He started in 520 b.c. and ended his ministry in 480 b.c., a time of great unrest, when someone is being attacked by the Persians.

586 b.c. it the beginning of the fall of Jerusalem. 536 b.c., the Jews begin to return to the land. 535 b.c. is the beginning of the work on the Temple. It is stopped, and then resumed under Zechariah. 516 b.c. the general return.

It was his purpose to get the Jews cranked up. The Jews are out from under the fifth cycle of discipline.

Darius is ruling the Persian empire, and it is more or less a nation of believers. The Greeks were a bunch of demon-possessed monsters.

The Persians were greater than the Greeks. They were the scientists. They understood math and science and astronomy and medicine. They began as a noble race under Cyrus the Great.

The leader of the Persian empire is a hero of this time. Darius. There is Zerrubbabel, who is descended from David. The High Priest is Joshua.

Rider on the red horse, the wall of fire, the branch, the Lord of the whole earth, the branch and the two crowns, the king of palm Sunday, the betrayed shepherd, the One Who is Pierced, the Smitten One, the Returning One are the different ways that we will know Jesus Christ in the book of Zechariah.

Zech. 1:1 In the eighth month, in the second year of Darius, the word of the LORD came to the prophet Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, son of Iddo, saying,

God the Father still has a plan for the Jews at this time. God has been gracious in getting them back into the land as believers; but they are still not getting with it.

They are told to turn around, to go on positive signals. God is waiting on us to bless us. As long as we are on negative signals, God will not intrude upon our privacy. He will not force us into His plan.

The worst thing to have at Christmas time is a guilt complex. This is the way that you get the grace of God.

Zech. 1:3 Therefore say to them, Thus declares the LORD of hosts: Return to me, says the LORD of hosts, and I will return to you, says the LORD of hosts.

A pre-exilic illustration. Do not behave like your fathers. Look at those who went into the fifth cycle. If you want to know what happened, see Hosea.

Hosea 4:6–7 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because you have rejected knowledge, I reject you from being a priest to me. And since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children. The more they increased, the more they sinned against me; I will change their glory into shame. She had 3 children, and only one of those was actually his. God had him marry this woman in order to teach. This gal ran off with one of the princes of Israel. He still loved her, even though she ran off with one man and then another. He did not blot her out. He was unable to do that. His message depended upon his carrying the torch, and he is raising these 3 boys, one who is not his. It is a job.

Hosea was told that his wife was for sale as a slave. He went down and bought her and brought her home as his wife and restored her to her place in the home. The whole point is, you Jews are just like Gomer. God still loves them with a perfect love and they cannot shake His character. My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because you reject knowledge, I have rejected you.

There was a lack of knowledge of doctrine. God tells them to return from their evil ways and from their evil doings. They are told not to fall into the failure of the generation which fell into discipline. They were guilty of stupidity. They went into the fifth cycle of discipline. Just because they were stupid and spiritual idiots, that does not keep them out of heaven. It is all about Who and What God is. That is grace. Bob is not trying to get us to be idiots. God does not change. He loves us even though we fail. Now we have a group of people the 3^rd generation from then.

The greatest virtue in the Christian life is knowing Bible doctrine. Failure to learn doctrine is like depriving you of oxygen in the air. Whether you enjoy the details of life or not depends upon whether you know doctrine. It is just because you are minus doctrine. If you know doctrine, then you can deal with money, success, pleasure, social life, loved ones, sex, materialistic things and status symbols. Everyone has something. But you must have Bible doctrine in order to appreciate the Lord. They need a good hymn on the Christmas blues. The most important thing in your life is not having some ecstatic experience. You cannot fulfill the Christian life unless you know what you are doing. If you only nothing 00.00, then that is all that you can produce.

Zechariah is warning a generation. They have the doctrine, but they are not using it. Zechariah comes along and says, “Get with it, boys.” Some of you may not appreciate Zechariah because he teaches with the toe of his boot.

The most miserable people alive today are those who reject doctrine. When the rapture takes place, no matter where you are, you go up, whether a honky tonk, or a girlie show, or in church. This may not be something that everyone amen’s. When God speaks of your fathers, those are the failures.

God cannot stand a loser, and He designed a plan where you cannot be a loser. You can messy your life up until it is unbelievable. However, it does not depend upon us a bit. Bob would like to wrap us with the phoney self righteousness. This is how Zechariah talked to his generation, so we have to get into that spirit. He knocked them down and walked on their face. This is how you wake people up.

Zech. 1:4 Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets cried out, 'Thus says the LORD of hosts, Return from your evil ways and from your evil deeds.' But they did not hear or pay attention to me, declares the LORD.

You can mess up phase 2, but that is only the 3^rd quarter. God says, “Look, we are in the 3^rd quarter, and you can have a good 3^rd quarter.”

Your fathers dies in captivity. Eternal security and grace. You cannot lose under grace, even though you may fail under grace. Ultimate sanctification.

God keeps His Word. God’s words and statutes are what God gave to the prophets to teach. God keeps His Word.

God dealt with the people as per their doings. That is production. Their ways is their mental attitude. God reminds them that they are just a generation removed from slavery.

Zech. 1:6 But my words and my statutes, which I commanded my servants the prophets, did they not overtake your fathers? So they repented and said, As the LORD of hosts purposed to deal with us for our ways and deeds, so has he dealt with us."

God used this nation. The administration of the fifth cycle of discipline, God used Chaldea. However, Chaldea abused their power. God gives these nations power to do His will. The Zima pressure. Some people cannot stand power. They abuse it. There was a great staff sergeant, but he moved up to Lt. Something and he could not deal with the increase of authority. They are unable to use power, they abuse it instead.

Zech. 1:7 On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, which is the month of Shebat, in the second year of Darius, the word of the LORD came to the prophet Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, son of Iddo, saying,

24 February 520 b.c. Behind him there are red horses, speckled and white. The man riding the red horse is Jesus Christ.

Red is for all of the blood of the Old Testament sacrifices. The blood of Christ stands for the spiritual death of Christ. The blood of all of the animal sacrifices depict this in the Old Testament. While the blood of Christ is the 1^st advent, the 2^nd advent will bring the blood of man.

Behind the Lord Jesus Christ are 3 troops. A troop is sorrel; B troop is beige, and C troop is the grey troop. A sorrel horse is a reddish brown horse with a red mane and a red tail. They are the slaughterers. All 3 troops are troops of angels. This first troop will slaughter the invading armies at the 2^nd advent. God has always had His sorrel troops which eliminate armies. These are the troops which beseige Israel.

A bay horse is a brown body and a black tail and mane. The two colors, the red and the black, indicate that these are the angels which divide. They are the separators. Matt. 13 they are the angels who separate the wheat from the tares. The grays or the white horse troops, which is what Jesus rides in Rev. 19, and this represents victory. In union with Christ, we are always victorious. Victory is not something which we do; victory is a relationship. We do not have the victory because we gave up wild women or because we are a holy roller or because we have lived on lettuce leaves and bird seed. These are the deliverers.

Zech. 1:8 "I saw in the night, and behold, a man riding on a red horse! He was standing among the myrtle trees in the glen, and behind him were red, sorrel, and white horses.

In order to have peace in the world, God must use angelic forces, and these three organizations are operative. There needs to be a strong doctrinal reason to do this.

Zechariah calls this angel my lord, simply because the angel is his teacher here. This angel comes to him and explains stuff to him. Zechariah needs to recognize the authority of this angel. The angel of the Lord is Jesus Christ.

In reference to these angelic troops, Zechariah asks, what are these? Zechariah has a teaching angel and sometimes the teaching angel turns this over to Jehovah.

Zech. 1:9 Then I said, 'What are these, my lord?' The angel who talked with me said to me, 'I will show you what they are.'

The man among the myrtle trees says that these are the ones that the Lord has sent to patrol the earth.

Zech. 1:10 So the man who was standing among the myrtle trees answered, 'These are they whom the LORD has sent to patrol the earth.'

here they return from their mission, which is the basis to explain the vision of Zechariah. There are 3 parts: the angelic forces, which we have already studied. The 2^nd part is the vision of the 4 horns. 520 b.c. was definitely the year of the horns. The 3 grave carvers who cut the graves out of rock.

The walking to and fro is to go throughout the entire earth. That is their mission. The man among the myrtle trees and the Angel of the Lord among the myrtle trees are the same person. Jesus Christ tells us the mission was accomplished; they went throughout the earth and established stability.

The Persians were a noble and learned race and the most scientific of that time, in medicine, astronomy and math. Great engineers, fantastic concepts. A maximum number of born-again believers at this time of Cyrus the Great.

Cyrus the Great was one of the greatest men of all time, and the angels were grouped to bring these things to pass. He came to the throne and the Chaldeans were near by. 1000 miles of the southern end were the Chaldeans. His cousins the Medes were in the north. There was a lot of unrest. These 3 angelic troops were making it possible for a born-again man to have a significant place in this world. Daniel also tells us about this. Eph. 6 we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but of principalities and powers. Many rulers in human history have been demon possessed, like Hitler. He was not much of an intellect.

the Chaldean race became sort of a mad dog race, and their debauchery is clearly presented in Psalm 119.

Cavalry has been mostly involved in reconnaissance, but they can be for fighting as well.

God used Persia to give the Jews 200 years of prosperity and blessings. Spiritual and materialistic prosperity. You do not get this type of prosperity from legislation.

Gun legislation is problematic. God took a nation called Persia, with a maximum number of believers, and used them to stabilize the world for a couple hundred years, even though Persia was in decline.

Zech. 1:11 And they answered the angel of the LORD who was standing among the myrtle trees, and said, 'We have patrolled the earth, and behold, all the earth remains at rest.'

God the Son speaks to God the Father. The Jews right now are out under the fifth cycle of discipline. Jesus Christ is making intercession for the Jews in prayer.

The Jews are now out under the fifth cycle, but this time the church is taking their place.

Zech. 1:12 Then the angel of the LORD said, 'O LORD of hosts, how long will you have no mercy on Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, against which you have been angry these seventy years?'

Bob says that this is Jesus Christ speaking to the teaching angel. Maybe this could be God the Father speaking to the Angel of the Lord. They are learning doctrine and standing on doctrine (the Jews?).

Zech. 1:13 And the LORD answered gracious and comforting words to the angel who talked with me.

Zech. 1:14 So the angel who talked with me said to me, 'Cry out, Thus says the LORD of hosts: I am exceedingly zealous for Jerusalem and for Zion.

Juries often do not have enough technical knowledge, and one lawyer wins by using psychology, and a jury system is one of the weaknesses of our system.

The Persians acquired power, and they abused their power. They could not handle it.

Lieutenants are the backbone of the army and not sergeants. More power in being a 2^nd lieutenant than being a sergeant. There are some people who cannot deal with power. There are good Colonels who cannot be good Generals. There is a peak at which someone ought to have no more power.

Getting older and getting power and promotion are the two things which change people. Every vicious thing is brought out in then, and no longer is their youth to cover for them. Doctrine can change all of that. Some of the finest people you can know are older people with doctrine; and executives with doctrine.

Zech. 1:15 And I am exceedingly angry with the nations that are at ease; for while I was angry but a little, they furthered the disaster.

The restoration of Israel. There will be walls and then there will be a line stretched around Israel, which indicates surveys and building.

Zech. 1:16 Therefore, thus says the LORD, I have returned to Jerusalem with mercy; my house shall be built in it, declares the LORD of hosts, and the measuring line shall be stretched out over Jerusalem.

Zechariah is told to preach some more. Jerusalem will continue to have a place in the plan of God at the end of the fifth cycle. There will be a back to doctrine movement at the end of the Babylonian captivity.

Zech. 1:17 Cry out again, Thus says the LORD of hosts: My cities shall again overflow with prosperity, and the LORD will again comfort Zion and again choose Jerusalem.'"

vision of the horns in the next two verses. The 4 horns: Assyria, which was used in 721 b.c. to administer the fifth cycle of discipline to Samaria. This is under Sargon. A horn is a nation at the peak of its power. Dan 8:20–21 Rev. 13:1 Amos 6:13 Jer. 48:35. Chaldea is the 2^nd horn. They scattered Israel in 606 b.c., the famous year in history when Nebuchadnezzar defeated the Egyptians at the Battle of Carcamesh. 598 b.c. the Jews got out of line and Nebuchadnezzar came back, taking more hostages, which included Ezekiel. Finally had to come back in 586 b.c. and he knocked them out, destroying the Temple and beginning the fifth cycle of discipline. Hellenistic empire is the 3^rd horn. The 3^rd horn is the Selucid empire with Antiachus the Great and Antiachus Ephiphenies. The 4^th horn is Rome. Pompey went by Jerusalem, thought that it looked like a wealthy city, and decided to attack it and plunder the treasury (the 4^th Cycle of Disicpline). Titus in 70 a.d. conquered Jerusalem and sent the Jews into the fifth cycle of discipline.

Assyrian when power-mad, and God cut off their horn; then the Chaldeans and then the Hellenistic Empire and finally the Romans (cutting off their horns would be in the future).

Zech. 1:19 And I said to the angel who talked with me, "What are these?" And he said to me, "These are the horns that have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem."

these craftsmen are horn cutters. These are the ones who cut the horns. There are 4 who scatter Judah, Israel and Jerusalem. The 2^nd group of 4 are the horn-cutters.

Nahum is the destruction of Nineveh, the capitol of Assyria. This is how God protects the world from mad dogs. The 2^nd is Cyrus the Great; the 2^nd horn is Chaldea. 539 b.c. described in detail in Daniel. Beldeshazzar is tying one on and there are all of this drinking and then there is the writing on the wall.

Scipio Asiaticus is related to Scipio Africanus and he starts the ball rolling. Even Rome is afraid of Antiachus the Great. He is mad because Antiachus is hiding? There is something about Hannibal, so Antiachus and Scipio go to war. It is proved that the Selucids can be defeated; and Hannibal committed suicide.

One was going to offer up pigs, and the Jews objected, so he said, I will offer up your sons, and he killed about 10,000 young Jews or so. The Jews had an insulting term for him.

Antiachus Epiphanies had conquered all over. Then Populius Linus in 168 b.c. went to military school with Antiachus and he knew he was a coward and a bluff. Populius walks out and he hauls out his sword and draws a line, and says, cross that line and Rome will get you. Step across that line and it is war with Rome. He turned around the entire army. One Roman officer turned them back. The whole army turned around and left. Rome was a horn cutter. Pompey the Great was the primary cutter, but he had help.

The 4^th horn is Rome and Jesus Christ is the 4^th horn cutter who takes them on at the 2^nd advent.

Romulus Augustus and one historian quipped he is the end (his first name was the founder and the other was the emperor).

The Roman empire destroyed in 486 and the Holy Roman empire upended by Protestantism; and finally, the Revived Roman Empire will be defeated by Jesus Christ.

Zech. 1:21 And I said, "What are these coming to do?" He said, "These are the horns that scattered Judah, so that no one raised his head. And these have come to terrify them, to cast down the horns of the nations who lifted up their horns against the land of Judah to scatter it."

Behind this passage is the idea that Israel has a future. Divine discipline does not hinder Israel’s future. God may have to spank us for something tomorrow. We will spend eternity with Him and we will still have a resurrection. If you do not rebound, you can expect things to be more difficult than that. This does not change His plan for us and our future. Some people have problems with the enormity of their own sins. God’s attitude toward us has not changed even once.

The guy Zechariah is someone with a surveyor’s instrument. Jerusalem and Temple were destroyed by the Chaldeans. They abused the power which God gave them. In 539 b.c., they were destroyed by Cyrus the Great and the Persians. In 536 b.c., the Persian king told the Jews that they could now return to the land. Zerubbabel and the priests returned and did Zerubbabel’s Temple.

There will be 66 years of divine protection. No walls whatsoever and no arrows or spears thrown in their direction.

Then Zechariah said, “Where are you going?” And the surveyor said he was going to Jerusalem to measure for the walls of Jerusalem. The width and length would determine where the walls should be placed. Nehemiah will construct the walls.

Zech. 2:2 I asked, "Where are you going?" He answered me, "To measure Jerusalem to determine its width and length."

2 angels in v. 3; a teaching angel and a messenger; and elect angels fall into many categories and have many different jobs.

This applies to Zechariah’s generation. Every prophet has a message for his own generation. There is a dual application for many of these prophecies. The Temple was to be done first. Doctrine first. God would take care of the protection. The surveyor will provide a wall of fire. The first principle is, the battle is the Lord’s. As long as we live in this life, the battle is the Lord’s. When Bob was younger, he solved a great many problems by using his fists. But, there were no permanent results.

The normal tendency is to try to solve your own problems. Women rarely use fighting to solve their problems. Women can be very vindictive and implacable, so they find out what hurts you and they do that. Everyone has an old sin nature.

Bob knew one person who threw a party to do nothing but to hurt one person. It is much better to be a relaxed person and let God handle it. Just as the Lord was a wall of fire around Jerusalem, so He is around us.

It takes two angels to get this doctrine to Zechariah. This has to do with divine protection of the Jews.

Zech. 2:3 Then the angel who was speaking with me went out, and another angel went out to meet him.

One angel speaks to the other. The messenger says for one to go talk to Zechariah and to teach him something. Zechariah is young. Jerusalem is his responsibility. In any case, the age of a preacher is unimportant. It is not the man but the message. He is a communicator and he communicates effectively.

Knowledge of doctrine and the filling of the Spirit is the basis for teaching doctrine well. 516–445 b.c. is one time Jerusalem is without walls and the end time will be during the Millennium. Bible doctrine is the key to a wonderful and prosperous nation. It is not even the form of government which is the key. It is the doctrine, not the government type which is the key. When we are without doctrine, our government breaks down just like any other. There are all kinds of governments, but the influence of doctrine within the national entity.

Yashab means to sit down and to relax. There are several different words for to dwell, and this means to sit down and relax in blessing.

Zech. 2:4 He said to him, "Run and tell this young man: Jerusalem will be inhabited without walls because of the number of people and livestock in it."

God would be a wall of fire about Jerusalem and the glory in her midst. Jesus Christ has perfect character and it is His perfect character which protects Jerusalem. It is because of the one who makes the promise.

A promise is no stronger than the person who makes it. Friend of Bob’s father promised him a gun, and he eventually realized that he was a very unstable person. Fulfilling a promise or not depends upon character. Love depends upon the character of a person. The same is true when a person says I love you. It is important when this person has character and meaningless when they have no character. It might be a good idea to run in the opposite direction. When a person makes a promise, it is no stronger than the person; and when God makes a promise, it means something. God has never welched on an obligation. God has made billions of promises and has kept every one of them. You can think of life in terms of all the promises that you have ever made. No character; using promises as a gimmick. God is perfect and His promises are perfect. If you depend upon the promises of people, you are going to be disappointed. If you have your eyes on God, then you depend upon Him. Some of you are undoubtedly in love—either that or you have the flu—if you put love first, then you have had it. Social life, friends, loved ones. Put God first and you can enjoy it. Put anything else first, and you have had it. As a believer in Jesus Christ, we are never commanded anywhere at anytime to put our trust in man. Who ever told you to put your eyes on people? What passage of Scripture ever tells you to put your eyes on people? You must learn the principle of the essence box. All members of the Godhead have the same essence and we can rely upon them because they are perfect. When Jesus Christ says He will be a wall of fire, we can depend upon that promise. Jesus Christ must be our wall of fire. We cannot depend upon our knuckles. You cannot depend upon your strength and ingenuity. You cannot depend upon revenge tactics. You must depend upon Who and What God is. God is a gentleman. If you go on negative signals, then He will not come in and take over. He will allow us to handle things until we turn it over to Him.

516–445 b.c. is the time that Jerusalem sat safe without walls. In Babylon, there are a lot of Jews, tied up the details of life. In Jerusalem, there are Jews tied up with doctrine. In v. 4, there is promise protection. But, many stayed in Babylon, because business was good there; they liked their lives there. Things were find. However, 3 scooted over the Jerusalem because they wanted to be under the wall of fire.

About 4 years later, Darius was on the throne of Persia, and Babylon revolted against Persian, and Darius went down to Babylon and clobbered them, killing many Jews. Jews in Jerusalem were safe; those in Babylon were not. And that is what God is telling them here. The Lord says, “I am your Wall of Fire.” Babylon has walls but no doctrine; Jerusalem has doctrine, but no walls.

Jesus Christ indwells us today as believers. Jesus Christ is the One Who provides from His perfect character, promises and doctrine. He always keeps His Word because He is perfect. There is no place for us to take any credit for our talent, our human good or our human energy. This should relax us as, God’s plan does not depend upon us.

Bob knows people associated with Berachah and if this church depended upon them, Berachah would be out of business. Berachah Church does not depend upon them, or upon Bob or upon us. We are what we are by His promise. If Bob departed tomorrow, that would not change a thing, as we still would have doctrine and we would still have the Lord.

Berachah Church is a local church and nothing depends upon us. We can be thankful that God uses us; we can be thankful that God uses us and that we can do anything in the house of the Lord and that we can do it as unto the Lord. We ought to be grateful for every day that we can enjoy here on this earth. Every time that we get on our high horse and think that we have done it and we are important, the whole thing shuts down. God is our wall of fire. We can jump in or jump out.

Bob describes a gypsy wedding. That wall of fire is always there. God’s provision is always there for us. If we are outside, then we will be miserable as believers. Then you ought to ask yourself a question: which side of the wall of fire are you on?.

The whole principle of perspective and occupation with Christ. Jews were protected even when they were out.

Zech. 2:5 The declaration of the LORD: "I will be a wall of fire around it, and I will be the glory within it."

God calls the people to attention. This is a military phrase to haul these people together and to move them out of Babylon. These are those who are in Babylon and ought to be in the land. We cannot walk into any land from Babylon. Our land is Bible doctrine. This does have an application to us. In the land, Bible doctrine; out of the land, minus Bible doctrine.

Land of the north is a problem; however, to enter the Tigris Euphrates valley, one had to go north. The official beginning of the fifth cycle of discipline is the destruction of the Temple. The fifth cycle of discipline terminates by the rebuilding of the Temple. People can return at any time. In 586, the walls were torn down and the Temple destroyed. In 536, people began to return to the land, and it is all rubble. Haggai tells us how they built their homes. They went about 15 years, and, in 516 b.c., the Temple is completed.

Zech. 2:6 "Get up! Leave the land of the north"--the LORD's declaration--"for I have scattered you like the four winds of heaven"--the LORD's declaration.

Now we go to the people who are still in Babylon. To get to Babylon, you traveled north first, to miss the desert. They would not cross the desert to go to Babylon, as it is one of the worst deserts in the world.

Niphal imperative, receive deliverance. God’s plan for your life does not call for you to park yourself on a bench and wait for manna from heaven. Faith rest is not going to a park bench and sitting down and waiting for God to give you something. If they got up and left Babylon, then they would lose many details of life, and they would be starting from scratch; but they would be behind a wall of fire. Whatever you have by way of the details of life, they are meaningless without doctrine.

There are Jews who stayed behind, and they are being told here, get up and go. They are living with the daughter of Babylon.

Darius sent an army down to take Babylon, but they closed the gates and they could not get in. Gobrius was one of the outstanding generals of the Persian army. They knew he could not take the city by a frontal assault, because there would be too many casualties. The idea is, function with minimal casualties. That is our problem in Vietnam. You do not win wars by bombing bridges and trucks. You go to Guam first with SAC and then to Hanoi, and you take out Hanoi, and that ends it. What we are doing does not end wars nor is it the way we preserve our people.

John B. Hood was advanced in the ranks, and he only learned frontal assaults. He wiped out the confederacy at the same time, losing 13 confederate generals.

Gobrius cut off his nose and his two ears, and he is bleeding, and he cuts off his stars and he has a talk with the people of Babylon, and he said, “Look, what the King of Persia did to me.” So he was taken on as a general, and 5 days later, he opened up the gates and the Persians came in.

Zech. 2:7 "Go [or, receive deliverance], Zion! Escape, you who are living with Daughter Babylon."

There is going to be a reckoning and the Chaldeans are going to get some extra discipline. God tells the Jews, “If anyone touches you, they are touching the pupil of My eye.”

Any nation which has power and uses it against the Jews, that is touching the pupil of God’s eye, and God will deal with them.

Zech. 2:8 For the LORD of Hosts says this: "He has sent Me for His glory against the nations who are plundering you, for anyone who touches you touches the pupil of His eye.

believers in a national entity are rejecting Bible doctrine. Hosea 4:6 explains why the fifth cycle of discipline is about to occur. In order to administer the fifth cycle of discipline, it become necessary to give another national entity an extreme amount of power. However, the Chaldeans are unable to cope with this kind of power.

Even under the fifth cycle of discipline, God still does not intend for the Jews to be abused; and for this reason, God chose to get rid of the Chaldean nation. This leads to anti-Semitism. Zech. 2:8 begins this topic.

Rabbis changed this phrase to apple of the eye, but it is actually the pupil of they eye. The frontal bones protect it from blows. Anyone who has fought in the ring understands about the tremendous protection given to the eye by this bone. There is a protection from dust and particles in the air. The brows of the eyelash protect from dust. This is like being protected from false doctrine. The lids protect the pupil from glare. This represents the human viewpoint of life. Then there are the tear ducts, which protect form dirt and foreign matter in the eyes, like a cleansing from sin. Deut. 32:10 Psalm 17:8 Prov. 7:2 has the same phrase.

Zech. 2:8 For the LORD of Hosts says this: "He has sent Me for His glory against the nations who are plundering you, for anyone who touches you touches the pupil of His eye.

Anti-Semitism and history. This could be rendered, behold, I will punch them. It is a tremendous responsibility to have power of any kind. A weaker person can lose his temper and get feisty; but someone who is very strong can get caught up in bullying. A person without perspective in life or has no good norms and standards, he becomes a bully and he is a failure in most everything that he does. He never has the character or the ability to assume responsibility or power in anything in life. When given this power, then he always abuses that power.

We start with the human soul. It has self-consciousness, a conscience, mentality, etc. Doctrine is stored in the human spirit. This is for our personal use and personal problems. When a soul operates on all systems go. Jews were able to evaluate, even in captivity, the fall of the Chaldean empire and the rise of the Persian empire. They also learned that the Jews still in Babylon were warned to get out of Babylon.

The fact that the Lord of hosts sends them means that they know what is going on. Some will move from Babylon back to Jerusalem.

Anti-Semitism

Often born-again believers know some doctrine, or they have some conservative outlook; however, too often, such people are anti-Semitic, so the oppose the cause they should espouse.

1. The anti-Semitism clause found in Gen. 12:1–3 I will bless them that bless you and curse them who curse you.

2. Anti-Semitism principle in Zech. 2:8 Psalm 17:8 Prov. 7;2

3. Semantics. There are 3 biblical concepts of Israel.

a. Racial Israel = anyone who possesses the genes of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

b. Religious Israel is always condemned in the Word (Matt. 23). Christianity is anti-religion. They are antithetical concepts. Grace is God doing the work and man receives what God provides. Religion is man doing the work and God is supposed to bless man on the basis of what man does. The credit goes to God versus the credit goes to man. No difference between the religious people then and religious people now.

c. Regenerate Israel in Rom. 9:6–14 is the most misunderstood thing. Abram and Nahor are both born as Chaldeans. In Ur of the Chaldees, Abram believed in Jesus Christ and became a Jew. Nahor remained a Chaldean. Bob is calling them brothers. There are two brothers, Isaac and Ishmael. One was a believer and the other was not. Then there was Jacob and Esau, twin brothers. The difference in every case was believer versus unbeliever. One title for Jesus Christ is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. This is the only race founded on regeneration, which was so that the Jews would recognize their place from the Old Testament. They were a special nation who had custodianship of the Word. Until the time of the Church Age, there is the racial Jew on this earth. He was also, at times, a religious Jew; and he might be a regenerate Jews as well. When you accept Christ as Savior, ,you are technically no longer a Jew or a Gentile.

4. The history of anti-Semitism and the rise and fall of nations.

a. Chaldean empire fell because of anti-Semitism.

b. The Assyrian Empire went 2 years without the loss of a babble. In 612 b.c. this great empire suddenly disappears. Nahum and Isaiah tells us what happened. Cambridge Ancient History says that they are at a loss to explain what occurred. Nabopolassar and some others attack and destroy Nineveh.

c. The rise of Persia can be attributed to their attitude about the Jews.

d. Alexander the Great used the Jews throughout his empire. Selucis was anti-Semetic. He established a large empire, but it went down because of his attitude toward the Jews. It could have been a great Hellenistic empire. Antiachus Epiphenes, the latter word meaning magnificent. The Greeks called him Epimenes, which means madman. He walked into the Temple and said, cut out these sacrifices; we are going to sacrifice some pigs. He demanded this, and the priest said no. Then he brought in 10,000 Jewish boys to be sacrificed, which led to the Maccabean revolt. 165 b.c. the feast of lights, Hannuchuh. The fall of the Selucid empire, the chaldeans, etc. all because of anti-Semitism.

e. Julius Ceasar had a very favorable relationship with the Jews, and the Roman empire was great because of that.

f. Torquemada was one of the cruelest men of all time, and persuaded Isabel to set up one of the greatest torture chambers of all time, and it was used in the Spanish Inquisition. It was directed toward Jews. It was designed to attack the middle class; the professional class. They had made Spain to prosper. He wanted the church to get the money of the Jews. After that, Spain went down and down and became a 3^rd rate nation. They lost the Netherlands; they lost their overseas possessions. To this day, Spain never recovered.

g. England began to rise. They had a favorable attitude toward the Jew. As a result, the sun never set on the union jack in the last century. Literally millions of people found Christ via the British Empire.

h. The rise and the fall of the third reich is a good example.

i. France in WW1 and WW2 is probably related to the Dreyfus case and similar instances.

5. Encyclopedia Britannica: 14^th edition vol. 13 p. 51: it is a noteworthy fact of history that great conquerors have always treated the Jews well; on the other hand, lesser men with narrower outlooks, have sought to suppress the Jew. Such empires have fallen and the Jews survived them.

6. Under the constitution of the United States, religion was made the concern of the individual, which is the true picture of the way things should be. This is in keeping with divine institution 1 and 4. People should be free to choose for or against Christ; for or against any religion. Freedom has always been our strong point.

7. 3 great ivy-league colleges were established, Dartmouth, Harvard and Yale, were established to train believers in Jesus Christ to go out and reach the Indians for Jesus Christ. Our whole educational system in this country was to train men in Greek and Hebrew to read the Scripture. This is the foundation for our entire academic system.

Today, it is a tremendous system of decadence. What they are trying to teach at every stage is ridiculous. We are trying to cater to two groups of people. Much of high school is designed to reach the genius and the idiots. The other 98% are ignored. Geniuses are born. If you are not born a genius or an idiot, you do not belong in our educational system. It is a gross system and you can thank Columbian University for it. There are teacher unions and liberal groups designed to exploit this. We would be better to have 98% dropouts rather than to continue this educational system. Professors at the college level are the dullest people in the world. We no longer have interesting teachers at the college level. They are only concerned if they publish. Great teachers are disappearing. There are so many people who are not oriented to life. They make up tests which border on idiocy, asking things never discussed in class or in the reading assignments. The best college education today is at West Point. They have not succumbed to this monstrosity of an education system. It is better in Houston than in most places, and some of the high schools are outstanding like BelAir, Lee and Lamar.

You need a sense of humor and a tremendous amount of discernment to get anything out of college. Most people major in psychology to solve their own problems. Bob knew an intern in Medical school. She said, “I am here to solve my own problems, and most of the people in my class are there for the same reason.” It is not our educational system which keeps us going, but the good attitude of liberals toward Jews and evangelism. However, there has been talk lately about our president not keeping up with the Jews today.

