“It shall be said in that day, Behold our God upon Whom we have waited and hoped, that He might save us! (Is 25:9)
NOAH
Genesis 6:5-9
“The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination and intention of all human thinking was only evil continually. And the Lord regretted that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved at heart. So the Lord said, I will destroy, blot out, and wipe away mankind, whom I have created from the face of the ground-not only man, [but] the beasts and the creeping things and the birds of the air-for it grieves Me and makes Me regretful that I have made them.
But Noah found grace (favor) in the eyes of the Lord. This is the history of the generations of Noah. Noah was a just and righteous man, blameless in his [evil] generation; Noah walked [in habitual fellowship] with God.”
Genesis 7:6-7,11-12
And Noah did all that the Lord commanded Him. Noah was 600 years old when the flood of waters come upon the earth or land. And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons' wives with him went into the ark because of the waters of the flood... In the year 600 of Noah's life, in the seventeenth day of the second month, that same day all the fountains of the great deep were broken up and burst forth, and the windows and floodgates of the heavens were opened. And it rained upon the earth forty days and forty nights.
In Hebrews 11:7 it says, “[Prompted] by faith Noah, being forewarned by God concerning events of which as yet there was no visible sign, took heed and diligently and reverently constructed and prepared an ark for the deliverance of his own family. By this [his faith which relied on God] he passed judgment and sentence on the world's unbelief and became an heir and possessor of righteousness (that relation of being right into which God puts the person who has faith).”
SODOM AND GOMORAH
Genesis 18:17, 20-23,
“And the Lord said, Shall I hide from Abraham [My friend and servant] what I am going to do... And the Lord said, Because the shriek [of the sins] of Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is exceedingly grievous, I will go down now and see whether they have done altogether [as vilely and wickedly] as is the cry of it which has come to Me; and if not, I will know.
Now the two men turned from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the Lord. And Abraham came close and said, Will you destroy the righteous (those upright and in right standing with God) together with the wicked?...
Genesis 19:12-13, 15-26
And the [two] men asked Lot, Have you any other here – sons-in-law or your sons or your daughters? Whomever you have in the city, bring them out of this place, for we will spoil and destroy [Sodom]; for the outcry and shriek against its people has grown great before the Lord, and He has sent us to destroy it...
When morning came, the angels urged Lot to hurry, saying, arise, take your wife and two daughters who are here [and be off], lest you [too] be consumed and swept away in the iniquity and punishment of the city.
But while he lingered, the men seized him and his wife and his two daughters by the hand, for the Lord was merciful to him; and they brought him forth and set him outside the city and left him there. And when they had brought them forth, they said, Escape for your life! Do not look behind you or stop anywhere in the whole valley; escape to the mountains [of Moab], lest you be consumed.
And Lot said to them, Oh, not that, my lords! See now yonder city; it is near enough to flee to, and it is a little one. Oh, let me escape to it! Is it not a little one? And my life will be saved! And [the angel] said to him, See I have yielded to your entreaty concerning this thing also; I will not destroy this city of which you have spoken. Make hast and take refuge there, for I cannot do anything until you arrive there. Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar [little].
The sun had risen over the earth when Lot entered Zoar. Then the Lord rained on Sodom and on Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heavens. He overthrew, destroyed, and ended those cities, and all the valley and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground. But [Lot's] wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.”
Unlike Noah who promptly and diligently built and stepped into the ark, Lot and his family lingered in the world not wanting to let it go. One commentary notes about Lot and his family lingering, “Lot had mixed feelings about the destruction that was to come. Lot and his family needed to be propelled from their home by physical force. The verb for took hold means 'to seize.'[1] Another commentary notes the “the grip of this present evil world is strong, but God’s mercy overcame Lot’s last-minute procrastination.” [2]
To be 'consumed' in the iniquity and punishment is the Hebrew word sapah, Strongs #5595. It means to be caught up, captured by, joined with and/or destroyed by it. [3] What is means is that what we grip onto so tightly now has its grip on us and is destroying us.
