The Prophet Ezekiel

From Koinonia House

Bible Study > Old Testament > The Prophet Ezekiel

With the new CD-ROM release this month of our commentary on the Book of Ezekiel it seems like an appropriate time to profile this most fascinating prophet of the Old Testament.

In fact, with the current geopolitical horizon, you can’t really understand the caldron of the Middle East unless you understand the remarkable prophecies in this book.

Ezekiel was among the captives with King Jehoiachin in the second of three deportations under King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon.  He mentions Daniel three times, who had been in Babylon nine years before Ezekiel arrived.

Ezekiel ministered, as did Jeremiah, to a nation experiencing judgment for their sins.  (If God spared not Israel, His Chosen, when they sinned, why not America?)

In his captivity he lived at the River Chebar, which was the great ship canal branching off from the Euphrates above Babylon and turning through Nippur to the Tigris.  This was the primary settlement location of the Jewish captives.

Ezekiel was born in approximately 627 B.C. and lived in a time of moral decline, distress and uprooting.  His messages were not well received at first, but did ultimately result in the nation being purged of idolatrous practices.  He was married and owned his home.  His wife died during his ministry, and he was forbidden to mourn her.

We also learn that God intended his life to be a series of signs to Israel; therefore, he does all kinds of strange things.  (This was before Christian television.)

He shuts himself up in his home.  He binds himself.  He is struck dumb.  In a formal ritual, he was to lie on his right and his left sides for a total of 430 days.  He ate bread that was prepared in an unclean manner.  He shaved his head and beard, which was considered a shame in his particular calling.

Throughout the book, his main theme was the sovereignty and glory of God.  This is good for us, because we can get so focused on God’s grace that we tend to forget there is also a governing role of God, and that His glory requires justice.

Ezekiel was very direct.  He carefully vindicated God’s justice throughout the book, although he deals more in symbol and allegory that any other Old Testament prophet.

He is probably the greatest mystic of the Old Testament.  He was well suited for the calling God gave him, which included a remarkable vision of God’s Throne in Chapter 1.  This dramatic vision of God never left him.  It is not just introduced in the first chapter, it is referenced all the way through.

The Prophet of the
Regathering

The famed vision of the Valley of the Dry Bones in Chapters 36 and 37 is not only the subject of the well-known Spiritual chorus, it is unquestionably the monumental Biblical fulfillment of the 20th century.

Beginning in the last half of the 19th century, the regathering that climaxed in the establishment of the State of Israel is one of the most irrefutable evidences that we are on threshold of God’s climax for the nations mentioned throughout the Bible – and remarkably detailed in the writings of Ezekiel.

(There is even a possible chronological hint hidden in Chapter 4 which would seem to identify the re-establishment of the nation of Israel on May 14, 1948, and the regaining of the city of Jerusalem on June 6, 1967.)

The Millennium Temple

The final chapters, 40-48, climax with a remarkably detailed description of the Millennial Temple to be rebuilt.  Ezekiel was uniquely qualified for this role due to his priestly background.

He was the son of Buzi, who was also a priest.  It is interesting that even though he never served as a priest, he apparently so influenced later worship that today he is called by some, “The Father of Judaism.”

From Numbers 4:3 we know that Kohathites had to be 30 years old before they could begin service as priests.  When Ezekiel became 30, however, he was deported, in approximately the eightieth year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar.

The Temple which Ezekiel describes has never yet been built.  Most scholars regard it as the details for the Temple which will be established during the Millennium on Planet Earth.

Between the regathering of the nation in Chapters 36 and 37, and the Millennium Temple described in Chapters 40-48, there is a climactic event that intervenes.

The Intervening Event: Gog and Magog

The invasion of Gog and Magog, described in Chapters 38 and 39, are among the most famous prophetic passages in the Bible.  For a variety of reasons, the identity of “Magog” as the people of Russia seems well established.

One reason to study the Book of Ezekiel is that, from current updates by leading intelligence sources, the decision to invade the Middle East seems to have been already made in the Kremlin, and it is now only a matter of timing.

Almost all the details described by Ezekiel are currently being set in place for this climactic event, which we feel is post-Rapture!

The Opportunity

If you were invited to a reception that would bring you into contact with a world-famous author, you would, of course, run out and quickly review his book to avoid any embarrassment.

Well, you may soon be in the company of one of the most fascinating characters of the Old Testament, and when you are introduced to him, you will want to be able to declare, “Hey, I sure enjoyed your book!”

Have you ever studied this incredible book carefully?  See our Expositional Commentary on Ezekiel, now on CD-ROM, with MP3 audio files (and the necessary software) and also the PDF text files (again, with the necessary software).

Ezekiel – MP3 Commentary – Chuck MisslerStudy the book of Ezekiel verse by verse and explore some of the most incredible prophecies in the Bible. Now in one, self-contained CD-ROM. Click for more information – MP3 on CD-ROM

The Magog Invasion – DVD – Chuck MisslerDoes the Bible really predict the use of nuclear weapons? Chuck Missler examines the reemergence of Russia as a nuclear superpower in light of Biblical prophecy. Click for more information – DVD

A Prophet for our Time: Ezekiel – Chuck Missler

Timely Speculation? Ezekiel’s 430 Days – Chuck Missler

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Thy Kingdom Come: The Millennium

From Koinonia House

Prophetic > End-Times > The Millennium

It is tragic that most of the major denominations – Roman Catholic and Protestant – embrace an eschatology (“study of last things”) that is amillennial : a view that does not envision a literal rule of Christ on the Throne of David on the Planet Earth.

While there are many different, yet defendable, views regarding many aspects of end-time prophecies, this basic divergence – denying a literal Millennium – is particularly dangerous in that it would appear to be an attack on the very character of God!  It does violence to His numerous and explicit promises and commitments that pervade both the Old and New Testaments.

The Old Testament is replete with commitments for a literal Messiah ultimately ruling the world through Israel from His throne in Jerusalem.  There are at least 1,845 references in the Old Testament and 17 books give prominence to the event.  The ancient rabbinical aspirations were dominated by it.  In fact, this obsession obscured their recognizing the Messiah when He made His initial appearance.

There are at least 318 references in 216 chapters of the New Testament and 23 of its 27 books give prominence to the event.  The early church looked longingly for His promised return as their “Blessed Hope” to rid their desperate world of its evil rulers. How and where did this skepticism known as “Amillennialism” begin?

Origen

Pious, popular, and persuasive, Origen stands out as one of the great figures of the 3rd century church.  Even at the age of 18, he stood out spectacularly well as a teacher in Alexandria.  (In misguided obedience to Matthew 19:12, he emasculated himself, which he later regretted.) Later, as a prolific writer based in Caesarea, his De Principiis systematically laid out Christian doctrine in terms of Hellenic thinking and set the pattern for most subsequent theological thought for many years.  His numerous sermons and commentaries, however, tragically also established an extreme pattern of allegorizing Scripture, which was to strongly influence Augustine in subsequent years.

