Judaism teaches that one should always leave in readiness for the Messiah’s coming. In fact, the famous sage Rambam listed this expectation as one of the 13 core tenants of the faith. According to Rambam, if you are not expecting the Messiah’s return imminently you have denied the Torah and Moses (i.e. it is tantamount to denying the faith).
Expecting the Messiah’s return changes the way we live our lives. A story from the Talmud illustrates this well:
Rabbi Eliezer says: Repent one day before your death.
Rabbi Eliezer’s students asked him: But does a person know the day on which he will die?
He said to them: All the more so.. one should repent today lest he die tomorrow
(Shabbat 153a)
In light of Jesus’ soon coming, it is important for us all to take Rabbi Eliezer’s advice and live in repentance today. Now is the time to get right with God and live fully for Him.
For more on the End Times, see our new book on the Jubilee.
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Enoch Lavender was born in Australia, raised in Norway, spent time living in China and is now based in Melbourne, Australia. He has been studying Hebrew and the Jewish roots of our faith for the past decade, and has a keen interest in the Middle East from a Bible prophecy perspective.
In the early 19th Century, a period of unprecedented restoration began to take place in both Israel and the Church.
As the Jews were scattered all over the world, the language of Hebrew had become extinct except for use in religious ceremonies. As Jews began to trickle back to Palestine in the late 19th century, one man named Eliezer Ben Yehuda had a vision to restore the ancient language of Hebrew back to a modern language. Currently the returning Jews were weak and divided, but a common language would be central in helping them to unite into a modern nation.
Undeterred by his diagnosis of deadly tubercolosis at age 18, Eliezer dedicated himself to bringing the ancient language back to life. From 1881 to 1921, Eliezer worked up to 18 hour days as he tirelessly researched ancient languages looking for fragments of ancient Jewish words. Combining this with his knowledge of Biblical Hebrew, Ben Yehudah began to piece together a modern and practical language, which he ultimately published in a mammoth 18 volume dictionary. By the end of his life, Eliezer’s efforts had paid off and Hebrew had become so widely used that it was recognised as one of three languages in Palestine.
The Bible text predicts many layers to the End Time restoration, and the prophet Zephaniah declared in this context “…I will restore to the peoples a pure language” (Zeph 3:9). While this verse definitely predicts the restoration of “a” pure language, which language is he speaking of?
The previous verse contains the clue. Zephaniah 3:8 is the only verse in the entire Hebrew Bible to contain every single letter of the Hebrew alphabet – including the special form of five unique letters that appear differently when they appear at the end of a word. It seems that this verse is a giant hint that the language prophesied to be restored in the very next verse, is none other than the Hebrew language itself.
The language of Hebrew was not the only language that was lost during the time of Israel’s exile. In the early centuries of the church, the gifts of the spirit all but died out. However, in the late 18th century, many believers began to earnestly seek and pray for a new Pentecost, believing from their reading of the Scriptures that we were nearing the End of the Age. In response to these prayers, on New Years Eve 1901, there was an outpouring of the Holy Spirit in Topeka, Kansas evidenced by the speaking in tongues. This became the catalyst for of a mighty Pentecostal revival which swept the globe.
The restoration of the language of the Spirit to the Church happened precisely in the middle of the 40 year period in which Hebrew was being restored to the Jewish nation.
Learn More about the Restoration
Our upcoming book ‘The Jubilee: Discover the End Time Mystery” goes into more detail about the fascinating dual restoration of Israel and the Church.
Pre-order the book today
1 See St. John, Robert, Tongues of the Prophets: The Life Story of Eliezer Ben Yehudah, Doubleday & Company Inc. Garden City, New York: 1952
Enoch Lavender was born in Australia, raised in Norway, spent time living in China and is now based in Melbourne, Australia. He has been studying Hebrew and the Jewish roots of our faith for the past decade, and has a keen interest in the Middle East from a Bible prophecy perspective.
Is there a link between the ancient practice of the Jubilee and Jesus’ soon coming return to earth? If so, what insights can we learn from this link as we look forward to Jesus’ return?
