Participants: Pr. Stephen Bohr
Series Code: SMTF
Program Code: SMTF000002
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00:34 Shall we bow our heads for prayer?
00:38 Our Father in heaven, 00:40 what a joy it is to come into Your presence 00:43 and to know that because You have given us 00:45 Your word and because of the Holy Spirit, 00:49 we can understand Your will for these last days. 00:52 And, Father, we ask that as we open Your word 00:56 that Your Holy Spirit will be with us and teach us. 01:00 Help us to understand the times that we're living in. 01:04 Help us to understand that Jesus will soon come 01:07 and that we need to prepare for that great event. 01:11 We thank you, Father, 01:12 for hearing and answering our prayer, 01:14 for we ask it in Jesus' name. Amen. 01:19 I'd like us to go back 01:20 in our minds to the year 1445 B.C. 01:27 This is believed to be 01:29 the date of the exodus of Israel from Egypt. 01:34 Now approximately three months after they left Egypt, 01:37 they arrived at Mount Sinai. 01:40 Now God had delivered them, freely, 01:43 without any merit on their part. 01:46 And when they arrived at Mount Sinai, 01:48 God wanted to make a covenant with them. 01:51 In other words, God wanted to be their God 01:53 and He wanted Israel to be His people. 01:57 And so at the foot of Mount Sinai, 02:00 we find God speaking to Moses and telling him that He wanted 02:04 to make a covenant with Israel. 02:07 We find this offer of a covenant in Exodus 19:4-6. 02:14 Exodus 19:4-6. 02:20 It says there, "You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, 02:25 and how I bore you on eagles' wings 02:28 and brought you to Myself. 02:31 Now therefore, if you will indeed 02:34 obey My voice and keep My covenant, 02:38 then you shall be a special treasure to me above all people, 02:43 for all the earth is Mine. 02:46 and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. 02:51 These are the words which you shall speak 02:54 to the children of Israel." 02:57 So God tells Moses, "I want you to go 02:59 and make an offer to Israel from My part. 03:02 That is that I want to enter a covenant with them. 03:05 But in order for this covenant to be valid, 03:08 they need to hear My voice, obey My voice 03:12 and they need to keep My covenant." 03:15 Well, if you read verse 8, you'll notice that 03:19 Israel sent Moses back to God and asked him to tell God, 03:25 "Everything that the Lord has said, we will do." 03:31 And so there you have the covenant. 03:33 God offers the covenant and Israel responds, 03:36 "Yes, everything that the Lord has said, we will do." 03:41 And so God makes His decision that He's going to come 03:45 and He's going to dwell there in the presence of Israel. 03:50 And so He tells Israel to build Him a sanctuary 03:53 that this covenant God might now dwell with them. 03:57 Notice Exodus 25:8 where God is speaking 04:02 about the building of this sanctuary. 04:06 God says to Moses, "And let them make Me a sanctuary 04:13 that I may dwell among them." 04:16 So God says, "They made a covenant with Me, 04:19 I'm their God, they are my people, 04:21 so now I'm going to come 04:23 and I'm going to dwell among them, 04:25 they need to build me a sanctuary." 04:28 Now when the sanctuary was finished, 04:30 God came and made Himself present in the sanctuary. 04:34 Notice Exodus 40:34, 35. 04:39 Exodus 40:34, 35. 04:43 This is the moment when the Shekinah 04:46 entered the sanctuary in the wilderness. 04:50 It says there in verse 34, 04:52 "Then the cloud covered the tabernacle of meeting 04:56 and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 05:01 And Moses was not able 05:03 to enter the tabernacle of meeting, 05:05 because the cloud rested above it, 05:08 and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle." 05:12 So God says, "Build Me a sanctuary" 05:14 and then His glory enters the sanctuary 05:17 and now the covenant God is dwelling in the midst of Israel. 05:22 Later on, God asked Israel 05:24 to build a more permanent structure 05:26 which came to be known as Solomon's temple. 05:29 A misnomer for sure, because it was not Solomon's temple, 05:34 it was the Lord's temple. 05:36 And it's interesting to notice that as soon as the temple 05:39 that God asked Solomon to build was finished, once again, 05:43 the Shekinah glory of God entered the temple. 05:47 Notice 1 Kings 8:10, 11. 05:52 1 Kings 8:10, 11. 05:56 It says there, "And it came to pass, 06:00 when the priests came out of the holy place, 06:03 that the cloud filled the house of the Lord, 06:07 so that the priests could not 06:09 continue ministering because of the cloud, 06:12 for the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord." 06:17 And so both in the tabernacle in the wilderness 06:20 and in Solomon's temple, 06:21 the glory of God entered the temple. 06:26 But then, we notice that the history of Israel, 06:30 from the time that the tabernacle was established 06:33 till the time of the Babylonian captivity, 06:36 was the history of one rebellion after another. 06:40 They did not live up to their end of the bargain. 06:43 They did not obey God's voice. 06:45 They did not keep God's covenant. 06:48 It is one unfaithfulness after another 06:51 in the history of Israel. 06:52 Let's read about that in 2 Chronicles 36:14-16. 06:58 2 Chronicles 36:14-16. 07:03 By the way, this rebellion took place 07:06 during a period of approximately 800 years from the time 07:10 that they were established as a theocracy at Mount Sinai 07:14 and finally when they went into captivity. 07:17 It says there in 2 Chronicles 36, 07:19 "Moreover, all the leaders of the priests 07:23 and the people transgressed more and more, 07:28 according to all" now I want you to notice 07:31 this very important word, "according to all 07:33 the abominations of the nations, 07:36 and defiled the house of the Lord 07:39 which He had consecrated in Jerusalem. 07:42 And the Lord God of their fathers 07:44 sent warnings to them by His messengers, 07:47 rising up early and sending them, 07:49 because He had compassion 07:51 on His people and on His dwelling place. 07:54 But they mocked the messengers of God, 07:56 despised His words, and scoffed at His prophets, 08:01 until the wrath of the Lord arose against His people, 08:05 till there was no remedy." 08:08 I want you to notice that key word, "abominations," 08:11 which we're going to read in a few moments, 08:13 some other texts that use that critically important word 08:17 which later on is used in the Gospel of Matthew. 