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The 6th Sign of Elisha Fulfilled

As Phil and I were driving down to Pensacola last week, it was confirmed to me through John G. Lake that this would be the time for the 6th sign of Elisha, the birth of the son of the Shunammite woman (2 Kings 4:17). I told Phil that David Hogan would use some biblical passage as his text that would indicate the birthing of a child, to indicate this sign.

We arrived on Wednesday afternoon, and that evening the meeting began at 7:00 p.m. There was, of course, a lot of singing first, and then David got up to speak. His text was Isaiah 9:6, 7,

⁶ For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder; and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counseller, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. ⁷ Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon His kingdom, to order it and to establish with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this."

When he read this, I looked at my watch and saw that it was precisely 9:06 p.m. while he was reading Isaiah 9:6. The following night he laid hands on me to impart Isaiah 9:6 and 7 to me. That, I knew, was the primary purpose for going to Pensacola. It was the 6th sign of Elisha, which was to prepare for the 7th sign, apparently scheduled for January 27.

John G. Lake wrote much about this new birth. Here is a sample that inspired me to see the connection between the birth of the Shunammite woman's son and what it actually meants to us today:

"My understanding of this is that the "child" being born today is not simply Jesus Christ, but His Body through whom He will bring about the second work of Christ. Though many have already walked in the power of this second work of Christ to some extent, what is coming is a greater fullness of Christ than has been seen before.

"The new birth has brought us into vital union with Jesus Christ. This thing I am teaching you about our union with God is not known in the great body of Christians. All they have is forgiveness of sin. There is no actual union with God. They do not know that the new birth is a real incarnation. They do not know that they are as much the sons and daughters of God Almighty as Jesus is. The great body of the Christian Church has no dominion, does not know it. They have the most befogged concept of what God has done and what God is to them, and what they are to God.

"Another step. That incarnation that God has given through the new birth has bestowed upon us the lost authority of the Garden of Eden. And only here and there has a man known it, or preached it, or dared to assume it."

I see the present time as the day of preparation. We may have a few weeks to ponder and pray about these things. I think that January 27 and April 12 are the times to watch. It appears that what is coming will be incremental, rather than all at once.

The way things are shaping up, it appears to me that 2009 was the Year of the Ox (Joseph), where we saw the signs that Joseph was found and the Birthright was being returned to him. So the year 2010 is the actual outworking of that Birthright and authority. Incidentally, Pastor Vinny in Pensacola asked me about a strange revelation he had last week. It was about an "ox tail." It meant absolutly nothing to him. I told him that we are now at the tail end of the Year of the Ox, and that we were about to enter the Year of the Tiger (Woods).

In the story of Joseph, recall that it was Judah's idea to sell Joseph into slavery (Gen 37:26). The other story relevant to the Birthright is that of Jacob and Esau, where Isaac prophesied that at some point in time Esau would be given the dominion that Jacob had stolen. This occurred in 1948, of course, as I explained thoroughly in my book, The Struggle for the Birthright.

But since the Jews are a combination of Judah and Esau, having absorbed the descendants of Esau (Edom, or Idumea) back in 125 B.C., the current Israeli state must fulfill both sets of prophecies today. Hence, the year 2010 appears to be the time when the Birthright is returned to Joseph, the true inheritors. The Jews, fulfilling the "Judah" side of the prophecy, must do as the original patriarch Judah did when Joseph was discovered. Without Joseph, Judah would have had both the Scepter and the Birthright, but when Joseph was found, Judah had to give up the Birthright.

Secondly, on the "Esau" side of the prophecy, the Israeli state has proven itself unworthy to hold the Birthright, because they continue to function by the bloodthirsty character of Esau in their treatment of the Palestinians. Hence, they too much give up their claim to the Birthright and give it to those who are worthy of ruling in the Kingdom.

These two sets of prophecy are coming together, it seems, in the year 2010. And the Birthright is being given to the Overcomers, the true Israelites in the original sense of the word. (I explained this further in my book, Who are the Israelites.)

The bottom line is this: while many have already walked according to the principles of the Scepter and Birthright (as individuals), we seem to be arriving at the time of a more corporate fulfillment, where this will be much more widespread than in past years.

The Scepter was not to depart from Judah until Shiloh came (Gen. 49:10). This has had many layers of fulfillment over the years. The Ark first was set up in Shiloh of Ephraim (Joshua 18:1). Later, it was transferred to the temple in Jerusalem by Solomon, whose name is derived from Shiloh. His Name was taken from Jerusalem a few centuries later for the same reason it was taken from Shiloh (Jer. 7:12-14). His Name was then placed upon the true Temple of the New Jerusalem, which is us, for His Name is in our foreheads (Rev. 22:4).

But now, once again, in the end of the Pentecostal Age, we have been watching for the corporate manifestation of this. It appears to me that the tsunami in the Solomon Islands on January 2, 2010 suggests the emergence of the New Jerusalem into the earth in a new and greater manifestation. Solomon was the original Prince of Peace, for his name means "peace." Jesus Himself was the next Prince of Peace. But the "Prince of Peace" in our time is not just Jesus, the Head, but also Christ, the Body. It is the new creation man.

So the news is all good. The Light of God will shine brighter and brighter even as the darkness in the world deepens. Isaiah 60:2 says,

"For behold, darkness will cover the earth, and deep darkness the peoples; but the Lord will rise upon you, and His glory will appear upon you."