Edmund Heddle looks at the sobering calling on every prophet's life to warn people of coming judgment and encourage them to repent.

God operates an early-warning system. In his mercy he warns people and nations of the inevitable result arising from their continued sin and disobedience, urging them to repent so as to escape the coming judgment. This he does through his servants the prophets.

Men may not like prophets interfering in their reckless pleasures and unjust profits and may choose to ignore their warnings. That does not alter the fact that God's warning messengers are a gift of his grace and represent the only remedy for man's pride and self-pleasing - and the only way of escape from condemnation and judgment.

God operates an early-warning system, urging people to repent through his servants the prophets.

Flood warning!

The story of Noah provides the earliest example of how God always warns mankind of coming judgment.

God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways. So God said to Noah, 'I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is full of violence...I am going to bring floodwaters on the earth to destroy all life under the heavens...so make yourself an ark' (Gen 6:12-17)

Sadly, the warning of Noah, the preacher of righteousness, was ignored and the people went on "eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed them all" (2 Pet 2:5; Luke 17:26-27). All men need to do to be lost is to be totally absorbed in daily living.

All men need to do to be lost is to be totally absorbed in daily living.

Fires of judgment

It is the prophet Amos who tells us that "the sovereign Lord does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets" (Amos 3:7), and we see this principle demonstrated in the story of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. "Then the Lord said, 'Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?'" (Gen 18:17). But he did not do that. Instead, he confided to Abraham that the homosexual practices of those cities are so utterly evil that they - the communities - must be wiped out (Gen 18:20, 19:4-5).

This sharing of God's decision with his servant made intercession possible, and Abraham did all he could to persuade the Almighty to spare those cities. When God reveals to us today that the fires of judgment must fall on modern towns far more wicked than those ancient cities, we too must intercede that they will repent and so be spared.

When God shares his decisions with his servants, it makes intercession possible.

Years of famine

The scriptures recount how Pharaoh had a double dream - a warning from God as to what was going to happen to Egypt in the next fourteen years. But neither he nor his wise men could interpret its meaning. Hearing that there was a young man in prison who could interpret dreams, Pharaoh sent for Joseph and told him:

'I have heard it said of you that when you hear a dream you can interpret it'. 'I cannot do it', Joseph replied to Pharaoh, 'but God will give Pharaoh the answer' (Gen 41:15-16)

The answer Joseph gave to Pharaoh foretold that "seven years of great abundance are coming...but seven years of famine will follow them and the abundance will not be remembered because the famine that follows it will be so severe." Joseph goes on to say that "the reason the dream was given to Pharaoh in two forms is that the matter has been firmly decided by God, and God will do it soon" (Gen 41:32).

The plan commended itself to Pharaoh and his officials and Joseph was put in charge, as the Egyptian leader exclaimed, "Can we find anyone like this man, one in whom is the Spirit of God?"

This is not the only place in the Bible where guidance was given to Spirit-filled men telling them how to cope with an announced famine. Agabus predicted that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world, and the Christians in Antioch sent help to their brothers living in Judea (Acts 11:27-30).

Threatened disaster

The Pharaoh at the time of Moses was very different from the Pharaoh who had appointed Joseph to be his Food Minister four hundred years earlier. When Moses and Aaron were sent to ask him to release the children of Israel, it was no surprise to the Lord that his answer was "No!". In fact, God had warned Moses that "he will not listen to you" (Ex 7:2-4).

At this point the Lord began a series of ten plagues, a softening-up process which continued until the final threat of disaster upon all the first-born of man and beast resulted in "loud wailing in Egypt, for there was not a house without someone dead" (Ex 12:30).

It is still the task of the prophet to declare that "the wages of sin is death" (Rom 6:23), and this must be done whatever the response. As the Lord said to Ezekiel, "The people to whom I am sending you are obstinate and stubborn. Say to them, 'This is what the Sovereign Lord says'. And whether they listen or fail to listen - they will know that a prophet has been among them" (Ezek 2:4-5).

It is still the task of prophets to declare that the wages of sin is death – whatever the people's response.

Repeated warnings

Eli the priest had two wicked sons, Hophni and Phineas, "whose sin was very great in the Lord's sight" (1 Sam 2:12, 17). They were guilty of sacrilege and of having sex with women who were serving at the Tent of Meeting (1 Sam 2:17. 22). Eli had mildly rebuked them (1 Sam 2:23) but had failed to restrain them (1 Sam 3:13).

An unnamed prophet had been sent by the Lord to warn Eli that if they continued in their rebellion they would both die on the same day (1 Sam 2:27-34), This warning was repeated when the boy Samuel learned to listen to the Lord s voice and was given a heavy burden which he wished to keep from Eli (1 Sam 3:10-14).

The prophet has a solemn responsibility to warn leaders of God's people against the dangers of manifesting a domineering attitude on the one hand and of sexual laxity on the other. Instead, all who are called to ministry should covet to do according to what is in God's heart and mind (1 Sam 2:35).

Prophets also have a solemn responsibility to warn leaders of God's people against wrong attitudes to their ministry.

