Isaiah's Prophecies

No one is going to defy God and get away with it!

We have to come to God HIS way!

Fred R. Coulter—May 11, 2024

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{note that the transcription starts about 4 minutes after audio starts}

Now then, all through the history of the Church of God, the question has been: When will Christ return?

Jesus said that 'it's not for you to know. You go preach the Gospel.' He gave us some hints and prophecies of what it would be.

Just this last week, Greg White sent me some early Church of God articles about the beast power. I find it very interesting because here November 2, 1854, Church of God.

Remember one of the errors of Herbert Armstrong: he said that the Gospel hadn't been preached for 1800 years. A lie! He did that so everyone would focus on him. Yet, he got all of his doctrine from the Church of God Seventh Day. So, here's one:

• November 2, 1854, article by Erastus Clark, The Beast and His Image—the Roman Catholic Church, and he mentions the mark of the beast. But even mentioning the mark of the beast, they thought that the mark of the beast was Sunday-keeping, just like the Seventh Day Adventists do today and some Churches of God.

That's what Herbert Armstrong taught. I read the booklet when I first went down to Pasadena to be baptized. So, here in 1854 they were talking about it:

• November 30, 1854—here was an article, and it was discussing the two-horned beast, the second one in Rev. 13
• August 24, 1864—article on Napoleon III, indicating that he may be the antichrist, and to be defeated when Christ returns.

Now, stop and think in 1863 how long it took for the information to get from Europe to where the headquarters was for the Church of God Seventh Day. Months!

I want you to think on that because we'll cover some of this next week when we have the questions and answers.

• October 2, 1866—the seven-headed and ten-horned beast of Rev.13.

What did we just cover last week? That very same thing!

• November 23, 1869—Napoleon Empire in Prophecy—the empire that was and is not and yet is—by Alexander Keef

• Were they watching?
• Were they looking at events?
• Were they to the best of their ability at the time relating these things that they saw?

What was the one main thing that they all had? They knew it was coming out of Europe! King of the North!

Now, let's look at some of the things that are taking place here in America right now. Remember the bill that was passed in the Congress here just recently? Probably will never become law. That is the bill to combat anti-Semitism on campuses.

As Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene said, it would also 'prohibit the preaching of the Gospel.' You read Matt. 23 how Christ condemns all of the Jewish religious leaders. Then in John 8, he said, 'You are of your father the devil.'

Now, today, if this bill passed, then people could be carted off for being anti-Semitic.

• Why don't they balance the bill off and get this?
• Why not have a bill that is holding up—because everybody's against white people today—having no anti-white propaganda?

No!

So, you see: men and women without the true knowledge of God can never come to the truth! They take part of what they see, part of what they hear, maybe even look in the Bible. But why do we have the mess we have today everywhere that it is? Because everyone has forgotten God!

What's happening over in the area of Judea now where they're fighting against Hamas?

There are a lot of archaeological digs going on, and I think that they have found some other cities of the Kingdom of David at about 1000B.C.The war going on is definitely to clear the deck so that the third temple can be built.  Now, we'll talk about that a little later.

I want to pass on to you something important concerning health. I want you to understand this; please realize this very important thing: Just because you do not eat unclean meats does not mean that's the perfect health answer for you!

• you've got to know your body
• you've got to know your weaknesses
• you've got to know how to take care of your own body

Today, everything is with doctors and drugs—DD. Remember what the poison is? DDT! So, we can say doctors and drug therapy equals poison.

Now, those who took Covid shots should know that they had RM genes in it and they also had graphene oxide, which is also a poison. They're trying to get graphene oxide into the environment so that people will get it into their systems.

Why is that? Graphene oxide is a poison and it is also electronically frequency sensitive where they can take all of the electronics with 5G, and that can cause problems with health.

So here's a perfect guide to remove graphene; you have to go online to get it. I won't go through the article, but it tells you what to do. Now, especially for anyone who has had the Covid shot, it tells you how it works in the body, what it does to the body, how that these frequencies that come from 5G can cause the body and the mind to do certain things.

For example, we don't know exactly how it works, but we know it works and we know that it's electronic. I have in my hand a thumb-bob. When I leave the house, I can point it toward the alarm, push the button, and whatever electronics that you can't see goes up to the main the main alarm in the house, and it sets it and it says alarm, go out of the house.

