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Issue #256November 2009
Matthew 13:44 records a short parable of the Kingdom that Jesus told.
44 The Kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field; which a man found and hid; and from joy over it he goes and sells all that he has, and buys that field.
On September 24, 2009 three news events occurred that illustrated this parable and provided us with a prophetic sign of its soon-coming fulfillment. Now I realize that many signs occurred in Scripture that took centuries for the actual event to manifest in the world. However, when we see a double witness of the same sign occur at the same time, it indicates a soon-coming fulfillment.
Note the words of Joseph when he interpreted Pharaoh’s dream. Pharaoh had two dreams in the same night. In the first he saw seven lean cows eat up seven fat cows; and in the second dream he saw seven thin ears of wheat eat up seven good ears of wheat. Joseph interpreted the dream as indicating seven good years followed by seven years of famine. Then he said in Genesis 41:32,
32 Now as for the repeating of the dream to Pharaoh twice, it means that the matter is determined by God, and God will quickly bring it about.
Hence, because we actually saw three signs occur on September 24, we can take this not as being the double witness, but also the third witness. In fact, I believe that we are already in the time of “famine,” which is manifesting as an economic collapse.
Recall that it was in the second year of the famine that Joseph revealed himself to his brethren. Joseph was the treasure hidden in the field, and this is precisely what is going on right now in the signs of the times. On Sept. 24 the leading Egyptian Daily Al-Ahram reported, “Coins from Era of Biblical Joseph Found in Egypt.” On the same day in England, it was reported that a hoard of “Anglo-Saxon Treasure” was unearthed. The third sign came from Johannesburg in South Africa, where a 507 carat diamond was unearthed on the same date. All of these are signs of the treasure hidden in the field that has now been found.
Joseph Hidden in the Field
Joseph was hidden in Egypt after being sold as a slave by his brothers. Egypt is a type of the world, and (as Jesus said in Matt. 13:38), “the field is the world.” For this reason, I have taught for many years that the story of Joseph is crucial to understanding Matt. 13:44. He (that is, his sons) were given the name Israel in Gen. 48:16, when Jacob said to Ephraim and Manasseh, “let my name be named on them.”
Israel, then, was God’s “peculiar treasure” (Ex. 19:5) that was later hidden in the “field” (world) when they were taken to Assyria. They were the “lost sheep of the house of Israel,” lost because they lost the name Israel and became known by other names that hid their Israel identity.
The story of Joseph provides us with a prophetic type that would be fulfilled in his descendants of the house of Israel. Joseph’s identity was hidden largely because Pharaoh gave him a new name, Zaphnath-paaneah (Gen. 41:45). The meaning of the name is disputed among scholars, but Strong’s Concordance says that the Hebrew name is Tsephan-yahu as meaning “Yah has secreted.” (See #6846). The root word is Tsaphan, “to hide (by covering over).” (See #6845)
This meaning is reinforced when Joseph hid his silver cup in Benjamin’s sack of grain so that it appeared to be stolen (Gen. 44:2). Once again, it was a hidden treasure being brought to light in preparation for Joseph himself to reveal himself to them at the appropriate time.
All of this was a grand parable with the players acting out their roles that prophesied of future events. Like Joseph, Israel was hidden, and now they are being found.
Joseph’s Coins Found
The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) reported on Sept. 24, 2009,
“In an unprecedented find, a group of Egyptian researchers and archeologists has discovered a cache of coins from the time of the Pharaohs. . .
“The researchers discovered the coins when they sifted through thousands of small archeological artifacts stored in [the vaults of] the Museum of Egypt. [Initially] they took them for charms, but a thorough examination revealed that the coins bore the year in which they were minted and their value, or effigies of the pharaohs [who ruled] at the time of their minting. Some of the coins are from the time when Joseph lived in Egypt, and bear his name and portrait. . . .
“The researcher identified coins from many different periods, including coins that bore special markings identifying them as being from the era of Joseph. Among these, there was one coin that had an inscription on it, and an image of a cow symbolizing Pharaoh’s dream about the seven fat cows and seven lean cows, and the seven green stalks of grain and seven dry stalks of grain. . . .
