Summary of Bible references on the Rapture

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Ezekiel 38:1 And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, 2 Son of man, set thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him, 3 And say, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal: 4 And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws, and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords: 5 Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet: 6 Gomer, and all his bands; the house of Togarmah of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee.

I don't want to get bogged down in this portion. Everyone who expounds on this chapter will discuss who these peoples are. There is a consensus that we are talking about Russia and their allies. Also the only two Middle Eastern nations are Persia (Iran) and Turkey. However, when you read the Psalm 83 war it is all of the nations that were recently at war with Israel. Therefore I think we can say that this takes place after the Psalm 83 war and after Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis have been defeated. Syria is also defeated as well as Jordan. We don't know what the hooks in the jaw refer to, but it is a metaphor for catching a fish.

7 Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them. 8 After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.

"Be thou prepared" refers to the Jews who have been assembled in Israel, and this is clearly a prophecy for the latter days at the time of the Lord's return. When the Jews return they will be gathered out of many people, and the land they returned to was waste, but they have been brought back to dwell safely after the war. A very accurate description of 1948.

9 Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou, and all thy bands, and many people with thee.

How does a storm come? The sky turns dark we see lightning we hear thunder, the wind picks up, then the rain starts to pour. At the time of war it is as though a dark cloud covers the land.

10 Thus saith the Lord God; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought: 11 And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates, 12 To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land.

This verse indicates that Russia and all their allies are like a dark cloud over Israel when a thought comes up in their mind to go to the land of unwalled villages. This is not Israel as we know it today. Israel is a land of walled villages and their walls are famous the world over. Also if you are talking about taking spoil being cattle then that also cannot be a reference to Israel. They have a fraction of 1% of the world's herds. Here is where we must realize in the OT there are two kingdoms for Israel, the northern one represented ten tribes and the southern one represented two tribes. The northern kingdom is called Israel and the Southern kingdom is called Judah. This is a shadow of the present time. Today the Jews are divided into two kingdoms. One in the Middle East is called Israel and 49% of the world's Jews live there and the other is the USA and 49% of the world's Jews live there as well. The US is a land of unwalled villages unlike just about anywhere else in the world. I visited Mexico and they have bars on their windows, I visited Taiwan and they have bars on their windows. Most if not all countries have a very strict immigration policy restricting who can move into their country. The US historically had been the place that welcomed all peoples to come and move their. The US has much goods and they have much cattle. Russia and their allies will get the thought to attack the US because they will never be able to defeat Israel as long as the US is supporting them. A hook in the jaw makes the fish go where it does not want to go, and the fight it puts up once it is on the line is a fight to the death. The recent tariffs that Trump has imposed on these nations is devastating to their economy. Between tariffs and sanctions they are hooked and with the US rising as an AI superpower this is a fight to the death for them.
 
Ezekiel 38:13 Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil? hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil?

This is a direct reference to Saudi Arabia and Britain, two very close allies to the US. What is the "great spoil". Silver, gold and cattle. Right now there is a battle for the reserve currency between the US and BRICS. If they can take the silver and gold from the US then BRICS would win and become the reserve currency. Likewise the cattle would help feed many of their allies.

14 Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say unto Gog, Thus saith the Lord God; In that day when my people of Israel dwelleth safely, shalt thou not know it?

Clearly this "land of unwalled villages" refers to the Lord's people. The US is a Christian nation home to largest number of Christians in any one country on earth and it is home to 49% of the Jews. It is the only place on earth today that fits all the criteria mentioned.

15 And thou shalt come from thy place out of the north parts, thou, and many people with thee, all of them riding upon horses, a great company, and a mighty army: 16 And thou shalt come up against my people of Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days, and I will bring thee against my land, that the heathen may know me, when I shall be sanctified in thee, O Gog, before their eyes.

This describes a large army of people coming against the land to spoil it. But it does not describe a battle. People talk about the Ezekiel 38 war but there is no description of a war in this chapter, only of an army jumping on the spoil.

17 Thus saith the Lord God; Art thou he of whom I have spoken in old time by my servants the prophets of Israel, which prophesied in those days many years that I would bring thee against them?

Again, the Lord is claiming that it is He that brings them against His people in the US. That is similar to what we learn about the judgement on the Great Babylon.

18 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. 19 For in my jealousy and in the fire of my wrath have I spoken, Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel; 20 So that the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the field, and all creeping things that creep upon the earth, and all the men that are upon the face of the earth, shall shake at my presence, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the steep places shall fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground.


All the men that are upon the face of the earth?! This is not simply a big earthquake, this is a scale that we have never seen in human history. It could be that a super volcano erupts, it could be that a meteor hits the earth, it could be a 10.0 on the richter scale. The only reference to such. a great shaking during the latter days is the opening of the sixth seal. This is a reference to the rapture.

21 And I will call for a sword against him throughout all my mountains, saith the Lord God: every man's sword shall be against his brother.