Then I get in the car and I put in the key and I start the car. Well, we know how that works electronically. Then I have a button which then puts up the garage door and when I'm leaving, I push the button and the garage door comes down.

How is all of that energy working there in a little, tiny thumb-bob like this with a very small amount of electrical things?

Same way with the remote on your television. You pick up the remote, you think nothing about it, you point it to the master box coming in from the video chain that you're on or whatever it is, and you push the on and off button, you push the buttons for all the channels, and they all work by electronics, but you see nothing that takes place!

Well, that's the same thing that they want to do with this graphene oxide in the system. It will affect people's systems to cause sickness, to cause disease, to cause death!

Note this from Expose-news.com: {https://expose-news.com/2024/04/27/perfect-guide-remove-graphene/}

When they were wanting everyone to get shots, we told everyone, 'Don't get the shots.' And we had excuses that we sent out, and we sent out probably about 1,200 or 1,300 of those excuses, and all of them were accepted.

But you wait and see. There will come a time when they will not allow any kind of exemption. Why? Because they want to control everyone!

With what they have with the digital things that they have now, they can know:

• who you are
• where you are
• what you are doing
• what you have done
• what you have purchased
• what you have sold
• where your car is
• where you are at any time

Just click on whatever the number of your phone would be, and VOILA! they know where you are.

So, think about the things like that coming in the future with the mark of the beast!

I just wanted to cover these because they were very important, both of these, and for us to understand. We're living in the most dangerous times in the history of the world, and we're living in a time when we have the ability to see more of the unfolding of prophecy than those back in the 1800s.

So, I'll leave it to you. I want you to study Matt. 24 for next week and figure out what was the missing key in the 1800s and before what they did not have. What was it that Jesus told them that they would be able to do, which only those of us in this generation will be able to do.

Isaiah's Prophecies

It's amazing that when we read things like In Isaiah that we're going to cover about prophecies that are taking place, there are so many.

We'll cover just some of them today to look at exactly what is going on. Everybody looks at the problem, and they try and solve the problem, but they don't know the cause.

Why don't they know the cause? Because none of them will listen to the Word of God. Some few do, but there are a lot of them that don't. Here's what God says:

Isaiah 57:3: "But draw near here, you sons of the sorceress…"—the satanists!

We have more witchcraft and satanism and masochism and transgender than ever before; and concerning the worst crime of all, abortion!  We have more abortions than ever before, and some thought that when the Supreme Court struck down Roe v Wade, that abortions would go down.

Well, they did go down temporarily, but there are some people who are so selfish and so self-centered on their evil and what they want to do, they don't care about anybody else. As different ones are saying, when the election comes along, it's going to make 2020 look like kindergarten. Not going to be easy because the wicked are ruling!

Verse 4: "Against whom are you making sport? Against whom do you make a wide mouth and draw out the tongue?…."

• they're against anyone who wants anything that's right and good
• they're against anyone who believes in God
• they are against the Bible
• they hate God
• they hate Christians
• everything they do is ruled by hate

"…Are you not children of transgression, a lying seed, being inflamed with idols under every green tree… [anyplace you are] …killing the little children in the valleys…" (vs 4-5).

They had actual child sacrifice then; that's what every abortion is, a sacrifice of a child to the man and the woman who don't want the child. But if you ask them:

• Do you like your life? They'll say yes!
• Where did you come from? They have to admit they had to have a father and a mother!
• Why then are you killing your offspring and saying that's the right you need to have; 'if I don't have it, I'm going to tear down the whole world.'

God's going to take it down; He says here:

Verse 6: "Among the smooth stones of the stream is your portion; they, even they, are your lot; even to them you have poured a drink offering, you have offered a grain offering. Should I relent over these?" You can add in there today:

• all of the drugs
• all Sabbath breaking

because He says over here in Isa. 56 about keeping the Sabbath! Look at everything that goes on with the Sabbath beginning on Friday night and all day Saturday. Everything that goes on, every sport in the world, every activity, every sale, everything that people do: working in their yards, working at whatever they work at.

