Titus 2:13

Looking for that blessed hope,
and the glorious appearing of the great God
and our Saviour Jesus Christ;

Donna wrote:

Just found your site and am enjoying and researching some of your studies. But before I proceed, it is important for me to know if you believe that Jesus Christ is God in the flesh. The viewpoint of the studies could greatly vary over who you believe Jesus to be.
Thanks,
Donna

Dear Donna,
God Bless you for writing; we hope this shows we truly believe Jesus Christ is God come in the flesh and is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

THE LORD JESUS CHRIST

1. The Declaration

We believe that 'confessedly great is the mystery of godliness.' While God absolutely is Spirit and invisible, Whom no man has seen or can see, yet for the purpose of creation, He assumed the limitations suggested by the titles, 'The Image of the invisible God,' 'The Form of God,' and 'The Word,' and for the purpose of redemption He yet further limited Himself by being made flesh and tabernacled among us as The Only Begotten of The Father. In spite of all such limitations, and in spite of the problems arising out of His incarnation, we believe we may, with Thomas, fully and unreservedly bow at the feet of Christ and say: 'My Lord and my God.'

2. Scriptural Grounds

'In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God ... All things were made by Him ... the world was made by Him' (John 1:1, John 1:3, John 1:10).

'Before Abraham was, I Am' (John 8:58).

'Who being the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power ... Unto the Son He saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever ... Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands: they shall perish; but Thou remainest' (Heb. 1:3, Heb. 1:8, Heb. 1:10-11).

'Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: for by Him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created BY Him, and FOR Him: and He is before all things, and by Him all things consist' (Col. 1:15-17).

'Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: but made Himself of no reputation' (Phil. 2:6-7).

' ... The church of God, which He hath purchased with His own blood' (Acts 20:28).

' ... shall call His Name Immanuel - God with us' (Isa. 7:14; cf. Matt. 1:23).

'Unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given ... and His Name shall be called ... The mighty God' (Isa. 9:6).

'These things said Esaias (Isaiah), when he saw His (Christ's) glory, and spake of Him' (John 12:41).

' ... Mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of Hosts' (Isa. 6:5).

'1 am the LORD: that is My Name: and My glory will I not give to another' (Isa. 42:8).

3. An Expansion And Exposition Of Some Aspects Of This Mighty Theme.

It has been pointed out that in the frescoes painted by Fra Angelico, the figure of the Saviour is much below the average, the reason being that when this artist attempted to portray his Lord, the solemnity and majesty of his subject overwhelmed him.

We have no ability to select a pictorial representation of the Lord at all, but today, people demand graphics, so we make a feeble attempt to display something. Even when we try to relate in words, Fra Angelico's difficulty expresses something of our own. How can we adequately express what the Lord Jesus is to us? If we are brief, it may seem that we have no reverence for our theme. If we are lengthy, all the pages at our disposal cannot touch the fringe of the subject. If we make no reference to false translations such as that of John 1:1, where some render the passage, 'The Word was a God,' the omission may be misconstrued. If we load our pages with refutations and arguments, we may put out our hands to stay the ark of God. Reasoning and logic are true only when employed within the sphere of our experience. It is true for us to say that nothing can be in two places at one and the same time, but such logic becomes untrue when taken into God's Sphere. We, therefore, content ourselves with the following brief exhibition of the Scriptural grounds for our faith concerning the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ.

We most surely believe that the Lord Jesus Christ is both God and man - 'God manifest in the flesh.'  We adhere to the AV. of 1 Timothy 3:16.

We believe that Christ, as a perfect sinless man, was miraculously born of a virgin. Himself untainted by the fall of Adam.

According to Scripture, there are three outstanding attributes of God which He declares belong to no one else. These three attributes are unreservedly given by Scripture to the Lord Jesus Christ.

1. Creator

'In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth' (Gen. 1:1).

' . . . in six days the LORD made heaven and earth' (Exod. 20:11).

'For thus saith the LORD that created the heavens; God Himself that formed the earth and made it ... I am the LORD; and there is none else' (Isa. 45:18).

2. Redeemer

'Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and His Redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside Me there is no God' (Isa. 44:6).

3. Jehovah - Lord

'I am the LORD: that is My name: and My glory will I not give to another' (Isa. 42:8).

In each of these statements, the claim is exclusive. And we may now seek to shew that these exclusively divine attributes belong to Christ.

1. Jesus Christ is the Creator

'All things were made by Him ... He was in the world, and the world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not' (John 1:3, John 1:10).

He made the world. Yet He was in the world. This chapter recognizes the problem and solves it.

' ... The Word was God' (John 1:1).

' ... the Word was made (became) flesh' (John 1:14).

' ... by Him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him, and for Him: and He is before all things, and by Him all things consist' (Col. 1:16-17).

The range here is tremendous. Not only is creation attributed to Christ, but it is for Him and held together by Him. Here, instead of the title 'The Word,' we have 'The Image of the Invisible God' and 'The Firstborn of every creature'. If the title 'Firstborn' be construed as meaning that the Lord had no existence before, how shall we explain its recurrence in Col. 1:18, 'The Firstborn from the dead'? If we accept the inspired explanation which is given in the passage considered - 'The Beginning' - we shall understand its bearing upon creation itself. Christ is called 'The beginning of the creation of God' (Rev. 3:14), not because He was the first One created, but because He created all things.

The first verse of Hebrews states that in times past, God spoke by the prophets, but the second verse reveals a deeper truth - He has since spoken Himself, for the words are, 'Hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son (in Son).' The Son is addressed as 'God' and 'Lord' (Heb. 1:8, Heb. 1:10), and the creation, including heaven and earth, is attributed to Him. As we read Isaiah 45:18 and the passages from John, Colossians, and Hebrews already quoted, we have no alternative but to bow in the presence of the Saviour and say, 'My Lord and my God.'

2. Jesus Christ is the Redeemer

There is no need to quote chapter and verse. All we need do is to remind the reader of Isaiah 44:6 and to affirm that Whoever is, in a Scriptural sense, The Redeemer is God.

3. Jesus Christ is the Lord

' ... Every tongue should (shall) confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father' (Phil. 2:11).

This is a quotation from Isaiah 45:23, and by reading the four previous verses in this Chapter, we learn that the One referred to as 'Lord' is God:

'There is no God else beside Me ... I am God, and there is none else. I have sworn by Myself, the word is gone out of My mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, That unto Me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear'.

