Revelation 20 describes the binding of Satan and his exile to the abyss. He was bound so Christ can spoil his “vessels.” He was sent to the place of legless creeping things. He was put under a lid, and will stay there until the final judgment, when he will be released for a short time, so he can be exposed and destroyed. [1]
When it was pointed out to a Southern Baptist pastor at one of those (now quaint) prophecy conferences they still insist on holding, that there were more than ten European nations in the EEC, he replied that however many there may be now, there will be exactly ten when the Antichrist comes to power.
Re The Wrath of Love, Michael Micklow commented:
(Correction - not Michael Shover - Michael got his Michael’s crossed)
“The prophet did not have to remind God, so much as he had to remind himself of the love of God, and to see God’s judgment as the wrath of love.”
What about the dangerous yet successful Mosaic paradigm in Exodus 32:7-14? In this section, the prophet is able to approach, contest and sway God’s wrath (vv. 11-13). In response to Moses’ challenge, the text tells us, “and the Lord changed his mind about the disaster that he planned to bring on his people” (v. 14)…
… And what was the cornerstone of his defense? — the appeal to memory (v. 13). Moses cites the exodus event, and he further appeals to the covenant established with Abraham.
So, we have noted that the New Jerusalem, the crystal city with walls and gates, is pictured by the water crossings of Israel.
“Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the Land.” (Matthew 5:5)
Some more thoughts related to Walking on Water. Please read Joshua 3 before proceeding.
If the New Jerusalem is the fulfilment of the “wall of water” at the Jordan crossing, the Lamb at the centre of the city is the Ark in the middle of the riverbed, surrounded by a human government. [1] If you know your James Jordan, the Ark of the Covenant was an image of the Light that shone on Day 1. The Lamb remains at the centre of the city, surrounded by the firstfruits saints, until the last saint is redeemed and Christ hands the kingdom to the Father.
I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted — you may well put up with it! (2 Corinthians 11:2-4)
Read Fighting Over the Children and The Finger of God before you read this post.
John’s account concerning the woman caught in adultery highlights the satanic nature of legalism. The garden of Eden is not replayed here; rather, it is a sequel. The woman stands in the midst (a phrase that occurs twice). She is the Altar of Incense, the fragrant “army.” The scribes and Pharisees are the false Lampstand, standing in for satan as his body. He is, after all, their father. They bring no male lover to be condemned. She has been enticed and now stands accused. Her sin is one of wandering astray. Their sin is high-handed.
God took on a body, from the dust, in Adam. A trillion particles of inanimate, dead stuff pulled together and organised into the most complex system in the cosmos, an organic machine capable of feats we are yet to discover.
Adam, as Covenant head, also took on a “body.” A Divine Handful of flesh and bone, dead or dying by any human measure, organised into a being more palatial and lavish than any male eye is worthy to behold.
In Envy and the Sons of God, I wrote:
…those with the title “the sons of God” in Job were not angels but priestly, mediatorial men (an observation I have heard from Gary DeMar). Satan envied them, accused them, as he always does. They are Adams in the garden, Covenant heads, and he hates them. Job was a priest-king.
DeMar has also just published an article on Job in the last few days that deals with the crazy angel/human hybrid Nephilim theory, and of necessity covers the identity of the sons of God.
J. Townsend posted a great Luther quote over at the AV forum, one that I really needed to hear today:
“Whenever the devil pesters you, at once seek out the company of friends, drink more, joke and jest, or engage in some form of merriment.”
Alone, we are more vulnerable to his intimidations. And I bet our get-togethers remind him of the party we’ll have at his destruction.
Day 1
So, Adam fouled the first Sabbath. He failed to be Light.
Day 2
Cain made a false exodus (with Abel as the Passover lamb) and went to “worship in the wilderness.” God marked him as a “covering.” Being “barren”, Cain built a city as a covering, but it was just like Adam’s figleaves. It was a phony firmament, a fabricated Covenant, a city built on the wrong sort of blood.
Day 3
His offspring built a counterfeit Tabernacle - in opposition to the worship at the Gate of Eden. This was a false Land, a false mountain, like Mount Gerizim became to the Samaritans. Lamech, as a false Moses, “ascended” not as a Lamb slain, but as an accuser, the incarnation of the serpent. But someone true ascended as Firstfruits: Enoch.
This brings us to Day 4. As in the Garden, and as in Israel’s wilderness, the test was harlotry.
