A Brief Outline of this Message
The covenant message holds answers to prophecy. It contains so much evidence: how can anyone deny it is the truth. God’s people are commanded to be watching. This message is something that they should be watching for. God’s word is quoted so prevalently throughout the message that reading it comes with promises of blessings, for by reading it you are listening to the voice of the Lord your God. God hid end time truths in the Old Testament, and this message is bringing those truths to light. These understandings are deep, but great pains were given to insure that everything is clear and easy to understand. The objective of this message is to quickly increase everyone’s understanding of God’s end time plan, because these things will come upon us suddenly.
Because of the length of this message, it was divided into three sections. The first section concentrates on showing people how the truths of prophesy can be proven. Also in this section we will learn God’s reasons for having end times; and we will begin to understand how he will accomplished his plan; and we will discover truths about a chosen man that God will be sending to the Islamic nation, to increase their understandings. And at the end of this section, you’ll witness evidence that the fulfillment of God’s end time plan has already begun.
The second section of this message is primarily focused on increasing everyone’s understanding of a few of the key figures who commonly appear in prophecy. Since these understandings are coming from the Old Testament scriptures, we will see how God chose certain useful names, placed them in prophetic verses, and left us clues as to who these names represent. We also will learn what mistakes these people are making in his eyes, and we will find out what God intends to do about them.
The third section shows us what will happen next in God’s prophetic plan. The good news is that by gaining understanding, we can help others; and we will be happy, satisfied, and prepared, during these times and in the day of God’s wrath. “Wisdom and Knowledge shall be the stability of thy times, and the strength of salvation (Isaiah 33:6).”
A message For All Muslims, Jews, and Christians
Understanding Prophecy
“We looked for peace, and there is no good; and for a time of healing, and behold trouble! (Jeremiah 14:19).” According to God’s word, which is forever stedfast, there is no peace at this time. “No flesh shall have peace (Jeremiah 12:12).” “The prophets say unto them... I will give you assured peace in this place. Then said the Lord unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not... they prophesy unto you a false vision and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart (Jeremiah 14:13-14).” “Know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come (2Timothy 3:1).” “Ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars (Matthew 24:6).”
God promised us that one day he would do a new thing, and he also promised us that one day he would send a messenger who would publish a warning of affliction. “A voice declares from Dan, and publishes affliction from mount Ephraim (Jeremiah 4:15).” This is a published message, and it is a warning of a forth coming affliction. Take heed and listen carefully to what God’s word actually says, so that truth can be established. “Set your hearts unto all the words which I testify among you... because it is for your life (Deuteronomy 32: 46-47).” “Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? (Isaiah 43:19).” We have been rebuked by God for not paying attention to the scriptures. “I said not unto the seed of Jacob, Seek ye me in vain: I the Lord speak in righteousness, I declare things that are right (Isaiah 45:19).” “How do you say, We are wise, the law of the Lord is with us? Lo, certainly in vain made he it; the pen of the scribes is in vain (Jeremiah 8:8).”
God chose to use three nations, including Islam, Judaism, and Christianity, to build his kingdom. There is ample evidence of this in the scriptures: Jesus likened the kingdom of God unto a woman who hid three measures of meal in her leaven, until the whole was leavened (Luke 13:21). In the book of Revelation, the great city is divided into three parts (Revelation 16:19). The Bible was written in three languages: including Hebrew, Greek, and the Syrian language (See the book of Daniel, and a letter included in the book of Ezra (Ezra 4:7)). And there are many prophesies in the Old Testament which pertain exclusively to the Islamic nation, the most obvious ones pertain to Edom, which is Esau. Did you ever notice that three times in the book of Ezekiel God said, “I will overturn, overturn, overturn, it? (Ezekiel 21:27).” “Three shepherds also will I cut off in one month; and my soul loathed them, and their soul also abhorred me (Zechariah 11:8).”
There is also a forth kingdom that God has been using to help to build up mount Zion: it’s the kingdom of his priests, and his prophets. Collectively these four kingdoms are the four winds of heaven. God called his priesthood nation by the parable name of Judah. “Judah is my lawgiver (Psalm 60:7).” A few examples of prophecies which use this name, include: “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 (Zechariah 12:7).” “Hear the word of the Lord, all ye of Judah... Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Amend your ways and your doings, and I will cause you to dwell in this place (Jeremiah 7:2-3).” “I will have mercy upon the house of Judah, and will save them by the Lord their God (Hosea 1:7).”
God’s purpose for end times is the annihilation of religion. To fulfill his mandate, God will destroy all persons who either continue to trust in their own beliefs, or who think to destroy what God has prepared for these times. “I will cut thee off from the people, and I will cause thee to perish out of the countries: I will destroy thee; and thou shalt know that I am the Lord (Ezekiel 25:7).” In ancient days when God desired to do a new thing, he began to institute change by calling his chosen people out of corruption. Noah built an ark; Abraham left Haran; Israel was led forth out of Egypt; and God called Jesus’ followers out of Judaism. In the same fashion, he is calling today’s believers out of religion. “Come out of her, my people, that you be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not her plagues (Revelation 18:4).” “I will sweep it with a besom of destruction (Isaiah 14:23).” “The consumption decreed shall overflow with righteousness. For the Lord God of hosts shall make a consumption, even determined, in the midst of all the land (Isaiah 10:22-23).”
“They kept not the covenant of God, and refused to walk in his laws (Psalm 78:10).” This verse reveals the main cause of the problem. It indicates that believers have failed to read the scriptures, and as a result God’s people have corrupted themselves. God knew that this would happen, so through the voices of the ancient prophets, God prophesied a plan to fix it. “Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure (Isaiah 46:10).” “Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he reveals his secret unto his servants the prophets (Amos 3:7).”
Through this prophesied plan, God will begin to fulfill the promises which he swore to his people, promises of peace, and of rest, and of a new covenant. “In that day will I make a covenant for them... and I will break the bow and the sword and the battle out of the earth, and will make them to lie down safely (Hosea 2:18).” His plan began by God bringing troubles upon his people to cause them to return to him. “Thou hast stricken them, but they have not grieved; thou hast consumed them, but they have refused to receive correction: they have made their faces harder than a rock; they have refused to return (Jeremiah 5:3).” How do we return to God? By reading the scriptures.
We have been given a new standard. As soon as its confirmed, this new standard will be the only way in which believers will be accepted into the gates of salvation. “Go through, go through the gates; prepare ye the way of the people; cast up, cast up the highway... lift up a standard for the people (Isaiah 62:10).” The new standard is a new covenant. “I will give them one heart, and one way, that they may fear me forever, for the good of them, and of their children after them: and I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; but I will put my fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from me (Jeremiah 32:39-40).” Our new covenant is to read the New Testament scriptures, and to keep reading them, and praying, and doing those things which are written therein, until the day that you receive the Holy Spirit. “Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me (Matthew 11:29).”
