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ANSWERS TO YOUR QUESTIONS!--Dad Answering Maria's Endtime Questions DFO 1526 20/5/83
1. QUESTION: (MARIA: HOW COULD THE 144,000 (OF {\ul \i GOE} CHAP.14) BE ANY PEOPLE OTHER THAN THE EARLY JEWS, since that passage mentions the Tribes so specifically?)
ANSWER: WELL, IT COULD STILL BE US, did you ever think of that?--Because so many of us are Jews! (See "New Nation Prophecy" No.64.)
2. QUESTION: WHAT WAS THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE TRIBE OF JUDAH & THE 10 TRIBES OF ISRAEL?
ANSWER: GOD CHOSE JUDAH FOR THE ANCESTRY OF CHRIST & JERUSALEM FOR THE TEMPLE, SO JUDAH WOUND UP AS BEING THE LEADING TRIBE OF ALL. It was the Royal Tribe, it was the religious Temple Tribe, it was the Tribe of David & Jesus etc. So obviously it was the most important tribe because even their enemies nicknamed them all "Jews" after Judah, when many of them were not of the Tribe of Judah at all, most of them in fact. But because Judah was the head tribe, the tribe of the legitimate Kings, therefore their enemies nicknamed them "Jews". Whereas the 10 tribes of Israel were in absolute open rebellion against Judah most of the time & the Northern Kingdom of Israel became the first to become completely steeped in idolatry & witchcraft & open rebellion against the established religion of the Temple. The Northern 10 tribes were called Israel, the Southern two tribes from whom they broke away were called Judah & Benjamin.
3. QUESTION: (MARIA: HERE'S ANOTHER QUESTION: ARE CHRISTIANS GOING TO ESCAPE ALL THE HORRORS OF THE TRIBULATION? Christians are going to go through some of the horrors, aren't they?)
ANSWER: THERE'S A VERSE THAT THE PRE-TRIB RAPTURISTS USE all the time, that "ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things" (Lu.21:36). The Pre-Trib Rapturists use that verse to try to prove that they're going to escape the Tribulation entirely in a Pre-Trib Rapture. I don't think the writer, I'm sure the Holy Spirit, meant that there was going to be escape by a Pre-Trib Rapture, but that's how the church teaches it today.
4. QUESTION: SO WHAT DOES THAT VERSE MEAN?
ANSWER: MY INTERPRETATION IS that it's quite evident from reading the description of the Tribulation that if you want to take a prototype of Israel & the Land of Goshen during the plagues of Egypt, Israel was not affected by any of the plagues at all except the final plague of death of the firstborn. There was light in the Land of Goshen, there were no locusts, no diseases, no plagues in Goshen at all. The plagues only affected their persecutors. The thing that Israel was suffering was the persecution of man, not being persecuted by God. The Egyptians were being persecuted by God. From all the sound of the whole description of the things that are going on during the Tribulation, although the church is being persecuted by the Antichrist Government, the Antichrist Government is suffering horrible plagues & curses & all kinds of horrors which God's Word definitely says will not touch the people who have the Seal of God in their forehead! (Rev.7:3) So I think that's what the escape means, that you'll be counted worthy to escape all these things that befall them. I don't think any of those diseases are going to affect us, none of those plagues, none of those horrors described in the Tribulation, none of them! The only thing that we have to suffer is the persecution of the Antichrist & his Mark of the Beast people.
MOST OF THE HORRORS ARE HAPPENING TO THE ANTICHRIST PEOPLE. The only horror happening to us is the persecution of the System, & of course we already suffer that sort of thing, it's just going to be intensified, that's all. But it will be actually legal to kill us, which has happened before, in fact which they even do now when they can get away with it. So it's not all that much different in a way, the persecution is just magnified, amplified, multiplied & intensified. I mean our enemies hate us just as much now already as they will then, including governments & systems that they already control. And they kill us now when they have a chance, & they've been known to do it! The only thing then is that it will be on a legal worldwide scale.
(MARIA: IT'S PRETTY WORLDWIDE ALREADY! The Whore has been responsible for all of the deaths of all the martyrs from the very beginning! You could take it in the large sense of the word down through history, the greater World system itself, or you could even take it as America, who started the persecution of us present-day Christians which has swept the World!) Yes. But I'm trying to prove to you that we are going to escape the worst of the horrors of the Tribulation, the plagues which God sends upon the Antichrist system. We will be suffering their persecution, but God will see to it that they are suffering His retribution. And He says definitely in the opening passage about the horrors of the Tribulation: First wait until we seal the people of God, don't touch them, so that they'll not be touched by all these horrors that God is going to send on the Antichrist system! (Rev.7) We will be free of all those horrible things.
ALL THOSE HORRIBLE MONSTERS & EVERYTHING HE DESCRIBES, WE DON'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT THEM AT ALL, THEY'RE ON OUR SIDE, THEY'RE PROTECTING US! They're God's monsters in a sense. (Maria: And will we have even greater power than we do today?)--And we'll also have greater power, the two witnesses can call down fire out of Heaven, create famines & all kinds of things against our enemies! (Maria: Well, will the general run of Christians have greater power as well?) I think they're symbolic of all witnesses in a way, but they're the two principal ones. I look at them as the leaders. Yes, I believe we'll all have greater "power for the hour" to help us survive as long as possible.
5. QUESTION: (MARIA: DO I UNDERSTAND CORRECTLY THAT THE LAKE OF FIRE, HELL & THE BOTTOMLESS PIT ARE DIFFERENT PLACES BUT ALL SOMEWHERE IN THE HEART OF THE EARTH?--Or are they the same thing?)
ANSWER: IT CERTAINLY SOUNDS LIKE IT! Yes, the fact that Science even says that there's hell down below, fire down below, seems to literally confirm that there is a literal Lake of Fire down there!
