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Luccas Rodor: Hi,
friends, and welcome to our
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"Sabbath School Study Hour."
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It's so good to
have you all here.
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It's good to be back home.
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I was traveling for a
while so it's good to be home.
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And I'd like to welcome you here
to our Granite Bay Seventh Day
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Adventist Church in partnership
with Amazing Facts Ministries.
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We have people here in our local
audience so I'd like to welcome
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you and I'd also like to welcome
those who are coming--who are
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watching from afar, be that
on the Internet or on Facebook.
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God bless you and I'm sure that
you're going to have a great
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study today here with us.
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Today we're going to be studying
the second lesson of this new
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quarterly and the
lesson title is "Nehemiah."
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If you don't have the quarterly
at home and you'd like to read
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along with us, you can
find it at lesson.aftv.org.
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But before we go into the lesson
per se I'd like to give you our
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special offer of the day and
that is this book--this booklet,
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"Teach Us to Pray."
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And so if you want--this
is a very important lesson.
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If you want to have this booklet
and you'd like to learn more
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about how to pray, you can text
"SH065" to the number "40544."
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Of course, that's if
you're in North America so
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the United States and in
Canada and its territories.
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If not, you can go
online to study.aftv.org/SH065
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and you can also find
this booklet over there.
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Today we have this
interesting lesson.
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Pastor Shawn is going to be
teaching for us and I'm sure
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that we're going to
have a blessed study today.
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Pastor Shawn, may God bless you.
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But before Pastor Shawn
comes up, I'd like to call our
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song--our music ministry, and
they're going to be singing for
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us a beautiful song.
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May God bless you as
you study the Bible today.
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¤ Take time to be holy,
speak oft with thy Lord; ¤
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¤ abide in H im
always, and feed on His Word. ¤
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¤ Make friends
of God's children, ¤
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¤ help those who are weak, ¤
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¤ forgetting in
nothing His blessing to seek. ¤
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¤ Take time to be
holy, the world rushes on; ¤
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¤ spend much time in
secret, with Jesus alone. ¤
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¤ By looking to Jesus,
like Him thou shalt be; ¤
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¤ thy friends in thy conduct
His likeness shall see. ¤
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¤ Take time to be
holy, let Him be thy Guide; ¤
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¤ and run not before
Him, whatever betide. ¤
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¤ In joy or in sorrow,
still follow thy Lord, ¤
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¤ and, looking to Jesus,
still trust in His Word. ¤
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¤ Take time to be
holy, be calm in thy soul, ¤
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¤ each thought and each
motive beneath His control. ¤
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¤ Thus led by His
Spirit to fountains of love, ¤
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¤ thou soon shalt be
fitted for service above. ¤
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Shawn Brummund: Father in
heaven, we are just so thankful
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to be able to find ourselves
here in this church worshiping
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You, glorifying You, God, coming
close to You, drawing towards
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You, Lord, even as we know
and pray and trust that You will
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draw towards us.
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God, we want to pray that Your
Holy Spirit will guide us and
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that You will lead us as we open
Your Word, as we look at some of
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the grand themes in which
Ezra and Nehemiah is found in.
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Father, we want to pray that
You will help us to be able to
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establish our faith that
much more, to understand Your
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workings and Your
plan of salvation.
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In Jesus's name I
pray these things, amen.
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Well, we are looking at lesson
number 2 in a very exciting and
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very milestone study in two
of the milestone books, really.
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It's a turning stone or a turn
in the history of God's people
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of ancient Israel and so
these are no small books.
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They're small in number, as far
as chapters and size, but they
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are not small in regards to
their historical importance.
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These books are
absolutely vital.
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We're going to look at the
bigger picture but before we do
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that, I want to go to lesson
number 2 which is where we're at
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this week and look at our memory
verse which is found in Nehemiah
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chapter 1 and
verses 4 through 5.
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It says: "So it was, when I
heard these words, that I sat
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down and wept, and mourned
for many days; I was fasting and
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praying before
the God of heaven.
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And I said: 'I pray, Lord God of
heaven, O great and awesome God,
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You who keep Your covenant and
mercy with those who love You
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and observe Your commandments.'"
And so here we have this
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beautiful response, these
beautiful, powerful words of the
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second important figure in the
second book which we're studying
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this quarter.
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And so last week we
kind of had an intro to Ezra.
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This week we're going to have a
very brief intro to Nehemiah and
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then next week we're going
to actually look at the call of
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both of them again and so,
really, the first three weeks
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are intros to these key
figures and these two key books.
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Now, because next week we're
going to look and intro Nehemiah
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again and also because as I
look through the whole quarterly
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there's one theme that just
did really pop out for me that I
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just--the Lord has just cried
out through me and wants me to
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be able to share.
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And so we're going to
come back to Nehemiah.
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We're going to look at some
of the highlights of what the
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quarterly actually points out.
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But I want to spend the bulk of
our time actually looking at the
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bigger picture in Israel's
history, looking at the bigger
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picture in the light of prophecy
in concern to the time and the
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events that surround the two
figures of Ezra and Nehemiah.
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Now, last week, of course,
Pastor Doug as he intro'd this
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particular study, these
two books, he talked about the
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70-year prophecy that God
had given through Jeremiah.
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Now, Jeremiah was the one that
was living for the few decades
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up to the captivity and the
conquering of Israel by Babylon.
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And he lived a few years
beyond and stayed in Israel.
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And he's the one that God had
actually called to give hope to
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the Israelites, to give
hope to those of Israel.
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And so when we pick up in Ezra
and Nehemiah, we find that 70
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long years had now passed
between the time that Israel
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lost its sovereignty, lost
its holy capital, lost its holy
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temple, and they are finding
themselves for decades now in an
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ancient far-off
pagan land, really.
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And so it's been a long time
since Judah and Jerusalem had
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been conquered and destroyed.
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Several thousand of the Jews
were taken captive into Babylon,
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the ones that were lucky enough
to survive, if some of them
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counted themselves lucky and
weren't slain by the Babylonians
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when they came in.
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And so we're looking
at the bigger picture.
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How did that all take place?
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Well, we have to back up just
a little bit, even further than
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that.
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We find that, indeed, from the
time of David in about 1000 AD,
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the beginning of the first
faithful king at least, until
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the time that Nebuchadnezzar,
the ancient Babylonian king and
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his armies came in from Babylon
and conquered Israel, there was
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about a 400-year period and
so from 1000 BC, I should say,
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until about--and I'm talking in
round numbers, 600 BC, we find
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that there was 400 years that,
for the most part, Israel had
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enjoyed not only autonomy,
sovereignty as a nation,
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independence as a nation, but
they also kept the ceremonial
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services going, the feasts, the
daily sacrifices that surrounded
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the holy temple of God that was
a 3D proclamation of the message
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of God's plan of salvation,
bringing hope not only to their
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generations but all those
who were going through the
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crossroads of the known world
back then which Israel was the
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crossroads.
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And so many other nations
and peoples were exposed to this
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holy temple of the Jews in
Jerusalem and they were exposed
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to the sacrificial system
and the guilt that could be
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transferred symbolically from
the sinner to the innocent lamb
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or to the innocent
sacrificial animal.
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And so we have this great
period, this 400-year period, in
00:10:01.20\00:10:06.17
which Israel had
enjoyed its sovereignty.
00:10:06.20\00:10:09.47
Sadly, history tells us both in
the Bible and outside that after
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Babylon came in and conquered
them, Israel would never enjoy
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its sovereignty again.
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Not until at least modern times
in which Israel now, of course,
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is a sovereign nation
in the Middle East today.
00:10:22.42\00:10:25.39
And so that's a
long time, isn't it?
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Hundreds and hundreds, in fact,
thousands of years, I think, if
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we add it up, that
Israel had lost its sovereignty.
00:10:29.99\00:10:33.16
And so looking at the bigger
picture again, what led up to
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the captivity?
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Well, of course, as God had
pointed out through his first
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prophet that led the Israelites
into the Promised Land, is that
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if they were faithful God would
bless them, God would prosper
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them, God would protect them,
and they would be the light to
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the world, to the Gentiles, to
the non-Jewish world, and draw
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all peoples to Jesus and to the
temple as a house of prayer for
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all nations.
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And sometimes they fulfilled
that but, sadly, when we look at
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the history of Israel, we
find that more times than not,
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they were not so faithful.
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And so, because of that, they
kept declining more and more
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morally and, even though a
couple of good kings came in in
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the last few decades just before
Babylon came in, we have some
00:11:20.54\00:11:23.45
real wicked kings that find
themselves on the throne doing
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evil in the sight of the Lord
and they're listening to all the
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wrong voices including false
prophets and such and--'til
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finally, the Bible tells us that
even though God had compassion
00:11:34.26\00:11:37.16
on them, He did everything
He possibly could to be able to
00:11:37.19\00:11:41.53
prevent this captivity, He
was left with no other choice.
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And so we find that history
tells us, the Bible tells us,
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that God used not
a righteous nation,
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but another wicked nation.
00:11:50.54\00:11:51.94
So Israel had become wicked and
God uses another wicked nation
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to come in and
discipline His people Israel.
00:11:55.34\00:11:58.48
And so He draws in a people.
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He opens the door and
removes His protection.
00:12:01.48\00:12:03.72
The Babylonian army comes in.
00:12:03.75\00:12:05.79
They take away captive many of
the Jews, all the royal family
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and such, and Daniel, of course,
is one of the most outstanding
00:12:07.76\00:12:12.23
famous individuals that
was found in those numbers
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of the captives.
00:12:17.97\00:12:21.04
And so here we find that,
starting at about 605 BC, the
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first time that Nebuchadnezzar
and the Babylonians came in and
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conquered Israel, conquered
Jerusalem, took its captive, we
00:12:29.51\00:12:33.25
find that Israel now, for 70
years, is captive to the most
00:12:33.28\00:12:36.52
notorious, most known enemy
of God and His truth: Babylon.
