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Pt. 8 SHUSHAN PURIM: Daily Worship is
Abolished at Jerusalem's Western Wall & Temple Mount
The Timelines of Daniel & Revelation Begin
Purim, the Jewish holiday that occurs around late
February or March, appears to be the calendar date which initiates the spiritual
timelines that leads, day by day, towards the eventual Day of the LORD and the
reign of Messiah. If so, at or near Purim, the Temple Mount will tumble in
destructive ruin. The Middle East will be embroiled in conflict, with some of
the world’s greatest military powers involved. The carnage could be enormous
with the devastation of cities, towns and villages. Tensions between Judaism,
Islam and Christianity will be on the rise, fostering dangerous conditions in
Israel and in Jerusalem. Holy sites in Jerusalem would become targets of rage.
Concerning Jerusalem, Daniel heard that “from
the time that the daily sacrifice is abolished and the abomination
that causes desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days. Blessed is the one
who waits for and reaches the end of the 1,335 days,” (12:11-12).
The word sacrifice was not in the original text. Translators have
not improved the passage by adding the word that inspiration did not. The
original language simply reads the “daily” or “tamid” in Hebrew; meaning
“continual,” is to be abolished. So what is the daily?
Jerusalem is the heart and soul of the Jewish people
and the central focus of prophecy and final events. In May, 1948, Israel became
a nation once again. For the 19 years that followed from 1948 to 1967,
Jerusalem was a divided city. East Jerusalem, including the Old City, was
occupied by the Arab Legion of Jordan. Although they promised access to the
Western Wall, Jews were not allowed to pray at this remnant of the wall that had
once surrounded the ancient Temple until its destruction in 70 A.D.
On June 5, 1967, the Six-Day War began, and through
God’s miraculous intervention by the end of the third day the Western Wall was
recaptured and Jerusalem reunited. Jews congregated at the Wall to pray and
worship for the first time in nearly 1,900 years under Israel’s protection.
This privilege will likely continue until the taking away of the “tamid,” the
daily activities, at the Western Wall and Temple Mount as the end-times begin.
Revelation 11:2 says, the
“outer court [of the Temple area in Jerusalem]; do not measure it, because it
has been given to the Gentiles. They will trample on the holy city for 42
months.”
By this we know a disastrous event
will occur in Jerusalem that will forever change the city’s landscape. Daily
worship at Jerusalem’s holy sites will be taken away, and Gentile troops will
soon occupy the city through the remainder of human history and the appointed
time of the end.
Jesus warned, as we enter the appointed time of the
end, conflict between nations and peoples will rise sharply, and natural
disasters will strike with unrelenting force (Matthew 24:7)
“There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and
fearful events and great signs from heaven,” (Luke 21:11). Signs of incredible
nature will occur in the sky, and nature’s forces will rise up bringing about
winds, drought, diseases, and pestilences. Lucifer, the prince and power of the
air, and his demonic army will unleash miraculous sights and sounds.
Once Satan has provoked fear and pandemonium around
the globe, he will provide the solution. As we near the close of time, there
will be a growing external manifestation of the forces of darkness. Demons will
manifest their power and will exhibit themselves before the nations of the world
in various forms. Visitations and apparitions impersonating the Virgin Mary,
“Queen of Heaven” (as Catholicism affectionately calls her), will increase with
miraculous displays. Many will interpret Mary’s appearances as God-sent to save
Planet Earth. The great deception will have come, and the world community will
be intoxicated with Babylon’s cup of delusion. The majority of spiritual
leaders across the globe will drink the concoction and fall under the spell, and
earth’s population will marvel at the revived political-religious Rome. “For
the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to
suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of
religious teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will
turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths,” (2 Timothy
4:3-5). The clearest evidence of the Word of God and the prophecies placed
before them will have no effect in changing their hearts. Turning away from the
authentic, their darkened consciences will compel them to honor the evil
visitations of light, believing they are following the wonderful work of God.
A Catholic author wrote these words: “During the
past century, and especially the last ten years, we on earth have been
experiencing a major supernatural episode. Reports of unusual events, spiritual
events, are coming from every habitable continent. In Europe and Asia, in
Nicaragua and the Middle East, in Africa and America, are accounts of an
apparitional woman calling herself the Blessed Virgin Mary who appears to
visionaries and gives them inspiration, instructions and messages, including
warnings about the future of the world.”
He continues, “She comes to children. She comes to
adults. She speaks to peasants and aristocrats, Christians and non-Christians,
believers and atheists. She appears in the glory of Heaven, beautiful beyond
comparison and arrayed with angels, but often shedding tears of disappointment.
She comes as a bright light in an era of spiritual darkness, a young mother
calling her children away from danger and exposing the unseen perils… whether
you’re a believer or disbeliever, Catholic or Protestant, Gentile or Jew, you
are about to encounter a series of unearthly events—call them alleged
events—unlike any reported in 2,000 years. A good argument can be made that
there haven’t been such extraordinary phenomena since Christ Himself appeared
after death to His apostles. That may sound like an exceedingly large claim but
the reports of supernatural events, especially the apparitions of a saintly
woman whom Catholics call Our Lady or the Queen of Heaven, are remarkably
consistent… By her merits of her earthly faith and suffering she has gained a
special place in paradise. She is to be honored.”
