The common thought about Biblical prophecy and the instruments of evil that Satan brings forth at the end of the age is that the Antichrist will be the leader of the revived Roman Empire. I mentioned in an earlier chapter that I didn’t believe this is what the Scriptures actually teach and that I would explain myself concerning this. However, regardless of whether there is to be a Caesar separate from an Antichrist, we should agree that the full power and display of evil on the earth occurs after Satan’s removal from the heavens. The casting of Satan down to the earth is an event full of the purpose of God. That is when the world sees the full unbridled display of evil that issues forth from the god of this age, and his desperate attempt to maintain his control of the earth.

Satan’s evil instruments that will be present on the earth at the end of the age are exactly what God will judge and destroy. Purpose? God orders all events according to the counsel of His will (Eph. 1:11). His sovereign work – providence, judgment, or grace – will serve to bring out the full manifestation of His glory. Whether it is sovereign judgment of the evil or His faithfulness to fulfill all His promises in sovereign grace to Israel, it will glorify God above all else.

The Transition at the end of the Age

These events point to the end of the age. There is a distinct understanding of what will exist and what will happen at the end. It is different from that of the present order and course of things. The end of the age is a period of transition to a new age – the millennium and the reign and dominion of the Son of Man over all creation. It would be helpful if we could list the major events that prophecy and the Scriptures tell us will take place in this period of transition between the two ages.

  • The wheat will be removed from the field of the world (Matt. 13:30). The rapture of the true church to the heavens is the first significant event signaling the very beginning of this transition period. There is no prophetic event or any prophecies to be fulfilled before the glorification of the body of Christ. If the church is the mystery of God hidden from prophecy, then her rapture is hidden as well. Paul does say in speaking of the event, “Behold, I tell you a mystery.” (I Cor. 15:46-54) This event will be one of the greatest works of God’s sovereign power and grace ever known (Eph. 1:17-23).

The true church is the heavenly calling. The remnant of Israel is the earthly calling. God will not and cannot recognize Israel in their calling as His people again until that which now has the principle of God’s calling is finished and out of the way. When Philadelphia is taken and Laodicea is spewed out of the Lord’s mouth and no longer acknowledged, then God can choose and seal a Jewish remnant on the earth. He has to stop acknowledging the church on the earth before He can recognize a remnant from Israel on the earth. The rapture of the true church must be first and precedes many things. Until Israel is acknowledged again in their calling, prophecy and time being counted cannot move forward or resume. The rapture removes the true church from the earth and out of the way, in this regard.

  • The tares of Christendom are bundled together and left in the field of the world. They are destined to be burned (Matt. 13:30, 40-42, 49-50).       It seems certain that what remains of the professing church will be judged and destroyed before the judgment of the world (Rev. 17:16-17). Judgment starts first at the house of God.

 

  • The rapture of the church is the realization of the heavenly calling of the church. After the rapture God then can turn back to Israel and deal with them in their earthly calling. When Israel rejected Jesus as their Messiah it resulted in the setting aside of Israel and their calling in the plan and counsels of God. It resulted in Messiah and all promises and prophecy associated with Messiah being set aside. Israel, as a house of God, will remain desolate until they physically see Jesus Christ again, and the remnant says to Him, “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord (Jehovah).” (Matt. 23:37-39) The principle is that until the heavenly calling is fulfilled, God will not turn back to the earthly calling in Israel. After the true church is removed from the earth and during the transition period, God will choose and seal a Jewish remnant. He will preserve and protect them during the transition period, even pouring out His Spirit on them, among the remnant whom the Lord calls (Joel 2:28-32).

 

  • The dragon will be cast out of the heavens and down to the earth, and he will know his time is short (3½ yrs.).       There will be great rejoicing in the heavens by those (the church) now residing there, but it will be woe to the inhabitants of the earth and sea (Rev. 12:7-13). Satan will attempt to maintain control over the earth and world. He will bring forth two great and final instruments of evil in his desperation, and to them he will give all his power and authority. [131]

 

  • The first instrument of Satan’s evil in the end is the revived Roman beast and its corresponding Caesar. The beast represents both. The revived Roman Empire is the last form of the fourth beast of Daniel 7. The last Caesar is the little horn among the ten horns talked about in that chapter. The final form of the Roman Empire is that which ‘will be present’ and ‘will ascend out of the bottomless pit’ (Rev. 17:8, 11:7).