Disobedient prophet

When Jonah was first sent to Nineveh to preach against that great city, he refused (Jonah 1:1-2). He did not want the city he hated to repent so he ran away. Prophets do not always like the message God gives them to proclaim. But the Lord has ways of dealing with us and bringing us to our senses; mercifully for us it is not a three-day stay inside a great fish! God deals with us in various ways to end our disobedience and to help us to a better kind of thinking (Jonah 4:11).

When Jonah eventually got round to doing what he had been told to do and announced, "Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown" (Jonah 3:4), there was a fantastic response - all in Nineveh from the least to the greatest repented, believed and declared a fast with the wearing of sackcloth. How well the king had got the prophetic message is shown in his words: "Let everyone call urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence. Who knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish" (Jonah 3:8-9).

God wants prophets who share his outlook and are willing to obey him, whatever the cost. They are the ones who will see outstanding results for their faithfulness.

Disobedient people

During the latter years of Jeremiah, a deputation of army officers came to him with the request, "Pray that the Lord your God will tell us where we should go and what we should do". Before they left the prophet they added, "Whether it is favourable or unfavourable, we will obey the Lord our God" (Jer 42:3-6).

It was ten days later before the Lord gave Jeremiah the answer (Jer 42:7). We must not run away with the idea that we must necessarily give prophetic direction to God's people immediately, as it were off the top of our heads. If Jeremiah took ten days, we should not expect an instant answer without the need for really seeking the Lord.

Maybe Jeremiah sensed that they had already made up their minds as to where they wanted to go (Jer 42:17). Eventually he was able to put before them the alternative: "If you stay in this land I will build you up and not tear you down; I will plant you and not uproot you...If you are determined to go to Egypt and you do go to settle there, then the sword you fear will overtake you there, and the famine you dread will follow you into Egypt, and there you will die" (Jer 42:10-16).

Despite Jeremiah's warning after his long period of waiting on the Lord, they were determined to go to Egypt. This must have been a crowning sadness to Jeremiah: then as now, the tendency of God's people is to make up their minds first and then seek God's confirmation of and blessing on their plans. The true prophet can only look on with dismay.

The tendency of God's people has always been to make up their minds first and then seek God's confirmation and blessing.

Accountable watchmen

The awful responsibility of God's 'warning messengers' is highlighted by Ezekiel's picture of the watchmen (Ezek 3:16-19, 33:1-9).

The watchman's responsibility is to keep watch and when he sees the enemy advancing he must blow the trumpet and warn the people of their danger. If he does this faithfully and the people ignore his warning blasts and are killed, their blood is on their own heads.

However, if he fails to blow the trumpet and they perish, he will be held accountable. This simple picture reveals the solemn responsibility of God's 'warning messengers'. He will hold them responsible if they fail to warn the people and the nation to "flee from the wrath to come" (Matt 3:7).

Jesus' warning

The Lord Jesus is our example in this part of the prophet's responsibility, as in all its other aspects. In his dissertation concerning the end of the age some comments apply to the end times preceding his return, while others referred to the time of the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem in AD 70.

"When you see standing in the holy place the abomination that causes desolation spoken of through the prophet Daniel - let the reader understand - then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains" (Matt 24:15-16). The early Christians obeyed this warning from their Lord and they escaped the awful carnage and atrocities experienced in Jerusalem.

In that same discourse there are other warning words which apply to us who live in the end times. To warn men so that they may escape danger or death is an important part of a prophet's ministry and one which we dare not neglect - for the Lord has made us responsible.

First published in Prophecy Today, Vol 4 No 3, May/June 1988.

Clifford Hill surveys the Volkswagen scandal and asks: is God saying something to Germany - and to us?

Germany, the political and economic driver of Europe, has suffered one blow of dismay and humiliation after another in the past month. The country was still struggling with the fallout from their controversial migration policy when the Volkswagen scandal struck. What's going on in Europe's leading nation? Is there any prophetic significance in these events?

The Volkswagen Scandal

Volkswagen, the world's leading car manufacturer, has admitted that some 11 million of their cars distributed around the world have been fitted with a cheating device that gives a false reading of its engine efficiency when on the test pad. It cuts the emission of pollutants while the car is being tested but once out on the road the car can spew poisonous gases into the air, including nitrogen oxides, in amounts 40 times higher than regulation emissions standards.

So far investigations have been restricted to Volkswagen, but the spiralling scandal has led to calls for cars from other manufacturers to be checked for carrying similar devices deliberately designed to cheat when the cars are being tested. US authorities, who broke the news that they had discovered the sophisticated software which turns off pollution emissions on the test pad said that VW had admitted equipping about half a million cars in the United States. VW then admitted some 2.8 million cars in Germany also had the devices and that others have been distributed throughout Europe including in Britain.

