ACTS CHAPTER 1

The book of Acts is a transitional, unique time in history, when the promises of the Old Testament were fulfilled and the "Mystery" which was the Gospel and the Church in the Old Testament were revealed. It transitions from focusing on Israel to the Church. Most Christians do not even think that the four Gospels were actually before the Cross, making them still in the Old Testament period! Jesus gave the "New Covenant in His Blood" (Matthew 26:28, Mark 14:24, Luke 22:20). In the beginning of Acts and throughout many chapters, there are still Old Testament believers who were not baptized, and had received the Holy Spirit. That is no longer the case today.

Acts is not a doctrinal book, but rather a recording of early Church history, and we should not glean our doctrines out of it. The letters are our Church doctrine. Incorrect interpretation of the book of Acts leads to all sorts of heresies, and has done so for the past two millennia. The book of Ephesians chapter 2 speaks a lot about the "times past", "ages to come", and "the here" and "but now". This is the Mystery of the Church revealed in a "that was then, this is now" kind of fashion.

It has been called "The Fifth Gospel". In Matthew 28, the last recorded act is the Resurrection, which is in Acts Chapter One. In Mark the last recorded act is the Ascension, which is in Acts Chapter One. In Luke the last recorded act is the The Promise of the Holy Spirit, In John the last recorded act is the the Promise of the Second Coming, which are both in Acts Chapter 1.

The book of Acts is like the fusion and mixing, the culmination and finality of the four Gospels.

• Missionary Commission-confirmed in Acts
• It is between the Gospels and the Epistles
• History of the birth of the Church
• Origin of the spiritual body of Christ, Genesis the physical bodies of everything
• The book of Acts starts in Jerusalem and ends in Rome
• The New Testament starts off primarily in Jerusalem and ends in Revelation 17-18 with the destruction in Rome
• 110 people are mentioned by name in Acts

THE DISPENSATIONS

• Adam-Creation, Perfection, (Innocence)
• The Fall of Adam and Eve
• Noah-Pre-Flood (Conscious)
• Noah-Post-Flood-(Human Government)
• Abraham-(Promise)
• Moses-(Law)
• THE BOOK OF ACTS
  This is about to be a major, first time switch of dispensations
• Church-(Grace)
• Rapture->>>>>>Then the Seven Year Tribulation
• World-(Millennial Kingdom)
• New Creation, Eternity

The Mystery of the Church

• The Gentiles before and without Christ were aliens, strangers, pilgrims, far off, without hope, without God, uncircumcised in the flesh or the heart (Ephesians 2)
• There was a difference between Jew and Gentile, even as believers-you could not unite with the Jews as one, as a spiritual entity
• The Church was hidden in the Old Testament; only the Messiah was proclaimed
• Jesus said I WILL build my Church, not I HAVE built it.
• Jesus did not send a single Gentile to a single Gentile, and the only Gentiles blessed were those who blessed Israel
• Jesus even did not want to speak to the Gentiles, but only to the lost sheep of the House of Israel (Matthew 10:5-6, Matthew 15:24-28, John 4 even alludes to this)
• The blessings to the Gentiles came only through Israel, not the other way around
• Before Paul went to the Gentiles in Acts 9:15, no one did at all!
• Paul gave the Gentiles the dispensation of Grace (Ephesians 3:19)
• "All of the Bible is for us, but not all of it is about us or to us."
• The Temple was still there
• Sacrifices were still being made
• There was still a high priest
• After the Rapture, it goes back to Jew-Gentile again
• No one who was a believer in the Old Testament just simply received the indwelling of the Holy Ghost upon belief, sealing them forever, including the four Gospels and much of the book of Acts

Romans 11:25
For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.

Romans 16:25-26
Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith:

1 Corinthians 2:7
But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:

Colossians 1:25-27
Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God; Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:

Matthew 16:18
And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. __________________________________________________________________________

Luke, the Beloved Physician

Colossians 4:14
Luke, the beloved physician, and Demas, greet you.

2 Timothy 4:11
Only Luke is with me. Take Mark, and bring him with thee: for he is profitable to me for the ministry.

• In Ancient Greece, doctors were considered of low esteem
• Many were personally owned as slaves by wealthy people
• Governments did not want medical schools; they wanted colleges
• Doctors were for military use to treat wounds in battle

Luke, The Author

Luke 1:1-4
Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us, Even as they delivered them unto us, which from the beginning were eyewitnesses, and ministers of the word;
It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus, That thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been instructed. Acts 1:1
Acts 1:1 The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, __________________________________________________________________________

Acts 1:1
The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach,

• The former is the book of Luke
• Theophilus means lover of God
• This was not everything Jesus did, but everything Jesus did that Luke eye witnessed

Acts 1:2
Until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen:

• Jesus did and taught the entire time on earth, until He ascended
• Jesus submitted totally to the leading of the Holy Spirit
• The order in the narrative in this verse is simple: Jesus gave commandments, then the Ascension happened

Acts 1:3
To whom also he shewed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God:

• It was not just a claim that He was Resurrected
• Only revealed Himself to His own believers, not the Pharisees, Roman leaders
• Infallible means incapable of being corrupted
• Proofs just adds weight to the infallibility
• Luke ends his gospel with the proofs and the ascension
• He also begins his gospel with the same intro like this book

INFALLIBIL'ITY
INFAL'LIBLE, a. [L. fallo.]
1. Not fallible; not capable of erring; entirely exempt from liability to mistake; applied to persons. No man is infallible; to be infallible is the prerogative of God only.
2. Not liable to fail, or to deceive confidence; certain; as infallible evidence; infallible success.
To whom he showed himself alive after his passion, by many infallible proofs--

Luke 1:1-4
Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us, Even as they delivered them unto us, which from the beginning were eyewitnesses, and ministers of the word; It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus, That thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been instructed.

Acts 1:4
And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me.

• To the Jew first with the Gospel, then the Gentiles
• It is all in the timing
• The Promise of the Father is the Holy Spirit
• This baptism, of the Holy Spirit, was not the receipt and the indwelling, but rather the power
• The next verses, the context, speak of this exact power they would receive
• They had already been told that the Holy Spirit was with them, and would be indwelling them (John 14:17)

THE DISCIPLES RECEIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT

John 14:17
Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

John 20:19-23
Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. And when he had so said, he shewed unto them his hands and his side. Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord.
Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost: Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained.

The Promise of The Father

Luke 24:49
And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.

John 14:26
But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

Romans 1:16
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.

Romans 2:10
But glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile:

Romans 2:9
Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile;

The Promise of the Holy Ghost

Luke 24:49
And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.

John 14:26
But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

John 15:26
But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:

John 15:26
But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:

Acts 1:5
For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.

• This was a UNIQUE time event, on the day of Pentecost
• These were saved believers who did not have the Holy Spirit living in them
• Old Testament believers did not receive the Holy Spirit, except in very rare instances. For New Testament believers, it is now automatic.

THE BAPTISMS

THE BAPTISM OF JOHN

Matthew 3:7
But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?

Matthew 21:25
The baptism of John, whence was it? from heaven, or of men? And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven; he will say unto us, Why did ye not then believe him?

Mark 1:4
John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.

Luke 3:3
And he came into all the country about Jordan, preaching the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins;

Luke 7:29
And all the people that heard him, and the publicans, justified God, being baptized with the baptism of John.

Luke 20:4
The baptism of John, was it from heaven, or of men?

Acts 1:22
Beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection.

