Vol 19. Issue No. 2. April 2006 - Bible · PDF fileApril 2006 Vol. 19. Issue No.2. ... as a priest, prophet, ... shared the mediatorship with Zadoc the high priest, but it was only

Vol 19. Issue No. 2. April 2006

THE BIBLE MAGAZINETHE BIBLE MAGAZINEApril 2006 Vol. 19. Issue No.2.

Editorial & Subscriptions

A WITNESS OF BIBLE TRUTH FOR OUR TIMES

Cover Story PAGES 16.

PAGE 6. Related to our back page feature, the speculations & theories of men arecontrasted with the plain and simple testimony of the Bible.

The Bible in the News

ISRAEL’S AGENDA FOR THENEXT GENERATION

A Conference recently held in Jerusalembrought together leading figures in Israelipolitics, economy, security establishment,journalists, culture and academic as well asTorah scholars. It was an opportunity for theBible Magazine team to learn of the concerns,values and hopes of the Jewish nation at acritical time of its history. The Conferencealso provided an unexpected opening for awitness to the Truth of Scripture.

LOCAL INFORMATION

“Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.”— John 17:17.

PAGE 3. John Thomas writes about Mediatorship, a subject of current interest.

PAGE 22. David Billington looks at spiritual lessons in the Hebrew poetry of the Psalms.

Editorial

PAGE 26. Paul Billington continues the series on “The Origin & Remedy of Evil”.

Archeology & History

PAGE 30. Ken Loveridge highlights Napoleon’s emancipation of the Jews.

PAGE 9. Ron Kidd looks at the question of the Holy Sprit Gifts and claims made for it.

Notice Board

BACK PAGE. Believe it or Not! Can we really believe what the Bible tells us aboutcreation or must we look for more “scientific” explanations. In this issue this topic isexpanded upon in our Editorial.

PAGE 12. Another Milestones update by Don Pearce focuses upon events in Israel

READ OR LISTEN! THE BIBLE IN THE NEWS ON THURSDAYS:via Realplayer or as an mp3 file.

www.Biblemagazine.com

Exposition

Prophecy Fulfilling

PAGE 25. New light on the Pool of Siloam & the King’s Garden in Jerusalem.

CONCERNS FOR THE FUTURE

PAGE 5. Dates, events and items of interest to Bible Magazine readers

Evolution - Creation

Doctrine

Publishing Editor: Paul BillingtonPhone: (519) 449 3446Phone/Fax: (519) 449-3660

Editorial Address:The Bible MagazineP.O. Box 514BURFORD ON,Canada.N0E 1A0

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Phone: 08-8381-3616

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Israel’s President, MosheKatzav, addresses Conference

PAGE 21. Expulsion of settlers from Amona in the West Bank. More to come?

THE BIBLE MAGAZINE VOL. 19 ISSUE No. 2 Page 3

he Law” is a term applied in the Scriptures to that system ofthings enjoined by Jehovah upon the Twelve Tribes of Israel

through Moses. “The Law was given through Moses” (John 1:17), andhence it is styled “the Law of Moses” not because it originated fromhim; but because it was transmitted through him as the medium ofcommunication between the Lord of the Universe and the descendantsof Abraham in the chosen line of Isaac and Jacob, whom He surnamedIsrael, of whom He condescended to become the King. “He gave thema fiery law” (Deut. 33:2), which he caused to be delivered to Moses forpromulgation. He did not leave his throne in the light to commune withMoses in his own proper person; for no man shall see Him and live”(Ex. 33:20; 1 Tim. 6:16): but he imparted his will to the angels of hispresence, “who do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of hisword;” and these, as faithful ministers of his pleasure (Psa. 103:20-21),handed to Moses his high, and holy, and just decrees, with all thesanctions of Sinai recorded in “the Book.”

“In the Hands of a Mediator”Thus “the law was ordained by angels in the hands of a Mediator”

(Gal. 3:19), who was Moses, occupying middle ground between Israeland their King. Terrified with the thunder-tones in which the Decaloguewas delivered, which made even Mosesquake with fear, they besought Jehovah tospeak to them only through the medium oftheir brother. In making this request theyproposed a Mediatorship, and suggestedthe appointment of Moses to the office.They had acknowledged themselves asJehovah’s nation, and now they wishedthat the communication between themshould be through an intermediate personwith whom they could confer withoutterror. The proposal pleased Jehovah, whosaid “they had well spoken what they hadspoken,” and their request wasconsequently complied with. From thistime the Mediatorship became anordinance in Israel. Moses was the firstthat held the office, in which he officiatedas a priest, prophet, legislator and king. After the nation was planted inCanaan, the high priests acted in the character of mediators, beingJehovah’s supreme magistrates over the people, for the pontificate wasalways above the kingly office, though many of the kings treated thehigh priests with indignity. Moses was the only complete representativeof a mediator that has yet appeared in Israel. He was Jehovah’srepresentative in all his relations to the nation. David and Solomonshared the mediatorship with Zadoc the high priest, but it was only askingly, not priestly and legislative representatives of Jehovah. Theywere mediatorial administrators of Moses’ law; and representative menin the offices they sustained—Jehovah’s representatives, individuallyrepresentative in their historical outlines of the mediator like untoMoses, who shall hereafter appear as king in Jeshurun.

Through IsraelNo other nation besides Israel has received a law “ordained in the

hand of a mediator.” The constitutions and laws of the nations havebeen given to them by evil men who have subdued them; or by men noholier, whom they may have chosen to rule over them. Hence theirorganizations are evil, and the spirit which actuates them, satanic. Thesupreme power is one, and the people is another, and there is nomediator—“no days-man betwixt them that might lay his hand uponthem both.” Their laws and institutions being human, purely so, orrather devilish, they have no intercourse with God; for if they spoke tohim and he should answer, seeing that they have no mediator, they

WRITTEN OVER 100 YEARS AGO:

MEDIATORSHIPwould be as terror-stricken as Israel of old, and cry out, “Let not Godspeak with us, lest we die!” Never did a people before hear the voice ofGod speaking out of the midst of the fire and live; nor besides Israel hasany nation heard him speak at all. Jehovah speaks only to Israel, inIsrael, and through them; and if the nations are addressed, it is throughthe mediation of the tribes; for what Moses was to them, so are they tothe world at large.

Mediation being an Israelitish institution, and there being no otherbetween Jehovah and the population of the earth; and it being admittedthat no man can come to God save through a mediator approved ofHim; it follows, that both individuals and nations can obtain access to“the throne of the Majesty in the heavens” only through the mediationwhich pertains to Israel. Now this mediation is in no way practicable onthe old basis, that is, through the Mosaic law. Obviously so; becauseaccording to that law there is no acceptance except through sacrificeoffered in Jerusalem by the priesthood of Levi. So long as Jerusalem istrodden under foot of the Gentiles, this is impossible; Israel therefore,like the rest of the nations, although they trust in Moses, is as destituteof mediation as though the mediatorship pertained to the Chinese andnot to them. If blindness had not happened to them, they would

certainly see this; for it is written inMoses, “Cursed is every one thatcontinueth not in all things written in thebook of the law to do them.” But whatone thing, not to mention all things, dothey observe in the letter or spirit of itthat is written therein? They practicecircumcision. But that is not of the law;yet by its practice they become debtors todo the whole law. By offending in theleast they are guilty of the whole; forMoses curses every Israelite whocontinueth not in all. Cursed, then, arethey of Moses in whom they trust; yetwere they ever so willing to obey him,they are circumstantially prevented.

Alas for Israel! They are “without aking, without a prince, without a

sacrifice, without an image, without an ephod, and without teraphim”(Hos. 3:4), and the king, prince, sacrifice, image of the invisible God,they will not receive! But, if Israel’s case is forlorn, that of the nationsis worse; for while Israel refuses Him who speaks from the right handof God, the Gentiles, who profess to acknowledge him, pay no regardto what he says. Redemption awaits Israel (Dan. 12:1): but anger andwrath, and sore distress, to all the world besides. How shall this troublebe eschewed?

Salvation in ChristEscape there is none save for those who obey the truth. The door is

not yet shut. “He that believes and is baptized shall be saved;” but markthe words which follow— “He that believes not shall be condemned.”What is that thing which when not believed brings condemnation to aman? The context answers this question in two words—“THE GOSPEL”(Mark 16:15-16). So that you see, you may even be baptized, or ratherimmersed, but if you believe not “the gospel,” you cannot be saved.That gospel announces to every man, both Jew and Gentile whobelieves it, access to Jehovah and his restored kingdom through his sonJesus, on his accession to the mediatorship in Israel. The law of Moseswas ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator. But that law asoriginally ordained has been impaired by the manifestation of some ofits antitypes; and being therefore no longer an exact representation ofthe knowledge of the truth, and incompatible with the nature of thingsas modified by the appearance of the prophet like unto Moses,—it

“T

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needs to be amended. Thisemendation is ordained byJehovah in the hand of amediator, as well as the originalpromulgation of the law.

Moses received it from theangels as the ministers of God;but Jesus, who is greater thanMoses, “being a son over his ownhouse,” in which Moses was onlya servant (Heb. 3:5-6), receivesthe amended law direct fromJehovah; for says God, “I will putmy words in his mouth; and heshall speak unto them (Israel) allthat I shall command him; andwhosoever will not hearken tomy words which he shall speak inmy name, I will require it ofhim.” Angels brought the wordsof God to Sinai, and theredelivered them to Moses for himto speak to Israel; but the HolySpirit, in the form of a dove, descended frombefore the throne, and abode on Jesus. Heneeded no angels to tell him what to speak, forthe Father dwelt in Him by his spirit, andmoved his tongue to utterance. “The Father isin me. I speak not of myself; the Fatherdwelling in me doth the works.” Though thatSpirit forsook him when he yielded up his lifeupon the cross (Matt. 27:46,50; Luke 23:46), itwas only till he rose again by its life-impartingenergy (Rom. 8:11). The fullness of theGodhead now dwelleth bodily in him; and ofthat “fullness have we all,” says an apostle,“received, even gift for the sake of gift—χαριναντ χαριτος—charin anti charitos” (Col. 2:9;John 1:16).

Coming in Power and GloryWhen he shall depart from “holy ground” to

revisit the arena of suffering and reproach,angels will escort him to his kingdom, full ofJehovah’s words of truth and mercy to hispeople; for “he shall roar out of Zion, and utterhis voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens andthe earth shall shake: but he will be the hope ofhis people, and the strength of the children ofIsrael. So shall they know that he is the Lordtheir God dwelling in Zion his holy mountain:Jerusalem shall then be holy, and strangers shallpass through her no more” (Joel 3:16-17).

Thus will he utter his archangel voice fromZion, amid the echoes of Jehovah’s trumpetsending forth its blasts as on Sinai in the daysof old. That trump will awake the dead (1Thess. 4:16; 1:7-8). And where will be hisfoes? Though gathered together to battleagainst Jerusalem a mighty host, of whataccount will they be when the crashing thunderof that dead-awakening shout, rattles throughthe flaming heavens, booming upon their ears?Madness will seize upon them, and upon theirhorses—blindness and astonishment.

The burden of Jerusalem will be heavyupon them, and a cup of trembling to them all(Zech. 12:1-7). But drink it to the dregs theymust; for their wickedness will be great (Joel

3:13). Jehovah’s first interview with his nationat Sinai was attended by a terrificdemonstration preceded by the overthrow ofIsrael’s enemies. Under the sanction of thisdisplay of power and glory he presented Mosesto the people as his representative over them.But the time is not very remote, when the crisisthat is now forming will necessitate a secondinterview between Jehovah and the Tribes.They have to be delivered from those that hatethem; and to be impressed with a spirit ofprompt obedience and submission to theMoses-like prophet, who is to be themediatorial representative of Jehovah in theirmidst for a thousand years to come.

Nothing short of a Sinaitic demonstrationwill accomplish this; for Israel is as stiff-neckeda people to-day as thirty-four centuries ago. The

battle of Armageddon and the warwhich it inducts, with all theattendant manifestations of powerand great glory, will inaugurate,with all-subduing majesty,Jehovah’s king in Zion, the hill ofHis holiness.

The mediatorship will thenhave reappeared in Israel underthe new covenant, dedicatedupwards of eighteen centuriesbefore by the blood of themediator, who speaks the wordscommanded of the Father insending forth the amended lawfrom Zion, and the word ofJehovah from Jerusalem (Isa. 2:3);not to Israel only, but to theresidue of men who then seek afterthe Lord, and to all the nationscalled by his name (Acts 15:17).Great, glorious, and free, willIsrael then be in the midst of

enlightened, obedient, and happy nations. TheKingdom of God, for which Jesus taught hisapostles to pray, will have come to Zion, andhis Father’s will performed on earth as it is inheaven. As the woman’s seed he will havebruised the serpent’s head, and have deliveredhis brethren from evil, because the kingdom ishis, the power and the glory for ever, amen.

Thus then will the amended law beordained by Jehovah in the hand of Jesus, theMediator of the New Covenant,—even the lawinitiated by Moses for a single nation; butperfected and adapted to a consociation of allnations, by the prophet like unto him, the futureking and lord of all the earth (Zech. 14:9).When that which is perfect hath come, theordering of things terrestrial will have obtainedthe permanency of a thousand years, asexhibited in the following descending series:—

JEHOVAH,Lord of the boundless universe; dwelling

in unapproachable light; whom no man hathseen, or can see and live:

JESUSJehovah’s High Priest and King over allthe Earth on David’s Throne in Zion:

THE SAINTS

Associates with Jesus in the enlightenmentand government of the world:

LEVITICAL PRIESTHOOD,Priests to Israel and the Gentiles who

come up to worship Jehovah at the Temple inJerusalem:

TWELVE TRIBES OF ISRAEL

The Kingdom of God, or Jehovah’s FirstBorn of the many nations constituted His sons

in Abraham, their federal paternal chief:THE NATIONS,

The Inheritance of Jehovah’s king to theends of the earth.

Herald of the kingdom and Age to Come,1853, page 5.

“Behold, the days come, saith theLORD, that I will make a new

covenant with the house of Israel,and with the house of Judah: Notaccording to the covenant that I

made with their fathers in the daythat I took them by the hand to

bring them out of the land ofEgypt; which my covenant they

brake, although I was an husbandunto them, saith the LORD: Butthis shall be the covenant that I

will make with the house of Israel;After those days, saith the LORD, I

will put my law in their inwardparts, and write it in their hearts;

and will be their God, and theyshall be my people.”Jeremiah 31:31-33

THE BIBLE MAGAZINE VOL. 19 ISSUE No. 2

Page 5

Northern Prophecy Day October 28th. to beheld in York. For information contact PhilipJones. Phone 01226-286026.

South Wales Prophecy Day. June 10th. Forinformation contact Brian Woodall

01269 596 973

PROGRAMME THEME:“The Evidence of Things not Seen”

In the following locations:Saturday April 22 InvercargillTuesday April 25 Christchurch/ DunedinSaturday April 29 WellingtonSaturday May 6 Auckland

For information contact David ArcherPhone: 04-232-6192

[email protected]

HOUSTON TX. PROPHECY DAY. SATURDAYOCTOBER 14TH. For information contactShannon Strickland (281) 794-9932.

BRANTFORD PROPHECY DAY SaturdayNovember 4th. For information contactGary Smith (519) 758-0362.

The Bible in The News is a short audio broadcasteach week linking Scripture to events in the news. Itis normally put up on our website each Thursday.

In addition to our regular audio version, there is also a transcription of the broadcastavailable which can be printed if so desired. It is a short (usually 10 to 15 minutes)commentary helping to create an awareness of God’s Hand at work in currentevents each week. Listen in and tell your friends!

THE BIBLE MAGAZINE NOTICE BOARD2006

UK PROPHECY DAYSPROPHECY DAYS IN

NORTH AMERICAPROPHECY DAYS IN

NEW ZEALAND

PROPHECY DAYS INAUSTRALIA

In the following locations:Saturday May 13th. Brisbane area.Saturday May 20. Sydney (Punchbowl)Saturday May 27 Perth

PROPHECY EVENINGS to be held inAdelaide May 23 to 25.For information contact

Neville Bullock (Brisbane area)John Elton (Sydney)Brian Hurn (Perth)

Brian Luke (Adelaide)WWW.Bibleinthenews.com

Thurs. NOVEMBER 16th to Mon. 20th2006

ENTER THE GATES OF ZION...Speakers: Roger Long (UK) and Paul Billington (Canada)Includes a guided tour of Jerusalem with Bro. Michael Shterenshish

School sponsored by CBM UKEnquiries and information from Philip Hunt. e-mail: [email protected] Gate Jerusalem


A WEEKLY COMMENTFROM A BIBLE

PERSPECTIVE ON THENEWS & CURRENT EVENTS

or some time now, The BibleMagazine has devoted its backpage to the subject of Creationand has been a testimony againstthe theory of evolution. This has

sometimes taken a light-hearted approacheven though we recognize that the issue is aserious one. The approach has been simpleand direct, placing before our readersvarious avenues of evidence which, in ourview, lead very obviously to the conclusionthat the Bible is true and the evolutionarytheories of men are—to put it bluntly,untrue. As the apostle Paul writes inRomans 1:20, “...the invisible things of Himfrom the creation of the world are clearlyseen, being understood by the things that aremade... so that they are without excuse.”



Page 6 THE BIBLE MAGAZINE VOL. 19 ISSUE No. 2

EDITORIAL:

Look at the expanse above, look at the starsand at the marvel that our natural eyes cansee—or as Isaiah 40:26 expresses it: “Lift upyour eyes on high, and behold, who hath



A Matter of RevelationOur approach in this back page feature has

not been technical or even “scientific,” and thatis because these things are not proved by astring of scientific arguments produced by thewisdom of men; they are matters of revelation.As God says in Job 38:4 “Where wast thouwhen I laid the foundations of the earth?declare, if thou has understanding!” To hearsome men talk of their evolution, you wouldthink that they were there on the spot to witnessit all happen at the very beginning—but theywere not. All their words are merespeculation—they tell their dreams and createshadows of what might have been. There isonly one authority in the matter—and He wasthere, and He has told us all that we need toknow.

When we open God’s Book, the very firstthing that we are asked to believe is this: “Inthe beginning God created the heaven and theearth...” As to how long He took to do it, or bywhat means, and why—are all questions towhich God Himself has providedstraightforward answers through his word. TheBible is His revelation to mankind and we caneither believe it or not. The revelation is a fact,and we can read it, we can understand what thewords mean—but whether we are humbleenough to accept the truths that are imparted tous is an individual matter.

