Prophecy is a battle plan
In a podcast where an article from this website was featured as the point of discussion, I listened to the podcasters discuss everything they saw wrong with the prophecy they were discussing. Though both podcasters have been associated with churches in the past, they have fallen away from their individual faiths and are now, for some inexplicable reason, producing a podcast which deals in matters of faith. They expressed what is a common desire for those even in faith communities, namely, that prophecy would provide a clear understanding containing a time and place of a predicted event. The reason is that prophecy is a battle plan and as such it is vague and necessarily so.
The rebellion of Satan
Isaiah 14:12-14 records this event which occurred in the heavens before time:
12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!
13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north;
14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the Most High.
By this prophecy it is understood that a being called Lucifer rebelled against God. He sought to set himself up to be like God.
The Inspired Version of the Scriptures in Genesis 3:1-5, which is scripture peculiar to the restoration, gives a clearer understanding of what took place by recording:
1 And I, the Lord God, spake unto Moses, saying, That Satan whom thou hast commanded in the name of mine Only Begotten, is the same which was from the beginning;
2 And he came before me, saying, Behold I, send me, I will be thy Son, and I will redeem all mankind, that one soul shall not be lost, and surely I will do it; wherefore, give me thine honor.
3 But behold, my beloved Son, which was my beloved and chosen from the beginning, said unto me: Father, thy will be done, and the glory be thine forever.
4 Wherefore, because that Satan rebelled against me, and sought to destroy the agency of man, which I, the Lord God, had given him; and also that I should give unto him mine own power; by the power of mine Only Begotten I caused that he should be cast down; and he became Satan.
5 Yea, even the devil, the father of all lies, to deceive, and to blind men, and to lead them captive at his will, even as many as would not hearken unto my voice.
It is evident from this scripture that the object of the rebellion was to receive the honor, glory and power from God. Evidently whoever redeemed mankind was to receive the honor and glory due for such an act and also power of, or from, the Lord. Satan sought to do this by forcing mankind, against the agency given them by the Lord.
From Revelation 12:7-10 it is also evident that Lucifer, called Satan, was cast out of heaven into the earth.
7 And the dragon prevailed not against Michael, neither the child, nor the woman which was the church of God, who had been delivered of her pains, and brought forth the kingdom of our God and his Christ.
8 Neither was there place found in heaven for the great dragon, who was cast out; that old serpent called the devil, and also called Satan, which deceiveth the whole world; he was cast out into the earth; and his angels were cast out with him.
9 And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ;
10 For the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.
It is evident from the previous scripture that Satan accuses mankind of their sins before the Lord. The following scripture in Job 1:6-12 shows an example, corroborating that Satan is still able to come before the Lord to make accusation.
6 Now there was a day when the children of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan came also among them.
7 And the Lord said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.
8 And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?
9 Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, Doth Job fear God for naught?
10 Hast not thou made a hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land.
11 But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face.
12 And the Lord said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thine hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord.
The story of Job is an example of a just man who is tried by the Lord, upon the accusation of Satan, and proves himself faithful. If, as it is seen from the previous verses, Satan is the accuser of men before the Lord day and night, it is shown by the specific example of Job that Satan, though he has been thrust down into the earth, is still able to present himself before the Lord to accuse mankind. It is also evident that Satan is able to make accusation of any man as he made accusation against Job and that if Satan is able to make his case before the Lord, those men are condemned by the Lord.
From Revelation 20:1-3, 7-10 it becomes evident that this process of accusation before the Lord will last until Satan is bound and cast into prison, unable to accuse men before the Lord and although Satan will be cast into a prison for a thousand years, he is not to be cast to his final doom until the very end.
1 And I saw an angel come down out of heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.
2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,
3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled; and after that he must be loosed a little season.
7 And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,
8 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.
9 And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city; and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.
10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night forever and ever.
We can see from these scriptures that a being named Lucifer, called Satan, who held a position of honor before the Lord, rebelled against the Lord and was cast into the earth. Satan seeks to set himself up like God, desiring to have the power of the Lord. This Satan still has access to the presence of the Lord to make accusation of any and all men. The rebellion will last and Satan will be able to accuse men of their sins before the Lord until he is cast into prison for a thousand years and ultimately cast into the pit.
