Love Israel

Narrator: Shalom and welcome to Ve-ahavta Yisrael, a Hebrew phrase which means "You shall love Israel." We hope you'll stay with us for the next 30 minutes as our teacher, Dr. Baruch, shares his expository teaching from the Bible.

Dr. Baruch is the senior lecturer at the Zera Avraham Institute based in Israel. Although all courses are taught in Hebrew at the institute, Dr. Baruch is pleased to share this weekly address in English. To find out more about our work in Israel, please visit us on the web at loveisrael.org. That's one word, loveisrael.org. Now, let's join Dr. Baruch with today's lesson.

Dr. Baruch Korman: Biblically speaking, we see in Matthew chapter 24 and verse 21 that there's going to be great tribulation. This should not be confused with a similar term that appears in Revelation chapter 7 and verse 14 because there it has the definite article: the word "the." And it's speaking about something that is specific, something that is unique, something that is different.

When we look at Matthew chapter 24 and verse 21, that time of great tribulation is what Israel is going to go through. But when we look at Revelation chapter 7 and verse 14, this is speaking about something that the church is going to go through. So with that said, take your Bible and look with me to Revelation chapter 6.

We want to look at a few verses in the sixth chapter. And you might recall that in our first session, I mentioned this fifth seal. Because when you turn there and look with me to verse nine, Revelation chapter 6 and verse 9, where it says, "And when he opened up the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar..." Now, the altar is a place of sacrifice. And we're speaking about a group of people who sacrificed their lives.

And again, we need to be reminded what caused them to do so. Why were they put to death? Well, the scripture is going to tell us. It says that they saw underneath the altar the souls of those who were caused to be slain. They just didn't die, but there was a reason for their death. And the scripture tells us what that is: on account of the word of God. And not just the word of God, but also on account of the testimony that they were holding.

The word of God impacted their life in order that they had a God-pleasing testimony based upon obedience to the word of God, and this led them to be put to death. So it says here as we continue on, look at verse 10: "And they cried out in a great voice saying, 'Until when, oh Lord?'" And this is a word that speaks about Him being sovereign. "Until when, oh Lord, the Holy One and the True One, until You do something? Until You judge and vindicate?"

Now, that word "vindicate," or in your translation, "avenge," it's very important that we see what that is. It is comprised of two Greek words. The first word is a prefix; it means to bring out. The primary word is a word for righteousness. So we need to see something. It's not just talking about retribution or avenging, but when we look at that biblical word, there's a purpose to this vengeance.

And that is to bring out righteousness, to change a situation from where there is unrighteousness. What's unrighteous? Those who are loyal to the word of God are being put to death. And God is going to move in order to bring judgment for the purpose of bringing out righteousness. And notice what it says: "to avenge our blood." And who are the ones who are putting to death those who are faithful to the word of God, who have a God-pleasing testimony?

Well, notice what it says at the end of verse 10: "from the ones who dwell upon the earth." Now, we need to be careful because if you read carefully the book of Revelation, in this book of Revelation, there are two groups of people mentioned. The first one is we just encountered: "those who dwell upon the earth." The second group are "those who dwell in heaven."

And hear this: it has nothing to do with where they are physically located. Both groups are dwelling in the earth. But these two different terms—remember what they are: "those who dwell upon the earth" and "those who dwell in heaven." Now, what do we know? Well, if you read carefully, those who dwell upon the earth, their names are not written in the Lamb's Book of Life. Those who dwell upon the earth, they belong to this world.

And they also are faithful or loyal to the Antichrist's empire. And they are going to be the ones who take the mark of the beast, and they are going to make an image to that beast, and they're going to worship that empire. They are going to demonstrate an allegiance to the Antichrist empire. But those who dwell upon the heavens or dwell in the heavens, they are those who are kingdom-bound. Those are believers.

They will not take the Lamb's or they will not take the mark of the beast. Their names are indeed written in the Lamb's Book of Life. And what does the scripture say? Look again. Those who were put to death, who lived sacrificially, they're asking God, "Until when will You judge and You avenge our blood?" Who's putting them to death? Those who are part of the Antichrist empire.

Look at verse 11: "And it was given to each one of them a white robe. And it was said to them that they should rest a little bit longer until the full number of their fellow servants and their brethren who were about to be killed as they were." So when we look here, we see clearly these are believers, are they not? And they're being put to death for their commitment to the word of God. And who's putting them to death? Those who dwell upon the earth, those who are in allegiance with the Antichrist empire.