CREATED these things...” Let us then hear Him!“In Six Days”

Moses wrote in Exodus 20:11, “...in sixdays the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea,and all that in them is.” Moses tells us that“God spake all these words” (verse 1). It is Godwho tells us through Moses, that He made thesethings in six days. And again “the LORD spakeunto Moses” in Exodus 31:17, saying: “...for insix days the LORD made heaven and earth.” Sothat is twice!

Modern man in his imagined wisdomcannot accept this statement—and so Jesussays: “But if ye believe not his (Moses’)writings, how shall ye believe my words?”(John 5:47). The word of God is so constructedthat we must either believe it or not.

And so it is that some begin to re-define aday. Not satisfied with one day beingequivalent to one rotation of the earth (ascommonly understood) our wise friends tell usthat the days of Genesis chapter one lasted formillions of years (or more). It is true that Petersays “that one day is with the Lord as athousand years, and a thousand years as oneday (2 Peter 3:8), but there is no way that thecontext here gives us license to make athousand years into a million or a billion! Wecannot s-t-r-e-t-c-h the word of God in order tofit some individual’s theory. The apostle Peter

TIME MAGAZINE AT WAR!

F

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calls that kind of thing “wresting” Scripture (2Peter 3:16).

Genesis 1:5 states that “the evening and themorning were the first day,” and each of thecreative “days” are similarly described, up tothe seventh. This pattern is the basis for thesabbath law, for as Exodus 20:11 tells us:

“For in six days the LORD made heaven andearth, the sea, and all that in them is, andrested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD

blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.”We must take the Scriptures in context. If

we consider the work of the 4th day (Genesis1:14-19), we see that the idea of night and dayare involved with the lights that were set in thefirmament of heaven. These two great lightswere to rule over the day and the night—that isone rotation of the earth, after which we aretold, “And the evening and the morning werethe fourth day.” This, clearly, is a literal day—as is the sabbath day. Hebrews chapter 4 doesgive a symbolic application to the sabbath day,but that application is no justification forobliterating the literal sense upon which thesymbolic is based. To do that would makenonsense of Exodus 20:11 and 31:17.

Escaping through AllegoryThe Genesis account of creation is a direct

challenge to the so-called “knowledge” of men.Men trust in their own wisdom and knowledgerather than in the word of the living God. Thishas been the case all down the ages. It was soin the early days of the Christians when theGnostics paraded their views—they were the‘knowing Ones’ of the day, and the historianEdward Gibbon writes about them in hisDecline and Fall of the Roman Empire asfollows:

“The Mosaic account of the creation and fallof man was treated with profane derision bythe Gnostics, who would not listen withpatience to the repose of the Deity after sixdays’ labour, to the rib of Adam, the gardenof Eden, the trees of life and knowledge, thespeaking serpent, the forbidden fruit, and thecondemnation pronounced against humankind for the venial offence of their firstprogenitors... Acknowledging that the literalsense is repugnant to every principle of faithas well as reason, they deem themselvessecure and invulnerable behind the ampleveil of allegory, which they carefully spreadover every tender part of the Mosaicdispensation.”

It is the mind of faith that accepts thosethings which God has revealed, and whichacknowledges that beyond that revelation, ourunderstanding is limited. The words of Job38:4 are very applicable here—“Where wastthou when I laid the foundations of the earth?”Who are we to darken counsel by wordswithout knowledge (verse 2)? “Knowest thou itbecause thou wast then born? or because thenumber of thy days is great?” (verse 21). “Shallhe that contendeth with the Almighty instructHim?” (Job 40:2). How many are prepared tohumble themselves as Job did, saying: “Iuttered that I understood not; things too

wonderful for me, which I knew not...wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dustand ashes” (Job 42:3-6).

The Gnostics of early Christian times andtheir counterparts in our day stumble at thatstumbling stone; namely the word of God.There is no escaping the plain and clearteaching of Scripture. We either believe it or wedo not.

Is it possible?Geologists frequently interpret what they

see as being the product of long ages of time.The formation of cliffs on a sea-coast are seenas a result of the waves of the sea poundingupon the shore and gradually breaking uprocks, taking slices from a hill and soproducing cliffs, boulders and—in time—grains of sand. But that is largely a theory. Trueit is that this process does occur, and can beobserved as happening now, but we cannottherefore assume this to be the way it hasalways been. Is it possible that these thingscould have been created in a short time as theBible says? There are reasons for thinking thatit was so—and one of those reasons is seen inthe birth of the island of Surtsey in 1963. In thepreface to the book Surtsey by SturlaFridriksson, the following description is given:

“... a whole island had been created, and anextensive area of land had been formed fromthe primary rock. From the depths of theocean there had been built up a broad base,on the top of which was an island withmountains and craters, lava flows, cliffs,gentle slopes, flat sandy beaches andwithered coastal strips with worn, roundedpebbles and boulder rims that gave thelandscape an ancient appearance.”

This event alone does not prove thatgeological features appeared instantaneously—but it does demonstrate that it is possible. It iswhen we put such things alongside Scripturehowever that the truth shines out. For example,look at Psalm 33:6-9.

“By the word of theLORD were theheavens made; andall the host of themby the breath of hismouth. Hegathereth the watersof the sea togetheras an heap: helayeth up the depthin storehouses. Letall the earth fear theLORD: let all theinhabitants of theworld stand in aweof him. For hespake, and it wasdone; hecommanded, and itstood fast.”

As with Surtsey,a landscape may wellhave “an ancientappearance,” but that

does not mean that it really is ancient. God hascreated it that way, establishing the importantprinciple that our trust should be in the word ofGod—and not in appearances.

How was it Done?The Psalm quoted above has answered that

question—“By the word of the LORD were theheavens made... For he spake, and it wasdone...” This is in harmony with the Genesisaccount—“And God said... and it was so.”

This teaches us of the tremendous power inGod’s word. The words of God are not lost inthe air; they accomplish that which he pleases,and they prosper in the purpose for which theyare sent (Isaiah 55:11).

So it is then, that to say, “By the word of theLORD were the heavens made,” is theequivalent of saying “He hath made the earthby his power, he hath established the world byhis wisdom, and stretched out the heaven by hisunderstanding” (Jeremiah 51:15).

This power or energy is the basis of allmaterial creation. Several years ago a writer forthe U.K.’s Sunday Telegraph made that point asfollows:

“The building-block of matter and ultimately

Above and below: Cliffs can be seen onthe 1963 island of Surtsey

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of the universe is the atom. No one has everbeen able to define the energy that binds theatom, but it is this intangible something thatholds the form of the universe. If, by somemagic, the energy of the atom were to beswitched off, the whole of material creationwould vanish, for the atom has no materialsubstance within itself. Only when it is builtinto molecular structures do we arrive at thestage of matter and solidity.“This is the underlying reality of theuniverse we inhabit and of ourselves. Canwe expect to probe deeper? We look for theedge of the universe; but the galaxiescontinue on as far as our finest instrumentscan penetrate.“What is the energy that sustains theuniverse, and where does it originate?”

That journalist should have read Jeremiah51:15 (or Jeremiah 10:12). That “energy,”power or spirit is the means whereby Godcreated these things, and by which He sustainsthem—Job 34:14-15. It is the power of Hisword.

Creation through the WordJohn chapter 1, verses 1-3, tells us yet again

the basic facts underlying creation. Thetranslation made by William Tyndale in 1534carries the true sense:

“In the beginning was the word, and theword was with God: and the word was God.The same was in the beginning with God.All things were made by it, and without it,was made nothing, that was made.”

The word of God then, which carriescreative power or energy, is the basis and themeans of all creation. So powerful is this thatJeremiah says:

“Ah Lord GOD! behold, thou hast made theheaven and the earth by thy great power andstretched out arm, and there is nothing toohard for thee” (chapter 32:17).

“With God all things are possible” saidJesus (Matt. 19:26). Why should we doubt thatthe Living and true God could have doneexactly what He says, and that “in six days theLORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and allthat in them is?” Why can we not believe Hisword?

Just as it was the word of God that initiatedthe literal creation of material things, so it isthe belief of that word which can generate anew creation in men and women. John says(chapter 1;12), “But as many as received him,to them gave he power to become sons of God,even to them that believe on his name.” AndPeter says of such, that they are “born again,not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, bythe word of God, which liveth and abideth forever” (1 Peter 1:23).

Here is a creation that springs out ofbelief—it is a belief of the word of God whichproduces faith in a person so that they becomenew people; new creatures. But if we cannotbelieve in the Mosaic account of the creation,how can we believe in the literality of miracles,of the resurrection of the dead, or of the realityof salvation and the coming kingdom of God?

These things are interdependent — as it iswritten:

“For thus saith the LORD that created theheavens; God himself that formed the earthand made it; he hath established it, hecreated it not in vain, he formed it to beinhabited: I am the LORD; and there is noneelse” (Isaiah 45:18).

God ‘Created’The concept of a gradual evolution of

things is not to be found in the Bible. The veryword that is used, the Hebrew verb for create(bara) refers to an instantaneous act and not aprocess. Further, it requires an agent—“Godcreated” (Genesis 1:1). Someone had to do thecreating; there is no room for a self-generatingprocess.

This teaching is consistent throughoutScripture. Take Genesis 2:4, “...the heavensand the earth when they were created, in theday that God created man...” These Scripturestell us quite plainly that God “created,” that isa specific act—and it was accomplished on aparticular “day.”

It is the consistency of this teaching that isso striking. The language always fits the samepattern. God is the Creator, the maker, as Hesays in Isaiah 45:12,

“I have made the earth, and created manupon it: I, even my hands, have stretched outthe heavens, and all their host have Icommanded.”

It is faith in this God, the Creator, that is thecornerstone of the Truth. This was recognizedand acknowledged by Hezekiah in his hour ofneed. In 2 Kings 19:15 we read his words:

“And Hezekiah prayed before the LORD, andsaid, O LORD God of Israel, which dwellestbetween the cherubims, thou art the God,even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of theearth; thou hast made heaven and earth.”

The King of Tyre recognized the true God

in these words:“ Huram said moreover, Blessed be the LORD

God of Israel, that made heaven and earth,who hath given to David the king a wise son,endued with prudence and understanding,that might build an house for the LORD, andan house for his kingdom” (2 Chron. 2:12).

This same recognition is found in the NewTestament also. For example, Acts 4:24,“...they lifted up their voice with one accordand said, Lord, thou art God, which hast madeheaven, and earth, and the sea, and all that inthem is.” And in Acts 17:24 the apostle Paulspeaks of “God that made the world and allthings therein...”

The Living Being who can do these thingscan do anything. Nothing is too hard—allthings are possible with him. What a blessingindeed it is then for those who are “blessed ofthe LORD which made heaven and earth”(Psalm 115:15).

Helping those who BelieveThere are times and situations in life when

people need help. They need the loving care ofanother. And the one thing that we all need helpwith—whether we acknowledge it or not—is inovercoming the power that sin holds over us.We cannot save ourselves from sin—we needhelp. And so it is that we can cry out with thePsalmist (if we believe the same as he did):“My help cometh from the LORD, which madeheaven and earth” (Psalm 121:2).

This is Israel’s hope, for God has made veryspecific promises to them, and so the Psalmistlays before us the truth—“now may Israel say...Our help is in the name of the LORD, who madeheaven and earth”—Psalm 124. So it is to theGod of Israel that all must look for help and forsalvation. As the Psalmist says again:

“Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob forhis help, whose hope is in the LORD his God:Which made heaven, and earth, the sea, andall that therein is: which keepeth truth forever” (Psalm 146:5-6).

Today, the time is fast approaching when allwill be called upon to give glory to the Creatorin acknowledging the truth of His word.“Scientific” knowledge and Gnosticism will beof no avail in the day of judgement, for thetheories, guesses and imaginations of men willthen be exposed for what they really are. As itis written of that time in Revelation 14:7, a loudvoice will proclaim:

“Fear God, and give glory to him; for thehour of his judgment is come: and worshiphim that made heaven, and earth, and thesea, and the fountains of waters.”

Whoever loves and maketh a lie, saysRevelation 22:15, will be on the outside of theholy city when it is established. They will notbe in the kingdom of Christ. This includesthose who teach the lie of evolution—inwhatever guise it may be dressed up. Bibleteaching simply leaves no room for it. Believeit or not, God created the heavens and the earthin six days, and on the seventh day he rested.

“Blessed be the LORDGod of Israel, thatmade heaven and

earth”2 Chronicles 2:12.

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o serious Bible student would deny theactivity of God’s spirit power. Weare told that by His spirit God createdthe heavens (Job 26:13) and by the

same spirit all creation is sustained (Acts17:28). In fact, according to the Bible, if theCreator were to remove His spirit all fleshwould perish (Job 34:14,15). This, however, isquite different to claiming that the miraculousgifts of the first century are very much aliveand active today.

Most Christian religions maintain that theHoly Spirit is active in one way or another. ThePentecostal and other Charismatic groups forexample, claim to be able to speak in tongues,or perform miracles of healing by the power ofthe Holy Spirit. Other denominations such asthe Jehovah’s Witnesses and the Church of theLatter Day Saints profess to be the recipients ofdivine revelation, and the Roman Catholicchurch has its Lourdes where miraclesallegedly occur.

All this raises a question of credibility. Ifall these denominations believe that God’sHoly Spirit power is active in their particularchurch then how can they justify being separateand distinct? On the other hand, if theseparation is based upon differences of doctrine(which is clearly the case) then some one ismaking false claims. Christian groups cannotlay claim to Holy Spirit powers and at the sametime preach a different gospel, because theBible states that “no man can say that Jesus isLord, but by the Holy Spirit” (1 Corinthians12:3); God is not the author of confusion (1Corinthians 14:33).

This anomaly can only be resolved byexamining the teaching of the Bible, and theprophet Isaiah who sets the tone for ourexamination: “to the law and the testimony: ifthey speak not according to this word, it isbecause there is no light in them” (Isaiah 8:20).

False claims predictedThe Lord Jesus Christ warned his disciples

that people would arise making false claims.We read, “Many false prophets shall rise, andshall deceive many” (Matthew 24:11).Moreover these false claims would besupported with “signs and wonders” so thateven the very elect of God would be challenged(verse 24). Jesus’ words came true during thefirst century after his ascension into heaven, sothat John, his beloved apostle, could write,“Many deceivers are entered into the world…”(2 John 7). Deception would be at the veryheart of these false claims.

This influence from false teachers claiming

to perform miracles, was not to be just a firstcentury problem. The Bible teaches that thesame false claims would be evident in the lastdays, prior to the return of the Lord JesusChrist. Notice what the apostle Paul has to say:

“Now we beseech you, brethren, by thecoming of our Lord Jesus Christ… that dayshall not come, except there come a fallingaway first, and that man of sin be revealed,the son of perdition… And then shall thatWicked be revealed, whom the Lord shallconsume with the spirit of his mouth, andshall destroy with the brightness of hiscoming: Even him, whose coming is afterthe working of Satan with all power andsigns and lying wonders, And with alldeceivableness of unrighteousness in themthat perish; because they received not thelove of the truth, that they might be saved”(2 Thessalonians 2:1-3, 8-10).

We can summarize the main points fromthese verses as follows:

1. Jesus Christ is coming back.2. Before Jesus returns there will be a fallingaway (this is the Greek word ‘apostasia’ fromwhich our word apostasy is derived).3. When this occurs there will have beenrevealed a Wicked one, a man of sin, whomthe Lord will destroy.4. The message of this Wicked one would beaccompanied by “power and signs andwonders.”

5. The effect of these alleged wonders wouldbe to deceive the people.

Who this “wicked one” refers to is not oursubject, we simply want to emphasize that priorto Jesus Christ’s return there will be peoplemaking false claims, and supporting them by“miraculous powers.”

Just because someone claims to haveperformed a miracle from God does not meanthat God is behind it. Jesus said, “Many willsay unto me in that day, Lord, Lord, have wenot prophesied in thy name? And in thy namehave cast out many devils? (Matthew 7:22).Clearly these were “false prophets,” as isindicated by Jesus’ reply, “And then I willprofess unto them, I never knew you: departfrom me, ye that work iniquity” (verse 23).These people laid claim to the miraculous giftsof prophecy and healing, but God was notbehind it.

An example of this can be found in the OldTestament, in the book of Exodus. It was onthe occasion that Moses stood before Pharaohto demand the release of the children of Israel;God gave Moses a number of signs that hecould display before Pharaoh to demonstratethat God had sent him. One of the signs was forMoses to take his staff, cast it to the ground andit would become a snake (Exodus 7:8-10).Moses did so, but the Egyptian magicians didthe same thing (verse 11,12). Was God alsoworking through the Egyptians, or was itsimply a clever trick?

The test of a true prophetIn Old Testament times God set down the

criteria for discerning false claims. We read thefollowing:

“If there arise among you a prophet, or adreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign ora wonder, And the sign or the wonder cometo pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying,Let us go after other gods, which thou hastnot known, and let us serve them; Thou shaltnot hearken unto the words of that prophet,or that dreamer of dreams: for the LORD yourGod proveth you, to know whether ye lovethe LORD your God with all your heart andwith all your soul” (Deuteronomy 13:1-3).

But how was Israel to determine whetherthe prophet was false or not, the evidence of hiscredentials lay in the miracles that the prophethad performed. The alleged miracles, inthemselves, were not the credentials; it waswhether the prophet was speaking according toGod’s word: “Ye shall walk after the LORD yourGod, and fear him, and keep hiscommandments, and obey his voice” (verse 4).The word of God was to be the only authority

NOT AVAILABLE TODAY:

By Ron Kidd LONDON, ON. CANADA

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Is it really the Holy Spirit?


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for determining truth; and the same principleapplies today. The apostle John enjoins us to“believe not every spirit, but try the spiritswhether they are of God: because many falseprophets are gone out into the world” (1 John4:1). Here is the litmus test in determiningtruth from error; we are called upon to measureall that we encounter by God’s word (2 Peter3:2,3).

The issue before us is not whether unusualhappenings occur within religious groups, theissue is whether these are the work of Godthrough the Holy Spirit. That unusual eventsdo take place in the name of religion is notdenied. However, unusual happenings alsooccur in spiritualistic séances, Buddhisttemples and voodoo rituals, and none of thesewould be attributed to the hand of God. It willbe seen from the photographs that thecharacteristics displayed during aso called Holy Spirit “experience”and the African possessed by avoodoo spirit are very similar(compare previous page). Bothphenomena can be shown to havea common physiological basis,where the brain is subjected tostress changes caused by exposureto loud music, drumming, andrhythmic clapping.

