Second Coming during Feast of Tabernacles?

Q. Can we expect Jesus’ Second coming to occur on the first day of the feast of Tabernacles?

A. I believe that the prophetic scenario will play out this way. We are approaching the 6000^th year from creation. When the year 6001 occurs, it begins the last 1000 years of history, of time as we know it. This time period is called “the Day of the Lord”, “the Last day”, “the Sabbath of God” “the Millennium” and other terms. This last 1000 years begins on Yom Teruah or as it is known today as Rosh Ha Shannah which means “the head of the year”. Yom Teruah is the biblical name for this day (Num 29). It is also known as “the day no man knows” because this is the only festival that occurs on a new moon and you can’t start a month without sighting the new moon first so “no man knows” when a month starts until the new moon is sighted.

This festival has many themes attached to it but the four main ones are resurrection, the coronation of the Messiah, judgment and the wedding of the Messiah. This is the day the Yeshua will resurrect the bodies of the departed believers and those who are alive physically at the time will be caught up with them, called the Natzal (1 Thes 4.13-18) and be taken to Heaven for 7 years, or wedding week called a “shavuah.” 10 days later is Yom Kippur or the Day of Atonement. This is the day the Birth-pains of the Messiah will begin, or the Tribulation period. The countdown of 2,520 days, a time, begins on this Yom Kippur, year 6001 from creation. The exact halfway point of the tribulation will be Nisan 10. This is the day Yeshua rode into Jerusalem and presented Himself as Messiah. This will also be the day the false Messiah will go into the Temple of God and declare Himself “Jesus” the Messiah as well. This will begin the last 1260 days, or a “time, times and half a time” leading up to another Yom Kippur. So the Tribulation will begin on a Yom Kippur.

The halfway point of the Tribulation will be Nisan 10 and the last day will be a Yom Kippur. It is this Yom Kippur (Matt 24.29-31) that ends the 7 year Tribulation that I believe Yeshua will return to Jerusalem and destroy the False Messiah, the false Prophet and their followers (Rev 19). In the Temple service there were two goats on Yom Kippur. One was sacrificed “to the Lord” but the other was called “Azazel” which means “to the wilderness” and it is killed and it is this goat that is symbolic of the False Messiah. Yeshua will return to the city on Yom Kippur. For the next 5 days there will a judgment of those who survived the Tribulation. Some will be believers and some will not. This judgment is discussed in many places in the Scripture but Matt. 25 is a good start. After these 5 days we come up to the Feast of Sukkot, or Tabernacles, and by this time there are no unbelievers who have survived the Tribulation and the judgment of the sheep and goats.

These believers along, with those who returned from Heaven with Yeshua, will enter the Messianic Kingdom for the balance of the 1000 years (Rev 20). At the end of the 1000 years Satan will be released from his bonds and instigate another rebellion with many of those born from the Tribulation survivors and their descendants. This will quickly be put out and then there is another resurrection. Those that have died as believers after year 6001 will be resurrected as a part of the first resurrection. The first resurrection has already started, beginning with Yeshua (first phase) and the second phase will bethose resurrected after Him in the first century (Matt 27.52-53). The third phase happened on Yom Teruah year 6001 with the Natzal or catching away of the believers before the Tribulation began and the final phase will be these believers. The second resurrection will involve all unbelievers of all time.

These unbelievers will stand before the Great white Throne of God and be condemned forever in the Lake of Fire. After this we enter what is called “the Olam Haba” or the world to come and there isn’t a lot of Scripture about this age but whatever it is the Scripture says we can’t even imagine what it will be like, so I won’t speculate. Understanding the biblical festivals is a must if you are going to understand biblical prophecy. The spring festivals are Passover, Unleavened Bread, First Fruits and Shavuot. The literal fulfillment of these festivals were accomplished on the very day they were celebrated by Yeshua in His first coming. The fall festivals are Yom Teruah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot and there is no reason to believe that Yeshua will not fulfill these literally, on the day they are celebrated as well. Of course these are my observations, beliefs and opinions and I submit them for you to consider. Thanks for the question.

Great Tribulation to Start in 3-10 Years?

Bill Riley

Olive Tree Ministries
ot.waxahachie@yahoo.com

From time to time people will ask questions about Bible prophecy. Here are a few grouped together on a variety of subjects that will be discussed over the next few weeks.

Q: How important is a Jerusalem Temple to Bible prophecy?

A: There are several things to understand if you are going to have a decent handle on understanding prophecy. You must know the Torah and the Prophets, including the Biblical Festivals and the time of year they are appointed, the Two Calendars used in Scripture and other things. If you don’t know these things you will misunderstand prophecy. There are three things to watch specifically. One needs to watch the Land of Israel, Jerusalem and the Temple Mount. The Scriptures have specific things to say about these areas and how it relates to prophecy, including the altar site, the Red Heifer and so on. The altar will be put up first before a temple for instance. A temple building is not required to begin services at the altar, so one needs to know the Scriptures on what is required for the altar to be put up more than watching for a temple building. Once the the altar site has been determined, a seven day cleansing prior to its usage will begin and it is quite possible that before the seven year birth pains (Great Tribulation) begin, believers will actually see the altar site, the priests and vessels undergo the ritual cleansing process prescribed in Scripture before the Natzal (rapture) of the truth believers occurs on Rosh Ha Shanah of the year 6,001 from the creation. There is no question that there will be a temple, but there are other things that will happen first in relation to the temple that we need to watch first. If you want more information, send in another question and we can deal with it more in detail.

