By D. K. Henry

Most of you know me and think that I have come to give you a peaceful sermon that will reinforce what you already believe. This is not so, I came as a Don Quixote attacking windmills. I come as an Iconoclast with a club knocking down Icons.

I worry a lot. I worry about all of the things to be found in the scriptures that I do not understand, and then on the other hand I worry about all of the things that I have learned in church that are not true.

Icon #1, Things like the children of Israel being slaves in Egypt for four hundred and thirty years. I believed this until I discovered that Levi was Moses grandfather through his mother’s side and his great grandfather through his father’s side.

Genesis 46:11, “And the sons of Levi; Gershon, Kohath and Merari.” Levi and these three sons walked into Egypt.

Numbers 26:58-59,”And Kahath begat Amram and the name of Amram’s wife was Jochebed, the daughter of Levi, whom her mother bare unto Levi in Egypt and she bare unto Amram Aaron and Moses and Miriam their sister.”

Exodus 6:20, “And Amram took him Jochebed his father’s sister to wife, and she bare him Aaron and Moses and the years of the life of Amram were and hundred and thirty and seven years.” Both of Moses’ grandfathers walked into Egypt with the Patriarchs and Moses walked out in the Exodus. His paternal grandfather was Kohath who walked into Egypt and his maternal grandfather was Levi himself. Moses mother was Levi’s daughter.

Icon #2, How many of you have heard a preacher or teacher quote the scripture, “After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight.” And then have that same preacher explain that it is now two thousand years since Christ’s birth so we are about to enter into that third day and somehow that third day will also be the seventh day millennium which is somehow tied to the second coming of Christ. I even went so far as to think that Christ’s resurrection day was more important than his birthday so maybe we might have to wait another thirty years for that third day.

Then one day I was thinking about a statement that my father made when I was a child and listening. He said that a text separated from its context can often be called a pretext so I decided to look up the context to find out just when the two day timeline started.

When I looked it up and read the context I was shocked to find out that the starting date had nothing in common with either the birth or the death of Messiah and that we have been in that third day for some seven hundred years.

Too often we take a text out of its context and put it into a different situation and then build a house around it and call it truth.

The story is in Hosea five fourteen through Hosea six three and the time is shortly after the children of Israel are carried as slaves into Assyria. After everything they had or had been was destroyed they took inventory and made this prophetic statement. Let me read it starting with Hosea 5:14.

This is a prophetic statement given to Hosea declaring what Yahweh would do to Israel and how the people would respond after he had sold them all into Assyria as slaves.

First Yahweh’s statement on what he is going to do and then the people’s statement after he has done it.

Hosea 5:14-15, “For I will be unto Ephraim as a lion, and as a young lion to the house of Judah: I even I. will tear and go away; I will take away, and none shall rescue him. 15, I will return to my place, until they acknowledge their offence, and seek my face: In their affliction they will seek me early.” This is Yahweh’s statement and note that it includes both Israel and Judah, that major portion of Judah that went into captivity with Israel.

Chapter six, the prophetic statement made by the people after they found themselves as slaves in Assyria.

Hosea 6:1-3, “Come, and let us return unto Yahweh, for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten and he will bind us up. After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight. Then shall we know, if we follow on to know Yahweh: his going forth is prepared as the morning: and he shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth.”

They went into captivity in three groups, Israel between 738BC and 721BC. also 713BC for the forty six fenced cities of Judah who went into Assyria with Israel. These people all dropped off of the radar screen for two thousand years and after two days he revived them in the very beginning of what we call the Reformation. 713BC plus 2000 years brings us to 1287AD; which is the very beginning of the Reformation. If we use Bullenger’s dates it puts us up to about 1380.

The invention of the printing press and Wycliffe’s translation of the scriptures became available to them and breakaway groups and churches formed all over Western Europe. Then he sent the great material blessings that were promised to the house of Joseph and they all became the leading nations of the world and we have lived in his sight ever since.

It was seven hundred thirty years from the time they crossed the Jordan River into Palestine until they were cast out because of their sins.

Now it has been approximately seven hundred thirty years since we were revived and we have come full circle and our sins are approaching critical mass, which will bring on our own long night of Jacob’s trouble.

The church, which should be our bulwark against sin has totally abdicated its position as defender of the laws, commandments and statutes of the Most High God. They claim to appose sin but not any specific sin. Instead they preach a social gospel and tolerance of sin. Yahweh is not tolerant of sin. They refuse to make people face their sin or their conscience because it would make some one in the pews uncomfortable.

Abortion is murder, the killing of our own children. If a pastor stated this truth from the pulpit some people sitting in the pews would be forced to face their God and cry for mercy.

If they preach against fornication and adultery some members would have to face their own conscience and repent.

If they preach against the great abomination that pervades out society they would be branded a hate group and very few pastors are willing to stand in that gap.

