Apocalypse Prophecy LVI: That Old Whore Babylon

Once A Whore, Always A Whore

In Chapter's 17 & 18 we see allusion to the rise and vivid description of the fall of Babylon. There are peculiar parallels throughout history that show when the "spirit of Babylon" rears her ugly head, God smack it back down. When the forces of Babylon unite to act in a united front against God in apostasy, God destroys it. So it was then, so it will be again.

In Genesis 11:1-9, Babylon (as Babel) historically symbolized by the tower reaching to heaven, proposed to maintain the union of the world through a common worship and a common tongue. God defeated this purpose by confusing the language and scattering the people.

Babylon, ecclesiastically (church-like) symbolized by the woman in Revelation 17, proposes a common worship and a common religion through uniting in a world church. This is destroyed by the beast in Revelation 17:16 who thus fulfills the will of God (Rev. 17:17). Babylon, politically symbolized by the great city of Revelation 18, attempts to achieve its domination of the world by a world common market and a world government. These are destroyed by Christ at His second coming (Rev. 19:11-21). The triumph of God is therefore witnessed historically in the scattering of the people and the unfinished tower of Genesis 11 and prophetically in the destruction of the world church by the killing of the harlot of Revelation 17 and in the destruction of the city of Revelation 18. With the graphic description of the fall of Babylon contained in chapters 17 and 18, the way is cleared for the presentation of the major theme of the book of Revelation, the second coming of Christ and the establishment of His glorious kingdom (Walvoord 267)

As mentioned in Genesis 11 there was unity of the world through a common worship and a common tongue. Based in this premise I would have to say that the prominence of Nebuchadnezzar who/which was the first world empire and was followed by a decline from which it would never official recover from after the Neo-Babylonian era is also influential to the thinking of the "Babylon concept".

There are mention of cult-like practices like the Babylonian Mysteries which gave birth to the ubiquitous Mystery Religions that were all over the Middle Eastern area that involved idol worship that inevitably led to Baal Worship. These satanic Mystery Religions of Babylon gave birth to countless others all of which offered a counterfeit religion and counterfeit God in opposition to the true God. They always have been in existence as an affront to God and according to Revelation, they will also be around in the end to flip-off God then too.

Through history we see the ubiquitous nature of these Babylonian mystery religions, practices and miscellany eventually even find their way into the Romanism or Romanization of Christianity and the inclusion or attempts to include features of this cult into the Christian faith—which continues until today. It can be seen in modern Roman Catholicism and modern "academic" liberalism. We see hints of this in the RC concepts of "the Queen of Heaven". Although this concept is oft denied it is clear that the RC has practically made Mary the equivalent of Jesus if not supplanted Him in some respects. To me this is abominable. It appears in the last death gasp of this satanic religion/cult it will resurface again in the last days in the period right before the return of the Lord to the world. This all appears to be the allusion on Revelation 17:5.

There seems to be a “worldwide Babylon” that will need to be dealt with by Christ also. This final destruction will be both in ecclesiastical (church/religious) and political forms. It is shown in John’s vision as representing false religion. Babylon is the name for a great system of religious error. To a lesser extent Babylon also has political, economic and as already mentioned spiritual aspects attached to it. All of these aspects make them unique “Babylon-esque” when they are specifically set-up, established or built upon the premise of usurping God’s rightful position above all of mankind. The overall principle becomes manifest in Chapter 17 in that man with the impetus of Satan makes a blasphemous attempt to institute a world religion completely contrary to divine revelation but also unwittingly fulfill God’s will that the kingdoms of the world will eventually come under the domain of the Beast which will crushed by the coming of Jesus Christ.

To me, it is clear Babylon appears to be the hotbed of Satanic/demonic activity as if it is a portal from Hell and is the abode of the demonic whether it be geographical Babylon or Babylon as a mindset. The power and wealth that comes from Babylon-type organizations like the Roman Catholic Church always seems to have been accumulated or acquired in the absence of God. Due to the nature of Babylon’s overwhelming apostasy, it is demanded that, “double unto her according to her works”. The city of Babylon politically is now destroyed historically, the power and religious character of Babylon are destroyed at the second coming. All will marvel at her fall.

Apocalypse Prophecy LV: Bowls of Wrath

Pouring Out The Bowls (Chapter 16)

A “great voice” commands the seven angels to “pour out the seven bowls of the wrath of God onto the earth.” The voice is that of either an angel, a cherub, Christ, or God Himself. The first angel sets in motion his judgment, which comes to punish people because of idol worship and “those who had the mark of the beast and who worshiped his image”. The bowl’s effect is based on the literal Egyptian plague of boils (Exodus  9:9–11).

The second bowl: God punishes the world system economically in Revelation16:3. The second bowl’s parallelism with the second trumpet is striking. The trumpet struck the sea and “a third of the sea became blood, and a third of the living creatures in the sea died.” Likewise, the second bowl strikes the sea and “there came about blood as of a dead person, and every living thing died, the things in the sea.” Both texts are clearly based on Exodus 7:17–21, where Moses turns the Nile into blood and the fish in it die. Therefore, the second trumpet and the second bowl have to do with the same kind of judgment. The primary difference is the trumpet’s partial effect and the bowl’s total affect. The third bowl: god punishes the persecutors of his people economically (16:4–7).

The third bowl is parallel with the third trumpet (Revelation 8:10–11). The third trumpet bring destruction “on a third of the  rivers and on the springs of the waters … and many people died from the waters because they were made bitter.” Similarly, the third bowl is directed against “the rivers and the springs of the waters, and they became blood.” Both texts are based on the plague on the Nile in Exodus 7:17–21. Therefore, the third trumpet and the third bowl pertain to the same kind of judgment - the primary difference is that the former has partial effect and the latter total effect.

