ISAIAH 23

OPENS WITH The Burden Against Tyre & GOD'S PROMISE OF JUDGMENT AGAINST TYRE.

Verses 1-5 tell us the sailors of Tyre agonize when they hear of the destruction of their home port.

"The burden against Tyre. Wail, you ships of Tarshish! For it is laid waste, so that there is no house, no harbor; from the land of Cyprus it is revealed to them. Be still, you inhabitants of the coastland, you merchants of Sidon, whom those who cross the sea have filled. And on great waters the grain of Shihor, the harvest of the River, is her revenue; and she is a marketplace for the nations. Be ashamed, O Sidon; for the sea has spoken, the strength of the sea, saying, "I do not labor, nor bring forth children; neither do I rear young men, nor bring up virgins." When the report reaches Egypt, they also will be in agony at the report of Tyre."

The burden against Tyre..

SO WHO WAS AND WHERE WAS TYRE?

TYRE was to the north of Israel. Tyre was the leading city of Phoenecia, the great maritime power of the ancient world. Because it was such an important harbor and center for shipping, Tyre was synonymous with commerce and materialism.

Tyre was the "Babylon of the Sea." Because of their excellent harbor and seamanship, they established a commercial empire far greater than one would expect given their size and military power.

AND DID YOU KNOW?

Tyre was a city in two parts - an inland city, and an island city. The inland city was conquered by the Assyrians and the Babylonians, just as Isaiah prophesied. The island city was conquered later by Alexander the Great in 332 B.C..

AND THE BIBLE tells us Tyre was a mixed bag for Israel. King Hiram of Tyre supplied David and Solomon great timbers for the building of the temple and other projects. Hiram gave Solomon sailors so Israel could build their commerce by sea. But later, Tyre gave Israel one of the worst rulers Israel ever had: Jezebel, the wife of King Ahab of Israel.

There is no house, no harbor...Isaiah pictures sailors from Tyre in the land of Cyprus and in Egypt hearing of the destruction of the harbor of Tyre. When they hear the news, the wail and are in agony at the report of Tyre.

Verses 6-9 tell us the proud city of Tyre is humbled.

"Cross over to Tarshish; wail, you inhabitants of the coastland! Is this your joyous city, whose antiquity is from ancient days, whose feet carried her far off to dwell? Who has taken this counsel against Tyre, the crowning city, whose merchants are princes, whose traders are the honorable of the earth? The LORD of hosts has purposed it, to bring to dishonor the pride of all glory, to bring into contempt all the honorable of the earth."

HISTORY tells us Tyre was a city where MONEY ruled. The merchants are princes, and the traders are the honorable of the earth. To be a leader or honorable, one didn't need to be of royal heritage, a good or a honest man. The only thing needed was success in business!

The LORD of hosts has purposed it, to bring dishonor the pride of all glory...

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

Because of its great success, Tyre had become proud and full of self-glory. They gave THE LORD not a thought & never considered that ALL THEY HAD was due to THE LORD. SO the LORD of hosts has purposed to judge and humble Tyre, and Isaiah announces it.

JENNINGS says it well, "Pride, pride, pride, is that basic sin to which God is ever opposed, and man is ever expressing."

Verses 10-14 tells us of the destruction of the city of Tyre.

"Overflow through your land like the River, O daughter of Tarshish; there is no more strength. He stretched out His hand over the sea, He shook the kingdoms; the LORD has given a commandment against Canaan to destroy its strongholds. And He said, "You will rejoice no more, O you oppressed virgin daughter of Sidon. Arise, cross over to Cyprus; there also you will have no rest." Behold, the land of the Chaldeans, this people which was not; Assyria founded it for wild beasts of the desert. They set up its towers, they raised up its palaces, and brought it to ruin. Wail, you ships of Tarshish! For your strength is laid waste."

The Chaldeans … Assyria...

We KNOW the mainland CITY of Tyre was defeated by both the Assyrians and the Babylonians. AND Alexander The Great, conquered the ISLAND OF TYRE. They were EACH used by God to bring the city to ruin.

Verses 15-16 tell us of SEVENTY YEARS of desolation for the city of Tyre.