Acts 10:37
That word, I say, ye know, which was published throughout all Judaea, and began from Galilee, after the baptism which John preached;

Acts 13:24
When John had first preached before his coming the baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel.

Acts 18:25
This man was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in the spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John.

Acts 19:2-7
>He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John's baptism.Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus.
When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied. And all the men were about twelve.

BAPTISM OF JESUS-DEATH

Matthew 20:22
But Jesus answered and said, Ye know not what ye ask. Are ye able to drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? They say unto him, We are able.

Matthew 20:23
And he saith unto them, Ye shall drink indeed of my cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with: but to sit on my right hand, and on my left, is not mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father.

Mark 10:38
But Jesus said unto them, Ye know not what ye ask: can ye drink of the cup that I drink of? and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?

Mark 10:39
And they said unto him, We can. And Jesus said unto them, Ye shall indeed drink of the cup that I drink of; and with the baptism that I am baptized withal shall ye be baptized:

Mark 11:30
The baptism of John, was it from heaven, or of men? answer me.

Luke 12:50
But I have a baptism to be baptized with; and how am I straitened till it be accomplished!

BAPTISM TODAY

Romans 6:4
Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

Ephesians 4:5
One Lord, one faith, one baptism,

Colossians 2:12
Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.

Hebrews 6:2
Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.

1 Peter 3:21
The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ:

APOSTLES AND THE HOLY SPIRIT

John 14:16-17
And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

OLD TESTAMENT BELIEVERS WHO GOT THE HOLY SPIRIT

SAUL RECEIVES THE HOLY SPIRIT

1 Samuel 11:6
And the Spirit of God came upon Saul when he heard those tidings, and his anger was kindled greatly.

...THEN LOSES IT

1 Samuel 16:14
But the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD troubled him.

BALAAM

Numbers 24:2
And Balaam lifted up his eyes, and he saw Israel abiding in his tents according to their tribes; and the spirit of God came upon him.

AMASAI

1 Chronicles 12:18
Then the spirit came upon Amasai, who was chief of the captains, and he said, Thine are we, David, and on thy side, thou son of Jesse: peace, peace be unto thee, and peace be to thine helpers; for thy God helpeth thee. Then David received them, and made them captains of the band.

AZARIAH

2 Chronicles 15:1
And the Spirit of God came upon Azariah the son of Oded:

ZECHARIAH

2 Chronicles 24:20
And the Spirit of God came upon Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, which stood above the people, and said unto them, Thus saith God, Why transgress ye the commandments of the LORD, that ye cannot prosper? because ye have forsaken the LORD, he hath also forsaken you.

JOHN THE BAPTIST'S PARENTS ELIZABETH, ZACHARIAS

Luke 1:41
And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost:

Luke 1:67
And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost, and prophesied, saying,

Ephesians 1:13-14
In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

BAPTISM OF THE HOLY SPIRIT: TODAY

1 Corinthians 12:13
For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.

2 Corinthians 1:22
Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts.

Ephesians 4:30
And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.

Acts 1:6
When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?

• Even at this later point in time, the program was not fully understood.
• They, like all Jews then as now, wanted the reigning Messiah, not the suffering Messiah
• They probably now thought that, post-Cross, Burial and Resurrection, it was KINGDOM TIME!

Matthew 16:21-23
From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day. Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee. But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.

Acts 1:7
And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.

• The hidden mystery of the Church had to be worked out first
• They were being told that their concern was now to be lost souls, Jew and Gentile...not kingdoms.

Acts 1:8
But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

• In Jerusalem (chapters 1-7)
• In Judea and in Samaria, (chapters 8-12)
• ...and unto the uttermost part of the earth. (chapters 13-end)
• Few Old Testament saints were indwelt, none necessarily in the same way as us, in the Old Testament
• King David was certainly one
• Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah was another
• This statement of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in believers from this day forward announced shows that it was not that way in times past....it is a new dispensation.
• The Holy Spirit could leave them; He will not ever leave us

Psalms 51:11
Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me.

Exodus 31:3
And I have filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship,

Acts 1:9-10
And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.  And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel;

• Mission One on Earth Accomplished
• The two men are obviously angels, manifested as men
• He called them one or two at a time, now they are together, and He left them as a group, His group, to do the work via the Holy Spirit

STEADFASTLY, STEDFASTLY, adv. Firmly; with constancy or steadiness of mind.
Steadfastly believe that whatever God has revealed is infallibly true.

Acts 1:11
Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.

• The Second Coming back is obviously not the Rapture
• We will be there with Him at His return

Daniel 7:13
I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.

Matthew 24:30
And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

Mark 13:26
And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory.

Mark 14:62
And Jesus said, I am: and ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.

Jude 1:14
And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints,

Revelation 1:7
Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.

Acts 1:12
Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is from Jerusalem a sabbath day's journey.

• Jesus Christ will stand on the Mount of Olives when He comes back the second time
• "A Sabbath Day's Journey was roughly a distance of 2,000 cubits, which is less than a half mile, a distance which, according to Jewish tradition, they were allowed to travel on the Sabbath without violating the law
• This was lengthened by the rabbis using legalism, clever ideas and formulas over the years, like how far they would be forced to go to get to the temple and still be within the city limits
• Then they re-interpreted "place in Exodus 16:29 to mean from the city, so that added another 2,000 cubits to their legal limit
• Then they decided to add another law that you could place provisions at a distance, that place legally became your abode, so that they could go the 2,000 cubits within the city, and another 2,000 cubits without the city to get to their "abode", making it 4,000 cubits distance
• During the days of Jesus Christ 's life on earth, they added the return trip in, making it legal to now go 8,000 cubits travel time in a sabbath day.

Zechariah 14:4
And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.

Exodus 16:29
See, for that the LORD hath given you the sabbath, therefore he giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days; abide ye every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day.

Joshua 3:3-4
And they commanded the people, saying, When ye see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, and the priests the Levites bearing it, then ye shall remove from your place, and go after it.
Yet there shall be a space between you and it, about two thousand cubits by measure: come not near unto it, that ye may know the way by which ye must go: for ye have not passed this way heretofore.

Acts 1:13
And when they were come in, they went up into an upper room, where abode both Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew, Philip, and Thomas, Bartholomew, and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon Zelotes, and Judas the brother of James.

• This count is eleven, because of Judas
• No one noticed throughout Jesus's three year ministry that Judas was not one of them....what does that say about phony sheep?

Acts 1:14
These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren.

• They continued, meaning they were already in the process of praying.
• "His" brethren is Jesus brethren, James and Jude, and shows that Jesus had brothers, and Mary was not and is not a perpetual virgin
• Mary was the mother of Jesus the man, not the mother of God.......God does not have a mother.......He is.
• This also is the very last mention of Mary the mother of Jesus in the Bible, and no mention of her death, nothing
• Prayer AND supplication, showing that prayer is not just asking for things from God
• Prayer is simply talking to God; supplication is asking, begging, pleading for something needed; intercession is asking for someone else.

Matthew 13:55
Is not this the carpenter's son? is not his mother called Mary? and his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas?

Galatians 1:19
But other of the apostles saw I none, save James the Lord's brother.

SUPPLICATION

SUPPLICA'TION, n. [L. supplicatio.]

1. Entreaty; humble and earnest prayer in worship. In all our supplications to the Father of mercies, let us remember a world lying in ignorance and wickedness.
2. Petition; earnest request.
3. In Roman antiquity, a religious solemnity observed in consequence of some military success. It consisted in sacrifices, feasting, offering thanks, and praying for a continuance of success.