The fourth angel pours his bowl on the sun, causing it “to burn men with fire.” The power “to burn” could be seen as “given” either to the angel or the sun. God’s direct authority over the trial is explicitly indicated by Revelation16:9’s: “God, the one having authority over these plagues.” This woe includes suffering involving deprivation of forms of earthly security, likely with an economic focus. This bowl plague brings about only blasphemy and a non-repentant attitude, much like the sixth trumpet. Indeed, the similarity of the sixth trumpet and the fourth bowl is striking. “They blasphemed the name of God” because of the suffering they experienced from the plague of the fourth bowl. This blasphemy is a defiant slandering or defaming of the name of the true God. In this context, God’s “name” represents his attributes and character. The reprobates utter lies about God’s character as revenge for the punishments that they experience under his hand.

The fifth bowl: god punishes hardened idolaters by causing them to suffer by revealing to them their irremediable separation from him in Revelation 16:10–11. The contents of the fifth bowl are emptied onto “the throne of the beast.” The beast’s throne represents the beast’ sovereignty over his realm. Therefore, the bowl affects the beast’s ability to rule. The result of the judgment is that “his kingdom became darkened.” Like the fourth trumpet, this woe is also based on Exodus 10:22, where God brings darkness over Egypt. The plague came against Pharaoh because of his disobedience to God’s command, his oppression of Israel, and his allegiance to Egypt’s idolatrous system-so too here to some extent. The suffering of v 10 does not soften the subjects of the beast but hardens them further in their antagonism to God. This is parallel to the plagues of Pharaoh having the effect of hardening his heart also. Just like Egypt a remnant of Egyptians did repent and came out of Egypt with Israel, the vast majority refused to trust in Israel’s God. This will be the same in the time of the End.

The sixth and seventh bowls: The final judgment of the evil world system take place in Revelation16:12–21). The sixth bowl: god gathers together ungodly forces in order to punish them decisively at the End of the Age. Although they might think they are coming to wage war they are actually being gathered together to be shot like fish in a barrel. The woe of the sixth bowl is depicted according to the  description of God’s judgment of Babylon and Israel’s restoration, which itself was patterned after the drying up of the Red Sea at the exodus.

Kings will come from the east and from the vicinity of the Euphrates in Revelation 16:12. This evokes the OT prophecy of a northern enemy beyond the Euphrates, whom God will bring to judge sinful Israel. Though these kings figuratively will traverse the dry riverbed, in contrast to the ancient Egyptians, who failed to cross the Red Sea, their journey will culminate in a greater judgment than was experienced by Pharaoh’s army.

And just as Babylon has been universalized and become symbolic of Rome or some new incarnation of Rome (See Apocalypse Prophecy LVI), so the Euphrates may or may not be a literal geographical reference to the Euphrates in modern Iraq, Syria, and Turkey. Is this reference to be taken literally or figuratively? A figurative interpretation of the Euphrates may also be suggested by the figurative use of “sea,” “river,” and “water” in the exodus-like plagues of the 2nd and 3rd bowls. 

The pouring out of the bowl sets in motion actions by the three great opponents of the saints and leaders of the forces of evil that culminate in the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet, who represent respectively Satan, the Satanic political system, and the religious support of the political system. It should be added that this is the first occurrence of “false prophet” in John’s Apocalypse. The deceptive influence of the three characters is portrayed metaphorically. The wicked trio spit out “three unclean spirits like frogs,” one spirit from each member of the triumvirate. As I will allude to in my next post, Babylon is the “habitation of demons and prison of every unclean spirit” and of all unclean animals. The woe of frogs recalls the exodus plague of frogs, which falls in line with the other preceding bowls and trumpets also modeled in part on the exodus plagues. Frogs are chosen to represent deceptive spirits partly because of their characteristic croaking, which is loud, meaningless and usually annoying. The demons are “doing signs”. Here the deception is aimed at “the kings.” The purpose of the deception is “to gather them together for the war of the great day of God Almighty.” (as if…)

That the battle is called “the war of the great day of God” indicates that the battle is one in which God will decisively judge the unrighteous and crush them once and for all. This is the meaning of “great day of God” we read about all throughout the Old Testament but especially in Joel 2:11 and Zephaniah 1:14. The time that would come when the beast would attempt to annihilate the entire community of faith has come. The truth is that this onslaught will occur on “the great day of God” and could come at any hour. Believers must be prepared to hold firm in faith and not compromise when it does happen. The members of the churc must expect that the situation described in Revelation16:12–16 could happen at any moment and should be prepared accordingly. So…the demonic spirits deceive the kings and “gather them together at the place” where the war is to occur. The outcome of the war is described in 17:14; 19:14–21; and 20:7–10, where the forces of the dragon and beast are portrayed as destroyed by Christ and God.

The place where the battle is to be fought is called “Armageddon.” Like the place names “Babylon” and “Euphrates,” so to “Armageddon” may not refer to a specific geographical locale, but possibly the whole world. The battles in Israel associated with Meggido and the nearby mountain become a typologic symbol of the last battle against the saints and Christ, which occurs throughout the earth. The possibility that “Armageddon” is not literal is evident from the observation  that OT prophecies of the final battle of history place it, without exception, in the immediate vicinity of the city of Jerusalem and Mount Zion or its surrounding mountains. In reality the plain of Megiddo is about a two days’ walk north of Jerusalem. Furthermore, John himself places the battle directly outside Jerusalem in Revelation 14:20 and 20:8–9. A figurative view of “Armageddon” is also apparent from the fact that no mountain of Megiddo exists nor has it ever. Literally, “Armaggedon” in Hebrew (har-megiddôn) means “mount of Megiddo.”

Along comes the Seventh Bowl: God Punishes the World System with Final Judgment. The seventh bowl describes the final destruction of the corrupt world system, which follows on the heels of the Battle of Armageddon. The bowl being poured out on the “air” is best understood as part of the exodus plague imagery present in the trumpets and the preceding bowls and alluded to in “the plague of hail”. The announcement is that “it is done” is very similar to the declaration of Christ’s accomplishment of redemption at the cross, “it is finished.” By verse 20 we see the absolute nature of the judgment is continued by a picture of the further breakup of the cosmos and the fact that “every island fled, and the mountains were not found”. The exodus plague of hail is replicated, but this time it strikes not one nation but all throughout the world who are in opposition to God.

