High watch times

Red Sky at Morning

Superstar
Joined
Mar 15, 2017
Messages
13,932
From Todd Hampson...

Connecting the Prophetic Dots

I’m a child of the 70’s and it was definitely a different era. Video games were just entering the scene and we didn’t have cell phones so we had other activities to keep us busy. Most of them were outdoor activities so we wouldn’t break the house or drive our parents crazy, but there were a few indoor activities that were popular in my generation as well. Two that come to mind are: Connect-the-Dots, and Paint-By-Numbers.

I loved Connect-the-Dots because at first it just looked like a bunch of random dots on a page. But as we drew lines from each numbered dot to the next one a picture would begin to emerge. What at first seemed like unconnected and completely random dots formed into a very clear picture right before our eyes.

Paint-By-Numbers on the other hand was less appealing to me. You could already make out the picture and the only goal was to mind-numbingly paint all of the 1’s blue, all of the 2’s red, all of the 3s white. You get the picture (pun intended). By the time you finished you felt like Rembrandt but all you were doing was filling in the colors like a drone. Sorry to anyone who loves doing Paint-By-Numbers. Stick with me here. I promise it will be worth the time.

When it comes to Bible prophecy—or any area of complex theology for that matter—we often prefer a Paint-By-Numbers approach. We want it all spelled out neatly for us without having to do too much work or think too deeply about what we believe and why we believe it. I’m all for simple childlike faith, but as we grow in our walk with he Lord, we should begin to crave meat instead of milk. This does not make God love us more or put a “Super Christian” emblem on our chests, but it helps us to be grounded more deeply in God’s word and it helps us better understand the times in which we live.

As Bible prophecy students we must take the Connect-the-Dots approach. We have to put in the hard work of studying scripture—particularly the Old Testament prophets (major and minor), the Olivet Discourse, epistles such as 1st and 2nd Thessalonians, and the book of Revelation. Then we must apply that to what we see today. That means we need to view the daily news cycle in light of Scripture.

If God is sovereign, nothing is random. Nothing. He sees all of history simultaneously. For us, our present intersects with eternity one moment at a time. He knows the end from the beginning as if it has already happened. He paints a very clear picture of what the end-times will look like and my friends—when I connect the dots I see today, I am convinced that a very clear picture is emerging before our eyes.

A couple times a year I try to do a post where I provide a snapshot of the prophetic landscape as I see it. I’d like to Connect-the-Dots of a few prophetic end-time sign categories to see what picture is emerging. Space does not allow for me to cite all relevant verses for each category, but this is where I would encourage readers to roll their sleeves up and do some dot-connecting of their own.

Things are happening so fast and in such detail, that I’ve shifted from citing a bunch of supporting Bible verses, to encouraging readers to be skeptics and try to disprove the dots I’m connecting. I don’t do this for debate or ego purposes. My goal is to force people (if they really want to know the truth about the times in which we live) to study the details themselves. I have found that this moves people from having a general knowledge to forming strong convictions—and it provides a clear view of the signs of the times. When you have to wrestle with concepts, you form convictions as you study the details. As you do, the Holy Spirit reveals things that are hidden in plain sight.

With all of that as a backdrop, here are a few major clusters of dots that have so clearly connected in our day that these signs seriously cannot be understated. One caveat. I know I’m missing some signs here. There are simply too many to cover, and they are developing too quickly to cover accurately in a single post. It’s enough to make your head spin.

Israel
The unprecedented series of events leading to 2 forced elections in close proximity have served to kick the Deal-of-the-Century can further down the road. Everything surrounding this deal makes it the perfect candidate for the covenant the Antichrist will strengthen and push over the finish line sometime after the rapture occurs. The Deal of the Century could very well be the core framework for the end-time covenant spoken of in Daniel chapter 9.

I can’t stress this enough, but every single detail related to Israel’s rebirth as a nation has been fulfilled exactly as foretold in Scripture. Specific prophecies about the land, the people, the wars, the economy, the military, Jerusalem, the events leading up to (and following) her rebirth, the desire to build a 3rd temple, the global rise in antisemitism (just ask The Squad), and so much more—have all occurred precisely as predicted in the Bible. This dense cluster of dots has connected to form a very clear and compelling end-time mega-sign. All key end-time prophecies require Israel to be established as a nation again.

Technological
The visions of Daniel, Ezekiel, and Revelation are full of technological details that must be in place in order for various events to occur during the 7-year tribulation period. There are monetary, military, DNA, AI, communication, data-mining, biologically integrated, and other technological developments occurring in our day (at exponential, break-neck speed) that make the foretold events possible. The more technology advances, the more it lines up with the events of the tribulation period. Cashless systems, autonomous weapons, chip and neurological implants, DNA manipulation, the internet, satellite communication, nuclear weaponry, the surveillance state, and many other current and emerging technologies are all related to end-time Bible prophecies.

Geopolitical
The geopolitical landscape could not be more ripe for end-time events. The players and details of Ezekiel 38 continue to fall in place like a movie script. Again, there are so many details in place and casting shadows that we could detail them in a series of blog posts like this one. You simply can’t study the details of Ezekiel 38-39 (or expand that out to 36-39 if you have time) and not have your mind blown at how spot-on the prophecy is. And it is forming right before our eyes—if you have eyes to see!

In addition to Ezekiel 38, we also see the extreme instability of nations. There are truly wars and rumors of war increasing like birth pains, just as described by Jesus in the Olivet Discourse. Part of that prophecy included division within countries, not just animosity between countries. We see this on the daily news. The US has (in my opinion) never been more divided—with the exception of the civil war which was (again, in my opinion) God’s judgment for the sin of slavery. But even in that case, our country was divided in two. Today it seems it is divided into 50. There is no human solution to our perplexing problems.