But there is not only fire down there, there are other places down there, including the Bottomless Pit!--And most Bible students agree that at one time before the Resurrection of Christ that there was a place called Paradise! It's confirmed by the Scripture when Jesus said to the dying thief "This day shalt thou be with Me in Paradise," & yet it says He spent three days & three nights in the heart of the Earth! (Lk.23:43, Mt.12:40) So there you have what sounds like a contradiction but isn't, it just shows there are several different places down there, even as the Catholics teach. There's the Lake of Fire, Purgatory, the Bottomless Pit & there's Paradise & Limbo etc.
(Maria: And the Bottomless Pit?)
I think that may be the heart of it all. The Devil is not cast into the Lake of Fire at the beginning of the Millennium; he is just cast into the Bottomless Pit, & the only kind of Bottomless Pit is where gravity reverses itself at the Earth's center of gravity in the heart of the Earth.
(Maria: So the Bottomless Pit is different than the Lake of Fire?)
They're all inside the Earth, somewhere in the heart of the Earth, but they are different places--they're all in the general locality within the Earth somewhere, but they are different places.
6. (MARIA: SO TO MAKE IT VERY CLEAR, THE DEVIL IS CAST INTO THE BOTTOMLESS PIT AT THE BEGINNING OF THE MILLENNIUM & AT THE VERY END HE IS CAST INTO THE LAKE OF FIRE with the False Prophet & the Antichrist who have been there already for a thousand years?)
YES, THE FALSE PROPHET & THE ANTICHRIST ARE CAST INTO THE LAKE OF FIRE DURING THE BATTLE OF ARMAGEDDON. (Rev.19:20) (Maria: The reason the Devil is not cast in there is because that's a pretty "permanent" place where you can't get out, & he is not yet cast into the Lake of Fire because he still has to be loosed after the Millennium, so he's just being sort of temporarily imprisoned there for a thousand years so he can come back for the Battle of Gog & Magog. [EDITED: "Rev.20:2-3,7-8"]) Yes!
MAYBE IF THE DEVIL HAD BEEN CAST INTO THE LAKE OF FIRE THEN HE WOULD HAVE REPENTED & NOT HAVE PULLED THE BATTLE OF GOG & MAGOG, but God had one more job for him to do, to separate the sheep from the goats of the Millennium in giving them a test by letting him loose to see who would follow whom. When that final job is done, to separate the Millennial Saints from the Millennial Wicked, then God is through with him & he is cast into the Lake of Fire with the Beast & the False Prophet, where they already are & have already been there a thousand years!
7. (MARIA: SO POSSIBLY THE GENERAL WORD USED FOR BOTH THE LAKE OF FIRE & BOTTOMLESS PIT IS HELL, IT'S ALL HELL, RIGHT?)
YOU CANNOT JUST SAY "HELL" BECAUSE THERE ARE THREE DIFFERENT WORDS TRANSLATED AS "HELL". One of them is "Gehenna" the Lake of Fire. Another is "The Grave", which actually as interpreted from the original means the "spirit state" or the "spirit world", & another is "death" which obviously means some type of punishment or life hereafter which is more like death, which is the part of the spirit world to which evidently the evil spirits & bad people go, but it's obviously not as bad as the Lake of Fire! There's "Gehenna", "Sheol" & "Hades". "Gehenna" is the "Lake of Fire", "Sheol" is the grave or death & there's "Hades" which is the spirit world & which is sometimes even translated as Paradise, particularly in mythology. Hades was some form of Paradise inside the World in the Underworld--at least during Old Testament times before the resurrection of the Old Testament saints.
8. (MARIA: WHEN YOU SAY, "THE DEVIL IS IN HELL FOR A THOUSAND YEARS," WHAT DO YOU MEAN?)
WHEN I'M TALKING ABOUT THAT KIND OF HELL of course I'm either talking about the usual popular concept of the word "Hell" as a fiery place of punishment, or in this case it's the Bottomless Pit, a place of punishment or imprisonment, though not the fiery one. In other words, Hell covers a lot of different subjects & places & forms of the Hereafter, everything from Paradise to the Lake of Fire! The translators should have used the literal translations to make it clearer, but frankly I think both the Jews, the Priesthood & probably the Churches, didn't want to leave any loopholes for anybody to think they could crawl through & escape eternal hellfire torment hereafter, so they just kept translating all three of those words as Hell & gave everybody the popular conception of Hell as being nothing but the Lake of Fire. When the Bible says "Hell", if you don't have a concordance that gives you the original word & its meaning, then you're going to have to go by the context as to which Hell it's talking about, "Hades", "Sheol" or "Gehenna"!
IN OTHER WORDS, IT'S HELL DOWN BELOW FOR THE DEVIL & THE EVIL, WHETHER IT'S A BOTTOMLESS PIT OR IT'S LIKENED TO THE GRAVE OR DEATH OR HELLFIRE, IT'S ALL HELL! But there are other places there too. Obviously if Jesus was going to spend three days & three nights in the heart of the Earth as it says, immediately after His crucifixion to the time of His Resurrection, & yet He said to the dying thief, "This day shalt thou be with Me in Paradise", there must have been some kind of Paradise down there too.
THE BIBLE SAID HE PREACHED TO THE SPIRITS IN PRISON, but how could He have been in prison, & been in Paradise at the same time? Well obviously He must have done a little travelling while He was there. I mean if He went to Paradise & He also visited the prison, then He got around a little bit. Some people seem to think that the reason Jesus went to the heart of Earth was that He went to Hell to really suffer the torment of the sinner, but that wouldn't sound like Paradise--the Scripture which came to me a minute ago. The Lord always checks me somehow with some Scripture. All I know is the Word, & sometimes I forget it but the Lord reminds me. Obviously those prisoners were in some kind of detention for their sins & their lives, the lives that they had lived on Earth. Jesus went & preached to them, & of course what else would He have preached but the Gospel, that He died for their sins & now they could be released if they'd believe & accept His forgiveness. I believe it!
