chapter
five
When Zion Travails
About this
chapter:
a. Are we Spiritual Zion?
b. Will Israel help take the
Gospel?
Before we get into the scriptures about the travail of Zion, it would be good to understand who Zion is. It is very sad what the Gentile Church has done to the promises that God made to Israel.
The common belief that the Church is spiritual Israel is a very overspiritualized misconception. The promise that God made to Abraham was that he would become the father of many nations. What most people don't take into consideration is that everyone born of Abraham was not Jews. Surprised? Abraham had one son by Hagar, another son by Sarah. He also had seven other sons besides these two children. In all, Abraham had nine sons. The New Testament called Isaac, the son of Sarah, Abraham's only begotten son. With careful study, you will realize that Isaac was the only begotten son of promise. This was an allegory about salvation coming to the world from the barren woman (Sarah). We are born again, not by the Law, but by Promise.
Abraham was a Chaldean, not a Jew. Being Abraham's son did not make Isaac a Jew. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob would be the father of Israel, the Jews, but they themselves were not Jews. Everyone born of Abraham was not a Jew. For example, Ishmael became the father of the Arabian people, who are not Jews, but are the descendants of Abraham from Ishamel. Esau, the son of Isaac, was not a Jew, neither did his children become Jews. Esau became the nation of Edom, and they are not Jews. This group of people are now living in the nation of Jordan, next door to Israel. Can you see what I am saying?
It wasn't until Jacob, who was Israel himself, that the Jew became a people. Out of the twelve sons of Jacob would come the people of God that we today call Jews. This name wasn't used until the land of Judea was established. Being named after the tribe of Judah, one of Jacob's sons, the name Jews was in reference to the people out of the land of Judea.
The Church isn't spiritual Israel either. Paul said that in Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek, there are no nations in Christ. We are the NATION OF GOD. Why did the Bible say that we were the sons of Abraham? It is simply this: Abraham was the father of faith. We have followed his example, and are now following God after this principal. He is a spiritual Father, but he is not our Jewish Father. We are children of the promise that God made to Abraham. Faith Children. In Christ there are no Jews, only children of God.
This misunderstanding about Israel has created a lot of problems for the Jewish people down through the centuries. It was literally born out of hatred for the Jewish people. Many people, out of hatred for the Jew, have taken scriptures from the Bible and have twisted them to be talking about any believer, which eliminated the Jews from scripture. The promises that were intended to be given to the Jew were obscured by their overspiritualism. God's people, who were unaware of what Satan was doing through these people, down through time have adopted some of their teachings by not realizing the end results of such a thing.
There have been a number of false doctrines born out of the teaching that the Church is Spiritual Israel. One of these is the Jehovah Witness denomination that believes that out of their denominational belief will come the 144,000 Jews in Revelation 7th chapter. The spirit that comes out of this is very damaging to Israel and to the Church. Another is the Seventh Day Adventist, who believe that everything in the book of Revelation about Israel is about themselves. The Mormon religion does the very same thing. These teachings are very, very destructive. Satan has come to steal, and has been stealing the promises that God literally made to Israel, through the ignorance of the Church.
The new covenant promises made to Israel in the Old Testament are applicable to the Church in many ways, but even in this we must be careful. We are not Spiritual Israel, or Zion. It is a sin to believe that we are. It is theft. By applying these scriptures to ourselves, we have been unable to see what God is going to do for Israel in the last days. We have hidden the truth from our own eyes by our own vanity and pride. By not understanding what God is going to do for Israel, it has kept us from being able to understand the book of Revelation, or any of the other prophecy books concerning the end time.
We are partakers with Israel in their promises by Jesus Christ, but we did not replace Israel.
Galatians 3:28-29:
Here Paul is making it very clear that we are heirs to the promise of Abraham. That we are the children of promise, but not Israel. Look very carefully at what he said. Neither Jew nor Greek, neither bond nor free, male nor female. Think about this. Every man that I have ever known remained a male after he was saved. I have never known a woman who did not remain a woman after she was saved. There have been many Christians who spent their whole lives as slaves to other races. So there has always been bond or free. I have never known an Indian, or a black or a Caucasian, or an Hespanic who did not remain what they had been born after the flesh. It is fairly easy to see that Paul wasn't talking about after the flesh. Paul himself told us that he too was a Jew from the tribe of Benjamin. So what was he saying?
