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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdtR68oW9Nk?feature=shared

THE HE-GOAT OF THE WEST

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[Daniel 8:5 ASV] — "And as I was considering, behold, a he-goat came from the west over the face of the whole earth, and touched not the ground: and the goat had a notable horn between his eyes."

[Daniel 8:5 ISV] — "As I watched and wondered, a male goat was coming from the west over the surface of the entire earth without touching the ground. The goat had a distinctive horn between its eyes.””

This Episode and lines of this Bible Verse in Red begins with:

* How Daniel was occupied with how much he'd seen and with seeing of the Ram in the vision;

* Then behold another appearance that could grab his focus away from looking at the Ram;

* This greater spectacle was coming from the West, not from the East or from river Ulai;

* Though coming from far West, Daniel already knew what was coming and knew it was He-Goat;

* This coming of the He-Goat was remarkably a "Crossing Over" grounds of the earth as in flyover;

* It's like the He-Goat had to move from West to East without touching/using the earth's grounds;

* And importantly, there was a Notification about the horn in between the eyes of the He-Goat.

Now let's touch some briefs on these lines:

How Daniel was occupied with how much he'd seen and with seeing of the Ram in the vision: Visions from God have such influence and engagement on people, even while the visions are ongoing. But like Daniel, while you are occupied and saturated, still be attentive and receptive; and which you are wondering, still be watching.

Then behold another appearance that could grab Daniel's focus away from looking at the Ram: While seeing visions, you will notice how much your attention can be directed or captured. You don't always control your own focus or attention in every visions, trance or dreams.

This greater spectacle was coming from the West, not from the East or from river Ulai: The Sun do not rise from the West, but some Stars do rise from the West and come to the East. The West here was beyond Babylon or Bethlehem which were all in "Middle East:" The West was Europe.

Though coming from far West, Daniel already knew what was coming and knew it was He-Goat: In Visions, distance do not usually limit a seer's sight as distance does in literal world. Without the use of telescope, binoculars, spyglass, or monocular, Daniel knew was it was.

This coming of the He-Goat was remarkably a "Crossing Over" grounds of the earth as in flyover: The He-Goat was figuratively an incoming Manned Aerial Drone or low range flying altitude private Jet. It's like the He-Goat had to move from West to East without touching/using the earth's grounds: Though He-Goats are land animals, this He-Goat approached battle like Airforce rather than ground force.

And importantly, there was a Notification about the horn in between the eyes of the He-Goat. It's important to know that when this He-goat is facing you, his horn is also pointing at you. He doesn't have to turn his face away from you to point his horn at you. If the horn was a gun, you can easily tell where the gun is pointing at by where those eyes are focused. But the horn was no gun, but a king; for the He-goat was a Kingdom of whatever horn that is on the goat.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZnDxmAJabo?feature=shared

RAM OF THE EAST: SUBDUED WEST, NORTH, SOUTH

Let me begin by correcting myself from a geographic error. Here is the correct and updated lines:

The vision Daniel received is strikingly reminiscent of the Star that guided the wise men to the birth of Jesus Christ during King Herod's reign. Both events emphasize the significance of guidance and revelation. The wise men traveled from the East, while Daniel's journey took him toward the East, illustrating the intertwined paths of destiny and divine purpose.

- Direction Matters: The movement from Bethlehem to Babylon is an eastward journey, just as the transition from Babylon to Persia also heads east. However, the journey from Persia to Greece marks a return from the East—symbolizing new challenges and opportunities.

The Star and the wise men were coming from the East: While This vision and the wise Daniel were going to the East.

This is because:

Traveling from Bethlehem (in Judah) to Babylon (in Iraq) goes East.
Traveling from Babylon (in Iraq) to Persia or Elam (in Iran) goes East.
But, traveling from Persia (in Iran) to Greece (in Europe) is coming back from the East, for it goes West.

This narrative illustrates Daniel's progression from Bethlehem through Babylon to Persia as an advancing journey into the East—a metaphor for enlightenment. Yet, when it comes to Greece, it is not Daniel who travels westward; instead, he receives a vision from the west while at the River Ulai.

Now, here is the main bible verse in Red for this episode:

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[Daniel 8:4 KJV] — "I saw the ram pushing westward, and northward, and southward; so that no beasts might stand before him, neither was there any that could deliver out of his hand; but he did according to his will, and became great.”

[Daniel 8:4 TLV] — "I saw the ram charging toward the west and north and south. No animal could stand against him—none could deliver from his hand. So he did as he pleased and magnified himself.”

This Ram in the Vision was protecting or defending the East, while fighting all threats in the West (opposite the East), in the north, and in the south. There was no threat from the East, and no one to fight along the East. So, let's say the Kingdom of this Ram represented the Kingdom of the East: Thus, Kings of the East.

No beast could stand to challenge the Ram, yet. Not that any had tried fighting the Ram, and was crushed or defeated, but that the Ram was so dominineering that with only a little or no war, the Ram had already conquered all beasts in the west, north and south within it's purview - or so it seemed. The conquest was more of a psychological or mind conquest over the world, than that of might conquest. All beasts were too mentally paralyzed to even challenge the Charging and Battering Ram. Even Babylon with it's great walls was frozen in fear and in siege by this Battering Ram, while the Ram was pushing West.

Have you not witnessed a Ram or a Bull like that, which likes to push, charge, butt or batter, anyone close to it for no reason? And people and beast avoid such Ram or Bull, especially avoiding the horns. For bible laws on handling owners of Bulls (by extension owners of dogs), who's Bulls (or Dogs) attack people or attack other people's animals, see "Exodus 21:27-36" whether it warrants killing the owner of the Bull or owner of the dog that attacked any human being or livestock of another person.

In the Bible verse in Red:

1. If you were thinking that testoterone or manhood pride would drive someone to fight, you may be disappointed that no beast was man enough to even stand before the Ram or charge back at the Ram;

2. And if you were thinking self-defense or family defense would drive someone to fight, you may be disappointed that no beast could deliver or defend any out of the hand of the Ram.

3. And if you were thinking there's strength in number, you may be disappointed that the beasts could form any alliance or formidable force to leverage on number advantage over the Ram.

Therefore, the Ram did whatever thing the Ram wanted or pleased to do, and grew even greater.

But do not ask, saying, "If when the Ram was great, no one could prevent or stop the Ram; is it now that the Ram has grown even greater and stronger that anyone can stop the Ram?" I said, do not ask that question. Do not ask, "If when he was not yet the president, no one could prevent or stop him; is it now that he is now the president and has all the powers of the state that anyone can stop him?"

I tell you, there are people, who may not be stopped or prevented when they are great, but they shall be stopped and prevented when they become even greater and more powerful than they are. To stop them do not come by making them weaker, but by making them stronger or greater. Their growing in greatness and growing in power appears to be leading them far from falling or from becoming stoppable, but in the ways of the LORD their growing greater and more powerful is actually their getting closer to great fall and sudden end. Therefore, do not be afraid of increase or prosperity of the proud; for those are setup and snares against them. The LORD does things so that men would see and say, "This is the Finger of the LORD. Not of men."

The ways of the LORD are great and mysterious.

YOUR PROPHETS\PASTORS ARE AS THESE FOXES

[Ezekiel 13:4 AKJV] — "O Israel, your prophets are like the foxes in the deserts."

[Ezekiel 13:4 BSB'25] — "Your prophets, O Israel, are like foxes among the ruins."

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Your prophets, O Israel, are like foxes in the deserts or ruins. These foxes (prophets or pastors) have destroyed Israel (and in our case, ruined Christians) - They did not meet It as deserts or ruins already, but met It better than It is now with them on board. And, even if they met It deserts or ruins, they have done nothing of significant value to rebuild the ruins and retore the desolate.

How?

•1• The Prophets and Pastors met It as a fruitful Vineyard, but they became the dogs and little foxes that spoil the Vine in the vineyard: As it is written,

[Song 2:15 AKJV] — "Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes."

[Song 2:15 BSB'25] — "Catch for us the foxes— the little foxes that ruin the vineyards— for our vineyards are in bloom."

•2• Those Prophets and Pastors eventually destroyed the Vineyard, ruined it and it became desolate: As it is written,

[Jeremiah 12:10-11 AKJV] — "Many pastors have destroyed My vineyard, they have trodden My portion under foot, they have made My pleasant portion a desolate wilderness. They have made it desolate, and being desolate it mourns to Me; the whole land is made desolate, because no man lays it to heart."

•3• Many of those Prophets and Pastors did not even know the damages and ruins they caused and allowed on the LORD's Vineyard or Household: As in, they do not know it is not desolate ruins among which they as foxes dwell.

[Lamentation 5:18 AKJV] — "Because of the mountain of Zion, which is desolate, the foxes walk on it.”

Now, see the main Bible verse in Red:

[Ezekiel 13:4 AKJV] — "O Israel, your prophets are like the foxes in the deserts."

[Ezekiel 13:4 BSB'25] — "Your prophets, O Israel, are like foxes among the ruins."

This means, Israel was figuratively in ruins or desolation as deserts. When the Antichrist emerges with his false prophets, he will become chief Abomination that makes desolate or ruins.

THE RAM AND THE HORNS

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[Daniel 8:2 NKJV] — "Then I lifted my eyes and saw, and there, standing beside the river, was a ram which had two horns, and the two horns were high; but one was higher than the other, and the higher one came up last.”

[Daniel 8:2 FBV] — "I looked around and saw a ram standing beside the river. It had two long horns, one longer than the other, even though the longer one had grown last.”

On lighter entrance, I begin checking for comparisons between this Ram that Daniel saw in this “Vision” by a river, and the Ram that Abraham saw in a “Pro-vision” on a mountain. Both “Ram(s)” suddenly appeared out of nowhere, and both "Ram(s)” had something about their horns as soon as they were first seen or sighted by the testifying seers.

[Genesis 22:13-14 AKJV] — "And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son. And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovahjireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the LORD it shall be seen.”

Vision and Pro-vision both meant the same at that point and in that Mountain of the LORD named, “Jehovah-Jireh:” — It shall be seen meant it's provided.

But behold, the Ram Daniel saw was not seen on the LORD's mountain, but by river Ulai, though it's still in the Lord's Visions. It was not a Ram Daniel was to use for sacrifice as offering, unlike Abraham had done: rather, this Ram is a Kingdom of Kings, which Daniel beheld.

The horns of this Ram in Daniel's visions were not like the horns of the Ram that Abraham saw and took for offering, seeing the horns of the Ram for Abraham were horns that could be caught or be entangled by thickets, thorns or branches of trees, like Absalom’s hair was to his death.

Rather behold, the horns of this Ram in Daniel's visions were kings, to degree that Daniel had to acknowledge their “Highnesses” as in “Highness of the two Horns” of that Ram before anything else about the Ram. Highness also means majesty. However, one of the Horns had more Highness than the other Horn, but the Highness of the higher horn had to first become the Highness of the the lower horn before.

In other words, the higher horn was once the lower horn, because the higher horn came up last after the lower horn had first gone up before it. Even so, being higher is not always being ahead: one may be higher ahead of you, for you that is lower to later grow higher than he that you used to look up to.

Yes, the last became more than the first — higher than the first. As is written:

[Revelation 2:19] — "I know your works, and charity, and service, and faith, and your patience, and your works; and the last to be more than the first.”

[Matthew 23:11-12 AFV] — "But the greatest among you shall be your servant. And whoever will exalt himself shall be humbled; and whoever will humble himself shall be exalted."

Now “Exalted” entered this, let us use it. The horns of the Ram were exalted even as Daniel was looking at them. The fact that Daniel knew the horns grew up high, and knew the higher horn came up last, meant he saw and witnessed the exaltation of these horns of the Ram at River Ulai.

Other things the Horns of a Ram may signify to us figuratively are Trumpets: Not as in Donald Trump, but as in Trumpets of Ram's Horns meant for sound:

[Leviticus 23:24 AFV] — "“Speak to the children of Israel saying, ‘In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, you shall have a Sabbath, a memorial of blowing of ram’s horns, a holy convocation."

Yes, even the blasting of the Trumpet of the Ram's Horns, which when joined with the Holy shouting of the people, Walls of Jericho fell down or collapsed.

[‭Joshua 6:5] — “When you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets of the Ram's, have the whole army give a loud shout; then the wall of the city will collapse and the army will go up, everyone straight in.”

Ewes — the females of Rams — do not usually grow horns like the Rams or their males (even as in most Ruminants/Cattles). But our women in the Lord do have horns as well as our men in the Lord. The first in the Bible scriptures to testify of this was a Woman, Hannah, whose horn was exalted by the Lord:

[1 Samuel 2:1-2,10 AFV] — "And Hannah prayed and said, “My heart rejoices in the LORD, my horn is exalted in the LORD. My mouth is enlarged over my enemies because I rejoice in Your salvation. There is none holy as the LORD, for there is none beside You. Neither is there any rock like our God. … The foes of the LORD shall be broken to pieces. He thunders in the heavens upon them. The LORD shall judge the ends of the earth. And He shall give strength to His king, and exalts the horn of His anointed.”"

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WOE TO THESE FOOLISH PROPHETS

[Ezekiel 13:3 AKJV] — "Thus said the Lord GOD; Woe to the foolish prophets, that follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing!"

[Ezekiel 13:3 LG] — "Thus says the Lord: ‘Woe to them that prophesy out of their own heart, and who see nothing at all."

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In this Bible verse in Red,

‭Ezekiel 13:3 NKJV‬
[3] Thus says the Lord God: “Woe to the foolish prophets, who follow their own spirit and have seen nothing!

‭Ezekiel 13:3 NIV‬
[3] This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Woe to the foolish prophets who follow their own spirit and have seen nothing!

‭Ezekiel 13:3 GNT‬
[3] This is what the Sovereign Lord says: “These foolish prophets are doomed! They provide their own inspiration and invent their own visions.

There was a church in which the pastor was asking the congregation, “Can I prophesy to?” And the congregation responded, “Prophesy, man of God!” And again he asked, “Can I prophesy?” And they said, “Prophesy!”

The soldiers mocked the Lord Jesus Christ, when to told him to “Prophesy:” They blindedfolded Him so that He may not see, and yet required who they blinded to prophesy through His spiritual Eye, and not His natural Eyes —

[Luke 22:64 LG] — "And having blindfolded Him, they were striking His face and asking Him, saying, "Prophesy! Who is the one who struck You?"”

I know there are men who, though they are blind in the natural eyes yet they, see by the Spirit or with their spirit, like Paul, Ahijah, etc, were as some point. But the Bible verse in Red pronounced “Woe” to those who prophesy without seeing anything just because they were led in following their spirit.

One of the language terms that prophesying prophets use is — “I see…” E.g. “I see Donald Trump getting sworn into office as President of USA on January 20, 2025.” “I see many rising, and I see many falling…” etc.

The use of “I see” by a prophesying prophet is supposed to mean he/she saw vision, had revelation or heard from the Lord God. It is not supposed to be from their own imagination, their own heart, their own mind, their prediction or following their own spirit. It is dangerous for any prophet to be following his own spirit; rather, the proper thing is the spirit of a prophet to follow him.

[1 Corinthians 14:32 LG] — "And the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets."

[1 John 4:1 LG] — "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are from God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.”

This last Bible reference here introduced the use of the word “False Prophets” into this article: — It had been “Foolish Prophets” all along from the Bible verse in Red, and there's slight difference between “Foolish Prophets” and “False Prophets.”

Moreover, the Lord Jesus Christ said, “By their fruits, you shall know the False Prophets,” while John in that last reference here inferred “By their spirit (not just their fruits) you shall know the False Prophets.”

Well, the Bible verse in Red spoke of “Foolish Prophets,” not necessarily the “False Prophets.” You may recall that these “Foolish Prophets” were first referred to as the “Prophets of Israel” that prophesy from their own hearts or following their own spirit.

There are reasons the Spirit of God or the Word of God had to come upon prophets before they prophesied. In the last days, God poured His Spirit on all flesh, sons and daughters prophesied by the Spirit, old men dream dreams and young men and women see visions. If they saw nothing, and no Spirit of God or Word of God, but went about prophesying — they are foolish prophets and “Woe betide them” as it is written in red.

Some of the Woe that may follow prophesying foolish prophets is that since they follow their own spirit or heart to prophesy to people, they become susceptible or vulnerable to evil spirits and demonic manipulations of their tongues and their prophecies.

♨️1▪︎ Those 400 prophets prophesying to Ahab were easily tongued-possessed by a “Lying spirit” — And they felt the power as if they were under the power or influence of the Spirit of God, but that's some of the woe, lost discernment and blindness to see true visions of God, but instead manipulated into seeing lying visions and influenced by demons that know how to mimic or act like the Spirit of God on those foolish prophets.

♨️2▪︎ Saul, the first king before David came, began to joke with this by always following the people he was leading and pleasing the people at the cost of disobeying or undermining the true message or Word of God to Him. Then it happened, and the Spirit of God left Saul, then evil spirits from the Lord took over, troubling that king and making him to keep prophesying.

David with the Spirit of God was hired to play music that would be casting out the evil spirits, but David did not just know when to resign or quit that job after he killed Goliath. David should have tendered his resignation letter, and quit playing instruments for a king or a foolish prophet that was then under the Woe — If you are like that, each time you see the madman prophesying, you would be acting like David because of your anointing and Holy Spirit, and like David you will not only remain in the presence of the prophesying madman or prophet of strange spirits, but will be playing instrument like David to him — be guided and be wise as Paul became wise and grew tired of the prophesying mad girl, who was possessed by an evil spirit of Python (serpent) in divination or prophesying. As is written in Logos Bible,

[Acts 16:16-18 LG] — "Now it came to pass, as we went to prayer, that a certain slave girl, having a spirit of Python, met us, who brought much profit to her masters by fortune telling. This girl, following after Paul and us, was crying out, saying, "These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation." And this she did for many days. But Paul, being greatly annoyed and turning around, said to the spirit, "I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her." And he came out in that very hour.”

At least, Paul grew tired of being under the ministration of the prophesying prophetess that was under the influence of spirit of divination, and instead of resigning, Paul fired or sacked the evil spirit. But as for David, he did not know when to quit listening or doing that job of playing instruments for a prophesying prophet under the influence of a spirit of divination — this almost cost David his life more than twice:

[1 Samuel 18:10-13 GWN] — "The next day an evil spirit from God seized Saul. He began to prophesy in his house while David strummed a tune on the lyre as he did every day. Now, Saul had a spear in his hand. He raised the spear and thought, "I'll nail David to the wall." But David got away from him twice. Saul was afraid of David, because the LORD was with David but had left Saul. So he kept David away. He made David captain of a regiment. David led the troops out [to battle] and back again."

You see it happened twice, two times, attempts to kill David on that job, and yet David would not quit the job of playing instrument for a prophesying prophet that was under the influence evil spirit and followed his spirit to kill David. Saul then drafted David out, since David would not die on the job and still would not resign to quit that job.

Guess what? David still returned to doing that job, and for the third time he almost got killed. That was when David finally ran away and quit that job. Don't ask me why David left where he was drafted or posted to come back to playing music for a prophesying prophet that was under that “Woe” —

[1 Samuel 19:9-12 GWN] — "Then an evil spirit from the LORD came over Saul while he was sitting in his house with his spear in his hand. David was strumming a tune. Saul tried to nail David to the wall with his spear. But David dodged it, and Saul's spear struck the wall. David fled, escaping [from Saul] that night. Saul sent messengers to watch David's house and kill him in the morning. But Michal, David's wife, advised him, "If you don't save yourself tonight, you'll be dead tomorrow!" So Michal lowered David through a window, and he ran away to escape.”

The Lord Jesus Christ would cast out demons from the prophesying prophets or madmen who were prophesying: but though those demons knew Him as the Son of God, and would prophesy good things about Him, the Lord Jesus Christ would shut them up from prophesying and cast them out from men. Paul initially did entertained the demon of Python in prophesying good about them, but Paul became wise and cast the evil spirit from the prophesying prophetess. David learnt in a hard way to flee such.

Again, I tell you, the day the Lord will get rid of unclean spirits or demons from the Church will be the day prophesying prophets will end in the Church:

[‭Zechariah 13:2-5 NKJV‬] — “It shall be in that day,” says the Lord of hosts, “that I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, and they shall no longer be remembered. I will also cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to depart from the land. It shall come to pass that if anyone still prophesies, then his father and mother who begot him will say to him, ‘You shall not live, because you have spoken lies in the name of the Lord.’ And his father and mother who begot him shall thrust him through when he prophesies. “And it shall be in that day that every prophet will be ashamed of his vision when he prophesies; they will not wear a robe of coarse hair to deceive. But he will say, ‘I am no prophet, I am a farmer; for a man taught me to keep cattle from my youth.’