 

  • The second instrument of Satan’s final evil is another beast (Rev. 13:11). It comes up distinctly out of the earth as a contrast to the four beasts of Daniel that all come up out of the Great Sea (Dan. 7:2-3).       This beast has two horns like a lamb, but speaks like the dragon who gave it authority. All beasts are earthly powers or kingdoms. All beasts are also the heads of their respective domain of power. This beast is no different – there is a sphere of earthly power and the head of it. This king is the Antichrist.

 

  • Satan has a short time to bring forth the full perfection of his evil. Events take place. Judgments are trumpeted or poured out from the heavens upon the earth.       The major players of the prophetic judgment of the world are found gathered at Armageddon (Rev. 16:12-16, 19:19) – the last Caesar, the kings of the earth and of the whole world, their armies, and the false prophet (Antichrist). All these are destroyed by the return of the Son of Man on the white horse with His armies.

 

  • These two (the last Caesar and the false prophet – the Antichrist) were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone.       The rest were killed with the sword which proceeded from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse…Then I saw an angel…he laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; and cast him into the bottomless pit…” (Rev. 19:19 – 20:3)

These are the main events in the transition period between this age and the age to come. There are other things of course.   God restores a Jewish remnant to the Promised Land. God deals with the remainder of unbelieving Israel as well as judging the remaining Gentile nations. These subjects are the main focus of bible prophecy for they deal with the earth, with Israel, and with God’s government of the earth.

The Present Course of Things

When we talk of the course of this present age we can make four overall observations depicting its general characteristics as borne out in Scripture.

1.      Israel is set aside at this present time. They are not God’s people, and He is not their God. Judaism, as God’s religion of the earth, is set aside as well. Jerusalem and the temple were destroyed. The principle of God’s government of the earth is not with Israel. The principle of God’s calling as a people is not with Israel. There are many consequences to the fact that Israel is set aside by God at this present time. The earth and prophecy are not being dealt with by God, and time is not being counted. Because Messiah was rejected by Israel, this title and the corresponding Messianic kingdom in Israel, and all associated promises to Israel are set aside for the time being.[132]

2.      The principle of government is with the Gentiles and will remain that way until the return of the Son of Man to this earth. The label for this present age is ‘the times of the Gentiles’ and involves Nebuchadnezzar’s great image and Daniel’s visions of the four beasts (Luke 21:24, Dan. 2:31-35, 7:2-8).

3.      The principle of God’s calling is currently with the body of Christ. When the Son of Man was glorified to the right hand of God, then the Holy Spirit was sent down to gather in His body, the church, from out of the condemned world (John 7:38-39, 12:31). The present age is a time in which God shows goodness and grace. Jesus Christ builds His church in the heavens, by a heavenly calling and citizenship, and God’s workmanship in this effort is incorruptible and eternal (Eph. 2:4-10). In contrast, on the earth man builds the house of God upon the foundation that Paul had laid as a wise master builder (I Cor. 3:9-15). This is the work of man and is very corruptible, and has been proven corrupt by God.

4.      The course of the age is that evil was present at the beginning, and that it grows and ripens to full fruit at the end. This is seen in both principles – the government of the earth in the Gentiles and the calling of God with the professing church. Both entities have failed miserably in their corporate responsibilities. Evil has entered in both and is spreading and growing. The only solution for both is the sovereign power of God that will be demonstrated either in judgment or grace. However, this sovereign work of God waits for the end of the age (Matt. 13:40-42, 49-50).

God presently restrains Evil

2 Thessalonians 2:6-7

“And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time.  For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way.”

God restrains the full display of evil in the church world at this present time. It is clear that the mystery of lawlessness was already at work in the church in Paul’s days. This mystery of sin and corruption has been growing in Christendom from the first century. The full display of evil is hindered by the presence of the Holy Spirit in the true church on the earth – the habitation of God in the Spirit (Eph. 2:22). When the true church is removed to the heavens, the restraints on evil will then be lifted. What remains of the professing church will fall away (apostasy) and the man of sin will be revealed (II Thess. 2:3, 8-10).

The Two Beasts – one from the Sea and one from the Earth

But who is this man of sin and lawlessness spoken of by Paul? Is it the Caesar or the Antichrist, or are they one and the same? The passage in II Thessalonians does not definitively identify who the lawless one is (II Thess. 2:8-11). It could be a blasphemous civil power like a Caesar, who enjoys idolatry and self-deification. The second beast causes the whole earth to worship the first beast (Rev. 13:11-12). This would be the deifying of the first beast, and idolatry encouraged and enforced by the second. The man of sin does exalt himself above all that is called God and shows himself that he is God (II Thess. 2:4).

