One With an Ending, the Second Without

Doug Batchelor: Hello, friends. Welcome to Amazing Facts "Bible Answers Live." Would you like to hear an amazing fact? Saddam Hussein, the infamous former dictator of Iraq, became obsessed with the ancient Babylonian ruler Nebuchadnezzar who had conquered Israel in current-day Iran. Saddam saw himself as a modern reincarnation of Nebuchadnezzar who would unite the Arab world and restore the ancient empire of Babylon, but a Hebrew prophecy in Isaiah 13 clearly states ancient Babylon would never be rebuilt. Seeking to prove the Jewish prediction wrong, in 1986, Saddam spent millions to reconstruct the old site of Babylon.

His delusions came to an end with his capture following the Gulf War and eventual execution in 2006. Now, the ghostly shell of his immense palace on a hill above the ruins of Babylon and the abandoned construction projects stand as a ghostly reminder that God's prophecies never fail. Well, you and I have heard some stories, Pastor Ross, about the great lengths he went to to try to re-establish himself as the ancient ruler of Babylon. He had pictures of him and Nebuchadnezzar everywhere, and he was riding in an imitation charade of Nebuchadnezzar and tried to portray himself. In reincarnation it wouldn't have made sense with the Islam theology, but he was kind of fantasizing. And he hated Israel so much that he thought, "I can disprove the prophecy. I'll rebuild the ancient city." Construction stopped twice during the two Gulf wars and then ultimately came to an end. And I've heard that--it either just happened or will happen soon; that UNESCO is going to declare the ruins of Babylon a historic site so it can never be rebuilt, just going to show that God's prophecy in Isaiah 13 it'll never be rebuilt. It'll never be inhabited. It could not be overthrown.

Jëan Ross: You know, it seems, Pastor Doug, when you look at the Bible, you--sometimes the Old Testament is being described as the story of two cities. On the one hand you have Jerusalem representing, you know, God's dwelling place and the truth and way of salvation, then you got the opposite of that being Babylon. And of course, historically you had the Babylonians that conquered and destroyed Jerusalem and took the Jews captive, but then God's people came out of Babylon and rebuilt the temple in Jerusalem. So that same theme of Babylon and Jerusalem kind of follows all the way not only in the Old Testament, but we even see some of that in the New Testament. In the New Testament you have got a whole chapter talking about a woman this time, and her name is Babylon.

Doug: Yeah, Babylon is actually mentioned, I think, six times in the book of Revelation, and chapter 17 pretty clearly identifies who Babylon is. It's interesting that even in the New Testament times the apostles use the word "Babylon" to kind of refer to Rome because the Romans were occupying Israel like the Babylonians had once done, and--I better not say too much because we've got a free offer that's going to tell people about who is Babylon in the book of Revelation.

Jëan: That's right. We've got a book called "The Scarlet Woman." And the reason we have that title it's because you read the description in Revelation 17, this woman Babylon she's dressed in scarlet. And we'll be happy to send that to anyone who calls and asks. That is the free offer for this evening called "The Scarlet Woman." The number to call is 800-835-6747. You can ask for that by name, "The Scarlet Woman." Or dial #250, say "Bible answers live," and then ask for that free offer and we'll send you a digital download. So, two ways that you're going to be able to receive that offer, and I hope you take advantage of it. It's a great read. It's an important study because part of the three angels' messages, God's last-warning message, talks about Babylon being fallen, being fallen. So understanding who Babylon is, what it represents, that's an important truth.

Doug: And yeah, it's amazing that I still run into some Christian pastors that say, "Oh yeah, ancient Babylon is going to be rebuilt." They're totally missing not only the prophecy in Isaiah that said it would not be but what Revelation is really talking about. So, you owe it to yourself, friends, to pick up this study guide. You'll be blessed.

Jëan: All right, well, before we go to the phone lines, as we always do let's start with prayer. Dear Father, we thank You once again that we have this time to open up Your Word and study. And, Father, we always want to ask Your blessing upon this program. Wherever the people might be who are listening, we just pray, Lord, that You'll guide them and be with us here in the studio as we search the Scriptures to find a clearer understanding of Bible truth. For we ask this in Jesus's name, amen.

Doug: Amen.

Jëan: We're going to go to the phone lines. We've got Elijah listening in Arizona, and he has a question about the judgment. Elijah, welcome to the program.

Elijah: Yes. My question was at the time when--if you do something and you repent, you never do it again and ask God for forgiveness, at the time of judgment will God show it to everyone?

Doug: No. If you've repented of your sins and you've asked God to forgive you, the Bible tells us that He takes our sins, and He casts them into the depths of the sea. I'm trying to remember that verse. I used to know it by heart. But if they're not repented of, you can read in Luke 12:3, "Wherefore whatever you have spoken in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you've spoken in the ear in inner rooms will be proclaimed from the housetops." So, the Lord basically says, you know, everything's going to be made manifest and open to the eyes of whom we have to do. But if our sins are forgiven, they're under the blood. He buries in the depths of the sea and He doesn't remember them anymore. He forgives and forgets our sins, so to speak.

Jëan: Yeah, Micah chapter 7, verse 19 is the verse you were referring to there. All right. Thank you. Next caller that we have is Gary, and he's got a question related to Revelation. Gary, welcome to the program.

Gary: Thank you. In Revelation 8:7 it says the world went by fire and hail. So we're seeing a lot of weather events that--have that come true? Are we in the--in tribulation or are we just in perilous times?

