Great Quake Part 2 - Removing The Fog of Religion

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Great Quake Part 2

PROPHECY
Great Quake is Coming
A Warning to the World!
Part 2, Part 1, Part 3
The real SIGN of His return
by your servant, Dan Baxley
dan@servantosfyahshua.com
www.servantsofyahshua.com  

(All verses quoted in this study will be from The New International Version (NIV) 1984, Unless otherwise noted.)

Since writing "Great Quake Part 1" a few questions were raised leading to further study into this topic of "earthquakes". A few things must be covered in order to consider the importance of the "great quake" of Revelation 6, and the opening of the 6th seal -- It is the first event to occur, followed by heavenly signs that will scare the life out of some and cause others to beg for a quick death.

My study (Part 1) initially was to explain how the Messiah will not return before the "great quake" of revelation 6 as it is obviously still future – so – He cannot come at any moment (imminent return doctrine) as the Rapturist teach. We are told in very plain language that this event, the "great quake" is the "Wrath of the Lamb" and so must precede His coming. The "great quake" is so massive as to move mountains and Islands out of their place and then this is followed by events never before seen -- this is not going to be just another earthquake, and it is not going to be the only earthquake to change the topographical view of the earth, there will be at least five others. But, this "great quake" accompanied by the heavenly events is the one everyone will experience and it will be that generation that will witness the "time of trouble" and the preaching of the "two witnesses" and hear the "trumpet blasts" announcing the return of YaHshua. That generation will be the true "end-time" generation and it is that generation that in the Body of the Christ is known as the Laodiceans (Rev 3:14)

The Purpose
After much study and thought and investigating into what others have had to say I have come up with something quite different from the normal teaching. Everyone seems to have the timing of these events mixed up. Some, in fact most, see the language of these events as symbolic. Nearly all commentators would have you believe the "great quake" is but a shaking up of world governments and it is certainly that but they negate the reality of the words as something true, as something that is physically going to happen to the earth and the people on it. It is my experience, concerning the use of symbolic language, the reader is told the meaning, and it is not left up to the reader to guess.

When John was shown something and did not understand it he was told what it meant. The language of the 6th seal is not symbolic; it does not say the "great quake" is "like" this or that, it simply states "it is". Certainly I can understand, and I'm sure you can too, that the preachers and teachers don't want to hear there will be a "great shaking" of the whole planet, and they know their lay-members don't want to hear it either, but this does not change what is to happen. I don't want to hear it either but I can't ignore it and it does make my heart heavy when I think on what it will be like. The teachers today have confused the issue and further caused many to ignore much of the prophetic value of the Book of Revelation by the Imminent return doctrine and the Rapture teaching that you won't be on this earth when all this happens, and that is just not true, it is a lie.

By letting the scriptures say what it means we come up with a fresh new look – a look that, I believe, unravels the confusion and presents our Lords pure truth. No, I'm not saying I have the last word on this, but I believe we can see there is more than enough room to allow for a different understanding keeping closer to the written word, whether we like the outcome or not.

Why do we need to know this? What difference does it make if we think he is coming any moment or a hundred years from now? As I mentioned in Part 1, so the believers, those called into His Name, and perhaps anyone with an open mind will be spiritually prepared for the coming events – events that will literally turn the world on its ear. If you believe one thing and the opposite happens you might become so confused as to abandon your faith, and this is what I believe those trusting in the "Rapture" doctrine and of "imminent return" doctrine (the two go hand in hand) are setting themselves up for.

With that said let’s take the plunge into what I believe to be the answer concerning the "great quake" to come – not just any earthquake but a pivotal earth event occurring prior to the coming of YaHshua. But first, one more thing, we need to consider what our Savior had to say about events leading up to this "great quake". He actually tells us of this event to come in Matthew 24, a very popular, and sometimes misunderstood, prophetic outline given by our Savior to His disciples.

So, what is the Messiah really saying in Matthew 24?
I will attempt a verse by verse commentary of what our Savior taught His disciple in a private teaching handed down to us from them. Please stay with me, when we reach the end you will see just how the "great quake" fits.

Certainly the Disciples lived His words, seeing the destruction of the Temple (we know John did, any of the others?). Over 2000 years later we can check our Savior's words against history and see how accurate they prove to be. There is something missing however, and that is the "end". His words are not finished, so we have the historical proof of these prophetic words and from this we cannot deny the remaining events, not yet having occurred, will be just as accurate when they come. Bear with me, as we move through Matthew 24, heading for that moment when He speaks of the "great quake". We need to follow these events in order to see the plain truth of the "timing" of the events to come.

Let's Begin -- Verse by Verse Comments on Matthew 24 --

(Mat 24:1) YaHshua left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to its buildings.

Comment: Notice the disciples were admiring the "buildings". The Temple itself, being a separate feature, surrounded by several other buildings, and walls, many having nothing to do with the Temple itself. King Herod was admittedly a wicked king but he spent 40 years of his life building this monument to himself and to keep the Jewish leadership happy, an, perhaps, to buy favor with the God of Israel. He would not be the first to think to buy his salvation.

(Mat 24:2) Do you see all these things? he asked. "I tell you the truth, not one stone here will be left on another; everyone will be thrown down."

Comment: Our Messiah said this and it happened, but not as many teach. It is really quite simple, really, as our Messiah is obviously speaking of the "buildings" the disciples were admiring. Some of the stones used in the construction of the surrounding buildings were approximately 42’ x 11’ x 20’ and weighted several tons. The Romans tore the Temple down to the ground in 68AD – 70AD but the complete destruction of the buildings has not, to this day, really been finished. Everyone knows of the "wailing wall" and it is yet to be thrown down making a complete fulfillment of YaHshua’s words. Also, it was not until 138AD – 140AD that the whole of Jerusalem was flattened, but still portions of the wall of the Temple area (the wailing wall) were left standing, covered perhaps, but standing and today stands as a grim reminder of Israel’s punishment. Perhaps we are waiting for the final fulfillment of this prophecy -- from the lips or our Savior.

A small historical note: Titus Caesar order everything torn down (70 AD) and the stones to be ground to dust except for the west wall and three massive towers to serve a garrison for soldiers left there to proclaim the victory of Caesar. This information can be found in, "Josephus War of the Jew". A second rebellion in 138 AD led to the complete leveling of all of Jerusalem, being finished in 140 AD.

(Mat 24:3) As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. "Tell us," they said, "when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?"

Comment: Imagine, if you will, Yahshua and His disciples are sitting on the mount of Olives, the very mountain He will return to and they are looking across the valley of Kidron, a deep gorge, to a full view of the Temple, the wall, the towers, all gleaming bright white and gold in the sun light.

(Mat 24:4) Jesus answered: "Watch out that no one deceives you.
(Mat 24:5) For many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am the Christ, ' and will deceive many.

Comment: What a warning, wow! "Many will come in My Name" -- and do we see that today? Not really, not quite yet -- they did see it in their day, "many coming in His Name, false prophets, teaching in His Name, a Name given Him by His Father, our Father (John 17:12). History shows us His Name was abandoned soon after the last disciple died.

Today, however, the revealed birth name of our Savior is becoming ever more present. As knowledge increases and the errors of past scholars these last few hundred years, knowingly and unknowingly, is uncovered, the knowledge of His real Identity and that of the Father is growing. Even in times past you can find reverence to the Holy Name of God, the God of Israel mention in writings, but never in the Scriptures -- like a secret well kept.

The Biblical scholars and translators joined with the Jewish scholars in following a "custom of men" in regards to the Holy Identity of our Savior and Creator. They purposely used the method of substitution when it came to the use of the Holy Name of our Creator and Savior. The term "lord" being the favored word substituted for the Heavenly Name of the God of Israel, the God of the Holy Bible.

The prophetic sense of verse 5 is that many will again begin use of His true Identity. He does not say they will call Him by another Name but by His Name and His Name is YaHshua, not Jesus. With this knowledge we must take care we are not deceived by someone because they use His true identity, for "many will come acknowledging this true name and deceive many". Once again, our standard, our guide for determining the truth is the Scriptures, our only protection against these false teachers.

In Acts 12:4 we see that there is salvation in only one name and eventually everyone will be given the chance to accept or reject that Name. Believe me, the knowledge of His true Identity is a relevant truth for those called, but it is not the deciding factor. A false teacher can have this knowledge and be using it to deceive those coming to this truth for the first time -- the verses warning of false teachers apply to those with this knowledge just as it does to those who reject this truth, perhaps even more so.

When you read in the book of Revelation those things concerning the Beast and the False Prophet you can see that it is truly a battle of names (Rev 13:17, 13:6-8; 14:1, 14:11; 7:3; 9:4). It is a battle of names and you need this knowledge if you are to endure the coming "times of trouble". Some will reject His Name for another, a name of the Beast, or the number of his name (Rev 13:16-18). The mark or "seal" of our Father's Name in those terrible days will be of great importance to those living (Rev 7:3, 9:4). You need the "seal" of His Name while rejecting the "mark" of the beast and his name.

