by Michael C. Garrett
And, continuing my thought here – some of them who knew the Word of God, and had preached it for years, when the group in Pasadena announced that they were changing doctrine, they just went along with it. Because, well, they had a wife, and children, and had a mortgage, and they had to pay for college for their children, and get a retirement fund set up. They couldn’t just walk away! Had they walked away, I believe God would have blessed them, for their loyalty to Him. And even now, there is a certain organization, from which I know from short personal experience, which pays some of its supporters – and they don’t publicize this very much – in order to keep them loyal. And so whatever the little leader says – he snaps his fingers – he expects everybody just to bow and say, “O’ yes, O yes!” The same types of stuff God condemn here in the Bible!
Ezekiel 16, Verse 34, 35 – “’ Now then, O harlot, hear the Word of the LORD!’” – this is God speaking to modern-day Israel and modern-day America and the British Commonwealth, the nations from which the once British Commonwealth was formed. Verses 36-37, 38 – “’ And I will judge you as women who break wedlock or shed blood are judged; I will bring blood upon you in fury and jealousy.’” – that’s A DIRECT THREAT AGAINST OUR PEOPLE! Verse 39 – “’ I will also give you into their hand, and they shall throw down your shrines and break down your high places. … 40) They shall also bring up an assembly against you, …’” – that’s an army – armed forces. “…’ and they shall stone you with stones and thrust you through with their swords.’” – that’s military defeat. He’s saying, ‘you will be ravaged, killed, raped, plundered!’
And this is part of your punishment – and this is a part of the DAY OF THE LORD! Which is prophetically linked with the Day of Atonement. Verse 41 – “’ They shall burn your houses with fire, …’” – again, any discussion with the Day of the Lord often involves images of fire and things being burned down and destroyed. Verses 41, 42 – “’ So I will lay to rest My fury toward you, …’” – so, eventually it comes to an end. And that’s the beginning of the Millennium. “…’ and My jealousy shall depart from you. I will be quiet, and be angry no more.’” – that’s the Millennium again. Verse 43 – “’ Because you did not remember the days of your youth, …’” – remember, America was founded on Judean-Christian principles. And it’s very easy to go back to the writings of our founding fathers and to see where they saw our government outlined in the pages of the Bible. And yet now, we’re turning against our Christian roots. And we’re embracing everything that God says, ‘I do not want you to do.’ “…’ with all these things, surely I will also recompense your deeds on your own head, …’” – so many places in the Bible we’ve heard that phrase. ‘I will recompense you!’ ‘I will give you what you deserve!’ “…’ And you shall not commit lewdness in addition to all your abominations.’” – in other words, ‘this will end!’ ‘Your whoredoms will end!’ ‘And in the end you will come back to the true God, and beg for forgiveness and you will be forgiven, and you will start up anew in the Kingdom of God. In the Millennium, under the leadership of God the Father and Jesus Christ and all the resurrected saints and the great angelic throne. And you will finally learn how to live according to My ways!’ Verse 44 – “’ Indeed everyone who quotes proverbs will use this proverb against you: ‘Like mother, like daughter!’” – again, very powerful Words! So, let’s skip down to Verse 59 –
“For thus says the Lord GOD: ‘I will deal with you as you have done, …’” – once again, you’re going to be paid – you’re going to be rewarded – or, you’re going to be punished, exactly the way you deserve. “…’ who despised the oath by breaking the covenant.’” – that ancient marriage covenant.
But again, there’s redemption on the other side, there’s healing on the other side. Verse 60 – “’ Nevertheless I will remember My covenant with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you.’” – that’s the Millennium. That’s the government of God. That’s the Family of God.
