Circular Letters 2017

Can These be the Words of a True Believer?

An eTPL26 Circular Letter

The Prophecy Letter will shortly enter into its 27th year of publication if our LORD does not return before July 1st. 

In our entire period of proclaiming both the doctrinal tenets and the prophetic messages of the Bible, we have experienced some degree of disagreement with other brethren – differences of opinion as to the meaning of certain passages of prophetic scripture.

But thankfully, we have no essential differences with our critics – until perhaps now.

Ordinarily, we would shrug off criticism of such vehemence as we now intend to speak about, but we have decided that brethren who bear false witness to another brother’s life and mission should be brought forth for all to consider; who can know what positive reaction will be triggered?

The following message came into our inbox in April:

Dear Brother Harold: Please remove me from your mailing list.  I never asked to be included on your mailing list.  I can no longer accept your mailings that continue to promote a prophetic fantasy - all built on the false premise that no further destruction/cleansing is to fall upon the people and Land of Israel. You have adopted and continually promote a delusion that results in a wresting of the prophetic record, which is in direct collision with the revealed will of Deity.

These words are rather positive in their claim that Israel, as we know it today, is scheduled for another calamity – another Holocaust – which the writer claimed in another email would snuff out the lives of 2/3s of the people now in the Land – both Jews and Arabs!

It is stated with such unsupported fervor that it would seem that the writer hopes that will happen to substantiate his convictions! Much of his diatribe hinges around his persistent claims that Israel “has to be taught a lesson” for lack of a better reason – there is certainly no scriptural reason for his claim.

But his claims become even more dramatically in their gross error …

Another email to us which shortly followed the first one read as follows …

Why would I waste my time to provide you scriptures? You have shown, over and over again that you are firmly entrenched in your views and you continually INSULT those who disagree with you. The traditional views have been around for some time, and you have rejected them. Why would I waste my time? Why would anyone want to waste their time with you?  Really?  Let's be practical here.   If you read the Sanctuary-Keeper magazine (as you seem to be expect (sic) others to read your material) you would have seen (over the course of many years) irrefutable proof regarding a more traditional prophetic understanding. But again, your whole fantasy - yes fantasy - is based upon a false premise. Like my grandmother always said - you trip over your premise you will fall flat on your conclusion. You have fallen flat on your conclusions bro. Harold. If your ears were truly open then maybe we would have something to discuss.    

We should like to state an obvious fact in response to this vehemence: Life on the attack is a major waste of time and energy!

Note well that there is not one reference to scripture in any of these words – but instead, an humanistic reflection of the author’s own prejudice, and obvious desire to see present day Israel demolished and destroyed simply because its existence does not fit his prejudices.

We should like to address some of the phraseology employed here in order to reveal the intransigent “traditional” mindset of the author.

He asked, “Why would I waste my time to provide you with scriptures?”

The question is “of the flesh” in the most elemental way – an expression of arrogance that is unwarranted and unloving. The answer to this question is elemental for true brethren of Christ.

The writings of the Apostle Peter address this matter globally …

1Peter 3:8  Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous:

1Pe 3:9  Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing.

1Pe 3:10  For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile:

1Pe 3:11  Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it.

1Pe 3:12  For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.

1Pe 3:13  And who is he that will (actually) harm you, if ye be followers of that which is good?

1Pe 3:14  But and if ye suffer for righteousness' sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled;

1Pe 3:15  But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:

1Pe 3:16  Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ.

1Pe 3:17  For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing, than for evil doing.

Verse 8 – We detect no “pity” and no “courtesy” in the words directed against us.

Verse 9 – Having directed no “evil” upon this brother, or “railing,” we feel falsely accused.

But if he means that we have disagreed with his view of several Biblical matters of great spiritual significance, he is correct.

In our view, the Sanctuary Keeper Magazine “keeps” no worthwhile Sanctuary, except that tower of self-satisfaction its editors have erected to themselves … including their precious “traditions.”

The Pharisees of Jesus’ day were also famous for their traditions, for which our LORD denounced them on several occasions, forcefully and publically. Paul admits his own initial compliance with such “traditions” (before his conversion) in his confession found in Galatians 1:14.

We shall continue to resist these as did Paul after his conversion.

Verse 10 – Lips which speak “guile” are condemned. Our critic’s words are precisely that – guile. The eTPL has fiercely disagreed with this brother and his entire cohort. But scriptural disagreement is not “slander” as claimed by the author. We view such exchanges with our brethren as extremely vital discussions of spiritual matters of importance.

Verse 11 – “… let him speak peace, and ensue (pursue) it.” ‘Nough said.

Verse 12 – We tend to view such a vehement reaction to God’s word as evil speaking, which we eschew. We should not wish to have “the Lord’s face” turned against us in any such matter, but such critics seem to be inviting that terrible reaction!

Verse 14 – The writer’s words are in a direct sense, verbal “terror,” and smack of unreasonable fundamentalism of thought – a sense that there can be no possibility of error in their understanding – or their claims – and that all hearers had better toe their line or else; they have indeed made such claims … and enforced them against innocent brothers and sisters.

Verse 15 is especially demanding of the True Believer: But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:

Pardon us, but we see complete failure in some brethren to obey this advice by Peter – the proponents of the future (and once again) destruction of Israel. These proponents are not willing to furnish what they believe to be scriptural proof of their position in a frank and honest discussion; they have refused to “discuss it” on many past occasions when invited to sit down and calmly discuss our differences with Bibles in hand.

We believe it is because they are not confident enough in their scriptural knowledge to back up their beliefs as derived from views of 150 years ago. We state again, that they think they know what John Thomas thought and wrote, and to all appearances, they deem him as infallible in all prophetic utterances.

In their minds, nothing substantial has happened to further the Plan of God in all the years since John Thomas – and that somehow, “things” will magically turn around in the near future and be fulfilled just as “the pioneers” have stated.

On the other hand, our “entrenched” views, we believe, are simply those of the plainly revealed words of YHVH through His prophets.

Yes … we stand by those unequivocally.

If that be “entrenched,” so be it.

Readers must realize that such adamant critics are actually denying that YHVH has completed his clearly promised “seven times” punishment of the Jews and that the reestablishment of Israel has any godly significance.

Have they actually considered Paul’s exhortation in Romans 11 (Hath God cast away his people? God forbid)? And have they yet noticed the overreaching meaning of verse 26: And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:

Israel will not “turn away” of itself – it shall have to be convinced; the Lord Jesus shall do this “convincing” in the spectacularly successful destruction of the Islamic enemies “round about.” That will be the tipping point upon which turns Israel’s conversion … and no other. 

If another Plan is in the works, please give eTPL readers the references!

They are also denying the significance of the fulfillment of the Prophecy of the Sanctuary’s Cleansing (the 2300 days, which ended June 7, 1967).

They are essentially adding to God’s word (cf., Revelation 22: 19), and claiming that there will be THREE re-gatherings of the Jewish people rather than the TWO designated by YHVH through Isaiah 11: 11 because if the Jews are uprooted a third time there must be a third regathering. There is NO scriptural hint of such an occurrence.

They ignore the obvious difficulty of recovering Jews from nations which at this very moment have NO Jews yet resident! These have already been recovered!

The latter words of Isaiah 11: 11 are … that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. 

That prophecy has NOW BEEN FULFILLED … and cannot be accomplished a second time for obvious reasons. Their recovery from “the islands of the sea” (all the unspecified regions of their worldwide dispersal) is being conducted at the present time … and shall continue largely with the regathering of the Ten Tribes after the Kingdom is established and Christ their King “hisses” for them (Zechariah 10:8) to return to Him and to His Land.

They are denying any significance to the Holocaust to the Jewish people – a horrendous historical epoch which is implicit in the vision of the Vision of the Valley of Dry Bones of Ezekiel; they were miraculously rescued from that specific “valley” in Nazi Europe. Cf., Ezekiel 37: 12 – 14, a passage which only awaits the infusion of God’s Spirit into His people; all the remainder has and is being fulfilled before our eyes; let us not deny it but acknowledge it and rejoice in it!

They are denying the miraculous events involving the unexpected and nearly impossible victories of Israel in all its end time wars against the Arabs – and indeed, that the Arabs “round about” are any problem at all for God’s people, requiring that they be destroyed fully in order to clear the land for the establishment of Christ’s kingdom. They stress always and consistently, the invasion by Gog – and numerous other important but unrelated prophecies and confusing the issue, completely denying its demise “in Israel” of that future day.

They adamantly misunderstand and mislabel the identity of Michael of Daniel 12: 1-3, “that great prince which standeth for the children of thy people,” as NOT being actually the Archangel, and his highly visible and miraculous role in the regathering of Israel currently in progress. In a “traditional” practice of re-labeling (actually second-guessing) of many entities of the scriptures they are denying that the “Michael” of Daniel 12: 1 is identical with the same entity of Daniel 10: 13 and 21, a practice which has led to multiple cases of mis-identity of entities in prophetic matters: a case in point is the claim that “the latter day Assyrian” of Micah 5 is actually Russia and its cohort of the Gogian host!

Our extensive comments upon an appallingly erroneous and fantastic article (in the sense of being based on fantasy) in the Sanctuary Keeper is posted on our website as The Permanence of Israel Today as listed in the left sidebar of the home page, and deals both scripturally, competently,  and exhaustively with the gross error that Israel today has not resulted from the ongoing and continuous fulfillment of Ezekiel 37, set to end with “David My Servant” (verse 24) reestablished on the reconstituted Throne of David in Jerusalem – all well BEFORE the dreaded and much-touted Gogian invasion of Christ’s kingdom, after Israel is under His rulership, dwelling in utter peace and safety (that of Ezekiel 38 and 39). It is obvious that Ezekiel 37 comes to pass before Ezekiel 38 and 39 - and these precede Ezekiel 40-48!

They are denying that the 2/3 destruction of the Jewish people was fulfilled in the Roman victories of AD 70-73, and has no future application at all.

They deny that the division of Jerusalem from 1948 to 1967 is reflected in Zechariah 14 – the only time in history that Jerusalem has been so divided.

The prophecy is now history and can only reasonably be recognized as such.