"Now it shall come to pass in that day that Tyre will be forgotten seventy years, according to the days of one king. At the end of seventy years it will happen to Tyre as in the song of the harlot: "Take a harp, go about the city, you forgotten harlot; make sweet melody, sing many songs, that you may be remembered."

Tyre WILL BE FORGOTTEN FOR SEVENTY YEARS...God's judgments are so precise that He decrees the exact number of years Tyre will be forgotten.

That you MAY BE remembered...Quoting what may have been a well-known song in his day, Isaiah makes the point that at the end of the seventy years appointed by God, Tyre WILL BE remembered again.

Verses 17-18 tells us God's PURPOSE in restoring the city of Tyre.

"And it shall be, at the end of seventy years, that the LORD will visit Tyre. She will return to her hire, and commit fornication with all the kingdoms of the world on the face of the earth. Her gain and her pay will be set apart for the LORD; it will not be treasured nor laid up, for her gain will be for those who dwell before the LORD, to eat sufficiently, and for fine clothing."

She will return to her hire...

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

God will allow Tyre, symbolized by a prostitute, to continue her gross materialism with all the kingdoms of the world. But Her gain and her pay will be set apart for the LORD; ultimately, the riches Tyre so desperately sought will be given to the LORD anyway.

The LORD WILL VISIT Tyre...Many commentators think this refers to the presence of Christianity in Tyre in the days of the early church.

CLARKE, a wonderful Bible historian tells us, "Tyre, after its destruction by Nebuchadnezzar, recovered, as it is here foretold, its ancient trade, wealth, and grandeur; as it did likewise after a second destruction by Alexander. It became Christian early with the rest of the neighboring countries. Paul himself found many Christian there, Acts 21:4. It suffered much in the Diocletian persecution. It continued Christian till it was taken by the Saracens in 639; was recovered by the Christians in 1124; but in 1280 was conquered by the Mamelukes and afterwards taken from them by the Turks in 1517. Since that time it has sunk into utter decay; is now a mere ruin, a bare rock, 'a place to spread nets upon,' as the Prophet Ezekiel foretold it should be, chapter 26:14."



ISAIAH 24

OPENS WITH The Character of the Judgment of the LORD & THE SCENE OF GOD'S JUDGMENT.

Verses 1-3 tells us the scope of the judgment of the LORD.

"Behold, the LORD makes the earth empty and makes it waste, distorts its surface and scatters abroad its inhabitants. And it shall be: As with the people, so with the priest; as with the servant, so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the lender, so with the borrower; as with the creditor, so with the debtor. The land shall be entirely emptied and utterly plundered, for the LORD has spoken this word."

Behold, the LORD makes the earth empty...

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

Isaiah invites us to behold, to look upon the scene of God's judgment. The principles revealed here apply universally to the judgment of the LORD, but the ultimate fulfillment of this will be in the ultimate period of judgment, the time of the Great Tribulation told to us in Matthew 24:21-22, which will immediately precede the second coming of Jesus Christ told to us in Matthew 24:29-30).

In the days of the Great Tribulation, the earth will not be literally empty, but Isaiah's poetic description applies, because the earth will seem empty in many places. More than one-third of humanity will die in the judgments of the great tribulation told to us in Revelation 9:15-21, making the areas hardest hit seem as if the earth were empty.

AND HOW MANY IS 1/3 OF THE EARTH'S POPULATION? TODAY THERE ARE OVER 7 BILLION PEOPLE ON THE FACE OF THE EARTH. GLOBALLY, THERE COULD BE AS MANY AS 1 BILLION JESUS LOVING, BELIEVING AND TRUSTING CHRISTIANS ON THE FACE OF THE EARTH. AFTER THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH, THAT WOULD LEAVE AN ESTIMATED 6 BILLION ON THE FACE OF THE EARTH. ONE THIRD OF 6 BILLION, MEANS 2 BILLION PEOPLE WILL DIE DURING THE GREAT TRIBULATION.

BULTEMA says it well,"The connection between these chapters and the preceding ones appear to be as follows: the judgments pronounced upon the various countries and nations in those chapters are drawn together here into a focal point. The specific divine judgments described there become here the general judgment upon the nations, which will take place when the Lord Jesus Christ with His Church will return to this earth."

