The American Wisdom Series

Presents pamphlet #6405

The Book of Isaiah
Chapter 5

We have now come to the 5th chapter of Isaiah which concerns our Father's vineyard, beginning with the "Song of the Vineyard" followed by the "Parable of the Vineyard". Of course the key to understanding what is written in this 5th chapter is to understand exactly what the vineyard is and here in this great 5th chapter of Isaiah we are told in vs. 7 that it "is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah His pleasant plant: and He looked for judgment, but behold oppression; for righteousness, but behold a cry (or an outcry)." So the subject in this chapter is the House of Israel, the true House of Israel*.

*Note: If you do not know who the so-called lost 10 tribes of the House of Israel are and where they dwell today, then contact Artisan Publishers at www.artisanpublishers.com and purchase the little booklet (The Abrahamic Covenant, by E. Raymond Capt.) or log unto pamphlets #1064 and #1020 on this web site.

Jesus Christ referred to this Parable of the Vineyard in Luke 20:9-16 where He talked about a certain man who planted a vineyard and let it forth to husbandmen and then went into a far country for a long time. He then sent servants unto the husbandmen that they should give him of the fruit of the vineyard, but the husbandmen beat all the servants he sent until finally he sent his son! But they cast his son out of the vineyard and killed him. Woe! Then at the end of that parable Christ talked about the "stone" which the builders rejected, the same which is become the head of the corner, and when the religious community finally figured out that He was talking about them, they sought to kill Him. Isn't it amazing what the religious community is capable of doing... in the name of God of course?

One of the lessons we have learned so far in this great Book of Isaiah is that our leaders are put there to watch over us and serve God's children in accordance with His laws and His statutes which are truth and justice. And especially our spiritual leaders who are charged with keeping the knowledge of our Father's Word upon their lips and are commanded to speak His words... for they are His messengers! Malachi 2:7 "For the priest's lips should keep knowledge, and they should seek the law at His mouth: for he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts." But instead it seems that most would rather teach the traditions of men and play church rather than teach His Word chapter by chapter and verse by verse. And so it is that our Father's vineyard has suffered greatly and He is not happy about it! So when payday soon comes, those who have led our people astray to follow after the traditions of men shall receive their just reward... Woe!

Let us now learn our Father's song concerning His vineyard.

Isaiah 5:1
Now will I sing to My wellbeloved a song of My beloved touching his vineyard. My wellbeloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill:
This is about our Father touching, as in loving His people and there is much more said here in the Hebrew manuscripts than is brought forth in the English. Your Companion Bible for instance will note that the phrase "very fruitful" means "oil's son", even olive oil used for anointing! And "hill" should be translated "horn" which is symbolic of "power" but also means "ray or beacon of light". You "see", it is through Messiah, the Anointed One, the Light of truth, His power, that the fruit in the vineyard is brought forth. All else produces poison-berries (next verse)!
[2] And he fenced it, and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the choicest vine , and built a tower in the midst of it, and also made a winepress therein: and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes.
Our Father made His vineyard and abundantly provided everything necessary to produce good grapes. He not only fenced it and removed the "stones" thereof, He planted it with the choicest vine and provided a "tower", as in a watchtower, in the midst of it. The watchtower is where the watchmen watch which in a deeper sense is the Word of God which is our guide and our warning against iniquity and the wicked one. We also see that our Father made a winepress expecting to receive a great harvest of grapes with which to produce much wine.

But WOE!!! What happened? All He got was "wild grapes" which are "beushiym" in Hebrew meaning "poisonous grapes" or as Strong's has it "poison-berries". Hey, you don't get bad grapes from the choicest vine so something is amiss here. There must be some bad branches hanging around and for sure there is some really bad "dressing" and "keeping" of the vineyard going on here by the husbandmen else there would be good grapes brought forth! Matthew 7:16 "Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?" So what's going on in the vineyard? Well, if you know anything about how it was in the beginning you'll know why there are thorns and thistles! We will discuss this more a few verses hence.

wild grapes, be'ushiym, be-oo-sheem', Hebrew 891; plural of Hebrew 889 (be'osh); poison-berries :- wild grapes.

be'osh, be-oshe', Hebrew 889; from Hebrew 877 (bo'r); a stench :- stink.