BUT YOU SEE, THE CHURCH HAS TAUGHT FOR SO MANY YEARS THAT HELL IS PERMANENT. So they really gagged on that verse in Peter (1Pe.3:19). In fact, the only way they can explain it is, well, He went down there to preach condemnation.--Can you imagine?--To confirm their sentence!--To show that that's what they deserved! What a horrible, cruel interpretation of that verse, that Jesus went down there & preached to the prisoners just to make them feel worse by not giving them any hope at all! I am convinced that He preached them the Gospel, & that if they believed it they were released & were probably resurrected & Raptured at the time of His Resurrection just two or three days later!--As were the other Old Testament saints! (Mt.27:52-53)
THOSE OLD TESTAMENT SAINTS RESURRECTED AT THE TIME OF JESUS' RESURRECTION WOULD HAVE HAD TO HAVE SOME KIND OF A RAPTURE, RIGHT? Maybe they're going to talk about us one of these days as those people that believe in Three Raptures!--Ha!--One at the time of Jesus' resurrection, one at the time of the Resurrection & Rapture at the Second Coming & a Rapture of the Millennial Saints at the Battle of Gog & Magog! So we believe in Three Raptures!--I believe it, why not? There are more raptures than that. What about every time a saint dies? Paul says he goes to be with the Lord, so he is Raptured! What would you call that but a Rapture?
OF COURSE, THE WORD "RAPTURE" ISN'T EVEN IN THE BIBLE!--But it's a good word! It's a popular theological term describing literally the ascension of the New Testament saints to be with the Lord. Well, every time a Saint dies he ascends to be with the Lord. We've got afterdeath testimonies to attest to that as well as lots of Scriptures that when we die we go to be with the Lord. (Ps.116:9; 2Cor.5:8; Rev.14:12-13) So we ascend to where the Lord is in some heavenly place, & I'm convinced it's Space City, that it's already out there now! I know it is because I saw it, I was there in the Spirit! So with every saint that dies & goes to be with the Lord it is in a sense a Rapture, right? So why worry about there being anymore Raptures, there have been millions of Raptures already! Hal! TYJ!
SOME OF THESE THEOLOGICAL HAIRSPLITTERS GET REALLY OFFENDED IF YOU SAY THERE'S ANY OTHER RAPTURE than just being raptured at the Second Coming! But obviously there have to be other Raptures, & that particular one has no corner on the rest of them, except it is one very big & dramatic one, probably the biggest because it will probably be the biggest Resurrection & the greatest Rapture because it will probably involve more people!--All the Christians who have died since Jesus' Resurrection & all the saints that will still be alive on the Earth when He comes, which is going to be more people than the Old Testament saints who had died before His first coming! God only knows how many Millennial saints will be Raptured out of the Battle of Gog & Magog, but I doubt if it's going to be as many as the millions of saints who have died within the past 2,000 years & the millions who will be living at the time of Jesus' Second Coming! I think that's the Big One!
I DON'T BELIEVE THAT THE THOUSAND-YEAR MILLENNIUM COULD PRODUCE AS MANY SAINTS, considering how few people are going to be left on the Earth after the Tribulation, Wrath of God & the Battle of Armageddon. It's pretty obvious that in the thousand years the Millennium is not likely to have produced as many saints as the last 2,000 years of World history. So I think the Resurrection & Rapture at the Second Coming of Christ is the Main Event, the Big One!--Hal! TYJ!--I'm looking forward to it! It'll be tremendous!
9. (MARIA: IS IT CALLED THE SECOND COMING IN THE BIBLE?)
I DON'T THINK THAT EXACT TERM IS FOUND IN THE SCRIPTURES. It's usually just called His Coming. The only Scripture that's close is Hebrews 9:28: "So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; & unto them that look for Him shall He appear the second time without sin unto salvation."--But that's good enough for me!
10. (MARIA: IF EVERY SAINT THAT HAS EVER DIED HAS BEEN "RAPTURED", YOU COULD SAY EVERY SAINT THAT HAS EVER RECEIVED JESUS HAS EXPERIENCED JESUS' COMING! So not only was He born, but then He comes again into every heart that ever receives Him, you know. I was talking with Techi about Jesus' "Second Coming", & I was afraid she'd add it up & get three comings instead of two--the first when He came as a Baby, the second when He came into her heart, & the third when He comes to Resurrect & Rapture the great body of Saints at the end of the Tribulation!)
NOT ONLY THAT, BUT A LOT OF PREACHERS USED TO PREACH THAT JESUS CAME TO GET EACH SAINT AS HE DIED, He came in person to take them to Heaven, particularly the Post-Millennialists who don't preach the Rapture at all! What it literally boils down to is that they preach that whenever each saint dies he hears the voice of the Lord calling him, the shout of the Archangel & the Trump of God & this calls him out of this life & he goes to Heaven!--That every time a saint dies the Lord goes through that big fanfare, but of course that's contrary to the Scriptures! The only time that fanfare is spoken of is at The Rapture at the soon coming of Christ, commonly known as the "Second Coming."
OF COURSE THEY'D BE HARD TO NUMBER IF THEY REALLY KNEW HOW MANY TIMES JESUS HAS ALREADY BEEN HERE!--He's come a lot of times. He was in the Garden of Eden with Adam & Eve & walked in the Garden with them, & He appeared to many of the different Old Testament Saints & prophets, & then came as a babe on Christmas! So literally & mathematically the so-called "first" & "second" comings really could be a misnomer--He's come a lot of times, & to enumerate all those comings is something that theologians have not done & it's not spoken of in the Scriptures. It's not spoken of either as the first or the second coming except in Hebrews 9:28. But this is the closed logic which the guys use who oppose any resurrection or Rapture of the Millennial saints.
THEY SAY THE SECOND COMING IS IT, THAT'S IT, NO MORE RESURRECTIONS, NO MORE SALVATIONS & NO MORE RAPTURES! Everybody that gets left behind in the Millennium is unsaved, wicked & they're all going to go to Hell! Can you imagine that?--That God is just saving their lives to live out the Millennium to torment them another thousand years & finally to burn them up in the Battle of Gog & Magog! If you ask me, that sounds like a wasted thousand years! What good did the Kingdom of God on earth do? Some of these theological terms that some of these theologians get stuck on can also get stuck in your craw for the plain & simple reason that certain theological terms they've solidified & clung to as only having one meaning of one time of one event when it ain't necessarily so!