The first beast is worshiped along with the dragon (Rev. 13:4), and a mouth is given to him speaking great things and blasphemies (Rev. 13:5, Dan. 7:8, 11, 20, 24-25). The first beast is anti-Christian having rid himself of the harlot. He speaks blasphemy against God and God’s name. He does the same against God’s tabernacle and those who dwell in heaven (this is the church – Rev. 13:6).

The second beast is a bit different from the Roman beast. As a beast it will also be a king and an earthly power. But this beast rises up out of the earth. It does not come up out of the Gentile sea. This is an important distinction, for the terminology can easily be related to the Jews and Judaism. They have the earthly calling, and Judaism is God’s religion for the earth and for man in Adam. Everything in Judaism is connected to the world and the first creation. Judaism is the vine of the earth, and as such the unbelieving Jews will be subject to the wrath of God (Rev. 14:19). This beast that comes up out of the earth is among the Jews and associated with Judaism. Doesn’t John speak of similar things?

The Antichrist is associated with Judaism and a false Messiah

1 John 2:22

“Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son.”

 

1 John 4:3

“…and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world.”

 

2 John 1:7

“For many deceivers have gone out into the world who do not confess Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.”

In many respects the beliefs of the Antichrist are the same as the beliefs of the Jews. They deny the revelation of the Father given by the Son (John 15:22-24). They deny that Jesus is their Messiah and King. They deny that Messiah has already visited them. The Antichrist is a religious Jewish entity associated with Judaism.

John 5:43

“I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive.”

The Antichrist is who Jesus is referring to in this passage. He will be the other one who will come in his own name to the Jews. He will not have witness and testimony as to who he is, but the nation will receive him as the Messiah.[133] An interesting contrast is that when Jesus came to Israel, the small Jewish remnant received Him, while the nation as a whole rejected Him. When the Antichrist comes in the end it will be the opposite – the unbelieving nation will receive him, while the elect Jewish remnant rejects him (Matt. 24:24).

The second beast in Revelation 13 is of the earth and looks like a lamb. This is an imitation of Jesus Christ, the slain Lamb. This is a false king, a false Christ, and false Messiah. He doesn’t have seven horns as Jesus, the slain Lamb in the midst of the throne (Rev. 5:6), and thus the divine perfection of power. But he has two horns giving him title to his earthly power. This will most likely be in Judah.

Pilate and Herod in Type

There is another significant parallelism I want to point out on this subject. In the time Jesus came to Israel the Roman Empire was in power with Caesars as their kings. The representative of the Romans in Jerusalem was Pilate. But there was another king in Judah of the Jewish persuasion – Herod. He was mostly a false king of Judah, but he was there. Jesus was taken before him during His trial (Luke 23:7-11).

When Jesus comes a second time there will again be these two authorities. There will be a Caesar over the revived Roman Empire, but also there will be a false king in Jerusalem among the Jews. This will be the Antichrist. He will exercise power in the presence of the Roman beast and its Caesar, just as Herod did of old. Herod serves as a type of what is to come.

The Power, Signs, and Lying Wonders

Revelation 13:13-15

“He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men. (14) And he deceives those who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who was wounded by the sword and lived. (15) He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed.”

The calling of fire down from heaven mimics the contest between Elijah and the prophets of Baal (I Kings 18:17-39). Elijah demonstrated that, “The Lord, He is God.” In the end with the Antichrist, Israel will turn back to idolatry and apostasy rather than away from it. Israel as a whole will follow after the Antichrist. Their spiritual condition at the end of the age will be seven times worse than at first with Baal (Matt. 12:43-45). The fire from heaven is particularly a Jewish sign. And what is the character of Judaism? “The Jews request a sign.” (I Cor. 1:22)

The Unholy Trinity of Evil at the End of the Age

After Satan is cast down from the heavens to the earth and the restraints to evil are removed, there will be a trinity of evil on the earth. Satan as the god and source of evil, the first beast having been given his throne and all his authority and power on the earth, and the second beast exercising that power and authority in the presence of the first beast. This is a direct mimicking of the trinity of the Godhead – the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Mark 13:22           

“For false Christs and false prophets will arise, and give signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.”

The Jewish remnant will not be deceived by the Antichrist or others. They are looking for and expecting the fulfillment of the promise of Messiah to Israel. Jehovah will keep these elect ones from being fooled (Matt. 24:4-11). They are chosen and preserved by the sovereign grace of God. They will be a marked remnant in the midst of a deceived and idolatrous nation (Rev. 7:1-8).