Bankruptcy Threatened

The revelations, with their potential of creating the world's biggest corporate scandal, immediately hit the value of VW's shares. Some €25 billion, about 40%, was wiped off VW's share price in just two days. The US Government added to Volkswagen's woes by announcing that they would levy fines of $18 billion. But this is only the start of the cost to VW which may result in diesel engines no longer being used for domestic cars. It is a crippling blow to the worldwide sales of VW cars which include Audi, Seat and Skoda models, that could bankrupt the firm creating massive workforce redundancies that will affect the German national economy.

Blow to Pride

The VW revelations have dealt an enormous blow to German pride: Volkswagen is a national symbol of German character and has strengthened their economy since World War II.

The Volkswagen revelations not only have financial implications; they have dealt an enormous blow to German pride. Volkswagen is not just a carmaker; it is a symbol of the national character of Germany. Volkswagen began producing a 'People's car' in the Nazi era and played a significant role in the recovery of the German economy after World War II. It became the ambition of every German family to own a VW and the company's worldwide success symbolised the prosperity of the nation enabling it to exercise both economic and political power in Europe.

Suddenly all this prosperity and pride is now threatened. Germany has dominated the councils of the EU, successfully persuaded a group of nations to join the euro club putting their national economies under the control of the European Central Bank (mainly under German control), and forced crippling austerity programmes upon those with weaker economies. Now it is Germany's turn to be worried about their national economy and there are many Europeans who will say that they are getting their comeuppance.

London's ReputationLondon's financial heart - once a centre renowned for business integrity.

But we in Britain are in no place to point the finger. We too have suffered enormous blows to our national pride through cheating. Our bankers used to have a worldwide reputation for honesty in the days when London was renowned for business integrity and deals could be made on the basis of word-of-mouth and a handshake, without even reading the small print. That reputation for honesty has disappeared in a cesspit of banking scandals, Libor rate fixing, and massive rewards paid to failed executives.

It is not only in the world of finance that cheating has been exposed; our great parliamentary tradition that used to be the envy of the world has been humbled by the exposure of cheating by Members of both Houses of Parliament, with scandals involving their expenses and allowances, and selling their services for commercial gain.

The catalogue of cheating exposures does not end there but has included the sexual abuse of children and other scandals by celebrities and leaders in church and state that have shaken the nation.

We in Britain are in no place to point the finger at Germany, having suffered enormous blows to our national pride through cheating.

The Western World

Other European nations have also had their shocks and similarly in the United States cheating and corruption have been exposed, leading to the downfall of mighty financial institutions. So what's going on throughout the Western world among nations who share the Christian faith and a long biblical heritage?

Surely, the plain answer is that as nations we have deliberately turned our backs upon the word of God that historically has provided trustworthy foundations for personal and social morality. The spiralling revelations that have been shaking the nations throughout the past 40 years coincide with the increasing secularisation of the nations and the abandonment of biblical values. All of these things are prophesied in the Bible that speaks of a great shaking of the nations and a time of international turmoil and conflict.

Warning Signs

The revelations of cheating in the nations are not just coincidental, they are warning signs urging us to change course before bringing disaster upon our generation. The revelations are the deliberate action of God turning on the light to expose evil. His major purpose is to bring his salvation to the nations rather than to bring judgement.

Uncovering corruption is a salutary warning of the consequences of abandoning truth and deliberately turning upside-down the moral values which are part of God's act of creation.

Uncovering corruption is a salutary warning of the consequences of deliberately up-ending the moral values which are part of God's act of creation.

The word of God to our generation is "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. Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight...For they have rejected the law of the Lord Almighty" (Isa 5:20-24). The future history of the world depends upon whether or not we will take note of the warning signs!

This perhaps unattractive title refers to an essential aspect of any true prophetic ministry, one which cannot be neglected without creating an unbalanced presentation of God's truth.

The prophets of the Old Testament rejoiced to proclaim God's acts of mercy in the past, delivering his people and individuals from their enemies and from disasters of all kinds. They delighted to reassure God's people that he was present with them and that the Holy One of Israel in their midst was mighty. They strained their linguistic ability to express his promise of a future deliverance and victory, when "the wolf will lie down with the lamb" and "the Earth will be filled with the knowledge of God as the waters cover the sea" (Isa 11:6-9).

They had also to proclaim divine warnings of the awful consequences of the continued breaking of God's laws by both individuals and nations. The people were longing for 'the Day of the Lord' but the prophets had to point out that, unless they changed their ways, it would be for them a day of darkness and disaster (Amos 5:18). "Wail, Alas for the day!" was their reaction (Eze 30:2-3), and their prophecies are littered with such expressions as "Woe", "Ah, Lord God", "Alas" (for this) and "Alas" (for that), all of which expressed their reaction to the prophetic 'burden' they were called to bear.

Today's Prophets

As we give further thought to the prophet's role, we must stress the unchanging responsibility of today's 'forth-tellers' to declare God's laws and the consequences of ignoring or rejecting them. We have heard any number of prophecies which assure us that all is well; like the people of Isaiah's day, we want today's prophets to "tell us pleasant things" (Isa 30:10). We are living in serious times, far more serious than many imagine.