JESUS HAS COME A LOT OF TIMES TO THIS EARTH! How about the time He came back after His Resurrection? You could call that His Second Coming!--He'd already been here. As far as Raptures & Resurrections go, what about the one of the Old Testament saints that occurred at His Resurrection, who certainly were obviously Raptured also!--He certainly wouldn't have sent them back to their graves after they'd already been resurrected!
SO I BELIEVE IN MANY COMINGS OF CHRIST, SEVERAL RESURRECTIONS & A NUMBER OF RAPTURES.--Now how's that? Ha! I'll tell you how that is: It'll absolutely make the theologians of almost all descriptions practically go up in smoke & despair at our being such absolutely incorrigible heretics because we don't stick to the orthodox doctrine of just certain saints & certain resurrections & certain raptures that they've got all figured out dogmatically & numerically!
THAT BRINGS UP THE QUESTION WHERE JOHN CALLS THE FOLKS THAT HE SEES IN HEAVEN THE "FIRST RESURRECTION." Well now, if he's just talking about the folks who had just gotten resurrected at the time of Jesus' so-called Second Coming & since he's talking about the Millennial Saints too, what happened to those folks who got resurrected at the time of Jesus' resurrection? That was an obvious resurrection. Wasn't that the first resurrection? Then wouldn't the ones John saw be the second resurrection? And yet it was the folks who ruled & reigned with Christ on the Earth 1000 years, of whom he says; "This is the First Resurrection"!--And yet there was a resurrection at the time of Christ's resurrection commonly called "the first fruits" resurrection. (1Cor.15:20,23) That's a commonly accepted theological term because they call Christ the first fruits of that resurrection, & other theologians include all those Old Testament Saints who were resurrected at the time of Jesus's Resurrection. So aren't they also amongst the saints who rule & reign with Christ? Aren't they also Millennial saints? Well then, the Old Testament saints resurrected at the time of Jesus' resurrection must have also been considered a part of the First Resurrection! Though it was in two installments, first the Old Testament saints at the time of Jesus' resurrection, & then the New Testament saints at the time of the Second Coming, both are included in the First Resurrection, so-called.
THEN THE PREACHERS DESCRIBE THE RESURRECTION OF ALL OTHERS AT THE GREAT WHITE THRONE JUDGEMENT AS THE SECOND RESURRECTION, & of course the churches consign all of them to Hell because of the misinterpretation of that Chapter. The churches don't allow for any salvations at all at that time, whereas it's obvious in the Scripture that some of them are saved & are not cast into Hell if their names are found written in the Book of Life! So that's what comes of solidifying your terminology & becoming dogmatic about some of these theological names & theological terms for certain events of the Bible, even names & terms that are not even in the Bible such as the "Trinity". That word you cannot find in the Bible, neither can you find "Rapture" & I don't think you'll find "Second Coming" or "First Coming" either!
IF YOU START TYING YOURSELF DOWN TO SOME OF THOSE OLD TRADITIONAL TERMS FOR SOME OF THESE EVENTS, & CONFINING YOURSELF TO CERTAIN SET NAMES FOR CERTAIN SET EVENTS, YOU'RE GOING TO FIND YOURSELF BOXED IN & LIMITED TO THEIR THEOLOGY & THEIR INTERPRETATION OF BIBLE, WHICH LEAVES NO ROOM FOR ANYTHING ELSE. They've got it all cut & dried with no leeway for any other salvations, any other hells or any other comings or resurrections or Raptures or saints or anything! They've got everything labeled in a set way, & as far as they're concerned you can't change them. And there's one sure thing, you can't change their minds or confuse them with the facts!--Their minds are made up! They've got their set interpretation, & that's it! I've seldom ever heard one of them say, "So sorry I was mistaken, I was wrong, it's not exactly the way I thought it was," as I have sometimes said!--As I have sometimes confessed, I should say.
SO IT DOESN'T PAY TO GET YOURSELF TIED DOWN TO BEING TOO DOGMATIC & TOO SET IN YOUR SPECIFICS, as you may later find out that your interpretation was mistaken, as I've sometimes discovered. Leave yourself open with an open mind that can be changed by the facts or the Truth or the Scriptures at a later date if necessary, & that's certainly true of our interpretations of Bible prophecy.
WE DON'T WANT TO GET TOO DOGMATIC OR TOO SET IN OUR INTERPRETATION THAT WE CAN'T CHANGE OUR MINDS WHEN THE LORD SHOWS US SOMETHING DIFFERENT. That's the trouble with the church traditionalists today, they've got a set system & they can't change it without admitting they were wrong, & of course they don't dare admit that they were ever wrong, since they're infallible, so they never change & you can't change'm no matter how wrong they are! They'll never admit it, they'll never change, because they find it impossible to confess that they made a mistake or that they were ever wrong!
I THINK I'VE REALLY TRIED NOT TO BE TOO DOGMATIC about some of these things. I've said "probably" & "may" & "I think" & "it's my opinion, my interpretation, my view", without necessarily being too dogmatic, except where the Scripture is very very clear. And there you can put your foot down, you can say, "That's the way it's got to be because that's what the Bible says!" But getting into all these interpretative details in trying to define everything, to describe everything, you're apt to put your foot in your mouth! That's why I'm never too certain about some of these details.
I USUALLY MERELY PRESENT SOME & PUT THEM FORTH AS MY OPINION, MY INTERPRETATION, my guess or guesstimate or whatever, & let you take your choice. I've often said, "You don't have to believe what I say, because I can't necessarily prove it by the Bible. But I believe it because that's my conviction or that's what the Lord has shown me personally!" So the people who don't believe anything but what they find in the Bible are a little bit limited & restricted in what they do believe or can believe.--And of course most of them don't believe anything I've said anyhow, most of those particular people I'm talking about--church people in other words--they don't believe what I say anyhow, so it doesn't make much difference. But I hope you believe it because I believe it, & what I've proved by the Bible you'd better accept! But what I can't prove by the Bible, you don't have to accept if you don't want to, you can count that as my personal opinion or private interpretation or whatever you want to call it, but I haven't very often been wrong, TTL! GBAKY right, in Jesus' name, amen!--Are you right?