“Joseph’s name appears twice on this coin, written in hieroglyphs: once the original name, Joseph, and once his Egyptian name, Saba Sabani, which was given to him by Pharaoh when he became treasurer. There is also an image of Joseph, who was part of the Egyptian administration at the time.”
This announcement on Sept. 24, 2009 is important to us as a sign that Joseph is found. And because Joseph is the hidden treasure, it suggests that the lost sheep of the house of Israel are about to be found and known for who they are. This necessarily means that the Israeli state will have to forfeit its right to use the name Israel. It will have to give up the Birthright of Joseph as well, which it was given in 1948.
For years I have wondered why the prophet Daniel explicitly tells us that Darius the Mede was 62 years old when he took control of Babylon. It seemed unnecessary to tell us this detail. But I thought it might prove significant to the year 2010, which is 62 years after 1948. I had been thinking more in economic terms, since Babylon is seen largely as a global economic system. But now it appears that it is tied also to the Israeli state and may perhaps signal its demise.
The Treasure and the Field
The Bible itself interprets Jesus’ parable of Matt. 13:44. Exodus 19:5 tells us that Israel was to be God’s “peculiar treasure.” When the house of Israel was lost in Assyria, it was the treasure that God hid in the world. “The field is the world,” Jesus said in verse 38.
In those days they did not have banks or financial institutions where the rich could store their money. They usually buried their treasure on their property (field) to hide it from thieves. Sometimes people died and treasure was lost. There was always the potential for someone to find it by accident. But if the finder took it for himself, he was a thief, because one had to own the field in order to own anything on the property—even hidden treasure.
Jesus came to seek that which was lost (Ezekiel 34:11). When He found the treasure, He hid it again, then sold all that He had (gave His life) in order to purchase the field. He purchased the field in order to obtain the treasure in a lawful manner. In this manner, Jesus bought the whole world with His blood, and certainly, His blood was worth far more than the world was worth.
Those who think that God is only interested in Israelites do not understand Matthew 13:44. While it is true that His prime focus was upon the treasure, it is equally true that He purchased the whole world in order to get the treasure. Furthermore, this was part of the divine plan from the beginning, because “God so loved the world” (John 3:16).
Anglo-Saxon Gold Hoard Found
On Sept. 24, 2009 it was announced to the world that a huge golden treasure was discovered “buried in a field in Staffordshire.” It had actually been discovered in July, but kept secret until the appointed date of revelation.
“Mr. Herbert, 55, of Burntwood in Staffordshire, who has been metal detecting for 18 years, came across the hoard as he searched land belonging to a farmer friend over five days in July. The exact location has not been disclosed. ‘I have this phrase that I say sometimes: Spirits of yesteryear, take me where the coins appear, but on that day I changed coins to gold,’ he said. ‘I don’t know why I said it that day, but I think somebody was listening and directed me to it.’
“Duncan Slarke, finds liaison officer for Staffordshire, was the first professional to see the hoard, which contains warfare paraphernalia, including sword pommel caps and hilt plates inlaid with precious stones. He said he was ‘virtually speechless” when he saw the items.
“Dr. Kevin Leahy, who had been cataloguing the find for the Portable Antiquities Scheme, said it was ‘a truly remarkable collection.’ He said it had been found in the heartland of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Mercia.”
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/staffordshire/8272058.stm
Many people do not realize that the term Anglo-Saxon came from the merging of two tribes many centuries ago. These were the Angles (or Engles) and the Saxons. The Engles gave their name to England, “land of the Engles.”
The term actually comes from the Hebrew egle, which appears in Jer. 31:18 and 46:21, where it is translated “bullock.” The bull was the sign on the banner or flag of the tribe of Joseph in the wilderness. Moses blessed this tribe, saying in Deut. 33:17,
17 As the firstborn of his ox, majesty is his, and his are the horns of the wild ox; with them he shall push the peoples, all at once, to the ends of the earth. And those are the ten thousands of Ephraim, and those are the thousands of Manasseh.