00:12:36.55\00:12:42.79
Babylon is the arch-enemy, the
historical arch-enemy of God.
00:12:42.82\00:12:47.76
Is it the only city that was
an enemy of God, the only one
00:12:47.83\00:12:50.37
rebellious against God?
00:12:50.40\00:12:52.00
No, we have Nineveh, we have
a number of other cities: Tyre,
00:12:52.03\00:12:55.60
Sidon, there's all kinds of
ancient cities that were also in
00:12:55.64\00:12:58.07
rebellion but Babylon was
kind of the mother of harlots.
00:12:58.11\00:13:01.81
Babylon was the ultimate
rebellious city and symbolic
00:13:01.84\00:13:07.92
enemy of God and His people.
00:13:07.95\00:13:11.82
Now, sometimes, we can assume,
wrongfully and it's naturally
00:13:11.85\00:13:15.69
that the original founders of
the city of Babylon kind of sat
00:13:15.72\00:13:20.30
down, you know, the mayor
and his city council, and said,
00:13:20.33\00:13:22.96
"What are we
going to name our city?"
00:13:23.00\00:13:24.30
And they said, "Well, let's name
it 'Confusion'," which Babylon
00:13:24.33\00:13:28.40
means, doesn't it?
00:13:28.44\00:13:29.97
Confusion is actually a Greek
word that means to confuse or
00:13:30.01\00:13:33.74
confusion.
00:13:33.78\00:13:35.48
Now, that really doesn't make
a whole lot of sense, does it?
00:13:35.51\00:13:38.51
That's what the Bible prophets
called that city but that's not
00:13:38.55\00:13:41.28
what its originators and
its leaders and Nebuchadnezzar
00:13:41.32\00:13:43.35
referred it to.
00:13:43.39\00:13:44.45
It actually is called
and referred to as Bab-ilu.
00:13:44.49\00:13:47.22
We see it on the
screen here, Bab-ilu.
00:13:47.26\00:13:50.46
And so this was an ancient term
that actually literally meant,
00:13:50.49\00:13:53.43
most scholars agree, it
means "Gate of the gods."
00:13:53.46\00:13:56.06
And this is a fitting title in
the eyes of its founders, in the
00:13:56.10\00:14:02.17
eyes of its leaders, because as
Babylon established itself and
00:14:02.20\00:14:05.21
grew more and more powerful
and more and more notorious as a
00:14:05.24\00:14:09.54
city of not only of religion but
in rebellion to the true God, we
00:14:09.58\00:14:14.05
find that it was the
center of religion in its day.
00:14:14.08\00:14:18.22
And so in the heyday when it
conquered Israel, it was the--it
00:14:18.25\00:14:21.96
was the center of the known
world in regards to religion.
00:14:21.99\00:14:25.29
If you were a study and a
scholar religion the ultimate
00:14:25.33\00:14:28.16
place to go and study religion
would be Babylon, or Bab-ilu as
00:14:28.20\00:14:31.33
they would call it.
00:14:31.37\00:14:32.23
The Gate of the
gods, all these gods.
00:14:32.27\00:14:34.30
They had more gods, more idols,
more priests and so on than any
00:14:34.34\00:14:37.77
other city in ancient times.
00:14:37.81\00:14:39.27
And so it was the golden
city, not only of power and
00:14:39.31\00:14:44.45
prosperity, but
also of false religion.
00:14:44.48\00:14:47.08
And then, of course, for many
of us that have read Genesis and
00:14:47.12\00:14:51.39
some of the earlier chapters
of the Bible, we have discovered
00:14:51.42\00:14:53.72
that indeed Babylon has a very
long heritage that stretches far
00:14:53.76\00:14:58.99
back further than the time in
which Nebuchadnezzar lived and
00:14:59.03\00:15:03.70
Israel was taken captive.
00:15:03.73\00:15:06.13
In fact, Babylon finds its
heritage in the very first years
00:15:06.17\00:15:09.97
right after the
flood in Noah's day.
00:15:10.01\00:15:11.97
Noah is still alive.
00:15:12.01\00:15:13.48
God had said after the
flood: "Be fruitful and go and
00:15:13.51\00:15:16.88
multiply."
00:15:16.91\00:15:18.78
And when He said that, He wanted
the people to spread out to the
00:15:18.81\00:15:23.92
different parts of the
planet and of the known world.
00:15:23.95\00:15:26.59
But did they do that?
00:15:26.62\00:15:28.26
No, the Bible record
tells us that instead, they find
00:15:28.29\00:15:30.96
themselves all
congregated into one spot.
00:15:30.99\00:15:33.50
They produced this great city
and at the centerpiece of that
00:15:33.53\00:15:37.03
city was the
Tower of Babel, okay?
00:15:37.07\00:15:40.44
Many of you know the story.
00:15:40.47\00:15:42.20
Now, it was called Babel which
is the Hebrew term that means
00:15:42.24\00:15:46.07
confusion, and rightly so. Why?
00:15:46.11\00:15:48.41
Because as they were making this
great project to glorify not God
00:15:48.44\00:15:52.78
but to glorify themselves and
to glorify false religion and
00:15:52.81\00:15:56.65
rebellion and independence from
God, we find that God stymied
00:15:56.69\00:16:01.09
their languages and that's--we
find the origins of multi
00:16:01.12\00:16:04.69
languages in
nations around the world.
00:16:04.73\00:16:07.10
And that stymied the project,
the Tower of Babylon and its
00:16:07.13\00:16:10.57
project was come to its
completion but when we come to
00:16:10.60\00:16:14.04
Genesis 10 we find that that
city was not complete in regards
00:16:14.07\00:16:17.84
to Satan's work because we find
that there is a individual--we
00:16:17.87\00:16:23.38
find that there is a individual
by the name of Nimrod.
00:16:23.41\00:16:27.25
Now many of you have
heard the term "Nimrod" before.
00:16:27.28\00:16:29.52
Now, Nimrod is the
great-grandson of--anybody know?
00:16:29.55\00:16:35.29
The
great-grandson of Noah, yeah.
00:16:35.32\00:16:40.50
So Noah had Ham, Ham had Cush,
and then Cush gave birth to
00:16:40.53\00:16:44.80
Nimrod.
00:16:44.83\00:16:45.87
And was Ham the rebellious
son of Nebuchadnezzar?
00:16:45.90\00:16:49.17
Yes, he was, wasn't he?
00:16:49.20\00:16:51.97
And so Ham we found is--kind of
becomes the new Cain of the new
00:16:52.01\00:16:56.28
generations that developed
through Noah and his wife after
00:16:56.31\00:17:00.38
the flood.
00:17:00.42\00:17:01.62
And so, sadly, we find that
Nimrod leads this city and he
00:17:01.65\00:17:05.72
founds this city and he
continues to carry it forward
00:17:05.75\00:17:08.42
and establish its many different
false religious practices and
00:17:08.46\00:17:12.43
beliefs and
rebellion against God.
00:17:12.46\00:17:16.53
And so that's the
heritage of the city.
00:17:16.56\00:17:19.00
And now in the empire that
extends from that city, that was
00:17:19.03\00:17:22.04
really that part of the world
when Nebuchadnezzar came in, it
00:17:22.07\00:17:24.94
was establishing this new-found
world empire with Babylon as its
00:17:24.97\00:17:28.94
capital.
00:17:28.98\00:17:30.18
And so Satan was busy at
work back in those ancient days.
00:17:30.21\00:17:34.62
God understood everything that
was taking place but He had a
00:17:34.65\00:17:37.09
problem even while Satan was
doing his work through Babylon
00:17:37.12\00:17:40.22
and that is that God's city,
Jerusalem, which representative
00:17:40.26\00:17:43.86
was to--intended to represent
everything the opposite of which
00:17:43.89\00:17:47.23
Babylon was to represent and was
founding itself on, was actually
00:17:47.23\00:17:50.87
starting to represent more the
beliefs and practices of ancient
00:17:50.90\00:17:55.70
Babylon than what God
intended for Jerusalem.
00:17:55.74\00:17:59.11
And so God had to
do something about it.
00:17:59.14\00:18:00.84
He brought in the Babylonians
and He conquered--had Israel and
00:18:00.88\00:18:06.65
Jerusalem conquered, destroyed,
many of its captives were taken
00:18:06.68\00:18:11.09
over to a long, faraway
place and so that's the bigger
00:18:11.12\00:18:15.86
picture, historically,
of Ezra and Nehemiah.
00:18:15.89\00:18:19.23
Israel is now found captive to
this powerful longstanding enemy
00:18:19.26\00:18:24.37
of God, but does God
leave him without hope?
00:18:24.40\00:18:28.84
No, He doesn't leave him
without hope at all, does He?
00:18:28.87\00:18:30.84
No, in fact, He gives some very
powerful prophecies through the
00:18:30.87\00:18:35.14
prophet that was living in
Jerusalem and appealing to the
00:18:35.18\00:18:38.35
leadership and the people of
Israel when Babylon came in and
00:18:38.38\00:18:42.25
took them captive.
00:18:42.28\00:18:43.92
Now, we have a volunteer here
this morning that's going to
00:18:43.95\00:18:46.86
read Jeremiah chapter 29 and
verses 10 through 11, and so if
00:18:46.89\00:18:51.76
you have your Bibles, let's open
to Jeremiah chapter 29, verses
00:18:51.79\00:18:55.76
10 through 11, and
we'll invite her down.
00:18:55.80\00:19:01.77
Thank you.