This message contains instructions, and there are consequences for ignoring God’s instructions. God refers to them as his four sore judgments. One of these prophesied judgments is to send an indignant mob against you; another is to allow you to be led astray by false teachings; A third one is to plague you with pestilence and disease; and the remaining prophesied judgment is to bring about a swift death by an act of God, such as by hailstones.“Thus saith the Lord God... I send my four sore judgments upon Jerusalem, the sword, and the famine, and the noisome beast, and the pestilence, to cut off from it man and beast (Ezekiel 14:21).”
God is sending his four sore judgements upon everyone who needs correction, including believers. This is how God will cause believers to consider their mistakes, and he will cause them to return to him. His judgments are fair and just, not only because we have his word which declared them, but also because he sent his messengers who warned them, but they refused to be corrected. “If you walk contrary unto me, and will not hearken unto me; I will bring seven times more plagues upon you according to your sins. I will also send wild beasts among you, which shall rob you of your children... and if you will not be reformed by me by these things, but will walk contrary unto me; then will I also walk contrary unto you, and will punish you yet seven times for your sins. And I will bring a sword upon you, that shall avenge the quarrel of my covenant (Leviticus 26:21-25).”
Now for some good news: God will supernaturally protect all believers who accept and perform the words of their new covenant, if they acknowledge his end time plan. To every believer who understands the plan and follows his instructions, end times will be days of refreshing and rest. “To you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ (2Thessalonians 1:7-8).” “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 (Isaiah 40:2).” “If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the Lord that healeth thee (Exodus 15:26).”
“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem (Psalm 122:6).” The annihilation of religion is for our benefit, it is the peace that we have been praying for: for it is the one true peace. It is peace between you, and God. And this peace comes with an added benefit of no more religious wars. “He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth; he breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder; he burneth the chariot in the fire (Psalm 46:9).” “He shall judge among many nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more (Isaiah 2:4)”
How is prophecy understood, and proven? It all begins by utilizing the entire Old Testament scriptures. Begin to picture the Old Testament as not just as a historical record of happenings and God’s messages, but also as a highly sophisticated work of prophecy. God documented actual events, and then capitalized on certain words within those events: I call them parable words. He wove those words into prophetic verses for two reasons: he wanted to create understanding, but he also used them to create a distraction. To insure that believers would one day discover this work, God used the names of dead people, and he wove them into the prophetic verses which were given by prophets that rose up years later, after the people were deceased. “I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world (Matthew 13:35).” Just as a healing remedy, every parable word gives believers a small dose of end time understanding. “For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little (Isaiah 28:10).”
Parable words must be looked up in a concordance to find every place wherein that same word was written in scripture. Then each word must to be studied in the context of those places wherein it was written. God also caused certain verses which shared a common word, to give understanding to one another. Each parable word has one essential meaning, or if you will, one definition. So for this reason you must do a thorough search of each parable word in a prophecy before trying to interpret the prophecy. When you think you understand the prophecy, then say to yourself, can I prove it. Every interpretation of scripture has proof. When you can find the proof of your theory, then you can know that you have an accurate interpretation of prophecy. Also, when you find instances where God says the same thing twice, then you can trust that it was established by God (Genesis 41:32). “Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation (2Peter 1:20).”
The prophetic verses of the Old Testament scriptures were as forgotten waters, but God’s people are not to be blamed. This knowledge was purposed to remain hidden until the day wherein God’s people had corrupted themselves. Jesus assured us that one day God’s plan would be revealed. “For nothing is secret, that shall not be made manifest; neither any thing hid, that shall not be known and come abroad (Luke 8:17).” By using parable words God intentionally camouflaged prophetic verses: the people passed over these verses quickly, and lightly esteemed them, because they were complicated, and they contained words which clearly linked them to ancient things that happened long ago. God gave us another clue to insure that his plan was discovered, when he said: “That which hath been is now; and that which is to be hath already been, and God requireth that the past (Ecclesiastes 3:15).” The reason that God required the past is because he required a true life experience for each parable word, to insure that believers would have a pattern to aid them in their quest for interpretation of prophecy.
“I will proceed to do a marvelous work among this people, even a marvelous work and a wonder: for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid (Isaiah 29:14).” Don’t dismiss this verse before actually hearing it: for it is clearly evidence that these things are happening. God called the discovery of prophecy through parables, the “rain.” “If ye shall hearken diligently... I will give you the rain of your land in his due season (Deuteronomy 11:13-14).” “My doctrine shall drop as the rain (Deuteronomy 32:2).” Religion’s doctrines have dried up: they are ineffective, because they lack rain. “I caused it to rain upon one city, and caused it not to rain upon another city... and the piece whereupon it rained not withered (Amos 4:7).” “At that time shall it be said to this people and to Jerusalem, A dry wind of the high places (Jeremiah 4:11).” It takes true faith coupled together with an understanding heart, and a little private bible study time, in order to believe that God could create and preserve end time understanding in this fashion. “When the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth (Luke 18:8)?”
Let’s take a look at some examples of these parable words. One example which frequents prophecy, is the name of, Jacob. A definition of this parable word is found in the book of Psalms, “He showeth his word unto Jacob (Psalm 147:19).” So, in essence, the name of Jacob applies to every believer who has ever seen, and fully internalized the word of God, regardless of their religion.“The Lord God hath sworn by himself, saith the Lord the God of hosts, I abhor the excellency of Jacob, and hate his palaces: therefore will I deliver up the city with ALL that is therein (Amos 6:8).” So why is God swearing that he abhors Jacob’s excellency? And that he hates his palaces? Because of his disdain for religion. God is signifying that he will not show favoritism in judgment, not even to Jacob. Jacob needs to learn to cooperate with God’s word. “Who gave Jacob for a spoil, and Israel to the robbers? Did not the Lord, he against whom we have sinned? For they would not walk in his ways, neither were they obedient unto his law (Isaiah 42:24).”
The name “Jerusalem” is another parable name in prophecy. It represents the place wherein every individual believer came to know the Lord. Presently Jerusalem consists of three major factions, the Jewish, Christian, and Muslim faiths. “Jerusalem... is the mother of us all (Galatians 4:26).” “Jerusalem is builded as a city that is compact together (Psalm 122:3).” “Be thou instructed, O Jerusalem, lest my soul depart from thee; Lest I make thee desolate, a land not inhabited (Jeremiah 6:8).” Also consider that God is working to create a new Jerusalem. “Be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy. And I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in my people: and the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of crying (Isaiah 65:17-18).”
The parable word “Israel” refers to backslidden believers. “Israel sliddeth back as a backsliding heifer ( Hosea 4:16).” “Though thy people Israel be as the sand of the sea, yet a remnant of them shall return (Isaiah 10:22).” “Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith the Lord; and I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you; for I am merciful... and I will not keep anger for ever (Jeremiah 3:12).” The word “north” is another word which refers to backslidden believers, however it only represents those who rise up to come against the corruption of religion. “There shall come from the north a smoke, and none shall be alone in his appointed times (Isaiah 14:31).” “Set up the standard toward Zion: retire, stay not: for I will bring evil from the north, and a great destruction (Jeremiah 4:6).”