After the rapture there will be chaos. If the power is gone out and if there is massive destruction from this earthquake, meteor, tsunami, volcano, etc. then you will see chaos in the cities with roving gangs killing each other. They will riot, they will loot, and then they will pull out their guns and start shooting one another to get food and water.

22 And I will plead against him with pestilence and with blood; and I will rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many people that are with him, an overflowing rain, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone.

Again, if there is no power there is no water purification. Without clean drinking water within two weeks you will have dysentery and other pestilences. Great hailstones and fire can be a reference to volcanic eruptions. Brimstone can be a reference to a meteor.

23 Thus will I magnify myself, and sanctify myself; and I will be known in the eyes of many nations, and they shall know that I am the Lord.

The Great Babylon is judged for their apostasy from the Lord. The entire earth at one time marveled at how blessed the US was and that was attributed to the Lord's blessing, so this judgment will also be attributed to the Lord. If we look at this it seems Russia and their allies take advantage of the US shortly after the rapture to loot it and ransack it.
 
This word makes it much easier to share the word of God

15 For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish: 16 To the one we are the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things?

When the Roman general returned from a victory in battle they would parade the captives and they would be carrying incense. Some of the captives would become slaves and some would be put to death. Paul is likening out sharing the gospel to this event saying that for some of the captives when they smell that incense it is the smell of life unto life, and for others that are about to be executed it is the smell of death unto death.

17 For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God: but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God speak we in Christ.

For we -- this is an explanation of what Paul just shared. Some Christians "corrupt the word of God". It is all about increase and numbers to them, so they tell you that everyone will live, everyone will be saved, there is no hell, etc. But that is a corruption. Those that reject the gospel, when they hear the gospel, it is a savor of death unto death because you are reminding them of the coming judgment. This doesn't mean we go around condemning people, what it means is I don't change the word of God to avoid offending others.

We are supposed to be walking a fine line, we speak the truth, we lie not, but we speak the truth in love. For example the Gideon's offend some because we stand on the Bible being the inerrant word of God. We are not trying to offend anyone, but we must speak the truth, we cannot lie. The New Testament tells us what are sins and what is the work of the flesh. If we are faithful to the Lord we must tell people this so they can repent, and if we fail to share the full counsel of God then we will also have to bear the judgment for those sins. For example, the New Testament gives the criteria for a pastor of a church, and the New Testament also says "you shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people". So we must walk a fine line.
 
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Donald Trump has shortened the deadline he has given to Russia. Now according to Trump the missiles will start on the Feast of New wine (based on the dead sea scrolls).

When Jesus died He said that His blood was wine.

Matthew 26:27 And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; 28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

1 Corinthians 11:25 After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, this cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me.

The church eats the Lord's body and drinks the Lord's blood and they are made one with the Lord Jesus to become the Body of Christ. However, at the end of the church age there are those who have rejected the Lord's redemption and so they will be shedding their own blood during the tribulation.
 
Watch & Learn World as Babylon Burns 7-28-25@ 8:47 AM

Make sure you listen to this message at the end, I think it is very instructive.

She is saying any sin, knowingly or unknowingly gives access to the enemy into that portion of your life.

Let me share a recent example. We (my wife and I) were asked by the church to stay after an outdoor meeting to help serve food. I was doing the sound for the meeting, my wife was not serving in this meeting. She asked if we could stay I said yes (usually we would leave for a variety of reasons, but we made changes to our schedule) and I wrote a text saying we would be there. That was confusing. In my mind I was saying we would stay later so that my wife could help them serve. What they understood was that both my wife and I would help serve. I told my wife I was going to go do something and she said "you said you would help serve" and I responded "No, I said we would stay later so that you could help serve". But when I looked at the text message it was very clear that it was confusing. I confessed this, I repented, I took the Lord's blood, and then when they asked for help with ushering at the next meeting I responded in a much clearer way saying I would help serve with ushering.

To say you will do something and then not do it is a lie and so that is sin. Here is an example of a sin, was it knowingly or unknowingly? Maybe a gray area. But there was clearly an allegation of sin and hence there was the need to deal with that and in this case I needed to repent and take the Lord's blood as I was the one who had sent the confusing text.

But this explains why we are not found guilty the minute the sin is committed. Satan needs to first accuse you of the sin and then you need to be able to respond and if you are guilty to plead the blood of Jesus, to confess and to have a repentance worthy of that confession. If we do that the blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin. But if not you have left the door open for Satan to attack you. Also the sin would be worse because in addition to this lie there would also be the rebellion in refusing to acknowledge the sin and there would be a second lie in denying the first lie.
 
There is a lot of talk about the calendar and a lot of confusion as there are multiple calendars being used and claims that this one or that one is erroneous.

1. We have been told clearly by God that Seedtime and Harvest are constants

Genesis 8:22 While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.

This means that we can accurately count years.

2. The seven days of creation (or restoration) begin with this verse:

Genesis 1:2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

I would argue that this is a reference to the fall of man and sin entering in.

