QUESTION LIST; Page Number 78
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  1. Forgiveness: what is required of the Christian by the Scriptures?

  2. Long-term financial commitment solicitations in the churches

  3. Forged Presidential "Holocaust Quotes"

  4. WHICH generation is the, "this generation shall not pass, till all these things be done", of Mark 13:30?  And, why is the book of Revelation written in the past-tense?

  5. Airborne vehicles in the book of Ezekiel

  6. The state of the dead, and the resurrectionS

  7. Near of kin wives and children in Scripture

  8. The Giants after Noah's Flood

  9. Recovering from a false teacher or false doctrine

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Question #1

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Forgiveness: what is required of the Christian by the Scriptures?

 

A reader writes:

Hello,

Do Christians have an obligation to interact with those that have harmed us.
I know forgiveness is demanded but is there an admonition to reconciliation?
What if the offending person (also a Christian) has not asked for
forgiveness or sought reconciliation?

Thanks,
[Xxxxxxx]


Answer:

Hello [Xxxxxx].  Yours is a good (and common) question.  Many of us have been wronged by others, some worse than others, some incredibly painful.  But must we forgive anyone who sins against us? 

    Understanding that oftentimes granting forgiveness often helps the heart of the person that has been trespassed-against more than the transgressor, we might see that forgiveness in our heart is self-serving in a positive way.  However, must we forgive someone who is not repentant, who has no conscience on the matter, and who would just as likely repeat the trespass against us again?  No, absolutely not. 

    I know that this is counter to what you will hear in most every watered-down Christian church today, but forgiveness is the positive answer to repentance.  In other words, when someone does you wrong, then they say to you that they are sorry, and then you decide whether to forgive them for that or to not forgive them.  The operative word here is that they "repent" (say sorry, have a change of heart, feel remorse, etc.).  Now, if I hit you on the head with a brick, and then I do not apologize, and you by-and-by forgive me.  Then what happens next week when I hit you with another brick?  I would not have been repentant, and would be taking your kindness for weakness, and would continue to abuse you because I am not sorry. 

    Consider this, then we will look at some Scriptures: if you went out tonight and committed adultery, and then you did not repent to God, would He forgive you?  No, forgiveness is granted upon request (in Jesus Christ's name of course).  So, if you do not repent to God in Jesus Christ's name then God does not forgive you.  Why then should we be held to a higher standard than our Heavenly Father?  The Bible tells us that we are to repent, THEN be forgiven:

Acts 3:19
19 Repent ye therefore, and be converted,
[so] that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;  KJV

    Many Christians are not being told that they must repent for every sin—even after they are saved.  Some Christians think that once they are saved all their sins both past and future are forgiven.  No so; and this is very dangerous.  When we sin—even after being saved—we must repent of those sins after we commit them or else they are with us on Judgment Day.  Observe that even saved people must answer for their UN-REPENTED sins on Judgment Day (but sins that have been repented for are washed away forever):

Revelation 20:11-15
11 And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.
12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.
13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.
14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.  KJV
 

2 Corinthians 5:10
10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.  KJV

    Even till the end of times—during the Great Tribulation even—Jesus by revelation chastened those in His (future) Christian churches to repent:

Revelation 2:5
5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.  KJV
 

Revelation 3:3
3 Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.  KJV
 

Revelation 3:19
19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.  KJV
 

Revelation 2:22-23
22 Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except
[unless] they repent of their deeds.
23 And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works.  KJV

    Apostle Peter told Simon (of Simony fame) to repent of his evil deed, then he may be forgiven:

Acts 8:18-22
18 And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles' hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money,
19 Saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost.
20 But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money.
21 Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God.
22 Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee.  KJV

    Incidentally, "Simony" is the selling of salvation by man.  The Catholic Church has been guilty of this all down through her sordid past.  And it (in the form of selling Indulgences) was the cause of the Great Reformation where Martin Luther split the Catholic Church into two, creating Protestantism (originating in Lutheranism for Martin Luther's namesake).  An indulgence is a free pass to commit a future sin.  The church sold these indulgences and the people would purchase one before, say, committing adultery, and they believed that they were pre-forgiven of it.  Of course they weren't, but they believed the corrupted church to their own destruction. 

    Jesus in the below is very clear that we must forgive after being sought out with repentance.  Observe the qualification in Jesus' below dissertation:

Luke 17:1-4 [Jesus speaking]
17 Then said he unto the disciples, It is impossible but that offences will come: but woe unto him, through whom they come!
2 It were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he cast into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones.
3 Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him.
4 And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him.  KJV

    Apostle John (whom authored for God the Gospel of John, the three Epistles of John, and the book of Revelation) also touched on the matter of forgiveness:

1 John 5:16-21
16 If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask
[for forgiveness], and he shall give him life [forgiveness] for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it.
17 All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a sin not unto death.
18 We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not.
19 And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness.
20 And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.
21 Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen.  KJV

    Jesus, while teaching His apostles to pray, told them that they must ask God for forgiveness (i.e., repent), likewise it stands to reason by analogy that those that they were to forgive also likewise must needs ask for it first:

Matthew 6:9-15 [Jesus speaking]
9 After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
14 For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:
15 But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.  KJV

    Below is a long dissertation on the matter by Jesus Christ.  And it incorporates a parable to help us understand.  As you read the below Scripture keep a keen attention on forgiveness and repentance and the relationship between the two.  You should notice that forgiveness comes AFTER repentance, and not the other way around:

Matthew 18:15-35 [Jesus speaking]
15 Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee
[sympathize with your complaint, agree to his error, and presumably repenting] , thou hast gained thy brother.
16 But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.
17 And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican.
18 Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind [not forgive] on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose [forgive] on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
19 Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.
20 For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.
21 Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?
22 Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.
[Now here comes the parable]

23 Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants.
24 And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed him ten thousand talents.
25 But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made.
26 The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.
27 Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt.
28 But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellowservants, which owed him an hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest.
29 And his fellowservant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.
30 And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt.
31 So when his fellowservants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told unto their lord all that was done.
32 Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me:
33 Shouldest not thou also have had compassion [forgive] on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee?
34 And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him.
35 So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.  KJV

    You will notice that in the above that the first man was forgiven AFTER he repented, but the second man was not forgiven even though he had repented.  Therein lied the sin, repentance was denied and rejected, and the man at fault was not loosed (forgiven). 

    in closing, nowhere does it say that we must "hang around" with someone after they have sinned against us.  We are only instructed to accept an apology and to forgive that trespass.  Sometimes two people just can't get along, and if they continue to be in each other's company then the one will sin against the other again.  So you are probably doing the trespasser a favor by avoiding them like the plague.  Therefore, if someone asks for forgiveness, give it.  But you need not be their doormat.  Take sexual sins for instance; surely you do not think that God would expect a woman who, say, has been raped; to keep company with the rapist afterwards even if he had repented?  Of course not.  Forgive the repentant sinner, and then put as much distance between the two of you that you feel is necessary.  Nothing more is required of you by the Scriptures. 

    And just because you forgive a sinner who sins against you, that does not mean that you can't remember that that person has a tendency to do this or that.  Abusers tend to re-abuse, the violent tend towards further violence, the liar lies again, cheaters cheat.  You protect yourself by remembering who and what to watch out for.  Once again, Christians are not to be doormats.  So, if I were married and someone slept with my wife, I assure you that he and she would not be allowed to be in each other's company.  Does that show a lack of forgiveness?  No, it shows a wise man.  Common sense must prevail in all matters.  I might forgive an employee who stole from my cash register, therefore saving him prison time; however, he would not be working my cash register thereafter, even though I had forgiven him.  Forgiveness looses a person from God's revenge and wrath.  When we forgive someone we are loosing that trespass before God, so that God shall do whatever with that fellow, but we are telling God that we hold no such desire for revenge against the fellow.  Once again observe in this context Jesus' words on this matter; for this is exactly what Jesus was referring to:  "Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." (Mat 18:18). 

    But like I stated earlier, oftentimes forgiving someone actually gives us closure and peace.  And as with all things, pray to God in Jesus Christ's name about anything that you are uncertain of.  God will not let you down, nor shall you be answer-less if you ask. 

    Peace to you in Christ Jesus.

_______________________________________________________________________

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God bless the study of His Word; in Jesus Christ's Precious and powerful name!
Nick Goggin

 

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Long-term financial commitment solicitations in the churches

 

A reader writes:

Dear Nick,

I have a question re: long term monetary commitments. Just some background: The church we belong to has just moved into a new building. We moved in Easter Day, 2007. There was what they called, a" Forward in Faith Campaign" going on for 3 years prior to building the new facility. In this campaign, pledges were made for a 3 year commitment from the congregation. ( We were not involved in this, we started attending this church well after this campaign started). The new building was to be completed in phases.

The main part is complete, as I said, opening Easter, 2007. Now, after only being in the building for only a year, our Preacher decided (in December of 2007) he wants to start the 2nd phase of construction. This section will have rooms for the children and a "social room" (without kitchen accessories). The Loft or balcony will be completed also. The building now, as it stands, has seating for about 600, and what a blessing it would be if it were full. However, the weekly count for attendance is anywhere from 180 to 230 for both services.

The children (approximately 15 to 20) are now in our "old" church building, for Sunday School, which is located less than 1/4 mile away, on the same road, from the new building, about 2 minutes away. Now, dropping children there apparently has become a problem for parents.

