The Unforgiving Servant / Feast of Trumpets

 THE UNFORGIVING SERVANT

7/29/2018

Peter asked the Lord the number of times he should forgive his brother who sinned against him and he gave the number of seven time.  Jesus corrected Peter and said to him that the number was not seven but rather it was 70 times seven or 490 times.

The number 490 is called Blessed Time by Dr. S. Jones because it is the grace period that God gives to a nation that is basically obedient to His law.  In other words God does not foreclose on the debt note until the end of 490 years of forgiveness.  This concept of Biblical chronology will hopefully be covered in a future article or you can read the booklet entitled Secrets of Time. 

https://www.gods-kingdom-ministries.net/teachings/books/secrets-of-time/

Matthew 18:21-22 NET Then Peter came to him and said, "Lord, how many times must I forgive my brother who sins against me? As many as seven times?" (22) Jesus said to him, "Not seven times, I tell you, but seventy-seven times!

In this parable the servant who refused to forgive the debt of his neighbor found himself no longer forgiven of his 10,000 talent debt.  Regardless of the claim of some Bible teachers, it has nothing to do with losing or gaining salvation.  Justification is by faith.  After justification, God, through the power of the Holy Spirit begins transforming the heart of the justified person.  This work of the Spirit releases the repentant sinner of the works of the flesh including bitterness and unforgiveness.  This is called Justification.  

A forgiving person is an overcomer/elect whereas one who continues to not forgive is a general Christian.  Forgiveness is the most difficult part of Sanctification.  The level of sanctification qualifies one for either the first resurrection or the second.

Matthew 18:23-35 NET (23) "For this reason, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his slaves. (24) As he began settling his accounts, a man who owed ten thousand talents was brought to him. (25) Because he was not able to repay it, the lord ordered him to be sold, along with his wife, children, and whatever he possessed, and repayment to be made. (26) Then the slave threw himself to the ground before him, saying, 'Be patient with me, and I will repay you everything.' (27) The lord had compassion on that slave and released him, and forgave him the debt. (28) After he went out, that same slave found one of his fellow slaves who owed him one hundred silver coins. So he grabbed him by the throat and started to choke him, saying, 'Pay back what you owe me!' (29) Then his fellow slave threw himself down and begged him, 'Be patient with me, and I will repay you.' (30) But he refused. Instead, he went out and threw him in prison until he repaid the debt. (31) When his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were very upset and went and told their lord everything that had taken place. (32) Then his lord called the first slave and said to him, 'Evil slave! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me! (33) Should you not have shown mercy to your fellow slave, just as I showed it to you?' (34) And in anger his lord turned him over to the prison guards to torture him until he repaid all he owed. (35) So also my heavenly Father will do to you, if each of you does not forgive your brother from your heart."

Ancient Babylon first laid siege to Jerusalem around 605 BC.  The grace period for Judah had run its course and God used Babylon to foreclose on their debt note.  Jeremiah 34 explains that the people of Jerusalem prayed to God asking for mercy similar to the parable servant who owed 10,000 talents.

God sent word through Jeremiah offering an answer.  The solution was for Judah to actually enact a rest year which was something they had never done, however the king and the people agreed to proclaim a Sabbath rest.

Jeremiah 34:8-10 NET The LORD spoke to Jeremiah after King Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people in Jerusalem to grant their slaves their freedom. (9) Everyone was supposed to free their male and female Hebrew slaves. No one was supposed to keep a fellow Judean enslaved. (10) All the people and their leaders had agreed to this. They had agreed to free their male and female slaves and not keep them enslaved any longer. They originally complied with the covenant and freed them.

Everyone freed their slaves and servant.  The above scriptural final sentence states, “They originally complied with the covenant and freed them”.  All the slaves, servants, and bondpeople were released from all debts and servanthood.  This allowed God the position to forgive Jerusalem and Judah their debt to the law of God.  The Babylonian military would be stopped and turned back leaving the people of Judah with their freedom and life.

