which thou redeemedst to thee from Egypt, from the nations and their gods? For thou hast confirmed to thyself thy people Israel to be a people unto thee for ever: and thou, LORD, art become their God. And now, O LORD God, the word that thou hast spoken concerning thy servant, and concerning his house, establish it for ever, and do as thou hast said. And let thy name be magnified for ever, saying, The LORD of hosts is the God over Israel: and let the house of thy servant David be established before thee. For thou, O LORD of hosts, God of Israel, hast revealed to thy servant, saying, I will build thee an house: therefore hath thy servant found in his heart to pray this prayer unto thee. And now, O Lord GOD, thou art that God, and thy words be true, and thou hast promised this goodness unto thy servant: therefore now let it please thee to bless the house of thy servant, that it may continue for ever before thee: for thou, O Lord GOD, hast spoken it: and with thy blessing let the house of thy servant be blessed for ever.” (2 Samuel 7:18-29)

David humbled himself before God, acknowledging who God is, that there is none like Him, and that God knows his thoughts before he even spoke them to God. Unlike so many rulers of Israel we read about in the Bible, as well as so many rulers and government leaders in our world today, David was not puffed up in pride when God had spoken these words to him through the prophet Nathan but had asked God, “Who am I, O Lord GOD? and what is my house, that thou hast brought me hitherto?” (2 Samuel 7:18) David acknowledged that it was God Himself who had redeemed the people of Israel out of the hands of Pharaoh in Egypt. David acknowledged that God had chosen Israel to be His people forever and to magnify His name. David ended his prayer by asking God to do what He said He was going to do, which was to establish the house of David, His servant, and that it would continue forever.

In the words that God gave the prophet Nathan to tell to David, God also reconfirmed the unconditional land covenant that He had made with Abraham (Genesis 17:8):

“Moreover I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own, and move no more; neither shall the children of wickedness afflict them any more, as be foretime…” (2 Samuel 7:10)

The establishment of the house and kingdom of David which will last forever began with David, continued with his son Solomon, will have its final fulfillment when Jesus returns to earth at the conclusion of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble and takes His rightful and righteous reign on earth for a period of 1,000 years, followed by the creation of a new heaven and a new earth, from which He will reign forever.

The Old Testament prophesies of this link between David and Jesus Christ, through the tribe of Judah:

“In that day shall the branch of the LORD be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and comely [appealing] for them that are escaped of [have survived] Israel.” (Isaiah 4:2)

“And there shall come forth a rod [shoot] out of the stem [stock or trunk] of Jesse [David’s father], and a Branch shall grow [bear fruit] out of his roots. And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD; and shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the LORD: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears: but with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked. And righteousness shall be the girdle [belt] of his loins, and faithfulness in the girdle of his reins [belt of his waist].” (Isaiah 11:1-5)

“And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign [banner] of the people; to it [him] shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest [resting place] shall be glorious. And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands [coastlands] of the sea. And he shall set up an ensign [banner] for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.” (Isaiah 11:10-12)

“Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper [act wisely], and shall execute judgment and justice [justice and righteousness] in the earth. In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS. Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that they shall no more say, The LORD liveth, which brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; but, The LORD liveth, which brought up and which led the seed of the house of Israel out of the north country, and from all countries whither I had driven them; and they shall dwell in their own land.” (Jeremiah 23:5-8)

“Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will perform that good thing which I have promised unto the house of Israel and to the house of Judah. In those days, and at that time, will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David; and he shall execute judgment [justice] and righteousness in the land [earth]. In those days shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely: and this is the name wherewith she shall be called, The LORD our righteousness. For thus saith the LORD; David shall never want [lack] a man to sit upon the throne of the house of Israel…"“ (Jeremiah 33:14-17)

“Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, thou, and thy fellows [companions] that sit before thee: for they are men wondered at [men of a sign]; for, behold, I will bring forth my servant the BRANCH. For behold the stone that I have laid before Joshua; upon one stone shall be seven eyes: behold, I will engrave the graving [inscription] thereof, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day. In that day, saith the LORD of hosts, shall ye call every man his neighbour under the vine and under the fig tree.” (Zechariah 3:8-10)

“Then take silver and gold, and make crowns, and set them upon the head of Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest; and speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out [branch out] of his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD: even he shall build the temple of the LORD; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne; and shall be a priest upon his throne: and the counsel of peace shall be between them both.” (Zechariah 6:11-13)

“The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham…So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are fourteen generations.” (Matthew 1:1, 17)

“And I [John the apostle] saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book [scroll] written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals. And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof? And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book [scroll], neither to look thereon. And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon. And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda [Judah], the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof. And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.” (Revelation 5:1-6)

It is ONLY Jesus Christ, the Messiah and the High Priest, who will judge every person who has ever lived with righteousness and justice. It is ONLY when Jesus returns to earth the second time that the surviving remnant of Israel will finally turn to Him and be saved and will be gathered by Him in their land. It is ONLY at that time will they dwell safely in all the land that God has given unto them.

As today’s Scripture verses confirm to us, the Lord God has not forgotten Zion, the people of Israel and Judah. In the time that Isaiah prophesied these words, the people of Judah had not been taken into captivity by Babylon, Jerusalem had not been destroyed, and the Temple had not yet been burned. However, Isaiah’s prophecies did come to pass, exactly as God said they would, and when they did, they would have felt like their world was ending, like God had forgotten them. But this prophecy is not only a prophecy of the Jews’ 70-year captivity in Babylon and their subsequent return to Israel, but it is a prophecy that looks far into the future, when God’s only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, would come to earth the first time, be born of a virgin, serve as God’s suffering servant and offer salvation to all who would believe in Him as their Messiah, their long looked-for Savior, only to be despised and be rejected by those who He came to save first, the Jews. They would have Him crucified because He spoke the truth to them but did not want to hear and heed. Jesus Christ gave up His life, died, was put in a tomb for three days, after which He rose from the dead, remained on earth forty days, and then ascended to heaven to sit at the right hand of God the Father, where He is today.

At Jesus’ first coming, the nation of Israel rejected the Son of her womb. Consequently, Jesus turned His message of salvation to the Gentiles to offer them salvation. The gospel message would be preached throughout the world, beginning with His small number of disciples who had believed in Him as the Messiah. Before Jesus ascended to heaven, He was with His apostles and He:

“…commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence. When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power [authority]. But ye shall receive power, after that [when] the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven. Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is from Jerusalem a sabbath day’s journey.” (Acts 1:8-12)

Jesus’ apostles wanted to know when He would restore the kingdom of Israel. At the time of Jesus’ first coming, Israel was living under the rule of the Roman Empire, and Israel was not the sovereign, independent kingdom it once had been. But Jesus told His apostles that it wasn’t for them to know when the kingdom of Israel would be restored, for it is only of the power of God the Father to know the timing of when that would happen. And, there was a lot to be done before that would happen, and that is the spreading of the gospel, the good news of salvation from sins through faith in Jesus Christ, all around the world. Before that could start happening, His apostles would first need to be filled with the power of the Holy Spirit. After Jesus ascended to heaven, as He said would happen, He sent His Holy Spirit upon them:

“And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord [purpose or mind] in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven [divided] tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven. Now when this was noised abroad [sound occurred], the multitude came together, and were confounded [confused], because that every man heard them speak in his own language. And they were all amazed and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galilaeans? And how hear we every man in our own tongue [language or dialect], wherein we were born? Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judaea, and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and Asia, Phrygia, and Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of [visitors from] Rome, Jews and proselytes, Cretes and Abrabians, we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God. And they were all amazed, and were in doubt [perplexed], saying one to another, What meaneth this? Others mocking said, These men are full of new wine.” (Acts 2:1-13)

Did you notice the people’s responses to what Jesus’ apostles were telling the people in the peoples’ own languages? Some were amazed by the power of God in what they had just seen and heard, where the same people they knew were from Galilee, and they knew the language that they spoke and it wasn’t the languages that they were now speaking. While some people were amazed at what they heard, others mocked them and accused them of being drunk on new wine. Nothing has changed since the gospel message first began being taught. The truth of God truly does reveal the character of one’s heart.

Let us read from John chapter 21 and consider Peter, the apostle who three times had denied knowing Jesus when Jesus was arrested prior to being crucified, but whose faith in Him was restored after God raised Jesus from the dead. After Jesus was resurrected and while His disciples were fishing in a boat in the sea of Tiberias, Jesus came to the shore and watched them fish. Without them knowing it was Jesus, He asked them, “Children, have ye any meat [food]?” “They answered him, No.” Then Jesus replied to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and ye shall find.” They did as He said, and they caught so many fish in the net, they couldn’t lift it into the boat and had to drag it behind the boat because it was so heavy. The apostle John then realized that this man speaking to them from the shore was Jesus, and he said to Peter, “it is the Lord.”. Peter then jumped into the sea to swim to the shore where Jesus was. Peter couldn’t wait to see Him! Jesus told them to bring the fish they had caught. Peter went and got the net and counted 153 fish in the net. Jesus then fed them from the food He had cooked for them. The Bible tells us this was the third time that Jesus had revealed Himself to His disciples after He was resurrected from the dead. Jesus then asked Peter three times if Peter loved Him. Peter responded three times that he loved Jesus. After the first time Peter responded, Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.” The second time Jesus said, “Feed [tend] my sheep,” and the third time Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.” Jesus had not only restored Peter’s faith in Him, but He also told Peter that it would be Peter who would feed His sheep, meaning it would be Peter who would tell the good news of salvation through faith in Him as a good shepherd takes care of his sheep. Three times Peter had denied Jesus, but now, three times Peter confirmed His love for Jesus.

Now, let us read the words of Peter, who having been filled with the Holy Spirit, as he stood before the multitude of Jewish men in Jerusalem, some of whom had accused Peter and the other apostles of being drunk on new wine when they had spoken to the Jews in the languages of the countries from which the Jews had come. This same Peter who had been filled with fear when the authorities were hunting down Jesus and fearing that he too may be arrested, was no longer afraid of men and was now filled with boldness to proclaim the gospel message of Christ. Let us read the words he spoke to this crowd:

“But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words: for these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day. But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; and it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: and on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy…” (Acts 2:14-18)

This was the reason why the apostles from Galilee were able to speak the good news of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ to the Jews who had come to Jerusalem and who were from all over the world and spoke many languages. Peter also began to prophesy of things that were still to come far into the future. Not only would Peter prophesy to them at that time he was speaking, but before he died, he would also write two epistles, 1 Peter and 2 Peter, in which he would speak about prophecy:

“We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star [Jesus] arise in your hearts: knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation [origin]. For the prophecy came not in old [any] time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.” (2 Peter 1:19-21)

Further, Peter told them that though they had crucified Jesus and had Him put to death, Jesus didn’t stay dead but was resurrected by God, fulfilling the prophecy that God had made to King David that his kingdom would be established forever (2 Samuel 7):

“And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke: the sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come: and it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of [attested by] God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know: Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: whom God hath raised up, having loosed [destroyed] the pains of death: because it was not possible that he should be holden of [held by] it. For David speaketh concerning him, I foresaw the Lord always before my face, for he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved [shaken]: therefore did my heart rejoice, and my tongue was glad; moreover also my flesh shall rest in hope: because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell [hades], neither thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. Thou hast made known to me the ways of life; thou shalt make me full of joy with thy countenance. Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day. Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne; he seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption. This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses. Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear. For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself, The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, until I make thy foes thy footstool. Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.” (Acts 2:19-36)

Peter unashamedly told his accusers that they had crucified Jesus but they had not thwarted God’s plan, for God Himself raised Jesus from the dead. Peter also told them the good news of Christ, that all who call on the name of the Lord will be saved. Let us read what happened next:

“Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart [cut to the heart], and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission [forgiveness] of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call. And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward [crooked] generation. Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls. And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by [through] the apostles. And all that believed were together, and had all things common; and sold their possessions and goods, and parted [distributed] them to all men, as every man [anyone] had need. And they, continuing daily with one accord [mind] in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat [food] with gladness and singleness [simplicity] of heart, praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be [were being] saved.” (Acts 2:37-47)

So began the ministry of Peter and the apostles when they were filled with the Holy Spirit of God and began to do as Jesus had previously commanded them to do after He had risen from the dead:

“And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power [authority] is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go therefore, and teach [make disciples of] all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway even unto the end of the world. Amen.” (Matthew 28:18-20)

That is exactly what has been happening ever since that day of Pentecost when Peter first preached the gospel message of Jesus Christ and 3,000 souls were saved. Jesus would later go on to call another apostle, whose name was Saul. Saul was also called Paul, and he once persecuted the early Christians and did so with much zeal and threatened to murder them, both men and women. One day when Saul and his companions were on a road to Damascus to find Christians, bind them, and bring them back to Jerusalem, Jesus literally blinded Saul with a light from heaven:

“And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: and he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? And he [Saul] said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do. And the men which journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice, but seeing no man. And Saul arose from the earth; and when his eyes were opened, he saw no man: but they led him by the hand, and brought him into Damascus. And he was three days without sight, and neither did eat nor drink.” (Acts 9:3-9)

Did you notice in the Scriptures above that Jesus didn’t ask Saul why he was persecuting Christians? No, Jesus asked Saul why he was persecuting Him? When anyone persecutes Christians, they are not persecuting them, but are persecuting Jesus. Instead of denying to Jesus that he was persecuting Him, Saul asked Jesus what He wanted him to do. Saul could have told Jesus that he would not do as He said, but Saul did do what Jesus had told him to do. Because the light of heaven had shone so brightly around him, Saul could not see for three days, neither did he eat nor drink, and had to rely on the help of his companions to lead him into Damascus. Next, Jesus told His disciple Ananias who lived in Damascus that He had chosen Saul to be His apostle to preach the word of God to the Gentiles, the non-Jews, and also to the Jews. Ananias reacted with fear, for he knew all about Saul and how he vigorously persecuted Christians:

“And there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ananias; and to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here, Lord. And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and enquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul, of Tarsus: for, behold, he prayeth, and hath seen in a vision a man named Ananias coming in, and putting his hand on him, that he might receive his sight. Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man, how much evil [harm] he hath done to thy saints at Jerusalem: and here he hath authority from the chief priests to bind all that call on thy name. But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel: for I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name’s sake.” (Acts 9:10-16)

Let us continue reading about Saul:

“And Ananias went his way, and entered into the house; and putting his hands upon him said, Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the way as thou camest, hath sent me, that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost. And immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been [something like] scales: and he received sight forthwith [at once], and arose, and was baptized. And when he had received meat [food], he was strengthened. Then was Saul certain days with the disciples which were at Damascus. And straightway he preached Christ in the synagogues, that he is the Son of God. But all that heard him were amazed, and said; Is not this he that destroyed them which called on this name in Jerusalem, and came hither for that intent, that he might bring them bound unto the chief priests? But Saul increased the more in strength, and confounded the Jews which dwelt at Damascus, proving that this is very Christ [this Jesus is the Christ]. And after that many days were fulfilled, the Jews took counsel to kill him…” (Acts 9:17-23)

Isn’t it amazing that Jesus chose Saul, who was one of the top religious leaders, a Pharisee, who not only had previously rejected Jesus as the Messiah but had also persecuted with zeal those who believed in Him as the Messiah, and now this same Saul began to preach salvation of sins through faith in Jesus Christ? Years later, Paul would write In the book of Philippians about his past as a Pharisee, and he told us that Christians are not required to be circumcised, that we are not to trust in the flesh to save us, as he once did, but we are to trust in Jesus Christ:

“For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh. Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh, I more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee; concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless. But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ.” (Philippians 3:3-7)

Paul would later speak the words below about himself when he appeared before King Herod Agrippa II to defend himself after the Jews had accused him of desecrating the temple and had him arrested. Paul gave his testimony to the king of how he came to faith in Jesus Christ and was obedient to Him when Jesus called him to be a witness to both the Gentiles and the Jews:

“Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Thou art permitted to speak for thyself. Then Paul stretched forth the hand, and answered for himself: I think myself happy, king Agrippa, because I shall answer for myself this day before thee touching [concerning] all the things whereof I am accused of the Jews: especially because I know thee to be expert in all customs and questions which are among the Jews: wherefore I beseech thee to hear me patiently. My manner of life from my youth, which was at the first [spent from the beginning] among mine own nation at Jerusalem, know all the Jews; which knew me from the beginning, if they would testify, that after the most straitest [strictest] sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee. And now I stand and am judged for the hope of the promise made of God unto our fathers: unto which promise our twelve tribes, instantly [earnestly] serving God day and night, hope to come [attain]. For which hope’s sake, king Agrippa, I am accused of [by] the Jews. Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you, that God should raise the dead? I verily thought with myself, that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth. Which thing I also did in Jerusalem: and many of the saints did I shut up in prison, having received authority from the chief priests; and when they were put to death, I gave my voice [cast my vote] against them. And I punished them oft [often] in every synagogue, and compelled them to blaspheme; and being exceedingly mad [enraged] against them, I persecuted them even unto strange cities. Whereupon as I went to Damascus with authority and commission from the chief priests, at midday, O king, I saw in the way a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me and them which journeyed with me. And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking unto me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. And I said, Who art thou, Lord? And he said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest. But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear [reveal] unto thee; delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, to open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified [set apart] by faith that is in me. Whereupon, O king Agrippa, I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision: but shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts [region] of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet [befitting] for repentance. For these causes the Jews caught [seized] me in the temple, and went about to kill me. Having therefore obtained help of God, I continue unto this day, witnessing both to small and great, saying none other things than those which the prophets and Moses did say should come: That Christ should suffer, and that he should be the first that should rise from the dead, and should [would] shew [proclaim] light unto the people, and to the Gentiles.” (Acts 26:1-23)

Paul spoke the truth to the king and to all who were present. Next, a Roman procurator named Festus accused Paul of having gone mad due to all of his learning. Let us read what transpired next:

“But he [Paul] said, I am not mad [out of my mind], most noble Festus; but speak forth the words of truth and soberness [reason]. For the king knoweth of these things, before whom also I speak freely: for I am persuaded that none of these things are hidden from him; for this thing was not done in a corner. King Agrippa, believest thou the prophets? I know that thou believest. Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian. And Paul said, I would to God, that not only thou, but also all that hear me this day, were both almost, and altogether such as I am, except these bonds. And when he had thus spoken, the king rose up, and the governor, and Bernice, and they sat with them: and when they were gone aside, they talked between themselves, saying, This man doth nothing worthy of death or of bonds. Then said Agrippa unto Festus, This man might have been set at liberty, if he had not appealed unto Caesar.” (Acts 26:25-32)

Paul had previously revealed that he was a Roman citizen by birth and had appealed to let him make his case before the Roman Caesar. Gotquestions.org writes that after Paul gave his testimony and appeal to King Agrippa, Paul did go to Rome: (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/Porcius-Festus.html)

“Once in Rome, Paul spends two years under house arrest, chained to a guard, but he is finally in the city where he had longed to be for years (Romans 15:23). And while there he has the opportunity to write the epistles Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon.”

Let us read of one of those times when Paul spoke to people when he was under house arrest in Rome:

“And when we came to Rome, the centurion delivered the prisoners to the captain of the guard: but Paul was suffered [permitted] to dwell by himself with a soldier that kept [guarded] him. And it came to pass, that after three days Paul called the chief [leaders] of the Jews together, he said unto them, Men and brethren, though I have committed nothing against the people, or customs of our fathers, yet was I delivered prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans. Who, when they had examined me, would have [wanted to] let me go, because there was no cause of death in me. But when the Jews spake against it, I was constrained [compelled] to appeal unto Caesar; not that I had ought [anything] to accuse my nation of. For this cause therefore have I called for you, to see you, and to speak with you: because that for the hope of Israel I am bound with this chain. And they said unto him, We neither received letters out of Judaea concerning thee, neither any of the brethren that came shewed or spake any harm [evil] of thee. But we desire to hear of thee what thou thinkest: for as concerning this sect, we know that everywhere it is spoken against. And when they had appointed him a day, there came many to him into his lodging; to whom he expounded [explained] and testified the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets, from morning till evening. And some believed the things which were spoken, and some believed not. And when they agreed not among themselves, they departed, after that Paul had spoken one word, Well spake the Holy Ghost by Esaias [Isaiah] the prophet unto our fathers, saying, Go unto this people, and say, Hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and not perceive: for the heart of this people is waxed gross [has grown dull], and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes have they closed; lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. Be it known therefore unto you, that the salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles, and that they will hear it. And when he had said these words, the Jews departed, and had great reasoning [dispute] among themselves. And Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired [rented] house, and received all that came in unto him, preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence, no man forbidding him.” (Acts 28:16-31)

In the Scriptures above, it states that Paul explained to them about Jesus from the law of Moses and from the prophets. Paul used the Old Testament Scriptures to teach them about Jesus. It was only recently that my own eyes were opened to the fact that the prophecies of Jesus are throughout much of the Old Testament. Paul didn’t cite any text other than that which was familiar to and read often by the Jews to tell them about Jesus. Let us read the prophecy of Jesus spoken by Moses in the Law:

“The LORD thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken; according to all that thou desiredst of the LORD thy God in Horeb in the day of the assembly, saying, Let me not hear again the voice of the LORD my God, neither let me see this great fire any more, that I die not. And the LORD said unto me, They have well spoken that which they have spoken. I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him.” (Deuteronomy 18:15-19)

The Jews were very familiar with these words that Moses had spoken to the priests, the Levites, and all the tribe of Levi. John the Baptist, Jesus’ cousin, began preparing the way of the Lord Jesus and telling people about Him. Let us read what John wrote in the first chapter of his book:

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended [apprehended] it not. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power [the right] to become the sons [children] 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. And the Word was made flesh [became flesh], and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. John bear witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me [ranks higher than I]: for he was before me. And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace. For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.” (John 1:1-18)

The Jews wanted to question John about what he was saying and why, and they sent priests and the Levites to him:

“And this is the record [testimony] of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou? And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ. And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias [Elijah]? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered , No. Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself? He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias [Isaiah]. And they which were sent were of the Pharisees.” (John 1:19-24)

When they had asked John, “Art thou that prophet,” they were referring to the Prophet whom long ago Moses had said God would raise up from among them and would put His words in His mouth. Yes, they were looking for the Prophet, as prophesied by Moses that He would come, but when He came, the majority of His own people rejected Him.

