Daily Devotional, Year 2 – AUGUST 11 (Apocalypse Now! Part 3: “The Little Book”)
By admin On January 31st, 2021.
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Daily Devotional, Year 2 – AUGUST 11
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Apocalypse Now!
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Part 3:
“The Little Book”
To read Part 1, click here… “AUGUST 3 (Apocalypse Now! Part 1: Silencing the Gospel!)“
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“And the voice which I heard from heaven spake unto me again,
and said, Go and take the little book…and eat it up;
and it shall make thy belly bitter,
but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey.”
Revelation 10:8, 9
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There have been many teachers who attempted to interpret the Book of Revelation, coming up with many varied ideas about what it is speaking of.
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Now of course, the Lord tells us that it is an unsealed book for the most part. And yet, confusion abounds as to exactly what this little book is all about.
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Those who cling to the false and unbiblical hermeneutic which demands literal interpretation as far as possible, attempt to define The Revelation as literal as possible! And so, they can only conclude that when this book mentions “Jews”, it must be speaking of literal Jews, and not the “Commonwealth of Israel” consisting of both Jew and Gentile Believers alike. (see Ephesians Chapter 2:12-14)
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John given little book – dia@emory.edu
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A TEDIOUS WORK
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But the book of Revelation must be interpreted spiritually, just like the rest of the Bible! We must compare “spiritual things with spiritual”, as 1st Corinthians 2 tells us, and we must add, “line upon line, here a little, there a little” as Isaiah 28 tells us to do.
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And so, proper understanding of Revelation depends upon a humble and prayerful comparing of every related Bible verse. It is a very tedious work!
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Chaplain reads Bible – Wikimedia – US Govt. Public Domain
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JOHN’S LITTLE BOOK
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Now today’s devotional concerns Chapter 10, in which there was a “little book” that John was commanded to eat…“And the voice which I heard from heaven spake unto me again, and said, Go and take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel which standeth upon the sea and upon the earth. And I went unto the angel, and said unto him, Give me the little book. And he said unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey.” Revelation 10:8, 9
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This above verse speaks of a little book.
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But what book?
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John given little book – dia@emory.edu
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WHAT BOOK IS IT?
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Many teachers say it speaks of the book of Daniel. Others say it speaks of the Book of Revelation. And yet others say, the entire Bible. But the fact is, this passage doesn’t say exactly what book this little book is.
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But a similar passage is found in Ezekiel…“But thou, son of man, hear what I say unto thee; Be not thou rebellious like that rebellious house: open thy mouth, and eat that I give thee. And when I looked, behold, an hand was sent unto me; and, lo, a roll of a book was therein; And he spread it before me; and it was written within and without: and there was written therein lamentations, and mourning, and woe.” Ezekiel 2:9-10
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Now this roll of a book was given to the “son of man” to eat. And the rebellious house mentioned here was, “the house of Israel”.
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Magnifying Glass – Wikimedia – Share-alike License
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ROLL OF A BOOK
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Now this above passage from Ezekiel 2 continues into Ezekiel 3…“And He said unto me, Son of man, cause thy belly to eat, and fill thy bowels with this roll that I give thee. Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness. And He said unto me, Son of man, go, get thee unto the house of Israel, and speak with My words unto them.” Ezekiel 3:3, 4
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So here is seen that this roll of a book was in his mouth “as honey for sweetness”. This, of course must be referring to God’s Word, which is sometimes compared to honey.
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Ezekiel’s book – Wikipedia – US Public Domain
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THE BIBLE: THE GOOD NEWS
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But this roll of a book was necessary for God’s rebuke to the house of Israel. And let’s not forget that this book, “was written within and without: and there was written therein lamentations, and mourning, and woe.” Ezekiel 2:10
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Now, the Bible has many lamentations, mourning and woes. But it must be remembered that the Bible also is the Good News of Salvation.
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Holy Bible – cropped image – Wikimedia – Creative Commons Lic.
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LAMENTATIONS
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Well, there does happen to be one little book in the Bible which is filled with “lamentations, mourning and woe”.
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This is the little book of Lamentations, penned by the prophet, Jeremiah, years prior to Ezekiel’s ministry.
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And so, perhaps this is what Ezekiel 2:9-3:4 is referring to.
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Oh yes, the Book of Revelation is also filled with “lamentations, mourning and woes”.
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Cry of prophet Jeremiah on the Ruins of Jerusalem – Wikiart – US Public Domain
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STIFF-NECKED AND STUBBORN
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One thing is for sure! God was sending Ezekiel to speak to God’s captive people, Israel, with a message that they were not going to like…
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Listen… “For thou art not sent to a people of a strange speech and of an hard language, but to the house of Israel; Not to many people of a strange speech and of an hard language, whose words thou canst not understand. Surely, had I sent thee to them, they would have hearkened unto thee. But the house of Israel will not hearken unto thee; for they will not hearken unto Me: for all the house of Israel are impudent and hardhearted.” Ezekiel 3:5-7
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So, this above passage reveals the “impudent and hardhearted” condition of God’s people at that time.
