The History of The Next 25 Years

The Elijah

 

As the Old Testament of the Bible closes, there is a prophecy that is very significant to the End Time.

 

Malachi 4: 4-6  "Remember you the Law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments.  5. Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD:  6. And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse."

 

This prophecy is of such importance that God inspired that unless it is fulfilled He would smite the earth with a 'curse'.  The word 'curse', translated from the Hebrew word 'cherem', means Utter Destruction.

 

That is an amazing statement!

 

Consider that if the Great God says something is so important that if it does not happen He will smite the earth with 'utter destruction' how important that event must be.  Why is this of such importance? And just what is this event?

 

Elijah the prophet lived many hundreds of years before this prophecy was written, during the reign of King Ahab of ancient Israel.  He shows up in scripture primarily in I Kings chapters 17-19.  Prophecy in the Bible often will have an initial fulfillment which is a type of a final fulfillment.  In this case there was also a secondary fulfillment and there yet remains a final fulfillment.

 

Let us take a look at this prophecy.  The reader is directed to the chapters of I Kings 17-19.  To write them out in this work would prove too cumbersome, and unnecessary as access to the scriptures is available to all who have internet access.

 

To summarize:  The nation of Israel, under the leadership of wicked kings, had fallen from the worship of the only True God and had turned to worship of idols and false gods.  Even the knowledge of true worship and identity of God had almost been lost.  Elijah comes on the scene and proclaims a cessation of rain except by his word for what lasted three years.  He then leaves and is in hiding for those years.

 

In the third year, God told Elijah to go and show himself to Ahab, the wicked king of Israel at the time.          I Kings 18: 1  " And it came to pass after many days, that the word of the LORD came to Elijah in the third year, saying, Go, show yourself unto Ahab; and I will send rain upon the earth.  2. And Elijah went to show himself unto Ahab.  And there was a sore famine in Samaria."

 

What was the purpose of all this? 

 

Notice I Kings 18: 18  "And he (Elijah) answered, I have not troubled Israel; but you, and your father's house, in that you have forsaken the commandments of the LORD, and have followed Baalim (a false god).  19. Now therefore send, and gather to me all Israel unto mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the groves four hundred, which eat at Jezebel's table."

 

I Kings 18: 21  "And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long do you halt between two opinions?  If the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him.  And the people answered him not a word."

 

The issue here was: Who is the True God that should be followed.  Notice the people did not answer because they did not know.  Then Elijah proposes a test to prove who the True God is.  Please read this chapter as these things are of utmost importance!

 

After the priests of Baal failed miserably to obtain an answer from their false god, Elijah prepares his offering and then; three times had four (twelve in all) barrels of water poured over it.  Then he said a very short prayer but one that again is of utmost importance to understand.

 

I Kings 18: 36-37  "And it came to pass at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near, and said, LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel, and that I am your servant, and that I have done all these things at your word.  37. Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that you are the LORD God, and that you have turned their heart back again."

 

So we see from this account of the original Elijah the Prophet that his mission was to distinguish the True God and to turn the hearts of Israel back to Him.

 

That mission was not fulfilled in Ancient Israel in spite of the great miracle that God performed by bringing fire down from heaven and consuming the sacrifice, the alter, and the water which had been poured over it.

 

We can see a secondary fulfillment of this prophecy at the time of Christ's first coming.  There was a time period of approximately four hundred years from the time of Malachi's prophecy that there was no word from God given to major prophets or priests.  We see the last 'Word from God' to any prophet or priest had been to Malachi, and the last thing mentioned was the sending of Elijah the Prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD.  The next time any revelation came from God is recorded in Luke 1: 13-17 to the Priest Zacharias, John the Baptist's father, and corresponds to the same theme as the counterpart 400 years previously.  This would not have been any small event in the eyes of the Jews.  After 400 years, God was once again communicating with them.

 

Luke 1: 13  " But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elisabeth shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.  14.  And you shall have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth.  15. For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb.  16. And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God.  17.  And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."

 

Notice the wording!  This helps to make clearer the commission of the 'Elijah'.  Notice the phrase "the spirit and power of Elijah".  The commission remained the same; i.e. point out the true God, turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, to turn the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, and to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.

