Faulty Logic

Recently I came across a teaching that says the tribulation and The Day of the Lord aren't the same thing.  The main point being that Isaiah 2:11 and 2:17 both say "the Lord alone will be exalted in that day".  What day?  Verse 2, the "latter days" and verse 12, "the day of the Lord."...the 'day'.  These two are synonymous.

However, we know that during the second half of the tribulation the anti-Christ will exalt himself and cause himself to be worshiped as God.  So this teacher concludes that the 'day' can't possibly be the tribulation because, as he teaches, worship of the anti-Christ would contradict Isaiah 2:11 and 17.

On the surface it sounds like a very good argument.  Let's take a closer look at what he's saying:

This teacher is really saying that Isaiah 2:11 and 17 refer to the entirety of that 'day'...the entire duration of the Day of the Lord.  He interprets this verse to say "the Lord alone will be exalted for the entire duration of the Day of the Lord."

The logic we use to read the Bible is like a ruler.  Isaiah 28 speaks of "precepts and lines".  The word "line" has an underlying definition which means a measuring tool.  We have to use the same ruler to measure similar things, otherwise our measurements will be wrong.  I can't use a yard stick to measure some events of that 'day' and a 12-inch foot ruler to measure others.  All events of that 'day' must be measured with the same ruler.

According to the logic of this teacher, all events of that 'day' must occur for the entire duration of that 'day'.  Which means that all events of that 'day' must occur simultaneously.  Let's try to measure some of the events of the 'day' using this teacher's ruler.

If "the Lord alone is exalted" lasts for the duration of that 'day', then the following must also be true:

* Isaiah 4:1  All latter days will be filled with seven women taking hold of one man for a covering.

* Isaiah 3:7  All latter days will be filled with men refusing to be leaders.

* Isaiah 4:2  All latter days will be filled with Israel escaping and enjoying the fruit of the earth.

* Isaiah 17:4  All latter days will be filled with leanness for Jacob.

* Isaiah 2:3  All latter days will be filled with people saying "Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD.

* Joel 2:28  All latter days will be filled with God pouring out his spirit on all flesh.

* Isaiah 13  All latter days will be filled with an army coming against Babylon to destroy it.

etc., etc., etc.

We are told of many things that will transpire during that 'day'. Every event, within the context of "that day" (in the latter days) must be accounted for using his logic that they all occur for the duration of that 'day'.

But they don't.  It stops making sense when we start applying his ruler to other events of that 'day'.

The correct interpretation of Isaiah 2:11 and 17?  I believe it is "at the end of the Day of the Lord, the Lord alone will be exalted."

After all, isn't that what it's all about?  The restoration of all things as they should be?  All idols will be abolished and all the proud and haughty looks will be made low.  But at the conclusion of that 'day', the LORD alone will be exalted.

Repent now while there is still time.

God Will Punish His People

"God's people aren't appointed for wrath so that must mean we aren't punished during the tribulation."


The more I read the Word of God the more clear things are becoming.  I'm beginning to think this may be in the top 3 lies of our generation.  People, do you want to know the truth or do you want to hear fables?  If you want to know the truth then read his Word.  The truth is that God is not happy with his people when the tribulation starts.  The truth is that judgment begins at the house of God. (I Peter 4:17)  If you want to understand the end-time prophecies then you have to understand who his people are.  His two daughters have two names: Israel and Judah.  Guess who Israel is?  The answer is found, among other places, in Galatians 6:16.

Is God happy with his people in the last days?  Will all the lovely christians float up to heaven at the beginning of tribulation?  Quite the opposite is true.  Read in Isaiah 5 what God feels about his vineyard.  Or see what Amos has to say.  God asks:

Can two walk together unless they be agreed?  Amos 3:3   You want me to rescue you from judgment?...sorry, we're not in agreement.  You are filled with pride and overcome by the spirit of harlotry.

What does Micah say?

Micah 3:8
But truly I am full of power by the Spirit of the LORD, And of justice and might, To declare to Jacob his transgression And to Israel his sin.


