05-03-09
Sorry, you must have Windows Media Player 9 or higher. This is a large file which may take a few seconds to start Windows Media Real Audio MP3 Click here, or scroll down to view today's diagram CIRCUMSTANCES EXISTING TOWARD THE END OF SEVEN YEARS OF TRIBULATION (Judg 6:1-6) And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD: and the LORD delivered them into the hand [power] of Midian seven years [of tribulation]. And the hand of Midian [the unsaved multitudes] prevailed against Israel [the saved]: and because of the Midianites the children of Israel made them the dens which are in the mountains, and caves, and strong holds. And so it was, when Israel had sown [seed, the Word of God], that the Midianites came up, and the Amalekites, and the children [tribes] of the east, even they came up against them; And they encamped against them, and destroyed the increase of the earth, till thou come unto Gaza, and left no sustenance for Israel, neither sheep, nor ox, nor ass. For they came up with their cattle and their tents, and they came as grasshoppers for multitude; for both they and their camels were without number [demographics: Moslems have a very high child to parent ratio]: and they entered into the land to destroy it. And Israel was greatly impoverished [Heb: made feeble: brought low, dried up, emptied] because of the Midianites; and the children of Israel cried unto the LORD. 1. Midian = Heb: quarrel:--brawling, contentious, discord, strife. 2. Amelekites = Heb: (a descendant of Esau). 3. children of the east = (Arabians). 4. Commentary: the latter three groups are referenced to in Judges 8:24 as being “Ishmaelites,” descendants of Ishmael, the son of Abram and Hagar, to whom modern day followers of the religion of Islam (Moslems) refer to as their ancestor. THE CALLING OF GOD (Judg 6:33-35) Then all the Midianites and the Amalekites and the children of the east were gathered together [“Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them:” Mat 13:30], and went over, and pitched in the valley of Jezreel. But the spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet; and Abiezer [Gideon’s family] was gathered after him. And he sent messengers [Heb: mal'ak; angels] throughout all Manasseh [Gideon’s tribe]; who also was gathered after him: and he sent messengers [angels] unto Asher, and unto Zebulun, and unto Naphtali; and they came up to meet them. 1. Commentary: “in the valley of Jezreel” = also called the valley of Armageddon that is the site of the final battle of this age in which God intervenes to destroy the armies of Satan. (Rev 16:16). 2. (Mat 22:14) For many are called, but few are chosen. THE FIRST TEST FOR EVERY HUMAN BEING: SEPARATING THE SAVED FROM THE UNSAVED (Judg 7:1-3) Then Jerubbaal [Heb: Baal will contend (with)], who is Gideon, and all the people that were with him, rose up early, and pitched beside the well of Harod [Heb: fountain of trembling]: so that the host of the Midianites were on the north side of them, by the hill of Moreh [Heb: a noose (for catching animals); a hook (for the nose):--be ensnared, snared, trap], in the valley. And the LORD said unto Gideon, The people that are with thee are too many [32,000] for me to give the Midianites [135,000] into their hands, lest Israel vaunt [Heb: boast] themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me. Now therefore go to, proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, Whosoever is fearful and afraid, let him return [to their home] and depart early [in the morning] from mount Gilead. And there returned of the people twenty and two thousand [22,000]; and there remained ten thousand [10,000]. 1. Gideon = Heb: feller (i.e. warrior) /// to fell a tree:--cut (asunder, in sunder, down, off), hew down. 2. (Mat 22:14) For many are called, but few are chosen. 3. Commentary: Why did 22,000 warriors, approximately two thirds of the people, return to their homes? Refer to Zech 13:7-9. THE SECOND TEST FOR BORN-AGAIN CHRISTIANS ONLY: SEPARATING THE SHEEP FROM THE SHEPHERDS FOR SERVICE TO THE LORD (Judg 7:4-8) And the LORD said unto Gideon, The people [10,000] are yet too many; bring them down unto the water [a biblical symbol of the Holy Spirit], and I will try [Heb: purify, purge] them for thee there: and it shall be, that of whom I say unto thee, This shall go with thee, the same shall go with thee; and of whomsoever I say unto thee, This shall not go with thee, the same shall not go. So he brought down the people unto the water: and the LORD said unto Gideon, Every one that lappeth of the water with his tongue, as a dog lappeth, him shalt thou set by himself [in one group]; likewise [in another group] every one that boweth down upon his knees to drink. And the number of them that lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, were three hundred men [300]: but all the rest of the people [9,700] bowed down upon their knees to drink water. And the LORD said unto Gideon, By the three hundred men that lapped will I save you, and deliver the Midianites into thine hand: and let all the other people go every man unto his place. So the people [the 300 combat troops] took victuals [Heb: food] in their hand, and their trumpets: and he sent all the rest of [true, believing] Israel [the 9,700 support troops] every man unto his tent [i.e., not back to their homes, as unbelieving Israel, but still actively on the battlefield], and retained those three hundred men: and the host of Midian was beneath [below, underneath] him in the valley [depression]. 