Doug: Yeah. Well, I certainly do believe, Gary, that we are seeing an acceleration of natural disasters. I've actually got a chart where insurance companies--of course, they make their money and--insuring against disasters. There--they show that all different kinds of disasters seem to be on the increase. Now of course, you know, they're blaming global warming for that and other things. But I don't think we're in the great time of trouble because that's when the seven last plagues fall. I think we're in a time that's leading up to what you call the small time of trouble. You know, Jesus said there's going to be wars, rumors of wars, earthquakes in different places, but the end isn't yet. And so these things accelerate like labor pains get closer together. Before a woman has a baby, you see greater frequency, greater intensity. That's where we're at now.

Jëan: You know, Luke chapter 21, verse 25, Jesus talking about end-time events he says there'll be signs in the sun and the moon and the stars and on the earth distress of nations with perplexity. And then it adds this: the sea and the waves roaring. Kind of gives the idea of an increase of storms or increase of, you know, weather issues. And, yeah, as we get close to the end, it seems that we see more of that. All right. Thank you, Gary. We've got Karen in Nebraska, and she's got a question about Melchizedek. Karen, welcome to the program.

Karen: Hi. Thank you. I'm studying Hebrews and I'm having a hard time with chapter 7. Okay, I understand it's about the priesthood and it's talking about the order of Melchizedek and the order of Aaron and the law and the covenant, but I thought we didn't know--even know who Melchizedek is. How does that fit in here in chapter 7?

Doug: I think--Paul, we believe, wrote Hebrews. Paul is showing that he--Melchizedek, who appears in the Old Testament, is an allegory of Christ. You know, most of the priests came from the tribe of Aaron, but Paul is saying there were some priests of God that didn't come from Israel at all such as Melchizedek. When you look in the Old Testament, it says four or five interesting things about Melchizedek. First of all, it doesn't say where he came from. We know he was the king of Salem that later became known as Jerusalem which means city of peace, and Jesus is our king of peace of the New Jerusalem. It says he--the word Melchizedek means king of righteousness. Jesus is our king of righteousness. He brought Abraham bread and wine, and Jesus made the covenant with the bread and the wine with the disciples. And so, there's a lot of analogies of Melchizedek, who is a king and a priest. Jesus is our high priest and our king. So, Paul is showing that he was a type of Christ who is without beginning or end. There--we don't know what happened to Melchizedek. He appears and disappears in the Bible. We don't know his genealogy. So that's why Paul is saying all that.

Jëan: He's also laying the foundation that Christ's priesthood, his heavenly ministry is superior to that of the Levitical priesthood because obviously Jesus didn't come through the tribe of Levi. He came through the tribe of Judah. So, someone said, "Well, how can he be a priest if he's not part of the tribe of Levi?" Paul is making the argument in Hebrews saying, well, he's actually part or a symbol--Melchizedek is a symbol or a type of Christ priesthood, which is even greater than that of the Levitical priesthood because Abraham gave a tithe to Melchizedek. So that's his argument. He's kind of portraying this high-priestly ministry of Jesus far superior to that of the Hebrew or the Levitical priesthood.

Doug: You got a good series on Hebrews. I should have let you answer that.

Jëan: No, no, it's a good--you gave a good answer. That's a great study. It really is. All right. Thank you, Karen. We got Glenn listening in Ohio, question about Acts chapter 2. Glenn, welcome to the program.

Glenn: Good evening. Thank you very much for taking my call.

Doug: Yeah.

Glenn: Now, historically Christianity is not a religion that was practiced till about 4 centuries after the apostles. If that's the case, what doctrine did the apostles adhere to in Acts 2:42? Then if the statement about the history of Christianity is not true, when did Christianity come on the scene and where did the name come from?

Doug: Well, it tells us they first called them Christians. It's right in the Bible. It--in the book of Acts, it says they first called them Christians in Antioch. So that's back in the days of the apostles. So, I'm not sure where you heard that the religion of Christianity did not begin until 4 centuries after Christ. The organized Catholic Church may not have begun until that point, but Christianity began in the Old Testament.

Jëan: And that verse you're talking about, Pastor Doug, Acts chapter 11, verse 26 where it says, as you mentioned, in Antioch the believers were called Christians. So that's kind of the origin of the name. And of course the early church for the first 100 years, they were taught by the apostles who were taught by Christ directly. So, the church was growing. It was evangelistic. They were faithful to the Word, and they--yeah, it wasn't until the legalization of Christianity in 313 and the rise of the papal power or Catholic Church that we begin to see some compromise taking place where the church began to wander away from the simple truths of the Bible.

Doug: Church was organized. Even in Acts chapter 6, they're appointing deacons and then they're having--Paul is appointing elders.

Jëan: And they had a council in Jerusalem.

Doug: Yeah. So they were--they didn't maybe have a big Vatican, but they certainly were an organized religion at that point. Thank you. Good question, Glenn.

Jëan: We've got Nicole listening in Michigan, and she's asking about the Day of Atonement. Nicole, welcome to the program.

Nicole: Hi, good evening. How are you?

Doug: Good. How are you?

Nicole: Good. My question is, when Babylon came and destroyed Jerusalem--I mean, the sanctuary, the ark was taken and hidden. So, when Nehemiah and Ezra went back to rebuild the city and they started to perform the various ceremonies, mainly the Day of Atonement, how are they keeping the Day of Atonement if the Ark of the Covenant was not in the most holy place?

