Isaiah 11:16

Copyright Ó 2013 J. Neely

Isaiah 11:16ues

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16 And there shall be an highway [macillah] for the remnant [sha'ar] of his people, [`am] which ['aher] shall be left, [sha'ar] from Assyria; ['Ashshuwr] like as it was to Israel [Yisra'el] in the day [yowm] that he came up [`alah] out of the land ['erets] of Egypt. [Mitsrayim] KJV-Interlinear

16 And there will be a highway from Assyria For the remnant of His people who will be left, Just as there was for Israel In the day that they came up out of the land of Egypt. NASB

Assyria here, is not the specific country of Assyria as it was known in Isaiah’s day, ‘Ashshuwr,’ was the second son of Shem who was the first son of Noah.

The empire at one time spanned from modern day Turkey to Iran, from the Caspian Sea down deep into Egypt.  So it pretty much covered all of the Middle East and then a bit more, or all of the known world back in the early days of Mesopotamia.

We have already seen that the nations all around Israel will have been defeated and destroyed by Christ, verse 11.

We saw in yesterday’s study that the geographical barriers such as the rivers and gulfs will be dried up or divided up into many smaller streams, allowing people to walk back to Israel without the need for special vehicles or boats or such.

And in this last verse of the chapter, the result is a vast highway, coming from all directions, allowing people to return to the Lord, and to return in as easy a way as possible given the nature of the world in that future day.

So we look a bit at how the world will look.

First there will have been a huge final war called Armageddon which will see the deaths of all evil people.

People who have but one purpose, which was to kill off all Jews and Christians and then finally all of humanity.

Second the world will be in a shambles.  All mountains, all islands, entire continents will be reshaped and changed if not gone completely.  So people will be walking back to Jerusalem and to the Lord by passing all of this death and destruction.

Also, we need or note one more item within this verse.

There will be similarities to the exodus when the Israelites came out of Egypt.  God did so by means of miraculous achievements such as in the parting of the Red Sea.  But too, God provided them with all that they needed, including food and water.

Also, this verse states that it will be like the remnant that came out of Egypt.

Back then, when the Israelites left Canaan and went into Egypt they numbered only about 75 people.  When they left they numbered about two-million.

When the tribulation begins, depending on when that happens, we know that the population of the world will most likely be larger than it is today and today we number well over seven-billion.  That total number will of course be reduced by however many Christians are removed at the Rapture.

Today the estimated Jewish world population is about thirteen million.  In the future, in several more decades, that number could advance to well over a hundred million.

Historically in recent centuries the Jewish population has grown slowly with lots of setbacks due to one holocaust after another, but prior to the Exodus, the Israelite population rose dramatically.  So, if that same attribute holds, then there could be a big jump in their population in coming decades.  Time will tell, I suppose.

So, if the Rapture does not occur for several more decades, then the world population could easily be into the tens of billions of people.  At the end of the Tribulation, that number will be significantly reduced by well over ninety-nine percent.

The end of the Tribulation will see phenomenal destruction and death for all people.  And the primary target of the world will be the Jews.

Yet still and in spite of the great effort to destroy Jewish people, there will still be a remnant that will come out of the mountains, out of their hiding places, coming out of the woodwork so to speak, and they will come from all over the Middle East and beyond.

The number of delivered people could be in the thousands or even the tens of thousands.  Perhaps even a couple of million as was in the exodus.  In any case, survival of anyone will be nothing short of a miracle, but there will be a significant remnant of people coming from all over and they will begin moving toward Jerusalem when the way is clear and safe.

Isaiah 11:15

Copyright Ó 2013 J. Neely

Isaiah 11:15ues

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15 And the LORD [Yahovah] shall utterly destroy [charam] the tongue [lashown] of the Egyptian [Mitsrayim] sea; [yam] and with his mighty [`ayam] wind [ruwach] shall he shake [nuwph] his hand [yad] over the river, [nahar] and shall smite [nakah] it in the seven [sheba`] streams, [nachal] and make men go over [darak] dryshod. [na`al]KJV-Interlinear

15 And the Lord will utterly destroy The tongue of the Sea of Egypt; And He will wave His hand over the River With His scorching wind; And He will strike it into seven streams, And make men walk over dry-shod. NASB

The Sea of Egypt is generally a term that refers to the Suez Gulf or the Red Sea.

The river, is most often used to refer to the Euphrates River.

The Tigress and the Euphrates both empty into the Persian Gulf or the Gulf of Aqaba.

