Chapter 2

Sa'ar

Left Behind

America's Fate...

Many have pondered whether there are any passages in Scripture which specifically address America as the nation exists today. The answer is yes.

But since the prophetic portrayal of the United States is so bleak, before we analyze it, let's examine how we got into this fix. In Paul's first letter to Timothy, he tells us that certain influential and important individuals will expressly lead humankind away from God, separating us from His truth and redemption. He is speaking of religious clerics, politicians, media spokespeople, and certain scholars who have indoctrinated a generation. With their religious schemes and political agendas, they have rendered a nation incapable of discerning right from wrong, freedom from submission, truth from deception, Yahweh from Satan.

In the Timothy passage, the Set-Apart Spirit issues a warning. There is a conspiracy, and Yahweh doesn't want us to be victimized by the deceitful spirit behind it. While relevant to everyone, this admonition is directed to those living in the years immediately prior to the Tribulation. It is a message to us today.

As with all Scripture presented in Yada Yahweh, please read the bold words first so as to understand the essence of the passage, and then go back and read it a second time with the benefit of the amplified shadings. "But now the Spirit (pneuma - breath of life) expressly communicates and (rhetos - explicitly in these exact words) says (lego - teaches and affirms, reports and reveals, declares and maintains) that (hoti - related to knowing, thinking, perceiving, judging, and understanding) in (en - or within the sphere of the place and time of) the latter (husteros - final and future) times (kairos - fixed period) some (tis - certain influential and important individuals) will excite a revolt which leads to the separation and departure from (apohistemi - will mislead and deceive, withdrawing and falling away from, forsaking) a conviction in the truth, trust and reliance (pistis - assurance of what is real and verifiable) indoctrinating, taking control of minds, and misleading people with words (prosecho - altering the message) in the spirit (pneumasin) of the deceiver, of deceptiveness and error which causes people to be corrupted, and to wander away (planos - to be seduced by an imposter, a false messenger and witness), and even (kai) the teaching, dogmas, doctrines, and mandates (didaskalia) of false gods and demons (daimonion - the manifestations, messengers, and spirits influenced by Satan)." (1 Timothy 4:1)

According to God, an undisclosed number of important and influential individuals will mislead the masses. Whether they know it or not, they will be in league with Satan, separating people from Yahweh. The tools of their trade will the be a corruption of the truth (Yahweh's message), half truths (counterfeits), and outright deceit as they are manifest in false teaching, false religions, false doctrines, false gods, and false messengers.

Central to this warning is apohistemi. It is a compound of apo and histemi. Histemi is the most important term in the Renewed Covenant. It means "to stand up, enabling others to stand." Histemi conveys the means behind our redemption. It is "to renew, to establish, and to affirm by accepting the burden of sin," and God accomplishes these things "by being upright in our midst."

Apo, which means "separation," negates all of these things, just as errant bible translations and misleading church sermons negate the salvation message inherent in Yahweh's revelation. While histemi unites us with Yahweh through what He has done on our behalf, apohistemi is the condition of being separated from Yahweh by way of the deceptions of man - religion and politics.

Histemi is to stand with God. Apohistemi is to bow down before Him. So if the religious ritual of bowing to God seems normal, or worse, necessary to you, then you are a victim of aposhistemi. In Scripture, all who are shown bowing in Yahweh's presence are either being told to stand up, or they are being judged, and are thus excluded from His eternal family.

God does not want us bowing down to Him or anyone else. He bowed down for us so that we could stand with Him, walk with Him, and converse with Him. Religions, especially Islam and Catholicism, are built around the act of bowing. Even in Socialist Secular Humanism, certain men are elevated above others, creating the same result where many are forced to serve the few. Moreover, no society in human history has been as intent on creating idols and superstars as has America's in the 21^st century. It is an attribute of a fallen culture.

There is very little I can share with you that is as profound and important as not bowing down to God or man. No man is worth it, and God has done everything in His power to avoid it. He created us, revealed His Word, and sacrificed Himself so that we could become His adopted children and love Him as a son or daughter adores their father.

One of the things which separate us from receiving the benefit of histemi is that many of the most important words and concepts inherent in the religions of Judaism and Christianity are corrupt, even demonic. That means that the cultures based on these doctrines are founded on deception. For example, all of the following terms, titles, names, and concepts are Satanic and not Scriptural: Lord, Jesus, Christ, Jehovah, Christian, Pope, Rabbi, Bible, Talmud, New and Old Testament, Gospel, Sunday, Worship, Bowing Down, Saying Amen, Hailing Mary, Easter, Christmas, Lent, Halloween, Holy, Saints, Church, and all things pertaining to Cross. Our vocabulary has been so corrupted, and man's teachings have become so convoluted, that even if we found a map leading to God, we wouldn't know how to read it or which side was up.

Let's reexamine the most important corruption of histemi before we move on with the review of this passage, because it lies at the heart of man's corruption of God's message. The Greek word stauros, errantly translated "cross," is a noun based on the verb histemi. Stauros means "upright pillar," and thus it confirms that Yahshua stood up for us so that we would be able to stand with Him. Christians the world over have been misled by those who knowingly and errantly substituted the pagan sungod image of a "cross" for the salvation message inherent in "upright pillar." There is nothing about stauros, histemi, nor any other words in Scripture which would lead anyone who is knowledgeable to believe that Yahshua's physical body died on a cross. The theologians who have over the centuries promoted this myth have not only encouraged people to revere a graven image in direct conflict with the second commandment (which is why the Catholic Church eliminated the second and divided the tenth). They have obliterated the profound truth inherent in stauros and histemi, of God standing in and up for us so that we could stand in His presence.

Moreover, clerics, consistent with the message of this passage, have taught people to believe that God died, and that His physical suffering and death were material to our salvation - neither of which are accurate. God cannot die and the penalty for sin is not physical death, but instead separation. So for Yahweh to redeem us He had to have a soul and had to have His soul suffer in our stead in the place of separation, known as hades, because separation is the penalty for sin. For this to happen, Yahweh's Spirit had to be removed from Yahshua's soul prior to the death of His body on the upright pole. And that is because Yahweh's Spirit can neither die nor go to the place of separation - only Yahshua's physical body and soul could do those things. This understanding is essential to recognizing how what occurred on the Sabbath of Unleavened Bread in 33 CE formed the basis of mankind's salvation. And if this is confusing to you, please go back and read the "Tsadaq - Vindication" chapter which reveals precisely how Yahweh explained and predicted all of this in Psalm 22.

While it is completely irrelevant to Yahweh's message and purpose, the device upon which the physical body of Yahshua suffered and died formed the shape of a capital "T." The upright pole remained in position, set into a receptacle carved into the earth, and it was reused. The victim was usually tied, but sometimes nailed, to a smaller, disposable beam of wood. Once affixed, the transverse beam with the victim attached was lifted up and set into a notch on top of the upright pillar. The victim's feet, usually at the ankles, were then nailed into the vertical pole. Once they had suffocated, the nails were removed from the feet and the transverse beam was lifted up and removed, freeing the victim from the death stake. Once on the ground, the victim was either untied or the nails driven through their wrists were removed.

There is more to apohistemi deception than that manifest in religion. I often speak of a conniving conspiracy of men leaguing with Satan to indoctrinate, control, and fleece mankind. While its modern incarnation began with Adam Wieshaupt and his Order of the Enlightened, Yahweh was on to him and his kind 1900 years before I stumbled upon John Robison's Proofs of a Conspiracy, Abe Barruel's Memoirs Illustrating the History of Jacobinism, Antony Sutton's The Best Enemy Money Can Buy, Ralph Epperson's The Unseen Hand, Edward Griffin's Creature from Jekyll Island, and Carroll Quigley's Tragedy and Hope. Read them, and you too will know some of what God knows about the evil spirit lurking inside Freemasonry, Socialist Secular Humanism, Communism, Fascism, American and English politics, the Council on Foreign Relations, the United Nations, the Federal Reserve, the World Bank, and the International Monetary Fund. Collectively, these advocates of Socialist Secular Humanism (the conceited religion of man) will unite in purpose and spirit with Catholicism and Islam to usher in man's ultimate decline during the last days.

Every religious, political, and media leader today is actively engaged in pseudologos - inducing and inciting by argument, advice, or appeal, that which is untrue. During these last days, the problem has become epidemic. "They speak lies (pseudologos - deceive with words, promoting, maintaining, affirming, and exhorting that which is false) by way of (en - in) hypocrisy (hypokrisis - under false pretences, through concealment, insincerity and duplicity, by means of imitation, interpretation, and counterfeiting, pretending with flamboyant speech and practiced gestures). Their individual (idios - own, unique, separate, personal, and concealed) conscience (suneidesis - faculty for moral judgments, perceptions, and discernment, the ability to distinguish right from wrong, good from bad, truth from lies) is functionally destroyed (kekausteriasmenon - their conscience is seared, consumed, scorched and scared, bearing the brand of a slave, deadening their perceptions)." (1 Timothy 4:2)

A hypokrisis is a public persona engaged in creating an impression which is at odds with their real motivation and agenda. They are in a phrase "hypocritical conniving conspirators." They are politicians, clerics, and media celebrities. Their holy grail is for you to believe their errant ideas and false perceptions are reality. Most every nationally and internationally known political, religious, and media personality falls under this condemnation. They are hypocrites, and are not what they pretend to be. While I have always thought that most religious and political leaders know the truth, but have ignored and convoluted it out of convenience and out of a lust for power, sex, and money, God is suggesting that their conscience no longer functions. But that isn't the biggest problem; it is the result. This malady is now ubiquitous in their victims. Mankind's almost universal lack of judgment has bred confusion and immorality. It is a disease we have contracted from our leaders.

The common thread among these people and their victims is a dysfunctional suneidesis, best translated "conscience" from the Greek.  This is the part of humankind which facilitates the ability to be judgmental, to be moral, perceptive, and discerning. The Greek term is derived from suneido, a word which describes the ability to consider and to be privy to something, to see things clearly, to know and to comprehend. Sun in Greek means to be "with" and eido is "perception and discernment which facilitates discovery, understanding, and experiencing something and someone." The something is the Word and the someone is Yahweh.

Suneidesis is therefore foundational to choice, to combining the collection of information with the ability to process it in a way which leads to understanding and to knowing. It provides the ability to choose wisely and morally between options and paths. Suneidesis is thus the essence of being judgmental. And being judgmental provides the framework for morality, civil society, and justice.

The mass extinction of our collective conscience, of our ability to be judgmental, is the result of Political Correctness, the hypocritical replacement moral code of Socialist Secular Humanism that was conceived by Adam Wieshaupt. It has become the national code of conduct for countries like the United States, where tolerance is demanded at the expense or discernment and rational objectivity. Its proponents see no hypocrisy in being intolerant of intolerance, or in sacrificing justice, common sense, or personal accountability to advance the adaptation of their moral code - one which is in every way opposed to Yahweh's teaching. Without a conscience, society no longer has a moral filter, and thus no ability to be judgmental.