The poison-berries look real pretty, like they are good to eat, but they stink to high heaven! And that is exactly what our Father thinks of the traditions of men because there is no good fruit produced through the traditions of men which actually make void the Word of God. So you might pause and consider the question: From where do you get your fruit? You "see", our Father wants us to get the picture here! There should be a vineyard full of fruit, full of plump luscious grapes with which to produce much wine, but instead the land is full of stinky, stenchy, poisonous berries!
[3] And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem, and men of Judah, judge, I pray you, betwixt me and my vineyard.
God is saying, "you make the call". Go ahead and you judge between God and His children. God has given His children everything. He has given them protection and the choicest real estate on earth. He gave them a watchtower, even His Word to lead, guide, and direct them, and the choicest plants, even Judah his pleasant plant (vs. 7). So the question is and the judgment for you to make is... (next verse):
[4] What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it? wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes, brought it forth wild grapes?
What more could our Father give to His children, especially in this final generation where we have more wealth and luxuries than any other society in the history of mankind. Wherefore (why) should there not be good grapes produced in the vineyard? And yet look what is being produced... a bunch of poison-berries! These have been brought forth by all the lazy, Biblically illiterate, self-serving husbandmen, who are those many preachers and ministers and priests Jesus Christ warned us of in Mat. 24 and Mark 13, who would come in His name, i.e. claiming to be His representatives, and deceive the multitudes of God's people by teaching the traditions of men. You "see", poison-berries come from the bad branch, not the good vine our Father planted. That bad branch is the puffed up tree of the knowledge of good and evil, Satan himself, and those who take that bad fruit from that bad tree and feed it to our people. Again, where do you get your fruit? If you are not prayerfully studying your Father's Word, you are barking up the wrong tree!
[5] And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down:
Woe! There is trouble on the horizon my friend! However some might still ask, "How is our Father going to take away the hedge and break down the wall? And what is the hedge and the wall anyway?" The answer to the first question is that He is simply going to allow the spiritual leaders of our people, the majority of who teach for doctrine the commandments of men (Mat. 15:9), to do their thing and continue with their idolatrous teachings that make void the Word of God, which is our hedge and wall of protection. And you know, our people just love it! They love to eat tasty junk food, both physically and spiritually, that is not only void of nutrition but actually toxic, i.e. poisonous! And that is about all our people are fed from the pulpits of this land... junk food! Let us turn to Ezekiel 13, the entire chapter of which concerns the false prophets of our day, for some direct clarification.
Ezekiel 13:4-5
O Israel, thy prophets are like the foxes in the deserts.
The vineyard has become parched through the lack of "rain" and is now become as a valley of dry bones, spiritually speaking (Ezek. 37), and yet the preachers and teachers do nothing to help our people as per the instructions to the watchmen (Ezek. 37:4) but rather like foxes, they hunt them down to feed themselves and line their own pockets. Ezekiel 13:19 "And will ye pollute me among my people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, to slay the souls that should not die, and to save the souls alive that should not live, by your lying to my people that hear your lies?"
[5] Ye have not gone up into the gaps, neither made up the hedge for the house of Israel to stand in the battle in the day of the LORD.
The vineyard has no hedge about it and thus our people are left spiritually unprotected and shall not be able to stand with those Christian soldiers in Ephesians 6, but shall rather be spiritually slain by Satan, the false messiah when he comes. You "see", they have been lied to, spiritually seduced, and given false hope and false peace of mind by those who claim to represent Christ as His ministers.
Ezekiel 13:10
Because, even because they have seduced my people, saying, Peace; and there was no peace; and one built up a wall, and, lo, others daubed it with untempered morter:
Have you ever read the great Book of Nehemiah that talks about the wall around the city, symbolic of the protection by our Father? Well, that wall has NOT been built up! Instead, the preachers and the ministers have set up a phony wall of peace and security founded upon the traditions of men and NOT the Word of God! To wit, many of our brothers and sisters are told that all they have to do is believe and soon, at any moment, Jesus Christ will come and "rapture" them away, as in "take them" up into the fluffy clouds where they can avoid facing the tribulation of the "vile person", Satan when he comes to eareth as the false-christ. Whereas God's elect who shall not be taken, but shall remain behind laboring in the field until the true Bridegroom, the real Jesus Christ comes, are preparing themselves and their loved ones to be soldiers in the army of God by putting on the whole gospel armor to be able to take a stand against the fiery darts of the wicked one and kick some dragon (Eph. 6)!

Dear one, the rapture theory is just that, a theory, and the fact of the matter is it has no scriptural basis with which you can put your faith and trust and hope in! In other words, it is a phony wall which has been "set up" and the majority of "others", i.e. the Christian leaders and preachers, etc., continue to "daub it with untempered mortar" which means to "whitewash" it! That may offend some, which is not our intent, but the choice is yours to either believe that which is written in your Father's Word or the lies that are traditionally taught to give "peace" to our people's minds to make them feel like they are in good standing with our Father... when in fact they are in big trouble because of their ignorance of His Word! Woe!

[6] And I will lay it waste: it shall not be pruned, nor digged; but there shall come up briers and thorns: I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.
There are those briers and thorns again! And of course you do know what happens when there is no rain? You get a drought! And if the vineyard is full of briers and thorns that choke the vine, then there will be little to no crop, as in there will be no fruit produced with which to make wine. And so it is written and in fact has already come to pass in this final generation that there would be "famine and drought" in the land. If you are not aware of it, then let the prophet Amos explain exactly what that famine and drought consists of and then perhaps you'll understand.
Amos 8:11-12
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.
You know something? It is written in the first chapter of Ecclesiastes that "there is no new thing under the sun" and if you are familiar with what happened in God's garden in the beginning when he placed Adam there to "dress it" and to "keep it", then there will be no mystery in this Parable of the Vineyard.
Genesis 2:15
And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.
Have you ever looked up the words "dress" and "keep" in Strong's concordance to see in more detail what it is Adam was supposed to do in the garden? He was NOT placed there just to sit around and watch the daisies grow and munch on pomegranates! He was to dress the garden and to keep it, as in be an husbandman and build an hedge about it to keep it protected from the infiltration of bad fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil!
dress, `abad, aw-bad', Hebrew 5647; a primitive root; to work (in any sense); by implication to serve, till, (causative) enslave, etc. :- × be, keep in bondage, be bondmen, bond-service, compel, do, dress, ear, execute, + husbandman, keep, labour (-ing man), bring to pass, (cause to, make to) serve (-ing, self), (be, become) servant (-s), do (use) service, till (-er), transgress [from margin], (set a) work, be wrought, worshipper.

keep, shamar, shaw-mar', Hebrew 8104; a primitive root; properly to hedge about (as with thorns), i.e. guard; generally to protect, attend to, etc. :- beware, be circumspect, take heed (to self), keep (-er, self), mark, look narrowly, observe, preserve, regard, reserve, save (self), sure, (that lay) wait (for), watch (-man).

Had Adam obeyed his Father's command to "dress and keep" the garden, Eve would not have been seduced by the old serpent for Adam would have immediately nipped that bad fruit in the bud! The question is: "How protected are you? Do you have an hedge about you? Is the wall that protects you and gives you peace and security built up and founded upon the Word of God, or is your wall like a Hollywood set put up and painted by playacting ministers of Christ to look real from the front, but when you look underneath and behind it you find it is only a facade that has been whitewashed to look like the real thing? That is exactly what the traditions of men are so perhaps taking a real close look at all the things we have been taught from our youth up is a really good idea. Think about it!

Do you have eyes to see and ears to hear the Parable of our Father's Vineyard? It begins with understanding what His vineyard is and He tells us right here in this 5th chapter of Isaiah.