Doug: Good question. And, you know, there's all--all I have on that is speculation and I've never read anything definitive, but you're right. The real ark, the original ark that was made during the time of Moses, captured once by the Philistines, recovered--then when Nebuchadnezzar came and besieged the city, it was hidden somewhere and it's probably still hidden there. No, Solomon did not give it to the Queen of Sheba as our Ethiopian friends say because it appears again later during the time of King Josiah. But as near as we can tell, when they rebuilt the temple they put some facsimile of the ark in there so that the priest could put blood on it during the Day of Atonement. But they were hoping that God would restore to them the place of the original ark. So, I don't think they ever made a copy of it. At least I don't see any record of that. But they had--they put, I think, some kind of facsimile of it with a golden horn so they could put the blood on it.

Jëan: Right, of course, what made the Ark of the Covenant so special was the law written by the finger of God on the tables of stone inside the ark. That could never be reproduced. So, they had, like you say, maybe a box of some kind or something to kind of represent where it stood in the most holy place. Okay, thanks, Nicole. Good question. We got Dana listening in New York, and she's calling about what does the Bible say about praise dancing. Dana, welcome to the program.

Dana: Yes, hi. How are you all doing?

Doug: Doing very well. Thank you.

Dana: All right. God bless you both. So, my question is, what do you think about modern praise dancing where some churches may have an individual or group, mostly females dressed in a long dress of some sort, and then they perform different bodily movements to a gospel song? What do you think about that form of worship, and is it biblical?

Doug: Well, you're asking, is it biblical? There's only three or four examples of dancing. Now, the word dance is mentioned more than three or four times, but you've got, of course, where David danced before the ark. That was not in the temple or on the Sabbath day. He's bringing the ark up to the house of God. Then you have when the women came out following a victory. Like when David and Saul beat the Philistines the women came out and sang songs, and that was customary that they'd go out and greet and celebrate a victory. When Miriam led the women after crossing the Red Sea, because of the victory over the Egyptians they would sing. The women only danced with women. This is not happening in the sanctuary. The ones who led out in praise and music in the sanctuary were typically the Levites and the sons of Asaph, which were, I think, Levites if I'm not mistaken. They were the musicians. I was reading about that this week in 1 Chronicles, I think, 25. But I don't see any example of women dancing or recreating songs in the temple on the Sabbath.

Jëan: And the type of dancing, as you mentioned, Pastor Doug, is very different even from what we see today in some churches. Even today if you go to Israel and you go to the Wailing Wall even on Friday evening or on the Sabbath, you'll have two groups. You have the men on the one side. You have the women on the other side. And they usually form a circle, and they'll sing and they'll move around in a circle. That's a little different than having four or five people standing on the stage, you know, waving a banner or moving around to music with a scarf or something. It's total--it was a totally different type of celebration.

Doug: Yeah. Yeah. The focus in Israel at the Wailing Wall--of course, that's not even in the temple. That's in the wall outside. The focus there was really just to welcome the Sabbath, and they usually were singing a--some kind of a biblical song. It was a--usually repeating some biblical promise or song. Yeah, yeah. I've seen this before. I know just what you're talking about, and it kind of it--I just couldn't picture that happening in the synagogue of Jesus. Anyway, thanks. I appreciate your question.

Jëan: All right, next caller that we have is Junith listening in Nevada, and she's asking about Hagar. Junith, welcome to the program.

Junith: Hi. Hello. Hello, and good evening to both of you. Thanks for taking my call. My question is, what could have happened that Hagar and Abraham did not have Ishmael?

Doug: Okay, well, if Ishmael was not in the picture, of course-- well, of course, if Sarah did not encourage Abraham to use Hagar as a surrogate, I guess it was more than a surrogate, a concubine, well then Isaac would have been born and a lot of the problems that are in the world today between the descendants of Ishmael and the descendants of Isaac would probably not be happening. If you're asking what if Hagar did not have a child, well then again it would probably be a non-event. Eventually, Sarah would have. So, whenever you say what if you start to speculate, and you can go wild trying to speculate how God would have orchestrated things because you really don't know. People say, "What would have happened if Eve ate the fruit and Adam didn't?" Have you ever heard that one? So, I don't even try to answer that because you'll lose every time.

Jëan: All right. Well, thank you, Junith. We've got Julie in South Dakota. She's got a question about the close of probation. Julie, welcome to the program.

Julie: Well, thank you. I appreciate you taking my call. I was wondering if there's a correlation between the closing of probation with God shutting the door to Noah's ark seven days prior to the rain. Because I was thinking maybe like seven years prior to Jesus returning that God would, you know, close the door to salvation and we can no longer be saved during those seven years.

Doug: Well, is there a correlation? There is in the sense that life went on outside the ark for a period of time even after their destiny was sealed. I don't think the seven days of Noah re--because it's not a prophecy--are representing seven years. For one thing, can you imagine what the world would look like after one year of the oceans and fresh water being blood and men being scorched with great heat and people suffering with a noisome sore? I think the time for the seven plagues is going to be more like the time of the ten plagues that fell on Egypt. When you track that, it probably happened within a period of about a month, a month and a half. It came in quick order. Like the plagues that fell on Job, it seemed like they came rather quickly, lasted a few weeks, and--so I don't see the seven last plagues when probation closes. There's really no purpose in God allowing the world to suffer for 7 years with the righteous still here surrounded with that misery. There's no--they can't be lost. There's no benefit. No one's being converted.

