Megas Thlipsis - Insights into Allegorical Models and Signs

21 For then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will. 22 Unless those days had been cut short, no life would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short. ~ Matthew 24:21-22

I've been writing about this Pesah season as megas thlipsis, great tribulation. It will be a season like no other. Time will be in flux, and there are perspectives where time will be shifted into the future. A great deception will be manifest and nearly everyone will fall prey to it - but a small number are about to be protected in what can be described as a space-time ark. Aaron and I still have plenty of questions about what's coming but answers continue to come as the Lord abides faithful to His promise of help. Insight is being brought into the scriptures and through multimedia presentations, and signs are being observed. More on signs later.

As demonstrated in Will No One Know the Day?, knowing the time of the Lord's coming is a key thread that runs through the entire 24th chapter of Matthew. Now, with a greater understanding of megas thlipsis, and seeing that as a central thread woven into the time theme of the passage, verse 37 suggests another point of comparison.

For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah. ~ Matthew 24:37

Some will be like Noah, knowing the time in advance. It was Noah entered the ark, with his family and the creatures who were appointed to salvation, and so it will be on that same pattern. Did you read the accounts in Genesis and Jasher? An argument can be made that they entered a week before destruction was brought by the flood. Have you grasped how the water as time metaphor applies?

13 On the very same day Noah and Shem and Ham and Japheth, the sons of Noah, and Noah’s wife and the three wives of his sons with them, entered the ark, 14 they and every beast after its kind, and all the cattle after their kind, and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth after its kind, and every bird after its kind, all sorts of birds. 15 So they went into the ark to Noah, by twos of all flesh in which was the breath of life. 16 Those that entered, male and female of all flesh, entered as God had commanded him; and the Lord closed (Strongs H5462: sagar) it behind him. ~ Genesis 7:13-16

The Hebrew word for, “closed,” (verse 16) was used once before in a specially related context. In Genesis 2, the Lord God the Lord closed up something else, Adam's flesh, after putting him into a deep sleep and removing that which became his bride.

21 So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then He took one of his ribs and closed (Strongs H5462: sagar) up the flesh at that place. 22 The LORD God fashioned into a woman the rib which He had taken from the man, and brought her to the man. 23 The man said, “This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.” ~ Genesis 2:21-23

That is a prophetic model of the Bride Theft, when the Bride is taken out of the Body of Christ, the last Adam (1 Corinthians 15:45). Of course, this is not to say that the body of Christ is the ark, because the Bride has been sealed outside, not inside. See instead the pattern of how the Lord God will remove a Bride from the fleshy fleshly Body and make them separate distinct entities. See also that the Body of Christ is put into a deep sleep when the Bride is about to be removed. Is the Body of Christ not being anesthetized?

In the account given in Luke 17, the days of the Son of Man are compared to the days of Noah and also the days of Lot. Don't skip over the fact that we're literally talking about time parallels here; "days of." In Lot's day, most were destroyed but a few were saved, those who had been sealed inside Lot's house when the visiting angels shut the door (Genesis 19:10-11). The parallel to when God shut the door of the ark should be obvious, when those appointed for salvation were sealed inside. (Genesis 7:13-16) For those saved in Lot's house, it was made so that the men of Sodom who had been struck with blindness could not even find the doorway. Think about it as a time-space ark that vanished from their sight, with undiscoverable access. When fire and brimstone rained down from heaven destroying Sodom and Gomorrah, those who had been sealed inside Lot's house had already escaped to safety. Just such an escape to the mountains for safety is appointed for some who live in Judea during megas thlipsis, whose flight will be triggered when they see the abomination of desolation, according to Matthew 24:15-20, where the connection is established with Daniel 12.

This is definitely not an academic exercise, here. This is what real prepping looks like, the receiving of timely help from the Lord Who opens our eyes and ears so we may find our way through the narrow door, or the martyr's reward, wherever our good Shepherd may lead.

