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Introduction

Almost two thousand years ago, Jesus Christ, under the inspiration of God the Father, prophesied that the very last generation of mankind would be so evil and wicked that it would be willing to even destroy “all flesh” in a worldwide war (Matthew 24:22). At that time of impending cosmocide “the love of many”—even in God’s Church—“will grow cold” (Matthew 24:12). There is a reason for such indifference and God tells us in the same verse what the reason is, “…because lawlessness will abound.”

At that very time it will be as if people were to say, “The law is no more!” (Lamentations 2:9). Instead, they will have been misled by the “mystery of lawlessness” (2 Thessalonians 2:7). This mysterious concept was already at work in the days of the apostle Paul but it grew worse and worse over the centuries. Just prior to the return of Jesus Christ, a religious personality, referred to as the “lawless one,” will appear (2 Thessalonians 2:8). The overwhelming majority, not having “received the love of the truth,” will accept, support and even worship that man, thinking that he is God (2 Thessalonians 2:10).

How could this be, given the fact that most people, especially in the Western World, are professing Christians, and as such, supposedly embrace the teachings of the Bible? Don’t they agree with, and keep, the fundamental and, we might say, constitutional law of the Bible, the Ten Commandments, as well as God’s statutes and judgments that further define and explain the Ten Commandments? How could professing Christians be referred to in the Bible as people who follow “lawlessness”?

Most professing Christians do not believe that the Ten Commandments are still in force and effect, so they don’t see a need to keep them—neither in the letter, nor in “spirit and in truth” (John 4:24).

Before you disagree with this statement, consider the fact that the Bible nowhere authorizes replacement of the weekly Sabbath with Sunday worship. The fourth commandment says, “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8). The Sabbath (the time from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset) is the last or seventh day of the week. God Himself set aside the Sabbath at the creation of man, thereby making it holy. He subsequently required that man keep it holy as He made it. It is still in force and effect today. Sunday is not the Sabbath. Sunday is the first day of the week, not the last day. But how many professing Christians keep the Sabbath holy? Only very few. It was the Catholic Church that “changed” the Sabbath law, fulfilling a prophecy in Daniel 7:25 that describes a church that would, in fact, “intend to change times and law”—that is, the “law” regulating holy “times.” But God did not approve of this man-made change. And by following the lead of the Catholic Church, many were made to “stumble at the law” (Malachi 2:8).

Apart from the rather obvious discrepancy between biblically-commanded Sabbath observance and humanly-invented Sunday worship, how many Christians do you know who really believe and keep even the other nine of the Ten Commandments?

How many do you know who are determined, for example, never to lie, never to kill, never to take God’s name in vain, never to worship idols, never to steal, and never to desire his or her neighbor’s wife or husband, or something that belongs to a neighbor?

It is obvious that not many have this determination not to violate God’s law. This is why our carnal minds that are incapable of being subject to the law (Romans 8:7), have invented seemingly convincing “logical arguments” that “prove” from the Bible that God’s law is indeed “no more.”

What Sin Is!

The Bible teaches us from beginning to end that sin, unrepented of, will prevent us from entering the Kingdom of God. God expects and requires of us to overcome sin. And if God’s Holy Spirit dwells in us, we can become victorious over sin—that is, we can stop breaking God’s law. We read in Romans 8:4, in the Living Bible, “So now we can obey God’s law, if we follow after the Holy Spirit and no longer obey the old evil nature within us.”

When we obey God’s law, we don’t sin. Sin is defined as “the transgression of the law” (1 John 3:4, Authorized Version). We could also say, sin is lawlessness. Those who live in and follow after lawlessness, live in and follow after sin. We are also told that all unrighteousness is sin (1 John 5:17). Conversely, if we keep God’s commandments, we live in righteousness, as God defines all of His commandments as “righteousness” (Psalm 119:172, Authorized Version).

But what exactly is the “law” that we break when we sin? Is it some “New Law” that Christ brought, while doing away with His Father’s commandments? Or is it the very same law that defined sin from the outset—the Ten Commandments?

We read in Matthew 19:16–19 about a young man who once came to Christ with an interesting question. He asked Him what “good thing” he had to do in order to “have eternal life.” Christ responded by saying, “…if you want to enter into [eternal] life, keep the commandments.” The young man asked what many professing Christians might want to ask today, “Which ones?”

Notice, carefully, Christ’s answer. Did He say, “Why, of course, not the old ancient ones that Israel received at Mount Sinai! Not those Ten Commandments from the relic past. Rather, you need to keep the New Law that I am bringing to REPLACE those burdensome Ten Commandments!”?

Not at all! His response is recorded in verses 18 and 19: “…You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not bear false witness, Honor your father and your mother, and You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Christ quoted from the last six of the Ten Commandments, which define our love toward neighbor. He did not quote from any of the first four of the Ten Commandments, which define our love toward God. Did He tell the young man that he did not have to love God anymore? Of course not! It is obvious that, although Christ quoted just some of the Ten Commandments, He wanted it to be understood that we can only obtain eternal life if we keep them all. As the same section goes on to show, Christ was addressing this individual in direct response to what his underlying lack involved. As a Jewish citizen of that day, he knew the command to keep ALL of God’s commandments—and he claimed that he had done so from his youth (Matthew 19:20). However, Christ showed him that he really lacked the love toward neighbor and toward God, as he placed his riches before God and neighbor (Matthew 19:21). He stumbled at Christ’s challenge to rid himself of his great wealth and give it to the poor, and to follow Christ. His riches had become the most important aspect of his life, and he was not able to put service and surrender to God and neighbor FIRST in his life (Matthew 19:22).

The Law of the Ten Commandments

Some, though, would want to disagree and argue with these clear words of Christ. They allege that, since Christ only quoted some of the Ten Commandments, only those need to be kept, and since He did not specifically refer to the Sabbath commandment, that law no longer needs to be kept either. (Remember, though, that Christ quoted none of the first four commandments!).

Those who reason this way overlook a very important biblical principle. The apostle James, who is the half-brother of Jesus, explains this principle and, at the same time, silences those who claim that we today do not have to keep all of God’s Ten Commandments. Let’s read his decisive answer in James 2:8–12: “If you really fulfill [that is, keep] the royal law according to the Scripture, You shall love your neighbor as yourself, you do well; but if you show partiality, you commit sin, and are convicted by the law as transgressors. For whoever shall keep [or, fulfill] the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all. For He who said, Do not commit adultery, also said, Do not murder. Now if you do not commit adultery, but you do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. So speak and so do as those who will be judged by the law of liberty.”

The Ten Commandments as a Package!

James tells us that we sin if we break just one provision of the “whole” law. He makes it clear that the “law” he is talking about is, in fact, the Ten Commandments. He illustrates this point by selecting two of the Ten Commandments—the law against murder and the law against adultery. He explains to us that, if we violate even one of the Ten Commandments, we are still a “transgressor of the [entire]LAW.” Note that James uses the word “law” as a summary term to include all of God’s Ten Commandments.

We do the same today in human affairs. A person might have violated a specific traffic regulation and the police officer might tell him, “You have violated the law.” The officer would be right, as that particular traffic rule is indeed part of the entirety of man’s law. When Christ told the young man that he had to keep the commandments, and then cited some of the Ten Commandments, especially focusing on the last six, He made it very clear that He was referring to all of the Ten Commandments, treating them as a “total package,” as did the apostle James.

Did Christ Abolish God’s Law?

Some, having given themselves over to the arguments of the carnal mind—which is hostile toward the law of God—have used this “package” concept, to “prove” that the entire law of God was abolished. Their absurd “argument” goes something like this: Since certain scriptures show that a “law” is no longer in effect, all of God’s Ten Commandments (it is alleged) have been done away with, and Jesus Christ brought a “New Law,” which happens to include nine of the Ten Commandments, while omitting the Sabbath commandment.

This seemingly “clever” argument to get away from God’s specific commandment to remember the Sabbath day and to keep it holy is “supported” by the misuse of the following scriptures: Galatians 3, Romans 5, and Hebrews 10. Correctly understood, however, these three passages do not at all support abolishment of the Ten Commandments—rather, they prove the opposite—that the Ten Commandments are still in force and effect for us today! Let’s analyze these aforementioned scriptures.

Does Galatians 3 Abolish the Ten Commandments?

Reading from Galatians 3:17–19, 22, 24–25: “And this I say, that the law, which was four hundred and thirty years later, cannot annul the covenant that was confirmed before by God in Christ, that it should make the promise of no effect. For if the inheritance is of the law, it is no longer of promise; but God gave it to Abraham by promise. What purpose then does the law serve? It was added because of transgressions, till the Seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was appointed through angels by the hand of a mediator… (verse 22) But the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in [of] Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe… (verse 24) Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.”

Does this passage teach us that the Ten Commandments have been abolished, as some claim? Does Paul even have the Ten Commandments in mind when he talks about the “law” that “was added because of transgressions”?

In order to understand this passage properly, we must recognize that the Bible sometimes uses the word “law” for just a portion of the entire law system. We must consider the context of the particular passage in order to ascertain whether the word “law” refers to the entirety of God’s law system, or just a portion, and if just a portion, which portion.

We do the same today in human affairs. We might say, “the law requires you to do this or that,” and we may be speaking about a particular provision in the Civil Code, or the Criminal Code, or some administrative law.

We learned from Galatians 3:17 and 19 that “the law” was “added” “four hundred and thirty years” after God’s covenant with Abraham. This “law” was added “because of transgressions.” We also learned in verse 22 that the Scripture confined everybody “under sin.” We know already that sin is the transgression of the law. The law referred to in Galatians 3 was added because people had sinned—because they hadtransgressed God’s law.

Paul’s use of the word “law” in the third chapter of the book of Galatians then does not relate to the Ten Commandments at all, but to an altogether different set of rules.

The Bible does not contradict itself. One Scripture does not “break” or “make of no effect” another Scripture (John 10:35). A law was added because of transgressions. This law cannot be the Ten Commandments. Rather, because people had transgressed the law of the Ten Commandments, an additional law was given to the people. What this additional law was will become clear very soon.

Ten Commandments in Force and Effect Since Creation of Man

The Bible consistently teaches that people transgressed the Ten Commandments long before the added “law” mentioned in Galatians 3 came into existence.

We read in 1 Timothy 2:14 that “Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived, fell into transgression.” Eve sinned when she violated God’s law. This means that God’s law of the Ten Commandments was already in effect long before Abraham or Moses, because Paul tells us in Romans 4:15, “…where there is no law there is no transgression.” And remember, if we sin, we are “convicted by the law as transgressors” (James 2:9).

Adam and Eve transgressed the law of the Ten Commandments when they took of the forbidden fruit. They sinned by disobeying God, by stealing from Him and by lying to Him about it. They also committed idolatry by following Satan, desiring to have something that was not theirs. Later, Cain sinned by murdering his brother Abel (Genesis 4:7–8). The men of Sodom were “sinful” against God (Genesis 13:13) in violating His commandments and principles pertaining to marriage (Genesis 18:20).

God prevented two pagan rulers, both referred to as Abimelech, from sinning against Him by having an adulterous relationship with Abraham’s and Isaac’s wives (Genesis 20:6; Genesis 26:10). Later, Joseph refused to commit adultery with Potiphar’s wife, knowing that this would be a sin (Genesis 39:7–9). Jacob sinned by deceiving, or lying to, his father Isaac (Genesis 27:35). Jacob knew that stealing was sinful (Genesis 30:33; 31:39). Joseph later explained that kidnapping a person was stealing and therefore sinful (Genesis 40:15). His brothers understood, too, that stealing was sinful (Genesis 50:17; Genesis 44:8).

Fornication was understood to be a sinful act long before God spoke the Ten Commandments to Israel (Genesis 34:7, 31; 38:24). Murder also was declared to be sinful (compare also Genesis 49:6–7), and the midwives refused to kill the Israelite baby boys because they feared God (Exodus 1:16–17).

Prior to arriving at Mount Sinai, God clearly identified the observance of the seventh-day Sabbath as a law that had to be obeyed (Exodus 16:4–5, 22–30). After all, it had been in effect since Adam and Eve were created (Genesis 2:2–3).

We see, then, that the Ten Commandments were in force and effect since the creation of man. In breaking them, man sinned and fell into transgression. And because of such transgression, another law was later added.

Does Romans 5 Abolish the Ten Commandments?

In Romans 5, as in Galatians 3, people misinterpret Paul’s statements about the law, not realizing what “law” he is referring to. We will see here that Paul again writes about a “law” that was “added”—he is not at all talking about the Ten Commandments.

Romans 5:13–14 reads, “For until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come.”

Paul tells us clearly that there was already sin in the world before “the law” came. Sin, we know, is the transgression of the LAW. Therefore, there was a law in effect that was broken before this additional “law” came.So, the law that came or was added must have been different from the law that was already broken; in fact, this particular law was added because another law had been transgressed.

We also read about the transgression of Adam. Adam sinned—sin being the transgression of the law. Others sinned too—although perhaps not to the same degree that Adam sinned—because we read that death reigned from Adam to Moses. Romans 6:23 tells us why death reigned: “For the wages of sin is death.” When we sin or transgress God’s law, we have to pay a penalty—death. This is confirmed by the apostle James in James 1:15: “…sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.”

We understand, then, that a law was added “because of transgression”—because God’s Ten Commandments had been transgressed. What “law” is it, then, that Paul talks about in Galatians 3 and Romans 5 that was added because of transgression or sin?

Does Hebrews 10 Abolish the Ten Commandments?

The answer can be found, paradoxically, in Hebrews 10—the very scripture that some would use to “prove” that the Ten Commandments are no longer in effect. But, the tenth chapter of the book of Hebrews does not refer to the Ten Commandments—rather, it identifies the law that was added because of transgression.

In discussing the “earthly sanctuary” that Moses built according to God’s instructions, Paul explains in Hebrews 9:9–10, “It was symbolic for the present time in which both gifts and sacrifices were offered which cannot make him who performed the sacrifice perfect in regard to the conscience—concerned only with foods and drinks, various washings, and fleshly ordinances imposed until the time of reformation.”

Here we find described the “law that was added.” It was only a temporary law—it was only imposed until the time of reformation, that is, until the time of Jesus Christ’s perfect life without sin (Hebrews 4:15), His sacrificial death and His resurrection to eternal life. Since Christ paid the penalty for our sins through His death, we are no longer under the tutor referred to in Galatians 3. We are no longer under the law that was added that dealt with fleshly ordinances and rituals. This temporary law can be summarized as the sacrificial law—it regulated sacrifices, food and drink offerings, certain washings, and other rituals dealing with the flesh. This was the law that was added after Israel made a golden calf—after Israel had sinned against God’s Ten Commandments and fallen into transgression.

This sacrificial system is clearly referred to as “the law” in the Bible. Let’s note this in Hebrews 10:1, 8–9, and let’s also note that it is that law that was abolished when Christ died for us: “(verse 1) For the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect… (verse 8) Previously saying, ‘Sacrifice and offering, burnt offerings, and offerings for sin You did not desire, nor had pleasure in them’ (which are offered according to the law), (verse 9) then He said, ‘Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God.’ He takes away the first that He may establish the second.”

Acts 13:38–39 explains that those who now believe in Christ are the ones who receive the forgiveness of sins and are justified (made perfect through living as Christ lived). Verse 39 also shows, by contrast, that no one “… could be justified by the law of Moses.” We will explain later that the “law of Moses” included the sacrificial system. Contrast this with the response by Jesus when the young man asked what he must do to gain eternal life—“keep the commandments” (Matthew 19:17).

Christ took away the LAW of sacrifices, washings, and rituals—He abolished the entire sacrificial system. This was the law that had been added—not the Ten Commandments. The physical sacrificial system had been given to the people because they had sinned against God’s spiritual law—the Ten Commandments. The ritual law was a “tutor” to bring us to Christ. It was laborious work and the people were motivated through this kind of work to avoid sinning, at least to an extent.

But the sacrificial law could not forgive sin, as Paul stresses in Hebrews 10:4: “For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins.” Paul adds in verse 11: “And every priest stands ministering daily and offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins.”

This sacrificial law is not binding for Christians today. It was a law that was added because of sin, until Christ came to forgive sin, upon repentance of sin and belief in His sacrifice. That’s why we read in Hebrews 10:18, “Now where there is remission [forgiveness] of these, there is no longer an offering for sin.”

This sacrificial law that was added and then later taken away did not affect the Ten Commandments. This means, for example, that the fourth commandment, regarding the keeping of the Sabbath, is still valid and in force today. Note that the Sabbath was made for man (Mark 2:27) at the time of the creation of man (Genesis 2:2–3). It is referred to as a law to be kept prior to Mount Sinai (Exodus 16:25–30). It is still a binding commandment for all of mankind today, as are the other nine of the Ten Commandments. The sacrificial system, which was added one year after God spoke the Ten Commandments to the people, did not enact or bring into existence the Ten Commandments, including the Sabbath commandment. And since it did not enact the Ten Commandments, it could not void them when the sacrificial system itself became obsolete.

We have seen, then, that the word “law” used in the Bible can refer to all of God’s laws, or it can refer to just a portion of God’s laws. We always need to study the context to see how the word “law” is to be understood in any given situation.

As this is such an important issue, we will take some time now and analyze several passages from both the Old and the New Testaments to show that the word “law” does not always refer to the entirety of God’s laws. In fact, many of the passages that we will look at apply the word “law” exclusively to the sacrificial system or provisions within the sacrificial system. Once we have this truth firmly in mind, it will not be possible to fall for, or be fooled by, “clever” arguments that try to convince us that Christ did away with all of the laws of the Old Testament and replaced them with an entire set of new laws.

Notice the following examples from the Old Testament, applying the words “the law” strictly to a portion of the sacrifical system that pertains to different kinds of offerings:

“Command Aaron and his sons, saying, ‘This is the law of the burnt offering… This is the law of the grain offering… This is the law of the sin offering’” (Leviticus 6:9, 14, 25).

“‘Likewise this is the law of the trespass offering (it is most holy)… This is the law of the sacrifice of peace offerings, which he shall offer to the LORD… This is the law of the burnt offering, the grain offering, the sin offering, the trespass offering, the consecrations, and the sacrifice of the peace offering, which the LORD commanded Moses on Mount Sinai, on the day when He commanded the children of Israel to offer their offerings to the LORD in the wilderness of Sinai’” (Leviticus 7:1, 11, 37–38).

In addition, let’s notice the following examples from the Old Testament that apply the words “the law” strictly to certain ritualistic washings and purification. For instance, there were in existence specific rituals that had to be fulfilled when a child was born:

“When the days of her purification are fulfilled, whether for a son or a daughter, she shall bring to the priest a lamb of the first year as a burnt offering, and a young pigeon or a turtle dove as a sin offering, to the door of the tabernacle of meeting. Then he shall offer it before the LORD, and make atonement for her. And she shall be clean from the flow of her blood. This is the law for her who has borne a male or a female” (Leviticus 12:6–7).

There was also a statute that had to be obeyed regarding the purification of a leper or infected garments and buildings. This statute is clearly referred to as “the law of leprosy”: “‘This shall be the law of the leper for the day of his cleansing… This is the law for one who had a leprous sore, who cannot afford the usual cleansing… This is the law for any leprous sore and scale, for the leprosy of a garment and of a house, for a swelling and a scab and bright spot, to teach when it is unclean and when it is clean. This is the law of leprosy’” (Leviticus 14: 2, 32, 54–57).

We are also introduced to another ritualistic procedure, referred to as the “law of jealousy,” to determine whether a wife had committed adultery or not:

“This is the law of jealousy, when a wife, while under her husband’s authority, goes astray and defiles herself, or when the spirit of jealousy comes upon a man, and he becomes jealous of his wife; then he shall stand the woman before the LORD, and the priest shall execute all this law upon her” (Numbers 5:29–30).

Another example from the Old Testament notes a ritualistic law of purification regarding a person who was in or entered a tent in which a man had died:

“This is the law when a man dies in a tent: All who come into the tent and all who are in the tent shall be unclean seven days… on the seventh day he shall purify himself, wash his clothes, and bathe in water; and at evening he shall be clean” (Numbers 19:14, 19).

All of these examples serve to illustrate the point that the words “the law”—based on the context in which they are used—can apply to just a portion of the entire law of God, and when those particular laws are abolished, they do not nullify the rest of God’s laws.

The word “law” must always be viewed in context. This is true for both the Old and the New Testaments. We already saw that the word “law” in Galatians 3, Romans 5, and Hebrews 10 does not refer to the entirety of God’s laws, nor to the Ten Commandments at all. Rather, they refer to the laws or the legal system pertaining to washings, rituals and sacrifices. This became evident as we viewed those passages in context with the rest of the Scriptures.

This biblical principle must be applied throughout. For instance, some have carelessly assumed, when reading the 21st chapter of the book of Acts, that Paul was accused of not living by the Ten Commandments. A careful review of this passage will show, however, that it does not deal with the Ten Commandments at all.

We read in Acts 21:18–24, “On the following day Paul went in with us to James, and all the elders were present. When he had greeted them, he told in detail those things which God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry. And when they heard it, they glorified the Lord. And they said to him, ‘You see, brother, how many myriads of Jews there are who have believed, and they are all zealous for the law; but they have been informed about you that you teach all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circumcise their children nor to walk according to the customs. What then? The assembly must certainly meet, for they will hear that you have come. Therefore do what we tell you: We have four men who have taken a vow. Take them and be purified with them, pay their expenses so that they may shave their heads, and that all may know that those things of which they were informed concerning you are nothing, but that you yourself also walk orderly and keep the law.’”

What “law” is this passage talking about? The law of the Ten Commandments? Note that the specific context is circumcision, purification, and other rituals in connection with the making of a vow. Consider also what Paul actually did do when following the “customs” of the Jews: “Then Paul took the men, and the next day, having been purified with them, entered the temple to announce the expiration of the days of purification, at which time an offering should be made for each one of them” (verse 26).

The reference to the “law” or the “customs” is solely in regard to that portion in the writings of Moses that dealt with sacrifices, washings and rituals—in other words, the “law that was added,” and not the Ten Commandments at all.

We might add here that it was of course not sinful for Paul to participate in these customs, although they were no longer required. Paul said that he became a Jew to the Jews in order to win some (1 Corinthians 9:20). And, although he had made it clear that circumcision was no longer required [see the detailed discussion later in this booklet], he still circumcised Timothy, for the Jews’ sake, in order not to place a stumbling block before them (Acts 16:1–3).

We have seen, from the previous examples that the word “law” must always be examined in context. It can refer to the entirety of God’s laws or it can refer just to a portion of God’s laws. We learned that the word “law” sometimes refers to the sacrificial system that was established or “added” one year after God spoke the Ten Commandments to ancient Israel.

If one does not differentiate between God’s spiritual laws (including the law of the Ten Commandments) and the laws of sacrifices and rituals, one is bound to make devastating mistakes in understanding the Bible. Let us therefore note a few more examples that clearly distinguish between God’s spiritual law that existed since the creation of man, and the ritual and sacrificial law system “that was added” at the time of Moses.

God makes this distinction very clear in Jeremiah 7:22–23: “For I did not speak to your fathers, or command them in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, concerning burnt offerings or sacrifices [In fact, those commands God gave one year later]. But this is what I commanded them, saying, ‘Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be My people. And walk in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well with you.’”

God Himself is teaching us an important concept here. He commanded the Israelites to walk in all His ways—and this did not include the bringing of sacrifices! God’s spiritual law—the Ten Commandments—and the statutes and judgments that further define God’s spiritual law, knew nothing about sacrifices. The sacrificial system was added because the Israelites did not obey God’s spiritual law.

In Jeremiah 6:19–20, God emphasizes this same truth: “Hear, O earth! Behold, I will certainly bring calamity on this people—The fruit of their thoughts, Because they have not heeded My words Nor My law, but rejected it. For what purpose to Me Comes frankincense from Sheba, And sweet cane from a far country? Your burnt offerings are not acceptable, Nor your sacrifices sweet to Me.”

The people brought sacrifices, yet rejected God’s law. Obviously, God is speaking here about two different sets of “laws.” The Israelites kept the sacrificial law, but they did not keep God’s spiritual law of the Ten Commandments. Nowhere in all of God’s word is He ever displeased with those who do keep His great spiritual laws, including the Ten Commandments.

Another clear distinction between the system of sacrifices (that was added to bring people to Christ) and God’s spiritual law is made in Psalm 40:6–8: “Sacrifice and offering You did not desire; My ears You have opened. Burnt offering and sin offering You did not require. Then I said, Behold, I come; in the scroll of the book it is written of me. I delight to do Your will, O my God, And Your law is within my heart.”

Originally, it was not God’s will, nor was it part of God’s spiritual law, to bring sacrifices. Rather, the requirement of sacrifices was added after Israel had broken God’s spiritual law. Again, we see that the word “law” must be carefully examined, in context, in order to come to a correct understanding.

As we will discuss later in this booklet in much more detail, God made a covenant with Israel at Mount Sinai. We read in Exodus 24 that the covenant was sealed with blood. When that happened, the covenant was final and could not be altered. The law of the covenant was written in a book, the “Book of the Covenant” (verse 7; compare Hebrews 9:19–20). At that time, the sacrificial system was not a part of the law—those ritual provisions had not been given yet—and they were not written in the Book of the Covenant. The only sacrifice that is mentioned as a required sacrifice is the Passover (Exodus 23:18; Exodus 12). Yet, even this Passover sacrifice found its fulfillment in the death of Jesus Christ. Christians do not now offer lambs in sacrifice for Passover—rather, Paul shows: “For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us” (1 Corinthians 5:7).

There is also a reference to an altar on which offerings could be made (Exodus 20:22–26), but these offerings were not part of a mandatory sacrificial system. Even before Sinai, people gave voluntary offerings (Cain and Abel, Genesis 4:3–5; Noah, Genesis 8:20–21; Abram, Genesis 15:9–11; Abraham, Genesis 22:13; Jacob, Genesis 31:54; 35:14; Israel, Genesis 46:1). The offerings mentioned in Exodus 20 were voluntary—they are identified as burnt and peace offerings (verse 24). Interestingly, sin and trespass offerings are not mentioned. They are only described as a part of the sacrificial system—to remind the people of their sins and trespasses—for the first time in Leviticus 4 and 5.

The covenant at Horeb originally did not include the sacrificial system. Neither did the Book of the Covenant contain such ritual regulations. But as time went on, ritual laws were added, including the laws regarding the Levitical priesthood and penalties or curses for violations of God’s spiritual law, and those did find their way into the Book of the Covenant, which is also called the Book of the Law of Moses (Deuteronomy 28:58, 61; 29:20–21, 27, 29; 31:9).

This Book of the Law was placed outside or beside the ark of the covenant (Deuteronomy 31:24–26). The tablets with the Ten Commandments, however, were placed inside the ark (Deuteronomy 10:4–5; Hebrews 9:4).

Later, all the laws that had been written by Moses into the Book of the Law were engraved on massive stones (Deuteronomy 27:2–3, 8; Joshua 8:30–32, 34). The laws that were written on the stones included the Ten Commandments, along with the statutes and judgments, and also the rules and regulations regarding sacrifices and other rituals. We find a reference to those stones and the laws that had been engraved on them in 2 Corinthians 3:7–8, “But if the ministry of death, written and engraved on stones, was glorious… how will the ministry of the Spirit not be more glorious?”

The reference to the ministry of death includes the death penalty for violating God’s spiritual law. The penalties were first written in the Book of the Law of Moses and then engraved on massive stones. Since Christ died for us, we don’t have to pay the death penalty, if we repent of our sins and obtain forgiveness. In addition, the ritual sacrificial laws, which were among the laws written on stones, could not forgive sins—they only reminded the sinners of their sins. The Levitical priesthood was, in that sense, a ministry of death, as people would still not be able to obtain eternal life, even though they brought sacrifices.