An example of being consumed by inequity would be alcoholism. Perhaps when someone starts drinking, it is a social occasion. However, for some people, at some point it becomes more than social. One begins to drink as a source of comfort and deadening pain. For awhile it is fun. One feels less pain and is distracted by their new interest. They maybe make new friends that enjoy drinking as well. They may linger in this and ignore God's prompting to give it up. They may refuse the help that God sends their way. When they do this, sooner or later, the person who is drinking excessively starts to see consequences in their life. When someone starts to experience consequences, they may decide to stop, no longer drink, and go in another direction. However, some linger behind and become so gripped and consumed by it that it fills their life and no matter the destruction or consequences, they can't seem to let go of it. At times this has resulted in their eventual death.
By God's grace and mercy, even though Lot and his family wanted to linger in the place of God's judgment, they were brought out of it. God took them by the hand and led them out. And the valley which Lot had once so much coveted was destroyed. [4]
“Lot's wife not only 'looked back' to where her heart's interests were, but she lingered behind; and probably overtaken by the fire and brimstone” which encrusted her body. [5] She turned around (away from God and embracing the world). She refused to come out of the place of destruction and it eventually destroyed her. In Luke 17:26-37, Jesus warns us not to be like Lot's wife and to linger or dwell with our heart interests in the world.
(The clock reads 3:33).
Jesus says, “And [just] as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be in the time of the Son of Man. [People] ate, they drank, they married, they were given in marriage, right up to the day when Noah went into the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all.
So also [it was the same] as it was in the days of Lot. [People] ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built; But on the [very] day that Lot went out of Sodom, it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed [them] all.
That is the way it will be on the day that the Son of Man is revealed. On that day let him who is on the housetop, with his belongings in the house, not come down [and go inside] to carry them away; and likewise let him who is the field not turn back. Remember Lot's wife!
Whoever tries to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will preserve and quicken it. I tell you, in that night there will be two men in one bed; one will be taken and the other will be left. There will be two women grinding together; one will be taken and the other will be left. Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other will be left.
Then they asked Him, Where Lord? He said to them, Wherever the dead body is, there will the vultures or eagles be gathered together.”
Taken is the Hebrew word paralambanō, Strongs #3880. It means “to receive near” by intimate act or relation. [6] It can mean to take up, to join with oneself or and/or to not reject or withhold obedience from. [7]
Additionally, it signifies to 'receive from' as in 1 Corinthians 15:1-2, “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.” [8]
The opposite of taken is to be left. It is the Hebrew word aphiemi, Strongs #863. Rather than being received near, walking in obedience, or receiving from, it means to be 'to be let alone.' An example is in Matthew 15:14 where Jesus says, “Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch." [9]
Paul says in Ephesians 2:12-14, "[Remember] that you were at that time separated (living apart) from Christ [excluded from all part in Him], utterly estranged and outlawed from the rights of Israel as a nation, and strnagers with no share in the sacred compacts of the [Messianic] promis [with no knowledge of or right in God's agreements, His covenants]. And you had no hope (no promise); you were in the world without God. But now in Christ Jesus, you who once were [so] far away, through (by, in) the blood of Christ have been brought near. For He is {Himself] our peace (our bond of unity and harmony)."
Enoch is an example of someone who was 'taken' by God. Genesis 5:24 says, “And Enoch walked [in habitual fellowship] with God; and he was not, for God took him.”
Hebrews 11:5 says, “By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death: 'He could not be found, because God had taken him away.' For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”
Enoch lived a fairly short life compared to his ancestors. He lived 365 years when his father had lived 962 years. Enoch, lived in a time when the earth was corrupt and on the verge of destruction. Yet, Enoch chose to spend his time on earth, faithfully, in a close relationship with God, until God took him away (Genesis 5:24).
Jude 14-15 says about Enoch, “Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men: 'See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones to judge everyone, and to convict all the ungodly of all the ungodly acts they have done in the ungodly way, and all the harsh words ungodly sinners have spoken against him.”
Susan Sievers once wrote, “Enoch is a roadmap from time to eternity for every believer. He is a sign to this generation.... Some of God's signposts and maps are in a body. He lived on the horizon of the coming of the Lord. The earth was corrupt and the people were running out of time and space to repent. Enoch was a sign: God has made a way of escape.... a faith escape.” [10]
While the world is corrupt and running out of time (Is. 24:20), God in His mercy has made a way of escape for us – salvation through faith in Him. And as Enoch, we are invited not only into salvation but into an intimate relationship with the Living God.