1. Commentary: Why did God choose out for combat service the 300 men “that lapped” the water versus the 9,700 “that boweth down”? 2. (1 Pet 5:8) Be sober [abstain from alcohol and drugs, i.e., be in your right mind], be vigilant [Gk: to keep awake, watch (ful)]; because your adversary [Gk: enemy] the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: 3. retained = Heb: chazaq, khaw-zak'; to fasten upon; hence to seize, be strong. a. (1 Thess 4:17) Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. b. caught up = Gk: harpazo, har-pad'-zo; to seize:--catch away, catch up, pluck, pull, take (by force). FRONT LINE COMBAT SERVICE TO THE LORD (Judg 7:15-22) And it was so, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream, and the interpretation thereof, that he worshipped, and returned into the host of Israel, and said, Arise [1 Thess 4:14-18]; for the LORD hath delivered into your hand the host of Midian. And he divided the three hundred men into three companies [under the spiritual banners of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost], and he put a trumpet [symbolic of voice] in every man's hand, with empty pitchers [earthen pitchers symbolic of our body], and lamps [Heb: torches] within the pitchers [symbolic of the Holy Spirit]. And he said unto them, Look on me, and do likewise: and, behold, when I come to the outside of the camp, it shall be that, as I do, so shall ye do. When I blow with a trumpet, I and all that are with me, then blow ye the trumpets also on every side of all the camp, and say, The sword of the LORD, and of Gideon. So Gideon, and the hundred men that were with him, came unto the outside of the camp in the beginning of the middle watch [about 10pm]; and they had but newly set the watch: and they blew the trumpets, and brake the pitchers that were in their hands. And the three companies blew the trumpets, and brake the pitchers, and held the lamps in their left hands, and the trumpets in their right hands to blow withal: and they cried, The sword of the LORD, and of Gideon. And they stood every man in his place round about the camp: and all the host ran, and cried, and fled. And the three hundred blew the trumpets, and the LORD set every man's sword against his fellow, even throughout all the host: and the [Midianite] host [the remaining 15,000 men “for there fell an hundred and twenty thousand men that drew sword” Judg 8:10] fled to Bethshittah in Zererath, and to the border of Abelmeholah, unto Tabbath. Amen Previous Chapter Table Of Contents Next Chapter Click here to download a printable version of this message Click here to download a DOC version of this message
This is a large file which may take a few seconds to start
Real Audio
MP3
CIRCUMSTANCES EXISTING TOWARD THE END OF SEVEN YEARS OF TRIBULATION
(Judg 6:1-6) And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD: and the LORD delivered them into the hand [power] of Midian seven years [of tribulation]. And the hand of Midian [the unsaved multitudes] prevailed against Israel [the saved]: and because of the Midianites the children of Israel made them the dens which are in the mountains, and caves, and strong holds. And so it was, when Israel had sown [seed, the Word of God], that the Midianites came up, and the Amalekites, and the children [tribes] of the east, even they came up against them; And they encamped against them, and destroyed the increase of the earth, till thou come unto Gaza, and left no sustenance for Israel, neither sheep, nor ox, nor ass. For they came up with their cattle and their tents, and they came as grasshoppers for multitude; for both they and their camels were without number [demographics: Moslems have a very high child to parent ratio]: and they entered into the land to destroy it. And Israel was greatly impoverished [Heb: made feeble: brought low, dried up, emptied] because of the Midianites; and the children of Israel cried unto the LORD.
1. Midian = Heb: quarrel:--brawling, contentious, discord, strife.
2. Amelekites = Heb: (a descendant of Esau).
3. children of the east = (Arabians).
4. Commentary: the latter three groups are referenced to in Judges 8:24 as being “Ishmaelites,” descendants of Ishmael, the son of Abram and Hagar, to whom modern day followers of the religion of Islam (Moslems) refer to as their ancestor.
THE CALLING OF GOD
(Judg 6:33-35) Then all the Midianites and the Amalekites and the children of the east were gathered together [“Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them:” Mat 13:30], and went over, and pitched in the valley of Jezreel. But the spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet; and Abiezer [Gideon’s family] was gathered after him. And he sent messengers [Heb: mal'ak; angels] throughout all Manasseh [Gideon’s tribe]; who also was gathered after him: and he sent messengers [angels] unto Asher, and unto Zebulun, and unto Naphtali; and they came up to meet them.
1. Commentary: “in the valley of Jezreel” = also called the valley of Armageddon that is the site of the final battle of this age in which God intervenes to destroy the armies of Satan. (Rev 16:16).
2. (Mat 22:14) For many are called, but few are chosen.
