News Letter 5849-016
21st day of the 3rd month
5849 years after the creation of Adam
The 3rd Month in the Fourth year of the third Sabbatical Cycle
The Third Sabbatical Cycle of the 119th Jubilee Cycle
The Sabbatical Cycle of Earthquakes Famines, and Pestilences

June 1, 2013

Shabbat Shalom Brethren,

I want to thank each and everyone of those who have stepped up and helped to support the sharing of the Sabbatical and Jubilee teachings on TV and Video. I had hoped for enough to start but then I was not sure it would happen.

I said to Yehovah that I had to give the two men who are going to do this an answer so they could either work with me are go and find another client. I said I would wait until the end of May and then I would know if the brethren believe in this or if this is just me alone shouting out this warning.

After just one month, You Brethren, You of the Royal House of Israel who are also concerned about the welfare of your countrymen and brethren have stepped up to the plate and hit solid ball, and are now standing on base.

May Yehovah bless all of those who have stood with me on this and supported this effort with their prayers and financial support as well.

I have notified both Joshua and Tyler that we can now go forward and begin. And in a short time I hope to share with you and the world what you have bought with your donations.

We do not yet have enough to do a complete series. But we do have enough to do at least three, maybe more. And this is exciting.

So pray for the inspiration of those who are going to make this presentable on TV and in Video so that it will cause those who see it to return to keeping Torah, and the Sabbath, and the Holy Days and the Sabbatical years.

If you have not yet support this cause with your donations then please do consider this in your prayers. We have just started but we are not nearly done. There is still more to do. So watch the product these men produce and then I hope you will be encouraged to help us go further.

Also in the weeks to come you will also see when you log into the web site a request to join up to this News Letter. You need to do that if you want to continue to receive this information each week. Once you rejoin this sign up page will only pop up about once a month after that. I think.

Once it is up and running we will then trash this email list of about 11,000 names and continue with the new list. Like grapes we are going to prune this mailing list very hard and remove the dead wood.

Last week as you all know there was another F5 Tornado in Moore Oklahoma. This is a suburb of Oklahoma City.

The 2013 Moore tornado occurred on the afternoon of Monday, May 20, 2013. The EF5 tornado, with peak winds estimated at 210 miles per hour (340 km/h), impacted Moore, Oklahoma, and adjacent areas, killing 24 people, including 10 children,[3] and injuring 377 others.[2][4][5] The tornado was part of a larger weather system that had produced several other tornadoes over the previous two days. The tornado touched down west of Newcastle at 2:45 p.m. CDT (19:45 UTC), staying on the ground for approximately 50 minutes over a 17-mile (27 km) path, crossing through a heavily populated section of Moore. The tornado was 1.3 miles (2.1 km) wide at its peak.
Between 12,000 to 13,000 homes were destroyed or damaged and 33,000 people were affected.[1] Most areas in the path of the storm suffered catastrophic damage.[20] Entire subdivisions were obliterated and houses flattened in a large swath of the city.

The 1999 Bridge Creek – Moore tornado was an extremely powerful F5 tornado in which the highest wind speeds ever measured, 302 miles per hour (486 km/h), were recorded by a Doppler on Wheels (DOW) radar. The tornado devastated towns just outside of Oklahoma City on May 3, 1999. Throughout its one hour and 25 minute existence, the tornado covered 38 mi (61 km), destroying thousands of homes, killing 41 people and leaving $1 billion in losses behind. This ranks the tornado as the third costliest on record, not accounting for inflation.[1]

The May 2003 tornado outbreak sequence in the United States was a series of tornado outbreaks that occurred from May 3 to May 11, 2003. Tornadoes began occurring over the affected area on April 30, but the most prolific continuous period was the seven-day period of May 4–10. There were 401 tornado reports in 19 states and 1 Canadian province, 1,587 reports of large hail, and 740 reports of wind damage.[2] More severe weather broke out this week alone than any other week in U.S. history.[2] The old record for most tornado reports in one week was 171 during the week of the May 1995 Tornado Outbreak Sequence (May 12 to May 18, 1995).[3] The Super Outbreak of April 3 to April 4, 1974, previously held the record for the most tornadoes produced in a 24 hour period until that record was surpassed by the 2011 Super Outbreak which produced approximately 190 tornadoes in a 24 hour period. The Super Outbreak in April 1974 also produced more significant and violent tornadoes than any other week in history.[4]

Four years after an F5 tornado destroyed large sections of Moore during the 1999 Oklahoma tornado outbreak, another strong tornado, an F4 affected the area. The storm responsible for the Moore tornado developed across Grady County during the mid-afternoon hours and produced a weak tornado near Newcastle and west of Moore. Just after 5:00 PM, a new tornado touched down on the west side of Moore west of Interstate 35 and moved east northeast across Moore, then the southeastern sections of Oklahoma City including Tinker Air Force Base near Interstate 40, Midwest City and Choctaw.

May 11, 2010 At 5:20 p.m. CDT (2220 UTC), an F4 tornado touched down in the southern part of Moore, Oklahoma in Cleveland County near the interchange of Interstate 35 and Indian Hills Road (exit 114) and quickly turned to the east-northeast.

The National Weather Service in Norman has compiled information on the tornado outbreak that occurred across central Oklahoma on May 10th. Here are some facts:

A total of 36 tornadoes have been documented in the NWS Norman County Warning Area, and additional tornadoes occurred in eastern Oklahoma in the NWS Tulsa County Warning Area. This will be the second largest tornado outbreak documented in Oklahoma (the largest outbreak occurring on May 3, 1999.)

Thirteen different storms produced tornadoes.

The United States has the most tornadoes of any country, and most strong and violent tornadoes.

The United States averaged 1,274 tornadoes per year in the last decade, along with Canada reporting nearly 100 annually in the southern regions. [2] However, the UK probably has most tornadoes per area per year, 0.14 per 1000 km².[3] Also the Netherlands have relatively many tornadoes per area. Also in absolute number of events, ignoring area, the UK experiences more tornadoes (excluding waterspouts) than any other European country.

Tornadoes kill an average of 52 people per year in Bangladesh, the most in the world.[citation needed] This is due to their high population density, poor quality of construction, lack of tornado safety knowledge, as well as other factors.[4][5] Other areas of the world that have frequent tornadoes include South Africa, parts of Argentina, Uruguay, and southern Brazil, as well as portions of Europe, Australia and New Zealand, and far eastern Asia.[6][7]

The United States averaged 1,274 tornadoes per year in the last decade. April 2011 saw the most tornadoes ever recorded for any month in the US National Weather Service’s history, 875; the previous record was 542 in one month.[2] It has more tornadoes yearly than any other country and reports more violent (F4 and F5) tornadoes than anywhere else.

Canada also experiences numerous tornadoes, although fewer than the United States. In Canada, at least 80-100 tornadoes occur annually (with many more likely undetected in large expanses of unpopulated areas), causing tens of millions of dollars in damage.[citation needed] Most are weak F0 or F1 in intensity, but there are on average a few F2 or stronger that touch down each season.