So what if the scriptures about one being taken and another left do not mean that Christians are going to be literally taken to heaven and 'spared' difficulty while everyone else suffers terribly? Rather, one is going to receive Christ, walk in the Spirit and be filled with His peace while others will chose not to? What if God made a way of escape, a way to enter the 'ark' of safety in the midst of the storm? A place of peace and rest, near to Him even in the midst of difficulty.
“Better is one day in Your courts than thousands elsewhere” sings.
The Lord says in I Kings 8:23, “O Lord, the God of Israel, there is no God like You in heaven above or on earth beneath, keeping covenant and showing mercy and loving-kindness to Your servants who walk before You with all their heart.”
“How lovely is your dwelling place” sings.
Isaiah 26:3-4 says, “You will guard him and keep him in perfect and constant peace whose mind [both its inclination and its character] is stayed on You, because he commits himself to You, leans on You, and hopes confidently in You. So trust in the Lord (commit yourself to Him, lean on Him, hope confidently in Him) forever; for the Lord God is an everlasting Rock [the Rock of Ages].”
Just as Jesus learned obedience by what He suffered, so do we, and suffering produces character. So, rather than escaping suffering, what if Jesus made a way to find nearness to Him in the midst of it? What if we (Christians) by laying down our lives are the on-ramp for others to be able to enter into the ark into safety?
“Even if surrendering means leaving everything behind” sings. The song goes on to say, “You never know why you're alive until you know what you would die for...”
1 Peter 2:21-24
For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; and while be reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously; and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed.
The fellowship of suffering that He calls us into is both the dying to self and our desires for pride, possessions, power, position, and productivity as well as suffering for others benefit.
In the time [days] of the Son of Man' more than likely refers to some period of time near and at the time of His return. What if we are being warned that in that period of time we are not to let our hearts 'linger' in the world or hold onto those things we see as belonging to us?
We are to let go of the things we covet, grasp and get our security from. Rather than dwelling on losses when things of the world are being shaken or trying to somehow take it all with us, we are to be more like Noah who by faith trusted God and let everything go into his hands. Noah let God lift him and his family to safety and he didn't look back.
Matthew 6:19-20 says, “Do not gather and heap up and store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust and worm consume and destroy, and where thieves break through and steal. But gather and heap us and store for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust nor worm consume and destroy, and where thieves do not break through and steal. For where you treasure is, there will your heart be also.”
When Jesus was asked where all that He had spoken of in Luke as His coming would occur, He answered them in Luke 17:37, “Wherever the dead body is, there will the vultures or eagles be gathered together.” Commentary notes that the eagles or vultures symbolize impending judgments by God against sin and unbelief. [11]
Vultures speak of eating the flesh. Revelation 19:17-18 says about the end times, “Then I saw a single angel stationed in the sun's light, and with a mighty voice he shouted to all the birds that fly across the sky, Come, gather yourselves together for the great supper of God. That you may feast on the flesh of rulers, the flesh of generals and captains, the flesh of powerful and mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all humanity, both free and slave, both small and great!”
Both at the time of Noah and in the days of Lot, it was right before God's judgment came. Judgment came against wickedness and oppression. And in judgment, God made a way for all righteousness.
An example of God bringing judgment in the form of wrath against wickedness is when Jesus chased the money changers out of the temple. He turned the tables over and chased away those who were using the temple of God as a place for their own gain. He declared the temple to be a place of prayer. Then the blind and the lame came and found healing and life there. (Matthew 21:12-14)
Psalm 107 praises God for His goodness, mercy and loving-kindnesses in His judgments. In verse 33-35 it says, “He turns rivers into a wilderness, water springs into a thirsty ground, a fruitful land into a barren, salt waste, because of the wickedness of those who dwell in it. He turns a wilderness into a pool of water and a dry ground into water springs.”
