The Valley of Decision

“Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.”  Joel 3:14

It is my intensions to deal with the gathering armies of the world that will culminate with what we call World War Three. This train of thought will continue into future writings. The Bible calls this epic battle, the Battle of Armageddon to take place in the Valley of Jehoshaphat. It seems that all nations have just skirted this epic event only to wait for the signal from God to commence the advancing of world armies.  As we continue in this Bible study it is also my intension to deal with the Millennial Reign of Christ, better known as the One Thousand Year Reign. Many empires have attempted to exert themselves to procreate and endure this long of a period of time and some have been successful. The only successful empire known to date is the Roman Empire which lasted 2,214 years. Its mighty force of economics is still felt and administered here and around the world today. Some defiant ones still say that Rome still lives and I for one believe it does through the Roman Catholic Church in which the influence of the Vatican is felt throughout the world.

“Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles; 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, 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 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. {This celestial event is the signature of Divine intervention in the Day of the LORD.} 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 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

For decades now it seems that any nation who has an interest in the Middle East has intentionally left a residue of their troops in that area to secure their personal interests. These military consorts are better known as ‘advisors’. The U.S. alone has thousands in the region looking after her best interest. The country of Iran and Iraq have expressed in detail the destruction of Israel many times over only to be pushed back on the burner of the furnace of God. The French, British, German, and only to mention the Russians, all have their advisors on the line of the entire Middle East as I write. For some time now the Russian’s have been aiding Iran with nuclear interests and setting up missile installations all up and down Iran’s borders getting ready for the Day of the LORD which is a lot closer than we can imagine. It seems Iran somehow feels threatened by the U.S. backed Israel. The time is not yet, but everyone who desires to be involved is already there and waiting to pounce on Israel. One day and very soon, the hand of God will remove and allow the armies of the world to advance into Israel’s borders and over run her with the intensions of total inhalation. Why are they so interested in Israel one might ask? For one reason and it seems the most obvious is the oil below the sands. By now everyone knows about the abundance of oil in the entire region. It seems that anywhere there is sand and open desert one will find pools of oil. But there is something more precious than oil and natural gas to be found in the region and that is water. That’s right, water. Precious water aquifers are known in the region and only now are being tapped into development of the wasteland desert to bring forth the harvests of diver’s fruits and vegetables to feed the surrounding cities. Anyone who visits can see fields of sand being transformed into beautiful orchards by means of irrigation from these aquifers unseen from above. The real reason for opposing military presence is because of the hatred and jealously of God’s favor upon a land and people of His choosing, the JEWS. The entire world is jealous of them to the point of annihilation because they seem to be so successful at everything they set out to do in life. According to God’s overall grand plans of the ages, this was planned from the very beginning of time. This is a very old story, once again, about to be unfolded before our eyes.

I have been taught as others have in Sunday school and church services how the LORD will deliver Israel and escape destruction. But according to The Scripture it tells us how the heathen rage and that Jerusalem will be overrun with troops according to prophecy. I feel that the reason for this action against Jerusalem is to convince her people without a shadow of a doubt just who is their Saviour and Messiah. This time it will not be any supporting country such as the U.S. The help of the arm of the flesh will be cut off to prove the point God deems necessary for Israel to wake up and realize the truth of the matter. It will be unquestionable to those who stand to lose their lives at the hand of invading armies.

“Blow ye the trumpet 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 at hand; A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of 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. A fire devoureth before them; and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the Garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them. The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses; and as horsemen, so shall they run. Like the noise of chariots on the tops of mountains shall they leap, like the noise of a flame of fire that devoureth the stubble, as a strong people set in battle array. Before their face the people shall be much pained: all faces shall gather blackness. They shall run like mighty men; they shall climb the wall like men of war; and they shall march every one on his ways, and they shall not break their ranks: Neither shall one thrust another; they shall walk every one in his path: and when they fall upon the sword, they shall not be wounded. They shall run to and fro in the city; they shall run upon the wall, they shall climb up upon the houses; they shall enter in at the windows like a thief. The earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining:..” Joel 2:1-10

“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 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 arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible. I will make a man more precious 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, and as a sheep that no man taketh up: 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, and their wives ravished. Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them, which shall not regard 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.” Isaiah 13:4-18

The Scripture states that God will make man more precious than gold which implies that men will be so involved in the movement of armies that one will not be able to find one because of their scarcity. When God makes His move against the invaders, both the aggressors and defendants will lose tremendous amounts of armed personnel due to the intense fighting. I feel that this epic battle of the ages will dwarf World War I and W.W. II put together. The Bible declares that there has never been or ever seen the likes of this coming battle.