Our quandary is this: There is still a 3 1/2 million dollar mortgage on the new building. Now for the past several weeks a new campaign is in progress called "Building Tomorrow", with mailings, meetings, dinners, consultants and week after week of preaching money. On June the 8th, better known as "Commitment Sunday" cards will be handed out to the church, and members are ask to put a $$$$$ value on it, over and above regular tithes, then sign it.

This is a 3 year commitment. My husband and I are both retired, we tithe over 10 %, we give to our daughter each month to help her out. We give to different charities, we help people who are in need, donate time and my husband is blessed with being very talented in construction and has done a lot of work for the church in other areas. My question I suppose is this, should we feel pressured into signing this type of commitment? Our hearts are not convicted to do this. We have also been reading about being a slave to debt, and not being a guarantor for other peoples debt in the bible. Are we wrong in not wanting to make this commitment??? In His Love, [Xxxxxx]


Answer:

Hello [Xxxxxx].  You asked:

"Are we wrong in not wanting to make this commitment???"

    My gut feeling (and I felt it the moment I began reading your E-mail) is this:  Absolutely not!  You are on a fixed income and you shouldn't even be tithing ten percent—as far as I am concerned.  When you tithe with Pension and Social Security money you are tithing on money set aside to aid you.  You are giving want out of want.  The money is tithed-on when you make it, your Pension and Social Security money is money set aside for yourself when you are not working.  That is why you don't pay taxes on it when you make it.  It is exempt, and it is less than you are accustomed to making.

    In fact, the tithes back in the Bible were also a sort of "Social Security" money for those who could work but yet needed to eat and have the necessities.  You don't tithe on Pension and Social Security money.  Now, if one feels led to give a little to the ministry when they are retired, then fine, make a small "love offering," but not a tithe.  Widows and orphans and handicapped, and the aged, infirm, and poor, do not tithe either, they are supposed to live off the tithes.  How many poor families is pastor mega-bucks helping with the congregation's tithes?  God knows!  The poor don't need mega-churches, they need a job and a meal, clothes for their children,  a roof, and again a job.  I so object to these mega-palace churches!

    This is one thing that I really respect about the Shepherd's Chapel church in Arkansas, they bought an old roller-rink and made a nice little church out of it.  Pastors are supposed to be good stewards of God's donations.  And it is God's money, not theirs; for, the faithful are donating to God's cause, not man's.

    I have to tell you, I don't like the whole concept of a 10% tithe in these days, either.  Because we already pay 25% to 33% of our wages in taxes to in addition to running this country, support the entitled lazy class that is content with taking it.  (I don't speak of the truly needy, or those who have paid into these funds, but rather I speak of the forth generation now of Welfare recipients in the same family.)  In the day of Christ and before, your tithe (10%) was used to feed the widows and orphans, provide for the needs of the community and nation (military, police etc.), not lazy gang-bangers and criminals.  And today we pay U.S. Taxes to do those things.  So, giving 10% and then 25% to %35 on top of that is slavery.

    Now, if the Lord moves your heart to give this or that, then you should follow that leading of the Spirit.  However, it is clear that you feel no such leading of the Lord for this church; and quite the contrary, are being warned off it.  Therefore, don't give it.

    You are retired and are not making the kind of money to be financing your pastor's 3.5 million dreams.  And besides, your first obligation is to your daughter.  And if I might add, when your husband does work on and around the church and does not charge for his services, guess what?  THAT is your tithe!  No man's work is without value, and nobody should work for nothing.  Therefore, his time at labor for the church should be deducted from whatever you were originally going to give.  And money and goods that you directly give to the needy is also considered part of your tithes and offerings.  Take myself for example.  I enjoy the Shepherd's Chapel ministry, but I do not tithe to them.  Why?  Because the time I spend on this Christian Website I consider to be my tithe to the Lord.  Time working is a also a tithe or offering.  And He hasn't moved my heart to do any different.  And I am not a cheap man, either.  Nor am I covetous—I have a near zero bank balance every month, but I always have that which I need.  So don't think that I am simply looking for a loophole to not part with my cash.

    We all do what we can for the Lord's work, some work in the ministry, some donate, some are rich and donate buildings or whatever, and some can do none of this but are thankful.

    Furthermore, I really have a bad taste in my mouth by the way they went about this.  It smacks of peer-pressure and coercion.  No doubt those who give much will be exalted and those who give little will be made low—the exact opposite of what Christ said to do.  Listen, if God wants them to have a three-times bigger church than they need, at millions upon millions of dollars, then He will rustle up a large benefactor and shoot him their way.

    You cannot imagine how upset your letter has made me.  I bite my tongue as I write.  And you should be upset too.  Every true Christian should be ashamed of this pastor.  This is everything that is wrong with the 21st Century churches.

    Donations are not solicited, they are freely given, else they are not donations.  And when you shame and con people into donating to you then where is God in that?  God isn't in that.  The person is not giving in the right spirit; they are "buying," not giving.  Buying prestige against their shame.  What will God have to do with that?

    Now, I am not suggesting that you say this to your pastor, but as far as I am concerned, when I saw what your pastor did:

"Now for the past several weeks a new campaign is in progress called "Building Tomorrow", with mailings, meetings, dinners, consultants and week after week of preaching money. On June the 8th, better known as "Commitment Sunday" cards will be handed out to the church, and members are ask to put a $$$$$ value on it, over and above regular tithes, then sign it. This is a 3 year commitment...",

I felt like saying to him:

Luke 19:46 [Jesus speaking]
46 Saying unto them, It is written, My house is the house of prayer: but ye have made it a den of thieves.  KJV

    And far, far from making 3-year financial commitments to that pastor, I'd be walking out of that church for the last time.  And I would spend the next four Sundays going each week to a different small local non-denomination Bible-teaching church, one's  barely getting by on funds for their old building, but which teach the best they can right out of the Bible.  There is where you shall find God and Christ residing.  No minister or ministry is perfect, mind you, all men are human and subject to imperfection and error—that's why you have a Bible to verify their teachings; but sincere intentions, a willingness to correct discovered error, and earnest attempts at study and verification from the Scriptures, goes a long way indeed.  And I would pick one out after trying a few, and to them I would donate love offerings as I feel led, to supply their need, not their wants.  They are much closer to God that the 3.5 million dollar church will ever be.

    And please do not misconstrue this as to mean that I am saying not to donate to the churches.  I am not saying that at all; if Christians do not support Christian ministries, who shall?  Heathens, the government?  Pastor's children need to eat as well as do your own, and they have need of the same things that you do.

    May I close this E-mail with a quote from one of the most honest and loyal to Christ Christian preachers that I have ever come across in my studies?

You ask, Where you are to worship? We reply wherever God is glorified, Christ is exalted, God's Word is honored, the Holy Spirit's power is evidenced and man abased. Never go anywhere where you do not know more of God's Word than when you entered. Never be in any Body where you may be "turned out"; or have your name down where it may be scratched out. Be content with the membership which God has given you in the spiritual unity of the Body of Christ, from which no power in Earth or Hell can cut you off and be content that your name was written in the Lamb's "book of life" before the foundation of the world, and from which no power in Earth or Hell can ever take it out. Do nothing to imply that you do not hold these priceless privileges to be of infinite value; or that they can be added to in the slightest degree by any of man's corporate unities.— Rev. (Anglican) Dr. E.W. Bullinger (late 1890's)

    THAT, is what it is all about.  Now, find a church like that and I can show you scores of other readers who have written in likewise seeking, hoping to find one like it in their hometown.  True Christians are hungry for true teaching, true Biblically-documented Scripture instruction.

    Pray on it, and follow the Lord's leading.  He will not leave you answerless.

    Peace to you in Christ Jesus.
_______________________________________________________________________

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God bless the study of His Word; in Jesus Christ's Precious and powerful name!
Nick Goggin

 

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Forged Presidential "Holocaust Quotes"

 

A reader sends a chain mail containing gross Judaic error:

[The chain E-mail follows:]

A U.S. solider surveys a German concentration camp


 

It is a matter of history that when Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces, General Dwight Eisenhower, found the victims of the death camps, he ordered all possible photographs to be taken, and for the German people from surrounding villages to be ushered through the camps and even made to bury the dead.


He did this because he said in words to this effect: 'Get it all on record now - get the films - get the witnesses - because somewhere down the track of history some b*stard will get up and say that this never happened'

'All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing' -- Edmund Burke


 

This week, the UK removed The Holocaust from its school curriculum because it 'offended' the Muslim population which claims it never occurred.

This is a frightening portent of the fear that is gripping the world and how easily each country is giving in to it.
 


 

These photos were taken in Germany by James Emison Chanslor, an Army Master Sergeant who served in World War II from 1942 until 1945.
 

Source: Photos courtesy of John Michael Chanslor.

It is now more than 60 years after the Second World War in Europe ended.

This e-mail is being sent as a memorial chain, in memory of the six million Jews, 20 million Russians, 10 million Christians and 1,900 Catholic priests who were murdered, massacred, raped, burned, starved and humiliated with the German and Russian peoples looking the other way!

Now, more than ever, with Iran , among others, claiming the Holocaust to be 'a myth,' it is imperative to make sure the world never forgets.

This e-mail is intended to reach 40 million people worldwide!

Be a link in the memorial chain and help distribute this around the world.

Don't just delete this. It will only take a minute to pass this along.

let's cover the world and remember because we cannot let it ever happen again.