An Octave Too High For Human Ears

My Greek professor Dr. Wesley Smith once told me to read The Prophets from Abraham Heschel. I didn't understand then what he meant. I have finally had the opportunity to read both volumes. I know now why he told me specifically why I should read this tome. This is a book that speaks to every person that is called to preach or teaches Scripture...it is not just about the Old Testament prophets either. This should not come as a surprise as prophets were not so much forth-telling the future as they were exhorting men and women to return to God by revealing God's truth to them. Speaking, yelling, spitting out words to spiritually dead and spiritually deaf people that did not realize they were spiritually dead or spiritually deaf. It is only when these people did not respond to the exhortation that the prophet would tell them what awaited them in the future in terms of God's wrath and punishment for disobedience (foretelling). They are the thunder and lightning that comes on the storm front...a warning to those within earshot of what is coming. They're the heralds of a message few want to hear. Those that don't want to hear their words wish only to silence them.

I will note a few ideas that jump out to me in startling manner as I read through this awesome tome. They spoke/speak to me profoundly. The path of a man of God is a lonely trek. Perhaps worse even for his wife and children. The theologian will spend many a sleepless night pained by the behavior of man. In the act of thinking about man, he will think immediately of God. They're inseparable. Am I calling myself a prophet? Oh good grief no! What I will say is this. Anyone that is compelled by the Spirit to expound on the word to all people will relate to what Heschel has to write. They will relate to it on an intimate level. A painful and piercing level.

The world needs people to tell it the truth, not more smooth talkers that tell people what they want to hear. We live in a time when the leaders and scholars are world-smart but spiritually stunted and morally dead. We live in a day when a majority of the self-proclaimed religious leaders are nothing more than prideful charlatans. We live in a day of propped up prosperity and an illusion of gain while we drowned in debt because of our greed. We live in a day when princes and kings (politicians and leaders) are scoundrels and rogues and judges are agenda driven and corrupt. They acquit the guilty for a payoff and deprive the innocent of justice. No good can come of this and the days are evil. One needs only read Amos 5 and Isaiah 2 among other passages. Scoffers scoff and mock the righteous. The foolishly brazen godless are unfazed by their impending doom. Words like mine only solicit more scoffing and ridicule at the Lord's expense. They have made a covenant with death and the pact is sealed with brimstone. The rebellious world in its headlong race to disaster remains unmoved and obstinate. Only an irrational person hits the gas pedal when heading for a cliff.

"Turn back! Turn back!" Screams the speaker [all the while the wicked gleefully race towards oblivion's edge]

Some are compelled to teach, preach and speak the truth...even when it hurts. I would like to tell you things that will make you feel good…but instead I am compelled to tell you the truth...even when it hurts you and me. I am not here to build your self-esteem or your ego,  I am here to tell you the truth of the Word and let it do what it may-burn, pierce your soul, make you wince. It builds you up or tears you down. I am only a mediator or mouthpiece for the Gospel as it has be commanded since the beginning (Matthew 28:19-20). It is not my call to edit the Scripture. It is to convey it as honestly as I can. The less of "me" or "I" that I put into it, the more of "it" I convey. "It" being the Scripture, "It" being the mind of God as revealed in Scripture.

"I preached … as a dying man to dying men" ~Richard Baxter

Preachers, men of God''s persuasion and calling. Always under the tension of petitioning men to return to God that either do not know Him or have overtly rejected Him. It is the paradox of God spurned. A God that implores people both through His word and His chosen messengers to return to Him in such a sublime and humble manner...never forcing the issue, always leaving it a matter of choice. But these very same people God calls, fail to practice any introspection. Never once examining themselves to see the sin or actions that has brought God's wrath down upon them. They only blame God or the messenger of the Word. They mock and sometimes kill God's messenger. And why not? They killed His Son too! All the while the preacher or prophet stands before God pleading in behalf of man while simultaneously standing before men pleading on behalf of God. A person torn between two places and constantly under tension. Man spurning God inevitably leads to God spurning man (Romans 1)

Dr. Wesley Smith knew what awaited me. He had been there as a preacher/teacher. I as a preacher/teacher I am teaching people to come back to, or stay with God. To repent and turn their face to God before judgment comes. In this day and age and culture, the message of the Gospel is unpopular. This is the message- The Gospel. Therefore as messenger of the Gospel, the messengers of God...will be rejected. They rejected Christ. So they reject us.

If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. John 15:18

Do not be surprised by this rejection if it is your lot to carry the message. Rejection is normal but it is not final.

Do not be surprised, my brothers, if the world hates you. 1 John 3:13

Rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. 1 Peter 4:13

What we should be surprised about is if they accept us. That means they are either of God, being drawn by God or we ourselves are lying and not telling truth of the Word.

I must tell the truth even if it comes off harsh, but I must sympathetic to God. God's glory and honor is at stake. Our natural inclination is to have sympathy for man, that's the easy part...but what of God's glory in a world that will not even acknowledge Him? What of God who is so often invisible from humanity's standpoint...spiritually under the radar?

The burden of a preacher and a prophet: They have empathy for man but they have the consideration for God. They were/are people who heard God's voice and could not remain silent about it. God's voice breaks spiritual eardrums.  

The prophet never just tells stories, but etches the reality into the minds of men. His worship is truth telling, singing is not their vocabulary. Beseeching is first and then admonishing is last resort. People rarely listen to God of the men of God so it always comes off as admonishment. The pictures that comes from their mouths do not just throw heat they sear themselves into our mind. Their words are tattooed on our soul. The preachers/prophets job is to teach truth clearly enough to allow people understand their responsibility and make them realize they are accountable.  They do not preach self-pity, self-esteem or a perfect life with abundance but rather a path of suffering and reward at the end for obedience. The delivery of their words are not often embracing us but rather challenging and sometimes provoking...sometimes they slap us upside the head. The prophet and preachers words should startle us in their clarity and truth. They set us off balance as they are rooted in the word and the natural man is not. So to us of the natural sinful realm, they come off as an affront.