The problem was – the people reneged on their promise and later reclaimed their servants and slaves.  They had been forgiven a tremendous debt note of sin, but they could not forgive their neighbors of their small debts.  Or perhaps, they were too selfish to live without servants and slaves.  As a consequence, God’s grace came to an end. No extension of grace was given to them. God canceled their Jubilee and sold all survivors into bondage for the next 70 years.

Jeremiah 34:11 NET But later they had changed their minds. They had taken back their male and female slaves that they had freed and forced them to be slaves again.

This process of reneging on forgiveness is similar to the unforgiving servant in the parable of Jesus.  The servant was absolved of his 10,000 talent debt but refused to forgive another who owed him 100 silver coins.

If you are a Christian who aspires to be a part of the first resurrection remnant you must know and practice the law of Jubilee in your own personal life.  Otherwise you will be sold into a type of bondage at the end of this age.  Which means you will be sold into a kind of captivity, and like Israel under Moses, you will metaphorically “die in the wilderness” (Num. 26: 65) without receiving the promised inheritance in the First Resurrection.  If you are alive at the initiation of the Kingdom of God, you may not necessarily die physically but you will not inherit a glorified body at the beginning of the Kingdom.  It will be necessary to wait until the second Resurrection at the end of the Millennial Kingdom.

The remnant of the elect/overcomers is not a group of super-spiritual individuals. It does not require great intelligence or great spirituality to become part of this group.  You do not have to be a great prophet, or win thousands of souls for Christ, or perform great miracles. There is only one requirement: learn to forgive your debtors. The key is obedience to the law of Jubilee which is basically explained in Matthew 6: 14-15.

Matthew 6:14-15 NET "For if you forgive others their sins, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. (15) But if you do not forgive others, your Father will not forgive you your sins.

If you practice the Jubilee principle toward others, God will do the same with you. It is said that at the end of the final 490-year grace period of the Church, when God reckons the accounts of the Church, those who cancel all debts of others will be released of all their own debts, they will receive their true inheritance.  This gift will be transfiguration and immortality (i.e. a glorified body) within the First Resurrection. 

From Dr. Stephen Jones:

The biblical patterns of Israel’s feast days indicate that the Resurrection will occur at the Feast of Trumpets of some year, even as Passover prophesied of Jesus crucifixion, and Pentecost foretold of the Spirit’s coming in Acts 2. We do know that the Church Age lasted 40 Jubilees, from 33 A.D. to 1993 A.D. This is also four periods of 490 years. The Church’s critical moment of visitation thus came in 1993 AD, at which time they were disqualified, and the mandate to bring forth the Kingdom was passed to the Overcomers.

According to his calculations of Biblical timelines, Dr. Jones claims the Church Age ended in 1993 after four periods of 490 years.  The general Church was disqualified to bring forth the Kingdom of God, however the overcomers/the elect of the Church received the mandate of the Kingdom.  Does that mean the deadline to be an overcomer or one of the elect of God has passed thus disallowing any further additions?  Not at all.  To paraphrase the words of Christ, “the last may be the first and the first may be the last”.

In my mind, the parable of the vineyard owner who hired workers throughout the day but paid all the same wage at the end of the day is prophetic concerning the resurrection of Kingdom workers which will be the First Resurrection.

