fearnot
Living With Pain
Posts: 8,385 
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Post by fearnot on Feb 6, 2024 10:14:20 GMT -5
"You who are far away,
hear what I have done;
And you who are near,
acknowledge My might."
Isaiah 33:13
The world will acknowledge his power and might,
this is the result of everyone's awe of God....
even those who are far away,
and have only heard of what God has done.
And here, in the next verse,
the awe and fear is stated more completely.
Sinners in Zion are terrified;
Trembling has seized the godless.
"Who among us can live with the consuming fire?
Who among us can live with everlasting burning?"
Isaiah 33:14
I suppose someone might think,
well what does this ancient history,
of men being afraid, have to do with me?
Are people still sinful and even wicked?
Are they stubborn in their 'intellectual' pride,
not believing in God?
And yet do some call themselves 'spiritual'
or even satanists, and the like?
Perhaps people, in this time frame,
ought to go back,
to what people of the past knew,
reflected on and were terrified of....
and consider, the unquenchable fires of Hell.
Many churches, don't talk about Hell...
They don't wish to be accused of using 'fear tactics',
to scare people into becoming believers.
They rather camp on God's love
God is love...
but He is not one dimensional,
in His character....
He also hates sin and must be just.
He is Holy...
thus Hell for the unbeliever is real.
Done for Today
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Post by Cindy on Feb 7, 2024 12:10:50 GMT -5
 This goes along with what I was thinking about too! After reading so much of what the prophets have said about the Tribulation, I began thinking about all that the Jewish people have been through. First we have all the judgments against them that were carried out during the Old Testament times. We can easily read about those in our Bible. The last one is actually in the NT and is when Rome destroyed most of the towns in Israel and of course Jerusalem and hauled the Jews who managed to survive (barely) off to be slaves.
There's the 1066 Granada massacre which took place in 1066 when a Muslim mob stormed the royal palace in Granada, killed and crucified the Jewish vizier Joseph ibn Naghrela, and massacred much of the Jewish population of the city.
One of the worst anti-Semitic massacres of the Middle Ages took place in York in 1190. The city’s entire Jewish community was trapped by an angry mob inside the tower of York Castle. Many members of the community chose to commit suicide rather than be murdered or forcibly baptised by the attackers.
Jews were commonly used as scapegoats for tragedies and disasters such as in the Black Death Persecutions,
Jewish communities were often blamed for outbreaks of the Black Death in Europe. From 1348-1351, acts of violence were committed in Toulon, Barcelona, Erfurt, Basel, Frankfurt, Strasbourg and elsewhere
The Massacre of 1391 was a display of antisemitism and violence against Jews in Castile and Aragon. It was one of the Middle Ages' worst antisemitic outbreaks. Jews in the Iberian Peninsula at this time were generally disliked, and violence against them was common even until the 15th century. The year 1391, however, marked a peak of anti-Jewish violence. Facing death, many Jews converted en masse to Christianity from 1391 in order to survive.
There was the expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1490. On July 31, 1492 (the 9th of Av that year), practicing Jews living in Spain had to make their final decision: Convert to Christianity or leave the country.
If converted Jews stayed and continued to keep their faith in secret, but were found out by members of the Inquisition or exposed by neighbors, they would be tortured brutally into admitting their “sin” and later be burned, all of which was ordered by the Church. In March 1492, Ferdinand and Isabella instituted the Alhambra Decree, otherwise known as the Edict of Expulsion, which ordered the expulsion of practicing Jews from the country, ranging between 45,000 to 200,000.
However, almost 100 years before, in 1391, over half of Spain’s Jews had converted to Christianity as a result of religious persecution and pogroms. The 1492 Edict of Expulsion was instituted mainly to eliminate the influence of practicing Jews on Spain’s large conversion population and ensure they did not revert to Judaism.
Pogroms in the Russian Empire were large-scale, targeted, and repeated anti-Jewish rioting that began in the 19th century. Pogroms began to occur after Imperial Russia, which previously had very few Jews, acquired territories with large Jewish populations from the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Ottoman Empire from 1772 to 1815.
I was going to post the times they've been thrown out of countries- always done with great violence, but there's so many it's ridiculous! It's literally insane! You can check them out here and I'd bet they don't have all of them listed!