With that background, we should be able to better understand what Paul is telling us in Galatians 3:10–13, where he speaks about the “works of the law.” In reading this passage, remember to consider the context to see what specific law this passage has reference to. Beginning in verse 10, “For as many as are of the works of the law [including the sacrificial and ritual works that had to be performed] are under the curse; for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do them.’ But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for ‘the just shall live by faith.’ Yet the law is not of faith, but ‘the man who does them [i.e., the rituals and sacrifices] shall live by them [that is, God did not kill them as long as they lived within the sacrificial system.].’ Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree’).”

Anyone who did not continue in everything, which was written in the Book of the Law, including the regulations pertaining to washings, rituals and sacrifices, was cursed. Although the Book of the Law included, of course, the Ten Commandments and its spiritual statutes and judgments, it also included the physical works of the law, that is, the sacrificial system, as well as the death penalties for the violations of God’s law.

Paul’s statement, then, that the law was added because of transgression (Galatians 3:19), refers to that part of the law or laws in the Book of the Law which have to do with sacrifices and other rituals, as well as the curses or penalties for violating God’s spiritual law.

We need to keep firmly in mind that “the Book of the Law of Moses,” sometimes referred to as “the law of Moses,” included all kinds of laws. We must therefore be careful not to draw hasty conclusions when we read about the Book of the Law in the New Testament. Again, we always need to analyze in context, which particular and specific lawsthe author is talking about.

For instance, we read in Acts 15:5, “But some of the sect of the Pharisees who believed rose up, saying, ‘It is necessary to circumcise them [Gentiles who became Christians], and to command them to keep the law of Moses.’”

The context of the discussion shows us that they were not arguing about the Ten Commandments—including the Sabbath—but whether circumcision and other rituals contained in the Law of Moses were mandatory for Gentile Christians. Now, notice, how this question was decided in the first ministerial conference in Jerusalem. Notice that it is James who is saying these words—the same apostle who later talked about the Ten Commandments as a package, saying that we are guilty of violating them all if we break even one of the Ten: “‘Therefore I judge that we should not trouble those from among the Gentiles who are turning to God, but that we write to them to abstain from things polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from things strangled, and from blood’” (Acts 15:19–20; compare also Acts 15: 28–29).

James was not talking about the Ten Commandments. But, why does James specifically mention that the Gentiles must abstain from idols, sexual immorality, strangled meat and blood? These four aspects in the Law of Moses were mentioned here in connection with rituals and sacrifices (Leviticus 17:7, 10). Gentiles would often times drink blood with their sacrifices, or they would eat their sacrifices with the blood still in the meat (as happens when animals are strangled), or they would commit fornication with temple prostitutes. So that there would be no misunderstanding, the apostles and elders clarified to the Gentiles that those laws, although mentioned in the context of the sacrificial system, were still valid and binding on them.

Christ did not come to do away with God’s spiritual law of the Ten Commandments. He stated in Matthew 5:17 that He had not come to destroy the law, but to fulfill it—to magnify it, to exalt it and to make it more honorable (Isaiah 42:21), to fill it up with its intended meaning, to show how to keep it perfectly in the flesh. The Greek word for “fulfill” is “pleroo.” It literally means “to fill” or “to make full” (Young’s Analytical Concordance to the Bible). In Matthew 3:15 it is used in this context: “…it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.”

In Philippians 2:2, Paul states, “…fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love.” Further, Paul reminds the saints in Colosse that he became a minister to “fulfill the word of God” (Colossians 1:25), and he admonishes Archippus to “take heed to the ministry which you have received in the Lord, that you may fulfill it” (Colossians 4:17). None of these passages convey the thought that something has ended—rather, the obvious understanding is that something should be continued to be filled with meaning, or to be brought to perfection.

Since Christ did abolish the sacrificial system, He did not talk about that law in Matthew 5:17. Rather, He stated in that passage that He had not come to do away with God’s spiritual law—the Ten Commandments and all the Old and New Testament statutes and judgments that define and magnify the Ten Commandments even more.

After all, we read that God’s spiritual law, as defined in the Ten Commandments, the statutes and the judgments, “stand[s] fast forever and ever” (Psalm 111:7–8), and that it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away “than for one tittle of the law to fail” (Luke 16:17). A tittle is the smallest stroke in a Hebrew letter.

Some quote a statement in Romans 10:4 to support the idea that Christ did away with God’s spiritual law. We read there, “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.” Here the word for “end” in the Greek is “teleos” and means, “goal, aim, result.” James 5:11 states that we saw the “end [teleos in Greek] intended by the Lord—that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful.” In 1 Peter 1:9, we are told to “receiv[e] the end [teleos in Greek] of your faith—the salvation of your souls.”

Therefore, the law did not end with Christ, but rather it was the end result of the law to lead us to Christ. The law then helps us to become like Christ. And the living Christ in us helps us to become righteous and live in righteousness (Romans 8:3–4).

Others quote Romans 6:14, stating that we are no longer “under law but under grace,” saying this means we don’t have to obey the law anymore. However, the correct meaning of this passage is that when we violate the law, we are no longer under the curse of the law—the death penalty—as the blood of Christ, given to us by grace, has covered and forgiven our sins—has paid the death penalty that we earned. Paul explains in the very next verse (verse 15), that this does not mean that we can now continue to sin—that is, to break God’s law. Rather, we are now to be “slaves of righteousness” (verse 18), in keeping God’s law.

We find another interesting reference to a “law” in the seventh chapter of the book of Hebrews. As we will analyze this passage, we will clearly see that it does not address the Ten Commandments at all. Rather, it discusses tithing. Many who read this passage become confused, believing that God did away with His command to tithe, that is, to give to God ten percent of our income. But God had told His people in Malachi 3:8–10, “Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me! But you say, ‘In what way have we robbed You?’ In tithes and offerings. You are cursed with a curse, For you have robbed Me, even this whole nation. Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, That there may be food in My house, And try Me now in this, Says the LORD of hosts, If I will not open for you the windows of heaven And pour out for you such blessing That there will not be room enough to receive it.”

Jesus Christ confirmed that the tithing law was still in effect at the time of His first coming. While emphasizing that tithing is not an end in itself, He nevertheless endorsed its validity: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone” (Matthew 23:23).

Some say that Christ did away with the law of tithing when He died. They support their claim by referring to the seventh chapter of the book of Hebrews. They misunderstand, however, what this passage tells us. Let’s read Hebrews 7:5 and understand what it says: “And indeed those who are of the sons of Levi, who receive the priesthood, have a commandment to receive tithes from the people according to the law.”

The law referred to here is the law of the Levites—that portion of the laws of God that regulates the collection of tithes through the Levites. Note how that portion of God’s laws is referred to in Nehemiah 12:44: “And at the same time some were appointed over the rooms of the storehouse for the offerings, the firstfruits, and the tithes, to gather into them from the fields of the cities the portions specified by the Law for the priests and Levites.” The Levites had been given the right, from God, to collect tithes. God had issued a specific law to grant them such responsibility.

Back in Hebrews 7, let’s continue in verses 11–12: “Therefore, if perfection were through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need was there that another priest should rise according to the order of Melchizedek, and not be called according to the order of Aaron?For the priesthood being changed, of necessity there is also a change in the law.”

The law that was changed had to do with the Levitical priesthood. It is referred to as “the law of a fleshly commandment” (Hebrews 7:16), as the Levites were human beings—flesh and blood. That portion of the entirety of God’s laws giving authority to the Levites to collect tithes was “annulled,” as we read in verse 18, “because of its weakness and unprofitableness.” The Levites were weak by reason of human nature. The law that gave them the right to collect tithes “made nothing perfect” (verse 19). But the “change of that law for the Levites” did not do away with the commandment to give tithes—it had only to do with who has the right today to collect tithes from God’s people.

In fact, the tithing law was in existence long before the law was given to the Levites to collect those tithes. Notice Hebrews 7:9: “Even Levi, who receives tithes, paid tithes through Abraham, so to speak, for he was still in the loins of his father when Melchizedek met him.” We read about this incident in Genesis 14:20, where Abraham gave Melchizedek “a tithe of all.” Later, Jacob told God that he would accept God as His God and give Him a tithe if He were to bless him (Genesis 28:20–22).

God’s people, we see, paid a tithe of their income long before there were Levites to collect tithes. And today, it’s no longer the Levites who have the responsibility to collect God’s tithes. This right has now been given to “another priest” who arose “according to the order of Melchizedek”—Jesus Christ. He is the everlasting High Priest who collects the tithes today—and He does it through His spiritual body, the Church.

Notice Hebrews 7:28: “For the law [regulating the collection of tithes through the Levites] appoints as high priests men who have weaknesses, but the word of the oath, which came after the law [pertaining to the Levites], appoints the Son who has been perfected forever.”

Christ, who is a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek” (verse 17), was none other than Melchizedek himself. Melchizedek is described as the “king of peace, without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, remain[ing] a priest continually” (verses 2–3). It is said about Melchizedek that he “receives them [tithes], of whom it is witnessed that he lives” (verse 8).

We are still duty-bound to pay tithes; otherwise, we rob God and are under a curse. But it is no longer the Levites who are to collect the tithes. That part of the law was changed. It is now Christ—through His Church—who has the responsibility of collecting God’s tithes. The word “law” in Hebrews 7 does not talk about the abolishment of collecting the tithes—it only refers to the identity of the one who is charged today with collecting them.

We have seen so far that the key scriptures that have been quoted to support the idea that the Ten Commandments, as well as the statutes and judgments, are no longer in effect today, do not at all prove such a concept—in fact, they prove the opposite.

Still, the carnal mind—which is hostile toward the law of God—does not give up easily. Inspired by Satan who hates God and His law, humans have come up with another idea as to why they think that they don’t have to obey God. And this is essentially how that argument goes:

God’s Ten Commandments are no longer in force today, as they, as well as all the other Old Testament laws, are allegedly identical with the Old Covenant, and since God abolished the Old Covenant, He also abolished the Ten Commandments and all the other Old Testament laws. Christ, so the argument goes, replaced the Old Covenant (allegedly identical with all of the Old Testament laws) with a New Covenant, and this New Covenant is allegedly identical with a New Law. This “New Law” allegedly includes, for instance, nine of the original Ten Commandments, but it leaves out the fourth commandment (to keep the Sabbath holy), as well as the statutes regarding the annual Holy Days, tithing, or clean and unclean meat, just to name a few.

Surprisingly, many have fallen for this argument and have concluded that they do not have to keep the Sabbath or the annual Holy Days anymore, and that they don’t have to tithe nor refrain from unclean meats.

What about this argument? Is it valid? Or can it be proven to be wrong from the Bible? Is—as the advocates of this argument claim—the Old Covenant identical with the Ten Commandments? As we will see in the remainder of this booklet, the answer to this question is a resounding, NO!

Quite frankly, the idea that the Old Covenant is identical with the Ten Commandments is rather silly and only shows an absolute ignorance of what a covenant is. The word “covenant,” as used in the Old Testament, is a translation from the Hebrew word “berith.” The meaning of this term is “covenant, agreement or contract.”

The Bible mentions numerous covenants or contracts. Technically, it is incorrect to say that the Bible only speaks about the “Old” and the “New” Covenants.

Webster defines a “covenant” as a “usually formal, binding agreement between two or more persons, to do or not to do something; a document containing the terms of the agreement.”

Today, we still use this kind of language in legal matters to show what a covenant is. It is very common to begin a written lease agreement as follows, “We hereby covenant and agree…”

Rienecker, in Lexikon zur Bibel, writes, “The Bible knows quite a few Godly covenants…”

Once we understand that a covenant is merely a contract or an agreement, the fact that the Bible speaks about more than just one or two covenants should not surprise us. Neither should we be surprised by the fact that a covenant is not identical with the law—rather, a covenant or contract is based on law.

Let’s take an example. You might want to buy a car from me, and we might reduce our oral agreement to writing. The document might say, that you buy a used car from me for the amount of $3,000.00. The document might also say that California law applies to this transaction. Assume that you don’t have the money to pay for the car. Under those changed circumstances, we might declare the contract to be null and void. In other words, I don’t have to deliver the car to you and you don’t have to pay me money (that you don’t have, anyway). But, when we annul the contract and tear apart the written document, have we thereby invalidated the California law on which the contract was based? Of course not.

We can learn from this example a very important lesson: When a contract or a covenant, which is based on law becomes invalid, it does not automatically invalidate the law on which the contract is based. The abolishment of a covenant does not affect the validity of the law on which the covenant is based.

As we will see, the Bible confirms the basic truth that a covenant is not identical with the law. In fact, God entered into covenants with people because they had kept the law!

Let us take a closer look at the many covenants, which God has made with man over the centuries. We will see that there were numerous covenants in effect before God ever made a covenant with the nation of Israel at the time of Moses.

God’s Covenant With Noah

One of the most famous covenants that God made with man is the covenant with Noah. While God destroyed the entire earth through a flood because of the wickedness of all flesh, He spared Noah, his wife, and his three sons and daughters-in-law, as well as certain land animals, by protecting them in an ark.

Notice how the covenant is described in Genesis 9:9–17: “‘And as for Me, behold, I establish My covenant with you and with your descendants after you, and with every living creature that is with you… Thus I establish My covenant with you: Never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood; never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.’ And God said: ‘This is the sign of the covenant which I make between Me and you, and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth… (verse 15) and I will remember My covenant which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. The rainbow shall be in the cloud, and I will look on it to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.’ And God said to Noah, ‘This is the sign of the covenant which I have establishedbetween Me and all flesh that is on the earth.’”

God explained very clearly in the preceding verses what a covenant is. It is a contract or an agreement between two or more parties. In today’s language, we would say, God made a contract between Himself and Noah, which included benefits for third parties (i.e., Noah’s descendants and all the animals). The subject matter of this contract was the fact that all flesh would never again be destroyed through a worldwide flood. The length of time or duration of this contract was forever—never again would God bring a flood over this earth to destroy all flesh. To put it differently, as long as there would be flesh on this earth, God would not destroy it through a worldwide flood. In addition, there was also a sign of the covenant—the rainbow. Every time God would see a rainbow in the sky, it would remind Him that He promised to Noah—by and through a covenant with him—that He would never again destroy the earth with a flood.

Why was it that God even made a covenant with Noah? Did Noah’s lifestyle have any influence on God’s decision to make a covenant with him? Was it immaterial to God how Noah lived—what kind of a person he was?

Genesis 6:8–9 and 7:1 reveal: “…Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD. This is the genealogy of Noah. Noah was a just man, perfect in his generations. Noah walked with God… Then the LORD said to Noah, ‘Come into the ark, you and all your household, because I have seen that you are righteous before Me in this generation.’”

While the “wickedness of man was great in the earth, and… every intent of the thought of his heart was only evil continually,” (Genesis 6:5) Noah was “righteous.” We already know that righteousness is defined as the observance of all of God’s commandments (Psalm 119:172). God saved Noah and made a covenant with him because Noah was righteous—because he kept God’s law. And Noah stayed righteous, or obedient, even after God announced to him that He would make a covenant with him (Genesis 6:18, 22; 7:5, 16).

Recall that a covenant is not identical with the law, but that it is based on law. God made a covenant with Noah because he kept God’s laws. However, the covenant itself that God made with Noah does not mention any laws. This fact alone proves that God’s covenant with Noah was not identical with God’s laws.

Notice an interesting passage in Isaiah 24:5–6: “The earth is also defiled under its inhabitants, Because they have transgressed the laws, Changed the ordinance, Broken the everlasting covenant. Therefore the curse has devoured the earth, And those who dwell in it are desolate. Therefore the inhabitants of the earth are burned, And few men are left.”

The prophet Isaiah tells us that the inhabitants of the earth have transgressed the laws—that is, they have sinned—and that they have broken the everlasting covenant. Isaiah is not stuttering here or repeating himself. To break the laws and to break the everlasting covenant are two different things. But what everlasting covenant did Isaiah have in mind? The only covenant mentioned in Scripture that is between God and all the inhabitants of the earth is God’s covenant with Noah. God made this covenant with man after He had brought on the flood as punishment for man’s sins.

Since man would continue sinning, God announces in Isaiah 24 that He would bring a curse of FIRE over the earth. We see, then, that God keeps His covenant with Noah—He will not destroy all flesh again through a worldwide flood. But sin has its price, and God will bring FIRE over this earth, at the time of Christ’s return, to devour those who do not live as Noah had lived (2 Thessalonians 1:6–8).

God made a covenant with Noah because Noah had obeyed God. God’s covenant with Noah did not establish or bring into existence any laws, but it was made, of course, on the basis of existing law.

Clean and Unclean Animals

Let’s also note, in passing, that the laws of clean and unclean meat were already in existence at the time of Noah—they did not come into existence at the time of Moses. Noah was specifically told by God to take with him into the ark “seven each of every clean animal, a male and a female; two each of animals that are unclean, a male and a female” (Genesis 7:2. Compare also verse 8). Noah offered a burnt offering to God “of every clean animal and of every clean bird” (Genesis 8:20).

The covenant that God made later with Israel had no effect on the laws of clean and unclean animals—they were already in force long before that covenant was made. And nowhere does God teach us that we are now permitted to eat unclean animals. Notice the curse that God pronounces over those who, at the time of Christ’s return, eat swine’s flesh (Isaiah 66:17; 65:3–4).

God’s Covenants With Abraham, Isaac and Jacob

In due course, God chose to make another covenant with man—this time with Abram.

God’s First Covenant With Abram

We are introduced to that covenant in Genesis 15:18, where we read, “On the same day the LORD MADE a covenant with Abram, saying: ‘To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the River Euphrates.’”

Notice that God actually MADE that covenant—or contract—with Abram on that very same day when He said those words. The subject matter of that covenant was the conveyance of land to Abram’s descendants.

God’s Second Covenant With Abram

As time went on, God would make an ADDITIONAL covenant with Abram. We read about this next contract in the 17th chapter of the book of Genesis: “(verse 1) When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, ‘I am Almighty God; walk before Me and be blameless. And I WILL MAKE My covenant between Me and you, and will multiply you exceedingly… (verse 4) As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, and you shall be a father of many nations. (verse 5) No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations. (verse 6) I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you. (verse 7) And I WILL ESTABLISH My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you.”

This is a new covenant with Abram. It is not the same covenant that God had made with Abram earlier. Though the subject matter of this new covenant includes the conveyance of the land of Canaan to Abram’s descendants (verse 8), it goes beyond that—it involves the promise that many nations and kings would descend from Abraham, and it includes the promise that the Eternal would be God for Abraham and his descendants.

We are also told in Romans 4:13 that God’s covenant was not limited to the land of Canaan; rather, God’s promise to Abraham and his descendants would ultimately include the whole earth.

God’s Third Covenant With Abram, Now Called Abraham

Returning to Genesis 17, we find that God made with Abraham a third covenant—the covenant of circumcision. Beginning in verse 10, “This is My covenant which you shall keep, between Me and you and your descendants after you: Every male child among you shall be circumcised.” We see here that circumcision was a separate covenant. The deacon, Stephen, would later explain to the Jewish council that God gave Abraham “the covenant of circumcision” (Acts 7:8). It is true that circumcision is also referred to as a sign of the covenant (Genesis 17:11) that God was about to make with Abraham (as described in Genesis 17:1–7). This reminds us of the rainbow, which was a sign of the covenant between God and Noah. Nevertheless, circumcision was also a separate covenant between God and Abraham.

God’s Fourth Covenant With Abraham

Realize that, in addition to physical promises of national greatness and kingship, God’s covenant relationship with Abraham also included spiritual promises. Notice Acts 3:25–26, “You are sons of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’ To you first, God, having raised up His Servant Jesus, sent Him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from your iniquity” (Luke 1:72–75).

It is noteworthy that these spiritual promises that God gave to Abraham in a covenant are not mentioned in the 17th chapter of Genesis. They are mentioned, however, in Genesis 22:16–18 and in Genesis 26:4. From this, it is apparent that God made even an additional covenant with Abraham, pertaining to spiritual matters, subsequent to His earlier covenants that dealt with physical matters.

It was promised to Abraham that his Seed—Jesus Christ—would give Abraham and his descendants spiritual blessings. In the book of Galatians, Paul made it clear that all the promises to Abraham—physical and spiritual—were also made to Jesus Christ, as the Seed or Descendant of Abraham, and to us, if we are Christ’s and therefore “Abraham’s seed”:

“Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, ‘And to seeds,’ as of many, but as of one, ‘and to your Seed,’ who is Christ… And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Galatians 3:16, 29).

God’s Covenants With Isaac and Jacob

In Genesis 17:21 God promised Abraham that He would make a covenant with Abraham’s son, Isaac: “But My covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this set time next year.” And so He did, and subsequently, God made another covenant with Jacob whose name was later changed to Israel.

It is important to recognize that God made these covenants with Isaac and with Israel on an individual basis, just as He had entered into different covenants or agreements with Abraham. This again shows what a covenant is—simply a contract or an agreement, based on law, but not identical with the law.

Notice the following scripture that tells us about the covenants that God made with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob: “I will remember My covenant with Jacob, and My covenant with Isaac and My covenant with Abraham I will remember; I will remember the land” (Leviticus 26:42).

Although the subject matter of these three covenants was identical, God still made individual covenants with Abraham, his son, and his grandson, as the parties were different.

Why God Made Covenants With Abraham

Why was it that God made a covenant with Abram or Abraham in the first place? We saw that God made a covenant with Noah because Noah was righteous. Can the same be said about Abram?

We read the following testimony about Abram, before God made a covenant with him: “And he believed in the LORD, and He accounted it to him for righteousness” (Genesis 15:6). Afterwards, God made a covenant with him (Genesis 15:18).

Abram’s faith was one of obedience (Romans 1:5; 16:26). We read that “by faith Abraham obeyed” (Hebrews 11:8). Abraham’s righteousness was by faith, which motivated him to keep God’s commandments and not to sin. We are told in Nehemiah 9:7–8: “You are the LORD God, Who chose Abram, And brought him out of Ur of the Chaldeans, And gave him the name Abraham; You found his heart faithful before You, And made a covenant with him to Give the land of the Canaanites… to his descendants. You have performed Your words, For You are righteous.”

We see that God first found Abraham’s heart faithful, then, He made a covenant with him. After God had already made His covenants with him, Abraham stayed loyal and faithful, as Noah had done. Abraham did not refuse to obey God in the most difficult of circumstances, and because of his ongoing obedience, God told him, in Genesis 22:18: “In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.” We also read in Genesis 26:3–5, that God made His promises, by covenants, to Abraham, “because Abraham obeyed My voice and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My laws” (verse 5).

We see, then, that God made covenants with Abraham because he had lived an obedient life. God knew that Abraham would teach his descendants God’s law and that, as a consequence, Isaac and—to an extent, Jacob—would also live righteously. He said in Genesis 18:19: “For I have known him, in order that he may command his children and his household after him, that they keep the way of the LORD, to do righteousness and justice, that the LORD may bring to Abraham what He has spoken to him.” But it was because of Abraham’s faith and righteousness that God entered into a covenant relationship with Abraham and his descendants. God gave Abraham an unconditional promise that He would make covenants with Isaac and Jacob, and later with the entire nation of Israel, to give that nation the Promised Land. The nation of Israel was not to inherit any spiritual blessings, but they were to possess the physical land of Canaan, and they would be allowed to dwell there—but only as long as they stayed obedient.

Abraham is actually called the friend of God in numerous places (James 2:23; 2 Chronicles 20:7; Isaiah 41:8). This means that Abraham agreed with God as to how to live, because two cannot walk together unless they are agreed (Amos 3:3). Abraham lived in obedience to God’s laws, and that is why God called him His friend and entered into agreements with him.

We understand, then, that the covenants God made with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob were not identical with God’s laws, but they were made because Abraham had kept God’s laws.

God’s Covenants With the Nation of Israel, Under Moses

As time went on, the nation of Israel found itself enslaved by the Egyptians. God sent a deliverer, Moses, who was used to bring Israel out of slavery and to lead them to Mount Zion. At that time, God began to enter into a covenant relationship with the people. As we will see, God made several covenants or agreements with the nation of Israel—not just one. And there was a particular reason why God made such covenants with the people—covenants that included God’s promise to bring the nation into the Promised Land.

Moses tells the people the reason in Deuteronomy 9:5: “It is not because of your righteousness or the uprightness of your heart that you go in to possess their land, but because of the wickedness of these nations that the LORD your God drives them out from before you, and that He may fulfill the word which the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.”

Later, God had Jeremiah explain this same reason to the nation of Judah. We read in Jeremiah 11:3–5, “Thus says the LORD God of Israel: ‘Cursed is the man who does not obey the words of this covenant which I commanded your fathers in the day I brought them out of the land of Egypt, from the iron furnace, saying, Obey My voice, and do according to all that I command you; so shall you be My people, and I will be your God, that I may establish the oath which I have sworn to your fathers, to give them a land flowing with milk and honey, as it is this day.’”

God made a covenant with the nation of Israel at the time when He brought them out of slavery to fulfill His unconditional promise that He had made, through a covenant or agreement, to Abraham, later to Isaac, and then to Jacob. But, as we will see, God expected of the nation to obey Him—at least in a general way. Since God never offered them the gift of the Holy Spirit, He knew that they could not obey Him in the same way we can today. Still, God expected obedience to an extent. In fact, when they refused to do so, He expelled them from the land. Let’s note the specific circumstances and conditions under which this agreement between God and the nation of Israel was entered.

God’s First Covenant With the Nation of Israel

We read in Exodus 19 that God instructed Moses to make the people an offer of a covenant or an agreement. We also read that the people accepted the offer; thus an agreement was reached. Exodus 19:5–6 says, “Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel.”

Note the people’s response to God’s offer in Exodus 19:8: “Then all the people answered together and said, All that the LORD has spoken we will do. So Moses brought back the words of the people to the LORD.”

God and the people had agreed, in principle, on the terms of the covenant. God then explained the foundation of this covenant—what the covenant would be based on—by speaking the Ten Commandments directly to the people and by giving Moses additional statutes and judgments to be communicated to the people (Exodus 20:1–Exodus 23:33). These were the “words of the LORD” that Moses wrote down in the Book of the Covenant.

And, as is the case with many contracts today, something else was necessary to make the covenant binding and “enforceable.” Today, we may need notarization of a written agreement. At the time of Moses, the covenant had to be sealed with blood of animals, as noted in Exodus 24:3–8: “So Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD and all the judgments. And all the people answered [again, a second time] with one voice and said, All the words which the LORD has said we will do. And Moses wrote all the words of the LORD… Then he sent young men of the children of Israel, who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of the oxen to the LORD… Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read in the hearing of the people. And they said [for the third time], All that the LORD has said we will do, and be obedient. And Moses took the blood, sprinkled it on the people, and said, This is the blood of the covenant which the LORD has made with youaccording to all these words.”

So we see that the blood of the covenant “sealed” the contract—now it was confirmed or legally binding. Galatians 3:15 explains that no subsequent unilateral changes can be made, even to a contract between humans, once it is sealed and delivered: “Though it is only a man’s covenant, yet if it is confirmed, no one annuls or adds to it.”

The subject matter of God’s covenant with the nation of Israel at that time was simply this: If Israel were obedient to the words of God, which formed the basis of the covenant, then they would become a kingdom of priests. Note in verse 8 that God made the covenant with the nation “according to all these words.” The New International Version and the Revised Standard Version translate, “…the covenant that [or, which] the LORD has made with you in accordance with all these words.”

Lamsa and the Authorized Version say, “…the covenant which the LORD has [or, hath] made with you concerning all these words.” Moffat reads, “This is the blood of the compact which the Eternal has made with you, on all these terms.” The Revised English Bible states, “This is the blood of the covenant which the LORD has made with you on the terms of this book.”

A Covenant Is Based On Law

All of these translations show clearly that the covenant, a contract or agreement, was made based on God’s words. God’s law was the basis of, or foundation for the covenant. The covenant did not bring God’s law into existence, nor was it identical with God’s law—rather, the contract or covenant was made on the basis of certain terms, in accordance with God’s law. The phrases “according to” or “in accordance with” can also be translated as “based on” or “based upon” or “pursuant to” or “founded upon” or even, “because of.” The German Luther Bible translates Exodus 24:8, “This is the blood of the covenant that God made with you because of all of these words.” The German Menge Bible translates it in a similar fashion: “This is the blood of the covenant which the LORD made with you because of all of these commandments.” The German Elberfelder Bibel translates it this way: “This is the blood of the covenant that the LORD made with you on all of these words.”