They deny that Gog’s SOLE destiny is to be defeated and destroyed upon the mountains of Israel, and shall have NO success at all against Christ and the Saints and Israel, His people. 

They are in gross error by claiming the equivalence of Gog of the Land of Magog, the King of the North, and the “latter day Assyrian” as being all the same entity, whereas a careful scriptural comparison shows that they are all different from each other in the extreme – that they 

(1) occur at different times in history, 

(2) for different reasons,

(3) feature different combatants, 

(4) involve different geographic areas and 

(5) result in different outcomes.

But to point out these scriptural differences somehow is “slander” of those who believe those blatant errors.

Bosh!

And Bosh Again!

When discussing godly affairs with the Pharisees, Jesus pulled no punches in condemning their unscriptural traditions … and neither shall we, in these vital issues.

To misunderstand them is never to discover our Father’s reassuring revelations to His children, and never to discover His Way in prophetic affairs – and breathlessly to expect a totally different outcome than that seen by our eyes this day!

Such an insensible approach leads directly to false expectations – and to its attendant feature, a lack of preparedness for His return.

We simply call upon all students to use their God-given intellects, coupled with hearts of reason, of courtesy, and of understanding, and of brotherly love.

And do not fear their terroristic threats; we do not.

  <HEL 6P> ~2575  words. An eTPL26  Circular Letter  Published June 26, 2017

Planned Tour of Israel, Fall 2018,  God Willing

An eTPL27  Circular Letter 

The eTPL is planning its eighth detailed escorted tour of the Middle East for Bible students, to occur in the early fall of 2018, God willing.

We believe the approaching two Feasts of Trumpets will bring significant advances in Bible prophecy; since it is much too late to plan an organized tour for this year (September 21, 22), we are targeting the same festival next year. In any eventuality, to be in Israel during this festival will be an educational and heartening experience for tour members.

The following chart gives a summary of the Festivals of God from 2014 through 2018: according to the chart, we will plan to be in Jerusalem on September 10-11, 2018, if hotel space and airline seats have not already been reserved for those dates and cannot now be booked.

We firmly believe that since the spring festivals were fulfilled literally by historical events in the first century, so also will the remaining ones be literally fulfilled at the Second Advent of the LORD from heaven. As well as we can determine, the next fulfillment should be the Second Coming of our LORD to gather the saints of all ages together for judgment.

If that assumption is valid, the Feast of Trumpets is the next festival to be fulfilled by literal events. In I Thessalonians, the Apostle Paul connects “the seventh trump” with the resurrection of the dead in Christ, and the gathering of the saints to the Judgment bema of Christ.

Additionally, it is extremely relevant that the body of believers now is assured that our time is “the season” of His return. See I Corinthians 15: 52 for relevance; the saints are aware of this imminence of His return from many “signs” of that event approaching.

For this reason, the upcoming Feast of Trumpets becomes eminently important to our minds: shall this September be the time of the Second Advent? Or must the saints wait for the same festival in 2018?

As we are commanded to “occupy until I come,” (Luke 19: 13); our Father intends us to carry on our faithful conduct even in the light of the critical events we see … until He sends His beloved Son back to the earth to save His people.

Pursuant to that expectation, we plan ahead in the faith that we will be able to carry out the plans we make. If not, no matter; they simply pass away in the shadow of our departure toward better things!

We are beginning at this moment to formulate this carefully planned tour of God’s beloved Land for all those who wish to participate. This notice is merely a preliminary announcement so that anyone who may be interested may begin to think and to plan in this direction. Nearly a dozen folk have already expressed serious interest in this tour.

It is our plan that more information will be forthcoming as soon as such can be decided and put into action. We will continue to keep readers informed as these plans develop. It probably goes without saying that a complex event such as this does require much planning and organization. Those efforts are now being put forth by the author.

<HEL 7Q> An eTPL27  Circular Letter   Posted to our List on July 10, 2017.

Is Edom Russia?

An eTPL27  Editorial

 During the past months, we have heard it solemnly proclaimed by an observer that Edom (a.k.a. Esau, Mt. Seir and Idumea), as discussed in Obadiah, is a symbol of Russia. 

This is a preposterous proposal as this short article will prove …   

 1.  If Edom is really Russia, how does one explain …

 Malachi 1:3 And I hated Esau, and laid his mountains and his heritage waste for the dragons of the wilderness. 4 Whereas Edom saith, We are impoverished, but we will return and build the desolate places; thus saith the LORD of hosts, They shall build, but I will throw down; and they shall call them, The border of wickedness, and, The people against whom the LORD hath indignation for ever.

These curses of destruction have never happened to Russia, a kingdom which only originated by the immigration of Scandinavian peoples northward in the ninth century to establish Moscow. The following quotation is from Wikipedia … Thus, the first East Slavic state, Rus', emerged in the 9th century along the Dnieper River valley. A coordinated group of princely states with a common interest in maintaining trade along the river routes, Kievan Rus' controlled the trade route for furs, wax, and slaves between Scandinavia and the Byzantine Empire along the Volkhov [Volga] and Dnieper Rivers.[Moscow is just south of the Volga, the “mother river” of Russia.]

2. The point was made that no peoples today are known as “Edom” or as “Esau.” This is a true statement, of course. But consider this … any reference which was being made by Obadiah to the peoples who live in the old territories of Edom today could not have been referred to by their modern name. So it remains for us to uncover the identity of those modern peoples and where their population is dispersed.

Obadiah is specific in these details … and everyone will agree that Obadiah’s prophecy is “of the end time.” So our conclusion must be that those people referred to by Obadiah as “Edom” exist today upon the land areas described by his prophecy.

There is only one group of non-Israelites who live in those territories as pointedly described in verses 19, 20 … and they are the terrorist population of the Palestinian Authority and its closest allies, al-Fatah, Hamas, and Hezbollah.

This determination fits the prophesied events perfectly – those foretold for the Proximal Islamic peoples who are the current, rabid enemies of Israel as the regathered People of God in their Land! No other explanation fits the case that is obvious to every sensible observer.

3. In Obadiah verse 18, this statement appears: there shall not be any remaining of the house of Esau. This condition of complete annihilation is not said to apply to the Gogians (Russians included) of Ezekiel 38 and 39. The land of Magog is specifically marked out for punishment in 39: 6 where these words are recorded: I will send a fire on Magog, and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles; but the implications of this are not clear as to extent; is it a total destruction of Magogians? We don’t get that drift from the text. Instead, it is severe enough punishment upon Magog for attacking Israel that its people will be assaulted ... and indeed enlightened as to Whom they have actually attacked – namely, God’s People Israel, Christ their King, and the Immortalized Saints Who are there present with Him in that society.

4. In the history of Russia – which indeed did start in a small way by colonization of Slavic peoples from the Kiev area in the 8th century – it has never been known for its “smallness.” Indeed, it became the largest country in the world for land mass occupied, and one of the most powerful in history at one time. This is not the picture of “Edom” as given by the prophet in Obadiah 1:2  Behold, I have made thee small among the heathen: thou art greatly despised.

5. In all its checkered history, Russia has never been known to have violated Jacob as an entity (Many Jews, yes, during the days of the Russian Pale of Settlement, but not Israel/Jacob – only possible since 1948). Obadiah 1:10  For thy violence against thy brother Jacob shame shall cover thee, and thou shalt be cut off for ever.

See also Jeremiah 49: 7-22.

An additional fact is that Russian can in no way be said to the “brother” of Jacob; that was the disavowed honor of Esau, who sold his birthright to his brother for a bowl of lamb stew!

6. To point (5) above, neither has Russia ever performed the offensive deeds attributed to Edom in Obadiah verses 10 – 14, which enumerate offenses which Edomites literally committed against the Israelites during the Babylonian invasion by Nebuchadnezzar c. 606BC.

8.  The reference to “Teman” solidifies that the reference is to the proximal enemies of Israel today as “Teman” is not in Russia, but in the Negev desert south of Israel! Also, Russia is never referred to as “the mount of Esau.” Obadiah  1:9  And thy mighty men, O Teman, shall be dismayed, to the end that every one of the mount of Esau may be cut off by slaughter.

 Our admonition to our brethren who mistakenly identify entities such as Edom, or Esau, is that they think seriously about their assumptions before they air them for other brethren to consider.

Such inane comparisons (allegations) show that such presenters have not researched their subject very well, and have been willing to adopt the assumptions of past interpreters as their basis of the belief of contemporary prophecy.

That approach doesn’t work at all.

The passage of many decades has shown the assumptions of 160 years ago as to prophetic details are nearly entirely in error.

Their adoption by brethren today has the effect of leading these brethren to assume a superior attitude of insight into the prophecies based on the fame of earlier prognosticators – brethren who were sincere in their analysis of both the major and the minor prophets, but who, because of key fulfillments not having occurred prior to their days, could not possibly have formulated the details of prophetic out working with anything near accuracy. 

We thank our Heavenly Father that they DID arrive at the end points with utter accuracy as to major details:

·       that Christ is coming back to the earth;

·       that He will raise the dead in covenant with Him;

·       that He will gather together the living in Christ with them;

·       that He will judge them before His Judgment Bema;

·       that He will reward the righteous with immortality;

·       that He will celebrate with them the Marriage Supper of the Lamb;

·       that they will then, as “One Man” come to intervene in the affairs of the then-constituted People of God

·       that He will save them from their enemies (Luke 1: 71-74);

·       that He will occupy the promised land of Abraham’s Seed;

·       that He will be recognized and accepted by the Jews;

·       that He will take the scepter of David and rule over them;

·       that He will build His kingdom of peace into the dominant kingdom among men.

Those points are, in our opinion, the essential doctrines of the Kingdom of God.

However, it is clear that many of the details of this approaching scenario were unclear to the pioneers of Truth; but it is also apparent that the pathway to the kingdom is not a salvational body of information.

The ultimate fact that their interpretations of the precise pathway to the kingdom’s establishment were wrong does not nullify the final product – the Kingdom of Christ established, glorifying the great name of YHVH in all the earth!

