Okay - so the OT chief priests and Pharisees were removed as God's representatives. Is that what you're asserting?
No, God did judge His Old Testament congregation and took the kingdom representative from them as a whole. You probably are thinking, "Hey, TS, what about the Old Testament Elect at that time, I thought you said they are protected."
Yes! He did! I will explain...
First, I have mentioned on other thread the other day that
Zechariah 14 was not about His Second Coming. It took place at the Cross. We need to compare Scripture with Scripture that to understand the SYMBOLISM we need to recognize that Jersualem, the holy city and bride of god, is representative of the congregation, the PEOPLE of God. In the Old Testament, that was the Jews. Zechariah 14 is in reference to THEIR SPIRITUAL CAPTIVITY (not Roman captivity), the apostasy that had gripped that congregation, and this WARFARE in His Congregation.
Matthew 11:12 KJV
[12] And
from the days of John the Baptist until now the
kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force.
The kingdom of Heaven is the CONGREGATION of Israel on earth. It is not Kingdom of Heaven being attacked by Romans armies, not every physical nation in the world, and not at the end times in His second advent, but these "nations" (unbelievers) were defeated by the Lord and by His army (messengers) in their testimony. It was a spiritual war between Christ and his messengers (apostles and faithful) and Satan and his messengers (Jewish leaders, Pharisees, and their followers):
Revelation 12:7-9 KJV
[7] And there was
war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the
dragon fought and his angels,
[8] And
prevailed not; neither was
their place found any more in heaven.
[9] And the
great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was
cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
It is Satan's messengers who also happen to be part of God's congregation will come against Christ and destroy the city and the sanctuary.
Daniel 9:26 KJV
[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.
Indeed the people of the Prince, Jews, under the influence of Satan, did destroy the city and sanctuary, and consequently, the kingdom was taken from them and given to another.
These were the nations that came against Jerusalem, as Christ is this Prince, was
delivered to the Gentiles for crucifixion by His own people!
This language of delivering to the Gentiles is not coincidental, as it illustrates His people were working as Gentiles against their own Prince.
Gentiles simply mean anyone not a Jew,
an alien or foreigner from Israel. Anyone who is
not the true Jews or children of God are
spiritually Gentiles (Revelation 3:9)
and at war in Jerusalem.
Revelation 3:9 KJV
[9] Behold, I will make
them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews,
and are not, but
do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee.
It does NOT matter if you say you are a Jew by bloodline, you are not one in God's eyes. Period! There was no physical war going on in Jerusalem when Christ came, so why do you think God prophesied Christ's coming to end Jerusalem's warfare and to bring comfort to her?
Isaiah 40:1-2 KJV
[1]
Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.
[2] Speak
ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and
cry unto her, that
her warfare is accomplished, that
her iniquity is pardoned:
for she hath received of the LORD'S hand double for all her sins.
These are questions that many teachers ignore because it illustrates vividly that the Lord spoke this way. While they want to keep holding to an idea that understanding city spiritually is of men rather than of God. But the
Biblical fact is, she indeed was at war, but
not warfare as the world defines it, but
as God's word does. Not by all the literal/physical nations battling against her as the world defines it, but as God does! It is the war between two different generations or families, one the messengers and children of Satan and the other the messengers or children of God. Even as Revelation 12 also depicts. The end result was that Christ came to the mount of Olives (signifying the anointed kingdom), came to Jerusalem as King, freed the children held in captivity, in the bondage of Satan and his minions, and judged those who fought against Him. Not in worldly Premillennialists or Preterist terms, but spiritual.
Zechariah 12:89
- "In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the LORD before them.
- And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.
- And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn."
Well, "in that day" did not occur in 70AD! It was at the Cross! The only real question is when Christ poured out His Spirit of grace upon the house of David (Pentecost), how was Jerusalem under siege in by all the nations, and how did God seek to destroy all the nations that came against Jerusalem? When you answer that question
honestly, you know that this never spoke of a physical/literal war or nations. Not even 70AD. The Lord did defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem and did destroy the nations that came up against her and He did pour out His spirit upon the house of David, and they did look upon Him whom they had pierced. Could it be any more clearer it was already Done! Long before your 70AD theory! Christ accomplished this at the cross. And they did mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, as also confirmed! I did not say that. John wrote:
John 19:36-37
- "For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken.
- And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced."
When did that happen? At the Cross, of course! Not 70AD. It's not scripture yet to be fulfilled in your doctrine, it's Scripture already fulfilled. We just need to take God's word as authoritative, rather than listen to the self-serving denials of men snared in Preterism/Premillennial/Judaism/Zionism.
