As a well known fact, in its history Judaism has struggled with the balance of sanctifying the Sabbath and preserving life. The first book of Macabees gives us one such account of how the Jews in the time of Antiochus IV had to realize that preservation of life in regard to self-defense took precedent over Sabbath restrictions. After nearly being wiped out by the armies of their enemies, the made a determination that they would fight on Shabbat, rather than letting their brothers and sisters be exterminated like vermin (1 Macabees 2:29-41).
In the Gospels (less than two centuries later), there is still a struggle with balancing Sabbath restrictions with compassion for humanity. Yeshua chastises the opposing Pharisees for their lack of compassion and adamantly declares that bringing wholeness to a person on the Sabbath is the overriding element of the normal Sabbath stringencies. Mark records the account of the man with the withered hand as follows:
Another time he went into the synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there. Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath. Jesus said to the man with the shriveled hand, “Stand up in front of everyone.”
Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent.
He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus.
(Mark 3:1-6)
Yeshua emphasizes to those around him that the priority of bringing wholeness to another person has taken precedent over Sabbath abstentions.
Another similar case in which Yeshua emphasizes this message is found in the Gospel of Luke:
On a Sabbath Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues, and a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all. When Jesus saw her, he called her forward and said to her, “Woman, you are set free from your infirmity.” Then he put his hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and praised God.
Indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, the synagogue ruler said to the people, “There are six days for work. So come and be healed on those days, not on the Sabbath.”
The Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Doesn’t each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or donkey from the stall and lead it out to give it water? Then should not this woman, a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen long years, be set free on the Sabbath day from what bound her?”
When he said this, all his opponents were humiliated, but the people were delighted with all the wonderful things he was doing.
(Luke 13:10-17)
Here he actually interacts with the people, bringing in a chal v’homer argument from Scripture to prove his point.
In both of these instances Yeshua is seen to be critical of the current halacha regarding Sabbath, and by most Christian interpretation as critical of adhering to any form of Sabbath restriction. However, I seriously believe he was helping to shape the embryonic development of the halachic standard of Sabbath observance within the framework of Judaism. I believe his rulings, such as these, helped to shape the “binding and loosing” within the Rabbinic Judaism of today. The Mishnah (compiled less than two centuries after the time of Yeshua) records Sabbath leniencies in regard to aiding a woman in labor.
We may assist a woman in childbirth on the Sabbath; and we may call a midwife from place to place for her; and we may desecrate the Sabbath on her behalf.
(Mishnah, Shabbat 18:3)
According to this mishnah, nearly anything may be done on the Sabbath for the woman giving birth. This includes lighting candles for her, even though she may be blind, for it might give her peace of mind knowing that the midwife could see well. The Gemara goes even further to tell us we may even “desecrate” Sabbath on her account up to seven days after “the opening of the womb.” And in another instance it tells us that a fire may be kindled on the Sabbath to bring warmth to one who is ill, even if it is in warm weather (b.Shabbat 129a).
Just two centuries after Yeshua, the halacha has been codified with the more lenient (and compassionate intent of the Sabbath) viewpoint. We see from these examples Yeshua’s tremendous influence on the development of Rabbinic halacha as the one who would be the “Repairer of the Breaches” (Isaiah 58:9-12).
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Here is How Eliyah will restore all things (Matth 17:11), Before the coming of Yeshua Messiah (Jesus-Christ) (Mal 4:5-6; Act 3:19-21) !
(NB: All in this document is translated from French, so excuse for the approximate English)
“Prove all things and hold fast to that which is good” (1Thes 5:21)
God says in the Bible: “Do not keep the prophetic words of this book (the Bible) a secret, because the time is near.” (Rev 22:10).
With the help of the Holy Spirit (Jn 14:26; 16:13-14), God shows us today, the work Elijah has to do, just before the coming of the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord!
(A) What are the Things to be restored, according to the Bible?
1) The Kingdom of God on the earth
Since the fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, God’s Kingdom governs no more the mankind.
*Gen 3: 22-23: “Then the Lord God said,’ now the man has become like one of us and has knowledge of what is good and what is bad. He must not be allowed to take fruit from the tree that gives life, eat it, and live for ever. So the lord God sent him out of the garden and made him cultivate the soil from which he had been formed.”
NB: So, God’s Kingdom has been removed from the earth after the sin of Adam; but very soon, God will restore it through His Nation which will be born in a day, like a mustard seed, after the coming of the son of man who is Elijah (Ez 2:3-5; Luke 17:22; Mal 4:5).