Micah 6:2
Hear, O you mountains, the LORD's complaint, And you strong foundations of the earth; For the LORD has a complaint against His people, And He will contend with Israel.


Amos 3:14
"That in the day I punish Israel for their transgressions, I will also visit destruction on the altars of Bethel; And the horns of the altar shall be cut off And fall to the ground.


What day are these prophets talking about?  Is it not THE day?  The Day of the Lord?

Amos 5:21
"I hate, I despise your feast days, And I do not savor your sacred assemblies.


Isaiah 1:13
Bring no more futile sacrifices; Incense is an abomination to Me. The New Moons, the Sabbaths, and the calling of assemblies— I cannot endure iniquity and the sacred meeting.


Malachi 1:10  NLT
"I wish that someone among you would shut the Temple doors so that these worthless sacrifices could not be offered! I am not at all pleased with you," says the LORD Almighty, "and I will not accept your offerings.

Think he's speaking of a time long past?  Think again.  God absolutely despises Sunday morning church services when people gather in his name and it's evident by the lives of the people that he wasn't even invited. They come to get their ears tickled only to return to their sin an hour later.

But in what way have we sinned, you ask?  Isaiah 3, speaking of that day of judgment, answers: 


Isaiah 3:16
Moreover the LORD says: "Because the daughters of Zion are haughty, And walk with outstretched necks And wanton eyes, Walking and mincing as they go, Making a jingling with their feet,




We get off scot free, huh?  God knew people would think that:

Amos 9:10
All the sinners of My people shall die by the sword, Who say, 'The calamity shall not overtake nor confront us.'


Jeremiah 30:11 ...But I will correct you in justice, And will not let you go altogether unpunished.'
When?
v 24 ...In the latter days you will consider it.


In what way will God punish his people?


Read Isaiah chapter 8.  If you want to see the whole picture, read Isaiah chapters 1 through 12.  
Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz: "Swift to plunder and quick to spoil.": On the heels of your land being destroyed by fire (Isaiah 1,13,18,47), the enemy will attack.


Ezekiel 15:7
'and I will set My face against them. They will go out from one fire (the destruction of America), but another fire shall devour them (the Battle of Gog/Magog). Then you shall know that I am the LORD, when I set My face against them.  (Those who persist in unfaithfulness will be devoured by the second fire.)


Amos 8:10
I will turn your feasts into mourning, And all your songs into lamentation; I will bring sackcloth on every waist, And baldness on every head; I will make it like mourning for an only son, And its end like a bitter day.


There is one thing going on that same day (when America is destroyed) that causes hairloss.  Radiation.  Why do you think God calls his people in Isaiah 18:7 "smooth-skinned"?  In the Bible, baldness is a type of shame.  God will save his people but he will allow the radiation from the nuclear bombs to cause our hair to fall out.  After all, we allowed our country to be overrun with sin.  And we allowed ourselves to become overrun with sin.  It's to our shame that we didn't have enough salt and light to preserve this land or even ourselves.  All of God's people whom he preserves through nuclear holocaust will return to Zion...bald!...and wearing rags.  What a sight that will be.  (But you who fear God, do not lose heart.  God will exchange those rags for clean clothes. Zechariah 3:2-4).


Isaiah 3:24
And so it shall be: Instead of a sweet smell there will be a stench; Instead of a sash, a rope; Instead of well-set hair, baldness; Instead of a rich robe, a girding of sackcloth; And branding instead of beauty.


What's the end-result of the punishment?


Isaiah 2:17
The loftiness of man shall be bowed down, And the haughtiness of men shall be brought low; The LORD alone will be exalted in that day,


Isaiah 2:20
In that day a man will cast away his idols of silver And his idols of gold, Which they made, each for himself to worship, To the moles and bats,


Zephaniah 3:12
I will leave in your midst A meek and humble people, And they shall trust in the name of the LORD.




"But first, I will judge those that carry the name of Christians, yet have tried to deceive Me.  Because of them My name was, and is, dishonored and blasphemed before those that do not know Me".


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A final word of hope on this topic.  If you turn from your sin and live a clean life before God, you will be rewarded in that day.