Paul was talking about in Christ, in the Spirit. If we are not Spiritual Jews in Christ, tell me, how could the Church possibly be Spiritual Israel? When this is the exact thing that Paul was talking about. Spiritual. In the Spirit, we are neither Jew nor Greek. But there are direct promises that God made to Israel after the flesh, and there are direct promises that God has made to the Gentiles after the flesh. But that is after the flesh, not the Spirit.
Satan has been very careful in promoting the idea that the Church is Spiritual Israel. He has done it in a very tender, subtile way. I am going to share with you one of the scriptures that Satan has used to hide God's promise to Israel.
Isaiah 66:8:
The Zion in this scripture is commonly preached as being the Church. The message that is preached out of this teaches that when the Church, or Zion, begins to pray to the point of tears and much labor, that God will save many souls. This is a pretty tricky thing. You know why? It's because it works! When the Church does pray, with tears and great labor, that is exactly what God will do. But this is not the scripture that God intended for us to use for this teaching. The scripture that we needed for that is found in the book of Psalms.
Psalms 126:5-6:
This truly works, and this teaching is found here. But when Zion travails in Isaiah 66:8, it is not about this at all. This is for sure talking about souls coming to God, but it is Israel that is travailing, not the Gentile Church. And it is not because she is praying with tears for souls to be saved, but rather is suffering a time of trouble that will cause this to happen.
There is a lot to be said about the travail of Israel. Many scriptures in the Bible talk about it, including Jesus when He was here on the earth. It's called the time of Jacob's troubles. Some call it the time of sorrows.
Jesus said in Matthew 24:21:
Jesus was very concerned about this seven-year period. Things would happen on this earth that will change the destiny of millions of people. It is the time of great pain and turmoil, but, out of this seven-year period, we will see the final acts of God in this great stage of life. With many violent events, but with God manifesting His great love, and power to deliver, to bring about the salvation of Israel, and that great company of nations that God promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
Remember that I said Rachel was a shadow of Israel? Let's look at her again. Rachel was the one that caught Jacob's eye, and he wanted to marry her very bad. Circumstances did not allow him to marry her when he wanted to, but, after much work, he finally married her, which brought them both much happiness. He married Leah first. Leah is a shadow of the Gentiles. She made him a good, faithful wife, and gave him more children than Rachel. Jacob is a shadow of Christ coming to Israel first, but having to take a Gentile bride instead. But, it is still His plan to marry and have children with Israel.
Rachel's first two children were not her own. She allowed Jacob, according as to custom, to sleep with her handmaid, Bilhah. The first son's name was Dan. His name meant judging. These first two sons were a shadow of the Law. Dan represents a child of the Law. His name meaning judging is very revealing. When God delivered Israel from Egypt, Moses became the first person to rule over Israel as a judge. Israel was governed by judges for a long time, but became dissatisfied with this arrangement and decided that they wanted a king.
The next son born to Rachel was Naphtali, whose name meant wrestlings of God. From the time of the kings, Israel wrestled with God. Even today, they are still wrestling with God. At the time Jesus came to Israel, they wrestled with Him. It resulted in Israel being scattered into all the earth, until this century. They are gradually being restored to their land, but God will spiritually restore Israel through the Blood of Jesus.
After a long time of being barren, or without children of her own, God remembers Rachel. But, before this happens, Rachel goes to Leah with a request. She asks Leah for a favor. She wanted Leah to get some mandrake from Reuben. Mandrake was an herb, which was thought to cause a person to become able to conceive children. This is a shadow of the Gentiles giving the Gospel to Israel, causing child birth. The Gospel is the only thing this mandrake could represent. Christ is the one that gives birth, but, without the hearing of the Gospel, it is pretty hard to be born again. Leah did not want to help her, but, after a promise of a night with Jacob, she did it. This act caused her to have more children of her own. When the Gentiles, in these last days, finally realize what will take place after Israel hears the Gospel, they will more than gladly do what God has called us to do from the beginning. It will bring salvation to the Gentiles, more children to God.
So, God remembered Rachel, and gave her real children of her own. The first son was named Joseph, whose name meant the Lord shall add. In this shadow Joseph is a shadow of his own family or house. The birthright has been passed down from Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, to Joseph. It was given to his sons born to his Gentile bride in Egypt. Their names were Manasseh and Ephraim. The greater part of this blessing was given to Ephraim to whom it was promised that He would become a multitude of nations.
