Isaiah 2:19
19 And they shall go [bow'] into the holes [ma`arah] of
the rocks, [tsuwr] and into the caves [machillah] of the earth, [`aphar] for [paniym] fear [pachad] of the LORD, [Yahovah] and for the glory [hadar]
of his majesty, [ga'own] when he ariseth [quwm] to shake terribly [`arats]
the earth. ['erets] KJV-Interlinear
19 And
men will go into caves of the rocks, And into holes of the ground Before the
terror of the Lord, And before the splendor of His majesty, When He arises to
make the earth tremble. NASB
They, is a reference to
all who have rejected God, Christ, doctrine and the spiritual life as God has
designed and defined it. And more
specifically, they, is a reference to that final generation, that will live in
the last days of human rule on this earth, the Tribulation.
We know that the
tribulation is yet future, and will begin when our Rapture occurs, and will
last for seven years. The end of which will
be the most horrifying period in all of human history.
Judea and Israel in
general is a mountainous country. And
within the mountains and hills, there are many such caves and crevices and
places into which a person can go for safety and hiding. And this provides us with a descriptive
example of just how terrified people will be, and to what lengths they will go
to hide from Gods wrath.
At En-gedi, a cave is
mentioned where David with six hundred men hid himself from Saul in the ‘sides’
of the cave system, 1 Sam 24. Caves or dens were sometimes constructed for
refuge or defense, Judg 6:2; 1 Sam 13:6.
So in times of extreme
trouble, such as in an invasion, people would run and hide anywhere they could
find what they thought would provide them with some semblance of safety or
escape. Refugees are always on the run
just trying to stay ahead of the advance of a murderous invading force. But people hide in basements, and closets and
in attics and street drain systems and such.
When He arises, is an
expression that means when the action begins and continues. In this case it will be Gods judgment, a
series of actions brought against unbelieving and wicked humanity, which
actions will last for many weeks and months and years during the ultimate
period of judgment, the Tribulation. The
worst of which will occur during the last half of the Tribulation, which will
last three-and-a-half years.
Having difficulties such
as storms or invasions or crime or atrocities is bad enough when they last for
just a few days or even weeks, but when they continue on and on and there is
never an end, then that will be the worst possible experience to have, ever.
For to have the earth
literally shaking beneath and all around you, with no stopping, makes it very
clear that something if really wrong.
That earthquake in Japan
pasted for six minutes, which is a pretty long time for an earthquake, but then
a half an hour later the ocean waves came in and buried several coastal
cities. And, they just kept coming and
coming. But then that disaster finally
came to an end, just as the disasters in Indonesia and Haiti and other places
ended.
But, during the
Tribulation, as we have already studied in our Revelation study, the disasters
and horrible circumstances will commence after the Rapture, and they will continue
and escalate for the entire seven year period, being extreme and beyond extreme
in the latter half of the Tribulation.
During that seven year period, very nearly the entire population of the
world, will die. Not sure how much more extreme and terrifying things could
possibly get on this planet.
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