So, we understand that God made the covenant with the nation of Israel BASED ON God’s law, including the Ten Commandments. This covenant did not bring the Ten Commandments into existence. This covenant was not identical with the Ten Commandments, nor were the Ten Commandments the only law on which the covenant was based. It was also founded on additional judgments that had been announced to the people.

God’s Second Covenant With the Nation of Israel

Shortly after they had made this agreement with God, the people sinned. When Moses delayed his return from the mountain, they decided that they needed another visible “leader”—and so they built a golden calf to lead them back to Egypt (Exodus 32:1–6). Moses, upon his return, in anger, broke the two tablets of stone on which were written the Ten Commandments (Exodus 32:19). God had Moses cut out two new tablets of stone on which God would again write the Ten Commandments (Exodus 34:1).

Notice what else God said He would do. “Then the LORD said: ‘I AM MAKING a covenant with you’” (Exodus 34:10, NIV). This is indeed the proper translation of the tense—God is referring to a new contract that He was about to enter into with the people. The Living Bible says it in a similar fashion: “This is the contract that I AM GOING TO MAKE with you.” The New American Bible states, “‘Here then,’ said the LORD, ‘is the covenant I WILL MAKE.’”

After Israel sinned against God and broke the first agreement, God was now entering into a second contract with them. There is something else we can learn about this second contract that God was about to make with the people. We read God’s words in Exodus 34:27–28: “Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘Write these words, for according to the tenor of these words I have made a covenant with you and with Israel.’ So He was there with the LORD [another] forty days and forty nights [that is, a second time, after he had broken the tablets]; he neither ate bread nor drank water. And He [that is, God] wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant, the Ten Commandments.”

Covenant Not Identical With The Ten Commandments

Some say that this last passage proves that the Ten Commandments and the covenant were identical, as it says that the Ten Commandments were the words of the covenant. But we just read in the previous verse that God’s covenant was made “according to the tenor” of those words—that is, it was BASED on these words. The Ten Commandments existed already before this covenant was made—so they cannot be identical with the covenant. They are called here the “words of the covenant,” because they were the heart and core—the basis—of the covenant.

Some say that Deuteronomy 4:13 proves that the Ten Commandments and God’s covenant with Israel were identical. But does it? Let’s read it: “So He declared to you His covenant which He commanded you to perform, the Ten Commandments; and He wrote them on two tablets of stone.”

But as is the case with the scripture in Exodus 34:28, this passage in Deuteronomy 4:13 only shows that the Ten Commandments were the heart and core, or the basis, of God’s covenant with Israel. Note how the Revised English Bible translates this verse: “He announced to you the terms of his covenant, bidding you observe the Ten Commandments, which he wrote on two stone tablets.”

In addition, note the very next verse, “And the LORD commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgments, that you might observe them in the land which you cross over to possess” (Deuteronomy 4:14). These additional statutes and judgments were not written on the tablets of stone, but they were written by Moses, in a book, and they, too, were part of the terms of the covenant and had to be obeyed.

Covenants and Laws Are Not Identical!

We read earlier in Isaiah 24:5–6 that God made a distinction between His Law and His covenant with Noah. Through His prophet, He pointed out that the inhabitants of the earth were violating His laws and that they were breaking His covenant. The following additional Scriptures will prove beyond any doubt that the Bible teaches that a covenant and the law on which the covenant is based are different and distinct.

For instance, we are told in Joshua 7:11, “Israel has sinned [remember that sin is the transgression of the LAW], and they have also transgressed My covenant which I commanded them.”

Also in 2 Kings 18:11–12, in the Revised English Bible, “The king of Assyria deported the Israelites to Assyria and settled them… in the cities of Media, because they did not obey the LORD their God but violated His covenant and every commandment that Moses the servant of the LORD had given them; they would not listen and they would not obey.”

We are also informed in Hosea 8:1, in the New American Bible, “… they have violated my covenant, and sinned against my law.”

Further confirmation of the truth that the law and the covenants are distinct from each other can be found in Romans 9:4: “…who are Israelites, to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God, and the promises.”

So we can see that God’s law and God’s covenants are separate and distinct. If God does away with a covenant, that does not mean that He thereby does away with the law on which the covenant was based.

Consequences for Breach of a Covenant

In any given contract, there is a penalty for breach of contract. This is just as true today, as it was at the time of ancient Israel. The legal penalty might be monetary compensatory damages, it might be specific performance of the commitment that had been agreed to, and it might be punitive damages. The contract might even agree in advance to specific damages in case of a breach. We read that God held the nation of Israel accountable for breach of their covenant with Him. Moses prophesied in Leviticus 26:25 that this would happen: “And I will bring a sword against you that will execute the vengeance of the covenant.” Or, as the Moffat Bible reads, “I will let loose the sword of war on you, in punishment for your breach of compact.”

And so we see that God made two covenants with the nation of Israel, under Moses. He made a second one, after they had breached the first one. But, it may come as another surprise that God subsequently made additional covenants with the people of Israel, under Moses.

God’s Third Covenant With the Nation of Israel

Just prior to crossing over the River Jordan to enter the Promised Land, Moses addressed the younger generation. He said in Deuteronomy 29:1, “These are the words of the covenant which the LORD commanded Moses to make with the children of Israel in the land of Moab, besides the covenant which He made with them in Horeb.”

This is an additional covenant or contract. Notice with whom it is being made, verses 14–15: “I make this covenant and this oath, not with you alone, but with him who stands here with us today before the LORD our God, as well as with him who is not here with us today.” This covenant, then, included future generations as well.

As was the case with the previous covenants that God made with the nation of Israel, this third covenant was also made because of the unconditional promises that God had given to Abraham. We read in verse 13 of Deuteronomy 29 that God is making this covenant with the new generation, so “that He may establish you today as a people for Himself, and that He may be God to you, just as He has spoken to you, and just as He has sworn to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.”

If one wants to argue that the Old Covenant is identical with the Ten Commandments, and that the Ten Commandments vanished when the Old Covenant was abolished, which specific covenant is one talking about? Is it the covenant that God made with Israel at Sinai before Israel sinned or after Israel sinned? Or is it the covenant that God made with the nation in Moab? Further, this third covenant was made on the basis of additional laws that had been written in the Book of the Law as time had gone on—laws that had not been the basis for the covenant(s) that God made with Israel at Mount Sinai a generation earlier. As we mentioned before, these additional laws had been added because of sin, and included sacrificial rules, rituals, and other ceremonial washings, as well as curses and penalties.

God’s Fourth Covenant With the Nation of Israel—The Sabbaths Covenant

But perhaps even more surprising, God made yet another covenant with the entire nation of Israel at Sinai, in addition to the covenants that He had made earlier. We are introduced to that separate covenant or agreement in the 31st chapter of the book of Exodus. The subject matter of this covenant was the Sabbath, but this covenant did not bring the Sabbath into existence. This covenant was made long after the Ten Commandments had been announced, and, as we saw earlier, the Sabbath commandment was already in existence since the time of the creation of man. So, we see again that a covenant is not identical with the law, although it is based on law.

We read in Exodus 31:16, “Therefore the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant.”

In addition, the Sabbath law was now designated as a sign between God and Israel. Verses 13 and 17 tell us, “Surely My Sabbaths (this word is in the plural and refers to both weekly and annual Sabbaths or Holy Days) you shall keep, for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the LORD who sanctifies you… It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel forever…”

By observing and being mindful of this sign, Israel would understand that it is God who sanctifies them, and Israel as a nation would become a sign to the other nations of this world, as the keeping of God’s Sabbaths does single one out.

This separate Sabbath covenant between God and His people was never abolished—neither were the laws of God commanding us to keep His weekly and annual Sabbaths holy. And, since Christians are to be spiritual Jews (Romans 2:28–29; Galatians 6:16; Revelation 2:9; 3:9), they have a two-fold obligation to keep God’s Sabbaths—first, because God commands us to do so; and second, because they are under a specific covenant or agreement that God made with both physical and spiritual Israel, for all generations.

God’s Covenant With Aaron And His Descendants

At the time of Moses, God chose to make still another covenant with a part of the nation of Israel—Aaron, of the house of Levi, and his descendants. This additional covenant needs to be examined very closely, as its importance and significance has confused a lot of people.

Numbers 18:19 calls this covenant between God and Aaron and his descendants “a covenant of salt.” The subject matter of this covenant was the Levitical priesthood and the sacrificial system, and especially the right of Aaron and his descendants to eat of the sacrifices. God says, “All the heave offerings of the holy things, which the children of Israel offer to the LORD, I have given to you and your sons and daughters with you as an ordinance forever.”

Compare also Leviticus 24:5, 8–9: “And you shall take fine flour and bake twelve cakes with it…Every Sabbath he shall set it in order before the LORD continually, being taken from the children of Israel by an everlasting covenant. And it shall be for Aaron and his sons, and they shall eat it in a holy place; for it is most holy to him from the offerings of the LORD made by fire, by a perpetual statute.”

These offerings had to be made with salt to signify, among other things, the permanent validity or lasting effect of God’s covenant with the priesthood. Leviticus 2:13 tells us that “…every offering of your grain offering you shall season with salt; you shall not allow the salt of the covenant of your God to be lacking from your grain offering. With all your offerings you shall offer salt.”

In time, the covenant with Aaron was transferred to, or made with, Aaron’s grandson Phinehas and his descendants. When God’s laws were flagrantly violated before all Israel, with at least the tacit approval of the people, Phinehas arose and turned away the wrath of God who was ready to consume the nation.

We are told in Numbers 25:11–13, “Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned back My wrath from the children of Israel, because he was zealous with My zeal among them, so that I did not consume the children of Israel in My zeal. Therefore say, Behold I give to him My covenant of peace; and it shall be to him and his descendants after him a covenant of an everlasting priesthood, because he was zealous for his God, and made atonement for the children of Israel.”

God later elaborated by saying that Phinehas’ conduct “was accounted to him for righteousness to all generations forever” (Psalm 106:31). We read earlier that Abraham’s faith was counted to him as righteousness. Abraham DID something. He proved his living faith by his obedience. The same is true for Phinehas—he DID something that was righteous in the eyes of God—and as a consequence, Phinehas became the recipient of the blessings of the Levitical priesthood that had been bestowed on Aaron and his descendants through a covenant with God.

We find another reference to this covenant in Nehemiah 13:29–30 where Nehemiah was forced to reform the priesthood and cleanse it from pagan influences. We read, “Remember them, O my God, because they have defiled the priesthood and the covenant of the priesthood and the Levites. Thus I cleansed them of everything pagan. I also assigned duties to the priests and the Levites, each to his service.”

God utters a very strict and stern warning in the prophetic book of Malachi, addressing specifically the failure of the Levites—both the physical descendants and the spiritual ministers of God—to stand strong for God’s law in the sight of adversity and compromise (Malachi 2:4–9). Beginning in verse 4, “Then you shall know that I have sent this commandment to you, That My covenant with Levi may continue, Says the LORD of hosts. My covenant was with him, one of life and peace, And I gave them to him that he might fear Me; so he feared Me And was reverent before My name. The law of truth was in his mouth, And injustice was not found on his lips. He walked with Me in peace and equity, And turned many away from iniquity. For the lips of a priest should keep knowledge, And people should seek the law from his mouth; for he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts. But you have departed from the way; You have caused many to stumble at the law. You have corrupted the covenant of Levi, Says the LORD of hosts. Therefore I also have made you contemptible and base Before all the people, Because you have not kept My ways But have shown partiality in the law.”

This prophecy for our day tells us, in verse 4, that God’s covenant with Levi will continue. This means that it is still in force and in effect today. We find this confirmed in the 33rd chapter of the book of Jeremiah where there is an unconditional promise for the perpetual validity of God’s covenant with Levi (Jeremiah 33:18–22): “…nor shall the priests, the Levites, lack a man to offer burnt offerings before Me, to kindle grain offerings, and to sacrifice continually… Thus says the LORD: If you can break My covenant with the day and My covenant with the night, so that there will not be day and night in their season, then My covenant may also be broken … with the Levites, the priests, My ministers. As the host of heaven cannot be numbered, nor the sand of the sea measured, so will I multiply… the Levites who minister to Me.”

These passages clearly tell us that God’s covenant with Levi was to continue—that it is therefore still in force and effect today—and that it will remain so in the future. But how can this be, given the fact that sacrifices are no longer required since the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and that the Jews have ceased bringing sacrifices since the destruction of the temple in 70 A.D.?

These passages in Malachi, and especially in Jeremiah, teach us that as long as and whenever biblical sacrifices are being brought to God in Jerusalem, they will be brought through the descendants of Aaron and Phinehas. And God gave those descendants the right to eat from those sacrifices. We also know that shortly before the return of Jesus Christ, the Jews will again start to bring sacrifices in Jerusalem, apparently in a newly-rebuilt temple. Daniel 12:11 refers to a future time when sacrifices that had commenced will be taken away again and the abomination of desolation will be set up at the holy place (Matthew 24:15). The Jews have recorded the genealogies of the Levites, so they know exactly who the priests are who will bring sacrifices shortly before the coming of the Messiah. We also know that at the beginning of the Millennium sacrifices will be brought again in Jerusalem. The 44th chapter of the prophetic book of Ezekiel explains this in great detail. Verses 15 and 29–30 tell us that “the priests, the Levites, the sons of Zadok,” will bring and eat from the sacrifices.

We must note that those Millennial sacrifices will not be brought for the purpose of forgiveness of sin. Christ’s blood did this once and for all. But God introduced the sacrificial system to ancient Israel because Israel had sinned. The sacrifices served as a reminder of their sins. Apparently, for the same reason, there will be sacrifices brought in the Millennium so that carnal, unconverted people can begin to appreciate the awesome purpose and meaning of Christ’s sacrifice and how God looks at sin. But, as we already saw, the necessity of bringing these sacrifices ceased for Christians with the death and resurrection of Christ. The millennial rule of Jesus Christ will be administered by spirit beings—those who are part of the first resurrection. Satan and his demonic followers will no longer be able to influence mankind. World government will emanate from Jerusalem. In addition, there will be an ongoing physical priesthood serving at that time. The physical sacrifices extant at that future time, which will be brought in Jerusalem at the temple, will be part of the new administration that God’s Kingdom will usher in.

The covenant between God and Levi, then, does continue to exist, that is, the Levitical priests will continue to offer sacrifices in Jerusalem for carnal, unconverted people, both prior to and subsequent to the return of Christ. But as we read, Jesus Christ became the High Priest for converted people. Unless one accepts the sacrifice of Christ, one has no part of that priesthood. However, once we do accept Christ’s sacrifice, our High Priest will then live in us, intervene for us, and lead us to perfection. The Levitical priesthood was not given the function or responsibility to lead carnal people to spiritual perfection. Rather, they presided over the administration of the sacrificial system as a reminder of sin—not for the purpose of forgiving sin.

The sacrificial system and the rules regarding the Levitical priesthood were added after God had made His covenant with the nation of Israel at Mount Sinai or Horeb, because of Israel’s sin. When these regulations were added, they became part of an additional covenant that God made with the nation. The sacrificial system is, of course, not identical with the covenant, as laws—any laws—are different and distinct from covenants. But God made a covenant that now incorporated, or was based on, the additional sacrificial system administered by the Levitical priesthood.

God’s Covenant With David

There is another covenant that God made in Old Testament times, that has tremendous importance for us today and all mankind. That is the covenant that God made with king David of Israel. We read David’s last words as recorded in 2 Samuel 23:3–5: “The God of Israel said, The Rock of Israel spoke to me: ‘He who rules over men must be just, Ruling in the fear of God. And he shall be like the light of the morning when the sun rises, A morning without clouds, Like the tender grass springing out of the earth, By clear shining after rain.’ Although my house is not so with God, Yet He has made with me an everlasting covenant, Ordered in all things and secure.”

Psalm 89:3–4 and 34–37 summarizes for us the subject matter of that covenant between God and David. We read that God says, “I have made a covenant with My chosen, I have sworn to My servant David: Your seed I will establish forever, And build up your throne to all generations… My covenant I will not break, Nor alter the word that has gone out of My lips. Once I have sworn by My holiness; I will not lie to David: His seed shall endure forever, And his throne as the sun before Me; It shall be established forever like the moon, even like the faithful witness in the sky.”

It might have appeared to the Israelites at times that God had broken His covenant with David when He punished them for their transgressions. The truth is that God never abolished His contract with David. He promised David, in a covenant with him, that there would always be a descendant of his sitting on the throne of David, until the very time of Christ’s return, and beyond. We read in 1 Kings 11:11–13 how God remembered His covenant with David, even though David’s son, Solomon, had terribly sinned against God: “Therefore the LORD said to Solomon, ‘Because you have done this, and have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant… However I will not tear away the whole kingdom; I will give one tribe to your son for the sake of My servant David, and for the sake of Jerusalem which I have chosen.’”

God saw to it that one of David’s descendants would always sit on the throne of David. King Abijah of Judah reminded Jeroboam, the servant of Solomon, of this very fact, when he said “Should you not know that the LORD God of Israel gave the dominion over Israel to David forever, to him and his sons, by a covenant of salt?” (2 Chronicles 13:5).

Later, we are told that God did not wipe out the house of David, even though they had begun to rebel against Him. 2 Chronicles 21:7 reads, “Yet the LORD would not destroy the house of David, because of the covenant that He had made with David, and since He had promised to give a lamp to him and to his sons forever.”

Earlier we discussed the 33rd chapter of the book of Jeremiah where God had made a covenant with the house of Levi, guaranteeing that offerings to the LORD would always be brought by the Levitical priesthood. This chapter also makes reference to God’s covenant with the house of David. Jeremiah 33:17 says, “For thus says the LORD: ‘David shall never lack a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel…’” Jeremiah continues in verses 20 and 21, “Thus says the LORD: ‘If you can break My covenant with the day and My covenant with the night, so that there will not be day and night in their season, then My covenant may also be broken with David My servant, so that he shall not have a son to reign on his throne…’” Then in verses 25 and 26, “Thus says the LORD: ‘If My covenant is not with day and night, and if I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth, then I will cast away the descendants of Jacob and David My servant, so that I will not take any of his descendants to be rulers over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.’”

What God is telling us here is simply this: As long as the throne of David exists on earth, one of David’s descendants would sit on that throne. David’s throne is in fact on this earth today. Christ will return to an existing throne, and He, as a descendant of David, will then sit on it and rule from it. The angel Gabriel told Mary, the mother of Jesus, as recorded in Luke 1:31–33, “‘And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus… and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever.’”

Christ will rule from Jerusalem, sitting on the throne of David. When He returns, He will be given that very throne. In the meantime, according to God’s promise, the physical line of David would continue sitting on it, until Christ’s return. Even before Christ’s first coming, as long as the kingdom of Judah existed, a descendant of the house of David sat on the throne of David, ruling over the house of Judah. When king Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon destroyed the kingdom of Judah (the house of Israel had been destroyed before by the Assyrians), the prophet Jeremiah transferred the throne of David from Jerusalem to Ireland, in that he accompanied one of the daughters of king Zedekia of Judah to Ireland, where she married a descendant of David who lived there. The couple then ruled from the throne of David over Ireland. Later, the throne was transferred to Scotland, and in the process of time, it was again transferred to England where it still is today. Christ will be returning to an existing throne, just as God prophesied that He would. This throne will then be transferred to Jerusalem and Christ will rule from there.

Why did God decide to make a covenant with David? God explains in 1 Kings 11:34, “‘However I will not take the whole kingdom out of his [Solomon’s] hand, because I have made him ruler all the days of his life for the sake of My servant David,whom I chose because he kept My commandments and My statutes.’”

God chose David because David was a righteous man who obeyed God to the best of his ability. God referred to David as “a man after My own heart, who will do all My will” (Acts 13:22). And although David was not sinless—since there is no human being who does not sin (1 Kings 8:46; Ecclesiastes 7:20; Romans 3:23; 1 John 1:8, 10 )—yet, overall he did please and obey God. Notice God’s additional testimony about His servant David, in 1 Kings 15:4–5, “Nevertheless for David’s sake the LORD his God gave him a lamp in Jerusalem, by setting up his son after him and by establishing Jerusalem; because David did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, and had not turned aside from anything that He commanded him all the days of his life, except in the matter of Uriah the Hittite.” Psalm 51 shows that David deeply repented of this terrible sin, and he turned back to obedience to God.

So, we see again in regard to the covenant that God made with David, what we have seen over and over again—that a covenant is not identical with the law, but it is based on law. This law which was already in existence, David kept. It is because David kept God’s law that God made a covenant with him.

Additional Old Testament Covenants

The Bible, in fact, mentions many additional covenants that were made in Old Testament times. They were all based on God’s law—none of the covenants established laws, nor were they identical with God’s law. In many cases, these covenants were made because the people had transgressed God’s laws. They came to repentance and promised God that from then on they would be loyal to Him and keep His commandments. They promised God through a covenant with Him that they would from now on keep His laws. We read, for instance, about covenants made with God under Joshua (Joshua 24:19–25); under king Asa of Judah (2 Chronicles 15:8–15); under the priest Jehoiada (2 Chronicles 23:16; 2 Kings 11:17); under king Hezekiah of Judah (2 Chronicles 29:6–10); under king Josiah of Judah (2 Chronicles 34:29–32); and under Ezra the priest (Ezra 10:3). All of these covenants were contractual promises by the people to keep God’s laws that had been broken by them.

How clear it is, then, that a covenant is not identical with the law, but that it is based on law. Therefore, the abolishment of a covenant has absolutely no influence or effect on the law on which the covenant was based.

Does all of this understanding change when we begin to analyze the New Covenant? Is it no longer true that the New Covenant is an agreement or a contract made between two or more parties, that is based on law?

Christ—The New Covenant?

Is it correct to say that Jesus Christ is the New Covenant, and that as long as Jesus lives in our hearts, we will automatically do what is right, so that we don’t even need any written laws or rules whatsoever? Some who support this last claim turn to Old Testament scriptures in the book of Isaiah that prophesy the coming of Jesus Christ. Isaiah 42:6 reads, “I, the LORD [God the Father], have called You [Jesus Christ] in righteousness, And will hold Your hand; I will keep You and give You as a covenant to the people.” They also refer to Isaiah 49:8, which says, “Thus says the LORD: ‘In an acceptable time I have heard You, And in the day of salvation I have helped You; I will preserve You and give You As a covenant to the people, To restore the earth, To cause them to inherit the desolate heritages…’” But, since a covenant is a contract or an agreement between two or more parties, how can Christ, a being, be identical with a covenant? The obvious answer is, of course, He is not! Let’s understand, then, the meaning of what we just read in the book of Isaiah. To help clarify this, let’s read about the coming of Jesus Christ in Malachi 3:1, “Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts” (Authorized Version). In this passage, Jesus Christ is referred to as “the messenger of the covenant,” not as the covenant itself. He is the one who brings the New Covenant. How, then, do we understand Isaiah 42:6, and Isaiah 49:8? Let’s take a look at how some other translations render this passage. The Zürcher Bibel translates both scriptures this way, “I have given You as the messenger of the covenant for the people.” The Living Bible interprets the passages, “I have given you to my people as the personal confirmation of my covenant with them.” The real meaning is that God gave Christ, His only-begotten Son, to establish a New Covenant with the people. The Father gave His Son “FOR a covenant,” as the Lamsa translations brings it—in other words, to establish a New Covenant with man. Notice, too, that Paul identifies Christ in Hebrews 12:24 as “the Mediator of the new covenant.” Christ, then, is not identical with the New Covenant, nor is the law—any law—identical with the New Covenant. But as we will see, both Jesus Christ and God’s law have a major role in relationship with the New Covenant between God and man.

The New Covenant In “Old Testament” Scriptures

The New Covenant is not an isolated contract between God and man—without any connection with previous contracts that God had made. Rather, the Bible makes it very clear that God made or offered a New Covenant, which ties in specifically and directly with “Old Testament” covenants that He had previously made.

The New Covenant and Noah

In Isaiah 54:9–10, God compares the New Covenant with the covenant He made with Noah. We read, “‘For this is like the waters of Noah to Me; For as I have sworn That the waters of Noah would no longer cover the earth, So have I sworn That I would not be angry with you, nor rebuke you. For the mountains shall depart And the hills be removed, But My kindness shall not depart from you, Nor shall My covenant of peace be removed,’ Says the LORD, who has mercy on you.”

As we will see much more clearly in a short while, God is speaking here about the New Covenant, calling it His covenant of peace, but comparing it at the same time with the covenant that He had made with Noah.

The New Covenant and David

Let’s notice God’s prophetic words in Isaiah 55:3, “Incline your ear, and come to Me. Hear, and your soul shall live; And I will make an everlasting covenant with you—The sure mercies of David.”

Here, God refers to the New Covenant as an everlasting covenant. He places this covenant in relationship with His covenant that He had made with David. We will see in a moment why there is such a relationship, involving and including rulership over Israel.

More Old Testament Scriptures About the “New Covenant”

Isaiah 59:21 gives us further understanding regarding the New Covenant: “‘As for Me,’ says the LORD, ‘this is My covenant with them: My Spirit who is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth, shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your descendants, nor from the mouth of your descendants’ descendants,’ says the LORD, ‘from this time and forevermore.’”

New Covenant Includes Spiritual Blessings

The New Covenant includes the fact that God’s Holy Spirit and God’s Holy Word will not depart anymore from the people with whom the New Covenant will be made, and this will even include the descendants of those people.

Now notice something remarkable and shocking in the book of Jeremiah. Many teach today that while the “Old Covenant“ was made with ancient Israel, the “New Covenant” will be made, or has been made, with the Gentiles. Nothing could be further from the truth. Let’s read Jeremiah 31:31–34, and note with whom the New Covenant is to be made:

“Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah—not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the LORD. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they shall all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”

This is a critical passage that explains to us the nature of the New Covenant, and why there even had to be such a New Covenant. First, we read that the New Covenant is to be made with the houses of Israel and Judah—it does not say that it is to be made with Gentiles! Gentiles can become parties to this New Covenant, but only if they become spiritual Israelites or Jews, as we saw earlier when we discussed God’s Sabbaths covenant with the nation of Israel. Secondly, we read that ancient Israel and Judah broke God’s covenant, but that they will keep the New Covenant, because God’s Law will be in their hearts and minds. Rather than having God’s Law on tablets of stone, it will be within them—it will have become a part of them. But notice—it is the same law, not different sets of rules.

The problem with the covenants that God had made with ancient Israel at Mount Sinai or in Moab was not the law—rather, the problem was that God’s law was not in the hearts and minds of the people, so they broke the covenants by breaking God’s law on which the covenants were based.

Further, Jeremiah tells us that people who are parties to the New Covenant have obtained, and can obtain, forgiveness of sin—something the previous covenants did not offer—and they can have spiritual understanding of God through the Holy Spirit given to them—again, something that was not offered to such an extent in previous covenants.

Notice this additional prophecy regarding the New Covenant in Jeremiah 32:38–40: “They shall be My people, and I will be their God; then I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear Me forever, for the good of them and their children after them. And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from doing them good; but I will put My fear in their hearts so that they will not depart from Me.”

By the fear of God, one departs from evil (Proverbs 16:6). God’s Spirit will be living in those people, so that they will not practice the way of disobedience any longer.

New Covenant Includes Physical Blessings

Although the New Covenant is mostly concerned with spiritual blessings, it would be false to assume that it does not include physical blessings as well. Notice Ezekiel 34:25–28, 30: “I will make a covenant of peace with them, and cause wild beasts to cease from the land; and they will dwell safely in the wilderness and sleep in the woods. I will make them and the places all around My hill a blessing; and I will cause showers to come down in their season; there shall be showers of blessing. Then the trees of the field shall yield their fruit, and the earth shall yield their increase. They shall be safe in their land; and they shall know that I am the LORD, when I have broken the bands of their yoke and delivered them from the hand of those who enslaved them. And they shall no longer be a prey of the nations, nor shall beasts of the land devour them; but they shall dwell safely, and no one shall make them afraid… Thus they shall know that I, the LORD their God, am with them, and they, the house of Israel, are My people, says the LORD GOD.”