Isaiah 42:8 declares that the Lord will not give His glory to another. When we read that Jesus Christ is Lord, it means that He is the Jehovah of the Old Testament, the 'I AM' who was before Abraham.

John 12:41 declares that when Isaiah saw the Lord high and lifted up in the temple, he saw the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ, while Hezekiah most emphatically affirms that the Lord of Hosts seen by Isaiah was 'God ... alone' (Isa. 37:16).

We can understand that the Creator is God, but that this is true of The Redeemer, Who is necessarily man (for He must die), is at first sight a difficulty to many. Yet the question of the deity of Christ could be decided by this matter alone, for He Who is a Redeemer in the Scriptural sense must be God and must also be man. No one else can fill the position, for the Hebrew word for The Redeemer is Goel, meaning a kinsman (as in the story of Ruth). If Jesus Christ is not God, and if He is not truly man, we have no Redeemer.

Now the Redeemer has the following titles in Isaiah:- 'Lord,' 'The Lord of Hosts,' 'The mighty One of Jacob,' 'The Holy One of Israel,' 'The Creator of Israel,' 'Beside Me there is no God' (Isa. 41:14; Isa. 47:4; Isa. 49:26; Isa. 54:5; Isa. 43:15; and Isa. 44:6). Here, then, is the problem. How can God, the Creator, the Lord of Hosts, be 'next of kin' to man? Isaiah, whose emphasis upon the Godhead of the Redeemer creates the problem, supplies the solution:

' ... Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel' (Isa. 7:14).

'Unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon His shoulder: and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace' (Isa. 9:6).

' ... Fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall bring forth a Son, and thou shalt call His name JESUS: for He shall save His people from their sins. Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call His name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us' (Matt. 1:20-23).

' ... Feed the church of God, which He hath purchased with His own blood' (Acts 20:28).

We hope this helps, and God Bless you in Christ Jesus, The Lord
The Believers

1 Thessalonians 4:15-18

This is where in Scripture, Paul addresses the Hope of the Church,
which he and the believers looked forward to prior to the time of Acts 28:28. 

John wrote:

Where is rapture mentioned in the Bible?

John

Dear John,
God Bless your beautiful heart, and thank you for writing. The word "rapture" is not found anywhere in the Biblical texts and is a term used by some to describe what they call an early departure of the church. This is not sound Biblical doctrine, and we are enclosing a teaching to help you discover what the Bible teaches regarding The Coming of The Lord.

THE HOPE OF PAUL'S ACTS EPISTLES

Paul said in verse 1 Thes. 4:15 "This we say unto you,  By The Word Of The Lord .... Paul was quoting and using The Word of the Lord to show them their Hope. That Hope, as found in 1 Thess. 4:16-18 is detailed with its shout, voices of the archangel, and trumpet and was written down in The Word of the Lord.

In 1 Corinthians 15, when writing about the same Hope of resurrection (which some call the "rapture"), he says in 1 Cor. 15:54-55 “So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality,  then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, death is swallowed in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?” If Paul means what he says and says what he means, the Hope of 1 Corinthians 15 was prophesied in The Word of the Lord.

Paul is quoting from two different Books in The Word of the Lord, Hosea 13:14 and Isa. 25:8, to show the Corinthians their hope. This agrees with what Paul said in Acts 26:22, where summing up his Acts ministry, he said,” Having therefore obtained help of God, I continue unto this day witnessing both to small and great, saying none other things than those which the prophets and Moses did say should come.” Paul’s Acts ministry and what he wrote in his Acts epistles can be found in the Old Testament Scriptures, and that includes the Hope he wrote about in 1 Thessalonians 4 and 1 Corinthians 15.

In this article, we will show that the Hope that Paul wrote about in 1 Thessalonians 4 and 1 Corinthians 15 is not only found in the Old Testament Scriptures but was taught by Jesus Christ in His earthly ministry in Matthew 24 and other places. That this runs contrary to what is taught in most Bible churches today is certain, but there are as many "doctrines and traditions of men in "Bible churches,” as there are in denominational churches in this country.

For years it has been the “party line” in most “Bible churches” that 1 Thessalonians 4 and 1 Corinthians 15 are the promised hope of The Church today and that no one knew or wrote about this hope prior to Paul. This doctrine has been preached for so long and so loud that Christendom accepts this with no questions asked. But yet, we just read that what Paul said to the Thessalonians about their hope, he said to them by the Word of The Lord. And we read in 1 Corinthians 15 that when that resurrection takes place, Old Testament Scriptures would be brought to pass.

The question that Bible believers need to answer these days is, who are we going to believe? Are we going to believe what the preachers say because they have been saying it for so long and loud, or are we going to believe what the Scriptures say, where they say it, as they say, it? We should always endeavor to study to show ourselves approved before God, and let the traditions of men fall where they may, no matter what the cost.

Let it be said at the offset of this article that we do not believe that the Hope of the Church today is found in 1 Corinthians 15 or 1 Thessalonians 4. We believe that God revealed a new and better Hope to Paul after the Acts period and that it is found in his Prison Epistles.

If you are serious about your bible study, and you want to get to the bottom of this issue and find out for yourself if what we are saying is true, we recommend you get three Bibles and lay them out before you. Open one to Matthew 24, another to 1 Corinthians 15, and the other to 1 Thessalonians 4. The subject is the same in all three books, and it is resurrection. We are going to compare what Jesus says about the resurrection in Matthew 24, which He taught during His earthly ministry, with the resurrection Paul wrote about in 1 Cor. 15 and 1 Thess. 4. If Jesus and Paul say the same thing, then they must be talking about the same resurrection. On the other hand, if they say contradictory things about the resurrection, then they are not speaking of the same resurrection. In Matthew 24, Jesus taught the 12 apostles about resurrection, and He said in Matt. 24:29-31 ...

"Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other." (Mark 13:27 "from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven")

Let’s compare what Jesus says here with what Paul says.

(1.) THE HOPE OF MATT. 24 IS THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST.

Matt. 24:30, "They shall see the Son of man COMING"

Matt. 24:29, "For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the COMING of the Son of man be"

The Hope Of I Cor. 15 And I Thess. 4 Is Also The Second Coming Of Christ.