We need to examine what theBible says about the Holy Spiritgifts in order to establish a soundbasis for examining these modernclaims. Our examination will fallinto three areas of consideration:

1. The purpose for the HolySpirit gifts

2. The method by which the giftswere given

3. The Bible predicted thewithdrawal of the giftsThe purpose for the Holy Spirit gifts

Just before his crucifixion, Jesus promisedhis disciples a Comforter. He was about toleave them, not only to die upon the cross butalso to ascend to the right hand of his Father,and his disciples were frightened and confused.To address their concerns Jesus said, “I will notleave you comfortless: I will come unto you”(John 14:18). The word “comfortless” simplymeans fatherless and is so translated in James1:27. In other words the disciples would not beleft in a bereaved state, and so Jesus promisedto send them the Comforter.

The work of the Comforter is detailed inthree chapters of John’s gospel(chapt.14,15,16). The following summary willemphasize why it was given.

1. The Comforter is described as “the Spiritof truth” (John 14:17; 16:13). In other wordsthe Holy Spirit would guarantee that God’sword would be accurately conveyed. This iswhat is meant when Peter wrote that thegospel was preached “unto you with HolySpirit sent down from heaven” (1 Peter 1:12);it would ensure that the word preached wouldnot be by “private interpretation,” i.e. human

origins, but “holy men of God spake as theywere moved by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:20,21).2. The Comforter would teach the disciples“all things, and bring things to (their)remembrance” (John 14:26). In other wordsthey would be able to recall events andconversations from the ministry of Jesus.3. The Comforter would “testify of me: andye shall bear witness, because you have beenwith me from the beginning” (John 15:26,27). Thus the Holy Spirit would provide awitness that the apostles were speaking truth.This occurred during the ministry of thedisciples, the Lord “gave testimony unto theword of his grace, and granted signs andwonders to be done by their hands” (Acts14:3).4. The Comforter would “reprove the world

of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment”(John 16:8). This was certainly true of theapostles. On the day of Pentecost the wordsof Peter pricked the conscience of his hearersto the point where they cried: “Men andbrethren, what shall we do?” (Acts 2:37).And when the Jews would no longer listen itwas said to them, “seeing ye put it (thegospel) from you, and judge yourselvesunworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to theGentiles” (Acts 13:46).5. The Comforter would “shew you things tocome” (John 16:13). The disciples would begiven the gift of prophecy, as is evident fromthe visions in the book of Revelation, whenJohn heard a voice saying, “I will shew youthings which must be hereafter” (Revelation4:1).

All these details show that the promisedComforter was peculiar to the first century andapplicable only to the twelve apostles. Of thedisciples alone could it be said that they hadbeen with Jesus “from the beginning.” Thedisciples alone had spoken with Jesus and itwas the memories of their conversations that

the Comforter would recall, and provide thatimportant witness in the dissemination of thegospel.

The method of giving the giftsOn more than one occasion Jesus told his

disciples that they would receive the gift of theHoly Spirit (John 5:38,39). After hisresurrection he told the disciples to wait atJerusalem “for the promise of the Father,” i.e.the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:4,5). Whenthe day of Pentecost arrived the disciples wereall gathered together in one place, “And thereappeared unto them cloven tongues like as offire, and it sat upon each of them. And theywere filled with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:3,4).The promise that Jesus would send theComforter to his disciples had been fulfilled.

Later the same miraculous power waspoured out upon a small company of Gentiles

in the presence of the apostlePeter (Acts 10:44). In bothinstances the Holy Spirit wasbestowed directly from God andthe reasons are obvious. In thefirst instance the gift of the HolySpirit had resided only in theLord Jesus Christ and it was healone that could pass it on to hisdisciples. In the second instanceit was necessary that Godendorse in some unmistakablemanner that He had opened theway to the Gentiles. Gentileswere considered unclean by theJews, thus the outpouring of thespirit provided the confirmationthat God had cleansed theGentiles (Acts 10:11-16). Petermakes this clear when he says,“Forasmuch then as God gavethem the like gift as he did untous, who believed on the Lord

Jesus Christ; what was I, that I could withstandGod?” (Acts 11:17).

The initial outpouring of the spirit on bothJew and Gentile was direct from heaven. Thishowever, was not to be the normal method oftransmitting the gifts. Once this initialconfirmation had been achieved theresponsibility for passing the gifts on to othersfell to the Apostles.

A prerequisite in any relationship with Godis understanding. Without it we will perish(Psalm 49:20). Only “he that believeth and isbaptized” shall be saved (Mark 16:16). Onceagain truth is the foundation of the believer’srelationship with God, a sound knowledge ofthe things believed is essential. In this regardwe have an example in Acts 8. Philip was oneof the seven people chosen to assist the apostlesin taking over some of the routine activities ofthe Jerusalem church. As a result of thepersecution that arose against the believers,Philip travelled to Samaria and preached thegospel of the kingdom of God (Acts 8:12). Hismessage was accompanied by “miracles andsigns” (verse 13), with the result that manybelieved (verse 12); these were baptized, both

A man in Africa is possessed by a voodoo spirit


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men and women (verse 12).There is one detail that is particularly

significant. Philip could perform miracles buthe was unable to pass the spirit gifts on to thenewly baptized. We read, “Now when theapostles which were at Jerusalem heard thatSamaria had received the word of God, theysent unto them Peter and John: “Who, whenthey were come down, prayed for them, thatthey might receive the Holy Spirit: (For as yethe was fallen upon none of them: only theywere baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.)”(Acts 8:14-16). The method for giving theHoly Spirit gifts is explained in verse 18,“through laying on of the apostle’s hands theHoly Spirit was given.”

Thus the process is clearly outlined:1. Philip preached the gospel and those thatheard were required to understand themessage and believe it before they werebaptized.2. Though these new converts were baptizedthey did not possess the Holy Spirit gifts.3. Philip, who had taught them from the wordof God and demonstrated his authority by“miracles and signs” was unable to pass onthese gifts to the Samaritans.4. It was necessary for the apostles to travelto Samaria in order to pass on these powers.5. The transmission of the gifts wasaccompanied by the laying on of the apostles’hands.

This method is referred to on otheroccasions in the New Testament, where weread, “And when Paul had laid his hands uponthem, the Holy Spirit came on them; and theyspake with tongues, and prophesied” Acts 19:6(see also 2 Timothy 1:6).

This method leads us to conclude that whenthe apostles passed off the scene the gifts of theHoly Spirit gradually ceased; there was nobodyleft to transmit the gifts.

Withdrawal of the gifts predictedIt was never God’s intention that the Holy

Spirit gifts should continue indefinitely and justafter their introduction the apostles taught thatthe gifts would cease. Consider the words ofPeter on the day of Pentecost.

The Holy Spirit had just been poured outupon the apostles and they began to speak inforeign languages (Acts 2:8). Some of thosethat heard accused the apostles of being drunk(verse 13), who in response quoted from theprophet Joel to demonstrate that this newphenomena was in effect the fulfilment ofBible prophecy. Here is what the prophet hadto say:

“And it shall come to pass in the last days,saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit uponall flesh: and your sons and your daughtersshall prophesy, and your young men shallsee visions, and your old men shall dreamdreams: And on my servants and on myhandmaidens I will pour out in those days ofmy Spirit; and they shall prophesy” (Acts2:17,18).

God had prophesied the outpouring of the

Holy Spirit, but had clearly indicated thelimited time for its manifestation—twogenerations; “your sons and daughters” and“your old men.” Neither would this outpouringbe limited to Jews only, but “all flesh” wouldbenefit, Jew and Gentile. Peter confirms thisunderstanding when he comments later in thechapter, saying (verse 39),

• “for the promise is unto you…”—thegeneration he was speaking to.• “and to your children…”—the generationthat would follow.• “and all that are afar off, even as many asthe Lord shall call”—those that would hearbeyond the land of Israel, including theGentiles.

Two generations would receive the HolySpirit gifts at a time described by Joel as “thelast days.” This does not refer to the times inwhich we live but rather the closing days of thenation of Israel, before the judgments of God inAD 70. Paul describes the ministry of Jesus asoccurring in the last days (Hebrews 1:2). It was

this generation that was witnessing “that whichwas spoken by the prophet Joel” (verse 16).

The apostle Paul conveyed the samemessage when he wrote to the Corinthians. Inchapter 12 he speaks about the diversity ofspirit gifts amongst the believers, remindingthem that the gifts were given for the believers’benefit (verse 6,7). God had distributed thegifts amongst the believers for the well beingof the whole ecclesia (verse 18, 25).Notwithstanding Paul instructs believers atCorinth, and ourselves, that there is somethingfar more important than spirit gifts—“yet shewI unto you a more excellent way” (verse 31).He then proceeds to develop that beautifulchapter about love (chapter 13).

Notice what Paul says in verse 8:“Charity (love) never faileth: but whetherthere be prophecies, they shall fail; whetherthere be tongues, they shall cease; whetherthere be knowledge, it shall vanish away.”

The point that Paul is making is that thelove of God will always be there, it will neverfail. However the gifts of prophecy andtongues and knowledge will one day vanish.These gifts were only “in part” (verse 9), that isto say they were manifested by particularmembers (the Greek word “part” is alsotranslated “particularly” in 12:27 in referenceto individual members). This being the case

when would the gifts be removed? Paul says,“when that which is perfect is come, then thatwhich is in part shall be done away” (verse 10).This has been interpreted by the Charismaticgroups to mean that the kingdom of God is theperfect state, and when it comes then the giftswill “vanish away.” Thus the gifts are stillavailable today. But this simply isn’t true.

The word ‘perfect’ does not refer to the timeof God’s kingdom. Paul addresses theCorinthians indicating that some were already“perfect” (1 Corinthians 2:6, see alsoPhilippians 3:15); the word is translated “men”in chapter 14:20 and “full age” in Hebrews5:14. It is the Greek word “teleios” andsignifies, mature, complete or grown up. Paulis stressing that when the first century ecclesiareached maturity, or full age, the spirit giftswould no longer be necessary. This occurredwhen the writings of the New Testament werecompleted, towards the end of the first century.

Those who claim that the “perfect state”refers to the kingdom period should considerPaul’s comment in Hebrews 6:5, where heinforms us that the Holy Spirit powers are “thepowers of the world to come.” In other wordswhen God’s kingdom is established there willbe a further outpouring of miraculous powersof a far greater magnitude than the first century(Ephesians 1:14).

God’s spirit at work todayIt would be altogether wrong to suggest that

God’s spirit power is no longer working on thebehalf of those who desire God’s truth. Thereis, and always has been, the invisible work ofthe angels. These immortal beings “excel instrength” and “do (God’s) commandments”(Psalm 103:20). They were at work in the lifeof Jacob (Genesis 48:16); of Moses (Exodus3:2); of David (2 Samuel 24:17); of Daniel(Daniel 6:22); of Jesus (Matthew 4:11; Luke24:23), and they are at work today on behalf ofbelievers as “ministering spirits, sent forth tominister for them who shall be heirs ofsalvation” (Hebrews 1:14).

But in addition to the angels, God has givento us His word. We must never underestimatethe power of God’s word (Romans 1:16). It iscalled “the sword of the spirit” (Ephesians6:17); Jesus said, “the words which I speakunto you, they are spirit, and they are life”(John 6:63). Men and women are made holy byGod’s word (John 17:17) and by the same wordthey are born again, for we read that we are“Being born again, not of corruptible seed, butof incorruptible, by the word of God, whichliveth and abideth for ever” (1Peter 1:23). Andthe apostle Paul says that by God’s word “theman of God may be perfect, thoroughlyfurnished unto all good works” and capable ofbecoming “wise unto salvation” (2 Timothy3:16,17).

Let us not be deceived by the claims offalse teachers but let us follow the injunction ofthe Lord Jesus Christ who said, “search thescriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternallife: and they are they which testify of me”(John 5:39).

It was never God’sintention that the Holy

Spirit gifts shouldcontinue indefinitely and

just after theirintroduction the apostles

taught that the giftswould cease.

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MILESTONESUPDATE

By Don Pearce RUGBY, UK.

Israel is at the centre of events influencing policyof many nations, including that of the Vatican

ormally it is the events of the 31st ofDecember that cause a rewrite of thelast draft of Milestones—but this

time it was a quiet news day! It was a few dayslater when there was a dramatic twist to thesituation in Israel. On Jan 4th Mr Sharon wentinto a deep coma from which he still has notrecovered at the time of writing.

Now Israel have held their elections andthe new Kadima party set up by Sharon is theoverall winner. It has a much smaller majoritythan expected. Kadima’s aim is to reduceJewish settlements on the West Bank retainingonly certain ones that can be more easilydefended or are of strategic importance.

The Palestinian elections a few weeksearlier brought Hamas unexpectedly topower—and the day after theIsraeli elections, thePalestinians formed theirgovernment with the avowedaim of driving Israel fromthe land! In the few monthssince Israel has withdrawnfrom the Gaza Strip, themilitants and Al Qaeda havemoved in, and the rocketattacks on the Israeli townshave intensified. The rangeof their home producedrockets is now beingsupplemented bysophisticated Iranianmissiles, well able to hit notonly the Israeli town ofAshkelon, the site of manyoil tanks and pipelines, butmany other Israeli towns. Adangerous situation isdeveloping and seriousthought is being given tosending Israeli troops backinto Gaza to deal with thisgrowing terrorist threat!

Not only do we have Palestinians intent onwiping Israel off the map and so gaining controlof Jerusalem, and Israelis wishing to withdrawfrom parts of the land, including areas aroundJerusalem, but also we have steady pressurefrom the Vatican in order to gain control ofJerusalem!

The apathy of the Israelis was very markedin these elections—it was the lowest turnoutever. They have grown tired of the conflict and

are prepared to give in, hoping for a measure ofpeace. Many thousands of Jewish settlers nowfear they are under threat of eviction. Theevacuation of Gaza was relatively smooth. Thesubsequent evacuation of Hebron turned into afierce struggle between settlers and themilitary. Further withdrawals would inflamepassions—the situation is serious.

So we commence our review by looking atthis situation in Israel.Why was Sharon so dramatically removed?

It would seem clear that it was in God’sPurpose that there should be a withdrawal fromGaza to permit there to be a Palestinianpresence there, west of Israel and hostile to her(Isa 11:14). In Bible times there seemed alwaysto have been a Philistine presence in this

region. The situationregarding the so-called WestBank is different. This is theheartland of the 10 tribes,and constitutes the“mountains of Israel” whichscripture indicates will beunder Jewish control at thetime of the end (Ezekiel38:8). Sharon’s dramaticremoval from the scene willprobably be seen to havehad a significant effect onIsrael’s political scene. Thenewly formed Kadima partyhad been racing away in thepolls, but steadily slumpedafter Jan 4th. Sharon wasthe centre of the party andmuch of the reason for hisparty’s existence hasdisappeared, as he had notmade public the full extentof his plans. His deputyOlmert, tried to follow whathe perceived to be Sharon’sgoals, but lacked Sharon’s

military experience. With a steadily increasingnumber of rocket attacks from the Gaza,Israelis had doubts about the wisdom ofwithdrawing from more territory. Then camethe Hamas victory in the Palestinian elections.Although they received less than 50% of thevotes, due to the electoral system they receivedthe majority of the seats in the PalestinianAssembly. This was a disturbing escalation ofIsrael’s struggle against terrorist attacks. Her

Arab neighbours are now run by a body ofpeople who are a terrorist organisation, whoseavowed aim is to purge the land of Jews as thefollowing statement shows.

I dream of a map without Israel“Newly-appointed Palestinian AuthorityForeign Minister, Mahmoud Zahar ofHamas, reiterated yesterday his party’sdesire to eliminate Israel and replace it withan Islamic state. Zahar commented in aninterview to the Chinese news agencyXinhua, that he dreams of hanging a map ofthe world in his Gaza home which does notinclude Israel on it. He added, ‘I hope thatour dream to have our independent state onall historic Palestine (will materialise).’”(BICOM 4-4-06)

They are backed by Iran whose leader hasbeen equally outspoken about his desire to seethe elimination of Israel!

Faced with these growing threats theIsraeli public showed their concern by givingthe Kadima Party a hollow victory. Instead ofthe 36-40 seats they were hoping for, theyobtained 29. This has put them in a muchweaker position. Israeli politics arecomplicated, there are so many parties and agovernment majority is only achieved byforming coalitions until one has at least 61 ofthe 120 seats. It will be very difficult to form astrong government, and the likelihood is that itwill not last long, nor will it easily be able toimplement its plans of settlement withdrawals.

“Olmert wants to redraw Israel’s boundariestoday. He will have to avoid the nightmarishscenario of a civil war that a narrow center-left coalition would no doubt usher in andwill have to negotiate the consensus with theright. That, even in ideal conditions, wouldtake longer than the time it took Rabin’s farmore stable coalition to sign Oslo and itwould cost infinitely more than theDisengagement did: this time, it would evicttens of thousands of settlers from theirhomes, and it is the heartland of BiblicalIsrael that they would be asked to abandonfor an uncertain future.“But conditions are not ideal. While Israeliswere busy voting (or not voting), a Katyusharocket landed in southern Israel, killing twoBedouin shepherds. Gaza today is closer toTel Aviv than ever before. And the presenceof much more efficient, elusive, andsophisticated weaponry in Gaza only sevenmonths after the disengagement shows how

Ehud Olmert: Can he fillSharon’s Shoes?

The Hamas Logo

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frail and fragile the Kadima vision was, howunreliable the international community whoshould be monitoring the borders is, and howineffectual (not to say worse) are theEgyptians in Sinai when it comes toweapons’ smuggling into Gaza. And thatwithdrawal does not a peace make.Emanuele Ottolenghi 29-3-06 (He teachesIsrael studies at Oxford University.)

What is not yet clear is whether inOlmert’s plans civilian withdrawal from WestBank settlements also includes a militarywithdrawal. Would Israel continue to havemilitary control over the Palestinians in theWest Bank area?