The Trumpet will Sound
For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. (I Thes 4:16)
One central feature of Jesus’ Return that theologians of all persuasions can agree upon is that it will be marked by the sounding of a loud trumpet. Bearing this in mind, let us turn to Leviticus 25, a chapter dedicated to the topic of the Jubilee year cycles:
Then you shall cause the trumpet of the Jubilee to sound on the tenth day of the seventh month (Lev 25:9)
In other words, the Jubilee, like Jesus’ Return, is announced with the Trumpet. What would this have looked like and is there a link between the two trumpet soundings?
Life in the ancient world was tough, and many lived as farmers who were completely dependent on the produce of their fields. Those finding themselves in severe financial hardship could temporarily sell their land and even themselves into slavery. The laws of the Jubilee then stipulated that a friend or relative could ‘redeem’ or buy back the land and set those who had become slaves free. If no redeemer was found, God Himself decreed that the debts of the poor were to be cancelled, the slaves set free and His people restored to their ancestral inheritance in the 50th year, the year of Jubilee.
Can you imagine the joy that the sounding of this Jubilee Trumpet would have caused in ancient Israel? At this once in a generation trumpet blast, slaves were set free across the nation and the poor were released from their long-held debts. In the streets of Israel long lost loved ones would be tearfully embracing and rejoicing together in the redemption of God. Could this ancient joy at the sound of the Jubilee Trumpet be a foretaste of the much greater joy to come at Jesus’ Return?
There are only four portions of the Bible that directly mention the Jubilee. Two of these passages are technical descriptions of the laws surrounding the Jubilee, but the other two passages are of great interest to us as we explore the links between the Jubilee and the Trumpet of Jesus’ Return.
The Glory and the Trumpet
The twelve tribes of Israel had gathered at the foot of Mount Sinai only three months after being set free from Egypt. In Egypt and at the Red Sea they had dramatically witnessed the power of God through mighty miracles and signs that exceed anything most of us have ever experienced. Yet even the crossing of the Red Sea paled into insignificance compared to the encounter with the Glory of God which they were about to experience in its full manifestation on Mount Sinai.
Moses describes a thick cloud enveloping the mountain, thunder, lightning, smoke and the entire mountain shaking as the Lord Himself physically descended upon the Mountain. Many scholars describe this dramatic appearance of God as being a powerful prophetic preview of the day when Jesus Himself will physically descend from the heavens. It is crucial then to note that God’s awesome descent on the mountain was marked with an exceeding long and loud trumpet blast:
When the trumpet (yobel) sounds long, they shall come near the mountain…..
And when the blast of the trumpet sounded long and became louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him by voice. Then the Lord came down upon Mount Sinai
(Ex 19:13, 16-20, emphasis added)
The word used here for trumpet is the word Yobel or Jubilee. In other words, the long blast on the mountain signifying God’s descent was also a Jubilee Trumpet. Israel itself was truly in the midst of an amazing Jubilee experience, being set free from slavery and being on their way to inherit the promised land.
Could this Exodus 19 descent of God’s awesome manifest presence, marked by the sounding of the Jubilee Trumpet, be a foreshadow of Jesus’ Return?
Entering the Promised Land
In our world today it is not uncommon for bitter strife to erupt in families as they contest an inheritance. In the same way, while Israel’s inheritance was in the Promised Land, many battles were ahead of Joshua as he led the people across the Jordan river.
Their first hindrance seemed impossible. They were charged with taking the impenetrable city of Jericho. Preparing for battle, Joshua encounters the Angel of the Lord, who gives him very specific battle instructions.
Before we look at these instructions, let us turn our minds back to the Jubilee practice for a moment. In Leviticus chapter 25, God instructed His people to farm the land for six years and then let it rest in the seventh year. After seven such seven-year cycles, in the 50th year, the Jubilee would be proclaimed with the Trumpet sound.
As the people of Israel come to Jericho under Joshua’s leadership, our first hint of a link with the Jubilee is God’s rather unusual battle instruction to His people. He commanded them to go in circles around the city for seven days and then finally seven times on the seventh day.
After these cycles were literally completed, the people were to sound the Trumpet:
It shall come to pass, when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, that all the people shall shout with a great shout; then the wall of the city will fall down flat. And the people shall go up every man straight before him.
(Josh 6:5, emphasis added)
While our English translations use the word “ram’s horn” or “trumpet” throughout the story of the battle of Jericho, the primary word for trumpet used repeatedly throughout this chapter is Yobel or Jubilee. In other words, having marched around the walls in seven cycles, they were now to announce the Jubilee with the sound of the Jubilee Trumpet. And as they did, the walls would come crashing down and they would begin to enter their inheritance!
