Shabbat Shalom kol beit Yisra'el and Mishpachah and welcome back to the 41st part of the Book of Revelation in which we shall be examining the 7th and last Shofar (Trumpet) blast and its accompanying 3rd Woe, thus completing the second of the three major cycles of Judgment. I am going to do this in two parts and tackle only one verse today, in part so we can reconnect (as we've been off topic for a couple of weeks) and because there have been several emergencies I have needed to attend to this past week; but also because I want to devote some time to faith-building given the state of the world right now. May Yahweh open our eyes and ears so that we too can understand more of what was being said to the seven messianic assemblies of Asia Minor!

Two sessions ago we completed the Second Interlude, or so we thought, and then had to spend another session making some corrections to our understanding of which Court, and in which Temple, was the one that will be invaded and trampled down by the Gentiles or Unbelievers; we discovered it was not the Priests' Court of the Temple-proper but the unauthorised and blasphemous 'Outer' Court of the Gentiles of Herod's Temple which John's older readers would have been most familiar with.

We made a pretty comprehensive summary of Chapters 10 & 11 so we don't need to cover any of that material again other than to briefly remind you of the three kinds of time - months (Rev.11:2; 23:5), days (Rev.11:3; 12:6) and years (Rev.12:14; Dan.7:25; 12:7) which lend support to the statement I made in my last Rosh Chodesh sermon that three different events are involved, at different times in history, when Yah'shua (Jesus) quoted the navi (prophet) Daniel about the "abomination of desolation" in Matthew 24:15-25.

The Two Witnesses prophesy for 42 months, 1,260 days and 3½ years. Note, if you will, that the 'treading' or 'trampling' by the Gentiles of the 'Court of the Gentiles' is reckoned in months as are the beginning, duration of Noah's flood and the Moses' plague of locusts, and the blasphemies and persecutions of the Beast. The computation in months is used of judgments. But when it comes to man, the duration of his time is reckoned in 'days' (Gen.47:9,28; Ps.90:10,12; 119:84, etc.). Thus in prophetic terminology our life is lived in the Scriptures as days. And so it is that the testimony of these Two Witnesses is to be given by days - a day-by-day witness - without let-up much as we do in our own witnessing.

If you cast your minds back to the period of time in which the navi (prophet) Elijah's prayer resulted in the heavens being shut up, you will recall that that length of time was 3½ years or 'three years and six months' (Lk.4:25; jas.5:17). Understanding how time is used in Scripture is a great key to unlocking the timetables of many prophecies, especially when they concern different but related events even if separated by centuries. Then we can look at past and future prophecies to find keys to the understanding of current prophetic events. The Two Witnesses are linked to the two olive trees which are used to represent themselves in the same way the identical symbol is used to represent Zerubbabel and Joshua (Yeshua) the Cohen Gadol (High Priest) in Zechariah 4.

You see, in just the same way as Zerubbabel and Joshua (Yeshua) were 'raised up', 'gifted', 'divinely anointed' and 'protected' against Satan's assaults, so the Two Witnesses will be 'raised' up and correspond to Zerubbabel and Joshua (Yeshua), occupying a similar position as the depositories of heavenly power and wisdom, and exercising a similar ministry. Moses and Elijah on the Mount of Transfiguration are likewise connected symbolically. So this means we are yet to see 'two Olive Trees' in our day plus the ministerial gifts that accompany those operating in the offices represented by Moses and Elijah.

This is important because of the great promises attached to these offices and ministries: authentic Torah-teachers and nevi'im (prophets) are our own 'olive trees' on a collective, ministerial level. And olive trees, as you know, depict so many different things scripturally. The olive tree was unquestionably one of the most valuable plants in Bible times, of equal importance with the vine and the fig tree (Judg.9:8-13; 2 Ki.5:26; Hab.3:17; Jas.3:12), where it is used figuratively as a symbol of fruitfulness, beauty and dignity (Ps.52:8; Jer.11:16; Hos.14:6). In a word, it represents the Priesthood and in the New Covenant context of the Book of Revelation, the Melchizedek Priesthood and the dignity, beauty and fruitfulness of its Cohen Gadol or High Priest, our Master (Lord) and Deliverer (Saviour) Yah'shua the Messiah (Jesus Christ).