By placing the ten tribes in the Northern Kingdom of Israel under kings from the tribe of Ephraim, God was able to bring all of Israel in that part of Canaan into the promise with Ephraim. God called the Northern Kingdom by the name of Ephraim to prove this. This group of Jews were scattered into the earth beginning in 721 BC. Their descendants have gradually come to the western part of the world.
When this group of people is saved it will bring world Revival. In the story of Joseph's life we will see shadows of this group of Jews being saved in the seven years before the tribulation. This will be the Jews in America and the other nations in the Western Hemisphere of the world. It will be the Gentile Bride in America who will give birth to these Jewish people. Through the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Jews will be born into the kingdom of God. There are six million of them living in America right now, more than any place in the world, including the nation of Israel herself. These Jewish Christians and the Gentile Bride will play a great role in causing the next son to be born, who will be born during the tribulation.
In the end of Rachel's life, which is a shadow of Israel in the end of the age, Rachel gives birth to another son. But, this story is so tragic. It was the time of her end. She was so sorrowful, she named this son Benoni, which means son of my sorrow. This is the shadow of Israel during the time of sorrows, the great seven year tribulation. But, Jacob said, no, we are not going to name him son of my sorrow, but rather, his name will be Benjamin, son of the right hand. This son is a shadow of the Remnant of Israel (the Jews living in the nation of Israel), Rachel's last born son to Jacob. This Remnant of Israel will be saved during the seven year tribulation. He is Jacob and Rachel's very own true born son, not of the Law, but born into the glorious liberty of Christ. He will step over to the right hand of God, into Jesus, who is the Right Hand of God, to be glorified with Him forever. It will appear to be the end of Israel, but in reality, Israel is about to be reborn.
The other ten sons of Jacob loved Benjamin very much. After having grieved their father with the rejection and cruelty they had given Joseph, they were very protective of Benjamin. The years of guilt and shame had taken its toll, working in their hearts a determination to never let their father suffer anything like it again. During the seven years of famine, the thought of something happening to him among the Gentiles was more than they could bare. But they were forced to take him anyway -- the Lord of that land demanded it.
During the seven-year tribulation the Remnant of Israel will be forced to leave Israel and go to a Gentile land. There will be much fear and distress in protecting this Remnant. But, Israel will have to trust God. He knows what He is doing. It will be there, in that land, that the Remnant (the Jews from the land of Israel) will be saved! When Joseph's servants fed the children of Israel, Joseph gave to Benjamin a double portion of everything. This is a shadow of Christ giving the Remnant of Israel a double portion of the Spirit, after the Jews and Gentiles in that land feed them the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
World Revival is coming! But, we are going to have to take great care in preparing for this Remnant. Much prayer, many Missionaries, much planning, great preparation is needed. I am praying for Israel. Please join with me to do the same. Paul said that through our mercy, that Israel may obtain mercy.
The book of Revelation is not given to men so they can boast of their great knowledge, but rather, so the people of God will know what they must do during this great time of distress. Now, let us go to understanding this great mystery. In Isaiah 66:8 it says:
This, to me, is one of the most wonderful scriptures in the Bible. What God has given us is a wonderful insight into the plan of God. The one day that He is talking about is not a literal 24 hour day. He is talking about a short time that He will do a wonderful work. It will be during the seven year tribulation. Israel will be born again to Jesus Christ during this time, but, it will be under great stress. That is why He calls it travail, pains of childbirth, pains that will bring about birth. But, Israel is not all that will be saved. He said, "Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day." It is during this time that God saves whole nations and fulfills His promises to Abraham.
Isaiah 66:9:
In this scripture God assures us that He will not change His mind. He will cause it to happen! Whatever it takes! His Word is true. It is God's plan to use us, the Gentiles, in performing His will in reaching Israel. Will we refuse to help? Will we refuse to help Israel? God help us if we do.
He will get our help either way, either through asking us, or out of our desperation for His help. He is going to perform His will, and it will come through the obedience of the Church. If we choose to help Him, He will give us a double portion, and save our families, and our nation! What an opportunity! This outreach is going to bring unity to the Church, all over the world. He said in that day the watchmen would see eye to eye. Are you a watchman? Get ready to trash your doctrines. They will not be able to stand the heat of the fire that is coming! We have all got to have one purpose, and that is to reach lost souls all over the world, especially Israel.
