Steadfast
12-07-2007, 07:54 PM
<div align="center">Salvation of Jah
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At the beginning of the tribulation, Jesus receives his kingship in heaven as outlined in Daniel 7:13-14:
'I kept on beholding in the visions of the night, and, see there! with the clouds of the heavens someone like a son of man happened to be coming; and to the Ancient of Days he gained access, and they brought him up close even before that One. And to him there were given rulership and dignity and kingdom that the peoples, national groups and languages should all serve him. His rulership is an indefinitely lasting rulership that will not pass away, and his kingdom one that will not be brought to ruin.'
The birth of the kingdom government, (at the beginning of the tribulation), is also outlined in Revelation 12, where the woman gives birth and Jesus receives his kingship:
Verse 1 'And a great sign was seen in heaven, a woman arrayed with the sun, and the moon was beneath her feet, and on her head was a crown of twelve stars, and she was pregnant. And she cries out in her pains and in her agony to give birth.
Verse 5 And she gave birth to a son, a male who is to shepherd all the nations with an iron rod.'
This newborn King and his kingdom are 'caught away to God and to his throne' Revelation 12:5.
In the order of this arrangement, it seems appropriate that as his first duty of Kingship, Jesus acts as judge of the Temple sons who will rule with him as kings and priests. This is outlined at Malachi 3:1,5:
'And there will suddenly come to His temple the [true] Lord (Jesus), whom you people are seeking, and the messenger of the covenant in whom you are delighting. Look! He will certainly come, Jehovah of armies has said.
And I will come near to you people for judgment, and I will become a speedy witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against those swearing falsely, and against those acting fraudulently with the wages of a wage worker, with the widow and with the fatherless boy, and those turning away the alien resident, while they have not feared me, Jehovah of armies has said.'
When the temple judgment is complete, the living earthly remnant of the woman's seed who are permanently sealed, flee to the wilderness for 3-1/2 years, where they are miraculously protected and fed:
Verse 6 'and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days.'
Verse 14 'But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time.'
So, after the birth of the Kingdom, confirmed by the sixth-seal final sealing at Revelation 7:4, Satan is then cast out of heaven.
Revelation 12:7-9 'Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon and his angels fought back, but he was defeated and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole worldhe was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.'
Satan demands to witness the final sealing before being cast out and knows who the living sons of the Kingdom are. Knowing who has been permanently sealed, Satan then goes off to wage war with the 'remaining ones of her seed' Revelation 12:17. These ones will participate in the preaching of the two witnesses. When their sackcloth preaching is finished, Satan influences the beast to make war with them, conquer and kill them.
The Mark of Salvation
Ezekiel 9:3-6 outlines that the mark of salvation and the subsequent destruction begins at the sanctuary and extends beyond it:
'Now the glory of the God of Israel had gone up from the cherub on which it rested to the threshold of the house. And he called to the man clothed in linen, who had the writing case at his waist. And the LORD said to him, "Pass through the city, through Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations that are committed in it."
And to the others (the ones with the smashing weapons) he said in my hearing, "pass through the city after him, and strike. Your eye shall not spare, and you shall show no pity. Kill old men outright, young men and maidens, little children and women, but touch no one on whom is the mark. And begin at my sanctuary." So they began with the elders before the house.'
Revelation 9:1-4 confirms the order of salvation where it describes the locust plague that touches all men except those who do not have the seal in their hand or forehead.
'And the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star fallen from heaven to earth, and he was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit. He opened the shaft of the bottomless pit, and from the shaft rose smoke like the smoke of a great furnace, and the sun and the air were darkened with the smoke from the shaft.
Then from the smoke came locusts on the earth, and they were given power like the power of scorpions of the earth. They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any green plant or any tree, but only those people who do not have the seal of God in their foreheads.
How do we know that this seal is different than the seal for the 144,000? Ezekiel 9 says: 'Begin with my sanctuary' both to salvation and to destruction.
After the temple is judged and sealed in the forehead for salvation or destruction, the rest of mankind also receive a seal in the forehead for salvation or destruction. This mark of salvation or destruction is seen after the sealing of the 144,000 has already taken place at the 6th seal, while the sealing of those in Revelation 9:4 is mentioned at the 5th trumpet.
The trumpets don't begin to blow until the after the 7th seal has opened.