Isaiah 25 exalts God for His judgments which are good and merciful in the end times. Isaiah writes in Is. 25:1-9, “O Lord, You are my God; I will exalt You, I will praise Your name, for You have done wonderful things, even purposes planned of old [and fulfilled] in faithfulness and truth.
For You have made a city a heap, a fortified city a ruin, a palace of aliens without a city [is not more a city]; it will never be rebuilt. Therefore [many] a strong people will glorify You, [many] a city of terrible and ruthless nations will [reverently] fear You.
For You have been a stronghold for the poor, a stronghold for the need in his distress, a shelter from at the storm, a shade from the heat; for the blast of the ruthless ones is like a rainstorm against a wall. As the heat in a dry land [is reduced by the shadow of a cloud, so You will bring down the noise of aliens [exultant over their enemies]; and as the heat is brought low by the shadow of a cloud, so the song of the ruthless ones is brought low.
And on this Mount [Zion] shall the Lord of hosts make for all peoples a feast of rich things [symbolic of His coronation festival inaugurating the reign of the Lord on earth, in the wake of a background of gloom, judgment, and terror], a feast of wines on the lees -of fat things full of marrow, of wines on the lees well refined.
And He will destroy on this mountain the covering of the face that is cast over the heads of all peoples [in mourning], and the veil [of profound wretchedness] that is woven and spread over nations. He will swallow up death [in victory; He will abolish death forever]. And the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces; and the reproach of His people He will take away from off all the earth; for the Lord has spoken it.
It shall be said in that day, Behold our God upon Whom we have waited and hoped, that He might save us! This is the Lord, we have waited for Him; we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation.”
God's judgments in the earth was something that the prophets longed for. Isaiah proclaims in 26:9, “For when Your judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.”
Easton's Bible Dictionary notes that judgment "pertains to him as mediator to complete and publicly manifest the salvation of his people and the overthrow of his enemies, together with the glorious righteousness of his work in both respects." [13]
Jesus overthrew enemies on the cross and demonstrated what His judgment looked like when He died on the cross. Then He sent His Holy Spirit to convict the world of sin, of righteousness and judgment. (John 16:8)
John 16:9-11 says, “of sin, because they do not believe in Me; of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.”
Zechariah 12:10 was fulfilled once in His coming and dying on the cross, "And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son.”
And Revelation 1:7 says about His second coming, “Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen.”
Lord, Help us to be people in this time and season who, like Noah, trust You and follow You anywhere. Help us to be quick to let go of all that we might try to grasp to and to not linger with our hearts in the world. And rather than people who are filled with stress, may we be filled with Your Spirit and bring peace to all we encounter. Set our hearts on You, the only true treasure!
1. Radmacher, Earl D. ; Allen, Ronald Barclay ; House, H. Wayne: The Nelson Study Bible : New King James Version. Nashville : T. Nelson Publishers, 1997, S. Ge 19:16
2. KJV Bible Commentary. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1994, S. 55
3. Strong, James: The New Strong's Dictionary of Hebrew and Greek Words. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1996, S. H8674
4-5. The Amplified Bible. Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI. 1987.
6, 9. Strong, James: The Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible : Showing Every Word of the Text of the Common English Version of the Canonical Books, and Every Occurrence of Each Word in Regular Order. electronic ed. Ontario : Woodside Bible Fellowship., 1996, S. G3880
7. Vine, W. E. ; Unger, Merrill F. ; White, William: Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words. Nashville : T. Nelson, 1996, S. 2:510
8. Vine, W. E. ; Unger, Merrill F. ; White, William: Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words. Nashville : T. Nelson, 1996, S. 2:23
10. Sievers, Susan. The Enoch Generation. 2002.
11. MacDonald, William ; Farstad, Arthur: Believer's Bible Commentary : Old and New Testaments. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1995, S. Lk 17:37
12. Radmacher, Earl D. ; Allen, Ronald Barclay ; House, H. Wayne: Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Commentary. Nashville : T. Nelson Publishers, 1999, S. Jn 16:9-11
13. Easton's Bible Dictionary. Judgment, The Final. Located at: http://eastonsbibledictionary.com/judgment.htm. Last Accessed: 8/23/11.