We have yet to see "many" preaching this truth, or preaching in His Name, but it is becoming more and more prevalent everyday as many begin to see the name "Jesus" is a bogus name and does not belong to our Savior.  Jesus is a name dreamed up, a name that is really hard to pin to any past language in a clear connection -- contrary to what some try to suppose, the name JESUS, is not backward transposable, to Greek, period!

Sooner or later those of us that make a habit of studying the Scriptures will have put enough pressure on the false teachers and those living in this error to finally abandon this "other Christ" and attempt to reconcile the false name "Jesus" with the true Name of Our Savior. In this day we see many more teachers using the birth name of our Savior alongside the false name attempting to blend the two. We are seeing this, just as the first century Church saw it, but in "reverse", this pattern of deceit. Another thing you should watch for, in association with this new knowledge, is a warning found in Revelation 3:9.  There are those that claim to be Jews and are not, they obviously will have knowledge of our Savior's true Identity, and we see some attempting to restore the Old covenant, and in doing this they are claiming, in effect, that they are Jews -- be forewarned. They are few in number but growing. Then there are those Christians that teach the British and the Americans are Israelites (Jews), some know this teaching as "British Israelism". They ignore the warnings concerning Names and taking on titles that do not belong to them. This, of course, all fits into the "end age" pattern of what our Messiah tells us and of the relevance of the book of Revelation. These things, about identity, will come into play at an intensified rate, after the 6th seal of Revelation 6 is opened and the "great quake" occurs.

(Mat 24:6) You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.

Comment: This is very interesting -- a warning for all ages -- notice, the disciples were asking about the "end age" (verse 3). YaHshua give a caution -- "not to be troubled", or too concerned about world events concerning "wars and rumors of wars". Certainly these things should get our attention but we are not to become overly concerned.

(Mat 24:7) Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places.

Comment: We can read about these things today and in every generation from the time of the Roman Empires. "Earthquakes in various places", what kind of warning or caution is that? You see, Yahshua knew full well that we, the believers, those called to Him, would, or should understand the basic events to unfold prior to His return. This caution is that there will be earthquakes and that not to assume that every earthquake that comes along has anything to do with the Great Earth announcing His return. The other earthquakes we will discuss later are not to be confused with the many earthquakes happening in "various" places, as we approach the Great Quake of the 6th seal. The "great quake" will be a worldwide event, not quakes in diverse place but in one place, the whole of earth, shaken, perhaps even tipped, rolling from side to side like a drunk trying to find his footing.

(Mat 24:8) All these are the beginning of birth pains.

Comment: The things our Savior mentions -- actually covers 2000 plus years, as we see, unlike his disciples sitting at his feet on the Mount of Olives, the "end age" is not yet – these things are but the "beginning of birth pains". The early Disciples would never have dreamed a continuation of 2000 or more years. They thought they were living in those "end days" and down through the ages generations after generation has believed this very same thing -- we have the teachers of today teaching this very thing, -- "we are the end time generation, they say. These false teachers even deceive themselves (2 Titus 3:13) by their "end time" doctrines. One thing is sure, we, you and I, are living in OUR end days. How is this? You are not immortal and you will die sometime within the generation you live, so, the "end time" is the end of your life.

But this is not the teachings of the false teachers, no they, like those before them, think to know the mind of God and without reservation use the words of our Savior to prove we live in the "End Times", even though our Savior says plainly, "All these (you know, the things He just mentioned) are the beginning of birth pains" -- not the beginning of the pregnancy, but of the "birth". Very few babies are born at the first sign of birth pain – ask any mother about the process of birthing -- and you may get a better understanding of what our Savior was saying. Remember, the news of the earth has always been bad.  World news from the beginning has always been filled with elements of war, and world disturbances of all sorts, just like today. Look as WWII, if you want to see a time that would have fit the "end time" scenario as the preachers of end time prophecy teach, but, no we continue on, awaiting the "great quake", the shaking of the heavens.

(Mat 24:9) Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me.

Comment: You can actually go back in history and see where the first followers of YaHshua (remember, the name "Jesus" did not come into being until 1600 years later) were persecuted for staying loyal to YaHshua as Savior. Later a false church rose up, a state approved church (church of the government?), and this Church began its own brand of "Christian" persecution, and not only Christians of the Word, but the Jews too. In Satan’s hunt to annihilate the Jews many a true Christian (follower of YaHshua) have been caught up in the same satanic snare, and the reverse is true also, when the Christian follower of the Messiah, YaHshua, is persecuted so is the Jew. I think, however, the Messiah is saying something even bigger, encompassing an even greater area of the earth than that of the Roman Empire -- this can be seen in His statement, "…hated by all nations, because of Me". Certainly we can see, historically, the trials the believers of the Word have endured but "all nations"? Remember, YaHshua’s disciples are asking about the "end of the age".

(Mat 24:10) At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other,

Comment: Something is going to happen that will cause many to fall away. It has happened in the past when the people of YaHshua have been distressed. Many a professing Christian has stumbled under the stain of physical assault. Here we see, what I believe to be the "great falling away" (2 Th 2:3). The sense of this statement is troubling, indeed, to think of brothers and sister in the faith actually hating each other and betraying one another. What must be the condition of the world to cause such a "betraying". Doesn’t this suggest a kind of outing by your friend? What is it that would begin a search for those that bare His Name and cause many to turn away and to disclose those of the faith, to identify them and for what purpose? I shudder to think.

(Mat 24:11) and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people.

Comment: this, of course has been going on from the beginning, but it really fits here. As those turn away from the true faith in YaHshua and begin exposing the true followers to the authorities, they will need a replacement belief to replace what they have abandoned – they will be ripe for exploitation by the many false prophets.

(Mat 24:12) Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold,
(Mat 24:13) but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.

Comment: As the days of Noah, so goes the saying, so we will see it in the end age. How else can you explain the many traitors of the faith? I am also of the opinion that this "love" is the "love" professing Christians have or are supposed to have. Notice, it is the increase in wickedness that the "love" grows cold. As the climate of the world becomes ever more wicked and violent the pressure on the follower of the Messiah will increase. As the world continues to become more wicked it would only be natural for their love to be cold. Our concern and love for our Savior and our Heavenly father must be unwavering and our love to "mankind" must be maintained if for no other reason than men are made in the image of the Creator Himself, and He so loved the world He sacrificed Himself for it. He wants everyone to be saved even knowing this will not be the case and we, in our love should be respecters of His feelings as His Children. You can hate the evil and the wickedness but pray that those caught up in the wickedness of the world will change, will repent.  That is what the Book of Revelation and the coming Wrath of the Lamb and the Father is mostly about – giving the people of the earth the chance to repent. The whole mystery of God is bringing the repentant soul into the Kingdom by and through YaHshua.

(Mat 24:14) And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

Comment: There is a parallel found in Mark’s writings to really make this statement stand out in a meaning few have recognized. Looking at Mark 13:10 we find "must be published in all the world". Putting the two together, as many fail to do, and you have a statement that the Gospel must be "preached" and "published" in all the world. This preaching of the message of salvation has been preached in all the world, no denying that, but published? Even Paul suggested to the Colossians the gospel had been preached to every creature under heaven (Colossians 1:23). And yes I know this word for "published" in Mark could also be interchange for the word "preached" and isn’t it interesting that the subject of "preaching and publishing" of the word are the same? The publishing of the Word in all the world has only recently occurred. China was the last holdout and today, in our time the Gospel message, the very Word of God is being literally published in China. Just a few years ago if you had suggested such a thing would happen so quickly you would have been laughed at. I personally believe the political attitude in China, allowing a certain westernizing for economic gain, came about largely to tear down this last wall against the Holy Bible and its being published in all nations. My friends, you have witnessed a prophetic happening not even noticed by the world – the Word Published in China! There is yet another concern with this "preaching" of the Gospel to the whole world and this can be found in Revelation 14:6. This might be considered the absolute final Gospel message – no one will be able to say, "Well, I never heard that", and this will be the final and complete fulfillment of YaHshua’s prophetic statement.

(Mat 24:15) So when you see standing in the holy place 'the abomination that causes desolation,' spoken of through the prophet Daniel--let the reader understand--
(Mat 24:16) then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.

Comment: The warning here I believe concerns a much greater event than the destruction of Jerusalem by the Roman armies, although one can see a type of fulfillment, but notice, the warning is not merely for those living in Jerusalem but to all of Judah and that basically covers the whole of modern Israel today. Most of the history we get concerning the events and timing of the destruction of the Temple in and around 68AD comes to us from the writings of Josephus (The Wars of the Jews) and the book of Maccabees, found in The American Bible.