Dearest Dad, 5/83
GBY! WLYSM & ARE PRAYING FOR YOU! WE HEARD THAT YOU WERE WORKING ON SOME ENDTIME QUESTIONS & ANSWERS.--So these are points I haven't understood too clearly or have had questions about while studying over various events & aspects of the End while working on the recent End-Time Compilations for the BOF II Book.--I hope they're not theological hair-splitters or any kind of unnecessary burden to you.--So here goes:
11. QUESTION: FROM DANIEL 11, WE KNOW THAT THE ANTICHRIST "PLANTS HIS PALACE BETWEEN THE SEAS IN THE GLORIOUS HOLY MOUNTAIN" (Dan.11:45), Mount Moriah, Jerusalem, in the rebuilt Temple, where he "sitteth in the Temple of God" (2Th.2:4), "places the Abomination of Desolation" (Dan.11:31; Mt.24:15), etc. Daniel 11 also speaks of him "coming toward the South" (Dan.11:29), obviously from the North. Daniel 11:40 says, "At the time of the End shall the king of the South push at him: & the king of the North shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, horsemen, many ships" etc., which, as you have said, makes it pretty clear that the Antichrist is the "king of the North". And in Ezekiel 38, which is the Chapter that my question deals with, we find Gog, who apparently is the Antichrist, coming against Israel with his vast hordes in the Last Days.
FROM THE TEXT OF EZEKIEL 38 it appears that immediately after Gog invades Israel, God socks it to him & he & his forces are virtually destroyed. It says, "And it shall come to pass at the same time when Gog shall come against the land of Israel, saith the Lord God, that My fury shall come up in My face...Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel...& all the men that are upon the face of the Earth, shall shake at My presence, & the mountains shall be thrown down, & the steep places shall fall, & every wall shall fall to the ground. And I will plead against him with pestilence & with blood; & I will rain upon him, & upon his bands, & upon the many people that are with him, an overflowing rain, & great hailstones, fire, & brimstone." (Ez.38:18-22)
THE NEXT CHAPTER GOES ON TO SAY HOW 5/6THS OF HIS FORCES WILL BE DESTROYED (v.2), & how God will "send a fire on Magog (Russia), & among them that dwell carelessly in the isles." (Ez.39:6) And then it goes on to describe the devastation resulting from God's judgements, the seven months of burying the dead, the seven years of weapon burning & the fowls & beasts feasting on the carcasses of the fallen armies.--Which definitely parallels Revelation's description of the Wrath of God & the Battle of Armageddon.
--SO MY QUESTION IS, IF GOG IS THE ANTICHRIST, & therefore not only invades Israel, but occupies & rules from Jerusalem for 42 months, why does Ezekiel prophesy that "at the same time...in that day" he gets destroyed by God's judgements? Is this simply a matter of the Prophet seeing the mountain peaks of coming events in the distant future & being unable to discern the distance between them (3-1/2 years)?--Or could it be possible that Gog, although definitely the "chief prince" of Russia, might not actually be the Antichrist, who we know will actually occupy & rule from Jerusalem for 42 months?
ANSWER: GOG IS DEFINITELY THE ANTICHRIST, of whom the Lord says in Ezekiel 38:17, "of whom I have spoken in old time by my servants the Prophets" (like Daniel etc.), & his destruction described is definitely that of Armageddon, 3-1/2 years after his invasion of Israel, which is only a moment of time to the Lord.
12. QUESTION: ANOTHER QUESTION WHICH I HAD HAS TO DO WITH THE DESTRUCTION OF BABYLON as described in Revelation. It says in Revelation 17 that the ten kings who cooperate with the Antichrist will destroy her: "And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the Beast, these shall hate the Whore, & shall make her desolate & naked, & shall eat her flesh, & burn her with fire. For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil His will, & to agree, & give their kingdom unto the Beast, until the Words of God shall be fulfilled." (Rev.17:16,17)--But back in Revelation 16, during the final Seventh Vial of the Wrath of God, it looks like the Whore is destroyed by the great earthquake & one-hundred-pound hailstones that are part of God's final judgements on the Antichrist's kingdom: "And there were voices, & thunders, & lightnings; & there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the Earth, so mighty an earthquake, & so great. And the great city was divided into three parts, & the cities of the nations fell: & great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of His wrath. And every island fled away, & the mountains were not found. And there fell upon men a great hail out of Heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: & men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great." (Rev.16:18-21)
SO THE THING I DON'T QUITE FULLY GRASP is when exactly does the Whore--the Worldwide city system of materialism & Mammon-worship--get hers? The verses in Revelation 17 seem to indicate that her destruction is a concerted effort by the Antichrist's cohorts, whereas Chapter 16 seems to show that while all of the Antichrist's forces & armies are gathered together for the big showdown at Armageddon, the Lord wipes out Babylon with a supernatural earthquake & hailstorm, at the time of the Seventh Vial--"in the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall." (Is.30:25)
COULD IT BE THAT THE ANTICHRIST KNOCKS OUT THE U.S.A. (the center or epitome of capitalistic Babylonic Confusion today), but that the Lord destroys all of Babylon (the entire World city system) at Armageddon?
ANSWER: YES.
13. QUESTION: A QUESTION REGARDING THE RESURRECTION: While working on the Second Coming Compilation, I was studying these Scriptures: "For I know that my Redeemer liveth, & that He shall stand at the Latter Day upon the Earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: Whom I shall see for myself, & mine eyes shall behold, & not another; though my reins be consumed within me." (Job 19:25-27)
"AS FOR ME, I WILL BEHOLD THY FACE IN RIGHTEOUSNESS: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with Thy likeness." (Ps.17:15) "Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake & sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, & the Earth shall cast out the dead." (Is.26:19)--All written by Old Testament saints who seem to be saying that when Jesus returns, then they'll get their new resurrection bodies.