Both of these gulfs when viewed on a map look like tongues that extend northward from the Arabian Sea.

The imagery here is from the exodus when God parted the waters of the Red Sea and the Israelites crossed over on dry land.  The barrier was removed and the crossing was made easy.

And what Isaiah is saying here is that God will remove the most formidable barriers that have historically prevented the Jews from returning to Israel.

But even more than that, this regathering is not to Jerusalem exclusively, or even to the land, but it is a regathering of the surviving Jewish people, to Christ.

The scorching wind, the shaking of His hand, the seven streams, all point to the resolve of purpose, and to the finality and accomplishment of Gods plan.

When the Kingdom of God is installed, then all barriers, great and small, will be removed.

Evil is removed, the wildness and uncertainties of nature are removed, the enemies of the world are removed, and the geographical features of great seas and rivers and such, will be removed.

For people all over the world, who survive at the end of the Tribulation, and this is not exclusive to the Middle East, the path to Christ, will be made easy.

Isaiah 11:14

Copyright Ó 2013 J. Neely

Isaiah 11:14ues

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14 But they shall fly [`uwph] upon the shoulders [katheph] of the Philistines [Palishtiy] toward the west; [yam] they shall spoil [bazaz] them [ben] of the east [qedem] together: [yachad] they shall lay [mishlowach] their hand [yad] upon Edom ['Edom] and Moab; [Mow'ab] and the children [ben] of Ammon [`Ammown] shall obey [mishma`ath] them. KJV-Interlinear

14 And they will swoop down on the slopes of the Philistines on the west; Together they will plunder the sons of the east; They will possess Edom and Moab; And the sons of Ammon will be subject to them. NASB

The subject of this chapter is the sudden and awesome changes that will occur after the Second Advent, when Christ returns and takes the throne or rulership.

When an invading force is powerful and invades suddenly such that it overwhelms its enemies, then what occurs is being described here in a symbolic way.

The Philistines lived on the southwestern side of the land of Canaan, which is to the west of Judea.

Edom was situated to the south, while Moab was to the east on both sides of the Jordan River.

Ammon was to the southeast of Judea.

So all of these countries were historical and the usual enemies with which Judah and Israel had to fight over and over again from the time of the judges through the time of David, and after the split of the nation following the death of Solomon.

But when Christ returns, the tables will be turned.  Christ Himself will defeat all enemies which will exist across the entire planet.

But after a victory in any given battle, there is a collection of the spoils, not only from the battle field, but from the home countries that have been defeated.

All of these countries which have historically surrounded Israel, will be defeated and in fact they will be unpopulated.  There will not be a living soul within any of them.  Certainly no enemies will be alive.

This leaves them wide open for the taking of anything and everything that they once possessed.

To fly upon the shoulders, is a figure of speech which describes the fast the furious taking of possession of these lands and property.  There is nothing to stop it and no one to prevent it.

The shoulder is that of a man or a beast, but it is also a word that represents the border of a country.  And so the Jewish people will make a rapid descent across all borders, which those borders no longer exist as a barrier.

To spoil them says it all.  Those who will survive and move in to the Millennium, will have at their disposal phenomenal wealth and resources, simply for the taking.

To lay their hand, is another figure of speech, which indicates the ease of the taking and the lack of any opposition.

The children of Ammon, will obey.  Ammon was a country that existed long ago, but they have descendants, both in physical offspring as well as in the pattern of attitude against the Jews.  Obedience here means defeated, subdued, and therefore obedient.  With everyone dead, there is no one to be disobedient, no one to oppose, no one to hinder the occupation of these lands.

Therefore the Jews will rule and occupy all that they take, with no opposition.

This verse describes the rapid advance of Christs victory, on the neighboring countries.

After delivering Jerusalem and therefore Israel, who had occupying forces within their borders, now the borders will be extended and no longer be a hindrance, and now the Jews will occupy those neighboring lands, and own them.  After all they no longer have any living owners.

This verse also indicates that the remnant who will be delivered, will not be a humble dozen or so of people, but that number will be rather significant.