Isaiah 3:10
"Say to the righteous that it shall be well with them, For they shall eat the fruit of their doings.

My 2016 Theory

Update 2012/07/12

The proof of these things is contained within, and greatly expanded upon, in my new book, "Quenched Like a Wick."
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Joel 2:31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD.

Daniel 9:25 "Know therefore and understand, That from the going forth of the command To restore and build Jerusalem Until Messiah the Prince, There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; The street shall be built again, and the wall, Even in troublesome times.

Synopsis
My 2016 Theory states that the much anticipated "Day of the Lord" (a.k.a. 7-year Tribulation, a.k.a. Hour of Judgment, a.k.a Daniel's 70th week) begins in the spring of 2016. This theory rests on the interpretation of two key verses in the Bible, naturally occurring solar and lunar celestial events as well as one key moment in recent history. As I will show in this article this theory, to date, has both strengths and weaknesses.

Credit

I'd like to give credit to Pastor Mark Blitz for researching and publicizing in 2008 the celestial solar and lunar events on God's feast days. I'd also like to give credit to the person who originally interpreted Daniel 9 to mean there are two commands to rebuild Jerusalem. I believe it very may well be the correct interpretation. It has been reported that Sir Isaac Newton first insisted publicly: "We avoid also the doing violence to the language of Daniel, by taking the seven weeks and sixty two weeks for one number."

Disclaimer

I'm not responsible for however you may choose to use this information. Please be aware this is one of many interpretations and timelines people have given for the end of our age. In fact, I've already been wrong at least once regarding the interpretation of Daniel 9.

Foreword

As I mentioned, this is one of many interpretations and timelines. To be quite honest, I didn't think I'd be writing this type of article again. And certainly not so soon after being so colossally wrong back in May of this year. I'm weary of all the timelines and predictions. I loathe reading them. Many of them have been very convincing, only to eventually fail. But to a watchman, timelines are like a siren song. It's in our nature because we want to warn the people. Something in us "has" to know. I call this a theory because I don't consider it a proof. There's at least one gaping hole, which I'll get to later. But in spite of this, I think it has a lot of merit. You can make up your own mind.

Background

There are a couple things we have to understand before we dig in. The first is that celestial events are part of God's plan. He intends them to be used to indicate signs and seasons.

Genesis 1:14

Then God said, "Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years;

The second thing we have to understand is that God's seven annual feasts are God's appointed times with men. It's when he personally intervenes in history. These are God's special days each year that he has marked on the calendar. He tells us these days are holy. We are to keep these appointments with him.

Leviticus 23:37

'These are the feasts of the LORD which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, to offer an offering made by fire to the LORD, a burnt offering and a grain offering, a sacrifice and drink offerings, everything on its day—

Now, what happens when his celestial signs line up with his holy days? Is it something we should give some attention? Obviously, I think we should pay very close attention.

Celestial Events

So what are these celestial events that fall on God's holidays? In 2008 Pastor Mark Blitz discovered that by using NASA's website, he could determine past and future lunar and solar eclipses. He then combined that information with the Jewish calendar. You are invited to go onto NASA's website and see for yourself. This is a summary of what he discovered:

Lunar Eclipse - Passover - April 15, 2014

Lunar Eclipse - Feast of Tabernacles - October 8, 2014

Solar Eclipse - Adar 29/Nisan 1(new year) - March 20, 2015

Lunar Eclipse - Passover - April 4, 2015

Solar Eclipse - Feast of Trumpets - September 13, 2015

Lunar Eclipse - Feast of Tabernacles - September 28, 2015

You should understand at this point that a lunar eclipse is also referred to as a blood red moon. The reason why is explained here.

Now let's go back and look at that verse in Joel:

Joel 2:31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD.

What if this verse is talking about solar and lunar eclipses? I believe it is and this is the reason I'm writing this article. Certainly we see here four lunar eclipses and two solar eclipses occurring on six important Jewish holidays. You may be thinking: well, I suppose that could be a match. But there's more to this theory.

Daniel 9

The 70 weeks of Daniel 9 have been interpreted a hundred ways from Sunday. They seem to contain a very important clue regarding the timing of our Lord's return.