The prophet is human, yet he employs notes one octave too high for our ears.  ~Abraham Heschel

For years I was told I was too harsh. I was told I need to tone down my "act" or I would attract no one to the faith. Those people were meant to reach other types of personalities. This is not the way God made me. I am made to aspire to an attentiveness of holiness. To remain as attuned to the smallest nuance of wickedness so as to crush it like a parasite. To me it is not a matter of how close I can get to sin and still get away with wayward behavior. For me it is an issue of running the other way and avoiding it completely the minute I see it. Scared? No...sensible. Otherwise I am not tempted to abuse grace which is so prevalent in our churches by people that misunderstand their position in Christ. Yes, we are saved and once we are saved we stay that way. This does not give us a license to sin with no fear of reprisal (Romans 6:1-2). Besides, if we sin on a regular there is a good possibility that we might not be the Christians we think we are (1 John 3:9). A true preacher realizes that behind every Christian freedom lurks a sinister entrenched sin waiting to be abused. I must warn and steel myself against even the faintest inkling of divergence. Stay the course on stormy seas.

As my wife often tells me, I am a "fixer" not necessarily a person that can remain passive in the face of something I know is wrong. Justice screams out at me from within and often erupts into words on the surface. I must speak or the Spirit in me convicts me to project outwardly anyway. As Jeremiah said...

“But if I say, "I will not mention him or speak any more in his name," his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot.” ~Jeremiah 20:9

And so this fire will continue to burn within until I have no bones left to burn. What will remain will be what is wholly acceptable to God…nothing more.

“If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames. ~1 Corinthians 3:12-15

“Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and that day that is coming will set them on fire,” says the Lord Almighty. “Not a root or a branch will be left to them.  But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings. And you will go out and leap like calves released from the stall.  Then you will trample down the wicked; they will be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day when I do these things,” says the Lord Almighty. ~Malachi 4:1-3

We are now entering days of wrath and hardly anyone notices. Behold. The Day of the Lord comes and it comes like an incinerating bolt of lightning upon the heads of the wicked. Repent and seek the face of God. There will be many surprised people that day. Many who thought they did just enough or were in God’s good graces and were not. Its not about what you do, its about what He has done on your behalf. There are two sides and one of them is the wrong side. Whose side are you on?

Apocalypse Prophecy LIV: Armageddon & Exodus Flashbacks

Chapters 15-16

Wrath Exhausted

The saints will glorify God and the Lamb for their incomparable attributes demonstrated in the Winning of redemption and judgment (15:1–4). Up to Revelation 14:20 only six visions of the sevenfold series  have been presented since the beginning of the series in Revelation 12:1. The seventh vision does not come until 15:2–4. The presentation of the seventh vision is interrupted by the introduction of the seven bowl angels in Revelation 15:1. The best explanation of verses 2–4 is that they serve both as a conclusion to 12:1–14:20 and as part of the introduction to the bowls.

Transitions between the Apocalypse’s major segments have an “interlocking” function with respect to the preceding and following sections. The song in verse 2–4 praises God’s justice as it is expressed in the judgments of Revelation14:6–11, 14–20. It also focuses is on the saints’ victory over the ungodly as well as the judgment of their opponents.

The background of the exodus provides the thematic link between the bowl judgments and the song of Moses and the Lamb. The seven bowls are obviously modeled on the exodus plagues, and the song in 15:3–4 is an imitation of the song of Moses after the Red Sea victory in Exodus 15.

The reference to a new, final exodus victory in Revelation 15:2–4, concludes the segment of Revelation 12:1–14:20, and it inspires a recall in chapter 16 of the exodus plagues leading up to the final victory. Accordingly, the “seven last plagues” could correspond to  the ten plagues God brought against Egypt. It appears the exodus judgments will be enacted against the world at the end of history when Israel would again be redeemed. These OT and Jewish antecedents provide a typological and eschatological background against which the inherent idea of “last” in Revelation 15:1 may well best be seen. This background makes plausible the suggestion that the plagues in Revelation are “last” in the sense that they occur in the latter days (after Christ’s Resurrection and Ascension), hence “seven eschatological plagues”) in contrast to the former days when the Egyptian plagues occurred. Based on this understanding, John and the NT writers believed that the latter days were  inaugurated with Christ’s first coming and will be culminated at his Parousia or second-coming.

Accordingly, the bowl plagues would extend throughout the course of the latter-day period, from Christ’s first to second coming. In Chapter bears out clearly that the bowl plagues are typological equivalents of the Egyptian plagues, as do the Red Sea imagery and context of 15:2–4. In Jewish and Christian literature the exodus plagues were also understood as typological of later plagues to come on subsequent generations of humanity.

Alternatively, “last” could explain how the wrath revealed in the seals and the trumpets reaches its goal. This has some merit, since the bowl judgments, in contrast to the other seven-fold series, have more explicit statements  about the purpose of divine judgments. The bowls are “last” in order of presentation of the visions “because in them has been completed the wrath of God.” The bowls complement and round out the portrayal of divine wrath in the seals and trumpets. It is in this fuller presentation of punishment in the bowls that it can be said that God’s wrath has been “completely expressed” or “has reached its completion and is exhausted for those here on earth. The bowls are generally parallel thematically and temporally with the trumpets and ultimately with the seals. This obviously is a further development of God’s “cup of wrath” filled with “the wine of wrath” in Revelation 14:10.

Sea of Glass

The sight of what appeared to be “like a sea of glass like crystal” could be an allusion to the reflection of the laver in Solomon’s temple and to the heavenly splendor of God’s holy separateness. The most vivid picture that comes in mind is the heavenly analogy to the Red Sea in connection with the New Exodus.  This identification is confirmed beyond doubt by the following mention of the new song of Moses, which is the last day counterpart of Moses’ song in Exodus 15. Compound this with the (v.6) “plagues” and the (v.5) “tabernacle of testimony/covenant law” and the parallel is undeniable. This sea is also parallel to Daniel 7 too. In fulfillment of Daniel 7, the Lamb’s “overcoming” has also paved the way for the saints’ “overcoming” of the beast at the sea which is the focus in 15:2. They are victorious only because the Lamb has conquered and granted them a share in the effects of his victory. Therefore, the Lamb is praised in 15:3 because he has judged the opponents. In the world’s eyes the people of God are defeated but they have won a spiritual victory by maintaining their faith and separating from any compromising alliances. Hence the idea of persevering through suffering early on in Revelations in the letters to the seven churches as they are prototypical of all churches both good and bad. That the saints are “standing on the sea of glass” shows that they themselves have been involved in the battle against the sea beast and have fought in the midst of the unbelieving world, where the “waters” are defined as ungodly masses of people in the world (Revelation 17:15).