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Expulsions_and_exoduses_of_Jews
Of course we can't help but think of the terrible Holocaust and the torture and murder of six million Jews. Just knowing about some of this, it's amazing to me how people can not ask themselves how one small people group can be hounded and persecuted so violently from the very beginning and still survive! Talk about a miracle! I mean it's a miracle that anyone with any amount of Jewish blood has survived to this day. But that's not all, they have survived as a nation! Only God could do that!
But I'm getting off track. This all has happened to the Jews, and will continue to happen during the Tribulation, (only it will be MUCH worse!) for one reason. They're a punishment for rejecting Jesus when He was here and ever since then, both individually and as a nation.
Let's look at that and see how it might apply to others today. If God will send these judgements against Israel for rejecting Jesus as their Messiah, then how do you think He feels about us Gentiles who have rejected Him? The same way!!! God doesn't play favorites. The Tribulation will be judgement against all the people who have rejected Jesus. But the purpose will be to wake Israel up and give birth to a saved, cleansed, and justified nation of Israel.
So I would hope that if we could somehow show people just how angry God is against the people who have rejected His Son, that they would get down on their knees, repent, plead for mercy, and be saved!
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fearnot
Living With Pain
Posts: 8,385
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Post by fearnot on Feb 8, 2024 18:05:46 GMT -5
Thank you Cindy!!!!!!!
I did not know any of that history!
WOW!!!
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fearnot
Living With Pain
Posts: 8,385
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Post by fearnot on Feb 8, 2024 19:03:01 GMT -5
One who walks righteously and speaks with integrity,
One who rejects unjust gain
And shakes his hands so that they hold no bribe;
One who stops his ears from hearing about bloodshed
And shuts his eyes from looking at evil;
Isaiah 33:15
We see the contrast of those who can be in God's presence,
they will be righteous, honest, free from all manner of corruption,
and they do not promote war, murder etc.
Furthermore, they do everything they can to avoid looking at evil.
That last part, is almost the opposite of many people today.
There are magazines, movies, porn, etc. etc.
that people can't get enough of looking at evil on purpose.
However, it can sometimes be even harder
to avoid seeing evil, when you ARE trying to avoid it.
In some ways it's harder to avoid,
than ever before in history,
because the internet,
does not always have 'high standards'
for Ads, news items, etc.
So without meaning to:
You might see people totally inappropriately dressed,
or should I say, people that are hardly dressed at all,
in compromising situations.
In fact, the skimpier the clothing/outfit,
is often lauded as 'edgy',
high fashion, etc.
Or you may be looking at a news site
and up pops some gay lovers kissing,
or a parade...
of them with next to no clothes on etc. etc.
And this is getting worse ( not better).
Soon one learns to not go to such 'news' sites
but only those that are Christian.
However, such things can pop up on facebook
etc.
And so, there is value in righteousness:
He will dwell on the heights,
His refuge will be the impregnable rock;
His bread will be given him,
His water will be sure.
Isaiah 33:16
They will be safe and secure, away from danger,
and with ample provisions.
The young lions do lack and suffer hunger;
But they who seek the Lord
shall not be in want of any good thing.
Psalms 34:10
This next verse seems to be
a 'near and far' into the future prophecy,
pointing to Christ in the far future:
Your eyes will see the King in His beauty;
They will see a distant land.
Isaiah 33:17
They remember past troubles:
Your heart will meditate on terror:
"Where is one who counts?
Where is one who weighs?
Where is one who counts the towers?"
Isaiah 33:18
Rather,
this is their reality....
they are no longer under the tyranny
of a cruel foreign dictatorship:
You will no longer see a fierce people,
A people of unintelligible speech
which no one comprehends,
Of a stammering tongue
which no one understands.
Isaiah 33:19
Done for Today
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Post by Cindy on Feb 9, 2024 11:34:49 GMT -5
Thank you Cindy!!!!!!!
I did not know any of that history!
WOW!!!