The New Covenant Is a Marriage Agreement

Let’s read the parallel passage in Hosea 2:16, 18–20, and notice some interesting additional information. Notice, too, in Hosea 1:10 that God speaks to the children of Israel. “And it shall be, in that day, Says the LORD, That you will call Me My Husband…In that day I will make a covenant for them With the beasts of the field, With the birds of the air, And with the creeping things of the ground. Bow and sword of battle I will shatter from the earth, To make them lie down safely. I will betroth you to Me forever; Yes, I will betroth you to Me in righteousness and justice, In lovingkindness and mercy; I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness, And you shall know the LORD.”

We are introduced here to the concept that this New Covenant, which includes physical blessings of peace and prosperity, is compared with betrothal and marriage. We will discuss the concept of betrothal more fully a little bit later—it can roughly be compared with a binding agreement of engagement that can only be annulled through a divorce. God compared His covenant with ancient Israel at Mount Sinai with a marriage agreement (compare Ezekiel 16:8; Isaiah 54:5; Jeremiah 31:32)—but this marriage ended in divorce, as Israel broke the agreement and sinned against God (Isaiah 50:1; Jeremiah 3:8). Now, we are told that God, when making a New Covenant, will enter again into a marriage agreement with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. First, it will start with a betrothal. This is very significant, as we will see in a moment.

The New Covenant in the “New Testament” Scriptures

On the very night when He would be betrayed, Jesus Christ introduced the New Covenant to His disciples. We read in Matthew 26:27–28, “Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you. For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.’”

The New Covenant makes it possible, then, to have sins forgiven—something, as we will recall, that was not possible under the previous covenants that God had made with ancient Israel. Notice, too, in Hebrews 13:20, “Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you complete…”

Through Christ’s shed blood of the New Covenant, the resurrection from the dead to eternal life has become possible. We are being sanctified or set aside for a holy purpose through the blood of Christ, which grants us forgiveness of our sins. Hebrews 10:29 explains, “Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace?”

We obtain forgiveness through Christ’s sacrifice. This makes it possible to receive God’s Holy Spirit—God’s power enabling us to overcome sin and to keep God’s law which has been written in our hearts (Hebrews 10:16–17, quoting Jeremiah 31:33–34). And since Christ’s sacrifice is sufficient for the forgiveness of our sins, animal sacrifices are no longer necessary (Hebrews 10:18).

Christ came to enter into a new covenant relationship with those who are called by God, by forgiving their sins that had been previously committed. Hebrews 9:15 explains, “And for this reason He is the Mediator of the new covenant, by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant, that those who are called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance.”

As we read earlier, it was the people who broke the first covenants—the fault was with the people—not with the Old Testament covenants. Paul says so, explicitly, in Hebrews 8:7–8, “For if that first covenant had been faultless, then no place would have been sought for a second. Because finding fault with them, He says, ‘Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.’”

The people broke the covenants—the fault was with them. And why did they break the covenants? Because God’s law was not in their hearts (Hebrews 8:10). But, God promises that it will be different in regard to the New Covenant. That is why Hebrews 8:6 says that Christ is “the Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises” (compare also Hebrews 7:22).

What Are Those Better Promises?

First of all, before the New Covenant came, there was no forgiveness of sins—animal sacrifices do not forgive sins (Hebrews 10:4, 11). Also, there was no promise for receiving the Holy Spirit, which alone gives us the strength and power to overcome and conquer sin, and to obey and keep God’s law. The Israelites had the law written on tablets of stone (2 Corinthians 3:2–3). These tablets of stone never became part of their being—they never entered their hearts. As the tablets were of stone, so were their hearts. That is the reason why God, in a New Covenant, replaces our stony hearts with hearts of flesh (Ezekiel 11:19).

The ministry under the previous covenants led to condemnation, since people sinned and could not obtain forgiveness (2 Corinthians 3:9). On the other hand, the ministry under the New Covenant leads to righteousness, since the promises of the New Covenant include forgiveness of sins and the gift of the power of the Holy Spirit to live righteously.

But the promises of the New Covenant include more than that. Notice 2 Corinthians 3:18, “But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.” Through the Spirit of God, we are to be born into the Family of God. We are to become a glorified God being. THAT was never a promise given to ancient Israel at the time of Mount Sinai. In addition, we will enter into the covenant relationship between God and David, by ruling with Christ for one thousand years here on earth (as was promised to Abraham and his descendants) (Revelation 20:4; 5:10), and after that, for all eternity (Revelation 22:5).

Since the time that God made a New Covenant with Israel, the first covenants that He made with them are becoming obsolete and are growing old, ready to vanish away (Hebrews 8:13). But notice—it does not say that the law of God was growing old, ready to vanish away—in fact, God had just explained in Hebrews 8:12 that He will remember their LAWLESS deeds no more. God forgives the transgressions and sins previously committed, and He puts His laws in the minds and hearts of the people so that they do not continue with their practice of transgressing God’s laws and committing lawless deeds. The laws of God are still in effect—they have not become obsolete.

In What Way Is the New Covenant Established on Better Promises?

Returning to Hebrews 8:6, recall that the New Covenant is “established” on better promises. The New Revised Standard Version says here, “enacted through better promises.” The New Jerusalem Bible states, “founded on better promises.” The Greek word, translated as “established” or “enacted” or “founded,” is “nomotheteo.” The word “nomos” means, “law.”

In Hebrews 7:11, the same word “nomotheteo” is translated as “received the law.” In James 4:12, the noun “nomothetes” is used in the Greek and rendered there as “Lawgiver.” In Romans 9:4, the related Greek word “nomothesia” is translated as “giving of the law.”

When we take another look at Hebrews 8:6, we can now see what the obvious meaning of that passage is: Jesus Christ is Mediator of a better covenant, which, having better promises, is BASED or ENACTED or FOUNDED on God’s given law.

The New Covenant is based on God’s law, just as all the other covenants were based on God’s law, and the New Covenant is not identical with God’s law, just as none of the other covenants were identical with God’s law.

However, the New Covenant is not based on laws that God has decreed are no longer valid. The New Covenant is not based, for example, on the sacrificial system, the Levitical priesthood, and other rituals and washings. But it is important that we understand why those particular laws are no longer valid. Not, because the “Old Covenant” was abolished, and with it all Old Testament laws. The concept that the “Old Covenant” ended, and with it all the laws of the Old Testament, is WRONG, as a covenant is not identical with the law, but it is BASED on the law.

What To Do When Laws Change

We saw that certain Old Testament laws are no longer binding because God tells us in the New Testament that they are no longer binding. Therefore, the covenants which God made with ancient Israel at Mount Sinai and in Moab are vanishing, because they were based, along with other laws, on ritual statutes and sacrificial regulations which are no longer valid today—and, of course, because Israel kept breaking the covenants.

We can relate to this, when we look at a modern day example. Assume that you enter into a contract and base it on certain laws, and that those laws, or at least some of them, later become obsolete. What happens to your contract? The parties might have several options at their disposal. They could agree to do away with the contract in its entirety, and make a new contract based on the laws, which are still in effect. Or, they could try to change or modify the contract, by considering the new circumstances and by determining what they would have done, if they had known that some of the laws on which the contract was based, would be changed.

How did God do it? Actually, He used both methods.

When analyzing His covenant with the Levitical priesthood, we find that He kept that contract alive, but He modified it, as the provisions or laws regarding the collection of tithes were changed. That right was transferred from the Levites to Christ. The remainder of the contract between God and the Levites, including the Levitical right to bring, and to eat from, the sacrifices, stayed in effect. As you will recall, it will be the Levites who will administer the sacrifices, which will be reestablished in Jerusalem for the Jews prior to Christ’s return (Daniel 12:44), and at the beginning of the Millennium for unconverted people (Ezekiel 44:15, 29–30).

When analyzing the covenants that God made with the ancient nation of Israel at Mount Sinai and in Moab, God did away with those covenants [except for the Sabbaths covenant with Israel, which remains in force and effect], as too many laws on which those covenants had been based, had become obsolete. Also, God wanted to make a new covenant that would include additional promises that were never a part of the previous covenants with the nation of Israel. So, God abolished the previous covenants with the nation of Israel because certain laws on which the covenants were based were changed or abolished.

We understand, then, that changes in the law can lead to the abolishment of a covenant or contract, which is based on such law, but, that the abolishment of a contract never leads to the abolishment of the law on which the contract is based.

As this is so, we need to consider the following, extremely critical point: In order to determine which Old Testament laws are no longer valid today, God must identify those to us in the New Testament. It is false to say, Old Testament laws are no longer valid, unless they are specifically mentioned in the New Testament. Rather, one must say that Old Testament laws remain in effect, unless the New Testament specifically states, through the letter or through the Spirit, that they are no longer valid today.

Which Laws Were Abolished?

And what are those laws that have been abolished? We have already touched upon them—the laws dealing with animal sacrifices, ritual washings, and the right of the Levitical priesthood to collect God’s tithes.

Some have asked for a specific list of the individual sacrificial or ritual laws mentioned in the Old Testament, which are no longer valid today. To discuss all of those laws here would go beyond the scope of this booklet. Future writings will go into these questions in more detail. In the meantime, any questions regarding the validity of particular laws could be directed to the ministry responsible for the publication of this booklet.

At this point, it may be sufficient to set forth important principles which need to be applied to determine whether a specific law is still valid, or whether it has been abrogated in the New Testament through the Spirit—at least insofar as its practical application for the Church and its members are concerned. We will also give a few examples to show how to apply these principles.

From a general standpoint, the laws in the Old Testament are divided into several categories. They may deal with temporary national or ritual circumstances, or they may address lasting principles to be incorporated in our personal lives.

For instance, Deuteronomy 20 contains laws and regulations about national warfare. These laws are clearly not binding for Christians today, as a Christian is not to participate in war (Matthew 5:44; 26:52; Romans 12:20; 2 Corinthians 10:3–4; James 4:1–2; 1 John 3:15).

In addition, God gave Israel certain national laws, for instance in Deuteronomy 16 and 17, dealing with the punishment and, in certain cases, the execution of criminals. Converted Christians are servants of the New Covenant, which gives life (2 Corinthians 3:6). They are not to judge or condemn another person. Christ said that he who is without sin may cast the first stone (John 8:7). At the same time, we are told that nobody can claim to be without sin (1 John 1:8). Therefore, Christians are not to participate, for instance as jurors, in the judicial systems of this world. In addition, the Church today is not to carry out the death penalty, either. Rather, the ministry is to preach today reconciliation and eternal life (2 Corinthians 5:18–21).

Another “national” law, which is no longer in effect today, is listed in Deuteronomy 25:5–10. It is commonly referred to as the law of the “levirate marriage.” It stated that if a married man died without children, his widow was to be married to his brother, so that the name of the dead brother “may not be blotted out of Israel” (verse 6). One reason why this law is not in force for the Church today is that it may require a converted brother-in-law to marry an unconverted sister-in-law, or vice versa. This would be contrary to specific New Testament instructions in 1 Corinthians 7:39 and 2 Corinthians 6:14. Also, if the brother-in-law were already married, the application of the law would violate the New Testament teaching that a man is to be the husband of only one wife (compare 1 Timothy 3:2, 12).

To just give one more example of an obsolete “national” statute, turn to Deuteronomy 23: 1–8. This law excludes certain people with particular racial or national backgrounds, such as Ammonites or Moabites, or eunuchs, from access to the congregation. This distinction does not apply to the New Testament Church. True Christians may be from any nation and suffer any physical disability (Ephesians 2:19). This will be discussed more fully below.

Another category of laws, which are no longer binding for Christians today are the ritual laws of sacrifices and washings. Again, certain principles apply, showing us when a law is of a temporary ritual nature, or when it is still binding for us. For instance, the violation of a statute or a particular circumstance could make a person “unclean” for a certain period of time. Following ritual washings, that person could become clean again. Clearly, these kinds of laws are strictly ritualistic in nature, as no violation of a binding law was automatically cured simply by lapse of time and ritual washings.

For instance, while the laws prohibiting the consumption of unclean food are still valid (see discussion earlier in this booklet), the laws declaring someone unclean who touched the body of an unclean animal are not. This can be seen, as such a person was only unclean “until evening,” and he became clean again after washing himself, showing the ritualistic character of these laws (Leviticus 11:24, 27, 31). On the other hand, the eating of an unclean animal did not bring about only ritual uncleanness that ended in the evening after washing. There is no scripture, which tells us that a person who ate an unclean animal became clean again in the evening, after ritual washings. Many scriptures, however, tell us that a person who touched the carcass of an unclean or even a clean animal (Leviticus 11:39) became ritually clean again in the evening, after washings. This shows, then, the different nature of these two sets of laws.

Another temporary ritual law of a similar nature can be found in Deuteronomy 23:9–11, stating that an individual who contracts some ceremonial defilement during the night becomes ritually clean again by the next sunset. [This is not to say, however, that there were no physical health benefits attached to such laws, such as the prevention of possible transmission of diseases—the underlying principle of physical cleanliness is still very much applicable today.]

Many of these examples, which we have discussed so far, have shown us how we must view an Old Testament law with the eyes of New Testament spiritual principles. We must always look at the purpose and intent of a given statute—lest we become like the Pharisees who tried to uphold the “letter” of the law, while neglecting the “spirit.” For instance, Jesus said that David was guiltless when he was hungry and ate from the showbread, although the law said that only a priest could eat from it (Matthew 12:3–4). Christ was pointing at the spiritual intent of that particular statute—and it was never its intent to regulate a situation when someone was hungry and had nothing else to eat.

Another example would be a law contained in Deuteronomy 22:12, commanding that tassels be made on the four corners of one’s clothing. The reason is given in Numbers 15:38–40: “…that you may look upon it and remember all the commandments of the LORD to do them… and so be holy to the LORD.” A similar law is found in Deuteronomy 11:18–20, commanding the writing of the Ten Commandments on the doorposts of our houses. Today, God’s Holy Spirit reminds us of God’s law. Ancient Israel needed those physical reminders, however, as the Holy Spirit was not promised or given to them. Under the New Covenant, those physical reminders should not be necessary, as the law of God is being written on our hearts and minds.

Let us briefly review a few examples of Old Testament laws, which are clearly still binding today, as neither the letter, nor spiritual principles of the New Testament, nor any ritual character of such laws would indicate otherwise.

For instance, Deuteronomy 22:5 prohibits cross-dressing. A man is not to wear women’s clothes and vice versa. This law deals with transvestism.

Deuteronomy 22:9 forbids sowing a vineyard with different kinds of seed. The principle is to plant seeds together that will each continue to reproduce after its own kind, in order to avoid substandard products or hybrids. There is nothing wrong, then, with planting peas or beans among corn, or planting two pasture grasses together. On the other hand, cucumbers should not be planted with watermelons because they will cross and produce a perversion. Likewise, various members of the muskmelon and cantaloupe family should not be planted near pumpkins or certain types of squash, as they will mix.

Finally, Deuteronomy 22:11 prohibits, correctly translated, the wearing of a garment “of different sorts, wool and linen mixed together.” [The words, “such as” have been added and do not appear in the original Hebrew.] Leviticus 19:19 contains the same prohibition. Wool is an animal product, while linen is a plant product. Such products should not be combined, as an improper blend, as they produce clothes of lesser quality.

In addition, as we have already discussed, laws that have NOT been abolished include the Ten Commandments, the commandments to keep God’s annual Holy Days and to tithe faithfully.

The Law of Physical Circumcision

There is one additional law that is no longer mandatory—the law regarding physical circumcision. And since this is so, the covenant of circumcision that God made with Abraham is no longer valid.

We read in Galatians 5:1–3, “Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage. Indeed I, Paul, say to you that if you become circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing. And I testify again to every man who becomes circumcised that he is a debtor to keep the whole law.”

Here, the phrase “the whole law” refers to every law that God has ever given to man—including the sacrifices and the rituals. Paul is saying here, If you think that you can become justified just because you are physically circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing, because you still don’t understand the need to obtain the Father’s and Christ’s forgiveness of your sins (Galatians 5:4).

We read earlier that the New Covenant is going to be made with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. Does this mean that Gentiles don’t have access to that New Covenant relationship with God? Of course they do, but in order to make the Gentiles a party to the New Covenant, the specific law of physical circumcision that was given in the Old Testament had to become obsolete.

Notice Ephesians 2:11–15: “Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh—who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands—that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace.”

What is that “law of commandments contained in ordinances” that was abolished? Which law was it that prevented the Gentiles from having access to the covenants of promise? None other than the law of physical circumcision and the rituals and ordinances related thereto. In doing away with that requirement, Gentiles could then become “spiritual” Israelites and Jews, and thus parties to the New Covenant.

We saw that God made covenants with ancient Israel, and that God will make a New Covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah “after these days”—that is, after Christ’s return. At that time, God will call the Israelites to repentance and He will resurrect those who have not been called to spiritual salvation before, to offer them the opportunity to become a party to the New Covenant.

But what about us today—converted Christians—spiritual Israelites and Jews?

We understand that the New Covenant is compared to a marriage agreement. Recall, too, that Jesus Christ already shed His blood, the blood of the New Covenant, for the remission of our sins. In the Old Testament, ancient Israel listened to the conditions that God gave them and they agreed to those conditions. Then, God sealed the covenant with blood.

Christ clearly told us the conditions of the New Covenant, and we accepted them at the time of our baptism. As ancient Israel said, we also said, “Everything that the LORD has said, we will do.” We also, of course, accepted Christ’s shed blood that forgives our sins, and we acknowledged that we had entered into a covenant with God at the time of our baptism.

Does this mean, then, that the New Covenant has already been made with us at the time of our baptism? Well, yes and no.

The New Covenant is a marriage agreement. The consummation of our marriage with Jesus Christ—the bridegroom and the Lamb—is still in the future. This is where the biblical concept of betrothal becomes important. In biblical times, the parties went through a period of “betrothal” before they actually consummated the marriage. Mary was already betrothed to Joseph when she was found to be with child (Matthew 1:18). Since they had not consummated the marriage, Joseph thought that Mary was guilty of fornication. But Mary and Joseph were already called, at the time of their betrothal, husband and wife (Matthew 1:19–20, 24; compare also Deuteronomy 28:30). Betrothal was a binding agreement or contract of marriage, and it could only be severed through a divorce. With this contract, the husband had promised his wife to consummate the marriage with her, after a certain period of time.

In the same way, we, when we became baptized, entered into a covenant with God, and into a contract of betrothal with Jesus Christ. The consummation of our marriage will occur, once Jesus Christ returns to establish His Kingdom. At that time, we will be immortal Spirit beings—born-again members of the God Family.

In addition, this marriage contract with Christ is also an agreement to inherit what had been promised, through covenants, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and to their descendants. It is not only a will, or a testament that can be changed by the testator at any time before his death, but it is a legally binding, enforceable agreement. In any event, the testator, Jesus Christ, who inherited the promises from Abraham and his offspring, did already die, so His will, as promised to us by a contract, cannot be changed anymore. A will or a testament, in biblical times, was more like a mutual contract of inheritance. In fact, the Greek word for “covenant” and for “testament” is exactly the same, i.e., “diatheke.” Both parties had to agree to the terms of the covenant of inheritance. This contract could be based on certain conditions, and the agreement could only be carried out, and the inheritance obtained, if both parties fulfilled the conditions.

Also, such a contract of inheritance could very well say that the inheritance was not going to be obtained until a certain specified time after the testator’s death. In the meantime, the inheritance could be reserved for the heir and administered for him. And, of course, the contract of inheritance could say that the heir would actually come into possession of the inheritance only if he proved himself to be worthy of it. One of those conditions could have been that the heir had to be married at the time of taking possession of the inheritance.

When we consider these concepts and apply them to our situation, we reach the following conclusion: We, as spiritual Israelites, must be married in order to obtain the inheritance. The New Covenant tells us to whom we have to be married—Jesus Christ. But a marriage can only occur and last if both parties are willing to marry each other, and to remain faithful to each other. Christ has already made a marriage agreement with us—a betrothal—and He will spiritually consummate His marriage with us at His return, if we remain faithful (Revelation 19:7–9; Matthew 22:2; 25:1).

This is not to say that we cannot or will not sin today, even though we have already entered into the New Covenant relationship with God. The Bible tells us specifically that we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us, if we say that we do not sin today (1 John 1:8). But, we do not practice the way of sin anymore. Rather, when we sin and “confess our sins,” God is “faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Christ will not reject us if we show Him in this life that we are willing to obey Him, even though we may sometimes slip and fall. He knows that only once we are born-again immortal members in the Family of God, we cannot sin anymore (1 John 5:18).

On the other hand, if we become disobedient and rebellious and begin again to practice the wrong way of life, Christ has the right to divorce us. Remember, Joseph, a just man, was willing to leave his wife to whom he was betrothed when he thought that she had become unfaithful to him (Matthew 1:19).

We can understand, then, what the New Covenant means for us today. It is a contract, which is based on God’s law. God called and chose us to become a party to His contract. By our obedience to God’s laws, we show Him that we want to become parties to His covenant (Acts 5:32). When we are baptized, we enter into a covenant relationship with the Father and Jesus Christ. This agreement contains conditions that we must fulfill. It promises us a certain inheritance in the future, including sonship in God’s Family, kingship over this earth and the universe, and priestly functions. This future inheritance is being preserved for us right now in heaven.

This contract is also a marriage agreement. We are already betrothed to Jesus Christ and we are to consummate the marriage with Him, when He returns to establish His Kingdom. In addition, this contract includes a will or a testament from the testator, Jesus Christ, to share with us the promises that He inherited as the Seed of Abraham. Christ’s will shows us how we must live worthy of Him, and it requires of us to do so, so that He will consummate His marriage with us, and so that we can take possession of our promised inheritance.

Therefore, as long as we stay faithful, as long as we do not trample the Son of God and His holy law under foot, and as long as we do not insult His Spirit of grace, Christ is going to consummate His marriage with us in just a few years from now, and we will inherit the promises that God made to us in the New Covenant. If we become obedient servants of our God, and remain so until Christ’s return, we will never have to hear Him say to us, “I never knew you, depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness” (Matthew 7:23).

While lawlessness abounds all around us, let us be different! Let us obey God and His Word and thereby become shining lights of righteousness that will be noticed in this dark and evil world (Matthew 5:14–16; Philippians 2:14–16).

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We hear more and more about earthquakes, famines, droughts, wildfires, disease and sickness, wars and rumors of wars, floods, hailstorms and tornadoes. We hear of an undetected asteroid that almost collided with our planet.

We watch as new political alliances develop on the world scene, and ancient empires rise with renewed influence to form new alliances and power blocs. Unexpected economic developments cause uncertainty among investors and erosion of confidence among consumers. Terrorist attacks become more commonplace—and closer to home. We look for peace, but there is no peace.

Why such unrest in a world that supposedly is making giant strides to help us live longer and make our lives easier? It is because mankind, as a whole, has chosen to turn his back on his Creator. Thousands of years ago a book was written that predicted these very events would occur in our time—right now—in our day and age. God clearly warns us through this ancient book—the Bible—that even more devastating events will come upon this earth very soon, unless we repent and turn to Him.

In this booklet, we’ll take a close-up view of the frightening prophecies that describe the terrible events that will take place during the time period of the “Great Tribulation” and the “day of the LORD.” We are compelled by God Himself to speak His words as written in His book, and to openly warn people that there is a way of escape, whether people choose to listen or not. We pray that God will give YOU ears to hear and a heart to heed His warning, and to act accordingly.

Part 1 – Jerusalem and the Jewish People in Prophecy

The Middle East, especially the city of Jerusalem, has been in the news for quite some time, and we expect that this will continue. Our focus must be directed to the City of Jerusalem and the surrounding areas because that is where history-making events will unfold—events that will soon engulf the region with indescribable human suffering, pain, and misery, to be followed by unimaginable prosperity and peace!

Yes, the Bible predicts that within a few short years explosive events will take place in Jerusalem, events that will lead directly to the return of Jesus Christ. You need to understand what these things mean as they happen!

In His famous Olivet Prophecy Jesus explained very clearly what would happen to Jerusalem at the very end of this age of man. Reading in Luke 21:20, 22–24, “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near… For these are the days of vengeance [the Great Tribulation], that all things which are written may be fulfilled. But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! For there will be great distress in the land and wrath upon this people. And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.”

Matthew 24:21 adds this warning: “For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be.”

Daniel 12:1 also prophesies that this will be the worst time ever in the history of mankind: “And there shall be a time of trouble, Such as never was since there was a nation, Even to that time.” When, exactly, will all of this happen and what will it lead to? Luke 21:27, 31 points out: “Then they will see the Son of Man coming [the Second Coming of Jesus Christ] in a cloud with power and great glory… So you also, when you see these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near.”

Jesus had just explained that, before He returns to this earth, the modern city of Jerusalem will be surrounded by armies. When this happens, its desolation will be near and there will be great distress because of the wrath to come upon the people of Jerusalem. Many of its inhabitants will be taken captive or killed in war. Gentiles will occupy the city—trample the city under foot—until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. How long will that be? Revelation 11:2 reveals: “…[Jerusalem, the holy city] has been granted to the Gentiles. And they will tread the holy city underfoot for forty-two months [three-and-a-half years].”

Does the Bible reveal who the Gentiles are that will attack and occupy Jerusalem? Indeed, it does, and we will discuss their identity in much more detail later in this booklet. At this point, we’ll focus just on the sequence of events.

Jerusalem will be occupied by Gentiles, led by a political and military personage–a powerful leader of a United Europe. This human military leader is identified in Scripture as the “Beast,” (compare Revelation 16:10); the “king of the North” (compare Daniel 11:40–41); or “King Jareb” of Assyria (compare Hosea 5:13; 10:6). “Jareb” means “fighter” or one who is quarrelsome. History does not reveal the existence of any Assyrian leader with the name or title of “Jareb.” This biblical reference is not to a historical leader of the past, but rather to a future leader of a modern Assyria. It could be the translation of an actual name, or more likely, the description of his character. You can read more about “King Jareb” of Assyria in the free booklet, Europe in Prophecy: The Unfolding of End-Time Events.

Historical records reveal that modern Assyrians can be found in the countries of Germany and Austria. And, as we will see in more detail, it will be this modern “King Jareb” of Assyria who will lead the Gentile armies to occupy the city of Jerusalem, trampling it underfoot for three-and-a-half years.

Initially, a somewhat peaceful relationship will exist between King Jareb and the Jewish people. But this peaceful relationship will change in time. We read in Hosea 5:13 that Judah will see his wound. This wound could be a reference to a serious military defeat in battle. King Jareb will, at that time, become an ally with Arab nations in a plan to destroy the Jews. He will enter into a confederacy—an alliance—with certain nations against the modern state of Israel.

Notice what is prophesied to happen in Psalm 83:2–8 and notice the identity of these modern peoples—revealed by modern archeology, by history and by biblical research: “For behold, Your enemies make a tumult; And those who hate you lifted up their head. They have taken crafty counsel against Your people, and consulted together against Your sheltered ones. They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation, that the name of Israel may be remembered no more. For they have consulted together with one consent; they form a confederacy against You: the tents of Edom [Turkey] and the Ishmaelites [Saudi-Arabia]; Moab [part of Jordan and the western part of Iraq] and the Hagrites [mainly Syria]; Gebal [Lebanon], Ammon [Jordan and the PLO], and Amalek [the PLO]; Philistia [Palestinians from the Gaza Strip] with the inhabitants of Tyre [the city of Tyre is more fully discussed later in this booklet]; Assyria also has joined with them; They have helped the children of Lot [Jordan].”

However, this confederacy will not last long. A powerful United Europe, under King Jareb of Assyria, will soon find itself involved in a war with many of the Arab nations. Europe will invade the Middle East, the Holy Land, and the city of Jerusalem.