3. Man's life is 120 years.

Genesis 6:3 And the Lord said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.

I would argue that this refers to 120 periods of fifty years each. This is based on Satan being given a lease on man for 6,000 years and there is ample Biblical support for the seven days in Genesis 1 referring to seven thousand years with the seventh day referring to the Millennial reign. This verse supports the assertion that the six thousand years begins and ends with the day that man fell.

4. In the fourth day of creation God created the Sun and the Moon. This is a reference to Jesus Christ and the Church. Therefore I would argue that the year of the crucifixion, the same year that Pentecost marked the beginning of the church was the 4,000th year from Adam. In fact I would argue that the day of Pentecost was exactly 4,000 years from the fall of man. Therefore two thousand years after Pentecost I would expect Satan's lease on man to expire. Therefore he is going to need to go to Armageddon prior to that expiration.

5. We have four possible years that Jesus was crucified based on all of the reputable historians: 30, 31, 32 and 33 AD. Two thousand years later would be 2030, 2031, 2032 and 2033. Of those, the first two would indicate we are already in the seven year period known as "the tribulation" described in Revelation. 2032 indicates this seven year period will begin in less than two months and 2033 indicates it would begin in about a year.

6. However, the temple was destroyed in 70 AD, that we know for a fact, and we also know that this is according to the sign of Jonah. The sign of Jonah was Jesus rising from the dead. But it is also Jonah walking to and fro throughout the city for forty days telling them to repent. I would argue that this began when Jesus told the Pharisees they had committed the unforgivable sin when they proclaimed that Jesus was not the Messiah and that He was casting demons out by Beelzebub. Therefore He had to have made that proclamation on the 9th of Av in 30 AD and exactly 40 years later to the day the temple was destroyed. This eliminates 30 AD as a possible year for the crucifixion. It also makes 2033 less likely as the Jews made the proclamation after many people had come to the Jewish leaders asking if Jesus was the Messiah. If He was crucified in 2033 it would mean that they made this proclamation in Jesus' first year of ministry.

7. The ninth of Av is also when the Spies gave an evil report. The official report from the Pharisees that Jesus was not the Messiah is an evil report. I believe pattern is prophecy and the 9th of AV was prophetic for the Jewish leaders making this declaration. This took place the second year after leaving Egypt and Israel wandered for 38 years more. Therefore according to this pattern I would say that this proclamation was made in the second year of Jesus' earthly ministry and that it was made in 30 AD. They were given 40 years from that point and Jesus was crucified a little less than two years later in 32 AD.

In conclusion I would say that Jesus was crucified in 32 AD, and the six thousand years ends in 2032 AD and that the seven year tribulation leading up to the Day of Atonement begins in 2025. The fall of man was on the 9th of Av, the trial and ultimate judgment from God took place later on the Day of Atonement. I expect the Antichrist will be revealed on the Feast of Trumpets, or the announcement for him will be that day and he will be revealed on the Day of Atonement. I expect that the we are in a countdown to the Feast of New Wine (8th of AV), and the 9th of AV. I expect the rapture to take place prior to the revelation of the Antichrist. Regardless of which calendar you use that is sometime in the next two months. I believe this 12 day countdown that Trump recently announced takes us down to the 8th or 9th of Av.

Other than that, does it matter? Now is the time to be preaching the gospel. Now is the time to be telling people to repent for the kingdom of the heavens is at hand.
 
In addition Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist and then He was thrust out into the wilderness for 40 days and nights of fasting. After that He was tempted by Satan and then began His ministry.

Therefore I expect that the baptism of Jesus foreshadows the rapture. Just as the crucifixion and resurrection was the end of His earthly ministry this baptism signifies the end of ministry of the spirit filled saints who get raptured. Being thrust out into the wilderness foreshadows the left behind saints beginning by fasting and praying and being tempted by Satan before the tribulation saints begin their ministry.

After the ninth of Av and the evil report God rejected the Israelites and they were thrust out to wander and die in the wilderness for 38 years, or in the case of the tribulation saints for 38 months.
 
Why the book of Revelations is so difficult for Christianity.

The book of Revelation is a conclusion to the entire Bible, that is a tremendous amount of material to wrap up in 22 chapters. So the Biblical references in this book are more dense than in any other book (in my opinion). By that I mean a single verse can be referring to multiple other places in the Bible. Because of that I would say you need to know the entire Bible before you can adequately expound on this book.

The second problem is this book is describing things that would have been very difficult for John to understand much less for his audience. So it is full of allegorical and metaphorical speaking. This kind of word opens itself up to a thousand different interpretations. The only way to actually expound on this book is to stick to what Peter said, no verse is of its own interpretation. So you need ten other verses for every verse. Again, it is rare to find that kind of Bible teacher. Often they are very good at searching out the scriptures, but don't do "dream interpretation" and yet this book requires both, dream interpretation and a profound grasp of the entire Bible. I was once told you shouldn't try to teach a book in the Bible until you have read it 100 times. For Revelation I would say you need to read the Bible 100 times first.