AND THINK ABOUT THIS...THE LORD REMINDED ME, AS I WAS STUDYING THIS CHAPTER...THAT THE EARTH WILL BE EMPTY, AS FAR AS HE IS CONCERNED, BECAUSE HE WILL HAVE TAKEN HIS BRIDE, HIS CHURCH, HIS LIGHT FROM THE EARTH, AND HE WILL ALSO REMOVE HIS HOLY SPIRIT FROM THE FACE OF THE EARTH AT THE RAPTURE, SO THE REAL BEGINNING OF THE GREAT TRIBULATION CAN NOT BEGIN UNTIL HIS REDEEMED FAMILY IS SAFELY IN HEAVEN WITH HIM. WHAT WILL REMAIN ON THE EARTH IS THE BIBLE, THE TEACHINGS FROM THOSE WHO LOVED HIM AND SOUGHT TO SHINE AND SHOW HIM...AND A REMNANT...THE 144,000 VIRGIN, MALE JEWISH YOUNG MEN & THEY WILL BE SEALED AGAINST HARM TO PREACH TO THE LOST WORLD.

OTHERWISE, ALL THAT WILL REMAIN ARE THOSE WHO HAVE AT BEST HEAD FAITH, LIKE SATAN, WHO BELIEVES AND KNOWS AND HAS SEEN THE TRIUNE GOD, BUT REJECTS HIS SOVEREIGNTY.

HEAD FAITH FOR MANKIND IS FOR THOSE WHO BELIEVE THERE IS A CREATOR GOD, BEING, SOMETHING OUT THERE SOMEWHERE WHO CREATED ALL THINGS, BUT REJECTS THE SAVING REDEEMING GRACE, LOVE, AND BLOOD SACRIFICE OF JESUS CHRIST ON THE CROSS FOR MANKIND.

HEAD FAITH IS THE BELIEF THAT SINCE I AM A MEMBER OF A CHURCH, I FOLLOW ALL THEIR RULES, RITUALS, AND COMMANDS, & I LIVE A GOOD LIFE, I DO GOOD DEEDS, AND HAVE NOT HARMED ANOTHER SOUL...I BELIEVE IN GOD, BUT NOT IN JESUS CHRIST, THAT I WILL GO TO HEAVEN.

THAT IS THE SUBTLE TWISTING OF GOD'S WORD BY SATAN, TO MANKIND, AND TO MAN CREATED RELIGIONS...AND IT IS A LIE STRAIGHT FROM THE PIT OF HELL ITSELF.

BUT IS IT NOT PRECIOUS, HOW MUCH WE ARE LOVED BY OUR TRIUNE GOD, THAT IF WE ARE NOT IN A PLACE, THEN TO HIM THAT PLACE IS EMPTY...NEVER DOUBT HOW MUCH OUR LORD JESUS LOVES THOSE HE CALLS FRIEND AND FAMILY, AMEN?

AND HERE ISAIAH CONFIRMS THIS...

As with the people, so with the priest; as with the servant, so with his master...

In these comparisons, Isaiah shows that a high station in life (priest … master … mistress … seller) will not protect one from the judgments of the LORD. As well, a low station of life (borrower … debtor) will not protect one either. When the judgment of the Great Tribulation comes, it will be complete in its scope!

AND SATAN AND THOSE WHO KNOWINGLY OR UNKNOWINGLY HEAR AND BELIEVE HIS TWISTING WHISPERS TEACH AND BELIEVE...that the church, JESUS FAMILY will be left on the earth to endure the Great Tribulation.

THEY WRONGLY believe that God will miraculously protect Christians during that time, so they face none of the judgments of the LORD, only perhaps persecution from the Antichrist. But this passage reinforces the idea that the judgments of the LORD during the Great Tribulation will be universal in their scope, and that no class of people will be immune from the general judgment of the LORD.

Therefore, it makes sense for God to remove as His redeemed before this period of Great Tribulation, so only those who trust in Him during the Great Tribulation have to suffer under these judgments.

AND THINK ABOUT THIS, ALL THE OLD TESTAMENT PROPHETS HAVE BEEN WARNING OF THE GREAT TRIBULATION TO COME, BEFORE JESUS AND HIS DISCIPLES BEGAN WARNING OF IT, SO ALMIGHTY GOD HAS BEEN WARNING, PLEADING, URGING, SEEKING TO DRAW AND TO SAVE LOST MANKIND FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS...REPENT, CALL UPON THE NAME ABOVE ALL NAMES, AND YOU SHALL BE SAVED, AMEN?