  <HEL 7Q> ~1250 words. An eTPL27  Editorial  Published in Circular Letters July 13, 2017

Jacob’s Sheep, Now Back in Israel, Begin Birthing

An eTPL26  Circular Letter

Our intense interest in the saga of Jacob’s Sheep returning to Israel has taken a natural and expected turn … 

The now returned flock of Jacob’s Sheep, now living in Nes Harim, Israel, north of Beer’sheva, have begun kidding (calving?) – i.e., bringing forth offspring.

They are en route it is reported to a kibbutz in the Jordan Valley, where their owners – Gil and Jenna Lewinski of Canada, now having made aliyah – will continue to care for them and to develop the flock.

Readers may watch two short videos which give details of the Baa-aliyah of the sheep (pun intended!) which will be of intense interest in this heartening story of some of the longest exiles from the Land of Israel now having returned …

I don’t know about your feelings, but mine are that there is nothing in nature more lovable and precious than a lamb, just as our Father views His lambs of His human flock as they humbly and devotedly serve Him.

 Videos of Jacob’s Sheep in Israel today may be viewed at …

https://www.breakingisraelnews.com/89318/bible-codes-foretell-special-role-first-israeli-born-jacobs-sheep-2000-years/?utm_source=Israel365+Daily+Email&utm_campaign=5aa52a383a-Israel365+email&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c014d47a2a-5aa52a383a-21176121#M3BJpQvAttClDpSl.97   

  ALSO …

 https://www.breakingisraelnews.com/82522/baa-liyah-jacobs-sheep-frolick-new-home/#eYCxxPxP2rY2lGhu.97

 Access to these videos may be obtained by copying the URLs (the addresses above) and pasting them into your search engine. Both are less than ten minutes in length, and are so worth watching!

   <HEL 6P> An eTPL26  Circular Letter  Published June 12, 2017 

Our Twenty Eighth Anniversary

An eTPL28 Analysis

July 2018

The Prophecy Letter is now beginning its 28th year of publication. We appreciate the hearty acceptance it has received from most quarters of our brotherhood – a reflection of the genuine hunger of many to gain a more thorough insight into God’s word and a more logical and scriptural understanding of what is considered by many to be a complex subject – Bible prophecy.

We agree. The subject IS complex; it contains many interlocking facets of the revelation of the Word, all of which fit together extremely well when properly understood, in our opinion.

We commend readers to our web site where we have tried to post comprehensive and well-researched articles which show profusely how events are prophesied to progress toward the Second Coming of our LORD and beyond.

 We believe confidently that no reader will be able to research our theses from 1990, and show where our reasoning has failed. That is not an arrogant claim, that we have understood the entire subject perfectly. Doubtless, we have not. But we are certainly open to scrutiny, discussion and correction if needed.

When we launched the eTPL, we noted in our Charter ...

The Prophecy Letter was published by this author in paper form for nearly sixteen years, beginning in 1990, well before the availability of the World Wide Web (www). Our avowed purpose was to research its many subjects as thoroughly as possible, examining earlier viewpoints and, in the tradition and approach of credible textual research, to seek to determine the veracity of earlier conclusions: to re-prove or to dis-prove them – to establish workable solutions and qualified standards for what many think of as a formidable field of endeavor.

   Its purpose was to explore end time prophecy based strictly upon Bible exegesis, relying almost completely on original research rather than on contemporary or past commentators on Bible prophecy, many of whom, with the passage of many years, have proven to be erroneous in both minor and major points of actual fulfillment.

This statement is also not to be taken as boastful or “superior” in any way. Our approach to God’s word is always covered by earnest prayer for a lucid understanding, and an ability to state our findings clearly and scripturally for fellow students.

In our undertakings – which have consumed literally thousands of hours during about 30 years of concentrated application of our minds to this task – we have inevitably “crossed swords” with a few other brethren – students who prefer the “old paths,” as they express it. That approach is well and good when one can prove his beliefs comparing scripture to scripture. We prove that fact over and over again in matters of doctrine, or salvational faith necessary to be understood and believed in order to be related by covenant to our Father and His Son. We must endeavor to do the same with Bible prophecy – prove and verify, again and again. We believe this is the “due diligence” that is required for understanding the subject as well as can be discerned before the facts of fulfillment.

We readily admit that certainty of fulfillment is possible only after the events prophesied have recognizably come to pass. This belief also necessitates that when a prophecy has been fulfilled – and many (at least fifteen major milestones) have been passed since 1860 – that we agree that it HAS been fulfilled, recognize its place in the divine pattern and then move ahead with further considerations.

In our opinion, that is the primary value of studying this subject – the decided value of discernment WHEN a prophecy has been fulfilled, receiving the strength and reinforcement of our faith by that fact, and moving on to further understanding.

 Finally, we give sincere thanks to our heavenly Father for good health to continue this career of the intensive study of His word. We pray for the extension of all our lives to the time of the sounding of the “last trump” spoken of by Paul in I Corinthians 15: 52 ... a reference which, we believe connects the resurrection of the responsible dead depicted there to the Feast of Trumpets – the next Biblical festival which seems to require literal fulfillment as the four spring festivals were fulfilled.

The 69th anniversary of that festival (since the formation of the modern State of Israel – the “budding of the fig tree”) occurs in September (21-22) of this year; the 70th anniversary of it is slightly earlier in the fall of 2018.

We expect with a great deal of confidence (but not certainty) that the resurrection of the dead could occur on one of these two special observances in light of the psalmist’s observation in Psalm 90: 10 – that a “generation” is seventy years, in addition to Jesus’ statement that “this generation shall not pass till all these things be fulfilled” Matthew 24: 34.

But if our reasoning is faulty – if the LORD does not return by one of those dates – we shall continue our earnest vigil in the strength which our Lord shall give us.

One more consideration ...

Some readers have commented upon the voluminous content of eTPL as sent out regularly to our List. Our only defense for their length and hopefully thorough content is that we are compelled by the imminence of the Second Advent to warn our colleagues in the faith of its nearness.

In addition, we feel obligated to express our determinations as clearly and thoroughly as possible because of their great import – and as a reaction against the common practice of “news media” of today which often merely mention drastic occurrences in some place with which we may be familiar, but do not give intelligible or usable details as to location, severity, effect on surrounding peoples, and other important facts, rendering their dispatches often ineffectual.

Therefore readers are encouraged to make the effort to peruse our messages closely and make their best efforts to connect them to their spiritual journey toward the ultimate Kingdom of God on the earth.

And in that process, make a conscious effort to ...

·       Discern every article’s veracity as to God’s word:

·       Is it really what God’s word intends?

·       Does it integrate fully with everything else we know about the subject?

·       Have other researchers reached the same conclusions (and on what basis)?

·       What other explanation might seem rational?

·       Is the principal/subject repeated elsewhere, and reinforced with the same emphasis?

·       Does it compromise any basic scriptural tenet? (If so, discard it!)

These are the standards by which we strive to conduct our research into end time prophecies. It seems to be the only means by which God’s people will be able faithfully to refine their lives, to continue to correct their expectations of the past, and to renew their own strength and vigor as they relate to our conduct in the faith. Our fervent prayer is that our dear heavenly Father send His Son back to the earth soon to heal its woes, to bless His servants who have occupied his vineyard in His absence, and to establish peace and righteousness in the whole earth.

   <HEL 7Q> ~1200 words. An eTPL28 Analysis Posted July 21, 2017.

Struggle Over Temple Mount Continues

An eTPL28  Circular Letter

The gamesmanship over control of Temple Mount continues today – about three days after Israel capitulated to the Waqf again and removed all security cameras and metal detectors from the Mount. It was done because the Palestinian Authority (PA) had called for a boycott of Arab attendance at prayers on the Mount following the murders of two Druze/Israeli policemen over a week ago by Islamic terrorists using weapons which had been smuggled onto the site previously.

Our answer to such a boycott should have been, “So be it!”

But the Israeli leadership is too soft-hearted to carry out its decided resolve in such matters.

The goal of the PA is to establish complete control over the Mount to the exclusion of Jews who wish to come there to walk about its grounds – the site of their two (actually three) previous Temples – the singular place where God chose to place His name over 3,000 years ago, after David bought and paid for the threshing floor and several oxen from Araunah, a local Jebusite (II Samuel 24: 18).

The property has never been relinquished by Israel voluntarily since that time.

Thus, it still belongs to the LORD, Who has no intention of ceding it back to the local pagans.

The not-so-subtle tactic being used by Mahmoud Abbas, the President of the PA, has been to perpetuate the lie fostered in the 1930s by the mufti, Haj Amin al-Husseini, at first accusing British soldiers of desecrating mosques, giving currency to the perpetually circulated, but false, rumor that  "Al-Aksa is in Danger."

Such a warning raises the hackles of every “Palestinian,” and readies them to become “martyrs” by committing murder upon Jews, by which they hope to gain power and status to lead a generalized struggle of Muslims to gain sovereignty over the Temple Mount.

Instead of being Jews, however, the Israeli policemen were Druze – an offshoot of Islam, and therefore their own kind!

But the Muslim ploys have not paid off in any other sense, either.

In 2015, the last time “Palestinians” rioted over the Temple Mount, a small group of pious Jews had attempted to pray on the Mount.

That activity is forbidden to anyone except Arabs, by the diktat of the Waqf.

But this writer would like these spurious “authorities” to know that he has many times offered prayers to our heavenly Father from the Temple platform – even from inside the Dome of the Rock AND Al-Aksa  Mosque – not because they are “holy” places, but because there was a quiet atmosphere conducive to Prayer for The Peace of Jerusalem.

But these were “stealth” prayers!

You see, in the Arab mind, one must place his forehead solidly on a prayer rug and elevate his hind parts into the air in order to pray, all the while listening to a leader who intones a standard, written invocation of hatred and vilification of Jews and “Christians.”

We are reminded that this is the posture assumed by the ancient idolaters of the Land when Israel and Judah were seduced to “worship” as their neighbors did.

Well, their vendetta of revenge and retribution against their enemies has failed the PA and its ilk badly.

Instead of Jews dying, most fatalities have been among the Arabs!