*Matth 13 :31,38 : « The Kingdom of the heaven is like a mustard seed that a man takes and sows in his field…The field is the world; the good seed is the people who belong to the kingdom.”,
*Isa 66:8: “Has anyone ever seen or heard of such a thing? Has a Nation ever been born in a day? Zion will not have to suffer long, before the Nation is born.”
*Dan 2:44: “At the time of those rulers the God of heaven will establish a kingdom that will never end.”
*Luke 12:32: “Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father is pleased to give you the Kingdom.”
*Matth 10:7,23: “Go and preach, ‘The Kingdom of heaven is near…you will not finish your work in all the towns of Israel before the Son of man comes.”
NB: It’s clear here that, the Kingdom of God will come, when the Son of man, who is Elijah, will come!
The coming of God’s Kingdom is closely linked at the coming of Elijah, who must restore all things Before the day of the Lord.
2) One Language
*Gen 11:1: “At first, the people of the whole world had only one language and used the same words.”, but God mixed up their language at the Tower of Babel , so that they couldn’t understand one another (V7).
Since there, the whole world has many and many languages; but as it occurred the day of Pentecost, at the foundation of the Church of God (Act 2:1, 4), a miracle of language will happen the day the Nation of God will be born: All those of the little flock who will belong to the Nation of God, will talk only one language, the language of Millennium!:
*1 Pet 2:9-10: “But you are the chosen race, the King’s priest, the Holy Nation, God’s own people…at one time you were not God’s people, but now you are his people.”
*Hos 2 17: “I will remove from her mouth the names of Baal.”
*Zep 3:9: “Then I will give to the people – it will be a change – a pure language, so that they all pray to me, and serve me by mutual consent.” (N.W.T.)
: “On that day I will purify the lips of all the people, so ,that everyone will be able to worship the Lord together.” (N.L.T).
3) Israel ’s kingdom or the House of David
After the death of Solomon, son of David, Israel’s kingdom fell into two kingdoms, as God announced to the prophet Ahijah (1 Kings 11:29_36 ;12:12-19).
However God has promised David that, at the end of the times, one of his sons (descendants) will restore his kingdom like it was long ago:
*2 Sam 7:12-13: “When you die and are buried with your ancestors, I will make one of your sons king and will keep his kingdom strong. He will be the one to build a temple for me, and I will strengthen the throne of his kingdom for ever.”
*2 Sam 7:18-19, 25: “Then the king David went into… Lord’s presence…and prayed: ‘…yet now you are doing even more, Sovereign Lord: you have made” promises about my descendants in the years to come…And now, Lord god, fulfil for all time the promise you made about me and my descendants, and do what you said you would.”
*Am 9:11: “The Lord says: ‘A day is coming when I will restorer the kingdom of David , which is like a home fallen into ruins…? I will rebuild it and make it as it was long ago.”
*Ps 89:33-35: “I will not stop loving David or fail to keep my promise to him. I will not break my covenant with him or take back even one promise I made him. Once and for all I have promised by my, holy name: I will never lie to David.”
NB: So, the descendant of David, who will restore his kingdom at the end of the times, would only be Elijah, the son of man who will restore the kingdom of God ; because, in fact, God’s Kingdom is and will be always in the hands of David’s descendants:
*2 Chr 13:8: “Do you really think you can stand against the Lord’s kingdom that is given to David’s descendants?”
*1 Kings 28:5: “…He (the Lord) chose Solomon to rule over Israel , the Lord’s kingdom.”
So, the coming of God’s kingdom is the restoring of Israel ’s kingdom, which will be ruled, for a short time by Elijah, the son of the man, a descendant of David, until the coming of Christ.
*Zec 6:12-13: “Tell him that the Lord Almighty says, ‘Here is the man (son of man) called the Branch. He will branch out where he is and build the Temple of Lord . He will build the Lord’s Temple and receive royal honour, and will rule as a king from his throne. He will also serve as a priest from his throne, and there will be perfect harmony between the two.”
NB: Elijah, the son of man, the descendant of David, will be both king and priest; he will hold two offices that must not get interruption:
*Jer 33:17-18: “I, the Lord, promise that there will always be a descendant of David to be a king of Israel and that there will always be priests from the tribe of Levi to serve me…?”
NB: The throne of David is at the present time occupied by Queen Elisabeth II of England (Ephraim), and the Stone of crowning is in Scotland .
The Bible predicts a fourth and last reversal of this throne at the end of the times:
*Isa 28:1-3: “Ephraim (the kingdom of Israel ) is doomed! Its glory is fading like the crowns of flowers on the heads of its drunken leaders…The Lord has someone strong and powerful…who will come like a hailstorm… The pride of those drunken leaders (of Ephraim) will be trampled underfoot.”