Everyone ignores the Sabbath, and God is going to bring His correction because of that!

Verse 7: "Upon a lofty and high mountain you have set your bed; even there you went up to offer sacrifice." We have that today with:

• all the false religion
• all the wokeism

I couldn't believe watching Jesse Waters' program yesterday; he had all of the woke idiots sporting their best and hating everybody else. The way it's all going now, they're raising a whole generation of idiots!

Verse 8: "Also, behind the doors and the posts you have set up your images; far from Me have you uncovered and ascended…"

They're leaving God further and further away, and the further they go from God, the more difficulty that comes along.

"…and enlarged your bed. You made a covenant with them; you loved their bed; you saw their hand beckoning you" (v 8).

Then it even talks about the king that goes—that is the leader—goes in and does all of these evil things.

Let's come over here and see what we have today in Isa. 59. Talking about today, everyone's wondering: Why isn't anything working out?

Fewer and fewer people are coming to the nominal Christianity. Their numbers are going down. They're going down, and that means there are fewer people even believing in God in any way. When that happens, we're going to see difficulties occur.

So with the election coming up, we don't know what it's going to bring. We don't know how it's going to turn out:

• with all the immigrants that are here
• with all their drugs
• with all their guns
• with all of the things that they're going to do

we are headed for trouble!

As I've mentioned to you, you've got to have extra food. You've got to have extra water. You've got to have extra things, because there probably will come a time that you won't be able to leave your house for a while because of all of the violence that's going to take place everywhere. So beware!

Isa. 59—for all of those who are 'religious' and they think that they can just cry out to God and God will be there to help them in spite of what they're doing, never happen! They wonder why:

• IF there is a God, why won't He answer?
• IF there is a God, why are all these things taking place?

Isaiah 59:1: "Behold, the LORD'S hand is not shortened that it cannot save, nor is His ear heavy that it cannot hear. But your iniquities… [sin, transgressions] …have come between you and your God, and your sins have hid His face from you, that He will not hear" (vs 1-2).

Remember what God told Jeremiah several times, because the sins of the people were so bad?

God said, 'Don't pray for them, because I won't hear you.' Why? Because no one is repenting! They want the penalties lifted, but they don't want to change their behavior.

Verse 3: "For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue has muttered perverseness."

Does that not tell us about most of the news, the mainstream media? Understand this: Whenever you watch the news, the one who is giving the broadcast is reading it; put up there by the producer. So, the producer is the one who is formulating what news they want you to watch and hear. And you rarely hear the truth!

You hear some of it on Fox News, you hear a little more of it on NewsMax[transcriber's correction]  but where else can you hear it?

IF you don't know the Bible and IF you don't know the Word of God, you don't know what on earth is happening! You wonder why all these things are taking place.

Verse 4: "None calls for justice…"

And when they do, they're voted down! Look at what they're putting Donald Trump through. Now, Donald Trump has had his problems during his whole life and everything. That's the way it goes. Who knows what his heart is or if he has any relationship with God or not. At least he is proclaiming the Bible, and at least he says he reads it. What about 'Uncle' Biden? Never hear that from him!

But don't put your hopes in Trump that he's going to solve a lot of problems. He may solve some if he becomes president, but what happens if he doesn't? A lot of people don't even want to think that!

Verse 4: "None calls for justice, nor does anyone plead for Truth; they trust in vanity and speak lies…."

That sounds like the whole Democrat Party and the whole vast majority of young people today, who are only wrapped up in their own lives and their own things that they're doing; all of the promiscuous sex and drugs. That's what they're into. They don't have a clue what's going on, and they don't care about anybody else. They just care about what pleasure they're going to have that day.

"…They conceive mischief and bring forth iniquity" (v 4).

Look at it! Look at the cities! Look at New York City! Remember what I said about New York City? Guess what is happening in New York? in Chicago? in Philadelphia? in Baltimore? in Los Angeles? in Portland? in Seattle? Rats are multiplying by the millions!

• What do you think that's going to bring?
• What did it bring in ages past?

the bubonic plague!

• Will it come again?
• What are they going to do with all the rats?

Verse 5: "They hatch adders' eggs and weave the spider's web; he who eats their eggs dies, and that which is crushed breaks out into a viper."