But there was a twist to Saul's Woe story here — he had been a prophesying prophet under the Woe, and as a such prophesying prophet he had being used to following his own spirit, his own mind, heart or influenced by evil spirit, so long as he prophesied — He did not care about hearing from the Lord God nor awaiting to see God's vision, but he just went on prophesying from his own. The twist was that suddenly, he who had been prophesying and had not be listening or hearing or seeing, suddenly desired to hear the true Word of God in his last days. Saul sought to hear God, but God did not speak to him: and his hunger to hear from God or from a true prophet of God drove Saul to consult a witch or sorceress to use forbidden art or necromancy to invoke a true Prophet from the dead, even Samuel a man of God whom God sent even from the dead:

[‭1 Samuel 28:15-16 NIV‬] — Samuel said to Saul, “Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?” “I am in great distress,” Saul said. “The Philistines are fighting against me, and God has departed from me. He no longer answers me, either by prophets or by dreams. So I have called on you to tell me what to do.” Samuel said, “Why do you consult me, now that the Lord has departed from you and become your enemy?

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[Daniel 8:2 AKJV] — "And I saw in a vision; and it came to pass, when I saw, that I was at Shushan in the palace, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in a vision, and I was by the river of Ulai."

[Daniel 8:2 MKJV] — "And in a vision I looked. And it happened when I looked, I [was] at Shushan the palace, which [is] in the province of Elam. And in a vision I looked, and I was by the Ulai Canal."

This Daniel's Vision: — He described the time he received the Vision as in the “Third Year of Belshazzar's reign as king of Babylon,” but then the trance of the vision was at Shushan, state capital of the Province of Elam - Persia.

It was a vision received in the time of the kingdom of Babylon, but received in the palace and place of Elam - (Medo-Persia). Actually, this was meant to reveal the coming times of the kingdom of Persia, while it was yet the time of the kingdom of Babylon: with and including even the coming time of the kingdom of Greece, beyond the coming time of the kingdom of Persia, during the time of the kingdom of Babylon — precisely in the third year of the king Belshazzar, ruler of Babylon. So, Daniel's understanding of the Handwriting on the Wall concerning “Perez” or “Upharsin” began to build from this vision.

Again, this Vision appearing to Daniel and revealing the birth of those kingdoms during the days of Belshazzar as king of Babylonian, was like the Star appearing in the East to the wise men announcing the birth of the King of the Jews, Jesus Christ, in the days of Herod as king of Judea. The traffic flow difference between the two includes:

▪︎ The Star and the Wise men traffic flow was — Coming from the East

▪︎ This Vision and the Wise Daniel traffic flow was — Going to the East: -

This is Because:

— From Bethlehem (in Judah) to Babylon (in Iraq) — Go East.

— From Babylon (in Iraq) to Persia or Elam (in Iran) — Go East.

— From Persia (in Iran) to Greece (in Europe) — Go East.

♨️ Now let's focus on the Bible verse in Red: - From this Bible verse in Red, Daniel was still in the aspect of “Seeing Himself while seeing the Visions.” Seeing Visions is only about seeing other people or things, but could be just as seeing yourself as in a Mirror — Except that in this “Mirror” or “Vision” the reflection was not showing the location where Daniel was looking into the “Mirror” or Visions from, but instead revealed Daniel was in a different place or different country from where he began looking into the ‘Mirror’ or visions.

●1● And each time he looked into one of those Mirrors or Visions, Daniel was caught up or raptured or tranced in spiritual projection into the vision he was seeing or looking into. It was not his reflection in the mirror that was mimicking him, rather it was him that was mimicking or repeating what he saw his reflection doing or going, by spiritual automatic way. It was like the Mirrors, Visions or Portals, that draw and swallow whoever looks/gazes into them. One finds himself/herself inside the worlds of such Visions, Mirrors, Trance or Portals, just by looking at them, even when seeing their own image.

How do I exemplify this with something natural or carnal? Yes, I recall seeing an animated movie involving real people and animated characters as well. In the movie, the real people gathered to play certain simulation game, involving putting on their minds or wearing on their head things that looked like headphones and mental hypnosis, which then struck them unconscious in the physical reality of their environment, and then they would wake up in a virtual world of game, which they would sense and feel as real, while the real world is unreal to them by then. Each of them would be Avatar or Animated Character of what he/she was in thoughts, deeds, actions and feelings: and they would be occupied with things such as glitches, enemies, pits, insects, etc. in those virtual game worlds because they think those things are real, and they have fears in those worlds, which in the real world are things that do not matter, but mattered to them in those virtual worlds. It's like how this carnal world matters to carnal men, but spiritual worlds do not count them as matter.

However, the common ground for illustration is that instead of the people in the real world to be controlling their reflection, avatar or character in the game or virtual worlds — reverse was the case because the avatars in the games or virtual worlds were controlling those in the outside or real world, and it was as if the final life of the avatar in the game ends, the real person would die literally in the real world.

●2● First time Daniel looked into the Vision or Mirror, Daniel was in a different country away from Babylon — He was in Shushan, state capital or palace of Elam, which is Persia — East of Babylon.

Then again, either the sane or similar Vision/Mirror still appeared to him inside that trance, and Daniel looked again — And this time Daniel was caught away from Shushan the palace to a different location called “River Ulai” but was still within the province of Elam or country of Persia.

Thus, Daniel's transition from trance to trance.

Some of you may recall how Rick, while in a Trance and with the Lord Jesus inside heaven, had to also fall into another deeper trance, to be able to enter the deeper realms where he could see God the Father.

The Saints of the Lord Jesus Christ have “Mirrors” they can look into and they would be Changed, Translated or Transited, from glory to glory, from realms to realms, and from dimensions to dimensions - the Lord's Spirit. But these “Mirrors” are not just for seeing themselves, seeing their own reflection as Daniel in the main Bible verse in Red — Rather, instead of seeing self in these “Mirrors” to trigger the change, translation, transfiguration or transition, like Daniel saw here, these “Mirrors” are meant for seeing the glory of the Lord or seeing the Image of the Son of God, Jesus Christ inside the Mirrors by the Spirit of the Lord - to trigger the transition, the change, transfiguration, transformation, translation etc from glory to glory, from realms to realms etc.

[2 Corinthians 3:18 LG] — "But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.”

Remember, it is not the Reflection, Image or Glory, in these kinds of Mirrors that mimick or copy you that is looking into the Mirrors; rather, you are the one who must change, mimick, follow or relive, what the Image, Reflection you saw in the Mirrors or be wherever the Reflection is. This differentiates these Vision Mirrors from carnal mirrors among natural creatures.

SENT PROPHETS VERSUS PROPHETS OF ISRAEL


[Ezekiel 13:2 AKJV] — "Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel that prophesy, and say you to them that prophesy out of their own hearts, Hear you the word of the LORD;"

[Ezekiel 13:2 FBV] — "“Son of man, you are to prophesy against the prophets of Israel who right now are busy prophesying. Tell those who make up their own prophecies: Listen to the word of the Lord!"

♨️♨️♨️♨️♨️♨️♨️


In this Bible verse in Red, two distinct categories of prophets/pastors are here prophesying:

▪︎1▪︎ The Prophets of Israel that are already prophesying

▪︎2▪︎ The Prophet of God (son of man) who is also required to prophesy

Prophets were already prophesying; yet this man was required or instructed to also prophesy. It's like a replay of past event, in which about 400 prophets were all prophesying before two kings in Israel, and yet one man was sought after and required to prophesy his own. As it is recorded:

[2 Chronicles 18:11-13 MKJV] — "And all the prophets prophesied so, saying, “Go up to Ramoth-gilead and be blessed. For the LORD shall deliver [it] into the king's hand.” And the messenger who went to call Micaiah spoke to him, saying, “Behold, the words of the prophets [declare] good to the king with one mouth, and please let your word be like one of theirs, and speak good.” And Micaiah said, “[As] the Lord lives, even what my God says, that I will speak."”

You see the resemblance in both cases:

-a- In both cases, the majority prophets were prophesying/declaring/decreeing or speaking “Good, Blessing, Prosperity, Miracles, Breakthroughs, Successes, Wealth, etc.” — but using the name of the Lord to authenticate or stamp their prayers, prophecies or declarations. They are basically making promises or giving assurance that the Lord will do things for people, when the Lord has not said so. It is like, a man promising you that a governor will give you a car or gifts, using the name of the governor: and you foolishly believe the man, whereas the governor has never told you he knows that man or you have never seen the same man standing or walking with the governor before: The man only comes or operates in the governor's house whenever the governor is absent, but never seen anywhere the governor is present. Yet, such men would use the name of the governor, use their dressing as one of the governor's key men, and their operating from the governor's houses to deceived simple and foolish people, making promises to them in the name of the governor, and receiving gifts from them on behalf of the governor in the governor's absence. Never has the governor ever done or said things that endorses or shows they represent him. Worse of it is that they don't even know the governor himself, but they only care to know the governor has power, riches and promises, to bless them. Their testimonies are spread by paid agents or false agents in hype

-b- In both cases, though the majority prophets are prophesying and saying the same or similar things, there was a prophet or one who did not join the bandwagon and was not even prophesying as the rest, but somehow that isolated one was required to prophesy too. The Isolated prophet does not prophesy like the other prophets do, because the Isolated prophet is not motivated or inspired by feelings of men when he speaks or prophesies, but only speaks what the Word of the Lord is saying.

Now enough between both cases, let's focus on only the Bible verse in Red:

[Ezekiel 13:2 AKJV] — "Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel that prophesy, and say you to them that prophesy out of their own hearts, Hear you the word of the LORD;"

[Ezekiel 13:2 FBV] — "“Son of man, you are to prophesy against the prophets of Israel who right now are busy prophesying. Tell those who make up their own prophecies: Listen to the word of the Lord!"

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Four items to extract from this Bible verse in Red:

■1■ “Be a Prophet of God” ‐ This is greater than “Be a Prophet of Israel.”

■2■ “Be Sent to prophesy” ‐ This is greater than “Be a Prophet to prophesy.”

■3■ “Have Hearing to prophesy” ‐ Is greater than “Have Heart to prophesy.”

■4■ Prophesy against false prophets is to cause them hear true Word of God.


♨️ ITEM °1
“Be a Prophet of God” ‐ This is greater than “Be a Prophet of Israel.”

They were called “Prophets of Israel” — which means they have the title of Prophets of the People of God. But though they were the prophets of Israel — They were not the prophets of God.

♤ Prophets of Israel are not the same as Prophets of God to Israel like Ezekiel

♤ Pastors of Churches are not the same as Pastors of Christ to the Churches.

The difference is whether they were called and trained by the Lord Himself, or they were called, trained and ordained by men, having attended schools, classes, trainings, etc, set by men before their ordination. Though, being trained by men and ordained by men are also recognized and respected by God where it's faithfully done well, yet called and trained by God is higher.

[Galatians 1:10-12 BSB] — "Am I now seeking the approval of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ. For I certify to you, brothers, that the gospel I preached was not devised by man. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ.”

The Pastors or Prophets of the people are by the people and seems to be for the people, but deeply they are just for themselves like the greedy politicians. The false gospel that Satan promotes favors the things of men, but not things of God.

[Matthew 16:23 BSB] — "But Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me. For you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.””

♨️ ITEM °2
“Be Sent to prophesy” ‐ This is greater than “Be a Prophet to prophesy.”

While being a prophet of God is greater than being a prophet of Israel, being sent by God is greater than being a prophet of God.

Greater than being the Lord's Anointed, is being the Lord's Sent. For not all who were the Lord's Anointed, were Sent by the Lord in Messages. To be Anointed of the Lord is to occupy an office of the Lord, but to be Sent of the Lord is to occupy Messages of the Lord. And I tell, greater is He who occupies the Lord's messages than he who occupies the Lord's offices in this world.

A man may be more anointed than the other, but if the other is sent by the Lord he is an apostle or messenger of the Lord on assignment.

Now, let me ask you: — Between Aaron and Moses, who was more anointed than the other? You may say Moses was more anointed than Aaron, but I tell you Aaron was far more anointed than Moses was, for Aaron was a high priest and had the highest office of the LORD then. However, Moses was far more sent by the LORD than Aaron, and Moses occupied the Messages of the LORD above them all.

Let's do it again: — Between Elijah and Elisha, who was more anointed than the other? You may say Elijah was more anointed than Elisha, but I tell you Elisha was far more anointed than Elijah was, for Elisha twice or double of the anointing Elijah had and he occupied highest office of the LORD then over all prophets in Israel instead Elijah. However, Elijah was far more sent by the LORD than Elisha, and Elijah occupied the Messages of the LORD above them all. Infact, though Elisha did double of almost every miracle Elijah did, rarely will you find where the LORD sent Elisha on any message or errand as the LORD was doing with Elijah. Infact, even after taking Elijah to heaven, the Lord is still sending Elijah on messages: As it is written,

[Malachi 4:5 BSB] — "Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and awesome Day of the LORD.”

Please don't get me started on how there was a prophet in Samaria, but God would still not send him, but would send a man of God all the way from Judah or from another country to come to the neighborhood of that prophet to deliver the Lord's message — [1 Kings 13].

Behold, the greatest Sent One is the Lord Jesus Christ, the Anointed One or Messiah. He had being the Anointed One since Adam, but the difference now is that He became the Sent One. Do not just believe in Him as the Messiah or the Anointed One, but much more believe in Him as the Sent One —

[John 6:28-29 LG] — "Then they said to Him, "What should we do, that we may work the works of God?" Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.""

The Disciples were sent by the Lord Jesus Christ, and they went out into countries without the Lord Jesus Christ with them, and with just the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, all demons were subject to them wherever they were even without the Lord Jesus Christ physically with them. And when they returned, the Lord Jesus Christ still gave them more power to tread on the serpents and scorpions, and on all powers of the enemies, and nothing shall by any means hurt them. Meaning, the Lord Jesus Christ increased their powers and authority besides His Name over the powers of darkness.

But after that, a young boy possessed with unclean spirits was brought to nine of them together while the heavens were opened to the Lord Jesus Christ on the mountain of transfiguration: Demons that just two of them could cast out when they were sent out, were demons that nine of them together with the new added powers to tread over serpents and scorpions could not still cast out while the Lord Jesus Christ was not too far away from them. I know all the theology of this kind cannot go out unless by prayer and fasting. But I tell you, supposing they were sent of the LORD, and they encountered the same demons, they would have cast them out without prayer or fasting. Recall how Paul cast out demons from that young girl that was a prophetess by familiar spirits.

So, it's not just about gaining anointing, power or gaining spiritual authority: But also be sent or be on assignment of the messages of the LORD. The Holy Spirit from the Lord Jesus Christ to us was the Spirit of God from One Sent Person to other sent People. He gave us His Spirit so that we may be sent as He was sent. As it is written,

[John 20:21-22 LG] — "Therefore Jesus said to them again, "Peace to you! Just as the Father has sent Me, I also send you." And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit.”


♨️ ITEM °3
“Have Hearing to prophesy” ‐ Is greater than “Have Heart to prophesy.”

I teach that we see visions with our heart, perceive or understand with our heart, and unveiled eyes. But I tell you, do not prophesy from your heart.

Use your heart to connect with God and with the spiritual and eternal things, but do not prophesy from your heart or your mind.

Rather prophesy from hearing the Word or Saying of the LORD. It's like this:

[John 5:30:m AFV] — "I have no power to do anything of Myself; but as I hear, I judge; and My judgment is just because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father, Who sent Me.”

The duty of a prophesying prophet is to “Echo” or “Relay” or “Amplify” what he or she is hearing from the Word of God as an oracle or mouthpiece.

Echo does formulate or initiate the sound it relays, but just hears the sound from external source and faithful relays the sound or voice so as to maintain both the integrity of the content and the voice of the sound.

Let not your heart or mind formulate the prophecies or declarations you are making in the name of the Lord, unless you are bound to fulfill those words yourself without the Lord getting involved. Why should there be the name of the Lord to it, but no word of the Lord in it? Why should it be the words of a man but made in the name of the Lord God?

[Jeremiah 23:21-24 GWN] — "I didn't send these prophets, yet they ran [with their message]. I didn't speak to them, yet they prophesied. If they had been in My inner circle, they would have announced My words to My people. They would have turned back from their evil ways and the evil they have done. "I am a God who is near. I am also a God who is far away," declares the LORD. "No one can hide so that I can't see him," declares the LORD. "I fill heaven and earth!" declares the LORD."

♨️ ITEM °4
“Prophesy against false prophets is to cause them hear true Word of God.”

Because they did not hear the Word of God before they went on prophesying, their punishment begins with hearing the Word of God after they prophesied.

[John 12:48-49 BSB] — "There is a judge for the one who rejects Me and does not receive My words: The word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day. I have not spoken on My own, but the Father who sent Me has commanded Me what to say and how to say it.”

In the main Bible verse in Red, the true Prophet (Ezekiel) was not going to fight against the prophets of Israel by also speaking his own mind against them – for if he was speaking his mind or opinion against the false prophets he would also be doing the core things they were doing in prophesying, which is speaking from their own mind or prophesying the words of men as if they were the Words of God: — Rather the true prophet fights against the prophets of Israel or the prophets of churches by speaking true Words of God to them.

[2 Timothy 4:2-6 FBV] — "Speak God's word whether it is convenient or not, tell people where they're going wrong, warn them, encourage them. Do this with a great deal of patient teaching. For the time is coming when people won't bother to listen to true teaching. Instead they will be curious to listen to something different, and will surround themselves with teachers who'll tell them what they want to hear. They will stop listening to the truth and wander off following myths. You need to keep your wits about you at all times. Put up with troubles, do the work of sharing the good news, fulfill your ministry. For I'm about to be sacrificed— the time of my death is approaching."

+

THE VISIONS OF THE YEAR

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[Daniel 8:1 Web] — "In the third year of the reign of king Belshazzar a vision appeared to me, even to me, Daniel, after that which appeared to me at the first."

[Daniel 8:1 GWN] — "In Belshazzar's third year as king, I, Daniel, saw a vision. This vision came after the one I saw earlier."

From this Bible verse in Red, we will be relearning these four items:

▪︎1. Application of “the Third Year of the Reign of king Belshazzar” in/to date

▪︎2. Application of “third Year of the Reign of king Belshazzar” to the vision

▪︎3. Appearance of a Vision in connection with seeing the Vision

▪︎4. Sequels, Sequence or interconnections between a vision to a previous one

ITEM ▪︎1
♨️Application of “the Third Year of the Reign of king Belshazzar” in/to date

Years are identified, named or numbered in what is called “Calendar.” Once a year is identified, it is calenderized. A year without identity is of no calendar.

Calenders — A calendar is a systematic arrangement of days, weeks, months and years to identify/measure time, track events, and plan activities.

There are numerous calendars, including the Gregorian calendar (which is the currently most popular today as in 2025), Julian calendar, Islamic calendar, Hebrew calendar, Chinese calendar, Mayan calendar, Egyptian calendar, International Fixed Calendar, World Calendar, Hanke-Henry Permanent Calendar, Persian calendar, Hindu calendar, Buddhist calendar, Coptic calendar, Ethiopian calendar, and many others used across different cultures, religions, and historical periods.

However, there are four Calenders I want you to pay more attention to. In one of the four is found the Application of “the Third Year of the Reign of king Belshazzar” under the Bible verse in Red. These four Calenders include:

◇a◇— AM — If a calendar is based on the age of the Earth, it would be called an "Anno Mundi" (AM) calendar. Example, in year 6025 AM — means 6,025 years from when man was created on earth.

"Anno Mundi" is Latin for "in the year of the world." This type of calendar counts the years from the estimated creation of the world, often based on biblical or scientific calculations.

◇b◇— AD — If a calendar is based on the age of the Lord Jesus Christ, it would be called an "Anno Domini" (AD) calendar. Example, in year 2025 AD — means 2,025 years from when the Lord Jesus Christ was born on earth. Or the Lord Jesus Christ is now 2,025 years as the Son of man or Son of God.

2025 AD means the year 2025 in the Anno Domini (AD) era, which is based on the traditional birthdate of Jesus Christ. In this context, "AD" stands for the Latin phrase "Anno Domini," meaning "in the year of the Lord."

AD and BC are Gregorian calendar system. BC stands for "Before Christ," referring to the years that come before the birth of Jesus Christ in the Anno Domini (AD) era.

◇c◇— AA — If a calendar is based on the age of one's date of birth, it would be called an "Anno Aetatis" (AA) calendar. Example, in 8 months to my year 41st AA — means 8 months to my 41 years Anniversary from when I was born on earth.

Anno Aetatis (AA) is Latin for "in the year of age". It is a method of reckoning time based on the age or birthday of a person, often used to calculate someone's age or the number of years since their birth.

◇d◇— RC — If a calendar is based on the reign or regime of a ruler, it is called a "Regnal Calendar" or "Regnal Year". Example, in the Third Year of the Reign of king Belshazzar — means Year 3 from beginning of the kingdom of Belshazzar, king of Babylon.

A Regnal Calendar is a system of numbering years based on the reign of a monarch or ruler, where each year is counted from the beginning of their reign.

ITEM ▪︎2
♨️Application of “third Year of the Reign of king Belshazzar” to the vision

I would like to refer to them as — “In the Days of Daniel;” but even Daniel himself did not refer to them as “In the days of Daniel,” but instead he wrote of them as — “In the days or third year of the reign of king Belshazzar” — the Vision appeared to me or I saw the Visions.

It's like when the Lord Jesus Christ was born King of the Jews, and yet it was not referred to as the days of the Lord Jesus, but as the days of Herod the king in which the Star appeared and wise men saw the Star in the days of Herod:

[Matthew 2:1-2 LG] — "Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East arrived in Jerusalem, saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East, and have come to worship Him."”