The first time Bob taught anti-Semitism and about 10 people left. They apparently liked the teaching that Bob did on the crucifixion. Some of you get huffy when you hear certain things and that is fine; you can just huff on out of here.

Zech. 2:9 I will move against them with My power [behold, I will shake My fist against them], and they will become plunder for their own servants. Then you will know that the LORD of Hosts has sent Me.

The future of Israel vv. 10–13. Shouting here is from way down deep, like when the Dallas cowboys begin winning again. This will be a time of great happiness for all believers.

Dwelling here refers to dwelling permanently. 1000 years of perfect environment. No more war; lion and the lamb will lie down side-by-side.

Zech. 2:10 "Daughter Zion, shout for joy and be glad, for I am coming to dwell among you"--the LORD's declaration.

Many nations refers to those who are favorable to the Jews. There is prayer and praise and adoration. Another is communication of doctrine.

This chapter begins with problems for the Jews; and God will straighten it all out in the future.

Zech. 2:11 "Many nations will join themselves to the LORD on that day and become My people. I will dwell among you, and you will know that the LORD of Hosts has sent Me to you.

Zech. 2:12 The LORD will take possession of Judah as His portion in the Holy Land, and He will once again choose Jerusalem.

Zech. 2:13 Let all people be silent before the LORD, for He is coming from His holy dwelling."

Political leadership in Zerubbabel, descended from David, the political ruler. There was the ministry of the prophets, which included Zechariah and Haggai. The actual ritualistic of Temple leadership was invested in the Levitical priesthood, not functioning for years.

In 536 b.c. they began to construct the Temple, but it was delayed on several occasions and even discontinued, like Westheimer for the last year. In 620, Zechariah was challenged to get started back on the Temple. He had 3 ministries: to emphasize doctrine, to encourage the people to work on the Temple, and to get the Levitical priesthood to function again.

The Jews will again go into the fifth cycle of discipline at 70 a.d. The church has become a kingdom of priests. In 516, the Temple will be begun again.

Doctrine of the Levitical priesthood

this was the official and authorized priesthood

1. 3 essentials given in Num. 16:5; they had to be chosen by God. They were set apart as holy. Spiritually qualified. They were permitted to draw near to God, permitted to function in the Tabernacle and later in the Temple.

2. Reuben was supposed to be the family patriarch, the family priest and the double-portion. He lost both of these. Reuben was unstable as water. Levi pulled one of the dirtiest tricks in the Bible. He was put under a special divine curse. He would never inherit the land was the curse. He rebounded. The sons of Levi would be the spiritual leaders and the priests. This was the spiritual basis for the whole tribe of Levi.

3. Moses would have been the priest, but he got under the sin unto death. He did not have his sons circumcised. He had one uncircumcised son. They pull up in a motel 1 day out of Egypt and about to get out of Egypt, and God put him under the sin unto death. This was disobedience to the Word of God and the will of God. He ordered his wife to circumcise the boy, and she apparently had trouble with this. Moses insisted, in circumcising the young son, she calls him a bloody groom.

4. God slapped leprosy on her for this. Miriam was the sister jealous of the 2^nd wife, and this woman probably made him very happy. So, Moses went alone to the land. Moses pulled another stunt too. Military, administrative, speaking, engineering genius. Moses turned down the throne of Egypt by the death of Thutmose II, and Hapshetsit held the throne for Moses. Heb. 12 Moses set up a great administrative system in Egypt. Acts 7, the greatest public speaker of his day. God brought in Aaron, a mousy brother. This was a great problem for Mosees to be stuck with a lame speaker. Moses would never have any more children because his two half-Arab half-Jew sons. They went back and became Arab chiefs, which ended Moses line. Aaron had 4 sons, so the Levitical Priesthood would begin with Aaron. Ex. 28:1 Num.

5. The priesthood was suppose to descend through Aaron’s 4 sons. 2 revolted against Moses. Num. 18:1 the two younger sons became the basis for the priesthood. Eleazar and Ithamar. Num. 10:6. The oldest son would be the High Priest.

6. However, any progeny of them would be disqualified for any defect. Lev. 21:17–23.

7. The general function of the priesthood: first function was to taech doctrine. Lev. 10:11 Lev. 9 was them to offer sacrifices. Num. 18:3 to maintain the Tabernacle and later the Temple. Ex. 30:7–8 Lev. to conduct ceremonial things. Num. 13–14 6:22 to inspect people for leprosy. Deut. 17:8 to judge controversies, since all were based on the Mosaic Law, and since that was the law of the land, they were the logical judges. God did not permit juries. Juries generally know nothing abour the law and if the criminal looks nice, they give him a break. Those who sit on the jury are usually the least qualified at all. One guy who does not believe in capital punishment goes against the grain.

8. Levites were to assist in these offerings. 1000's of sacrifices required some help. 2Chron. 29:34 35:14

9. The priesthood had to be reorganized in David’s day. David established 24 courses to the priesthood. 24 orders to the priesthood from then on.

10. Some priests received the office of prophet. Jeremiah and Ezekiel and Zechariah.

11. The enitre nation of Israel was originally designated as a kingdom of priests, but their sinfulness prevented this Ex. 19:4–6 from happening. The Jews could not endure the presence of the Lord at Sinai. Everyone born a Jew should have been made a priest. In the Church Age, every believer in a priest. We are all priests.

He showed Zechariah something. Joshua was a cousin, Haggai 1:1, 12, 14 and in this courtroom scene, Joshua is the defendant. Like anyone else, Joshua has a sin nature. Satan was there accusing him.

we will need some background. Joshua was born spiritually dead like everyone. We are all born spiritually dead. There is the nethanine, which hits the format of the soul. The format of the soul has mentality, and the sin nature hits this and the person is born spiritually dead. Rom. 5:12, which means we are all born spiritually dead. He had sins and human good. No place in the plan of God from human good or for sins. Jesus Christ went to the cross, and He handled Joshua’s sins and everyone else’s. He also reject human good. Joshua produced sins and human good. He is clothed with filthy garments. The Hebrew says that his clothes are covered with excrement. Joshua was not presentable. So, Satan had quite a card file on Joshua. The kosmokrators are a G2 force which Satan put on Joshua. Satan is bringing the whole thing into court. Will you let that stink walk into that beautiful place?

We do not deserve to do anything in the Christian life. Satan has brought about this trial. There is also the Angel of the Lord here. Satan is standing at his right hand to Satan him. Satan tries to eliminate believers by accusing them before the throne of God. Job 1:6–11 Rev. 12:8–10 Jesus Christ is there as our defense attorney.

Lucifer is the actual name, the glamorous, translucent one. Satan is a functional title, that he accuses believers. Joshua has been committing personal sins. God can love Joshua because he believed in Jesus Christ. That is the first reason why he can function. He will be given a new set of garments which he can wear.

We still function here under the grace of God. Discipline makes it possible for us to continue to serve God.

Zech. 3:1 Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the Angel of the LORD, with Satan standing at his right side to accuse him.

Joshua is a burning stick pulled out of the fire. He was a man about to be thrown into the fire, but he has been snatched out of the fire. He is under no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. God is free to love Joshua, and now he is a brand pulled out of the fire. From the divine viewpoint, he is under grace; he is under the holiness bypass.

Christ did the most of Joshua when Joshua was God’s enemy. Rom. 8:32. If God does the most for His enemy Joshua, then what can He do for His friend Joshua? The enemy is the recipient of the holiness of God. 1John 2:1–2 is the second concept here. My little children [or, my childish children], I am writing you these things so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate [a defense attorney] with the Father--Jesus Christ the righteous One. He Himself is the propitiation for our sins [this is why He can be our attorney; he continues to be our propitiation], and not only for ours, but also for those of the whole world. These are adults acting like children. If you are married to a child, he sulks the most and he throws the biggest tantrums. That is a childish child. Here it is used in a spiritual sense.

Zech. 3:2 The LORD said to Satan: "The LORD rebuke you, Satan! May the LORD who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Isn't this man a burning stick snatched from the fire?"

There are Jews in the land today, but that does not mean that it is all over. In 520 b.c., Zechariah began to work on them to get onto the Temple again. The Angelic Conflict reached one of its historical peaks. The High Priest is Joshua.

Joshua is under the holiness bypass. He has passed the point of propitiation. He does have a right to be the High Priest.

We are in the Lord’s service wherever we are. Why can He still use us? We all have a sin nature. As believers, we can do nothing about it. The plan of God did everything about this situation. God is free to love us without being inconsistent with His Own holiness. Joshua sinned, he failed; his failures and sins did not keep him from functioning in the plan of God. God is not impressed about how you feel about your sins. Those who are going to do better depend upon their own strength. The strength of man is not enough. We simply name our sins.

Joshua is a recipient of the grace of God. He recovers fellowship through rebound. Grace is God doing the work. We are all in full-time Christian service. This purpose goes on for as long as we live.

This is why Joshua is qualified. God is not pleased with human good efforts. It is God’s provision and His grace. If Joshua is defended in heaven and if he functions on earth, then the principle of grace is established.

The system begins with the principle of rebound. Bob knows that if he told a congregation what it means, “Our righteousness are as filthy rags.” He’s never given a literal translation of this. Joshua’s garments are covered with excrement. 2Chron. 21 and Job 1–2 tell us that Satan is up there telling on us. Bible schools are filled with legalism today. They first take the makeup off the girls. Then they make them have the same color hair: the missionary bun. They think that this is spirituality. All of these things cause people to bypass the filling of the Spirit.

Satan had a card file on Joshua which was fantastic. Satan as a demon-system called kosmocrater, and he builds up a card file on everyone and then goes to God and complains. Satan cannot stand a good believer. Satan and all of his angels are still in heaven as well as on earth.

The angel here is Jesus Christ. Joshua was on trial in heaven and Jesus Christ represented him (1John 5:2). He was found not guilty. The case was thrown out of court on legal grounds. On earth, Joshua is going to be prepared for the function of the High Priest. On earth, Joshua is going to be punished by hearing 3 sermons, from Jesus Christ, from Zechariah and from God the Father. As goes the trial of Joshua, so goes the nation Israel. How can He be acquitted? Joshua will stand on the basis of the merit of Jesus Christ.

The word stand here indicates the principle of rebound. Rebound makes it possible for Joshua to serve the Lord. This simply means that he is back in the bottom circle. Joshua stood before the angel, and he has on these filthy clothes.

Zech. 3:3 Now Joshua was dressed with filthy clothes as he stood before the Angel.

The restored status has to do with the removal of his filthy clothes. The clothes covere dight excrement have been removed from him. This is the forgiveness of sins because of rebound. Could this be simply salvation? God removed guilt from him.

Let’s assume that Joshua is even happy about his sin. Still, he is forgiven by God. No one has ever been restored to fellowship by feeling sorry for having sinned. The more sincere we are, the worse off we are. Human good was rejected before man existed. Before the human good of Adam and Eve, still God had, in eternity past, rejected that human good. There were no thoughts about God. They just turned respectable. Their fig leaves were rejected.

Zech. 3:4 So He spoke to those standing before Him, "Take off his filthy clothes!" Then He said to him, "See, I have removed your guilt from you, and I will clothe you with splendid robes."

Zechariah is all excited about this, and he interrupts, and says, “Don’t forget his hat.” It is a turban with a gold crown and a little gold plaque. Poor old Zechariah thinks that he is going to forget the hat. He is quite concerned about it. The Angel of the Lord stood by, indicating that they are in fellowship.

Zech. 3:5 Then I said, "Let them put a clean turban on his head." So a clean turban was placed on his head, and they clothed him in garments while the Angel of the LORD was standing nearby.

We have what appears to be a summary of the 3 messages. We have the synopsis of these 3 messages, rather than the entirety of them.

the key in v. 7 is that Joshua will function in phase 2 as the High Priest. The key word is walk. That is a word used for the believer functioning in phase 2.

Walking has the idea of progress and the concept of consistency or faithfulness. We have a myriad of phrases with the word walk which refer to functioning in the Christian way of life.

Walking comes first, which indicates fellowship and forward movement. We need to know doctrine and be in fellowship. Joshua is going to judge and/or rule; and he will function as the High Priest. His life will be a part of the Angelic Conflict.

Zech. 3:7 "This is what the LORD of Hosts says: If you walk in My ways and keep My instructions, you will both rule My house and take care of My courts; I will also grant you access among these who are standing here.

Zechariah is going to interrupt again and say, “Don’t forget occupation with Christ.” For whatever reason, Bob says this is Zechariah speaking again. The colleagues here fellow priests.

Priests are men of type; their office and function all teach the Lord Jesus Christ. The same thing is true of functions of life. It is a misconception that the ministry is much more difficult. When Bob told his dad he was going to be a minister, that really tore him up; but Bob carried into the ministry some of his father’s opinions about ministers. Bob has met all kinds of people who used to be preachers. Some ministers stick it out for their pension.

There has to be something more than the details of life. Whatever you are doing, it is full-time Christian service. If it is a point of doctrine, you have it made, and if it is not a point of doctrine, then you have had it.

Jesus Christ is the Branch. This is Him restoring the Jews from the 70 year Babylonian captivity.

Zech. 3:8 "Listen, Joshua the high priest, you and your colleagues sitting before you; indeed, these men are a sign [men of type] that I am about to bring My servant, the Branch.

Don’t get your eyes on people or on yourself. Keep your eyes on the Lord. Jesus Christ is sovereignty, love, eternal life, omniscience, veracity, etc. The Father and the Spirit have the same characteristics.

Whatever God has given us, it must be a point of doctrine. We must know doctrine. Christ must be first in every relationship. Jesus Christ will, through His own character, through His own essence, remove the fifth cycle of discipline. He will remove it in one day, which is the day the Temple was finished.

Every time the Jews come back from the fifth cycle of discipline, it is always a point of doctrine. When they returned in 516, it ended up being a golden age until 323 b.c. The same will be true in the Millennium.

Zech. 3:9 Notice the stone I have set before Joshua; on that one stone are seven eyes. I will engrave an inscription on it"--the declaration of the LORD of Hosts--"and I will take away the guilt of this land in a single day.

This is a sign of great economic prosperity. As a result of doctrine in the nation, there will also be economic prosperity. It will be true again in the Millennium. Jesus Christ brought this about in 516 b.c. and it will be brought about in the Millennium.

Zech. 3:10 On that day, each of you will invite his neighbor to sit under his vine and fig tree." This is the declaration of the LORD of Hosts.

Some of us will associate certain details with happiness. They are often tied to money and loved ones.

586–536 b.c., things only got worse, since this was the fifth cycle. However, in 516 b.c., the fifth cycle of discipline was terminated.

In socialism, mediocrity is the order of the day for leadership. When the people have doctrine, superior leadership is the order of the day. We have been brainwashed to think that if we drop a nuclear weapon on the enemy, that will make Russia mad. When you punch someone and punch them hard, that will shut them up. Bob, when he got a light blow, would start fighting more, letting down his defenses to some degree. He knew that he could take a punch and was able to get into more.

Bible doctrine give one the moral courage to make tough moral decisions. One of the greatest men in our history was Benedict Arnold. There was mediocrity above him; Gauge was put over him. He got burned out of the picture by all of this.

One of the reasons why the War Between the States went slowly at first, the Union general, McClellan could not make a decision. Grant began to make all decisions for him.

A strong leadership emerged in Israel. One was from the tribe of Judah, descended from David, and he should be the leader. Zerubbabel. What will it take to convert Zerubbabel and Joshua into great leaders? Bible doctrine + grace. God raises up a type of leadership to fill the gap: the prophets. Zechariah will crank up the leadership; but someone has to teach Zechariah. Where will he get doctrine from? He gets it from the Word.

Germans have a language for war. Eisenhower is an affable person, who is personable and a great bridge player. However, he was unable to hold a candle to Von Brock or to other German generals.

Zechariah had a problem. He thought in Hebrew. Hebrew and English do not have the categorical precision of Koine Greek. Zechariah was a victim, to some extent, of the language. He could not get information which he needed for his time, then and there.

John 21 or Heb. 6 cannot be developed completely in the English. Just as you find yourself dependent upon men who study the original languages, Zechariah the prophet found himself in the same boat. He did not have the information necessary for his nation. Therefore, he had a teacher. He got a super-creature, a teacher of doctrine, an angel. Zechariah is the prophet. He will communicate to the people, but he needs information pertinent to the situation that they are in in 520 b.c. Because is going to give these people almost 200 years of prosperity. These 4 visions which Zechariah has is fantastic and unusual and shows God’s faithfulness to the Jews, and how God will turn cursing into blessing. When the Jews have this doctrine in the frontal lobe, the whole history of the world will break wide open. It is going to require a lot of study on the part of Zechariah. He is mentally fatigued. This is the worst kind of fatigue of all. The mind of the individual is developed through categories. There is this fantastic development of the mind.

In our day, how can you improve your mind today when you think you have to take a break to watch your favorite tv program? There are some people who will just never develop their minds.

Bible doctrine can take people who have never thought in their lives and have never attempted to, and it will teach them to think. It will give them the capacity to love God and to enjoy life. As a man, you cannot enjoy a woman unless she is a point of doctrine. Before the canon of Scripture was developed, God brought Scripture right to the prophets.

Zechariah is exhausted for several reasons; one is being taught. This is the sleeping preacher passage. If the body is fatigued, the mind often will not function. The body demands rest so that the mind can function. The muscles of the body require rest in order to be developed.

Bob got all of his sleep during dead week, as he studied throughout the course. Studying all night for an exam is about the stupidest thing in the world. Your body needs rest for your mind to function.

Zech. 4:1 And the angel who was speaking with me returned and awakened me, as a man is awakened out of his sleep.

Zechariah is still tired and he is asked, what do you see? He asked what are these things he is looking at. Bob is a believer in candle stick, as it makes women look beautiful. Bob was discouraged at first, when he found there was a lampstand here rather than a candlestick.

Up here overhead is an oil reservoir, and there is an olive tree near the top, and oil came from trees and from fish. They used oil for light for 1000's of years. The Jews have always had this, in the Tabernacle and the Temple. There is the tree on each side which is different.

The Lampstand

Ex. 25 37 The lampstand was manufactured in an unusual way. It was beaten out of softened gold. They never separated the gold.

1. The central branch represents the Lord Jesus Christ and the 6 branches joined to it represent born-again believers. God has provided for people to be complete in the Church Age. 7 represents Christ and 7 is the number of completion. We are in union with Christ and we are complete in Him. That is the principle of relationship.

2. The central branch has a light. Jesus Christ is the light of the world. Christ is the revealed member of the Godhead. John 1:18 Christ is available to everyone in the world and salvation is available to all. Each of the 6 branches has a light, which speaks of the believers as witnessing. We have the privilege of taking gospel information and revealing it to other believers. Every believer has a purpose in phase 2. The humanity of Jesus Christ was filled with the Spirit and led by the Spirit and performed miracles in the power of the Spirit; the Spirit took part in the resurrection. The oil represents the Holy Spirit working in Jesus.

3. The oil and the 6 branches represents the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the life of the ble.

4. 7 concepts of oil:

a. Oil lubricates (all women should know this); so the oil ought to be changed now and again. Oil abolishes friction. ἀγαπ love is what is able to do that. Minus the mental attitude sins means that you can interact with other believers.

b. Luke 10:34 oil soothes; and the Holy Spirit has a ministry to deal with disasters and problems.

c. Oil lights. This is the teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit. When we are filled with the Holy Spirit, we can learn doctrine. John 14:26 1Cor. 2:9–14

d. Oil warms; the Holy Spirit can take the sorriest person in the world and give that warming ministry.

e. Oil invigorates. Greek athletes did not wear any clothes, so they wore oil, and it has invigorating powers. Every Greek athlete had a trainer. The Holy Spirit invigorates and this is for the production of divine good.

f. Oil adorns, as for hair preparation. The adoring is the production of the Holy Spirit; the fruit of the Spirit.

g. Oil is used in polishing. The Holy Spirit removes the rough edges of the sin nature by His ministry.

5. The wick of the lamp. The believer is the wick. What made the lamp burn is that the wick sets up a partial vacuum, which draws the oil out of the bowl, and it comes up the wick. Like putting a napkin in coffee and it sucks it up. A vacuum is created and there is a flame. The oil is the Holy Spirit and the wick must be saturated with oil in order to burn. The burnt wick must be cut off. The divine good which we produced yesterday, we can forget it. We move on. “25 years ago, I did this great thing for God.” Divine good is stored and God will reward it. But every day is a new day.

6. The snuff box in Ex. 35:28 and the burnt wick is trimmed and stored in the box. This is a picture of the storing of all the divine good which you produced. We can forget about it, and God will not and He will reward it.

This is the first thing which Zechariah saw and did not understand; the next thing he sees and does not understand are the two olive trees.

Zech. 4:2 And he said to me, What do you see? And I said, I see, and behold, a lampstand, all of it gold, and a bowl on its top, and its seven lamps on it, and seven spouts each to the seven lamps on its top;

Zech. 4:1 And the angel who was speaking with me returned and awakened me, as a man is awakened out of his sleep.

We have a lampstand and the lamps and 7 pipes to the 7 lamps. On the sides, there are 2 olive trees, each representing a segment of leadership. Joshua, the High Priest and Zerubbabel.

Zerubbabel and Joshua will be moved toward a better ministry via God the Holy Spirit.

Zech. 4:3 and two olive trees are beside it, one on the right of the bowl, and one on its left.

He knows the doctrine of the lampstand, but what he does not understand is the stuff which Bob gave last time. It must be communicated in relationship to its own time. You have to know what you don’t know. Some learn a little doctrine and think that they know everything.

Zech. 4:4 And I answered and spoke to the angel who was talking with me, saying, What are these, my lord?

The worst people of all know a little bit. They know a little Greek or they have read a book and now they think that they are an expert.

Before you can learn more doctrine, then you must be honest with yourself. This is a great prophet because, even though he knows a great deal, he does not know what he is seeing. The more you know, the more you realize that you do not know. The more you realize that you do not know, the more you know.

Zech. 4:5 And the angel who was speaking with me answered and said to me, Do you not know what these are? And I said, No, my lord.

This is the first lesson. Zerubbabel is, for all intents and purposes, a king; but he is not officially crowned a king. In this case, he is the political leader.

In 586 b.c., Jews went out under discipline. Many returned in 536 b.c. many returned to the land. 535 b.c. they started and then stopped building the temple. In 516, the Temple will be completed. The mountain of opposition in front of Zerubbabel.

Only a few had the Holy Spirit. Leaders only. No place in the plan of God for human ability or human good. There is no place for human power and no place for human ability.

Zech. 4:6 Then he answered and spoke to me, saying, This is the Word of Jehovah to Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, says Jehovah of Hosts.

All of the agencies which Satan has put into operation, and Zerubbabel is getting the Temple built. The mountain in front of Zerubbabel will be razed.

In order to answer the question of v. 7 (Who are you, O great mountain?), we need to go to Ezra 4. Cyrus is in his first year of having an entire empire. 536 b.c. Cyrus was stirred up in his spirit to send Zerubbabel and Joshua to the land. Ezra 2:68–69 for an offering: And some of the heads of the fathers, when they came to the house of Jehovah at Jerusalem, offered freely for the house of God to set it up in its place. They gave according to their ability to the treasury of the ministry, sixty one thousand drachmas of gold, and five thousand minas of silver, and one hundred garments for the priests.

They return in 536, then get started in 535, but only go as far as the foundation. Ezra 3:10–13: And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of Jehovah, they made stand the priests in their robes with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals to praise Jehovah, according to the ordinance of David king of Israel. And they sang, praising and giving thanks to Jehovah, because He is good, for His mercy endures forever toward Israel. And all the people shouted with a great shout when they praised Jehovah because the foundation of the house of Jehovah was laid. But many of the priests and Levites, and heads of the fathers, the aged men who had seen the first house, when the foundation of this house was laid before their eyes, wept with a loud voice. And many shouted aloud for joy, So that the people could not tell the noise of the shout of joy from the noise of weeping of the people. For the people shouted with a loud shout, and the noise was heard afar off.

Then there is always the sour grapes crowd. Many of the priests and Levites and chief fathers, who were ancient men. Some of them remember Solomon’s Temple and its size. They go into operation sour grapes. These are those who saw the original Temple and they are quite distressed. They wept because of the size. They wept with loud weeping. It was not as big as Solomon’s Temple.

If you are the kind who sits around and criticizes, then you are not oriented to the plan of God. This is like those who sit in the stands and complain about how the quarterback is not throwing like you expect him to. Things are going to be better than ever before. It is not the size of the Temple which is important, but doctrine in the soul which counts. Those who are for the temple drown out those who are against it.

The Samaritans are in the land and they are partially Jewish, and they resent the return of the Jews. The sour grapes crowd is drowned out and rightly so.

Now we have the opposition: Ezra 4:1–2 And when the enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the sons of the exile built the temple to Jehovah the God of Israel, then they came to Zerubbabel and to the head of the fathers and said to them, Let us build with you, for we seek your God, as you. And we have not sacrificed to Him since the days of Esarhaddon king of Assyria, who brought us up here. These are apostates and unbelievers; and they sacrifice to Ishtar and to other idols. They want to participate in this and these are Gentiles who have been in the land long before the fifth cycle of discipline.

Zerubbabel has doctrine in his human spirit. Ezra 4:3–4 But Zerubbabel, and Jeshua, and the rest of the heads of the fathers of Israel said to them, It is not for you and for us to build a house to our God. But we ourselves will together build to Jehovah the God of Israel, as King Cyrus the king of Persia has commanded us. Then the people of the land weakened the hands of the people of Judah and terrified them in building. There was opposition to their building.

However, they then hire lawyers to shut this down. Ezra 4:5–7 And they hired counselors against them to break their purpose all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia. And in the reign of Ahasuerus, in the beginning of his reign, they wrote an accusation against the people of Judah and Jerusalem. And in the days of Artaxerxes, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of their companions wrote to Artaxerxes the king of Persia. And the letter was written in Aramaic, and translated from Aramaic.

Ezra 4:21–24 Now make a decree to cause these men to cease, and that this city not be rebuilt until the decree shall be given from me. And beware of being at fault, to act on this. Why should damage grow to the hurt of the kings? Then as soon as the copy of the letter of Artaxerxes the king was read before Rehum, and Shimshai the scribe, and their associates, they hurried to Jerusalem to the Jews, and made them stop working by force and power. Then the work of the house of God in Jerusalem stopped. So it ceased until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia. There was a 14 year stopage and during this time, nothing was done.

Now to Haggai: Haggai 1:1–5 In the second year of Darius the king, in the sixth month, in the first day of the month, the Word of Jehovah came by Haggai the prophet to Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah; and to Joshua, the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, saying: So speaks Jehovah of Hosts, saying, This people says, The time has not come, the time for the house of Jehovah to be built. And the Word of Jehovah was by Haggai the prophet, saying, Is it time for you yourselves to live in your covered houses, and this house to lie waste? And now, so says Jehovah of Hosts: Set your heart on your ways! They say it is not God’s will for this to be built. The opposition are all comfortable in their homes and they do not want the Gentiles throwing rocks at them. 535–520, the people did nothing to the Temple, so God clobbered them and hit them where it hurts.

Haggai 1:6–10 You have sown much, and bring in little; you eat, but are not satisfied; you drink, but not to be filled; you dress, but there is no warmth to one. Yea, one hiring out himself hires out himself for a bag of holes. So says Jehovah of Hosts: Set your heart on your ways. Go up the mountain and bring wood and build this house. And I will be pleased with it, and I will be glorified, says Jehovah. You looked for much, and, behold, little! And when you brought it home, then I blew on it. Why, declares Jehovah of Hosts? Because of My house that is ruined, and you, each man, run to his own house. On account of this, the heavens above you have held back the dew, and the earth is held back from her produce. Agricultural difficulties is described here.

The soul of Zerubbabel is on all systems go. Doctrine is piped into the soul. The same thing is true of Joshua. Hag 1:11–15 And I called for a drought in the land, and on the mountains, and on the grain, and on the new wine, and on the oil, and on that which the ground produces, and on man, and on livestock, and on all the labor of your hands. Then Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, and Joshua, the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and all the remnant of the people, obeyed the voice of Jehovah their God, and the words of Haggai the prophet, as Jehovah their God had sent him. And the people feared before Jehovah. And Haggai, the messenger of Jehovah, spoke the message of Jehovah to the people, saying, I am with you, says Jehovah. And Jehovah stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua, the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnant of the people. And they came and worked on the house of Jehovah of Hosts, their God, in the twenty-fourth day of the sixth month, in the second year of Darius the king.

In Haggai 2, we find out what they have been doing all of this time. Ask the priest about the Law, which means they have failed.

Summary: The mountain in front of Zerubbabel will last for 14 years. When these Samaritans could not be allowed to join, then they began to attack the workers. They finally slowed this down with some legal work. It is Bible doctrine which is level that mountain. The mountain stands in front of Zerubbabel for 14 years.

This is 520 and he will complete the Temple in 4 years. The last stone placed in the building, just as the last stone of the foundation. The restoration of their Christology. Every believer faces the kinds of things they have. We have mountains in our lives. How do you face them? Bible doctrine motivated them. The land began to have a prosperity which lasted for 200 years. There is a 14 years depression and drought. They had built nice homes, but they were in a depression. So God sent them Haggai and Zechariah.

The building that they worked on would last until 70 a.d., but this work would last forever because it is divine good.

Zech. 4:7 Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain. And he shall bring forth the capstone with shouts: Grace! Grace to it!

you will know. Zerubbabel will start it and Zerubbabel will complete it. This generation will succeed. These are total failures who will become total successes. 14 years of failure and 4 years of success. How you handle your failures determines your spiritual success. The failures of the Exodus generation lasted all of their lives.

1 year of a failure and they let their failure keep them down. We have all failed. Pick yourself up and move on. Confess your sins and forget it.

God knew that this generation would fail over a period of 14 years. You do not win rights flat on your face. You get up and you keep on fighting. This is the principle of rebound. As long as you are alive, the worst thing Bob hears are those who whine, “I did this terrible thing and God is going to discipline me.” Bob wants to bounce their heads against the wall. He hates crybabies. Bob would go through the field and kick the sheep around, and then go merrily on his way into the sunset.

Bob knows preachers who are crybabies. It’s a bunch of stuff. It is maudlin stupidity. The people cried all night. For that reason, this generation would not go into the Temple. One of their excuses was, the giants will kill our children. And they all died in the desert and their children went into the land and killed the giants.

Their facing the giants was their final exam. They lost it. Moses was a bartender for one day. He turned the golden calf into a dust and made all of these men drink a solution with gold dust in it. Bob would like to see the Battle of Waterloo, Jesus throwing the money changers out of the Temple, and Moses making this generation eat dust.

Haggai picked them out of the dust and kicked them in the pants to get them going. It took 2 prophets to do it. Bob often runs into situations where people have failed. People may have made a big mistake years ago, and they have never heard of rebound and keep moving. When you fail, you confess it and move on.

there are two principles. Day of small things represents the day of grace; and the mountain represents things which are in the way. These are two factors which we face in our lives. All of us, at some time, face a mountain of difficulty. The grace of God removes the great mountain in our way.

Everything today is human dynamics and human power, but God never uses these. The most effective use of doctrine. The prophet had the job of communicating doctrine to the category known as leaders. The 2^nd Temple will be used. Satan did every thing that he could to keep it from being constructed. Come hell or high water, that building is going up. From the book of Haggai, we know they build beautiful homes. There were men of great ability in the field of engineering. All of that talent and ability, but nothing is done about the building of the Temple. You can only get back to the grace of God through the Word of God. It is strictly the essence of God. It is the character of God. The great mountain of opposition. Just as a lot of people despised the day of small things, as they saw the smaller Temple foundation. A small beginning can become great because of the grace of God. It is not human talent or human ability.

