Blood Red Moons and the Second Coming

Are the Four Blood Red Moons Signs of the Rapture?

The rapture of the Church is believed by many to be very close due to a series of four lunar eclipses which fall on biblical feast days. According to Joel 2:31, the moon will be turned into “blood before

the Day of the Lord.” Because the “Day of the Lord” is frequently believed to be equivalent to the seven years of the tribulation, then the moon becoming blood red is considered to be a sign of the impending tribulation, and if the tribulation is near, then so too must be the rapture. In other words, the theory rests on two major premises and a conclusion:

• a phenomenon which causes the moon to turn red points toward the Day of the Lord and
• the Day of the Lord is equivalent to the tribulation;,
• therefore, the rapture will happen soon because believers are taken out of the world before the tribulation.

When dealing with a syllogism (a logical argument), the conclusion can only be true if the preliminary premises are true. There are, however, two major mistakes in this theory of the blood red moons. The first is that they are focusing solely on the moon, when the Bible is clear that there will be a phenomenon in the sun and the stars too: the Bible clearly tells us how the sun, moon, and stars become darkened. The second error arises from assuming that the Day of the Lord is the same as the tribulation. The ­­­Bible is also clear that these are two distinct events. We will explore both issues in this article.

First though, to be fair, I must admit that I once believed in the blood red moon craze. It made sense and it was exciting because it just so happened that between 2014 and 2015 there would be a tetrad (a series of four lunar eclipses where the moon turns to a reddish color). Add to that fact that those would occur on biblical feast days, and voila! You have something of Biblical proportions!

Messianic pastor Mark Biltz was the first discover that these eclipses fell on biblical feast days, and then pastor John Hagee followed it up with a book of his own. As a dedicated researcher, I also went to the NASA website to check the dates for myself. I was excited to discover that there really would be eclipses at those stated times, and they had indeed occurred in the past. In fact, those occurrences in the past seemed to line up with other significant events in the life of the Jewish people. For example: There was a tetrad in 1492 when Columbus sailed the ocean blue which was the same year that the Jews also got kicked out of Spain…that was definitely significant. There was another tetrad in 1949, just after the War of Independence. Then there was another tetrad which was around the time of the 1967 Six Day War. Since all of those seemed to be very significant, then the tetrad of 2014-15 would invariably be significant as well and could in fact be a sign of the nearness of the rapture.

Is Just the Moon Affected?

Figure 1 Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Lava flow with full moon

I was sad to discover that I could not hold the theory any longer because the moon-turning-to-blood had to also be accompanied by a sign in the sun and the stars. The tetrad / blood red moon sign fails because it focuses solely on a phenomenon in the moon, when Scripture is clear that simultaneously with the moon turning to blood, the sun will be darkened, and the stars will not give their light. We see this when we look at the entire verse in Joel 2:31:

The sun shall be turned into darkness, ​And the moon into blood, ​Before the coming of the great and awesome Day of the Lord. (Joel 2:31)

In the same chapter of Joel, where the moon turns to blood, we discover that “the sun and moon grow dark, ​and the stars diminish their brightness.” (Joel 2:10) This is confirmed from the book of Isaiah where we read about all three phenomena occurring: the stars don’t give their light, the sun is darkened, and the moon doesn’t shine:

For the stars of heaven and their constellations ​will not give their light; ​The sun will be darkened in its going forth, ​and the moon will not cause its light to shine. (Isa 13:10)

Therefore, the blood red moon prediction fails twice in the book of Joel and also once from the book of Isaiah because three things must occur for the sign to be valid: the sun, moon, and stars must not give their light. Obviously, the sun has not grown dark, nor have the stars diminished their brightness.

The Day of the Lord is the Day Yeshua Returns

One of the strongest proofs we have that the Day of the Lord is the same as the second coming (and not the entire seven year or 3 ½ year tribulation, depending on how you see it) is the fact that God alone will be exalted in that day. In Isaiah 2, God twice declares (in verses 11-12 and 17) that in that day He ALONE will be exalted. If God exclusively will be lifted up in that day, yet during the tribulation, there exists someone who is blaspheming him, then the tribulation cannot be that day:

The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, ​The haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, ​And the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day. For the Day of the Lord of hosts ​Shall come upon everything proud and lofty, ​Upon everything lifted up– ​And it shall be brought low– (Isa 2:11-12)

Yahweh Himself declares to us in no uncertain terms that He only will be revered in that day, and hence, it cannot be the same as any part of the tribulation since we are also told in equally explicit language that one known as the Beast, Little Horn, or Antichrist, will exalt himself and speak blasphemies against God and against those in heaven for a period of forty-two months. God foretells this through several of His prophets, thereby confirming the matter by at least two witnesses as required by His own instructions.