Also, the vision of Gabriel the Angel, whom Zachariah, father of John the Baptist, saw was in the days of Herod.

[Luke 1:5 LG] — "There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.”

Down that passage you will find an Angel appeared to him, or he saw vision. Even so, the days of reigns of evil rulers are also potentially times of visions and revelations to the saints. The nights come with the reign of darkness, but also visions and dreams come in nights. The days of evil are days of visions.

It was in the third year of Belshazzar as king, but Daniel already received two great visions within those three Regnal years of Belshazzar: and the Visions of Daniel in those years were far more important and enduring than the reign of the king in power. For even today, in last days, the Visions or Prophecies Daniel received in the years of Belshazzar as king are still relevant and active far beyond that which the kingdom of Belshazzar, which could not cross the night of the Handwriting on the Wall, could endure.

Even so, a vision from the Lord of heavens and of the Heavens is worth far more than reigning as a mortal and visionless king or president of the highest nation on earth. Better to have eyes that see through Christ, than to be king that do not see. As it is written,

[Luke 10:23-24 BSB] — "Then Jesus turned to the disciples and said privately, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see. For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.”"

ITEM ▪︎3
♨️Appearance of a Vision in connection with seeing the Vision

In the main Bible in Red, some Bible translations said the Vision appeared to Daniel, and some others said Daniel saw the Vision.

A vision could appear and could also disappear — Make sure you see it with unveiled eyes when it appears to you. I say this because Vision could appear to persons without being revealed to the persons or without the persons’ heart able to see and perceive the vision they are seeing with their eyes.

The Lord Jesus appeared in different form to two of His disciples on their way to Emmaus — They saw Him, but did not know Him until He broke the bread and gave them before their spiritual eye was unveiled to know Him: and as soon as they knew Him, He disappeared from them. Even so, some Visions would appear to those who can see them but do know them, but when they know them then the Visions will disappear so that the knowledge and revelation will remain in their hearts and they would continue to see those visions through their unveiled or opened spiritual eyes rather than the sightly appearance or manifest way of seeing them. Visions appear for you to connect seeing them with your eyes to better seeing them by the Spirit through your heart. For things seen are temporary, but things unseen by appearance are eternal. Therefore, look at things not seen more than looking at things seen.

[2 Corinthians 4:18 AKJV] — "While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.”

ITEM ▪︎4
♨️Sequels, Sequence or interconnections between a vision to a previous one

Some visions can only be seen, perceived or understood, as sequel to previous or preceding visions. You must have to see or learn a vision before meeting them or before they meet you. As for Daniel, the first vision was in the first year of Belshazzar's reign:

[Daniel 7:1 LG] — "In the first year of Belteshazzar, king of the Chaldeans Daniel had a dream, and visions of his head upon his bed: and he wrote down the dream.”

So, in about two years later after seeing the first visions, this Vision came as the Sequel or Season 2. Moreover, in the first, Daniel was in a dream while seeing the visions, but in this sequel Daniel was not a Dream but in a Trance.

Anyway, some Visions are not seen with a veiled or closed eyes, but rather they are seen with unveiled or opened eyes. So, one has to encounter or meet experiences, visions, persons, etc, that will help to open/unveil the seers's eye more than they are already opened, in order for the seer to attain beholding more/less. Eye opening or unveiling is continuous process from one to more

[Matthew 13:12-13 LG] — "For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he shall have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him. Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.”

DAY 26-29: — THE POWER OF EMUNAH, THE IVRIM, THE MASADA MYSTERY, THE DOUBLE

DAY 26 - THE POWER OF EMUNAH

ONE OF THE most important of words,” said the teacher, “is faith. Without it, you can’t be saved. And apart from it, you can’t do anything of heavenly worth. You can’t overcome and you can’t live victoriously. So what is it?” he asked. “What is faith?”
“Faith is to believe,” I said.
“To believe what?”
“What you can’t see.”
“In Hebrew, the word emun speaks of that which is sure, solid, and true. Add an ah to emun and it becomes the word emunah. Emunah is the Hebrew word for faith. What does that tell you?”
“Faith is linked to truth.”
“Yes. And so faith is a very solid thing. It isn’t a wishful thinking or an unrealistic hoping. Faith is linked to that which is rock solid—the truth. Faith is that by which you join yourself, root yourself, and ground yourself to the truth. And the word emunah also means steadfast, established, stable, and steady. The more true faith you have, the more steadfast you become, the more stable, the more steady, and the more established. So faith,” said the teacher, “causes you to become strong.”
He paused for a moment before continuing. “But there’s another Hebrew word that also comes from the same root word as truth and faith. And you already know it. It’s the word amen. It even sounds like emun and emunah. So to say, ‘Amen,’ is to say, ‘It’s true, I agree, yes.’ So, what is faith? Faith is to give your amen to God’s emun, His truth. Faith is to say amen, yes to God—amen to His reality, amen to His love, and amen to His salvation . . . not just with your mouth but with your heart, your mind, your emotions, your strength, and your life. ‘Truth faith’ is to say amen with your entire being. And the greater, the stronger, and the more confident your amen, the greater and more powerful will be your faith. So give the amen of your heart and life, the strongest amen you can give to the word, the truth, and
love of God, and your life will become emunah, steadfast, established, and as a solid as a rock.”
“Amen!” I added.

The Mission: Take a word from the Word of God today and give it your strongest amen, the total yes of your heart, soul, mind, and will. Isaiah 7:9; Colossians 2:6–7; Hebrews 11:6 - Emunah


DAY 27 - THE IVRIM

IN ANCIENT TIMES,” said the teacher, “the people of God were called the Hebrews. Do you know what the word Hebrew means?”
“You mean, what does Hebrew mean in Hebrew?”
“Yes.”
“I have no idea. It’s all Greek to me.”
“Hebrew in Hebrew is the word Ivri, the singular of Ivrim, the Hebrews. And the word Ivri comes from the Hebrew root word avar. And avar means to cross over.”
“What’s the connection?”
“The Ivrim, the Hebrews, are those who cross over. In order to leave the land of Egypt, they had to cross over the Red Sea. In order to enter the Promised Land, they had to cross over the Jordan River. They are the cross over people, those who leave one land and enter another, those who end one life and begin a new one. But the Hebrews aren’t the only Hebrews.”
“And what exactly does that mean?”
“The Word of God speaks of another people joined to Israel . . . the followers of Messiah. They are Hebrews of spirit. So to be saved, you must be a spiritual Hebrew. You must be an Ivri. And in order to be a Hebrew, an Ivri, you have to cross over. You have to pass through a barrier. You have to leave one land and enter another.”
“Or one life to enter a new one,” I said.
“So who is the Ivri?” he asked.
“The one who has known two lands, two realms, two lives.”
“The one,” he said, “who is born again. That is the Ivri, the Hebrew, the one who has crossed over, who has left an old life and entered the new, who has passed through the barrier, through Messiah, from darkness to light. As it is written, ‘Unless a man is born again, he cannot enter the kingdom of heaven.’”
“So Messiah is the King of the Ivrim, King of the Hebrews.”
“He is,” said the teacher. “But why?”
“He’s the One who broke the ultimate barrier and crossed over from death to life. So He’s the ultimate Ivri, the King of the Hebrews.”
“Yes, The Ivri of Ivrim, the Hebrew of Hebrews, in whom is the power to cross over any barrier, to leave any darkness, and to enter every promised land.”

The Mission: What barriers are hindering you and the will of God in your life? Identify them. Then, by the power of Messiah, begin crossing your Jordan. You are an Ivri. You were born again to cross over. Joshua 3:14–17; John 3:3; 2 Corinthians 5:17 - The Hebrew Mystery


DAY 28 - THE MASADA MYSTERY

WE WERE STANDING in the middle of a large valley, harsh and forbidding.
“The prophet Ezekiel was taken in a vision to a valley filled with dry bones, which, by the hand of God, would rise and come to life and become a massive army. It was a prophecy that the nation of Israel, though utterly destroyed, would one day by God’s hand be resurrected from the grave.”
The teacher began to walk through the valley, unfolding the mystery as he went.
“In the first century the Romans destroyed the nation of Israel. The nation’s last stand took place on a desert mountain fortress called Masada. It was there that her last soldiers would meet their end. So Masada became the grave of ancient Israel. But then, after two thousand years, the nation of Israel was resurrected by the hand of God as foretold in the vision of dry bones. The people were resurrected, the cities were resurrected, and the Israeli soldier was resurrected. And then the resurrected nation decided to return to its ancient grave.”
“To Masada? Why?”
“To excavate it, to dig it up. The man in charge of the excavation was one of the nation’s most famous soldiers and archaeologists. And Israeli soldiers helped in the excavation. So now on the grave of Israel’s ancient soldiers walked her resurrected soldiers to see what lay hidden in its ruins.”
“And what was hidden in the ruins?”
“A prophetic mystery . . . a Scripture. It had been buried and hidden there for almost two thousand years.”
“And what did it say?”
“It was from the Book of Ezekiel, the section that contained the prophecy of the Valley of Dry Bones: ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Behold, O My people, I will open your graves and cause you to come up from your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel.”’ So the prophecy was hidden right there in Israel’s ancient grave, waiting for ages for the day that it would be uncovered, the day when its words would be fulfilled and the nation resurrected from its grave. You see, God is real. And His will is to restore the broken, bring hope from hopelessness, and life from death. Don’t ever give up. For with God, nothing is impossible . . . even restoration of a nation from a valley of dry bones.”

The Mission: Bring your most hopeless situations and issues to God. Believe God for the impossible. Live and move in the power of the
impossible. Ezekiel 37:12–14; Luke 1:37 - The Masada Mystery


DAY 29 - THE DOUBLE

IN ANCIENT TIMES,” said the teacher, “on the holiest day of the year, Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, a unique ceremony took place. The high priest would stand before the people with two goats at his side. Each goat had to be identical in appearance to the other. The high priest would then reach into an urn and pull out two lots, one in each hand. Each lot had a different Hebrew word inscribed on it. He then placed one lot on the head of the goat to his right, and another on the head of the goat to his left. One stone identified the goat that would die as the sacrifice for the sins of the people. The other identified the goat that would be let go. So before there could be a sacrifice, there had to be the presentation of the two goats before the people and the apportioning of the two destinies. What about Messiah? Before His sacrifice, what took place? He was presented before the people, for the choosing, for the apportioning of destinies.”
“And there had to be two presented,” I said. “So there had to be two men presented before the people.”
“Exactly. And only one could become the sacrifice. So Messiah had to be one of two lives presented before the people in order to be chosen as the sacrifice. And according to the ordinance of Yom Kippur, the other life had to be let go. So what happened to the other life that was presented that day?”
“He was let go.”
“And what was his name?”
“Barabbas.”
“According to the requirements of the ancient ceremony, the two goats or lives had to be identical. Messiah was the Son of God, the Son of the Father. Do you know what the name Barabbas means?”
“No.”
“Barabbas comes from two Hebrew words, bar, which means son, and abba, which means father. Barabbas means the Son of the Father . . . Two
lives . . . Each one bears the name the Son of the Father. So the sacrifice and the one set free because of the sacrifice must in some way be identical. So if God were to die in your place . . . ”
“He would have to become like me.”
“He would have to become like you, of flesh and blood, in the likeness of sin. He would become . . . your identical.”

The Mission: Live today as one sentenced to judgment, but who has instead been set free and given a second chance of life, because of the love and sacrifice of Him. Leviticus 16:7–10; Matthew 27:15–24 - Azazel

DAY 22-25: — THE ELOHIM, HE WHOSE NAME IS LIKE OIL, THE SECRET PLACE, THE KING OF THE CURSE


DAY 22 - THE ELOHIM MYSTERY

B’RESHEET BARA ELOHIM,” said the teacher. “‘In the beginning God created . . . ’ The first words of Scripture. The word Elohim is God. Do you notice anything about the word?”
“It has the im ending that you told me about.”
“And what does the im signify?”
“That it’s a plural word.”
“It is . . . And why is that strange?”
“Because it’s the word for God?”
“Exactly. It’s the word for God, and yet it’s plural.”
“Shouldn’t it be translated as ‘gods’?”
“It could be translated that way in another context. But the word next to it, created, is the Hebrew bara. Bara is not plural but singular.”
“A plural noun and a singular verb. Doesn’t that break the rules?”
“It does . . . and in the very first sentence of Scripture. It’s because there’s something deeper here . . . a mystery.”
“Which is . . . ?”
“The singularity and plurality of God. And beyond that, in Hebrew, when you have a plural word that should be singular, it’s telling you that there’s something profound about the reality behind the word.”
“So it’s telling you there’s something profound about God.”
“What it’s saying is that the reality of God is so transcendent, so awesome, and so beyond, that there’s no word in any language that can express it, not even the word God. The word Elohim is letting you know that whatever you think God is, He’s more than that. No matter how good you think He is, He’s better. No matter how beautiful, majestic, and amazing, He’s more beautiful, He’s more majestic, and He’s more amazing. No matter how awesome you think He is, He’s more awesome. And no matter how beyond you think He is, He’s even beyond that. What does Elohim reveal? It reveals that no matter how much you think you know of God, there’s always more to know, so much more . . . and so much more than so much more. So never stop seeking Him. For His Name is Elohim, and of His awesomeness, there will be no end.”

The Mission: Today, seek to know God as one who doesn’t know the half of Him. Seek to know Him more, and afresh, as if for the first time.
Genesis 1:1; 1 Kings 8:26; Job 38 - The Elohim Mystery


DAY 23 - HE WHOSE NAME IS LIKE OIL

THE TEACHER WAS sitting inside one of the school’s gardens, surrounded by a variety of plants, bushes, and trees all enclosed by a small stone wall. He had requested I meet him there. As I entered the garden, I noticed a small scroll in his hands that he was studying. As I drew nearer, I could hear him translating its contents.
“‘Your name is oil poured forth . . . ’” said the teacher. “It’s from the Song of Solomon, the love song of the Scriptures. It’s about a bride and a groom. But at its highest level, it’s about God and us. God, the Bridegroom and we, the bride. And here, at its very beginning, the bride says of the Bridegroom, ‘Your name is oil poured forth . . . ’ What do you think that means?”
“The bride is in love. And when you’re in love, your beloved’s name is beautiful.”
“That’s right,” he said. “And the ancient oils would carry the scent of spices, sweet fragrances. So the bride is saying that her beloved’s name is like pouring oil, beautiful, flowing, and filled with sweet fragrance. But if the Song of Solomon, at its highest level, is about God and us, then what does it mean?”
“That the bride should be in love with the Bridegroom. That we should be in love with God, so much so that just hearing His Name would give us joy, that to us His Name would be like pouring oil.”
“And could it reveal even more than that? The bride says, ‘Your name is oil.’ Therefore, the name of the Bridegroom, the Beloved, will be like oil. Is there anyone whose name is oil?”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“Is there anyone known in human history whose name is like oil? There is one,” he said, “The One who is called ‘the Christ.’ The word Christ
comes from Christos. Christos is a translation of the Hebrew word Mashiach, or Messiah. The name Mashiach is linked to oil. It means the Anointed One, the One anointed with oil.”
“He whose name is like oil . . . the Bridegroom.”
“Therefore, He is the Beloved. And if we’re the bride, then we are to be so in love with Him that His Name becomes to us . . . as pouring oil.”

The Mission: Delight today in the name of your Beloved. Let it pour forth from your lips, your mind, and your heart. Song of Solomon 1:3; John 1:41 - Like Pure Oil


DAY 24 - THE SECRET PLACE

WE WERE WALKING on the side of a mountain when he found an opening into something of a cave. He went inside and motioned me to follow.
“Do you know,” said the teacher, “what the holiest place on earth was?”
“No,” I replied.
“It was called the kodesh hakodashim. It means the holy of holies.”
“I’ve heard of it.”
“It was the holiest place of the holy sanctuary, the innermost chamber of the Temple. It could only be entered on the holiest day of the year, Yom Kippur. It was there that the most important event of the biblical year took place, the act of atonement . . . the holiest act in the holiest place on the holiest day. And do you know how many people witnessed this most holy of acts?”
“No.”
“Only one, the high priest who performed it. No one else saw it. How many people do you think could come into the holy of holies?”
“I don’t know.”
“One. No more than one. It was made to hold just one person . . . one person and the glory of God. So no one could see what happened there, even when it was the most important event of the year and that on which everyone’s relationship with God depended. It all took place in secret. The most holy event was the most secret of events, the most holy moment, the most secret moment. And the most holy of places is the secret place.”
“So what is the holiest place on earth now?”
“The secret place,” he replied. “And where is the secret place? It’s where you make it. It’s where you go to be with Him. It’s the place that can contain only one person, just you and the presence of God, and nothing else. So the secret place must be totally separate, totally secret, and totally apart from the rest of your life, from the world, from even the things of God. The most holy place only has room for you and Him. As it is written, ‘Oh my dove, in the clefts of the rock, in the secret place of the cliff, let me see your face, let me hear your voice, for your voice is sweet, and your face is lovely.’ It’s the most important place you can dwell. For it is there that you’ll find His presence, hear His voice, and see His glory. For they only reside in the most holy of places . . . the secret place.”

The Mission: Today, go into the secret place, apart from the world and even the things of Him, away from everything—but His presence. Exodus 25:21–22; Song of Solomon 2:14; Matthew 6:6 - The Secret Place


DAY 25 - KING OF THE CURSE

WE SAT DOWN in a desert valley surrounded by mountains. Between us was a little thornbush. The teacher reached for one of its branches, twisted it off, and held it in front of his eyes.
“Thorns,” he said. “Did you ever wonder why Messiah wore a crown of thorns?”
“I’ve always found it a strange thing.”
“Think about it, a crown, a symbol of royalty, power, kingship, wealth, and glory . . . yet made not of gold or jewels, but thorns. Why? When man fell, the consequence of that fall was the curse; the ground would now bear thorns and thistles. The thorns were thus the sign of the curse, the sign of a fallen world, a creation that can no longer bear the fruit it was called to bear, but now brings forth thorns, pain, piercing, blood, tears, and destruction.”
He handed me the branch of thorns, then continued, “Now when a crown is placed on a man’s head, he becomes king. At that moment, the weight of the kingdom rests upon him. So what is the mystery of the crown of thorns that was placed on the head of Messiah?”
“When the crown was placed on His head, He became . . . ”
“The King of Thorns, the King of the Curse. Thorns speak of pain and tears. So the crown of thorns means He will now bear the pain and tears of man. Thorns speak of piercing. So He will be pierced. And the thorns are linked to the curse and the curse is linked to death. So the crown of thorns ordains that Messiah will die. He will bear the weight of the curse upon His head. He becomes the King of Thorns, the King of the Curse.”
“But a crown also signifies authority,” I said. “One who reigns.”
“Yes, and thus by bearing the weight of the curse, He becomes king over it. He becomes King of the Curse.”
“And King of the Cursed.”
“King of the Broken, King of the Pierced and Wounded, King of the Rejected, and King of Tears. So all who have fallen can come to Him and find redemption. For the One who wears the crown has authority over these things . . . to turn sorrow into joy, death into life, and thorns into blossoms. He who wears the crown is Lord of the Fallen, the King of Thorns.”

The Mission: Today, bring the thorns, the wounds, the shame, the sorrows of your life to the King of Thorns, and commit them to His authority. Isaiah 53:3–5; 61:1–3; Matthew 27:29; Galatians 3:13 - Lord of Eden

DAY 18 - 21: YESHUA, ALIYAH, FOOTSTOOL WORLD, HEARTBEAT


DAY 18 - YESHUA

A MOST IMPORTANT WORD,” said the teacher, “the word yasha. In Hebrew, it means to rescue, to help, to defend, to preserve, to make
free, to attain victory, to bring to safety, to heal, and to save . . . one word and the answer to everything.”
“How is it the answer to everything?” I asked.
“Yasha is what we spend our lives seeking for, whether we realize it or not. We all need help, we all need freedom, we all need victory, and we all, in one way or another, seek for salvation. And in Hebrew, salvation comes from yasha. From the word yasha comes the Hebrew word yeshua. Yeshua means salvation. So in the Hebrew Scriptures, it is written, ‘He has become my salvation.’”
“Who has become salvation?”
“God,” he said. “God has become salvation. In other words, God would not only be the Creator of the universe, He would become our salvation. In other words, God would become our help, our defense, our preserving, our freedom, our victory, our salvation. God would become the answer to our greatest and deepest needs. In Hebrew, God would become yeshua.”
“But if the word yeshua means salvation, what’s the difference between saying ‘God would become salvation’ or ‘God would become yeshua’?”
“From the Hebrew word yeshua comes the name Yeshua. And when the name Yeshua was translated into Greek, it became Iesous. And when Iesous
was translated into English, it became Jesus. Jesus is Yeshua . . . or Yeshua is Jesus. Yeshua is the real name of the one the world knows as Jesus.”
“So then God will become Yeshua. God will become Jesus.”
“And that’s exactly what the name Yeshua reveals. It means, God is my salvation. The ancient hope was that one day God would become our
Yeshua. And so He has. And so what does Yeshua actually mean?”
“It means God has become our rescue, our help, our freedom, our healing, our victory, and our salvation.”
“Yes,” said the teacher. “God became Yeshua to become the answer to every need. So the key is to take every need in your life and join it to that name, to Yeshua, one word . . . and the answer to everything.”

