The question “Does our vote count” has been discussed from
all sides during this election season. Yes our vote does count, but maybe not
for the reasons we have been given. In election season we become very
self-focused; I want, I think, I feel. But aren’t we supposed to be laying down
our lives for others? Aren’t we supposed to serve others? Our vote counts
because what we stand for will count before Yahweh. It is hard to find a
candidate that embraces all our ideas and values. But what we stand for, or
those we lay our lives down for, is recorded, it is what is in our heart. To
recap last week’s study, this is the devil’s world for now. It is a shame that
preachers won’t tell congregants this truth. Imagine what power the called out
ones would have if they all knew and understood that the devil is the god of
this world (as per Paul) or the prince of this world (as per Jesus). In the
devil’s world we almost always get what we deserve. In Yahweh’s future kingdom
we do not get what we deserve, we are allowed grace, mercy, and forgiveness,
which are weighed and balanced according to the judgment, mercy, or forgiveness
we give out to others. Therefore, when we question why bad things happen to
good people we have to remember, this is the devil’s world. We also want to
remember that the devil and his secret orders create chaos and live by the
edict to bring order out of chaos. The more instability they create the more
fear people live in and the bigger the hero they can create to fix it all. We
will look at how to identify these schemes and what ideals we should consider
to side with before Yahweh.
Ezekiel had a vision of the glory physically leaving the
temple. At this point in history (as we studied previously), there was about
three hundred and thirty years of defilement in the temple. There was male and
female prostitution in the temple; the worship of the Cherubim, the stars, and
the constellations; the sacrifice of abortions and other outrageous things happening
in the temple. This is why the Prophets always spoke against these practices
and were not a part of the temple. Let’s keep in mind that Ezekiel was a
Prophet who was not part of the temple services. This is why Yahweh had him dig
a hole through the wall to see what was happening inside the temple. He saw the
filthy defilement which was the reason the glory was now leaving the temple and
the people were being marked as to their opinions regarding the state of the
nation. Those who grieved were marked.
Jezekiel 9:1 And he cried in mine ears with a loud
voice, saying, The judgment of the city has drawn nigh; and each had the
weapons of destruction in his hand. 2 And, behold, six men came from
the way of the high gate that looks toward the north, and each one’s axe was in
his hand; and there was one man in the midst of them clothed with a long robe
down to the feet, and a sapphire girdle was on his loins: and they came in and
stood near the brazen altar. 3 And the glory of the God of Israel,
that was upon them, went up from the cherubs to the porch of the house.
And he called the man that was clothed with the long robe,
who had the girdle on his loins; 4 And said to him, Go through the
midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark on the foreheads of the men that groan and
that grieve for all the iniquities that are done in the midst of them. 5 And
he said to the first in my hearing, Go after him into the city, and smite: and
let not your eyes spare, and have no mercy. 6 Slay utterly old man
and youth, and virgin, and infants, and women: but go ye not nigh any on whom
is the mark: begin at my sanctuary.
So they began with the elder men who were within in the
house. 7 And he said to them, Defile the house, and go out and fill
the ways with dead bodies, and smite.
In Ezekiel’s vision the angels come to Jerusalem, to the
temple area, and started the marking and slaughtering of the people. Ezekiel
was upset that so many people were going to die. Understand that they weren’t
dying immediately, he was seeing that the unmarked were going to die, and many people
did die in the following wars that led to their captivity. Where did the marked
people go as compared to the unmarked people when they died? At this time, people
either went to Hades or Abraham’s Bay as we have previously studied.
Jezekiel 9:8 And it came to pass as they were smiting,
that I fell upon my face, and cried out, and said, Alas, O Lord! wilt thou
destroy the remnant of Israel, in pouring out thy wrath upon
Jerusalem? 9 Then said he to me, The iniquity of the house of Israel
and Juda is become very exceedingly great: for the land is filled with many
nations, and the city is filled with iniquity and uncleanness: because they
have said, The Lord has forsaken the earth, The Lord looks not upon it. 10 Therefore
mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have any mercy: I have recompensed
their ways upon their heads.
11 And, behold, the man clothed with the long robe,
and girt with the girdle about his loins, answered and said, I have done as
thou didst command me.