Ezekiel 18 – Verse 30 – one more time this DIRECT WARNING FROM GOD! In the end, there will be justice. In the end, all of the books will balance. In the end, there will be ATONEMENT! And He says, “’ Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways,’ says the Lord GOD. ‘REPENT, and turn from all your transgressions, so that iniquity will not be your ruin. 31) Cast away from you all the transgressions which you have committed, and get yourselves a new heart and a new spirit.’” – A direct illusion TO THE NEW COVENANT! Speaking of the New Covenant, we need to look to the New Covenant and not the Old Covenant. “…’ For why should you die, O house of Israel?’” – if you live according to the Old Covenant, you will die! If you live according to the New Covenant you will live for all eternity. Verse 32 – “’ For I have no pleasure in the death of one who dies,’ says the Lord GOD. ‘Therefore turn and live!’” – LIVE THE PRECEPTS OF THE NEW COVENANT AND LIVE under the Priesthood of Jesus Christ and you will live! But if you live by the Old Covenant and the old ways you won’t make it. THUS SAYS, GOD!
Ezekiel 20 – notice Verse 8 – here God had attempted the children of Israel to go into the Promised Land. Verse 9 – “’But I acted for My name’s sake, that it should not be profaned before the Gentiles among whom they were, in whose sight I had made Myself known to them, …’” – think of all the miracles that took place during the time of the Passover in leaving Egypt. Powerful miracles. Verse 10 – “’ Therefore I made them go out of the land of Egypt and brought them into the wilderness.’” – so, that was physical Israel leaving slavery to go – eventually – into the Promised Land.
The analogy is: Now God is working with the members of a spiritual Israel. Members of the true Church, in whose Spirit resides and Truth resides. And for those people, God will take out of the bondage of being human, and temporary, and mortal, and releasing them to live for all eternity in the Kingdom of God. And that’s the analogy of the Old compared to the analogy of the New.
Verse 11 – “’And I gave them My statutes and showed them My judgments, ‘which, if a man does, he shall live by them.’” – and then, notice Verse 12 – Now, there might be some of you who read these notes, who may find what I say different and unique, and some of you are still clinging to your old Protestant or Catholic roots, or other religious roots.
And some of you might read this and you are still fixated on the idea that in the Bible the weekly day of church is Sunday. And, let me tell you again, I’ve spoken of this before, nowhere in the Bible does it say that Sunday is the day of worship. Over and over, dozens and dozens and scores of times the Bible talks about the Sabbath – the Sabbath is not Sunday. The Sabbath is the seventh day of the week. It’s what we call in our Western culture, Saturday. He says in Verse 12 – “’ Moreover I also gave them My Sabbaths, to be a sign between them and Me, that they might know that I AM the LORD who sanctifies them. 13) Yet the house of Israel rebelled against Me in the wilderness; …’” Verse 16 – “’ because they despised My judgments and did not walk in My statutes, …’” – they did not follow the Law’s of God. “…’ but profaned My Sabbaths; for their heart went after their idols.’” – false religion. False religious ideas. Verse 18 – “’ But I said to their children in the wilderness, ‘Do not walk in the statutes of your fathers, nor observe their judgments, nor defile yourselves with their idols.’” – with their false religion. Verse 19 – “’ I AM the LORD your God: Walk in My statutes, keep My judgments, and do them; …’” – OBEY THE TEN COMMANDMENTS! Verses 20-22, 24 – “’ because they had not executed My judgments, but had despised My statutes, …’” – they did not keep the Ten Commandments. “…’ profaned My Sabbaths, and their eyes were fixed on their fathers’ idols [false religion]’”
Now, I’ve had people say, “What you’re saying makes sense. And I can’t discount it, but my father was a member of the such-and-such church. Of a Catholic church or a Protestant church. And I’ve got to go with my father and my mother. I mean, God says, ‘Honor thy father and thy mother!’” Well, honor thy father and thy mother when their right! But if they're blatantly wrong, opposing the Word of God, then it’s incumbent upon you to make a change! Recall that song by Michael Jackson, Man In the Mirror, with the lyrics ♪ ♫ I’m gonna make a change For once in my life ♪ ♫. Look into your Bible and realize that the Bible talks about keeping the Sabbath! I know that’s odd to so many people!
Because they’ve grown up in a culture in which they, sort-of, pay lip-service on Sunday – but everything else is just doing what you want. But folks, that’s what the Bible says! I don’t want you to die. I don’t want to die.
