147 - National Destruction and Armegeddon

JOEL 

"Jehovah is God".  Bible commentaries are reluctant to give a date for Joel's activities except to say that he preached only to Judah and therefore it was probably after the capture of Israel.  

Some, however, place him as early as 835 BCE; this would actually put him about 100 years before Hosea and about 115 years before the fall of Israel in 720 BCE.  If that date is right it is strange that Joel did not even mention Israel.  

On the other hand, if he preached after the fall of Israel it seems strange that he did not use the captivity of Israel as a warning to the people of Judah.

That which the creeping locust has left, the swarming locust has eaten. And that which the swarming locust has left, the locust larvae has eaten. And that which the locust larvae has left, the stripping locust has eaten. Joel 1:4  

In 1915 a devastating plague of locusts covered what is modern-day Israel and Syria. The first swarms came in March, in clouds so thick they blocked out the sun. The female locusts immediately began to lay eggs, 100 at a time. Witnesses say that in one square yard, there were as many as 65,000 to 75,000 eggs. In a few weeks they hatched, and the young locusts resembled large ants. They couldn’t fly yet, and got along by hopping. They marched along 400 to 600 feet a day, devouring every speck of vegetation along the way. After two more stages of molting they became adults who could fly - and the devastation continued. Guzik

For a nation has come up on My land, strong and without number, whose teeth are the teeth of a lion, and he has the jaw teeth of a lioness. He has laid My vine waste and splintered My fig tree. He has stripped it and cast it away; its branches grow white. 1:6-7.  Scholars say that this nation refers to the army of locusts that invaded Israel.  Gill allows that this may refer to the Babylonian army and the damage that they did to the land when they first arrived in Judah 606 BCE.

Those aren't the only problems Judah faced; there was a drought in their land that has completely destroyed all food sources.

According to biblical prophets, these things befall a nation because they have turned their back on the teachings of Jehovah.  Yet, in spite of all of that Jehovah says turn to Me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning. 

Is Your Faith Real

Yes, tear your heart and not your robes, or, in other words, don't put on a show of religion, rather be genuinely repentant for your sins.   This was Christ's continual beef with the Pharisees of His time - hypocritical religion!  The psalmist wrote The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. Psalm 51:17.  

and turn to Jehovah your God: for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness. 2:12.  This is the prophets continuously repeated anthem: let Him heal your spirit and then, with His help, your lifestyle will also improve.

And it shall be afterward, I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh. And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy; your old men shall dream dreams; your young men shall see visions.  Most Bible commentaries agree that this refers to the day of Pentecost when the holy spirit was poured out on the waiting disciples in the upper room. (See Acts ch. 2). 

However, EBC has this slant, There follows ... the promise of a great outpouring of the Spirit on all Israel, (but only Israel) amid terrible manifestations in heaven and earth.  There is some soundness in their thinking.  

Notice that Joel speaks of Jehovah your God.  To Joel that was the national God of Israel.  Also, he distinctly says, your sons and your daughters, your old men and your young men; for Joel, the word your is a reference to the children of Israel.  

Another point is that when the multitude, on the day of Pentecost heard the apostles speaking in tongues, they said,  Behold, are not these who speak all Galileans? Acts 2:7.  This would indicate that the spirit had been poured only on Jewish people.   Furthermore, when Peter talked to his hearers that day he limited that promise to the Israelites, Men, Jews, and all who dwell at Jerusalem, 2:14  Again he said, Men, Israelites, hear these words. Act 2:22.

The Christian church loves to claim this promise for the present age but is it perhaps for a future time?  Joel and Peter both associate it with prophecies for the last days: 

• it shall be in the last days, says God, I will pour out of My Spirit upon all flesh. And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. ... And I will give wonders in the heaven above, and miracles on the earth below, blood and fire and vapor of smoke. Acts 2:20  
• The sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood, before that great and glorious Day of the Lord. Acts 2:17-20.