Verses 4-6 GOD tells ISAIAH the reason for judgment.

"The earth mourns and fades away, the world languishes and fades away; the haughty people of the earth languish. The earth is also defiled under its inhabitants, because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant. Therefore the curse has devoured the earth, and those who dwell in it are desolate. Therefore the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men are left."

The earth mourns and fades away...
WHY DOES THE EARTH MOURN? Because in the Great Tribulation, the earth will be terribly afflicted by the judgments of the LORD. Revelation 8:7-13 describes the terrible effect of the judgments of the LORD upon the earth TOO.

SOME HAVE ASKED...Is this God's fault? Does God hate the earth?

THE ANSWER IS No, this is the fault of man. The earth is also defiled under its inhabitants. Man has defiled the earth with his sin and great wickedness, so the earth must endure some of the righteous judgment of God also. In this sense, the most ecologically responsible thing anyone could do is to honor the LORD God, walk right with Him, and in obedience to Him, AMEN!

This passage is a good reminder of the principle that God is greater than His creation.

AND IT CATEGORICALLY DISMISSES NEW AGE IDEOLOGIES.

The Bible NEVER teaches the New Age idea of God that He is somehow bound up together with what He has created. God is separate from His creation, and when the earth fades away, when the world fades away, the LORD God will remain unchanged, AMEN?

Because they have transgressed the laws...

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

The idea of transgression is to step over the line that God has established. God has set boundaries for us, but many of us don't want to see or respect God's boundaries.

AND SADLY, NOW MORE THAN EVER, LIKE SODOM AND GOMORRAH...Transgression is the spirit of our age. Notice the slogans from recent national advertising campaigns: Nothing is taboo … Break all the rules … To know no boundaries … Relax: No rules here … Peel off inhibitions. Find your own road … We are all hedonists and want to do what feels good … That's what makes us human … Living without boundaries … Just do it. The idea is constant: you don't have to respect God's boundaries, because you can make your own and live by them.

HOW MANY TODAY SIT IN THE WAITING PRISON OF HELL, BECAUSE THEY CHOSE TO TRUST AND BELIEVE THE AD CAMPAIGNS OF SATAN, RELIGIOSITIES, AND MANKIND?

Because they have … changed the ordinance.
DID YOU KNOW...The Hebrew word for ordinance here is TORAH, which often means the law of God and the word of God. Mankind is ripe for judgment because we have changed God's word into something "lighter," into something "more acceptable."

Mankind has changed the law of God in the sense of changing the basic moral code which men have recognized and lived by for centuries. When once it was universally recognized that it was wrong to lie, wrong to cheat, wrong to be sexually immoral, abortion is murder, sodomy is an abomination, it was wrong to do so many other things, today all of that is approved and celebrated! We have changed the ordinance, and are ripe for judgment!

Mankind has changed the word of God by replacing it with substitutes, or by fashioning it into something more suitable to his liking. Every time a preacher soft-peddles the gospel, every time a politician twists the Scriptures to rise in the opinion polls, every time a counselor wrenches the context of God's word to make it fit a crazy psychological theory, they have changed the ordinance, and are ripe for judgment!

Because they have … broken the everlasting covenant.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

God has entered into covenant with man, and man has turned his back on His covenant. Instead of receiving God's everlasting covenant, man wants to make up his own way with God!

There is no single covenant known as the everlasting covenant, because the title applies to SEVERAL different covenants.

The covenant God made with mankind after the flood, never to judge the world again by water is called an everlasting covenant told to us in Genesis 9:16.

The covenant God made with Abraham and his descendants is called an everlasting covenant told to us in Genesis 17:7, 13, 19).

The covenant God made with Israel and the priesthood is called an everlasting covenant told to us in Leviticus 24:8.

The covenant God made with David, to bring the Messiah from his line, is called an everlasting covenant told to us in 2 Samuel 23:5.

The New Covenant is called an everlasting covenant, both prophetically told to us in Jeremiah 32:40 and after its establishment told to us in Hebrews 13:20.

