The Second Exodus

"About 3466 years ago God performed an amazing miracle when He freed a slave people from Egypt and made them a nation in their own right. The crossing of the Red Sea was another tremendous miracle that the God of Israel performed. Each year, at the Feast of Unleavened Bread we commemorate the deliverance of our people Israel from Egypt, particularly with the Night to Be Much Observed when they first came out of Egypt with a high hand. We look to that event because it is a type of our own spiritual lives, our coming out of this world and our exodus out of Satan’s world into the Promised Land of God’s Church. The Feast of Unleavened Bread concluded with this climactic event – the crossing of the Red Sea!

Just as the first Exodus occurred in 1446 B.C., it is also going to occur again with the return of Jesus Christ and the establishment of the Kingdom of God on this Earth. Once again, the remnant of Israel is going to cross the Red Sea, but this time on a far more massive scale. The events of the Second Exodus of Israel will eclipse those of the First Exodus because they will be far more dramatic. Then, in the World to come, those who come in the Second Exodus will study the events of the First Exodus in their Bibles. They will have that historical record to look at, that precursor of the far greater Second Exodus of Israel.

Let us turn to Isaiah, chapter 11, because we are going to see 7 similarities between these two Exoduses, one historic and the other prophetic. We will learn some things about the Second Exodus from the First. In Isaiah 11:15 it says,

“And the Lord shall utterly destroy the tongue of the Egyptian sea;” – on the map we can see that the tongue of the Egyptian sea is referring to what is now called the Gulf of Suez; the prophecy says that, after the return of Jesus Christ, God is going to utterly destroy the tongue of the Egyptian sea. The people of Israel walked into their captivity in Egypt. In a future time, they will be able to cross that Red Sea just as their forefathers did in the past – “…and with his mighty wind shall he shake his hand over the river” - most commentaries feel this is referring to the Euphrates River – “and shall smite it in the seven streams, and make men go over dry-shod”.

Translators generally feel that what is going to happen here is that the great Euphrates River will be reduced to the seven small streams that can be easily crossed on foot. They may be correct in believing that the river referred to here is the Euphrates. In part, they choose the Euphrates based on the next verse, verse 16:

“And there shall be a highway for the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria” - because the ancient Assyria was in the area of the Euphrates, though the modern day Assyria is Germany and Austria in central Europe - “like as it was to Israel in the day that he came up out of the land of Egypt”.

It says, “Like as it was” because the history is about to repeat itself, and it is going to repeat itself on a far greater scale!

The commentaries may be correct in believing that the river referred to in Isaiah 11:15 is the Euphrates because the Hebrew expression can be also translated as “shall smite it into seven streams”. But it is interesting to look at the mouth of the Nile in Lower Egypt. The river Nile, as it begins to enter the Mediterranean sea, breaks up into seven streams. So this verse may be talking about the Nile and “I will smite it in those seven streams” may be talking about those Israelites to the west of the Nile who will be able to go over that section of the Nile, the mouth of the Nile close to the Mediterranean, and be able to go over it dry-shod. Which river is this prophecy referring to we cannot exactly prove. It may refer to both. But we know for certain that the Euphrates is to be dried up during the Day of the Lord as it says in Revelation 16:12. The sixth plague of the seventh trumpet will be when the great Euphrates is completely dried up to allow the passage of the most massive army in all of human history – 200 million men out of Asia!

Zechariah, chapter 10 and beginning in verse 10. Let us review three scriptures that refer to the crossing of the Red Sea once again! Isaiah 11:15 is first of all where God said that He would smite the tongue of the Egyptian Sea, referring to the Gulf of Suez. Today’s English Version of the Bible says: “The Lord will dry up the Gulf of Suez, and he will bring a [mighty] wind to dry up the Euphrates, leaving only seven tiny streams, so that anyone can walk across”.

Zechariah 10:11 is speaking of Israel. In fact, Zechariah 10 is a Second Exodus chapter. We will come back to it later. Right now, we are focusing on the future crossing of the Red Sea. It says about Israel in verse 10:

“He shall pass through the sea with affliction” - better translation would be “He shall pass through the sea of affliction” or “the sea of distress” because Israel was greatly distressed when they faced the Red Sea. Why is “the sea of affliction” or “the sea of distress” a better translation? Because Israel was greatly distressed on that day when they faced the Red Sea. They had the mountains on one side, the army of Pharaoh coming down behind them and the Red Sea. They had no way to escape this army. So, at that sea, the Red Sea was a day of great distress and mental affliction for Israelites because they believed that they were trapped. But here in future times Israel will again pass through the sea of distress, the Red Sea.

“…and shall smite the waves in the sea, and all the deeps of the river shall dry up:”

Here, in this particular case, most commentaries believe that the river referred to is the Nile. Now, if they are correct, then three great bodies of water are going to experience being dried up on the Day of the Lord and at the return of Jesus Christ: the Gulf of Suez, the Nile and the Euphrates. “…and the pride of Assyria shall be brought down, and the scepter of Egypt shall depart away”.

Isaiah 43, beginning in verse 1, is another Second Exodus scripture.

Isaiah 43:1-2: “But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob, And He who formed you, O Israel: "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; You are Mine”. Israel will be God’s once again!