I mentioned the model of the Passover a couple days ago, referencing it from Hebrews 11. This is a fundamental model. What I wrote in The Exodus Archetype is a useful collateral study, if you're not already familiar with it. The houses of the believing Hebrews were models of the ark of salvation. Those who were being saved had been obedient to select and slay a lamb. The lamb's blood was put on the posts and lintel of the doors, creating a blood seal. When destruction visited the land in the plague of the firstborn, those sealed inside were safe. They escaped destruction, making their way through the sea. When the Passover week was over, the Hebrews (crossing over) had been passed over by destruction, arriving safely on the other side. They passed through the sea in martial array, in ranks of 50. They emerged as victors of a time-war, in type; alive, completely whole, bearing with them the spoils of Egypt.

Other Pesah models of the space-time ark are easily found, like when Israel had been brought into Egypt about four centuries earlier.

Joseph had arranged to bring all his brothers to Egypt, announcing to them that the Lord had sent him ahead to provide salvation. (Genesis 45) See Joseph and Benjamin - Part I and Part II for more detail. He had brought them into his private chamber for a special meal. Egypt was then a type of heaven, and only Joseph and his brothers supped together in that heavenly compartment. Joseph sent every other man away. Joseph (Y'shua) commissioned the brothers (144k sons of Israel), and perhaps Benjamin (the Bride) with them, sending them on a mission to quickly bring Jacob-Israel back to Egypt, so the family could reside in a special place for protection from the famine, in Goshen, the best of Egypt. The prophetic modeling in that scenario was begun at Pesah, and I believe the mission was completed at Shavuot, Pentecost, the wheat harvest. As I understand Revelation 7, there is a megas thlipsis that extends out to the completion of that mission and the harvest of the great multitude of Wheat saints.

For another private Pesah dinner with Y'shua modeling the space-time ark, consider the upper room where Judas was revealed. The large upper room is a spacious heavenly chamber. The context features the looming threat from the religious persecutors, and the work of the betrayer.

1 Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which is called the Passover, was approaching. 2 The chief priests and the scribes were seeking how they might put Him to death; for they were afraid of the people. 3 And Satan entered into Judas who was called Iscariot, belonging to the number of the twelve. 4 And he went away and discussed with the chief priests and officers how he might betray Him to them. 5 They were glad and agreed to give him money. 6 So he consented, and began seeking a good opportunity to betray Him to them apart from the crowd. 7 Then came the first day of Unleavened Bread on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. 8 And Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and prepare the Passover for us, so that we may eat it.” 9 They said to Him, “Where do You want us to prepare it?” 10 And He said to them, “When you have entered the city, a man will meet you carrying a pitcher of water; follow him into the house that he enters. 11 And you shall say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher says to you, “Where is the guest room in which I may eat the Passover with My disciples?”’ 12 And he will show you a large, furnished upper room; prepare it there.” 13 And they left and found everything just as He had told them; and they prepared the Passover. 14 When the hour had come, He reclined at the table, and the apostles with Him. 15 And He said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; 16 for I say to you, I shall never again eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” ~ Luke 22:1-16

If the timing on this scenario looks different from the account in John, there's a reason for that. Are you familiar with what I've been led to write about John 13? Efforts made by scholars to merge or harmonize the accounts have met with some success, but I believe multiple time frames serve the Lord's multiple agendas. Judas is named as one of the 12, and the inclusion of the time number draws our attention. The man carrying the water in the pitcher is a sign to them, and to us. Water signals time. The message to be conveyed identifies the Lord as “The Teacher.” Why? Listen up, students, because there's a lesson here. In Luke's account, we see selected aspects of the megas thlipsis being dramatized. Threats surround them, and the betrayer is present, and an active participant, until he's sent on his special mission. Yet they were safe. He calls that meal in the upper room, the Passover. It speaks to me further of the upcoming Pesah week. Why does the naming of Passover seem to be used so loosely with respect to time? Perhaps it has something to say about time being in flux, warping ....