Let me say right here, no one, that is no one, has this nailed down. Our Savior gives us a source, Daniel, and some of what Daniel says is plain and easy to understand as a prophetic piece of history, but some of the remarks by Daniel concerning the "abomination of (or causes) desolation" is not so easily understood. We know from the Messiah's warning it is a specific event He is thinking of. Don't forget the Savior's follow-up remark, "let the reader understand". We know from Daniel there is an example of an abomination taking place concerning Antiochus Epiphanies but this took place around 168 BC so our Savior obviously knew this event "spoken of by Daniel the prophet" had already occurred, a fulfilling of historical prophetic words written centuries before it happened. So, what is He, our Savior, referring to? It can't be the same event, and so we are left with the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple in 68-70 AD under the Roman command of Titus. Is this what Daniel spoke of; is this the event our Savior was speaking of? Consider, Daniel 9:27; 11:31; 12:11

Some of this you will have to decide for yourself. To me it seems to make sense our Savior, Yahshua, is speaking of a time further in the future, more into our time and I get of the feeling for this from something Daniel was told: (read all of Daniel 12:12-13)

(Dan 12:6-7) One of them said to the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, "How long will it be before these astonishing things are fulfilled?" The man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, lifted his right hand and his left hand toward heaven, and I heard him swear by him who lives forever, saying, "It will be for a time, times and half a time. When the power of the holy people has been finally broken, all these things will be completed."
(Dan 12:8) I heard, but I did not understand. So I asked, "My lord, what will the outcome of all this be?"
(Dan 12:9-10) He replied, "Go your way, Daniel, because the words are closed up and sealed until the time of the end. Many will be purified, made spotless and refined, but the wicked will continue to be wicked. None of the wicked will understand, but those who are wise will understand.
(Dan 12:11-13)From the time that the daily sacrifice is abolished and the abomination that causes desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days. Blessed is the one who waits for and reaches the end of the 1,335 days. As for you, go your way till the end. You will rest, and then at the end of the days you will rise to receive your allotted inheritance.

It is from these verses many end-time teachers think the Temple is to be rebuilt and the reason for this is the mention of the 1290 days -- there is no way you can fit that time into a period coming of the destruction of the Temple under Titus within the rapture teaching. I admit the 1290 days, even figured at a day for a year principle does not measure up as a marking of the "end time" so these days are projected into a future timing after the rebuilding of the Temple. Notice verses 9-10, Daniel is told the 'words are sealed up until the end time'. So, what if we are not in the "end time", as being taught today? Then the words are still "sealed up", right? Now take a critical look as verse 11-10, and we see many, not all, or millions, but "many" are made spotless at this time, but see what is said next, "the wicked will continue to be wicked"? Does this sound like going into the Kingdom? It sounds more to me like a continuation of time. Look, we know our Savior put an end to the daily Sacrifice, by His personal sacrifice. The complete stopping of the daily sacrificing came in 69-70 AD and has not resumed since.

Our Savior's statement in Matthew 24:15, the subject of this lengthy comment, mentions the "holy place" but no mention of the Temple, which is curious. If we are to understand the Temple He saw, in a future destruction, being rebuilt, why wouldn't He mention the Temple, a rebuilt Temple? He had just told His disciples the Temple would be destroyed? The "holy place" is Mount Moriah itself. So, I am not convinced the Temple is to be rebuilt. What of the 1290 days, the 1335 Days? There are certainly a lot of opinions and a lot of differing views taught as fact, but, at this point I'm not sure. I admit I am not wise enough to sort all of this out but one thing is certain, when the event of the Great Quake hits this earth we will all begin to see things and understand things we can only guess at right now, perhaps that will be when the understanding of the closed portion of the Book of Daniel will be opened.

The "abomination that causes desolation" is seen standing in the "holy place", as YaHshua says, it is then the Jews, or anyone in Jerusalem, are warned to escape to the hills. Run for the hills, get out of there, leave, flee. YaHshua's warning and command is urgent and is a perpetual warning -- He doesn't know the time, the angels don't know, we don't know the time, Satan doesn't know the time, only our Father in Heaven (Mat 24:36) and we have not yet seen the "abomination that causes desolation", that has yet to happen.
What is this "abomination that causes desolation standing in the Holy place"? I am not sure, but, if I were to guess I would say it is the "False Prophet", the one that stands in the place of the True God, the one speaking mighty things against the Creator and our Savior YaHshua, perhaps in the assumption they are speaking for the God of Heaven but instead speak for the "god of this world" (II Corinthians 4:4). The same individual that will be able to perform miracles, calling fire from the sky (Rev 13:13), causing the betrayal of the true followers of YaHshua, causing small and great to worship the Beast system, and the Beast himself. That would be my guess. When you see this Destroyer standing in the Holy Place those in Judah should head for the hills because something is about to happen on a grand scale. Keep in mind, for this to happen the Temple does not have to be rebuilt. The Holy Place is still there, the spot of the Holy of Holies is still there – the building is gone that’s all. A great religious leader of world renown could take the steps leading to the Holy Mountain where the Temple once stood and make his way to the Holy of Holies and this abomination will cause much destruction. Just think about it – I’m only guessing. There is, of course, the possibility, as in BC 168; an idol will be set up.

There are some that believe this object is the Dome of the Rock? From the following verses we see this "abomination" is going to mark the beginning of a "great distress", and it is this event that thrust the "abomination" as still future, a time preceding the return of our Savior. We need His intervention or none will be saved. A time or an event preceding the Great Quake?

(Mat 24:17) Let no one on the roof of his house go down to take anything out of the house.
(Mat 24:18) Let no one in the field go back to get his cloak.
(Mat 24:19) How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers!
(Mat 24:20) Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath.
(Mat 24:21) For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now-- and never to be equaled again.

Comment: Here we see this event to come leading to something happening never before seen, something worthy of a warning to the inhabitant of Judah to head for the mountains. My guess, again, is that a persecution is about to begin leading to the deaths of many of the Saviors people, Israelites as well as the Saints. Some have attempted to say this happened when the Roman Armies killed about 3 million in the Jerusalem purge of 68-70AD, but look at what the Germans did in WWII, 6 million Jews, and another 6 million, many of whom were Christians, 12 million total in their purge, and this is not counting the 50 million deaths of the war. Nothing on that scale has ever happened before and there can be no comparison with the smaller scale Roman purge of the Jews. Many bible teachers of 1939-45 were labeling Mussolini and Hitler as the two horns of the Beast government and the Pope as the False Prophet, and it all looked pretty good, but what came of it – Korean War, Cold War, Vietnam War – and not to forget, Mussolini and Hitler are now long dead. Can it happen again? After WW I who would have believed WW II could be worse – WW I had been labeled the war to end all wars – Hitler and Mussolini were on the move as early as 1936.

Considering modern history I don’t buy the prophecy pitch the Romans are the fulfillment of this prophetic event. To my understanding, this verse, this prophetic statement of our Savor, is still future and is going to be brought about by the Great Quake of Revelation 6 – the 6 th Seal in the progression of the 7 Seals of history outlined in seven steps from our Messiah to now. For those that try to say, what about the destruction of the temple by the Romans, I say, read the verse again, "never to be equaled again", has such a thing happened since? You know the answer to that, just ask any Jew. WW I and WW II have come and gone and Matthew 24:21 is still waiting the "Great Distress".

(Mat 24:22) If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened.

Comment: Here is another clue from these prophetic statements of our Savior.  For the sake of the Elect things are going to be shortened, not prolonged. There seems to be a real danger of losing the Elect and the as well as everyone else on this planet, as in the days of Noah.  We need this saving intervention or no one would survive. I believe this may also mean the spiritual survival of the elect not just a physical survival. If things are allowed to continue at that end age even the Elect may no longer be able to withstand the on slot of evil – Satan’s assault on mankind and the unrepentant hearts of men would lead to the loss of all, just as in the Days of Noah.

Remember, we are told that a true believer will not be taken beyond what he, or she, can endure. I know you don’t what to hear these things but hear you must. If you do not close your eyes and stuff up your ears you will be better suited in preparing yourself for the evil times ahead. You do not need to be taken by surprise for we are not disciples of darkness (1Th 5:4-5). If you understand the necessity of the coming events, unpleasant as they may be, you will not be weakened in your faith in our Savior but strengthened. But, if you are not aware and are not watching and you are caught off guard you may falter. I would liken it to hitting you thumb with a hammer and the first words out of your mouth would not be, Praise God. If, however, you were told the next strike of the hammer you would be hitting your thumb and you should praise God you did not knock your thumb completely off then your response is more likely to be, "Praise you YaH", or, HalleluYaH – thanks for the warning.

(Mat 24:23) At that time if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or, 'There he is!' do not believe it.
(Mat 24:24) For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect--if that were possible.