In these scriptures, God is telling us that the time is coming that will bring great fear. But, out of it, He is going to save people by the millions. The man that we see in travail with child is Jacob. He represents the whole nation of Israel giving birth to God, during Jacob's troubles. Children to God! God's children! But, it says all men. These men represent nations.
It will be during the tribulation that God will try to bring forth children to Himself, out of all nations. Some will. But, sadly, many nations will not, and will be destroyed during this time. The Antichrist will only receive power over a fourth part of the earth. So most of the stress we will feel in America will be the war, the rescue of Israel, and trying to warn others, that the end is at hand. But, it will also be a time that the Church will do more works for God than at any other time in the history of the world. There will be a lot of love among the children of God. God will also be performing many miracles to show His love for mankind. The people of Israel will be living with us, many in our own homes. It will also be a time of great blessing. Whoever blesses Israel, I will bless; whoever curses Israel, I will curse. He will bless us!!
In Genesis 38:27-----Tamar, Judah's daughter in law, was giving birth to Pharez and Zarah:
The Bible calls the pains of childbirth, when delivering, Travail.
The Bible also teaches us that, in the last days, Israel would go into travail. That inside this nation would be children that would be born to Him (God).
Micah 5:3:
Micah 4:6-7:
Jeremiah 30:5-7:
Isaiah 29:22-23:
Jesus said in John 16:21:
In the scriptures above, we can clearly see that Israel will be born again. It is in the book of Revelation that we will get the rest of this story, beginning with Revelation 12.
Revelation 12:1:
This woman remains a mystery unless we know our Bible symbols, and they have to be the symbols the Bible uses, in order to be accurate.
In Genesis 37:9-10, it says this (Joseph's dreams):
Now we see that Jacob, Rachel, and his brethren, along with Joseph, were a perfect symbol of Israel. God also changed Jacob's name to Israel.
In Revelation 12:1, the nation of Israel is this woman!
Revelation 12:2:
Here we see Israel about to give birth to a child in the time of her travail. As soon as this child is born, Satan tries to destroy it, Revelation 12:3-5, but the child was caught up to God and His throne.
In the past I believed that this child was Jesus, until I ran across this scripture in Isaiah 66:7:
Now, this man child was Jesus. He came at a time when Israel was far from God. Their mouths professed Him, but their hearts were far from Him.
They thought they didn't need Him, and Jesus told them in Matthew 23:37-39:
But, when Jesus comes back to Israel, she will have many children and will be looking for His coming with great anticipation.
The man child in Revelation 12 is not Jesus, but someone else. This child she has is the first fruits of her children, and God harvests the first fruits quickly to keep them from being killed by Satan. Now, you might say, this is a man child. Let me remind you that many times God has used a man or a woman to represent a group of people, such as Jacob, or even this woman in Revelation 12, who stands for the whole nation of Israel. I believe that this man child is the 144,000 of Revelation 7:1-8, Revelation 14:1-5, the First Fruits unto God and the Lamb in Revelation 14:4.
Now, God becomes angry with Satan for this, and casts him and his angels down to the earth. (Revelation 12:7-12) Satan is cast into the ten nations of the Antichrist. It is only in these nations that he has any power, until Jesus comes to destroy him, and his power over these countries, and chains Satan up for a thousand years. It is this power that the beast uses to gain control and conquer.
Daniel 8:24:
Now, I used to think that maybe Satan was cast down before this. Satan stands before God all of the time to accuse us before God. But, Jesus is our intercessor, and takes up for His people.
In Bible prophecy, we see in Zechariah 3:1-10 that God uses Joshua, the High Priest, as a shadow of Israel in the last days. God rebukes Satan for opposing Joshua and gives Joshua a new garment. If you read verses 8-10, you will see that Israel has already received Jesus as Lord, and He has established His reign in Israel. When Satan is cast down, it is a curse to the ten nations, because he will lead them to their own destruction. But, it will be a blessing to the Church, and the rest of the world.
Revelation 12:10:
This is talking about salvation to Israel, but it opens the door for the Gentiles, too.