08:21 In fact, things got so bad in Israel that we're told 08:26 that God called His own people a harlot. 08:30 Notice Ezekiel 16 and we're going to read 3 verses 08:34 not in succession but 3 verses in Chapter 16. 08:37 Verse 15, verse 22 and verse 30. 08:41 I want you to notice here that 08:42 God is addressing His professed people. 08:45 He's not speaking to the Philistines, 08:46 He's not speaking to the Babylonians, 08:49 He's not speaking to the worldly, so to speak, 08:52 He's speaking to His own people 08:54 and He is calling them a harlot, because of their abominations. 08:59 Notice Ezekiel 16:15. 09:04 God is speaking about Israel and says, 09:05 "But you trusted in your own beauty, 09:08 played the harlot because of your fame, 09:11 and poured out your harlotry on everyone passing by 09:15 who would have it. 09:16 And in all your," now here comes the key word again, 09:19 "and in all your abominations and acts of harlotry 09:25 you did not remember the days of your youth," 09:27 that is when she formed the covenant. 09:30 "When you were naked and bare, struggling in your blood." 09:33 In other words, when the nation was about to be born, 09:35 when they left Mount Sinai. 09:37 Verse 30. "'How degenerate is your heart!' 09:41 says the Lord God, 'seeing you do all these things, 09:45 the deeds of a brazen harlot.'" 09:50 This is amazing language, God calling His own people a harlot 09:54 because of the abominations that they were committing. 09:57 Notice a little bit earlier in the chapter, 09:59 in Ezekiel Chapter 16:2, once again our key word. 10:05 God is speaking to the prophet Ezekiel 10:07 and He says, "'Son of man, cause Jerusalem to know," her what? 10:13 "To know her abominations." 10:16 Time and again, in Ezekiel and in Jeremiah, 10:20 we find this key word abominations 10:23 which Israel was committing 10:25 against the Lord as a brazen harlot. 10:29 And so God decided that He was going to come 10:31 in judgment upon Israel. 10:33 He was going to take them into captivity. 10:36 And so it was that according to Ezekiel 1:4, 10:40 God came from the north in His chariot 10:43 to the sanctuary to judge Israel. 10:45 In fact, let's read about that in Ezekiel 1:4. 10:50 Here Ezekiel sees God coming to the Jerusalem temple 10:54 because He is going to judge His apostate people 10:57 who are committing these abominations. 11:00 It says there, "Then I looked, and behold, 11:03 a whirlwind was coming out of the north, 11:07 and a great cloud with a raging fire engulfing itself. 11:12 And brightness was all around it, 11:14 radiating out of the midst like the color of amber, 11:18 out of the midst of the fire." 11:20 If you continue reading, you'll see that this chariot 11:22 is coming from the north, the place of God's throne 11:25 and it's coming to earth, to the Jerusalem temple 11:28 to perform a work of judgment among God's people 11:32 for the abominations that they are committing. 11:36 Now let's read about that great abomination 11:41 that was being committed 11:42 in the city of God's professed people. 11:45 Ezekiel 8:16, 17. Ezekiel 8:16, 17. 11:52 And by the way, I want to underline that 11:54 this is happening among those who profess to be God's people. 11:58 This is not happening among the secular people, 12:01 the worldly people, this is happening 12:03 among those who claim to serve the true God, remember that. 12:07 When we come back to Matthew 24, 12:09 we'll study it more extensively. 12:11 It says there in Ezekiel 8:16, "So He brought me 12:16 into the inner court of the Lord's house, 12:18 and there, at the door of the temple of the Lord, 12:24 between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men 12:29 with their backs toward the temple of the Lord 12:33 and their faces toward the east, 12:35 and they were worshiping the sun toward the east." 12:40 Notice that God's own people, 12:41 instead of worshiping the creator, 12:43 were worshiping the sun according to this. 12:46 Notice verse 17, "Then He said to me, 12:49 'Have you seen this, O son of man? 12:52 Is it a trivial thing for the house of Judah 12:55 to commit the,'" here it is again, 12:58 "'the abominations which they commit here? 13:01 For they have filled the land with violence, 13:04 then they have returned to provoke Me to anger. 13:07 Indeed they put the branch to their nose. 13:10 Therefore I also will act in fury. 13:13 My eye will not spare nor will I have pity, 13:18 and though they cry in My ears with a loud voice, 13:21 I will not hear them.'" 13:25 What was the great abomination that was being committed 13:27 in the city of Jerusalem? 13:29 The worship of the sun. 13:31 I want you to remember this 13:32 because we're going to come back to it later. 13:34 They were not only worshiping the sun, 13:37 they were also trampling upon God's holy Sabbath. 13:40 And that led them to the captivity 13:43 that God is talking about here. 13:45 Now I want to make a couple of references only, 13:47 I'm not going to read the verses, 13:49 but in Jeremiah 5:31, 13:51 we're told that the rulers ruled by their own will, 13:55 the priests did as they wished and God's people wanted it so. 14:01 In other words, the priests led them down the wrong road 14:04 but that's what the people wanted. 14:07 And so God said, "Because of these abominations 14:09 that are being committed in My own house, 14:12 I am going to come from the four angles of the earth 14:17 to destroy this city and this temple." 14:20 And you can read in Ezekiel 7:1, 2, 14:24 where we're told that the end, 14:26 the end is coming upon the four corners of the earth. 14:32 But before God could destroy the Holy City, 14:35 He needed to perform a work of separation. 14:39 Because, you see, not everybody in the city 14:41 was committing the abominations that God was speaking about. 14:45 There was a small remnant 14:47 that was faithful to God within the city 14:50 and it was necessary to mark those individuals 14:53 so that when the destruction would come, 14:55 they would not be destroyed with the impenitent. 14:59 So I want you to notice that 15:00 when Jerusalem is about to be destroyed, 15:02 there's a small remnant that is going to receive a mark 15:06 so that they are not destroyed in the general ruin of the city. 15:09 We find this in Ezekiel 9:1-6. 15:14 It's a rather extensive passage 15:16 but it has some very important details. 