After Jesus healed a man who had been sick for 38 years, likely paralyzed, healing him on the sabbath day, the Jews sought to persecute and kill Jesus because He had healed the man on the sabbath day. They came to Jesus and questioned Him. Jesus replied to them, “My Father worketh hitherto, and I work.” (John 5:17) This infuriated the Jews because Jesus “not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that God was his Father, making himself equal with God.” (John 5:18) John 5:19-47 tells us of the things that Jesus said to the Jews, telling them that that He could do nothing of Himself but only did that of the Father. At the end of His discussion with the Jews, He told them this:

“And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape [form]. And ye have not his word abiding in you: for whom he hath sent, him ye believe not. Search [you search] the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. And [but] ye will not come to me, that ye might have life. I receive not honour from men. But I know you, that ye have not the love of God in you. I am come in my Father’s name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive. How can ye believe, which receive honour one of another, and seek not the honour that cometh from God only? Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father: there is one that accuseth you, even Moses, in whom ye trust. For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me. But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words?” (John 5:37-47)

Though the majority of the Jews rejected Jesus as the Prophet which Moses said God would raise up from among them, Jesus’ disciples did recognize Him as the Prophet after they saw Him perform yet another miracle. The miracle which they saw was when He fed not only 5,000 men but also women and children with only five barley loaves and two small fishes and even had twelve baskets of leftovers (John 6):

“Then those men, when they had seen the miracle that Jesus did, said, This is of a truth that prophet that should come into the world.” (John 6:14)

In Matthew chapter 23, Jesus pronounced several woes specifically addressed to the scribes and Pharisees, whom Jesus called “hypocrites!” These were the most educated men of the Old Testament Scriptures, who read and studied God’s word daily, and yet, they did not recognize Him as their Messiah. He told them just as their fathers before them had rejected and killed the prophets that God had sent them, so too would they reject the prophets, wise men, and scribes that Jesus would send them:

“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish [adorn] the sepulchres of the righteous, and say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. Wherefore ye be witnesses unto [against] yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers [measure of guilt]. Ye serpents, ye generation [brood or offspring] of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell? Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city: that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar. Verily I say unto you, all these things shall come upon this generation.” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 23:29-36)

Returning to the questioning of Paul by the Jews when he was under house arrest in Rome, Paul was pointing out to them that throughout God’s word which they read and studied, both Moses and the prophets had prophesied of their coming Messiah. Yet, they did not accept Him when He did come the first time but rejected Him and had Him crucified. Just as Jesus said would happen, the Jews did persecute those whom Jesus would send, and the apostle Paul was one of them. However, Paul never wavered from his faith in Jesus Christ:

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, the just shall live by faith.” (Romans 1:16-17)

“…According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” (Philippians 1:20-21)

The conversion of Paul demonstrates beautifully several key points to us. The first is that we all have a choice whether or not to follow Jesus Christ. When we choose to follow Him, He can do some pretty amazing things in us through His Holy Spirit. Second, no sin we have ever committed in our past is too much for Jesus to forgive and to wash us clean from our sins. Third, the opinion of people who knew us before we are saved doesn’t matter to Jesus. People may think that we are beyond saving, but only Jesus knows our heart. Fourth, it shows us that we too will suffer, as Jesus did, and so too did His apostles, when we decide to follow Him. Believing in Jesus Christ isn’t always easy, and our faith will be tested by fire. But through this testing, if we remain in Him, it will be so worth it in the end. Fifth, sometimes Jesus has to literally bring us to our knees, blinding us, so that we can hear Him when He speaks to us. If we listen to His voice, He will lift the blinders off our eyes so that we can see and know that we need Him in our lives. Sixth, it shows us that Jesus can use anyone He wants to use to preach His word and to make new disciples of Him. Seventh, it confirms to us that while we may seem great in the eyes of a religious system that depends on what it perceives as good works, nothing can save us from our sins except believing with our hearts in the resurrected Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

It is no wonder that in our world today, there are many professing Christians, including in my own family, and those in the Hebrew Roots Movement, who have come against the apostle Paul, saying he is a false apostle. If they deny that Jesus Himself called on Paul to preach salvation to the Gentiles, then they deny the word of God. They deny the 13 of 27 books of the New Testament, and possibly 14 if we include Hebrews, that were written by Paul through the power of the Holy Spirit within him. Paul was very clear with his repetitive message to all to whom he spoke the gospel message, that it is by God’s grace we are saved and not by works:

“For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another. But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; which he shed [poured out] on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; that being justified [declared righteous] by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” (Titus 3:3-7)

“For by grace are ye [you have been] saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast.”(Ephesians 2:8-9)

“…Knowing that a man is not justified [declared righteous] by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.” (Galatians 2:16)

We are currently living in a time period that will not go on forever and will come to an end, after which Jesus will turn His attention back to the Jews, as Paul told us in Romans 11 will happen. In our world that we live in today and which is once more growing increasingly hostile to the Jews, we best heed the words of God’s apostle Paul, who himself was a Jew and a Pharisee, a religious leader, who clearly tells us that God has not forgotten His people:

“I say then, Hath God cast away his people? God forbid [certainly not]. For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. God hath not cast away his people which he foreknew. Wot [know] ye not what the scripture saith of Elias [Elijah] how he maketh intercession to God against Israel, saying, Lord, they have killed thy prophets, and digged [torn] down thine altars; and I am left alone, and they seek my life. But what saith the answer of God unto him? I have reserved to myself seven thousand men, who have not bowed the knee to the image of Baal. Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace. And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work. What then? Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for; but the election [elect] hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded [hardened] (According as it is written, God hath given them the spirit of slumber [stupor], eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear;) unto this day. And David saith, Let their table be made a snare, and a trap, and a stumblingblock, and a recompense unto them: Let their eyes be darkened, that they may not see, and bow down their back alway. I say then, Have they stumbled that they should fall? God forbid [certainly not]: but rather through their fall [trespass] salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to jealousy.” (Romans 11:1-11)

“For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness [hardening] in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: for this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins. As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching [concerning] the election, they are beloved for the fathers’ sakes. For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance [irrevocable]. For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief: even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy. For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all. O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor? Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.” (Romans 11:25-36)

Though Israel has rejected the Son of her womb, Jesus their Messiah, and has not had compassion on Him, He has not forgotten her. After Jesus had pronounced the woes upon the scribes and the Pharisees, He said to them:

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 23:37-39)

The Jews had a long history of rejecting the words of the prophets that God had sent them long ago, for they did not like the words that God had given them to speak to them. Instead of heeding the words of the prophets, they turned to false prophets and worshipped false gods. They listened to those who told them things they wanted to hear instead of things that they needed to hear. When Jesus came to them, it was no different. They didn’t want to hear the things He told them, and they rejected Him. Jesus wanted to gather His children to Him and protect them, as a mother hen protects her chicks, but they did not want to have anything to do with Him. As Jesus told them in the Scriptures above from Matthew 23:29-36, they also did not want to have anything to do with anyone who would speak of Jesus to them, and that included a Jewish man named Stephen.

Stephen was one of seven men chosen by the twelve apostles after the apostles had been filled with the Holy Spirit after Jesus had ascended to heaven. These seven men were believers in Jesus Christ and were also filled with the Holy Spirit who were selected to distribute food to the widows. The Bible tells us, “And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and miracles among the people.” (Acts 6:8) There were men in the synagogue who argued with Stephen, and they bribed other men to accuse him of blaspheming God and Moses. They took Stephen and brought him to the council, where false witnesses came against him. The high priest asked Stephen if the things they said about him were true. Stephen then spoke of many things from the Bible, reminding them of their long history. Stephen began by telling them how God had appeared to Abraham and took him out of the place where he was living and made a promise to him that He would give the Promised Land to his descendants. Stephen discussed many things before the council, including when God took Abraham’s descendants to Egypt to be in bondage for four hundred years before God appointed Moses to bring them out of Egypt. Let us learn a little about Moses.

Moses was a Hebrew, whose father was from the tribe of Levi. When Moses was born, though he was born a Hebrew, he was raised as an Egyptian. He had escaped death as an infant when Pharaoh had ordered all male Hebrew infants to be cast into the river because the number of Hebrews in Egypt had increased significantly and Pharaoh felt that they were a threat to his rule. No longer able to hide him from birth, Moses’ mother put him in an ark and cast him into the river when he was three months old. Moses’ sister watched as Moses went down the river in the ark. She saw as Pharaoh’s daughter found him and had compassion for him, knowing he was one of the Hebrews’ children. Moses’ sister came up to Pharaoh’s daughter and asked her if she would like for her to take him to a Hebrew woman to nurse him. Pharaoh’s daughter said yes, and Moses’ sister went and called her mother to Pharaoh’s daughter, who told her to take the child and nurse him and that she would pay Moses’ mother. Moses grew, and his mother took him to Pharaoh’s daughter, who then raised him as her own son, and called his name “Moses,” “because I drew him out of the water.” (Exodus 2:10)

Stephen went on to tell the council members that when Moses was forty years old, after living all that time in Pharaoh’s house, he went to see his people, the Hebrews. He saw with his own eyes how they were burdened in their slavery, and witnessed an Egyptian striking one of them, mistreating one of his own brethren. Moses then slew the Egyptian. Moses went out a second day and saw two Hebrews fighting and asked the one who did wrong why he had hit the other man. The man who had done the hitting said to Moses, “Who made thee a prince and a judge over us? intendest thou to kill me, as thou killedst the Egyptian? (Exodus 2:14) Pharaoh heard what had happened and sought to kill Moses, but Moses had feared for his life, knowing that what had happened would be told to Pharaoh, and Moses had fled to the land of Midian for safety. Moses married Zipporah, one of the priest’s seven daughters, and they had a son of their own. Moses lived there and tended the sheep of his father-in-law, Jethro. Let us read what the word of God says next in Exodus 2:

“And it came to pass in process of time, that the king of Egypt died: and the children of Israel sighed by reason [groaned because] of the bondage and they cried, and their cry came up unto God by reason of the bondage. And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. And God looked upon the children of Israel, and God had respect unto them [acknowledged them].” (Exodus 2:23-25)

God had not forgotten His people. He then sent an angel to appear before Moses on the mountain of God in a burning bush when Moses was shepherding his father-in-law’s flock. Moses was perplexed as to why the bush burned yet it was not consumed:

“And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I. And He said, Draw not nigh hither [do not draw near this place]: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground. Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God. And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows; and I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites. Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them. Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt.” (Exodus 3:3-10)

God called Moses to take His people out of bondage, and that is exactly what Moses did. God had to send ten plagues upon Pharaoh and Egypt before Pharaoh finally agreed to let God’s people go. Moses led God’s people out of Egypt. When Moses and all Israel came to the Red Sea, through the power of Almighty God, Moses commanded the sea to be divided in order for Israel to walk on dry land and escape to the other side. After they had safely crossed, the sea then swallowed up Pharaoh, his army, and their horses and chariots after Pharaoh had changed his mind and went to hunt down Israel.

Of Moses, Stephen told the council members that this was the same Moses whom their fathers would not obey and turned their hearts against him. After God had used Moses to bring His people out of Egypt and they were journeying in the wilderness, God had called Moses up to Mount Sinai for forty days to give him the Ten Commandments from God. God also gave Moses instructions for building the ark of the covenant and the tabernacle. It was during this time that the people of Israel grew restless and thought something had happened to Moses. Stephen reminded the council what had happened next:

“This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear. This is he, that was in the church [assembly] in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles [living sayings] to give unto us: to whom our fathers would not obey, but thrust him from them, and in their hearts turned back again into Egypt, saying unto Aaron, Make us gods to go before us: for as for this Moses, which brought us out of the land of Egypt, we wot [know] not what is become of him. And they made a calf in those days, and offered sacrifice unto the idol, and rejoiced in the works of their own hands.” (Acts 7:37-41)

Stephen then said to them:

“Ye stiffnecked [stubborn] and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye. Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? and they have slain them which shewed [foretold] before of the coming of the Just One [Jesus Christ]; of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers: who have received the law by the disposition [direction] of angels, and have not kept it.” (Acts 7:51-53)

Oh, what must have been the look on their faces when Stephen spoke these words of truth to them! Here were the members of the Jewish council, which was the Sanhedrin, the Supreme Court of Israel, and whose members were the religious leaders - the chief priests, elders, and scribes - who had just been told the truth by this Stephen, whom they perceived as a lowly blasphemer of God. Stephen had spoken the truth to them, that though they were circumcised physically, in the flesh, they were uncircumcised in their heart and ears because they had resisted the Holy Ghost, also called the Holy Spirit. Like their fathers before them, who had persecuted God’s prophets who had told them long ago of God’s coming Son, the Just One, they themselves had ignored the words of God’s prophets and betrayed and murdered the Son of God. Let us read what happened next:

“When they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed on [at] him with their teeth. But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up steadfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, and said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God. Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord, and cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man’s feet, whose name was Saul. And they stoned Stephen, calling [as he was calling] upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he feel asleep [died]. And Saul was consenting unto his death. And at that time there was a great persecution against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judaea and Samaria, except the apostles. And devout men carried Stephen to his burial, and made great lamentation over him. As for Saul, he made havock of the church, entering into every house, and haling [dragging off] men and women committed them to prison.” (Acts 7:54-58)

Instead of heeding the words of Stephen, the Jews killed him, just as they had killed Jesus. As Jesus did when He gave up His life, Stephen asked God to forgive those who killed him. Did you notice who was present at Stephen’s death and who consented to it? It was Saul, also known as Paul. Again, this shows us that no matter our past, if we put our faith and trust in Jesus Christ to save us from all our sins, He can do mighty things in our lives to spread the good news of salvation to others. Before Paul’s conversion, he searched for the early Christians so that he could bind them and have them put into prison. But after his conversion, he traveled all over to tell unbelievers of how Jesus Christ can save them so that their shackles of sin could be broken and that they too could have the light of Jesus within them.

Returning to today’s Scriptures verses, though Israel, who is the woman referred to in Isaiah 49:15, rejected her sucking [nursing] child, who is Jesus, and did not have compassion on Him, the Son of her womb, He has not forgotten her. Remember that Jesus told Israel:

“Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 23:38-39)

As Jesus told them would happen, their house, and notice He did not say His house, which was the Jewish Temple, was left desolate, and it was destroyed by the Roman Empire in 70 AD. In the second part of the Scriptures above, notice also that Jesus did not say that they would never see Him again. No, He told them that they would not see Him again until they say, “Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.” In other words, they will acknowledge that it truly was God who sent Him, something they denied then and most still deny to this day. Not long before Jesus spoke the words He said in the scriptures above, many in Jerusalem did proclaim those words about Him before He was crucified:

“And when they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, and were come to Bethphage, unto the mount of Olives, then sent Jesus two disciples, saying unto them, Go into the village over against [opposite] you, and straightway ye shall find an ass [donkey] tied, and a colt with her: loose [untie] them, and bring them unto me. And if any man say ought [anything] unto you, ye shall say, The Lord hath need of them; and straightway he will send them. All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek [lowly], and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass. And the disciples went, and did as Jesus commanded them, and brought the ass, and the colt, and put on them their clothes, and they set him thereon. And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, and strawed [spread] them in the way [road]. And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest. And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, Who is this? And the multitude said, This is Jesus the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee.” (Matthew 21:1-11)

When Jesus rode to Jerusalem on the donkey, He had fulfilled the words of a prophecy given by Zechariah long ago. The Jews, particularly the religious leaders - the chief priests, the scribes, the Pharisees, and the elders - should have recognized that as they looked upon Jesus, He was fulfilling that prophecy before their very eyes:

“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just [righteous], and having salvation; lowly [humble], and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.” (Zechariah 9:9)

However, they did not want a lowly and humble King; instead, they wanted a King who would conquer Rome and remove Israel out from under its thumb. Though many people of Israel had proclaimed “Hosanna to the son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest” about Jesus on that day, it wasn’t long afterwards when they would turn against Him, after He was wrongfully arrested. Instead of bowing to and praising their King, they would shout the words below to the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate, when he had given them the choice either to release Jesus or a criminal named Barabbas:

“And Jesus stood before the governor: and the governor asked him, saying, Art thou the King of the Jews? And Jesus said unto him, Thou sayest [it is as you say]. And when he was accused of the chief priests and elders, he answered nothing. Then said Pilate unto him, Hearest thou not how many things they witness against thee? And he answered him to never a word; insomuch that the governor marveled greatly. Now at that feast the governor was wont [wished] to release unto the people [multitude] a prisoner, whom they would [wished]. And they had then a notable [notorious] prisoner, called Barabbas. Therefore when they were gathered together, Pilate said unto them, Whom will ye that I release unto you? Barabbas, or Jesus which is called the Christ? For he knew that for envy they had delivered him. When he was set down on the judgment seat, his wife sent unto him, saying, Have thou nothing to do with that just man: for I have suffered many things this day in a dream because of him. But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitude that they should ask Barabbas, and destroy Jesus. The governor answered and said unto them, Whether of the twain will ye that I release unto you? They said, Barabbas. Pilate saith unto them, What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ? They all say unto him, Let him be crucified. And the governor said, Why, what evil hath he done? But they cried out the more, saying, Let him be crucified. When Pilate saw that he could prevail [accomplish] nothing, but that rather a tumult was made [rising], he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye to it. Then answered all the people, and said, His blood be on us, and on our children. Then released he Barabbas unto them: and when he had scourged [flogged with a scourge] Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.” (Matthew 27:11-26)

Yes, as today’s Scripture states, Israel has forgotten the Son of her womb and has not had compassion on Him, both in the days that Jesus came to earth the first time, and in the days we are living in now. However, as the Scripture also states, God has not forgotten them, and He never will. Jeremiah the prophet wrote about this. Let us read again the words that God gave Jeremiah:

“Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will perform that good thing which I have promised unto the house of Israel and to the house of Judah. In those days, and at that time, I will cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David; and he shall execute judgment [justice] and righteousness in the land [earth]. In those days shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely: and this is the name wherewith she shall be called, The LORD our righteousness. For thus saith the LORD; David shall never want [lack] a man to sit upon the throne of the house of Israel; neither shall the priests the Levites want [lack] a man before me to offer burnt offerings, and to kindle meat offerings, and to do sacrifice continually.” (Jeremiah 33:14-18)

Jesus IS the Branch of righteousness, and He Is the High Priest:

“Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him. But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer [allow] it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered [allowed] him. And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: and lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:13-17)

“But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man. For it became him [was fitting for him], for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory. to make the captain [author] of their salvation perfect [complete] through sufferings.” (Hebrews 2:9-10)

“For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham. Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour [aid] them that are tempted.” (Hebrews 2:16-18)

Jeremiah the prophet prophesied of the coming of Jesus Christ through the lineage of David, and that prophesy was fulfilled. The other prophesies Jeremiah prophesied have not yet come to pass, but they will. The prophecies that Jesus will execute judgment, meaning justice, and righteousness in the earth, and that Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will dwell safely, and her name shall be called “The LORD our righteousness” (Jeremiah 33:16) will come to pass. All these things will be fulfilled when the Jews, Israel, will finally recognize that Jesus IS their Messiah. For anyone who thinks that Jesus will not return to earth to judge the world in all righteousness and that He has forgotten Israel, they are sorely mistaken, as Jeremiah wrote about:

“And the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah, saying, Thus saith the LORD; If ye can break my covenant of the day, and my covenant of the night, and that there should not be day and night in their season; then may also my covenant be broken with David my servant, that he should not have a son to reign upon his throne; and with the Levites the priests, my ministers. As the host of heaven cannot be numbered, neither the sand of the sea measured: so will I multiply the seed of David my servant, and the Levites that minister unto me. Moreover the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying, Considerest thou not what this people have spoken, saying, The two families which the LORD hath chosen, he hath even cast them off? thus they have despised my people, that they should be no more a nation before them. Thus saith the LORD; If my covenant be not with day and night, and if I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth; then I will cast away the seed of Jacob, and David my servant, so that I will not take any of his seed to be rulers over the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob: for I will cause their captivity [captives] to return, and have mercy on them.” (Jeremiah 33:19-26)

God was saying there is nothing that could ever happen that would cause Him to forget His covenant with HIs people, no matter how disobedient they have been to Him. God does not break His unconditional covenants with Israel. Just as in the times in which God gave these words to Jeremiah, the nations despised the Jews and wanted to prevent them from ever again being a nation, so too from that time through our world today have nations tried to eliminate the Jews from the world. Isn’t it odd that such a small group of people, representing approximately less than 0.2 percent of the world’s population in 2022, has been so hated and despised for millennia and many times has been sought to be eradicated from the face of the earth? (See: https://www.answers.com/governmental-structures/What_percentage_of_the_world%27s_population_is_Jewish). Prior to World War II, the largest percentage of Jews in the world lived in Europe, specifically Eastern Europe, which had 8.15 million of the 9.5 million Jews in Europe. (See: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1357607/historical-jewish-population/) Adolph Hitler and Nazi Germany murdered approximately 63% of the Jews living in Europe during World War II, with the surviving Jews in Europe numbered at just 3.7 million. (See: https://247wallst.com/special-report/2023/08/25/countries-with-the-highest-percentage-of-jewish-deaths-from-the-holocaust/?tpid=1306411&tv=link&tc=in_content It is no coincidence; they are hated and despised because they were chosen by God to be THE people from whom His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, would come and who would bring salvation to all who believe on Him. The source of this hatred is Satan. Jesus WILL return to earth and execute His righteous judgment on all who choose to remain in their sin, having rejected His gift of redemption of sins. It is this same Jesus who will eventually cast Satan into the lake of fire and brimstone, where he will remain forever. Thus, in Satan’s warped and evil mind, if he could stop the Jews, he could stop Jesus from destroying him and casting him into the eternal lake of fire and brimstone, where he will never ever again deceive people and lead them to eternal destruction.

In Isaiah 49:16, I have struggled to understand this passage of Scripture that reads, “Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me,” but I do know that there are many Scriptures that refer to the power of the hand of God. In Isaiah 49:16, it tells us that Jesus has graven, or inscribed, Israel on the palms of His hands. Before I discuss this, let us read about the first high priest of Israel, who was Aaron, Moses’ brother, whom God had chosen to minister unto Him:

“And take thou unto thee Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him, from among the children of Israel, that they may minister unto me in the priest’s office, even Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron’s sons. And thou shalt make holy [sacred] garments for Aaron thy brother for glory and for beauty. And thou shalt speak unto all that are wise hearted, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom, that they may make Aaron’s garments to consecrate him, that he may minister unto me in the priest’s office.” (Exodus 28:1-3)

God had given Moses specific instructions on how the high priest’s garments should be made, including an ornamented vest called an ephod. The ephod was to have two shoulder pieces that would be joined together. God told Moses:

“And thou shalt take two onyx stones, and grave [engrave] on them the names of the children of Israel: six of their names on one stone, and the other six names of the rest on the other stone, according to their birth. With the work of an engraver in stone, like the engravings of a signet, shalt thou engrave the two stones with the names of the children of Israel: thou shalt make them to be set in ouches [settings] of gold. And thou shalt put the two stones upon the shoulders of the ephod for stones of memorial unto the children of Israel: and Aaron shall bear their names before the LORD upon his two shoulders for a memorial.” (Exodus 28:9-12)

As gotquestions.org writes: (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/high-priest.html)

“The most important duty of the high priest was to conduct the service on the Day of Atonement, the tenth day of the seventh month of every year. Only he was allowed to enter the Most Holy Place behind the veil to stand before God. Having made a sacrifice for himself and for the people, he then brought the blood into the Holy of Holies and sprinkled it on the mercy seat, God’s “throne” (Leviticus 16:14-15). He did this to make atonement for himself and the people for all their sins committed during the year just ended (Exodus 30:10).”

In the books of Psalms and Zechariah, there is a prophecy of how God would bring forth His servant, called the BRANCH, who is Jesus the Christ. Jesus is the stone, the chief cornerstone, on whom will be the engraving and will take away the sins of the land of Israel:

“The stone which the builders refused [rejected] is become the head stone of the corner [chief corner stone]: this is the LORD”s doing; it is marvellous in our eyes. This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. Save now, I beseech thee, O LORD: O LORD, I beseech thee, send now prosperity. Blessed be he that cometh in the name of the LORD: we have blessed you out of the house of the LORD.” (Psalm 118:22-26)

“Hear now; O Joshua the high priest, thou, and thy fellows [companions] that sit before thee: for they are men wondered at [a wondrous sign, or men of a sign]: for, behold, I will bring forth my servant the BRANCH. For behold the stone that I have laid before Joshua; upon one stone shall be seven eyes: behold, I will engrave the graving [inscription] thereof, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day. In that day, saith the LORD of hosts, shall ye call every man his neighbour under the vine and under the fig tree.” (Zechariah 3:8-10)

Though the high priest had the names of the twelve tribes of Israel engraved on two stones placed upon his shoulders, Jesus would engrave Israel upon the palms of His hands when His own people cried out to Pontius Pilate “Let him be crucified,” (Matthew 27:22-23) and He was crucified through His hands and feet. Not long before He was crucified, Jesus was teaching in the temple and the chief priests and elders questioned His authority and asked Him who gave Him this authority. Jesus then quoted to them Psalm 118, which told them that Jesus had come to earth under God’s authority, that it was the Lord’s doing:

“Did ye never read in the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner [chief corner stone]: this is the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes? Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof. And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder. And when the chief priests and Pharisees had heard his parables, they perceived that he spake of them. But when they sought to lay hands on him, they feared the multitude, because they took him for a prophet.” (Matthew 21:42-46)

After Jesus gave up His life, died, was buried, rose again on the third day, and later appeared to His disciples, it was the apostle Thomas, who was not there with the other disciples, who said he would not believe until something in particular happened:

“But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.” (John 20:24-25)

Thomas wanted to see the prints of Jesus’ crucifixion nails in Jesus’ hands and not only see the prints from the nails that had pierced Him, but Thomas also wanted to put his finger into the prints and thrust his hand into Jesus’ side that was pierced. Let us read what happened eight days after Thomas said that:

“And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless [unbelieving] but believing. And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God. Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed. And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book: but these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.” (John 20:26-31)

As the apostle John told us, Jesus came first for His own, meaning the Jews, but they rejected Him. Jesus knew this would happen before He came down from heaven and yet, He still came to earth because His gift of salvation would be for all who believe on Him as their Savior, their Redeemer, both Jew and Gentile:

“He came unto his own, and his own [his own people] received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power [the right] to become the sons [children] 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)

Again, though Israel has forgotten her Son, Jesus Christ, He has not forgotten them and never will. As Zechariah the prophet prophesied, there is coming a day when they will realize that the One whom they rejected and despised - Jesus the Christ - IS God’s only begotten Son, who loved them so much that He came down from heaven to earth, to live as a man and suffer a horrible death, but be raised again so that He could offer them complete redemption of sins. It is only after the nation of Israel will go through the coming 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, and two-thirds of them will die. However, one third will be tested and tried by God and they will survive because they will finally feel their deep sin of rejecting Him all these years. They will mourn for the One whom they pierced, and they will call upon the name of Jesus, no longer rejecting Him as Messiah. God will cleanse all sin from them and from their land:

“And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness [grieve] for him, as one that is in bitterness [grieves] for his firstborn. In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadad-rimmon in the valley of Megiddon. And the land shall mourn, every family apart [by itself]; the family of the house of David apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Nathan apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Levi apart, and their wives apart; the family of Shimei apart, and their wives apart; all the families that remain, every family apart, and their wives apart.” (Zechariah 12:10-14)

“In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness. And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, and they shall no more be remembered: and also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to pass out of [depart from] the land.” (Zechariah 13:1-2)

“And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the LORD, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein. And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try [test] them as gold is tried [tested]: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: they shall say, The LORD is my God.” (Zechariah 13:8-9)

When Jesus came to earth the first time and after He ascended to heaven from the Mount of Olives, it is prophesied that Jesus will return to the Mount of Olives at His second coming:

“And when he [Jesus] had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight. And while they [Jesus’ apostles] looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven. Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is from Jerusalem a sabbath day’s journey.” (Acts 1:9-12)

At His second coming, Jesus will defend His people and His holy city, Jerusalem, from those who seek to destroy them. Jesus will cause those who come against Jerusalem to turn upon themselves and kill one another, and God’s people will take the wealth of all who came against them. Finally, Jesus will reign as King of kings and Lord of lords from Jerusalem for 1,000 years:

“Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil [plunder] shall be divided in the midst of thee. For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled [plundered], and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city. Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. And his [Jesus’] feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave [split in two] in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azai: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah the king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee [him]. And it shall come to pass in that day, that the light shall not be clear [there will be no light], nor dark [the lights will diminish]: but it shall be one day which shall be known to the LORD, not day, nor night: but it shall come to pass, that at evening time it shall be light. And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea [eastern, the Dead Sea], and half of them toward the hinder sea [the Mediterranean Sea]: in summer and in winter shall it be. And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one. All the land shall be turned as [turned into] a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem: and it [Jerusalem] shall be lifted up, and inhabited in her place, from Benjamin’s gate unto the place of the first gate, unto the corner gate, and from the tower of Hananeel unto the king’s winepresses. And men shall dwell in it, and there shall be no more utter destruction; but Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited. And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away [decay] while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes [sockets], and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth. And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult [panic] from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold [seize] every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour. And Judah also shall fight at Jerusalem; and the wealth of all the heathen round about shall be gathered together, gold, and silver, and apparel, in great abundance. And so shall be the plague of the horse, of the mule, of the camel, and of the ass, and of all the beasts that shall be in these tents [camps], as this plague [so shall this plague be]. And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles.” (Zechariah 14:1-16)

After Jesus’ 1,000-year reign on earth, He will destroy with fire the earth and the heavens and will create a new heaven, a new earth, and a new Jerusalem. His people, the twelve tribes of Israel, and the walls of Jerusalem, will always be before Him, just as Isaiah the prophet prophesied in Isaiah 49:14-16. Jesus will also be with ALL who believe in Him as their Messiah, both Jew and Gentile, and we will be with Him forever and ever. Let us read Revelation 21 in its entirety, for it is an absolutely beautiful picture of the love and mercy of the Lord God Almighty, not only for His people Israel but also for all who believe in Him. Before we read it though, let us read what God had told Israel long ago, when He had told Moses to tell these words to the people of Israel, a peculiar people, whom God had chosen and had delivered them with His mighty hand out of their bondage in Egypt and set them in the land He gave them:

“For thou art an holy [set apart] people unto the LORD thy God: the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people [treasure] unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth. The LORD did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people: but because the LORD loved you, and because he would keep the oath which he sworn unto your fathers, hath the LORD brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondmen slavery], from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.” (Deuteronomy 7:6-8)

“And the LORD hath avouched [proclaimed] thee this day to be his peculiar [special] people, as he hath promised thee, and that thou shouldest keep all his commandments; and to make thee high above all nations which he hath made, in praise, and in name, and in honour; and that thou mayest be an holy people unto the LORD thy God, as he hath spoken.” (Deuteronomy 26:18-19)

Before God gave these words to Moses to speak to Israel, God knew that Israel would not keep His commandments. That is why God would later send Jesus to earth the first time to offer salvation from all sins to all who believe on Him, whether they are Jew or Gentile/non-Jew. Before Jesus came to earth, God needed to choose a people from whom Messiah would come, and God chose Israel. He didn’t choose them because they were a great and large nation; no, He chose them because they were a small nation, as they still are today. It is through Israel that all nations are blessed, for without Israel, there is no Messiah, and without Messiah, there is no forgiveness of sins. Though many people and nations have tried to destroy Israel, they will never succeed. God always has, and will in the future, save a remnant of His people. It is that one-third remnant of Jews who will be saved through the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, and they will finally believe on Jesus as their Messiah. After Jesus comes to earth a second time, this time they will abide with Him, no longer in unbelief, in His land, the land of Israel, during His millennial reign, and will live with Him for eternity. No more will Satan use men of nations to come against them and try to destroy them, for Satan will be cast into the lake of eternal fire and brimstone, along with all who choose to follow him instead of God. No more will Israel turn from God and turn to idols, and no more will they break His commandments. They will live with Him forever, and He will be their God, and they shall be His son. Just as Isaiah prophesied in Isaiah 49:14-16, Jesus has not forgotten His people, and He will be with them always. The wall of the holy city, New Jerusalem, with its twelve gates which have the names of the twelve tribes of Israel inscribed upon them, will be before Him continually. Now, let us read in Revelation 21 of how Jesus blesses Israel when He creates a new heaven, a new earth, and a New Jerusalem:

“And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things have passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things news. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst [who thirsts] of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death. And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials [bowls] full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb’s wife. And he carried me in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal; and had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel: on the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates. And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in [on] them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. And he that talked with me had a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof. And the city lieth foursquare [is laid out as a square], and the length is as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal. And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel. And the building [construction] of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass. And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished [adorned] with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald; the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolyte; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst. And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several [individual] gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass. And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten [illuminate] it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it. And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there. And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it. And there shall be in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh [causes an] abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.” (Revelation 21:1-27)

November 15, 2024: Isaiah 49:13 - The Lord hath Comforted His People

“Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into singing, O mountains: for the LORD hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted.” - Isaiah 49:13

UPDATE 1/31/25: Search on “1/31/25” to see an update I made regarding who possibly may represent tho whore of Babylon/Babylon the Great in Revelation 17:15.

There is coming a day when the heavens will sing, the earth will be joyful, and the mountains will break forth into singing, and it will happen after the entire world experiences great tribulation for a period of seven years, the time of Jacob’s trouble, a time that I truly believe is drawing oh, so near. At the end of that period, Jesus will come to earth a second time, will restore the remnant of Israel that He Himself will preserve, and He will gather them in their land, but this time, they will be gathered in belief in Jesus as their Messiah. It is at this time that Jesus will finally rule the kingdoms of the world with a rod of iron and with righteousness. It is at this time that peace will be upon the earth, including peace between mankind and the animal kingdom.

The children of God, we who have been born again by putting our faith and trust in Jesus Christ to redeem us of our sins, will be united in our faith with the Jewish believers. No longer will there be separation between Jew and Gentile:

“For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek [Gentile, non-Jew], there is neither bond [slave] nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ’s then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” (Galatians 3:26-29)

“But as many as received him [Jesus Christ], to them gave he power to become the sons [children] 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 1:12-13)

“And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.” (Romans 8:17)

However, before that happens, two thirds of the Jewish people will die during the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble and will not turn to Jesus as their Savior. The surviving remnant will feel as they have been forsaken by God. As we will read in the latter part of Isaiah 49, God will show them that He has not left them, that He has not forgotten them. For their many children whom they have lost, God will give them new children, children of the Gentiles. These children will also have been born again by the precious blood of Jesus Christ, and they will come to them in the land of Israel, and the glory of the Lord will be revealed.

WHEN ALL CREATION BEGAN TO GROWN

Before this happens though, the whole earth will continue to groan, as it has since sin began in the world with Adam and Eve. In this devotional, I am going to take a deep-dive into God’s word, for I truly believe that we are so very close to the rapture of the church, when Jesus calls up all who have been born again by His precious blood, both the dead and the living, to Himself in the clouds and He opens the first of the seven seals of the scroll, beginning the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble. If you are not one to take the time to read lengthy devotionals, this devotional is not for you. I am not writing this devotional to appease any human being, but am doing my best to listen to and obey the directing of the Holy Spirit. Some people are good at writing at the macro level. I am not one of those people. I am all about the details, and I have delved deep into the word of God to study and understand today’s Scripture verse, and the result is a very long devotional. Now, for anyone willing to read, let’s begin our deep dive into God’s word.

The groaning is happening because this world is not how God intended it to be, free from sin, and enjoying eternal life with Him. Prior to the fall, God provided everything that mankind would need to live with God in the Garden of Eden:

“And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat [food].” (Genesis 1:29)

“And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress [tend or cultivate] it and to keep it. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” (Genesis 2:15-17)

God also provided all of the food that would be eaten by all the animals of the earth:

“And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat [food]: and it was so.” (Genesis 1:30)

It was only after Adam and Eve sinned when they ate of the fruit of the one tree from which God forbade them to eat, that an animal’s blood was spilled and the animal’s skin provided coverings for Adam and Eve when after their sin they realized that they were naked and wanted to hide their nakedness from God:

“Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats [tunics] of skins, and clothed them.” (Genesis 3:21)

The Bible tells us that blood is a requirement for forgiveness of sins:

“And almost all things are by the law purged [cleansed] with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission [forgiveness].” (Hebrews 9:22)

Ever since sin happened in the garden, life has been a struggle. After Eve was deceived by the serpent, Satan, and Adam committed sin and disobeyed God’s commandment to him and listened instead to his wife and ate the fruit, God told Adam that He would no longer make it easy for him to sustain himself and most importantly, that he (and Eve) would die. After they sinned, God told Adam that he - and all future generations - would need to provide for themselves, and it would be a struggle until they would eventually die and their bodies would be returned to the earth:

“And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow [toll] shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” (Genesis 17-19)

God also told Eve that life would not be easy for her either because of her sins against Him:

“Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow [pain] and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.” (Genesis 3:16)

WHEN ANIMALS BECAME FOOD FOR MANKIND

Many years later, God sent the flood upon the entire earth to destroy everything upon the earth because the sons of God, of whom many people believe were fallen angels, had had sexual intercourse with human women, who bore children that were giants and had corrupted every one and everything except for Noah and his family:

“And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, that the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose. And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive [abide] with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years. There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown. And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination [intent or thought] of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the LORD [the LORD was sorry] that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air, for it repenteth me [I am sorry] that I have made them. But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD. These are the generations: Noah was a just man and perfect [blameless] in his generations, and Noah walked with God.” (Genesis 6:1-9)

The Lord God did send the flood and destroyed everything except Noah and his seven family members. After the flood, God told Noah that the animals would become food for mankind, and they would fear mankind:

“And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth. And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every fowl of the air, upon all that moveth upon the earth, and upon all the fishes of the sea; into your hand are they delivered. Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat [food] for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things.” (Genesis 9:1-3)

With Adam’s fall because of his sin, which was passed to every single human being born from him - all of mankind - no longer has the earth lived in peace and harmony with mankind, as it once did with Adam and Eve, who were banished from the garden (Genesis 3:22-24) because of their sins against God. God’s creation, the earth and all that is in it, will not live in peace and harmony with mankind until Jesus Christ, King of kings and Lord of lords, returns to earth, puts an end to wickedness, and reigns in righteousness, for there can be no peace as long as sin abounds; the two are incompatible with each other.

The Bible tells us that God’s creation longs for such a time that God will deliver it from the bondage of mankind’s sin and corruption, a time when God will destroy will sin. The creation longs for the coming time when Jesus Christ will reign in righteousness, and He will dwell with His children, those who are called sons of God, for eternity. There is coming a time when Jesus will finally destroy Satan and cast him into the eternal lake of fire, and sin will never exist again. Jesus will destroy the current heavens and earth and will create a new heaven and a new earth, upon which only the children of God will abide; all nonbelievers will be tried and found guilty of their sins and will spend their eternity in the lake of fire. Let us read some Scriptures that relate to the groaning of the earth. We who are believers in Jesus Christ also have an inner longing for Jesus to come and put an end to sin:

“How long shall the land mourn, and the herbs of every field wither, for the wickedness of them that dwell therein? the beasts are consumed, and the birds; because they [the wicked] said, He shall not see our last [final] end?” (Jeremiah 12:4)

“For the earnest expectation of the creature [God’s creation] waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. For the creature [creation] was made subject to vanity [futility], not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope. Because the creature [creation] itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption [decay] into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.” (Romans 8:19-23)

Though we are not to worship the creation - the earth, heavens, and the sea and all that is in them - and are to worship the Creator, we are to take care of His creation and not seek to destroy it. The Bible tells us in the book of Revelation, which describes the coming judgments that God will send to earth because of its rebellion against Him and because of mankind’s near wholesale rejection of Jesus Christ, that when Jesus comes the second time, He will destroy those who destroy the earth. Are we not seeing in our world today powerful people who are destroying the earth for reasons of further expanding their wealth and power and to control people and bring destruction upon many? The force behind these people, whether they know it or not, is Satan. Satan hates God, and he hates mankind, for humans are the only creation of God that was made in His image. Satan has done, and is continuing to do, all that he can to destroy mankind, and that includes destroying the perfect ecosystem that God created in order to sustain human life:

“And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.” (Revelation 11:18)

SATAN THE DECEIVER

The whole focus of today’s Scripture verse is God’s people, the nation of Israel, whom God refers to as “his afflicted.” Let us return to the book of Genesis and read about when their affliction first began, which was after Eve was deceived by the serpent and ate the forbidden fruit and when Adam disobeyed God and decided to listen to his wife instead and he too ate the fruit. Let us read what God afterwards told the serpent:

“And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled [deceived] me, and I did eat. And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: and I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it [he] shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” (Genesis 3:13-15)

Before Eve and then Adam ate the fruit that God had commanded them not to eat, Satan already had hatred for mankind in his heart. He knowingly deceived Eve, causing her to question what God had told her husband, and flat out telling her a lie that they would not die if they did eat of the fruit:

“Now the serpent was more subtil [cunning] than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not sure die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” (Genesis 3:1-5)

It is beyond the shadow of a doubt that Satan had no good intentions toward Eve when he deceived her and told her a lie that if she ate the fruit, she would not die, and even went further than that and told her, “and ye shall be as gods.” Instead of obeying what God had told her husband, Eve listened to the serpent and ate the fruit. She then gave the fruit to her husband Adam, who also ate it, and eventually they died. Let us read what Jesus told His disciples about the thief, meaning Satan, and his intentions and compare them to the intentions of Jesus:

“The thief cometh not, but for [except] to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” (Jesus Christ; John 10:10)

Let us also read what Jesus the scribes and the Pharisees who sought to kill Him because He told them the truth of who He is and they rejected the truth:

“Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode [stands] not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar and the father of it. And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not. Which of you convinceth [convicts] me of sin? And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe me? He that is of God heareth God’s words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.” (Jesus Christ; John 8:44-47)

Let us read Genesis 3:15 again, for it contains a prophecy of Jesus Christ:

“And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it [he] shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” (Genesis 3:15)

God told Satan that he would put enmity between him and the woman. “Enmity” is a mutual hatred or ill will. Merriam-webster.com states:

Enmity (which derives from an Anglo-French word meaning "enemy") suggests true hatred, either overt or concealed.

God also said that Satan would be at war with the seed, meaning offspring, of the woman. As many have noted before me, notice that God says “between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” However, women do not have seed, which is another term for sperm, but have eggs. Thus, this has a double meaning in that Satan would be at war with both humans that would descend from Eve, but also specifically Satan would be at war with her seed who would bruise Satan’s head, meaning He would crush Satan. Jesus was not conceived in the ordinary way that humans are conceived, where the human father provides the seed and the mother provides the egg. No, Jesus’ mother Mary was a virgin, and she conceived Jesus Christ not from the seed of a human man but from the seed of Holy Spirit (Luke 1:26-35). As Genesis 3:15 states, Satan and his seed, meaning those who follow him, who choose to align themselves with him and against God, have been at war with Jesus Christ, even before He was born of Mary, sent as a man, having left His throne in heaven, to offer the way of salvation from sins, first to the Jews and then to the Gentiles. Satan did all that he could to prevent Jesus’ first coming, and Satan failed. Satan thought that when he convinced the Jews to have Jesus crucified, when Satan bruised His heel when the nail was put through Jesus’ heels and Jesus died, that that would be the end of Jesus. But Satan failed again when Jesus rose again from the grave, for Jesus had defeated death. There is coming a day when Jesus will come again a second time, and He will bruise Satan’s head, crushing him and will end his reign of terror, forever. I will discuss this later in today’s devotional.

Fast forward since the time of Adam and Eve to our world today, and we can see that Satan is still tempting mankind, telling them his sweet little lies that tickle peoples’ ears. Billions of people are still believing them, to their own eternal peril, if they do not ask God for forgiveness and accept Jesus Christ in their heart as their Savior. Have you heard of Yuval Noah Herari? He is an Israeli historian, lecturer, philosopher, and author, and he is believing the lies of Satan, just as Eve and Adam did. Let us read some of what he has written about humanity and its future (See: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Our-Nonconscious-Future-2119857; Harari, Y. Noah. "Our Nonconscious Future." Encyclopedia Britannica, March 19, 2021):

“Within the next century or two, we humans are likely to upgrade ourselves into gods and change the most basic principles of the evolution of life. Traditional mythologies depicted gods as powerful beings that could design and create life according to their wishes. In the coming two centuries we will probably learn how to engineer and manufacture various life forms according to our wishes.”

“In the next two centuries, however, science could be ushering in the era of inorganic life shaped by intelligent design. Not the intelligent design of some god above the clouds—but our intelligent design and the intelligent design of our cloud computing.”

GOD SPEAKS TO SINFUL MEN BUT ALSO TO THE SOURCE OF THEIR SIN: SATAN

In the Bible, there are times when God is addressing specific men, but through those men, He is also speaking to the source of their evil ways, which is Satan. I believe in many cases, while God is addressing the things which then were shortly yet to come, He is also speaking a prophecy of things yet to come, often far into the future. Let us read three of these times: Isaiah 14, Ezekiel 28, and Matthew 16:23.

When God Spoke to Satan Through the King of Babylon

The first is in Isaiah 14, when after God tells us that He will have mercy on Israel and put them back again in their own land, freeing them from their oppressors, He takes up a proverb against the king of Babylon. Before I discuss Isaiah 14, let us remember where Babylon originated. Babylon, the epitome of rebellion against God by man, began with the man named Nimrod in Babel. After all of the earth had been corrupted except for the man named Noah and his seven family members, God sent the great flood to destroy all of mankind and all the beasts, birds, and creeping things on the earth, for they all had been corrupted. God saved Noah and his family and all the animals He had told Noah to bring with him on the ark. After the flood, God told Noah to “be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish [fill] the earth (Genesis 9:1). God also made a covenant with Noah, telling him:

“And I will establish my covenant with you; neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood; neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth. And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I do set my bow [rainbow] in the cloud and it shall be a token [sign] of a covenant between me and the earth.” (Genesis 9:11-13)

Noah did as God commanded him, and he began to repopulate the earth and had three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. His son Ham had sons, one of whom was Cush. Cush had sons, one of whom was Nimrod. Of Nimrod, the Bible tells us:

“And Cush begat Nimrod: he began to be a mighty one in the earth. He was a mighty hunter before the LORD: wherefore it is said, Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before the LORD. And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accede, and Caineh, in the land of Shiner.” (Genesis 10:8-10)

Genesis 10:11 also tells us that Nimrod built Nineveh, an extremely wicked city in Assyria. Genesis 11 then tells us that at that time, everyone alive on earth spoke one language, and they all came to the land of Shinar and lived there. Let us read what happened next:

“And they said one to another, Go to [come], let us make brick, and burn them thoroughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime [asphalt] for morter. And they said, Go to, let us build a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.” (Genesis 11:3-4)

The people in Babel were in clear disobedience of God’s commandments to Noah. Instead of spreading across the earth to fill it with people, they all gathered together in a single city. Instead of wanting to give God the glory and instead of praising His name, they wanted to make a name for themselves, to give themselves the glory, and they built a high tower. Perhaps they built a high tower thinking that if God ever sent anything like the flood He had sent years before, that they could escape God’s wrath. If they believed God’s promise to mankind that He would never destroy the earth again by a flood, they would not have built a high tower. They also spoke the same language, making it easy to communicate their disobedience to each other. Let us read God’s response to their disobedience:

“And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded. And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined [propose] to do. Go to, [come], let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech. So the LORD scattered them abroad from thence upon [over] the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city. Therefore is the name of it called Babel [confusion]; because the LORD did there confound [confuse] the language of all the earth: and from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon [over] the face of all the earth.” (Genesis 11:5-9)

God knew that if the people were unified and centralized in their disobedience to Him, their sin would be left unrestrained, and likely would destroy mankind. Consequently, He caused them not to understand their single language and spread them across the earth. It is no coincidence that rich and powerful people - globalists - in our world today are pushing people to live in very large, “15-minute cities,” instead of living all across the world, as God commanded us to do. It is no coincidence that technology, including now artificial intelligence (AI), is being utilized to allow people of all languages to communicate with one another.

In Genesis 11, we have the first instance of Babel, from which would come the rich and powerful nation of Babylon that would take the people of Judah captive for 70 years, and from which will come what is described in chapter 17 of the book of Revelation as “MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.” I will discuss this mystery, Babylon in detail in this devotional message, and the possibility that the United States of America is this Babylon the Great. For now, let me give one reason why I believe this. Let us look at the connection to the sign of the covenant that God made after the flood, when He said to Noah, “This is the token [sign] of the covenant, which I have established between me and all the flesh that is upon the earth,” and that sign was the rainbow, which had never appeared on earth prior to the great flood. The USA has taken that beautiful sign, the rainbow, and has made a complete abomination of it when, beginning in 1978 in San Francisco, it began being used as a symbol of the LGBT pride flag, and is used today, more than ever before. America has spread this abomination across the world to represent its pride in its sin. The flag has undergone several transformations, including decreasing the number of colors on the flag from eight to six. (See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rainbow_flag_(LGBTQ)). It is no coincidence that the number six represents the number of man and that the flag is known as the “pride flag.” In their pride and sin, the people of Babel disobeyed God and sought to seek a name for themselves, just as is being done today. Let us remember what God’s word tells us about pride:

“Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall. Better it is to be of an humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil [plunder] with the proud.” (Proverbs 16:18-19)

“Haughty” is defined by merriam-webster.com as “blatantly and disdainfully proud : having or showing an attitude of superiority and contempt for people or things perceived to be inferior.” If that doesn’t describe this sinful movement in the USA perfectly, I don’t know what does.

Now, let us read the words that Isaiah spoke to the king of Babylon. Though this proverb is spoken against the king of Babylon, I believe God is speaking to Satan, the one who fueled the hatred of the king of Babylon at that time. I also believe that God is also speaking to the future mystery Babylon that is discussed in the book of Revelation, when the final antichrist, whom I believe is referred to as “the Assyrian” in Isaiah 14:25, will be the final evil ruler on earth that will be indwelled by Satan, before the second coming of Christ. It is Jesus Himself who will break the staff of the wicked and will cast Satan into the bottomless pit for 1,000 years:

“For the LORD will have mercy on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land: and the strangers shall be joined with them, and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob. And the people shall take them, and bring them to their place: and the house of Israel shall possess them in the land of the LORD for servants and handmaids: and they shall rule over their oppressors. And it shall come to pass in the day that the LORD shall give thee rest from thy sorrow, and from thy fear, and from the hard bondage wherein thou wast made to serve, that thou shalt take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say, How hast the oppressor ceased! the golden city ceased! The LORD hath broken the staff of the wicked, and the scepter of the rulers. He who smote the people in wrath with a continual stroke, he that ruled the nations in anger, is persecuted, and none hindereth. The whole earth is at rest, and is quiet: they break forth into singing. Yea, the fir trees rejoice at thee, and the cedars of Lebanon, saying, Since thou art laid down, no feller [woodsman] is come up against us.” (Isaiah 14:1-8)

Let us pay particular attention to that last part of the Scriptures above. It is only when he who once ruled the nations in anger, meaning Satan/Devil/Lucifer, is persecuted. This has not happened yet but will happen when he is cast by an angel into hell, also called the bottomless pit (Revelation 20:1-3), after Jesus Christ returns to earth at His second coming. It is only when Jesus will destroy all wicked men upon the earth and will reign in righteousness for 1,000 years (Revelation 19) that the whole earth will be at rest and will rejoice. Let us continue reading from Isaiah 14:

“Hell from beneath is moved for thee to meet thee at thy coming: it stirreth up the dead for thee, even all the chief ones of the earth; it hath raised up from their thrones all the kings of the nations. All they shall speak and say unto thee, Art thou also become weak as we? art thou become like unto us? Thy pomp is brought down to the grave, and the noise of thy viols [harps or lutes]: the worm [maggot] is spread under thee, and the worms cover thee. How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend to heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.” (Isaiah 14:9-14)

Let us discus the verses above. I believe this description of a man goes far further than the king of Babylon. I believe these verses also have a connection to Ezekiel 28, when the prophet Ezekiel addressed the king of Tyrus, also called Tyre, in a similar manner that Isaiah prophesied to the king of Babylon. I will include passages of that chapter later in today’s devotional. The main reason I believe these Scriptures from Isaiah are not referring to the king of Babylon but to Satan is because the king of Babylon did not fall from heaven because he was never in heaven, but Lucifer/Satan did fall when he was cast out of heaven. Jesus Himself saw Satan’s fall and told seventy of His disciples about it. We also read about this in the book of Revelation chapter 12 that when Satan was cast out, he took his angels, those who opposed God, with him:

“And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils [demons] are subject unto us through thy name. And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lighting fall from heaven.” (Luke 10:17-18)

“And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon [Satan]: and the dragon fought and his angels, and prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.” (Revelation 12:7-9)

Is it any wonder that we see images of dragons and serpents all around the world? It is because Satan is full of pride and wants the world to worship him instead of God. He has been deceiving people since mankind began. Instead of worshipping God, many people have worshipped Satan and have made and placed images of dragons and serpents all over the world.