Daniel sees this three times in his visions, thereby establishing it and even highlighting the future reality:

…And there, in this horn, were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking pompous words. ​ (Dan 7:8b)

“I watched then because of the sound of the pompous words which the horn was speaking… (Dan 7:11a)

He even exalted himself as high as the Prince of the host… (Dan 8:11a)

“Then the king shall do according to his own will: he shall exalt and magnify himself above every god, shall speak blasphemies against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the wrath has been accomplished; for what has been determined shall be done. (Dan 11:36)

He shall regard neither the God of his fathers nor the desire of women, nor regard any god; for he shall exalt himself above them all. (Dan 11:37)

Paul taught about the “son of perdition” who would exalt himself as God:

who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. (2Thess 2:4)

Lastly, in the Book of Revelation, John is told three times (which confirms the severity of the offense) that this person will blaspheme God and those who dwell in heaven:

And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to continue for forty-two months. Then he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven. (Rev 13:5-6)

We must therefore conclude that during the tribulation, God is not being glorified or worshipped as God, but is in fact being blasphemed in a way unlike any in human history. That being the case, there is no way that the Day of the Lord, in which God alone is exalted, could be the duration of the tribulation. It must refer to the time immediately after the tribulation, also known as the Second Coming of Yeshua, because without question, He alone will be exalted in that day.

When and How Will the Blood Moons Take Place?

Since the tetrads are not an indicator of the timing nor are they the means by which the moons turns to blood and the sun and stars are darkened, what is? Does something physically happen to them? God has revealed to His prophets what will cause the darkness and blood red moon to occur.

God first declares that the conditions which cause the sun to be turned to darkness and the moon to turn to blood will be because of clouds and thick darkness:

A day of darkness and gloominess, ​A day of clouds and thick darkness, ​like the morning clouds spread over the mountains (Joel 2:2)

God goes on to declare that there will be “blood and fire and pillars of smoke.” (Joel 2:30) So, there will be lots of smoke and clouds. Yahweh repeats this through his prophet Zephaniah:

That day is a day of wrath, ​A day of trouble and distress, ​A day of devastation and desolation, ​A day of darkness and gloominess, ​A day of clouds and thick darkness, (Zeph 1:15)

Yahweh confirms it through the prophet Ezekiel as well:

When I put out your light, ​I will cover the heavens, and make its stars dark; ​I will cover the sun with a cloud, ​And the moon shall not give her light. (Ezek 32:7)

So, we see that the three things – sun, moon, stars – are going to be darkened because of a clouds and thick smoke. Finally, in the book of Revelation, Yahweh shows us from where the smoke comes that will cover the sun, moon, and stars. It is the Destroyer (Abaddon) opening the Abyss.

Satan and his angels (described as stars in Rev 12:4) will be cast to the earth. John is shown that the great star (Satan/Abaddon) is given the key to open the Abyss which results in a tremendous amount of smoke coming out which darkens the sun and the air, just as described in the former prophets:

“And I saw a star fallen from heaven to the earth. To him was given the key to the bottomless pit. And he opened the bottomless pit, and smoke arose out of the pit like the smoke of a great furnace. So the sun and the air were darkened because of the smoke of the pit.” (Rev 9:1-2)

Hence, Yahweh has revealed how the sun, moon, and stars will be darkened which will be from the great amount of smoke that will be released when the Abyss is opened.

Figure 2 Smoke from the Tea Fire 2008 gives full moon blood moon effect

How could smoke in the sky cause the moon to become blood red? Several years ago, there were some forest fires in Southern California, where I live. I looked up and saw that the moon was blood red. At first I thought it was a sign, but then I realized that when the moon is covered by smoke (ash), it appears red. Figure 1 shows a moon as seen through smoke.

Figure 2 is another picture of the moon seen through a layer of ash from a fire in 2008. The moon has predictably appeared to change color because of the smoke.

Figure 3 California fires darken sun

If that smoke is thick enough, it would cause the sun to be darkened, just like as if it were covered by sackcloth, and it goes without saying that the stars – which are lesser in light than the sun – will not give their light. This is not speculation, but observation. Figure 3 is from a California fire that darkened the sun. As witnessed from the smoke covering the sun, it then had the appearance of being covered by something thick and dark…like sackcloth.

In 2011, the Eyjafjallajökull volcano erupted, releasing smoke like a great furnace, offering us an example of what to look for. It covered the entire sky of Iceland and grounded flights across Europe because of the ash. The sun looked like it was covered with sackcloth (See figure 4).