[End]


Answer:

Well, since President Eisenhower was himself Jewish, we might have found him saying the below (as you have supplied to me in quote):
"...It is a matter of history that when Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces, General Dwight Eisenhower, found the victims of the death camps, he ordered all possible photographs to be taken, and for the German people from surrounding villages to be ushered through the camps and even made to bury the dead.
 
He did this because he said in words to this effect: 'Get it all on record now - get the films - get the witnesses - because somewhere down the track of history some b*stard will get up and say that this never happened'...."
    However, he did not say it.  This is just another instance of the liars lying.  I base my conclusion that Eisenhower could not have said the above, upon the below information:
 

Eisenhower, Churchill, de Gaulle

Three of the best known works on the Second World War are General Eisenhower's Crusade in Europe (New York: Doubleday [Country Life Press], 1948), Winston Churchill's The Second World War (London: Cassell, 6 vols., 1948-1954), and the Mémoires de guerre of General de Gaulle (Paris: Plon, 3 vols., 1954-1959). In these three works not the least mention of Nazi gas chambers is to be found.

Eisenhower's Crusade in Europe is a book of 559 pages; the six volumes of Churchill's Second World War total 4,448 pages; and de Gaulle's three-volume Mémoires de guerre is 2,054 pages. In this mass of writing, which altogether totals 7,061 pages (not including the introductory parts), published from 1948 to 1959, one will find no mention either of Nazi "gas chambers," a "genocide" of the Jews, or of "six million" Jewish victims of the war.

― “The Detail” by Robert Faurisson. The Journal of Historical Review, March-April 1998 (Vol. 17, No. 2), pages 19-20.  Source: http://www.ihr.org/jhr/v17/v17n2p19_Faurisson.html

 

Mainstream education is baffled

 

"I've checked out Churchill's Second World War and the statement

is quite correct” not a single mention of Nazi 'gas chambers,' a

'genocide' of the Jews, or of 'six million' Jewish victims of the war.

 

This is astonishing.  How can it be explained?” 

― Richard Lynn, Professor Emeritus, University of Ulster, December 5, 2005 (commenting on Faurisson’s Journal of Historical Review statement that Eisenhower, Churchill, and de Gaulle failed to observe any Holocaust in their extensive WWII documentaries published after the war between the years 1948 and 1959).

 

    My, my; it seems awfully odd of President Eisenhower to forget "the Holocaust" when he wrote his history of the Second World War—especially if we are to believe your quote of him, that he personally witnessed the aftermath of this Holocaust.  And most especially since he was a (crypto) Judaic himself.  And, as the Commanding General of the victorious forces in Europe during World War II, he would have been in the know if such an event had in fact occurred.

    You know, there aren't too many people that I dislike more than liars.  Please don't pollute my in-box with Zionist propaganda.  Thank you.  Send it the lemmings of this world who are so easily swayed with amateurish lies and forged quotes.

    When will it ever end?  All I saw in those pictures were dead people in a war zone.  No evidence that they were Jewish or that they were Concentration Camp internees.  They look like lined-up victims of an (Allied?) bombing campaign, prior to their identification and burial.  And most of all, are we really to assume, as you suggest, that the Germans just kept all these corpses laying around in the open so that Eisenhower could stumble upon them for war-reparations photo-ops?

   Also, in the future, when you prepare E-mail chain letters to be sent to, as you say, "40 million people worldwide", please learn to document your statements.  We don't know you, you have not built-up any credibility for yourself with us.  And it is really not enough for you to say simply that, "It is a matter of history...", as in your below:

"It is a matter of history that when Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces, General Dwight Eisenhower, found the victims of the death camps, he ordered all possible photographs to be taken, and for the German people from surrounding villages to be ushered through the camps and even made to bury the dead."

    It "is a matter of history", where?!?  Document, document, document, as I do.

    Nice try.  Back to the forgery drawing board for you.

    And do send my E-mail response off to the "40 million people worldwide" that you are intending to mislead with your little chain letter hoax here.

    Listen, the world is waking up to the true history of WWII and the so-called "6-million Jewish Holocaust."  And now they are desperate, making up all kinds of laws forbidding scholarly discussion on the matter under threat of incarceration.  These are not actions of honest men, but of men who have something that they desperately need to hide.  How about Hiroshima Denial laws?  Never heard of it, have you?  Or WWI Denial laws?  Why aren't there laws to prohibit questioning these events?  Because they happened, and you don't need laws to protect the truth.  Furthermore, the very moment that laws were put into place in a dozen Judaic-controlled European nations making it illegal to doubt the proffered facts on the Holocaust, they lost it—it was then that it became painfully obvious to the thinking man that there was something wrong with the official Holocaust story.

    See the below scholarly free E-book on the matter (one of it's distributers did time in an Austrian prison under "Holocaust Minimization" laws, by the way): 

Did Six Million Really Die?...The Truth   More Jews (3 1/3 million) filed for survivor compensation from West Germany after the war than were in all of German controlled Europe during the war (3 million). That doesn't even begin to try to account for the "exterminated" (six-million).   Excerpt:  "...how many of the 3 million European Jews under German control survived after 1945? .... the growing number of Jews claiming compensation from the West German Government for having allegedly suffered between 1939 and 1945.  By 1965 the number of these claimants registered with the West German Government had tripled in ten years and reached 3,375,000 (Aufbau, June 30, 1965) ... Nothing could be a more devastating proof of the brazen fantasy of the Six Million. Most of these claimants are Jews, so there can be no doubt that the majority of the 3 million Jews who experienced the Nazi occupation of Europe remained, in fact, very much alive. It is a resounding confirmation of the fact that Jewish casualties during the Second World War can only be estimated at a fraction of 'Six Million'.  Surely this is enough grief for the Jewish people? Who has the right to compound it with vast imaginary slaughter, marking with eternal shame a great European nation, as well as wringing fraudulent monetary compensation from them?"   (Continued at page.)

    And since you like to talk about one of our many crypto-Jew (secretly Judaic) Presidents, President Dwight David Eisenhower, why don't you mention that he was a Jewish mass-murderer of German civilians AFTER WWII?  Or don't surrendered and prostrated Germans and German civilians' deaths matter in this Judaic-controlled upside-down and most corrupt world?

In 1945 Eisenhower threw 1.7 million Germans in open fields which killed approx 1.2 million

    And just in case you are still languishing in a state of willing disbelief, see: Eisenhower admits his Jewish bloodline

    Peace in Christ Jesus.

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Nick Goggin

 

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Which generation is the "this generation shall not pass, till all these things be done" of Mark 13:30?  And, why is the book of Revelation written in the past-tense?

 

A reader writes:

Hi Nick,

It is rather frustrating to me to receive an email like the one below. I don't think I have enough command of the Scriptures to try to refute what the writer states.

What went down is that I sent out an email (at bottom) to my e-list which contained some of your material; then a man on my e-list apparently forwarded my email to another man ([man A]); then they had a bit of back and forth; then this [man A] sent a response attempting to refute my email (containing your material) to the original man on my e-list; and then the original man on my e-list sent [man A]'s refutation to me. Phew! Actually, [man A] was in agreement with you and I quite a bit. But where he disagreed, he really disagreed.

Anyway, I thought you might want to read [man A]'s comments, then refute his position with your knowledge and with Scripture. If you choose to refute [man A]'s comments, after you send your response to me, I will forward it to the man on my e-list then he can forward it to [man A]. Personally, I would love to read your response anyway. Your information should prove enlightening, and could certainly be useful to me in the future.

I have left the names as they are to reduce confusion to you. I know that you would never expose them.

Oh, and by the way, I received three email responses to my email that agreed with me (and you). I was very pleasantly surprised and reassured by the comments contained therein.

Thank you for your time. God bless, [the reader who wrote to us].

 

The letter from [man A] to [man B]:

[man B], thanks for sending me this personal stimulus package. I'll respond in my brief mode. If you care to read this, fine, if not, just X it out.

I can agree with this writer [WBSG] to the extent that Israel is not Israel today. The apostle Paul said, "Not as though the word of God hath taken none effect. For they are not all Israel, which are of Israel: .......Esaias also crieth concerning Israel, Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant shall be saved:...... But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness." The writer is correct in the origin of the modern day usurpers. They couldn't trace their blood line to Levi never in a million years. Genghis Khan and Attila The Hun may be closer to their family tree than so-called Israel that has usurped the land taken from them, never to be returned.

The other thing I agree with is what was said [by the reader who wrote to us], "The most important thing is that Jesus is my Savior and I love ALL of my fellowman.  As with the Elephant Man, "I am not an animal."

It seems that folks with a point to prove choose only to select their "wagon wheel rut" passages to prove their points. This writer seems to be locked into a pre-millennial mode of interpretation.

There are some good points in this short essay and I will keep it for reference.

I'll only respond to one of the many mistaken, IMO [in my opinion], assumptions made. To respond to all of them would take a larger server.

Written: "Simply stated, regarding the apostle's/disciple's question as to the restoration of "the kingdom of Israel", it refers to what we today would call "the end." That is to say the end of the world as we now know it, marked by the Second Advent."
Biblically it should have been said, "The end of the world as they knew it." Clearly shown is the mis-understanding of apocalyptic language, or poetic language, or symbolic language. What does the Bible say about the "end of the world"? (By the way, I had already chosen to include this phrase in a word study for my next talk this fall.)

The reference to Matthew 24 and some OT prophecies shows the foundation of this is mis-understanding. Matthew 23-24, Mark 13, Luke 21 all explain their meanings contextually and do not need our assumptions subjectively drawn from already fulfilled prophecies.