Isaiah 11:13

Copyright Ó 2013 J. Neely

Isaiah 11:13ues

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13 The envy [qin'ah] also of Ephraim ['Ephrayim] shall depart, [cuwr] and the adversaries [tsarar] of Judah [Yahuwdah] shall be cut off: [karath] Ephraim ['Ephrayim] shall not envy [qana'] Judah, [Yahuwdah] and Judah [Yahuwdah] shall not vex [tsarar] Ephraim. ['Ephrayim] KJV-Interlinear

13 Then the jealousy of Ephraim will depart, And those who harass Judah will be cut off; Ephraim will not be jealous of Judah, And Judah will not harass Ephraim. NASB

Envy here is written in two ways. 

The first, ‘qinah,’ refers to a jealousy of someone who wants something that you have, or that they perceive that you have, and they want.

The second, ‘qana,’ refers to a hatred which is driven by jealousy.  It has no truthful basis or justification, but is just there because they simply do not like you.

When you deal with lots of people, and especially when you deal with lots of people in what may be considered a competitive situation, then sooner or later you will become the object of their hate.  And that hate is driven by their jealousy and further fueled with their gossip against you, neither of which are right, but they just want you to hurt or be hurt and therefore fail in anything or everything.  It matters not what your failure is, they just want you to fail in order to justify their hate against you.

And this principle will apply to everyone, even you, since you live in a world that is populated with people.  Whether it comes through your work, through your hobby, through your social life, whatever, sooner or later you will become a target.

And if you happen to be advancing in your spiritual life, in the correct way, and thus you learn that you need not compete in this world because it is really the Lord who is driving your life, then others, who are not so inclined in their spiritual life, will hate you because they have to work and you seem to be getting somewhere, even if you are not, so they hate you.

Their hate is not based on logic or even facts, it is simply an emotional reaction of someone who lacks a spiritual life.  With no spiritual life or with an ineffective spiritual life, then there are no certainties, no confidences in life that are resident within their soul.

When you lack a spiritual life, then insecure emotion makes up a great deal of all that you have. 

Whereas, the growing believer has or should have confidence in Gods care for himself.

And so we now have the relationship between the two nations that were created when Israel split.  Samaria, also called Israel, also called Ephraim, was the northern kingdom, and Judah was the southern kingdom.

Their struggle between them was intense and demonstrates those who struggled for their own plan for life as was the case for Samaria, and then there was Judah which represented the nation of Gods choice and therefore blessing.

Samaria was thus jealous, which led to hate, which led to their attempts to destroy Judah.

Now that was back in Isaiah’s day.

This principle also applies to all people, including you, who will come face to face with those who would destroy them over nothing. And that is a lot of what jealousy is.  A lot to do about nothing.  A struggle for removing someone when no removal is needed or even necessary.

Ephraim rejected God but wanted Gods approval.  They wanted to be the chosen of God, even as they rejected God.

Judah on the other hand was Gods chosen, and even when Judah was disobedient, they still received Gods favor.  More than enough to upset Ephraim.

Judah on the other hand, became an adversary of Ephraim.  Vex, ‘tsarar,’ means adversary, afflict, distress, oppress, oppose, upset, irk, annoy.  And Judah, being Gods chosen, would not let Ephraim forget that. Kind of like gloating over ones position or presumed importance.  A nose stuck in the air, or a holier than thou sort of attitude.

Therefore, both of these descriptions are of inner hostilities within the Jewish nation.

When Christ takes the reigns of His kingdom, which begins at the second advent, then these emotional and behavioral and even overt hostilities and attitudes will cease.

If you have not yet begun to fit the pieces of this puzzle together, when Christ returns, the world will not be the same.  Not by a long shot.

Life will change in the animal kingdom, in the philosophy realm, as well in the human realm.

But we still need to deal with the gentiles, as well as the geographic makeup of the world.  Both of which will see dramatic changes, too.

And how do these future changes relate to what we have now?

Why do we have what we have now, and why will things change in the future?

What do you suppose the difference is between the two times in history and why will we never be able to achieve what Christ will achieve?

Isaiah 11:12

Copyright Ó 2013 J. Neely

Isaiah 11:12ues

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12 And he shall set up [nasa'] an ensign [nec] for the nations, [gowy] and shall assemble ['acaph] the outcasts [dachah] of Israel, [Yisra'el] and gather together [qabats] the dispersed [naphats] of Judah [Yahuwdah] from the four ['arba`] corners [kanaph] of the earth. ['erets]KJV-Interlinear

12 And He will lift up a standard for the nations, And will assemble the banished ones of Israel, And will gather the dispersed of Judah From the four corners of the earth. NASB

An ensign, ‘nec,’ means a signal, a flag, a symbol that all look to as a rallying point, a standard.