The Character of the end-time Remnant

They are also the remnant that will have the Spirit of Jehovah poured out on them (Joel 2:28-32). However, ‘on them’ is very different than the Spirit of God ‘in them’ as a seal of redemption in Christ. The former is very Jewish, while the latter is the seal of the sons of God in Christianity (Gal. 3:26, 4:6, Eph. 1:13-14). Poured out on them is like the Jewish prophets of old, and leads to Jewish signs like visions and dreams and prophesying. These things aren’t Christian signs? No, they are the result of the Spirit poured out on a person, as Daniel had dreams and visions, and Isaiah and Jeremiah prophesied. It is the Spirit of God on them and by measure (John 3:34).

John 4:48

“Then Jesus said to him, “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe.”

Remember Judaism is a walk by sight and signs. It is the character of Judaism and the character of the Jewish people. When the Jewish remnant is sealed by God at the end of the age, He will deal with them in Judaism and by Jewish ways. This remnant will not believe until they see. They will not receive any false Christs and false prophets. But they will not believe in Jesus as their Messiah until they look on Him whom they have pierced and they say, “Blessed is He who comes in the name of Jehovah.” (Zech. 12:9-10, Matt. 23:37-39) They will be like Thomas in their faith (John 20:26-29). For that matter, they will be like all eleven disciples who did not believe until they saw with their eyes Jesus raised from the dead. It is remarkable how the twelve disciples are often used in Scripture as a type/shadow of the Jewish remnant at the end of the age. They are used as a type in this way quite extensively.

The Gospel of the Kingdom

We should not be looking for a Jewish remnant in the tribulation period going throughout the entire world evangelizing with a Christian gospel, and achieving remarkable results (Rev. 7:4-10). This thought is such a mismatch of Biblical principles and characteristics, and is a contradiction of sound spiritual reasoning.

The gospel of the kingdom preached in all the world at the end of the age is not the Christian gospel. It is a message of warning from God of impending judgment on the world (Matt. 24:14). The gospel of the kingdom is that God is soon to make the world and the earth His kingdom (Rev. 10:15, 12:10, and 14:6-7). The Jewish end-time remnant may in fact have this message and be spreading it, but it is the gospel of the physical kingdom of God coming on the earth that the Jews have always expected from prophecy. The gospel of the coming kingdom is a very Jewish message and a very earthly message. It is a witness and warning to the nations, not the means of converting and saving them. The same is true of the testimony of the two witnesses in Jerusalem – they testify on behalf of Jehovah, the true Lord of the earth (Rev. 11:4). Their testimony for 3½ years doesn’t attract positive attention from anybody except the remnant inside of Israel (Rev. 11:1). Think of the years that Noah preached. It was a warning of approaching judgment and by his faith he condemned the world (Heb. 11:7). We only see eight people enter the ark (II Pet. 2:5).

The Character of the Jewish Remnant in the Psalms

The Jewish remnant will have a certain character according to Judaism. They are the elect ones crying out day and night for deliverance and vengeance during Jacob’s trouble. “Avenge me of my adversary.” (Luke 18:1-8) This describes the Jewish character and a walk by sight, and a certain looking for vengeance. It is also this future Jewish remnant in the Psalms crying out to Jehovah, asking how long will the wicked prosper, and how long will Jehovah remain silent (Ps. 94, 83, 79, 74, 73, 68-71, etc.). The Psalms cannot be properly understood without having the character of the future Jewish remnant in mind. In many instances it is their crying out for vengeance and deliverance, as well as Christ identifying with the sufferings of the remnant.

Psalm 59:1-13

“Deliver me from my enemies, O my God;
Defend me from those who rise up against me.
Deliver me from the workers of iniquity,
And save me from bloodthirsty men.

For look, they lie in wait for my life;
The mighty gather against me,
Not for my transgression nor for my sin, O Lord.
They run and prepare themselves through no fault of mine.

Awake to help me, and behold!
You therefore, O Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel,
Awake to punish all the nations;
Do not be merciful to any wicked transgressors. Selah

At evening they return,
They growl like a dog,
And go all around the city.
Indeed, they belch with their mouth;
Swords are in their lips;
For they say, “Who hears?”

But You, O Lord, shall laugh at them;
You shall have all the nations in derision.
I will wait for You, O You his Strength;
For God is my defense.
My God of mercy shall come to meet me;
God shall let me see my desire on my enemies.

Do not slay them, lest my people forget;
Scatter them by Your power,
And bring them down,
O Lord our shield.
For the sin of their mouth and the words of their lips,
Let them even be taken in their pride,
And for the cursing and lying which they speak.
Consume them in wrath, consume them,
That they may not be;
And let them know that God rules in Jacob
To the ends of the earth. Selah”

The distinct signature of the character of the future remnant is seen all over the above psalm. However, this is not Christian character. It is not the way to teach Christians to pray (Luke 18:1). In the time of grace and the gospel we tolerate evil prospering around us, and never cry out for vengeance upon it. How do you turn the other cheek if you are crying out for vengeance on the one who slapped you? True believers suffer persecutions now and endure trials with perseverance, knowing that we are in Christ and will be found in glory with Him. We can suffer reproaches and distresses now, for His grace is sufficient strength for our present need. And He has gone away to prepare a place for us in the Father’s house, in the heavens and in glory.