Aside from the struggles in the US, there are internal divisions in Iran, China, Syria, Nigeria, South Africa, Venezuela, Italy, England, Spain, France, Germany, and others countries. Divisions between globalism and nationalism, the clash of cultures from the influx of refugees, races, tribes, other “isms”, and many other factors make the global landscape more volatile than ever before.

Couple this with the ongoing conflicts and ever-declining relationships between superpowers like the US, Russia, and China who increasingly find themselves with military assets in the same theaters. Let that sink in for a moment.

The tension between Nationalism and Globalism has been brought to light the past few years like never before. Brexit and Trump have been lightning rods to highlight the demarcation lines. What used to be considered conspiracy theory is now known fact. The gloves are off and though many key globalist figures remain hidden behind the scenes, their followers push the global agenda which (knowingly or not) lines up perfectly with the prophecies of Daniel and John.

Economical
Even with the booming economy of the US (though economic manipulators attempting to scare the markets and effect the next election by using the R-word—recession) is 22.5 trillion dollars. This number is so big we can’t grasp it. It is—in my humble non-mathemetician opinion—too big to pay back. At some point, events will converge causing it to collapse. I believe (based on Matthew 24:37-39) that it will collapse as a result of the rapture and related events. Right now, the only thing holding it together is a bit of supernatural crazy glue. When the US economy collapses, the financial tsunami will circle the globe. This will help provide the perfect scenario for the antichrist to emerge and bring order out of chaos.

The Brexit-can has also been kicked down the road, but is about to come to an end. No-one knows exactly what economic ripple effects this will have in the EU this fall. Stay tuned!

Spiritual
There is a connection between this sign category and the next. Spiritual factors naturally bleed into cultural trends. One of the recent mass-shooters was (based on scores of handwritten notebooks found at his house) a satanist. Much of what our society calls “mental health” is really spiritual warfare—demonic influence that has invaded the hearts and minds of people as we continue to kick God out.

Some high-profile figures have recently turned from their faith. Author Joshua Harris and Hillsong singer and songwriter Marty Sampson both recently made comments about no longer believing in Christianity. There are people claiming to be Christian witches, Christian mediums, and other self-contradictory and wholly unbiblical combinations.

The current Pope seems hell-bent on dividing his flock between those who hold to tradition and those who accept all religions (or no religion) as one. Someone recently asked me if I thought the current Pope was the false prophet spoken of in Revelation. I said, “If he’s not, he’s doing an awful lot to try out for the part.” His ideology lines up exactly with the false religion of the future tribulation period.

On the bright side of the spiritual sign category, there is a great awakening among muslims in Iran, Indonesia and other places, as well as an exploding underground church in China. The gospel has gone full circle around the globe and perhaps this is part of a last ingathering before the rapture can occur. The times of the gentiles is almost up!

Cultural
I remember when Columbine was a big deal. It was unprecidented. Now it’s expected. Sadly, we’re just waiting for the next mass shooting to occur—and they do, regularly. So much so, that most of them (unless the body count is extremely high) are not reported in the national news. In Chicago, at least 46 people were shot in one weekend recently. Unless you live near Chicago, you probably never heard about that.

Just 20 or so years ago, pro-abortion folks said they wanted abortions to be “safe, legal, and rare”. Now many of those same people are proposing legislation that allows abortions to be administered by health technicians instead of “real” doctors (What doctor really goes to medical school with plans to become an abortionist?). They also encourage cross-border secret (ie. Illegal) abortion access, and states such as New York have passed legislation that allows babies to be killed at the moment of birth. There is an actual movement (complete with a book and website) called “Shout Your Abortion.” What could possibly be holding back the judgment of God except for his foreordained timing?

There is no respect for the innocence of children. They are exposed to immorality almost everywhere they turn. Libraries around the country regularly have “Drag Queen Story Time”. Come on. That is wrong on so many levels that there shouldn’t even be a debate about it.

Here’s a snapshot of what I’m talking about. Last weekend a movie called Good Boys released. It stars 3 young boys and is rated R for all of the reasons you would expect a movie to be so rated. The purpose of the movie is to juxtapose the innocence of children with the most vulgar of adult vices and ungodly behavior—in the name of “comedy”. Innocence lost.

Natural
In the Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21) Jesus talked about pestilence (various natural disasters), earthquakes, and famines increasing like birth pains the closer the world was to his return. We tend to focus on the US when it comes to these signs. The news is dominated by non-stop political spin. But, just recently there have been several devastating convulsions of nature around the world that we’ve not even heard about. There have been deviating floods and landslides across parts of South Asia from heavy monsoon rains.

Right now there are record-breaking heat waves and droughts, and several major wildfires. Russia, for example, is on track to have its worst year ever recorded for wildfires. There are also major wildfires in Alaska, Greenland, Paraguay, and other places—including areas of the Amazon rainforest. And don’t forget, 2018 saw America’s most destructive wildfire season ever.

Just within the past month there have been 646 earthquakes with 9 of them registering 6.0 or higher (and several more that registered 5.9). The two major earthquakes that hit California this summer triggered 16,000 smaller earthquakes. So, between July 4th when the 6.4 quake hit (possibly a prophetically significant day I might add) and July 19th or so when the aftershocks died down, there were 16,000 earthquakes—an average of 1066 earthquakes per day. That is significant. The one-two punch of the 6.4 and 7.1 quakes in just a few days definitely got the country’s attention.

Convergence
The two mega-signs are Israel and convergence. They are like bookends of the categories and serve to show us how late the hour may be. Prophetic details are converging in our time unlike any other time in history. This is one of those statements I don’t want you to take my word for. Please pray for eyes to see as you study these things for yourself and see if they are not true.

I know this can seem crazy to the world, but lets be crazy for Christ’s sake. In the words of the Apostle Paul from 1 Corinthians 5:13, “If it seems we are crazy, it is to bring glory to God.”

