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| 1 The burden of the valley of vision. What aileth thee now, that thou art wholly gone up to the housetops? |
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| 2 Thou that wast full of stir, a town of tumult, a joyous city: thy slain men are not slain with the sword, nor dead in battle. |
Full of stirs – A crashing or loud clamor (Strong's 8663).
Tumultuous city – Mystic Babylon, Christendom.
A joyous city – Rejoicing, not knowing that she is about to collapse. |
| 3 All thy rulers have fled together, they are taken prisoners without the bow: all that are found of thee are made prisoners together; they were fleeing far off. |
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| 4 Therefore said I, Look away from me; let me weep bitterly: labour not to comfort me, because of the spoiling of the daughter of my people. |
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| 5 For it is a day of trouble, and of treading down, and of perplexity, from the Lord, Jehovah of hosts, in the valley of vision; a day of breaking down the wall, and of crying to the mountain: |
Day of trouble – The Day of the Lord, the time of trouble.
Treading down – The crumbling of Christendom is clearly a thing brought about by the Lord.
Perplexity – "The Lord shall have them in derision." Psa. 2:4. Due to the various intertwining treaties between the kingdoms of Christendom, once the great battle began they were bound by these treaties to come to one another's aid. By this means, the battle was unavoidable.
Breaking down walls – The walls of Christendom are its protection. This comes largely from the civil powers. D40:1
Crying to the mountains – Pleading with the Kingdoms to save her, but this is the Lord's work and her cries will not be answered in the manner she hopes. Indeed, the kingdoms (at the time of this prophecy's fulfillment) are having just as much trouble as the ecclestiacal powers. |
| 6 --Elam beareth the quiver with chariots of men and horsemen; and Kir uncovereth the shield. |
Elam – Strong's 5867 - Hidden, i.e., distant. |
| 7 And it shall come to pass that thy choicest valleys shall be full of chariots, and the horsemen shall set themselves in array at the gate. |
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| 8 And he uncovereth the covering of Judah: and thou didst look in that day to the armour in the house of the forest; |
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| 9 and ye have seen the breaches of the city of David, that they are many; and ye have gathered together the waters of the lower pool; |
Breaches – The various places where the strength of the wall (protection) is broken giving to the enemies of the city a means of coming into the city.
The city of David – Christendom, which claims to be the true city of David (Christ). |
| 10 and ye have numbered the houses of Jerusalem, and have broken down the houses to fortify the wall; |
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| 11 and ye have made a reservoir between the two walls for the water of the old pool: but ye have not had regard unto the maker thereof, neither have ye looked unto him that fashioned it long ago. |
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| 12 And in that day did the Lord Jehovah of hosts call to weeping, and to mourning, and to baldness, and to girding with sackcloth; |
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| 13 and behold joy and rejoicing, slaying oxen, and killing sheep, eating flesh, and drinking wine: --Let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we die. |
Let us eat .. shall die – Quoted by Paul in 1 Cor. 15:32 |
| 14 And it was revealed in mine ears by Jehovah of hosts: Assuredly this iniquity shall not be purged from you till ye die, saith the Lord, Jehovah of hosts. |
Until you die – Thus the death of Christendom is assured.
Saith the Lord GOD of hosts – When the decree is thus signed by the Lord of all creation the results are absolutely guaranteed. |
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| 15 Thus saith the Lord Jehovah of hosts: Go, get thee in unto this steward, unto Shebna, who is over the house, and say, |
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| 16 What hast thou here? and whom hast thou here, that thou hast hewn thee out a sepulchre here, as he that heweth out his sepulchre on high, cutting out in the rock a habitation for himself? |
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| 17 Behold, Jehovah will hurl thee with the force of a mighty man, and will cover thee entirely. |
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| 18 Rolling thee up completely, he will roll thee as a ball into a wide country: there shalt thou die, and there shall be the chariots of thy glory, O shame of thy lord's house! |
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| 19 And I will drive thee from thine office, and from thy station will I pull thee down. |
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| 20 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will call my servant Eliakim the son of Hilkijah; |
| This section from vs 20-24 makes more sense if verse 25 is considered first. |
In that day – The Millennial Age.
Eliakim – Strong's 471 = God of raising.
Hilkiah – Strong's 2518 = Portion of Jah. |
| 21 and I will clothe him with thy robe, and strengthen him with thy girdle, and I will commit thy government into his hand; and he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to the house of Judah. |
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| 22 And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; and he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open. |
He shall open.. – Applied by our Lord to Himself - Rev. 3:7. |
| 23 And I will fasten him as a nail in a sure place; and he shall be for a throne of glory to his father's house: |
I – Jehovah.
Will – Not at the time of this prophecy but "in that day" - vs 20, after the ending of the "Times of the Gentiles".
Fasten him – Securely place Jesus.
As a nail in a sure place – See additional comment vs 25. The rulership of earth by Jesus will completely topple the rulership of the Gentiles during their "times," and Jesus will truly have the support of all humanity.
He – Jesus.
For a glorious throne – His kingdom and rulership shall indeed be a glorious one.
To his father's house – i.e., For the glory of His Heavenly Father. The seeking to glorify the Heavenly Father has always been first with our Master and should also be with us. John 17:1 |
| 24 and they shall hang upon him all the glory of his father's house, the offspring and the issue, all the small vessels, as well the vessels of cups as all the vessels of flagons. |
Hang upon him – i.e., Jesus will be the support that will hold all the things described in the remainder of this verse. |
| 25 In that day, saith Jehovah of hosts, shall the nail that is fastened in a sure place be removed, and be cut down, and fall; and the burden that was upon it shall be cut off: for Jehovah hath spoken. |
In that day – The Millennial Age.
The Nail – Strong's 3489. First mention is in Exo. 27:19 where it is described as a pin or peg. All the pins of the Tabernacle and the court were made of copper, signifying human nature. When in the court it would represent perfect human nature. Here it seems to indicate human support.
That is fastened in a sure place – The human support of Babylon had been fastened in such a sure place that it had existed for well over a thousand years. This nail seems to be the religious belief in the divine right of kings.
Shall be removed – No one today (2005) believes in that the kings rule by divine right any more.
Cut down – Not just simply fall off. It was the Lord who cut down the old arrangement. See Dan 4 and B93.
And fall – "Babylon is fallen" Rev. 18:2.
The burden that was upon it – "The load hanging on it" - NASB.
Shall be cut off – Completely separated from Christendom.
For the LORD hath spoken it – Jehovah God Himself has signed the decree. "I have spoken it, I will bring it to pass, I also will do it." Isa. 46:11 |