00:19:01.80\00:19:02.97
female: "Thus says the Lord:
After 70 years are completed at
00:19:03.00\00:19:06.88
Babylon, I will visit you and
perform My good word toward you,
00:19:06.91\00:19:11.98
and cause you to
return to this place.
00:19:12.01\00:19:15.18
For I know the thoughts that I
think toward you, says the Lord,
00:19:15.22\00:19:19.52
thoughts of peace and not of
evil, to give you a future and a
00:19:19.55\00:19:24.49
hope."
00:19:24.53\00:19:26.73
Shawn: Okay, thank you.
00:19:26.76\00:19:27.56
So there we find
one of the times.
00:19:27.60\00:19:29.40
Now, Jeremiah two or three
times, actually, wrote in his
00:19:29.43\00:19:31.97
book and gave that
prophecy, that 70-year prophecy.
00:19:32.00\00:19:35.27
Why?
00:19:35.30\00:19:36.50
Because it was vital for God to
be able to give the Israelites
00:19:36.54\00:19:40.91
hope that even when the whole
world was falling apart, that
00:19:40.94\00:19:45.28
there was an end that was
to come, that this was not the
00:19:45.31\00:19:47.78
final end of Jerusalem and God's
plan of salvation through it.
00:19:47.82\00:19:50.99
That the Messiah still would
arrive in a nation that would be
00:19:51.02\00:19:55.36
able to receive Him
in the city of Jerusalem.
00:19:55.39\00:19:57.53
And so we find that God gave
hope even while their world was
00:19:57.56\00:20:02.13
falling apart.
00:20:02.16\00:20:03.40
And so that's a powerful thing
and I'd--you know, the second
00:20:03.43\00:20:06.84
verse is actually
more famous, isn't it?
00:20:06.87\00:20:08.40
The one that was just read which
is verse 11: "For I know the
00:20:08.44\00:20:12.37
thoughts that I have towards
you, plans, you know, thoughts
00:20:12.41\00:20:13.78
to prosper you and give you
peace and such," you know, and
00:20:13.81\00:20:15.94
we apply that to our lives.
00:20:15.98\00:20:17.78
And that principle does apply to
us, doesn't it, if we have faith
00:20:17.81\00:20:21.45
in God.
00:20:21.48\00:20:22.75
But even while Israel was
in rebellion during their worst
00:20:22.78\00:20:26.42
point in their lives and in
their existence, we find here
00:20:26.45\00:20:29.76
that God says, "I know the
thoughts that I have towards
00:20:29.79\00:20:33.56
you."
00:20:33.60\00:20:35.10
And so even when we're in a bad
state of mind, even if--and one
00:20:35.13\00:20:39.00
of us might be in rebellion
against God right now, and God
00:20:39.03\00:20:41.57
is using this message and this
study to be able to appeal to
00:20:41.60\00:20:45.77
you.
00:20:45.81\00:20:46.98
And He is saying, "Listen, even
though you may not be in the
00:20:47.01\00:20:50.08
right mindset, in the right
mindframe right now, I know the
00:20:50.11\00:20:55.45
thoughts that I have towards
you, thoughts to prosper you and
00:20:55.48\00:20:58.75
give you peace and a future."
00:20:58.79\00:21:00.69
And so that's the
God we serve, amen?
00:21:00.72\00:21:03.39
Even when we're rebelling
against God, God has a plan and
00:21:03.43\00:21:07.03
He has a great desire to give us
a better future and to help our
00:21:07.10\00:21:10.77
lives and turn them around
and so that's a powerful thing.
00:21:10.80\00:21:13.87
I hope you're still in Jeremiah.
00:21:13.90\00:21:15.70
I want to go to Jeremiah chapter
50 and verses 18 through 19, and
00:21:15.74\00:21:20.74
read that together.
00:21:20.78\00:21:23.58
So we're going just a few
chapters ahead now to Jeremiah
00:21:23.61\00:21:26.85
chapter 50, verse 18.
00:21:26.88\00:21:28.22
It says: "Therefore thus says
the Lord God of hosts, the God
00:21:28.25\00:21:31.32
of Israel: 'Behold, I will
punish the king of Babylon and
00:21:31.35\00:21:35.06
his land, as I have
punished the king of Assyria.
00:21:35.09\00:21:38.16
But I will bring back Israel to
his--to his home--'" and so here
00:21:38.19\00:21:42.40
we find it repeated again
and so through the prophecies of
00:21:42.43\00:21:45.87
judgment that is the predominant
words of the prophet Jeremiah,
00:21:45.90\00:21:49.57
because of the decisions of the
Israelites, God is still giving
00:21:49.60\00:21:53.11
seeds of hope not only to that
generation as they are pulled
00:21:53.14\00:21:56.75
out from their homeland, but
to the further generations that
00:21:56.78\00:21:59.38
find themselves growing up in a
foreign land, needing to learn a
00:21:59.41\00:22:02.98
new language, a new culture,
a new people, a new way of doing
00:22:03.02\00:22:06.86
things, and all these other
things that were in this ancient
00:22:06.89\00:22:10.23
Babylon--Babylonian empire.
00:22:10.26\00:22:12.29
And so that's the greater
context as the Israelites find
00:22:12.33\00:22:17.57
themselves pulled out of Israel
and planted in this foreign
00:22:17.60\00:22:20.70
land.
00:22:20.74\00:22:21.87
Now, I want to share something
that is one of the most
00:22:21.90\00:22:23.30
fascinating faith-building
prophecies that we can find in
00:22:23.34\00:22:26.34
all the Bible, and I am just
so glad that I may have the time
00:22:26.37\00:22:29.98
and the opportunity here to
be able to bring us through it
00:22:30.01\00:22:33.08
'cause it relates directly to
our study of Ezra and Nehemiah
00:22:33.11\00:22:36.48
and the context there.
00:22:36.52\00:22:37.55
Let's go to Isaiah
chapter 44 and verse 24, okay?
00:22:37.59\00:22:42.36
We're going to go to Isaiah
chapter 44 and start reading in
00:22:42.39\00:22:49.16
verse 24.
00:22:49.20\00:22:51.97
Now, here we have Isaiah.
00:22:52.00\00:22:53.23
Now, let's put the context--even
before I start to read it, this
00:22:53.27\00:22:55.24
is just so exciting.
00:22:55.27\00:22:56.40
When we get to the book of
Isaiah, Isaiah is living and
00:22:56.44\00:22:59.61
prophesied up
until about 700 BC.
00:22:59.64\00:23:03.01
Now, he prophesied for several
decades but he ends his ministry
00:23:03.04\00:23:06.98
at 700 BC.
00:23:07.02\00:23:08.75
So the very latest that these
words were written would be 700
00:23:08.78\00:23:13.89
BC and so let's keep that
in mind as we read it, okay?
00:23:13.92\00:23:18.36
Now, of course, this is 100
years before Babylon came in and
00:23:18.39\00:23:22.63
took Israel away captive.
00:23:22.66\00:23:24.07
Hundred years before.
00:23:24.10\00:23:25.27
It says: "Thus says the Lord
your God, your Redeemer, and He
00:23:25.30\00:23:28.90
who has formed you from the
womb: 'I am the Lord, who makes
00:23:28.94\00:23:34.08
all things, who stretches
out the heavens all alone, who
00:23:34.11\00:23:37.41
spreads abroad the earth by
Myself; who frustrates the signs
00:23:37.45\00:23:41.28
of the babblers, and drives
diviners mad; who turns wise men
00:23:41.32\00:23:45.82
backward, and makes their
knowledge foolishness,'" I just
00:23:45.85\00:23:49.79
love this context, you know,
this passage here because it
00:23:49.82\00:23:52.26
talks about how God stymies and
frustrates and puzzles those who
00:23:52.29\00:23:56.40
believe in these different
channels that the devil develops
00:23:56.43\00:23:59.67
that he was supposed to give us
connected to the higher powers
00:23:59.70\00:24:02.40
of the universe and so on.
00:24:02.44\00:24:03.51
And He says,
"Listen, I drive them crazy."
00:24:03.54\00:24:07.01
In verse 26 He says,
"Who confirms the word of His
00:24:07.04\00:24:09.91
servant."
00:24:09.94\00:24:11.11
Now, He's contrasting those
who are working through Satan's
00:24:11.15\00:24:16.02
channels and now those who
are working with God as their
00:24:16.05\00:24:19.05
channel.
00:24:19.09\00:24:20.29
Verse 26, it says: "Who confirms
the word of His servant," that
00:24:20.32\00:24:22.86
would be His prophet, in this
case Isaiah, "And performs the
00:24:22.89\00:24:27.40
counsel of His messengers; who
says to Jerusalem," now, that's
00:24:27.46\00:24:31.27
God's city, not Babylon, "'You
shall be inhabited,' to the
00:24:31.30\00:24:35.34
cities of Judah, 'You shall be
built,' and I will raise up her
00:24:35.37\00:24:39.74
waste places."
00:24:39.77\00:24:41.21
Now, the irony is that Jerusalem
was up and doing--it was alive
00:24:41.24\00:24:44.68
and well, that city,
when he prophesied this.
00:24:44.71\00:24:47.82
And so at first the Babyl--I
mean, the Israelites must have
00:24:47.85\00:24:51.05
scratched their head and said,
"What do you mean, 'He's going
00:24:51.09\00:24:53.89
to rebuild Jerusalem and lift
up its walls again,' and such?
00:24:53.92\00:24:56.73
We're doing well," okay?
00:24:56.76\00:24:57.93
But Isaiah is prophetically
looking far into the future,
00:24:57.96\00:25:01.23
isn't he?
00:25:01.26\00:25:02.46
He's looking over 100 years into
the future when Nebuchadnezzar
00:25:02.50\00:25:04.97
and the Babylonians come in.