The Lord's response
The rebellion of Satan necessitated a response from God. The object of the rebellion is the power of the Lord over mankind, a creation which we learn from Genesis 3:4 was given agency. Agency is defined most accurately in the Book of Mormon in Alma 9:51.
51 Wherefore he gave commandments unto men, they having first transgressed the first commandments as to things which were temporal, and becoming as gods, knowing good from evil, placing themselves in a state to act, or being placed in a state to act according to their wills and pleasures, whether to do evil or to do good;
God gave mankind their agency, the right to choose for themselves whether to follow the commandments, statutes and judgments of the Lord and do good. By giving mankind agency, God then constrained himself from forcing man to choose him. The rebellion of Satan presented an opportunity for mankind to choose to follow Satan in his rebellion and refuse to follow the Lord. This placed God in a logical box.
The box contained a puzzle. How could God redeem mankind from having transgressed his commandments and perfect them, thereby allowing them to return into his presence and give him their worship. This would give the Lord the companionship of mankind who, having been given their agency and a choice whether to follow him or Satan, had freely chosen him.
One of the challenges that need to be solved was: How could God prove to mankind their need to choose to follow his commandments, statutes and judgments without, in any way, coercing them. He had to be able to prove his superior attributes to mankind while balancing their agency, or their right, given by him, of choice.
Isaiah 46:9, 10 shows the us the advantage that God had over Satan in the struggle for the worship of mankind:
9 Remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me.
10 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;
God uniquely knows what the end of the chain of events we call history is going to be. Therefore, knowing these events beforehand he has the ability to communicate them to mankind before the events occur. The impartation of this knowledge of the end of events from before their occurrence is one of the gifts of God to men called prophecy. A man who is gifted to receive of this knowledge is called a prophet.
The challenge of imparting prophecy to mankind is that once it was given to mankind, Satan, who is "...going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it" (Job 1:7; 2:2) would have access to that knowledge. Prophecy then, of necessity, requires obfuscation.
The obfuscation of prophecy
Obfuscation is deliberately making something more difficult to understand. The obfuscation of prophecy takes the form of encoding. The encoding of prophecy makes it more difficult for Satan to understand the methods the Lord is going to use in his warfare to battle. The encoding of prophecy takes several different forms.
Prophecy has keys
Keys are pieces of scripture which, when the understanding they give are inserted into other pieces of scripture, unlock their meaning. A simple example of a key is found in Hebrews 11:1.
1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
This verse clearly defines in a single phrase what faith is. If you take the definition, and insert it into any other passage with the word faith in it, it will clarify what the other passage means.
Prophecy is distributed
In Isaiah 28:9, 10 God imparts a key to understanding prophecy.
9 Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts.
10 For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little;
Prophecy is given in the context of the prophet
In Jeremiah 49:34-39 is the prophecy against Elam. The prophecy was given in the context of the days of Jeremiah. In order to understand the prophecy, you have to translate Elam to the modern day equivalent of the geographical area in order to understand where and what peoples the prophecy will affect.
Prophecy reflects the personality of the prophet
Prophecy is given through mankind and as such it reflects the personality of the individual it is given through. Their own understanding influences the description of what they are given. In Ezekiel 1 and Revelation 4 there are descriptions given of the throne of God. Ezekiel and John are both describing the same scene using similar language, but Ezekiel goes into much greater detail struggling to describe things which he did not have the words to convey. Notice the frequent use of the word "like." The things they were describing were not the things they described, but the best approximation of what they were seeing.
Prophecy points to events
Prophecy points to events which the Lord God has ordained to occur throughout the timeline we call history. The timing of these events is sometime defined in dates and times, This is the case in Jeremiah 25:9-11 When the Lord God through prophecy to Jeremiah defines the length of the captivity of Judah in Babylon.
Many prophesied events, however, may only be discerned by understanding the confluence of events that various distributed prophecies describe will precede them. They may be understood to be coming to pass immediately before their occurrence by those who are studied in the general body of prophecy. This was the case in Matthew 3:1, 2 when Wise men came from the east to worship the Messiah of the Jews. They had studied the prophecies and understood at the appearance of his star that he had been born. Note, however, that those who were affected by the prophecy who had not studied them did not understand the sign and were unprepared to take the appropriate actions.