“if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the filthy lives of lawless men (for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)— if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue godly men from trials and to hold the unrighteous for the day of judgment, while continuing their punishment.” (2 Peter 2:6–9)
I'm surprised, I thought for sure you'd know about a lot of it, especially since so much of it "just happened" to happen of the 9 of Av (also called Tisha B'Av)! That's when the the Temple was destroyed each time too!
holocaustremembranceassociation.org/the-ninth-of-av/ Tisha B'Av will occur on the following days of the secular calendar:
Jewish Year 5784: sunset August 12, 2024 - nightfall August 13, 2024
Jewish Year 5785: sunset August 2, 2025 - nightfall August 3, 2025
Jewish Year 5786: sunset July 22, 2026 - nightfall July 23, 2026
Jewish Year 5787: sunset August 11, 2027 - nightfall August 12, 2027
Jewish Year 5788: sunset July 31, 2028 - nightfall August 1, 2028. I doubt if we'll be here by this date, at least I hope we won't! |
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fearnot
Living With Pain
Posts: 8,385
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Post by fearnot on Feb 10, 2024 8:25:29 GMT -5
Me too! I hope we won't be here:
sunset July 31, 2028-nightfall August 1, 2028
(Jewish Year 5788)
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fearnot
Living With Pain
Posts: 8,385
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Post by fearnot on Feb 10, 2024 9:13:44 GMT -5
Look at Zion,
the city of our appointed feasts;
Your eyes will see Jerusalem,
an undisturbed settlement,
A tent which will not be folded;
Its stakes will never be pulled up,
Nor any of its ropes be torn apart.
Isaiah 33:20
Restored Jerusalem during the millennium
will be free from terror and invasions...
people will live in permanent safety.
This can only happen with the reign of Jesus.
But there the majestic One, the LORD,
will be for us
A place of rivers and wide canals
On which no boat with oars will go,
And on which no mighty ship will pass—
Isaiah 33:21
God defends the city from any invasion by water
rivers, canals.
This is because God, the majestic One, is there.
For the LORD is our judge,
The LORD is our lawgiver,
The LORD is our king;
He will save us—
Isaiah 33:22
What a wonderful promise,
God will save us, He is our blessing.
He is the Judge, lawgiver, and our King...
He and He alone,
so we joyfully submit to His authority,
and hear and obey His word.
And the peace of God,
which surpasses all comprehension,
will guard your hearts and your minds
in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:7
Your ship's tackle hangs slack;
It cannot hold the base of its mast firmly,
Nor spread out the sail.
Then the prey of an abundant spoil will be divided;
Those who limp will take the plunder.
Isaiah 33:23
By itself Jerusalem is weak,
but with God it can defend itself
against all invaders.
And here is 2 other wonderful promises:
And no resident will say,
"I am sick";
The people who live there
will be forgiven their wrongdoing.
Isaiah 33:24
They will be free of physical issues/sickness
and better yet,
forgiven of sins ( spiritual sickness).
That our sins are forgiven, by Jesus,
is the best promise ever!
Done for Today
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Post by Cindy on Feb 10, 2024 10:56:22 GMT -5
Amen! Sadly I just started reading Zechariah 11:1–17 which describes God's anger at Israel for rejecting Jesus and the devastation that would start with Rome in 70ad and end with the Tribulation. But the previous chapter was wonderful and about what you spoke about here. 
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Post by oliverwithatwist on Feb 10, 2024 14:50:04 GMT -5
The Jewish people are the most pitiful. They had the most "light", but are the most blind. I pray for them and we gentiles daily.
We (the saved) are one in Christ.
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Post by Cindy on Feb 12, 2024 12:42:43 GMT -5
I agree Oliver, but I've begun to think that we're almost as bad. I often wonder if we had been in their position, would we have recognized Jesus as the Messiah? Yet today, the vast number of people who say they're Christian, don't know His Word (and therefore can't be doers of His Word like we're commanded to be) and many don't even realize that we're anywhere near the end of this age or that there really is something called a "rapture" that really will happen and a horrible judgment that comes after it. Yet Jesus told us what to look for. It sure doesn't seem very many are looking and even fewer are praying like He told us to do. He commanded that we be alert, watch, and pray. But I don't see much of it. I've always said that the pretrib rapture was going to get ridiculed more and more and fewer pastors would teach it. That's certainly been shown to be true. I said that would happen because that's what always happen with the Truth. It's when everyone agrees with us that we need to be wary, not when they don't agree!  My mind is wandering now though, so I'd better get busy and pay the bills!
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Post by oliverwithatwist on Feb 12, 2024 13:11:04 GMT -5
I agree. My Mom (she passed away 2017) said Americans are consumed by greed and the need to be entertained constantly and are spiritually blind.
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Post by Cindy on Feb 13, 2024 11:19:27 GMT -5
I know I didn't say that very well Oliver, and I apologize. My brain just doesn't work as well as it used to. Hopefully it'll get back in shape soon.
