Dr. Joseph Speciale, Instructor

Transcription

1 Study to shew thyself approved unto God (2 Tim 2:15) Dr. Joseph Speciale, Instructor A ministry of the Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church Lee Swor, Pastor

2 The words GLORY and BEAUTY appear in the same verse together 8x (v.19; 28:5; Exo 28:2,40; 1 Chr 16:29; Job 40:10; Psa 29:2; Pro 20:29) and applies to PRIESTLY GARMENTS (Exo 28:2,40) and the LORD (28:5; 1 Chr 16:29; Psa 29:2)- both of which are counterfeited by BABYLON (47:8,10; Jos 7:21) Shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. Sodom and Gomorrah were overthrown by the Lord raining fire and brimstone down upon them from heaven Gen 19: Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven; 25 And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground. The fact that ancient Babylon was conquered by the Medes and Persians and was slowly destroyed over the course of centuries, has led many to believe that ancient Babylon MUST be rebuilt and be destroyed in an instant by fire from heaven to fulfill this prophecy

3 While Babylon the Great will be destroyed in an instant by fire (Rev 17:16; 18:8-9,18) that does not mean ancient Babylon MUST be rebuilt It is important to note that the verse does not say Babylon will be OVERTHROWN AS Sodom and Gomorrah was overthrown but it will be as Sodom and Gomorrah WHEN God overthrew them The explanation is provided in the next verse (v.20)

4 Isa 13:20 It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall the shepherds make their fold there. It shall never be inhabited. This explains how Babylon shall be AS WHEN God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah- when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah they were never inhabited again This was not fulfilled with the conquest of the Medes and Persians because people continued to live in Babylon for centuries (e.g.- Alexander the Great wanted to make it a capital of his empire; Peter wrote his first epistle from there) The destruction of Babylon was initiated by the Medes and Persians and, although it took centuries to become a desolation, it has nevertheless been fulfilled

5 Jer 25:12 And it shall come to pass, when seventy years are accomplished, that I will punish the king of Babylon, and that nation, saith the LORD, for their iniquity, and the land of the Chaldeans, and will make it perpetual desolations. Jer 50:3,13,40 3 For out of the north there cometh up a nation against her, which shall make her land desolate, and none shall dwell therein: they shall remove, they shall depart, both man and beast. 13 Because of the wrath of the LORD it shall not be inhabited, but it shall be wholly desolate: every one that goeth by Babylon shall be astonished, and hiss at all her plagues. 40 As God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighbour cities thereof, saith the LORD; so shall no man abide there, neither shall any son of man dwell therein. The gradual desolation of ancient Babylon appears to be supported by Jeremiah 50:3 since the desolation is not the result of all men and beasts being DESTROYED within it but the result of them DEPARTING and removing from it

6 Neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there. The ARABIAN defines the THE SHEPHERDS mentioned in the verse because they were nomadic peoples (e.g.- the Bedouins) In spite of isolated attempts to rebuild Babylon it remains an uninhabited sand-heap to this day The most notable attempt to rebuild Babylon was by Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, who believed he was the reincarnation of Nebuchadnezzar II Following the Iran-Iraq War, he vowed to rebuild Babylon and restore it to its former glory While some structures were erected including a Presidential palace and a replica of the Ishtar Gate, the site was never inhabited by a native population Saddam s invasion of Kuwait instigated the USA to form a coalition of nations to remove him by military force The Persian Gulf War and the severe economic sanctions placed upon Iraq following the war, halted any further restoration/rebuilding efforts In 2003, US intelligence information indicated that Saddam Hussein was in possession of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) in violation of UN Security Council Resolution 687 which called for the elimination of Iraq s WMDs following the Persian Gulf War

7 The veracity of this information is debatable to this day; however, the USA acted upon this information and initiated a second invasion of Iraq in 2003 with the objectives of removing Saddam Hussein and his sons from power, and locating and seizing any WMDs The Iraq War brought shock and awe to the region along with mass vandalism and looting- many precious antiquities were stolen, damaged, or destroyed The US military set up a 370-acre base camp on the site of ancient Babylon with a heliport built among the ruins The presence of the US military and the activities of the war brought additional damage to the site Many Iraqi locals believe the site is cursed and will not go near it- the city of HILLAH (pop. 365,000) is about 15 km from the site of ancient Babylon It appears the Lord has made sure that Babylon shall NEVER BE INHABITED

8 Mystery, Babylon The Great

9 Isa 13: But wild beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and owls shall dwell there, and satyrs shall dance there. 22 And the wild beasts of the islands shall cry in their desolate houses, and dragons in their pleasant palaces: and her time is near to come, and her days shall not be prolonged. Wild beasts of the desert shall lie there And the wild beasts of the islands. The description of the desolation of Babylon is like that of a GHOST TOWN, a place that has been completely abandoned by men and occupied by wild animals The WILD BEASTS OF THE DESERT and the WILD BEASTS OF THE ISLANDS appear together 3x; 2x in reference to BABYLON (v.21-22; Jer 50:39) and 1x in reference to IDUMEA (34:14) The problem is, according to Jeremiah 50:3, the desolation of Babylon is the result of BOTH man AND BEAST removing and departing from it

10 The fact Babylon s desolation is the result of men and beasts departing from it is proof How can beasts DEPART from Babylon (Jer 50:3) and DWELL in Babylon (Jer 50:39)? Jer 50:3, For out of the north there cometh up a nation against her, which shall make her land desolate, and none shall dwell therein: they shall remove, they shall depart, both man and beast. 39 Therefore the wild beasts of the desert with the wild beasts of the islands shall dwell there, and the owls shall dwell therein: and it shall be no more inhabited for ever; neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation. 40 As God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighbour cities thereof, saith the LORD; so shall no man abide there, neither shall any son of man dwell therein. The answer is that the BEASTS of (v.21-22; 34:14; Jer 50:39) are not PHYSICAL beasts but SPIRITUAL beasts This is evident by the other creatures they are associated with in these verses 1. OWLS and other UNCLEAN BIRDS (e.g.- cormorant, bittern, raven, vultures) o BIRDS are symbolic of SPIRITS (e.g.- a dove= the Holy Spirit) so UNCLEAN birds are symbolic of UNCLEAN SPIRITS (i.e.- DEVILS) (Matt 13:4,19,32; Rev 18:2)

11 2. DRAGONS 3. SATYRS Isa 34:6,8-11, The sword of the LORD is filled with blood, it is made fat with fatness, and with the blood of lambs and goats, with the fat of the kidneys of rams: for the LORD hath a sacrifice in Bozrah, and a great slaughter in the land of Idumea. 8 For it is the day of the LORD S vengeance, and the year of recompences for the controversy of Zion. 9 And the streams thereof shall be turned into pitch, and the dust thereof into brimstone, and the land thereof shall become burning pitch. 10 It shall not be quenched night nor day; the smoke thereof shall go up for ever: from generation to generation it shall lie waste; none shall pass through it for ever and ever. 11 But the cormorant and the bittern shall possess it; the owl also and the raven shall dwell in it: and he shall stretch out upon it the line of confusion, and the stones of emptiness. 13 And thorns shall come up in her palaces, nettles and brambles in the fortresses thereof: and it shall be an habitation of dragons, and a court for owls. 14 The wild beasts of the desert shall also meet with the wild beasts of the island, and the satyr shall cry to his fellow; the screech owl also shall rest there, and find for herself a place of rest. 15 There shall the great owl make her nest, and lay, and hatch, and gather under her shadow: there shall the vultures also be gathered, every one with her mate.