Augustine

Augustine, the Bishop of Hippo (A.D. 354-430), was one of the most influential leaders of the Western church, living during the turbulent days of the disintegration of the Roman Empire.

He lived a sensuous, dissolute life, but following a dramatic conversion he experienced a total change of character.  In 391 he was ordained as a priest in North Africa and four years later was elevated to the Bishop of Hippo.  He embarked on a writing career and his extensive doctrinal writings deeply affected the Medieval Roman Catholic Church.  Augustine’s most elaborate writing, The City of God , was written as the Empire lay crumbling under a siege by half-civilized tribes.  It portrayed the Church as a new civic order in the midst of the ruins of the Roman Empire.  Augustine died while the Vandals were besieging the very gates of Hippo in A.D. 430.

Although his writings effectively defeated a number of heresies emerging in those turbulent times, the allegorizing influences of Origen left an amillennial eschatology in their wake.  As the Church had increasingly become an instrument of the state, it wasn’t politically expedient to look toward a literal return of Christ to rid the world of its evil rulers!  The allegorical reposturing of those passages was more “politically correct.” (This reminds me of the saying among the data processing profession: “If you torture the data long enough, it will confess to anything!”)

The Reformation Shortfall

A thousand years later, under the influences of Martin Luther and others, the Reformation brought an intensive return to the authority of the Scriptures which, in turn, resulted in the subsequent reform in soteriology (the study of salvation) with its emphasis on salvation by faith alone.  Many were willingly burned at the stake for their commitment to a Biblical perspective. However, one of the unfortunate shortcomings of the Reformation was that it failed to also reexamine the eschatology of the Medieval Church in the light of Scripture. Thus, the allegorizing alchemy of Origen, institutionalized by Augustine, left a denial of the Millennium that still continues to pervade the doctrines of most Protestant denominations today.

From Augustine to Auschwitz

One of the derivative aspects of an amillennial perspective is that it denies Israel’s future role in God’s plans.  This also leads to a “replacement theology” in which the Church is viewed as replacing Israel in God’s program for mankind.  In addition to forcing an allegorization of many key passages of Scripture, this also led to the tragedy of the Holocaust in Europe.  The responsibility for the six million Jews who were systematically murdered in the concentration camps has to include the silent pulpits who had embraced this heretical eschatology and its attendant anti-Semitism.

Reality of the Millennium

For anyone who takes the Bible seriously, the numerous explicit commitments of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that the Messiah would literally rule from Zion cannot be ignored or explained away.  God’s explicit and unconditional commitment of the land of Israel to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is the very issue that is being challenged by the world today!  And, the resurgence of amillennialism, and its attendant doctrines, are again setting the stage for the next holocaust.¹

In the New Testament, these commitments are reconfirmed.  Every Christmas we are reminded that Gabriel promised Mary that her son was destined to sit on the Throne of David (which did not exist during the days of His ministry).² It is yet to be fulfilled.  In fact, He taught us to pray specifically for it: “Thy Kingdom come….”  What does that mean? The thousand-year reign, from which the Millennium takes its label, is detailed in numerous passages including Revelation 20, Isaiah 65, and Ezekiel 40-48, among others.  Ezekiel’s detailed tour of the Millennial Temple virtually defies any skeptic’s attempt to treat it allegorically (see diagram). Encompassing a Temple area 50 miles on a side, substantially to the north of Jerusalem, as a source of a river that flows toward both the Mediterranean to the west and the Dead Sea to the east, Ezekiel’s description implies a total change of topography, which is explicit in the Scripture. ³

However, the more we learn about the Millennium, the more questions it raises.  It is not heaven: it is clearly distinctive in contrast to the eternal state which follows (Revelation 21).  It will be characterized by a limited amount of evil, which Christ will judge perfectly and immediately. ⁴ Neither is it the “new earth” that God will yet create;⁵ for therein righteousness dwells, which is something not true of the Millennium.

Millennium Paradoxes

As an example of some of the ostensible paradoxes of the Millennium is the strange question of death. Dr. Arnold Fruchtenbaum, a dear friend and highly respected Messianic scholar, suggests that death in the Millennium will be for unbelievers only.  Nowhere in the Bible does it speak of a resurrection of Millennial saints.  This may be why the resurrection of the tribulation saints is said to complete the “first resurrection” (Rev 20:4-6).

From the New Covenant in Jeremiah 31:31-34, it would seem that there will be no Jewish unbelievers in the kingdom; all Jews born during the Millennium will accept the Messiah before their 100th year.⁶ Unbelief would thus be among the Gentiles only, and therefore, death would exist only among the Gentiles.⁷ [Jer 31:35-37 refutes "Reconstructionism" and similar heresies.]  Another strange issue is the prominence of sacrifices in the Millennium.  It would seem that they are memorials after the fact, just as the sacrifices in the Old Testament were memorials in advance.⁸

A Time to Study

As recent events have so dramatically emphasized to all of us, it is, indeed, a time to reexamine our perspectives, and to acknowledge in our personal priorities that history includes some shocking “non-linearities”: even our most cherished presumptions are subject to cataclysmic challenges!  It is time to refresh our understanding from the bedrock of Scripture and to recognize the urgency of the times.  I believe we are rapidly being plunged into a period of time about which the Bible says more than it does about any other period of time in history – including the time that Jesus walked the shores of Galilee and climbed the mountains of Judea!

Are you ready?  Maranatha!

Thy Kingdom Come: Christ’s Millennial Reign – Chuck MisslerIn this briefing pack, Chuck Missler and Albert Israeli will explore mysteries of the Kingdom teachings, including the detailed Millennial Temple and the confinement and release of the Evil One. Click for more information – Audio Cassette

1. See our briefing package, The Next Holocaust and the Refuge in Edom.  Also, Hal Lindsey’s Road to Holocaust, Bantam Books, is a definitive study of these issues.
2. Luke 1:32.
3. See our briefing package, Thy Kingdom Come.
4. Isaiah 11:1-16.
5. Isaiah 65:17; 66:22; 2 Peter 3:13; Rev 21:1.
6. Isaiah 65:20.
7. Arnold Fruchtenbaum, Footsteps of the Messiah,  p.273.   Cf.  Jerusalem in the Millennium: pp.330ff.
8. 8. Hebrews 10:4ff.

The Next Holocaust – Chuck Missler What is the purpose of the Great Tribulation? What is the prophetic role of Ammon, Moab, and Edom (now known as Jordan)? Where does Jesus return? On the Mount of Olives or in Bozrah? Click for more information – Audio Cassette

Footprints of the Messiah – Chuck MisslerWhat Old Testament Bible Study is mentioned twelve times in one book of the Bible, is given by seven different people and is almost never given today? Click for more information – Audio Cassette

After the Infamous Four: Behold, A Fifth Horseman! – Chuck Missler

Now on CD-ROM: The Prophet Ezekiel – Chuck Missler

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A Calendar Error? The 7th Millennium

From Koinonia House

Prophetic > End-Times > The 7th Millennium

As we approach the New Year, we are also approaching the close of both this century and this millennium. It should not surprise us that this will be accompanied by all kinds of eschatological speculations. They will “come out of the woodwork.” We need to realize that there will be all kinds of theories, “discoveries,” and foolishness clamoring for our attention.

