THE GREAT TRIBULATION
THE SUN, MOON, AND STARS
When
the Scriptures tell us that the sun and the moon and the stars will lose their
light, is this a literal act? To
answer this, simply ask yourself if the kingdom of heaven is literal Jerusalem. Yahshua came to this earth and
repeatedly spoke in parables, and yet Christians want to take passages like
these and make them literal. In
truth, they have an understanding equal to those who departed from Him when He
told them that they must eat His flesh and drink His blood. In like manner, Christians have
departed from the truth when they take passages like these concerning the sun
and the moon and the stars as literal.
Yahshua repeatedly demonstrated that truth is hidden in parables and riddles,
and if we want to know truth, we have to recognize this.
Isaiah
13 begins, “The oracle concerning Babylon which Isaiah the son of Amoz
saw.” So, if we are going to
be literalists, then whatever took place in Babylon per the fulfillment of this
prophecy, will indicate any like fulfillment today. Thus we ask, when in Isaiah 13:9-11 we read this testimony
regarding the sun and the moon and the stars, did it literally take place?
Behold, the day of Yahweh is coming, cruel, with fury and burning anger,
to make the land a desolation; and He will exterminate its sinners from
it. For the stars of heaven and
their constellations will not flash forth their light; the sun will be dark
when it rises and the moon will not shed its light. Thus
I will punish the world for its evil and the wicked for their iniquity; I will
also put an end to the arrogance of the proud and abase the haughtiness of the
ruthless.
Did
Yahweh punish the world when the Medes and Persians took over Babylon? No. In fact, He did not even destroy Babylon as clearly declared
in Isaiah. So do you think that
the sun and moon and stars really ceased giving their light at that time? Of course not. No more than they did when Yahweh said
the same thing regarding Egypt. In
Ezekiel 32:2, Yahweh declared to Ezekiel, “Son of man, take up a
lamentation over Pharaoh king of Egypt and say to him, ….” In verses 7-8 He declared:
“’And when I
extinguish you, I will cover the heavens and darken their stars; I will
cover the sun with a cloud and the moon will not give its light. All
the shining lights in the heavens I will darken over you and will set darkness
on your land,’ declares the Lord Yahweh.”
This
was written after they had come out of Egypt, when the three days of darkness
had been on Egypt. But even in
that event, the sun, moon, and stars did not lose their light, for it was light
in Goshen (Exodus 10:21-23), and obviously elsewhere.
And
in Joel 2:10-14, we read that Yahweh’s army from the north comes against
Zion, and:
“Before them the earth quakes, the heavens tremble, the sun
and the moon grow dark and the stars lose their brightness.”
And in verses
30-32, we then read:
“I will display wonders in the sky and on the earth, blood,
fire and columns of smoke. The
sun will be turned into darkness and the moon into blood before the great and
awesome day of Yahweh comes. And it will come about that whoever
calls on the name of Yahweh will be delivered.”
These
latter verses were the very ones quoted by Peter in Acts 2:20 as being fulfilled
on the day of Pentecost:
“For these
men are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only the third hour of the day; but this is what was
spoken of through the prophet Joel …. (15-16)”
Therefore,
on the day of Pentecost when these words were cited, did the sun literally turn into darkness and the moon into
blood? Once again, of course not.
And
let us not forget the book of Revelation, where we read:
I looked when He broke the sixth seal, and there was a great
earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth made of hair, and the whole moon became like blood;
and the stars of the sky fell to the earth, as a fig tree casts its unripe figs when shaken by a great
wind. The sky was split apart like
a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island were moved out of
their places [Revelation 6:12-14].
The fourth angel sounded, and a third of the
sun and a third of the moon and a third of the stars were struck, so that a
third of them would be darkened and the day would not shine for a third of it,
and the night in the same way
[Revelation 8:12].
So
what are all of these verses telling us?
The fact is that they are all parables. Literal stars cannot fall to the earth like unripe figs
shaken by a great wind. None of
these things are literal. The
question has to be asked instead:
What do each of these speak of prophetically? If Jerusalem speaks of the kingdom of heaven, the church, or
even the new Jerusalem that is established on earth, then what do the sun,
moon, and stars speak of?
To
begin with, we read in Genesis 1:16 that “God made the two great lights,
the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night; He
made the stars also”
(Genesis 1:16). Prophetically, who
is it who rules the day, and who rules the night? Yahshua is given to rule the day, and Satan is given to rule
the night. Thus, we see two clear
types – the sun speaks of Yahshua, and the moon speaks of Satan.