Paul said in Romans 11:12:
In other words, if the casting away of the Jew brings salvation to the Gentiles, then there are going to be a lot more Gentiles saved when Israel does come back to God through Jesus Christ
Satan goes immediately after Israel in Revelation 12:13, but Israel is given two wings of a great eagle to escape for three and a half years. In Bible symbols, we find that God compares powerful nations to eagles. So, I believe that we see by this symbol (Ezekiel 17--the riddle of the eagles), that a great nation rescues Israel and takes her away so that the Antichrist cannot kill them. A great earthquake swallows up a great portion of the armies of the Antichrist, and separates those that escape from danger. While this is taking place, it will allow them the time they will need in order to board transports and leave. It is this time that Matthew 24:16-22 talks about, when it tells those in Judea to escape. In Luke, He tells them to pray that they would be accounted worthy to escape all these things and to stand before the Son of Man. Then, Satan goes after those children who do not escape. In Matthew 24:22, it tells us that if the Lord did not shorten the days, that no flesh would be saved. This is talking about all of the land of Israel.
But, we have much more to say about Israel than this. When Israel is forced to leave their country, they will go to a place that God has prepared for them in the wilderness, to be protected from the face of the dragon. They will be fed there for three and a half years. When God gave this prophecy to John, America was just a wilderness. I believe that God has been preparing America for this time from the very beginning of her birth as a nation. It will be the place in the wilderness where she will be protected from the dragon. Why? Because this nation belongs to God. God created it for a safe haven among the nations of the world. It is a sister nation to Israel. Even though there are a lot of vile sinners in this nation, it will not stop God from blessing the Church. This nation has evangelized more than any nation in the world. We are still the largest Christian nation in the world today, and God has raised this nation for a special purpose.
When Israel comes to America, the Church all over the world will be praying for her safety. We are the one nation that God has raised up in the world who will do everything it can to rescue Israel. Of course, I believe that our allies will help. God will put it in our hearts, just as He always has in the past. America has more Jews living here than in the nation of Israel, herself. And, that is the other reason God blesses this country. If you were a Jew, living in Israel when this trouble comes, where would you want to go? America is still the greatest power among the nations. And, would you not want to go where there are relatives? Of course you would.
God has a perfect plan. When they come to this country, they will be fed for three and one half years. The Church in America will feed and protect Israel when they arrive. But, natural food is not all they will receive from the Church. Remember the scriptures in Isaiah, showing Israel as little babies in the arms of the Gentiles, being fed milk from their breasts? This is talking about Israel's rebirth to God, through Jesus Christ. Israel will come face to face with a great Revival in America. The milk from the Gentile's breasts represents the Gospel being preached to Israel along with the Jews that are already here.
After Israel is saved, it will take the Gospel to the world, all nations. They will go to every nation that God opens a door to go to. Her preaching in America, and all the nations who do not support the Antichrist, will result in the salvation of whole Gentile nations, including America. Praise the Lord!! This is the hidden message in the Word, that is just now being revealed by the Lord Jesus Christ!
In looking at this woman who is in travail, Jesus gives us an interesting insight. At the middle of the tribulation, the Antichrist invades Israel, and declares himself to be God in the temple.
Here, we see a warning to Israel. Those who are with child is the nation of Israel, pregnant with the Gospel that is being preached there. The other warning goes to those that give suck. These people are the missionaries in Israel who have been preaching the Gospel. Jesus warns these people to escape! They will escape, because He will make a way. Some of these people will stay, but only by their own choice. This will be the remnant that stays in Israel, who have the testimony of Jesus Christ. The Antichrist will seek to kill these people, and some will die as a testimony to their Lord.
In Isaiah, the 26th chapter, we see Israel among the Gentiles after she has been born again by the Spirit. Isaiah 26:15-18:
Here, we see Israel after she has been born again. But, she is troubled! Why is she troubled? Because, it has been the Gentiles, up to this time, that have mainly been responsible for taking the Gospel to the world. Why does this trouble her? Because she knows that it will not be long till Jesus will return, and Israel has not had the opportunity to reach souls. But, Israel is in for a great surprise, and so are the Gentiles. God has saved the best for the last!
In the next two verses of Isaiah 26, it talks about the rapture. God hid from Isaiah, in this chapter, how God was going to bless Israel and the nations. But, in Isaiah 66:18-19:
Here, we see Israel, after she escapes to the Gentiles from the Holy Land, taking the Gospel to the nations that God has chosen to salvation. Remember the parable about the workers in the vineyard? Here, we see Israel working in the vineyard at the end of the day. Even though the Gentiles have labored a long time, and have borne the heat of the day, Israel will receive the same reward for her services. In the parable, the late workers came to work. The other workers did not quit working just because these came to work, but, they finished out their day just the same. There is only one dispensation of Grace, not one for the Gentile and another for the Jew. The Jew and the Gentile will finish the work together, the salvation of a multitude of nations, as promised to Abraham. Then, the rapture will happen.