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Ezekiel, the Prophet – G. Dore – Wikipedia – US Public Domain
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FOR ALL NATIONS
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Now, in the Book of Revelation, the Apostle John is given the same commission. But John is to take the little book and, “prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings.”
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And so now, while Ezekiel’s roll of a book was specifically for the house of Israel, John’s little book was for “many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings”.
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John on Patmos – Wikigallery – public domain
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COMMONWEALTH OF ISRAEL
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But now, if this little book given to John is intimately intertwined with Ezekiel’s roll of a
book, it only confirms that John’s little book is not just for literal Jews, but for the entire Commonwealth of Israel, comprised of Christians from all the “peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings”.
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In other words, the commonwealth of Israel is now sprinkled throughout the world! And it is called “the commonwealth” because, “the Israel of God” is now made up of all peoples. It is no longer just an isolated nation of literal Jews, but now a community of Believers from every corner of the globe.
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Bible Study Group – cropped image – Wikimedia – Share-Alike License
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THE LEADERS OF THIS PEOPLE
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“For the leaders of this people cause them to err; and they that are led of them are destroyed.” Isaiah 9:16
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And so, as we read the chapters of Revelation which follow this tiny section in Revelation about the “little book”, we see a message about the true Gospel and those who are the true worshipers of God, who make up the temple in Heaven.
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The Bible warned us that Satan would come as an “angel of light”, bringing his false shepherds, ministers of righteousness to mislead the people of God. And from viewing history past, Satan has always come in the form of the general consensus and leadership of the Church to mislead God’s people. In other words, the so-called cults out there today are not the big problem. It is the mainstream portion of the house of God which has always been the biggest problem, as far as apostasy and incorrect doctrines.
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Audience hands – cropped & altered – Wikimedia – Universal Public Domain
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ARMOR UP!
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The Good News is, that God has allowed us a little more time to correct our many misconceptions about Revelation, as well as the rest of the Bible.
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And so, we need to cry out to God for the ability to study for our own selves, and no longer depend upon mainstream Christianity to tell us what we are to believe, or not to believe.
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And after we finally become personally well-versed in the whole Bible, then we will have become fully dressed in God’s protective armor, and ready for the final battle to come!
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TO READ PART 4, CLICK HERE…
AUGUST 12 (Apocalypse Now! Part 4: Silencing Christians)
Duct Tape Mouth – Wikimedia – Share-alike license
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TODAY’S PRAYER…
“Dear Lord, Help me to study the Bible for my own self, no longer depending upon other to tell me what to believe…
Praying Hands – Otto Greiner – Wikimedia – .bassenge.com – Cropped image – Public Domain
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READ MORE…
To explore deeper into this subject, please read…January 24th (The True Message of Revelation!), or you can also read this article…” March 23rd (1st Beast of Revelation 13)”
Question book magnify svg – Wikimedia – GNU license
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THE END
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TODAY’S FEATURED HEAVENLY SIGN
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7 STARS IMITATE THE CROSS OF ORION
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This phenomenon begins in late October, in the pre-dawn hours. It then begins a little earlier each night, and lasts for several months, until they both appear to lie down once again.
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This Wikipedia star-chart to the left, has this Orion Constellation sketched in. You must locate Orion, when it is mid-sky, between east and west. You’ll be facing southward most likely, unless you are far south. Try to imagine it as a Cross on a steep hill. The 3-star belt of Orion becomes the crest of the hill. The 3 very faint stars that make up Orion’s head become the very top of the Cross.
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Next, locate the 7 Stars Constellation. This 7 Stars Constellation is seen by facing northward. It stands upright a little later in the night. Eventually, Orion will lay down and no longer be seen as an uplifted Cross! Beginning in November, the 7 Stars (AKA Big Dipper) can be seen as a Cross a little bit later in evening.
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When you are comfortable in locating Orion & The 7 Stars Constellations, then show a friend. This can be a great witnessing tool!
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ABOVE CHART: The Cross of Orion Constellation star-chart – not for commercial use
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READ MORE…
To explore deeper into this subject, please read… ‘7 Stars’ Imitate ‘The Cross of Orion’
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TOMORROW…
AUGUST 12 (Apocalypse Now! Part 4: Silencing Christians)
Duct Tape Mouth – Wikimedia – Share-alike license
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20+ MINUTE AUDIO JEREMIAH STUDY
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ALL ‘NOBLE BEREANS’ (open-minded seekers of Bible truth) ARE ENCOURAGED TO BEGIN FOLLOWING THIS 650+ AUDIO BIBLE STUDY THROUGH THE BOOK OF JEREMIAH EACH DAY ON THIS DAILY DEVOTIONAL.
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THIS IS STUDY #588 IS PRESENTED BY THE LATE HAROLD CAMPING…
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