Comment: These words should ring in your ears just look at what has happened and continues to happen as "false Christ" come and go through history. Even today we see demon filled preachers putting on shows filled with "signs" and "miracles" (1 Th 2:9, 2 Peter 2:3). This should give a believer pause, a warning of the first order. Signs, miracles, and wonders, and stories made up are the first order the false teachers and prophets not of the true prophets or teachers of the Creator God. No wonder Satan and those of his spirit appear as "angels of light", this is all fitting for the god of this world, Satan (2 Cor 11:13-14). Certainly this was as true then, as it is now and was in between – but even more so as we are hurled into the evil days ahead. (I personally do not believe we are in the end age. Much of what our Savior tells us is present through every age or generation) Keep in mind this is all to be in a time that is going to be shortened. With this understanding it is plain the events spoken of do not find their final fulfillment 2000 years in the past. There is no "gap theory" either, that is one of the many false doctrines taught by the Rapture people. The 7 Seals of Revelation 6 make that plain. Each of those Seals brings us closer to our Savior’s return. Those seals are historical progressions with the final seal delivering the world into the "Wrath of the Lamb" (Rev 6:12-15).

It is with a "Great Sign" our Savior will announce His coming and the whole world will shake. His "sign" will be so stupendous as to scare the life out of the bravest. The "signs" of the agents of Satan will be very convincing even if it were possible to deceive the "elect". The way it is worded it seems these false prophets will not be able to deceive the elect. I’m thinking this is the case as the elect are so grounded in the Word that anyone attempting to convince the religious community "great signs" and "miracles" the elect will be able to "discern" these things as not from our Creator. By His word, the written words of God, the elect will be able to see these things for what they are – deceiving signs -- deceiving miracles. All believers should be wary of anyone coming with "signs" and "miracles" as these things are actually a "end time" warning of deception, not of the Holy Spirit as these fakers of today and tomorrow try to make out. If you are in a Church that is centered on "sign" and "miracles" then you had better take a second look. Our Savior has warned us – our Savior has warned you. Read, II Thessalonians 2:9-10 closely and you will see the use of "signs" and "miracles" is not the sign of a true man, or woman, of God, far from it. Isn’t it amazing how many ministries are built around these kinds of things when the plain words of our Messiah warns against these things? Read Matthew 12:39 and then think twice about searching for, seeking, signs. Protect yourself; take up the serious study and reading or you Savior's words.

(Mat 24:25) See, I have told you ahead of time.

Comment: This is a chilling statement. Our Messiah, YaHshua, has warned us well "ahead of time". We have been warned – given a heads up, so to speak – are we listening? I hope so but what I see in the Evangelical community is not good it is downright scary. The deceivers have infiltrated the Evangelical community and they are deceiving even themselves. If you are seeking signs and wonders you will get them, all you can take, you will see what you want to see. When the ultimate sign hits this world it will be something beyond man, it will be heavenly, and it will be global, but will it be recognized for what it is -- the sign of His coming?

(Mat 24:26) So if anyone tells you, 'There he is, out in the desert,' do not go out; or, 'Here he is, in the inner rooms,' do not believe it.

Comment: If you, as a Believer, have to be told where the Messiah is then you have missed out. This also demonstrates your ignorance toward the Word of God. The true believer, in word and deed, called of the Father to the Son, will see the Great events to strike this world for what they are, not the "end" but only the beginning culminating into something glorious – the Return of our Savior and the end of all war, well, almost. HalleluYah.

(Mat 24:27) For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.

Comment: I love this verse; it is so simple yet so difficult for the world to understand. For one thing lightening does not travel from east to west (as the KJV has it – the NIV, quoted here has actually tried to make sense of it, but the wrong sense). Lightening is not only seen from the east, but the west, the north and south. In reality lightening comes from above to the ground and sometimes from the ground up to the clouds, this of course is what our Savior will do, coming with the clouds to the ground. Here, however, is a better understanding and meaning of this verse. What is it that travels from east to west and is as bright as lightening and is seen by everyone the world over? The sun, of course, we see it move across the earth from east to west. Is it the sun that is moving? No, of course not, it is the rotation of the earth -- the sun is stationary. When we see the Savior coming He will be as a bright sun approaching the earth and the earth, all of the earth, every eye, will see him just as they see the sun appearing to move from east to west so will be the coming of our Savior and the people of earth, small and great will shake with fear and dread.

(Mat 24:28) Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather.

Comment: This is a hard one, no one seems to know exactly what this means and from this it may not be a point to worry about but I will take a crack at it anyway. I have heard of the possible interpretation, not supported by any of the original wording, but much more suitable to the Christian mind and that is this: Wherever the Body is there the chicks will gather. This makes sense in the fact our Savior is discussing His return. Like I said, however, there is no support for this other than a Christian sense of being gathered to the Messiah. Another suggestion involves the dead bodies that result from our Savior’s deliverance of Israel and the Elect. It either means something happy, or something very sad, or both.

(Mat 24:29) Immediately after the distress of those days 'the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.'
(Mat 24:30) At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory.

Comment: Now we can really get down to business. This is all about the 6 th Seal of Revelation 6. Everything mentioned here is mirrored in the vision of revelation given to John. There cannot be any mistaking this. More proof that the return of our Savior is anything but secret or silent, as the Rapture teachers would have you believe. Notice, it is "immediately after the distress of those days", what days? The days of "abomination that causes desolation". We will see a great persecution taking place in Israel and then the intervention of our Savior by a mighty, "great quake", that will reset the world political systems.
(Mat 24:31) And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.

Comment: Here we are launched into the sounding of the Trumpets and the gathering of the Elect from every corner of the earth. Imagine. But prior to this we have to deal with the 6 th Seal, and the 7 th Seal launching the 7 Trumpet sounds and these Trumpets take us into the Resurrection. Read Revelation 10:7, when the 7 th Trumpet is ABOUT to sound, "the Mystery of God is accomplished". From here and into Revelation 11 where you see the resurrection of the Two Witnesses and, I believe, the Elect of the earth, dead and living. Then in verse 15 we see the 7 th Trumpet sound and it is highlighted by the declaration of all the kingdoms becoming the Kingdoms of God punctuated with another "earthquake and a Great Hail Storm". From here our Messiah, in His "end of age" lesson, gave His disciples a lesson in observation and this lesson is for those living toward and eventually into the "end age".

(Mat 24:32) Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near.
(Mat 24:33) Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it is near, right at the door.

Comment: When we see these things, like forecasting the weather, we should know we are near, and has anyone seen these things? No, they have not because they have not occurred yet. So, why are the many Evangelical teachers speaking things with such a positive attitude, could it be they really think they are to escape the days coming? An interesting side light to this warning of observation is that modern man leaves the reading of the skies, the heavens to others. Today most have their nose so close to the ground (myself included) they seldom look up to the heavens other than to admire its beauty in a romantic mood but seldom to tell what the weather is going to be like. If not for the TV weather man people would be lost in reading the signs of the seasons. We, as a people, have lost that talent and perhaps it is a sign of modern man’s inability to read the "end age" weather signs, modern Christian’s inability to study and understand the scriptures for themselves. Here is an interesting point in the lesson of the "fig tree". Our Savior gives the example of a fig tree breaking from spring into summer. Revelation 6:13 also speaks of the fig tree but in this case it seems to be a reference to an untimely event. The fruit is shaken from the tree before its time!

The fig tree is seen as a symbol for Israel and apply the remarks concerning the "fig tree" to Israel and its possession of the area of land they now sit on. But look, they do not control the Temple Mount, they do not control the land mass given them by God and they keep trying to make deals with their belligerent neighbors. Perhaps this is the "fig tree" of untimely fruit? At any rate our Savior speaks of determining the times by and action not unlike watching conditions of the earth in determining the time of season we live in. the Fig tree of the 6th seal is translated by some works as and over ripe condition while others, like the KJV see it as unripe fruit. So, there you have it, your choice, before the fruit is ready or after. One thing is sure, when the fruit is shaken to the ground is it there to rot, no mention of a harvest at that point in time.

(Mat 24:34) I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.
(Mat 24:35) Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
(Mat 24:36) No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.

Comment: How often are these verses quoted and then almost immediately broken? I have heard it all. Okay, we can’t know the day or the hour, but we can know the season, they say, and then begins the speculation on the day and the hour. After all, they say, He didn’t say we couldn’t know the year, only the day and the hour, right? I personally am not against weather watching, meaning world event watching, and looking for the season of His coming, as the Messiah told us to learn the lesson of the "fig tree", right? On one hand we see when summer approaches and on the other we see and untimely shaking. Listen, my friends, when the fruit falls and hits the ground and is bruised it will rot. So, I’m seeing that warning as being observant not so much in world political events but as events out of man’s control -- beyond man's control. We do not control the weather, nor do we control earthquakes, the wind blows where it will and it is our Creator and only our Creator that can control the heaven and the earth as described in the 6th Seal. The natural events of the earth are controlled by its Creator so it is these events we are to see, to watch for and then we can tell when the fruit is about to fall.