15:18 It says there, "Then He called out 15:21 in my hearing with a loud voice, saying, 15:24 'Let those who have charge over the city draw near, 15:28 each with a deadly weapon in his hand.' 15:31 And suddenly six men came from the direction of the upper gate, 15:35 which faces north, each with his battle-ax in his hand. 15:39 One man among them was clothed with linen," 15:42 by the way, this is Jesus Christ, 15:44 "and had a writer's inkhorn at his side. 15:48 They went in and stood beside the bronze altar. 15:51 Now the glory of the God of Israel had gone up 15:53 from the cherub, where it had been, 15:56 to the threshold of the temple. 15:58 And He called to the man clothed with linen, 16:01 who had the writer's inkhorn at his side, 16:04 and the Lord said to him, 'Go through the midst of the city, 16:08 through the midst of Jerusalem," this is among God's own people, 16:13 the wicked are not contemplated here. 16:15 The secular, the worldly are not coming into view. 16:19 So He says, "Go through the midst of the city, 16:22 through the midst of Jerusalem, 16:24 and put a mark on the foreheads", 16:26 remember this, "put a mark on the foreheads of the men 16:30 who sigh and cry over all the" what? 16:34 "The abominations that are done within it." 16:38 What was the problem with God's people? 16:40 They were committing what? Abominations. 16:43 And God says, these abominations 16:45 are going to lead to the destruction of the city. 16:49 And then notice what was going to happen 16:51 after the righteous were separated from the unrighteous. 16:55 Verse 5, "To the others He said in my hearing, 16:59 'Go after him through the city and kill", this sounds terrible, 17:06 "and kill, do not let your eye spare, nor have any pity. 17:12 Utterly slay old and young men, 17:15 maidens and little children and women, 17:18 but do not come near anyone on whom is the mark, 17:23 and begin at My sanctuary." 17:26 Notice, with the religious leaders. 17:28 "So they began with the elders who were before the temple. 17:32 Then He said to them, 'Defile the temple, 17:35 fill the courts with the slain. Go out!' 17:38 And they went out and killed in the city." 17:43 So the abominations led God to come in judgment 17:48 and to perform a work of separation 17:50 between those who were worshiping the sun 17:53 and those who were sighing and crying 17:56 because of the abominations 17:58 that were being committed in the city. 18:00 When this work of separation was finished, 18:03 we find that the Shekinah that had come into the temple 18:06 in the days of Solomon, now leaves the temple. 18:11 Notice Ezekiel 10:19. Ezekiel 10:19. 18:17 The moment of the departing of the Shekinah from the temple. 18:21 It says, by the way, this is the same glory 18:24 that came in Chapter 1 to judge. 18:26 In Chapter 9, the judgment takes place, 18:29 now in Chapter 10, the Shekinah is going to depart 18:32 because the work of separation is finished, 18:34 probation has closed 18:36 for the city of Jerusalem and for the temple. 18:38 So it says, "Then the glory of the Lord departed 18:41 from the threshold of the temple and stood over the cherubim. 18:45 And the cherubim lifted their wings 18:47 and mounted up from the earth in my sight. 18:50 When they went out, the wheels were beside them, 18:53 and they stood at the door of the east gate 18:57 of the Lord's house", by the way, 18:59 this is the very entrance of the sanctuary, to the east, 19:02 "and the glory of the God of Israel was above them." 19:07 So you notice the Shekinah is forsaking the temple, 19:10 it goes to the entrance of the temple, and then, 19:13 in Chapter 11:22, 23 we find that the Shekinah, 19:18 after it leaves the temple, it goes and rests 19:21 upon the Mount of Olives on the eastern slope of Jerusalem. 19:27 Notice, Ezekiel 11:22, 23. 19:32 And the Shekinah lingers there for a while 19:35 as if not wanting to leave. 19:37 Notice Ezekiel 11:22, 23. 19:42 "Then the cherubim lifted up their wings, 19:45 with the wheels beside them, 19:47 and the glory of the God of Israel was high above them 19:52 and the glory of the Lord went up from the midst of the city", 19:57 and now notice, "and stood on the mountain, 20:01 stood on the mountain." 20:02 Notice it didn't just fly off all of a sudden. 20:04 For a moment it stood on the mountain 20:07 "which is on the east side of the city." 20:10 In the book, The Prophets and Kings 20:12 were told that the Shekinah stood on the Mount of Olives 20:16 because it didn't want to leave. 20:18 It was saying, "I don't want to leave you, my people. 20:20 I want to stay here but your abominations 20:23 have made it impossible." 20:25 The separation had been made 20:27 between the righteous and the unrighteous. 20:29 And now the Shekinah was going to forsake the temple 20:32 and was going to leave God's people desolate. 20:37 And then, in consequence to this, 20:40 you have Nebuchadnezzar coming and besieging the city, 20:46 demolishing the walls, destroying the city, 20:51 and destroying the temple of the Lord in the year 586. 20:56 Now it's interesting to notice that when Nebuchadnezzar comes, 21:01 it's emphasized that he is coming 21:04 with his armies like eagles. 21:06 I want you to remember that because in Matthew Chapter 24, 21:09 we have a reference to eagles once again. 21:13 Notice Jeremiah 4:13. 21:17 Jeremiah 4:13. Remember the eagles. 21:20 It says there, "Behold", speaking about Nebuchadnezzar, 21:25 "behold, he shall come up like clouds 21:28 and his chariots like a whirlwind. 21:31 His horses are swifter than" what? "Than eagles. 21:36 Woe to us, for we are plundered!" 21:40 Notice Lamentations 4:19. 21:44 "Our pursuers were swifter than the eagles of the heavens. 21:48 They pursued us on the mountains 21:51 and lay in wait for us in the wilderness." 21:54 Once again, Nebuchadnezzar spoken of as coming with eagles. 21:58 Habakkuk 1:8 which is describing this event says, 22:03 speaking about Nebuchadnezzar and his armies, 22:05 "Their horses also are swifter than leopards, 22:09 and more fierce than evening wolves. 22:12 Their chargers charge ahead, their cavalry comes from afar, 22:17 they fly as the eagle that hastens to eat." 22:22 And, of course, we all know that in Daniel 7:4, 22:26 Babylon is represented as a lion with eagle's wings. 22:31 Notice Daniel 7:4. 