We read in Daniel 11:40–41: “At the time of the end the king of the South [an Arabic religious and military leader] shall attack him [“push at him;” i.e., the “king of the North,” also identified as the “Beast” and “King Jareb,” a military leader of a United Europe]; and the king of the North shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter the countries, overwhelm them, and pass through. He shall also enter the Glorious Land and many countries shall be overthrown; but these shall escape from his hand: Edom, Moab and the prominent people of Ammon.”

Notice that Edom [Turkey], Moab [part of Jordan and the western part of Iraq], and the prominent people or leaders of Ammon [Jordan and the PLO], will not be conquered by the king of the North. Notice, on the other hand in Daniel 11:42–43, which countries will be conquered by the king or leader of modern Assyria, or which countries will form an alliance with Europe: “He shall stretch out his hand against the countries, and the land of Egypt [where the Arabs dwell today] shall not escape. He shall have power over the treasures of gold and silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt; also the Libyans and Ethiopians shall follow at his heels.”

That the Libyans and Ethiopians will “follow” the king of the North does not necessarily mean that they will be at war with him or that they will be beaten by him in war. Depending on what translation we use, we find the meaning conveyed as, they “will follow in subjection to him,” or they “shall be his servants,” or “ the Libyans and Nubians [will be] in submission” to the king of the North. Also, note, that the king of the North will have power over the gold and silver in the region, as well as all the precious things of Egypt.

Continuing in Daniel 11:44, we are introduced to a third power bloc which will play a devastating role in end-time events. “But news from the east and the north shall trouble him [the king of the North]; therefore he shall go out with great fury to destroy and annihilate many.”

The king of the North will react to rumors from the east and the north. This is the location of a strong military Asiatic power bloc with an army of two hundred million people, referred to in the book of Revelation as the “kings from the east” (Revelation 16:12), or the “army of the horsemen” (Revelation 9:16). It will, in all likelihood, be a confrontation between a United Europe under modern Assyria and a confederacy of Asian nations, such as Russia, China, Japan, and India. The modern Medes are identified in Scripture as one of the mortal enemies of modern Babylon, or Europe (compare Isaiah 13:1, 17). The identity of the modern Medes will be explained later in this booklet.

Daniel 11:45 continues: “And he [the king of the North] shall plant the tents of his palace between the seas and the glorious holy mountain [Jerusalem]; yet he shall come to his end, and no one will help him.”

The king of the North will occupy Jerusalem and rule from there, during which time the Holy City will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles. Then Christ will return. He will throw the king of the North into the lake of fire, which, at that time will be a place outside Jerusalem where criminals and sinners will be burned up (compare Revelation 19:20). 

Let’s note in more detail what is revealed about the fate of the king of the North–King Jareb of Assyria. We read in Isaiah 10:12: “Therefore it shall come to pass, when the LORD has performed all His work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, that He will say, I will punish the fruit of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his haughty looks.”

Isaiah 14:25 adds this thought: “… I will break the Assyrian in My land, And on My mountains tread him underfoot. Then his yoke [of slavery, or captivity] shall be removed from them, And his burden removed from their shoulder.”

Isaiah 30:30–33 continues: “The LORD will cause His glorious voice to be heard, And show His descent of His arm, With the indignation of His anger And the flame of a devouring fire, With scattering, tempest, and hailstones. For through the voice of the LORD Assyria will be beaten down, As He strikes with the rod. And in every place where the staff of punishment passes, Which the LORD lays on him, It will be with tambourines and harps; And in battles of brandishing He will fight with it. For Tophet was established of old, Yes, for the king it is prepared. He has made it deep and large; Its pyre is fire with much wood; the breath of the LORD, like a stream of brimstone, Kindles it.”

This passage describes the fate of the king of Assyria—he will be burned up in a place likened to a stream of brimstone, also referred to as “Tophet,” which literally means a “burning place,” or “a lake of fire.” We know from Revelation 19:20 that the military leader of the United States of Europe, called the “Beast,” will be thrown into a lake of fire and brimstone as well. Therefore, the “king of the North,” “king Jareb of Assyria,” and the “Beast” are one and the same.

Notice Isaiah 31:8–9: “Then Assyria shall fall by a sword not of a man [Jesus Christ will personally destroy him and his army], and a sword not of mankind shall devour him… He shall cross over to his stronghold for fear, And his princes shall be afraid of the banner, Says the LORD, Whose fire is in Zion And whose furnace is in Jerusalem.”

God will deal in this way with the king of Assyria because of his evil intent (cp. Zechariah 1:15). When he attacks and overthrows Jerusalem, a terrible time will begin for its inhabitants.

Isaiah 3:1, 24–26 tells us: “For behold, the LORD, the LORD of hosts, Takes away from Jerusalem and from Judah The stock and the store, The whole supply of bread and the whole supply of water… And so it shall be: Instead of a sweet smell there will be a stench; Instead of a sash, a robe; Instead of well-set hair, baldness; And branding instead of beauty. Your men shall fall by the sword, And your mighty in the war. Her gates shall lament and mourn, and she being desolate shall sit on the ground.”

God Himself will remove the protection of Judah, as Isaiah 22:8 tells us. Without God’s protection, Jerusalem will fall into the hands of her enemy. We read in Isaiah 29:1–7: “Woe to Ariel [an expression for Jerusalem, lit. Lion of God], to Ariel, the city where David dwelt… I will distress Ariel; there shall be heaviness and sorrow… You shall be brought down… Moreover the multitude of your foes Shall be like fine dust, And the multitude of the terrible ones Like chaff that passes away; Yes, it shall be in an instant, suddenly. You will be punished by the LORD of hosts With thunder and earthquake and great noise, With storm and tempest And the flame of devouring fire. The multitude of all the nations who fight against Ariel, Even all who fight against her and her fortress, And distress her, Shall be as a dream of a night vision.”

The prophet Jeremiah also describes in poetic terms the coming assault by the Assyrians on the city of Jerusalem. He tells us in Jeremiah 6:1, 22–23: “O you children of Benjamin, Gather yourselves to flee from the midst of Jerusalem… Thus says the LORD: Behold, a people comes from the north country, [remember that the military leader of the conquering nations is called, “the king of the North.”] And a great nation will be raised from the farthest parts of the earth. They will lay hold on bow and spear; they are cruel and have no mercy; Their voice roars like the sea; and they ride on horses, As men of war set in array against you, O daughter of Zion.”

Jeremiah describes the terrible future of the city of Jerusalem following the attack by the Gentiles with very vivid terms in the prophetic book of Lamentations. As will be discussed more fully later in this booklet, phrases like “in that day”, “in the latter days,” “in the day of the LORD,” or “in the day of the LORD’S anger” identify the time setting of the particular prophecy as relating to the period just prior to Christ’s return. Especially the phrase, “the day of the LORD’S anger” describes the time when God is very angry with the peoples at the end of this age (compare Revelation 11:18):

“Young and old lie on the ground in the streets; My virgins and my young men Have fallen by the sword; You have slain them in the day of Your anger, You have slaughtered and not pitied. You have invited as to a feast day The terrors that surround me. In the day of the LORD’S anger There was no refugee or survivor. Those whom I have borne and brought up My enemies have destroyed… The kings of the earth, And all inhabitants of the world, Would not have believed That the adversary and the enemy Could enter the gates of Jerusalem” (Lamentations 2:21–22; 4:12).

We are told in Zechariah 14:1–2 that “all nations” will fight against Jerusalem, and that “half of the city” will go into captivity: 

“Behold, the day of the LORD is coming, And your spoil will be divided in your midst. For I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem; the city shall be taken, The houses rifled, And the women ravished. Half of the city shall go into captivity, But the remnant of the people shall not be cut off from the city.”

This describes a literal captivity of the Jewish people just prior to Christ’s return. This is not a reference to a “spiritual captivity of sin,” nor to a figurative “exile,” nor is this a description of something that has already happened to ancient Judah.

WHERE will half of the residents of the city of Jerusalem go? Generally, they will be transported as captives into many nations, some of which are specifically identified in Scripture. For instance, Micah 4:10 tells us, “Be in pain, and labor to bring forth, O daughter of Zion, Like a woman in birth pangs. For now you shall go forth from the city, You shall dwell in the field, and to Babylon you shall go, There you shall be delivered; there the LORD will redeem you From the hand of your enemies.”

The reference here to the “daughter of Zion” is the modern generation of Jews, not ancient Judah. They—modern Judah—will be brought as captives to modern Babylon. As we will see in the remainder of this booklet, modern Babylon is identified as the power bloc of continental Europe, led by modern Assyria. This modern Babylonian system will, in turn, transport its captives into other countries as well.

Joel 3:1–3, 6 confirms this: “For behold, in those days and at that time, When I bring back the captives of Judah and Jerusalem, I will also gather all nations, And bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; and I will enter into judgment with them there On account of My people, My heritage Israel, Whom they have scattered among the nations; they have also divided up My land. They have cast lots for My people, Have given a boy as payment for a harlot, and sold a girl for wine, that they may drink… Also the people of Judah and the people of Jerusalem You have sold to the Greeks, that you may remove them far from their borders.” The Bible clearly indicates that many of the Jews will be sold as slaves to modern Greece, who themselves will be aligned with a future United States of Europe.

Zechariah 10:6, 10 identifies other countries or regions where Jews will be held captive at the time of the return of Jesus Christ: “I will strengthen the house of Judah… I will bring them back, Because I have mercy on them. They shall be as though I had not cast them aside; For I am the LORD their God, And I will hear them… I will also bring them back from the land of Egypt [where the Arabs live today], And gather them from Assyria [modern Germany and German-speaking nations]. I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon, Until no more room is found for them.”

Yes, terrible times are in store for the city of Jerusalem and the Jewish people. But why is God going to allow this to happen? Isaiah 3:8–9 explains: “For Jerusalem stumbled, And Judah is fallen, Because their tongue and their doings Are against the LORD, To provoke the eyes of His glory. The look on their countenance witnesses against them, And they declare their sin as Sodom; they do not hide it. Woe to their soul! For they have brought evil upon themselves.” Notice in verse 7 that the time setting is “in that day.” This is a reference to the “day of the LORD” just prior to Christ’s return.

Amos 2:4–5 elaborates: “Thus says the LORD: For three transgressions of Judah, and for four, I will not turn away its punishment, Because they have despised the law of the LORD, And have not kept His commandments. Their lies lead them astray, Lies which their fathers followed. But I will send a fire upon Judah, And it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem.”

Let us state here, that although it does not give us any pleasure to say that these things are going to happen, we must be true to God’s Word and cite those scriptures that clearly show the reality of these events. We cannot shrink from our responsibility to proclaim what God Himself says is going to happen. It is our hope that at least some of you reading this booklet will heed the warning, repent of your ways, and turn to God so that you can be spared.

God does not pull any punches! He voices very forcefully and directly that Jerusalem and the Jewish people will face disaster and calamity because they have sinned against Him and have refused to repent. Jesus Christ would later weep over Jerusalem, thinking of the evil that would come upon it because of their refusal to repent and to accept Him as their personal Savior. In fact, the temple at Jerusalem was destroyed in 70 A.D., a forerunner of even worse tragedies that will strike Jerusalem in just a few years from now (compare Luke 13:34–35).

Do these prophecies conflict with Hosea 11:12 where we read, “… Judah still walks with God, Even with the Holy One who is faithful”? If modern Judah still walks with God, then why would God punish it? And why do other passages read that modern Judah has sinned against God and refuses to repent? Does the Bible contradict itself?

Actually, in this verse, there is a variance among translations. We quoted Hosea 11:12 from the New King James Bible, a translation that is reliable in the vast majority of cases. However, this particular scripture is not accurately translated in saying that Judah still walks with God because, according to many commentaries, the translators added a letter in the Hebrew that is NOT in the original. To clarify this, let’s read how other translations render this passage:

The New International Version: “…and Judah is unruly against God, even against the faithful Holy One.”

The New American Bible: “Judah is still rebellious against God, against the Holy One who is faithful.”

The Revised English Bible: “Judah is still restive under God, still loyal to the idols he counts holy.”

So we see that Judah will be punished because of rebellion against God, and that His punishment on them is intended to bring about repentance and a return to Him. Even though terrible times await the Jewish people, Jesus Christ Himself proclaimed the good news of the Kingdom of God and what it entails, including a marvelous future for Judah and for all mankind. Jesus Christ WILL return, and when He does, HE will rescue Jerusalem from the Gentiles and call Judah to repentance.

Notice the prophecy in Isaiah 31:4–5: “For thus the LORD has spoken to me: As a lion roars, And a young lion over his prey… so the LORD of hosts will come down to fight for Mount Zion and for its hill. Like birds flying about, So will the LORD of hosts defend Jerusalem. Defending, He will also deliver it; Passing over He will preserve it.”

The prophet Zechariah foresaw Christ’s fight against the Gentiles in a vision given to us in Zechariah 14:3–4: “Then the LORD will go forth and fight against those nations, As He fights in the day of battle. And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives.”

When Jesus Christ was taken up to heaven from the Mount of Olives, two angels assured the disciples that Christ would come back “in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11). He will, indeed, return to the Mount of Olives and He will then strike out against the Gentiles who fought against the city of Jerusalem and occupied it. Zechariah 14:12–13, 15 gives a very graphic description of their fate: “And this shall be the plague with which the LORD will strike all the people who fought against Jerusalem: Their flesh shall dissolve while they stand on their feet, Their eyes shall dissolve in their sockets, And their tongues shall dissolve in their mouths. It shall come to pass in that day That a great panic from the LORD will be among them. Everyone will seize the hand of his neighbor, And raise his hand against his neighbor’s hand… such also shall be the plague On the horse and the mule; On the camel and the donkey, and on all the cattle that will be in those camps. So shall this plague be.”

Additionally, Zechariah 14:11, 21 tells us in no uncertain terms: “The people shall dwell in it; And no longer shall there be utter destruction, But Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited… Yes, every pot in Jerusalem and Judah shall be holiness to the LORD of hosts… In that day there shall no longer be a Canaanite in the house of the LORD of hosts.”

The Jewish people will come to repentance—they will mourn when they see the returning Christ and when they come to realize the truth about Him and about themselves, as foretold in Zechariah 12:10–11: “And I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they have pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn. In that day there shall be a great mourning in Jerusalem…”

Returning to the book of Isaiah, let’s note additional prophecies describing a glorious future for the nation of Judah, once they have repented of their sins and accepted Jesus Christ as their personal Savior and King. We read in Isaiah 4:3–6: “And it shall come to pass that he who is left in Zion and remains in Jerusalem will be called holy—everyone who is recorded among the living in Jerusalem. When the LORD has washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and purged the blood of Jerusalem from her midst, by the spirit of judgment and by the spirit of burning, then the LORD will create above every dwelling place of Mount Zion, and above her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day and the shining of a flaming fire by night. For over all the glory there will be a covering. And there will be a tabernacle for shade in the daytime from the heat, for a place of refuge, and for a shelter from storm and rain.”

God’s Word reveals that the Jewish people will be taken captive by a United Europe under the leadership of modern Assyria, and while in captivity, they will come to their senses and turn to their Savior. Notice what happens next: “Awake, awake! Put on your strength, O Zion; Put on your beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city! For the uncircumcised and the unclean Shall no longer come to you. Shake yourself from the dust, arise; Sit down, O Jerusalem! Loose yourself from the bonds of your neck, O captive daughter of Zion… For thus says the Lord GOD: My people went down at first Into Egypt to dwell there; Then the Assyrian oppressed them without cause. Now therefore, what have I here, says the LORD, That My people are taken away for nothing? Those who rule over them Make them wail, says the LORD, And My name is blasphemed continually every day. Therefore My people shall know my name; therefore they shall know in that day That I am He who speaks: Behold, it is I.” (Isaiah 52:1–2, 4–6).

The Jewish people, as well as most professing Christians, do not realize that it is Jesus Christ Himself who is speaking these words. They do not understand that the God of the Old Testament was not God the Father, but was actually the One who later became a human being—Jesus Christ—born in the flesh of the virgin Mary. Christ came to reveal the Father (Matthew 11:27). The Jews of His time did not know the Father. Christ said that the Jews had never seen the Father’s form, nor did they hear His voice (John 5:37; 6:46). But some DID hear God’s voice and saw His form (Numbers 12:8); however, it was the voice of Jesus Christ, the Son of God—predominantly referred to in the Old Testament as “the Lord,” meaning, “the Eternal.” The time will come when Jews and Christians, as well as those who follow other religions, will come to understand who and what God really is.

Along with acceptance of Jesus Christ as our personal Savior comes blessings, prosperity, and peace. Note HOW blessed Jerusalem will be, once she accepts her God and begins to live in accordance with His words: “Thus says the LORD: I will return to Zion, And dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. Jerusalem shall be called the City of Truth, The Mountain of the LORD of hosts, The Holy Mountain” (Zechariah 8:3).

When reading this passage, we are reminded of the famous prophecy in Isaiah 2:2–4: “Now it shall come to pass in the latter days, That the mountain of the LORD’S house Shall be established on the top of the mountains [other major nations], And shall be exalted above the hills [smaller nations]; And all nations shall flow to it. Many people shall come and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, To the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, And we shall walk in His paths. For out of Zion shall go forth the law; And the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. He shall judge between the nations, And rebuke many people; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, And their spears into pruning hooks; Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, Neither shall they learn war anymore.”

Imagine that! No more wars! The ENTIRE WORLD will live in REAL PEACE! Jesus Christ will return to this earth and will rule from Jerusalem, and ALL nations will want to learn from Christ how to live righteously. What a different world that will be! Wouldn’t YOU like to be there?

Continuing with Zechariah 8:4: “Thus says the LORD of hosts: Old men and old women shall again sit In the streets of Jerusalem, Each one with his staff in his hand Because of great age. The streets of the city Shall be full of boys and girls Playing in its streets. Thus says the LORD of hosts: If it is marvelous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in these days, Will it also be marvelous in My eyes? Says the LORD of hosts. Thus says the LORD of hosts: Behold, I will save My people from the land of the east And from the land of the west [a reference to areas to which modern Babylon transported their captives]; I will bring them back, And they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. They shall be My people And I will be their God, In truth and righteousness” (Zechariah 8:4–8).

Once they are in captivity, they will turn to God and begin to accept Christ as their personal Savior. They will become God’s people in the true sense of the word, and God will become their God. We will see in a moment why they will turn to God, and how they will even know to whom they should turn.

Zechariah 8:13–15, 23 continues: “And it shall come to pass That just as you were a curse among the nations, O house of Judah… So I will save you, and you shall be a blessing. Do not fear, Let your hands be strong. For thus says the LORD of hosts: Just as I determined to punish you When your fathers provoked Me to wrath, Says the LORD of hosts, And I would not relent, So again in these days I am determined to do good to Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. Do not fear… Thus says the LORD of hosts: In those days ten men from every language of the nations shall grasp the sleeve of a Jewish man, saying, Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”

Again, what will bring about this change in the people of Judah? What will convince them that Jesus Christ is, in fact, their promised Savior, just as He is for all mankind? 

The Bible prophesies that the message of captivity and conversion of the Jewish people will be preached powerfully to them just prior to the return of Christ. Today most of the Jews—actually, most of the people in the world—do not want to hear this very critical, life-saving message. But when the events that were announced to them actually do take place, they will finally come to their senses and realize that the prophetic word of God had been in their midst.

What this means then, for the true Church of God, is that it needs to obey God by proclaiming what will truly and certainly come to pass. This message is to be boldly proclaimed by God’s Church, and indeed, IS being proclaimed in this very booklet. We pray that those of you reading this will heed the warning and act accordingly.

Read and meditate on the following selected passages from God’s Word that reveal this part of His commission for His end-time Church:

“Declare in Judah and proclaim in Jerusalem, and say: Blow the trumpet in the land; Cry, Gather together, And say, Assemble yourselves, and let us go into the fortified cities… Take refuge! Do not delay! For I will bring disaster from the north [brought about by the king of the North], And great destruction. The lion has come up from his thicket, And the destroyer of nations is on his way. He has gone forth from his place To make your land desolate. Your cities will be laid waste, without inhabitant…And it shall come to pass in that day, says the LORD, That the heart of the king shall perish, And the heart of the princes; The priests shall be astonished, And the prophets shall wonder… O Jerusalem, wash your heart from wickedness, That you may be saved. How long shall your evil thoughts lodge within you?… Make mention to the nations, Yes, proclaim against Jerusalem, That watchers come from a far country And raise their voice against the cities of Judah… Because she has been rebellious against Me, says the LORD. Your ways and your doings have procured these things for you. This is your wickedness, Because it is bitter, Because it reaches to your heart” (Jeremiah 4:5–18)

In addition to this warning, the Church is also to proclaim Judah’s peaceful and glorious future following her repentance and conversion: “Comfort, yes, comfort My people! Says your God. Speak comfort to Jerusalem, and cry out to her, That her warfare is ended, That her iniquity is pardoned; for she has received from the LORD’S hand Double for all her sins” (Isaiah 40:1–2).

“How beautiful upon the mountains Are the feet of him who brings good news [the gospel], Who proclaims peace, Who brings glad tidings of good things, Who proclaims salvation, Who says to Zion, Your God reigns! Your watchman shall lift up their voices, With their voices they shall sing together; for they shall see eye to eye When the LORD brings back Zion” (Isaiah 52:7–8).

“O Zion [Zion can refer to the actual city of Jerusalem but it can also refer to the Church of God], You who bring good tidings, Get up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem [a reference here to spiritual Jerusalem—the Church of God; it can also be a reference to the fact that the word of God will go out from Jerusalem once Jesus Christ lives and rules from there (Isaiah 2:2–4)], You who bring good tidings, Lift up your voice with strength, Lift it up, be not afraid; Say to the cities of Judah, Behold your God” (Isaiah 40:9).

“I have set watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; They shall never hold their peace day or night. You who make mention of the LORD, do not keep silent, And give Him no rest till He establishes And till He makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth” (Isaiah 62:6–7).

YOU could be among those watchmen with us. YOU could have a part with those who are called by God to proclaim His message—the GOOD NEWS—to the Jewish people and to the world, warning them of their grim future and showing them that peace and prosperity await them after they repent of their sins and turn to Jesus Christ. The Bible predicts that this message WILL go out. It is your choice as to whether or not you want to have a part in proclaiming it with us.

Part 2 – The Modern House of Israel in Prophecy

Many falsely believe that the house of Israel and the Jewish people are one and the same. Nothing could be further from the truth. Judah, from whom the Jewish people descended, was just one tribe of the descendants of Jacob, whose name God changed to Israel long ago (Genesis 35:10). In due time they separated from their Israelite brothers and, along with the tribes of Levi and Benjamin, formed the “house of Judah.” The other tribes then became known as the “house of Israel.” The “house of Israel” went into captivity first, never to return to the “Promised Land.” Today, they are known as the “lost ten tribes.” The “house of Judah” also went into captivity but did eventually return to Palestine. Many descendants of the house of Judah are living today in the state of Israel. In due time, as history and archeology reveal, the lost ten tribes of the house of Israel migrated to and settled in Europe and the British Isles. One tribe in particular, the descendants of Manasseh—the older son of Joseph—migrated from there to the United States of America, where they still are today. The descendants of Ephraim—the younger son of Joseph—can still be found in Great Britain and the Commonwealth Nations, including Canada, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand.

The Bible contains many predictions about the future of the modern house of Israel (not to be confused with the Jews or the house of Judah). Israel refers to the modern house of Israel—especially the leading tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh—in many different ways, including “the remnant of Jacob.” As we will see, the coming great and mighty economic power bloc in Europe, under the leadership of modern Assyria, will have a devastating influence, not only on the modern house of Judah, but also on the modern house of Israel.

We know that when this power bloc establishes itself on the world scene, the time will be short. Do we realize that this gigantic power bloc is already forming in front of our very eyes? During a recent ceremony in Aachen, celebrating the arrival of the new European currency, Italian President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi stated that the Euro is the beginning point for further European developments. He stressed that the need for Europe to react in a unified fashion toward crisis situations outside the European Union becomes more obvious day by day. It was also stated during the celebration that the Euro has become the symbol for the European vision, having done more to give stability to and confidence in the political unification of Europe than all of the previous European treaties combined.

At the beginning, the modern house of Israel will have a friendly relationship with this European power bloc. And, as we will see more closely in Part 3 of this booklet, they will even trade with them, including agricultural products and technological developments. Hosea 12:1 talks about an economic covenant that those two power blocs will enter into.

But will this friendly relationship last? No! Incredible as it may seem, the United States and Great Britain, as well as other Commonwealth nations, will be overthrown and enslaved by their former ally and friend—the United States of Europe, led by the modern Assyrians. Not only will Assyria be instrumental in fighting against and enslaving the modern house of Judah, they will—apparently at the same time—fight victoriously against and enslave the modern house of Israel. We will cover this in detail later in this booklet.

But first, let’s take note of a remarkable prophecy in Micah 5:5–6 (Micah 5:7 shows that the people referred to here are identified as “the remnant of Jacob,” and are, in fact, the modern house of Israel, particularly the United States and Great Britain.): “…When the Assyrian comes into our land, And when he treads in our palaces, Then we will raise against him Seven shepherds and eight princely men. They shall waste with the sword the land of Assyria, And the land of Nimrod at its entrances; Thus He shall deliver us from the Assyrian, When he comes into our land And when he treads within our borders.” 

Let’s see how this compares to history. In 1940, modern Assyria, under the leadership of Adolph Hitler, did attack Great Britain in World War II, but God gave victory to the British. Hitler was very reluctant to fight against Great Britain, as he considered the British people to be part of the master race. Nevertheless, he did assault England by air—known as the Blitz—from September 7 to November 13, 1940. Germany, however, was devastated, and most of its cities were destroyed by the end of the war.

God also protected the United States from the Assyrians at least twice more in modern history.

First, let’s look at a remarkable revelation that has recently come to light. German Kaiser Wilhelm II had a plan to attack the United States about 100 years ago. He was going to attack New York and Boston with 100 ships and 100,000 soldiers. At that time, the United States only had 54 military ships. His ultimate goal was to establish and possess colonies in South America and in the Pacific, and to gain control over the Panama Canal. The plan, though 10 years in the making, was not carried out. Instead, Kaiser Wilhelm II led Germany into World War I in 1914.

In addition to Adolph Hitler’s attack on Great Britain, he also declared war on the United States on December 11, 1941. This was just two days after President Roosevelt announced that Germany was as guilty for attacking Pearl Harbor as was Japan. Hitler then ordered the destruction of all American ships, wherever they could be found.

Hitler lost this war, as he fought too many battles at the same time—Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Russia, and the United States. But we can realize how the plan of the Europeans—especially the modern Assyrians—to attack the United States had entered their minds. This same plan will be pursued again, and next time, it will be successful.

At the end of his life, Hitler made this remarkable prophetic observation: “With the defeat of the Reich and pending the emergence of the Asiatic, the African, and perhaps the South American nationalisms, there will remain in the world only two Great Powers capable of confronting each other—the United States and Soviet Russia. The laws of both history and geography will compel these two powers to a trial of strength, either military or in the fields of economics and ideology. These same laws make it inevitable that both powers should become enemies of Europe.” (Klaus P. Fischer, Nazi Germany–A New History, 1995, pp. 563–564).

Micah 5:7–9 continues to describe the modern nations of the house of Israel, referred to as the “remnant of Jacob.” They are pictured as being powerful, like a lion among other nations. They are wealthy and prosperous; and they are victorious in battle.

But as we read in verses 10–15 of Micah 5, things will start to change. Note how and why they will change: “And it shall be in that day [recall that this phrase is always a reference to the very last days, or the day of the LORD when God begins to actively intervene in human and political affairs], says the LORD, That I will cut off your horses from your midst And destroy your chariots. I will cut off the cities of your land and throw down all your strongholds. I will cut off sorceries from your hand, And you shall have no soothsayers. Your carved images I will also cut off, And your sacred pillars from your midst; you shall no more worship the work of your hands; I will pluck your wooden images from your midst; Thus I will destroy your cities. And I will execute vengeance in anger and fury On the nations that have not heard [or, “obeyed”].”