God will avenge His elect Jewish remnant that cries out constantly to Him, though He bears long with them (Luke 18:7-8). But God bears long with them because they have no walk of faith or heavenly Christian hopes. God preserves them and eventually avenges them on the earth because God has to remain faithful to keep His promises to Israel. It is toward the elect remnant of Israel that His sovereign grace is shown. The true church, which had the walk of faith on the earth, is now gone. So then, Jesus asks the question, “…when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?”

The Character of the coming Age

All of this will take place during the transition period between the two ages. The present age has the character of a walk by faith by the true church in the wilderness. Our faith is the substance of the things we hope for, and all our hopes are in glory. Christ in the believer, the hope of glory (Col. 1:27). The age that is coming upon the earth is one where every eye will see Him.

Revelation 1:7

“Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen.”

In a certain sense this gives you the character of things on the earth in the coming age – every eye will see (Matt. 24:30). Allow me to ask the reader this question. Is this the character of Christianity or Judaism? In the coming age and on the millennial earth certain truths will be manifested, very different from the previous age involving the church and gospel and a King hidden away in heaven.

1.)    God will make a new covenant with the two divided houses of Israel, finally bringing the two back together (Jer. 31:31, Heb. 8:8). The two sticks will be joined as one (Ez. 37:15-20). This is at the beginning of the new age, the millennium, when the Jewish remnant is restored in the Promised Land.

 

Ezekiel 37:21-28

“Then say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Surely I will take the children of Israel from among the nations, wherever they have gone, and will gather them from every side and bring them into their own land; (22) and I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king over them all; they shall no longer be two nations, nor shall they ever be divided into two kingdoms again. (23) They shall not defile themselves anymore with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions; but I will deliver them from all their dwelling places in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them. Then they shall be My people, and I will be their God.

(24) “David My servant shall be king over them, and they shall all have one shepherd; they shall also walk in My judgments and observe My statutes, and do them. (25) Then they shall dwell in the land that I have given to Jacob My servant, where your fathers dwelt; and they shall dwell there, they, their children, and their children’s children, forever; and My servant David shall be their prince forever. (26) Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them, and it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; I will establish them and multiply them, and I will set My sanctuary in their midst forevermore. (27) My tabernacle also shall be over them; indeed I will be their God, and they shall be My people. (28) The nations also will know that I, the Lord, sanctify Israel, when My sanctuary is in their midst forevermore.”

The new covenant will reunite the two houses of Israel as one (Jer. 31:31). It is for the purpose of blessing and prospering this Jewish remnant in the land.

2.)    The new covenant in its formal sense and plain language is a Jewish covenant. It replaces the first covenant they had long ago that passed away. As most of the covenants are in their formal character, the new covenant is for Israel when they are restored in the land. Concerning this new covenant Jehovah says, “Behold the days are coming…when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.” (Jer. 31:31, Heb. 8:8) This new covenant replaces the old covenant they were given at Mt. Sinai (Jer. 31:32, Heb. 8:9). The old covenant was written in tablets of stone and, as we said, has already ceased to exist (Heb. 8:13). The old covenant’s final passing was when the Romans destroyed Jerusalem and the temple. That is why in the time of Paul writing the epistle to the Hebrews, he says concerning the old covenant, “Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.”

The old covenant was defective and had Moses as a mediator (Heb. 8:5, 7, Gal. 3:19). The old covenant was given only to Israel and not to the Gentiles. The old covenant created a wall of separation between Israel and the Gentile nations. The new covenant is a better covenant, with a more excellent Mediator (Heb. 8:6). The new covenant is also given only to Israel. The new covenant maintains the wall of separation between Israel and the Gentile nations. During the millennium the Gentile nations will serve Israel, and be gathered to this nation for blessing (Isa. 49:6, 23, 60:1-12, Zech. 14:16-17). Israel is separated out of the nations and restored to the land (Isa. 11:11-12, 49:5-6, Jer. 3:17-18, 31:7-12, 31:36-40, 32:36-44, 33:6-9, Ez. 20:33-44, 28:25-26, 34:11-14, 34:27-31, 36:2-11, 36:22-38, 37:11-14, 37:21-28, 39:21-29, Zech. 10:6-12). These words of prophetic scripture cannot be taken any other way but literally. To spiritualize all of this to apply it to the church is simply an impossible task. It cannot be accomplished with any sound spiritual thinking. These prophecies speak of the nation of Israel – on the earth and restored in the land – having the new covenant. Israel becomes the greatest, most blessed, and most favored nation on the face of the earth. But the new covenant maintains the wall of separation for Israel on the earth, and maintains it eternally. This is the point. The new covenant, bringing the two kingdoms of Israel back together as one nation, is an eternal covenant. Israel will eternally be maintained before God as a separate nation from the Gentiles.