In a way, the Israel today reflects the stateof their former leader: the majority are in adeep coma to spiritual things. They lack aleader who can guide them back to God. Theolder generation of Jewish pioneers have beenreplaced by a people who have trusted in theirown strength to save them. The majority see noway out from their present problems except bygiving up territory, in spite of the problems theGaza withdrawal has brought in its wake, andby maintaining a military superiority. Fewwould seek to trust in the Lord their God. Itseems clear that right to the end Israel will beseeking solutions that exclude God, for as wehave seen before, God counts the period priorto the invasion described in Ezekiel ch 38 as atime of trespass on Israel’s part (Ez 39:26). Asin the times of the Judges, God is drawing thenation towards a time when they will beoverwhelmed by their enemies and in theirextremity they will then cry out to God to savethem. God’s Saviour of His people is prepared,but the eyes of the nation are—for the present—veiled from recognising him.

We do look for an element of religiousrevival in order that there may be a remnantthat will be saved from the coming destructionto form the nucleus of the Kingdom. Howexciting that the Bible Magazine editor wasable to raise his voice of witness in Jerusalemas reported elsewhere in this issue. To whatextent that reformation lies in the period afterthe Lord’s return to his household, we cannotbe sure. Last year’s Gaza evacuation has drawnthe attention of Israel to a small proportion oftheir countrymen who do seek to serve God andhave a love of the Torah and are prepared tostand up for their beliefs. It is certainly aninteresting, yet difficult, period for Israel.

Vatican seeks pieces of JerusalemFor over seven years the Vatican has been

attempting to obtain control over what itconsiders to be an historic site in Jerusalem.The Cenacle is the alleged site of the LastSupper, but in reality it is a building erected bythe crusaders in the 15th century! The Israeligovernment have owned the site since 1948,and the building houses a Jewish Torah school.The Vatican’s deal was to take over the site inexchange for giving back to the Jews a Spanishchurch that originally was a synagogue. Israelhas been unwilling to accept the terms of theswap. The Cenacle has historic links for theJews, for David’s tomb is alleged to have been

on this site.The Jewish press brought to the world’s

attention a speech by the Vatican’s legal advisorin Israel, David Jaeger, who “ harshly criticizedIsrael’s policy regarding safeguarding Christianholy sites.”

“Speaking during an internationalconference at a Haifa University conferenceTuesday, Jaeger said Jerusalem is animportant city the fate of which should notbe left in the hands of Israel and thePalestinians.“Any solution to the status of Jerusalemneeds the approval of the internationalcommunity, said Jaeger, adding that thePalestinian Authority has also failed inkeeping with international conventions onpreserving holy sites.” (Ynet news 4-1-06)

When most of the city was underJordanian control, the Jews were excluded fromany sites that they did not hold. Since theircontrol of Jerusalem in 1967, they have

allowed others the freedom of worship that hadbeen denied to them. In Milestones 2005 welooked at the unsuccessful efforts that theVatican has made since 1947 to avoid Israelhaving control of the city.

“The nerve point of the world scene …is the Holy Land” — Benedict XVI

Addressing the crowd assembled to hearhis first regular public audience of 2006,Ratzinger declared that the “moral imperative”of the Roman Catholic Church was to unitemankind in Christ. This is church shorthand forsetting a goal for the bringing of all under theircontrol! A few days later he was speaking to the174 ambassadors accredited to the Holy See.

“...He joined the church’s mission to that ofall world leaders, stating that the Vatican is“united as in a common mission” with theworld’s diplomats. (Considering that Rome’smission is to catholicize the world, that wassome statement!) In carefully wordeddiplomatic script designed as a hit atextremist Islam, the pope underpinned his

reference to a “clash of civilizations” bypointing to the prime cause being terrorism,which he declared was rooted in “politicalideology combined with aberrant religiousideas.” Only a fool would fail to catch thisas a glaring reference to Islamicfundamentalism. This is a religious war ofwords, couched in the language ofdiplomacy.“Even more striking was the pope’sdeclaration to the diplomats gathered beforehis throne that ‘the nerve point of the worldscene... is the Holy Land’” (The Trumpet 27-3-06).

Both the Vatican and the Moslems have acommon—but incompatible—aim. Both areseeking world domination, both seeking tobring the world to their way of thinking; bothsee Jerusalem as a touch point of their striving.Yet it is the Jews who have practical control ofthis city, and will continue to do so until Gogdefeats them, prior to the battle ofArmageddon. It is clear from Ezekiel 38 thatthe driving force behind the Gogian invasion isso-called Christian Europe rather than Islamicfundamentalists. In the final picture theMoslem countries — Persia Ethiopia and Libya(Ez 38:5) work with, but don’t lead, Europe.Their common goal is to remove Israel fromtheir land.

However the world sees the threat in termsof Christian versus Moslem. At the momentthat is what appears to be the great challenge ofthis age. It is interesting therefore that the newpope has chosen to recall the previous contestsbetween these two powers — the time of theCrusades.

“Vatican change of heart over ‘barbaric’Crusades”

“The Vatican has begun moves torehabilitate the Crusaders by sponsoring aconference at the weekend that portrays theCrusades as wars fought with the “nobleaim” of regaining the Holy Land forChristianity.“The Crusades are seen by many Muslims asacts of violence that have underpinnedWestern aggression towards the Arab worldever since. Followers of Osama bin Ladenclaim to be taking part in a latter-day “jihadagainst the Jews and Crusaders.”“At the conference, held at the ReginaApostolorum Pontifical University, RobertoDe Mattei, an Italian historian, recalled thatthe Crusades were ‘a response to the Musliminvasion of Christian lands and the Muslimdevastation of the Holy Places.’“‘The debate has been reopened,’ La Stampasaid. Professor De Mattei noted that thedesecration of the Holy Sepulchre inJerusalem by Muslim forces in 1009 hadhelped to provoke the First Crusade at theend of the 11th century, called by PopeUrban II.“He said that the Crusaders were “martyrs”who had “sacrificed their lives for the faith.”He was backed by Jonathan Riley-Smith,Dixie Professor of Ecclesiastical History atCambridge University, who said that those


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who sought forgiveness for the Crusades “donot know their history.”“Until the early 11th century, Christians,Jews and Muslims coexisted under Muslimrule in the Holy Land. After growing friction,the first Crusade was sparked by ambushesof Christian pilgrims going to Jerusalem. TheByzantine Emperor Alexius appealed toPope Urban II, who in 1095 called onChristendom to take up arms to free the HolyLand from the “Muslim infidel” (The Times20-3-06).

How aptly the Lord God saw thatJerusalem would be the burdensome stone to allnations. For in their striving to wrest from theJews the control of that city, they themselveswill be cut in pieces (Zec 12:1-3). It is God’scity; He has promised it to His son (Lk 1:32).The strivings by Jew, Moslem and Christianwill fail, for it is not for them to decide theoutcome. God has sworn that the futureblessings upon the world will be channeledthrough a transformed and repentant Israel asthe citizens of the Great King.

European Parliament invites Pope to speakThe Catholic World News (3-4-06)

reported that Pope Benedict XVI has beeninvited to address the European Parliament atStrasbourg. The Roman news agency I Mediareports that the president of the parliamentaryassembly, René van der Linden, delivered theinvitation when he met with the him in a privateaudience on April 3.

A similar invitation was delivered to JohnPaul II in 2004, but he was not able to go due toill health. It now looks as if his successor willmake this historic trip. It was back in 1988 thatJohn Paul did visit and address parliament,using Jesus’ words concerning rendering toCaesar, to state that earthly things were theirresponsibility and heavenly things his. Sincethen the EU has become increasingly secular.Has the time now come for that to be reversedand the pendulum swing back to the situation ofpast centuries when Europe was ruled byEmperor and Pope working together?

Germany revivingIn time past the Holy Roman Empire had a

German emperor. It is interesting to see thatGermany after a long period of submissionfollowing her defeat in WWII is beginning herclimb to power. The future Gogian leader is “ofthe land of Magog” (Ez 38:38 RV) which weassociate with Germany. It is exciting to seeGermany’s power reviving.

Germany regaining its stride“After four years of stagnation, Germany isshowing signs of reclaiming its role as theeconomic engine of Europe. A variety ofrecent statistics suggest that Germany, theworld’s third-largest economy after theUnited States and Japan, is on the mend, withquickening growth, surging investorconfidence, signs of a rebirth in consumerspending, and even a modest decline inunemployment.“A reinvigorated Germany would have far-reaching implications for Europe and even

the global economy. It accounts for a fifth ofthe economic activity of the entire EuropeanUnion, and is the world’s largest exporter, atitle it managed to retain even during theselean years.“Back in fighting trim, German industry hasbegun flexing its muscles overseas” (NewYork Times 17-1-06).

Stratfor, the American strategicforecasting service, in their Review of 2006issued 14-1-06, had some fascinatingcomments to make about Germany’s role asthey saw it.

“During 2006, Germany will re-enter theEuropean system as the dominant power andbegin the process of reshaping theContinent.“Germany has been in a geopolitical deep-freeze since 1945. Divided and occupieduntil 1993, the country has had two mainforeign-policy themes: saying “I’m sorry,”and meekly lending its financial support tothe European project. German policy didbecome less timid under Chancellor GerhardSchroeder, but even then, nearly everythingSchroeder did was couched in terms of theEuropean interest (which meant mostly

French interest). Europeanism was the onlyapproved outlet for German nationalism.“But now there has been a clean break.Angela Merkel is now in charge ofGermany, and despite presiding over anunwieldy and uncomfortable coalitiongovernment, in her first few weeks on thejob she already has emerged as the center-point of European affairs. It was Merkelwho seized on the opportunity of across-the-aisle sentiment triggered by IranianPresident Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s denialof the Holocaust to make an assertive breakwith her predecessor’s policy. She then usedthat strength at the December EU heads-of-government summit to forge a positionindependent of (even if, for now,complimentary to) Paris to become the forcethat brokered an agreement and preventedyet another EU summit failure. Thischaracteristic will repeat and intensifythroughout 2006.“Germany is returning to its traditional roleas the core European power. For more than a

millennium, the single feature of theEuropean system that has determined eventshas been Germany’s strength, or lackthereof. When Germany is weak—as it hasbeen for the past 60 years—other powers areable to rise and assert their interests. Butwhen Germany is strong, it dominates theheart of the Continent and relegates itsneighbors to powerlessness—until such timeas they ally to crush it.“This pattern already has cycled three times.Charlemagne’s Holy Roman Empire (thefirst iteration of what is now “Germany”)dominated Europe until it fell in Europe’sreligious wars. Its death is what allowedBritain, France and Russia to rise as majorpowers. Imperial Germany played a similardominating role from its rise in 1870 until itsfall in World War I, when WeimarGermany’s weakness allowed a French andRussian renaissance. And of course NaziGermany’s rise again put all eyes on Berlin,and its destruction led to the superpowerstandoff—and, eventually, to the rise of a“united” Europe.“The year 2006 will mark a new turningpoint as Germany begins to ascend for afourth time—which raises the question:What will it do with its rising influence?...Merkel undoubtedly will follow herpredecessors’ efforts to unite and federalizeEurope—but bearing in mind what is goodfor Germany, as opposed to what is good forEurope.

“• After a generation at the helm ofFrance, President Jacques Chirac is a spentpolitical force.

“• In the United Kingdom, 2006 likelywill see a transfer of power from PrimeMinister Tony Blair to Gordon Brown(currently chancellor of the exchequer).

“• Italy will hold elections.“Which leaves Merkel’s Germany—

regardless of its position as the Continent’sgeographic center and the union’s largesteconomy—as the only horse in the race.”

Merkel and Putin cement ‘strategicpartnership’

Merkel visited the leaders of France,Britain and Russia. Although at the moment itis not such a cosy relationship as betweenSchröder and Putin, nevertheless bothcountries saw the need to continue to worktogether. Under the above headlineEUPolitix.com (20-1-06) reported on Merkel’sRussian visit:—

“Angela Merkel and Vladimir Putin haveagreed to strengthen political and economicties, but failed to agree on human rights,after meeting in Moscow on Monday.“The German and Russian leadersconfirmed that the Baltic Sea gas pipelineproject would continue and coordinatedtheir positions on Iran.”So, you thought the European constitution

was dead, did you?This was the headline to a slightly tongue-

in-cheek Daily Telegraph (20-3-06) article.


Benedict invited to Israel by Peres:but does the pope have

“an Evil Thought?”

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There is no doubt that the European drive tointegrate has hardly stalled. Britain will findherself increasingly isolated as she wakes up tothe prospect of the constitution by stealth!

“Two years from now, the Europeanconstitution will be in force—certainly defacto and probably de jure, too. Never mindthat 15 million Frenchmen and five millionHollanders voted against it.“The Eurocrats have worked out a deft wayof getting around them. Here’s how they’lldo it.“First, they will shove through as many ofthe constitution’s contents as they can underthe existing legal framework—a processthey had already begun even before thereferendums.“Around 85 per cent of the text can, withsome creative interpretation, beimplemented this way.“True, there are one or two clauses that willrequire a formal treaty amendment: aEuropean president to replace the systemwhereby the member nations take it in turnsto chair EU meetings; a new voting system...“Here is Wolfgang Schüssel, Chancellor ofAustria and the EU’s current president:“The constitution is not dead.”“Here is Angela Merkel, leader of Europe’smost powerful and populous state: “Europeneeds the constitution… We are willing tomake whatever contribution is necessary tobring the constitution into force.”“Here is Dominique de Villepin, who, intrue European style, has risen to the primeministership of France without ever havingrun for elected office: “France did not sayno to Europe.”“For the purest statement of the Eurocrats’contempt for the voters, however, we mustturn to the constitution’s author, ValéryGiscard d’Estaing. Here is a man who, withhis exquisite suits and de haut en basmanner, might be said to personify the EU.“‘Let’s be clear about this,’ pronouncedGiscard a couple of weeks ago. “Therejection of the constitution was a mistakethat will have to be corrected.”“To complain that the EU is undemocratic islike attacking a cow for being bovine, or abutterfly for being flighty. In disregardingpublic opinion, the EU is doing what it hasbeen programmed to do. It is fulfilling itsprime directive.“Sadly, we British are also exhibiting one ofour worst national characteristics, namelyour tendency to ignore what is happening onthe Continent until too late.”The Middle East and Russia’s New Game

This was the headline in Stratfor 15-2-06following the invitation by Russia to the newlyelected Hamas leaders to visit Moscow. Itoutlined the steady growth of Russia’sinfluence in the Middle East after a longabsence.

“...the Hamas affair is of substantialsignificance, for several reasons. First, theRussians are clearly signaling that theyintend to get back into the Middle East

game. Second, they are aware that this willmake the United States extremelyuncomfortable. Third, that is exactly whatthey intend to achieve. Creating problemsfor the United States in strategic areas iswhat the Russians think is in their nationalinterest right now... Moscow’s invitation toHamas is intended to be a warning thatRussia can make life increasingly difficultfor the United States—and that Russia plansto do just that.”

We close with two further itemsconcerning Israel.

Bush Pledges to Defend Israel From IranPresident Bush has made clear that he

stands by Israel.“United States President George W. Bushhas declared that the U.S. will defend Israelmilitarily should Iran launch an attack on theJewish State.“‘I see a threat in Iran,’ Bush said Monday,answering a question after a speakingengagement in Cleveland, Ohio. ‘The threatfrom Iran is, of course, their stated objectiveto destroy our strong ally Israel. That’s a

threat, a serious threat. It’s a threat to worldpeace; it’s a threat, in essence, to a strongalliance. I made it clear, I’ll make it clearagain, that we will use military might toprotect our ally, Israel’” (A7 News 21-3-06).

UK Foreign Secretary Jack Straw alsodeclared

“‘It is sad that a country whose founder,Cyrus the Great, celebrated for rebuildingthe temple of the Jews should now have asits President a man who makes sickeningcalls for Israel to be wiped from the face ofthe map. Instead of using its geopoliticalposition and undoubted influence in theregion to promote stability, as we and itsneighbours would like it to, Iran does theopposite” (Foreign & Commonwealth Officewebsite 13-3-06).

Israel’s Jewish population surpassesUnited States

For the first time, Israel has more Jewsthan the US, according to Hebrew UniversityProf. Sergio Della Pergola. Tel Aviv has alsoovertaken New York as the city with the largest

Jewish population.“Dr. Della Pergola, who released thestatistics at a conference in Jerusalem thisweek, said that the new figures are partly theresult of the increase in Israel’s Jews, butgreatly due to the shrinking Diaspora. Thepercentage of Jews, within the globalpopulations, has decreased by one thirdsince 1970 due to intermarriage andassimilation.“According to Della Pergola, the Jewishpeople now comprise .21% of the world’spopulation—whereas they comprised .35%in 1970.“In 1970, there were about 10 million Jewsliving outside Israel. Only 7.75 millionremain. The slight increase in the number ofJews in the world — from 12.65 million in1970 to nearly 13 million now, is only due tothe growth of Jews living in the Jewish state,Della Pergola said. A7 News 17-1-06

Her population has now risen to 7 millionaccording to recent figures.

“Israel’s population is projected to cross the7 million mark this month, reaching7,006,000.

In a fast moving world it is difficult tokeep an eye on all the important players of theworld stage! However it is reassuring to seeour traditional picture of a north-south splitcontinues to be clearly seen. Tarshish and heryoung lions continue to be active in theirdealings in the Middle East, with a policy thatdraws the resentment of Russia and Europe,who largely oppose the dominance ofAmerica in this region. The visit ofCondoleezza Rice to Britain last weekemphasised Britain’s difficult position as shestrives vainly to be a “good” European, yet isdrawn towards America. The cartoon(centre) from the European Foundation(March/April 06) neatly encapsulatesBritain’s dilemma. We look for the day when,probably under a new leader, Britain will tire

of the enmeshment of Europe and exert herselfmore forcefully as a friend of America andIsrael.

We pray for the day when at the commandof God, the Saviour will return to save hispeople.

“I, even I, am he that comforteth you: whoart thou, that thou shouldest be afraid of aman that shall die, and of the son of manwhich shall be made as grass; And forgettestthe LORD thy maker, that hath stretched forththe heavens, and laid the foundations of theearth; and hast feared continually every daybecause of the fury of the oppressor, as if hewere ready to destroy? and where is the furyof the oppressor? But I am the LORD thyGod, that divided the sea, whose wavesroared: The LORD of hosts is his name. AndI have put my words in thy mouth, and Ihave covered thee in the shadow of minehand, that I may plant the heavens, and laythe foundations of the earth, and say untoZion, Thou art my people” (Isa 51:12-16).