Jëan: Yeah, we do have a verse on that also: Revelation chapter 18, verse 8. Easy verse to remember. It's talking about the plagues. So, then we know the plagues come after probation closes. It says, "Therefore her plagues," speaking of Babylon, "will come in one day--death and mourning and famine. And she shall be utterly burned with fire." So, the Bible seems to indicate that; yes, once probation closes and the plagues begin to fall, once the plagues start falling, it's about the period of a year. And if you look at the makeup of the plagues, like you say, the earth probably can't keep going much longer if all of this--you know, the plagues are falling and, like you say, the sea is turning to blood, the fresh water is turning to blood. There's famine, the--intense heat, fires. So--all right. Hopefully that helps.

Doug: Thank you.

Jëan: Next caller that we have is Wade in Minnesota. Wade, welcome to the program. You have a question about 2 Thessalonians.

Wade: Yeah. Thank you. Yeah, I'm trying to figure out who the he is in 2 Thessalonians 2:7 and when that verse will be fulfilled.

Doug: Yeah, let's read this for our friends that are listening. Speaking of, we believe, the Antichrist power, it says, "For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. He who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way." So, the he is capital H, the Holy Spirit is going to restrain the work of the devil, the lawless one. So, you're wondering about the he there who does the restraining. I believe that's the Spirit. Is that your understanding?

Wade: Yes.

Doug: Yeah.

Jëan: Yeah.

Doug: Yeah, so the Holy Spirit is restraining. And you can read in the days of Noah, when wickedness increased in the earth God's Spirit was restraining. It says, "My Spirit will not always strive with men." There'll come a day when once again the Spirit will be withdrawn and no longer strive with people and then kind of demons have free reign at that point, and it's going to get pretty hairy scary on the world at that time.

Jëan: All right.

Doug: Thank you.

Jëan: Next caller that we have is Ryan in New Mexico. Ryan, welcome to the program.

Ryan: Hello. How are y'all doing today?

Doug: Doing good. Thank you for calling.

Ryan: My question is, isn't the 7-day cycle have Babylonian roots that started from--it would be sun worship.

Doug: All right. Well, let's talk about that. It is true the Babylonians also recognize a 7-day week. Most of the world--well, everyone in the world recognizes a 7-day week now. The Babylonians, they worshiped the sun on the first day of the week, and then Egypt also the sun was the principal god of worship. With the Greeks and the Romans, it was Apollo, Jupiter. So--and that's where you get the word Sunday. So, in that sense, the Sunday part of the Babylonian worship trickled down through other empires. And when we were talking about Babylon earlier, not only was there a war between Israel and Babylon but you go back to the Tower of Babel and, you know, it--you can see two camps actually split way back then. But the weekly cycle begins in Genesis where God creates the world in six days and then He creates another day as a day of rest that we call the seventh day and the Sabbath. That didn't come from the Babylonians, that--the Bible tells us that goes all the way back to the beginning.

Jëan: And it's not just the sun god that was worshiped, you know, for one day during the week. Of course, you have Monday, which is connected with the moon god. And so, you know, all of these pagan traditions and cultures, they would look to the heavens and they'd see these different planets and they would name them a god and they would worship them on a specific day. But what's amazing is that they also followed a 7-day week, a 7-day cycle and there's nothing in the natural realm--you know, it's not because the earth is spinning on its, you know, axis or it's going around the sun or the moon. All of--you know, you talk about years and you've got months and you've got days. We all--we can see something in nature, but when it comes to the 7-day week the only evidence for that or the only reason for that is back in Genesis chapter 1.

Doug: Yeah. Absolutely. Well, thank you. Appreciate that. Maybe we have time for another call before our break.

Jëan: All right. We've got James listening in Texas. James, welcome to the program.

James: Yes, sir. Hi. Thank you for taking my call tonight. My question is, does God have a sin? Like in--I've heard in Exodus chapter 20, verses 3 through 5 where it does say--or even God com--says Himself that He is a jealous God. But ain't jealousy a sin?

Doug: Good. Good question. Yeah. God says, "I'm a jealous God." And this is an emotion that is appropriate. If a man is married, he loves his wife and he feels no protection or possessiveness if someone is infringing on their relationship, that is unnatural. When God says He's a jealous God, it means He loves us and He's not willing to share that love with another god or an idol. That is normal. That is healthy. And so, some people are obsessed with inappropriate jealousy. They're just not trusting their spouse when there's no reason for distrust. That's inappropriate. So, we think about a person who's, you know, jealous that someone else is prospering. That's inappropriate. But biblical jealousy that you would have in a love relationship is normal and acceptable. This is what God is talking about.

Jëan: Okay. Very good. Well, I'm looking at the clock, Pastor Doug. We've got 20 seconds before we're going to take a break. Of course, the program's not over. We just halfway through.

Doug: The best is yet to come.

Jëan: That's right. So, when--stand by. We'll be--call your friends. Tell them. You know, we still got a half an hour to answer your Bible questions, and we will be back in just a few moments. We'll take a break and then answer more Bible questions.

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Doug: We are back. Welcome, friends, again to "Bible Answers Live." If you're tuning in along the way, we are a live, international, interactive Bible study. We're not only on radio stations, satellite, land based. We are streaming on the Amazing Facts Facebook page, the Doug Batchelor Facebook, YouTube channel, and a number of other outlets. And we're just so thankful that we could be studying the Word with you. My name is Doug Batchelor.

Jëan: My name is Jëan Ross, and we've got Jay in Canada that he's standing by with a question about 1 Timothy chapter 2. Jay, welcome to the program.