And the only way that I can ensure that both you and I have a chance at eternal life is if we live in the concepts and precepts of the New Covenant with Jesus Christ as our High Priest and the basis of our lives are on the Law of the Ten Commandments. That’s THE FOUNDATION upon which we stand! And, the leadership and the guidance of Jesus Christ! That’s where our focus is. Now I continually speak of the Word of God, the Truth of God, and the Plan of God. And we should focus on what Jesus said, “’ Feed My sheep!’”
Again, I’ve been speaking on the meaning and the Biblical authority of the Day of Atonement – which is prophetically linked with the Day of the Lord. Now, I think each holy day has different meanings – different layers of meaning – and so with the Day of Atonement. But the ultimate meaning of the Day of Atonement is symbolic of the Day of the Lord – that is the day when Jesus Christ and God the Father (the realm of GOD) comes to this Earth and They exact justice. The books will finally be balanced, of good and evil, of justice and injustice. It is the final accounting of mankind’s sins. And, it is a day of judgment upon all facets of the earth. And Jesus Christ will literally come face to face with human beings, and there will be a big-time accounting. And, I’ve been trying to say, and some may not believe me, and some may not understand what I am saying, but the majority of the Bible is prophecy or has a prophetic nature to it– the vast majority. And, the vast majority of those prophecies, maybe upwards of 90%, deal with the Day of the Lord. Now, this has never been taught in the generations of the different manifestations of the churches of God. It’s never been understood. And for many of you whose roots go back to the Worldwide Church of God, you might very well find yourself saying, “Wait a minute. Herbert never taught that. Ted never taught that.” And, the answer is, “Yes, you’re correct!” They never did teach about this because, quite frankly, and in my opinion – the only thing I can conclude is – they simply did not understand it. Now I have every reason to believe, that had they understood it, they would have talked about it. But quite frankly, the Worldwide Church of God dismissed the magnity of the Day of the Lord. Just said that it was a relatively minor event, just a passing event.
Well, it is relatively short in time, but it is the most traumatic event the Earth will have ever gone through when this thing is over with! And it affects everyone who will be living upon the face of the Earth! Now, hopefully, just BEFORE the Day of the Lord, many of us – who profess and hope that we have God’s Spirit and that our names are written into the Book of Life – will be resurrected from a mortal human existence into an immortal eternal spiritual existence. And that is the hope of eternal life promised so many times in the pages of the Bible.
Now, this series of notes have not gone over all of the Scriptures which deal with the Day of the Lord. And in truth I’ve only covered a tiny portion – maybe dented it just a bit. There is so much more to go over. However, this is vital information that has never been explained, never been understood, never been taught, in the hallways of the churches of God. And, by going over these notes, you’re going to see passages which you’ve heard – you’ve heard different minister’s talk about – but which you’ve never understood, or really had the slightest meaning about what it was talking about. It just, sort-of, sounded like “Old Testament stuff.” Well, all of a sudden these verses which have been oblique at best in your mind will become crystal clear as to their meaning. Now, to those who continually say to me, “People don’t need to hear downtrodden messages, they need to hear happy things, and joyous things, and uplifting things!” Well, I think of Isaiah 30 - beginning with Verse 9 – “’That this is a rebellious people, Lying children, Children who will not hear the law of the LORD; 10) Who say to the seers [to the preachers, the prophets], ‘Do not see,’ And to the prophets, ‘Do not prophesy to us right things; Speak to us smooth things, prophesy deceits. 