The parable word “sword” represents, the word of God. “Out of his mouth went a sharp two-edged sword (Revelation 1:16).” We wield this instrument to cause believers to know the word of the of the Lord. Witness the hidden understanding that prophetic verses take on, once you consider God’s use of the parables. “Be ye afraid of the sword: for wrath bringeth the punishments of the sword, that ye may know there is a judgment (Job 19:29).” “If ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it (Isaiah 1:20).” “The wicked have drawn out the sword, and have bent their bow, to cast down the poor and needy, and to slay such as be of upright conversation. Their sword shall enter into their own heart, and their bows shall be broken (Psalm 37:14-15).”
God’s people are instructed to help others know what God has planned for them. “If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, and the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity; And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noon day: and the Lord shall guide thee continually... and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not (Isaiah 58:9-11).” “Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm 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 (Isaiah 35:3-5).” “Lift ye up a banner upon the high mountain, exalt the voice unto them, shake the hand, that they may go into the gates of the nobles (Isaiah 13:2).”
“Doubtless thou art our father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not: thou, O Lord, art our father, our redeemer; thy name is from everlasting (Isaiah 63:16).” For a long time now, our Muslim brothers and sisters have been waiting for their promised Mahdi. “Wherefore dost thou forget us for ever, and forsake us so long time? Turn thou us unto thee, O Lord, and we shall be turned (Lamentations 5:20-21).” “O Lord, though our iniquities testify against us, do thou it for thy name’s sake: for our backslidings are many; we have sinned against thee (Jeremiah 14:7).”
God will send them a leader who came to know the Lord through the Islamic faith. Through this man God will raise up deliverance for their nation. Before viewing this evidence, you’ll need to understand that the word “east” is also used as a parable. It represents the Islamic nation. The Islamic nation was born through the descendants Abraham, and through the descendants of Lot, and Laban, who, himself was a Syrian (Genesis 25:20). “Jacob went on his journey, and came into the land of the people of the east... and he said to them, Know ye Laban? (Genesis 29:1&5).” “Unto the sons of the concubines, which Abraham had, Abraham gave gifts, and sent them away from Isaac his son, while he yet lived, eastward, unto the east country (Genesis 25:6).” “Lot chose him all the plain of Jordan; and Lot journeyed east (Genesis 13:11).” “Thou hast forsaken thy people the house of Jacob, because they be replenished from the east, and are soothsayers like the Philistines (Isaiah 2:6).” These verses are evidences which prove that the parable word “east” applies to the Islamic nation.
Now let’s take a look at some of the evidences which prove that this Muslim leader is from God. “Who raised up a righteous man from the east, called him to his foot, gave the nations before him, and made him rule over kings (Isaiah 41:2).” “Calling a ravenous bird from the east, the man that executes my counsel from a far country: yea, I have spoken it, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed it, I will also do it (Isaiah 46:11).” “He shall stand and feed 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 5:4).” This leader is a necessary part of God’s end time plan, for he will protect faithful Muslims from the fiery assaults of the Islamic nation. “This man shall be the peace, when the Assyrian shall come into our land: and when he shall tread in our palaces (Micah 5:5).”
“Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith. Yea also, because he transgresseth by wine, he is a proud man, neither keepeth he at home, who enlargeth his desire as hell, and is as death, and cannot be satisfied, but gathers unto him all nations, and heaps unto him all people (Habakkuk 2:4-5).” There is evidence in scripture that this leader is making some mistakes. One of those mistakes is recorded against him: Only the Islamic nation should be following this leader, and no one else. God chose him to convert the Islamic nation. Non-Muslim believers who are following him are serving out one of God’s judgments: for they have been taken into captivity. “When he cometh, he shall smite the land of Egypt, and deliver... such as are for captivity to captivity (Jeremiah 43:11).” “The wind shall eat up all thy pastors, and thy lovers shall go into captivity: surely then shalt thou be ashamed and confounded for all thy wickedness (Jeremiah 22:22).” “My people are as gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge: and their honorable men are famished, and their multitude dried up with thirst. Therefore hell hath enlarged herself, and opened her mouth without measure: and their glory, and their multitude... shall descend into it (Isaiah 5:13-14).”
Those who find themselves taken into captivity need to immediately stop worshipping this man, and following his teachings, or it will destroy them. If they hear the truth, and they cry out God for his forgiveness, then God will hear them, and he will help them. “The Lord shall scatter you among the nations, and ye shall be left few in number among the heathen, whither the Lord shall lead you. And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men’s hands... but if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul (Deuteronomy 4:27-29).” “They draw near unto the gates of death. Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, and he saveth them out of their distresses. He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions (Psalm 107:17-20).” “Behold, I will bring again the captivity of Jacob’s tents, and have mercy on his dwelling places; and the city shall be builded upon her own heap... and out of them shall proceed thanksgiving and the voice of them that make merry (Jeremiah 30:18).”
The parable words, “Teman” and “Paran” supply unmistakeable evidence that this leader is a chosen vessel of God. “God came from Teman, and the Holy One from mount Paran. Selah. His glory covered the heavens, and the earth was full of his praise (Habakkuk 3-3).” Teman is the name of Esau’s grandson (Genesis 36:11); and Paran is where Ishmael dwelt. “Hagar, fear not; for God hath heard the voice of the lad... I will make him a great nation... and he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran (from Genesis 21:17-21).” “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 43:2).”
Since this man is a chosen vessel, be mindful that it is never good to come against anyone who is sent by God: don’t make the same mistake that king Josiah made (2Chronicles 35:21-24). “His power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practice, and shall destroy the mighty and holy people (Daniel 8:24).” “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... I have trodden the winepress alone; and of the people there was none with me... For the day of vengeance is in my heart, and the year of my redeemed is come... And I will tread down the people in mine anger... and I will bring down their strength to the earth (Isaiah 63:3-6).” Neither this prophet, nor any of his followers will have any power over God’s people, if they are following God’s instructions.
God has given us a sign which confirms that these things have begun to happen. This evidence is found in the forty seventh chapter of the book of Jeremiah. It is here, in this chapter that God confirmed that he had appointed a sign. “Baldness is come upon Gaza: Ashkelon is cut off with the remnant of their valley: how long wilt thou cut thyself? O thou sword of the Lord, how long will it be ere thou be quiet? Put up thyself into thy scabbard, rest, be still. How can it be quiet, seeing the Lord hath given it a charge against Ashkelon, and against the sea shore? There hath he appointed it (Jeremiah 47:5-7).” This prophecy accurately predicted Israel’s war in Gaza, and in effect, it validated, with that sign, that end times have begun. “For Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ashkelon a desolation... 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 be no inhabitant. And the sea coast shall be dwellings and cottages for shepherds, and folds for flocks (Zephaniah 2:4-6).”