(Mat 24:37) As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.
(Mat 24:38) For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark;
(Mat 24:39) and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.

Comment: "The Days of Noah", how often have we heard those words? Verse 38 is a favorite, "they were eating and drinking, and marrying and giving in marriage". This all sounds almost ideal but the days of Noah were anything but ideal. Violence filled the earth in those days and the wickedness of man reached to the heavens – sound familiar? Even in all of the current turmoil people are going about their business, especially here in the United States, as if nothing is happening. Fighting a war on terror, collapsing economy and what is the average citizen doing? Going to the movies, taking vacations, flying here and there, not a care, not a worry. Even the unemployed are living pretty good. Sure some of the newly unemployed have had to downsize from their 3000 square foot home but by and large life is really good when compared to the average citizen of Pakistan, or India, or Mexico, or South America, or just about anywhere else. Even in those impoverished nations they still are marrying and giving in marriage as if all things continue, the level of poverty or wealth does not stop this event.

Look, I’m not saying we should give up living because there are Wars and Rumors of Wars but we should be paying more attention than we are. In the times of Noah he was found to be blameless before YHWH and some have suggested this could well mean that he was the last of the line of Adam not to having crossbred with other races (Gen 7:1, some see this verse as "prefect in his generation). I’m not so sure of this as he had three sons and this would make them pure, genetically, also. The fact of the scripture is found in Genesis 6:9, Noah, a righteous man, a man walking with the Creator and this fact is mentioned right after we see the men of God mingling with the daughters of other men, so you can see the natural connection. We see this in the world today the barrier of interracial marriage has been brought down. God originally confused the languages of men dividing the races by tongue and then by area. Men, however, enjoy doing just the opposite of what the Creator wants.

A day is coming when everyone will return to their own land, or place of origin --"like sheep without a shepherd". (Isaiah 13:13-14, the timing of this verse is seen in the statement, "Wrath of YHWH", in the day of His burning anger and the day He shakes the earth – Rev 6:12-15) This, of course, is not politically correct but still does not change what our Creator had in mind for us. As in the days of Noah, not only had they become wicked in everything they did but the line of the men of God was being lost, as we see in Genesis 6, by intermarriage leading them away from the true god. Anyone knowing the story of Solomon can see this very same thing as he took to himself wives of every race and in doing so he began to cave into their demands for religious representation in Israel. In his later years Solomon had returned Israel to a pagan worship second only to the Canaanites before them. This time of Noah is more than marrying and giving in marriage, it is a time of losing the true worship, a true gospel being lost. This makes the remark of our Savior even more pointed concerning His return, "Will He find faith on earth?" (Luke 18:8). In Noah’s day it was only Noah, only Noah while his three sons their families went along for the ride. So, as the days of Noah? Will He find faith when He returns? It may well be that the true follower of YaHshua may number in a few thousand (the 144,000 for sure), not the millions mentioned in today’s census.

(Mat 24:40) Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left.
(Mat 24:41) Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.
(Mat 24:42) Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.

Comment: The Rapturist like to quote this verse giving no heed to the lesson of the "parable of the Weeds" (Matthew 13:24-30), "first collect the weeds and then tie them in bundles to be burned". Those taken first, in the parable, are not the followers but the weeds, and they are thrown into the fire. This is a witness against the false Rapture teaching as they teach just the opposite of this lesson from the Messiah.

(Mat 24:43) But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into.
(Mat 24:44) So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.

Comment: 1 Thessalonians 5:4-5 is the answer to this – we are not children of the darkness that this day should take us by surprise. I am afraid, however, that that may be just the case, as we have seen, few escaped in the days of Noah -- we must pray for our brothers and sisters to have courage, to be able to stand in the day of His Wrath that we might glorify His Name. Will He find faith, we should shout, yes! Look, here am I, Oh Lord, here am I.

(Mat 24:45) Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time?

Comment: I pray this is food for you at the proper time. I know this is a selfish endeavor on my part but I seem driven to it.

(Mat 24:46) It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns.
(Mat 24:47) I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.
(Mat 24:48) But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, 'My master is staying away a long time,'
(Mat 24:49) and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards.
(Mat 24:50) The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of.

Comment: Of course I do not want to be that servant. These verses speak for themselves and anyone attempting to teach the Word or to care for the people within the Body of the Christ should take them seriously. The day of reckoning is approaching, be gentle with those you are feeding, never compromise the Word of truth and most certainly never use the Word to punish those you are supposed to encourage by the Word. There is more than one way in the art of beating the children of God and to their shame many false teachers desiring to be adored as leaders use the Word itself as a club to keep the deceived in line. Constantly being threatened not to judge, and you will be judged as you judge. These are true sayings of Scripture being misused and abused. The understanding is not given in judging, not by your words but by the Word and words of our God and our Savior, YaHshua. When you use the Word of God as your instrument of judgment it is not you that judge but the Word -- do you see? It is not for us to "condemn" but we must judge by the written word. It is by the written word we are able to defend ourselves against the deceivers, and we must make a judgment constantly concerning our belief and knowledge as opposed to the false teachers threaten us with the "judgment club" to beat the weak back into line. This is a perfect example of how the misuse of the word is used to silence the timid, and in some cases, to drive a brother or sister from the group.

(Mat 24:51) He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Comment: Sounds like hell to me – outside of the Kingdom, do doubt. It is appropriate our Savior would end with this warning to the servants of the household as He began with a warning about "deceivers". He has a lot to say without giving away all the details. Why else the Book of Revelation?

Now The Great Quake

Recap From Part 1 (Link to Part 1 of 3 on full article)
The Great Quake that is to hit the whole world, really, a worldwide event, an event that has never happened in the recorded history of mankind. People of all races and social position, rich, poor, everyone, kings, presidents, everyone will think the "end" has come. Scientist have speculated on the demise of the earth not realizing how tantalizingly close they have come to giving a prophecy of Biblical proportions, and they love it. The "end" of their tale, however, is one of no hope but of utter destruction and the end of all mankind -- much like the dinosaurs of a previous age, or so science tells us. If you watch the National Geographic channel you will have had your fill of the Total Destruction documentaries, either by a fire ball from space, or the ultimate burn out of the sun, or the eventual destruction of humanity at the hands of humanity, and, of course there is a galaxy heading our way, not to mention the asteroid and comet assaults that could strike at any "moment". They don’t say, "if", but "when", and they offer no hope whatsoever, nothing – oh, wait, they do say we could escape to another planet? They have become the prophets of these modern days, but is anyone listening, really listening? Hardly, but it does make for good movie entertainment.

I am not a prophet but I do believe what the Holy Bible says. No, I do not have all the answers and some of the things written in the Scriptures concerning the future of this Earth will only be seen clearly after the event or events occur. That’s right, all of these modern day prophets are only guessing, educated guesses, to be sure, and in a roundabout way they are, unknowingly, agreeing with the Scriptures. What about the religious prophets? Certainly men of the cloth, so to speak, have the answer. After all, they study the Scriptures all day long, right? Mostly, however, they prefer to give the feel good news, you know, all the bad things are going to happen to the bad people, but you will escape. They spend a lot of time telling people what they want to hear, preaching a good-news doctrine that goes to the opposite extreme of what science tells us. Certainly no one wants to suffer but sometimes there is no other way, as the history of man has been proving. As the Christ Himself has demonstrated – by His suffering He was made more perfect (Hebrews 2:10)

I need to make a small correction: In Part 1 I said I did not know of anyone teaching this plain word of God concerning this coming Great Quake. With a little more investigation I discovered there are a few that mention the Great Quake but then they promptly skip over the next events – the 7th Seal -- rushing forward with quotes from Revelation and Ezekiel about the 10 Nation United Europe, the Beast, the invasion of Israel by Russia and some speculation on where the USA fits into all of this. Some say we are bombed out of existence by the Beast and this explains why such a great nation as the USA is not mention. Others work at fitting the USA in with other nations referred to as the "Ships of Tarsus", the Young Lions, etc., etc. Then there is Isaiah 18:7 where a description of a people is given – a most unusual chapter – about a smooth skinned people from a land divided by rivers. This seems to be a reference to the people of Egypt (verse 1), descendants of Cush. Some, however, suggest this is a description of the United States.  

At any rate, the thing that gets lost is the Great Quake -- the "sign of the Lamb's Wrath" --followed by another three events only the Creator would know about – the launch into the 7 th Seal which introduces the world to the 7 Trumpets, each announcing a major event, events that cannot be and will not be ignored. When we (our descendants?) witness these events following the Great Quake we should grab hold of our faith with both hands and hang on. He tells us through His Word there is going to be a great, massive, worldwide earthquake accompanied by heavenly signs that cause some to drop dead in fear.  It will be after this great worldwide calamity that the 7 th Seal if opened. The world changed, as we know it, is to be further reshaped by what still is to come.  The political system will be changed in a drastic way and those recognized as world powers today may not be then, or reduced to self-survival and reconstruction with not time to worry about the Middle East. An event such as the Great Quake could be the explanation as to why the United States seems to be absent from major prophetic utterances?