11) Get out of the way, Turn aside from the path, Cause the Holy One of Israel [Jesus Christ, Himself] To cease from before us.’” – basically, this is what happened to me with a particular group from 2012 to 2019. They didn’t want to be confronted with what the Word of God says, even with the profound meanings of the Day of the Lord! Which is what I was doing. “But just prophesy smooth things.” “Easy things, just prophesy candy, and think of the church people as children who want their new lollipop or gumdrops or their new juicy fruits.” “But whatever you do, don’t give us real solid meat from the Word of God!” Well, I’m sorry brethren, I reject what you attempted to do to me, and Jesus Christ is still with me, and to the best of my ability I will continue to teach from the Word of God – all of the Word of God! Including those things which talk about the Day of Atonement – the Day of the Lord. The day when God Almighty and Jesus Christ visit this Earth in a time of judgment, in a time of justice. Also turn to Jeremiah 5, verse 31 – “’ The prophets prophesy falsely, And the priests rule by their own power; And My people love to have it so. …’” – and in today’s world we don’t use the terms ‘prophets’ and ‘priests,’ we use the word ministers. There are ministers, in important places, and even though they try to come across as charming and also humble, and gentle, they prophesy candy and sweet things, they are prophesying falsely. Because the truth of the Bible is not candy and sweet things – but the DAY OF THE LORD! Which is soon to come upon this Earth. Also turn to 1st Timothy – chapter 4, beginning in verse 1 – “Now the Spirit expressly says that in the latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, 2) speaking lies in hypocrisy, …’” – and what happened to me - where it was said to me, “I will do everything within my power to destroy you and the church in Owensboro!” ‘speaking lies in hypocrisy!’ I would rather have a rattlesnake for a friend. “…’ having their own conscience seared with a hot iron, …’” – and I think because of God’s Spirit he didn’t want me anywhere around him. Well, you would think I was a ten-horned demon.
In the end, the truth will come out. And I will live quite peacefully knowing that I have served my Creator and Savior and that my life is in Their hands. And my fate is in Their hands.
So, going again to some of the passages which talk about the Day of the Lord. And, these are just notes, not anything closely related to in depth. Just some of the chief places – some of the Books that talk about the Day of the Lord in different ways.
Deuteronomy 31:16 – “And the LORD said to Moses: ‘Behold, you will rest [‘you’re going to go to sleep] with your fathers; and this people [this nation called ISRAEL] will rise and play the harlot with the gods of the foreigners of the land, where they go to be among them, and they will forsake Me and break My covenant which I have made with them.” And, Verse 17, God’s ultimate punishment for this act of rebellion over centuries and centuries – “’Then My anger shall be aroused against them IN THAT DAY, …’” – in the Bible – not every time, but, the vast majority of the time – when you see the phrase “in that day” that is referring to the Day of the Lord. Now, sometimes “in that day” refers to the events just following the Day of the Lord, in which God begins to set up the Kingdom of God, in the Millennial reign of Jesus Christ. It’s like two different sides of the same coin. “…’ and I will forsake them, and I will hide My face from them, and they shall be devoured. And many evils and troubles shall befall them, so that they will say IN THAT DAY, ‘Have not these evils come upon us because our God is not among us?’” – ‘God has left us!’ Verse 18 – “’ And I will surely hide My face IN THAT DAY because of all the evil which they have done, in that they have turned to other gods.’” – so, even back in the writings of Moses you have references to the Day of the Lord.
Isaiah 1:20 – now if you refuse and rebel, if you refuse to hear the Word of God and the Truth of God and the Plan of God, “’ But if you refuse and rebel, You shall be devoured by the sword [warfare].’” Isaiah 2:11 – “The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, The haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, And the LORD alone shall be exalted IN THAT DAY [the Day of the Lord]. 12) For THE DAY OF THE LORD of hosts Shall come upon everything proud and lofty, Upon everything lifted up – And it shall be brought low … 17) The loftiness of man shall be bowed down, And the haughtiness of men shall be brought low; The LORD alone will be exalted IN THAT DAY, 18) But the idols He shall utterly abolish.”
19) They shall go into the holes of the rocks, And into the caves of the earth, From the terror of the LORD And the glory of His majesty, When He arises to shake the earth mightily.” – in THE DAY OF THE LORD and the events leading up to it, there will be many violent earthquakes upon our planet.