Jay: Yeah. So, my question is for that verse that says, "I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority for--over a man. She must remain silent." My question is, is that just for the culture of the day or is that still applied today maybe only in the church or just applied today in general?

Doug: No. I think that generally speaking in spiritual matters Paul's not saying that, you know, in a marriage there are areas in domestic life where women are in charge. You know, Karen and I have a good working relationship. There are certain things that she does and certain things that I do, and she is the chief of certain areas. But when it comes to being the priest of the family, spiritual leader--and the church is an extension. Church is a combination of families. Men are to be--are supposed to be the spiritual leaders in their households. Now, in the case where a woman becomes a believer and she's married to an unbeliever, she will need to take the lead on teaching the children the Word. But in a regular Christian family the man should be taking the lead, and you only see men offering sacrifice and fulfilling the priestly functions in the Bible. So, there is a distinction in roles. But does that mean a woman can never speak in the church? No. Because we have examples in the Bible where women did speak. But it's talking about having--teaching of the authority. The final authority was to rest with the men.

Jëan: Also, if you read on a little further in the chapter, Paul talks about having all things done decently and in order. It appears that there were some issues that were being addressed, especially in the church of Corinth where there was a little bit of chaos from time to time, it seems, in the church where people were talking over other people and there was too much noise and perhaps the woman in the group in the church were calling down to their men who was sitting in a different area. And Paul is saying, "No, let's keep reverent. Let's do everything decent and in order. And, you know, this is not the time to talk back and forth during the service."

Doug: I know it probably surprises people. You and I have traveled a lot. We've been in churches where--in the Middle East and India the men and women do not sit together, and the object the--they're figuring, you know, keep your mind pure, so they separate them. And women in Corinth were maybe calling across the aisle, so to speak, or up to the balcony and--asking their husbands questions, kind of embarrassing their husbands. And Paul said, "Talk at home. Don't do that here."

Jëan: In other words, they were calling down to their husband. "Did you hear that? Are you listening? Pay attention." All right, next caller that we have is Amanda in Nebraska. Amanda, welcome to the program.

Amanda: Hello.

Doug: Hi. Thanks for calling.

Amanda: Yeah, I just had a question on Leviticus 19:23 through 25. Do you have any idea what that significance could be?

Doug: Yeah, let me read that for our friends. "When you come into the land and you've planted all kinds of trees for food, then you shall count their fruit as uncircumcised. Three years it shall be uncircumcised to you. It shall not be eaten. But in the fourth year all the fruit shall be holy, a praise to the Lord. In the fifth year you may eat its fruit and it may yield to you its increase. I am the Lord Your God." That in particular or are you talking about the--I think that's the main one you're talking about. Is that right, Amanda?

Amanda: Yeah.

Doug: Yeah, the--I know that so--yeah, I know that may seem a little odd, but they're actually trees that start bearing fruit. They--just like a lot of creatures, they have a maturity where the fruit will be, I think, the best after a few years of bearing. If you strip a tree too much when it's young, it also can't--might not survive. It's almost like it needs to grow a little bit and then you're going to have the best fruit. There may be a spiritual analogy to that. Often, the first fruits belonged to the Lord when it came to animals giving birth. And so, this may have been something where they said, you know, "Take the fruit. Give it to the creatures." But it belongs to the Lord for--the first few years.

Jëan: And then actually the promise is that it'll produce even more fruit. And we know that if the plant has a chance to kind of--you know, those first few years it's important. So, there's practical reasons, but also it's a recognition that everything comes from God. He provides food for us. He sustains us. So it's dual application, I think. Dual meaning there. Thank you, Amanda. We've got Ellen listening in North Carolina, and she's got a question about the second commandment. Ellen, welcome to the program.

Ellen: Oh, hi. Thank you so much, pastors, for taking my call. I just have to thank you. We--my family has learned so much from this program. Thank you for this ministry. The second commandment, pretty basic and I'm having trouble. I know Jesus said, you know, "Remember me." And he was a man. So--and also with, you know, different teachings and even in Sunday school for the children--or Saturday school for the children with kids’ stories and pictures of Jesus, movies of Jesus, the Ten Commandments. Could you speak about that please in terms of what it says in Deuteronomy and the second commandment?

Doug: Yes, it's in both Deuteronomy and in Exodus where you find the Ten Commandments. Let me just read it for our friends. "You'll not make for yourself a carved image--any likeness of anything in the heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down yourself to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord Your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children unto the third and fourth generations of those that hate Me, but showing mercy and to thousands of those who love Me and keep My commandments." God did not want us making images of anything and worshiping it.

This is not a complete or a comprehensive prohibition about making any kind of a likeness of anything by itself. It said do not make a likeness and bow down to it. Proof for that would be a little later you see in the Bible where God instructs Moses to make a bronze serpent of all things. Jesus even refers to that. They looked at it and they would live. They were healed from the venom. When Solomon built the temple, he put this great big bronze bathtub that held the water for the priest to wash. It wasn't for their--them to climb in. It was on 12 oxen. Now, they weren't to pray to the oxen, and they all knew that. It was just ornamental. In the sanctuary, God told them that they were to engrave angels on the walls of the holy place and in the veil.

So, God wouldn't say, "Don't do this. Don't make any kind of a likeness of anything or you'll be killed." And then say, "Now don't forget to make images of cherubim on top of the ark." There are two angels on top of the ark. The key is we shouldn't pray to these things. Now, there is a risk. You know, I think whenever we start making representations or facsimiles or paintings or statues of Jesus some people are, you know, like inclined to pray to those things. They think there's some kind of a sacred relic. During the time of Hezekiah when the people started burning incense to the bronze serpent that somehow had survived all those years, he said that's just a piece of brass and he crushed it and threw it away just like Moses crushed the golden calf and said, "Drink the water. Don't worship these things."