22:34 It says, "The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings." 22:40 And so Nebuchadnezzar comes like an eagle 22:44 with his armies to destroy the city. 22:46 And by the way, do you know that Jeremiah composed 22:50 the Book of Lamentations for the Jews to sing 22:54 as they were being taken captive to Babylon? 22:57 In fact, the Book of Lamentations, 22:58 you know what lamentation is, it means to cry out. 23:02 This book describes what the besieging 23:05 of the city was like. 23:06 It even says that mothers ate their children. 23:09 In fact, the Book of Lamentations 23:11 is written in what is known as "kinah" meter. 23:15 It's a poetic style that is used for funeral dirges. 23:19 In other words, it is a funeral type of poetic language 23:24 that has been used in the Book of Lamentations 23:27 because God's people had been destroyed, 23:29 they had been left desolate. 23:33 I want you to notice that when the city was besieged, 23:36 that there were three punishments 23:38 that came upon the city. 23:39 Notice Jeremiah 32:24, 25. Jeremiah 32:24, 25. 23:47 The three punishments are famine, sword and pestilence. 23:51 By the way, these are the very ones 23:52 that are mentioned also in Matthew Chapter 24. 23:55 It says there, "Look, the siege mounds! 23:59 They have come to the city to take it, 24:02 and the city has been given into the hand of the Chaldeans 24:06 who fight against it, 24:07 because of the sword and famine and pestilence." 24:14 Are those things mentioned in Matthew Chapter 24? 24:16 Absolutely. 24:18 "What You have spoken has happened, there you see it! 24:22 And You have said to me, O Lord God, 24:24 'Buy the field for money and take witnesses!' 24:27 Yet the city has been given into the hands of the Chaldeans." 24:34 And so God's people were taken captive to Babylon. 24:40 The city was destroyed. 24:42 The temple was destroyed, and God's people 24:46 were slain in the courts of the temple itself 24:49 and in the courts of the city as God had said. 24:53 I'd like to read from 2 Chronicles 36:17-21, 24:59 the description of the destruction 25:01 of the city and the temple. 25:03 2 Chronicles 36:17-21. 25:08 Do you remember that in Ezekiel we read 25:10 that God said don't spare woman, child, don't spare man? 25:14 Now notice how this was enforced by the Lord 25:17 when the city actually fell. 25:20 It says there, "Therefore He brought against them 25:23 the king of the Chaldeans, who killed their young men 25:27 with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, 25:30 and had no compassion on young man or virgin, 25:35 on the aged or the weak" very similar terminology 25:39 to what we read in Ezekiel. 25:41 "He gave them all into his hand. 25:44 And all the articles from the house of the Lord, 25:46 great and small, the treasures of the house of the Lord, 25:49 and the treasures of the king, and of his leaders, 25:52 all these he took to Babylon. 25:54 Then they burned the house of God, 25:56 broke down the wall of Jerusalem, 25:58 and burned all its palaces with fire, 26:00 and destroyed all its precious possessions. 26:03 And those who escaped from the sword, 26:05 he carried away to Babylon where they became servants to him 26:09 and his sons until the rule of the kingdom of Persia, 26:12 to fulfill the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah, 26:16 until the land had enjoyed her Sabbaths, 26:18 as long as she lay desolate 26:20 she kept Sabbath, to fulfill" how long? 26:23 "To fulfill seventy years." 26:26 By the way, incidentally, 26:28 if you read the Book of Jeremiah, 26:30 you're going to discover something very interesting. 26:33 Jeremiah time and again emphasizes 26:35 that when the city was being besieged by Nebuchadnezzar, 26:39 false prophets arose saying, 26:42 "This city will never fall. This is God's city. 26:45 Don't be concerned with the words that Jeremiah 26:48 and the other prophets are talking about. 26:50 God is with us." 26:52 In other words, time and again in Jeremiah, 26:54 Jeremiah speaks about the false prophets 26:57 trying to counteract the word of God's true prophets. 27:03 And then, of course, the city was destroyed. 27:07 It's interesting to notice then, 27:08 that the abominations of Jerusalem led to its what? 27:13 Led to its desolation. 27:15 In other words, the abominations led to the desolation. 27:19 In fact, notice Jeremiah Chapter 25 27:22 and we'll read three verses here. 27:24 Jeremiah 25, verses 9, 11 and 18. 27:28 Jeremiah 25:9, 11, 18. 27:32 It says there, and I'm going to begin actually, in verse 8, 27:36 "Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, 27:39 'Because you have not heard My words, 27:42 behold, I will send and take all the families of the north,' 27:46 says the Lord, 27:47 'and Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, 27:50 My servant and will bring them 27:53 against this land, against its inhabitants, 27:56 and against these nations all around, 27:59 and will utterly destroy them, and make them an astonishment, 28:03 a hissing and perpetual'", what? 28:06 There's the word, "'desolations.'" 28:08 Verse 11, "And this whole land shall be a" what? 28:13 "Desolation and an astonishment, and these nations shall serve 28:18 the king of Babylon seventy years." 28:21 Verse 18, "Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, 28:24 its kings and its princes, to make them a", 28:27 there's the key word again, what? 28:29 "Desolation, an astonishment, 28:31 a hissing and a curse, as it is this day." 28:35 Are you understanding what the abomination of desolation is? 28:38 The abominations in Jerusalem, 28:41 the greatest of which was worshiping the sun 28:44 is what eventually led to the desolation of the city. 28:48 In other words, national apostasy led to national what? 28:54 National ruin. 28:55 And what was the great sin, the great abomination? 28:59 It was the fact that they were worshiping the sun. 29:02 By the way, do you know that God said 29:04 that the reason why they went into captivity 29:05 is because they were not keeping the Sabbath? 29:08 They were worshipping the sun instead of keeping the Sabbath. 29:11 Notice Jeremiah 17:24, 25 and we'll read also verse 27. 29:17 Jeremiah 17:24, 25 and we'll read also verse 27. 29:23 It says there in verse 24 29:26 "'And it shall be, if you heed me carefully, 29:30 says the Lord, to bring no burden 29:32 through the gates of this city on the Sabbath day, 29:36 but hallow the Sabbath day, to do no work in it. 29:40 Verse 25, "Then shall enter the gates of this city 29:45 kings and princes sitting on the throne of David, 29:50 riding in chariots and on horses, 29:52 they and their princes, accompanied by the men of Judah, 29:56 and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, 29:58 and this city shall remain," what? "Forever." 