Isaiah 5:7
For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah His pleasant plant: and He looked for judgment, but behold oppression; for righteousness, but behold a cry.
Unfortunately most of our brothers and sisters do not know who the true house of Israel is, nor do most know the difference between an Hebrew, an Israelite, a Jew (a Judahite), and a Jew (a Kenite). They have been deceived into believing that those who call themselves "Jews" comprise the whole of the "house of Israel", but such is not the case at all. There were 12 sons of Jacob, whose name was changed to Israel, and Judah was but one of them. In fact, following the reign of king Solomon the kingdom was divided and the 10 northern tribes became known as the House of Israel while Judah and Benjamin in the south became known as the House of Judah. And not only do many Bibles have maps in their appendixes clearly depicting the two separate houses, but the history of the migrations of those 10 northern tribes following their captivity is easy to trace... once you are aware of it. The problem is, if you don't know something, then you don't know that you don't know it! So if you don't know who and where the true house of Israel is today, contact Artisan Publishers at www.artisanpublishers.com and purchase the little booklet The Abrahamic Covenant, by E. Raymond Capt.) or log unto pamphlets #1064 and #1020 on this web site.

Mere observation makes is quite obvious that the LORD has blessed "His vineyard" by not only giving them the choicest land on earth replete with abounding fields of amber waves of grain and purple mountains majesty, but also with the abundant availability of His Word. So the big question that was discussed in chapter 4 is why aren't there plump grapes brought forth everywhere throughout the land instead of wild grapes, i.e. instead of poison-berries? Well, we are about to find out why in the presentation of "Six Woes" which is our Father's way of not only expressing His displeasure with what has been transpiring in the vineyard, but that there are some classes of people who are in heap big trouble! Woe!

You see, our people have all kinds of ideas of what pleases God. They go to church and gather to together in assemblies and sing songs and dig deep into their pockets to add to the collection plate, for they are told by their preachers that that is their sacrifice, and then they go out and vote liberals into office and allow the kenites to ride roughshod all over them with the Four Hidden Dynasties, which are Four Horses of Revelation 6. Then they wonder why their prayers are not answered, yet it really never occurs to them to check out their Father's Word and see what it is He is looking to see in His vineyard? Well we just read it in verse 5:7 where He said He looked for truth and justice but all that could be found was oppression and an outcry! You may recall earlier we read from the prophet Amos what our Father thinks about our religious practices (seeking Bethel, i.e. churchianity) verses seeking His truth and justice (seeking Him through His Word).

Amos 5:21-24
I hate, I despise your feast days, and I will not smell in your solemn assemblies.
[22] Though ye offer me burnt offerings and your meat offerings, I will not accept them: neither will I regard the peace offerings of your fat beasts.

[23] Take thou away from me the noise of thy songs; for I will not hear the melody of thy viols.

[24] But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.

This is how our Father views the difference between churchianity and the reality of following Jesus Christ, the Word of God. So let us return to our study of Isaiah and learn why it is the vineyard has produced poison-berries instead of lush grapes. Again, it is presented to us in the form of Six Woes which is so apropos since "6" in Biblical numerics is the number of man as noted in the following excerpt from appendix 10 in the Companion Bible, Kregel Publishers.
SIX. Denotes the human number. Man was created on the sixth day; and this first occurrence of the number makes it (and all multiples of it) the hall-mark of all connected with man. He works six days. The hours of his day are a multiple of six. Athaliah usurped the throne of Judah six years. The great men who have stood out in defiance of God (Goliath and Nebuchadnezzar and Antichrist) are all emphatically marked by this number.
Your Companion Bible on page 937 will also give you an outline of the Six Woes we are about to study as follows:
(1) Covetousness
(2) Desolation
(3) Excess
(4) Captivity
(5) Iniquity
(6) Destruction
WOE (1)
Isaiah 5:8
Woe unto them that join house to house, that lay field to field, till there be no place, that they may be placed alone in the midst of the earth!
"Them that join house to house and flat to flat" refers to the city builders! Do you know who the first city builder was?
Genesis 4:17
And Cain knew his wife; and she conceived, and bare Enoch: and he builded a city, and called the name of the city, after the name of his son, Enoch.
We all know what festering cesspools of theft and crime and murders cities can become when people are packed together like sardines. God certainly did not intend for His children to dwell in such tight quarters, away from mother nature where the air and water become polluted. However, there is a deeper meaning here in not joining house to house and it concerns the house of Israel and the house of Cain. They should not be joined together or it will certainly bring spiritual desolation to our people! And you "see", the house of Cain did join itself to the house of Israel in 2 Chron. 2:55!
1 Chron. 2:55
And the families of the scribes which dwelt at Jabez; the Tirathites, the Shimeathites, and Suchathites. These are the Kenites that came of Hemath, the father of the house of Rechab.
By the time Jesus Christ arrived on the scene, these kenites of the house of Rechab had worked their way into the priesthood and now sat in the seat of Moses, meaning the sons of Cain were in control and in charge of the temple where the people went to worship. Matthew 23:2 "Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat." Well, there is nothing new under the sun, which is why Christ warned us to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees which if allowed to enter in will quickly expand and take over your house.
Matthew 16:6
Then Jesus said unto them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.

Matthew 16:12
Then understood they how that he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.

Sad to say, but the doctrine of the kenites has become pervasive throughout the churches of Christianity... beginning with the false perception that those who call themselves "Jews" are God's chosen people by "heritage", i.e. because they are of Abraham's seed! Sorry, but as the Word of God declares in both Rev. 2:9 and 3:9, that is simply not true! The kenites are NOT of Judah as they claim to be for they are liars and are of the synagogue of Satan. Rev. 3:9 "Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee." Rev. 2:9 "I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan."

And so it is of a truth, that many "houses", both individual as well as houses of worship, have become desolate because of the joining of house to house and field to field!