Though separated out into two trees to depict the different ministerial rôles of Zerubabbel and Joshua, of the Two Witnesses, and of the genuine Torah-Teachers and Nevi'im (Prophets) generally, they are but two aspects of One Melchizedek Priesthood and One Melchizedek High Priest. And because they are dignified, beautiful and fruitful, Satan will indeed actively oppose those operating in these offices (Zech.3:1, etc.). But as Scripture also informs us, Yahweh will be present to 'rebuke' him and protect His own. These assurances should cause the Remnant of greatly rejoice! That is why the Priesthood is so desirable but also why it demands such dedication, purity and sacrifice.

One last point before we move on to today's text that may surprise you: when the Two Witnesses are finally killed by the Beast arising out of the very deep pit or abyss, we're told that their bodies or corpses will lie in the street of the great city, which is spiritually called Sodom and Egypt, for 3½ days. Or are they? You see, all the criical texts say, in Revelation 11:8, that the Two Witnesses' dead body in the singular...not 'bodies' in the plural...will lie on the street whereas in verse 9 the text reads 'bodies' in the plural. What does this mean? The assumption - and here we go again with assumptions, this time made by translators (personally, I think this is a presumption more than an 'assumption' on their part) - the assumption/presumption is made by these doctors of divinity that the first 'body' in verse 8 should read 'bodies' in verse 9 because it 'must' be a scribal error. No. There's no error, brethren, and this is a reason Yahweh strictly warns against changing anything in this text in Revelation 22:18-19. So the two verses should read as follows:

"When [the Two Witnesses] have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up from the very deep ('bottomless') pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them, and their dead body will lie in the street of the great city that is prophetically called Sodom and Egypt where also their Master (Lord) was crucified. For three and a half days members of the peoples and tribes and languages and nations will gaze at their dead bodies and refuse to let them be placed in a tomb..." (Rev.11:7-9, NRSV, adapted).

Don't ever change a prophetic text just because you don't understand it! Don't bend Scripture to fit your limited understanding. Leave it as it is! 'But surely this is a contradiction?' you might protest. No. It isn't. Because 'bodies' in prophetic literature can mean either individual bodies or a corporate body consisting of two or more-in-one. One Priesthood, two Ministries (Teacher and Prophet), for example. Another reason only one 'body' is mentioned in verse 7 is because this event is the fulfilment of Psalm 79:

"Elohim (God), the pagans (heathen, gentiles, nations) have invaded Your heritage (inheritance), they have desecrated (defiled) Your qadosh (holy, set-apart) Temple; they have reduced Jerusalem to a pile of ruins (heaps), they have left the corpses (dead bodies) of Your servants to the birds of the air for food, and the flesh of Your qodeshim (saints, set-apart, devout ones) to the beasts of the earth. They have shed their blood like water throughout Jerusalem, there was no one to bury them (there were no undertakers)" (Ps.79:1-3a, based on JB, NKJV and KJV).

The whole of this Psalm, along with Psalms 9 and 10, should be read alongside Revelation 11:7-9 which relate to these very 'times of trouble' (Rev.9:9; 10:1) when the 'wicked man' or 'the man of the earth' oppresses and slays Yahweh's people. The singular body in verse 8 represnts Messiah on the highest level, but below that the collective witness of the true nevi'im (prophets) across the centuries, as represented symbolically by the Two Witnesses, whereas the bodies in verse 9 are specific to the Two Witnesses themselves in their own time and space. Two different time-sets are at play here, again showing the multi-layered nature of many prophecies and how they can follow a divine tavnith or pattern common to several events, even if those events are separated by large spans of time. This is how Hebrew Scripture works and that is why we have to learn to think as they did, multi-dimonsionally and across multiple time periods (where the text warrants it, of course) in order to get the full meaning of them, rather than thinking two-dimensionally and just picking just one and so neglecting the others. So the 'Jerusalem' or 'great city' or 'Sodom' or 'Egypt' begins here in verse 8 with Jerusalem across the ages from the time David conquered the Canaanite city of Jebus, down to the Two Witnesses in the 'present' Jerusalem (future in our timeline thus far), and ends with their exclusive 'presence' in the Jerusalem of the day of the end of the end-time. We will no doubt return to all of this later on in the course as we have need. Meanwhile store this in your exegetical tool-kit.