BUT AS YOU BROUGHT OUT IN "THE EASTER STORY!" & other places, & as the Gospel of Matthew says, at the time of Jesus' crucifixion, "the graves were opened; & many bodies of the saints which slept arose, & came out of the graves after His resurrection, & went into the Holy City, & appeared unto many!" (Mt.27:52,53)
SO MY QUESTION IS, DID ALL OF THE OLD TESTAMENT ERA SAVED BELIEVERS RISE IN ACTUAL HEAVENLY RESURRECTION "NEW MODEL" BODIES at this time, or only "many" of them around Jerusalem, to be a witness to the city that had just seen their Messiah crucified?--Isaiah seems to say that he will personally get his "new model" at the Second Coming--"together with my dead body shall they arise." (Is.26:19)--Or could he be implying that although he is already in his new body, others who receive theirs at Christ's Coming will be joined together with him?--Also, will those who arose at Christ's crucifixion come along with those "who sleep in Jesus that God will bring with Him" (1Th.4:14) when the resurrection occurs?
ANSWER: WHY MUST YOU ASSUME THAT JOB & ISAIAH WERE TALKING OF THE SO-CALLED "SECOND COMING"? (See Answers to Questions No.8 & 10) Why couldn't they be speaking of their resurrection at Christ's "first" coming?--There is nothing here to preclude the same! Neither does the "many" of Matthew 27 not mean all--they couldn't have known how many nor whether it was all, they only saw many. Why would the Lord only have raised part of them?--And why shouldn't He bring'm back with Him when He comes again for the BIG ONE?--The great Family Reunion of all!--The Rapture at His "Second" Coming?
I REALISE THESE AREN'T SUPER URGENT OR IMPORTANT QUESTIONS, nor are they things we really need to know & understand right now.--Like you've often said, when the time comes, I'm sure the Lord will show us! But these were questions that I had & if now is a convenient time to ask them & if you feel they're worth answering, here they are.
AGAIN, I SINCERELY HOPE THEY DON'T UNNECESSARILY TAKE TOO MUCH OF YOUR PRECIOUS TIME.--We're all "thanking God for the good"!--And I can honestly say, "To whom else can we go?--Thou alone hast His Words of eternal life for today!"--TYJ!--And if you have time to clarify or fill in these little gaps for us, of course we'd be grateful.--But if not, we understand completely & can't thank you enough for the major, life-changing, eternally important chasms, voids & emptiness you have filled!--You've given us Jesus & a way to live & love for Him!--TYJ!--And thank you!
Love Always in His & Your Service,
Apollos & Lois
PTL! GBY! I'm happy to try to answer all I can, but many are still a mystery God has reserved for later when we really need to know.
14. QUESTION: I WAS TAUGHT AS A BABE THAT WHEN SATAN & ONE-THIRD OF THE ANGELS ARE CAST OUT OF HEAVEN ONTO THE EARTH IN THE TRIBULATION THAT WE WOULDN'T BE BOTHERED BY THEM SPIRITUALLY ANYMORE. They would only bother us in the flesh. Is there anything you care to add or subtract from that? I know you've said a lot of our problems come from our own stubborn spirits & not the Devil, but when it does happen during the Tribulation, will that mean we'll all have a lot more faith & power to do miracles?--John, S.E. Asia.
ANSWER: I CERTAINLY NEVER TAUGHT SUCH A RIDICULOUS DOCTRINE AS THAT, that the Devil & his angels wouldn't bother us during the Tribulation!--Sounds like the false prophet Joel! Rev.12:12 explicitly says: "Woe to the inhabiters of the Earth & of the sea! For the Devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time." If anything he'll try to give us a harder time than ever!--Perhaps you're confusing the Tribulation with the Millennium when he'll be in the Pit & our main problems will be the wicked he left behind!
15. QUESTION: DAD, YOU MENTIONED THAT "YOU'LL HAVE YOUR MATE IN HEAVEN FOREVER & YOUR CHILDREN & YOUR LOVED ONES, & your friends that you win to Jesus." Do you think that in the life to come we will in some cases continue on in the same teams, or working & living arrangements that we have now? Do you think these personal relationships are eternal, unless God does otherwise? It sounds like we will be with the people that we know, so I wondered if you had any additional info on this! It sure is a blessing to be able to ask you these questions!--Love, Francis, S.E. Asia.
ANSWER: I THINK THE LETTERS HAVE MENTIONED THIS MANY TIMES BEFORE: YES!--WHY NOT?
16. QUESTION: IF IN THE HEAVENLY CITY EACH PERSON WILL BE ON A CERTAIN LEVEL ACCORDING TO THEIR REWARDS, WILL THERE BE FREE ACCESS TO ALL LEVELS, or certain areas of different levels, even if not to live but to visit? Could those on a lower level go up to a higher level eventually to live as they continue to learn & pass certain grades? Thanks so much for taking your valuable time to answer all our questions!--Angela, W.S. Unit.
ANSWER: I DON'T KNOW!--But my logic is it'll be like the old passenger steamships: The bottom steerage for those who barely made it, fourth or D deck below for Fourth Class passengers, C for Third Class, B for Second Class & A or Top Deck for First Class!--Only our ship could have nearly a million decks for variety!--Also lower deck passengers were not allowed on upper decks without paying higher prices--like the martyrs!
17. QUESTION: WILL WE WHO ARE SAVED BE RESPONSIBLE TO WITNESS TO OLD FRIENDS, loved ones, & acquaintances who were never saved? Would these people be our assignment if we are the only ones whom they knew who were saved?--Josiah, S.E. Asia.
ANSWER: WHEN?--YOU ARE NOW!--And certainly should have as great concern for them hereafter as well!
18. QUESTION: I'VE REALLY BEEN INTRIGUED LATELY ABOUT THE 10 HORNS OF REVELATION 13 that you mentioned in "War & Peace", which could be the 10 EEC members. In Rev.17:12 it says "And the ten horns which thou sawest are 10 kings which have received no kingdom as yet, but receive power as kings one hour with the Beast." It almost sounded to me that it was a worldwide conspiracy by the Beast & 10 of his followers, that somehow they become the leaders of the ten different countries or areas, that the Antichrist Empire is divided up into.