Joshua and Jesus
Moses the great leader and prophet who brought the people of Israel out of Egypt, told the people of a ‘Prophet like me’ (Deut. 18:15) who would come. While Moses brought people to the edge of the promised land, it was only his successor, Joshua who was able to bring the people into their inheritance.
Jesus’ name in Hebrew is simply another form of the name Joshua. Jesus is truly the greater Joshua who came after Moses and is the only one who can truly lead God’s people into their inheritance and into the Kingdom to come. He will one day soon come to earth to setup His Kingdom and to reign upon the throne of His father David, ushering in the Jubilee and His Messianic reign. What a day it will be!
This is an excerpt from the upcoming book ‘The Jubilee: Discover The End Time Mystery”.
To pre-order a digital or print copy, please go to www.olivetreeministries.tv/preorder
Enoch Lavender was born in Australia, raised in Norway, spent time living in China and is now based in Melbourne, Australia. He has been studying Hebrew and the Jewish roots of our faith for the past decade, and has a keen interest in the Middle East from a Bible prophecy perspective.
Through His sacrificial death on the cross, Jesus has brought us salvation and granted those who believe eternal life. He is rightly called our Saviour, but from a Jewish perspective He cannot – yet – be fully called the Messiah.
The Anointed One
Messiah literally means ‘the smeared one’ or the ‘anointed one’. As the anointing has become synonymous with the presence and power of the Holy Spirit, many Christians already see Jesus as ‘anointed’.
However, the Biblical term literally refers to being physically anointed with a unique anointing oil to take the throne of Israel. The recent coronation of King Charles the III gave millions of viewers worldwide a once-in-a-lifetime viewing of this ancient practice. In full public sight, Charles was disrobed of his royal garments, leaving him dressed in rather plain white undergarments. Charles was then ushered to an area concealed by large decorative screens where he was anointed with oil uniquely chosen from the Mount of Olives.
Once the anointing was complete, Charles emerged to be dressed in his spectacular golden royal robe. He was then crowned with his royal crown with the Archbishop of Canterbury declaring “God Save the King!”
The Missing Anointing Oil
For Jesus to fulfill His role as Messiah, He literally must return to earth and be crowned King over Israel – just as the Angel Gabriel foretold (Luk 1:32). There is a problem however. Israel’s formula for anointing oil contains its own unique ingredients including persimmon oil. This oil was exceedingly rare in ancient times, with only two known groves in existence at the time of Jesus. Both of these groves were destroyed during the destruction of the Temple, leaving Israel without a means to anoint their Messiah as King – until now1.
The Missing Anointing
The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls in the Qumran caves not only provided priceless ancient scrolls of Biblical texts, but also a rather unusual Copper Scroll. It took researchers years of careful restoration work before they were finally able to unfurl the scroll and read its contents. The scroll effectively contained a treasure map of 64 treasures from Bible times. While it has been hard to match its descriptions with Israel’s current landscape, researchers nevertheless were able to use its contents to uncover a sealed clay jar in Cave 11 at Qumran. This jar contained a very unusual and sticky substance, with chemical analysis showed it to be composed of Moses’ unique ingredients for anointing oil. The jar was carbon dated back to the days of Jesus, as published by the National Geographic2. According to Grant Jeffrey, this unusual jar is now in the safekeeping of the chief rabbis in Israel, and perhaps it will be the very substance used to anoint Jesus as the future King of Israel.
I believe Jesus is truly coming again, and when He comes, we can expect there to be a far greater and more magnificent crowning ceremony than the world has ever seen. On that day, He will be finally be declared as the Messiah of Israel and the King over all the Earth – may that day come soon!
1 Jeffrey, Grant. R,The New Temple and the Second Coming (2007), page 50-51, 56-57
2 See Special To The New York (1989-02-16). “Balsam Oil of Israelite Kings Found in Cave Near Dead Sea”. The New York Times. Also see Jones, Vendyl. A Door of Hope: My Search for the Treasures of the Copper Scroll (2005). Lightcatcher Books.
Enoch Lavender was born in Australia, raised in Norway, spent time living in China and is now based in Melbourne, Australia. He has been studying Hebrew and the Jewish roots of our faith for the past decade, and has a keen interest in the Middle East from a Bible prophecy perspective.