Then even if you have someone who has read the Bible 100 times, is good at both Bible exposition as well as dream interpretation, you still have the problem of the audience. It is like having Sheldon Cooper try to teach high school students. You can be a Phd level scholar with Paul or the New Testament, but when you teach Revelation you need to be able to make this accessible to all the less mature saints because they are often the ones who are most drawn to this book.

The next problem is the internet. Every single cult and oddball interpretation of this book is out there. To even try and teach this book it is like cutting through the thorns and brambles.

Finally you have this unspoken prohibition on teaching on this book. Many might try and deny this, that is fine. Let's take a survey on what portion of the New Testament was taught last week in church. I will suspect, based on my experience, that among 99% of the congregations it was not about the book of Revelation. Now I am not giving equal weight to some guy with a youtube channel with that of a Pastor with five hundred people in their congregation. If we simply look at church meetings with at least 250 or more in the gathering I suspect you will have less than 1% focused on Revelation. If you eliminate the seven letters to the churches in chapters 2 and 3, you will probably have half that number. So the book of Revelation is 8% of the New Testament based on the number of chapters and yet you probably have less than 1% of the sermons at church this last week focused on this book.

Therefore I would suggest anyone who wants to take on this challenge to be prudent.

1. I would encourage doing three times as much study as you normally would prior to teaching any part of it.

2. I would encourage much more prayer for light and revelation from the Lord.

3. I would encourage going much slower than you might otherwise go. A typical sermon might involve 12 verses, whereas in Revelation you might want to think of 1-3 verses as more than enough. If you go slower you have the time to bring in the references to other parts of the Bible and explain the connection.

4. I would be very careful to be extremely scriptural in my approach. Anyone who picks up this book will be attacked from all sides. You will have those who don't want you to teach it, and you will have those who are upset you aren't pushing their favorite interpretation.

5. I would begin any study of this book by giving a clear mandate from the Lord. For example His charge to us to watch. The book also comes with a blessing and so that would be a good verse to begin each lesson with.

But know this, the reason there is such an intense attack over this one book is because you are over the target. It is like a bomber in the war, you know you are over the target when the sky lights up with the air defense.
 
Why the book of Revelations is so difficult for Christianity.

The book of Revelation is a conclusion to the entire Bible, that is a tremendous amount of material to wrap up in 22 chapters. So the Biblical references in this book are more dense than in any other book (in my opinion). By that I mean a single verse can be referring to multiple other places in the Bible. Because of that I would say you need to know the entire Bible before you can adequately expound on this book.

The second problem is this book is describing things that would have been very difficult for John to understand much less for his audience. So it is full of allegorical and metaphorical speaking. This kind of word opens itself up to a thousand different interpretations. The only way to actually expound on this book is to stick to what Peter said, no verse is of its own interpretation. So you need ten other verses for every verse. Again, it is rare to find that kind of Bible teacher. Often they are very good at searching out the scriptures, but don't do "dream interpretation" and yet this book requires both, dream interpretation and a profound grasp of the entire Bible. I was once told you shouldn't try to teach a book in the Bible until you have read it 100 times. For Revelation I would say you need to read the Bible 100 times first.

Then even if you have someone who has read the Bible 100 times, is good at both Bible exposition as well as dream interpretation, you still have the problem of the audience. It is like having Sheldon Cooper try to teach high school students. You can be a Phd level scholar with Paul or the New Testament, but when you teach Revelation you need to be able to make this accessible to all the less mature saints because they are often the ones who are most drawn to this book.

The next problem is the internet. Every single cult and oddball interpretation of this book is out there. To even try and teach this book it is like cutting through the thorns and brambles.

Finally you have this unspoken prohibition on teaching on this book. Many might try and deny this, that is fine. Let's take a survey on what portion of the New Testament was taught last week in church. I will suspect, based on my experience, that among 99% of the congregations it was not about the book of Revelation. Now I am not giving equal weight to some guy with a youtube channel with that of a Pastor with five hundred people in their congregation. If we simply look at church meetings with at least 250 or more in the gathering I suspect you will have less than 1% focused on Revelation. If you eliminate the seven letters to the churches in chapters 2 and 3, you will probably have half that number. So the book of Revelation is 8% of the New Testament based on the number of chapters and yet you probably have less than 1% of the sermons at church this last week focused on this book.

Therefore I would suggest anyone who wants to take on this challenge to be prudent.

1. I would encourage doing three times as much study as you normally would prior to teaching any part of it.

2. I would encourage much more prayer for light and revelation from the Lord.

3. I would encourage going much slower than you might otherwise go. A typical sermon might involve 12 verses, whereas in Revelation you might want to think of 1-3 verses as more than enough. If you go slower you have the time to bring in the references to other parts of the Bible and explain the connection.