It has been ever thus, since the Great Aliyah of the late 1800s.  Ynet News of Israel recently reported that, “even in the great Arab revolt of the 1930s, the Brits were the main target. Some 200 Brits, 400 Jews, and 5,000 Arabs were killed” in that series of conflicts!

That source also pointed out that “most of the Arabs murdered during the revolt were victims of a bloody war between rival Arab factions, and the mufti and his supporters were responsible for most of the acts of murder!”

The dispatch related further, that “In recent decades the Muslims have mainly been massacring themselves. From 2002 to 2016, 202,697 people were murdered in acts of terror, the absolute majority of whom were Muslim, in Muslim countries or in Muslim population centers.”

We recognize that this too is a sure indicator of the end time – that time in which the LORD’s Cup of Fury would be taken from Israel and given to their enemies to drink.

Three references are pertinent to this intentional shift of fury by YHVH ...

Isaiah 51:17 - Awake, awake, stand up, O Jerusalem, which hast drunk at the hand of the LORD the cup of his fury; thou hast drunken the dregs of the cup of trembling, and wrung them out. (Note the past tense, to become effective at a certain time in the future to Isaiah’s day.)

Isaiah 51:22 - Thus saith thy Lord the LORD, and thy God that pleadeth the cause of his people, Behold, I have taken out of thine hand the cup of trembling, even the dregs of the cup of my fury; thou shalt no more drink it again: (Note carefully that Israel shall NO MORE drink it again! But that someone else shall now take the Cup and drink it.)

Jeremiah 25:15 - For thus saith the LORD God of Israel unto me; Take the wine cup of this fury at my hand, and cause all the nations, to whom I send thee, to drink it. (Note the shift of emphasis to the LORD’s – and Israel’s – enemies, which should begin with the “nations round about” Israel of today – after Israel has begun to regather.)

Such is the judgment and justice of the LORD on behalf of His People – Praise Be to His holy Name!       

  <HEL 7Q> ~950 words. An eTPL28  Circular Letter. Posted July 28, 2017.

 The Rock of Ages

An eTPL28 Analysis

A vital bit of input from an insightful reader, for which we thank her...

Thank you once again Bro. Harold, I have been wondering whether 'The Dome of The Rock' could in fact be 'The Burdensome Stone' of Zechariah 12, and the thing that brings everything to a head, a sort of 'play on words,' or has this been fulfilled?

I guess Jerusalem has been 'a burdensome stone' for a very long time.

Yours in gratitude, __________

Methinks this is a wonderfully incisive observation, because, Yes, Jerusalem the City is a major point of controversy, being desired so fervently by the “Palestinians” for their headquarters, and capital of a “Palestinian” state, but the de facto capitol (eternally) of Israel, God’s people.

 But this wonderful play on words had never occurred to us!

After all, in considering the hullabaloo over Jerusalem the city, the REAL controversy is over Temple Mount, the centerpiece of which is the Rock of God, that most holy place where God chose to place His name and His house ages ago, supporting the very presence of the Ark of God among men – and the Shekinah which hovered above the mercy seat made of pure gold between the outstretched wings of cherubim!

In our modern world, we don’t tend to place much significance on any “place” as being “holy,” because we realize that prayer can be offered in any locale and under nearly any circumstance ... “that every place is hallowed ground,” as we often sing.

But the Rock of God has so many implications and convolutions in the scriptures that we cannot dismiss its supreme importance in our Father’s eyes.

Our opinion is that the prophecy under discussion is now being fulfilled before our eyes.

His Rock has been desecrated for millennia by pagan structures, garbage and waste, once being plowed and salted by the Romans. The story is poetically told in the great alliterative poem, “The Siege of Jerusalem,” by an anonymous poet in the fifteenth century, in classical Middle English; the 1295th stanza of which reads ...

And whan the Temple was overtilt,    Tytus commaundys

In plowes to putte    and alle the place erye;

Suth they sow hit with salt,    and seiden this wordes:

"Now is this stalwourthe stede    distroied forevere."

“Distroied forevere?”

Not at all! No such temporal damage could accomplish this end – just as the days are numbered for the Dome of the Rock with its sumptuous golden dome.

The controversy over this Rock will soon be resolved; its terminal destiny is under no question whatever.

One need have no fear for the City or its People, for does not the prophecy also promise, that ... In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem?  Zechariah 12:8 

There is to be NO victory in future time for any aggressors of God’s City – neither from the nations round about, or from the mighty Gogian host!

And in the finality, the faithful of God shall faithfully and joyfully shout ...

Psalm 62:5 - My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him. 6 He only is my Rock and my Salvation: he is my Defence; I shall not be moved. 7 In God is my Salvation and my Glory: the Rock of my strength, and my Refuge, is in God.

        <HEL7Q> ~500 words. An eTPL28 Analysis  Posted July 29, 2017.

 Observing Tisha B’Av

An eTPL28 Analysis

Tisha B’Av ... the ninth day of the month, Av. 

Today is observed as a moed (festival, or observance) of mourning by the Jews. Today brings to a close the three weeks of mourning for the destruction of the Temples of Israel on this identical day on two separate occasions.

But the day is additionally marked by tragedy and misfortune for God’s people. It occurred to us that readers might find the facts below quite interesting ...

Other adverse occurrences on this same day have been ...

1313 BC      The spies returned from their reconnoiter of the land of Canaan with an evil report, dissuading the People from invading the land at that moment. Only Joshua and Caleb disagreed, and were allowed to live through the coming period of 40 years’ wandering in the wilderness.

423 BC        The first Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed by Babylon, by burring.

70 AD          The second Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans, by burning. The onset of suffering of the Jews has not relented since that time – until their reestablishment as a nation in 1937-48 AD.

133 AD        The Bar Kochba revolt against the Romans ended on this day by defeat.

134 AD        The Temple mount was plowed on this date.

1280 AD      The Jews of England were expelled.

1492 AD      The Jews of Spain were expelled and banished.

1914 AD      On Tisha B’Av, the Germans declared war on Russia as the beginning of a great 30-year world conflict that ended only in ...

1945  AD     On Tisha B’Av, WW II officially ended. It was a two-part conflict which ended in the greatest, most concentrated persecution of any ethnic group in history – the Jews of the Shoah of Nazi Europe – and resulted directly in the establishment of the State of Israel only three years later!

This remarkable sequence of events is an example of the pinpointed relevance to God’s signatory people, His “witnesses,” the Jews and their history. How can one not see the extreme relevance of this terrible anniversary? Is it not a day marked by the Almighty for disaster that would befall His people?

The Jews’ observance of Tisha B’Av is remarkable, also.

·       They fast for 25 hours, beginning this evening at 6pm in their respective time zones around the world. They neither eat nor drink.

·       Nor wear leather footwear

·       Nor bathe or wash ourselves (washing only until the knuckle when mandated by halachah)

·       Nor apply ointments or creams

·       Nor engage in marital relations or any form of intimacy

·       Nor sit on a normal-height chair until chatzot (the time when the sun has reached its apex)

·       Nor study Torah (except for the “sad” parts that deal with the destruction of the Temples, etc.)

·       Nor send gifts, or even greet one another (you may respond to greetings)

·       Nor engage in outings, trips or similar pleasurable activities

·       Nor wear fine, festive clothing

All these activities are avoided because they give joy – and this is not a time for joy or gladness.

So how do the people conduct themselves on this important day?

We quote from a web site which gives these details ...

·       “Starting from midday on 8 Av, we limit our Torah study to the few allowed topics that are of a ‘sad’ nature or pertain to the Temples’ destruction.

·       “We eat a square meal in the afternoon, before Minchah services. Then, late in the afternoon, a “separation meal,” seudah hamafseket, is eaten. It consists of bread and a hard-boiled egg dipped in ashes, accompanied by water. This meal is eaten alone, sitting on a low stool.

·       “The meal must be over by sundown when all the laws of Tisha B’Av take effect.

·       “Tisha B’Av evening services are held in the synagogue, where the ark [containing the Torah scrolls] has been stripped of its decorative curtain and the lights dimmed. Evening prayers are followed by the chanting of Eichah (Lamentations).

·       “Morning prayers are held without tallit and tefillin, since both are considered adornments. Most of the morning is occupied by the reading of Kinot, elegies marking the various tragedies that befell our people.

·       “Work is permitted on Tisha B’Av, but discouraged. On this day, one’s focus should be on mourning and repentance. If one must work, it is preferable to begin after midday.

·       “It is customary to give extra charity on Tisha B’Av, as on every fast day.

·       “After midday, it is permissible to sit on chairs, and tallit and tefillin are worn during the afternoon prayer. In the synagogue, the ark’s curtain is restored to its place before the afternoon prayers.

·       “Many communities have the custom to clean the house and wash the floors after midday, in anticipation of the Redemption, which we await.”

Activities after the fast are also important ...

·       “When night falls, before breaking the fast, one should perform netilat yadayim (hand-washing), this time covering the entire hand with water, but without reciting the blessing. It is also customary to perform Kiddush Levanah at this point, celebrating the rebirth of the moon, and our hoped-for national rebirth.

·       “The Temple was set ablaze on the afternoon of the 9th of Av, and it burned through the 10th. Therefore, the restrictions of the Nine Days (such as not eating meat, swimming or laundering clothing) extend until midday of the 10th of Av.”

Even though the sadness and contrition that envelops this festival is pervasive, the website continues ... “Even as we mourn, there is an element of joy and comfort. Indeed, the reading of Eichah concludes with the verse ‘Restore us to You, O L‑rd, that we may be restored! Renew our days as of old.’ There is also a custom among many to use flimsy paperback Kinot booklets, hoping that they will not be needed next year. It is by no accident that Scripture refers to this day as a mo’ed, a holiday, and Tachanun (prayer of repentance) is not said today. May the time soon come when we look back with the clarity of hindsight to see how all our suffering were but a prelude to happiness and goodness, with the coming of Moshiach. Amen!”

 It is significant that this entire observance ends with the sentiment expressed in these last lines: it is the core wish of the faithfully observant Jews in Israel – and we believe it will be these who will first accept the identity of their returned Moshiach (Messiah) when He reveals Himself to His People through His great deeds of valor – saving them from their enemies and those who hate them (Luke 1: 71).