Isaiah 5:9
In mine ears said the LORD of hosts, Of a truth many houses shall be desolate, even great and fair, without inhabitant.
Though many houses claim to be Christian, many are desolate because they are actually void of Jesus Christ, the Word of God. Those houses have become Beth-avens (houses of emptiness), uninhabited with truth, instead of Beth-els (houses of God) wherein Jesus Christ, the Word of God dwells. Again, many go to church but all they are taught there are the empty (vain) traditions of men laden with the doctrine of the scribes and Pharisees. And so it is that fertile ground with which to plant the seeds of truth from our Father's Word is rare and hard to be found. One would think that because of God's bountiful blessings and the availability of His Word there should be tons of lush ripe grapes with which to produce wine, but the fact is that the harvest is very poor indeed! How poor is it? (Next verse.)
[10] Yea, ten acres of vineyard shall yield one bath, and the seed of an homer shall yield an ephah.
First of all, one should know that "the land" does not yield her strength for the kenites, the house of Cain. Let's document that:
Genesis 4:9-12
And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper?

[10] And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground.

[11] And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand;

[12] When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth.

So with the kenites in possession of the land (the vineyard), having entered in and joined their house to ours (2 Chron. 2:55), what kind of a yield would you expect? Not much if you have the wisdom from our Father's Word to understand the Parable of the Vineyard.

Spiritually speaking, ten acres, like the ten tribes of Israel, should produce vats and vats of "firstfruit" grapes. But alas, only one bath which is about six English gallons is yielded from ten acres of the vineyard. Also, an homer of seed, which equals about 10 ephahs, an ephah being about three English pecks, should produce wagons full of grain with which to make bread. But alas, only a 10th of that which is sown is yielded in the harvest. That's disastrous, wouldn't you say?

The point is, it is pretty obvious to those who do labor in the vineyard that there are not too many who have eyes to see or ears to hear as rich fertile ground has become a precious commodity indeed in these last days, during this time of great drought and famine (Amos 8:11-13)! Of course our Father warned us long ago through the hand of Moses, that if we choose to follow the ways of the city builders and the idolatrous traditions of men which are contrary to the laws and statutes of truth and justice, i.e. His Word, then we would reap the consequences which in this case are the curses that come as a result.

Deut. 28:15-16
But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee:

[16] Cursed shalt thou be in the city, and cursed shalt thou be in the field.

Woe unto those who cause our people to be drawn away from His  laws and statutes!
Deut. 28:38-39


Thou shalt carry much seed out into the field, and shalt gather but little in; for the locust shall consume it.

"Ten acres of vineyard shall yield one bath, and the seed of an homer shall yield an ephah" for the locusts, who are the kenites, have consumed the heritage of the vineyard!
[39] Thou shalt plant vineyards, and dress them, but shalt neither drink of the wine, nor gather the grapes; for the worms shall eat them.
The vineyard should produce plenty of grapes with which to make wine, but instead they are eaten by the worms and that which is produced are poison-berries!
 
WOE (2)
Isaiah 5:11
Woe unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong drink; that continue until night, till wine inflame them!
Yes, over indulgence in strong drink and wine have caused much desolation among our people. However, the reality is that it is symptomatic, a flesh manifestation, of a spiritual problem. Then too, our Father uses drunkenness whereby a person becomes inflamed to the point he or she stumbles and staggers and falls, to give us an analogy, a picture, of the religious drunkenness caused by the spiritual strong drink and wine served by the king of Babylon himself, which the majority of our people partake of because our spiritual leaders follow after his strong drink and wine! You "see", spiritually speaking the priesthood is to abstain from spiritual "strong drink" and "wine", i.e. the intoxicating doctrines and traditions of men, when they enter into the tabernacle of the congregation, lest they die! WOE! This is serious business my friend! Here are Father's instructions to the priesthood:
Leviticus 10:8
And the LORD spake unto Aaron, saying,

[9] Do not drink wine nor strong drink, thou, nor thy sons with thee, when ye go into the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations:

Our Father doesn’t like the traditions of men, man’s intoxicating religion which comes from strong drink and the wine taken from the chalice cup of Babylon. You "see", the duties of the priests are to educate the people in God's laws and statutes that they might know the difference between the holy and the profane, between the false messiah and the true messiah, that they might be able to discern between the clean and the unclean.
[10] And that ye may put difference between holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean;

[11] And that ye may teach the children of Israel all the statutes which the LORD hath spoken unto them by the hand of Moses.

This next verse documents that we are talking about religion and spiritual drunkenness.
Isaiah 5:12
And the harp, and the viol, the tabret, and pipe, and wine, are in their feasts: but they regard not the work of the LORD, neither consider the operation of his hands.
Satan beats the drum and plays the fife and the people march to his tune! You could say that he is the pied piper who leads the children of Israel away from the mercy seat of truth and justice to follow after his ways and the ways of man. And so it is that his ministers and preachers regard not the "work of the LORD, neither consider the operation of His hands" but rather through their traditions lead our people in a march to their spiritual death. Agriculturally and spiritually speaking, that is to say that by ignoring His Word and not keeping His commands to the priesthood to teach, they produce no fruit for the kingdom of God... therefore He shall destroy them as in "lest ye die (Lev. 10:9)".
Psalm 28:5
Because they regard not the works of the LORD, nor the operation of his hands, He shall destroy them, and not build them up.
Here now is want happens when the priests do not teach and lead His people to follow His laws and statutes.
Isaiah 5:13
Therefore my people are gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge: and their honourable men are famished, and their multitude dried up with thirst.
Our people shall fail, which is to stumble and fall before Satan, because of famine and drought in these last days which Amos clearly explains is a spiritual famine and dearth for the hearing of the truth of God's Word (Amos 8:11-13)! And what happens during an extended period of drought and famine? People and animals die, don't they, and you end up with a valley of dry bones (Ezek. 37)!
[14] Therefore hell hath enlarged herself, and opened her mouth without measure: and their glory, and their multitude, and their pomp, and he that rejoiceth, shall descend into it.
The vineyard has become as a graveyard because the truth of God's Word has been dried up!
[15] And the mean man shall be brought down, and the mighty man shall be humbled, and the eyes of the lofty shall be humbled:
The mean (common) man shall fall and those high and mighty preachers who have pied-pipered them to march to their spiritual death by following after the traditions of men shall be brought to their knees in shame and humiliation!
[16] But the LORD of hosts shall be exalted in judgment, and God that is holy shall be sanctified in righteousness.
There shall surely be judgment and righteousness flowing like mighty rivers through the vineyard when Yahshua Messiah returns to this earth to set up His ruling kingdom.
[17] Then shall the lambs feed after their manner, and the waste places of the fat ones shall strangers eat.
Satan shall be bound for a thousand years and God's elect, His just ones, the Zadok, shall fulfill the duties of the preisthood without ever going astray! It is written... and so shall it be.
Ezekiel 44:23-24
And they shall teach my people the difference between the holy and profane, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean.