I agree Kelly, only I'd say that about most of the world, not just the US. The root of all sins is selfishness, living for self instead of for God. That's why Jesus said we had to deny our self. If we are doing things for us, we're not living for Him and that's a sin. And that convicts every human being alive because we all live for ourselves most of the time. Those of us who are saved a little less than the rest and we're forgiven since we confess our sins. Then just add what I call all the "self sins": self-love,
self-righteousness, self-savior thinking you're the only one who can do the job....
self-centered instead of God centered & others centered;
self-justification (vindicating myself);
self-reliant;
self-indulgent;
self-serving;
self-seeking;
self-interest - putting myself, my needs & wants, before others
self-sufficiency
self-pity
selfishness;
self-realization —My claim to my right to live my life the way I want to.
A few generations ago, every pastor taught that our old nature's capacity was to serve self and the new nature's was to serve God. Then the world started teaching that everyone had to have a good "self esteem" and that if you don't put yourself first you can't help others, etc. and all those self sins eventually became things that people strove for. Satan did a real good job on that one!
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fearnot
Living With Pain
Posts: 8,385
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Post by fearnot on Feb 13, 2024 23:27:02 GMT -5
Excellent as always Cindy ( and Oliver)...thank you both for your insightful words!!!
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fearnot
Living With Pain
Posts: 8,385
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Post by fearnot on Feb 15, 2024 19:01:45 GMT -5
Come near, you nations, to hear; and listen, you peoples!
Let the earth and all it contains hear,
and the world
and all that springs from it.
Isaiah 34:1
God invites the nations to come near and hear His judgments against them.
For the LORD'S anger is against all the nations,
And His wrath against all their armies.
He has utterly destroyed them,
He has turned them over to slaughter.
Isaiah 34:2
It is so certain that it is stated as already done!
This can be a warning,
for those who choose not to believe in God,
and relish their sins, and evil ways,
they ought to know,
that just because God has not struck them down today,
if they do not repent, and rely on the finish work of Jesus,
the day will come,
when they will have to pay for their sins by themselves.
So their slain will be thrown out,
And their corpses will give off their stench,
And the mountains will be drenched with their blood.
Isaiah 34:3
There will not be enough left surviving to bury the dead,
not even from huge armies.
And all the heavenly lights will wear away,
And the sky will be rolled up like a scroll;
All its lights will also wither away
As a leaf withers from the vine,
Or as one withers from the fig tree.
Isaiah 34:4
Well, this sounds like the very end,
in Revelations.
Done for Today
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anna
Trials
Posts: 1,995
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Post by anna on Feb 17, 2024 10:47:24 GMT -5
The idea that this chapter relates to the very end times goes back a long time among Christian teachers. Come near, you nations, to hear; and heed, you people, the stage is set, and scriptures tell about it.
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fearnot
Living With Pain
Posts: 8,385
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Post by fearnot on Feb 19, 2024 14:31:56 GMT -5
Thank you Anna
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fearnot
Living With Pain
Posts: 8,385
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Post by fearnot on Feb 19, 2024 14:59:53 GMT -5
For My sword has drunk its fill in heaven;
Behold it shall descend for judgment upon Edom,
And upon the people whom I have designated for destruction.
Isaiah 34:5
Edom is used as a symbol for all the nations,
that God will execute His judgement.
Don't ever make the mistake,
of thinking, that God is blind
to the evil sins of the world.
None are far from destruction!
If the do not repent,
it will or might,
only seem,
that they might be getting away with it.
The sword of the LORD is filled with blood,
It drips with fat, with the blood of lambs and goats,
With the fat of the kidneys of rams.
For the LORD has a sacrifice in Bozrah,
And a great slaughter in the land of Edom.
Isaiah 34:6
Bozrah a chief city in Edom,
but again represents all ungodly human developments.
The ungodly did not obey God's way of worship and sacrifice,
nor did they repent of their sins,
so, they will become the sacrifice.
and so, also, with this verse :
Wild oxen will also fall with them
And young bulls with strong ones;
So their land will be soaked with blood,
And their dust become greasy with fat
Isa 34:7
God will not spare judgment,
according to man made entitlements like;
age, beauty, rank, etc.
He directs His anger according to truth and justice,
to those who refused mercy.
Done for Today
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fearnot
Living With Pain
Posts: 8,385
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Post by fearnot on Feb 20, 2024 18:56:33 GMT -5
For the LORD has a day of vengeance,
A year of retribution for the cause of Zion.