Matthew 20:1-16 NET "For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. (2) And after agreeing with the workers for the standard wage, he sent them into his vineyard. (3) When it was about nine o'clock in the morning, he went out again and saw others standing around in the marketplace without work. (4) He said to them, 'You go into the vineyard too, and I will give you whatever is right.' (5) So they went. When he went out again about noon and three o'clock that afternoon, he did the same thing. (6) And about five o'clock that afternoon he went out and found others standing around, and said to them, 'Why are you standing here all day without work?' (7) They said to him, 'Because no one hired us.' He said to them, 'You go and work in the vineyard too.' (8) When it was evening the owner of the vineyard said to his manager, 'Call the workers and give the pay starting with the last hired until the first.' (9) When those hired about five o'clock came, each received a full day's pay. (10) And when those hired first came, they thought they would receive more. But each one also received the standard wage. (11) When they received it, they began to complain against the landowner, (12) saying, 'These last fellows worked one hour, and you have made them equal to us who bore the hardship and burning heat of the day.' (13) And the landowner replied to one of them, 'Friend, I am not treating you unfairly. Didn't you agree with me to work for the standard wage? (14) Take what is yours and go. I want to give to this last man the same as I gave to you. (15) Am I not permitted to do what I want with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous?' (16) So the last will be first, and the first last."

The parable even begins with “the Kingdom of Heaven”.  Please note that Matthew uses the phrase, “the Kingdom of Heaven” and Luke uses the phrase “the Kingdom of God”.  Both phrases have the exact same meaning –there is no difference.  

“He went out early in the morning” – at the beginning of human history.

“He went out again about 9:00 AM” – about one/fourth of human history.

“He went out at noon” – the middle or one/half of humanhistory.

“He went out at 3:00 PM” – about three/fourths of human history.

“He went out at 5:00 PM” – toward the end of human history.

All were paid the same regardless of their starting time.

This parable illustrates that all receiving the first resurrection as Kingdom workers, under the guidance of Jesus Christ, will be compensated the same.  All will receive transfiguration and immortality (i.e. a glorified body).  In other words there will be no difference between (possibly) YOU?? and Adam, Seth, Noah, or whoever.

Below is an internet list of dates for the Feast of Trumpets.  This is supposedly based on some Jewish calendar and they may not be correct.

2018      September 10-11

2019      September 30 – October 1

2020      September 19-20

2021      September 7-8

2022      September 26-27

From the posted article: Why Are The Nations Perturbed? On 7/24/2018  Nations Perturbed

Dr. Jones believes the harpazo (rapture and resurrection) of the elect will occur around the time of some (but unknown) feast of Trumpets.

Numbers 10:2-4 NET "Make two trumpets of silver; you are to make them from a single hammered piece. You will use them for assembling the community and for directing the traveling of the camps. (3) When they blow them both, all the community must come to you to the entrance of the tent of meeting. (4) "But if they blow with one trumpet, then the leaders, the heads of the thousands of Israel, must come to you.

Moses was instructed by God to make two silver trumpets.  The playing of both trumpets would assemble the entire community, but one trumpet would only summon the leaders.  In this case as Paul points out in 1 Corinthians 15:52 there will only be one trumpet sounded.  This will summon only the leaders (i.e. the saints/the elect/the overcomers) both alive and the dead to be resurrected and meet the Lord in the air (above ground not in the stratosphere – there is no air up there anyway). 

1 Corinthians 15:52 NET (52) in a moment, in the blinking of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.

1 Thessalonians 4:16 NET (16) For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a shout of command, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.

The Feast of Trumpets prophesies of the resurrection of the dead. It has been called in Jewish circles, "the Day of the Awakening Blast." Because this festival fell on the first day of the seventh month, it fell on a new moon--that is, when the first sliver of the new moon appeared in the evening sky at the beginning of each lunar month. 

There was always some uncertainty as to when the new moon would appear or could be seen (if cloudy). For this reason, Jesus spoke of His coming in Matthew 25:13, saying,"Be on the alert then, for you do not know the day nor the hour." This phrase about not knowing the day nor the hour is a peculiar Hebrew saying, which they specifically applied to the Feast of Trumpets, whose beginning was unknown until the new moon was sighted.

Daniel's Prophecy of Seventy Weeks

DANIEL’S PROPHECY OF SEVENTY WEEKS

Daniel 9:24-27 KJV  Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.  

(25)  Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.  (26)  And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.