00:25:05.00\00:25:07.34
And then verse 27, it says:
"Who says to the deep, 'Be dry!
00:25:07.37\00:25:13.27
And I will dry up your rivers';
who says of Cyrus, 'He is My
00:25:13.31\00:25:17.05
shepherd, and he shall perform
all My pleasure, saying to
00:25:17.08\00:25:21.12
Jerusalem, "You shall be
built," and to the temple, "Your
00:25:21.15\00:25:24.75
foundation shall be laid."'" And
so again, God is giving some of
00:25:24.79\00:25:29.99
the details, even historically,
100 years before, and we're
00:25:30.03\00:25:33.19
going to touch on that a
little bit, on how Babylon was
00:25:33.23\00:25:35.56
conquered and how
Israel was delivered.
00:25:35.60\00:25:39.40
Then we come into
verse--chapter 25.
00:25:39.43\00:25:42.54
Verse 1, it says: "For thus says
the Lord to His anointed, to
00:25:42.57\00:25:47.01
Cyrus, whose right hand I
have held--to subdue nations
00:25:47.04\00:25:51.95
before him." Now,
isn't this fascinating?
00:25:51.98\00:25:53.98
There's only one person, one
individual, in all of Scripture,
00:25:54.02\00:25:56.82
outside of Christ, that God
refers to in His Scriptures as
00:25:56.85\00:26:00.36
the anointed one.
00:26:00.39\00:26:02.46
Now, some of you already have
learned in past times in Sabbath
00:26:02.49\00:26:04.89
School, other times, that
Messiah is the Hebrew term that
00:26:04.93\00:26:09.36
literally means
the anointed one.
00:26:09.40\00:26:11.90
If you didn't know that,
you should know it, okay?
00:26:11.93\00:26:14.87
So the Hebrew term for Messiah
literally means the anointed
00:26:14.90\00:26:17.84
one.
00:26:17.87\00:26:18.71
What does "Christ" mean?
00:26:18.74\00:26:19.94
It's a trick
question. Same thing.
00:26:19.97\00:26:25.05
It means the anointed one.
00:26:25.08\00:26:26.31
Christ is the Heb--I mean, the
Greek equivalent of the Hebrew
00:26:26.35\00:26:30.99
title "Messiah."
00:26:31.02\00:26:32.85
And so both of them literally
mean the anointed one, okay?
00:26:32.89\00:26:38.09
Jesus is the ultimate
anointed one, isn't He?
00:26:38.13\00:26:40.83
Here we have Cyrus who is
also the only individual that is
00:26:40.86\00:26:44.50
referred to as the anointed one.
00:26:44.53\00:26:47.27
Now, this is big when it comes
to studying the prophecies of
00:26:47.30\00:26:49.27
Revelation, in particular, to
be able to understand this, all
00:26:49.30\00:26:53.44
right?
00:26:53.48\00:26:54.68
So Cyrus is going to be God's
deliverer for ancient Israel and
00:26:54.71\00:26:57.31
its people.
00:26:57.35\00:26:59.28
Okay, so we pick it up again:
"To Cyrus, whose right hand I
00:26:59.31\00:27:01.55
have held--to
subdue nations before him.
00:27:01.58\00:27:03.99
And to loose the armor of kings,
to open before him the double
00:27:04.02\00:27:07.29
doors, so that the gates will
not be shut: 'I will go before
00:27:07.32\00:27:11.26
you and make the crooked places
straight; I will break in pieces
00:27:11.29\00:27:14.10
the gates of bronze
and cut the bars of iron.
00:27:14.13\00:27:16.70
I will give you the treasures of
darkness and the hidden riches
00:27:16.73\00:27:19.53
of secret places, that you
may know that I am the Lord, who
00:27:19.57\00:27:24.01
call you by your
name, am the God of Israel.
00:27:24.04\00:27:30.15
For Jacob My servant's sake, and
Israel My elect, I have called
00:27:30.18\00:27:33.48
you by your name; and have named
you, though you have not known
00:27:33.52\00:27:37.42
Me.
00:27:37.45\00:27:38.69
I am the Lord, and there is no
other; there is no God besides
00:27:38.72\00:27:42.09
Me--'" and that's
powerful stuff, isn't it?
00:27:42.12\00:27:45.29
Let's go just a little
bit further to verse 13.
00:27:45.33\00:27:47.30
Again, it's on the same subject:
"'I have raised him,'" that's
00:27:47.36\00:27:49.60
Cyrus, "'up in righteousness,
and I will direct all his ways;
00:27:49.63\00:27:52.70
he shall build My city and let
My exiles go free, not for price
00:27:52.73\00:27:57.57
nor reward,' says
the Lord of hosts."
00:27:57.61\00:28:00.48
Now, one of the
fascinating--there's two
00:28:00.51\00:28:02.44
fascinating points on
this particular prophecy.
00:28:02.48\00:28:04.51
Number one, God wrote it
100 years before Cyrus was even
00:28:04.55\00:28:07.28
conceived in the
womb of his mother, okay?
00:28:07.32\00:28:11.59
So God names this Persian
king far before he ever came to
00:28:11.62\00:28:14.82
exist.
00:28:14.86\00:28:16.02
And so this is one of God's
prime exhibit A as He says more
00:28:16.06\00:28:22.03
often in the book of Isaiah than
anywhere else that "I am God and
00:28:22.06\00:28:25.03
one of the greatest, most
powerful ways that I demonstrate
00:28:25.07\00:28:27.97
that I am God of the universe is
that I declare the end from the
00:28:28.00\00:28:31.11
beginning.
00:28:31.14\00:28:32.31
That I declare to you things
that have not yet taken place."
00:28:32.34\00:28:35.74
He says, "Here's one prime
example, boom, Cyrus, 100 years
00:28:35.78\00:28:39.35
before he ever comes along.
00:28:39.38\00:28:40.52
He's going to be the Persian
king that will conquer the
00:28:40.55\00:28:42.38
unconquerable city of
Babylon," and did history
00:28:42.42\00:28:43.75
actually fulfill that?
00:28:43.79\00:28:47.76
Yes, it did.
00:28:47.79\00:28:50.66
It perfectly fulfilled that even
as God had prophesied it so long
00:28:50.69\00:28:52.93
beforehand.
00:28:52.96\00:28:55.63
And so this is a powerful thing.
00:28:55.66\00:28:57.07
Now, listen to this.
00:28:57.10\00:28:58.43
After Cyrus had actually
conquered Babylon, we're going
00:28:58.47\00:29:00.50
to back up a little bit to that.
00:29:00.54\00:29:04.01
But after he had conquered
it, Josephus, one of the most
00:29:04.04\00:29:07.21
reliable ancient Jewish
historians that lived during the
00:29:07.24\00:29:09.18
time of Christ, actually writes
in his books of history that the
00:29:09.21\00:29:14.32
Israelites that were living in
Babylonian captivity and in the
00:29:14.35\00:29:16.69
city of Babylon, came
and approached this newfound
00:29:16.72\00:29:18.59
conquering King Cyrus and
presented to him the scrolls of
00:29:18.62\00:29:25.56
Isaiah.
00:29:25.59\00:29:27.50
And as they presented the
scrolls of Isaiah, he said,
00:29:27.50\00:29:30.03
"This prophet Isaiah lived 100
years before you were ever born,
00:29:30.07\00:29:34.87
and this is what he wrote."
00:29:34.90\00:29:37.17
And he showed--they showed
Cyrus, word for word, this
00:29:37.21\00:29:40.24
message that God had written to
Cyrus 100 years beforehand, over
00:29:40.28\00:29:45.01
100 years beforehand.
00:29:45.05\00:29:46.45
Is that powerful, friends?
00:29:46.48\00:29:48.68
This is exciting stuff, friends.
00:29:48.72\00:29:50.52
This is the stuff that really
builds our faith and understands
00:29:50.55\00:29:53.46
that we are
serving the true God.
00:29:53.49\00:29:55.99
And it is said that this is the
number one influence that God
00:29:56.02\00:29:59.16
had used to be able to convince
Cyrus to let His people go.
00:29:59.19\00:30:03.23
And he didn't do it for reward,
as verse 13 says or for price,
00:30:03.26\00:30:08.77
for money.
00:30:08.80\00:30:09.74
In fact, it was the opposite.
00:30:09.77\00:30:11.21
He actually contributed to
the cause, and he was one of the
00:30:11.24\00:30:14.34
ones that actually contributed
to a fundraising methodology
00:30:14.38\00:30:19.18
that took place across the land
of Babylon, to be able to fund
00:30:19.21\00:30:21.75
this exile and
return of God's people.
00:30:21.78\00:30:24.92
And so, exciting stuff.
00:30:24.95\00:30:27.36
Faith-building, powerful
stuff that God gives to us.
00:30:27.39\00:30:31.56
Now, in addition to the Jeremiah
70-year prophecy, God gives them
00:30:31.59\00:30:35.83
a very strong, clear
call to get out of Babylon.
00:30:35.86\00:30:39.73
He says, "Okay, now you're in
Babylon and this is the reason
00:30:39.77\00:30:41.80
why.
00:30:41.84\00:30:43.07
Jeremiah told you beforehand,
Ezekiel and Daniel are telling
00:30:43.10\00:30:44.87
you afterhand, and such, so you
know why you're here but don't
00:30:44.91\00:30:48.78
get too comfortable
because this is not your home.
00:30:48.81\00:30:52.95
Israel is your home.
Jerusalem is your capital.
00:30:52.98\00:30:56.72
Babylon is not your capital.
00:30:56.75\00:30:58.39
Babylon is the
capital of Satan, okay?
00:30:58.42\00:31:02.06
So you need to be able to get
out as soon as you can, asap."
00:31:02.09\00:31:07.13
Very clear.