Berachah Church is one of the better known independent church in the US. At U of H there is a list of the various denominations which one could belong to, and under the B’s was Berachah. They are recognized on the U of H campus. There are true liberals out there. They do not agree with some things, but the recognize that they are experts in their field, which is the principle of scholarship. So, Berachah is not on the IBM form.

Worst thing in the world for Bob is a wedding rehearsal. That is real hard work.

Bob has no idea how the tape ministry got started. Someone put down a tape recorder next to the pulpit at the old airplane hanger. Not even a smidgeon of credit belongs to Ron or to Bob. Regardless, it is strictly the grace of God.

When things change, when things move, that is God’s plan. The mind of Christ is because this is the thinking of Jesus Christ. When someone comes in and he thinks he knows something, you cannot teach them. People who think they know it all. It takes awhile. Zechariah was a great man. All of the way through the prophecy, every time he turned around, there would be something that he did not know what it was, so God told him what it was all about. God can use someone with talent or a stick and a stone.

You don’t have to walk around giving God all the credit. His glory represents His plan; His design, all of which is perfect. The only imperfect part of His plan is us. We all have a human soul. Self-consciousness can become pride and mentality can become rationalism. We can somehow say, “We did it.” But we cannot take credit for anything that we have done.” When we think that we have done something and that God cannot get along without us, we are shot down.

The Temple went up because Jesus Christ stood over that Temple. The erection of the Temple depended completely upon Who and What Jesus Christ is. A person makes a promise. All promises and statements are made by people. Statements are no better than those made by the person. We have a Bible because of what God has done. Satan has done everything to eliminate it; all of the powers of hell have worked against it. We have a Bible because of the grace of God. You cannot simply lay your hands on any given book. They go out of print. You have to have a human instrument. Zechariah is a grace man. He has no illusions about himself.

The promise is based upon a person and a promise is no greater than the person who makes it.

Zechariah here Ezra 3 lays the foundation stone. He will also finish it, putting in the gable stone. You must know Bible doctrine. Somewhere in this world, God designed an opposite number for us. However, we may be singing the blues because some person phased us out.

Anything in this life, if it is a point of doctrine, it can make you happy. If it is not, it will make you miserable. Any detail in life has to be a point of doctrine, then it is solid. If you lose something which is a point of doctrine, you still have doctrine. When we lose someone to death, we sorrow, but not as those who have no hope.

“You will know that the Lord of Hosts was sent to hold back the plans of Satan. God will complete any work which He begins. The people laid the foundation, and they did so in 535 b.c., and God made sure that it was completed. God began it and He will finish it. What held of Jesus was not the opposition but the spiritual life of the believer. Zerubbabel was God’s instrument. He’ll put up the gable stone, which is the last stone of the building. Joshua represents the failure of the people, as his garments were covered with excrement. God the Holy Spirit used words that we are surprised to find. That is quite a picture. Take this great magnificent high priest, and he is covered with excrement encrusted robes. People avoid him because he stinks. Bob paints the picture of his trousers and sport coat covered in excrement; and came down to chat or set up blowers. Bob would be unable to communicate with us under those conditions. No one can communicate Bible doctrine out of fellowship. The power of God is gone. He could be public speaker #1, with well-organized information, but nothing would be communicated if the communicator is out of fellowship. Joshua communicates doctrine, as does Haggai and Zerubbabel.

Zech. 4:9 The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it. And you shall know that Jehovah of Hosts has sent me to you.

The mountain is removed. Who refers to the Jews, weeping and wailing, because of the foundation being too small. Some people look on the surface. They do not understand the grace of God or the character of God. They can only see the small foundation. They thought of Solomon’s great Temple. That is superficial. Doctrine gives you a set of new eyes, so that you can see beyond every superficial thing and every small thing. Behind every difficulty is the character of God. God’s plan is greater than any small beginning. Everything in your life must be a point of doctrine. The fact that we have a Bible on our lap means that God is perfect, faithful and a genius. It is all because of Who and What God is. There is no situation in this life or set of difficulties which are too difficult for you. We all have a different crack up point. Humanly speaking, people can reach that point. There is no way that we can meet those problems, no way where we can meet life. God has provided for the great and small pressures. He has provided for everything.

God, because of His character, we have what He is going to provide at the end of the construction. When the Temple is finished, when Zerubbabel puts in the gable stone because the Temple is a point of doctrine. Others will be miserable because the Temple is too small; it is not a point of doctrine, but a building. The Temple is not marble and wood and decoration and all of the pieces of furniture, but the Temple is more than that. Bob tries to teach in such a way that Berachah is a point of doctrine. The people who do not get it, are concerned about others in the church, or the lack of ritual or the lame architecture. Someone does them wrong. People who are blessed see Berachah Church as a point of doctrine. If you are a born-again believer, you are going to be miserable wherever you go.

The gable stone = the final stone placed in a building. This means that the building is complete. Anything which is a point of doctrine produces inner happiness. Jesus Christ is also present at the dedication ceremony. As the stone goes into place, the people will shout grace, grace, grace. Zerubbabel is lowering the stone, and the people who shout will be shouting one word, grace, which depends upon Who and What God is.

Who are [is?] those seven? Rev. 4:5 5:6 7 refers to a perfect number, which describes a perfect person. Jesus Christ has been there on the job with them. He is present at the time of the dedication ceremony.

Control of the kingdom of Persia and control of the other kingdoms of involved. These 7 are the eyes of the Lord. What you know about a person, you know from their eyes. We have a lot of heads of great Romans, of Nero, Caligula, etc. You cannot see the color of the eye. You can see bone structure and decorations, but you cannot look at the sculptures, you cannot tell who they are. The pupil and eyelids can be seen, but there is no animation there. Bob sees people whose eyes are glazed over. There are all different colors and expressions, and he knows about us by looking into our eyes. The person of the Lord is perfect.

There are the legalists who despise the day of small things. The grace people are there. They would rejoice. There were world conditions which could have restricted the construction of this Temple. All around them was designed to hinder this Temple. When we are caught up in a myriad of events, all of these events cannot stop the plan of God for one second. As we are oriented to the plan of God, we are a point of doctrine. All history and all hell and all Satanic genius cannot stop the plan of God. However, we can mess up our own lives. Satan can try and he will continue to try, but God has put a wall of fire around believers, including the clucks. For us, it is positional truth. Positional truth depends upon Who and What God is. Throughout the whole earth, events have been put in place by the Lord Jesus.

Zech. 4:10 For who has despised the day of small things? For they shall rejoice and shall see the plummet stone [gable stone = the final stone placed in a building] in the hand of Zerubbabel. These seven are the eyes of Jehovah [= the perfect character of Jesus Christ]; they run to and fro through all the earth.

Restoration of the leadership in v. 11. The lampstand is the testimony of Israel. There is a tree with branches, and there is the lampstand. The branches represent Zerubbabel and Joshua. Out of them will come golden liquid, which is Bible doctrine. Zerubbabel’s decisions will be based upon Bible doctrine. It is Bible doctrine all the way through. This is when the nation goes into its golden age. No nation had a greater history and spiritual blessing than Israel during this time, although there were great problems throughout the rest of the world. There is Bible doctrine with the leadership.

Zech. 4:11 And I answered and said to him, What are these two olive trees on the right of the lampstand, and on its left?

Zech. 4:12 And I answered a second time and said to him, What are the two clusters of olive trees beside the two golden pipes, emptying the golden oil from themselves?

Zech. 4:13 And he spoke to me, saying, Do you not know what these are? And I said, No, my lord.

Two people have been anointed. Joshua the High Priest. They stood in the gap. They are leaders. They represent the Lord and the whole earth. They are qualified to represent because they have learned Bible doctrine, they are in fellowship, so they are ready to go.

Zech. 4:14 And he said, These are the two sons of fresh oil who stand by the Lord of the whole earth.

The very things which people see to make them happy are the very things which elude them. Like the person who seeks to get money and money does not make him happy. What they seek for happiness are the very things which elude them. Social life, success, etc. If that very same thing becomes a point of doctrine, the loss does not give you unhappiness and its gain does not increase happiness. Loss or gain everyone has a goal, everyone has an idea. Satan did not invent money or dolls, but they need to be a point of doctrine; they are details of life, and they are not what provides happiness. Security, happiness and pleasure elude us.

Also the importance of regeneration for divine service. The importance of the Holy Spirit’s for the ministry and the importance of knowing doctrine. The 5^th lesson is the knowledge of doctrine and the impact of the individual. The Temple becomes a point of doctrine and the basis of communicating the Word of God.

The 8^th and 3^rd commandments are being violated. The flying scroll represents the Word of God.

Zech. 5:1 And I again lifted up my eyes and looked, and, behold, a flying scroll!

The dimensions have significance. The coach points out the problems and errors of the team from the previous game. The dimensions here are the dimensions of the holy place or the Tabernacle. This teaches us about the holy place and the relationship between the Jews and this holy place. They had to trim the lampstand everyday and change out the bread. This is a picture of the believer in the Church Age. The priest in the holy place is like the believer in the Church Age. Cursing is turned to blessing for the Jew who believes in Jesus Christ. Jews and Gentiles are one in Christ in the Church Age.

The articles of furniture are related to life in phase 2. Lampstand is witnessing; the bread is the provision of Jesus Christ. Prayer life related to...? The porch of Solomon's Temple had one purpose. On this porch, they would stand up and read the Word of God. It would be read and exegeted. Read and taught to the people. The importance of the Word of God to Jews. It is the Word of God which will give the Jews

the Jews learned their lesson in captivity of rejecting Bible doctrine. Malachi describes the apostasy which occurs. The Jews are minus doctrine at one time with commercialism. They will realize that that there is a tie to blessing and Bible doctrine.

The flying scroll has dimensions the size of the holy place, the Temple and Solomon's porch.

Zech. 5:2 And he said to me, What do you see? And I answered, I see a flying scroll; its length is twenty cubits, and its width ten cubits.

Then we have the curse. The Jews have just had 70 years of the curse. The word it refers to different things at different times. Here it refers to the scroll, partially rolled up. In those days, they wrote on both side of the paper. 5 commandments on one side and 5 on the other. When unrolling, the 8^th commandment is seen first. Then there is the 3^rd commandment, which does not mean to use profanity. It means taking the name of God in a solemn oath, to seal a contract, and then cheating on the contract at a later date. This is using the name of God in order to cheat on a contract. "If you swear by the name of God, I know you will keep your word." These two commandments are related to dishonest business dealings. Some wanted to stay in Babylon because they were under comfortable circumstances and making a buttload of money.

God used an idolatrous people to take them into captivity, which cured the Jews of idolatry. They hated idolatry, and some formed the great gangster groups who robbed temples, as heathen temples were filled with money and gold. They were not afraid of curses and robbed these heathen temples.

When Paul's companions were put up for trial. Jews were known at that time for robbing temples; but one who stood up to break up the mob said, "These Jews are not robbers of temples." They no longer worshiped heathen idols; but they robbed them at first.

The Jews began to worship the might dollar; wealth and gain. They no longer worshiped idols; they knew they were suckers for doing that. They realized in Babylon what money could do. They were slaves one day, and they would do some business transactions and buy their own freedom, and some became quite rich using good business practices. So many did not want to go back to the land.

This was not true of all Jews. Those who came back to the land had doctrine; those who came back from the land did not have doctrine in their souls. Whenever the Jews went minus doctrine, they go in other directions, like religion and commercial activity. These things exist in a situation where there is no doctrine, and it results in the fifth cycle of discipline.

When you have + doctrine, you have money and wealth, and this is because they are in the blessing bracket.

Swearing here means to seven [something]; to take an oath befoer 7 witnesses or in the presence of God (perfect 7). To take an oath and then to break the contract means they will be cut off. The false business practice.

Zech. 5:3 And he said to me, This is the curse that goes forth over the face of the whole earth. For from now on everyone who steals shall be cut off according to it; and everyone who swears from now on shall be cut off according to it.

It here refers to the curse of the fifth cycle of discipline. Here, breaking a business contract for gain. People built beautiful homes and they had all of the luxuries of life and these things will be taken from them. These successful Jews were minus doctrine but they got caught up in dishonest business practices. They had lots of material things; status symbols. The house was used to represent the details of life. In 518 b.c., their money, success and social life will be wiped out. Darius Hyspastese will send down his general who will clobber them. The details of life and the things which they are using will be destroyed.

They used to be able to go into the Temple and take a vow in the name of the Lord; but they stopped this. You had to pay money in gold to take this vow. This is the golden oath. Paul himself went into the Temple and took this vow. And he fell for the same thing himself. He paid his money and took a vow in the name of the Lord; and this is why he was disciplined for 4 years.

Commercialism and religion got together at this time. There were these systems where the pharisees protected the gangs out in the Negeb as they got some of the take. Alexandria was one of the largest Jewish population centers in the world. Going across the desert, you could be robbed 2 or 3 times. Apparently, the robbers coughed up some of the money to religion?

The timber and stones which were the construction material for their homes, and this is like saying that the roof would fall in on them.

Zech. 5:4 And I will bring it forth, says Jehovah of Hosts. And it shall go into the house of the thief, and into the house of the one who swears falsely by My name. And it shall remain within his house and shall finish it, and its timber, and its stones.

Usually, when women are complimented, it is because they are grace women. Otherwise, the woman is often used in a rather disparaging way. Here we have the teaching angel; Zechariah's teacher was an angel.

Zech. 5:5 Then the angel who was speaking with me went out, and said to me, Now lift up your eyes and see what this is that goes forth.

Zechariah knows what a woman is and what an ephah is. You can be smart and still be dumb. This is why he needed help. However, Zechariah here does not know the meaning for the woman and for the ephah here. This is why we have the gift of pastor-teacher.

"Some of you have been married many years and you still do not understand your wife or women."

An ephah is a dry measure. It is a 7.5 gallon bucket. This is the largest grain measure in existence, but also, the Jews had a grain monopoly in Babylon. This was a measure the Jews had but the Babylonians did not. 7.5 gallons was the smallest measure of the Jews; however, they whittled things down to a 5 gallon ephah.

We first must know that the Jews cornered the grain market. They had all sorts of things. The ephah represents the tremendous commercial success of the Jews, but this violated commandments 8 and 3. The ephah was only part of the deal; they falsified balances, etc.

They enjoyed commercial success, but based upon dishonesty. The ephah became the symbol of Jewish success throughout the land.

Zech. 5:6 And I said, What is it? And he said, This is the ephah that goes forth. And he said, This is their form in all the earth.

The woman is inside the ephah. A talent of lead is 125 pounds of lead. It is a heavy lid. The lid is on the ephah and the woman is inside. She is the harlot of Babylon. 2Thess. 2:7–12. She is religion as it will exist in the Tribulation.

Now Satan gets into the picture. The first woman is religious Babylon and the second is economic Babylon. The stork is an unclean bird. This is the unclean ecumenical system of the Tribulation.

Zech. 5:7 And, behold, a lead cover was lifted up, and a woman was sitting in the middle of the ephah.

Zech. 5:8 And he said, This is wickedness. And he threw her into the midst of the ephah; and he threw the lead stone over its opening.

Zech. 5:9 And I lifted up my eyes and looked. And, behold, two women came out. And the wind was in their wings; for they had wings like the wings of the stork. And they lifted up the ephah between the earth and the heavens.

The prophet now has a question. This is a normal way to approach the Word of God, not understanding it.

Zech. 5:10 And I said to the angel who was speaking with me, Where are they going with the ephah?

Shinar is the land of Babylon. When the lid is prepared, it will fulfill the function.

Zech. 5:11 And he said to me, To build a house for it in the land of Shinar; and it shall be made ready and placed there on its own place.

There are 3 men who responded to grace and there are others who will remain behind for the cursing.

These prophets did not teach esoteric messages that no one would understand until the 20^th century. They spoke to the people of their own day. Under the law of double fulfillment, they had a message for their contemporaries.

Under the fifth cycle of discipline, the Jews are out of the land in slavery (for the most part). In 536 b.c., the Persians allowed the Jews to return to the land. The Chaldeans are as different from the Babylonians as the English are from the Scots. The English people are the Johnny-come-lately's to the British Isles. They are Germanic groups who crossed over into England. The Scotch are entirely different. They are a celtic people. In this way, they are like the Chaldeans. They are a rugged warlike people who are divided into clans. The Chaldeans conquered the Babylonians.

The Chaldean empire in 586 came to Jerusalem and destroyed it. They had a batch of terrible rulers, and some lasted a few months and a few for 10 years. Nabonitus resigned as king, and he took his retirement in Arabia. It is very much like Tucson today.

586–538 b.c. the Chaldean empire is on the decline. The Persians take over and they sponsor the Jews returning to the land in 536 b.c. In 535, those who later became the Samaritans, were able to call a halt. They went into the Persian courts. Psudosperdes, and he is anti-God and anti-Jew, and he agrees to have the Temple-building stopped.

Zechariah was brought into the picture. In 516, the Temple was completed, which ended the 70 years of the Babylonian captivity. When the Jews came out of the Egyptian bondage, the construction of the Tabernacle marked the end of their bondage. Even though some Jews were back in the land in 536, the end of the fifth cycle of discipline was signed in 516, after the Temple had been built. Our passage is 518 b.c.

In Jerusalem in 518, the Jews are under Bible doctrine with great prosperity and great spiritual blessing, so all is going well in Jerusalem. The born-again Jews are having the previews of the golden age.

Those in Babylon are out of fellowship and out of God’s will. Those in Jerusalem are in God's will.

The judgment of the 4 chariots. This was a warning to these Jews. Leaven this area and come to this other area. You get doctrine here and you are minus doctrine here.

If you make the details of life your happiness, then you lose your happiness when you lose them. If God is the source of your happiness, then you happy even if you lose the details of life.

Zechariah sent his first measure to these Jews in Babylon, and most of them turned him down. In 518 they lost their money and the details of life. They had misery on the inside and they folded up. Zechariah had a message for the people of his day. However, he also has a message for Jews who will face a similar situation in the Tribulation.

Zech. 6:1 And again my eyes lifted up and looked, and, behold, four chariots were coming from between two mountains; and the mountains were mountains of bronze.

First, there is the vision of the 4 chariots. They were the tanks of the ancient world. The Jews were very familiar with the chariots; it was a famous weapon. Egyptians took their chariots to the Battle of Carcamish. There was the concept of a super-weapon. Everyone knew about them.

There are 4 chariots in this passage and the difference between them will be the horses. They will represent 4 categories of angels used by God to protect the Jews. God uses elect angels to protect individuals and nations. God put a wall of fire around Jerusalem, protecting them. Angels and maneuvering behind the scenes at this time.

The 4 chariots speak of the universality of God's control of history. These angels all move. There will be angelic attacks as a part of the Angelic Conflict, at various parts of the earth, from 520–516 and 516–323. There is a constant attack from behind this periphery.

These are called mountains of brass. God, to protect Israel, must judge those who are antagonistic to the Jews.

Abraham became a Hebrew by crossing over the Euphrates. He was originally a Chaldean. The wall of fire is around Jerusalem. There are these military forces moving out to judge those who seek to destroy Israel.

Red speaks of war and bloodshed, and during the time that the Jews were in Jerusalem, there was war all around them; but they were protected by a wall of fire.

Zech. 6:2 With the first chariot were red horses, and with the second chariot black horses,

The white horse represents victory and triumph. The last horse is a spotted horse, and that refers to a disease.

In periphery B, where the Jews ought not to be; 3 of them understand the bay horse, which represents salvation. The 3 musketeers and they just hauled out of there. This is the near fulfillment, referring to the time during which Zechariah lived.

The far-fulfillment deals with 2 chapters of Rev. 6–7. Rev. 6:4 for war; 6:5–6 for economic disaster in the Tribulation. The white horses, referring to the great empire building and conquests of Rev. 6:2. Grizzled horse for disease and epidemic (Rev. 6:8) and then evangelism of Rev. 7:9–15.

When you assume that you know nothing about a subject, then you can really learn about that subject. Many people assume they know something. When Bob was an officer in the cavalry, and he was detailed to teach them horsemanship, and one old boy figured he knew how to ride.

Zech. 6:3 and with the third chariot white horses, and with the fourth dappled and strong colored horses.

The communicating angel is in v. 4. Zechariah sees all of this stuff and then he asks, what are these things?

Zech. 6:4 And I answered and said to the angel who was talking with me, What are these, my lord?

So the angel gives him an answer. Spirits generally refers to angels Psalm 68:17 104:4 Heb. 1:7 Guardian angels in Heb. 1:14 unclean spirits Matt. 10:1 Acts 5:16 Rev.

Some believers in time are preservatives of the earth; these are angels who fulfill promises to believers. He cannot welsh on His obligation. Many of God's promises are fulfilled by unseen creatures. The creation of man is an extension of the Angelic Conflict. We are a visible part of the Angelic Conflict. If necessary, God will maneuver a million angels to keep His Word.

Now, someone says, "I love you" and you think it is great. It all depends upon the character of the person making the statement.

They go forth from standing before. They are on parade from Jesus Christ. They are in operation red, involved in some battle for judgment.

There are probably 4 armies here and they all have jobs. People are sometimes best evangelized when they are under maximum pressure and have no resources of their own. In 518 b.c., there will be a detachment from each of these groups. There will be elect angels who will now act upon history.

This is the 5^th year of Darius Histaspes. Cyrus conquered everything but Egypt. Babylonians revolted in the 5^th year of his reign.

Zech. 6:5 And the angel answered and said to me, These are the four spirits [winds?] of Heaven who go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth.

Jesus Christ detaches, which is operation black horse. Going to the north always referred to Babylon. You always had to go north to get to Babylon. You went north first. No one crosses the desert.

To enjoy the details of life, you must have doctrine flowing into the soul. Then you can enjoy life to the maximum. The Jews who stayed behind, money was a big thing to them. That is okay, as long as God is a bigger thing. God simply took it away, which is operation black horse.

The white horse. In 514 the Persians hit Babylon and destroyed it. It was never a major city again.

Two ways to be evangelized; listen and be evangelized or listen, reject, and then have God knock you for a loop. The grizzled go toward the south country.

The remnant of Jews revolted against Gedeliah, killed him, and went to Egypt, kidnaping Jeremiah. Grizzled horse is their judgment.

Zech. 6:6 The black horses in it go into the north country, and the white go after them; and the dappled ones go toward the south country.

One more thing happened in 518, which was a year of maximum evangelism. This was the great year for that. Certain periods of history are marvelous. The bay horse does not go north nor does it go south. World wide evangelism. God knew that out in the Mongolian circle, there would be positive volition all over.

Zech. 6:7 And the strong colored ones went forth and sought to go, to walk to and fro in the earth. And he said, Go! Walk to and fro in the earth. So they walked to and fro in the earth.

These forces have expressed God’s wrath or judgment. There is a concentration of Jews right in the midst of God’s wrath. We have a personal wall of fire and we have divine operating assets for the life which God has set up for us. If we miss the boat, it is because we are straight up the middle stupid. If you reject Bible doctrine, then you are stupid. Bible doctrine is designed for communication and application. It is designed for blessing for everything in life.

Zech. 6:8 And he cried out to me, and spoke to me, saying, Behold, these who go toward the north country have caused My Spirit to rest in the north country.

Establishing of a priesthood again. The principle of dual fulfillment again. Word of the Lord indicates the principle of divine revelation. Two sources for truth: the prophet and the priest. They were taught by dreams, visions and direct conversation with God. These dreams, visions or direct conversations were interpreted by angels. Moses received information directly from the Lord as angels taught him. Then the information then resided with the prophet or with the priest.

The population was taught the gospel and the doctrinal principles of the gospel. Sometimes there were principles taught which were not in the Mosaic Law. The Mosaic Law became the 4^th way of truth. The prophet taught the special things pertinent to the hour.

The priests had various ways of communicating information. The coronation of Joshua the High Priest. For 6+ chapters, we have seen things peculiar to Zechariah’s ministry. However, what he teaches was taught by other prophets in the past.

In 518 b.c. the coronation of Joshua + the questions. Later the Temple is completed in 516, which means that the discipline is over. The primary function of the Levitical priesthood was the teaching of Bible doctrine.

Where did he get his crown? The original was destroyed? Zechariah has another purpose. Jerusalem is without walls. It does not need walls because it has Jesus Christ. In Babylon, there are many thousands of Jews. Because of their emphasis on the details of life, those in Babylon are staying there. There is a judgment which is going to hit Babylon.

The details of life are money, success, pleasure, social life, health, sex and status symbols. These believers who are still in Babylon place their emphasis on the details of life. They hear the warning of Zechariah and they accept this as the Word of God. The 3 men who are presented to us have doctrine in the human spirit.

The believer stores doctrine in the human spirit. The real you is made up of self-consciousness, mentality, emotion, volition, norms and standards, and the old sin nature, the distorter or the soul.

Those who went to Jerusalem had more of an appreciation for Bible doctrine than for the details of life. Bible doctrine went to the sin nature, frustrating it.

Phase 1 plan of God is salvation; and phase 1 makes it possible for us to enter into the plan of God. When Christ was hanging on the cross, He took on the penalty for our sins and, at the same time, He rejected human good. In phase 2, the issue is what we are like on the inside. It is not an issue of taboos, it is what we think. We are not living a good Christian life because we follow some system of morality or ethics. If you have envy, jealousy, fear, worry, anxiety, anger, etc., you are a carnal Christian, even if you appear to be very respectable on the outside.

These 3 men are believers who know doctrine and their production of divine good is based upon Bible doctrine in their souls. They provided the funds for the double-crown, which is described here in this context. A crown on top of a crown.

The captivity are the Jews who remained behind. There are the 3 who are about to be seized. There are still a lot of Jews and born-again Jews are in periphery B (Bablon). The first one is Heldai. The Hebrew is from the verb chalad, which means to be smooth, to glide; and, as a noun, a transient life. This also means a temporary or a fleeting happiness. It has an idiomatic use for emphasis upon the details of life. You can have the details of life, as long as they are a point of doctrine. Believers who are mature often have the details of life. You can have success without being fatheaded.

The communist plot is to involve us in all of these wars all over the world, outside of our country. Raphah there is this gaping wound; the wound is pulled together and sewed up, with the result that it is healed.

Hen means grace. This is his other name, which represents the whole principle of reconciliation.

Zech. 6:10 Take from Heldai, from Tobijah, and from Jedaiah, from the exiles who have come from Babylon; and in that day you go and enter into the house of Josiah, the son of Zephaniah.

There are two crowns which are made here. Jesus Christ is in view. Before, the High Priest just had one crown. These two crowns represent everything which happens in the book of Revelation from chapters 6 to 19. They did not have the book of revelation, but they had the two crowns. The two crowns speak of Jesus Christ.

Zech. 6:11 And take silver and gold, and make crowns, and set on the head of Joshua, the son of Jehozadak, the high priest.

This takes us to Jesus Christ, the Branch. As the Branch, we see that Israel is the tree. Jesus Christ is the founder of the Jewish race. He is also the Branch. The fifth cycle of discipline made the tree into a stump, but Jesus Christ grows out of the stump.

On Palm Sunday, the problem was, they were ready to celebrate Jesus as the King, but they did not understand Him as our Savior. They wanted Jesus to be their King immediately, which is what Satan offered. The idea was, bypass the cross. But the cross must come before the crown. Jesus must go through the cross.

The Branch will branch out is what this says. This is the repetition of a noun and its verbal cognate, which is quite strong.

The rebuilding of the Temple correctly. Equality can never be accomplished by man and man’s plans. Putting the Jews back in the land cannot be accomplished by man. No one can do this but Jesus Christ.

What man has failed to accomplish in all of history, Jesus Christ will accomplish in the 2^nd advent. Qal perfect means that this is accomplished immediately. Ezek. 40–48 Micah and some other passage on the Millennial Temple.

Zech. 6:12 And speak to him, saying, So says Jehovah of Hosts, saying, Behold! The Man whose name is THE BRANCH! And He shall spring up out of His place, and He shall build the temple of Jehovah.

He functions as a priest. There is no problems between king and priest, as Jesus Christ will be both. This must be the meaning of the double crown.

There will be a false Temple during the Tribulation. At the end of the Exodus, they had a Tabernacle. At the end of each fifth cycle of discipline, there will be a Temple or a Tabernacle, which indicates the end of the fifth cycle.

Zech. 6:13 Even He shall build the temple of Jehovah; and He shall bear the majesty, and shall sit and rule on His throne. And He shall be a priest on His throne; and the counsel of peace shall be between the two of them.

There will also be a memorial to 3 men who thought more of Bible doctrine than of the details of life.

If God is first, then the details of life will be points of doctrine. When you lose these things, you will still have God; you will still have doctrine. These crowns represent the money and silver and gold of those who left Babylon. Doctrine was more important to them than the details of life.

These 2 crowns would be there for 200 years. They will admire the beauty first, and then they will learn the doctrine.

1Peter has been hard on the ladies, so Bob is going to deal with the men. There is a RW for each man or a WW. For every man, there is the RW, but he can get the RW at the wrong time. If he gets her when he has doctrine, at the right time, then she is a point of doctrine. God is first and that woman will give him great happiness.

Men sometimes come in and talk to Bob about their wives coming to Bible class. Their wives can bring them a lot of happiness if she has doctrine. If you do not put doctrine first, then you have had it.

Bob thought that walking was easy, until he walked on crutches and had to learn how to walk again, twice. God needs to be first with every detail of life. Everything in your life needs to be a point of doctrine.

You might have to sleep on the floor and use orange crates for furniture, but if they are a point of doctrine, then you can enjoy them.

Zech. 6:14 And the crowns shall be for a memorial in the temple of Jehovah, to Helem, and to Tobijah, and to Jedaiah, and to Hen, the son of Zephaniah.

Zech. 6:15 And the distant ones shall come and build in the temple of Jehovah. And you shall know that Jehovah of Hosts has sent me to you. And this shall be, if listening you will listen to the voice of Jehovah your God.

Nebuchadnezzar came first in 606 b.c. after the Battle of Carcamish. There was a decisive defeat of the Egyptians. The Egyptians had lions on cages, and they released them from a cage; they ran to the Chaldeans, they held up spears, and the lions turned tail and went after the Egyptians.

Nebuchadnezzar saw the wonderful city of Jerusalem and asked about it. He wanted in to the city; there was a brief brawl and they let him in, and from thereon in, the Jews were under the fifth cycle of discipline to the Chaldeans.

He came back a second time for hostages and then a 3^rd time to destroy the city. Jeremiah was pensioned, as Nebuchadnezzar had respect for Jeremiah. 586 b.c., and the young people had a good idea about Bible doctrine, as Jeremiah taught them.

God judged the Chaldean empire and used Cyrus, a believer, to do it. In 25 years, Cyrus conquered the Entire empire. In 536, Jews were permitted to go back to the land. Work discontinued on the Temple in 535 b.c.; 520 it began again (530?). 516 the Temple was completed and the fifth cycle of discipline was over. The Jews learned the importance of Bible doctrine over those 70 years. This was followed by a golden age of about 200 years for the Jews. Economic and spiritual prosperity. Then they went through the cycles of discipline again. Pompey begins the cycles of discipline against the Jews, and Titus will execute the fifth cycle of discipline against them.

Jesus Christ will reign in the Millennium; there is no religion, all of the demons will be incarcerated. Filling of the Spirit will characterize the life of all believers. There will be no war, there will be a population explosion, there will be revolt against perfect environment.