Q: Do you have an idea about how much time is left before the Tribulation?

A: I have an estimation based on the genealogies listed in Scripture, current events, history and other sources and the best I can say is we are three to 10 years away from the Tribulation. This is just an estimation and given with an open mind to what God is doing. But we are very close. I believe when you see some significant movement on re-establishing services on the Temple Mount, you better get ready, especially by the following Rosh Ha Shanah. This will be preceded by a kosher red heifer and the cleansing of the priests and the actual site on the Temple Mount.

Q: I’ve heard that the Antichrist will be Jewish. Is this true?

A: I believe he will be Jewish and so did many rabbis going back to before the first century. This is not a new subject. There is a lot of information on this subject. If you go to the Jewish Encyclopedia (jewishencyclopedia.com) on our Web site, otwaxahachie.net, and type “antichrist,” there is more information on him there than you will find in most places. That subject is discussed there and by the estimation of some will come from the tribe of Dan. Some of the reasons are a serpent was the symbol for the tribe based on Gen. 49:16-17; Dan led the people into idolatry by replacing the priesthood, the festivals and the services with man-made ones which is exactly what Christianity and other religions have done. The spirit of the false messiah (antichrist) is to do away with the Torah and to persecute those who believe in Yeshua and keep the commandments (Rev. 12:17). There have been many movies on the false messiah over the years like the Omen in the 1970s and its recent remake but there is little biblical fact in these movies so don’t base your idea of who the false messiah

Q. Have you heard of the “Two House” theory in Messianic Judaism?

A. Yes and there are some previous articles about it and how it has some real problems but let me go over 4 fatal flaws of this theory again. This theory is built on the false premise that the 10 Northern Tribes “lost” their identity. The Scriptures and history say otherwise but that doesn’t stop those who don’t want to listen. This premise will be found in the teachings of Mormonism, British Israelites, Aryanism and several other variations and is now being seen among Messianics as the “Ephraimite” or “Two House” theories. The second flaw say’s that remnants of the lost tribes are among the Gentiles. And if you have a desire for Israel and Torah Observance you are really part of a lost tribe of Israel. But, God’s word says that the salvation is for all nations and Gentiles should be coming to the Messiah and the Torah. The prophets predicted they would, but that doesn’t mean one is Jewish. The third flaw is only when realizes they are descended from one of the “lost” tribes can the prophecies about union between Israel and Judah be fulfilled. The truth is, this union will come about as an event distinct from the salvation of the nations. The last flaw is you can’t prove you are descended from one of the lost tribes anyway because there are no genealogies that go back to the first century anymore. There some physical tests that can reveal some things and names can be indicators but very few people could prove it, even if your last name was Bernstein or Cohen. The main point is it really doesn’t matter. God saves among the Jews and the gentiles and the important thing is to in the Body of Messiah, part of the “called out one’s” or Kahal/ekklesia of God. Believe me, God doesn’t care about pedigree’s or birth certificates because He already knows.

Q. Do you believe in the doctrine of the Trinity?

A. The simple answer is “yes” and I will try to explain this in a way that can be of some help, but I don’t believe anyone can adequately explain this concept. God is too big for us to figure out and there are some things we just need to accept. However, that doesn’t mean that God hasn’t revealed certain aspects about Himself in the Scriptures. In Isaiah 48.16 it says “Come near to Me, listen to this: from the first I have not spoken in secret, from the time it took place, I was there. And now the Lord God (the Father) has sent Me (the Son) and His Spirit (Ruach Ha Kodesh or Holy Spirit).” I will use this verse as a basis for what I am going to say along with Rom. 8.16 with the phrase “the Spirit Himself”, Acts 5.3 “ why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit”, and 1Tim 4.1 “the Spirit explicitly says”. I don’t think anyone has a problem with the Father being God, some have a problem with Yeshua but he is equal to God and was considered so by the writers of the Gospels and epistles. So, I’ll concentrate on the Holy Spirit. The above verses clearly make the RHK (Holy Spirit) part of the Godhead, equal to the Father and the Son. He is referred to as “Himself” in Romans and can “lie to” the RHK in Acts and He “speaks” in Timothy. These terms are not used for a “force” or “wind” or inanimate substance. Many Scriptures say the same thing. I don’t profess to be an expert in all this but I will try to explain this. God is “one” and the Hebrew word used is “echad” which can mean a plural unity. The same word used for a husband and wife (2 people) being “one” (echad). So, God is one being with 3 simultaneous ways of existing called “hypostasis” or the hypostatic union. This word is better than the Latin “persona” which gives off a wrong concept. It’s like the Son and the Spirit are localized concentrations of who God is. Like starlight through a telescope (from the Greek “telos”) so we can see it. It’s the same light we see in time and space. God is spirit and personal. The concentrations or extensions are distinct, personal expressions or personalities yet are one being.