After the telling of the great tragedies in Matthew, Mark, and Luke to befall the religious charlatans of their day, Jesus says "Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled." The word "generation" would require a few pages of references showing it was a generation, not an eon.

Apparently our writer believes that a generation can cover several thousand years since what is expected in this model has not happened. That's the trouble literalists create because they cannot grasp poetic language, much of which is used in the writings from Genesis through the Revelation. It doesn't mean their intelligence in is question, it simply means they read "fire" and in their minds see flames. Not! And that is another word study we need.

The writer of Hebrews tells us "now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself."
Notice when Christ offered himself: it was in "the end of the world."

Hebrews goes on to report, "Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:"

If I had time I would reply line for line with "the rest of the story" as Paul Harvey says. Regal passages describing Christ are sprinkled throughout the NT and the then presence of the Kingdom.

Thanks, [man B], for sending this. You sure know how to pull my chain or push my button or ___.
Peace,
[man A]


ps. By the way, many years ago I taught pretty near everything your correspondent writes excepting the pre-millennial ideas. Some are correct, but when the passages are taken in context, application to the subject sometimes flies out the window.
[man A]


Answer [to the reader who wrote to us]:

Hi [Xxxxxx].  Taking the leap, huh?  You're coming out and saying unpopular truths.  Very good, but don't be surprised if you get bit a few times.

    I read the E-mail exchanges that you sent me.  And while, for time's sake I generally don't get involved in third party debates, I will this one time.

    That [man A] fellow sounds like he is an Amillennialist ("a" as in "not," and millennialist for millennium; i.e., no millennial kingdom, which however Christ by revelation described in Revelation chapter 20), as he seems to be saying that the prophesies of the end time have already happened.  He did not write enough for me to be sure where he is at in that regard, but the below quote makes it seem apparent.  (I have highlighted the relevant line.)

    And I would add is that he has a misunderstanding of Jesus' discourse on the end.  [Man A] said:

"Matthew 23-24, Mark 13, Luke 21 all explain their meanings contextually and do not need our assumptions subjectively drawn from already fulfilled prophecies.

After the telling of the great tragedies in Matthew, Mark, and Luke to befall the religious charlatans of their day, Jesus says "Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled."  The word "generation" would require a few pages of references showing it was a generation, not an eon.

Apparently our writer believes that a generation can cover several thousand years since what is expected in this model has not happened."

    [Man A] is correct that a "generation" here is a literal generation of people living on the Earth, in this we are in agreement.  He is also correct that the model has not happened yet.  Mr. [man A] should take another look at the Scripture that he quotes, in light of my following comments: 

Luke 21:29-32
29 And he spake to them a parable; Behold the fig tree, and all the trees;
30 When they now shoot forth, ye see and know of your own selves that summer is now nigh at hand.
31 So likewise ye, when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that the kingdom of God is nigh at hand.
32 Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled.  KJV

    What generation "shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled"?  The generation who: "when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that the kingdom of God is nigh at hand"

    When ye see what "things come to pass"?  The things that Jesus just listed in the verses prior to the above Parable of the Fig Tree" verses.

    [Man A] is confusing who Jesus is speaking of.  While He is speaking to those seated at His feet, He is speaking of the endtime generation.  What Jesus spoke to their ears was written down for our eyes some 2000 years later.  Below we will publish those verses that Jesus was referring to when He said "So likewise ye, when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that the kingdom of God is nigh at hand."

    But first it must be observed that the words "ye" and "you" in the above "So likewise ye, when ye see" are plural words, not singular.  In other words, Jesus was not speaking to "thee" and "thy," which are singular pronouns in the King James Bible, but He was speaking in the plural to us as well as those seated before Christ.  Actually, Jesus was in the company of only four men when He delivered Mark chapter 13: "Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately" (Mk 13:3b).  But what He said to them was for all Christians that were to be living when those things came to pass.

   Now, observe those things that Jesus said had to happen before the end.  [Man A] apparently thinks that all of these things have already happened, except for that Christ did not yet return.  How he reasons this in his mind is beyond me.  But Amillennialists do.  I will hasten to add that some of the things in the below were fulfilled in type, but the still needs be fulfilled in antitype (the actual event).  If even one thing in the below list of things that Jesus said must happen before the end, does not happen, then [man A] cannot be right.  Observe (I have highlight some events that had definitely not happened to the generation then alive when Christ spoke the below):

Mark 13:1-31
1 And as he went out of the temple, one of his disciples saith unto him, Master, see what manner of stones and what buildings are here!
2 And Jesus answering said unto him, Seest thou these great buildings? there shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.
3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives over against the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately,
4 Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign when all these things shall be fulfilled?
5 And Jesus answering them began to say, Take heed lest any man deceive you:
6 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.
7 And when ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars, be ye not troubled: for such things must needs be; but the end shall not be yet.
8 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.
9 But take heed to yourselves: for they shall deliver you up to councils; and in the synagogues ye shall be beaten: and ye shall be brought before rulers and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them.
10 And the gospel must first be published among all nations.
11 But when they shall lead you, and deliver you up, take no thought beforehand what ye shall speak, neither do ye premeditate: but whatsoever shall be given you in that hour, that speak ye: for it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Ghost.
12 Now the brother shall betray the brother to death, and the father the son; and children shall rise up against their parents, and shall cause them to be put to death.
13 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
14 But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not, (let him that readeth understand,) then let them that be in Judaea flee to the mountains:
15 And let him that is on the housetop not go down into the house, neither enter therein, to take any thing out of his house:
16 And let him that is in the field not turn back again for to take up his garment.
17 But woe to them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!
18 And pray ye that your flight be not in the winter.
19 For in those days shall be affliction, such as was not from the beginning of the creation which God created unto this time, neither shall be.
20 And except that the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh should be saved: but for the elect's sake, whom he hath chosen, he hath shortened the days.
21 And then if any man shall say to you, Lo, here is Christ; or, lo, he is there; believe him not:
22 For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect.
23 But take ye heed: behold, I have foretold you all things.
24 But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light,
25 And the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken.
26 And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory.
27 And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven.
28 Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When her branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is near:
29 So ye in like manner, when ye shall see these things come to pass, know that it is nigh, even at the doors.
30 Verily I say unto you, that this generation shall not pass, till all these things be done.
31 Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.  KJV

    In other words, "this generation" is the generation that shall see "these things," and it is not the generation that He was addressing, for they never saw those things.  It was us, the final generation; we shall see "these things" and our generation "shall not pass, till all these things be done."

    And if I mislabeled [man A] and his beliefs, then I apologize.  Too little data was given.  He seems like he is really into Bible study; I like that.  And with just a slight readjustment in some of his foundational understandings, he will formidable.  But it is so difficult for any of us to un-learn something that is so foundational as to effect the way which we screen every verse in the Bible.  For me, the book of Revelation has not yet been opened, for others we have almost lived through the whole thing.

    Of course, they are incorrect.  What throws them off is the past-tense language of the book of Revelation.  Everything is written in the past tense; i.e., "then I saw...," "he said to me...," "I looked...," etc.  However, a clear read of Revelation 1:10 will solve the mystery.  Apostle John, the author of the book of Revelation (and the Gospel of John, and the three Epistles of John), states:

Revelation 1:10
10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet,  KJV

    In other words, Apostle John was taken from the first century all the way up to the "day of the Lord"; the Millennium (Rev 20).  He then was shown the end of the world and the years proceeding it (and even the future out to eternity),  He wrote down what he saw (past tense) when he was taken back to his present day.  And what he wrote, those future things that he saw (past tense to him), were written down in our Bible.  And today we see prophecy in the book of Revelation, things that shall happen to us, but that had already happened right before John's eyes.  That is why everything is written as though it had already happened.  But it shall happen.  This is called prophecy, calling those things before they happen, exactly as they happen.

    This might sound odd—but not really—but God has already "fast-forwarded" this world to the end, and He knows exactly how all shall transpire.  Just as He did with apostle John and the book of Revelation.  And it is why He can with all fairness exercise a certain "destiny" in people's lives.  Observe:

Jude 4
4 For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.  KJV

1 Peter 2:6-8
6 Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded.
7 Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner,
8 And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.  KJV

Ephesians 1:1-12
1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus:
2 Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:
4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,
6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.
7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;
8 Wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence;
9 Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:
10 That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:
11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
12 That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.  KJV

    Does that mean that our fate is set and that we can have no hand in our future choices?  No, absolutely not!  Of course we can choose, that is the reason that we were cast down to this Earth in this flesh age (for we came from God and return to Him).  Of course we set our own life's track.  Of course we must make decisions throughout our life that will effect our final destiny--Heaven or the Lake or Fire.  But it is just that God knows beforehand what we will do.

    Apostle Paul, one of Jesus' most-used apostles, even though he came later—and whom the enemies of Christ this very day are claiming isn't a "true" apostle (but see Acts 9:15)—explains this (by the power of the Holy Spirit) in the below Scripture:

Romans 9:1-23
9 I say the truth in Christ, I lie not, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Ghost,
2 That I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart.
3 For I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh:
4 Who are Israelites; to whom pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises;
5 Whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is over all, God blessed for ever. Amen.
6 Not as though the word of God hath taken none effect. For they are not all Israel, which are of Israel:
7 Neither, because they are the seed of Abraham, are they all children: but, In Isaac shall thy seed be called.
8 That is, They which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God: but the children of the promise are counted for the seed.
9 For this is the word of promise, At this time will I come, and Sara shall have a son.
10 And not only this; but when Rebecca also had conceived by one, even by our father Isaac;
11 (For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;)
12 It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger.
13 As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.
14 What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid.
15 For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
16 So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.
17 For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth.
18 Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth.
19 Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will?
20 Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?
21 Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?
22 What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction:
23 And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory,  KJV

    Peace to you in Christ Jesus.

