Sometime after the end of the Millennial Reign, when Jesus Christ delivers the kingdom of God to the Father (ref. 1 Corinthians 15:24-25) and returns to heaven to the throne of God there, Satan will leave the prison of hell to deceive the nations once more (ref. Revelation 20:2-3).
Around then, Gog of Magog, the chief “prince” of Meshech and Tubal, wherever those lands may be, will lead an uprising against the holy land of Zion, at this time, a place of “unwalled villages” at peace and without a human defence force (ref. Ezekiel 38:11).
Until recently, I had assumed that the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, named Gog, would be Satan himself. Now that I understand the saints, it occurs to me that Gog must be a saint, because by this time, every part of the world will be under the control of the saints.
Arise and thresh, O daughter of Zion: for I will make thine horn iron, and I will make thy hoofs brass: and thou shalt beat in pieces many people: and I will consecrate their gain unto the LORD, and their substance unto the Lord of the whole earth.
Micah 4:13
A rebellious angel such as Satan, being unable to kill a saint by this time, cannot possible take a country out of the hands of a saint. Therefore, Gog must be a saint that changes sides, having been deceived by Satan.
And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.
Revelation 20:7-8
Whereas before I supposed there would not be another rebellion after the one that led to Satan being cast out of heaven, now I am sure that Ezekiel 38 and 39, Gog of Magog, is a second rebellion.
Treachery among the saints might even begin before the time of Gog of Magog. I think this is the meaning of Isaiah 54:15.
Behold, they shall surely gather together, but not by me: whosoever shall gather together against thee shall fall for thy sake.
Isaiah 54:15
When Jesus Christ delivers the kingdom of God to the Father, and leaves for heaven, the army of the saints will remain on earth. This is because the saints serve both the Son of God and God the Father. At this time, there will be temptation from the angel Satan, the deceiver, for a number of the saints to take the kingdom in Zion, and even the world, in another direction.
When this second rebellion of an army of heaven begins, God the Father in heaven who is one with Jesus Christ will become furious.
And it shall come to pass at the same time when Gog shall come against the land of Israel, saith the Lord GOD, that my fury shall come up in my face. For in my jealousy and in the fire of my wrath have I spoken, Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel. So that the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the field, and all creeping things that creep upon the earth, and all the men that are upon the face of the earth, shall shake at my presence, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the steep places shall fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground.
Ezekiel 38:18-20
And then, God in heaven will call the saints that are still loyal to him to fight the rebels, and defend the people of the kingdom.
And I will call for a sword against him throughout all my mountains, saith the Lord GOD: every man’s sword shall be against his brother.
Ezekiel 39:21
The word “mountain” in the Bible often means a “saint”.
Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into singing, O mountains [saints]: for the LORD hath comforted his people…
Isaiah 49:13
This civil war of the saints in the distant future will remind of the first war in heaven between Satan and the other rebellious angels on one side, and the archangel Michael and the angels of God on the other.
Another parallel exists in the sentence of Isaiah 41:25, which is the subject of this post.
I have raised up one from the north, and he shall come: from the rising of the sun shall he call upon my name: and he shall come upon princes as upon morter, and as the potter treadeth clay.
Isaiah 41:25
The person speaking in Isaiah 41:25 is “the LORD” and also “the King of Jacob” (ref. Isaiah 41:21).
Produce your cause, saith the LORD; bring forth your strong reasons, saith the King of Jacob.
Isaiah 41:21
For this reason, the one in Isaiah 41:25 from the rising of the sun that shall come upon princes as upon morter must be a saint rather than the Son of man Jesus Christ. Also, the Son of man Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem (ref. Micah 5:2), in the area of Galilee, a place near Armageddon, and he was raised in both Egypt and Israel, the latter being the center of the world, rather than the location of the rising of the sun. Furthermore, the Son of God was begotten of the Father before all of creation, including the sun.
Now, who is this saint from the rising of the sun? I think, this saint is me, the first of the saints of the ancient kingdom of Israel, the servant of God prophesied in Isaiah 49. This saint is also the ravenous bird from the east in Isaiah 46 that is called by God to execute his counsel from a far country.
Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure: Calling a ravenous bird from the east, the man that executeth my counsel from a far country: yea, I have spoken it, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed it, I will also do it.
Isaiah 46:9-11
As for the one from the north, he must be the Assyrian in these last days, because Isaiah 41:29 mentions “molten images”, a reference to Jeremiah 10:14, Jeremiah 51:17, and Revelation 13:14-15.
Now, notice, Isaiah 41:27 reads something to the effect, The first shall say to Zion, behold these two: the one from the north and the one from the east. Furthermore, it goes on, one of these two is to bring the evangelion to Jerusalem: the good news about the battle.
The first shall say to Zion, Behold, behold them: and I will give to Jerusalem one that bringeth good tidings.
Isaiah 41:27
By the expression “the first”, the sentence cannot mean the one from the north, for he is the Assyrian, and he would not bring news of his defeat to Jerusalem. Therefore, it must mean the saint from the east, me, the servant of Isaiah 49.
