Interpreting Biblical Prophesy

Shall the New Jerusalem actually fall from the sky and supplant the old? Shall creatures appearing to be giant locusts with long hair actually afflict humanity? Are Biblical prophecies actually being fulfilled right now and we don't recognize it? Can these questions be answered if we learn from those prophecies that have already been fulfilled? Prophecies are no less than our Elohim's Word communicated to His prophets. In some cases this is verbal communication, such as with Isaiah, or this communication may take the form of a vision, such as with John. In either case, the message is colored by the recipient's cultural and social background. As most people already know, a message consists of not only what is said, but also in what context something is said. In the case of prophetic visions, the symbolism involved may easily escape the comprehension of the modern reader, whose own cultural and social background is definitely different from that of the recipient who had it written down. Recognizing these facts, some authors have produced some amazing hypotheses as to what the Biblical prophets actually saw in their visions. Did Ezekiel actually see aliens from outer space? Was that a fiery chariot or a space craft that took him away? What did he actually see when he described "wheels within wheels"? Was John's locusts actually high-tech soldiers in body armor, environment suits, and highly advanced weaponry? Is the "mark of the beast" really a bar-code tattoo or an implanted micro-chip? ("666" is NOT his mark, it is his number!) All too often, readers will arbitrarily accept or reject these hypotheses without investigating either the prophecy itself or the evidence and logic advanced by the author! Of course all too often the author's "evidence" is something that cannot be independently verified! That leaves the reader with the only options of investigating that which can be verified and using the Ruach HaKodesh as a guide and

informant on that which cannot. Since the prophet's culture and social background play a part in his perception of the prophecy he received, the researcher needs to learn everything possible about them. As an example, one might wonder why the Bible even bothers to mention that Gideon was left-handed. So what? In that place and time, people who were left-handed were considered unclean! One normally used their right hand to eat with and their left hand to clean themselves after using the toilet. Lefthanded people used their left hands to do both. Therefore, left-handed people were disgustingly unclean! Thus the Bible was making the point that our Elohim used someone considered unclean to save His people! Much that modern readers consider mere details in scripture are actually of some importance. Proverbs' admonition that the husband should always be satisfied with his wife's breasts has been changed in some modern versions of the Bible to that the husband should always be satisfied with his wife's charms. First of all, "charms" are instruments of magick used to control others. Next of all, other parts of a woman's anatomy may be sexually appealing to some but were not considered appropriate objects of desire. The buttocks were considered to be both unclean and a lure to commit sodomy (anal intercourse), which is expressly forbidden by our Elohim! So this "mere detail" instructed the reader as to that which is acceptable to Elohim in a husband's and wife's sexual conduct. So called "details" may actually contain the clues that the researcher needs to solve some of the Bible's riddles! So how can we apply this to the interpretation of prophecy? Isaiah prophesied to Ahaz, King of Judah, that his enemies Israel and Syria would soon be destroyed. Ahaz had difficulty in believing that so powerful of kingdoms could be so quickly and completely eliminated. So Isaiah assured him that the living Elohim Himself would guarantee it! Isaiah 7:14-16 reads: "Therefore Yahu'ah Himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son and shall call his name 'Immanuel'. Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil and choose the good. For before the child shall know to refuse the evil and know the good, the land that thou abhors shall be forsaken of both her kings." This prophecy is fulfilled as recorded in Isaiah 8:1-4: "Moreover, Yahu'ah said unto me, 'Take a great scroll and write in it with a man's pen concerning Mahershalalhashbaz.' And I took with me faithful witnesses to record, Uriah the priest and Zechariah, the son of Jeberechiah. And I went to the prophetess and she conceived, and bore a son. Then said Yahu'ah to me, 'Call his name "Mahershalalhashbaz." For before the child shall have knowledge to cry, your father and your mother and the riches of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria shall be taken away before the king of Assyria.'" And indeed, the child Immanuel witnessed the armies of Assyria quickly overwhelming Ahaz's enemies like a flood (Isaiah 8:8), leaving Judah alone independent in the midst of the Assyrian Empire. This prophecy was fulfilled as witnessed and attested to by Uriah and Zechariah. What about the different names given to the child? Different culture, place, and time answer that question. In the ancient occident a person would have many names. Some of these would describe some attribute or achievement of that person and would have nothing at all to do with his or her parentage nor necessarily be used except on certain occasions. Just as Yahu'ah is also called "Sabaoth" ("Lord of Hosts") and "Elyon" ("Most High"), so would an ordinary person have additional names (cognomen) attached to, or used instead of, his or her forename or surname. Thus we have Jacob named "Israel" and Simon called "Peter", etc. Note that Isaiah's prophecy states that the mother would call the child "Immanuel" and that Yahu'ah instructs Isaiah to call the child

"Mahershalalhashbaz". Each name indicated the significance of that child to the person naming him. The Roman emperors took this practice to its logical extreme and literally had a dozen or more names (most of which had to do with their attributes or achievements). Yet the emperors (like the common people) were usually known by only one name, and that could be their forename, surname, or cognomen.