The Mission: God has become your Yeshua, the specific answer to your deepest needs. Let that get inside your heart and live accordingly.
Exodus 15:2; Psalm 118:14; Isaiah 12:2; Matthew 1:21 - Yeshua: The Name


DAY 19 - ALIYAH

COME,” SAID THE teacher.
“Where?” I asked.
“Up,” he answered. “Up a mountain.”
He then took me on a half-hour journey through the desert to a particularly high mountain.
“Let us go up,” he said.
So we did. There was nothing easy about it. I had to rest several times, just to catch my breath. Finally we made it to the top.
“Look at that,” he said, pointing to the majestic panorama before us. “It’s something you can only see from up here, from the heights. It was worth the climb. Do you know what it’s called in Hebrew, what we just did?”
“Torture?”
“No,” he said, “it’s called aliyah. It means the going up, the ascent. When you read in the Scriptures of Messiah going to Jerusalem, you’ll find the word up used over and over again. Why is that? Jerusalem is a city set on the mountains. So to get there, you have to go up. So the journey to Jerusalem is called Aliyah. . . the ascending. And it was not only because of the physical terrain but because Jerusalem is the Holy City. So to go to Jerusalem is to make Aliyah. In the modern age, when the Jewish people began to return to the land of Israel, the return was called Aliyah. Going to the Promised Land was known as ‘making Aliyah,’ ‘the upward journey.’ The children of Israel were commanded to make Aliyah. But those who are of Messiah are the spiritual children of Israel. So what would that mean?”
“They also have an Aliyah to make?”
“Yes,” said the teacher, “but a spiritual people must make a spiritual journey.”
“So what’s the journey?” I asked. “What’s the Aliyah?”
“Your life,” said the teacher. “Your entire life is the Aliyah. Your life is a journey, but in God it is to be an upward journey . . . an ever higher ascending. How do you do that? The same way you ascended the mountain. Every day you will be given choices. Every choice will give you the chance to go lower, to stay the same, or to go higher. Choose the higher path, even if it’s harder, take the higher step . . . let each of your steps be higher than the step before it, each of your days be higher than the day before it. And you will end up walking on mountain heights . . . and your life will be an Aliyah.”

The Mission: Today, choose the higher step, the higher act, the higher ground, the higher path in every decision. Start making your life an Aliyah. Psalm 121; Mark 10:32 - The Aliyah Mystery


DAY 20 - THE FOOTSTOOL WORLD

HE TOOK ME into his study and motioned me to sit down in his chair. In front of the chair was a cushioned stool.
“Relax,” he said, “put your feet up.”
So I did. He was quiet. Finally I broke the silence.
“And what’s today’s mystery?” I asked.
“That,” he said. “That,” he said again, pointing to the stool.
“The footstool?”
“Yes, the footstool. And within it lies a cosmic revelation.”
“A cosmic revelation? I never would have thought.”
“Cosmic enough to be spoken of by God. ‘Heaven is My throne,’ He said, ‘and the earth is My footstool.’ What do you think it means?”
“The earth is the place where God puts His feet?”
“That’s exactly right. Heaven is His throne. In other words, heaven is God’s dwelling place, the center of His presence, and where He rests His weight. And the word for weight in Hebrew is kavode. Kavode also means glory. Heaven in which rests God’s weight and glory.”
“And the earth?”
“The earth is not His throne. So it can’t bear the weight of His glory.”
“But it’s His footstool.”
“Yes. So He rests His feet on it. It bears the imprint of His feet, but never His full weight. And what does this reveal?”
“What?”
“You live in a footstool world. The earth is just a footstool. It means it isn’t the place on which you can rest all your weight or your well-being. Its possessions are only footstool possessions. Its issues are only footstool issues. Its problems are only footstool problems. And its glory is only a footstool glory. You don’t sit on a footstool; you just place your feet on top of it . . . on top of its problems, on top of its issues, on top of its glories. You rest your feet on it . . . lightly. That’s the way one must live in a footstool world.”
“Then where do you rest your weight?”
“In the heavenlies,” he said. “But that’s another mystery. For now, enjoy the footstool.”

The Mission: Today, see the world and everything in it in a new way, as the footstool world, with only footstool issues, and live accordingly. Isaiah 66:1; Ephesians 2:6; Colossians 3:1–2 - The Footstool World


DAY 21 - THE HEARTBEAT OF THE MIRACLE

WE WERE SITTING on two large stones at the base of a small mountain. The teacher leaned down to the ground, picked up a rock, and handed it to me.
“What do you feel?” he asked.
“Nothing,” I replied. “A rock.”
Now put your hand on your neck. Do you feel anything?”
“My heartbeat.”
“But the rock had no heartbeat,” he said.
“Of course not.”
“The rock exists as a rock with no heartbeat. It retains its shape, its size, its consistency, with no need of a heartbeat. But you have a heartbeat. Every moment of your existence hangs on a heartbeat. The moment it stops, your existence is over. That’s the difference between a rock and your life. God ordained it. Rocks just exist. But life never just exists. It must strive to exist, fight to exist. Your heart must keep beating, every moment of your life. Even if you do nothing, your heart beats. Even when you sleep, it keeps beating every moment so that you can remain alive. If you waste your moments on earth, still it beats that you can waste your time. When you sin, when you gossip, when you covet and hate, still it beats while you do so. When you weep, when you give up hope, still it beats so that even in your tears and despair, it still fights for you to live and to be able to cry.”
“So the difference between my existence and that of a rock is . . . ”
“Your life doesn’t just exist; it strives to exist. Your life is a miracle. Your every moment is a miracle. Your joys are a miracle. Even your tears are a miracle. Your life is the gift from God. Every moment is sustained by Him. Every moment is a miracle.”
“How does one apply this?”
“You cease taking your life for granted. You stop wasting it, mistreating it, treating it as something less than the miracle it is. You cease to allow your life to be given to sin and what is less than God’s will. You treasure the existence with which you were entrusted. You stop throwing away your moments. You treat your life and your time on earth as a treasure. You treat your every moment as if there was a heart beating behind it, striving for that moment to exist. In short . . . You live a life worthy . . . of every heartbeat.”

The Mission: Live this day in the miracle of your existence. Take account of every heartbeat and make your moments worthy of each one. Psalm 139:14–17 - Forty Million Heartbeats

DAY 14 - DAY 15: — KISSING GOD, THE NIGHT AND DAY PARADIGM, THE TALEH, HOW TO ALTER YOUR PAST


DAY 14 - KISSING GOD

THERE WAS A gathering in the school’s open-air tent. It was a time of worship and praise. We were just outside the tent listening.
“What do you think of,” asked the teacher, “when you hear the word worship?”
“Singing, hymns, prayers, words of praise . . . ”
“That’s the outward form of worship,” he said. “That’s how worship manifests. But what’s the heart of worship?”
“I don’t know.”
“I’ll give you one definition, a secret. It’s found in the New Covenant Scriptures. It only appears in the Greek. It’s the word proskuneo. And do you know what it means?”
I had no answer.
“It means to kiss. True worship,” said the teacher, “is to kiss. And what does this reveal? What is a kiss? A kiss is the most intimate of acts. Therefore, worship is to be the most intimate thing you can experience.”
“To worship God is to kiss God?”
“In the spiritual realm, yes, to kiss from your heart, from your innermost being. And when you kiss, you don’t do it because you have to. You do it freely from your heart because you want to.”
“So true worship is never done by compulsion, but freely from the overflow of your heart.”
“And why does one kiss?” asked the teacher.
“Because of joy.”
“Yes,” he said, “a kiss is an expression of joy. And kissing brings you joy. So true worship is an expression of joy. You worship out of joy. Your joy becomes worship and your worship becomes joy.”
“Teacher,” I said, “we didn’t say the most obvious.”
“Which is . . . ?”
“One kisses because of love,” I said. “A kiss is an expression of love.”
“It is. So then what is true worship?”
“Worship is an expression of love.”
“Yes,” said the teacher, “It’s as simple as that: It’s the most intimate act of love and joy. Worship is as simple as kissing God.”

The Mission: Today, draw near to God in worship, in love, in joy, in the deepest of intimacy. Learn the secret of kissing God. Psalm 42:7–8; Song of Solomon 1:2; John 4:24 - Yishkeni: The Divine Kiss


DAY 15 - THE NIGHT AND DAY PARADIGM

THERE WAS NO lesson that day. But then in the middle of the night he came to my room and woke me.
“Come,” said the teacher. “It’s time for the lesson. We’re going outside.”
I was half asleep and not thrilled at the idea, but, of course, I complied. He led me to a hill where we sat down in the darkness of the night.
“Which comes first,” he asked, “the day or the night?”
“The day,” I answered. “Night comes when the day is over.”
“That’s what most people would say. And that’s how most people in the world see it. Day leads into night. But it’s not how God sees it.”
“What do you mean?”
“If the day leads to night, then everything goes from light to darkness. Everything gets darker. Everything is in the process of darkening. And it would appear to be the way of the world. We go from day to night, from youth to aging, from strength to weakness, and ultimately from life to death. Day to night. It’s the way of the world, but it’s not the way of God. When God created the universe, it was not day and night. It is written, ‘There was evening, and then there was morning.’ The day began with night. There was night and then there was day. It is the night that comes first.”
“So that’s why Jewish holidays always begin at sunset.”
“Yes, and not only Jewish holidays, but every biblical day. Each day begins at sunset. There is evening and then morning. The world moves from day to night. But in God, it is the opposite. It goes from night to day . . . from darkness to light. The children of this world live from day to night. But the children of God live from night to day. They are born again in the darkness and move to the day. And if you belong to God, then that is the order of your life. You are to go from darkness to light, from weakness to strength, from despair to hope, from guilt to innocence, from tears to joy, and from death to life. And every night in your life will lead to the dawn. So live according to God’s sacred order of time . . . that your entire life be always moving away from the darkness and to the light.”
As he said those words, the first light of daybreak appeared and the night began yielding to the day.

The Mission: What darkness is in your life, the darkness of fear, of sin, of problems, of gloom? Today, turn away from it and to the light of day. Genesis 1:3–5; Psalm 30:5; Ephesians 5:8; 1 Peter 2:9; 2 Peter 1:19 - The Night and the Sunrise


DAY 16 - THE TALEH

HE TOOK ME through a ravine that opened up into a valley. In the valley, a boy was tending a flock of sheep and lambs. One of the lambs had wandered off in our direction.
“Look,” said the teacher, “a lamb, the most defenseless of creatures, so defenseless it needs a boy to protect it. And yet it is of cosmic importance.”
“How?” I asked.
“The lamb is the master theme of God’s Word. In Genesis, a boy asks his father, ‘Where is the lamb . . . ?’ That’s the question of Scripture. On Passover, it is the lamb that dies to save the firstborn son of each house. The nation of Israel is saved by the blood of the lamb. Then in the Temple of Jerusalem, lambs are offered up in sacrifice every day of every year. And then, in the fifty-third chapter of Isaiah, it prophesied that a man will give His life as a sacrificial lamb, ‘as a lamb to the slaughter,’ and by His death, we will find healing, forgiveness, and blessing. Do you see the theme?”
“The lamb is the life given to save or bless others.”
“Yes, and to cover our sins. In Hebrew, taleh means lamb. And from taleh also comes the word that means covering. The Lamb will be our covering. So who is the Lamb? In all of world history, is there anyone known above all for giving His life, as an offering, as a sacrifice, that we might be saved?”
“There’s only one I know of,” I replied. “And wasn’t He called ‘the Lamb’?”
“Yes,” said the teacher, “Messiah, the Lamb of God, the Taleh Elohim. It was all about the Lamb from the beginning, the answer was always linked to the Lamb. But why a lamb in the first place?”
“I don’t know.”
“What the lamb means is this: There will be One who is entirely pure, innocent, without blemish, without evil . . . and this One will give His life to save those who are not innocent. But what is without blemish, what is entirely pure and good? What is the mystery of the lamb?”
“Tell me.”
“The mystery of the lamb is God. The mystery is that God will give His life to save us. For God is love. And the nature of love is to give of itself. The Taleh, the Lamb . . . is God.”

The Mission: Today, live in the spirit of the Lamb. Let everything you do be done in love. And live to make your life a blessing to others.
Genesis 22:1–18; Isaiah 53:7; 1 Peter 1:18–19; Revelation 5:6–13 - The Lamb Mysteries I–VI


DAY 17 - HOW TO ALTER YOUR PAST

WE WERE SITTING in his study. He was holding a scarlet cord.
“I dyed it myself,” said the teacher. “I left it in the solution for several days to make sure the dye soaked into every fiber. Do you think it’s possible to undye the cord, to make it white again?”
“I doubt it.”
“It is written: ‘Though your sins are as scarlet, I will make them white as snow.’ It would be like undyeing the cord.”
“Which would be impossible,” I said.
“But it’s even more impossible than that. How do you make sins go from scarlet to white? Sins are sins because they’re already committed. They’re done. They’re part of the past, and the past is finished.”
“Then the only way to alter a sin would be to change the past.”
“Yes, and yet the Scriptures are filled with the promise that God will one day wipe away sin and wash away our guilt. You can’t wipe away sin or cleanse guilt without changing the past.”
“But it’s impossible to change the past.”
“The first recorded miracle of Messiah was the changing of water into wine. But wine is only wine if it’s aged. But the wine of the miracle had no past to be aged. It had to, in a sense, be given a new past. If God can give a past where there was no past, then He can remove a past where there was one.”
“So salvation is the undyeing of the scarlet cord,” I said.
“Exactly. God doesn’t just forgive the scarlet cord or pretend it isn’t scarlet. He changes its past and, by that, changes its reality. He undyes it.”
“He can do that?” I asked.
“God brought time into existence. God can bring it out of existence.”
“So it’s not simply that everything is the same and we’re forgiven in spite of it. It’s as if we never sinned in the first place.”
“And even more amazing than that. It’s not just as if we never sinned but, in His redemption, it has become that we’ve never sinned. In salvation, the impossible becomes the reality, the guilty become innocent, the tainted become pure, the rejected become those who were always beloved children, and our sins, which were as scarlet, become . . . as white as snow.”

The Mission: Soak in the undyeing. Receive from heaven your changed, innocent, pure, and beloved past, a past as beautiful and as white as snow. Isaiah 1:18; Luke 7:37–47; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 John 1:8–9 - As Beloved Children

DAY 10 - DAY 13: THE SERPENT’S BLOOD, FACE IN THE WATER, COSMIC LOVE, EAST WEST CONTINUUM


DAY 10 - THE SERPENT’S BLOOD

DO YOU SEE it?” asked the teacher.
“Behind the rock,” I replied.
It was a snake, brown and black, and slithering in the desert sand.
“What do you know about snakes?” he asked.
“I know to avoid them.”
“Nothing more?”
“Not much.”
“What you should know is that snakes are cold-blooded.”
“Why is that important?”
“You’re warm-blooded. And because you’re warm-blooded, you can run and keep running. But a snake, being cold-blooded, is limited in its ability to endure, to keep going. Therefore, you can outlast it.”
“That’s good to know,” I replied.
“In the Scriptures, the serpent is a symbol of evil.”
“Why is that?”
“Not because snakes are evil in themselves but because they provide a representation of evil. They often move by twisting. And so the nature of evil is to twist. A lie is the twisting of the truth. The impure is the twisting of the pure. And evil, itself, is the twisting of the good.”
“So then if snakes are cold-blooded, then, so, in some way, is evil?”
“Yes,” said the teacher. “Evil is cold-blooded. What that means is this: Though evil may have its day, its victories, its time to move and strike—it remains coldblooded. Therefore, it can never endure. No matter how powerful the evil may appear, no matter how triumphant and unstoppable it may seem, it cannot last. Deception is cold-blooded. Hatred is cold-blooded. Slander is cold-blooded. Oppression is cold-blooded. All evil is cold-blooded. And so the power of evil is only for the short-term and the momentary. Its days are always numbered. And in the long run, it always fails.”
“But the good is not cold-blooded,” I said.
“Yes,” he said. “So, in the end, the good will always outlast the evil. Therefore, persevere in the good, keep going in what is true, keep standing for what is right, and you will overcome and prevail in the end.”

The Mission: In the face of whatever evil, trouble, attack, or sin you’re dealing with, don’t give in. Don’t give up. But press on in the good. Isaiah 54:17; Matthew 24:13; John 1:5 - Snake Busters I–VI


DAY 11 - THE FACE IN THE WATERS

WE WALKED FOR some time until we came to a pool of water hidden at the foot of one of the desert mountains. We sat down by its
edge.
“Smile,” said the teacher.
So I did.
“No,” he said, “smile into the waters. Lean over the waters and smile.”
So I did.
“Now make a face of anger.”
So I did.
“Now open your hand and stretch it over the waters as if giving a gift.”
So I did.
“Now do the opposite.”
“What’s the opposite?”
“Stretch your hand to the waters, close it and withdraw it, as if taking something away.”
“I’m not seeing the point of this.”
“Oh, but there is a point,” he said, “and the point is critical for you to learn. When you smiled at the waters, there was a man smiling back at you.”
“My reflection.”
“And when you glared at it, the face of an angry man glared back at you. And when you stretched your hand out to the waters to give to it, the hand in the waters stretched back to give to you. And when you reached toward the waters to take from it, the hand reached back as if to take from you. This is the law of reflection. As you do, so it will be done to you. If you bless others, you will be blessed. If you withhold blessing, your blessings will be withheld. If you live by taking, it will, in the end, be taken from you. If you live a life of giving, it will, in the end, be given to you. Condemn others, and you will be condemned. Forgive others, and you will be forgiven. Live with a closed hand, and His hand will be closed you. Live with an open hand, and His hand will be opened to you. What you give will be given back. What you take will be taken back. Therefore, live a life of love, of giving, of blessing, of compassion, of an open hand and heart. Whatever you do, remember what you saw here. Live your life in view of the face in the waters.”

The Mission: What is it that you seek from life and from others? Today, make it your goal to give to others the very thing you seek.
Proverbs 27:19; Luke 6:37–38; Galatians 6:7–10 - The Face in the Waters



DAY 12 - THE COSMIC LOVE

DEFINE LOVE,” SAID the teacher.
“Love is to want the best for another,” I replied.
“Yes,” he said. “And to put it another way, love is to put yourself in the place of another, to feel their feelings, walk in their shoes, weep with their tears, rejoice in their joys, take upon yourself their burdens, and give to them your life.”
“I like that.”
“The Scriptures declare that God is love,” he said. “If God is love, He must be the greatest love, the ultimate love. Do you believe God loves us?”
“I do.”
“Then what must love do?”
“Love must put itself in the place of another.”
“So what would be the greatest possible manifestation of love?”
“That God . . . would put Himself in the place of another?”
“And how would that actually manifest? What would be the greatest manifestation of love?”
“God would have to put Himself in our place . . . He would have to walk in our shoes.”
“Yes, and feel our feelings.”
“And cry our tears.”
“And take upon Himself our burdens,” he said, “and our judgment . . . and our death, to save us, to give us life. He would give His life.”
“Then if God is love,” I said, “that’s what He would do.”
“Then,” said the teacher, “the greatest possible manifestation of love has already manifested . . . on our planet. God putting Himself in our place. And so there is no greater love you could ever know,” he said. “When you feel it and when you don’t, it doesn’t matter—it doesn’t change anything. Nothing you do can alter this love. No good work can increase it. And no sin can lessen it. When you feel it and when you don’t, it’s there nonetheless. We cannot change it—we can only receive it and be changed by it. We can only let it change us. For the greatest possible love has already been manifested. God has come down. It is only for us to receive it and to do likewise.”

The Mission: Today, practice the divine and cosmic love. Put yourself in the
place of another—your feet in their shoes, your heart in their heart.
John 15:12–13; Romans 5:6–8; Philippians 2:5–9
God in Our Sandals


DAY 13 - THE EAST-WEST CONTINUUM

IT WAS DAWN. We were watching the sun rise over the desert landscape.
“Kedem,” said the teacher. “It’s Hebrew for east, a most critical direction.”
“Why?” I asked.
“The Temple of Jerusalem was built according to the kedem. It had to face the east. The altar of the sacrifice was at its easternmost end. The holy of holies was at its westernmost end. Everything else was in between. So everything in the Temple existed on an east-west continuum. Everything that took place in the Temple took place on an east-west continuum. Most importantly, on the holiest day of the year, Yom Kippur, the sins of Israel were atoned for, removed from the people, on an east-west continuum. The high priest would offer up the sacrifice in the east, and then sprinkle the blood on the ark of the covenant in the west. He would journey back and forth on an east-west continuum. And the closing act of the day would see the sins of the people symbolically removed from the west to the east.”
“But why is that more significant than if it was a north-south continuum?”
“Because,” said the teacher, “the earth is a sphere . . . and it turns on its axis on an east-west continuum. Therefore, the earth has a north pole and a south pole, but no east or west pole.”
“I still don’t understand.”
“How far is the north from the south?” he asked. “Since there are two poles, the distance is limited. All north comes to an end at the North Pole. And all south ends at the South Pole. If the Temple had been built on a north-south continuum, then sin would have been removed a few thousand miles from the sinner. But how far is the east from the west? East and west have no poles. Therefore, they never end. East and west are infinite. They go on forever. In fact, the Hebrew word for the east, kedem, also means everlasting.”
“But back then no one knew the earth was a sphere.”
“God did. And all this is a shadow of the atonement of Messiah, our salvation. So in Messiah, how far does God remove your sins from you? An
infinity away . . . an eternity away. And if you had all eternity, you could never find them again. As it is written, ‘So far has He removed our sins away from us . . . as far as the east is from the west.’”