Now, that's true! I just heard of a man who was 55 years old, BANG! Dropped dead! He lived a very promiscuous life and ignored everything about what we find in the Bible. He thought he could defy everything. But at 55, he's gone.

And God says that's going to happen with all of their plans!

Verse 6: "Their webs shall not become clothing, nor shall they cover themselves with their works; their works are works of iniquity, and the acts of violence are in their hands. Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood…" (vs 6-7).

That now sounds like all of these riots that we're having at the colleges. they know that most of them there are paid rioters from Antifa and Black Lives Matter and other organizations. They're funded by the evil people that want to destroy America.

Why is God doing that? Because America has turned its back on God! Just like it says here:

• they mouth it
• they speak it

If you don't believe it:

• watch Joel Osteen on Sunday
• watch Kenneth Copeland on Sunday
• watch David Jeremiah on Sunday

then go to:

• TBN—watch all of the nonsense that goes there
• Daystar—what goes there

And who knows what's happening in the other churches where their attendance is way down and no one wants to go. It isn't going to work out!

"…make haste to shed innocent blood… [abortion] …their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths. They have not known the way of peace, and there is no justice in their ways…." (vs7-8).

Look at what's happening to the justice system. Criminals can go into a store and they can steal $949 worth of goods and walk out with their arms full and not be arrested.

What's happening in San Francisco? They're losing all their retail businesses one by one because the owners cannot afford to be ripped off every day by the lawlessness that the evil people in charge; mainly Democrats and other atheist and God haters that are in the government. That's what it is! "…thoughts of iniquity"

Verse 8: "They have not known the way of peace, and there is no justice in their ways. They have made crooked paths for themselves; whoever goes therein shall not know peace. Therefore, justice is far from us…" (vs 8-9).

When was the last time? Now, once in a while the Supreme Court gets it right. Once in a while a judge may do something that is right. But there's no justice otherwise!

"…We wait for light, but behold, darkness… [everybody's hoping for things to get better but it gets worse] …for brightness, but we walk in deep shadows" (v 9).

Isa. 60 says darkness, gross darkness has covered the earth! So, not only just here in America but you'd have it in many countries in the world, as well.

Verse 10: "We grope along the wall like the blind, and we grope as if we had no eyes. We stumble at noonday as in the night; among those who are strong, we are like dead men."

Isn't that true? When someone wants to do something that is right they are attacked, and there's virtually nothing that they can do!

Verse 11: "We all roar like bears, and mourn grievously like doves; we look for justice, but there is none, we look for salvation, yet, it is far from us."

Here's why; here is the thing: How many people are saying this? How many people are really coming out and saying:

• the problem is you have left God
• the problem is you want to go your way and expect God to bless you in spite of your sins

That'll never happen!

When you hear the religionists say 'we need to repent' they never tell them that repentance involves the understanding of God's Laws!

Isa. 55—Let's see what has to happen here. Here is what they need to do; here is the solution. But how many will follow it?

Isaiah 55:6: "Seek the LORD while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near."

Well, he's pretty far off for an awful lot of people today, right? They don't know what to do!

Verse 7: "Let the wicked forsake his way…" All of the things that we read in Isa. 59 they have to repent of and get out them!

"…and let him return to the LORD…" (v 7)

The Protestants have it all wrong. They say to pray this little prayer, 'Jesus, come into my heart' and if you do that you're saved, and by the way, call this number and we'll pray for you and we'll ask you for a donation!

Verse 7: "Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts…"

• See what we're dealing with?
• What kind of sin is there out there when the vast majority of people don't know God and don't know right from wrong?
• Where do they begin?

They have to come to the point of real repentance; that repentance is you are coming to God His way!

It says in Joel 2 to 'rend your heart, not your garments'; admit your sins! Look at the Ten Commandments, which tells you:

• what is wrong with you
• what is wrong with this nation
• what is wrong with the school system
• what is wrong with the government
• what is wrong with the religions

They've all left God!

God says, "…and let him return to the LORD, and He will have mercy upon him…"

IF you return and repent, THEN what do you have to do?  You have to start living God's way, keeping His commandments, doing what is right!

You can't continue any evil and have more and more evil. It's only going to be a total collapse.