For, behold, in those days and in that time, when I will bring again the exiles of Judah and Jerusalem, I will also gather all nations and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat. Joel 3:1-2. 

It is said that there is no valley in Israel called "The valley of Jehoshaphat" but the word Jehoshaphat means God will judge.  So it is believed that the name "Jehoshaphat" alludes to the Har-Magedon where the battle of Armageddon will be fought.  It is the scene of the final conflict between Christ and Antichrist. Easton Bible Dictionary.

“Valley of Decision” has been used in countless evangelistic meetings to show people that they stand in the “Valley of Decision,” and must decide for or against Jesus. Joel’s context is exactly the opposite. Man does indeed stand in the valley of decision, but it is God who does the deciding, not man. It is a valley of judgment. 


Joel looks out upon the Valley of Jehoshaphat at the Battle of Armageddon, and sees multitudes facing their eternal fate - truly, it is a valley of decision, and those who fight against the LORD and His Messiah are in the wrong place in the valley of decision, ultimately fulfilled at the Battle of Armageddon. Guzik.

146 - The Price of a Female Slave

Adultery

Whether Hosea's "autobiography" is actual or an allegory the message it portrays should speak to all of us.  

He chose a prostitute as a wife; together they built a home with two sons and a daughter.  However, the mother could not get her wayward ways out of her system and she left home to live with Hosea's friend.  Jehovah said to me, Go again. Love a woman beloved by a friend, yet an adulteress, according to the love of Jehovah toward the sons of Israel, who turn to other gods. Hosea 3:1.   

In chapter 1 Hosea is told to take to yourself a wife, but by chapter three his love for her has grown and he is told to go back to her, in love, and bring her home again so that their family could be a family again.  

The Bible teaches that in the case of unfaithfulness divorce is allowed but it is by no means obligatory.  If the partner who has been wronged is willing to forgive, the relationship can be restored; according to the love of Jehovah.  If it were not so, how could Jehovah keep on taking us back if we go and follow other gods after we have promised to follow Him forever?

It is true that the Bible allows for divorce in the case of adultery but not just because the guy wants blue walls and she wants pink walls.  Christ said that in the case of divorce, except in the case of adultery, the divorced person may not marry again.  But I say to you that whoever shall put away his wife, except for the cause of fornication, (The word fornication is Used for adultery (Mat_5:32) Fausset's Bible dictionary) causes her to commit adultery. And whoever shall marry her who is put away commits adultery. Matthew 5:32.  

However, churches, in general, have no qualms in going against Christ's teaching in that matter.   For divorcees to get remarried is common practice in almost all churches these days.  Why does the church believe she has the right to pick and choose which of Christ's teachings she wants to follow?

Hosea's wife was already his because years ago she had married him but now he bought her back.  So I bought her to me for fifteen pieces of silver, and for a homer of barley and a half homer of barley. 3:2.  The cash was half the regular price of a female slave and the 12 bushels of barley made up the remaining half.  This is a picture of how much people are really worth - twenty-four bushels of barley, and yet the amount paid for the redemption of humans is priceless, and this is according to the love of Jehovah.

For Jehovah has a quarrel with the people of the land, this quarrel was not started by Jehovah, it was started by those humans who refuse to live according to the "rules of the book".

Spiritual Adultery

This description does not fit only the Israelites; it describes North America to a "Tee"; 
because there is no truth.  One can hardly answer the phone these days without expecting to be swindled by some smooth talking shyster.

nor mercy, can we not bend over backwards to give more than we promised; more than we owe; can we not "pay it forward"?

nor knowledge of God in the land.  If some time was spent in school teaching the children even the basics of what the Bible teaches, the following list of sins would not be so prevalent in our society.  

The least we should expect is that every person who lives in a country that has Christian churches should know the ten commandments.  Muslim children know the basic rules of the Koran.  

• Children do not learn the ten commandments at home from their unchurched parents; 
• those same children do not go to Sunday school, 
• so the most logical place to learn them is in public schools.  