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Airborne vehicles in the book of Ezekiel


A reader writes:

Hi Nick, could you please tell me if this below study is a true teaching or a false teaching. I do think you are one of the most learned bible teachers out there and I recognize where that comes from, our Father of course! please let me know if you have time. I can't wait for your book it's going to help me and all others especially in the future tribulation thats to come.

[Quoting an unknown source:]

The Israelites never saw a vehicle of any kind; there were no cars or airplanes back then. They were use to seeing ox and carts; there was no modern technology back then. There were only foot soldiers and they walked wherever they wanted to go. Even Jesus and His disciples walked wherever they went. Israelites were not accustom to seeing teams of horses hook to a chariot, until they were introduced to the horses in Egypt. It was an awesome sight for them to see a team of horses racing through the wind with their mane flapping and pulling a chariot. When the chariots of God arrived, there was no way for them to describe them. They had never seen anything like them before; the only things that they had seen flying were birds. When they tried to describe a vehicle of God, they had to relate it to a chariot, because that’s all that they have seen before. Before we look at the spiritual horses of God (horses of fire, vehicles); that was used as transportation between heaven and earth. Let’s go into the manuscripts of God; into the Hebrew teaching in Ezekiel for a description of God’s vehicles. The spiritual horses of God are in a different dimension and that’s why we can’t see them in our flesh bodies unless God permits.

Let’s look at Ezekiel 1

{3} The word of the LORD came expressly unto Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar; and the hand of the LORD was there upon him. [4] And I looked, and, behold, a whirlwind came out of the north, a great cloud, and a fire enfolding itself, and a brightness was about it, and out of the midst thereof as the color of amber, out of the midst of the fire.

Let’s look at two words in the Strong’s Concordance. (1) The word "colour" used here is the Hebrew word "ayin" which literally or figuratively means "eye", and is used here in the sense of "to see" or "appeared as". (2) The word "amber" is "chashmal" and means "polished spectrum metal" or "shiny polished bronze". Ezekiel has never seen an airplane, jet or spacecraft before and there were no telephones, electricity or TV’s back then. All that he has seen were wagons pulled by horses or oxen. All that Ezekiel ever saw fly was birds with wings. So, he did a pretty good job of describing God’s spacecraft. He says, I looked up and I saw a whirlwind (circular motion; round spacecraft) coming in the clouds and it appeared as polished spectrum metal. Yes I said spacecraft, don’t you think that if man can make a spacecraft that God has already made them a long time before and even more modern then ours of today. It is easier for us to understand today, because we have seen airplanes, jets and the space shuttle. Now we begin to see the vehicles of God; horses are not made up of metal and the chariots at this time were made of wood. So you see that these were the vehicles of God.

 

Answer:

Hello.  Yes, Ezekiel was describing a vehicle or airborne "craft."  Apparently, these were used at times when penetrating our flesh realm.  Elisha may have seen similar craft in Second Kings, but here they are not described.  Observe:

2 Kings 6:17
17 And Elisha prayed, and said, Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.  KJV

    Pastor Murray of the Shepherds Chapel also teaches this about Ezekiel.  (His program is on early morning TV everywhere).  He also has a good cassette tape study on it (call the Chapel's phone number from their Website and they will tell you what tape it is and how to purchase it).

    Let's look at your verse and examine the Strong's Concordance definitions:

Ezekiel 1:4
4 And I looked, and, behold, a whirlwind came out of the north, a great cloud, and a fire infolding itself, and a brightness was about it, and out of the midst thereof as the colour of amber, out of the midst of the fire.  KJV

as the colour of: Hebrew word #5869  `ayin (ah'-yin); probably a primitive word; an eye (literally or figuratively); by analogy, a fountain (as the eye of the landscape):  KJV - affliction, outward appearance,  before,  think best, colour, conceit,  be content, countenance,  displease, eye ([-brow], [-d], -sight), face,  favour, fountain, furrow [from the margin],  him,  humble, knowledge, look, (+well),  me, open (-ly),  (not) please, presence,  regard, resemblance, sight,  thee,  them,  think,  us, well,  you (-rselves). 

amber:  Hebrew word #2830  chashmal (khash-mal'); of uncertain derivation; probably bronze or polished spectrum metal:  KJV - amber.

(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

    And if you scroll down in this Scripture three verses, to verse seven, you will see an even more clear witness that this object was metallic; and this verse shows well in the English translation, wherein the word "brass" is utilized:

Ezekiel 1:7
7 And their feet were straight feet; and the sole of their feet was like the sole of a calf's foot: and they sparkled like the colour of burnished brass.  KJV

like the colour of: Hebrew word #5869  `ayin.  [Same as in verse 4 above.] 

brass: Hebrew word #5178  nechosheth (nekh-o'-sheth); for OT:5154; copper, hence, something made of that metal, i.e. coin, a fetter; figuratively, base (as compared with gold or silver):  KJV - brasen, brass, chain, copper, fetter (of brass), filthiness, steel.

(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

    Peace to you in Christ Jesus.

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The state of the dead, and the resurrectionS

 

 

A reader writes:

Dear Nick,

            I just got through reading a works by E.W. Bullinger titled ‘The Rich Man and Lazarus: An Intermediate State?’ I’m sure you have read it. Now I’m perplexed! I am new to the study of God’s Holy Word ( five years with Shepherds Chapel and your site ) and being sixty five years old I consider myself a little slow with understanding but now I just don’t know what happens at the instant of death. I thought, and was sure, that the spirit, the intellect of the soul, instantly upon the death of the flesh, returns to God. I don’t get this idea from Bullinger’s works which I suppose is okay but I would like to know what I am talking about when I share with members of my family and friends. Am I missing something? Can you help me out with this?

                          Thank you so much for your hard work.

                          [Xxxxx Xxxxxx]


Answer:

Hello [Xxxxxx].  You said:

"but now I just don’t know what happens at the instant of death. I thought, and was sure, that the spirit, the intellect of the soul, instantly upon the death of the flesh, returns to God."

    And you contrasted it with (presumably) "soul sleep." 

    Why can't both positions be correct? 

    We certainly know that upon death we go back to God, this much is clear in the below Scripture:

Ecclesiastes 12:7
7 Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.  KJV

    And the below Scripture also declares that to be absent from the flesh (i.e., dead) is to be present with the Lord; there is no third state, whether the soul be good or the soul be bad:

2 Corinthians 5:6-10
6 Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord:
7 (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)
8 We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.
9 Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him.
10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.  KJV

    And we also know that Daniel spoke of a resurrection just prior to Judgment Day, that much is clear from:

Daniel 12:2
2 And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth
[die, be deceased]  shall awake [resurrect], some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.  KJV

    And the Lord Jesus Christ also spoke of this resurrection in the end times:

John 5:28-29
28 Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,
29 And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.  KJV

    However, Jesus also alluded to another latter resurrection prior to Judgment Day ("Daniel's resurrection"), for He spoke of "the first resurrection," necessitating, of course, at least one more resurrection event (of other people—each soul only resurrects once):

Revelation 20:1-6
20 And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.
2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,
3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.
4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
5 But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.
6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death
[the death of a soul in the Lake of Fire] hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.  KJV

    I do not see the Scriptures colliding here at all.  Daniel spoke of the latter resurrection, in the which all are resurrected for Judgment Day, where the good are rewarded and the bad are destroyed (2 Corinthians 5:10 above speaks of this day).  And Jesus spoke of not only the latter resurrection of Daniel 12:2; but He also spoke of another resurrection, the first resurrection, the resurrection of the Tribulation martyrs (who will enjoy the Lord's presence for a thousand years alongside of the Tribulation faithful who were neither martyred nor had they betrayed Christ by taking the mark of the beast:  "...and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and [also those] which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they [both groups]  lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years." [Revelation 20:4b]) 

    Very little is written in the Scriptures of "the condition or state of the dead" (Lazarus and the rich man is a parable), so we must deduce what we can from the available Scriptural information.  Therefore, for both Scriptures to be correct (and they must, for Jesus assured us that "and the scripture cannot be broken" [John 10:35b]), it would mean that upon death we do in fact return immediately to God, as Ecc 12:7 and 2nd Cor 5:8 declares; but, we are not conscious or cognizant until the resurrections spoken of by Christ and wise Daniel.  Would that not be consistent with the term "resurrection?"

    And I know that you know this; but, for the benefit of others who may be reading this, I will repeat something that we put on the masthead of our Homepage:

You just have to believe the Scriptures, then they open up to you.— WBSG.

    Peace to you in Christ Jesus.

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Nick Goggin

The reader replies:

Dear Nick,

Thank you for your speedy reply. Yes, what you say is what I’ve come to understand and then I read Bullinger’s paper on the aforementioned subject and became confused. I know that he was not perfect. (I suppose that I would like to think that he was.) He said ‘The Rich Man and Lazarus’ was not a parable etc. etc. Have you read this work that I’m referring to and will you share your feelings on his work.