The Mission: Today, take time to ponder and take in the love of God that removed your sins as far as the east is from the west—and live accordingly. Leviticus 16:14; Psalm 103:10–12 - The Mystery of the Kedem

WE ALL ARE BRIDE NEEDING OF THE HUSBAND, THE TINY MOVE MATTERS, DESERT IS HOLY PLACE, SPIRITUAL IS ABUNDANT


DAY 6 - THE MYSTERY OF THE BRIDE

IN OUR JOURNEY to the city, we stopped on a nearby hill.
“Look,” said the teacher, pointing to an event at the city’s edge.
“It looks like a wedding,” I replied, “or the preparation for a wedding.”
The bride, in a white gown, was standing in a garden with her bridesmaids.
“You’re watching a cosmic mystery, the shadow of a mystery. Existence,” he said, “is a love story . . . or was meant to be a love story. The
bride is a picture of what we each were created to be.”
“I don’t understand.”
“We were each created to be the bride. That’s why we can never be complete in ourselves. That’s why, deep down, in the center of our being, in the deepest part of our heart, we seek to be filled. For the bride is made to be married. So we can never find our completion until we are joined to Him who is beyond us. And that is why we go through our lives trying to join ourselves . . . ”
“Join ourselves to what?”
“To that which we think will fill the longing of our hearts—to people, success, possessions, achievements, money, comfort, acceptance, beauty, romance, family, power, a movement, a goal, and any multitude of things. For the bride was created to be married, and she can never rest until she is.”
“So none of the other things can work?”
“No. None of the other things are the Bridegroom.”
“And who is the Bridegroom?”
“The Bridegroom is God, the One for whom we were created.”
“So we have to find Him.”
“More than that,” he said. “A bride doesn’t just find the Bridegroom; she marries Him. So it’s not enough to find God; you must marry Him.”
“Marry God? How?”
“By joining every part of your life and being—your deepest parts, your heart, your soul, your wounds, your longings, your desires, everything—to God. Only then can you be complete. Only then can your deepest needs and longings be fulfilled. For the mystery of our hearts is the mystery of the bride. And the bride can only find her completion in the Bridegroom. And the Bridegroom of our souls . . . is God.”

The Mission: Put away anything that substitutes for His presence, and join all that you are, your deepest parts, to your Bridegroom.
Deuteronomy 6:5; Song of Solomon 1:1–4; Ephesians 5:28–32 - The Mystery of the Calah


DAY 7 - THE POWER OF THE YUD

THE TEACHER LED me out into the desert ravine where we sat down in the sand, face-to-face. He picked up a stick and, with the slightest of
movements, created the smallest of marks in the sand.
“This can change your life,” he said.
“An apostrophe?”
“A yud.”
“What’s a yud?”
“A yud is a letter, the smallest of Hebrew letters . . . barely more than a dot, so small you could miss it. From the yud came the Roman letters I and J. And from the yud came the Greek letter iota.”
“As in ‘not one iota.’”
“Yes, or as in ‘not one jot.’ It all comes from the same tiny letter.”
“So it’s the smallest of letters. Why is it significant?”
“That’s the point . . . as the smallest of letters, it is most significant. It is the yud that begins the greatest and most sacred of Hebrew words: The sacred Name of God, YHVH, begins with a yud. The land of God, Israel, begins with a yud. The City of God, Jerusalem, begins with the yud. And the name Jesus, in Hebrew, begins, as well, with a yud.”
“And what does it all mean?”
“The greatest of words begin with the smallest of letters. In the same way, the greatest works of God begin with the smallest of strokes. Life itself begins on a scale so small, it can’t even be seen. It’s the secret of the yud.”
“And how does one apply it?”
“We are called to the new and to change. But by nature we avoid both newness and change. So how do you change? How do you go from a life of
failure to a life of victory? It’s an overwhelming prospect. How do you do it? With the yud. You start by taking the yud of steps, the smallest of steps but toward the greatest of changes. You don’t start out with a great victory, but you take the yud, one small action, one little step toward that great victory. You take that one step, that yud of courage, that iota of change, that smallest stroke of new beginnings, the yud of the life you’re called to live. You begin the greatest of things with the smallest of strokes. You begin by applying the secret of the yud.”

The Mission: Today, take the smallest of actions, but in a new direction, the first step toward the life of victory you’re called to live—the yud of a new journey. Job 8:7; Acts 3:4–9 - The First Step


DAY 8 - THE MIDBAR

HE TOOK ME out in the desert to an immense valley surrounded by reddish mountains, which turned increasingly purple and blue as
they extended out into the far distance.
“What words come to your mind,” said the teacher, “when you look at the desert wilderness?”
“Dry . . . barren . . . hot . . . austere . . . severe . . . hard . . . forbidding . . .”
“And when people go through hard times—times of loss, crisis, tragedy, loneliness, conflict, hardship, problems, separation, tears—they speak of going through the wilderness. And yet the wilderness is a holy place. It was in a desert wilderness that God gave His Law, His Word, and where He revealed His presence. The wilderness is holy.”
“So the hard times in our lives are holy?”
“For those who are His children, yes.”
“How so?”
“In Hebrew, the wilderness is called the midbar. Midbar comes from the root word dabar. And dabar means to speak. What is the wilderness? It is the midbar. And what is the midbar? It is the place of God’s speaking, the place of His voice. It’s where God especially talks to us. Why did He bring His people into wilderness, into the midbar? So He could speak to them. He brought Moses into the midbar to speak to him through a burning bush. He brought Elijah to the midbar to speak to him in a still, small voice. So too He brings us into the wilderness that He might speak to us.”
“What is it about the wilderness that makes it the place of God’s speaking?”
“Look around you,” he said. “What do you see?”
“Rock, sand, mountains—not much.”
“That’s why,” said the teacher. “God speaks, but we don’t hear. We have too many distractions. But in the wilderness the distractions are gone. So God brings us to the wilderness that we might hear His voice. Therefore, do not fear or despise the wildernesses of your life, and don’t despise His removing of the distractions. Rather embrace it. Draw closer to Him. And listen to what He is saying. Seek to hear His voice, and you will hear Him. For the wilderness in your life is not just a wilderness. It is holy ground . . .the midbar . . . the place of His voice.”

The Mission: Put away the distractions, those things that keep you from hearing. And go into the wilderness, the midbar, and seek the voice of God. Deuteronomy 8:2–16; Psalm 46:10; Jeremiah 29:12–13; Luke 3:2 - The Midbar


DAY 9 - THE SHAMAYIM AND THE ARETZ

HE LED ME out in the darkness of the night to a sandy expanse. There we lay down and gazed up into the star-filled skies.
“It’s so vast,” said the teacher, without turning from his upward gaze.
“The sky?” I answered. “I would think it is.”
“In Hebrew, the word for heaven is shamayim. The word for earth is aretz. When you hear a Hebrew word that ends with im, it’s a sign that word is plural. So what does this tell you?”
“The word for heaven is plural . . . but the word for earth is not.”
“Correct. Shamayim, heaven, is plural, but aretz, earth, is not. And it’s not just the words; it’s what the words represent.”
“Which is . . . ”
“That which is earthly is singular. That which belongs to the physical realm is finite. Everything that is physical is limited. That’s why, no matter how much of the earthly realm you get, no matter how many earthly possessions you possess, it can never fill you or bring you completion.”
“Because they’re limited,” I said, “because they’re finite.”
“And so a life focused on the physical . . . ”
“Is a life filled with limitations.”
“But if you empty your heart of physical things . . . ”
“Then you empty yourself of limitations.”
“So the things of earth are finite,” he said, “but the things of heaven are infinite. The physical is limited, but the spiritual is unlimited. Only that which is spiritual, the infinite, can fill the heart.”
“But how does one get away from living in the earthly realm?”
“One doesn’t,” said the teacher. “You can’t escape living in the earthly realm–but you don’t have to live of the earthly realm. You must deal with earthly things, but you don’t have to fill your heart with them. Set your heart on that which is heavenly. Fill up your heart with that which is spiritual. For heaven is shamayim, and shamayim has no limitation. And, therefore, a heart filled up with that which is spiritual and that which is heavenly . . . ”
“Becomes unlimited.”

The Mission: What are your possessions? Today, let go. Free up your heart of its earthly possessions. And fill it up with the spiritual and heavenly. Isaiah 55:9; Philippians 4:8–9 - The Hebrew Mysteries I–IV

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DAY 2-5: I AM, SHANNAH, RUACH, MANAH DAYS

DAY 2 - THE I AM OF ALL I AMS

I WAS BY the second day that I realized that there would be no set time for the teacher’s coming. He came in the afternoon.
“Do you know the Name of God?” asked the teacher.
“I don’t know that I do.”
It’s made up of four Hebrew letters, the yud, the heh, the vav, and the heh: YHVH. It’s the most sacred of names, so sacred some refuse to say it. And yet you say it all the time.”
“The sacred Name of God?” I replied. “How could I when I never knew it?”
“When you speak of yourself, you say the Name.”
“I don’t understand.”
“When you feel happy, you say, ‘I am happy.’ And when you’re not, you say ‘I am sad.’ When you tell others who you are, you say, ‘I am’ followed by your name. “YHVH means ‘I Am.’ It’s the Name of the Eternal, the Name of God. His Name is I Am.
“Then we all say His Name.”
“Yes. And you have always said it. It is woven into the fabric of existence that when you speak of yourself, you must say His Name.”
“Why is that?”
“It’s because your existence comes from His existence. He is the I Am of all existence . . . the I Am of all I ams. Your I am only exists because of His I Am. And as you exist from Him, so it is only from Him that you can find the reason and purpose of your existence. Therefore, when you say your name, you must always speak His Name. And you must always speak His Name first.”
“Because . . . ”
“Because His existence is first and your existence flows forth from His. That’s the flow of existence. Therefore, you must put Him first and then let everything flow from that. Let everything begin with Him and flow forth from Him. That’s the secret of life. To not only live for Him, but to live your life from Him, to live from His living, to move from His moving, to act from His actions, to feel from His heart, to be from His being, and to become who you are from who He is . . . I am.”

The Mission: Today, learn the secret of living each moment from His life,
doing from His doing, loving from His love, and being from His being.
Exodus 3:14–15; Acts 17:28
The I Am Mysteries

DAY 3 - THE SHANNAH

HE CAME TO me at night.
“What is a year?” asked the teacher.
“Three hundred sixty-five days,” I answered.
“But in the holy language of Scripture it’s more than that. It’s called the shannah. . . and it contains a secret. The word shannah is linked to the number two.”
“I don’t get the connection.”
“Shannah can mean the second, the duplicate, or the repeat. In the course of nature the year is the repeating of what has already been . . . the winter, the spring, the summer, and the fall, the blossoming of flowers and their withering away, the rebirth of nature and its dying, the same progression, the same replaying of what already was. So a year is a shannah, a repetition. And now you have a new year before you. And what kind of year will it be?”
“What do you mean?”
“The nature of nature is to repeat, just as we live, by nature, as creatures of habit. We gravitate toward doing that which we’ve done before, the same routines and courses, even when those routines and courses are harmful to us. So what will the shannah, this new year, be for you?”
“Well if the year means the repeat, I guess I don’t have much of a choice. It will be mostly the same as the one before.”
“But you do have a choice,” he said. “You see, shannah has a double meaning. It not only means the repeat . . . it also means the change.”
“How can the same word mean the opposite?”
“The same way the year ahead of you can be either. The way of the world is to repeat—but the way of God is the way of newness and change. You can’t know God and not be changed by knowing Him. And His will is that the year, the shannah ahead, be not a time of repetition but of change, of new beginnings, new steps, of breaking out of the old. And if you want to experience a year of new things, you must choose to live not in the repetition of the natural, but in the newness of the supernatural. Choose to walk not in your will but in the will of Him who is beyond the natural and beyond all that is old. As it is written, He makes all things new. Open up your life to the newness of His will, and you will walk in the newness of life and in the shannah of change.”

The Mission: Today, step out of your old ways, habits, and steps. Do what
you’ve never done before but should have. Walk in the newness of the
Spirit.
Isaiah 43:19; Romans 6:4; 2 Corinthians 5:17
The Shannah


DAY 4 - THE RUACH

HE TOOK ME to an open desert plain. It was a windy day, so windy it was almost violent.
“Come,” said the teacher. He was asking me to walk against the wind’s blowing. So I did.
“What is it like to walk against the wind?” he asked.
“It’s a struggle,” I replied.
“In the language of Scripture,” he said, “the word for wind is ruach. But it has another meaning; it also means the Spirit. In Hebrew, the Holy Spirit is the Holy Wind. So what happens if you walk against the wind?”
“It creates drag. It becomes harder to walk and you get tired.”
“In the same way,” he said, “when you walk against the Spirit, it creates a drag on your life. Everything you do becomes harder. It takes more energy to do less. So when you go against His Spirit, you’re fighting against the Wind. And you can’t walk against the direction of the Wind without getting weary and worn out.”
“And what way is the direction of the Wind, the Spirit?”
“The Spirit is the Holy Spirit. Therefore, it blows in the direction of the holy, and blows against the direction of the unholy. Now try something else. Turn around and walk back, the same way you came.”
So I did. I was now walking in the direction of the wind’s blowing.
“And what was that like?” he asked.
“It was much easier,” I said.
“That’s because there was no drag,” he said. “You were walking in the direction of the wind. And the wind helped you walk. It moved you ahead. It made your walking easier. So when you walk against the wind, it creates drag. But if you turn around, then the wind gives you power. So it is with the Spirit. If you turn, if you change your course, if you repent, if you walk in the Spirit, then the drag will disappear. Then the Spirit will empower you and will move you forward. And then everything you do, that you must do, will become easier.”
“So if you walk in the Spirit,” I said, “life will go from being a drag to a breeze.”
“Yes,” said the teacher. “For those who walk in the Spirit, the Wind is at their back.”

The Mission: What part of your life is against the direction of the Spirit?
Today, turn it around and start walking with the Wind at your back.
John 3:8; Acts 2:2; Galatians 5:16–17
Ruach


DAY 5 - APPOINTING YOUR DAYS

WE’VE SPOKEN OF the year before you,” said the teacher. “Today we will speak of the days before you. What will the days yet to come
bring to your life?”
“How could I know that?” I replied. “I don’t really have a say in the matter.”
“But what if you did?”
“How?”
“It is written, ‘Teach us to number our days.’ What does that mean?”
“That our days are limited, and so it’s wise to number them.”
“That’s correct,” he said. “And it’s the first meaning of the Scripture. But in the original language is a secret. And this secret can change your life, the days of your life. In the Hebrew it says, ‘Teach us to manah our days.’ The same word, manah, appears in the Book of Jonah where it is written that God manahs a fish, a worm, and a wind.”
“Then manah must mean more than number.”
“It does. It means to prepare and to appoint. So you must not only number your days, you must learn to prepare your days, to appoint your
days.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means that you’re not just to watch and wait passively to see what your days will bring. You’re to prepare them.”
“How can I prepare my days before they happen?”
“How did the first days happen in the beginning? They didn’t just happen. Before they existed, God prepared them. He appointed them. He
purposed them. So if you’re a child of God, you must do likewise.”
“How?”
“Prayer.”
“Praying for days that don’t yet exist?”
“Prayer isn’t only for what is, but for what is not yet.”
“But I can’t determine what will happen.”
“It doesn’t matter what happens. You appoint your days in God to bring what is good. You consecrate them for the purposes of God. And then you use your days to accomplish those purposes. Don’t let your days determine your life. Let your life determine your days. And don’t just let your days go by. Prepare them, that they might become vessels of blessing and life. Appoint your days.”

The Mission: Prepare the days ahead. Set them apart. Commit them into
God’s hands and appoint them for the fulfilling of His purposes.
Psalm 90:12; Acts 19:21
The Shannah and the Manah

DAY 1 - INFINITY IN A JAR
(By Jonathan Cahn)

THE BEGINNING

WHO ARE YOU?” I asked.
“A teacher,” he replied.
“A teacher of what?”
“Mysteries.”
“And where do you teach?”
“Here.”
“In the desert?”
“What better place to find the truth with no distractions?”
“In a school?”
“Some would call it that,” he replied.
“And who are your students?”
“Seekers of truth.”
“How do they know to come . . . to the desert?”
“Word of mouth . . . an encounter, if it’s meant to be. It just happens in the encounter . . . as in this one.”
“As in this encounter?”
“If it’s meant to be.”
“And where do your students live?”
“There are many accommodations.”
“Dorms?”
“That might be stretching it,” he replied. “Rooms, dwelling places,
chambers.”
“And how much does it cost to . . . ”
“Attend?”
“Yes.”
“It doesn’t.”
“How is that possible?”
“If one is truly seeking, it’s provided for.”
“Really?”
“Come,” he said.
“To the school?”
“Come and you’ll see.”
“I can’t,” I said. “I’m in the middle of a kind of journey.”
“Through a Middle Eastern desert?” he said.
“Yes.”
“And what exactly were you expecting to find?”
“Nothing just . . . ”
“You’re on a journey to find nothing?”
“I like to travel.”
“With no destination?”
“Not in particular.”
“But what if there was a destination?”
“What do you mean?”
“What if there was something you were meant to find?”
“Like what?”
“Come and you’ll see. The new year’s about to begin. It’s a good time to start.”
“To start?”
“The new course. The course I teach starts with the new year and ends at the year’s end.”
“I can’t.”
“Of course you can,” he said.
“I mean, I don’t know that I would.”
“You will,” he said, “if it’s meant to be.”

That’s how it all began, an unplanned encounter in the middle of a desert. I don’t know which was more absurd, what he told me about his “school” or the fact that I actually ended up there as one of his students. And I can’t say exactly what it was that led me to take that step. Perhaps it was the thought that if I didn’t do it, I would always wonder what it would have been like to
have done so and regret having not taken the chance.

Nothing about the school was ordinary. The accommodations were sparse as one would expect considering the location. And yet it didn’t seem to matter, not to any of the students. They came from all walks of life and from a wide variety of places. It wasn’t entirely barren. There were carefully maintained gardens of trees, plants, vines, and flowers. And then there were the people who lived in the surrounding region, the nomads, the shepherds, the many desert dwellers who lived in the tent encampments or tent villages that dotted the arid landscape. About an hour’s walk from the school was a small city. On occasion I would go there, as would others from the school, to purchase
goods, to observe, and, when appropriate, to seek to apply the lessons given.

The school had other classes and teachers, but he was clearly preeminent and the one who oversaw everything else. He was so preeminent that he was known simply as “the teacher.” All the more reason I could never understand why he chose me as one of his students. He lived a simple, ascetic life, as did everyone at the school. It was in keeping with the goal of eliminating all distractions. We drew our water from a well, and at night the school was lit up with candles and oil lamps. It was as if we were all transported back to ancient times. And yet, at the same time, the teacher seemed very much aware of what was going on in the larger world from which the school seemed so cut off. Nor was he averse to making use of any tool or service of the modern world that would serve the purposes of the teachings.

As for the teachings themselves, they were no less ordinary than the school in which they were given. Most of the classes I was given consisted of just me and the teacher. There was no set time or place. They could take place early in the morning, in the middle of the day, or late at night and in desert plains, on mountaintops, on hills, in oil-lit chambers, while overlooking one of the tent villages, or while journeying through the desert on camels. There were times when the teaching would be triggered or initiated by the surroundings or by something we happened to see, or at least it seemed that way. I could never quite tell if the teaching was based on the surroundings or the surroundings on the teaching.

And there were some teachings that came about in response to one of my questions. Each teaching would impart a mystery or truth. Some mysteries would build upon other mysteries or together form a larger mystery. At the end of each teaching he would give me an assignment, a mission to apply what I learned to my life that day. I kept a journal in which I wrote down what he taught me and our conversations as best I could remember them—the teachings, the mysteries, the questions and answers, and the references I was able to find later on that
matched up with what he shared. So by the end of the course and the year I had recorded three hundred sixty-five mysteries, one for each day of the year, a teaching, a mystery, and a mission.

The following is the record of what I was shown by the teacher, the mysteries he imparted, as I received them in the year I dwelt in the desert.