If only so many of our educators were not so stubborn and blind.  It would not hurt them to admit that the Bible has good teachings.

Hosea knew the ten commandments:

1. There is lying, Hosea 4:2. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. Exodus 20:16.
2. and swearing, Hosea 4:2. You shall not take the name of Jehovah your God in vain. For Jehovah will not hold him guiltless that takes His name in vain. Exodus 20:7. 
3. and killing, Hosea 4:2. You shall not kill. Exodus 20:13. 
4. and stealing, Hosea 4:2. You shall not steal. Exodus 20:15. 
5. and the committing of adultery; Hosea 4:2. You shall not commit adultery. Exodus 20:14. 
6. Some versions have this added phrase, they break out; Rashi tells us that this means, They bear children from their friends’ wives. 
7. and blood touches blood. Hosea 4:2. In the ancient Hebrew, this is literally bloody deed touches bloody deed.  Apparently, violent crimes had become so common that one seemed immediately to follow another as if touching it.  Not that much different than the shooting sprees in the USA.

They break all restraint: It all connects back to leaving the knowledge of God.  Soon, truth and mercy are things of the past, and people no longer practice restraint.  When (a) man will not or can not restrain himself, bloodshed and destruction follow.
i. Our modern age is completely set against the idea of restraint.  
ii. The message is the same: You make your own rules.  You answer to no one.  You are the one that matters.  Your universe revolves around you.  You should only restrain yourself if you want to.
iii. The ultimate result is bloodshed after bloodshed.   Barnes Bible Commentary.

let no man reprove. 4:4.  The Targum states it more clearly, "but yet they say, let not the scribe teach, nor the prophet reprove:'' Gill.  

Those that do not want to hear what the Bible teaches accuse us of "picking fights" or "causing dissensions".  The current trend is, never reprove anyone, for fear that they may be offended.  

We must never say anything that is not politically correct, for others may have different opinions than we do, and if we vocalise our opinion we are "belittling" them.  It is doubtful that the Christian church will ever again develop a backbone and stand up for the moral standards that the Bible teaches.

Israel and Ephraim.  Ephraim was the major tribe of the ten Northern tribes constituting Israel; so much so that sometimes Israel is even called Ephraim. (See Hosea 5:9-13 for a good example.)

Israel and Ephraim shall fall by their iniquity: Judah also shall fall with them. 5:5.   By being aware of current trends Hosea might have foreseen the coming destruction of Israel, by Assyria, it was only about 25 years away. 

Some believe that Hosea preached from 790-755 BCE.  If this is true his prediction of the fall of Judah was made at least 170 years before it happened.  Was that astute foresightedness; was it a "lucky" guess, or was it that holy men of God spoke being borne along by the Holy Spirit. 2 Peter 1:21.  

145 - Christ's Coming Kingdom

North America

The following, spoken to the leaders of Israel, sounds as if it also applies to the leaders of the North American people.  Read the words of Isaiah 10:1-4 (in red).

You, North American, people are in for trouble! You, corrupt judges, have made cruel and unfair laws; you, lawmakers, have your spineless stooges at your beck and call.  For a bribe, these lawyers, without moral compunctions, will twist the truth in court cases so that you can cheat the poor and needy and rob widows and orphans, and destroy the lives of rape victims.  Judges, your pawns will do whatever needs to be done to wring the last penny from the hands of the poor and needy; and you call this justice!

But what will you do when you are fiercely attacked and punished by foreigners?  ISIS is at your doorstep; a few have already entered your borders.  You boast that you are the most powerful nation in the world, so where will you run for help?

Where will you hide your valuables?  Your whole mindset is of material wealth; your stocks and bonds; your mansions and fancy cars; your yachts and private planes; how will you feel when they are all confiscated by ISIS? and their cohorts? 

How will you escape being captured or killed?  Mass shootings by terrorists or off balanced minds are prevalent because you insist that everyone, regardless of their mental state, political or religious leanings, is perfectly free to walk the streets carrying firearms.  You asked for it, now How will you escape being captured or killed?