“And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.” Revelation 16:16

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

“For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in diver’s places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.” Matthew 24:7-8 {words of Christ in red}

Just before this battle of the ages takes place there are certain things, events, which will lead up to it and divulge the hidden mysteries of Bible prophecy. I am convinced the most important of all the prophecies is the prophecy of the Anti-Christ that will be revealed as described by the Apostle Paul. The Anti-Christ, or the Beast of Revelation as he is referred to by the Apostle John will be revealed and will lead the nations will uncanny wisdom and power unlike we have ever seen. Underworld wizardry and magic will rule the day. I have seen and reviewed all the movies and documentaries I could get my hands on of WWII and found that there is an uncanny resemblance of this description of the Anti-Christ in comparison of the man that led the entire world into war, the Nazis dictator Adolph Hitler. Even with the charisma of this evil mastermind, we are told by the prophets that the Anti-Christ to come, in the not too distant future, cannot be compared to any of his predecessors of renown. Just when we thought these events could not get any worse that WWII, we are instructed this coming Battle of Armageddon will surpass all previous known wars.

“Now we beseech 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. 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 that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit 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 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 who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” II Thessalonians 2:1-12

“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, and great authority. And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast. And they worshipped the dragon which gave power 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 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 was given him over all kindred’s, 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 the faith of the saints. 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 of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. And he doeth great wonders, 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 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 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, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save 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 13:1-18

In this Scripture above, The Apostles say the same thing according to the prophecies of Daniel and Ezekiel. There are so many proclaiming Christian’s today that have been told there is nothing to worry about because they won’t be here because the Rapture has already taken place. This is a lie of Satan to deceive the church. So many Christian’s will lose their faith in the church and their pastors because they have believed this lie for decades. They will be totally unprepared to deal with the events that will engulf all the church comprised of both true believers and false pretenders.

“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, and to them that give suck 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 sake those days shall be shortened.” Matthew 24:15-22 {words of Christ in red}

The prophet Daniel wrote prophesies leading to the ‘abomination of desolation’, some 350 years before it happened the first time in history. We have an account of the Old Testament event that took place during the Jewish revolt {civil war 167-160 BC} recorded in the historical accounts in the Book of Maccabees I &II recorded by the renowned historian Josephus. The ruler at that time, Antiochus IV Epiphanies (175-164 BC)  one sons of Alexander the Great, decreed that all Jewish rituals of animal sacrifice be halted by slaughtering a pig on the altar of the House of God. This despicable atrocity was to infuriate and inflame the Jewish population into subjection of Grecian culture.

“And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate.” Daniel 11:31

This action taken against the Jew’s religious practices in the Temple signifying the end of sacrifices by desecrating the altar with a forbidden sacrifice. Antiochus was attempting to preempt the Jewish rituals by introducing the Hellenistic {Grecian} pagan rituals of that time. Of course, this action was outrageous and escalated civil war. Upon the untimely death of Antiochus IV Epiphanies, in which he died of natural causes, the war was ended with the Maccabean Revolt. The Temple Mount was cleansed and dedicated known today as the “Feast of Dedication” which is still held around the 15^th of December.

 "They decked, also, the forefront of the temple with crowns of gold and with shields, and the gates and chambers they renewed and hanged doors upon them:"1 Maccabees. 4:52-59.

Our LORD Jesus made a visit to this Jewish festival just before He went to Calvary {AD.33} in the following spring, and after the Festival of the Passover.

“And it was at Jerusalem the Feast of the Dedication, and it was winter. And Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon's porch. Then came the Jews round about him, and said unto him, “How long dost thou make us to doubt? If thou be the Christ, tell us plainly.” John 10:22-24