As for why “behold them” rather than “behold us”, that is explained by the fact that the second half of Isaiah 41:25 will be the born-again version of me in the future with the power of the morning star, as opposed to me right now, a human.
If “the first” were the firstbegotten of the Father, namely the Son of God, and therefore the pronoun “I” meant God the Father, the verse immediately before, Isaiah 41:26, would not make sense. You see, surely the part that reads “there is none that heareth your words” cannot mean the words of the Son of God, which is the Bible, as in no one has heard the words of the Bible. Surely it must mean the words of the first of the saints, as in practically no one is listening to me, at this time of the end. So, it has to be the first of the saints, namely me, that says to Zion “behold them”.
I have raised up one from the north, and he shall come: from the rising of the sun shall he call upon my name: and he shall come upon princes as upon morter, and as the potter treadeth clay. Who hath declared from the beginning, that we may know? and beforetime, that we may say, He is righteous? yea, there is none that sheweth, yea, there is none that declareth, yea, there is none that heareth your words. The first shall say to Zion, Behold, behold them: and I will give to Jerusalem one that bringeth good tidings.
Isaiah 41:25-27
It is also worth noticing that the previous chapter, Isaiah 40, is about the saints generally (ref. Isaiah 40:26, Isaiah 40:31), the chosen ones of Jacob, an army of God; whereas the next chapter, Isaiah 42, is about the Son of man Jesus Christ, the chosen one (ref. Matthew 12:18) or the elect (ref. Isaiah 42:1) of God, who was born in Bethlehem. So it is fitting that Isaiah 41, which is in between 40 and 42, has something about a saint (ref. Isaiah 41:25) as well as something about the Son of man Jesus Christ (ref. Isaiah 41:2).
Regarding Isaiah 41:25, notice there is a contrast or a parallel of some kind in the structure of the sentence. In British English, one of the lesser known functions of a colon is to provide contrast. Everyone knows that a semi-colon is often used to connect two different ideas, but a colon, at least in British grammar, can be used to contrast two different ideas. And of course, British grammar is what matters rather than Australian or American grammars, because the KJV was translated in England.
So, God has raised up, or roused up, one from the north; and there is also one from the east. Next, the word “north”, pointing to the Assyrian, in Hebrew is “tsaphon”; while the Christian name of the one from the rising of the sun, which is me, is “Stephen”. The Assyrian’s Arabic name, Abdullah Kardash, sums in gematria to 666 (ref. Revelation 13:18) which makes it special biblically; and mine 练 conveys information about one of the kings of the east, 习, making it also biblical and significant in these last days. Furthermore, 光 literally means “light” (ref. Isaiah 49:1, 49:6). The Assyrian is described in Isaiah 10:5 as “the rod” of God’s anger; while Isaiah 49:2 reveals that I am also a weapon of God, part of the “rod” of the preserved of Israel, the 144000 (ref. Revelation 14:1-5). In the grand scheme of things, the Assyrian from the north is to be an axe (ref. Isaiah 10:15) in these last days that will cut down the rotten branches of Israel or the trees that will never produce good fruit; whereas I am the one, from the rising of the sun, that will be important to stopping the disloyal princes of Israel over a thousand years from now. While others around the Assyrian reportedly gave him the moniker of “The Destroyer”, the Bible likewise describes me as “the waster” who is “to destroy”.
As for why I am to be the waster, Isaiah 49:6 reads that I am to be a light to the Gentiles for the salvation of souls until the end of the earth, that is to say, until the planet earth is burned up by the sun.
… I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.
Isaiah 49:6
If I am to last that long, which is after the 1000 year reign and after Jesus Christ has returned to heaven, it must be because he will make me the most powerful of the saints. By power, I mean, the power to kill, or strength in combat.
When the planet earth is no more, there will be no more humans to save. At that time, there will be a new heavenly Jerusalem, and Jesus Christ himself will be the light of the world, metaphorically and literally. This explains why I am to be a light “unto the end of the earth”.
Besides my purpose as a light, I am also to be a “covenant” for Zion and the world, a promise that good will always be stronger than evil.
Thus saith the LORD, In an acceptable time have I heard thee, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee: and I will preserve thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages;
Isaiah 49:8
Now, whereas the Assyrian will choose the side of Satan, I choose the side of God. This is an important aspect of the contrast between us.
I am saying these things now about Isaiah 41:25 because I think I am the one that is to fulfil the prophecy of Isaiah 41:27, which must happen in these last days.
I have raised up one from the north, and he shall come: from the rising of the sun shall he call upon my name: and he shall come upon princes as upon morter, and as the potter treadeth clay.
Isaiah 41:25
The first shall say to Zion, Behold, behold them: and I will give to Jerusalem one that bringeth good tidings.