The saints’ weapon has been their fiery, faithful testimony which the beast and his allies have tried to extinguish. The saints now stand before God’s throne in heaven. Their song is a hymn of deliverance and praise of God’s  attributes just like Moses song in Exod. 15:1–18. Later OT interpretations of the first exodus have been selected to explain the new exodus, which has happened on a grander scale than the first, to praise God for the redemption and the implicit scene of judgment pictured (Deuteronomy 28:59–60) which predicts that Israel’s future judgment will be patterned after the Egyptian plagues. Ultimate redemption through Christ has brought to supreme expression how he demonstrates his justice. Those trusting

in Christ have the penalty of their sin paid for by his blood but those rejecting the divine

provision will bear their own penalty for sin.

The Seven Bowl Judgments

Here God punishes the ungodly because of their persecution and idolatry and we see the resumption of the introduction to the seven bowl judgments (15:5–8). The temple now mentioned is “the tabernacle of testimony” as the heavenly equivalent of the tabernacle that was with Israel in the wilderness, continuing the exodus context of vv2–4. The “testimony” referred to is the Ten Commandments, which Moses placed in the ark of the tabernacle (Exodus 16:34; 25:21; 31:18; 32:15 in relation to 27:21 and 40:24) Therefore, the Law of the Lord is his testimony, which reveals his just will. The tabernacle sanctuary was placed in Israel’s midst because God was to “dwell in their midst.” The tabernacle with the ark also represented the grace and mercy of God, since substitutionary animal sacrifices were offered there to atone for (or cover) Israel’s sin and to reconcile the nation to their Lord. But now for John the tabernacle witnesses no longer to divine mercy but to judgment, introduced in Revelation. This “testimony” in Revelation15:5 includes not only the Law but “the testimony of Jesus,” who embodies the OT  “commandments of God” in himself. The point is that God is about to reveal his just will from his heavenly dwelling place by in the form of judgments on the earth against those who reject his testimony. They rejected Jesus Christ.

John now sees the seven angels introduced in v 1 coming out of the temple after it has been opened. The angels have the “seven plagues,” which must mean that they have been commissioned to execute the seven bowl judgments that follow in chapter16. These images of bowls comes partly from the OT, where “bowls” are mentioned in conjunction with the priestly service at the altar in the tabernacle or the temple. The bowls were probably used to carry out the ashes and fat of sacrifices. These bowls are sometimes directly

connected with “the tabernacle of witness”. Now, angelic priests minister with the bowls at the heavenly altar of the tabernacle of witness. The destructive nature of the bowls is stressed by their characterization as “plagues” (v.6, 8) and as being “full of God’s wrath.” The concluding statement of ch15 underscores the fact that the bowl afflictions do not come ultimately from the seven angels or from the four living beings but only from God. God’s presence is so awesome in expressing wrath that not even heavenly beings can stand in his midst. The unapproachability of God in both the OT and Revelation could be due to the awfulness of his revealed presence. God himself is executing the trials and “no one was able to enter the temple until” he has completed the task through “the seven plagues of the seven angels.” No one is able to hold back God’s hand when he decides to execute judgments.

Some Observations on the Trumpet and Bowls Judgment

Some commentators argue that the trumpets are different judgments from those of the bowls because the first four trumpets appear only to affect nature, whereas the first four bowls affect wicked people. The first six trumpets are said to be partial in their effect, whereas the bowls seem to have a universal effect. The similarities between the trumpets and the bowls overshadow the differences. What the trumpets state in a highly figurative manner is stated more directly in the bowls.

Both trumpets and bowls present the plagues in the same order: plagues striking (1) the earth, (2) the sea, (3) rivers, (4) the sun, (5) the realm of the wicked with darkness, (6) the Euphrates (together with influencing the wicked by demons), and (7) the world with the final judgment (with the same imagery of “lightning, sounds, thunders, and earthquake” and “great hail”). The overwhelming likeness of the trumpets and the bowls is a result of both being modeled on the exodus plagues. Each woe in both series, except the sixth trumpet, alludes to an Exodus plague. Further, in each series seven angels execute the seven plagues. Therefore the trumpet and bowl series are probably parallel literarily, thematically, and temporally.

Examples: In trumpet 4: A third of sun, moon, and stars are struck. Darkness results for a third of a night and day. Bowl 4: A bowl is poured on the sun, which scorches people with fire. Trumpet 5: The shaft of the pit is opened. Sun and air are darkened with smoke from which locusts emerge to torment people without the seal of God. Bowl 5: A bowl is poured on the throne of the beast. His kingdom is darkened and people are in anguish. Trumpet 6: Four angels bound at the Euphrates are released, with their cavalry of two hundred million, which kills a third of humanity. Bowl 6: A bowl is poured on the Euphrates, which dries up for kings from the east. Demonic frogs deceive the kings of the world to assemble for battle at Armageddon. Trumpet 7: Loud voices in heaven announce the coming of the kingdom of God and of Christ. Lightning, thunder, earthquake, and hail occur. Bowl 7: A bowl is poured into the air, and a loud voice from God’s throne announces “It is done.” Lightning, thunder, and an unprecedented earthquake occur, and terrible hail falls.…

Obviously, there is not a one-to-one correspondence between each corresponding trumpet and bowl. But they are vivid similarities and enough to be considered parts of the same overall program of divine judgments occurring during the same general period. Just like the trumpets, the bowls are God’s further answer to the saints’ plea in Revelation 6:9–11 that their persecutors be judged. Those undergoing the judgments of the bowl plagues are punished because of their identification with the beast and not with the Lamb. This also leads to an interpretative conclusion that involves tensions revolving around divine sovereignty and human accountability, that all stem from either repentance or a failure to repent.