Judgment is the marriage of information and discernment. It is the ability to connect related details within the context of the big picture. Without it, we obfuscate the benefits of freedom of choice. And that's catastrophic, because choice provides the underpinning upon which relationships and love are based. So when we lose this ability, all the information in the world won't do us any good. We can no longer process it wisely and thus choose appropriately. That is why judgment has become the battleground upon which Secular Humanists are warring with God.

In the opening lines of Genesis 2, Yahweh makes a special point of telling us that the one thing which makes mankind unique, the thing which makes humans like God, and separates us from all other animals, is a nesamah. It is the Hebrew equivalent of suneidesis. In Genesis 2:7 we read: "And Yahuweh God ('elohiym) formed (yasar - fashioned, created, and conceived) 'Adam of the dust ('aphar - ground, earth, small particles of loose matter) and breathed (naphach - blew) into his nostrils ('aph) the nesamah of living/existence (chayah/hayah); and 'Adam existed as (hayah) a living (chay) soul (nepesh)." According to Scripture, all animals have a nepesh, or soul, a term analogous to consciousness. But only Adam was given a nesamah - conscience.

The nesamah represents the inherent ability to make an informed and wise choice - to be judgmental, to know right from wrong, to differentiate good from bad, to distinguish that which is true from that which is not. The nesamah endows us with the potential to know God and thus to receive His gifts of salvation and eternal life. The nesamah provides us with the ability to understand His Word and to know Him. Empowered with truth and judgment, we are able to form a personal relationship with God. The nesamah/conscience is what makes it possible for us to choose to be with Yahweh and to love Him. And that is why we are here.

For confirmation of this, we can turn to the book of Job. Written hundreds of years before the Torah, Job is foundational to our understanding. "Indeed ('aken - truly and surely) the Spirit (ruach), She (huw') in mortal man ('enowsh - in the weak and frail, in humankind) and even the nesamah of the Almighty (shaday) provide understanding and wisdom (biyn - the ability to perceive and discern so as to apprehend information and make wise and moral judgments)." (Job 32:8)

Scripture defines nesamah as "the part of mortal man that can know and respond to Yahuweh." The nesamah makes the connection between facts and understanding, between the soul and the Spirit. While it does not make us immortal, it provides us with the ability to know, commune with, love, and trust the source of immortality. It is the thing that connects us to the source of life. Fittingly, nesamah is based upon nasham, meaning "the process of childbirth."

The nepesh provides all animals with a sense of consciousness while the nesamah makes us human, providing us with our conscience. It is that unique human element that seeks to yada Yahweh. But when the suneidesis (conscience, ability to be judgmental, to be moral, perceptive, and discerning) is repressed, God can no longer be known. That makes this warning in the letter to Timothy especially important. It is a matter of life and death.

Central to Yahweh's message to and purpose for man is the establishment of a family based upon the fidelity of marriage. Catholics forbid their clerics from marrying, while Socialist Secular Humanist deny, demean, and convolute the institution. Muslims make a mockery of it by endorsing adultery through Quran-sanctioned rape, the revolving three-day marriage called the "mut'a," and through Quran-approved polygamy. By corrupting and weakening marriage, and thus family and fidelity, Yahweh's primary metaphor, that of a monogamous loving relationship, is tarnished.

Further, the religions of Islam, Catholicism, and Humanism, are all wont to advocate "diets" which are inconsistent with Yahweh's instructions. Muslims even go so far as to describe Islamic food as being "Halal," which according to Yahweh, is Satan's name.

That is why we read: "Denying, forbidding, and weakening the institution of (kolyo - preventing, refusing, impeding, and being opposed to) marriage (gameo - the life-giving and loving monogamous covenant between man and woman which establishes families), and abstaining from (apecho ­ - avoiding) certain diets (broma - notably meat, nourishment, provision, means of sustenance, inclusive of healthy doctrine which sustains spiritually) which (hos) God (theos) created (ektisen) to be received and shared (metalempsis - accepted as a condition of being associated) with (meta - in the company of and together with) the thankful and grateful (eucharistia ­ - those with the appropriate attitude of reciprocity and relationship), those (ho) who trust and rely upon (pistos) and who are thoroughly acquainted with (epiginosko - accurately know and recognize, acknowledge, understand, perceive, and comprehend) the absolute truth (aletheian - manifest reality which is in eternal accord with the evidence; the genuine, honest, dependable, binding, and trustworthy one)." (1 Timothy 4:3)

Religious and political advocates convolute Yahweh's symbolism and metaphors to lead people away from receiving His grace and gaining a place in His eternal family. The antidote is trust and reliance on the Truth, the One and Only who is trustworthy.

Let's bring it all together: "But now the Spirit (breath of life) expressly communicates and (explicitly in these exact words) says (teaches and affirms, reports and reveals, declares and maintains) that (related to knowing, thinking, perceiving, judging, and understanding) in the latter times some (certain influential and important individuals) will excite a revolt which leads to the separation and departure from (will mislead and deceive, withdrawing and falling away from, forsaking) a conviction in the truth, trust and reliance (assurance of what is real and verifiable) indoctrinating, taking control of minds, and misleading people with words (altering the message) in the spirit of the deceiver, of deceptiveness and error which causes people to be corrupted, and to wander away (to be seduced by an imposter, a false messenger and witness), and even the teaching, dogmas, doctrines, and mandates of false gods and demons (manifestations, messengers, and spirits influenced by Satan). They speak lies (deceive with words, promoting, maintaining, affirming, and exhorting that which is false) by way of hypocrisy (under false pretences, through concealment, insincerity and duplicity, by means of imitation, interpretation, and counterfeiting, pretending with flamboyant speech and practiced gestures). Their individual (personal and concealed) conscience (faculty for moral judgments, perceptions, and discernment, the ability to distinguish right from wrong, good from bad, truth from lies) is functionally destroyed (their conscience is seared, consumed, scorched and scared, bearing the brand of a slave, deadening their perceptions). Denying, forbidding, and weakening the institution of (preventing, refusing, impeding, and being opposed to) marriage (the life-giving and loving monogamous covenant between man and woman which establishes families), and abstaining from (avoiding) certain diets (kinds of food, notably meat, nourishment, provision, means of sustenance, inclusive of healthy doctrine which sustains spiritually) which God created to be received and shared (accepted as a condition of having an association) with (in the company of and together with) the thankful and grateful (those with the appropriate attitude of reciprocity and relationship), those who trust and rely upon and who are thoroughly acquainted with (accurately know and recognize, acknowledge, understand, perceive, and comprehend) the absolute truth (manifest reality which is in eternal accord with the evidence; the genuine, honest, dependable, binding, and trustworthy one)." (1 Timothy 4:1-3)

We've talked all around it but didn't want you to miss it. The reason America and the West are doomed, and most are damned, is because our religious, political, societal, and academic leaders have a scarred conscience, and they in turn have functionally destroyed the nation's collective suneidesis/nesamah. The reason they have done so is because it serves as the implement of judgment. Without judgment, it doesn't matter how much a person knows, because they are rendered incapable of utilizing it.

The reason that this is important is because without accurate information or the ability to evaluate it, freedom and choice vanish. When we obfuscate our ability to choose wisely, we become animals, incapable of knowing God. And our society tumbles into chaos. Terror and carnality rule, because those who feel and fear - obey.

Catholic, Muslim, and Communist societies solved the problem of choice, and thus were able to control the masses, by withholding information from their people. That is why nations infected by these false religions are known for their tyranny and oppression, for their indoctrination and restrictions on information. But when Adam Wieshaupt conceived his religion of Socialist Secular Humanism in post-Reformation Europe, he was faced with a new challenge. Information was ubiquitous. So to control mankind and establish his master-slave new world order, Wieshaupt conceived a new moral code which we call Political Correctness. Its purpose was to render being judgmental a crime against humanity.

All opinions, cultures, religions, political systems and behaviors are to be accepted, even respected - now matter how contradictory, errant, or immoral. There is no right or wrong, no heaven or hell. So even with all of the world's knowledge at one's fingertips, it no longer does them any good, because they can't discriminate between good and evil, between truth and fiction.

This is the reason America will be destroyed and why there is no longer any hope for the fallen nation. No matter how many religious and political lies are exposed and condemned, most people's suneidesis/nesamah/conscience has been too scarred for it to do any good. Hope is now only personal and individual. And that is why the passage we have been reviewing ends as it does.

An entire chapter was devoted to the Laodiceans. In it, we discovered that Yahshua's open letter to them was actually written to Protestant Christians living in today's Western democracies. Since that review was in a previous volume, and since its insights are germane to understanding the fallen nature of Western society, and thus Yahweh's prophecy concerning America, let's take a moment to review that letter.

To appreciate the context in which the Laodiceans were addressed, it's important to recognize that they were the last of seven assemblies, telling us that they represent the nature of the "church" in the last days. The seventh letter was preceded by three depicting the birth, marriage, and death of Catholicism: Pergamos, Thyatira, and Sardis. In that Catholics were depicted as "the seat of Satan," "married to Ba'al," and "dead" versus not yet saved, as is the case with the Laodicean Church, Yahshua was telling us that these Laodicean Christians were Protestants, even Evangelicals. Also, it is important to note that the Laodicean prophecy immediately followed the depiction of the Reformation under the Philadelphians who had returned to Yahweh and His Word. This further confirmed that the Laodiceans were Protestant Evangelicals living in a time in which truth was available and yet not heeded.

Laodicea means "the people legislate," so God is addressing a Christian assembly living in democratic nations. As such, their political culture was predicted to be very different than that of the Nicolaitane-influenced assemblies of Catholicism where a politicized clerical hierarchy ruled over men.

Religiously, the Laodiceans were said to be neither alive nor dead, and thus they were predicted to be in a considerably better place than people enduring the Thyatira and Sardis eras of Roman Catholicism, where Satanic corruptions had caused the Church to die. However, there were considerable problems. The age of enlightenment ushered in by the Philadelphian Reformation was now being undermined by human schemes, most especially socialist secular humanism, replacement morality, and self-reliance.

Addressing today's Western Protestant Christians, Yahushua began where He ended in Timothy. "And to the messenger of the ekklesia/assembly of the Laodiceans (Laodikeia - from laos, meaning people and nations, and dike meaning to legislate) write, 'These things says (affirms, teaches, and exhorts) the sure, valid, and true One, the trustworthy One who can be relied upon, the One who in name, resemblance, and nature corresponds in every respect to (the One who is genuine, sincere and upright) the witness, the One who originates (creates, the first in order of place, time and rank, the cornerstone), the Foundation (who ordains, builds, and establishes), God." (Revelation 3:14)

I have always been amazed how nicely Scripture fits together. This could have been the next line in the Timothy passage we were reviewing. There, God had told us that those who were not corrupted were "those who trusted and relied upon and were thoroughly acquainted with (accurately knew and recognized, acknowledged and understood) the absolute truth (the genuine, honest, dependable, binding, and trustworthy one)." The reason one passage begins where the other left off is because God was speaking to the same people in the same era.