At the same time I am not calling for a rash of heavy condemnatory utterances which reveal more of the personal animosity of the prophet than they do of the heart of God. Like Isaiah, Jeremiah and the other prophets who said, "I weep...I drench you with tears"..."I will weep and wail...and take up a lament" (Isa 16:9 and Jer 9:10), we need to stand in the presence of God until we feel his heart-beat before we can even begin to share their ministry.

There are any number of prophecies assuring us that all is well. What we need is to feel God's heart-beat – even if it's one of lament.

Weeping Prophets' Vocabulary

'Alas!' is an exclamation of unhappiness or alarm expressing grief and voicing concern. It occurs only about four times in the Old Testament but expresses the anguish of the prophets who voiced it (Jeremiah 30:7, Ezekiel 6:11, Joel 1:15 and Amos 5:16). The word 'Alas!' occurs in the RSV rendering of these verses.

'Ah, Lord God' or 'Ah, Sovereign Lord' are special phrases used by both Jeremiah and Ezekiel, occurring four times in each of their prophecies. It is used to express their bewilderment at what God had allowed to happen, or to challenge the situation. They reason with the Lord and even tell him that he has deceived them. This poignant little phrase indicates both their respect for God but also their involvement with his people and the awful tension that these situations created (Jer 4:10, 32:17; Eze 9:8; 11:13). Jeremiah was so distressed that he even cursed the day he was born (Jer 15:10).

'Woe!' is the most frequently employed word in this connection. It is used nearly 60 times and occurs in ten of the prophetic books of the Old Testament. It is a word of condemnation and as such used in both the Old and New Testaments. But it speaks of sadness as well as of judgment. Although it may have the nature in prophetic denunciation of pronouncing an anathema or curse, it also conveys an element of grief and distress. This is true also of the 'Woes!' of the Lord Jesus recorded in the gospels of Matthew and Luke (Matt 11:21, 23:13-16; Luke 6:24, 11:42-47).

'Woes!' Addressed to Individuals

In Habakkuk 2:5-20 there are five 'Woes!' (verses 6, 9, 12, 15 and 19), and they are addressed to the man who piles up stolen goods, who builds his kingdom by extortion, who resorts to bloodshed in his building programme of self-glorification, who gets his neighbour drunk with evil sexual intent, and who makes an idol and bids it "Come to life!".

There is a similar list of six 'Woes!' in Isaiah 5:8-23. Like those in the Habakkuk passage, they are all addressed to individuals. There is still a place for a prophetic word today to individuals, pointing out where their conduct is contrary to what we know to be the word of God. Spoken in the power of the Spirit, such a word can lead to repentance and a change in lifestyle.

There is still a place for prophetic words to individuals, spoken in the power of the Spirit to provoke repentance.

'Woes!' Addressed to Nations

In order to gain the full force of what the Old Testament prophets felt about their ministry to nations as well as to individuals, we need to re-discover a word that is now hidden if we are using one of the more recent versions of the Bible. In the King James' rendering we come across the word 'burden', which is used frequently to describe the prophets' awareness of the weight and importance of the message God gave them to speak to the nations.

From a Hebrew word which means 'to lift up or to bear away', it has the dual meaning of that which is borne by a man and that which is born to a man. A prediction of severe judgment might well be a 'burden' that would render both body and mind uneasy. It might even be spoken of as being more than someone can bear. Such a prophetic word would be a 'burden' to the one who carried it, as well as to the one for whom it was destined. The word is translated as 'oracle' in most modern versions, by the prophet called to announce it.

The Prophet's Burden

The earlier chapters of Isaiah speak of the vision he saw (Isa 1:1) or of the word he received (Isa 2:1) but from chapter 13 onwards each prophecy is introduced by a different expression: that of a 'burden'. This continues until chapter 23.

God had things to say to Babylon, Philistia, Moab, Damascus, Egypt, Idumea, Arabia, Tyre and the Negev, as well as Jerusalem herself. To each of the nations or communities quite detailed and specific messages were conveyed - one wonders whether they were ever received. What is clear is that a considerable part of Isaiah's prophecy is taken up with foreign nations. Are we to assume that God had things to say to those ancient nations but has nothing to say to the nations of today? Is prophecy to be limited to the local church and its activities? Is there not a burden on our shoulders, too, to find out what the Lord wants proclaimed?

Considerable parts of Isaiah's prophecy are addressed to nations other than Israel. Are we to assume that God had things to say to them but has nothing to say to the nations of today?

Are We God's Burden?

In a foreboding passage in Jeremiah (23:33-40) the people are told by the prophet that when asked "What is the burden of the Lord!" they were to reply "You are the burden and I will cast you off". Instead of carrying God's word to whoever he had sent it, they were a burden and an obstruction to his purposes.

Later on in the same passage it is clear that the burden they were carrying was not the divine word but their own word, and in so doing they were perverting the words of the living God. Judgment is inevitable on those who stand in the way of sending forth God's word or who pervert the truth as they pass it on to others.

Expressing God's Compassion

One book in the Old Testament expresses particularly well the compassion, even agony, of a prophet - in this case Jeremiah - at the disaster that had overwhelmed Jerusalem. In Lamentations we see the kind of attitude that today's prophets ought to take over those who reject the Lord's word and plunge themselves into terrible trouble.

