Category Archives: Keys To Prophecy

Common Pitfalls in Interpretation, Part 6

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Missing the Symbolism or Over Symbolizing

Admittedly this may be difficult at times. Further, over symbolizing can be as bad for the truth as missing the symbolism.

Take Jesus speaking of the leaven of the Pharisees.

To get the context we have go back to Matthew chapter 15. In the middle of the chapter Jesus had gone from the area of Tyre and Sidon back to the sea of Galilee. Many people were coming to Him, seeking His words and seeking His healing. Jesus said in Mtt 15:32 that He felt sorry for the people. They had been with Him for three days with nothing to eat, and He was afraid they might faint on the way back with nothing to eat. The disciples asked where would they get enough to feed this large crowd in such a deserted place. Jesu asked what the disciples what they had to eat, they said they had seven loaves of bread and a few fish. Jesus took what they had, blessed it and began breaking it and feeding it to the people. In the end, with that small beginning Jesus feed “four thousand men, besides women and children,” and picked up seven baskets of left-over pieces.

Somewhere in the events that followed,

The disciples came to the far side of the Sea of
Galilee, but forgot to take along
some bread, Mtt 16:5.

Then Jesus said to them,

“… Take heed and beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
Mtt 16:6

The disciples began talking among themselves and thought that Jesus said this because they brought no bread.

Jesus knew what they were thinking, and said

“… Why do you reason among yourselves, you of little faith, ‘because you have brought no bread?’”
Mtt 16:8

Jesus reminded them of the five loaves for five thousand people, and how many baskets of left-overs they had picked up! Also He reminded them of the seven loaves for four thousand and how many baskets of left-overs they had taken up!

“How is it that you don’t perceive that I didn’t speak to you concerning bread? But beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
Mtt 16:11

Jesus never directly told them He was
talking symboliclly about teachings.

But they finally got the point. That is the way it will often be with us.

“Then they understood that he didn’t tell them to beware of the yeast of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
Mtt 16:12

Also at times it is not an either or thing,

Prophecy Principles, discusses in detail that double prophecy in 2Samuel 7.

especially with symbolic persons, places, things, or events, sometimes called types and anti-types. Sometimes a passage my have both a literal meaning and a symbolic meaning. In 2Samuel chapter 7 the prophet Nathan talks about a special son of David who would build a house/temple for the Lord. It actually has a double meaning. Solomon the son of David fulfills this (1Chron 22:9-10), and built a physical temple to the Lord , and Jesus the Son of David also fulfills this (Heb 1:5), and He is in the process of building a spiritual temple to the Lord (Mtt 18:18, 1Pe 2:5, etc.).

Scriptures are from the World English Bible (WEB), a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Most History and Most Prophecy is not Strictly Chronological!

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An audio lesson.

Scripture is often unfairly criticized for not being strictly chronological. Actually the basic format of much of prophecy bears it greatest resemblance to human converstions. God is having conversations with us about the future. And the truth is that even most of the secualar histories which we read, are not strictly chronological!

Listen to this audio lesson here, or click on the Audio Player to download as an MP3 file.

Common Pitfalls in Interpretation, Part 5

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Getting swamped in false interpretations

And you think you have trouble because you have heard so many false interpretations? It is Satan’s tactic used all through history. You have heard many different things, some of them contradictory, and you simply do not not know which one of them to believe.

It was a huge problem in Jeremiah’s time.

Jeremiah was trying desperately to get everyone to listen to the Word of the Lord, and save themselves and their nation from destruction. But the word was constantly muddled by false prophets. They were assuring the people that everything would be alright.

“12 They have denied Yahweh, and said, It is not he; neither shall evil come on us; neither shall we see sword nor famine: 13 and the prophets shall become wind, and the word is not in them: thus shall it be done to them.”
Jer 5:12-13 WEB

It is summarized at the end of the chapter.