We
see this same application in Revelation 12:1, which states:
A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed
with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve
stars ….
First,
who is this woman? The answer is
quite obvious, for we read, “she was with child; and she cried out, being
in labor and in pain to give birth. … And she gave birth to a son, a male
child, who is to rule all the
nations with a rod of iron; and her child was caught up to God and to His
throne.” There is only one
male child this could refer to, and that is Yahshua. He alone has the authority to rule the nations with a rod of
iron (Revelations 19:15). He
alone, after His resurrection, “was caught up to God and to His
throne.” And there is only
one work that has the authority to birth Yahshua – the Elijah.
The
Elijah is the Mary who prepares Yahshua’s way. The Elijah stands in Yahshua’s office, therefore he is
clothed in the sun. He is not the
sun, but is clothed in Yahshua’s office. Satan is placed under the feet of Elijah, thus the moon is
under the feet of the woman who brings forth Yahshua. And, the Elijah bears the latter rain twelve apostles, so
there are twelve stars in the woman’s crown.
Therefore,
we see a clear application of the sun, the moon, and the stars. Let us now look at yet another. In Genesis 37:9, we read that Joseph
had a dream, and in it the sun, the moon, and eleven stars were bowing down to
him. Upon hearing this, his
father, Jacob, objected, “What is this dream that you have had? Shall I and your mother and your
brothers actually come to bow ourselves down before you to the
ground?” Most interesting,
when Joseph had this dream and Jacob said this, Rachel had already died.
This
leads us now to another question:
If there is a type, is there not also an antitype? And let us also recall what the Greek
tells us about the meaning of the word “anti” – it speaks of
something “in place of.”
Thus, if Yahshua and Satan are the fulfillment of the sun and the moon,
then who are “in place of” them? We have already noted that from the standpoint of the
government over the church, Satan is in the place of Christ. But from the standpoint of the sun and
the moon, we see another testimony.
Though
we will not elaborate on these, first, there is no doubt that the body of
Christ, Christianity, is clearly in place of Christ on this earth. They are the sun on the earth, and
their sabbath is Sunday. And as
addressed in several writings here, including The Raven,
page 2, the Bride is
the two-part cherubim that replaces Satan, the covering cherub of Ezekiel
28:14. Thus, the sun is the type
of Yahshua, and His antitype is the body of Christ; and the moon is the type of
Satan, and his antitype, even replacement, is the Bride.
So,
how can these passages regarding the sun, moon, and stars be fulfilled? Part of this is revealed in Revelation
3:9:
“Behold, I will cause those of the synagogue of Satan, who say that they are
Jews and are not, but lie – I will make them come and bow down at your
feet, and make them know that
I have loved you.”
Who
is the church of Philadelphia?
They are the second Remnant, the Elijah. (See The
Signs That Cause Belief, page 4, and perform a page search for
“Philadelphia.”) Who
bows down to the Elijah? As
attested by Joseph’s dream, it is the body of Christ, the sun. And remember, Joseph’s mother was
dead at the time of the dream, as Satan will lose his place. And in a most unusual testimony, the
eleven first Remnant apostles bow down as well.
So
we see that the sun represents Yahshua, and His antitype, the body of Christ;
and the moon represents Satan, and his antitype, the Bride. And what do the stars represent? Thus far we see in two testimonies that
they represent the apostles – the twelve stars on the woman’s
crown, and the stars representing the twelve sons of Jacob, with one elevated
to an exalted place.
Knowing
this, let us now perform a Gospel comparison regarding Yahshua’s words
concerning the sun, moon, and stars.
In each case we will begin at the same point in these parallel
accounts. In Matthew and Mark,
this is where He was talking about false Christs. But in Luke, as we have noted, instead He speaks of the
times of the nations being fulfilled.
And in all three gospels, these verses end at the same place – at
the parable of the fig tree (not quoted here). Let us now look at all three parallel passages.
In
Matthew 24:24-31, we read:
“For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show
great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect. Behold, I have told you in
advance. So if they say to you,
'Behold, He is in the wilderness,' do not go out, or, 'Behold, He is in the inner rooms,' do not
believe them. For just as the lightning comes from
the east and flashes even to the west, so will the coming of the Son of Man
be. Wherever the corpse is, there
the vultures will gather.
But immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and
the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the
powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then the sign of the Son of Man
will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and
they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and
great glory. And He will send
forth His angels with a great trumpet and they will gather together His elect
from the four winds, from the farthest end of the heavens to the farthest end
of them.”