Now, what are we talking about in this session? We're talking about what is mentioned in Revelation chapter 7, verse 14, what's known as "the Great Tribulation." And here's what most people—if you, for example, just put on your tablet or your computer or in your phone, "What is the Great Tribulation?" The problem is people will answer that based upon human logic rather than the word of God.

Now, what people will tell you is this: the Great Tribulation is in the second half of these last seven years, and it's connected to the wrath of God. This is false. It has nothing to do with the wrath of God. Everyone teaches that, but it's not correct. Why? Well, we are in—we just read about the fifth seal. Those who are being put to death because of their commitment to the word of God and the testimony that is connected to the word of God.

And they're praying for vengeance. They want God to move and pour out His judgment upon those who dwell on the earth. And what does the scripture tell us? Well, when we look, we're going to see in chapter 7 that this is all happening. And remember what we learned in our first session: these seals have nothing to do with God's wrath.

Now, it is true the sixth seal announces the wrath of the Lamb, but as we're going to find, it does not come. How do we know that? Well, let's go now to chapter 7, Revelation chapter 7. When we look at this seventh chapter, we see in the sixth seal the wrath of God is announced, called the wrath of the Lamb, and people see that it's coming soon.

They're saying to one another, "Let's hide in the caves. Let's hide underneath the rocks because the wrath of the Lamb is imminent." But it has not happened. And when you go to chapter 7—look there with me, Revelation chapter 7—notice what it says: "And after these things I looked, and four angels..." Your Bible will say "standing," but it's in that perfect tense. It has been standing, standing now, and will in the future continue to stand.

What it tells us is that this has an eternal connection. This is something that God has spoken about and will take place. So there's these four angels, having stood, are standing and will stand in the four corners of the earth. And what are they doing? They are holding the four winds of the earth. Now, we need to understand that numbers are important in the Bible, and the number four speaks about a global truth.

Meaning when the number four appears in the Bible, we're talking about the world in its entirety. What is getting ready to happen? Well, remember the sixth seal? God's wrath is being proclaimed, and God's wrath is going to be poured out upon the earth. But something's going to change that, and we see exactly what that is.

Keep reading. It says here in order—middle of verse 1: "In order that the wind should not blow upon the earth, nor upon the sea, nor at any tree..." Until what? Look at verse 2: "And I saw another angel rising up..." It says here, rising up—your Bible says "from the east"; it doesn't say that. It says "from the rising of the sun." Now, why is that important? That's in the east; we all know that the sun rises in the east.

But literally it says "from the rising of the sun." And then the scripture goes on to say, "having the seal of the living God." So God is going to do something. God is going to, before the wrath of God happens, He is going to do something. He is going to send an angel in order to stop the wrath of the Lamb, to delay it until a very important event happens.

And what is that? That this 144,000 that we talked about in chapter 7, until they are sealed by the living God. Keep reading. "And a loud voice cried out to the four angels..." These are these angels who's going to pour out God's wrath. "...in order that they shall not harm the earth or the sea, saying, 'Do not harm the earth, nor the sea, nor the trees until which the servants of our God are sealed upon their foreheads.'"

So we see that the wrath of God is delayed. It has not happened until first there is that sealing of the 144,000—12,000 from each of the 12 tribes of Israel. And remember, that number 12 relates to the kingdom of God. So the wrath of God has been delayed. It has not happened because God is going to move with that remnant of Israel, that 144,000 who are going to be persecuted.

Remember what we talked about: the worst time of persecution for Israel is not in Israel's history, but it's in the future in the last days. That's what Messiah spoke about in Matthew 24 and verse 21, where it speaks about those in Judea. Now, let's just pause for a moment and have a proper understanding of Matthew 24. It's such an important chapter.

It deals with the end times. And remember how it begins. We see that the disciples, they speak to Messiah about the beautiful buildings on the Temple Mount. Now, these buildings, there's two types. There is the temple itself, but there is also additional buildings that house the Sanhedrin. Now, the temple is for worship; the Sanhedrin is for the administrating of the commandments of God. It is for justice; it is to ensure that the people of Israel behave according to the word of God.

