BLOG

The Jerusalem prophecy

On September 26, 2019 some Israeli Jews sacrificed a lamb on the Mount of Olives. Here is a 16-minute video of the ceremony itself.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WtFdAkw9kQM

While many think that this is a fulfillment of prophecy and is a wonderful thing, it actually was an act of blasphemy, biblically speaking, because it rejected Jesus Christ as the Lamb of God that was provided for the sin of the world. Secondly, by sacrificing the animal on the Mount of Olives—where Jesus Himself was sacrificed—it represented a counterfeit that was not at all in accordance with the will of God.

Thirdly, they appealed to the whole world (“the seventy nations”) to participate in this animal sacrifice, as if the blood of an animal were effectual in saving the world. Old Covenant faith in the blood of an animal is ineffectual, and for that reason it had to be repeated daily in previous times. The blood of Jesus, however, is “once for all” (Romans 6:10; Hebrews 7:27; 10:10).

Finally, by appealing to God during the sacrifice, they invoked His blessing upon the whole Old Covenant ceremony, as if God could bless their rejection of Jesus as the Messiah. That is blasphemy. 1 John 2:22, 23 says,

²² Who is the liar but the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, the one who denies the Father and the Son. ²³ Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father; the one who confesses the Son has the Father also.

Their animal sacrifice is indeed prophetic, but not in the way they believe. First, since they crucified Jesus on a charge of blasphemy, the law demands an equal penalty, “life for life” (Exodus 21:23; Leviticus 24:16). The judgment always fits the crime. Second, their sacrifice was done through the spirit of antichrist, as John says. Christians ought not to support antichrist, as many do, for their participation makes them liable on some level, mitigated only by their level of ignorance.

Cursed Time

As I explained in my book, Secrets of Time, “Cursed Time” is measured in cycles of 414 days or years. The curse of the law is the judgment rendered on account of sin, but Cursed Time is the grace period between the verdict and the execution. For nations and long-term prophecy, it is a cycle of 414 years or a multiple of 414. For individuals and for short-term prophecy, it is 414 days or a multiple.

Hence, as a result of the curse on the ground when Adam sinned (Genesis 3:17), the flood came 1656 years later (4 x 414). Likewise, Noah’s curse on Canaan (Genesis 9:25) gave the Canaanites 2 x 414 years of grace before Joshua led Israel across the Jordan to drive them out of the land. Again, when King Saul consulted the witch of En-dor on the night before he was killed in battle with the Philistines, he put the monarchy of Judah on Cursed Time. The penalty was paid by King Jehoiachin 414 years later.

In the recent case of the animal sacrifice on the Mount of Olives, there is no question in my mind that this put the Jewish state on Cursed Time. This established a countdown toward the destruction of Jerusalem as prophesied in Jeremiah 19:10, 11. While Jerusalem has been destroyed many times in the past, it was always rebuilt later and exists to this day.

Jeremiah, however, compares it to an old earthen jar (Jeremiah 19:1, 10) which was to be cast into the valley of the son of Hinnom (Greek: gehenna). “Just so shall I break this people and this city, even as one breaks a potter’s vessel which cannot again be repaired.” It is evident from history that Jerusalem has always been “repaired;” hence, Jeremiah’s prophecy has yet to be fulfilled.

I believe that the animal sacrifice on September 26, 2019 is the specific event that will bring about the fulfillment of Jeremiah’s prophecy.

The first cycle of 414 days from that date, reckoned inclusively, brings us to November 12, 2020. Going back as early as 1981, November 12 has been one of the most significant dates in my own life, as this was the start of my own wilderness journey, wherein God disciplined me. (See The Wars of the Lord, chapter 1.) The difference was that this discipline worked in my favor in the long run, for it brought me to a new level of faith. I do not see the same thing happening to the city of Jerusalem, simply because the prophecies give no hope for Jerusalem.

One can search the entire passage in Jeremiah 18:11 through chapter 19 and find not a single ray of hope for Jerusalem. In fact, the old earthen jar representing Jerusalem and Judah stands in stark contrast to the wet clay jar in Jeremiah 18:1-10 which represents the house of Israel. Israel was the name of the 10 northern tribes, while Judah was the name of the 2 tribes in the south. The Israelites were exiled to Assyria, and their nation was destroyed, even as the potter beat down the wet clay to remake it into another vessel. But Judah was smashed in Gehenna.

Jews and Israelites

Most Christians make the mistake of applying the prophecy of Israel to the Jewish state which men call Israel. They do not seem to realize that the Jews are not the Israelites. Jew is a contraction for Judah, and after the split in the Kingdom, they were no longer Israelites insofar as these prophecies were concerned.

Furthermore, a true Jew (in the eyes of God) is one whose heart has been circumcised. Paul tells us in Romans 2:28, 29 that “he is NOT a Jew who is one outwardly,” and that “he IS a Jew who is one inwardly.” In other words, the Old Covenant sign (circumcision) may cause men to label a man a Jew, but that is not how God defines the term. To God, there are no Jews apart from heart circumcision, which is the sign of the New Covenant. In other words, one must be in unity with the Mediator of the New Covenant, Jesus Christ, in order to be a “Jew” in the sight of God.

Furthermore, Paul says that the earthly Jerusalem is Hagar, while the heavenly Jerusalem is Sarah. (Galatians 4:25, 26). Paul says that the children of the bondwoman are those who adhere to the Old Covenant—i.e., those who remain in Old Covenant Judaism. The children of the free woman (Sarah) are those who come under the New Covenant and are therefore inheritors. In the end, the divine verdict is that the bondwoman and her son must be “cast out” (Galatians 4:30).

When Jerusalem is “cast out,” I believe that Jeremiah’s prophecy will be fulfilled as well. In my view, November 12, 2020 is the first date to watch in regard to this matter.