So, I don't know if that helps a little bit; but yeah, it's not a sin to make a representation of something. We need to be careful if people are--I know I'm kind of hemming and hawing here because I sure don't want to lead anyone wrong. I was with Karen in Russia. It's interesting. The Catholic Church prays to statues, but in the Orthodox Church they pray to paintings. And we brought as gifts to Russia paintings from the book of Revelation because we were doing a Revelation seminar. When the pastors saw that, they kind of rolled their eyes thinking, "What's happened to the American church?" Because they tell their people--he said, "These folks are going to pin that up on the wall and put a candle in front of it and they're going to pray to this picture that you've got from the book of Revelation." And I thought, "Oh, man, I don't want to do anything to make anyone stumble." So, you got to keep that in mind as well. You know, a lot of good Christian people might have a picture of Jesus at the Last Supper on the wall and they don't pray to it, and it--it's not any kind of a relic, it's a piece of art. So, there's a balance there. But if you have any doubts, do the safe thing.

Jëan: Okay, thank you very much. Next caller that we have is Paul in Australia, and he has a question about John chapter 8, verse 56. Paul, welcome to the program.

Paul: Thank you. Thank you so much for answering my call. My question is John chapter 8, verse 56. Jesus said to the Jews, that is Abraham, "Your father Abraham will see my day and rejoice." So, which mean that is Abraham in the heaven or he's not in the heaven? If in the heaven, why the Bible is not record it? And if it's not in the heaven, why did Jesus say that?

Doug: Yeah, when Jesus said, "Abraham saw my day and he rejoiced," your father Abraham rejoiced to see, that means he rejoiced looking forward to his day. When Abraham took his son up on the mountain and offered his only begotten son--he didn't quite complete the offering because an angel stopped him. God, I think, revealed to Abraham, "I am going to give My Son." And Abraham understood that God so loved the world He would give His Son. He saw--Abraham then saw on Mount Moriah the day of Christ coming. He understood what the mission of Christ was and he rejoiced. It doesn't mean Abraham was up in heaven looking down and rejoicing because Abraham's dead. He's sleeping until the Resurrection. So, it says Abraham slept.

Jëan: So, one might say that Abraham saw it in vision perhaps. God revealed to him what was yet to come. Okay, very good. Well, thank you. Thanks, Paul. Hopefully that helps. We got Joseph in Florida, and Joseph is asking a question about Matthew chapter 18. Joseph, welcome to the program.

Joseph: Hi. Thank you for taking my call. The question I had was when Peter had asked Jesus, "How many times should I forgive my brother?" and he said up to seven times thinking that that was, you know, the limit or the ultimate, and Jesus referred no, 7 times 70. That--was he reflecting to the 70-week prophecy, the 490-day year prophecy of Daniel 9:24 that God had allotted to the Jewish nation to repent?

Doug: You know, that's very perceptive because Daniel in chapter 9 is praying, and God had been so merciful with the nation. He's wondering, "How long, you know, will You bear with Your people?" Because He--God answers and says 70 weeks are cut off for the nation. There would be 70 times 7, 490 years of mercy now. And you find seven is often associated with forgiveness. It says God cast seven devils out of Mary Magdalene. A righteous man falls seven times and rises again. Job says, "He will deliver me in six times. Yes, seven. No evil will befall me." So, the number seven is often associated with perfect forgiveness, which is probably why Peter said seven times. But Jesus said, "No, 70 times 7." Now, God is not in heaven with a ledger that is counting how many times you sin because all of us listening probably would have used up our 490 times a long time ago. He's basically saying that as long as we're willing to genuinely repent He will forgive. So, yeah, beautiful thought. But I do think there's kind of an illusion there he's making.

Jëan: That's right. Sort of there is a probationary time coming. Forgiveness does end at some point. All right, thank you. We've got Chelsea in Florida. Chelsea, welcome to "Bible Answers Live."

Chelsea: Hi, good evening. How are you both?

Doug: Good.

Chelsea: So my question is, how do I explain to other Christians of different denominational backgrounds basically the importance of studying biblical doctrines, like the truth about hell, the Second Coming? And also, if they've never been exposed to like the three-angels message and the truth and revelation--like, for example, I guess we're setting the truth about hell fire and then like maybe if someone says, "Well, these details don't really matter. It just matters if we all believe in Jesus Christ and that he's our Savior and that's it. We don't have to really study the details." So how do I explain the importance of these doctrines to them?

Doug: Well, that's a great question. And I was exercising my mind about that just last week in visiting with some friends. And yeah, a lot of Christians will say, "Well, as long as we love the Lord--" And it is true that love for God is premier, and there are going to be Christians from many faiths in heaven. But understanding doctrine affects our picture of God. For example, the unbiblical teaching that the wicked burn through ceaseless ages for the sins of one lifetime it distorts the picture of God and makes Him look like He's unjust and He enjoys watching His creatures suffer. There is a hell and there is a punishment. People need to understand that. But the idea that zillions of years go by, and they've never even begun burning is just a horrific thought when you think about it, and the Bible doesn't teach that. So, understanding the truth about that doctrine actually sets you free. Jesus said the truth will set you free. So, I would tell people that misunderstanding the particulars changes their ability to love God. They can love Him more when they understand the truth.