Isaiah 34:8
There will be a time when God will punish those,
who have had controversy with Zion,
with massive severity.
This will extend to those enemies of the church,
and tho God may delay for a time,
it is certain to come,
in His timing.
Its streams will be turned into pitch,
And its loose earth into brimstone,
And its land will become burning pitch.
Isaiah 34:9
The ungodly nations,
will be brought to the point of
constant volcanic waste.
To emphasis the everlasting and never ending,
of their destruction,
It is stated in absolute detail in this next verse:
It will not be extinguished night or day;
Its smoke will go up forever.
From generation to generation it will be desolate;
None will pass through it forever and ever.
Isaiah 34:10
This reminds me of Sodom and Gomorrah.
Done for Today
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Post by Cindy on Feb 21, 2024 13:36:32 GMT -5
Yeah, this is also spoken about in Revelation: (I won't post all the scriptures, just a few of each)
“A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: “If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on the forehead or on the hand, he, too, will drink of the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. He will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment rises for ever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of his name.”” (Revelation 14:9–11)
“When they see the smoke of her burning, they will exclaim, ‘Was there ever a city like this great city?’ They will throw dust on their heads, and with weeping and mourning cry out: “ ‘Woe! Woe, O great city, where all who had ships on the sea became rich through her wealth! In one hour she has been brought to ruin! Rejoice over her, O heaven! Rejoice, saints and apostles and prophets! God has judged her for the way she treated you.’ ”” (Revelation 18:18–20)
“After this I heard what sounded like the roar of a great multitude in heaven shouting: “Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, for true and just are his judgments. He has condemned the great prostitute who corrupted the earth by her adulteries. He has avenged on her the blood of his servants.” And again they shouted: “Hallelujah! The smoke from her goes up for ever and ever.” The twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God, who was seated on the throne. And they cried: “Amen, Hallelujah!”” (Revelation 19:1–4)
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fearnot
Living With Pain
Posts: 8,385
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Post by fearnot on Feb 24, 2024 14:38:42 GMT -5
But pelican and hedgehog will possess it,
And owl and raven will dwell in it;
And He will stretch over it the line of desolation
And the plumb line of emptiness.
Isaiah 34:11
The land will be reduced to a waste,
such that man would not live there,
only wild animals and many unclean birds.
Its nobles—there is no one there
Whom they may proclaim king—
And all its officials will be nothing.
Isaiah 34:12
There would not be any people to rule there.
Thorns will come up in its fortified towers,
Weeds and thistles in its fortified cities;
It will also be a haunt of jackals
And a habitat of ostriches.
Isaiah 34:13
More signs of frightful and extreme desolation,
and eternal ruin.
The only thing growing is thorns, weeds and thistles.
And the ruins of the towers, showing men's arrogant display,
of their once magnificent houses and costly palaces.
These monuments now stand as a testimony,
of foolish ambition, and as idols of nothingness.
The desert creatures will meet with the wolves,
The goat also will cry to its kind.
Yes, the night-bird will settle there
And will find herself a resting place.
Isaiah 34:14
Expanding the picture of the frightful desolation.
The tree snake will make its nest and lay eggs there,
And it will hatch and gather them under its protection.
Yes, the hawks will be gathered there, Every one with its kind.
Isaiah 34:15
When I saw a 'tree snake',
it made me think of satan, as the snake, in the garden of Eden,
which brought about destruction, emptiness, and death.
And the snakes eggs, I thought of as the lies,
to spread desolation and death.
But in any case, the land is allotted,
only to all manner of wild and unclean animals.
Done for Today
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fearnot
Living With Pain
Posts: 8,385
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Post by fearnot on Feb 25, 2024 19:15:24 GMT -5
Thank you Oliver for the like :)
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Post by Cindy on Feb 26, 2024 11:47:55 GMT -5
Good one! Well, now I know why it took me so long to read this lol. The Lord just had me reading about Edom today too, only I was reading about it in Malachi 1:1–5! Many of the prophets speak of Edom being completely destroyed. For example: Jeremiah 49:17, Isaiah 34:5, Ezekiel 35:15, Joel 3:19, Amos 1:11, Obadiah 8, and Malachi 1:4.
I find it interesting though that both Petra and Bozrah are located in Edom (or were). Those are the places where God will care for His people during the Tribulation. I'm guessing that's why God protects Edom from the Antichrist (Daniel 11:41).