This accurate account of a tyrant has been given place, though mistaken as the Anti-Christ. The Anti-Christ is described also by Daniel’s prophecies in conjunction with John’s apocalyptic writings in the Book of Revelation. As I have stated in other writings many times, history has an uncanny way of repeating itself. You might be asking, what does this have to do with the anti-Christ of Revelation? I would like to point out that there are two distinct events taking place in the same portion of Scripture and is given away with closer inspection. Daniel 11:21-35 gives the life and exploits of the Seleucid King, Antiochus IV Epiphanies, a vile usurper of the throne. One event happened before the First Advent of Christ. When Christ was here with the Disciples he spoke of another event that would occur in the future. The Scripture takes a turn from this epic event to look down the road of the future by focusing on yet a further future event, the “End of Times”. In Daniel 11:36 we have a further knowledge of these future events by the Prophet Daniel when he describes the ultimate evil and another vile usurper of the throne. Just when we thought it could not get any worse, the Anti-Christ appears to pick up where Antiochus IV Epiphanies leaves off somewhere in the very distant future. As I have stated many times, history runs in cycles and over periods of time and distance, the similar events will begin to surface once again to remind us of the things that used to be. I mentioned earlier the debauchery and defamation of the Temple and the offering up a pagan sacrifice known in Jewish history as the “abomination of desolation”. This act of defilement is carried into the future at the “End of Times” or better known as the “Great Tribulation. This “abomination of desolation is performed again by the Beast of Revelation but there is one very distinct difference between Antiochus IV Epiphanies and the Beast of Revelation. This time the offence will be that the Beast will declare himself as god and will set himself upon the throne of David in the Holy City of Jerusalem. This is where it culminates and this event is the apex that stirs the God of the universe, Jehovah God.

Son of Perdition

I am convinced that there is nowhere on this earth a more serious or controversial subject than the Anti-Christ of the Bible. I well remember the long discussions and debates of who we think this mystery man could be. I have seen people go so far out on a limb by devising mathematical wizardry to determine just who would fit into the mold of this Man of Sin. I have to admit, there are many throughout history that can fit into this mold but, as the Bible emphatically states, there has never been or will never be anyone who will destroy and put to waste as this man of the not too distant future will reveal to us all. And I thought the Nazis dictator Adolph Hitler was bad.  

“Now we beseech 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. 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 {the abomination of desolation}. Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things? And now ye know what with-holdeth that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit 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 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 who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” II Thessalonians 2:1-12

“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, and great authority. And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast. And they worshipped the dragon which gave power 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 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 was given him over all kindred’s, 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 the faith of the saints. 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 of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. And he doeth great wonders, 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 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 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, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save 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 13:1-18

In this Scripture above, the Apostles say the same thing according to the prophecies of Daniel and Ezekiel. Let me clarify what the Apostle Paul writes about when he talks about the son of perdition. The word perdition conjures up the imagination and speaks of all out destruction or of waste. That is what this mystery man is all about, complete all out waste culminating with the annihilation of the nation of Israel. There are so many proclaiming Christian’s today that have been told there is nothing to worry about because they won’t be here because the Rapture has already taken place. This is a lie of Satan to deceive the church. We will see just how good that fire insurance the devil has been peddling out these days pays off in the end. Are people really willing to chance their eternal soul on the belief that the fire insurance stipulates? The time will come that so many professing Christian’s will lose their faith in the church and their pastors because they have believed this lie for decades. They will be totally unprepared to deal with the events that will engulf all the church comprised of both true believers and false pretenders. It is they who lose their faith, who will take the mark of the Beast.

“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, and to them that give suck 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 sake those days shall be shortened.” Matthew 24:15-22 {words of Christ in red}

The prophet Daniel wrote prophesies leading to the ‘abomination of desolation’, some 350 years before it happened the first time in history. We have an account of the Old Testament event that took place during the Jewish revolt {civil war 167-160 BC} recorded in the historical accounts in the Book of Maccabees I &II recorded by the renowned historian of that time, Josephus. The ruler at that time was a Grecian conqueror, Antiochus IV Epiphanies (175-164 BC.), one of the sons of Alexander the Great. After taking by force the City of Jerusalem, decreed that all Jewish rituals of animal sacrifice be halted by slaughtering a pig on the altar of the House of God. This despicable atrocity was to infuriate and inflame the Jewish population into subjection of Grecian culture.

“And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate.” Daniel 11:31

This accurate account of a tyrant has been given place, though many times mistaken, as the Anti-Christ of the Apocalypse. The Anti-Christ is described by Daniel’s prophecies in conjunction with John’s apocalyptic writings in the Book of Revelation. As I have stated in other writings many times, history has an uncanny way of repeating itself. You might be asking, what does this have to do with the anti-Christ of Revelation? I would like to point out that there are two distinct events taking place in the same portion of Scripture and is given away with closer inspection. Daniel 11:21-35 gives the life and exploits of the Seleucid King, Antiochus IV Epiphanies, a vile usurper of the throne. But the Scripture takes a turn from this epic event to look down the road of the future by focusing on yet a further future event, the “End of Times”. In Daniel 11:36 we have a further knowledge of these future events by the Prophet Daniel when he describes the ultimate evil and another vile usurper of the throne. Just when we thought it could not get any worse, the Anti-Christ appears to pick up where Antiochus IV Epiphanies leaves off somewhere in the very distant future. As I have stated many times, history runs in cycles and over periods of time and distance, the similar events will begin to surface once again to remind us of the things that used to be. Thus the saying, “what goes around comes around”. I mentioned earlier the debauchery and defamation of the Temple and the offering up a pagan sacrifice known in Jewish history as the “abomination of desolation”. This act of defilement is carried into the future at the “End of Times” or better known as the “Great Tribulation. This “abomination of desolation is performed again by the Beast of Revelation but there is one very distinct difference between Antiochus IV Epiphanies and the Beast of Revelation. This time the offence will be that the Beast will declare himself as god and will set himself upon the throne of David in the Holy City of Jerusalem. This is where it culminates and this event is the apex that stirs the God of the universe, Jehovah God.