We are polluting our gene pool at a prodigious rate and we call it Multiculturalism.

Yahweh is watching and writing it all down in his book and he has already told us that when our sins reach a critical mass that he will bring judgment and move all nations of the earth against us and destroy two thirds of his own children.

Zechariah 13:8-9, “And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith Yahweh, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third part shall be left therein, and I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and I will try them as gold is tried: they shall call upon my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, Yahweh is my Elohim.”

Icon #3, How many church creeds and statements of belief have you seen that quote Matthew 28:19 saying that all of the things given in the great commission should be done in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit? If we look at the statements and actions of other people who were present at the giving of the great commission we find a very serious discrepancy. I have seen writings that claim that this verse, Matthew 28:19, was modified just before the end of the third century by a Roman bishop who translated the Vulgate from the old Latin to the new Latin. This was done about twenty-five years after the infamous council of Nicaea, 325AD, where the Christian trinity doctrine was promulgated by the Roman Emperor Constantine to satisfy the many new converts to that church who still worshipped the Egyptian trinity, Horus, Isis, and Osiris or the Greek and Roman trinity of Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva. The writings claim that remnants of older copies of the Vulgate have been found that quote Yahshua as really saying to do all of these things in his name singular.

We really do not need to see those remnants to believe this story; all we need to do is to read the statements and actions of other people who were present when the great commission was given.

Mark was a witness and he quoted Yahshua as saying: Mark 16:15-20, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature, - - and these signs shall follow them that believe; in my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with other tongues, - - - so then after the lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven.”

Dr. Luke was a witness and he quoted Yahshua as saying; Luke 24:47, “And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning in Jerusalem,” Verse 51 “And it came to pass while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven.”

Peter was a witness and this is what Peter said ten days later under the power of the Holy Spirit: Acts 2:38, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins.” Peter was being obedient to what he heard Yahshua say at the great commission.

Paul was aware of the true great commission so when he met some disciples of John he rebaptized them in Yahshua’s name, see Acts 19:5, “And when they heard this, they were baptized in the name (singular) of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came upon them and they spake with other tongues.” Remember, Mark said that these signs would follow - - - they shall speak with other tongues. If you do it right the signs will follow.

All baptisms recorded in scripture after the resurrection were done in the name of Yahshua, singular.

Icon #4, Have you ever heard a preacher or teacher say that Israel the divorced wife could no longer return to her husband, and that her husband Yahweh would have to die before she would be free to remarry, so he Yahweh came to earth and died so Israel can now marry Christ. Then have that same preacher base this doctrine upon a study that Paul made concerning you and I being married to our carnal natures and that our carnal natures must die under the Law, the old covenant that we might be free to marry the spiritual overcoming nature that is found in Christ in the new covenant.

In this study the Law does not die, we die.

They then reinforce this doctrine by stating that Israel remarried because of a statement made in Hosea six where Israel says, “I will go and return to my former husband, for it was better with me than now.” This statement does not assure that she remarried because every divorced wife has a former husband whether she remarries or not.

Because this statement muddies up the water it is necessary that we examine the context of several scriptures that define the divorce and remarriage of Israel.

But first let me dismiss the ridiculous and beyond belief statement that God/Yahweh died. He is the source of all life and Job 34:14-15, states, “If he Yahweh, gather unto himself his spirit and his breath: all flesh shall perish together, and man shall turn again to dust.” If Yahweh died all creation would cease to exist.

In this study it is a given or specified that Yahweh who is spirit married the feminine spirits of the whole house of Israel at Sinai and that Moses was the preacher who went up and down that mountain seven times and spelled out the marriage contract with its many conditions. Then after he descended the seventh time he read all the details of the contract to the people and the people said, I do.

Exodus 24:7-8, “And he (Moses) took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, all that Yahweh hath said we will do, and be obedient. And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it upon the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which Yahweh hath made with you concerning these words.”

Notice that it was a blood covenant.

Even though this marriage was never consummated until Yahweh overshadowed Mary it was still a real marriage.

There is marriage in the flesh which when consummated, will produce flesh; and there is also marriage in the spirit which will produce spirit if and when it is consummated. John 3:6, “That which is born of flesh is flesh, and that which is born of spirit is spirit.”

Now let us reference some of the facts concerning the divorce relationship given to the House of Joseph as described by Yahweh himself.

Isaiah 50:1, (To Israel) “Thus saith Yahweh, where is the bill of your mother’s divorcement, whom I have put away? Or to whom of my creditors is it to whom I have sold you? Behold for your iniquities have ye sold yourselves, and for your transgressions is your mother put away.”

Jeremiah 3:1, (To Israel) “They say, if a man put away his wife, and she go from him, and become another man’s, shall he return to her again? Shall not that land be greatly polluted? But thou hast played the harlot with many lovers; yet return unto me saith Yahweh.” Here Yahweh is saying, yes, I know the rule, yes, that land is greatly polluted, but even so I am saying to you, return thou unto me and I will cleanse you. He accused her of adultery but not of remarriage.