4. I would be very careful to be extremely scriptural in my approach. Anyone who picks up this book will be attacked from all sides. You will have those who don't want you to teach it, and you will have those who are upset you aren't pushing their favorite interpretation.

5. I would begin any study of this book by giving a clear mandate from the Lord. For example His charge to us to watch. The book also comes with a blessing and so that would be a good verse to begin each lesson with.

But know this, the reason there is such an intense attack over this one book is because you are over the target. It is like a bomber in the war, you know you are over the target when the sky lights up with the air defense.
Revelation 1:1 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John:

Everything in these 22 chapters is a revelation of Jesus Christ. Does it describe the Antichrist? Yes, but he is a counterfeit to the real Christ. So the book reveals the real Christ and shows us the fake Christ to help us distinguish between the two. Does it describe the beast rising out of the sea? Sure, but if you have a heavyweight champion going into the ring to fight for the crown you need to describe the opponent. Human history is described as a number of empires and all of them are labeled with 666, that is two thirds of 1,000. The Godhead is three, if you don't have Jesus you only have two thirds of the Godhead. So this shows us what it is like with Christ and what the world is like without Christ.

Now God gave this revelation to John for a reason, to show it to the servants of the Lord Jesus Christ because we are getting a preview of what is about to come to pass. Why? This is like getting a scouting report on the opponent prior to the game. If we understand that the enemy will want to have the mark of the beast it helps us to watch for this. Starlink, RFID chips, Artificial intelligence and quantum computers are all necessary for the mark of the beast. As we see those things put in place we see the day approaching. Also this gives us a good contrast between Satan and Jesus. Why does he need the mark of the beast? Because he is not omniscient, he doesn't know where you are at all times, he doesn't know what you are buying or selling. Also he is not omnipotent, the mark of the beast will give him the ability to control what you buy or sell. Jesus through the Holy Spirit is both omnipotent and omniscient. He is with you at all times and the Holy Spirit will bother you if you are buying or selling something that grieves the Holy Spirit. But again there is a contrast. We are to listen and obey, but we have a free will to do this. The Antichrist is not giving you free will.

This book is filled with visions of the day of judgment. So who better to give us this revelation than John, the one brother who speaks of love and forgiveness more than any other. I would not want James or Jude or even Matthew to deliver this revelation.

2 Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw.

Both the word of God and the testimony of Jesus must align with the revelation and your interpretation of it. This book is the conclusion of the Bible, it is not introducing new doctrines, it is concluding everything that the Bible teaches. But notice how John includes the testimony of Jesus. A lot of Biblical interpretation is Ruthless, but Jesus is not Ruthless. It is easy to forget that the Bible is not Ruthless, but it is impossible to forget that Jesus is not Ruthless. He is a merciful redeemer and any interpretation you come up with from this book must align with Jesus being the merciful redeemer.
 
Revelation 1:3 Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.

There is a blessing to read any book of the Bible. Jesus said that we live by every word of God. In Romans we are told that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. In Psalms we are told that the Bible is a light unto my path. In Psalm 119 we learn we get God's presence and protection from shame from the Bible. So when we get this promised blessing it includes all the blessings of the Bible, but also the blessing that we would know the things that must shortly come to pass.

The blessing is specifically to those that read this book. That means they are studying it. Even more it means they are reading it themselves rather than letting someone else tell them what it says. I hear people crying about all the different interpretations, who should we believe? Believe John and read the book for yourself. Why are you letting someone else tell you what it says? The blessing also to those who hear this word. This verse sounds remarkably similar to Romans 10 where Paul said that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. Yes, we must read the book, but we should also pray that the Lord will speak to us through the words of this book. Faith come by hearing, we need the Lord to speak to us specifically from this book.

Then he says "and keep those things that are written therein". If you read this book and hear the Lord speaking and don't keep these things, that is rebellion. That is spiritual leprosy. If the Lord speaks to you then you must obey. This is the way you get the Lord to speak to you more and more. Think of it like you are rock climbing up a cliff face. You come to a place that is very hard, you can't get through. The Lord is telling you what to do but you are afraid. It is pointless to talk to you about the rest of the mountain until you pass this one spot. As long as you are stuck there the Lord's speaking will be stuck. We must all bear our cross, this can be terrifying, going to the cross where we will be crucified. We can balk, but until we go through this cross the speaking will be stuck on this one point. We have an expression if no death no life. Well, if no obedience to the cross no blessing.

Two thousand years ago John said "the time is at hand". The reality is that Jesus was on the throne from that time, He was raising up the churches from that time, and the spirit of Antichrist was moving. Many people see the opening of the first seal as the revelation of the antichrist, the counterfeit Christ. Ever since Jesus rose from the dead and ascended to heaven we have had counterfeit Christs. Every word about "the Antichrist" applies to all the counterfeits, not just the ultimate one. They talk about the opening of the second seal as the time of the war that takes place during the last seven years. But the truth is there has been a spiritual warfare for the entire church age. The things that will be are the things that currently are, only more intense. Think of the last seven years of this age as "the Super bowl". OK, but we have playoff games prior to that and we have the regular season prior to that and we have the preseason prior to that. When John says "the time is at hand" he means that right now you can take up the full armor of God. You don't need to wait two thousand years.
 