THE FIRST TEST FOR EVERY HUMAN BEING:
SEPARATING THE SAVED FROM THE UNSAVED
(Judg 7:1-3) Then Jerubbaal [Heb: Baal will contend (with)], who is Gideon, and all the people that were with him, rose up early, and pitched beside the well of Harod [Heb: fountain of trembling]: so that the host of the Midianites were on the north side of them, by the hill of Moreh [Heb: a noose (for catching animals); a hook (for the nose):--be ensnared, snared, trap], in the valley. And the LORD said unto Gideon, The people that are with thee are too many [32,000] for me to give the Midianites [135,000] into their hands, lest Israel vaunt [Heb: boast] themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me. Now therefore go to, proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, Whosoever is fearful and afraid, let him return [to their home] and depart early [in the morning] from mount Gilead. And there returned of the people twenty and two thousand [22,000]; and there remained ten thousand [10,000].
1. Gideon = Heb: feller (i.e. warrior) /// to fell a tree:--cut (asunder, in sunder, down, off), hew down.
3. Commentary: Why did 22,000 warriors, approximately two thirds of the people, return to their homes? Refer to Zech 13:7-9.
THE SECOND TEST FOR BORN-AGAIN CHRISTIANS ONLY:
SEPARATING THE SHEEP FROM THE SHEPHERDS FOR SERVICE TO THE LORD
(Judg 7:4-8) And the LORD said unto Gideon, The people [10,000] are yet too many; bring them down unto the water [a biblical symbol of the Holy Spirit], and I will try [Heb: purify, purge] them for thee there: and it shall be, that of whom I say unto thee, This shall go with thee, the same shall go with thee; and of whomsoever I say unto thee, This shall not go with thee, the same shall not go. So he brought down the people unto the water: and the LORD said unto Gideon, Every one that lappeth of the water with his tongue, as a dog lappeth, him shalt thou set by himself [in one group]; likewise [in another group] every one that boweth down upon his knees to drink. And the number of them that lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, were three hundred men [300]: but all the rest of the people [9,700] bowed down upon their knees to drink water. And the LORD said unto Gideon, By the three hundred men that lapped will I save you, and deliver the Midianites into thine hand: and let all the other people go every man unto his place. So the people [the 300 combat troops] took victuals [Heb: food] in their hand, and their trumpets: and he sent all the rest of [true, believing] Israel [the 9,700 support troops] every man unto his tent [i.e., not back to their homes, as unbelieving Israel, but still actively on the battlefield], and retained those three hundred men: and the host of Midian was beneath [below, underneath] him in the valley [depression].
1. Commentary: Why did God choose out for combat service the 300 men “that lapped” the water versus the 9,700 “that boweth down”?
2. (1 Pet 5:8) Be sober [abstain from alcohol and drugs, i.e., be in your right mind], be vigilant [Gk: to keep awake, watch (ful)]; because your adversary [Gk: enemy] the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:
3. retained = Heb: chazaq, khaw-zak'; to fasten upon; hence to seize, be strong.
a. (1 Thess 4:17) Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
b. caught up = Gk: harpazo, har-pad'-zo; to seize:--catch away, catch up, pluck, pull, take (by force).
FRONT LINE COMBAT SERVICE TO THE LORD
(Judg 7:15-22) And it was so, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream, and the interpretation thereof, that he worshipped, and returned into the host of Israel, and said, Arise [1 Thess 4:14-18]; for the LORD hath delivered into your hand the host of Midian. And he divided the three hundred men into three companies [under the spiritual banners of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost], and he put a trumpet [symbolic of voice] in every man's hand, with empty pitchers [earthen pitchers symbolic of our body], and lamps [Heb: torches] within the pitchers [symbolic of the Holy Spirit]. And he said unto them, Look on me, and do likewise: and, behold, when I come to the outside of the camp, it shall be that, as I do, so shall ye do. When I blow with a trumpet, I and all that are with me, then blow ye the trumpets also on every side of all the camp, and say, The sword of the LORD, and of Gideon. So Gideon, and the hundred men that were with him, came unto the outside of the camp in the beginning of the middle watch [about 10pm]; and they had but newly set the watch: and they blew the trumpets, and brake the pitchers that were in their hands. And the three companies blew the trumpets, and brake the pitchers, and held the lamps in their left hands, and the trumpets in their right hands to blow withal: and they cried, The sword of the LORD, and of Gideon. And they stood every man in his place round about the camp: and all the host ran, and cried, and fled. And the three hundred blew the trumpets, and the LORD set every man's sword against his fellow, even throughout all the host: and the [Midianite] host [the remaining 15,000 men “for there fell an hundred and twenty thousand men that drew sword” Judg 8:10] fled to Bethshittah in Zererath, and to the border of Abelmeholah, unto Tabbath.
Amen
Previous Chapter