The term, “in anger and fury” is a reference to the wrath of God, described in vivid terms in the book of Revelation as a time when God’s wrath is poured out on the last generation of man. God will begin His punishment with the modern house of Israel, “the nations that have not obeyed,” such as the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. And this time, these nations will be destroyed. God has prophesied it, and it WILL happen.

Jeremiah 30:3 sheds additional light on what is soon to happen. “For behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, that I will bring back from captivity My people Israel and Judah, says the LORD. And I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it.”

We already know from Part 1 of this booklet that the modern house of Judah will go into captivity. Now we learn that the modern house of Israel will also be taken captive by a foreign power. We will see in a moment that it is, in fact, the same power that will enslave both the Jews and the modern house of Israel. But the prophet Jeremiah is inspired to tell us that it is God who will eventually free Israel and Judah out of captivity and they will return to the land that God gave to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Historically, the house of Israel never returned to the Promised Land—only some of the Jews did. This, then, is still a prophecy for the future.

Jeremiah 30:6–7 goes on to make very clear exactly when those events—the modern warfare and captivity, and ultimate deliverance from slavery—will take place: “Ask now, and see, Whether a man is ever in labor with child? So why do I see every man with his hands on his loins Like a woman in labor, And all faces turned pale? Alas! For that day is great, So that none is like it; and it is the time of Jacob’s trouble, but he shall be saved out of it.”

As we already know, the phrase “that day is great” is a reference to the GREAT DAY OF THE LORD, a time that is still in the future. This “day” will be unique—no time will be like it. We are reminded that the same has been said about the great tribulation at the very end of this age. We see, then, that the Great Tribulation and the day of the Lord both refer to the same general time period. Technically, the Great Tribulation lasts two-and-a-half years, followed by the day of the Lord that lasts for one year. The total time then is three-and-a-half years that the modern house of Israel will be punished and the Gentiles will tread Jerusalem underfoot.

This time is especially identified as the time of Jacob’s trouble—referring to the modern house of Israel. We are told that God will save them OUT OF that terrible time—showing that they will have to first go through it!

Jeremiah 30:8 continues: “For it shall come to pass in that day [the time of God’s intervention], Says the LORD of hosts, That I will break his yoke from your neck, And will burst your bonds; Foreigners shall no more enslave them.”

At the time of God’s intervention, “his yoke” will be broken from their neck, indicating that they were under a yoke of slavery at that time. We already know that the Jews will be under a yoke of slavery, enforced by modern Assyria, and that they will be freed by God at Christ’s return. The terminology, “his yoke,” strongly suggests that Assyria will have placed his yoke of slavery, not only on the house of Judah, but on the house of Israel as well.

God will free them from that yoke of slavery. Notice the next sentence: “FOREIGNERS shall NO MORE ENSLAVE them.” So then, foreigners, or a foreign power, did enslave them, and they are still enslaved when God intervenes. Jeremiah 30:9 reveals when all of this will take place: “But they shall serve the LORD their God, And David their king, Whom I will raise up for them.” These events will take place at the time of the resurrection of the just, which will occur at the time of the return of Jesus Christ to this earth.

Jeremiah 30:10 concludes: “Therefore do not fear, O My servant Jacob, says the LORD, Nor be dismayed, O Israel; For behold, I will save you from afar, And your seed from the land of their captivity.”

At the time of Christ’s return and the resurrection of the just, Christ will save the SEED of Jacob, the end-time descendants of Jacob—the modern American and British peoples—from the land of their captivity. What land is that?

The answer is in Jeremiah 23:7–8: “Therefore, behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, that they shall no longer say, As the LORD lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of Egypt, but, As the LORD lives who brought up and led the descendants of the house of Israel from the north country and from all the countries where I had driven them…”

God will bring back the descendants of the house of Israel from the north country [where the king of the North came from], and from all the countries where He drove them—where God permitted the foreign power to take them. They will be enslaved in a country north of Jerusalem—a particular country somewhere in Europe. They will also be driven, or taken, into other countries who will hold them captive. Note that the Assyrians especially, both in ancient and modern times, transported their captives from their own country to other countries.

Those who claim that such terrible things as captivity and slavery of entire nations could not possibly happen in our sophisticated 21^st century, forget that these kinds of actions did happen less than a generation ago.

Listen to these remarkable quotes from Fisher’s book on Nazi Germany, pp. 498, 486, 487, 488: “(p.498) Most of these grandiose plans [to conquer and enslave occupied peoples] reflect the Assyrian nature of German policy toward conquered peoples… (p. 486) Heinrich Himmler … declared that ‘whether nations live in prosperity or starve to death interests me only insofar as we need them for slaves for our Kultur…’ (p.487) By the end of 1941 almost four million foreigners worked in Germany, most of them Poles… [F]oreigners [were rounded up] in town squares, churches, cinemas, or other places where people congregated in great numbers and ship[ped]… back to Germany in freight cars…. As to workers from eastern Europe, the German conquerors treated them essentially like slaves… (p. 488) The rest were either incarcerated in concentration camps, sent to the Reich as slave laborers, or simply allowed to starve to death. Of at least five and half million Soviet prisoners of war, half died.”

Jeremiah 23:8 concludes their ultimate return: “…And they shall dwell in their own land.” After the house of Israel was taken captive by the ancient Assyrians, they never returned to the Promised Land. So again, this is still to take place in the future.

Some argue that the Bible does not really mean to convey that modern Israel and Judah will literally be enslaved. Is that true? We saw that a “yoke” will be placed on the modern house of Israel, as well as on the modern Jews (cp. Isaiah 14:25 and 52:2).

What exactly is meant by the word, “yoke,” and who enforces it on the modern house of Israel? Let’s look at the biblical definition of the word “yoke.”

We’ll begin by noting a prophecy in Isaiah 47:1: “Come down and sit in the dust, O virgin daughter of Babylon; Sit on the ground without a throne, O daughter of the Chaldeans! For you shall no more be called Tender and delicate.”

The prophecy is directed at the “virgin daughter of Babylon,” not ancient Babylon, but a daughter—a descendant. “Babylon” here refers to a modern European system—an economic, political, military, and religious power soon to arise on the world scene.

Note Isaiah 47:6: “I was angry with My people: I have profaned My inheritance, And given them into your hand. You showed them no mercy; On the elderly you laid your yoke very heavily.”

The “yoke” here describes literal slavery. Modern Babylon will put her yoke of slavery VERY HEAVILY on the houses of Israel and Judah—much more so than had been intended by God.

And so, we read in Isaiah 47:9, 11: “But these two things shall come to you [modern Babylon] In a moment, in one day: The loss of children, and widowhood. They shall come upon you in their fullness Because of the multitude of your sorceries, For the great abundance of your enchantments… Therefore evil shall come upon you; You shall not know from where it arises. And trouble shall fall upon you; You will not be able to put it off. And desolation shall come upon you suddenly, Which you shall not know. ”

This passage tells us that modern Babylon’s destruction will happen very suddenly—“in a moment, in one day.” The book of Revelation describes the downfall of modern Babylon in great detail, which we will discuss in Part 3 of this booklet. Suffice it to say here that Revelation 18:8 & 10 also explains that “her plagues will come in one day” and that “in one hour your judgment has come.” Since Babylon did not show mercy when placing the yoke of slavery on the neck of the peoples of Israel and Judah, neither will she receive mercy from God, and she will be destroyed very quickly.

We find another reference to the house of Israel’s yoke of end-time slavery in Deuteronomy 28:47–51: “Because you did not serve the LORD your God with joy and gladness of heart, for the abundance of everything, therefore you shall serve your enemies, whom the LORD will send against you, in hunger, in thirst, in nakedness, and in need of everything; and He will put a yoke of iron on your neck until He has destroyed you [Again, we see that the term “yoke” refers to literal slavery.]. The LORD will bring a nation against you from afar, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flies, a nation whose language you will not understand, a nation of fierce countenance, which does not respect the elderly nor show favor to the young. And they shall eat the increase of your livestock and the produce of your land, until you are destroyed; they shall not leave you grain or new wine or oil, or the increase of your cattle or the offspring of your flocks, until they have destroyed you.”

“The Assyrian nature of the German peoples,” as Klaus Fischer put it, revealed itself during World War II as well, when considering how conquered nations were treated by their conquerors. Note this quote from Hermann Göring (quoted by Klaus Fischer, Nazi Germany, p. 486): “‘In the old days, the rule was plunder. Now, outward forms have become more humane. Nevertheless I intend to plunder, and plunder copiously.’”

Hitler himself declared: “‘Our guiding principle must be that these people have but one justification for existence—to be of use to us economically. We must concentrate on extracting from these territories everything that is possible to extract.’” (Fischer, ibid.)

Deuteronomy 28:68 predicts: “And the LORD will take you back to Egypt in ships, by the way of which I said to you, You shall never see it again. And there you shall be offered for sale to your enemies as male and female slaves, but no one will buy you.”

The modern nations of the houses of Israel and Judah will go back by ships to “Egypt”—a symbol for slavery. It does not say here that all will go back to the land of Egypt. We will see the reason for the omission of the word “land” very soon.

We note, as a forerunner of what will happen on a much greater scale, the following example of what already occurred in World War II in Hungary (Klaus Fischer, Nazi Germany, p. 511): “The Nazis also halfheartedly experimented with a new technique—selling Jews to the Western world, a plan, unfortunately, that, as a result of Nazi duplicity and the indifference and bureaucratic obstructionism of Western governments, never really worked.”

As predicted in Deuteronomy 28:68, captives from the houses of Israel and Judah will be offered for sale, but “no one will buy” them.

The prophet Ezekiel clearly predicts, as well, that the modern house of Israel—the United States and Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and other Commonwealth nations—will be defeated in a coming war with a modern enemy‑continental Europe. This will be a unique time in the history of man—a time of calamities and terrible atrocities that have never happened before, and which will never happen again (cp. Ezekiel 5:9). It will be a time of GREAT TRIBULATION!

In Ezekiel 6:1–2 God tells Ezekiel to speak to “the mountains of Israel.” Then in verse 6 God says: “In all your dwelling places the cities shall be laid waste, and the high places shall be desolate…” This has not happened yet! Never, in the history of ancient Israel, were their cities laid waste in all their dwelling places. In fact, when the Assyrians conquered Samaria, they saw to it that the cities were not laid waste, but inhabited.

Continuing with Ezekiel 6:7: “The slain shall fall in your midst, and you shall know that I am the LORD.” Modern America, Britain, Canada and Australia don’t really know God, nor do they know that God is against them. But they will come to realize that God forsakes us when we forsake Him. They will ONLY learn this lesson, however, when God leads them into the Great Tribulation and the day of the LORD, ultimately saving them out of it when Jesus Christ returns to this earth. If Jesus were not to return as He said He would, not even one person would survive (Matthew 24:21–22).

God has not left the modern house of Israel without warning. He told them in His own words thousands of years ago that He would first bring natural disasters on their lands—disasters such as extended periods of drought and resulting famines. We are already experiencing unprecedented droughts and insect plagues in Canada and large parts of the United States. These droughts are warnings to wake the nations up, and to announce to them at the same time, that worse things will happen if they don’t repent of their sins.

God tells the modern house of Israel in Amos 4:7–9: “I also withheld rain from you, When there were still three months to the harvest. I made it rain on one city, I withheld rain from another city. One part was rained upon, And where it did not rain the part withered. So two or three cities wandered to another city to drink water, But they were not satisfied; Yet you have not returned to Me, Says the LORD. I blasted you with blight and mildew. When your gardens increased, Your vineyards, Your fig trees, And your olive trees, The locust devoured them; Yet you have not returned to Me, Says the LORD.” Read the next two verses and you will see that God next pronounces WAR and TOTAL DEVASTATION.

A similar warning can be found in Deuteronomy 28:23–24, 38–39 & 42: “And your heavens which are over your head shall be bronze, and the earth which is under you shall be iron. The LORD will change the rain of your land to powder and dust; from the heaven it shall come down on you until you are destroyed… You shall carry much seed out to the field but gather little in, for the locust shall consume it. You shall plant vineyards and tend them, but you shall neither drink of the wine nor gather the grapes; for the worms shall eat them… Locusts shall consume all your trees and the produce of your land.”

Droughts are not to be taken lightly. God has used droughts before to try to awaken sinning people and to teach them lessons (compare Haggai 1:11), and He will do so again (compare Zechariah 14:17; Revelation 11:6). He is doing it right now. Can we see it?

Ezekiel 6:8–10 makes it very clear what will happen next to the modern house of Israel if they don’t wake up: “Yet I will leave a remnant, so that you may have some who escape the sword among the nations, when you are scattered through the countries. Then those of you who escape will remember Me among the nations where they are carried captive, because I was crushed by their adulterous heart which has departed from Me, and by their eyes which play the harlot after their idols; they will loathe themselves for the evils which they committed in all their abominations. And they shall know that I am the LORD; I have not said in vain that I would bring this calamity upon them.” These are warnings from God Himself! Are we listening?

Ezekiel 39:21–29 confirms that God will ultimately free Israel from their captivity—once they repent—and that He will bring them back into the land that was promised to their fathers: “I will set My glory among the nations; all the nations shall see My judgment which I have executed, and My hand which I have laid on them. So the house of Israel shall know that I am the LORD their God from that day forward. The Gentiles shall know that the house of Israel went into captivity for their iniquity; because they were unfaithful to Me, therefore I hid My face from them. I gave them into the hand of their enemies, and they all fell by the sword…. Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: ‘Now I will bring back the captivity of Jacob, and have mercy on the whole house of Israel; and I will be jealous for My holy name—after they have borne their shame, and all their unfaithfulness in which they were unfaithful to Me, when they dwelt safely in their own land and no one made them afraid. When I have brought them back from the peoples and gathered them out of their enemies’ lands, and I am hallowed in them in the sight of many nations, then they shall know that I am the LORD their God, who sent them into captivity among the nations, but also brought them back to their land, and left none of them captive any longer. And I will not hide My face from them anymore; for I shall have poured out my Spirit on the house of Israel,’ says the Lord GOD.”

God drove them into slavery, and God will bring them back out of slavery at the time He pours out His Spirit over them. This has not happened yet—this is still in the future.

Like Ezekiel, the prophet Jeremiah also has much to say regarding the destiny of the modern house of Israel. Let’s turn to a few passages, proving without a doubt, that disaster is decreed for the modern nations of the house of Israel, as well as a glorious future, unparalleled in the history of any nation.

Jeremiah 30:18–24 states: “Thus says the LORD: Behold, I will bring back the captivity of Jacob’s tents, And have mercy on his dwelling places; The city shall be built upon its own mound [or, ruins], And the palace shall remain according to its own plan. Then out of them shall proceed thanksgiving And the voice of those who make merry; I will multiply them, and they shall not diminish; I will also glorify them, and they shall not be small. Their children also shall be as before, And their congregation shall be established before Me; And I will punish all who oppress them… You shall be My people, And I will be your God… In the latter days you will consider it.” 

This is a prophecy for the future—for the latter days—when the modern house of Israel repents of their sins and are freed from slavery by God Almighty Himself.

Now notice the continuation in Jeremiah 31:1–9: “At the same time [that is, in the latter days], says the LORD, I will be the God of all the families of Israel [including the Jews, as they are also descendants of Jacob], and they shall be My people. Thus says the LORD: The people who survived the sword Found grace in the wilderness—Israel, when I went to give him rest…For thus says the LORD: Sing with gladness for Jacob, And shout among the chief of the nations; Proclaim, give praise, and say, O LORD, save Your people, The remnant of Israel [this is not talking about ancient Israel, but a remnant in modern times after their defeat in war]! Behold, I will bring them from the north country [where they had been held captive], And gather them from the ends of the earth, Among them the blind and the lame, The woman with child And the one who labors with child, together; A great throng shall return there. They shall come with weeping… For I am a Father to Israel, And Ephraim [Great Britain, Canada, and the other Commonwealth nations] is My firstborn.”

Jeremiah 32:37–40 continues: “Behold, I will gather them out of all countries where I have driven them in My anger, in My fury, and in great wrath [speaking about the wrath of God at the very end of this age]; I will bring them back to this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely. They shall be My people, and I will be their God; then I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear Me forever, for the good of them and their children after them. And I will make an everlasting covenant [the New Covenant] with them, that I will not turn away from doing them good; but I will put My fear in their hearts so that they will not depart from Me.”

What this passage clearly tells us is that God will free the enslaved modern Israelites out of captivity and that He will, at the same time, give them His Holy Spirit—a prerequisite for entering into the New Covenant. Again, we see that literal captivity and slavery are prophesied for the modern house of Israel. And not only for the house of Israel, but the house of Judah (the Jews, the Benjaminites and the Levites) will also go into captivity—apparently at the same time—and both houses will be freed by God when Christ returns.

Notice this again in Jeremiah 33:7–9: “And I will cause the captives of Judah and the captives of Israel to return [note that the house of Israel, when they were enslaved in ancient times by the Assyrians, never returned to the Promised Land], and will rebuild those places as at the first. I will cleanse them from all their iniquity by which they have sinned against Me, and I will pardon all their iniquities by which they have sinned and by which they have transgressed against Me. Then… they shall fear and tremble for all the goodness and all the prosperity that I provide for it.”

The captives of Israel and the captives of Judah will return together and God will forgive their sins. This has NEVER happened before in the history of these two houses.

Again, Jeremiah 46:27–28 confirms that God will free the modern house of Israel from captivity: “But do not fear, O My servant Jacob, And do not be dismayed, O Israel! For behold, I will save you from afar, And your offspring from the land of their captivity; Jacob shall return, have rest and be at ease; No one shall make him afraid. Do not fear, O Jacob My servant, says the LORD, For I am with you; For I will make a complete end of all the nations To which I have driven you, But I will not make a complete end of you. I will rightly correct you, For I will not leave you wholly unpunished.”

God promises to save Jacob’s offspring, that is, the modern descendants of Jacob—the house of Israel—from the land of their captivity. Is all this talk about captivity and enslavement for real?

Some argue that God does not predict a literal captivity of the house of Israel, but that He is only pointing out that the house of Israel will live “in exile” prior to the return of Christ—in other words, that they will not have possessed the Promised Land. However, the Bible very clearly predicts a literal captivity. For example, in the above-quoted passage in Jeremiah 46:27, the word for “captivity” is “shebi” and can only mean, “captivity” or “captive.” [The words that can also mean “exile,” depending on the circumstances, are “golah,” or “galuth.”]

Some have raised the objection that the Bible only predicts a “spiritual” captivity for the house of Israel, since all of mankind is held spiritually captive by sin and by Satan the devil, the “god” of this world and the prince of the power of the air. Although it is true that we are presently “captives” of Satan and sin, unless God frees us through His Holy Spirit, the Scriptures speaking about captivity of the modern houses of Israel and Judah do not refer to such a “spiritual captivity.” Let’s look at the biblical perspective of this issue.

First of all, we have already established from many scriptures that modern Judah will clearly go into a literal captivity. Note that in many cases, God names the houses of Israel and Judah together when describing their captivity, not making any distinction between a literal captivity of the house of Judah and a spiritual captivity of the house of Israel. In addition, the Scriptures differentiate between the “captivity” of the houses of Israel and Judah and the “freedom” of other unconverted Gentile nations—an odd distinction, indeed, if the captivity of Israel and Judah were to describe only a spiritual captivity of Satan and sin. Clearly, such captivity would apply to every modern nation.

Jeremiah 50:4–5 repeats and confirms what we just read: “In those days and in that time, says the LORD, the children of Israel shall come, they and the children of Judah together; With continual weeping [showing their heart-rending repentance] they shall come and seek the LORD their God. They shall ask the way to Zion, with their faces toward it, saying, Come and let us join ourselves to the LORD in a perpetual covenant [i.e., the New Covenant] That will not be forgotten.”

Both the modern house of Israel and the modern house of Judah will come together in a repentant attitude, to enter into the New Covenant with God. Obviously, this is a future prophecy, as this has not happened yet.

From what region will they come? Jeremiah 50:8 explains: “Move from the midst of Babylon, Go out of the land of the Chaldeans; and be like the rams before the flocks.” This is not talking about ancient Babylon and the ancient Chaldeans, but a modern political and military system that is arising in Europe right now, as will be explained in much more detail in Part 3 of this booklet. The captives of Israel and Judah will be freed from the slavery of modern Babylon at the return of Christ. Jeremiah 3:18 also clearly shows that the prophecy is still awaiting future fulfillment: “In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given as an inheritance to your fathers.” Both houses will return together out of their land of captivity “in the north.”

Jeremiah 50:33–34 summarizes these future events this way: “Thus says the LORD of hosts: The children of Israel were oppressed, Along with the children of Judah; All who took them captive have held them fast; They have refused to let them go. [This cannot possibly be talking about a spiritual captivity of sin.] Their Redeemer is strong; The LORD of hosts is His name. He will thoroughly plead their case, that He may give rest to the land, And disquiet the inhabitants of Babylon.”

The captors—the modern Babylonian system—will have enslaved both Israel and Judah and will not want to let them go. In ancient times, the Babylonians took only the house of Judah captive; the house of Israel had already been taken captive some time earlier by the Assyrians. It is God Himself who will free both the house of Israel and the house of Judah from their literal captivity when He returns to this earth.

As if this were not proof enough that God predicts a literal captivity of the modern house of Israel in a future war prior to the return of Jesus Christ, we’ll look at what God spoke through another Old Testament prophet, Amos.

Amos addresses the actual time of the “day of the LORD” in Amos 5:18–20. In verse 25 it shows that he is talking to the “house of Israel.” And in verse 27 he makes it very clear what will happen to the modern Israelites during the soon-coming time of the “day of the LORD”: “Therefore I will send you into captivity beyond Damascus, Says the LORD, whose name is the God of hosts.”

God repeats His warning to the modern house of Israel—especially the descendants of Ephraim and Manasseh—in Amos 6:3–7: “Woe to you who put far off the day of doom, Who cause the seat of violence to come near; Who lie on beds of ivory, Stretch out on your couches, Eat lambs from the flock And calves from the midst of the stall; Who sing idly to the sound of stringed instruments, And invent for yourselves musical instruments like David [As an aside, is it mere coincidence that our “modern music” played with electric guitars was invented in, and then popularized from Ephraim and Manasseh—Great Britain and the United States?]; Who drink wine from bowls, And anoint yourselves with the best ointments, But are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph. Therefore they shall now go captive as the first of the captives, And those who recline at banquets shall be removed.”

In the ninth chapter of Amos God again confirms that HE will send the modern house of Israel into captivity, and that HE will ultimately free them when Christ returns and they repent of their sins. Listen to these encouraging words: “Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, When the plowman shall overtake the reaper, And the treader of grapes him who sows seed; The mountains shall drip with sweet wine, And all the hills shall flow with it. I will bring back the captives of My people Israel; They shall build the waste cities and inhabit them; They shall plant vineyards and drink wine from them; they shall also make gardens and eat fruit from them. I will plant them in their land, And no longer shall they be pulled up From the land I have given them, Says the LORD your God” (Amos 9:13–15).

This is another clear prophecy for the future. Up until now the house of Israel has NOT returned to the land that was promised to their fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. But they will return out of a literal slavery when Christ comes back to this earth.

There is yet another witness in the pages of the Old Testament who predicts the end-time fate of modern Ephraim and Manasseh—the prophet Hosea. He proclaims in Hosea 9:3, “They [the tribes of Israel, cp. verse 1] shall not dwell in the LORD’s land, but Ephraim shall return to Egypt, And shall eat unclean things in Assyria.”

As we know from what we’ve read so far, both of the modern nations of Israel and Judah will go into captivity. The land of slavery for the house of Israel, especially Ephraim, is mainly modern Assyria. There, they will eat unclean things. The house of Israel will also go back to “Egypt,” as we read here, but not to the land of Egypt. Notice Hosea 11:3, 5: “I taught Ephraim to walk… He shall not return to the land of Egypt; But the Assyrian shall be his king, Because they refused to repent.”

Egypt, then, is a symbol for slavery. The captives will return to Egypt, that is, into slavery, but notice that it doesn’t say they will return to the “land” of Egypt. Rather, they will be enslaved by Assyria, under “King Jareb.”

When Christ returns to free them, notice where they will come from. “They [the reference is still to the people of Ephraim] shall walk after the LORD. He will roar like a lion. When He roars, Then His sons shall come trembling from the west [In the Hebrew, there is no term for “northwest.” Therefore, some passages talk about the land of captivity as being west of Jerusalem, while most other passages designate it as being north of Jerusalem. Taking all of these passages together, the reference is to a country “northwest” of Jerusalem. Germany is situated northwest of Jerusalem.]; They shall come trembling like a bird from Egypt [again note, it does not say the land of Egypt], Like a dove from the land of Assyria. And I will let them dwell in their houses, Says the LORD” (Hosea 11:10–11).

Now let’s return to the book of Isaiah and read a few more prophecies about the future of the houses of Israel and Judah. Isaiah predicts a time of trial, followed by a time of great prosperity and peace.

Isaiah 11:11–12 points out, “It shall come to pass in that day [the time of Christ’s intervention] That the LORD shall set His hand again the second time To recover the remnant of His people who are left, From Assyria and Egypt, From Pathros and Cush, From Elam and Shinar [Babylon], From Hamath and the islands of the sea. He will set up a banner for the nations, And will assemble the outcasts of Israel, And gather together the dispersed of Judah From the four corners of the earth.”

We are all familiar with how God freed the Jews from Babylon and allowed them to return to the Promised Land. The house of Israel, though, never returned. When Christ comes back to this earth, He will set His hand not only to free Judah the second time, but also modern Israel, as well, from captivity. This has not yet happened.

Notice how Isaiah 11:16 emphasizes where most of the captives will be held: “There will be a highway for the remnant of His people Who will be left from Assyria, As it was for Israel In the day that he came up from the land of Egypt.”

Isaiah 27:13 says that, at the time of Christ’s return, the house of Israel will be enslaved in the land of Assyria, while the Jews will be enslaved in the land of Egypt: “So it shall be in that day [the day of Christ’s return and His intervention]: The great trumpet will be blown; They will come, who are about to perish in the land of Assyria [the house of Israel], And they who are outcasts in the land of Egypt [the house of Judah], And shall worship the LORD in the holy mount at Jerusalem.”

Could it REALLY happen?

Looking at the present day, some may say that Europe could NEVER attack and successfully conquer Great Britain and the United States. They forget, however, that there have already been plans to do so, and the ONLY reason that it did not happen at the time was because God did not let it happen. Many times, God intervened by sending bad weather to prevent German attacks on British or American troops. Once God withdraws His protection, these things WILL occur as prophesied.

In the last Great War, Hitler did not succeed in his attacks against Britain and the United States because he was entangled in warfare in Europe and Africa, and also against Russia. The next time, Europe will be united and will not have to worry about fighting against Russia, China, and the other powerful nations in the Far East. THAT war will come later, AFTER modern Europe—with their Arab allies—successfully overtakes the United States and Britain. It is most important to understand, though, that in this overthrow God will cease from protecting the house of Israel and He will allow Satan to carry out his plan of destruction.

Additionally, the Bible predicts that the peoples will be astonished when they see the ancient Roman Empire forming again as a very influential European power bloc. When Hitler’s Third Reich disappeared from the world scene, most thought that Germany would never rise again. Klaus Fischer writes in Nazi Germany on page 560: “Yet, having entrusted their future to a criminal leadership, they had no choice, certainly not after July 20, 1944, except to follow their leaders into the abyss.”

Europe will not stay in the “abyss.” It will awaken one more time. The European system, referred to as the “Beast” in the book of Revelation, will come out of the abyss for a tenth and final resurrection of the ancient Roman Empire to create havoc on this earth. All nations will be astonished when it shows its ugly head one more time.

God says that He will use Asiatic hordes, or armies, to punish and destroy the United States of Europe—modern Babylon. We find a reference to the eastern powers in Daniel 11:44; in Revelation 9:13 (at the time of the sixth trumpet); and in Revelation 16:12. We will describe these battles in more detail in Part 3 of this booklet, but for now, notice carefully that these battles will take place between the kings of the East and the Beast of Europe. These battles do not involve the United States of America, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, or New Zealand, because by that time, those nations will have been enslaved by Europe.