To set up, ‘nasa,’ means to establish, to magnify, to advance, to bear up, to exalt.

Psa. 138:2, God has magnified his word above His name.

Without doctrine we have no means of a relationship with God. That is the mode of communication and of our learning and of our gaining an understanding about anything and everything, especially God.

When Christ returns at the second advent, then He is the living manifestation of the written word, He is the living word, and the word is truth which will be the focus and the standard by which the world will be managed.

Today we have all sorts of religions and philosophies and ideas that discombobulate the thinking of people, making everything confusing, and even making the absurd the normal.

But when Christ takes the reigns of government, then all of the nonsense will vanish, and the state of normalcy will be supported by truth.

And people will rally to that standard, both of truth, and of Christ Himself.

The outcasts of Israel, referring to the northern kingdom which proactively broke away from Judah with ten of the tribes and they were eventually destroyed.  The word for outcasts, ‘dachah,’ is in the masculine, which refers to the masculine attribute of being proactive, but in their case they left God and the nation of their own accord and were thus destroyed due to their own obstinacy.

The dispersed of Judah, which also includes the tribe of Benjamin, is in the feminine form as they were more passive in their rejection of God and thus were driven out as a nation.

Despite their mutual destruction as nations, the Jews continued to exist and eventually have ended up living all over the world as we know this to be true today.

And when Christ returns at the second advent, then He will recover all living and believing Jewish peoples from all over the world, for many will survive across the globe, rallying them to Jerusalem, and to Himself.

This event is future, and has not yet occurred in history.  It will occur after Christ returns.  He will destroy evil and then re-gather all believers to Himself and thereby begin His millennial reign with a nation of believers only.  No unbelievers will remain alive at the second advent.  The Millennial reign of Christ will begin with believers only.

Isaiah 11:11

Copyright Ó 2013 J. Neely

Isaiah 11:11ues

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11 And it shall come to pass in that day, [yowm] that the Lord ['Adonay] shall set [yacaph] his hand [yad] again [yacaph] the second time [sheniy] to recover [qanah] the remnant [sha'ar] of his people, [`am] which shall be left, [sha'ar] from Assyria, ['Ashshuwr] and from Egypt, [Mitsrayim] and from Pathros, [Pathrowc] and from Cush, [Kuwsh] and from Elam, [`Eylam] and from Shinar, [Shin`ar] and from Hamath, [Chamath] and from the islands ['iy] of the sea. [yam] KJV-Interlinear

11 Then it will happen on that day that the Lord Will again recover the second time with His hand The remnant of His people, who will remain, From Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, Cush, Elam, Shinar, Hamath, And from the islands of the sea. NASB

A difficult verse to be sure, but only if you do not read it and the previous and the next verses properly.

A second time is referred to, but what is going to occur a second time?  That is where many commentators and people in general, get mixed up.  But it is really quite simple.

But first things first.

Where are these places, from which the Jewish peoples will come back?  Or, are they actually coming back from these places?

And so we list the places first.

Assyria, is to the north of Israel.  And actually since Jerusalem is the focal point of the Bible, then all directions generally are in relation to Jerusalem.

So, Assyria is the land and lands to the north.  Egypt is a reference to the lands to the south.  These are the two great powers that existed in Isaiah’s day.  Isaiah lived during the mid to early eighth century B.C., or 750 to about 700 B.C.  He lived longer than this time frame but this is the general time period which needs to be looked at for the purpose of our study here.

Pathros refers to the northern end or upper Egypt, while Mizraim, for reference purposes, refers to the southern portion of Egypt.

Cush, generally refers to the lands to the south of Egypt or into Africa.

Elam, refers to the lands east of the Tigris River, typically todays Iran and the lands to the east.

Shinar, founded by Nimrod, refers to the lands south of and including the junction of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, typically todays Iraq, Iran, Saudi Arabia.

Hamath, refers to what would be todays Lebanon.

The islands of the sea, refers to the local sea, which would be the Mediterranean Sea up into the island regions of Turkey and Greece, along the coast line, and perhaps beyond toward present day Italy.

What is being described is the region immediately surrounding and local to Jerusalem, as it was known in Isaiah’s day.

In Isaiah’s day, there was no historical deportation of the Hebrews, to these regions, even after the invasion of the northern kingdom of Samaria, and its removal from history.  This does not even refer to the deliverance of the Israelites out of Egypt, for that is a single country, and not to the entire region of the Middle East and beyond.