*Jer 13:18: “Say to the king and his mother, ‘Come down from your thrones and sit in the dust, for your crowns will soon be snatched from your heads.”
*Ez 21:26-27: “I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken. Take off your crown and your turban. Nothing will be the same again. Raise the poor to power! Bring down those who are ruling! Ruin, ruin! But this will not happen until the one whom I have chosen…Then I will giver it to him.”.
NB: So, the throne of England (Ephraim), which is David’s throne, will be given for a moment to a man, Elijah (Zec 6:12-13) before Christ comes and takes it definitively (Luke 1:32-33).
This throne of David will be snatched from England , and given to the descendant of David, Elijah, who will sit on it at the Safety Place , in the upper mountains of Galilea, especially in Mount Hermon :
*Ez 34:11-14: “I, the Sovereign Lord, tell you that I myself will look for my sheep and take ca re of them…I will bring them back from all the places where they were scattered… I will…gather them together… I will let them graze in safety in the mountains…and in all the green pastures of the land of Israel .”
*Ex 15:13-17: “Faithful to your promise, you led the people you had rescued…you bring them in and plant them on your mountain, the place that you, Lord, have chosen for your home…”
*Joel 2:31-32: “…Before the great and terrible day of the Lord arrives…there will be people on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem who escape.”
*Isa 4:5-6: “Then over Mount Zion and over all who are gathered there, the Lord will send a cloud in the daytime and smoke and bright flame at night…covering the glorious land…It will be a shelter from daytime heat and a place of safety from storms and rain.”
*Ps 133: “How wonderful it is, how pleasant, for God’s people to live together in harmony! It is like the dew on Mount Hermon, falling on the hills of Zion . That where the Lord has promised his blessing – life that never ends.”
*Isa 65:9: “I will arise from Jacob descendants and from Judah an heir of my mountains; and my chosen people will possess my land of mountains.”
NB: The Bible is very clear today! God’s Nation which will be born in a day will go to the Safety Place on Mount Hermon in Galilea, before the Great Tribulation, and will be led and ruled by Elijah, a physical descendant of David, until Jesus comes and establishes the millennium Reign on earth!
Salvation (God’s Kingdom) will be on Mount Zion , that is Mount Hermon (De 4:48), because God’s Nation will stay there; and in Jerusalem , because the Two Witnesses (Representatives of God’s Nation) will be there, during the Great Tribulation (Rev 11:3-8).
4) The Temple of God or Church of God
The introduction in the Church of God of pagan doctrines, especially the Trinity by false ministers, has been the main cause of dispersal in the Church of God , after the death of M. Armstrong, the messenger of Philadelphia Era (Rev 3:7).
The Good News about the coming of God’s Kingdom on earth, has been preached by him – as testimony- (Matth 24:14).
After his death, here is what was to happen shortly afterwards, before the coming of God’s Kingdom:
*Matth 24:15: “You will see the abomination of desolation…standing in the Holy Place – reader, understand what this means.”
*Ez 34:5-6: “Because the sheep had no shepherd (M. Armstrong), they were scattered…They were scattered over the face of the earth.”
*1 Tim 4:1: “The Spirit says clearly that some people will abandon the faith in later times; they will obey lying spirits and follow the teachings of demons.”
*2 Tim 4:3-4: “The time will come when people will not listen the sound doctrine, but will follow their own desires and will collect for themselves more and more teachers (ministers) who will tell them what they are itching to hear. They will turn away from listening to the truth and give their attention to legends (pagan myths).”
*2 Pet 2:1-2: “False prophets appeared in the past among the people (physical Israel ), and in the same way false teachers (ministers) will appear among you ( Church of God ). They will bring in destructive, untrue doctrines…Many will follow their immoral ways; and because of what they do, others will speak evil of the way of truth.”
*2 Thes 2:2-3: “Not to be easily confused in your thinking or upset by the claim that the day of the Lord has come…for the day will not come until the apostasy takes place.”
NB: The rejection of what one has first believed (apostasy), was to happen in the Church of God after the death of M. Armstrong, and before the day of the Lord (2 Thes 2:2-3).
Meanwhile, God says in the Bible that, He will sent Elijah to restore all things before the day of the Lord (Mal 4:5; Matth 17:11.
All this shows clearly that the Temple of God (the Church), which is today lying in ruins, abandoned, after the death of M. Armstrong (Hag 1:4,9; 2:3 ;Matth 23:38-39 ;Luke 13:35), will be restored on its foundation (2 Tim 2:19 ;Hag 2:23), by Elijah, who is the son of man and the descendant of David (Zec 6:12-13 ;2 Sam 7:12-13).