As we connect the dots of the day—lets be sure to pay attention to the picture that emerges before our eyes. Lord, give us eyes to see!

http://toddhampson.com/connecting-the-prophetic-dots/
 

saki

Star
Joined
Dec 11, 2017
Messages
1,277
https://www.newsbusters.org/blogs/nb/clay-waters/2019/09/09/new-york-times-meet-rising-drag-stars-america-theyre-tweens

New York Times: 'Meet the Rising Drag Stars of America. They’re Tweens'
By Clay Waters | September 9, 2019 10:10 AM EDT

Demonstrating the New York Times’eagerness to ingratiate with the LGBTQ left, Alice Hines eagerly explored the world of pre-teenaged “drag stars” in “Sashaying Their Way Through Youth -- Among the rising stars of drag are some who are not even old enough to drive” for the New York Times on Sunday. The main focus was the now-12-year-old “drag star” Desmond Napoles, aka “Desmond is Amazing.” The online subhead was promotional: “Meet the rising drag stars of America. They’re tweens.”

Desmond pegs his start in the world of drag to 2015, when videos of him vogueing at the New York Pride parade went viral; at one point, a high kick sent a flip-flop soaring over the crowd. Next came gigs channeling Gwen Stefani and David Bowie, along with runway shows for Gypsy Sport and the Blonds.​
Hines didn't spot any sexual content in the “drag kid” moment.

As recently as the 1970s, when dressing as another gender could lead to arrest on charges of vagrancy or “perversion” in many jurisdictions, drag was an adults-only affair, relegated to underground spaces and rich in sexual innuendo.
But as gay culture has gained mainstream acceptance, the number and variety of locations where drag is welcome have grown. G-rated story hours are now offered at public libraries. Kids -- and parents intent on raising them outside of traditional gender norms -- are keen to perform.
Criticism of kids performing in drag (while being avidly pushed and managed on social media by “drag mothers”), which could have been included for balance, was cast aside as something to be filtered out.

The job consists largely of filtering comments. An active subset of the internet sees kids in drag not as “the future of America,” as RuPaul has said of Desmond, but “socially accepted child abuse,” in the words of Elizabeth Johnston, a vlogger who “daily tackles the left on abortion, feminism, & gender insanity,” according to her social media bios.
Her network also helped call for the cancellation of several drag queen story hours at local libraries. Among their criticisms are that exposure to drag sexualizes children and leads to confusion around gender roles.
Nina West, a queen who appeared on “Drag Race” and who has often performed for kids, said that while drag is a form of gender protest, it is not inherently sexual....​
That’s an easier argument to make if you skip the facts about a “Desmond Is Amazing” performance in a Brooklyn gay bar.

“I truly think 10 percent of his followers are there to watch every move he makes because they hate him,” Ms. Napoles said. In January a talk radio host reported Desmond’s family to Child Protective Services after he performed at 3 Dollar Bill, a queer bar.​
That’s the only mention of the event in Brooklyn, described by The Daily Wireas “an 11-year-old boy dressed in drag danced on stage in a sexual manner at a gay bar in Brooklyn, NY, called 3 Dollar Bill. The child, Desmond Napoles, was dressed as a Gwen Stefani-lookalike -- full drag make up, a blonde wig, and crop top included -- as he bounced around onstage to No Doubt's 'Just a Girl' and collected dollar bills from male adults viewing the number.”

Hines ignored the obvious sexualization of the then-11-year-old boy mimicking the tropes of a stripper routine to adult approval.

The paper was not always so copacetic about the sexualization of children. The paper was far more moralistic in its past coverage of the murder of the six-year-old “beauty queen” JonBenet Ramsey, and condemnation of the children's pageant circuit in which she spent her short life. Here’s an excerpt from one of several disapproving news articles from the late 1990s: "Since JonBenet died, and endless photographs of her carefully made-up face and coquettish pageant dance routines became mawkish fodder for tabloids, the children's beauty pageant circuit has watched the number of contests plummet. After her death, JonBenet became for many Americans a poignant symbol of parental manipulation and child exploitation.”

Yet no concern was raised in 2019 about “child exploitation” regarding an 11-year-old acting out stripper tropes at a gay bar to the amusement of adults.

National Review has more about some of Desmond’s dubious “friends” in adult drag culture.
 

Red Sky at Morning

Superstar
Joined
Mar 15, 2017
Messages
13,932
By T.W. Tramm

“A POPULAR view among Christians is that the wedding of Ruth to Boaz foreshadows the joining of the Church to Messiah at the Rapture.

Scripture doesn’t reveal the exact time of Ruth and Boaz’s typological wedding. However, an important clue to the season is that Ruth lived with her mother-in-law, Naomi, until the end of the wheat harvest:

“[Boaz told Ruth] to come back and stay with his harvesters until the entire harvest is completed …. So Ruth worked with them and gathered grain until all the barley and wheat had been harvested, all the while living with her mother-in-law” (Ruth 2:21, 23).

That Ruth lived with her mother-in-law until the “entire” wheat harvest was complete means she didn’t marry and move into Boaz’s home before this time.

Another reason Ruth and Boaz wouldn’t have cohabited before the harvest was complete is that Boaz, the owner of the field in which Ruth was gleaning, would have been preoccupied with overseeing the gathering and processing of the wheat. Although Boaz was a prince of the people, a mighty man of wealth and standing, he was known to personally supervise the threshing of the grain in his barn. It was normal practice in those days for landowners and farmers to not leave the threshing floor during the harvest—even at night—as a deterrent to theft. This is why Boaz is seen making the threshing floor his bed when Ruth first comes to visit (Ruth 3).

The harvest didn’t end with the threshing and winnowing. The wheat had to be measured, portions had to be meted out as various payments or tithes, and the rest stored. Thus, Boaz’s life would have revolved around the threshing floor for a period of months, until all of the work was complete.

When would Boaz’s role as overseer been finished so he could leave the threshing floor and take up residence with his new wife, Ruth? Assuming “all” of the wheat harvest mentioned in Ruth chapter 2 includes the spring wheat—the grain planted in the spring and harvested in late summer—Boaz could easily have been tied up with the harvest through the sixth biblical month, Elul, corresponding to September.