30:02 In other words, keep my Sabbath. 30:04 And the city will remain forever. 30:06 What happens if they don't keep the Sabbath? 30:08 Notice verse 27. 30:10 "But if you will not heed Me to hallow the Sabbath day, 30:15 such as not carrying a burden, 30:18 when entering the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day, 30:22 then I will kindle a fire in its gates, 30:25 and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, 30:28 and it shall not be quenched." 30:32 Let me ask you, do you think that 30:34 those who were sighing and crying 30:35 over the abominations were keeping the Sabbath? 30:38 Of course. 30:39 How about those people who were not sighing and crying? 30:42 What were they worshipping? 30:44 They were worshipping what? The sun. 30:46 I want you to remember the Sabbath issue, 30:49 because in Matthew Chapter 24, 30:51 Jesus says something very interesting. 30:53 He says "Pray that your flight might not be in winter or," 30:59 what? "Or on the Sabbath." 31:01 In other words, those who were going to flee 31:03 were going to be what? 31:04 Sabbath keepers just like those who sighed and cried 31:09 over the abominations in the city. 31:11 Now you're saying what does this have to do with Matthew 24? 31:15 We have to have this background 31:17 or else we'll not be able to understand 31:19 the second destruction of Jerusalem in the year 70. 31:23 Now Israel went captive to Babylon for 70 years. 31:27 But God promised that after 70 years, 31:30 he was going to take them to their land again 31:33 and they were going to rebuild the city. 31:35 They were going to rebuild the walls 31:37 and they were going to rebuild the sanctuary. 31:39 And God was going to give them another chance. 31:44 Notice what we find in Daniel Chapter 9:1, 2. 31:47 Here Daniel is studying the prophecy of the 70 years. 31:50 He wants to know whether God is gonna fulfill His promise 31:53 of releasing Israel to go back to their land 31:56 after the 70-year captivity. 31:58 It says there in Daniel 9:1, 2, "In the first year of Darius 32:03 the son of Ahasuerus, of the lineage of the Medes, 32:07 who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans, 32:10 in the first year of his reign, I Daniel understood 32:14 by the books the number of the years specified 32:17 by the word of the Lord through Jeremiah the prophet, 32:20 that He would accomplish 70 years in the desolations, 32:24 in the desolations of Jerusalem." 32:27 So long was the desolation of Jerusalem gonna last? 32:30 It was not gonna be permanent. 32:32 It was going to last for a period of 70 years. 32:35 Then they would return to the city. 32:37 They would rebuild it. 32:38 And they would reestablish the sanctuary service. 32:43 By the way, this is mentioned by Daniel 32:47 a little later on in the same chapter, Chapter 9. 32:50 Go with me to Chapter 9:25-27. Daniel 9:25-27. 32:57 This is the famous prophecy of the 70 weeks 33:00 and you know we don't have a lot of time 33:02 to go into all of the details of the prophecy of the 70 weeks. 33:05 But basically, it speaks about the going forth of the Lord 33:08 to restore and build Jerusalem after it was destroyed 33:11 by Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians 33:13 and then it speaks about 70 weeks 33:15 being allotted for the Hebrew nation. 33:18 In other words, God is giving them another opportunity. 33:21 He is giving them another chance to repent 33:23 and to obey the covenant and to listen to His voice. 33:27 Notice Daniel 9:25, "Know therefore and understand 33:33 that from the going forth of the command to restore 33:35 and build Jerusalem," so it must have been in ruins 33:38 if they needed to restore and build it? 33:40 Of course. Nebuchadnezzar had destroyed it. 33:42 "Until Messiah, the Prince, 33:44 there shall be seven weeks, and sixty-two weeks." 33:47 That's by the way 69 weeks, which is a period of how long? 33:51 483 years that leads to the last week 33:55 of the prophecy of the 70 weeks. 33:58 It says, "The street shall be built again, 33:59 and the wall, even in troublous times." 34:02 So was there some rebuilding that had to take place 34:05 once the word was given to restore and build Jerusalem? 34:07 Verse 26, After the 62 weeks, Messiah shall be cut off." 34:13 What was gonna happen to the Messiah? 34:15 He was gonna be cutoff. 34:16 By the way, the Messiah means 34:18 the anointed one shall be cutoff. 34:20 "But not for himself." And now notice. 34:22 Was Jerusalem going 34:24 to be destroyed again in this prophecy? 34:27 Absolutely, because it says, "And after the 62 weeks, 34:30 Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself, 34:33 and the people of the prince who is to come 34:36 shall destroy the city and the sanctuary." 34:40 So after this period of 70 weeks, 34:42 was there going to be a second destruction 34:45 of Jerusalem by a prince who was to come? 34:48 Absolutely. And then notice the key terminology. 34:52 It says, "The end of it," that is the end of the city, 34:55 "shall be with a flood, till the end of the" 34:59 what? "Of the war." 35:02 What's the key word there? "Desolations are determined. 35:06 Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week. 35:09 But in the middle of the week, 35:11 He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering." 35:14 And now notice, "And on the wing of," 35:17 What's the word there? 35:18 "Of abomination shall be one who makes, 35:23 " there it is again," desolate, even until the consummation, 35:26 which is determined is poured out upon the," 35:31 what? "Upon the desolate." 35:33 Question then, was Jerusalem going to have 35:36 a second destruction because of abominations? 35:39 Was there gonna be another desolation 35:41 by the prince who was to come? 35:43 Absolutely. 35:45 The prophecy of the 70 weeks 35:46 contemplates two destructions of Jerusalem 35:48 because Jerusalem has to be rebuilt and restored. 35:52 That means that it was destroyed 35:54 and also at the end of the prophecy 35:56 it says that when the Messiah would come, 35:58 after He should come, the city once again 36:01 would be desolate because of its what? 36:03 Because of its abominations. 