What comes next today is the 7th Shofar (Trumpet Judgment) and 3rd Woe followed by a longish 3rd and Final Interlude containing some very important prophetic material which, once more, is the subject of much speculation so we will need to unpack it all very carefully when we come to it. So let's get straight into today's and next week's text. Turn with me, then, to chapter 11 of the Book of Revelation in your New King James Versions (NKJVs), starting at the 15th verse:

"15 Then the seventh malak (angel) sounded (Rev.16:57; Is.27:13; Mt.24:31; 1 Cor.15:52; 1 Thes.4:15) [his Shofar (trumpet)]: And there were loud voices (Rev.16:17; 19:1) in heaven, saying, 'The kingdom [1] ('sovereignty' - Bullinger) of this world has [1] become {the kingdom ('sovereignty' - Bullinger)} [2] of our Master and of His Messiah (Christ, Anointed One) (Rev.12:10), and He shall reign forever and ever ('to the ages of the ages' - YLNT; 'le-olam-va-ed' - RSTNE)! (Ps.145:13; Dan.2:44;7:14,27; Mic.4:7; Zec.14:9; Lk.1:33)' 16 And the twenty-four elders (zeqanim) (Rev.4:4) who sat before Elohim (God) on their thrones fell on their faces (Rev.4:10) and worshiped Elohim (God), 17 saying:

'We give You thanks (Ps.30:12), O Yahweh-Elohim ('Master YHWH' - RSTNE; Lord God) Almighty ('of heaven's armies' - JNT, Amos 3:13; 4:13) (Rev.1:8),
The One who is and who was and who is to come ('He-Is-and-He-Was' - JB) (Rev.1:4),
Because You have taken Your great power and reigned ('begun to reign' - NIV) (Rev.19:6).
18 The nations (goyim, gentiles, pagans) were angry ('seething with rage' - JB) (Ps.2:1,5), and Your wrath has come,
And the time of the dead, that they should be judged (Rev.20:12),
And that You should reward Your avadim (servants) the nevi'im (prophets) (Rev.10:7) and the qodeshim (saints, set-apart ones; 'all who worship You' - JB)),
And those who fear Your Name, small and great (Rev.19:5),
And should destroy those who destroy the earth (olam - world; alt. land).'

19 Then the temple (sukkah, tent) (Rev.15:5,8) of Elohim (God) was opened in heaven, and the ark of His Covenant was seen in His temple (Sukkah) (Ex.25:10-22; 2 Chr.5:7; Heb.9:4). And there were lightnings, noises, thunderings ('peals of thunder' - JNT, JB) (Rev.4:5), an earthquake, and [a] great hail[storm] (Rev.16:21; OB 267:8; 368:11-12)" (Rev.11:15-19, NKJV).

Right off the bat we have a problem with the the first verse which is what we are going to devote ourselves to for the rest of this assembly. If your version has the word 'kingdoms' in the plural you need to strike out the 's' at once. The guilty versions are, for the main, the King James Version (KJV) and New King James Version (NKJV) which used a faulty Greek manuscript - you may remember from a study we made a long time ago that the King James translators lacked a Greek manuscript for the Book of Revelation and instead reverse-translated the Latin Vulgate because they were in a hurry to meet a publisher's deadline! This may come as a shock to the 'King James Onlyers'. And whilst the KJV and NKJV have much to commend them, you need to be very careful when it comes to their Book of Revelation unless, of course, you believe Jerome's Latin Vulgate to be 100 per cent inspired in which case why aren't you using that, like a good mediaeval Catholic, rather than the KJV? Of course, the KJV-Onlyers have no answer to that question because they are trapped by their own 'KJV infallibility' dogma.

Other versions that are based off the KJV like the messianic Restoration Scriptures True Name Edition (RSTNE) produced by YATI (which has the word in the Hebrew plural - malchutim) also perpetuate this error. Why is this important? Because John isn't talking about the nations in the coming Millennium but is sharing a cosmic, global vision, and the Kingdom which Yahweh has established through His Messiah isn't simply a collection of countries or kingdoms. This is a description of universal rule - here Yahweh is, to borrow N.T.Wright's imagery, "scooping up the kingdom of the world as a single entity and claiming is back as His own rightful property" [3]. For this reason, E.W.Bullinger has the right idea when he replaces our English word 'kingdom' with the word 'sovereignty' [4] because the whole subject is one of sovereignty, that is to say, the supreme power of Elohim (God). This is what the whole of the Book of Revelation has been leading up to - indeed, the whole Bible - and the matter is to be settled, once and for all, by these next final judgments of the Seven Vials which we are soon to examine in an couple of weeks. To use the vernacular of my day when I was young, what the Ruach (Spirit) is saying emphatically is, Yahweh Rules OK! The dispute raised by the rebels is well and truly over and an eternally-binding Divine Judgment is being issued that no man may ever dispute, be he atheist, agnostic, or follower of some other religious creed or philosophy. Verse 15 has a note of finality about it.