Most Scripture quotations take from The Amplified Bible. Copyright 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by the Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved. Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org)
Genesis 6:5-9
“The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination and intention of all human thinking was only evil continually. And the Lord regretted that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved at heart. So the Lord said, I will destroy, blot out, and wipe away mankind, whom I have created from the face of the ground-not only man, [but] the beasts and the creeping things and the birds of the air-for it grieves Me and makes Me regretful that I have made them.
But Noah found grace (favor) in the eyes of the Lord. This is the history of the generations of Noah. Noah was a just and righteous man, blameless in his [evil] generation; Noah walked [in habitual fellowship] with God.”
Genesis 7:6-7,11-12
And Noah did all that the Lord commanded Him. Noah was 600 years old when the flood of waters come upon the earth or land. And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons' wives with him went into the ark because of the waters of the flood... In the year 600 of Noah's life, in the seventeenth day of the second month, that same day all the fountains of the great deep were broken up and burst forth, and the windows and floodgates of the heavens were opened. And it rained upon the earth forty days and forty nights.
In Hebrews 11:7 it says, “[Prompted] by faith Noah, being forewarned by God concerning events of which as yet there was no visible sign, took heed and diligently and reverently constructed and prepared an ark for the deliverance of his own family. By this [his faith which relied on God] he passed judgment and sentence on the world's unbelief and became an heir and possessor of righteousness (that relation of being right into which God puts the person who has faith).”
SODOM AND GOMORAH
Genesis 18:17, 20-23,
“And the Lord said, Shall I hide from Abraham [My friend and servant] what I am going to do... And the Lord said, Because the shriek [of the sins] of Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is exceedingly grievous, I will go down now and see whether they have done altogether [as vilely and wickedly] as is the cry of it which has come to Me; and if not, I will know.
Now the two men turned from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the Lord. And Abraham came close and said, Will you destroy the righteous (those upright and in right standing with God) together with the wicked?...
Genesis 19:12-13, 15-26
And the [two] men asked Lot, Have you any other here – sons-in-law or your sons or your daughters? Whomever you have in the city, bring them out of this place, for we will spoil and destroy [Sodom]; for the outcry and shriek against its people has grown great before the Lord, and He has sent us to destroy it...
When morning came, the angels urged Lot to hurry, saying, arise, take your wife and two daughters who are here [and be off], lest you [too] be consumed and swept away in the iniquity and punishment of the city.
But while he lingered, the men seized him and his wife and his two daughters by the hand, for the Lord was merciful to him; and they brought him forth and set him outside the city and left him there. And when they had brought them forth, they said, Escape for your life! Do not look behind you or stop anywhere in the whole valley; escape to the mountains [of Moab], lest you be consumed.
And Lot said to them, Oh, not that, my lords! See now yonder city; it is near enough to flee to, and it is a little one. Oh, let me escape to it! Is it not a little one? And my life will be saved! And [the angel] said to him, See I have yielded to your entreaty concerning this thing also; I will not destroy this city of which you have spoken. Make hast and take refuge there, for I cannot do anything until you arrive there. Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar [little].
The sun had risen over the earth when Lot entered Zoar. Then the Lord rained on Sodom and on Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heavens. He overthrew, destroyed, and ended those cities, and all the valley and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground. But [Lot's] wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.”
Unlike Noah who promptly and diligently built and stepped into the ark, Lot and his family lingered in the world not wanting to let it go. One commentary notes about Lot and his family lingering, “Lot had mixed feelings about the destruction that was to come. Lot and his family needed to be propelled from their home by physical force. The verb for took hold means 'to seize.'[1] Another commentary notes the “the grip of this present evil world is strong, but God’s mercy overcame Lot’s last-minute procrastination.” [2]
To be 'consumed' in the iniquity and punishment is the Hebrew word sapah, Strongs #5595. It means to be caught up, captured by, joined with and/or destroyed by it. [3] What is means is that what we grip onto so tightly now has its grip on us and is destroying us.