Ruth and Boaz’s wedding occurring in the six month harmonizes typologically with the wedding of the Church to Messiah after 6,000 years and may explain in part the significance of the six measures of barley Boaz gave to Ruth when she visited him on the threshing floor (Ruth 3:15).

Additionally interesting is the fact that, according to the rabbis, Ruth and Boaz were 40 and 80 years of age respectively at the time they were married. The numbers 40 and 80 add up to 120, the number of jubilees contained in a 6,000-year period.

The number 120 also points to Pentecost, the harvest festival on which Jews traditionally read the Book of Ruth each year. Scripture records that there were 120 believers gathered in an upper room on Pentecost morning when the Holy Spirit was poured out and the Church was “betrothed” to God (Acts 2). Israel was likewise betrothed to God on Pentecost morning at Sinai (Ex. 19).

Some believe that Ruth and Boaz’s “morning betrothal,” when Boaz publicly declared his intent to take the Gentile maid as his wife, occurred on or around Pentecost (Ruth 3:13-18; 4:1-10). Seeing that Jewish weddings traditionally occur in stages—a betrothal followed by the consummation months or years later—a betrothal on or around Pentecost would make late summer/early fall, about 3-4 months afterward, an ideal time for the pair to consummate the marriage and start living together.

Does the season of Ruth and Boaz’s wedding portend the season of the Church’s wedding to Messiah?

An indication that it may is the fact that the other main typology in the Story of Ruth, the redemption of the Jewish Naomi’s land, points to the season of fulfillment. Naomi, representing Israel, came home to redeem her land in the spring, around the beginning of the barley harvest (Ruth 1:22). As it happens, it was during the spring, around the time of the barley harvest in 1948, that the Jews “came home” with the intention of realizing the age-old dream of redeeming the Land of Israel.

Scripture teaches that there is an appointed season for everything (Ecc. 3:1).

While the date of Ruth’s wedding and certainly the Church’s are, for now, unknowable, the late summer/early fall seems a plausible season for both.”

. . .

NOTES:

1. “[Ruth] kept close to the maids of Boaz: and continued to glean with them, till *all the barley and the wheat were laid up in the barns*” (2:23 DRB).

2. From the Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel on May 14, 1948: “We appeal to the Jewish people throughout the Diaspora to rally round the Jews of Eretz-Israel in the tasks of immigration and upbuilding and to stand by them in the great struggle for the realization of the age-old dream—the redemption of Israel.”
https://mfa.gov.il/mfa/foreignpolicy/peace/guide/pages/declaration of establishment of state of israel.aspx

3. The entire summer harvest season, the period intervening the spring and fall festivals, may be seen as representing the Church Age. The Church Age began with the “betrothal,” via the sending of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost 2,000 years ago. The Church Age will end with Jesus coming to gather the bride on a day no one knows, possibly around the conclusion of the agricultural wheat harvest. Harvesting the Church at the end of the wheat season symbolically allows the most possible time for believers to mature or “ripen.”

4. The sixth biblical month, Elul, is considered an auspicious time for weddings in Judaism.
 

Red Sky at Morning

Superstar
Joined
Mar 15, 2017
Messages
13,932
WITH the biblical festival Yom Kippur, or “Day of Atonement,” approaching (Oct. 8-9), it’s interesting to recall a significant date-alignment of four years ago.

From T.W. Tramm’s Facebook page

Daniel 9:25 says:

“From the time the word goes out to restore [return to] and rebuild Jerusalem until Messiah, the ruler, comes, there will be seven ‘sevens’ [49 years].”

Counting exactly 49 biblical/360-day years from the recapture of Jerusalem by Israeli forces on June 7, 1967, we arrive at September 23, 2015—the Day of Atonement. This date-alignment defies coincidence and denotes a link between the return to Jerusalem in 1967 and the festival associated with God’s Judgment.

Another interesting calculation related to Daniel’s “going out of the word” to rebuild Jerusalem, brought to my attention recently by a reader, is that when we count 49 regular/Gregorian years from when the official plan to rebuild Jerusalem was approved and published with little fanfare in August 1970, we arrive at August 2019 (see notes 2, 3).

That the plan to rebuild Jerusalem was made public just over 49 years ago is interesting because Leviticus instructs us to count 49 years and then sound the trumpet on the Day of Atonement:

“Count off seven sabbath years—seven times seven years—so that the seven sabbath years amount to a period of forty-nine years. Then have the trumpet sounded everywhere on the tenth day of the seventh month; on the Day of Atonement sound the trumpet throughout your land. Consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you; each of you is to return to your family property and to your own clan” (Lev. 25:8-10).

Are we suggesting something prophetic is going to occur on the Day of Atonement in 2019?

We are not.

History shows that a compelling date alignment or timeline convergence does not necessarily equate to a prophetic fulfillment but is sometimes merely a sign or marker pointing forward.

Besides, Scripture says Jesus is coming like a thief—on a day and at an hour no one can predict—and at a time we think not (1 Thess. 5; Matt. 24:42-51).

Nonetheless, it IS wise to study the timelines in Daniel because A) they are believed to have a dual application, pertaining to both the first and second coming of Messiah, and B) God *wants* us to study them! Think about it. If the Lord didn’t want us trying to determine the time of His return He would not have included in Scripture the year-counts and start points related to His “timepiece” Jerusalem.

So keep watch!

While no one knows the day, a remarkable convergence of signs and timelines indicates it is near—very near.