Thanks again, Sincerely, [Xxxx Xxxxx]


Answer:

Hello again.  As you may or may not know, E.W. Bullinger (1837-1913) is my all time favorite Bible teacher/scholar.  And just as I also enjoy and respect pastor Murray's teachings but disagree at some points, I also disagree with Bullinger at some points.  But Bullinger did not have the benefit of modern discoveries and scholarship due to his early date.

    For instance, Bullinger did not know of two separate creative events (the 6th day creation of all the races of the Earth, and then the 8th day forming of Adam and his subsequent race).  Bullinger also believed in a Rapture.  He was also unaware that the "new manuscripts" which came into prominence in his time and which directly challenged the Textus Receptus (the King James Version N.T. manuscripts), and which were the underlying manuscripts for all the modern corrupt newer Bible versions (the NASB, NIV, etc.) were themselves copies of the corrupted text of ORIGEN (c. A.D. 185 – c. A.D. 254), surnamed Adamantius, from his Hexapla (Origen's compilation of six ancient versions of the Bible in parallel columns—circa A.D. 130).

    The Greek text formed by Origen (contrary to popular knowledge) was the mythical B.C. Septuagint.  And this Greek text, the POST-A.D. Septuagint was the basis for Constantine I (the Great's) famous 50 copies of the New Testament text (circa A.D. 325), two of which are extant today, in partial form; these are known as the Codex Vaticanus and the Codex Sinaiticus.  From thence sprang all the corrupted Bible versions beginning with the Revised Version (the RV—1881-5) on through the NASB, the NIV (the best selling Bible today), and etc.

    Thus is the condensed history of how they corrupted "the Bible."  However, I hasten to add, the King James Version Bible is not based upon any of these corrupt texts, and represents the true written Word of God in the English language.  In fact, the title King James Version is a misnomer.  Originally the "King James Bible" was called simply the Holy Bible, a title which graced its cover.  It was only after satan's scribes began infiltrating corrupted newer Bible versions into the churches that the "Holy Bible" began to be referred to as the King James Bible so as to differentiate between the several conflicting Bible versions then (and now) on the market.  There is no book more attacked by the Judaic press and "scholarship" that the New Testament of the Holy Bible (King James Version), also called the Authorized Version [A.V.) and the "1611").  Christians need to know this, but most do not, because their priests and preachers do not—having themselves been taught to doubt the whole Bible in the Judaic-run Seminaries and Bible Colleges.  A hard statement but nonetheless true.

    However, and sadly, the King James Bible, under a barrage of Jewish-sponsored false accusations (of which they are the masters), is falling into disuse with most Christians and ministers of the last two generations.  The expected (and planned) result of which is the modern-day lukewarm, saltless, false doctrine "Judeo-Christian" churches of today—most of them, anyway; but not all, there are still some few good churches out there teaching Bible.  (See our: Adulterations in the Newer Bible Versions (NIV, NASB...); Proof that the King James Bible (KJV) is the True Word of God.)

    As regarding Bullinger's volume, The Rich Man and Lazarus: having endeavored to read it many years ago I met with several foundational problems in his theory and I left off completing the book.  But this was so long ago that I could not now competently proffer a list of my disagreements with his thesis.  It appears that you have spotted them as well, though.  And if something doesn't "feel" right; guess what?  It most likely isn't.  But do confirm it (and all teachings) in the Bible.  If it fits with the Bible then it is worthy of trust.

    Whenever a man's writing, any man's, comes into contradiction with any Scripture properly interpreted, then that man's writing must at that point be rejected.  Though the man himself needn't be rejected; for, what man can claim infallibility?  So, while I admire Bullinger as being one of the best, if not the best, I am at the same time cognizant of the human flaw in him that besets us all; as too was Bullinger himself cognizant of this human dilemma.  And I quote Bullinger himself here:

None are more cognizant of imperfection and failure than ourselves; and, after all we have done, there is still much left for others to do.

We do not exhaust the book; and may, after all, have only laid out a road on which others may follow with far greater success. We claim only one thing - an earnest desire to believe God; and to receive what He has said, regardless alike of the praise of man or the fear of man; and quite apart from all traditional beliefs or interpretations.

May the Lord own and use and bless our efforts for His own Glory and the good of His people.— E.W. Bullinger, The Apocalypse, pg. xii (as quoted in E.W. Bullinger, A Biography, ppg. 233-234).

    Honesty and humility such as the above is one of the things that makes Bullinger among the best.  What sincere Bible-believing Christian cannot help but to admire a (peer-approved) world-class Biblical scholar who can humble himself to make the above statement near the end of his life's studies?

Luke 14:11
11 For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.  KJV

    And so, true to Christ's words in the above Scripture; E.W. Bullinger is, almost a century after his passing, admired and respected as one of the best—even by those who disagree with him is there respect for him.  To say that Bullinger is peerless would not be hyperbole.

    Peace to you in Christ Jesus.

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Near of kin wives and children in Scripture

 

A reader writes:

I like your study on the two creations [Mankind; two separate creation events], it is so hard to get people to see this truth. Marrying next of kin has been wrong from the beginning, just as murder or lying. It says God doesn't change so if it is sin today it was sin then.

Lev 18:6
6
None of you
shall approach to any that is near of kin to him, to uncover their nakedness: I am YHWH .

Mal 3:6
6
For I am YHWH , I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.

Heb 13:8
8
Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever. KJV

Those two verses nailed it for me, since God cannot sin and would not create us to have no choice in the matter but to sin, if we all started from one set of parents as most theologians teach. 

Nick, the point I am trying to make is maybe you could  update your separate creation study to strengthen it or have another addendum.

The Truth in Jesus Christ, Peace Brother.

[Xxxxxxx]


Answer:

Hello.  Thank you for the kind words.  But remember that Leviticus wasn't written until after the release from Egypt (shortly after 1490 B.C.), and that the early peoples (Adam was formed in 4004 B.C.) were allowed to marry near kin.  For instance, Abraham married his half-sister, Sarah, the daughter of his father but not the daughter of his mother (Gen 20:12).  However, Abraham was born and married before God gave the Law to Moses (which Moses then wrote down in the book of Leviticus, etc.).  So he did not sin in doing this, even though it is a sin today.

Abraham marries his half-sister, Sarah:

Genesis 20:1-12
20 And Abraham journeyed from thence toward the south country, and dwelled between Kadesh and Shur, and sojourned in Gerar.
2 And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, She is my sister: and Abimelech king of Gerar sent, and took Sarah.
3 But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, Behold, thou art but a dead man, for the woman which thou hast taken; for she is a man's wife.
4 But Abimelech had not come near her
[did not commit adultery with her]: and he said, Lord, wilt thou slay also a righteous nation?
5 Said he not unto me, She is my sister? and she, even she herself said, He is my brother: in the integrity of my heart and innocency of my hands have I done this.
6 And God said unto him in a dream, Yea, I know that thou didst this in the integrity of thy heart; for I also withheld thee from sinning against me: therefore suffered I thee not to touch her.
7 Now therefore restore the man his wife; for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for thee, and thou shalt live: and if thou restore her not, know thou that thou shalt surely die, thou, and all that are thine.
8 Therefore Abimelech rose early in the morning, and called all his servants, and told all these things in their ears: and the men were sore afraid.
9 Then Abimelech called Abraham, and said unto him, What hast thou done unto us? and what have I offended thee, that thou hast brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? thou hast done deeds unto me that ought not to be done.
10 And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What sawest thou, that thou hast done this thing?
11 And Abraham said, Because I thought, Surely the fear of God is not in this place; and they will slay me for my wife's sake.
12 And yet indeed she is my sister; she is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife.  KJV

    The above would LATER be outlawed by God when He delivered His Law to Moses:

(Note: In the below, the terms "uncovering the nakedness of..." and "seeing the nakedness of..." mean to have sexual intercourse.  This is what Noah's son Ham did to Noah; Ham had sexual intercourse with Noah's wife, and the child of that union was Canaan.  See further below for explanation)

Leviticus 18:9
9 The nakedness of thy sister, the daughter of thy father, or daughter of thy mother, whether she be born at home, or born abroad, even their nakedness thou shalt not uncover
[shall not have sex with].  KJV

Leviticus 20:17
17 And if a man shall take his sister, his father's daughter, or his mother's daughter, and see her nakedness
[have sex with], and she see his nakedness; it is a wicked thing; and they shall be cut off in the sight of their people: he hath uncovered his sister's nakedness; he shall bear his iniquity.  KJV

    Another example of this would be found in Genesis 35 where we are informed that Rueben, Jacob/Israel's firstborn son, had sexual intercourse with Jacob/Israel's concubine (a second lesser wife).