It is in that spiritual Temple rebuilt by Elijah (Luke 1:16-17), that Christ will enter in his coming and our meeting with him (Mal 3:1; 2 Thes 2:1)
Christ cannot come today in an abandoned Temple , whose members are scattered (Hag 1:4, 9; Ez 34:5). He must remain in heaven until Elijah comes and prepares a people very ready to him (Mal 4:6; Luke 1:16-17; Act 3:20-21), that is to say, a glory church – pure and faultiness, without a spot or wrinkle or any other imperfection (Eph 5:27).
5) Revelation of All that is hidden in the Bible
*Rev 22:10: “Do not keep the prophetic words of this book (Bible) a secret, because the time is near.”
*Luke 8:17: “For whatever is hidden away will be brought out into the open and whatever is covered up will be found and brought to light.”
NB: So, everything that is sealed or secret in the Word of God must be brought to light for the last time, before the day of the Lord.
*Isa 44:28: “When I say of Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd! He will certainly do what I say. He will command that Jerusalem be rebuilt and that the Temple (the Church) be restored.”
*Isa 45:1-3, 6: “That is what the Lord says to Cyrus, his anointed one, whose right hand he will empower…I will smash down gates…And I will give you treasures hidden in the darkness – secret riches…so all the world from east to west will know there is no other God. I am the Lord, and there’s no other.”
NB: Cyrus means = The Last time, or the Last time of God, or the Latest of God.
So, Cyrus, who is an anointed of God, and sent in the end of the times to rebuild and restore the Temple of God (the Church), is no one else than Elijah who must come to restore all things before the day of the Lord; and so, all that is hidden or secret in the Bible will be brought to light by Elijah, who is the spiritual Cyrus, because God will open all the doors to him, and they will never be shut again (Isa 45:2 ;Rev 3:7).
God’s secrets which are hidden in the prophetic Scriptures, will be totally revealed as God has commanded (Rev 22:10), and will be brought to all nations by Elijah, before the day of the Lord (Joel 2:1 ;Rom 16:25-26 ;Mal 4:5-6).
(B) The Prophetic Figures (Roles) of Elijah
The Bible says that God will send a man in this end of the times to restore all things, and fulfil all his Will (Isa 44:28); that man is Elijah, the prophet, who will hold several prophetic positions to accomplish his mission. God always works through (a mouth of) a man or son of man (Act 15:7 ;2 Sam 23:2 ;Isa 50:10 ;Mal 2:7 ;2 Pet 1:21):
1) The Son of man (Luke 17:22)
*Ez 7:2-3, 6-7: “Son of man, this is what the Sovereign Lord says to Israel : The end is here! Wherever you look – east, west, north, or south – your land is finished…I will unleash my anger against you…The end has come…The time has come, the day of trouble is near…”
*Ez 2:3, 5: “Son of man he said, ‘I am sending you to the nation of Israel …And whether they listen or not…at least they will know they have had a prophet among them.”
*Mal 4:5: “Look, I am sending you (people of Israel ) the prophet Elijah before the great and dreadful day of the Lord.” (See Mal 1:1).
NB: The son of the man, a prophet who is sent by God to the spiritual Israelites at the endtime, before the day of the Lord, and Elijah, the prophet who is also sent by God to those Israelites, are the only and the same person.
It is why Jesus said that, Elijah who will come to restore all things, should first suffer much as the son of man, and be rejected, and die in this generation of the end (Mark 9:12; Luke 17:25; Job 14:13); then, God will raise him from the dead to the physical life, to fulfil his mission (Ps 30:2-3; 40:1-3; Matth 24:27):
*Luke 17:24: “For when the Son of man returns (in physical life), you will know it beyond all doubt. It will be as evident as the lightning that flashes across the sky.”
2) Cyrus (Isa 44:28)
Cyrus, as it has been said, means the Latest of God or the Last time of God. Because, for the last time, God will restore all things and warn the whole world before his terrible day comes.
We have seen that all things in the Bible will be brought to light by Cyrus (Isa 45:1, 3), who will also rebuilt God’s Temple (Isa 44:28). So, Cyrus is no one else than Elijah who will rebuild the spiritual Temple , in which Christ will enter at his coming –Mal 3:1; 4:5; Luke 1:17).
3) Joshuah (Zec 3)
*Zec 3:8: “Listen to me, O Josuah the high priest…Soon I am going to bring my servant, the Branch.”
*Zec 6:12: “…Here is a man (son of man) called the Branch. He will branch out where he is and build the temple of the Lord.”
NB: God will rise up and bring in the forefront, a man or son of man who will be a high priest, and will build God’s Temple . That son of man is called Josuah!