When we hear the word ‘gospel’ today, we tend to think of the basic message of Christianity; namely that mankind is separated from God through sin and that Jesus paid the penalty for our sin through His death, burial and resurrection. However, we will see that the word ‘gospel’ in the time of Jesus carried a significantly different meaning.
The Bible tells us that Jesus went about preaching ‘the gospel of the kingdom’ (Matt. 4:23). Yet we have no record of Jesus directly preaching to the crowds that He was going to die and rise again so that through faith in Him we could come to God. Furthermore, Jesus even sent His disciples out to preach ‘the gospel’ (Luke 9:6). If Jesus’ disciples were preaching about His coming death, burial and resurrection, why then were they so confused and depressed after Jesus’ death?
I believe the answer to this question can be found by studying the ancient practice of the Jubilee and its role in Messianic prophecy.
The Jubilee System
Life in Ancient World was tough, and many lived as farmers who were completely dependant on the produce of their fields. Those finding themselves in severe financial hardship could temporarily sell their land and even themselves into slavery. The laws of the Jubilee then stipulated that a friend or relative could ‘redeem’ or buy back the land and set those who had become slaves free. However, if no redeemer was found; in the 50th year, God Himself would cancel the debts of the poor, He would set the slaves free, and He would restore them to their individually allotted inheritance.
Just imagine for a moment the dramatic nationwide joy of this once in a generation occasion! Tears and shouts of joy would have erupted across Israel as debts were cancelled, as families embraced loved ones who had spent years in slavery, and as people returned to their God-given farms and properties.
A National Bankruptcy
The nation of Israel itself soon became morally ‘bankrupt’. As a result, the land was invaded and conquered by foreign armies, and the entire population found themselves in slavery to foreign powers. The nation was powerless to set themselves free from this slavery, to return to their land or to ‘pay off’ their debt.
The people of Israel began to long for a redeemer, one who would restore them to freedom and to their God-given inheritance. In fact, to this day, Judaism speaks longingly of this national redemption and the Messianic age to come.
Sky High Expectation
At the time of Jesus birth, expectation of the coming redeemer was sky-high. Anna the prophetess excitedly spoke of Jesus to all those ‘who looked for redemption in Jerusalem’ (Luke 2:36).
Then as Jesus started His ministry, His very first sermon was a reading from Isaiah 61. “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me…” He began, “to preach good tidings to the poor… liberty to the captives… To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord… And they shall rebuild the old ruins…”.
This prophecy of Isaiah speaks of the Messiah declaring the “acceptable year of the Lord”, or in other words, the Jubilee. No wonder all the people in the Synagogue were staring at Jesus after He spoke these words!
This Messianic Jubilee proclamation is ‘good news’ to the poor. Why? Because their debts are being cancelled. This Jubilee proclamation is ‘freedom to the captives’. Why? Because the bankrupt slaves have their debts cancelled and their freedom restored. They will ‘rebuild the old ruins’. Why? Because the people are returning to their own ancestral inheritance and beginning to restore the old properties and cities that had fallen into disrepair. All this is truly ‘good news’! With this Messianic declaration, it is no wonder that people flocked to Jesus, and that many wanted to crown Him King.
In these words from Isaiah, we also discover the answer to our earlier question about the ‘gospel’ (or good news) which Jesus preached. The gospel Jesus preached wasn’t a message of faith in Him for salvation from sins (all though this message is important). Instead, this gospel message was understood to mean that the ‘Jubilee restoration’ was at hand.
The Disappointment
The peoples hope of an imminent Jubilee came crashing down as Jesus breathed his final breath on the cross. His own disciples spoke of their disillusionment as they were hoping it ‘was he who was going to redeem Israel’ (Luke 24:21)
After His resurrection, Jesus spends the next 40 days with His disciples. The only question the disciples asked Jesus at this time reflects what was on their hearts. ‘Lord will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel’? (Acts 1:6). In other words, is the Jubilee going to happen now?
Fast forward to the day of Pentecost, and we see this question of the Jubilee still lingering as Peter gets up to speak. Anointed by the Holy Spirit, Peter explains “Jesus has to remain in heaven until the time comes for restoring everything, as God said long ago, when he spoke through the holy prophets” (Acts 3:21). In other words, what the prophets have said about the Jubilee, will take place. The restoration is coming, and it will be a Jubilee restoration of ‘everything’, coming to its fullness at the time of Jesus’ return.