For more evidence, look what is said in verses Revelation 9:20-21 after the locust plague of the 5th angel's trumpet blast, and the 6th angel blows his trumpet:
'The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands nor give up worshipping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk, nor did they repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.'
It seems reasonable then to conclude that those who have the seal of salvation in their forehead at the 5th trumpet, are also the great crowd outlined in Revelation 7:9-10:
'After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, "Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!"'
It is also reasonable to conclude that none of the plagues to come affect any who have been given the seal of salvation in their forehead as outlined in Revelation 9 above.
Removal And Destruction Of The Wicked
The same ordering takes place with removal and destruction of the wicked. It begins first with Jesus coming to the temple and permanently sealing the 144,000 in Revelation 7:4. At that time, the weeds are symbolically thrown out of the temple to await their permanent destruction, either at the hand of the beast or by Christ at Armageddon. Second, those of mankind who took the mark of the beast are completely destroyed by Christ at Armageddon:
Revelation 19:11, 15-18, and 21:
'Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On his robe and on this thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.
Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he called to all the birds that fly directly overhead, "Come, gather for the great supper of God, to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all men, both free and slave, both small and great. And the rest were slain by the sword that came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse, and all the birds were gorged with their flesh.'
Should any be afraid? Absolutely not! All should 'stand erect as deliverance is getting near' and Psalms 91 becomes our comfort:
'He that dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of Jehovah, He is my refuge and my fortress; My God in whom I trust. For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler, and from the deadly pestilence.
He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings shall you take refuge. His truth is a shield and a buckler. You shall not be afraid for the terror by night, nor for the arrow that flies by day; For the pestilence that walks in darkness, nor for the destruction that wastes at noonday. A thousand shall fall at your side, and ten thousands at your right hand, but it shall not come near you. Only with your eyes shall you behold, and see the reward of the wicked.
For you, O Jehovah are my refuge! You have made the Most High your habitation; There shall no evil befall you, neither shall any plague come near your tent. For he will give his angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways. They will bear you upon their hands lest you dash your foot against a stone.
You shall tread upon the lion and adder: The young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot. Because he has set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high because he has known my name. He shall call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble: I will deliver him and honor him.
With long life will I satisfy him, and show him my salvation.'
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At the beginning of the tribulation, Jesus receives his kingship in heaven as outlined in Daniel 7:13-14:
'I kept on beholding in the visions of the night, and, see there! with the clouds of the heavens someone like a son of man happened to be coming; and to the Ancient of Days he gained access, and they brought him up close even before that One. And to him there were given rulership and dignity and kingdom that the peoples, national groups and languages should all serve him. His rulership is an indefinitely lasting rulership that will not pass away, and his kingdom one that will not be brought to ruin.'
The birth of the kingdom government, (at the beginning of the tribulation), is also outlined in Revelation 12, where the woman gives birth and Jesus receives his kingship:
Verse 1 'And a great sign was seen in heaven, a woman arrayed with the sun, and the moon was beneath her feet, and on her head was a crown of twelve stars, and she was pregnant. And she cries out in her pains and in her agony to give birth.
Verse 5 And she gave birth to a son, a male who is to shepherd all the nations with an iron rod.'
This newborn King and his kingdom are 'caught away to God and to his throne' Revelation 12:5.
In the order of this arrangement, it seems appropriate that as his first duty of Kingship, Jesus acts as judge of the Temple sons who will rule with him as kings and priests. This is outlined at Malachi 3:1,5:
'And there will suddenly come to His temple the [true] Lord (Jesus), whom you people are seeking, and the messenger of the covenant in whom you are delighting. Look! He will certainly come, Jehovah of armies has said.
And I will come near to you people for judgment, and I will become a speedy witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against those swearing falsely, and against those acting fraudulently with the wages of a wage worker, with the widow and with the fatherless boy, and those turning away the alien resident, while they have not feared me, Jehovah of armies has said.'
When the temple judgment is complete, the living earthly remnant of the woman's seed who are permanently sealed, flee to the wilderness for 3-1/2 years, where they are miraculously protected and fed:
Verse 6 'and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days.'
Verse 14 'But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time.'
So, after the birth of the Kingdom, confirmed by the sixth-seal final sealing at Revelation 7:4, Satan is then cast out of heaven.
Revelation 12:7-9 'Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon and his angels fought back, but he was defeated and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole worldhe was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.'
