03/10/22
Moses and the Hebrews come forth out of Egypt and arrive at Mt. Sinai. Moses writes the book of Leviticus there before Israel leaves Mt. Sinai and travels to their land of Canaan (Israel), destroy its inhabitants, and be God's kingdom nation there. But, Israel would not go into the land for fear of the giants there (Numb 13 KJ). So God sends Moses and all those who came out of Egypt with him into the wilderness for 40 years.
(Numb 14: 33,34 KJ) And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your carcases be wasted in the wilderness.
(34) After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye shall know my breach of promise.
After the 40 years in the wilderness, Joshua and those that survived the wilderness wanderings finally enter the land of Canaan. After Joshua's death and the death of those of his generation, another generation rises; and they know not the LORD:
(Judges 2:8,10 KJ) And Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died, being an hundred and ten years old.
(10) And also all that generation were gathered unto their fathers: and there arose another generation after them, which knew not the LORD, nor yet the works which he had done for Israel.
And what does this new generation of people do? They do precisely what God in the first chastisement of (Lev 26:14 f.f. - KJ) told them NOT to do…..and God brings His first chastisement against Israel in the book of Judges:
(Judges 2:11- KJ) And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, and served Baalim:
(12) And they forsook the LORD God of their fathers, which brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of the people that were round about them, and bowed themselves unto them, and provoked the LORD to anger.
(13) And they forsook the LORD, and served Baal and Ashtaroth.
(14) And the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and he delivered them into the hands of spoilers that spoiled them, and he sold them into the hands of their enemies round about, so that they could not any longer stand before their enemies.
(15) Whithersoever they went out, the hand of the LORD was against them for evil, as the LORD had said, and as the LORD had sworn unto them: and they were greatly distressed.
“as the LORD had said, and as the LORD had sworn unto them:”
When did the LORD say that?
Back there at Mt. Sinai when Moses wrote the book of Leviticus, and before they wandered in the wilderness for 40 years, God had given Israel an understanding of what He expected from His people for thier obedience to Him. They were to obey His covenant of laws, His statutes, and His commandments that He had given to Moses and Israel at Mt. Sinai. In (Lev 26:1-9 KJ) God speaks to Israel concerning their obedience to Him in the land that He is giving them and leading them to.
And for their obedience to God, God would cause them to have rain, fruitful land and trees; their threshing would reach to the vintage and the vintage to the sowing time. Also, they would dwell safely and have peace in their land; they would lie down and none would make them afraid. God would also rid evil beasts out of their land and the sword would not go through their land. Also, Israel would chase their enemies and their enemies would fall before them by the sword. Five would chase an hundred and an hundred would put ten thousand to flight. God would have respect unto them, make them fruitful and multiply them, and establish His covenant with them. Also:
(Leviticus 26:10- KJ) And ye shall eat old store, and bring forth the old because of the new.
(11) And I will set my tabernacle among you: and my soul shall not abhor you.
(12) And I will walk among you, and will be your God, and ye shall be my people.
But if Israel did not obey God's covenant, God would chastise Israel. The purpose of the punishment was to reform (Lev 26:23 KJ) Israel, to get them back in a right relationship with Him. Starting in verses (14-17) God gives the 1st punishment of 5 that He will lay upon Israel for their disobedience to His covenant. Each new chastisement of punishment increases sevenfold and continues when the next chastisement is added.
(Leviticus 26:14-17 KJ) But if ye will not hearken unto me, and will not do all these commandments;
(15) And if ye shall despise my statutes, or if your soul abhor my judgments, so that ye will not do all my commandments, but that ye break my covenant:
(16) I also will do this unto you; I will even appoint over you terror, consumption, and the burning ague, that shall consume the eyes, and cause sorrow of heart: and ye shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it.
(17) And I will set my face against you, and ye shall be slain before your enemies: they that hate you shall reign over you; and ye shall flee when none pursueth you.
Just like the first chastisement above (Lev 26:14-17 KJ), that started in (Judg 2:14,15 KJ) and lasted till (1 Sam 16 KJ), we can actually go through Israel's history and locate when each of the 5 chastisements began and how long they lasted.
God gave Israel's history in advance in (Lev 26). Mankind has always had the choice (volition) to obey God or not to, but just as God gave to Adam and Eve the consequences of what would happen to them if they disobeyed Him, God also in (Lev 26) gave consequences to Israel if they disobeyed His covenant.
Recall earlier that when Joshua died, the new generation of Israelites forsook the LORD and worshipped false gods. Because of that, God started His first chastisement (Lev 26:14-17) against Israel in:
(Judges 2:14,15 KJ) And the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and he delivered them into the hands of spoilers that spoiled them, and he sold them into the hands of their enemies round about, so that they could not any longer stand before their enemies.