Ephesians 6:18
Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

1 Timothy 2:1
I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;

1 Timothy 5:5
Now she that is a widow indeed, and desolate, trusteth in God, and continueth in supplications and prayers night and day.

Hebrews 5:5-7
So also Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son, to day have I begotten thee. As he saith also in another place, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec. Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared;

Acts 1:15
And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said, (the number of names together were about an hundred and twenty,)

• Obviously a large upper room
• The number of names, unlike the Old Testament, appears to be of women and children also counted in the number

Acts 1:16
Men and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas, which was guide to them that took Jesus.

• This was not just the doing of Judas by chance, but we were foretold
• Did Judas ever hear of this prophecy about himself?
• (Matthew 26:23; Matthew 26:47; Mark 14:43; John 13:18; John 18:3)

Psalms 69:25
Let their habitation be desolate; and let none dwell in their tents.

Psalms 109:8
Let his days be few; and let another take his office.

Acts 1:17
For he was numbered with us, and had obtained part of this ministry.

• He was chosen of God
• His life was foreordained, yet he exercised free will
• He actually DID ministry with the apostles for three years
• For three years he was an apostle, undiscovered as a wolf among sheep, by the sheep
• Judas was not one who saw the Resurrected Christ at all (Mark 16:14, Luke 24:9, 13), a qualification of an apostle

Matthew 10:2-4
Now the names of the twelve apostles are these; The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.

Luke 6:13-16 And when it was day, he called unto him his disciples: and of them he chose twelve, whom also he named apostles; Simon, (whom he also named Peter,) and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called Zelotes, And Judas the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, which also was the traitor.

Acts 1:18
Now this man purchased a field with the reward of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out.

• Tradition says that Judas went and hanged himself above the Valley of Hinnom on a cliff's edge. Over time, as would happen, the rope wore out and simply snapped, or someone cut it, and his body therefore fell headfirst into the field below, exactly as Luke described
• Matthew records the hanging; Luke records the aftermath over time is all.
• Judas's money bought the field; the Pharisees did the transaction
• Muslims like to use these two different accounts as "an error" or " a contradiction" in the Bible, in regards to who bought the field

PROPHECY

Zechariah 11:12-13
And I said unto them, If ye think good, give me my price; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver. And the LORD said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house of the LORD.

FULFILLMENT

Matthew 26:15
And said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver.

Matthew 27:3-10
Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, Saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood. And they said, What is that to us? see thou to that.
And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself. And the chief priests took the silver pieces, and said, It is not lawful for to put them into the treasury, because it is the price of blood. And they took counsel, and bought with them the potter's field, to bury strangers in.
Wherefore that field was called, The field of blood, unto this day. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying, And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of him that was valued, whom they of the children of Israel did value; And gave them for the potter's field, as the Lord appointed me.

• This is again, another "error" pointed out by all sorts of unbelievers
• This quote is found in Zechariah 11, not Jeremiah
• Very simple...........Jeremiah SPOKE IT (like it exactly says), Zechariah WROTE it

ONE DOWN, ELEVEN LEFT

Mark 16:14 |
Afterward he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen.

Luke 24:9
And returned from the sepulchre, and told all these things unto the eleven, and to all the rest.

Acts 1:19
And it was known unto all the dwellers at Jerusalem; insomuch as that field is called in their proper tongue, Aceldama, that is to say, The field of blood.

• Land purchased with blood money
• This action being famous, or infamous, with the spread of Christianity, because of eyewitnesses of the Resurrected Christ, the boldness of the apostles, and this field of blood, which is a symbol of evil, greed, and futility, because you cannot keep a good man down, or kill God

Acts 1:20
For it is written in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation be desolate, and let no man dwell therein: and his bishoprick let another take.

• The number must be twelve, one for each tribe of Israel
• Nothing about Judas or his family is heard about ever again

Acts 1:21
Wherefore of these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us,

• The apostles felt that it had to be one from themselves who would replace Judas
• In the minds of men, that does make sense, since Jesus was physically no longer around to do the replacement personally
• But that is in the minds of men, not God

Isaiah 55:8-9
For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Acts 1:22
Beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection.

• One part of the ordination of an apostle is that they were an eyewitness of the Resurrected Christ
• One of the reasons there are no true apostles today is that they are 2,000 years removed from the Resurrection

1 Corinthians 9:1
Am I not an apostle? am I not free? have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord? are not ye my work in the Lord?

1 Corinthians 15:8
And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time.

Acts 1:23
And they appointed two, Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias.

• This is the only reference to these two men in Scripture
• Apparently God did not choose them, as He instead chose Saul of Tarshish

Acts 1:24
And they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen,

• Honest, sincere, deep serious supplication in agreement
• God was still sovereign and chose someone else
• They chose to for God to choose from; He chose a third, known to them probably by this time for his persecution

Acts 1:25
That he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place.

• Each unbeliever has "their own place" after death
• In Judas's case, he had a ministry and apostleship, but decided he did not want it......it did not pay enough, he was not sincere, he in unbelief rejected Christ (who he personally walked with and ate with and slept with for three years
• He chose the religious Pharisees, who he saw Jesus annihilate and excoriate in the streets and in the synagogues daily

Acts 1:26
And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.

• Casting lots gives AN answer, always-just not always from God
• Aaron cast lots for the scapegoat
• Joshua cast lots for the division of the Promised Land
• Casting lots uncovered Jonathan's disobeying his father Saul and eating honey
• King David cast lots to Merarites for service, for division of other duties, and for land, in three different instances
• The people in Nehemiah's day cast lots for division duties also
• Psalm 22, the Prophetic Messianic Sacrifice Psalm, pre tells of the Roman soldiers casting lots for Jesus's tunic
• THis was recorded as fulfilled in Matthew, Luke, John
• Joel spoke of how the Jews were casting lots for evil, selling their children for harlots, wine
• Edom cast lots for captive Jews in both Obadiah's and Nahum's day
• Lots were cast to uncover that Jonah was the culprit for the stormy sea.

CASTING LOTS

Leviticus 16:8
And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the LORD, and the other lot for the scapegoat.

Joshua 18:6
Ye shall therefore describe the land into seven parts, and bring the description hither to me, that I may cast lots for you here before the LORD our God.

Joshua 18:8
And the men arose, and went away: and Joshua charged them that went to describe the land, saying, Go and walk through the land, and describe it, and come again to me, that I may here cast lots for you before the LORD in Shiloh.

Joshua 18:10
And Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the LORD: and there Joshua divided the land unto the children of Israel according to their divisions.

1 Samuel 14:42
And Saul said, cast lots between me and Jonathan my son. And Jonathan was taken.

1 Chronicles 24:31
These likewise cast lots over against their brethren the sons of Aaron in the presence of David the king, and Zadok, and Ahimelech, and the chief of the fathers of the priests and Levites, even the principal fathers over against their younger brethren.

1 Chronicles 25:8
And they cast lots , ward against ward, as well the small as the great, the teacher as the scholar.

1 Chronicles 26:13
And they cast lots , as well the small as the great, according to the house of their fathers, for every gate.

1 Chronicles 26:14
And the lot eastward fell to Shelemiah. Then for Zechariah his son, a wise counsellor, they cast lots ; and his lot came out northward.

Nehemiah 11:1
And the rulers of the people dwelt at Jerusalem: the rest of the people also cast lots , to bring one of ten to dwell in Jerusalem the holy city, and nine parts to dwell in other cities.