When, in His confidential briefing to his disciples, Jesus answered their questions concerning His Second Coming,¹ He opened His presentation with the admonition, “Take heed that no man deceive you.”² We do need to be on our guard. And we are also specifically admonished to avoid any kind of “date setting.”³ Yet the Scripture also indicates that the “Children of the Day” will not be caught by surprise.⁴

Let’s examine one of the earliest perspectives on the climax of all history.

The Heptadic Calendar

Everyone is, of course, aware of the institution of the “Sabbath for man” in Genesis, which is also embodied in the Ten Commandments.⁵ A week of days consists of six days for labor, followed by a day of rest. It is interesting that this pattern is again replicated in several other ways.

There also is a “Week of Weeks,” the “Counting of the Omer,” between the Feast of First Fruits and the Feast of Weeks, in Hebrew, Hag HaShavuot. This turns out to also be the interval between our First Fruits (the Resurrection) and the birth of the church, on what we call (from the Greek) the Feast of Pentecost.

We also observe that there is a “Week of Months,” in the institution of the religious calendar at the Passover in the Exodus,⁶ between the month of Nisan, and the civil calendar which begins in Tishri, at Rosh Hashannah.⁷

Just as there is a Sabbath for man-a day of rest in seven-God also ordained a Sabbath for the land, in which, after six years of cultivation, they were to allow it to lie fallow for a year of rest: a Sabbatical year.⁸ It was their failure to observe this ordinance that resulted in the 70 years of captivity in Babylon.⁹

A Sabbatical Millennium?

If there are “weeks” (groups of seven) of days, weeks, months, and years, what about millennia? The inference that perhaps all of history will also be patterned after this heptadic structure is recorded in the earliest rabbinical speculations.¹⁰ As early as Nachmonides (1194-1270) we find the conjecture of a Sabbatical Millennium: 6,000 years of man’s attempts to govern himself, followed by 1,000 years of God’s perfect rule, for a total of 7,000.

The early church also regarded this possibility. We find it highlighted in the Epistle of Barnabas and subsequently embraced by Augustine and others. And, of course, these notions endure to the present day. This is, of course, also suggested by the events in Revelation 20.

A Calendar Error?

It is interesting to note that the current Hebrew calendar may have an error: the year 2000 might really be 6000 on the corrected Hebrew calendar!

The traditional Jewish calendar implies that we are approaching 5761 years since the creation of Adam. Yet they may be really closer to the year 6000. Some scholars have suggested that two principal errors appear to have occurred from the Hebrew sages of the past.¹¹

1) From a misunderstanding of Daniel 9, their erroneous assumption that there were 490 years between the destruction of the First and Second Temples, rather than 656, introduced a 166-year error.

2) A copyist error in the Septua-gint text of the genealogies of Genesis 5 appears to have introduced another 73 years.

These errors would imply a total discrepancy of 239 years. Therefore, the year 5761 should possibly be rendered the year 6000. The Jewish year of 5761 begins on Sept. 30, 2000.

Will this prove to be prophetically relevant? I personally doubt it. (I suspect that we have at least seven years which must intervene before the ultimate Millennium.)

But it is interesting that the United Nations is scheduled to “redefine itself” in September 2000. There are many other reasons to suggest that 2000 will prove to be a very interesting year.¹²

And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.
Luke 21:28

* * *

1. Mt 24; Mk 13; Lk 21.
2. Mt 24:4.
3. Mt 24:36, 42-50 ; 25:13; Mk 13:32, et al.
4. 1 Thess 5:1-6; Cf. Mt 16:1-3.
5. Ex 20:11.
6. Ex 12:2.
7. For a full development of this, see The Feasts of Israel briefing pack.
8. Lev 25:2-7; Ex 23:10-12; Lev 26:34, 35; Deut 15:1-11.
9. 2 Chr 36:20-21.
10. For a comprehensive exploration of the heptadic structure of the Scriptures, see Cosmic Codes – Hidden Messages From the Edge of Eternity.
11. Cf. Armageddon…Appointment with Destiny by Grant R. Jeffrey.
12. Watch for our updated briefing package, Strategic Trends – 2000.

Cosmic Codes – Now In Paperback – Chuck MisslerRead the implications of our finite universe and the shocking discoveries of quantum physics at the very boundaries of reality and learn their significance to our origin and personal destinies! Click for more information – Textbook

The Feasts of Israel – Chuck Missler / Dan StolebargerThe Feasts of Israel, set by God, are not only commemorative in a historical context, but are also prophetic. Click for more information – Audio Cassette

Exodus – Audio Commentary – Chuck MisslerExplore Exodus verse-by-verse with Chuck Missler. This is a 2 volume set with eight audios in each volume including notes. Click for more information – Audio Cassette

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An Alternative Ending: Part 2 – Antichrist from the Middle East?

From Koinonia House

Prophetic > End-Times > Antichrist From The Middle East?

In our previous article, we explored the possibility that while we understand that the coming world leader, whom we commonly call “the Antichrist,” is predicted to come from the Roman Empire,¹ we tend to be myopic regarding the extent of this designation: we tend to equate the Roman Empire with Western Europe, ignoring the eastern leg of this empire, which outlasted the western leg by a thousand years!

If we carefully examine the many references in the Old Testament, we discover a surprising number of allusions to this dominant personage as “the Assyrian.”² This would seem to focus on the region that we know today as Syria and Iraq.  With the current world tensions over that very region, it seems quite timely to re-examine some of our perspectives regarding the potential role of that region in the climactic Biblical scenario!

Satan’s Seven Empires

The Bible profiles man’s history in terms of seven major empires:

And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.  -Revelation 12:3

These would appear to be Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Persian, Greece, and Rome, this last one in two phases: Ancient Rome (“Phase I”) and the final re-emergent revival of the Roman Empire (“Phase II”).

This perspective derives from a careful study of Daniel 2 and 7, which profiles the “times of the Gentiles” from Babylon until God establishes His own Kingdom, with the Messiah reigning as King of Kings.  In both Daniel 2 and 7, we see four major kingdoms: Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome-with the fourth one fragmenting, but then ultimately re-emerging in the “last days.”

Strangely, the prophecies of Daniel provide a surprising amount of detail concerning both Greece and Rome, with both Chapters 7 and 8 highlighting a “little horn” that emerges among the prominent “10 horns” that will dominate the final scenario.³ This “little horn” – an 11th, in effect – is another designation for the climactic world leader we commonly call “the Antichrist.”