When Christ returns He will free both Israel and Judah from captivity and bring them back—for the first time since the fall of ancient Samaria and Jerusalem—to the Promised Land. Once they have returned to the Promised Land and live in safety, powers from the east will lunge a surprise attack on them. This attack is described in detail in Ezekiel 38 and 39, and, as we will see, this attack takes place AFTER Christ’s return. Rightly understood, these prophecies also prove that the modern houses of Israel and Judah will go into a literal captivity prior to Christ’s return, and that Christ will free them at the time of His return.

Notice Ezekiel 38:8: “After many days you [a Eurasian prince, called “Gog of the land of Magog,” who is commanding a vast army of eastern peoples] will be visited. In the latter years you will come into the land of those brought back from the sword and gathered from many people on the mountains of Israel, which had long been desolate; they were brought out of the nations, and now all of them dwell safely.”

This Eurasian army will come against Israel in the latter years. Verse 16 says in the latter days. The phrase “latter days” CAN refer to the time after Christ’s return, as it does here, but it is always a prophetic term for the future—beginning with the time just prior to Christ’s return—it does not refer to events in the ancient past.

At this time, then, the Israelites will have been gathered from many peoples—they will have been brought out of slavery. They will be dwelling safely, implying that they did not dwell safely before. At no time prior to Christ’s return‑at least not since the terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers in New York on September 11, 2001—could this be true for the United States of America.

Verse 11 of Ezekial 38 continues: “You [the prince of Gog] will say, I will go up against a land of unwalled villages; I will go to a peaceful people, who dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates…”

The nations of Israel will be living peacefully at that time without walls, having neither bars nor gates. This cannot possibly be a description of the U.S.A. today, where crimes and murders run rampant—at least in big cities such as New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Boston, and San Francisco. Our cities may be without walls, but we certainly do not live safely, nor in peace.

Then verse 12 says: “…to take plunder and to take booty, to stretch out your hand against the waste places that are again inhabited, and against a people gathered from the nations, who have acquired livestock and goods, who dwell in the midst of the land.” The places where Israel will dwell had formerly become as wasteland and uninhabited due to the destruction of the Beast power.

Verse 21 continues: “I will call for a sword against Gog throughout all My mountains, says the LORD God. Every man’s sword will be against his brother.” Note that modern Israel will not fight. Rather, the armies of Gog and Magog will fight each other.

Verse 22 tells us: “And I will bring him to judgment with pestilence and bloodshed; I will rain down on him, on his troops, and on the many peoples who are with him, flooding rain, great hailstones, fire, and brimstone.”

It is God who will supernaturally intervene and destroy this army. Another picture of fire and brimstone is painted, reminding us of the lake of fire and brimstone into which the beast—the military leader of Europe—will be thrown at the beginning of the Millennium. A similar fate awaits Gog and his cohorts because they operate with the same evil mindset.

Ezekiel 39:3 continues: “Then I will knock the bow out of your left hand [the hand of prince Gog], and cause the arrows to fall out of your right hand.”

Notice the kinds of weapons described here: These are bows and arrows—weapons of wood. These can be easily made after God destroys the sophisticated weapons of war at the time of Christ’s return. It is true that sometimes terms like “bows” or “arrows” can be a figurative reference to sophisticated modern weapons such as guns or nuclear missiles, but this is not the case here.

Verses 9–10 tell us: “Then those who dwell in the cities of Israel will go out and set on fire and burn the weapons, both the shields and the bucklers, the bows and arrows, the javelins and spears; and they will make fires with them for seven years. They will not take wood from the field nor cut down any from the forests, because they will make fires with the weapons; and they will plunder those who plundered them, and pillage those who pillaged them, says the LORD God.”

These weapons are not missiles or atomic bombs. Rather, they can be easily burned and used for firewood. One would certainly not try to burn nuclear missiles to use them for firewood. But these weapons of wood will be burned for firewood, it says, for seven years.

A similar event will happen again at the end of the Millennium, as described in Revelation 20:7–10, when Satan is released from prison and deceives “Gog” and “Magog.” God will destroy these attacking armies by throwing down fire from heaven and devouring them. Notice, though, that in the episode in Ezekiel 38, it was not Satan who influenced Gog and his army. Satan will be in prison at that time. Rather, we read in Ezekiel 38:10 that thoughts will arise in Gog’s mind and that he will make an evil plan. Man can do wrong things without Satan’s influence.

We saw that the Church of God has been given a commission from God to proclaim in advance to the modern house of Judah, what the Bible predicts is going to happen to them. Likewise, the Church of God has also received a commission to tell the modern nations of the house of Israel what awaits them—in the hope that at least some will listen and repent before it is too late.

Notice God’s word to His end-time Church in Amos 3:13–14: “Hear and testify against the house of Jacob, Says the Lord GOD, the God of hosts, that in the day I punish Israel for their transgressions, I will also visit destruction on the altars of Bethel… [modern Israel’s false religious worship ceremonies].”

The Bible tells us that the Church will, indeed, accomplish its commission. Notice in Hosea 5:9: “Ephraim shall be desolate in the day of rebuke; Among the tribes of Israel I make known what is sure.”

Hosea 7:11–12 adds: “Ephraim also is like a silly dove, without sense—They call to Egypt, They go to Assyria. Wherever they go, I will spread My net on them [to capture them, to make them captives]; I will bring them down like birds of the air; I will chastise them According to what their congregation has heard.”

In Hosea 8:1–4, God again gives His Church a very specific commission as to what to include in its preaching to the house of Israel: “Set the trumpet to your mouth! [What follows is the warning message, to be proclaimed like a trumpet to the house of Israel (compare Ezekiel 33:1–20)]. He shall come like an eagle [remember that the symbol of Assyria—ancient and modern—is the eagle] against the house of the LORD, Because they have transgressed My covenant And rebelled against My law. Israel will cry to Me, My God, we know You! Israel has rejected the good; The enemy will pursue him. They set up kings, but not by Me; They made princes, but I did not acknowledge them.”

God’s commission to His Church to warn modern Israel and Judah, along with the rest of the world, while, at the same time, proclaiming the wonderful news of the coming Kingdom of God and how we can enter into it, is an on-going commission. We don’t read anywhere that the assigned task of the Church ends prior to the return of Christ.

Quite to the contrary! Note Christ’s words to His disciples in Matthew 28:19–20: “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations… and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Most people who hear the message will not accept it. Their reaction will be one of hate and rejection, and even persecution. Christ told us very clearly: “And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake [all will hate you when the gospel is preached in all the world, to all nations]. But he who endures to the end will be saved. When they persecute you in this city, flee to another. For assuredly, I say to you, you will not have gone through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes” (Matthew 10:22–23).

Even when we are being persecuted, we must not stop preaching God’s word and warning the people. Luke 21:12–13 prophecies: “But before all these things [the increase of great earthquakes in various places, famines and pestilences, and frightful sights and great signs from heaven, verse 11], they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons. You will be brought before kings and rulers for My name’s sake. But it will turn out for you as an occasion for testimony.”

Remember that Paul was brought before kings after preaching the gospel. Why? Simply BECAUSE OF PREACHING THE GOSPEL! He was accused of having turned the whole world upside down because of his preaching. He was HATED by many because of his preaching. So also will be God’s Church and those who follow the commission, as the apostle Paul did, to proclaim God’s word in all the world as a witness, or testimony.

Again, we have a choice. God wants us to BOLDLY PROCLAIM His warning message to the modern house of Israel, as well as to the rest of the world, in the hope that some will listen and change their ways. How about you?

Part 3 – Ancient and Modern “Tyre” in Prophecy

The Bible contains a series of remarkable prophecies regarding the end-time religious, economic, and military system we have been discussing throughout this booklet, and which is forming right now in continental Europe. This system, as we already know, is referred to in the book of Revelation as “Babylon” and is also sometimes called “the Beast.” [Note that the term “Beast” can refer to the entire system, as well as to the end-time political leader ruling over this system.] The Bible also symbolically refers to this system as “Tyre.” Some of the prophecies that include the entire system, as well as the end-time leadership of that system—both on a human and a spiritual level—can be found in chapters 27 and 28 of the book of Ezekiel. We’ll take a look at Chapter 26 of Ezekiel first to set the stage in regard to the ancient city of Tyre—the historical forerunner of the end-time system.

God says in Ezekiel 26:2–3, “Son of man, because Tyre has said against Jerusalem, ‘Aha! She is broken who was the gateway of the peoples; now she is turned over to me; I shall be filled; she is laid waste.’ Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against you, O Tyre, and will cause many nations to come up against you, as the sea causes its waves to come up.”

The ancient city of Tyre was a famous port city of the Phoenicians. It is called “Sor” in Hebrew, and “Sur” in the Arabic language; it means “rock” in both languages. It was already an important Phoenician city in the 15^th century B.C; Joshua 19:29 refers to it as “the fortified city of Tyre.” It is mentioned again during the time of David as “the stronghold [or fortress] of Tyre” (2 Samuel 24:7).

Tyre was a dual city—part of the city lay on the coast and part was situated offshore on islands of rock. We read in verse 3 that many nations would come up against Tyre, just as the sea causes its waves to come up—one after the other. In verses 4 and 5, notice that many nations, not just one, would destroy the walls of Tyre. Verse 4 emphasizes specifically that “they” shall destroy the walls.

Verses 7–11 explain in detail how the first conqueror of Tyre to bring about its desolation would be Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon. Verse 12, however, uses the plural, stating that “they [more than one nation or emperor] will plunder your riches… and lay your… soil in the midst of the water.” Historically, Nebuchadnezzar did not destroy the part of Tyre that was offshore. He only destroyed “Old Tyre,” the part on the coast, about 609B.C. The Persians allowed that destroyed part of Tyre to be rebuilt exactly 70 years after its partial destruction.

Later, Alexander destroyed both Old Tyre and New Tyre (on the island). At that time, many people from Tyre fled over the sea to Carthage in North Africa. That city had been established by the Phoenicians as a trading post in the 9^th century B.C. Later, many people from ancient Tyre fled to Tarshish in Spain. Others settled in Italy—especially the Chaldeans and the Phoenicians—where they founded Venice.

But parts of Tyre were subsequently resettled. Tyre had again become a thriving port by the time Jesus was here on the earth (Mark 7:24–31). It was here where Christ healed the young woman whose mother said that even the dogs eat crumbs from the table of their masters (Matthew 15:21–28). Also, Tyre is mentioned in Acts 12:20–21, where king Herod died, being eaten up by worms because he did not give God glory.

In time, other nations came to attack and plunder Tyre, including the Greeks, the Romans, the Arabs, the Crusaders, and the Mamelukes. (The Mamelukes were originally purchased slaves who converted to Islam. They advanced to high military posts in Egypt. From them came the Turks, the Mongols and the Circassians. Today, they can be found in Nubia, in North East Africa). Some of the inhabitants of Tyre migrated to Italy, where they settled in Rome. The name “Tyrrhenian Sea”—one of the seas or oceans surrounding Italy—has derived its name from the inhabitants of Tyre who settled in Italy.

Today, Tyre is still a minor port and inhabited by Islamic Arabs who fled Palestine when the state of Israel was formed, and who settled in southern Lebanon.

In Ezekiel 26:13–14 God states, “I will put an end to the sound of your songs, and the sound of your harps shall be heard no more. I will make you like the top of a rock; you shall be a place for spreading nets, and you shall never be rebuilt, for I the LORD have spoken, says the Lord GOD.”

This prophecy is still to be fulfilled, even for the ancient city of Tyre. Notice what God Himself says, “I will put an end to the sound of your songs…I will make you like the top of a rock…” Verses 19–21 give further details as to what exactly God did to the ancient city of Tyre and what He will do to the modern city of Tyre.

The focus then changes in the 27^th chapter of the book of Ezekiel. Notice that it no longer describes the ancient city of Tyre. Rather, it speaks about a powerful, modern economic system that is comparable to the wealth and prosperity of ancient Tyre. Just as the Bible uses “Babylon” to refer to an ancient city, as well as to a modern city, the Bible also uses “Tyre” in similar ways. Modern “Tyre” in Ezekiel 27:1–9 is described as a great merchant ship—a symbol of its importance as an economic power. This refers to the modern European system—still in the future—and is, in fact, the last resurrection of the ancient Roman Empire.

This system is also described as a military power in Ezekiel 27:10–11. Beginning with verse 12, Ezekiel returns to his description of the system of modern Tyre as a wealthy economic power. This switch from an economic to a military power, and then back to an economic power, MIGHT suggest that the real economic wealth and prosperity that originally existed to an extent, is going to be heavily increased by military actions and not by peaceful means.

Notice how this European economic system is described in Ezekiel 27:12–13, and note also, the areas and countries—as identified by archeology and history—with whom this system will trade. “Tarshish [city in Spain—symbolic of the economic power of Spain] was your merchant because of your many luxury goods. They gave you silver, iron, tin, and lead for your goods. Javan [Greece, perhaps Japan], Tubal and Meshesh [nations or peoples originally between the Black and the Caspian Sea, which could be a reference to the Russian cities of Tobolsk and Moskow] were your traders. They bartered human lives and vessels of bronze for your merchandise.” Yes, even human lives—slaves—will be traded within this system.

Continuing with verses 14–16: “Those from the house of Togarmah [Siberia, some have felt, this might be a reference to Armenia] traded for your wares with horses, steeds, and mules. The men of Dedan were your traders; many isles were the market of your hand. They brought you ivory tusks and ebony as payment [or “forced tribute,” suggesting occupation and enslavement]. Syria was your merchant because of the abundance of goods you made. They gave you for your wares emeralds, purple, embroidery, fine linen, corals, and rubies.”

Now notice in verse 17 who else will have—to an extent—an economic relationship and trade arrangements with this European system, at least at the beginning: “Judah and the land of Israel [wherever the house of Israel is today—including the British Isles, the United States of America, Canada, New Zealand, Australia] were your traders. They traded for your merchandise wheat of Minnith, millet, honey, oil, and balm.” The modern houses of Israel and Judah will export wheat, millet and other grains and goods, as well as medical supplies—symbolized by the word “balm”—to the European economic system.

Ezekiel 27:18–23 reveals the other nations that will be trading with this European system. The tribe of Dan [modern Ireland] is specifically mentioned in verse 19, with its main trade of cane or sugar. The Arabs are identified in verses 20 and 21. Verse 23 mentions “Assur and Chilmad.” Some translations have here “Assur and all the Medes.”

Notice that verses 25 and 26 refer to the fact that the modern European system is somehow situated “in the midst of the seas.”

But something is going to happen to this system. It will be destroyed in one day, through the “east wind,” as we read in verses 26 and 27: “…But the east wind broke you in the midst of the seas… Your mariners and pilots… All your men of war who are in you, And the entire company which is in your midst, Will fall into the midst of the seas on the day of your ruin.”

Read the entire prophecy of modern Tyre’s downfall and destruction in Ezekiel 27:28–36, and see the correlation to an almost identical description of the fall of this military/economic system—referred to as modern “Babylon”—in Revelation 18:9–21. In Scripture this system is sometimes called the “daughter of Babylon,” which identifies both its origins and the future time of its ultimate destruction (Jeremiah 50:42; 51:33).

In order to bring about the destruction of this modern military and economic system, God will use powers of the East and the North (Daniel 11:44), mainly the “Medes,” to attack modern Babylon or Tyre—the European power bloc.

Notice the following passages by the prophet Jeremiah that identify modern Europe’s foe with great clarity: “Make the arrows bright! Gather the shields! The LORD has raised up the spirit of the kings of the Medes. For His plan is against [modern] Babylon to destroy it, Because it is the vengeance of the LORD, the vengeance for His temple… Prepare against her the nations, with the kings of the Medes, Its governors and all its rulers, All the land of his dominion. And the land will tremble and sorrow; For every purpose of the LORD shall be performed against Babylon, To make the land of Babylon a desolation without inhabitant” (Jeremiah 51:11; 51:28–29).

Notice, too, the following prophecies in the book of Isaiah: “The burden against Babylon… Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them, Who will not regard silver; And as for gold, they will not delight in it… A distressing vision is declared to me; The treacherous dealer deals treacherously, And the plunderer plunders. Go up, O Elam! Besiege, O Media! All its sighing I have made to cease… And look, here comes a chariot of men with a pair of horsemen. Then he… said, Babylon is fallen, is fallen!” [showing that it would fall twice–in ancient times, and, as the book of Revelation predicts, at the time of Christ’s return] (Isaiah 13:1, 17; 21:2, 9).

Who were the ancient Medes and who are they today? In ancient times, the Medes lived in present-day Iran. Originally, under Assyrian rule, they revolted against and expelled the Assyrians and imposed their rule over the Persians. They then attacked Niniveh and overthrew the Assyrian Empire. Under Cyrus the Great, the Medes and the Persians were considered as one people. The Encyclopedia Britannica (ed.1959) points out that at least some of the Medes were not Iranians or Indo-Europeans, but perhaps connected with the numerous tribes of the Caucasus. The modern Medes, then, are to be found in modern Russia and surrounding areas.

Ultimately, God Himself will destroy modern Babel, or Tyre, at the time of Christ’s return. And at that time, He will also directly destroy the modest remains of the ancient city of Tyre.

In the 28^th chapter of Ezekiel, we find a description of a leader of Tyre, primarily a modern leader of the modern European system—not the ancient leader of the ancient city of Tyre. This modern leader is referred to as the “PRINCE of Tyre.”

Ezekiel 28:2 identifies this modern leader—someone who will become known on the world scene very soon—as follows: “Son of man, say to the prince of Tyre, Thus says the Lord GOD: Because your heart is lifted up, And you say, I am a god [or, I am God], I sit in the seat of gods, In the midst of the seas, Yet you are a man, and not a god [or, not God], Though you set your heart as the heart of a god [or, Though you make your heart as the heart of God]…”

This man speaks like the man of sin in 2 Thessalonians 2:3–4. This personage, also referred to as the “false prophet” in other passages, claims that he is sitting “as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.” Ezekiel 28:2 describes, then, the religious leadership over the European system of modern “Tyre.” [Compare with Revelation 17:3, picturing the religious system as a “woman” sitting on the “beast.”] The religious leader originally sits “in the midst of the seas.” Italy, with its capital of Rome, is located between, and surrounded by numerous seas or oceans—the Ligurian Sea, the Tyrrhenian Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, the Ionian Sea, and the Adriatic Sea.

But, as other Scriptures reveal, this religious leader—together with the military leader or the “Beast”—will move its capital to the city of Jerusalem. By that time, it seems, the Jews will have built a third temple—maybe on the Temple Mount—where they will bring sacrifices, but the European system will take away those daily sacrifices (Daniel 8:11–14; 11:31; Matthew 24:15–22), perhaps in order to pacify the Arab nations.

2 Thessalonians 2:4 also strongly suggests that the false prophet will sit in that very temple, claiming to be God Himself. The Greek word for “temple” is “naos” and means “inner sanctuary.” Although this word can apply to a spiritual temple (Christ spoke of the temple, “naos,” of His body in John 2:21), this word can also apply to a literal temple. Revelation 11:1–2 shows that the “temple of God” is to be measured. Yet the court outside the “temple” was not be be measured because it had been given to the Gentiles, who will tread the holy city underfoot for 3½ years (compare Luke 21:24). So it appears that the false prophet will be sitting in a literal temple in Jerusalem at that time.

Ezekiel 28:4 describes this religious power as being very rich, prosperous and wealthy. Verse 7 predicts that strangers will come against it and against the religious leader himself: “And they shall draw their swords against the beauty of your wisdom, And defile your splendor.” Those foes are identified as “the most terrible of the nations” or “the most violent nations.” Verse 7 describes the fate of the religious leader, as well as the religious system he represents and rules over. But who are those strangers—the “most terrible of the nations”?

Notice this interesting passage in Ezekiel 7:24: “Therefore I will bring the worst of the Gentiles [against the land of Israel, verse 2], And they will possess their houses.”

Who are the “worst of the Gentiles” to attack Israel? We know that the European army will attack and enslave the modern nations of Israel and Judah. We must, therefore, conclude that the “worst of the Gentiles” will, indeed, be the European army that destroys the European religious system.

Confirmation that the term “worst of the Gentiles” or “most terrible of the nations” does, in fact, refer to the armies of Europe under the leadership of modern Assyria, can be found in Ezekiel 30:10–11. There, the term “the most terrible of the nations” applies to the ancient Babylonians in their fight against Egypt. Both Ezekiel 31:12 and 32:12 use the same term, also applying them to the ancient Babylonians. In the same way, the Bible applies this term to the modern Babylonians—the modern European system.

Is there additional biblical support for the conclusion that the modern Babylonians—the European army—will attack the European religious system? Indeed, there is. Revelation 17:16–17 reveals: “And the ten horns [ten final political leaders in continental Europe] which you saw on the beast [the resurrected ancient Roman system], these will hate the harlot [a religious power called “Babylon the Great” (verse 5), but also a city (verse 18) sitting on seven mountains or hills (verse 9)], make her desolate and naked, eat her flesh and burn her with fire. For God has put it into their hearts to fulfill His purpose, to be of one mind, and to give their kingdom to the beast [both a system, as well as a political leader over the system], until the words of God are fulfilled.”

We are told in this passage that the military power will ultimately destroy the religious power and confiscate her riches and burn her up, that is, extinguish her existence.

How and why could it happen that the political and military system of Europe will turn on and actually destroy the religious system of Europe? Does this not contradict the thought that Jesus Christ Himself will throw both the religious leader of that system and the military leader alive into the lake of fire that will burn outside of Jerusalem?

Remember from Revelation 17:16 that the ten horns, or military leaders of the political system under the “Beast,” will hate the woman—the religious system, as well as the city of Rome—and make her naked and desolate and eat her flesh. One possibility for their conduct is that they might feel betrayed by the woman, as she had been promising them peace on earth and invulnerability. When they see, instead, that they themselves are going to be overrun by Asiatic hordes, they might change their minds about the woman. In any event, we are told that it is God who will move their hearts to fulfill His purpose (Revelation 17:17).

One reason why the ten horns will not destroy or kill the false prophet is that the false prophet—together with the beast—will be living in Jerusalem. So, it may be that the ten European military leaders may find enough courage to go after the city of Rome, while lacking courage—or even opportunity—to go directly after the false prophet (although they will most certainly attack him with words). We may recall that Adolph Hitler was going after the Catholic Church in Germany, as well as in occupied countries, but he did not fight directly against the Pope himself.

We find another prophecy in the 23^rd chapter of the book of Isaiah that also describes the religious aspect of the modern European system referred to as “Tyre.” Isaiah 23, verses 1 and 4 tell us: “The burden against Tyre… [T]he sea has spoken, The strength of the sea, saying, I do not labor, nor bring forth children; Neither do I rear young men, Nor bring up virgins.”

Here, Isaiah describes in prophetic and poetic words the time—still ahead of us—when “the strength of the sea,” the great and influential religious power situated in continental Europe, is no longer considered to be the mother church capable of bringing forth children.

Isaiah 23:7 continues: “Is this your joyous city, Whose antiquity is from ancient days, Whose feet carried her afar off to dwell?” This is a reference to the historical fact that many of the inhabitants of the ancient city of Tyre migrated to another city and settled there—the famous city of Rome.

Isaiah 23:13 elaborates on this historical development: “Behold, the land of the Chaldeans, This people which was not; Assyria founded it for wild beasts of the desert. They set up its towers, They raised up its palaces, And brought it to ruin.”

Isaiah has in mind here that the people from the land of the Chaldeans would settle in Italy after they were no longer a people in their ancient land. Recall that the people who fled from ancient Tyre settled in numerous places, including Carthage, Tarshish, Venice and Rome. They gave the name “Tyrrhenian Sea” to one of the seas surrounding Italy. Many of those who lived in Tyre were Phoenicians. The Phoenicians founded Carthage and they later founded Venice when they settled in Italy. They are still living in Italy today, along with the Chaldeans. They will play an instrumental part in the modern United States of Europe. Modern Europe was founded in Rome. The modern Europeans have been accurately described many times in the press as “modern Romans.” Historians understand that the heritage of modern Europe is the ancient Roman Empire. Assyria had originally founded Chaldea, but God says, looking at the end of the matter, that Assyria had really founded it for wild beasts to dwell there. The same fate awaits modern Tyre or Babel (Revelation 18:2).

Isaiah contains another interesting prophecy—dual in nature—applying to both ancient Tyre and its modern religious counterpart. We read in Isaiah 23:15–18: “Now it shall come to pass in that day that Tyre will be forgotten seventy years, according to the days of one king. At the end of seventy years it will happen to Tyre as in the song of a harlot: Take a harp, go about the city, You forgotten harlot; Make sweet melody, sing many songs, That you may be remembered. And it shall be, at the end of seventy years, that the LORD will deal with Tyre. She will return to her hire, and commit fornication with all the kingdoms of the world in the face of the earth. Her gain and her pay will be set apart for the LORD; it will not be treasured nor laid up, for her gain will be for those who dwell before the LORD, to eat sufficiently, and for fine clothing.”

Historically, the ancient city of Tyre was forgotten and lost all influence over other nations for 70 years, from the attack by Nebuchadnezzar in 609 B.C. until the fall of ancient Babylon in 539 B.C. Then Tyre began to become known and influential once again. But this prophecy in Isaiah is also an end-time prophecy for the modern religious system of Tyre, as understood by the phrase, “in that day,” referring to the “day of the LORD”—the time of Christ’s intervention in human affairs—still ahead of us.

Note how this prophecy applies to our time. In 1859, Garibaldi united the Italian states and, by all standards, destroyed the power of the Catholic Church (referred to in Isaiah 23 as “Tyre.”). But in 1929, exactly 70 years later, Mussolini signed a concordat with the almost bankrupt Catholic Church, enabling it to again become very prosperous and powerful. Verse 18 of Isaiah 23 also tells us that the wealth of that religious power will be used in the Millennium for good purposes.

Note how the end-time activities of this prosperous religious power—called “Tyre” in the Old Testament—are described in Revelation 17:4, 5, 9, 18, and 18:3, 7, and 8. In these New Testament passages the religious power is referred to in several ways—“a woman,” “Babylon the Great,” and “the great city,” among others.

Returning to Ezekiel 28, recall that the focus of verses 1–10 is on the end-time religious leader of that religious system. He is called in other passages “the false prophet” or “the man of sin.” He will be slain by Christ Himself. Christ will throw him alive, together with the military leader—the “Beast”—into the lake of fire (Revelation 19:20).

God asks this religious leader in Ezekiel 28:9, “Will you still say before him [better, “Him,” Jesus Christ] who slays you, I am a god? [better, “I am God?”]. But you shall be a man, and not a god [or, “God”], In the hand of him [better, “Him”] who slays you.”

Back up to verse 8 and let’s notice what God prophesied through Ezekiel about the end-time religious leader: “They shall throw you down into the Pit, And you shall die the death of the slain In the midst of the seas.” Verse 8 explains that the “false prophet” will be thrown into the pit—the abyss—and his influence on the nations will cease and he will die the deaths of those that are slain in the midst of the sea. In other words, as they die, so will he.

Verse 10 continues, reading from the Authorized Version: “Thou shall die the deaths of the uncircumcised by the hands of strangers.” In other words, this religious leader will die in disgrace. Christ will throw him into the lake of fire.

We find an interesting distinction of personages in Ezekiel 28:11. Until this verse, the prophet Ezekiel spoke about “the prince of Tyre” (verse 2). Now, we are introduced to the “king of Tyre” (verse 12). In studying this passage, we can see that God is not describing a human being. Rather, this king of Tyre is none other than Satan the devil. He is the power BEHIND the prince of Tyre—the end-time religious leader—as well as the religious system itself. In fact, he is behind all aspects of the system, including its economic and military forces. Satan wanted to BE God—the Most High (Isaiah 14:12–14). When he failed, he began to use human instruments, influencing them with the same evil desires, to take prerogatives from God, which only God can give us.