Addressing the assembly known by the designation of "the people legislate," i.e., democracies and representative governments, God revealed: "I know to whom you belong and with what you occupy yourselves. You are neither cold (sluggish, inert, and completely attached to the world) nor boiling with passion (fervent and zealous). I wish you were either inert or passionate. But because you are lukewarm and indifferent (apathetic, unenthusiastic, neutral between good and evil, tepid), and neither fervent nor completely attached to the world, I am about to (expect and intend to; have a mind to) vomit (throw up, spewing and spitting) you out of My mouth." (Revelation 3:15-16) This very graphic depiction is designed to underscore just how intolerant Yahuweh is of tolerance, apathy, and hypocrisy. Today's Christian church is neither fish nor foul, alive nor dead.

"Because you say, 'I am rich, abounding in resources (affluent, having abundant possessions), holding on to great wealth (prosperous and monetarily affluent), and have no need of anyone or for anything,' and yet do not know (see or perceive) that you are contemptible, cast down, and wretched (deplorable in body and mind), that you are miserable, pathetic, and pitiable (deserving scorn), that you are powerless and destitute (a poor beggar without influence, status, or honor), that you are puffed up, blinded with pride (arrogant and conceited, yet foolish and stupid, befuddled, unable to see clearly or understand, insolent and overbearing) and that you are unclad, without the appropriate garments (bare and naked)." (Revelation 3:17) Pride and self-reliance are things Yahuweh despises. Scripture doesn't get much more condemning than this. And that's bad for us because this is specifically addressing the church in America circa 2000 CE.

To live with Yahuweh, our souls must be adorned with the Spirit's Garment of Light. Nothing else will do. We do not warrant salvation and we cannot contribute to our redemption. So, since a Garment of Light cannot be purchased, Yahushua tells those who are overly fixated on business that they should be "in the market" for one. "I advise (counsel and recommend) that you be in the market for (acquire) My gold which glows like fire in order that you may be richly supplied (possess something of real value) with garments (robes) of light (brilliant and dazzling white illumination radiating innocence and purity) in order that you may be clothed and covered in them (have them placed all around you, being adorned in them) so that your confusion, humiliation, and shame (disgrace, ignominy, and indecency) of your nakedness is not rendered apparent (made visible, manifest, declared, shown, and revealed)..." (Revelation 3:18)

Then speaking of the manmade solutions which contributed to the blindness of the Laodiceans, and by implication, American Christians, and to their problem of being self-reliant, Yahushua uses a play on words to get their attention. "...and rub (egchrio - smear) your eyes with medicinal cake (kollourion - a drug preparation for tired and sore eyes) in order that you might see." (Revelation 3:18) This was the only time chrio, the basis for "Christ" and "Christian" was written out in Scripture, albeit here as a part of a compound word. And it isn't being used as a substitute for Messiah. The eg prefix of egchrio is a contraction of ego, meaning "I, me, and my," a concept in harmony with the Laodiceans being self-reliant. But what's important about chrio, is that it involves the application of drugs, in this case a mineral compound that was used to heal sore eyes. It is but another confirmation that to be chrio, the basis of "Christ" and "Christian" is to be doped or drugged. The use of the errant terminology by "Christians" in America is indicative of their illness.

Speaking to the assembly He neither loves nor hates, and to those He wants to know, Yahushua says: "Whoever I have affection for (am fond of and have a personal interest in) I refute and admonish (rebuke and reprove; find fault, exposing and correcting) and train them as if they were children (instructing and disciplining them as a parent treats a child, educating, chastening, and teaching them). Therefore be zealous (exhibit warmth and passion) and think differently (reconsider, changing your mind for the better)." (Revelation 3:19) He is scolding these children because He cares for them. He wants them to change from the errant ways and make something of themselves. He is being a good parent.

The key word in Yahushua's next sentence is histemi. The admonition in Timothy to those living in the last days was based upon it. "Behold, I put in place, I established, paid for, maintain, acknowledge the validity of, recommend, and stand upright so as to enable others to stand at (histemi - authorize, abide by, and continue to be present at) the door (the portal, entrance, opening, and gate) and knock." (Revelation 3:20) The door to paradise was made from the pole upon which Yahshua hung. Here He is shown abiding by the portal to paradise because He is the door to paradise.

"If anyone (as an individual) hears and pays attention to (receives and understands) My voice and opens the door, I will come into (become known to, establish and influence, ultimately raising) him, and will enjoy a feast [as in the Miqra'] with him, and he with Me." (Revelation 3:20) God loves a good party. It's the first thing on his list. It reminds me of the story of the Prodigal's son.

However, a word of warning to Western and American Christians: Yahushua has just said that He is not currently part of your lives, which means that you are not saved. From the perspective of Heaven, the Laodiceans are on the outside looking in. So Yahshua is asking them to make a choice. Before He will let them into His home, they must first invite Him into their lives, opening the door to the place they live. All of these concepts will be played out again in the Old Covenant passage detailing America's destiny, so remember them.

Now here is the really amazing part. Yahushua's parting words speak volumes about who Yahuweh is and what He wants our relationship to be like. These may be some of the most radical words in Scripture. "To him who prevails I give them the gift of sitting down with Me on My throne, as I also prevailed, and even as I Am sitting with My Father on His throne. He who can hear, let him listen to what the Spirit says to the ekklesia.'" (Revelation 3:21-22) Imagine that. God wants to be buds. We are not going to bow down at His feet. We are going to sit in His chair. We become His sons and daughters and inherit His power and authority in the same way Yahushua possessed the power and authority of Yahuweh. If that doesn't make your day, nothing will.

So, God has revealed in advance what Protestant Christians living in America and the West will be like so that we won't be like them. He doesn't want us to endure their temporal fate. And after you read what He has to say about America's future, you won't either.

According to Yahweh, most Americans will miss the harvest known as the rapture. He says that the nation will be severely pruned back, witnessing the complete destruction of her largest cities. Let's turn to Isaiah to find out why and how.

The prophetic book named "Salvation is from Yahweh," or Yashayahu, is mostly compiled topically, although sometimes chronologically. It opens by declaring that Yisra'el will continue to be unfaithful, intensifying their rebellion against God. Everything else which is predicted by the prophet is a derivative of Yahuwdym and Gowym (Goyim) allying with Satan rather than forming a relationship with Yahweh.

In his review of future history, Yashayahu focuses most intently on the role Yahweh's human manifestation will play in the world's redemption. Called Yahushua, God With Us, the Son, God Almighty, the Counselor, the Sacrificial Lamb, the Savior, the Spirit, the Redeemer, the Branch, and the Rock of our Salvation, the Messiah, Yah's Anointed Implement, is repeatedly shown to be the lone remedy for mankind's fallen state.

In the midst of this conversation, the prophet speaks of Yahweh turning to Gowym as His temporary witnesses during the long epoch of Jewish rebellion. But he also predicts that a remnant of Jews will be prepared for the last days. The vine which is Yisra'el will bear fruit again.

The sixth and seventh advents of Yahushua (Yah Saves) were predicted in the awe-inspiring language of the 9^th chapter of Yashayahu. After acknowledging that there is hope, Assyria was predicted to be the implement of Yahweh's temporal chastisement. By the 11^th chapter, the prophet returned to the cure: the Spirit of Yahweh. But since there is an alternative spirit, an adversarial influence, the 13^th and 14^th chapters delve deeply into the nature of Satan and his most compelling and enduring counterfeit: the political and religious schemes of Babylon. The Adversary is introduced by name for the first time. He is Halal ben Shachar, a fallen angelic messenger whose ambition is to be worshiped as God.

With the stage set, and the players identified, Yashayahu details the fate of nations. He begins in the 15^th and 16^th chapters with Moab, which is Jordan. The fate of this Middle Eastern Palestinian country is not promising. And that is because Muslims despise Jordan almost as much as they hate Israel. On their way to kill Jews, Islamic militias will trample Jordan down, leaving desolation in their wake. After having compiled a 1400-year history of Islamic terrorism, I have come to understand how Jordan can opt out of the Magog War against Israel, and yet be destroyed, not by Yahweh or Yahuwdym, but by jihadists.

Yashayahu begins his 17^th chapter confirming that the events he is predicting are still in our future. He says that Damascus, the world's oldest continuously inhabited city, will be no more.

The reason for this was not clear to me until after I had compiled my 2000-page review of Muhammad's legacy, The Crude Nature of Islamic Terrorism. I discovered that the world's largest and most ruthless anti-Israeli army was Hizballah - Allah's Party. Controlled, funded, and equipped by Iran, this militant organization is headquartered in Damascus. That is why you will find references to a nation of Submission (Islam means submission in Arabic), prostration (Islam's signature move), and twisted perversions (the Qur'an is a concoction of distorted Talmud tales) in this passage on Damascus's fate.

"Behold (hinneh - look and pay attention to) Damascus's (dammeseq) burden (massa' - effort and cost of harboring, accommodating, and transporting a submissive nation). Damascus shall be abandoned and abolished (suwr - removed and forsaken), an inhabited city no more. She will become a heap of ruins (ma'iy - diminished, from 'avah, a twisted, distorted and perverted place of prostration), a destroyed pile of rubble (mappalah - prostrated)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 17:1)

Syria is a client of Iran, just as is Iraq, thanks to America's ill-fated invasion. By way of Hizballah, the religious regime in Iran controls Lebanon, creating a land crescent into northern Israel - just as prophecy predicts. A thoughtful review of the whole of Scripture confirms that in 2027, after the affirmation of a peace treaty with many in November 2026, Muslims will disregard their promises of peace and form the Magog Federation. It will include: a united Iran and Iraq, Syria, Pakistan, the Islamic states in the Caucasus region, and Turkey. Gog, a Muslim cleric and warlord from Turkey, will ally them with Egypt, Libya, Algeria, and the Sudan and collectively Allah's Party, headquartered in Damascus, will attack Israel.

I'm fairly certain Yahweh's use of aro'er in the next verse is a reference to Lebanon. Not only will Hizballah attack Israel by marching through this once proud country known to the world for its soaring cypress trees, that has been devastated and impoverished by Islam. The fact aro'er is based on 'arrod, meaning wild ass, clenches it for me. Yahweh has already told us that Ishmael's descendants, today's Muslims, will be "wild asses of men. Their hand will be against their brother and their brother's hand will be against them. And they will live in hostility with the entire world." So aro'er is a play on words; the mighty cypress tree is now a juniper bush.