What we are witnessing in today's text is a celebration in Heaven...in anticipation of what is to come. How is it possible to celebrate 2,000 years in advance? Because Yahweh's Davar or Word, once uttered, never returns to Him void or unfulfilled. The inhabitants of heaven know this is going to happen because the Creator is omnipotent (all-powerful) and omniscient (all.knowing). He does not - cannot - lie. And He has the power or sovereignty to back up absolutely everything He says. It matters not that He utters His decree in antiquated language belonging to a civilisation which, by our standards, may appear 'primitive' to us (though I hope you'll agree that's a rather arrogant to say given how spiritually dim-witted moderns are) - He could have said the same words at an even earlier time in history and the results would still have been the same. So, yes, we can and ought to celebrate the prophesied future in faith!

Now, true, we must wait until chapter 20 before the actual transfer or change of sovereignty is consummated. This is, after all, a prophecy - an advance announcement. John, remember, represents the kingdoms of this world as 'wild beasts', knowing no master and having no owner, because this is Yahweh's view of all earthly governments, whether they be ancient Rome or our own modern governments in Washington DC, London, Moscow, Beijing, Stockholm, Nairobi or wherever. They are all the same to Him in their claims to power and authority - they are zero - nothing, and will all be swept away by the by. And that statement is infuriating to those who love worldly power and though they may turn their wrath onto believers for saying so and giving them a universal perspective, it is the Cosmic Creator they have to contend with for they are like a fly claiming sovereignty over an elephant. That's why as believers we are not worried at all by the final outcome because we know who wins - the Book of Revelation tells us so. Such powers as the flies presently possess is but temporary and an illusion in the grand scheme of things.

Let me add some persepective for those of you who are yet mesmerised by the world system and think it to be so wonderful, or who believe that can effect some positive, lasting change by political means. I am not sure who said this as it was published anonymously, but I want to share it with you this morning because it's hits the nail of the issue right on the head. I published it online the other day. It's entitled, 150 Years From Now. Here's what the author said:

"150 years from now, none of us reading this today will be alive. 70 to 100 percent of everything we are fighting over right now will be totally forgotten. Underline the word, TOTALLY.

"If we go back [on] memory lane to 150 years before us, that will be 1872, none of those that carried the world on their heads then are alive today. Almost all of us reading this will find it difficult to picture anybody's face of that era.

"Pause for a while and imagine how some of them betrayed their relatives and sold them as slaves for a piece of mirror. Some killed family members just for a piece of land or tubers of yam or cowries (a small gastropod/mollusc) or for a pinch of salt. Where is the yam, cowries, mirror, or salt that they were using to brag? It may sound funny to us now, but that is how silly we humans are sometimes, especially when it comes to power or trying to be relevant.

"I remember those days in my secondary school, how some people fought and did so many unimaginable things just to have their names shortlisted among those to be made school Prefects. Ordinary school Prefects! It is just about 18 years since I left secondary school, nobody in that school now remembers that I even schooled there despite my popularity then. Now, imagine what happens after 150 years?

"Even when you claim the internet age will preserve your memory, take Michael Jackson as an example. Michael Jackson died in 2009, that was just 13 years ago. Imagine the influence Michael Jackson had all over the world when he was alive. Gosh, he was like a god. How many young people of today remember him with awe, that is if they even know him? In 150 years to come, his name, when mentioned, will not ring any bell to a lot of people. This is even because he was popular, imagine the majority of people who will never be known worldwide like him?

"Let us take life easy, nobody will get out of this world alive... The land you are fighting and ready to kill for, somebody left that land, the person is dead, rotten, and forgotten. That will also be your fate. In 150 years to come, none of the vehicles or phones we are using today to brag [about] will be relevant. Biko, take life easy!

"Let love lead. Be genuinely happy for each other. No malice, no backbiting. No jealousy. No comparison. It is not a competition. At the end of the day, we all have the same destiny in the grave. It is just a question of who gets there first, but surely we will all go there."