36:05 Now after the captivity, 36:08 the city and the temple were rebuilt. 36:11 Notice what we find in 2 Chronicles 36:22, 23. 36:17 2 Chronicles 36:22, 23. 36:21 Here is the order to restore 36:24 the sanctuary service in Jerusalem. 36:26 It says, "Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, 36:30 that the word of the Lord 36:31 by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, 36:34 the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, 36:38 so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, 36:42 and also put it in writing, saying, 36:44 Thus says Cyrus king of Persia, 36:47 All the kingdoms of the earth 36:49 the Lord God of heaven has given me. 36:51 And He has commanded me to build Him a house at Jerusalem." 36:54 So must the house have been destroyed 36:55 if God commanded him to build a house? 36:57 Of course. 36:58 "And He has commanded me to build Him a house 37:00 at Jerusalem which is in Judah. 37:03 Who is among you of all His people? 37:06 May the Lord his God be with him, and let him" what? 37:10 "And let him go up. 37:11 And so the work of construction began. 37:13 And to make a long story short, 37:15 the temple was finished in the year 515 BC. 37:20 They went back in the year 536, 37:23 but the temple was finished in the year 515 BC. 37:27 And by the way, some of the people 37:28 that saw this second temple actually cried when they saw it. 37:33 Because there was nothing like Solomon's Temple. 37:35 It was far inferior. 37:37 In fact, there was no evidence 37:38 that the Shekinah even came into this temple. 37:41 Notice how this is described in the Book of Haggai 2:6-9. 37:47 Haggai 2:6-9. 37:50 The temple here has been finished 37:54 and God is promising something 37:57 which the Jews are still trying to understand today. 38:00 It says there in Haggai 2:6, 38:03 "For thus says the Lord of hosts. 38:06 Once more, it is a little while, 38:09 I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and dry land, 38:13 and I will shake all nations, and they shall come." 38:18 Notice and they shall come to the what? 38:21 "To the desire of all nations." 38:22 It also could be translated the desire of ages. 38:26 "And I will fill" notice "I will fill this temple with" 38:30 what? "With glory." 38:32 This is that second temple built after the captivity. 38:35 He says, "'I will fill this temple with glory' 38:38 says the Lord of hosts. 38:39 'The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine,' 38:41 says the Lord of hosts. 38:43 'The glory of this latter temple shall be greater 38:46 than the former,' says the Lord of hosts. 38:48 'And in this place I will give peace,' 38:51 says the Lord of hosts." 38:54 The Jews are still trying to understand 38:56 when that was fulfilled because the second temple 39:00 was destroyed and it never reached 39:01 the glory of the first temple. 39:04 Solomon's Temple, so called, 39:05 was far surpassed this temple in glory. 39:08 And yet, God was saying that this temple 39:11 which was built after the captivity 39:13 would far surpass that first temple in glory 39:16 and that God would come into the temple with power and glory. 39:21 How are we to understand this? 39:23 Was this prophecy ever fulfilled? Absolutely. 39:28 Notice John 1:14. John 1:14. 39:34 Here the Shekinah enters the temple. 39:38 It says there, and you've read this verse many times before. 39:43 "And the Word became flesh." 39:48 Is this what the prophecy of the 70 weeks was pointing to? 39:51 The coming of the Messiah? Absolutely. 39:54 "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, 39:57 and we beheld His," what? 40:00 "We beheld His glory, 40:02 the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, 40:06 full of grace and truth." 40:11 Is the presence of Jesus spoken off as glory? Yes. 40:15 Did Jesus walk in the courts of this second temple? Yes. 40:23 This is how this second temple was more glorious 40:26 than the first temple, which was destroyed. 40:29 And yet how did Israel respond to the Shekinah 40:33 that was in their midst? 40:34 He came to His own and His own received Him not. 40:40 They refused to hear His voice. 40:43 They refused to obey His covenant and therefore, 40:47 at the very end of His ministry, 40:49 the Shekinah comes into the temple for the last time. 40:54 Let's read about it in Luke 19:37, 38. 41:00 Luke 19:37, 38. 41:06 By the way, did the Shekinah enter the temple 41:09 in the days of Ezekiel right before Jerusalem was destroyed? 41:14 Yes, it departed the temple then, didn't it? 41:17 And where did it linger? On the Mount of Olives. 41:20 You see, this is gonna happen all over again 41:23 with Israel in its second opportunity. 41:26 Notice Luke 19:37, 38. 41:28 It says then, "As He was now drawing near, 41:31 the descent of the Mount of Olives, 41:34 the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice 41:37 and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works 41:41 they had seen, saying 41:43 'Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord. 41:47 Peace in heaven and glory in the highest.'" 41:50 So He's coming down the Mount of Olives 41:54 and then He comes into the temple. 41:58 Notice Matthew 21:12, 13 42:01 which chronologically is at this very time. 42:04 You see, Luke is describing it in one way. 42:07 Here we find in Matthew 21 the description of Matthew. 42:12 Matthew 21:12, 13. 42:15 It says, "Then Jesus went into the," 42:20 what? That's important. 42:22 "Into the temple of God." 42:24 So when Jesus went into the temple, 42:26 was it still the temple of God? It was. 42:28 It says, "Then Jesus went into the temple of God 42:32 and drove out all those who bought and sold in the temple, 42:36 and overturned the tables of the moneychangers, 42:40 and the seats of those who sold doves. 42:43 And He said to them, "It is written," notice this. 42:46 "'My house,'" did He still claim 42:49 that this was His house? Absolutely. 42:51 "'My house shall be called the house of prayer,' 42:54 but you have made it a den of thieves." 42:56 So did the Shekinah come to the temple? 42:58 He most certainly did. 42:59 Did He cleanse the temple? He absolutely did? 43:03 And then, in the temple courts, 43:05 Jesus teaches several parables. 43:09 One of those parables is the parable of the fig tree, 43:11 which we're gonna study later on in this series. 43:14 You remember the story of the fig tree 43:16 Jesus goes looking for food on it? 43:19 And what was the problem with the fig tree? 43:21 It had no fruit. 