"Abandoned and forsaken ('azab - deserted, destroyed, and damned) will be the inhabited region ('ir - populated place) of the cypress bush (aro'er - a bushy juniper with needles, pertaining to plants and people who are poor, vulnerable, and without resources, needy and yet outcast; related to 'arod, wild ass). Flocks of goats and donkeys ('eder) will come to lie down there because no one will remain to terrorize them (harad - make them tremble or be afraid)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 17:2)

"The fortified places (mibsar - strongholds and fortifications, defenses) of Ephraim ('eprayim - usually a reference to the Northern Kingdom or the 11 tribes other than Yahudah) and Damascus's government (mamlakah) will cease to be active (sabat)." But then, here is some good news: "A remnant (sa'ar - the portion which remains, those left behind) of Aram ('aram - Assyria, the combination of Mesopotamia, Syria, and Lebanon) will be glorified with abundance (kabowd - become honored and significant) as sons (ben) existing (hayah) by declaring and discussing the authority, message, and prophecy (na'um) of Yahweh of hosts (saba' - company of spiritual messengers and envoys)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 17:3) It is of course interesting that the only significant populations of Christians in the Muslim Middle East are Assyrians and Lebanese Phalange. They are this remnant of Aram. Orthodox Christians now, they will be left behind. But in the eye of the storm, they will come home.

After concluding his presentation on the future of Syria and Lebanon, Yahsayahu transitions to a discussion about how Israel will be narrowed at her midsection. This is a "land-for-peace" treaty in which the West Bank and Gaza will be given to the nation of Islam for useless proclamations of peace - thinning Israel at the waist to less than twenty miles across. Since Gaza is already gone, this will happen in stages. The final act will be the treaty announced by Daniel which ushers in the seven-year Tribulation that starts in November 2026.

Isaiah 17:4 predicts: "It will come to pass (hayah - come to exist) in a day (yowm - time) that the size (kabowd - mass and weight, riches and dignity, reputation and abundance) of Ya'aqob [another name for Yisra'el] shall be thinned (dalal - laid low), and her fattest places (mashman - waist or midsection) of her body (basar - physical existence) shall be leaned (razah - made thin and shrink in size)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 17:4) The United States compelled Israel to give Gaza to the Muslims. Bad move. Now, America is coercing Israel into abandoning the West Bank and Golan. That is the essence of George Bush's "Roadmap to Peace." It is the same plan the Iraq Study Group proposed. When accomplished, it will thin Israel at her waist to less than 20 miles across. Since 70% of Israel's wealth and population reside in this place, the nation will become so vulnerable to attack, Muslims will do so. The result is the Magog War. One out of every four people alive on earth at the time will die.

Ignorant and immoral, America is following the example of England. In 1938 Neville Chamberlain gave the Nazis the high ground of Czechoslovakia. That land-for-peace initiative was the catalyst for the Second World War. This one will start the Third.

We are told that the narrowing of Israel occurs in conjunction with a harvest: "And He shall (hayah) as the Sacrificial Lamb (zaroah' - arm of the mighty power who shoulders burdens, from zara', the seed which produces offspring, and zerah, to arise and to shine, radiating light) gather together and receive ('acaph - collect, assemble, and remove, reward by ingathering and withdrawing, fetch) the harvest (qasir - reaping the fruit from the chaff in season), collecting the standing grain (qamah - that which is upright and has the ability to stand and rise)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 17:5) This is the harvest known as the "rapture."

The Zaroah' is Yahushua, the seed of woman and the source of life. An entire chapter of Yada Yahweh was dedicated to understanding the significance of this Messianic term. Also in the passage, qamah is the Hebrew equivalent of histemi, and thus confirms that He stood up for us so that we could stand with Him. The Yahuwdym (those related to Yah) are the standing grain. He is coming for us and will gather us together and receive us unto Himself in the sky as we rise to meet Him there. This is the paralambano harpazo discussed throughout the Renewed Covenant. It will occur on the Miqra' of Taruwah sometime between the fall of 2007 (the year of this writing) and the fall of 2026 (when the Tribulation begins.)

I was once troubled by the fact this passage lists the thinning of Israel immediately before describing this harvest. And that's because the "collecting, removing, and receiving harvest" predicted by Taruwah and being described here has to occur before the land-for-peace treaty alluded to in this passage is affirmed - as that is the Tribulation's opening act. But now I understand. The process of narrowing Israel at the waist has begun and is ongoing. Gaza was lopped off in 2006. Between now and 2026, the West Bank will be sliced away. Yahweh's Sacrificial Lamb will gather His children and take them away during this twenty-year period of time.

"He will be the One who cuts the fruit of the grain from the chaff (sibbolet qasar - reaping fruit in season from the fields) and glean it from (laqat - picking up what is left in the field after the first fruit harvest, implying that a small amount will be gathered in relation to the energy expended in) the valley of dead and demonic spirits (rapa'im)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 17:5)

Laqat describes the process of collecting like things and gathering them together in one place where they can be received and held on to. In the sense of a harvest, it always refers to picking up that which was left in the field after the initial reaping. While there are seven harvests depicted in Scripture, the harvest which fulfilled the Miqra' of FirstFruits, and thus the previous and primary harvest alluded to here, occurred immediately after Yahushua's resurrection on the Miqra' of FirstFruits. It followed Passover and Unleavened Bread on April 3^rd, 33 CE. By using this term, Yahweh is telling us that the next harvest, the one predicted by the Miqra' of Taruwah and known as the rapture, will be relatively small. And once these souls are removed, all that will be left on earth will be dead and demonic spirits. Don't be one of them.

As Yahushua's open prophetic letters to the Philadelphian and Laodicean assemblies affirm, the first will be harvested prior to the Tribulation while the latter will remain to endure it. They are the dead in this passage while the demonic spirits are the religious and political leaders Paul spoke of in Timothy who are in league with Satan. The difference between them is that the Laodiceans will come to know and rely upon Yahweh during the Tribulation and will be saved.

There is another important message included in this passage. This harvest will be small - very small. Yahushua paid a heavy price for our redemption and yet very few souls have availed themselves of the service He rendered.

The metaphors Isaiah uses in the next verse further identify who the subjects are in this passage. Grapes and vines symbolize Yahuweh's family - Yahuwdym. While the Laodiceans are currently "Christians," and not Yahuwdym, this will change. The nature of this transformation is conveyed by the reference to olives. They represent the influence of the Set-Apart Spirit, because olive oil brought light to dark places and was used to anoint and heal. The anointing of the Spirit is what separates those who live with Yahweh from those who do not.

The harvest which will follow the rapture will be smaller still. "Yet, there will be those left behind (sa'ar - those who will remain for a duration of time), gleanings ('olelah - an additional harvest of grapes from a vine; from 'alal - those who are distracted, wanton, abusive, and ruthless fools who endure severe treatment) as in the striking, shaking, and cutting down (naqap - decay, rotting, and destruction) of an olive tree (zayit - olive; from ziv, brightness). Two or three ripe olives (gargar - from garar, regurgitated cud or vomit which is taken away) from the top (ro'sh) branch ('amir - symbol of the Messiah), four or five concealed in rock enclosures (sa'ip), bearing fruit and flourishing (parah - a future harvest) declaring and discussing the authority, message, and prophecy of (na'um - witnessing to the divine revelation from) Yahuweh, God ('elohiym - Mighty One) of Yisra'el (those who strive and live with God)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 17:6)

A "gleaning" is that which is picked up in a secondary or tertiary harvest. The now "ripe olives" from the "branch," which are protected by the "rock" of their salvation, who were "left behind" during the previous harvest are Laodicean Christians turned Yahuwdym. These martyred "witnesses" will be harvested during the Tribulation as they openly "declare Yahweh's message."

You'll notice that the word used to describe the prior state of these people is "vomit," consistent with the Revelation description of Laodiceans. Further, we are told that these people, better known today as Western Christians, will endure the severity a time of "shaking," because prior to it they were "distracted, wanton, abusive, and ruthless fools," things said about them in Revelation. Amused by possessions, frivolities, politics, and religion, these Christians are the reason America foolishly invaded Iraq, leading to the wanton destruction of that nation. Soon, they will taste some of their own medicine. But fortunately, that will shake them to their senses and they will turn to Yahweh, opening the door to Him and declaring His authority, discussing His message, and recognizing His prophecy.

The Laodicean church will finally understand the Word and hear Yahushua knocking at their heart. They will know their Maker by name, Yahuweh, and they will see Him in a new light, from a different perspective, causing them to behold, discern and experience the "God of Yisra'el" for the first time.

As such, they will receive His gift of eternal life. "In that day men ('adam - humans with a functional nesamah) will regard, accept, and receive the gift of (sa'ah - pay attention to, respect, trust, and look to) their Creator ('asah - the One who made everything and did all the work), and their eyes will look to ('ayin - and he will understand) God ('el), the Set-Apart One (qadowsh - cleansing and purifying) of Yisra'el, seeing Him (ra'ah - finding delight in mutual revelation)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 17:7)

Reborn Spiritually, they will no longer trust the sungod illusions manifest in religions or the platitudes of politicians. They will have traded religion for relationship. "So then they shall not regard or accept (lo sa'ah - not look to or consider) altars to gods ('el mizabeha) that are the work (masaseh - customs and practices, habits and traditions) of their hands nor what their fingers have made. They will not look to or delight in Asherah ('aserah - a Babylonian and Assyrian pagan mother earth goddess upon which the Roman Catholic religious festival of Easter was conceived, the idol Madonna and Child statues were built, and the Cross symbol was derived) and sun images and idols (chamman)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 17:8)

Asherah was also called Astarte and Ishtar by the Babylonians and then Venus by the Romans. She was the consort of Ba'al, meaning Lord, the most common Scriptural name for Satan in his sungod manifestation. Worshiped as the Madonna with Child, she was called the Mother of God and the Queen of Heaven. Catholics show reverence to her when they light candles in front of their Madonna statues and when they repeat their ritual Hail Mary prayers. Her primary religious festival was Easter Sunday during the Vernal Equinox, when Mother Earth was impregnated by the sun. In Babylon, nine months later, the son of the sun was born on the Winter solstice, today's Christmas. The name of our planet was derived from a blend of Asherah and Astarte. Mother Nature references are allusions to this goddess as well. Her pictogram is now the scientific symbol for woman - the combination of a circular sun disc and a cross.

Like all of Satan's disguises, the basis of Asherah's name is meant to be deceiving. 'Asera means "to bless." Similarly, Ba'al means Lord and Father. Likewise, Allah means "the God" in Arabic. Further, the Islamic god's other name, Rahman, means "merciful." Satan is disingenuous, not stupid.