   <HEL 7Q> ~1100 words. An eTPL28 Analysis   Published August 1 (Tisha B’AV)  2017.  

A Possible Retardant to U.S. Intervention for Israel

In its Coming Conflicts

An eTPL28 Analysis 

In His initial conflicts with Israel’s enemies, the LORD Jesus, in Isaiah 63, states, “I have trodden the winepress alone, and of the people (nations) there was none with Me.” In contradiction to our earlier beliefs, we now believe that He is in this instance referring to the lack of assistance (at first) from His own people. Israel’s involvement is not to be expected, it would seem because they know not that He is about to intervene on their behalf.

Other prophets, however, do indicate the involvement of Israel Defense Forces in perhaps later phases of this war with those “round about” Israel.

For example, Obadiah 1: 18-21 indicates the deep involvement of Israel’s forces in phases of that same initial conflict – with Edom, specifically, the capital of which was ancient Bozrah (Isaiah 63:1).

Our feeling is that, even though Israeli observers do not recognize the Intruder of Edom in this instance recorded by Isaiah, they quickly “get” the picture and join in with their newly-found Ally, and assist in the completion of Edom’s destruction.

The entirety of Ezekiel 35 seems to involve the military forces of Israel along with Christ and the Redeemed Saints Who accompany Him (cf., Psalm 149:9 - To execute upon them the judgment written: this honour have all his saints) as those same nations are defeated.

Zechariah 12: 6 certainly indicates the heavy investment of Jewish forces in this conflict, as well.

However, the lack of assistance from other powers who now may be allies of Israel – such as the United States – will also be notable.

Our contention is that NO other national power shall be in league with Israel in this initial series of conflicts (the “Valley of Jehoshaphat” war); neither shall they be allied against the later notable enemy of Israel, the Gogian host.

Now, we realize that this is not the “received interpretation” of this later affair. Current publications and websites both tout the supposed resistance of Sheba, Dedan, and the “merchants of Tarshish,” claimed to include not only Britain but also her “young lions,” including the United States, as resistant to the Gogian host – solely because of the inquiry made by these powers as recorded in Ezekiel 38: 13, q.v..

It is an inquiry to which Gog never even offers a recorded answer, presumably because of its imminent utter destruction in perhaps one day!

Indeed, one proponent of this theory of massive Western alliance in support of Israel in the “battle of Armageddon,” as it is phrased by him, claims that the U. S. and Saudi Arabia (presumably the fraction indicated by Sheba and Dedan?), will support Israel and stand with her to attack the forces which are assaulting Israel in a later battle, which they (mistakenly, in our opinion) refer to as “Armageddon.”

Those forces consist of “all nations” (cf., Zechariah 14: 2) it is claimed, and include the United Nations Organization – that is, in their mind, all the nations of the world.

But the qualifier found in Zechariah 14: 12, is ignored, which specifies those enemies ONLY to be “all the nations that have fought against Jerusalem,” which excludes at this stage of fulfillment, any others beyond those Islamic enemies between the Nile and the Euphrates rivers, His arena of first concern, and the subject of His first mission of conquest among the nations of the earth.

Those nations are the precise nations that are so carefully and plainly cataloged in Psalm 83 – the text of which is a summary descriptor of all these final, scattered conflicts of Christ and Israel with the long-term Islamic insurgents of the Land.

All these are doomed to destruction.

The word “Armageddon” is tossed about with abandon by many of its exponents, including Hollywood filmmakers and the writers of “thrillers” depicting the perilous times which doubtless lie ahead.

Our conviction is that the actual event of “Armageddon” is conducted in Europe primarily, and describes the conflict of Christ’s Kingdom forces with the Beast, the Harlot and the False Prophet standing up in the West, as depicted in Revelation 16, the only instance where the word “Armageddon” is mentioned (verse 16).

The “Picture” Today

But the picture today is much different to the scriptural depiction.

Donald J. Trump, the president of the United States, has vowed to “have Israel’s back” in any and every conflict that she may encounter. It is a solid affirmation of the current friendship between Israel and the USA. We don’t believe this heartfelt feeling of affinity for Israel shall abate in the near term.

So why would the USA not come to the aid of Israel in its battles both with the proximate Islamic entities as well as the Gogian host? 

That has been our fervent concern ...

We believe that some drastic event must occur in the United States to quench its interest and/or ability to support Israel, or else that some drastic event must occur which makes it impossible for the US to support and try to intervene on Israel’s behalf.

What could that event be?

In a conference with other students of God’s word who also have wondered about this lack of support of Israel by the US, a notable historical possibility has been recognized which bears on this factor; it has arisen just in the recent past – indeed, within this current year.

That factor is the sudden emergence of North Korea (NOKO) upon the international stage along with its bitter threats against the USA – all for no seemingly rational reason.

Kim Jung Un, the feisty, stout young leader of the North Koreans, has recently made irrational threats against the US for no good reason – good, that is, to the western mind. It seems odd to our thinking ...

But Kim does not possess a rational mind; his thought processes are completely irrational. He feels a strong need to be “loved” and adored by his countrymen (we believe most of them hate him!) and to be seen as standing for their “rights” and interests in world affairs.

He seems to have manufactured this sudden confrontation with the American president in order to make himself look good to his countrymen and to get his way with the rest of the world in his effort to develop ICBMs along with bombs for them to deliver at long distances.

 He seems to look upon the American president today with the same eyes as the former president was seen – indecisive, wishy-washy, undetermined to do much of anything.

Kim just lately has threatened to fire four rockets at the US Territory of Guam, which lies several hundred kilometers southeast of North Korea, in the vast expanses of the Pacific Ocean.

It would be a notable demonstration of his “power” in the face of comparative (to the US) weakness. The scriptures tell us that in the end time some of the weaker nations shall claim strength (“let the weak say, I am strong;” Joel 3: 10).

He has vowed to do this “around the middle of August” and today is August 14th.

Kim’s childish nature is such that he cannot suffer any “loss of face.” His culture is the same as China and Japan in this regard.

If he promises to do something, he is practically bound to do as he has promised. It is not a matter of honesty, but a matter of “face.”

To do otherwise would bring shame upon him and his people, showing him to be a coward, in effect.

It is a result which he would be loath to experience – even, we believe, to the point of doing something irrational to show his own courage and determination against a perceived enemy – the US.

To this point, the US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has sent messages to Kim that the US is not his enemy; that this country holds no animosity toward the North Koreans.

Tillerson has stated that he believes that negotiations with the NOKOs will bring relief of the tensions.

But we wonder.

Some see NOKO as a mere gnat in the ointment – a thing of no consequence whatever.

But we wonder ...

Could it be that the North Koreans will do some irrational act to bring the US to its knees? To compel the US to ignore Israel when her time of confrontation with the nations round about her comes?

What could the Koreans do?

Well ... Kim could follow through on his promise to lay four missiles in the quadrants around Guam, for one thing. This would illustrate his capability of lofting long range rockets and guide them to their desired destinations.

And it would prove that he is a man of his word – a leader not to be toyed with ...

What effect might this have on the US administration of Donald Trump?

Donald Trump, as everyone perceives, likewise has a “thin skin” when he is criticized, or when he is contradicted – or “crossed.” He tweets messages in response merely to snide remarks by his critics.

Last week Mr. Trump publicly promised Kim Jung Un on national television, that if North Korea continues on its present course of conduct, that it will suffer a severe repercussion from the US, “the likes of which the world had never seen.”

A pretty serious rebuttal, isn’t it?

Barack Obama drew a “red line in the sand” in Syria, as to its use of chemical weapons, then did nothing when Bashar al-Assad used them repeatedly on his own people.

That is not what Donald Trump is inclined to do. We believe that he would retaliate – rapidly and with force.

But he is not insane, either. He would not, we opine, purposely destroy a large segment of the Korean population with a nuclear weapon.

But he might lob an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) bomb over the Korean peninsula and detonate it at a low altitude so as to limit its effects upon the people below.

As most readers will remember, an EMP does not kill or maim any people or animals; it does not destroy buildings. It causes no “radiation sickness” whatever.

But it produces powerful gamma rays which travel in line-of-sight pathways in every direction, “frying” all electronic equipment, including all computers and Internet related electronics – all implements utilizing microchips and central processing units.

It disables all power grids from high-voltage transmission lines down to local distribution systems to residential electricity essentials.

It disables all automobiles which are operated by computers (nearly all vehicles since about 1988 (?), or thereabouts).

It disables all electronic gadgets such as cell phones, personal computers, appliances, and other equipment such as heavy equipment used for construction, motorcycles, railways, sanitation systems, sewer treatment facilities, hydroelectric generators, water distribution systems – anything and everything which is operated by cybernetics, including NOKO’s nuclear research laboratories (unless Kim has shielded these in preparation for such an attack).

Power stations and electricity grids would go dark instantly.

People would have to find wells from which to draw their potable water and water for livestock. They would have to haul building materials in wheelbarrows. They would be compelled to walk everywhere they needed to travel. The donkey of yesteryear would become the vehicle of choice!

They would instantly find themselves back in the Stone Age!

One well-placed pulse bomb over Pyongyang would do damage to NOKO that would take months for any recovery whatever.

It would be a welcome respite from its leader’s braggadocio and pomposity.

But he would recover from the damage.

And again, due to his need to regain “face” with his people and with the world, he would then probably do something unheard of since 1945.

We believe he is so full of compulsion to save face that he might carry out another of his threats upon the US – that is, he might attempt to destroy a large American city by nuclear means.

And if the TwinTowers attacks of 2001 set the US back five or ten years, just try to visualize the effect of a nuclear attack upon Silicon Valley (San Francisco), or San Diego (the principal naval base on the West Coast), or Seattle (the home of Starbucks ... oh, of Microsoft and Boeing Aircraft).

In such a case, the US would take its eyes off all international affairs to concentrate on its own recovery.

It is rational that this may be the means by which the US is retarded from any avowed support of Israel in its time of crisis.

Does this rationalization make sense?

It does to us ... but it may not to you.