In the preceding chapters we saw the rise of the dragon in chapter 12, followed by the beast in chapter 13:1–10, the false prophet in 13:11–18), and finally Babylon in Revelation 14:6–11. In Revelation 16 we see a segment that reverses the order of the careers of these evil beasts. Babylon is mentioned first in the explanation of their demise (16:17–21; chs17–18), followed by the beast and the false prophet (19:17–20) and finally the dragon himself (20:10). This reversal is chronological in sequence in the Apocalypse. The four foes are eliminated simultaneously, as is evident from the repetition of wording and OT allusions in the descriptions of their defeat as seen in Revelation 16:14; 19:19; 20:8. 

Apocalypse Prophecy LIII: Treading The Winepress

Crushing Sour Grapes (Revelation 14:14-20) 

Once the Christians and non-believers alike take in the intoxication and wicked influence, it removes all desire to resist Babylon’s destructive influence and therefor binds and blinds one to Babylon’s own ultimate insecurity and to God as the source of real security. People will then become spiritually deadened and numbed against any fear of a coming judgment…and that is the trap. The immediate gratification and pleasure from sin will make the one who imbibes of it blind to the eventual destruction that this type of path of wickedness paves the way for. The third angel appears in the vision. Like the first two, he also announces judgment. He declares that if people give ultimate allegiance to the beast, they will suffer a fate much worse than death. In (v.10) we see the consequence of beast worship. Those who express greater devotion to the beast than to Christ in order to maintain economic security will be punished severely.

“…they, too, will drink the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. They will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. Revelation 14:10

The phrase, “into the cup of his wrath,” reiterates the preceding “he will drink from the wine of the wrath of God” to emphasize the definitiveness and severity of the last. Those who have denied the Lamb will be forced to acknowledge him as they are being punished. Regardless of what Universalists or people like Rob Bell have told easily misled Christians of eternal punishment, there are powerful statements being made in the next few verses. In (v. 10–11) the idea of eternal punishment cannot and should not be diluted by affirming that the imagery of the verses have only a rhetorical function of warning, and does not convey  any doctrinal idea of a future state of punishment. That eventually through Jesus’ love all are saved because “love wins”. Love that does not tell the truth and promote the idea of perfect justice through God’s judgment is not justice at all. God judging all in the end and sending some to Hell is God’s eventual answer the suffering of things like wars, genocide and wicked sinful behavior in general. Without the prospect of eternal permanent judgement on the wicked, the scales of justice just do not balance out. On the final day of the Lord, the scale so justice will be balanced and all with get their just due, both believer and non-believer alike. All will be judged and they will either found wanting and condemned or found righteous in Christ and saved to eternal life in the presence of Christ Jesus. Therefore we see an exhortation in verse 12 to true saints to persevere through this temporary suffering in this earthly life. A suffering and persecution inflicted on them because of their loyalty to Christ, so that they might avoid the eternal consequences of loyalty to the beast and receive an eternal reward (v 13). If Christians remain loyal to the Lamb, they will suffer now in the present, but afterward will gain a reward of eternal rest in Christ. Just as Christ was rewarded after death for his endurance, and so will Christians, since Christ is their representative

“I looked, and there before me was a white cloud, and seated on the cloud was one like a son of man with a crown of gold on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand. Then another angel came out of the temple and called in a loud voice to him who was sitting on the cloud, “Take your sickle and reap, because the time to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is ripe.”  So he who was seated on the cloud swung his sickle over the earth, and the earth was harvested. Another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle. Still another angel, who had charge of the fire, came from the altar and called in a loud voice to him who had the sharp sickle, “Take your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of grapes from the earth’s vine, because its grapes are ripe.” The angel swung his sickle on the earth, gathered its grapes and threw them into the great winepress of God’s wrath. They were trampled in the winepress outside the city, and blood flowed out of the press, rising as high as the horses’ bridles for a distance of 1,600 stadia”. Revelation 14:14-20

This heavenly figure “has a golden crown on his head”. The crown identifies him as king over his people, who rule with him and also wear “golden crowns”. His crown also evokes kingship over his enemies (19:12). The “sharp sickle” is a metaphor of judgment.  Including the Son of man, there are seven heavenly beings in 14:6–20. Furthermore, the coming of the Son of man on clouds in the Synoptic eschatological discourses and elsewhere is always Christ (Matthew 24:30; Mark 13:26; Luke 21:27). In verse 15-16 “Another angel” now appears and issues a command to the Son of man. The angel’s command could suggest that he has authority over the Son of man, who is therefore subordinate to the angel. This would clearly be a functional subordination to God is in mind since this angel conveys a divine message from God’s throne room itself. Christ must be informed by God about the time for judgment to begin, since “of that day or that hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” Mark 13:32. 

The Son of man’s judgment is described through a metaphor of gathering in a harvest. He is commanded to harvest “because the harvest of the earth has become ripe.” Just as God determines harvest time each year, so God has determined the time when the end of the age will have been reached and when judgment must begin because the sins of humanity have reached their full measure and tipped against them. So the heavenly comes forth with a sharp sickle to harvest the earth. The presence of the Son of man in the first segment and the grisly image of trampling grapes in the second are taken respectively as suggesting redemptive and judicial imagery and/or a dual harvest is also supported by the dual aspect of the harvest in Jesus’ teachings, which may stand partly in the background of Matthew 3:12; 13:24–30 and Mark 4:26–29. The Synoptic Gospel parallel in Mark 4:26–29 stands closest to Revelation 14 although Mark does not explicitly mention the gathering of believers, though that may be implied.

The mention of “first fruits” in Revelation 14:4 could also anticipate an idea that more elect people will be gathered in later, namely in verse 15 and 16. Interestingly, “first fruits” and “harvest” are directly associated with each other in a positive manner in Old Testament offering passages (Exodus 23:16; 34:22; Numbers 18:12 and Jeremiah 2:3.

