Bonita,
I saw this a few years back as I was studying. I was astounded at how plain it is laid out in the bible. It just confirms what you are sawing. Hope you are doing well. Darrell
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Luk 21:8 (ASV) And he said, Take heed that ye be not led astray: for many shall come in my name, saying, I am he; and, The time is at hand: go ye not after them.
and
Mar 13:6 (ASV) Many shall come in my name, saying, I am he; and shall lead many astray.
(**the word 'he' or 'Christ' (which appears in other translations) is italicized and not in the original greek.)
'I am' - refers not to I AM as in Exodus 3:14 but to I AM in these verses:
Zep 2:15 This is the joyous city that dwelt carelessly, that said in her heart, I am, and there is none besides me: how is she become a desolation, a place for beasts to lie down in! every one that passeth by her shall hiss, and wag his hand.
And just in case you wanted to be sure WHO this verse refers to:
Zep 3:1 Woe to her that is rebellious and polluted! to the oppressing city!
Zep 3:2 She obeyed not the voice; she received not correction; she trusted not in Jehovah; she drew not near to her God
Zep 3:3 Her princes in the midst of her are roaring lions; her judges are evening wolves; they leave nothing till the morrow.
Zep 3:4 Her prophets are light and treacherous persons; her priests have profaned the sanctuary, they have done violence to the law.
Isaiah 47
is a reference to the polluted city which Isaiah 47 refers to as the 'daughter of Babylon' or 'daughter of the Chaldeans'. Verse 8 makes reference to 'I am'. Verse 2 references 'millstones'
Isa 47:1 Come down, and sit in the dust, O virgin daughter of Babylon; sit on the ground without a throne, O daughter of the Chaldeans: for thou shalt no more be called tender and delicate.
Isa 47:2 Take the millstones, and grind meal; remove thy veil, strip off the train, uncover the leg, pass through the rivers.
Isa 47:3 Thy nakedness shall be uncovered, yea, thy shame shall be seen: I will take vengeance, and will spare no man.
Isa 47:4 Our Redeemer, Jehovah of hosts is his name, the Holy One of Israel.
Isa 47:5 Sit thou silent, and get thee into darkness, O daughter of the Chaldeans; for thou shalt no more be called The mistress of kingdoms.
Isa 47:6 I was wroth with my people, I profaned mine inheritance, and gave them into thy hand: thou didst show them no mercy; upon the aged hast thou very heavily laid thy yoke.
Isa 47:7 And thou saidst, I shall be mistress for ever; so that thou didst not lay these things to thy heart, neither didst remember the latter end thereof.
Isa 47:8 Now therefore hear this, thou that art given to pleasures, that sittest securely, that sayest in thy heart, I am, and there is none else besides me; I shall not sit as a widow, neither shall I know the loss of children:
Isa 47:9 but these two things shall come to thee in a moment in one day, the loss of children, and widowhood; in their full measure shall they come upon thee, in the multitude of thy sorceries, and the great abundance of thine enchantments.
Isa 47:10 For thou hast trusted in thy wickedness; thou hast said, None seeth me; thy wisdom and thy knowledge, it hath perverted thee, and thou hast said in thy heart, I am, and there is none else besides me.
**Notice that the wisdom has 'perverted thee'. The church begins as Jersusalem and is carried off and becomes Babylon. (See Zech 5 for a picture of the people of God being carried off to Shinar/Babylon vs 11)
Isa 47:11 Therefore shall evil come upon thee; thou shalt not know the dawning thereof: and mischief shall fall upon thee; thou shalt not be able to put it away: and desolation shall come upon thee suddenly, which thou knowest not.
Isa 47:12 Stand now with thine enchantments, and with the multitude of thy sorceries, wherein thou hast labored from thy youth; if so be thou shalt be able to profit, if so be thou mayest prevail.
Isa 47:13 Thou art wearied in the multitude of thy counsels: let now the astrologers, the star-gazers, the monthly prognosticators, stand up, and save thee from the things that shall come upon thee.
Isa 47:14 Behold, they shall be as stubble; the fire shall burn them; they shall not deliver themselves from the power of the flame: it shall not be a coal to warm at, nor a fire to sit before.
Isa 47:15 Thus shall the things be unto thee wherein thou hast labored: they that have trafficked with thee from thy youth shall wander every one to his quarter; there shall be none to save thee.
Ezekiel 28
Eze 28:2 Son of man, say unto the prince of Tyre, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Because thy heart is lifted up, and thou hast said, I am a god, I sit in the seat of God, in the midst of the seas; yet thou art man, and not God, though thou didst set thy heart as the heart of God; -
Eze 28:9 Wilt thou yet say before him that slayeth thee, I am God? but thou art man, and not God, in the hand of him that woundeth thee.
**Notice that these verses refer to someone or some group that think they are God but are really man.....
Rev 18 describes the judgement of Babylon and the mention of the 'millstone' in verse 21..
Rev 18:2 And he cried with a mighty voice, saying, Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, and is become a habitation of demons, and a hold of every unclean spirit, and a hold of every unclean and hateful bird.
**Notice that this is a habitation of birds and demons. This is the SAME thing that Jesus describes in these verses:
Mat 13:31 Another parable set he before them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like unto a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field:
Mat 13:32 which indeed is less than all seeds; but when it is grown, it is greater than the herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the heaven come and lodge in the branches thereof.
***Notice in these verses that a man came and took the seed and "sowed in HIS field. Hence the 'carrying off the Babylon, spiritually speaking.
Rev 18:13 and cinnamon, and spice, and incense, and ointment, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and cattle, and sheep; and merchandise of horses and chariots and slaves; and souls of men.
Rev 18:21 And a strong angel took up a stone as it were a great millstone and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with a mighty fall shall Babylon, the great city, be cast down, and shall be found no more at all.
**Notice the mention AGAIN of the millstone. See Mat 18:6 But whoso shall cause one of these little ones that believe on me to stumble, it is profitable for him that a great millstone should be hanged about his neck, and that he should be sunk in the depth of the sea.
Babylon cause 'little ones that believe on me (Jesus) to stumble". They very quickly lead seekers of Jesus into apostacy or Babylon. They continue to say that they represent Jesus because they are the church, but in the eyes of Jesus they are an abomnation.
I could go on and on because Jesus went to GREAT lengths to talk about what the church would morph onto (See Matt 13:33 for another example). Most do not have ears to hear this and will reject this. Hope this isn't confusing.
Darrell
PS: the original verse Luke 21:8 has a second part ("the time is at hand: go ye not after them.") This references Ezekiel 7 which again speaks of the end of the land of 'Israel' (spiritually speaking) similar to Rev 18) .