“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;” - the waters of the Nile or the waters of the Euphrates, but particularly the Red Sea. God will be with His people in the Second Exodus through the rivers, the Nile, perhaps the Euphrates. Some of the modern Israelites may end up in captivity in Asia also because they will be sold as slaves around the world to all nations, though they will be concentrated in slavery in certain areas of the world, as we are going to see in a moment –

“…they shall not overflow you”. This is the Second Exodus. Israelites are going to cross bodies of water once again. And it may not just be the Nile or the Euphrates or the Gulf of Suez. Maybe God will dry up the Danube for His people and other rivers that stand in their path on their way back to the Promised Land, because the so-called lost Israel will be coming from all over the world!

“When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned…” Our fire is a type of trial, so it is symbolic. But the House of Israel, in one sense, is not being tried anymore. They have come out of their Great Tribulation. They are now a free people, in the Second Exodus, on their way back to the Promised Land. But there will be those who will oppose them. Yet, no bullets and no flame throwers will be able to have any effect upon the returning Israel!

“When thou walk through the fire, you shall not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon you”, no matter what military armaments the “Beast” or other nations may use to try to stop the returning Israel on its way back to the Promised Land! No military weapon will be able to stop their marching home. “When thou walk through the fire, you shall not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon you”.

Verse 3 and 4: “For I am the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior: I gave Egypt for your ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for you. Since you were precious in My sight, You have been honored, And I have loved you; Therefore I will give men for you” - I will put others to death that this remnant of Israel might live! “I will give men for you, and people for your life”.

Verses 5-7: “Fear not, for I am with you; I will bring your seed from the east, And gather you from the west; I will say to the north, Give up; and to the south, Keep not back: bring my sons from far, and my daughters from the ends of the earth; Even every one that is called by my name: for I have created him for my glory” - Israel will be used as a tool, an instrument in God’s hands for God’s glory in the World to come! “I have formed him; yes, I have made him”.

Clearly, this is not the First Exodus because Israel then came only out of Egypt. In this passage, the prophecy says, “bring your seed from the east, from the west, from the north, from the south, from the ends of the earth!” In this great slave trade of the Great Tribulation, modern Israelites will be sold as slaves into all nations! And each will be making individual ways as well as group ways on their return to the Promised Land. History is going to repeat itself on a far more dramatic and grander scale! We are examining the history about to unfold before us and to see how Israel’s second deliverance is to take place.

As I mentioned, there are 7 similarities between the First Exodus and the Second because, indeed, we learn about the Second from the First.

1. Similarity number 1 is that a good portion of modern day Israel is going to be, once again, in the land of Egypt, even though they are not conquered by Egypt. They will be conquered by German-led United States of Europe. Deuteronomy 28 is one of the chapters on blessings and curses. Among the prophetic curses we find these statements in Deuteronomy 28:36-48:

"The [Eternal] will bring you and the king whom you set over you” - whatever government it is that modern Israel would have in the end time - “unto a nation which neither you nor your fathers have known, and there you shall serve other gods — wood and stone”.

In that time Israel did not know the Assyrian Empire in the sense of being a part of it. Abraham had come out of the Euphrates region and Assyria was to become a great nation later toward the end of Israel’s history and take them into a second captivity. The first one was to Egypt in the book of Exodus and then later on to Assyria. But this prophetic verse applies to the end-time captivity. This is what God says primarily to the Israelites with the birthright, that is the British Commonwealth nations and the United States of America, “I will bring you to a nation which neither you nor your fathers have known”. Well, those two nations have known of Germany, a country they defeated in both world wars. But in those world wars they did not know the new nation that is now being formed in Europe, currently named European Union which is soon to become the United States of Europe. The coming United States of Europe will be a resurrection of the Roman Empire, but different in many ways. It is a new nation. It has never had such a name before. Let us notice verse 49:

“The Lord will bring a nation against you from afar, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flies” - the national emblem of Germany and Austria is the eagle! “As swift as the eagle flies” because the Germans are famous for their blitzkrieg maneuvers; “…a nation whose language you will not understand,” - German is mostly unknown language among the modern Israelites that hold the birthright promises, British, Canadians, Australians, New Zealanders and United States of America.

Verse 50: “a nation of fierce countenance, which does not regard the person of the old or show favor to the young”.

Germany exemplified itself as such a nation in the Second World War with the concentration camps and death camps. Serbian nation was twice occupied by Germans in both World Wars, and we still remember vividly that fierce countenance of Germany! The Anglo-Saxon nations have never had Germans occupy their lands. This is the prophetic verse in which God says that Britain and America primarily are to be defeated by the coming German-led United States of Europe.

Verse 68: “And [God] shall bring you into Egypt”. Britain and America won’t be conquered by Egypt! Egypt is to later be conquered by the German-led Europe when the prophesied King of the south pushes against the King of the north. The King of the south will then be defeated and Egypt will become a colony of Europe. But, following the coming Anglo-Saxon nations’ defeat by the German-led Europe, a good portion of British and Americans will be taken down into Egypt probably to be used as slave laborers, just as Israelites were in ancient time used for building the treasured cities of Pithom and Rameses.

“And the Lord shall bring you into Egypt again” - but not the way they went the first time; the first time they walked - “the Lord shall bring you into Egypt again with ships”. That prophecy written at the time of Moses has never been fulfilled. In all of Israel’s history, the Israelites have never been taken to Egypt in ships! Many Americans are to be taken across the Atlantic Ocean in ships and through the Strait of Gibraltar to Egypt to do great work projects of the “Beast” in that part of the world.

“The [Eternal] shall bring you into Egypt again the Lord shall bring you into Egypt again with ships, by the way whereof I spoke to thee, you shalt see it no more again: and there shall you be sold unto your enemies for bondmen and bondwomen, and no man shall buy you”.