[24] And in controversy they shall stand in judgment; and they shall judge it according to my judgments: and they shall keep my laws and my statutes in all mine assemblies; and they shall hallow my sabbaths.

What a time we have to look forward to! He is so good to His children, especially to those who do regard His works and the operation of His hands.

As the famine of these last days waxes worse and worse in our land, that famine being for the hearing of the Word of God as documented in Amos 8:11-13, righteous judgment is proportionately deteriorating to the point where more and more evil is being declared good and more and more good is being declared evil (Isa. 5:20). All one has to do to verify that is keep up with the current news of the day. Consider for example the recent ungodly judgments of the highest court in our land: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A41371-2003Jun27.html

Supreme Court's Rulings on Gays, Race Surprises

Reuters
Friday, June 27, 2003; 3:10 PM

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court's just-ended term defied expectations, with historic rulings that strongly endorsed racial preferences and gave gays broad constitutional protection for private consensual sex...

One simply cannot execute righteous judgment without the true knowledge and wisdom of God's Word or by willingly or even ignorantly forsaking His laws and statutes. The reality is that truth and justice are intimately woven together and therefore the "woes" we are reading about here in Isaiah chapter 5 apply to both the ecclesiastic and civil leaders... beginning first with the religious leaders in these last days who have despised and disregarded the Word of God and have substituted a form of feel-good praise and worship in the stead of teaching His laws and statutes. Remember in our last study we covered the duties of the priesthood which are to teach His people, not assemble them together to wave and clap their hands and say Lord, Lord, Praise the Lord, and then cause them to give money to charities (mainly their own). Our beloved brothers and sisters who are caught up in that form of "churchianity" need led to read Matthew 7:21-23, for unless they begin to come to know the Lord Jesus Christ through His Word, they shall be in for a big disappointment on the day of His return they so look forward to.
Matthew 7:21-23
Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

[22] Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?

Make no mistake about it! Jesus is talking about those who call themselves Christians. They blindly follow after the traditions of men and do those things that their churches and their preachers tell them is pleasing to God... but it is not!
[23] And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
Remember in 16th & 17th verses of Isaiah 5, we read that the LORD of hosts shall yet be exalted in judgment and sanctified in righteousness and His people shall be fed the truth of His Word. That means that the truth and justice He now looks for in His Vineyard but finds oppression and outcry, shall soon flow like mighty rivers from His throne during the Millennium. Though we made that point, let's review how it shall be at that time when God's elect, the Zadok who are His just ones, shall reign, as in teach and rule, with Jesus Christ for a thousand years.
Ezekiel 44:23-24


And they shall teach my people the difference between the holy and profane, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean.

This is the truth part. Again, one must be filled with the knowledge and wisdom of God's Word, which is His righteousness, before he or she can properly discern and execute righteous judgment either in his or her personal life or from either the pulpit or the bench. And it shall come to pass that God's people shall be fed, meaning they shall be taught during the Millennium by His rulers and teachers, His "kings" and "priests", the Zadok, who shall live and reign a thousand with Jesus Christ, the King of kings and Lord of lords (Rev. 20:4).
The next verse speaks of the judgment part. Notice how all judgment shall be executed according to righteousness, which is the Word of God. That means there will be no separation of God and state, doesn't it? All communism, socialism, and all forms of liberalism shall be snuffed out and trampled under foot!
Ezekiel 44:24


And in controversy they shall stand in judgment; and they shall judge it according to my judgments* : and they shall keep my laws and my statutes in all mine assemblies; and they shall hallow my sabbaths.

The Hebrew word for judgment used here is "mishpat" which in this case means divine law.
*judgment, mishpat*, mish-pawt', Hebrew 4941; from Hebrew 8199 (shaphat*); properly a verdict (favorable or unfavorable) pronounced judicially, especially a sentence or formal decree (human or [participle] divine law, individual or collective), including the act, the place, the suit, the crime, and the penalty; abstract justice, including a participle right, or privilege (statutory or customary), or even a style :- + adversary, ceremony, charge, × crime, custom, desert, determination, discretion, disposing, due, fashion, form, to be judged, judgment, just (-ice, -ly), (manner of) law (-ful), manner, measure, (due) order, ordinance, right, sentence, usest, × worth, + wrong.
Did you know it used to be that a judge in this great nation had to know the books of Leviticus and Deuteronomy in order to qualify to sit on the bench. Now those books are not allowed in the court rooms as the enemies of Christianity, the kenites through their antichristian organizations, continue their onslaught with every attempt to remove not only prayer from our schools but even the 10 Commandments from our halls of justice. But woe unto them because as sure as the sun comes up in the morning, those who lead our people astray and cause and execute injustice contrary to Father's Word, contrary to His laws and statutes, shall find themselves on the receiving end of the wrath of Almighty God. Woe! Let us now continue with the last four of the "6" Woes of Isaiah chapter five, for they are written for these last days upon whom the ends of the world are come.


WOE (3)

Isaiah 5:18
Woe unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity, and sin as it were with a cart rope:
These are simply figures of speech concerning mass deception which causes widespread spiritual desolation and woe to those who bring it about. Here are Strong's definitions for "vanity" and "sin":
vanity, shav', shawv, Hebrew 7723; or shav, shav; from the same as Hebrew 7722 (show') in the sense of desolating; evil (as destructive), literal (ruin) or moral (especially guile); figurative idolatry (as false, subjective), uselessness (as deceptive, objective; also adverb in vain) :- false (-ly), lie, lying, vain, vanity.

sin, chat*t*a'ah, khat-taw-aw', Hebrew 2402; (Chaldee); corresponding to Hebrew 2401 (chat*a'ah); an offence, and the penalty or sacrifice for it :- sin (offering).