Psalms 22:18
They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture.

Joel 3:3
And they have cast lots for my people; and have given a boy for an harlot, and sold a girl for wine, that they might drink.

Obadiah 1:11
In the day that thou stoodest on the other side, in the day that the strangers carried away captive his forces, and foreigners entered into his gates, and cast lots upon Jerusalem, even thou wast as one of them.

Jonah 1:7
And they said every one to his fellow, Come, and let us cast lots , that we may know for whose cause this evil is upon us. So they cast lots , and the lot fell upon Jonah.

Nahum 3:10
Yet was she carried away, she went into captivity: her young children also were dashed in pieces at the top of all the streets: and they cast lots for her honourable men, and all her great men were bound in chains.

Matthew 27:35
And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots .

Luke 23:34
Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots .

John 19:24
They said therefore among themselves, Let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be: that the scripture might be fulfilled, which saith, They parted my raiment among them, and for my vesture they did cast lots . These things therefore the soldiers did.

Isaiah Chapter 22

The Burden of Jerusalem

1. Burdens are judgments, countries around Israel, each representing a system, principle or philosophy of man, same today as well
2. Babylon: The World
3. Moab:
4. Damascus:
5. Sixth: Egypt
6. Desert of the Sea
7. Dumah
9. Edom: the Flesh
10. Arabia: War

2 Chronicles 32:2-6 And when Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib was come, and that he was purposed to fight against Jerusalem, He took counsel with his princes and his mighty men to stop the waters of the fountains which were without the city: and they did help him. So there was gathered much people together, who stopped all the fountains, and the brook that ran through the midst of the land, saying, Why should the kings of Assyria come, and find much water?
Also he strengthened himself, and built up all the wall that was broken, and raised it up to the towers, and another wall without, and repaired Millo in the city of David, and made darts and shields in abundance. And he set captains of war over the people, and gathered them together to him in the street of the gate of the city, and spake comfortably to them, saying,

• In preparation for war, Hezekiah built walls to hold the water, still seen there today
• He also made weapons (darts) and shields for protection in battle

Isaiah 22:1
The burden of the valley of vision. What aileth thee now, that thou art wholly gone up to the housetops?

Housetops, Rooftops

• The "Valley of Vision" is Jerusalem (Jerusalem, Israel, "the daughter of my people"(v.4), covering of Judah (v.8), "the houses of Jerusalem" (v.10))
• The housetops could have a lawn,
• The Gospel was to be proclaimed from the housetops, so most likely it was used as a way to announce events, etc.
• Rooves had battlements

  (BAT'TLEMENT, n. [This is said to have been bastillement, from bastille, a fortification.]
  A wall raised on a building with openings or embrasures, or the embrasure itself.)

• Rahab used the roof to hide two spies for Joshua
• Samson brought down a roof of several thousand in his final act of revenge
• King David fell from grace looking at Bathsheba from his roof
• He then was on the roof getting intelligence on Absalom
• The booths for the Feast of Tabernacles were on the rooves.
• A man sick with palsy was lowered from and through a roof to Jesus to be healed

2 Kings 19:26
Therefore their inhabitants were of small power, they were dismayed and confounded; they were as the grass of the field, and as the green herb, as the grass on the housetops, and as corn blasted before it be grown up.

Psalms 129:6
Let them be as the grass upon the housetops, which withereth afore it groweth up:

Isaiah 37:27
Therefore their inhabitants were of small power, they were dismayed and confounded: they were as the grass of the field, and as the green herb, as the grass on the housetops, and as corn blasted before it be grown up.

This is word for word the exact same verse as 2 Kings 19:26.

Jeremiah 48:38
There shall be lamentation generally upon all the housetops of Moab, and in the streets thereof: for I have broken Moab like a vessel wherein is no pleasure, saith the LORD.

Matthew 10:27
What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light: and what ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the housetops.

Luke 12:3
Therefore whatsoever ye have spoken in darkness shall be heard in the light; and that which ye have spoken in the ear in closets shall be proclaimed upon the housetops.

Joshua 2:6
But she had brought them up to the roof of the house, and hid them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order upon the roof.

Judges 16:27 Now the house was full of men and women; and all the lords of the Philistines were there; and there were upon the roof about three thousand men and women, that beheld while Samson made sport.

2 Samuel 11:2
And it came to pass in an eveningtide, that David arose from off his bed, and walked upon the roof of the king's house: and from the roof he saw a woman washing herself; and the woman was very beautiful to look upon.

2 Samuel 18:24
And David sat between the two gates: and the watchman went up to the roof over the gate unto the wall, and lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold a man running alone.

Nehemiah 8:16
So the people went forth, and brought them, and made themselves booths, every one upon the roof of his house, and in their courts, and in the courts of the house of God, and in the street of the water gate, and in the street of the gate of Ephraim.

Mark 2:4
And when they could not come nigh unto him for the press, they uncovered the roof where he was: and when they had broken it up, they let down the bed wherein the sick of the palsy lay.

Isaiah 22:2
Thou that art full of stirs, a tumultuous city, a joyous city: thy slain men are not slain with the sword, nor dead in battle.

• They are acting restless, like they do when a battle is on, hyperactive
• It is for a different reason
• Thus far it is only a surrounding siege, not a deadly war, no one is dead-yet
• This was to starve people to death or have them surrender
• Romans, best at this, up to twenty five years was the preparation if you enlisted, you agreed to it!
• Many become cannibals (Jospeheus)
• This is the origin of Hezekiah's Tunnel

Isaiah 22:3
All thy rulers are fled together, they are bound by the archers: all that are found in thee are bound together, which have fled from far.

• They (the Northern Kingdom of Israel) are taken captive instead

2 Kings 18:11
And the king of Assyria did carry away Israel unto Assyria, and put them in Halah and in Habor by the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes:

Isaiah 22:4
Therefore said I, Look away from me; I will weep bitterly, labour not to comfort me, because of the spoiling of the daughter of my people.

• Isaiah is mourning this, not wanting his own people ("my people")to look at him
• There is no comfort to give, so he wants none. This is nothing light

Isaiah 22:5
For it is a day of trouble, and of treading down, and of perplexity by the Lord GOD of hosts in the valley of vision, breaking down the walls, and of crying to the mountains.

• This judgment is from God and brings: trouble, destruction, confusion, sadness, mourning

Isaiah 22:6
And Elam bare the quiver with chariots of men and horsemen, and Kir uncovered the shield.

• Now, the invasion
• Elam is what is now modern day Iran,

Jeremiah 49:35-38
Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Behold, I will break the bow of Elam, the chief of their might. And upon Elam will I bring the four winds from the four quarters of heaven, and will scatter them toward all those winds; and there shall be no nation whither the outcasts of Elam shall not come. For I will cause Elam to be dismayed before their enemies, and before them that seek their life: and I will bring evil upon them, even my fierce anger, saith the LORD; and I will send the sword after them, till I have consumed them: And I will set my throne in Elam, and will destroy from thence the king and the princes, saith the LORD.

But....

Jeremiah 49:39
But it shall come to pass in the latter days, that I will bring again the captivity of Elam, saith the LORD. Isaiah 22:7
And it shall come to pass, that thy choicest valleys shall be full of chariots, and the horsemen shall set themselves in array at the gate.

Isaiah 22:8
And he discovered the covering of Judah, and thou didst look in that day to the armour of the house of the forest.