The Lord is still angry, and he isn't through with you yet!  When a country, which was built on Christian principles, turns its back on Jehovah, He has every right to say ... I am furious! Isaiah 10:1-4 CEV.

Jehovah is a long-suffering and a forgiving God.  Even though His nations have scorned Him and scoffed at Him, He still says, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die.  Ezekiel 33:11.

Israel did not repent and they were destroyed.  The words in the Book of Daniel fit North America too: the handwriting on the wall of North America is easy to see.  God has numbered the days of your kingdom and has brought it to an end. He has weighed you on his balance scales, and you fall short of what it takes to be a nation. Dan. 5: 26-28 CEV.

A New King Is Coming

When the populations of the nations have been decimated, due to the Battle of Armageddon, a new kingdom will be established.  It will be the antithesis of present-day kingdoms.  Someone from David's family will someday be king; we recall, from Matthew chapter one, that Jesus Christ is the direct descendant of King David; and He is coming to set up His kingdom.

The Spirit of the LORD will be with him to give him understanding, wisdom, and insight.  Jehovah's spirit will be with the new king to guide Him in the affairs of His new kingdom.  

He will be powerful, and he will know and honor the LORD.  This statement clearly states that Christ is not the LORD - it says that he will know and honor the Lord.  His greatest joy will be to obey the LORD.  This king won't judge by appearances or listen to rumors.

The poor and the needy will be treated with fairness and with justice. This is exactly the opposite to what lawmakers in the nations of the world are doing today: note again, you cheat the poor and needy and rob widows and orphans.

His word will be law everywhere in the land.  The words of Christ will be the law.  Those who do not obey will be put to death.  One can't help but wonder, though, if capital punishment is enforced in the land of perfect peace, in Christ's kingdom, should capital punishment not also be part of the civil laws in Christian countries.  After all, that is the Biblical stance on this issue.  

Honesty and fairness will be his royal robes. 11:1-5 CEV.  This statement is an indication as to how literally we should, or should not, accept the words of Isaiah 11.  Since the words honesty and fairness are used symbolically as clothing, is it not also possible to believe that the promised coming kingdom will not be as totally, wonderfully peaceful as we have been led to believe?   It may not even be worldwide!  Is this whole chapter symbolic?  Perhaps it will be a comparative peace; compared perhaps to the Battle of Armageddon.

Notice that in the new kingdom Israel will stop being jealous of Judah, and Judah will no longer be the enemy of Israel.   Instead, they will get together and attack the Philistines in the west. Then they will defeat the Edomites, the Moabites, and the Ammonites in the east.



Some Bible students insist that those people mentioned here are still living in the areas as shown on the map.  According to some the Philistines are the modern day Palestinians.  The Edomites are, of course, the Arabians and the Moabites and the Ammonites are the Jordanians.  The descendants of Moab who have remained in the same geographical area as their forefathers now call themselves Jordanians.   
                                                     www.reference.com › ... › Social Sciences › Cultures & Traditions

 They will rule those people and take from them whatever they want. 11:13-14.  Isn't it interesting that when preachers talk about Christ's coming kingdom of peace, they never mention these verses which tell us that during that kingdom, where Christ rules, according to Isaiah, there will still be wars in the Near East?

144 - A Prostitute For A Wife

Our Library

We have now finished the book of Daniel and by doing that we also finished the section called the Major Prophets.   

For the more recent viewers to this blog, I might mention that we have been treating the Bible as a library with an older wing and a newer wing.  In the first wing there are five shelves and in the new wing, there are four shelves.  To orient yourself with this picture I suggest

 http://spaceshiptheology.blogspot.com/2014/10/38-old-testament-library.html 

 and http://spaceshiptheology.blogspot.com/2014/10/39-new-testament-library.html.