Tony Blair representing a Britain splitbetween the United States and Europe

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recent conference held in Jerusalem,sponsored by the Israeli B’Shevanewspaper, discussed “key issues andvalues” of Israel’s national agendaand that of the Jewish people for the

next 25 years. The subject matter is of greatinterest to those who watch for the consolationof Israel and the fulfillment of prophecy inthese last days.

As the programme indicated, theconference brought together leading figures inIsraeli politics, economy, securityestablishment, culture and academic as well asTorah scholars. The theme of the Conferencethis year was “Thoughts and Challenges for thenext 25 years.” It provided an opportunity tolearn of these things from a Jewish and Israeliperspective so that we could compare this withthe teaching and prophecies of Scripture.

“Political Principles”When John Thomas wrote in 1849 of the

then future “partial and primary restoration ofJews” before the advent of their Messiah (or in

Greek, Christ), he said that it was:“...to serve as the nucleus, or basis, of futureoperations in the restoration of the rest of thetribes after he has appeared in the kingdom.The pre-adventual colonization of Palestinewill be on purely political principles; and theJewish colonists will return in unbelief of theMessiahship of Jesus, and of the truth as it isin him. They will emigrate thither asagriculturists and traders, in the hope ofultimately establishing their commonwealth,but more immediately of getting rich in silverand gold by commerce with India...”

In view of this expectation—based as it wasupon the understanding of both the true Gospeland of the prophetic word of God—eventsconnected with the Jewish people have beenclosely followed by Bible believers for manyyears. The political development has beenobserved and commented upon ever since theFirst Zionist Congress of 1897, and was thesubject of many articles and lectures in lateryears—especially in 1917, 1948 and 1967.

Commenting further in 1869 upon thepolitical events that would bring about Israel’srestoration, John Thomas wrote:

“I believe that the period for Israel’s down-treading is at an end, and that we haveentered upon a new series of events that willculminate in the cleansing of the Holy. Weare not necessarily to look for some greatevent that will wind-up the purposes of Godin a flash of lightning. One series of eventshaving come to its close, another series hasalready begun and will continue to developmore and more largely until the Ancient ofDays makes his appearance and takes thingsinto his own hands. That this will be theorder in which the events of these latter dayswill develop, we are justified in saying,because it is the order of all God’s pastrelations with Israel. All His purposes andschemes with them have been gradual indevelopment. God is never in a hurry. He hasplenty of time at His disposal. He is notbound to do things according to yourspeculation or mine as to how long He oughtto take. He has fixed the times and seasons.He has commenced the development of Hisevents, and they will not be interrupted bythe policy of men, but on the contrary, theactivity of men to carry out their ownpurposes will only expedite His. He has the


By Paul Billington. BRANTFORD, ON.

A

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controlling power, and what He has decreedwill most assuredly come to pass. None canhinder or stay His hand.” The BookUnsealed.

So it was understood that God would workout His purpose with Israel through, apparentlynormal political events in the hands of men.Thus, the State of Israel today—though asecular political entity and in the hands of thoseJews who have returned in unbelief—isnonetheless part of a development which whencompleted, will form a nucleus through whichChrist will work in order to establish theKingdom of God—which will be the Kingdomof Israel restored (Acts 1:6 and 3:20-21). So theJerusalem Conference that we recently attendedgave us insight into the current thinking ofseveral leading Jewish personalities as theylook forward to the next generation. Asbelievers in the Hope of Israel, we also lookforward as events indicate the nearness ofChrist’s return and the redemption of Israel.

An Over-riding ConcernOn the first day of the Conference several

speakers expressed their concerns for the future,but the one topic that dominated was not theArabs, or Hamas, or even Iran—it was inter-marriage and assimilation. One of the firstspeakers, a Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau (a formerchief rabbi of Israel) recalled the Biblicalaccount of Balaam who counselled Balak tosend in the daughters of Moab to corrupt anddestroy the Jewish people. He said that this waswhat inter-marriage was doing today. In order topreserve its unique character Israel must “dwellalone, and shall not be reckoned among thenations” (Numbers 23:9).

Dan Margalit, a journalist for the Maarivpaper raised the same concern, saying that in 25years time there would be no need fordiscussion on the Law of Return, because theJewish people will have become negligiblethrough assimilation. The one thing that couldprevent this happening, he said, was a rise inanti-Semitism. This could separate the Jewishpeople from other peoples. There had to beseparation walls in order to create a nationalghetto in Israel—this was necessary for thepreservation of the Jewish State and for theState of the Jews.

Professor Eliezer Schweid of the Hebrew

University also pointed to the danger ofassimilation. Jewish communities wereabsorbing post-modernism and it was beingimported from western countries.

What was noticeable in all this discussionwas the apparent lack of any acknowledgementof the hand of God in Jewish affairs. Theconcerns are real enough, but they are not reallynews. In 1754 (over 250 years ago), ThomasNewton in looking at the miracle of fulfillingprophecy commented:

“You see the Jews ‘led away captive into allnations, and Jerusalem trodden down of theGentiles,’ and likely to continue so ‘until thetimes of the Gentiles be fulfilled,’ as the Jewsare by a constant miracle preserved a distinctpeople for the completion of otherprophecies relating to them.”

After some 2,000 years of survival the Jewshave been preserved as a distinct and separatedpeople “by a constant miracle.” Why shouldthat “miracle” fail now? Well, the Scriptures arequite clear;

“For I am with thee, saith the LORD, to savethee: though I make a full end of all nationswhither I have scattered thee, yet will I notmake a full end of thee: but I will correct theein measure, and will not leave thee altogetherunpunished” (Jer. 30:11).

Walls, Bars and GatesTravelling into the West Bank (Judea and

samaria) today, gives a sense of Israel’sseparation, especially as one passes throughcheck-points and sees the gates and bars—andof course the controversial security wall(pictured below). The reality of this situationstrikes home and poses the question—Why isall this here now, when Ezekiel specifically tellsus that it will be a “land of unwalled villages...all of them dwelling without walls, and havingneither bars nor gates” (Ezekiel 38:11)?

Clearly, things must change before Gogcomes to take his spoil, and to turn his handupon the desolate places that are now inhabited.In the meantime however, Arab hostilitytowards Israel over the years—and now thewalls, bars and gates, have served a definitepurpose. The Jewish people in Israel are beingkept separate, and the principle stated inLeviticus 20:24-26 is clearly in evidence:

The Controversial Security wall near the City of JerusalemCheck-point entering West Bank areaTHE BIBLE MAGAZINE VOL. 19 ISSUE No. 2

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“I have said unto you, Ye shall inherit theirland, and I will give it unto you to possess it,a land that floweth with milk and honey: I amthe LORD your God, which have separatedyou from other people... And ye shall be holyunto me: for I the LORD am holy, and havesevered you from other people, that ye shouldbe mine.”

There are many secular Jews in Israel todaywho would not only be willing to mingle withthe Arabs and so-called Palestinians, but theywould actively encourage it. These areunbelieving Jews—Jews who pay no regardeven to their own Torah (the Law of Moses) anddo not keep the Sabbath—except to treat it as aday off and a day of pleasure. They are oftenfound to be on the Left of the political spectrumand would be willing to give away Land, andeventually become assimilated with theirneighbours. The Law of Moses for Israel stated:

“And when the LORD thy God shall deliverthem before thee; thou shalt smite them, andutterly destroy them; thou shalt make nocovenant with them, nor shew mercy untothem: Neither shalt thou make marriageswith them; thy daughter thou shalt not giveunto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou takeunto thy son. For they will turn away thy sonfrom following me, that they may serve othergods: so will the anger of the LORD bekindled against you, and destroy theesuddenly. But thus shall ye deal with them;ye shall destroy their altars, and break downtheir images, and cut down their groves, andburn their graven images with fire. For thouart an holy people unto the LORD thy God: theLORD thy God hath chosen thee to be aspecial people unto himself, above all peoplethat are upon the face of the earth” (Deut.7:2-6).

It is significant, surely, that many in modern

Israel who pay no attention to this principle arenonetheless prevented from transgressing it bythe very situation that exists in the land. Thereare physical barriers which keep the people ofIsrael separate—and there are some Jews whosee the need for it. This was the approach ofDan Margalit, the Maariv journalist who spokeat the Jerusalem Conference. In his eyesseparation is necessary for the preservation ofthe Jewish people. He is in favour of thesecurity wall—but he also wants to see Israelwithdraw from areas of the West Bank (Judeaand Samaria) believing that this will helpconsummate separation from the Palestinians.

“Bring Them In...”The name of Natan Sharansky will be

known to many who follow events in Israel. Hewas a well-known “Refusenik” who, for manyyears, was prevented from leaving Russia bythe former Communist regime. His eventual‘Aliya’ to Israel made newsheadlines—and today he is amember of the Knesset(Parliament).

In his speech at the JerusalemConference, Sharansky suggestedthat the real solution was to bringin as many Jews as possible toIsrael—irrespective of theirpersuasion or background. Herecalled ‘Operation Moses’ (thedramatic airlift of Ethiopian Jewsto Israel in 1985) and the commentmade at that time in the Russiannewspaper Pravda. The EthiopianJews were being brought to Israelas “canon fodder” the paper hadsaid. But this is just what Israelneeds— Jewish immigration.Sharansky said he was a Jew first,and an Israeli second, and because

he disagreed with Ariel Sharon over the policyof disengagement, he had resigned from theGovernment.

As to what might happen in 25 years time,suggestions must be taken with a grain of salt.We cannot foresee the twists and turns ofevents—just as we did not anticipate the rise ofanti-Zionism and the way in which Israel todayis demonized.

“What I see as an important trend, is thatJewish identity will become more connectedwith Israel,” he said. Conversely, in theDiaspora, the State of Israel is anembarrassment to some Jews. They believe thatthey could be more successful in business andthe world if Israel did not exist. These Jews areon their way to assimilation. Thus, in thinkingabout the fate of the Jews, Sharansky believedthat survival depended upon a strong Israel. Thefact is that Jews who live in America, and whocare about their Jewishness, bring their childrento Israel for education. They base their family inIsrael but work in New York, coming home forweek-ends in Israel. He also made reference tothe ‘Birthright Programme’—a programme thatbrings young Jewish people for a free tour ofIsrael so as to encourage the connection withthe Land. He said that statistics demonstratedthat this programme was drawing many towardstheir Jewishness.

A Continuing ProcessAll this is continuing the process of the

“partial and primary restoration of Jews”foreseen from the Scriptures by John Thomas inhis book Elpis Israel over 150 years ago. It hasbeen going on for a long time, and much longerthan nineteenth century writers thought. Yet itunderlines what John Thomas wrote (quotedearlier), that all God’s purposes and schemeswith Israel have been gradual in development.“God is never in a hurry. He has plenty of timeat His disposal.”

For well over a century the hand ofGod has been gathering the Jews “out of thenations” (Ezekiel 38:8). This is because He hasa purpose with this people, and we must expectto see the process continue “on purely political

Bible Magazine editor with Knesset memberNatan Sharansky at the Jerusalem Conference

Walls, bars, gates on the Mountains of Israel (the West Bank)


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principles” until “a nucleus, orbasis” for future operations isdeveloped. That this willbecome evident in time cannotbe doubted. The “nucleus” willemerge so gradually that it willappear as a natural developmentwhich most will not even notice,or be aware of. This is how Godworks, so that only those whoare truly informed by a carefulstudy of the word will perceivewhat is taking place.

In writing of the hostilitythat is to develop between theEuropean Beast and the futureJewish presence in the Land,Joseph Mede wrote thefollowing in 1649,

“...a passage may be preparedfor new enemies of the Beastto come from the East; that is,for the Israelites to bewonderfully converted to thepure faith and worship ofChrist, and now to haveconferred upon them thekingdom promised so manyages since. Whom theworshippers of the Beast,haply, shall esteem for thearmy of their imaginaryAntichrist to arise from amongthe Jews, God so revenging theobstinacy of their errors.”

Thus will a deluded andapostate Christendom be caughtin the trap of Armageddon! Thiswill come to completion in thefulfillment of Ezekiel 38 and 39.

Ezekiel describes this pre-adventual restoration of Jews—the “partial and primaryrestoration”—as not only agathering out of the nations, butspecifically to dwell on “themountains of Israel, which havebeen always waste” (verse 8),and to “dwell in the midst of the Land” (verse12). This is quite definitely the area of the WestBank known as Judea and Samaria.

The Future of the West BankWhen Benjamin Netanyahu rose to address

the Jerusalem Conference on its second day, itwas one week away from the Israeli generalelection. As events turned out, his Likud partydid not do well in the election, but that does notdetract from the issue that he spoke about,especially the future of the West Bank—those“mountains of Israel.” Some saw the electionas a referendum on withdrawal—and that ishow The Jerusalem Post depicted it on electionday with its front page headline: Futureborders at stake as Israel votes.

Netanyahu saw the election in much thesame way. With Hamas coming to power, hesaid, a withdrawal from the West Bank wouldbe simply handing over territory to the

terrorists. It is hard to disagree with that view—and certainly it would not get rid of the walls,bars and gates. In fact the controversial securitywall is a key feature of the withdrawal plan,which involves pulling out and fencing offPalestinian areas.

But as we turn to Scripture and look atprophecy, it is quite clear that a Jewish presencein this area of the mountains of Israel, and of themidst of the Land, is a required part of the finalpicture. Ezekiel 38 especially, requires this.When Gog and his northern host invades themountains of Israel, they are not coming againsta Palestinian state—they are coming against“the people that are gathered out of the nations”(verse 12). If we believe what the Bible says,then we have to say that a Jewish presence uponthe mountains of Israel at the time of Gog’sinvasion is an absolute certainty. Not only willthere be a Jewish presence in the area, Ezekieltells us that the walls, bars and gates will not be

required. This tells us that somefundamental changes are to beexpected. It tells us that the two-state plan is doomed to failure.

Neither a wall, gates, bars orcheck-points can put an end toterrorist activity of course—and itis difficult to see that handingterritory over to the Palestinianscan accomplish anything. Withrockets coming into Israel fromGaza since the disengagementfrom there, we can hardly expectpeace and tranquility to follow aWest Bank pull-out. In fact aJerusalem Post interview withShaul Mofaz, the Israeli defenceminister makes this quite clear.While saying that there would beno withdrawal during 2006, hesaid that there certainly would beover the next two years. However“Israel, he said, would not restrainitself militarily following theformation of the Hamasgovernment, and if the need arosethe IDF would launch widespreadoperations in the West Banksimilar to Operation DefensiveShield in 2002. ‘There is noreason not to take action againstanyone who engages in anti-Israelterror activity,’ he said. ‘Hamasare terrorists... and if there will beterror under their governmentthen, for me, they will be heldresponsible.’”

That doesn’t sound very muchlike a peaceful outcome! Morelikely, it could lead to drasticaction and some fundamentalchanges to the situation.

Mr Netanyahu may not havewon the election, but he mayprove to be right.

A Witness to the TruthAs listeners to The Bible in the

News will know, an opportunity to address MrNetanyahu and the Jerusalem Conference waspresented to us. It was a rare opportunity andextremely short. Having listened to thespeakers at the Conference, and judging themood after hearing many concerns expressed,we felt the need to offer some encouragement.After all, believing firmly in the Hope of Israel(Acts 28:20), and knowing what a gloriousdestiny awaits this people, it seemedappropriate to speak the Truth. As we read inJeremiah 46:27-28,

“But fear not thou, O my servant Jacob, andbe not dismayed, O Israel: for, behold, I willsave thee from afar off, and thy seed from theland of their captivity; and Jacob shall return,and be in rest and at ease, and none shallmake him afraid. Fear thou not, O Jacob myservant, saith the LORD: for I am with thee;for I will make a full end of all the nationswhither I have driven thee: but I will not

Above: Benjamin Netanyahu addresses the Jerusalem Conferenceone week before the Israeli election. He expressed concern over

planned withdrawals, and certainly this was a major issue asexplained by the Jerusalem Post on election day (below).


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make a full end of thee, but correct thee inmeasure; yet will I not leave thee whollyunpunished.”

It is true that today Israel knows not herMessiah and Lord, but that will not always be so.As we said earlier, a “nucleus or basis” for futureoperations will be developed—and there can beno doubt that the very early signs of this arebecoming visible. It is not there yet, but the signsof its approach are there. This being so, it wasour intention to encourage the Jewish people atthe Conference to recognize the fact that Godhas said that He is with them to save them.

We were introduced by the Conferencechairman as “a guest who has come fromCanada.” “He is not Jewish. He is a Christian, alover of Israel, and he has some very importantwords to say to us.”

We then addressed Mr. Netanyahu and theConference as follows:

“Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, it is a greatprivilege for me to be able to speak to you. Iam not Jewish and I love you people and Iknow that you are going through a verydifficult time at the moment. Terribledecisions have to be made amongst you. Wehave been listening to the speakers during theConference during the last few days andespecially after the Gush Katif episode,Amona, now Hamas and I am sensingamongst you, some doubts. I am sensing thatthere are giants. There are Anakim that areperhaps too big for us. But they’re not too bigfor us, because you have on your side theGod of Israel. There is no doubt in my mindabout that whatsoever. Faith you see is notirrational, as was suggested yesterday. Faithis not superstition. Faith is something that isvery logical and is in touch with reality. Anddo you know, you people have survived for2,000 years—through many differentholocausts. Why have you done that?Because the Almighty is with you. BecauseHe has a purpose with you people. And thosepeople who are put into power have atremendous responsibility in this regard, tosee that there is a great destiny for the peopleof Israel. A remarkable destiny for youpeople. You may not want to be the chosenpeople but you are. It wasn’t your choice. Itwas God’s choice.”

We had intended to say more, but with thatshort comment our time was gone. However, aninterview on Israel National Radio thatafternoon provided us with an opportunity toexpand and enlarge upon our statement.

This we felt was an opportunity to makeknown the manifold wisdom of God according toHis purpose—as we read in Ephesians 3:10-12,

“To the intent that now unto the principalitiesand powers in heavenly places might beknown by the ecclesia the manifold wisdomof God, According to the eternal purposewhich he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord:In whom we have boldness and access withconfidence by the faith of him.”

It was not a perfect testimony by any means,but we did what we could. May the day soon

dawn when Zion’s Deliverer shall come!Oh! watch ye for Zion; the day-spring is breaking,Her night has been gloomy, but shortly will end;

Her long-promised Shepherd His lost sheep isseeking,

The heart of the obdurate nation will bend.

Rejoice ye for Zion! Jehovah has spoken;Jerusalem’s outcasts shall yet be restored;

The bonds of the fetter-bound slave shall bebroken,

And Judah set free at the word of the Lord.