The Davidic Throne

Jeremiah 33:14-17

“Behold, the days are coming,’ says the Lord, ‘that I will perform that good thing which I have promised to the house of Israel and to the house of Judah:

 ‘In those days and at that time
I will cause to grow up to David
A Branch of righteousness;
He shall execute judgment and righteousness in the earth.
In those days Judah will be saved,
And Jerusalem will dwell safely.
And this is the name by which she will be called:

‘THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.’

“For thus says the Lord: ‘David shall never lack a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel.”

That ‘good thing’ that Jehovah will perform is the gathering of the Jewish remnant out of the nations and restoring them in the Promised land by sovereign power and grace, and then formally making a new covenant with them for their blessing and prosperity. This is easily understood by the use of the phrase ‘behold the days are coming’ and the direct reference to the two distinct houses, for these particular phrases are the same used in the promise of the new covenant (Jer. 31:31). Jerusalem is called ‘the Lord our Righteousness’ because Jesus, ‘the Branch of Righteousness’ growing up unto David, will be physically present on the Davidic throne of the house of Israel. In order for Him to sit on this throne in earthly Jerusalem, He will have to return to the earth from where He presently is – hidden from the world at the right hand of God (Col. 3:1-4). There can be no mistaking that the Davidic throne is on the earth, in the earthly city of Jerusalem, and in the house of Israel. There can be no mistaking that Jesus is not presently sitting on any Davidic throne (Rev. 3:21).

The passage quoted above gives us another understanding that further proves this point. When Jesus returns to this earth and does sit on the Davidic throne in Jerusalem, His reigning at that time is described as, “… executing judgments in righteousness in the earth.” Some say that He reigns now, and that He does so as the King sitting on the Davidic throne. If this were true you would see Him executing judgments. But this is exactly what you do not see at this present time and in this present evil age (Gal. 1:4). The phrase depicts the character of His reign over the earth in the coming age – when He is physically present on the earth.

The Davidic Throne and Peter’s preaching

Many people use the preaching of Peter on the day of Pentecost, with his references to the words of David, as proof for their belief and teaching of the present fulfillment of the Davidic throne and covenant (Acts 2:22-36). But these are misguided human conclusions that result from not attending closely to God’s word. If we take the assumption of a fulfilled Davidic throne, existing now for the past 2000 years, and compare this conclusion to the above quoted passage from Jeremiah 34, we immediately see how much is missing. The assumption falls to the wayside as all human thoughts and systems should, when analyzed in the light of Scripture. The only portion of Peter’s words that actually speaks of the throne of David is verse thirty (v. 30). But this becomes the launching board for all the mistaken assumptions concerning the remainder of the passage, and these assumptions are used to support a human system of doctrine.

Now let us consider what proper relationship the Davidic throne has with Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of the Gentile statue. In his dream we see a stone cut out without hands, which strikes the image on its feet of iron and clay, and breaks them in pieces. All the different portions of the statue were crushed together and became like chaff (Dan. 2:34-35, 2:44-45). The stone that brings this judgment on the last form of the Gentile civil world powers is Jesus Christ and His return to this earth. Are we willing to say that the establishing of the Davidic throne has nothing to do with this stone cut out without hands coming out of heaven? Are we willing to say that David’s throne in Israel has nothing to do with Gentile power and rule being thrown off of the Jews? Yet at the time of Peter’s preaching in Acts 2 the Romans were firmly entrenched in their civil world dominion – this according to the statue’s two legs of iron. The place where the stone strikes the statue has never come about yet in the history of these Gentile powers. The feet and toes of iron and clay are yet future in time. I am perplexed that anyone could think that the fulfillment of the covenant of the eternal throne of David could co-exist at the same moment in time with Gentile world dominion. How does that make any biblical sense?