No one shall buy you back, that is a prophecy. This prophecy says to modern Britain, America and other Israelites in Scandinavia, France and Benelux: you will not be redeemed! It will be a permanent slavery for you unless Jesus Christ returned to deliver His people! That is the first similarity between this Exodus to come and the one of old: some of modern Israelites will be in Egypt once again.

2. The second similarity is found in Exodus chapter 7.

Exodus 7:1: “So [God] said to Moses: "See, I have made you a god to Pharaoh, and Aaron your brother shall be your prophet (that is, your spokesman)”. Two men were to go before Pharaoh to speak on behalf of those Israelites in captivity in Egypt.

Verse 2: “You shalt speak all that I command you: and Aaron your brother shall speak unto Pharaoh, that he shall send the children of Israel out of his land”.

Verse 3: “And I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and multiply my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt”.

Verse 4: “But Pharaoh shall not hearken unto you, that I may lay my hand upon Egypt, and bring forth mine armies (or my hosts), and my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great judgments”.

Verse 5: “And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I stretch forth mine hand upon Egypt, and bring out the children of Israel from among them”.

Once again, many peoples in the world will know that God is the God of Israel when He stretches forth His hand upon Egypt and upon other nations to bring out His people in the great future Second Exodus. Pharaoh was a type of the “Beast”, of the coming European dictator. Moses and Aaron were a type of the two witnesses. The Two Witnesses will go to the “Beast” of Europe, particularly during the Day of the Lord when the Tribulation of modern Israelites is complete! During that one year of the Day of the Lord they will have the same message to the “Beast” that Moses and Aaron had to Pharaoh, “Let my people go!”

Verse 16: “And you shall say to him, 'The Lord God of the Hebrews has sent me to you, saying, "Let My people go”.

Turn to Revelation, chapter 11. The Two Witnesses will prophesy for three and a half years. The major thrust of their message during the final year prior to Christ’s return will be to the rulers of the nations that hold Israelites captive and particularly to the Beast and to the False Prophet, “Let God’s people go!” The heart of the “Beast” and the heart of the “False Prophet” will be hardened! Moreover, the hearts of all the other rulers will be like Pharaoh’s. God will exact great judgments against them to force their hand. And they, like Pharaoh, will finally relent.

Revelation 11:3: “And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth”

Verse 5 “And if any man will hurt them, fire proceeds out of their mouth, and devours their enemies” - like Elijah of old, they will have power to call fire down from heaven. Elijah slew 100 men that way – two bands of fifty. These two men will have the same power - “…and if any man will hurt them” - if any man tries to oppose these Two Witnesses “he must in this manner be killed”.

Verse 6: “These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy” – that is the same power that Elijah had, but also the same power that Moses and Aaron had because it goes on to say – “and have power over waters to turn them to blood (the first of the ten plagues upon Egypt) and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will” (just as Moses and Aaron smote Egypt with different plagues).

So, these Two Witnesses will be doing a work of preaching God’s Gospel message to the world. And particularly, during the final year, their message to the rulers of the world will be, “Let God’s people go!” Time after time the rulers will refuse and the Two Witnesses, alike Moses and Aaron, will call for a different plague upon those nations; plague after plague until finally those nations come to the point of relenting. Though, even then, in certain areas Israel will have to force its way out, as we are going to see.

The first similarity is that a good portion of captured Israel will be in Egypt. The second similarity is that there will be two men working for them to bring them out of captivity, the Two Witnesses.

3. The third similarity is the timing of the Exodus. The timing is given to us in Isaiah, chapter 27. Israel left Egypt on the first Day of Unleavened Bread. Here in Isaiah 27, the indications are given that Jesus Christ will return on a Feast of Trumpets. The Feast of Trumpets symbolizes His return. And it is most likely that He was born on the Feast of Trumpets. He certainly was born around that time of year. We can prove that from the Bible although the Bible does not give us the exact day. But the similarity would be that both Exoduses begin with a Holy Day of God, a day of special deliverance. With the Feast of Unleavened Bread, we are delivered from the world and Israel of old was delivered from Egypt. With the Feast of Trumpets, Jesus Christ returns to deliver humankind from itself and, it would seem from this scripture, to deliver His people from captivity.

Isaiah 27:12: “And it shall come to pass in that day, that the [Eternal] shall beat off from the channel of the river to the stream of Egypt, and you shall be gathered one by one, O you children of Israel”.

As one translation puts it, the time will come when God will gather them one by one like handpicked grain, selecting them from His great threshing floor that reaches all the way from the Euphrates River to the Egyptian boundary. Because the Israel of the World to come will be a larger nation than the Israel in the Promised Land that we have known in the past.

Verse 13 “And it shall come to pass in that day, that the great trumpet shall be blown, (the last, seventh trumpet of Revelation) and they shall come which were ready to perish in the land of Assyria (because a good portion of modern Israel will be in central Europe, in Germany) and the outcasts in the land of Egypt”. Assyria and Egypt will be the two major concentrations of Israel during the Great Tribulation! The Great Tribulation will last two and a half years, followed by one-year Day of the Lord! Just as Israel of old time suffered a captivity in Egypt and a captivity in Assyria! This time, in the coming Great Tribulation, also called Jacob’s trouble, those two captivities will be side by side. The greater portion of captured British and Americans will be in Europe and in Egypt, although others will be scattered, sold as slaves around the world.

We have just read that “it shall come to pass in that day, that the great trumpet shall be blown” - the seventh trumpet that in the book of Revelation heralds the return of Jesus Christ – “and they shall come which were ready to perish in the land of Assyria, and the outcasts in the land of Egypt, and shall worship [God] in the holy mount at Jerusalem”.