Also notice chapter 3, Verse 7 – “IN THAT DAY he will protest, saying, ‘I cannot cure your ills, For in my house is neither food nor clothing; Do not make me a ruler of the people.’ 8) For Jerusalem stumbled, And Judah is fallen, Because their tongue and their doings Are against the LORD, To provoke the eyes of His glory.” And, again here, these are just a few, to try to show you that there are great portions of the Bible which talk about the Day of the Lord and prophecy that we need to explore. Verse 18; King James Version – “IN THAT DAY the Lord will take away the bravery of their tinkling ornaments about their feet, and their cauls [scarves or veils], and their round tires like the moon [the crescents]” Verse 25 – “Your men shall fall by the sword, And your mighty in the war. 26) Her gates shall lament and mourn, And she being desolate shall sit on the ground.” – now one of the Books of the Bible is called Lamentations. Lamenting, mourning. And I’ve asked the question: What are they lamenting!? And, yes, there were some events back in that day – but prophetically – the lamenting in the Book of Lamentations is about the Day of the Lord. An event which is yet to come!
Chapter 4, Verse 1 – “And IN THAT DAY seven women shall take hold of one man, …” - meaning, so many men will have been killed, that there will be a great majority of women and very few men because they’ve been killed in warfare and sickness and plague and all manner of horrible things. Verse 2 – “IN THAT DAY the Branch of the LORD shall be beautiful and glorious; …” – again, this is talking about the backside of the Day of the Lord, which is the establishment of the Millennial reign of Jesus Christ.
Chapter 5, Verse 20 – and this is a verse I often mention. In the eyes of God – especially concerning His so-called ministers – He says in verse 20, “’ Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! 21) Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, And prudent in their own sight!’” Verse 24 – “…’ Because they have rejected the law of the LORD of hosts, And despised the Word of the Holy One of Israel.’” Verse 30 – “’ IN THAT DAY they will roar against them Like the roaring of the sea. And if one looks to the land, Behold, darkness and sorrow; And the light is darkened by the clouds.’”
Chapter 13, Verse 6 – “Wail, for THE DAY OF THE LORD is at hand! It will come as destruction from the Almighty. 7) Therefore all hands will be limp, Every man’s heart will melt, 8) And they will be afraid. Pangs and sorrows will take hold of them; They will be in pain as a woman in childbirth; They will be amazed at one another; Their faces will be like flames.” Verse 9 – “Behold, THE DAY OF THE LORD comes, Cruel, with both wrath and fierce anger, To lay the land desolate; And He will destroy its sinners from it.” – It’s a day of judgment upon the Earth! Verse 13 – “’ Therefore I will shake the heavens, And the earth will move out of her place, …’” – talking about earthquakes. “…’ In the wrath of the LORD of hosts And in the day of His fierce anger.’” – the Day of the Lord!
Isaiah 22:4 – “Therefore I said [Isaiah speaking when he sees these things in vision], ‘Look away from me, I will weep bitterly; Do not labor to comfort me Because of the plundering of the daughter of my people.’ 5) For it is A DAY OF TROUBLE …” – now, you’ve heard the expression Jesus Christ talking about ‘a day of tribulation,’ well, that word just means troubles. And here is what Isaiah says, it’s a day of just tremendous troubles.
The vast majority of the Bible is talking about the DAY OF THE LORD! And yet, the leaders of the Worldwide Church of God and the churches which came from it, have never put this together! Well, I’m blessed and I’m humbled to realize that God has shown this to me.
Chapter 30, Verse 25 – “There will be on every high mountain And on every high hill Rivers and streams of waters, IN THE DAY OF THE GREAT SLAUGHTER, …” – that’s another name for the Day of the Lord.
Chapter 34, Verse 8 – “For it is THE DAY OF THE LORD’S VENGEANCE, The year of recompense for the cause of Zion.” Verse 9 – “Its streams shall be turned into pitch, And its dust shall become burning pitch. 10) It shall not be quenched night or day; Its smoke shall ascend forever. From generation to generation it shall lie waste; No one shall pass through it forever and ever.” – and this is talking about TURKEY! Turkey, one of the Islamic nations! A Sunni nation, who horribly betrays the nation of Israel as they try to escape in the future. Turkey will be punished by God by complete destruction! This is one of the prophecies concerning the Day of the Lord!