An example of being consumed by inequity would be alcoholism. Perhaps when someone starts drinking, it is a social occasion. However, for some people, at some point it becomes more than social. One begins to drink as a source of comfort and deadening pain. For awhile it is fun. One feels less pain and is distracted by their new interest. They maybe make new friends that enjoy drinking as well. They may linger in this and ignore God's prompting to give it up. They may refuse the help that God sends their way. When they do this, sooner or later, the person who is drinking excessively starts to see consequences in their life. When someone starts to experience consequences, they may decide to stop, no longer drink, and go in another direction. However, some linger behind and become so gripped and consumed by it that it fills their life and no matter the destruction or consequences, they can't seem to let go of it. At times this has resulted in their eventual death.
By God's grace and mercy, even though Lot and his family wanted to linger in the place of God's judgment, they were brought out of it. God took them by the hand and led them out. And the valley which Lot had once so much coveted was destroyed. [4]
“Lot's wife not only 'looked back' to where her heart's interests were, but she lingered behind; and probably overtaken by the fire and brimstone” which encrusted her body. [5] She turned around (away from God and embracing the world). She refused to come out of the place of destruction and it eventually destroyed her. In Luke 17:26-37, Jesus warns us not to be like Lot's wife and to linger or dwell with our heart interests in the world.
(The clock reads 3:33).
Jesus says, “And [just] as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be in the time of the Son of Man. [People] ate, they drank, they married, they were given in marriage, right up to the day when Noah went into the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all.
So also [it was the same] as it was in the days of Lot. [People] ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built; But on the [very] day that Lot went out of Sodom, it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed [them] all.
That is the way it will be on the day that the Son of Man is revealed. On that day let him who is on the housetop, with his belongings in the house, not come down [and go inside] to carry them away; and likewise let him who is the field not turn back. Remember Lot's wife!
Whoever tries to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will preserve and quicken it. I tell you, in that night there will be two men in one bed; one will be taken and the other will be left. There will be two women grinding together; one will be taken and the other will be left. Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other will be left.
Then they asked Him, Where Lord? He said to them, Wherever the dead body is, there will the vultures or eagles be gathered together.”
Taken is the Hebrew word paralambanō, Strongs #3880. It means “to receive near” by intimate act or relation. [6] It can mean to take up, to join with oneself or and/or to not reject or withhold obedience from. [7]
Additionally, it signifies to 'receive from' as in 1 Corinthians 15:1-2, “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.” [8]
The opposite of taken is to be left. It is the Hebrew word aphiemi, Strongs #863. Rather than being received near, walking in obedience, or receiving from, it means to be 'to be let alone.' An example is in Matthew 15:14 where Jesus says, “Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch." [9]
Paul says in Ephesians 2:12-14, "[Remember] that you were at that time separated (living apart) from Christ [excluded from all part in Him], utterly estranged and outlawed from the rights of Israel as a nation, and strnagers with no share in the sacred compacts of the [Messianic] promis [with no knowledge of or right in God's agreements, His covenants]. And you had no hope (no promise); you were in the world without God. But now in Christ Jesus, you who once were [so] far away, through (by, in) the blood of Christ have been brought near. For He is {Himself] our peace (our bond of unity and harmony)."
Enoch is an example of someone who was 'taken' by God. Genesis 5:24 says, “And Enoch walked [in habitual fellowship] with God; and he was not, for God took him.”
Hebrews 11:5 says, “By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death: 'He could not be found, because God had taken him away.' For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”
Enoch lived a fairly short life compared to his ancestors. He lived 365 years when his father had lived 962 years. Enoch, lived in a time when the earth was corrupt and on the verge of destruction. Yet, Enoch chose to spend his time on earth, faithfully, in a close relationship with God, until God took him away (Genesis 5:24).
Jude 14-15 says about Enoch, “Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men: 'See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones to judge everyone, and to convict all the ungodly of all the ungodly acts they have done in the ungodly way, and all the harsh words ungodly sinners have spoken against him.”
Susan Sievers once wrote, “Enoch is a roadmap from time to eternity for every believer. He is a sign to this generation.... Some of God's signposts and maps are in a body. He lived on the horizon of the coming of the Lord. The earth was corrupt and the people were running out of time and space to repent. Enoch was a sign: God has made a way of escape.... a faith escape.” [10]
While the world is corrupt and running out of time (Is. 24:20), God in His mercy has made a way of escape for us – salvation through faith in Him. And as Enoch, we are invited not only into salvation but into an intimate relationship with the Living God.