A friend online wrote a response to this short article and said this:

"How right you are brother ...! EVERYTHING here on this earthly plane is temporary, particularly life itself. People are completely ensconced in things of no importance while neglecting the very thing they were created for: to be transformed into Messiah's nature, ways and thinking. Everything else is entirely trivial and irrelevant. If there's one great thing this scamdemic has brought about, it is the dividing of the sheep from the sheep. For those who were already separated from the sheep in wolves' clothing, the chasm broadened in spectacular fashion! Thank you for this great article!..."

So, back to verse 15. Yahweh's view of earthly governments isn't exactly flattering, is it, let alone each individual human being's conception of him- or herself as being somehow important in the grand scheme of things. No government in the world - past or present - to whom Yahweh has committed authority in order to protect the nations' citizens - has ever been rightly exercised in behalf of Elohim (God). Not only is His sovereignty not generally recognised, but even His suzerainty or overlordship - His right to rule us - is rejected. Worse, some of the invisible rulers of our nations consciously and deliberately serve Satan and are becoming more open about it. So, really, it is quite absurd to talk about 'Christian kingdoms' or 'Christian nations' - and it is even more insane when ministers talk about 'taming' these wild beasts as the proponents of 'Kingdom Now' theology and of 'Neo-conservatism' do (the Neocons), instead of warning them of all the coming judgments which will destroy them altogether...every one of them. Now I am not saying that all kingdoms or countries are equally 'wild' for clearly they are not; nevertheless, they are far, far off the mark if any of them think of themselves as being 'God's Country' or 'Christian' or ''Messianic', no matter what the national motto may be (e.g. 'In God We Trust' or 'God With Us'). It is equally incongruous when modern political parties call themselves 'Christian Democrat' or Catholic political organisations like 'Opus Dei ('Work of God') claim something similar. They are all in the service of the wild beasts.

Our job is to witness of the grace of Elohim (God) to lost and hopeless sinners, not to trade that sacred calling for an utterly vain and futile attempt to change society through politics. That's not to say that Yahweh doesn't have His politicians positioned to influence society for the better but at no time does He ever say that such are to exchange the witness of the Besorah (Gospel, Good News) for a political voice. As I look back at the Christian politicians who have come and gone over my own lifetime - the Reverend Jesse Jackson, President Ronald Reagan and Senators Ron with Rand Paul in America, Bishop Abel Muzorewa in Zimbabwe, Bishop Desmond Tutu in South Africa, and the Reverend Iaian Paisley in Northern Ireland, I am struck both by their noble intentions (for the most part) but also by their abject failure to actually achieve anything that has lasted. Both the conservative and liberals had a go, but the wild beasts are still in charge and the nations are still wild and getting wilder...and rapidly disintegrating. German Chancellor Kohl was a devout Catholic who oversaw German reunification but look at the mess his country is in now? The wild beasts have destroyed practially everything those Christian politicians set out to achieve. The Kingdom of our Elohim (God) cannot be brought about by politics. At best, these men and women can give us short breathing spaces - which is undoubtedly what their calling was - while the wild animals circle their camps until they go the way of the earth and the beasts can occuply their spots once again.

Now I am not saying that all unbelieving politicians are the same either. Those who pass godly legislation to improve our conditions of life and who remove crying evils are to be commended and backed. Yahweh is with them too. My point - and the point of today's passage - is this: we cannot make politics our great aim because it cannot succeed in the long-term. Such benefits as politicians can, do and should bring are only for the short term. Just look at the history of politics and you will see it is so. So attempts to make 'Sunday', 'Saturday', 'Friday' or some other day an official state 'day of rest' cannot succeed for they will end up oppressing someone or other. What use is an official day of rest if it cannot ussher in the Millennium of rest? By all means legislate for a 5- or 6-day work week but leave it at that. The same goes for other public holidays like communist-inspired May Day or Catholic-inspired Christmas.

As a point of note for messianics in particular, the very laws Yahweh gave on Sinai, the Divine Ritual of the Tabernacle and of the Temple, did not keep Israel from religious apostacy and political ruin. That is not to say the Torah lifestyle is unimportant - by no means. We are, as believers, under obligation to live it both to please our Heavenly father and because it is the best solution to society's ills. The point is this: Torah-obedience, whether individually or nationally, will not - cannot - ussher in the Millennium, until both the Messianic Community and the nations come under the direct sovereignty of Yahweh and His Anointed One, the Messiah, Yah'shua (Jesus).

