Presents
Lesson 6 "That Fearsome Locust Army" from The
Book of Joel
Details of that fearsome locust army from the
9th chapter of Revelation.
Joel 1:3
Tell
ye your children of it, and let your children tell their children, and
their children another generation.
Tell your generations and their
generations until the last
generation (of sons and daughters) is here, which is the generation
when
all these things He has foretold us shall be fulfilled (Mat. 24:34). And
He has foretold us all things, the details of which He told us through
His prophets: Mark 13:23
"But take ye
heed: behold, I have foretold you all things." By
the way, if your father
or one of your forefathers has broken this commandment of God in Joel
1:3
to tell your children His words contained herein, then YOU get busy
studying
His Word and learn the truth and restart the process with your children. John 14:15 "If ye love me, keep my
commandments."
Locusts, Locusts, Everywhere!
Having come this far in the great Book of Joel, we now know "Who" is to Blow the Trumpet and "Where" it is to be sounded and "What" the sounds are that the trumpeter is to herald, i.e. that Apollyon and his locust army are coming at the sound of the 6th Trump before Jesus Christ returns five months later at the sound of the 7th Trump! Therefore, there is only one thing left to know and understand and that is "When" are we to Blow the Trumpet in Zion and Sound the Alarm!
No problem! We are given that answer by the prophet Joel in these next few verses:
Peter qualified the "afterward" as meaning "in the last days": "And it shall come to pass in the last days... (Acts 2: 17). And as we learned from the Song of Moses in Deuteronomy 32, His doctrine, i.e. His truth, His Word, His spirit, IS that rain which shall be poured out upon all flesh, even all nations: Mark 13:10 "And the gospel must first be published [heralded] among all nations."Joel 2:28
And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:
Hey, you know the saying, "When it Rains, it Pours!" Hmmm... Wasn't that the slogan for Morton Salt? It brings to mind the scripture "Ye are the salt of the earth (Mat. 5:13)". Nevertheless, it is the "latter day rain" of Joel 2:23 which we have already covered that is the pouring out of God's Spirit, His truth.And it is poured out upon ALL flesh through His sons and daughters of this final generation.Deut. 32:2
My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech shall distil as the dew, as the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass:
Through His Spirit, symbolized by the olive* oil, which is received through prayer and by studying His Word, the "wise" virgins of the last days shall and have come to understand (see) the visions of the prophets. It is written that the angel spoke unto Daniel the prophet and said "... Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. [10] Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly: and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand." Yes, they would "See" the visions of the prophets in the last days!Joel 2:28 ... and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
* Note: Isn't it most interesting that the word "Olive" in Greek is actually "Joel" (Yah is El) in reverse. Check it out:
olive = dëáßá elaiael-ah'-yah Strong's #1636
Feminine of a presumed derivative from an obsolete primary; an olive (the tree or the fruit):—olive (berry, tree).
This phrase really has a double meaning, because as the young men and women grow in their "understanding" of the visions, they also begin to actually "see the prophetic visions" come to pass, many of which have already come to pass! So these young lovers of God's Word will be teaching His truth in "Brotherly Love" and blowing the trumpet in the ears of their slumbering Brothers and Sisters. They are as watchmen and shepherds over the House of Israel to whom they are sent and they speak out boldly against the deception of the wolves in sheep's clothing who come in the name of Jesus and deceive our people with the traditions of men and by blowing the wrong ram's horn! This is the witness of the Church of Philadelphia (Rev. 3:7-13), the Church of Brotherly love!Joel 2:28 ... your young men shall see visions:
But there will be another witness by those of another candlestick. It shall be by the "old men" who "shall dream dreams" before the kings and rulers of the nations, just as Christ foretold us in Mat. 24 and Mark 13, which JO-EL refers to in the following phrase given by the Spirit to perk the ears of the wise and spiritually mature who do know the scriptures!
Let's document to those with eyes to see and ears to hear what Joel is talking about. Do you know and recall the story of Joseph who was "betrayed by his brothers" and sold into bondage? Well, after Joseph was taken to Egypt, the "woman", who was the master's unfaithful wife, tried to "seduce" him, but to no avail and so the scorned woman saw to it that Joseph was "cast into prison", the king's prison!Joel 2:28 ... your old men shall dream dreams,
But have no fear, the LORD was with Joseph! You see, if you are a servant of God then has PROMISED "He will NEVER leave thee or forsake thee (Heb. 13:5)!"Genesis 39:20
And Joseph's master took him, and put him into the prison, a place where the king's prisoners were bound: and he was there in the prison.