I'd also like to share what one of my commentaries says about Isaiah 34:11–15: Only such highly charged language could begin to hint at God’s wrath in store for those who reject the truth (Rom 1:18; Rom 2:5). NT writers (Rev) borrow OT prophetic imagery of this sort to portray the destiny of sinful people & cultures. God loves the world (John 3:16) &, through Christ, has made it possible for those who have rejected His way to be reconciled to Him (2 Cor 5:19). But persistent opposition to His program of redemption will eventuate in judgment. The Apologetics Study Bible
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fearnot
Living With Pain
Posts: 8,385
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Post by fearnot on Feb 27, 2024 16:35:46 GMT -5
Seek from the book of the LORD, and read:
Not one of these will be missing;
None will lack its mate.
For His mouth has commanded,
And His Spirit has gathered them.
Isaiah 34:16
God would always avenge his people,
these things did not happen by chance!
It is confirmed by what He has previously said.
This is to quell unbelief,
and anyone thinking that this is so singular a happening,
as to never have happened before.
Because,
God had done miracles,
for the Jews throughout their history,
which was written in the book of the Lord.
This even includes the animals.
Though it may seem at first blush a very strange strange prophecy,
the Jews had been told long ago.
He has cast the lot for them,
And His hand has divided it to them by the measuring line.
They shall possess it forever;
From generation to generation they will dwell in it.
Isaiah 34:17
God has separated Edon,
and designated it to the wild animals,
as their permanent habitation.
Perhaps this might be an application for us,
to not to get too comfortable in our abodes
in this life.
For this is not the Christian's 'home'.
They are not of the world,
just as I am not of the world
John 17:16
and
Do not love the world
or the things in the world........
1 John 2:15
furthermore
But our citizenship is in heaven...
Philippians 3:20
Plus
If you were of the world,
the world would love you as its own;
but because you are not of the world,
but I chose you out of the world,
therefore the world hates you.
John 15:19
This too
Set your minds on things that are above,
not on things that are on earth.
Colossians 3:2
in addition
And the world is passing away
along with its desires,
but whoever does the will of God abides forever.
1 John 2:17
also
For what will it profit a man
if he gains the whole world
and forfeits his soul?
Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?
Matthew 16:26
Plus
Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth,
where moth and rust destroy
and where thieves break in and steal,
Matthew 6:19
Done for Today
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fearnot
Living With Pain
Posts: 8,385
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Post by fearnot on Feb 27, 2024 16:50:58 GMT -5
Thank you Cindy, such interesting info!!!!
I looked for The Apologetics Study Bible,
but even used copies were rather spendy.
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Post by Cindy on Feb 28, 2024 12:14:01 GMT -5
The apologetics commentary is good, but not great. It says some things that are really good, but then others are just so so. Honestly, I would recommend others before that one.
That's a great application for us, thanks for mentioning that! I've heard it said that the older we get the more God uses our circumstances and experiences to wean us away from this world and cause us to long even more for Him and Heaven.
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Post by oliverwithatwist on Feb 28, 2024 13:26:54 GMT -5
The apologetics commentary is good, but not great. It says some things that are really good, but then others are just so so. Honestly, I would recommend others before that one.
That's a great application for us, thanks for mentioning that! I've heard it said that the older we get the more God uses our circumstances and experiences to wean us away from this world and cause us to long even more for Him and Heaven.
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fearnot
Living With Pain
Posts: 8,385
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Post by fearnot on Mar 3, 2024 19:49:05 GMT -5
The wilderness and the desert will rejoice,
And the desert will shout for joy and blossom;
Like the crocus
Isaiah 35:1
During Jesus 1000 year reign,
there will be dramatic and wonderful changes and restoration,
of joy and beauty, on account of God's blessings.
It will blossom profusely
And rejoice with joy and jubilation.
The glory of Lebanon will be given to it,
The majesty of Carmel and Sharon.
They will see the glory of the LORD,
The majesty of our God.
Isaiah 35:2
Israel will know this is because of the Lord Messiah’s reign,
and will give Him all the credit.
This describes more fully the effect of the grace of Jesus.
It reminds me of what Jesus does
when an unbeliever is born again....
they go from ruin and death,
to ever growing spiritual beauty.
Strengthen the exhausted,
and make the feeble strong.