“The secret things belong to the Lord our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law (Deuteronomy 29:29).”
Part Two
The Assyrian
“The Assyrian was a cedar in Lebanon... the waters made him great, and the deep set him up on high with her rivers running round about his plants (Ezekiel 31:3-4).” Before we can continue on to know what will happen immediately after the war taking place in Gaza, we must increase our understanding concerning a few of the main character names which God has set up in prophecy in such a way that they can, and do, represent today’s believers. Let’s start with the word “Assyrian”. Many prophecies were written about the Assyrian, therefore a large portion of this section is focused on pointing out just who the Assyrian is, and what he has done. “Open thy doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour thy cedars (Zechariah 11:1).”
God said that he would give his people understanding before the day of his wrath: and that is exactly what he did. “Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me (Malachi 3:1).” God chose to raise up an early understanding by giving the kingdom message unto his servants, the priests and prophets. “I spake unto you, rising up early and speaking, but ye heard not; and I called you, but ye answered not (Jeremiah 7:13).” The leaders who heard the message didn’t know what to think, because they didn’t understand it. God named the leaders who heard the covenant message, Assyrians. By calling all the characters of prophecy by a name, God could speak directly to their face, and he give out secrets about them. Assyrians will be grouped into this dubious name, until the day wherein they give glory to God concerning his end time message.
The covenant message was meant to provoke the priesthood into studying the scriptures, so that they could prepare themselves for the day of his wrath. “The Lord shall go fourth as a mighty man, he shall will stir up jealousy like a man of war (Isaiah 42:13).” Jealousies over new understandings which were heard in the land, provoked many leaders into paying attention to the Old Testament scriptures. Much information concerning the Assyrian is written in the book of Second Kings. It is in this book that we find the best evidence that the Assyrian has read the covenant message. For he said, “I have digged and drunk strange waters (2Kings 19:24).”
Reading the Old Testament scriptures has allowed priests time to get accustomed to hearing God’s voice, and now, even unwittingly, there are priests who have prepared themselves to hear what God has to say to them during these times. Some of our priests have already begun faithfully delivering messages which value the Old Testament scriptures, but the Lord’s kingdom message was, in large part, abandoned. “They have blown the trumpet, even to make all ready; but none goeth to battle: for my wrath is upon all the multitude thereof (Ezekiel 7:14).” Are the Assyrians being complacent? “Thy shepherds love to slumber, O king of Assyria (Nahum 3:18).” “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 (Jeremiah 23:22).”
Unbelieving Assyrians have dismissed the covenant message altogether considering it nonsense; because they never could have believed that God would unite Muslims, Christians, and Jews, into one covenant. Wherefore, they have rejected this supposed theory, and considered the matter closed. “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 65:12).” But God’s word supplies much evidence which proves that they are wrong. “I will bring the blind by a way they knew not; I will lead them in paths that they have not known: I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them, and not forsake them (Isaiah 42:16).”
Humbled leaders will believe this message as soon as they see the strong evidence.“We have transgressed and have rebelled: thou hast not pardoned (Lamentations 3:42).” But the transgressions of every Assyrian will not be pardoned until the day that he stands before the congregation and declares the end time plan of God, and confesses the new covenant. God intends to break the power of tradition, as well as the power of man’s teachings. He will set his people free to worship him in truth, and in spirit. “Thy teachers have transgressed against me (Isaiah 43:27).” “Now will I break his yoke from off thee, and will burst thy bonds in sunder (Nahum 1:13).” “The Lord hath broken the staff of the wicked, and the scepter of the rulers (Isaiah 14:5).”
“O foolish people, and without understanding; which have eyes, and see not; which have ears, and hear not (Jeremiah 5:21).” How many times should God have to tell us to obey his voice? Just how do you expect God to be glorified by his people, if they reject knowledge and refuse to know what he is planning to do? “I am pressed under you, as a cart is pressed that is full of sheaves (Amos 2:13).” “I have shown thee new things from this time, even hidden things, and thou didst not know them (Isaiah 48:6).” “If you be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: but if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it (Isaiah 1:19-20).” “Hear, ye that are far off, what I have done; and, ye that are near, acknowledge my might (Isaiah 33:13).” Surely after that I was turned, I repented; and after that I was instructed, I smote upon my thigh: I was ashamed, yea, even confounded, because I did bear the reproach of my youth (Jeremiah 31:19).” “We acknowledge, O Lord, our wickedness, and the iniquity of our fathers: for we have sinned against thee (Jeremiah 14:20).”
Religion has spiritually blinded the eyes of the entire body of believers, and religion’s rules have caused many people to fall away from God. “This people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honor me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men (Isaiah 29:13).” “They say still unto them that despise me, the Lord hath said, Ye shall have mercy... 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... it shall fall grievously upon the head of the wicked. The anger of the Lord shall not return, until he have executed, and till he have preformed the thoughts of his heart: in the latter days ye shall consider it perfectly (Jeremiah 23:17-20).”
Assyrians will not only be responsible for their own afflictions, but they will also be held accountable for the afflictions of their followers. “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children (Hosea 4:6).” “Who shall declare his way to his face? And who shall repay him for what he hath done (Job 21:31)?” “Amend your ways and your doings, and obey the voice of the Lord your God, and the Lord will repent him of the evil that he hath pronounced against you (Jeremiah 26:13).” “It shall come to pass, that as he cried, and they would not hear; so they cried, and I would not hear (Zechariah 7:13).” “When I cry and shout, he shutteth out my prayers (Lamentations 3:8).” “Be not many masters, knowing that we shall receive the greater condemnation (James 3:1).”
Now we need to focus our attention on one particular Assyrian. He is of the Islamic faith, and he has been spinning a lying message. His message has been used to stir up a multitude of followers. “There is one come out of thee that imagineth evil against the Lord, a wicked counselor (Nahum 1:11).” “We have heard of the pride of Moab, (he is exceedingly proud)... I know his wrath, saith the Lord; but it shall not be so; his lies shall not so effect it (Jeremiah 48:29-30).” This ambitious man still believes that Islam shall have dominion over all nations. “Thou hast said, These two nations and these two countries shall be mine, and we will possess it; whereas the Lord was there (Ezekiel 35:10).” “They that hate thee... have taken crafty counsel against thy people... They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance (from Psalm 83:2-4).” Think about the word “crafty” and what that word is implying. It suggests that the counsel of this prophet has been built upon scripture verses which have been taken out of context and misrepresented, and that he has put these verses together in such a way as to build a strong case that fits his own narrative for end times.