But the rather sudden emergence of this Eastern Threat from NOKO – a weak nation, relatively speaking – and the loudmouthed threats breathed by its odd little dictator – is a likely example of how our Father could bring about the orderly fulfillment of His predictions about the lack of any support for Israel in its end time wars with its dire enemies.

 <HEL 7Q> ~2050 words. An eTPL28 Analysis Published August 14, 2017.

 Catastrophic Storms of Today

Texas and Florida Hurricanes

An eTPL28 Analysis

The US is being brought to a standstill in certain areas of endeavor by the severe storms which have impacted the continent during the last two weeks and the approaching Hurricane Irma.

Hurricane Harvey that struck south Texas last week did more damage than any storm has ever done to the continental US. Its cost is estimated to be up to 200 billion dollars. It has killed nearly fifty people. It has destroyed literally hundreds of thousands of automobiles, thousands of homes, businesses, parklands, and government properties. National oil refining capacity has been reduced by about 30 percent, causing a sharp spike in gasoline and diesel fuel prices. Hundreds of thousands of persons have been displaced perhaps for months (years?). It has disrupted travel in all the areas affected by it. Many victims have lost all their personal possessions.

In praising God, the psalmist addresses those who go down to the sea in ships, that they observe at close hand the wonders of our God: Psalm 107:25 For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof. 26  They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble. He concludes that ... These see the works of the LORD, and his wonders in the deep. Psa 107:24.

Doubtless, because of its unusual severity, we believe that this storm, Harvey, was a “work of the LORD.”

And so is Hurricane Irma, now bearing down upon Florida, where it is expected to do more damage than any previous hurricane impacting that state. It is the strongest storm ever known to have been incubated in the Atlantic Ocean – a Category 5 by meteorological estimate, with winds presently of 185 miles per hour, and gusts to 225 mph. Its high wind zone is 125 miles wide around the eye of the storm!

These two storms have and will reduce severely the survivability of local businesses and services. The governor of Florida has recommended that all persons evacuate the area of South Florida as soon as possible. If everyone waits until the last minute, the roads will be clogged beyond usability.

We wonder what has triggered these storms in the divine context.

We can think of several possibilities...all of which have been developing for the last several years.

Perhaps it is the cumulative result of the present allowability of elective infant abortion – nearly all instances of which are rationally definable as murder of these tiny victims before they have any opportunity at viability. Regardless of the views of liberals, the rampant abortion of infants is genocidal – a critical disruption of the human reproductive process which was established and mandated by our heavenly Father, and a clear violation of infant rights.

Could it be because of the recent allowance of “same sex marriages,” and the tolerance of all forms of GLBTQ activities – all now jealously protected by law in the USA? These sinful activities have been the downfall of entire population centers in past time; the Father’s standards have not changed.

Could it be because of the general prevalence of violence in US society? We think of the high number of homicides in various population centers such as Chicago, notably, but other centers are heavily involved in this sort of criminal activity as well. Our Father once destroyed the entire population of the earth because of the prevalent violence of the people (Noah’s flood).

Irma is at this moment pounding the US Territory of Puerto Rico, and by the best models of probability, will move over south Florida on the coming weekend.

 The prices of orange juice and grapefruit juice is spiking as we write – both produced by the sandy loams of Florida in great abundance, and in danger of great damage from the storm.

Water shortages in stores are prevalent.

Foodstocks are disappearing from grocery store shelves as restocking is expected to be compromised.

Gasoline prices in our area of Maryland have spiked from $2.37 per gallon of gasoline to around $2.79 per gallon.

Lowes and Home Depot just announced that they have sent 700 loads of replacement supplies southward to Florida and the Gulf States, Georgia and the Carolinas.

As the storm makes its US landfall, its strength is expected to lessen to a Cat 3 storm, but the probability of great damage and disruption is still very high. Doubtless, many lives will be lost in Florida and the southeastern US – and much physical property destroyed. The additional costs will soar to impossibly high levels.

And with some disappointment, weather observers report that yet another storm named Jose is even now building in the Mid-Atlantic region west of Africa – the incubator of nearly all North Atlantic hurricanes as far as we know. There are as yet no estimates of the strength of this storm as it moves westward in the well-worn path of such disturbances, toward its destined landfall (unless it is deflected northward into the offshore waters of the East Coast prior to hitting land).

All the above indicate events beyond the control of humanity – and nearly impossible for the race to combat on any terms.

We are victims, plain and simple.

But the “message” from on high seems to be being ignored by many. The levels of defiance (“We will rebuild; we will remain; we will continue as we have until now”) is palpable. There is resignation to the damaging effects, but little evidence of the sheer humility that would be more appropriate – nor more importantly, a change of direction in such matters as those above noted.

We see these physical events – along with several other events of an international character – as a reflection of men’s hearts failing them for fear of those things coming upon the earth.

There is new discussion of the possibility of an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) bomb being detonated above the USA by North Korea, and the catastrophic results which this would bring, including the melt-down of nuclear electricity reactors which could no longer be cooled due to the lack of water-pumping abilities by the utility companies. Such an attack could reduce a sizeable population to the rudimentary conditions of the 14th century almost instantly! It is an unthinkable possibility.

But its ease of execution is admitted by every authority.

In addition, the US Govenrment has been making preparations for a rapidly rising sea level and a polar shift of the earth for several years unknown to the general population. It means to assure the continuation of vital services in case of such an event.

The cost of such preparations is completely unknown at this time. Authorities are recommending that citizens arrange for their evacuation to the Arkansas/Missouri Ozarks as the safest shelter in such a case!

Meanwhile, our eyes are set upon a different goal – the Second Coming of Jesus Christ to the earth and the reconciliation of all men to Him by a complex process of advancing world domination by Him and His Helpers, the immortalized Saints of that future age.

But first, another event is inevitable: the resurrection and judgment of all the living and dead who are responsible to that event. We believe this event is imminent – and that its impact is that for which we must now prepare ourselves. It is a storm of even greater magnitude than mere hurricanes and stormy winds! Because it has eternal implications rather than mere temporal ones.

We accordingly are looking forward to the upcoming Feast of Trumpets as a critical time. That date is September 21-23 – a mere fifteen days in advance of today. Whether a drastically supernatural event such as the resurrection of the dead will occur on that date we cannot be sure; but we do know that the inspired words of the Apostle Paul in I Corinthians, where he wrote: Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 1Corinthians 15: 51, 52

In our humble understanding, these words are a certain connector to the Jewish Feast of Trumpets – the next physical event which is expected to be fulfilled by the personal interaction of the LORD Jesus Christ.  

    <HEL 9Q> ~1400 words. An eTPL28 Analysis  Published Sept. 6, 2017

The Sea and the Waves Roaring

An eTPL28 Editorial

In living memory the world has never been as disturbed as it is at this moment. The warnings of our LORD as recorded in the words of Luke are: And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; Luke 21:25.

We have lately written of the signs that we are beholding in the heavens; not in the “political heavens,” but in the heavenly bodies festooned in the night skies – and in daytime events resulting in solar and lunar eclipses. One of the most notable of these has been the greatest and most complete display of solar eclipse for over 200 years, the path of which spanned the entire North American continent by the space of about two hours. That event received the attention of people all over the world. Not another such is expected for over 500 years!

But political and social events – as particularized by the last two phrases of Jesus’ words in Luke 21, gain our rapt attention, and give us great concern too.

We can recall no previous time in history when so many varied events of great import have grasped the intensely focused attention of the world in so many different arenas ... both social (civil) and physical events whose destructive power is and has been the worst ever recorded, and the damage from which will require years to repair and funds which are impossible to imagine, not even to mention the loss of human life and the disruption of civil society which they have caused.

The ones we think of offhand, are ...

1.      The most destructive hurricane ever known absolutely destroyed Houston, Texas, and many outlying communities as 23 trillion gallons of rain, along with the devastation of hurricane-force winds, lashed a giant area of Texas last month in Hurricane Harvey. It is estimated to have been the strongest storm in over 1,000 years! It seems to have sprung up suddenly in the humid waters of the Western Caribbean Sea and Eastern Gulf of Mexico.

2.     The most intense hurricane ever to be realized was incubated in the warm waters of the Atlantic Ocean, and has devastated all in its path from the Leeward Islands to this day’s approach to the State of Florida. Hurricane Irma will perhaps cause even more damage in Florida than did Harvey in Texas and Louisiana. The southern tip of Florida expects a storm-surge of up to 15 feet of salt water coming onshore with the devastating force of a nuclear bomb (as to physical destruction). Fifteen million persons lie in its path of greatest intensity.

3.     A third tropical hurricane from the same incubator, designated Jose, is following only days behind, and closely in the same track as Irma, and will doubtless add greatly to the human misery and suffering of Irma, but in addition, may spread further west (or east) and affect additional areas of the country.

4.     The largest wildfire in the history of Los Angeles County occurred two weeks ago, destroying many thousands of acres of forests as well as homes and businesses in that wealthy enclave of southern California.

5.     An earthquake of 8.1 magnitude occurred near Mexico City, Mexico, in which a great swath of property was destroyed and at least 61 lives were lost. It was the most intense in over 100 years.

6.     Bangladesh has suffered a monster typhoon and is literally covered with water. Many lives have been lost; poverty stricken natives have lost all their meager private property. Human suffering is beyond estimation.

7.      Some of the nations of Europe are feeling the pain of their liberal immigration policies as the “refugees” from Africa and the Middle East make their way in great numbers to the continent. They bring with them their own standards of conduct – often much lower than the societies in which they settle, along with their “religion” of Islam – and a dependence upon public support that is unsustainable in countries such as Sweden, Germany, France and Belgium. The crime rate that has risen with their numbers is directly proportionate to the degree of immigration. Women are raped by men “of southern appearance” and otherwise harassed especially in Germany, Sweden and France.

8.     The physical combat of “militants” in various countries of the Middle East continues unabated. Shia and Sunni Moslems continue their murderous ways, resulting in the deaths of many thousands of each monthly, as each vies for superiority over the other.

9.     The animosity of “Palestinians” toward Israelis persists as strongly as ever despite decades of “peace talks” between the two parties.