But as this entire chapter is messianic, then so too is the location of the Jews, prophetic, as in future times, they will live not only in Judah, but in all of the surrounding regions just described.

Likewise, in the next verse the four corners of the earth are made reference to, with regard to their regathering.  But that is in the next verse, not this verse.

Here we focus on the words, second time.

So what does this mean?

Well we need one more definition.

What is happening a second time?  And for that we look to the word, recover, ‘qanah,’ which means to purchase, to procure, to possess, to redeem, to deliver, to rescue.

So, to what do you suppose these two times are referring?

In the next verse there is a rallying of the remnant, but in this verse there is only the reference to the purchase, and a second purchase at that.

By the way this is not a second crucifixion.  Christ has already been crucified, buried, resurrected in a resurrection body and glorified at the right hand of the Father, where He now resides.

So, within this single verse, we have the first and second advent being referred to.  The first advent was a purchase for the purpose of salvation, and in the second advent there is a purchase due to the deliverance as a result of the second advent.

In the first advent all of humanity and especially the Jewish peoples, were purchased out of bondage.  The then known world of Isaiah, being referred to here as all lands surrounding Jerusalem throughout the Middle East and beyond, but applying it to the time of Christ.

Many Jews lived in Greece, in Africa, in Persia and throughout the region in the time of Christ.

But the second purchase comes well after the first, since it is a part of the establishment of the Kingdom of God, wherein Christ will rule.  This entire chapter pointing to that future time.

The phrase, ‘in that day,’ is our prophetic pointer to that future time.  It refers to the same ‘in that day,’ as has been referred to throughout this chapter.  The second purchase likewise being the focus of this verse, which too is future.

And by the way, the word for second, does in fact mean a second time, not a third, not a first, and is not even ambiguous like meaning, again or a repeat of something that is not numbered.  This is the second time, and there are only two of these times of purchase.

Isaiah 11:10

Copyright Ó 2013 J. Neely

Isaiah 11:10ues

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10 And in that day [yowm] there shall be a root [sheresh] of Jesse, [Yishay] which shall stand [`amad] for an ensign [nec] of the people; [`am] to it shall the Gentiles [gowy] seek: [darash] and his rest [manuwchah] shall be glorious. [kabowd] KJV-Interlinear

10 Then it will come about in that day That the nations will resort to the root of Jesse, Who will stand as a signal for the peoples; And His resting place will be glorious. NASB

In that day, is a reference to this messianic passage, when the Messiah will take the reigns of rulership in the Kingdom of God, which is still future.

The root of Jesse, refers to the tree of Jesse, which tree refers to him as a person and to his life, but now has died and has been dead and gone since those distant ancient times. But within that tree remains a stump and within that dead stump there remains a living root, which will spring out and grow into yet another tree from that same tree.

This of course defines the family line of the Messiah, and narrows it down to the family of Jesse.  In other passages it is narrowed down even more to David and thus on eventually to Joseph and Mary.  This eliminates all other competition and claims of messiahship from other sources and religions and refers exclusively to Jesus Christ.

From that root, will spring out the Savior, Jesus Christ and to Him, all nations, both Jew and Gentile, will seek Him as their lord and savior.

Thus from these words, the Messiah was not exclusive to the Jewish people, but was there for all peoples the world over.  Likewise, the Kingdom of God, which we often times call the Millennium, will not be exclusive to the Jewish people, but there will be many gentiles who will survive and be delivered at the end of the Tribulation and of who will enter into the Millennium as well.

And He shall stand, will be conspicuous, will be well known by all, without exception throughout His reign.

For one-thousand years, everyone will know who and what Christ is.  He will not be an unknown to anyone.

This too, points out the dramatic impact and thoroughness of His rule for His entire reign.

Thus far, Isaiah has pointed out His birth, His personal characteristics, His policy, the results of His policy on life and the environment the world over.  These things and many more, will be well known and understood and understood that all is due to the rule of Christ, and for no other reason.

An ensign, is a banner, a flag, a symbol, around which or to which all troops rally.  So too, Jesus Christ will be the person to whom all peoples will rally and look to.

The gentiles will seek Him, meaning obviously that there will be gentile peoples living in the Millennium.

And His rest will be glorious.

His rest here is all inclusive, referring to peace, tranquility, security, happiness, prosperity, wealth, burden free, worry free, anxiety free, the dreamed of perfect life.  These all, will be caused and provided and maintained and sustained by Jesus Christ.