DAY 1 — INFINITY IN A JAR

T WAS MORNING. The teacher came to my room holding a little clay jar.
“A question,” he said. “Can that which is little contain that which is big?”
“No,” I answered.
“Can that which is finite encompass that which is infinite?”
“No,” I said again.
“But it can,” he replied.
“How?”
He lifted the jar and removed the cap from its top.
“It can,” he said. “It can if it’s an open vessel. A closed vessel can never contain anything larger than its own size. But an open vessel has no limitations. It now can contain the blowing of the wind or the outpouring of the rain. It could even contain the flowing of a river.”
“It would take a long time to contain a river.”
“It could take forever, but the principle is the same.”
“And the reason you’re showing me this . . . ”
“Which is larger, that which you know or that which you don’t know?”
“That which I don’t know, I would think.”
“So then, it’s only wise that you seek that which you don’t know.”
“I guess.”
“But how do you contain that which is bigger than you . . . that which is bigger than your ability to comprehend?”
“By becoming an open vessel,” I said.
“Yes,” said the teacher. “Only by opening yourself up can you come to know that which you don’t already know. And only by becoming an open
vessel can you contain that which is greater than yourself. The truth is always greater than our knowing. Your mind and heart are finite, clay jars. But the truth has no end. God has no end. The Eternal is infinite . . . always flowing.”
“Like the river,” I said.
“Yes,” he said, “but when the jar opens itself, it becomes unlimited. It can contain the waters of the river . . . So open now your mind, your heart, and your life. For it is only the open vessel and an open heart that can contain the infinity of God.”

The Mission: Today, open your mind, your heart, and your life to that which you don’t yet know, that you might contain that which is greater than yourself.
Isaiah 55:1–9; Jeremiah 33:3; 2 Corinthians 4:7
Filled Up With the Fullness

St. FAUSTINA's VISION OF HELL FROM HER DIARY

I, Sister Faustina Kowalska, by the order of God, have visited the Abysses of Hell so that I might tell souls about it and testify to its existence...the devils were full of hatred for me, but they had to obey me at the command of God, What I have written is but a pale shadow of the things I saw. But I noticed one thing: That most of the souls there are those who disbelieved that there is a hell." (Diary 741)

"Today, I was led by an angel to the Chasms of Hell. It is a place of great torture; how awesomely large and extensive it is! The kinds of tortures I saw:

The First Torture that constitutes hell is:
The loss of God.

The Second is:
Perpetual remorse of conscience.

The Third is:
That one's condition will never change.

The Fourth is:
The fire that will penetrate the soul without destroying it. A terrible suffering since it is a purely spiritual fire, lit by God's anger.

The Fifth Torture is:
Continual darkness and a terrible suffocating smell, and despite the darkness, the devils and the souls of the damned see each other and all the evil, both of others and their own.

The Sixth Torture is:
The constant company of Satan.

The Seventh Torture is:
Horrible despair, hatred of God, vile words, curses and blasphemies.

These are the Tortures suffered by all the damned together, but that is not the end of the sufferings.

INDESCRIBABLE SUFFERINGS

There are special Tortures destined for particular souls. These are the torments of the senses. Each soul undergoes terrible and indescribable sufferings related to the manner in which it has sinned.

There are caverns and pits of torture where one form of agony differs from another. I would have died at the very sight of these tortures if the omnipotence of God had not supported me.

No One Can Say There is No Hell
Let the sinner know that he will be tortured throughout all eternity, in those senses which he made use of to sin. I am writing this at the command of God, so that no soul may find an excuse by saying there is no hell, or that nobody has ever been there, and so no one can say what it is like...how terribly souls suffer there! Consequently, I pray even more fervently for the conversion of sinners. I incessantly plead God's mercy upon them. O my Jesus, I would rather be in agony until the end of the world, amidst the greatest sufferings, than offend You by the least sin." (Diary 741)

ONE SIN DEMONS/DEVILS COULD NEVER SIN, BUT MEN DO SIN — DENYING GOD EXISTS

CHAPTER 10. AN ATHEIST IN HELL

We had not gone much farther before I saw a vast number of tormenting demons. They were continually lashing a large company of wretched souls with knotted whips of burning steel. The tormented were roaring out with such loud cries that I thought it might have melted even cruelty itself into some pity. This made me say to one of the tormentors, "Oh, stop your whipping, and do not use such cruelty on those who are your fellow creatures, and whom you probably helped lead to all this misery."

"No!" answered the tormentor very smoothly. "Though we are bad enough, no devil was as bad as them, nor were we guilty of such crimes as they were. We all know there is a God, although we hate Him; but these souls would never admit (until they came here) that there was such a Being."

"Then these," I said, "were atheists. They are wretched men, and tried to ruin me had not eternal grace prevented it."
I had no sooner spoken—but one of the tormented wretches cried out mournfully, "Surely I know that voice. It must be John."

I was amazed to hear my name mentioned; and therefore I answered, "Yes, I am John; but who are you?"

To this he replied, "I once knew you well upon the earth, and had almost persuaded you to be of my opinion. I am the author of that celebrated book entitled ‘Leviathan.’"

"What! The great Hobbs?" said I. "Are you come here?"

"Alas," replied he, "I am that unhappy man indeed. But I am so far from being great, that I am one of the most wretched people in all these dirty territories. For now I know there is a God. But oh! I wish there were not, for I am sure He will have no mercy on me. Nor is there any reason that He should. I do confess I was His foe on earth, and now He is mine in hell. It was that proud confidence I had in my own wisdom, which has so betrayed me."

"Your case is miserable, and yet you admit that you suffer justly. For how industrious were you to persuade others and try to bring them to the same damnation. No one can know this better than I, as I was almost taken in your snare to perish forever."

"It is that," said he, "which stings me to the heart—to think how many will perish by my influence. I was afraid when I first heard your voice that you had also been cast into hell. Not that I wish any person happy—for it is my torment to think that anyone is happy while I am so miserable. But I did not want you to be cast into hell, because every soul that is brought here through my deceptions, increases my pains in hell."

"But tell me," I said, "for I want to know the truth. Did you indeed believe there was no God when you lived upon earth?

"At first I believed there was a God," he answered, "but as I turned to sins which would lead me to His judgment, I hoped there was no God. For it is impossible to think there is a just God, and not also remember that He will punish those who disobey Him. But as I continued in my sins, and found that justice did not swiftly come, I then began to hope that there was no God. From those hopes I began to frame ideas in my own mind, which could justify what I hoped. My ideas framed a new system of the world’s origin, which excluded from it the existence of God. At last I found myself so fond of these new theories that I decided to believe them and convince others that they were true. But before this, I did find several checks in my own conscience. I felt that I could be wrong—but I ignored these warnings. Now I find that those checking thoughts that might have helped me then, are here the things that most of all torment me. I must confess that the love of sin hardened my heart against my Maker, and made me hate Him first, and then deny His being. Sin, which I so proudly embraced, has been the cursed cause of all this woe; it is the serpent which has stung my soul to death! For now I find, in spite of my vain philosophy, that there is a God. I have also found that God will not be mocked, although it was my daily practice in the world to mock at heaven and all that is sacred, for this was the means that I found very successful to spread abroad my cursed ideas. For anyone that I could get to ridicule the truths of God, I looked upon as becoming one of my disciples. But now these thoughts are more tormenting to me—than the sufferings I endure from these whips of burning steel."

"Sad indeed," I said. "See what Almighty Power can inflict on those who violate His righteous law." I was making some further comments when the relentless fiend who had been tormenting them then interrupted me.

"Now you see what sort of men they were in the world. Do you not think they deserve their punishment now?"

To which I answered, "Doubtless it is the just reward of sin which they suffer, and which you will suffer also. For you, as well as they, have sinned against the ever blessed God, and for your sin you shall suffer the just vengeance of eternal fire. Nor is it any excuse to say you never doubted the being of a God; for though you knew there was God—yet you rebelled against Him. Therefore you shall be justly punished with everlasting destruction, away from the presence of the Lord."

To this the fiend replied, "It is true we know we shall be punished, as you say. But if you say that mankind should have pity showed them, because they fell through the temptations of the devil, it is the same case with me and all the rest of the inferior spirits. For we were tempted by Lucifer—the Bright Sun of the Morning to rebel with him. And therefore, though this multiplies the crime of Lucifer, it should lessen that of the inferior spirits."

To this my bright conductor replied with an angry countenance. "O you apostate, wicked, lying spirit! Can you say those things and see me here? You know it was your proud heart which made you rebel with Lucifer, against the blessed God who had created you with glory! But since you proudly exalted yourself above your blessed Creator, and joined with Lucifer—you are justly cast down to hell. Your former beauty has changed into your present horrible form—as the just punishment of your rebellious pride!"

To this the apostate spirit replied, "Why do you invade our territories, and come here to torment us before our time?" And when he had said this, he slipped away as if he did not want to have an answer. After he was gone I said to my guardian angel that I had already heard about the fall of the apostate angels—but wanted to know more about what happened. To this my guide answered me, "When you have finished your earthly life and return to heaven—you shall learn many things that you are not yet ready to understand. In your present state—do not desire to learn more than what is written in the Scriptures. It is enough to know that the angels sinned, and for their sin were cast down to hell. But how pure spirits could have a thought arise in their hearts against the eternal Purity that first created them, is what you are not yet capable of understanding."

"I have observed," said I, "that those in hell complain most about the torment from their own sense of guilt, which confirms the justice of their punishment. This gloomy prison is the best place to rightly understand sin; for were it not so evil, it would not be rewarded with such extreme punishment."

"What you say is very natural; but there is yet a better place to see the just reward due to sin. That place can be seen when you behold the blessed Son of God upon the cross. There we may see the terrible effects of sin. There we may see all of its true evil. For all the sufferings of the damned here—are but the sufferings of created beings; but on the cross you see a suffering God!"

"Surely," said I, "did justice and mercy triumph, and kiss each other in that fatal hour. For justice was fully satisfied at the cross—in the just punishment of sin; and mercy triumphed and was pleased there—because salvation for poor sinners was completed. Oh, eternal praises to His holy name forever, that His grace has made me willing to accept this salvation, and become an heir of glory! For I remember that some of those lost wretches here have lamented, that when salvation had been offered to them, they had refused it. It was therefore grace alone—which makes me differ from them."

At this point my shining guardian told me that he must bring me back to the earth again, and leave me there until it was time for me to enter my heavenly reward. "Come," he said, "let us leave this place of sorrow and horror to the possession of their black inhabitants."

In a very little space of time I found myself on earth again. I was left at the very place where the angel had met me, when I had been thinking about committing suicide through the temptations of the devil, who had tried to persuade me that there was no God. How I returned there, I do not know. But as soon as I was back there, the bright angel who had been my conductor said, "John, I must go now. I have another ministry to complete. Praise Him who sits upon the throne forever, who has all power in heaven, earth, and hell. Praise Him for all the wonders of His love and grace—which He has shown you in so short a time."

As I was going to reply, the shining angel disappeared and I was left alone. I spent some time considering the amazing things I had seen and heard—and then knelt down and prayed. When I rose up I began blessing and praising God for all His goodness.

When I returned back to my house, my family was very surprised to see how my countenance had so greatly changed. They looked at me as if they scarcely knew me. I asked them what they were staring at. They answered that it was the change in my face which caused their astonishment. I said, "How am I so greatly changed?"

They told me, "Yesterday you looked so depressed that you seemed the very image of despair. But now, your face appears radiantly beautiful, and seems full of perfect joy and satisfaction."

"If you had seen," I said, "what I have seen today—you would not be surprised at the change in me." Then I went into my room, took my pen and ink, and wrote down everything that I had heard and seen. And I hope that those who read this will be moved in their hearts—just as I have been, as I wrote everything down.

ENDED.

SEE WHY SINNERS PRAYING/REPENTING AT THEIR LAST MINUTE BEFORE DEATH MAY NOT WORK

CHAPTER 9. FURTHER CONVERSATIONS

This wretched soul had scarcely finished what he was saying when he was tormented again by a hellish demon, who told him to stop complaining. The demon said, "don't you know you have deserved it all? How often were you told of this before—but would not believe it? You laughed at those who warned you about hell. You were even so presumptuous as to dare Almighty justice to destroy you! How often you called on God to damn you. Do you complain that you are answered according to your wishes? What an unreasonable thing! You know that you had salvation offered you, and you refused it. How can you now complain of being damned? I have more reason to complain, for you had a long time in which repentance was offered you; but I was cast into hell as soon as I had sinned. If I had been offered salvation, I would never have rejected it as you did. Who do you think should pity you now, with all that heaven had offered to you?"

This made the wretch cry out, "Oh, do not continue to torment me; I know that I chose destruction. Oh, that I could forget it! These thoughts are my greatest torture. I chose to be damned—and therefore justly am so."

Then turning to the demon that tortured him he said, "But I also came here through your temptations, you cursed devil! You were the one who had tempted me to do all of my sins; and now you would reproach me? You say you never had a Savior offered to you; but you should also remember that you never had a tempter such as you have always been to me!"

To this the devil scornfully replied, "It was my business to lead you here! You had often been warned of this by your preacher. You were plainly told that we sought your ruin, and go about continually like roaring lions, seeking whom we could devour. I was often afraid you that would believe them, as several other souls did, to our great disappointment. But you were willing to do what we wanted; and since you have done our work—it is but reasonable that we should pay you wages." Then the fiend tormented him again and caused him to roar out so horribly that I could no longer stay to hear him, so I passed on.

"How dismal," I then said to my conductor, "is the condition of these damned souls! They are the devils slaves while upon earth, and he reproaches and then torments them for it when they come to hell."

"The devils hate all the race of Adam," said my conductor. "And because many souls are ignorant of their devices, they easily succeed to bring them to eternal ruin. You will see more how the demons treat the damned here."

Passing a little further we saw a multitude of damned souls together, gnashing their teeth with extreme rage and pain, while the tormenting fiends with hellish fury poured liquid fire and brimstone continually upon them. In the meantime, they were cursing God and those about them, and were blaspheming in a tremendous manner. I could not help but ask of one demon that so tormented them, who were these souls that he tormented so cruelly?

Said he, "These wretches well deserve their punishment. They led others astray, and were so in love with sin, that they came here. These are those souls that have been our great helpers upon the earth, and therefore they deserve our special attention in hell. We use our full diligence to give every one their utmost share of torments, for they not only have their own sins to answer for—but also all the sins of those whom they led astray both by their doctrine and example."

"Since they have been such great helpers for you, I would think that in gratitude you would treat them a little more kindly."

To this the impudent fiend answered me in a scoffing manner, "Those who expect gratitude among devils, will find themselves mistaken. Gratitude is a virtue—but we hate all virtue. Besides, we hate all mankind, and were it in our power not one of them would be happy. It is true we do not tell them so upon earth, because there it is our business to flatter and deceive them. But when we have them here where they cannot escape—we soon convince them of their foolishness in serving us."

From this I could only think about what infinite grace it is—that any poor sinners are brought to heaven, considering how many traps are laid by the enemy to ensnare them by the way. Therefore it is a ministry well worthy of the blessed Son of God—to save His people from their sins, and to deliver them from the wrath to come. But it is also folly and madness in men—to refuse the offers of His grace, and to choose to side with the destroyer.

Going farther on, I heard a wretch complaining in a heartbreaking strain, against those men that had betrayed him and brought him here.

"I was told," said he, ‘by those whom I depended on, and whom I thought could inform me correctly, that if I said ‘Lord, have mercy on me,’ when I came to die, it would be enough to save me. But oh, now I find myself mistaken, to my eternal sorrow! Alas, I called for mercy on my deathbed—but found it was too late. Before that time, this cursed devil here told me that I was safe. Then on my deathbed, he told me it was too late! Hell must forever be my portion!"

"You see—I did tell you the truth at last," said the devil, "and then you would not believe me. A very fitting end, don't you think? You spend your days enjoying sin, and wallow in your filthiness—and you want to go to heaven when you die! Would anyone but a madman think that would be just? No! He who sincerely wants to go to heaven when he dies, must walk in the ways of holiness and virtue while he is alive. You say that some of your lewd companions told you that saying, ‘Lord, have mercy on me’ when you came to die would be enough. A very fine excuse! If you had read the Bible you would have known that ‘Without holiness, no one shall see the Lord." Therefore, if you were willing to live in your sins as long as you could, you did not finally leave them because you did not like them—but because you could follow them no longer! And this you know to be true. How could you be so stupid to think you could go to heaven—with the love of sin in your heart? No! no! no! You were warned often enough that you should take heed of being deceived, for God is not mocked—but what you have sowed—you have reaped. You have no reason to complain of anything—but your own folly, which you now see too late."

"This lecture of the devil was a very cutting one to the poor tormented wretch," I said to my conductor, "and shows the true situation of many now on earth as well as those in hell. But oh, what a far different judgment do they make in this sad place from what they did on earth."

"The reason for this," replied my guardian angel, "is that they will not allow themselves to think what the effect of sin will be, while on earth. Carelessness ruins many souls who do not think about what they are doing, nor where they are going—until it is too late to help it."

+

CHAPTER 7. THE TORTURES OF HELL

There were yet more tragic scenes of sorrow that we saw as we left these two cursed wretches accusing each other. One woman had flaming sulfur continually forced down her throat by a tormenting demon! He did this with such horrible cruelty and insolence, that I said to him, "Why should you so delight in tormenting that cursed wretch, and be pouring that flaming, infernal liquid down her throat?"

"This is a more than just reward," replied the demon. "This woman in her life time was such a greedy wretch—that though she had plenty of gold, she could never be satisfied. Therefore I now pour it down her throat! She cared not who she ruined—as long as she could get their gold. And when she had gathered together a greater treasure than she could ever spend—her love of money would not let her spend enough of it to supply herself with her basic living needs. She often went with an empty stomach, though her money bags were full. She kept no house because she would not be taxed, and would not keep her treasure in her hands for fear she should be robbed. She would not put her money in bonds, for fear of being cheated; although she always cheated everyone that she could. She was so great a cheat that she cheated her own body of its food, and her own soul of mercy. Since gold was her god on earth—is it not a just reward that she should have her belly full of it in hell?"

When her tormentor had done speaking, I asked her whether this was all true. To this she answered me, "No; to my grief it is not."

"Why is this not true," I said, "and why are you grieved that it is not true?"

"Because if what my tormentor told you is true," she said, "I would be satisfied. He tells you that he pours gold down my throat; but he is a lying devil and speaks falsely. If it was gold I would never complain. But he mocks me, and instead of gold he only gives me this horrid, stinking sulfur! If I had my gold I would be happy still, for I value it so much that if I had it—I would not part with it even if an entrance to heaven could be bought."

I told my angelic conductor that I was amazed to hear a wretch in hell itself so greedy for riches, while forever being tormented.

"This," he said, "may convince you that it is sin which is the greatest of all evils. Whenever the love of sin controls a soul, it is the greatest of all punishments for them to be abandoned to that evil love. The love of gold which this cursed soul is consumed by—is a more fatal punishment than what the demons can inflict upon her!"

"O!" said I, "if only wicked men on earth could for one moment hear the horrid shrieks of those damned souls, they could not be in love with sin again."

"Eternal Truth has told us otherwise, for those who will not fear His ministers, nor have regard to what His Word contains—will not be warned, though one should come from hell."

We had not gone much farther before we saw a wretched soul lying on a bed of burning steel, almost choked with brimstone. He cried out with such dreadful anguish and desperation, that I asked my conductor to wait. I heard him speak as follows:

"Ah, miserable wretch! Undone forever, forever! Oh, this killing word, 'forever!' Will not a million years be long enough to bear that pain, which if I could avoid it, I would not endure for even one moment for the sake of being offered one million worlds? No, no! My misery never will have an end; after millions of years it will still be forever! Oh, what a helpless and hopeless condition I am in! It is this 'forever' that is the hell of hell! O cursed wretch! Cursed to all eternity! How willfully have I undone myself! Oh, what stupendous folly am I guilty of—to choose sin’s short and momentary pleasure—at the dear price of everlasting pain! How often I was told that it would be so! How often I was encouraged to leave those paths of sin—which brought me to the chambers of eternal death! But I, like a dumb animal, would not listen to those pleadings. Now it is too late to change it, for my eternal state is fixed forever! Why was I made a person, that I would choose this fate? Why was I made with an immortal soul—and yet should take so little care of it? Oh how my own neglect stings me to death—and yet I cannot die! I live a dying life, worse than ten thousand deaths; and yet I once could have changed all this—but did not! Oh, that is the gnawing worm that never dies! I might once have been happy, salvation was offered to me and I refused it. Had salvation been offered to me only once, it would have been an unforgivable folly to refuse it! But salvation was offered me a thousand times, and yet (wretch that I was!) I still as often refused it. O cursed sin, that with deluding pleasures, leads mankind to eternal ruin! God often called—but I as often refused; He stretched His hand out—but I would not mind it. How often have I ignored His counsel! How often have I refused His reproof! But now the scene is changed—the case is altered! Now He laughs at my calamity, and mocks at the destruction which is come upon me. He would have helped me once—but I would not accept His help. Therefore those eternal miseries I am condemned to undergo—are but the just reward of my own doing!"

I could not hear this sorrowful lamentation without thinking about the wonderful grace that God had shown to me. Eternal praises to His holy name! For my heart told me that I had deserved eternal judgment as much as that sad wretch—but that God's grace alone had made us different. O how unsearchable are His counsels! Who can fathom His divine decree?