Notice that Israel and Juda were both mentioned for their
sins. The temple was to be a house of meeting where people met with Yahweh, but
it turned into a house of defilement instead. The people believed that Yahweh
had forsaken both the northern and southern kingdoms. Think about this, the
glory of the Lord resided in the temple among the sins of the male and female
prostitutes in the booths, in the temple, among the incense and idolatrous
worship of other false gods, and among the aborted babies thrown into the fires
of Moloch in the temple. The people thought Yahweh forsook them, but instead
they pushed him out. Let’s read the prior chapter of Ezekiel with this in mind.
Jezekiel 8:1 And it came to pass in the sixth
year, in the fifth month, on the fifth day of the month, I was
sitting in the house, and the elders of Juda were sitting before me: and the
hand of the Lord came upon me. 2 And I looked, and, behold, the
likeness of a man: from his loins and downwards there was fire,
and from his loins upwards there was as the appearance of
amber. 3 And he stretched forth the likeness of a hand, and took me
by the crown of my head; and the Spirit lifted me up between the earth and sky,
and brought me to Jerusalem in a vision of God, to the porch of the gate that
looks to the north, where was the pillar of the Purchaser. 4 And,
behold, the glory of the Lord God of Israel was there, according to the vision
which I saw in the plain.
5 And he said to me, Son of man, lift up thine eyes
toward the north. So I lifted up mine eyes toward the north, and, behold, I
looked from the north toward the eastern gate. 6 And he said
to me, Son of man, hast thou seen what these do? They commit great abominations
here so that I should keep away from my sanctuary: and thou shalt see yet
greater iniquities.
7 And he brought me to the porch of the
court. 8 And he said to me, Son of man, dig: so I dug, and behold a
door. 9 And he said to me, Go in, and behold the iniquities which
they practise here. 10 So I went in and looked; and beheld vain
abominations, and all the idols of the house of Israel, portrayed upon them
round about. 11 And seventy men of the elders of the house of Israel,
and Jechonias the son of Saphan stood in their presence in the midst of them,
and each one held his censer in his hand; and the smoke of the incense went
up. 12 And he said to me, Thou hast seen, son of man, what the elders
of the house of Israel do, each one of them in their secret chamber: because
they have said, The Lord see not; The Lord has forsaken the earth.
13 And he said to me, Thou shalt see yet greater
iniquities which these do. 14 And he brought me in to the porch of
the house of the Lord that looks to the north; and, behold there were women
sitting there lamenting for Thammuz. 15 And he said to me, Son of
man, thou hast seen; but thou shalt yet see evil practices
greater then these.
16 And he brought me into the inner court of the house
of the Lord, and at the entrance of the temple of the Lord, between the porch
and the altar, were about twenty men, with their back parts toward the temple
of the Lord, and their faces turned the opposite way; and
these were worshipping the sun. 17 And he said to me, Son of man,
thou hast seen this. Is it a little thing to the house of Juda
to practise the iniquities which they have practised here? for they have filled
the land with iniquity: and, behold, these are as scorners. 18Therefore
will I deal with them in wrath: mine eye shall not spare, nor will I have any
mercy.
This all started just before Solomon’s death but we cannot
be sure of the exact date, so we calculate from the point of the kingdom split
to this time of Ezekiel and we get 337 years if the historians are correct.
Three hundred years of evil practices in the house of meeting, yet the glory
had not left until this time. There were very few Passovers celebrated, we have
note of Samuel’s Passover, and then we jump to Hezekiah. Hezekiah couldn’t
clean up Judea well enough, even by the provision of the Passover held in the
second month, so he basically crossed his fingers and prayed that Yahweh would
accept what they could manage. Josiah cleaned up Judea for fourteen years, then
held the Passover in the first month, but that was the last recorded Passover
before the captivity. After the captivity and the re-build of the temple,
Passover’s were held again.
We need to take special note of something here. The only
nation held to the covenant of Moses was Israel as a whole, and then Judea.
Yahweh did not judge other nations according to the covenant of Moses. In fact,
the only time Yahweh judged another nation was when that nation rose up against
either Israel (before the split) or Judea. There are no other nations required
to fulfill the covenants, laws, and practices that Moses gave to the children
of Jacob. So when people try to scare others by saying ‘God will judge this
nation’ and imply that they must keep the commands, they are myopic and
misinformed. The covenant was made with the sons of Jacob, not with the entire
world. The covenant was not even made with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Shem, Eber,
or Enoch. We need to get our facts straight. The old covenant changed when
Jesus came and there are different rules in place for the nations now; but even
today under the new covenant, Yahweh is not judging nations, especially
according to Mosaic laws.