And one wonders just how anyone in the Millennium could reject Him as the Savior.  But unfortunately, a perfect environment is not the answer to the question of salvation or a relationship with God.  Only faith in Christ is the one and only answer.  Therefore ones environment, ones circumstances are irrelevant to salvation.

Glorious, means phenomenal.  There will never be a life in this world that will be like life in the Millennium.

Those who survive the Tribulation, will come out of the most horrendous time in all of human history, and so they will see firsthand the huge differences between the two.

Those who will be born during the Millennium, will never know the hardships of life that have occurred throughout history, and so they will never have anything to compare life to, except from the stories that they are told by their parents.  But hearing about an experience, and living that experience are two vastly different things.  It will be difficult to comprehend something that you have never experienced firsthand.

The Lords Kingdom during the Millennium, will be the most phenomenal period of time, with the most phenomenal and dramatic changes to the environment, to animals, to the lifespans of people, even to the general day to day lifestyle for all. 

It will be impossible to figure out how to improve on anything, as life is perfect in almost every way.

It will be impossible to criticize any aspect of life for those very same reasons.

Isaiah 11:9

Copyright Ó 2013 J. Neely

Isaiah 11:9ues

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9 They shall not hurt [ra`a`] nor destroy [shachath] in all my holy [qodesh] mountain: [har] for the earth ['erets] shall be full [male'] of the knowledge [de`ah] of the LORD, [Yahovah] as the waters [mayim] cover [kacah] the sea. [yam] KJV-Interlinear

9 They will not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain, For the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord As the waters cover the sea. NASB

They, refers to the wild and hostile and venomous animals spoken of in the previous verses, will not have their usual ways of ferociousness, and will not bring any harm of any kind, during the reign of Christ.

The holy mountain is often used to describe the domain over which Christ rules.  In this case, that domain will be the entire world.

The earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord, namely bible doctrine.

The waters covering the seas, describes the parts of the planet upon which the oceans reside, from their vastness to their vast depths.  The canyons and great expanses over which the oceans are assigned, are filled completely and thoroughly.  And the waters of the oceans are vast.

And so it will be for doctrine which will cover the entire planet.

Today we have many religions and beliefs that compete across the world.  But in the future kingdom of Christ, there will be no competition, no alternate and false religions.  Only Christianity will reign supreme upon the planet and before the people that will live in the millennium.

All religions are authored by Satan and are all lies.  But in the millennium, Satan will be locked up for the entire reign of Christ, up to the very end of that reign.  So, religion will not surface throughout the millennium, and will not raise its evil head until Satan is released at the very end of the Millennium and then and only then when he is released, he will recruit and lead a rebellious people against Christ.  A rebellion that will not last very long, but will be put down quickly.

Throughout the Millennium, Christian doctrine will be taught and most people will believe in Christ.  But still in the end, people having free will thinking, will still reject Christ despite His tremendously resourceful and successful and prosperous and peaceful reign.

This verse describes the perfect environment, free of natural threats, and full of truth.

Isaiah 11:8

Copyright Ó 2013 J. Neely

Isaiah 11:8ues

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8 And the sucking child [yanaq] shall play [sha`a`] on the hole [chuwr] of the asp, [pethen] and the weaned child [gamal] shall put [hadah] his hand [yad] on the cockatrice [tsepha`]' den. [mauwrah] KJV-Interlinear

8 And the nursing child will play by the hole of the cobra, And the weaned child will put his hand on the viper's den. NASB

The term, asp, refers to various types of venomous snakes.

The term cockatrice generally refers to a viper or a tongued serpent such as would be found in mythical folklore, like the medusa whose look can turn the person to stone if they looked it in the eye.

In either case, both terms refers to extremely deadly animals, both of which no one in their right mind would ever go near, let alone a mother with a nursing infant, or a parent with a young child.

However, when Christ takes the reigns of power in the Millennium, then the changes are going to be so dramatic and so far reaching that it would take the normal person some time to get used to them.

However, these changes will be so dramatic, and complete and thorough, that even young mothers will think nothing of the risks imposed by nature, for there will be none.

The deadly poisons of snakes and all such creatures, will be non-existent.

No more bites.  No more dangers.  No more threatening risks from nature toward the very innocent and helpless of children.

The hole of an asp is not a place that an infant can place themselves near.  A mother has to do that.

The den of other dangerous animals is not a place that a toddler would be allowed to go and play.   A parent would have to allow that.