In the Major Prophets, Isaiah took us from the days of Uzziah, Isaiah 1:1, in about 736 BCE, and Daniel ended the section in circa 540 BCE.   Now by moving forward to the next shelf, the Minor Prophets, we move back in time.  

As to the dates, as in almost everything biblical, Bible scholars do not agree.  Of the sixteen Old Testament prophets who have a book named after them, it seems that Hosea may be the first one, although some place Jonah as the first.  We will, in keeping with our form, follow the arrangement in the order they are found the Protestant Bible.

In about 930 BCE, in a civil war, Israel, the Northern 10 tribes, separated from Judah, the Southern 2 tribes.  Immediately Israel fell into idolatry and pagan style worship.  It is this turn of events that the prophets lamented and preached against so vehemently. 

HOSEA - 

"Salvation"  790-755 BCE.  By comparing Ezekiel with Hosea we see some very distinct similarities.  Both are very brash in their language and both are very adept at using realistic word pictures.


And Jehovah said to Hosea, Go, take to yourself a wife of adultery and children of adultery. For the land has utterly gone lusting away from Jehovah. Hosea 1:2.  At this point in the history of the Jewish people, the Southern tribes were still worshipping Jehovah in the temple that Solomon had finished only a few years earlier.  

However, the leaders of the Northern tribes did not want their people going to Jerusalem because they were afraid that they might not return and so they built a temple of their own and soon incorporated pagan deities and styles of worship.  This is what Hosea is preaching against.

Some scholars say that Hosea actually married a prostitute; others say that he was only using the metaphor to bring his point home - concerning spiritual matters you Israelites are spending time in the "red light district".

Hosea also had three children with the "supposed" prostitute that he married.  The names of his children are so outlandish that it is hard to imagine that a caring father would burden his real kids with such names.   

Picture this: The first day of school; a little black-haired Jewish boy; the teacher asks, What is your name?  
The tyke responds, my name is God Will Sow.
Teacher: That is an interesting name, so what is your sister's name?  
Student: Oh, her name is No Mercy.
Teacher: Oh my, what is your baby brother's name? 
Student: Not-my-people. Hosea 1:4,6,9.

Based on this argument alone, it seems that it is safe to say that Hosea did not actually marry a prostitute and that the children he spoke of were not real, but simply part of his sermon.  Apart from whether or not the situation was actual, the teaching is pertinent.  

In ancient times when farmers planted their grain, they would scatter the seed by hand, this was called "sowing".  Jehovah says I will  (sow) scatter the people of the northern tribes.   

After the daughter was born Jehovah said to Hosea, call her name No Mercy, for I will no more have mercy.  

When the third child was born Jehovah said, Call his name, Not-my-people, For you are not My people, and I will not be for you (I will not fight for you). 

Restoration

As we have seen in previous posts, this picture of Jehovah rejecting Israel does not end in gloom; there is a great day coming when the number of the sons of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered. And it shall be, in the place where it was said to them, You are not My people, there it shall be said to them, You are the sons of the living God. Hos 1:10.  

Later, in history, Ezekiel also speaks of that day of restoration when the dry bones come back to life.   I will make them one nation in the land, upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all; and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms anymore at all. Ezekiel 37:22.

One part of history that the Jewish prophets did not seem to grasp is "the Church age". They believed that the Messiah was coming but they did not grasp the idea that there was a span between Messiah's arrival and the final restoration of Israel.  After the Christian church was born the New Testament writers explained "the Church age". 

When the Jews will again be gathered as one nation the Christians will also be resurrected to a new life because of the death and resurrection of Christ.  At that time the Jewish nation will set over themselves one head, He is the ruler of the house of David, the Messiah, Jesus Christ.

And I will give her vineyards to her from there.  This is easier to understand in the Darby translation, I will give her her vineyards. 

and the valley of Achor for a door of hope.   The valley of Achor is close to Jericho; it was there that Israel lost the battle against the little town of Ai.  After that, it was called The Valley of Achor, or  The Valley of Trouble.  Now Jehovah promises that The valley of Achor will become a door of hope; i.e., trouble would be turned into joy, despair into hope. Easton Bible Dictionary.

