For a bible believer reading right now, this is SHOUTING TIME, why? Because when the Lord comes 'out of his place', Heaven, to 'punish the inhabitants of the earth', you can only be in one place - Revelation 19!
As all of you know by now, the entire world is beset with the coronavirus panic that is crashing economies and has placed 3 billion people and counting on lockdown. People all across the globe are searching for answers and looking for the truth. Today's date is 03/26/2020, which has led to many Christians looking at Isaiah 26:20 to see if God is showing us a promise from scripture about keeping us safe during this coronavirus pandemic. Let's take a look and see what the prophet Isaiah can tell us.
"Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast. For, behold, the LORD cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain." Isaiah 26:20,21 (KJB)
Those are very comforting words we just read, highlighting an incredible promise by God to keep His people safe during a time of great "indignation", and a promise to come out and punish the evildoers responsible. Since any time is a great time for a bible study, let's rightly divide these verses and see who God is talking to here.
- "Come, my people": In the context of this passage and the chapter, Isaiah is talking to Jews living in the land of Judah, as we see in verse one. "In that day shall this song be sung in the land of Judah; We have a strong city; salvation will God appoint for walls and bulwarks." Christians are the adopted children, Jew and Gentile, who make up the Body of Christ, so the "my people" cannot be directed at us. It is the Jews, and God through Isaiah is telling them to run and hide from the "indignation" that is coming upon them.
- "hide thyself": We see something quite similar in Matthew 24 where Jesus tells the Jews who are in Judah, to "flee to the mountains" after they see Antichrist sit in the rebuilt Temple in Jerusalem. In both Isaiah 26 and Matthew 24 are addressed to Jews living in Judah. From this we conclude that it is highly likely that Isaiah 26 and Matthew 24 are referencing the same event. "When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:" Matthew 24:15,16 (KJB)
 COME AND EXPLORE THE WONDERS OF SELAH PETRA, THE TEMPORARY HOME OF THE JEWISH REMNANT IN THE TRIBULATION
- "for a little moment": The entire time of Jacob's trouble is 7 years long, as Daniel 9:27 tells us, and the first 3.5 years will be the time of false peace and safety Paul shows us in Thessalonians. "For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape." 1 Thessalonians 5:3 (KJB). But the second 3.5 year period, the time Jesus calls "great tribulation" the likes of which the world has never seen, is when the Jews will "flee to the mountains". And the bible is very specific as to which mountains they will flee to, the red rock city of Selah Petra is where the bible says they will run to. “Send ye the lamb to the ruler of the land from Sela to the wilderness, unto the mount of the daughter of Zion. For it shall be, that, as a wandering bird cast out of the nest,so the daughters of Moab shall be at the fords of Arnon. Take counsel, execute judgment; make thy shadow as the night in the midst of the noonday; hide the outcasts; bewray not him that wandereth. Let mine outcasts dwell with thee, Moab; be thou a covert to them from the face of the spoiler: for the extortioner is at an end, the spoiler ceaseth, the oppressors are consumed out of the land. And in mercy shall the throne be established: and he shall sit upon it in truth in the tabernacle of David, judging, and seeking judgment, and hasting righteousness.” Isaiah 16:1-5 (KJV). The remnant Jews will flee to Selah Petra and remain there for the entire 3.5 year period of "indignation", then the Lord shows up. Literally, physically and visibly.
- "the LORD cometh out of his place": For a bible believer reading right now, this is SHOUTING TIME, why? Because when the Lord comes out of his place, Heaven, to "punish the inhabitants of the earth", you can only be in one place - Revelation 19! This is the Second Coming when we, the born again Body of Christ, mount up on white horses with King Jesus and return to earth, the Pretribulation Rapture already having taken place 7 years earlier, to fight the Battle of Armageddon. "And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS." Revelation 19:11-16 (KJB)
Now we see exactly what Isaiah 26 is talking about, it is a wonderful depiction of God's promise to His people, the Jews, to not only keep a remnant of them safe during the Tribulation, but to return to the earth and personally rescue them from Antichrist. Isaiah is not speaking devotionally or metaphorically, Isaiah 26 is future history that will come to pass during the great Tribulation period. It cannot be applied to Christians who are going through the global crisis we are now facing, but guess what? God has given us something better than Isaiah 26, He has given us the Blessed Hope of Titus 2:13. That's for us. I hope this mini-study was a blessing to you, please post comments and questions below.
|
|
No comments:
Post a Comment