• This is Hezekiah's tunnel
• http://www.reclaimingthemind.org/blog/2010/07/top-ten-biblical-discoveries-in-archaeology-%E2%80%93-7-hezekiahs-tunnel/
• This is looking to works, and not to God

Isaiah 22:9
Ye have seen also the breaches of the city of David, that they are many: and ye gathered together the waters of the lower pool.

• This is top Hezekiah (he fixed walls, he used the Gihon Spring
• The tunnel was because the water was outside of the wall
• You can go through tunnel this today on a tourist trip
• This later forms, among other things, the pool of Siloam

Isaiah 22:10
And ye have numbered the houses of Jerusalem, and the houses have ye broken down to fortify the wall.

• Nothing spared to make this wall
• Imagine going house to house and asking for or demanding donations of materials to rebuild a wall from their house

Isaiah 22:11
Ye made also a ditch between the two walls for the water of the old pool: but ye have not looked unto the maker thereof, neither had respect unto him that fashioned it long ago.

• This also proves that the "valley of vision" is Jerusalem in Israel
• They built a wall to capture and keep water to survive, still there today
• They looked to their works, not to God to save them

Isaiah 22:12
And in that day did the Lord GOD of hosts call to weeping, and to mourning, and to baldness, and to girding with sackcloth:

• Every sign of mourning, in one verse.
• Priests were forbidden to shave completely their heads, and this is shaving of the heads

Isaiah 22:13
And behold joy and gladness, slaying oxen, and killing sheep, eating flesh, and drinking wine: let us eat and drink; for to morrow we shall die.

• Paul quoted this

1 Corinthians 15:32
If after the manner of men I have fought with beasts at Ephesus, what advantageth it me, if the dead rise not? let us eat and drink; for to morrow we die.

Isaiah 22:14
And it was revealed in mine ears by the LORD of hosts, Surely this iniquity shall not be purged from you till ye die, saith the Lord GOD of hosts.

• So Hezekiah will have to die before things get right in Israel at this time

Isaiah 22:15
Thus saith the Lord GOD of hosts, Go, get thee unto this treasurer, even unto Shebna, which is over the house, and say,

• Secretary of the treasurer

Isaiah 22:16
What hast thou here? and whom hast thou here, that thou hast hewed thee out a sepulchre here, as he that heweth him out a sepulchre on high, and that graveth an habitation for himself in a rock?

• This corrupt politician was building his own expensive tomb as a remembrance
• This "habitation" was to be his "final resting place" as we say today
• He was never buried in it!
• This was for his legacy to do something for his name

HABITA'TION, n. [L. habitatio, from habito, to dwell, from habeo, to hold, or as we say in English, to keep.

1. 1. Act of inhabiting; state of dwelling.
2. 2. Place of abode; a settled dwelling; a mansion; a house or other place in which man or any animal dwells.
   The stars may be the habitations of numerous races of beings.
   The Lord blesseth the habitation of the just. Prov 3.

Isaiah 22:17
Behold, the LORD will carry thee away with a mighty captivity, and will surely cover thee

• Shebna could or could not be the Scribe of the Scriptures
• God will see that someone will bury him

2 Kings 18:18
And when they had called to the king, there came out to them Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, which was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder.

2 Kings 18:26
Then said Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, and Shebna, and Joah, unto Rabshakeh, Speak, I pray thee, to thy servants in the Syrian language; for we understand it: and talk not with us in the Jews' language in the ears of the people that are on the wall.

2 Kings 18:37
Then came Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, which was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder, to Hezekiah with their clothes rent, and told him the words of Rabshakeh.

2 Kings 19:2
And he sent Eliakim, which was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz.

Isaiah 22:15
Thus saith the Lord GOD of hosts, Go, get thee unto this treasurer, even unto Shebna, which is over the house, and say,

Isaiah 36:3
Then came forth unto him Eliakim, Hilkiah's son, which was over the house, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah, Asaph's son, the recorder.

Isaiah 36:11
Then said Eliakim and Shebna and Joah unto Rabshakeh, Speak, I pray thee, unto thy servants in the Syrian language; for we understand it: and speak not to us in the Jews' language, in the ears of the people that are on the wall.

Isaiah 36:22
Then came Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah, that was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah, the son of Asaph, the recorder, to Hezekiah with their clothes rent, and told him the words of Rabshakeh.

Isaiah 37:2
And he sent Eliakim, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests covered with sackcloth, unto Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz.

Isaiah 22:18
He will surely violently turn and toss thee like a ball into a large country: there shalt thou die, and there the chariots of thy glory shall be the shame of thy lord's house.

• His sepulcher will be a waste of time and money, nothing to boast about at that point

Isaiah 22:19
And I will drive thee from thy station, and from thy state shall he pull thee down.

• Interesting use of words, STATION

STATION, n. [L.]

1. The act of standing.
   Their manner was to stand at prayer--on which their meetings for that purpose received the name of stations.
2. A state of rest.
   All progression is preformed by drawing on or impelling forward what was before in station or at quiet. [Rare.]
3. The spot or place where one stands, particularly where a person habitually stands, or is appointed to remain for a time; as the station of a sentinel. Each detachment of troops had its station.
4. Post assigned; office; the part or department of public duty which a person is appointed to perform. The chief magistrate occupies the first political station in a nation. Other officers fill subordinate stations. The office of bishop is an ecclesiastical station of great importance. It is the duty of the executive to fill all civil and military stations with men of worth.
5. Situation; position.
   The fig and date, why love they to remain in middle station?
6. Employment; occupation; business.
   By sending the sabbath in retirement and religious exercises, we gain new strength and resolution to perform Gods will in our several stations the week following.
7. Character; state.
   The greater part have kept their station.
8. Rank; condition of life. He can be contented with a humble station.
9. In church history, the fast of the fourth and sixth days of the week, Wednesday and Friday, in memory of the council which condemned Christ, and of his passion.
10. In the church of Rome, a church where indulgences are to be had on certain days.

Isaiah 22:20-22
And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will call my servant Eliakim the son of Hilkiah: And I will clothe him with thy robe, and strengthen him with thy girdle, and I will commit thy government into his hand: and he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to the house of Judah. And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open.

• This is the same as the Church of Philadelphia
• This has to be Christ (Revelation 3:7)

Revelation 3:7
And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth;

Isaiah 22:23
And I will fasten him as a nail in a sure place; and he shall be for a glorious throne to his father's house.

• The LORD Jesus Christ is someone we can hang everything and anything on
• This is Eliakim and Jesus Christ, back and forth

Isaiah 22:24
And they shall hang upon him all the glory of his father's house, the offspring and the issue, all vessels of small quantity, from the vessels of cups, even to all the vessels of flagons.

• Back to Eliakim

Isaiah 22:25
In that day, saith the LORD of hosts, shall the nail that is fastened in the sure place be removed, and be cut down, and fall; and the burden that was upon it shall be cut off: for the LORD hath spoken it.

• Shebna, a type of anti-Christ
• This nail is not in a sure place. Hang something on Shebna and it will fall
• The nail in a real sure place is Jesus Christ

Isaiah Chapter 21

Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin

Daniel 5:30-31
In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain. And Darius the Median took the kingdom, being about threescore and two years old.

The city and nation of Babylon first rose to power in about 1830 B.C., but was nothing like it was in 539 B.C. This was fulfilled by in B.C. 539, by Cyrus the Great, a Persian king who, through Gobryas his general, lowered the river Euphrates by temporarily diverting it into irrigation channels and marched under the wall of the fortified city of Babylon on dry land, to suddenly storm the unsuspecting city and decisively destroy a people whose leaders the night before were drunk and who in the morning were no doubt still drunk and most certainly hung over.