For thousands of years, we have had various people trying to make people equal. However, you cannot take a moron and make him equal to a genius; so you must bring the genius down to the moron level. A federal organization starts doing 100 things for you this year and an additional 100 next year, etc.

They went without food, drank a little water, and discontinued all normal activity. As they lowered their heads, they would beat their breasts. Then they realize that they could go back to the Levitical offerings. No need to do all of this fasting stuff when they could be in the land and offer up sacrifices to God.

Zech. 7:1 In the fourth year of King Darius [518 b.c.], the word of the LORD came to Zechariah on the fourth day of the ninth month, which is Chislev.

There is the House of the Lord and there is Bethel, and this is Bethel. These men were sent down to pray or to worship and they were to make some inquiries.

The prophets got their message directly from the Lord. The prophets had a message for the people of their day. The prophet had a message which would be recorded in the Word of God and it would also stand for all time.

The priests communicated doctrine from the Law. They taught the Mosaic Law. It was written. They taught and explained the offerings and the holy days and the furniture. They took Scripture and taught Scripture.

Eating is a normal function in life. There is nothing wrong with eating. There will be no invitations for anyone to come forward and give up eating.

The priests taught the written canon. They had everything on up to Jeremiah and Lamentations.

The sin you have committed is not the worst sin in the world. Just because people say it is horrible does not make it horrible. You forget the sins which are behind. There is no place for crybabies.

Berachah Church has a philosophy. Your privacy is respected. No cards to sign; no coming forward. And there is no crying from the pulpit.

Adam saw the first sinner, his wife, and then he had to make a choice; Christ in the garden or the woman outside of the garden. Their sins came directly from their volition, as they had no sin nature at that time. The first act of the sin nature was one of human good.

People naturally think if we are adjusted to other people then we are okay with God. That is the universal brotherhood of man. Let’s all get along; let’s all be equal. However, we are different, even in our sin natures. When Jesus Christ came in the garden, the fig leafs were not enough. Jesus Christ broke the silence, and the question got the conversation going.

Bob got rid of the religious types right a way; but he did keep the rough tough sinners and those with Bible doctrine. Religion is ruining us today. Regem-melech when to Jerusalem because Bible doctrine was being taught there. It will take two chapters to cover this, and the end result is, there will be no more fasting. It will be the end of fasting among Jews of that time. No substitute for Bible doctrine.

Zech. 7:2 Now the people of Bethel had sent Sharezer, Regem-melech, and their men to plead for the LORD's favor

Zech. 7:3 by asking the priests who were at the house of the LORD of Hosts as well as the prophets, "Should we mourn and fast in the fifth month as we have done these many years?"

was this done is a bonafide spiritual function, and the answer will be no. some of you are real suckers for religion. These are magazines telling why we are such great successes. That is not Christianity but it is sheer public relations. Bob recalls Willie the Weeper.

22 days on the march from Jerusalem to Babylon, and they got some doctrine during this time. Grace people of a relaxed mental attitude toward others and they mind their own business. They are interested in God’s business. Regen-melech is tired of all the phoney stuff. Was all this fasting and mourning all really done for God? There was ritual without reality. This fasting was weeping and wailing over the past glories of Jerusalem. They were crybaby losers. There is no place in the plan of God for a loser. We can be temporary failures but we are not losers. You cannot sit around and worry about past failures. There is no place in the plan of God for crybabies or for losers. Phase III is designed for perpetual victory.

The worst thing you can give a person is sympathy. We have too many crybabies. These people are looking for a crutch. Will you pat me on the hand and tell me that things will be all right. Worst thing that Bob saw; football players crying when they lost a game. You pick yourself up and move on.

Zech. 7:5 "Ask all the people of the land and the priests: When you fasted and lamented in the fifth and in the seventh months for these 70 years, did you really fast for Me?

Faith is thinking; non-meritorious thinking. Because something is nonmeritorious does not make it inferior in any way. Most of what we know or learn is based upon faith.

God is perfect and therefore, His plan is perfect. But what He provides must be received in a non-meritorious manner. All members of the human race can think. Faith, rationalism and empiricism are the 3 ways of thinking; but even rationalism and empiricism require some measure of faith in order to build upon.

Jesus Christ is the only Savior and the only way to appropriate salvation is by faith. God the Holy Spirit reveals it and God the Father planned it.

It is not the eating, but what you eat that is important. Bob got a long letter about how cabbage is quite good. “You cold tell that he was quite crazy about cabbage.”

All people, good and bad, have the ability to eat. God prepares salvation and it is assimilated in a non-meritorious way, which is faith. Eating and drinking represents the same idea; all people can eat and drink. The entire concept of fasting is contrary to Scripture. During the course of the fifth cycle they have entered into 4 fasts; but the true concept of the holy days is eating, not fasting. Some portion of the sacrifice was eaten. When you have a system set up where you do not eat, that system is contrary to spirituality and salvation. It is pseudo-spirituality.

There is merit in dieting or eating correctly; but there is no spiritual benefit in dieting. Eating is a picture of faith; fasting is a picture of merit.

They were also involved in a breast-beating operation. The verb to fast means to go without food, to beat one’s breast. It is the overt activity of weeping and wailing and beating one’s breast. This had been going on for years and when Regem-melech come down from Bethel, they are given this information from the negative and the positive point of view.

Zech. 7:6 When you eat and drink, don't you eat and drink simply for yourselves?

In the holy days, eating and drinking represented faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. When they simply forgot what this was about, they just went in for ritual; but they lost track of what the ritual was all about. We have the same thing in the Eucharist.

They had lost sight of the doctrine, and they had ritual without doctrine. Ritual without reality. One of the reasons for the fifth cycle, their rituals were continued, but without any reality. There were these 4 fasts were developed, but they are meaningless. They are emotional activities. Expressions of sincerity; an emotional content. The principle of ritual without reality.

These Jews should have been learning doctrine; they should have been listening to the Word of God. Aren’t these the words which Jehovah proclaimed through the earlier prophets? These are the prophets who ministered before the fifth cycle of discipline. Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Hosea. Then, later there is Daniel and Ezekiel. Then around 516 b.c., There was Zechariah and Hosea after this point in time. Their warning was over and over again. When a nation has doctrine, they are protected; when they lack it, they are not.

Gomer is illustrative as apostasy among the people (Gomer, being Hosea’s adulterous wife).

Hosea 4:1–6: Hear the word of the LORD, people of Israel, for the LORD has a case against the inhabitants of the land: There is no truth, no faithful love, and no knowledge of God in the land! Cursing, lying, murder, stealing, and rape are rampant; one act of bloodshed follows another [there is violence in the land; no respect for private property; and this destroys the economy]. For this reason the land mourns, and everyone who lives in it languishes [weakness of character, according to Bob; it takes character to move a nation forward], along with the wild animals and the birds of the sky; even the fish of the sea disappear [even the animal kingdom is affected by reversionism]. But let no one dispute [judge or malign]; let no one argue, for My case is against you priests [one source of doctrine, who taught Bible doctrine from the Bible, as it existed at that time]. You will stumble by day; the prophet [the other source of doctrine, whose words were recorded as the Word of God, who had things directed directly for the people and their situation at that time] will also stumble with you by night. And I will destroy your mother. My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I will reject you from serving as My priest. Since you have forgotten the law of your God, I will also forget your sons.

In v. 6, they rejected doctrine, but they continued with the rituals. Ritual is something which you do on the outside. It is always an overt activity. However, there must be some connection to what is in the soul. In v. 7, they were warned. They were warned under perfect conditions for learning. There was a population explosion and Jerusalem was prosperous, and the conditions were perfect for learning. There was no excuse; conditions were perfect for the assimilation of truth.

There was fasting, and it was meaningless. In the ritual of eating and drinking, there must be doctrine in the mind, making the eating and drinking meaningful. These fasts were not really legitimate systems; they would just go without food.

There are thousands of believers telling God just how sorry they are for their failures; or they promise God about what they are going to do; or they are involved in some area of asceticism. There is fasting today, contemplating eternity; all which are not Biblical. Walking down the aisle, weeping and wailing, coming forward; etc. are just various meaningless activities.

Then there are those who come forward and others come up to them and hug them and tell them how they have been praying for them, and they are crying and hugging; and it is a farce. Bob will tell this to your face or from 50 ft. away. Your emotion involved in walking down an aisle means nothing, and all of those people who pray that you come forward, that is also a farce. It is just as bonafide to crawl under your seat, or wander to the back and into a lavatory and make your decision.

Zech. 7:7 Aren't these the words that the LORD proclaimed through the earlier prophets when Jerusalem was inhabited and secure, along with its surrounding cities, and when the southern region and the Judæan foothills were inhabited?"

What should these people have been doing? What should they be thinking? This tells us what counts. Shaphat is the verb meaning to judge. This is actually rebound here. Once you are back in fellowship, you are to treat others with grace and mercy.

Zech. 7:9 "The LORD of Hosts says this: Render true justice. Show faithful love and compassion to one another.

The widow was helpless, but also, she faced verbal sins, like gossip. The stranger is a person who is obnoxious? Mercy treats them in grace.

All you need is jealousy and a little imagination. Jealousy + imagination = assassination. The evil occurs in your heart; that is where it is based; sin is in the heart.

Zech. 7:10 Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the stranger or the poor, and do not plot evil in your hearts against one another.

The response; technically, this is a reaction. Why did all of these terrible things happen? These people went on negative volition to Bible doctrine. They should have been rebounding, getting back into fellowship, and learning Bible doctrine; but they refused to listen. Turning the shoulder indicates they are giving you the cold shoulder; this is an overt manifestation of rejection of Bible doctrine. Closing up the ears is more rejection of Bible doctrine.

Zech. 7:11 But they refused to pay attention and turned a stubborn shoulder; they closed their ears so they could not hear.

Why go through all this fasting during the fifth cycle? They needed the words of the Lord; they did not need fasts. Their cold shoulder was their approach to doctrine.

They shouted out doctrine. They were not crying like babies. They went negative toward the prophet.

Zech. 7:12 They made their hearts like a rock so as not to obey the law or the words that the LORD of Hosts had sent by His Spirit through the earlier prophets. Therefore great anger came from the LORD of Hosts.

God shouted and they would not hear. All of the shouting in the world would not help. There are survivors, and they fast and shout. They are sincere, but God is not moved by sincerity. God is not impressed with sack cloth and ashes. He wants mercy toward others.

Zech. 7:13 Just as He had called, and they would not listen, so when they called, I would not listen," says the LORD of Hosts.

Scattering them means the fifth cycle of discipline. Those, believers without doctrine and unbeliever, made the land desolate. They were responsible for it. They brought it on themselves. God did everything over a period of years and years. The stopped their ears regarding doctrine. They went from wicked imaginations to overt actions. They are responsible for their own collapse.

Zech. 7:14 "I scattered them with a windstorm over all the nations that had not known them, and the land was left desolate behind them, with no one coming or going. They turned a pleasant land into a desolation."

God does not destroy nations and it is not His desire to destroy nations. A military disaster is often preceded by years, even decades, of internal failure.

Next time is the positive answer. This chapter was the tearing down of sackcloth and ashes; next time, we will see what is good.

God is never impressed with ritual or sincerity. He reads minds. Fasting has no spiritual connotation.

Belshazzar is drinking with his buds, and they began to drink out from a cup taken from the Temple, and from there, we have the writing on the wall. Persian empire under Cyrus the Great.

Zechariah began his ministry in 520 b.c. Psalm 119 gives us some clue about the Jews and doctrine and how, for nearly 200 years, Bible doctrine carried the people.

96 –192 was one of the great periods of time in Rome. England under George III and George the IV and .

Rege-melech is one of those who is tried of all this emotional stuff which is going on. God is not impressed with this stuff. Religion is the worst thing to wpoak with

There is no plade in the plan of God for the tongues movement. There iss a tendency in many Christian grouops to emphasize the overt. The priests and prophets taught doctrine.

and anthropopathism.. The object of jealousy gets a lot of static. Jealous people make other people unhappy. Generally, we are familiar with the study of jealousy. Prepare yourself for a shock, because jealousy is used in conjunction with God. When God is jealous, we know that it is not a sin. God is perfect righteousness, and this makes jealousy impossible. Justice means God can only be fair. God is perfect love, and love is not jealous. God is perfect. It is impossible for God to sin or for God to solicit to sin.

This is an anthropopathism. The other is an anthropomorphism. The first attributes a human characteristic to God that He does not have. This explains to a group of people a characteristic of God which He does not have. Rom. 9:13: As it is written: Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated. This is one for the books; twins, one a Jew and the other a Gentile. This record cannot be broken. Abraham is saved and Nahor is not; Isaac is saved and Ishmael is not; Jacob is saved and Esau is not. If anything, Jacob is a nicer person than Esau. Jacob is loved; divine approbation; Esau is hated, is divine disapprobation. God does not hate. We understand God through an application of human thinking.

Jealousy indicates a relationship of some kind. There is a concept of possession. Almost everyone has been jealous before. If you have an IQ over 75, then you have been jealous, if you have loved anyone. Bob went into a house, made friends with the dog; and the owner was actually jealous. The dog doesn’t pay attention to me that way. Dogs have discernment. Some have a higher regard for dogs than for members of the human race.

Relationship and possession are keys to understand this. God has a relationship with Zion and God possesses Zion. Anything which you own, you want that which you own to put your first. Any relationship that you have, if you are a normal human, you want that relationship to give you first place. Jealousy, you assume a person in a relationship is gigivnig someone else more attention than they are giving you. This creates a vibration in the emotion of the soul.

Jealous people do some of the weirdest things in the world. It sometimes leads to a temporary form of insanity. You ought to lock yourself up before you do some weirdo thing. Shakespear play where a guy loves his gal madly, and he kills her. It seems ridiculous, but jealousy was ruling over him. Our of jealousy, people get shocked.

Common case of killing, the unfaithful lover. That is the stupidest thing you can do. If someone does not care enough about you to be faithful to you, why shoot them? It is silly to shoot someone. If you cannot hold a person based upon who and what you are, then why shoot them for having some good sense. People do all kinds of crazy things when they are jealous.

Often when people are jealous, they go into this erratic behavior. The guy and a gal became jealous of one another and the girl said, “I’ll show him” and she slept around and eventually died of TB. She showed him.

People who are jealous often feel as if they need to get up and do something. That is when the human being is the subject.

You cannot even tone down v. 2; the verb and its noun cognate are found here. And it is repeated. It is repeated with anger being thrown into the mix. The subject in each case is God the Father, Who cannot sin. This is an anthropopathism. It has several connotations. Relationship and possession. The Jews are the peculiar possession of God. God protected the Jewish line when it was twins, Esau and Jacob. The Jews are the apple of God’s eye. They belong to Him. In addition to this, God has a special relationship with certain of the Jews, called the remnant, and what better way to show the fifth cycle of discipline, than to take something which everyone understands. Bob feels like his batting average has been .999. Everyone understand jealousy. If you can understand jealousy and what is behind it; possessiveness and relationship and also intimacy. Great jealousy demands intimacy. Jewish believers have a great spiritual life. As the nation moves along, Hosea 4:1–6, God uses a human term and ascribes it to God. God has an attitude. This jealousy is an attitude, and it expresses itself in a fury. Fury is the fifth cycle of discipline. You never are jealous of someone unless you have some kind of a love for them. Jealousy connotes a love. Love, as it increases, as it develops, becomes more and more possessive.

All the way through there is a verb here, and it is the Piel stem. Kanah, and the koph represents the subconscious. There is something in the subconscious which moves into the conscious. You can, in your subconscious, go to sleep at night, or whenever you sleep, and you subconscious takes over and works on something dropped in there a month before. The subconscious overflows into the conscious mind. The wife might get mad at you for something you did 3 months ago.

God does not have a subconscious because He does not sleep. As believers, He knows every failure which we have had and every sin that we would sin. He knew every bit of blasphemy that we would utter. We still have the most intimate relationship based upon positional truth. In time, He makes provision for them. He still keeps us alive and even blesses us while these things are going on. That is His grace and also His jealousy.

God shows forethought and He redesigns things. What were these kooks doing? Fasting, praying, sackcloth and ashes, which did not assuage the jealousy of God.

There was a famous artist in history, and he caught...I won’t tell you about that.

Divine jealousy is not assuaged with any type of pseudo-spirituality. God is not assuaged because you go without makeup or without eating or breast-beating. Meaningless rituals do not impress God. God’s Word impresses God. What God thinks impresses Him. God is no respector of persons. His thinking is perfect. He thinks Bible doctrine. God is not impressed with the way we look but what is on the interior. God looks on the inner man.

When God sees doctrine and coming from the human spirit, He is impressed. We look at life in the way that He looks at it. 1Sam. 16:1–7: The LORD said to Samuel, "How long are you going to mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and go. I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem because I have selected a king from his sons." Samuel asked, "How can I go? Saul will hear about it and kill me!" The LORD answered, "Take a young cow with you and say, 'I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.' Then invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will let you know what you are to do. You are to anoint for Me the one I indicate to you." Samuel did what the LORD directed and went to Bethlehem. When the elders of the town met him, they trembled and asked, "Do you come in peace?" "In peace," he replied. "I've come to sacrifice to the LORD. Consecrate yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice." Then he consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice. When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and said, "Certainly the LORD's anointed one is here before Him." But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not look at his appearance or his stature, because I have rejected him. Man does not see what the LORD sees, for man sees what is visible, but the LORD sees the heart." Samuel was a brilliant man, but he was out of fellowship; “If Saul hears it, he will kill me.”

some pastor picked people and worked with them early in the morning. Some of the greatest believers Bob has ever seen, he would not have expected it. No way can one man look at a congregation and pick out those who had the spiritual potential. Samuel was impressed by the overt things. He finally has decided that he wants to go.

Samuel sees these men who look terrific, and God tells them, do not look on his height or stature. God tells Samuel, I refused him. Eliab’s big problem was jealousy. We find this out in the next chapter of Samuel. Elias cannot be used; no doctrine in his soul. Jesse had 7 sons and they were all minus doctrine, including their father. David had a special tape recorder out in the desert.

God knew what we would look like, our high IQ, and what we would dress like. God can trace every chromosome right back to Adam. There are so many chromosomes between us and Adam, and yet God can trace them back. He can see us as we are. We may impress ourselves and others, but we do not impress God. Impressing others is called deception.

Now back to the Hebrew word for jealousy. God knows us better than we know ourselves. Jesus Christ designed everything that we need in eternity past; and what they did not need is fasting, sackcloth and ashes, or breastbeating. These are signs of sincerity and minus doctrine. God is not impressed with sincerity or with human good or with fasting. Thse are overt and superficial actions.

Zech. 8:2 "The LORD of Hosts says this: I am extremely jealous for Zion; I am jealous for her with great wrath."

The answer is amplified. “I will return.” Shub. Qal perfect. These factors are all truth because Jerusalem is a city of truth. There restoration of the nation is the Temple, which represents the whol concept of the dissemination of doctrine. In reality, in principle and concept, through the use of a direct statement; stop the breast beating; stop the sackcloth and ashes.

Zech. 8:3 The LORD says this: "I will return to Zion and live in Jerusalem. Then Jerusalem will be called the Faithful City [a city of truth], the mountain of the LORD of Hosts, and the Holy Mountain."

Apparently, someone showed up in sackcloth and ashes. Absolute criterion in v. 1; anthropopathism in v. 2, restoration to fellowship in v. 3. There is a representative analogy between the animal blood and the spiritual death of Jesus Christ.

The citation of a sin, which is indicated by shub. Between 586–516, the Jews learns the importance of doctrine, so after that, they enjoyed almost 200 years of prosperity. They became a city of doctrine, which is a city of truth.

The aged will be covered in v. 4 and youth in v. 5. Old men and old women indicate that there is prosperity; because people do not tend to live for a long period of time. This means, there has not been a lot of warfare; so no problems with slavery, malnutrition, war, etc.

Zech. 8:4 The LORD of Hosts says this: "Old men and women will again sit along the streets of Jerusalem, each with a staff in hand because of advanced age.

We go from the very aged to the youth, which indicates national stability. Playing in the streets indicates prosperity; the word means laughing. Children are living normal lives, which is the prosperity index.

2 great adjustments in childhood and in old age. Usually in between, life takes up the slack in adjusting to life. A maximum amount of Bible doctrine has a tremendous affect upon the children, and they are oriented to life.

Some people are very maladjusted to old age. They have problems, losing their youth. The children playing in the street indicates safety, security and youth. Bible doctrine provides for all stages of life.

In a national entity where there are a maximum number of believers who have doctrine in their souls; and those who are older are well-adjusted to life. Zechariah describes this 2 years before the fifth cycle is over (518 b.c.).

Let’s go back to August of 586 b.c. (Which is the time that the Temple fell twice). Psalm 119 and Lamentations, we were able to study the death march. However, the youth survived. This death march was mostly made up of teens. Many became very successful in business. Bible doctrine became the basis for orientation to life.

On the other end they are facing the pressure of being in old age. The same Bible doctrine takes care of them in their old age. If God keeps you alive, that means that God has a plan for us in old age. It does not make any difference how humanly unattractive you are in old age. God’s plan goes on for you in old age.

Zech. 8:5 The streets of the city will be filled with boys and girls playing in them."

the remnant in the next verse is the key. When the fifth cycle is off and the Jews return and the Temple is completed and they go from 516–323 b.c. in prosperity. This is the remnant which follows that period of prosperity. The days which follow the construction of the 2^nd Temple.

Zech. 8:6 The LORD of Hosts says this: "Though it may seem incredible to the remnant of this people in those days, should it also seem incredible [wonderful?] to Me?"--the declaration of the LORD of Hosts.

The fifth cycle of discipline and Babylon is the east country. The fifth cycle of discipline will end with the 2^nd advent, and what will happen is a golden age. The restoration of Israel is completed.

Zech. 8:7 The LORD of Hosts says this: "I will save My people from the land of the east and the land of the west.

A perfect tense here refers to a completed action. The key is not vows and sincerity; the key is doctrine. God will not promote us without it. They were operating under false humility. Bob thinks that Miami is going to pass LA for kooksville spirituality (tongues).

Zech. 8:8 I will bring them back to live in Jerusalem. They will be My people, and I will be their faithful and righteous God."

all of these false groups existed at that time. Kazak means to have a firm or stabilized grasp. It means to latch on, indicating to latch on to Bible doctrine.

Shama is a word for perception; it means to listen and obey; to listen and apply. The words which comes from the mouth of the prophets. The Temple was one way to teach Bible doctrine categorically.

Zech. 8:9 The LORD of Hosts says this: "Let your hands be strong, you who now hear these words that the prophets spoke when the foundations were laid for the rebuilding of the temple, the house of the LORD of Hosts.

Today, there is this constant bickering going back and forth where they are trying to find a patsy. You must start with doctrine.

Some people get carried away with whatever God gives them, a successful business etc., and they run into problems. You may a person before the Lord, and they make you so miserable that you want to be dead; or they dear John you.

Zech. 8:10 For prior to those days neither man nor beast had wages. There was no safety from the enemy for anyone who came or went, for I turned everyone against his neighbor.

Zech. 8:11 But now, I will not treat the remnant of this people as in the former days"--the declaration of the LORD of Hosts.

When Bible doctrine is first, these people are to possess all things, which includes the details of life. The land will produce all of these things. This is prosperity for believers with doctrine.

Zech. 8:12 "For they will sow in peace: the vine will yield its fruit, the land will yield its produce, and the skies will yield their dew. I will give the remnant of this people all these things as an inheritance.

Apparently a lot of time passed since last being in this passage. In 536 they went back to the land and in 535, they began and then stopped work on the Temple. In Zech. 8, this occurred in 518 b.c., and the Temple was in process of being built.

We have studied the farce of fasting. We will have a description of part of this golden age. Bible doctrine is going to pay fantastic dividends down to Alexander the Great. The Jews will be protected from a tremendous series of wars.

There were tremendous things provided for Israel at this time. Any national entity which goes for Bible doctrine becomes a blessing to other nations as well. England had fantastic revivals and there were thousands of people accepting Christ as Savior. England took in India and large sections of Africa. These blessings stretched out to their entire empire.

Now, today, nations connected closely to the UN, are in bad shape. Communists have made such an attack on colonialism, even though colonialism protected their freedom by giving them law and order.

When the gates of Jerusalem opened, the Jews came out without weapons to them. They heard very beautiful singing as psalms were sung to them. The High Priest was in front of them. They were marching toward them without weapons, and they were trusting God for the deliverance of Jerusalem. Alexander had just completed the siege of Tyre. Alexander had been tremendously successful.

There is a concept of stability and strength. They are to hang on to something tenaciously; hanging on the Bible doctrine no matter what.

Zech. 8:13 As you have been a curse among the nations, house of Judah and house of Israel, so I will save [I will cause you to be delivered] you, and you will be a blessing. Don't be afraid; let your hands be strong."

God was caused to take the steps that He did. You do nothing for blessing. However, you do something in order to be cursed. We do something to get out of fellowship, but to get back in, it is non-meritorious.

Nacham means a complete change of mental attitude. God is the one doing the repenting. Repentance never means to feel sorry for sins. The subject is God and the object is the Jews minus doctrine. Man repents toward God; which means He changes His mind about God. In salvation, man repents regarding Christ.

Evangelism today is 5 points of heresy every time they write a sentence. This same lack of knowledge will hurt us as well. The evangelist needs to know all these various principles and doctrines. The word repent means to change the mind. Here, the Niphal stem is reflexive. The entire decision was in God’s hands.

Zech. 8:14 For the LORD of Hosts says this: "As I resolved to treat you badly when your fathers provoked Me to anger, and would not relent," says the LORD of Hosts,

Bob had quite a time in Sacramento; he talked about throwing a faggot on the fire and you never saw so many angry faces. They all have a Rom. 12:1 or a discipleship message. They do not know what has hit them until yet. People are constantly trying to do something. One thing which characterizes a mature believer, is to do nothing. When Bob was a new 2^nd Lieutenant, and he learned that it is bad for morale to have soldiers standing around doing nothing.

The Christian life is just the opposite; there are times when you do not do anything. You work in the power of the Spirit; not in the power of the flesh.

Zech. 8:15 "so I have resolved again in these days to do what is good to Jerusalem and the house of Judah. Don't be afraid.

Zech. 8:16 These are the things you must do: Speak truth to one another; render honest and peaceful judgments in your gates.

The negative side is next. Do not imagine evil in your heart against your neighbors. Those are the people in your vicinity; anyone with whom you have contact.

Zech. 8:17 Do not plot evil in your hearts against your neighbor, and do not love perjury, for I hate all this"--the LORD's declaration.

Zech. 8:19 "The LORD of Hosts says this: The fast of the fourth month, the fast of the fifth, the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth will become times of joy, gladness, and cheerful festivals for the house of Judah. Therefore, love truth and peace."

Once you learn Bible doctrine, you want more of it. There was a conference in Sacramento and some traveled as far as 300 miles in one night. They loved the Word.

Zech. 8:20 The LORD of Hosts says this: "Peoples will yet come, the residents of many cities;

In the Millennium, a Jew will be passing through going to Jerusalem, and just going through town, he is recognized as a Jew and 10 Gentiles desire to go with him. A tremendous desire for Bible doctrine and the truth. Any nation or individual must build their life on the principles nucleated in the plan of God.

Zech. 8:21 the residents of one city will go to another, saying: Let's go at once to plead for the LORD's favor and to seek the LORD of Hosts. I am also going.

Zech. 8:22 Many peoples and strong nations will come to seek the LORD of Hosts in Jerusalem and to plead for the LORD's favor."

Zech. 8:23 The LORD of Hosts says this: "In those days, 10 men from nations of every language will grab the robe of a Jewish man tightly, urging: Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you."

Abrahamic covenant, Palestinian Covenant, Davidic Covenant and the New Covenant.

The burden is a huge rock; a crushing weight. The smashing judgment from the Word of the Lord.

Zech. 9:1 This is the divine revelation. The word of the LORD is against the land of Hadrach and will rest [it’s resting place] on Damascus

There is an anti-Semitism clause. God does not allow man to destroy the Jew. The Lord notes anti-Semitism and smashes it.

Tyre and Sidon. Down the Mediterranean coast is Sidon. It is on the land; it is vulnerable. There are many mountains around it. 1 mile off shore there is an island. There are two sets of walls going completely around it. This island owns a navy of 350 ships. The largest and strongest navy in the world. Alexander comes down and takes Sidon and he faces his problem with Tyre.

Tyre has a 350 ship navy and a 1000 ship merchant marine. They went all the way to England. The first to sail through the Straits of Gibralter. They stole the formula for iron and put their iron foundries up in Spain and they called it Tarshish, which is the direction that Jonah went in. Tarshish means the iron foundries.

Zech. 9:2 and also Hamath, which borders on it, and Tyre and Sidon, though they are very wise [prosperous]. (The eyes of humanity and of all the tribes of Israel are on the LORD.)

No one had succeeded in conquering Tyre. No land army could get to them but they were offshore. Assyrian kings spent 5 years barking at them from ½ mile. They were considered to be impregnable. However, they were anti-Semitic. They are fantastically wealthy.

When Alexander comes to the shores of Sidon and he sends 5 men across in a boat. He said that Alexander would like to offer up a sacrifice in the temple of Hercules. The Sidon people cut their throats in full view. Alexander sent out 5 more and they were killed the same way.

Then Alexander began to bring rocks. He puts up patrols and Arabs keep harassing them. They then built towers, so one night the commandoes came out and burned the towers to the ground, and he did it again. They got about a quarter mile in. They sent a whole fleet to attack him. He hired the Cypriote navy to patrol while he did this. There was a naval battle where their was an unusal loss. Fantastic storm and Alexander had to start again. Alexander’s leadership was never better shown here. One Tyre tower greater than the rest, and he stood up and exposed himself to hundreds of darts and arrows. His men charged. 30,000 people escaped to the temples, but the rest were killed. These were sold into slavery. Then he burned the whole thing to the ground.

They used divers here as well. They had 4000 frogmen and they lost them all. They had Marines and commandoes and frogmen.

Ezek. 26:8–29 He will destroy the villages on your mainland. He will set up blockades, put up dirt ramps, and raise his shields against you. He will direct his battering rams against your walls, and he will cut down your towers with his axes. He will have so many horses that their dust will cover you. The noise from the war horses, wagon wheels, and chariots will shake your walls when he enters your gates. He will enter as people enter a conquered city. With his horses' hoofs he will trample all your streets. He will kill your people in battle, and your strong pillars will fall to the ground. His troops will loot your riches and take your goods as prizes. They will destroy your walls and tear down your delightful homes. They will throw your stones, wood, and soil into the water. "I will put a stop to your noisy songs, and the music from your harps will no longer be heard. I will turn you into bare rock. You will become a place to spread fishing nets. You will never be rebuilt. I, the LORD, have spoken, declares the Almighty LORD. "This is what the Almighty LORD says to Tyre: The people who live on the coast will shake with fear when they hear about your defeat. They will groan when your people are wounded and slaughtered. Then the princes from the coast will come down from their thrones. They will remove their robes and take off their embroidered clothes. Dressed in terror, they will sit on the ground. They will tremble constantly and be shocked at you. Then they will sing this funeral song for you: Tyre, you famous city, you have been destroyed. You have been shattered by the sea. You and your people ruled the sea. All your people terrified those who lived by the coast. Your defeat will make the people who live by the coast tremble. Your end will terrify the islands in the sea. "This is what the Almighty LORD says: I will turn your city into ruins like cities that have no one living in them. I will bring the deep ocean over you, and the Mediterranean Sea will cover you. I will bring you down with those who descend to the grave to join the people of long ago. I will make you live below the earth among the ancient ruins with those who go down to the grave. You will never return or take your place in the land of the living. I will turn you into a terror, and you will no longer exist. People will look for you, but they will never see you again," declares the Almighty LORD.