And she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt.  That reference may well be to The Song of Moses and to Miriam's festival of music, as they are found in Exodus 15.

And it shall be at that day, says Jehovah, you shall call Me, My Husband.  Israel and the Christian Church will no more "play the prostitute" in the spiritual realm; after the restoration of all things, the redeemed will see Jehovah as their loving husband.  And I will betroth you to Me forever. Yea, I will betroth you to Me in 

• righteousness, 
• in judgment, 
• in loving-kindness, 
• in mercies. 
• I will even betroth you to Me in faithfulness. 

And you shall know Jehovah. 2:15-20.  

143 - Don't Jump The Queue

The Great Resurrection

From the content, it is obvious that Daniel is no longer writing only about Antiochus of Syria or the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus with the Roman army.  

By using the phrase, those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, he makes it clear that he is speaking of the great resurrection of the dead after the last war is finished.  He is prophesying about the misty, distant future and says, I heard, but I did not understand. Daniel 12:8.  

There is hope; there will be deliverance, but first comes destruction and desolation.  The people of Syria are already experiencing it.  If the destruction in Syria now is the beginning of the last war, it will move south from Syria into Israel.  And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation; until that time.

And at that time your people (Daniel's race) shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.  According to some commentators, this means "those destined for death in the war, will die, those destined to life will live".  

However, it seems to me that Daniel is here introducing the idea of the resurrection of the dead.  The dead shall be delivered from the grave; all those that shall be found written in the book.  It is true that Daniel limits that resurrection to the Jews because Judaism is a one nation religion, but after the resurrection of Christ, the Apostles could understand that since Christ died for all races then also all races would be included in the resurrection.

And many, the word (many) is sometimes used for "all"; see Rom_5:15, Gill.

many (all) of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. Daniel 12:1-2.  

Christ, speaking of the rapture, said, For the Son of Man shall come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He shall reward each one according to his works. Mat. 16:27.   

John, in the Apocalypse, wrote it like this, I saw the dead, ... stand before God. And books were opened, and another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. Rev. 20:12.

For anyone who believes the Bible to be true or even those who do not, but still believe in life after death, this teaching is certainly a great incentive to live lives with high moral standards.  Our eternal rewards will be commensurate with our lifestyle while on earth.

some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. Daniel 12:1-2.  To me, it seems interesting that Daniel is not comparing life with death but rather with shame.  Even those who do not receive rewards for a life well lived will still be alive but suffer shame and everlasting contempt.

The question is then asked when shall be the end of these wonders?  The answer is when they have made an end of scattering the power of the holy people (the Jews).   When the antichrist and his army have destroyed the military forces of Israel; when Israel can no longer count on her own prowess to win the battle of Armageddon then all these things shall be finished. 12:6-7.

But Wait Your Turn

But you go on to the end, for you shall rest and stand in your lot at the end of the days. 12:13  Daniel is told to continue steadfast till the end of his life and then he will go to rest in the dust of the earth (2:2) just like all other people who will die before the rapture. 


Concerning this topic lets look at some Bible heroes:

1. Abraham: the father of the Jewish nation: looked for a city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God. Heb 11:10.  He did not receive the promise, for God had provided some better thing for us, that they should not be made perfect without us. Heb 11:39-40.  Abraham is still waiting for the rapture of the church before he will enter heaven!

2. Samuel: When King Saul went to the witch of Endor to recall Samuel after Samuel had died, the witch saw him coming up out of the earth.  Samuel said to Saul, Why did you bring me up?

It is obvious that he did not come down from heaven which he would have needed to do if saints go to heaven when they die.  Samuel said to Saul, Jehovah has left you and has become your enemy and tomorrow you and your sons shall be with me.  Jehovah's enemies do not end up in heaven.  This shows that Samuel, though he was dead, had not yet gone to heaven.  All of us must wait for the rapture before we will see Jesus face to face!