I am reminded of one of the most notorious acts of Antiochus Epiphanies and there were many. By his design, everywhere there was a synagogue he had a gymnasium established to beguile the young Jewish children as a training center for the heart, body, and soul in the Grecian manner. This culture of Hellenization, with the encroaching idea of gymnasiums is integrated in the church denominations of America today and many insist on having a gymnasium just outside of the worship center. Ever wonder where the YMCA got its idea from? These gyms are intended to mix and mingle the unbeliever with the born-again people of God and they do this very well by disarming the born-again Christian. Did you know that the YMCA’s and YWCA’s are 501c3 tax exempt facilities just like the Church Corporations of today? They are in every denomination of churches of America. This is most definitely a device of Satan to divide and conquer the body of Christ and Satan used a Grecian conqueror to accomplish this. I make it a point to stay away from churches that incorporate the world in with the worship center. Some churches in our area have even built the gym with the intensions to double up the use of it as the main worship center when on the days of the week roll through it is just a gym. They now classify this building as a “Family Life Center”, to be able to let their guard down and play and worship at the same time. There is no wonder the children do not know how to act in the corporate worship service. They think they have come to play instead of worship the Living God who is Holy and Reverent altogether. The bottom line is that all God’s people do not fear the LORD anymore. God’s people do not realize that this type of action will bring judgment to the church? The spirit of the Anti-Christ is alive and well in the local assemblies.

“And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness. Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted. Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play. Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand. Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted and were destroyed of serpents. Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer. Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.” 1Corinthians 10:4-11

This is the very thing God commands us to stay away from in the Church. It is a fact that the unsaved and the saved cannot worship together. Why is this? Because, the unsaved do not know what to worship except the idol of this world, money, flesh stirring music, notoriety, positions and posts of authority masking the real person they are, a lost sinner playing a ruse with the unknowing saved people of God. This action brings into perspective the classic scenario of the wheat being raised up with the tares {a vetch plant} of this world. They bring idol worship into the church so the born-again go along with this false worship bringing them into condemnation in God’s face. The Apostle Paul wrote two letters to the Church of Corinth admonishing them not to mix and mingle with the lost sinners in the worship service. It wasn’t an option; it was a command from God warning them not to touch the unclean thing in worshiping the Holy Son of God.

“Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.”

John 4:22 {words of Christ in red}

The Apostle Paul stated; “Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump? Purge out therefore the old leaven {sin} that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened {without sin}. For even Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us: Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators: Yet not altogether with the fornicators of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or with idolaters; for then must ye needs go out of the world. But now I have written unto you not to keep company, {in the church}   if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat. For what have I to do to judge them also that are without? Do not ye judge them that are within? But them that are without God judgeth. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person.” 1Corinthians 5:6-13

“For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of by wisdom this world? Hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For after that, in the wisdom of God the world knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. 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. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men. For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in his presence. But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.” 1Corinthians 1:18-31

“Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? Or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? For ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.” 2Corinthians 6:14-18

When I explain to the born-again Christian why we are not to mix and mingle with the unsaved in the corporate worship service they look at me thinking I have lost my mind. This is totally unheard of and I am looked at with disdain. Little do they know it was Christ Jesus, the very one who is head of the church, that gave the command is to separate ourselves from the unsaved, unregenerate sinners in the corporate church worship services. Why is it that the church has lost its power and influence over the community? There was a time when no alcoholic beverages were sold on Sunday and the local whore houses stayed on the outskirts of the town. No one in the community would dare open for business on Sunday. Why do so-called revivals fizzle out as soon as the last song and prayer is said? Why is it that a preacher of the Gospel has to obtain a Doctorate degree at least attending some kind of school before he is allowed in the pulpit of America? Why is it that every time I leave a church service I have this empty feeling come over me like I was white washed for the week? It is because we have put down our guard and allowed everyone that is curious, ambitious, glory seeking, or just looking for a platform to perform on stage, is encouraged to attend church. The preachers and pastors have migrated into the entertainment business with a little serving of the Scripture on the side and even that is watered down by using other strange versions that take away the power and fire of the Word of God. This action has literally drained the power of God right out of the church. It is like an electric power line that has been grounded out to the point the power is drained from being used as it was designed. This must be stopped and right away before we force the hand of God upon the local church. There is no doubt Satan’s strategy is working very well in today’s corporate churches.