Chapter 61, Verse 2 – now, this is interesting, these are some of the same Words spoken of by Jesus Christ! And He actually quoted verse 1 and stopped before following up with verse 2. “To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, …” – He did mention that but then stopped. “…’ And THE DAY OF VENGEANCE OF OUR GOD; …” – now, the ‘acceptable year of the LORD’ is the establishment of the Millennium, of the Kingdom of God. But before that will come ‘the day of vengeance of our God.’ So, He was selective in what He had quoted when He stood up that day in the temple.
Jeremiah 12, Verse 3 – “But You, O LORD, know me; You have seen me, And You have tested my heart toward You. Pull them out like sheep for the slaughter, And prepare them for THE DAY OF SLAUGHTER.” – once again we hear the Day of the Lord.
Chapter 16, Verse 18 – “’ And first I will repay double for their iniquity and their sin, because they have defiled My land; they have filled My inheritance with the carcasses of their detestable and abominable idols.’”
Chapter 17, Verse 17 – “Do not be a terror to me; You are my hope in the DAY OF DOOM.” – and that’s what all of us should think!
If the return of Jesus Christ is a decade away or less (10-years) there’s a good chance a lot of us will be here when it happens! The only thing that will protect you – in that time of trouble – will be you having a close connection with the living Jesus Christ. And that’s what he’s saying here. Verse 18 – “Let them be ashamed who persecute me, But do not let me be put to shame; Let them be dismayed, But do not let me be dismayed. Bring on them the DAY OF DOOM, And destroy them with double destruction!” – so, Jeremiah, he had troubles with people trying to cause him a hard time. That was his prayer for them.
Chapter 46, Verse 10 – “’ For this is THE DAY OF THE LORD GOD of hosts, A day of vengeance, That He may avenge Himself on His adversaries. The sword shall devour; It shall be satiated and made drunk with their blood; For the Lord GOD of hosts has a sacrifice In the north country by the River Euphrates.’” – that sounds like it could be IRAQ. Remember, in the end-time, the Arab and Islamic nations will, basically, be decimated by the hand and the direction of Jesus Christ! He is probably determined that their religion is so apart from the true religion – and the people who get sucked into that religion – their minds become so hardened, that when He returns He’s not going to waste a bunch of time trying to convert them, He’s just going to have them eliminated! And then, in the “Great White Throne Judgment,” a thousand years later, He will bring them back to life and the earth will have lived under the rulership of Jesus Christ for a thousand years – and then He will attempt to change those hearts and minds. But, at the end of their life, if they do not change – after being told the truth of God and having it made clear to them – then they will face the lake of fire – the final death.
Chapter 51, Verse 2 – “’ And I will send winnowers [winds] to Babylon [think IRAQ, think Bagdad], Who shall winnow [blow] her and empty her land. For in THE DAY OF DOOM They shall be against her all around.’” – think of the Islamic world.
Lamentations 1:3 – “Judah has gone into captivity, Under affliction and hard servitude; She dwells among the nations, She finds no rest; All her persecutors overtake her in dire straits.” – now, this did take place in 605 B.C.! THIS WILL HAPPEN AGAIN! So, many prophecies are dual – they have an earlier fulfillment, and they have a much larger, more significant fulfillment in the latter days! And this will be one of those latter days fulfillment.
Verse 12 – “Is it nothing to you, all you who pass by? Behold and see If there is any sorrow like my sorrow, Which has been brought on me, Which the LORD has inflicted In THE DAY OF HIS FIERCE ANGER.” – the Day of the Lord!
Chapter 2, Verse 1 – “How the Lord has covered the daughter of Zion With a cloud in His anger! He cast down from heaven to the earth The beauty of Israel, And did not remember His footstool IN THE DAY OF HIS ANGER.” – ‘In the day of His anger’ is the Day of the Lord! Verse 5 – “The Lord was like an enemy. He has swallowed up ISRAEL, … And has increased mourning and lamentation In the daughter of Judah.” Verse 21 – “’ Young and old lie On the ground in the streets; My virgins and my young men Have fallen by the sword; You have slain them in THE DAY OF YOUR ANGER, You have slaughtered and not pitied.’” – now, ‘
Pray Not For This People’ is indeed a Message from the Bible.