Most every important aspect of Roman Catholicism is based upon the Babylonian and Assyrian sungod religion. The papacy, hierarchal church order, nuns, fathers, and monks, the adoration of Mary, the notion God has a mother, the Rosary, Sunday worship, the Mass, confessions, bowing down, the sign and symbol of the cross, the golden sunburst icons placed on their altars, most of the priestly apparel, including the pope's fish hat, infant baptism, purgatory, holy water, wax candles, incense, steeples, saints, Lent, Easter, Christmas, and calling God Lord are all examples of religious rites, customs, and terms conceived in Babylon rather than the Word. The religious traditions of a decorated Christmas tree, the wreath, yule log, mistletoe, Santa's names, job, and costume, the exchange of presents, the Easter Bunny, died eggs dipped in the colors of Spring, the Easter ham, and hot cross buns are all direct derivatives of the Babylon sungod religion.

In this passage, the terminology used regarding Asherah is said by some to reference "the poles of Asherah worship." These were later transformed into the Christmas tree and the Christian cross. Shia Muslims, based upon Muhammad's testimony, celebrate Ashura Day, named in honor of this pagan goddess - somewhat strange for a religion which claims to be monotheistic. But then again, Satan needs a bride.

By sharing this passage, Yahweh has told us that those who know Him no longer tolerate these corrupt counterfeits. And that's a special problem in the United States. Many of America's most enduring symbols are sun god related. On the secular side, some of these include: the national and presidential eagle image, the Washington Monument, the Statue of Liberty, and the pyramid and eye on the nation's currency. They are an abomination to Yahuweh.

While the recently Spirit-filled Laodiceans will be comforted by Yahuweh, they will still endure the trial. Their mission will be a tough one - to be godly witnesses in hellish times. "In that day, the defenses and fortifications (ma'oz - protective forces and systems) of their cities will be abandoned ('azab - deserted and neglected) like areas of underbrush and thicket (hores) neglected briars and desolation found at the summit of a mountain ('amir) which ('asher - by way of relationship) are destitute and forsaken ('azab - deserted and desolate, lifeless) because of the presence of (paneh - because of being in the face of and confronting) the children (ben - sons) of Yisra'el and will be (hayah) destroyed and become lifeless (samamah - utterly ruined, uninhabitable, deserted, and desolate)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 17:9)

Since the subject has been "the gleanings left behind who have come to know Yahweh," this passage tells us that this devastation will be perpetrated on the cities formally inhabited by the Laodicean church. These Christians, by definition and description, live in Western democracies where Protestant assemblies prevail over Catholicism. By reading Revelation, we know that Roman Catholics have already gone from being Jezeba'alian (married to Ba'al and thus Satanic) to being dead. So such cities could include the likes of New York, Washington, Boston, Baltimore, Miami, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Diego, London, or Munich. The last two, however, will soon be scratched off the list as Yashayahu goes to great lengths to describe the nation whose cities will be destroyed.

There is another interesting insight here. We have just been told that there will be a connection between the destruction of these cities and the children of Israel. Since Muslims blame Americans for supporting Israel (something which is actually untrue, unfortunately), the purveyors of devastation and death may be jihadists. I have been convinced for nearly a decade that Islamic terrorists will sail low-grade nuclear bombs into America's largest cities - all of which are located on large bodies of water. And while that would lead to the kind of desolation described here, as there are no defenses against such an attack, the devastation could also be the result of a natural disaster which overwhelms manmade defenses. God certainly isn't going to protect America or Europe as both have been confrontational with Israel, taking the side of Islam over Yahuwdym for "crude" reasons. Either way, during this time of catastrophic destruction, Yahweh has said that he will protect His newly adopted family.

The timing of this seems to coincide with the awakening and salvation of those left behind. As such, I think America's cities will be destroyed during the Tribulation.

While the Laodiceans are on the right path, the reason they will have to endure this hellish time is now made clear. They were not delivered from the tribulation and not harvested with those who were saved... "Indeed because (kiy - branded by another) they ignored and forgot, becoming ignorant of (sakah - lost track of information regarding something so as to lose sight of its significance and therefore failed to respond to, neglecting) the God ('elohym - Mighty One) of their deliverance and salvation (yasah - Deliverer and Savior), the Rock (tsur - high fortress enclosure) of their protection and refuge (ma'oz - safety on high ground, from 'azaz, that which strengthens, establishes, and prevails), not (lo) remembering or mentioning (zakar - recalling information regarding or responding to in an appropriate manner, mentioning or proclaiming, publicly asserting the truth about) the Most High ('al)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 17:10) As a result of listening to their dishonest and deceitful religious and political leaders, those who called themselves Christians had separated themselves from the God revealed in Scripture. They were ignorant of Him. They ignored Him. Not one in a thousand declared His name. This is yet another confirmation that Yahweh is speaking of the Laodiceans, the Christian West circa the early 21^st century.

 In the next verse, Yahweh uses a metaphor which requires some explaining. Gowym, or Gentiles, who have been adopted by Yahuweh are considered to be grafted into the vine rooted in Yisra'el. Imported vines, however, are uprooted, and thus they lack life sustaining nutrition and water. Unless they are properly replanted, they will die. Therefore, their fate and condition depends entirely upon whether they are grounded in the Word and are Spirit-filled or not. Since the passage says "no" to both, these folks are in trouble. Also, please note, the highest concentration of imported vines can be found in the same place we find the world's most abundant harvests - America, the home of Laodicean Christians.

Having been deceived into believing in a religious corruption of the truth, a counterfeit, American Christians are busy being counter productive. "Therefore you plant (nata' - root, set into the ground, embed, and dwell around) pleasant-tasting and delightful-looking, yet illegitimate plants (na'amanym - a distorted garden of Adonis planted in the unfaithful home of misunderstanding), using your own strength to sow (tizra enu - yielding offspring by scattering your seed), growing seedlings in your plantation (neta' - arranging, ordering, and caring for your own garden) which produces foreign, dried up, and scorched (zar - hostile, strange, different, unauthorized, non-Yisra'elite, and illicit) vine branches (zamorah - detestable objects used in religious sun worship ritual)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 17:10)

The name Adonis means "lord." It is based upon one of the two Hebrew and Aramaic terms for lord, adoniy (the other being ba'al). Adonis was the beautiful youth and mighty hunter of Greek mythology. A derivative of the Babylonian religion, he was modeled after Nimrod - the founder of Mystery Babylon, Satan's first sungod religion. Like Nimrod before him, Adonis was killed in a hunting accident by a wild boar. So Aphrodite in Greek mythology (the goddess of love and beauty represented by Venus), and Asherah in Babylon (Mother Earth, Mother of God, and Queen of Heaven represented by Venus and the Madonna and Child in Babylonian mythology), who lusted for him, restored him to life, resurrecting him each year on the Sunday nearest the Vernal Equinox - today's Easter Sunday. Satan has a counterfeit for all of Yahweh's metaphors, messages, and miqra. Unfortunately the Church was beguiled into assimilating them. In fact, they went so far as to replace Yahweh's name with Adonis' adoniy each of the 7,000 times Yahweh meticulously placed it in His Word. Although to be fair, Jewish rabbis deserve much of the blame for this corruption.

As an interesting aside, Aphrodite and Asherah are both related to the Aramaic word for beekeeper - a term synonymous with "the word" in that language. That's significant because beeswax candles were used as the ritual symbol for the enlightenment of the Word - in this case Ba'al's sungod counterfeit of Yahweh's Word in the Babylonian Mystery religion. When we see these wax candles burned in Roman Catholic and Orthodox Christian Churches before statues of the Madonna and Child, as prayers are offered to her as Mother of God, we have come full circle. And while the Protestant Church left Mary out of their religious scheme, they copied most all other aspects of Catholicism, changing very little else apart from papal leadership.

Zar is "a foreigner or alien who is outside the community." They are "illegitimate and thus not part of the family, excluded from inheritance." The term is derived from zara', meaning "a nauseating and loathsome thing." We have returned to vomit.

The next word describes who these lowlifes belong to. Zamorah refers to "the Babylonian religious custom of worshipping the rising sun by holding pruned vine branches in their hands." The religion of Christianity was created by Constantine's Catholic Church. Their basis was the Babylonian sungod religion. God is telling American Christians that their religion is based upon the Babylonian sungod rituals of Lord Ba'al and that as a result, they are strangers to Him. Leave your church and come to God. Form a relationship and discard religion.

Yahweh doesn't want Christians blaming Him for being left behind and for having to endure the wrath of the Tribulation. It is like Jews in the Holocaust. It wasn't and won't be God's fault that they are suffering. That is why He is telling them in advance exactly why they will endure the Great Tribulation.

They started off deceived, hemmed in by all manner of religious and political deceptions. "In the day of your apostasy (suwg - when you hedge, vacillating under modern interpretations, and backslide by building a fence around your garden), in the morning (boqer - you make religious donations to earn favoritism) you sow seeds (zera' - scatter them to produce offspring) which sprout and bud (parah) into a harvest (qasir) which is piled up and thrust aside (ned - living in textual error behind a barrier, dammed up and unable to flow to the destination, from nuwd, shaken and wavering, lamenting) in the day of disease, affliction, and pain (halah - sickness and weakness), severe physical, mental, and emotional anguish (ka'eb - tribulation and terrible suffering, terror and fear, devastation and destruction), incurable despair, desperation, and death ('anus - hopelessness which cannot be healed or cured, a complete lack of peace and hope, the utter calamity which befalls mortal man)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 17:11) Halah is remarkably similar to Satan's name, Halal, and in sound to Allah. I wonder if that was by design?

It's amazing how many Christians fight eschatological battles to suggest that there is no pre-Tribulation rapture, only one mid- or post-Trib based upon their particular inclination. Not only does Scripture confirm that there is not one but seven harvests, the last three occurring pre-, mid-, and post-Tribulation, to suggest that God would allow His children, those already adopted into His family, to endure this horrible time makes Him out to be enormously less compassionate than He is. But then I suppose that those who deny the mercy of a pre-Tribulation harvest are the same folks who believe that God is sufficiently demented to say: "Love me or I will torture you forever in Hell." There is another fate for souls, and there are three harvests during man's waning days.

The only solution which conforms to the whole of Scripture and is consistent with God's nature and plan, is for the last three harvests to occur pre-, mid-, and post-Tribulation. While this material was covered in the chapter dedicated to harvests, for those who have forgotten or are reading this out of order, the first was the harvest of Enoch. The second rescue was Lot before Sodom's destruction. Matthew even ties this example into his description of the paralambano harpazo known as the rapture. The third snatching up was of Elijah. And since neither Enoch nor Elijah experienced death, they will be the two Tribulation witnesses. The fourth harvest was a fulfillment of the third Miqra'. This FirstFruits' harvest was coterminous with Yahushua's resurrection in 33CE. The fifth collecting and receiving will coincide with, and will fulfill, the Miqra' of Taruwah. It will occur weeks or years before the Tribulation begins. I'm guessing three years, putting it on a Sabbath in the fall of 2023. The sixth harvest is the mid-Tribulation gleaning awaiting the Laodiceans we have been reading about. And the last comes at the end of the time of testing, and at the dawn of the Millennial Sabbath. Yahuweh has a thing for sevens.