Preparations were made in advance of when the Pascal lamb was slain and eaten. The first official preparation for the feast was made with a lamb being selected on the 10th day of the 1st month. That's pointing to March 31, 2015, if you're paying attention. Many elements of these several prophetic models are soon to be fulfilled. Stay alert and watch. Some models suggest a sealing in from the 15th through the 21st days, the duration of the Feast, like how Noah and the others were in the ark for a week before destruction came. With what light I have at present, others seem to suggest a separation and sealing a few days earlier, even on the 12th day. We suspect there are agendas being advanced with diverse groups of saints on differing schedules.

In Acts 12, we find one of my favorite Bride Theft scenarios. (Passing Through the Iron Gate) Here's another chapter numbered with the time number, 12. Peter, playing the role of the Bride of Christ in this prophetic allegory, had been isolated from the outside world. He alone was saved in this scenario. The prison as ark of salvation. Note that James was killed by the sword at the time when Peter was imprisoned, who was quite possibly modeling those of the Bride company appointed for martyrdom. Megas Thlipsis. Herod (meaning, heroic) is a type of the Antichrist, the new incarnation of the hero of old.

1 Now about that time Herod the king laid hands on some who belonged to the church in order to mistreat them. 2 And he had James the brother of John put to death with a sword. 3 When he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. Now it was during the days of Unleavened Bread. 4 When he had seized him, he put him in prison, delivering him to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out before the people. 5 So Peter was kept in the prison, but prayer for him was being made fervently by the church to God. 6 On the very night when Herod was about to bring him forward, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and guards in front of the door were watching over the prison. 7 And behold, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter’s side and woke him up, saying, “Get up quickly.” And his chains fell off his hands. 8 And the angel said to him, “Gird yourself and put on your sandals.” And he did so. And he said to him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.” 9 And he went out and continued to follow, and he did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. 10 When they had passed the first and second guard, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened for them by itself; and they went out and went along one street, and immediately the angel departed from him. 11 When Peter came to himself, he said, “Now I know for sure that the Lord has sent forth His angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting.” ~ Acts 12:1-11

That Acts 12 scenario is a cryptic time prophecy, which I was led to from the one in Genesis 45, and these both identify this third year of the Shemitah as the one appointed for the Bride Theft. This revelation insight represented an absolutely HUGE advance in the progressive unfolding to me of the chronology of the end times, and the way of its unfolding through metaphor and allegory. The Lord had prompted me to ask about what I only knew to call, "the rapture," back in the day. “If it's not at the beginning of the seven, when is it?” What followed was insight into Genesis 45:6, Luke 12:38 (there's that chapter number again) and Acts 12:10. The answer was, after two years, in the third. It was a count I related to the celestial sign of Yom Teruah, 1991.

“Guard,” in Acts 12:10, is the Greek word, phulake, the same word that is translated, “watch”, in Luke 12:38. The years of this Shemitah are the watches of the night.

Whether he comes in the second watch, or even in the third, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves. ~ Luke 12:38

Phulake, is the word for, “watch,” in Matthew 24:43!

43 But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into. ~ Matthew 24:43

The verses that flank that one speak to me about the need to endure, staying vigilant, on the alert for further refinement in this season with our attention fixed on the Shepherd Himself! Have we really received The Love of The Truth? These are the proving hours.

There's more of these scenarios to be brought forth but I want to pause for some personal testimony. The Lord has been keeping it real, keeping it very personal with engaging interaction in a variety of familiar ways. Aside from the timely provision of tokens of glory and His quick response to our frequent petitions for help, He has been granting the meaning of some cryptic dreams and visions. Closure.

Here's a dream Aaron received on August 17, 2014. We hadn't been led to published it until now.