“the prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their hand; and my people love to have it so: and what will you do in the end of it?”
Jer 5:31 nf

Or consider when the prophet Micaiah
had to appear before the kings.

The kings of Israel and Judah were joining hands to go to war against Aram, Hebrew aram (which is called Syria in some translations). The King of Israel called up all of his prophets, to see what they said. There were 400 prophets according to 1Kgs 22:6, and they were unanimous that victory was assured, and some of them were prophesying by the the LORD, that is Yaweh, according to 1Kgs 22:8, 26. Then a true prophet of Yahweh was called, Micaiah. So, who should you listen to? At first he said, sure, go ahead. Then the King of Israel put him under oath to tell the truth, and Micaiah prophesied disaster and death. There is more to tell in the story, fascinating, but too long to repeat hear. Finally the king said about Micaiah,

“… Put this fellow in the prison, and feed him with bread of affliction and with water of affliction, until I come in peace.”
1Kgs 22:27 WEB

Micaiah replied,

“… If you return at all in peace, Yahweh has not spoken by me. He said, Hear, you peoples, all of you.”
1Kgs 22:28 WEB

So what was the standard?

“when a prophet speaks in the name of Yahweh, if the thing doesn’t follow, nor happen, that is the thing which Yahweh has not spoken: the prophet has spoken it presumptuously, you shall not be afraid of him.” Deut 18:19 WEB

Prophecy is ALWAYS logical and consistent,
and always is TRUE.

Parts of Daniel it is true are sealed, according to Dan 12:9. Revelation is for sure not a sealed book.

“He said to me, “Don’t seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is at hand.””
Rev 22:15WEB

Sealed? No! Deliberately ambiguous in parts? Yes, and for good reasons. Understandable? Also yes, for we are commanded to obey this book, Rev 22:7.

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

nf is my own translation based on the WEB.

Common Pitfalls in Interpretation, Part 4

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And More Naive Assumptions: Thinking we know
what God may want or desire.

Without realizing it, we as men may read into what God says what is really human desires and objectives. We can do this in prophecy and also in many other things.

Take for instance food.

God speaking by the mouth of Paul has said,

“for the Kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.”
Rom 14:17

Still some may think, it is about how you eat, and what you eat. That is part of what righteousness is all about, and blithely ignore passages like,

“But food will not commend us to God. For neither, if we don’t eat, are we the worse; nor, if we eat, are we the better.”
1Cor 8.8

So much for God telling us plainly.

Or thinking if we like something for worship,
God must like it too!

Now you may like big band music, or rock music, or whatever, and that is your prerogative. But does that mean that God also likes what you like, and you should introduce it into worship? Really? This listen to what God says by the mouth of Isaiah.

“8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, says Yahweh. 9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
Isa 55:8-9

It is foolish to introduce worldly entertainment into worship, confident of God’s acceptance. So how would we know how to correctly worship God? He would have to tell us.

“For who among men knows the things of a man, except the spirit of the man, which is in him? Even so, no one knows the things of God, except God’s Spirit.”
1Cor 2:11

And it very simple things which God’s commands.

“What is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also. I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also.”
1Cor 14:15

There is more to say, but that is the gist of it.

And what is God’s kingdom all about?

We have already seen that it is NOT about food and drink, Rom 14:17. But further even from that, we can see clearly that it is not really even about this world at all. Not ultimately! For when we see Jesus was on trial for His life before the Roman governor Pontus Pilate. Pilate asked Him, “What have you done?”

“Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, then my servants would fight, that I wouldn’t be delivered to the Jews. But now my kingdom is not from here.””
Jn 18:36

No, it is about a new heavens and a new earth after this present universe is burned up, 2Pe 3:10-13.

The premillenialists have it all wrong. They are confusing verses about heaven, with verses about this present world.

Once again, so much for God telling us plainly.

Scriptures are from the World English Bible (WEB), a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Common Pitfalls in Interpretation, Part 3

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Making naive assumptions

The world is full of naive assumptions about God and what He might do, or say, or speak, or like.