Now I am deliberately spending a lot of time on this theme today because righteous government is the one great desire and need of the whole world right now in this time of extreme lawlessness and anarchy. The wild beasts are once more banding together in another attempt to turn the whole world into a dictatorship as they have long dreamed of doing - a world government that can only possibly be achieved by conspiracy and the inevitable violence and oppression which revolution bings in its wake, and be held together thereafter by coersion and more oppression. Why? Because the aspirant rulers - the dictator wannabees - are wild beasts themselves. It's this scheme of theirs, which has been in the planning for generations, which is currently coming under penultimate judgment as I speak. It is this selfish ambition that gives every Antichrist the motive for his crimes. The reason these Antichrists achieve power for a while is not ultimately their fault but mankind as a whole for allowing them to, because man is presently unable to see - and won't see - until the worst of evils has its suffocating hand around his neck (because there are so few to tell him) - that there can be no righteous government for the world until the Righteous One shall come "whose right it is" (Ezek.21:27) to rule in righteousness: and there can be no peace on earth while the blood of the Prince of Peace cries for vengeance, and as a result they sing of "peace in heaven":

"Blessed is the king who comes in the name of Yahweh! (Jer.7:11) Peace in heaven and glory in the highest heaven ('places' - JNT)!" (Lk.19:38, NRSV)

And that, brethren and sisters, is where our shalom or peace currently is, even as it is written :

"In those days you were living apart from Messiah (Christ). You were excluded from Elohim's (God's) people, Israel, and you did not know the promises Elohim (God) had made to them. You lived in this world without Elohim (God) and without hope. But now you belong to Messiah Yah'shua (Christ Jesus). Though you once were far away from Elohim (God), now you have been brought near to Him because of the blood of Messiah (Christ).

"For Messiah (Christ) Himself has made shalom (peace) between us Judahites (Jews) and you Gentiles ('Greeks' - e.g. Ac.20:21,28; 1 Cor.1:24; 10:32; 12:13) by making us all one people. He has broken down the wall of hostility that used to separate us. By His death He ended the whole system of [Old Covenant ritualistic and sacrificial] Judahite law that excluded the Gentiles. His purpose was to make shalom (peace) between Judahites (Jews) and Gentiles by creating in Himself one new person from the two groups. Together as one body, Messiah (Christ) reconciled both groups to Elohim (God) by means of His death, and our hostility toward each other was put to death. Now all of us, both Judahites (Jews) and Gentiles, may come to the father through the same Ruach haQodesh (Holy Spirit) because of what Messiah (Christ) has done for us" (Eph.2:12-17, NLT).

Now I don't propose to get into all the controversial issues of translating this passage so for those who want to dig deeper I have left a fuller discussion in the footnotes on the website [6] because traditionally orthodox Christianity has taught that Paul is saying that the death of Yah'shua (Jesus) on the cross has meant that Yahweh had abolished His entire Torah which means not only the Law of Moses but the entire corpus of teaching of the Tanakh (Old Testament) because that's what the Torah ultimately is, which is patently absurd, because that is the moral and ethical foundation of our life. For our purposes now in the context of today's study of Revelation 11:15, the message is very simple indeed: like the demolition of the Berlin wall that divided that city into two separate communities, a 'wall of hostility' that resulted in the death of many souls attempting to escape from the communist east to the democratic west, so Yah'shua the Messiah (Jesus Christ) has removed the barrier of sin separating us from Yahweh on the one hand, but at the same time different communities from one another, whether Judahite and Greek, or different groups of believers from one another. Another illustration would be the old apartheid system of South Africa artifically separating white people from those of colour by imposition of state law.

Paul is referring here specifically to the religious prejudice that existed between the Judean converts and Gentile believers of his day. Jews looked down on Greeks and everyone else as inferior 'gentiles' and Greeks looked down on Jews and everyone else as culturally inferior 'barbarians' (Col.3:11; Rom.1:14). Moreover, this wasn't something that had to be imposed as it is today in our secular society by the social disaster known as 'political correctness' and 'hate speech laws' but is something that comes naturally and spontaneously to those who are born again or spiritually regenerated in Messiah. All races in Christ are now one, the differences which our carnal nature perceive being eradicated along with our carnal natures which have been put to death in Christ.

All artificial divisions - whether the prejudices of white people with their insulting terms for non-whites, or black Africans who disparigingly refer to white people as muzungus, or those of the modern Left who regard all white people as 'toxic', for example, are erased by the blood of Christ. Didn't Yah'shua (Jesus) teach forcibly against giving rich people a special social 'status' in assemblies? We are all human beings of one family, the race of Adam. Indeed, whether our divisions are racial, political, economic, or educational, it is now possible for us to be reconcilhas not yet come to those claiming to be Christian or Messianic, has it? The true religion is not being exercised, is it? There is a spiritual deficiency that most likely is as serious as separation of such people from Elohim (God) Himself. Indeed - and this is far more worrying - they may not even be saved.

