Questions and Answers
Here is the verse: “Manasseh shall devour Ephraim, and Ephraim Manasseh; Together they shall be against Judah. For all this His anger is not turned away, But His hand is stretched out still.” Manasseh, Ephraim and Judah are names mentioned often in the Old Testament, but their prophetic significance is found in events now occurring and those about to take place in the United States (modern Manasseh), the United Kingdom (modern Ephraim) and the State of Israel (modern Judah). This prophecy in Isaiah 9:21 applies to the end of this age—just before the return of Jesus Christ! Further proof of Old Testament prophecies being given by God for our time can be found in our publications: Q&A–You teach that the Bible contains end-time prophecies, involving many modern nations and peoples, referring to them with ancient names. Would you please explain the identity of major modern nations, as mentioned in Biblical prophecy? Q&A–Numerous Scriptures in the books of Isaiah and Ezekiel address the house of Israel with dire warnings. Do any of those prophecies apply to us today? The Fall and Rise of Britain and America; The Fall and Rise of the Jewish People Ephraim and Manasseh were the two sons of Joseph specially blessed… Over many years, we have been asked if we are, or are part of, the true Church of God. We have answered this a number of times; please see: Q&A – Why Does CEG exist? This is in our weekly Update number 96 on 6th June 2003. Q&A – Are You the True Church? This is in our weekly Update number 479 on 11th February 2011. There have been many other references to this, which have been included in our new booklet “How to Find the True Church of God”, where we state the following on pages 1 and 2: “Even though God’s true Church—the body of Christ (Colossians 1:24)—is a spiritual organism, consisting of all who have received the gift of the Holy Spirit, it is nevertheless physically organized. Organizations that are divided among themselves need to strive to come to the unity of the faith (Jude 3) and to embrace the unity of the Truth. “It is the responsibility of every Christian to ascertain where the Truth is being upheld and taught; and this can only be accomplished by comparing the teachings and practices of a particular Church organization with the requirements of the Bible. We read in Acts 17:11 about… If so, who will and who will not be at that place; where is it; and how can one get there? In the previous Q&A, we discussed God’s promise of protection for some Church members at a special place on earth during the times of the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord. In this Q&A, we will address additional pertinent questions on this subject, including how God’s people might get to the place of safety; who will be those who will be protected; and who will belong to those who won’t be protected at the place of safety. How Will God’s People Get to the Place of Safety? We read in Jeremiah 4:6 that God’s people are to “Take refuge! Do not delay! For I will bring disaster from the north, And great destruction.” Isaiah 26:20–21 states: “Come, My people, enter your chambers, And shut your doors behind you; Hide yourself, as it were, for a little moment, Until the indignation is past. For behold, the LORD comes out of His place To punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity; The earth will also disclose her blood, And will no more cover her slain.” These passages seem to imply some active… If so, who will and who will not be at that place; where is it; and how can one get there? We have written much about the place of safety. In this new series, we will present information which we already provided in the past, while adding additional thoughts and explanations in an attempt to answer follow-up questions. Protection During the Day of the Lord In our two previous Q&As, we addressed 144,000 Israelites and a great multitude of Gentile nations, as mentioned in Revelation 7, and explained that following the beginning of the Great Tribulation, which is Satan’s wrath, God will pour out the plagues of His wrath during a time referred to as the Day of the Lord. We showed that God will protect at that time many of those who will have experienced and survived the trials of the Great Tribulation, including the 144,000 and the great multitude. However, there is no indication that God will bring those survivors to a special place of safety; rather, He will protect them wherever they will be at that time. Persecution BEFORE the Great Tribulation On the other hand, we will explain that the Bible clearly shows that there WILL BE a special place of… Will it consist of people who have already died? Will they be part of the 144,000? Will they go to heaven before Christ’s return? In the previous Q&A, we discussed the question, “Do the 144,000, mentioned in Revelation 7, describe spiritual Israelites prior to the Great Tribulation including those who have already died?” We explained that Revelation 7:1-8 describes 144,000 Israelites who will be sealed after the beginning of the Great Tribulation to be protected from the plagues of the Day of the Lord. In addition, Revelation 7:9-10, 13-17 continues to describe a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, who came out of the Great Tribulation. Many ideas exist as to who the great multitude describes. Some claim that the great multitude is identical with the 144,000, or that the 144,000 are part of the great multitude. Some claim that the multitude consists of all Gentile Christians from the beginning of the creation of man, and that the number is innumerable as it is not yet determined. Some claim that the great multitude will be in heaven after the beginning of the Great Tribulation, but before the Day of the Lord begins. Halley’s Bible Handbook gives a most confusing… When considering carefully what the Bible says about the 144,000, we find that they cannot