"…He will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon" (v 7).

Here's the thing: Not only do we have to forsake our own thoughts, but we have to come to the Word of God to understand His thoughts!

For everybody who is new and needs to start out, the best place for you to start is in the book of Proverbs; that will tell you:

• right from wrong
• good from evil
• what you need to do
• how you have messed up your mind and your life and everything about you

And the only way that you can straighten it out is coming to God His way! So, this is the kind of repentance that God needs, that God wants. He will hear, we'll show that in a little bit.

Verse 8: "'For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor your ways My ways,' says the LORD."

But everyone wants to come to God his own way and wants God to approve it. 'I'm a good person.' What is a good person?

God says, v 9: "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts."

That's why you've got to come to the Word of God. So if you're brand new and you want to know how to get out of trouble, start with the Ten Commandments and the book of Proverbs; that will help you, that will be a start.

And in your repentance, you need to realize that the only sacrifice that is going to pay for your sins is the blood of Jesus Christ!

• no other thing is going to do it
• no other religion
• no other god
• no other philosophy

You must come to God His way!

Isa. 56—God tells you, here's the start. That's why you need the Bible [The Holy Bible In Its Original Order, A Faithful Version] You write us right now, we'll send you one free. And you also need the book, Lord, What Should I Do? That will tell you step-by-step-by-step what you shall do.

Now, when I was on Caravan to Midnight, that's what we offered. And we're going to send out this week a whole lot of Bibles and the books:

• Occult Holidays or God's Holy Days—Which?
• From a Speck of Dust to a Son of God: Why Were You Born?

The thing that people need to understand is that they've got to come to God His way!

Isaiah 56:1: "Thus says the LORD, 'Keep justice and do righteousness…'"

That means to do what is right and good and righteous according to the Word of God.

"…for My salvation is near to come…" (v 1).

Yes, it is true. IF you have that kind of repentance, God will hear!

"…and My righteousness to be revealed" (v 1).

Here's the start! Here's what you need to do! Now then, this has to do with the Sabbath Day. We have on Church at Home {churchathome.org} a six-part series concerning the Sabbath: God's Sabbath Old and New Testaments

You need to understand it, because the greatest sin and the greatest lie that the Protestants tell everyone is this: The Law has been done away! God changed—Jesus changed—the Sabbath from Sabbath to Sunday. Lies!

• the Catholics changed it
• people changed it

No man can change what God has said in order. No one!

Verse 2: "Blessed..." You want the blessing from God? Here's how to start!

Verse 2: "Blessed is the man who does this, and the son of man who lays hold on it…"—who keeps the Sabbath from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday.

• you get the Bible
• you study the Bible
• you listen to all of our messages that we have
• you go to truthofgod.org
• you go to churchathome.org
• you get the Bible
• you get our literature
• you get our books

We send them all out free. There are a lot of brethren who have given their tithes and their offerings to make it so that we can do this.

But the Sabbath is the start. What'll happen is this: If you keep the Sabbath and you study the Word of God; like I said, you go to the Proverbs and start there.

Then you go to the New Testament and you start understanding what Jesus said in the Gospels.

• What did He say?
• How are we to act?
• What are our thoughts to be?

That's all tied up in there!

"…who keeps the Sabbath from profaning it, and keeps his hand from doing any evil" (v 2).

Verse 4: "For thus says the LORD, 'To the eunuchs who keep My Sabbaths…"—that's to anyone!

But the eunuchs said, 'We don't have any family and all of that. God is saying if you:

"…keep My Sabbaths, and choose things that please Me, and take hold of My covenant; even to them will I give within My house and within My walls a place and a name better than of sons and of daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off: (vs 4-5).

In other words, you can look forward to eternal life, and the only way anyone is going to come that eternal life is through Jesus Christ! Not going to come any other way You're NOT going to find it:

• in Catholicism
• in Protestantism
• in Islam
• in Buddhism
• in Hinduism

• God's Way
• His Word
• His Truth

Now, let's look and see an example of what some of the kings did to correct the evil. We're going to look at something, and this is quite a lesson for us:

2 Kings 20—this is important because it shows several things. It talks about Hezekiah, a righteous king. He did a lot to help formulate some of the things that later became part of the Bible.