1 Cor. 15:22-23, “For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the first fruits; afterward they that are Christ’s AT HIS COMING”.

1 Cor. 1:7, “So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for THE COMING OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST.”

1 Thess. 4:15, "For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto THE COMING OF THE LORD shall not prevent them which are asleep"

The hope of the Acts Believers was the coming of the Lord. Paul mentions it ten times in his Acts epistles. Check them out and see for yourself, 1 Cor. 1:7, 1 Cor. 4:5, 1 Cor. 11:26, 1 Cor. 15:23, 1 Thess. 2:19, 1 Thess. 3:13, 1 Thess. 4:15, 1 Thess. 5:23, 2 Thess.1:10, 2 Thess. 2:1.

Now, if the Lord has already come once to die for sinners, then the coming we have been reading about must be His Second Coming, right? Why is it so hard for Bible believers to admit that? A Bible believer once said that his hope was not the second coming of Christ, but it was the “rapture,” and he quoted 1 Thess. 4:15. Doesn’t Paul say they would be caught up at the COMING of the Lord? And doesn’t he mention His coming ten times in his Acts epistles? And if Christ has already come one time, wouldn’t this be his second coming?

(2.) IN MATT. 24 WHEN JESUS COMES, HE COMES IN THE CLOUDS.

Matt. 24:30 says, “They shall see the Son of man coming in the Clouds Of Heaven”

In 1 Thess. 4 and 1 Cor. 15, when Jesus Comes, He comes in Clouds.

1 Thess. 4:17 says, “Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them IN THE CLOUDS, to meet the Lord in the air.”

If you want to know where the clouds are, look up into the air, and you will see them. It’s the clouds in the lower atmosphere.

(3.) IN MATT. 24 WHEN JESUS COMES IN THE CLOUDS, HE WILL COME WITH ANGELS.

Matt. 24:31, "And He shall send forth his ANGELS"

In 1 Thess. 4 and 1 Cor. 15, when Jesus comes in the clouds, He will come with Angels.

1 Thess. 4:16, “HE will descend from heaven with... the voice of the ARCHANGEL.

Michael is the archangel and the prince of Israel (DAN 12:1-2), and where Michael goes, so do His Angels, read Rev. 12:7.

(4.) IN MATT. 24 WHEN JESUS COMES IN THE CLOUDS WITH ANGELS, A TRUMPET IS BLOWN.

Matt. 24:31, “And he shall send his angels with a great SOUND OF A TRUMPET”

In 1 Thess. 4 and I Cor. 15, when Jesus comes in the clouds with Angels, a Trumpet is blown.

I Cor. 15:52, “For The Trumpet Shall Sound and the dead shall be raised “1 Thess. 4:16 says, “The Lord himself shall descend from heaven ..with The Trump Of God”.

(5.) THE TRUMPET THAT IS BLOWN IN MATT. 24 IS THE LAST TRUMPET, FOR IT IS BLOWN AFTER THE GREAT TRIBULATION.

Matt. 24:29, “Immediately after the tribulation of those days ... Matt. 24:31 "he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet.”

The Trumpet in 1 Thess. 4 and 1 Cor.15 is specifically called The Last Trumpet.

1 Cor. 15:52, "In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, At The Last Trump: for the Trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised.”

If Paul said they would be raised at the last trumpet, that means there are other trumpets blown before it. There is no denying the fact that before the second coming of Christ, trumpets are going to be blown. In Rev. Chapters 8-9-10-11, there will be at least seven trumpets blown before The Lord Jesus comes. In 1 Cor. 15, Paul said the dead would be raised at the Last Trumpet. If there are 7 Trumpets blown before He comes, which Trumpet is Paul referring to? That’s easy, it’s number 7 in Rev. 11:15, and it so happens that when the seventh trumpet is blown in Rev. 11, a resurrection of the Saints takes place, they are judged, and rewards are given out to them, read Rev. 11:15-18. Also read 2 Cor. 5:8-11.

Every trumpet that is going to be blown before Jesus comes is found in the Book of Revelation, so don’t waste your time running all over the Bible, trying to find another trumpet to get around the last trumpet in 1 Corinthians 15. If a trumpet is going to be blown, if a seal is going to be opened, if a vial is going to be poured out in the tribulation, You will find it in the Book of Revelation or Daniel. If it’s not in those Books, don’t waste your time searching through the Scriptures to come up with another trumpet, vial, or seal. (It’s amazing what people and preachers will do to get around these clear records! Just believe the Book and relax; for 1 Cor. 15 and 1 Thess. 4 is not your Hope. God gave us a new and better Hope, and it's found in the Prison Epistles of Paul, and it takes place before the first trumpet even blows. We will lay out the details of this Hope later, but we are studying the Acts period, and a pre-tribulation Hope was unheard of; in fact, that false doctrine only surfaced about 150 years ago.

When the resurrection of Matt. 24 takes place, not only will The Lord descend from Heaven in the clouds with His Angels and a Trumpet, but a Voice will be heard also.

The voice is not mentioned in Matt. 24, but it is in John 5:25-28. It says, "The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live"

In 1 THESS. 4 and 1 COR. 15 When the Lord descends from Heaven into the clouds with Angels and the sound of a Trumpet, a voice will be heard.

1 Thess. 4:16 “The Lord shall descend from heaven with a Shout ...

The shout is for the dead; the trumpet is for those alive.

(7.) IN MATT. 24 WHEN JESUS COMES WITH HIS ANGELS AND A SHOUT AND THE SOUND OF A TRUMPET, HIS ELECT WILL BE GATHERED TOGETHER.

Matt. 24:31, “They shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other (Also read Mark 13:27)

In 1 Cor. 15 and 1 Thess. 4, When Jesus comes with a shout, a trumpet, and angels, His elect will be gathered together.

2 Thess. 2:1 “Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto HIm.

And those that he gathers together here are his elect also, according to 1 Thess. 1:4, and 2 Thess. 2:13.

(8.) IN MATT. 24 WHEN JESUS COMES IN THE CLOUDS, IT WILL BE SUDDEN AND UNEXPECTED.

Matt. 24:42, “Watch, therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would not have suffered his house to be broken up. Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.”

In these verses, Jesus compares his coming with a thief breaking into a house. A thief comes suddenly and unexpectedly. He comes in and then gets out as fast as he can with the valuables and jewels he came after.