“I was in some place with my dad. It was a house or something. My mom was still gone. It was winter time. Looking outside I see mountains or hills with an incredible amount of snow and ice. I've found myself buried under snow and ice, trying to climb out, but I couldn't. At this point I'm not sure if I woke up, or whether the dream just changed.

It was the Superbowl, and there was a major upset of a very unusual kind something strange happened, but I don't know what. I tried to call someone to tell them about it, but it was a strange sort of phone like the kind you would find in a hotel in the 1990's. The cord was ripped out of the phone somehow. I remember seeing something like a pay phone booth with many people around in a state of extreme excitement.

At this point the dream shifted again and I was in some sort of large glass type building on a lower level double door with large panes of glass looking outside. I was with someone, or maybe more than one I don't know. I recalled there was still in extreme type of excited energy all around, but not necessarily a good, or happy kind.

The next thing I know I'm looking out of the large panes of glass on the double door and I see a massive wall of rushing water. I was able to hold the doors closed but the power of the water forced it open a crack and some water came in. I said, "Displaced by water and time." Then another massive wall of water came much larger and stronger than the first, and I and two others were washed away with me. I remember seeing the three of us being washed away by two large trees that look like palm trees, and someone said, "God will make a place for us."

Then I woke up.”

Until the Lord was pouring out more insight about water-as-time, in the context of the season when the Devil has control over time, we really didn't know what to make of most of the dream. Leading up to Super Bowl Sunday, 2/1/15, we remembered the dream in several conversations, wondering what it might mean. We didn't pay attention to the game when the day finally came but we did give attention to the half time show. The highly controversial results of the game seems to explain part of it, just part, but what we noted in the days and weeks that followed was how the day actually marked a significant transition. I'm not going to go into detail but a different season of personal preparation had arrived, one that made no sense unless it was the season of finality and closure. When the Lord more recently brought that dream to mind, when He was informing us about water-as-time in the context of the abbreviated “megas thlipsis,” we began to understand how it applied on both a personal and a more corporate level. This vague story will make more sense when we look at the Gospel accounts of storms on the sea of Galilee, but it's about time wars, the enemy's assault and our preparation and provision. There will be victory over death in that second wave, because, God will make a place for us, an ark of safety. The time war would destroy all flesh, but through the agency of the elect and while they are under special protection, those days of megas thlipsis will be cut short. Special ops, special provision.

While I was writing the previous paragraph, the Lord used a “phones” sign to validate the fitness of the presentation for Aaron and I. We need the Lord's help constantly in real time. That's how it is for those of us who are awake and alert. He had done it earlier with a War of the Worlds (1953) sign, involving another brother also who made timely contact.

19 So then, when the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. 20 And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them, and confirmed the word by the signs that followed. ~ Mark 16:19-20

During the season of the initial outpouring of insight about megas thlipsis, the Lord reminded me of a vision-like experience I had back in 2005 or 6, when I heard a heavenly choir. I wrote about that back in November of 2013, in a post titled, Part 19 - Celestial Stargates - River and Serpent Symbolism. After Aaron and I had followed the Lord's leading to review many passages of scripture and connect many dots. He brought us to passages where storms were tossing the boats on the sea of Galilee. After that, maybe on the third or fourth day of all this latter rain drenching, He brought us to review the verse by verse comparison between John 13 and Revelation 13 and 14. (John 13 and Revelation 13 and 14 - Comparing Thirty-Eight Verse Pairs) When we got to John 13:21 == Revelation 14:3, The Lord reminded me of when I heard the heavenly choir.

As I reflected on that and the context of my hearing it, I occurred to me that theme of that special evening was, Rivers. My dear Mennonite brother Jacob and the children of his middle school class were singing a song about a river, and the Lord gave me to hear what it sounded like on the other side. It was awesome! The river of time - stargate opened to the heavenly realm.

