Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep

John 4:11
The woman said to Him, “Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. Where then do You get that living water?

Just continuing from the previous post, we often forget who Jesus or God is. Miracles are so rare that, even when it happens, it seems such an extraordinary thing. If we get used to the idea that Jesus is Almighty, then the miracles would not be surprising at all. In fact it would be surprising if God's deeds are not miraculous. So do we really know God to the point that whatever he does, we would not be surprised by it? So if Jesus says he will give us living water, just take it and be thankful - he has a lot more from where that came from.

Where then do You get that living water?

John 4:11
11 The woman said to Him, “Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. Where then do You get that living water?

There must be several times in our lives for us believers, when we questioned God's promises. It may be like the seemingly innocent question of the woman at the well. We meant no hostility towards Jesus when we ask those questions. We earnestly wanted to know how Jesus could do something for us which seems so incredible.

Therein lies the danger in which we are actually doubting our Lord's divine ability. It is not wrong for us to not understand or comprehend how Jesus can do remarkable things for our benefit, because our minds and intellect are very limited. However when the question arises from doubt, then it shows that our faith in our Lord has wavered because we are doubting His divine nature. If He said He can do it, He surely can do it.

The waters which you saw, where the harlot sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues

Revelation 17:7-18

There are things the Scripture describes using allegory / symbolic and there are things which are literal. For the most cases when it is not literal, as in this chapter, the Scripture itself will provide the explanation. Hence in other parts of Scripture which does not give specific explanations, they are generally meant to be taken as literal.

In this chapter, the Woman and the Beast are symbolic and are explained by the angel. The beast is said to be "Was, is not, and yet is". The angel does not explain more than that. People have usually taken this to mean that the Beast represents the Anti-Christ and that he will be mortally wounded and appeared to have died. And then the Beast would come back to life again, causing people to think that he was resurrected.

There's another phrase about they "whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world". This might mean the non-believers, those who choose not to follow Y'shua Jesus. The interesting part about this is that they may have been pre-determined not to be in the book of life from the beginning.

More details are revealed that the seven heads of the beast are actually seven mountains. They may correspond to seven kingdoms with seven kings. At that time, five kings have already been known and fallen, one king is there at that time, and there will be one more to come. The seventh kings will reign a short time and will give rise to the resurrected beast who will be the eighth king.

The ten horns are another set of ten kings with no kingdoms, but will be given to reign a short time with the beast at the End Times. The fact that the have no kingdoms, has led to some interpretation that they are spiritual beings, followers of the Enemy, rather than earthly kings. They will worship and support the beast and will be ultimately defeated by the Lamb.

Finally the woman is revealed as the great city which "reigns over the kings of the earth". This may be a capital of a united world of kingdoms. The water which the woman sits on is also revealed as peoples and  nations. So it seems to be an oppressive worldwide government. However, this worldwide regime will be opposed by the ten kings who worship the Beast. So although it seems like the evil forces are fighting with another evil force, the result is that the people of the nations who will endure great suffering in those battles.

MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT

Revelation 17:1-6

John was led by one of the seven angels and shown the Harlot woman and the Beast. Here are the descriptions of each:

The Harlot Woman
- sits on many waters
- commits fornication with kings of the earth, perhaps making some evil deals with them.
- cause the people to be drunk with fornication.
- sits on a scarlet beast. Is this the same woman?
- clothes in scarlet and purple with lots of jewelry
- holds a golden cup full of abomination and filthiness of her fornication
- drinks the blood of the saints and martyrs of Jesus. Probably means she is complicit in their destruction.

The Beast
- scarlet colour
- has seven heads and ten horns
- full of blasphemy

The Scriptures contain literal images as well as non literal ones. Usually when the images are non-literal such as the Woman and the Beast, then the Scripture itself would explain those images, as in this chapter. Hence there is no excuse for claiming some parts of Scripture to be allegorical when it is not meant to be.

To be continued...........




-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Revelation 17
The Scarlet Woman and the Scarlet Beast

1 Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and talked with me, saying to me,[a] “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters, 2 with whom the kings of the earth committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth were made drunk with the wine of her fornication.”

3 So he carried me away in the Spirit into the wilderness. And I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast which was full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. 4 The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, having in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the filthiness of her fornication.[b] 5 And on her forehead a name was written:

MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT,
THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS
AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS
OF THE EARTH.

6 I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. And when I saw her, I marveled with great amazement.

The Meaning of the Woman and the Beast

7 But the angel said to me, “Why did you marvel? I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and the ten horns. 8 The beast that you saw was, and is not, and will ascend out of the bottomless pit and go to perdition. And those who dwell on the earth will marvel, whose names are not written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world, when they see the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.[c]

9 “Here is the mind which has wisdom: The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits. 10 There are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, and the other has not yet come. And when he comes, he must continue a short time. 11 The beast that was, and is not, is himself also the eighth, and is of the seven, and is going to perdition.