Jëan: And then also I think it's important for us to realize that as we near the end of time the truths that have been revealed in Scripture and especially in prophecy are extremely important to help us so we are not deceived. Because the Jesus said in the last days there will be many false prophets and many false christs and they deceive many. So we need to test everything by the Word of God. And so understanding these important truths will be a safeguard to help us in the last days in particular. For example, before Jesus came the first time, people had different ideas. But if you didn't understand the nature of Christ's first coming, meaning that he was going to come as a Savior and you thought he was going to come as a conquering king; if you misunderstood how Christ was going to come, you very likely would reject him. So, at the last days, you know, understanding how Jesus will come and the scenes connected with that becomes very important because we don't want to be set up by the devil impersonating the Second Coming of Jesus.

Doug: Good point. Yeah. The person of not knowing the truth about that doctrine can set them up for a major deception. Hope that helps. Thank you, Chelsea. A good, good point.

Jëan: All right. We've got Jordan in Georgia. Jordan, welcome to the program.

Jordan: I just had a question on how do I study the Bible and, like, take notes and stuff like that.

Doug: That's--well, that's a good question. Everyone does it a little different. I know Karen when she's listening to a sermon she's got a separate pad. She takes notes and she sticks them in her Bible and her Bible ends up being twice its original size because she's inserting papers all the time. Some people when they're studying the Bible--I have a color-coded--it's like a pencil that's got three or four different colored crayons in it that I can click down and I underline, and the different colors mean different things. So, as I'm preaching it helps me highlight. And then I take a pencil and I write in the margin a few words. So that helps me in my Bible study. We use Bible software. I use a program called Logos where I can actually make notes in the software that will reappear later. So, I save my notes, and you can copy them and back them up so you don't ever lose them. And--so some people now are transferring a lot of their study to digital notes in Bible study, and that's actually--computers have accelerated my study ability 100 times from when I started.

Jëan: You know, I've got a whole bunch of stuff on my computer, but the most important file that I've got on my computer are all of the sermon notes and the study notes over the years. I'll make sure I backed that up on the cloud because I don't want to lose that. I like to study, and I like to do cross reference. I like to read commentaries on the different verses and then kind of condense it down to central thought of what's the takeaway from that verse, so to speak. And then I like to keep that together. So, find something that works and it'll enhance your Bible study.

Doug: Yeah. Some people take more notes. Some people actually use a recorder. When I'm driving down the road I have a tape recorder, an old-fashioned little handheld tape recorder, and I record thoughts that come to me because I know I'll forget by the time I get home.

Jëan: All right. Thank you. Next caller that we have is Cindy, and she is listening in Florida. Cindy, welcome to "Bible Answers Live."

Cindy: Thank you, pastors. I appreciate your ministry. I've been watching Pastor Ross on my YouTube on "Sabbath School" on Daniel and "Pinnacles of Prophecy." I watched doctor--doctor--Pastor Batchelor. So, my question in general is regarding Daniel and Revelation. Why did Christ in prophecy use like animals, the rams, the goats, the bear, the earth water, all those?

Doug: Right, the different symbols. Well, two things. One, he uses the symbols because most of the apocalyptic prophecies were written while God's people were captive with--under another nation. You had--for instance, Babylon had occupied the Jews when Daniel had his prophecies, and some of the prophecies talk about the fall of Babylon. So those sym--those things are couched in symbols. Babylon's a lion, for example. By the way, when they excavated Babylon, they found lions with wings on the walls, which is what they saw in vision. Then another thing to keep in mind is the Israelites were shepherds. It was a nation of shepherds to begin with. So, when it's talking about the sheep and the goat that are fighting, those are clean animals. Then you get to the bear, the leopard, the lion, those are unclean animals. There's actually meaning there as well. So, you know, these common animals were used as symbols and--you know, in the Bible, a lamb, of course a type of Christ. Water represented a multitude of people. Stormy waters represented times of trouble. These symbols are given other places. Jesus said that, "I speak to you in parables that though the wise will understand." He wants us to dig a little bit.

Jëan: And of course, some of the things that are revealed in prophecy really have to do with kingdoms that were in power at the time. So, for example, if you go to the 1st century early Christian church, there are things revealed in Bible prophecy that probably those who were in power had they clearly understood it, it might have brought even more persecution. So, it was couched in symbolism that the wise would understand it, those who are studying. But those who shouldn't know about it didn't understand it, and that was true all through the Middle Ages to the dark ages.

Doug: Okay. Hope that helps a little.

Jëan: All right, next caller that we have is--let's see. We've got Janet in California. Janet, welcome to the program. Janet: Hi, yeah, my question is, so, if you're saved and when you die you go to heaven and--when people die, a lot of people say that, "Okay, they're in heaven now and they're with other loved ones or friends," or whatever. And in the Bible when it talks about Jesus going back for his people, it says how the dead will go and then the living. So where are you really when you're dead?

Doug: Yeah. Well, you're very perceptive. It's--a lot of misunderstandings about this. You know, you read that passage in 2 Corinthians where it says, "to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord." And for a believer, your next conscious thought when you die is the Resurrection, but it hasn't happened yet. So, the dead are not up there now roaming around looking down on us. The Bible tells us in Ecclesiastes chapter 9, the living know they'll die. The dead don't know anything. David says in Psalms the dead do not praise the Lord. Hezekiah repeats something similar. The--Jesus said, "Our friend Lazarus is asleep." So, when a person dies, they are sleeping a dreamless sleep with no consciousness of time. So, for them the next conscious thought if they're saved is the Second Coming. The trumpet blows. They come out of the graves. Right now, they are resting in peace. That's why you get that on the tombstones that used to say R-I-P, RIP, resting in peace.