In
Mark 13:22-27, we read:
“… for false Christs and false prophets will arise, and
will show signs and wonders, in order to lead astray, if possible, the
elect. But take heed; behold, I
have told you everything in advance.
But in those days, after the tribulation, the sun will be darkened and the moon will
not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers
that are in the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see the Son of Man
coming in the clouds with great power and glory. And then He will send forth the angels, and will gather
together His elect from the four winds, from the farthest end of the earth to
the farthest end of heaven.”
In
Luke 21:24-28, we read:
“… and Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the
nations until the times of the nations are completed.
There will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth dismay among nations, in
perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, men fainting/swooning from
fear and the expectation of the things which are coming upon the world; for the
powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see the Son of man
coming in a cloud with power and great glory. But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and
lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”
First,
you will notice that in Luke, there is no mention of “false
Christs.” Why? Because the Elijah second Remnant
prepares the way for the true Christ, Yahshua. There have been many pseudochrists who have come in the last
2,000 years, both those who falsely assume His name, as well as those who
falsely speak in His name.
Also,
quite significantly, the reference point of both Matthew and Mark is that these
things are relative to “after the tribulation.” Yet in Luke, once again we see no
mention of tribulation. The time
of the great tribulation is indeed in the period of the first Remnant and
Christianity; but as promised in those same books, it is cut short for the sake
of the elect. Thus we find in
Luke, the elect, that there is no mention of the tribulation.
But
now for the matter at hand. You
will notice in Matthew and Mark that the statements regarding the sun, moon,
and stars are essentially identical.
But once again in Luke the message is distinctly different.
In
Matthew 24:29, we read:
“… the sun will be darkened, and
the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the
powers of the heavens will be shaken.”
In
Mark 13:24-25, we read:
“… the sun will be darkened and the
moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and
the powers that are in the heavens will be shaken.”
But
in Luke 21:25, we read:
“There will be signs in sun and moon and
stars …; for the powers
of the heavens will be shaken.”
What
can it mean that in Matthew and Mark the sun is darkened, the moon will not
give its light, and the stars fall; whereas in Luke there is not the darkness,
and the stars do not fall? And in clear
contrast, the testimony in Luke is that there will be signs in the sun, moon,
and stars.
Given
what we know about the first 2,000 years of the church, it is quite fitting
that the prophetic message in Matthew and Mark is that the sun is
darkened. As we have seen, the
antitype of the sun is the body of Christ; and for that period, they have not
been a true light to the world and have all died – the sun is
darkened! Yahshua brought light,
but when He left, the sun was darkened in the antitype of Christianity. Likewise, the moon, or Satan, has not
brought forth that light as well; and certainly, he too will die, losing his
place. And finally, the first
Remnant apostles did indeed fall; for instead of prevailing and leading the
church, they too died.
Thus,
when you consider the exact phrasing of these statements in Matthew and Mark,
they are entirely fitting. The sun
was in fact darkened, for it
had given light in Yahshua, but became dark when He left. On the other hand, the moon did not
give its light. The first Remnant did not see the full
truth, nor did it receive the glory.
And certainly Satan gave no light.
The statement concerning the moon would not have been accurate if it too
said that the moon became darkened.
No, the moon never gave its light.
Thus, both statements as they read are entirely accurate.
But
in Luke the message is not darkness and falling, but rather that the sun, moon,
and stars will provide signs. What
could those signs be? Based on
what we are seeing regarding the Scriptures’ testimonies for this day,
the sun-clothed woman will prepare the way for the Son of God, the true and
lasting sun who does not lose His light.
Also, the Bride will be formed and replace Satan, and the moon will
become full, attesting to the beginning of the new era of time – the
Millennial reign, the beginning of the new heavens and the new earth. And the stars will not fall from
heaven; but rather, with the rest of the Bride will ascend into heaven to
receive their immortal, incorruptible bodies.
But
Luke also attests to events unique to the other two gospels that are most
revealing and very hopeful.
Inserted between the passage regarding the sun, moon, and stars, and the
common statement concerning the powers of the heavens being shaken, we find the
following:
“… and on the earth dismay among
nations, in perplexity [being at a loss] at the roaring of the sea and the
waves, men fainting/swooning from fear and the expectation of the things which
are coming upon the world ….”
And
even before this, you will recall the like highly significant message entirely
unique to Luke:
“… and Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the
nations until the times of the nations are completed.”