Revelation 1:4 John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne; 5 And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, 6 And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

There is so much here. First, there are seven churches, we are not identical, but we are all made of gold (the word of God), we all have the Holy Spirit within us as the oil that allows us to burn bright. Now look at who is sending this to us. He who was, is and is to come. Jesus Christ is the great I am. He knows everything that has happened up to this date, he has an extraordinary resume, training and background. He is present and He is to come. We also have seven spirits to go with the seven churches and our prayers that are one with the Spirit are before the throne of God. We have access to the throne. And Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, our example, and the firstborn from the dead, the one with the power of resurrection that overcomes death, and the prince of the kings of the Earth. When He gives the order they must obey. He is the one who loved us and washed us from our sins, so Satan and his demons must think twice before attacking us. And, He has made us Kings and priests to God. Therefore we are to express the king of kings. Ultimately everything in this book is to bring glory and dominion to the Triune God for ever and ever.

If we have the faith concerning who we are representing and if we have the revelation it will change us.
 
Revelation 1:7 Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.

There is a doctrine taught that prophecies for Jesus return were fulfilled in 70AD when the temple was destroyed. If so that would indicate that this verse above has already been fulfilled. To do that they must change the date of this prophetic speaking to prior to 70 AD. The problem is that all the Historical evidence points to this having been given around 90+ AD. That doctrine also trivializes this verse. "All kindreds of earth shall wail because of Him"? How could anyone believe that took place in 70 AD? The doctrine is easily debunked. The reason it has any traction at all is because many people don't read the Bible and want someone else to tell them what the Bible says. This is both lazy and foolish. If you are going to let someone else tell you what the Bible says then you open yourself up to Satan and his henchman telling you whatever it is they want you to believe. We are told in the New Testament that he can disguise himself as an angel of light. We are told that he is a liar.

This also applies to the many, many translations. Why do you think there is a need for so many translations? There are some valid reasons. First, whenever you translate from one language to another something will be lost in translation. To combat that we have the Amplified version and the Young's literal translation. The Amplified will give you a list of the different english equivalents to some word. It is very helpful in giving you the various shades of meaning, however, it is very difficult translation to use to read the Bible.

Amplified version
Daniel 9:27 And he will enter into a binding and irrevocable covenant with the many for one week (seven years), but in the middle of the week he will stop the sacrifice and grain offering [for the remaining three and one-half years]; and on the wing of abominations will come one who makes desolate, even until the complete destruction, one that is decreed, is poured out on the one who causes the horror.”


So this is a good translation to have when you study the Bible. Young's literal translation takes a different approach, it decides on one unique english word for every Hebrew or Greek word. This translation is very weird to read, but it is helpful in that many of the words will stand out and cause you to examine that verse.

Young's Literal Translation
Daniel 9:27 And he hath strengthened a covenant with many -- one week, and [in] the midst of the week he causeth sacrifice and present to cease, and by the wing of abominations he is making desolate, even till the consummation, and that which is determined is poured on the desolate one.'


King James Version is one of the earliest done, it was done by excellent scholars, used the best text available to them and by all accounts is an excellent translation. It is so good that many Christians are "King James Only" meaning they will not accept any doctrine unless it is based on the King James version. What has happened since the KJV is many translations have been written to justify some doctrine or agenda. For example, let's compare Numbers 5:21

NIVUK
Numbers 5:21 here the priest is to put the woman under this curse – ‘may the Lord cause you to become a curse among your people when he makes your womb miscarry and your abdomen swell.


This translation is written to justify abortion saying that what the Priest was doing here was performing an abortion.

Compare this to the King James Version

KJV
Numbers 5:21 Then the priest shall charge the woman with an oath of cursing, and the priest shall say unto the woman, The Lord make thee a curse and an oath among thy people, when the Lord doth make thy thigh to rot, and thy belly to swell;


Amplified
Numbers 5:21 (then the priest shall have the woman swear the oath of the curse, and say to the woman), “The Lord make you a curse and an oath among your people when the Lord makes your thigh waste away and your abdomen swell;


Young's Literal Translation
Numbers 5:21 (then the priest hath caused the woman to swear with an oath of execration, and the priest hath said to the woman) -- Jehovah doth give thee for an execration, and for a curse, in the midst of thy people, in Jehovah's giving thy thigh to fall, and thy belly to swell,

Other translations with this agenda to justify abortion

Voice -- uses the term miscarriage

New Revised Version
NRSVUE
-- uses the term uterus and "womb discharge".

NRSVCE -- uses the term uterus and "womb discharge".