In these verses, Jesus Christ is as a thief breaking into a house. The house is this world that the devil is the god of (Matt.12:29). As a thief breaks into a house to take something of value out, His coming is to take his elect out of this world so that he can destroy it along with the devil (2 Pet. 3:10).

The Resurrection in 1 Thess. 4 and 1 Cor. 15 will be sudden and unexpected also.

1 Cor. 15:52 “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: For the trumpet shall sound and the dead shall be raised...”

When Paul says: “in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye,” he is showing you HOW FAST that resurrection will take place. But when he says "AT the last trump”, he is showing you WHEN it will take place. It will be sudden and unexpected, just like the Hope of Matt. 24.

(9.) WHEN THE RESURRECTION OF MATT. 24 TAKES PLACE; BELIEVERS WHO ARE ALIVE WILL BE CAUGHT UP WITHOUT DYING.

This fact is brought out by the Lord in John 11. In John 11, Lazarus, who was Martha’s brother, died, and she wants Christ to raise him from the dead. And Jesus said unto her in John 11:23, “Thy brother shall rise again.” Martha saith unto him, "I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day." Jesus said unto her: “I am the resurrection; and the life: he that believeth in me; though he were dead, yet shall he live. And whosoever liveth and believeth in Me shall never die ... believest thou this?”

When Jesus said, "he that believeth in me though he were dead, yet shall he live.” He is referring to those who are dead when the resurrection of the last day takes place. And when He said, "whosoever liveth and believeth in me," He is referring to those who are alive when the resurrection of the last day takes place, and he says: “They shall never die.” When the resurrection of Matt. 24 takes place, those believers who are dead will be raised, and those believers who are alive will be gathered together without dying.

When the Resurrection of 1 Thess. 4 and 1 Cor. 15 takes place, believers who are alive will be caught up without dying.

1 Cor. 15:51 "I shew you a Mystery; we shall not all sleep, but we shall be changed."

The Mystery of 1 Cor. 15:51 is not the resurrection, but it’s the fact that there will be some caught up without dying. But this is a mystery hidden in the Scriptures, for in 1 Cor. 15:55, Paul quotes Isa. 25:8, which says, "O Death where is thy sting?" In other words, in the Old Testament Scriptures, it was written down that somebody was going to get out of this life without experiencing the sting of death.

This is what Jesus is referring to in John 11:26 when he said, “He that liveth and believeth in me shall never die.” That was the only time that Christ mentioned that fact to anyone, and prior to Paul, it was the general consensus that by the time that resurrection took place, all believers would be dead. But God opened up the Scriptures to Paul, and he was the first man to fully understand that fact and write about it. But nevertheless, it was in the Old Testament Scriptures, even though concealed.

Isn’t it wonderful how the Bible opens up when you just believe what the words say and ignore what the preachers say?

(10.) THE RESURRECTION AND HOPE IN MATT. 24 WAS, OF COURSE, PROPHESIED BY THE PROPHETS.

The Hope of 1 Cor. 15:54 and 1 Thess. 4 were, of course, implied.

1 Cor. 15:54 “Then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory, O Death where is thy sting? “O Grave, where is thy victory?”

When the resurrection of 1 Cor. 15 takes place, Old Testament prophecies concerning resurrection will be brought to pass, namely Hosea 13:14 and Isa. 25:8.

(11.) THE HOPE OF MATT. 24 WAS ISRAEL’S HOPE.

The resurrection Jesus describes in Matt.24 is the hope of the New Covenant that God made with Israel.

Hope of Paul’s Acts Epistles was The Hope of Israel.

Acts 28:20 "For this cause, therefore, have I called for you, to see you, and to speak with you: because that for the Hope of Israel, I am bound with this chain.

Paul refers to the Hope of Israel 4 times in Acts.

1. In Acts 23:6, he mentions the Hope as being resurrection.
2. In Acts 24:15, he mentions the hope as being resurrection.
3. In Acts 26:6-8 He mentions the hope as being resurrection.
4. In Acts 28:20-23 he mentions the Hope in connection with the Kingdom of God.

The Hope of Israel was to be resurrected into the kingdom of God; as a matter of fact, the only way they could get into the Kingdom of God was by resurrection.

That’s exactly what Paul is showing the Corinthians in 1 Cor. 15. In that Chapter; he is showing them how to get into the Kingdom of God, and guess what he told them had to happen for them to get in? They had to be resurrected and changed. WHY? Because in 1 Cor. 15:50, he said:

“Now this I say; brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.

And in 1 Cor. 15:51, he told them they would all be changed, and the change would take place in resurrection. 1 Cor. 15 and 1 Thess. 4 is the hope of Israel. The hope of Israel was resurrection into the Kingdom of God, which is exactly what Paul is writing about in this chapter.

You say: “How did Gentiles in that Church end up with Israel’s Hope?” Because in the Acts period, they were grafted into Israel the good olive tree, according to Rom. 11:17. And being grafted into the tree, they partook of the fatness of the olive tree. The fatness of the olive tree was the blessings and promises made to the fathers, who were the root of the tree - Rom. 15:27. And one of those blessings and promises was their Hope of Resurrection.

(12.) BEFORE THE HOPE OF MATT. 24 TAKES PLACE; THERE WILL BE A FALLING AWAY, THAT IS, APOSTASY AND THE REVELATION OF THE ANTI-CHRIST.

In Matt. 24:11 Jesus said, "Many false prophets shall rise and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.” (A reference to apostasy)

Matt. 24:15, "When ye, therefore, shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the Holy place ..." (A reference to the anti-Christ Dan. 11:31)

Matt. 24:24, "There would be false Christs; and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect." (A reference to the Devil working false miracles.)

Paul said the exact same thing would take place before the Resurrection of 1 Thess. 4 and 1 Cor. 15 would take place.

2 Thess. 2:1-2 "Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him; "that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor as by letter as from us that the day of Christ is at hand."

The day of Christ in 2 Thess. 2:2, was his coming and their gathering together unto him in 2 Thess. 2:1. The Thessalonians were “all shaken up” because somebody wrote them a false letter and told them it was at hand; that is, it was immediately to take place. If it were true, they were to soon face the wrath of 2 Thess. 1:8-9.  So Paul, to assure them that His return was not imminent, tells them in 2 Thess. 2:3 “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.