My main question was, what you thought of the idea that the Image of Daniel 2 had five toes on the East foot & five on the West foot--that perhaps these last ten kingdoms are the five leading countries of the East & the five of the West. I know already that they have an expression that they call the five leading countries of the West, "The Big Five".--I think they are the U.S., Britain, France, W. Germany & Japan!--Matthew, S.E. Asia.
ANSWER: THE PROBLEM HERE IS THAT THE FIVE EAST TOES GREW OUT OF THE EAST ROMAN EMPIRE LEG which never went further East than Israel, Syria & Egypt, & was mainly Greece & Turkey. The West Roman Empire leg ended mostly in the five Western Europe Toes of Britain, France, Germany, Spain & Italy. Most of these are already members of the EEC, with more coming. Thank God the Far East & Third World don't seem to be his top friends & henchmen or amongst the main Ten Toes!
19. QUESTION: IN DAN.7:8 IT SAYS "I CONSIDERED THE HORNS & behold, there came up among them another little horn before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots:..." Keeping this in mind & looking at Rev.17:12, I was wondering if these 10 were actually the same as the 10 in Dan.7:8 who seemed to be in existence before the Antichrist's rise to power, but those in Rev.17:12 only had power after the beast was in power. Or perhaps it is like a before-&-after situation where they are both the same kingdoms but before & after the Nuke War when new rulers perhaps have taken over the 10 kingdoms.--Simon, S.E. Asia.
ANSWER: THE FINAL REVELATION TEN SEEM TO SYMBOLISE ACTUAL EUROPEAN LEADERS, "Kings", whose nations are the same as Daniel's Ten, but these are their final leaders, represented principally today by the EEC. (See "War or Peace?" No.1518.)
20. QUESTION: REFERRING TO THE ABOVE: IF THE 10 HORNS ARE THE SAME IN BOTH CASES, then because the Antichrist turns on three of them & destroys them, either along with the U.S., or if they include the U.S., either one, this would tie in with your vision of W. Germany being an atomic wasteland. The whole Eden series was fascinating even though I'd heard them before! I really loved it!--Simon, S.E. Asia.
ANSWER: NOPE, SORRY. ACCORDING TO EZEK.38:6, GOMER OR GERMANY WILL BE ONE OF THE LEADERS OF THE ANTICHRIST FORCES!--But this does not necessarily prevent it from being destroyed by U.S. retaliatory missiles before the U.S. goes down!--Especially if Europe's Ten Kings have agreed with the Antichrist to turn all their missiles on the U.S.!--As indicated by Rev.17:12,13,16 & 17.
21. QUESTION: ONE QUESTION ABOUT THE "LITTLE SEASON" AT THE END OF THE MILLENNIUM, when the Devil & his horde surround the Camp of the Saints, which you said would most likely be the Millennial Saints. We were wondering why we wouldn't be there to defend them? Is it perhaps a similar situation for them that we will face in the Great Tribulation, a time to "try them, purge them & make them white?"--Crystal, S.E. Asia.
ANSWER: YES, BUT I DIDN'T SAY WE WOULDN'T BE THERE WITH THEM TO HELP THERE, even as the Angels & departed Saints now help us, & certainly will even more during our Tribulation! The Battle of Gog & Magog is indeed the final "Tribulation" of the Millennial Saints!
22. QUESTION: WITH THE DEVIL CAST OUT OF HEAVEN DURING THE TRIBULATION, DOES THIS MEAN HE OR HIS DEMONS WON'T BE ABLE TO ACCUSE US BEFORE GOD, & thus we'll have a much clearer channel with the Lord during the Great Trib?--Jeremy, Pacific.
ANSWER: I CERTAINLY HOPE SO!--BUT THEY'LL BE GIVIN' US A TOUGHER TIME ON EARTH! SEE REV.12:12.
23. QUESTION: IF SOMEONE RECEIVES THE MARK OF THE BEAST DURING THE TRIBULATION, DOES THAT IMPLY THEY'LL BE SO SOLD OUT TO THE DEVIL THERE'S NO HOPE OF PERSONAL SALVATION FOR THEM PRIOR TO JESUS' RETURN?--Jeremy, Pacific.
ANSWER: RIGHT!
24. QUESTION: DOES IT SEEM THEORETICALLY POSSIBLE THAT THE ANTICHRIST COULD HAVE BEEN BORN TO (JEWISH) RUSSIAN PARENTS WHO WERE STATIONED IN EGYPT as military advisors, but then has been brought up in Russia where he's received his schooling & training, etc.--Although he received his "anointing" at birth in Egypt?--Jeremy, Pacific.
ANSWER: "WITH GOD NOTHING SHALL BE IMPOSSIBLE!"--(Lk.1:37)
25. QUESTION: DOES IT SEEM FEASIBLE THAT THE IMPENDING NUCLEAR WAR WILL BE DEFUSED THROUGH THE "HOLY COVENANT" which may be any of the various "Peace Talks" now underway, but that it will not actually be "confirmed" till 1985-86, due to the way these things drag on in negotiations?--Jeremy, Pacific.
ANSWER: YES, AS WE BROUGHT OUT IN "WAR OR PEACE?", No.1518.
26. QUESTION: WILL THERE BE ANIMALS INSIDE SPACE CITY?--That is possibly in parks, etc., on each level or even as "house pets"?--Or will all the animals be outside on the New Earth?--Jeremy, Pacific.
ANSWER: I THINK I ANSWERED THAT IN "SPACE CITY" & Nos.338, 275 & 686.
27. QUESTION: DO YOU THINK THERE WILL BE ANY MORE CONVENTIONAL WARS IN THE MIDEAST involving Israel before the Atomic War?--Job, W.S. Unit.
ANSWER: THERE IS ONE RIGHT NOW BETWEEN ISRAEL & SYRIA!
28. QUESTION: IS IT CERTAIN THAT THE TEN KINGS ARE THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC COMMUNITY nations as we know them now? Is it possible that it might refer to a different grouping of nations that might come about between now & then?--Job, W.S. Unit.