Examine the photos in this article or conduct your own internet research to see for yourself. Notice

Figure 4 Smoke billows like a great furnace from Icelandic volcano

that the smoke coming out of a volcano is enough to cover the sky, “like out of a great furnace” and can cover the sun, moon, and stars.

We have seen that the sun, moon, and stars will all (simultaneously) fail to give their light because of the opening of the Abyss, which will be like the opening of a great furnace. The smoke that comes out will cover the sky and consequently block the light of the sun, moon, and stars; the verses we have discussed and the pictures in this article give an illustration of how it might happen and what

Figure 5 The 2011 Eyjafjallajökull volcanic eruption covers the sky

it could look like.

Thus the blood red moons of the four sequential eclipses are completely a non-issue when it comes to why the moon turns to blood. To suggest that the tetrads hold any biblical significance is fantasy; not a single Bible verse supports the theory. What the Bible does tell us is that the timing of the blood red moon will occur sometime after the Abyss is opened. This event will happen after Satan is cast down from heaven being defeated by Michael and his angels. Sometime after being cast out, he is given the key to open the Abyss and then smoke rises out like out of a great furnace so that it covers the sky, somewhat like what happens at the eruption of a massive volcano, like that of Iceland in 2011 (Rev 12:4,9; 8:10-12; 9:1,2,11). Thus the timing of the blood red moon is after the mid-point of Daniel’s seventieth week and the means of the moon turning to blood is the sky being covered by the smoke which rises from the Abyss. (See my video The Second Coming and the Battle of Armageddon for a more detailed explanation.)

Conclusion

In conclusion, the blood red moon craze is something that is based on a faulty foundation. Its first assumption, that the four total lunar eclipses are the fulfillment of the blood red moons mentioned in Scripture, fails because the sign must appear not only in the moon, but also in the sun and stars. The tetrads, both past and present, while very interesting astronomical occurrences, are not equal to or even related to the blood red moon as described in Scripture.

The second assumption undergirding the blood red moon craze is that the blood moons happen before the tribulation, and are therefore an indication of its imminent commencement. Because we are told that Yahweh alone will be exalted in that day, and yet the antichrist/beast is blaspheming Yahweh during that time, then there is no way that any part of the tribulation could be associated with the Day of the Lord. The Day of the Lord must occur immediately after the tribulation. Only when Yeshua returns will God alone be exalted. Therefore, the blood red moons, caused by smoke and cloud, are a sign of the return of Yeshua, not of a pre-tribulation rapture.

Finally, the Bible gives the reason for the moon turning to blood and the diminishing of the light of sun and stars – it is not an eclipse, but rather, it is the opening of the Abyss, which will probably happen around the mid-point of the tribulation. When the Abyss opens, smokes pours out like the smoke out of a great furnace, which will then cover the sky blotting out the light of the sun and stars  and will turn the light of the moon blood red.

In 1954 the Englishman, Roger Bannister was the first to cross the barrier of running the mile in four minutes. Up until that point, experts thought it was impossible to do…but once Bannister achieved the feat, many others have done so as well. In other words, Bannister was the first to fulfill it which paved the way for others to follow the example. So, too, God told Israel to put His Torah on their hearts (Deut 6:6, 10:12-13, 11:18). Unfortunately, they did not fulfill what God said to do.

Then Yeshua came and showed us how to fulfill the Torah. Unfortunately, many have gotten the wrong idea that because he didn’t, now I don’t have to. But that is erroneous thinking; just because Bannister ran the mile doesn’t mean that others don’t have to (to continue the analogy). Since we are all participating in the game of life, then we are naturally in the race. Yeshua’ fulfilling of the Torah doesn’t mean that I am now exempt from doing so! Rather he showed us how we too can do it, just as Bannister showed the world that it can be done.

People that say we don’t have to keep the (Old Testament) Torah any more because Yeshua did it for us are basing that on his words: “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill [lexical form: πληρόω plero’o]. (Matt 5:17) The idea is that Jesus did all that was required in the law and through his death has freed us from the ‘burden of the law’. This thinking is faulty for several reasons.

1. Yahweh, the law giver, said that if a man does them he will live through them. (Lev 18:5)
2. Yahweh gave them for our good. (Deut 10:13)
3. Yahweh gave the Torah and already put it “very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may do it. See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil.” (Deut 30:14-15)
4. The notion that the O.T. commandments (Torah) were a burden is not true as we read in 1st John: “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.” (1John 5:3)

The word “fulfill” is the key word in this passage. It is also used in Galatians 6:2, where Paul uses the same word to tell us that when we “bear one another’s burdens,” we “fulfill [lexical form: πληρόω plero’o] the law of Christ.” (Gal 6:2) So we see that bearing one another’s burdens (an ongoing action) is the means by which we are following Yeshua’s example. This proves that Yeshua’s action of fulfilling the law does not mean that keeping the Torah has been set aside; it means that he did crossed the barrier (which no one had ever done) of living in complete harmony with heart of the Father as revealed in the Torah.