This man, and his message, will be canceled on the day of God’s wrath, for God will drop hailstones upon his followers. “I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria (Isaiah 10:12).” “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 (Isaiah 28:17-18).” Because their hope was against God’s word, Assyrians will not be permitted to enter into the houses of worship wherein they had planned to deliver their messages.“Thus saith the Lord concerning the king of Assyria, He shall not come into this city... by the way that he came, by the same shall he return, and shall not come into this city, saith the Lord, for I will defend this city to save it for mine own sake, and for my servant David’s sake (Isaiah 37:33-35).” “I will plead against him with pestilence and with blood; and I will rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many people that are with him, an overflowing rain, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone (Ezekiel 38:22).” “I will break the Assyrian in my land, and upon my mountain tread him under foot: then shall his yoke depart from off them, and his burden depart from off their shoulders (Isaiah 14:25).”
Another parable name which is helpful to understand for the purpose of interpreting prophecy, is the name “Pharaoh” king of Egypt. This is the name that God has chosen to represent all prideful religious leaders who are smug in their religious beliefs. “He hath said in his heart, I shall not be moved: for I shall never be in adversity (Psalm 10:6).” They have refused to hear anything that wasn’t in accordance with their religious beliefs. Therefore they are utterly unaware of what is going to happen during end times. “Behold, I am against thee, Pharaoh king of Egypt... which hath said, My river is mine own, and I have made it for myself (Ezekiel 29:3).”
“Behold, I am against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and will brake his arms, the strong, and that which was broken; and I will cause his sword to fall out of his hand... And I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, and put my sword in his hand: but I will break Pharaoh’s arms (Ezekiel 30:22&24).” The arm is a symbol of a man’s strength: every leader’s followers are his arms, because they are his strength. God will brake Pharaoh’s arms, and he will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, which, in effect means, that he will be taking Pharaoh’s congregation away, and he will be giving them to be followers of his chosen man of the east. “Behold, I will give the land of Egypt unto Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; and he shall take her multitude, and take her spoil, and take her prey; and it shall be wages for his army (Ezekiel 29:19).”
“Nebuchadnezzar” king of Babylon, is another parable name which frequents prophecy; This is the parable name which God has given to his chosen man of the east. He and his followers have heard the covenant message, and they believed it. “Strangers shall submit themselves unto me: as soon as they hear, they shall be obedient unto me (2Sa 22:45).” They are prideful, full of knowledge, and they are full of strength for this war; however, they are not filled with the Holy Spirit, because they have not read the New Testament. Learning about Jesus is not optional. His followers are still in bondage. “Oh that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments! Then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea... His name should not have been cut off nor destroyed from before me (Isaiah 48:18-19).” When God confirms this message, reading the New Testament will be our new covenant. “All thy children shall be taught of the Lord; and great shall be the peace of thy children (Isaiah 54:13).”
God will give the congregations of every leader who refused to follow his instructions, into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, and into the hand of his followers, and into the hands of the Chaldeans. God had the ancient prophets record the evidence of what happened to Zedekiah, king of Judah, and to the priests, and to the prophets, and to all of the people who did not follow the prophet Jeremiah’s instructions when God had told them to go forth voluntarily into captivity, for their good. This story is our pattern, it was recorded for our edification. When God’s chosen man of the east comes and enters into our places of worship, the people there will have no strength to resist him; because God will fight against them, even in his anger and great wrath. God will protect his chosen man of the east, and the city shall go forth into captivity.
“Thus saith the Lord; Behold, I set before you the way of life, and the way of death. He that abideth in this city shall die by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence: but he that goeth out, and fallen to the Chaldeans that besiege you, he shall live, and his life shall be unto him for a prey (Jeremiah 21:8-9).” “I will pour out mine indignation upon thee, I will blow against thee in the fire of my wrath, and deliver thee into the hand of brutish men, and skillful to destroy (Ezekiel 21:31).” “Behold, I will send and take Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon... and when he cometh, he shall smite the land of Egypt... and I will kindle a fire in the houses of the gods of Egypt; and he shall burn them, and carry them away captives: and he shall array himself with the land of Egypt, as a shepherd putteth on his garment; and he shall go forth from thence in peace (Jeremiah 43:10-12).”
According to God’s word the major problem fueling this battle, is indignation. Why? Because of jealousies, and pridefulness, and shortsightednesses. Indignation is coming from every direction. Some are incensed at priests for are not accepting, and believing their messages. Others look upon our corruption with hatred and disgust. Some will think that priests should have discovered these things years ago. How could theologians have gotten prophecy so wrong? Why have they sold us lies? How can we know that they have it right this time? These are just a few examples of the fiery reasons for indignation. “The Lord of hosts hath purposed it, to stain the pride of all glory, and to bring into contempt all the honorable of the earth (Isaiah 23:9).” “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 bought low, and upon all the cedars of Lebanon, that are high and lifted up (Isaiah 2:12-13).”
God purposed the indignation for correction, but as soon as his people begin to acknowledge the truth about what he has done for them, then he will stand up and correct the wicked for their indignation. “We shall not die. O Lord, thou hast ordained them for judgment; and, O mighty God, thou hast established them for correction (Habakkuk 1:12).” “They that war against thee shall be as nothing, and as a thing of nought. For I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee (Isaiah 41:12-13).” “Who can stand before his indignation? And who can abide in the fierceness of his anger? His fury is poured out like fire, and rocks are thrown down by him. The Lord is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him. But with an overrunning flood he will make an utter end of the place thereof, and darkness shall pursue his enemies. What do you imagine against the Lord? He will make an utter end: affliction shall not rise up the second time (Nahum 1:6-9).”
“The Lord shall cause his glorious voice to be heard, and shall shew the lighting down of his arm, with the indignation of his anger, and with the flame of a devouring fire, with scattering, and tempest, and hailstones. For through the voice of the Lord shall the Assyrian be beaten down, which smote with a rod (Isaiah 30:30-31).” “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... 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 (Jeremiah 50:18-20).”
Part Three
What Happens Next
Now we are ready to learn what will happen next, after the war in Gaza. This insight comes to us from the forty seventh chapter of the book of Jeremiah, the chapter wherein God prophesied the forsaking of Gaza, and declared that it marked the appointed times. “Thus saith the Lord; Behold, waters rise up out of the north, and there shall be an overflowing flood, and shall overflow the land, and all that is therein; the city, and them that dwell therein (Jeremiah 47:2).” The waters breaking forth, are coming from the Assyrians. “Behold, the Lord bringeth up upon them the waters of the river, strong and many, even the king of Assyria, and all his glory: and he shall come up over all his channels, and go over all his banks (Isaiah 8:7).”