12 “The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have received no kingdom as yet, but they receive authority for one hour as kings with the beast. 13 These are of one mind, and they will give their power and authority to the beast. 14 These will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, for He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and those who are with Him are called, chosen, and faithful.”

15 Then he said to me, “The waters which you saw, where the harlot sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues. 16 And the ten horns which you saw on[d] the beast, these will hate the harlot, make her desolate and naked, eat her flesh and burn her with fire. 17 For God has put it into their hearts to fulfill His purpose, to be of one mind, and to give their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God are fulfilled. 18 And the woman whom you saw is that great city which reigns over the kings of the earth.”

he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ

There are various supernatural players in this chapter, some of which could be symbolic, while others are real no matter how unlikely they may seem. The first two characters are the woman in travail and the great dragon.

The woman giving birth - she appears from heaven. She is clothed as bright as the sun, stepping on the moon and wears a crown of twelve stars. This may be a good character since she not only appears from heaven but is as brilliant as the sun, however we cannot be sure yet.

The great red dragon - it has seven heads, ten horns and seven crowns. It is written that its tail drew a third of the stars of heaven to earth. This is reminiscent of the Enemy who was cast down to earth with a third of the angels. The dragon was prepared to devour the baby as the woman gives birth. The baby is a boy and is destined to rule. The baby is soon taken to God's throne very soon after birth. The is similar to how the Lord Yshua was born into the world where the Enemy was waiting to destroy Him since birth. Yshua's life on earth was very brief and was soon at the right hand of God again, just as the baby boy's life was brief. The boy's mother fled and was protected for a thousand two hundred and sixty days. This period of time is three and a half years and is similar to the length of certain periods of tribulation already mentioned.

Going back to the reference of the woman, this cannot be representing the Virgin Mary, mother of Jesus. This woman is associated with too many imagery such as the sun, moon, stars, wings of eagle, flying to the wilderness and so on - she has to represent something other than a real woman. One possible explanation is that the woman represents Israel. In Genesis 37:9-10, Joseph dreamt of the sun, moon and 11 stars bowing to him. Jacob understood this dream to represent himself, his wife Rachel and his 11 other children. Also our Lord Jesus is born out of Israel.

Also the great battle that resulted in the casting down of the Evil One and his angels may not have been the past rebellion, but instead the final exile from Heaven which is still in the future. The rebellion may have happened in the past, but it seems the Evil One still had access to Heaven such as when he was accusing Job in front of God. So during this final exile or cast down to Earth, that would explain the "great wrath" and the "woe to the inhabitants of the earth" in that final time.

The final passage shows the supernatural protection on the woman (or Israel). The evil scheme against her fail so the Enemy turn the attention towards "her offspring" who have the "testimony of Jesus Christ". This offspring could possibly refer to gentile Christians. Even if the rapture has taken place, perhaps some of the remaining Gentiles will still have the chance of turning to Christ, but will face the great wrath of the Enemy.







Revelation 12
The Woman, the Child, and the Dragon

1 Now a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a garland of twelve stars. 2 Then being with child, she cried out in labor and in pain to give birth.

3 And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great, fiery red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems on his heads. 4 His tail drew a third of the stars of heaven and threw them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was ready to give birth, to devour her Child as soon as it was born. 5 She bore a male Child who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron. And her Child was caught up to God and His throne. 6 Then the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, that they should feed her there one thousand two hundred and sixty days.

Satan Thrown Out of Heaven

7 And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, 8 but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them[a] in heaven any longer. 9 So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

10 Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. 11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. 12 Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time.”

The Woman Persecuted

13 Now when the dragon saw that he had been cast to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male Child. 14 But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of the serpent. 15 So the serpent spewed water out of his mouth like a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away by the flood. 16 But the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the flood which the dragon had spewed out of his mouth. 17 And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.[b]

Afterward the Children of Israel shall Return and Seek the Lord their God

In this short chapter, God tells Hosea directly to take the harlot for a wife, and Hosea obediently does so. It is important to note that once Hosea bought and redeem the harlot and take her for his wife, she is not supposed to continue in her past sins. This applies to us and the future Israel who after returning to God, must put away their old ways. Instead, she must be faithful to Hosea only. God's aim is to use this as an illustration between himself, the husband, and Israel the harlot.




Hosea 3
Israel Will Return to God

1 Then the Lord said to me, “Go again, love a woman who is loved by a lover[a] and is committing adultery, just like the love of the Lord for the children of Israel, who look to other gods and love the raisin cakes of the pagans.”

2 So I bought her for myself for fifteen shekels of silver, and one and one-half homers of barley. 3 And I said to her, “You shall stay with me many days; you shall not play the harlot, nor shall you have a man—so, too, will I be toward you.”

4 For the children of Israel shall abide many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or sacred pillar, without ephod or teraphim. 5 Afterward the children of Israel shall return and seek the Lord their God and David their king. They shall fear the Lord and His goodness in the latter days.