Let us continue reading what God has to say about the future of Satan, the one who is full of pride and who hates God and who hates those who believe in Him. I must admit that I do not understand the true meaning of all the Scriptures below, but I am absolutely convinced that their far fulfillment refers to the final end of Satan and all who follow him. I am doing my best to understand the Scriptures through the guiding of the Holy Spirit. I will discuss these Scriptures later in this devotional. Continuing in Isaiah 14:

“Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides [lowest depths] of the pit. They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms; that made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof; that opened not the house of his prisoners? All the kings of the nations, even all of them, lie in glory, every one in his own house. But thou art cast out of thy grave like an abominable branch, and as the raiment [garment] of those that are slain, thrust through with a sword, that go down to the stones of the pit; as a carcase trodden under feet. Thou shalt not be joined with them in burial, because thou hast destroyed thy land, and slain thy people: the seed of evildoers shall never be renowned [named]. Prepare slaughter for his children for the iniquity of their fathers; that they do not rise, nor possess the land, nor fill the face of the world with cities. For I will rise up against them, saith the LORD of hosts, and cut off from Babylon the name, and remnant, and son [offspring], and nephew [posterity], saith the LORD. I will also make it a possession for the bittern [porcupine], and pools of water [marshes]: and I will sweep it with the besom [broom] of destruction, saith the LORD of hosts. The LORD of hosts hath sworn, saying, Surely as I have thought, so shall it come to pass; and as I have purposed, so shall it stand: That I will break the Assyrian in my land, and upon my mountains tread him under foot: then shall his yoke depart from off them, and his burden depart from off their shoulders. This is the purpose that is purposed upon the whole earth: and this is the hand that is stretched out upon all the nations. For the LORD of hosts hath purposed, and who shall disannul it? and his hand is stretched out, and who shall turn it back? In the year that king Ahaz died was this burden [oracle or prophecy].” (Isaiah 14:15-28)

When God Spoke to Satan Through the King of Tyrus (Tyre)

Now, let us read the second example of when God spoke through the prophet Ezekiel to a man, the king of Tyrus/Tyre, but He was also more importantly addressing the source of his evil ways, who was Satan. Tyrus was king in a nation that eerily sounds a lot like the United States today. The king of Tyrus, like many world rulers today, lived in abundance and pride and believed that he was a god. He sounds a lot like Yuval Noah Harari and also many others today who believe like him. Let us read first the words of God that I believe were directed to the king/prince of Tyrus, who clearly was being led by Satan and worshipped him, for no man who worships Almighty God will believe that he himself is a God:

“The word of the LORD came again unto me, saying, Son of man, say unto the prince of Tyrus, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because thine heart is lifted up [proud], and thou hast said, I am a God, I sit in the seat of God, in the midst of the seas; yet thou art a man, and not God, though thou set thine heart as the heart of God: behold, thou art wiser than Daniel; there is no secret that they can hide from thee: with thy wisdom and with thine understanding thou hast gotten thee riches, and hast gotten gold and silver into thy treasures: by thy great wisdom and by thy traffick [in trade] hast thou increased thy riches, and thine heart is lifted up because of thy riches: therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because thou hast set thine heart as the heart of God; Behold, therefore will I bring strangers upon thee, the terrible of the nations: and they shall draw their swords against the beauty of thy wisdom, and they shall defile thy brightness [splendour]. They shall bring thee down to the pit, and thou shalt die the deaths of them that are slain in the midst of the seas. Wilt thou yet say before him that slayeth thee, I am God? but thou shalt be a man, and no God, in the hand of him that slayeth thee. Thou shalt die the deaths of the uncircumcised by the hand of strangers: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.” (Ezekiel 28:1-10)

Of Tyrus/Tyre, gotquestions.org writes something that perfectly describes America today (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/King-of-Tyre.html):

“Tyre was a center of religious idolatry and sexual immorality. The biblical prophets rebuked Tyre for its pride brought on by its great wealth and strategic location. Ezekiel 28:11–19 seems to be a particularly strong indictment against the king of Tyre in the prophet Ezekiel’s day, rebuking the king for his insatiable pride and greed.”

Is America experiencing now what Tyrus experienced then, when the prophet Ezekiel said, “Behold, therefore will I bring strangers upon thee, the terrible of the nations: and they shall draw their swords against the beauty of thy wisdom, and they shall defile thy brightness [splendour].” Is the mass illegal migration of other countries that have flooded into the USA over the years going to result in doom for America? And/or will America be invaded a conquering nation that destroys it? Time will tell.

Isaiah’s prophecies of the future of Tyre did come to pass, and per gotquestions.org, “Nebuchadnezzar besieged Tyre from 585–572 BC. Alexander the Great conquered Tyre in 322 BC, completely destroying the city.” (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/Tyre-and-Sidon.html)

Now, let us read the words of God, as spoken through the prophet Ezekiel, that I believe were addressed to Satan:

“Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, take up a lamentation upon the king of Tyrus, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty [were the seal of perfection]. Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that wast created. Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee. By the multitude of thy merchandise [trading] they have filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned: therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God: and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. Thine heart was lifted up [proud] because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness [splendour]: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee. Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick [trading]; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee. All they that know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a terror [horror], and never shalt thou be any more.” (Ezekiel 28:11-19)

The primary reason I believe this passage of Scripture is referring to Satan and not the king of Tyrus is because it states, “Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God” (Ezekiel 28:13). It was Satan, the serpent, that was in the garden of Eden and not the king of Tyrus. It was Satan and not the king of Tyrus that was the anointed cherub, whom God made perfect in beauty and adorned with every precious stone. God also gave Satan and not the king of Tyrus musical ability with timbrels and pipes (Ezekiel 28:13). Verse 13 also tells us that Satan is a created being, and unlike Jesus Christ, Satan did not always exist. Jesus tells us in Revelation 22:13, “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.” Ezekiel 28:15 tells us, “Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee.” Tyrus was not perfect from the day he was created because ever since Adam sinned by disobeying God the Father’s command, all human beings born from that time forward are born with sin, including Tyrus. Satan was created perfect by God, but because of his sin - his pride in wanting to be God - he was cast out of heaven to earth, where he still rules today. For anyone who may not believe that he rules this earth, let us read what Satan told Jesus when Jesus had been fasting for 40 days and Satan tempted Him:

“And the devil, taking him up into an high mountain, shewed unto him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said unto him, All this power [authority] will I give thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will give it. If thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be thine.” (Luke 4:5-7)

Let us read Jesus’ reply to Satan:

“And Jesus answered and said unto him, Get thee behind me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.” (Luke 4:8)

Notice that Jesus did not deny that Satan has all authority/power over all the kingdoms of the world or that Satan has the authority to give power to others. Jesus clearly shows us that it is not He who currently rules the world but it is Satan. However, as the Bible tells us, Jesus’ time to take His rightful reign over the world in righteousness is coming, and I believe it is sooner than most people think. Satan used, and still uses, people willing to worship him instead of God, and Satan enriches them and gives them knowledge, power, and authority, as he did with the king of Tyrus, and as Satan is doing in our world today with rich and powerful men and women.

Similarities Between Tyrus and the USA and Revelation’s Babylon the Great and the USA

Before continuing, let us consider what I believe are the parallels of the nation of Tyrus and the United States of America (USA). The nation of Tyrus was very wealthy and traded merchandise with many nations, just as the USA trades with many nations. However, instead of using those riches for good and instead of worshipping Almighty God, Tyrus, as America today, was lifted up in pride and worshipped money and self instead of God. I encourage you to read Ezekiel 27 and 28 and compare them to what is written in Revelation 18, which describes the whore of Babylon, and see the many similarities between not only Tyrus and the whore of Babylon, but also to America. The whore of Babylon will play a major role during the 7-year time of Jacob’s, meaning Israel’s, trouble, also known as the tribulation period, and the whore of Babylon will be destroyed by God in one hour. While I do not know with 100% certainty that America IS the whore of Babylon, I believe there are many similarities to the whore of Babylon in Revelation 18 and the USA, and also to the nation of Tyrus in how they lived in luxury and were full of fornication and abominations. If America is not this whore of Babylon, is certainly does provide a preview of her who is to come:

“For all the nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed [have become] rich through the abundance of her delicacies [luxury].” (Revelation 18:3)

“How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously [luxuriously], so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow. Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her. And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously [luxuriously] with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning. Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come. And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more…” (Revelation 18:7-11)

I don’t know of any other nation in modern history, and the whore of Babylon in the book of Revelation is about the modern times in which we live and not times of old, which has lived so luxuriously and traded with many nations, importing their merchandise and increasing those nations’ wealth, than the USA. With ports on its western, southern, and eastern coasts, in 2021 America was only second to China in the amount of container port traffic (See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_container_port_traffic). However, instead of using all that wealth for good and to glorify God and to share the good news of Jesus Christ across the world, the USA has gone from the time when it worshipped Almighty God to worshipping the “almighty dollar,” and has exported its filth all across the world, corrupting many nations with its pornography, alternative lifestyles and sexual perversion, rampant promotion of abortion, drug use, never-ending wars with nations in order to maintain and increase its deprived standard of living, and the list goes on and on.

Let us read the name that God gave the whore:

“And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.” (Revelation 17:5)

Revelation 17 opens by telling us of the future of this mother of harlots:

“And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials [bowls], and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters: with whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.” (Revelation 17:1-2)

In Revelation 17:3, the apostle John continues, telling us that this woman sits upon a scarlet beast. This beast is the final antichrist and is described in Revelation 13 as the beast of the sea that has seven heads and ten horns and will receive his power and authority from Satan (also called the dragon):

“So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.” (Revelation 17:3)

Revelation 17:4 tells us that this whore is dressed in a manner that exudes wealth and sets her apart from many nations:

“And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked [adorned] with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication…” (Revelation 17:4)

I came across a very interesting article that compares the mother of harlots to the Babylonian goddess Ishtar, from which the Statue of Liberty in New York City was modeled after. While I do not know if this information is factual, it is a very interesting comparison. (See: https://www.ancientpages.com/2018/09/28/is-there-an-ancient-secret-connection-between-the-statue-of-liberty-and-the-anunnaki-goddess-inanna/)

It is interesting to me to note that ancient Tyrus (Tyre) produced purple dye, which was very rare and expensive: (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/Tyre-in-the-Bible.html)

“In ancient times, Tyre flourished as a maritime city and a busy center for commercial trade. The area’s most valuable export was its then world-famous purple dye.”

Revelation 17:15 further describes the whore:

“And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.” (Revelation 17:15)

The Scripture above from Revelation 17:15 seems to describe the USA, which has long been named as a “melting pot,” that brings together people from all over the world, representing many nations and tongues/languages. The Statue of Liberty, we are told, stands as a beacon of hope, lighting the way for the immigrants coming to America, but is there something more sinister to all of this?

UPDATE 1/31/25: I wanted to add something regarding the verse from Revelation 17:15 above because I didn’t think of it when I first posted this devotional on November 15, 2024. I believe this passage of Scripture may also be referring to, and more importantly than the Statue of Liberty, the United Nations (UN). The headquarters of the UN is located in New York City. According to Wikipedia, there are 193 sovereign states represented in the UN. (See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Member_states_of_the_United_Nations) I believe that is a very fitting match to Revelation 17:15. The headquarters of the UN sits in New York City and represents many peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues/languages.

“The member states of the United Nations comprise 193 sovereign states. The United Nations(UN) is the world's largest intergovernmental organization. All members have equal representation in the UN General Assembly.”

Further, as part of my 1/31/25 update, I wanted to provide the Scriptures below from Isaiah 13 and Jeremiah 50, which I believe tells us the reason why Mystery, Babylon, Babylon the Great, is not a rebuilt Babylon, the Babylon of the Old Testament. I know that there are pastors, such as Andy Woods, that believe that Mystery, Babylon is a rebuilt Babylon, but I respectfully disagree with them. Many times in the Bible the New Testament is a mirror of the Old Testament, and I believe this is true in Jeremiah 50, where what happened once before will happen again. There are many passages of Scripture not only in Jeremiah 50 but also Jeremiah 51 that are repeated almost verbatim in the book of Revelation regarding Babylon the Great. I believe the reason why the book of Revelation calls it “Mystery, Babylon,” is because the location is not the same as the Babylon of the Old Testament, but its evil spirit and wickedness remains the same. The wicked and evil spirit originated at the tower of Babel, and the source of it remains the same: Satan. Let us read these Scriptures from Isaiah 13 and Jeremiah 50 and 51:

“And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees’ excellency, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall the shepherds make their fold there. But wild beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures [owls]; and owls shall dwell there, and satyrs [wild goats] shall dance there. And the wild beasts [hyenas] of the islands shall cry in their desolate houses [citadels], and drawings [jackals] in their pleasant palaces: and her time is near to come, and her days shall not be prolonged.” (Isaiah 13:19-22)

“A sword is upon the Chaldeans, saith the LORD, and upon the inhabitants of Babylon, and upon her princes, and upon her wise men…A drought is upon her waters; and they shall be dried up: for it is the land of graven images, and they are mad upon [insane with] their idols. Therefore the wild beasts of the desert with the wild beasts of the island shall dwell there, and the owls shall dwell therein: and it shall be no more inhabited forever; neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation. As God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighbour cities thereof, saith the LORD; so shall no man abide there, neither shall any son of man dwell therein.” (Jeremiah 50:35, 38-40)

“So Jeremiah wrote in a book all the evil that should come upon Babylon, even all these words that are written against Babylon. And Jeremiah said to Serbian, When thou comest to Babylon, and shalt see, and shalt read all these words; then shalt thou say, O LORD, thou hast spoken against this place, to cut it off, that none shall remain in it, neither man nor beast, but that it shall be desolate for ever. And it shall be, when thou hast made an end of reading this book, that thou shalt bind a stone to it, and cast it into the midst of the Euphrates: and thou shalt say, Thus shall Babylon sink, and shall not rise from the evil that I will bring upon her: and they shall be weary. Thus far are the words of Jeremiah.” (Jeremiah 51:60-64)

I also wanted to point out something in the Scriptures above that reference owls. Gotquestions.org has an interesting article that speaks about how in the Bible, owls are used to indicate God’s judgment and the resulting mourning. (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/owls-in-the-Bible.html) Did you hear the news report that made national headlines on December 20, 2024 when a family had that a barred owl come through their chimney and landed on their Christmas tree, knocking off the Christmas star that was on it. While looking into the meaning of owls today, I just realized something that to me, is quite eerie: the city in which this owl landed on the Christmas tree is in Arlington, Virginia. This is the exact same city as the crash that just occurred on January 29, 2025 between a military Blackhawk helicopter and a American Eagle passenger jet, where the plane landed in the Potomac River in Arlington, VA. (See: https://apnews.com/article/ronald-reagan-national-airport-aircraft-crash-9d79051a9e535bd855df5a4e5553b2e9) Is this just coincidence?

END OF 1/31/25 UPDATE.

For many years, America has believed it is immune from suffering because of its vast size and wealth, believing it will always life the lifestyle it has been living. Even the poor in America are wealthier than most people in other countries. America is full of pride and full of self, and I believe that one day, this will change overnight.

Revelation 18:12-13 describes all sorts of merchandise that the whore of Babylon will buy from the nations. Let us take a moment to read the last part of verse 13 that describes what else the whore of Babylon bought:

“…and slaves, and souls of men.” (Revelation 18:13)

Something that has been revealed recently is the amount of human trafficking, and particularly sexual trafficking, that is occurring all over the USA. People are being brought into America against their will and are being sold as sex slaves, including young children. America’s lust for perverted sex is insatiable. This is not only happening at America’s ports but also at America’s borders, which have been nearly left wide open for many years. There may also be a dual meaning here, where it may also mean that people, including young children, are enslaved in the countries in which the merchandise is made, such as we know is the case in China, where they are forced to make merchandise to keep costs down and the profits high.

Let us read now from the remainder of Revelation 18 that prophesies what is to happen to this whore of Babylon. Before we read, I want to emphasize again the name that we read earlier from Revelation 17:5. Read closely, it says this name is written upon her forehead:

“And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.” (Revelation 17:5)

Is this an odd coincidence that Donald Trump’s campaign slogan from both his 2016 and 2024 election campaigns but also his failed 2020 campaign is “Make America Great Again,” and it was placed upon his signature red baseball cap that is displayed proudly upon the forehead? Is it an odd coincidence that Donald Trump lives in New York City in his Trump Tower’s penthouse apartment that is lavishly decorated in gold and marble, putting on full display of abundance and wealth? (See: https://www.architecturaldigest.in/content/president-donald-trump-melania-trump-new-york-apartment-trump-tower/) Is it an odd coincidence that the term “MAGA” is also used to denote the highest level of membership, the fifth degree, in the church of Satan? (See: https://www.churchofsatan.com/hierarchy/) PLEASE NOTE: I have been writing this devotional since October 11, 2024. Sometime between then and November 13, I discovered that this link is no longer functional. In fact, the website for the “church” is no longer on the internet. Is that another odd coincidence? However, you can access this site through an internet archives site called “Wayback Machine.” Here is the link: https://web.archive.org/web/20180919124338/https://www.churchofsatan.com/hierarchy/

Just recently on October 27, 2024, Elon Musk, fellow billionaire and currently the richest man in the world, came out in support of Donald Trump at Trump’s campaign event in Madison Square Gardens, saying, “I am dark gothic MAGA.” Looking at photos from the event, Trump and Musk are shown in front of crowds shown in scarlet and purple. (See: https://www.foxnews.com/politics/elon-musk-comes-out-support-trump-dark-gothic-maga-madison-square-garden Is it any wonder that Musk has aligned himself with Donald Trump? Is it any wonder that he is implementing the Starlink low earth satellite system, whose goal is to “provide global mobile broadband,” which very well may be used to provide the tracking and enforcement require to enact the mark of the beast system prophesied in Revelation 13?

Don’t get me wrong: I am neither a supporter of Donald Trump nor Kamala Harris nor any political figure. There is no human who can fix America. I do not understand how any American can truly believe that America can be great as long as it continues to life the lifestyle it has been living that is in full rejection of God and which is supported by BOTH political parties. America is not worshipping God; rather, it is worshipping everything else but God. Back when Barack Obama was running for president, there were many Americans who worshipped him as a god, and there are many now who worship Donald Trump as a god, with many church leaders lifting him up as though he were God. The only One who can fix us is Jesus Christ, and unless we accept Him in our heart as our Savior, there is no saving us.

Now, let us read of the future destruction of the whore of Babylon:

“The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing, and saying, Alas, alas that great city, that was clothed in fine linen, and purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls! For in one hour so great riches is come to nought [nothing]. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by the sea, stood afar off, and cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like unto this great city! and they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness [wealth]! for in one hour is she made desolate [a wasteland].” (Revelation 18:15-19)

Isn’t is fitting that in the financial district of Manhattan in New York City that on December 20, 1989 the charging bull, also called the “Bull of Wall Street” was placed to represent the “the symbol of financial optimism and prosperity?” (See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charging_Bull) The bull has long been worshipped by sinful mankind, beginning after Moses led the nation of Israel out of Egypt. When God called Moses up to the mountain to give him the Ten Commandments, the people got tired of waiting for him to come down off the mountain and made a golden calf and worshipped it instead of God. Are we, too, a nation that is tired of waiting for God to save us and instead are worshipping a golden calf to keep us living in prosperity?

Before continuing to read the rest of Revelation 18, I wanted to mention that I think we have seen a preview of this during the COVID lockdowns and subsequent supply chain problems, when many container ships were floating in the coasts off the USA, waiting for the ports to reopen so that they could come and offload their wares. Now, let us continue:

“Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; for God hath avenged you on her. And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all. And the voice [sound] of harpers, and musicians, and of pipers [flutists], and trumpeters, shall be heard no more at all in thee; and no craftsman, of whatsoever craft he be, shall be found any more in thee; and the sound of a millstone shall be heard no more at all in thee; and the light of a candle [lamp] shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived. And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth.” (Revelation 18:20-24)

The passage of Scripture above clearly tells us that Babylon the Great will never be great again, for it will be destroyed in one hour. All that represented happiness and life - the sound of music, the voice of a groom and his bride, the craftsman making their wares, and the sound of millstones grinding grain - will never be found in that city again. There is also something else that will never be found and that is a light of a candle or a lamp shining its light, for this city that once had light shining in her, now loves darkness over light. Thus, the light will never shine in her again. With the latter statement, again, there seems to be an eerie connection between Babylon the Great and the United States of America. The light of a candle or a lamp that shines its light may be referring to the torch of the Statue of Liberty never shining its light, which at night does appear as the light of a candle, because it will be destroyed. It could also be a reference to what Jesus told His disciples when He gave them what is called the Sermon on the Mount. Let us read what He said about the light:

“Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle [lamp], and put it under a bushel [basket], but on a candlestick [lampstand]; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 5:14-16)

When Puritan John Winthrop, who was an English lawyer, sailed in 1630 on the ship named Arbella with other Puritans from England to settle the Massachusetts Bay colony in Boston, he delivered a lecture titled “A Model of Christian Charity,” in which he made the famous statement that they should consider that they should be “as a city upon a hill.” Let us read part of his lecture, and also read his warnings about the future of their endeavors if they did not obey God: (See: https://www.gilderlehrman.org/sites/default/files/inline-pdfs/Winthrop%27s%20City%20upon%20a%20Hill.pdf)

“Now the onely way to avoyde this shipwracke, and to provide for our posterity, is to followe the counsell of Micah, to doe justly, to love mercy, to walk humbly with our God. For this end, wee must be knitt together, in this worke, as one man. Wee must entertaine each other in brotherly affection…Wee shall finde that the God of Israell is among us, when ten of us shall be able to resist a thousand of our enemies; when hee shall make us a prayse and glory that men shall say of succeeding plantations, “the Lord make it like that of New England.” For wee must consider that wee shall be as a citty upon a hill. The eies of all people are upon us. Soe that if wee shall deale falsely with our God in this worke wee have undertaken, and soe cause him to withdrawe his present help from us, wee shall be made a story and a by-word through the world. Wee shall open the mouthes of enemies to speake evill of the ways of God, and all professors for God’s sake. Wee shall shame the faces of many of God’s worthy servants, and cause theire prayers to be turned into curses upon us till wee be consumed out of the good land whither wee are a goeing.I shall shutt upp this discourse with that exhortation of Moses, that faithfull servant of the Lord, in his last farewell to Israell, Deut. 30. Beloved there is now sett before us life and good, Death and evill, in that wee are commanded this day to love the Lord our God, and to love one another, to walke in his wayes and to keepe his Commandements and his Ordinance and his lawes, and the articles of our Covenant with him, that wee may live and be multiplied, and that the Lord our God may blesse us in the land whither wee goe to possesse it. But if our heartes shall turne away, soe that wee will not obey, but shall be seduced, and worshipp and serve other Gods, our pleasure and proffitts, and serve them; it is propounded unto us this day, wee shall surely perishe out of the good land whither wee passe over this vast sea to possesse it; Therefore let us choose life that wee, and our seede may live, by obeyeing His voyce and cleaveing to Him, for Hee is our life and our prosperity.”

Many years have gone by since Boston was settled, and the people of the states who came together to “form a more perfect union” and which became the United States of America, have not heeded the warnings of John Winthrop. While politicians including John F. Kennedy, Ronald Reagan, Barack Obama, and other political figures have given speeches that referenced America as a “city on a hill,” it was only in the context of America being a city that others would look to as a “beacon of hope.” They did not remind Americans that we must not turn from the God of Israel to worship and serve other gods, lest we perish out of the land. (See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/City_upon_a_Hill#Use_in_American_politics) As John Winthrop forewarned, our hearts have turned away from God, and we now worship and serve other gods. As John Winthrop stated above, we are seeking pleasure and profits instead of Almighty God, the God of Israel. I believe his warning that we will perish out of the land coincides to what God prophesied in Revelation 18 that Babylon will be destroyed in one hour.

Before finishing with this comparison of America to Babylon the Great, I wanted to focus on the last part of Revelation 18:23 and also verse 24. Let us read the end of verse 23 again:

“…and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived.” (Revelation 18:23)

America once loved God and sent missionaries all over the world to spread the good news of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. I don’t know of any other nation that once did more to spread the good news of Jesus Christ than America. America once taught the Bible to its children in its homes, churches, and schools, but, as John Winthrop warned, it turned away from God quite a while ago. Consequently, I believe that the reference to the voice of the bridegroom, meaning Jesus, and of the bride, meaning we who have put our faith and trust in Jesus Christ to save us, will not be heard any more in Babylon also means that no longer would the good news of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ be spoken by believers in Christ because there won’t be any left in America. Verse 24 seems to support this:

“And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth.” (Revelation 18:24)

Prior to Babylon being destroyed, it will kill both the Jews, referred to as the prophets, for it is of the Jews from whom the prophets of the Bible came, and also of the saints, meaning the children of God, those who are saved by Jesus Christ. America has also become increasingly hostile to both Jews and Christians, just as Jesus warned His disciples would happen in the last days. I believe the only reason that God has put up with America’s wickedness this long is because of her support for Israel. However, that is changing.