After these thoughts I spoke to the sorrowful complainer, and told him that I had heard his woeful complaints. I saw that his misery was great, and his loss irreparable, and told him I would willingly hear more about it—if this might possibly help lessen his sufferings."

"No, not at all; my pains cannot be relieved even for one small moment! But by your question I understand that you are a stranger here; and may you ever be a stranger! Ah, had I but the least hope still remaining, how I would kneel and cry and pray forever to be redeemed from this hell! But it is all in vain—I am lost forever! But so that you will be warned about ending up here—I will tell you what the damned suffer."

CHAPTER 8. A LOST SOUL SPEAKS

"Our miseries in this infernal dungeon are of two kinds: what we have lost, and what we suffer. I will first speak about what we have LOST.

1. In this sad dark place of misery and sorrow, we have lost the wondrous presence of the ever blessed God. This is what makes this dungeon—hell. Though we had lost a thousand worlds, it would not be as important as this one greatest loss. Could we but see the least glimpse of His favor here—we might be happy; but have lost it to our everlasting woe.

2. Here we have also lost the company of saints and angels, and instead have nothing but tormenting devils!

3. Here we have lost heaven, too—the center of blessedness. There is a deep gulf between us and heaven, so that we are shut out from it forever! Those everlasting gates that let the redeemed into heaven—are now for ever shut against us.

4. To make our wretchedness far worse, we have lost the hope of ever obtaining a better condition. This makes us truly hopeless. Well may our hearts now break, since we are both without hope and help. This is what we have lost; and if we think of these things, it is enough to tear and gnaw upon our miserable souls forever. Yet, oh, that this were all that our torments were!

But we are also tormented by suffering and pain, as I will try to explain to you now.

1. First, we undergo a variety of torments. We are tormented here a thousand, no, ten thousand different ways! Those who suffer upon the earth seldom have more than one affliction at a time. But if they had ulcers, gallstones, headaches, and fever all at the same time—would they not be very miserable? Yet all those together are but like the biting of a flea—compared to those intolerable, sharp pains which we endure. Here we have all the sufferings of hell. Here is an unquenchable fire which burns us; a lake of burning brimstone which ever chokes us; and eternal chains which bind us. Here there is utter darkness to frighten us, and a worm of conscience which gnaws upon us everlastingly. Any one of these is worse to bear—than all the torments that mankind ever felt on earth!

2. But our torments here are not only various—but are also universal. They afflict every part of the body, and torment all the powers of the soul. This makes what we suffer—the worst of tortures. In those sicknesses which men have on earth, though some members of their bodies will suffer—yet other parts will have no pain. Here it is different; every member of the soul and body suffers at the same time.

"Our eyes are tormented here with the sight of devils who appear in all the horrible shapes and black appearances that sin can give them. Our ears are continually tormented with the loud continual yellings of the damned. Our nostrils are smothered with sulfurous flames; our tongues with burning blisters; and the whole body is rolled in flames of liquid fire! All the powers and faculties of our souls are also tormented here. The imagination suffers with the thoughts of our present pain and the memory of the heaven we have lost. Our minds are tormented as we remember how foolishly we spent our precious time on earth. Our understanding is tormented with the thoughts of our past pleasures, present pains, and future sorrows, which are to last forever. And our consciences are tormented with a continual gnawing worm!

3. Another thing that makes our misery so awful—is the sharpness of our torments. The fire which burns us is so violent that all the water in the sea can never quench it. The pains we suffer here are so extreme, that it is impossible for anyone to know them except the damned.

4. Another part of our misery is the ceaselessness of our torments. As various, as universal, and as extremely violent as they are, they are also continual. We have no rest from them. If there were any relaxation, it might be some relief. But there is no easing of our torments, and what we suffer now—we must suffer forever.

5. The company we have here is another part of our misery. Tormenting devils and tormented souls—are all our company. Dreadful shrieks, howlings, and fearful cursing—are our continual conversation because of the fierceness of our pain.

6. The place we are in also increases our sufferings. It is the epitome of all misery—a prison, a dungeon, a bottomless pit, a lake of brimstone, a furnace of fire which burns to eternity, the blackness of darkness forever; and lastly, hell itself. Such a wretched place as this, can only increase our wretchedness.

7. The cruelty of our tormentors is another thing which adds to our sufferings. Our tormentors are devils in whom there is no pity. While they are tormented themselves, they still take pleasure in tormenting us!

8. All those sufferings that I have recounted are very grievous. But that which makes them the most grievous—is that they shall always be forever! All of our intolerable sufferings shall last to all eternity! ‘Depart from Me, you who are cursed—into everlasting fire!’ is what continually sounds in my ears. Oh, that I could reverse that fatal sentence! Oh, if there was but a bare possibility of salvation! This is the miserable situation we are in—and shall be in forever!"

Chapter 5. We Shall Know Each Other

I remarked, "As I was brought here, I saw among the saints some who appeared to shine with greater brightness than the others. Are there among the blessed different degrees of glory?"

"The happiness and glory which all the glorified here enjoy is the result of their communion with and love to the ever blessed God. The more we see Him—the more we love Him; and love changes our souls into His nature, and from this results our glory. This makes a difference in the degrees of glory. Nor is there any murmuring in one to see another’s glory much greater than his own. The ever blessed God is an unbounded ocean of light and life, and joy and happiness, still filling every vessel—until it can hold no more. And though the vessels are of several sizes, while each is filled there are none who can complain. My answer therefore to your question, is that those who have the most enlarged capacity do love God most—are thereby changed most into His likeness. This is the highest glory which heaven can give. Nor let this seem strange to you, for even among God’s flaming angels there are diversities of order and different degrees of glory.

While I was talking with the prophet a shining form drew near. It was one of the redeemed. He told me he had left his body below resting in hope until the resurrection; and that though he was still a substance yet it was an immaterial one, not to be touched by mortal.

He said, "We here behold a sight worth dying for—the blessed Lamb of God, the glorious Savior! Here we see Him in His kingly office, on account of which He is called King of kings and Lord of lords. But all the glorious greatness of our blessed Redeemer does not make His kindness seem distant—but only more precious. It makes heaven more than heaven to me—to find Him reigning here, Who suffered so much for me in the world below! And our Redeemer’s great happiness increases our own, as He invites each faithful servant to enter into his Master’s joy.

"Here we see not only our elder Brother, Christ—but also our friends and relatives. Although Elijah lived in the world below long before your time, you no sooner saw him—than you knew him. And so you will also know Adam when you see him. Here we communicate the purest pleasure to each other—a sincere ardent love uniting our society. And oh, how happy is that state of love! Where there is love like this—all are filled with delight. How can it be otherwise, since in this blessed society there is a continual receiving and returning of love and joy.

"But besides, all the happiness which comes to us by our communion with God and with each other—it is to me a mighty happiness to understand all the deep mysteries of religion which the wisest in the world below could not fully understand. Here we discern a perfect harmony between those scripture texts that in the world below seemed to oppose each other. And here we are especially filled with wonder and gratitude at discovering the divine goodness towards each one of us in particular. In respect to my former life on earth, I have seen the mercifulness of those very afflictions which I once (when upon earth) thought to show His anger. I am now fully convinced that no affliction that I ever met with in the world below (and I have met with many) either came sooner, or fell heavier, or continued longer—than what was needful for my good. My hopes were not disappointed—but God used all things to prepare me for a better eternal reward than what I had hoped for.

"But I remember that you are still in the body, and may be tired with hearing what I could forever tell, so great is the happiness that I possess. I shall only add one other thing about our happiness: though a vast multitude of blessed souls partakes of this joy and glory, this does not make less of what each receives. For this ocean of happiness is so bottomless, that the innumerable company of all the saints and angels can never exhaust it. Nor is this strange, for in the world below everyone equally enjoys the benefit of sunlight. There is no one who can complain that they enjoy it less, because another enjoys it also. All enjoy the benefit of sunlight as fully—as if no one else enjoyed it but themselves. If a multitude of people drink of the same river—none of them is able to exhaust it, even though each of them has the liberty of drinking as much as he can. So whoever enjoys God—enjoys Him as much as he can contain, according to his capacity.

"Thus I have given you a brief account of our heavenly Canaan. It is not the thousandth part of that which might be said—yet it is enough to let you see it is a land flowing with milk and honey. In this happy place, worldly relations cease. Nor are there male and female here—but all are like the angels. For souls cannot be distinguished into sexes, and therefore all relations are here swallowed up in God."

He had no sooner spoken than he took me by the hand. Then, far swifter than an arrow from a bow, we passed by several shining forms clothed in robes of immortality, who looked at me as I passed them. He said, to me, "Farewell, my friend, your guardian angel will shortly come and bring you back to the world below."

I drew near the shining form of a redeemed one who stood before me, who appeared extremely glorious, encircled with rays of dazzling luster. I hardly could behold her—for the exceeding brightness of her face.

She said to me, "For what I am—to Him who is on the throne, be all the praise and glory. The robe of glory which you see me wear—is only the reflection of His own bright beams!"

"You appear to be one who feels the mighty joys that you speak of."

She replied, "You should not think this strange. The mighty wonders of divine love and grace will be the subject of our song forever! Here all human relations cease and are swallowed up in God Who is alone the great Father of all this heavenly family. As for the members of the family that I left behind in the world below, I have committed them to God. I would be glad to see them all heirs of this blessed inheritance. But if they should join with the grand enemy of souls and refuse the grace offered them, and thereby perish in their unbelief—God will be glorified in His justice, and in His glory I shall still rejoice!"

Then I desired to know whether the saints in heaven understood and were concerned for what was happening in the world below.

To this she replied, "As to the affairs of particular people, we are not concerned with them and are ignorant of them. Only God is present in all places and sees all things. But the struggles and the victories of the church below, is told to us by the angels, who are ministering spirits sent forth to minister to those who shall be heirs of salvation. From what they report we are excited to renew our praises to Him who sits upon the throne."

Chapter 6. Conducted to HELL

Then the bright messenger who had brought me to heaven returned. "I have," said the angel, "a commission to return you to the earth from where I took you, after first visiting the regions of the prince of darkness. There you will see the reward of sin, and what Justice has prepared as the judgment of those who would exalt themselves above the throne of the Most High God."

To leave heaven for earth, was extremely disappointing. But to leave heaven for hell, turned my very heart within me! However, when I knew that it was God's good pleasure, I was a little comforted. So I said to my bright conductor, "That which God has ordered I shall always be willing to obey. Even in hell I will not be afraid—if I may have His presence with me there."

To this my shining guardian replied, "Wherever the blessed God grants His presence—there is heaven, and while we are in hell He will be with us."

Then bowing low before the Almighty’s throne, swifter than thought, my guardian angel carried me on a speedy journey down through the heavens. When I saw the stars I told my conductor that I had heard on earth that each one of these stars had their own worlds. "But I would ask you to tell me the truth of this matter."

To this my shining guardian answered, "To Him Who is Almighty, there is nothing impossible. But from knowing that it is in His power to do this, to argue that it is His will—is no good logic in the school of heaven. We know what He pleases to reveal to us; and what He has not revealed, are secrets locked up in His own eternal counsel. For anyone to inquire into these secrets would be but bold and presumptuous curiosity. There is no doubt that He can make as many worlds as He wants—but He has not yet revealed it to us, and it is not our duty to inquire."

By this time we had come down to the lowest regions of the air. There I saw multitudes of horrible forms and dismal dark appearances which fled from the shining presence of my bright conductor.

I said, "These surely are some of the vanguard of hell—so black and so frightening are their forms!"

My conductor replied, "Now we are upon the borders of hell, and these are some of the apostate spirits that wander around like roaring lions."

Soon we were surrounded with a darkness much more black than night, and with a stench far more suffocating than that of burning sulfur. My ears were likewise filled with the horrible yelling of the damned spirits, which in comparison with—would make the most discordant notes on earth, sound like beautiful music.

"Now," said my guardian angel, "you are on the edge of hell—but do not fear the power of the destroyer. My commission from the Imperial Throne secures you from all danger. Here you may hear from devils and damned souls—the cursed causes of their endless ruin. What you ask them about, they will answer. The devils cannot hurt you, though they would want to, for they are bound by Him who has commissioned me."

We then came within hell’s territories, placed in the caverns of the infernal deep in the center of the earth. There, in a sulfurous lake of liquid fire, sat Lucifer upon a burning throne. His horrid eyes sparkled with hellish fury, as full of rage as his strong anger could make him. I saw that the demons that had fled from us as we approached from heaven had given notice of our coming. This had put all hell in an uproar, and made Lucifer release horrid blasphemies against the blessed God with an air of arrogance and pride.

"What would the Thunderer have?" said he. "He has my heaven already, whose radiant scepter this bold hand should bear. Instead of those never fading fields of light, He confines me here in this dark house of death, sorrow, and woe! What, would He take hell away from me too, that He insults me here? Ah! Could I but obtain another day to try it, I would make heaven shake and His bright throne to totter. Nor would I fear the utmost of His power, though He had fiercer flames than these to throw me in!

Although I lost the battle that day, the fault was not mine! No winged spirit in heaven strove better for the victory than I did. But, ah!" he continued with a changed voice, "that day is lost, and I am forever doomed to these dark territories! But it is still at least some comfort to me—that mankind’s sorrow waits upon me. And since I cannot fight against the Thunderer, I will make the utmost of my anger to fall on them."

I was amazed to hear his ungodly speech, and felt compelled to say to my conductor, "How justly are his blasphemies rewarded!"

"What you have heard from this apostate spirit, is both his sin and punishment; for every blasphemy he belches against heaven, makes hell the hotter to him!"

We then passed on to see more sorrowful scenes. I saw two wretched souls being tormented by a demon. He was continually plunging them in liquid fire and burning brimstone, while at the same time they accused and cursed each other! One of them said to his tormented fellow sufferer, "O cursed be your face, that ever I set eyes upon you! My misery is due to you! I may thank you for this, for it was your persuasions that brought me here. You enticed me, it was you who ensnared me into this. It was your covetousness, cheating, and oppression of the poor—that brought me here. If you had been as good an example as you had been a bad one, I might now be in heaven. O what a fool I was! When I followed your steps—you ruined me forever. O that I never had seen your face—or that you had never been born!"

The other wretch replied, "And may I not as well blame you? Don't you remember how at such a time and place you enticed me to go along with you? I was minding my own business when you called me away—so you are as guilty as I. Though I was covetous—but you were proud. Though you learned how to cheat from me—yet you taught me to lust, to lie, to get drunk and to scoff at godliness. So although I tempted you in some things, you tempted me as much in others. Therefore if you blame me, I can blame you as much. I wish you never had come here—the very sight of you wounds my soul, by bringing sin afresh into my mind. It was with you, with you—that I sinned! O grief to my soul! Since I could not avoid your companionship on earth—O that I could be without it here!"

From this sad conversation, I learned that those who are companions in sin upon earth, shall also be punished together in hell. I believe that this was the true reason why the rich man seemed so charitable to his brethren (Luke16:27-28). The reason he did not want them to join him in hell—was because they would have increased his torments!

Chapter 4. The Happiness of Heaven

The prophet continued, "I will briefly tell you about our happiness here, for ages spent on this delightful theme would only begin to explain it. That you may have the best understanding, I will first explain about what the redeemed souls have been delivered from, and secondly about the happiness which they enjoy here.

"Firstly, the souls of all the glorified are forever freed from everything that can make them miserable, which above all, is sin. It was sin which brought misery into creation. The blessed God at first made all things happy, like Himself. Had not sin defaced the beauty of His workmanship, angels and men would have never known what is meant by misery. It was sin which threw the apostate angels down into hell, and spoiled the beauty of the lower world. It was sin which defaced God's image in man's soul, and made the ones who were to be the lords of creation—into slaves of their own lust. It is sin which can also plunge them into an ocean of eternal misery from which is no redemption. It is an invaluable mercy that in this happy place, all the saints are forever freed from sin through the blood of our Redeemer. In the earth below, the best and holiest of souls groan under the burden of corruption. Sin clings to all that they do, and often leads them captive against their will. "Who shall deliver me?" has been the cry of many of God's faithful servants, who at the same time have been dear to Jesus. Sin is the heavy weight upon the saints, while they live in their corrupted flesh. Therefore when they lay their bodies down, their souls are like a bird loosed from its cage, and with a heavenly joy they rise up to heaven. But here their warfare is at an end, and 'death is swallowed up in victory.' Below their souls were deformed and stained by sin—but here their bright souls by the ever-blessed Jesus are presented to the Father 'without spot or wrinkle.'

"Not only are the saints here free from sin—but also from any temptation to sin. When Adam was in paradise, though he was innocent and free from sin—yet he was not free from temptation. Satan got into paradise and Adam fatally yielded to his temptations. Like a disease, sin has eaten into the human nature and corrupted all mankind.

"Here each soul is freed from this. Nothing but what is pure and holy can find admission here. That roaring lion who roams back and forth throughout the earth seeking whom he may devour, in respect to the saints in heaven, is bound fast in everlasting chains. The temptations of the world shall never again allure those who through faith and patience have overcome it, and safely arrived here. In heaven we look with contempt on all earthly enjoyments. There is nothing here that can disturb our peace—but an eternal calm crowns all our happiness.

"Since we are freed from all sin and its effects, we are also rescued from punishment. After death, hell confines the unforgiven sinner to eternal misery. Yet the redeemed are delivered from all these things.
"However, these things are but the least part of the happiness of heaven. Our joys are positive, more than just the negative that we have been redeemed from. What these are I shall try to show you.

"Here we enjoy the sight of God, the blessed spring and eternal source of all our happiness. But what this is, I can no more fully explain—than can finite creatures comprehend infinity. Yet the sight of God continually fills our souls with unspeakable joy, and with a love so flaming that nothing but the blessed author of it can satisfy, nor eternity itself can end. It is that which makes us live, love, sing, and praise forever, while it also transforms us into His blessed likeness. Beholding God's face, we enjoy His love. His blessed smiles make glad our souls, and in His favor we rejoice continually, 'for in His favor is life.' And by this blessed vision of God, we come to know Him far above how any had known Him in the world below. For the sight of Him opens our understandings, and 'gives us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.' Here we all enjoy Him face to face. Below the saints enjoy God in a measure—but here we enjoy Him without measure. There they have some sips of His goodness—but here we drink largely and swim in the boundless ocean of happiness! Below the saints have their communion with God broken off many times—but here it is uninterrupted. Below love is mixed with fear, and fear has torment; but here love is perfect, and perfect love casts out fear. In heaven we love God more than ourselves, and one another like ourselves. Here we enjoy the perfection of all grace.

"In heaven our understanding and knowledge is enlarged according to the greatness of what we can observe and think. In the world below, light could only shine into our minds through the windows of our senses, so God had to condescend to our limited capacities when revealing His Majesty. Our purest ideas of God were very imperfect—but here the gold is separated from the dross and we can conceive the holiness and purity of God. We understand about His decrees and counsels, His providence and dispensations. We clearly see here that from eternity God existed alone—but not solitary, that the Godhead is neither confused in unity, nor divided in number. We see that there is a priority of order but no superiority among the persons of the Trinity—but that they equally have the same excellency and power, and equally are adored. Those ways of God that in the world below seemed unsearchable and beyond our comprehension, we understand so clearly here by His divine wisdom, that the truth could not be made more simple.

"These are some of the things which make our souls happy. However, the happiness of the saints in heaven will not be complete until their bodies are resurrected and united with their souls. I will therefore show you what the resurrection body shall be like:

"First, the resurrection bodies of the blessed, will be spiritual bodies, like mine. You may better understand this not only by seeing but by touch. (After saying this, the holy prophet was pleased to give me his hand.) They will be bodies which are purified from all corruption—yet will have substance. They will not be like wind or air, as people on earth sometimes foolishly imagine."

Then I said to him that I always understood spiritual as the opposite of material, so I thought that a spiritual body must be immaterial, and not capable of being touched or felt as I found his hand was.

To this the prophet replied that their bodies were spiritual, not only because they were purified from all corruption—but as they were sustained by the enjoyment of God without needing food, drink, or sleep. Beholding the Lord is what supports both their souls and their bodies, and is what they live upon forever. "Have you not read," said the prophet, "that the blessed Jesus, after His resurrection, appeared in His body to His disciples when they were met together in a chamber and the doors shut about them? And yet He called to Thomas to come and reach forth his hand and thrust it into His side, which shows it had substance.

"Our bodies in the resurrection shall be immortal, and incapable of dying. Below their bodies are all mortal, perishing, and subject to crumbling into dust at any time. But here our bodies will be incorruptible and freed from death forever, for our corruption here shall put on incorruption, and our mortality will be swallowed up of life."

Here I desired the prophet to bear with me a little, while I gave him an account of my own ideas about these matter.
"Speak, for I am ready to remove your doubt," he said.
"I have learned," I said, "in the holy Scriptures that immortality belongs to God only, and not to men. Daily experience tells us that bodies of men are mortal, and die. Therefore Paul told Timothy that God alone has immortality."