10.  Resistance to Israelis living in the “West Bank” territories persists, yet over a million Moslems live freely and unresented among the Israelis.

11.   The BDS (boycott, divestment and sanctions) of Israeli goods made in the “West Bank” and even extending to all Israeli exports, continues, contrary to international norms of decency.

12.   Hamas continues to construct terror tunnels under Israeli border with Gaza, hoping to use these to infiltrate and terrorize the civil population of areas proximate to Gaza.

13.   Israel is now constructing a wall along its border with Gaza – a structure which goes deep into the ground (to prevent tunneling) and high into the air (to prevent breaches of the wall) as protection from Hamas.

14.   Hezbollah in Lebanon continues its savage threats toward Israel as it continues to construct missile bases and other offensive facilities in South Lebanon.

15.   Although ISIS is being routed from Syria at the moment, it has now spread to more than 30 countries as a metastatic cancer. It continues to attract recruits from all the earth.

16.   Iran continues to infiltrate Syria, striving to inject its power with the aim of establishing a Shi’ite corridor from Tehran to Damascus, threatening the security of Israel as it does so.

17.   Russian forces are establishing operations in the Golan Heights near the frontier with Israel in spite of face-to-face talks of Bibi Netanyahu with Vlad Putin in the Russian president’s summer residence in Sochi, located in the Caucasian Riviera, in Russia.

18.  Iran continues to develop its nuclear weapons even in light of an agreement with the West they it would suppress those efforts for several years.

19.   Iran continues inexplicably to threaten Israel with nuclear annihilation despite the lack of animosity toward Iran from Israel.

20.  North Korea continues unabated in its nuclear research into ICBMs and appropriately miniaturized nuclear warheads for these, in spite of promises for over 20 years that they would halt such ambitions.

21.   North Korea is under the control of a psychopathic killer, who inexplicably threatens to attack the United States (Guam and Hawaii) and its treaty partners in the Pacific (such as Japan and South Korea). Kim Jung Un acts as if he is often under the influence of cocaine, stupidly smiling and waving to his subjects while he examines supposed nuclear devices and watches missile “tests.” The extent of his reckless behavior and daring is unknowable and therefore unpredictable by any measure of normalcy. It is entirely possible (probable?) that he may soon attack the US with an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) bomb, which would suddenly degrade the ability of the US economy to function normally for decades.

22.  The national debt of the US continues to grow out of control. The amount of debt is now perhaps beyond the country’s ability ever to pay back.

23.  In addition, the US population is as near to civil war as we have ever perceived. The deep hatred by the “left,” of President Trump, is incalculable, and its continuing protests of his policies unabated. The slightest provocation – or civil disruption – could cause overt street fighting and widespread anarchy in the country.

24.  The sheer insanity of such movements as “Black Lives Matter,” and their incongruity – their inappropriate relevance to such events as those recently seen in Ferguson, Missouri – defy understanding, as does its widespread acceptance.

25.  The persistence of the global warming movement is astonishing. Upon further investigation we have found that the “powers that be” are expecting the long-standing polar arrangement of the earth suddenly to be disrupted at some indeterminate time, and therefore for the climatology and the topography of the earth to change drastically. The government has been silently planning its options since about 1964, we are told, and has recommended that the safest haven after the expected shift of the poles will be – ready? – the Arkansas Missouri Ozarks.

Conclusion:

     We view the foregoing uncertainties and trials as precursor to the Second Advent of the LORD Jesus Christ from the heavens. It is not a known or popular view with most of the world’s peoples. And millions more have an awareness of it but a markedly distorted understanding of what the Bible tells Believers is now imminent.

The true words of prophecy are that,

1.      The last trump shall sound – I Thessalonians 4:15-17.

2.     The responsible dead shall arise, and

3.     The responsible living shall be assembled with them;

4.     All these shall be gathered to a secret place of judgment in the atmosphere (on the earth);

5.     Those found unacceptable to Him at that time will be turned away;

6.     While those found acceptable will be immortalized and clothed with white garments;

7.      They are then united to Him and made one with Him;

8.     Together, this “one Man” will appear in Israel to fight for His people (Isaiah 63; Psalm 83; Obadiah; Isaiah 11; Ezekiel 35-37; Micah 5, etc.).

9.     They, along with the Israel Defense Forces (also fighting their opponents in the Land, prior to the state’s recognition of Jesus as Messiah), will devastate and remove all Islamic opposition (the nations round about Israel);

10.  Thus thoroughly freeing the land of “the Canaanite” – Zechariah 14: 21.

11.   Jesus and the Saints will come to the Mount of Olives;

12.   The great earthquake will occur at that time – Zechariah 14: 4;

13.   Jesus shall reveal His wounds (Zechariah 12 and 13) to Israel,

14.   And be accepted wholeheartedly as their long-expected Messiah.

15.   He shall begin the development of His kingdom, including these events:

16.   He shall ascend the throne of David in Mt. Zion.

17.   He shall make an everlasting new covenant with Israel His people.

18.  He shall begin to recall His remaining Tribal brethren from all the earth,

19.   And resettle them in their tribal enclaves (Ezekiel 40 – 48);

20.  He shall disarm Israel completely – Zechariah 9:10;

21.   And remove all military outposts, all physical barriers (e.g., the Wall) – Ezekiel 38, 8, 11, 14;

22.  And establish domestic tranquility (peace and safety) between the Nile and the Euphrates (the primary Abrahamic land grant of Genesis 12, et seq).

23.  He shall return a pure language (a single language) to the people (we opine that it will be Hebrew, as today – Zephaniah 3:9).

24.  He will begin to construct the Temple of the Millennium on Temple Mount, replacing the Dome of the Rock and Mosque al-Aqsa, which shall have been demolished.

25.  And initiate all other ancillary procedures of the infrastructure and administration of the Mustard-Seed Kingdom of God on the earth.

Our considered opinion is that at that time, the nations of the earth are intensely concentrated upon “the Jewish problem” (as they have been for millennia, anyway!) and shall begin to formulate a method and means by which they may rid this earth of Israel and its naïve King, who has lately appeared literally out of nowhere, and been supremely victorious over His enemies in a blitzkrieg war of extermination.

The Gogian invasion then ensues ... with drastically fatal consequences for Gog and his cohort “in one day.”

The everlasting gospel shall be sent forth to the entire world (Fear God, and give glory to Him ... – Revelation 14:7).

Armageddon results (Revelation 16: 16).

And after those terrifying events, which shall be terminal for all opposing forces to His regency, the gospel shall go forth to all the world, resulting in every man and woman and child upon the earth “knowing Him” and what He requires of them in their existence in His kingdom, which shall persist for a thousand years. At the end of this period, Jesus turns over the perfect Kingdom to His Father.

      <HEL 9Q> ~2100 words. An eTPL28 Editorial  Published September 10, 2017.

 Details of the Second Coming

An eTPL28 Analysis

The last chapter of Daniel tells of sweeping events of the end time – the ultimate outworking of all the previous details which Daniel (and we) are given in that prophet’s writings.

The summary statement of this body of information is given succinctly in the first three verses.

Now, please, we ask that you stick with us in this discussion, because it will become greatly complex before it simplifies in our understanding ...

Daniel writes:

Daniel 12:1  And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.

Dan 12:2  And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.

Dan 12:3  And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.

Historically, the personage named here – Michael – “that great prince which standeth for the children of thy (Daniel’s) people – has been considered to be none other than Jesus Christ Himself, depicted as having come to resurrect the dead, to reward the faithful, and and “turn many to righteousness,” (meaning. then to convert the world to His way).

In context, these words follow immediately upon the defeat and fall of the last King of the North of Daniel 11.

In our extensively considered opinion, the last King of the North was identifiable as the Ottoman Empire which had occupied Jerusalem and Palestine for 400 years, and was defeated (“came to his end with none to help”) by Lord Allenby and the British forces advancing from Egypt in 1917, fulfilling to the very letter the prophecy as it was written in Daniel 11: 40-45, q.v.

There are multiple scriptural reasons for our determination that this “King of the North” is a completely different entity than that with which he has previously been confused: “Gog of the land of Magog,” chief prince of Meshech and Tubal of Ezekiel 38 and 39. We have considered the finer points of comparison between these two powers in an extensive series of articles as already published in eTPL. Please refer to these references by copying and pasting the line below into your browser and searching for it. The series of ten articles should appear immediately and be available at our web site for your study ...

1.                 10 Gog as Distinct from the King of the North (1)

However, although important to this discussion, this is not the main point that we wish to make in this article.

Our discussion here is considered to be the time in historical outworking indicated by Daniel.

In considering the historical facts immediately following the defeat of the Ottomans – given that he indeed is the designated “King of the North” of Daniel 11 – there are several extremely important considerations that the diligent student should note.

In the three verses transcribed above, note the underlined phrases, upon which we intend to comment in this article, revising our previously expressed opinion that the verses only apply to the angelic agency by which Israel has been recovered from the nations (resurrected) in the end time ... the running historical record of which has filled the newspapers and TV news broadcasts of the past seventy plus years.

We do believe there are deeper meanings embedded in this prophecy.

By his use of the phrase “at that time,” the prophet was given to understand that the events following the end of the previous chapter (chapter 11) would now take place.

Note that there are several events listed ...

1.     At that time shall Michael stand up, that great prince which standeth for the children of thy (Daniel’s) people.

2.    ... and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time.

3.    ... and at that time thy people shall be delivered,

4.    ... every one that shall be found written in the book.

These seem certainly to be events which have already been fulfilled in this sense ...

The name “Michael” is the name of an archangel – evidently head of an order of our Father’s Agents who are given superior responsibilities – a named leader of a subgroup of such beings who act at his behest. The name literally means “(him) who is like God.”

For this cause, many have claimed that the name is a cryptic name for the returning Lord Jesus Christ, for Who, more than He, is “like God?”

The reasoning is not without logic.

But we ask whether this is the personage which we have perceived to have “stood for Daniel’s people” in the days following the last King of the North – and he who has “delivered” Daniel’s people from their Diaspora?