For example, the tornado frequency of Southwestern Ontario is about half that of the most prone areas of the central US plains. The last multiple tornado-related deaths in Canada were caused by a tornado in Ear Falls, Ontario, on July 9, 2009, where 3 died, and the last killer tornado was on August 21, 2011 in Goderich, Ontario. The two deadliest tornadoes on Canadian soil were the Regina Cyclone of June 30, 1912 (28 fatalities) and the Edmonton Tornado of July 31, 1987 (27 fatalities). Both of these storms were rated an F4 on the Fujita scale. The city of Windsor was struck by strong tornadoes four times within a 61-year span (1946, 1953, 1974, 1997) ranging in strength from an F2 to F4. Windsor has been struck by more significant tornadoes than any other city in Canada.[citation needed] Canada’s first official F5 tornado struck Elie, Manitoba on June 22, 2007.[18] At least two other tornadoes in Saskatchewan in earlier parts of the 20th century are suspected as F5.[citation needed] Tornadoes are most frequent in the provinces of Manitoba, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Ontario.

So my question after learning all of this is WHY?

After checking with the NOAA they claim the number of Tornados per year recorded is about half of what they actually are and that they have not really increased in the number, but that we have more people with cell phones and camera technology that can report them.

The list of United States hurricanes includes all tropical cyclones officially recorded to have produced sustained winds of greater than 74 mph (118 km/h) in the United States, which is the minimum threshold for hurricane intensity. The list, which is sorted by U.S. state, begins in 1851 with the start of the official Atlantic hurricane database (HURDAT), as provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Hurricane Research Division; the data from 1941 to 1979 is subject to change, due to the lack of official wind speed estimates during the time period. Since 1851, a total of 289 North Atlantic hurricanes produced hurricane-force winds in 19 states along the Atlantic coast.
Additionally, three Pacific hurricanes struck Hawaii, and one Pacific tropical cyclone brought hurricane force winds to California.

A total of 289 Atlantic tropical cyclones have produced hurricane-force winds in every state along the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico, as well as Pennsylvania. Florida was affected by 116 hurricanes, which was more than any other state; Texas ranked second. Hurricane Donna affected a total of eight states—more than any other hurricane.[1]

A 2010 study published in Natural Hazards Review, a journal of the American Society of Civil Engineers, “Normalized Hurricane Damage in the United State: 1900-2005” (PDF), analyzed storm-related property damage figures from 1900 through 2005 adjusted (“normalized”) for inflation, wealth and population factors over time. The study found that: 1) Using normalized figures, hurricane-related damages steadily increased from 1900 to 2005; 2) Based on the adjusted data, Hurricane Katrina is the second-most destructive storm in U.S. history. The top-ranking storm in terms of property damage is the Great Miami Hurricane of 1926, with losses between $140-157 billion in 2005 dollars; 3) While 1996-2005 was the second-most costly period for storm-related damages, the preceding periods of 1976-1985 and 1986-1995 were “anomalously benign,” accounting for only 10% of all storm damage reported since 1900; 4) Approximately 85% of all storm-related damages occur in the months of August (35%) and September (50%).[3]

You can see the areas and the classification of the hurricanes that have struck the USA at this link. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Hurr-uslandfalling-1950-2007.jpg

Hurricane Katrina was the number three all time most deadly and most costly in 2005. In 1992 Hurricane Andrew was the 5th most costly in Florida and I was there for that one.

I remember Katrina as I was in Israel watching this develop and I was still learning about the Sabbatical years and connecting the dots.

Hurricane Sandy was the deadliest and most destructive hurricane of the 2012 Atlantic hurricane season, as well as the second-costliest hurricane in United States history. Classified as the eighteenth named storm, tenth hurricane and second major hurricane of the year, Sandy was a Category 3 storm at its peak intensity when it made landfall in Cuba.[1] While it was a Category 2 storm off the coast of the Northeastern United States, the storm became the largest Atlantic hurricane on record (as measured by diameter, with winds spanning 1,100 miles (1,800 km)).[2][3] Preliminary estimates assess damage at nearly $75 billion (2012 USD), a total surpassed only by Hurricane Katrina. At least 285 people were killed along the path of the storm in seven countries.[4] The severe and widespread damage the storm caused in the United States, as well as its unusual merge with a frontal system, resulted in the nicknaming of the hurricane by the media and several organizations of the U.S. government “Superstorm Sandy”.[5][6][7][8]

In the United States, Hurricane Sandy affected 24 states, including the entire eastern seaboard from Florida to Maine and west across the Appalachian Mountains to Michigan and Wisconsin, with particularly severe damage in New Jersey and New York. Its storm surge hit New York City on October 29, flooding streets, tunnels and subway lines and cutting power in and around the city.[13][14] Damage in the US is estimated at over $71 billion (2012 USD).[15][16]

Within the United States, for example, the Federal Emergency Management Agency reports that in the 37 years between 1953 and 1989, an average of 23 major disasters were declared per year. In the 1990s, that average nearly doubled—to 42.
Then, the decade that followed, from 2000 to 2009—besides seeing that annual figure leap up yet again, to 56—brought some of the most destructive natural disasters in recorded history across the globe! Earthquakes alone killed more than 780,000 people and affected more than 2 billion others. Globally, the number of catastrophic events more than doubled since the 1980s, the Center for Research on Epidemiology of Disasters said in January 2010.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) declared more disasters in 2010 than ever—nearly 2½ times the annual average. The “peaceful” years of 23 major disaster declarations in the U.S. look to be over: 2010 saw 81 of them—a major disaster every 4½ days! “The term ‘100-year event’ really lost its meaning this year,” said Craig Fugate, head of FEMA.

A weather system that summer swept through Asia, claiming nearly 17,000 lives with a killer heat wave in Russia and epic flooding in Pakistan. The year ended with eastern Australia drowning under its worst flooding ever (the leading newspaper there called it a “biblical disaster”), millions fleeing floods and landslides in Colombia and Venezuela, record-breaking winter storms in Europe and North America that left many dead and homeless, and wildfires in Israel that were considered the worst natural disaster in that nation’s history. The world’s biggest reinsurer, Swiss Re, estimated that worldwide, disasters in 2010 cost three times more than the year before, totaling nearly a quarter trillion dollars!

“This was the year the Earth struck back,” wrote the Associated Press. More than a quarter million people perished in nature-related disasters—more lives than terrorism claimed in the previous 40 years combined.

Astoundingly, though, this grisly trend of record-breaking disasters only got worse in 2011! January saw four huge earthquakes, in Argentina, Japan, Pakistan and Chile. Floods in Brazil caused mudslides that left tens of thousands homeless and killed more than 700 people. In February, Queensland—still shell-shocked from flooding—got walloped by a massive cyclone.