Isaiah 21:1
The burden of the desert of the sea. As whirlwinds in the south pass through; so it cometh from the desert, from a terrible land.

• (v.9, Babylon) The fall of Babylon (desert of the sea) by the Medes and Persians is foretold before it even existed by roughly 200 years!
• A whirlwind is simply what they call out in the western part of the U.S., "Dust devils"
• It was/is located on a plain on the Euphrates
• Throughout Scripture, beginning to end, Babylon represents false religion, the occult, paganism
• Tower of Babel (Genesis), Mystery Babylon (Revelation 17-18)

Genesis 11:1-9
And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there.
And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them throughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for morter.
And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.
And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded. And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do.
Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech. So the LORD scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city. Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the LORD did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.

Revelation 17:1
And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:

Isaiah 21:2
A grievous vision is declared unto me; the treacherous dealer dealeth treacherously, and the spoiler spoileth. Go up, O Elam: besiege, O Media; all the sighing thereof have I made to cease.

• Media/Persia (Elam) is going to destroy Babylon
• Persia did not even exist as a nation yet!

Isaiah 21:3-4
Therefore are my loins filled with pain: pangs have taken hold upon me, as the pangs of a woman that travaileth: I was bowed down at the hearing of it; I was dismayed at the seeing of it. My heart panted, fearfulness affrighted me: the night of my pleasure hath he turned into fear unto me.

• The Bible often speaks of the end times like birth pangs, starting, building, faster and faster
• The judgment of God is never a pretty sight to be enjoyed, in the flesh
• The best way to enjoy it is by thinking of the spiritual victory over the enemy, not to rejoice over people who die
• Enjoying the death of people is not even healthy
• This is the reason God will wipe away the tears from our eyes after the lost are judged and hell is cast into the lake of fire

Isaiah 28:21
For the LORD shall rise up as in mount Perazim, he shall be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon, that he may do his work, his strange work; and bring to pass his act, his strange act.

Isaiah 25:8
He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the LORD hath spoken it.

Revelation 7:17
For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.

Revelation 21:4
And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

Isaiah 21:5
Prepare the table, watch in the watchtower, eat, drink: arise, ye princes, and anoint the shield.

• This is a vision of the preparation for the decisive rout of Babylon
• This is the fulfillment of in Daniel 5
• This is sarcasm, since there is nothign that anything they do will help. TOday we say, "Knock yourself out!"

Isaiah 21:6
For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Go, set a watchman, let him declare what he seeth.

• It is time to monitor the battle
• There is no chance that of getting out of this; it is sure to happen
• The only thing to do now is watch and wait

Mark 13:35-37
Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning: Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping. And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.

Isaiah 21:7
And he saw a chariot with a couple of horsemen, a chariot of asses, and a chariot of camels; and he hearkened diligently with much heed:

• The messengers, in the distance approaching
• There is a total anticipation and expectation of news here, bad news

Isaiah 21:8
And he cried, A lion: My lord, I stand continually upon the watchtower in the daytime, and I am set in my ward whole nights:

• This is a day and night, determined, vigilant vigil, until it is over
• Rogue lions are dangerous, determined

Isaiah 21:9
And, behold, here cometh a chariot of men, with a couple of horsemen. And he answered and said, Babylon is fallen, is fallen; and all the graven images of her gods he hath broken unto the ground.

• Cyrus conquered, but did not destroy the images, but rather worshipped them
• This is therefore a double fulfillment, the future one being complete
• Messengers, riding horses with news, bad tidings
• They were at that night praising the gods of gold, silver, iron, etc.
• There were a lot more false gods they made idols of as well.
• Smashing, destroying idols is a way of taking their power away.

Daniel 5:4
They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone.

Isaiah 21:10
O my threshing, and the corn of my floor: that which I have heard of the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, have I declared unto you.

• Harvest is the time of judgment, judgment here is the time of harvest
• They were apparently "white to harvest"

John 4:35
Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest.

Isaiah 21:11
The burden of Dumah. He calleth to me out of Seir, Watchman, what of the night? Watchman, what of the night?

• Dumah is a symbolic word, (means silence, dumb) an Ishmaelite
• Mount Seir is in Edom (Esau) territory
• This is the silence before the storm, and the source of the storm
• He is asking when

Genesis 36:8
Thus dwelt Esau in mount Seir: Esau is Edom.

Genesis 25:13-14
And these are the names of the sons of Ishmael, by their names, according to their generations: the firstborn of Ishmael, Nebajoth; and Kedar, and Adbeel, and Mibsam, And Mishma, and Dumah, and Massa,

1 Chronicles 1:29-31 These are their generations: The firstborn of Ishmael, Nebaioth; then Kedar, and Adbeel, and Mibsam, Mishma, and Dumah, Massa, Hadad, and Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah. These are the sons of Ishmael.

Isaiah 21:12
The watchman said, The morning cometh, and also the night: if ye will enquire, enquire ye: return, come.

• Glory (moring light) for some will be darkness (night) for others
• It all depends on which side you are on in the judgment

Isaiah 21:13
The burden upon Arabia. In the forest in Arabia shall ye lodge, O ye travelling companies of Dedanim.

• Dedan is Arabia
• Dedanim is a change (insertion) in vowel points can mean evening
• Ishmaelites, Bedouins, this is their night, evening time, the end is near
• "Evening and morning were the first day" sins end is God's beginning
• Hebrew does not have vowels

Isaiah 21:14
The inhabitants of the land of Tema brought water to him that was thirsty, they prevented with their bread him that fled.

• Tema is from Ishmael as well
• They fed the fleeing peoples before they fled

Genesis 25:13-15 And these are the names of the sons of Ishmael, by their names, according to their generations: the firstborn of Ishmael, Nebajoth; and Kedar, and Adbeel, and Mibsam, And Mishma, and Dumah, and Massa, Hadar, and Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah:

Isaiah 21:15
For they fled from the swords, from the drawn sword, and from the bent bow, and from the grievousness of war.

• Pride is reversed into utter humility when under sever attack, as in a swift and decisive war.
• Judgment, swift and sever, is coming to Arabia.

Isaiah 21:16
For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Within a year, according to the years of an hireling, and all the glory of Kedar shall fail:

• This is an undeniable, soon witnessed fulfillment to any man's eyes who knows of it

Isaiah 21:17
And the residue of the number of archers, the mighty men of the children of Kedar, shall be diminished: for the LORD God of Israel hath spoken it.

Sargon, 176 B.C., same as the one who conquered Egypt and Ethiopia............fulfilled

The Attributes of God

1. Creator of everything (Genesis 1, 2):
   Revelation 21:1
   And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.

2. The I AM
   Exodus 3:14
   And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.
   John 8:58
   Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.

3. HOLY
   Leviticus 11:44
   For I am the LORD your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy: neither shall ye defile yourselves with any manner of creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
   1 Peter 1:16
   Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.