So, the son of man, Elijah will hold the position of spiritual Josuah, the high priest who will build God’s Temple; and, as his physical namesake, who led the physical Israel across the Jordan River into Canaan (the land of promised), the spiritual Josuah who is Elijah will lead the spiritual people of God into the Safety Place in Galilea!
4) The Descendant of David (2 Sam 7:12-13)
We have proved above that the descendant of David, who will rebuild his kingdom (Am 9:11), is Elijah, the son of man who will restore all things and bring the kingdom of God (Matth 17:11; 10:7, 23).
Since the kingdom of God is led by the sons of David (1 Chr 28:5 ;2 Chr 13:8), the descendant of David who will restore his kingdom, and Elijah the son of man ,who will bring the Kingdom of God, are the same and only one person!
5) The second Blacksmith and the second Angel or Messenger (Zec 1:20-21; Rev 14:8; 18:1-2)
The Bible clearly speaks of four (4) Blacksmiths or God’s servants, who will come at the end of the times, in order to throw down Babylon (Zec 1:20-21):
– The First Blacksmith: is the first Angel or messenger of Revelation 14:6-7; his work corresponds to what Christ foretold to his disciples: “This Good News about the Kingdom will be preached through all the world for a witness to all mankind; and then the end will come.” (Matth 24:14).
This first messenger of God at this endtime was M. Armstrong, the spiritual Moses (Mal 4:4), and the spiritual Zerubbabel (Zec 4:9-10), who has preached at the Philadelphia Era, as testimony, the Good News of the coming of God’s Kingdom on earth. The mission God gave him came to its end on 16th January 1986, the day he died (Rev 3:7; Isa 48:3, 6-7).
– The Second Blacksmith: is the second Angel or Messenger of Revelation 14:8; 18:1-2).
Since the end was to come after the mission of testimony of the first messenger, M. Armstrong (Matth 24:14), it means that the next verse (Matth 24:15), marks the beginning of that end:
*Matth 24:15: “The time will come when you will see…the sacrilegious object that causes desecration standing in the Holy Place –reader understand what this means.”
NB: So, after the Good News of the coming of God’s Kingdom had been preached all over the world, as testimony by M.Armstrong, pagan doctrines, whose main is the Trinity, were introduced by M. Tkach in the Church of God, which is the Holy Place (Eph 5:27); this situation caused the apostasy and the desolation which scattered God’s people (2 Thes 2:3; Ez 34:5-6).
Before the fall of Babylon and the day of the Lord, God will send his second messenger or servant to prepare to the Lord, a people ready for him, gathered and not scattered:
*Rev 14:8: “Then a second angel followed the first one, saying: “She has fallen! Great Babylon has fallen!” (See also Rev 18:1-2).
*Mal 4:5: “Look, I am sending you the prophet Elijah before the great and dreadful day of the lord arrives…”
*Luke 1:16-17: “And he will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God…he will turn disobedient people back to the way of thinking of the righteous; he will get the Lord’s people ready for him.”
NB: So, the second Angel or messenger of Revelation 14:8 and 18:1-2, is no one else than Elijah, the son of man, who will warn people of the fall of Babylon , and ask God’s people to come out from her (Ez 7:2; Joel 2:1; Rev 18:2, 4).
– The Third and Fourth Blacksmiths: are the Third Angel of Revelation 14:9-10. We only see one angel instead of two, because one of them (Rev 11:3-12), will be the Spokesman of the Duo, as Aaron and Moses (Ex 4:14-16; 7:1-2; Am 3:3; Ecc 4:9-12), as Theos (the Father) and Logos (Christ) – John 1:1-3. They will be the Representatives of God’s Nation during the Great Tribulation.
In conclusion, the second Blacksmith of Zechariah 1:20-21, the second Angel of Rev.14:8 and 18:1-2, are no one else than Elijah, who will come before the Great Tribulation and the Fall of Babylon to warn the whole world and bring God’s Kingdom!
(C) The Mission of Elijah has Two Stages
Taking about the descendant of David who will restore his Kingdom, God has said:
*2 Sam 7:12-15, 19: “I will raise up one of your descendants…He is the one who will build a house (a Temple) for my name…If he sins, I will punish him as a father punishes his son…But my unfailing love will not be taken from him…Sovereign Lord; you have made promises about my descendants in the years to come.”
*Isa 57:17-18: “I was angry with them (him) because of their (his) sin and greed, and so I punished them (him) and abandoned them (him)…I have seen how they (he) acted, but I will heal them (him). I will lead them (him) and help them (him)…” – In the Bible in French, it’s a person (in the singular), and not several persons (in the plural)!
*Ps 118:17-18: “I will not die, but I will live to tell what the Lord has done. The Lord has punished me severely, but he has not handed me over the death.”