And yet these restrictions, that we would impose on our own children today, will not be restrictions or even second thoughts or concerns of parents who will live during the Millennium.

And remember this, that these verses are referring to animals, not to the bad behavior of people that might be changing. These as nature changes and they will happen dramatically and virtually instantly beginning at the start of the rule of Christ in the Millennium.

As for people, we have studied in other passages that even the rule of Christ will be insufficient to get everyone to believe in Him.  His presence, the dramatic changes in nature, the dramatic changes in the human lifespan, the phenomenal prosperity that will exist, the perfect weather for one-thousand years, will not cause everyone to believe in Christ.

At the end of the Millennium, Satan will be released and he will find a huge population of unbelievers living on planet earth.  And they will rally quickly to him and rebel against Christ, in Satan’s last effort to overthrow Christ from the throne.

That last revolt will end quickly and the Millennium will end immediately after, followed by the last resurrection of living and dead millennial believers, and their reward evaluation before the last Judgment Seat of Christ.

Then all unbelievers will be resurrected in a very different resurrection to face Christ at the Great White Throne, to receive their final sentence and condemnation.  The Lake of Fire follows for them/

After this the universe is destroyed and the new universe is created and eternity begins for all believers.

Often times it takes something extremely dramatic to obtain changes in people. 

Often times, even extreme changes are not enough to change people.

Prior to the flood, angels infiltrated humanity in order to destroy the human race.  Humanity flocked to that change, and to their own self-destruction.

The flood in Noah’s day was dramatic enough and yet no one turned to the Ark, for their deliverance.

The world saw the ten plagues against Egypt, and turned away.  They saw the many miracles of Jesus and turned away.  The world has seen many diseases and plagues, and world wars, and economic disasters and many weather related and natural disasters that have been beyond extreme, and still humanity has remained negative toward Christ for the most part.

Even in our current day, there is an intense indifference toward the very basics of the spiritual life, in favor of more convenient approaches to God and what people believe is their right or their better way to serve either themselves or God or whatever deity or goal they have defined for themselves.

We will likely see many more disasters in our future.  We already know that the end of our dispensation has been described as the period of the Great Apostasy.  This is simply a turning away from truth, for whatever else people will turn to, whether secular or religious.

Then the next great historical event, the Rapture, may not even get noticed, except perhaps by some, what with such a huge negative interest in God, Christ, doctrine and so forth.

And that leaves the last seven years of human rule, called the Tribulation, in which well over ninety-nine percent of the entire worlds population will die.

Most folks would call that, dramatic and extreme.

The people, mature believers, who only seven years earlier were unbelievers, and now will become the first and only survivors to enter into the Millennium, will do so with the dramatic visions of an entire world that died, with the visions of entire islands and continents that have totally changed their geography, with a nature that is nothing like the nature from before, with life that is so dramatically different and better under the rule of Christ, that one would think, that that would be more than enough to convince people to look to Christ.

But as we have already studied, the world and its changes whatever they might be, are never enough.  People have to believe in Christ and pursue their spiritual lives as God has designed that growth process, in order to effect those same changes in themselves.

But who will listen?  Who will read the words?  Who will figure it out?

And so will you be numbered among the vast, vast, vast majority that will fail? 

Or are you going to be numbered among the very, very few that will succeed by pursuing your daily bible study, every day, without exception?

Isaiah 11:7

Copyright Ó 2013 J. Neely

Isaiah 11:7ues

http://www.dailybiblestudy.org

7 And the cow [parah] and the bear [dob] shall feed; [ra`ah] their young ones [yeled] shall lie down [rabats] together: [yachad] and the lion ['ariy] shall eat ['akal] straw [teben] like the ox. [baqar]KJV-Interlinear

7 Also the cow and the bear will graze; Their young will lie down together; And the lion will eat straw like the ox. NASB

In the previous verse we saw how the predatory behavior of wild animals will cease to exist.

Here we see that even the diet and habit of otherwise wild animals will change dramatically.

The bear, normally the predator will be domestic and tame and will move about and graze alongside cattle in the field.  Even their young will live, play, and frolic together without the typical interference or protectiveness of the mother.   There is no further need for guarded protectiveness, because there is no danger.

The lion whose appetite is for meat from the kill, will have dramatic changes in its diet.  From meat to grass is quite a change.  That even implies that the nature of the teeth will change so as to be able to eat grass as opposed to the teeth that are needed to tear apart flesh and meat. Even the digestive system would need to undergo changes for the change in diet.