For ALL THESE REASONS, the curse has devoured the earth. Man's hardened, repeated REJECTION of God & HIS PRECIOUS SON JESUS CHRIST, will bring the ultimate judgment: the Great Tribulation.

MORGAN says it well, "Man has transgressed the laws, violated the statutes, and broken the covenant. For an interpretation of these words of Isaiah, read Paul - Romans 1:18-32."

MORGAN ADDS, "This is the interpretation of all disease, all insanity, all the things of waste, of disorder, of strife, of misery in human history and human experience. A polluted race pollutes the earth, and chaos is the result."

Verses 7-13 tells us the scene of judgment.

"The new wine fails, the vine languishes, all the merry-hearted sigh. The mirth of the tambourine ceases, the noise of the jubilant ends, the joy of the harp ceases. They shall not drink wine with a song; strong drink is bitter to those who drink it. The city of confusion is broken down; every house is shut up, so that none may go in. There is a cry for wine in the streets, all joy is darkened, the mirth of the land is gone. In the city desolation is left, and the gate is stricken with destruction. When it shall be thus in the midst of the land among the people, it shall be like the shaking of an olive tree, like the gleaning of grapes when the vintage is done."

All the merry-hearted sigh...WHEN THE RAPTURE COMES, THE LOST WORLD WILL CELEBRATE OUR DISAPPEARANCE. THEY WILL AT FIRST SHOUT....FREE AT LAST!!! BUT When the LORD brings the judgment of the Great Tribulation, there will be no more "partying as usual." The days for eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage told to us in Matthew 24:38 REMEMBER ARE BEFORE THE RAPTURE AND BEFORE the Great Tribulation. When the Great Tribulation comes, the noise of the jubilant ends, the joy of the harp ceases.

During the Great Tribulation, God's judgment will bring destruction EVERYWHERE...In the city desolation is left, and the gate is stricken with destruction. The judgment will be so complete that the cities will look like olive trees bare (like the shaking of an olive tree) and grape vines striped of everything (like the gleaning of grapes when the vintage is done). There will be NO BOMB SHELTERS, NO IVORY TOWERS, NO COMPOUNDS...THAT ARE SAFE FROM THE GREAT TRIBULATION.

Verses 14-16 tells us the glory of God and the woe of man.

"They shall lift up their voice, they shall sing; for the majesty of the LORD they shall cry aloud from the sea. Therefore glorify the LORD in the dawning light, the name of the LORD God of Israel in the coastlands of the sea. From the ends of the earth we have heard songs: "Glory to the righteous!" But I said, "I am ruined, ruined! Woe to me! The treacherous dealers have dealt treacherously, indeed, the treacherous dealers have dealt very treacherously."

They shall lift up their voice, they shall sing...Even in the midst of great judgment, God has His own that praise Him. Before the Great Tribulation, God will remove all His people; but WE NEED TO REMEMBER THAT MANY JEW AND GENTILE ALIKE come to trust in Jesus DURING the Great Tribulation, and these will praise Him in the midst of judgment told to us also in Revelation 7:9-14.

SOME HAVE ASKED...Why do they praise Him?

Because even in His judgments, or perhaps especially in His judgments, the LORD shows His majesty, He shows His glory. The godly can see the goodness, the greatness, and the glory of God even in judgment, even when the treacherous dealers have dealt very treacherously.

AND THEY ALSO REALIZE THAT THOUGH THEY DELAYED COMING TO JESUS BEFORE THE RAPTURE, THEY HAVE THE SWEET KNOWLEDGE THAT NO MATTER WHAT THEY FACE DURING THE GREAT TRIBULATION, THEY WILL TOO BE SAVED AND SPEND ETERNITY IN HEAVEN WITH JESUS, AMEN?

Verses 17-18 tells us the judgment of the LORD will always be completed.

"Fear and the pit and the snare are upon you, O inhabitant of the earth. And it shall be that he who flees from the noise of the fear shall fall into the pit, and he who comes up from the midst of the pit shall be caught in the snare; for the windows from on high are open, and the foundations of the earth are shaken."

O inhabitant of the earth...