Woe to those bring forth cartloads of sin and heap spiritual ruin upon our people by their lying to them with their vain and idolatrous traditions of men. Read Ezekiel 13:1-9 for further details of this woe to the false preachers and ministers of our day. The irony in all this is that most of those false prophets, who are the majority of today's Christian preachers and ministers who Christ warned us about in Matthew 24 and Mark 13, who would come and deceive the multitudes with their carloads of falsehoods (traditions), is that they are looking forward to the Day of the Lord expecting to receive a reward! "For what", He will say (Mat. 7:23)? For working iniquity, which is to starve and deceive our people and thus cause them to stumble and fall before Satan? You "see", it is their teaching of traditions and their lack of teaching His Word chapter by chapter and verse by verse that has produced poison-berries in the vineyard instead of lush grapes! Woe to them on that great day!
[19] That say, Let Him make speed, and hasten His work, that we may see it: and let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw nigh and come, that we may know it!
Again, most of our spiritual leaders who are responsible for the lack of "judgment and righteousness" in the vineyard think that they are doing the work of the Lord, but the plainly visible poison-berries in the vineyard declare that the majority of preachers "regard not the work of the LORD, neither consider the operation of his hands (Isa. 5:12)". Most do not even know the plan of God, His will, and the judgment He shall bring with Him. Well, they are going to see the counsel and the judgment of the Holy One of Israel and realize when they face Him that the desolation, the spiritual death brought upon our people by the famine and the drought, is of their doing.

By the way, you can also apply this woe to the scoffers of 2 Peter 3:4-7 who defy His Word and say "Where is the promise of His coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation." You "see", they are "willingly" ignorant of His Word which declares that our Father destroyed the age of the dinosaurs, called the "world that then was (2 Pet. 3:6)", for the very same reason He is going to bring His "fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men (2 Pet. 3:7)" at the end of this final generation. Woe to the willingly ignorant!

WOE (4)

Isaiah 5:20
Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
Once again this applies to both the religious and civil leaders of our people who turn the truth of His Word upside down. However, because the root problem comes from the drying up of the truth of God's Word in these last days, which is why judgment begins at the house of God (1 Pet. 4:17), we will focus on those who should be the messengers of His truth but instead teach and promote the iniquitous traditions of men and call it "good and pleasing in the sight of the Lord"! WOE!
evil, ra`, rah, Hebrew 7451; from Hebrew 7489 (ra`a`); bad or (as noun) evil (natural or moral) :- adversity, affliction, bad, calamity, + displease (-ure), distress, evil ([-favouredness], man, thing), + exceedingly, × great, grief (-vous), harm, heavy, hurt (-ful), ill (favoured), + mark, mischief (-vous), misery, naught (-ty), noisome, + not please, sad (-ly), sore, sorrow, trouble, vex, wicked (-ly, -ness, one), worse (-st), wretchedness, wrong. [Incling feminine ra`ah; as adjective or noun.]
Our Father is growing very weary by what is happening in His vineyard and He does not like those who call themselves His messengers, i.e. come in the name of Christ claiming to represent Him as His ministers of light, and tell His children that the do-gooder traditions they follow are pleasing in the sight of the LORD, when as we read in Amos 5:21-24 He clearly states that He hates their songs and will not smell the incense of their prayers because they remain ignorant of His Word, which is righteousness, and as a result the land has become spiritually desolate, void of judgment and righteousness! Here is what the LORD has to say to those "messengers".
Malachi 2:17
Ye have wearied the LORD with your words. Yet ye say, Wherein have we wearied him? When ye say, Every one that doeth evil is good in the sight of the LORD, and He delighteth in them; or, Where is the God of judgment?
Malachi means "my messenger" and the entire book is written to the priesthood, those who are to be the messengers of truth and justice, those who are to hold fast to the Word of God and not stray off into the corrupted traditions of men that make void the Word of God and cause our people to fall. Malachi 2:7-8 "For the priest's lips should keep knowledge, and they should seek the law at His mouth: for he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts. [8] But ye are departed out of the way; ye have caused many to stumble at the law; ye have corrupted the covenant of Levi, saith the LORD of hosts.

Here is another message to them, one that they ignore (because they know not it is written to them) and instead turn upside down for their own self gain and use it to lay "guilt trips" upon our brothers and sisters to cause them to give more money.

Malachi 3:8
Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.
Just about any Sunday morning you can turn on the idiot box and see some preacher misapply this verse, again because it is written to the preachers... not to their congregations! The Hebrew word for "robbed" used here is qaba, kaw-bah', Strong's #H6906, and it is used only three times in the manuscripts. It is a prime root meaning to "defraud"!  Check it out. What the LORD is saying is that the preachers have robbed Him and His people by taking tithes into the storehouse but NOT providing "meat" for His people to eat! They feed them fluff... like snakes and apples, and Ishtar bunnies and eggs, and "fly-away" rapture theories, and on and on!
[9] Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.
Again, it is the preachers who have robbed God, not the people, for the preachers have robbed the peoplr also... and not just of their money but of their opportunity to come to a knowledge of the truth whereby they might have life! Here is what the "messengers" are supposed to do:
[10] Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
If you teach His Word chapter by chapter and verse by verse after the manner of "Thus saith the Lord" and "It is written" then you will never have to ask for money or support.

WOE (5)

Isaiah 5:21
Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!
wise, chakam, khaw-kawm', Hebrew 2450; from Hebrew 2449 (chakam); wise, (i.e. intelligent, skilful or artful) :- cunning (man), subtil, ([un-]), wise ([hearted], man).
Ah, the trademark of ego... the ID of liberalism and so-called enlightenment! People get all puffed up with knowledge taken from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil instead of from the Tree of Life, and they think they know-it-all! They think that they can determine for themselves what is right and what is wrong rather than hold to the standards of God's laws and statutes and precepts. To wit the justices of our Supreme Court! The only problem is that "The way that seemeth right unto a man, leads to certain death... spiritual death (Prov. 14:14, 16:25)! What did God tell Adam? Genesis 2:17 "But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die." There is no "maybe" in "Thou shalt surely die!"