The two horns of the ox (or bull) were the two sons of Joseph, Ephraim and Manasseh. This also prophesied that Ephraim and Manasseh would, in some way, push the Israelites into dispersion “to the ends of the earth.”
In those days the ends of the earth were the lands that bordered the Atlantic Ocean, and historians have often used the term as a reference to Britain. And so if we were to trace the history of the Israelites after they were taken to Assyria, we would find that they immigrated north and west into Europe and Britain. But, of course, since God intended that they (like Joseph) would be lost for a season, it is not surprising that these historical facts are not recognized by the mainstream historians or by the Church.
Like Joseph, they were lost primarily because the Assyrians gave them other names such as Beth-Ghomri, or just Ghomri, Gomer, Khumri, and Humria. The Black Obelisk of Shalmanezer and the Moabite Stone each refer to Israel by the name Beth-Khumri, “House of Omri.”
As for the term Saxon, this is the term used by the Latin historians of Rome. The Greeks called them Sacae, Skuths (Scots), and Scythians. Colossians 3:11 mentions the Scythians (Greek: Skuthes).
The tomb of Darius I of Persia is located at Behistun. The inscription is in three languages, listing all the people that were under his rule. In the Persian language, he lists Scythia (pronounced Saka). In the Babylonian language it is written as Matu Gimiri, “the land of Gimiri” (Gomer).
Historians know, then, that the Saka and the Khumri were the same people, but called different names by the ancient languages. Hosea prophesies of the people of Gomer (or Khumri) and identifies them as the Israelites in dispersion. Thus, those Israelite Khumri were also known as Saka or Saxons. This name is actually derived from the name Isaac, written in Hebrew as Yizchak. Amos 7:16 tells us that the Israelites were also called the House of Isaac:
16 And now hear the word of the Lord; you are saying, You shall not prophesy against Israel nor shall you speak against the house of Isaac.
Sir Henry Rawlinson was the archeologist deciphering the text on the Behistun Rock. In his book, The Origin of the Nations, he writes,
“We have reasonable grounds for regarding the Gimirri, or Cimmerians, who first appeared on the confines of Assyria and Media in the seventh century B.C., and the Sacae of the Behistun Rock, nearly two centuries later, as identical with the Beth-Khumree of Samaria, or the Ten Tribes of the House of Israel.”
Of course, those Israelites in dispersion migrated both east and west, and some traveled by ship to other parts of the world. But our present concern is the sign on Sept. 24 when the Anglo-Saxon hoard of gold was discovered. The history of the lost house of Israel is the background by which we may understand this sign.
This discovery is the sign of the lost treasure hidden in the field, and it also connects Joseph-Israel on a genealogical level to England and to the Anglo-Saxon people in general. The sons of Joseph pushed the Israelites to the ends of the earth. How? By their idolatry, whereby God brought judgment upon Israel. Yet this judgment was also designed for a good purpose, even as God’s design for Joseph was for good. Joseph himself told his brothers in Gen. 50:20,
20 And as for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive.
The judgments of God are designed to correct us and give us His mercy. All things work together for good, Paul says, even if it appears that God is mistreating us in the short term.
I believe that this is why the hoard of gold was found in the old Kingdom of Mercia (part of present-day England). Its old English name meant “borderland,” but as a sign of the times, it connects with the mercy of God.
Likewise, in later years when God cast out the house of Israel, its purpose was to hide Israel in the “field,” so that Christ would be legally required to purchase the whole field in order to obtain the treasure. Paul comments on this in Romans 11:12, saying about those lost Israelites,
12 Now if their transgression be riches for the world and their failure be riches for the nations [ethnos], how much more will their fulfillment be!