When Alexander the Great died, four of his generals divided up the Greek Empire, with Ptolemy in the south and Seleucus in the east taking the largest shares.  In fact, the contentions detailed in Daniel 11 chronicle – in advance – the rivalries between the Ptolemies and the Seleucids over the subsequent centuries with such an accuracy that skeptical critics have attempted to “late date” these passages to avoid acknowledging the supernatural aspect of these prophecies.⁴ [The fact that the Old Testament was translated into Greek (the Septuagint Version) during the early part of this period refutes these attempts.]

It is noteworthy that in both Daniel 8 and 11, prophecies highlighting the final world leader emerge from the passages involving the sequence of the leaders of the Seleucid Empire: the region now known as Syria and Iraq. ⁵ The seven empires are also the focus of Revelation 17:

And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space.  - Revelation 17:10

The “five are fallen” would seem to refer to the five kingdoms that had preceded John’s day: Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Persia, and Greece. The “one is” would seem to be the one existing when John was writing: Rome, in its “first phase.” The “other is not yet come” would seem to point to that final world empire that will be taken over by the “11th horn.”  The following verse also focuses on this final empire:

And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.  -Revelation 17:11

It would seem that this final “eighth” empire is one “that was, and is not,” and yet is among the list of seven.  The only empire among the seven that doesn’t exist in some form today is Assyria.  It strangely disappeared from history until the sensational discoveries of Henry Layard in 1849.

The Return of Nimrod?

The first world dictator was Nimrod (whose name means “we rebel”), who ruled from Babylon.⁶ It is interesting that Micah also refers to the “land of Nimrod” in his allusion to the final world empire.  Could it be that this final world dictator will be, in some sense, a return of Nimrod?  Could it be that there will also be some kind of climactic ellipsis of Satan’s kingdoms⁷ as we approach the final judgment? If so, it is noteworthy that Nimrod ruled from Babylon.

The Mystery of Babylon

This may add an additional dimension to the mysteries surrounding the future of Babylon: Is it just used as a symbol?  Or will Babylon literally rise to prominence on the banks of the Euphrates once again?

There are those who regard “Babylon” as simply a rhetorical device, and who interpret the prophetic passages symbolically.  There are also those who feel that the “Mystery Babylon” of Revelation refers to the Vatican. ⁸ However, there are passages in both Isaiah and Jeremiah that clearly describe a destruction of Babylon that has never happened-yet.⁹ (Many Bible commentaries and helps are in error on this point: one must not confuse the fall of Babylon to the Persians in 539 B.C. with the destruction of Babylon detailed in the Bible.  When Cyrus conquered Babylon, he was able to brag to the world that he did it without a battle!)

It is significant to compare the accounts of Babylon’s destiny in Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Revelation. [See Table]. Contrary to the details emphasized in the prophecies of Isaiah and Jeremiah, the building materials of ancient Babylon have been reused; the area has been inhabited over the centuries, contrary to the prophetic passages.  We feel that it is quite significant that Saddam Hussein has made significant efforts to rebuild Babylon and has used the rebuilt Nebuchadnezzar’s palace for state occasions.  It appears that the cataclysmic destruction described by Isaiah and Jeremiah (“like Sodom and Gomorrah”) is still in the future.

A strange vision in the Book of Zechariah may hold the key.

Then the angel that talked with me went forth, and said unto me, Lift up now thine eyes, and see what is this that goeth forth. And I said, What is it? And he said, This is an ephah that goeth forth. He said moreover, This is their resemblance through all the earth. And, behold, there was lifted up a talent of lead: and this is a woman that sitteth in the midst of the ephah.  And he said, This is wickedness. And he cast it into the midst of the ephah; and he cast the weight of lead upon the mouth thereof.  – Zechariah 5:5-8

An ephah was a familiar volumetric measure in commercial practice, about a bushel in capacity.  The talent of lead was a commercial standard of weight, about 96 Avoirdupois (U.S.) pounds.  The woman that was sealed into this container was labeled “wickedness.”

Then lifted I up mine eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came out two women, and the wind was in their wings; for they had wings like the wings of a stork: and they lifted up the ephah between the earth and the heaven. Then said I to the angel that talked with me, Whither do these bear the ephah? And he said unto me, To build it an house in the land of Shinar: and it shall be established, and set there upon her own base.  - Zechariah 5:10-11

It should be borne in mind that the stork was, in Jewish terms, an unclean bird.¹⁰ This vision has “sinister” written all over it!  Shinar is the geographic location where Babylon was located.  It seems that this woman – wickedness, mother of harlots, etc. – is to be relocated to where it all began.

All idolatry and paganism had its roots at Bab-El, which became Babylon.  The pagan priesthood and its attendant rites then followed the political power structures of each succeeding empire until it ultimately settled in Rome.  Thus, the various false gods they worshiped followed in various forms: Ishtar and Tammuz of Babylon became Isis and Osiris in Egypt, Aphrodite and Zeus in Greece, Venus and Jupiter in Rome, and Ashtoreth and Baal in Chaldea.  Zechariah’s vision seems to indicate that this pagan centroid of power will migrate back to where it all started to receive its final judgment.

Further Mysteries

There are those who also suspect that the final world leader will be an apparent “reincarnation” of a prominent leader of the past.  Nero was a common suggestion.  Others even believe it could be Judas reincarnated.¹¹ (“Reincarnation” has been a traditional lie of Satan, echoing his lie at Eden: “Ye shall not surely die.”¹² Reincarnation is clearly refuted in Scripture,¹³ although Satan may stage a counterfeit.) But there are other possibilities as well.  What about cloning from a protein sample of the past? Is it possible that this “eighth” is “of the seven” in microbiological sense? Also, remember the strange hint that Jesus gave us:

But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.  -Matthew 24:37; Luke 17:26

In order to appreciate this allusion, it is essential to understand what the “days of Noah” were like, including the strange mischief caused by the fallen angels.  It has been suggested that this coming leader may be a Nephilim, a recurrence of events in Genesis 6 that brought the previous cataclysmic judgment of the flood upon the earth.

Conclusion

With the current world turmoil surrounding Iraq and the Middle East, it is likely that the coming months and years will bring some striking changes.  It is essential that we stand back from our presumptions and prejudices and listen carefully to what the Biblical text is telling us.  We are living in exciting times, but we need to be diligent in our study of God’s Word.  The only certain barrier to truth is the presumption that we already have it.

This article was excerpted from our currently featured briefing pack, AntiChrist – The Alternate Ending.

1. Daniel 9:26.
2. Isaiah 10:5, 24; 14:25; 30:31; Ezekiel 31:3f., Micah 5:5, 6.
3. Daniel 7:8, 20-26; 8:9-14.
4. Daniel 11:5-35.
5. Daniel 8:9-14; 11:36ff.
6. Genesis 10:8-10.
7. 2 Corinthians 4:4.
8. Alexander Hislop, The Two Babylons, is the classic work here. However, Dave Hunt’s A Woman Rides the Beast , has emerged as the definitive work here; well researched and documented, it is a “must read” on this topic.
9. Isaiah 13, 14; Jeremiah 50, 51.
10. Leviticus 11:19; Deuteronomy 14:18.
11. Psalm 55:11-14; Isaiah 28:18, Revelation 6:8; Matthew 12:41-43; John 17:12; John 6:7; 2 Thessalonians 2:3; Acts 1:25, with Revelation 11:7. (He emerges out of the Abousso , Rev 11:7.)
12. Genesis 3:4.
13. Hebrews 9:27.