Now with that being said, we have to remind ourselves that
in the devil’s world, we always get what we deserve; but because of Yahweh’s
grace we don’t get what we deserve. For example, Paul the Apostle killed many Christians,
but he can still enter the kingdom of God. That is mercy and grace. We looked
at David last week, as he was a foolish man but repented. That repentance exalted
him above others. That is the key to our lives as well, repentance. There was
someone else who did horrible things, but he later repented, that was Manasseh,
son of Hezekiah. Let’s look at this.
2 Chronicles 33:1 Manasses was twelve years old when
he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-five years in
Jerusalem. 2 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord,
according to all the abominations of the heathen, whom the Lord destroyed from
before the face of the children of Israel. 3 And he returned and
built the high places, which his father Ezekias had pulled down, and set up
images to Baalim, and made groves, and worshipped all the host of heaven, and
served them. 4 And he built altars in the house of the Lord, concerning
which the Lord said, In Jerusalem shall be my name for ever. 5 And he
built altars to all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the
Lord. 6 He also passed his children through the fire in the valley of
Benennom; and he divined, and used auspices, and sorceries, and appointed those
who had divining spirits, and enchanters, and wrought abundant wickedness
before the Lord, to provoke him. 7 And he set the graven image,
the molten statue, the idol which he made, in the house of God, of
which God had said to David and to Solomon his son, In this house, and
Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, I will put my
name for ever; 8 and I will not again remove the foot of Israel from
the land which I gave to their fathers, if only they will take heed to do all
things which I have commanded them, according to all the law and the ordinances
and the judgments given by the hand of Moses. 9 So
Manasses led astray Juda and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to do evil beyond
all the nations which the Lord cast out from before the children of Israel.
Manasseh undid everything that Hezekiah did, he brought
back all the nonsense into the temple. He was only 12 when he took over the
kingdom, so we should probably ask who his advisors were. Notice verse 7, Yahweh
says “In this house, and Jerusalem, which
I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, I will put my name for ever; and
I will not again remove the foot of Israel from the land which I gave to their
fathers, if only they will take heed to do all things which I have commanded
them, according to all the law and the ordinances and the judgments given by the hand of Moses”
This was a promise contingent on keeping and practicing the law and ordinances
and judgments of Moses. The people didn’t listen and didn’t care, so they had a
scrimmage with Assyria.
2 Chronicles 33:10 And the Lord spoke to Manasses, and
to his people: but they hearkened not. 11 And the Lord brought upon
them the captains of the host of the king of Assyria, and they took Manasses in
bonds, and bound him in fetters, and brought him to Babylon. 12 And
when he was afflicted, he sought the face of the Lord his God, and was greatly
humbled before the face of the God of his fathers; 13 and he prayed
to him: and he hearkened to him, and listened to his cry, and brought him back
to Jerusalem to his kingdom: and Manasses knew that the Lord he is God.
At this time Babylon was not an independent nation, they
were under Assyrian rule. But Manasseh sought the face of the Lord his God.
Great advice. Manasseh built a wall around the City of David, enclosing the
Gihon Springs/Opel. He also fortified the cities to keep the enemies out.
2 Chronicles 33:14 And afterward he built a wall
without the city of David, from the southwest southward in the valleys and at
the entrance through the fish-gate, as men go out by the gate round about, even
as far as Opel: and he raised it much, and set captains of the host in all the
fortified cities in Juda. 15 And he removed the strange gods, and the
graven image out of the house of the Lord, and all the altars
which he had built in the mount of the house of the Lord, and in Jerusalem, and
without the city. 16 And he repaired the altar of the Lord, and
offered upon it a sacrifice of peace-offering and thank-offering, and he told
Juda to serve the Lord God of Israel. 17 Nevertheless the people
still sacrificed on the high places, only to the Lord their God.
18 And the rest of the acts of Manasses, and his
prayer to God, and the words of the seers that spoke to him in the name of the
God of Israel, 19 behold, they are in the account of
his prayer; and God hearkened to him. And all his sins, and
his backslidings, and the spots on which he built the high places, and set
there groves and graven images, before he repented, behold, they are written in
the books of the seers. 20 And Manasses slept with his fathers, and
they buried him in the garden of his house: and Amon his son reigned in his
stead.