Of course it might just be possible that that the two accounts in Revelation 14:14–16 and Revelation 14:17–20 are describing precisely the same act of judgment since the images are exactly the same.

• “another angel” comes “out of the temple” or “out from the altar” commands “in a great voice” another heavenly figure to “put in your sickle” and reap
• “because” the harvest is “ripe.”
• The commanding angel of v 18 is associated with a decree of judgment. This suggests that the angel of v 15 is also a messenger of judgment.
• Whenever commands are issued from the heavenly temple or altar, they are always declarations of judgment.
• Both are dependent on Joel  4:13 for the harvest imagery reinforces this conclusion, since the Joel passage contains only the thought of judgment and is the only Old Testament passage where harvesting with a “sickle” is spoken of figuratively, just as it is in Revelation 14. 

This leaves one remaining question. Why would there be two identical accounts of the same judgment in Revelation 14:15–20? Again we turn to the Old Testament pattern of emphasizing thing by saying them twice but in different ways. It is a form of Hebraic parallelism. The double narration emphasizes the severity and unqualified nature of the punishment, which reaches its climax here in these verses. The image of “treading a wine press” is without exception a metaphor of judgment in the Old Testament. The images of harvest and treading the wine press occur together, and they are both figurative images predicting judgment. The Joel text is the model for the same picture.

Revealing Christ In The Old Testament VI: A Crimson Thread Runs Through It

Joshua

Moving on to Joshua we see that it tells of the "Captain of the Lord's host". There will be victory over enemies against insurmountable odds. When all chances of victory are abandoned from a human perspective, there will ultimately be triumph through Christ including a defeat of the ultimate enemy to believers...death.

"Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?” “Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come.” Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord have for his servant?” The commander of the Lord’s army replied, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so. Joshua 5:13-15

I believe we may be seeing a theophany here in Joshua 5. After the Israelites crossed the Jordan River and prepared to fight for the city of Jericho, the Lord Jesus Himself—God the Son—appears to have met Joshua here.

The assumption from a human vantage point after reading something like this is that God does these types of things primary to help believers to assist in their well-being. Although this might be true some of the time, the reality is that God does things primarily for His own reasons, that will bring rightful glory to Him. Victory is indeed in the Lord but not always for the reasons we think. In the case of Christ it was to bring all things in subjection and reconciliation to Christ as Jesus is the centrality and upholder of all things.

“In bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through what he suffered.” Hebrews 2:10

“...fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Hebrews 12:2

"The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross." Colossians 1:15-20

It is interesting that Joshua a name that is the Hebrew version of Jesus, takes over after the giver of the law had died, and he led the people into the future that God had planned and designed for them. The book begins with a statement about Moses' death. Moses represented the law. The people could not enter the land of Canaan until Moses was dead (the Law). If we look to Romans we see a parallel. "For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit (Romans 8)…. Joshua then leads Israel to victory after crossing the Jordan. He was their advocate in time of defeat. It was Joshua who allotted them their portions within the land. All of this beautifully pictures the work of the Lord. In Joshua we see a prototype of Jesus Himself.

In the Battle of Jericho, the city's walls we see the insurmountable obstacle of getting into the promised land. From a human perspective it should have been impossible for the Israelites to have been able to conquer the city. With God acting on their behalf they only need to march around the city once every day for six days with the seven priests carrying ram's horns in front of the ark. On the seventh day they were to march around the city seven times and then the priests were to blow the ram's horns. So on the seventh day, after marching around the city the seventh time, the priests sounded their ram's horns and Joshua ordered the people to shout. Upon this war cry the walls of the city collapsed, and the Israelites were able to run right into the city. The city was completely destroyed, and every man, woman, and child in it was killed as commanded. The undefeatable foe has been defeated. The insurmountable has been surmounted. Like Jesus conquering all the sin of humanity with His blood, when all of humanity couldn't even conquer one sin.

We see Christ in the story of Rahab's crimson cord...

"Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and that you will save us from death.” “Our lives for your lives!” the men assured her. “If you don’t tell what we are doing, we will treat you kindly and faithfully when the Lord gives us the land.” So she let them down by a rope through the window, for the house she lived in was part of the city wall. Now she had said to them, “Go to the hills so the pursuers will not find you. Hide yourselves there three days until they return, and then go on your way.” The men said to her, “This oath you made us swear will not be binding on us unless, when we enter the land, you have tied this scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down, and unless you have brought your father and mother, your brothers and all your family into your house. If anyone goes outside your house into the street, his blood will be on his own head; we will not be responsible. As for anyone who is in the house with you, his blood will be on our head if a hand is laid on him. But if you tell what we are doing, we will be released from the oath you made us swear.”  “Agreed,” she replied. “Let it be as you say.” So she sent them away and they departed. And she tied the scarlet cord in the window. Joshua 2:12-21

In this passage, the children of Israel, are on the east bank of the Jordan, are waiting to invade / enter the promised land and but Joshua having been trained well as a military leader wanted  military reconnaissance. The spies entered the city of Jericho, but something went wrong and their covers was blown. The authorities mobilized forces to track them down and kill them. This is thwarted by a prostitute named Rahab who took them in and hid them. She seeks God and realizes these men are representatives of God. She uses a crimson cord which she allows the men to  rappel down the wall and escape. She knows inevitably that God's people are going to capture the city. So she asks that she be spared along with her family.

Thus, we should see this as an image of impending judgment as coming from Christ. The Bible commands all people to seek God and to repent, because there is coming an appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness. Obviously, there is only one place where we'll find deliverance. This is also similar to the crimson or red blood of the Passover on the doorframes of the Israelites. Safety and deliverance is in the crimson blood of the Savior Jesus, since the blood is a metonymy of life: Christ's life, given up for us on the Cross. So Rahab and her family are told to remain in the room with the crimson cord tied to the window. By imagery, this must be understood as the crimson blood of Christ.