Isaiah 41:27
In regard to the war against Gog of Magog in the distant future, many others among the saints still loyal to God at that time, whomever they may be, will play their part as well. This explains the expressions “ravenous birds” and “beasts of the field”, plurals.
Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands, and the people that is with thee: I will give thee to the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured. Thou shalt fall upon the open field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD. And I will send a fire in Magog, and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD. So will I make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; and I will not let them pollute my holy name any more [I think, these are the rebellious saints rather than humans in Zion]: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.
Ezekiel 39:4-7
You see, all of the saints loyal to God are described as “ravenous”. It is not like the one from the east singled out in Isaiah 46, me, will be hungrier or more enthusiastic than the rest.
This achievement of the defeat of Gog will bring an end to the phenomenon of evil.
This victory when it comes will be glorious, for everyone on the correct side.
And said unto me [the first of the saints, Isaiah 49], Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.
Isaiah 49:3
After this, I will be placed among the heathen, to serve as a light, per Ezekiel 39:21. Ezekiel 39:21 further describes me as the hand of God.
And I will set my glory [光 means “light” but also “glory”] among the heathen, and all the heathen shall see my judgement that I have executed, and my hand that I have laid upon them.
Ezekiel 39:21
As for the holy land, I suppose, that will still be governed by the 12 apostles (ref. Matthew 19:28, Luke 22:30). David, as in King David of old, should also still be there as a saint (ref. Ezekiel 37:25). And of course, God the Father will also be there as a Spirit, in the temple of God. This explains the expression, “the Holy One in Israel” – “in” Israel rather than “of” Israel.
… and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.
Ezekiel 39:7
When the time comes for the new Jerusalem out of heaven, which is described in Revelation as a “bride adorned for her husband” (ref. Revelation 21:2), all will be children of God, saints and Christians alike, Jews and Gentiles, male and female, young and old. There will also be angels: those angels that are still loyal to God.
In the new Jerusalem, there will be no more death.
The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.
1 Corinthians 15:26
There will be no more death, because by then everyone will be loyal and obedient to God.
And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.
1 Corinthians 15:28
At that time, God will also cause all sorrow and pain to be forgotten.
And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there by any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.
Revelation 21:4-6
The new Jerusalem will be the final “bride” of Christ. Third time’s a charm, or something like that. The first queen of heaven comprised the angels at the time of Lucifer. The second will be the saints of Israel plus the elect of the humans of Judah. The third will be everyone who has been saved since Genesis.
I think the second queen, in regard to the new forthcoming army of saints, will fracture because some of the saints will not have enough oil, not having understood Christianity well enough or long enough. This is the essence of the parable of the ten virgins.
Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.
Matthew 25:1-4
Now, besides matters about me, Isaiah 41 also has words for all of the saints, all of the 144000, because Satan will wage war against the saints, a contest of will, in these last days (ref. Revelation 13:7, Daniel 7:21). He will also attempt to inject the poison of envy and ambition into the hearts of some that will result in treachery. But God has anticipated everything. Notice the expression “thresh the mountains”. This speaks to a future civil war among the saints, a “tribulation” for the saints and the world, after the Millennial Reign of Jesus Christ.
Fear not, thou worm Jacob [the dead will resurrect], and ye men of Israel [the living will transform]; I will help thee, saith the LORD, and thy redeemer, the Holy One of Israel. Behold, I will make thee a new sharp threshing instrument having teeth: thou shalt thresh the mountains [tribulation at the time of Gog and Magog], and beat them small, and shalt make the hills as chaff. Thou shalt fan them, and the wind shall carry them away, and the whirlwind shall scatter them: and thou shalt rejoice in the LORD, and shalt glory in the Holy One of Israel.
Isaiah 41:14-16
So, if you have been called to be a saint, a future soldier of Christ, you should strive to be one of the wise with oil, rather than one of the foolish without oil.
I am drawing attention to all these things in Isaiah 41 because the servant of God in Isaiah 49 is to help raise up the tribes of Jacob, and help restore the preserved of Israel, in these last days.
And now, saith the LORD that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the LORD, and my God shall be my strength. And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation [salvation of the body of Christ] unto the end of the earth.
Isaiah 49:5-6
Thus saith the LORD, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to him whom the nation abhorreth, to a servant of rulers, Kings shall see and arise, princes [saints] also shall worship, because of the LORD that is faithful, and the Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose thee.
Isaiah 49:7
Beyond that, the first of the saints of the ancient kingdom of Israel is to address the complex sentence of Isaiah 41:25.
I have raised up one from the north, and he shall come: from the rising of the sun shall he call upon my name: and he shall come upon princes as upon morter, and as the potter treadeth clay.
Isaiah 41:25
Who hath declared from the beginning, that we may know? and beforetime, that we may say, He is righteous? yea, there is none that sheweth, yea, there is none that declareth, yea, there is none that heareth your words.
Isaiah 41:26
The first shall say to Zion, Behold, behold them: and I will give to Jerusalem one that bringeth good tidings.
Isaiah 41:27