Genesis 35:22
22 And it came to pass, when Israel dwelt in that land, that Reuben went and lay with
[had sex with] Bilhah his father's concubine: and Israel heard it. Now the sons of Jacob were twelve:  KJV

    This was later formerly outlawed under the Law:

Leviticus 18:8
8 The nakedness of thy father's wife shalt thou not uncover
[have sex with her]: it is thy father's nakedness.  KJV  

    Confirmed as a sin in the book Deuteronomy for a second witness:

Deuteronomy 27:20
20 Cursed be he that lieth with his father's wife; because he uncovereth his father's skirt. And all the people shall say, Amen.  KJV

  The sentence (death to both patties) outlined in Leviticus:

Leviticus 20:11
11 And the man that lieth with his father's wife hath uncovered his father's nakedness: both of them shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.  KJV

    And the below documents that the laws for a man's wife also apply to a man's concubine; for, speaking of this same incident, Rueben is told that he "defiled his father's bed" (by having sex with his father's concubine).  Thus it is incest and adultery regardless if it is a concubine or a wife:

Genesis 49:4 [Speaking to/of Rueben]
4 Unstable as water, thou shalt not excel; because thou wentest up to thy father's bed; then defiledst thou it
[had sex with his father's concubine]: he went up to my couch.  KJV

    Noah's son Ham also did the same as Rueben.  Ham had sex with Noah's wife, and the child born of that union was a son named Canaan.  This was also before the Law was given, so we see that Ham was not executed.  Pay particular attention as to who is the father of Canaan:

Genesis 9:18-23
18 And the sons of Noah, that went forth of the ark, were Shem, and Ham, and Japheth: and Ham is the father of Canaan.
19 These are the three sons of Noah: and of them was the whole earth overspread.
20 And Noah began to be an husbandman, and he planted a vineyard:
21 And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent.
22 And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father
[had sex with his father's wife] , and told his two brethren without.
23 And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were backward, and they saw not their father's nakedness. KJV

    The Jews have a tradition that Ham had homosexual sex with his father Noah in the above and that the "Negro race was the result," but like all Talmudic filth this Jewish tradition (of men) is wrong.  The term "uncovering your father's nakedness" means to have sex with his wife (not necessarily your own mother, but usually):

Leviticus 20:11
11 And the man that lieth with his father's wife hath uncovered his father's nakedness: both of them shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.  KJV

    So, both Rueben and Ham committed a Capital Offense (execution), but the sentence was not carried out by God because both of these incidents occurred BEFORE God have given the law through Moses.  That is not to say that God "was okay with it," He wasn't.  And they were punished variously, but they were not punished according t o the later law of Moses.  Rueben forfeited His birthright (the privilege of the firstborn male), Ham's incestuous son Canaan was cursed by Noah (not God).  Ham would go on to be the patriarch of many corrupt and cursed peoples, as would Canaan.

    Another example of this would be found in Cain who murdered his brother Able.  While God did in fact punish Cain, He did not exact the severe penalty for murder that would be later outlined in the law of Moses—execution.  Cain was cast out and set to wander the earth.  Later his descendents would found Talmudic Judaism, a blend of the Hebrew Old Testament religion and the Babylonian mysteries.  Hence, we see the Jewish Babylonian Talmud (Babylonian Talmud is the actual full name of the volume set).  This is the religion that Christ so often railed against,.  Though the actual written Talmud was not completed until circa A. D. 500 (begun in circa 500 B.C. orally, and begun in circa A.D. 200 in written from.  These are the people that the greatest majority of deceived endtime Christians errantly call "God's Chosen People," and, "the apple of God's eye."  Nothing could be further from the truth.  They are His enemies, not His favorites; and like the greatest of enemies they murdered His Son Jesus Christ based upon their false witness (lies, perjured testimony).

   Let's cover one more example of offenses being committed BEFORE God specifically outlined them in the Law of Moses.  Below is the law that we are dealing with:

Leviticus 18:14
18 Neither shalt thou take a wife to her sister
[marry your wife's sister], to vex her, to uncover her nakedness [sexual intercourse consummating the marriage], beside the other in her life time [while the first sister-wife still lives].  KJV

    Now, Jacob married sisters while they were both alive (Rachael and Leah, both daughters of Laban), which would be outlawed by the above Scripture from God's Law.  However, Jacob did this BEFORE God had given the law:

Genesis 29:16-30
16 And Laban had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel.
17 Leah was tender eyed; but Rachel was beautiful and well favoured.
18 And Jacob loved Rachel; and said, I will serve thee seven years for Rachel thy younger daughter.
19 And Laban said, It is better that I give her to thee, than that I should give her to another man: abide with me.
20 And Jacob served seven years for Rachel; and they seemed unto him but a few days, for the love he had to her.
21 And Jacob said unto Laban, Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in unto her.
22 And Laban gathered together all the men of the place, and made a feast.
23 And it came to pass in the evening, that he took Leah his daughter, and brought her to him
[Jacob] ; and he went in unto her [sexual intercourse consummating the marriage].
24 And Laban gave unto his daughter Leah Zilpah his maid for an handmaid.
25 And it came to pass, that in the morning, behold, it was Leah: and he said to Laban, What is this thou hast done unto me? did not I serve with thee for Rachel? wherefore then hast thou beguiled me?
26 And Laban said, It must not be so done in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn.
27 Fulfil her week, and we will give thee this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years.
28 And Jacob did so, and fulfilled her week: and he gave him Rachel his daughter to wife also.
29 And Laban gave to Rachel his daughter Bilhah his handmaid to be her maid.
30 And he went in also unto Rachel, and he loved also Rachel more than Leah, and served with him yet seven other years.  KJV

    And don't forget that Seth (Adam's son by Eve) had to marry his full sister to keep his line pure, and was the only way that Jesus Christ could be the "seed of the woman" (Gen 3:15—Mat 1:23).  But this too, naturally, was before God gave man His Law.  A Law of God is only enforced after He delivers it, of course.  For, as apostle Paul observed: "What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet." (Rom 7:5).  Therefore, before God prohibited marriage to near kin, it was not a sin.  And it is therefore not a good reference to "prove" that there were in fact two creative events (all the races on the 6th day and Adam and his progeny on the 8th day), even though there really were two creative events (see our: Mankind; two separate creation events).  Also, your supposition implies that Seth, Adam's son, married a female of the sixth day creation.  But this could not be for reasons mentioned above.

    On a side note regarding Isaac's relationship with his wife, we offer the following.  Isaac, Abraham's son, married his first cousin, once removed (which was NOT later outlawed).  I offer it simply because some mistakenly confuse that Isaac married a first cousin, rather than a first cousin, once removed, which added the blood of Bethuel's wife into Isaac's son Jacob.  In our society it used to be illegal to marry first cousins (because of deformities in the children), but there is no such prohibition in the Bible.

Isaac marries Rebekah his first cousin, once removed:

Genesis 24:15-16
15 And it came to pass, before he had done speaking, that, behold, Rebekah came out, who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham's brother, with her pitcher upon her shoulder.
16 And the damsel was very fair to look upon, a virgin, neither had any man known her: and she went down to the well, and filled her pitcher, and came up.

[...Continued to:]

67 And Isaac [Abraham's son] brought her [Rebekah] into his mother Sarah's tent, and took Rebekah [sexual intercourse consummating the marriage], and she became his wife; and he loved her: and Isaac was comforted after his mother's death. KJV

Isaac's wife, Rebekah, was
his first cousin, once removed

Abraham brother of Nahor (married to Milcah)
    had son Bethuel
had son Isaac married to had daughter Rebekah

    And from Geneology.com we ascertain the term "first cousin, once removed."

Quote:  "When the word 'removed' is used to describe a relationship, it indicates that the two people are from different generations. You and your first cousins are in the same generation (two generations younger than your grandparents), so the word 'removed' is not used to describe your relationship.

The words 'once removed' mean that there is a difference of one generation. For example, your mother's [or in this case, father's] first cousin is your first cousin, once removed. This is because your mother's first cousin is one generation younger than your grandparents and you are two generations younger than your grandparents. This one-generation difference equals 'once removed'."  [see Geneology.com for more on familial terms]

    Peace to you in Christ Jesus.

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The Giants after Noah's Flood

 

A reader writes:

Subject: MATT 24 STUDY
In this study you state that God brought the flood (Noah's) to kill the giants. The giants were still around at the time of David. (Goliath).

Please explain.

Thank you.

[X. X.]

Answer:

Hello.  Dr. Bullinger states (in his Companion Bible) that there must have been a latter influx of the fallen angels which would account for the latter reports of Giants (the offspring of the angels and flesh women recorded in Genesis chapter six).  I am not so sure.  Perhaps not all the Giants were killed off.  The Bible speaks of a tribe of Giants called the sons of Anak, so they obviously were able to reproduce (something unusual for a hybrid) and formed into a tribal body.  The spies of Israel (during the Exodus) also reported seeing a group of Giants.

Numbers 13:33
33 And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.  KJV

    This was well after Noah's deluge. 

    Very little is written on this matter in the Bible, so a definitive answer is not possible.  And as Bullinger also stated on such matters where little Biblical documentation is supplied:  'Perhaps where Scripture is silent so too should we remain silent.'  Nevertheless, if I were pressed to speculate I would say that either they continued living in some region after the Great Flood; or, there was another penetration into this realm by other fallen angels (sons of God).  We do know that those angels who came here (against God's will and for the attempted purpose of corrupting Adam's bloodline, and thus Christ's bloodline through Mother Mary) were imprisoned and remain so until Judgment Day:

Jude 6
6 And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day.  KJV

whereupon they presumably shall be deposited into the Lake of Fire:

Matthew 25:41
41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:  KJV

   All that we do know is that there definitely were Giants after the days of the Great Deluge.  A short list of Scriptural references to the Giants is as below:

Genesis 6:4
Numbers 13:33
Deuteronomy 2:11
Deuteronomy 2:20
Deuteronomy 3:11
Deuteronomy 3:13
Joshua 12:4
Joshua 13:12
Joshua 15:8
Joshua 17:15
Joshua 18:16

    I hope that helps.

    Peace to you in Christ Jesus.