00:31:07.13\00:31:08.50
God makes it very clear that
Babylon is not a safe place to
00:31:08.53\00:31:11.33
say--to stay and if you have any
kind of opportunity, the first
00:31:11.37\00:31:15.20
opportunity that rises up
before you to get out, get out
00:31:15.24\00:31:17.84
immediately.
00:31:17.87\00:31:19.67
And we find that in
Jeremiah's writings.
00:31:19.71\00:31:22.38
Jeremiah chapter 51.
00:31:22.41\00:31:23.88
Let's go to it.
00:31:23.91\00:31:25.28
Okay, so we're in Isaiah, if you
still have your Bibles open or
00:31:25.31\00:31:27.68
your tablets, phones, we're
going to Jeremiah chapter 51.
00:31:27.72\00:31:37.73
Okay, and we have a volunteer
that's going to read verses 6
00:31:40.50\00:31:42.33
through 7.
00:31:42.36\00:31:44.33
Jeremiah 6 through 7--51.
00:31:44.37\00:31:46.50
Jeremiah chapter
51, verses 6 through 7.
00:31:46.53\00:31:50.61
male: Yes.
00:31:50.64\00:31:52.01
"Flee from the midst of Babylon,
and every one saves his life!
00:31:52.04\00:31:55.71
Do not be cut off in her
iniquity, for this is the time
00:31:55.74\00:31:58.68
of the Lord's vengeance;
He shall recompense her.
00:31:58.71\00:32:01.68
Babylon was a golden
cup in the Lord's hand,
00:32:01.72\00:32:05.75
that made all the earth drunk.
00:32:05.79\00:32:08.52
The nations drank her wine;
00:32:08.56\00:32:10.66
therefore the
nations are deranged."
00:32:10.69\00:32:12.93
Shawn: Right, thank you.
00:32:13.73\00:32:15.20
So what's the message to God's
people even before they find
00:32:15.23\00:32:17.60
themselves in Babylon, as
they're being taken captive?
00:32:17.63\00:32:20.47
"Flee.
00:32:20.50\00:32:22.37
Flee from the midst of Babylon,
every one save his life!"
00:32:22.40\00:32:25.64
And so even as they're on the
way over, he says, "Listen, you
00:32:25.67\00:32:28.04
need to flee as soon as
possible once you get there.
00:32:28.08\00:32:30.38
So don't get comfortable."
00:32:30.41\00:32:32.11
Don't get comfortable.
00:32:32.15\00:32:33.85
You know, you need to be able
to provide for your family and
00:32:33.88\00:32:36.42
obviously have a house and
so on, 70 years is a long time.
00:32:36.45\00:32:39.19
And by the way, there were
some very faithful Jews in that
00:32:39.22\00:32:42.99
company that heard the words of
Jeremiah and read them when they
00:32:43.02\00:32:46.70
were first penned that were
still alive at the end of the
00:32:46.73\00:32:50.27
70-year period.
00:32:50.30\00:32:51.80
Now, friends, we don't have to
do math for very long to be able
00:32:51.83\00:32:53.87
to find out that these
are very elderly people, okay?
00:32:53.90\00:32:56.60
Because they were in Babylon for
70 years so let's say that some
00:32:56.64\00:33:01.38
of them were 10 years old
when they were taken captive.
00:33:01.41\00:33:05.51
Now they're 80 years old.
00:33:05.55\00:33:07.48
Friends, there were
some 80-plus-year-old
00:33:07.52\00:33:09.35
Jerusalem--Israelites in Babylon
that took this to heart, "Flee
00:33:09.38\00:33:14.86
from Babylon," and they did
not get too comfortable and they
00:33:14.89\00:33:18.23
fled at the very first
opportunity that they had under
00:33:18.26\00:33:21.10
Zerubbabel.
00:33:21.13\00:33:23.06
Zerubbabel.
00:33:23.10\00:33:25.13
As Pastor Doug had said last
week, it's hard to pronounce.
00:33:25.17\00:33:28.10
Zerubbabel.
00:33:28.14\00:33:29.54
And so we find that there's some
that are 80-plus years old when
00:33:29.57\00:33:33.04
they go.
00:33:33.07\00:33:33.88
How do I know that?
00:33:33.91\00:33:35.14
Because the historical records
in the Scriptures tell us that
00:33:35.18\00:33:37.11
once they had laid the
foundation under--in Jerusalem
00:33:37.15\00:33:40.98
once again, it was nothing
compared to that of Solomon's
00:33:41.02\00:33:44.09
temple and it tells us that
there was this great cacophony
00:33:44.12\00:33:47.59
of sound and noise that rose up
that day when they dedicated the
00:33:47.62\00:33:51.23
temple's foundation to the Lord
because there was this mix of
00:33:51.26\00:33:54.86
those who were with--full of joy
and praise and shouting before
00:33:54.93\00:33:58.83
the Lord and it was mixed
with those who were wailing and
00:33:58.87\00:34:02.10
crying and
mourning before the Lord.
00:34:02.14\00:34:04.84
Why?
00:34:04.87\00:34:06.07
Because the generation that was
taken captive and knew and saw
00:34:06.11\00:34:09.24
with their eyes the former
temple, knew that the new temple
00:34:09.28\00:34:12.38
didn't even compare to
the glory of the first one.
00:34:12.41\00:34:16.72
And so, friends, that tells us
that there were some that were
00:34:16.75\00:34:18.65
faithful for 70 years and at
80-plus years of age made that
00:34:18.69\00:34:23.73
multi-month journey, thousands
of miles by foot and camel and
00:34:23.76\00:34:29.23
donkey to make their
way to the Promised Land.
00:34:29.26\00:34:32.10
Amazing history.
00:34:34.80\00:34:35.77
Amazing history.
00:34:35.80\00:34:38.24
Now, we read Jeremiah
chapter 51, didn't we?
00:34:38.27\00:34:40.34
Yeah, okay, so
let's go to verse 45.
00:34:40.38\00:34:42.58
I'm going to read verse 45 here
as well because we're in the
00:34:42.61\00:34:44.68
chapter already, and by the way,
when you came to Jeremiah 51,
00:34:44.71\00:34:48.98
verse 7, did that sound familiar
if you've been a student of
00:34:49.02\00:34:51.12
Revelation?
00:34:51.15\00:34:52.32
Do you see where Revelation's
picking up the language in
00:34:52.35\00:34:54.99
modern spiritual
Babylon, in Revelation?
00:34:55.02\00:34:57.76
Isaiah and Jeremiah's just
jam-packed with the language
00:34:57.79\00:35:01.73
that Revelation then uses
for spiritual modern Babylon and
00:35:01.76\00:35:05.27
modern Israel.
00:35:05.30\00:35:07.00
And so we're
looking at verse 45.
00:35:07.04\00:35:09.67
Again, God says, "My
people." Whose people?
00:35:09.70\00:35:12.44
"My people," that's God
speaking, "go out of the midst
00:35:12.47\00:35:16.81
of her!"
00:35:16.85\00:35:19.05
Again, God speaks very clearly,
"Get out as soon as you can.
00:35:19.08\00:35:23.28
This is not your
home." This is not your home.
00:35:23.32\00:35:25.85
Well, the first wholesale
opportunity for any and all of
00:35:25.89\00:35:30.59
the Jews to be able to find
themselves leaving Babylon to
00:35:30.63\00:35:32.93
fulfill that call that God
get--said, "Get out," is when
00:35:32.96\00:35:36.77
Babylon itself is conquered and
it falls as, not only as a city,
00:35:36.80\00:35:40.97
but also as an empire.
00:35:41.00\00:35:43.64
And so we go back
to the book of Isaiah.
00:35:43.67\00:35:46.01
Isaiah chapter 13.
00:35:46.04\00:35:48.08
Let's go back to
Isaiah chapter 13, verse 19.
00:35:48.11\00:35:54.42
Isaiah 13, okay, and
verse 19 through 20 and we have
00:35:54.45\00:36:03.32
a volunteer that's going
to kindly read that for us.
00:36:04.09\00:36:06.76
female: "And Babylon, the
glory of kingdoms, the beauty of
00:36:06.80\00:36:10.50
the Chaldeans' pride, will be
as when God overthrew Sodom and
00:36:10.53\00:36:15.17
Gomorrah.
00:36:15.20\00:36:17.11
It will never be inhabited,
nor will it be settled from
00:36:17.14\00:36:20.01
generation to generation;
nor will the Arabian pitch tents
00:36:20.04\00:36:24.78
there, nor will the shepherds
make their sheepfolds there."
00:36:24.81\00:36:29.32
Shawn: Thank you.
00:36:29.35\00:36:30.55
So here we have Isaiah
proclaiming that, "Hey, listen,
00:36:30.59\00:36:32.49
Babylon will be the arch-enemy
of God, rebelling against God.
00:36:32.52\00:36:34.49
It will be the captors of God's
people in Judah and Jerusalem,
00:36:34.52\00:36:36.66
but it will have its end."
00:36:36.69\00:36:42.53
God declares its end and He said
the end will be so sure and so
00:36:42.56\00:36:45.23
complete and so fulfilled that,
indeed, no one will ever live
00:36:45.27\00:36:49.04
there again.
00:36:49.07\00:36:50.21
Now, this particular view
that you see on the screen here
00:36:50.24\00:36:52.71
today, is actually from
the porch of Saddam Hussein.
00:36:52.74\00:36:56.91
Saddam Hussein had built a
palace right beside what the
00:36:56.95\00:37:02.95
archeologists call a tel or what
we would call the archeological
00:37:02.98\00:37:06.15
site of ancient Babylon.