These waters have been polluted by an alternate version of an end time message. Assyrians want to dismiss publishing the news that God has given us a new covenant, and they hope to flood the nations with their own understandings of end times. “They shall roar, and lay hold of the prey, and shall carry it away safe, and none shall deliver it (Isaiah 5:29).” Those who fall victim to their messages will be taken into captivity by an unproven newly fashioned set of laws for salvation. Their teachers are false prophets. “The prophet is a snare of a fowler in all his ways, and hatred in the house of his God (Hosea 9:8),” “Let them bring forth, and show us what shall happen... or declare us things for to come. Shew the things that are to come hereafter, that we may know ye are gods: yea, do good, or do evil, that we may be dismayed, and behold it together. Behold, ye are nothing, and your work of nought: an abomination is he that chooseth you (Isaiah 41:22-24).”
Evidence that this flood is coming from those who have heard the covenant message, is found in the book of Job: “The flood breaketh out from the inhabitant; even waters forgotten of foot (Job 28:4).” These forgotten waters are none other than the Old Testament prophecies which the covenant message has been digging up, and bringing to light. When we look upon the army that will be attacking religion, we will see an unrefined people, the heathen, but they will be armed with biblical truths. “The floods of ungodly men made me afraid (2Samuel 22:5).” “By swearing, and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing adultery, they break out, and blood toucheth blood (Hosea 4:2).” Regardless of their lack of eloquence, this army is coming forth by the word of God. “Take counsel together, it shall come to nought; speak the word, and it shall not stand: for God is with us (Isaiah 8:10).” “Behold, a people cometh from the north country, and a great nation shall be raised from the sides of the earth. They shall lay hold on the bow and spear; they are cruel, and have no mercy; their voice roareth like the sea; and they ride upon horses, set in array as men of war against thee, O daughter of Zion (Jeremiah 6:22-23).”
“Hear, O earth: behold, I will bring evil upon this people, even the fruit of their thoughts, because they have not hearkened unto my words, nor to my law, but rejected it (Jeremiah 6:19).” “Out of the north an evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land. For, lo, I will call all the families of the kingdoms of the north... and they shall come, and they shall set every one his throne at the entering of the gates of Jerusalem... and against the cities of Judah. And I will utter my judgments against them touching all their wickedness, who have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, and worshipped the works of their own hands (Jeremiah 1:14-16).” “When ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh (Luke 21:20).”
Naive believers who refused to hear what is coming, will be confounded. “Behold, I cry out of wrong, but I am not heard: I cry aloud, but there is no judgment. He hath fenced up my way that I cannot pass, and he hath set darkness in my paths. He hath stripped me out of my glory, and taken the crown from my head. He hath destroyed me on every side, and I am gone: and mine hope hath he removed like a tree. He hath also kindled his wrath against me, and he counted me unto him as one of his enemies. His troops come together, and raise up their way against me, and encamp round about my tabernacle (Job 19:7-12).” “O our God, wilt thou not judge them? For we have no might against this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon thee (2Chronicles 20:12).” “Persecute them with thy tempest, and make them afraid with thy storm. Fill their faces with shame; that they may seek thy name, O Lord (Psalm 83:15-16).”
Additional information concerning the people of this army is gathered through parable words such as, horses and chariots, and, wagons and wheels. Let’s interrupt Jeremiah’s prophecy just enough to consider these words, so we can learn to appreciate their value. Let’s begin with the parable word, chariot. This word conjures up images of a horse drawn buggy with wheels. In ancient times the kings who reigned over the people would ride in the chariots. God used the word chariot to represent our current laws of salvation and our doctrines of religion, which have been reigning over the people. These laws have been instrumental in encouraging us in the way of salvation, however, they were fashioned in a way that kept believers from abandoning their religion, and the faith of their forefathers. These laws held the foundations of religion in place throughout the ages. “If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do? (Psalm 11:3).”
The wheels are people who have positioned their thoughts, and aligned their deeds in agreement with upholding and promoting those laws, and the beliefs of their heritage. “The work of the wheels was like the work of a chariot wheel (I Kings 7:33).” When chariots are used in the battle, God is disclosing that the people are still in bondage, and that they have not been set free to worship him in truth. They have not read the New Testament, for if they had read it, they would have been set free from their bondage. That’s why the New Testament is our new covenant, because, reading it sets us free from man’s rules of salvation: for we have assurance of salvation when we have the presence of the Holy Spirit within us. You can only receive this gift through the teachings of Jesus Christ.
Horses, represent believers who did precisely what their laws deemed necessary for salvation: but their laws fell short, and consequently, they do not know the Lord. Horses are strong, fierce, fearless, and raging, and they are prepared for battle. They shall tread down their enemies, like the mire in the streets. However, the scripture also say, “Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle (Psalm 32:9).” “Thus saith the Lord... 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 (Isaiah 43:17).”
Now let’s take a look at a prophecy from the book of Ezekiel. It reads: “Behold, I will raise up thy lovers against thee, from whom thy mind is alienated, and I will bring them against thee on every side; The babylonians, and all the Chaldeans... and all the Assyrians with them: all of them desirable young men, captains and rulers, great lords and renowned, all of them riding upon horses. And they shall come against thee with chariots, wagons, and wheels, and with an assembly of people... and I will set judgment before them, and they shall judge thee according to their judgments... and they shall deal with thee hatefully, and shall take away all thy labor, and shall leave thee naked and bare... I will do these things unto thee, because thou hast gone a-whoring after the heathen, and because thou art polluted with their idols (Ezekiel 23:22-30).”
The word, wagon, appeared once, and only once, in prophecy: the verse in which it appeared is recorded above. Over one hundred other times that same Hebrew word was translated into the word “chariot”. This means that God prophesied two Hebrew words, both of which meant “chariot” into one verse. The implication being that there are two types of chariots. Upon further examination of the prophecy, we can surmise why there are two types of chariots: it is because the prophecy indicated that there are both Babylonians and Assyrians coming against the uninformed. Remember that the Babylonians are leaders who believe the covenant message: their biggest mistake is in not having taken the time to read the New Testament. The unbelieving Assyrians have done worse. They have devised evil against the Lord by crafting an alternate end time theory, a wagon: and, they have no excuse. “Woe to the rebellious children, saith the Lord, that take counsel, but not of me; and that cover with a covering, but not my spirit, that they may add sin to sin: That walk to go down into Egypt, and have not asked by my mouth; to strengthen themselves in the strength of Pharaoh, and to trust in the shadow of Egypt (Isaiah 30:1-2).”
The scriptures suggest that the Assyrians have conspired with Pharaoh, they have recruited and enlisted the help of his mighty congregation to deliver their end time messages: for this reason all the prophecies which prophesy the punishments that shall come upon either one of them, will apply to both. “The Assyrian shall come into Egypt, and the Egyptian into Assyria, and the Egyptians shall serve with the Assyrians (Isaiah 19:23).” “Egypt riseth up like a flood, and his waters are moved like the rivers; and he saith, I will go up, and will cover the earth; I will destroy the city and the inhabitants thereof (Jeremiah 46:8).”