"When I say that the bodies of the glorified here are immortal, I am speaking about the bodies in their resurrected state, that then they are subject to death no more. Man in his corruptible state is mortal and subject to death. And there is nothing more evident to all who dwell in the world below. Even the bodies of all those glorified souls who are here in heaven, are at this time still kept under the power of death. At the resurrection day, when they shall be raised up again—then they shall then be immortal. And as to what you say from the Scripture, that the blessed God alone has immortality, it is very true. He is most essentially so in His own being and nature; there is no angel or man that can, in that strict sense, be said to be so. We are immortal through His grace and favor; but God is immortal in His essence and has been so from all eternity. In that sense He may well be said to alone have immortality. Whatever the blessed God is, He is essentially so in His own being. It can likewise be said that He alone is holy, and there is none good but God, none righteous but God, and none merciful but He."

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VISIONS OF HEAVEN AND HELL
by John Bunyan


Chapter 1. Planning Suicide

When evil people have gone in a life of sin, and find that they have reason to fear the just judgment of God, they begin at first to wish there were no God to punish them. Then little by little they persuade themselves that there is no God, and look for arguments to back their opinion. I had the unhappiness to know someone like this, who would always be telling me there was neither God nor devil, and no heaven or hell.

It was with fear and trembling that I first heard him speak about these topics, but he spoke of them so often that I felt I must consider what he said. From this time I found my mind so confused that I could not remember the truths about God, which had appeared so clear to me before. I could not think there was no God—but with the greatest horror—yet I questioned the truth of His being. I would not have parted with my hope of heaven for all the riches of the world—yet now I was not sure whether there was any such place.

In my confusion I went to my false friend to see what comfort he could give me. He only laughed at my fears and pretended to pity my weakness. His talks only made me more confused, until life became a burden to me. It is impossible to tell you the agonies I felt, until I was pushed to the edge of desperation. I thought, "Why should I linger between despair and hope? Would it not be better to end my life and find out what is the truth?" So I decided to kill myself.

One morning I went out into a nearby woods, where I had planned to kill myself. But before I tried to use the knife, I heard a secret whisper say,

"Do not fall into everlasting misery to gratify the enemy of your soul.

The fatal stroke you are about to give yourself will seal your own damnation. For if there is a God, as surely as there is, how can you hope for mercy from Him if you willfully destroy yourself, who were made in His image?"

Where this secret whisper came from, I do not know, but I believe it came from God; for it came with so much power it made me throw away my knife, and it showed me the great evil of suicide. The horror of what I had almost done made me shake so much that I could hardly stand.

I recognized my deliverance to have come from the Lord, and in gratitude I returned thanks.

I knelt down on the ground and worshiped Him, asking that He would take away the blackness in my soul so that I would never again question His being or great power which I had just experienced.

Suddenly I was surrounded with a glorious light, brighter than anything I had ever seen before. I saw coming toward me a glorious person like a man, but circled with beams of light and glory which shined from him as he came nearer. I tried to stand up, but had no strength left in me, so I fell flat on my face. As he lifted me up and I was given new strength, I said to him, "O my shining deliverer, how shall I acknowledge my thankfulness, and in what manner should I adore you?"

With majesty and mildness he replied, "Pay your adorations to God, and not to me who am your fellow-creature. I am sent from Him Whose being you have so lately denied, to stop you from falling into eternal ruin."

This touched my heart with such a sense of my own unworthiness that I could only cry out, "Oh, how utterly unworthy I am of all this grace and mercy!" To this the heavenly messenger replied, "When God decided to show mercy—He did not consult your unworthiness, but His own unbounded goodness and vast love. He saw how the grand enemy of souls desired your ruin, but He upheld you by His secret power. Through this, when Satan thought that you were destroyed, the snare was broken and you have escaped." These words made me break forth into song, and I praised my Savior and declared that He alone is God.

Chapter 2. Beyond the Sun and Stars

The heavenly messenger then said, "That you may never doubt the reality of eternal things, I have come to show you the truth of them: not by faith only—but also by sight. I will show you things never yet seen by mortal eye, and to that end your eyes shall be strengthened and made able to behold heavenly things."

At these words of the angel I was very surprised, and doubted I would be able to bear it. I said to him, "Who is able to bear such a sight?"

To this he replied, "The joy of the Lord shall be your strength." When he had said this, he took hold of me and said, "Fear not, for I am sent to show the things you have not seen." Then before I was aware, I found myself far above the earth, which seemed now to be very small.

Then I said to my bright conductor, "Please let it not offend you if I ask a question or two." To this he replied, "Speak on. It is my work to answer whatever you ask. For I am a ministering spirit, sent forth to minister to you and to those who will inherit salvation."

Then I said, "Please inform me about that dark spot below, which has grown smaller and smaller as we have mounted higher, and which appears much darker since I have come into this region of light."

My conductor replied, "That little spot that now looks so dark and despised is the world which you have lived on. To obtain one small part of that spot of earth so many men have risked and lost their immortal souls; which are so precious that the Prince of Peace has told us that though a man could gain the whole world, it would not equal so great a loss. As you have ascended higher towards heaven, the world has appeared still smaller and more insignificant; and it will appear the same to all who can by faith get their hearts above it. If men below could but see the world as it is, they would not covet it as they do now, but alas, they are in a state of darkness. And what is worse, they love to walk in this darkness. For although the prince of Light came down among them and showed them the true light of life—yet they go on in darkness and will not bring themselves to the light, because their deeds are evil."

Then I asked him, "What are those multitudes of black and horrible forms that hover in the air above the world? I would have been much afraid of them, but I saw that as you passed by, they fled; perhaps not being able to abide your brightness."

To this he answered me, "They are the fallen angels which for their pride and rebellion were cast down from heaven. They wander in the air by decree of the Almighty, being bound in chains of darkness and kept unto the judgment of the great day. They are permitted to descend into the world, both for the trial of the elect, and for the condemnation of the wicked. And although you see that they now have black and horrible forms—yet they were once the sons of Light. They once were clothed in robes of glorious brightness, like what you see me wear. But the loss of this, although it was the result of their own willful sin, fills them with anger and hatred against the ever blessed God Whose power and majesty, they fear and hate.

"Tell me," I said, "O blessed conductor, have they no hopes of being reconciled to God again, after some term of time, or at least some of them?"

"No, not at all. They are lost forever. They were the first that sinned, and had no tempter; and they were at once cast down from heaven. Besides, the Son of God, the blessed Messiah by Whom alone salvation can be gained, did not take upon Himself the angelic nature. He left the apostate angels all to perish, and took upon Himself only the seed of Abraham. For this reason they have so much hatred against the sons of men, because it is a torment for them to see men made the heirs of heaven—while they are doomed to hell."

By this time we were above the sun. My conductor told me this mighty globe of fire was one of the great works of God. Yet all the stars were not less wonderful; whose great distance away makes them appear like candles in our sight. They hang in their appointed places without any support. Nothing but His word that first created them, could keep them in their station.

"These words are enough," I said to my conductor, "To convince anyone of the great power of their Creator, and to show the evil of that unbelief which questions the being of the God who has given so many evidences of His power and glory. If men were not like beasts still looking downwards, they could not help but acknowledge His great power and wisdom."

"You speak what is true," he replied. "But you will see far greater things than these. These are but the scaffolds and outworks to that glorious place, that the glorified above inhabit. A view of it shall now be given to you—as far as you are able to comprehend it."

In a few moments I found what my conductor had told me was true. For I found myself transferred into heaven, where I saw things that are impossible to describe, and heard beautiful songs that I could never sing. Whoever has not seen that glory can speak but very imperfectly of it, and those who have seen it cannot tell the thousandth part of what it is. Therefore the great apostle of the Gentiles, who tells us that he had been caught up into paradise where he had heard unspeakable words which are not possible for a man to utter, wrote that "Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man—to conceive the things that God has prepared for those who love him." I will give you the best account I can of what I saw and heard, as near as I can remember.

Chapter 3. Elijah Explains

When I was first brought near this glorious place I saw innumerable hosts of bright attendants, who welcomed me into this blessed place of happiness. And there I saw that perfect and unapproachable light, which changes all things into its own nature, for even the souls of the glorified saints are transparent. They are not illumined by the sun; but all that light, that flows with such transparent brightness throughout these heavenly mansions, is nothing else but the shining forth of the Divine glory.

Compared to this glory, the light of the sun is but darkness, and the fire of the most sparkling jewels are but dead coals. Therefore it is called The Throne of the Glory of God, where the radiance of the divine Majesty is revealed in the most illustrious manner. God was too bright for me to look upon, as He was exalted on the high throne of His glory, while multitudes of angels and saints sang forth eternal hallelujahs and praises to Him. Well may He be called the God of Glory, for by His presence He makes heaven what it is. Rivers of pleasure continually spring forth from the divine Presence, and radiate cheerfulness, joy, and splendor to all the blessed inhabitants of heaven, the seat of His eternal empire.

For my own part, I was too weak to bear the least ray of glory which shot from that everlasting Spring of Light which sat upon the throne. I was forced to cry out to my conductor, "The sight of so much glory is too great for me to bear—yet it is so refreshing and delightful that I would desire to look, though I die."

"No, no," said my conductor, "death cannot enter this blessed place, nor sin nor sorrow can abide. It is the glory of this happy place to be forever freed from all that is evil; and without that freedom, our blessedness even here would be imperfect. Come along with me and I will bring you to one who is in the body, as you are. Talk with him for a while before I take you back again."

"O rather," I eagerly said, "let me stay here. There is no need of building tabernacles, for the heavenly mansions are already prepared." My shining messenger replied to this, "Here in a while you shall forever be—but the divine will must first be obeyed."

Swift as thought, he conveyed me past thousands of angels, and presented me to that great saint, the prophet Elijah. Though he had lived in the world many hundreds of years ago, I knew him at first sight.

"Here is one," said my conductor to Elijah, "who by the commission of the Imperial Throne has been permitted to visit these realms of light, and I have brought him to you, to learn from you."

"That," said the prophet, "I shall gladly do. For it is our food and drink in these blessed regions, to do the will of God and the Lamb, to sing His praises, and serve Him with the humblest adoration, saying, 'Blessing, and honor, and glory, and power, be unto Him who sits upon the throne; and to the Lamb forever and ever! For He has redeemed us to God by His blood, out of every kindred and tongue, and people and nation, and has made us unto our God kings and priests! Even so, Amen.'" And I likewise added my "Amen" to that of the holy prophet.

The prophet then asked me why this great permission and privilege was given to me. (By which I understand, that the saints in heaven are ignorant of what is done on earth; so how can prayers be directed to them?) I then told him the events I have already written here, at which the holy prophet broke forth in praise, "Glory forever be given to Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, for His unbounded goodness and great condescension to the weakness of a poor and doubting sinner." After this he said, "Now give attention to what I shall speak. What you have already seen and heard, I am sure you cannot make fully understood to those not yet translated to this glorious place, who have not yet been freed from their earthly bodies. Nor is my being here in the body any objection to what I say; for although it has not been subject to death—yet it has been transformed. It has been made spiritual, and is no longer able to suffer. Yet in this full state of happiness I cannot utter all that I enjoy, nor do I know what shall yet be enjoyed, for here our happiness is always new."

I then asked the blessed prophet to explain himself. I did not understand how happiness could be complete, and yet still be added to. The following was his reply:

"When the soul and body are both perfectly happy, as mine now are, I count it a complete state of happiness. For throughout all the coming ages of eternity, it is the soul and body joined together in the blessed resurrection state, which shall receive this happiness. But concerning the object of our happiness, which is the ever adorable and blessed God, our vision of Him is forever new. For as the divine perfections are infinite, nothing less than eternity can be sufficient to display their glory. This makes our happiness eternally added to, as well as our knowledge of Him to be eternally progressive also.

"Therefore the apostle Paul said, 'Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor can it enter into the heart of man to conceive what God has prepared for those who love him.' Yet the human eye has seen many admirable things in nature. It has seen mountains of crystal, and rocks of diamonds, it has seen mines of gold, and coasts of pearls. Nevertheless, the eye that has seen so many wonders in the world below, could never pry into the glories of this triumphant place. And though the ear of man has heard many delightful and harmonious sounds, even all that man and nature could supply him with—yet he has never heard the heavenly melody which both saints and angels make before the throne. The heart of man is so excellent and imaginative, that it can conceive almost anything that is, or was, or ever shall be in the world below, and even what shall never be. Man can conceive that every stone on earth shall be turned into pearls, and every blade of grass into the brightest of shining jewels. He can conceive that the whole earth be turned into a mass of pure gold, and the air turned into crystal. He can conceive every star to become as bright as the sun, and the sun to be a thousand times larger and brighter. But all this is infinitely short of what the eternal Majesty has prepared for all His faithful followers."

PROPHET PROPHESYING AGAINST PROPHESYING PROPHETS

Behold the conflict between truth and lies, the paradox of false prophets, a shocking event that turns things upside down to the prophets of Israel, and the call to embrace God’s true message. We will see a few key ideas: a conflict, a paradox, a surprising event, and the revealing of a new truth.

■1■ Conflict: — A clear battle line between the true message of God and the false prophecies being spread by the prophets in Israel or Christianity has been drawn. When God says "prophesy against the prophets," it’s a challenge to those who are claiming to speak for Him. This creates confusion and conflict, as people are hearing different messages about what God wills.

■2■ Paradox: — The people who should be sharing God's truth are instead making up their own ideas. Prophets are supposed to speak for God by speaking from the Word of God, not from their own mind.

■3■ Shocking Event: — The shocking part is that God sends His own to speak against these false prophets. It’s strange because prophets normally don’t challenge each other. This goes against the usual order of things, and it would be surprising for the people to hear, as it questions who is truly speaking for God.

■4■ Those Who May Be Shocked:

* The false prophets: may be surprised by direct confrontation, which calls out their lies, when their claims of speaking for God are exposed as false.

* The people: who followed these false prophets might be shocked to realize they’ve been misled, when the ‘truth and hope’ they believed in are found to be lies and strong delusion.

* The faithful or Ezekiel’s audience: They may feel both shocked and hopeful. They are hearing a new truth that asks them to stop believing lies and to listen to God’s true message.

■5■ Unveiling the only Truth that matters: — Hear the word of the Lord!: The truth is that only God’s words matter, not those made up by people. This is not just a warning; it’s an invitation to listen to God’s voice and follow His will, not the fake teachings or prophecies of even the prophesying men who take to speak over your life or make decrees over those under the sound of their voice.

[Ezekiel 13:2 AKJV] — "Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel that prophesy, and say you to them that prophesy out of their own hearts, Hear you the word of the LORD;"

[Ezekiel 13:2 FBV] — "“Son of man, you are to prophesy against the prophets of Israel who right now are busy prophesying. Tell those who make up their own prophecies: Listen to the word of the Lord!"

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They were called “Prophets of Israel” — which means they have the title of Prophets of the People of God. But though they were the prophets of Israel or the prophets over Israel as a covering — They were not the prophets of God.

♤ Prophets of Israel are not the same as Prophets of God to Israel like Ezekiel

♤ Pastors of Churches are not the same as Pastors of Christ to the Churches.

The Pastors or Prophets of the people are by the people and seems to be for the people, but deeply they are just for themselves like the greedy politicians. But in the main Bible verse above, the true Prophet (Ezekiel) was not going to fight against the prophets of Israel by also speaking his own mind against them – for if he was speaking his mind or opinion against the false prophets he would also be doing the core things they were doing in prophesying, which is speaking from their own mind or prophesying the words of men as if they were the Words of God: — Rather the true prophet fights against the prophets of Israel or the prophets of churches by speaking true Words of God to them.

[2 Timothy 4:2-6 FBV] — "Speak God's word whether it is convenient or not, tell people where they're going wrong, warn them, encourage them. Do this with a great deal of patient teaching. For the time is coming when people won't bother to listen to true teaching. Instead they will be curious to listen to something different, and will surround themselves with teachers who'll tell them what they want to hear. They will stop listening to the truth and wander off following myths. You need to keep your wits about you at all times. Put up with troubles, do the work of sharing the good news, fulfill your ministry. For I'm about to be sacrificed— the time of my death is approaching."

THE WEIGHT OF REVELATION

Visions of heaven, angels, and divine glory, while conveying messages of hope and salvation, can also leave individuals shaken and terrified. The intensity of these encounters reminds us of the gravity of spiritual truths and the complex nature of human responses to the divine.

Experiencing divine visions, such as those of angels or heavenly realms, can provoke intense emotional responses, often blending awe with fear. These encounters are not just peaceful revelations, but can leave individuals horrified or shocked, similar to watching a disturbing movie. Some examples illustrate this paradox:

1. **John Bunyan**: John Bunyan, in his writings, describes being shown visions of both heaven and hell. While the beauty of heaven filled him with joy, the stark contrast with hell left him terrified. The splendor of eternal life heightened the horror of damnation, and the joy from heavenly sights was intertwined with the fear of what could be lost due to sin.

2. **St. Faustina Kowalska**: St. Faustina recorded a vision of heaven filled with unimaginable beauty. However, her awareness of the consequences of sin, particularly eternal separation from God, added a layer of horror to the experience. The joy of divine bliss was accompanied by the dread of hell, creating an overwhelming emotional response.

3. **The Shepherds’ Encounter (Luke 2:8-14)**: When the shepherds received the announcement of Christ’s birth, they were initially terrified by the appearance of angels. Despite the good news, the sheer majesty of the event caused them to tremble, demonstrating how even joyous divine revelations can be unsettling.

4. **Zechariah’s Doubt (Luke 1:11-20)**: Zechariah’s encounter with the angel Gabriel, who announced the birth of John the Baptist, filled him with fear and disbelief. His terror led to his muteness as a consequence of doubting the message, illustrating how divine good news can be overshadowed by human fear and doubt.

5. **Daniel’s Vision (Daniel 7:28)**: Daniel experienced a vision of heavenly glory, which deeply troubled him. Despite the good news of God’s ultimate triumph, Daniel was overwhelmed by the terror of the suffering that would precede it. His physical reaction, turning pale, mirrored the emotional weight of the revelation, highlighting the unsettling nature of divine revelations.

6. **The Apostle Paul’s Vision (Acts 9:3-9)**: Saul’s encounter with the risen Christ left him blind and in a state of shock. The vision of Christ’s glory, though offering the gospel of salvation, overwhelmed Saul with awe and terror, leaving him unable to eat or drink for three days.

7. **Isaiah’s Vision (Isaiah 6:1-5)**: Isaiah's vision of God in His heavenly temple left him horrified. He recognized his sinfulness and that of his people, causing him to cry out in despair despite being about to receive a prophetic commission. The divine glory was both overwhelming and unsettling.

8. **John’s Vision of Heaven (Revelation 1:12-17)**: When John saw the glorified Christ, he was so overcome by fear that he fell at His feet as though dead. The glory of Christ, even though signaling ultimate victory, initially caused terror, demonstrating that divine revelations can be both awe-inspiring and unsettling.

9. **Moses and the Burning Bush (Exodus 3:2-6)**: Moses, upon encountering God in the burning bush, was initially afraid and hid his face. Even though the vision was a call to liberate the Israelites, the awe and terror of God's presence overshadowed the joy of the task ahead.

[Daniel 7:28 LG] — "This is the end of the matter. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts greatly troubled me, and my countenance was changed: but I kept the matter in my heart."

[Daniel 7:28 FBV] — "This is the end of the summary. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts really disturbed me and my face turned pale, but I kept it all to myself."

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In this main bible verse in red, the matter concerning the revelation or visions Daniel saw was concluded and ended: But though the matter was concluded or finished, the great troubles and disturbing thoughts afflicting Daniel did not end when the matter ended. It's like some horror movies, which though they have come to the end of the horror movies, the disturbance from seeing the horrors in the movies continued to torment the seers of horrors beyond the duration of the movies. Daniel was so troubled that his countenance was changed, and his face turned pale, like one who saw a terrible ghost and has not recovered from the trauma.

Nevertheless, though the matter was finished or ended, and though the matter troubled Daniel that much, yet Daniel retained and kept the same matter in his heart. He may not have shared the matter, but also by keeping the matter as treasure in his heart he kept it and did not cast away such troubling matter from his heart.

Like Daniel here, don't throw away the message or matter of the vision when it's the end of the movie; and don't cast away the message or matter of the vision when it's greatly disturbing, troubling or hard message/matter to relive — Rather, retain them in your heart, and live with it. What Daniel did in this main Bible verse in Red technically includes Daniel among the faithful saints who have seen and experienced the great tribulation and advent of Antichrist, and beyond — though literally Daniel was not in the end-times or tribulation era. Daniel saw it, felt it, experienced it, and kept it in his heart, even more than many pastors, prophets and saints, who are sleeping in the last days, have kept watch of these things in their hearts. Many of these are not prepared for the great tribulation to come and the eschatology.

Imagine the visions and revelations a man would see and his Countenance would be changed from the disturbance, and his face literally turned pale: yet he retained this matter in his heart, and the matter had been in his heart after.

[Ecclesiastes 7:3-8 BSB] — "Sorrow is better than laughter, for a sad countenance is good for the heart. The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure. It is better to heed a wise man’s rebuke than to listen to the song of fools. For like the crackling of thorns under the pot, so is the laughter of the fool. This too is futile. Surely extortion turns a wise man into a fool, and a bribe corrupts the heart. The end of a matter is better than the beginning, and a patient spirit is better than a proud one."