Visions offer a far more formidable challenge to the interpreter. Even were we aware of the identity and significance of all of the ancient symbols, the ancients themselves had difficulty discerning the meanings of visions. None of the seers nor any of wise men in the Babylonian Empire could interpret Nebuchadnezzar's dream. Nor could Daniel interpret Nebuchadnezzar's dream. Daniel had to rely upon the Ruach HaKodesh! John's visions openly combine both literal and symbolic imagery, but the modern reader is often at a loss to discern which is which! As a result, modern authors and religious leaders widely disagree on which of John's visions are symbolic. So as with Daniel's case, the Ruach HaKodesh must be the answer! That is, at least until events overtake prophecy! But then, if we are unclear as to a prophecy's correct interpretation, how will we know when it has been fulfilled? Could AIDS be the plague that afflicts one-third of humanity during the tribulation? In Africa alone, over one-third of the population is infected! It spreads unabated throughout the world. If AIDS is indeed this Biblical plague, then at what point in the tribulation are we? (Those awaiting rapture before the tribulation shall be disappointed - we shall rapture upward as our Adonay Yah Shua HaMashiach descends to the ground at the end of the tribulation!) What other elements of John's prophecy are already being fulfilled? Micro-chips to be implanted under the skin have already been developed that can contain all of one's criminal, educational, financial, and medical history, and can be located by using the GPS. Some are already in use in America and Europe. Would they be implanted in infants so the infants can be located if stolen and so proper medical attention can be given to them in an emergency? Might adults also be enticed by their convenience and utility to have these chips implanted in themselves? Instead of carrying cash or a credit or debit card, one would only need have the chip that was implanted in them scanned to make a purchase or get a loan. Might their implantation become mandatory in the near future? If the chip was absent, you couldn't buy anything! And if all of one's business licenses could only be on the chip as well, if you didn't have a chip, you couldn't legally sell anything either! Is this the "mark" of the beast? Perhaps only time, or the Ruach HaKodesh, will tell!

As the reader may have already surmised, interpreting Biblical prophecy takes a great deal of inspiration, knowledge, and research. It is imperative that the Ruach HaKodesh be the researcher's guide. Both Daniel and John were told that some things were not to be revealed until their time. If Yahu'ah doesn't want something to be revealed no amount of research will reveal it! You will only be wasting your valuable time in a fruitless endeavor. If you only want to publish a flakey book to make some cash, little research is needed - just come up with a semi-plausible hypothesis and have it published!

But if you are serious, research the culture and social standing of the prophet, and thoroughly research the prophecy itself in its original language (NOT Greek, ALL of the oldest Biblical manuscripts were written in Aramaic or Hebrew!). And anyone who thinks that the Bible has not been altered significantly since its creation need only visit their local Christian book store to be disabused of that notion. In the last century eleven different versions have been produced in America and Europe alone! And as has already been demonstrated, the "details" altered in these new versions are significant. Ancient scrolls found in desert caves in the Middle East have revealed multiple versions of many of the books of the Bible. One version of the book of Daniel was found that was a third larger than the modern version. The Apostle John had these alterations in mind when he wrote his warning at the end of Revelation not to add or subtract anything from that prophecy! Indeed, not only have the books themselves been altered, but which books are included in the Bible itself have changed over the centuries (Besides the Apocrypha, books like Enoch and the Temple Scroll have also been included and removed.). All of these alterations have been the results of cultural bias, mistranslation, political and social correctness, and religious convention. While the Bible we see today still contains the infallible Word of Elohim, it is not all of Elohim's Word, nor is all of it Elohim's Word. So by all means seek the counsel of the Ruach HaKodesh!

Hallelu Yah Veh Sabaoth! Hallelu Yah Shua HaMashiach! Hallelu Ruach HaKodesh! Hallelu Yah!