Now then, God gave him a great blessing, because an army of 180,000 men of the Assyrians came, and they were ready to come into Jerusalem.

Isaiah the prophet was with Hezekiah and they took the letter from the general of the Assyrian armies and said, 'You surrender, and we won't destroy everything.'

Hezekiah took this before God at the Temple of God and laid it before God and prayed to God a mighty prayer. God heard his prayer, and God fought the battle for him.

What happened? God destroyed the whole army that night--180,000 in the army died. BANG! GONE! The generals woke up in the morning, and it was quiet. They looked out there, and all their men were dead.

Hezekiah was really happy about that, and he was praising God. And then he came down with a very severe sickness and a great boil that was going to take his life. So, he cried out to God, and God gave him 15 years additional life. That's a righteous king!

Now then, here's a lesson for all of us who know the Truth, all of us who have had prayers answered by God. Don't do anything stupid!

I tell myself that quite often: 'Fred, don't do anything stupid.' I've done enough stupid things! You've done enough! Don't do anything stupid.

Well, Hezekiah did something very stupid out of his vanity. The ambassadors in 2-Kings 20 from Babylon came over, because they heard of the defeat of the army of the Assyrians. You know, that went everywhere. So, they came over and talked to Hezekiah, and Hezekiah got lifted up in his vanity.

What did God do? All the gold, all the silver, all the treasure that the children of Israel and children of Judah did to bring all of that to the house of God, all of that treasure that the Assyrians had taken from Egypt, God gave to Hezekiah!

So, the ambassadors came over, and Hezekiah did something very stupid and vain. He told the ambassadors all about it, and then he showed them everything.

Isaiah came and said, 'Hezekiah, what were these ambassadors doing here?' Hezekiah told Isaiah, and Isaiah said, 'What did you show them?' And he said, 'I showed them everything.'

Isaiah said, 'Because you have done this. All this wealth is going to Babylon, but not in your day.' Then Hezekiah said something very selfish: 'Well, at least I'll have peace.'

Now then, what happened? He had a son named Manasseh. Now, the reason I'm going to bring this up is because we will see that whenever people leave God, the results are going to carry on to other people and bring a lot of difficulty.

Here's Manasseh, 2-Kings 21:1: "Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and guess how long he was king? 55 years!

Here today, we can't even endure four years of Biden. Think of 55 years of Manasseh! The worst, the most evil, the most profoundly profligate king of all! Let's see what he did.

Verse 2: "And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD after the abominations of the heathen whom the LORD cast out before the children of Israel For he built up again the high places which his father Hezekiah had destroyed. And he erected altars for Baal…" (vs 2-3)—and Baal is sun-god!

If you go to church on Sunday, you are a Baal-worshiper, even though they say it's in the name of Jesus, that's a false Christ!

"…and made a grove as Ahab king of Israel did. And he worshiped all the host of heaven and served them. And he built altars in the house of the LORD of which the LORD said, 'In Jerusalem I will put My name'" (vs 3-4).—right there at the temple! Desecrated the whole thing!

Verse 5: "Then he built altars for all the host of the heavens in the two courts of the house of the LORD."

Ecumenical religion! Isn't that lovely and sweet? Let's have all religions together! What are we getting today through 'El Papa' in Rome? All the religions coming together!  What's going to happen when he dies? We will know we're closer to the end-time if the next pope does miracles!

And remember that when anyone sees a miracle, they believe. Right? But what is the thing you need to judge it by? Is it according to the Laws and Commandments of God or not? Not that there's a miracle, because Jesus said that in the last days that they would be doing great signs and wonders. That it might even deceive the elect if you're not on guard!

Let's see what happened here:

Verse 6: "And he made his son pass through the fire and observed times and used witchcraft. And he dealt with familiar spirits and wizards. He worked much wickedness in the sight of the LORD to provoke Him to anger. And he set a graven image of the grove, which he had made in the house of which the LORD had said to David and to Solomon his son, 'In this house, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, I will put My name forever'" (vs 6-7).

But what did he tell Solomon? Now Solomon was another case! God appeared to him twice. He was pleased with building the temple that Solomon did. He was pleased with the prayer that Solomon did in the dedication.