One could go almost through the alphabet with words that are used in this book to express the feelings felt in such situations: affliction, anguish, betrayed, bitterness, calamity, crushed, crying out, disgraced, downcast, destroyed, disturbed...right through to weary, wasting away, weeping, without pity and without hope! How the nations need prophets who will care like Jeremiah did!

The 'Woes!' of Jesus

There was one who cared even more than Jeremiah. Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth, wept over Jerusalem. He did not pray for that city, because it was now too late. He could only weep and exclaim, "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, how often would I have gathered you as a hen gathers her chicks, but you would not" (Matt 23:37). For Jerusalem, the Lord's special city, it was too late. There is still time, though perhaps not much, for us to get God's word to the nations. "Whom shall I send and who will go for us?" (Isa 6:8). It is those who care who will reply: "Send me!"

First Published in Prophecy Today, Vol 3 No 6, November/December 1987.

In our series on the Jewish High Holy Days, Helen Belton examines Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.

Recent discussions about the so-called 'blood moons' phenomenon deserve to be weighed carefully. We are publishing two articles for your prayerful consideration and feedback.

There has been much said recently about the prophetic significance of a series of blood red moons and whether this is a fulfilment of biblical prophecy or early signs that will eventually culminate in greater and more pronounced fulfilment. At Prophecy Today, we are cautious about predicting dates but certainly alert to the signs of the times. Our 'Comment' articles are designed to provide help in interpreting these signs and our 'Study' section is an aid for our readers to grow in biblical knowledge and discernment.

Our Board has noted the widespread interest in the so-called 'blood moons' and has traced it back to publications in the USA from Mark Biltz and John Hagee. There have been some responses from the scientific community to these, which indicate that we must be cautious about overstating the case. We are, therefore, still assessing our position.

In the light of this, we are publishing two articles: the first written by one of our Board members and the second by a regular contributor to the ministry of Prophecy Today UK. Our purpose is to offer these as discussion papers for you to consider. Any feedback you are prompted to send us will be welcome.

THE TIMING OF THE SH'MITTAH YEAR

Greg Stevenson

It was midnight on 4 September 2010, in South Island NZ.

Like any city in the hours before dawn, this city was outwardly quiet and asleep. But some families couldn't sleep because their normally quiet dogs continually barked, asking to be let out and then in again. In the countryside, a farmer bringing his herd in for milking stared in disbelief when all 500 cows suddenly sat down. Another farmer went to let his agitated dog out at about 4am and suddenly birds began to chirp, the neighbour's pigs started to squeal and his own cows began to bellow. Then, just as suddenly, all went quiet. Something odd was happening. At 4:35am a terrifying 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck, about 40km west of Christchurch. 4 September 2010 will be remembered.

No-one knows exactly what animals sense at such times, but the Creator has placed in them an awareness of his mighty power of which we know nothing. Migratory birds obey their God-given instincts but man refuses to obey God's laws (Jer 8:7). He has warned us clearly in his word of the consequences of such actions. Indeed, judgment is coming upon this sinful world, for Paul reminds us that God has appointed a day when he will judge the world in righteousness (Acts 17:31).

Signs and patterns

God speaks to us in many ways – through his word, through his creation, through dreams or visions, through some traumatic event, or directly by his Spirit. He also calls out to us through the warning system he has given us - our conscience (personal or national), so we know when we should turn back to him.

But to societies and nations that rebel against him, he warns them with judgment, and we can see clear examples of this in the world today. In his patience to bring man to repentance, one way he speaks is through repetitive patterns that help us to recognise his voice. A series of warnings include his use of cycles of 7, notably Shabbat, the 7^th day, Sh'mittah, the 7^th year, and Jubilee, the 50^th year (the year after 7x7 years). Seven is the number of completion, perfection, or fullness, and God's prophetic calendar is based on this number. Seven is found in so much of his creation - one might say it is God's own number.

Times of rest

Every 7^th day is called Shabbat. The word simply means rest; it's a time of rest for all mankind. But Exodus 16:23 also tells us it is "a holy Sabbath to the Lord". It is a God-ordained day for man to follow to reflect his Maker's pattern, a day to make a dwelling-place for God each week, a place he so desires.

Likewise, every 7^th year was to be a year of rest, a Sh'mittah year. This word means to release, from the Hebrew root shamat, meaning to let fall, or fling down. Every 7^th year the land was to be released from the work of producing food, and lie fallow for a whole year. It is called "the Lord's release" (Ex 23:11, Lev 25:2-7, Deut 15:1-7).

The Sh'mittah year

The Sh'mittah year had two principal functions:

1. From the start of the year, the land was to rest, to reflect its Maker's pattern and to enjoy its Sabbaths – this year is "a Sabbath of rest unto the land, a sabbath for the Lord" (Lev 25:2-7).
2. By the end of the year, the people were to obey God's command to remit or release debts (to let them fall, Deut 25:2-3), thus eliminating a polarity of wealth and preventing poverty.