AntiChrist – The Alternate Ending – Chuck MisslerWhen studying prophecies concerning the AntiChrist, we should remember that the Roman Empire had an eastern leg that, in fact, survived the western leg by a thousand years! Click for more information – Audio Cassette

Pedigree of the Coming World Leader? The Genealogy of the Antichrist – Chuck Missler

The March Toward Tyranny: The Man On Horseback – Chuck Missler

What’s Really Going On? The Antichrist Doesn’t Wear Tights – John Loeffler

An Alternative View: The Return of Nimrod? – Chuck Missler

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An Alternative View: The Return of Nimrod?

From Koinonia House

Prophetic > End-Times > The Return Of Nimrod?

by Chuck Missler

An Alternative View:

The Return of Nimrod?

With the continuing tensions over Iraq apparently coming to a head, many questions arise concerning the prophetic future of this region, which on the one hand has such deep roots as the cradle of civilization and yet also has a destiny in the final Biblical scenario.  There may be far more relevance to this region than is commonly recognized in most books and articles on end-time prophecy.

All of us are subject to limitations imposed by the presumptions we bring to a topic, and it may be essential to step back from time to time and reestablish a fresh perspective. The only certain barrier to truth is the presumption that you already have it.

The Coming World Leader

One of the dominant topics among prophecy buffs is the identity of the coming leader whom we call “the Antichrist.”  As current events seem to be increasingly drawing us into the threshold of the climactic Biblical scenario, speculations continue.

One of the most fundamental passages concerning the end times is the famous “Seventy Weeks” prophecy contained in the last four verses of Daniel 9.  The Angel Gabriel interrupts Daniel’s prayer to provide him with what has to be the most astonishing passage in the entire Bible:  he predicts the precise day-five centuries in advance-the exact day that the Messiah would present Himself as king!¹

In describing an interval between the contiguous group of years of 69 weeks (of years), and the final “70th week,” we notice that the Angel Gabriel declares that the:
…Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary… - Daniel 9:26

After the Messiah is killed (“cut off”), the “people of the Prince that shall come” shall destroy the city and the sanctuary.  This, of course, was fulfilled when Jerusalem and the Temple were destroyed by the Roman legions in A.D. 70.

“The Prince that shall come,” thus becomes one of the 33 titles in the Old Testament of the coming world leader that will figure so prominently in end-time prophecies.

This also becomes one of several passages which  indicates that this final world leader will emerge out of the Roman Empire, whose legions destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple.

A Case of Myopia?

All of us, I suspect, tend to equate the Roman Empire with Western Europe, and there have been many books suggesting conjectures involving Rome, the Vatican, and the rise of the European Union, etc.

We, too, have published numerous materials exploring these possibilities.  However, all of us may have been subject to a myopia (“nearsightedness”) by overlooking the fact that the Roman Empire had an eastern leg that, in fact, survived the western leg by a thousand years!  [Roman Empire Map]

In A.D. 284 , Emperor Diocletian restored efficient government to the empire after the near anarchy of the 3rd century.² He divided the Empire into two legs³ (just as Daniel had predicted when he interpreted Nebuchadnezzar’s dream nine centuries earlier).⁴

His reorganization of the fiscal, administrative and military machinery of the empire temporarily shored up the decaying empire in the West and laid the foundation for the forthcoming Byzantine Empire of the East.

In A.D. 312, the Emperor Constantine relocated the capital of the empire to its eastern leg, to Byzantium, naming it Constantinople (the “New Rome”).

After Constantine’s death in 395, Emperor Theodosius divided the empire between his two sons and it was never again reunited.⁵

(It was Theodosius who made Christianity the sole religion of the empire, and subsequently Constantinople assumed preeminence over the West.)

In the late 5th century, the western leg began to disintegrate, but the eastern leg, commonly dubbed the “Byzantine Empire,” endured until 1453 when it finally was overrun by the Muslims.

There are a number of Biblical texts that strongly suggest that the coming world leader, commonly called the Antichrist, will emerge from the region of the eastern leg of the Roman Empire, and that profoundly impacts our prophetic perspectives.

Daniel 11

Our clearest identification comes from prophecies relating to the precedent empire: the breakup of the Greek Empire after Alexander’s death.

When Alexander the Great died, his four generals divided up the empire-which reached eastward even to India.  Cassander took Macedonia and Greece; Lysimachus took Asia Minor and Thrace; Seleucus took over Syria, Babylon and the east; and, Ptolemy took over Egypt [See Map].

Since Israel was caught between the territories of Seleucus and Ptolemy, it subsequently was a buffer zone between these two rivals.  Daniel Chapter 11 details the struggles between the Seleucid Empire (“the king of the north”) and the Ptolemies (“the king of the south”).

(Many scholars refer to the 400 years between the Old Testament and the New Testament as “the silent years.”  In fact, much of this history was written in advance, with an accuracy that has forced skeptical critics to attempt to “late date” the book of Daniel!)

The first 35 verses of Daniel 11 are summarized in [Table 1]. From verses 36-40, the passage focuses on Antiochus IV (“Epiphanes”) whose desecration of the Temple, and placing a pagan idol in the Holy of Holies (the “abomination of desolation”), triggered the Maccabean Revolt that threw off the yoke of the Seleucid Empire.

Three years after that infamous desecration, the Israelites rededicated the Temple, and this event is celebrated to this day on the 25th of Kislev as Hanukkah.⁶

Jesus’ Confidential Briefing

Two centuries later, when four disciples came to Jesus for a confidential briefing on His Second Coming,⁷ Jesus referred to a repeat of that historical event, the “abomination of desolation,” as the key to end-time prophecy.⁸ A similar event will trigger the climactic three-and-a-half-year period that Jesus Himself labeled as the “Great Tribulation.”⁹

In Daniel 11:40-45, the passage continues by looking forward to the final “king of the north,” to the person we commonly call the Antichrist.  It is significant that this climactic leader seems to be presented as the final member of this previous detailed line of the “kings of the north.”

It would seem, taking the chapter as a whole, that the final world leader will emerge from this region which comprised the Seleucid empire, rather than from the western regions as commonly assumed.

“The Assyrian”

It is provocative that the Prophet Micah refers to this final conqueror as the “Assyrian”:

And this [one] shall be the peace, when the Assyrian shall come into our land: and when he shall tread in our palaces, then shall we raise against him seven shepherds, and eight principal men.And they shall waste the land of Assyria with the sword, and the land of Nimrod in the entrances thereof: thus shall he deliver us from the Assyrian, when he cometh into our land, and when he treadeth within our borders. - Micah 5:5, 6

Isaiah and Ezekiel also employ this very term.¹⁰

The Assyrian empire preceded the Babylonian empire by several centuries.  This empire embraced the region we know today as Syria and Iraq.