It becomes clear that God is describing Satan the devil in Ezekiel 28:11–17. Before his fall, Satan was “the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty” (verse 12). He was “in Eden, the garden of God” (verse 13). He was “created” on a particular special day (the end of verse 13). He was “the anointed cherub who covers” (verse 14). He was “on the holy mountain of God” (verse 14). He was “perfect” in his ways “from the day” he was “created, till iniquity was found” in him (verse 15). When he “sinned,” God removed him, “the covering cherub,” from the midst of the fiery stones” and cast him out “of the mountain of God” (verse 16). Clearly, all of these passages do not describe a human being—the prince of Tyre—but an angelic being—a cherub—who sinned and fell from heaven—Satan the devil.

The second half of verse 17 reverts back to the prince of Tyre—the religious end-time leader, the human instrument in Satan’s hands—describing his fate again in verses 17–19. Verse 18 tells us that this man will be “turned… to ashes upon the earth,” and, indeed, he will be—in the lake of fire.

We read in verse 19 that this man—“the prince of Tyre”—“shall be no more forever.” This does not necessarily mean “for all eternity.” The word “forever” can refer to the time of an age; for instance, the age of the Millennium. The false prophet, being thrown into the lake of fire at the beginning of the Millennium, might very well be brought back to life at a future time, at the time of the second or third resurrection, depending on what
fate awaits him (Revelation 20:4–6, 11–15).

God warns His people not to get entangled with this military and religious system soon to arise again with great power. Both in the Old and New Testaments, He admonishes us to “Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues” (Revelation 18:4; Isaiah 48:20; Zechariah 2:7).

If you want to understand more about modern “Tyre” or “Babylon,” and how you can obey God’s command to “come out of her,” please request a free copy of the booklet, Europe in Prophecy: The Unfolding of End-Time Events.

Throughout this booklet we have been reading prophecies that refer to the “day of the LORD.” We have seen that this term describes the time of Christ’s intervention in human affairs. This is not necessarily referring to just one particular 24-hour day, although this is one meaning of the phrase—the actual day of Christ’s return (Zechariah 14:1,6–7). It also refers to a particular time span longer than one day.

One prophetic book in particular focuses a great deal on the “day of the LORD.” This little known and almost totally misunderstood Old Testament book is Zephaniah, one of the so-called “minor prophets.” Zephaniah’s name means, “Whom the LORD has hidden.” He received the Word of God at the time of King Josiah of Judah (Zephaniah 1:1), whose reign is described in II Kings 22 and 23, and in II Chronicles 34 and 35.

Zephaniah prophesied at the time of King Josiah, and although he announced calamity to ancient Judah, which did occur, the book of Zephaniah mainly describes a future calamity to befall this entire world. The destruction of ancient Jerusalem was a forerunner of the terrible times prophesied to happen on a worldwide scale just prior to Christ’s return.

The prophet Zephaniah is dead and gone. His prophetic word has survived. It is to be announced today, prior to the disaster that will strike this earth soon. We would do well to prayerfully review these stern warnings of Almighty God as recorded in the book of Zephaniah, where God reveals to humankind what will shortly come to pass, and why.

Zephaniah 1:2–3, 7 describes, in no uncertain terms, the future of this end-time generation of man: “I will utterly consume everything From the face of the land, Says the LORD; I will consume man and beast; I will consume the birds of the heavens, The fish of the sea, And the stumbling blocks [idols] along with the wicked. I will cut off man from the face of the land [or, ground], Says the LORD… Be silent in the presence of the Lord GOD; For the day of the LORD is at hand, For the LORD has prepared a sacrifice; He has invited His guests.”

As we can see from this passage, the book of Zephaniah describes events that will take place at the time of the DAY OF THE LORD, referring to the future. Notice how some commentaries understand the meaning of this phrase.

“The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia,” Vol. 2, p. 799, summarizes the term, “the day of the LORD” as a very common Old Testament concept that describes the establishment of the kingdom of God. In the New Testament it is referred to as the Day of Wrath or simply as “the day” or “that day,” without any further qualifications, as if this day is the only day that really counts in the entirety of the history of the world. The commentary goes on to explain that this day focuses on Jesus Christ and the establishment of the everlasting kingdom of heavens.

“Unger’s Bible Lexicon,” p. 249, describes the “Day of the Lord” as the prophesied period that begins with the second coming of Christ and ends with the purification of heavens and earth by fire, and the creation of new heavens and a new earth that will last forever. The commentary points out that the day of the LORD includes the time period from the end of the Great Tribulation until the end of the Millennium.

Notice the frightening description of the events during the “day of the LORD,” as found in Zephaniah 1:14–18: “The great day of the LORD is near; It is near and hastens quickly. The noise of the day of the LORD is bitter; There the mighty men shall cry out. That day is a day of wrath, A day of trouble and distress, A day of devastation and desolation, A day of darkness and gloominess, A day of clouds and thick darkness, A day of trumpet and alarm Against the fortified cities And against the high towers. I will bring distress upon men, And they shall walk like blind men, Because they have sinned against the LORD; Their blood shall be poured out like dust, And their flesh like refuse. Neither their silver nor their gold Shall be able to deliver them In the day of the LORD’S wrath; But the whole land [or, earth] shall be devoured By the fire of His jealousy, For He will make speedy riddance Of all those who dwell in the land [on the earth].”

Notice in this passage that the day of the LORD is called a “day of wrath,” a “day of trouble and distress,” and a “day of darkness.” This certainly does not describe a pleasant time. We had better take God’s warnings seriously, because what God has purposed to do, He will do.

Zephaniah is addressing, in particular, the punishment of modern Judah. We read in Zephaniah 1:12: “And it shall come to pass at that time That I will search Jerusalem with lamps, And punish the men who are settled in complacency, Who say in their heart, The LORD will not do good, Nor will He do evil.”

The book of Lamentations also describes the time of God’s punishment of Jerusalem with frightening details in chapter 2, verses 21–22. All of this will happen during the time of the “day of the LORD,” or, as Lamentations puts it, “the day of the LORD’S anger.”

But, the day of the LORD is not confined to the punishment of the modern house of Judah. It also includes punishment of other nations, such as the nations of the modern house of Israel, whose name was originally Jacob. Recall from Jeremiah 30:5–7 that the day of the LORD “is the time of Jacob’s trouble.”

The second chapter of the book of Isaiah sheds additional light on God’s punishment of the modern house of Israel during the time of the “day of the LORD.” Verse 3 specifically addresses “the house of Jacob” and verse 12 specifies the time as being “the day of the LORD.” The warning is to the modern descendants of the house of Israel, in no uncertain terms: “(Verse 6) For You have forsaken Your people, the house of Jacob, Because they are filled with eastern ways… (verse 7) Their land is also full of silver and gold, And there is no end to their treasures; Their land is also full of horses, And there is no end of their chariots. Their land is also full of idols; They worship the work of their own hands.”

In reading the entire second chapter of Isaiah, however, we notice that it is not only directed at the modern house of Israel. It also describes a terrible punishment that will come over ALL nations. Notice the following statements: “(Verse 12) For the day of the LORD of hosts Shall come upon everything proud and lofty, Upon everything lifted up… (verse 14) Upon all the high mountains, And upon all the hills that are lifted up; Upon every high tower, And upon every fortified wall… (verse 17) The loftiness of man shall be bowed down, And the haughtiness of men shall be brought low; The LORD alone will be exalted in that day… (verse 20) In that day a man will cast away his idols of silver And his idols of gold, Which they made, each of himself to worship, to the moles and bats, To go into the clefts of the rocks, And into the crags of the rugged rocks, From the terror of the LORD, And the glory of His majesty, When He arises to shake the earth mightily.” 

So, we see that at the time of God’s intervention, mighty earthquakes will shake the earth. Recall that in Jesus’ famous Olivet prophecy, He warned of the increase of earthquake activities prior to His return (Matthew 24:7). Notice the following interesting comments taken from a book authored by Stephen Skinner entitled, Millennium Prophecies, published in 1997. Quoting from pages 142–143: “Earthquakes, famines and troubles have always been with us, but there has certainly been an increase in earthquake activity over the last decade… Earthquake belts are so extensive that a concerted upheaval could destroy most of the Pacific rim, southern Europe, the Near East and southeast Asia. Even Britain is not immune, having had an earthquake registering 5.2 on the Richter scale as recently as 1990. In recent years earthquakes have been occurring in previously stable areas… Some observers are convinced that the number of earthquakes has roughly doubled in each of the decades since 1950. The side effects of future earthquakes might include nuclear spillage, as some Eastern European reactors have been built along fault lines.”

Let’s also note a frightening and sobering prophecy in the seventh chapter of the book of Ezekiel, primarily addressing the modern houses of Israel and Judah (verse 2), and describing events that will take place during the time of the day of the LORD: “(Verse 10) Behold, the day! Behold, it has come! Doom has gone out… (verse 11) Violence has risen up into a rod of wickedness… (verse 12) The time has come, The day draws near… (verse 15) The sword is outside, And the pestilence and famine within. Whoever is in the field Will die by the sword; And whoever is in the city, Famine and pestilence will devour him… (verse 19) They will throw their silver into the streets, And their gold will be like refuse; Their silver and their gold will not be able to deliver them In the day of the wrath of the LORD.”

In verse 15, God indicates that pestilence will make an ugly comeback, while new disease epidemics will emerge (Deuteronomy 28:27–28, 35, 58–61), and their terrible clutches will not only embrace the modern Israelites and Jews. Christ warns in His Olivet prophecy that “pestilences” will occur “in various places” (Matthew 24:7).

Let’s take note of the following quotes from Millennium Prophecies, pp. 148–149, discussing the sudden rise of ancient plagues, as well as new ones: “It is slowly dawning that the triumph of medical science over disease is no longer as inevitable as it seemed back in the 1950s… Tuberculosis, which kills 3 million people a year worldwide, is beginning to acquire antibiotic resistance. In the USA a dangerous alliance has been formed between AIDS and tuberculosis. Another former scourge, malaria, is now making a comeback, claiming 2 million deaths per year worldwide… But drugs are not winning the race, and even in industrialized countries thousands of people are dying every year from antibiotic-resistant infections which they pick up in hospital while receiving treatment for less serious conditions… The food industry’s practice of using every last piece of slaughtered animal has meant that unwholesome remains now re-enter the food chain as food for another animal. Recent outbreaks of ‘mad cow disease’ have been caused by this practice, the brains of infected animals being recycled and fed to cattle. This would never normally occur in nature; left to their own devices, cows would not eat meat.”

The quoted article also relates, in a separate box, a frightening case of the comeback of “the black death” in the 1920s in England: “Workmen engaged upon building a railway cutting near Lewes, in Sussex, unwittingly dug into an old plague pit, undisturbed for centuries. Before long the men began to succumb to an illness which was initially diagnosed as pneumonia. Several of the workmen died before the authorities realized that they were dealing with something a great deal more sinister and hastily quarantined everyone in danger. Eventually the crisis was brought under control, but it is sobering to realize that the seeds of death in the form of plague bacteria can survive in the soil for centuries.”

As already mentioned, God’s punishment on the day of the LORD will be directed against all nations (compare Obadiah 15; Joel 3:12–14). Additional scriptures reveal specifically that God will punish Egypt and other Middle Eastern nations during the time of the “day of the LORD.”

Ezekiel 30:3–5 explains: “For the day of the LORD is near; It will be a day of clouds, the time of the Gentiles. The sword shall come upon Egypt, And great anguish shall be in Ethiopia, When the slain fall in Egypt, And they take away her wealth, And her foundations are broken down. Ethiopia, Libya, Lydia, all the mingled people, Chub, and the men of the lands who are allied, shall fall with them by the sword.”

Also, modern Babylon is expressly identified as one of the nations, or power blocs, that will be dealt with by God during the “day of the LORD.” We read in Isaiah 13:1, 6–9: “The burden against Babylon…Wail, for the day of the LORD is at hand! It will come as destruction from the Almighty…Behold, the day of the LORD comes, Cruel, with both wrath and fierce anger, To lay the land desolate; And He will destroy its sinners from it.”

But, again, God’s punishment will not be limited to the Babylonian system of modern Europe. God’s anger will be poured out over all flesh during the time of the “day of the LORD.” Notice verses 11–13: “I will punish the world for its evil, And the wicked for their iniquity… I will make a mortal more rare than fine gold… I will shake the heavens, and the earth will move out of her place, In the wrath of the LORD of hosts And in the day of His fierce anger.”

Let’s also note God’s coming punishment of Edom, or modern Turkey, as prophesied in Isaiah 34:5– 8: “For My sword shall be bathed in heaven; Indeed it shall come down on Edom… For the LORD has a sacrifice in Bozrah, And a great slaughter in the land of Edom… For it is the day of the LORD’S vengeance, The year of recompense for the cause of Zion.”

We might mention here that this passage is one of the scriptures indicating that “the day of the LORD” will commence immediately following the Great Tribulation, one year prior to, and culminating with Christ’s return (cp. also Isaiah 63:3–4 and 61:1–2, equating the “day of vengeance” with “the year of the LORD.”). In addition, as Zechariah 14:6–7 and many New Testament scriptures point out (discussed below), the day of the LORD can refer to a literal day of 24 hours in describing Christ’s return. And finally, 2 Peter 3:7–13 applies the term “day of the LORD” to the 1000-year reign of Christ on this earth, as well as the time after that, showing that it refers to the time when God begins to actively intervene in human affairs on a worldwide scale. Once He does so, His rule over man will never end.

As stated repeatedly, God’s anger is against all nations. And God wants all nations to hear and heed His end-time warning (which you are reading right now in this booklet). As Isaiah 34:1–4 states: “Come near, you nations, to hear; And heed, you people! Let the earth hear, and all that is in it, The world and all things that come forth from it. For the indignation of the LORD is against all nations, And His fury against all their armies [showing that true Christians should not be serving in the armies of this world]; He has utterly destroyed them, He has given them over to the slaughter… All the host of heaven shall be dissolved, And the heavens shall be rolled up like a scroll; All their host shall fall down As the leaf falls from the vine, And as fruit falling from a fig tree.”

Let’s also notice the following interesting comments in the book, Millennium Prophecies, on pp. 50 and 150, discussing how those heavenly disasters described in the book of Isaiah and in other places could possibly come about: “The Apocalypse [Book of Revelation] describes earthquakes, the removal of the ozone layer (‘the heaven was removed as a scroll when it is rolled up’), meteorites (‘the stars of heaven fell upon the earth’) and many other natural disasters… One event of particular interest is the fall of a meteorite called ‘Wormwood’ [Revelation 8:10–11], which will poison all the rivers and many people; it is also possible that ‘Wormwood’ will turn out to be a man-made bomb… Possibly a fall of great comets or meteors is indicated in ‘the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind” ([Revelation] 6:13). The shaking might refer to a wobbling of the Earth’s axis, which is likely to accompany the arrival of these destructive heavenly bodies. With the destruction of the ozone layer which ‘departed as a scroll when it is rolled together’ humankind will be forced to seek shelter wherever it can find it. The next verse [Revelation] (6:15) tells how at that awful time everyone, from kings and rich men down to ordinary free men, will hide ‘themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains’. In the recent past this verse was interpreted as the population escaping nuclear fallout in underground shelters. [It could also refer to] some ecological disaster.”

In the book of Joel, we read more about the events immediately preceding, and continuing during the day of the LORD. Joel 2:11, 30–31 points out: “For the day of the LORD is great and very terrible; Who can endure it?… And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth: Blood and fire and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD.”

The heavenly signs on the sun, moon and stars could very well be the result of volcanic eruption. Notice these interesting thoughts, again from Millennium Prophecies, pp. 154–155: “The Apocalypse…does not use the word volcano [and neither does the above-quoted passage in the book of Joel], but nevertheless has some pretty accurate descriptions of phenomena that we would recognize as volcanoes… It may take months [after extensive volcanic activity] for the dust and rock particles to finally settle out of the atmosphere, but the sulphuric acid droplets can ride the winds for years. The resultant ‘dust-veils’ cause beautiful sunsets and strange optical effects [like the turning of the moon into blood].”

For more information on the meaning of Biblical passages, dealing with the “heavenly signs,” please request our free booklet, The Theory of Evolution—A Fairy Tale for Adults?

We should also take note of another important prophecy that must be fulfilled before the day of the LORD—culminating in Christ’s return—can come. And amazingly, you and I have an important role in regard to that prophecy.

Malachi 4:5–6 tells us: “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet Before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD. And he will turn The hearts of the fathers to the children, And the hearts of the children to their fathers, Lest I come and strike the earth with a curse [or, with utter destruction].”

We also read in Matthew 24:22 that if it weren’t for God’s elect, this world would be totally destroyed. NO HUMAN BEING—NO FLESH AT ALL—would survive the coming dreadful day of the LORD.

We read in Luke 1:14–17 about the first fulfillment of Malachi’s prophecy, where John the Baptist came in the spirit of Elijah to prepare the people of his time for the first coming of Jesus Christ. However, Malachi speaks primarily about the time just prior to the day of the LORD, which is still in the future. Therefore, another “Elijah” must come to prepare this world for the second coming of Christ.

God has given this role of an end-time Elijah to His end-time Church. There should be no doubt that Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong, who is considered by many as an apostle and who served as Pastor General of the Church of God until his death in 1986, began to fulfill this role. But God’s commission to His Church is ongoing. God expects His Church to continue to “turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers,” so that the day of the LORD’s return can come, and so that this earth will not have to face total and complete destruction.

(If you want to learn more about this part of the Church’s commission and how these aspects of Malachi’s prophecy are being fulfilled today, request our free booklet, The Keys to Happy Marriages and Families.)

In most of the Old Testament prophecies the events taking place during the day of the LORD are described as dealing with all of the nations of this world. In the New Testament though, additional emphasis is placed on the spiritual nation of God—the body of believers—and what the day of the LORD should mean to them. In John 6: 39 Jesus Christ applies the term “the last day” to the 24-hour day of His return.

In 1 Thessalonians 5:1–4–9 the apostle Paul states that for us‑the true follows of Christ‑the day of the LORD should not be one of wrath as it is for the nations of this earth, but rather a day of joy, as we are going to attain salvation—eternal life—at that time. The same thought is conveyed in 2 Thessalonians 1:3–10 and in 2 Timothy 4:8, referring to the day of the LORD as “that Day.”

Paul was convinced that he would meet Christ at His return (Philippians 2:14–16), referring to the day of the LORD as the “day of Christ.” It was his earnest hope and expectation that those whom he had taught would be there with him and meet Christ as well (Philippians 1:6, 10). He expresses the same desire in 1 Corinthians 1:4–8, where he refers to the day of the LORD as “the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Nothing was more important to Paul than to know that the brethren would be counted worthy to stand before the returning Son of Man, even if it meant drastic correction for the present in order to bring a sinner to repentance (1 Corinthians 5:1, 4–5).

We see, then, that we each have a responsibility to live up to the standards given to us by God, and shown to us by Jesus Christ. We will discuss a little later in this booklet that God promises us shelter and safety in the future if we are, in fact, counted worthy to escape all these things that will surely come to pass.

There is another frightening prophecy given in the pages of the New Testament that reveals events to occur just prior to the coming of the day of the LORD.

2 Thessalonians 2:1–3, 8–9 tells us: “Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ [NU: the Lord] had come. Let no one deceive you by any means: for that Day will not come unless the falling away [apostasy—a falling away from the truth of God] comes first, and the man of sin [NU: lawlessness] is revealed, the son of perdition [the false prophet discussed earlier in this booklet] … And then the lawless one will be revealed [or become manifest] whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming [by throwing him, together with the Beast, into the lake of fire]. The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs and lying wonders.”

This religious leader—the false prophet—will receive power to do miracles from Satan himself (compare Revelation 19:20). He, and the system that he represents, is described in Revelation 13:11 as a beast with “two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon.” He “performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men. And he deceives those who dwell on the earth by those signs” (verses 13–14). This system is also described as engaging in “sorcery” (Revelation 18:23). We are warned in Matthew 24:24 that some of those “signs” will be so convincing that, if it were possible, even the elect of God would be deceived.

Historical records establish the fact that Simon Magus, who had been baptized but had never truly repented (Acts 8:13–24), became a leader in the early Babylonian system. He had been a sorcerer, regarded as “the great power of God” (Acts 8:9–10).

Quoting from Millennium Prophecies, p. 59, let’s learn more about Simon Magus and the Satanic powers which he allegedly possessed. This should make us a bit more prepared for what is going to happen in the future and why the false prophet will be able to deceive so many people with his sorcery: “The Samarian-born Simon Magus (15 BC–AD 53), son of a Jewish sorcerer, was educated in the cradle of Gnosticism, Alexandria. He was a disciple of Dositheus, who had been a follower of John the Baptist and contended with Jesus Christ for the title of Messiah. Simon traveled widely in Persia, Arabia [and] Egypt to learn all he could about magical lore. He was accompanied by a sorceress called Helena, whom Simon claimed was a reincarnation of Helen of Troy. In Samaria, even Christians spoke of Simon as ‘the great power of God’… Simon Magus performed many miracles, including healing the sick, raising the dead, walking through fire, flying through the air, turning stones into bread, creating phantom banquets, making himself invisible, animating stone statues, changing his own shape and, of course, reputedly commanding elemental spirits or possibly demons to do his bidding.”

Simon Magus was not the only leader within the Babylonian system who practiced sorcery. Millennium Prophecies tells of another famous sorcerer, Pope Silvester II, who lived at the end of the first century. Quoting from pp. 68 and 69: “Tradition has it that he was an advanced student of the black arts… It was said that he regularly conversed with the Devil… he was credited with possessing a ‘brazen head’ that spoke to him and could prophecy future events… [He] learned… to summon ghostly figures from the lower world… [The] demons obeyed him in all that he required of them day and night, because of the great sacrifices which he offered, and his prayers and fastings and magic books and great diversity of rings and candles.”

The false prophet—the last leader of the religious system called “Babylon the Great” in the Bible—will appear soon on the world scene. He will be able to perform mighty miracles because Satan will give him the power to do so. Many will be deceived by those signs and will follow the wrong teachings of this man. May God protect YOU from doing so.

A series of remarkable prophecies that deal with the time of the day of the LORD can be found in the book of Revelation. In fact, the whole prophecy covers events pertaining to or leading up to the day of the Lord (Revelation 1:10).

Revelation 6:12–17 describes cosmic disturbances—culminating in the day of the LORD—referred to in that passage as “the great day of His [the Lamb’s, that is, Jesus Christ’s] wrath” (verses 16–17).

The book of Revelation emphasizes time and time again that God the Father and Jesus Christ will be very angry, or filled with wrath, at the time just prior to Christ’s return (Revelation 11:17–18; 14:9–10, 19; 15:1, 7; 16:1, 19; 19:15).

The reason WHY God will be so angry becomes clear when we consider the attitude of people at that time and the kind of society they are involved in. They will have “shed the blood of saints and prophets” (Revelation 16:6). They will “blaspheme the name of God” and refuse to “repent” (Revelation 16:9, 11, 21). Due to the influence of this modern Babylonian system, the sins of all of the nations will have “reached to heaven” (Revelation 18:3–5). This very Babylonian system that people will follow is responsible for “the blood of prophets and saints, and of all who were slain on the earth” (Revelation 18:24), and God Himself will “avenge…the blood of His servants shed by her [the great false system of Babylon]” (Revelation 19:2).

When God begins to intervene in human affairs, mankind will not want him to do so. In fact, people will be so deceived that they will actually try to fight against the returning Jesus Christ (Revelation 19:19). So then, God must speak in a language that man will understand.

Considering these terrible times ahead of us, we might wonder, “Is there a way of escape, or will everyone experience the wrath of God? Do we all have to go through the times of the Great Tribulation and the day of the LORD? What can we do?”

The answer is, God has promised us protection from the terrible times to come, if we are faithful to Him. Christ tells us in Revelation 3:10: “Because you have kept My command to persevere (to have patience), I also will keep you from the hour of trial [tribulation] which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.”

Notice Christ’s additional admonition and promise in Luke 21:34–36: “But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.”

Recall that the name of Zephaniah means, “Whom the LORD has hidden.” We are told in Zephaniah’s message, as well, that WE can be hidden, or protected, in the day of the LORD’S anger. Yes, there is a way! Notice this remarkable promise in Zephaniah 2:3: “Seek the LORD, all you meek [humble] of the earth, Who have upheld His justice. Seek righteousness, seek humility. It may be that you will be hidden In the day of the LORD’S anger.”

King David, himself a prophet, also understood that God would hide and protect those who faithfully trust in Him. Listen to these encouraging words: “Keep me as the apple of Your eye; Hide me under the shadow of your wings…” (Psalm 17:8).

“For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in his pavilion; In the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock” (Psalm 27:5).

“Oh, how great is Your goodness, Which You have laid up for those who fear You, Which you have prepared for those who trust in You In the presence of the sons of men! You shall hide them in the secret place of your presence From the plots of man; You shall keep them secretly in a pavilion From the strife of tongues” (Psalm 31:19–20).

King Solomon confirms, in Proverbs 14:26, that God’s people will be protected in the coming times of trial: “In the fear of the LORD there is strong confidence, And His children will have a place of refuge.”

This place of refuge is more clearly described in Revelation 12:14, promising the end-time Church of God her place in the wilderness—on this earth—prepared by God, a place where she will be nourished for 3 ½ years and protected from Satan the devil. Compare this with Isaiah 33:16, describing the righteous person (verse 15) as dwelling “on high; His place of defense will be the fortress of rocks; Bread will be given him, His water will be sure.”

God gives us the same promise in Isaiah 26:20–21: “Come, My people, enter your chambers, And shut your doors behind you; Hide yourself, as it were, for a little moment, Until the indignation is past. For behold, the LORD comes out of His place To punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity; The earth will also disclose her blood, And will no more cover her slain.”

Through all this, we can take great comfort from God’s promise for His people, as recorded by the prophet, Joel. We can be protected, if God looks at us as His people and counts us worthy to escape the terrible times ahead of us. Joel 3:14–16 reads: “Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision. The sun and moon will grow dark, And the stars will diminish their brightness. The LORD also will roar from Zion, And utter his voice from Jerusalem; The heavens and earth will shake; But the LORD will be a shelter for His people, And the strength of the children of Israel.”

Yes, God has promised shelter and protection to those whom He counts as worthy to escape the horrible times to come. But in order to be worthy of God and His kingdom (2 Thessalonians 1:5), we must continue to be God’s witnesses by actively supporting His work of proclaiming His message (Luke 24:46–48; Acts 1:8), and we must be willing to suffer for it in the process (Acts 5:40–42). If we shrink back from this God-appointed duty and responsibility, God will have no pleasure in us. In effect, we will be showing Him that we do not really care for others and that we are only concerned about how WE can escape tribulation. God promises protection only to those who “sigh and cry” over all the abominations which are being done (Ezekiel 9:3–6), showing a genuine concern for others and praying that they also would repent of their ways and turn to God.

God wants us to become like Him, a God of LOVE. He has outgoing concern for the welfare of others. He wants us to have that same kind of love. He, in fact, GAVE His only begotten Son for this world, so that those who believe in Him could have everlasting life. Christ was willing to DIE for us—to give up His life for us—while we were still sinners and His enemies! Do we LOVE the world in the same way? Do we PROVE our love by SHARING the knowledge we received from God (compare Colossians 1:9–12)? Do we labor in the Work of God (Luke 10:7), preaching the gospel as we are instructed to do (Acts 13:2; 14:26; 15:38; 1 Corinthians 16:10; Philippians 2:29–30)? Are we effective coworkers with God (2 Corinthians 6:1) for the kingdom of God (Colossians 4:11)?

If we are, in fact, fully declaring the Work of God (Jeremiah 51:10), as we should be doing, we are Christ’s disciples, indeed, and we WILL BE counted worthy to escape the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord and to ENTER into the Kingdom of God. For more information about the great master plan God reveals in His Word, the Bible, and how you can understand the potential of mankind’s ultimate destiny, please request our free booklets, And Lawlessness Will Abound… along with The Gospel of the Kingdom of God.