ANSWER: POSSIBLY, BUT IT SEEMS VERY SIMILAR, as Europe today is the Ten-toed iron-&-clay remains of the old Roman legs of Daniel 2.--See A/Qs No. 18, 19 & 20.
29. QUESTION: MARIA: IN THE BIBLE ARE BOTH THE FALSE PROPHET & THE ANTICHRIST CALLED THE BEAST?
ANSWER: THEY ARE BOTH BEASTS, BUT USUALLY ONLY THE ANTICHRIST IS CALLED THE BEAST, although the False Prophet is a beast, the False Lamb of Revelation 13.
30. QUESTION: WHY IS THE FALSE PROPHET CALLED THE BEAST IN REVELATION 13? I thought the Antichrist was the Beast?
ANSWER: HE'S NOT! The False Prophet is not called "the" Beast", but "another beast" (See above A/Q No.29.) In the Unholy Trinity, Satan is like the anti-type of God; the Antichrist is like his son, the anti-type of Christ; & the False Prophet I presume represents the Devil's Un-Holy Spirit. But the False Prophet is represented by a horned lamb which seems to make him also an anti-type of the True Lamb, Jesus. But I don't understand it either, just like we don't fully understand Jesus & the Holy Spirit very well either.--Who understands the Trinity? Jesus & God are almost the same as the Holy Spirit, so how can we even understand the Trinity, three persons in one & yet separate persons! The Holy Spirit is part of Jesus in a way, & yet She's a separate personality! Because when you ask Jesus to come into your heart, Who is it really?--It's the Holy Spirit of Jesus! I mean, when you get into that stuff you're splitting theological hairs which is the kind of stuff that the church got into & all messed up on trying to figure out every little detail! The False Prophet represents the Antichrist like the Holy Spirit represents Christ.
31. QUESTION: IT SAYS WHEN JESUS COMES THAT EVERY EYE SHALL SEE HIM & "they also which pierced Him shall see Him coming in the skies." How can that be?
ANSWER: OBVIOUSLY THEIR SPIRITS ARE STILL AROUND, SO EVEN THE SPIRIT WORLD CAN SEE THE SECOND COMING OF JESUS & THE RESURRECTION & RAPTURE! They're all going to see it, everybody is going to see it no matter where they are, even the Spirit World is going to see the Coming of the Lord! Think of that! Well, of course, after all, they see us, why shouldn't they see Jesus when He comes? Isn't that funny? I never could understand that Scripture, how they could see Him too, but since the Lord has revealed to us about the spirits, that makes it easy to understand.
THE SPIRIT WORLD ALSO WILL SEE JESUS COMING, BOTH THE GOOD & THE BAD SPIRITS! It says in another passage, I think it's Zechariah, (Zech.12:10): "And they will weep for Him as for an only Son." Boy! That's another revelation! Thank you for asking the question, Honey. I never could see how those Jews that pierced Him, that were already dead, how could they also see Him? Well of course, they are alive & kickin' in the Spirit World! How about that? Everybody both dead & alive will see Jesus when He comes! "That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in Heaven, & things in Earth, & things under the Earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Phil.2:10,11)
32. QUESTION: IN "DANIEL 8 FLANNELGRAPH" (THE CHART) IT MENTIONS THAT THE 2300 DAYS WILL BE 6 YEARS & 3 MONTHS, & THE BALANCE OF THE 7 YEARS, THE 220 DAYS, WILL BE 9 MONTHS. But it seems like 2300 days was actually a little longer, figuring like this: 2300 divided by 30 days/month = 76 & 2/3 mos. 76 & 2/3 months divided by 12 = 6 years, 4 & 2/3 months. (or 6 yrs., 5 mos. ?) 220 days divided by 30 days/month = 7 & 1/3 mos. (or 7 mos.?) OR 7 yrs. Total. Are these figures correct?--Gabriel, S.E. Asia.
ANSWER:--WHOSE FIGURES?--YOURS OR MINE?--And where did I say what? Please give me the exact reference!--Just remember, the Bible number of days will be exact, but years & months a bit different, due to the difference between our present Roman calendar & the old Jewish calendar. But let's don't split hairs!--All but the days are approximate. Incidentally, Sam put that 220 days on that Chart, not me! I always figured that since the 2300 days were about 6 years & 3 months, then the rest of the 7 years would be around 8-9 months. Sorry.
33. QUESTION: LUKE 21:24 SAYS "JERUSALEM SHALL BE TRODDEN DOWN...UNTIL THE TIMES OF THE GENTILES BE FULFILLED," which Dad said was he Antichrist reign. In "Little Book & the Time of the Gentiles", Dad had gotten that the "Times of the Gentiles" was fulfilled with our beginning in 1969. Is one a physical fulfilment involving different dates?--Jeremy, Pacific.
ANSWER: REMEMBER I SAID IN THE "70 YEARS PROPHECY" that the time of the Gentiles was fulfilled about the time we began the Family (See No.146:17), & Luke 21 said that Jerusalem would be trodden under foot until the Time of the Gentiles be fulfilled. Figuring on the year/day theory, that worked out not only to the birth of the Family but almost to the exact date of the Jewish reoccupation of Jerusalem in one of their recent wars! But the Gentiles are going to occupy it again, the forces of the Antichrist, & they're going to tread it down another 42 months! (Rev.11:2)
34. QUESTION: I HAD A QUESTION OR THOUGHT ON WHAT THE MILLENNIUM WILL BE LIKE. I wondered if possibly there might be electric cars & vehicles (& not internal combustion engines--or should I say "infernal"). Electric ones are quiet & go much slower & don't pollute, so not so apt to hurt & destroy.
You mentioned a car in the "Magic Green Shirt", & also a bus in the Millennial Dream Trip", so I wondered what type of vehicles these might be!--Ruth, W.S. Unit.
ANSWER: "WITH GOD NOTHING SHALL BE IMPOSSIBLE!"--Sounds interesting!--Maybe so!--But mostly I've seen animals, wagons, sailboats, etc.
Copyright (c) 1998 by The Family