The first world dictator was Nimrod (whose name means “we rebel”), who ruled from Babylon. ¹¹ It is interesting that Micah also refers to this “land of Nimrod” in his passage quoted above. Could it be that this final world dictator will be, in some sense, a return of Nimrod?

This may add an additional dimension to the mysteries surrounding the future of Babylon: is it just used as a symbol, or will Babylon literally rise to prominence on the banks of the Euphrates once again?

Isaiah and Jeremiah clearly describe a destruction of Babylon that has never happened-yet.¹² Zechariah seems to hold the key.¹³

*  *  *

In our next article we will continue to explore the potential implications of these passages. This article has been excerpted from our briefing package, Antichrist: An Alternate Ending.

AntiChrist – The Alternate Ending – Chuck MisslerWhen studying prophecies concerning the AntiChrist, we should remember that the Roman Empire had an eastern leg that, in fact, survived the western leg by a thousand years! Click for more information – Audio Cassette

1. Daniel 9:25; Cf. Luke 19:38-44.  See our briefing package, Daniel’s 70 Weeks for an in-depth review of this incredible passage.
2. Enclyclopaedia Britannica, Vol 4, p. 105.
3. Alexander Roberts, The Ante-Nicene Fathers Vol. VII : Translations of the Writings of the Fathers Down to A.D. 325, ECF 1.7.1.5.0.7, Logos Research Systems, Oak Harbor WA, 1997.
4. Daniel 2:26-45.
5. Encyclopaedia Britannica, Vol. 2, p. 699.
6. This is referred to in the New Testament: John 10:22.
7. Matthew 24f; Mark 13; Luke 21.
8. Matthew 24:15.
9. Matthew 24:21, 22; quoting from Daniel 12:1.
10. Isaiah 10:5, 24; 14:25; 30:31;  Ezekiel 31:3f.
11. Genesis 10:8-10.
12. Isaiah 13, 14; Jeremiah 50, 51.
13. Zechariah 5:5-11.

AntiChrist – The Alternate Ending – Chuck MisslerWhen studying prophecies concerning the AntiChrist, we should remember that the Roman Empire had an eastern leg that, in fact, survived the western leg by a thousand years! Click for more information – Audio Cassette

Daniel – MP3 Commentary – Chuck MisslerChuck Missler’s updated commentary on Daniel now with his all-new multimedia slideshow presentations! Click for more information – MP3 on CD-ROM

Daniel’s 70 Weeks – MP3 Download – Chuck MisslerChuck Missler examines some of the most provocative passages in the Bible – the Messianic and end-times prophecies in the book of Daniel. All new updated version! Click for more information – MP3 Download

Pedigree of the Coming World Leader? The Genealogy of the Antichrist – Chuck Missler

What’s Really Going On? The Antichrist Doesn’t Wear Tights – John Loeffler

The March Toward Tyranny: The Man On Horseback – Chuck Missler

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The Kingdom, Power & Glory

From Koinonia House

The Kingdom, Power & Glory

Nan’s Corner: The Kingdom, Power & Glory by Nancy and Chuck Missler

Did you know that Daniel Webster, the famous 1800s statesman, was a born-again Christian? He was also known as a brilliant scholar who gave the most eloquent speeches ever delivered in Congress. One evening he was invited to lecture a group of congressmen. After dinner, the small talk didn’t interest him, so he got up and went into another room. The Chairman of the group was concerned, followed him and tried to engage him in a meaningful conversation: “Mr. Webster,” he asked, “tell me what is the greatest thought that has ever passed through your mind?” Webster immediately responded, “My accountability to God” (and he meant after he was saved!)

The most important thought that Daniel Webster ever had was “the importance of his accountability before the Lord,” as a Christian! He went on to say: “God puts us here and will someday judge us for the way we have treated Him and our fellow beings. This thought should be written in bold type on the tablets of our hearts.”¹

This is really the subject of our new expanded and updated book, The Kingdom, Power and Glory, and the subject that we are going to be exploring over the next several months in our newsletter—the importance of our own accountability before God, after we are saved.

The way it all began with us is about three years ago, Chuck and I read a book called The Reign of the Servant Kings by Joseph Dillow and that experience began a series of events that totally changed the way we look at our own accountability before the Lord.

After being Christians for more than 50 years, what we learned then and what we have learned since then in our re-search for the new book has totally revolutionized our personal walks with the Lord. We consider the truths that we share in the book to be some of the most life-changing principles we’ve encountered since our new births.

We are passionate about this material because it has made the whole Bible come alive for us. Passages of Scripture that we have known for years are now taking on a new depth of understanding; passages that have stumped us are being enlightened; and passages we never saw before as millennial are now jumping off the page.

We pray that we’ll be able to adequately communicate some of what God has taught us and then you can take what you hear back to the Word of God and see if the Lord confirms the same thing to your hearts.

We are going to cover some controversial issues—issues that probably will go against some of your traditional views, as they did ours—so we encourage you, first to be open and teachable like Acts 17:11 tells us, but then check out everything out in God’s Word.

If intense warfare is any indication of the importance of a spiritual message, then this message has to be one of the most important messages we have ever given! Because the warfare in preparing for this book—and the DVD & CD series that ac-companies it—has been greater than anything we’ve ever faced in preparing other studies or materials.

So, get ready for a real roller-coaster ride as we begin to explore some of these things together.

One of God’s purposes for calling us as Christians is “to be conformed to His image.” We used to believe that to be the ex-tent of our calling. But, we’ve come to understand that God’s calling is far more extensive than that.

The real reason for our calling is to rule and reign as kings and priests with Christ in the coming Millennial Kingdom and after that for eternity. Genesis 1:26-28 and Revelation 5:9-10 are two Scriptures that confirm we were created for this very purpose. Thus, everything in the universe moves toward this goal.

Being conformed into His image is critically important (being a living example of Christ is what will bring other to Him), but the real purpose for our calling is to have positions of authority alongside of Christ in the coming Millennial Kingdom, and after that, in eternity.

But, here’s the catch: Our life here on earth is the training ground, the proving ground, and the testing ground for that privilege. In other words, it’s not a shoe-in! It doesn’t happen automatically! It’s doesn’t happen with-out effort!

The Millennial Kingdom that we will be talking about is not heaven; it’s that literal, physical kingdom on earth where Jesus Christ will reign in person for a thousand years. It’s a place where we will recognize each other, where we will have intimacy with the King of kings, and where we will have a chance to rule and reign alongside of Christ. (Micah 4:1-2)

When we say “rule and reign” with Christ (which we will mention quite often) we simply mean we will hold positions of authority (or levels of responsibility) that Christ will entrust to us. It might be authority over a country, over a state, a city, a town, or simply a housing complex. It will all depend upon our faithfulness here in this life.