The previously self-reliant and apostate ekklesia of Laodicea will reap what they have sown. Those who come to know Yahweh and His Word will endure the great affliction as witnesses and martyrs. But Spiritless Gentiles will begin to scream, collectively and individually. This will not be a pleasant time. "Woe (hoy - alas, expressing dissatisfaction and pain in a declaration of judgment and prophetic warning), huge and agitated crowds of greedy people will roar (hamown - multitudes of people living in abundance and wealth who are fond of pomp, ceremony, and accumulating possessions will cry out in commotion and confusion, clamoring in massive disorderly riots), a multitude of arrogant people (rabiym amiym - an abundance of militant and haughty individuals) will wail (kahamot/hamah - cry out loudly and groan in a tumultuous roar, disturbed and disorderly, they will snarl and growl enraged) like the sea (yam - a metaphor for gowym or gentiles). Wealthy nations of people will moan and wail (la'om yehemayun/hamah - great populations will groan in agitated tumult, terrorizing while screaming in their abundance and anguish), roaring and rioting (sha'own - crying out in a horrible uproar as things crash down around them in ruin), like the waters (mayim) of great (kabiyr - mighty and massive) devastation and desolation (sa'ah - smashing everything down into a heap of lifeless waste as a result of a devastating storm)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 17:12) It sounds as if the whole world starts behaving like Muslims, looting, destroying, and killing everything in sight while shouting "Allahu Akbar!" And then in the midst of all of this a series of catastrophic storms devastate the planet. What America witnessed with Katrina and its aftermath in New Orleans may serve as a harbinger of what is to come.

Yahweh's prophetic words are selected with precision, so subtle nuances become particularly important when various terms are used to describe similar events. There are many important shadings here which should not be overlooked. We have been told that multitudes will scream and lay waste. With pomp and tumult they will roar against and destroy an abundant and large nation or nations. Their cries will be as loud and relentless as the raging of the sea. Devoid of morals, these people will take what is not theirs and destroy what they do not take. It is gang mentality manifest in religion and politics on a massive scale.

This vision was so all-encompassing and horrific, Isaiah continued to paint it with these words: "Nations of people (la'om - large assemblies with common interests) will lash out in an uproar; corrupted, they destroy and kill (sa'on - massive, arrogant, and loathsome crowds will be enraged, clamoring out of slimy muck they will riot and lay waste, desolating and destroying) like a massive flood of (rabym - like a great and imposing, powerful and militant, widespread and abundant amount of) water (mayim). Moving fast and making a huge noise, they will destroy quickly, causing great devastation and desolation (sa'ah - crashing cities down into lifeless ruined heaps with great suddenness, massive explosive booms, tumult, terror, and fear, causing people to flee in panic). Then when He rebukes them (ga'ar - with conviction reprimands them in disapproval, exposing their error while speaking judgmentally to fiendish powers, rejecting, and threatening them) on account of them being odious and evil (baw - bad),  they will flee trembling (nus - run away in haste to hide). Yet exposed and alienated (merhaq - naked, distanced, remote, and separated), they will be pursued and prosecuted (radap - hounded and chased in a hostile fashion for the purpose of persecution) like chaff driven by the wind (mos - useless and insignificant husks which are susceptible to being blown away) on the hills and mountains (har) in the presence of (paneh) the Spirit (ruach), a swirling gale (galgal supah - a devastating rotating wind storm, hurricane or tornado)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 17:13)

Simply stated: people are going to act very badly and be extremely destructive and deadly and then Yahweh is going to blow them away. God is not tolerant of rebellion against Him, His people, or his purpose. And these people will be as rebellious as the world has ever seen, devastating everything in their path including life and choice. Corrupt beyond hope, God knows that if He does not intervene now and prosecute them, left to their own devices they would destroy all life on earth, making the planet uninhabitable. We are talking about nuclear holocaust in addition to a series of devastating "natural" disasters. This rapid and explosive destruction is occurring on a global scale.

And there will be terror. Many will die. But death and devastation will be particularly apportioned to those who loot and prey upon Yahuweh's favorite place and upon His chosen people. While Muslims try, America has been the only nation to successfully plunder Israel of her most valuable and important asset - her God-given gift: the Promised Land. The United States forced Israelis to give back the Sinai and Gaza, then Lebanon, followed by control of large swaths of the West Bank. America did it to sell arms to the Islamic nations and to buy oil more cheaply.

In Genesis, Yahweh meticulously laid out His plan of six plus one. The six-thousand-year rule of man on earth is nearly over. This horror will all unfold during our twilight. "The timing is (la 'eth - this point in time and occasion is) sunset ('ereb - evening, night, the close of the day when things grow dark), so behold (wahineh - now look and see) the terrorism (ballahah - sudden and dreadful calamitous destruction perpetrated on civilian populations, fear educing destruction which results in the cessation of life)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 17:14)

Interestingly, the word 'ereb, meaning "the lack of light," is indistinguishable in the Hebrew text from 'Arab, the desolate places and race universally associated with Islamic terrorism. As a result of Islam, Arab and Muslim have become indistinguishable. And their religion is running amuck around the world, destroying everything in its path. I don't suppose that's an accident. And speaking of coincidences, Allah's name is found in the midst of the Hebrew word for "terror." Yahweh was not surprised that Muslims following Allah's orders would be responsible for over 95% of the world's terrorist acts.

Just as it is darkest just before the dawn, so it will be with man. These horrible events usher in the dawn of a new day when the light of God will reside with us for all time. "In the time before (baterem) the dawn (boqer - morning, the arrival of light, sunrise) there will be hostility and non-existence (enenu/'ayin - there will be a national and public personal enemy representing incurable lifelessness and negativity, emptiness, nothingness and naught, who is vacuous and inane, devoid of intelligence and worth). That is the portion (heleq - share of booty seductively enticed by sexual suggestion) of those who plunder and take a spoil (sasah - of the militant raiders, ransakers, and looters, of those who pillage by force), the verdict and punishment (gowral - the divine judgment and retribution, the lot and recompense) on those who loot and mistreat (bazaz - plunder and disrespect, show contempt for, and act badly toward) us [Yisra'el]." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 17:14) The Qur'an's 8^th surah, appropriately called the "Spoils of War," says: "Plunder is lawful and good." Methinks Yahweh disagrees.

Heleq defines the entire Quranic motivation for Islamic terrorism: the seductive promise of stolen booty in this world and of unending sexual favors in paradise for those Muslims who terrorize on behalf of the enemy, Allah, who is Satan. We have moved well beyond coincidence here. Yahweh is telling us that the terrorists will be Muslims fighting in Allah's Cause. He told us back in 700 BCE, 1,300 years before Islam was invented, and 2,700 years before they would unleash their nuclear weapons, that Muslims would terrorize Israel for these very reasons.

For the sake of review, and to keep our bearings, let's bring the 17^th chapter all together before we move on... "Behold (pay attention to) Damascus's burden (massa' - effort and cost of harboring, accommodating, and transporting a submissive nation [i.e., Muslims as Hizballah (Allah's Party)]). Damascus shall be abandoned and abolished, an inhabited city no more. She will become a heap or ruins (a twisted, distorted and perverted place of prostration), a destroyed pile of rubble. (17:1) Abandoned and forsaken (deserted, destroyed, and damned) will be the inhabited region (populated place) of the cypress tree. Flocks of goats and donkeys will come to lie down there because no one will remain there to terrorize them. (17:2) The fortified places (defenses) of Ephraim (the Northern Kingdom) and Damascus's government will cease to be active, but a remnant (those left behind) of Aram (Assyria, the combination of Mesopotamia, Syria, and Lebanon) will be glorified with abundance as sons existing by declaring and discussing the authority, message, and prophecy of Yahuweh of hosts. (17:3)

"It will come to pass in a day that the size (mass and weight, riches and abundance) of Ya'aqob [Yisra'el] shall be thinned, and her fattest places (waist or midsection) of her body (physical existence) shall be leaned (made thin and shrink in size). (17:4) And He shall as the Sacrificial Lamb gather together and receive (collect, assemble, and remove, ingather and withdraw by fetching) the harvest (reaping the fruit from the chaff in season), collecting the standing grain (that which is upright and has the ability to stand and rise). He will be the One who cuts the fruit of the grain from the chaff (reaping fruit in season from the fields) and gleaning it from (picking up what is left in the field after the firstfruit harvest, implying that a small amount will be gathered in relation to the energy expended in) the valley of dead and demonic spirits." (17:5)

"Yet, there will be those left behind (those who will remain for a duration of time), gleanings (a secondary harvest from a vine; those who were distracted, wanton, abusive, and ruthless fools) as in the striking, shaking, and cutting down of an olive tree. Two or three ripe olives (regurgitated cud or vomit) from the top branch, four or five concealed in a rock enclosure, bearing fruit and flourishing (as a future harvest) declaring and discussing the authority, message, and prophecy of Yahuweh, God of Yisra'el. (17:6) In that day men (humans with a functional nesamah) will regard, accept, and receive the gift of (will pay attention to, respect, trust, and look to) their Creator, and their eyes will look to (and they will understand) God ('el), the Set-Apart One of Yisra'el, seeing Him (and finding delight in mutual revelation). (17:7) So then they shall not regard or accept (not look to nor consider) altars to gods which are the work (customs and practices, habits and traditions) of their hands, nor at what their fingers have made. They will not look to or delight in Asherah and sun images and idols." (17:8)

"In that day, the defenses and fortifications (protective forces and systems) of their cities will be abandoned (deserted and neglected) like areas of underbrush and thicket, neglected briars and desolation found at the summit of a mountain which are destitute and forsaken because of the presence of (because of being in the face of and confronting) the children of Yisra'el. They will be destroyed and deserted (utterly ruined, becoming uninhabitable and desolate). (17:9) Indeed because (branded by another) they ignored and forgot, becoming ignorant of (lost track of information regarding Me so as to lose sight of My significance and therefore failed to respond to, neglecting) the God of their deliverance and salvation (Deliverer and Savior), the Rock (high fortress enclosure) of their protection and refuge, not remembering or mentioning (recalling information regarding or responding to in an appropriate manner, or proclaiming publicly the truth about) the Most High." (17:10)