For years Bible believers have wrestled with these Scriptures because they have been taught that the “so-called” Rapture in 1 Thess. 4 was a pre-tribulation rapture. We speak from personal experience. For once, we believed that until we compared the records from The Scriptures.

When we finally made up our minds to just believe what the Scriptures say, the verses shined onto us like the noonday sun! What is Paul saying here? He is saying that the day of Christ in 2 Thess. 2:2 was His Coming and their gathering together unto Him in 2 Thess. 2:1 is the same Hope found in 1 Thess. 4.

Somebody wrote a letter to them, forged Paul’s name to it, and told them it was at hand that is soon taking place. They were shaken up, for if that were true, then what Paul had taught them was wrong. Paul writes this letter to assure them that they had not been taught anything but The Truth about The Day of Christ that is, His Coming, which was still their Hope and gave instructions again on what would happen before His Coming. Paul said the Day of Christ would not take place until after a period of apostasy and the revelation of the Anti-Christ, which they knew had not taken place. (He also mentions the Devil working miracles in 2 Thess. 2:9)

The point that we are making is the Hope of 1 Thess. 4 which was the Day of Christ, would not take place until AFTER a period of apostasy and the revelation of the Anti-Christ, just like the resurrection in Matt. 24. Don’t get uptight thinking you’re going to be here when the Anti-Christ is revealed, for 1 Thess. 4 is not your Hope. We have a new and better Hope found in the Prison Epistles, which is described in the article That Blessed Hope. And that Hope takes place before the Tribulation ever begins, maybe years before.

We believe these 12 similarities between Matt. 24 and I Cor. 15 and 1 Thess. 4 are enough to convince any fair-minded believer that we have been looking at the same resurrection. If they are not the same, then there will be two resurrections that will take place in the future at the same time that are identical! Well, the reason they are identical is because they are the same.

The Body of Christ has ONE HOPE, but it is not found in 1 Thess. 4 or 1 Cor. 15; it is found in his Prison Epistles.

ADDITIONAL NAMES CONCERNING THE HOPE OF THE ACTS EPISTLES

When speaking of “Bible Things,” we should use “Bible Names.”

The word that most Christians use today for the resurrection is the word “Rapture.” The word “Rapture” is not Scripture at all. It does not appear in the Bible even one time. Upon looking at its definition, it is a terrible word to use for resurrection. The word “Rapture” means “Violence of a pleasing passion.” “A state or experience of being carried away by overwhelming emotion, ecstasy, or passion in a carnal, sensual, sexual manner.” As a matter of fact, the word “Rapture” comes from the Latin cognate raptus, meaning “seized and taken, kidnapped by force, snatched hold of and then taken hostage, carried off or away.” In Medieval times, raptus was sometimes used to describe the euphoria soldiers experienced after defeating a foe in battle, then seizing the opponent, and taking him away as a captive. Greek raptus virginum Sabinarum is a reference to the Sabine virgins, who were raped and abducted. Why would anyone want to use a worldly word for violent, forceful rape as a word for the resurrection of saints?

Whenever Paul writes about resurrection, he always uses the word “HOPE" (See Titus 2:13, Acts 28:20, Eph. 1:18). The word “HOPE" is the Bible name for resurrection, not the carnal, sensual word “Rapture."

People use 1 Thess. 1:10 to try to prove that the resurrection in 1 Thess. 4:15-18 takes place before the tribulation period begins. They point out that it says they would be delivered from the “wrath to come” and that they were not appointed to wrath in 1 Thess. 5:9. But, that cannot be true, for Paul also told them they would be resurrected at the last trumpet in 1 Cor. 15:52, and the last trumpet is the seventh of seven, that will be blown DURING the tribulation before Lord Jesus comes at the end. Paul also told them that the Day of Christ, which was His Coming and their gathering together unto Him, was not at hand, for it would be preceded by a falling away and the revelation of the Anti-Christ, which all takes place During The Tribulation, Not Before. (2 Thess. 2:1-6 ) You cannot ignore these facts when reading 1 Thess. 1:10.

The question then that we must answer is, “What is the Wrath to Come”? That expression appears three times in the Bible, Matt. 3:7, Luke 3:7, and 1 Thess. 1:10. In Matt. 3 and Luke 3, it is identified as the day that Jesus comes in a fire to burn up the chaff after He gathers the wheat into His garner. That day is at the Very End of the tribulation.

That’s the wrath of 1 Thess. 5:9 that they were not appointed to. That’s the "wrath to come” they were delivered from in 1 Thess. 1:10. As a matter of fact, even the tribulation saints are delivered from the wrath to come, and no believer, including the tribulation saints, is appointed to wrath. Before the wrath to come is unleashed upon this earth, at the very end of the tribulation, many believers from different ages will, by that time, have been resurrected. (Though not all at the same time.)

Also, the “wrath to come” that Paul wrote of in 1 Thess. 1:10 will not come until after the last trumpet is blown (Rev. 11:18), and it was at the last trumpet that they were to be caught up to meet the Lord in the air. That’s why Paul told them that they could “Rest" when the wrath fell in 2 Thess. l:7.

If 1 Thess. 4 and 1 Cor. 15 are the Hope of The Church today (notice we said “IF”) and “if" God did not reveal a new and better Hope to Paul after the Acts period, then you can be assured that The Church will go through the tribulation just like Paul said.

And it would be false doctrine to preach a pre-tribulation resurrection. Furthermore, if you believe that 1 Thess. 4 and 1 Cor. 15 are the Hope of The Church today, then you ought to be honest enough to preach that it will take place at the end of the tribulation and not before. And we have more respect for a man that believes that 1 Thess. 4 is his hope and preaches that it will take place at the end of the tribulation than we do for a man that claims it as his hope but denies that it takes place at the end of the tribulation like Paul says it will.

We do realize that what we have written is not going to be “well-liked or received” by most Bible believers, but somebody has needed to stick their necks out and say this for a very long time. We know this is not going to “win many friends and influence many people," but somebody has got to be willing to become even the filth and off-scouring of the world and be looked upon as an evil doer by God’s own people. If that is what it takes for people to get their eyes open to what their Hope is, it is well worth it. The devil is doing everything he can to keep you from seeing the Truth about this Hope, and the one spoken of in the Prison Epistles

When men go up against the doctrines and traditions of men that have been believed and taught for many years, they will find themselves alone on the outside looking in. Their own friends will turn against them and turn away from them and accuse them of being troublemakers. That’s what happened to Paul, but he was willing to suffer abuse if that is what it took to show and reveal the Truth to people that God revealed to him.