Also, Ezekiel 7:19 – “’They will throw their silver into the streets, And their gold will be like refuse; Their silver and their gold will not be able to deliver them IN THE DAY OF THE WRATH OF THE LORD; They will not satisfy their souls, Nor fill their stomachs, Because it became their stumbling block of iniquity.’”
Chapter 13, Verse 5 – “’ You have not gone up into the gaps to build a wall for the house of Israel to stand in battle ON THE DAY OF THE LORD.’” – again, a direct reference to the Day of the Lord.
Chapter 30, Verse 3 – “’ For the day is near, Even the DAY OF THE LORD is near; It will be a day of clouds, the time of the Gentiles.’” – because for a time the Gentiles will have seem to have taken over ISRAEL and JUDAH. But it doesn’t last very long.
Hosea 5:9 – “’ Ephraim [think the United Kingdom] shall be desolate in THE DAY OF REBUKE; Among the tribes of Israel I make known what is sure.’”
Joel – the Book of Joel – is a very definitive chapter that links the concept of the Day of the Lord and the Day of Atonement. Joel is one of the so-called “minor” prophets, and there are 12 so-called “minor” prophets. Now, they’re “minor” because they are relatively short but their Message is not minor. Nine of the twelve “minor” prophets deal with some degree or another with the Day of the Lord. And here in the Book of Joel, it’s very frank – the connection with the Day of Atonement and the Day of the Lord.
Joel 1: beginning with verses 1, 4 – “’ What the chewing locust left, the swarming locust has eaten; What the swarming locust left; the crawling locust has eaten; And what the crawling locust left, the consuming locust has eaten.’” – in other words, He’s talking about an insect infestation that’s basically denuded the landscape. Verses 5-6 – “’ Awake, you drunkards, and weep; And wail, all you drinkers of wine, Because of the new wine, For it has been cut off from your mouth. 6) For a nation has come up against My land, …’” – and these, again, are Gentile armies. “…’ Strong, and without number; His teeth are the teeth of a lion, And he has the fangs of a fierce lion.’” Verse 7 – “’ He has laid waste My vine [the people of Israel and Judah], And ruined My fig tree; He has stripped it bare and thrown it away; Its branches are made white. 8) Lament …’” Verses 9-13, 14 – “’ Consecrate a fast [very symbolic of the Day of Atonement] …’” Verse 15 – “’ Alas for the day! For THE DAY OF THE LORD is at hand; [again, a direct reference to the Day of the Lord!] It shall come as destruction from the Almighty.’” Verses 16-18, 19 – “O LORD, to You I cry out; For fire [again, fire in reference to the Day of the Lord] has devoured the open pastures, And a flame has burned all the trees of the field.’”
Chapter 2, Verse 1 – “’ Blow the trumpet in Zion, And sound an alarm in My holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble; FOR THE DAY OF THE LORD IS COMING, …’” – once again, the Day of the Lord! There’s no fogginess about what this is talking about! Verse 2 – “’A day of darkness and gloominess. A day of clouds and thick darkness, Like the morning clouds spread over the mountains. A people come, great and strong [again, Gentile armies; the invading armies], The like of whom has never been; Nor will there ever be any such after them, Even for many successive generations. 3) A fire devours before them, And behind them a flame burns; The land is like the Garden of Eden before them, And behind them a desolate wilderness; Surely nothing shall escape them. 4) Their appearance is like the appearance of horses; And like swift steeds, so they run. 5) With a noise like chariots Over mountaintops, they leap, Like the noise of a flaming fire that devours the stubble, Like a strong people set in battle array. 6) Before them [speaking of the ARMY OF GOD – and most likely, the resurrected saints of God coming to the rescue of the people of Israel and Judah –] the people writhe in pain; All faces are drained of color [the Gentile armies and most likely the Arab and Islamic armies which they are taking on].