Most Christians acknowledge the Millennial Kingdom to some degree or another, but many have no idea as to what is required to enjoy a significant role there. We certainly didn’t. There are many Scriptures that talk about the requirements for ruling and reigning. For example: 2 Timothy 2:12 and Romans 8:17 which both tell us that only “if we suffer, will we reign with Him.”

Suffering in this context doesn’t mean being tortured in some far off prison. This type of suffering comes from denying ourselves. It comes from baring ourselves from following what we think and feel, and choosing instead to follow Christ. And, it’s true, when we deny our “flesh,” it often is painful and we do suffer.

These are only two of the many Scriptures that talk about God’s requirements for ruling and reigning, yet many of us just skip over these passages.

Another example: We asked one young believer recently, “Does what you do here on earth as a believer influence your position in the coming kingdom?” He immediately responded, “Oh yeah, we get rewards or something like that!” That was the extent of his understanding. To be honest, that was the extent of our own understanding until a few years ago. “Oh, yeah, at the Judgment Seat of Christ we get rewards or some-thing like that!”

Many of us don’t understand that not only our rewards, but also our place of responsibility in this future kingdom will ei-ther be won or lost according to our faithfulness in this life.

2 Corinthians 5:10 talks about the Judgment Seat of Christ and tells us that all Christians will be judged there according to what they have done, either for good or for bad. This judgment is a judicial evaluation not only of the good we have done; but also for the bad. It’s here that our position in the coming kingdom will be determined. So, this judgment seat is not just for rewards!

Erwin Lutzer, Pastor of Moody Church in Chicago and author of One Minute After You Die, said: “The assumption that rewards are nothing more than crowns is false in my opinion. Rewards have more to do with levels of responsibility that will be given to us. When we become more like Him we will be qualified to share with Him in the inheritance, and to work with Him in important positions of high responsibility over the whole universe.”

Colossians 3:24 calls it the “reward of inheritance.”

Consequently, there is an urgent need in the Christian body for a renewed recognition of our own personal accountability before the Lord (after we have been saved), just as Daniel Webster said. It’s essential that we have a “kingdom perspective” where we see our lives here on earth in the context of eternity. We must understand that once we are saved, we are still responsible for what we do with the rest of our lives here and now.

It isn’t “cheap grace”! Saving faith is more than just belief. It’s more than just knowing the Scriptures! And it’s more than just going to church on Sundays. Saving faith is learning how to be a partaker of Christ’s Life––which means not only receiving His Life at our new birth (being born again), but also living His Life every day!

The Bible calls these kind of sanctified Christians (those who partake of His Life) “overcomers.” And the Lord promises some incredible things to these overcomers: “He that overcometh shall inherit all things, and I will be his God, and he shall be My son.” (Revelation 21:7)

Both of us have been Christians for more than 50 years and we are only just now seeing the importance not only of becoming overcomers, but also of our own personal accountability before the Lord. We don’t want other believers to have to wait 50 years in order to see and understand these things. We want to help them know now what “the hope of their calling” is and understand now what the “riches of their inheritance” are in the coming kingdom. (Ephesians 1:17, 18) We want them to see that they are deciding today what kind of Millennium they will enjoy tomorrow.

Next month we will explore exactly what an overcomer is; why it’s so important to become one; and, what the future holds for overcomers.

* * *

To be continued: Introduction Part 2. This article has been excerpted in part from Chuck and Nan’s book, The Kingdom, Power, & Glory.

Visit the King’s High Way Website

This article was originally published in the
May 2009 Personal Update NewsJournal.
For a FREE 1-Year Subscription, click here.

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**NOTES**

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Note:

1. From Perhaps Today, by Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins, Tyndale Publishers, Wheaton, IL, 2001, pp. 178-179.

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For We Are His Workmanship

From Koinonia House

**MEMORY VERSE OF THE WEEK**

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For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
Ephesians 2:10 KJV

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**Important News Headlines**

From Koinonia House

**IMPORTANT NEWS HEADLINES**

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Masters Student Expelled For Christian Viewpoint – May 26, 2009
Eastern Michigan University (EMU) African-American grad student Julea Ward was kicked out of the school’s counseling program after she requested a homosexual man be counseled by another person. According to Gary Glenn of the American Family Association of Michigan, Julea Ward made the request because, as a Christian, her beliefs and counsel would not affirm the client’s lifestyle… OneNewsNow

CA’s Same-Sex Marriage Ban Will Stand – May 26, 2009
The state Supreme Court has upheld a voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage, but also decided that the estimated 18,000 gay couples who tied the knot before the law took effect will stay wed. The decision Tuesday rejected an argument from gay rights activists that the ban revised the California constitution’s equal protection clause to such a dramatic degree that it first needed the Legislature’s approval. USA Today

MIT Robotic Therapy Holds Promise For Cerebral Palsy – May 26, 2009
Over the past few years, MIT engineers have successfully tested robotic devices to help stroke patients learn to control their arms and legs. Now, they’re building on that work to help children with cerebral palsy. “Robotic therapy can potentially help reduce impairment and facilitate neuro-development of youngsters with cerebral palsy,” says Hermano Igo Krebs, principal research scientist in mechanical engineering. MedicalNewsToday

Trouble With North Korea Only Beginning – May 26, 2009
President Obama, other world leaders and the UN Security Council strongly condemned North Korea’s nuclear test Monday, while experts who have studied the isolated state for years warned that the US has few options and that more provocation likely lies ahead. On Tuesday, South Korea said it will join the US-led Proliferation Security Initiative, which began in 2003 to deter states such as North Korea and Iran from trade in missile and nuclear technology. North Korea has warned that it would consider the South’s full participation in the program as a declaration of war. The Washington Times

Palestinian Christians Don’t Feel Safe Anymore – May 25, 2009
Palestinian Christians are reeling from a series of grave desecrations this week that they say are indicative of intimidation tactics from the town’s growing Muslim population. “Christians don’t feel free anymore. Our way of life is changing while the Muslim population grows,” a local Christian told WND. The Christian would only give his first name, Anis, for fear of Muslim retaliation if he speaks out. WorldNetDaily

Netanyahu Would Remove Illegal Outposts – May 25, 2009
Deeply concerned about the Iranian threat and eager for US support, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is willing to remove illegal outposts while allowing natural growth in existing West Bank settlements. “We are not in regular times,” Netanyahu said. “The danger is approaching, and the most dangerous thing for a live organism is to not recognize the danger on the way.” Israel’s Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman disagreed, urging the government to ratify the road map. The Jerusalem Post

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In Memoriam

From Koinonia House

IN MEMORIAM

“It is, in a way, an odd thing to honor those who died in defense of our country, in defense of us, in wars afar away. The imagination plays a trick. We see these soldiers in our mind as old and wise. We see them as something like the Founding Fathers, grave and gray-haired. But most of them were boys when they died, and they gave up two lives, the one they were living and the one they would have lived. When they died, they gave up their chance to be husbands and fathers and grandfathers. They gave up their chance to be revered old men. They gave up everything for our country, for us. And all we can do is remember.” – Ronald Reagan

It began on April 19, 1775 at the battle of Lexington and Concord. It was this famous revolutionary battle that was preceded by the midnight ride of Paul Revere and made immortal by the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson, who wrote:

“By the rude bridge that arched the flood
Their flag to April’s breeze unfurled
Here once the embattled farmers stood
And fired the shot heard round the world.”

