SESSION 6 – THE GOAL OF “PROPHECY”

This Article is part of a multi-part Study Series called Through The Bible In 14 Sessions.

The specific goal of prophetic program of God is the coming of the Messiah King and the ultimate establishment of His Millennial Kingdom on earth. (See also Daniel 2:28-45)

Hosea 3:4-5 For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod (Priest), and without teraphim: 5 Afterward shall the children of Israel RETURN, and seek the LORD their God, and David their king; and shall fear the LORD and his goodness IN THE LATTER DAYS.

Micah 4:1-2 But IN THE LAST DAYS it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow unto it. 2 And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.

In “Time Past” the hope of the nation Israel was to be “a Kingdom of Priests.”

Exodus 19:6 YE (Israel) SHALL BE UNTO ME A KINGDOM OF PRIESTS, and an holy nation

Isaiah 61:6 But YE SHALL BE NAMED THE PRIESTS OF THE LORD: MEN SHALL CALL YOU THE MINISTERS OF OUR GOD: ye shall eat (enjoy) the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory (honorable life) shall ye boast yourselves.  (See also Zechariah 8:13, 20-23 in Session 5)

This Hope is to be realized UPON the EARTH.

Genesis 13:14-18 And the LORD said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward: 15 For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever. 16 And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered. 17 Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee. 18 Then Abram removed his tent, and came and dwelt in the plain of Mamre, which is in Hebron, and built there an altar unto the LORD.

Genesis 17:6-8 And I will make thee (Abram) exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. 7 And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. 8 And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all THE LAND OF CANAAN, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.

Job 19:25-26 For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day UPON THE EARTH: 26 And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God:

Daniel interpreted Nebuchadnezzar’s vision of the image speaks of the Messiah’s Kingdom breaking all man’s kingdoms.

Daniel 2:28, 44 But there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets, and maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be IN THE LATTER DAYS…. 44And in the days of these kings shall THE GOD OF HEAVEN SET UP A KINGDOM, WHICH SHALL NEVER BE DESTROYED: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these (gentile) kingdoms (of men), AND IT SHALL STAND FOR EVER.

The Kingdom on earth will fulfill the “Davidic Covenant.” The dual prophecy below relates directly to David’s Son, Solomon, but then it relates remotely to Jesus Christ and His Kingdom Throne.

2 Samuel 7:12-14 when thy days be fulfilled, and thou (David) shalt sleep with thy fathers, I (God) will set up thy seed after thee (after David), which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever. 14 I will be his father, and he shall be my son. If he commit iniquity, I (God the Father) will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men (for the sins of the world):  Jesus bore OUR SINS and was chastened with stripes for us.

2Chronicles 7:4-6 Then the king (Solomon) of all the people offered sacrifices before the LORD. 5 And king Solomon offered a sacrifice of twenty and two thousand oxen, and an hundred and twenty thousand sheep: so the king and all the people dedicated the house of God. 6 And the priests waited on their offices

Psalm 89:34-37 My covenant will I not break… 35Once have I sworn by my holiness that I WILL NOT LIE UNTO DAVID. 36HIS SEED SHALL ENDURE FOR EVER, and his THRONE as the sun before me. 37 It shall be established for ever as the moon, and as a faithful witness in heaven…

Ten Notable Details about the KINGDOM:

1. IT WILL BE ON THE WHOLE EARTH: (SEE ALSO Isa 11:9; Luke 2:14 Matt 5:5; 6:10; 19:28)

Jeremiah 23:5 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.

Psalm 2:8 Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, AND the UTTERMOST PARTS OF THE EARTH FOR THY POSSESSION.

Matthew 6:10 THY KINGDOM COME. THY WILL BE DONE IN EARTH, AS IT IS IN HEAVEN.

2. IT WILL BE CENTERED IN JERUSALEM IN ISRAEL: (SEE ALSO Isa 24:23; Jer 3:17; Micah 5:2)

Isaiah 2:3 And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from JERUSALEM.

Matthew 5:35 JERUSALEM; for it is THE CITY OF THE GREAT KING.