So, the third similarity indicated is the Holy Day. The first Exodus occurred on a Holy Day, during the Days of Unleavened Bread. The Second Exodus may also occur on a Holy Day. Again, the timing is given to us in Isaiah 27. It is not, however, going to be during the Feast of Unleavened Bread if this scripture is intended to be taken literally. They left Egypt on the first Day of Unleavened Bread. Here, in Isaiah 27 the indications are given and we believe that Jesus Christ will return on a Feast of Trumpets. He doesn’t have to. The Feast of Trumpets just symbolizes His return. But it could well be that He comes back on the literal day just as it could well be that He was born on a Feast of Trumpets. But the similarity would be - if it is the Feast of Trumpets - that with both Exoduses they begin with a Holy Day of God, a day of special deliverance. With the Feast of Unleavened Bread we are delivered from the world and Israel of old was delivered from Egypt. With the Feast of Trumpets, Jesus Christ returns to deliver humankind from itself.

4. The fourth similarity is that Israelitish people will be spared the seven last plagues. Exodus chapter 8, verse 22 and 23 tell us that after the first three plagues of the ten that came upon Egypt, God said to Pharaoh that He would perform an extra miracle.

Exodus 8:22-23: „And I will sever in that day the land of Goshen, in which my people dwell, that no swarms of flies shall be there; to the end thou mayest know that I am the LORD in the midst of the earth. And I will put a division between my people and thy people: tomorrow shall this sign be“.

The land of Goshen was located east of the Nile River. Israelites did not have to cross it when they lived in the land of Goshen. They were living east of it. If the Nile is dried up in the future, it will mean that some of Israelites are west of the Nile. But God said He would set apart the land of Goshen from the seven remaining plagues of the ten.

In Revelation 18 we find that Israel in the future, at the return of Jesus Christ, is spared the seven last plagues. Because when the seventh trump sounds heralding the deliverance of Israel by Jesus Christ, the seven last plagues are poured upon nations but particularly upon the “Beast” power. Revelation 18:4:

“And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues”.

It is talking about “Babylon” as we can see from preceding scriptures. So, Israel of old was protected from the last seven of the ten plagues upon Egypt. Likewise, they will be protected from the seven last plagues of the book of Revelation.

5. The fifth similarity: Israel of old, Exodus 14 and verse 8, came out of Egypt with a high hand. So it will be in the Second Exodus. Isaiah 52, verse 11. A good portion of Isaiah 52 talks about the Second Exodus. The first six verses very clearly speak about Israel’s coming captivity and Israel’s deliverance in the coming Second Exodus. Verse 7 and 8 speak about this work of God - preaching the Good News of the coming Kingdom of God and the return of Jesus Christ. Verse 9 and 10 tell modern Israelites to rejoice in the deliverance which will come to them. Because, as it says in the latter part of verse 10: “And all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God”. Notice verse 11 and 12:

“Depart you, depart you, go you out from thence, touch no unclean thing;” As we read in Revelation 18:4, they are called out of “Babylon” and not to be a partaker of her sins so they might be delivered from the seven last plagues. So here: “Depart you, depart you, go you out from thence, touch no unclean thing; get you out of the midst of her; be you clean, that bear the vessels of the Lord”. This was fulfilled in type with Ezra’s exodus out of captivity from Babylon. Ezra bore the vessels of God because they had been taken from the temple of Solomon to Babylon. Cyrus permitted the returning Jews to take those vessels back for the building of Zerubbabel’s temple. But the overall context shows that, even though this was fulfilled in type historically by Ezra, the main part of this prophecy actually remains for the Second Exodus to come.

Verse 12: “For ye shall not go out with haste, nor go by flight: for [God] will go before you; and the God of Israel will be your rear guard”.

With the pillar of fire and the cloud that sheltered Israel before they were to cross the Red Sea, God was their rear guard and protected them. But He also led them out of Egypt and led them through the wilderness.

Yes, Israel did eat the Passover in haste. And it is true that the Egyptians tried to push Israel out because they said, “for we be all dead men” after the tenth plague when the firstborn were killed. But Israel did not go out by flight. They did not flee Egypt. They went out in an orderly manner on the first day of Unleavened Bread. And so again, modern day Israelites will not go out with haste and by flight. They won’t be fleeing from Assyria. They will be walking out because God will go before them and the God of Israel will be their rear guard. Then, this chapter goes on to say about the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. The next chapter also deals with Jesus Christ’s crucifixion in the context of the Second Exodus because the first Exodus had occurred during the Feast of Unleavened Bread, following the Passover. In the Second Exodus, God, who is to go before them and be their rear guard, will be Jesus Christ Himself who died for them and was returned at the Feast of Trumpets. At His return, when the great trumpet is blown, they will be brought out of their captivity.

So, Israel once again is going to go out with a high hand. It is interesting that Isaiah 52 ties in the Second Exodus with the Passover sacrifice of Jesus Christ because He is the God that brought about the first Exodus and will also lead the Second!

6. The sixth similarity is that there are going to be tremendous miracles once again, even greater than those that took place during the first Exodus. Micah chapter 7, and beginning in verse 12:

“In that day also he shall come even to you from Assyria, and from the fortified cities, and from the fortress even to the river, and from sea to sea, and from mountain to mountain”.

Some commentaries believe that “he shall come” is referring to Israel coming back to Jerusalem. This is how Today’s English Version puts it: “Your people will return to you from everywhere — from Assyria in the east, from Egypt in the south, from the region of the Euphrates River, from distant seas and far-off mountains” - because they will have been scattered around the world.