The battle of Lexington and Concord marked the beginning of America’s war for independence. It was then the blood of the first American patriots was spilled. From that day until this, many of our men and women have willingly given their lives for the cause of freedom – in many wars, on many continents, with varying degrees of support from the home front.

Today, in the Middle East, thousands of United States soldiers are fighting to protect the values and freedoms that we too often take for granted. Please continue to pray for spiritual healing for our nation, wisdom for our leaders, and safety for our soldiers fighting overseas. Also, in honor of Memorial Day, please take a moment to thank our military veterans and those in active military service for risking their lives for the cause of freedom.

Memorial Day has passed, yet the war continues.   The battle is not only made by the men and women in uniform, although theirs is a very visual struggle; the battle is fought every day by each of us as we lay down our own lives and put ourselves aside in the protection and nurture of our families and our communities.   The battle continues every day for the souls of men and women for whom Christ died.  As we walk on from Memorial Day into the summer, let’s continue to remember those who have gone before us, and be inspired to love as they have loved, giving the last full measure of devotion to those causes that deserve it.

Related Links:

• Strategic Trends: America’s Challenge – Koinonia House
• Hosea, Can You See? – MP3 Download – Koinonia House

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Who is Supreme Court Nominee Sonia Sotomayor?

From Koinonia House

WHO IS SUPREME COURT NOMINEE SONIA SOTOMAYOR?

President Obama’s first US Supreme Court nomination, Judge Sonia Sotomayor, has a richly inspiring personal story. Raised by a widowed mother in the Bronx projects, Sotomayor rose from her humble beginnings to serve for a decade on the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, and may soon become the nation’s third female and first Hispanic Supreme Court justice. Judge Sotomayor’s history is not irrelevant to her quality as a judge; we all pull from our experiences when making important decisions. The big question is, how does Sotomayor process controversial issues and what does her voting record tell us about the types of decisions she makes?

Sonia Sotomayor’s father died when she was nine-years-old, yet Sotomayor’s mother worked six-days-per-week in order to send her two children to Catholic school. Sotomayor attended Princeton University, where she graduated summa cum laude, and then went onto Yale Law School, where she became editor the Yale Law Journal. President Bush (41) nominated Sotomayor to the federal court in 1991 and she was promoted to the appeals court for the Second Circuit in 1997 by President Clinton. Now, at age 54, Sotomayor is in position to take her seat on the most powerful court in the land.

Liberals say that Sotomayor is a brilliant woman who is hardly a radical, and will likely vote much the same as David Hackett Souter, whose seat she will fill after his retirement.

Conservatives want to know how Sotomayor will approach the Constitution. She concerned conservatives by a statement she made when speaking at Duke University, saying, “All of the legal defense funds out there, they’re looking for people with court of appeals experience” because “the court of appeals is where policy is made.”  That statement presented her as a judicial activist.

In explanation, Sotomayor answered her critics by saying, “On the Court of Appeals, you are looking to how the law is developing so that it will then be applied to a broad class of cases. So you are always thinking about the ramifications of this ruling on the next step in the development of the law.”   She clarified that judges “don’t make law.”

Constitutional Originalists are still wary.  “Americans want the Supreme Court to make decisions based on the Constitution and not on some lawless standard that puts identity politics before the law,” Judicial Watch said in a statement. “There is no room on the Supreme Court for someone who will put her feeling and politics above the rule of law.”

Whether Sotomayor will follow the words of the Constitution – or whether she will try to bend the Constitution to her will – is the question people want answered. The best way to know her, though, is to look at the decisions she’s made in the past. Sotomayor’s substantial number of years as a judge give America plenty to sift through to understand what sort of jurist she will be.

Election Law:
In Gelb v Board of Elections Sotomayor ruled in favor of write-in voting on ballots. She was the first federal judge to do so, writing that “states cannot structure elections in a manner that favors candidates of established parties.”

Affirmative Action:
In a famous case, which has since gone to the US Supreme Court (Ricci v. DeStefano), Sotomayor voted to side with the city of New Haven when it threw out standardized tests for firefighter advancement because too few minorities were able to pass it. The City decided to scrap the test because its results would have had a “disparate impact” on minorities, and there was concern about lawsuits over employment discrimination. In a fiercely split decision, Sotomayor voted in favor of the city and against the white firefighters who said their rights were violated.

First Amendment:
Yet, in Pappas v. Giuliani, Sotomayor voted to uphold the free speech rights of a NYPD employee who sent out racist materials through the mail on his own time. She argued that the NYPD could not terminate the employee, because he retained his First Amendment rights outside of work even if his speech was “offensive, hateful, and insulting.”

Fourth Amendment:
In N.G. ex rel. S.G. v. Connecticut, Sotomayor voted against the strip searching of troubled adolescent girls at juvenile detention centers, and disagreed with the majority in doing so. She agreed that some of the strip searches had been lawful, but due to their severity, they should not be allowed “in the absence of individualized suspicion, of adolescents who have never been charged with a crime.”

On the other hand, Sotomayor voted in Leventhal v. Knapek that a DOT employee’s rights were not violated when his employer searched his computer, because the employer had reasonable grounds to suspect “work-related misconduct.”

Abortion:
In Center for Reproductive Law and Policy v. Bush, Sotomayor voted in favor of President Bush’s Mexico City Policy and against abortion rights groups. She argued that the government “is free to favor the anti-abortion position over the pro-choice position, and can do so with public funds.” According to LifeNews, Sotomayor is “[t]he only potential Supreme Court justice who may provide hope for pro-life advocates.”  Sotomayor has never decided a case on the constitutionality of abortion itself.

George Pavia, a New York lawyer representing major Italian clients called Sotomayor “liberal” 25 years ago, saying, “She is liberal, as am I,” Pavia said. “Liberal without being a flaming type of do-gooder or anything of the sort. To call her a centrist would not be accurate. To call her wild-eyed would also not be accurate. She is far too rational, far too interested in the underlying facts.”

The US Senate will do more to dig into the character and history of Judge Sotomayor, and will make the final decision on her confirmation.  In the meanwhile, her success in rising from fatherless child in the Bronx to US Supreme Court nominee deserves congratulations.

Related Links:

• Obama Picks Sotomayor, Citing Intellect – The New York Times
• Pro-Life Group Details Pro-Abortion Views of Likely Obama Supreme Court Picks – Life News
• For Sotomayor, Humble Beginnings to High Court Pick – The Washington Post
• Obama Nominates Judge Sonia Sotomayor for Supreme Court Justice – Fox News
• Sotomayor Has Very Good Record in Election Law – Ballot Access News

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