Then on February 22, an exceptionally violent trembler leveled much of Christchurch, New Zealand. Scientists say this severe of a quake strikes an average of once every thousand years. NOT EVEN THREE WEEKS LATER, a 9.0 quake hit near Japan, creating a killer tsunami that killed tens of thousands of people and caused a nuclear disaster. The geopolitical effects of that tragedy may change Asia permanently.
In April, more than 600 tornadoes shredded the U.S., shattering the previous April record of 267. Three hundred and twelve of them came in a single 24-hour period, the worst of which was 20 times normal size: It tore a scar one mile wide and a record 300 miles long across Alabama and Georgia. Meanwhile, severe flooding deluged other parts of the country—even as Texas was suffering its worst drought since 1895, creating perfect conditions for thousands of wildfires. Thus, wheat crops withered in Texas while farms drowned in Missouri.
In August, Hurricane Irene left 4 million businesses and homes without power as it swept up the East Coast of the U.S. All totaled, 12 billion-dollar disasters pounded the United States in 2011—three more than the previous record set in 2008. These catastrophic events were responsible for killing 1,000 Americans and causing $52 billion in damages. As the Associated Press reported on December 7, 2011, “With an almost biblical onslaught of twisters, floods, snow, drought, heat and wildfire, the U.S. in 2011 has seen more weather catastrophes that caused at least $1 billion in damage than it did in all of the 1980s, even after the dollar figures from back then are adjusted for inflation” (emphasis added throughout). Breaking it down further, AP revealed this alarming trend: During the 1980s, the U.S. averaged just one billion-dollar disaster per year. In the 1990s, it jumped to 3.8 per year—then 4.6 during the first decade of the new millennium. For just the first two years of the following decade, the U.S. has averaged 7½ billion-dollar disasters per year.

2012 continued the same trend, with England beginning the year in drought, and floods hitting New South Wales and Victoria in Australia, and the North Island of New Zealand. Severe drought—the worst since the Dust Bowl of the 1930s—continued in the U.S., affecting almost two thirds of the country and causing devastating wildfires and severe agricultural losses. Colorado was ravaged by its worst wildfire in state history, with hundreds of homes being destroyed.

A series of tornadoes plowed through the American Midwest in February, killing 13 people and injuring hundreds. The following month saw another huge outbreak of tornadoes devastate Midwest states, claiming the lives of 39 people. In early April, tornadoes and violent storms raged through north Texas, destroying an estimated 650 homes. Later in the month, more than 75 tornadoes ripped through the central U.S., killing six people and injuring 29.

In the Philippines, more than 90 people were killed in floods resulting from monsoon rains. Hurricane Isaac left a trail of death and destruction in Haiti and other islands in August. In October, Hurricane Sandy killed some 69 people in the Caribbean and went on to do massive damage in New York State and New Jersey. The superstorm created an estimated $30-50 billion in total economic damages on the East Coast.

On and on the list goes. “Unprecedented” and “record” disasters are happening at a quickening pace. “History making” events are becoming commonplace!

Again Brethren I ask you what is going on?

We have in the Oklahoma area two large Sabbath and Holy Day keeping groups. In Edmond Oklahoma is the Philadelphia Church of God and in Norman Oklahoma is Lion and Lamb Ministries. In fact I have been told that Monte Judah’s son Ephraim lost his house in this tornado, Although I have not had confirmation.

Lion and Lamb Ministries had this to say on their site about the Tornado.

So far, all of our staff and brethren are safe, but there is a tremendous amount of damage left in the tornado’s wake. Your prayers are appreciated. We have set up a fund to help Messianic brethren affected by the May 20th tornado for those wishing to contribute monetary aid.

Indeed brethren I had hundreds of people send out emails and notices for everyone to pray for the people of Oklahoma. There were so many that it became annoying.

It was the same way for hurricane Sandy and for Katrina. We were to pray for them.

What? Why should we pray for them? Pray for the Brethren Yes by all means. But the rest? Is that what Yehovah says we should do?

Jer 11:9 And Jehovah said to me, A plot is found among the men of Judah, and among the people of Jerusalem. 10 They have turned back to the iniquities of their forefathers, who refused to hear My Words. And they went 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. 11 So Jehovah says this: Behold, I will bring evil on them, which they shall not be able to escape; and though they shall cry to Me, I will not listen to them. 12 Then shall the cities of Judah and the people of Jerusalem go and cry to the gods to whom they offer incense. But they shall not save them at all in the time of their trouble. 13 For according to the number of your cities were your gods, O Judah. And according to the number of the streets of Jerusalem you have set up altars to that shameful thing, altars to burn incense to Baal. 14 And you, do not pray for this people, nor lift up a cry or prayer for them. For I will not hear them in the time they cry to Me for their trouble.

Yehovah is telling the great prophet Jeremiah not to pray for his Jewish countrymen. Those who were suppose to be keeping the Sabbath and the Holy Days. NOT TO PRAY FOR THEM!!!

WHY?

The answer is found in the verses we just read. Yehovah mocks them and tells them to go and cry out to the gods they were worshiping. Yes they were keeping the Sabbath and yes they were keeping the Holy Days but no they were not keeping the Sabbatical Years as we know from Jeremiah 25.

I have spoken to you, rising early and speaking. But you have not listened.

Jer 25:4 And Jehovah has sent to you all His servants the prophets, rising early and sending them; but you have not listened nor bowed down your ear to hear. 5 They said, Turn again now, each one from his evil way, and from the evil of your doings, and dwell in the land that Jehovah has given to you and to your fathers forever and ever. 6 And do not go after other gods to serve them, and to worship them, and do not provoke Me to anger with the works of your hands; and I will do you no harm. 7 Yet you have not listened to Me, says Jehovah, so that you might provoke Me with the works of your hands, for harm to you. 8 Therefore so says Jehovah of Hosts, Because you have not heard My Words, 9 behold, I will send and take all the families of the north, says Jehovah, and Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, My servant; and will bring them against this land, and against its people, and against all these nations all around. And I will completely destroy them, and make them a waste, and a hissing, and everlasting ruins. 10 And I will take from them the voice of rejoicing and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones and the light of the candle. 11 And this whole land shall be a ruin and a waste. And these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years. 12 And it shall be, when seventy years are fulfilled I will punish the king of Babylon, and that nation, and the land of the Chaldeans, says Jehovah, for their iniquity, and I will make it an everlasting ruin.

If we will worship Yehovah and Him alone and not mix our worship of Him with other gods then He will bring us NO HARM!!!

Two weeks ago brethren we were fast approaching Shavuot. And it was made apparent to me that I had sinned by not completing the Third Tithe year to the widows and orphans. I also sent out to you an article written by my friends Schalk and Elsa Klee about how we are to repent on Shavuot for not having kept the Torah we had agreed to keep.

I explained to you all how I felt that the problems I was having and the problems the Vineyard were having were a result of both mine and your sins. Once I repented and I did so publicly the Locust stop coming.

I received both praise and condemnation for my actions. Nonetheless I am in the process of rectifying my wrong and adding a fifth to it. What are you doing?

When evil happens do you point a finger at those to whom it has occurred and say they are bad and I am good? Does your self-righteousness stink to high heaven? Do you mix your worship of Yehovah with pagan practices and call it OK because you are doing it to Yehovah?