3. This KINGDOM WILL BE EXTENDED TO ALL THE EARTH: (SEE ALSO Dan 2:45, 7:12)

Psalm 72:11 Yea, all kings shall fall down before him (Messiah): ALL NATIONS shall serve him.
Psalm 2:8 Ask of me, and I (the Lord) shall give thee (Israel) the heathen for thine inheritance, and THE UTTERMOST PARTS OF THE EARTH FOR THY POSSESSION.

4. ISRAEL WILL ULTIMATELY BECOME A BLESSING TO THE GENTILES: (See also Isa 60:1-3; Gen 22:17-18)

Zechariah 8:13 And it shall come to pass, that as ye were a curse among the heathen, O house of Judah, and house of Israel; so will I save you, and ye shall be a blessing: fear not, but let your hands be strong.

 Zechariah 8:20-23 23 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.

5. GOVERNMENT WILL BE PURIFIED:

Isaiah 11:4 But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked.
Isaiah 61:11 For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations.
Jeremiah 23:5 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise (like) unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.

6. WAR AND BLOODSHED WILL BE ABOLISHED:

Isaiah 9:6 unto us (Israel) a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
Isaiah 2:4
And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, NEITHER SHALL THEY LEARN WAR ANY MORE.

7.  HEALTH and LONG LIFE ON EARTH WILL BE RESTORED: (See also Ezekiel 47)

Isaiah 33:24 inhabitant shall NOT say, I am sick: the people that dwell therein shall be forgiven their iniquity.
Isaiah 35:5-6 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. 6 Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert.

8. ANIMAL CREATION WILL BE TAMED:

Isaiah 11:6-7 The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. 7 And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox

Isaiah 65:25 The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent’s meat. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the LORD.

9. THE GENESIS CURSE WILL BE REMOVED FROM THE VEGETABLE CREATION

Isaiah 35:1-2 The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose. 2 It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the LORD, and the excellency of our God.
Isaiah 35:6-7
Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert. 7 And the parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water: in the habitation of dragons, where each lay, shall be grass with reeds and rushes.

10. IN THAT DAY, ALL ISRAEL SHALL BE SAVED: (See also Jeremiah 36:24-28)

Romans 11:26-27 And so ALL ISRAEL SHALL BE SAVED: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: 27 For this is my covenant unto them, when I SHALL TAKE AWAY THEIR SINS. (Greater than sins covered by the blood of bulls)

Ezekiel 36:24-28 I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land. 25 Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I CLEANSE YOU. 26 A NEW HEART ALSO WILL I GIVE YOU, AND A NEW SPIRIT WILL I PUT WITHIN YOU: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. 28 And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.

It will be through redeemed Israel that God will send blessing and salvation to the nations (Gentiles). God gave Israel a prophetic time schedule for accomplishing the cleansing of the nations in the Tribulation.

Daniel 9:24-27 Seventy weeks (of 7 years, 490 years) 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 (49 years), 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 (434 years) shall MESSIAH BE CUT OFF (killed), 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 (Anti-Christ) shall confirm the covenant with many for one week (7 yrs): and in the midst of the week (at 3-1/2 yrs) 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.

An important time schedule in the Bible: There was 400 years of silence as Israel awaited the arrival of “the voice of one crying in the wilderness.” The days of the Messiah” arrived on the prophetic schedule. Mark 1:14-15 after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, 15 saying, The TIME IS FULFILLED, and the kingdom of god is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.

Then Messiah was “cut off” beginning Israel’s “New Testament.” Matthew 1:1 does not begin the NT since “a TESTAMENT IS OF FORCE AFTER MEN ARE DEAD…it is of no strength at all while the testator liveth.(Heb 9:17)

John the Baptist’s message of “repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt 3:2) is exactly what was needed in order for God’s favored nation of Israel to prepare for her Messiah’s arrival.

Things to remember about “Time Past” and the Goal of Prophecy:

  • God chose the Nation Israel.
  • God added “the Law” to Israel.
  • Gentile salvation was available only through Israel.
  • God’s prophetic purpose is to restore the headship of Jesus Christ over the planet earth through the instrumentality of the Kingdom vested in the Nation Israel as His agent in the earth.