NB: According to the prophecy about the house of David at the end of the times, and according to the typology (foreshadowing of events to come) which is frequently woven through the Psalms of David (2 Sam 23:2,5), we are here in the face of a descendant of David that God will punish by a disease (2 Sam 7:14 ;Isa57:17), but God will heal him (Jer 33:6 ;Isa 57:18), because God supports him (2 Sam 7:15).
But how God will heal him?
*Job 14:13: “I wish you would hide me in the world of the dead; let me hidden until your anger is over, and then set a time to remember me.”
*Ps 30:2-3: “I cried to you for help, O Lord my God, and you healed me; you brought me up from the grave, O Lord. I was on my way to the world of the dead, but you restored my life.”
*Ps 40:1-3: “I waited patiently for the Lord to help me, and he turned to me and heard my cry. He pulled me out of the pit of despair, out of the mud and the mire. He set my feet on solid ground (rock) and steadied me as I walked along…Many who see this will take warning and will put their trust in the Lord.”
NB: So, God will heal the descendant of David that he has punished, by a resurrection to the physical life; this means clearly that he was died before, owing to the disease God inflicted on him!
Job’s prayer (cry) foreshadowed the physical suffering that the descendant of David had to endure before his dead, and his return in physical life. The prayer of Job was a prophecy for the time of the end, for today!
It’s clear that all those verses above concerning the descendant of David cannot be applied to Job, or to David himself, and nor to Jesus, another descendant of David; that is why:
– Job healed from his disease, without passing through the death (Job 42:10)
– David didn’t die from disease (1 Kings 2:10; 1 Chr 29:28)
– Jesus was never sick, and didn’t die from sickness (Jn 19:17-18.)
To sum up, the descendant of David who will restore his kingdom at the end of the times, had to suffer much like Job and die; but he will return soon in the physical life, to fulfil the second part of his mission, at the time set by God!
The Bible shows clearly the two stages of the mission of Elijah at the end of the times, throughout the prophetic persons he will represent:
– Primo = First stage – First appearance – First fulfilment
– Pause = Absence in the scene
– Segundo = Second stage – Second appearance – Last fulfilment
1) As the Son of man
NB: Jesus is not yet the Son of man since his resurrection from the death (Rom 1:3-4; 2 Cor 5:16; Jn 3:6; 1 Cor 15:50).
a) – Primo: He must first suffer must, be rejected and his message scorned (Mark 9:12; Luke 17:25)
– Pause: He must disappear for a moment (2 Thes 2:7)
b) – Segundo: He will rise from his hiding-place (Job 14:13; Ps 30:2-3). He will be revealed (Luke 17:30), and his day (Luke 17:24) will be the starting point of a worldwide upheaval, as it was in the times of Noah and Lot (Luke 17:26-29)
c) – Primo:
*Undermined by the sickness, he won’t be able to warn the spiritual Israelites, but whenever God gives him a message, he loosens his tongue and lets him speak (Ez 3:26-27)
*Because of his sickness, he must be retained in the house, so he cannot go out among the people of God (Ez 3:24-25)
– Pause
d) – Segundo:
*At a day set by God, he will get back the power of speech which he had lost, and he will talk again. He wile be a sign to the people (Ez 24:26-27)
*In this day, he will not be tied again, he will stand up, and God will send him this time, to the spiritual Israelites, and they will know that a prophet is among them (Ez 2:1-5 ;Ps 40:3 ;Isa 29:23-24).
2) As the Spiritual Josuah
– Primo: He is a high priest, but he wears filthy clothes of the laodicean ‘own-way’ (Zec 3:3 ;Rev 3:17); he must be striped of this condition by a physical (severe) punishment, inflicted by God (Zec 3:4 ;Isa 57:17 ;Rev 3:18 ;Ez 3:24-27), and then, he must wear new clothes of God’s understanding and Justice (Zec 3:5)
– Pause
– Segundo: At a day set by God, he will germinate (appear, rise from dead) with great authority to rebuild God’s Temple (Zec 6:10-13).
3) As the Second Angel (Blacksmith-Messenger)
– Primo: He says (preaches): “She has fallen! Great Babylon has fallen”, in an undertone, like a murmur (Rev 14:8), in contrary to the first and third angels who say (preache) their messages in a loud voice (Rev 14:7, 9)
– Pause
– Segundo: In Revelation 18:1-2, the angel who comes down from heaven with great authority, preaches in a loud voice, the same message that the angel of Revelation 14:8 has preached in undertone: “She has fallen! Great Babylon has fallen!”