While Donald Trump professes to be a friend of Israel, during his first presidency, it was he and his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, who proposed the “Deal of the Century,” also known as the “Peace to Prosperity” plan that would provide a two-state solution that would divide Israel, God’s land. The plan was rejected by the Palestinians and was not put in place. Under the subsequent American administration with Joe Biden as president, it has placed increasing pressure on Israel to divide its land, especially after the October 7, 2023 attacks in Israel by Hamas. In fact, the world is increasing its hatred against the Jews, just as Jesus said would happen before His second coming. The future for America, or any other nation, is not one of blessing by God if it curses Israel by seeking to divide the land that God gave it:

“Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: and I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: and I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” (Genesis 12:1-3)

“In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed [descendants] have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates…” (Genesis 15:18)

America and the world, particularly the wicked United Nations, are putting increasing pressure on Israel to divide its land and create a “two-state solution.” I believe this pressure will continue to grow until such time that Israel will make a covenant with many for a period of seven years, as prophesied in Daniel 9:27, with Israel not realizing that the one with whom it will make the covenant, is the final Antichrist, who comes declaring peace when in fact, he is seeking their destruction. During this time, the Jews will build their long-hoped-for third Jewish temple, in which they will conduct animal sacrifices and oblations. Antichrist will then break the covenant 3-1/2 years later:

“And he [the antichrist] shall confirm the covenant [or treaty] with many for one week [a period of seven years]; and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and oblation [offering] to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.” (Daniel 9:27)

Throughout history, Israel has gone through periods of time when it trusted God, only to turn away from Him and worship false gods. Israel’s wholesale rejection of God’s only begotten Son Jesus Christ resulted in God partially blinding them until the time of the Gentiles, the non-Jews, is come in, meaning it is complete/finished (Romans 11). As it has many times in history, Israel is looking for a man to give them “peace and security” and not to God. Instead of looking to Jesus Christ, their Messiah, the precious cornerstone and sure foundation, to save them, it is looking to earthly man, as it has time and time again. Israel currently is ripe to make such an agreement or covenant with the man who will be the final Antichrist. One main motivation to make this covenant is that the Jewish religious leaders in Israel are longing to build their third temple, and it may be that they will be allowed to build the temple if they make the covenant. Israel just announced on October 21, 2024 that it has built a replica of the Ark of the Covenant that once stood in the first Jewish temple (See: https://www.jns.org/with-eyes-on-winning-war-building-third-jewish-temple-ark-replica-shown-in-jerusalem/).

On November 11, 2024, just six days after Donald Trump was elected as the 47th president of America, israel365news.com ran an article titled, “Midrash Hints that Trump Will Return Glory to Western World by Building Third Temple.” The article makes some concerning statements from Rabbi Yosef Berger and for anyone who knows Bible prophecy, these seem to align with what the books of Daniel and Revelation refer to the antichrist: (See: https://israel365news.com/397766/midrash-hints-that-trump-will-return-glory-to-western-world-by-building-third-temple/)

“Rabbi Yosef Berger revealed some amazing aspects of Donald Trump’s victory in the recent US Presidential election, most notably his potential role in building the Third Temple. As the spiritual descendant of Rome, the nation that destroyed the Second Temple, Trump has the potential to do a tikkun, fixing the sin of Rome, and returning the glory to Western society.”

Compare this to the book of Daniel in the seventy weeks prophecy that tells us from where the antichrist will come. Gotquestions.org has a good article that explains this prophecy (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/seventy-weeks.html):

“And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off [suffer the death penalty], but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. And he shall confirm the covenant [or a treaty] with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation [offering] to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.” (Daniel 9:26-27)

The “people of the prince that shall come” does in fact refer to the people of Rome, which destroyed Jerusalem and the second Jewish temple in 70 AD. The “prince” that it refers to is the final antichrist, and he will make a 7-year covenant with the Jewish nation, and possibly other nations, for a period of one week, which in this prophecy is a period of seven years. However, he will break the covenant halfway through it and will commit an abomination in the temple. Jesus told His disciples about this. When this abomination happens, the people of Israel will realize that they have been deceived by the antichrist and will flee to the mountains, which many believe is Petra:

“When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) then let them which be in Judaea, fleet into the mountains…” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 24:15-16)

Could the signing of this covenant pave the way for the nation of Israel to build its third temple? Just on November 14, 2024, an article was posted on the Middle East Eye stating that Pete Hegseth, Donald Trump’s pick for the US Defense Secretary has, in the past, “has called for the building of a third Jewish temple on the site of Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.” (See: https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/new-us-defence-secretary-called-building-third-temple-jerusalem)

Continuing with the israel365news.com article (see prior link above), it compared Donald Trump to King Cyrus of Persia, who was called by God to allow the Jews to return to Jerusalem from Babylon and build the second Jewish Temple. It also states something very peculiar:

“Rabbi Berger cited the medieval commentator, Rashi, who stated (Daniel 12:12) that moshiach [Messiah] will be revealed, concealed, and then revealed again. This was also stated in Midrash Rabbah (Bamidbar 11:3):”

“‘Like Cyrus, God put Donald Trump in power in order to build the Temple and pave the way for moshiach,’ Rabbi Berger said. ‘Like Moses, Trump began as part of the common people, was revealed in his first success entering the White House, but was then hidden.’”

“‘Like Moses, now that Trump has been revealed for the second time, he will fulfill his ultimate function,’ Rabbi Berger said.”

The book of Revelation makes an eerily similar statement, but it is not referring to the Messiah but to the final antichrist:

“And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman [Babylon the Great, the mother of harlots], and of the beast [antichrist] that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns. The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition [destruction]: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder [marvel], whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is. And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth. And there are seven kings: five are [have] fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space [time]. And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition. And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast. These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength [authority] unto the beast. These shall make war with the Lamb [Jesus], and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.” (Revelation 17:7-14)

I do not know if Donald Trump is the antichrist, but the statements that are being made by certain rabbis in Israel are very concerning to me. We know that they are not looking for the return of Jesus Christ but for the one they call their Messiah, who in fact the Bible tells us will be the final antichrist. I truly believe we are drawing very near to the time when Israel will either voluntarily or have intense pressure put upon her to make a covenant for a period of seven years to bring “peace and security” to her and the nations that surround her, but which will in fact bring the opposite. I believe this covenant may be the one that Isaiah prophesied will be cancelled:

“Wherefore hear the word of the LORD, ye scornful men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem. Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves: Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste. Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place. And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it.” (Isaiah 28:14-18)

I believe this covenant will be made sometime soon, after America has now elected Donald Trump to be its next president. Time will tell.

Returning to Revelation 18:24, I believe the last part that states, “and of all that were slain upon the earth,” includes everyone else who was killed by bloody Babylon. The wicked rulers of America, on both sides of the political aisle, together with leaders of large corporations all around the world, have caused many wars and conflicts around the world so that they can increase their wealth and keep living in luxury, at the cost of millions of people’s lives in the process. However, instead of repenting for our deep sins against God, Americans want to keep on living in our wicked sins against God. At his October 27, 2024 re-election campaign rally at Madison Square Garden, Donald Trump promised: (See: https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/live-blog-posts/trump-madison-square-garden-golden-age/)

“This will be America’s new golden age. It’s going to happen quickly too, very quickly.”

This eerily reminds me of ancient Babylon, the Babylon written about in the Old Testament. Babylon conquered other nations, including Judah, the southern kingdom of Israel when Israel was a divided nation, and took their wealth so that it could live in opulence and abundance that had never been known. It was a period of time known as Babylon’s “golden age.” (See: https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/beautiful-babylon-jewel-ancient-world/)

Babylon destroyed the Jewish temple in Jerusalem and took many Jews captive for a period of 70-years in Babylon. Like America that has rejected Almighty God, the One true God, Babylon worshipped many false gods, to its own peril. As written in Daniel chapter 5, Babylon’s last king was full of pride, and one night held a great feast where he and his right-hand men, and his wives and concubines/mistresses all partied and drank from the Jewish temple vessels that had been taken when Babylon conquered Jerusalem. This was an abomination to God, and God brought judgment upon Babylon when He sent Cyrus, the king of Persia, which is modern-day Iran, to conquer it in 539 BC. Is it an odd coincidence that during President Trump’s first administration, many Jews, and even many Americans professing to be Christian, referred to him as a “modern-day Cyrus”? It was Cyrus who conquered Babylon and allowed the Jews to return home from Babylon and build their second temple. Could former President Trump be the one that conquers modern-day Babylon, which I believe may very well be America? Could this be a fulfillment of the prophecy below?

“And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore [Babylon the Great], and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire. For God hath put in their hearts to fulfill his will, and to agree [be of one mind], and give their kingdom unto the beast [antichrist], until the words of God shall be fulfilled. And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.” (Revelation 17:16-18)

Is Donald Trump the one who will make a covenant with the Jews, which will include a “two-state solution,” in exchange for supporting the building of their third temple, as King Cyrus did with the second temple, something they have been longing to do for a very long time?

Concluding with my reasoning as to why America may be the harlot, Babylon the Great, in the book of Revelation, let us read the last part of Revelation 18:23 again:

”…for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived.” (Revelation 18:23)

First, I noticed something different in how the merchants were referred to in the verse above as compared to in previous verses in chapter 18:

“…and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies…” (Revelation 18:3)

“…and the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more…” (Revelation 18:11)

“The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing.” (Revelation 18:15)

The merchants of the earth are “thy merchants,” meaning these are Babylon’s merchants, who are the rich and powerful men of the earth. There is a clear connection to these merchants and Babylon.

Babylon the Great’s Worldwide Deception

Next, let us focus on the second part of verse 23. I first heard of this from JD Farag, a pastor in Hawaii, I listen to online, who noted that in the original Greek, the word “sorceries” is “pharmakeia,” from which we get “pharmacy.” It is defined as “the use of medicine, drugs or spells.” (See: https://biblehub.com/greek/5331.htm) America has had a drug problem for a long time, and it continues to grow worse and worse, However, in this context, I believe this is no ordinary drug problem because it says, “for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived.” What does it mean to deceive someone? Merriam-Webster defines “deceive” as “to cause to accept as true or valid what is false or invalid.” Every day, people are deceived. But what does it say about Babylon? It says, “for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived.” When were all nations deceived? They were deceived by the so-called COVID “pandemic,” with the USA leading the charge for all nations to comply with the mandates dictated by the American administration to “slow the curve.” The mandates included people wearing masks and staying six feet apart, which was in lockstep with the World “Health” Organization, which I believe is better named as the World “Hell” Organization. It was also in lockstep with rich and powerful men, such as Bill Gates, who joined with 16 pharmaceutical companies to create “vaccines” for COVID.

Never before have such “vaccines” been rushed to market so quickly without taking the normal amount of time to conduct clinical trials to see what adverse events and side effects may result from the vaccines. Subsequently, many people have died and many others have had serious health injuries from them as reported on the US Health and Human Services Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS). Looking at the reporting data for the COVID “vaccines,” it is clear that since 1990 when reporting through VAERS began, there have never been the number of deaths associated with any vaccine as high as those for COVID (See: https://openvaers.com/covid-data and the chart titled “All Deaths Reported to VAERS by Year.” I have heard that only a low number of incidents are reported to this system, as it takes a significant amount of time to report the adverse event, and that the numbers are actually much higher. Even the US Government’s own website stated: (See: https://digital.ahrq.gov/ahrq-funded-projects/electronic-support-public-health-vaccine-adverse-event-reporting-system).

“Adverse events from vaccines are common but underreported, with less than one percent reported to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Low reporting rates preclude or delay the identification of "problem" vaccines, potentially endangering the health of the public.”

With such a significant number of adverse events, which at least according to VAERS appears never to have happened with other vaccines, why weren’t the COVID “vaccines” pulled immediately? I also ask, who was leading the helm of these so-called vaccines? It was Donald Trump, and he even stated: (See: https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/23/politics/trump-vaccine-covid-effectiveness/index.html)

“I came up with a vaccine, with three vaccines. All are very, very good. Came up with three of them in less than nine months.”

“‘Look, the results of the vaccine are very good, and if you do get (Covid), it’s a very minor form. People aren’t dying when they take the vaccine,’ he said in an interview with The Daily Wire’s Candace Owens that was released Tuesday.”

“When Owens began raising doubt about the vaccine efficacy, Trump interjected, saying, ‘Well, no, the vaccine works.’”

As time has elapsed since these “vaccines” were introduced, we have seen an alarming rate of young, healthy people dying from heart-related conditions and also from aggressive cancers, with a new term being added called “turbo cancers,” and yet no one in mainstream media wants to discuss the possible connection to the “vaccines” and instead has used reasons of “Sudden Adult Death Syndrome (SADS),” the COVID virus itself, energy drinks, the food we eat, and the list goes on and on. Let us read some other quotes from Donald Trump, which were from the 2021 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC). I have included a link to the website that contains the transcription and also the video itself.

(See: https://www.rev.com/transcript-editor/shared/bPp2Yv5dZPAF6M6A8RQyZUlo563lBfA5s3_VgMdkk5IWUoDTmLjS02rQLE4akVID9dlIuFRL3UBH1WqnAykTj98Wjew?loadFrom=PastedDeeplink&ts=1540.44)

Donald Trump (25:40):

“Can you imagine if you had to go through what all of the countries of the world who are now getting the vaccine or soon will be getting it from various companies, but can you imagine if all of those countries had to go through what they've been going through over the last year? You'd lose hundreds of millions of people. I pushed the FDA like they have never been pushed before. They told me that loud and clear. They have never been pushed like I pushed them. I didn't like them at all, but once we got it done, I said, I now love you very much. What the Trump administration has done with vaccines has in many respects, perhaps saved large portions of the world. Not only our country, but large portions of the world.”

Donald Trump (26:38):

“Not only did we push the FDA far beyond what the bureaucrats wanted to do. We also put up billions and billions of dollars, 10 billion to produce the vaccines before we knew they were going to work. It was called a calculated bet or a calculated risk. We took a risk because if we didn't do that, you still wouldn't have the vaccines. You wouldn't have them for a long time. So think of that, we took this bet. We made a bet because we thought we were on a certain track, but you'd be starting to make them right now. It'd be a long time before you ever saw. It takes 60 to 100 days to manufacture and inspect new doses. And that means that 100% of the increased availability that we have now was initiated by our administration. 100%. In fact, the director of National Institutes of Health, Francis Collins, he's Fauci's boss, actually, I think he's a Democrat too, by the way, recently said that our operation warp speed was absolutely breathtaking and that the Trump administration deserves full credit, which we do. And as conservatives and Republicans, never forget that we did it. Never let them take the credit because they don't deserve the credit. They just followed now, they're following our plan, but this has been something that they really call, they call it an absolute miracle.”

Let us read Donald Trump’s own words at his Operation Warp Speed Vaccine Summit on December 8, 2020: (See: https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/briefings-statements/remarks-president-trump-operation-warp-speed-vaccine-summit/)

“We’re here to discuss a monumental national achievement. From the instant the coronavirus invaded our shores, we raced into action to develop a safe and effective vaccine at breakneck speed. It would normally take five years, six years, seven years, or even more. In order to achieve this goal, we harnessed the full power of government, the genius of American scientists, and the might of American industry to save millions and millions of lives all over the world. We’re just days away from authorization from the FDA, and we’re pushing them hard, at which point we will immediately begin mass distribution.”

“Before Operation Warp Speed, the typical timeframe for development and approval, as you know, could be infinity. And we were very, very happy that we were able to get things done at a level that nobody has ever seen before. The gold standard vaccine has been done in less than nine months.”

It wasn’t just Donald Trump that was pushing his country to get vaccinated, it was also Benjamin Netanyahu, who pushed Israel to get vaccinated. Netanyahu made a deal with Pfizer to buy vaccines early in their rollout to countries in an agreement to share health data from the people of Israel, which, rightfully so, raised concerns of privacy: (See: https://www.npr.org/2021/01/31/960819083/vaccines-for-data-israels-pfizer-deal-drives-quick-rollout-and-privacy-worries)

“How has tiny Israel beat out bigger countries on COVID-19 vaccinations, securing a steady stream of vials and inoculating a larger share of its citizenry than any other nation?”

“Israel paid a premium, locked in an early supply of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines and struck a unique deal: vaccines for data.”

"‘We said to Pfizer ... that the moment they give us the vaccine, we'll be able to vaccinate at the speed they've never heard of,’ Israel's health minister Yuli Edelstein tells NPR.”

"‘We need to understand that [Israel's agreement with Pfizer] is going to be one of the, I would say, widest medical experiments on humans at the 21st century,’ says the Israel Democracy Institute's Tehilla Shwartz Altshuler, a data privacy advocate and a leading voice questioning the Pfizer data deal.”

Another thing I will say about this worldwide deception, that sounds eerily similar to what is written in Revelation 18:23, is to ask if you knew that in October 2019, an exercise was conducted in New York where it planned for a simulated event of a coronavirus global outbreak? (See: https://centerforhealthsecurity.org/our-work/tabletop-exercises/event-201-pandemic-tabletop-exercise)

“The Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security in partnership with the World Economic Forum and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation hosted Event 201, a high-level pandemic exercise on October 18, 2019, in New York, NY. The exercise illustrated areas where public/private partnerships will be necessary during the response to a severe pandemic in order to diminish large-scale economic and societal consequences.”

“Event 201 simulates an outbreak of a novel zoonotic coronavirus transmitted from bats to pigs to people that eventually becomes efficiently transmissible from person to person, leading to a severe pandemic. The pathogen and the disease it causes are modeled largely on SARS, but it is more transmissible in the community setting by people with mild symptoms.”

Is it an odd coincidence that just a few months later in March 2020 the world was locked down due to a coronavirus pandemic, during which Donald Trump was president? I am reminded of when he made an out-of-the-blue statement back on October 5, 2017 when he met with his top military leaders and perplexed reporters when he said to them: “You guys know what this represents? Maybe it’s the calm before the storm.” After they asked him what storm he was referring to, he told them, “You’ll find out.” Was the COVID pandemic the storm he referred to? (See: https://www.cnn.com/2017/10/06/politics/trump-storm-coming/index.html)

As others have speculated, I do believe the vaccines were not created for COVID, but COVID was created to bring in the vaccines, and it was not with good intentions but with nefarious purposes, whose far-reaching, disastrous and evil intended outcomes I believe are still yet to be revealed.

I have been writing this devotional since October 11, 2024, and we all have seen and heard the American 2024 Presidential campaign rhetoric. On November 6, as I continued writing this devotional, the day after the election, Donald Trump was declared the winner and America, and many in the world, were and still are singing, “Happy days are here again!” as they celebrate their candidate’s win and look to him for better days ahead. On November 12, 2024, israel365news.com ran an article titled, “Ben Shapiro: Trump is Noah, Made to Save This Generation.” (See: https://israel365news.com/397789/ben-shapiro-trump-is-noah-made-to-save-this-generation/) It reminds me of the days described in the Old Testament, when the people of Israel looked to wicked kings to save them and disregarded what God’s prophets told them time and time again to stop sinning and return to God, and then they would have His blessings and not curses. I love my country, but America has become an abomination to God for its love of sin, and it has not learned its lesson, it has not repented and turned back to God. Further, and more importantly, I believe America will soon turn its back on Israel and will push it to divide the land that God gave to Israel and to Israel alone. Just one day after Donald Trump was elected President of the USA, Newsweek ran an article titled “Hamas Calls for 'Immediate' End to War After Trump Election Win”: (See: https://www.newsweek.com/hamas-calls-immediate-end-war-after-trump-election-win-1981571)

“A senior Hamas official has called for an immediate end to Israel's war against the group in the Gaza Strip and a plan to achieve Palestinian statehood in remarks shared with Newsweek in the wake of former President Donald Trump's election victory.

"‘The election of Trump as the 47th president of the USA is a private matter for the Americans,’ Hamas Political Bureau member and spokesperson Basem Naim told Newsweek, ‘but Palestinians look forward to an immediate cessation of the aggression against our people, especially in Gaza, and look for assistance in achieving their legitimate rights of freedom, independence, and the establishment of their independent self-sovereign state with Jerusalem as its capital.’"

"‘The blind support for the Zionist entity 'Israel' and its fascist government, at the expense of the future of our people and the security and stability of the region, must stop immediately,’ he added.”

Jerusalem is God’s holy city, and it is the capital of the land that God gave to Israel. Any nation or anyone who believes that they can take it by force will be sorely mistaken, as we are told in God’s word. In addition, any nation or anyone who believes that they can divide God’s land is also sorely mistaken:

“For behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity [captives] of Judah and Jerusalem, I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead [enter into judgment] with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted [divided up] my land.” (Joel 3:1-2)

“The burden [oracle or prophecy] of the word of the LORD for Israel, saith the LORD, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him. Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.” (Zechariah 12:1-3)

“In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the LORD before them. And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.” (Zechariah 12:8-9)

Consequently, I believe we are in for a very rough road ahead of us, a road that has been disguised with promises of peace and glory but which is paved with lies and deception. I do not believe America will be blessed by God but will be cursed by Him. Time will tell.

When God Spoke to Satan through the Apostle Peter

The third and final example I wanted to provide of when God spoke to Satan through a man is when Jesus, who is God the Son, spoke to Peter. It was sometime after when Jesus asked His disciples whom do men say that He is and they answered, “Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets.” (Matthew 16:13-14). Jesus then asked His disciples whom they say that He is, and Peter answered, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus answered Peter, saying:

“Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona [Peter’s name before Jesus started calling him “Peter]: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 16:17-19)

Jesus then told His disciples that they should not tell anyone that He was Jesus the Christ. Then He told them this:

“From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day.” (Matthew 16:21)

For many, including myself when I first read this, what was said next by Peter and Jesus’ response to him was perplexing:

“Then Peter took him [took him aside], and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee. But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offense unto me: for thou savourest not [are not mindful of] the things that be of God, but those that be of men.” (Matthew 16:22-23)

Here was the same Peter who, not long beforehand, was the first apostle to rightfully declare to Jesus that He is “the Christ, the living Son of the living God.“ Likely, in Peter’s eyes, he was defending Jesus, for he had grown to love Him and didn’t want anything bad to happen to Him. But there was also a darker side to the words that Peter had spoken, and the words had a sense of pride in them. Peter said the things that Jesus had just told him and the other disciples would happen would not happen, but the source of these words was Satan, for Satan did not want God’s plan for Jesus to be fulfilled, especially when Jesus said He would “be raised again the third day.” Satan wanted his plan for mankind to be fulfilled and not God’s, and Jesus knew that the words that Peter had just spoken were not his own but Satan’s.

There were many times that Satan has tried to stop God’s plan for mankind from happening, including when he had King Herod kill all of the babies two years old and under when he was seeking to find and kill Jesus not long after He had been born. Satan knows his future. He knows God’s word and what it says about his future, and that that there is coming a time when Jesus will cast him into the lake of fire and brimstone for eternity and Satan will never, ever be able to influence mankind again. Until that happens, Satan is doing everything he can to influence people to destroy everyone who is with God. He started that in the beginning with Adam and Eve and it is still happening today, including many world leaders who reject God and who believe Satan, also called Lucifer, who are puffed up in their pride and believe they are the ruling elite. Whether they know it or not, when they reject God to follow Satan/Lucifer, they have set themselves up for destruction and will spend their eternity in the lake of fire.

THE TIME WHEN THE EARTH WILL REJOICE - JESUS’ MILLENNIAL REIGN

Finally, let us read of the time when the earth will rejoice. That time will come when the time of Jacob’s trouble, the 7-year tribulation period, is finished when Jesus comes to earth a second time with His armies in heaven. He will stand in the mount of Olives and will strike down (kill) all of mankind who has come against Him and has followed the unholy trinity of Satan, his right-hand man known as the beast/final antichrist, and his false prophet, who will require all of mankind to worship the antichrist and take his mark, name, or number (666) in order to buy or sell. The antichrist and the false prophet will be cast into the eternal lake of fire and Satan will be cast into the bottomless pit for 1,000 years.

“And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, and cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season [while].” (Revelation 20:1-3)

During that time, Jesus Christ will reign on earth with a rod of iron. He will finally rule all kingdoms of the earth, having taken them from the grip of Satan. It is at that time when creation will rejoice.

During the 1,000-year millennial reign of Jesus Christ, people will still die during this period but their lifespans will significantly increase. The people who were not caught up to Jesus in the rapture prior to the start of the 7-year tribulation period but who during this time accept Him as their Savior, will not live in their new glorified bodies, as those who were saved prior to the rapture and who return to earth with Jesus at His second coming, but will live in their normal, fleshly bodies and will be able to bear children. They will also still be able to sin, and when they do, it will not be tolerated; hence, Jesus reigns with a rod of iron. No longer will there be a corrupt justice system that lets criminals go free and continue to terrorize; no, Jesus will not tolerate it. Let us read some of the Scriptures that discuss this time period. While we do not know the exact timing of all of this, we do know that it WILL happen:

“And the seventh angel sounded [blew his trumpet]; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever. And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats [thrones], fell upon their faces, and worshipped God, saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned. And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come…” (Revelation 11:15-18)

“Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil [plunder] shall be divided in the midst of thee. For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled [plundered] and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue [remnant] of the people shall not be cut off from the city. Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. And his [Jesus’] feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave [split in two] in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azai: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.” (Zechariah 14:1-5)

“And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one. All the land shall be turned as a [turned into] plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem: and it [Jerusalem] shall be lifted up, and inhabited in her place, from Benjamin’s gate unto the place of the first gate, unto the corner gate, and from the tower of Hananeel unto the king’s winepresses. And men shall dwell in it, and there shall be no more utter destruction; but Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited.” (Zechariah 14:9-11)

“And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots: and the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD; and shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the LORD: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes [by what he sees], neither reprove after the hearing of his ears [decide by what he hears]: but with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked. And righteousness shall be the girdle [belt] of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins [belt of his waist]. The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the falling together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed [graze]; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the sucking [nursing] child shall play on the hole of the asp [cobra], and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice’ [in the viper’s] den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea. And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of [a banner to] the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious.” (Isaiah 11:1-10)

“There shall be no more thence an infant of days [live but a few days], nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed.” (Isaiah 65:20)

“The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock [ox]: and dust shall be the serpent’s meat [food]. They shall not hurt not destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the LORD.” (Isaiah 65:25)

While the world seeks to have peace, because of sin and corruption of mankind, true peace is found only in Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace. True peace will only exist when He returns to earth the second time and reigns over all kingdoms of the world for 1,000 years. There is no corruption found in Him, and He will reign with righteous justice. It will be at that time that nations will no longer war against each other:

“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.” (Isaiah 9:6-7)

“And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.” (Isaiah 2:4)

THE END OF SATAN AND A NEW BEGINNING FOR BELIEVERS IN CHRIST

Before ending this devotional message, I wanted to write that there is more to come for mankind after the millennial reign of Jesus Christ, as the book of Revelation tells us. I believe there is a connection between the Scriptures I included previously in this devotional from Isaiah 14:15-28, and part of which I have included again below, which state that Satan will be cast out of his grave and what is written in Revelation 20:7-15, which I have included below. After Jesus reigns for 1,000 years on earth, Satan will be released from the pit/cast out from the grave. Even though mankind will have lived during this time period of 1,000 years with Jesus ruling, there will still be people who will choose to turn against Him and follow Satan. This will prove once and for all that mankind is inherently sinful and no matter how perfect the environment is and without Satan’s influence and deception over the world, there will still be people who just hate God and want to follow Satan. After Satan is released, he will deceive the world one final time. Jesus will then put a complete end to Satan and to all who will choose to follow him, ending all evil and wickedness forever, and He will cast Satan into the eternal lake of fire. Jesus will then resurrect from the dead every single person who died in their sins, who did not put their faith and trust in God to save them. Jesus will pronounce them guilty, for their names will not be found in the book of life, and they will be cast into the eternal lake of fire, where Satan will be.