Verse 8, “And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also.”

Verse 11, “And Yahweh said unto me, the backsliding Israel hath justified herself more than treacherous Judah.”

Verse 12, “Go and proclaim these words toward the north, (Israel was in slavery in Assyria which is north of Palestine so these words are for Israel) and say, return thou backsliding Israel, saith Yahweh; and I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you: for I am merciful, saith Yahweh, and I will not keep anger for ever.”

Verse 13, “Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against Yahweh thy Elohim.”

Verses 14-15, “Turn, O backsliding children, saith Yahweh; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion: And I will give you pastors according to mine heart; which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.”

Here in Jeremiah Three Yahweh gives us a short thumbnail sketch of his plan all in one context.

1, marriage, 2, they sin, 3, divorce, 4, they sell themselves into bondage, 5, they acknowledge their sin, 6, they are redeemed from bondage, 7, they return to Yahweh, 8, they are declared to be married again, 9, a few are taken to Zion where The King lives.

Scripture is best proven by other scripture so let us turn to Hosea and see if that account is in agreement with the above list.

In the first few chapters of Hosea, Yahweh has asked Hosea to act out in his personal life the relationship that Yahweh has with Israel.

Hosea 1:2-4, Go take thee a wife of whoredoms and children of whoredom: for the land hath committed great whoredom, departing from Yahweh. So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim; which conceived and bare him a son. And Yahweh said unto him, call his name Jezreel; for yet a little while, and I will avenge the blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu, and I will cause to cease the kingdom of the house of Israel.”

Gomer had three children and Yahweh instructed Hosea to give them names that meant; 1, God will scatter, 2, Not my people, and 3, Will not show mercy, indicating that God would scatter Israel, that he would refuse to acknowledge them, and that in his judgment he would show no mercy.

Hosea 2:2, “Plead with your mother, plead: for she is not my wife, neither am I her husband.” Here Yahweh declares that the marriage is over. At this point Hosea’s wife ran away and sold herself into bondage just as Israel did as stated in Isaiah 50:1, “Behold for your iniquities have ye sold yourselves, for your transgressions is your mother put away.”

Then instead of walking away from her, Yahweh follows her and redirects her travels by hedging up her way, he hovers over her like a mother hen.

Hosea 2:6, Therefore, behold I will hedge up thy way with thorns, and make a wall, that she shall not find her paths. And she shall follow after her lovers, but she shall not overtake them: then shall she say, I will go and return to my former husband; for then it was better with me than now.” Note that she followed after her lovers but was not allowed to overtake them so she was not allowed to remarry.

That land was greatly polluted but she did not remarry so she could come back.

Now we have a situation where Israel has gone after her lovers and sold herself into bondage and Hosea’s wife has runaway and sold herself into bondage.

At this point Yahweh takes Hosea aside and explains how very much he still loves Israel, that even though she is no longer his wife, he is still her friend who loves her very much.

Hosea 3:1, “Then said Yahweh unto me, Go yet, love a woman beloved of her friend, yet an adulteress, according to the love of Yahweh toward the children of Israel, who look to other gods, and love flagons of wine.”

"Here Yahweh reveals to Hosea that even though he is no longer her husband he is still her friend and he loves her dearly so Hosea goes and finds his runaway wife and redeems her from her bondage and brings her home.

Hosea 3:2-4, “So I bought her to me for fifteen pieces of silver, and an homer of barley and an half homer of barley.”

And I said unto her, thou shalt abide for me many days; thou shalt not play the harlot, and thou shalt not be for another man: so will I be for thee. For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without a pillar, and without an ephod, and without a teraphim. Afterward, shall the children of Israel return and seek Yahweh their Elohim, and David (Yahshua) their King; and shall fear Yahweh and his goodness in the latter days.”

The Prophet Hosea gives much more detail concerning the return and the remarriage than Jeremiah did.

Hosea 2:14, “Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her. 15 And I will give her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope: and she shall sing there as in the days of her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt.”

Hosea 2:23, “And I will sow her unto me in the earth, (instead of scatter) and I will have mercy upon her that had not obtained mercy; and I will say to them which were not my people, thou art my people; and they shall say, thou art my Elohim.”

Verse 19, “And I will betroth thee unto me for ever; yea, I will betroth thee unto me in righteousness, and in judgment, and in loving kindness, and in mercies.”

Verse 20, “I will even betroth thee unto me in faithfulness: and thou shalt know Yahweh.”

"Verse 16, from the Septuagint, “And it shall be in that day, saith Yahweh, that thou shalt call me husband; and shalt call me no more lord.”

Hosea 13:14, “I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death:”

"When he ransoms us from the power of the grave, then the grave can no longer hold us and we will dwell in his presence.

Hallelujah.

DK.