43:23 What did the fig tree represent? 43:26 It represented the nation of Israel. 43:28 Everybody can tell you that 43:30 Israel is symbolized by a fig tree. 43:33 And yet, Jesus came looking for food 43:36 on that fig tree and He found none. 43:39 So what did Jesus do? 43:41 Notice Matthew 21:18, 19. 43:46 It says, "Now in the morning 43:47 as He returned to the city, He was hungry. 43:50 And seeing a fig tree by the road, 43:52 He came to it and found nothing on it but leaves, 43:55 and said to it, 'Let' notice this, 43:58 "'Let no fruit grow on you ever again.' 44:03 And immediately the fig tree," what? "Withered away." 44:07 Was He predicting what was gonna happen to the Hebrew nation? 44:10 He most certainly was. 44:12 And He was teaching this in the courts of the temple. 44:14 He was coming to judge in the temple 44:17 just like in the Old Testament. 44:19 He came down from the east, 44:20 down the slope of the Mount of Olives into the temple. 44:23 And now, He's gonna perform 44:24 a work of separation in the temple. 44:28 And then, of course, in the temple, 44:29 Jesus also tells that famous parable. 44:32 Matthew 21:33-43. 44:35 It's the parable of the vineyard workers. 44:38 It says there, "Here another parable. 44:40 There was a certain landowner, who planted a vineyard, 44:43 and set a hedge around it, 44:45 dug a winepress in it and built a tower. 44:47 And he leased it to vinedressers, 44:49 and went into a far country. 44:52 Now when vintage-time drew near, 44:54 he sent his servants to the vinedressers, 44:57 that they might receive its," what? "Its fruit. 45:01 And the vinedressers took his servants, 45:02 beat one, killed one, and stoned another." 45:05 Is this what they did with the servants 45:06 between the times of Moses and the Babylonian captivity? 45:10 What they did with their prophets and their messengers? 45:12 Absolutely. Verse 36, 45:14 "Again, he sent other servants." 45:16 See after the captivity, he sends more servants. 45:18 "More than the first, and they did likewise to them." 45:22 Now notice verse 37. 45:23 "Then last of all," notice it has a finality to it. 45:26 "Last of all, he sent his," what? 45:29 "His son to them, saying, 'They will respect my son.' 45:34 But when the vinedressers saw the son, 45:36 they said among themselves, 'This is the heir. 45:39 Come, let us kill him, and seize his inheritance.' 45:42 So they took him and cast him 45:44 out of the vineyard and killed him. 45:46 Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, 45:48 what will he do to those vinedressers? 45:51 They said to Him, 'He will destroy 45:53 those wicked men miserably.' 45:56 What was Jesus talking about? 45:58 He was talking about the nation 45:59 that had this second chance, the Hebrew nation. 46:03 "They said to him, 46:04 'He will destroy those wicked men miserably.' 46:07 And lease his vineyard to other vinedressers 46:09 who will render to him the fruits in their seasons. 46:12 Jesus said to them, 'Have you never read in the scriptures, 46:15 'The stone which the builders rejected 46:17 has become the chief cornerstone. 46:19 This was the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes'?" 46:23 Now notice this. 46:25 "Therefore I say I to you, the kingdom of God will be," 46:29 what? "Will be taken from you, 46:32 and given to a nation bearing the fruits thereof." 46:36 Was there going to be 46:38 another rejection of the Hebrew theocracy? 46:41 Yes. Why? 46:42 Because they rejected whom? 46:44 Because they rejected Jesus, the Messiah, the one 46:48 who originally made the covenant with Him at Mount Sinai 46:52 who came down the eastern slope of the Mount of Olives 46:54 like in the days of Ezekiel, entered the temple 46:57 to give parables of judgment, was rejected in there. 47:03 And then I want you to notice 47:04 what He says when He leaves the temple. 47:06 Matthew 23:37, 38. 47:10 You see, he leaves the temple. 47:11 Just like the Shekinah in the days of Ezekiel. 47:14 It says in Matthew 23:37, Jesus is speaking. 47:19 "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets 47:23 and stones those who are sent to her. 47:26 How often I wanted to gather your children together, 47:30 as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, 47:34 but you were not willing. 47:36 See." Now notice this. 47:38 "Your house is left to you," excuse me? "Desolate." 47:45 Is that a key word? 47:46 Was that found in relationship 47:48 to the first destruction of Jerusalem? Yes. 47:52 Was Jerusalem left desolate 47:53 because they rejected the Lord? Absolutely. 47:56 So Jesus--is the Shekinah departing the temple now? 47:59 Absolutely. Verse 39. 48:01 "For I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, 48:07 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.'" 48:10 And then interestingly enough, after Jesus leaves the temple, 48:13 He says, "Your house is left desolate." 48:16 Just like in the days of Ezekiel, 48:18 Jesus now goes and He sits on the Mount of Olives. 48:23 And He is going to linger there 48:25 and do you know what He's gonna talk about? 48:28 He's gonna talk about the destruction of Jerusalem. 48:33 Is this parallel to what we noticed in the Old Testament? 48:36 It is tremendously parallel 48:38 to what happened in the Old Testament. 48:40 And so in Matthew 24:1, 2 we find these words. 48:47 "Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, 48:51 and His disciples came up to show Him 48:53 the buildings of the temple. 48:54 And Jesus said to them, 48:56 'Do you not see all these things? 48:58 Assuredly, I say to you, 49:00 not one stone shall be left here upon another, 49:04 that shall not be thrown down.'" 49:09 Was Jerusalem gonna be left desolate again? 49:12 Was the Shekinah going to forsake them again? Absolutely. 49:16 Was it because of abominations? Go with me to Matthew 24:15. 49:24 Matthew 24:15. 49:26 Here we reach the most important point of our study. 49:30 It says there and we read this in our first lecture, 49:34 "Therefore when you see the 'abomination of desolation.'" 49:40 Is that similar terminology to what we read in Ezekiel? 49:44 It's identical terminology to what we read in Ezekiel. 49:49 Did the abominations lead to desolation? 49:51 They most certainly did. 49:52 "Therefore when you see the 'abomination of desolation,' 49:55 spoken of by" who? 49:58 Did we read that in Daniel Chapter 9? 