And what did they say? They spoke about these beautiful buildings. And remember what Messiah says? He says, "I tell you the truth, there will not be left one stone upon another that's not cast down." Now, what was He prophesying about? He was prophesying about what would happen 40 years later in 70 AD with the destruction of the second temple. Let me ask a question: was He right? Perfectly right. 40 years later, just as He said, Jerusalem and the temple area were destroyed by the Romans.

Now, when we go into the next verse, verse 3 of Matthew 24, the disciples find Him, but there's a change. No longer is He by the temple, but rather He is now on the Mount of Olives. And they come and they ask Him three questions. First question: "When will these things be?" Second question: "What is the sign of Your coming?" And the third question is: "What will bring about the end or the conclusion of this age?"

So they ask three questions, and Messiah begins to speak. Now, the message is this: there is a change. Whenever there's a difference in location, it teaches us biblically that there's a change in the subject. He's no longer talking about what took place in 70 AD. He's speaking about the end times. How do we know that? What was their question? "What will be the sign of Your coming?"

And He began to speak, and He gave some signs: what's known as "birth pains." And birth pains have a purpose: they bring about a change. And He says that there's going to be wars, rumors of war. And then He says something. He says "nation," but that word "nation" is where we get the English word "ethnic." There's going to be ethnic conflicts.

And then He says "kingdom will rise against kingdom." There will be earthquakes and famines and pestilence. And He says, "Don't let anyone deceive you because these are just the beginning of the end-time signs." And then He goes on and He speaks about how those who are His disciples are going to be persecuted. And it says "the enemies of a man"—that's true for a woman as well—"will be the members of her family." Families are going to be divided. Why? Because of the gospel.

And we're going to see that there's going to be father rising up against son, son against father, mother against daughter-in-law, daughter-in-law against mother. There's going to be this great, great division in families over what? Over the gospel. And He says that you are going to be persecuted. And what does He call the church to do?

Well, let me give you a verse, Matthew 24, verse 13, where it says, "Those who persevere to the end will be saved." Most people misinterpret that verse. It does not mean that it's only for those who persevere that you will be saved. That's not what it's saying. When He says, "Those who persevere to the end will be saved," He's telling us something: it is a statement of encouragement.

He wants us to know that in the end, there is going to be victory. So He's saying, "Realize, persevere, endure, overcome, because in the end, there's going to be victory." That salvation is a word of victory. And not just a temporal victory, but an eternal victory. So there's good news. And then what does He say? You move on to the next verse, verse 24.

He says it's necessary that this gospel of the kingdom—did you hear this? This gospel of the kingdom, meaning the good news. And the word "gospel" is good news about redemption. And if you have been redeemed through this good news, it says the good news of the kingdom, it has a kingdom implication. And it says it's necessary for this gospel of the kingdom to be proclaimed to all nations.

Now, I'm going to ask you a question: who is going to be the proclaimer of this gospel? Well, I'll give you a verse of scripture you can read this later—we skipped over it today—but if you look at Revelation 14 and verse 6, it tells us who is going to be proclaiming that everlasting gospel. And who is that? An angel. It is not the 144,000.

Even though if you look at books on eschatology, the study of the last days, you will read over and over these 144,000 are evangelists. But the Bible never says that. The one who's going to be evangelizing the nations is an angel. He is going to be the one to do so. And if you look immediately after that, what's going to happen?

We see that there is this harvest of the church. And then after that comes the wrath of God. Now, there's a very important event. Move to the next verse, which is Matthew 24 and verse 15. This is what it says: "And when you see the abomination of desolation standing in the holy place..." What holy place? In the Holy of Holies. Not just speaking about the temple, but the Holy of Holies is where the abomination of desolation happens.

And what is it? Well, we don't have to speculate because Paul tells us exactly what it is. Let me give you a verse of scripture: make a note of this. Second Thessalonians chapter 2, verses 4 and 5. There, Paul tells us exactly what is the abomination of desolation. It is when the Antichrist, what's called the "man of sin," he goes into the Holy of Holies, not just into the temple, but specifically into the Holy of Holies where it says that this one opposes and he exalts himself above everything that is called God.

So that he sits in the Holy of Holies proclaiming that he is God. Is he? No. He is a liar. The Antichrist receives power from Satan. The Antichrist is a type of Satan incarnate. He's evil. What is his characteristic? The Bible says that this empire is a blasphemous empire. So he is going to go into the Holy of Holies, he is going to proclaim that he is God.