Failure to keep the Sh'mittah year had serious consequences (Lev 36:33-35; 2 Chron. 36:21; Jer 25:11-2, 29:10; Dan 9:2): exile in Babylon for 70 years, to cover the 70 Sh'mittah years that had not been kept (490 years) between 1006-516 BC.

After 7 Sh'mittah years the shofar is sounded and a Jubilee is proclaimed, on Yom Kippur in the 50^th year, when every man returned to his possessions and to his family. We can see here God's choice of cycles of seven.

So why are Sh'mittah years so important?

Here are 7 possible reasons:

1. They bear witness that the land belongs to God, and is entrusted to human beings as stewards (Lev 25:23). We are indebted to God for all we have; our possessions, money, and the produce of our work, whether it's from the land, or from our creative skills - ultimately they all belong to God. Sh'mittah releases our hold on his land, acknowledging his ownership of it and allowing it to rest according to his command.
2. They declare that God is to be put first in all things. Since all blessings come from him, our success is related to our response to his calling on our lives. Secular humanism demands that the earth belongs to, and can be controlled by, humans. Sh'mittah is thus a gift – an opportunity to turn away from secular and worldly values and recognise his provision.
3. They end financial imbalances, the polarity of wealth, financial error and greed, and require the return of essential items for individual survival of each and every family. Sh'mittah requires people to release attachment to material possessions, including land, and it breaks the bonds of dependence on the accumulation of wealth and the love of money.
4. They emphasise a basic flaw in human nature, which separates the blessings of life from the Giver of the blessings. In rejecting God from our lives, blessings are sought through physical things – materialism, wealth, success, knowledge, health - which become idols to replace God. This further reduces spiritual growth, a path which ultimately removes the blessings that come from him. Sh'mittah offers a return to God's blessings.
5. They are an act of obedience, demonstrating our humility and dependence on our Creator. Our self-nature is released, our pride is dealt with, and we can learn to act justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly with our God (Mic 6:8). Sh'mittah gives an opportunity to reflect and represent our Maker to others and to find our security only in him.
6. They are a mirror to Shabbat, a complete year of rest: to release and to be released, to lay down burdens and re-structure our lives. It is a mo'ed, an appointed time to refocus upon God, to make a dwelling-place for him and be refreshed. Sh'mittah, like Shabbat, is intended to be a blessing – restoration, forgiveness, remission, release, refreshment, re-focus and abiding in him.
7. In people, or nations, obedient to this law, the keeping of Sh'mittah in ways that are God-led, is both an act of faith in, and an act of worship to the living God.

The Sh'mittah year as judgment

Only Israel was commanded to observe the Sh'mittah year, but as they moved away from God, he used this year as a sign of warning and as judgment, in both the North and the South Kingdoms, to turn them back to him. This applies to Israel as his covenant people. But as a prophetic sign it may clearly apply to any nation, especially those he has historically blessed and equipped for spreading the gospel. God speaks clearly through Jeremiah (18:7-8):

If at any time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down and destroyed, and if that nation I warned repents of its evil, then I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster I had planned.

The Sh'mittah year may become an instrument of judgment upon nations that do not respond to the warnings God gives them. The sins of ancient Israel have been repeated by modern nations, so we should not be surprised to find God expressing correction in a similar way today to turn nations back to him. Yet this can also bring blessing, if people heed the warnings and turn back to God, as Israel did through their exile in Babylon. By following God's word through Ezekiel, they increased in number and wealth, and idolatry was no more found among them after their return to the Promised Land.

Two examples: America and Britain

America was founded on biblical principles, based upon Israel, and consecrated to God on 30 April 1789 by its first President, George Washington. In his inaugural address, he gave a prophetic message: "The propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right which Heaven itself hath ordained".

However, from early times leaders in America have set themselves against the Lord and against his Anointed, breaking the restraining bands of God's laws and casting off the cords of his love. Over the past 50 years, there have been major economic and financial catastrophes following a 7-year cycle, with each fall occurring at the end of the Sh'mittah years (see Table 1). These have become more severe as God has increased the shaking world-wide since 1986. Warnings and opportunities to turn back to God have been largely missed, or responses have been short-lived.

Psalm 2 tells us that if nations rebel against the Lord, with no response to his warnings, he will judge them (Heb. bahal, terrify, cause to tremble). Even after the climatic storms that the Lord has brought upon America since 1965, and increasingly now upon the UK as well, neither nation has learned this lesson. Both have forgotten God's hand of blessing of power and wealth, as both nations took his message of salvation to the world. It is good to remember God's caution at times like this: "You may say to yourself, "My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me." But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth..." (Deut 8:17-18).

Like the people of Ephraim and Samaria in ancient Israel, after 9/11 America, instead of seeking God in humility asking why such a terrible disaster had occurred, defiantly declared: "the bricks have fallen down but we will build with dressed stone; the fig trees have been felled but we will replace them with cedars." Sadly, this verse was originally a statement of Israel's rebellion against God which America's political leaders misunderstood. This was the Lord's response: "But the people have not returned to him who struck them...Those who guide this people mislead them, and those who are guided are led astray." (Isa 9:9-16).