Then the butler and baker who were cast into the prison with Joseph both dreamed a dream and Joseph, having informed them both that "interpretations belong to God", told them the meanings of their dreams. Then later, Pharaoh himself, a type of vile person, also "dreamed a dream" and when he could find no one to interpret the dream the butler "remembered" Joseph and told Pharaoh about him. Soooo... Joseph was brought out of the dungeon and "brought before the ruler" of Egypt![21] But the LORD was with Joseph, and shewed him mercy, and gave him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison.
Joseph spoke the interpretation of the dream to Pharaoh as it was given to him by the Holy Spirit! Got it so far?Genesis 41:14
Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they brought him hastily out of the dungeon: and he shaved himself, and changed his raiment, and came in unto Pharaoh.Genesis 41:15
And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I have dreamed a dream, and there is none that can interpret it: and I have heard say of thee, that thou canst understand a dream to interpret it.[16] And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, It is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace.
Now let's go to another historical "type" of vile person, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, who also dreamed a dream and sought for someone to interpret it for him.
Of course these religious leaders, the so-called wise men, had no clue, no idea whatsoever, what the dream was. But God's servant Daniel, who along with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego was "taken captive" by the king of Babylon, was shown the interpretation thereof by the Holy Spirit and then he was "delivered up" before this world ruling king.Daniel 2:3
And the king [Nebuchadnezzar] said unto them [the religious leaders], I have dreamed a dream, and my spirit was troubled to know the dream.
We already know from Joseph's witness that "interpretations belong to God" so therefore man, without God's spirit, no matter how smart he is or thinks he is, cannot know the meaning of the dreams and visions on his own! Wisdom comes God!Daniel 2:26
The king answered and said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, Art thou able to make known unto me the dream which I have seen, and the interpretation thereof?
They are all a bunch of hypocrites and self-serving con-artists who do not know the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob! You can actually turn on your television set and find many of their modern day counterparts! There is nothing new under the sun.[27] Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, The secret which the king hath demanded cannot the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, the soothsayers, shew unto the king;
Nebuchadnezzar's dream was a vision for the latter days! But notice again that God's servant Daniel was "delivered up" before the king of Babylon, and his very life depended on him giving witness from God to king of the golden empire! Hey, NO PROBLEM! Daniel could cut it![28] But there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets, and maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. Thy dream, and the visions of thy head upon thy bed, are these;
So what did Joel mean by "your old men shall dream dreams?" The dreaming of dreams is the "delivering up" before rulers and kings and before Satan himself, the king of Babylon of Revelation. Christ foretold us all this in Mat. 24, Mark 13 and Luke 21! But even before that He told us through Joel the prophet, didn't he?
Just as Joseph and Daniel were brought before kings and rulers, so shall some of the spiritually mature sons and daughters, "the old men", be delivered up in this final generation and "dream dreams" before kings and rulers as a witness against them! And you know what, neither Joseph nor Daniel had to premeditate what they would say, did they? Neither shall you if and when you are delivered up. In fact, Christ said "Do not premeditate" for He will handle the words of your mouth in that hour:Mark 13:9
But take heed to yourselves: for they shall deliver you up to councils; and in the synagogues ye shall be beaten: and ye shall be brought before rulers and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them.
This is the witness of the Church of Smyrna in Rev. 2:8-11:Mark 13:11
But when they shall lead you, and deliver you up, take no thought beforehand what ye shall speak, neither do ye premeditate: but whatsoever shall be given you in that hour, that speak ye: for it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Ghost.
If you are destined and called to be delivered up, take it seriously but "Don't sweat it", i.e. the 10 days of tribulation! "Be thou faithful unto death" simply means "hang in there baby", i.e. in the face of Satan (whose name is death). You know what is happening! Just do as Daniel and his friends did and simply do not partake of the king of Babylon's tainted meat and leavened garbage (the tribulation), but rather eat and digest God's Word prayerfully and after 10 days your countenance will shine with the truth as the Holy Spirit descends upon you like a fiery cloven tongue and gives you utterance, AS HE HAS PROMISED!! Never forget it!Rev. 2:10
Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.
Daniel 1:12
Prove thy servants, I beseech thee, ten days; and let them give us pulse to eat, and water to drink.