(27)  And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.

A specific interpretation of Daniel’s 70 weeks is an important linchpin for the pre-tribulation rapture crowd. They even consider it to be the most important prophecy in the Bible, particularly for their doctrine. The Scofield-deluded, dispensational, pre-tribulation interpreters generally devise a way to have the crucifixion of Jesus as the end of the 69^th week with the 70^th week transform into a future tribulation era that is usually correlated to the revelation. Since most commentators have a different concept of the correlation of the 70^th week to the revelation, there are various understandings and interpretations of John’s book.

For the record, it is my opinion, based on the work of Dr. Steven Jones, that Jesus was born in 2 BC and was crucified on April 3, 33 A.D. the 69^th week ended in April 26 AD with the Sabbath year beginning a few months later in September. The crucifixion of Jesus was also the preparation day for Passover where the sacrificial lambs were killed. This would also include Jesus who was the sacrificial lamb for everyone who has ever lived on planet Earth. The 70^th week of Daniel spans from April 26 to April 33 A.D. as a point of reference Sabbath years actually began in September for those years.

Putting the revelation argument aside for a moment let’s look at the interpretations of Daniel’s 70 weeks. I have read several interpretations but not all of them. Most of them have different and varied dates for the birth and crucifixion of Jesus. Likewise these commentators give several starting dates to begin the 70 weeks.

Gabriel told Daniel the start of the 70 weeks would be a decree or permission to restore and rebuild Jerusalem.  The original Cyrus decree was issued in 534 BC which was 566 years before 33 AD which would have been 76 years to early. Almost a century ago some Bible scholars formed a theory claiming that Cyrus actually lived in the 450’s BC rather than the 530’s. Their supposed proof postulated that some of the kings in the Persian king list were actually the same king going by different names or titles therefore moving history forward almost 80 years. However, a recent archaeological discovery with complete names of all the Persian kings has proven their theory to be false and that Cyrus actually lived during the 530’s BC and his first decree was issued in 534 BC.

However, there was a 2^nd decree issued 76 years later than the decree of Cyrus and this is the actual decree that begins the 70 weeks or 490 years. This was issued by Artaxerxes in 458 BC and this date is precisely 490 years prior to 33 A.D. which can be verified in the book of Ezra 7:11-13.

Ezra 7:6-7 KJV  This Ezra went up from Babylon; and he was a ready scribe in the law of Moses, which the LORD God of Israel had given: and the king granted him all his request, according to the hand of the LORD his God upon him.  (7)  And there went up some of the children of Israel, and of the priests, and the Levites, and the singers, and the porters, and the Nethinims, unto Jerusalem, in the seventh year of Artaxerxes the king.

Ezra 7:11-13 KJV  Now this is the copy of the letter that the king Artaxerxes gave unto Ezra the priest, the scribe, even a scribe of the words of the commandments of the LORD, and of his statutes to Israel.  (12)  Artaxerxes, king of kings, unto Ezra the priest, a scribe of the law of the God of heaven, perfect peace, and at such a time.  (13)  I make a decree, that all they of the people of Israel, and of his priests and Levites, in my realm, which are minded of their own freewill to go up to Jerusalem, go with thee.

Two Kings Named Cyrus

Xerxes died in 465 BC in the first year of his successor Artaxerxes was the year 464 BC. Josephus tells us in his writings that Artaxerxes had another name. This name was Cyrus but the Greeks called him Artaxerxes. This dual name could be prophetic. The original Cyrus issued the first decree allowing the Jews to return to Jerusalem and build the second Temple. 76 years later Artaxerxes basically did the same thing. This may be the reason past historians consider them to be the same person.

Other Aspects

Since the pre-tribulation rapture group insists that the 70^th week is a future occurrence during which the events of the revelation are fulfilled, they also insist that their preconceived interpretations of the revelation are revealed in the 70 week prophecy. Daniel 9:26 which speaks about ”the people of the prince that shall come” is transform into the so-called antichrist or beast who is not a future event but is the papacy of the Roman church.