Revelation 14:6-7:
Matthew 24:14:
Many people believe that the Gospel will be preached to all the world, then the tribulation will begin. But, according to these scriptures, the Gospel will reach the world during the seven-year tribulation, then the end will come! World Revival during the tribulation! Jew and Gentile working together for the salvation of the nations. Then the RAPTURE!
Let's go back to Isaiah 26:19-21. (The rapture of the Church):
In these scriptures, we see Israel has given birth, preached the Gospel to the nations, and, along with the Gentiles, is raptured together, the whole Church!! Then Christ destroys His enemies. He will then bring the Church back from Heaven to reign and rule with Him for a thousand years. The Gentiles will go back to their lands that He has given them to teach the nations, who are being born at that time. Israel will go back to her land, where He will rule forever.
Isaiah 66: 10:
In Revelation 4:1-2, God caught John up into a heavenly vision to show him things that were to take place in the future. What John was about to see was not an actual event occurring at that moment. Everything he was to see was something in the future. His being told to come up hither was not telling us that the rapture would occur between the third and fourth chapters. God was catching John up to a higher plane in the spirit (verse 2) in order to understand what he was about to see.
It is our own vanity and pride that has kept us from seeing the truth about Israel. Deep down, the Gentile people feel that they are a little better than the Jew. We exhibit this in teaching after teaching in our interpretation of scripture. I have personally listened to preacher after preacher take scripture, especially in Isaiah and Jeremiah, and twist their meaning to be something about us instead of it being to the people to whom it was written.
The scriptures have been hidden from us because of our own selfish attitude about ourselves. Our vanity has blinded our own hearts. We don't mind Israel getting saved, it's OK. It's just that we don't want God to do it in a big way. It would hurt our feelings. It's true what I tell you! This is what has blinded our hearts to the truth in Bible prophecy! Believe me when I tell you that the Jews will be saved before Jesus comes and we will all be raptured together, BOTH JEW AND GENTILE!
The pride that declares that the wild olive (the Gentiles) is going to be raptured without the tame olive (the Jews) is a ridiculous assumption. We have been grafted into them, think on this! We are partakers of their promises, remember?
What we have not realized in the past is that the fourth chapter of Revelation is about Israel's redemption. In the fifth chapter are seven seals that reveal events to come during the time of their redemption and their labor in glorifying God before Jesus comes.
John is about to see something that is certainly going to warm his heart. In the third and fourth verses, John sees God sitting on the throne with twenty four elders gathered around Him. These elders are the twelve sons of Jacob and the twelve apostles. In reality, John literally sees himself along with the other elders. Remember, this is a vision.
These elders represent both covenants, the twelve patriarchs, who represent the old covenant and its promise of Christ to come to fulfill the promises, and the twelve disciples who represent the new covenant and its promises. These twenty four elders are there to declare by their presence that all of Israel will be saved. All twelve tribes are represented by both covenant leaders.
John saw four creatures around the throne of God. One had the face of a lion, another like a calf, another had the face of a man, and the fourth had the face of a flying eagle (Revelation 4:7). All of these faces are emblems that were on the four flags or banners of Israel, when they were camped around the tabernacle in the wilderness. The reason God allowed John to see these as beasts, or living creatures, was to show him that someday Israel would be alive again, and that they would be back in fellowship with God.
Their bodies are full of eyes, they had eyes before and behind, and (in verse eight) they were full of eyes within. This is very revealing. These creatures represent the whole house of Israel. They are full of eyes because God has given them eyes to see. In other words, God has opened Israel's understanding. Israel has been in partial blindness ever since the coming of Jesus, but now he has given them eyes to see.
In verse six, it says that these creatures had eyes before and behind. In verse eight it says that they were full of eyes within, and in verse eight we find the reason for the eyes. These creatures now say Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.
OK now, let's put this together. No 1., the eyes behind go along with the creatures saying which was. They are able to look back and realize that Jesus really was the true Messiah that was crucified at Jerusalem for their sins. They need not look for another.
No. 2, the eyes within (which are under the wings), are revealed when they say in verse eight, and is. This scripture tells us that Israel knows that Jesus is real and that he is alive because He is now living in their hearts. They have been born again, and now they can see Him within.
No. 3, the eyes before also tells us more, along with verse eight they say and is to come. This isn't very hard to see now that we see what has happened to Israel. Israel is now looking for the coming of the Lord, the rapture of the Church, just like the rest of the Church.