You see, on that Pentecost day in Acts chapter 2 (Pente-cost means count 50) when the Holy Spirit descended and Peter quoted from Joel the prophet, it was 10 days after Jesus Christ had ascended into heaven to become our advocate at the right hand of the Father. I.e. He ascended on the 40th day and it was now the 50th, a difference of 10 days before the Comforter would come. (Of course the older you get the faster time seems to go by, so a 10 day wait will go by much quicker to "ye old men and women" than it will for you young visionaries! LOL)Daniel 1:15
And at the end of ten days their countenances appeared fairer and fatter in flesh than all the children which did eat the portion of the king's meat.Jeremiah 42:7
And it came to pass after ten days, that the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah.
Hey, where is Joel? Did we lose him?
BOTH His servants and handmaids, male and female, will be filled with His spirit and pour forth the teaching and the witness in these last days. And what will be the signs that it is time to blow the trumpet? Pay close attention because the "I" speaking in the next verse, a verse which has caused much bewilderment among people, is "Jesus Christ" who is "the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever (Hebrews 13:8)".Joel 2:29
And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.
Here is how the Lord said exactly the same thing, in exactly the same order, in the Book of Luke:[30] And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.
Let us look at these same signs together with the other scriptures of those same signs given in the same order so that we might glean a clearer picture of what it is we are to know.Luke 21:25
And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring;
(1) Blood and (2) Fire followed by (3) Vapour of smoke. (Joel 2:30, Acts 2:19)
(1) Wars and (2) Rumours of Wars followed by "the (3) Scenes produced by the Smoke from bottomless pit", i.e. "nation rising against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. " (Mat. 24:7, Mark 13:7).
(1) Distress of Nations, with (2) Perplexity; followed by (3) The Sea and the Waves Roaring;
John's Note: We are not going to take the time to
re-document
the wars and rumors of wars (the cold war) other than to repeat that
the
20th century was by far the BLOODIEST century in the history of
mankind.
If you are not familiar with the 13th chapter of Mark, then you need to
be in order to understand the signs of times and the blowing of all 7
Trumpets.
Read
Live Link to=>"Take
Heed - a Study of Mark 13"
You "see", it is during the period of the 5th Trump, when the bottomless pit is opened (Rev. 9:2) and those pillars and vapours of "smoke" from that pit ascend into the atmosphere of society which grows ever darker as that locust nation of the kenites, the sons of Cain, using the power of the Four Hidden Dynasties, bring forth the 1st Beast of Rev. 13, which is the political beast, i.e. the New World Order. This is done in preparation for the arrival of the 2nd Beast of Rev. 13 which is Satan, Apollyon and his angelic locust army, who come at the sound of the 6th Trump!
However, the World Wars and the Cold War did NOT signal the beginnings of sorrows:
The rising of billowing pillars and vapours of smoke from the bottomless pit, which do signal the beginning of sorrows, began with the following signs.Mark 13:7
And when ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars, be ye not troubled: for such things must needs be; but the end shall not be yet.
Most of you are familiar with the famine of the end time for it is recorded in Amos 8:11-13 which declares that the famine is not for bread nor a thirst for water, but for the hearing of the Word of God. Once again we refer you to the Live Link to=>"Take Heed" series for further explanation of the famine and troubles and the upheavals in all aspects of society.Mark 13:8
For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against (i.e. along side of) kingdom: and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.