Did you notice what Yehovah said to Jeremiah? These people who worshipped Yehovah and kept the Sabbath and kept the Holy Days but had mixed their worship with that of Molech, which is the celebrations of Christmas and Chanukah, the festival of lights, which is the celebration of the live sacrificing of the burning of enfant children to Molech or Nimrod and Cush? Are you justifying your position on this now and arguing with me?

Or are you keeping your Star of Rephan, which Stephen accused the Jews of keeping, yes that is the so-called Megan Star. It is nothing more than another symbol of the Sun god who was again Nimrod and Cush. You can see the exact same star used by the Assyrians in their temples long before Israel was ever a nation. Do your homework and know what objects you bring in to your homes that separate you from Yehovah.

Stephen would go on to say:

“Yet not in houses made by hands does the Most High dwell, even as the prophet says…. Stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ear, you always oppose the Holy Spirit; as your father did, so do you also. Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? And they killed those who foretold the coming of the Just One, of whom you have now been the betrayers and murderers, you who received the Law as an ordinance of angels and did not keep it.”

Are you who hold up the bible any different than these to whom Stephen is rebuking? You parade the bible back and fourth and you say you read it but you will not obey it.

These tornados happen in the American Bible Belt. The areas where people are suppose to be going to church faithfully and obeying Yehovah. But it is all a show, a charade.

The veteran CNN journalist Wolf Blitzer was interviewing Rebecca Vitsmum, who fled her home with her 19-month old son, just before the tornado in Moore flattened her home.

Speaking to Vitsmum, he said: “We’re happy you’re here. You guys did a great job. You’ve gotta thank the Lord, right? Do you thank the Lord for that split-second decision?”

It might be the first time Vitsmum smiled since losing her entire home. “I – I’m actually an atheist,” she said, laughing off the awkward moment.

And now they are making t-shirts saying “I am and Atheist” and many Atheist have come together to donate to this womans new home.

You have to stop and think what is going in the USA and the rest of the world.

Over the past year I have personally contacted both the Ministry of Lion and Lamb and with the Church of God and explained to them about the Sabbatical and Jubilee years. They do not think it is applicable to them. Nor do many of the other ministries I have contacted.

Again we must go back and read what Jeremiah says.

Jer 25:12 And it shall be, when seventy years are fulfilled I will punish the king of Babylon, and that nation, and the land of the Chaldeans, says Jehovah, for their iniquity, and I will make it an everlasting ruin.

What does this mean?

We have already read how they had angered Yehovah by mixing their worship with other gods and saying it was all good, but then this statement is said after all of that. The answer to what Jeremiah is saying is found in 2 Chronicles.

2Ch 36:20 And the ones who had escaped from the sword he carried away to Babylon, where they were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the kingdom of Persia, 21 to fulfill the Word of Jehovah in the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed its sabbaths. All the days of the desolation it kept the sabbath, to the full measure of seventy years.

Israel and Judah had not kept 70 Sabbatical years holy as they were told to do at Sinai. It was part of the marriage contract they agreed to do. At Shavuot we all remind ourselves of this same contract and we seven ourselves and pledge ourselves to keep it each year as we count the Omer. And by keeping Shavuot you acknowledge the Sabbatical and Jubilee cycles.

But few are willing to research and study and prepare and plan for the next Sabbatical year in 2016, and this sin is then added to the others of mixing their worship of Yehovah with other gods.

So if you will not keep the Sabbath and the Holy Days and the Sabbatical years, what hope have you? If you keep only a part of these then again you are still sinning by not keeping them all.

If we don’t obey Yehovah, it says, then He will bring upon us ever intensifying curses, the likes of which this world has never seen! (Lev 26:16-25).
The God of the Bible is not impotent. He wields the punitive sword of flood and mildew—and also that of drought (Deuteronomy 28:22; 11:17). Sometimes He uses both at the same time in order to heighten their corrective power: “And also I have withholden the rain from you, when there were yet three months to the harvest: and I caused it to rain upon one city, and caused it not to rain upon another city: one piece was rained upon, and the piece whereupon it rained not withered” (Amos 4:7). Notice—this is Yehovah talking through His Prophet Amos. Yehovah causes these weather disasters! In one region Yehovah sends a drought—in another region, floods—and it all happens right before harvest time. And why? Yehovah causes it because we haven’t returned to Him (verse 8). Amos is trying to help us see the connection between extreme weather upsets and human sin.
In verse 9, Yehovah says, “I have smitten you with blasting and mildew .…” The International Critical Commentary (ICC) says this “blasting” refers to a scorching “east wind.” Most commentaries say this is a hot blast of drought that wipes out crops, but the fact that the word is paired with “mildew” (as in Deuteronomy 28:22) might give this verse a broader application. The ICC says this mildew is “caused by dampness and heat, having a yellow appearance.” This certainly could describe the aftermath of the summer hurricanes that lash America’s coastlines.
Realize: The book of Amos is another message directed at Israel in this end time (Amos 8:2).
The book of Nahum is another end-time book, although its message is primarily directed at the modern-day descendants of ancient Assyria. Even still, the prophet begins by drawing attention to the command Yehovah has over disastrous weather.

Nah 1:3 Jehovah is slow to anger, and great in power. And He does not by any means acquit the guilty. Jehovah has His way in the tempest and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of His feet.

In today’s language, this is speaking of hurricanes and tornadoes. Again, just as in Amos, it says Yehovah SENDS STORMS—and these storms result in flooding and destruction.

Yehovah is the one who sends the whirlwinds the tornados and hurricanes. He will not listen to those who will not obey Him.

Psalm 66:18 If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened;

Jeremiah 7:16 “So do not pray for this people nor offer any plea or petition for them; do not plead with me, for I will not listen to you.

Jeremiah 11:11 Therefore this is what the LORD says: ‘I will bring on them a disaster they cannot escape. Although they cry out to me, I will not listen to them.

Hosea 5:6 When they go with their flocks and herds to seek the LORD, they will not find him; he has withdrawn himself from them.

Zechariah 7:13 “‘When I called, they did not listen; so when they called, I would not listen,’ says the LORD Almighty.

Malachi 2:13 Another thing you do: You flood the LORD’s altar with tears. You weep and wail because he no longer looks with favor on your offerings or accepts them with pleasure from your hands.