And what do we know? Israel—hear this—Israel's going to reject him. Why? Well, this is why we talked about this last night. In Jeremiah chapter 30 and verse 7, why Israel's going to be persecuted: because they reject the Antichrist. They do not receive him as God. And therefore, he's going to persecute them. See, Israel, they are sealed from the wrath of God, that remnant, that 144,000.

But there's going to be two-thirds of them put to death because of the Antichrist's persecution. But one-third will be changed; one-third will come to faith in that gospel. So after the abomination of desolation, when you move to verse 16 of Matthew 24, there's a change. Prior to this, when when Messiah spoke, He spoke in the second person plural, meaning "you all," referring to the church, to His disciples.

But beginning in verse 16 of Matthew 24, there's a change. No longer does He use from verse 16 until verse 32, He does not use the second person plural. He speaks about another group. He says, "Then let those who are in Judea, those who are in the land of Israel, realize something: they're going to have great tribulation." Not "the" Great Tribulation, but they are going to have great tribulation.

And who is the source of that? It's going to be the Antichrist empire. And what do we know? In the end of that time, we should expect something. You look, for example, in Matthew 24, beginning in verse 29, and we see an image of the second coming. And what is Messiah going to do when He comes a second time? Not speaking of the rapture, but the second coming at the end of Daniel's 70th week.

He is going to do three things. The Bible's very clear about this: He is going to destroy the enemies of Israel. Why? He's faithful. He is going to save a remnant of Israel, that one-third. And then what's the third and final thing that He is going to do? He is going to establish that millennial kingdom. So those are the three things that Messiah will accomplish.

Now, when we look, for example, later on in this section, it says—and your pastor taught me this—there's going to be the trumpet of God. And He's going to send out—hear this—Messiah is going to send out His angels to gather up the elect. And when we see the "elect," He's not using this as Paul does, but Christ uses it referring to Israel.

So you should be doing something. If you want to pray effectively, if you're interested in the kingdom of God, then you should be praying that God brings the people back to the land of Israel. And I have good news for you: it is happening. God is faithful to His word. This is a sign that we are approaching the end times because God is returning Israel to the land of Israel.

It's happening in our days. It is a statement of the faithfulness of God. He's getting things into order even though that the world doesn't want that. The world doesn't want the kingdom of God, but we do. And there is an order for its establishment. So Messiah is coming again at the end of Daniel's 70th week. He is going to save a remnant of Israel. He is going to destroy the enemies of Israel, and He is going to establish His kingdom.

All of that is promised by the word of God. Now, let's look at another passage. Look with me now to Revelation chapter 7, and let's go to verse 13. Revelation chapter 7 and verse 13: "And one of the elders answered saying to me, 'These ones that are made to be clothed in a white robe, who are these and from where have they come?'"

So remember something: there is a group of individuals—we read about them in Revelation 7, verses 9 and 10—they are standing before the throne of God. They are clothed with white robes, and they have, as I said earlier, a palm branch, which speaks of dependence and the grace of God. They were dependent upon God's grace. They are before the throne of God. And what's the question? Well, one of these elders are asking, "Who are they and from where have they come?"

Look now at verse 14: "And I answered him, 'Lord, you know.' And he said to me, 'These are the ones who have been made to come out...'" It does not say, as your Bible does, "which came out." That would be active; it's passive. They were made to come out of—and then we have the term—to come out of... Your Bible does not translate it properly. It says "out of great tribulation." It doesn't say that.

Your translation ignores the definite article, the word "the." It's not talking about what took place in Matthew 24 and verse 21. That's how it's said there; it ignores the definite article, the word "the." It says literally, biblically, according to Greek, they were made to come out of "the" Great Tribulation, a specific event. And what is that event known as "the Great Tribulation"? Well, we've already mentioned it.

It is found in the fifth seal, where those who were loyal to the word of God, and they had a testimony in obedience to the word of God, when they were being sacrificed because of their faith, they were being put to death. And what does the scripture say? Look again at verse 14: "And I said to him, 'Lord, you know.' And he said to me, 'These are the ones that were caused to come out of the Great Tribulation, and they have washed their robes and made them white by the blood of the Lamb.'"

Would you not agree that these are believers? And they took place, they took part of "the" Great Tribulation. Now, again, if you Google or you ask AI, "What is the Great Tribulation?" you will get a false answer, one that is not biblical. They will tell you that the Great Tribulation is in the second half of Daniel's 70th week, and it relates to God pouring out His wrath. That is false. Why? Well, remember something.