(15) Whithersoever they went out, the hand of the LORD was against them for evil, as the LORD had said, and as the LORD had sworn unto them: and they were greatly distressed.
“as the LORD had said, and as the LORD had sworn unto them:”
When did the LORD swear unto Israel that He would punish them for their disobedience? That would be back in (Lev 26:14-17 KJ),….where the first chastisement that God had said that He would give to Israel is located, way back there at Mt. Sinai, before Israel's 40 years in the wilderness.
Think about God's grace here. Before God laid down the first chastisement upon Israel, there was the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, the conquest of Israel by Joshua after the 40 years, the passing away of Joshua and his generation after him, and finally the raising up of the following generation after Joshua. God gave Israel a long time to turn back to Him. God is very gracious…..but He does have a line. America…..listen up.
All through the period of the Judges, Israel would forsake God's covenant, and God, as He said that He would do in the first chastisement, brought enemies of Israel against them that held them in bondage. At some point Israel would cry out to God and He would send them a deliverer (i.e., Judge) who would rescue them. And this cycle repeated itself.
Then we come in Israel's history to a respite from God's judgment against His people of Israel. Remember, the purpose behind the chastisements, each one continuing on into the next chastisement, was not God getting even with Israel, but the chastisements, all 5, are reformatory (see: Lev 26:23 KJ). That is, God is punishing Israel in order to reform them so that they will obey His covenant.
After the period of the Judges, we come to the time of the Kings. God replaces the first King…King Saul, with King David, and then after King David his son Solomon reigns. The era of King David and King Solomon was a respite from God's chastisement upon Israel. Most of what it will take for Israel to become the Holy nation and people that God created Israel to be is found in (Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon), i.e., the ‘heart’ of Israel books. And out of those 5 books, David and Solomon wrote most of the last 4. God destroyed King David's enemies and gave immense blessings to Israel under King Solomon, such as hasn't been seen from that time till now.
However:
(1 Kings 11:1,2 KJ) But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites;
(2) Of the nations concerning which the LORD said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love.
……“for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love.”
(1 Kings 11:7,8 KJ) Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon.
(8) And likewise did he for all his strange wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods.
…"in the hill that is before Jerusalem,”
That would be the Mount of Olives. Solomon's strange (i.e., foreign) wives sacrificed to false gods in the high places that Solomon built for that purpose.
Solomon forsook the LORD God who appeared unto him twice.
Enter God's judgment of the 2nd chastisement against Israel:
(Leviticus 26:18-20 KJ) And if ye will not yet for all this hearken unto me, then I will punish you seven times more for your sins.
(19) And I will break the pride of your power; and I will make your heaven as iron, and your earth as brass:
(20) And your strength shall be spent in vain: for your land shall not yield her increase, neither shall the trees of the land yield their fruits.
The second chastisement happens from (1 Kings 12 - 22 KJ). God had said in (Lev 26:19 KJ) that He would:
“break the pride of your power;”
And that's exactly what God did. After Solomon's son Rehoboam became King, God broke the pride of their power and:
DIVIDED THE KINGDOM OF ISRAEL INTO 2 KINGDOMS.
The 3rd chastisement:
(Leviticus 26:21,22 KJ) And if ye walk contrary unto me, and will not hearken unto me; I will bring seven times more plagues upon you according to your sins.
(22) I will also send wild beasts among you, which shall rob you of your children, and destroy your cattle, and make you few in number; and your high ways shall be desolate.
…….”I will also send wild beasts among you, which shall rob you of your children,”
It is very interesting what happened after the prophet Elisha saw the prophet Elijah get taken into heaven by the chariot and horses of fire (2 Kgs 2:1,2 KJ). The Jordan river parted for Elisha and he went towards Bethel. Watch what happens here:
(2 Kings 2:23-24 KJ) And he went up from thence unto Bethel: and as he was going up by the way, there came forth little children out of the city, and mocked him, and said unto him, Go up, thou bald head; go up, thou bald head.
(24) And he turned back, and looked on them, and cursed them in the name of the LORD. And there came forth two she bears out of the wood, and tare forty and two children of them.
Notice what the children want Elisha to do. They mock him and tell him to “Go up”….i.e., go where Elijah now is….(Elijah is in heaven now)….we don't want you here on earth with us etc. Where did those children get that idea? That's right…..from the adults. And how did the Lord God say that He would punish Israel if they did not reform and obey His Covenant?
…….”I will also send wild beasts among you, which shall rob you of your children,”
The chastisements each have at least one Prophet who addresses the issues Israel and Judah are dealing with. Samuel was Prophet during the 1st course, Elijah during the 2nd, and Elisha during the 3rd.
The “writing” prophets, i.e., (Isaiah - Malachi), all write during the 4th and the beginning of the 5th chastisements. Why is that?