Mal 2:1 And now, O priests, this command is for you. 2 If you will not hear, and if you will not set it on your heart to give glory to My name, says Jehovah of Hosts, then I will send a curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings. And indeed I have cursed it, because you do not set it on your heart. 3 Behold, I am rebuking your seed; and I will spread dung upon your faces, even the dung of your appointed feasts. And one shall lift you up to it. 4 And you shall know that I have sent this command to you, to be My covenant with Levi, says Jehovah of Hosts. 5 My covenant with him was life and peace, and I gave them to him for fear; and he feared Me, and he is awed before My name. 6 The Law of Truth was in his mouth, and iniquity was not found in his lips. He walked with Me in peace and uprightness, and turned away many from iniquity. 7 For the priest’s lips should guard knowledge, and they should seek the Law at his mouth; for he is the messenger of Jehovah of Hosts. 8 But you have turned out of the way; you have caused many to stumble at the law. You have corrupted the covenant of Levi, says Jehovah of Hosts. 9 Therefore I have also made you despised and low before all the people, just as you have not kept My ways but are lifting up faces in the law. 10 Is there not one Father to us all? Has not one God created us? Why do we act deceitfully, each man with his brother, to profane the covenant of our fathers. 11 Judah has dealt treacherously, and an abomination is committed in Israel and in Jerusalem. For Judah has profaned the holy place of Jehovah, which He loves, and has married the daughter of a foreign god. 12 Jehovah will cut off from the tents of Jacob the man who does it; stirring and answering; or offering a food offering to Jehovah of Hosts. 13 And this is a second thing you have done, covering the altar of Jehovah with tears, weeping, and groaning, yet not facing toward the food offering, and taking it with delight from your hand. 14 Yet you say, Why? Because Jehovah has been witness between you and the wife of your youth, against whom you have dealt treacherously; yet she is your companion and your covenant wife. 15 And did He not make you one? Yet the vestige of the Spirit is in him. And what of the one? He was seeking a godly seed. Then guard your spirit, and do not act treacherously with the wife of your youth. 16 Jehovah, the God of Israel, says He hates sending away; and to cover with violence on his garment, says Jehovah of Hosts. Then guard your spirit, and do not act treacherously. 17 You have wearied Jehovah with your words. Yet you say, In what have we wearied Him? When you say, Every evildoer is good in the eyes of Jehovah, and He delights in them; or, Where is the God of justice?

These disasters come so that you will turn from the way of evil you are now on and repent and begin to keep His Torah and his commandments.

Pro 1:23 Turn at my warning; behold, I will pour out my Spirit to you; I will make my words known to you. 24 Because I called, and you refused; I stretched out my hand, and no one paid attention; 25 but you have despised all my advice, and would have none of my warning. 26 I also will laugh at your trouble; I will mock when your fear comes; 27 when your fear comes as a wasting away, and your ruin comes like a tempest when trouble and pain come upon you. 28 Then they shall call upon me, and I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me; 29 instead they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of Jehovah. 30 They would have none of my counsel; they despised all my correction, 31 and they shall eat the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own desires. 32 For the turning away of the simple kills them, and the ease of fools destroys them. 33 But whoever listens to me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil.

“and your ruin comes like a tempest when trouble and pain come upon you.”
The Word Tempest is whirlwind or as we call it today a Tornado or Hurricane.

In Lev 23 we are told about the Sabbath and the Holy Days and in Lev 25 we are told about the Sabbatical Years and how to keep them and what to do and not to do on them. Then in Lev 26:14 we are told the punishments we will have to endure if we will not keep them.

Here is the first curse of Terror;

Lev 26:14 But if you will not listen to Me, and will not do all these commandments, 15 and if you shall despise My statutes, or if your soul hates My judgments, so that you will not do all My commandments, so that you break My covenant; 16 I will also do this to you: I will even appoint terror over you, consumption, and burning fever, consuming the eyes and causing sorrow of heart. And you shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it. 17 And I will set My face against you, and you shall be slain before your enemies. They that hate you shall reign over you. And you shall flee when none pursues you.

Here is the second curse of Drought and this curse includes the tornados and hurricanes and wild fire that are plaguing the USA;

18 And if you will not yet listen to Me for all this, then I will punish you seven times more for your sins.19 And I will break the pride of your power, and I will make your heaven like iron and your earth like bronze. 20 And your strength shall be spent in vain. For your land shall not yield its increase, neither shall the trees of the field yield their fruits.

The third curse of Pestilence and right now we have had swine flu and we are always hearing about the potential for bird flu and SARS and other diseases:

21 And if you walk contrary to Me, and will not listen to Me, I will bring seven times more plagues on you according to your sins. 22 I will also send wild beasts among you, who shall bereave you. And I will destroy your cattle, and make you few. And your highways shall be deserted.

The fourth curse of War and famine, which is to begin starting with the year 2017;

23 And if you will not be reformed by Me by these things, but will still walk contrary to Me, 24 then I will walk contrary to you and will punish you seven times more for your sins. 25 And I will bring a sword on you that shall execute the vengeance of the covenant. And when you are gathered inside your cities, I will send the plague among you. And you shall be delivered into the hand of the enemy. 26 When I have broken the staff of your bread, ten women shall bake your bread in one oven, and they shall deliver you your bread again by weight. And you shall eat and not be satisfied.

I was not going to include the fifth curse as most people can’t stand to read it, but you need to read it and to know this is coming to your family unless you begin to repent today. This is the fifth curse of captivity and cannibalism.

Lev 26:27 And if you will not for all of this listen to Me, but will walk contrary to Me, 28 then I will walk contrary to you also in fury. And I, even I, will chastise you seven times for your sins. 29 And you shall eat the flesh of your sons, and the flesh of your daughters you shall eat. 30 And I will destroy your high places and cut down your images, and throw your carcasses on the carcasses of your idols, and My soul shall despise you. 31 And I will make your cities waste and cause your sanctuaries to be deserted. And I will not smell the savor of your sweet odors. 32 And I will turn the land into wasteland. And your enemies who dwell in it shall be astonished at it. 33 And I will scatter you among the nations, and will draw out a sword after you. And your land shall be waste, and your cities waste. 34 Then shall the land enjoy its sabbaths, as long as it lies waste, and you are in your enemies’ land; then shall the land rest and enjoy its sabbaths. 35 As long as it lies waste it shall rest, because it did not rest in your sabbaths when you lived on it. 36 And on those of you that are left I will send a faintness into their hearts in the lands of their enemies. And the sound of a driven leaf shall chase them, and they shall flee as if fleeing from a sword. And they shall fall when none pursues. 37 And they shall fall on one another, as if it were before a sword, when none pursues. And you shall have no power to stand before your enemies. 38 And you shall perish among the nations, and the land of your enemies shall eat you up. 39 And they that are left of you shall putrefy in their iniquity in the lands of your enemies. And also they shall putrefy with them in the iniquities of their fathers.

Yehovah is showing you He is upset. You can reject the Sabbatical years at your own peril. You can reject the Holy Days again at your own peril and you can reject the weekly Seventh Day Saturday Sabbath to your own suffering.

Proverbs 1: 26 I also will laugh at your trouble; I will mock when your fear comes; 27 when your fear comes as a wasting away, and your ruin comes like a tempest (Tornado) when trouble and pain come upon you. 28 Then they shall call upon me, and I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me; 29 instead they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of Jehovah.

And when disaster comes Yehovah will not hear your prayers. In fact He does not want us to pray for those who are caught in these disasters. Because they are sent by Him for punishment and rebuke. If they turn from their sins then and only then will He help them.

After reading the curses Yehovah is going to send on those who do not obey in Lev 26 He then tells us how to stop those curses and how He will protect you IF you repent.