If our Lord sits on a Davidic throne today, then we are in the millennium. But alas, the 1000 years has expanded to 2000, give or take a few – another forced spiritualized explanation to accommodate the human system. The millennial reign of the Davidic throne is characterized by judgments in righteousness that put away all evil. Where do we see anything today that resembles these actions or this character? We live in a present evil age where evil grows and prospers in the world (Gal. 1:4). It does the same in God’s house of Christendom on the earth. The full display of the evil is only restricted by the presence of the Holy Spirit on the earth (II Thess. 2:6-7). Yet we are not mistaken in saying the principle of sin was well entrenched in the church world from its beginning. How is this present age the character of the throne of David?

The King on the present Throne is the Father

The current form the kingdom of God takes in this evil age is what Matthew’s gospel speaks of as the kingdom of heaven in mystery. There exist two main components in this kingdom:

  • the field which is the world
  • the spoiled crop that is in the field.

We understand that the wheat in the crop in the field was planted by the Son of Man. These are the true sons of the kingdom as it is in this present form (Matt. 13:37-38). It is also clear that the kingdom of God stays in this general form until the end of the age (Matt. 13:30, 39-42, 47-50). When Jesus gives us the teachings of the kingdom of heaven, believers are portrayed as the sons of the Father who is in heaven (Matt. 5:45). These teachings center in upon the relationship of the sons of the kingdom with their Father in heaven (Matt. 5, 6, 7). In all honesty, the King of the kingdom of heaven is the Father and not Jesus, the Son of Man. This is why Jesus presently sits on His Father’s throne (Rev. 3:21). The King on that throne is the Father, and He has that present relationship to the kingdom of heaven and with the wheat in the crop in the field.

There are so many Christians who want to have Jesus as their King. For the believer and true church this will always be a misguided and unscriptural thought. The church is always His body and His bride (Eph. 5:25-32). He is Head of the body, and the church is His help-meet as Eve was for Adam. Individually we are His brethren and joint-heirs with Him of God (Heb. 2:11, Rom. 8:17). Individually we are sons of God with Him, and when we are glorified, we will be conformed into the image of God’s Son (Gal. 3:26, Rom. 8:29). When Jesus takes up the title of ‘King of kings and Lord of lords’ it is in manifestation to the world. This is who He is to the world and for the earth, but it is never a title that describes His relationship with the believer/church.

3.)    The new covenant made with Israel during the millennium is the same law of Jehovah given to Israel at Mt. Sinai, only instead of writing on tablets of stone, it is written in the Jewish remnant’s hearts and minds (Jer. 31:33, Heb. 8:10). They will not need to teach one another the law for they all will know the Lord Jehovah, from the least to the greatest among them (Jer. 31:34, Heb. 8:11). Israel will again be recognized as His people and Jehovah again as their God (Jer. 31:1, 33). This is Israel with the new covenant during the coming age.

Israel’s New Covenant

How will Israel be blessed on the earth during the millennium? They are blessed above all nations through their new covenant. God will forgive all their iniquity and sin (Jer. 31:34). He will enable them by divine power to do the law written now on their hearts and minds and be blessed.

 

Ezekiel 11:16-20

“Therefore say, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Although I have cast them far off among the Gentiles, and although I have scattered them among the countries, yet I shall be a little sanctuary for them in the countries where they have gone.”’ (17) Therefore say, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “I will gather you from the peoples, assemble you from the countries where you have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel.”’ (18) And they will go there, and they will take away all its detestable things and all its abominations from there. (19) Then I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within them, and take the stony heart out of their flesh, and give them a heart of flesh, (20) that they may walk in My statutes and keep My judgments and do them; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God.”

This passage succinctly tells the story of Israel’s scattering in 70 AD, Jehovah preserving a physical seed of Abraham in the nations, and then gathering the remnant back at the beginning of the millennium. He gives them a new heart and spirit by which they will walk in His commandments and law. And look how the passage ends – they will be My people, and I will be their God. This phrase, commonly found in prophecy, always points to Jehovah again recognizing Israel after having set them aside and having disregarded them (Jer. 31:1, 33, 30:22, 24:7, 32:38, Ez. 14:11, 34:30, 37:23, 37:27, Zech. 8:8, Heb. 8:10). When Israel receives their new covenant in the millennium, their blessings as a nation will be according to this passage:

Deuteronomy 28:1

“Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God, to observe carefully all His commandments which I command you today, that the Lord your God will set you high above all nations of the earth.”

Please continue to read Deuteronomy 28:2-14. These are the physical blessings of Israel for their obedience during the coming millennium.

4.)    The law will be the basis of God’s government of the earth during the millennium. We must remember that the law is God’s perfect rule for man in Adam. The law represents human righteousness for man in the flesh, and all that is on the earth at that time will be man in the flesh. The Son of Man will rule the world and will righteously judge the nations, putting down all evil. Israel will do the law and Jerusalem will be the capital city of Jehovah’s government of the earth. Judaism is God’s religion for the world and man in Adam. The millennium will prove this to be true.