Isaiah 35:3
Israel had been through a LOT:
bad kings, false prophets, etc.
so the council is to help those,
who would be exhausted and weak.
They are not to give up now, when victory is at hand.
The idea and application for them and for us,
is to help and encourage
our fellow believers.
and here is how to encourage them in this next verse:
Say to those with anxious heart,
"Take courage, fear not.
Behold, your God will come with vengeance;
The retribution of God will come,
But He will save you."
Isaiah 35:4
God will redeem His long oppressed people.
Nothing harmful, scary, frightful etc. will be able to harm them.
We are told throughout the Bible to 'Fear not"!
Fearful people often make hasty wrong choices.
In their fear, they often do not factor in God's compassion and strength.
Fear also weakens a body, mind and spirit, so people are often defeated without even trying.
But God will come and will save....
especially in the 1000 year reign.
Done for Today.
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fearnot
Living With Pain
Posts: 8,385
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Post by fearnot on Mar 6, 2024 12:31:51 GMT -5
Then the eyes of those who are blind will be opened,
And the ears of those who are deaf will be unstopped.
Isaiah 35:5
We saw Jesus do this in His first coming,
Jesus answered and said to them,
“Go and report to John what you hear and see:
the blind receive sight and the lame walk,
the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear,
the dead are raised up,
and the poor have the gospel preached to them
Matthew 11:4,5
and it will be so during His 1000 year reign.
We know this is in the future, because Isaiah says,
it will happen...THEN ( then... as in, that time... in the future).
Jesus will accomplish many types of restoration!
There is the condition of being physically blind and deaf,
but, an even a worse condition,
of being spiritually blind and deaf.
Blind and deaf can also be metaphors,
for those with spiritual disabilities,
which would be everyone before they are born again.
Then those who limp will leap like a deer,
And the tongue of those who cannot speak will shout for joy.
For waters will burst forth in the wilderness,
And streams in the desert.
Isaiah 35:6
Again Isaiah tells us
when = Then.
And large crowds came to Him,
bringing with them those who were
lame,
crippled,
blind,
mute,
and many others, and they laid them down at His feet;
and He healed them.
Matthew 15:30
and
Jesus said to him,
“Get up, pick up your pallet and walk.”
Immediately the man became well,
and picked up his pallet and began to walk.
John 5:8,9
and
As they were going out, a mute,
demon-possessed man was brought to Him.
After the demon was cast out,
the mute man spoke;
and the crowds were amazed, and were saying,
“Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel.”
and
And at once his mouth was opened
and his tongue loosed,
and he began to speak in praise of God.
Luke 1:64
Doing miracles is nothing hard for Jesus.
These were some of the signs Jesus did,
the first time He came,
which proved He was the Messiah,
and He will do them again!
They shout for joy because their messiah,
their Savior and king have come,
and has brought restoration.
Today, those who do not have the Savior, Jesus,
they shout...
in anger, spewing violence and hatred.
Also in a land where water is often scarce,
Jesus will bring forth abundance,
like water and streams in the desert.
Further:
The scorched land
will become a pool
And the thirsty ground springs of water;
In the haunt of jackals,
its resting place,
Grass becomes reeds and rushes.
Isaiah 35:7
The land is scorched, naturally, being a desert,
but perhaps also due to wars,
and perhaps even more so,
during the 7 year Tribulation.
However, this can also remind us of people's spiritual state
before being saved.
Now on the last day,
the great day of the feast,
Jesus stood and cried out, saying,
“If anyone is thirsty,
let him come to Me and drink.
“He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said,
‘From his innermost being
will flow rivers of living water.’
John 7:37,38
Done for Today
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fearnot
Living With Pain
Posts: 8,385
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Post by fearnot on Mar 7, 2024 17:07:32 GMT -5
Thank you Oliver :)
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Post by Cindy on Mar 8, 2024 10:54:27 GMT -5
Thank you! I can't wait till this age is over and Jesus reigns on earth.
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This goes along with what I was thinking about too! After reading so much of what the prophets have said about the Tribulation, I began thinking about all that the Jewish people have been through. First we have all the judgments against them that were carried out during the Old Testament times. We can easily read about those in our Bible. The last one is actually in the NT and is when Rome destroyed most of the towns in Israel and of course Jerusalem and hauled the Jews who managed to survive (barely) off to be slaves.
My mind is wandering now though, so I'd better get busy and pay the bills! 
!!