This year there have been two tectonic events in which the UK and the USA have crossed a line.

1. 31 March - in the UK the same-sex 'marriage' Bill became law.
2. 26 June - in the USA also, the Supreme Court (by a 5/4 majority of 9 lawyers) legalised same-sex 'marriage' in all US states.

These culture-changing events will affect not just marriage, but the nations and, not least, the church. The church's response in both nations has been largely silent, or accepting, but recall Philip Wren's prophetic voice that if legalised in the UK, gay marriage will be a rod of correction on a disobedient church.

Sh'mittah 2014/15

Sh'mittah years end on the 29^th of the last month Elul, the day before Rosh Hashanah (1^st Tishrei, or Jewish New Year). This year, the 29 Elul falls on 13 September and is marked by a solar eclipse, the fifth of six signs in the heavens in the past two years, which God has given to get our attention.

If God continues the pattern he has used to turn nations back to him, we may see a major judgment in the months after 29 Elul/13 September 2015 in both the USA and the UK. Many media comments this year have anticipated a stock market crash in late 2015, and world markets are increasingly fragile. When the Chinese yuan was devalued (>3%) last month, there were widespread losses on stock exchanges throughout Asia and Europe.

We remember the so-called 'Flash Crash' in 2010 when Wall Street fell 600 points in just 5 minutes, losing $1Tn. This year, the UK FTSE 100 share index has hit a record high, a feature also seen prior to crashes in 1987 and 2007-8 (note also that the last trading day to remit debts will be Friday 11 September 2015, before Shabbat begins at sunset. This is also the day of the debate in the House of Commons on the evil Assisted Dying Bill).

However, the dates of this shaking are less important than the purpose. The tetrad of total lunar eclipses at Pesach and Sukkot, in 2014/2015 and ending in this Sh'mittah season, is one sign that God is using to call out to the nations (and to Israel) to turn and repent, to restore a right relationship with the Lord, and with families, neighbours, friends and enemies. Beloved, the time is short. Now is the day of salvation. The Lord says to us, as he said to Isaiah, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?"

Understand the message

In Luke 12:56, Yeshua expressed amazement at the people's hypocrisy: "You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky. How is it that you don't know how to interpret this present time?" And in response to questions about those who had been killed in accidents (v4), or by evil men (v1), Jesus said, "Unless you repent, you too will all perish." Do you think he might be saying this to us today also? Do we discern the time rightly? This should be a major focus for small house groups and for larger churches in the coming weeks. Many churches offer little or no biblical teaching on understanding the times in which we are living.

We need to know and proclaim the place of safety for these days. The Hebrew word for safety is Yeshua. In his talk with Nicodemus on the need to be born again of the Holy Spirit, Jesus said "Truly, truly, except a man is born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God" (John 3:3). When Jesus says "Truly, truly", he means it - for he is The Truth (John 14:6). No discussion, no argument, no relative excuses. By contrast, after the Supreme Court decision in June, Obama declared: "This ruling is a victory for America. When all Americans are treated equal we are all more free" (Washington Post, 26 June 2015). However, it is not equality that sets us free, but The Truth (John 8:32).

These days are the days of Elijah, to be the voice that declares God's word. These are the days of Ezekiel, to be labourers in his harvest. These are the days that Isaiah saw, when he said, "See, darkness covers the earth, and thick darkness is over the peoples." See – it is a call to watch, to take heed, to be aware of what God is doing in the world; how he is intervening in the earth, and to be watchmen for our nation. There are very dark clouds gathering over the nations, which are in distress and perplexed (Luke 21:25).

Our response

"And this gospel of the Kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come" (Matt 24:14).

God is calling us to take note of his warnings, to be lights in dark places, boldly to share our testimonies of his goodness and to be sons of Issachar, who know the signs of the times and how they apply to both Israel and the nations.

We need to understand what the Lord is saying, and pray that the great shaking of the nations that is happening in our lifetime will produce the fullness of God's purpose. We must also pray for the true church, Jew and Gentile, to rise up and fulfil its calling. We must be careful not to pray for God to stop the shaking (Hag 2, Heb 12), or to stop bringing evil into the light, in case we put ourselves against God. It is God who forms the light and creates darkness.

We should have Israel, and America and Britain, in our prayers: praying for greater trust and faith in God who is the only one who can give peace and security to the nations through Jesus our Messiah, the One who died that we might live, and who rose again to give us life.

Kumi ori ki va orech, u'khvod Adonai alaich zarach.
Arise shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.
(Isa 60:1)

This is for Israel, of course, but also for believers in the Gentile nations who are grafted in among them.

Table 1: some dates and events for Bible study, prayer and discussion.

Notes on Table 1

This table relates major events in the USA and Israel to the end of Sh'mittah years, especially the 29 Elul. It also shows the 7- and 28-year cycles.

* = occurred in a Sh'mittah year.