The Final Caesar and the Antichrist

When the dragon is cast down from the heavens he empowers the first beast and the world follows after it – “And all the world marveled and followed the beast. So they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war with him?” (Rev. 13:3-4) But the second beast is the one who sets things up for the first. He is a false Messiah in the east who compels the inhabitants of the earth into idolatry (Rev. 13:14-15). While civil power is in the hands of the first beast, religious deception and wickedness are exercised by the second.

What are the results? The first beast is both the revived Roman Empire in the last 3½ years of the tribulation period, and the civil head of this Empire. He is the last Caesar of Rome. He is given generalized imperial power by Satan. He is associated with the ten kings and kingdoms, having overthrown three of them as the little horn of Daniel 7. He is blasphemous of God and Christianity, having thrown off the Babylonian harlot and destroyed her.

In Palestine there will be the second beast. He is the Antichrist, the false Messiah. He denies all basic Christian truth among the Jews, denying the claims of Christ as do the Jews. He deceives men by false miracles and wonders. He sets up an image of the first beast and forces open subjection to the Caesar by extreme governmental tyranny. He enslaves the wills of men by his great deceptions. His sphere of influence will be in the east, in Palestine. He is the little horn of Daniel 8, coming up out of the territories of the Grecian empire in the east. He grows exceedingly great in the direction of the south and east, and toward the Glorious Land (Dan. 8:9). This little horn stops the daily sacrifices in Israel and casts truth down to the ground (Dan. 8:11-12). He will magnify himself and through his cunning he will cause deceit to prosper (Dan. 8:23-26).

There are two little horns in the book of Daniel. The little horn of chapter seven is directly associated with the fourth beast. This beast is the Roman Empire but also, I believe, an end time Caesar. The little horn in chapter eight is in the east and from the confines of the previous Grecian empire. I believe this little horn to be the Antichrist. I do not believe these two entities are one and the same. I believe the two little horns of Daniel to be the two beasts of John’s vision in Revelation 13. It is not difficult to conceive of the second beast proclaiming to be the Messiah for Israel – as a beast he has the prophetic image of a lamb.

                                                     Chapter 16: Endnotes

[131] When Satan is removed from the heavens and cast down to the earth he loses his anti-priestly character as the accuser of the brethren (Rev. 12:10). On the earth, all he is left with is his anti-kingly and anti-prophet character. He gives the first beast his power, his throne, and great authority. This is civil power. The first beast is the anti-king character of Satan. The second beast has religious power and deception. He is a false prophet and a false Messiah (Rev. 16:13). This is the anti-prophet character of Satan.

There is an even greater parallel found in this. Jesus was the true King and Prophet rejected on the earth. It is on the earth at the end of the age that Satan will be allowed to imitate these two offices – king and prophet. Jesus is currently in the heavens as the High Priest for the church (Heb. 7:26). Satan is in the heavens currently and is there as the anti-priest against the church. He is cast down to the earth after the church is taken to the heavens. He loses any anti-priestly influence against the church. Of course the true church, having been raptured, glorified, and conformed into the Son’s image (Rom. 8:29-30), and now holy and blameless before the Father (Eph. 1:4), will have no need for Jesus to continue to function in His High Priestly ministry for her (Heb. 4:14-16). Why? Having been glorified, the church will no longer have weakness, infirmity, and needs.

The role of the true Prophet was fulfilled by Jesus when He first came to Israel. He was the Prophet that Moses referred to that would rise up after him, to whom Israel was to listen. In the heavens He is currently High Priest for the church (Heb. 4:14-16). He will be King of kings and Lord of lords to the world when He returns to the earth.

[132] All the Biblical understandings concerning Judaism and the law of Moses are thoroughly discussed in the first book of the series, ‘The Son of Man Glorified’. God’s purposes and reasoning for giving the law to Israel and that nation serving as a test case for all mankind is discussed there. Judaism as God’s religion for the earth and man in Adam is also explained.

[133] Jesus had a fourfold testimony and witness as to who He was:

1.)    John the Baptist testified (John 5:33-35)

2.)    The works the Father gave Him to do were testimony (John 5:36)

3.)    The Father’s voice from heaven testified as to who He was (John 5:37)

4.)    The Scriptures testify of Him (John 5:39, 46, and 47).

Yet Israel believed none of this and rejected Him (John 5:40). The Antichrist will come to Israel without such testimony as to who he really is, but Israel will receive him (John 5:43).