Because God is not going to speak to Israel for 400 years during the 5th chastisement.
The writing prophets speak about the 1st stage of the captivity, i.e., the 70 years in Babylon and how Israel is to get through it, but they also talk about the last stage of the captivity, i.e., the 7 year tribulation. That is, Jacob is in trouble in the last 7 years known as the tribulation, but Jacob was also in trouble when the Babylonians came to Jerusalem and took them (Ezekiel and Daniel, for example) back to Babylon for 70 years.
Passages in the writing prophets (Isaiah - Malachi) that speak of the 1st stage of the 5th chastisement, i.e., the Babylonian captivity, are at one and the same time speaking in ‘type’ about the last stage of the 5th chastisement, i.e., the last 7 years, the 7 year tribulation, the
TIME OF JACOB'S TROUBLE
Before the 5th chastisement happens, God begins to take Israel's (northern kingdom) land away in the 4th chastisement:
(Leviticus 26:23-26 KJ) And if ye will not be reformed by me by these things, but will walk contrary unto me;
(24) Then will I also walk contrary unto you, and will punish you yet seven times for your sins.
(25) And I will bring a sword upon you, that shall avenge the quarrel of my covenant: and when ye are gathered together within your cities, I will send the pestilence among you; and ye shall be delivered into the hand of the enemy.
(26) And when I have broken the staff of your bread, ten women shall bake your bread in one oven, and they shall deliver you your bread again by weight: and ye shall eat, and not be satisfied.
…”and if ye will not be reformed by me”
Again, the purpose of the 5 chastisements is to get Israel to turn back to obeying God's Covenant again. God loves His people of Israel and He will bless them,…..but they must obey His commandents, statutes and laws that they agreed to obey, to be blessed by God:
(Exodus 19:8 KJ) And all the people answered together, and said, All that the LORD hath spoken we will do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the LORD.
Note this from the 4th chastisement in (Lev 26:25 KJ)…:
And I will bring a sword upon you, that shall avenge the quarrel of my covenant:”
Here comes the sword in the 4th chastisement:
(2 Kings 10:32 KJ) In those days the LORD began to cut Israel short: and Hazael smote them in all the coasts of Israel;
….”began to cut Israel short:”
God also brings enemies against Judah (southern kingdom) who are in rebellion against God's covenant just as He also did earlier against Israel the (northern kingdom)….:
(2 Kings 15:37 KJ) In those days the LORD began to send against Judah Rezin the king of Syria, and Pekah the son of Remaliah.
The 5th chastisement (Lev 26:27 f.f. - KJ) is when God scatters His people into foreign lands. Israel the northern kingdom gets taken into captivity in 722 b.c., by Assyria. And Judah the southern kingdom also gets taken into captivity in 3 Babylonian invasions in (605, 597, 586 b.c.)
The captivity (political) i.e., the “times of the Gentiles,” is where Israel's crown over the nations is gone, and will remain gone, until:
(Hosea 3:4,5 KJ)For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and without teraphim:
(5) Afterward shall the children of Israel return, and seek the LORD their God, and David their king; and shall fear the LORD and his goodness in the latter days.
Until:
… “and seek the LORD their God,”
That is, they do what God said to do when Israel found themselves in captivity:
(Leviticus 26:40-43 KJ) If they shall confess their iniquity, and the iniquity of their fathers, with their trespass which they trespassed against me, and that also they have walked contrary unto me;
(41) And that I also have walked contrary unto them, and have brought them into the land of their enemies; if then their uncircumcised hearts be humbled, and they then accept of the punishment of their iniquity:
(42) Then will I remember my covenant with Jacob, and also my covenant with Isaac, and also my covenant with Abraham will I remember; and I will remember the land.
…”confess thier iniquity,”….. like those that came to John the Baptist did... Like Daniel did... And like the believing remnant of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and the 12 tribes must do for Jesus Christ to save them (1 Jn 1:9,10 KJ).
And the (spiritual) captivity of Israel will continue until “the fulness of the Gentiles be come in,” i.e., until the “dispensation of grace,” that God started with Paul is over at the rapture of the church, and until Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and the 12 tribes call out to their Lord Jesus Christ to save them:
(Romans 11:25 KJ) For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.
(Psalms 106:47,48 KJ) Save us, O LORD our God, and gather us from among the heathen, to give thanks unto thy holy name, and to triumph in thy praise.
(Psalms 106:48 KJ) Blessed be the Lord God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting: and let all the people say, Amen. Praise ye the LORD.
(Hosea 14:1,2 KJ) O Israel, return unto the LORD thy God; for thou hast fallen by thine iniquity.
(2) Take with you words, and turn to the LORD: say unto him, Take away all iniquity, and receive us graciously: so will we render the calves of our lips.
(Revelation 22:21 KJ) The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.