For instance, some “assume” that all prophecy is strictly linear. That God always talks first about what will happen first. Second He will talk about what will happen second, and so. So they claim, if a passage has a dual subject, then God must first finish talking about Subject A, before He talks about Subject B. Oh?

Take an admittedly difficult passage like
Matthew chapter 24.

There are clearly two subjects in Matthew 24, which was first spoken by Jesus around 30 AD. The first is the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. So Jesus speaks of the stones on which the Jewish temple was built, and says,

“… “Don’t you see all of these things? Most assuredly I tell you, there will not be left here one stone on another, that will not be thrown down.””
Mtt 24:2

That literally happened in 70 AD, and almost all acknowledge that Matthew 24 does talk about the war that drew to its conclusion in 70 AD!

But also Matthew 24 clearly talks about the end of this present universe. So Jesus says,

“and then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky. Then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory.”
Mtt 24:30

The issue for most is, where does the first subject stop, and the second subject begin?

Suppose we are talking about two boys,
Bobby and Billy.

We may say, well Bobby is really good at math. Yes, but Billy is really good at sports. That is true but also Bobby is good drama. Yes, and Billy is good at history and geography. And so on. So may go on talking for hours about Bobby and Billy, in a perfectly normal discussion of two normal little boys, or say two perfectly normal politicians running for office, going back and forth between two subjects! Such is not strange in human discussions.

And the answer for Matthew 24?

I think it is that the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD is symbolic of the end of our present universe, and Jesus is in Matthew 24 talking back and forth about both subjects. This is in fact a common device used in Bible prophecy. So to see what might apply to 70 AD, we might read the Jewish historian Josephus. And learn more about the end of this universe, we might consider how 70 AD happened.

The bottom line?

God can talk to us back and forth about more than one subject at a time if He wants to. It is for us to listen carefully and follow the conversation.

So what should we do?

Prophecy Principles, gives in depth descriptions of how fulfilled prophecies worked, to in this way see how prophecy really works.

The best way to avoid naive assumptions is first study fulfilled prophecies and see how they work, and then trying to derive our principles from what we see working in fulfilled prophecy. This is done in some detail in my first book, Prophecy Principles.

Scriptures are from the World English Bible (WEB), a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Common Pitfalls in Interpretation, Part 2

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Sometimes we miss big and important messages because we are,

Failing to see the overall message

The Pharisees made fatal mistakes here on several levels. A big one was their rejection of the gentiles as inferior, unclean, to be despised and rejected.

It is true that the Jews were to have nothing
to do with the Canaanites.

In fact, the ancient Canaanites were so wicked that they were to be wiped out.

“2 and when Yahweh your God shall deliver them up before you, and you shall strike them; then you shall utterly destroy them: you shall make no covenant with them, nor show mercy to them; 3 neither shall you make marriages with them; …”
Deut 7:2-3

But such commands did not extent
to all peoples in war.

“10 When you draw near to a city to fight against it, then proclaim peace to it. 11 It shall be, if it make you answer of peace, and open to you, then it shall be, that all the people who are found therein shall become tributary to you, and shall serve you.”
Deut 20:10-11

There is more to the instructions here, but the core is that the sanctions on the Canaanites did NOT apply to all nations.

And it is true that the Jews were to be first, IF they
were faithful to God and His Christ.

“Yahweh will make you the head, and not the tail; and you shall be above only, and you shall not be beneath; if you shall listen to the commandments of Yahweh your God, …”
Deut 28:13 WEB

But this did NOT mean that the Gentiles were all to be considered unclean, and not to be associated with.

Also, the Jews were to treat ALL MEN fairly

“The stranger who lives as a foreigner with you shall be to you as the native-born among you, and you shall love him as yourself; for you lived as foreigners in the land of Egypt. I am Yahweh your God. ”
Lev 19:34

“Therefore love the foreigner; for you were foreigners in the land of Egypt.”
Deut 10:19

The Pharisees missed the big message of
love and compassion in the Lord.