Here is the prayer of Manasseh, which used to be included
at the end of 2 Chronicles in some translations. It is now part of the
Apocryphal works of the King James Bible.
Prayer of Manasseh
O Lord, Almighty God of our fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob, and of their righteous seed; who hast made heaven and earth, with all
the ornament thereof; who hast bound the sea by the word of thy commandment;
who hast shut up the deep, and sealed it by thy terrible and glorious name;
whom all men fear, and tremble before thy power; for the majesty of thy glory
cannot be borne, and thine angry threatening toward sinners is importable: but
thy merciful promise is unmeasurable and unsearchable; for thou art the most
high Lord, of great compassion, longsuffering, very merciful, and repentest of
the evils of men. Thou, O Lord, according to thy great goodness hast promised
repentance and forgiveness to them that have sinned against thee: and of thine
infinite mercies hast appointed repentance unto sinners, that they may be
saved. Thou therefore, O Lord, that art the God of the just, hast not appointed
repentance to the just, as to Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, which have not
sinned against thee; but thou hast appointed repentance unto me that am a
sinner: for I have sinned above the number of the sands of the sea. My
transgressions, O Lord, are multiplied: my transgressions are multiplied, and I
am not worthy to behold and see the height of heaven for the multitude of mine
iniquities. I am bowed down with many iron bands, that I cannot lift up mine
head, neither have any release: for I have provoked thy wrath, and done evil
before thee: I did not thy will, neither kept I thy commandments: I have set up
abominations, and have multiplied offences. Now therefore I bow the knee of
mine heart, beseeching thee of grace. I have sinned, O Lord, I have sinned, and
I acknowledge mine iniquities: wherefore, I humbly beseech thee, forgive me, O
Lord, forgive me, and destroy me not with mine iniquites. Be not angry with me
for ever, by reserving evil for me; neither condemn me to the lower parts of
the earth. For thou art the God, even the God of them that repent; and in me
thou wilt shew all thy goodness: for thou wilt save me, that am unworthy,
according to thy great mercy. Therefore I will praise thee for ever all the
days of my life: for all the powers of the heavens do praise thee, and thine is
the glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Manasseh received forgiveness for his sins because he
repented. He was a young ruler who only knew his father Hezekiah for twelve
years. He had to have received poor counsel to have done all the spiritually
evil things he did. Even though he repented, like David, there was something
that had to be accounted for. It was not just Manasseh’s burden that he shed
innocent blood, the people shed innocent blood, and the people needed to repent
as well.
4 Kings 21:16 Moreover Manasses shed very much
innocent blood, until he filled Jerusalem with it from one end
to the other, beside his sins with which he caused Juda to sin, in doing evil
in the eyes of the Lord.
4 Kings 24:4 Moreover he shed innocent blood, and
filled Jerusalem with innocent blood, and the Lord would not pardon it
Manasseh didn’t do all the killing, the people did the
killings too. Manasseh was the leader in charge therefore responsible for what
the people were doing. Whether these were sacrifices in the temple, at the high
places, or murder anywhere in Judea, the leader was responsible to stop it,
which he eventually did. The people didn’t elect Manasseh, they inherited him.
But the people should have looked into their own hearts and not done what was
evil by shedding innocent blood. This is something that the Lord didn’t pardon,
and Judea ended up in a few battles, and then eventually in captivity.
We have to ask, why does the sin of innocent blood hold a
charge in the devil’s world? One idea is that humans are created in the image
of the Elohim. Killing the innocents lies in the misunderstanding that we are
separate from Yahweh Elohim. As if instead we are god. This is something that
the devil will hold against people. He accuses us before the throne of God day
and night. Remember that he wanted his throne in the sides of the north, on the
mount of the congregation; he wanted to judge the angels. Today he relentlessly
nags the Creator to impose judgment on us, the sons of Yahweh. This is not to
say that in a time of war people shouldn’t kill the enemy, but it is to say
that the innocent, unborn, the preborn, or newly born, and young, are helpless
without the assistance and compassion of humans. And while today, the nations
are not held accountable to the Old Covenant or temple service, the New
Covenant tells us to love Yahweh and our neighbor, to love one another, and to serve
the little ones and not destroy one of the little ones.