The little town we were in was, Bangor, if I remember correctly. On the way there and back, we passed a casino that was associated with a local tribe of Maidu indians, the Tyme Maidu. Tyme ~ Time? Maidu, means, man. The local watershed is all about the Feather River and Lake Oroville, which was created by the Oroville Dam (at 770 feet high, it is the tallest dam in the U.S.). The “Feather” River. The Lord has been emphasizing to me over the last few days how rivers wind through the land like the path of a serpent. Feather River - Feathered Serpent - Amaru. Time flies like an arrow, which has feathers. Remember the posts about the Apple Clock sign and Uli John Roth - Tempus Fugit? Time Flies? Feathered animals typically fly, with feathered wings, symbols of beings with the ability to traverse dimensions. Oroville was formerly known as Ophir City. The nickname is still, City of Gold. Read Psalm 45 lately?

In that same post about the river and serpent symbolism where I told that story, I mentioned when I had been taken to a realm near the Throne of the Most High that I call the timeless place, and that experience must also be revisited here. That was unique, not being repeated to this very day. As led, you can read more about it here (Search The Open Scroll for "The Timeless Place" -- then use your ctrl-F browser search to find exactly where the phrase occurs in the large result page returned by the search.) Why was it a "hosted" time mission? Preview? As incredible as it seems, what led up to the experience lends it credibility. I had just returned from The Apostles Gathering in Anaheim, in 1999. I went there after my attendance was confirmed with a vivid sign that had to do with locking down the relationship between the Shemitah and the millennial cycles. It was all orchestrated by the Lord, and now, closure is being brought.

Shortly after The Apostles Gathering, I had an accident on the job and lost some fingers. Five days later, I had a dream that I have just gotten more insight into. More closure. You can read a little more about it here. My Accident on 11/2/99 and Dream on 11/7/99, but here's the bulk of it.

“I had a dream the Sunday night following my table saw accident. I was fighting a snake. It was a very short dream. The snake was very threatening and struggling to attack, but I placed the index finger of my left hand on the back of his head and pressed down. As much as he tried, the snake couldn't strike while I had my finger on him. I just used enough pressure to restrain him, but I must have realized that I couldn't just maintain this situation because the snake would have resumed his attack if I lifted my finger, so I pressed down really hard and held it. After a few moments the snake stopped struggling and became motionless, and, while that was happening I found myself aware that I was actually feeling pressure from my hand inside the cast. I had been pressing with my hand, even feeling the pressure on the tip of the index finger that I don't have anymore. I thought that was odd, and with that thought, I woke up somewhat, concerned whether or not I hurt my hand by doing that. (I wasn't supposed to do anything with my hand yet and I had been exerting a lot of pressure. I had cut off my fingers only 5 days earlier.) When I realized I didn't hurt myself, that I just had the lingering sensation of pressing with the tip of my index finger, I drifted back to sleep. In the dream, all I could see was the head of the snake facing to the right and my left hand and nothing else. When I was waking up and remembered this dream I thought about the snake, that it had been green, and that I must have killed him or put it out of threatening status.

When I got up, I told my wife my dream, not having given it much thought. She didn't comment on it because of the company we had visiting at the time. When I laid down for a nap later in the day, I remembered the dream and it startled me that I hadn't realized before that it was a prophetic dream. As to the interpretation; the snake is the devil, and the tip of my index finger I don't have any more is the Lord's power. By His power He will use me to destroy the power of the Serpent! This has been confirmed through a number of people who have spontaneously brought forth prophetic words. The evidence of this has been seen to a certain degree, and I believe it will be multiplied.”

Again, the Lord has been emphasizing to me over the past few days how rivers wind through the land like the path of a serpent or a traveling serpent. As I was writing the above bit about the heavenly choir, I came across the post, Part 19 - Celestial Stargates - River and Serpent Symbolism. Now I'm putting it together. The green snake has to do with time, and very specifically the megas thlipsis when the Serpent has control of time. Wow!

Have you read Greg's comment on a recent post? There's a sign.

More signs have come today, but enough for this post.