3.  David: Israel's most famous poet and songwriter and a man about whom Jehovah said, I have found David ... to be a man after My own heart. Acts 13:22.  Even so, about him the Apostle Peter said, the patriarch David, ... is both dead and buried. Acts 2:29.  David has not ascended into the heavens. Acts 2:34.  If a man after God's own heart has not yet gone to heaven why would any of us think that we will as soon as we die?

4.  Job:  Known for his unending patience said, and even after they corrupt my skin, yet this: in my flesh I shall see God. Job 19:26.   He did not expect to go to heaven as soon as he died.  He expected to be in the grave at least until his skin was destroyed in the grave.  Then, at the rapture of The Church, with his new glorified body, he would see Jehovah. 

Paul wrote, For a trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, (the dead are still dead when the trumpet sounds) and we shall all be changed.    For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. 1 Cor. 15:52-53.

4. Daniel: a man greatly beloved, Dan. 10:11, must wait until the end of the days for his inheritance.  How then, is it logical that we will get our inheritance immediately at our death?  

How could it be that we should spend some time in heaven, with Jesus, and later, after the rapture, be arraigned to stand at the judgement seat of Christ to find out our standing?   If even Daniel does not go to heaven at the time of his death, where did Bible teachers get the idea that "us ordinary folks will go to be with Jesus as soon as we die"?  

5.  Christ: But now Christ has risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruit of those who slept. 1 Cor. 15:20.  Of all those who have died, Christ is the first to go to heaven.  The writer of the Book of Hebrews said that Abraham, and the Old Testament saints, would not receive their promise, without the church being present and it is just as true that the members of The Church will not receive their inheritance without the Old Testament saints being present.

While writing about some New Testament Christians who had passed away, St. Paul did not say, "they have gone to heaven" or "they are now with Jesus" or anything of that nature.  He wrote,  For this cause many ... sleep. 1 Cor. 11:30.  In another case, Paul wrote,  Afterward He was seen by over five hundred brothers at once, ... but also some fell asleep. 1 Cor. 15:6.  Again, there is nothing here about any saints going to heaven when they die!

For more on this topic, I suggest: 

http://spaceshiptheology.blogspot.com/2015/02/54-you-are-not-going-to-heaven-when-you.html

142 - No Pretribulation Rapture

Two-Pronged Prophecy

Daniel was referring to Antiochus, a leader in the Syrian army, who was working havoc in the near east.  However, that this prophecy is also about the Antichrist is proven by Christ's words, as we will see later.  

But news out of the east (in a modern setting perhaps Iraq or Iran) and out of the north (Turkey/Russia) shall trouble him (Antiochus and/or Antichrist). Then he will go out with great fury to destroy, and to devote many to destruction.  Fearing that he has "spread his army too thin" he will call back his troops, concentrate them in Israel and He will attack and kill many Jews.  

Interestingly Antiochus means to be against and to possess something.  This is the picture that the Bible also paints of Antichrist.  He will be against regular citizens possessing anything, as the Communist Party did in Russia. 

he shall plant his palace tents between the seas (believed to be The Mediterranean and the Dead Sea), in the glorious holy mountain (Mount Zion, Jerusalem). 11:44-45.

And at that time Michael shall stand up, 12:1. O Wow!  This verse opens up a weighty bag of theological disagreements: Is Micheal Christ or isn't he?
  
1. The Archangel, who has all the angels of heaven under him, and at his command, the Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ; who is as God, as the name signifies, truly and really God, and equal in nature, power, and glory, to his divine Father: "he shall stand up". Gill. 

2. Christ is that great prince, for he is the prince of the kings of the earth. Matthew Henry. 

3. God will send his angel to deliver it, whom he here calls Michael, meaning Christ. Geneva. 

Speak of conflicting teachings in the church!  We have been taught that all angels are created beings.   We have also been told that Christ, as the second person of the Godhead, is eternal; not created, but if all angels are created how is it possible that Christ is God and a created angel both? 