“THE NAVEL OF THE LAND”

“The midst of the land” (Ezekiel 38:12), or the navel of the land, is an expressionused also in Judges 9:37 (the middle of the land) where it refers to the area of

Shechem which lies between mount Gerizim and mount Ebal. Our twophotographs show the area taken from Gerizim looking toward Ebal, and the

valley which forms the “navel” referred to. Today it is known as Nablus by Arabs.


Looking to Mt. Ebal from Mt. Gerizim across Shechem

ollowing the “disengagement” from GushKatif (Gaza), the Israeli Governmentfollowed through with evictions from

other settlements in the northern West Bank(known in Israel as the Shomron). The settlers’organisations have been opposed to this due toboth political and religious reasons. Often thetwo reasons are connected and it is difficult toseparate between them.

When the Government decided to evictJews from a small district in Hebron there wasconsiderable resistance from settlers. But thiswas mild in comparison to what happened inFebruary at Amona. The incident was barelycovered by the main western media, so manyare unaware of what took place. Nine Jewishhomes in Amona were destroyed by Israelipolice, and the pictures opposite give a smallglimpse of the violent scene. A short clip ofvideo footage can be seen on the new DVD thatis advertised below.

Our interest in this event is prompted by ourinterest in Israel’s affairs as they are predictedin the Bible, and as they form part of thepurpose of God.

As mentioned elsewherein this issue, severalprophecies speak of thechildren of Israel returningto their own land in the latterdays—but more specificallyto “the mountains of Israel.”This is the West Bank, andcoincidentally (or elseprovidentially) it is wheremany of the religiousZionists dwell. This groupmake some serious attemptto keep the principles of the

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EVICTING SETTLERS FROM AMONA IN THE WEST BANKTorah (Law of Moses). They cannot do so fullyof course, especially in the absence of thetemple and its sacrifices, but they do display avery high moral standard and a way of life thatis rarely seen today.

We know of course that salvation is notpossible through the works of the Law, yet werecognize that Israel must honour that Law, asstated in Malachi 4:4. This would seem to be aprelude to their instruction and to the coming ofElijah (verses 5 & 6).

It may be that more scenes like that ofAmona are yet to be seen, with people beingtreated violently, evicted from their homes—and perhaps even worse. Such experiencesform character and may be necessary inpreparing minds to receive the Truth of God’sword. Yet as we witness such happenings ourhearts go out to this people. We mourn for Zionfor her beauty has faded. We see the sufferingand the desolations even today as it is inflictedby Jews who do not believe their Scriptures. Weknow however that her gloomy night willshortly end.

NEW DVD NOW READY:

CONFLICT IN THE PROMISED LAND“The Conflict in the Promised Land” shows us the amazing truth behind events

in Israel today. A Truth that is revealed in the Bible, and which describes thevery situation that we are seeing before us in the news. Filmed on location.

Paul Billingtonin Hebron

Tovia Singer ofIsrael National

Radio inter-viewed

Frank Abelat Capernaum

Jerusalem

ORDER FROM THE BIBLE MAGAZINE OR YOUR LOCAL AGENT

Bible Magazine editor views Amona destruction

Mounted police attack settlers

Jews expelling Jewish settlers

Many casualties resulted from expulsion

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By David Billington. BRANTFORD, ON.

salms 111 and 112 are two beautifullywritten pieces of Hebrew poetry, withcontrasting and complementary linesjuxtaposed against each other carrying

deep spiritual messages. They may not appearto be connected from a cursory reading in anEnglish version of the Bible, however they areboth acrostic Psalms with a line for each letterof the Hebrew alphabet in sequential order andwith the additional opening word, “Hallelujah”,or as it is translated in the AV: “Praise ye theLORD.” The lines are arranged in couplets, eachcouplet making a verse in the AV; aside fromverses 9 and 10 which include units of 3 lineseach. If there is any doubt that these Psalms area unit, line vav or verse 6b in each of the Psalmsis identical: “...and his righteousness endurethfor ever.” The purpose of the acrostic is to aidmemorization — there are memorizationtechniques today that use the same concept.One knows the letter that the next line startswith, and this triggers the memory as towhat the line is. It can be concluded then,that these Psalms were intended to bememorized and are therefore important. It isfitting that Psalm 111:4 should read: “Hehath made his wonderful works to beremembered.”

Psalms 111 and 112 precede thetraditional Passover “Hallel” Psalms —including Psalms 113 to 118 inclusive — whichcan all commence with “Hallelujah,” if onemoves the “Hallelujah” from the end of some ofthe Psalms to the beginning of the followingPsalm where the phrase is lacking. For examplePsalm 113 starts and finishes with “Hallelujah,”by moving the closing “Hallelujah” to Psalm114 they both start with “Hallelujah.” It is alsofelt by many that Psalms 114 and 115 belongtogether. Psalms 111 and 112 also both startwith “Hallelujah.” In this way Psalms 111 to118 are a set of Psalms that all commence with“Hallelujah” and Psalms 111 and 112 are aprelude to the traditional “Hallel” PassoverPsalms.

The topic of the exodus is clearly apparentin Psalm 114:1: “When Israel went out ofEgypt...” and when we consider the exodus wethink of redemption: “Thou in thy mercy hastled forth the people which thou hastredeemed... which thou hast purchased”(Exodus 15:13,16). The background to these“Hallel” Psalms then is the redemption ofGod’s firstborn son Israel from Egypt. IfPsalms 111 and 112 are a prelude to the“Hallel” we would expect to find the theme ofredemption in them also.

The Theme of Psalm 111 — The works ofYahweh, the work of redemption

In Psalm 111 the word ‘works’ occurs fivetimes and the Psalm speaks of what God hasdone and will do: “He hath made...”, “He hathgiven...”, “he will ever be mindful...”, “he hathshewed...”, “that he may give...”, “He sent...”,“he hath commanded...”. This Psalm is

obviously about the work of God; the work oftaking a planet that was in darkness, withoutform and void and filling it with the light ofGod’s glory (Numbers 14:21). The mechanismby which this can take place is the covenantmade with Abraham—the covenant of the HolyLand. The Abrahamic covenant has to do withthe salvation of Israel; the nation of Israel willbe redeemed by the process of this covenant (2Samuel 23:5, Jeremiah 31:33).

However, it may be said that this Psalm isspeaking about the covenant made with thenation at Sinai—the Mosaic. Zachariasprovides an answer in his prophecy in Luke 1,where he brings together thoughts from Psalm111 and 112 and connects them with the

Abrahamic covenant. In Luke 1:68 Zachariassaid: “...he hath visited and redeemed hispeople.” and in Psalm 111:9 we read: “He sentredemption unto his people...” In Luke 1:69 weread: “...he hath raised up an horn of salvationfor us in the house of his servant David” and inPsalm 112:9 we read: “...his horn shall beexalted with honour.” Then Zacharias refers tothe covenant made with Abraham: “To performthe mercy promised to our fathers, and toremember his holy covenant; the oath which hesware to our father Abraham...” and in Psalm111:5 we read: “...he will ever be mindful of hiscovenant” and verse 9: “...he hath commandedhis covenant for ever.” So Zacharias equatesthe covenant with the oath made to Abraham,not with the covenant made at Sinai. It hasalready been demonstrated that the two Psalmsgo together, and this also proves that thecovenant spoken of here is the covenant made

with Abraham and David and not thecovenant made with Israel at Sinai — theconstitution of the nation of Israel.

The raising of the horn spoken of inPsalm 112 is the horn of David—thekingship of the royal line of David—when this happens the law of Moses mustbe done away with. This is apparent fromthe previous Psalm 110 where Messiahwas to be “a priest for ever after the orderof Melchizedek”—not after the order of

Aaron. Again in Zechariah 3:8; 6:12-13 itspeaks of Joshua and his fellows as men“wondered at” or as the Hebrew is literally:“men of sign.” Joshua was a man of sign whowas typical of the Messiah. He is named the“Branch,” which clearly is a reference to thewords of Yahweh in Jeremiah where He says:“I will raise unto David a righteous Branch,and a king shall reign and prosper...” (Jeremiah23:5). The raising up of the Branch equateswith the raising up of the Davidic horn ofSalvation in the prophecy of Zacharias in Luke.In Zechariah 6 the man named the “Branch” isto sit and rule upon his throne and also to be apriest upon his throne—this is impossibleunder the law given to Moses. The house of

The Abrahamic covenantis the salvation of Israel; the

nation of Israel will beredeemed by the process of

this covenant

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David was of Judah and priests could onlycome from the family of Aaron (Exodus40:12–15). The constitution of the nation ofIsrael would not allow for a priest to be fromthe tribe of Judah and therefore had to change.

Psalm 111:9 contains three lines of theacrostic poem: the first speaks of theredemptive work of Yahweh, the second hiscovenant, and the third His holy name—Yahweh Elohim, literally “He who will bemighty ones,” which was revealed to Moses atthe bush in Exodus 3. This all ties in to theredemption of Yahweh’s firstborn son fromEgypt, as we read in Exodus 6:7: “And I willtake you to me for a people, and I will be to youa God: and ye shall know that I am the LORD

your God, which bringeth you out from underthe burdens of the Egyptians.” Jeremiah bringsout the future and ultimate application whenwriting of the rising up again of Zion: “And yeshall be my people, and I will be your God”(Jeremiah 30:22). This is the time when thehorn of David will be exalted: “But they shallserve the LORD their God, and David their king,whom I will raise up unto them” (Jeremiah30:9).

The theme of Psalm 111 is the redeemingwork of Yahweh through the covenant madewith Abraham. The promise of the seed and thepromise of the land both come out in Psalm111.

Promise of a SeedIn Psalm 111:5 we read that: “He hath given

meat to them that fear him.” When we read thiswe may think of the manna that God providedin the wilderness. The word here for meat istereph, the root of which means to “pluck off,to pull, to tear in pieces.” The word itself means“an animal torn in pieces, the prey of a wildbeast, food.” The incident of God askingAbraham to offer his son Isaac, helps inunderstanding what this line means. After theangel at the last moment stops Abraham fromperforming the sacrifice, Abraham lifts up hiseyes and sees a ram caught by his horns and“Abraham went and took the ram, and offeredhim up for a burnt offering in the stead of hisson” (Genesis 22:13). Earlier when his sonIsaac asked where the lamb was for theoffering, Abraham replied: “My son, God willprovide himself a lamb for a burnt offering.”Now God had provided meat for the sacrifice,however Abraham looked forward to a futuretime when he called the place “...Jehovahjireh:as it is said to this day, In the mount of the LORD

it (literally ‘he’) shall be seen.” Indeed, in themount of Yahweh he was seen—the word ofYahweh was made flesh and when he came hesaid: “I am that bread of life... I am the livingbread which came down from heaven: if anyman eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: andthe bread that I will give is my flesh, which Iwill give for the life of the world... Except yeeat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink hisblood, ye have no life in you.” Later on he says:“...the words that I speak unto you, they arespirit and they are life.” In other words, theword of life embodied in a person that crucifiedthe flesh with its lusts (John 6:48,51,53,63). In

the promised seed God provided himself alamb.

Promise of the LandPsalm 111:6 reads: “He hath shewed his

people the power of his works, that he maygive them the heritage of the heathen.” God diddemonstrate the power of his works so that hecould give his firstborn son Israel the HolyLand—taken from the heathen. Psalm 111:6bis juxtaposed with verse 5b that speaks of hiscovenant; Nehemiah brings these two thoughtstogether:

“Thou art the LORD the God, who didstchoose Abram, and broughtest him forth outof Ur of the Chaldees, and gavest him thename of Abraham; And foundest his heartfaithful before thee, and madest a covenantwith him to give the land of the Canaanites,the Hittites, the Amorites, and the Perizzites,and the Jebusites, and the Girgashites, togive it, I say, to his seed, and hast performedthy words; for thou art righteous”(Nehemiah 9:7,8).

Yes! He is righteous, “...thy redeemer the holyone of Israel” (Isaiah 54:5). The voice ofgladness and joy will yet be heard in the citiesof Judah, for his righteousness endures foreverand he will perform it.

What of us?The works of Yahweh are sought out of all

them that have pleasure therein (Psalm 111:2).We are required to seek out the mighty acts ofYahweh. The verb Darash translated “soughtout” means “to rub, to beat, to tread, totrample; used figuratively, to learn, to study.”The idea is a path frequently trodden—a pathwe need to visit daily. The word “pleasure”

here is the same as in Psalm 1 translateddelight: “His delight is in the law of the LORD

and in his law doth he meditate day and night.”He has shewed us the power of his works.

Why? So he may give us the heritage of theheathen (Psalm 111:6). How does ademonstration of God’s mighty works enable usto receive a heritage? 1 Peter 5:6 answers thequestion: “Humble yourselves therefore underthe mighty hand of God, that he may exalt youin due time.” A demonstration of God’s powerhumbles us to trust in him and not in ourselves.We are required to trust in Yahweh.

We are his work, his work shall praise himin the future age—that he succeeded in makingsomething out of us. His praise endurethforever.

The Theme of Psalm 112 — The RighteousServant, the Redeemer

Psalm 112 begins with the phrase: “Blessedis the man...” This is the same as Psalm 1 whichalso begins with this phrase; the concluding twowords are also identical between both Psalms inthe Hebrew text. The book of Psalmscommences with the phrase “Blessed is theman...” and concludes in Psalm 150 with: “Leteverything that hath breath praise the LORD.Hallelujah.” This is God’s purpose—startingwith one man that fears Yahweh, to fill the earthwith his glory: “His seed shall be mighty uponthe earth” (Psalm 112:2). But, “...who shalldeclare his generation? for he was cut off out ofthe land of the living...” yet “...he shall see hisseed” (Isaiah 53:8,10). “Of whom speaketh theprophet this? of himself, or of some otherman?” asked the Ethiopian eunuch. Verse 11replies: “My righteous servant.” Notice Psalm


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112 is all about him, in fact the words “his” and“him” appear 15 times in this Psalm.

In verse 3b or line vav of Psalm 112 weread: “And his Righteousness endurethforever.” (This is stressed in this Psalm as it isalso repeated exactly in line tzaddi/9b minusthe Hebrew letter vav translated and. The ideaof him being righteous is also stressed bycomparing line chet/4b with line chet in Psalm111. The characteristics of Yahweh beinggracious and full of compassion are in bothlines, however in Psalm 112 it adds“righteous”! There is parallelism betweenmany of the lines in Psalm 111 and theircounterparts in Psalm 112.) How canrighteousness endure forever in a man?“All have sinned and come short of theglory of God” (Romans 3:23); “...there isnone that does good, no, not one” (Psalm14:3); “...the wages of sin is death”(Romans 6:23). Righteousness can onlyendure forever in a man if he does notcommit sin—in the seed of the woman whowould bruise sinful human nature in the head(Genesis 3:15).

RedemptionIn line tet/5a we read that a good man

“lendeth.” What has this good man lent? InLuke 6:35 Jesus instructs us to “...do good, andlend, hoping for nothing again.” Jesus Christdied for us while we were yet sinners (Romans5:6–8), in this way he lent hoping for nothingagain. This idea is reinforced by comparing thisline with the corresponding line tet/5a in Psalm111: “He hath given meat...”

In line pey/9a we read: “He hathdispersed, he hath given to the poor.”Indeed, a sower went forth to sow—Jesuscame into Galilee preaching the gospel ofthe kingdom (Mark 1:14). He entered intothe synagogue on the Sabbath day andread from the scroll of Isaiah: “The Spiritof the Lord is upon me, because he hathanointed me to preach the gospel to thepoor...” Note the comparison with Psalm111:9a: “He sent redemption unto hispeople...”

The people that sat in darkness saw a greatlight (Isaiah 9:2); unto the upright there arose alight in the darkness (Psalm 112:4a). Verse 4bthen goes on to speak of the character of God:“He is gracious, and full of compassion, andrighteous.” This is the character revealed toMoses in the Mount (Exodus 34:5–7) and thecharacter manifested in the life of Jesus Christ.“For God, who commanded the light to shineout of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, togive the light of the knowledge of the glory ofGod in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Corinthians4:6). Compare the corresponding line Zayn (4a)in Psalm 111: “He hath made his wonderfulworks to be remembered.” The works ofYahweh are sought out by those that havepleasure in them, so when Jesus came he spokein parables. Wealth and riches are in his house(Psalm 112:3a), but if we wish to understandthe riches of his word the path to his door mustbe well trodden. “There is treasure to be desired

and oil in the dwelling of the wise; but afoolish man spendeth it up” (Proverbs 21:20).We need oil in our lamps; however it is onlyavailable in the dwelling of the wise man.

We have a Great High PriestAs the high priest wore a breastplate with

stones inscribed with the names of the tribes ofhis people, so the righteous servant is alwaysmindful of the righteous (Psalm 112:6b). Thegeneration of the upright (112:2b) was in the

mind of the Lord Jesus Christ right up until theend of his mortal life as propheticallyportrayed in the words of Psalm 22. Psalm 22:1was quoted by Jesus on the stake: “My God,my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” ThePsalm finishes with the words: “A seed shallserve him; it shall be accounted to the Lord fora generation. They shall come, and shalldeclare his righteousness unto a people thatshall be born, that he hath done this.” They arein his heart always—a heart that has beentouched with the sorrows and grief of mortallife. “For we have not an high priest which

cannot be touched with the feeling of ourinfirmities; but was in all points tempted like aswe are, yet without sin. Let us therefore comeboldly unto the throne of grace, that we mayobtain mercy, and find grace to help in time ofneed” (Hebrew 4:15,16).

The secret of his greatness is revealed inPsalm 112:7,8: “...his heart is fixed trusting inthe LORD”—not in himself or in the arm offlesh. In line Samech (8a) where we read:“...his heart is established,” the verb translated“established” is the same verb translated “standfast” in Samech (8a) in Psalm 111. Bycontrasting these two lines we see that theRighteous servant’s heart stands fast as it isgrounded in the word of God. Hisrighteousness endureth forever.