SINCE WE HAVE STUDIED ALL OF REVELATION, we have the confirming of JOHN & JESUS IN The Book of Revelation, writing of this time of Great Tribulation, makes constant reference to those who dwell on the earth told to us in Revelation 3:10, 6:10, 11:10, 13:12, 13:14.
This is in contrast to those who dwell in heaven told to us in Revelation 13:6, & who are seated with Jesus in the heavenly places told to us in Ephesians 2:6.

SO THE QUESTION FROM ALMIGHTY GOD IN ISAIAH & REVELATION IS THIS..Where do you sit? Where do you live? Are you an inhabitant of the earth, or do you sit with Jesus in heavenly places?

Fear … pit … snare.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

Simply put, the judgment of the LORD is inescapable. If you escape the fear, you will fall into the pit. If you escape the pit, you will fall into the snare. God's judgment has enough back-up plans to catch EVERYONE WHO REJECTS HIM. The only way to escape the judgment of God is to satisfy it, and the only place God's judgment was ever satisfied was on the cross, THROUGH HIS PRECIOUS SON JESUS CHRIST, AMEN?

Verses 19-20 tells us the intensity of the judgment of the LORD touches everything.

"The earth is violently broken, the earth is split open, the earth is shaken exceedingly. The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall totter like a hut; its transgression shall be heavy upon it, and it will fall, and not rise again."

The earth is violently broken, the earth is split open...
The Bible describes some of this judgment during the Great Tribulation in Revelation 6:13-14, and specifically mentions a mighty and great earthquake as had not occurred since men were on the earth in Revelation 16:18). No wonder Isaiah says, the earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard!

Verses 21-23 tells us the judgment of the LORD will touch everyone.

"It shall come to pass in that day that the LORD will punish on high the host of exalted ones, and on the earth the kings of the earth. They will be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and will be shut up in the prison; after many days they will be punished. Then the moon will be disgraced and the sun ashamed; for the LORD of hosts will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem and before His elders, gloriously."

The LORD WILL PUNISH on high the host of exalted ones...

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

One of the more frustrating aspects of life is to see the rich, powerful wicked escape the present consequences of their sin. But in His great judgment during the Great Tribulation, no one will be able to buy a high-priced lawyer to escape judgment, or bribe a politician to come out without being hurt.

AND MANY BELIEVE GOD WAS ALSO TELLING ISAIAH THAT "THE EXALTED ONES" ALSO REFERS TO THE REBELLIOUS ANGELS OF SATAN'S ARMY that are judged at the end of the age, and imprisoned in the pit until the final rebellion at the end of the Millennium told to us in Revelation 20:1-10.

The kings of the earth … will be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit...

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

Under God's great and final judgment, one's status on this earth will buy them nothing. Poetically speaking, even the moon will be disgraced and the sun ashamed. No degree of earthly greatness will help man on that day, and no degree of heavenly greatness will help an angelic being on that day!

NO ONE AND NOTHING ESCAPES THE FINAL JUDGMENT OF ALMIGHTY GOD...ONLY THOSE WHO HIT THEIR KNEES, CRY OUT TO JESUS CHRIST TO SAVE THEM...WILL BE SAVED...ALL ELSE WILL HAVE CHOSEN THE LAKE OF FIRE ETERNITY.

CLARKE, A HISTORIAN says of this, "The image seems to be taken from the practice of the great monarchs of that time; who, when they had thrown their wretched captives into a dungeon, never gave themselves the trouble of inquiring about them; but let them lie a long time in that miserable condition, wholly destitute of relief, and disregarded."

Instead, the LORD of hosts will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem and before His elders, gloriously! At the end of the Great Tribulation, God will usher in a thousand years of His glorious reign over all the earth from Mount Zion and in Jerusalem. God's purpose in judgment isn't simple vengeance or vindictiveness, it is to bring about a glorious new world.

SO ONCE AGAIN, FOR THOSE OF US WHO HAVE PEOPLE WHO BELIEVE AND TRUST IN THE OLD TESTAMENT AND NOT THE NEW TESTAMENT, SEND THEM TO ISAIAH 24. IT PERFECTLY MIRRORS THE NEW TESTAMENT...THOUSANDS OF YEARS BEFORE JESUS WALKED THE FACE OF THE EARTH.