NRSVA -- uses the term uterus and "womb discharge".

How can they come up with such a different version? Well, they say that newer and better manuscripts have been found. This is idiotic, Numbers is in the Torah, the Jews have an excellent credibility in the handling of the Torah since the days of Moses. The reason we have a variety of texts we must use for the New Testament is because of the persecution of Christians. That is not the case with the books of Moses. No complete New Testament has been found. They were hunting down Christians and persecuting them, hence the Bible was broken up and divided among many, giving each a few pages to guard. However, people would copy out those pages and share them, so we can find multiple copies that all agree.

Personally I would not accept any doctrine that is clearly debunked by the King James version. I would also be very careful of false prophets, they will go to great lengths to change the word of God. It is crystal clear that the Book of Revelation was written after 70 AD had already occurred and there are very good studies of this that you can find on the internet.
 

John Lennox UNPACKS The Book Of Daniel (Like You've Never Heard!)

He gives a very concise overview of the entire book of Daniel. The first six chapters describe the kingdom of Babylon and the next six describe the kingdom of Medo Persia.

The kingdom of Babylon ends with Daniel in the Lion's den, he is not eaten and then all the liars are tossed in and they are devoured. This is precisely where we are right now. For several years during the Biden administration many Christians were attacked, threatened, "roared at", etc. But they stood strong, the lions never ate them. Now with Trump becoming president we are seeing all these liars being tossed into the lion's den. Pundits, talking heads, late night talk show hosts, and deep state operatives.

The Medo Persia empire would represent a Muslim empire. That will be during the second half of Daniel and that will describe the seven year tribulation. Notice how the first six chapters begin with God's people refusing to eat the kings food followed by the three friends of Daniel being tossed into the furnace of fire. That is a reference to the church age beginning with the apostles and the persecution against the early church. Initially when you come into the church you come in with a Babylonian persona, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, but that gets burned away. By the end it is a godly persona, Daniel. Initially you are tossed into the Fire and we see Jesus with you in the fire. At the end of the church age Daniel is ruling, all the others are jealous, and his authority is not just over people it is also over lions. But in the second half our view is not from within the lion's den or within the furnace, now it seems we have the 30,000 foot view of God's eternal plan and the various human empires that tried to create an idol which could stand against God but which He destroys with a stone from heaven.
 

John Lennox UNPACKS The Book Of Daniel (Like You've Never Heard!)

He gives a very concise overview of the entire book of Daniel. The first six chapters describe the kingdom of Babylon and the next six describe the kingdom of Medo Persia.

The kingdom of Babylon ends with Daniel in the Lion's den, he is not eaten and then all the liars are tossed in and they are devoured. This is precisely where we are right now. For several years during the Biden administration many Christians were attacked, threatened, "roared at", etc. But they stood strong, the lions never ate them. Now with Trump becoming president we are seeing all these liars being tossed into the lion's den. Pundits, talking heads, late night talk show hosts, and deep state operatives.

The Medo Persia empire would represent a Muslim empire. That will be during the second half of Daniel and that will describe the seven year tribulation. Notice how the first six chapters begin with God's people refusing to eat the kings food followed by the three friends of Daniel being tossed into the furnace of fire. That is a reference to the church age beginning with the apostles and the persecution against the early church. Initially when you come into the church you come in with a Babylonian persona, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, but that gets burned away. By the end it is a godly persona, Daniel. Initially you are tossed into the Fire and we see Jesus with you in the fire. At the end of the church age Daniel is ruling, all the others are jealous, and his authority is not just over people it is also over lions. But in the second half our view is not from within the lion's den or within the furnace, now it seems we have the 30,000 foot view of God's eternal plan and the various human empires that tried to create an idol which could stand against God but which He destroys with a stone from heaven.
Why would God do this? The Babylonians were the most elite atheistic society. By atheist that means they were materialistic, believing that the forces of nature are the creative forces, their "gods" similar to our modern scientific revolution. Then the Medo Persians were like the Islamists. They believe that Satan is god. They don't use that term, but the description of their god is the description of Satan. We see this in FreeMasonry, as long as you are working for the religion you can do no wrong. Murder, lying, and stealing are all acceptable if done for the right reason, the greater good. FreeMasons have a theology very similar to "The Little Prince". The Bible was completed through the book of Isaiah and Jeremiah. This is like graduating HS. Then they are sent to these other kingdoms to see the competing theories and test them against the Bible, this is like a college education. Then they get to return and see that only God can tell the end from the beginning, that all these other cultures and philosophies are based on the idolatry of false gods and only Jesus Christ is real. Then it is time for Jesus to be manifested in the flesh. Once again it seems the "powers that be" will be able to crush Him and yet two thousand years later He is the most dominant force on earth and those powers that thought to crush Him have been crushed.
 
2 Corinthians 3:1 Do we begin again to commend ourselves? or need we, as some others, epistles of commendation to you, or letters of commendation from you? 2 Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men: 3 Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.