It would be much easier to just go along with the religious system and preach their “rapture” as being the hope of the church today. It would be much easier to just ignore and even deny what Paul said about the Hope in 1 Thess. 4 and 1 Cor. 15, like everybody else is doing. But when God changes His program and replaces it with something new and better, it is wrong to go on preaching what He changed.

In other words, if God revealed a Hope to Paul in his Prison Epistles that is different and better than the one he wrote about in The Acts Epistles, wouldn’t it be wrong to go on teaching the Hope in the Acts epistles as the Hope of the Church today?

All God's Blessings,
The Believers

Ephesians 1:3

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:

Geri wrote:

I was under the impression that the heavens were actually near to us. actually just beside us. for we see the holy spirit as inside us. and also close beside us. I was surprised by these verses. It makes God far away instead of close.
Thanks for your Bible study
Geri

Dear Geri,
God Bless you, and thank you for writing. In the Bible, heaven is anywhere above the earth, so it is very near, but the Bible also tells us of different levels of heaven and also of The Heaven of the heavens. God is very near and Far above all: 

Heaven. There are five words employed in the Hebrew O.T. translated as "heaven" and one Greek word so translated in the N.T. of the Hebrew words, galgal (Psa. 77:18) refers to the "rolling clouds," the word galgal being elsewhere rendered "wheel" and "rolling thing." Shachaq, used in Psalm 89:6 and Psalm 89:37, means a "thin cloud" and is elsewhere translated as "cloud," "sky," and "small dust." It may be accidental, but it is nevertheless interesting that the blue color, and hence the visibility of the "sky," is owing to the refraction of blue rays of light and that it is to the vapory and the earthy particles in the atmosphere that the refraction is due; but for these, there would be total darkness till the instant of sunrise. As the imagery of the O.T. has been seized upon to "prove" the unscientific character of these ancient writings, the inclusion of the above note may not be without justification. Arabah "mixed" (Psa. 68:4) and ariphim "dropping" (Isa. 5:30) complete the references that refer to the clouds under the covering figure of heaven.

Shamayim. This Hebrew word is the one that is translated as "heaven" or "heavens" in the O.T. except in those portions where the Chaldee equivalent shemayin is used (Ezra, Daniel, and Jer. 10:11). The Hebrew shamayim occurs in the O.T. 419 times, of these, twenty-one occurrences are translated "air," as in Genesis 1:26. In the N.T. only one word, ouranos, is translated "heaven." This Greek word occurs over 280 times, of which "air" accounts for ten occurrences and "sky" for five. The name 'heaven' in our own language has been explained, according to its etymology, as that which is heaved or lifted up, and a similar origin has been assigned to the Greek ouranos and the Hebrew shamayim. The temporary "heaven" stretched out like a tent over the earth during the ages of Redemption is not the subject of this article where we will deal with heaven itself. Whether the translation reads "heaven" or "heavens," the word is always plural in the original. This no more indicates a plurality of "heavens" than the plural Elohim "God" indicates a plurality of Gods. There is a use of the plural in the Hebrew language known as "The Plural of Majesty" as, for example, "the sacrifices of God" in Psalm 51:17, which means "the great sacrifice."

Creation is divided into two parts, "heaven and earth" (Gen. 1:1), which in Colossians 1:16 is expanded to mean "all things visible and invisible," and the term "heaven" may include thrones, dominions, principalities, and powers, as well as physical sun, moon, and stars. Heaven is often used as a symbol of authority, for example, when Nebuchadnezzar learned "that the heavens do rule" (Dan. 4:26). The superiority of the heavens to the earth is expressed in the words "on high" (Luke 1:78, Heb. 1:3), "height" (Isa. 7:11, Psa. 148:1, Proverbs 25:3). It is possible that, after Genesis 1:1, there are but nine or ten references to "heaven itself," i.e., the heaven of Genesis 1:1, in the whole of the O.T. This can be put to the test by reading the Book of Genesis, and noting every allusion to "heaven." We read of the waters that are under heaven, lights in the firmament of heaven, fowl that fly in the "air," the windows of heaven opened at the deluge, Abraham directed to look toward heaven, to the countless number of the stars, but no passage demands that the term "heaven" should be interpreted of the heaven of Genesis 1:1. We cannot print here the 419 references to heaven, but we can print the nine or ten references that look beyond the present limited firmament.

"Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens is the Lord's thy God" (Deut. 10:14).

Here Moses draws attention to the firmament, which is "called" heaven, and the heaven of heavens, the heavens in the highest degree that were created long before the six days of Genesis 1:3-31 and Genesis 2:1. No further reference is made to the heavens themselves, until the days of David and Solomon, where in Psalm 57:5, Psalm 57:11, Psalm 108:5, Psalm 113:4, Psalm 115:16 and Psalm 148:4 we have six references to a glory that is above the present limited heavens; making, with Deuteronomy 10:14, seven in all, the perfect number; in all other places the heavens referred to are put into correspondence with the firmament (Psalm 19:1) either by the actual statement or by implication. Five hundred years after Moses, Solomon recognized that neither the present heavens nor the heaven of heavens could "contain" God (1 Kings 8:27), and the last reference to the heaven of heavens, in contrast with the firmament, is found in the Levites' prayer (Neh. 9:6).

Even when we bring these passages forward, they only emphasize the fact that "the heaven" of the O.T. was the "firmament" of Genesis 1:8, stretched out like a curtain or a tent for God to dwell in (Isa. 40:22) and any reference in Psalm or Prophecy that speaks of heaven as God's "dwelling place" refers to this tabernacle formed by the firmament. When we open the N.T., it is pardonable if we there expect to find a great advance upon this limitation of the term "heaven." Twelve times do we read in Matthew of the "Father which is in heaven," but we also read that the heavens were opened at the baptism of the Lord, that the heavens are to pass away, and unless it is a matter beyond dispute that "angels" inhabit the heaven of heavens, we shall find no instance in the Gospel of Matthew of a reference to any other "heaven" than the firmament of Genesis 1:8.