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God bless the study of His Word; in Jesus Christ's Precious and powerful name!
Nick Goggin

 

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Recovering from a false teacher or false doctrine

 

A reader writes:

Hello Nick…I am really confused and have been for quite some time. I studied with pastor murray and pastor knight back in the day and then lance [pastor Lance Knight] moved to this new thinking. I have contacted him several times and even got responses from him. I am not sure what is going on but, I do know that I have not yet found peace. I thought I knew the truth and studied chapter by chapter and verse by verse…not quite sure what to believe now and don’t go all demonic talk on me. Just talk to me or don’t talk to me. But, don’t lecture me.

[Xxxxxx Xxxxxxx]


Answer:

    Hi [Xxxx].  You aren't demonic.  It is pastor Lance Knight that has the problem. 

    What I would do if I were you would be to get back to the basics.  Basic Bible study on foundational matters.  And leave all the "deeper" stuff till later.  You feel confused and let down.  This is normal when one has been exposed to false doctrine by someone that they trusted (pastor Lance Knight) and then realizes it.  I speak of Lance's New Age doctrines. 

    Pastor Murray will never steer you wrong.  Sure, I disagree with him on some matters, primarily in endtime studies, but these are not doctrines that are important to salvation and a real feeling relationship with the Lord.  And God wrote the endtime prophecies in such a way that we will not be able to perfectly understand them until they come to pass.  A prophecy is not only a warning, there is another purpose for prophecy.  Prophecy lets you know that after something happens that it was from God because he predicted it in a prophecy.  Take for instance Jesus majestic yet humble entrance into Jerusalem riding upon an ass.  Now, before Jesus came, no one was looking for a Messiah who would actually ride into Jerusalem on an ass—even though the prophecy was right there for 400 years for them to see.  But when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on an ass, it was then that those who studied the Scriptures knew that this one was The One.  That was the purpose of that prophecy.  Observe:

Matthew 21:1-9
21 And when they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, and were come to Bethphage, unto the mount of Olives, then sent Jesus two disciples,
2 Saying unto them, Go into the village over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me.
3 And if any man say ought unto you, ye shall say, The Lord hath need of them; and straightway he will send them.
4 All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying,
5 Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass.
6 And the disciples went, and did as Jesus commanded them,
7 And brought the ass, and the colt, and put on them their clothes, and they set him thereon.
8 And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, and strawed them in the way.
9 And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna
[oh save!] to the Son of David [an epithet (term) for The Messiah]: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest.  KJV

    The prophecy of this event was forecast in circa 410 B.C. by God's servant and prophet, Zechariah:

Zechariah 9:9
9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.  KJV

    And never doubt the Bible; the Bible is God's Word in the English language.  If we loose the Bible we have lost our instruction manual.  That is why the Judaics work so diligently to cast doubt on the written Word of God, the King James Bible (and none other in the English language).

   And make no mistake about it, the Scripture of the Bible is God-ordained:

2 Peter 1:19-21
19 We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:
20 Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.
21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.  KJV

    But some would say that "men corrupted the original Scriptures and we don't know that we have true Scripture today."  This is so wrong of them; for, it was GOD who was to preserve His Word, not man.  Below we see that it is GOD Himself who preserves His written Word.  That written Word is in your good old King James Bible.  Below we have the Holy Spirit-inspired promise that God always make sure that in every generation the faithful would an accurate copy of God's words to His mankind, specially His faithful, which today go by the name Christian, and no others:

Psalms 12:6-7
6 The words of the Lord are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.
7 Thou shalt keep them, O Lord, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.  KJV

    You will also notice that when "they" attack the validity, authenticity, and accurateness of the Bible, they attack the New Testament almost exclusively.  This is the hidden fingerprint of the antichrist Judaics.  They hate the Christian New Testament more than any written work on this Earth—hated even moreso than their compromised document, the Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion, which outlines how they planned to discredit the Christian churches and Christianity in general.  (PS: I know that "they" say that the Protocols is an "AntiSemitic forgery."  But they are lying about that.)

    Jesus prayed to God for us shortly before He was offered.  In that prayer He spoke of God's words and how that all those who later heard them would also come under the blessing.  This necessitated that God preserve those words:

John 17:11-20 [Jesus praying for us Christians of all times]
11 And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.
12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.
13 And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves.
14 I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
15 I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.
16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
18 As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them
[the prophets and apostles, and witnessing Christians] into the world.
19 And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.
20 Neither pray I for these alone
[those then living], but for them also which shall [later] believe on me through their [the prophets and apostles] word;  KJV

    Where then are those words which we shall be blessed by?  They are contained in the English language since A.D. 1611 in the King James Bible.  Before then they were in the Greek manuscripts, Greek then being a world language, as is English today.  English is the language of the intelligentsia globally.  (See also our: Adulterations in the Newer Bible Versions (NIV, NASB...); Proof that the King James Bible (KJV) is the True Word of God)

    Moreover, eighty times in the Bible the specific term, "it is written", is incorporated.  This is eighty confirmations that we would have the accurate Word of God even to this day.  Those passages are listed below:

Joshua 8:31
2 Samuel 1:18
1 Kings 2:3
2 Kings 23:21
2 Chronicles 23:18
2 Chronicles 25:4
2 Chronicles 31:3
2 Chronicles 35:12
Ezra 3:2
Ezra 3:4
Ezra 6:18
Nehemiah 8:15
Nehemiah 10:34
Nehemiah 10:36
Psalms 40:7
Isaiah 65:6
Daniel 9:13
Matthew 2:5
Matthew 4:4
Matthew 4:6
Matthew 4:7
Matthew 4:10
Matthew 11:10
Matthew 21:13
Matthew 26:24
Matthew 26:31
Mark 1:2
Mark 7:6
Mark 9:12
Mark 9:13
Mark 14:21
Mark 14:27
Luke 2:23
Luke 3:4
Luke 4:4
Luke 4:8
Luke 4:10
Luke 7:27
Luke 19:46
Luke 24:46
John 6:31
John 6:45
John 12:14
Acts 1:20
Acts 7:42
Acts 15:15
Acts 23:5
Romans 1:17
Romans 2:24
Romans 3:4
Romans 3:10
Romans 4:17
Romans 8:36
Romans 9:13
Romans 9:33
Romans 10:15
Romans 11:8
Romans 11:26
Romans 12:19
Romans 14:11
Romans 15:3
Romans 15:9
Romans 15:21
1 Corinthians 1:19
1 Corinthians 1:31
1 Corinthians 2:9
1 Corinthians 3:19
1 Corinthians 9:9
1 Corinthians 10:7
1 Corinthians 14:21
1 Corinthians 15:45
2 Corinthians 4:13
2 Corinthians 8:15
2 Corinthians 9:9
Galatians 3:10
Galatians 3:13
Galatians 4:22
Galatians 4:27
Hebrews 10:7
1 Peter 1:16

        But where "it is written"?  You know, it is written in God's Bible.  Never let any antichristian make you to doubt the Bible.  Satan and his minions want you to doubt the Bible, God and his faithful servants want that you believe it.  I know that you know that, but others shall be reading this who may need to hear it.

2 Timothy 3:13-17
13 But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.
14 But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them;
15 And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.  KJV

    And if I may use the old saying: Don't throw the baby out with the bath water.  And remember, it was with pastor Murray that you got your start in real Bible study.  Then you went off in Lance's direction because he promised something new and "deeper."  Then the problems began.  So, your solution is simple: go back to studying with pastor Murray and things will clear up for you.  There will be many more Lances as we move deeper into these end times, be double careful next time you are tempted to go off with a "new teacher" who basically called the long-time faithful servant of the Lord—pastor Arnold Murray—an antichrist.  How could you have allowed yourself to be deceived like that?  This is something that you are going to have to keep an eye on in the Tribulation.  Lance ain't got nothing on the ones that are coming—especially the antichrist.

Revelation 13:11-14
11 And I beheld another beast
[antichrist/satan] coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.
12 And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,
14 And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.  KJV

    You will be fine if you pray to God to clear the haze and confusion that you are experiencing.  Then I would suggest going back to studying with the one (pastor Murray) that used to make you see clearly before the other guy (pastor Lance Knight) rolled onto the scene confusing the heck out of everyone. 

    The way that you feel right now is exactly why I am so hard on Lance Knight for his false doctrine that hurt many people.  See our:

    And you may also be surprised that God would allow you to be deceived by Lance Knight and his false doctrine.  But you can't blame God.  God gave you the Scriptures so that you could check out any and every preacher and Bible teacher.  But you did not measure Lance's doctrine by the Bible—you couldn't have—for, most all of Lance's doctrine is foreign to the written Word of God.  He just "spiritualizes" everything, makes faulty analogies, and/or he says "this really means that" and then he tortures the Scriptures to make them seem to fit in with his doctrine.  Lance also played upon people's vanity.  This was done by making it seem that those who "get it" regarding what Lance was teaching were really higher thinkers, more holy, more "elect," and overall more spiritual Bible students.  But the truth of the matter is that those who "get it" regarding Lance's doctrine are simply deceived by the seducing spirits that accompanied "pastor" Lance Knight.   

    What's the first thing that you do when you are lost in the forest?  You go back to the last place that you recognize, the last place where you weren't lost.  You back track.  So, in short, go back to your roots and you will be back to normal in no time.

    Peace to you in Christ Jesus.

_______________________________________________________________________

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God bless the study of His Word; in Jesus Christ's Precious and powerful name!
Nick Goggin

 

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