Prophets, Then and Now
We are told the 6 th Seal is going to happen before our Savior returns, it is a sign of His coming (so much for the Imminent return doctrine), but that is not all, the sounding of the 7 Trumpets. These Trumpets announcing events, again, before the return of our Savior -- falling stars, the mountain (asteroid) falling into the sea, and the torch (comet) polluting all the fresh waters of the Earth, but, we are not told the time interval between the 6 th and 7 th Seal. They are not events falling one on the other but part of a progression moving toward the downfall of the powers of the earth.

It has to be realized that much of what we read in scripture is very direct but is only a shadow of the things to come. We will not understand the full meaning of these coming "physical" events, but when we do we will see the pure accuracy of Scripture. We are called to be witnesses. Certainly you can give witness of how you were called, how you became a believer but a witness of the Word is more than that. The Apostles witnessed about the Messiah, they proclaimed YaHshua was indeed the Savior and they witnessed His death and His life. They were eyewitnesses of those things and were then able to proclaim that witness. We also see the witnesses of YaHshua as Savior and having given their lives for this truth down to the end (Rev 20:4).

Most, today, witness about a man called Jesus, Iesus, Isus, Iss (Jss?) but have little knowledge of the Savior the Apostles knew personally, face to face. In many ways the prophecy preachers of Christianity today make the Creator and His words of less value by their continued speculations turned into fact. They turn their speculations, their theories, visions and dreams into fact and they write books of fiction mixed with their visions and biblical fact – made up truth, is a lie. Some have even gone so far as to call their evil writings "faction", a combining of the word "fiction" and the word "fact". Now let me think, isn’t that what Satan did in the Garden, and continues to do, mixing some truth with lies? A popular writer of adult fiction said once, "writing fiction is telling lies for fun and profit", later he wrote a book on writing with that title. Now, he was being truthful, his day dreams were for entertainment, not for deception in promoting a false idea. These ministers and writers of "faction", however, follow the principle of Satan himself and in their ignorance claim the conversion of millions to their deceitful books of fact mixed with fiction. On close examination one can see the so called facts of their works are anything but fact, mostly all made up stories attempting to support their visions of how they think things should go. When compared to the truth of the Scriptures their "fiction" books and movies seem really stupid.

We should all take care in handling the Word in our studies and in our own speculations. We should never step over the line and begin teaching our theories as fact. Yes, it is fun to speculate and to exchange ideas but the big prophecy preachers of today have begun to agree with one another in a common view, these speculations, and in some cases, theories of the mind (real fiction). This has been going on for years. They quote each other in a circular fashion making their daydreams appear as fact, each supporting the other as a source, quoting one another, around and around making fiction fact. You will notice all of the most popular prophecy teachers and writers of today have been in this business for the last forty years, they are running to the end or their proclamations and a kind of frenzy surfaces every few years with great declarations of being in the End Times. they have no idea of what they are talking about, and when the Great Quake hits this earth they will all wish they were dead -- Hum, I think that is just what the 6th Seal says.

I was once a member of a church that used to teach the 10 Nation United States of Europe and all of the other religious groups called that nuts, well today nearly all of the teachers are teaching just that, and guess what? I now think they are wrong. I’m always suspicious when a majority of prophets get on the same bandwagon. Listen, the whole Bible has around 40 some authors, that is 40 over a period of 6,000 years – there are at least twice that many in these modern times alone – this last 40 years. Go figure that one. What does the book of Revelations say about this, or better yet, not say! In Revelation 11, there is an account of an event occurring at the very time leading up to our Saviors return. Two prophets of the Living God, 2, only 2 are mentioned. That, of course, is within keeping of previous biblical examples, the real prophets of YHWH, the real prophets of YaHshua you can count on two hands and they are and have never been wrong -- PERIOD. Modern day prophets are constantly adjusting and readjusting their visions.

We have the writings of true prophets put down under inspiration of the Holy Spirit. This we can be sure of, the prophets mentioned in the Scriptures and their writings are uncontestable. In other word, they are the prophets we can trust. No one, since the Apostles of YaHshua has legally added to the words we have today. There have been no true prophets of YHWH of YaHshua since the death of John (not counting our Savior). The book of Revelation finishes it and there will be no new Prophets of the Living god until the two witnesses appear and they will have power like Moses and Aaron demonstrated. Please notice, prophets of old were usually held in contempt and had a message to deliver and in most cases they did it reluctantly – never do you see where a prophet said, pick me, pick me, it was mostly, I’m not worthy. Much of what they did was in words a record of words, of things told to them directly by the Creator Himself – thus -- inspired words. Moses and Aaron exhibited miraculous power as will the coming Witnesses. Yes, I know the New Testament makes mention of the office of prophet but it is obvious the Apostles, especially Paul played this down.

The term "prophet" in the New Testament is found in its abundance referencing the Prophets of the Old Testament and the mention of New Testament prophets as "false prophets" far outnumber any mention of Christian Prophet. Let’s have a quick look – I know, this will lead to the Great Quake and you will soon see why I felt it necessary to side track here a little – in the book of Revelation, remember, the book written by John after all of the other Apostles had died or been killed and after the destruction of the Temple by the Romans, speaks only of "false prophets", save the 2 Witnesses of Chapter 11. There is the record of a prophet coming to meet Paul before he goes to Jerusalem, to warn him that if he goes there the Jews will take him and bind him (Acts 21:10-11) Paul refuses to take him seriously. So, what happened? Paul went to Jerusalem and was taken captive and was bound, briefly, not by the Jews but by the Roman soldiers. Not only that -- if Paul had listened to this prophet – a prophet that had some influence, respected in his community as is witnessed by the fear of those trying to get Paul not to go to Jerusalem.

What happens next is an event you would have thought this prophet would have seen, after all he claims to be receiving his message from the Holy Spirit – Paul gives one of his most passionate and moving account of his conversion, of his life as a tormentor of the Church, stopped in his tracks by the Messiah Himself. Not only that we have an account of Paul, while being held, for his protection, by the Roman authorities, is being talked to by YaHshua and is informed he need not fear as this is all part of His plan for Paul to take the Gospel message to the Romans (Acts 21:37 through Acts 22:20, and Acts 23:11). Not only did the prophet Agabus get it wrong but he was actually going contrary to what the Messiah had planned for Paul. Unless a prophet speaks within the framework of Scripture then he must be considered and examined very carefully, perhaps, even ignored. My understanding is the office of prophet, within the New Testament, would better be rendered "preacher", and inspired speaker, not necessarily a seer of the future, not like those of the Old Testament (Hebrew Scriptures) through whom men spoke as they heard -- YHWH speaking to them.

Isn’t it odd that the only real prophets and true seers of the New Testament are the Apostles themselves and the revelation of Revelation is from the Apostle John via the LORD’s Angel speaking directly to him. Yahshua speaks to the Apostle John by His Angel (angel can also mean messenger) and He also speaks to him directly between visions and other spiritual experiences. What are we to make of all this?  Compared with today’s Pentecostal style churches there is a real lack of prophetic utterances recorded.  If the body of believers had so much to say in prophecy, as some assume today, then why is this type of revelation missing?  Nothing written into the New Testament writings by any of the of the local Church prophets? Perhaps they did not matter that much and should not matter that much today. Here is the final word on this, right from the pages of your own Bible, look it up.

In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom He made the universe. (Hebrews 1:1-2, NIV)

Our Father in Heaven speaks to us now by His Son YaHshua – not one mention of any other prophets in comparison to those that spoke to God’s people in the past, only the Son. Even though the Apostle John is given credit for the book of Revelation by many, it is not -- read its introduction and you will see it is from YaHshua to John, not John’s prophecy at all.

(Rev 1:1-2) The revelation of YaHshua the Christ, which God (the Father) gave Him to show His servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending His angel to his servant John, who testifies to everything he saw--that is, the word of God and the testimony of YaHshua the Christ.