We're studying—we just read Revelation chapter 7, and what verse? Verse 14. See, what you need to know is this: the wrath of God does not begin in the book of Revelation until chapter 8, with the trumpet judgments that are mentioned in Revelation chapters 8 and 9. Also, when we get into the bowl judgments, which is indeed the wrath of God, the full wrath of God being poured out, that's found in Revelation chapter 16.

So the Great Tribulation, what is mentioned in Revelation chapter 7 and verse 14, is before the wrath of God. It has no relationship with it. This is something that's happening in the first part of Daniel's 70th week, in the first three and a half years before the abomination of desolation. That's what the scripture says. Because the wrath of God does not begin until chapters 8 and 9.

And let me go back to another thing. People I hear all the time: people speak of this great end-time revival that the 144,000 are going to bring about. False. What we see is this: once God's wrath begins, we should not expect—the Bible does not speak about a great end-times revival. Now, the reason why they want to say this and the reason why they teach this is because they believe that the 144,000—they call them evangelists—that are going to bring about this great revival.

But I would call your attention to something. When you look at the wrath of God being poured out upon this world, what we are told at the end of chapter 9, we are told here that the people did not repent, that they did not turn away from their sinfulness, they did not renounce their evil activity. And then when we get to chapter 16 and the bowl judgments in which the wrath of God is complete, again, we don't see any repentance.

We don't see turning away from their murders, their thievery, from their sinfulness or from their idolatry. Now, does that mean that no one's going to be saved after the rapture? It does not. Biblically we know something. We know that after the rapture, there's going to be, as one of the questions from last night asked, there will be that one-third of the Jewish people who are saved.

One-third. Two-thirds are going to be put to death by that Antichrist empire. But we also know something else. Let me give you the verse: Zechariah chapter 14 and verse 16. It's speaking about a group of those who belong to the nations that are going to do something: that are going to go up to Jerusalem for a purpose. What is that purpose? To make war. These are those who are hostile to the word of God and the purposes of God.

But what does the scripture say? It says that there's going to be some of them when they see the faithfulness of God, when they see—and let's be very specific, let me give you a verse: Ezekiel chapter 37 and verse 28. What does it say there? It says that there's going to be those of the nations when they see how God keeps His word to sanctify a remnant of Israel in the last days, that they are going to believe in God.

They are going to believe in the Lord, and they are going to be saved. So Zechariah 14 and verse 16 speaks about a remnant of the nations and a remnant of Israel from Zechariah earlier on, that one-third that will come to salvation. So there will be those who are saved after the rapture. But the Bible does not speak about some massive end-time revival.

What should we understand? Well, let's turn to another place in the scripture. We'll come back to Revelation in a moment, but look with me to the book of Romans and chapter 11. The book of Romans and chapter 11. Now, Paul is speaking about Israel. And he says something—and here again, most people get this wrong. There's that verse of scripture, we all know it, that "all of Israel will be saved." What does that mean?

Well, we have to have a Torah perspective. Let me give you a verse of scripture: Genesis chapter 28 and verse 3. What does it say there? Genesis chapter 28 and verse 3, we have a definition for Israel. And it says here, Genesis chapter 28 and verse 3 says that He's going to do something. He speaks about that Israel is going to be—this Bible doesn't translate it correctly at all; it has the term *Kehilah*, which is a congregation.

It says that Israel's going to be not a multitude—doesn't use that word—but a congregation of not people, but *peoples* in the plural. That's why it's so important that we study literally what the word of God says. Because the Bible says that Israel in the last days, according to God's plan and His purposes, Israel's going to become a congregation of peoples.

Why is that important? Because Paul tells us. In the end, all of Israel will be saved. What does that mean, all of Israel? Let me tell you what it doesn't mean: it does not mean all the Jewish people. When it says "Israel," you have to understand that Israel, from a kingdom perspective—and we all know this, right? What is God's purpose? What is God's desire? What do we learn from the Abrahamic Covenant? That God wants to bless who? All the families of the earth.

That includes you. And what is He doing? God is working to bring a remnant from every nation, every tribe, every people, and every language. Why? Because God so loved the world. He doesn't want anyone to be lost. We are all His creation. He created us. But if we want to be in His kingdom, we have to experience His redemption. And that redemption is very narrow; it is very specific.