“Speak unto Pharaoh king of Egypt, and to his multitude; whom art thou like in thy greatness? Behold, the Assyrian was a cedar in Lebanon.. I made the nations to shake at the sound of his fall, when I cast him down to hell with them that descend into the pit... They also went down into hell with him... they that were his arm, that dwelt under his shadow in the midst of the heathen. To whom art thou thus like in glory and in greatness among the trees of Eden? Yet shalt thou be brought down with the trees of Eden unto the nether parts of the earth: thou shalt lie in the midst of the uncircumcised with them that be slain by the sword. This is Pharaoh and all his multitude, saith the Lord (Ezekiel 31:2&16-18).”
Continuing on with the forty seventh chapter of the book of Jeremiah: we left off as the flood waters were overwhelming the land, and the next verse reads: “Then the men shall cry, and all the inhabitants of the land shall howl (Jeremiah 47:2).” This crying is from the excruciating pain of recognizing their own mistakes; and they are crying out to God for his help, and for his mercy. But there are also the howlings, and the howlings are coming from the people who are being persecuted by the indignation of God’s instruments of warfare. The Assyrians aren’t able to enter in, but the Babylonians have been granted access to our sanctuaries. “The destroyer of the Gentiles is on his way; he is gone forth from his place to make thy land desolate; and thy cities shall be laid waste, without inhabitant. For this gird you with sackcloth, lament and howl: for the fierce anger of the Lord is not turned back from us (Jeremiah 4:7&8).” “Howl, ye ministers of the altar: come, lie all night in sackcloth, ye ministers of my God: for the meat offering and the drink offering is withholden from the house of your God (Joel 1:13).”
“Behold, I will bring evil upon them, which they shall not be able to escape; and though they shall cry unto me, I will not hearken unto them. Then shall the cities of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem go, and cry unto the gods unto whom they offer incense: but they shall not save them at all in their time of trouble (Jeremiah 11:11-12).” “Heshbon shall cry, and Elealeh: their voice shall be heard even unto Jahaz: therefore the armed soldiers of Moab shall cry out; his life shall be grievous (Isaiah 15:4).” “You shall cry out in that day because of your king which ye have chosen you; and the Lord will not hear you in that day (1Samuel 8:18).”
“Set the trumpet to thy mouth. He shall come as an eagle against the house of the Lord, because they have transgressed my covenant, and trespassed against my law. Israel shall cry unto me, My God, we know thee... They have set up kings, but not by me: they have made princes, and I knew it not; of their silver and their gold have they made them idols, that they may be cut off... How long will it be ere they attain to innocency? ...The workmen made it; therefore it is not God (Hosea 8:1-6).” “Lo, I raise up the Chaldeans, that bitter hasty nation... They are terrible and dreadful: their judgment and their dignity shall proceed of themselves... They shall fly as the eagle that hasteneth to eat. They shall come all for violence: their faces shall sup up the east wind, and they shall gather captivity as the sand (Habakkuk 1:6-9).”
We will all need to turn away from our mistaken end time beliefs, and repent, and embrace God’s end time message, for God is ready to forgive our iniquities with a stretched out hand. “For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still (Isaiah 5:25).” “Gird yourselves, and lament, ye priests: howl, ye minsters of the altar...Sanctify ye a fast, call a solemn assembly, gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land into the house of the Lord your God, and cry unto the Lord (Joel 1:13-14).” “Let the priests, the ministers of the Lord, weep between the porch and the altar, and let them say, Spare thy people, O Lord... Then will the Lord be jealous for his land, and pity his people. Yea, the Lord will answer and say unto his people, Behold I will send you corn, and wine, and oil, and ye shall be satisfied therewith: and I will no more make you a reproach among the heathen: but I will remove far off from you the northern army, and will drive him into a land barren and desolate, with his face toward the East Sea, and his hinder part toward the utmost sea, and his stink shall come up, and his ill savor shall come up, because he hath done great things (Joel 2:17-19).”
Continuing on again with the prophecy from the book of Jeremiah: we left off as men’s howlings were entering into God’s ears, and the next verse reads, “At the noise of the stamping of the hoofs of his strong horses, at the rushing of his chariots, and at the rumbling of his wheels, the fathers shall not look back to their children for feebleness of hands (Jeremiah 47:3).” This verse binds the timing of the arrival of God’s chosen man of the east, unto the day of God’s wrath. “I will bring upon Tyrus Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, a king of kings, from the north, with horses, and with chariots, and with horsemen, and companies, and much people... thy walls shall shake at the noise of the horsemen, and of the wheels, and of the chariots, when he shall enter into thy gates, as men enter into a city wherein is made a breach. With the hoofs of his horses shall he tread down all thy streets: he shall slay thy people by the sword, and thy strong garrisons shall go down to the ground. And they shall make a spoil of thy riches, and make a prey of thy merchandise: and they shall break down thy walls, and destroy thy pleasant houses: and they shall lay thy stones... in the midst of the water (Ezekiel 26:7-12).”
Whereas the fathers are seen fleeing before their children; think of this as the misguided leaders who didn’t recognize the voice of the Lord, or follow his instructions. They are fleeing from the selfish works of their wicked counselors, and more importantly, they are fleeing from the crashing thunder, the devastating hail, and the fierce anger of God’s wrath. “I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity... I will make a man more precious than fine gold... 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 a chased roe, and a sheep that no man taketh up: they shall every man turn to his own people, and flee every one into his own land (Isaiah 13:11-14).” “For thus saith the Lord of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land; and I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come (Haggai 2:6-7).”
“Behold, I will punish the multitude of No, and Pharaoh, and Egypt, with their gods, and their kings; even Pharaoh, and all them that trust in him: And I will deliver them into the hand of those that seek their lives, and into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of his servants (Jeremiah 46:25-26).” “Why are thy valiant men swept away? They stood not, because the Lord did drive them. He made many to fall, yea, one fell upon another... They did cry there, Pharaoh king of Egypt is but a noise, he hath passed the time appointed (Jeremiah 46:15-17).”
The last piece of information which was gathered from the prophecy of Jeremiah, concerns those who will suffer the most severe consequences of the prophecy. “The day cometh to spoil all the Philistines, and to cut off from Tyrus and Zion every helper that remaineth: for the Lord will spoil the Philistines, the remnant of the country of Captor (Jeremiah 47:4).” These parable names represent those who didn’t heed the warnings, but remained steadfast in the group known as the Assyrians (Psalm 83:1-8). These leaders knowingly continued to raise up understandings which were contrary to God’s word. Fortunately for us they have been taken in God’s snare. They made an oath with a false prophet (Psalm 83:5): they have already broken their oath with him; and even worse then that, because they continued to ignore God’s voice, now they have broken their covenant with God.