This was written before Zechariah. Exactly what was going to happen was laid out. Bob has actually seen photos of a fisherman squatting on a rock and throwing his net out on the rocks of Tyre. Almost anyone who goes to that part of the world gets a picture of a fisherman throwing out a net. This was once one of the greatest cities of the ancient world. What happened to them was anti-Semitism.

Zech. 9:3 Tyre built itself a fortress. It piled up silver like dust and gold like mud in the streets.

Alexander burned Tyre to the ground. It was written in 518 b.c. and fulfilled in 332 b.c.

Zech. 9:4 The Lord will take away its possessions. He will throw its wealth into the sea and burn the city down.

There are 4 city states left to the Philistines after this. Gath was destroyed by King Azaiah. Askelon will see the fall of Troy and they will be afraid.

Botos is a young Greek and loyal to Durias and he refuses to surrender and Alexander sends his men to guard putting up a ramp. When his men became discouraged, Alexander the Great led the charge. This time, he showed no quarter. He was so angry, he put holes in Botos’ feet and put ropes through these holes and dragged him through the streets. Botos was king of Gaza.

Zech. 9:5 Ashkelon will see this and be afraid. Gaza will also be in great pain [= to writhe in extreme pain], also Ekron, because its hope will fade [meaning, they would go into slavery]. Gaza will lose its king. Ashkelon will no longer be lived in.

The people of Ashdod were moved out and Alexander put in his own troops. The Philistines as a race now cease to exist, with the exception of a few survivors; and a there were a few born-again people who lived.

Zech. 9:6 A mixed race [a group of foreign people] will live in Ashdod, and I will cut off the Philistines' arrogance.

The Philistines as Greeks offered up human sacrifices. It was not common, but for certain situations. Professors glorified the Hellenistic civilizations that Bob learned under. Much of academic life has come out of Greek civilization. The Greeks were a degenerate demon-possessed people. The Persians were the scientific people.

The Philistines had a brilliant civilization; but they also had idolatry and an occasional human sacrifice.

The Jebusites were famous warriors, and Joshua was unable to conquer them. But David conquered them when he went into Jerusalem. He hit that hill and conquered them. He first built a tower there and then the city of Jerusalem. That is how the city of Jerusalem was established. They were defeated as the Jebusites were defeated.

Alexander was in some sort of a trance. A man in a beard and flowing robes and he told Alexander not to be afraid of the Persians.

He came back from Egypt and headed toward the east and asked if Jews wanted to be administrators, and this place Jews all over. He founded thousands of cities with Jews in charge.

Alexander essentially wiped out anti-Semitism. Selucid sponsored anti-Semitism, as one of Alexander’s generals.

Zech. 9:7 I will remove the blood from their mouths [human sacrifices] and the disgusting things from between their teeth. Then only a few of them will be left for our God [even he will turn to our God] like a tribe [governor] in Judah [which would be Zerubbabel], and Ekron will be like a Jebusite.

Zech. 9:8 I will camp in front of my house as a guard against those who come and go. No oppressors will pass through them, because I have seen it with my own eyes.

There are two advents of Jesus Christ, and they needed to distinguish between the two advents. The cross must come before the crown.

In 586 b.c., the Jews went out under the fifth cycle of discipline. The Chaldeans decisively defeated in 539 by Cyrus the Great, who was on his great conquest. He conquered the world in 25 years; and Alex the Great broke his record in 12 years. The Temple represents the whole concept of doctrine. In 520, they began. In 518, Zechariah gave the prophecy of the future of Israel when the Temple would be completed.

The Persians developed a great scientific background; they develop science, medicine, mathematics, astronomy, etc. They were a very noble and fantastic race.

Every European country has a culture based upon the Greek classics. Even the story of Pygmalian is found today as My Fair Lady. When the Persians invaded Greece, there is almost a cheer in the classroom; and the Greeks turned back the Persians. This had a purpose. Some Greeks would be tempted to come up against the Persians. Alexander was a genius. He was a great athlete. He was brilliant.

A minority people gave their name to Palestine. Some of the greatest warriors in the ancient world. Descended from the same stock as the Spartans.

Alexander build ships right there in India, and he proclaimed some of his men sailors. Narchus developed this encyclopedia on the winds, tides, animal life, etc.

The first 8 verses form the introduction to the rest of the passage. The Jews were losing track of a very important principle. Codex 2 was a complete theology. The levitical sacrifices, the holy days, etc. They need to related this information to the fact that the crown would not exist until long after the cross.

They had to believe in Jesus Christ first; and then they could move into the eternal covenants.

Vv. 9–10 will be Jewish failure; how they tried to bypass the cross and take up the crown, which is Satan’s way. The Maccabean wars got the Jews out of the fifth cycle and postponed it until 70 a.d. Bible doctrine kept them from going under.

We are not under the fourth cycle of discipline, and doctrine can always change the tide. The Jews maintained their independence until Pompey the Great. Maximum illustration as to what happened on palm Sunday as well as what happened in our Lord’s ministry.

The Jews were preserved when Alex the Great came to in 323 b.c. This was the only city which he did not attack. The Jews brought out the prophecies of Alex in the book of Daniel to impress him.

Hannibal ran away to one of these Hellenistic empire to the Selucids. Antiachus the Great gave him a place. He was not much with a fleet and he was clobbered by the Romans. Little by little, bit by bit, the Hellenistic empires were swallowed up.

General Ptolemy had a great, great, great, great, great, great granddaughter, Cleopatra. When she committed suicide, that was the last of the Hellenistic empires.

We look back at the cross. Before entering into the plan of God, the person must begin with the cross and believe in Jesus Christ, no matter what the dispensation.

The 3^rd failure would be Jews who believe in Jesus Christ, but then rejected doctrine.

Zechariah brings in the 1^st advent of Jesus Christ. We are two years away from the fifth cycle of discipline being over. The Jew is 2 years away from being the good wife instead of being the wicked daughter.

516–323 will be a golden age. Trouble, then they will recover, then trouble, then recovery and then trouble again, taking us the Palm Sunday.

When Jesus comes to the cross, He will satisfy God’s righteousness and justice. He will bear the sins of the world, even though He is tempted to bypass the cross. He bypasses His holiness. The Son propitiated the Father.

The 2^nd part of the holiness bypass. His love is free to come to the human race by way of the cross. God the Father makes a sovereign decision to love us. We may be victorious or carnal; God is free to love us and still be consistent with His character.

The religious Jews. Their old sin nature; they had committed sins. They had a lot of human good at this point. They want Jesus Christ to accept their human good and skip the cross and to get with the kingdom. They wanted to throw off the yoke of Rome, although Rome was quite good to them. On this palm Sunday, they said, “Hosanna, blessed is He Who comes in the name of the Lord.” They wanted to bypass the cross and go directly to the crown. They wanted to overthrow Rome.

Psalm 118:22–23 (the 1^st advent): The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. The LORD is responsible for this, and it is amazing for us to see. Then the 2^nd advent, which is Psalm 118:25–26: We beg you, O LORD, save us! We beg you, O LORD, give us success! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the LORD. We bless you from the LORD'S house.

Zech. 9:9 Rejoice with all your heart, people of Zion! Shout in triumph, people of Jerusalem! Look! Your King is coming to you: He is righteous and victorious. He is humble and rides on a donkey, on a colt, a young pack animal.

All of the evils in the Roman empire disappeared during a period of time. The Thunderbolt legion under Marcus Aurelius and they saved his neck. This is a period when Bible doctrine had maximum influence. It was hard ot find a soldier in the empire except on the frontier forts, the Rhine, the Danube. The period of time was the Antoinine Cæsar’s.

If we are going ot have world peace—the mothers marched on Washington recently. When you go into a brush war and you do not open up and use thermo nuclear weapons, other countries will think you are soft. We have done so much pussyfooting in Vietnam and Korea. Many of us will have children who will fight in WWIII because we have had the worst possible foreign policy and still be a nation. We have poured money and equipment and such into countries which hate us and they have turned it against us. And when Bob speaks about military training, he is referring the Marine type training.

Back to the Millennium when the battle bow will be broken. There will be no more weapons because Jesus Christ will personally control.

Jesus Christ will rule the entire earth. This is a point of doctrine to tell the Jews that, no matter when they live, the cross must come before the crown. You cannot have the crown without the cross. The people who get with salvation will find that between the cross and the crown, the secret is phase II. In 167 b.c., the Jews are under the 4^th cycle of discipline. They were under the Selucids. Selucus gave up India, and they would have lost it eventually. This would change the whole picture. There was a danger that he could not hold his entire kingdom. This is the northern kingdom, which is Syrian all the way up to India. Alexander had 19 generals who all became kings. Antigonus the One eye was left behind to guard Macedonia. He had a son who was good but unstable. There was this fantastic army all gathered, but Selucus did a very noble thing. He went to the king of India and said, trade me 50 elephants for all of India. Northern India was given away, and he used these elephants to wipe out Antigonus. They charged into the elephants and the elephants stomped them to bits.

Selucid had a great, great grandson, Antiochus, a hostage to Rome. He had a roommate Pompelius Linus, and they went through military school together. Antiachus was looking for a job. He was made the general in command of the Athenian army. He had an easy life, reading the report, and going to the gym.

His older brother had been assassinated. So he decided to take a crack at the kingdom. As he ascended the throne, he needed a fancy name, Antiachus Epiphanies (Antiuchus the fantastic) and the Jews called him Antiachus Epimenes (Antiachus the madman).

He was the most successful person since Alexander in conquering Egypt. He conquered everything but Alexandria. He had conquered all of Egypt and was about to have a great empire. Out of the gates came a Roman, and it turned out to be his old roommate. He went forward to shake his hand. His old buddy said, “Stop, where you are. I represent S.P.Q.R. and Rome does not want you in Egypt.” He drew a circle and told him not to walk out of the circle until he had an answer. Antiachus backed off.

He went into Jerusalem then. There was a great celebration to take place in 167 b.c. and they had come from all over to offer sacrifices; then Antiuchus brought his army in. He said, “We will sacrifice pigs.” The sacrificed people or pigs. They were bringing in hundreds of pigs. Then the grabbed the people instead and killed them instead. They let a few alive to see this, and then they slaughtered pigs and then they put up a statue of Antiachus Epiphanies; but called it Jupiter. Then Antiacus said, now we will put up an altar and sacrifice a pig in every town.

They went to one town, and told Matthias to sacrifice a pig; and he pulled out a Knife and killed the king? His name later became Judas Maccabeas, Judas the Hammer, and this is how the rebellion began. He met 4 Greek armies and defeated each one.

25 December 164 b.c. and they celebrated Hanukkah the feast of Lights. And there were speeches and how they refused ot let the Word of God be profaned by Hellenism.

Zech. 9:10 He will make sure there are no chariots in Ephraim or war horses in Jerusalem. There will be no battle bows. He will announce [maintain] peace to the nations. He will rule from sea to sea and from the Euphrates River to the ends of the earth.

Zech. 9:11 I will set your captives free from the waterless pit because of the blood that sealed my promise to you.

The fifth cycle of discipline is over. They are to return to the stronghold of Palestine. The Jews are told that, when they return, God would render double to them. The principles of Bible doctrine brought us a great economic prosperity. The whole great prosperity which we enjoyed came because of Bible doctrine and the plan of God.

They Jews had a chance to see this in action, and they began to decline in 323 b.c., but they recovered again in 167.

Zech. 9:12 Return to your fortress, you captives who have hope. Today I tell you that I will return to you double blessings.

Judah was forged as a weapon against Antiachus Epiphanies. One mother had 7 sons and they went to the Temple to worship. They were grabbed up and taken to Antiachus; he decided to interrogate them. “Are you ready to accept Greek culture? Are you ready to sacrifice pigs?” And the first son said no and explained why. So he was tied on a table, and they poured boiling water on the skin, but without getting to the eyes. There was a man who wuold grab the hair of the boy and pull the skin right off, but it did not kill the chld. And he asked, “Do you still want to say the same thing?” Then they pulled out his tongue and cut if off. So he told to nod to give an answer. The cut off one hand. He nodded “no” and they cut off his leg and then another. He still refused and they cut off his other hand. They threw him aside and went to the next son. They all encouraged one another to die for the Word of God. The teen boy of age 14, and Antiachus was so impressed. The king said, “I will raise this boy as a nobleman.” So the woman talks to him, and she tells him to keep tough. He goes after the last son. Antiachus knew from this, and then he killed the mother slowly as well. He said, “These people have to be taught.” So he went in at 167 and they people resisted him.

Many of the Jews came south with Bible doctrine. The army of the Syrian empire was mostly a Greek army.

Zech. 9:13 I will bend Judah as my bow and draw my bow with Ephraim as its arrow. I will stir up your people, Zion, against your people, Greece, and I will use you like a warrior's sword.

God has a bolt of lightning to protect them. God will blow the trumpet and there was a wind which came up from the negev.

Zech. 9:14 The LORD will appear over them, and his arrow will go out like lightning. The Almighty LORD will blow the ram's horn and will march in the storms from the south.

The Lord of Hosts will defend them. This is a reference to drinking the blood of their enemies; it is a reference to military victory.

Zech. 9:15 The LORD of Armies will defend them. They will destroy and trample the stones used in slings. They will drink and shout as if they were drunk. They will be filled like a sacrificial bowl used for sprinkling the corners of the altar.

The stones of the crown were the Jews of the land. When you wanted to raise some troops, you plant your standard in the city square. Those who wanted to join would come to the standard and say their oath.

Zech. 9:16 On that day the LORD their God will rescue them as the flock of his people. They will certainly sparkle in his land like jewels in a crown.

We are free tonight because believers have died on the battlefield and they have been the best killers of their outfit. It takes training and a vigorous recruit type training. This is the only way you can win and maintain freedom.

We have become too much of a religious nation and we have become too squeamish. Enemies on the outside cause the sea to rise. We could win the war in Vietnam quickly with thermonuclear weapons.

This is the Millennium. This describes what will happen. Young women and young men mean that social life is great; and grain and new wine means great social life as well.

Zech. 9:17 They will be beautiful and lovely. Young men will prosper on grain, and young women will prosper on new wine.

Bob ran into one guy who used to go to Berachah, and he said, “My hair turned grey but yours turned loose.” He was a Baptism minister now, so Bob said, “And your congregation is probably sending you coach and mine sends me 1^st class.”

75 miles from LA and the altitude was about 5000 ft., so Bob got in a lot of speaking time with these. One guy told Bob that he thought he knew the Bible after 20 years study and has found that he knows nothing.

There is a prophecy here to be fulfilled immediately, and also in the far future.

One great failure is not praying for our country. We can pray for enlightenment; we can pray for the salvation of our nation. Here, they will be encouraged to pray for the nation in general. This is a prayer for economic prosperity. We have probably, at one time in our life, we have prayed for economic prosperity. Most people need money for something. Everyone prays for money or for something which money will buy. Some believers have a tough time praying for money. One minister convinced his congregation that life is a pile of crap. So some cannot take prosperity. There is no orientation to the grace of God and to the plan of God.

Some people lived in a really nice area, and they were in a good situation; and everything to this guy was emotion, grit your teeth, and get on with it. And they figured they ought to have a hard time as well.

People can have pleasures and prosperity and still be happy. Along the same lines, those without doctrine can watch Mighty Mouse on television and be unhappy; and then the tv goes out and they are more unhappy.

Here, believers are being told to ask for prosperity. Only a person with doctrine can ask and get prosperity because they know what to do with it.

Two rains; the former and the latter rain, the latter rain coming before the harvest to insure a good crop. Asking for rain is asking for prosperity. They could not make it rain; and it did not rain because they were good or bad.

Most of our indexes are tabulated by those who are liberal and who do not believe in capitalism and do not believe in supply and demand, and they advocate some system of socialism. There is no possible way for them to recognize the grace of a national entity. They think that they are creating jobs. England is broke today because the government has taxed British industry out of existence. The government takes these taxes and builds better housing developments for those in labor who are not working. There is no industry so the government takes over the business. They are the least qualified of anyone in the world to run this business. These kinds of people would never think to ask God for prosperity. You can still ask God for prosperity, which is often the destruction of a socialistic system. Socialism is sponsored by Satan. Socialism is connected often with the social gospel and is a part of cosmos diabolicus.

Only God can overrule in some of these situations. Social security is the most dangerous thing which we have today. There is not enough money to pay social security. It is not social and it is not secure.

What is our hope? Bob doesn’t have a ranch. Even with all the water in the world, Bob could not grow anything. If his life depended upon growing anything, he would be at the end of the line; he cannot even make weeds grow.

Everyone is benefitted when the crop comes in. The sowers and the reapers are all paid off, and they are all paid off when the crop comes in. Under socialism, only the incapable are benefitted; under captialilsm, everyone who works enjoys the benefits of their labor.

The last Bob heard, it was 33¢ of gold for every dollar; and it has gotten worse since then.

Born-again believers praying for the latter rain. God promises here showers of rain and grass to every man in the field.

The jam can be economic or whatever. The only way to get out of any of the jams there, like crime, rioting, mass hysteria, and go to the only One Who can help. You have to be a believer in Jesus Christ who knows how to rebound. The is the bare minimum.

Houston has had a strong economy for a long time. God has definitely protected Houston. We ought ot be grateful for what God has done for Houston.

Zech. 10:1 Ask rain from Jehovah in the time of the latter rain. Jehovah shall make lightnings. And He gives them showers of rain, grass to each man in the field.

Teraphim are heathen idols. We have these figurines from the ancient world and they represent human gods. A beautiful woman, it is Venus; etc. etc.

People try to bribe God with our tithes. Instead of prayer, what the Jews have done is to pick up with their teraphim. They would do dances for these teraphim and put food outin front of them, etc. We cannot bribe God. All blessing comes through grace. God does the work and man receives it. If you drop the teraphim, they break. If you are rich, you get a good and expensive one. You do not have to hold up God; He holds us up.

The sheep were scattered because they did not have a shepherd to gather them; they had no spiritual leadership. There was no one to teach the Word, to guide them spiritually. False doctrine led to false practice. Use of the teraphim was false practice. No one was praying for the country; no one was in fellowship.

Zech. 10:2 For the family idols speak iniquity, and the divining ones have seen a lie and have told false dreams. They comfort in vain. On account of this, they wandered like a flock. They were troubled because there was no shepherd.

Man will live by every word which proceeds out of the mouth of God. The passage illustrates prophetically and historically

There was a tremendous amount of doctrine. Zechariah began to crank them up to reconstruct the Temple. No Temple means no doctrine.

The Jews learned doctrine through the priests and the prophets. They both taught Bible doctrine, but from an entirely different source. It was the ministry of the Levitical priests to teach the Word from the existing Bible. The prophet taught the Word of God from what God taught him. Dreams, visions, direct conversation and angelic teaching. Everything was geared to the proper use of Bible doctrine.

Rejecting Bible doctrine means disorientation to the grace of God. Billions of years ago, God designed a plan for each life. The believer can face all circumstances of life and successfully. God is not really angry; He loves us with an infinite love.

The Jews are saying, “We’re enjoying our misery; leave us alone.” Sooner or later, the Jews would learn the value of Bible doctrine.

God is not expressing hostility toward the believer at all; He is expressing a disdain for things which are in opposition to His essence. Mental attitude sins are in opposition to God. God despised religion. Christianity and religion are antithetical. Religion is legalism; Christianity is grace.

We no longer have real money; we have stage money. Every dollar bill we carry is worth about 25¢; we pretend that there is no trouble in the world, when there is. We pretend the FDR was a great man, but he sold us down the river and he gave up a 3^rd of the earth to Communism.

God has only one attitude toward us, and that is love. When a woman chews out her man, that is her expression of love. We are past the point of propitiation; so we know He loves us with an infinite love. God’s anger here is directed to these things which we pick up, like these floozies of life, like religion.

All divine operating assets are revealed in Bible doctrine. When we reject Bible doctrine, our souls turn in to a vacuum, and we suck in false doctrine.

The Selucid’s are the goats; they oppressed the Jews; just as the Assyrians did. They all oppressed the Jews on the 4^th cycle of discipline.

You can take self-pity to the point where you want to kill yourself. This is having a great relationship with Jesus Christ. When you engage in self-pity long enough, you may rightly gauge yourself; but suicide is taking it too far.

The funeral of a believer should involve the pastor saying, “Here is the stupidest person I know.” God is perfect and God has a perfect plan for our life. “Missed the boat” ought to be on their tombstone. “..but I made the port.”

it is not a goodly horse below. A well-trained horse is the only good one. But there is something which clicks in their old horse nature. When a horse gets mad, he runs into things. A horse has more strength in its neck than we have in our entire bodies. When we get the rope to guide the head this or that way, the horse has to go which every way he is guided.

Zech. 10:3 My anger is kindled against the shepherds, and I will punish the he-goats. For Jehovah of Hosts has visited His flock, the house of Judah, and made them as His splendid horse [a majestic charger] in battle.

The source of blessing and discipline. This is a week of celebration. The festival of lights. They have totally and completely recovered their freedom. This is their thinking after winning their freedom.

The wooden peg is a picture of putting all of your burdens on God. These pegs are used to hang utensils, which is a picture of God providing all of the divine operating assets.

So a few liberals can fill good about themselves, we are supposed to turn our nation over to irresponsible people.

Because of Bible doctrine, Matthias took a knife and plunged it into the chest of a Greek soldier? 4 great Greek generals were defeated decisively.

Zech. 10:4 From Him came the cornerstone, from Him the nail [this is a wooden peg which is used to hang things from], from Him came the battle bow, and from Him every ruler together.

They are effective as soldiers because they have doctrine in the soul. In Zech. 12 and 14, there will be the influence of religion during this time.

We have this concept that killing is a terrible thing. We don’t have many problems with murderers and we don’t want them to die; but we seem to have problems with killing by the military.

Mud in the streets are believers killing those who are trying to take over Jerusalem. In the first half of the Tribulation, the command is not to fight; in the second half, the instructions are to fight. They will right because the Lord is with them. You should never ask the Lord to be with you, as the Lord is in you. It makes little sense to ask Christ, who is in you, to be with you. The Holy Spirit is also with us.

There is also the sealing of the 144,000, which is in keeping with the Old Testament teachings and not with the Church Age. The Holy Spirit produces the character of Jesus Christ during the Church Age; during the Millennium, it produces ecstatics, because Christ is on earth. Emotion is not a characteristic of the filling of the Holy Spirit. Its purpose is to reproduce the character of Christ.

Tongues either have demon-produced or psychologically produced ecstatics. They are strictly apostate, 100%. Some people don’t like that; and that is why there are exits in Berachah Church. This is called rightly dividing the Word of Truth.

Sullivan Law in NY. One shopkeeper had been robbed 5 times, so he procured a gun and shot the next thief. The shopkeeper went to jail. What about the Ten Commandments? You will not murder is what it says. Murder is a terrible sin, but not killing.

Isa. 41:10: faith rest technique can claim this promise; “Do not fear for I am in you” is the proper understanding of this promise. David prayed for God not to take the Holy Spirit from him. The Holy Spirit can be quenched or grieved, but not removed.

Jesus Christ cannot come on this earth during the Church Age. He cannot come to the earth as Messiah; He is Messiah to Israel, not to us.

There will be darkness here, just as there was darkness when our Lord died for our sins.

Zech. 10:5 And they shall be like mighty ones who trample the mud of the streets in the battle. And they shall fight because Jehovah is with them, and they shall make the riders of horses ashamed.

As a result, Jesus Christ returns to the earth, and vv. 6–7 is the deliverance of the people at the 2^nd advent. God has in His Word promises for deliverance in a difficult situation. God gives them a good mental attitude. They are given concentration in their thinking. You must have doctrine and be able to apply it under pressure.

When Christ actually reigns on this earth, there will be no need for weapons of war. There will also be a perfect economy and a perfect environmental situation. The justice of God can, because of the cross, and man is reconciled and God is propitiated. God is free to love humanity, even though humanity is unlovable. When a person believes in Jesus Christ, his sin nature and sins are no longer an issue. Mercy describes God’s love for the believer.

Zech. 10:6 And I will make stronger the house of Judah [the southern kingdom], and I will save the house of Joseph [= the 10 northern tribes, sometimes called Israel and sometimes called Ephraim]. And I will return to save them, for I have pity on them. And they shall be as though I had not cast them off, for I am Jehovah their God, and I will answer them.

God has not cast the Jews off. There will be a place at which they can be regathered. There are a group of men in Jerusalem. However, those in Ephraim are seen as cowards. Psalm 78:9. A lot of people know doctrine but never apply it. The children of Ephraim, armed and carrying bows, turned back in the day of battle. Doctrine converts a coward into a hero.

Ephraim is converted through Bible doctrine. The analogy is, wine on the inside changes the overt behavior pattern, just as doctrine in the inside changes their overt behavior. This is an analogous idiom. As a result of being courageous, they preserve their families. Ephraim comes in and they fight too. Doctrine changes their mental attitude. Because they fight, their children will see the 2^nd advent of Christ.

There are mothers who march on Washington with placards saying, “We don’t want our sons to die.” Well, who does? Families of believers are all standing in Bible doctrine. The fathers are fighting and the children are able to see the coming of Jesus Christ.

Zech. 10:7 And Ephraim shall be like a mighty one, and their heart shall be glad as by wine. And their sons shall see and be glad; their heart shall rejoice in Jehovah.

Jesus Christ, at His return, will whistle for the Jews to return, as He has redeemed them. He paid for them. Believers will live on the earth with Jesus Christ.

The linen garments of the High Priest on the Day of Atonement are covered with blood and that is the 1^st advent. Then the High Priest will change into his magnificent uniform, which will mark the 2^nd advent.

Zech. 10:8 I will whistle for them and gather them, for I have redeemed them. And they shall multiply as they were multiplied.

V. 9 goes back to the administration of discipline. This really answers a question, which, by the syntax between vv. 8–9; why do You whistle, Lord? V. 9 answers this.

Zech. 10:9 And I will sow them among the peoples, and they shall remember Me in far countries, and they shall live with their sons and return.

Egypt enslaved the Jews. Assyrian enslaved the 10 tribes. Bob heard this eloquent speaker, Dan = Denmark, etc., and people buy it because he was so eloquent (I think this is Garner Ted Armstrong?).

The Saxons were vilianous in England. Replaced by the Normans? There was a lot of intermarriage with Scandinavian people. There are some left over from the Romans, many Germans, some Welsh. The Caledonians became the Scots and they are entirely different. They are Gaelic. What the British people are not are Jews.

There has never been a time when the 10 lost tribes were lost. God has always known where they are. Some are in Miami and some are in Houston.

Lebanon belongs to the Jews and so does Transjordania. There will be such a population explosion that there will be no room for them.

Zech. 10:10 And I will return to save them out of the land of Egypt and gather them out of Assyria. And I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon, for room shall not be found for them.

There is no anti-Semitic nation which will be able to hinder the regathering of Israel.

Zech. 10:11 And He shall pass through the sea of distress and strike the waves in the sea, and all the depths of the Nile shall dry up. And the pride of Assyria shall be brought down, and the scepter of Egypt shall go away.

Zech. 10:12 And I will make them strong in Jehovah, and they shall walk up and down in His name, says Jehovah.

vv. 1–11 are the false shepherds; vv. 12–14 the good shepherd; vv. 15–17 the idle shepherd. The goats are the enemies without; the Selucid dynasty. The stave of grace is broken in 70 a.d. and another one also for 70 a.d. although this appears to be prose, it is actually poetry.

Open is a Qal imperative. From 30 a.d. forward, the Temple had been a place of blasphemy. Once the permanent contract is established, the temporary contracts have been scratched. However, the Jews continued to offer animal sacrifices. The temporary contracts reveal Christ before the cross. People were still saved by believing in Jesus Christ. The Law was a shadow of good things to come, but it was without substance when it comes to salvation.

The 2^nd Temple eventually had to be discontinued. The Jews were given 40 years to discontinue offering up sacrifices. Jesus Christ slaughtered this one child, and the rest followed him in a frenzy.

Roman soldiers made an assault on the Temple and they threw fire brands over the walls. Titus himself tried to stop this. Jews who had been all over the city began to run for the hill yelling, “Stop the fire.” The Romans thought the Jews were going to be attacked, but thousands of Jews threw themselves upon the fire in the Temple.

Josephus was there as an eyewitness and he said that the blood and fire was mingled. There are these many factions who were slaughtered by the Romans. They fought each other and the Romans as well.

The fir tree refers to the people; the cedar refers to the Temple. People came from all over, out of caves are various hiding places, and threw themselves on the fire; and the fire and the blood seemed to be in equal quantities, according to Josephus.

The oaks of Bashan refers to the religious unbelievers. The religious people also seem to become involved here. There were 3 systems of fortifications; the outer walls. Often a sharp points. Often a triangulation. Outer walls and inner walls. Jesus Christ predicted that these walls would be destroyed.

On one side of Jerusalem is the valley of Jehoshaphat and the Valley of Hinnom on the other were natural barriers. The Jews fought with fantastic and fanatical courage. It is one time in history where both sides showed fantastic courage.

Zech. 11:2 Howl, fir tree, for the cedar has fallen, because the majestic trees have been destroyed. Howl, O oaks of Bashan, for the inaccessible forest [the fortified forest] has come down.

There is a voice of screaming. The shepherds could no longer think. They just screamed.

Religious leadership, call the shepherds, and political leadership, called the young lions.

The religious leaders were backed by a fantastic monetary system. This is the glorious spoil which is taken from them. The pride of Jordan is the Temple and the Temple treasure. Robbers in Jerusalem during the entire siege.

As the Romans moved in, the Jews moved closer to Jerusalem. They had a lot of confidence in Jerusalem. Bandits went from house to house and robbed people while the Romans were fighting the Jewish soldiers. Crime was fantastic. There was no controlling of crime for 6 months of 2 million people.

Sicari are those with a curved blade. Both sides are sharpened. They liked to ram it into someone’s stomach. Many died by the Sicar. Their favorite trick was assassination.

Paul stood before the Sanhedrin and claimed to be of a good conscience; and Annanias, the high priest, asked for Paul to he hit in the mouth. Paul called him a whited sepulcher. “You have brought me in to judge me, but God is about to judge you.” Paul had been struck; and warns that God would strike them. Annanias was quite a gangster and he had robber barron contacts and allowed them to function for a bribe.

There was a civil war between the zealots and the moderates. The zealots tried to kill off the moderates, except when they fought off the Romans on the wall. The zealots had lost all reason. Zealots on one wall and moderates on another; and then the zealots would attack the moderates. More were killed fighting each other until the Romans actually burst through the walls. Because they fought each other, they got no sleep; and there were many killed.

The third great factor would have been starvation. The zealots and the moderates were fighting at the grainery with about a 50 years supply of grain. The zealots got crazy and they burned down the whole grain supply. Then everyone began to starve. It is amazing that this small Jewish army held out. One person said he was safer on the walls fighting the Romans than fighting those in the city. In 2 weeks, the rats and mice were all gone (Jerusalem had a very large rat population).

Within 6 months time, without the use of modern weapons, 1,100,000 people were actually slaughtered in the fighting.

There was also a great system of torture. Robbers tortured their victims; the moderates and zealots tortured each other; and the Romans, once they broke into the city, began to torture the people.

The 97,000 survivors were sold into slavery. The tough ones were trained as gladiators. There were those who were sent to the salt mines.