As
we have noted, the times of the nations have been taking place for 6,000 years,
wherein the nations have had the rights to rule the earth, including ruling
over the kingdom of heaven. This
was never more evidenced than when the nations had the legal right to kill God,
the Son of God. And this
continuing right has been evidenced in the church where the nations have had
the right to rule over it.
But
this has to change. When we read
that Yahshua will rule the nations with a rod of iron, clearly at some point
the dramatic shift is made when the nations lose the right to rule, and that
right returns to the kingdom of heaven.
The question is: When is that change made? Does it not change until Yahshua returns, or does it change before
then?
Indications
here in Luke are that the change takes place before His return. We read here in Luke that (1) the time
of the nations will be completed and (2) they will then and thereby experience
dismay and be at a loss as to what is taking place. Thus, their time ends, resulting in dismay; and all of this
takes place before Yahshua’s return.
This
makes great sense, for the Elijah comes to prepare the way for Yahshua’s
return, and there needs to be that change before He comes so as to prepare His
way. Likewise, we read that Elijah
restores all things before Yahshua’s coming:
As
we read in Luke, before Yahshua comes, the nations enter into a time of turmoil
– dismay and being at a loss.
What could this mean, and what could cause this? Christians take this verse and try to
make it into apocalyptic calamity; but as we read in Luke 17:28, it is a time
of relative normality – “they were eating, they were drinking, they
were buying, they were selling, they were planting, they were building.” So then how can one put these two
seemingly different passages of normality and dismay together? Simple, they both occur at the same
time. There can be a sense of
normality, yet things taking place whereupon the nations are in dismay, being
at a loss as to what is taking place.
Even in the midst of the worst of economic times, though lifestyles can
change, there can still be the kind of normality mentioned here. Yahshua said both things, and both were
relative to the same time – the time of His return. Therefore, there has to be
compatibility in these two passages.
We cannot ignore what both of them say.
What
could cause this dismay – being at a loss of what is taking place, and
even having fear and wonder concerning the things that are coming upon the
world? First, we do know that when
the former rain came, there were like reactions to this first outpouring of the
Holy Spirit.
Everyone kept feeling a sense of fear [the same Greek word used to describe the
fainting/swooning from fear]; and many wonders and signs were taking place
through the apostles [Acts 2:43].
And great fear came over the whole church [after Ananias and Sapphira were slain by
Yahweh], and over all who heard of these things. At
the hands of the apostles many signs and wonders were taking place among the
people; and they were all with one accord in Solomon's portico. But none of the rest dared to
associate with them; however, the people held them in high esteem [Acts 5:11-13].
It
is hard to imagine what the outcome and response would be to a like move of the
Holy Spirit today, especially when the latter rain is a double portion of the
Spirit! Add to this the transfer
of the office of the Elijah from Satan to a man (a sign in the moon), the
“preacher of righteousness” (2 Peter 2:5) and the “spirit of
truth” who reproves “the world concerning sin and righteousness and
judgment” (John 16:8), the prospect of such change is quite hopeful.
Also,
you will recall that the testimony of the 1,335th day was an
earthquake (Acts 4:31), pointing to today. This is the same testimony that took place when Yahshua came
out of the tomb (Matthew 28:2).
And in like manner, it was an earthquake that delivered Paul and Silas
from jail (Acts 16:26). Likewise,
there was the earthquake in Ezekiel 37:7 that brought the dry bones
together. Today, there needs to be
that earthquake in people’s beliefs, in their thinking, in their
lives. Those things that are not
true and lasting need to be shaken down, so that truth can take their
place. And as we see further
attested in Acts 4:31, we need to be filled with the Holy Spirit and speak the
word of God with boldness.
Another
thing to consider is what the affect would be for yet another related flip to
take place. We have already
considered that the nations will no longer have authority over the kingdom of
heaven, but that the kingdom of heaven will have authority over the
nations. Related to both of these
– the nations and the kingdom – there is an element in each of them
that affords power and success.
For the nations, that power is afforded by money. For the kingdom of heaven, that power
is afforded by the Holy Spirit. What
money is to the nations, the Holy Spirit is to the kingdom of heaven.
For
6,000 years the currency of choice has been money. This has equally been true in the church. Why? Because money has been able to effect things in the church
that the Holy Spirit has not provided.
But what would happen when the nations and the kingdom of heaven
flip? Would not money and the Holy
Spirit flip as well? In that case,
suddenly the currency of choice would not be money, but the Holy Spirit. So what would that do to money?