To sum up, we see clearly that the angel of Revelation 14, and the one of Revelation 18, are the same messenger, because they have the same message, but which is only proclaimed in two different lapses of time, and with a different density or tone: firstly in an undertone – secondly in a loud voice.
This shows clearly that the angel of Rev 14 has disappeared at a certain moment, before coming back in the forefront with great authority (Rev 18:1-2).
4) As the Descendant of David
– Primo: He is a shepherd, but he is punished by God (2 Sam 7:14; Isa 57:17; Ps 118:18; Jer 17:16), and rejected by people (Ps 118:22)
– Pause: He is hidden by God in the grave (Job 14:13; Isa 49:1-3)
– Segundo: He is saved and healed by God (Ps ,118:14-17 ;Isa 57:18 ;Jer 33:6), who bring him back to the physical life, at a day set by him (Ps 30:2-3 ;40:1-2 ;118:23-24), so that he restores the kingdom of David (2 Sam 7:12-13 ;Am 9:11).
5) As Cyrus (the last time)
– Primo: He is sent by God to announce the birth of God’s Nation (Isa 44:26; 66:7-8). God gives him new revelations which are treasures hidden in the darkness (Isa 45:3; Matth 13:44; Isa 48:6-7). He passes it on the Laodiceans who are in captivity in Babylon today (Ez 11:24-25) – They reject the message and the messenger!
– Pause
– Segundo: The earth will open wide, so he returns in physical life; it will be like childbirth (Isa 45:8; 66:7), so that the entire world, from east to west will know there is no other God (Isa 45:6). He will rise from the dead to rebuild Jerusalem and restore the Temple ( Church of God ) – (Isa 44:28; 45:13).
(D) From what we know now, Can we Identify Elijah today?
1) M. Armstrong was not Elijah to come
M. Armstrong, the first messenger or servant of God at this end of the times could not be Elijah, because:
– He came before Laodicea Era which has brought Apostasy in the Church of God (Rev 3:10 ;2 Thes 2:3 ;1 Tim 4:1 ;2 Tim 4:3-4 ;Mathh 24:15), and caused the dispersal of God’s people, after his dead (Ez 34:5-6 ;2 Pet 2:1-2 ;Act 20:29-30).
– He didn’t prepare to God a people ready to him, not scattered, as Elijah to come will do it (Luke 1:16-17)
– He has revived the Church of God in Babylon (Rev 3:1-2, 7-8), but he didn’t bring it out of Babylon , as Elijah to come will do it, before the day of the Lord (Joel 2:1; Rev 18:1-4; Luke 1:16-17)
– He didn’t restore the kingdom of David , as Elijah to come, a descendant of David will do it (2 Sam 7:12-13; Am 9:11).
In short, M. Armstrong was not Elijah to come; on the contrary, he was the spiritual Moses who has restored the Law in the Church (Mal 4:4), the spiritual Zerubbabel who has built the spiritual Temple of God (the Church) in this end of the times (Zec 4:9-10), and the Angel or Messenger who has preached, as testimony, the Good News of the establishment of God’s Kingdom on the earth (Matth 24:14 ;Rev 14:6-7), by Elijah (Matth 17:11 ;Act 3:20-21).
NB: Even in the Jewish Canon, Moses represents the Law, and Elijah the Prophecy. The salvation comes from the Jews (Jn 4:22).
Moses cannot be Elijah and vice-versa; so, the endtime Moses (Mal 4:4) cannot be at the same time the endtime Elijah (Mal 4:5-6)!
Moreover, a space of time separates their arrivals on the scene:
– The first has come before Laodicean Era (Rev 3:7) to build the endtime Church of God (Zec 4:9-10), and to restore the law in the Church (Mal 4:4),
– The second will come soon in this laodicean era, before the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord (Mal 4:5-6; Matth 17:11), to get the Lord’s people ready for him (Luke 1:16-17), because God’s people were scattered after the death of the spiritual Moses (HWA) –Ez 34:5.
2) Who is Elijah today?
Taking about Cyrus, another representation of Elijah, here what God says:
*Isa 45:3: “…I will give you treasures hidden in the darkness – secret riches. I will do this so you may know I am the lord…who calls you by name.”
*Isa 49:1: “…The Lord called me before my birth; from within the womb he called me by name.”
NB: If God calls Cyrus (Elijah) by name, that name must be mentioned in the Bible!
Taking about the Prince of Tyre, a representation of the Man of sin, who will also come before the day of the Lord (2 Thes2:2-4), God says:
*Ez 28:1-3: “…Son of man (Elijah), give the Prince of Tyre this message from the Sovereign Lord: In your great pride you claim: ‘I am God! I sit on a divine throne…you boast that you are like a god. You think you are wiser than Daniel, that no secret can be kept from you!”