Zechariah will warn the people about this thing. Luke 20:19–20: And a hair of your head shall in no way perish. By your patience you will gain your souls. What has been described is what the unbelieving Jews had happen to them. Patience is the application of known Bible doctrine to the situation.

Luke 21:20–24: And when you see Jerusalem being encircled by armies, then recognize that its destruction has come near [the destruction of Jerusalem is about to come to them]. Then let those in Judea flee into the mountains; and those in its midst, let them go out. And those in the open spaces [those who are out in the country], let them not go into her. For these are days of vengeance when all things that have been written are to be fulfilled [Lev. 26:27ff]. But woe to the pregnant women, and the ones suckling in those days; for great distress will be on the earth and wrath on this people [it is hard to get out when you are pregnant or have small children]. And they will fall by the mouth of the sword and will be led captive to all the nations. And Jerusalem will be trodden down by nations, until the times of the nations are fulfilled [this will be completed at the 2^nd advent].

Lev. 26:27–35: If you will not listen to Me for this, and shall walk contrary to Me, then I also will walk contrary to you in fury. I also will chastise you, I also, seven times for your sins. And you shall eat of the flesh of your sons, and you shall eat of the flesh of your daughters [this was a shock, as the Jewish families were close]. And I shall destroy your high places and cut down your altars, and shall put your dead bodies on the carcasses of your idols. And My soul shall loathe you. And I shall make your cities a waste, and shall make your sanctuaries desolate; and I shall not smell your sweet fragrances [no more animal sacrifices]. And I shall make the land desolate, and your enemies who are living in it shall be astonished at it. And I will scatter you among nations, and shall draw out the sword after you, and your land shall become a waste, and your cities shall be a desolation. Then the land shall enjoy its sabbaths, all the days of the desolation. And you shall be in the land of your enemies; then the land shall enjoy rest, and shall enjoy its sabbaths. It shall rest all the days of the desolation, that which it has not rested in your sabbaths while you lived on it.

Lev 26:36–38: And those who are left of you, I shall also bring a faintness into their hearts in the lands of their enemies; and the sound of a driven leaf shall chase them; and they shall flee, as one flees from the sword; and they shall fall when no one pursues. And they shall stumble upon one another, as if it were before the sword, when no one pursues. And you shall have no power to stand before your enemies. And you shall perish among the nations, and the land of your enemies shall devour you.

Lev 26:39 And of those who are left of you, they shall putrefy in their iniquity, in the lands of your enemies; and also in the iniquities of their fathers, they shall putrefy with them.

Lev 26:40–41: And if they shall confess their iniquity, and the iniquity of their fathers, in their trespass with which they have trespassed against Me; and, also, that they have walked contrary to Me, that I also have walked contrary to them, and I have brought them into the land of their enemies; if their uncircumcised hearts are then humbled, and they then have accepted punishment for their iniquity; this is all about God forgiving believers who name their sins.

God does not do this arbitrarily. We are warned by the proclaiming of the gospel itself. Divine judgment can be expected from God.

Priests and the prophets warned the people. The priest taught the written word; the prophet the spoken word. The prophet gives the warnings here.

Zech. 11:3 A voice of the wailing of the shepherds is heard, for their splendor is destroyed. A voice of the roaring of young lions is heard, for the pride of Jordan is destroyed.

The command to warn the people of Zechariah’s generation as well. The flock of slaughter are those who will be destroyed because of their negative volition.

The prose prophecy begins in vv. 5–6. Israel is abandoned by 3 categories. By the Romans (the possessors), by their shepherds (the Jewish leaders) and the Lord Himself.

The triumphant led the land, Crasis, Pompey and Ceaesar. Eventually, Cæsar won out. If the Jews had all been pro-Roman, they would have probably prospered a great deal.

Nero came from the Hannabarbi, one of the most famous families; but he was a thorough jackass and insane. The only light at their parties, they light up Christians covered with oil or something.

Titus inherited from his father military brains. Also he got one of the most beautiful woman of all time, surviving daughter or granddaughter of Herod; mistress of Vespacion and mistress of Titus. He refused to marry her, even though he was very much in love. Titus was the one who was there when the Romans broke through.

Simon bar Gierra, John of Gisscalla, and Eleazar bar Simon were the 3 primary leaders inside of Jerusalem when the Roman legion was outside of Jerusalem?

Zech. 11:5 Those who buy them kill them and are not held guilty. And those who sell them say, Blessed be Jehovah, for I am rich. And their shepherds do not pity them.

Abandoned by God because they rejected Him. Simon bar Gera headed the bandits; the gangsters. They went from house to house and robbed everyone. The Romans took it from them and killed them. John of Bescalla, who commanded the zealots. He held troops to attack the moderates and those who liked Rome. He even allowed Arabs to come in and plunder the city. Eleazar headed another zealot party, and they disagreed with the first zealot party.

Eleazar barracaded the temple at the time of the Passover. He figured he would fortify the Temple and keep everyone out. They thought if they could just get in, and they fought hard to do it. John tried to get in. He agreed to lay down his arms to go in to worship one day, but they went in with weapons and killed the other zealots.

This woman with a lot of jewelry and she was tortured to get her jewelry. Then she had some grain, and tortured her to get grain. She later cooked her own baby, and ate part of it and those same type people came by again. She gave up the food without being tortured.

Zech. 11:6 For I will never again pity those living in the land, says Jehovah. But, behold! I will cause to be found the men, each one into his neighbor's hand, and into his king's hand. And they shall strike the land, and I will not deliver out of their hand.

A true democracy cannot exist without becoming anarchy. Two worst places for freedom is a democracy and a complete dictatorship. It is absolutely necessary for the kingdom of Judah to be a recipient of certain types of divine revelation. The termination of the fifth cycle of discipline is the 2^nd advent.

Feed the flock means that there would be a crash program in learning Bible doctrine.

Zechariah assumes the responsibility of teaching. Zechariah has 3 flocks. Message of the staves for those prior to 70 a.d. He will teach a generation starting at 67 a.d., which is where Zechariah and Hebrews cross.

Zech. 11:7 And I fed the flock of slaughter, the truly poor of the flock. And I took two staffs for Myself: the one I called Kindness, and the other I called Union. And I fed the flock.

The Jewish nation had prophets whose job it was to convey the spoken Word of God. Sometimes God spoke to them directly and sometimes by dreams, visions or God speaking directly to them.

The Brigans would cut off an estate and go in and rob them. The Romans were originally confined to a small area; Caesarea. They saw that Jerusalem was being fortified.

Mesolina is probably the most famous nymphomaniac in history and second to her is Agripina.

Agrippa I had 3 famous children: Agrippa II, Bernice (the most beautiful woman in the ancient world);

Napoleon Bonaparte had a very stable government and one of the few with such a stable government.

The siege of Jerusalem is one of the most documented siege and one of the most horrible of all time.

Zech. 11:8 I also cut off three shepherds in one month. And My soul loathed them, and their soul also detested Me.

Zechariah says here. Mothers even pulled food out of their children’s hands. Some took food out of people’s hands who were dying. They drank the flood of people and divided their bodies for feasts.

Luke 21:20–24: "But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near. Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, and let those who are inside the city depart, and let not those who are out in the country enter it, for these are days of vengeance, to fulfill all that is written. Alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! For there will be great distress upon the earth and wrath against this people. They will fall by the edge of the sword and be led captive among all nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. Some went back into the cities, and the Romans were coming, and they would kill them. Those who left the city were saved by the 1000's.

Zech. 11:9 Then I said, I will not feed you; that which dies, let it die; and that which is to be cut off, let it be cut off. And let the ones remaining, each woman, eat the flesh of her neighbor.

Zech. 11:10 And I took My staff Kindness and broke it apart, to break My covenant which I had cut with all the peoples.

Zech. 11:11 And it was broken in that day, and so the poor of the flock who were watching Me knew that it was the Word of Jehovah.

Now this is the final siege of Jerusalem, which will be in focus for the last 3 verses, Zech. 12 and half of 14.

Rejection of the cross and rejection of the good shepherd will be the key here. Believe in Christ or reject Christ. If they reject Him, they are destitute. Zechariah’s warning in v. 11; a warning for 40 yeas by the gift of tongues. When the fall of Jerusalem came, there was no more tongues.

Zech. 11:12 And I said to them, If it is good in your eyes, give My price; and if not, let it go. And they weighed My price, thirty pieces of silver.

The 30 pieces of silver is the slave gored by a bull. This in itself is a definite warning. “When Messiah comes, you will not give to Him His price (which is faith).”

nearly 550 years after this prophecy, it was fulfilled. Judas Iscariot was so in love with money, he would steal from the treasury. Even though money was everything to him and he would betray the Lord for it; and he still threw it away. He did not even negociate a full price.

Judas became so psychotic, he threw the silver away and took his own life. Two accounts of his suicide. He hung himself. The details of life were not enough to sustain him. Once he had it, it brought him nothing but misery.

Zech. 11:13 And Jehovah said to Me, Throw it to the potter, the magnificent price at which I was valued by them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw it to the potter in the house of Jehovah.

Zech. 11:14 Then I broke apart My second staff Union, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.

Zech. 11:15 And Jehovah said to me, Again take to yourself the vessels of a foolish shepherd.

The foolish shepherd is the dictator of Palestine. Willful king, the false prophet, the beast out of the land, he that will eat the flesh; the idle shepherd. 3 titles and 3 descriptions. That last great dictator of the Jews; he is the warning of the terrible events of the last half of the Tribulation.

There will be 3 and possibly 4 great invasions. There will be internal dissension. The shepherd is called foolish. He will not perform the normal functions of a ruler.

He is called an idle shepherd because of the abomination of desolation. The right eye is the sign of intelligence. He is unable to cope with events at the end of the Tribulation. These 3 verses give us a beginning to the next chapter.

Zech. 11:16 For, lo, I will raise up a shepherd in the land; he shall not visit those who are cut off, nor will he seek the young, nor will he heal that which is broken, nor will he sustain that which stands. But he shall eat the flesh of the fat, and tear off their hoofs.

Zech. 11:17 Woe to the worthless shepherd who abandons the flock! The sword shall be against his arm and against his right eye. His arm shall be completely withered, and his right eye shall be totally darkened.

Daniel 11:36 begins an introduction to Zech. 12. The siege of Jerusalem is the last event before the return of Jesus Christ. Tribulation is the end of the Jewish age. Abrahm to Moses is the patriarchal period; then Moses to Christ is the age of the Law. Interruption of the Church Age. Then the church is taken out of the way.

A period of power politics. Roman dictator (king of the west), king of the North (Russia), king of the East (Red China) and the king of the South (the Pan-Arabic bloc). Whoever controls the Suez Canal and the Bosporus? Controls 3 continents. These powers are analogous to what will occur

Satan, as ruler of the world, desires to destroy the Jews. He wants to annihilate Israel.

Daniel 11:36 "And the king shall do as he wills. He shall exalt himself and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak astonishing things against the God of gods. He shall prosper till the indignation is accomplished; for what is decreed shall be done.

Daniel 11:37 He shall pay no attention to the gods of his fathers, or to the one beloved by women. He shall not pay attention to any other god, for he shall magnify himself above all.

Our country could be tied in, either religiously or in some other way with the Roman empire. If we are stupid enough to be taken over by a religious system or taken under the influence of a decadent Rome.

There is nothing good about western Europe today. They are decadent and foolish today. We fed the Italians. During the final 2 years of the war, Italians lived on k rations shared with them by GI’s.

Europe ought to be extremely grateful, but they are not. Today, you cannot find a college professor who does not worship at the shrine of neo-classicism or the 16^th, 17^th centuries.

The French in WWII lasted 90 days before they were beat down. In the future, the United States is going to be a part of European decadence. We will be one of the toes.

This helps to explain Revelation; there are two beasts, one a gentile and one a Jew. This is a prophetical reference to that in Daniel. The first beast wants an acceptance of his religion and he wants money. That is what is going on. Maybe it is the first beast who erects his own statue in the Temple?

Daniel 11:38 He shall honor the god of fortresses instead of these. A god whom his fathers did not know he shall honor with gold and silver, with precious stones and costly gifts.

His internal policy. With the help of a strange God and those who acknowledge him are those who bring him into power. He is not a real messiah but a false messiah. He will divide the land amongst his gangster friends. This is a dictator who will be involved because of his alliance.

Daniel 11:39 He shall deal with the strongest fortresses with the help of a foreign god. Those who acknowledge him he shall load with honor. He shall make them rulers over many and shall divide the land for a price.

The Arabic countries attempt to enter the land, but the Jews have a good enough army to keep them out. The Arabs and Jews have been at war for a long time.

You always kill off a lot of men when generals make mistakes. The Russians were way behind during the industrial revolution. It really began in Prussia and next to it was Silesia. Some discovered coal on the ground and they figured out, that is what makes factories run. Frederich the Great (the II), and he had accepted French into his country for a long time. He took Silesia and Catherine the Great sent him a hot letter saying, “You cannot do that.” He then beat the French, Russian and Austrian army. They fought a battle outside of Berlin and in one day, 50,000 people were killed in a one day battle.

They built a railroad out to Siberia. Then they decided to go all the way to the Pacific Ocean.

The Russian navy goes in for missile cruisers and submarines. The operate in the Atlantic, the Pacific, etc.; and they operate out of the Black Sea. They are building all of these roads out there. At some point, they will come through the back door on these roads.

When the king of the north realizes the Arabs are there, he goes into action. Black Sea, Bosporus, and one is by sea and one is by land. They will move down and hit Syria and possibly go through Turkey. They will hit Egypt with a land army. The dictator in Russia will regroup. Only South Africa is on the gold standard today. They are the only nation which works for the Blacks and whites. They allow a limited number of people to enter into the cities, so there are no slums or pockets of poverty.

He will enter into Iran or Iraq and eventually into Egypt. A naval and a land force.

Daniel 11:40 "At the time of the end, the king of the south shall attack him, but the king of the north shall rush upon him like a whirlwind, with chariots and horsemen, and with many ships. And he shall come into countries and shall overflow and pass through.

The king of the north will enter into Israel, and this is a detail. This is what happened along the way. The many is a title for the Jews. The Palestinian government will be overthrown. In the first half of the Tribulation, many Jews were saved, and they escaped to the mountains of Moab, Edom and Ammon.

Daniel 11:41 He shall come into the glorious land. And tens of thousands shall fall, but these shall be delivered out of his hand: Edom and Moab and the main part of the Ammonites.

Now to Matt. 24: This disciples were impressed with the beautiful structure of the Temple more so than with what Jesus was saying. Jesus told them, He would destroy it.

Matt. 24:5 For many will come in my name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and they will lead many astray.

There will always be poverty and there will always be wars. No one can eliminate either. You can reduce the number of wars by winning wars. Bob does not like to keep fighting someone for an hour; he wants to take care of them in a few minutes. It never pays to prolong a fight. To stop war, you need to be prepared, and when you fight, you need to hit hard. One nuclear weapon used on Hiphong, and this will close them down.

We look weak in front of everyone else and everyone else wants a shot at us. Our planners did so poorly in Korea and in Vietnam that we will have to fight WWIII. You cannot have peace and quiet under the circumstances that we find ourselves in today.

Churches advocate disarmament. They ought to be the ones telling the state, let’s get a stronger military.

Matt. 24:6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet.

Matt. 24:7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places.

Here begins the Tribulation. The inquisition and the Jews in Spain. We do not know what the meaning is when it comes to assassination. Romanism has the greatest record of assassination. Religion has killed more than any other organization in the human race.

Matt. 24:9 "Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for My name's sake.

Matt. 24:10 And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another.

Matt. 24:12 And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold.

Matt. 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

Here is how these are preserved. The Jews are accepting this as their official religion. An image is put up in the Holy of Holies, and Jews who have believed in Jesus Christ are told what to do.

Matt. 24:15 "So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand),

Matt. 24:17 Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house,

Matt. 24:18 and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak.

Matt. 24:19 And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days!

The Jews are safe in 3 mountainous areas: Edom in the south; Moab’s mountains off to the east; and Ammon’s mountains off to the northeast.

Matt. 24:21 For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be.

Matt. 24:22 And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.

They will go to the mountains and cry out, “Jesus Christ is here.” They will try to lure people out of these mountains. “Messiah is here; you can return.”

The instructions are simple. Flee and then stay in the caves. Do not believe these reports that Messiah has returned.

Matt. 24:23 Then if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or 'There he is!' do not believe it.

There will be a lot of healing; there will be tongues. There will be a lot of impressive things. Some will get lured out?

Bob always wanted to preach a good sermon; he will just string together a lot of words which do not make sense. People are impressed by things that they do not understand. Stand pat; stick with the Word. Christ coming will be like a bolt of lightning.

Matt. 24:24 For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if [1^st class condition] possible, even the elect.

Matt. 24:26 So, if they say to you, 'Look, he is in the wilderness,' do not go out. If they say, 'Look, he is in the inner rooms,' do not believe it.

Matt. 24:27 For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.

This is the king of the north again. He has arrived in Egypt and Egypt will not be delivered.

Daniel 11:42 He shall stretch out his hand against the countries, and the land of Egypt shall not escape.

There will be great treasures gotten in Egypt. Then he will conquer all of Africa. He will need to control the Mediterranean coast because he will operate in the Mediterranean Sea. He will use a strategic envelopment along with strategic penetration with group A and B.

He regroups in Egypt, but this plan is never launched. He has to have a base in Africa, which he will have in Egypt.

Daniel 11:43 He shall become ruler of the treasures of gold and of silver, and all the precious things of Egypt, and the Libyans and the Cushites shall follow in his train.

He will hear news from the east and the north. The kings out of the East probably cross the Euphrates and move into the land as per Isa. 63 and they cut off his strong points. They will be in the Valley of Isdralen. His first and last stop will be Jerusalem. This is where we pick up Zech. 12.

Daniel 11:44 But news from the east and the north shall alarm him, and he shall go out with great fury to destroy and devote many to destruction.

Find the Dead Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, and you draw the line through the holy mountain, which is Jerusalem. There will be a command post right on the western edge of Jerusalem.

There will be believers and religious unbelievers. The unbelievers will surrender immediately. Believers will hold out because they have leadership.

Daniel 11:45 And he shall pitch his palatial tents between the sea and the glorious holy mountain. Yet he shall come to his end, with none to help him.

There are 2 born-again generals who will lead the Jews inthis mess. They will inspire the believers of Jerusalem to resist.

Envy is a very intensive mental attitude sins. Mental attitude sins produce self-induced misery. These mental attitude sins are usually the basis for other sins, and the Piel stem indicates intensification. Prov. 6:16–19 are the 7 sins which God abominates, and 3 of them are mental attitude sins. Satan is called a murderer from the beginning. 3 passages on the killing of Abel in the New Testament. In 1John 3:12, Cain used the sacrificial knife to kill Abel.

There is no place in the world where you can be and be more out of fellowship with mental attitude sins. Guilt complex or judging or jealousy or anger put you out of fellowship. You will not get anything out of Bible class if you are entertaining mental attitude sins.

The object here is probably an unbeliever who is living it up and is possibly a real stinker and he pisses you off and you want what he has. You drive to Berachah Church every night in a beat up old car and they are driving a brand new whatever.

In a crisis, you must get your eyes off people. One of the occupational hazards is jealousy of other people. You cannot have anything and be jealous.

Self-consciousness, mentality, volition, emotion, conscience (norms and standards) and the old sin nature make up the soul. The Christian way of life in phase II as designed in the Old Testament is so that you can have 2 kinds of love.

ἀγαπ love is something which is only possible when you have no mental attitude sins. Once you get away from having mental attitude sins habitually, you develop philos, which resides in the emotion, and is a rapport love.

Hannibal, Julius Ceasar, Alexander the Great, Gestalvus Adolphus, Frederick the Great; Napoleon were the greatest generals of all time, and all of different personalities, and different backgrounds and different national origins. They all had a fantastic mental attitude. When they conquered a city and it was resistant, they did not indulge in mental attitude sins. Adolphus was the only born-again believer among this group. He is called the father of modern warfare. He did not depend upon the land for rations. This stopped his army from stealing and plundering. He invented rations.

Socialism breeds mental attitude sins. There is jealousy and all other mental attitude sins develop from there. Any form of socialism encourages mental attitude sins.

Money is a necessary detail of life. Money is not evil nor is success nor is pleasure. Social life is not wrong. Friends are okay. When these things are emphasized or if you have mental attitude sins, then these things make you miserable. Miserable with sex, materialistic things and status symbols.

Do not have an intense desire to participate in the details of life. Such a believer will exclude Bible doctrine from his scale of values.

The heart refers to the mentality of the soul; it can be a believer or an unbeliever (an unbeliever in this context). Jealousy must make those around miserable. Jealousy causes a person to want to hurt. Usually there is some reaction here. Jealousy, Carmen gets jealous, drops the soldier for the toreador,

The house represents the believer’s soul. This is a 6-room house. To build means growth, function. Niphal stem is the passive of the Qal stem.

They performed magnificently as great heroes. In the pressure, they were able to perform; pressure did not deter them.

The protection of a country depends upon the maximum number of people having the right mental attitude. Bob looks through the groups of people for the Robert Kennedy assassination, and he looks at the people around him, and would never have any of them, apart from Rayford Johnson, in his own outfit.

A Jewish psychologist saw through the whole thing. People who get into these kinds of things that, when in a crisis, they cannot do anything other than emote. Mental attitude sins have become the order of the day. One man gets shot and people fall apart. If a series of shots from a .22 automatic sends people into crisis mode, what would they do if pinned down by an enemy barrage?

Communists just need to wait for gun registration and then for guns to be picked up. Lenin school of taking over a country involves gun registration first. Mental attitude sins. Athletic performance, but all of sudden things collapse.

Minority groups stirring up trouble and they try to get things through emotional sentimentalism. It is the exclusion of mental attitude sins which cause some to rise head and shoulders above others.

Our soul is a 6-room house. Knowledge of doctrine fills up the rooms. The chambers are the rooms of the soul. They will receive filling. Everything of value depends upon your soul. Pleasant means something stimulating. The believer minus doctrine is like a person who owns an empty house. The house stands, which is comparable to positional truth, but there is no furniture or decoration. An empty house can never succeed in phase II.

Prov. 24:4 by knowledge the rooms are filled with all precious and pleasant riches.

The benefits of a positive mental attitude. A wise man is one who is taking in doctrine, and it circulates throughout his soul. He is said to be strong. It means fully of power, full of strength, full of stability. It means a strong, powerful, mental function.

A man of knowledge, a believer with Bible doctrine, increases strength. Koach is a second word for strength here. You can only build muscle on muscle. The key to muscle is based upon the joints. If you don’t have the joints to do it, then you cannot build muscle. Every set of muscles is built upon joints. An unbeliever cannot even start building.

Your overt life would pass almost anywhere. People might think that you are a spiritual giant. You might be so moral that you do not even go to the beach anymore. You cannot build a spiritual life upon mental attitude sins.

On doctrine, you can build a spiritual life; on mental attitude sins, you cannot. You cannot build on legalism, sublimation or pseudo spirituality. Knowledge of doctrine is the basis for building a spiritual life. Those who think that you are learning too much doctrine are never going to go anywhere.

Prov. 24:5 A wise man is full of strength, and a man of knowledge enhances his might,

wise counsel is a believer with doctrine in his frontal lobe and using it in his business. Doctrine is as important to his life as eating and breathing.

Prov. 24:6 for by wise guidance you can wage your war, and in abundance of counselors there is victory.

They had a nucleus of an army that day. Doctrine builds strength and strength is biuld upon strength. This can only be fulfilled with Prov. 24:1–6.

Zech. 12:5 Then the clans of Judah shall say to themselves, 'The inhabitants of Jerusalem have strength through the LORD of hosts, their God.'

In the history of Jerusalem, there have been many sieges. The Jebusites held it for a long time and Joshua did not conquer it nor did anyone immediately following Joshua.

There will be a fall of Jerusalem at the beginning of the 5^th cycle of discipline; and at the beginning of the Tribulation.

There will be a passage repeated several times. When the Jews want to give an account of an event, they give a summary account, and then they go back and fill in some details. We have the phrase in that day followed by a brief summary. The first two verse are an introduction. The Jews do not cover something chronologically step-by-step.

Some of you are looking for people, so I am going to take some time out and you can stand up and look around. Bob has everyone stand up. “If you are in the wrong place and you meant to go to mass....” Bob would like to take every one of these people and have them see all the hullabaloo which is going on. You cannot teach the Word of God when no one is listening.

Burden is a crushing weight of judgment. The assassination of President Kennedy was a Communist. The one who assassinated Senator Kennedy is a Communist as well. Communists do not like to take over countries where the civilian population is armed. That makes it very difficult for the Communists to take over.

The destruction of Rome was certain, but then Bible doctrine came and stopped it all. Those in the farming areas had moved to the cities and the government decided that they needed to feed the people to keep them mollified. However, Bible doctrine came along and settled things down.

The kings of the south, east and the north will all come through the Jerusalem area. Burden is a reference to the various kings as well. Israel is one of the few nations today which has taken a strong stand against communism. Only nations which seem to have anything on the ball are South Africa, Israel and possibly Rhodesia. They function in a moral manner. Our country functions on expediency. We have a whole generation of Americans who do not know how to stand up for that which is right. We have allowed the viper in our bosom, the UN.

Bob got a letter today from one of the men on his prayer list. The reporters have been told to make it sound like we have won a battle; and he says we have not won any battles. There is no attempt to win the war over there and it has been de-escalated for political expediency. What keeps us from complete destruction is the wall of fire which is around us. We are on the verge of going back to the dark ages. Crime is out of control. We have the tools at our disposal, like capital punishment. Lawlessness is ignored except where law-abiding citizens are involved. You can be a law-abiding citizen and get kicked around in a traffic court, but criminals have no problems. “Do you think the love-in crowd will make good soldiers? I bet that 1 in 1000 of the hippies would make a good soldier.”

A small organized force can conquer thousands of Africans, and this has been true for 3000 years. Where did they lose self-discipline? It is their music, their way of life.

There are many violent groups in this country. There is a mighty thin veneer; there is the bush staring us in the face. Two things have stopped those people: doctrine and bullets. Mary Slesher went into Africa and got a great response.

Burden is s rock which has been dropped on you and you can’t get out from under it.

Jehovah here is Jesus Christ. There are 3 identifying phrases: 1) Who stretches forth the heavens (which is the creation and the function of the universe); Jesus Christ keeps everything moving as well; billions of galaxies. Also Isa. 42:5. 2) Jesus also laid the foundations of the earth. 3) the Giver of Life. Jesus Christ formed the spirit of man within him.

Zech. 12:1 The burden from the word of the LORD [this is a title] concerning Israel: Thus declares the LORD, who stretched out the heavens and founded the earth and formed the spirit of man within him:

Jerusalem is pictured as a goblet filled with a very strong intoxicant. All of these other kings will drink of this intoxicant. 5 spheres of influence which will drink and be reeling from intoxication. As a nation, we are in the process of going down. Other nations stand by and look at us and laugh at us. They do not realize that they will lose benefits. The prosperity of our country has benefitted countries all over the world. West Germany has a great economy because of what we have provided. Same for England, Italy, etc. These nations are jealous, and so they laugh and ridicule.

Many in that day found throughout this chapter, and we are still talking about the siege of Jerusalem in this passage at the end of the Tribulation.

Zech. 12:2 "Behold, I am about to make Jerusalem a cup of staggering to all the surrounding peoples. The siege of Jerusalem will also be against Judah.

Jerusalem is a stone which cannot be lifted up and moved out of the way,. Those involved: 1) the religious unbelieving Jews, who we have already seen in Matt. 24, and they will ally themselves with the leader of the Roman empire. 2) the king of the north and his armies will be destroyed at the siege of Jerusalem. 3) the king of the west, the revived Roman empire. 4) the kings of the east, and they will be in Idomea. They will be described in Isa. 63. 5) the king of the south, which refers to the Arab.

Sarat, which means they are seeking to fight and yet they are cut to pieces. God knew the Jews would fail Him and yet, He delivered them. Go to God on the basis of grace.

Zech. 12:3 On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples. All who lift it will surely hurt themselves. And all the nations of the earth will gather against it.

There will be a lot of fighting before God delivers them. Vv. 4–5 is the great slaughter. Some of the nicest things in life are stupid.

Striking a horse with terror is incredible. There is a military illustration. The French at the Battle of Waterloo had a cavalry corps; 10,000 mounted men. Napoleon though the saw a weakness, and he told one to break the British at the point. There were 10,000 cavalry in a charge. It is like an earthquake.

You cannot move armor around in a total darkness situation. Believers will be protected by confusion in the armies of the enemy. The blindness means the enemy cannot see because of a supernatural darkness. This confuses them. Described many places: Isa. 13:9–10 Joel 2:10–11 3:15 Amos 5:18 Ezek. 32:7–8 Rev. 6:12 this is how confusion is thrown into the ranks so that believers are no annihilated.

Zech. 12:4 On that day, declares the LORD, I will strike every horse with panic [terror], and its rider with madness. But for the sake of the house of Judah I will keep my eyes open, when I strike every horse of the peoples with blindness.

The generals are out fighting and pull into Jerusalem to make a last stand. There is no verb here, as this is elliptical. The last stand of the people of Jerusalem is Jesus Christ. Unbelievers will say, “Why fight with our brothers? They will treat us well.” And they will get raped and robbed. But there are armed believers, and there are 2 generals.

Zech. 12:5 Then the clans of Judah shall say to themselves, 'The inhabitants of Jerusalem have strength through the LORD of hosts, their God.'

This is fire which is saved in a fireplace and used the next day to start a fire. When you put fire to dry grass, it lights up suddenly. There is a mental attitude divine viewpoint. They have a willingness to fight and die for a cause. They have weapons. They will fight with weapons.

The generals of history had the knack to inspire their men on the battlefield. The examples of the greatest ones are Hannibal, and he had every nationality in the world in his army. Caesar was loved by the common soldier; professors of history are disliked by people today, particularly history profs. Cicero despised him. Cæsar never plugged himself. Gestalvos Adolphus led an army of Swedes, Frederick the Great led an army of Prussians; both were well loved by their men. Great captains in history have the ability to reach the mentality of the people.

This army will shoot to kill. There is only one correct mental attitude in war. You kill in battle. To devour means to slaughter in battle. A believer ought to be the best killer in his outfit. Sgt. Alvin York and was raised as a pacifist. When he was drafted into the military and he was on the verge of getting out and he thought about it and stayed in and got the Congressional Medal of Honor. Even born-again believers who murder ought to be executed; but as a born-again believer in the military, you ought to be the greatest killer in your unit.

We are free because men have gone to war and killed. Some of you have never been on a team and don’t know what it means to go all out to win. The idea of the national council of churches has gone out of its way to cause Americans to lose their lives in war; and our country has set up so many rules so that we cannot win in Vietnam. They don’t have ammunition even. One of our rules is not to bomb Hanoi, and drop one bomb near the border of China to keep them from coming over to see what is going on. “This will ruin our public relations image.” Bob never worried about that. He never had any trouble in high school. He never accepted a beating; that was temporary. He kept going back. He got respect that way.

Some pastors have to have people like them. Our whole way of thinking has been distorted.

There is a time to fight, and you have to make up your mind to fight; that is all there is to it. There is a time you have to stop running. Everyone has to face this. Mentally they are cowards. If you run mentally, you are going to be a coward. Take a big boy in football who doesn’t want to get hit.

This nucleus which resists. The swords will be turned into plowshares after Jesus Christ returns. A mental attitude based on Bible doctrine causes them to resist. Jerusalem will be inhabited. Jerusalem will be inhabited and live in blessing. Rev. 21:2, 10, and elsewhere.