Then God told him that 'IF you turn from Me, and IF the children of Israel turn from Me, I will scrape this temple off the face of the earth!'

Did he do that when they sinned? Yes, he did! And Manasseh was one of the leading figures leading up to that. So, there we have it.

Verse 8: "And I will not again make the feet of Israel wander any more out of the land which I gave their fathers; only if they will observe to do according to all that I have commanded them, and according to all the law that My servant Moses commanded them."

See, there is the proposition, IF you do what is commanded. So God said:

This is a promise right down through time—not only to the children of Israel, but all of those in the Church of God and anybody in the world—that if you come to God in true repentance and keep His commandments, He will honor that.

Verse 9: "But they did not hearken. And Manasseh seduced them to do more evil than the nations ever did whom the LORD destroyed before the children of Israel."

Worse! Isn't that about where we're coming now? Look at all the problems we have; look at all the problems in the world. Same thing!

Verse 12: "Therefore, thus says the LORD God of Israel, 'Behold, I am bringing evil upon Jerusalem and Judah, so that whoever hears of it both his ears shall tingle. And I will stretch over Jerusalem the line of Samaria and the measuring line of the house of Ahab. And I will wipe Jerusalem as a dish is wiped, wiping and turning it upside down'" (vs 12-13). That's what he did!

Now, the long and short of this is that God sent the king of Assyria, who at that time controlled Babylon, and he took Manasseh captive, and took him to Babylon, and put him in prison.

Guess what? As evil as he was… I bring this out from this point of view, that if someone really repents of the evil that they have done, God will honor it. So he repented! What happened? The king of Assyria took him out of prison and put him back in Jerusalem as a vassal king,

He tore down all the idols, cleaned everything up around the temple the best that he could do. And then we come to the cleanup of that.

2-Chron. 34—let's see what that was. How fantastic it was! We come to the King Josiah. Now, King Josiah also started out as a very young man, and then Josiah started cleaning out the temple.

Then Josiah started tearing down all the idols of Manasseh that he didn't take down, and cleaning up the whole temple area, and Hilkiah the high priest went in, and they found the Book of the Law.

Can you imagine that in the Temple of God in Jerusalem, that they couldn't find the Law, because it was buried under all of everything that they put in there with all the false worship? So, they found it, and Hilkiah brought it and read it to Josiah, and Josiah repented!

Josiah said, 'Go to Huldah the prophetess and find out what God says.' So, the word came back saying that if you do what is right, 'I won't bring destruction upon Jerusalem.' So then Hezekiah made the promise in 2-Chron. 34.

He cleaned up everything. He made the promise. Now this is what would have to happen. Now, for anything to really change in America, here is the pattern of what has to be done by the president. I don't know if it can be done. Everyone would scream to high heaven that this is against democracy, and this is against the Constitution, etc.

Well, they've already destroyed the Constitution; that's of no value with the way it's being run today. But here's what he would have to do, just like Josiah.

2-Chronicles 34:29: "And the king sent and gathered together all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem. And the king went up into the house of the LORD, and all the men of Judah, and the people of Jerusalem, and the priests, and the Levites, and all the people from the great to the small. And he read in their ears all the words of the Book of the Covenant that was found in the house of the LORD" (vs 29-30).

Ten commandments, the laws, the things that should be done. Now, I doubt that will happen, but something similar to it would have to happen in order for there to be a great reprieve in America.

Now, if Donald Trump gets in, you wait and see the deep state is going to be against him like he is the enemy #1 in the whole world.

But here the king, and here's what he did: Verse 31[transcriber's correction]: "And the king stood in his place and made a covenant before the LORD to walk after the LORD and to keep His commandments and His testimonies and His statutes with all his heart and with all his soul, to perform the words of the covenant, which are written in this book."

Then he made all of the leaders swear to do the same thing. Now, can you imagine what that would be like if that would happen in Washington, D.C. or in London?

But I doubt if King Charles has enough gumption and knowledge of the Truth to do it for the Brits.

So, what this shows is that God will honor repentance even in the most desperate times:

• if it is true
• if it's from the heart
• if people come to Him the way He says

That's important. Have to return to God!