You may wonder, what happened to the Old Testament faithfuls when the Lord took away the Kingdom Representative away from their congregation.
Zechariah 14:3 KJV
[3] Then shall the LORD go forth, and
fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.
The real question is "HOW" did the Lord fight FOR the people of Jerusalem? Was it a physical battle among His Congregation with physical armies setting Israel free from her physical enemies armies? Or Did He fight for them SPIRITUALLY, free them SPIRITUALLY, and restore them SPIRITUALLY? When God talks about going forth fighting against the nations/Gentiles to HELP Jersualem who is besieged, He is illustrating that there was a battle going on in His congregation (represented by Jesualem) and He would judge those that have forced His people into...spiritual captivity.
Revelation 12:7-11 KJV
[7] And
there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,
[8] And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven.
[9] And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
[10] And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven,
Now is come salvation, and
strength, and the
kingdom of our God, and
the power of his Christ: for the
accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.
[11]
And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and
by the word of their testimony; and
they loved not their lives unto the death.
When was the great accuser cast down and salvation and the strength of His Kingdom went forth? All the
victory of His messengers accomplished strictly by
THE BLOOD OF THE LAMB and
THE WORD OF THEIR TESTIMONY! Not some physical stones falling in 70AD. Not a battle of guns and missiles with Russia. But IN THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN on EARTH. Right here in the Old Testament Congregation when it fell and being restored by Christ...in three days with His Resurrection!
Think about for a moment with Egypt. When God says "as when" (or like) He fought in the day of battle, that is a reference to the deliverance of the children of Israel from Egypt at the red sea when it was parted to make a way that His children could ESCAPE their bondage. Same portrait in Zechariah 14, of the mountain cleaving in half and a great valley as a way of ESCAPE for His faithful people of the Old Testament, Selah! It is the portrait of the deliverance of His Congregation!
Exodus 14:12-14 KJV
[12] Is not this the word that we did tell thee in Egypt, saying, Let us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians? For it had been better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness.
[13] And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever.
[14] The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.
See? And Indeed the Lord DID fight for them and delivered them. Not in a premillennial physical army battle, but God fought for them in that "spiritual" battle that made a way for them to enter into the promised land. This deliverance from Egypt PREFIGURES Christ's deliverance of Isarel from spiritual bondage in Egypt that was overcome at the CROSS! In this SAME WAY, Zechariah predicts the coming of Christ as when the LORD WILL FIGHT FOR HIS FAITHFUL, just as He fought in the day of battle! It is SPIRITUAL warfare, a SPIRITUAL ending of it, and a SPIRITUAL peace and safety established by the Deliverer Himself with Grace! That can only mean that the battle against those nations the prophecy of Zechariah 14 says the Lord will fight for them, is also a spiritual battle. It was very destructive for the Old Testament Congregation, but He also made it a way for His faithful to escape into the New Testament congregation! Selah!
Zechariah 14:3-5 KJV
[3] Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.
[4] And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.
[5] And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.
The mount of Olivers represents the congregation of Israel. In this case, the Old Testament congregation. The cleaving and splitting of the mountain signify the judgment of God upon this congregation. In other words, the Old Testament Congregation fell. The Lord created a great valley for His True faithful to escape the judgment into...guess where? New Testament Congregation,
spiritually speaking. Just the Lord had the sea parted for the Jews back in days of Egypt. In other words, the
TRUE congregation of Israel CONTINUED from Old into the New, this time, with the temple that Christ rebuilt where He is now a Chief Cornerstone of that building! All of this already took place at Cross/Pentecost. Not 70AD. Satan has been cast out of God's congregation with the fall of Old Testament Congregation and bound Him so He could rebuild His congregation and this time includes the Gentiles. Satan has been bound (restrained) from frustrating God's New Testament congregation until God first finished sealing His chosen Elect
through the testimony of two Witnesses for 1,260 symoblic days (whole New Testament period). Once all Israel shall be saved (Rev 7, Romans 11:26) Satan will be loosened for "a short season" to gather His army again to attack the New Testament congregation. Do you even notice what is going on with the congregations spiritually all over the world lately while the professed Christians are busy looking for literal signs or fulfillment they thought only applies to national Israel or Jerusalem like the foolish virgins of Matthew 25, humm?
Oh well, only those have spiritual eyes to see and ear to hear!
Selah!