Daniel 9:25 "Know therefore and understand, That from the going forth of the command To restore and build Jerusalem Until Messiah the Prince, There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; The street shall be built again, and the wall, Even in troublesome times.

Daniel is told that there are 70 weeks left for God's people. The Hebrew word here for "weeks" is shabuwa and means "sevens". Just as we use the word decade to mean a set of ten years, weeks here is used to indicate a set of seven, such as seven days or seven years. I personally believe it is used here to indicate a set of seven years. The 70 weeks is then broken up into three distinct periods: 62, 7, and 1. They total the overall time-frame of 70.

Two of the time periods, the 62 and the 7, have a starting point. That starting point is a command to restore and rebuild Jerusalem. I believe this refers to two separate commands in history. We'll talk about the first command later in this article. For now I want to focus on the second period, the 7.

62 * 7 = 434 years

7 * 7 = 49 years

1 * 7 = 7 years

In recent history there was an event which could very well be likened to a decree to restore Jerusalem. On June 28th, 1967, a few weeks after the Six Days War, the Knesset passed a decree to annex East Jerusalem. This was the singular event that forever altered the recent history of Israel. From that time to today, Jerusalem is a united city under control of Israel. But what about those lunar eclipses? Do they signify that June of 1967 was an important point in history? Here's what the NASA website indicates. Once again we see four lunar eclipses on God's holy days.

Lunar Eclipse - Passover - April 24, 1967

Lunar Eclipse - Sukkoth - October 18, 1967

Lunar Eclipse - Passover - April 13, 1968

Lunar Eclipse - Sukkoth - October 6, 1968

As the image at the top of this article indicates, those four lunar eclipses on God's holy days do not occur at any time between November 1968 and May 2014. But what's even more astonishing is that these lunar eclipses show up at one other key time period...when, after nearly 2000 years, Israel became a sovereign nation once again.

Lunar Eclipse - Passover - April 13, 1949

Lunar Eclipse - Sukkoth - October 7, 1949

Lunar Eclipse - Passover - April 2, 1950

Lunar Eclipse - Sukkoth - September 26, 1950

To see this happen again in history you have to go all the way back to 1493 and 1494.

Do you see what God did?! He "book-ended" the "7" time period...the 49 years between the second command to restore Jerusalem and the start of the last time period: the "1"...the last seven years (and four months) before Christ returns.

The Problem

Now let's talk about the problem with this theory: we can't prove the 62...at least not yet. You see, the first time period of 62, if applied to this pattern, is 434 years. We are told this period would begin with the command to restore Jerusalem and end with the crucifixion of our Savior.

Daniel 9:26 "And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off..."

What's more, we are even told who gave the command to restore Jerusalem:

Isaiah 44:28 Who says of Cyrus, 'He is My shepherd, And he shall perform all My pleasure, Saying to Jerusalem, "You shall be built," And to the temple, "Your foundation shall be laid."

Who is this Cyrus? We believe him to be Cyrus the Great, or Cyrus the Elder, king of Persia. This story of Jerusalem being rebuilt is recorded in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah.

Ezra 1:1 NOW in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and also put it in writing, saying...

The problem is that most historians place this time-frame sometime in the sixth century....a good 150 years or so before the time-frame we need to prove the 62 matches this 7 pattern. In fact, we would need key discoveries to be made concerning both this time period and the disputed time period of our Savior's crucifixion.


It's very possible that Sir Isaac Newton was correct in his interpretation: that Daniel 9 contains a prophecy regarding not just the crucifixion of the Messiah but also his birth.  Taken this way, it may be possible to accurately render time-frames from the Babylonian exile to the birth of Messiah and then to his crucifixion.  These three being contained within the 70, starting from the first command to restore Jerusalem.  Then the second command to restore Jerusalem (in 1967) pertains to the period of 7 (49 years) and the subsequent remaining period of 7 years (Daniel's 70th week) and finally the return of Messiah.