As the Scriptures below state, Satan truly is the seed of evildoers and from that point forward, he will never be renowned/named again, for all sin will be gone forever, along with all his children who followed him instead of God. The people who rejected salvation will not live with Jesus and His believers on the new earth that Jesus will create, along with a new heaven and a new Jerusalem after He destroys the earth by fire, for Jesus will have cut them off. Babylon, the epitome of rebellion against God by man, which began with Nimrod in Babel, when he and his followers built a high tower to exalt themselves instead of God, Babylon which continued with Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon who conquered Judah and destroyed it and Jerusalem and burned the first Jewish temple, and Babylon, which will rise again as Mystery Babylon the Great during the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, will be destroyed, never to rise again:

“But thou art cast out of thy grave like an abominable [despised] branch, and as the raiment [garment] of those that are slain, thrust through with a sword, that go down to the stones of the pit; as a carcase trodden under feet. Thou shalt not be joined with them in burial, because thou hast destroyed thy land, and slain thy people: the seed of evildoers shall never be renowned [named]. Prepare slaughter for his children for the iniquity of their fathers; that they do not rise, nor possess the land, nor fill the face of the world with cities. For I will rise up against them, saith the LORD of hosts, and cut off from Babylon the name, and remnant, and son [offspring], and nephew [posterity], saith the LORD. I will also make it a possession for the bittern [porcupine], and pools of water: and I will sweep it with the besom [broom] of destruction, saith the LORD of hosts. The LORD of hosts hath sworn, saying, Surely as I have thought, so shall it come to pass; and as I have purposed, so shall it stand…” (Isaiah 14:19-24)

“And when the thousand years are expired [completed], Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, and shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast [antichrist] and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever. And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” (Revelation 20:7-15)

In conclusion, let us read the words of King David, the apostle Paul, and the apostle John and remember that God has not forgotten His people Israel, His afflicted, and Jesus will save a remnant of them through the time of Jacob’s trouble. It is this remnant who will finally put their faith and trust in Jesus - their Messiah, their TRUE Messiah - and they will all be saved. Let us also remember there is coming a day when all of creation will be joyful, when the heavens and the mountains break forth into singing, when the righteous king, Jesus Christ, King of kings and Lord of lords, takes His rightful reign upon the earth and is set in the midst of His people Israel, who will finally recognize Him as their Messiah:

“Ye that fear the LORD, praise him; all ye the seed [descendants] of Jacob, glorify him; and fear him [hold him in awesome reverence], all ye the seed of Israel. For he hath not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; neither hath he hid his face from him; but when he cried unto him, he heard. My praise shall be of thee in the great congregation: I will pay my vows before them that fear him. The meek shall eat and be satisfied: they shall praise the LORD that seek him: your heart shall live for ever. All the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the LORD: and all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before thee. For the kingdom is the LORD’s: and he is the governor among the nations. All they that be fat [prosper] upon earth shall eat and worship: all they that go down to the dust [death] shall bow before him: and none can keep alive his own soul [keep himself alive]. A seed shall serve him; it shall be accounted to the Lord for a generation. They shall come, and shall declare his righteousness unto a people that shall be born, that he hath done this.” (Psalm 22:23-31)

“In that day shalt thou not be ashamed for all thy doings [deeds], wherein thou hast transgressed against me: for then I will take away out of the midst of thee them that rejoice in thy pride, and thou shalt no more be haughty because of my holy mountain. I will also leave in the midst of thee an afflicted [gentle and humble] and poor people, and they shall trust in the name of the LORD. The remnant of Israel shall not do iniquity, nor speak lies; neither shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth: for they shall feed [feed their flocks] and lie down, and none shall make them afraid. Sing, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel; be glad and rejoice with all the heart, O daughter of Jerusalem. The LORD hath taken away thy judgments, he hath cast out thine enemy: the king of Israel, even the LORD, is in the midst of thee: thou shalt not see [fear] evil [disaster] any more. In that day it shall be said to Jerusalem, Fear thou not: and to Zion, Let not thine hands be slack [weak]. The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest [quiet you] in his love, he will joy over thee with singing. I will gather them that are sorrowful for the solemn [appointed] assembly, who are of thee [among you], to whom the reproach of it was a burden. Behold, at that time I will undo [deal with all] that afflict thee: and I will save her that halteth, and gather her that was driven out; and I will get [give] them praise and fame in every land where they have been put to shame. At that time will I bring you again, even in the time that I gather you: for I will make you a name [fame] and a praise among all people of the earth, when I turn back your captivity before your eyes, saith the LORD.” (Zephaniah 3:11-20)

“For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits [opinion]; that blindness [hardening] in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion [Zion] the Deliver, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: for this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.” (Romans 11:25-27)

“Wherefore God hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things [those] in heaven, and things [those] in earth, and things [those] under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:9-11)

“And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of [ruler over] the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, and hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds [the tribes] of the earth shall wail [mourn] because of him. Even so, Amen. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.” (Revelation 1:5-8) ✝️

October 10, 2024: Isaiah 49:11-12 - God will Make a Way for His People

“And I will make all my mountains a way, and my highways shall be exalted. Behold, these shall come from far: and, lo, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim.” - Isaiah 49:11-12

In this passage of Scripture from the book of Isaiah, let us go back and read what is in verse one of this chapter of Isaiah: It is Jesus Christ Himself who is speaking to us, and He is specifically addressing the Gentile/non-Jewish nations, which are referred to as “isles” and “people from far.”. Let us read again what Jesus said in Isaiah 49:1:

“Listen, O isles, unto me: and hearken, ye people, from far; the LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name.” (Isaiah 49:1)

In Isaiah 49:6, Jesus told us that God said unto Him:

“And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.” (Isaiah 49:6)

Jesus also told us:

“And now saith the LORD that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him. Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the LORD, and my God shall be my strength.” (Isaiah 49:5)

The book of Isaiah prophesied that Judah, which was part of the southern kingdom when the twelve tribes of Israel, once a unified nation, was divided into the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah, would be conquered by Babylon. Isaiah prophesied that not only would Judah be conquered, but its people would be taken into captivity to Babylon. The ten tribes of the northern kingdom of Israel had already been conquered by Assyria and its people taken captive, and now Judah, comprised of the two tribes of Judah and Benjamin, was about to suffer the same fate but by the ruling nation of Babylon and its king, Nebuchadnezzar. God allowed this to happen because of the people’s many terrible sins against Him. Both Israel and Judah had terribly bad kings who had ruled over them. Though Judah did have some good kings, most of their kings had committed many sins against God. Prior to the people of Judah being taken into captivity, instead of worshipping Almighty God, the one true God, the mighty One of Jacob, the people worshipped pagan idols and false gods, and they even sacrificed their own children to these false gods. Let us read of Isaiah’s prophecy to Hezekiah, the king of Judah at that time and who was one of the few good kings. This prophecy was given long before Judah would be invaded and conquered by Babylon:

“At that time Merodach-baladan, the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present to Hezekiah: for he had heard that he had been sick, and was recovered. And Hezekiah was glad of them, and shewed them the house of his precious things, the silver, and the gold, and the spices, and the precious ointment, and all the house of his armour, and all that was found in his treasures: there was nothing in his house, nor in all his dominion, that Hezekiah shewed them not. Then came Isaiah the prophet unto king Hezekiah, and said unto him, What said these men? and from whence came they unto thee? And Hezekiah said, They are come from a far country unto me, even from Babylon. Then said he, What have they seen in thine house? And Hezekiah answered, All that is in mine house have they seen: there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shewed them. Then said Isaiah to Hezekiah, Hear the word of the LORD of hosts: Behold, the days come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store until this day, shall be carried to Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith the LORD. And of thy sons that shall issue [descend] from thee, which shou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon. Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah, Good [just] is the word of the LORD which thou hast spoken. He said moreover, For there shall be peace and truth in my days.” (Isaiah 39)

This prophecy of Isaiah was later fulfilled with stunning accuracy. King Hezekiah, though once was filled with pride, had humbled himself before God when He sent His wrath upon him. Not only did Hezekiah humble himself, but so too did the people of Jerusalem. God rewarded Hezekiah, and he lived out the rest of his life in peace. Afterwards, Hezekiah’s son, Manasseh became king, and he was an evil king that led the people of Judah once again into the worship of false gods. Though the king eventually did repent, he had done too much damage to the people of Judah, and they themselves did not repent and stood steadfast in their sins against God. (See: https://www.gotquestions.org/King-Manasseh.html) Ultimately, just as Isaiah had prophesied, Judah was conquered by Babylon and its people were taken into captivity. There were several deportations of the people of Judah as they were taken from their land and brought into Babylon. Let us read of one of them:

“In his days Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up, and Jehoiakim [the king of Judah, five kings after Hezekiah] became his servant three years: then he turned and rebelled against him. And the LORD sent against him bands [troops] of the Chaldees, and bands of the Syrians, and bands of the Moabites, and bands of the children of Ammon, and sent them against Judah to destroy it, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by his servants the prophets. Surely at the commandment of the LORD came this upon Judah, to remove them out of his sight, for the sins of Manasseh [king Hezekiah’s son], according to all that he did; and also for the innocent blood that he shed: for he filled Jerusalem with innocent blood; which the LORD would not pardon. Now the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? So Jehoiakim slept with his fathers [died]: and Jehoiachin his son reigned in his stead. And the king of Egypt came not again any more out of his land: for the king of Babylon had taken from the river Egypt unto the river Euphrates all that pertained to the king of Egypt. Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. And his mother’s name was Nehushta, the daughter of Elnathan of Jerusalem. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father had done. At that time the servants of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up against Jerusalem, and the city was besieged. And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came against the city, and his servants did besiege it. And Jehoiachin the king of Judah went out to the king of Babylon, he, and his mother, and his servants, and his princes, and his officers: and the king of Babylon took him in the eighth year of his reign. And he carried out thence all the treasurers of the house [temple] of the LORD, and the treasures of the king’s house, and cut in pieces all the vessels of gold which Solomon king of Israel [the last king of Israel when it was a unified nation] had made in the temple of the LORD, as the LORD had said. And he carried away [took into captivity] all Jerusalem, and all the princes, and all the mighty men of valour, even ten thousand captives, and all the craftsmen and smiths: none remained, save the poorest sort of the people of the land. And he carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon, and the king’s mother, and the king’s wives, and his officers, and the mighty of the land, those carried he into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon. And all the men of might, even seven thousand, and craftsmen and smiths a thousand, all that were strong and apt [fit] for war, even them the king of Babylon brought captive to Babylon.” (2 Kings 24:1-16)

The Jewish prophet Daniel and his three friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, who were likely teenagers at the time, were four of the Jewish young men who lived in Judah and were taken into captivity in Babylon. Daniel wrote about this in the book of Daniel. They were made eunuchs, meaning they would be castrated so that they would not pose a threat to the king, and they were chosen to serve the king. Let us read what Daniel wrote in his opening chapter of his book:

“In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah came Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon unto Jerusalem, and besieged it. And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, with part of the vessels of the house [temple] of God: which he carried into the land of Shinar to the house of his god; and he brought the vessels into the treasure house of his god. And the king spake unto Ashpenaz the master of his eunuchs [castrated males], that he should bring certain of the children of Israel, and of the king’s seed [descendants], and of the princes; children in whom was no blemish, but well favoured, and skillful in all wisdom, and cunning in knowledge, and understanding science, and such as had ability in them to stand in the king’s palace, and whom they might teach the learning and the tongue of the Chaldeans. And the king appointed them a daily provision of the king’s meat [food], and of the wine which he drank: so nourishing them three years, that at the end thereof they might stand before [serve] the king. Now among these were of the children of Judah, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah: unto whom the prince of the eunuchs gave names: for he gave unto Daniel [whose Hebrew name means “God is my judge"] the name of Belteshazzar; and to Hananiah, of Shadrach; and to Mishael, of Meshach; and to Azariah, of Abed-nego. But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself. Now God brought Daniel into favour and tender love with the prince of the eunuchs.” (Daniel 1:1-9)

Just as Isaiah had prophesied decades prior that not only would the material treasures of Judah be taken away from them and brought to Babylon, but so too would the human treasures, the descendants of Hezekiah, young men, be taken away and castrated and would serve the king as eunuchs in his palace. Except for a small remnant of the most poor people in Judah who remained in Judah, the rest of them were deported to Babylon, just as Isaiah had prophesied.

Another Jewish prophet, Jeremiah, prophesied to the people of Judah during the first year of the reign of king Nebuchadrezzar, which is another name for Nebuchadnezzar, that because they had not listened to the words of God’s prophets who had warned them repeatedly to stop doing evil things and return to the Lord their God, that they would suffer the consequences of their sins against God. However, the people did not repent and return to the Lord. Consequently, God sent Jeremiah to tell them that God would send the king of Babylon to take them out of their land and bring them into captivity in Babylon for a period of seventy years. After the seventy years, God would then punish the king and the nation of Babylon because of their own sins:

“The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, that was the first year of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon; the which Jeremiah the prophet spake unto all the people of Judah, and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, From the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon king of Judah, even unto this day, that is the three and twentieth year, the word of the LORD hath come unto me, and I have spoken unto you, rising early and speaking; but ye have not hearkened [listened]. And the LORD hath sent unto you all his servants the prophets, rising early and sending them; but ye have not hearkened, nor inclined your ear to hear. They said, Turn ye again now every one from his evil way, and from the evil of your doings, and dwell in the land that the LORD hath given unto you and to your fathers for ever and ever: and go not after other gods to serve them, and to worship them, and provoke me not to anger with the works of your hands; and I will do you no hurt. Yet ye have not hearkened unto me, saith the LORD; that ye might provoke me to anger with the works of your hands to your own hurt. Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts; Because ye have not heard my words, behold, I will send and take all the families of the north, saith the LORD, and Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and will bring them against this land, and against the inhabitants thereof, and against all these nations round about, and make them an astonishment, and an hissing, and perpetual desolations. Moreover I will take from them the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones, and the light of the candle. And this whole land shall be a desolation, and an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years. And it shall come to pass, when seventy years are accomplished, that I will punish the king of Babylon, and that nation, saith the LORD, for their iniquity, and the land of the Chaldeans, and will make it perpetual desolations.” (Jeremiah 25:1-12)

As prophesied above by Jeremiah, the people of Judah were taken to Babylon, and they did return to their land after 70 years’ captivity. In chapter 2 of the book of Ezra, it describes in detail the people, by family name, who returned to Jerusalem and Judah. I have only included the summary verses below:

“Now these are the children of the province that went up out of the captivity, of those which had been carried away, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away unto Babylon, and came again unto Jerusalem and Judah, every one unto his city...” (Ezra 2:1)

“The whole congregation together was forty and two thousand three hundred and threescore.” (Ezra 2:64)

Time and time again, the Jews have rebelled against God, and He has brought punishment to them in order for them to see they needed to repent and to return to Him. Through their many punishments, God has always preserved a remnant of His people, including the people of Israel when it was a divided nation of ten of the twelve tribes and was split from the two tribes of Judah and Benjamin. Though Israel had many bad kings who ruled it, God still promised through the prophet Isaiah that he would preserve a remnant of the Jews of the northern kingdom of Israel who were taken to Assyria and that remnant would return to their land:

“And it shall come to pass in that day, that the remnant of Israel, and such as are escaped of the house of Jacob, shall no more again stay [depend] upon him that smote them; but shall stay upon the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, in truth. The remnant shall return, even the remnant of Jacob, unto the mighty God. For though thy people Israel be as the sand of the sea, yet a remnant of them shall return: the consumption [destruction] shall overflow with righteousness. For the LORD God of hosts shall make a consumption, even determined [a determined end], in the midst of all the land. Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD of hosts, O my people that dwellest in Zion, be not afraid of the Assyrian: he shall smite thee with a rod, and shall lift up his staff against thee, after the manner of Egypt. For yet a very little while, and the indignation shall cease, and mine anger in their destruction.” (Isaiah 10:20-25)

During the Babylonian captivity, God, through His prophet Ezekiel, proclaimed woe upon the shepherds of Israel and that their flocks - the Jewish people - were scattered because they had no shepherd to lead them. The shepherds were the religious leaders who were supposed to feed and protect the people and teach them the word of God. Instead of feeding the people, the shepherds had only fed themselves. Ezekiel prophesied that God Himself be the shepherd. It would be He who would seek out His people, gather them, and bring them back into their own land. Let us read some of what Ezekiel wrote about these false shepherds:

“And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD unto the shepherds; Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the flocks? Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill them that are fed: but ye feed not the flock. The diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither have ye brought again that which was driven away, neither have ye sought that which was lost; but with force and with cruelty have ye ruled them. And they were scattered, because there is no shepherd: and they became meat [food] to all the beasts of the field, when they were scattered. My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every high hill: yea, my flock was scattered upon all the face of the earth, and none did search or seek after them. Therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of the LORD; as I live, saith the Lord GOD, surely because my flock became a prey, and my flock became meat to [food for] every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did my shepherds search for my flock, but the shepherds fed themselves, and fed not my flock; therefore, O ye shepherds, hear the word of the LORD; Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more; for I will deliver my flock from their mouth, that they may not be meat for them. For thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out. As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered; so will I seek out my sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day. And I will bring them out from the people, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their own land, and feed them upon the mountains of Israel by the rivers, and in all the inhabited places of the country. I will feed them in a good pasture, and upon the high mountains of Israel shall their fold be: there shall they lie in a good fold, and in a fat [rich] pasture shall they feed upon the mountains of Israel. I will feed my flock, and will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord GOD. I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but I will destroy the fat and the strong; I will feed them with judgment.” (Ezekiel 34:1-16)

In this prophecy, God had nothing good to say about the shepherds of Israel. They had not taken care of the sheep, the people of Israel, and had left them to fend for themselves, causing them to stray and wander. When they did, the shepherds did not go looking for their sheep to bring them back into the fold, but just left them. While the shepherds grew fat and happy, the sheep became weak and frail and also prone to sinning because their shepherds had not properly instructed them in the ways of God. Because they were poorly fed, both physically and spiritually, the sheep were subject to disease and sickness and were vulnerable. They became prey to other nations. However, as written in the Scriptures below, it is not just the shepherds that God will judge but also the sheep themselves. The sheep that were faithful to Him will be judged as sheep but the ones that were not faithful to Him will be judged as goats. Ezekiel 34:17-22 describes this as a judgment between “cattle and cattle, between the rams and the he goats,” which I believe in the King James Version, it is a mistranslation, for in the Hebrew it reads, “between sheep and sheep, between rams and goats.” (See https://biblehub.com/text/ezekiel/34-17.htm). The sheep will be in God’s flock and the rest, the goats, will not be part of God’s flock; those who are part of His flock will be saved, and those who are not, will not be saved:

“And as for you, O my flock, thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I judge between cattle and cattle, [sheep and sheep], between the rams and the he [male] goats. Seemeth it a small thing unto you to have eaten up the good pasture, but ye must tread down with your feet the residue of your pastures? and to have drunk of the deep waters, but ye must foul the residue with your feet? And as for my flock, they eat that which ye have trodden with your feet; and they drink that which ye have fouled with your feet. Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD unto them; Behold, I, even I, will judge between the fat cattle [sheep] and between the lean cattle [sheep],. Because ye have thrust with side and with shoulder, and pushed all the diseased with your horns, till ye have scattered them abroad; Therefore will I save my flock, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between cattle [sheep] and cattle [sheep].” (Ezekiel 34:17=22)

Because the shepherds did not lead and care for God’s sheep, God then tells the shepherds of Israel to whom He has just pronounced woe upon, that He will set up one shepherd over His people:

“And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. And I the LORD will be their God, and my servant David a prince among them; I the LORD have spoken it. And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause the evil beasts to cease out of the land: and they shall dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods. And I will make them and thy places round about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in his season; there shall be showers of blessing. And the tree of the field shall yield her fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase, and they shall be safe in their land, and shall know that I am the LORD, when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and delivered them out of the hand of those that served themselves of them [enslaved them]. And they shall no more be a prey to the heathen [for the nations], neither shall the beast of the land devour them; but they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid. And I will raise up for them a plant of renown, and they shall be no more consumed with hunger in their land, neither bear the shame of the heathen any more. Thus shall they know that I the LORD their God am with them, and that they, even the house of Israel, are my people, saith the Lord GOD. And ye my flock, the flock of my pasture, are men, and I am your God, saith the Lord GOD.” (Ezekiel 34:23-31)

There are different viewpoints as to whom the “one shepherd” God is referring, is it Jesus Christ or is it David, resurrected from the dead, or both? I think it is both. It is Jesus Christ who only can bring eternal peace, and that is by faith in Him. God refers to Jesus Christ as the “Prince of Peace,” and tell us that He is from the line of David:

“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.” (Isaiah 9:6-7)

Jesus is the fulfillment of the prophecy that the Messiah would come from the lineage of David when the word of the LORD was given unto Nathan the prophet to speak to King David. The first part of the prophecy refers to David’s son Solomon, who would reign as king after his father King David died, and who would build the great first Jewish temple. However, the second part of the prophecy refers to the Messiah - Jesus Christ - who would come from the line of David and whose kingdom would be established forever:

“And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep [die] with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. He [Solomon, David’s son] shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever. I will be his father, and he shall be my son. If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men: but my mercy shall not depart away from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I put away before thee. And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever.” (2 Samuel 7:12-16)

I think it may be that after the tribulation period, when Jesus comes the second time and reigns upon the earth in righteousness and with a rod of iron for 1,000 years, prior to Him creating a new heaven and a new earth, that His servant David will be the shepherd in Israel. That is just my thought, and I very well could be wrong. What matters is that God knows, and His will, will be done. God’s Son, Jesus Christ, the good shepherd, will be the shepherd not only over the Jewish people but of all people, both Jews and Gentiles, all over the world. Jesus referred to Himself as the “good shepherd.” The apostle Peter said, Jesus is the “chief shepherd.” The author of Hebrews said, Jesus is the “great shepherd”:

“I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.” (Jesus Christ; John 10:11)

“I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep. And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.” (Jesus Christ; John 14-16)

“And when the Chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away,” (1 Peter 5:4)

“Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant…” (Hebrews 13:20)

In the prophecy above from Ezekiel 34:1-16 I believe there is a clue as to the timing when this will happen. Let us read again what it says:

“As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered; so will I seek out my sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day. And I will bring them out from the people, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their own land, and feed them upon the mountains of Israel by the rivers, and in all the inhabited places of the country.” (Ezekiel 34:12-13)

This Scripture is referring to the day of the Lord. The Scripture above is referenced to Ezekiel 30:3. Let us read what is written in Ezekiel 30:1-3:

“The word of the LORD came again unto me, saying, Son of man, prophesy and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Howl [wail] ye, Woe worth [to] the day! For the day is near, even the day of the LORD is near, a cloudy day; it shall be the time of the heaven [Gentiles].” (Ezekiel 30:1-3)

The day of the Lord begins when Jesus opens the seven seals that starts the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, and will end with His second coming to earth from heaven, when He will destroy all who come against Him. It will also be when the surviving remnant of the Jewish people will mourn for their sins against Him, finally believing that He IS their Messiah. Jesus will gather all His people from where they have been scattered and bring them back into their land. Jesus’ second coming will end the time of the Gentile reign upon the earth, and Jesus will reign in righteousness for 1,000 years. He will be their Shepherd.

