Elijah
The religious element of the Jews, including those behind the Iron Curtain in Russia, look for the Redeemer or Messiah to come. They do not, of course, expect Jesus of Nazareth to be He. In the book, “The Jews of Silence” on page 71, the Jews are quoted as saying: “The Redeemer shall come to Zion soon in our days.” On page 45 the Rabbis in Russia are quoted as saying: “The prophet Elijah will answer all questions when he comes. But let him come soon while there are Jews in Russia who still await him and who will be able to recognize him. If he delays much longer it may be too late.”
Mal. 4:1-6 tells us about Elijah’s place in prophecy. “For behold the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly shall be as stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of Hosts that it shall leave them neither root nor branch”. Here the overwhelming judgments of God upon the nations are foretold. Those (in verse 2) who fear His Name, will (in verse 3) carry the judgments of God into the earth, and in the process will “tread down the wicked; for they shall he ashes under the soles of your feet In The Day that I shall do this, saith the Lord of Hosts.” This Day or Time Period of the carrying of the judgments of God to the nations by Christ and the saints, is termed in verse 5, “The Great and Dreadful Day of the Lord.” This corresponds with the prophecy in Jude 14,15: “The Lord Cometh with ten thousands of His saints, to execute judgment upon all” etc. It is Before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord upon the nations that Elijah is sent. “Behold I will send you Elijah the prophet.”
It is Christ who will send Elijah. It must be the Jews to whom he will be sent. He will be sent to the Jews outside the land of Israel, not those in the land of Israel. He will be sent Before the judgments of God are carried to the nations, but not before the return of Christ to the earth, as some believe. He (Elijah) is “to turn the heart of the fathers to the children” etc. This means that he will cause the Jews, to whom he is sent, to effect a change of heart in respect to Jesus of Nazareth, or “to make ready a people prepared for the Lord” ( Luke 1:7).
It would seem that Elijah will be at the judgment seat with all of the other ones, and will go with the other glorified saints to Jerusalem, and will participate in, and witness the destruction of the Gogian hosts; and then, soon after he (and maybe others accompanying him) will he sent to the Jews in other lands, maybe into the land of the north, or Russia, and into Russian occupied territory, first.
In prophecies relating to the returning of the Jews to the land of Israel, God’s mind and attention seems to be focused, or centered, upon the land of the north. At least four times in Jeremiah attention is focused on the land of the north (Jeremiah 3:12,18; Jer. 16:14,15; Jer. 23:7, 8; Jer. 31:8).
So it could well be that Elijah will be sent first into the north country to prepare the Jews there for the coming judgments upon that area. It is well known that it is difficult for those inside Russia, and even Russian occupied territory, to receive news from the outside world. While most of the rest of the world will know about the destruction of the army of Gog, those inside Russia (especially Jews) may not. Elijah’s mission could well be then to inform them of the return of Jesus of Nazareth, and the destruction of the Gogian host, and to prepare them for deliverance. Without advanced preparation the Jews might well remain in ignorance of what has happened and might even support the Russians against Christ and the saints, as they did against the Nazi invasion. In doing this they would he destroyed along with the others when the time of the coming of Christ and the saints to that area arrived. All then, both Jews with the Russians, would be smitten with a curse. But Elijah there would make a difference.
A Message to the World
The establishment of Christ and the saints as the new rulers of Israel is symbolical represented by a lamb standing on Mt. Zion with an hundred and forty four thousand (Rev. 14:1). In verses 6,7 a message is sent forth to all the world, calling upon them to submit to God and give glory to Him. The saints will carry this message. This was revealed to John. he being a representative of the saints (Rev. 10:11). This message is called “the everlasting gospel”, that is, the good news pertaining to the millennial age. The substance of the message is contained in Rev. 14:6.7: “Fear God and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come: and worship Him that made heaven and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.”
Time will be given to the nations to decide whether to submit, or resist, and also to permit individuals to disassociate themselves from any organized move to resist Christ. (See Rev. 18:4). Meanwhile the judgments of God will be pending. And meanwhile Israel rallies and becomes converted to the acceptance of Jesus as their Messiah (Jere. 32:37-41; Ezek. 39:27-29; Rom. 11:26,27; Zech. 12:10).
An Exceeding Great Army
They will be built into “an exceeding great army” (Ezek. 37:10). Not a large army, but a great one in power under the guidance of Christ and the saints. It is the purpose and intention of God to use Israel to subdue the nations of the earth. In Jere. 51:20-23 God says to Israel: “Thou art my battle axe and weapons of war: for With Thee will I break in pieces the nations and with thee will I destroy kingdoms: and with thee will I break in pieces the horse and his rider; and with thee will I break in pieces the chariot and his rider . . . and with thee will I break in pieces captains and rulers.” Christ will raise up the sons of Zion and make them as “the sword of a mighty man” (Zech. 9:13,14). He will make them as His “goodly horse in the battle” (Zech. 10:3). “And they shall be as mighty men which tread down their enemies in the mire of the streets in the battle: and they shall fight, because the Lord is with them, and the riders on horses shall be confounded” (Zech. 10:5).
The Enemies of Israel
After order in the land of Israel has been restored, and the Jews have been converted to Christ, and they have been built into an army, they will, under the direction of Christ and the saints, begin to subdue their local enemies, the Arab nations. (See Isa. 11:14). “They shall fly upon the shoulders of the Philistines toward the west: they shall spoil them of the east together: they shall lay their hand upon Edom and Moab; and the children of Ammon shall obey them.” And it may be that the chronological order of the local nations around Israel to be dealt with is given to us in the 15th through the 22nd chapter of Isaiah as an outstanding exposition of Scripture suggested to me (Brother john Carter).