The position of prophet in the Church is not what some suppose. This should put us on notice; the prophets of the first century Church were not meant to be of the same caliber as those of the Old Testament. Also, the Scripture is finished, no more revealed writing from prophets. We have all been told what we need to know. Hold to this one thought and you will not fall prey to those false prophets that would have you go hide in the desert or in the mountains or drop out of society escaping to some Island, or some enclosed compound. It is from those claiming to be brothers and sisters and teachers, claiming to be something they are not, that we are to withdraw.  Read it for yourself, it is not from the world we are to withdraw, that would be impossible, but those claiming to be Christians, those following a false Christ, those continuing in the way of sin, continuing in their sin.  Read the list Paul gives and examine this for yourself --  

(1Co 5:9-11) I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people-- not at all meaning the sexually immoral of this world, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world.  But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler--not even to eat with such a one. NIV

Stay on guard with your Bible in hand and you will keep you and your family from becoming a victim of the likes of David Koresh, or Jim Jones (dead prophets) or Benny Hinn and others like him. Look at the Mormons, they hold prophets in high esteem, and look at the damage they do to themselves and their children. What has the benefit been for them? None whatsoever, the office of prophet has been used as a method of enslaving people to a personality and these personalities are nothing like the Prophets of the Old Testament and they certainly are not Christ like. Still, today, we have many self-proclaimed prophets but none equal to EliYaH, or IsaYaH, or JeremYaH, or Zechariah, or Moses and certainly not the Messiah, our Savior, YaHshua.  We need to listen to them – what is written has been written and is all we need to know.  With that warning out of the way let’s go further into the Word of prophecy, your Bible, and see if there is more than this one Great Quake.

The Great Quake -- Plus 5 Others?
Let’s start with a brief of what Our Savior told his disciples, a message for them and us. I know we covered this earlier but I want to get to a certain place in his prophetic discussion concerning the 6 th Seal and the Great Quake.

Wars and rumors of wars, and we are told not to be troubled? We cannot do anything about it and these things will happen so He tells us not to concern ourselves with these things. I don’t believe He means to ignore these things as He later tells those in Jerusalem to flee when they see certain things line up. He speaks of famines, disease, and earthquakes in different places. We see all of these things today but every generation since has seen these things. Then He speaks of the disciples being delivered up and killed and being hated for His NAME. His next statement, I believe, may have started before all the Apostles had died, but is primarily addressed to later events leading up to the Christian religion being hijacked by the Roman government.

We see the Christian Church in this condition today -- look at how they preach against one another. The Evangelicals speak as though they hate the Mormons and the Jehovah’s Witnesses, calling them cults, and then the many modern prophets preach hate toward the Catholic Church and all other groups calling themselves Christian, all however, promote the same book the Holy Bible, all of them claim "JESUS" as their savior and god. He tells us that any that will endure unto the end will be saved. To the end of what, two thousand years have passed? To the end of your life – the "endurance" he speaks of is having to live in this world of sin, of trials and temptations to the very end of our own life, whether it be short or long, we are to hang in there, not letting our love grow cold, for this will be the case with many as we enter the days as the "days of Noah".

So when you see standing in the holy place 'the abomination that causes desolation, spoken of through the prophet Daniel--let the reader understand-- then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let no one on the roof of his house go down to take anything out of the house. Let no one in the field go back to get his cloak. (Mat 24:15-18, NIV) (Note: KJV says, "the abomination of desolation"—this is incorrect and is most properly to be translated as "the abomination that lays waste", which is a quote from Dan 11:31&12:11)

This is a hotly debated warning. Some think the "abomination that causes desolation" is the Dome of the Rock on Mount Moriah (MorYaH, the place where YHWH has chosen to put His name). Others think this verse is implying the Hebrew Temple and the "abomination" will be the Antichrist. If it is the Muslim Dome of the Rock then the admonition warning to flee into the mountains isn’t happening not to mention the fact the Dome has been there for centuries, even before the Jew's minor return to their homeland. Also, He does not mention the Temple exactly, in fact He does not mention the Temple at all, except for when He says, "not one stone here will be left on another". He does say, "holy place", and to me that could be anywhere on Mount Moriah (MorYaH). There is, of course, a special spot that some say it the Holy of Holy spot, a place for example, we see the False prophet go up the steps leading to the place considered holy to take possession of this holy ground. There does not have to be a Temple. That, however, does not mean there won’t be for as we know the religious minority in Israel are working toward the taking of the Mount back from the Muslims and to begin construction of the Temple. Wonder what kind of destruction that would cause? More on this verse later.

Remember, the Jews are cut off so long as the Temple and the sacrificial system is not in place. One other thing to consider is the possibility that the rebuilding of the Temple may be the very thing that "causes desolation". That’s right, the holy place is most likely Mount Moriah and it may be the TEMPLE of the Jews that is the "abomination". How can that be? The rebuilding of the Temple is the ultimate denial that YaHshua is the son of the Living God and that he came in the flesh – the Temple reconstruction would be a monument of denial and rejection of the Messiah, YaHshua. This is only my opinion but I’m thinking the last place you would want to be is Jerusalem.  If they ever do start rebuilding the Temple one might be wise to heed the warning and get out of there before the thing that "causes desolation", cause desolation.

(Mat 24:29-31) Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. (KJV)

And what is our Savior saying so emphatically? "Immediately after the distress of those days" -- our Savior then gives us the description of the 6 th Seal -- the "sign of His coming". It should be pointed out that our Savior made it plain He did not know the time of His coming, that that information had been reserved for our Heavenly Father (Matthew 24:36), so any time constraints or expansions between these events are in His, our Father's, hands. It is too easy to put every event one right after the other.  An example of this is found in the sounding of the Trumpet. When you look into the book of Revelation concerning the Trumpet blast that signals the Resurrection you will see there are 6 Trumpets that sound before the Resurrection Trumpet and the time between the previous events that each Trumpet announces and this last Trumpet could be substantial, in earth time (Rev 8:6 through Rev 11:15 – all of this follows the Great Quake and heavenly sign of Rev 6).  The Great Earthquake shaking the whole planet will happen out of season, and before the sounding of the Trumpets within which we see the Trumpet of Resurrection (Mat 24: 31; 1Cor 15:52)

(Rev 6:12-13) And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. (KJV)

Here we see the same description with some added detail. Remember, this is The Revelation of YaHshua, not of John. John is the scribe it is YaHshua that is delivering the message (Revelation 1:1) Again the "fig tree" is mentioned but in this case the falling fruit is "untimely", or before its time. This should give us cause for alarm, especially if are waiting for the fruit to ripen.

When the "great quake" hits and the whole earth is "shaken", know that this is the "sign of His coming". He is not here yet, it is the beginning of His return and it follows the "great distress". This "great earth quake" puts a stop to the events brought about by the "abomination". This shaking of the earth may well change the political structure of many nations. The nations as we see them today may not be anything like the political powers that come out of this earth shaking quake, called the Great Quake of the 6th Seal. Even then, this earthquake that will change nations will occur after the "abomination that causes desolation", but the end is not yet. Even though, those of this world will think the absolute end of the earth has come as the 6th seal makes plain -- everyone, no matter their social position will be hiding from the "sign of His coming".

Moving on -- after the "great earthquake" and the heavenly signs that cause many, if not all, mankind to think the world has come to an end, we move into a calm. There is a space of time called the ½ hour of silence just before the 7 th Seal is opened. How long, in heavenly time, is this ½ hour, only our Father knows. At this point we have the #1 Great Earthquake, an event that destroys mountains and Islands, a worldwide earthquake. Imagine the tidal waves generated by the movement and destruction of these landmasses. The "abomination that causes desolation" is the trigger for this event. How long is this the duration of the "abomination that causes desolation" after entering the "Holy Place" is any ones guess but we know it is a time of "great distress" for those living in Judah, and it could not be a "time of great distress" unless there were a certain amount of time involved. Many prophecy teachers try to push all of these events into a short time period of 3 1/2 years.

7 th Seal Opened.
(Rev 8:1) When he opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.
Perhaps someone knowledgeable in Biblical numbers could shed light on this ½ hour of time. If it were to be an ½ hour by our standard clock it would be hardly worth mentioning as no one would notice it, but I’m thinking that by our standard of time this will be a significant period of time, not Heavenly time but Earthly time. My meager calculations, taking the "day as a thousand years principle (II Peter 3:8; Psalm 90:4) I make the ½ hour of silence to be approximately 21 years. This would be the period of time for mankind to regroup after the devastation of earthquake #1. Almost everyone misses this point of "time"; -- Heavenly time and Earthly time are not quite the same. Please take special note, the ½ hour of "silence" is Heavenly time and this makes the measurement of that period, as Peter identified Heavenly time for us.
During this Heavenly silence men will come out from their hiding places seeing the world has not come to an end. Now I am guessing here, but I think they will then join forces in an effort to defend themselves from such an invasion from Heaven, or outer space, if you prefer, should it happen again. This is when I see the Beast government coming to life and the False Prophet reconstituting religion as most will have the feeling their religion has failed them. They will see this "sign" of the coming of the Lamb’s wrath as a near miss to total destruction of the earth. I do not really think those hiding in the caves and rocks really see this as a "sign of His coming". Here is a time of Heavenly silence, no more shaking, no more of the sun going black but a seemingly return to normal. After the ½ hour, or the 20-21 years on earth there is again, another earthquake.

Skipping ahead we come to a second "earthquake:

(Rev 8:5) Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on the earth; and there came peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an earthquake.