We have to wait until we reach the Gospel of John for any explicit reference to the highest heavens, and there the Saviour speaks of ascending up to Heaven to where He was before (John 3:13, John 6:62), to The Glory that He had "before the world was" (John 17:5). In these few references is contained practically all that is said of the "heavens" of Genesis 1:1 in the four Gospels. The only Calling and Company, Hope, and Sphere of blessing that pierces the present firmament above us and ascends to where Christ sits at the right hand of God is the Church of The Mystery. Christ is set forth, in Ephesians 4:10, as having ascended "far above all heavens" yet revealed as seated at the right hand of God "in The Heavenly Places." These Heavenly Places, therefore, must be above the limitations of the outstretched heavens. This is not invalidated by the fact that the selfsame sphere is called in Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians "Heaven," for we must not allow ourselves to rob "heaven itself" of its true title simply because we have used it so often of the limited firmament. In connection with this same calling, Christ can be said to be both "far above all the heavens" yet "in Heaven" at the right hand of God.

There are eleven references to "heaven" in the Epistle to the Hebrews; one only speaks of "heaven itself," and the others refer to the lesser and lower heavens. For the heavens created as recorded in Hebrews 1:10 are to "perish," but this can never be said of "Heaven Itself" Christ is said to have "passed through the heavens," dierchomai (Heb. 4:14), and as being made "higher than the heavens" (Heb. 7:26), without involving any contradiction in the saying that He Who passed through the heavens and was made higher than the heavens, was at the selfsame time depicted as entering "Heaven itself" (Heb. 9:24). The contradiction only exists in our minds if we fail to distinguish The Heaven of the beginning, Genesis 1:1 from the heaven of the ages, Genesis 1:8. The only references to the heavens of Genesis 1:1 that are found in the remainder of the N.T. are those of Peter and of the Revelation, which speak of a new heaven and new earth (2 Pet. 3:13, Rev. 21:1).

The new heavens and the new earth spoken of by Isaiah are related to Jerusalem (Isa. 65:17-18). Where we read in Revelation twenty-one of a "first heaven" and a "first earth," the word translated "first," protos, is rendered in Rev. 21:4 as "the former things," and we should possibly translate Revelation 21:1 as "the former heaven and the former earth," the reference to "no more sea" being an evident allusion to Genesis 1:2. In connection with the subject before us, let us turn to the words of Paul as found in 2 Corinthians 12:1-4. In direct connection with the visions and revelations which he had received, he refers to an extraordinary experience. Whether he was "in the body or whether out of the body," he could not tell, but he did know that he had been caught up to the third heaven . . . caught up into paradise.

First, we must be clear as to the meaning of the term "caught up." The word "up" in this passage has no equivalent in Greek, and to attempt to make it have any bearing upon the subject betrays as much ignorance of the original as would be betrayed by anyone seeking to extract the idea of direction upward, from such idiomatic phrases of the English language as "shut up," "wash up," "lock up" and the like. We can omit the word "up" for the Greek word arpazo is translated as "take by force," "catch away," "pluck," "caught away," and "pull." The phrase "in the body" translates from en somati, which is very similar to the phrase en pneumati "in spirit" used on the occasion when John was translated to the Day of the Lord (Rev. 1:10). The closest parallel is that of the experience of Philip, who was "caught away" by the spirit of the Lord, and was "found at Azotus," some miles away.

It is evident that the third heaven to which Paul was caught away was Paradise; otherwise, his reiteration would need a deal of explanation. Paradise has been located in different regions by different teachers, mainly in accordance with their peculiar beliefs concerning the intermediate state. If we keep close to the Scriptural meaning of Paradise, we shall know that it is derived from the Hebrew pardes (Neh. 2:8, Song. 4:13) and means "a garden or orchard," and when we meet the word in the Book of Revelation, it has no connection whatever with an intermediate state but is still a garden and orchard, it is indeed the garden of Eden restored and extended.

In what way, we may ask, can this Paradise at the end of the age be in any way related to the "third" heaven? If we count the third heaven as being like the third story of a building, it will certainly appear incongruous. But Revelation twenty-one has already spoken of "a new earth" and a "former earth," and it would be true to say, even as Peter in 2 Peter three has indicated, that there was a first heaven in the beginning (Gen. 1:1); a second heaven, at the making of the earth ready for a man (Gen. 1:8); a third heaven, at the end when redemption shall be finished (Rev. 21:1). It was to this "heaven" and this "paradise" that Paul was caught away, and as he stresses more than any other writer in the N.T. the blessings of the New Creation, it is quite understandable that he should associate this great goal of the ages with the visions and revelation he had received in connection with his apostleship.

The great lesson that forces itself upon our attention, however, is the fact that, apart from Paul's ministry, and especially his Prison Ministry, there is scarcely any reference in the Scriptures, either Old or New, to The Heaven of Genesis 1:1. The Hope of The Mystery alone pierces the intervening firmament and places the believer "Far above all" even where Christ sits at the right hand of God. We must now go on to the consideration of the special term "Heavenly Places," but to this, we will devote a separate study.

All God's Blessings,
The Believers

Daniel 2:22

He revealeth the deep and secret things:
he knoweth what is in the darkness,
and the light dwelleth with him.

Josh wrote:

"Exoteros skotos" can refer to being delivered unto Satan or, extensively, to the region beyond "tehome" - the great salt sea that the entire universe is set in.

Dear Josh,
God Bless you, and thank you for writing. We took some time again with this subject to review our research before writing back looking to see if "the great salt sea that the entire universe is set in" was Scriptural or not; here is what we found in our research: 

Gen 1:6-8 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.

Firmament

From the Vulgate "firmamentum," which is used as the translation of the Hebrew raqiya. This word means simply "expansion." It denotes the space or expanse like an arch appearing immediately above us. They who rendered raqiya by "firmamentum" regarded it as a solid body. The language of Scripture is not scientific but coherent, and hence, we read of the sun rising and setting, and this is also the case with this particular word. It is plain that it was used to denote solidity as well as expansion. It formed a division between the waters above and the waters below (Gen 1:7). The raqiya supported the upper reservoir (Psa. 148:4). It was the support of the heavenly bodies (Gen 1:14) and is spoken of as having "windows" and "doors" (Gen 7:11; Isa 24:18; Mal 3:10) through which the rain and snow might descend. 