"Therefore you plant pleasant-tasting and delightful-looking, illegitimate plants (like distorted gardens of Adonis in the unfaithful home of misunderstanding), using your own strength to sow, growing seedlings in your plantation (arranging, ordering, and caring for your own garden) which produces foreign, dried up and scorched (hostile, strange, different, unauthorized, non-Yisra'elite, and illicit) vine branches (detestable objects used in religious worship ritual). (17:10) In the day of your apostasy (when you hedge, vacillating under modern interpretations, and backslide by building a fence around your garden), in the morning (you make religious donations to earn favoritism and) you sow seeds (scattering them to produce your offspring) which sprout and bud into a harvest which is piled up and thrust aside (living in textual error behind a barrier, dammed up and unable to flow to the destination, shaken and wavering) in the day of disease, affliction, and pain, severe physical, mental, and emotional anguish (tribulation and terrible suffering, terror and fear, devastation and destruction), incurable despair, desperation, and death (hopelessness which cannot be healed or cured, a complete lack of peace and utter calamity which befalls mortal man)." (17:11)

"Woe (alas, expressing dissatisfaction and pain in a declaration of judgment and prophetic warning), huge and agitated crowds of greedy people will roar (multitudes of people living in abundance and wealth who are fond of pomp, ceremony, and accumulating possessions will cry out in commotion and confusion, clamoring in massive disorderly riots), a multitude of arrogant people (an abundance of militant and haughty individuals) will wail (cry out loudly and groan in a tumultuous roar, disturbed and disorderly, they will snarl and growl enraged) like the sea (a metaphor for Gentiles). Wealthy nations of people will moan and wail (great populations will groan in agitated tumult, terrorizing while screaming in their abundance and anguish), roaring and rioting (crying out in a horrible uproar as things crash down around them in ruin), like the waters of great (mighty and massive) devastation and desolation (smashing everything down into a heap of lifeless waste as a result of a devastating storm). (17:12) Nations of people (large assemblies with common interests) will lash out in an uproar, and corrupted, they destroy and kill (arrogant and loathsome crowds will be enraged, clamoring out of slimy muck they riot and lay waste, desolating and destroying) like a massive flood of (like a great and imposing, powerful and militant, widespread and abundant amount of) water. Moving fast and making a huge noise, they destroy quickly, causing great devastation and desolation (crashing cities down into lifeless ruined heaps with great suddenness, massive explosive booms, tumult, terror, and fear, causing people to flee in panic). Then when He rebukes them (reprimands them in disapproval, exposing their error while speaking judgmentally to fiendish powers, rejecting and threatening them) on account of them being odious and evil, they will flee trembling (nus - run away in haste to hide). Yet exposed and alienated (naked, distanced, remote, and separated), they will be pursued and prosecuted (hounded and chased in a hostile fashion for the purpose of persecution) like chaff driven by the wind (like useless and insignificant husks which are susceptible to being blown away) on the hills and mountains in the presence of the Spirit (ruach), a swirling gale (a devastating rotating wind storm, a hurricane or tornado)." (17:13)

"The timing is (this point in time and occasion is) sunset (evening, night, the close of the day when things grow dark), so behold (now look and see) the terrorism (sudden and dreadful calamitous destruction perpetrated on civilian populations, fear educing destruction which results in the cessation of life). In the time before the dawn there will be hostility and non-existence (there will be a national and public personal enemy representing incurable lifelessness and negativity, emptiness, nothingness and naught, who is vacuous and inane, devoid of intelligence and worth). That is the portion (share of booty seductively enticed by sexual suggestion) of those who plunder and take a spoil (of the militant raiders and looters, of those who pillage by force), the verdict and punishment (the divine judgment and retribution, the lot and recompense) on those who loot and mistreat (plunder and disrespect, show contempt for and act badly toward) us." (17:14)

We have witnessed a preview of two harvests, one occurring as Israel trades land for worthless promises of peace, and the other as mankind unleashes nuclear holocaust upon itself. We are witnessing the consequence of religion and the twilight of man's reign.

The tone of Yahsayahu's vision does not change as we move through the artificial chapter break. Yahweh is once again defining his target audience. But there is a difference between the 17^th and 18^th chapters. Previously, God provided a host of clues to tell us that Laodicean Christians would be the beneficiaries of the Tribulation gleaning. He told us that these Western Christians would endure the trial because they had corrupted His message. He even explained how Muslims would prey upon them, terrorizing the affluent nation by obliterating her cities.

But now as we turn the page, Yahweh does something He does nowhere else in Scripture. Rather than naming a country which would be unknown for 2,000 years, He describes it in His prophetic warning. "Woe (hoy - alas, expressing dissatisfaction and a warning) to the land ('erets - nation and place) of whirling and buzzing armed (tsalatsal - loud percussive flying things which swarm in, devour, and destroy, the clangor of locust-like armies flying on) wings (kanap - a structure with winged extremities like a bird which are used to fly in, invade and attack) which (asher - relationally speaking) is the region beyond (me 'eber - the place situated across from and on the opposite side of [from the perspective of Yisra'el]) the rivers (nahar) of Cuwsh (the furthest western civilization and place known to the Yahuwdym during Yashayahu's time and probably Northern Africa)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 18:1)

Cush was one of the three sons of Ham listed in the Genesis 10 family of nations. He was the grandson of Noah and became the father of Nimrod, the black Babylonian king who invented the sungod religious counterfeit polluting so many people today - especially Christians. Since Nimrod was considered to be an African man, and since cuwsh means "black," Cush is thought to be Africa.

However, the first and only reference to the "rivers of Cush" occurs in Genesis 2:3. There, Yahweh was describing the location of the Garden of Eden which was north of Yisra'el in today's Turkey.

Without the reference to "rivers," linguistic scholars place the land of Cush in the Upper Kingdom of Egypt along the Nile. Cush is often translated "Ethiopia" even though no such country existed at the time and such a place was unknown to the Jews. At most, Cush could imply Egyptians in the southern Nile valley.

Other Isaiah references tie Cush and Egypt together as they come from the west to wage war against the Israelites (Isaiah 20:3 & 45:14). Egypt and Cush are also connected by Ezekiel and King David (Ezekiel 30:4 & Psalm 68:31). They are said to be rich and tied in with Egypt and Libya by Daniel in 11:43. In Amos 9:7, Yahweh calls the sons of Yisra'el, sons of Cush, saying that He brought them to Yisra'el from Egypt.

The good news here is that Yahweh isn't talking about cuwsh, but instead about a land and region which is beyond the rivers of Cush, a place situated on the opposite side of Africa from the perspective of Israel. Therefore, the land known for its winged military prowess is west or northwest of Israel on the opposite side of the world. I know of such a place. I live there.

Today, America is best known abroad for its whirring wings - Apache and Black Hawk helicopters - especially as they etched their way into the world's psyche, guns clattering in Mogadishu, Afghanistan, and Iraq. And since the terms used are applicable to any loud winged military contraption, I dare say, that if I gave you the entirety of the paleo-Hebrew lexicon, you couldn't write a more adept description.

But Isaiah wasn't done describing and defining this nation, it's location, assets, nature, and people. In the next verse, we are given nine additional clues, bringing the total to eleven. And that's in addition to the plethora of hints He's already given us in the previous chapter, tying these people to the Laodicean democratic Christians of the last days, most of whom live in America. God wants us to figure this out.

So the nation west of Africa from the perspective of a Jewish prophet living 2,700 years ago: "Stretches out and sends (salah - dispatches to other places for a purpose, is divorced and thus extends its influence in evil consol) by sea (yam) envoys (tsiyr - representatives) in floating (gome' - bulrush (the construction of the largest ships of the day), looking like long stalks of papyrus reeds, which appear to swallow up water to float, dark material used by the Egyptians to make boats for the Nile) vessels (kaliy - objects, boats, and apparatus which are often used as an implement of war) on the surface (paneh - face) of the waters (mayim), sending out (halak - moving about) swift, ignorant, and immoral (qal - a fast-moving, yet contemptible, disgraced, and foolishly ignorant assemblage or fleet of) messengers and representatives (mal'ak - those who inform, announcing a position, those who are empowered to project the influence and authority of the one sending them, and those who provide surveillance, including politicians, diplomats, ambassadors, covert operatives, and military attachés). They are a Gentile nation (gowy - a large cultural geographic population or country which is not Israeli) comprised of tall leaders who extend themselves and drag others along (masak). They are clean-shaven, smooth-skinned, and many have bald heads which appear polished (marat - headstrong and reckless), a people ('am - family, country, and army) feared and revered (yare' - causing distress through intimidation and earning respect through status) from (min) here to there and beyond in a future time (hal'ah - at some considerable distance away, out there, in a distant future period). They are a Gentile nation (gowy) who set the rules, speaking a strange foreign language, talking a lot, saying meaningless things while marching off to war (qaw'- qow' - a land where the inhabitants are spewed out and vomited up), a powerful nation which treads down and subjugates, imposing its will on others while causing their downfall (mabusah - extending themselves to aggressively trample down and subdue others). Their land ('erets - nation) is divided (baza') by rivers (nahariym)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 18:2)

Many of the Hebrew terms used in this passage to give us a word's eye view of the prophet's future, our present, are fairly uncommon in Scripture. Not only do they mean slightly different things based upon the way they are vocalized, there is a considerable range of meanings inherent in the various terms. I have erred on the side of completeness, so as to provide as comprehensive an assessment as possible of the nation Isaiah was describing.

But here is what we can tell for certain. This land is divided by rivers, and no nation on earth fits this description better than America. If it were "river" singular, the United States would have competition from Africa and South America with the Nile and Amazon, but not when the term is plural. Nothing distinguishes America more from all other places than its many long rivers which divide the land. They include: the Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, Colorado, Columbia, Rio Grande, St. Lawrence, Hudson, James, Shenandoah, Potomac, Rappahannock, Susquehanna, Snake, Kern, and Yukon.

We also know that in a future time, this nation is said to be feared and revered, and able to project its influence far and wide. That could be Rome, England, or America but we can strike Rome and England because this country relies on their navy and is best known for their air force. No nation in the history of humankind has ever had a larger, faster, or more powerful arsenal of oceanic or airborne weapons than America.

Further, compared to the rest of the world, Americans are tall, clean-shaven, and today it is especially common to see shaved and polished heads. Although, in reference to marat meaning "polished," since the term is used most often to describe the polished nature of a metallic sword, in this context, marat could be the prophet's way of telling us that the nation uses a gleaming metallic arsenal to project its power and influence.

We know that this nation is primarily Gentile and likes to meddle in other people's affairs. Americans think it is their obligation to the world and to God to set the rules for all others, and they aren't afraid to impose their form of governance on them. Moreover, Americans do talk a lot. And ignorantly, the nation marches off to wars like those in Korea, Vietnam, Afghanistan, and Iraq - leaving the last three places worse off than they were before. Then there is the reoccurring theme of the democratic Laodicean Christians being vomit. Only one nation in all of time meets these criteria. This is America in the early days of the 21^st century.