All these set-backs of the local church are akin to the action Antiochus had taken against the Jew’s religious practices in the Temple signified the end of sacrifices by desecrating the altar with a forbidden sacrifice. Now, the spirit of the Anti-Christ has deliberately desecrated the altar of every local church body. This is one of the many reasons that the LORD Jesus gave to us personally His Spirit of the Holy Ghost to reside inside of the born-again believer. This is so we can worship the LORD Jesus in spirit and in truth no matter where we go in this wicked world.

“If ye love me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.” John 14:15-18 {words of Christ in red}

Jerusalem: God’s Cup of Trembling

“Awake, awake, stand up, O Jerusalem, which hast drunk at the hand of the LORD the cup of his fury; thou hast drunken the dregs of the cup of trembling, and wrung them out.” Isaiah 51:17 KJV

There is no other place on earth that is as troublesome as the city of Jerusalem. It seems that every nation and every religion has something to prove when it comes to possessing the land that God promised to the lineage of Abraham through his son Isaac. Everybody wants a stake in this game of chance with God. It seems beyond human reasoning that if any other than Israel has possession of Jerusalem then their religion must be the true one, or is this way of thinking for naught? This is believed by the Muslims and Christians of today. In the beginning it wasn’t this way. In the writings of the Old Testament prophets, the lands appointed by the Creator of the Earth and Universe, Jehovah God, states emphatically that the lands of Israel are the sole possession of the sons and daughters of the lineage of father Abraham. The LORD God fulfilled a promise to Abraham and Sarah by giving them a son for an heir. But before we get ahead of ourselves be it known that in Sarah’s mind and heart this was just another empty promise along with the knowledge that she was already ninety years old. Before Isaac was born by none other than a miraculous conception considering the age of Sarah, determined and distraught, grew impatient and instructed Abraham to have a child by her handmaid Hagar. Out of this union that wasn’t supposed to be, came the curse of the ages. The lineage of Ishmael does have a vital part to play in the grand scheme of things. {They own the richest and largest oil producing regions of the world}. Hagar bare Ishmael to Abraham but God instructed Abraham that none other than the one God chose would be the heir to the lands of Israel. God chose Isaac that was given to Sarah after her impatience proved to be a disaster of the ages. On a personal note, I think that this maneuver of Sarah was of satanic origin in a futile attempt to thwart the royal bloodline that would produce the prophesied Messiah. There can only be one heir and Isaac was it of God’s own choosing.

“Now Sarai, Abram's wife bare him no children: and she had an handmaid, an Egyptian, whose name was Hagar. And Sarai said unto Abram, Behold now, the LORD hath restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go in unto my maid; it may be that I may obtain children by her. And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai. And Sarai Abram's wife took Hagar her maid the Egyptian, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife. And he went in unto Hagar, and she conceived: and when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her eyes. 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 with her, she fled from her face. And the angel of the LORD found her by a fountain 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 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; 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 all 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 him that seeth me?” Wherefore the well was called Beerlahairoi; behold, it is between Kadesh and Bered. And Hagar bare Abram a son: and Abram called his son's name, which Hagar bare, Ishmael. And Abram was fourscore and six years old, when Hagar bare Ishmael to Abram.” Genesis 16:1-16