Most people assume that Paul was speaking of the Jews or the nation of Judea in the first century. But Paul was speaking primarily of the Israelites who had already been dispersed 700 years earlier. This is easily seen by looking up Paul’s Old Testament quotations, most of which were prophecies given specifically to the northern tribes of the house of Israel. (I discussed this more fully in my online book, Blindness in Part, beginning with chapter 4.)
When God divorced the house of Israel and cast them out of His house (Jer. 3:8), His overall plan was to save Israel by saving the whole world—that is by purchasing the whole field. The regathering was to take place by the marriage laws, but it was to be done under a New Covenant marriage. This was to be a two-step program.
First people were to follow Jesus Christ as the King of Judah. In this way, by faith in His work on the cross, they would join the tribe of Judah by a legal process. Being justified by faith (Passover), they could then be trained in obedience (Pentecost) so that they might be eligible to become Israelites (by law) and receive the Birthright of Joseph (Tabernacles).
This is why the sign of the Anglo-Saxon hoard of gold found in the field in England is so important. It indicates that Joseph has been found, and that the Birthright is soon to be given to all who have qualified as Israelites—that is, the overcomers.
At the same time, it appears that the world is about to see that the Jews are NOT Israel, nor is the Israeli state the true Israel at all. This treasure was found in England, not in Tel Aviv. Those of you who have read my book, The Struggle for the Birthright, will understand that God gave the Israelis the Birthright in 1948 to satisfy the demands of Esau-Edom in Genesis 27:40 and to give Esau time to prove himself unworthy of the Birthright.
So it looks to me as if Esau is reaching the end of his dominion. Perhaps their war crimes in the Gaza War last year was one of the final proofs of Esau’s unworthiness. Or perhaps we are about to see the final act. Either way, the signs of Sept. 24 depict the discovery of Joseph and the transfer of the Birthright to the overcomers.
The 507-Carat Diamond Found in South Africa
The third sign which occurred on Sept. 24, 2009 is the huge diamond that was found at the Cullinan mine in South Africa. Reuters reported it on Sept. 29 in an article entitled, RPT-UPDATE 3-Petra Diamonds finds giant 507 carat stone.
“Petra Diamonds said on Tuesday [9/24] it had recovered one of the world’s 20 largest, high quality white diamonds at the Cullinan mine in South Africa.
“The massive 507.55 carat diamond, found on Sept. 24, could be worth about $20 million, and is expected to cover costs at the mine for two years, Finance Director David Abery said.”
Once again we see an example of finding the treasure hidden in the field, this time in South Africa. Even as it was meaningful that the hoard of gold was found in England, so also it is meaningful for the diamond to be found in South Africa.
To me it indicates that God’s “treasure” is not only in England, but all around the world.
The 24th Day of the 9th Month in Prophecy
I was first made aware of September 24 as being a watch date as early as August 13, 2009, when a friend came to my office with a revelation of a divine countdown leading to Sept. 24. I finally received confirmation of this date from other friends on Sept. 14, telling me that God had shown them that 9/24 was connected to the prophecy in Haggai 2:10 and 18.
This speaks of the foundation of the second temple that was laid on the 24th day of the 9th month on the Hebrew calendar. Fourteen years later, Haggai prophesied in verse 19, “from this day on, I will bless you.” The blessing given today, as seen clearly in the events of Sept. 24, 2009, is the blessing of the Birthright, which comes with the discovery of Joseph. The treasure hidden in the field has now been found and is a settled issue in the courts of heaven.
We should also watch December 12, 2009, which is 9/24 on the Hebrew calendar this year. But we do not know yet if Haggai’s prophecy applies on that calendar. Meanwhile, we do know that Sept. 24 was very significant on our own modern calendar.
How long will this take to manifest in the earth? I do not know, of course, but the signs are encouraging for the overcomers. Those who are losing the Birthright will not be happy with this turn of events, so we can be sure that they will fight it with every weapon at their disposal.
Yet God will overcome all opposition. After all, He raised up the opposition in the first place, even as He raised up Pharaoh for that purpose (Rom. 9:17). God is so sovereign that He has to create His own enemies just to have any.