Patterns of note:

• 28-year interval between the US victory after WII and their defeat after Vietnam;
• 28-year intervals between the conception, completion, and destruction of the World Trade Centre (WTC) towers;
• 7-year interval between physical shaking in Sept 2001 (9/11) and financial shaking in Sept 2008;
• significance of 29 Elul -
  • 7 Sept 1945: Victory Parade of the Allies
  • 19 Oct 1987: Black Monday stock crash, leading to $500bn loss.
  • 29 Elul was on 23 Sept 1987, or Black Monday
  • 17 Sept 2001 9/17, Stock market crash, stock down 37%
  • 29 Sept 2008 Greatest stock market point crash (777 points), stock down 56%, exactly 7 years after the 9/17 crash
  • Prospectively, 13 Sept 2015 - 7 years after the 2008 crash; now 28 years after Black Monday 1987.
• significance of Solar Eclipses:
  • 23 Sept 1987: just ahead of Black Monday
  • 10 May 2013: completion of the One WTC
  • 20 Mar 2015: erev 1 Nisan – the very middle day of the Sh'mittah year 5775. A total eclipse.
  • 28 Sept 2015: 15 Tishri, start of Sukkot.

A TIME TO MOURN AND A TIME TO DANCE

By Charles Gardner

There is a season for everything under heaven, according to the wisdom of Solomon. And I'm specifically thinking of his dictum that there's "a time to mourn and a time to dance" (Ecc 3:4).

Black clouds of impending doom are swooping down upon us all, and especially on God's ancient people, but the rainbow of ultimate peace also lies ahead, and we should not be too down-hearted.

On September 14 there will be much rejoicing as Jews everywhere celebrate their New Year in a month set to witness some quite extraordinary, even alarming, events connected with the future of Israel. I will look at these in a moment.

A time of mourning

We have just marked a time of mourning for Israel – a date known as the 9^th of Av in the Jewish calendar (25 July this year) which brings back bad memories of a past which has seen so many attempts to annihilate the Jewish nation.

It was on this date that the First Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BC. And it was on the very same day 656 years later – in 70 AD – that the Romans destroyed the Second Temple. The Jews subsequently rebelled against their occupiers, but were brutally butchered in 133 AD – again on the 9^th of Av – after which they were dispersed to all four corners of the earth.

This included England, from which they were expelled in 1290 AD – on the 9^th of Av. Then in 1492 they were expelled from Spain and given four months to put their affairs in order and leave the country, the deadline for which was the 9^th of Av.

Then came World War II and the Holocaust, said by historians to have been the long drawn-out conclusion of World War I, which broke out on the 9^th of Av. And, it is said, the first gas chambers were put into use on the very same day of the year!

Understandably, the Jewish people have much to mourn. And our duty as Christians, grafted into the olive tree of God's chosen people (Rom 11:11-24), is to love them, stand with them and pray for them.

September 2015: a significant month?

A series of significant events are scheduled for September, starting perhaps with the New Year celebrations. The Pope will be visiting the White House to meet with the President on the holiest day of the Jewish Year (Yom Kippur, 23 September 23). And a super-sized blood-red moon will shine over Jerusalem on 28 September during the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot). This will be the last of four successive 'blood moons' (known as a 'tetrad') to coincide with the main Jewish feasts of Passover and Sukkot in 2014 and 2015, a rare occurrence last witnessed in 1967 when, as a result of the Six-Day War, the Old City of Jerusalem came under Israeli control for the first time in 2,000 years.

In addition, the United Nations are said to be planning to declare a Palestinian state without Israel's consent or input and there is also, of course, the ongoing threat of Hamas and Hezbollah along with that of a potentially nuclear-armed Iran whose leaders have made no bones about their intention to "wipe Israel off the map". The recent deal negotiated with the big powers is, at best, only putting off the evil day rather than neutralising a dangerous rogue state.

In the light of this, an 800-year-old rabbinic commentary is most revealing. Known to the Jewish world as the Yalkut Shimoni, its translation by Rabbi Nachman Kahana includes this specific portion:

Paras (Persia-Iran) will be the dread of humanity. The world's leaders will be frustrated in their futile efforts to save what they can, but to no avail. The people of Yisrael will also be petrified by the impending danger. And HaShem (the Lord) will say to us, 'Why are you afraid? All of this I have done in order to bring you the awaited redemption. And this redemption will not be like the redemption from Egypt, which was followed by suffering. This redemption will be absolute, followed by peace.

The Messiah's return

Various Jewish rabbis are now sensing that their Messiah is soon to come. The day is surely not far off when beleaguered Israel will recognize the One who has loved them with an everlasting love (Jer 31:3) and who is destined to reign from Jerusalem for a thousand years of perfect peace (Rev 20:4).

Jesus told his disciples that his coming would follow an unprecedented period of distress after which "the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light" (Matt 24:29. Interestingly, a total solar eclipse occurred in the midst of the current tetrad of blood moons).

"At that time men will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory," he said. (Mark 13:24-26)

Come, Lord Jesus!

I am indebted for much background to David Soakell of Christian Friends of Israel and to Kolyah, a correspondent in the know who wishes to keep a low profile for security reasons.