We are told to follow Yeshua’s example:

“He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.” (1John 2:6)

And we are to make disciples:

“teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you…”  (Matt 28:20)

We too have the opportunity to fulfill the law and be in harmony with the heart of the Father. In fact, we are expected to walk just as he walked. Yeshua did not do the Torah so we don’t have to (as it taught by many churches); rather, just like Bannister who “fulfilled”  the four-minute-mile, Yeshua crossed the “here’s-how-you-live-out-the-Torah barrier” showing us how to do it as well. If we fall on the race track of life, we simply need to get back up and keep running until we too fulfill it.

“For though a righteous man falls seven times, he will rise again…” (Prov 24:16a)

God’s Divorce and Remarriage  And The Restoration of Israel  Through the New Covenant

A Study of God’s Marriage to Israel under the First Covenant, at Sinai,

 Their Divorce Due to Israel’s Adultery,   

And their Restoration Under the New Covenant Established by Yeshua/Jesus

By Douglas Hamp

Aug 2015

As Christians, we live and breathe the New Testament. There are some Christians who claim to be “New Testament Christians” only – referring to teaching exclusively from the corpus of the New Testament books. But what is the New Testament, that is, what is this new contract (not the Gospels, epistles, etc.)? To understand what the New Testament (contract) is, we must first understand that the Old Covenant/Testament (contract) was.

The First Marriage Contract

Simply put, it was a marriage contract between Yahweh/YHWH and Israel, who got married at Sinai. How do we know that “Old Covenant” was a marriage covenant? We know because of their subsequent divorce where Yahweh stated that Northern Israel “is not My wife, nor am I her Husband!” ​ (Hos 2:2a) Yahweh could only divorce Israel if He had once been wed to her. In Jeremiah, Yahweh specifically stated that He gave the northern Kingdom of Israel a certificate of divorce and put her away.

Then I saw that for all the causes for which backsliding Israel had committed adultery, I had put her away and given her a certificate of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah did not fear, but went and played the harlot also. (Jer 3:8)

Later in Jeremiah, Yahweh stated that the covenant that He made with Israel was one where He became her husband:

…the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says Yahweh. (Jer 31:32) 

The Wedding Vows

At their wedding on Mt Sinai, the groom and bride exchanged vows. Yahweh, the husband, expressed His love for His bride, Israel, when He vowed:

If you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. (Exod 19:5)

This vow of deep love was reiterated to Israel when they were about to enter the Promised Land:

Yahweh your God has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a special treasure above all the peoples on the face of the earth. Yahweh did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any other people, for you were the least of all peoples; but because Yahweh loves you, and because He would keep the oath which He swore to your fathers, Yahweh has brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you from the house of bondage, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. (Deut 7:6-8)  

The Recording of the Vows

Their marriage was recorded in the “book of the covenant” (a mere four chapters), similar to a Ketubah (Jewish “marriage contract” of today).

Then he [Moses] took the Book of the Covenant and read in the hearing of the people. (Exod 24:7a)

It was a marriage contract, complete with prenuptial agreements – that is, terms and conditions of what was expected, and what would happen in case of infidelity. The terms and conditions were Yahweh’s ten words (commandments) which He gave for her good!

“And now, Israel, what does Yahweh your God require of you, but to fear YAHWEH your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve Yahweh your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments of YAHWEH and His statutes which I command you today for your good? (Deut 10:12-13)

Israel then exuberantly responded with her marriage vow saying:  ‘All that YAHWEH has said we will do, and be obedient.’” (Exod 24:7b) All she needed to do was to love Him by remaining faithful to Him. Yahweh also promised that if they would be faithful then Israel would “be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine.” (Exod 19:5)

Their marriage contract was cut and the vows (contract) were ratified with blood:

And Moses took the blood, sprinkled it on the people, and said, “This is the blood of the covenant which YAHWEH has made with you according to all these words.”  (Exod 24:8)

God’s Divorce

Unfortunately, Israel was unfaithful to her husband from the beginning, and then after some time, His wife (United Israel) was divided into two kingdoms: the Kingdom of Judah in the south which included the tribe of Benjamin (and part of Levi since they were landless); and the Kingdom of Israel in the north which included the remaining ten tribes. Yahweh, in His patient love and sovereignty, waited while Israel (the northern kingdom) committed her adulteries time and again. Yahweh explained this in the book of Ezekiel, speaking of the two daughters of one mother who both practiced harlotry and defiled themselves.