. . .
NOTES:

1. The Hebrew word translated “restore” in Daniel 9:25 actually means to “return,” or come back.
https://biblehub.com/text/daniel/9-25.htm

2. The 1970 publicizing of the plan to rebuild Jerusalem puts a span of 1900 years between the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD and the announcement of the plan to rebuild the Holy City. The number 19 is said to denote God’s perfect order in regard to Judgment in Scripture.

https://www.biblestudy.org/bibleref/meaning-of-numbers-in-bible/19.html
http://www.biblebelievers.org.au/number17.htm

3. Excerpt from a New York Times article about the newly approved and announced plan to rebuild Jerusalem in August 1970:

“JERUSALEM, Aug 21 —“The [present] moment is awkward for talking about any big new plans,” the Mayor said. “The Rogers plan and the cease fire and all the negotiating talk, it's all making people nervous about the future—Israelis and Arabs.” Jerusalem’s Mayor Teddy Kollek, normally not reticent about things going on in his city, was discussing the District Town Planning Committee’s newly approved master plan to rehabilitate the older quarters of East Jerusalem, the part of the city that was ruled by Jordan until the six‐day war three years ago. The approval of the plan, which caps work under way from almost the first week of the Israeli take over, was made public this week with little fanfare.”

https://www.nytimes.com/1970/08/22/archives/jerusalem-is-hewing-to-rebuilding-plans.html

From the above article and others linked below, one gathers that the planning and clearing of rubble in preparation for the rebuilding of Jerusalem began soon after the Israeli takeover in 1967. However, the master plan to rebuild the Holy City, composed by a team of architects, engineers, and administrators, was not approved and made public until the week of August 21, 1970.

More on Jerusalem’s restoration:

Comprehensive article that explores the reconstruction of the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem after 1967:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/267632257_The_Jewish_Quarter_after_1967_A_Case_Study_on_the_Creation_of_an_Ideological-Cultural_Landscape_in_Jerusalem's_Old_City

1969 article about Jerusalem’s restoration:
http://biblocality.com/forums/showthread.php?4801-1967-or-1969-marks-the-decree-to-rebuild

CIA memo on Jerusalem (see #19): https://www.cia.gov/library/readingroom/docs/LOC-HAK-11-6-30-9.pdf

4. Yom Kippur is associated with Judgment Day in Scripture. One example is Isaiah 63 where Jesus is seen executing wrath on God’s enemies:

“Who is this coming from Edom, from Bozrah, with his garments stained crimson? Who is this, robed in splendor, striding forward in the greatness of his strength? ‘It is I, proclaiming victory, mighty to save.’ Why are your garments red, like those of one treading the winepress? ‘I have trodden the winepress alone; from the nations no one was with me. I trampled them in my anger and trod them down in my wrath; their blood spattered my garments, and I stained all my clothing’” (Isa. 63:1-3).

Here, phrases like “the day of vengeance” and “I trampled them in my wrath” point to the Day of Judgment. Notice Jesus’ garments are red and blood spattered. This is an allusion to the high priest on the Day of Atonement whose garments would become heavily stained with blood due to the many sacrifices. Blood symbolizes atonement in Scripture (Lev. 17:11).

Joel 2 links Yom Kippur to the end of the age/Second Coming as well:

“Blow the trumpet in Zion, declare a holy fast, call a sacred assembly. Gather the people, consecrate the assembly; bring together the elders, gather the children, those nursing at the breast. Let the bridegroom leave his room and the bride her chamber. Let the priests, who minister before the LORD, weep between the portico and the altar” (Joel 2:15-17).

The references to a “holy fast” and “sacred assembly” point to Yom Kippur, the most sacred and holy of all the feasts and the only appointed time on which fasting is mandated (Lev. 23:27, 32). Another allusion to Yom Kippur is the “priests who minister before the Lord,” a picture of the high priest standing in the Holy of Holies on Yom Kippur.

The Book of Revelation contains numerous references to Yom Kippur. The following example alludes to one of the main rituals:

“And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand. Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on the earth…” (Rev. 8:3, 5).

The picture of the angel standing before the altar, offering up incense with a golden censor, recalls the ritual performed by Israel’s high priest on Yom Kippur (Lev. 16:12-13).

Isaiah links Yom Kippur to the Jubilee. Recalling the earlier picture of Jesus executing judgment in chapter 63, this is happening because the “year to redeem,” i.e. the year of jubilee year, has come:

“I trampled them in my anger and trod them down in my wrath […because…] it was for me the day of vengeance; the year for me to redeem had come” (v. 3, 4).

The most explicit link between Yom Kippur and the Jubilee is, as noted earlier, found in Leviticus where God instructs Israel to sound the trumpet proclaiming the year of redemption on the Day of Atonement (Lev. 25:8-10).

That Scripture links Yom Kippur to the trumpet of jubilee explains why Jews refer to this feast as the day of the Great Trump and also Yom HaPeduth, or Day of Redemption. The latter title refers to the belief that the earth will be redeemed and the resurrected dead will come back to inherit the Kingdom on Yom Kippur.
 
Joined
Jul 20, 2019
Messages
2,622
WITH the biblical festival Yom Kippur, or “Day of Atonement,” approaching (Oct. 8-9), it’s interesting to recall a significant date-alignment of four years ago.
The very existence of Yom Kippur is what I call a nail in the coffin for the Jesus Question.
Jesus' death serves no theologically redeeming purposes. This is the Jewish way of reflecting on how HaShem actually is great, loving, forgiving and needs no greater sacrifice for humanity to have their salvation. HaShem has gifted and blessed humanity and (in the case of the specific Jewish observance) the Jewish people - even through our constant rebellion against HaShem and idolatry (Jesus) out of defiance of HaShem's forgiveness.
 

Red Sky at Morning

Superstar
Joined
Mar 15, 2017
Messages
13,932
The very existence of Yom Kippur is what I call a nail in the coffin for the Jesus Question.
Jesus' death serves no theologically redeeming purposes. This is the Jewish way of reflecting on how HaShem actually is great, loving, forgiving and needs no greater sacrifice for humanity to have their salvation. HaShem has gifted and blessed humanity and (in the case of the specific Jewish observance) the Jewish people - even through our constant rebellion against HaShem and idolatry (Jesus) out of defiance of HaShem's forgiveness.
One day Yom Kippur will mark the time when the Jews as a nation realise and mourn the rejection of their own Messiah as an only son.