The Redeemer shall come to ZionIt has already been demonstrated that the

horn in Psalm 112:9c—“His horn shall beexalted with honour”—is the kingship of the

royal line of David. The horn is to be raised upin Zion as spoken of in Psalm 132:13,17: “Forthe LORD hath chosen Zion; he hath desired itfor his habitation... There will I make the hornof David to bud: I have ordained a lamp formine anointed.” The raising up of the royalhorn of David in Zion is the raising up of thoseborn in Zion—the sons of Zion (Psalm 87:5–6)against those prophetically called the sons ofGreece: “When I have bent Judah for me, filled

the bow with Ephraim, and raised up thysons, O Zion, against thy sons, O Greece,and made thee as the sword of a mightyman” (Zech. 9:13). It is the raising up ofthe kingdom of God over the kingdom ofmen. It is the time of the smashing of theimage by the stone, when he shall rulethem with a rod of iron (Psalm 2:6–9). Atthis time the horn of David is portrayed asiron: “Arise and thresh, O daughter ofZion: for I will make thine horn iron, and Iwill make thy hoofs brass: and thou shalt

beat in pieces many people: and I willconsecrate their gain unto the LORD, and theirsubstance unto the Lord of the whole earth”(Micah 4:13).

The RedeemedIn Revelation 5:5–6 the lion of the tribe of

Judah, the root of David—the redeemer—isportrayed as a lamb with seven horns and seveneyes which are the seven spirits of God sentforth into all the earth. These seven horns arethe perfected and complete kingship of the ageto come, sent forth into the earth to rule andsubdue it. This kingship is portrayed by the

beasts and the elders and they say, “Thou...hast redeemed us to God by thy blood outof every kindred, and tongue, and people,and nation; And hast made us unto our Godkings and priests: and we shall reign on theearth.” These are those redeemed fromamong men, which follow the Lambwherever he goes (Revelation 14:4). Theysing the song of Moses—the song ofredemption, and the song of the Lamb—thesong of the redeemer, echoing the thoughtsof Psalm 111, a Psalm of the works of

Yahweh, singing: “Great and marvellous arethy works, Lord God Almighty; just and trueare thy ways, thou King of saints. Who shall notfear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? forthou only art holy: for all nations shall comeand worship before thee; for thy judgments aremade manifest” (Revelation 15:3,4).

Psalm 111 is a Psalm about the work ofYahweh—the work of redemption. Psalm 112is a Psalm of the redeemer—the righteousservant. Psalm 113 is a Psalm of the redeemed:“Praise Yahweh, O ye servants of the LORD...Who is like unto the LORD our God, whodwelleth on high, Who humbleth himself tobehold the things that are in heaven, and in theearth! He raiseth up the poor out of the dust,and lifteth the needy out of the dunghill; Thathe may set him with princes, even with theprinces of his people... Praise ye Yahweh!”

This is the characterrevealed to Moses in the

Mount (Exodus 34:5–7) andthe character manifested in

the life of Jesus Christ.

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The secret of his greatnessis revealed in Psalm 112:7,8:“...his heart is fixed trustingin the LORD” not in himself

or in the arm of flesh

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Recent excavations reveal aninteresting scene allowing us to“see” the locations referred to inthe Bible. For example, study thepicture opposite with the wordsof Nehemiah 3:15, “...the wall ofthe pool of Siloah by the king’sgarden, and unto the stairs...”The pool is on the left, remains ofthe wall and the stairs are seen inthe centre, and the garden on theright.In Jeremiah 52:7 we are told ofthe attempted escape of “all themen of war... by the way of thegate between the two walls,which was by the king’s garden.”In Isaiah 8:6-8 we are told thatthe people refused “the waters ofShiloah” (a word meaning asending forth), and a metaphorfor the word of God that wassent. In refusing it, the waters ofthe Assyrian river overwhelmedthem. Jesus is the one sent (theword made flesh), and bywashing in the pool of the OneSent, the blind see—John 9:7.The people chose Caesar andwere overwhelmed by his forces.

The pool of Siloam was identified for many years with the exit to Hezekiah’stunnel pictured left (see 2 Kings 20:20, 2 Chronicles 32:30, Isaiah 22:11). Therecent excavations suggest that the pool of Siloam was larger and near to thepalace and the king’s garden. The photographs seen here were taken in lateMarch, 2006. There is always a degree of uncertainty with many ancientlocations, but they become clearer as more discoveries are made.

RECENT EXCAVATIONS IN PROGRESS IN THE CITY OF DAVID

HEZEKIAH’S TUNNEL

STEPS INTO THE POOL?REMAINS OF THE KING’S GARDEN

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he following extract from theProtestant Dictionary (underDEMONS) is interesting:“In the Theology of the Greek

Platonist philosophers, both the neuter nounand the masculine noun are employed in thesense of inferior deities between the godsand man. Joseph Mede in his Apostasy of theLatter Times (Mede’s works, Book III) hasgiven copious proofs of this fact. Medemaintained that St. Paul used the terms in 1Tim. 4:1...”

The passage referred to by Mede in 1 Tim.4:1 reads:

“Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that inthe latter times some shall depart from thefaith, giving heed to seducing spirits, anddoctrines of devils (Gk. demons); Speakinglies in hypocrisy; having their conscienceseared with a hot iron; forbidding to marry,and commanding to abstain from meats,which God hath created to be received withthanksgiving of them which believe andknow the truth” (verses 1-3).

It was Mede’s contention that Paul waswarning believers against an apostasy from theChristian faith—one which would introducethe worship of inferior deities, or demons.

Now let the reader recall the briefcomparison that we made in our last issuebetween the Guardian spirits of Babylonianmythology, and the Guardian saints ofcontemporary Roman Catholicism. It is trulyremarkable that such a doctrine should formpart of this system which also forbids marriageto its priests, and commands abstinence fromcertain meats on Fridays! These three points ofidentification can hardly be a coincidence—Paul’s prophecy has come true.

Furthermore, Paul says that “the spiritspeaketh expressly.” Where does it do so? Theanswer is, Daniel chapter 11:37,38. Thisprophecy concerning the development ofRome states:

“Neither shall he regard the God of hisfathers, nor the desire of women, nor regardany god: for he shall magnify himself aboveall. But in his estate shall he honour the God

of forces: and a god whom his fathers knewnot...”

Rome, upon being converted frompaganism, no longer regarded the mythicalgods of its forebears. It did not recognise thenatural use of women (see also Rom. 1:27) andforbad its priests the privilege of marriage.Rome magnified itself above all during itspapal phase (see also 2 Thess. 2:3-4), and in hisplace honoured—what Daniel terms “the Godof forces.”

The original word here, as pointed out inthe KJV. margin, is Mauzzim, signifying“God’s protectors” or, “the god of guardians.”These guardian gods are the demonsmentioned by Paul in his letter to Timothy.Daniel’s prophecy continues (v. 39).

“ Thus shall he do in the most strong holdswith a strange god, whom he shallacknowledge and increase with glory...”

“The most strong holds” is “miutzahraimahuzzim” in the original. We have alreadyseen the meaning of the second word mauzzimor ‘mahuzzim’—guardians or protectors. Thenoun ‘miutzahrai’ is derived from the root‘bahtzar’—an enclosure. Parkhurst says of theword: “Derivative, Bazaar, a kind of coveredmarket-place among the Eastern nations,somewhat like our Exeter ‘change in London,but frequently much more extensive.” Hence,the literal meaning is: “The Bazaars of theGuardians.”

Lengerke translates the word temples, andrelates them to the heathen gods, or guardians.However, Daniel is speaking of post-heathentimes, when the gods were no longer regarded,nor the desire of women—hence, we can onlyconclude that it refers to those spiritual market-places dedicated to the guardian saints(demons) of so-called Christendom.

THE ORIGIN & REMEDYOF EVIL

2. Understanding Evil & TrialBy Paul Billington. BRANTFORD,ON.

MOVIES, MAKE-UP & FALSE DOCTRINE...

T


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(Important: please compare Rev. 18:2 and verse11). Is it any surprise, in the light of theseprophecies, if we find Christendom todayriddled with the “doctrines of devils” both goodand evil? The word demons is translated“superstition” in Acts 17:22 from the Greekdeisisaimon, Lit. “to fear a demon,” (Vine).

As we said at the outset of this series, beliefin devils and demons is a corruptive influencein modern times and should be contested, firstbecause it is false, and secondly because of themoral destructiveness upon society.

The CurseAnd so what is the origin of evil? In order

to answer this question from a Biblicalperspective we must first of all recognise thedistinction that exists in the Bible between eviland wickedness. The Oxford Dictionarydefines evil as “Bad, harmful” in any sense.The term evil therefore embraces anythingwhich might interfere with well-being: fromnatural disaster and war, to disease, death, andmoral depravity.

If it is clearly understood that evil is notnecessarily wickedness or sin, we can begin toopen our minds to the Bible teachingconcerning the origins of evil. In this sectiontherefore, we shall look at forms of evil otherthan those which may be termed wicked, and aswill become readily apparent, it is God Himselfwho creates such evils—and not as is popularlysupposed, an opposing god of evil, the Devil.

Isaiah 45:6 & 7 makes this point veryboldly:

“That they may know from the rising of thesun, and from the west, that there is nonebeside me. I am the LORD, and there is noneelse. I form the light, and create darkness: Imake peace, and create evil: I the LORD doall these things.”

In illustration of this truth we may recall theten plagues which God sent upon the land ofEgypt. In obedience to His word His angelsafflicted the Egyptians with most terribleworks—This is expressed in Psalm 78:49-51 asfollows:

“He cast upon them the fierceness of hisanger, wrath, and indignation, and trouble,by sending evil angels among them. Hemade a way to his anger; he spared not theirsoul from death, but gave their life over tothe pestilence; And smote all the firstborn inEgypt...”

These “evil angels” were not wicked spirits,they were “his angels that excel in strength, thatdo his commandments, hearkening unto thevoice of his word” (Psa. 103:20). Take anotherScripture: In Amos 3:6 we read:

“Shall a trumpet be blown in the city, and thepeople not be afraid? shall there be evil in acity, and the LORD hath not done it?”

It may be difficult for some to face this fact,but this is usually because of an inadequateappreciation of God’s character as revealed inall the Scriptures.

“Behold therefore,” says the apostle Paul,“the goodness and severity of God” (Rom.

11:22).When the attributes of God’s character

were first revealed to Moses (Ex. 34:6-7 andDuet. 5:8-10) it was seen that an essentialelement was justice. Whilst forgiving theiniquity of some, He would by no means clearthe guilt of those who continued to reject Him.Judgment would be meted out, and in this senseGod creates evil.

In addition to this there is the correctiveevil of chastisement which God brings uponpeople for their own ultimate good. “Spare therod and spoil the child” is a Scriptural principletaken from Proverbs (chapters 13:24; 19:18;22:15; 23:13-14). The apostle applies it toGod’s dealings with his children—Heb. 12:5-8.This may be likened to distasteful medicine,which in humility the true Christian willrecognise is prescribed for his own benefit.

A third and very important form of “evil” isgiven to man by God. It is the hardshipencountered during trials of faith. Peter told thefirst century believers in 1 Peter 4:12-13:

“Beloved, think it not strange concerning thefiery trial which is to try you, as thoughsome strange thing happened unto you: Butrejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers ofChrist's sufferings; that, when his glory shallbe revealed, ye may be glad also withexceeding joy.”

God tempts no man says James (chap.1:13), but He does try, or prove their hearts saysPaul (1 Thess 2:4), and it is essential to theunderstanding of the truth that we appreciatethis difference. God may place a man incircumstances that will prove his loyalty to theword (as for example His command thatAbraham should offer his son Isaac). Anenlightened man in such a position knows whatGod expects of him; the task or duty may bedifficult but the test will prove the man’s

faithfulness. This is a trial from God—such asin the case of Job in the Old Testament. Job wasnot tempted by a supernatural devil as taughtby many. It is true that Job had an “adversary,”but it was God who tried him. Job’s response isan exhortation to all; his own words were:

“But he knoweth the way that I take: whenhe hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.My foot hath held his steps, his way have Ikept, and not declined. Neither have I goneback from the commandment of his lips; Ihave esteemed the words of his mouth morethan my necessary food” (Job 23:10-12).

This then was the reason for “all the evilthat the LORD had brought upon him” (Job42:11). It was a trial of faith, the result of whichwas to improve him, and bring him forth asgold, in the way Peter describes in 1 Peter 1:7(which see). A trial of this type from God doesnot come so that God may learn what we arelike—it is so that we may have opportunity toexpress our love and our loyalty to Him.

As we have said, it is essential that wedistinguish between trial in this sense andtemptation. James says that

“Every man is tempted, when he is drawnaway of his own lust, and enticed” (James1:14).

The initiative that prompts man to sincomes from lust, or desire. It is only when aman or woman has rejected God’s call tofaithfulness that alternatives presentthemselves. These, as we shall explain later,come from within the man himself.

Finally, we must in humility seek tounderstand the reasons why God has createdcertain forms of evil. So many peoplecontemplate these things from an attitudewhich (sadly) challenges God’s justice. That isnot the way to seek His truth. “God is love”says John (1 John 4:8), and because this is so hehas created those evils which He calculates tobe promotive of salvation.

Take for example his judgements: theNoahic flood, the destruction of Sodom andGomorrah, of the Canaanites, Nineveh,Babylon etc. We can perhaps understand andappreciate these when we realise that humanwickedness is like a gangrene, which willspread through the body until it finally destroysit. A surgical amputation does not save thecorrupt limb—but it does save the remainder ofthe body. The human race is in precisely thiscondition, and it is for this reason—when apeople or nation’s iniquity has “come to thefull” (Dan. 8:23; Gen. 15:16; 1 Thess. 2:16)—that God destroys them. In other words, when asociety becomes fully saturated withwickedness (see Gen. 18:23-33 for an exactillustration) it becomes not only an obnoxion initself, but a positive source of danger toothers—hence it must be amputated or cut off.

Similarly with the principles ofchastisement and trial: these are for ourultimate good, despite the fact that temporaryevils are sent. Now if we can appreciate theseDivine principles it will help us to understandwhy the natural world—the creation—is

A 1991 Time Magazine


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marred with evil. Genesis tells us that Godcreated everything “very good,” but it also tellsus in chapter 3:16-21:

“Unto the woman he said, I will greatlymultiply thy sorrow and thy conception; insorrow thou shalt bring forth children; andthy desire shall be to thy husband, and heshall rule over thee. And unto Adam he said,Because thou hast hearkened unto the voiceof thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, ofwhich I commanded thee, saying, Thou shaltnot eat of it: cursed is the ground for thysake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all thedays of thy life; Thorns also and thistles shallit bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat theherb of the field; In the sweat of thy faceshalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto theground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dustthou art, and unto dust shalt thou return. AndAdam called his wife’s name Eve; becauseshe was the mother of all living. Unto Adamalso and to his wife did the LORD God makecoats of skins, and clothed them.”

So the Bible DOES teach that God createsevil. There is no escaping the fact. Let thegenuine student seek the reasons for it inhumility.

The natural world—as it exists today—isred in tooth and claw. The lion hunts his preyand the eagle sinks her talons into the flesh of adefenceless lamb—why must the innocent anddefenceless suffer like this? Why did Godchoose the skin of an innocent animal to coverAdam and Eve? Is not the story of Christ’ssacrifice locked within the world of nature,teaching the great principle that the innocentmust suffer for the preservation of the guilty!Who created the lion and the eagle? Whoprovides them with food that they mightsurvive? The answer is GOD! He who alsoprovided “the Lamb of God which taketh awaythe sin of the world.” Perhaps we see then thatthe sufferings imposed by the Genesis cursewere for the purpose of preserving fallen manso that sin could be covered by the principle ofsacrifice.

The Trial in EdenGod then is the Creator of evil, but not of

sin. The origin of sin is the subject to which wemust now address ourselves. The NewTestament teaches from Romans 5:12 that itwas

“By one man sin entered into the world, anddeath by sin...”

This was a deliberate choice by the manAdam. Again the New Testament makes thisclear from 1 Timothy 2:14,

“And Adam was not deceived, but thewoman being deceived was in thetransgression.”

“Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice ofthey wife” is God’s verdict in Genesis 3:17.Eve had been deceived when she entered intothe transgression of God’s command, but Adamknew perfectly well what he was doing.

But by what means was the wife, Eve,deceived? The New Testament says in 2

Corinthians 11:3,“The serpent beguiled Eve through hissubtility.”

“But surely” says the mind of unbelief,“you don’t expect us to believe that a reptilehas the capacity of subtilty!” Well, let us see.The Lord Jesus Christ once said to hisdisciples, “Be ye therefore wise as serpents,and harmless as doves” (Matt. 10:16). Weknow that a dove is harmless enough—whyshould he say the serpent was wise if it wasnot?

“Now the serpent was more subtil than anybeast of the field which the LORD God hadmade” says Genesis 3:1. If then Moses, Jesus,and Paul testify to a certain subtle wisdom inthe serpent, what authority has the unbelieverto challenge the fact? The very word serpent inthe Hebrew language (nachash in this place)signifies an observer, from the root “toperceive.”

We know of course that animals do have acertain degree of mental ability and that theyare frequently trained to do quite spectacularthings upon a given command. We know alsothat some—the fox for example—has certaindegrees of cunning. It is precisely this animalcunning which is implied by the word subtil inthe Genesis text (Hebrew: arum—crafty,cunning), and not the higher intellectualpowers which are peculiar to the human race.As we shall see, this animal cunning or craft, isall that is necessary to produce the suggestionswhich deceived Eve.

“But snakes don’t talk” says the persistentunbeliever of God’s word. Perfectly true, theydon’t. Neither do asses or mules! Instead ofchallenging God’s word, let us rather in

humility seek to understand it. Christendom ingeneral cannot believe it and therefore tells useither that the whole thing is a parable, or thata supernatural devil ventriloquised hisdeceptive lie through a nearby snake. Asregards the latter suggestion, there happens tobe no Scriptural evidence whatsoever for it,consequently such an explanation is mereconjecture. Nor is it a very plausibleconjecture, because either Eve was used tocommunicating with animals in the first place(and was therefore not surprised in this case) orelse she was plainly stupid in failing to realisethat there was something suspicious about thetalkative beast now desiring a chat! As to theaccount being a parable: again we need 1.Scriptural evidence, 2. an explanation of themoral being taught, and 3. a reason whyparable and not history is meant by the text. Allthree requirements are absent from the Bible,and not only so, but the uses that are made ofthe account in the New Testament strongly

require genuine historicity—for example,Romans 5:19,

“For as by one man’s disobedience manywere made sinners, so by the obedience ofone shall many be made righteous.”

Christ’s obedience was historical fact, andif Adam’s transgression were not also historicalfact Paul’s comparison could not have anyrelevance or validity. There must have been bynecessity a literal fall, otherwise reconciliationthrough Christ becomes a neutralised doctrine.Paul says again (Rom. 5:14) “death reignedfrom Adam to Moses.” This too requires literalhistoricity.