Matthew 18:10G3708See that G3361you should not G2706disdain G1520one G3588 G3397of these small ones! G3778 G3004For I say G1063 G1473to you, G3754that G3588 G32their angels G1473 G1722in G3772the heavens G1275continually G991look G3588on the G4383face G3588 G3962of my father, G1473 G3588the one G1722inG3772the heavens.
Matthew 18:14G3779Thus G3756it is
not G1510.2.3 G2307the will
G1715before
G3588 G3962your
father, G1473 G3588the
one G1722inG3772the heavens,
G2443that G622[3should
be lost G15201one G3588 G33972of
these small ones]. G3778
G622 LSJ Gloss: ἀπόλλυμι to destroy utterly, kill, slay
Dodson: ἀπόλλυμι I destroy, lose, am perishing (a) I kill,
destroy, (b) I lose, mid: I am perishing (the resultant death being viewed as
certain).
Strong's: ἀπόλλυμι to destroy fully (reflexively, to
perish, or lose), literally or figuratively Derivation: from G575 and
the base of G3639; KJV
Usage: destroy, die, lose, mar, perish.
Thayer:
1) to destroy
1a) to put out of the way entirely, abolish, put an end to ruin
1b) render useless
1c) to kill
1d) to declare that one must be put to death
1e) metaph. to devote or give over to eternal misery in hell
1f) to perish, to be lost, ruined, destroyed
2) to destroy
2a) to lose
1a) to put out of the way entirely, abolish, put an end to ruin
1b) render useless
1c) to kill
1d) to declare that one must be put to death
1e) metaph. to devote or give over to eternal misery in hell
1f) to perish, to be lost, ruined, destroyed
2) to destroy
2a) to lose
ἀπόλλυμι apollumi ap-ol'-loo-mee From G575 and
the base of G3639;
to destroy fully (reflexively to perish, or lose),
literally or figuratively KJV Usage: destroy, die, lose, mar, perish.
This is why our vote matters. Our opinion as to the little
ones and the shedding of innocent blood is recorded before Yahweh. This is why
this election is not about us, it is about those without a voice, and we should
lay our lives down for them. It may not matter who is elected, but it does
matter if one proposes or denounces the killing of the innocent ones. The
innocent and the righteous blood cries out to Yahweh, just like righteous Abel’s
blood. By not denouncing the shedding of innocent blood we leave an opening for
ourselves to personally get what we deserve on this earth. As children of
Yahweh we should never promote the destroying of innocent lives. We may still
have eternal life, even if we partake in evil today, but on this earth, the
children of Yahweh will be accused until we receive what we deserve. Not only
that, we allow others to be god over the unborn. Remember our understanding of
eugenics, pre-born and geriatric eugenics, as well as eugenics of the disabled,
mentally impaired, and terminally ill. Why would we allow politicians to be
gods over humans, who are created in the image and likeness of the Elohim? Does
it seem irrational to terminate a baby just before it is born, as we know that babies
can be born premature and live? Does it seem irrational to be concerned that
babies and children may be killed by disease or murder, therefore we force
potentially harmful vaccinations, or ban guns to keep the children safe, when
we are willing to terminate them just before birth? This irrational behavior is
due to the chaos created by the devil’s followers. Certainly with clear
thinking we can see through this scheme.
2 Esd 15:1-9 Behold, speak thou in the ears of my people
the words of prophecy, which I will put in thy mouth, saith the Lord:2 And
cause them to be written in paper: for they are faithful and true.3 Fear not
the imaginations against thee, let not the incredulity of them trouble thee,
that speak against thee.4 For all the unfaithful shall die in their
unfaithfulness.5 Behold, saith the Lord, I will bring plagues upon the world;
the sword, famine, death, and destruction.6 For wickedness hath exceedingly
polluted the whole earth, and their hurtful works are fulfilled.7 Therefore
saith the Lord,8 I will hold my tongue no more as touching their wickedness,
which they profanely commit, neither will I suffer them in those things, in
which they wickedly exercise themselves: behold, the innocent and righteous
blood crieth unto me, and the souls of the just complain continually.9 And
therefore, saith the Lord, I will surely avenge them, and receive unto me all
the innocent blood from among them. KJV
Yahweh receives the innocent blood; all the small ones that
died. Imagine that. Who will be responsible for the innocent blood? The leaders
and the people who don’t denounce it. Again, Yahweh is not judging nations as a
group. There are nations today that have had forced abortion as part of their
laws. Those nations take the aborted babies, dehydrate them, put them into
capsules, and sell them to people in other nations for virility. That is
cultural, and odd, as virility leads to more babies who are then aborted. So
no, Yahweh is not judging each nation as to their behavior as a nation or as to
whether the nations follow the commandments. Yahweh will judge on two occasions
in the future. For those who make Jesus Lord and Messiah, they will be judged
just after the coronation ceremony of Jesus as King, Revelation 11. The second occasion
will be during the White Throne Judgment after the millennial kingdom. Those
are the judgments for the individuals. This is why your vote matters. You may
be powerless to change any laws in your nation as the devil is running the
world in this age, but you certainly have an opinion regarding innocent blood. The
holier we can live and the more Christ-like we can become, the less chance we
will have of being accused by the devil.