So, until the Resurrection, the Judgment hasn't happened yet. So, for the Lord to take people and put them in heaven or hell before the Resurrection and before the Judgment and then pull them out again to judge them wouldn't make any sense. What confuses people is they forget that God lives outside of time. For us in this world, the Resurrection hasn't happened. People are asleep. The Bible says those that are in their graves will hear his voice and come forth. Where are they? They're in their graves until the Resurrection. So, we have a study guide. We can send a free copy of that to Janet and anyone who wants to know about that subject.

Jëan: Yeah, just call the number 800-835-6747 and you can ask for the study guide. It's called "Are the Dead Really Dead?" We'll be happy to send it to anyone who calls and asks. That's 800-835-6747. You can also dial #250 on your smartphone, say Bible answers live, ask for the study guide "Are the Dead Really Dead?" And we can send it to you digitally. So you'll be able to read it right along. We also have a website called deathtruth.com that's filled with a lot of great studies and resources and sermons. So take a look at that. All right. Thank you. Do we have Patty on the line, Patty in Idaho?

Patty: Hi. Hi, pastors.

Doug: Hi. How are you?

Patty: Good. Good. I have a question. I think I'm really trying to gain some better understanding of God's character, my question. But Revelation 7--or 1:7 says, "He is coming with the clouds. Every eye will see him, even those who pierced him." And so, my question is, is it--I guess I operate under the idea that those who pierced him are not saved. So, they should be a part of the second resurrection after the Millennium. But he does a special--or what seems to me a special resurrection for those. Which I know God's character is perfect, but me as a human when I read this I can't help but think it's boastful.

Doug: Yeah. Well, I do believe that when the Lord comes there is a special resurrection. Jesus said at his trial to the high priest, "Hereafter, you will see the Son of man coming in the clouds of glory on the right hand of power." So, there will be some who are raised that actually see that, and it's like a special resurrection. It's an exception.

Jëan: But it's also just in response to the demand. They wanted evidence. They said, "Are you the Christ?" And they kept pushing him. And finally, Jesus said, "Well, if you want evidence, you'll get it. You'll see me coming in the clouds of glory."

Doug: Yes. Absolutely. You know, Pastor Ross, we don't have time to run another question before we take our break. Some people may not know that we take the break in two sections here. We have some who are listening on satellite radio, and they sign off on a different clock than those who are on land-based stations. For those who are on the land-based stations, if you stay by, we're going to take a few moments and go through some rapid fire Bible questions that come in on the internet. And if you have those questions, we're going to tell you how to send them in in just a moment. For the rest of you, God bless. If you've not made your decision to make Jesus Lord of your life, do that now. We'll be back.

Announcer: Thank you for listening to today's broadcast. We hope you understand your Bible even better than before. "Bible Answers Live" is produced by Amazing Facts International, a faith-based ministry located in Granite Bay, California.

Jëan: Hello, friends. Welcome back to "Bible Answers Live," those of you who are able to stay by for our email questions. If you'd like to send us a question via email, the email address is just simply BALquestions@amazingfacts.org, BALquestions@amazingfacts.org. Pastor Doug, first question tonight, "Why do we wear shoes in church if being in the presence of God is on holy ground?"

Doug: Well, there are a few exceptions in the Bible when it tells us that God told Joshua and He told Moses, "Take your shoes off. You're on holy ground." They were in the physical presence of the Christ and God's glory at that time. It doesn't tell us that the Levites were to take their shoes off when they went into the temple, and, you know, they were ministering for the Lord. So, the high priest may have done that when he went in on the holy days, on the--what do you call it? The Day of Atonement. But I think on day to day they were, you know, busy butchering animals and stuff. Some countries do. If that's the custom for respect, I'd say do whatever they do. You and I were at a church in India that had over 100,000 members and several services. They all took off their shoes before they came in. It was really--and they managed--most of them got their shoes back after the service. So, I'd say whatever--do whatever is respectful.

Jëan: Okay, another question that we have, "Can you explain the rapture of the church?"

Doug: Yeah, well, the--God is not going to rapture the church separately from when He raptures the saints. Some people think that from Revelation chapter 4 on is--the church goes to heaven when it says, "I saw a door open in heaven." I respectfully disagree. I don't think that's what is happening there in Revelation chapter 4. Several things in Revelation, after chapter 4, describe the church in the world. It's not just talking about Israel. And so, the idea that the church is going to be raptured and saved from tribulation, that's a pleasant thought. But my Bible says he that endures to the end will be saved and that God's people are going to be saved through tribulation, not from tribulation. And I think we even have a book on that. If they read "Anything but Secret." You can ask for a free copy of "Anything but Secret," and that will explain that subject.

Jëan: All right, last question. "Do you think Judas Iscariot would have been forgiven if he repented after the Resurrection?"

Doug: Well, of course he killed himself before the Resurrection. But I think if he had sincerely repented, Jesus would have forgiven him. But he had grieved away the Holy Spirit there in the Upper Room. He kind of had his last chance when Jesus offered to wash his feet, and the Bible says that Satan entered him. He went out, and it was night. Friends don't let that happen to you. And God willing we're going to be studying His Word again next week. Keep Jesus first in your life, and we'll get together. And go to amazingfacts.org.

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