Verse 15 “According to the days of thy coming out of the land of Egypt (the first time) will I show to him marvelous things”.

History is going to repeat itself, “According to the days of thy coming out of the land of Egypt” - God performed great miracles of deliverance back then. He will show the modern Israelites marvelous things in the future. He will perform great miracles for them as He will be bringing the remnant of the 12 tribes back to their Promised Land. Great miracles again - this is the sixth similarity. One of those great miracles we mentioned was the future crossing of the Red Sea. We should not be surprised if God has future Israel cross the Red Sea at the exact same location that ancient Israel crossed it. Perhaps – and this is only speculation - the forces of the “Beast” occupying Egypt may come after those Israelites at the Red Sea in the same place where they were trapped in ancient times. And God will open up the Red Sea exactly as He did before. The forces of the “Beast” may come after the people of Israel in other areas. As they begin to escape, they might try to overtake them and to destroy them, just as when the Philadelphian remnant of the Church of God flees and European forces will come after it and the Bible shows in the book of Revelation that the earth is going to open its mouth and that European army is going to be swallowed up. Again, this is only a speculation. But one thing is certain - great and marvelous things are to be done for Israel once again!

Isaiah 48 indicates another miracle that will be performed at that time. Verse 20 is speaking about a historical event, but we are learning about the Second Exodus from the First. Undoubtedly, this that happened back then will be repeated. Isaiah 48:20-21:

“Go you forth of Babylon, flee you from the Chaldeans, with a voice of singing declare you, tell this, utter it even to the end of the earth;” - the Second Exodus when all humankind is involved in what has been done to Israel - “…say you, That [God] has redeemed his servant Jacob”.

“And they thirsted not when he led them through the deserts: he caused the waters to flow out of the rock for them:” - a miracle that was performed by God through Moses – “he clave the rock also, and the waters gushed out”.

No wonder God is going to show Israel marvelous things again. There are deserts that they will have to cross to get back to the Promised Land. There will be wildernesses created out of the warfare of the coming three and a half years of the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord. God will have to provide special miracles to feed them and to take care of their thirst. And so, verse 21, though it is harking back to a historical event, does so in the context of the future Exodus. There will be times when the leaders of those people will smite the rock and water will come out for them.

So, the sixth similarity is the duplication of the great miracles and, undoubtedly, even greater miracles than before and certainly more extensive miracles because the scope is going to be far vaster with the Second Exodus than it was for the First. The First involved coming out of one nation. The Second Exodus involves coming from the four corners of the earth!

7. Here is the seventh similarity: it is indicated that Israel will be organized to a certain extent into armies once again. It is only indicated because there are scriptures that teach us that Israel when they come out of captivity, will fight their enemies.

In Exodus 13 and verse 18, it says that Israel came up out of Egypt harnessed. Literally, in the Hebrew, it says “five abreast”. They came out in ranks because Moses, before the forty years he spent as a shepherd, had been a great and famous general for the Egyptian people and had defeated Ethiopia to the south of them with a great and tremendous victory. In fact, Josephus says that he was given the title “The General”. God gave him that training so that when he would bring about three million people out of Egypt, with his army and military training there would not be a mass confusion. To bring three million people out of Egypt and take them to the Red Sea and then through the wilderness - that had to be properly organized. God is an organized God. So, Moses was given special training and later on Israel, because of their lack of faith, had to fight in the wilderness and fight their way into the Promised Land.

Now, it is strange that the modern Israelites who survived the coming Great Tribulation and came out in the Second Exodus would be allowed by God to fight as soldiers against their enemies. We do not fully understand it. We can only have certain speculations based on what it says in the Bible. Perhaps such scriptures are to be interpreted symbolically. But if we read them at face value, it does indicate that, when Jesus Christ returns, the people who come out of captivity will fight against their enemies.

Zechariah 14, verse 14. This verse has nothing to do with the Second Exodus, but it will lay the groundwork for this seventh and final similarity. Zechariah 14 is speaking about the return of Jesus Christ. It speaks about the destruction of the armies of Europe and Asia that will be gathered together in the great valley of Jehoshaphat outside of Jerusalem. This great battle is for control of the future capital of the world, Jerusalem. It speaks of the special plague that God will pour out upon those European and Asiatic armies that joined together when they our ready to fight each other to death in the world genocide. From verse 12 on, it talks about the battle of the great day of God Almighty. Zechariah 14:14 says,

“And Judah also shall fight at Jerusalem;”

This is the point where Jesus Christ is to come to the Mount of Olives. He is about to fight the enemies of God in the Valley of Jehoshaphat. Now, it is strange to think of the remnant of Israel being allowed to fight. Jesus Christ said in John 18:36 that His servants could not fight. “Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence”.

Several Greek words are translated in King James as “world”. One of them “aion” means “age”. When the disciples said, “What is the sign of Your coming and the end of the world” the Greek word is “age”. They were asking not for the end of the world, but actually the end of the age. In Matthew, when the Gospel is to be preached in all the world, another Greek word is used meaning the civilized, inhabited world. The Gospel was not to be preached to the jungles and remote areas, but to the civilized areas of the world. It had particular reference to the Roman Empire. In other words, we go to the literate peoples of the world because the illiterate people (who live in jungles and swamps) could not understand it even if we took it to them.