Taking the events of these verses in the order in which they are presented by the text of Daniel, can it not be conceived that the primary indication of verse one is the nomination of the literal archangel Gabriel (previously named by Daniel twice – and in both instances being obviously the literal angelic Agent of God (not the Lord Jesus Christ)) as being Israel’s deliverer from the nations? ... their literal deliverer ... following the “time of trouble” of which he speaks.

Now, please consider this line of thought:

The admission of this fact does not obviate the later application of the term “Michael” in a symbolic sense as naming the returned Christ Jesus as well – a “secondary fulfillment” of the prophecy on a grander and more significant scale.

Now, notice the significant factor which is immediately named ... a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time.

After 1917, and Palestine’s liberation from the Ottoman Turk, another great war erupted which was to contain, in our opinion, this “time of trouble” of which there has never been an equivalent insult to any people – the concentrated, pervasive, exhaustive, and murderous pursuit of JEWS by the Nazi regime of Adolph Hitler which we know as The Holocaust (The Shoah).

It resulted in the death of six million of God’s people in twelve short years – 1933-1945.

Now notice carefully the next words given Daniel: ... and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.

Notice the close correlation of these grave words with the description given to the same event by YHVH to Daniel: it was a time such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time.

It was an unique time of great persecution which sickened even the war-weary world of that day (1945), and acted as a strong impetus for the election by the UNO to partition “Palestine” of that day, creating an homeland for the Jewish People!

Here again are the words “at that time,” meaning hard upon the end of the last King of the North, or the beginning of the end of the end time.

We believe that those “found written in the book” is a cryptic way of saying that NOT ALL His people would accept His appointed deliverance to their newly formed Land of Israel (1948), but would divert to other portions of the world as “displaced persons.”

The words of another of the Prophets of God – Jeremiah – spoke of the same “time of trouble” in precisely the same context – the time of the end, when Jeremiah writes the words of YHVH: For, lo, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will bring again the captivity of my people Israel and Judah, saith the LORD: and I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it. Jeremiah 30:3.

Of what day is the prophet speaking?

Note well verse seven: Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob's trouble; but he shall be saved out of it.

The Holocaust was without doubt this designated “time of Jacob’s trouble.” And we note with great appreciation that he (Israel) WAS “saved out of it,” in the sense that multitudes of the three million survivors of the European persecution did immediately remove to the Homeland which Michael, without any doubt in our minds whatever, had been instrumental in establishing as one of his appointed duties of the end time Recovery of God’s People from the nations.

We must ask the student ... HAS our Father (thorough the angelic agency of Michael) not returned an huge proportion of His People to their Land after divinely providing for the establishment of the State of Israel?

Half of the known Jews of the entire world now live in Israel!

Without that provided haven, there could have been no significant return of His People to their Land. Their previous occupier – the Ottoman Turks – forbade any significant influx of Jews into its southern Syrian Province of Palestine.

Even their successors – Great Britain – strove to keep the Jewish population down during the Mandatory period.

And without the Shoah, the Jews should not have had the impetus to return to it ... a daunting task for most of the early Jewish settlers of “Palestine” in the early 20th century. Instead, their aim was “assimilation” among the nations.

But our Father would not permit that to happen. His promise was to “return to them” if (and when) they “returned to Him.”

The historical outworking of that arrangement has been that the Jews of the world were destined PHYSICALLY to return to their Land prior to His “returning” to them in a spiritual sense. Malachi 3: 7.

Thusly, in our opinion, our Father “brought again the captivity (the people who were dispersed and captive in other nations) of Israel and Judah to their own land.”

That great boon was consequent upon not only the time of Jacob’s trouble driving them out of Europe, but upon the provision at just the precise time required in His Plan, of a designated homeland for His People! And all of it in our opinion was provided by the angelic agency of Michael, that “great prince” (archangel) who has long stood for Daniel’s people.

Now Daniel’s prophecy moves to the next level of Recovery of ALL His people ... the time of the physical resurrection of the covenanted sleeping ones, and the living who are amenable to His grace.

He now addresses the physical resurrection at the return of the “second” Michael, the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall then bring into effect this portion of His plan.

He speaks of the literally deceased (and “sleeping”) saints which are to be brought again from the death state ... and the resultant Judgment which He shall render upon each of them as they appear before His Judgment Bema as described in other scriptural accounts.

Dan 12:2 And many of them (notice – not “all”) that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. 3 And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.

This summary statement of all Daniel’s previous revelations is here concluded. The prophet now transcribes a series of verses detailing the end time, the details of which have been presented in other papers on this web site – and which we admit that we do not entirely understand clearly at the present time (especially the “thousand three hundred and five and thirty days” of Daniel 12: 12. We shall continue to cogitate upon this mysterious time period.

<HEL 9Q> ~2000 words.  An eTPL28 Analysis Published October 1, 2017.

 The Hand of YHVH in all This

An eTPL28 Analysis

President Donald Trump’s decision to move the US Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem has had major repercussions around the world.

As expected, the Arab world is uniformly critical of the move and strongly resistant to it in every way.

Some nations such as Czechoslovakia and the Philippines have already stated that they are now considering moving their embassies to Jerusalem in the wake of the US initiative. We expect others to follow suit.

Opinions as to the consequences of this move are coming from all quarters with predictions of every sort, from praiseworthy effects to disastrous ones.

But in Jerusalem, an unexpected reaction has surfaced: a few Jewish citizens in key positions are looking ahead to future implications about which we had given little thought.

They see this dramatic move by the US president as precursor to another action closely allied to Bible prophecy: the building of the “Third Temple” on Temple Mount!

Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz, an Israeli commentator, wrote on December 7th, in Breaking Israel News, an article entitled, “Trump’s Jerusalem Declaration ‘Enormous Step Towards Bringing Third Temple.’”

He begins his article with a “stock” photo of the president superposed upon a depiction of the Temple of Solomon, thus relating President Trump with Cyrus of Persia, who championed the return of the exiles to their Land and the rebuilding of their Temple ... 

And he acknowledges that the president’s action on Tuesday, of announcing his decision to move the US embassy to Jerusalem, was guided by Hashem (God), by quoting from the Israel Bible, Proverbs 21: 1, which says ... “Like channeled water is the mind of the king in Hashem’s hand; He directs it to whatever He wishes.” 

Mr. Berkowitz quoted several key workers in the Third Temple Movement in Israel, all of whom recognized the landmark decision as “a major step towards establishing the Third Temple and bringing the Messianic era.”

In this article, we shall see just how far toward the front of the modern Jewish mind is the imminence of the Kingdom age!the 

Mr. Asaf Fried, the official spokesman for the United Temple Movement, an association of organizations working towards making the Third Temple a reality said, “What he (President Trump) did last night was an enormous step in bringing the Temple.”

He added, “This necessarily had to come from a non-Jew in order to bring them into the process, so they will be able to take their part in the [building of the] Temple.”

Additionally, Mr. Fried drew a comparison of Trump’s role to that of Cyrus, King of Persia, who ended the Babylonian exile and helped build the Second Jewish Temple. He cited the verse from Proverbs 21 (stated above) as proof of Hashem’s influence in the hearts and minds of foreign kings when it suits His purpose. He elaborated: “There have been amazing advances towards bringing the Temple this year. It was clear that Trump was part of that process, guided by Hashem (God).”

The article then quoted Yakov Hayman, chairman of the United Temple Movement, who saw Mr. Trump’s action as part of an historical progression joining a large number of major shifts in modern history “for Israel and the Jewish people.” He pointed out that “1917 was (meaning brought) the Balfour Declaration establishing Israel for the nations ... 2017 was Trump’s declaration.”

It was an astonishing comparison, showing that in Mr. Hayman’s estimation, the ultimate evaluation of the announcement elevated the US president’s decision to that of world-changing status.

In further remarks, he opined that it was now “only a matter of time until [other] non-Jews made a similar declaration recognizing the Temple Mount as the site of the Jewish Temples, but noted that, to move forward, it was necessary for foot soldiers in the cause to take the first steps. ‘When Jews and non-Jews go up en masse, the Temple is inevitable.’”

He indicated that all the stages in this process would require a “multifaith effort,” with Jews and non-Jews performing various roles while moving ahead towards a mutual goal.

On this point we must differ sharply with his expressed views, although they are true to accepted humanistic principles.

The Prophet Zechariah speaks in detail of this future time in history and sets as its “type” the elevation of the High Priest of his own time:

Zechariah 6:11 - Then take silver and gold, and make crowns, and set them upon the head of Joshua (Yehoshua, or “Jesus”) the son of Josedech, the high priest; 12 And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD: 13 Even he shall build the temple of the LORD; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne; and he shall be a priest upon his throne: and the counsel of peace shall be between them both.

Thus Zechariah had revealed to him a man of his own time whose elevation portended the future elevation of another, future Man to that same position: the Branch of the LORD.

The words spoken of this Branch inform His people of the future duties of the Man of this office – that HE shall build the literal Temple of the LORD, and bear the (BE the) glory – the Shekinah of that Temple – and be not only king (shall rule upon his throne) but also the high priest (shall be the high priest upon his throne), thus establishing peace (unity in one) between them both.

Mr. Hayman continued with this observation: “The people of Israel are returning to their roots while simultaneously the non-Jews of the world are realizing the authenticity of our claim to the Temple Mount and our right to build a Jewish Temple as a House of Prayer for All Nations.”

Our summary comprehension of these views is that the Jews of Israel today have a much greater comprehension of their place in history – their role in contemporary events – which transcends all previous generations, than we have given them credit for; many of them gratefully realize that this generation is that of the restoration of the Kingdom to Israel, as voiced by the apostles after Jesus’ resurrection –When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? Acts 1:6.

This avid expectation underlines “the Hope of Israel” – that God’s former kingdom of the Hebrew people that gained unity under David, and peace under Solomon, shall be restored – brought back again – and reestablished upon the mountains of Israel forever under that Branch of Righteousness, the Root and Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star, the King of Righteousness, Yeshua Messiah, the Anointed Savior!

<HEL 12Q>   ~1150 words. An eTPL28 Analysis   Published Dec. 10, 2017