“He hath taken of the king’s seed, and made a covenant with him... But he rebelled against him in sending ambassadors into Egypt, that they might give him horses and much people. Shall he prosper? Shall he escape that doeth such things? Or shall he break the covenant, and be delivered? As I live, saith the Lord God, surely in the place where the king dwelleth that made him king, whose oath he despised, and whose covenant he brake, even with him in the midst of Babylon shall he die. Neither shall Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company make for him in the war... seeing he despised the oath by breaking the covenant, when, lo, he had given his hand, and hath done all these things, he shall not escape. Therefore thus saith the Lord God, As I live, surely mine oath that he hath despised, and my covenant that he hath broken, even it will I recompense upon his own head (Ezekiel 17:13-19).”
These rebellious leaders who continued to set their hearts against God’s word, are called fowlers: because they have set a snare for their followers: “The prophet is the snare of a fowler in all his ways (Hosea 9:8).” If these leaders don’t change their messages, then most of their followers will be forced to endure the punishments of God’s correction. “In the way wherein I walked have they privily laid a snare for me (Psalm 142:3).” “Let their table become a snare before them: and that which should have been for their welfare, let it become a trap (Psalm 69:22).” “My net also will I spread upon him, and he shall be taken in my snare: and I will bring him to Babylon to the land of the Chaldeans; yet shall he not see it, though he shall die there. And I will scatter toward every wind all that are about him to help him, and all his bands; and I will draw out the sword after them. And they shall know that I am the Lord, when I scatter them among the nations (Ezekiel 12:13-15).” “Many among them shall... be snared, and be taken (Isaiah 8:15).”
“Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence (Psalm 91:3).” Just showing these leaders and their followers that they have been taken in a snare, is enough to set them free. Stop cooperating with these fowlers. Keep your covenant with God, to walk in his ways, and to hearken to his voice (Deuteronomy 26:17). “My son, if thou be surety for thy friend, if thou hast stricken thy hand with a stranger, thou art snared with the words of thy mouth, thou art taken with the words of thy mouth. Do this now, my son, and deliver thyself, when thou art come into the hand of thy friend; go, humble thyself, and make sure thy friend. Give not sleep to thine eyes, nor slumber to thine eyelids. Deliver thyself as a roe from the hand of the hunter, and as a bird from the hand of the fowler (Proverbs 6:1-5).” “Our soul is escaped as a bird out of the snare of the fowlers: the snare is broken, and we are escaped (Psalm 124:7).” “Give wings unto Moab, that it may flee and get away (Jeremiah 48:9).”
God recommends that these leaders choose to stay out of this battle. “Enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be over past (Isaiah 26:20).” “The Egyptians shall help in vain, and to no purpose: therefore have I cried concerning this, Their strength is to sit still (Isaiah 30:7).” Some believers will receive this advice, and the armies of the Assyrian, as well as those of Pharaoh, will be weakened. “I will set Egyptians against the Egyptians: and they shall fight everyone against his brother, and every one against his neighbor; city against city and kingdom against kingdom. And the spirit of Egypt shall fail in the midst thereof; and I will destroy the counsel thereof (Isaiah 19:2-3).”
Every remaining Assyrian is in Babylon. If you read the prophecies about Babylon you will discover that Babylon has been taken in God’s snare, and that, Lo, she made an oath and has given her hand. God has prophesied that horrible consequences will come upon these leaders for not acknowledging and confessing his message, and for breaking their covenant between one another, as well as with him. These are the transgressions of the Assyrians. The words of our current covenant are recorded here for your convince.“Thou hast avouched the Lord this day... to hearken unto his voice: and the Lord hath avouched thee this day to be his peculiar people (Deuteronomy 26:17-18).”
“How is the hammer of the whole earth cut asunder and broken! How is Babylon become a desolation among the nations! I have laid a snare for thee, and thou art also taken, O Babylon, and thou wast not aware: thou art found, and also caught, because thou hast striven against the Lord. The Lord hath opened his armory, and hath brought forth the weapons of his indignation: for this is the work of the Lord of hosts in the land of the Chaldeans. Come against her from the utmost border, open her storehouses: cast her up as heaps, and destroy her utterly: let nothing of her be left... let none thereof escape: recompense her according to her work; according to all she hath done, do unto her: for she hath been proud against the Lord, against the Holy One of Israel (Jeremiah 50:23-29).”
“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 (Jeremiah 50:14-15).”
“They shall howl, saying, How is it broken down! How hath Moab turned back with shame! So shall Moab be a derision and a dismaying to all them about him. For thus saith the Lord; Behold, he shall fly as an eagle, and shall spread his wings over Moab... and the mighty men’s hearts in Moab at that day shall be as the heart of a woman in her pangs. And Moab shall be destroyed from being a people, because he magnified himself against the Lord. Fear, and the pit, and the snare, shall be upon thee, O inhabitant of Moab, saith the Lord (Jeremiah 48:39-43).”
“If thou wilt return, O Israel, saith the Lord, return unto me: and if thou wilt put away thine abominations out of my sight, then shalt thou not remove (Jeremiah 4:1).” It is more pleasing to God if you obey his voice before having to experience the pain of correction: but even if you failed to hear, afterwards there is still hope. Cry out to God, and read the scriptures, and wait upon him, because he will be there with you, and he will help you. “I am with thee, saith the Lord, to save thee... I will not make a full end of thee: but I will correct thee in measure, and will not leave thee altogether unpunished (Jeremiah 30:11).” “I will bear the indignation of the Lord, because I have sinned against him, until he plead my cause, and execute judgment for me (Micah 7:9).” “When the children of Israel cried unto the Lord, the Lord raised up a deliverer (Judges 3:9).”
The covenant message is a message of hope. It contains answers as to what God will shortly be bringing to pass. Look at all the evidences: how can anyone deny so much evidence? Everyone shall soon believe it. “Behold, I will this once cause them to know, I will cause them to know mine hand and my might; and they shall know that my name is The Lord (Jeremiah 16:21).” God has revealed all of this information to us, not only to confirm that the day of his wrath is at hand, but also to cause his people to glorify him. Will you hear his voice? Will you put your trust in him?
“Hath God assayed to go and take him a nation from the midst of another nation, by temptations, by signs, and by wonders, and by war, and by a mighty hand, and a stretched out arm, and by great terrors, according to all that the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes? Unto thee it was showed, that thou mightest know that the Lord he is God, there is none else beside him. Out of heaven he made thee to hear his voice, that he might instruct thee (Deuteronomy 4:34-36).” “Ye shall not do after all the things that we do here this day, every man whatsoever is right in his own eyes (Deuteronomy 12:8).” “For the indignation of the Lord is upon all nations, and his fury is upon all their armies: he hath utterly destroyed them, he hath delivered them to the slaughter (Isaiah 34:2).” “Then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may call upon the name of the Lord, to serve him with one consent (Zephaniah 3:9).” “In that day I will make a covenant for them... and I will break the bow and the sword and the battle out of the earth, and I will make them to lie down safely. And I will betroth thee unto me... in faithfulness: and thou shalt know the Lord (Hosea 2:18-20).”