The Menorah also contains an intriguing mystery with respect to the feasts for those with ears to hear:-

 

Red Sky at Morning

Superstar
Joined
Mar 15, 2017
Messages
13,932
Matthew 23 has no validity or relevancy whatsoever to Judaism or the Jewish people, it is a text from a 1st century heretical group that later created their own religion.
Borrowing from the Word of Christ

Obviously, those in Judaism have regarded much of the Bible as the truth, especially the Old Testament. Since Jesus, Immanuel, is God with us (Isaiah 7: 14; Matthew 1: 23), the Old Testament is His Word. Therefore, Judaists borrow from Jesus’ Word for their religion. This helps clarify a misconception. Often, we hear that Christianity was born out of Judaism, but this is not the case. Judaism was properly born as a response to Christianity. The Old Testament is a Christian document that points to Jesus Christ who is the ultimate author of Scripture (Luke 24: 27; John 5: 46).

Professor of Church History Dr. Phillip Schaff rightly states that the Old Testament Jewish religion “was the true religion before Christ but not perfect, or final.” 9 The New Testament, with Christ as the centerpiece, is like a blossomed flower with the Old Testament patriarchs, such as Abraham and Moses and the prophets as the stem, leaves, and roots.

But where the New Testament perfected or finalized the Old Testament in God’s perfect timing, the Pharisees deviated and held man’s ideas in the oral traditions to be greater than God’s Word.

Judaism is just that: a deviation from the clear teachings of the Old Testament caused by elevating the traditions of men and rejecting the New Testament of God. In other words, Judaism was born out of an improper understanding of Christ’s religion (Old Testament) and a rejection of God’s Word in the New Testament, particularly the rejection of the Messiah, Jesus.

This happened because they misunderstood the promise, which led to a misunderstanding of its fulfillment.

Source
 

Red Sky at Morning

Superstar
Joined
Mar 15, 2017
Messages
13,932
from T.W. Tramm

OCTOBER 13 marks the beginning of the seven-day Feast of Tabernacles, or Sukkot (Lev. 23:33-44).

Commentators agree that Sukkot ultimately points to the Millennial Kingdom, when the Lord will literally dwell, or “tabernacle,” among men. However, similar to the other biblical festivals, various themes and rituals of Sukkot point to the physical redemption of believers at the Rapture.

For instance—

• Sukkot is called the Feast of Ingathering (Ex. 34:22). The Rapture is a gathering of believers to the Lord (2 Thess. 2:1)

• Sukkot is the final festival of the harvest season. Thus, the shofar blast announcing Sukkot is the “last trump” (1 Cor. 15:52).

• Sukkot is the name of the place the Israelites first camped after departing Egypt (Ex. 12:37). The departure from Egypt is a type of the Rapture.

• Sukkot is one of two harvest festivals that occur on the full moon (the other is Passover). Since the moon is said to symbolize the Church, the full moon may point to its “fullness” (Rom. 11:25). Additionally, Scripture links the full moon to the return of the goodman of the house, a typological picture of Jesus returning to settle accounts at the end of the age (Prov. 7:19, 20).

• Solomon, a type of Christ, dedicated the Temple, a type of the body of Christ, to the Lord on Sukkot. When the 120 priests sounded their trumpets, the glory of the Lord filled the house (2 Chron. 5).

• Grapes and apples are harvested in the autumn, around Sukkot. In Song 2 the passages depicting the Shulammite maid, a type of the Church, in the presence of her beloved shepherd, a type of Christ, mention apples and grapes (vv. 3-5, 13).

• The Gentile Ruth, a type of the Church, married the Jewish redeemer Boaz, a type of Christ, after “all” the grain was harvested (Ruth 2:21, 23). Thus the typological wedding of Ruth and Boaz may have occurred around Sukkot (Ruth 2:21, 23; Deut. 16:13).

• Sukkot is when the last grain is brought into the barns, grapes are crushed, and figs and olives are harvested (Deut 16:13). In Scripture, grain represents the Church, grapes represent nonbelievers, and figs and olives are symbolic of Israel (Matt. 3:12; 13:24-30; Rev. 14:18-20; 19:15; Matt. 24:32-34; Jer. 24:1, 2; Rom. 11:17-25; Jer. 11:16).

• The Bible pictures judgment coming upon the world at a time when people are “planting” (Luke 17:28) Autumn, the season of Sukkot, is a popular time for planting as the weather is cool but the soil is still warm enough to stimulate root development.

• In John chapter 7 Jesus attends Sukkot in partial secrecy, not openly manifesting Himself to everyone, because His time had not yet fully come, and not even his brothers believed in Him (vv. 5, 6). Similarly, the Rapture is a limited appearance of the Lord at a time when many don’t believe.

• A popular theory is that the wave offering at Pentecost, consisting of two loaves of leavened bread, pictures the raptured Church being presented before the Lord (Lev. 23:17). However, because leaven represents “sin” in Scripture, one can argue that the loaves cannot represent the transformed saints who, at this time, will inhabit bodies not defiled by sin (Rev. 7:14). Thus, the Pentecost wave offering may represent the beginning of a spiritual harvest that culminates in a physical transformation around Sukkot.

• In Revelation 7, immediately following the Rapture, a vast multitude of saints are seen in heaven, celebrating Sukkot with palm branches (Rev. 7:9-17; Lev. 23:40). The next festival alluded to is the Day of Atonement as an angel is seen acting as the high priest, standing before the altar with a gold censer and offering up much incense (Rev. 8:3, 4; Lev. 16). Next, a series of trumpets begin to sound, each announcing a separate round of judgment (Rev. 8, 9). It’s interesting that these allusions to the fall feasts occur in the reverse order of their respective positions on the calendar.