50:01 Yes, we did. 50:02 "Spoken of by Daniel the prophet, 50:05 standing in the," what? 50:07 "In the holy place whoever reads, let him understand." 50:12 What was Jesus talking about when He said, 50:14 "When you see the abomination of desolation? 50:17 He's saying that there was a particular abomination 50:19 that ultimately marked the desolation of Jerusalem. 50:23 And what was that? Notice Luke 21:20. 50:29 Luke 21:20. This is a parallel passage. 50:33 This is the reason why it's so important 50:35 to study the gospels together. 50:37 We have to study Matthew 24, Mark 13, 50:41 and Luke 21 together because they complement one another. 50:45 They explain one another. Now notice Luke 21:20. 50:51 "But when you see Jerusalem," what? 50:56 "Surrounded by armies." 51:01 Is that the abomination? Yes, it is. 51:04 We're gonna talk about what was abominable about that? 51:07 I'll just give you little inkling 51:09 of some of the things that we're gonna study. 51:10 The Romans when they came 51:12 outside the city of Jerusalem, they had these standards. 51:17 They had an eagle and a sunburst on the standards. 51:22 And when these were put 51:23 outside the city of Jerusalem in the ground 51:26 just a few furlongs from the city wall, 51:30 the Romans as was their custom knelt 51:33 and they worshipped the standards 51:36 that had the eagle and the sun. Interesting. 51:41 Were there two different groups inside the holy city? 51:44 Were those who were there in the city, 51:46 those who were faithful to God, the Christians? 51:50 And were those who were apostate? Absolutely. 51:53 Did God, so to speak, 51:55 place a mark upon His faithful ones 51:59 so that they would not be destroyed 52:00 when the city was destroyed just like in the Old Testament? 52:04 So it says, "When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies," 52:07 that is the abomination in other words. 52:10 "Then know that its," what? "That its desolation is near." 52:17 Let me ask you, is the abomination 52:19 and is the desolation the same thing? No. 52:23 Are they related? Most certainly. 52:25 The abomination is the announcement 52:29 that what is coming? 52:30 That desolation is coming. 52:32 Because it says here, "When you see Jerusalem 52:35 surrounded by armies know that its desolation is near." 52:38 So when you see the abomination, 52:40 the desolation has not taken place yet. 52:43 Because it says you know that it's near 52:45 when you see the abomination. 52:47 Later on, we're gonna study 52:49 how this is fulfilled in the end time. 52:51 It has to do with the Sabbath. 52:53 And it has to do with the sun. 52:55 And it has to do with abominations 52:57 being committed within the Christian world. 52:59 And it has to do with Jesus abandoning 53:03 the service and the sanctuary 53:05 and Christendom being left desolate. 53:08 You see, all of this is typological of end time events. 53:13 That's why we had, you know, 53:15 this first study so that we could study the principles 53:19 that this prophecy is actually being fulfilled twice. 53:23 It's fulfilled with the destruction of Jerusalem, 53:25 but it's also fulfilled at the end of the world. 53:28 I want to conclude by reading Luke 19:41-44. 53:34 Luke 19:41-44. 53:37 Here Jesus is speaking and I want you to notice 53:41 how tragic the prophecy that He is uttering at this point. 53:48 "Now as He drew near, He saw the city 53:53 and," what? "And wept over it." 53:58 Jesus loved that city. 54:01 And He loved the people in that city. 54:05 "Now as He drew near, He saw the city 54:07 and wept over it, saying, 54:10 'If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, 54:16 the things that make for your peace.'" 54:19 If you only knew what it is that brings peace, 54:21 Jesus is saying. 54:23 "If you just accepted me, I'm the prince of peace," 54:25 is what Jesus is uttering. 54:28 "He says, 'But now they are hidden from your eyes. 54:33 For days will come upon you, when your enemies,'" 54:38 who were the enemies? The Romans. 54:41 "'When your enemies will build an embankment around you, 54:46 surround you, and close you in on every side.'" 54:51 Is that the same thing as Jerusalem being surrounded 54:54 by armies? Absolutely. 54:56 By the way, we still have to study 54:57 and this will be in our next lecture 54:59 the interesting fact that the city was besieged twice. 55:04 It was besieged once by Cestius 55:06 and then without any explanation, 55:08 he suddenly retreated. 55:10 And the false prophets in Jerusalem said, 55:12 "See we told you that God was gonna protect this city." 55:16 And they went after the Romans. 55:18 And the Romans suffered many losses. 55:20 But then the Romans came back and they besieged the city. 55:23 And they left no more. 55:25 All of that is symbolic of end time events. 55:29 So Jesus continues saying verse 43, 55:31 "For days will come upon you, 55:33 when your enemies will build an embankment around you, 55:35 surround you, and close you in on every side and level you." 55:41 Second destruction of Jerusalem? Yes. 55:44 "And your children within you to the ground. 55:47 And they will not leave in you one stone upon another." 55:53 Why? 55:54 "Because you did not know the time of your visitation." 56:01 You did not know that the Shekinah was in your midst. 56:05 You rejected the Shekinah. 56:07 And therefore the Shekinah will abandon your temple 56:10 and your city to return no more. 56:15 And so it was in the year 70 that Titus came, 56:19 by the way, a Pagan king like Nebuchadnezzar. 56:23 In the city, there was warfare and social unrest. 56:29 And there was pestilence and there was famine, 56:33 everything that's mentioned in Matthew 24. 56:35 And so he comes, he besieges the city, 56:38 and he destroys the city of Jerusalem. 56:41 He demolishes the temple. 56:43 He melts the gold that existed in the temple. 56:47 And by the way, Josephus tells us 56:50 that when Jerusalem was destroyed for the second time, 56:55 once again, the Book of Lamentations 56:59 was a song that was sung as people were being crucified 57:04 and as people were being let away captive 57:07 to the four corners of the earth. 57:12 Were you able to follow all the study this evening? 57:14 Yes. 57:15 You see, the first destruction of Jerusalem reveals 57:17 what was going to happen with the second destruction. 57:20 And the second destruction reveals 57:22 what will soon take place 57:24 in this world as unexpected by most. |
Revised 2014-12-17