4. Three persons
   Isaiah 11:1-3
   And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots: And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD; And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the LORD: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears:
   Revelation 22:16
   I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.
   Matthew 28:19
   Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
   John 14:26
   But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

5. A Spirit
   John 4:24
   God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

6. Omniscient
   1 John 3:20
   For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.

7. Omnipotent
   Matthew 19:26
   But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.

8. Omnipresent
   Psalms 139:7
   Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence?
   Proverbs 15:3
   The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good.
9. The Resurrection and the Life
   John 11:25
   Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:

10. The Way, the Truth, the Life
    John 14:6
    Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

11. Light
    John 1:4
    In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
    John 1:9
    That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.
    1 John 1:5
    This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

12. Sovereign
    Psalms 115:3
    But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.
    Ephesians 1:11
    In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

13. One God
    Deuteronomy 6:4
    Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:

    Malachi 2:10
    Have we not all one father? hath not one God created us? why do we deal treacherously every man against his brother, by profaning the covenant of our fathers?
    Mark 12:32
    And the scribe said unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the truth: for there is one God; and there is none other but he:

14. Our Father
    Matthew 6:9
    After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
    Malachi 2:10
    Have we not all one father? hath not one God created us? why do we deal treacherously every man against his brother, by profaning the covenant of our fathers?

15. God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob
    Exodus 3:6
    Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.
    Matthew 22:32
    I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.

Genesis 31:53
The God of Abraham, and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge betwixt us. And Jacob sware by the fear of his father Isaac.
16. Judge of Mankind
    Isaiah 33:22
    For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; he will save us.
    1 Peter 4:5
    Who shall give account to him that is ready to judge the quick and the dead.

17. King of Kings
1 Timothy 6:15
Which in his times he shall shew, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;
Revelation 17:14
These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.
18. LORD of lords
Deuteronomy 10:17
For the LORD your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and a terrible, which regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward:
1 Timothy 6:15
Which in his times he shall shew, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;
Revelation 17:14
These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.
19. Lawgiver
Isaiah 33:22
For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; he will save us.
Ezra 7:12
Artaxerxes, king of kings, unto Ezra the priest, a scribe of the law of the God of heaven, perfect peace, and at such a time.
20. Kinsman Redeemer
    Psalms 19:14 Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.

21. Our Brother
    Hebrews 2:11-12
    For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren, Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee.

22. Eternal/Everlasting (both)
    Deuteronomy 33:27
    The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms: and he shall thrust out the enemy from before thee; and shall say, Destroy them.
    Isaiah 43:10
    Ye are my witnesses, saith the LORD, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me.
    Genesis 21:33
    And Abraham planted a grove in Beersheba, and called there on the name of the LORD, the everlasting God.
    Isaiah 40:28
    Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding.
    Romans 16:26
    But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment ofthe everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith:

23. Sustainer of all things
    Colossians 1:17
    And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.

24. Alpha and Omega, First and Last, Beginning and the End
    Isaiah 41:4
    Who hath wrought and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I the LORD, the first,and with the last; I am he.
    Isaiah 44:6
    Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God.
    Isaiah 48:12
    Hearken unto me, O Jacob and Israel, my called; I am he; I am the first, I also am the last.

25. Immutable: The same yesterday, today and forever
Malachi 3:6
For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.
26. The Living God of the Living
    Matthew 22:32
    I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.

27. The Son
    John 8:58
    Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.

28. The Holy Spirit
    Acts 5:3-4
    But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keepback part of the price of the land? Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God.

What to Read?

Read What?

1 Corinthians 10:11
Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.

Amos 8:11
Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD:

One of the biggest problems in Christianity in America today is "the reading of many books", while at the exact same time having a "famine of the Word of God". Another problem is the prolific nature of those who also write many books, become famous and are considered somehow so much more important and enlightened than the rest of the body of Christ. Yet another problem is using these books to replace the reading of the only Book given to us directly by God, which we claim is the Final Word and Authority on all matters of faith and practice. One of the commands in the Bible, before Jesus left this earth, is:

Matthew 28:19
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

Discipleship is now a lost and dying practice today, because you cannot make disciples of people and teach them what Jesus said unless you know what Jesus said. And you cannot know what Jesus said without His very own Words He left us with. If your Bible is all sufficient, then it is all you need to know what God expects; it is your manual for life. It is also a baton to be passed down to disciples. If you cannot teach from it in small groups, bible studies, discipleship, children's ministry, then you do not know it. If you do not know it, why is that? If you need other books by other authors as guidelines in order to teach, then it should be as merely a bullet pointed guide, not a book containing the actual text from men to disciple with. When discipling, the guide really just needs to be the Bible; otherwise the Bible is apparently not good and sufficient enough, like it claims to be.

1 Timothy 3:2
A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach;

2 Timothy 2:24
And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient,

APT, a. [L. aptus, from apto, to fit. Gr. to tie.]

1. Fit; suitable; as, he used very apt metaphors.
2. Having a tendency; liable; used of things; as, wheat on moist land is apt to blast or be winter-killed.
3. Inclined; disposed customarily; used of persons; as, men are too apt to slander others.
4. Ready; quick; used of the mental powers; as, a pupil apt to learn; an opt wit.
5. Qualified; fit.
6. All the men of might, strong and apt for war. 2 Ki 24.
7. APT, v.t. To fit; to suit or adapt. Obs.

Throughout Scripture, God asks us to use His Word by:

• Reading it
• Consulting/Searching it for answers
• Studying it
• Memorizing it
• Discipling from it

He never said to learn more about Him by reading all sorts of books outside of Scripture to get "clarity" or "wisdom". Not even once. Above all else, this Book is to be considered foremost. Today, this is so neglected that we have people saved for a decade who do not know how to find any book of the Bible, do not know what the nation of Israel is, do not believe Genesis as it is written plainly, do not understand salvation and sanctification, how to rightly divide it, how to live the Christian life according to it, because they get their doctrines from men and not from God.

God Himself places His Word above His Name:

Psalms 138:2
I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name.

We seem too often to want to relegate it into the corner while we consult fallible men.

We in our society and Christian culture hold in very high esteem authors of books. They build mega-churches, go on book tours, hold seminars and conventions, go on radio, TV and internet, as though one should listen to them as some sort of a final authority-then do not read the Word of God. which is a problem of neglect. Imagine listening to man and not God and calling that "God's Will". Who in Scripture ever benefited from that? Start with Adam and work forward to the anti-Christ. This is a hundred percent proven to be sickening or fatal, spiritually.

Genesis 3:17
"And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;"

The result of Adam's one simple, single error of not listening to His Word and listening to his wife instead is death entering the world, then to now. Pretty severe!

Judges 17:6
In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes.

2 Chronicles 15:3
Now for a long season Israel hath been without the true God, and without a teaching priest, and without law.

Sound familiar? Same situation in American today. People want and cannot get the Word of God in other countries, or die trying to either get it or use it. We have several in our homes, and they are opened, "for church". Opened......not studied, searched, taught, memorized or used for discipleship. But we read, write and buy "Christian books", go to seminars, listen to sermons, consult experts for help, and ignore God's Word. God help us.

It was not reading, believing, knowing and teaching the Word of God to themselves and others that led the disciples to not knowing the Messiah would die for the sins of Israel and all of mankind when Jesus rose from the dead and communed with them:

Luke 24:25
Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?

Why did they not know? It was in the Word of God. Jesus did not ask, "Didn't you read Joe Blow's latest bestseller, 'What Will Happen to Jesus of Nazareth?'" How would they know what the prophets have spoken without reading the book God gave them? Now, admittedly, they could have read it and simply missed or did not use the eyes of faith, but what about us who did not read it or, today, those who do not read it, but instead read other things, eating up books ($$$$) of famous authors and lauding their works, when God did the ultimate written work of all time? About the only books a Christian needs to read today outside of the Word of God are:

• Books on ancient history, regarding the Gentile and World History (while reading Daniel)
• Books on archaeology which support Scripture (while reading Daniel)
• Books on Young Earth Creation Science, precisely because we live in a society that believes in the lie of Darwinism (coupled with reading the Genesis account and placing it above anything else)
• Articles on current events specifically, Israel in these last days. Yes, keep up with current events as they relate to last days and Scripture!
• This all should not even come close to the amount of reading OF the Word of God

These book support the Word of God and do not teach doctrine. Our doctrine should come from the Word of God, not from Christian books.