Now, let's look at Amos 4, because that's very instructive, as well. God shows here in Amos 4…

I won't read the whole chapter, but it says that even if all the punishment God brought upon them, and He brought it on them in waves and in different ways. He did that so that they would return to Him!

Amos 4:6: "'…yet, [#1]you have not returned to Me,' says the LORD."

See, the thing is this. Everyone expects God to come to them, but God expects the sinners to repent and come to Him.

Then God tells Amos about what happened with more plagues and then He says:

Verse 8: "'…yet, [#2]you have not returned to Me,' says the LORD."

He struck them with blasting and mildew and so forth:

Verse 9: "'…yet, [#3]you have not returned to Me,' says the LORD."

Then God said, v 10: "'I have sent the plague among you after the manner of Egypt; I have slain your young men with the sword, and have taken away your horses. And I have made the stench of your camps to come up into your nostrils; yet, [#4]you have not returned to Me,' says the LORD. 'I have overthrown some among you as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah…'" (vs 10-11). Quite a destruction!

"'…yet, [#5]you have not returned to Me,' says the LORD" (v 11).

• What's going to happen if they don't return to God?
• What's going to happen to this nation?

Well, that's another whole message in itself, but it's going to be very disastrous and very ugly!

Verse 12: "Therefore…"—because God is not done with it!

If you think the evil that's come upon us is bad, just wait and see what happens. Look, there were five times he said, "…yet, you have not returned to Me,' says the LORD."

• How many times does God have to punish us?
• How many times does God have to tell us what He's going to do and we suffer the consequences of it?
• What are we going to do when the dollar collapses?
• What are we going to do with all the immigrants that are here?
• What are we going to do with all the drugs that are here?
• What are we going to do with all of the traitors who have turned their back on God to destroy this nation?
• How many are going to return to God to do His way?

If not, He says this, v 12: "Therefore, I will do this to you, O Israel; and because I will do this to you, prepare to meet your God, O Israel!'"

Now, that's quite a statement! No one is going to defy God and get away with it. Now, we find in Amos 5 that He gives an alternative. If you don't like what is said up here in v 12, come down here to:

Amos 5:4: "For thus says the LORD to the house of Israel, [#1] Seek Me, and you shall live.'"

That's a real deep repentance, seeking God! He says,

Verse 5: "But do not seek Bethel…"—come to me!

Verse 6: "[#2]Seek the LORD and you shall live..."

All of these other things you've got to cast aside and forget. All of the things that you think that you were told if you were in a Sunday-keeping church, you don't need to pay any attention to.

Listen, because we are the descendants of the children of Israel, and that's why all of these things have come upon us.

He says again in v 8: "[#3]Seek Him Who created the Pleiades and Orion…"—Who created the whole heavens and earth!

Verse 8: "…[#4]Seek Him Who calls for the waters of the sea, and pours them out on the face of the earth—the LORD is His name." So there it is, seeking God!

• Who knows what people will do?
• Who knows how far what I've spoken here will go?
• Who knows who's going to turn from their evil?

only those who have the sense of coming back to God

• God will hear
• God will answer
• God will help

But you have to come to Him His way!

So, we see all this evil and all the troubles out there just multiplying and multiplying and multiplying! People are just wandering around like sheep without a leader.

The true Shepherd is Christ! They've got to come to Him. So let's ask for God's blessing, help, guidance and protection!

Scriptural References:

• Isaiah 57:3-8
• Isaiah 59:1-11
• Isaiah 55:6-9
• Isaiah 56:1-2, 4-5
• 2-Kings 21:1-9, 12-13
• 2 Chronicles 34:29-31
• Amos 4:6, 8-12
• Amos 5:4-6, 8

Scriptures referenced, not quoted:

• Revelation 13
• Matthew 23
• John 8
• Matthew 24
• Isaiah 60
• Joel 2
• 2-Kings 20

Also referenced:

Books {truthofGod.org}:

• Lord, What Should I Do?
• Occult Holidays or God's Holy Days—Which?
• From a Speck of Dust to a Son of God: Why Were You Born?

Church at Home{churchathome.org}God's Sabbath Old and New Testaments

FRC:bo/po
Transcribed: 5/20/24

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