However some prophecies are designed so that they may only be understood to have happened after their occurrence. The most notable of these prophecies is the Day of the Lord. Much is said about the events which will happen in the Day of the Lord, however nowhere is the key as to the exact time of it's occurrence. The closest that prophecy points to the Day of the Lord is is Luke 21:24, 25
24 ...And then his disciples asked him, saying, Master, tell us concerning thy coming?
25 And he answered them, and said, In the generation in which the times of the Gentiles shall be fulfilled, there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations with perplexity, like the sea and the waves roaring. The earth also shall be troubled, and the waters of the great deep;
26 Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth. For the powers of heaven shall be shaken.
27 And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up and lift up your heads, for the day of your redemption draweth nigh.
28 And then shall they see the Son of Man coming in a cloud, with power and great glory.
This prophecy of Jesus Christ gives a broad window "...in which the times of the Gentiles shall be fulfilled" Indeed, in Matthew 25:12 Jesus, commenting upon the parable of the ten virgins, says:
12 Watch therefore; for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of Man cometh.
From these scriptures we can understand that the coming of the Day of the Lord is in the generation in which the times of the gentiles are fulfilled, but no more that I have found points to when, or even what, defines the end of the times of the gentiles. What is left then is to patiently wait for the signs described to begin happening and be ready to act appropriately.
Prophecy must be studied
It is not possible with a cursory reading of the scriptures to understand it's deliberately interwoven intergenerational intricacies. It must be read again and again, it's similarities and discrepancies of language must be compared and contrasted to find the keys and clues to the events predicted. One must have an apprehensive understanding before consideration and deliberation shed the light of understanding upon even a moderate comprehension of the mysteries contained therein. This beginning of comprehension will lead to an understanding of the actions necessary to take at the appropriate time. Additionally it will plant the seed of faith to wait for those things to come to pass, even if they do not occur in the lifetime of the individual, his children's or even his grandchildren's generation. The faith of the saint then is to pass his understanding of that which has been given by the Creator, he who knows the end from the beginning, to those who have been gifted with insight into the events of the future, through the readers comprehension and the united understanding of the body throughout the generations of his progeny until the event occurs. If he has done this, then that generation in which the event does occur may then act appropriately and partake in the salvation from it's destructive effects or benefit from it's glorious restoration.
Prophecy is a Battle Plan
A Battle Plan is a strategem devised to fight an emeny. As such it's methods, timelines and objectives should be withheld from the enemy. In point of fact, battle plans are withheld from the soldiers fighting in the conflict until just before the fight begins. Each commander is given his responsibility and his part of the plan, but very few are given the overview if the entire plan, only those who need to know. If the plan is transmitted, it would, of necessity, need to be coded so that it could be understood by those executing the plan, but not by the enemy into whose hands it may fall. Prophecy is a deliberatly intergenerationally interwoven plan to show the final defeat of the attempted usurper Satan. If it were clearly laid out for all to read, then the objectives of the document could be nullified by he who would desire to rise to the heights of power, glory and honor by the usurpation of the agency of man. As written, it is designed to show, if by no other means than the statistical improbability of it's internal consistency despite it's disparate presentation throughout generations of disconnected individuals spread through thousands of years, writing thousands of miles apart and from contradistinctive cultures, the existence of a common, singular Diety commanding a singular body of law of whom they testified, some in lifelong service to mankind, some suffering for generations in bondage and slavery and others in hideous death, of the promise he offered of the final defeat of the enemy and entry into an indescribably glorious, peaceful Kingdom which he would set up at a specific, although unenumerated time in the future. The plan has been deliberately made difficult to understand in order that those who would join Satan to prevent it's formation would be frustrated in their efforts. It is compared to a battle plan because it is to be understod only by those who are faithfully engaged in executing the plan contained therein and to be misunderstood, unappreciated and underestimated by those who would vainly struggle against it.
If you don't get it...
The battle plan laid out in the scriptures is designed to bring peace, prosperity and security to any individual and by extension, any society that lives by it's laws. It can only be understood by long practice of it's principles. The greater the adherence to those laws, the greater the benefitis derived. If you don't understand it, you are probably not going to partake of it's benefits. The condemnation it belies for those who refuse to or will actively and unashamedly rebel against it's principles will endure the misery, shame and suffering that naturally come from those actions. Fight against if you will, but in the end, the prophecies will come to pass and you will benefit from or suffer the consequences of your own actions.
Published September 15, 2019