00:37:06.19\00:37:07.49
And so he built this extravagant
multi-million-dollar palace
00:37:07.52\00:37:10.66
right next to it because he
had this delusioned dream of
00:37:10.69\00:37:15.00
rebuilding the ancient city
of Babylon and recapturing the
00:37:15.03\00:37:18.57
glory of Nebuchadnezzar and
becoming a world emperor and,
00:37:18.60\00:37:22.17
of course, it was all just a big
delusion as we know by history.
00:37:22.20\00:37:25.61
And--but the fascinating thing
is that this is a great view of
00:37:25.64\00:37:29.41
the site where ancient Babylon
existed, where Daniel himself
00:37:29.44\00:37:32.18
lived and, of course, Queen
Esther and others and such.
00:37:32.21\00:37:35.92
No, actually, Queen Esther
lived in Shushan but Daniel, for
00:37:35.95\00:37:38.92
certain, you know, Mordecai
and--no, he was in Shushan as
00:37:38.95\00:37:41.86
well.
00:37:41.89\00:37:42.86
I've got to make
sure I get my facts right.
00:37:42.89\00:37:44.73
And so here we have Babylon,
ancient Babylon, the tel, and so
00:37:44.76\00:37:49.86
do you see anybody living there?
00:37:49.90\00:37:51.20
Okay, Saddam Hussein and his
posse, you know, lived there off
00:37:51.23\00:37:56.57
and on as he made his way there
but he didn't live in Babylon.
00:37:56.60\00:37:59.11
It's not a operating,
functioning city, is it?
00:37:59.14\00:38:01.98
Why?
00:38:02.01\00:38:03.21
Because God said no one would
ever inhabit it ever again.
00:38:03.24\00:38:06.25
Now, let's go to the next
slide, the Cyrus cylinder.
00:38:06.28\00:38:08.08
Now, this is exciting because
the question is how did God
00:38:08.12\00:38:11.85
conquer Israel?
00:38:11.89\00:38:13.09
How did He fulfill this prophecy
that He gave in 700 AD through
00:38:13.12\00:38:16.73
Isaiah, some 150 years
later, around 535, 536 BC?
00:38:16.76\00:38:21.50
And so here we
find the Cyrus cylinder.
00:38:21.53\00:38:25.73
This is no small
archeological find.
00:38:25.77\00:38:29.30
It was found in the site that
you just saw, ancient Babylon.
00:38:29.34\00:38:32.57
The archeologists had dug it up.
00:38:32.61\00:38:33.91
The British had found it in
the late 1800s and named it the
00:38:33.94\00:38:37.55
Cyrus cylinder because it
actually recorded and gives us a
00:38:37.58\00:38:40.65
play-by-play on how Cyrus was
able to successfully conquer the
00:38:40.68\00:38:44.89
unconquerable city.
00:38:44.92\00:38:45.82
Let's go to the next slide.
00:38:45.85\00:38:48.39
Why was it unconquerable?
00:38:48.42\00:38:49.52
Well, here's a bit of a
blueprint of ancient Babylon
00:38:49.56\00:38:52.23
and, as it turns out, one of the
greatest, largest rivers of the
00:38:52.26\00:38:55.80
area, the Euphrates,
ran right through it.
00:38:55.83\00:38:57.97
And so they had this
endless vast supply of water.
00:38:58.00\00:39:01.10
Now, why was that important?
00:39:01.14\00:39:03.10
Because the number one way that
ancients would--enemies would
00:39:03.14\00:39:06.71
conquer an ancient city is not
to knock down the walls which
00:39:06.74\00:39:09.41
sometimes they did successfully,
but not very often.
00:39:09.44\00:39:13.28
And the mortality rate was so
high because they would pour hot
00:39:13.31\00:39:17.15
oil and throw
spears down and such.
00:39:17.19\00:39:19.82
So they would just stand at
a safe distance and they would
00:39:19.85\00:39:21.99
just blockade the whole city
in and they would besiege it, as
00:39:22.02\00:39:25.36
they call it.
00:39:25.39\00:39:26.59
And so they would bring out
their lawn chairs and order in
00:39:26.63\00:39:28.36
pizza and just watch the people
inside start to starve to death
00:39:28.40\00:39:32.17
as month after month went by.
00:39:32.20\00:39:33.44
And then eventually, they would
be so starved they would give up
00:39:33.47\00:39:38.11
and--or they'd be so weak
that the enemy could go in and
00:39:38.14\00:39:40.48
conquer it.
00:39:40.51\00:39:41.88
Well, in this case the Euphrates
River ran through it and so they
00:39:41.91\00:39:44.71
had this endless supply of
water, they had all the water
00:39:44.75\00:39:47.55
they needed for their laundry,
to be able to bathe, to be able
00:39:47.58\00:39:50.09
to drink and to cook with
and, not only that, but also to
00:39:50.12\00:39:53.49
irrigate the gardens that
they had inside to give them a
00:39:53.52\00:39:56.22
continual supply of food.
00:39:56.26\00:39:58.03
And so they had
that whole thing covered.
00:39:58.06\00:40:00.90
It was impossible in the mind
of the ancients to be able to
00:40:00.93\00:40:05.53
conquer Babylon 'cause
besieging it was a lost cause.
00:40:05.57\00:40:08.87
And not only that, if you tried
to conquer down--if you tried to
00:40:08.90\00:40:12.17
break down its wall, why, they
had said to themselves, "Well,
00:40:12.21\00:40:14.91
instead of one wall as
traditionally cities do, let's
00:40:14.94\00:40:17.81
build three walls."
00:40:17.85\00:40:19.08
And so, if you got through the
first wall, you still had two
00:40:19.11\00:40:21.95
more walls to break through and
these were larger and thicker
00:40:21.98\00:40:26.19
than ever--in fact, it is said
that three chariots could race
00:40:26.22\00:40:29.66
one--parallel to each other
along the top of one of those
00:40:29.69\00:40:32.39
walls.
00:40:32.43\00:40:33.60
And then they put a moat around
the outside of that outside
00:40:33.63\00:40:35.76
wall.
00:40:35.80\00:40:36.63
It was the unconquerable city.
00:40:36.67\00:40:39.17
All the traditional methods
of taking an ancient city was a
00:40:39.20\00:40:43.04
lost cause when
it came to Israel.
00:40:43.07\00:40:44.94
I mean, to Babylon.
00:40:44.97\00:40:47.31
And so it was known as the
unconquerable city and so, of
00:40:47.34\00:40:49.81
course, the pride of Babylon
started to rise higher and
00:40:49.84\00:40:52.61
higher and we have
different quotes of the prophets
00:40:52.65\00:40:55.58
indicating that.
00:40:55.62\00:40:57.75
So how did Cyrus do it?
00:40:57.79\00:40:59.15
How did the Lord help him
fulfill that which we just read
00:40:59.19\00:41:01.96
in Isaiah 44 and 45?
00:41:01.99\00:41:04.33
Well, as it turns out,
the Cyrus cylinder gives us a
00:41:04.36\00:41:06.46
play-by-play.
00:41:06.49\00:41:07.76
Once again, let's
go to the next slide.
00:41:07.83\00:41:10.10
We find there that Cyrus had
said to himself as he scratched
00:41:10.13\00:41:13.60
his head and he looked at
the city and he said, "You know
00:41:13.64\00:41:15.90
what?
00:41:15.94\00:41:17.11
All the traditional ways aren't
going to work so I've got to
00:41:17.14\00:41:18.47
think outside the box."
00:41:18.51\00:41:19.94
And I'm trusting that the Lord
put in his head and put in his
00:41:19.97\00:41:22.78
mind and said, "Listen, you
need to be able to go under the
00:41:22.81\00:41:25.68
walls, not through it, not over
it, not around it, but under
00:41:25.71\00:41:30.52
the wall." "How do I do that?"
00:41:30.55\00:41:31.89
"You need to be able to
divert--temporarily divert the
00:41:31.92\00:41:35.32
waters of the Euphrates that are
running towards the city, dry up
00:41:35.36\00:41:38.93
that Euphrates River
temporarily, and then your army
00:41:38.96\00:41:42.93
and its soldiers can just march
right underneath the walls and
00:41:42.96\00:41:47.44
conquer the city." And
that's exactly what he did.
00:41:47.47\00:41:50.74
I don't know, I forget how long
it took him to be able to have
00:41:50.77\00:41:52.91
his soldiers, you know, have the
army, you know, digging away,
00:41:52.94\00:41:56.08
digging these channels in the
night, these secret channels and
00:41:56.11\00:41:57.98
then he, of course, they all
would release the very front of
00:41:58.01\00:41:59.45
them where the side of the
river was and then all the river
00:41:59.48\00:42:01.02
temporarily diverted into these
channels, into these canals.
00:42:01.05\00:42:07.89
And sure enough, the--you
know, of course, he had his best
00:42:07.92\00:42:12.26
soldiers of combat waiting at
the actual wall of the city and
00:42:12.29\00:42:16.60
ready to be able to go
under and, sure enough, they're
00:42:16.63\00:42:20.44
scratching their head, saying,
"Boy, I sure hope Cyrus knows
00:42:20.47\00:42:22.94
what he's doing.
00:42:22.97\00:42:23.74
I hope he can pull this off."
00:42:23.77\00:42:25.01
And lo and behold, they look at
the water and foot by foot they
00:42:25.04\00:42:26.24
see the water of the Euphrates
River decrease until it's right
00:42:26.27\00:42:31.98
down to the very bottom.
00:42:32.01\00:42:34.62
Now, they only have probably
a few minutes, maybe ten minutes
00:42:34.65\00:42:37.22
at the most, because it's a big
river and it's a lot of water to
00:42:37.25\00:42:39.45
divert.
00:42:39.49\00:42:40.76
And so they know that
time is of the essence.
00:42:40.79\00:42:42.32
They march underneath and, of
course, in Daniel chapter 5 we
00:42:42.36\00:42:44.63
find the inside details.