refer to spiritual Israelites who have lived and died prior to the beginning of the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord. When the book of Revelation begins to describe the time of the terrible DAY OF THE LORD to strike, an angel appears holding back the four winds (Revelation 7:1-3), which are the first four trumpet plagues (Revelation 8:7-12) of the Day of the Lord, until the 144,000 are sealed. We should also note, even though this is not the topic of this Q&A, that in addition to the sealing of 144,000, a great multitude of ALL NATIONS will turn to God and His protection, BEFORE the plagues of the Day of the Lord begin. The innumerable multitude shall have COME OUT of THE Great Tribulation (Revelation 7:14) to be protected during the Day of the Lord. In chapter 9 of our free booklet, The Mysteries of the Book of Revelation, we state the following: “In verse 1 of Revelation 7 we find that the Day of the Lord—the time of terrible plagues—is to be delayed temporarily UNTIL 144,000 servants of God have been… Ezekiel 28 speaks of two individuals. The first personage is a physical human being who is described here as the “Prince of Tyre.” The second individual is the “King of Tyre.” As one reads through this chapter, one will find striking similarities between the two individuals, and some are confused about the meaning. We need to correctly understand who is being talked about; then we can start to see the types of similarities that these two individuals share; and finally, we will understand why they are important. First of all, we should take note of chapters 26 and 27 which speak of the City of Tyre. It is referenced many times in the Bible and has played an interesting role in history. As is often the case, the Bible refers to this city as well in a dual role. The ancient city of Tyre is compared with the modern Babylonian system in Europe and the end-time city which is built on seven hills. And so we can already see the duality between the destruction of the city of Tyre and the city of Rome, and with it, the entire Babylonian system (Ezekiel 27:28-36; Revelation 18:9-21). Please read our booklet “The… The question deals with a statement in the second letter to the Thessalonians. Let us review the particular passage in context: 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4, 6-7 reads in the New King James Bible: “Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day [of Christ’s return] will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshipped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God… “And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He [margin: Or he] who now restrains will do so until He [Margin: Or he] is taken out of the way.” Many are confused about this passage. Some believe that the man of sin is a reference to the end-time “beast”—a political military leader. This is not the case. We write in our free booklet, “The Fall and Rise of the Jewish People”: “This ‘man of sin,’ who is also called ‘the lawless one’ in verses 8 and 9, is… Actually, the Bible is full of Scriptures addressing this vital subject. Addiction in its many forms is wrong; be it addiction to cigarettes or illegal mind-altering drugs; be it addiction to wrong sexual practices, false ideas and philosophies; be it addiction to a lifestyle of sin; and be it even addiction to something which might not be prohibited per se (i.e. consumption of alcohol), but which becomes sinful due to wrong dependency. Romans 6:12 tells us very clearly that if we let sinful conduct dictate our lives, we have become addicted to it: “Therefore do not let sin reign [“exercise dominion”, New Revised Standard Version] in your mortal bodies, that you should obey it in its lusts.” Romans 6:16-22 gives us the following additional admonition: “Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey [as your “master,” cp. Revised English Bible], whether of sin to death, or of obedience to righteousness? But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness… for just… To answer this important question, we need to focus on several biblical revelations. Jesus Christ—the Word or Logos or Son of God—was “WITH” God (Greek: theos) since all eternity, and He also “WAS” God (Greek: theos) (John 1:1-2). That means there were two God beings—Christ, the “Word of God” (Revelation 19:13) and God the FATHER. Christ was clearly God before He came to this earth! Paul explains in 1 Timothy 3:16: “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: GOD was manifest in the flesh, Justified in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Preached among the Gentiles, Believed on in the world, Received up in glory.” Philippians 2:5–7 reads: “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of GOD, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, TAKING THE FORM OF A BONDSERVANT, and coming IN THE LIKENESS OF MEN.” The Bible is also very clear that Christ IS God now! Notice Titus 2:11–14: “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly,…Is Isaiah 9:21 a Prophecy or Has This Already Happened?
Do You Believe That You Are, Or Are Part of, the True Church of God?
Will God’s People be Protected at a Certain Place on Earth During the Time of the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? (Part 2)
Will God’s People be Protected at a Certain Place on Earth During the Time of the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? (Part 1)
Who is the Great Multitude in Revelation 7?
Do the 144,000, Mentioned in Revelation 7, Describe Spiritual Israelites Prior to the Great Tribulation, Including Those Who Have Already Died?
What Are the Correlations Between the Prince of Tyre and the King of Tyre, Found in Ezekiel 28?
Who or What Restrains or Holds Back the Manifestation of the Man of Sin?
What Does the Bible Say about Addiction and Slavery to Sin?
Is There Any Scriptural Proof That God Is Identical With the Kingdom of God?