The fact that 500 witnesses of Jesus at his death have grown into more than a billion Christians worldwide today is a testimony. Some can argue that there are several prevailing religions. But the New Testament is very different from all of them. Other religions control how you behave, so much so that it is easy to spot a Muslim or Jew. But Christians are quite different. There is no single language for a Christian, no approved dress code, no standard form of worship. You might find specific pastors or congregations that have dress codes, or rules about worship, but that is not universal for Christians. Instead the central point is that the word of God is written on our heart. Every other religion has it written down how to act and with Christians you are to be the letter that expresses Christ.

4 And such trust have we through Christ to God-ward: 5 Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God; 6 Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.

In every religion they have some form of seminary where you are to go and be made sufficient in yourself to be.a priest. But that is also not true of Christians. Yes, it is true of Christianity, the religion that mimics the reality. But we begin with Peter, Paul, James and John. These brothers were not turned into apostles in a seminary, they became apostles by spending time with Jesus.

7 But if the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not stedfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance; which glory was to be done away: 8 How shall not the ministration of the spirit be rather glorious? 9 For if the ministration of condemnation be glory, much more doth the ministration of righteousness exceed in glory.

This is the big difference. Moses ministered condemnation, the Christian ministry is the ministry of the Spirit, the ministration of righteousness. Satanists and FreeMasons do not minister righteousness, they claim that they are free to sin. They are shipwrecked in their conscious.

If you are a letter of commendation to the apostles you will be filled with the Spirit, you will walk in righteousness and you will have a glory that exceeds that found in the ministry of condemnation.
 
2 Corinthians 3:10 For even that which was made glorious had no glory in this respect, by reason of the glory that excelleth. 11 For if that which is done away was glorious, much more that which remaineth is glorious.

The Jewish religion has been done away with. Why do I say that? Because the Jews do. They realize they don't have a temple, they don't have sacrifices, and so they don't have priests. All they have are "rabbis" and "synagogues". Many Jews are honest enough to admit Judaism is basically a culture. You have the Bible, you have the Hebrew language, and you have a heritage. But everything else has been done away with because they rejected the Messiah. At this point they can no longer have a Messiah. How would they know if this person were the descendant of David? How would they know if they were a descendant of Abraham? The fact is they have not kept ancestral records. According to Isaiah 53 the Messiah is supposed to be crucified. How could they crucify a Messiah today? We could go on and on, according to the pattern of prophecy the Messiah was supposed to come at the four thousand year point, He is the Son that is created on the fourth day. Prophecies have an expiration date and all the prophecies concerning the coming of the Messiah expired when Jesus was crucified.

However, as the light is being turned off on the Jews the light of the Jesus Christ in the Christians is growing brighter and brighter.

12 Seeing then that we have such hope, we use great plainness of speech: 13 And not as Moses, which put a veil over his face, that the children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that which is abolished: 14 But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ.

This blog about the rapture is using plainness of speech. This is not like the Jews who have to cloak everything they say in some great mystery because what they don't want to tell you is they can see that their religion has been abolished. No one wants to return to a religion of animal sacrifices.

15 But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart. 16 Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away.

As long as you deny that Jesus Christ is the Messiah, the lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world you have a vail on your heart. But if you will turn to the Lord Jesus that vail will be taken away and you will see that the Torah was a shadow of what was to come, pointing us to Jesus Christ and His sacrifice on the cross.

17 Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. 18 But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.
 
1 John 2:18 Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.

Why do you think there are over 900 different English translations of the Bible? I get that the approach the Amplified version takes and the approach that Young's literal translation takes and the approach that King James Version takes are three different and valid approaches to doing a translation. I agree that they all have value. I also understand why you might want a New King James Version and a bible version for elementary aged kids. I understand that some translations want to be a word for word translation while others are trying to convey the meaning using modern idioms. But all of that only explains why you would have 20 translations.

I understand that some of these translations might still have a copyright, but the copyright has expired on King James version and American Standard version and there are many good translations in the public domain.

No, the fact that many of these translations are done in order to change the word of God to push their particular doctrine is evidence that we have many antichrists. Jesus is the incarnated word of God. An antichrist is a counterfeit. We have many counterfeits of the Bible, this is proof that we are in the last time.

For example:

The Douay-Rheims Bible, a Catholic English translation of the Bible, was produced during the Protestant Reformation to counter Protestant interpretations and uphold Catholic doctrine. It is based primarily on the Latin Vulgate, the established Bible of the Catholic Church, and includes extensive footnotes defending Catholic teachings. The translation was a response to the proliferation of Protestant Bibles that often included commentary critical of Catholic practices.
 
Ephesians 2:21 In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:

In the Old Testament we have the church being removed from earth twice, both times on the 9th of Av. This could be a prophetic pattern, a shadow of the rapture and the church being removed. It would be the third time the temple of God was removed from earth.
 
Rapture 2025 the Summer harvest! His sword will be bathed in blood🩸