So when their Christ came, who clearly preached love and compassion to ALL … including the gentiles … they rejected their own Christ!

They failed to see the big picture of love and mercy to all … and thus sealed their own doom, because He was the one whom,

“… whoever will not listen to my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him.”
Deut 18:19 WEB

And so it stands, even to this day, for as Jesus said,

“I said therefore to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am he, you will die in your sins.”
Jn 8:24 WEB

Those are the words of the one and only Christ of God.

Scriptures are from the World English Bible (WEB), a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Keys to Prophecy: Trust God, Not Your Own Insight

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King Zedekiah about halfway trusted
the prophecies of God.

There were several encounters recorded in Jeremiah. He finally approached Jeremiah privately in Jeremiah 38 while Jerusalem was under siege from the Babylonians. He wanted to hear what he had to say. Jeremiah told him what God said would happen.

“Then said Jeremiah to Zedekiah, Thus says Yahweh, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: If you will go forth to the king of Babylon’s princes, then your soul shall live, and this city shall not be burned with fire; and you shall live, and your house..”
Jer 38:17

He was willing to think it might be right, but still had reservations about counsel of the Lord, and expressed these reservations.

“… I am afraid of the Jews who are fallen away to the Chaldeans, lest they deliver me into their hand, and they mock me.”
Jer 38:19

Jeremiah assured him these fears were without foundation.

“ … They shall not deliver you. Obey, I beg you, the voice of Yahweh, in that which I speak to you: so it shall be well with you, and your soul shall live.”
Jer 38:20

Then Jeremiah told him, again accurately, what would happen if he did not do what God told, Jer 38:23. King Zedekiah was not all powerful, but he did have important decisions to make. But he was not fully persuaded. So the terrible alternative came upon him.

“They killed the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him in fetters, and carried him to Babylon.”
2Kgs 25:7.

So the last sight Zedekiah saw was his sons being slaughtered before his eyes. And he went to Babylon as a blind man.

This is not to say that we do not have great potential.

Ah! Human potential. But the greatest of this is in the Lord. As Jesus said,

“5 I am the vine. You are the branches. He who remains in me, and I in him, the same bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If a man doesn’t remain in me, he is thrown out as a branch, and is withered; and they gather them, throw them into the fire, and they are burned. 7 If you remain in me, and my words remain in you, you will ask whatever you desire, and it will be done for you.”
Jn 15:5-7 WEB

We should trust His advice, His foresight

even if we think it violates what we are “sure” is “right” or “safe.”

“5 Trust in Yahweh with all your heart,
And don’t lean on your own understanding.
6 In all your ways acknowledge him,
And he will direct your paths.
7 Don’t be wise in your own eyes.
Fear Yahweh, and depart from evil.
8 It will be health to your body,
And nourishment to your bones.”
Prov 3:5-8 WEB

“One who trusts in himself is a fool;
But one who walks in wisdom, he is kept safe. ”
Prov 28:26 WEB

Scriptures are from the World English Bible (WEB), a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Keys to Prophecy: God Can And Does Often Direct Our Thinking

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We are but creatures and are by no means omnipotent. I have heard many preachers say that God would never violate our “free will” as they put it. He will never “make us” do something. What foolishness. The truth is that He makes us do or say or think things everyday, that we had no intention of doing or saying. God often overrules us.

Actually many may manipulate our thinking.

Including moms and dads, and “friends,” and announcers and ads. Because of the limitations on our earthly life and our knowledge, we from time to time become the victims of counsel that at best misguided, or at worst is manipulative. Sometimes even from those we love, and who also love us. And Satan! He can do such things,

“After supper, the devil having already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him,”
Jn 13:2

And of Mystery Babylon the Great, it says

“… for with your sorcery all the nations were deceived.”
Rev 18:23

So here is a human entity, which by “sorcery,” can alter the thinking, manipulate/deceive the entire world at some future time. (You don’t suppose God actually foresaw modern mass media do you? I jest!).