So what if the scriptures about one being taken and another left do not mean that Christians are going to be literally taken to heaven and 'spared' difficulty while everyone else suffers terribly? Rather, one is going to receive Christ, walk in the Spirit and be filled with His peace while others will chose not to? What if God made a way of escape, a way to enter the 'ark' of safety in the midst of the storm? A place of peace and rest, near to Him even in the midst of difficulty.
“Better is one day in Your courts than thousands elsewhere” sings.
The Lord says in I Kings 8:23, “O Lord, the God of Israel, there is no God like You in heaven above or on earth beneath, keeping covenant and showing mercy and loving-kindness to Your servants who walk before You with all their heart.”
“How lovely is your dwelling place” sings.
Isaiah 26:3-4 says, “You will guard him and keep him in perfect and constant peace whose mind [both its inclination and its character] is stayed on You, because he commits himself to You, leans on You, and hopes confidently in You. So trust in the Lord (commit yourself to Him, lean on Him, hope confidently in Him) forever; for the Lord God is an everlasting Rock [the Rock of Ages].”
Just as Jesus learned obedience by what He suffered, so do we, and suffering produces character. So, rather than escaping suffering, what if Jesus made a way to find nearness to Him in the midst of it? What if we (Christians) by laying down our lives are the on-ramp for others to be able to enter into the ark into safety?
“Even if surrendering means leaving everything behind” sings. The song goes on to say, “You never know why you're alive until you know what you would die for...”
1 Peter 2:21-24
For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; and while be reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously; and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed.
The fellowship of suffering that He calls us into is both the dying to self and our desires for pride, possessions, power, position, and productivity as well as suffering for others benefit.
In the time [days] of the Son of Man' more than likely refers to some period of time near and at the time of His return. What if we are being warned that in that period of time we are not to let our hearts 'linger' in the world or hold onto those things we see as belonging to us?
We are to let go of the things we covet, grasp and get our security from. Rather than dwelling on losses when things of the world are being shaken or trying to somehow take it all with us, we are to be more like Noah who by faith trusted God and let everything go into his hands. Noah let God lift him and his family to safety and he didn't look back.
Matthew 6:19-20 says, “Do not gather and heap up and store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust and worm consume and destroy, and where thieves break through and steal. But gather and heap us and store for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust nor worm consume and destroy, and where thieves do not break through and steal. For where you treasure is, there will your heart be also.”
When Jesus was asked where all that He had spoken of in Luke as His coming would occur, He answered them in Luke 17:37, “Wherever the dead body is, there will the vultures or eagles be gathered together.” Commentary notes that the eagles or vultures symbolize impending judgments by God against sin and unbelief. [11]
Vultures speak of eating the flesh. Revelation 19:17-18 says about the end times, “Then I saw a single angel stationed in the sun's light, and with a mighty voice he shouted to all the birds that fly across the sky, Come, gather yourselves together for the great supper of God. That you may feast on the flesh of rulers, the flesh of generals and captains, the flesh of powerful and mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all humanity, both free and slave, both small and great!”
Both at the time of Noah and in the days of Lot, it was right before God's judgment came. Judgment came against wickedness and oppression. And in judgment, God made a way for all righteousness.
An example of God bringing judgment in the form of wrath against wickedness is when Jesus chased the money changers out of the temple. He turned the tables over and chased away those who were using the temple of God as a place for their own gain. He declared the temple to be a place of prayer. Then the blind and the lame came and found healing and life there. (Matthew 21:12-14)
Psalm 107 praises God for His goodness, mercy and loving-kindnesses in His judgments. In verse 33-35 it says, “He turns rivers into a wilderness, water springs into a thirsty ground, a fruitful land into a barren, salt waste, because of the wickedness of those who dwell in it. He turns a wilderness into a pool of water and a dry ground into water springs.”
Isaiah 25 exalts God for His judgments which are good and merciful in the end times. Isaiah writes in Is. 25:1-9, “O Lord, You are my God; I will exalt You, I will praise Your name, for You have done wonderful things, even purposes planned of old [and fulfilled] in faithfulness and truth.