00:42:44.66\00:42:46.59
God records what's going on
inside, the king Belshazzar of
00:42:46.63\00:42:49.26
Babylon is in a drunken
feast, he's got the temple--the
00:42:49.30\00:42:51.90
Israelite temple vessels that
he's pouring alcoholic wine in
00:42:51.93\00:42:56.00
and they're all drunk and all
the soldiers, the guards, are
00:42:56.04\00:42:58.67
not in their right mind because
they'd been drinking all night
00:42:58.71\00:43:02.24
and so very easily, very
quickly, Belshazzar and all the
00:43:02.28\00:43:06.21
key men and soldiers and guards
of the city are slain in one
00:43:06.25\00:43:08.72
night.
00:43:08.75\00:43:10.15
And now, the very unconquerable
city, the center of the known
00:43:10.19\00:43:14.19
world and empire, is
conquered in one night.
00:43:14.22\00:43:16.46
And Cyrus, the anointed one, the
deliverer of God's people, is
00:43:16.49\00:43:20.13
now on the throne. In one night.
00:43:20.16\00:43:22.23
Powerful stuff.
00:43:22.26\00:43:23.23
2 Chronicles chapter 36.
00:43:23.26\00:43:28.97
Let's go to 2
Chronicles chapter 36.
00:43:29.00\00:43:31.37
We're going back to the last
chapter and I know that Pastor
00:43:36.18\00:43:38.15
Doug read this last week as
an intro and he touched on the
00:43:38.18\00:43:41.02
theme that we're looking at
here but I know he had such a
00:43:41.05\00:43:43.15
wonderful mission report that he
ran out of time and wasn't able
00:43:43.18\00:43:49.89
to be able to give it the full
attention that we're giving here
00:43:50.69\00:43:53.13
today.
00:43:53.16\00:43:54.30
And so I just count it a
privilege to be able to unpack
00:43:54.30\00:43:55.60
that a little bit more and be
able to look at this as we look
00:43:55.63\00:43:57.77
now for the next three months
at the context of Nehemiah and
00:43:57.80\00:44:01.44
Ezra.
00:44:01.47\00:44:03.34
Nehemiah--not Nehemiah, but
we're looking at 2 Chronicles
00:44:03.37\00:44:06.44
chapter 36 and verse 22.
00:44:06.47\00:44:10.08
2 Chronicles 36, verse 22.
00:44:10.11\00:44:11.68
The last two verses.
00:44:11.71\00:44:12.61
It says: "Now in the
first year," what year?
00:44:12.65\00:44:15.68
"The first year of Cyrus king
of Persia, that the word of the
00:44:15.72\00:44:19.75
Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah
might be fulfilled, the Lord
00:44:19.79\00:44:22.62
stretched--or stirred up the
spirit of Cyrus king of Persia,
00:44:22.66\00:44:26.16
so that he made a proclamation
throughout all his kingdom, and
00:44:26.19\00:44:28.73
also put in writing, saying,
Thus says Cyrus king of Persia:
00:44:28.76\00:44:32.70
All the kingdoms of the
earth the Lord God of heaven has
00:44:32.73\00:44:35.67
given me.
00:44:35.70\00:44:36.57
And He has
commanded me," he has what?
00:44:36.60\00:44:39.44
"He has commanded me."
00:44:39.47\00:44:40.81
Now, this goes perfect with
the traditional history that
00:44:40.84\00:44:43.98
Josephus records in which Cyrus
actually read the message that
00:44:44.01\00:44:47.68
God had inspired Isaiah to
record 100 years beforehand,
00:44:47.72\00:44:51.35
over 100 years.
00:44:51.39\00:44:53.09
"He has commanded me to build
Him a house at Jerusalem which
00:44:53.12\00:44:55.79
is in Judah.
00:44:55.82\00:44:56.73
Who is among you all His people?
00:44:56.76\00:44:58.06
May the Lord his God be
with him, and let him go up!"
00:44:58.09\00:45:01.70
And so here Cyrus is actually
reflecting the words that we
00:45:01.73\00:45:04.97
read in Isaiah, sorry, in
Jeremiah where God twice in the
00:45:05.00\00:45:08.80
last chapter of Jeremiah, the
last chapters of Jeremiah, said,
00:45:08.84\00:45:12.37
"Get out of Babylon.
00:45:12.41\00:45:14.81
Flee it before you also share
in the very destruction and
00:45:14.84\00:45:18.28
judgment that
is coming upon it."
00:45:18.31\00:45:21.98
And so here we have in the very
first year, one of the first
00:45:22.02\00:45:26.79
tasks that this newfound king
and empire takes upon himself is
00:45:26.82\00:45:30.86
this vast and huge exodus of the
Israelites that they may go back
00:45:30.89\00:45:35.96
to their homeland and rebuild
Jerusalem and the temple.
00:45:36.00\00:45:38.00
Now, the question, the
million-dollar question is, how
00:45:39.97\00:45:41.57
many of God's people respond?
00:45:41.60\00:45:43.81
Very, very small.
00:45:47.54\00:45:48.61
Very, very small
amount actually respond.
00:45:48.64\00:45:52.95
Okay, now, the Bible record
tells us that, you know, there's
00:45:52.98\00:45:57.12
about 50,000 on the first one.
00:45:57.15\00:45:58.99
That was the largest exodus
under Zerubbabel and Joshua.
00:45:59.02\00:46:04.19
Very small remnant, and the
word "remnant" is used by the
00:46:04.23\00:46:08.60
prophets itself as
they describe these events.
00:46:08.63\00:46:12.20
A small remnant is willing to
step out in faith and leave the
00:46:12.23\00:46:15.30
comfort and
familiarity of Babylon.
00:46:15.34\00:46:19.27
In Ezra chapter 2 and verses 65
to--64 to 65, it tells us about
00:46:19.31\00:46:23.21
50,000 had left Babylon's
false religions, its false moral
00:46:23.24\00:46:27.15
beliefs, and they went to
worship the only true God, to
00:46:27.18\00:46:29.98
restore his gospel message and
plan of salvation played out in
00:46:30.02\00:46:33.89
the sacrifices, in the temple
ceremonies, in the annual feast.
00:46:33.92\00:46:37.29
All pointing forward to the
ultimate deliverer, the anointed
00:46:37.33\00:46:40.70
one, Jesus Christ Himself, the
Savior of the world, the only
00:46:40.73\00:46:44.30
solution to happiness, the only
true solution to salvation for
00:46:44.33\00:46:48.00
eternity.
00:46:48.04\00:46:50.04
Now, God gives more than one
opportunity and this reveals a
00:46:50.74\00:46:53.04
God of grace.
00:46:53.07\00:46:54.38
You know, He could have said to
the rest of the Jewish people,
00:46:54.41\00:46:57.11
said, "Listen, I
told you to get out.
00:46:57.15\00:46:58.58
I told you to get out and flee
as soon as possible and most of
00:46:58.61\00:47:02.15
you didn't. Too bad."
00:47:02.18\00:47:03.65
Is that what He said?
00:47:03.69\00:47:06.05
No, okay, several years later He
raises up a man by the name of
00:47:06.09\00:47:10.43
Ezra and He says, "Now I want
you to lead the second batch."
00:47:10.46\00:47:14.10
Now, sadly, the second
batch only amounted to about
00:47:14.13\00:47:16.46
6000 people.
00:47:16.50\00:47:17.63
But they still had another
opportunity and 6000 more souls
00:47:17.67\00:47:22.74
found themselves in
the Promised Land, amen?
00:47:22.77\00:47:24.64
Okay, so that's the good news.
00:47:24.67\00:47:27.04
And then we find that there
is another man by the name of
00:47:27.08\00:47:31.41
Nehemiah that leads a third
group that leaves with him.
00:47:31.45\00:47:34.75
And again, a smaller group, much
smaller than the first group
00:47:34.78\00:47:37.32
but, nevertheless, there's a few
hundred or a thousand, I forget
00:47:37.35\00:47:40.39
what the number
is, that left with him.
00:47:40.42\00:47:42.26
And so God gives
three opportunities.
00:47:42.29\00:47:44.09
He gives a second chance and He
gives a third chance for God's
00:47:44.13\00:47:46.93
people to go back to the
Promised Land, back to the holy
00:47:46.96\00:47:50.67
capital which is Jerusalem,
rather than the throne of Satan
00:47:50.70\00:47:54.64
himself which is found in
ancient Babylon and the empire
00:47:54.67\00:47:59.21
that had been surrounding there
for so many years beforehand.
00:47:59.24\00:48:03.65
Now, the lesson points out that
Jeremiah--Nehemiah hears the bad
00:48:03.68\00:48:06.78
news, that the remnant is not
progressing very well with their
00:48:06.82\00:48:09.88
mission, the walls are still not
built around the city and it's
00:48:09.92\00:48:12.65
not functioning the
way that God intends.
00:48:12.69\00:48:14.46
And so he mourns, he cries, and
then he falls on his knees and
00:48:14.49\00:48:18.76
he fasts for
four straight months.
00:48:18.79\00:48:20.96
Now, I don't know if he fasted
for four straight months but he
00:48:20.96\00:48:23.53
is in a spirit of fasting off
and on, in deep prayer, asking
00:48:23.57\00:48:28.40
God to be able to open up an
opportunity to release him as
00:48:28.44\00:48:31.84
the cupbearer of the king and
go back to Jerusalem and help
00:48:31.87\00:48:35.24
rebuild the walls.
00:48:35.28\00:48:36.14
God put it upon
him heart--his heart.
00:48:36.18\00:48:39.35
And so he found that opportunity
in a private audience with the
00:48:39.38\00:48:41.78
queen and the king, when the
king was able to ask him some
00:48:41.82\00:48:44.65
personal questions, "You're
not looking the same, you're not
00:48:44.69\00:48:47.16
looking as happy
as you usually are."