So do you suppose that “many” can and do “manipulate” our thinking: mom, dad, friend, announcer, ad, movie, Satan … and God could not, would not?

God can and does influence the thinking of men.

It is both and little things and big things. God speaks of what He will do to His people in foreign lands, if they are not faithful to Him.

““‘As for those of you who are left, I will send a faintness into their hearts in the lands of their enemies: and the sound of a driven leaf will put them to flight; and they shall flee, as one flees from the sword; and they will fall when no one pursues.””
Lev 26:36

God can help us, or if we oppose God, He can harden us in bad thinking.

“But Sihon king of Heshbon would not let us pass by him; for Yahweh your God hardened his spirit, and made his heart obstinate, that he might deliver him into your hand, as at this day.”
Deut 2:30

And so it will be even with God’s enemies
(Rev 17:13-14) near the end.

Mystery Babylon the Great has near the end deceived the nations and come to commercially dominate the world, ruining the nations with wars and sexual immorality in order to better exploit men (Revelation 18). She deserves to be punished, but she is too powerful to resist.

So God puts together a coalition of ten kings (“horns,” see for instance Dan 8:20-21), who for “one hour” had the resources to destroy Mystery Babylon all the way down the ground.

“For God has put in their hearts to do what he has in mind, and to be of one mind, and to give their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God should be accomplished.”
Rev 17:17

Scriptures are from the World English Bible (WEB), a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Keys to Prophecy: Human Insight is Very Limited

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Jeremiah knows full well to weakness and insufficiency of man on his own. He comments on these things in various places.

“Yahweh, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man who walks to direct his steps.”
Jer 10:23

Or again, from Proverbs.

“A man’s steps are from Yahweh;
How then can man understand his way?”
Prov 20:24

Jeremiah knows that evil men need to be
brought to account.

For those who do not, will not, call on His name, and ruin the righteous, Jeremiah knows they deserve to be punished and calls on God to do it,

“Pour out your wrath on the nations that don’t know you, and on the families that don’t call on your name: for they have devoured Jacob, yes, they have devoured him and consumed him, and have laid waste his habitation.”
Jer 10:25

But also Jeremiah knows that we need much instruction and mercy to even survive. Jeremiah is an inspired prophet of God, following in faith, and tenaciously holding to the Lord even when none will follow him. Still he is aware of how vulnerable he is.

“Yahweh, correct me, but in measure: not in your anger, lest you bring me to nothing.”
Jer 10:24

James, the half-brother of Jesus, likewise
knows these things.

“Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow let’s go into this city, and spend a year there, trade, and make a profit.””
Jas 4:13

He goes on to say that we do not even know what our very lives will be like tomorrow! If we have any insight, and foresight, it is not of ourselves but of God. James goes on to say that we are but vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes. He does NOT say we are LIKE a vapor! He says WE ARE A VAPOR! We need to listen to God.

Yes, we can plan and think and “want” and ”will”
to do things.

“The plans of the heart belong to man,
But the answer of the tongue is from Yahweh.”
Prov 16:1

But we are not omnipotent, all powerful.

So often we cannot always carry out what we “will.” We are often overcome in even our day to day intentions to do or to seek.

“There are many plans in a man’s heart,
But Yahweh’s counsel will prevail.”
Prov 19:21

“For you ought to say, “If the Lord wills,

“we will both live, and do this or that.””
Jas 4:15

He is the One who is really in control. That is the sober truth of the matter. Though we may strut and swagger and boast, at the end of the day, Yahweh, He is God, and you and I are merely men. Men who very much need the support and advice and the foresight of the One and Only Living God, and who should never put our own understanding before that of God’s.

Scriptures are from the World English Bible (WEB), a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901