Yes, the "enlightened" consider themselves to be wise which is the same old "bull" from the beginning where Satan twisted the Word of God and convinced mother Eve that she would be enlightened and "NOT surely die!" Genesis 3:4 "And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die." Then the old low-life snake, Satan appearing as an angel of light to Eve, i.e. a teacher of God's Word who surely would not lead her astray, spoke on God's behalf and claimed the following lie:

Genesis 3:5
For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
"God knows you are able to determine what is right and wrong, Eve! A loving God will not surely not sentence you to die as long as you lead a good life and do what you think is right." Oh really? Proverbs 14:12 "There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death." Nevertheless liberals, be they liberal judges or liberal politicians or liberal preachers or liberals of any other category, believe in their own eyes that they can determine the standards of right and wrong! Sorry! Your liberalism is but a festering airborne disease that is fatal to those who are infected with its lies and the injustice which follows in its wake! WOE!

WOE (6)

Isaiah 5:22
Woe unto them that are mighty to drink wine, and men of strength to mingle strong drink:
Apply the same analogy here of physical drunkenness to spiritual drunkenness as we did back in verse 11, especially knowing that those who are being addressed in this verse are "mighty men", supposed spiritual warriors, and "men of strength", who are men of great influence among the people. We already showed that the priests are NOT to drink wine nor strong drink when they enter into the tabernacle (Lev. 10:9), meaning they are not to become spiritually intoxicated with the idolatrous teachings and traditions of men. They are to be and remain sober minded and teach all the laws and statutes of God's Word to the people.

As far as the kings and civil rulers of our people, "woe" unto them also because they have jumped in bed with the old harlot and "have become (spiritually) drunken with the wine of the wrath of her fornication", i.e. because of the wealth and prosperity she rewards them with. To wit, they have become spiritual whores themselves, selling out and compromising the laws and statutes of God, politically called by other names like "family values", etc., for self gain! WOE unto them!

Rev. 18:3-5
For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.

[4] And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.

Our Father wants us to come out of the spiritual confusion and drunkenness of Babylon the Great, else we will get thumped right along with her!
[5] For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.
God "sees all" that goes on in the world and in His vineyard, and He has remembered the iniquities of the great harlot and those who jump in bed with her, which means His warning of "woe" to them is about to manifest itself in action! They are compromisers of truth and justice because lobbyists and constituents reward them with money, power, and ego (prestige) to do so!
Isaiah 5:23
Which justify the wicked for reward, and take away the righteousness of the righteous from him!
Yes, it would seem that the gods of gold and silver play a monumental part in the spiritual battle of these last days. Babylon the great operates under its own version of the "Golden Rule" which is, "The Guys With the Gold Make the Rules!" But do not be afraid to take a stand against the fiery darts of the wicked one nor be anxious when you are delivered up before that old king of Babylon, for as it is written in Luke 21:18 concerning that time, "But there shall not an hair of your head perish". Your ensample is Shadrach, Meshach, and Abedneggo, when they were bound and cast into the fiery furnace by the most mighty men of Nebuchadnezzar's army. Daniel 3:27 "And the princes, governors, and captains, and the king's counsellors, being gathered together, saw these men, upon whose bodies the fire had no power, nor was an hair of their head singed, neither were their coats changed, nor the smell of fire had passed on them."

What then shall our Father do with those who have caused His vineyard to become waste?

[24] Therefore as the fire devoureth the stubble, and the flame consumeth the chaff, so their root shall be as rottenness, and their blossom shall go up as dust: because they have cast away the law of the LORD of hosts, and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.
His people have gone astray, having been led astray... yes, but nevertheless gone astray. They have forsaken their God by casting away the law of the LORD of hosts and by "despising" the word of the Holy One of Israel which is to blaspheme His name, which means His authority.
despised, na'ats, naw-ats', Hebrew 5006; a primitive root; to scorn; or (Eccles. 122:Hebrew 5 ('Abagtha')) by interchange for Hebrew 5132 (nuwts), to bloom :- abhor, (give occasion to) blaspheme, contemn, despise, flourish, × great, provoke.
Babylon the great of these last days, the New World Order which is nothing more than the Old World Order from the "world that then was", is full of “blaspheme”, i.e. full of laws and authorities that are contrary to the word of the Holy One of Israel! It is written:
Rev. 13:1


   And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.

This first beast of Revelation 13 is the one world political system, the New World Order, whose name, i.e. its authority, e.g. political correctness, are contrary to the law of the LORD. The following is symbolic of what is happening to righteousness and judgment in the vineyard as His law is literally cast aside!

Court Orders Removal of Monument to Ten Commandments http://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/02/national/02COMM.html

A federal appeals court ordered the chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court yesterday to remove a monument engraved with the Ten Commandments from the rotunda of his courthouse. The United States Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, in Atlanta, concluded that the monument violates the First Amendment's prohibition on government establishment of religion. The court was also unusually blunt in responding to the assertion by Chief Justice Roy S. Moore in court papers in the case that he does not recognize the authority of the federal court in this matter.

... The 5,280-pound granite monument setting out the Ten Commandments was erected in August 2001 as the centerpiece of the rotunda of the Alabama State Judicial Building, which houses several state courts, the state's law library and the court system's administrative office.

Three lawyers who found the monument offensive sued to have it removed. In November, Judge Myron H. Thompson of Federal District Court in Montgomery ruled in their favor. One of the plaintiffs, Stephen R. Glassroth, a criminal defense lawyer in Montgomery, called yesterday's decision a vindication.

Chief Justice Moore has been closely associated with the Ten Commandments through his career on the Alabama bench. He hung a hand-carved plaque depicting the commandments in his courtroom when he was a circuit court judge in Gadsden, generating controversy and lawsuits. In 2000, he successfully campaigned for chief justice as the "Ten Commandments judge." The appeals court noted that the excerpts from Exodus chiseled into the tablets are a Protestant version of the commandments. "Jewish, Catholic, Lutheran and Eastern Orthodox faiths use different parts of their holy texts as the authoritative Ten Commandments," the court said. "The point is that choosing which version of the Ten Commandments to display can have religious endorsement implications."