Satan demands to witness the final sealing before being cast out and knows who the living sons of the Kingdom are. Knowing who has been permanently sealed, Satan then goes off to wage war with the 'remaining ones of her seed' Revelation 12:17. These ones will participate in the preaching of the two witnesses. When their sackcloth preaching is finished, Satan influences the beast to make war with them, conquer and kill them.
The Mark of Salvation
Ezekiel 9:3-6 outlines that the mark of salvation and the subsequent destruction begins at the sanctuary and extends beyond it:
'Now the glory of the God of Israel had gone up from the cherub on which it rested to the threshold of the house. And he called to the man clothed in linen, who had the writing case at his waist. And the LORD said to him, "Pass through the city, through Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations that are committed in it."
And to the others (the ones with the smashing weapons) he said in my hearing, "pass through the city after him, and strike. Your eye shall not spare, and you shall show no pity. Kill old men outright, young men and maidens, little children and women, but touch no one on whom is the mark. And begin at my sanctuary." So they began with the elders before the house.'
Revelation 9:1-4 confirms the order of salvation where it describes the locust plague that touches all men except those who do not have the seal in their hand or forehead.
'And the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star fallen from heaven to earth, and he was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit. He opened the shaft of the bottomless pit, and from the shaft rose smoke like the smoke of a great furnace, and the sun and the air were darkened with the smoke from the shaft.
Then from the smoke came locusts on the earth, and they were given power like the power of scorpions of the earth. They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any green plant or any tree, but only those people who do not have the seal of God in their foreheads.
How do we know that this seal is different than the seal for the 144,000? Ezekiel 9 says: 'Begin with my sanctuary' both to salvation and to destruction.
After the temple is judged and sealed in the forehead for salvation or destruction, the rest of mankind also receive a seal in the forehead for salvation or destruction. This mark of salvation or destruction is seen after the sealing of the 144,000 has already taken place at the 6th seal, while the sealing of those in Revelation 9:4 is mentioned at the 5th trumpet.
The trumpets don't begin to blow until the after the 7th seal has opened.
For more evidence, look what is said in verses Revelation 9:20-21 after the locust plague of the 5th angel's trumpet blast, and the 6th angel blows his trumpet:
'The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands nor give up worshipping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk, nor did they repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.'
It seems reasonable then to conclude that those who have the seal of salvation in their forehead at the 5th trumpet, are also the great crowd outlined in Revelation 7:9-10:
'After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, "Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!"'
It is also reasonable to conclude that none of the plagues to come affect any who have been given the seal of salvation in their forehead as outlined in Revelation 9 above.
Removal And Destruction Of The Wicked
The same ordering takes place with removal and destruction of the wicked. It begins first with Jesus coming to the temple and permanently sealing the 144,000 in Revelation 7:4. At that time, the weeds are symbolically thrown out of the temple to await their permanent destruction, either at the hand of the beast or by Christ at Armageddon. Second, those of mankind who took the mark of the beast are completely destroyed by Christ at Armageddon:
Revelation 19:11, 15-18, and 21:
'Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On his robe and on this thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.
Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he called to all the birds that fly directly overhead, "Come, gather for the great supper of God, to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all men, both free and slave, both small and great. And the rest were slain by the sword that came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse, and all the birds were gorged with their flesh.'
Should any be afraid? Absolutely not! All should 'stand erect as deliverance is getting near' and Psalms 91 becomes our comfort:
'He that dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of Jehovah, He is my refuge and my fortress; My God in whom I trust. For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler, and from the deadly pestilence.
He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings shall you take refuge. His truth is a shield and a buckler. You shall not be afraid for the terror by night, nor for the arrow that flies by day; For the pestilence that walks in darkness, nor for the destruction that wastes at noonday. A thousand shall fall at your side, and ten thousands at your right hand, but it shall not come near you. Only with your eyes shall you behold, and see the reward of the wicked.
For you, O Jehovah are my refuge! You have made the Most High your habitation; There shall no evil befall you, neither shall any plague come near your tent. For he will give his angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways. They will bear you upon their hands lest you dash your foot against a stone.
You shall tread upon the lion and adder: The young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot. Because he has set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high because he has known my name. He shall call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble: I will deliver him and honor him.
With long life will I satisfy him, and show him my salvation.'