The word used here in John 18 and verse 36 is “kosmos”, which means the world as created by God. We could say “planet earth”. “My kingdom is not of this kosmos”, the earth as created by God. Yet, we know that Jesus Christ’s Kingdom in the future is going to be of this kosmos. It is going to be down here on planet earth. But at that time His Kingdom was not of this world. “But now is My Kingdom not from here”. So, where is it from? It is from heaven. That is why it is called the Kingdom of heaven because that is where it is coming from down to this earth. And His Kingdom will be on this world in a future age. It will be on this kosmos. And when Jesus Christ returns, He doesn’t return as the Lamb of God! He returns as the Lion of Judah to tear the prey into pieces. Jesus Christ, who was a conscientious objector back then, is coming back to fight and to make war. He rides a white horse with robe dipped in blood. And He has angelic armies who are going to fight with Him. We also will fight. We will have a part in destroying those who are contrary to God.

Now, this still does not explain why Israel would be allowed to fight because, in essence, they don’t really need to if we are going to do the fighting for them and destroy their enemies. Several scriptures indicate that we will fight. They may have simply spiritual application. But the one that we have just read is Zechariah 14:14 seems pretty clear.

The remnant of Israel will be like ancient Israel when they came out of Egypt. They were unconverted people and they didn’t have enough faith to trust God to fight their battles for them. These people coming out of captivity are also unconverted at this point and they also may lack faith. That is why God may have them fight not just for their own benefit, but also for the benefit of the Gentiles. To teach the Gentiles some very important lessons – that these people were physically helpless and powerless before them and now suddenly they are invincible! Nobody on the face of the earth, despite the unbelievable technological advances of this century, can destroy these slave people! God may use it as a tremendous witness to the nations.

Once Israel is converted in the World to come, we don’t see them fighting. We notice in Ezekiel 38, that when Gog and Magog come down to invade the new nation of Israel, there is no indication then that the Israelites are fighting against their enemy. It talks only of God doing great plagues and destruction upon those Asiatic armies that invade the Middle East at that time.

Let us read some other scriptures. Isaiah chapter 11 and beginning in verse 10. Let us take a look at some of the wars that it is indicated Israel coming out of captivity will fight. This first war is against the Arabs.

Isaiah 11:10-16: “And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious. 11 And it shall come to pass in that day, that [God] shall set his hand again the second time (for the Second Exodus) to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, (the two major locations, but also) from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. (From the different continents of the world.)

12 And he shall set up an ensign for the nations and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.

13 The envy also of Ephraim shall depart, and the adversaries of Judah shall be cut off: Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim”.

There will no longer be a northern kingdom and a southern kingdom. They will be united as one under the rulership of King David in the Kingdom of God. But notice, in their Second Exodus on their way back to their homeland.

Verse 14 “But (together, Judah and Ephraim) they shall fly upon the shoulders of the Philistines toward the west (who live by the Mediterranean); they shall spoil them of the east together: they shall lay their hand upon Edom and Moab; and the children of Ammon shall obey them”.

One translation says, “The kingdom of Israel will not be jealous of Judah anymore. And Judah will not be the enemy of Israel. Together they will attack the Philistines on the west and plunder the people who live to the east and they will conquer the people of Edom and Moab and the people of Ammon will obey them”. “Upon the shoulders”, Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown comment that “this expresses an attack made unexpectedly on one from behind. The image is more apt in Hebrew for shoulders is also shown to refer in Numbers to a maritime coast”. The Philistines dwelt on a maritime coast, the shoulders of Canaan. Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown go on to say, “They shall make a sudden victorious descent upon the borders of the Philistines southwest of Judea”. Another translation of verse 14 in Isaiah 11 says: “Together they will fly against the nations possessing their land on the east and on the west, uniting forces to destroy them”.

So, these scriptures indicate that the remnant of Israel is going to be allowed to fight this one war at least at this time; allowed to fight to conquer the Philistines in the Gaza Strip and to force the surrounding Arabic nations into submission. Here is what it says in verse 16 in the latter part:

“like as it was to Israel in the day that he came up out of the land of Egypt”.

History is to repeat itself. But there is another portion of Israel coming out of the north, out of Europe. And the Bible indicates that they also will fight a war. When they cross the Dardanelles into modern-day Turkey they will fight a war against the Turks. Obadiah, beginning in verse 10. Obadiah is a prophecy about the fate of modern-day Edom. A part of Edom resides in Asia Minor known as Turkey today.

Obadiah 10-14: “For your violence against your brother Jacob shame shall cover you, and you shall be cut off forever.

11 In the day that you stood on the other side, in the day that the strangers carried away captive his forces, and foreigners entered into his gates and cast lots upon Jerusalem, even you were as one of them”.

This had historical fulfillment with Nebuchadnezzar’s invasion. But the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem. A time is coming when they will just cast lots upon it. And Jerusalem will be occupied by the powers of the “Beast”.

Verse 12 “But thou should not have looked on the day of your brother in the day that he became a stranger; neither should you have rejoiced over the children of Judah in the day of their destruction; neither should you have spoken proudly in the day of distress.

Verse 13 “You should not have entered into the gate of my people in the day of their calamity; yes, you should not have looked on their affliction in the day of their calamity, nor have laid hands on their substance in the day of their calamity;

Verse 14 “Neither should you have stood in the crossway”.

Some commentaries believe that that is referring to mountain passes. But there is a particular crossway between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean – the Dardanelle passage that joins Europe to the Middle East. And it would seem there would be Israelites that would try to escape out of Europe through that crossway, and the Turks would show them no favor. Verse 14:

“Neither should you have stood in the crossway, to cut off those of his that did escape; neither should you have delivered up those of his that did remain in the day of distress”.