We were told in Joel 2, in Acts 2, in Matthew 24, in Mark 13, and in Luke 21 that we would be see "heavenly signs" and "earthly signs". Have you seen any lately? Are you aware of the heavenly signs? In our pamphlet Live Link to=> "The Signs in the Heavens" we documented signs in the sun and in the moon and in the stars along with heavenly signs."This verse [Mark 13:8] has been traditionally interpreted as nations rising in WAR against one another, even as the culmination of World Wars, like a World War III. However, students of His Word know that the final battle is spiritual, and occurs in an era of relative peace and prosperity. It is a fight for the souls of men, not a physical flesh and blood and guts battle at all! That is why we are instructed to put on the Gospel Armor in Ephesians chapter 6 and be prepared to stand against the "fiery darts" of Satan and his locust army!So what does this verse mean, "nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom?" It is really quite simple and is made clear in the Greek from which it is translated. First, the word translated "against" is the Greek word "epi" which means "upon" or "up against", as "along side of", not antagonistically in "opposition to". For example, your epi-dermis is your outer layer of skin which lies against, i.e. is attached to, your dermis, your inner layer of skin so that they are linked together! This is important so here is the Strong's definition in its entirety:
Next, the word "rise" in Greek is "egeiro" which means to "rouse" and "stand up", i.e. to "rear up".But the key to really understanding what this "rising" is comes from its root word "agora", which tells us what the rising together is to!epi, ep-ee', Greek 1909; a primary preposition properly meaning superimposition (of time, place, order, etc.), as a relation of distribution [with the genitive], i.e. over, upon, etc.; of rest (with the dative) at, on, etc.; of direction (with the accusative) towards, upon, etc. :- about (the times), above, after, against, among, as long as (touching), at, beside, × have charge of, (be-, [where-]) fore, in (a place, as much as, the time of, -to), (because) of, (up-) on (behalf of), over, (by, for) the space of, through (-out), (un-) to (-ward), with. In compounds it retains essentially the same import, at, upon, etc. (literal or figurative).This word "agora" is translated either "market" or "marketplace(s)" in every instance in the New Testament except one where it is translated "street", as in market street. Because this verse is so important to our understanding it seems appropriate that we should study it more in depth. So let's complete all the words and see what "nations" and "kingdoms" mean.agora, ag-or-ah', Greek 58; from ageiro (to gather; probably akin to Greek 1453 (egeiro)); properly the town-square (as a place of public resort); by implication a market or thoroughfare :- market (-place), street.nations = ethnos, eth'-nos, Greek 1484; probably from Greek 1486 (etho); a race (as of the same habit), i.e. a tribe; specially a foreign (non-Israelite) one (usually by implication pagan) :- Gentile, heathen, nation, people."Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom" simply means that the gentile nations, the non-ruling nations which basically comprise what we call the "Third World Countries", shall rise together in the marketplace, and the ruling nations, the "royal kingdoms" (including true Israel, i.e. the Christian nations and the rest of the Free World) shall also "rise up together" in the marketplace.kingdom = basileia, bas-il-i'-ah, Greek 932; from Greek 935 (basileus); properly royalty, i.e. (abstract) rule, or (concrete) a realm (literal or figurative) :- kingdom, + reign.So what is it Jesus was talking about? Globalization, One Worldism. This IS the rising of the one world political beast of Revelation 13. It is happening right before our very eyes, if you can see it. (Blepo) Have you ever heard of the World Trade Organization (WTO) or the IMF or the World Bank. The kingdoms of Europe have already risen together economically in the marketplace with the implementation of the Eurodollar and the Americas, including Canada and Mexico, are swiftly being brought under "Dollarization". And Worldwide E-commerce has arrived.
On May 5, 2000, there was an usual, highly publicized and talked about "alignment" of the planets, symbols of nations, a sign in the heavens! Four months later (the number "4" denotes earth in Biblical numerics) the following event occurred on earth, a sign in the earth. It was the largest gathering of the leaders of nations, of both the leading Free World Nations (kingdoms) and the Third World Countries (ethnos) in the HISTORY OF MANKIND. Here they all are standing (risen) against (epi) each other. Yep, they are all lined up!
The Kingdoms
and the Nations at the Millennium Summit 2000
http://www.un.org
Perhaps it should be pointed out that the "little red planet" Mars did not make the line-up with the other planets. Well, the "little red nation" of North Korea did not make the lineup of the nations either. You can read why they did not make it at http://www.cnn.com/2000/ASIANOW/east/09/05/korea.delegation/index.html. Actually it is really quite humorous (if you are not a Korean delegate)! You see, the North Korean officials were frisked and supposedly stripped searched at the airport. So they got mad and went home!
Never let it be said that our Father does not have a sense of humor.
Psalm 37:11
But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.[12] The wicked plotteth against the just, and gnasheth upon him with his teeth.
[13] The Lord shall laugh at him: for he seeth that his day is coming.
Read part 7 of our Fearsome Locust Army next:
Live Link to> Part #1 of 9 parts
Live Link to> Part #2 of 9 parts
Live Link to> Part #3 of 9 parts
Live Link to> Part #4 of 9 parts
Live Link to> Part #5 of 9 parts
Live Link to> Part #6 of 9 parts
Live Link to> Part #7 of 9 parts
Live Link to> Part #8 of 9 parts
Live Link to> Part #9 of 9 parts
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.
The "American Wisdom Series"
is
Published by:
Rhine Publishing Co.E-mail - americanwisdomseries@verizon.net