There is thus no doubt about what theScripture intends in a historical sense, andwhen Paul said “the serpent beguiled Evethrough his subtilty,” that is just what hemeant—no more, and no less.

Now consider the following account fromNumbers 22:28.

“The serpent beguiled Evethrough his

subtilty.”


“And the LORD opened the mouth of the ass,and she said unto Balaam, What have I doneunto thee, that thou hast smitten me thesethree times?”

It is conceivable then that God gave theserpent the ability of speech—but why wouldHe do so?

Suppose for the moment that this was thecase. It is not difficult in the light of what hasgone before, to realise that God provided thecircumstances of a trial, or test, in Eden. Adamwas created neither mortal (subject to death)nor immortal (incapable of death). He was inthe position of attaining either of these twostates, but as yet the choice between them hadto be made. He could either attain immortalitythrough faith—that is by demonstrating hisfaith in obedience (James 2:17-18), or he couldattain corruption and death through sin (Rom.6:23).

God created man with free-will, as a basisfrom which He might obtain voluntary—andtherefore genuine—love. Adam could thuschoose between faithfulness and loyalty toGod, or satisfying his own wishes at theexpense of his Creator’s will. In this way hewas completely free to either please or offend.

God then, who trieth the hearts of men andwomen, gave his creatures the opportunity todemonstrate their love by providing thecircumstances of the Genesis trial. Had theyresponded to this opportunity in faith theywould probably have gained the gift of God,which is an endless life.

The important point to grasp is God’sgoodness in this provision. Eternal life cannotbe given indiscriminately by God if He is tomaintain His own standards of righteousness.He required the voluntary affections of Hispeople, and their recognition of His supremewisdom (and therefore of His authority). Inorder that He might grant this supreme blessingto Adam and Eve, the circumstances had to beprovided so that they could prove themselvesworthy of it. This was done by giving them thecommand not to eat the fruit of a certain tree:This was His word entrusted to them for beliefand obedience.

Although it is conceivable that God gavethe serpent the ability of speech in order toprove Eve (for it was her own desire thattempted her, not the serpent), there is analternative.

Before the fall a much closer harmonyexisted between man and the animals. Beforesin entered the world, and before the Genesiscurse was imposed, complete harmony musthave existed in creation thus manifesting theharmony between God and man. It is quitereasonable to suggest that some form ofcommunication between creatures was possiblein such a state—for example, the picture givento us in Genesis 2:19-20 of the animals beingnamed by Adam, with the otherwise strangecomment “but for Adam there was not found anhelp meet for him.” The animals intelligenceand capacity for appreciation was inferior, andtherefore could not reciprocate Adam’s love

and devotion, but though unsuitable as help-meets, a certain harmony is implied by the text.It is evident that the behaviour of animalsaltered after the curse; they became wild andreflected the discord brought about by sin—adiscord that we are told will disappear whenthe curse is removed (see the beautiful picturegiven in Isa. 11:6-9). Language as we nowknow it was instituted at the tower of Babel(Gen. 11:1-9), and it is not unlikely that as Godconfounded languages here—“that they maynot understand one another’s speech” (v. 7)—so He interfered with communication at thetime of the fall. Today experiments are beingcarried out by naturalists who believe that

animals (the porpoise is an example) do in facthave reasonably sophisticated means ofcommunication.

Whatever view we might take, we have theplain testimony of the word, in both testaments,that Eve was deceived by the serpent’scraftiness or cunning. How did this comeabout?

It is evident from the text that God’scommand not to eat of a certain tree on pain ofdeath, had been brought to the serpent’s notice.

This idea or thought did not make sense tothe animal’s mind. It had a certain level ofthinking power, for it had been created—as allanimals were—to respond to the stimulireceived by its brain. For this intended purposeit was “very good,” but it did not have thecapacity for faith. The thought that death wouldbe caused by gaining a knowledge of good andevil did not accord with what the animal saw:The angels, or Elohim (translated gods in theA.V. or God in the R.V.), did not die—yet theyknew good and evil (chap. 3:5 and 22). Animalcunning therefore could only conclude that “Yeshall not surely die. Your eyes shall be openedand ye shall be as Elohim...” Such was the

conclusion brought about by the reflex actionof the animal’s brain.

This reasoning deceived Eve—but it didnot tempt her. The animal could not reasonaccurately upon the word that had beenentrusted to Eve, because it involved a moralfor which it had no faculty. This produced anunintentional lie which had the effect—equallyunintentional—of falsely accusing God. Theserpent thus became a false accuser and a liar.In Scriptural terminology it became a devil.

There are two senses in which the Bibleuses the word devil. One is the sense of demon(as previously considered); the other, which isconfined to the New Testament only, is theGreek word diabolos—meaning an accuser,slanderer. It is used for example in Titus 2:3.

“The aged women likewise, that they be inbehaviour as becometh holiness, notdiabolos (false accusers), not given to muchwine...”

Also in 2 Timothy 3:3 and Luke 16:1(diaballomai) similarly. It is translatedslanderers in 1 Timothy 3:11.

In the Septuagint Greek translation of theold Testament made before the time of Christ,the Greek diabolos is used to translate theHebrew word satan e.g. Job 1:7. It is cleartherefore that when diabolos is used in the NewTestament, it is used as the Greek equivalent ofthe Hebrew word satan.

On the word Satan, Bagster’s HebrewLexicon gives the root meaning as: to behostile, to oppose. In the masculine gender itsignifies adversary, and in the feminine genderaccusation. As a proper name it is Sitnah, thename of a well in Genesis 26:21. This wordappears in the plural—satans—in Psalm 71:13where it is translated adversaries. We might atthis place also refer to another quotation fromthe Encyclopaedia Britanica. Under “Satan”the following appears:

“In Hebrew, throughout the Old Testament,there is no suggestion of Dualism whethertemporal, spatial, or ethical. God Himselfforms light and creates darkness, makes wealand creates woe. Hostile heathen powerscould be spoken of as fighting against Godand His people Israel, but they are the rod ofHis anger.”

The serpent therefore became a devil orsatan. It was a false accuser that opposed theword of God entrusted to Eve.

This opposition neutralised Eve’s faith, andinstead of looking for guidance she looked atthe tree of the knowledge of good and evil—and this commenced the process of temptation.

The trial in Eden then, was brought aboutby natural circumstances that were in evidenceat the time. The animal mind being destitute ofmoral appreciation or reverence, calculated—as a very simple computer might do if the sameinformation were fed into it—that Eve wouldnot certainly die as a result of gaining theknowledge of good and evil. This invention thebeast was able to communicate to Eve, and she,descending to the level of reasoning, wasbeguiled.

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The Devil: In reality a false accuser!


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By Ken Loveridge PRINCE GEORGE, B.C..

apoleon Bonaparte apparently had nocontact with Jews early in his lifebefore going to war in Italy. In1797, the Jews of Ancona were

threatened with death as the French armyapproached—not by the French, but by theirneighbours! The reactionary and anti-Jewishelements were stirred up as the revolutionaryarmy came nearer. Napoleon, hearing of theirplight, rushed to their aid. The first Frenchsoldiers to enter the ghetto were Jews whopulled off the yellow badges that the ItalianJews were forced to wear, and replaced themwith revolutionary cockades. Afterwards, inMilan, he is credited with saying to them “Youare free men, you are free men… I shallmaintain your freedom. Be strong, don’t fearand don’t worry.” He abolished the laws of theInquisition and the Jews were able to feel freeat last. Napoleon was called Chelek Tov (inHebrew, ‘a good part’) that is Bona Parte, bythe Jews. That same year, on August 28, 1797,the French issued a decree abolishing theGhetto in Padua—“Liberty! Equality! In theName of the French Republic One andIndivisible. The Central Government of thePaduan Delta Districts of Rovigo and Adria…decrees: First, that the Hebrews are at liberty tolive in any street they please; Second, that thebarbarous and meaningless name of Ghetto,which designates the street which they havebeen inhabiting hitherto, shall be substituted bythat of Via Libera.”

During the violent years of the FrenchRevolution, the Jews of France were amongthose who were promised basic rights andfreedoms in the 1789 “Declaration of theRights of Man and Citizen.” Robespierre, oneof the prominent leaders of the Revolution,defended the rights of Protestants, and theblack slaves of the West Indian colonies, aswell as the Jews. The Emancipation of the Jewswas proclaimed on September 27, 1791, whenfull civil rights were given to the Jews as they

had earlier been given to other French citizens.The architects of the Declaration wereinfluenced by the men of the enlightenment, themajority of whom never intended that civilrights be extended towards Jews. Mostarguments were focused on toleration forProtestants. The question of Jewishemancipation arose with the argument thatJews could be made happier and more useful tothe state. The Revolution ushered in a period ofgreat hope and optimism, and the FrenchConstitution of 1793 led to their emancipation.“The Constitution guarantees, as natural andcivil rights… Liberty to every man to speak,write, print and publish his thoughts, withoutthe writings being subjected to censure orinspection before the publication, and toexercise the religious worship to which he isattached.”

The Sephardim (Spanish Jews) received

citizenship in September 1790 and theAshkenazim (German Jews) about six monthslater. In 1791 France became the first Europeancountry to emancipate its Jewish population.Even so, during the Reign of Terror (1793-94),synagogues and communal organizations wereclosed down, along with other religiousinstitutions. These were uncertain times, andBritain, and the Netherlands did not grant theJews in their countries equal rights withGentiles until after the French Revolution in1796. Napoleon freed the Jews in other areas heconquered, just as he had done in Italy.Elsewhere in Europe, especially where Jewswere most concentrated in Central and EasternEurope, Jews were not granted equal rights.The first true Jewish political movement didn’ttake place until the revolutionary atmosphereof the mid-19th century arose. Jews were givencivic rights as individuals, but lost their groupprivileges. The rise of Napoleon Bonaparteproved an important event in the emancipationof the Jews of Europe from old laws restrictingthem to Jewish ghettos, as well as the manylaws that limited Jews’ rights to property,worship, and careers. The French Revolutionabolished the different treatment of peopleaccording to religion or origin that existedunder the monarchy; the 1789 “Declaration ofthe Rights of Man and of the Citizen”guaranteed freedom of religion and freeexercise of worship, provided that it did notcontradict public order. At that time, most otherEuropean countries implemented measuresrestricting the rights of people from minorityreligions. The conquests of NapoleonBonaparte had the effect of spreading themodernist ideas of revolutionary France withrespect to the equality of citizens and the ruleof law.

Napoleon in the eyes of Europe at least,was among the greatest of the world’s mostbrilliant generals. Parallels are drawn withAlexander the Great, Cyrus the Persian andGenghis Khan. But Napoleon had limitations.Decree granting Jews equality in 1791.


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Whenever he pushed beyond the Europeanstates, he was constrained and defeated. Thefirst of these episodes took place when hesought to destroy and limit the extent of theburgeoning British Empire. Ironically, he wasresponsible for a major expansion of the infantUnited States of America when he later sold theFrench holdings which became the LouisianaPurchase, in part to keep these lands out of thehands of the British. Much of the wealth of theEmpire flowed to London from the east, fromIndia in particular. For almost 200 years, theBritish East India Company had dominated thiseastern trade. It was only in August of 1793 thatthe French were defeated in India by theEnglish, and Pondicherry and the other Frenchtrading stations were taken away. It wasthrough Egypt that the wealth of the empirepassed.

On October 26, 1795, Napoleon wasappointed general in charge of the Interiorunder the ruling Directory, and in the Spring of1796 he was given command over the armies inItaly. He used this post to weld a young,starving and disgruntled army into a forcewhich won victory after victory againststronger and more numerous Austrian forces.On Nov 17, 1796, he was victorious over theAustrians at Arcola. A treaty was negotiatedwith Pope Pius VI in February of 1797, but itwas October before a treaty with Austria endedthe war in Europe.

Napoleon returned to France in 1797 as thenation’s brightest star, with no further need ofthe patronage of Robespierre or Barras. Heportrayed himself to the people as politicallyindependent. On Feb 10, 1798, Napoleon’sarmies entered Rome after the killing of theFrench general. They proclaimed the RomanRepublic on the 20th, and imprisoned Pius VI,for his opposition. Napoleon was to use this actto his advantage later in dealing with theMuslims of the Middle East. Napoleon’ssuccessful campaigns in Italy convinced theDirectory that he should lead the invasion ofFrance’s mortal enemy, England. However, in1798, England’s naval strength was superiorand Napoleon knew he could not invade.Therefore, he proposed a much safer, and lesscareer threatening campaign—the invasion ofEgypt. In his memoirs, he wrote: “The principalobject of the French expedition to the East wasto check the power of the English. The armywhich was to change the destiny of India, wasto march from the Nile. Egypt was to supply theplace of Saint-Domingo and the Antilles, and toreconcile the freedom of the blacks with theinterests of our manufacturers. The conquest ofthis province would have produced the ruin ofall the English settlements in America and thePeninsula of the Ganges.”

As the 18th century drew to a close, theOttoman Empire was still a force to bereckoned with. Egypt was still a part of thatempire, but now was controlled by theMamelukes, the force of former slaves andChristian captives. Napoleon had conqueredthe kingdoms of Europe, overthrowing kingsand governments, but the British Navy

frustrated Napoleon and the French at everyturn. The English Channel stood betweenNapoleon and victory, but it was controlled bythe British. Seeking to inflict major damage onhis opponents, Napoleon looked to the east andEgypt. In 1797 he wrote, “In order to destroyEngland utterly, we must get possession ofEgypt.” He was prompted by a desire for freshvictories, and the Directory must have hadsome concerns that their now-famous generalwould attempt to seize power. An interruptionin the flow of trade would damage Britain justas France had been damaged by the navalblockade.

On 19 May 1798, Napoleon, set sail fromToulon, with 400 ships and 35,000 troops, forMalta and Egypt. On the 9th of June the armylanded, and two days later, the island was cededto the French Republic. There he took controlof the country from the Order of the Knights ofSt. John of Jerusalem that controlled it. Oversix days he abolished slavery, abolished feudalprivileges, gave the Jews equal rights with theChristians, allowed them to build a synagogue,freed the captive Turks and Moors, establishedfifteen primary schools, and sent off fifteenMaltese boys to be educated at French expensein Paris. Once again the Jews found themselveselevated to a state of equal rights with theirneighbours. The fleet sailed for Egypt, and twodays after that the English under HoratioNelson passed through the Strait of Messina.The English and French fleets sailed aroundeach other for more than a month as the Britishwent to Alexandria at the end of June, thensailed back to the east as the French landed onJuly 1st, marched the 15 miles to Alexandriaand took the city. Napoleon tried to present theFrench as liberators against the Mamelukes,and as True Moslems, responsible for the defeatof the Pope in Rome. “…tell the people that theFrench also are true Moslems. The proof is thatthey have been to Rome the great and havedestroyed the throne of the Pope, who alwaysincited the Christians to make war on theMoslems, and that they went to the island ofMalta and expelled the Knights, who fancied

The Fury of Action at Aboukir Bay in 1798THE BIBLE MAGAZINE VOL. 19 ISSUE No. 2

that God wanted them to make war on theMoslems.” This was the first part of the countryto be liberated from the Mamelukes. The Beyand his Mameluke army of 20,000 left Cairo inearly July while the French fleet anchored inAboukir Bay under Admiral Brueys. On July21st, 1798, the French and Mameluke armiesmet at the Battle of the Pyramids. The Frenchwon the battle, exterminating the army ofEgypt, and carried on to take Cairo.

British naval power, however, proved to betoo strong for Napoleon; on August 1st and 2nd,Admiral Nelson found and destroyed theFrench fleet at anchor in Aboukir Bay, at theBattle of the Nile, while Napoleon was inCairo. Almost evenly matched with ships andmen, Nelson attacked at first contact, findingthe French Admiral Brueys unprepared withmany of the crews ashore. The French flagship,L’Orient, which had carried Napoleon,exploded with great loss of life, includingBrueys. Nelson was also wounded and suffereda severe concussion. Both fleets were so badlydamaged that the French Admiral Villeneuve,who was later to meet Nelson at Trafalgar, wasable to escape the bay with four ships. Nelsonwas not able to pursue them. Napoleon wasisolated, but he continued the occupation andadministration of Egypt. News of the victorywas sent to both England and Naples, butNaples was the first to hear. Napoleon wasn’t toreceive the news of the destruction of his fleetuntil August 13th, almost two weeks later. OnAugust 17th 7 British ships and 6 French prizeswere sent to Gibraltar, and on August 19th,Nelson returned to Naples. Not only wasNapoleon now isolated in Egypt, but, onhearing the news of the destruction of theFrench fleet, a Second Coalition of Europeannations against France began to come together.Turkey declared war on France on September9th, and England, Russia, Austria, Naples, andTurkey began to work to join their forces. ButNapoleon’s work was not yet done in Egypt orthe Middle East, with either the Turks or theJews.

To be Continued

“...in six days the LORD madeheaven and earth, the sea, and allthat in them is.” — Exodus 20:11

“...for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth”—Exodus 31:17.

Well, that is what the Bible says! Oh no! says the wise man of this world, it could not have possibly beencreated in six literal days, only a naive and ill-informed ignoramus would claim that! Well, there seems to bea lot of that type who employed their time in writing Scripture—Moses for example, whose words appearabove. And he is not without his supporters. Jesus Christ says “had ye believed Moses, ye would have believedme: for he wrote of me. But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words?” (John 5:46,47). Inother words: Believe it or not... All of it!The Psalmist seems to have had the same view of things. He wrote: “By the word of the LORD were the heavensmade; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth... For he spake, and it was done; he commanded,and it stood fast” (see Psalm 33:6-9). But the wisdom of this world says “Not so!” And in proof thereof we aregiven speculative theories dressed up as science. The Bible’s answer to guess-mongers is this: “Where wast thouwhen I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding” (Job 38:4). For ourselves wewould rather hear the word of the One who says: “I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I, even myhands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their host have I commanded” (Isaiah 45:12). Let us make ourchoice... and believe it or not!

“...in six days the LORD madeheaven and earth, the sea, and allthat in them is.” — Exodus 20:11

Documents

Vol 19. Issue No. 2. April 2006 - Bible · PDF fileApril 2006 Vol. 19. Issue No.2. ... as a priest, prophet, ... shared the mediatorship with Zadoc the high priest, but it was only