"All of (kol - the entirety of) those who remain in (yasab) the world (tebel), those who dwell in and inhabit (sakan) the earth ('erets - land or nation), when the sign of Yahweh (YHWH nes - symbol of the upright pole [a reference to Moses saying "Yahweh is my standard." (Exodus 17:15)]) is lifted up and raised (nasa') on the mountain (har), look and behold (ra'ah - consider it and understand), and when the trumpet is sounded (taqa'), and the horn is blown (sopar), listen to and accept the news (sama' - heed the announcement)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 18:3) The only sign of Yahweh which I am aware of which is lifted up because they made Yahweh their standard, and is associated with a trumpet and sofar blast, is the pre-Tribulation paralambano harpazo, known as the "rapture." It will be fulfilled on the Miqra' of Taruwah, or Trumpets, as a sign to those who remain on earth and are left behind that they need to listen to Yahweh, and accept his message, now!

What's interesting about this is that the people most curious about the rapture are those who will not only miss it, but once they have missed it will be the ones who recognize the harvest as a sign from Yahweh. America is so fixated on the rapture they made the fictitious representation of it called Left Behind, a hundred-million-copy runaway bestseller. It's too bad the Left Behind series depiction of the last days is so inaccurate. In addition to a host of errors both big and small, its authors completely ignored the Miqra', Yahweh's other harvests, and the detailed timeline of Yahweh's plan of redemption.

These next words are very similar to Yahshua saying in His Revelation letter to the Laodiceans that He will knock on the door to their hearts. "Indeed because (kiy - truly) now, at this point in time (koh - here on this occasion) says ('amar - answers, promises, and declares) Yahuweh, I will move toward My goal and quietly say 'I am here. ('el'aniy - God will extend Himself toward us announcing His presence). Be at peace, I will grant relief (shaqat - be calm and at rest, I promise a favorable outcome from the tumult and tribulation). I will look down upon and care for you (nabat - pay attention to you out of compassion) from My dwelling place (makon - from the location in space where the universe was established and where there is life) like a warm and passionate (hamam) beautiful, dazzling, and clear light (sah - clearly understood and brilliant, glowing source of illumination, white, shining, and aglow), providing light and warmth ('or - building a fire which enables you to see and survive), enveloping you like a cloud ('ab - covering you in protective waters), like a warm and loving (hamam) dew (tal - a mist which covers the surface of whatever it touches, nurturing abundant life) at harvest time (qasir)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 18:4)

What a wonderful picture of Yahweh enveloping those left behind. After sending the signal of the rapture at the blowing of a trumpet which all will see and hear, Yahuweh will make Himself evident from heaven - a warm luminous light. And He will immerse those in His Spirit who come to know Him, trust Him and accept Him. He will be as close to them as the dew is to the harvest. The word picture which is being painted describes Yahweh's Set-Apart Spirit baptizing/immersing His children in a protective regenerative cocoon of love. While the Spirit will be removed temporarily from the earth during the pre-Tribulation harvest of the Philadelphian assembly, Her light, warmth, love, and cleansing, nurturing, and anointing living waters will return and envelop (baptize) those who answer when Yahweh says: "Here I Am."

Also, since God is speaking here of a harvest, and since we've already been told that these gleanings missed an earlier reaping, we have been given additional confirmation that there is more than one. This gleaning will occur during the midst of the Tribulation.

Sadly, Isaiah had some very bad news for the western land divided by rivers, for the air and sea power of the day, for the nation feared and revered. They will be pruned just before the harvest. Listen: "Before (paneh - in front of or in the presence of) the harvest (qasir - the reaping in season), as the buds and blossoms (perah - new tender shoots) have formed and become perfect (taman - are prepared, becoming complete and blameless, upright and established) and are dealt with and redeemed (gamal - ripened grapes are harvested, rewarded bountifully), the hard and sour fruit not prepared for harvest (boser - the unripe and immature grapes which lack sweetness) shall be (hayah) cut off (karat - pruned and cut down, banished and destroyed) with a pruning knife (mazmerah - a vinedresser's tool used to cut tendrils, scissors used to trim the stems of a climbing plant or vine). The spreading branches (natisot - stems of a climbing plant which spreads out) which don't bear fruit (zalzalim), will be lopped off in an act of separation for worshiping idols (tazaz - cutting them off and down because of unfaithfulness, infidelity, illicit sexual behavior, and a belief in false gods), removed and rejected (sur - forsaken and damned, being drug off, being left and abandoned, because of their revolting rebellion)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 18:5)

One of the words in this text appears nowhere else in Scripture. All we know for sure is that zalzalim is used to describe the nature of the branches which are cut off and discarded. Vocalized as zalzalim, it is said to mean "a new shoot on a vine which does not bear fruit." And while that would be a reasonable deduction from the context, some texts show an "h" in the word and I think that there may be more to it. So here is some food for thought. Zalal means to be "gluttonous and vile, to be worthless and despised, to have been corrupted by associating with a bad crowd." Zaham means "to be abhorred, denoting a type of food which makes people sick." Zul defines those who "lavish money on worthless idols." Someone who is zulah is "separated," and a zahah is "cut loose and removed." A zua is a "terrorist and fear monger." And a zahal is someone who "crawls on the ground and prostrates themselves in fear." It all seems to fit.

The previous passage says that there are only two groups of people left on earth: Yahuwdym who are now related to Yahweh and those who are not. The latter are being cut off the vine which is Yisra'el. They have been rejected and removed for their infidelity.

The next word is the most damning in Scripture. "Abandoned and forsaken ('azab - rejected and damned, set free to associate with demonic spirits) all together and all at once (yahdaw - completely and at the same time, treated alike as one group with a common nature and accord)..." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 18:6)

The interesting thing about 'azab is that it is a double entendre. It conveys the idea of "being set free and being released." That sounds good up to the point you realize that the souls are being set free from Yahweh. The word confirms that those who choose not to be with Him, those who reject Him, will get their wish. They will be sent on their way and damned which simply means to be separated.

"...to birds of prey ('ayit - flying creatures which hunt and kill living things and then prey on the dead; rapid, covetous, vicious, violent, ravenous, voracious, and deadly creatures who will swoop in), to the powers (har - to the mountains used as a metaphor for those in high places, for political, religious, military, and spiritual leaders and realms), to the beasts (bahemah - wild animals) of the earth ('erets - world and land), and they will pass the summer among and over them, startling and tormenting them ('al quywts - go through a hot period against and over them, being a thorn in their side, rousing those who are alive in abhorrence). All of (kol) the birds of prey ('ayit - rapid flying creatures who are covetous, vicious, violent, voracious, and deadly will swoop in) and the beasts (bahemah - wild animals) of the earth ('erets) will be among, upon, and against them ('al) during the autumn and winter insulting and taunting them (harap - spending the harvest time reproaching and scorning them, vilifying them)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 18:6)

We have learned that once the United States is pruned back, Americans will experience the wrath of Muslims. Just as we saw Somalis celebrate over the wrecked carcasses of downed Black Hawks and the mutilated bodies of American servicemen in 1993, with the whole Islamic world celebrating the downing of the Twin Towers in 2001, and with Iraqis in Fallujah dancing in the streets as they strung up the burned corpses of those who were sent to free them in 2004; in 2029 Muslims will roar, taunting God with shouts of "Allahu Akbar" as they nuke America's largest cities.

The passage revealed that the pruning occurred during the spring, so that is why the torment is being manifest during the summer and fall. While I don't want to get too deep into it at this point, it is relevant to know that it is possible to construct a timeline for the Tribulation. When that is done, we discover that three very bad things happen in the spring of 2029, specifically on Friday the 13^th of April. In the aftermath of the Magog, all-Islamic war against Israel, those outside the Middle East who have them, will unleash their nuclear weapons upon each other. One-third of those alive at the time will be killed and one-third of the earth will be scorched in thermonuclear blasts. While that's bad, at the same time an enormous asteroid named Aspinthos will be nudged from its path and it will strike the earth. Then, adding to the torment, the side of a mountain will slide into the sea causing a massive tsunami. The financial strength of the world's merchants will be obliterated in an hour. When this happens, the only power and wealth left on earth will be wielded by the Antichrist. Like Allah, he and his demons will insult and taunt, even torment, their victims. Theirs will be a harvest of the living dead - people who will want to die but won't be able to. That is the picture being painted in the sixth verse.

But remember, there are people still alive at this time who are enveloped in Yahweh's Set-Apart Spirit. The Laodicean Christians in the West, as new members of Yahuweh's family, will reach out to their Yahuwdym brothers and sisters in Yisra'el. While Gog and his Magog forces have tried to obliterate Judea, Yahweh has already annihilated them and He has kept the Promised Land from being consumed in the nuclear conflagration. And while that's good, with the Antichrist ruling the world from Jerusalem and announcing that he is God, the Yahuwdym need a helping hand.

"At that time ('et - at this occasion and in the right season) a people ('am - a family and nation) comprised of tall leaders who extend themselves (masak), who are clean-shaven and smooth-skinned, a people ('am - family and country) feared and revered (yare' - causing distress through intimidation and earning respect through status) from here to there (hal'ah), a Gentile nation (gowy) who tries to set the rules, speaking a strange foreign language, talking a lot while saying meaningless things as they march off to war (qaw'- qow' - a land where the inhabitants were spewed out and vomited up), a powerful nation which imposes its will on others and causes their downfall (mabusah), a land divided (baza') by rivers (nahariym), they by way of relationship ('aser) will bring (yabal - deliver) gifts (say - presents submitted out of respect) to Yahweh, to the place (maqom - home) of Yahuweh's name (shem), Mount Zion (siyyon - the place of God's signpost and directions)." (Isaiah/Yahsayahu 18:7) Bloodied and bruised like their Savior, American Christians, now Yahuwdym, will answer the call and serve Yahweh's people.

We now know what will happen to the most prosperous nation of our day. We have learned how Yahweh will enlighten and touch those who are left behind, and how they will be productive even as others are pruned and forsaken. Most importantly, you know that you don't want to be left behind.

Bereft of distractions, here again is the prophetic portrait of America Yashayahu painted in the 18^th chapter: "Woe (prophetically expressing dissatisfaction) to the land (and nation) of whirling and buzzing armed (loud flying things which swarm in, devour, and destroy with the clangor of armies flying on) wings (like a bird which invades and attacks) which is the region beyond (the place situated across from and on the opposite side of) the rivers of Cuwsh (Northern Africa). (18:1) They stretch out and send (dispatch to other places for a purpose, are divorced and thus extend their influence in evil consol) by sea with envoys (representatives) in floating vessels (boats which are used as an implement of war) on the surface of the waters, sending out swift, ignorant, and immoral (fast mo