Lev 26:40 If they shall confess their willfulness and the willfulness of their fathers, with their sin which they sinned against Me, and that also they have walked contrary to Me, 41 I also will walk contrary to them and will bring them into the land of their enemies. If then their uncircumcised hearts are humbled, and they then pay for their iniquity, 42 then I will remember My covenant with Jacob, and also My covenant with Isaac, and also My covenant with Abraham I will remember. And I will remember the land. 43 The land also shall be forsaken by them, and shall enjoy its sabbaths, while it lies waste without them. And they shall accept the punishment of their iniquities; because, even because they despised My judgments, and because their soul hated My statutes. 44 And yet for all that, when they are in the land of their enemies, I will not cast them away, neither will I hate them, to destroy them utterly and to break My covenant with them. For I am Jehovah their God. 45 But for their sakes, I will remember the covenant of their ancestors, whom I brought forth out of the land of Egypt in the sight of the heathen, so that I might be their God. I am Jehovah. 46 These are the statutes and judgments and laws, which Jehovah made between Him and the sons of Israel in Mount Sinai by the hand of Moses.

Yehovah controls the weather. And in these many biblical passages, He reveals that there is a direct connection between the weather we experience and HOW WE ARE LIVING.

Apparently, most people simply do not believe these scriptures. Many believe in a “God of love” who would never do anything as horrible as those prophecies suggest.

Those who believe such a thing, however, fail to recognize an EXTREMELY IMPORTANT ASPECT of this issue.
Yes, Yehovah is all-powerful. Yes, He could prevent disasters if He chose to. Yes, at times Yehovah actually CAUSES those disasters! And yes, the occurrence of natural disasters does reflect a side of His character that many people don’t want to face.
But NO, NO, NO A THOUSAND TIMES to the notion that Yehovah is a cruel, merciless being who enjoys witnessing the suffering of human beings!

We must humble ourselves enough to appreciate the full, awesome biblical revelation on this crucial point!
Yehovah tells us that the REAL CAUSE of our upset natural conditions involves SIN—which is the breaking of His laws. Yehovah USES WEATHER TO CORRECT AND DISCIPLINE HIS CREATION—to help us realize the error in our ways!

Some of you who call yourselves Christian will say all of this is OT and done away with. Consider this then.

Joh 9:31 But we know that God does not hear sinners, but if anyone is God-fearing and does His will, He hears him.

So you must now learn what is a sinner and whether or not you are one. If you are one then you will know Yehovah does not hear your prayers.

1Jn 3:4 Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness, for sin is lawlessness.

Lawlessness is someone who does not and will not keep the Commandments. Yes the Ten Commandments from Mount Sinai. But you all say you do keep them. Well all of them except the 4th one.

Because you do this and will not keep the Weekly Sabbath and the Holy Days of Lev 23 and the Sabbatical Years of Lev 25, then Yehovah does not acknowledge you are even here.

Deuteronomy 1:45 You came back and wept before the LORD, but he paid no attention to your weeping and turned a deaf ear to you.

Job 27:8 For what hope have the godless when they are cut off, when God takes away their life?

Job 35:13 Indeed, God does not listen to their empty plea; the Almighty pays no attention to it.

On the other hand those who do obey and those who do keep Holy the Sabbath and the Holy Days and the Sabbatical Years and the rest of the commandments, Yehovah does hear them and does work with them.

Psalm 34:15 The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and his ears are attentive to their cry;

Psalm 66:18 If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened;

Psalm 145:19 He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them.

Proverbs 15:29 The LORD is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayer of the righteous.

Proverbs 28:9 If anyone turns a deaf ear to my instruction, even their prayers are detestable.

Isaiah 1:15 When you spread out your hands in prayer, I hide my eyes from you; even when you offer many prayers, I am not listening. Your hands are full of blood!

So what is the will of Yehovah so that He will listen to us? And how do we become righteous so that He will listen to our prayers?

2Jn 1:5 And now I beseech you, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment to you, but that which we had from the beginning, that we love one another. 6 And this is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, as you heard from the beginning, that you should walk in it.

1Jn 5:1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God. And everyone who loves Him who begets also loves him who has been born of Him. 2 By this we know that we love the children of God, whenever we love God and keep His commandments. 3 For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments, and His commandments are not burdensome.

Joh 14:15 If you love Me, keep My commandments.

Joh 14:21 He who has My commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves Me. And he who loves Me shall be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will reveal Myself to him.

1Jn 2:3 And by this we know that we have known Him, if we keep His commandments. 4 He who says, I have known Him, and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But whoever keeps His Word, truly in this one the love of God is perfected. By this we know that we are in Him.

Rev 12:17 And the dragon was enraged over the woman, and went to make war with the rest of her seed, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

Rev 14:12 Here is the patience of the saints. Here are the ones who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.

Satan is after those who keep the commandments. He does not bother with those who do not keep them and are already deceived and already part of Satan’s kingdom.

Psa 119:172 My tongue shall speak Your Word, for all Your Commandments are righteousness.

Psa 119:138 In Your testimonies You have commanded righteousness and faithfulness exceedingly.

Deu 6:25 And if we are careful to do all this commandment before Jehovah our God, as He has commanded us, it shall be our righteousness.

That is how you acquire righteousness. You must walk the walk and do the commandments. Going to church on Sunday and just talking about the bible is not doing the commandments. Those who do this are ignorant of the Torah and the commandments. They have set up their righteousness which is not the same as Yehovah’s.

Rom 10:3 For they, being ignorant of God’s righteousness and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves to the righteousness of God.

Jas 2:10 For whoever shall keep the whole Law and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. 11 For He who said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said, “Do not murder.” But if you do not commit adultery, yet if you murder, you have become a transgressor of the Law. 12 So speak and do as those who shall be judged by the Law of liberty. 13 For he who has shown no mercy shall have judgment without mercy, and mercy exults over judgment. 14 My brothers, what profit is it if a man says he has faith and does not have works? Can faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, 16 and if one of you says to them, Go in peace, be warmed and filled, but you do not give them those things which are needful to the body, what good is it? 17 Even so, if it does not have works, faith is dead, being by itself. 18 But someone will say, You have faith, and I have works. Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith from my works. 19 You believe that there is one God, you do well; even the demons believe and tremble. 20 But will you know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead? 21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? 22 Do you see how faith worked with his works, and from the works faith was made complete? 23 And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was imputed to him for righteousness, and he was called the friend of God.” 24 You see then how a man is justified by works, and not by faith only. 25 And in the same way, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she had received the messengers and had sent them out another way? 26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

Brethren unless you begin to keep the commandments your faith is dead. Unless you begin to keep the commandments you will not have righteousness, which is what you must have on at the wedding.

Unless you begin to keep the commandments Yehovah will not hear your cries for help.
Unless you begin to keep the commandments you are of the sheep fold of Satan and do not know it.

Most people keep the commandments more or less. But most of them that do that will not keep the 4th one. To keep Holy the Sabbath, which includes the Seventh Day Saturday Sabbath and the Holy Days of Lev 23 and not adding any others to that list. And they do not keep the Sabbatical years. The next one is coming in 2016.

And because of this Yehovah does not hear them and does not protect them and sends the whirlwinds of destruction.

It is time right now for you to repent before disaster comes to your family and to your loved ones. It is time now to clean up your act and to get rid of the false worship you mix in with Torah and justify it. It is time to clean your house up before Yehovah sends disaster to you. It is time right now.