In other words, the return of Jesus is something to look forward to with expectation, just like the Jubilee in ancient Israel. It will be a time of restoration, a time of freedom, a time of release for those in bondage and slavery, and a time when ancient inheritances will be restored. No wonder this is good news!
The joyful expectation of the Jubilee must have been what Jesus had in mind when He said “ when these (End Time prophecies) …begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.” (Luke 21:28)
To learn more, see our new 5 Part Bible study resource on the Jubilee available at www.olivetreeministries.org.au/eshop
Enoch Lavender was born in Australia, raised in Norway, spent time living in China and is now based in Melbourne, Australia. He has been studying Hebrew and the Jewish roots of our faith for the past decade, and has a keen interest in the Middle East from a Bible prophecy perspective.
Peering into the future beyond the cataclysmic end time events, Zechariah the prophet foretells that there is coming a time when all the nations of the earth will go up to Jerusalem ‘year by year… to keep the Feast of Tabernacles’ (Zec 14:16).
His prophecy leads us to ask the question, why will the nations of the world be celebrating this particular feast on the Jewish calendar?
What is the Feast of Tabernacles?
Known in Hebrew as ‘the season of our joy’, Tabernacles is a unique celebration where God’s people are divinely mandated to rejoice. During the days of Jesus, the Temple was a focal point of this 7-day celebration of the harvest. The festivities would see the Temple lit up with giant 25-meter-high candelabras. Sacrifices and signing would fill each day, and in the evening, respected men of faith would dance, sing and even juggle flaming torches until late at night. For those who have never seen this celebration, the rabbis say, it is as if they have ‘never seen joy in their lives’ (Talmud Sukkah 51b).
A Prophetic Calendar
The feasts God gave to Israel through Moses are not just celebrations of past events but are also prophetic of future events. The first 4 feasts on the calendar were literally and to the day fulfilled by Jesus’ 1st coming, and many scholars therefore believe that the remaining feasts lay out the final sequence of events surrounding His 2nd coming.
The Feast of Tabernacles is the last of these celebrations, and it points to the great joy and the rejoicing there will be when God finally dwells (tabernacles) among His people.
While we can look forward to this great celebration, the prophets of the Bible all agree that a time of tremendous trouble is coming to earth before we reach this glorious end. The Feast immediately prior to Tabernacles is the ‘Day of Atonement’, in which the entire nation of Israel as one fasts and prays seeking God for forgiveness. Piecing this together with End Time prophecy, I believe that Israel will in the End Times face a time of great trial and persecution by the nations of the world, leading to her national repentance. This will in turn lead to the Messiah’s return and a time of unparalleled rejoicing.
But what about the Gentile Nations?
When the Lord finally intervenes on behalf of Israel, Zechariah predicts that He will seek to ‘destroy’ the nations that had so viciously come against Jerusalem (Zec 12:9). It as the judgment of God begins to fall on the nations, that I believe the Feast of Tabernacles will find it ultimate prophetic role.
During this feast, the Jewish people are commanded year by year to sacrifice a total of 70 bulls. The number 70 represents all the nations of the world (linked to the 70 descendants of Noah in Gen. 10:32). As such, as God’s wrath in the End Times is coming upon the Gentile persecutors of Israel, the nation of Israel will be sacrificing for those nations. Like Moses of old, they will stand in intercession for God to spare the nations who have so recently been responsible for dreadful persecution of Israel. This intercessory prayer of Israel will apparently be heard and many from the nations will be spared.
The End Time event concludes with Jesus’ Return and the restoration and forgiveness of not only Israel but also of the nations. It is no wonder then that those from the nations ‘who are left’ (Zec 14:9) will join Israel in the annual celebration of Tabernacles. Then this Feast will truly be the time ‘of greatest joy’ as all of mankind will together worship and rejoice before the God of Israel.
Enoch Lavender was born in Australia, raised in Norway, spent time living in China and is now based in Melbourne, Australia. He has been studying Hebrew and the Jewish roots of our faith for the past decade, and has a keen interest in the Middle East from a Bible prophecy perspective.