It is only through the blood of the Lamb. It is only through this Lamb of God who was crucified in your place, that He was that substitute. So we see that it says in Genesis 28 and verse 3 that Israel is a congregation of peoples. Now, what does Paul say in Romans chapter 11? He says that Israel has a transgression. What was their transgression? They've rejected the gospel. They said no to Christ.

And we see that Paul calls that a transgression. But the promises and the calling and the gifts of God, the Bible says, are irrevocable—meaning He doesn't change His mind. And Israel—the Bible says that Israel transgressed; they rejected that gospel. But their rejection did not hinder God. What happens? Paul says if their transgression brought about the wealth or the richness to the world—what does that mean? That the gospel, Israel rejected it, but God took it to the nations.

And He speaks of this, this change from Israel to the nations as wealth or richness. And then He gets very specific. You all know this, where it speaks about the "fullness of the Gentiles." You're familiar with that phrase, right? Well, after the fullness of the Gentiles come in, what is God going to do? He is going to pivot, that is, He's going to turn His attention to Israel.

And what does the scripture say? It says "the Redeemer is going to come forth from Zion," meaning He has a kingdom purpose. How's He called? He's called the "Redeemer." What's He going to do? Bring about redemption in the end times for that remnant of Israel. So the Bible does not talk about some massive end-time revival that are led by the 144,000. Nowhere in the Bible does it say that.

What the Bible says is after the fullness of the Gentiles come in, meaning the fullness of the Gentiles, that remnant is saved, then God's going to turn His attention to Israel, and He will save that one-third. So when He says "then all of Israel is saved," He's speaking about Israel from a Torah perspective. What is Israel? A congregation of peoples. Meaning not just the Jewish people.

When we talk about all of Israel, we have to have a biblical perspective. All of Israel: there's going to be a Gentile component—praise God for that—and there's going to be a Jewish component. When He says "all of Israel," He means both Jew and Gentile. This was always God's plan, was it not? Not just to save the Jewish people. In fact, Isaiah says it's too small a thing for God just to redeem the Jewish people, but He's going to redeem a remnant of the nations. Why? Through His grace, through His great love, through His plan that He gave to Abraham.

Another problem that we see in the scripture is that it speaks of how Israel is going to be—the term is a *Goy Gadol*, which means a great nation. Now, many people look at that and they think when the scripture speaks about how He's going to take the kingdom away from Israel and give it to a nation that is bearing fruit—we all know that verse, right? Well, it's not speaking about a replacement of the Jewish people. It's speaking about a prophetic change.

If you're a good student of prophecy, oftentimes in the last days, when they speak of Israel, they use that term *Goy*, which is usually in one sense a Gentile. But when God speaks in the Abrahamic Covenant, He promises to change Israel, to make Israel into a great nation, a *Goy Gadol*. And we see in the New Testament, that same word is being used to speak about a change, a last-day change that he's going to make to Israel.

Now, let's wrap this up. What should we anticipate? Well, we need to let our theology be shaped by the word of God. When we speak about "the Great Tribulation," it's speaking about something that happens before God's wrath, not related to His wrath, but before His wrath begins. And the source of it is the Antichrist empire that is going to be set against those people who serve God, those people who live according to the word of God.

This is going to get a remnant of the church put to death. That's okay. Because remember what we taught: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God. So the only way that you're going to enter into the kingdom of God is through resurrection. And that's why faith in Christ is necessary. Because when we look at John chapter 11, it tells us that He is the resurrection and the life. No man comes to the Father except through Him. He is the only way.

There's no other savior, there's no other redeemer, there's no other hope other than Christ and Him crucified. And that's why the Apostle Paul, when he spoke, he says, "I determine to know nothing else except Christ and Him crucified." Why? When was He crucified? On Passover. Passover is the day of redemption. His blood brought about redemption and eternal redemption for His people. This is God's plan. This is why He sent His Son into the world.

So let's get it straight. The Bible does not speak about some massive end-time revival. People love to talk about it, but the Bible does not reveal it. The Bible says that when God's wrath begins, people are going to be committed to their rebelliousness. They're not going to repent, they're not going to turn away from sin, they're not going to stop their idolatry, but they are going to be committed to that. And it's that commitment, that refusal to repent and to turn to the grace of God that is going to do something.