So, God in Obadiah prophesies a special punishment for Edom. He gives the same prophecy also in Jeremiah and Ezekiel. God says that all male Edomites, and Turks, will be destroyed! And how are they to be destroyed?

Verse 18: “And the house of Jacob shall be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame, and the house of Esau for stubble, and they shall kindle in them, and devour them, and there shall not be any remaining of the house of Esau;”

There shall not remain any of the men because Jeremiah and Ezekiel show that it is just the male Edomites that are going to be killed. But it does not say that God will destroy them. It says that the house of Jacob shall be a fire, the house of Joseph a flame. It does not say they will fight against them, but it does indicate a war of extermination. Israel did have a war of extermination against the Midianites before they entered the Promised Land when they killed all the males. The women of Edom will be spared. But the context, if we read the succeeding verses, verses 19 through 21, is clearly talking about Israel in the World to come. It says in verse 21:

“And saviors shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau, and the kingdom shall be the Lord's”.

Again, we have indications that the remnant of Israel will fight. Whether that will be the case or not, if that is what God plans and wants for His people, then God has good reasons for allowing it temporarily to be so. It is hard for us to think of people of God killing people. It goes contrary to everything we believe. And yet, two servants of God will kill hundreds, perhaps thousands of people when they become the Two Witnesses. Those who oppose them will be destroyed by fire from heaven. It will not be the Two Witnesses that will actually do the killing. They will call for the fire as Elijah did. God will do the work of killing those people. But they are not going to be conscientious objectors in the sense of saying, “Sure, you oppose me. Arrest me, throw me in jail, torture me”.

So when Jesus Christ returns, He does return as the Lion of Judah. We are going to fight on His side. That we can understand because Jesus Christ is going to fight.

Micah, chapter 5 and verse 2. We could ignore these scriptures, but they are in the Bible. If they turn out only to have symbolic meaning, so be it. But reading them at face value the indications are there that the remnant of Israel will fight.

“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Though you be little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall He come forth to Me that is to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth being from everlasting, from old time". This, of course, is Jesus Christ.

Verse 5: “And this Man (Jesus Christ) shall be the peace. When the Assyrians shall come into our land, And when the Assyrians shall tread in our palaces, Then shall we (Israel) raise against him Seven shepherds and eight principal men”.

Verse 6: “And they (the seven shepherds and the eight principal men) shall waste the land of Assyria with the sword, And the land of Nimrod at its entrances thereof: Thus shall He (Jesus Christ) deliver us from the Assyrian, When the Assyrian comes into our land And when he treads within our borders”.

Verse 7: “And the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many people as a dew from the [Eternal], as the showers upon the grass, that tarries not for man, nor waits for the sons of men”.

Who are the seven shepherds and the eight principal men? The Bible does not tell us. It would appear to be symbolic language. In Ecclesiastes 11, verses 1 and 2, it says: “Cast your bread upon the waters... 2 Give a serving to seven, and also to eight”. It is the symbolic language of going above and beyond. In other words, what is being said here is that we will raise against him more than enough in the way of power to waste the land of Assyria with the sword. The land of Assyria will be wasted, of course, at the time of the second woe and the invasion of the Asians into Europe. But there may be, along with that, a pursuit by the “Beast” power from Europe chasing some of the Israelites as they head down to the Promised Land. But the seven shepherds and the eight principal men were to represent undoubtedly, the saviors of Obadiah verse 21. Those who lived as human beings in this time, in God’s Church, have become spirit beings in God’s realm. Because our liberation from this fleshly body is tied in very much with the liberation of Israel from slavery.

Isaiah 61 and beginning in verse 1, when the remnant of Israel finally enters the Promised Land, after their Second Exodus, they will be a people who will have been purged from the rebels among them, as prophesied in the book of Ezekiel. Only those who are truly submissive to the Almighty God of Israel will enter the Promised Land. But our liberation from the flesh, from this tabernacle of corruption, is tied in very much with the liberation of Israel from its slavery to this world.

Isaiah 61:1: “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because [God] hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of prison to them that are bound;”

When Jesus Christ returns and we are changed into spirit, we are going to be sent by Jesus Christ out to the four corners of the world to gather His people out of their captivity, to bring them out of prison and out of bondage. As Moses was a general to led Israel out of Egypt, so we will be generals under Jesus Christ to bring the people of God to Jesus Christ at Jerusalem.

Verse 2: “To proclaim the acceptable year of our [God] and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;”

Verse 3: “To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the [Eternal], (who will be planted in the Promised Land of the Kingdom of God) that he might be glorified”.

So, we will release the surviving Israelites from the concentration camps, from the prisons, from wherever they will be held in slavery! And we will be used by Jesus Christ to bring His people back to Him. We are to be the generals under Jesus Christ, of Israelite armies, and Jesus Christ is to be our Joshua.

Israel, which has been so great in power during the last century, is about to experience a reversal in power unparalleled in all of human history. No nation in history will have been so great and then so suddenly brought to nothing and totally conquered. However, there will be another tremendous reversal at the end of the Apocalypse, those 3 and half years of the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord. Israel is going to become a great power once again and the greatest of powers on this earth. Micah, chapter 7.

Micah 7:16: “The nations shall see and be confounded at all their might:” – those who were one day slaves are suddenly going to be called by God to become a fantastic power on the face of the earth. All the other nations of the world will be confounded at the might of the new Israel. “[The Gentiles] shall lay their hand upon their mouth (in astonishment), their ears shall be (as though they were) deaf”.