Having highlighted how various Sukkot-themes point to the Rapture, understand we are not predicting that the catching away will occur during Sukkot.

The point is that it could.

The Rapture could also occur on another biblically significant date, or even a day not specially marked on our calendars (Matt. 24:42-44). Scripture says we see only “in part” and that “God’s thoughts are not our thoughts” (1 Cor. 13:12; Isa. 55: 8, 9). Is it possible, though we’ve been given a basic blueprint for the finishing of God’s plan of redemption via the fall festivals, that the Lord may have a surprise or two in store when it comes to fulfillments?

In view of Jesus’ warnings to the Church that He is coming like a thief, on a day and at an hour no one can predict, it’s best to keep an open mind and to keep watch always.

. . .


NOTES:

1. Scripture designates three annual harvest festivals during which every Israelite male is to make the pilgrimage to Jerusalem to appear before the Lord: Passover/Unleavened Bread, Weeks, and Tabernacles (Ex. 23:17; Deut. 16: 11-12; 16, 17).

2. The moon as a symbol of the Church: In Song of Solomon the Gentile/Shulammite maid, symbolic of the Church, is compared to the moon: “Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon .... Return, return, O Shulamite; return, return, that we may look upon thee” (Song 6:10, 13). The spiritual parallel between the Church and the moon is that the full moon, as bright and beautiful as it is, has no brilliance of its own. It relies entirely upon the sun, which is a picture of Christ (Ps. 84:11; 19:4, 5), for its light. Without the sun, the moon has no light. Likewise, man has no light of his own. We were created in the image of God to reflect His brilliance and glory (Gen. 1:27). When we turn to face the majesty of God, when we surrender to Him and seek Him with all our hearts, we reflect His glory (Matt. 5:14).

3. Jesus comes like a thief: In his first letter to the Thessalonians Paul explains to the Church how they will be caught up into the clouds at Jesus’ return (1 Thess. 4:16, 17). Addressing the timing of this event, the Apostle says there is no need to discuss “times and dates” because it’s understood Jesus is coming “like a thief in the night”—on a day and at an hour no one can predict (1 Thess. 5: 1, 2).
 
Last edited:

Red Sky at Morning

Superstar
Joined
Mar 15, 2017
Messages
13,932
From T.W. Tramm


FOLLOWING two inconclusive elections in 2019—one in April and another in September—Israel’s president, for the first time in the nation’s history, has turned over the task of finding a government to the Parliament.

President Rivlin this week set a December 11 deadline for lawmakers to nominate a new candidate from their own ranks to try and form a new government. If this process fails, a third vote will be held in March 2020.

Alongside the unprecedented election proceedings, another first in Israel: a sitting prime minister was charged with a crime as formal bribery, fraud, and breach-of-trust charges were lodged against Benjamin Netanyahu.

Commenting on the charges, Netanyahu’s main political rival, Benny Gantz, said the indicted prime minister—nicknamed “King Bibi” by devotees—no longer has a “public or moral mandate to make fateful decisions for the state of Israel.”

That Israel finds herself without a functioning government and “king” at a time when her enemies are champing at the bit for her destruction evokes a prophecy in Micah:

“Why are you now screaming in terror? Have you no king to lead you? Have your wise people all died? Pain has gripped you like a woman in childbirth …. Many nations have gathered against you. ‘Let her be desecrated,’ they say. ‘Let us see the destruction of Jerusalem.’ But they do not know the LORD’s thoughts or understand his plan. These nations don’t know that he is gathering them together to be beaten and trampled like sheaves of grain on a threshing floor” (Mic. 4:9, 11, 12).

Following the same theme, a modern-day prophecy concerning a leadership vacuum in Israel was spoken four decades ago by the most prominent and respected Jewish rabbi of our time, Yitzchak Kaduri, who, in the spirit of Joel 2:28, predicted that Messiah would come at a time of election difficulties.

Asked when Israel’s redeemer would arrive and whether there were signs that would precede his arrival, rabbi Kaduri answered, “When there will be elections but there will not be a government.”

This describes uncannily the circumstances today, multiple elections yet no government.

The lack of a functioning government in Israel is also preventing the release of the most anticipated and enigmatic Middle East peace plan in a generation, the Trump Administration’s so-called Deal of the Century.

That a major peace plan is ready to be unveiled is significant because Scripture says people will be saying “peace and security” when Judgment Day comes upon them suddenly, “as labor pains on a pregnant woman” (1 Thess. 5:3).

Seeing how Scripture links a kingless Israel and talk of peace and security to the onset of Judgment Day, is it coincidence that a chain of unprecedented events have made these the conditions today?

In a universe designed and administered by an omniscient and omnipotent God, there are no coincidences.

A better explanation, in view of the Creator’s proclivity to work to a schedule, is that events are occurring in accordance with a divine appointment, the day and hour of which only He knows.

. . .

. . .

LINKS:

https://www.dw.com/en/israeli-politics-churn-as-netanyahu-indictment-adds-to-chaos/a-51358757

https://www.breakingisraelnews.com/131363/rabbi-kaduri-predicted-40-years-ago-that-current-election-difficulties-presage-messiah/

NOTES:

*Micah 4 describes Israel’s destruction and redemption in the days of ancient Babylon. However, the passage clearly has a second application pertaining to the time of Jacob’s Trouble (Tribulation), and the nation’s ultimate redemption.
 
Joined
Jun 1, 2018
Messages
1,185
From T.W. Tramm


FOLLOWING two inconclusive elections in 2019—one in April and another in September—Israel’s president, for the first time in the nation’s history, has turned over the task of finding a government to the Parliament.

President Rivlin this week set a December 11 deadline for lawmakers to nominate a new candidate from their own ranks to try and form a new government. If this process fails, a third vote will be held in March 2020.

Alongside the unprecedented election proceedings, another first in Israel: a sitting prime minister was charged with a crime as formal bribery, fraud, and breach-of-trust charges were lodged against Benjamin Netanyahu.