It is going to show that God's wrath—and hear this—His wrath is justified. Because no one when God begins to pour out His wrath, we're not going to see people turning to Him. God's wrath being poured out, He is going to be justified in making this wrath upon the nations. Why? Because the vast majority of people—again, there's that one-third remnant of Israel, there's that passage from Zechariah 14, verse 16 that says there will be a remnant of the nations when they see the faithfulness of God to sanctify Israel—that they are going to accept the truth.

But no large end-time revival. God is justified in pouring out His wrath because the people are not wanting to repent. When you look, for example, in Revelation 18, you see that those when they see the wealth of the world—now realize this because many people, they are hardworking, they are laboring diligent for material things. Foolish. Why? Because the Bible tells us that in one hour—that can be a moment, not necessarily 60 minutes—but in one moment, the wealth of the world will come to nothing, just like that.

We don't want to be laboring for things that have no kingdom significance. We want to be different. What do we read about earlier? It says that they are going to have rest from their labor, and their deeds, their works are going to follow them into the kingdom of God. That's what we want. We want to have many good works. We want to demonstrate a faith, a trust, and obedience to the word of God.

And the scripture reveals there will be a remnant of God's people—I'm talking about the church—that are willing to lay down their life, willing to be persecuted, willing to be put to death because they have believed the truth. So let me ask you: are you truly committed to the truth of scripture? Do you understand that there's no other way?

God, if we want to be pleasing to Him, if we want to demonstrate that we are His servants, we have to be faithful to the word of God. And when we are in the last days, you can expect to do something: you can expect to suffer. But here's the good news: we will never suffer alone. He has promised never to leave us nor forsake us. Now, that word when we look at it from an Old Testament perspective, there's two words: He will never leave us nor forsake us. That word "forsaking" means He's never going to be careless.

Now, I'll conclude with this. There's a very important term, we know it in English: we speak about the providence of God. Now, when we translate that from English into Hebrew, we have the term *Hashgacha Pratit*. What is that? In Hebrew, we learn what the providence of God is. *Hashgacha Pratit* is God's personal supervision.

Here's the message. When you enter into a covenant—what covenant? The new covenant—God becomes your personal supervisor. He watches everything in your life. And He will protect us, He will defend us. And what else will He do? He will empower us. We might be persecuted, but remember what He said. He said many will be put to death, but—and this is an important "but"—not a hair on your head will be harmed.

Now, I get a haircut not too often, but I get a haircut. And it doesn't hurt, right? When they cut your hair, it doesn't hurt; there's no nerves, there's no feeling. So what He's promising is this: yes, you will be persecuted; yes, some of you will be put to death, but not a hair on your head will be harmed—meaning God will give us supernatural assistance to do what He says.

And what is that? To overcome. How do we receive that special help? What does the book of Revelation say to the church over and over and over? He says, "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit"—did you hear that?—"what the Spirit says to..." who? No, not to the church. Doesn't say that. To the *churches*. Why is that so important? Because here's the problem.

What I constantly hear people say is this: when we look at those seven churches in Revelation chapters 2 and 3, the most common interpretation is they represent seven different time periods of the church. This is false. Because the scripture says, "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches." These are seven individual messages for who? For all the church. Not just the church in the last days, but for the church in general, especially during the last days.

So they don't speak about seven different time periods of the church, where Ephesus being the first and Laodicea being the last. The Bible doesn't say that; you can't believe that, it's wrong. It's seven messages for the church, what we need to know concerning last-day faithfulness. God will never leave us nor forsake us. He will supply what we need—and He always does—in order that we manifest faithfulness. God will provide; He will give. He will do so abundantly so that we can demonstrate a God-pleasing faith. And when we do, He receives all the glory because He is always the source of our faithfulness.

Father God, You are good. Your word is true. And we thank You that we can trust in You and be not disappointed. We thank You that You forever will watch over us and strengthen us and empower us to behave faithfully. For to You be the glory now and forevermore. In that wonderful name of our Lord and Savior, Yeshua HaMashiach, Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.

Narrator: Well, we hope you will benefit from today's message and share it with others. Please plan to join us each week at this time and on this channel for our broadcast of loveisrael.org. Again, to find out more about us, please visit our website, loveisrael.org. There you will find articles and numerous other lectures by Baruch. These teachings are in video form. You may download them or watch them in streaming video. Until next week, may the Lord bless you in our Messiah Yeshua, that is Jesus, as you walk with Him. Shalom from Israel.