Posted on 03/04/2017 1:03:04 PM PST by pastorbillrandles
The burden of the word of the Lord for Israel, saith the Lord, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him. Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.(Zechariah 12:1-3)
God says that it is He that will make Jerusalem to be a stone that “the nations of the earth” would presume to pick up and carry away, however they would find to their detriment that it s too heavy for them to do so, and the ones who try are literally ‘Lacerated’ for their failed efforts.
The idea is that in some way, “all of the Kings of the earth and their rulers…” are walking down a road, progressing towards a common goal. At some point they come to an obstruction in the road, a heavy stone sits in the way of progress.As I stated in an earlier article, only the existence of the UN would allow us to really say that “all of the nations of the earth” are in any kind of common walk.Zechariah’s prophecy was only possible of fulfillment since 1945 ad, and 1948 ad, the years in which for the first time n world history, there was a congress of all of the nations of the World, meeting regularly in New York city, and also the first time since 790 ad, there was a political entity, named Israel.
The Kings of the earth are trying to forge a new path for the world. Their road is towards some kind of globalist “new world order”. It is post national, post Judeo-Christian, and is the possible fulfillment of the utopian ideals of millions over the centuries. The day is almost here,it is right around the corner,”Peace on earth and goodwill towards men” , (of course without God).
But there is one stubborn trouble spot, the Middle East! How are we going to solve the quarrel between Jacob and Esau?
It doesn’t matter who, every one of the “Kings of the earth and their rulers” who have tried to solve the problem of the so-called status of Jerusalem have failed to their own hurt. The sun set on the British Empire because of it.
Uncle Sam says, “I’ll take care of it”, and rolls up his sleeves and squats to lift the stone, but cannot move it, and has severe cuts on his arms to show for his efforts. Every American President since Eisenhower has tried and failed to solve the Jerusalem problem. None of them would dare move the US Embassy to it, out of deference to the Muslims, although most of them promised to when running for office.
One outstanding recent example of the Laceration of a world leader, who took it on himself to resolve the Stone in the road problem, occurred under the Presidency of George Bush Jr, and Israeli leader Ariel Sharon, which I wrote about in an article called The Laceration of Two Presidencies”
The Word in Zechariah 12, for “Injure themselves”, can be interpreted as “Lacerate themselves”.
On the very week that the Ariel Sharon administration succumbed to the years long American diplomatic pressure on Israel to evacuate Gush Katif, the Jewish community in Gaza, hurricane Katrina struck our southern coastal area, ultimately to the detriment of the Bush presidency.
The following bullet points are from a World Net Daily article about the GAza/Katrina connection,
*Gaza’s Jewish communities were located in Israel’s southern coastal region; America’s southern coastal region now lies in ruins.
*The U.S. government called on Louisiana residents to evacuate their homes ahead of the storm. The Israeli government, backed by statements from U.S. officials, demanded Gaza residents evacuate their homes.
*Katrina, written in Hebrew, has a numerical equivalent of 374, according to a biblical numbering system upheld by all traditional Jewish authorities. Two relevant passages in the Torah share the exact numerical equivalent: “They have done you evil” (Gen. 50:17) and “The sea upon land” (Exodus 14:15).
*Bush, from Texas, and Rice, from Alabama, were the most vocal U.S. backers of the Gaza evacuation. Hurricane Katrina hit the states in between Texas and Alabama – Louisiana and Mississippi.
*Similarity in scenes: Many residents of Jewish Gaza climbed to their rooftops to escape the threat of expulsion, while residents of the Gulf Coast climbed on their own rooftops to protect themselves from the rising waters. Jewish Gaza homes described as beautiful and charming were demolished this week by Israel’s military. Once beautiful homes in New Orleans now lie in ruins.
*The day Katrina hit, Israel began carrying out what was termed the most controversial aspect of the Gaza withdrawal – the uprooting of bodies from the area’s Jewish cemetery. There have been media reports of corpses floating around in flooded New Orleans regions.
Did God Send Katrina as a Judgment for Gaza? by Aaron Klein ( http://www.wnd.com/?pageId=32196 )
In the first year of his administration, President Obama made an unprecedented appeal to the Muslim world, and that from Cairo, Egypt. He made clear in the speech His sympathy with Muslims, and his desire for the so-called “two State” solution.
Obama personally has condemned the Netanyahu Government for authorising the building of housing in East Jerusalem. His administration, as well as the UN , the EU and Russia believe that East Jerusalem should be reserved as the capital of the Palestinian state.
Ominously, one of Obama’s national security advisors, John Brennon recently refered to Jerusalem as “Al Quds” in a speech to an Arab american student group.”Al Quds” is the name given to Jerusalem by Islamists who want to deny the Jewish history of the city, insisting that it has always been Jewish.
This pandering to Islamic terrorists by a representative of the world’s lone super power is an example of just how heavy the stone is and how desperate the world is to move it.
Zechariah’s prophecy comes closer to realisation as the “Status” of Jerusalem is argued about and maneuvered for by the movers and shakers of the World. I just dread the “lacerations that are sure to follow. Maranatha Lord Jesus!
Thanks for your threads.
They are very interesting in how they tie things together.
And apart from seats of governments, there is no actual city that is more of a burden to deal with, while in another astounding prophecy in Zech, it is this description of an experience unknown (unless in the destruction of Sodom) until ugust 6, 1945.
And this shall be the plague wherewith the Lord will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth. (Zechariah 14:12)
It’s fascinating how some prophecy is not really understood until something happens that causes it to be fulfilled.
That is one of the reasons I put so little stock into the prophesying of those who claim to know future events.
Most of the fulfillment is recognized only AFTER it is fulfilled.
And when it is, it usually doesn’t look like we expect.
Which is why so many people missed Jesus as the Messiah the first time, until AFTER He had died and rose.
I had the same exact thought when I read that for the first time many years ago.
In fact, when we used to do the “Duck and Cover” Drills in Elementary School, the teachers would say “Don’t look at the flash or your eyeballs will melt”.
Funny what things one remembers from childhood!
True. I think i said that here someplace!
And when things like chewing were the typical problems. We had the specter of nuclear war but overall society provided more stability till the rise of the rebels.
Indeed. Even with the mushroom cloud hanging over us, the 50’s seem wonderful in retrospect.
There are only two reasons we are told in scriptures why God sends calamities that I can think of. The first is when the wickedness of the people is so great, God will bring judgment down upon them to spare the land. Such was the case of Sodom where God couldn’t find any righteous people in the place or when He threw the people out of Canaan because of their wickedness. The second place is listed in Amos. In this case God states that He will bring judgment down on people so that they will repent and turn from their sins and towards Him.
In both cases it is a response from God for His care of His creation and His love for us.
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