Zech. 12:6 "On that day I will make the clans of Judah like a blazing pot in the midst of wood, like a flaming torch among sheaves. And they shall devour to the right and to the left all the surrounding peoples, while Jerusalem shall again be inhabited in its place, in Jerusalem.

You may see anyone walk in here. They might have long hair and a robe; just act like its normal and you do this as well.

The first couple verses was an intro. You often have a general covering of a subject and then you have a specific and then you have another specific.

The inhabitants of Jerusalem is found several times. These are Jews under maximum pressure when this city is being sieged. First in v. 5, then 6. The siege of Jerusalem. The inhabitants of Jerusalem are saved in the Tribulation. In the 2^nd half?

People appear to live in the Millennium in perfect environment but with their sin natures. A mental attitude sin here is pride and most people do not have the ability to spot pride.

You can always spot pride when it is connected to expressed sensitivity. The expression of his sensitivity is his pride sneaking through. If Jesus Christ had delivered the inhabitants of Jerusalem before those of Judah, there might have been some reason for pride. City boys and country boys. If Christ simply delivered the inhabitants of Jerusalem first, the city boys would be magnifying themselves over the country boys. Under perfect environment, the sins which occur as mental attitude sins. Here, magnify refers to pride. The LORD will save the tents of Judah first, so that the glory of David's house and the glory of Jerusalem's residents may not be greater than that of Judah.

Jesus Christ came the first time as Savior and the second time as King of Kings. The tents of Judah refer to those who live outside of the city of Jerusalem, those who live in the southern portion of Palestine; and they would be delivered first.

Matt. 3:11: John the baptizer is speaking here: "I baptize you with water for repentance, but the One who is coming after me is more powerful than I. I am not worthy to take off His sandals. He Himself will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

The ante-deluvian civilization had perfect weather and no rain. There was a perfect air conditioning system where the water was evaporated but not rained.

Bob was teaching the ante-deluvian civilizations, one of them is Charlie Clough. One of them wrote a paper on the weather conditions of the antediluvian civilization.

Adam and the woman began the first human civilization. After their fall, they were believers and they began a civilization. A civilization begins with believers only and ends with a catastrophe. The next civilization is the post-deluvian civilization and it is a believer only begun civilization. You develop the population and there are believers and unbelievers both. The judgment of the flood, which removes all unbelievers. The baptism of fire will remove all unbelievers. The 3^rd civilization is the Millennium. It begins with 1000's of believers, some gentiles and some Jews. The Millennium terminates with a great catastrophe, which is the destruction of the universe; and all unbelievers are cast into the Lake of Fire. A civilization requires removing unbelievers from the world.

Dispensations the Age of Gentiles, one race and one language which is terminated at the first UN building. Innocence, sinfulness, nationalism. Age of Israel, which is the patriarchs, the nation, and Tribulation. The Church Age is the Angelic Conflict shifting gears.

The saved population which survives the Tribulation will go into the Millennium and they will live at least 1000 years.

Matt. 25 are parables dealing with the 2^nd advent. Wise and the foolish virgins; wise virgins go in and the foolish ones go out.

Matt. 24:34: I assure you: This race will certainly not pass away until all these things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away. Satan will do everything he can to destroy the Jews. Anti-semitism will not be honored by God in any way and the right wing of this country has lost out because of its anti-Semitism.

People think of subjects and then write pamphlets on them, and then send them into the government printing office to print them up. This is a specific promise that the Jews will last forever. They have been the most persecuted race in the world. Spain was going to lead the world as a nation, but then got involved in anti-Semitism and they became a 3^rd rate nation.

There is a parallelism. There is this comparison between the time of Noah and the 2^nd advent. Matt. 24:37–39: As the days of Noah were, so the coming of the Son of Man will be. For in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah boarded the ark. They didn't know until the flood came and swept them all away. So this is the way the coming of the Son of Man will be. People will be carrying on with life without any thought to what is going on.

There are those who come to Berachah on Sundays, at the 2^nd service, but they do not go to Bible class. There are a lot of believers who have no interest in the Word of God.

In the illustration of Matt. 24, none of those things are sinful. Bob does not want the father to answer, in the wedding, “Who gives this woman away?” and he says, “I and my wife do.” That is pitiful. The man is the head of the household. His wife is one with him. His wife, in the concept of marriage, owns only 49% of the stock.

We are dealing here with legitimate social life. Bob has heard clucks deal with the passage, and they give a booze sermon and talk about the rapture. None of this is correct.

You can get involved in social life. Bob used to play chess 2 games a night when there was no Bible class every night. An avid chess player often needs a haircut, his clothes are rumpled, etc. Take a bridge fan. It isn’t sinful; it takes brains to play this game. Avid bridge fans can sit down and play all weekend. There are certain types of social life which exclude everything else.

That is all that is going on; a strong social life which excludes the Word of God. There will be millions of people who are indifferent to any spiritual claim whatsoever.

Matt. 24;40–44: Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and one left. Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and one left. Therefore be alert, since you don't know what day your Lord is coming. But know this: If the homeowner had known what time the thief was coming, he would have stayed alert and not let his house be broken into. This is why you also must be ready, because the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.

God the Holy Spirit indwells believers in the church and in the Millennium. All believers are indwelt by the Spirit. What about the Tribulation? There are 7 more years after the ministry of Jesus Christ. They are picked up after the Church Age. The same situation with the indwelling of the Spirit during the Tribulation as the rest of the time.

These believers in Jerusalem cannot say that they are superior to other believers. The citizens of Jerusalem have always had a superiority complex.

Zech. 12:7 "And the LORD will give salvation to the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem may not surpass that of Judah.

The courage of the remnant. Previous verse was the pride factor; this verse is about their courage. Feeble here is someone who has no strength to meet the crisis. Some of them have no effectiveness when it comes to weaponry. Whatever they lack, they make up with mental attitude.

No one should play football if they do not like bodily contact. They have to love to hit to crash into others. Whatever a person lacks in size can make up for in mental attitude. Take a boy who likes bodily contact, if he does not play football, he is going to get in a lot of fights. Some of the best athletes in the world don’t play football because they do not like bodily contact.

These people do not have the best weapons or the best training, but they have the correct mental attitude. They have the will to shoot to kill.

The attorney general today cannot distinguish between killing and murder. This is Ramsey Clarke. He suggests that we abolish the death penalty for all federal crimes, including for Sirhan Sirhan. You cannot believe what this is; this will increase our crime rate. The whole Biblical principle is to exterminate mad dogs. If the Amorites were not destroyed, there would be no human race today. All people have sin natures and certain activities and proclivities exist in people which are destructive to the human race. They were sacrificing their children and they were involved in bestiality.

People who are involved in any kind of crime will try to turn this into a federal crime so they won’t be killed. If Bob was president, this man would be fired. This statement borders on being idiotic. The crime rate is going up.

They attempt to defend themselves, but grace comes in and defends them. God honors the application of doctrine.

When you go into battle, you shoot to kill. Grace meets the application of doctrine here. These people have enough sense to distinguish between retreating and fighting. Some of you are confused and maudlin. Killing in defense of your country and for your freedom is bonafide. Our freedoms are maintained by the blood of millions of Americans. We are not free because of politicians. We are free because men have died for our freedoms and they have killed for our freedoms.

Jesus Christ at the 2^nd advent will kill the enemy. Rev. 19:11: Then I saw heaven opened, and there was a white horse! Its rider is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war His eyes were like a fiery flame, and on His head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knows except Himself. He wore a robe stained with blood, and His name is called the Word of God. The armies that were in heaven followed Him on white horses, wearing pure white linen.

We knew that our enemy was going to strike us; FDR knew that the US would be struck, although we did not know where, the Philippines or the Hawaiian Islands. FDR knew psychology,

Jesus Christ is the aggressor and in righteousness, He makes war. It is difficult to train men to war. It takes a lot to get men to be willing to kill. They cannot deal with warfare killing. The minds of these people is not confused with liberalism.

There will be some who surrender and the women will be raped and the men will be tortured.

history today bypass the battles, and these are the most important aspects of history. It is battles which provide freedom and independence. We are a country today just because someone died in battle.

This is apparently the 4^th of July. The concept of the 4^th of July and our military holidays is completely lost. For every good boy, there are ten kooks.

The feeblest among them will be like David. David did not know how to fight. The Jews are well-trained, but they were afraid of Goliath. He had big muscles and a big boiler plate, and they were filled with fear. They were afraid when they saw the giant. David had the mental attitude to face Goliath.

The house of David refers to the leadership of Israel; and being like God means, they are not disturbed with what they face. They are immutable in the face of these problems. The angel of the Lord is the Lord Jesus Christ.

Zech. 12:8 On that day the LORD will protect the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the feeblest among them on that day shall be like David, and the house of David shall be like God, like the angel of the LORD, going before them.

Here we have killing commanded by God. The slaughter of the besiegers. This will be at the end of the Tribulation. There is a causation concept here; God will cause them to be destroyed. Rev. 19:21 Isa. 34:5–6 there is a literal slaughter.

Most of the crimes in this country are committed by convicts who have been paroled. The criminal will turn his general area into criminal anarchy. There are a certain category of criminals...

The famous Mongolians who worked out under Genghis Kahn and every now and again, a mad-dog nation is destroyed. He who lives by the sword dies by the sword can be applied to nations as well.

Anti-Semitism

1. Gen. 12:1–3 is the anti-Semitism clause.

2. Nations and empires have been destroyed because of their attitude toward the Jews including persecution of the Jews. Nations have been looked favorably or unfavorably because of their attitude toward the Jews. Quote from Encyclopedia Britannica about great men who have recognized the Jews and those who have tried to crush them. “The Jews have survived their disappearance.”

3. Assyria did not have any socialism and they did not cater ro any laziness. They were a fantastic vigorous race and it just took capitalism and free enterprise. This approach often breeds a strong military. They faced the wild barbarians and the Scythians, and faced Media, Chaldea, Persians.

a. The book of Nahum tells us what happens to a nation which practices anti-Semitism.

b. Spain had everything going for it until around the 8^th century. They brought in the Jews which became a middle class, which gave a nation great strength. Sent out Columbus in 1492. They had a fantastic economic system going on. But there was this Catholic Priest Torquemada and he persuaded Isabelle to begin persecuting the Jews and they began to take their land and estates. Many Jews fled to England. Ferdinan and Isabel had a son, Charles V, who inherited about half of Europe by age 16 or 18. Rarely is Spain invaded successfully because of its size, isolation, and terraine. They lost, under Charles V all kinds of land. Philip II lost more and they have been a 2^nd class power since then.

c. This was with the rise of Great Britain, and Oliver Cromwell made England a haven for Jews. He gave them citizenship and equal privileges and Britain became more powerful. Disraeli was a PM there alternating with a believer. The Jews became a bugaboo fro England, and England has begun to go down and down. Little things began to happen. Socialists came to power and they socialized some industries. Transportation became a part of the state. They began to tax their own industries after WWII. American capital was being fed into Europe and there were other European countries which were doing really well with American investing. Britain was unable to put money back into their own businesses because of socialism. It became stronger and stronger and British industry was being taxed out of existence. British labor living in slums and without jobs. Why? These are principles of history. The renouncement of the Belfort Proclamation.

d. The French were in great danger here. Dryfeuss case of one accused of treason, a Jew, but without any evidence. This was accepted because there were so many anti-Semites.

e. There was the right to own property, to keep and bear arms and to be free to believe or not in Jesus Christ. This is one reason the Jews have done well here and our attitude toward the Jews is one reason for our prosperity. We have never given any dole to the Jews. They have always helped their own people.

f. Socialism takes the Negro and seeks to destroy our country with our acts toward the Blacks. When you give a minority group everything and they earn nothing, you destroy free enterprise. The Negro benefitted in education through segregation.

4. Concept Israel. There are 3 concepts of Jew or Israel. The nation, the individual, and the religion. British-Israelis is an evil. A lot of them are Scandinavian and many are French and many of Gallic. There are the Welsh people.

a. Racial concept: they have the genes of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Most Arabs had Abram blood. They come from Esau or Abraham. Jews and Arabs are both Semitic.

b. Regenerate Jew, the believer in Jesus Christ. The Jews began with regeneration. Abram began as a Chaldean. Technically, that makes him a gentile. His brother was Nahor, who was Chaldean. Lot is also the father of some Arabic groups.

c. Religious Jew, those who adhere to Judaism.

5. How do you evaluate a Jew?

a. As an individual; Jews are human beings. You evaluate them just like anyone else. The frontiersman who said, “The only good indian is a dead indian” is a fool. Members of the human race have the right to be evaluated as anyone else. Bob has had to evaluate people straight out of college. Bob decided that only 10% of those at Dallas Theological Seminary could be trusted in the military.

b. There is a Jewish nation which is called Israeli. Zionism is anti-God and anti-Biblical. However, we judge a nation. 2 of the greatest nations are in Africa: South Africa and Rhodesia. They are honest and have done more for the minorities and majorities than anyone else. Who hates these nations? The rest of the world, including stupid America. They make us look sick. Australia is high on the list as well; New Zealand is too socialistic. There are very few great nations today. Israeli recognizes the principle of the military. They are outnumbered and surrounded and they are willing to stand up against the Russians. If any race had the right to call themselves a super-race, the Persians do.

c. A large group of Jews are in the United States. Many have been citizens since our nation’s inception. State’s rights was a big part of the war between the states. New England shipping brought slaves to the US, but they developed a great guilt complex over it. The issue in the Civil War was the scope and authority of the federal government over the states. Senator Strom Thurman has the best understanding of state’s rights of anyone in Congress. Barry Goldwater is a great Jews as a state’s right man. Bob has the highest respect for these men. You evaluate them just as you would evaluate a Jap or a Negro. He knew one Jap kid who had a milk route in the morning, played football and worked with his dad and kept up his grades. And we stupidly put him behind bars during WWII. He is just as much an American as Bob and just as patriotic.

d. Evaluate certain Jews as internationalists. Marx and Engles for instance. They got their ideas from a gentile, Roman Catholic illuminate priest. Adam Vicehop?

e. Evaluating a Jew who has become a Christian. You judge not that you be not judged. When a person is a former Jew or a former Gentile. This does not make a man a super-Christian just because he used to be a Jew.

6. The future of the Jew: if they believe in Jesus Christ, they spend eternity with Christ; and those who don’t will spend eternity in the Lake of Fire.

Zech. 12:9 And on that day I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.

v. 10 tells us what will happen at the beginning of the Millennium. There will be a regret here and the regret is in honoring the Lord. It occurs immediately after the 2^nd advent of Jesus Christ.

The baptism of fire occurs at the 2^nd advent of Christ. The Millennium begins a new dispensation as well as a new civilization. There will also be a 2^nd advent of the Holy Spirit.

In order to understand the ministry of the Holy Spirit, you need to understand the ministry of the Holy Spirit in Israel, then in the Church Age and finally in the Millennium.

3 parts to the dispensation of Israel: the period of the patriarchs, the period of the Law and the Tribulation. The Jewish Age ends with the 2^nd advent. The Church Age is a contiguous age and the Age of Israel of broken up. Rev. 6–19 is the Tribulation.

Tribulation

1. The Holy Spirit indwelt a limited number of believers in the Jewish Age. Less than 1% of the believers. Very few born-again believers had any relationship with the Holy Spirit in the Jewish Age. The function of the Holy Spirit in anyone was specialized. Our passage is a Millennial passage, pouring out of the Spirit.

2. Case history, which will almost exhaust the subject. When you take the whole period of the Age of Israel and add all of those up, there are damn few.

a. Joseph Gen.

b. Tailors who made the priestly garments. Ex. 23 Today, there is no spiritual relationship to what we wear. These garments had to be exact down to the last stitch, so God the Holy Spirit had to direct the tailors. Therefore, there was a communication of spiritual information by what the priest wore. The priest wore a checkerboard with 12 squares, each square standing in for a tribe of Israel but not Levi.

c. Workmen who worked on the tabernacle. Every detail to the last inch reveals some phase of the Person and work of Jesus Christ.

d. Joshua in Joshua something Num. 7:18?

e. Gideon, who was the weakest of the entire group. Jeptha, Samson and someone else. Samson was a cluck; lots of muscle and no brains. There is more about the Holy Spirit and Sampson than anyone else other than Daniel. 3 references to the Holy Spirit and Samson. Samson killed over 100 people with the jawbone of an ass, probably a world record. One sign of lots of muscle is the fact that Samson had a very thick head of hair. A judge was a dictator.

f. Then we get to Saul and David, both of whom 10:9, 10 and David were empowered by the Holy Spirit.

g. Daniel was a believer controlled by the Spirit for a specialized ministry.

h. Zech. 4:3 for Zerubbabel.

3. There is a citation for every subsection of Jewish history. Joseph during the patriarchs and he was a leader during this period. In the period of Moses, there are the tailors, the elders, Joshua; then the judges; then the period of the monarchy, with the first 2 monarchs. Then the period of the fifth cycle of discipline and Daniel during this time. The post-exilic period, there is Zerubbabel. So in every period there was someone filled with the Spirit. During these time periods, there were millions of believers. However, we are talking about only a handful of people. During the time of Moses, there were about 75 out of 2 million who were filled with the Holy Spirit.

4. As discipline from God, anyone who had the Holy Spirit could have the Holy Spirit removed. Saul illustrated this 16:14 Psalm 51:11 for David. A prayer like that today is kooky. You cannot lose the Spirit in the Church Age. You can quench or grieve the Holy Spirit, but you cannot lose it. You produce sins and human good from you sin nature.

5. You could ask for the Holy Spirit in the dispensation of Israel. Elisha prayed for the Holy Spirit. When Jesus spoke to the disciples, He told them they could ask for the Holy Spirit. Jesus Christ is not here during the Church Age. Bob makes everyone stand up. He cannot stand suffering. Jesus Christ lived here during the Age of Israel. He came and His humanity was here. His humanity was indwelt by the Holy Spirit from the cradle to the grave. Jesus had 11 believing disciples and they were real knuckleheads. They represent the weakness of any believer. The grace of God changed them. There are stained glass windows with these weak framed bodies and a weird look and long hair, with a glow or halo to them. The grace of God changed them. What they needed was the Holy Spirit. For us to ask for the Holy Spirit is blasphemy. We receive the Spirit at salvation. To tarry, agonize, pray through, going through some system to get the Holy Spirit to get to you are all false systems which have nothing to do with the Christian life. You have no right to get involved in the holy roller movement and they are a part of the devil’s religious system. Some of them are demon-possessed. Some of you don’t like this; you can pick yourself up and let yourself out. Bob is not going to get happy meal stuff. Your dear aunt so-and-so may speak in tongues and you like her a lot, but she is still off base. Tongues were used to warn the Jews of the fifth cycle of discipline. Luke 11:9–13: "So I say to you, keep asking, and it will be given to you. Keep searching, and you will find. Keep knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who searches finds, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?" Asking for bread is asking for substance. Since man, who is corrupt, will give good gifts to his own children, how much more should believers ask for the Holy Spirit during the Age of Israel. The disciples should have then asked for the Holy Spirit, but they did not.

6. The disciples did not respond to this teaching of Jesus. They never asked for the Holy Spirit. So Jesus gave them the Holy Spirit. Jesus is about to ascend and He was 40 days on the earth. There were 10 more days until the Church Age and He knew that they could not keep it together for 10 days unless they had help. They needed to be carried. John 20:21–22 Jesus said to them again, "Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you." After saying this, He breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit.

7. Once the Church Age begins, every believer was indwelt by the Holy Spirit and could not lose the Holy Spirit by discipline. John 7:39 the Holy Spirit was not yet give because Christ was not yet glorified. When Jesus Christ was resurrection and seated at the right hand of God, He was glorified. This was the glorification of His humanity. God the Holy Spirit did not universally indwell all believers until Jesus Christ was glorified. At His glorification, the spiritual life had been test driven and shown to be sound. John 16:14: He will glorify Me, because He will take from what is Mine and declare it to you. There is no authorization for praying to the Holy Spirit. There is no authorization for praying to Jesus. Jesus Christ is the High Priest. The Holy Spirit also makes intercession for us. There is no place for dear Jesus or O Holy Ghost. Imagine somone thinking that you can commit a sin which is greater than the plan of God. You just are not that great. “This is one sin that God hadn’t thought of.” That is arrogance. 1Cor. 6:19–20: Do you not know that your body is a sanctuary of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body. You don’t belong to you. You belong to God, as you have been paid for. How do you glorify God in your body? We are the sanctuary of the Holy Spirit. Dr. Ironside and the Navahoes came in for Bible teaching. He was teaching the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and he called them the black dog and a white dog; said you had both of them in you. One asked, which dog wins? It is the dog to which you say sic ‘em. This is the believer’s function in rebound. The difference. Inside of us is a soul, and it is controlled by the Holy Spirit or by the sin nature. The soul is in the body and if the soul is controlled by the Holy Spirit, the body glorifies God. Gal. 3:2 and other passages.

8. The dispensation of the church. The ministry of the Holy Spirit in the church.

a. All believers in the Church Age are indwelt by the Holy Spirit. Rom. 8:10.

b. Commanded to be filled with the Spirit Eph. 5:18 walk in the Spirit, put on Christ.

c. The believer not filled with the Spirit is said to be carnal. 1Cor. 3;1–3 Eph. 4;30 a believer is either filled with the Spirit or they are carnal.

d. A believer filled with the Spirit is not under the Mosaic Law. Gal. 5:18 Rom. 10:4

e. Believer filled with the Spirit glorifies Christ. 6:19–20

f. We produce the character of Christ. In the Millennium we have an appreciation for Christ.

g. The believer filled with the Spirit imitates God. Eph. 5:1, 18 such a believer produces the character of Christ. The fruit of the Spirit is a result of the filling of the Spirit.

h. Believer filled with the Spirit produces the character of Christ. Gal. 4:19 5:23

i. Magnifies Christ in his inner life.

9. Dispensation of the Millennium

a. Believers in the Millennium are filled with the Holy Spirit. Ezek 36:37 37:14

b. Believers filled with the Spirit and indwelt both. Joel 2:28 Zech. 12:10 the filling of the Spirit produces an ecstatic experience, appreciating Christ upon the earth. However, in the Church Age, the Holy Spirit produces the character of Christ without emotion. Ecstatics and emotions are not bonafide for the Church Age; but they are for the Millennium.

10. The Two Advents of Jesus Christ: the cross followed by the crown. You cannot have the crown without the cross. “If you will fall down and worship me, I will give you all the nations.” was Satan’s promise to Jesus. Satan comes to perfect environment in the garden and seeks to turn it upside down; he does the same in the Millennium as well. The whole concept of revolt and something inferior is brought in. Believers and unbelievers in the Millennium living under perfect environment for a 1000 years, and Satan will lead some astray.

11. The two advents of the Holy Spirit. He came the first time in the Church Age and in the Millennium.

Great weeping for Josiah. The land will mourn. There is a basic unit of worship. House of David refers to the ruling family. Nathan is a full brother of Solomon and Mary’s line is through Nathan. 2Sam. 5:14 is where we find Nathan in the Old Testament.

Zech. 12:10 "And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn.

Zech. 12:11 On that day the mourning in Jerusalem will be as great as the mourning for Hadad-rimmon in the plain of Megiddo.

Zech. 12:12 The land shall mourn, each family by itself: the family of the house of David by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Nathan by itself, and their wives by themselves;

Zech. 12:13 the family of the house of Levi by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the Shimeites by itself, and their wives by themselves;

Zech. 12:14 and all the families that are left, each by itself, and their wives by themselves.

the Holy Spirit would continue in the Millennium and He would pour our His power. We are commanded to be filled with the Spirit. When we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins. However, the filling of the Spirit is not an emotional or an ecstatic experience.

You might get a lump in your throat by singing Dixie or seeing the Grand Canyon; but none of this means that you are filled with the Spirit. The filling of the Spirit is not an ecstatic experience nor is it emotional. It is designed to produce the character of Christ.

The filling of the Spirit is not designed in the Church Age to produce ecstatics. We are in a period of kooksville where there are a number of organizations which emphasize emotion over thinking.

Emotion and ecstatics are not the filling of the Holy Spirit. However, in the Millennium, the filling of the Holy Spirit will be characterized by ecstatics.

There is a case of capital punishment in the Millennium. So that means there will be sin and crime in the Millennium.

Religion stifles human freedom. No religion in the Millennium. There will be those who go astray. There is a law against holy rollers in the Millennium; they are disrupters. They will cause a problem with perfect environment.

There will be believers in the Millennium with sin natures; and there will be unbelievers with sin natures.

There is a Jerusalem on the earth and a Jerusalem suspended above the earth. There will be believers and unbelievers in human bodies that they will sin. They will all have sin natures. They have to go out and raise hell. An unbeliever will get bored with perfect environment. There is no war; no poverty; very little crime and crime is controlled with capital punishment.

However, when Satan is released, there will be a revolt against perfect environment based upon emotionalism.

There will be a tremendous amount of doctrine taught; the fountain is open and the gospel is taught. Emotionalism will counter attack. Two words, one for sin and another for uncleanness. The sins of the unbeliever and the sins of the believer. The word for uncleanness is menstruation.

Zech. 13:1 "On that day a fountain will be opened for the house of David and for the residents of Jerusalem, to wash away sin and impurity.

This is not some religion which Satan left behind; this is strictly from the sin nature of unbelievers. God will cut off the names of the idols from the land. This is a religion based upon emotion based upon ecstatics. All the religion of the past is thrown out. No Satan ruling the world.

Zech. 13:2 On that day"--the declaration of the LORD of Hosts--"I will erase the names of the idols from the land, and they will no longer be remembered. I will remove the prophets and the unclean spirit from the land.

The religious system is covered in vv. 3–4. There must be leaders. There must be ecstatic action. Parents will kill their children? When Rome became great. Romans got up every morning and had porridge. They dressed simply. They had great self-discipline. When a son was captured, the father killed the son, saying, “Rome is greater than my son.” They had courage and honor.

Zech. 13:3 If a man still prophesies, his father and his mother who bore him will say to him: You cannot remain alive because you have spoken falsely in the name of the LORD. When he prophesies, his father and his mother who bore him will pierce him through.

There will be a removal of the hypocrisy. It is a horrible thing when a father must kill his own son. Capital punishment is difficult to administer. More difficult for a father to kill his own son. The prophet himself will be ashamed of his false teaching.

A rough garment is asceticism working its way into their culture. This is a rebellion against perfect environment.

Zech. 13:4 On that day every prophet will be ashamed of his vision when he prophesies; they will not put on a hairy cloak in order to deceive.

Zech. 13:5 He will say: I am not a prophet; I am a tiller of the soil, for a man purchased me as a servant since my youth.

He is asked, what about these wounds? These scars were gotten from a frenzied religious ceremony. He claims he gets them from the house of his friends.

Zech. 13:6 If someone asks him: What are these wounds on your chest?--then he will answer: The wounds I received in the house of my friends.

Religion comes back from the old sin nature. They are prophesying and many of them die for it. The capital punishment is administered by the parents; and it is after a trial. They inflict ecstatic marks themselves and claim a girl did this.

The cross was designed to remove all religion. This is perfect environment, so it is hard for us to understand. Hard for us to understand the justice which is here; protecting people from people confuses us.

Most of the crime in Houston is committed by ex-cons. The police officer shot...by an ex-con. We are slopping in our thinking. Most murders are done by those who have been up already

in Houston, we have mad dogs walking around on two legs. We encourage them in their madness. There is a lot of confusion.

the sword at the beginning of v. 3 is capital punishment, which we find again. Capital punishment is in order. The sword in Rom. 13:4. In v. 7, the sword is being punished for the world. There is no excuse for religion.

Awakening of the sword is the judgement of God the Father against God the Son on the cross. He took our place that we might have eternal life.

Strike the shepherd and the sheep will scatter. This is Jesus Christ and the sheep are the disciples. Jesus quotes this to Peter and the other disciples.

The little ones are the saved Jews under the Tribulation. Believers alive at the end of the Tribulation who are alive will go into the Millennium. They will go into the Millennium.

Zech. 13:7 Sword, awake against My shepherd, against the man who is My associate [equal]--the declaration of the LORD of Hosts. Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered; I will also turn My hand against the little ones.

There is going to be some introduction first. The frest of this passage deals with the baptism of fire.

Baptism of Fire

1. Major Judgments:

a. Judgment of the cross. 2Cor. 5:21 all the sins of the world poured out on Christ and judged.

b. Rebound judgment which occurs in phase 2. He judges his sins 1Cor. 11:31 the concept of the rebound judgment. Carnal believer judging his own sins.

c. Rapture of the church.

d. Judgment Seat of Christ. 1Cor. 3:11–16 evaluation of the believer’s works in time. The purpose is to determine whether the believer has divine or human good. No place in the plan of God for human good.

e. At the end of the Tribulation, there is the 2^nd advent of Jesus Christ. There will be believers and unbelievers. No, gentiles and Jews. All believers enter into the Millennial reign of Christ; an unbelievers not. This is the baptism of fire. Judgement of gentiles and Jews. Ezek. 20:32–38 Luke passage for gentiles. Matt. 25:31ff

f. Judgment of the fallen angels, which concludes the angelic conflict. They were sentenced in eternity past. Matt.25:41

g. Great white throne of unbelievers. Rev. 20

h. There are many minor judgments which are found throughout the book of Revelation.

2. This is one of 7 baptisms found in the Bible. Baptism does not have to be connected with water. Used for identification by Homer and Heroditis. It never means anything else but identification. It is a transliterated Greek word. Whatever it is identified by whatever the object of the verb is. Some of the dumbest believers think that water is always a part of baptism and that it is a special hocus pocus thing. The baptism of the Spirit, which the holy rollers have confused. The Holy Spirit takes the believer and puts him into Christ. By one Spirit we are all baptized into Christ. You don’t have to be a genius to figure this out. It takes a lot of imagination and a lot of stupidity to think it is water.

a. Dry baptisms: This is an actual identification. A real baptism

i. Baptism of Moses where Moses and the children of Israel passed through the Red Sea dry; and there was an immersion the next morning when the pharaoh’s soldiers were covered. This was not a spiritual baptism. They walked dryshot through the Red Sea.

ii. The baptism of the cross. Christ is baptized with our sins. Matt. baptism of the cup. Jesus Christ is hanging on the cross and in the goblet are all the sins of the world. He drank the sins of the world, called the baptism of the goblet. Our sins are identified with Him. Subject is sins of the world; object is Jesus Christ on the cross.

iii. The baptism of the Holy Spirit, from Acts 1;5 1Cor. 12:13 and mentioned the most often. Every believer is baptized into Christ. Satan does not want us to understand Spirit-baptism. The worst distortion is the one is to have a tank with a beautiful baptismal and a picture behind it and the quotation is one Lord, One Spirit and one baptism. Heb. 6:1 speaks of baptisms it is blasphemy to put one baptism over a tank. Eph. 4:3: endeavoring to keep the unity of the bond of peace, and then there are 7 things which we have in common with all believers. One body, one Spirit, one Lord, one faith, one baptism (being entered into union with Christ at salvation), one God (the Father). This is the unity of believers. In unity, there is only one unifying baptism.

iv. Baptism of fire. Believers only enter into the Millennium. All unbelievers go into the Lake of Fire. The unbelievers are identified with fire.

b. Wet baptisms is a representative identification. Water is often used in the Bible to refer to something else; and water is essential for life. It represents the Word; it represents the Holy Spirit. A ritual baptism. Water baptism does not save nor does it make you spiritual. Bob baptizing a guy in Emerald Bay; and they body-surfed for an hour after.

i. The baptism of John. The water is the kingdom of believers. When he put a person into the water, they were identified with the kingdom of God.

ii. Baptism of Jesus was an unique baptism. We do not follow the Lord in baptism. He is unique. He is the God-man. His death is unique; His person is unique. The water represented the cross. His baptism meant that He would do the will of God; He would enter into God’s plan. Satan immediately challenged this. Jesus Christ was challenged. Jesus Christ was baptized. The water is the will of the Father.

iii. Water baptism of the believer in the Church Age. It is identification with Christ as He died on the cross and identification with Christ when He was resurrected. Under the water is being identified with Christ in His death. All ritual must be coordinated with our brains. Emotions are simple. Anyone can eat a piece of bread. It does not require anything. These are meaningless without doctrine. You have to know something about the Lord and about His death. It is meaningless without some knowledge.