Now I realise that all sorts of cultural problems exist between different nations and ethnic groups in multicultural societies, some of which are good and others of which are bad. We all have unique personalities, which is good. Vive la difference! Neverthless, there is a shared or common humanity between all peoples that in Christ becomes a living reality. All racial, class, and other barriers disappear in Messiah because the order of His Kingdom is priestly, not fleshy. The only differences between Yahweh's people are matters of spiritual maturity. This is what our communities - our churches, fellowships and assemblies are supposed to be like - a light to the world. But when Messiah returns then, as today's passage informs us, "the world world has become the Kingdom of our Master (Lord) and His Messiah (Christ), and He will reign forever" (Rev.11:15b, NLT).

The way we believers live in our homes and in our messianic communities or churches is supposed to reflect a miniature version of the Millennial Kingdom for all the world to see and be drawn to. But if we are like the world in our habits and attitudes, then of what use is our witness? If we have at all become like the world, then on what basis are we inviting those who belong to the Babylonian world system to join us and leave their old way of life behind? If what we do is the same of them - aside from meeting together once or twice a week to hold services or Bible studies - then what are we doing other than simply creating images of the Kingdom in our heads with mental propositions? That is what we are being challenged to consider in today's passage as the whole Babylonian world system, with its individual national prejudices and ugly behaviours on a national level, are forcibly ended by the return of Messiah leading to permanent inclusion or exclusion.

That's right, this is no liberal/socialist paradise that the Book of Revelation speaks of. Those who have not voluntarily come to Messiah are excluded from living on the planet altogether because Yahweh didn't create the planet for man to make his own artificial Utopia which he has only ever been able to make work through tyranny. Those who chose to be anti-human (which is what being outside of Christ actually means) must be 're-educated' elsewhere - in a different non-material dimension (resulting in the postponment of their resurrection) until finally a univeral reconciliation is worked out, usually painfully as the unrepentant come to terms with the consequences of their wrong choosing. Or putting this in more familar terms to Christians, there is a separation of humans by fire - the fire of judgment that leads, finally, after the corrective lessons have been learned in man's innermost being, to shalom (peace) everywhere in Creation.

Our hope is in the return of the Sovereign-Creator and the glorious resurrection when the Kingdom of our Messiah becomes global and all the inhabitants can know shalom (peace) together. Next week we will complete our study of the Song of Triumph. Until then, may you soberly consider what we have discussed today and find ever deeper shalom (peace) in our Messiah! Amen.

Endnotes

[1] The KJV and NKJV (and many other versions) read 'kingdoms' which is wrong because these versions used/use a defective Greek text that contained an error at this point. This is corrected in practically all modern versions to the singular 'kingdom' (e.g. ESV, JB, NRSV, JNT, NIV, NASB, etc.). The original Aramaic (e.g. HRV) has this (correcly) in the singular.

[2] The words in {parentheses} are not in the original text but are added for clarification. Unfortunately, these too are in error in the KJV and NKJV for the same reason as [1]. Where clarification is added (to make the text flow better in English) this ought to be {the kingdom} - N.T.Wright leaves the clarification out altogether and renders the passage, "Now the kingdom of the world has passed to our Lord (Master = Yahweh) and his Messiah" (KNT) equally effectively.

[3] Tom Wright, Revelation for Everyone - The New Testament for Everyone Commentary Series, Vol.19 (SPCK, London: 2011), p.103

[4] E.W.Bullinger*, Commentary on Revelation (Kregel Classics, Grand Rapids, Michihan: 1984), p.372

[5] The passive verb 'is abolished' is simgular and cannot have two subjects. As a result, only 'enmity' (hostility) is abolished, not (as translations of the Greek wrongly sugegst) the Torah itself. 'By His flesh' is conjuncted to 'and the Torah'. The next phrase is a dalet clause. The dalet preposition is very ambiguous in Aramaic and can mean 'who, which, that, that which, of or because'. The HRV has taken the meaning to be 'because' as in Daniel 3:29; 4:9; 6:3,23; 7:11

