Jottings

by J. Miller | Category: Jottings | Aug 1958

As we look abroad on this world of men and their affairs and see as far as we are able the storms which lie heavily on the various ships of state of many lands, the words of the prophet Azariah, the son of Oded, to Asa king of Judah come to mind: "Hear ye me Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin: the Lord is with

you, while ye be with Him; and if ye seek Him, He will be found of you; but if ye forsake Him, He will forsake you. Now for long seasons Israel hath been without the true God, and without a teaching priest, and without law:

but when in their distress they turned unto the LORD, the God of Israel, and sought Him, He was found of them. And in those times there was no peace to him that went out, nor to him that came in, but great vexatious were upon all the inhabitants of the lands. And they were broken in pieces, nation against nation, and city against city: for God did ver them with all adversity. But be ye strong, and let not your hands be slack: for your work shall be rewarded. And when Asa heard these 'words, and the prophecy of Oded the prophet, he took courage, and put away the abominations (idols) out of all the land of Judah and Benjamin, and out of the cities 'which he had taken from the hill country of Ephraim; and he renewed the altar of the LORD, that was before the porch of the LORD "(2 Chronicles 15. 2-8).

The state of Israel had its effect on the nations. In those times when Israel was without the true God, without a teaching priest and without law, it was a time of distress for God's people, but not for them only, for great vexatious were upon the inhabitants of other lands, and nation was broken in pieces against nation, and city against city. It cannot be gainsaid that the original purpose of God for Israel was to be what they will be in the millennium, a blessing in the midst of the earth (Isaiah 19. 24). Alas, they failed miserably in fulfilling God's purpose in them. Their behaviour spoiled their testimony, "for" as Paul says, "the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you" (Romans 2.24). That there were bright examples of great and godly men in Israel is beyond dispute. That holy seed was the stock or substance of Israel (Isaiah 6.18) and in one sense the cause of the preservation of the people, but, alas, these noble men and women had oftentimes a shocking time of persecution at the hands of the nation in general. Stephen asked the Jewish Sanhedrim, "Which of the prophets did not your fathers persecute? and they killed them which shewed before of the coming of the Righteous One; of whom ye have now become betrayers and murderers; ye who received the law as it was ordained by angels, and kept it not" (Acts 7.52, 58). It was a solemn but true indictment which cost him his life. The Lord's words were like Stephen's, " Ye are sons of them that slew the prophets," " 0 Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killeth the prophets, and stoneth them that are sent unto her (Matthew 23.81, 37). The apostles of the Lord shared the same treatment as the prophets (1 Thessalonians 2.14.16) at the hands of the Jews, and at last the wrath of God came upon the Jews to the uttermost. Their blackest crime of all was their killing of the blessed Lord Jesus, who ever went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed by the devil.

However, their disobedience will not bring to nought the purposes of God. With a wisdom beyond that of any or of all created beings, God will do His will, which is a mystery save to those who read with diligence His Word in the Holy Scriptures. Therein lies revealed what He will yet do amongst men.

When God has fulfilled His eternal purpose which He purposed in Christ Jesus relative to the building of all believers into one Body, the Church of this entire dispensation of grace, the Lord will return again to deal with Israel and the gospel of the kingdom shall be preached by Jewish men first of all, I believe, in the whole world for a testimony unto all the nations. This must take place before the end come, which end is the coming of the Lord in judgement to the earth (Matthew 24.14, 29-81). So great will be the revival through the out pouring of the Spirit as spoken by Joel (2.28.82) and quoted by Peter in Acts 2. 16 - 21 and so great also will be the martyrdoms that out of that time of the great tribulation there will be a great multitude of redeemed Gentiles which no man could number (Revelation 7.9.17). The spiritual battle of those times between God s saints and antichrist will be fast and furious but happily it will be of short duration for had the time Pot been shortened no flesh had been saved (Matthew 24. 21, 22)

The events between the Lord's coming to the air for the Church, and His coming to the earth in judgement upon the antichrist and the wicked, and for the deliverance of Israel, and the elect and saved people of the Gentiles, is one of great interest to all who take delight in events related to the coming of the Lord. How long the time extends between the Lord's coming to the air and to the earth is not revealed in the Scriptures, so far as I am aware, but there must at least be seven years between these events. Some speak very mysteriously about the seventy heptads of Daniel 9, and no doubt some have wondered, as I once did, at this seemingly profound wisdom in the use of this magic term. Hepta is the Greek word for seven. The Hebrew is Shebah, which also means seven, and is the usual word for week in the Old Testament, a period of seven days. Hut in Daniel 9.24, 25, 27 the period is not seven days, but seven years. Seventy sevens of years is four hundred and ninety years. Four hundred and eighty three of these years ended with the death of Christ on the cross, and there are yet seven years to be fulfilled. The prince that shall come, the antichrist (of 1 John 2.18, 22) or the beast (of Revelation 13, etc.) shall make a covenant with many (of the Jewish people) for one week (of years) in the midst of which he shall cause the sacrifice and oblation to cease, evidently breaking his covenant (Daniel 9.27), and setting up the abomination of desolation (Daniel 11. 31 ; Matthew 24.15-22) which is the image of the beast, in the holy place, not in the sanctuary where the beast or man of sin will sit (2 Thessalonians 2.4), but in a place where this image can be publicly seen. The flight of those that read and understand Daniel's prophecy and the Lord's words will then take place to the location prepared for them (Revelation 12.6,13-17), which is in the wilderness beyond Jordan (Isaiah 35.8-10), in Edom, Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon (Daniel ii. 41).

Of those who remain in the land, two thirds shall die, and the third part God will bring through the fire and will refine them as silver and try them as gold is tried; God will hear them, and each shall say, "The LORD is my God" (Zechariah 13.8, 9).

Zechariah 12 and 14.1-4 tell of God gathering all nations together against Jerusalem. This is done by the three unclean spirits which issue from the mouths of the dragon, the beast and the false prophet, they little appreciating the fact that for the time being God is using them in this way, and the nations are gathered together at Har-Magedon (Revelation 16.12-16). In the siege of Jerusalem the Jews will fight strenuously, and Jerusalem shall prove to be a burdensome stone to all the peoples that burden themselves with it. The magnificent fighting qualities of the Jewish defenders are described in Zechariah 12.8, "He that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the LORD before them." Nevertheless, "the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city" (Zechariah 14.2).

In the dire extremity of the Jewish people, Zechariah 14.8-5 says,

"Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when He fought in the day of battle. And His feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. And ye shall flee by the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azel: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the holy ones (saints, A.V.) with Thee."

"And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem" (Zechariah 12.9).

This is shown with even greater clearness in Revelation 19.11-21.

J. Miller | Aug 1958
Jottings