NB: A dead cannot talk to a living (Ecc 9:5,10); so, the son of man who will talk to the man of sin or Price of Tyre, and to the spiritual Israelites (Ez 2:3-5), will be a living, after his return in physical life (Ps 30:2-3 ;40:1-2 ;Luke 17:30).His name in the Bible is Daniel (Ez 28:3).
The prince of tyre, the man of sin, will regard himself wiser and representative than Daniel, the son of man that God will send (Ez 2:3-5; 28:2).
So, two forces or supermen will be in the forefront before the day of the Lord: the son of man, Elijah the prophet (Ez 2:3-5; Mal 4:5), and the man of sin, prince of Tyre the false prophet (2 Thes 2:3-4):
– The Man of the sin, the False prophet: will represent Satan, the devil (2 Thes 2:8-11 ;Rev 13:11-17)
– The Son of man, Elijah the prophet: will represent God (Ez 2:3-5; Mal 4:5; Matth 17:11).
Daniel, the son of man named by God, who will talk to the man of sin at this endtime, cannot be Daniel the prophet of the Old Testament, who died long time ago, and is still waiting in the grave, the resurrection of the saints (Dan 12:9,13 ;Heb 11:39-40).
Daniel, the son of man who is Elijah, is also the descendant or son of David; his name, then, is literally: “Daniel-Son of David” or “Daniel Dawson”, as God has called him before his birth (Isa 49:1; 45:3-4).
Jesus, another descendant of David, was also called: Jesus-Son of David ( Dawson ) – (Matth 15:22; 20:30-31; Mark 10:47-48; Luke 1:32; 18:38-39).
So, the name of Elijah to come is DANIEL DAWSON (Judge of God-Son of David)!
CONCLUSION
Some people (the Jews), in the first century didn’t accept a truth that Hebrew Scriptures revealed clearly: the Identity of the Messiah. Jesus of Nazareth had complied with all criterions, fulfilled all the prophecies on him.
However, a thickstring of lies and preconceived ideas stopped many of his compatriots understanding the Word of God (Rom 10:2-3; Eph 4:18).
It’s the same thing today (1 Cor 10:11).The spiritual Jews of the end of the times, refuse to admit that, after the dead of M. Armstrong, Elijah who is the son of man, will come before the day of the Lord, and before the advent of Christ, to restore all things (Mal 4:5 ;Matth 17:11 ;Act 3:20-21).
It is important to read the Bible without preconceived ideas, because as a veil, they darken the understanding and the intelligence of biblical truths (2 Cor 4:3-4)
We must take example of the people of Berea, who listened to the message with great eagerness, and searched the scriptures day after day to see if what Paul preached was really true (Act 17:11 ;Jn 17:17 ;1 Thes 5:21).
The Bible declares clearly that the son of man, Elijah and descendant of David who will come at the end of the times, before the day of the Lord:
– Had to suffer much physically and be rejected (Ps 118:18, 22 ;Luke 17:25)
– Had to die, after suffering much (Job 14:13 ;2 Thes 2:7)
– Will return in physical life by resurrection Ps 30:2-3; 40:1-2; 118:23-24; Isa 45:6, 8; 52:10; Zec 6:12).
But Jesus himself has predicted that, some people will remain hermetic to God’s Truths and Revelations “Even if someone were to rise from death” (Ez 2:5; Luke 16:30-31). So, when the son of man will rise from death, other people will say that he is a devil embodied (Hos 9:7; Matth 10:25).
On the other hand, many of God’s people will wake up; when they see this miracle occurred, because they have taken seriously this warning and testimony:
*Ps 40:3: “…Many who see this will take warning and will put their trust in the Lord.”
*Isa 29:23-24: “When his (Jacob) sons see among them the work of my hands, they will recognize the Holiness of the Holy one of Israel . They will stand in awe of the Lord of Israel . Those in error will then believe truth, and those who constantly complain will accept instruction.” – “They will know that a prophet has been among them.” (Ez 2:5)
So, it is urgent that we come out from our Laodicean attitude, and anoint our eyes, in order to recognize God throughout his Work (Rev 3:18).
God doesn’t look at the flesh, he uses His Spirit to do His Work with the man that he wants and chooses (Rom 1:14; 1 Cor 12:13; Gal 3:27-29), as he has predicted before the creation of the world:
*Isa 37:26: “Have you never heard that I planned all this long ago? And now I have carried it out…”
*Heb 12:25: “Be careful, then, and do not refuse to hear him who speaks. Those who refused to hear the one who gave the divine message on earth did not escape.”
Mbock Paul Janvier (COG – avoicecriesout)