“Son of man, there were two women, ​The daughters of one mother. They committed harlotry in Egypt, ​They committed harlotry in their youth…Their names: Oholah the elder and Oholibah her sister; ​They were Mine, ​And they bore sons and daughters. ​As for their names, ​Samaria is Oholah, and Jerusalem is Oholibah. Oholah played the harlot even though she was Mine; ​And she lusted for her lovers, the neighboring Assyrians…Thus she committed her harlotry with them, ​All of them choice men of Assyria; ​And with all for whom she lusted, ​With all their idols, she defiled herself.” (Ezek 23:2- 4, 7, 9)

Ultimately, after 700 years of Northern Israel’s backsliding and adultery, Yahweh “put her away and gave her a certificate of divorce.” (Jer 3:8) This truth is also stated in 2Kings:

“Therefore YAHWEH was very angry with Israel, and removed them from His sight; there was none left but the tribe of Judah alone. (2Kgs 17:18)

Their divorce created a seemingly unsolvable dilemma because, according to His own Instructions in Deut 24:1-4, a husband cannot take back his wife who has been with another husband (who has also sent her away or died).

If the latter husband detests her and writes her a certificate of divorce [kritut כְּרִיתֻת֙], puts it in her hand, and sends her out [shlichah] וְשִׁלְּחָ֖הּ] of his house, or if the latter husband dies who took her as his wife, then her former husband [in this case Yahweh] who divorced her must not take her back to be his wife after she has been defiled; for that is an abomination before Yahweh… (Deut 24:3-4)

Consequently, there was no conceivable hope for northern Israel to return to a marriage covenant with Yahweh or for Judah and Israel to ever reunite. Reconciliation with her groom would, according to Yahweh’s own commandments, result in abomination and the land becoming defiled. Nevertheless, Yahweh passionately calls His wayward wife to return (repent) to him and presumably, He would have to find a way to work things out.

“They say, “If a man divorces his wife, ​And she goes from him ​And becomes another man’s, ​May he return to her again?’ ​Would not that land be greatly polluted? ​But you have played the harlot with many lovers; ​Yet return (repent) to Me,” says Yahweh. (Jer 3:1) Yahweh said also to me in the days of Josiah the king: “Have you seen what backsliding Israel has done? She has gone up on every high mountain and under every green tree, and there played the harlot. (Jer 3:6) And I said, after she had done all these things, “Return to Me.’ But she did not return. And her treacherous sister Judah saw it. (Jer 3:7) Then I saw that for all the causes for which backsliding Israel had committed adultery, I had put her away and given her a certificate of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah did not fear, but went and played the harlot also. (Jer 3:8) And yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah has not turned to Me with her whole heart, but in pretense,” says Yahweh. (Jer 3:10) Then YAHWEH said to me, “Backsliding Israel has shown herself more righteous than treacherous Judah. (Jer 3:11) Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say: ​”Return, backsliding Israel,’ says Yahweh; ​”I will not cause My anger to fall on you. ​For I am merciful,’ says Yahweh; ​”I will not remain angry forever. (Jer 3:12) Only acknowledge your iniquity, ​That you have transgressed against Yahweh your God, ​And have scattered your charms ​To alien deities under every green tree, ​And you have not obeyed My voice,’ says Yahweh. (Jer 3:13) “Return, O backsliding children,” says Yahweh; “for I am married to you. I will take you, one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to Zion. (Jer 3:14)

The Divine Dilemma

How could Israel be brought back into a marriage covenant without Yahweh violating His own law?

“Then her former husband [Yahweh] who divorced her [Israel] must not take her [Israel] back to be his wife after she has been defiled; for that is an abomination before Yahweh.” (Deut 24:4a)

The only way the wife (Northern Kingdom Israel) could be released of her fate of having been put away [shlichah] וְשִׁלְּחָ֖הּ] [Hebrew word] and divorced [kritut כְּרִיתֻת֙]  [Hebrew word] by Yahweh was for Yahweh (her husband) to die which would annul and dissolve original marriage contract. Paul understood that when, using the law to explain, he reminded the Jews (who knew the law) that the law only has jurisdiction over a person until their death. When the person dies, any judgments, contracts, or obligations are then dissolved:

Or do you not know, brethren (for I speak to those who know the law), that the law has dominion over a man as long as he lives? (Rom 7:1)

Paul then explains how a woman is covenanted to her husband only as long as he lives. When he dies, she is free to remarry at will.