All of these chapters have an historical background but also they contain prophecies of the future. We have first of all the redemption of Israel in Chapter 14. Chapters 15, 16 have to do with Moab. Moab, (perhaps Transjordan) is counseled to submit to the ruler of the land, unto the mount of the daughter of Zion Isa. 16:1-4). See Revised Std. Ver. The ruler is the One who will sit on the throne of David, or Christ. (See verse 5). It may be that the plea of verses 3 and 4 will be that of the displaced refugees residing in Jordan, directed to Christ. Next comes Syria in Chapter 17, then Egypt in Chapter 19, Ethiopia in Chapter 20, then Arabia in Chapter 21. At any rate, we can be sure that these local enemies of Israel will be dealt with and subdued before the conflict is carried into the land of the Gentiles beyond the Arab countries.
An Ensign on the Mountains of Israel
The 18th chapter of Isaiah is interjected, or sandwiched between these chapters. This chapter tells of the land that sendeth ambassadors by sea, Britain (an island power) becoming a protector of Israel from 1917 to 1948 (verses 1 and 2). Then in verse 3 the whole world is called upon to consider an event of universal significance: “All ye inhabitants of the world and dwellers on the earth, See Ye, when He lifteth up an Ensign (sign, signal, banner) on the mountains; and when He bloweth a trumpet, Hear Ye.” This will be when Christ (who is the ensign—Isa. 11:10) declares and establishes Himself as the King Messiah in the land of Israel and calls upon the whole world to surrender to Him. This will be the sign of the Son of Man in heaven (Matt. 24:30). This call is termed the “everlasting gospel” in Rev. 14:6,7, which will be preached to all people.
Impending Judgments
He then waits (verse 4) to let the nations decide whether they will submit or resist. He quietly looks on from His dwelling place like impending lightning in a day of intense heat, while preparing to carry the conflict, or judgments of God, into the land of the enemy by the hands of the purified Jewish army. He rests in confidence because before this He has cut off the Gogian host like a pruner would cut off the sprigs and shoots, or branches of a grapevine before the fruit or grapes have an opportunity to mature (Verses 5,6; Eze. 39:4,17). Gog is cut off before his plans can reach maturity. In time the harvest of the nations will follow.
In the meantime, while Christ waits for the reaction of the Gentile nations to the Millennial Gospel’s order to submit, the nations around Israel mentioned in these chapters of Isaiah, will be subjugated. Elijah is probably at this time in the land of the north preparing the Jews there, who have not been permitted to leave, for the coming invasion by Israel under the supervision of Christ and the saints.
The Land of the North
Meanwhile the order or command will go forth to the north, “Give up”, and to the south, “Keep not back: bring my sons from far and my daughters from the ends of the earth” (Isa. 43:6,5). It would seem from Isa. 60:9 that the isles (perhaps meaning Britain and maybe other Anglo-American countries) will surrender sooner than some of the countries, and may escape some of the more intensified judgments of God. Isa. 23:18 is usually thought of as having reference to the latter day Tyre, or Britain, and maybe other English speaking people.
At any rate, the judgments of God to be carried into the north country will be much more severe than those carried into the south country (Zech. 6:6). Black horses (indicating severe judgments) go forth into the north country, while the grisled ones (dappled, spotted, meaning less severe or mixed judgments) go toward the south country. Verse 8 indicates that God’s Spirit has been intensely irritated by the north, but after His judgments are completed there, will become quieted.
Temple of Ezekiel’s Prophecy
In the meantime, preparation for the building of the temple of Ezekiel’s prophecy will begin. Christ will direct it (Zech. 6:12-15). The Olivet earthquake will effect many topographical changes. Jerusalem itself will be lifted up above the surrounding territory, making a suitable plateau, or mesa, for the site of the construction of the temple. The territory about five miles north of Jerusalem, and extending around to about twenty-five miles south of the city along the western side of the Dead Sea will be lowered and become as a plain (Zech. 14:10).
A false Messiah Expected
What will the professing religious element of the nations think about Christ? What about the Catholic and Protestant denominations? What will they think about this individual who declares himself to be Jesus of Nazareth, the Messiah? While some may accept Him as Jesus of Nazareth who has returned to earth, the nations will generally reject Him and prepare to resist Him and His demands. This will especially be true of the Roman Papal Catholic religious system. The Papal Catholic system will look upon Christ as an imposter and an Antichrist. Catholics and many Protestants are looking for an Antichrist, or false Messiah, to appear at Jerusalem who will declare Himself as the Messiah. According to their views He must be resisted by all who reject Him. They believe that this expected Antichrist will perform many wonders and perhaps even miracles. What they expect the Antichrist to do (based on a misconception of Daniel 7 and 9) Christ will do.
Land of the ten toes or Ten Horns
Continental Europe, as the land of the ten toes, or ten horns of the Roman Papal Catholic religious system, will organize and prepare to resist Christ (Rev. 17:12-14). This will be a holy or religious war. It is probably during this period of time that the second Psalm will receive fulfillment. In this Psalm the nations rage, and the kings or rulers take counsel against God and His Anointed (or Christ Jesus) and say: “Let us break their- bands asunder, and cast away their Lords from us.” But God laughs at their futility and declares: “I have set my King in Zion, my holy hill.” And Christ speaks: “I will tell of the decree of the Lord: He said to me, you are my Son, today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage. You shall break them with a rod of iron, and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.”
And in verses 10-12 wise counsel is directed to the rulers from God. “Now therefore 0 kings, be wise: be warned O rulers of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear, with trembling, kiss His feet lest He be angry and you perish by the way.” (See Rev. Std. Version). But they will not be wise and submit, so the army of Israel is made ready to invade the territories beyond the Arab countries (Mic. 4:13; Mic. 5:8,15).
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One