3. 3 Scriptures: Matt. 3:11–12 Luke 4 2Thess. 1:7–9

4. Matt. 24:36–41 is the analogy of the days of Noah. One is taken is the one who is the unbeliever. The believer is left on the earth. Too many try to make a rapture passage out of this. They trot out a booze sermon when they come to drinking. But they ignore marrying and giving in marriage. Drinking is not drunkenness. Then they talk about how bad the world is, etc.

5. Parables: the wheat and the tares. There is some denominational literature which is bad. They go wild on these things. Wheat and tares have nothing to do with the Church Age. The wheat are the believers going into the Millennium. Good and the bad fish. Matt. 13 Good and the bad servant. 10 virgins. 5 with oil and 5 without. Parable of the talents.

6. Gent5ile baptism of fire. Jewish is Ezek.

The sword represents divine judgment; the shepherd is Jesus Christ on the cross. Awake, means that God the Father wakes up to judge.

God says, “Strike the shepherd and the sheep will be scattered.” This refers to the sheep Israel being scattered in 70 a.d. Then “I will restore or bring back the little ones.”

Jesus Christ quotes this, but uses it to illustrate rather than to interpret. Like the Joel passage, where it is not fulfilled either.

Habak. 2:4 is quoted correctly and used as per its interpretation. From the cross to the scattering of the sheep.

Zech. 13:8 In the whole land--the LORD's declaration--two-thirds will be cut off and die, but a third will be left in it.

A third of the rock is gold, so it is gotten out by putting the rock into the fire. The heat will melt the rock and bring out the gold. What is left behind is called the slag. The slag stays; the pure gold comes out.

They will call upon His name and Jesus will hear them. They call up on the name of the Lord and He recognizes them. They go through the baptism of fire and come out.

Zech. 13:9 I will put this third through the fire; I will refine them as silver is refined and test them as gold is tested. They will call on My name, and I will answer them. I will say: They are My people, and they will say: The LORD is our God."

The day of the Lord refers to a few days before the 2^nd coming and includes the Millennium and 2^nd advent.

The Qal perfect indicates a certainty in the future. During the Tribulation, Jews will be the evangelists. Here, we are reassuring

Jerusalem is the spoil hee. The armies of the king of thr North will invest Jerusalem.

It is better to die fighting than to put yourself under Communism. Some people do not believe this. There is no such thing as an honorable peace with the ones with whom we are dealing. MacArthur warned to never get in a land war with the Asians. You can bomb them, but nothing else. We regained face with the Asians when we dropped the atom bomb. This is the way to deal with the orientals; and the oriental communist is a very bad combination.

When the Tribulation comes, there are 4 spheres of influence. Right now, the king of the north is comparable to the Russian empire. Kings of the east would be equivalent to the Red Chinese. The Pan-Arabic bloc is the king of the south. These merely are analogous to what will occur during the Tribulation. It just depends upon when it occurs. Before WWII came along, Mussolini did a lot of great things for Italy. He saved them from a depression and revived their Roman spirit and he rebuilt the roads. The beast is a dictator who will live in the Tribulation. Many older preachers should have qualified what they said with saying, comparable to Mussolini. Had the rapture occurred at 1939, he would have been right. We have power politics today.

Zech. 14:1 A day of the LORD is coming when your plunder will be divided [plundered] in your presence.

These people have come to rob, they have come to plunder. In all the land, 2 parts are the people: 1/3 survived; 1/3 are captured; 1/3 are killed. The 1/3 captures are believers and unbelievers. They surrender and they are killed horribly.

The property is plundered and the women are raped. Prov. 24:1–6: Don't envy evil men or desire to be with them, for their hearts plan violence, and their words stir up trouble. A house is built by wisdom, and it is established by understanding; by knowledge the rooms are filled with every precious and beautiful treasure [this is equivalent to having doctrine in the soul]. A wise warrior is better than a strong one, and a man of knowledge than one of strength [he does better in whatever area of life he finds himself; school, business, etc.]; for you should wage war with sound guidance [using doctrine]--victory comes with greatness of the one counseling.

The fool is the believer without doctrine. He has no sense of responsibility. The gate refers to the city government. It means to take part in the affairs of the government. Just before the 2^nd advent, there is the siege of Jerusalem. Born-again believers will be motivated by Bible doctrine to fight and to resist. They will refuse to surrender.

Because they did not learn Bible doctrine, they are sucked into social action, for maudlin sentimentalism; they go out and surrender. For their pains and stupidity and lack of doctrine, we already see what has happened to them.

These believers succumb to the great mental attitude factor. There is a bad attitude toward grace people. They will go out and surrender, but the grace crowd will not. Prov. 24:7–12: Wisdom is inaccessible to a fool; he does not open his mouth at the gate. The one who plots evil will be called a schemer. A foolish scheme is sin, and a mocker is detestable to people. If you do nothing in a difficult time, your strength is limited. Rescue those being taken off to death, and save those stumbling toward slaughter. If you say, "But we didn't know about this," won't He who weighs hearts consider it? Won't He who protects your life know? Won't He repay a person according to his work? It is a hopeless situation, and they are trapped, and they have fainted in their minds, and they go out with their hands in the air and they fainted. They did not have the proper mental attitude. We are never told to succumb to tyranny. Russian communism and Chinese communism are tyrannical.

We are as responsible as any other nation in the world for allowing the communists to take over China. We had a very sorry attitude. We helped the Chinese Communists. Chan Kai Shek would have resisted Communists. The Chinese Communists came into towns and closed down bars and brothels. Some missionaries liked that. They thought the Millennium had arrived. They did not know enough doctrine to fill a thimble. One missionary even gave this testimony in Berachah about this.

Take the country of Israel today. It has an excellent attitude. There are 3 nations with a great attitude: Israeli, and they refuse to knuckle under to Communists or Arabs; Rhodesia, who have not allowed England to bully them (libs run England today). South Africa. They are much greater than their detractors. They have a much better press than we have.

Believers will show great courage during the siege of Jerusalem. They have the wisdom and knowledge of doctrine and they are going to resist.

They will not be cut off from the city. They are not annihilated by thus great army. They will claim the promises of God; they will know enough doctrine to know that this is what they ought to do. They need to resist. They have doctrine. The greatest thing in the world is to know exactly what you ought to be doing because you have doctrine. Like young people who are smart enough to not date simply to have a social life. The details of life are not necessary. It is doctrine.

Bob’s dad was a head of a national fraternity and he got them to chase after Bob to get him to join. No team to help you with your spiritual life is necessary. Nice to see young people stand up against it. Good to see a young man who refuses to get drunk in order to join in with the others. Or someone who refuses to cater to a superior officer on the basis of doctrine. Bob likes to see those go out into the business world and apply Bible doctrine. There is a place where you can compromise and a place where you can stand on doctrine.

Bob figured that, if he stayed as a 2^nd lieutenant, that was fine. But he was promoted and the youngest major at that time (24). No one has ever lost by taking a stand on Bible doctrine. Sometimes it means loneliness and some time it means ostracism. To young people, this can mean a lot. No one has ever lost by taking a stand on Bible doctrine.

There is a day of darkness and the 2^nd advent, which will be why these people will be delivered. Whatever you do on the basis of Bible doctrine will be honored. God will honor His Word. He has to honor His Word because it is His Word. He has never been unstable or unfaithful. Jesus Christ is the same, yesterday, today and forever. God has to honor His Word. It is impossible for Him to do it in any other way.

There may be a lot of things about a minister you don’t like; maybe he is a cluck or not, but if this pastor-teacher honors God’s Word, then God will honor His Word...no matter what. God cannot change His character; He cannot cancel His character.

Paul was the worst person who lived, by his own testimony by the influence of the Holy Spirit. And God took Paul and made him into the greatest Apostle.

Zech. 14:2 I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem for battle. The city will be captured, the houses looted, and the women raped. Half the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be removed from the city.

The principle of deliverance in v. 3. When they start to fight....the believers with doctrine begin to open fire on the enemy. They are using the faith rest technique. They believe the promises of God. They start to shoot; they start to use their weapons. Rev. 19:11–221 Christ will return and slay His enemies with the word of His mouth. We will return with Him, but that is not found in the Rev. passage.

There are people who need killing. Jesus can look inside; He can look inside their souls. We have an attorney general who says that no one ought to be killed. Capital punishment tells us this as well. Certain people guilty of 1^st degree murder need killing; they need removal. The Canaanites needed killing; they were sacrificing their children and practicing bestiality. Jesus Christ Himself will destroy these people. He can do no wrong and He kills them. You ought to be able to understand that.

You cannot always talk over a table; you kill them on a battlefield. That tells them that we mean business. You cannot settle things in the U.N. They just make bigger and better wars. It took England a century to straighten out the Africans and it took the U.N. about 5 years to screw it all up. The longer we delay and the more we fight like in Korea...MacArthur had them on the run and was told by the president that he could not cross the Yalu River. May we have permission to fire 5 rounds? You cannot fight a war like that. It is a policy which is ludicrous. When you are fighting you shoot to kill.

Who knows, maybe even the Cubans would back off. “Fighting a responsible war; don’t let it spread? That is wrong.” Bob can tell that this does not mean much to some of his congregants. It takes 7 months to bury the dead. The blood runs for miles. He will come in white but His garments will be covered in the blood. These people needed killing and they are killed. They are people which must be removed like a mad dog.

Zech. 14:3 Then the LORD will go out to fight against those nations as He fights on a day of battle.

The mechanics of the 2^nd advent of Jesus Christ. He will fight against those nations in the day of battle. The first military difficulty that the Jews faced. They began as a family, and as a nation, they faced their first crisis when coming to the shores of the sea. The armored forces of pharaoh is behind them. Moses said, “The Lord will fight for you today.” All night long, after the light was removed, the Jews were walked through the Red Sea. They were in a hopeless situation tactically. They did the worst thing possible, they panicked. As a result, everything depended upon Who and What God is.

His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives. Jesus Christ would come back in like manner and He will come to the same place.

There will be an escape at this time parallel to that at the Red Sea. A geologist warned that there was a fault at the Mount of Olives and that, at some point, it will split apart. This is in agreement with the Bible.

There is a split on the Mount of Olives. Part of the mountain moves toward the north and part toward the south. The two generals and their citizen army.

There is a description which explains a lot of things in the Millennium. Micah 1:11 there will be a valley from Bethazel to Jerusalem. There will be a great valley where the Mediterranean will flow, creating a large river, which will flow into the Dead Sea and Jerusalem will become a port city. Mediterranean has water which flows into Jerusalem, which will fill up the Dead Sea and into the Red Sea?

Zech. 14:4 On that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which faces Jerusalem on the east. The Mount of Olives will be split in half from east to west, forming a huge valley, so that half the mountain will move to the north and half to the south.

About a third of the population are resisting and holding out. Amos 1:11 mentions the earthquake. 1Thes. 3;13 mentions this to.

Millennial Characteristics

1. 4 civilizations in history:

a. Ante-Deluvian civilization, earth is watered from below. Animals only ate grass and not other animals. There was no rain. The judgment of the floor removed all of the half-man/half-angels. Baptism of fire will take all of the unbelievers off the earth.

b. Post-Deluvian civilization

c. The Millennium

d. The Eternal State

2. Dispensations: some characteristics have to do with the dispensational concepts and some with the civilization concepts.

3. No religion during the Millennium. Religion and perfect environment cannot co-exist. In all of history, religion destroys perfect environment. No cults in Los Angeles.

4. There will be great spirituality. The Spirit will be poured out on all believers. Church Age and Millennium all have the filling of the Spirit. No universal filling of the Spirit in the Age of Israel, including the Tribulation. The filling of the Spirit produces the character of Christ; filling of the Spirit in the Millennium produces appreciatino for Christ. Until the Millennium, emotion is never a part of spirituality. Joel 2;28 and others.

5. Israel will be restored as a nation. Zech. 8;22–23 Israel is not recognized by God today. They are just like any other nation today. No significance to the Jews today. They may be in the land for a thousand years. Some have assumed there is something special supernatural and wonderful about Jews being in the land right now. They are a great nation by comparison to us. They fight a war to win and they fight to win in a hurry. The Communists are more impressed with Israel than they are with the US. The bleeding hearts want to stop the bombing; and we ought to increase it. The U.N. is only respected in the US. Jews will be in the land during the Tribulation but them being in the land right now.

6. Universal peace will exist during the Millennium. The sword are turned into plow shares and man will learn warn no more. Until that time, there will be wars and rumors of wars. Every sensible American should be given a 45. Crime rate would go down; we could cut down on our politce forces and trials times. Bob suggests to take everyone and throw them in the military and, if nothing else, give them close-order drills for 4 years.

7. Universal prosperity. Our president can fight poverty from now until doomsday and he will not stop poverty. You do not fight poverty by giving away money to people. These checks come from industry and capitalism. You wipe out industry, who will pay the bills for all these kooky ideas. Socialism encourages poverty and it spreads. We are losing every kind of a war there is. Psalm 72 is the golden pot psalm. Smart unbelievers are conservatives today because they know something about history. Greek was the business language because of Alexander the Great.

8. Maximum knowledge of Bible doctrine. Assyria had a great military machine and a fine business machine. In Assyria, when someone was lazy, he was put into the army and kept for 10 years, so when he came out, he was happy to work. The Jews during a great period of prosperity based upon Bible doctrine. England did nation building all over the world. There are people in India that wishes that England was back.

9. There will be a radical change in nature. Rom. 8:19–22 When the Arabs occupied Palestine, it was just sand and desert. The Jews took this land and made it wonderful; farmland. The Jew things free enterprise, aggressiveness, etc. Free enterprise means a great deal of difference.

10. Life is extended. Isa. 65:20 but there will be capital punishment. Millennium begins with believers only.

11. Every civilization begins with believers only. You get unbelievers and believers both.

Zech. 14:5 You will flee by My mountain valley, for the valley of the mountains will extend to Azal. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the LORD my God will come and all the holy ones with Him.

There is a transitional day when Christ returns to the earth, between the Tribulation and the Millennium. Bob talks about how you can see at night. You accustom your eyes to be able to see in the dark. Even the stars provide enough light making it possible to see. However, at this time, there will be no light whatsoever. There will be no light which will work; no candle, no flashlight, no light bulb will provide light. This was like the cross when Jesus could not be seen bearing our sins.

Just before Christ returns, all will be able to see Him, as the light of the world. The armies will be hindered from any movement; and there will be all of the armies which are immobilized. No one can move and no one can do a thing. There will be some panic and some will kill one another. That is, armies will shoot on their own. Once there is total darkness, then you are immobilized. Ezek 32 Joel 2 Matt. 24 Rev. 6:12 the day of the second advent.

Zech. 14:6 On that day there will be no light; the sunlight and moonlight will diminish.

This will be a unique day. There is this impenetrable darkness covered the earth for this one day. The first day of darkness was the cross, which saved believers; and this darkness will preserve believers for another day of living. 218 men of Abram’s army were able to wipe Kedarleomar’s army off the map.

The 2^nd advent in Jerusalem, it will be light. All day, it is total darkness; even the luminaries are withdrawn; but there will be great light at the Mount of Olives.

Zech. 14:7 It will be a day known only to Yahweh, without day or night, but there will be light at evening.

Here we find that Jerusalem is a sea port. There is the eastern and the western sea. The Mediterranean and the Dead Sea will send their waters to Jerusalem. This will make Jerusalem a sea port. The water will come from Jerusalem.

Zech. 14:8 On that day living water will flow out from Jerusalem, half of it toward the eastern sea and the other half toward the western sea, in summer and winter alike.

Jesus Christ ruling here as a world ruler. His name will be unique and He will be a unique Lord.

Zech. 14:9 On that day Yahweh will become king over all the earth--Yahweh alone, and His name alone.

Topographical improvements. This is a verse which is meaningful to us when we read these to ourselves. It makes it possible for you to read this stuff to yourself.

All the land is the land of Palestine only. There are plains and mountains in Palestine. There are high mountains, plateaus and very fertile valleys. The topography will be changed. There will be a high plateau and Jerusalem will be higher.

Water flowing and ships flowing uphill to Jerusalem and downhill to the Red Sea. This is a detail of blessing. Geba and Rimmon were two places where there was blessing. God provides the details of life for those who put doctrine first. There is a ragtag army; one day it is dark and at the end of that day, the Lord delivers them. There is nothing but weapons in their hands. You put doctrine first and wait, the details will come your way. Waiting on God is maximum faith rest technique. There is no crutch that will hold you up without doctrine. Put doctrine first and it will work out. Berachah Church is a pleasant place for many because the Word of God is important here.

There are organizations all over southern california with the idea of putting boys and girls together. They have spirituality by witnessing and spirituality by glowing testimony. Bob has had pressure on him to appoint a youth director. Those who are looking for entertainment are not going to amount to anything anyway. Bob says, you can vote me out anytime.

If you have doctrine at the borders, then you will have doctrine throughout the country. Doctrine will saturate the land. Blessing here means Bible doctrine. Benjamin’s gate is the north gate which faced the territory of Benjamin. This was a place where the Word of God was taught. A place of Bible teaching. There was a large open air auditorium. If the people wanted news at 5 pm, they would go to the gate. Huntley here and Brinkley here and Cronkite there. The king’s winepress was a landmark which had tremendous implications. It was associated with great happiness. The gates were where there were Bible classes. Where the Word of God is first, there is great happiness. If doctrine is first, the details of life will follow.

Zech. 14:10 All the land from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem will be changed into a plain. But Jerusalem will be raised up and will remain on its site from the Benjamin Gate to the place of the First Gate, to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the royal winepresses.

“I suspect that I am going to finish Zechariah tonite; in any case, I am not going to talk about it any more.”

People and their statistics ought to be dropped in the Ocean somewhere. Texas leads the US in murders, and Houston leads Texas, but Bob finds it to be rather tame. “That’s just vim, vigor and vitality....I am delighted to be in Houston, the murder capitol of the world.” People complain about the weather, and Bob tells them that it is 70° all day long.

V. 11 is a city of happy people. A city of 100% happy people could not exist in the world today. There will be many cities of happy people in the Millennium. For the first time in human history, war will be abolished.

God has personally ordered some wars, and God is not immoral. War has some immoral acts within it, e.g., a soldier raping a helpless woman during war.

A bunch of thugs went out of control in Chicago. The news people do not accurately report the enforcement of the law, but they quote some idiot minister.

Take a man like Wallace or Nixon, do you think they will give them equal time? Our finest young Americans are dying in Vietnam so the yippies can put up a pig for president.

Bob would rather live in Houston than anywhere else in the United States. The worst city in the US is NYC with the Sullivan Laws. In many ways, Houston is a happy city with Bible doctrine. Jerusalem is a city of great misery; e.g., Nebuchadnezzar’s siege of the city or 70 a.d. for Titus’ siege of the city.

During the first advent of Jesus Christ, Jerusalem was an unhappy city; but they will be joyous at the 2^nd advent.

Chêrem

1. Anything put under the ban or the curse could not be redeemed. It means ban or curse. It had to die.

2. Anyting under the ban or the curse was dedicated to the Lord. It had to die.

3. Anything put under the ban must be put to death.

4. When the Jews approached Jericho, God did not tell the Jews to walk in and say, “Let’s have world peace.” God says fight. The order of the day to the chief of staff; and the order was chêrem. If Jericho had not been wiped out, there would be no human race today.

5. What is wrong with the Canaanites?

a. They became totally without law and order. They were opposed to divine institutions 2-4; they were nihilists. They were anti law.

b. They liked homosexuality and bestiality. Too many homosexuals and the nation goes caput. God told the Jews to kill the people and the animals.

c. They offered their children in child sacrifice and they did this without a school system.

6. Chêrem allows the continuation of the human race. Every time we have war, we get our freedoms back. We legislate ourselves into slavery, but we go to war for freedom. We are slaves to an unjust government. Our foreign policy is immoral; we are slaves to minorities and to systems of legislation. All looters ought to be shot on sight. Mayor Daily has demonstrationed a sagacious attitude. Private property and the privacy of the individual is the very backbone of our freedom. Bob keeps guns and he knows when to use them and when not to use them. This is how crime is put down. Bob is against crime. Most clergymen are not against crime. They tell people to riot and to steal. Yippies are running our countr. We have permitted school systems to teach liberalism and atheism and we are now paying the piper.

7. Therefore, everything in Jericho, which means people, animals and things; except for one prostitute. Many of you might see a prostitute as being an immoral person. There are other moral and immoral in Jericho. One commentator said, “The word harlot is just a woman who waits on tables...I don’t know where he’s been.” Do you ever stop to meditate on this point during quiet time? Everyone is under the curse except for one beautiful prostitute. She is the only person who had positive volition at the point of God consciousness. When she heard the gospel, as did everyone else in Jericho, and she demonstrated her faith rest by hiding the two spies. Bob pastor friend had a ladies class and some lady asked, “Does that really mean harlot?” He was nice and she almost bullied him out of there. He was too nice to be a pastor. Bob uses legitimate English words to communicate. We are born chêrem. We are born under the curse and therefore, doomed to die; Jesus Christ took the chêrem for us at the cross. When Jesus Christ was put under the curse, He could not be redeemed. Rahab is the illustration of that exception. When she believed in Christ, the curse is removed. Cursing turned to blessing.

8. There is a guy who goes for curses and there was Achen who decided to take some of the things of the curse. He found a bit of gold and a fully engraved smith and wesson dagger and he hides them. Instead of destroying them, he has preserved that which is cursed. This illustrates the curse which is within us. It took awhile to figure it out, but Achen was found out. He was killed because he chose the curse instead of grace.

9. Twice in the history of Jerusalem, God has written them off as chêrem. Jeremiah escapes in 586 b.c. A lot escaped in 70 a.d. as well. Only grace can deliver anyone from chêrem.

10. Zechariah 14:11 now the curse is removed from Jerusalem forever.

Are you a city of happy people? You are if you have believed in Christ and learn and apply doctrine. If you carry chêrem in your life, then you will end up like Achen. God has made provision for the sin nature. All provision is grace. The Democratic convention will test your happiness. The condition of our country. Personal problems and difficulties.

Zech. 14:11 People will live [to dwell in a place of blessing] there, and never again will there be a curse [chêrem] of destruction. So Jerusalem will dwell in security.

V. 12 picks up where v. 3 leaves off. God will go forth and fight against the nations back in v. 3, but we have no details on that. The Bible must be understood based upon the style of the original language. You see the big picture and then you go back and fill in the details. An artist will sketch out the overall sketch. If it looks right, then you fill it in.

Zech. 14:12 This will be the plague the LORD strikes all the peoples with, who have warred against Jerusalem: their flesh will rot while they stand on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongues will rot in their mouths.

As a believer, you have no right to a great panic. The most difficult thing is to disarm a panicked person.

Zech. 14:13 On that day a great panic from the LORD will be among them, so that each will seize the hand of another, and the hand of one will rise against the other.

Zech. 14:14 Judah will also fight at Jerusalem, and the wealth of all the surrounding nations will be collected: gold, silver, and clothing in great abundance.

Zech. 14:15 The same plague as the previous one will strike the horses, mules, camels, donkeys, and all the animals that are in those camps.

The rest of this deals with the feast of the Tabernacles, which will be covered next time.

Everyone has a sin nature. We are born physically alive and spiritually dead. All sins were poured out on Jesus Christ. God’s plan excludes human good. Divine good begins at the cross. The first issue is divine good versus human good. Under salvation by grace, Jesus Christ does the work; under salvation by works, man does the work. Religion is the worst thing which has ever lived.

We look back to the cross and we examine the character of God: all 3 persons have the same essence. Man is a sinner and man is spiritually dead. In order for God to save man, to express His love to man, that is the work of the cross.

Because of the cross, God is able to love man. Eternal life and love can come down the grace pipe to man. Man prior to the cross have to be taught that they can believe in Jesus Christ and be saved. He has different names and different titles in different languages.

The Passover illustrated Jesus Christ and His death. Jesus Christ is said to be the Lamb of God Who takes away the sins of the world. Later, after the cross, we drink from the cup to portray His death. In each case, faith is seen as a non-meritorious system of perception. Eating is a non-meritorious system. Eating and drinking illustrate faith in Jesus Christ.

Those born under the Mosaic Law realized the acts of the Law could not saved. Feasts began with the Passover.

You cannot lose what God has provided for you at salvation. There are 34 things given at salvation. None of these things can be cancelled. They cannot be cancelled by any person and by any power.

The Passover was sundown to sundown. This was a picture of being sustained in phase 2. 8 day package. Each day of the feast is called a Sabbath, and it runs as a Sabbath. The unleavened bread makes an 8 day package of Sabbath days. The bread represents doctrine.

The first feast is the Passover, the believer in time is represented by unleavened bread. Fellowship through the Word and fellowship through rebound. Feast of the First Fruits; and Christ is called the First Fruits of them who sleep; and this Feast is the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Unleavened Bread when for 8 days. Then 50 days from there is called Pentecost. This is a prophetical feast. Pentecost is a prophetical feast of warning. You cannot neglect doctrine, occupation with Christ, or rebound.

Pentecost in 30 a.d. was when there was warning to the Jews, which warning continued for another 40 years. Passover is entrance into the plan of God by faith in Christ. The 2^nd feast is unleavened bread, which is fellowship with God in time. The 3^rd feast is First Fruits, which speaks of resurrection. Salvation then doctrine. The 3^rd feast is warning to stayed occupied with Christ. Then there is the warning of what will happen. Bible doctrine has a tremendous impact on those with doctrine. The perpetuation of freedom and our system of government and the prosperity which comes through capitalism, the concept of ownership of property, all of these are wonderful things which are a part of our heritage.

This does not mean that we are a Christian country, but we have born-again believers who have had an impact. Faith in Christ, living under doctrine, and occupation with Christ. These are the ways to direct our lives; but also the warning. Pentecost was a warning. Do you stay with the principle of grace?

Jews could not figure out why there was a feast on Sunday. When believers stop being occupied with Christ,...

Pentecost occurred and then a big gap, and then the 3 feasts. This gap is the 5^th cycle of discipline. Feast of Trumpets speak of the regathering and restoration of Israel. Many people think that Israeli is the regathered nation. This is just another nation just like any other nation. Israel is under the fifth cycle of discipline and it will continue through the rapture, through the Tribulation and to the 2^nd Advent.

From a human viewpoint, Israeli should be high on our admiration list. The Communists have sought the destruction of Israeli. They wanted the oil of the Middle East and they wanted the Arabs to offset the Jews. They have to be admired for the way that they fought this war.

Arabs went to the UN to appeal for some reason; perhaps because of the land the Jews had. However, this is different from Israel under Zechariah or Israel under David. We cannot admire the philosophy of some Jews, Zionism. Rhodesia and South Africa are two of the greatest nations today, and they are operating under Biblical principles, which we are not operating on. They are being maligned by the liberal press.

New Zealand is a great place to hunt and for scenery; but a terrible political system. The Feast of the Trumpets will be the regathering of the Jews.

England under Victoria was one of the greatest times and the greatest nation on the earth at that time. England during that time did more for the world than the UN could do in a Millennium. England brought Africa into the 20^th century. Arabs and Blacks sold Black slaves to us. Empire and colonialism are great words. Millions of people in Africa are in heaven today because of the British empire; the same for India. Missionaries could not make it in Africa or in India until there was law and order. The sun never set on the union jack (which is the British flag). They followed the principles of Bible doctrine. What generation is made fun of? Victorian England. Many have tried to blame the evils of the world on the British empire. Britain today is in a sorry state; they are controlled by socialism. The only difference is, theirs is a non-violent socialism. They departed from Biblical principles.

The Feast of the Atonement is next. Civilization concept. Only 8 believers began the post-deluvian civilization.

The 7^th feast is the Feast of the Tabernacles, which portrays the Millennium. This is when the lion and the lamb will lie down together; no war, no more poverty. This is the feast of the tabernacles. They leave their ordinary things of life and they concentrate on doctrine for 7 days. Then they return to their houses for ordinary living. It was like what we call a retreat today (which ought to be called an advance). Living in the shack with palm fronds.

Believing Jews and believing Gentiles who live go into the Millennium. These who survive the baptism of fire will form the nucleus for a new population for a new civilization. In a very short time, the world will be filled with millions of people.

There will be tours to the holy land just before the Feast of the Tabernacles. Bob has been offered 4 chances to go to the holy land and he was tempted once, but Bob doesn’t know how well we travel. He tells them, a tour to Africa to shoot animals; or a tour of the professional football games during the winter.

The Holy land and terrain is a lot like Arizona. There is nothing to be derived by going to Palestine today except to come back and to bore friends. Paul’s journeys in Turkey and Greece would be interesting. Bob has turned all of these things down.

Bob would like to see some battlefields and hunting tiger in Africa or India. He is not interested in the holy land, however. A trip to the holy land is seen like baptism; that you are not really holy until you do it.

These are tours of believers who know Bible doctrine and want to see Him personally in His capital city. They come to worship the King and to observe the Feast of the Tabernacles. This celebrates the Millennium.

Zech. 14:16 Then all the survivors from the nations that came against Jerusalem will go up year after year to worship the King, the LORD of Hosts, and to celebrate the Festival of Booths.

No rain is a loss of economy. They will suffer a loss of economic status. Heb. 6;7 those who refuse to go to this feast will eventually revolt. They will be in the Gog and Magog revolt.

Zech. 14:17 Should any of the families of the earth not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of Hosts, rain will not fall on them.

Egypt is made a test case. A plague is a discipline from the Lord. This is additional stimulation to get them to believe in Christ. Christ will not be forced on them. Egypt is used as a test case because it is close.

Zech. 14:18 And if the people of Egypt will not go up and enter, then rain will not fall on them; this will be the plague the LORD inflicts on the nations who do not go up to celebrate the Festival of Booths.

Zech. 14:19 This will be the punishment of Egypt and all the nations that do not go up to celebrate the Festival of Booths.

The Feast of the Tabernacles is held in Jerusalem in the Millennium. In the ancient world, when a nation had prosperity, they placed bells on their horses. They inscribed on the bells those who brought prosperity to the nation. Ornamental bells. No function except to refer to prosperity. These could be golden or silver.

Pots in the Lord’s house. This has the food of the sacrifices. Jesus Christ is more important than the food. One can enjoy the most common things in life. Some portion of the sacrifice is set aside to be eaten. It is enjoyed because of the mental attitude. You can enjoy food when you are occupation with Christ.

Zech. 14:20 On that day, the words HOLY TO THE LORD will be on the bells of the horses. The pots in the house of the LORD will be like the sprinkling basins before the altar.

No Canaanite in the house of the Lord. They were religious. They were on positive volition during Abraham’s day. They practiced on a wide scale homosexuality, which destroyed them as a people.

Zech. 14:21 Every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah will be holy to the LORD of Hosts. Everyone who sacrifices will come and take some of the pots to cook in. And on that day there will no longer be a Canaanite in the house of the LORD of Hosts.