00:48:47.19\00:48:49.76
And he shares his heart and his
burden, and the Lord moves upon
00:48:49.79\00:48:52.93
the king and says, "Go back.
00:48:52.96\00:48:54.86
And again, take it from my--I'm
going to pay the bill and I'm
00:48:54.93\00:48:58.27
going to give you an
escort, a military escort.
00:48:58.30\00:49:00.24
I'm going to give you the funds
that you need, and you go back
00:49:00.27\00:49:03.04
and rebuild the
city of your heritage."
00:49:03.07\00:49:05.87
And so,
powerful, powerful thing.
00:49:05.91\00:49:08.08
It's a great example for us
as the lesson study points out.
00:49:08.11\00:49:11.48
But as we close and we're
running out of time here now,
00:49:11.51\00:49:14.28
we're coming back
to the big picture.
00:49:14.32\00:49:15.72
There's a parallel that Pastor
Doug had pointed out last week.
00:49:15.75\00:49:19.25
Again, we want to be
able to pick that up today.
00:49:19.29\00:49:21.19
We don't have time to study it
but in Revelation chapter 14 on,
00:49:21.22\00:49:24.93
God speaks about a Babylon.
00:49:24.96\00:49:26.73
Now, we know it's not ancient
Babylon 'cause history tells us
00:49:26.76\00:49:29.20
that ancient Babylon started
to be buried by the sand around
00:49:29.23\00:49:32.87
100 AD.
00:49:32.90\00:49:34.10
100 AD there was just a few
straggling people, just a few
00:49:34.14\00:49:37.84
dozen, that were living in
the city of Babylon and then it
00:49:37.87\00:49:42.64
started to be buried by the
sand as we saw it in Iraq today.
00:49:42.68\00:49:47.58
And so we know that when
Revelation is being penned, God
00:49:47.62\00:49:50.52
is not talking about literal
ancient Babylon but He's talking
00:49:50.55\00:49:53.69
about a
spiritual modern Babylon.
00:49:53.72\00:49:56.42
And in chapter 17, Babylon
is referred to as a woman.
00:49:56.46\00:50:01.13
Now in prophecy, symbolic
prophecy, a woman always
00:50:01.16\00:50:03.80
represents a church.
00:50:03.83\00:50:05.07
And so, very sadly, God here is
pointing to religious confusion,
00:50:05.10\00:50:09.47
not in a pagan city and empire
called ancient Babylon, but in a
00:50:09.50\00:50:13.88
modern spiritual Babylon that is
including that of the Catholic
00:50:13.91\00:50:18.51
and Protestant traditions that
sadly compromise the Word of
00:50:18.55\00:50:21.68
God, the truth of the--the truth
and they replace it with age-old
00:50:21.72\00:50:26.65
traditions, beliefs that
are produced instead by men.
00:50:26.69\00:50:29.09
And God declared that there
would be an end to Babylon in
00:50:29.12\00:50:31.59
Revelation: Revelation chapter
18, verse 8 and verse 21.
00:50:31.63\00:50:36.36
Twice God says modern Babylon
will find its end even as
00:50:36.40\00:50:39.13
ancient Babylon did.
00:50:39.17\00:50:40.67
And He also
calls God's people out.
00:50:40.70\00:50:42.54
In Revelation 18, verse 4,
He says, "Come out of her, My
00:50:42.57\00:50:46.34
people, lest you share in her
judgment and you drink of her
00:50:46.37\00:50:49.94
plagues."
00:50:49.98\00:50:51.18
And so, friends, we find here
that God gives the same warning,
00:50:51.21\00:50:55.15
the same appeal,
"Come out of Babylon.
00:50:55.18\00:50:57.55
Don't make yourself comfortable.
00:50:57.59\00:50:59.22
Leave the familiarity of what
you know in Babylon and come
00:50:59.25\00:51:02.29
into the truth and
the Promised Land."
00:51:02.32\00:51:05.49
Sadly, only a small remnant
come out, but it's there, it's
00:51:05.53\00:51:08.46
available, and I believe that
indeed the Seventh Day Adventist
00:51:08.50\00:51:11.07
Church is a fulfillment of
that prophecy in the largest,
00:51:11.10\00:51:14.57
clearest way.
00:51:14.60\00:51:15.97
Thank God for that, amen?
00:51:16.00\00:51:18.01
Now, I want to recommend
something for further study on
00:51:18.04\00:51:21.01
Israel, modern Israel, modern
Babylon, and the modern remnant.
00:51:21.04\00:51:24.55
And you can find it in "Amazing
Facts" Study Guides, number 22
00:51:24.58\00:51:26.88
and 23.
00:51:26.92\00:51:27.78
They're entitled
"The Other Woman" and
00:51:27.82\00:51:31.12
"The Bride of Christ."
00:51:31.15\00:51:32.09
And you can go
to amazingfacts.org,
00:51:32.12\00:51:34.69
amazingfacts.org, and you can
find at the very--if you scroll
00:51:34.72\00:51:38.09
down to the very bottom of the
web page, you'll find there a
00:51:38.13\00:51:40.63
link to Study Guides.
00:51:40.66\00:51:42.20
Click on Study Guides, look for
number 22 and number 23, "The
00:51:42.23\00:51:46.23
Other Woman" and "The Bride of
Christ," and you can study that
00:51:46.27\00:51:48.87
in its fullness.
00:51:48.90\00:51:50.01
I strongly recommend it.
00:51:50.04\00:51:51.57
We have a free gift that we want
to offer to you, again, as we
00:51:51.61\00:51:54.64
did at the beginning: "Teach Us
to Pray," even as Nehemiah was
00:51:54.68\00:51:57.11
a man of prayer.
00:51:57.15\00:51:58.35
Ask for number 717 as far as the
Study Guide or gift code, and
00:51:58.38\00:52:03.05
then you can dial
1-866-788-3966, as you see on
00:52:05.79\00:52:09.42
the screen, and you can also
text to the information that you
00:52:09.46\00:52:12.19
find on the screen to 40544
and find yourself with a digital
00:52:12.23\00:52:17.33
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00:52:17.37\00:52:18.57
Until next week, God bless you,
and don't forget that not only
00:52:18.60\00:52:20.90
do we love you,
but God loves you too.
00:52:20.94\00:52:23.71
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00:52:58.74\00:53:00.11
It's not always easy to
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00:53:00.14\00:53:02.68
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00:53:02.71\00:53:03.81
With over 700,000 words
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¤¤¤
00:53:34.74\00:53:44.75
Doug Batchelor: The
heavens were parted for you.
00:54:15.82\00:54:17.89
The Holy Spirit came down.
00:54:17.92\00:54:19.25
This is what God
wants you to experience.
00:54:19.29\00:54:20.72
You come to Christ,
your sins are washed away,
00:54:20.76\00:54:24.39
you become a new creature.
00:54:24.43\00:54:25.79
It's a land of beginning again
and how many of you wish you
00:54:25.83\00:54:28.66
could get a new start?
00:54:28.70\00:54:31.03
male: "For I was hungry and
you gave me something to eat.
00:54:31.73\00:54:36.07
Inasmuch as you do it to one of
the least of these, my brethren,
00:54:36.10\00:54:39.57
you did it to me."
00:54:39.61\00:54:42.11
¤¤¤
00:54:43.48\00:54:49.45
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Doug: Hello, friends.
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We all know a marathon is one
of the longest and hardest races
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a person can run.
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But did you hear about the
ultra-marathon they used to have
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in Australia?
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It was 544 miles
from Melbourne to Sydney.
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It attracted as many as
150 world-class athletes.
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But then something happened
that no one would ever forget.
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In 1983 a 61-year-old potato
farmer named Cliff Young decided
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to enter the race.
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People were very amused because
he had on rubber galoshes over
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his boots and when the race
began and all the runners took
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off, sure enough, old Cliff
was left behind shuffling along
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very slowly but he was
shuffling very persistently.
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Normally, during this seven-day
race, the runners would go about
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18 hours running and
then they'd sleep for 6 hours.
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But nobody ever told Cliff that.
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When the other runners stopped
to rest during the night, Cliff
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just kept on running.
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Some people were afraid old
Cliff was going to have a heart
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attack and they were asking the
race organizers to show mercy
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and stop the crazy old man.
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But he would have none of it.
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Each day, he was gaining on
the pack because when they were
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sleeping, he was plodding along.
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During the last night of the
race, Cliff passed all of these
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world-class athletes.
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Not only was Cliff able to
run that 544-mile race without
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dying, he won, beating all
the other racers by nine hours,
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breaking the record and becoming
a national hero in the process.
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What's really amazing is when
they told him that he had won
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the $10,000 prize he looked
confused and said he didn't know
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there was a prize and he decided
to share it with the other
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runners.
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When asked how he was able
to run all night long, Cliff
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responded that he grew up on
a farm where they had about 2000
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head of cattle and because they
couldn't afford horses, he used
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to have to round them up on
foot, sometimes running two and
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three days nonstop so,
throughout the race, he just
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imagined he was chasing after
the cows and trying to outrun
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a storm.
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Old Cliff's secret was to keep
on running while others were
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sleeping.
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You know, the Bible tells us
that the race is not necessarily
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to the swift, something like
Aesop's parable of "The Tortoise
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and the Hare," the tortoise
just kept on plodding along.
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That's why Jesus tells us in
Matthew 24:13: "He that endures
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unto the end, the
same will be saved."
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Now, you might slip and fall
during the race, you might even
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get off to a bad start, but in
the Christian race that we run
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the main thing is
you want to finish well.
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Keep on running,
friends, and don't give up.
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