Commenting on the charges, Netanyahu’s main political rival, Benny Gantz, said the indicted prime minister—nicknamed “King Bibi” by devotees—no longer has a “public or moral mandate to make fateful decisions for the state of Israel.”

That Israel finds herself without a functioning government and “king” at a time when her enemies are champing at the bit for her destruction evokes a prophecy in Micah:

“Why are you now screaming in terror? Have you no king to lead you? Have your wise people all died? Pain has gripped you like a woman in childbirth …. Many nations have gathered against you. ‘Let her be desecrated,’ they say. ‘Let us see the destruction of Jerusalem.’ But they do not know the LORD’s thoughts or understand his plan. These nations don’t know that he is gathering them together to be beaten and trampled like sheaves of grain on a threshing floor” (Mic. 4:9, 11, 12).

Following the same theme, a modern-day prophecy concerning a leadership vacuum in Israel was spoken four decades ago by the most prominent and respected Jewish rabbi of our time, Yitzchak Kaduri, who, in the spirit of Joel 2:28, predicted that Messiah would come at a time of election difficulties.

Asked when Israel’s redeemer would arrive and whether there were signs that would precede his arrival, rabbi Kaduri answered, “When there will be elections but there will not be a government.”

This describes uncannily the circumstances today, multiple elections yet no government.

The lack of a functioning government in Israel is also preventing the release of the most anticipated and enigmatic Middle East peace plan in a generation, the Trump Administration’s so-called Deal of the Century.

That a major peace plan is ready to be unveiled is significant because Scripture says people will be saying “peace and security” when Judgment Day comes upon them suddenly, “as labor pains on a pregnant woman” (1 Thess. 5:3).

Seeing how Scripture links a kingless Israel and talk of peace and security to the onset of Judgment Day, is it coincidence that a chain of unprecedented events have made these the conditions today?

In a universe designed and administered by an omniscient and omnipotent God, there are no coincidences.

A better explanation, in view of the Creator’s proclivity to work to a schedule, is that events are occurring in accordance with a divine appointment, the day and hour of which only He knows.

. . .

. . .

LINKS:

https://www.dw.com/en/israeli-politics-churn-as-netanyahu-indictment-adds-to-chaos/a-51358757

https://www.breakingisraelnews.com/131363/rabbi-kaduri-predicted-40-years-ago-that-current-election-difficulties-presage-messiah/

NOTES:

*Micah 4 describes Israel’s destruction and redemption in the days of ancient Babylon. However, the passage clearly has a second application pertaining to the time of Jacob’s Trouble (Tribulation), and the nation’s ultimate redemption.
It is a time of joy and a time of sorrows. Joy for those looking for the Lord's judgment (Believers) , and sorrow for those who are disobedient and against God (The unbelieving!)
 

Red Sky at Morning

Superstar
Joined
Mar 15, 2017
Messages
13,932
I wonder if the rediscovery of the road up to the ancient second temple is a reminder to those who are listening of the times we are presently living in?

 

Lisa

Superstar
Joined
Mar 13, 2017
Messages
20,288
I wonder if the rediscovery of the road up to the ancient second temple is a reminder to those who are listening of the times we are presently living in?

Idk, aren’t most of those listening thinking that they are escaping the trib? Are they even paying attention or just waiting to go home to glory?
 

Red Sky at Morning

Superstar
Joined
Mar 15, 2017
Messages
13,932
Idk, aren’t most of those listening thinking that they are escaping the trib? Are they even paying attention or just waiting to go home to glory?
Perhaps this sentiment expressed by Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in Daniel 3 might make sense to you @Lisa?

17 If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king.
18 But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.
 
Last edited:

Lisa

Superstar
Joined
Mar 13, 2017
Messages
20,288
Perhaps this sentiment expressed by Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in Daniel 3 might make sense to you @Lisa?

17 If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king.
18 But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.
Sure, I love that quote...but I don’t think that’s it for pre tribbers. They exclusively think that they won’t be around and that God will snatch them before anything bad happens..so then they don’t have to watch really, they are waiting for their ride home.
 

Red Sky at Morning

Superstar
Joined
Mar 15, 2017
Messages
13,932
Sure, I love that quote...but I don’t think that’s it for pre tribbers. They exclusively think that they won’t be around and that God will snatch them before anything bad happens..so then they don’t have to watch really, they are waiting for their ride home.
I always think it is unwise to second-guess the motivations and commitment of others. If anything bad happens (e.g. Daniel 9:27) and we are still here, I will remind myself of my childhood hero from Acts 7 and steel myself to do as much damage to the kingdom of darkness as I am able. I would want to do this till they either track me down and kill me or I manage against the odds to survive till Revelation 19:11.
 
Last edited:

Lisa

Superstar
Joined
Mar 13, 2017
Messages
20,288
I always think it is unwise to second-guess the motivations and commitment of others. If anything bad happens (e.g. Daniel 9:27) and we are still here, I will remind myself of my childhood hero from Acts 7 and steel myself to do as much damage to the kingdom of darkness as I am able till they tracked me down and killed me or I managed against the odds to survive till Revelation 19:11.
I’ve been to a few pre trib websites and went to a church, for a short time, where they believed God would be back anytime..so its not second-guessing. I remember at that church they said that God could very well be back for them by the end of the year and I said no, not going to happen and they didn’t know what to say about that. I obviously was right. How was I right? Because I read the Bible correctly, in that Jesus isn’t coming until the apostasy and the man of lawlessness is revealed. Plus the times has to be the worst times the world has ever seen...I don’t think that these are those times yet. There is so much prophecy that has yet to be fulfilled for Jesus to come back..He won’t be back until at least the anti is revealed, which won’t happen until he enters the temple and performs the abomination of desolation..so at least mid-point in the tribulation.
And...I also believe that God has promised me some things to happen and they haven’t happened yet...but that is personal and not Biblical prophecy..so the only one that matters to is me.
 
Top