Now, let us examine further the prophesied judgment of the sheep and the goats in Ezekiel 34:17-22. The prophesied judgment by the shepherd truly does seem to have a connection to what Jesus said to the shepherds of Israel who were living when Jesus came the first time. He was in the temple and had pronounced His woe judgments upon the shepherds of Israel at that time, who were the scribes and the Pharisees, who, just like the shepherds in the times when the prophet Ezekiel prophesied, were not leading God’s people. Seven times Jesus called them “hypocrites!” and He called them “blind guides.” Just as in the times of Ezekiel, Jesus had nothing good to say about the shepherds of Israel at that time. Not long after Jesus called them out and told them of the woes that would be upon them, Jesus left the temple and answered His disciples’ question as to what would be the sign indicating His second coming and of the end of the age. He told them the things that would happen prior to and during the 7-year tribulation, which is called the “time of Jacob’s trouble,” meaning Israel’s trouble. He also told them about the kingdom of heaven. He said there would be a time when He would judge between the sheep and the goats. All nations will be gathered before Him in judgment, which I believe includes the sheep and goats of Israel:

“When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory: and before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: and he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was an hungred [hungry], and ye gave me meat [food]: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred [hungry], and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me. Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: for I was an hungred [hungry], and ye gave me no meat [food]: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not. Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee, an hungred [hungry], or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee? Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 25:32-46)

Now, regarding today’s Scripture verses in Isaiah 49:11-12, I believe this is both a near and far prophecy. The near prophecy was when at the end of their 70-year captivity in Babylon, the people of both Israel and Judah were allowed to return to their land in Israel by proclamation of King Cyrus, king of Persia, who had conquered Babylon. Remember that Isaiah had prophesied that God would use King Cyrus to accomplish His will and made mention of him by name nearly 150 years before he was even born (Isaiah 44:28, 45:1). Let us read some of what Jeremiah spoke about this and why God allowed Babylon to be conquered by the Medo-Persian empire, led by King Cyrus, which is referred to below as “an assembly of great nations from the north country”:

“The word that the LORD spake against Babylon and against the land of the Chaldeans by Jeremiah the prophet. Declare ye among the nations, and publish [proclaim], and set up a standard; publish, and conceal not: say, Babylon is taken, Bel [a Babylonian god], Merodach [or Marduk, a Babylonian god] is broken in pieces; her idols are confounded [humiliated], her images are broken in pieces. For out of the north there cometh up a nation against her, which shall make her land desolate, and none shall dwell therein: they shall remove, they shall depart, both man and beast. In those days, and in that time, saith the LORD, the children of Israel shall come, they and the children of Judah together, going and weeping: they shall go, and seek the LORD their God. They shall ask the way to Zion with their faces thitherward, saying, Come, and let us join ourselves to the LORD in a perpetual covenant that shall not be forgotten. My people have been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray, they have turned them away on the mountains: they have gone from mountain to hill, they have forgotten their resting place. All that found them have devoured them: and their adversaries said, We offend not, because they have sinned against the LORD, the habitation of justice, even the LORD, the hope of their fathers. Remove [move] out of the midst of Babylon, and go forth out of the land of the Chaldeans, and be as he goats [rams] before the flocks. For, lo, I will raise and cause to come up against Babylon an assembly of great nations from the north country: and they shall set themselves in array against her; from thence she shall be taken: their arrows shall be as of a mighty expert man; none shall return in vain. And Chaldea shall be a spoil [become plunder] all that spoil [plunder] her shall be satisfied, saith the LORD. Because ye were glad, because ye rejoiced, O ye destroyers of mine heritage, because ye are grown fat as the heifer at grass, and bellow as bulls; your mother shall be sore confounded [deeply ashamed]: behold, the hindermost [least] of the nations shall be a wilderness, a dry land, and a desert. Because of the wrath of the LORD it shall not be inhabited, but it shall be wholly desolate: every one that goeth by Babylon shall be astonished [horrified], and hiss at all her plagues. Put yourselves in array against Babylon round about: all ye that bend the bow, shoot at her, spare no arrows: for she hath sinned against the LORD. Shout against her round about: she hath given her hand: her foundations are fallen, her walls are thrown down: for it is the vengeance of the LORD: take vengeance upon her; as she hath done, do unto her. Cut off the sower from Babylon, and him that handleth the sickle in the time of harvest: for fear of the oppressing sword they shall turn every one to his people, and they shall flee every one to his own land. Israel is a scattered sheep; the lions have driven him away: first the king of Assyria hath devoured him; and last this Nebuchadrezzar [Nebuchadnezzar] king of Babylon hath broken his bones. Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will punish the king of Babylon and his land, as I have punished the king of Assyria. And I will bring Israel again to his habitation, and he shall feed on Carmel and Bashan, and his soul shall be satisfied upon mount Ephraim and Gilead. In those days, and in that time, saith the LORD, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found: for I will pardon them whom I reserve [preserve].” (Jeremiah 50:1-20)

“For Israel hath not been forsaken, nor Judah of [by] his God, of the LORD of hosts; though their land was filled with sin against the Holy One of Israel.” (Jeremiah 51:5)

“The portion of Jacob is not like them [the people of Babylon]; for he [God] is the former [maker] of all things: and Israel is the rod [tribe] of his inheritance: the LORD of hosts is his name.” (Jeremiah 51:19)

The perpetual covenant that Jeremiah mentioned above in Jeremiah 50:1-20 (Jeremiah 50:5) is the same covenant Jeremiah wrote about in Jeremiah 31:31:

“Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD: but this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more. (Jeremiah 31:31-34)

The new covenant was quoted in the New Testament book of Hebrews, Hebrews 8:8-12 when the author, possibly the apostle Paul, was speaking of Jesus Christ:

“Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum [main point]: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens; a minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man.” (Hebrews 8:1-2)

“But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises. For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second.” (Hebrews 8:6-7)

No longer would the Jewish people need to follow the Law but would follow Jesus; they would worship Him with all their heart. The Law reveals sin and cannot save anyone from their sins; only Jesus can save:

“Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 5:17-18)

I think it’s important to point out that in the Scriptures above from Jeremiah 31:31-34, God specifically says He will make a new covenant with both “the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah.” This indicates that the ten tribes of Israel of the northern kingdom that had been taken to Assyria were not lost forever; no, God explicitly tells us that this covenant applies to both the tribes of Israel and Judah. For anyone who believes that the ten tribes of the northern kingdom of Israel have been lost forever, I simply ask them: have they even read the Bible? If they were lost forever, then why would God say what He said? Are they smarter than God? I think not. If anyone thinks that God has forgotten about the Jews and has forsaken them forever, let us read what God Himself says about the Jews:

“Thus saith the LORD, which giveth the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, which divideth the sea when the waves thereof roar; The LORD of hosts is his name: If those ordinances depart from before me, saith the LORD, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me for ever.” (Jeremiah 31:35-36)

For anyone who believes modern-day Israel is not the Israel that Jeremiah the prophet wrote about long ago, I ask you: have the sun, the moon, and the stars departed? The answer is clearly no, and neither have God’s people, the Jews. God, in His word, always tells us that He has always preserved a remnant of His people; they will never be wiped away from this earth. All the nations that come against Israel, including the USA, should do so cautiously, as they will suffer the same fate as all other nations that have come against it.

As I have written above and in previous devotionals in this study of Isaiah 49, this new and perpetual covenant is Jesus. Let us read again what God told Jesus in Isaiah 49:8

“Thus saith the LORD, In an acceptable time have I heard thee, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee: and I will preserve thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages.” (Isaiah 49:8)

I believe the far fulfillment of the prophecy in today’s Scripture verse is when Jesus Christ will return to earth at His second coming and will reign with a rod of iron for 1,000 years. It is at His second coming that the surviving one-third remnant of Israel, who will have fled their land and endured their 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, will be gathered a final time in their land. However, this time will be different than all the other times when God removed them from their land because of their sins against Him.

At the time of Jesus’ first coming, many Jews were scattered across the Roman Empire. On May 14, 1948 the Jewish State of Israel was declared, and Jews have returned to Israel ever since. Israel’s population has increased from nearly 1.3 million in 1950 to 9.3 million in 2024 (See: https://www.macrotrends.net/global-metrics/countries/ISR/israel/population). Though many Jews have returned from many nations to modern-day Israel, the majority are living in unbelief, in rejection of their Messiah. However, when Jesus comes again at His second coming, the surviving remnant’s eyes and ears will be opened, and they will finally see that Jesus IS their Messiah, that He IS their good Shepherd. They will finally put their faith and trust in Him alone, not in themselves, not in other nations, and not in their false gods, and they will believe on Him forever and ever, never turning from Him again.

Fast-forward to today, though many Jewish people have returned to Israel, at least part of the land that God gave them long ago when God made the unconditional covenant with Abraham in Genesis 15, Israel is not living in obedience to God. Israel has unilaterally as a nation rejected God’s Son Jesus Christ, whom God sent first to the Jews so that they might be saved by Him, the King of kings, if they put their faith and trust in Him - not in themselves, or any earthly king or man or nation, or the Mosaic Law to save them from all their sin.

I do not know the exact timing of the events prophesied in the Bible, but God does; His word is true and sure, all that He said would happen, will happen. The Bible tells us that there is coming a day when Jerusalem will be “a cup of trembling unto all the people round about” and “a burdensome stone,” and God Himself will be their defender:

“The burden [oracle or prophecy] of the word of the LORD for Israel, saith the LORD, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him. Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.” (Zechariah 12:2-3)

“In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the LORD before them. And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn. In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadad-rimmon in the valley of Megiddon. And the land shall mourn, every family apart; the family of the house of David apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Nathan apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Levi apart and their wives apart; the family of Shimei apart, and their wives apart; all the families that remain, every family apart, and their wives apart.” (Zechariah 12:8-14)

“Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the LORD of hosts: smite [strike] the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones. And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the LORD, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein. And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God.” (Zechariah 13:8-9)

After Jesus came to earth the first time, Israel rejected their Shepherd and had Him crucified by the Roman Empire. In 70 AD, as Jesus said would happen, the Roman Empire destroyed Jerusalem and the second Jewish temple. Subsequently, many Jews were killed and many were further scattered among the Roman Empire.

As the prophets Zechariah and Ezekiel prophesied, there is coming a time when God will gather all His people back in their land and will pour out His grace upon His people. They will look upon Jesus, the One whom they pierced, and will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only begotten son. No longer will they live in in their land in rebellion against Him, and they will put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ:

“And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen [nations], whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land: and I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all: neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions: but I will save them out of all their dwellingplaces, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God. And David my servant shall be king over them; and they shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them. And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, even they, and their children, and their children’s children for ever: and my servant David shall be their prince for ever. Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore. My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And the heathen shall know that I the LORD do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.” (Ezekiel 37:21-28)

The prophetic words of today’s Scriptures verses from Isaiah 49:11-12 are not just referring to the remnant of the Jewish people who will return to their land and will accept Jesus Christ as their Savior, but it also includes believers in Christ from all the Gentile nations who will come to Israel. God Himself will make a way for all His people, all His children. We will read more about this in Isaiah 49:13-26. God sent Jesus for ALL the world to be saved, for the Jew first, and when they rejected their Messiah, God then turned His attention to the Gentile nations.

Let us read the words of the apostle Paul, who himself was a Jew and a Pharisee of the tribe of Benjamin. Paul, who was also known as “Saul,” once persecuted the early Christians, but Jesus chose him to be His servant to preach the message of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ primarily to the Gentiles. Paul believed in Jesus Christ when he was literally blinded by the light of Jesus when he was traveling on a road to Damascus to persecute Christians. Paul clearly tells us that salvation was first given to the Jews, but also given to the Greek, meaning the non-Jews/Gentiles:

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.” (Romans 1:16-17)

The Bible tells us that God is the way maker; He will make a way - the only way - for His children, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed:

“Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. 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. And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know. Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way? Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” (John 14:1-6)

“The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the LORD, and excellency of our God. Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm [make firm] the feeble knees. Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not: behold, your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompense; he will come and save you. Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as an hart [deer], and the tongue of the dumb [mute] sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert. And the parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water: in the habitation of dragons [jackals], where each lay, shall be grass with reeds and rushes. And an highway shall be there, and a way [road], and it shall be called The Way of holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it; but it shall be for those: the wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err therein [go astray]. No lion shall be there, nor any ravenous beast shall up thereon, it shall not be found there; but the redeemed shall walk there: and the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.” (Isaiah 35)

“Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the LORD’s hand double for all her sins. The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain [smooth]: and the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it. The voice said, Cry. And he said, What shall I cry? All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field: The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: because the spirit of the LORD bloweth upon it: surely the people is grass. The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever. O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God! Behold, the Lord GOD will come with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him. He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.” (Isaiah 40:1-11)

“I am the LORD, your Holy One, the creator of Israel, your King. Thus saith the LORD, which maketh a way in the sea, and a path in the mighty waters; which bringeth forth the chariot and horse, the army and the power; they shall lie down together, they shall not rise; they are extinct, they are quenched as tow. Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert. The beast of the field shall honour me, the dragons [jackals] and owls [ostriches]: because I give waters in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert, to give drink to my people, my chosen." (Isaiah 43:15-20)

“Then said they unto him [John the Baptist], Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself? He [John] said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias [Isaiah].” (John 1:22-23)

“In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, and saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.” (Matthew 3:1-3)

There is coming a day when Jesus Christ will return again and put an end to all wickedness. No more will people war against each other. No more will people curse the Jews, for they who cursed them will be destroyed by the mighty One of Jacob. Jesus will reign on earth for a thousand years, and afterward He will create a new heaven, a new earth, and a new Jerusalem. Jews and Gentiles will live together in true and everlasting peace, for they will have turned their hearts to Jesus and been saved by Him, the sinless, perfect Lamb of God. They will worship Him with their whole heart, and they will know Him as their Savior, as their Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob. God will dwell with them, and they shall be His people:

“And I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.” (Revelation 21:1-7)

“And I saw no temple there: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten [illuminate] it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it. And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there. And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it. And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.” (Revelation 21:22-27) ✝️

September 13, 2024: Isaiah 49:10 - They Shall Not Hunger Nor Thirst

“They shall not hunger nor thirst; neither shall the heat nor sun smite them: for he that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by the springs of water shall he guide them.” - Isaiah 49:10

The words in this Scripture that were spoken of by Isaiah the prophet, to whom God gave a single vision - let me repeat that, a single vision - to speak to the southern kingdom of Judah, when Israel was divided into the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah, and also to speak to the people of the holy city of Jerusalem in Judah, were words of a future prophecy that extends far out into the future, over two thousand years from when Isaiah spoke the vision. In our fast-food, give-it-to-me-now world in which we live, it can be difficult to comprehend something like this that tells us of something that will happen - which hasn’t happened yet - but will happen according to God’s perfect timing. This prophecy from Isaiah will be fulfilled during the timeframe that is described in the book of Revelation, the last book of the Bible. Based on all that I have read in the Bible, I believe this timeframe is drawing near, and that we are in the last moments of human history before the events in the book of Revelation begin. Let us read and see how this passage of Scripture from the book of Isaiah connects to the New Testament book of Revelation, and let us know that it is Jesus who connects it. Let us also know that the book of Revelation is all about Jesus.

The book of Revelation is written in the Greek language. The title of the book in Greek is “Apokalypsis Ioannou,” which means “Revelation of John.” The book was written by John the apostle when he was exiled on the island of Patmos by the Roman government. The book opens in the first verse with the words: “The Revelation of Jesus Christ.” In the Greek text, it is “Apokalypsis Iésous Christou.” The transliteration of “Apokalypsis” means “unveiling,” “disclosure”, or “revelation.” Remember back in Isaiah 49:1-3, Jesus is the One who is speaking, and He is speaking to the Gentiles. Jesus tells us that God has hidden Him in His (God’s) hand:

“Listen, O isles, unto me: and hearken, ye people, from far; the LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name. And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in his quiver hath he hid me: and said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.” (Isaiah 49:1-3)

Contrast this with the book of Revelation, where instead of hiding Jesus in His hand, giving us glimpses of Him throughout the Old Testament Scriptures, God reveals or unveils Jesus to us. Remember, the book of Revelation is not in the Old Testament and was written approximately between 90 - 95 AD, around sixty years after Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension to heaven after His first coming to earth. Is it any wonder that Satan is doing all that he can to persuade people, including many professing Christians and even so-called pastors, that they should not read the book of Revelation? He tells them that it’s too complicated, it’s full of symbolism, it’s already happened, it’s not going to happen, and anything and everything else he can say to prevent them from reading it. It makes sense that Satan would do everything in his power and with those who have aligned themselves with him, to stop people from reading the book of Revelation because it clearly tells us that he will be destroyed and cast into the everlasting fire by the power and might of Jesus Christ. It makes sense that Satan would convince people that they don’t need to read the book of Revelation when it clearly tells us that we who have put our faith and trust in Jesus Christ for our salvation will live with Him for 1,000 years on earth during His Millennial kingdom reign after He returns to earth at the end of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, also known as the tribulation period, when Jesus will reign with a rod of iron and sin will not be tolerated. It makes sense that Satan doesn’t want people to know that after Jesus’ 1,000-year reign on earth, He will destroy the earth by fire and will create a new heaven and a new earth, where all the pains, sorrows, struggles, and death that we experience on this current earth will be no more, and we will live with Jesus in our glorified bodies, our new sinless and perfect bodies, for eternity. We will never hunger nor thirst, for Jesus Christ is our living water.

Let us recall the words that Jesus spoke to the Samaritan woman at the well when she was fetching water. Before that, let’s set the context. John the Baptist had been approached by the Jews because John had been baptizing people and so too were the disciples of Jesus Christ baptizing people. The Jews pointed this out to John. John told them:

“Then there arose a question between some of John’s disciples and the Jews about purifying. And they came unto John, and said unto him, Rabbi, he [Jesus] that was with thee beyond Jordan, to whom thou barest witness, behold, the same baptizeth, and all men come to him. John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it be given to him from heaven. Ye yourselves bear me witness, that I said, I am not the Christ, but that I am sent before him. He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled. He must increase, but I must decrease. He that cometh from above is above all: he that is of the earth is earthly, and speaketh of the earth: he that cometh from heaven is above all. And what he hath seen and heard, that he testifieth; and no man receiveth his testimony. He that hath received his testimony hath set to his seal [certified] that God is true. For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him. The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand. He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.” (John 3:25-36)

John the baptizer spoke words of truth to the Jews, telling them that he is not the Christ but that Jesus is the Christ, having been sent by God, and that all who believe in Him will have everlasting but those who don’t believe will not have life but will have the wrath of God upon them. Most of the Jews rejected Jesus, though they were the ones to whom the message of salvation was first preached. Now, let us read what happened next when Jesus went to Samaria and met the Samaritan woman at the well.

The Samaritans were not Jews and were despised by the Jews. This woman was an outcast, as demonstrated by the fact that she came alone to get the water instead of with other women. She was living in sexual sin, and Jesus knew that and told her that, catching her off guard. However, Jesus didn’t reject her because of her sins and instead gave her the truth of salvation:

“When therefore the Lord knew how the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John, (though Jesus himself baptized not, but his disciples,) he left Judaea, and departed again into Galilee. And he must needs go [needed to go] through Samaria. Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Now Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour. There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink. (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat [food].) Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? For the Jews have no dealings with Samaritans. Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water? Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle? Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: but whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw. Jesus saith unto her, Go, call thy husband, and come hither. The woman answered and said, I have no husband. Jesus said unto her, Thou hast well said, I have no husband: for thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: in that saidst thou truly. The woman saith unto him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet. Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias [Messiah] cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things. Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he. And upon this came his disciples, and marveled that he talked with the woman: yet no man said, What seekest thou? or, Why talkest with her? The woman then left her waterpot, and went her way into the city, and saith to the men, come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ? Then they went out of the city, and came unto him.” (John 4:1-30)

In our sinful and lost world today, many people say God is a misogynist. The passage of Scripture above clearly contradicts that lie of Satan, for Jesus spoke with not only a Samaritan, but a Samaritan woman, when the Jews wouldn’t even talk to her. The Jews despised the Samaritans, who were a people that were part Jew and Gentile. Gotquestions.org has a good article regarding the Samaritans at https://www.gotquestions.org/Samaritans.html. Not only was this woman despised by the Jews, but she was apparently considered an outcast by her own people because she had come alone to fetch water instead of with other women. Through her conversation with Jesus and the things He said to her that no stranger could know about her, she realized that He is the Christ of whom the Jewish prophets of God had foretold long ago would come. Jesus’ disciples then came up and saw Jesus speaking to her and wondered why He was speaking to her. Jesus wasn’t a misogynist; no, Jesus loved her and gave her the truth - that He is the Christ and that those who drink from the living water that only He could give her will have everlasting life. The Samaritan woman was so stunned by what she heard Him say to her that she left her waterpot, which was the whole reason why she had come to the well in the first place - to fill it - and went and told the men of her people about Him. Instead of filling her waterpot with the water that would need to be filled again and again, she left with heart being filled by the living water of God Himself, which would need to be filled only once. The next thing that she did was to go and tell others about Him, which is something all we who believe in Him and have put our faith and trust in Him for our salvation, should do, so that others might be saved in Him. Let us read what happened next:

“‘And many of the Samaritans of that city believed on him for the saying of the woman, which testified, he told me all that ever I did. So when the Samaritans were come unto him, they besought [urged] him that he would tarry [stay] with them: and he abode there two days. And many more believed because of his own word; and said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.” (John 4:39-42)

Some of the Samaritans believed in Jesus because of the woman’s testimony of Him, and some believed only after they went and sought Jesus for themselves and heard Him speak to them directly. Just as Isaiah and other prophets told us in the Scriptures, that Jesus came not only to save the Jews, but also the Gentiles, including the Samaritans even though they were despised by the Jews. Jesus came to offer salvation to all people, Jew or Gentile, male or female, free or slave, who believe on Him.

The Jews knew long before Jesus came the first time that their God, their Messiah, was coming, but when Jesus their Messiah came, they rejected Him because He wasn’t the God they thought He would be, whom they wanted Him to be: the conquering King who would free them from the grip of the Roman Empire that ruled over them. How many of us are like them who have a certain perception of what our God must be like in order for us to accept Him and to accept the truth?

Just like the Samaritan woman and her encounter with Jesus, we all need water to live and to sustain our temporary lives here on earth. However, when Jesus said only He could give her the water that if she drank of it, she would never thirst again, He wasn’t referring to the water that we drink from the earth that sustains our life only but a short time, but the water that we drink from Him, which He gives freely to all, that will sustain us forever, with Him.

As the book of Revelation clearly tells us, we who are believers in Christ who have been washed clean by the blood of Christ, will hunger and thirst no more. We are also told that no longer will the sun nor any heat strike us. People who are not believers in Christ and are not caught up to Him in the rapture before the start of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, also known as the tribulation period, will go through the tribulation period. The last 3-1/2 years of this time period, Jesus Himself described as the “great tribulation.” (Matthew 24:21) Everyone who is not raptured prior to the start of the tribulation period but who turns to Jesus Christ during it and puts their faith and trust in Him to save them from their sins, which very well may cost them their lives, will spend their eternity with Him. Many people will turn to Jesus and be saved during this time period:

“After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues [languages], stood before the throne, and before the Lamb [Jesus Christ], clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; and cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb. And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God, saying, Amen: Blessing and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen. And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What [who] are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light [strike] them, nor any heat. For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed [shepherd] them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.” (Revelation 7:9-17)

Many people today believe there will be a great revival soon, when many people will turn to Jesus Christ and be born again, but that is not what the Bible tells us. No, it tells us that as we draw closer to the start of the tribulation period, the world will get worse and worse. Jesus described the events that would take place as the beginning of sorrows, which some Bible translations describe as birth pangs/pains, that would be signs indicating the nearness of His second coming and of the end of the world/age. May we also note that the first thing Jesus warned His disciples of was not to be deceived. The apostle Paul said there would be perilous times in the last days. Let us read what the Bible says about these times:

“And as he [Jesus] sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world [age]? And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers [various] places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.” (Matthew 24:3-8)

“This know also, 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, truce breakers, false accusers, incontinent [without self-control], fierce [brutal], despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady [reckless], high-minded [haughty], lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith. But they shall proceed no further: for their folly shall be manifest unto all men, as theirs also was.” (2 Timothy 3:1-9)

Do these descriptions of the condition of cultures all around the world at the time of the end sound like there will be a great revival in the church, with many people turning to Jesus Christ for their salvation? No, it is exactly the opposite! It is critical to note that Paul’s description of people’s attitudes at the time of the end is a description of those who are in the church, as evidenced by him saying, “having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof.” Oh, how we see this today in many churches around the world, and I would venture to say in the majority of American churches. Paul also had this to say about people in the church, and we are there; we are at the time that Paul described in the Scripture below:

“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.” (2 Timothy 4:3-4)

When I read the words above, it reminds me of a recent advertising campaign that began to air in the USA during the 2023 Super Bowl that was called “He Gets Us” and which continues to air. These commercials are preaching a false Christ, just as Jesus said would happen. The commercials are pandering to those who don’t want the truth of God but their version of the “truth” and which does not convict them of their sin but which comforts them in their sin. All the signs that Jesus gave us are definitely indicating we are very close to the start of the tribulation period.

At the end of the 7-year tribulation period, heaven will be opened and King Jesus will ride upon a white horse, along with His army of saints, who are the believers in Christ who were caught up to Him in the clouds, i.e., raptured, before the start of the tribulation, and He will make war upon the wicked and unbelieving world. Let’s read what the book of Revelation tells us about His second coming:

“And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture [robe] dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite [strike] the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture [robe] and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.” (Revelation 19:11-16)

Jesus’ second coming will not be like His first coming, when He came as the sacrificial Lamb of God to offer salvation to all who would believe on Him for redemption of their sin; no, this time, He will come as the Lion of the tribe of Judah. This reference to Him as a lion is in chapter five of Revelation, when the apostle John saw that it was Jesus Himself who would open the seven seals of the book/scroll, thus beginning the start of the tribulation period:

“And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book [scroll] written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals. And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof? And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon. And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and read the book, neither to look thereon. And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof. And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth. And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne. And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints. And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; and hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth. And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands; saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing. And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever. And the four beasts said, Amen. And the four and twenty elders fell down and worshipped him that liveth for ever and ever.” (Revelation 5:1-14)

Jesus Himself will begin the tribulation period by opening the seven seals of the book, and He will end it when He comes to judge and make war with the unbelieving world. When He comes to make war, it will be too late for anyone to turn to Him and be saved if they have not been born again already, and they will be slain by the sword of His mouth.