Israel had a covenant relationship with Yahweh, but this is
what they did.
Ps 106:34-41They did not destroy the nations, concerning
whom the Lord commanded them:35 But were mingled among the heathen, and learned
their works.36 And they served their idols: which were a snare unto them.37
Yea, they sacrificed their sons and their daughters unto devils,38 And shed
innocent blood, even the blood of their sons and of their daughters, whom they
sacrificed unto the idols of Canaan: and the land was polluted with blood.39
Thus were they defiled with their own works, and went a whoring with their own
inventions.40 Therefore was the wrath of the Lord kindled against his people,
insomuch that he abhorred his own inheritance.41 And he gave them into the hand
of the heathen; and they that hated them ruled over them. KJV
The
nations of today do not have a covenant relationship with Yahweh. Israel would
like to regain a covenant relationship with Yahweh, but they have no temple. We
are individuals who are solely responsible for our own covenant relationship
with Yahweh, just like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Shem, Eber, and Enoch; and just
like all the Prophets, Essenes, Nazarenes, Therapeutaes, and the Damascus
Community. We cannot hide behind politicians. We are simply responsible for our
condition on the earth and if we mourn the evil around us it will be noted.
Israel
didn’t have elections, so the people did not have a chance to elect a good
ruler or a bad ruler. How can we tell the difference between a righteous ruler
and an unrighteous ruler? There was a book that had been part of the first,
second, and third century canon of scripture called The Shepherd of Hermas.
It came after the Acts of the Apostles and before the Acts of Paul. It is an
interesting read as it was something that was highly regarded by the first,
second, and third century Christians. The Shepherd tells us of visions, commands,
and parables. In this section of commands we find something that seems to have
become a great visual representation in our modern era. On television and in
movies we have all been presented with a character who is trying to make a
decision, and on one shoulder he has an angel telling him to do what is right
and on the other shoulder a devil telling him to do what is wrong. The story
usually comes to a point when the character makes a decision to follow one of
the beings on his shoulders. This idea probably originated from the Shepherd of
Hermas’ sixth commandment. We can learn
a lot from this analogy of the two spirits.
Shepherd of Hermas II
HOW TO RECOGNISE THE
TWO SPIRITS ATTENDANT ON EACH MAN, AND HOW TO DISTINGUISH THE SUGGESTIONS OF
THE ONE FROM THOSE OF THE OTHER.
Sixth Commandment CHAPTER II.
"Hear now," said he, "in regard to faith.
There are two angels with a man--one of righteousness, and the other of
iniquity." And I said to him, "How, sir, am I to know the powers of
these, for both angels dwell with me?" "Hear," said he, and
"understand them. The angel of righteousness is gentle and modest, meek
and peaceful. When, therefore, he ascends into your heart, forthwith he talks
to you of righteousness, purity, chastity, contentment, and of every righteous
deed and glorious virtue. When all these ascend into your heart, know that the
angel of righteousness is with you. These are the deeds of the angel of
righteousness. Trust him, then, and his works. Look now at the works of the
angel of iniquity. First, he is wrathful, and bitter, and foolish, and his
works are evil, and ruin the servants of God. When, then, he ascends into your
heart, know him by his works." And I said to him, "How, sir, I shall
perceive him, I do not know." "Hear and understand" said he.