Conclusion

Ultimately you have to draw your own conclusions. I, personally, believe the merits of this theory are remarkable beyond ordinary measure. It's my personal belief that when all is said and done, the truth will come to light regarding the 62 time period. At this point in time, I tend to believe that the Day of the Lord will begin in 2016.

But what day in 2016?


Anything else that might lend support to this theory?

Flee!

A dear sister in Christ wrote me today to ask if I'm going to be leaving the U.S. "What about the commands to leave?" she asked. She noted the urgency of those commands and that it must be a command to get out now. I was glad to receive this question because I've actually been waiting for someone to ask me this. Let's take a look:

Revelation 18:4

And I heard another voice from heaven saying, "Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues

Jeremiah 50:8

"Move from the midst of Babylon, Go out of the land of the Chaldeans; And be like the rams before the flocks.

Jeremiah 51:6

Flee from the midst of Babylon, And every one save his life! Do not be cut off in her iniquity, For this is the time of the LORD's vengeance; He shall recompense her.

Jeremiah 51:45

My people, go out of the midst of her! And let everyone deliver himself from the fierce anger of the LORD.

Zechariah 2:7
"Up, Zion! Escape, you who dwell with the daughter of Babylon."


Isaiah 48:20
Go forth from Babylon! Flee from the Chaldeans! With a voice of singing, Declare, proclaim this, Utter it to the end of the earth; Say, "The LORD has redeemed His servant Jacob!"


Isaiah 54:11
Depart! Depart! Go out from there, Touch no unclean thing; Go out from the midst of her, Be clean, You who bear the vessels of the LORD.

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OK, so are we told to get out of the country? Yes, we are. But when? When are we to flee? I think another question will answer this one. When is the command given? Is the command given today, in 2010? Are we all to start fleeing when we come to realize that America is Babylon? That's going to be tricky because we're also told that Babylon, as a whole, won't even know she's Babylon. So how many will actually leave before this judgment comes to America? A couple hundred maybe? A thousand? Is that all that will make it out? Actually, we're told that 10% will survive. (Isaiah 6:13, Amos 5:3). 10% of 300 million is 30 million.

So "when" is the command to flee actually given?

I propose that the command to flee is given as the destruction is taking place. If you go back and look at the context of those verses (above) you'll see that Babylon is being destroyed.

Jeremiah 51:50

You who have escaped the sword, Get away! Do not stand still! Remember the LORD afar off, And let Jerusalem come to your mind.

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How exactly does one escape a nuclear holocaust? You have to know the One who is more powerful than a nuclear bomb. God says he will protect his people in that day:

Jeremiah 51:5

For Israel is not forsaken, nor Judah, By his God, the LORD of hosts, Though their land was filled with sin against the Holy One of Israel.

Jeremiah 50:20

In those days and in that time," says the LORD, "The iniquity of Israel shall be sought, but there shall be none; And the sins of Judah, but they shall not be found; For I will pardon those whom I preserve.

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Where do God's people go? Is it rapture time? Sorry, not yet.

Jeremiah 50:5

They shall ask the way to Zion, With their faces toward it, saying, 'Come and let us join ourselves to the LORD In a perpetual covenant That will not be forgotten.'

Jeremiah 51:10

The LORD has revealed our righteousness. Come and let us declare in Zion the work of the LORD our God

Isaiah 18:7

In that time a present will be brought to the LORD of hosts From a people tall and smooth of skin, And from a people terrible from their beginning onward, A nation powerful and treading down, Whose land the rivers divide— To the place of the name of the LORD of hosts, To Mount Zion.

Jeremiah 51:50

You who have escaped the sword, Get away! Do not stand still! Remember the LORD afar off, And let Jerusalem come to your mind.

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I want to touch on one more thing here. Some people have already started to leave America...both those who are God's people and those who aren't. Maybe it's your calling to leave early. Maybe that's what God has for you. As we see here in Jeremiah:

Jeremiah 50:8

"Move from the midst of Babylon, Go out of the land of the Chaldeans; And be like the rams before the flocks.

Be like the rams before the flocks. I believe he is saying here "Now it's time for all my people to get out. Be like my forerunners. Be like the ones who already left."