The sad part is, we as a people have become so drawn away from the mercy seat of truth and justice and indoctrinated with lies concerning both our Constitution and the Word of God, that we allow such idiocy and nonsense to continue. How do you think that makes our Father feel? Do you think He is happy with His children? Well, we do know He loves them very much and who He loves He chastens... for their own good (Heb. 12:5-6).
Isaiah 5:25
Therefore is the anger of the LORD kindled against His people, and He hath stretched forth His hand against them, and hath smitten them: and the hills did tremble, and their carcases were torn in the midst of the streets. For all this His anger is not turned away, but His hand is stretched out still.
When God stretches forth His hand to chastise His children, watch out! You "see", He is going to send the king of Babylon, Satan as the false-christ, and there shall be much spiritual desolation throughout the land. That is what the expression "their carcases were torn in the midst of the streets" refers to. It means that there will so many spiritually dead they will be like dung in the streets. Remember we discussed Satan's birds of prey in Mat. 24:28 who shall come and gather the "carcasses", the spiritually dead, and carry them away spiritually to worship the false messiah.
[26] And he will lift up an ensign to the nations from far, and will hiss unto them from the end of the earth: and, behold, they shall come with speed swiftly:
Again, God is going to send the king of Babylon, Satan, and the most mighty men of his army, the fallen angels (Rev. 12:7-9), against His people to chastise them. Of course this was written of long ago in the law, the law the priests are to teach, the law "which the LORD hath spoken unto them by the hand of Moses".
Deut. 28:49-50
The LORD shall bring a nation against thee from far, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flieth; a nation whose tongue thou shalt not understand;

[50] A nation of fierce countenance, which shall not regard the person of the old, nor shew favour to the young:

As it is written, Satan and his locust army shall come swiftly upon the land and strike as snakes and scorpions. However it is also written in Rev. 9:3-5 that those who have the seal of God in their foreheads will not be spiritually harmed. How about you? Do you study your Father's Word and keep His commands whereby you are donned with the full and spiritually impenetrable gospel armor of God, or do you follow after the iniquitous traditions of men that leave you without protection against the fiery darts of the old dragon? It is time to awaken from spiritual slumber for the hour is late and as it is written in Rev. 12:7-9, Satan and his angels will soon be cast out of heaven to this earth... and "woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea... (Rev. 12:12)".
Isaiah 5:27
None shall be weary nor stumble among them; none shall slumber nor sleep; neither shall the girdle of their loins be loosed, nor the latchet of their shoes be broken:
Nothing will stop the onslaught of Satan's locust army. They are well organized and as it is written in the great Book of Joel, they run like mighty men and "they shall not break their ranks". Joel 2:7-8 "They shall run like mighty men; they shall climb the wall like men of war; and they shall march every one on his ways, and they shall not break their ranks."
[28] Whose arrows are sharp, and all their bows bent, their horses' hoofs shall be counted like flint, and their wheels like a whirlwind:
Those sharp arrows cannot penetrate the gospel armor of God. By the way, are you familiar with the "horses" and "whirlwinds" described in the scriptures? Have you ever read about the highly polished bronze whirling vehicles in Ezekiel chapter one? If not, check out pamphlets #8001 and #8010.
[29] Their roaring shall be like a lion, they shall roar like young lions: yea, they shall roar, and lay hold of the prey, and shall carry it away safe, and none shall deliver it.
This is simply another analogous description of how awesome Satan's angelic host shall be. In Revelation 9:8-9 we read how they will appear gentle as women but spiritually they will rip and shred and tear our people to pieces with their massive cheek teeth.
Rev. 9:8-9
And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions.
Again, "having hair as the hair of women" means they will appear to be gentle, but what they do with their mouths is another matter, a spiritually destructive matter!
[9] And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle.
These are the breastplates not of soldiers but rather the breastplates of priests, for they shall appear as angels of light! But they shall spew forth their flood of lies and deceits and cause the whole world to worship after the beast and fall before Satan.
Isaiah 5:30
And in that day they shall roar against them like the roaring of the sea: and if one look unto the land, behold darkness and sorrow, and the light is darkened in the heavens thereof.
Can you "look unto the land" even now and "behold darkness and sorrow"? The light of truth is slowly but surely being snuffed out as the smoke from the pit has already greatly darkened the spiritual atmosphere. Rev. 9:2 "And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit." Even so, we are yet to enter into the greatest period of spiritual darkness the world has ever known when "the moon" (symbolic of Satan) comes and totally eclipses the sun (symbolic of Christ), i.e. Satan comes disguised and posing as Jesus Christ. Yes, that day when the 6th Trump sounds and the son of perdition, that abomination of desolation, Satan himself, is cast from heaven to this earth and comes and stands in the holy place claiming to be God, will far surpass all the Dark Ages of history. However, it shall not be dark for the children of light who walk in His ways, those who have awaken to the truth and have come out of the spiritual darkness and drunkenness of Babylon the great. Are you a child of Light? Let us conclude this study with the Word of God spoken through Paul concerning the light and the darkness.
1 Thes. 5:4-11
But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.

[5] Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.

We never walk in darkness because we dwell in the light of truth.
[6] Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.
Be sober minded and do the work of the watchman!
[7] For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night.
We've covered the spiritual drunkenness this is referring to.
[8] But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.
Keep the gospel armour on and in place.
[9] For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,
His children of light are not the objects of the woes nor the recipients of His wrath that shall be poured out upon the ungodly.
[10] Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him.

[11] Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.

Take great comfort in knowing that our Father is in charge and in complete control... even of the locust army He sends against His people to chastise them for "casting away the law of the LORD of hosts, and despising the word of the Holy One of Israel." He is so good to us and we thank Him for all He has done.

To study the Bible is the noblest of all pursuits; to understand it, the highest of all goals.
We pray that with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, you accomplish both.



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