For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her husband as long as he lives. But if the husband dies, she is released from the law of her husband. (Rom 7:2)

Continuing with Deuteronomy 24:1-4 in mind, Paul explains how the wife is freed from the “law of the husband” (the marriage contract), which had kept her out of the covenant relationship with her former husband. It should be noted, that Paul is only speaking of the cancelling of the divorce status; he is not suggesting that the entire “Torah” (Laws given at Sinai) are repealed. (“Yahweh” and “Israel” have been inserted below in brackets to make the relationships clearer).

So then if, while her husband [Yahweh] lives, she [Israel] marries another man [Ba’al etc.] , she will be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from that law, so that she is no adulteress, though she has married another man. (Rom 7:3)

Following that, Paul reaches crescendo with his exciting conclusion that through Yeshua/Jesus (the incarnate Word of Yahweh), the wife, Israel, can be married to a different man – which is none other than the Risen Yeshua – Wow!

Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law [of her husband c.f. Rom 7:2] through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another–to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God. (Rom 7:4)

In other writings Paul explains how the curses of the broken marriage covenant died with Yeshua, being nailed to the cross.

having wiped out the handwriting of requirements [death because of adultery] that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. (Col 2:14)

A New Marriage Contract

At the first covenant, cut at Sinai, the book of the covenant (marriage contract) was proclaimed and then the blood of bulls was sprinkled in order to “seal the deal” in the same way how today we sign a contract and then have it notarized and filed with the city clerk. The blood made the contract effective, operable, and binding.

Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read in the hearing of the people. And they said, “All that Yahweh has said we will do, and be obedient.” And Moses took the blood, sprinkled it on the people, and said, “This is the blood of the covenant which Yahweh has made with you according to all these words.” (Exod 24:7-8)

After the people had heard all of the conditions of the contract, they said “I do” and gladly accepted the marriage contract with Yahweh/YHWH. They agreed to be faithful to Him and to do all that He had asked them to do (which is what we always do when we enter into an agreement/contract).

With the New Covenant (new marriage contract), blood was offered to “seal the deal” just like the first covenant.

For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. (Matt 26:28)

However, the nature of the blood sacrifice was of immeasurably greater quality than that of the first covenant. Additionally, the one who would officiate the sacrifice would not be a Levite, but one of the order of Melchizedek. In this, the husband died to dissolve the old marriage but at the same time, his blood became the blood of the new covenant, and he also was the one who offered the blood on the heavenly altar.

But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation. Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. (Heb 9:11-12)

And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight (Col 1:21-22)

Now free from the curse of her broken marriage covenant, Israel could actually remarry without being called an adulteress. However, how could she be rejoined to her groom if he was in the grave? If Yeshua remained dead, then no remarriage between him and Israel could take place, despite her new freedom. Therefore, Yeshua had to not only die to free Israel, but had to also rise from the dead so that she could remarry her former husband, who was in reality a New Husband.

A New Husband for a New Wife

Yeshua’s resurrection, therefore, is the crux of the matter! Without the resurrection, Israel would have been free to marry another, but not to the very one who promised himself to her FOREVER. Now having risen from the dead, the Old Husband was actually a NEW Husband. All of the lawlessness (her adultery) of the first marriage was literally buried with Yeshua (the Husband, Yahweh in the flesh). Now he was free to remarry his former wife without breaking his own instructions. His new marriage would be a NEW COVENANT/TESTAMENT with Israel!

With this in mind, we can better understand Paul’s excitement as he proclaims in Ephesians 2:11-13 how the House of Israel (the Gentiles/Nations) has been brought back into the covenant relationship.

Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles [scattered Israel, out of covenant] in the flesh…that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world But now in Christ Yeshua you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.  (Eph 2:11-13) [“For you are not My people, and I will not be your God.” ​(Hos 1:9)]

Therefore, the New Covenant is not a new dispensation where Yahweh suddenly starts operating on the basis of grace with all of humanity. Yahweh has always been gracious and that quality of grace and mercy is the very thing that Yahweh declared about himself on Mt. Sinai:

Yahweh passed by before him and proclaimed: “Yahweh, Yahweh, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, and abounding in loyal love and faithfulness, (Exod 34:6)

The New Covenant, rather, is not a new basis of grace, but is rather a gracious, renewed marriage covenant between Yahweh and His divorced wife who had been scattered to the nations, just as Yahweh had promised would happen:

Yahweh will scatter you among all nations, from one end of the earth to the other. There you will worship other gods that neither you nor your ancestors have known, gods of wood and stone. (Deut 28:64; see also Lev 26:33 Jer 9:16, 13:24, 30:11, Ezek 5:10, 6:8, 20:23, 22:15, 36:19)

The Sisters Reunited Under the New Contract

While Yeshua’ death and resurrection resolved the divorce of Yahweh and Israel, what about Judah’s (the Southern Kingdom) relationship with Yahweh? Does she get a new marriage covenant? She certainly needed it based on how she “defiled the land and committed adultery with stones and trees.” (Jer 3:9) In fact,  her adulterous conduct, according to Yahweh, was actually worse than Israel’s (the Northern Kingdom).

And yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah has not turned [repented] to Me with her whole heart, but in pretense,” says Yahweh. Then Yahweh said to me, “Backsliding Israel has shown herself more righteous than treacherous Judah. (Jer 3:10-11)

Let there be no doubt, Judah most certainly deserved to be divorced because of her adulterous heart and wandering eyes which deeply hurt Yahweh (Ezek 6:9), but Yahweh never did divorce Judah because of the promise that he made to King David:

If his sons reject my law ​​​​​​and disobey my regulations, ​​​​​​​if they break my rules ​​​​​​and do not keep my commandments, ​​​​​​​I will punish their rebellion by beating them with a club, ​​​​​​their sin by inflicting them with bruises. ​​​​​​​But I will not remove my loyal love from him, ​​​​​​nor be unfaithful to my promise. (Ps 89:29-33)

Nevertheless, Yahweh stated that both “the House of Israel and the House of Judah ​have dealt very treacherously with Me,” (Jer 5:11) – they were both guilty of adultery and of breaking the covenant.

They have turned back to the iniquities of their forefathers who refused to hear My words, and they have gone after other gods to serve them; the House of Israel and the House of Judah have broken My covenant which I made with their fathers.” (Jer 11:10)

Furthermore, the two sister nations needed to be reunited into one nation: one wife. Yahweh declared that He would in fact make a new marriage contract with both houses:

“Behold, the days are coming, says Yahweh, when I will make a new covenant with the House of Israel and with the House of Judah– (Jer 31:31)

Yahweh also promised that he would join the two houses back together as depicted in the imagery of a stick, broken in two, which becomes one again:

“Thus says the Lord YAHWEH: “Surely I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel, his companions; and I will join them with it, with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they will be one in My hand.”‘ (Ezek 37:19)

Therefore, Yeshua’s death on the cross annulled Judah’s marriage contract with Yahweh and thereby allowed for the House of Judah to have a new covenant with Yahweh (because their first marriage was marked by gross adultery) even though she was never divorced. Judah could have a new relationship with Yahweh and so too Israel could come back into fellowship with her husband.

​For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation,  having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, [and I will join them with it, with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they will be one in My hand.”‘ (Ezek 37:19)] thus making peace, and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity. [Then the children of Judah and the children of Israel shall be gathered together…” (Hos 1:11)] And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near. For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father. Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, (Eph 2:14-19)

As a result their joint status as adulterers was wiped away. Israel’s utter hopeless situation as a divorcée was also annulled and Judah’s status as adulterous wife was cancelled. Furthermore, the House of Judah and the House of Israel have become one again and the wall of separation between them has been removed.

The Fullness of the Gentiles

The situation has now been rectified, though not in full. The House of Israel (Ephraim / Gentiles) can now return to her husband. They are no longer “aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.” (Eph 2:12)  Yeshua is now Israel’s and Judah’s “peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation (Eph 2:14). When Yeshua died on the cross, he “abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, (Eph 2:15) and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity.” (Eph 2:16)

Hence, Yeshua gave Good News to both the House of Israel and to the House of Judah when he “came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near.” (Eph 2:17) Through the work of Yeshua on the cross, the two houses now  “both have access by one Spirit to the Father.” (Eph 2:18) And truly, those of the House of Israel are “no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,” (Eph 2:19)

Thus, while the barrier to restoration has been removed, the reunification is not complete and will not be complete until the fullness of the nations/Israel comes in, as Paul explained to his Jewish brethren:

For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. (Rom 11:25)

The phrase that Paul employed comes directly out of Genesis 48:19 where Jacob prophesied over Ephraim, stating that his descendants will be THE fullness of the nations/gentiles.

But his (Joseph’s) father refused and said, “I know, my son, I know. He also shall become a people, and he also shall be great; but truly his younger brother [Ephraim] shall be greater than he, and his descendants shall become a multitude of nations [M’lo HaGoyim מְלֹֽא־הַגּוֹיִֽם literally the fullness of the nations].” (Gen 48:19)

The New Covenant is Yahweh’s Renewed Marriage with Israel

So what is the New Covenant? It is the renewed marriage contract between Yahweh and His wife Israel, (reunited House of Israel and House of Judah). Yeshua’s statement “this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins,” (Matt 26:28) was the blood necessary to establish the new marriage covenant. His death released his unfaithful wife (both Judah and Israel) from the curses of the broken marriage contract, and allowed northern Israel to remarry him, and for Israel and Judah to become one nation again. Yahweh’s first marriage was with his special treasure (united) Israel, and His new marriage is with His special treasure Israel and Judah (reunited). Yeshua did all that was necessary to restore his bride, Israel, just as he promised in Hosea to Israel, whom he divorced:

“I will betroth you to Me forever; ​Yes, I will betroth you to Me ​In righteousness and justice, ​In lovingkindness and mercy;  I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness, ​and you shall know Yahweh. (Hos 2:19-20)

However, what is even more amazing is that through the dispersion of the House of Israel to the nations, the entire world is being blessed because the House of Israel was assimilated into the nations and became one with them. Thus their return is nothing other than the ingathering of the gentiles into the kingdom and fulfills Yahweh’s original promise to Abraham that his seed would be like the stars of heavens.

Then He brought him outside and said, “Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number them.” And He said to him, “So shall your descendants be.” (Gen 15:5)

Yahweh’s regathering of House of Israel, which was divorced, scattered, and assimilated into the nations (through intermarriage), is nothing less than the House of Israel (gentiles, non-Jews) receiving by faith the fact that Yeshua graciously died to annul the first marriage covenant which they were in bondage to and resurrected to lovingly take her back under a new marriage covenant. The point is that any non-Jew who trusts in Yeshua, is part of “the fullness of the Gentiles” – they are part of the “mixed multitude” (Exod 12:38) which was added to children of Israel when they came out of Egypt. Indeed, Yahweh said that it was not enough for Yeshua to just restore the tribes of Jacob, but he would be salvation for the nations all over the planet:

Indeed He says, ​”It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant ​to raise up the tribes of Jacob, ​and to restore the preserved ones of Israel; ​I will also give You as a light to the Gentiles, ​that You should be My salvation to the ends of the earth.”‘ (Isa 49:6)

Yahweh reiterates this promise by saying that He would bring in the outcasts of Israel and also others:

Lord Yahweh, who gathers the outcasts of [the house of] Israel, says, ​”Yet I will gather to him ​others besides those who are gathered to him.” ​ (Isa 56:8) [other regathering prophetic scriptures: Eze 11:17, 20:34, 20:41, 28:25]

But He answered and said, “I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” (Matt 15:24)

Yeshua alluded to the others that would come in and the “one flock” when He said:

And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd. (John 10:16)

Yeshua confirmed the restoration when he said concerning his death: “And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself.” (John 12:32) With this in mind, we now understand clearly how Paul could state so emphatically that “there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Yahweh over all is rich to all who call upon Him (Rom 10:12) because the House of Israel and the House of Judah have been restored into one nation and one wife! Paul could say that with enthusiasm because, as an expert of the Scriptures, he knew that he was seeing the fulfillment of prophecy before his very eyes – the two houses were reunited as Yahweh said in Ezekiel:

Thus says Lord Yahweh: “Surely I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel, his companions; and I will join them with it, with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they will be one in My hand.”‘ And the sticks on which you write will be in your hand before their eyes. “Then say to them, “Thus says Lord Yahweh: “Surely I will take the children of Israel from among the nations, wherever they have gone, and will gather them from every side and bring them into their own land; and I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king over them all; they shall no longer be two nations, nor shall they ever be divided into two kingdoms again. (Ezek 37:19-22)

The New Testament is Yahweh restoring the House of Judah and Israel into one nation which was made possible by the death of Yeshua.

Truly, Yahweh is a faithful and loving husband and king worthy of our praise and gratitude.

Jesus spoke about his return in Matthew 24:29-31. He mentioned four key elements: He will come in the air, 2) on the clouds, 3) will command his angels (with a trumpet like voice) 4) to gather his people. Paul gives the same elements in his summary in 1Thess 4:16-17). Pretrib believers assert that the two accounts are two different events separated by at least seven years. Post trib believers maintain that they are one and the same event (the second coming of Jesus in which he gathers his people). Look closely at the two passages and leave a comment as to what differences you see between them (if you are pre-trib) or similarities (if you are post-trib). If you are mid trib, tell us what you see.

Immediately after the tribulation…They will see the Son of Man arriving on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet blast, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. (Matt 24:29, 31)

For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a shout of command, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be suddenly caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. (1Thess 4:16-17)

Both passages have

1. Jesus coming in the air,
2. On clouds
3. He gives a command that sounds like a trumpet (note: Jesus speaks like a trumpet in Rev 1 and when God descended on Mt Sinai there was a trumpet
4. people are picked up and gathered together

A matter must be established by two or three witnesses according to Scripture…Are these are the two different events (pret-rib) or the same event (post-trib). Please leave your comments below.