The Deep

Strongs

H8415

tehom (teh-home')

(Usually feminine) from H1949;
an abyss (as a surging mass of water),
especially the deep (the main sea or the subterranean water supply): - deep (place), depth.

1)  deep, depths, deep places, abyss, the deep sea

a) deep (of subterranean waters)

b) deep sea, abysses (of sea)

c) primeval ocean, deep d) deep, depth (of river)

e) abyss, the grave

Used 36 times in the AV - deep 20, depth 15, deep places 1; 36 The primitive use of the word in poetry was water making a commotion.

Psa. 42:7 Deep calleth unto deep. (wave after wave)

Psa. 42:11 hamah {haw-maw'} disquieted from the same root word

Psa. 33:7 Storehouse of the deep.

Psa. 71:20 Depths of the Earth.

Gen. 7:11 Fountains of the Great Deep. 

So, as we can see, tehom is rendered as "the deep" many times because of its close association with large amounts of water, but this water is below the Firmament. This is one reason we started with the Firmament, for it arches above "the deep." We could not, however, find any supporting Scripture for the connection to "to the region beyond "tehome" - the great salt sea that the entire universe is set in."

We do believe the wicked spirits, as well as the devil, can be imprisoned by "the deep" as in:

2 Pet. 2:4 For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment;

The word hell is tartaroo

From Tartarus (the deepest abyss of Hades);
to incarcerate in eternal torment: - cast down to hell.

Thayer Definition:

1) the name of the subterranean region, doleful and dark, regarded by the ancient Greeks as the abode of the wicked dead, where they suffer punishment for their evil deeds; it answers to Gehenna of the Jews

2) to thrust down to Tartarus, to hold captive in Tartarus
Part of Speech: verb

We believe this spot is:

Rev. 9:14 Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates.

So, for some reason beyond our understanding, it seems fallen angels can be imprisoned by deep water and great pressure, as in:

Rev 20:2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,

Rev 20:3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.

The word bottomless is abussos

Thayer Definition:

1) bottomless

2) unbounded

3) the abyss
      3a) the pit
             3b) the immeasurable depth
                   3c) of Orcus, a very deep gulf or chasm in the lowest parts of the earth used as the common receptacle of the dead and especially as the abode of demons

And the word Pit phrear

Thayer Definition:

1) a well

2) the pit of the abyss (because the nether world is thought to increase in size the further it extends from the surface of the earth and so resemble a cistern, the orifice of which is narrow)

Strong's Number: of uncertain derivation
Of uncertain derivation; a hole in the ground (dug for obtaining or holding water or other purposes), that is, a cistern or well; figuratively an abyss (as a prison): - well, pit.

These usages relate to the Deep or Great Abyss. Could it be the sea of cursing (from which fire and brimstone emerged until just 600 years ago) commonly known as the Dead Sea? Could this lake, which burneth with fire and is bottomless and revered as a cursed place being the lowest spot on earth, be the Lake of Fire? Something to consider, although we can not say with certainty.

Outer Darkness

Matt. 8:11-12 And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven. But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

This speaks of the Promised Kingdom time after The Resurrection of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who have realized their inheritance in the newness of life Everlasting. Christ Jesus, their King-Priest, is in command of the entire earth, and Israel is the mediator of the blessings of The Lord God to all the kingdoms and governments.

We believe the nation of Israel and God's throne is where light and life flow and that outer darkness is beyond Israel's border, where mortal men live in sin and unbelief. For the sinning Israelites, the Perfect Judge will cast them out into outer darkness to wander the earth. Since the whole world will know about the blessings of those within the borders of Israel, they will jeer and taunt the outcasts, who in turn, will wail and gnash their teeth. Unlike most other teachers, we believe The Kingdom period will not be a time of blessed peace for unbelieving humanity because the Righteous Judge will be The Sovereign Monarch, and those still in the flesh will continue to sin and break God's Law. Those in Israel will enjoy the blessings, but all else is outer darkness, and even some believers who transgress or have transgressed will be cast out.

Here are some of the Scriptures that make us believe that Outer Darkness is only during the Millennial period anywhere outside Israel, and why we believe the darkness is not only spiritual but physical as well. Oh woe unto them that are in the flesh in those days that come soon upon this world.

Isa 60:1 Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.

Isa 60:2 For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee.

Isa 60:3 And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.

Isa 60:4 Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side.

Isa 60:5 Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee.

Isa 60:10 And the sons of strangers shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister unto thee: for in my wrath I smote thee, but in my favour have I had mercy on thee.

Isa 60:11 Therefore thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bring unto thee the forces of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought.

Isa 60:12 For the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish; yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted.

Isa 60:13 The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the fir tree, the pine tree, and the box together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary; and I will make the place of my feet glorious.

Isa 60:14 The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee, The city of the LORD, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

Isa 60:15 Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations.

Isa 60:16 Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings: and thou shalt know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob.

Isa 60:17 For brass I will bring gold, and for iron I will bring silver, and for wood brass, and for stones iron: I will also make thy officers peace, and thine exactors righteousness.

Isa 60:18 Violence shall no more be heard in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy borders; but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise.

Isa 60:19 The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the LORD shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory.

Isa 60:20 Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the LORD shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended.

Isa 60:21 Thy people also shall be all righteous: they shall inherit the land for ever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified.

Isa 60:22 A little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation: I the LORD will hasten it in his time.

Isa 61:1 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;

Isa 61:2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;

Isa 61:3 To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.

Isa 61:4 And they shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations.

Isa 61:5 And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and the sons of the alien shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers.

Isa 61:6 But ye shall be named the Priests of the LORD: men shall call you the Ministers of our God: ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves.

Isa 61:7 For your shame ye shall have double; and for confusion, they shall rejoice in their portion: therefore in their land they shall possess the double: everlasting joy shall be unto them.

Isa 61:8 For I the LORD love judgment, I hate robbery for burnt offering; and I will direct their work in truth, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.

Isa 61:9 And their seed shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring among the people: all that see them shall acknowledge them, that they are the seed which the LORD hath blessed.

Isa 61:10 I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.

Isa 61:11 For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations.

We hope this study has answered some of your questions.

All God's Blessings,
The Believers