Daniel 9:27 speaks of the covenant being confirmed for one week. In the middle of the week He i.e. God will cause the sacrifice and the oblation to stop. This did not actually happen in the temple in Jerusalem but was a decree issued by God. This was the date that Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist and was named the Lamb of God taking away the sins of the world.  At that point, from God’s perspective, sacrifices were no longer necessary because the New Covenant had been instituted.

Judah had failed to enact 70 rest years which is the reason God sent them into captivity for 70 consecutive years. This can be seen in 2 Chronicles 36:20-21.

2 Chronicles 36:20-21 KJV  And them that had escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylon; where they were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the kingdom of Persia:  (21)  To fulfil the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her sabbaths: for as long as she lay desolate she kept sabbath, to fulfil threescore and ten years.

This judgment was specified in Leviticus 26:34-35 where God said he would exile them from the land for the sin of not respecting the sabbatical years.  During the period of “threescore and two years” (62 years) as written in Daniel 9:26, Judah kept the majority of the rest years but never even one Jubilee was honored, which meant their debt to the law of God continued to add up. It has been said that God’s solution for this particular issue (and many others) was to send the Messiah to pay the debt by sacrificing his own blood at the end of the final week.  Jesus was sent as the mediator of the new covenant.  One of the missions of Jesus, as the Messiah, was to teach mankind how to enter into God’s Jubilee rest.  The coming Millennium will be the seventh “thousand year era” of creation and will be God’s Jubilee rest.

A reading the KJV version of Daniel 9:26 appears to indicate the Messiah would arrive after 69 years, Jerusalem would then be destroyed seven years later with the Messiah being killed as well. An army of the prince would destroy the temple and the city and the Messiah would be left with nothing at all. It is possible Daniel could have understood the prophecy in this manner, but history paints a different picture in the above description did not happen.

Daniel 9:26 KJV And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined

Daniel 9:26 Brenton Septuagint  And after the sixty-two weeks, the anointed one shall be destroyed, and there is no judgment in him: and he shall destroy the city and the sanctuary with the prince that is coming: they shall be cut off with a flood, and to the end of the war which is rapidly completed he shall appoint the city to desolations.

The Septuagint translation gives a slightly different version than the KJV. The “anointed one shall be destroyed” rather than “Messiah shall be cut off” ending with “there is no judgment in him” versus “but not for himself”.  In other words, the Septuagint understands this to mean that the coming Messiah would be mistreated and judged falsely, which we know to be true.

The Septuagint translation also makes Daniel 9:27 much clearer and understandable.  The KJV appears to make the Messiah responsible for the stopping of the sacrifice and the oblation along with the overspreading of abominations and making a desolation. The Septuagint simply says the sacrifice and drink offering will be taken away and the temple itself will be made desolate.  To be desolate needs to be deserted or absent of something. It can also mean to be astonished, appalled, astounded, or awestruck. Many people indeed were astonished at the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple.

Daniel 9:27 KJV  And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.

Daniel 9:27 Brenton Septuagint  And one week shall establish the covenant with many: and in the midst of the week my sacrifice and drink-offering shall be taken away: and on the temple shall be the abomination of desolations; and at the end of time an end shall be put to the desolation.

The “many” does not refer to a handful or even a large group of people but is to be contrasted with “the one person” or one individual. In Romans 5:16-18, Paul shows that one man’s sin (Adam) affected the many and one Man’s righteous act (Jesus) also affected the many. Therefore the many is everyone except the one.

The flood is not a literal flood but a metaphor as in Proverbs 27:4.  It is similar to saying Jerusalem was conquered by a flood of soldiers.

Proverbs 27:4 NLT  Anger is cruel, and wrath is like a flood, but jealousy is even more dangerous.