Recorded
only in Luke, 16:9, in fact in the chapter just before these passages regarding
Yahshua’s return, He stated, “And I say to you, make friends for
yourselves by means of the wealth of unrighteousness, so that when it fails,
they will receive you into the eternal dwellings.” According to Yahshua, there will come a
day when money fails. Why? Because of the flip back to when the
Holy Spirit was moving over the face of the deep and was the preferred currency
– the wealth of righteousness instead. Money will no longer have the value we know today. It will become the far lesser, as
scarce as the Holy Spirit has been in the church. Money has had the legal right to prevail; but when the flip
comes, it too will lose that legal right.
The Holy Spirit failed during the first Remnant, and money will fail
during the second Remnant.
In
fact, there are foreboding signs right now that money, as Yahshua said, is
about to fail. Already the
American dollar is evidencing signs that it is about to collapse. Up to now I have completely avoided the
messages of doomsayers; but when I saw that money and the Holy Spirit would flip
and money would fall from its prevailing value, I began taking a more serious
look at what many economists are saying.
Here are five links to articles that address both the failing dollar, as
well as warning of an imminent stock market collapse:
Fed rate cut abandons dollar, WorldNetDaily
http://worldnetdaily.com/news/printer-friendly.asp?ARTICLE_ID=57759
Stock Market Crash, The History of Financial Train
Wrecks
http://www.stock-market-crash.net/coming-crash.htm
America’s Total Debt Report
https://web.archive.org/web/20090908092815/http://mwhodges.home.att.net/nat-debt/debt-nat.htm
Robert Kiyosaki On The Coming Stock Market Crash
http://www.nichegeek.com/robert_kiyosaki_on_the_coming_stock_market_crash
Bernanke & Bush: The Perfect Storm
http://chartingstocks.net/2007/09/23/bernanke-bush-the-perfect-storm/
Trumpets,
October 25, 2007, marks what is hoped to be the day when these legal flips take
place, effecting sudden results, and/or a time of ensuing quick change. In this regard, it is quite noteworthy
that October 24, the day before Trumpets, is United Nations Day. The United Nations was established on
October 24, 1945, and on October 24, 1948, the first United Nations Day was
observed. The year 1948 is also
the beginning of the test of Carmel (The
Passing Over Principle, pages 3 and 4).
October 24 would then mark the end of the times of the nations, and
Trumpets, October 25, would be the beginning of the times of the kingdom of
heaven.
It
is also noteworthy that on October 24, 1929, Wall Street crashed, marking the
beginning of the Great Depression.
The prosperity and excess of the Roaring Twenties, begun by the Curse of
1920, collapsed. Stock prices fell
on October 24, and continued to fall; and it took twenty-five years to return
to the those previous levels.
Thus, we will watch and see what October 24 and 25 and thereafter will
bring today for the value of money.
Also,
you will notice that one of the articles cited is titled, “Bernanke &
Bush: The Perfect Storm.”
Ben Bernanke is the present Chairman of the Federal Reserve. Of course George Bush is our President
at the time of writing this. This
is not a flattering article for either of these men. But the fact is, President Bush stands in the prophetic
place of the second Remnant (Bush –> Clinton –> Bush); and if
there is to be the flip of money and the Holy Spirit, what more fitting
testimony is there than that Bush flip money to be the lesser? If money is going to fail, let it be by
a prophetic second Remnant! It needs to fail, for money is
“unrighteous wealth.”
And in like manner, if the Holy Spirit is going to prevail, let it be by
the true second Remnant.
Therefore,
based on what we read in Luke 21:25-26, as well as the recorded affects of what
took place after Pentecost, would not a flip as we anticipate between the
nations and the kingdom of heaven, and between money and the Holy Spirit,
produce the kind of things spoken of here? Indeed!
There will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and
on the earth dismay among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and
the waves, men fainting/swooning from fear and the expectation of the things
which are coming upon the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
The
former rain was brief, interrupted, and in fact eventually failed. What then would happen for the latter
rain to come, bringing like results, yet this time increasing all the
more? The impact evidenced in Acts
2-4 would be sustained and increase all the more. What we need today is what we saw foreshadowed with the Twin
Towers, the World Trade Center.
Remember, evil is an Elijah that prepares the way for good.
What
is needed today is what we saw experienced in the World Trade Center –
the fall of finances and turning to things that are eternal. And like the Twin Towers, as on the day
of Pentecost, it needs to be a sudden experience, a Gihon, a “bursting
forth”! Or as we read in
Revelation 18:10, mystery Babylon falls in one hour.
Continue
to page 9 of The Great Tribulation
for THE BOOK OF REVELATION