Some additional things that foreshadow Christ or the believer in Joshua are the idea that Israel's warfare with the Canaanites is a picture of our conflict with Satan. The entire book of Joshua floats on this idea of constantly waging a war against often unseen enemies so that believers can come into possession of the Promised Land. Through faith in God and what He has promised we see that our victory as believers is by faith just as it was in Joshua's time...

"...by faith the walls of Jericho fell down" Hebrews 11:30

We read that the children of Manasseh could not drive out the Canaanites, but put them under tribute and let them dwell in the land (Joshua 17:12-13). this is an image of indwelling sin that remains in a believer even though the victory over sin in the long run has been won by Christ at the Cross. The book of Joshua's closes with his exhortation to the people. He reminds them that it is God who has fought for them (like Christ did on the cross). He exhorts them to keep all that is written in the Law of Moses, and to serve the Lord with all their heart. In other words: Obey God. He invites them to choose this day whom they will serve, but adds his own resolution, " As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."

Just as Rahab was covered by the crimson cord, so too are we covered by the blood of the Lamb.

Our Joshua paralleled in Christ never dies now. It is He who brings us into the good land (blessings and eternal salvation) and it is only as we abide under His leadership that we shall possess it and overcome all our enemies.

Revealing Christ In The Old Testament V: A King For A New Generation

Deuteronomy

Mainly Deuteronomy is the reiteration of the Law to a new generation of the Israelites that are about to take hold of the promise land. Moses is quite old at this point and ready to hand off the reins to Joshua. They are exhorted not to make the same mistakes of their fathers and are also exhorted to remain obedient to God and His word. As this book is a transition between the books of beginnings and the Law and into the more historical aspects of Israel it is not surprising to see God begin to pave the way for a growing and maturing Israel. As such we see the last book of the Pentateuch reveal a coming Prophet and King "like unto Moses". We see the stipulations God lays down for a human king to rule over Israel, and in turn the people of God or people that are obedient to God.

“When you enter the land the LORD your God is giving you and have taken possession of it and settled in it, and you say, “Let us set a king over us like all the nations around us,” be sure to appoint over you a king the LORD your God chooses. He must be from among your fellow Israelites. Do not place a foreigner over you, one who is not an Israelite. The king, moreover, must not acquire great numbers of horses for himself or make the people return to Egypt to get more of them, for the LORD has told you, “You are not to go back that way again.” He must not take many wives, or his heart will be led astray. He must not accumulate large amounts of silver and gold. When he takes the throne of his kingdom, he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law, taken from that of the Levitical priests. It is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life so that he may learn to revere the LORD his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees and not consider himself better than his fellow Israelites and turn from the law to the right or to the left. Then he and his descendants will reign a long time over his kingdom in Israel. Deuteronomy 17:14-20

This is then expounded upon as many Old Testament episodes are in the New Testament. Where things may not have been quite as clear and discernable in the Old, the writers of the New clarify the pictures and shadows revealed to us by the Old. Again here we see the beginning of the rejection and suffering Moses would endure yet we also see the beginning of what appears to be a sustained position of leadership. Eventually, Moses will turn the reins of this leadership over to Joshua which the above passage from Deuteronomy is beginning to allude to as Joshua is about to lead God’s people through a new generation into the promised land. The following passage parallels the Exodus account in wordage but inevitably leads to leadership in the promised land after the time of the Judges with Saul.


When Moses was forty years old, he decided to visit his own people, the Israelites. He saw one of them being mistreated by an Egyptian, so he went to his defense and avenged him by killing the Egyptian. Moses thought that his own people would realize that God was using him to rescue them, but they did not. The next day Moses came upon two Israelites who were fighting. He tried to reconcile them by saying, ‘Men, you are brothers; why do you want to hurt each other?’ “But the man who was mistreating the other pushed Moses aside and said, ‘Who made you ruler and judge over us? Are you thinking of killing me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?’ When Moses heard this, he fled to Midian, where he settled as a foreigner and had two sons.

A few chapters later we see a reference to those hung on a tree. The one hung on a tree is cursed. Here we see a foretelling of the curse of the sin of humanity that Christ would take upon Himself as He hung on it incurring the wrath of God that we deserved.

“If a man has committed a sin worthy of death and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree, his corpse shall not hang all night on the tree, but you shall surely bury him on the same day for he who is hanged is accursed of God, so that you do not defile your land which the LORD your God gives you as an inheritance. Deuteronomy 21:22-23

What is interesting is the command not to allow the body to stay there all night. According to the Gospel, this is exactly what happens with Jesus....it is just hours before nightfall right before the Sabbath or the day prior to the weekly Sabbath which for Jews was Friday. Preparation Day is the day leaven was removed in preparation for the Feast of Unleavened Bread. As mentioned in a previous posts, this feast symbolized Jesus’ sinless life because leaven is a picture of sin in the Bible, making Him the perfect sacrifice for our sins. Jesus' body was in the grave during the first days of this feast, like a kernel of wheat planted and waiting to burst forth as the bread of life.

The rest of the Levitical feasts in Leviticus 23 can be found here: ExaminingScripture XIX: Holy Days

“Now there was a man named Joseph, a member of the Council, a good and upright man, who had not consented to their decision and action. He came from the Judean town of Arimathea, and he himself was waiting for the kingdom of God. Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body. Then he took it down, wrapped it in linen cloth and placed it in a tomb cut in the rock, one in which no one had yet been laid. It was Preparation Day, and the Sabbath was about to begin. Luke 23:50-54

The other thing that should be noted in Deuteronomy is Christ portrayed in the Rock and Refuge of His people. 

“I will proclaim the name of the LORD.  Oh, praise the greatness of our God! He is the Rock, his works are perfect,  and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he. Deuteronomy 32:4

“There is no one like the God of Jeshurun, who rides across the heavens to help you and on the clouds in his majesty. The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms. He will drive out your enemies before you, saying, ‘Destroy them!’ So Israel will live in safety; Jacob will dwell secure in a land of grain and new wine, where the heavens drop dew. Blessed are you, Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the LORD? He is your shield and helper and your glorious sword. Your enemies will cower before you, and you will tread on their heights.” Deuteronomy 33: 26-29.