If you want to learn more about the Sabbatical Years and how to prove when they are and how we got so confused over this then order the book “Remembering the Sabbatical Year of 2016” by clicking on link now.

To turn a Cat around all you have to do is rub it the wrong way. Instead of rubbing the cat from head to tail try going from tail toward its head. It will immediately turn around so that you can rub him the right way from head to tail.

Yehovah is doing the same thing with man. He is sending the fear of tornados in every storm; the fear of wild fires and drought and floods and hail all in an effort to get us to turn around and allow Him to pet us the right way. To bless us so that we can have rain in due season, no severe and destructive weather at any time. Yehovah is rubbing us the wrong way to get our attention and turn us around and to begin to obey Him so that we can enjoy the blessings He wants us to have. Until we actually do turn around then we can expect more historical and record breaking disasters to come one after another more loss of property and lives and loved ones. You need to examine your self on a daily basis to make sure you are walking with Yehovah and not against His will. Get yourself turned around and going in the right direction.

Triennial Torah Cycle

We continue this weekend with our regular Triennial Torah Reading Cycle

Deut 20       1 Chron 25-29        1 Tim 4-6

Laws of Warfare (Deuteronomy 20)

Moses now discusses the principles governing warfare. These principles show that, despite the use of physical armaments, Israel was still to look to God for victory (Deuteronomy 20:1-9). One of the threats that Israel would face in war mentioned in verse 1 is “horses and chariots.” Armies equipped in this manner were particularly intimidating to foot soldiers. The commandment was given in Deuteronomy 17:16 that Israel’s kings not “multiply horses.” And there is no evidence that Israel utilized horses for war before Solomon’s time (1 Kings 4:26; 10:26). If this is the case, it is particularly fitting that Moses assured Israel they need not fear even when armies came against them with chariots.

With Almighty God as commander, there was no room for fear in the ranks—and those who were fearful were to be excused (verse 8). Others excused from warfare—at least on a temporary basis—included a person who had just built a new house, one who had planted a new vineyard, and one who was betrothed to a woman to marry her (verses 5-7). Deuteronomy 24:5 adds the further exception of a man who had just gotten married—he was permitted to stay with his wife for one year without having to go out to war. One of the reasons for these excuses from participation in battle seems to be that persons in such conditions would likely be thinking about what they were leaving behind rather than concentrating on the battle. No doubt, God’s mercy and compassion are also shown in these regulations. Furthermore, in these “excused absences,” God was showing that it is not necessary to rely on numbers. With God fighting for His people (verse 4), very few people could easily overcome a force of many times their number (see Leviticus 26:8), as often happened during the Israelites’ history when they were obedient to God.

Before the Israelites attacked a city “very far” from them (20:15), they had to offer peace to it (verses 10-11). It is interesting that the offer was of peace—not enslavement. Such cities were to pay tribute, essentially a tax, and “serve” Israel—not in slavery but to remain in peace and harmony with Israel, thus promoting the safety, security and well-being of God’s people. Moreover, in agreeing to keep Israel’s laws and way of life, such cities would in fact enter into a much better way of life than they had ever known. If a city refused the offer and chose war instead, Israel was to “strike every male in it with the edge of the sword” (verses 12-13), while leaving the women and children alive (verse 14). In regard to the cities that were located within the Promised Land, however, Israel was to “let nothing that breathes remain alive” (verse 16), so that the evil inhabitants could not influence Israel with “their abominations…and you sin against the Lord your God” (verse 18).

Finally, God told Israel not to cut down fruit trees in a siege against a city. They were only allowed to destroy those trees that were not “trees for food” (verses 19-20). This would especially make sense in a longer siege where food supplies could become an issue.

David Organizes the Musicians (1 Chronicles 25)

David has a particular interest in the group of Levites assigned to be musicians. He is a musician himself (see 1 Samuel 16:16-23), a maker or perhaps even inventor of musical instruments (1 Chronicles 23:5), and a prolific composer.

Twenty-four sons of the three chief musicians are chosen to head up divisions to correspond with the courses of priests. These three were originally chosen by the tribal leader to be the musicians when the ark was moved to Jerusalem (see 1 Chronicles 15:16-24). The sons of Asaph, of the Levitical sub-tribe of Gershom (Gershom, Kohath and Merari being the three sons of Levi), had four of the divisions. Asaph had been the chief musician assigned to minister before the Ark of the Covenant in Jerusalem (see 1 Chronicles 16:4-7, 37). He, too, composed psalms, with 12 of them bearing his name (Psalms 50; 73-83). The sons of Jeduthun, of the sub-tribe of Merari, had six divisions. Jeduthun is known as Ethan in many scriptures and, along with Heman, served at the tabernacle in Gibeon while the ark was in Jerusalem (see 1 Chronicles 16:39-42). The sons of Heman, of the sub-tribe of Kohath, made up the remaining 14 divisions. Heman was the grandson of the prophet Samuel, and descendant of Korah. One psalm is attributed to Heman (Psalm 88), but 10 others (42; 44-49; 84-85; 87) are attributed to the sons of Korah, which would include Heman and his descendants. Additional information can be found in 1 Chronicles 6:31-48.

Note that each group of musicians is said to be “under the direction of their father” (25:2, 3, 6). The older King James Version says “under the hands of their father,” a literal translation of the original Hebrew. This seems to convey the picture of a choral director leading the singers under him. But unlike modern choirs who, since the invention of the printing press and the musical notation of our day, tend to use printed musical notation, it was common for ancient choir directors to use more elaborate hand and arm gestures in a practice known as chironomy. This allowed them to convey not only the timing and volume, but even the notes the group was to sing or play.

When David and Asaph gave the singers and instrumentalists a new song, they probably did not pass out written music for everybody. Certainly the group could learn a new song through hearing someone sing it several times. But history shows that more sophisticated techniques were employed to enable these professional musicians to know what notes they were to sing or play “instantly” through the hand gestures of their father, or other musical director. That one such director may have been David can be seen in the phrase “order of the king” in verse 2—actually, in the Hebrew, “hands of the king.” This at least shows David’s direct involvement in composing, but it perhaps also means that he occasionally led the musicians himself.

According to the research and theory of Suzanne Haïk-Vantoura (author of The Music of the Bible Revealed, 1991), notation of these hand signals may actually be recorded in the accent marks (the jots and tittles) of the Masoretic Text of the Hebrew Bible.

David Organizes the Security Force (1 Chronicles 26)

Among the gatekeepers, part of the temple security force, was the family of Obed-Edom, who had housed the ark for three months (see 13:13-14). He and his large family had served in this capacity after the ark had been moved (16:37-38), and David had them continue this work. There were also Levites assigned specifically to watch over the treasury—the descendants of Moses among them. And finally, there were Levitical officers and judges appointed to take care of business in the rest of the country, away from the temple.

Verse 10 of 1 Chronicles 26 contains some interesting information. Here a father sets one of his sons as first even though he is not the firstborn. That it was unusual may be ascertained from its mention here. Yet God had, as we have seen repeatedly, directed that this be done many times before. Such occurred with Seth, Shem, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Ephraim, Moses and even David—and now Solomon too.