In Bible typology the land of Egypt represents the ways of the world at large. It has been speculated that Hagar was an Egyptian that was Sarah’s handmaid given to her when they were in Egypt. As the story goes, Pharaoh favored Sarah and intended on taking her as his wife until the fact came out that Sarah was already married to Abraham. With this news of beguiling nature, Pharaoh dismissed Abraham, Sarah, and gave possessions to them including Hagar to hasten their departure from Egypt. This particular episode of Abraham and Sarah’s travels are certainly true enough but it can be seen the Scripture disputes this train of thought by disclosing that Hagar was added to the family by way of Canaan, yet another worldly outpost of satanic origin. This was none other than another futile attempt of satanic origin to destroy the royal bloodline of the coming Messiah. God had a plan to preserve the promise He presented to Abraham but was interrupted by an impatient wife of her own choosing. Sarah’s poor decision only proves that anyone who cannot learn to wait on the LORD will most invariably pass on through the ages the sins of the heart. We all bare the sin guilt of our forefathers beginning from Adam and Eve. This self-proclaimed heir we have with us today, the rejected Ishmael, was the seed that started a holy war in the family of Abraham.  In my opinion, I feel that introduction of Ishmael instigated the beginning of the “cup of trembling”, the original family feud. We are living with that legacy today with the internal fighting noticed daily on the news. None other than Jews no matter of the nationality of today and still, many others lay claim to this land and are willing to die for it. That Day of Decision is soon approaching and all will be settled, once and for all times at the Second Coming of Christ.

“Thus saith thy Lord the LORD, and thy God that pleadeth the cause of his people, Behold, I have taken out of thine hand the cup of trembling, even the dregs of the cup of my fury; thou shalt no more drink it again:…” Isaiah 51:22 KJV

The name Jerusalem means, “in pursuit of peace”, and of which it is anything but peace. I feel the reason for this is because the city is used and pursued by those who have no legal or spiritual claim on it. Too many lives have been lost in holding on to this furnace of God and many more are slated to give their life for it according to the prophecies of the Bible. For centuries any people or nation who had a desire to push their influence on to the city of David has done so from the kings of France and popes of Italy, to the kings and queens of Great Briton and now the presidents of the United States, to the least and everyone in between. Whether we like or not is irrelevant, we all have a stake in the welfare of this City of God that is called by many names. If not by supporting it with diplomacy and weapons of mass destruction to a spiritual connection through the family ties of the Kingdom of God. Yes, Jerusalem is most definitely a major part of the Kingdom of God. It is most assuredly the most talked about and swooned over city on the face of this earth. The LORD God Jehovah has this city as His special interest because this city was the corner stone of all civilizations that was to represent the LORD God Himself.

As it stands right now, Jerusalem is a divided city with many interests in diverse cultures. The time will come and very soon when God will drive out the special interest religions and re-establish the original theocracy ruling with the LORD JESUS the Son of Jehovah God sitting on the throne of David ruling with a rod of iron. The King of Peace, ruling with a rod of iron, intriguing.

“Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine 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 them in his sore displeasure. Yet have I set 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 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, 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 2:1-12 KJV

I see Jerusalem as a very strange place because of the many different religions represented there. One can only see that this is only religion because of the warring nature of the occupiers of the grand and glorious city. If the City of God was truly the city of the living God Jehovah would it not stand to reason that all differences and arms would be laid down and set aside? But to this day, people and surrounding elements are armed to the teeth and lying in wait for an opportunity to overrun Jerusalem once again. Maybe we do not understand why this is happening but there are valid reasons for this unsettling nervousness in the land of Israel. There is a record of Jehovah’s problem with His beloved city and the prophet Ezekiel has recorded God’s very words of disdain and disgust of the sins and iniquities committed by the House of Jacob.