"When anger comes upon you, or harshness, know that he is in you; and you
will know this to be the case also, when you are attacked by a longing after
many transactions, and the richest delicacies, and drunken revels, and divers
luxuries, and things improper, and by a hankering after women, and by
overreaching, and pride, and blustering, and by whatever is like to these. When
these ascend into your heart, know that the angel of iniquity is in you. Now that
you know his works, depart from him, and in no respect trust him, because his
deeds are evil, and unprofitable to the servants of God. These, then, are the
actions of both angels. Understand them, and trust the angel of righteousness;
but depart from the angel of iniquity, because his instruction is bad in every
deed. For though a man be most faithful, and the thought of this angel ascend
into his heart, that man or woman must sin. On the other hand, be a man or
woman ever so bad, yet, if the works of the angel of righteousness ascend into
his or her heart, he or she must do something good. You see, therefore, that it
is good to follow the angel of righteousness, but to bid farewell to the angel
of iniquity.
"This commandment exhibits the deeds of faith, that
you may trust the works of the angel of righteousness, and doing them you may
live to God. But believe the works of the angel of iniquity are hard. If you
refuse to do them, you will live to God."
The characteristics of righteousness and iniquity are explained
here as two angels tempting the individual. To resist the spirit of iniquity is
hard, but if we refuse him we will live to God. If we look at people, their
lifestyles and their behaviors, we can get a clearer understanding of what is
in one’s heart. If we look at ourselves, our passions and desires, we will know
what is in our hearts. The Shepherd goes on in the seventh commandment and
tells us not to fear the devil. We should fear the deeds of the devil so that
we do not do them.
Seventh Commandment
ON FEARING GOD, AND
NOT FEARING THE DEVIL.
"Fear," said he, "the Lord, and keep His
commandments. For if you keep the commandments of God, you will be powerful in
every action, and every one of your actions will be incomparable. For, fearing
the Lord, you will do all things well. This is the fear which you ought to
have, that you may be saved. But fear not the devil; for, fearing the Lord, you
will have dominion over the devil, for there is no power in him. But he in whom
there is no power ought on no account to be an object of fear; but He in whom
there is glorious power is truly to be feared. For every one that has power
ought to be feared; but he who has not power is despised by all. Fear,
therefore, the deeds of the devil, since they are wicked. For, fearing the
Lord, you will not do these deeds, but will refrain from them. For fears are of
two kinds: for if you do not wish to do that which is evil, fear the Lord, and
you will not do it; but, again, if you wish to do that which is good, fear the
Lord, and you will do it. Wherefore the fear of the Lord is strong, and great,
and glorious. Fear, then, the Lord, and you will live to Him, and as many as
fear Him and keep His commandments will live to God." "Why,"
said I, "sir, did you say in regard to those that keep His commandments,
that they will live to God?" "Because," says he, "all
creation fears the Lord, but all creation does not keep His commandments. They
only who fear the Lord and keep His commandments have life with God; but as to
those who keep not His commandments, there is no life in them."
If we fear Yahweh, we will keep ourselves from evil. We are
living on the earth, ruled by the devil, who stole rulership from Adam. There
is a set time for the devil’s rule and once he is expelled from the heavens,
where he accuses us before the throne day and night, the earthlings will know
it. Who will you stand with, Yahweh or the devil? Will you endure the evil days
as a child of Yahweh? Jesus summed up the commandments for us as to love Yahweh
with all our heart, soul, and mind and love our neighbor as ourselves. All the
laws and all the words of the Prophets hang on these two things. Then he gave
us a new commandment, to love one another as Jesus himself loved us.
While our vote for a presidential candidate may not seem to
count, our vote as children of Yahweh does count, to Him. The USA has an
electoral college, should none of the candidates receive enough electorates,
the House of Representatives will vote for a president, taking away the will of
the people and the popular/majority vote. They will then pick the vice
president from among the two parties. If we think through what we have seen,
witnessed, and heard it may be that the New World Order will continue to keep
the US citizens divided. People may be enticed to continue to fight each other
politically, and continue the discord among law enforcement to push the devil’s
agenda. The devil never punishes his own, unless they defect to Yahweh. But who
we, the children of Yahweh, vote for weighs heavily towards sparing innocent
blood and those who can’t speak for themselves. The one unpardoned sin Manasseh
could not atone for, for the nation of Judea was the shedding of the innocent
blood. For that, Judea had to pay the devil’s price. It may be easy to forget
the un-born, or the very young because we think other people’s business doesn’t
concern us. Instead it may be that we should be laying down our lives for them.
Jesus was an un-planned, inconvenient, pregnancy and birth, thankfully his
mother and earthly father protected him through gestation, infancy, and
childhood.