 

Notice a further prophecy of Zacharias of his son, John, at his birth in Luke 1: 76-79  "And you, child, shall be called the prophet of the Highest: for you shall go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways; 77.  To give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins,  78.  Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring from on high has visited us, 79.  To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace."

 

This brings a greater degree of clarity and focus to the 'Elijah' role.

 

So to gain understanding of this let's briefly examine how John the Baptist fulfilled this role.  John 1: 6-8  "There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.  7.  The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light that all men through him might believe.  8.  He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light."  John's role was to point out the true Lord.

 

Unlike Christ, whose immediate family was not necessarily prominently recognized in Judah (though His linage was) and had somewhat 'gone off the radar screen' with the fleeing into Egypt when Herod the Great tried to kill him, John the Baptist came from a prominent Priestly family.  [Luke 1:5]  Several miracles had happened at the temple before his conception and after his birth and the Jews knew he was special.

 

There was prophecy and expectancy that he would be great, [Luke 3: 15] and regard for him was great among the Jews so much so that Herod (the tetrarch that had John beheaded) feared him to an extent and even thought that Jesus was John resurrected. [Matt. 14: 1-2]  John was born of the Priestly linage and was at the age of commencement of his priestly function and calling, thirty years old; and the prophetic timing was right for the appearance of the Messiah.  The Apostle Paul mentions of John in Acts 13: 24-25 that he prophesied of Christ while he fulfilled his Priestly course, which would have been the course of Abijah, as was his father's. [Luke 1: 5]  Notice that this discourse of Paul was given at Antioch, and yet Paul makes no attempt to introduce John, but rather refers to him as a well known individual.  John the Baptist was a highly regarded person among the Jews.  Christ said of John in John 5: 33-35, "You sent unto John, and he bare witness unto the truth.  34. But I receive not testimony from man: but these things I say, that you might be saved.  35. He was a burning and shining light: and you were willing for a season to rejoice in his light."

 

As we see above in John 1: 7, one main calling and purpose for John's ministry was to bear witness of Christ.  John (the Apostle) summarizes in John 1: 15 "John bare witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spoke, He that comes after me is preferred before me: for he was before me."  The original speaking of this statement was done during the one time that John served his Priestly course in the temple. [Acts 13: 24-25]

 

We can see the beginning of John's testimony to the envoys of the Priests given in John 1: 19-27.  In his first answer there are several points to note:

1.  The Priest expected that John was fulfilling some prophetic role, though they were unclear which.

2.  John told them that he indeed was fulfilling a major prophetic role associated with the coming of the Messiah.

3.  He told them the 'one' already stands among them (the Jews).

4. He told them that they did not know Him.

 

In John's second witness given in John 1: 29-34 there are more points to note:

1.  John (the Baptist) declares Jesus the "Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world"

2.  We see in verses 31-33 that John himself said that he did not know Him, but that the purpose that he came baptizing was to make Him manifest to Israel; and that he had been given a sign: the one on whom he saw the spirit descending and remaining, was the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.

3.  He states he did see the spirit descending like a dove, and it abode upon Him.

4.  John plainly bears record that Jesus is the Son of God, verse 34. 

 

In John's third witness, though more privately to his disciples, he again declares Jesus "the Lamb of God". [John 1: 35-36]  John fulfilled the role of identifying the true Lord and preparing a people for the Lord.

 

How did John fulfill the part of the commission; "many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God?

 

What was John's Message?

 

Matt. 3: 2  "And saying, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.  3.  For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Isaias, saying, The voice  of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare you the way of the Lord, make his paths straight."

 

Matt. 3: 8  "Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: 9.  And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.  10.  And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which brings not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.  11.  I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but  he that comes after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit, and with fire:  12.  Whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."

 

Luke 3: 3  "And he came into all the country about Jordan, preaching the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins;"

 

Jesus spoke of the prophecy of Elijah in Matthew 17: 10  "And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elijah must first come?  11.  And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elijah truly shall first come, and restore all things.  12.  But I say unto you, That Elijah is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed.  13.  Then the disciples understood that he spoke unto them of John the Baptist."

 

So Jesus Christ here acknowledges that John the Baptist was a secondary fulfillment of the role and commission of Elijah the Prophet.  He also confirms that there is a final and coming fulfillment.  We will examine further this final fulfillment in the next chapter: The Remnant of Israel; 144,000, and the Elijah.