[6] This is one of the hardest passages in the New Testament to translate and is one of the causes of disputation between Messianics and Evangelicals. I quote first the original Aramaic which the Greek translator has struggled to render into his own language and which every translator of the Greek into his own native language has subsequently struggled:

"But now, in Yah'shua the Messiah (Jesus Christ), you who previously were far have become near by the blood of the Messiah. For He is our shalom (peace), who made the two of them (Judahites and Gentiles) one and loosed the hedge (Aram. sh'ra s'yaga, i.e. 'permit activities that these hedge-rules had effectually discouraged') which stood in the middle. And emnity (by His flesh and also the Torah, because of mitzvot/commandments in His commands) is abolished, that [from] the two of them (Judahites and Gentiles) He might create in Himself one new man, and He made shalom (peace). And He has reconciled the two of them in one body with Elohim (God), and by His cross He killed the emnity (hostility, hatred)" (Eph.2:12-16, HRV)

"But now, you who were once far off have been brought near through the shedding of Messiah's blood. For He Himself is our shalom (peace) - He has made us both chead (one) and has broken down the m'chitzah (dividing wall) which divided us by destroying in His own body the enmity occasioned by the Torah, with its mitzvot (commandments) set forth in the form of ordinances. He did this in order to create union with Himself fronm the two groups a single new humanity and thus make shalom (peace), and in order to reconcile to Elohim (God), both, in a single body by being crucidied as a criminal and thus killing in Himself that enmity" (Eph.2:13-16, JNT, adapted).

Acknowledgements

[1] Tom Wright, Revelation for Everyone - The New Testament for Everyone Commentary Series, Vol.19 (SPCK, London: 2011)
[2] E.W.Bullinger*, Commentary on Revelation (Kregel Classics, Grand Rapids, Michihan: 1984)
[3] David H. Stern, Jewish New Testament Commentary (JNT Publications, Clarksville, Maryland: 1992)
[4] ESV Study Bible (Crossway, Wheaton, Illinois: 2011)
[5] The NIV Study Bible (Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan: 1995)
[6] Ed. J.R.Dummelow, A Commentary on the Holy Bible (MacMillan, London: 1909)
[7] Kevin J. Conner, The Tabernacle of Moses: The Riches of Redemption's Story as Revealed in the Tabernacle (City Christian Publishing, Portland, Oregon: 1976)
[8] Kevin J. Conner, The Tabernacle of David: The Presence of God as Experienced in the Tabernacle (City Christian Publishing, Portland, Oregon: 1976)
[9] Kevin J. Conner, The Temple of Solomon: The Glory of God as Displayed Through the Temple (City Christian Publishing, Portland, Oregon: 1988)
*E.W.Bullinger was a brilliant Anglican clergyman and scholar whose works merit careful study by serious students of the Bible. He was, however, seriously in error in at least three main areas, namely, (1) he believed the 'Church' has been raptured before the Book of Revelation opens, (2) he believed that the 7 churches in Revelation 2-3 are 7, literal Jewish churches or assemblies yet to come, and (3) he believed in a pre-tribulation, pre-millennial rapture.

• 1. White horse - military aggression
• 2. Red horse - bloodshed
• 3. Black horse - famine
• 4. Pale Green/Blanched/Pallid/Sickly-looking horse - disease, epidemics

  ---

• 5. Persecution & prayer
• 6. Tremour & terror

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  INTERLUDE I (Ch.7)
  (The 144,000 Redeemed)

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• 7. Silence in heaven, listening to prayers which are then answered in a final catastrophe: a severe earthquake I

• 1. Scorched earth
• 2. Polluted sea
• 3. Contaminated water
• 4. Reduced sunlight

  ---

• 5. Insects and plague (for five months) (1st Woe)
• 6. Oriental invasion (200 million army) (2nd Woe)

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  INTERLUDE II (Ch.10-11)
  (The Malak with the Little Scroll)
  (The Two Witnesses)

  ---

• 7. The Kingdom comes, the world is taken over by Yahweh & Yah'shua (Jesus) after a severe earthquake II (3rd Woe)

  ---

  INTERLUDE III (Ch.13-14)
  (The First & Second Beasts)
  (The Lamb & the 144,000)
  (The Messages of the Three Malakim)

  ---

• 1. Boils on the skin
• 2. Blood in the sea
• 3. Blood from the springs
• 4. Burning by the sun

  ---

• 5. Darkness
• 6. Armageddon

  ---

• 7. Hailstorm (OB 368:11-12) and severe earthquake III, leading to international collapse