A kind of "aftershock" if you will, an aftershock several years later, and this quake is accompanied by "peals of thunder, rumblings, and flashes of lightening" and then the 7 th Seal is opened and a one two, three punch is delivered – the first three Trumpets. First, what appears to be stars falling all over the earth, second an asteroid ("something like a huge Mountain") turning a third of the sea into blood and third, a comet ("blazing like a torch") polluting all of the fresh waters of the earth. There are four other trumpets to sound taking you right up to and through the witness of the Two Witnesses and the Resurrection.
It is not my purpose to make a verse by verse commentary on the Book of Revelation. If you read the following verses closely you will see the Resurrection occurs at a time, a certain, definite time and not as those teaching the Rapture say (at any moment), certainly it cannot happen at any moment, and the servants of the Living God and followers of YaHshua will be able to see this and know the "things to come" from the very words of our Savior by being able to use these "earthquakes" as bench marks of the events.
Revelation chapters 8, 9, 10, 11 take you right to through the 7 Trumpet ending with the Resurrection Trumpet and the proclamation of the "mystery of god" being finished and the Kingdoms of the world, becoming the Kingdom of the Saints. Notice especially chapter 10:6-7 and all of chapter 11. But, for now, this is about the "earthquakes" as a special marking event we, as students of the bible, can identify, an event accompanied by what may appear as the heavens collapsing occurring before our Lord returns.  Until this great event YaHshua, our Lord will not come.  This should put an end to the Imminent return doctrine.  

The Order of the Quakes
I am not entirely certain at this point, except for the first two, they certain are one after the other. There are four more and one of the four to come, after the first two, is said to be worse, greater, unlike anything to have ever hit the earth before – not since the recorded history of mankind, so this earthquake is going to be even greater than the ‘great quake" of the 6 th seal. This is the problem quake, however, for me and its timing. I’m not yet sure where to place it. It occurs in Revelation 16:17-21 and is obviously a punishment against the Beast system, but for now I would like to leave its positioning open to discussion. As it appears the events covered in the book of Revelation after Chapter 12 contains details of past events and are not necessarily in prophetic order. Kind of like filling in the blanks and we see this same procedure used in the Old Testament. An outline is given then it is repeated with greater detail. A prophetic statement is given followed by more details of the proclaimed event or events. I believe we see the same thing in the Book of Revelation. This is why I have yet to decide where this "earthquake" of Revelation 16 actually occurs.

Earthquake #2 -- is the opening of the 7 th Seal as we can see and this is the announcement of the 7 Trumpets and the 7 Trumpets take you to the coming of our Savior and the Resurrection, and this takes us to two additional earthquakes.

(Rev 8:5) Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on the earth; and there came peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an earthquake.

Earthquake #3 -- this earthquake is obviously centered at Jerusalem, where the Two Prophets rise to meet their Savior.
(Rev 11:12-13) Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, "Come up here." And they went up to heaven in a cloud, while their enemies looked on. At that very hour there was a severe earthquake and a tenth of the city collapsed. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the survivors were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.

Earthquake #4 – a "great hailstorm" accompanies this earthquake.
(Rev 11:18-19) The nations were angry; and your wrath has come. The time has come for judging the dead, and for rewarding your servants the prophets and your saints and those who reverence your name, both small and great-- and for destroying those who destroy the earth." Then God's temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a great hailstorm.

Here we see this 4th earthquake accompanied by a "great hailstorm", and for all of this we do not see mankind repenting. We as followers of the Word need to recognize these events and not be fooled by false teachers that have themselves been deceived by the sound of their own voice and writings, into following a doctrine that would blind us to the warnings coming. These warnings, or announcements, if you will, are punctuated with earthquakes and events only the Creator can control. No one will be able to give credit to mankind for this kind of power. Our Heavenly Father can put a stop, literally, to any plans men may have by merely shaking the earth to pieces.

Earthquake #5 – Revelation 16:17-21, describes and earthquake never before seen even greater than the "great quake" of previous years. This is the punishment to fall on the Babylonian Beast system and the false Prophet.
(Rev 16:16-17) Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon. The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and out of the temple came a loud voice from the throne, saying, "It is done!"
(Rev 16:18-21) Then there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder and a severe earthquake. No earthquake like it has ever occurred since man has been on earth, so tremendous was the quake. The great city split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. God remembered Babylon the Great and gave her the cup filled with the wine of the fury of his wrath. Every island fled away and the mountains could not be found. From the sky huge hailstones of about a hundred pounds each fell upon men. And they cursed God on account of the plague of hail, because the plague was so terrible.

This earthquake seems to have all the attributes of the first four earthquakes. A final blow to the Babylonian Beast System, a system I believe to be engineered in all its end time glory after the "Great Quake" of the 6 th seal. So this event could be placed in the 5 th spot of things to occur. This event may well be during the time of or just after the witness of the two Witnesses and may well be a prelude to YaHshua taking absolute control, physically and spiritually of the His Holy Mountain and the final deliverance of His people Israel – this would be a time near to, but after, the resurrection of the Saint, both of gentile and Israelite origins. The prelude to the restoration of Israel, as we see the judgment falling on the Beast and the False Prophet.

Earthquake # 6 – This is an earthquake that should be easy to place but for some reason most bible prophets and writers don’t seem to be able to place it correctly. The reason for this is that the proper placement of this earthquake does not fit in with their prophetic view. I am going to present two quotes from two sources that should settle this once and for all.

(Ezekiel 38:18-20) This is what will happen in that day: When Gog attacks the land of Israel, my hot anger will be aroused, declares the Sovereign LORD. In my zeal and fiery wrath I declare that at that time there shall be a great earthquake in the  land of Israel. The fish of the sea, the birds of the air, the beasts of the field, every creature that moves along the ground, and all the people on the face of the earth will tremble at my presence. The mountains will be overturned, the cliffs will crumble and every wall will fall to the ground

This earthquake is in the land of Israel and it is on the mountains of Israel the tribes of Gog and Magog will meet their end. The question is, when? Once again, letting the Bible speak for itself, the Word of God speaks to us from the pages of the Holy bible.

(Rev 20:7-9) When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth--Gog and Magog--to gather them for battle. In number they are like the sand on the seashore. They marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of God's people, the city he loves. But fire came down from heaven and devoured them.

If this event is to happen before the Messiah returns, as some suppose, how is it there would be any people of God and Magog left? After all, Ezekiel 38 makes it plain the end of Gog and Magog is at a particular time and the book of Revelation plainly states that that time is at the "end of the thousand years".
You see, my friends, the misunderstanding of Heaven and Hell and the misunderstanding of the doctrine concerning the Resurrection keep the false teachers in a confused state, a state they have convinced themselves is true. II Peter 2:3; II Timothy 3:13

Please consider
1. Yahshua gave the visions to John to write down, not Jesus (Hey Zeus).
2. Yahshua gave the outline of the events leading up to His return, not Jesus (Hey Zeus).
3. Yahshua is going to return, not Jesus.
4. II John 1:10
5. I John 5:13
The ARK of the New Covenant -- What must we do?
Staying the Course – Keeping the Faith
Be a good witness. Study the word and listen to the prophetic words of His Book. Believe Him and what His Apostles taught, not what men teach. It is a spiritual preparation, for us, this time -- consider Noah and the end of his world.

Noah and his family spent 120 years building a huge boat, a boat designed to support him and his family along with a large representation of all air breathing animal kinds. We, the elect of God and house of the Christ, have an Ark that will contain us also. YaHshua is the ARK of the New Covenant. It is in Him we have life and He is big enough, powerful enough, to contain us all. Heb 11:7; 1 Pet 2:5 -- (Heb 3:6) But Christ as a son over His own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.

Each age has its witnesses and today, in this age, we are the witnesses to the truth of His Word. When the Great Quake happens, and the heavens roll up as if the end of all things is about to occur, you and me, if we are still alive in the flesh will be the witnesses to the truth of His prophetic Word. Noah spent 120 years building his saving boat; just imagine the work and labor that went into that project? Being human, one could suppose Noah had his moments of doubts and questions, but he continued, in faith, staying the course, believing the words he was given and he became a witness to the world -- without our Creator we are all done for, there is no hope. We all know the dramatic, historical account, of Noah. So, it will be when, once again, the Wrath of the Living God and the Lamb are released against rebellious man.

This time, however, the survivors will be saved by the covering blood of YaHshua and by our entering through the DOOR, as Noah and his family entered through the door of the wooden Ark, we will enter through YaHshua, the only DOOR by which we can entering into His Rest, and receive eternal life, not by a boat we built, or we prepared but by Him and through Him we become His house in whom He lives and we live. He is the Door to our Ark; He is the Ark of our Salvation. There is a greater purpose behind all of this. YaHshua is not just coming to take power but to prepare, to make way for the coming of another, one greater, His and our Heavenly Father -- the Earth is being prepared.
Peace to you all, in the Love of YaHshua.

GREAT QUAKE Part 3
email dan@servantsofyahshua.com
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