He is only a prophet of doom, because they wouldn’t listen, had they listened in the first place to Isaiah (who they cut in half), Jeremiah wouldn’t have to have spoken the words he did. But Zedekiah didn’t want to hear it and put him in prison.

The object lesson is to listen and obey.

The voice of mirth, gladness, the bridegroom, and the bride and lighted candles and the sound of millstones were removed not only from Judah but also from the surrounding nations. Right away we can see a spiritual connotation because of Revelation 18:23, “And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived.” In other words, the natural picture, from which we can extrapolate valuable information, is a past historical fulfillment that embodies a prophecy of the future. As we continue, we will become more and more convinced that chapter 25 was not wholly fulfilled by the king of Babylon and his confederates, for some of the details did not happen back there but are prophesied elsewhere as events in the near future.

WHATEVER the character of the watching, and whatever the thing to be looked for, there can be no question that the exhortation to watch for an event whose precise time is not stated, implies that when the event does take place, the watching ones will know it. Watch, because ye know not, in order that at the proper time ye may know, is the thought; and the intimation clearly is, that those who do not watch will not know: that the events which are to be known in due time to the Watchers, will be recognized by them, and not recognized by others, at the time of accomplishment.

The call to come out of Babylon is an individual call. For the truth’s sake, one may have to leave his father, mother, sister, brother, friend, or anyone else who stays behind and obey as an individual. Christians get rooted in spiritual Babylon; they are comfortable there with their social friendships that are enjoyable, good, and wholesome for the most part. For one to come out of Babylon means to leave friendships and thus to suffer a loss. Taking a stand and leaving mystic Babylon is very searching. The call is to come out so “that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues” (Rev. 18:4). To spiritually come out of Babylon is to move from one condition to another. Sometimes very tender ties have to be broken. Then comes the Christian walk, the journeying to “Jerusalem which is above” (Gal. 4:26).

The key to understanding who is spoken about in Revelation 13, one must first look to Daniel. This Bible study explores the episode with the Three Hebrews; Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and the image on the plain of Dura. The incredible faith they had in God not to betray Him through fear of death at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar. When once we understand the symbols of Daniel we can then transfer them to the New Testament, namely the book of Revelation which is a book of symbols. Who is the Beast? Who is the image of the Beast? This study was given 1989

The Babylonian Empire is likened to a lion with eagle’s wings. A lion is called the king of the beasts because of its royal mien; that is, its big head and mouth almost completely hide the body. Similarly, the eagle is considered the king of the birds. These symbols beautifully harmonize with the golden head of the image in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream (Dan. 2:31,32).

Whereas Daniel 2 portrays the universal empires from man’s perspective, Daniel 7 pictures them from God’s perspective. In other words, Nebuchadnezzar and Daniel both dreamed about the same four empires but each from a different standpoint. “I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked.” This clause refers to the time when Nebuchadnezzar was reduced to insanity and humiliated for seven years. During that time he ate grass, his nails were like birds’ claws, and his hair grew like eagles’ feathers. In a negative sense a lion shows a boasting attitude, and an eagle indicates pride, being lifted up in heart. Nebuchadnezzar’s attitude was “Haven’t I myself accomplished all this glory, such as the Hanging Gardens?”

The first eagle, described as “great,” with great, long wings that were full of diverse-colored feathers, pictured King Nebuchadnezzar, the head of gold in the “great” Babylonian Empire (Dan. 2:38). Wings are used for flight, speed, power, and coverage. The variety of color in the feathers represented the diverse peoples in the empire with a diversity of talent.

Jeremiah, a contemporary of Ezekiel, referred to the speed of the Babylonian army, saying it was “swifter than eagles” (Jer. 4:13). He also likened this enemy of Israel, which came from the north, to a lion and a “destroyer of the Gentiles.” Through Jeremiah, God told Israel that the judgment was coming and the enemy would be victorious. “I will bring evil from the north, and a great destruction. The lion is come up from his thicket, and the destroyer of the Gentiles is on his way; he is gone forth from his place to make thy land desolate; and thy cities shall be laid waste, without an inhabitant” (Jer. 4:6,7). The lion and the eagle symbolize ferocity and swiftness, respectively. In Daniel 7:1–4, the kingdom of Babylon is likened to a lion (king of the beasts) with the wings of an eagle (king of the birds). An eagle spreads its wings to paralyze its prey; a lion roars.

This golden image on the Plain of Dura corresponds to the image of the beast. Both are statues. Some call Daniel the Old Testament Book of Revelation, and others give Ezekiel that title. A lot of pictures and subpictures from both books are reflected in the Book of Revelation. Incidentally, the “gold” suggests divinity—false divinity in this case.

Zechariah 9 is a very exciting chapter. It starts out with more detail about Psalm 83 which is the Arab-Israeli war that is coming very soon (see Newsletters for more details), also gives more details about the Gog and Magog invasion that follows the Psalm 83 incident and then discusses Israel’s coming back into favor with God with the rescue of the Holy Remnant. Here we connect the scriptures that pertain to the subject (Valley of Dry Bones, and Parable of Rich man and Lazarus) when the prisoners (who have hope) are released out of the pit where there is no water. What beautiful harmony there is in the Word of God.

Verses 1 and 2: “At that time, saith the LORD, they shall bring out the bones of the kings of Judah, and the bones of his princes, and the bones of the priests, and the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, out of their graves: And they shall spread them before the sun, and the moon, and all the host of heaven, whom they have loved, and whom they have served, and after they have walked, and whom they have sought, and whom they have worshipped: they shall not be gathered, nor be buried; they shall be for dung upon the face of the earth.” Jeremiah said that the time would come when the bones of all segments of society would be exhumed by the king of the north, Nebuchadnezzar. A principle in Bible study is to know the type before we consider the antitype, for God laid down the picture, from which we get the antitype.