Now note something that should be obvious, but needs to be mentioned anyway.  These changes are not man made. They are not changes that will occur naturally in nature.  There is no evolution operation going on here.

When Jesus Christ returns at the Second Advent, the world will undergo phenomenal changes in weather, in nature, in all of creation.

As for people, their lifespan will be extended dramatically.  A child will be a hundred years old, which means that old people will live for the most part of the Millennium, which is a thousand years.  That also indicates a healthier population, less disease, less illness and so forth.

The weather will be perfect for their entire duration of the millennium.

And as we have seen in these two verses, the animal kingdom is going to have dramatic changes within it as well.

The ferociousness of the wild will disappear, and the diet of the wild will no longer be carnivorous.

These are not symbolisms, but real changes.

If these were symbolisms then other references would have been brought into the context, such as some comparison to human behavior.  But such is not the case here.  These are actual animal changes that reach to the very core of their animal design.

Only God can accomplish that.  Only God can accomplish that is a short space of time.  At the Second Advent, changes will be virtually instant with but one exception, wherein the bird scavengers of the world will be there to have their last great feast on the human dead that will be scattered across the planet.  This is the last great cleanup and when completed, one could assume that even the scavengers will undergo certain changes.

In any case, the dramatic changes are Gods design, and Gods assignment for life during the Millennium. They will follow Gods command with immediate effect following the Second Advent.

Isaiah 11:6

Copyright Ó 2013 J. Neely

Isaiah 11:6ues

http://www.dailybiblestudy.org

6 The wolf [za'eb] also shall dwell [guwr] with the lamb, [kebes] and the leopard [namer] shall lie down [rabats] with the kid; [gadiy] and the calf [`egel] and the young lion [kaphiyr] and the fatling [mariy'] together; [yachad] and a little [qatan] child [na`ar] shall lead [nahag] them. KJV-Interlinear

6 And the wolf will dwell with the lamb, And the leopard will lie down with the kid, And the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; And a little boy will lead them. NASB

The wolf, the leopard, and the lion are all predators. The lamb, the kid (a young goat), the calf, and the fatling (an older of the cattle) are all domestic animals.

Then these, all of them, can be led by a child.

Whereas now, a young child might have a difficult time leading a calf or a goat due to their rambunctiousness. But there will come a time when a young child will not only be able to easily lead these domestic animals around on a lead rope, but also the child will be able to lead around a wolf, a leopard, or a lion as well.  Just as one might lead around a puppy or a kitten or a domestic cat or dog.

Within the space of this chapter, we have learned that the Messiah, who was born an infant child, grew up and learned about life just as we all did.

But more than that, this particular child, who was Jesus Christ, was intensely interested in doctrine, which unfortunately most of us when we grow up, are not so interested in doctrine.  So Jesus was different than the rest of us, He was perfect, He was and is God.

He figured out who He was and pursued that plan, which God had put into place for Him, since eternity past.  The scriptures confirmed His identity as well as God confirming it.  Even Satan and the demons that He confronted, confirmed His identity.

But this verse introduces us not to Jesus and His perfections, and not even His growing up, but to the repercussions of truth, when it finally becomes the standard of life in the world.

There will be no longer the predator and the prey. There will no longer be the ferocious and the meek.

But in truth, there will be harmony and stability and prosperity and so forth.  Such is the power and authority of truth over creation.

In the Garden of Eden, there was harmony.  Then sin entered into the picture and there came into the world, evil and trouble and destruction within life itself.

When God created the angels, they lived in harmony and happiness, but then Satan brought in sin and evil and the harmony of the universe was upset.

These things we have to take on faith. 

Enter truth and then enter harmony.  This we are told from the bible.

And then enter sin and then evil brings unrest and destruction to the universe.  This we are told by the bible and confirmed by the findings of geologists and such historical detectives who have been able to piece together various scenarios of prehistoric times, what with vicious animals and extinctions and such things.

Enter in the Garden and Adam and Eve and we have again harmony.  The source is God.

Enter in again, Satan, and temptation and then sin and the Garden is closed and trouble enters into history.

Next we will have the Millennium and the rule of Christ.  Again we have harmony even among the animals.

So, who introduces harmony?  God of course.  God is truth.

And who introduces discord and trouble into history and into creation?  Satan.  Satan is the example and pattern of the rejection or indifference toward truth.

When truth rules, then the vicious become gentle.