Verse 17 “[The Gentiles] shall lick the dust like a serpent, they shall move out of their holes like worms of the earth: they shall be afraid of the [Eternal] our God, and shall fear because of you (Israel)”.

They will be afraid of this new power of Israel because it will be utterly invincible. It will be a people called of God to repentance and empowered by God to come back to the Promised Land.

Isaiah 49:8: “Thus says the [Eternal] In an acceptable time have I heard you, and in a day of salvation have I helped you: and I will preserve you, and give you for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, (to help Me create that World to come) to cause to inherit the desolate heritages”; That is what we are called to do, brethren!

Verse 9 “That you may also say to the prisoners, Go forth; to them that are in darkness, Show yourselves. They shall feed in the ways, and their pastures shall be in all high places”. And when we bring them out in the Second Exodus, verse 10: “They shall not hunger nor thirst (for the miracles of breaking the rocks will be done); neither shall the heat nor sun smite them: for he that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by the springs of water shall he guide them”.

Verse 22 “Thus says the [Eternal] God, Behold, I will lift up mine hand to the Gentiles, and set up my standard to the people: and they shall bring your sons in their arms, and your daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders”.

Hosea chapter 9 shows us that most of the children in Israel today will not survive the Great Tribulation! But a minority will. There will be some children. And when God lifts up His standard, they shall bring your sons in their arms and your daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders. We certainly do not feel easy with the current breaking of the pride of Israelite’s power. We do not feel happy about the coming defeats of the House of Israel that are going to take place around the world. But a new day is going to dawn. And the great, mass migration of people unparalleled in history is going to take place!

How many people are there in the nations of Israel today? Several hundred million, for sure! If God takes a tenth of those peoples, we are talking about an enormous Second Exodus! Of course, we understand that many people living within the confines of the Israelitish nations are Gentiles. But then again, many Israelites are living in Gentile nations across the world as well. We cannot come up with the exact figure. We can estimate that there will be at least 50 million Israelites who survive. And that is more than ten times the size of the first Exodus! When the nations of the world watch 50 or so million people migrate from the ends of the earth to the Promised Land that is going to be an event which they will not be able to ignore; an event that is going to proclaim the glory of God. So, what He will do with Israel will proclaim His own glory. That is how important it is to be aware of the role of Israel in the plan of God!

The bulk of Zechariah 10 speaks about the coming Second Exodus. Here is what God says:

Zechariah 10:3: “Mine anger was kindled against the shepherds (of Israel, the governments), and I punished the goats: for the [Eternal] of hosts hath visited his flock the house of Judah, and (with Judah, He) has made them as his goodly horse in the battle”. (Zechariah 14:14 says it is the battle of the great day of God Almighty).

Verse 4: “Out of him (Judah) came forth the corner, out of him the nail, out of him the battle bow, out of him every [ruler] (as it should be translated) together (because the prophecy said the scepter would not depart from Judah)”.

Verse 5: “And they (the Jews) shall be as mighty men, which tread down their enemies in the mire of the streets in the battle (because they will be fighting at Jerusalem, says Zechariah 14:14): and they shall fight, because [God] is with them, and the riders on horses shall be confounded”.

Commentators believe that this is referring historically to the Maccabees. But it also talks about Ephraim. Ephraim shall be like mighty men, and Ephraim was not a part of the history of the Maccabees. Ephraim was elsewhere on the face of this earth. When we read the succeeding verses, we see clearly that God is talking about the Second Exodus.

Verse 7 “And they of Ephraim shall be like a mighty man, and their heart shall rejoice as through wine: yes, their children shall see it, and be glad; their heart shall rejoice in the [Eternal]”.

Verse 8 “I will hiss for them, and gather them; for I have redeemed them: and they shall increase as they have increased”.

Verse 9 “And I sow them (in past time) among the people: (I scattered them among the nations and in those far countries of their slavery) they shall remember me; and they shall live with their children, and turn again”.

Verse 10 “I will bring them again also out of the land of Egypt, and gather them out of Assyria; and I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon; and place shall not be found for them”.

Verse 12 “And I will strengthen them in the [Eternal]; and they shall walk up and down (the earth) in his name, (in the Kingdom of God)”.

Finally, Jeremiah chapter 23 beginning in verse 3:

“And I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries whither I have driven them, and will bring them again to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase”.

Verse 4: “And I will set up shepherds over them which shall feed them: (we are the shepherds, brethren, we are the saviors – with lower case ‘s’ and plural of Obadiah 21) I will set up shepherds over them which shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall they be lacking, says the [Eternal]”.

The First Exodus was a prophetic event. It symbolized the Second Exodus in which we will have a hand in making it.

Verse 7 “Therefore, behold, the days come, says the [Eternal], that they shall no more say, The Lord lives, which brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt;”

The historical record will be there in the Bibles in the Kingdom of God. But this Exodus to come, ten times as great as the First, more extensive in scope, will be a miracle so great, so massive in scale and so dramatic, that the First Exodus will pale beside the Second.

Verse 8 “But, The Lord lives, which brought up and which led the seed of the house of Israel out of the north country, and from all countries whither I had driven them; and they shall dwell in their own land”.

Israelites once crossed the Red Sea. One day soon, the remnant of Israel is going to cross the Red Sea a second time, perhaps at the very same location where it happened historically. One day soon, Israel is going to enter the Promised Land a second time. And one day soon Israel of God is going to become a great and mighty people a second time. But this time, for the first time, they will be a converted people whom God will be able to use in the service to all humankind in the Kingdom of God."

--Aleksandar Veljic