God’s case against Jerusalem

“Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, cause Jerusalem to know her abominations, And say, “Thus saith the Lord GOD unto Jerusalem; Thy birth and thy nativity is of the land of Canaan; thy father was an Amorite, and thy mother an Hittite. And as for thy nativity, in the day thou wast born thy navel was not cut, neither wast thou washed in water to supple thee; thou wast not salted at all, nor swaddled at all. None eye pitied thee, to do any of these unto thee, to have compassion upon thee; but thou wast cast out in the open field, to the lothing of thy person, in the day that thou wast born. And when I passed by thee, and saw thee polluted in thine own blood, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live; yea, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live. I have caused thee to multiply as the bud of the field, and thou hast increased and waxen great, and thou art come to excellent ornaments: thy breasts are fashioned, and thine hair is grown, whereas thou wast naked and bare. Now when I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, behold, thy time was the time of love; and I spread my skirt over thee, and covered thy nakedness: yea, I sware unto thee, and entered into a covenant with thee, saith the Lord GOD, and thou becamest mine. Then washed I thee with water; yea, I thoroughly washed away thy blood from thee, and I anointed thee with oil. I clothed thee also with broidered work, and shod thee with badgers' skin, and I girded thee about with fine linen, and I covered thee with silk. I decked thee also with ornaments, and I put bracelets upon thy hands, and a chain on thy neck. And I put a jewel on thy forehead, and earrings in thine ears, and a beautiful crown upon thine head. Thus wast thou decked with gold and silver; and thy raiment was of fine linen, and silk, and broidered work; thou didst eat fine flour, and honey, and oil: and thou wast exceeding beautiful, and thou didst prosper into a kingdom. And thy renown went forth among the heathen for thy beauty: for it was perfect through my comeliness, which I had put upon thee, saith the Lord GOD. But thou didst trust in thine own beauty, and playedst the harlot because of thy renown, and pouredst out thy fornications on every one that passed by; his it was. And of thy garments thou didst take, and deckedst thy high places with diver’s colours, and playedst the harlot thereupon: the like things shall not come, neither shall it be so. Thou hast also taken thy fair jewels of my gold and of my silver, which I had given thee, and madest to thyself images of men, and didst commit whoredom with them, And tookest thy broidered garments, and coveredst them: and thou hast set mine oil and mine incense before them. My meat also which I gave thee, fine flour, and oil, and honey, wherewith I fed thee, thou hast even set it before them for a sweet savour: and thus it was, saith the Lord GOD. Moreover thou hast taken thy sons and thy daughters, whom thou hast borne unto me, and these hast thou sacrificed unto them to be devoured. Is this of thy whoredoms a small matter, that thou hast slain my children, and delivered them to cause them to pass through the fire for them? And in all thine abominations and thy whoredoms thou hast not remembered the days of thy youth, when thou wast naked and bare, and wast polluted in thy blood. And it came to pass after all thy wickedness, (woe, woe unto thee! saith the Lord GOD;) That thou hast also built unto thee an eminent place, and hast made thee and high place in every street. Thou hast built thy high place at every head of the way, and hast made thy beauty to be abhorred, and hast opened thy feet to everyone that passed by, and multiplied thy whoredoms. Thou hast also committed fornication with the Egyptians thy neighbors’, great of flesh; and hast increased thy whoredoms, to provoke me to anger. Behold, therefore I have stretched out my hand over thee, and have diminished thine ordinary food, and delivered thee unto the will of them that hate thee, the daughters of the Philistines, which are ashamed of thy lewd way. Thou hast played the whore also with the Assyrians, because thou wast insatiable; yea, thou hast played the harlot with them, and yet couldest not be satisfied. Thou hast moreover multiplied thy fornication in the land of Canaan unto Chaldea; and yet thou wast not satisfied herewith. 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 givest thy gifts to all thy lovers, and hirest them, that they may come unto thee on every side for thy whoredom. And the contrary is in thee from other women in thy whoredoms, whereas none followeth thee to commit whoredoms: and in that thou givest a reward, and no reward is given unto thee, therefore thou art contrary. Wherefore, O harlot, hear the word of the LORD: Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because thy filthiness was poured out, and thy nakedness discovered through thy whoredoms with thy lovers, and with all the idols of thy abominations, and by the blood of thy children, which thou didst give unto them; Behold, therefore I will gather all thy lovers, with whom thou hast taken pleasure, and all them that thou hast loved, with all them that thou hast hated; I will even gather them roundabout against thee, and will discover thy nakedness unto them, that they may see all thy nakedness. And I will judge thee, as women that break wedlock and shed blood are judged; and I will give thee blood in fury and jealousy. And I will also give thee into their hand, and they shall throw down thine eminent place, and shall break down thy high places: they shall strip thee also of thy clothes, and shall take thy fair jewels, and leave thee naked and bare. They shall also bring up a company against thee, and they shall stone thee with stones, and thrust thee through with their swords. And they shall burn thine houses with fire, and execute judgments upon thee in the sight of many women: and I will cause thee to cease from playing the harlot, and thou also shalt give no hire any more. So will I make my fury toward thee to rest, and my jealousy shall depart from thee, and I will be quiet, and will be no more angry. Because thou hast not remembered the days of thy youth, but hast fretted me in all these things; behold, therefore I also will recompense thy way upon thine head, saith the Lord GOD: and thou shalt not commit this lewdness above all thine abominations. Behold, every one that useth proverbs shall use this proverb against thee, saying, as is the mother, so is her daughter. Thou art thy mother's daughter, that lotheth her husband and her children; and thou art the sister of thy sisters, which loathed their husbands and their children: your mother was a Hittite, and your father an Amorite. And thine elder sister is Samaria, she and her daughters that dwell at thy left hand: and thy younger sister, that dwelleth at thy right hand, is Sodom and her daughters. Yet hast thou not walked after their ways, nor done after their abominations: but, as if that were a very little thing, thou wast corrupted more than they in all thy ways. 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. When I shall bring again their captivity, the captivity of Sodom and her daughters, and the captivity of Samaria and her daughters, then will I bring again the captivity of thy captives in the midst of them: That thou mayest bear thine own shame, and mayest be confounded in all that thou hast done, in that thou art a comfort unto them. When thy sisters, Sodom and her daughters, shall return to their former estate, and Samaria and her daughters shall return to their former estate, then thou and thy daughters shall return to your former estate. For thy sister Sodom was not mentioned by thy mouth in the day of thy pride, Before thy wickedness was discovered, as at the time of thy reproach of the daughters of Syria, and all that are round about her, the daughters of the Philistines, which despise thee round about. Thou hast borne thy lewdness and thine abominations, saith the LORD. For thus saith the Lord GOD; I will even deal with thee as thou hast done, which hast despised the oath in breaking the covenant. 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 thy younger: and 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 16:1-63 KJV