No wonder in verses 9-11 the twenty four elders cast their crowns at God's feet. Their family, the house and nation of Israel, has now been saved.
The Bible also tells us in verse 8 that they rest not day and night. This speaks of Israel's intensity to take the Gospel to the world. This is their calling, according to Old Testament scriptures.
In Romans 11:28, Paul was speaking of Israel when he said that the gifts and callings of God are without repentance. He was saying that God would not change His mind about saving Israel, or about their calling, which is to take the Gospel to the world! When God put Israel in blindness, it was only temporary. After He gives them the ability to see again, they will accept this call to carry the Gospel, with great zeal and enthusiasm.
In Isaiah 54:1-8 this is explained so clearly. God speaks of Israel as being a barren woman that is unable to bring forth children. This is speaking of Israel's rejection of Jesus as Lord, and their inability to give God children. You must come to Jesus in order to be a child of God, and to be saved.
In Matthew 23:37-39, Jesus told Israel that they would be left desolate, which means barren, because of their rejection of Him, until the time that they accept Him as the One who God sent, the Messiah.
In Isaiah 54:1-8, He tells this desolate woman to sing and cry aloud (to shout with joy) because now she is going to give God more children than the married wife. Paul, in Galatians 4:24-31, compares this married wife with to the first covenant, or the law, but there is a deeper truth in this message than we realize. Paul is using these scriptures in Isaiah to demonstrate the difference in the two covenants, but what Paul was unable to share (because of prophetic timing) was that God had a married wife that would not bare as many children as the desolate woman would, because of her calling.
Isaiah clearly tells us that this desolate woman is going to give birth to millions of Gentiles. Isaiah 60:1-5 bears witness to this message. Read Isaiah 66:19.
There are many more scriptures than this declaring the work that Israel will do after they have accepted Jesus as Saviour. The Church in America has been trying to convert our nation to Jesus since the Pilgrims first came to convert the Indian, but the Church has become so divided over issues, that winning souls is second place to their stands on doctrinal differences. But, if we can reach the Jews in America with the Gospel, God will use these new converts to re-enforce the Church, and bring deliverance to our sin sick nation. GOD WILL, I PROMISE YOU, SAVE AMERICA! God's promises will always reign victorious! Jesus is that deliverance!
Through faith, I believe that God has many great and gallant Christians who are uncompromising and unafraid of what others think of them, because of their love for Jesus; who, for His sake, are willing to endure hardship from others in order to accomplish the will of God. We must share this message with others around us, in order to get the job done. It will only succeed through prayer and sharing. Please join me in praying for America and the salvation of the Jews who live here. There are SIX MILLION Jews in America.
Paul said in Romans 10:1, Brethren, my heart's desire for Israel is, that they might be saved. Paul was a Jew who knew that God wanted him to reach the Gentiles, and out of love, he obeyed God. Now, God is asking us who are Gentile to reach the Jew. Do you have the same love in your heart that Paul had? Do we have the same Jesus in us?
Rev. 5:8-10:
And they sung a new song, saying thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
And hast made us unto our God kings and priests and we shall reign on the earth.
Of course by now you realize that the four beasts and the four and twenty elders all represent the people of Israel and their leaders.
They are singing a new song. This song is a song that they have never sung before. It is about redemption and their gratitude to Jesus for saving their souls. These people are the Jews who live in the nations. Most of the Jews today live in the western part of the world, like America with six milion. These Jews are not the ones living in the nation of Israel. We will learn of their redemption through the seven seals.
God has identified these Jews in the four beasts by showing us a difference in Ephraim's banner (Revelation 4:7). Ephraim's banner was the Ox. Here we see a calf. What is the calf? It is a baby ox!! God is showing Ephraim, or the Jews who God has placed under Ephraim's banner) as having been born again. God is pointing out to us, by this calf, who these Jews are. Remember Ezekiel's two sticks? One for Ephraim, another for Judah. This is Ephraim's stick, the Jews in the nations. Most of them are American Jews!
In verse eight they are holding golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints. Why are they carrying these vials of prayers? Why are these prayers so important that they would be holding them like a treasure? These golden vials of prayers of saints are the reason that they have been redeemed! They are your prayers for their salvation and these people treasure your prayers because they know that they wouldn't have been saved if you hadn't prayed. Wonderful, huh?
End Chapter five