David’s Military and Tribal Organization (1 Chronicles 27)

Many of the mighty men we previously read about in 1 Chronicles 11 and 2 Samuel 23 headed up groups of 24,000 men who served on national security one month out of each year. These 288,000 men taken together probably constituted the regular army. This organization apparently dates back to the beginning of David’s reign, since Asahel is mentioned as the leader in the fourth month. He was killed by Abner before David moved to Jerusalem (see 2 Samuel 2:18-23), and was succeeded by his son Zebadiah (1 Chronicles 27:7).

The tribal leaders at this time are also listed, but how they were chosen is not stated. The individual tribes may have done that. It is interesting to note that the tribal leader of Judah is David’s brother Elihu (1 Chronicles 27:18), apparently his oldest brother elsewhere called Eliab (1 Samuel 16:6). And the leader of Benjamin is the son of Abner, apparently the Abner who was Saul’s uncle and military commander, well respected in his tribe and by all of Israel before his murder at the hand of Joab (compare 2 Samuel 2-3). David’s economic or agricultural administrators are listed, along with several other officials over the course of his reign.

David Instructs Solomon Regarding the Temple (1 Chronicles 28)

David gathers the leaders together (the ones we have been reading about in the foregoing chapters) to explain the transfer of power and his goals for Solomon. In verse 2, we can imagine an old and frail king, perhaps sometime during the summer months after a cold winter of trying to keep warm (compare 1 Kings 1:1-4), gathering his strength to be able to stand on his feet. David starts by discussing his consuming passion—to build the temple of God—and says that God did not allow him to build it because he was a man of war, his reign being replete with bloodshed. He points out that God Himself chose Solomon as king and the one to build the temple (1 Chronicles 28:5-6). Later Solomon tells Hiram that David was surrounded by too many wars, and that a time of peace would now permit Solomon, a man of peace, to build the temple (1 Kings 5:3-5).

We have seen that David gathered materials for the temple and organized the priesthood. Now he turns those materials and organizational plans over to Solomon, as well as detailed building plans, and explains that God revealed the design to him (1 Chronicles 28:12, 19). Similarly, God had revealed the plans for the tabernacle to Moses (Exodus 25:8-9) to ensure that His earthly dwelling was patterned after the one in heaven (Hebrews 8:5).

Offerings for the Temple; David’s Prayer;

Solomon Replaces David as King (1 Chronicles 29:1-25)

David reiterates that God is the one who chose Solomon, and then describes the materials he has assembled for Solomon to use in building the temple. This time, he also mentions his personal contributions, and encourages others to contribute as well. As in the days of Moses (compare Exodus 35:20-29), those who were able donated generously and willingly. The words “with a loyal heart” (1 Chronicles 29:9) are translated from a Hebrew phrase literally meaning “with a fullness of heart” (Nelson Study Bible, note on verse 9). And David is moved to thank God for actually enabling them to give—indeed, to simply give back to God what He has Himself given in the first place.

David’s prayer here has served much more than just this occasion. Indeed, many even today use words from it without knowing it. When Christ gave an outline of how to pray in His famous Sermon on the Mount—”Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come…” (Matthew 6:9-13)—He concluded it with words of praise used in David’s prayer. Jesus told us to conclude our prayers along these lines: “For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen” (verse 13). Compare this with David’s words in 1 Chronicles 29:10-12. Of course, the preincarnate Christ very likely inspired the words David prayed.

Finally, Solomon is once again anointed king, and Zadok is confirmed as the high priest with no mention here of the now out-of-favor line of Abiathar. Verse 23 states that Solomon sat on the “throne of the Lord.” And it really was God’s throne (compare 1 Samuel 8:7). Jesus Christ will once again occupy this throne when He returns to reign over Israel and all nations—that is, not the same physical chair but the office of responsibility.

The passage ends with the statement that God bestowed on Solomon “such majesty as had not been on any king before him in Israel” (verse 25). The Nelson Study Bible notes, “Obviously this included only Saul and David, but it is still a remarkable statement in light of David’s widely recognized power and magnificence (11:9; 14:2; 18:1-13; 29:28)” (note on verse 25). Indeed, David was apparently the dominant ruler of the age—and yet Solomon’s rule is already greater in power and prestige, and will be greater yet, as we will soon see.

1 Timothy 4

Some of the letters written by Sha’ul are made ever more difficult to put into context because of the Body’s lack of knowledge of history, both history of the church and secular history as well. Both of these play a very large role in the topics and matters which he has to address in his letters. There were very large groups of agnostics during these times in which Sha’ul wrote his letters and these agnostics had great influence upon these times. The agnostics had a belief that all pleasure was evil and wicked. They believed and taught that anything that was enjoyed by the flesh was of the evil one to include feasting, being married and enjoying intimacy between husband and wife. As many of us know, all of Yehovah’s Sabbaths surround feasting. They are even so named: Festivals or Feasts of YHWH.

Paul is addressing these beliefs and teachings of this type in chapter 4 of 1 Timothy. He mentions the forbidding of marriage and abstaining from certain foods. He does clarify though that these foods that are acceptable have already been set apart by the Word of Elohim – the Torah in clean and unclean foods. These misleading spirits are teaching from their own human logic and beliefs… not the Torah.

We see in verses 7 & 8 he even has to address this idea of “physical discipline of the flesh” and many of us have seen documentaries, movies, or read books about the times when men would beat their flesh to the point of drawing blood to try and “tame it.” Paul places reverence above this type of silly stuff. It is the Spirit of a person who disciplines the flesh. He urges the assembly to focus on teaching, being a good example, showing love, and exhibiting cleanliness, reading, encouragement. Teach it and live it, this is Paul’s advice.

1 Timothy 5

In chapter 5 we begin to wonder if there is not a problem with some thinking that the new assembly is a place to hang out and get free stuff. Perhaps some, particularly young single women saw the group as a safe haven and place to be cared for. If this is so, Paul certainly addresses the situation and advises that the young women not be taken in as widows and cared for as widows. The true widows are the women who have led a prosperous life with family, children, running a household in service, shown humility and the heart of a servant, willing to serve and serve and serve. Young people are not mature enough to continue in this type of attitude. Their selfish desires more often than not take over and this will become a large problem for the sake of not only their own testimony but the witness of the assembly to the outside community.

Those elders who do the most work for the Good News and in Service to one another should be looked after and cared for without question. This is right and appropriate. Don’t fall prey to mindless rumors or accusations of others against reputable elders. Make sure to get witnesses and that accusations are handled with a cool head.

1 Timothy 6

More and more and more concerning a servant’s heart, a good testimony, and all humility. Whether a servant’s master is believing or unbelieving, serve them with respect and reverence. Withdraw and separate yourself from those who teach something different from this for they are arrogant and puffed up and try to verbally persuade and catch others in the true way off guard. Teach concerning simplicity and not wealth. Teach how to be satisfied with food and clothing and not having need of great wealth for this is a snare. Be rich in good works!

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