For You have made a city a heap, a fortified city a ruin, a palace of aliens without a city [is not more a city]; it will never be rebuilt. Therefore [many] a strong people will glorify You, [many] a city of terrible and ruthless nations will [reverently] fear You.
For You have been a stronghold for the poor, a stronghold for the need in his distress, a shelter from at the storm, a shade from the heat; for the blast of the ruthless ones is like a rainstorm against a wall. As the heat in a dry land [is reduced by the shadow of a cloud, so You will bring down the noise of aliens [exultant over their enemies]; and as the heat is brought low by the shadow of a cloud, so the song of the ruthless ones is brought low.
And on this Mount [Zion] shall the Lord of hosts make for all peoples a feast of rich things [symbolic of His coronation festival inaugurating the reign of the Lord on earth, in the wake of a background of gloom, judgment, and terror], a feast of wines on the lees -of fat things full of marrow, of wines on the lees well refined.
And He will destroy on this mountain the covering of the face that is cast over the heads of all peoples [in mourning], and the veil [of profound wretchedness] that is woven and spread over nations. He will swallow up death [in victory; He will abolish death forever]. And the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces; and the reproach of His people He will take away from off all the earth; for the Lord has spoken it.
It shall be said in that day, Behold our God upon Whom we have waited and hoped, that He might save us! This is the Lord, we have waited for Him; we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation.”
God's judgments in the earth was something that the prophets longed for. Isaiah proclaims in 26:9, “For when Your judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.”
Easton's Bible Dictionary notes that judgment "pertains to him as mediator to complete and publicly manifest the salvation of his people and the overthrow of his enemies, together with the glorious righteousness of his work in both respects." [13]
Jesus overthrew enemies on the cross and demonstrated what His judgment looked like when He died on the cross. Then He sent His Holy Spirit to convict the world of sin, of righteousness and judgment. (John 16:8)
John 16:9-11 says, “of sin, because they do not believe in Me; of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.”
Zechariah 12:10 was fulfilled once in His coming and dying on the cross, "And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son.”
And Revelation 1:7 says about His second coming, “Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen.”
Lord, Help us to be people in this time and season who, like Noah, trust You and follow You anywhere. Help us to be quick to let go of all that we might try to grasp to and to not linger with our hearts in the world. And rather than people who are filled with stress, may we be filled with Your Spirit and bring peace to all we encounter. Set our hearts on You, the only true treasure!
1. Radmacher, Earl D. ; Allen, Ronald Barclay ; House, H. Wayne: The Nelson Study Bible : New King James Version. Nashville : T. Nelson Publishers, 1997, S. Ge 19:16
2. KJV Bible Commentary. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1994, S. 55
3. Strong, James: The New Strong's Dictionary of Hebrew and Greek Words. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1996, S. H8674
4-5. The Amplified Bible. Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI. 1987.
6, 9. Strong, James: The Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible : Showing Every Word of the Text of the Common English Version of the Canonical Books, and Every Occurrence of Each Word in Regular Order. electronic ed. Ontario : Woodside Bible Fellowship., 1996, S. G3880
7. Vine, W. E. ; Unger, Merrill F. ; White, William: Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words. Nashville : T. Nelson, 1996, S. 2:510
8. Vine, W. E. ; Unger, Merrill F. ; White, William: Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words. Nashville : T. Nelson, 1996, S. 2:23
10. Sievers, Susan. The Enoch Generation. 2002.
11. MacDonald, William ; Farstad, Arthur: Believer's Bible Commentary : Old and New Testaments. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1995, S. Lk 17:37
12. Radmacher, Earl D. ; Allen, Ronald Barclay ; House, H. Wayne: Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Commentary. Nashville : T. Nelson Publishers, 1999, S. Jn 16:9-11
13. Easton's Bible Dictionary. Judgment, The Final. Located at: http://eastonsbibledictionary.com/judgment.htm. Last Accessed: 8/23/11.
Most Scripture quotations take from The Amplified Bible. Copyright 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by the Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved. Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org)
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