Tell you what. Instead of spending the money on the seminar of the author who seemingly wrote about the Word of God, save your money, buy a Bible and send it to someone who has none, overseas. We have more than one or two in our own homes, un-cracked, on shelves. And we buy "Christian books". Sound right to you? Next time your small group or church wants to have that famous Christian author come and speak and sell books, save that money and have a church-wide, out loud reading of the Word for an hour or a day, and send the Word of God overseas.

Revelation 1:16
And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.

Genesis starts off with the Word of God rejected...now think about Revelation. Nothing different there, either. The whole world rejects it and will follow the dragon, the beast and the false prophet.

2 Kings 22:1-20
Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty and one years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Jedidah, the daughter of Adaiah of Boscath. And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, and walked in all the way of David his father, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left. And it came to pass in the eighteenth year of king Josiah, that the king sent Shaphan the son of Azaliah, the son of Meshullam, the scribe, to the house of the LORD, saying, Go up to Hilkiah the high priest, that he may sum the silver which is brought into the house of the LORD, which the keepers of the door have gathered of the people: And let them deliver it into the hand of the doers of the work, that have the oversight of the house of the LORD: and let them give it to the doers of the work which is in the house of the LORD, to repair the breaches of the house, Unto carpenters, and builders, and masons, and to buy timber and hewn stone to repair the house.

Howbeit there was no reckoning made with them of the money that was delivered into their hand, because they dealt faithfully. And Hilkiah the high priest said unto Shaphan the scribe, I have found the book of the law in the house of the LORD. And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, and he read it. And Shaphan the scribe came to the king, and brought the king word again, and said, Thyservants have gathered the money that was found in the house, and have delivered it into the hand of them that do the work, that have the oversight of the house of the LORD.

And Shaphan the scribe shewed the king, saying, Hilkiah the priest hath delivered me a book. And Shaphan read it before the king. And it came to pass, when the king had heard the words of the book of the law, that he rent his clothes. And the king commanded Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam the son of Shaphan, and Achbor the son of Michaiah, and Shaphan the scribe, and Asahiah a servant of the king's, saying, Go ye, enquire of the LORD for me, and for the people, and for all Judah, concerning the words of this book that is found: for great is the wrath of the LORD that is kindled against us, because our fathers have not hearkened unto the words of this book, to do according unto all that which is written concerning us. So Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam, and Achbor, and Shaphan, and Asahiah, went unto Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe; (now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the college;) and they communed with her. And she said unto them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Tell the man that sent you to me, Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will bring evil upon this place, and upon the inhabitants thereof, even all the words of the book which the king of Judah hath read: Because they have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, that they might provoke me to anger with all the works of their hands; therefore my wrath shall be kindled against this place, and shall not be quenched.

But to the king of Judah which sent you to enquire of the LORD, thus shall ye say to him, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, As touching the words which thou hast heard; Because thine heart was tender, and thou hast humbled thyself before the LORD, when thou heardest what I spake against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, that they should become a desolation and a curse, and hast rent thy clothes, and wept before me; I also have heard thee, saith the LORD. Behold therefore, I will gather thee unto thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered into thy grave in peace; and thine eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place. And they brought the king word again.

Again, the revival came from reading God's Word, not "Jewish books", which today we have as "Christian books". Before this, the wrath was upon them. After finding, dusting off and reading it, they repented, and were blessed.

You might ask, what is wrong with reading or writing more books? I might ask back, do we need to? Really? Is the Bible so irrelevant, mysterious, untrustworthy, unreliable, incomplete that we need to read or write something ABOUT it and not READ IT? Ask yourself what the people in the Bible did in both cases. When they had and read the Word of God-REVIVAL! When they abandoned it- APOSTASY and a CURSE!

God devoted an entire Psalm (119) to His Word. David revered it. Today, we take it off of the shelf and dust it off and carry it to church. We let someone else talk about it for an hour, not reading it aloud together, and they may cover one or two verses. Hardly meat.

THE CONSUMMATE EXAMPLE: SAUL (1 SAMUEL)

• When his fathers asses were lost, and they searched in vain, his servant recommended seeing the man of God for direction(9:6)
• Samuel offered to show Saul the word of God (9:27)
• The Word of the LORD through Samuel commanded Saul to meet him in Gilgal to sacrifice (10:8)
• Samuel wrote the entire account IN A BOOK for us to read today(10:25)
• Samuel rehashed their history, learned from the Scriptures, including conditions for either heeding God's Word or rejecting it (12:6-15)
• Saul rejected the Word of the LORD regarding Gilgal (13:8-10)
• In turn, God rejected Saul as an eternal king (13:13-14)
• Saul made his own commandment (14:24)
• Jonathan his own son was the only person who violated that commandment (14:27)
• Saul spared him because of the words of men (14:45)
• God gave Saul yet another commandment, the Word of the LORD through Samuel (15:3)
• Saul failed to obey this commandment also (15:8-9)
• God removed his earthly reign now as well, for rejecting the Word of God (15:23)
• This disobedience was compared to idolatry, witchcraft (15:23)

Ecclesiastes 12:12
And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.

He is not talking about the word of God here, as the Word of God is the King of all books and does not promote or even allow "weariness of the flesh", nor confusion, nor apostasy, nor unbelief. Neglecting and rejecting it does. Reading it causes hope, conviction and salvation, encouragement, healing, blessing, and much more.

Luke 16:29
Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.

"Moses and the prophets" is Scripture....Jesus is telling the dead man in hell that they are enough to save anyone, including this man's five brethren.

John 21:25
And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen.

John is not recommending the writing of more books, either. Just that the life of Jesus was so filled that many more books could have been written as eyewitness accounts and added to the Canon. They were not, because God wrote down only that which HE decided we needed to know.

Acts 19:19
Many of them also which used curious arts brought their books together, and burned them before all men: and they counted the price of them, and found it fifty thousand pieces of silver.

"Spiritual" books, meaning occultic, pagan books-not one of them Scripture, burned. The Bible has been burned many times, but always resurrects stronger many days later. This amount of pieces of silver is a lot of money (over twenty million dollars today) to burn, but when God's Word flows through, that all becomes irrelevant.

John 5:39
Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.

The reason everyone missed the boat was a lack of true knowledge of what God's Word says about the Messiah. The Jews did not lack the Scriptures-their own people wrote 99% of them and their own scribes coped them!

2 Timothy 2:15
Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

There is that command again, to study the Word of God (the word of truth).

2 Timothy 4:13
The cloke that I left at Troas with Carpus, when thou comest, bring with thee, and the books, but especially the parchments.

Certainly this same Paul who wrote so many of the epistles which became our Scriptures was not referring to anything else than the Word of God. Previously, in the same set of sentences, he told them:

2 Timothy 4:2-3
Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;

• Preach the Word
• Be ready to give answers
• Be ready to reprove
• Be ready to rebuke
• Be ready to exhort
• Do it with patience and DOCTRINE (from the Word)
• The apostasy is coming when the Word is rejected