After taking into account of all the accusations and indictments of Jehovah God against His people, we can get a mental picture of what is taking place in the City of God and surrounding areas of Israel. It is because God feels He has been betrayed of His love and benevolence of Jerusalem, His personal property and investment of generations. Yet they make the poor choices to play around as a harlot would on the very source of their wealth and prosperity. The Law of Sowing and Reaping is in full effect. God uses the analogy of an unfaithful wife derelict of her vows and covenant with the very one who came to her when no one wanted her, a no body and a castaway. God established her and nurtured her to the point she became over indulgent and wantonness of more and more worldly pleasures to the point of self destruction. One of the most damming indictments against Jerusalem was the fact that she turned her affections from Jehovah God to the wood stock idols of neighboring countries such as the Canaanites and Philistines. These wicked neighbors had this practice of throwing their children alive into the fires of heathen idol gods as a sacrifice.  This is how low Jerusalem and all the lands of Israel became over time. Guilty of turning their backs against their loving benefactor, Jerusalem now dependant on other countries promising her love and trinkets of passion only to lead her to destruction of her dubious and deceitful consorts. This is what has become of a comely and beautiful City of David, pulled from pillar to post betwixt and between the many who desire to lay with her for her favors. Just as a once loving wife that could fulfill her spouses every desire, Jerusalem became the unfaithful spouse of Jehovah God. The LORD God in His jealousy and disdain is becoming indolent yet patiently awaiting the moment to make His move against the whoremonger nations. Pleading constant promises of redemption, Jehovah God is acting like anyone would who has experienced the loss of affection of a spouse and is suffering from a broken heart.

“Woe to Ariel, to Ariel, the city where David dwelt! Add ye year to year; let them kill sacrifices. Yet I will distress Ariel, and there shall be heaviness and sorrow: and it shall be unto me as Ariel. And I will camp against thee round about, and will lay siege against thee with a mount, and I will raise forts against thee. And thou shalt be brought down, and shalt speak out of the ground, and thy speech shall be low out of the dust, and thy voice shall be, as of one that hath a familiar spirit, out of the ground, and thy speech shall whisper out of the dust. Moreover the multitude of thy strangers shall be like small dust, and the multitude of the terrible ones shall be as chaff that passeth away: yea, it shall be at an instant suddenly. Thou shalt be visited of the LORD of hosts with thunder, and with earthquake, and great noise, with storm and tempest, and the flame of devouring fire. And the multitude of all the nations that fight against Ariel, even all that fight against her and her munitions and that distress her, shall be as a dream of a night vision. It shall even be as when an hungry man dreameth, and, behold, he eateth; but he awaketh, and his soul is empty: or as when a thirsty man dreameth, and, behold, he drinketh; but he awaketh, and, behold, he is faint, and his soul hath appetite: so shall the multitude of all the nations be, that fight against mount Zion.” Isaiah 29:1-8 KJV

How many times in the history of this tumultuous city has the LORD God threatened and delivered punishment on Jerusalem is confirmed by the accounting of historical data compiled over centuries. It seems evident that Jerusalem has a nasty habit of getting things right and in order with their God Jehovah just to backslide and rebel to the point of being overrun once again by their old enemies of renown. And such as it is with anyone who resides in this body of flesh, having the best of intensions but lacking the power to be consistent and faithful. This is running like a broken record only to be repeated until divine intervention deems it necessary to bring it to a stop, which brings this story of shipwreck to our personal lives. We are all in need of this divine intervention. It will be our only hope of survival in the Millennial Reign of Christ if we are to continue to live in this wicked, sinful, adulterous world.