The author relays one of the apparition’s messages:
“Let all the children of men, of all the countries in the world, be one! Seek
and ask only for the true Holy Spirit. I have come to tell this depraved and
degenerated world, all of you unite. I will lead all the dispersed flock back to
one fold… Pray for as long as possible every day. Prayer is the manna that will
sustain mankind, and the Rosary should be said by everyone no matter what
religion or beliefs they hold," (The Final Hour by Michael H.
Brown, Faith Publishing Company, 1992, pages 1-3, 5, 77, 215).
Revelation 18:3 warns, “For all the nations have
drunk the maddening wine of her adulteries. The kings of the earth committed
adultery with her, and the merchants of the earth grew rich from her excessive
luxuries.” The prophet’s warning to Israel will need to be repeated during the
last days: “Do you not see what they are doing in the towns of Judah and in the
streets of Jerusalem? The children gather wood, the fathers light the fire, the
women knead the dough and make cakes of bread for the Queen of Heaven…
therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says: My anger and My wrath will be
poured out on this place, on man and beast… and it will burn and not be
quenched,” (Jeremiah 7:17-20).
The Purim Connection
Purim is celebrated by reading the Scroll of Esther,
known in Hebrew as the Megillat Esther, which relates the basic story of
Purim. Under the rule of the Persian King Xerxes, Haman, the King’s prime
minister, plots to exterminate all of the Jews of Persia (today’s Iran). His
plan is foiled by Israelite Queen Esther and her uncle Mordecai, who ultimately
save the Jews.
Queen Esther was in a position to save the Jewish
people when Haman plotted for their “destruction and slaughter and
annihilation,” (Esther 7:4). She risked her life by entering into the king’s
presence, but she saved the Israelites through her bold intervention. When all
was said and done, ironically the Jews gained power over the Gentiles who had
hated them.
Purim is an unusual holiday in many respects. First,
Esther is the only Book of the Bible in which God is not mentioned, and He did
not institute this Festival with the others in Leviticus. The elevation of
Purim to a major holiday was a result of the Jewish historical experience. Over
the centuries, Haman became the embodiment of every anti-Semite in every land
where Jews were oppressed. The significance in Purim lies not so much in how it
began, but in what it has become—a thankful and joyous affirmation of Jewish
survival against all odds. Purim is celebrated in honor of this young
virgin’s valor, most typically in festive parties.
The Purim celebration in the Middle East often
includes the sound of fire crackers. It is not known where this practice came
from, but the sound of explosions leaves many with an unsettled feeling. Most
of the larger fire crackers and explosive devices are set off at night, and many
consider the whole practice to be in bad taste. As the dull echoing explosions
carry far into the night, it reminds citizens of Israel of the bombs of
terrorism that have become almost a constant threat to life.
These disquieting explosions are indeed a prelude to
the sounds of war that will engulf Jerusalem, the Middle East and the entire
planet during the last days. We cannot fathom the global destruction that
awaits mankind. Nuclear detonations will mushroom, and large structures will
collapse into rubble. Death will be on every hand, and the men, women and
children who survive will be overcome by radiation, panic and shock.
Uncontrollable fires will rage. Economies will collapse, and valuable resources
will become worthless overnight. Marian visions of demonic powers are already
at work to help usher in the chosen son to be King, as Darius of old in Queen
Esther’s day. Just as surely as Elohim allowed Haman to test His people in ages
past, God will allow a ruler to reign who will decree against the Jews, making
their lives so difficult that many more around the globe will be compelled to
turn to God’s redeeming love.
The Hebrew Calendar illustrates that these timed
events could begin at Shushan Purim (Point 8) and lead up to the Day (Hebrew: “yoma”)—Yom
Kippur (Point 18). Shushan Purim, which falls on the 15th day of Adar (or the
16th, if the 15th day falls on Shabbat, such as in 2008)
is the day on which Jews in Jerusalem and Shushan (in Iran) celebrate Purim.
The Book of Esther explains that while the Jews in unwalled cities fought their
enemies on the 13th of Adar and rested on the 14th, the Jews in the walled
capital city of Shushan spent the 13th and 14th defeating their enemies, and
rested on the 15th (Esther 9:20-22). Although Mordechai and Esther decreed that
only walled cities should celebrate Purim on the 15th, in remembrance of the
battle in the walled city of Shushan, Jews noted that Jerusalem, the focus of
Jewish life, lay in ruins during the events of the Book of Esther. To make sure
that a Persian city was not honored more than Jerusalem, it was determined that
Jerusalem would also celebrate Purim on the 15th of Adar.
Iran will attempt to totally destroy Israel from the
face of the earth through any
means possible, but the Iranians will not succeed; rather, as in the days of
Purim in ancient Persia, to everyone’s surprise a Jewish leader will rise to a
position of prominence during the last days.
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