7) They run like mighty men, They climb the wall like men of war; Every one marches in formation. And they do not break ranks.” – I know of a psalm that the Worldwide Church of God uses to sing - a song written by Dwight Armstrong – "Blow The Horn, Let Zion Hear!", which takes this section of the Bible and made a psalm. And the psalm is set to, sort-of, an upbeat tempo, and the people would sing it like, “O’ isn’t this a joyous thing!?” They didn’t have a clue about what they were singing! This is not a time of joy or happiness, this is a part of THE DAY OF THE LORD! When millions and millions of people are going to be destroyed! Verse 8 – again, this same ARMY OF GOD – “’ They do not push one another; Every one marches in his own column. Though they lunge between weapons, They are not cut down.’” – again, these are not human beings they’re spirit beings. Verse 9 “’ They run to and fro in the city, They run on the wall; They climb into the houses, They enter at the windows like a thief.’”
Now we’re back to the Day of the Lord – Verse 10 – “’ The earth quakes before them, The heavens tremble; The Sun and Moon grow dark, And the stars diminish their brightness. 11) The LORD gives voice before His army, …’” – and we were just reading about His army (verses 6-9). “…’ For His camp is very great; For strong is the One who executes His Word. For THE DAY OF THE LORD is great and very terrible; Who can endure it?’”
Verse 12 – He changes tenses here, talking about AFTER the Day of the Lord – “’ Now, therefore,’ says the LORD, ‘Turn to Me with all your heart, With fasting [again, a reference to the Day of Atonement], with weeping, and with mourning.’” – Verses 13 – this is talking about a time following the Day of the Lord where God Almighty and Jesus Christ start to reach out to the children of Israel and the children of Judah – showing them that now they’re going to be protected. They’ve been punished, now they’re going to be taken care of. Verses 14-17.
Now Verses 18-29 – are talking about the Millennium.
Beginning with Verse 30, this goes back to the vengeful part of the Day of the Lord. “’ And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth; Blood and fire and pillars of smoke. 31) The Sun shall be turned into darkness, And the Moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome DAY OF THE LORD.’” – so we know that there will be many frightening signs at the time of the Day of the Lord.
Chapter 3, Verse 1 – “’ For behold, in those days, and at that time, When I bring back the captives of Judah and Jerusalem, …’” – this is during the Day of the Lord! Where the people are being punished. Verses 2-8.
Verses 9-14 gets back into warfare.
So, here we see, not just here, but many portions of this Book are talking about the Day of the Lord and the warfare and the blood shedding. And it also several times links it with ‘call a fast.’ So again, the Day of the Lord – prophetically linked with the Day of Atonement.
Amos 5:18; remember Jonah. Jonah wanted to see death and destruction. It was Nineveh’s ‘day of the Lord.’ But they repented. And God changed His mind. And Jonah was just all broken up. Verse 20.
Obadiah 15; that once again – throughout the Bible – this principle that God talks about: It will be recompensed unto you, the way you deserve it. And those who deserve to be punished will be punished. And those that deserve to die will die. And those who deserve to be saved will be saved.
Zephaniah 1:7-9; again, evil people will be rewarded. Verses 14-18. Zephaniah 2:1.
Zechariah 14:1-4.
Malachi 4:1, 3, 5.
So, again, with these notes – of what I’ve tried to do – is to show you just a few of places in the Bible which talks about the Day of the Lord. The single most prophesied event in the Bible.
I wanted to record this truth – a truth which has not been spoken about. And, you might say, “Well, it’s no big thing.” However, it’s the most traumatic, awesome thing which will occur in the history of the Earth. This is a very big deal. And, what really makes it important, if the return of Jesus Christ is within the next 8-10 years, many, if not most of you who read this, will experience this. You will either experience this – while being protected by Jesus Christ, or, you’ll be experiencing it by being in the middle of it – without God’s protection! So I pray that each and every one of you turns to Jesus Christ, and ask that He grant you His Spirit, that He grant you His Truth, His knowledge, the understanding of His Plan, and I ask that you pray that He protect you through all of these horrible things.