4. Since Michael is called the archangel (Jud_1:9), he is Satan’s true opposite. Satan is not the opposite of Jesus; he is the opposite of Michael, this high-ranking angel. Guzik.  So according to him, Jesus is not Micheal.  Besides that, there is nothing in the Bible that teaches that Michael is Christ! 

5. An archangel, not the Lord Jesus; for he (Micheal) is distinguished from “the Lord” in Jud_1:9. Jamieson, Fausset, Brown.   Again, Jesus isn't Micheal, an angel. 

6. Another proof that Micheal is not Christ is found in Daniel 10:13, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me.   Micheal is one of a group of chief princes and if Christ is God, He would be superior to that group and not belong to that group.   On the other hand, if He is not God then He did not exist before His miraculous conception.

Christ is a problem for people who believe that God is a Trinity because they don't know what to do with Jesus before He was born.  

• Was He an angel - or wasn't He?  
• Was he the wisdom of God (John 1:1) or was He God, the second person in a triune God?  He can't be both!  
• Was He a phantom that appeared to certain people whenever it was appropriate. 

How confusing this all becomes!

Those Christians who do not believe that God is a Trinity, have no problem with this whole matter.  

Normal theology does not teach that God ever had a beginning but the Bible plainly says that Christ was begotten; to be "begotten" means to "have a beginning"; therefore He did not exist before He was begotten and He was not present in the Old Testament except in prophecy.

Tribulation Then The Rapture

the great ruler (Micheal) who stands for the sons of your people. 10:13.  He is the archangel whose distinct area of operation is the people of Israel.  If, as the Trinitarians say, Christ is "God of very God", why would He, Christ, stand only for the Jewish race; why not for every race, after all, He died for all the people of every race?

And there shall be a time of distress, such as has not been from the being of a nation until that time.  This also is a double prophecy according to Haydock's Catholic Commentary; Antiochus Epiphanes, ... What is here said of this prince, is accommodated by St. Jerome and others to antichrist, of whom this Antiochus was a figure. ... He lived and died basely; as the origin and end of antichrist will be ignominious.  

As we learned earlier, it is estimated that Antiochus killed 100,000 Jews.  It may well be that the Jews experienced a time of distress worse than any they had ever endured since they became a nation.  

The prophecy does not end there.   Christ referred to Daniel's prophecy, He placed it into the future, and said,  For there will be great affliction, such as has not happened from the beginning of the world until now, no, nor ever will be. Mat 24:21.  

Does this not sound like the slaughter being carried out by the modern day terrorist groups?  It is a totally new kind of warfare - and it will get worse as long as soldiers think they are pleasing their God by committing suicide while they are killing innocent bystanders.

Christ clearly said, immediately after the affliction of those days ... the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the heavens. Mat. 24:29-30.   Where, then, did some Bible scholars get the idea that the rapture of the Church would happen before the "great tribulation"?  

I can tell you where the problem may have come from.  It probably came from those who used the Scofield, or any other, "chain reference" Bible.  Following that kind of a chain can lead a person way off topic which inevitably leads to wrong theology.

Christ also said, He (Jehovah) shall send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.  Mat.24:31.  Notice that His elect (the Church) will be gathered after the affliction of those days.

Dr Findley writes The pre-tribulation rapture theory is not plainly taught or directly stated in any place in Scripture, cannot be deduced from biblical teaching, contradicts the general teaching of the Bible regarding Christ’s second coming and was never taught in any branch of the church prior to 1830.

Yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him.  When Christ returns, the battle of Armageddon will soon be over and he (the antichrist) shall come to his end. 11:45.

For more on this very exciting topic I recommend:

http://wwwthinkagai.blogspot.com/2012/07/the-return-of-christ.html 

http://wwwthinkagai.blogspot.com/2012/07/no-pre-trib-return-of-christ.html