Next, Jesus will reign on earth with a rod of iron for 1,000 years, and at the end of it, the devil, also known as Satan and Lucifer, will be cast into the eternal lake of fire, where the final antichrist, called “the beast,” and his false prophet will already be (Revelation 19:20), and they will never escape from it. At the end of His millennial kingdom, Jesus will then will resurrect everyone whoever died, and they will stand before Him in judgment. Those who died in their sins will be found guilty and cast into the lake of fire because their names will not be written in the book of Life, for they chose sin over redemption. Believers in Christ will have their names written in the book of Life. (Revelation 20)

Next, Jesus will destroy the heavens and earth by fire (2 Peter 3:7) and will create a new heaven and a new earth. We who have received His offer of living waters will spend our eternity with Him on this new heaven and earth. However, there will be no unbelievers in this new heaven and earth, for they will have rejected Jesus’ free gift of salvation and instead chose to remain in their sin and shame. They will be in the lake of fire, forever thirsting, forever hungering for the word of God - Jesus Christ - who offered them the living waters when they were still alive but they chose to reject it:

“And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst [who thirsts] of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.” (Revelation 21:1-8)

It sounds harsh but it is the truth. I refuse to sugarcoat the truth, like so many people who call themselves pastors are doing and have done for many years because they have caved to the sinful world, telling people what they want to hear, telling them “He gets us,” instead of what they need to hear. Jesus Christ truly loves us, and He gave His life for us to offer us redemption of our sins. It’s up to us whether we choose to accept that gift. Yes, Jesus is love, and part of loving us includes dealing with sin. Our world is growing darker and darker by the minute because it has rejected the truth of God to believe the lie of Satan. Sin is running rampant. Jesus would not be loving if He continued to let sin reign forever; He must put an end to it, once and for all, and that time is soon coming. Can you imagine if He just let people continue to get away with murder, rape, slaughtering of the most innocent, babes in the womb, stealing, lying, committing all kinds of deviant sexual sin, etc., and yet He did nothing about it? How would the victims of these crimes and their families feel toward Him if He did nothing about it? That would not be a god of love but a false god, which is exactly what Satan, the god of this world, wants: to create as much chaos as possible and to let sin run rampant and go unpunished.

The truth is, one day we will all die, and when we do, we will only take one of two things with us: our sin or our righteousness that only comes by our faith in Jesus Christ. There will be a day, judgment day, when all those who died in their sin will appear before His court and stand trial. They will be judged by their works, which are written in books that He has maintained. Their works are the things that they did in their lives. Because no one can be made righteous except by being born again by the precious blood of Jesus Christ, their names will not be found in the book of Life, and they will be found guilty and cast into the eternal lake of fire (Revelation 20:11-15). God does not want this for us. That is why He sent us His Son Jesus Christ to live as one of us, experience all the pains and difficulties of life as we do, to walk and talk among us, to eat with us, and to tell us of God’s plan for salvation for us, which was prophesied long ago by the Old Testament prophets, including the prophet Isaiah. Sadly, as the majority of people who lived during Isaiah’s time rejected his warnings to them, so too do most people today reject the message of salvation, choosing instead to believe the lies of Satan, rejecting the bread of life and the living waters, rejecting God’s mercy, refusing to let Him lead them. Their choice will leave them forever hungering, forever thirsting, and that is the truth. I give you the truth, and what you do with it is up to you. ✝️

September 3, 2024: Isaiah 49:9 - Only Jesus Can Free Us from Sin and Darkness

“That thou mayest say to the prisoners, Go forth; to them that are in darkness, Shew yourselves. They shall feed in the ways, and their pastures shall be in all high places.” - Isaiah 49:9

We are all sinners in need of the Savior, Jesus Christ. What does sin do to us? It enslaves us to it, slowly at first, often without us even realizing it. At first, our sin feels good, pleasurable, but with time, it changes. It is like a boa constrictor, a serpent, that wraps itself around its prey, slowly squeezing its victim, as the victim tries to escape it. But the more the prey resists, the more pressure the serpent applies, squeezing it even tighter so that it restricts, cuts off the blood supply to the heart, brain, and other organs, until the person within the serpent’s strong hold gives up its life, succumbing to the serpent. This is what sin does; it literally takes our life from us, causing our heart and our brain not to receive the nourishing blood that it needs to sustain life and to think rationally. And, it’s not only our temporary life here on earth that our sin takes from us, but also our eternal life, which God planned for us - and wants us - to spend with Him. However, when we choose to remain in our sin and not accept God’s free gift of salvation through His only begotten Son Jesus Christ, we are telling Satan, the serpent, that we choose him over God, and we give him full access to our lives, and that includes our eternal life. It is only Jesus the Christ who can break these bonds of sin, the chains of the serpent Satan that bind us. Only Jesus can bring us out of darkness and into the light, the beautiful light that He emits with His radiance and glory. The light that evil hates, for evil loves the darkness.

Have you ever noticed how dark the world has become? Not too long ago, probably around twenty years or so, when my husband and I used to go to the movies, I told him that I noticed how dark, how sinister the movies had become, even children’s movies. No longer was there light present in them, but most of the movies had this dark aura about them. It was not my imagination; it was purposeful, because in recent years, Satan and all that he is - wicked, evil, perverted - has overcome not only the movie industry but much of the world today, particularly in America. The colors of red and black are prominent in movies, in opening ceremonies of large events and spectacles, and even in US presidential addresses to the nation. The theme of the majority of movies and TV series is sin: sexual fornication and perversion, violence and death, vile language, drugs, drugs, and more drugs, and on and on it goes. Why is all of this happening? Because instead of the world loving God and His Son Jesus Christ, it loves darkness and hates the light. Those that hate the light of Jesus will be voluntarily chained to their sin, and for now, Satan is the holder of those chains. Jesus Himself told us this fact:

“And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved [exposed].” (Jesus Christ; John 3:19-20)

“Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” (John 8:12)

The apostle Paul also wrote about this in the book of Romans and reminded the people that we are either servants to sin or to righteousness:

“Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.” (Romans 6:16-18)

Isaiah prophesied of the Light, Jesus Christ, long before Jesus would come to the earth the first time, and how the Light would break the chains of bondage and set the captives (of sin) free:

“The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because of the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up [heal] the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; to proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.” (Isaiah 61:1-3)

Jesus Himself quoted these words from the prophet Isaiah when He spoke to the Jews at the synagogue in Nazareth:

“And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read. And there was delivered unto him the book of Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised [oppressed], to preach the acceptable year of the Lord. And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. And he began to say unto them. This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears [hearing].” (Luke 4:16-21)

Jesus told us that what we take in, what we look at with our eyes, will affect whether we gravitate toward Him - the Light of the world - or toward Satan, the darkness of the world. Satan will tempt us with riches - money - and many people have literally sold their soul to him in exchange for money, status, and/or power. Jesus tells us that must decide whether we will serve Him or money; we cannot serve both:

“Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon the earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single [healthy], thy whole body shall be full of light. But if thine eye be evil [unhealthy], thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness! No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold [be loyal] to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon [riches].” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 6:19-24)

Isaiah wrote about gross darkness covering the earth, and that the glory of the Lord, the light of Jesus Christ, would come and bring salvation to the Gentiles:

“Arise, shine, for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side. Then thou shalt see, and flow together [become radiant], and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces [wealth] of the Gentiles [nations] shall come unto thee.” (Isaiah 60:1-5)

This is referring to the last days when after the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, meaning Israel’s trouble, when God turns His attention back to Israel. Ever since Jesus died, resurrected, and ascended to heaven, God’s attention has been on the non-Jews, the Gentiles, in the world, offering them salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. While Jews can and have been saved during this period, the focus during this time period, which is nearly 2,000 years, has been on the Gentiles. However, once the fullness of the Gentiles comes in, meaning it is complete (Romans 11:25), God will turn His attention back to Israel, and it will be during the time of Jacob’s trouble. During this 7-year period, not only the Jews, but everyone alive on earth who will be old enough to decide whether they believe in their heart that Jesus is their Savior but who will reject His free gift of salvation, will go through a time of tribulation such as never been known to mankind, nor never will occur again. At the end of this time period, Jesus Christ will return at His second coming. He will put an end to all the wicked alive at that time, reign for 1,000 years, destroy the heavens and earth by fire, and create a new heaven and a new earth, on which all believers in Him who ever lived will live with Him for eternity. Unlike the current earth that relies on the sun for its light, this new earth will rely on the Son for the light:

“And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten [illuminate] it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it. And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there. And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it. And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.” (Revelation 21:22-27)

It seems nearly every TV show or movie uses the name of Jesus in a derogatory way, and it is because they hate Him and they love the darkness. I remember the 1982 horror movie called “Poltergeist.” The one line I can remember from the entire movie was “Don’t go into the light.” Why is that? Because it wants to portray the light as something bad, and they want this thought to enter into your subconscious without you even realizing it. Satan is very deceptive and will use whatever tools he has available to him to deceive people. It’s not only Satan doing this but those who are aligned with him, which includes one-third of the angels who were cast out of heaven when they chose to align themselves with him instead of God. They are deceiving people in our world on a scale that I’ve never seen before in my lifetime.

The apostle John said that we must not desire to walk in darkness but to walk in the light of Jesus Christ:

“This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: but if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.” (1 John 1:5-7)

Without Jesus having washed us clean from our sins, we do not have His light within us. Thus, unbelievers do not shine His light, and we should not desire to be like them but to be like Him:

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

Satan wants to poison us with his venom, with his lies of deception. He tells us it’s okay to commit a little sin, after all, we’re “only human.” It’s okay to remain in sexual fornication as long as it makes us happy, or that we’re born that way. It’s okay to smoke a little pot, drink a little alcohol, or take another drug to help us relax. It’s okay to take a long glance at someone who is not our spouse because “looking doesn’t hurt anyone.” It’s okay to stop reading the Bible and to stop praying to God when our days are just so doggone busy and we’re just tired, you see. It’s okay to pray to God to make us rich, because He wants us to be healthy, wealthy, and wise. All of these are Satan’s lies from the pit of hell. The Bible makes it clear: yes, we are all sinners, but we must fight against our sinful nature each and every day and never give in to temptation, like Eve did when she gazed at the fruit on the one and only tree in the garden of Eden of which God forbade her husband Adam and her to eat and if they did, they would surely die, and they did, taking with them the curse of sin that has been passed to every single person born since then. A little poison still poisons us, and Satan knows that.

When we decide we are tired of the darkness and that we need the light of Jesus in our lives, when we see that we are bound in chains to our sin and we finally reach the point that we want to be liberated from our sin and we call out to Him to save us, not only will He save us from our sins, but He will lead us like a loving and faithful Shepherd to His sheep, tenderly caring for us, walking with us to show us the way, and to lead us, if we will finally release that control to Him. Like a shepherd who finds a good pasture on which to feed his sheep, so too does Jesus lead us to good pastures, where we can eat, while He guards us as the good shepherd.

Long before Jesus Christ came to earth the first time, the prophets Jeremiah and Ezekiel wrote about the shepherds of Israel and criticized them because they had not taken care of their flocks, the Jewish people, but were taking care of themselves, feeding themselves first with the best of everything and giving the scant leftovers to the people. They weren’t true shepherds to the people but hirelings, as Jesus would later call them, who didn’t care about their flocks and when trouble came, the false shepherds would leave their flocks, putting them at risk:

“My people hath been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray, they have turned them away on the mountains: they have gone from mountain to hill, they have forgotten their resting place. All that found them have devoured them…” (Jeremiah 50:6-7)

“And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD unto the shepherds; Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the flocks? Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill them that are fed: but ye feed not the flock. The diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither have ye brought again that which was driven away, neither have ye sought that which was lost; but with force and with cruelty have ye ruled them. And they were scattered, because there is no shepherd: and they became meat to [food for] all the beasts of the field, when they were scattered. My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every high hill: yea, my flock was scattered upon all the face of the earth, and none did search or seek after them. Therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of the LORD; as I live, saith the Lord GOD, surely because my flock became a prey, and my flock became meat to every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did my shepherds search for my flock, but the shepherds fed themselves, and fed not my flock; therefore, O ye shepherds, hear the word of the LORD; thus saith the Lord GOD; behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more; for I will deliver my flock from their mouth, that they may not be meat [food] for them. For thus saith the Lord GOD; behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out. As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered; so will I seek out my sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day. And I will bring them out from the people, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their own land, and feed them upon the mountains of Israel by the rivers, and in all the inhabited places of the country. I will feed them in a good pasture, and upon the high mountains of Israel shall their fold be: there shall they lie in a good fold, and in a fat [rich] pasture shall they feed upon the mountains of Israel. I will feed my flock, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord GOD. I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but I will destroy the fat and the strong; I will feed them with judgment.” (Ezekiel 34:1-16)

I believe the prophesy from Ezekiel was a two-fold or dual-fulfillment, prophesy, which we see often in the Bible, with the first fulfillment that happened in the times of the Old Testament before Jesus’ first coming, and the second fulfillment in the times after Jesus’ first coming in the New Testament, which is still yet to happen. The first fulfillment was in fact spoken by the prophet Ezekiel to warn Israel’s shepherds, the religious leaders, that judgment would come upon them. God gave Ezekiel some very harsh words of truth to speak to Israel’s shepherds. In the first fulfillment, God said His people, the Jews, and their false shepherds had been taken out of their land and scattered, exactly as had been prophesied by Isaiah and Jeremiah, but that He would bring back His sheep from the nations to which they had been scattered, which was in Babylon and also a small remnant from Assyria, and He would bring them back in their land, which in fact did happen after their 70-year captivity in Babylon.

Notice in Ezekiel 34:1 that it says, “And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel…” I believe this reference to the “Son of man” is referring to Jesus Christ, and will be fulfilled when Jesus returns to earth at the end of the 7-year time of Jacob’s trouble, when the remaining one-third remnant of the Jews who survive that horrific time period, will be brought back into their land a final time, never to be scattered again.

At His first coming, Jesus Himself did tell the Jewish leaders, the Pharisees, who were alive when Jesus walked the earth the first time, that they are not the true and good shepherds of the sheep, the people of Israel, but that He is their true and good Shepherd of the sheep:

“Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the porter [doorkeeper] openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers. This parable spake Jesus unto them: but they understood not what things they were which he spake unto them. Then said Jesus, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. But he that is an hireling [hired man], and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep. The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep. I am the good shepherd and know my sheep, and am known of mine. As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.” (John 10:1-15)

Jesus did not sugarcoat His words to the Pharisees; no, He gave them the truth, and it was not well received. Jesus also gives us the truth, and He is clear: “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” (John 14:6) Jesus then told them something that should not have surprised them because it was prophesied hundreds of years prior in the Old Testament, including in Isaiah 49:6, shown below, which I have written about in a prior devotional:

“And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.” (Isaiah 49:6)

These are the words that Jesus spoke of to the Pharisees that Isaiah had written about long ago:

“And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold [flock], and one shepherd.” (Jesus Christ; John 10:16)

Then and there, Jesus told them the truth that salvation would not only be offered to the Jews but also to the Gentiles, which are the “other sheep” He referred to in the scripture above, and that He would be their one and only shepherd, who would shepherd all the sheep that would be in flock; no longer would there be separation by Jew and Gentile. After Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension to heaven, the apostle Paul would later write of this to the churches of Galatia:

“Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;) and all the brethren which are with me, unto the churches of Galatia: grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father: to whom be glory or ever and ever. Amen.” (Galatians 1:1-5)

“For ye are all the children [sons] of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek [Gentile/non-Jew], there is neither bond [slave] nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.”  (Galatians 3:26-29)

Once we are saved, born again by putting our faith and trust in Jesus Christ to deliver us out of our sin, we become a new creation, and there is no more division by Jew or Gentile, free or slave, male or female, but we are all brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus. In our world that is increasingly doing things to divide us into buckets by race, sexual choices, what sex we are, political affiliation, denomination, and by so many other divisions, we must realize that the source of this division is Satan. Satan knows that if he can divide us, we will fall. Jesus warned the Jewish Pharisees of this:

“Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand.” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 12:25)

However, for those of us who have been born again, we are all sons and daughters of God, we are the bride of Christ, we are His church, and Satan will not prevail against us. Early in His ministry on earth when Jesus asked His disciples, “Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?” (Matthew 16:13), it was Simon Peter, also called Simon Bar-jona, who answered Jesus, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied to Peter, saying:

“Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” (Jesus Christ; Matthew 16:17-19)

Once we are saved by Jesus, He will feed us along our journey with Him, He will provide, for He is our Good Shepherd. He will make the way for us, even when we are fearful and don’t know what to do. If we will listen to Him as He speaks to us through His Holy Spirit and let Him guide us on the way, we will come to the point where no matter what is happening in our lives, whether we are going through a major trial in our life or we are experiencing a time when things are good, we will see that we can rely and trust in Him no matter what, we will know beyond a shadow of a doubt that He will never leave us nor forsake us, as His word tells us in both Joshua 1:5 and Hebrews 13:5. When we have come to that point, no longer will we hunger and thirst for the things of this world, for He will fulfill all those needs in us:

“And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.” (John 6:35)

There is a difference between reading those words in the Bible and really believing them. When we finally believe them and that He is our Good Shepherd, we can be at peace, no matter the chaos that might be surrounding us, and in Him, we can have joy and we can have rest:

“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.” (Psalm 23) ✝️

August 18, 2024: Isaiah 49:8 - In a Day of Salvation Have I Helped Thee

“Thus saith the LORD, In an acceptable time have I heard thee, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee: and I will preserve thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages…” - Isaiah 49:8

Long before God sent Jesus to the earth to be conceived by the Holy Spirit and to be born of a virgin, He told us in His word that not only would He send Jesus at just the right time, but that He would hear and help Jesus, preserve Him, and give Him as a covenant of the people. Jesus would also establish the earth, and He would inherit all the desolate heritages. The prophets of old told of Jesus’ first coming long before Jesus would come. God gave us glimpses of Jesus in the Old Testament Scriptures, so that when He came the first time, His people, the Jews, would recognize Him as their Messiah. As written in Isaiah 49:2-3:

“And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in his quiver hath he hid me; and said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.” (Isaiah 49:2-3)

Salvation from sins is found only in Jesus Christ. The day of salvation was only made possible when Jesus was crucified, when His perfect and sinless blood was spilled on that cross, when He died, was resurrected, and ascended to heaven, where He sits now at the right hand of God the Father. Without the Lamb of God being our perfect sacrifice, we would still be under God’s law, but Jesus fulfilled the law and provides salvation from sins for all who choose to believe in and put our faith and trust in Him and Him alone to save us from our sin.

Let us read what Jesus said after He gave up His life on the cross, resurrected three days later, and appeared in the midst of His apostles:

“And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all these things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me. Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures, and said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved [was necessary for] Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. And ye are witnesses of these things.” (Luke 24:44-48)

God chose the perfect time to send Jesus. Before Jesus would come, one would come before Him to prepare the way of the Lord, and his name was John, who would also be known as John the Baptist. John was Jesus’ cousin. John’s father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost and prophesied the words below on the day of circumcision of John when John was eight days old:

“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people, and hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David; as he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the works began: that we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us; to perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant; the oath which he sware to our father Abraham, that he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him, all the days of our life. And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways; to give knowledge of salvation into his people by the remission of their sins, through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring [Messiah] from on high hath visited us, to give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.” (Luke 1:68-79)

The apostle John wrote of John the Baptist:

“There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness of the Light [Jesus], that all men through him might believe. He [John] was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came into his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become sons [children] 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. And the Word was made [became] flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. John bear witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for he was before me. And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace, for the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him. And this is the record [testimony] of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou? And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ. And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No. Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself? He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias. And they which were sent were of the Pharisees. And they asked him, and said unto him, Why baptizeth thou then, if thou be not that Christ, nor Elias, neither that prophet? John answered them, saying, I baptize with water: but there standeth one among you, whom ye know not; he it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe’s latchet I am not worthy to unloose. These things were done in Bethabara beyond Jordan, where John was baptizing. The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me. And I knew him not: but that he should be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with water. And John bare record [testified], saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him. And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God. Again the next day after John stood, and two of his disciples; and looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God! And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.” (John 1:6-37)

God sent John the Baptist to prepare not only His people for their Savior, their Messiah, but also to be a witness of the Light for the Gentiles. Because God is all knowing, He knew the Jews would reject Jesus because of their hardened hearts, and that afterwards, He would turn His attention to the Gentiles to provoke His people to jealousy until He will turn His attention back to the Jews (Romans 11:11). I believe we are drawing very near to that time.

Jesus did come to the earth, was despised and rejected by His own, was crucified, and gave up His life. He felt as though God had abandoned Him when He felt the unfathomable weight of the world’s sin upon Him. As He hung on that cross, He must have felt unrelenting sorrow and pain coursing through His veins, and He thirsted for a drink of cool water. With a loud voice, He cried out to God in agony, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” which means “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46) Jesus felt and experienced what it was like to take on my sin, your sin, and the sins of everyone who has ever lived, and He took those sins to the cross even though He Himself had never sinned. He was and is the perfect, spotless Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world for all who put our faith and trust in Him to save us from our sins. Evil, Satan, thought he had won. He thought he had defeated the Christ, but that wasn’t the end; rather, it was just the beginning. As God promised Jesus in Isaiah 49:8, He DID help Jesus through His time of agony on the cross, because those who crucified Him did not take His life; rather, Jesus willingly gave it up. Jesus said, “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit,” (Luke 23:46) and saying these words “It is finished” (John 19:30) before “he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost [his spirit].” (John 19:30) You see, Jesus had to die for the new covenant, the new testament, to be enacted, for it takes the death of the testator for it to go into effect:

“And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you.” (Luke 22:19-20)

“How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge [cleanse] your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament [covenant], that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament [covenant], they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance. For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator.” (Hebrews 9:14-16)

As God promised, He DID preserve Jesus because Jesus did not stay dead after His body was placed in a rich man’s tomb: He rose from the dead three days later. Jesus didn’t just die on the cross - He rose again, showed Himself to over 500 people at a single time (1 Corinthians 15:6), walked, talked, and ate with His disciples, expounded to two of His disciples all the things prophesied of Himself in the Scriptures as they traveled to Emmaus (Luke 24), and ascended to heaven forty days later, where He is now, sitting at the right hand of God. Jesus is not a dead God; He IS the true and living God. He will ultimately establish a new earth and will give it as an inheritance to all who trust in Him for our salvation and who have been made by righteous through His precious blood, having all our sins washed clean:

“There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born? Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.” (John 3:1-8)

“Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.” (1 Corinthians 6:9-11)

“I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.” (Daniel 7:13-14)

But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever.” (Daniel 7:18)

“And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.” (Daniel 7:27)

“And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.” (Revelation 21:1-8)

God’s word is truth, and to deny the truth is to allow one to be deceived by the lies, which stem from Satan. I can’t make you believe in Him, that Jesus is the Christ sent to the world so that we might be saved by Him. No, all I can do is tell you of Him, provide Scripture verses from His word that show that long ago we were told by God that Jesus would come the first time as the perfect Lamb of God to offer salvation to all who put our faith and trust in Him for our salvation, and that God’s word also tells us that Jesus is coming back again, but this time it will be in judgement of all who reject Him and choose to remain in sin. Those who reject Him will not inherit the kingdom of God but will be cast into the eternal lake fire. You may not like that fact, and you may not believe it, but I give you the truth and what you do with it is up to you and you alone.

Please know that if you have not been born again before you die, it will be too late to turn to Him after you are dead. Let us remember the words of Jesus who told us of a rich man who had everything and lived in luxury and of a beggar named Lazarus, who begged the rich man for just the crumbs that fell from the man’s table. Let us read what happened when both men died. The rich man had not put his faith and trust in God for his salvation but the beggar had:

“There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously [lived in luxury] every day: and there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores, and desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; and in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence. Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father’s house: for I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.” (Jesus Christ; Luke 16:19-31)

Although this is describing two Jewish men, the message is clear for all of us: Jesus Himself told us that hell is real, and so is heaven, referred to here as “Abraham’s bosom,” meaning a place of rest and free from torment, unlike hell, where only torments exist. We all will go to one of these two places when die, and where we go is our decision to make. Many people, including many pastors, say that hell is not real - have they not read these words of Jesus? They can fool themselves, and sadly, they are fooling many people who do not read the Bible for themselves to learn the truth, but that doesn’t change the truth. The rich man even asked for someone to go and warn his five living brothers so that they would not make the same mistake that he did. But the rich man was told that even if he could rise from the dead and go and warn them them, that his brothers, like the rich man, have the truth in God’s word and if they don’t believe it, they wouldn’t believe his brother’s warnings about being in hell, and they would not repent and turn to God. I pray that you will not make the same horrible mistake that the rich man did and instead you will choose eternal life with Jesus, a place of true peace and rest, free from all sin and sorrow. We can only have eternal life with Jesus if we are born again by His precious blood and believing in Him as our Savior. All who are not born again will be judged by their works. Because no work they could ever do could save them, they will be found guilty and cast into the lake of fire for eternity:

“And behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.” (Jesus Christ; Revelation 22:12-13)

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” (Jesus Christ; John 3:16-18) ❤️ ✝️