Behold, he is coming with the clouds |
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Writer: Vassilis Zafeiroglou (September 25, 2018 Greece)
Biblical references from: ASV, ESV, AKJV and others if they fit better
with the Grk txt
The Ascension of the Lord
Jesus into the cloud
We know that, according to the scriptures,
Jesus appeared to Cephas after His resurrection, then to the twelve,
then to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, then to
James, then to all the apostles, and after his ascension, he
appeared to the apostle Paul, and so all of them became eyewitnesses
of His resurrection. The elected apostles and servants of the divine word
not only did they see Jesus for forty days after his resurrection, but they
also saw him ascending to heaven "in a cloud." (Luke
1:2, 1 Corinthians 15:4-8)
“In the
first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and
teach, until the day when he was
taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the
apostles whom he had chosen. He
presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs,
appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.”
(Acts 1:1-3)
“And
when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up,
and a cloud took him out of their sight.
And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two
men stood by them in white robes, and
said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus,
who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you
saw him go into heaven.” (Acts 1:9-11)
Through the words of the angel, who spoke to
them using the terminology of the prophets, just like Jesus did, a
very important piece of information emerged about the Second Coming of the
Lord Jesus Christ, which concerned the generation of the apostles:
“Men of Galilee, why do
you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into
heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”
(namely, in a cloud).
The importance of the cloud
For the Jewish disciples, the angel's words were of particular
importance. Besides, they had also heard the same words from Jesus. The
command they received to testify the resurrection of Jesus from the dead in
Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and in far countries, involved
persecutions, mockeries, losses, imprisonments, sorrows, and all kinds of
plots by Jews who were deniers of God's grace. Jesus' promise was that they
would receive power from above throughout their testimony, and after the
completion of their work he would come to reward them and take vengeance
on those who refused their testimony and saddened them. The apostle Paul
confirms:
“Seeing
it is a righteous thing with God to recompense tribulation to them that
trouble you; And to you who
are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed
from heaven with his mighty angels, In
flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not
the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: Who
shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the
Lord, and from the glory of his power;” (2 Thess. 1:6-9)
The consequences of the
Second Coming "in a cloud" for those who expected the
Savior Jesus to come would be different from the consequences for the
denying Jews who saddened them.
Jesus, having placed the siege of Jerusalem by the Romans as a sign
of his presence "in a cloud," said to them:
“And
then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with
power and great glory. And when
these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads;
for your redemption draws near.” (Luk. 21:27-28)
Very clearly, the word of
God proclaims that Jesus Christ would come for the Second Time "in
a cloud" during the lifespan of some of Jesus' disciples. In fact,
the disciples wouldn't have managed to preach the gospel of the Kingdom of
God to all the cities of Israel before the second coming of Jesus.
“For the
Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels;
and then he shall reward every man according to his works. Truly I say to you, There be some
standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see
the Son of man coming in his kingdom.” (Mat. 16:27-28)
“Behold,
I send you forth as sheep in the middle of wolves: be you therefore wise as
serpents, and harmless as doves. But
beware of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils,
and they will whip you in their synagogues;” (Mat. 10:16-17)
“But
when they persecute you in this city, flee you into another: for truly I
say to you, You shall not have gone over the cities of Israel,
till the Son of man be come.” (Mat. 10:23)
When God poured his wrath
upon a people or a man, he came against them/him with clouds
We will see below how the
prophets of the Old Testament illustrated the wrath that God sent against
every man and people that didn't keep His commandments, with clouds upon
which God rode.
“A Psalm of David, the
servant of the LORD, who addressed the words of this song to the LORD on
the day when the LORD rescued him from the hand of all his enemies,
and from the hand of Saul. He said: I love you, O LORD, my strength
…………………………. In my distress I called upon the LORD; to my God I cried for
help. From his temple he heard my voice, and my cry to him reached his
ears.
Then the earth reeled and rocked; the
foundations also of the mountains trembled and quaked,
because he was angry.
Smoke went up
from his nostrils, and devouring fire from his mouth; glowing coals
flamed forth from him.
He bowed the heavens and came down;
thick darkness was under his feet. He rode on a cherub and flew;
he came swiftly on the wings of the wind.
He made darkness his
covering, his canopy around him, thick clouds dark with water. Out
of the brightness before him hailstones and coals of fire broke through
his clouds.
The LORD also thundered in
the heavens, and the Most High uttered his voice, hailstones and coals of
fire. And he sent out his arrows and scattered them; he flashed forth
lightnings and routed them. Then the channels of the sea were seen, and
the foundations of the world were laid bare at your rebuke, O LORD, at
the blast of the breath of your nostrils.
He sent from on high, he
took me; he drew me out of many waters. He rescued me from my strong
enemy and from those who hated me, for they were too mighty for
me. They confronted me in the day of my calamity, but the LORD was my
support. He brought me out into a broad place; he rescued me,
because he delighted in me.” (Psalms 18:1-19)
From the words of the
above psalm, the parabolic speech used by the psalmist-prophet to show how
the destruction of his enemies would come from the glorious arm of the Lord
is very evident. God used "the clouds" in a parabolic way to
fulfill His purpose.
The Lord took revenge on
King Saul "flying upon the wings of the wind." The
Lord used "thick clouds of the skies." At the
brightness [that was] before him his thick clouds passed, hail
stones and coals of fire.
Those who study the Word
of God know that the wrath of the Lord against Saul came with the
Philistine army. In short, the enemies of the Israeli people and of Saul
came like "thick clouds of the skies" to bring destruction
to the disobedient and impious king.
Similarly, in the following psalm, it seems
that the judgment of God, which came with "clouds that
poured out water" against the Pharaoh of Egypt through Moses,
originates from the omnipresence and omnipotence of God.
“You are
the God who works wonders; you have made known your might among the
peoples. You with your arm
redeemed your people, the children of Jacob and Joseph. — Selah
When the
waters saw you, O God, when the waters saw you, they were afraid;
indeed, the deep trembled. The clouds
poured out water; the skies gave forth thunder; your arrows flashed on
every side.
The crash of your thunder
was in the whirlwind; your lightnings lighted up the world; the earth
trembled and shook.
Your way
was through the sea, your path through the great waters; yet your
footprints were unseen. You led
your people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron.” (Psalms 77:14-20)
“And we
cried aloud to the Lord; and he put a cloud and darkness
between us and the Egyptians, and he brought the sea upon
them, and covered them; and your eyes have seen all that the Lord did in
the land of Egypt; and ye were in the wilderness many days.” (Josh.
24:7, LXXE)
Jeremiah, prophesying about the coming of
Nebuchadnezzar against Jerusalem in his days, likens it to "a dry
wind of the high places in the wilderness toward the daughter of my
people," which "would come up as a cloud" and as a
"whirlwind."
“Behold,
he shall come up as a cloud, and his chariots as a tempest:
his horses are swifter than eagles. Woe unto us! for we are in misery. Cleanse thine heart from wickedness,
O Jerusalem, that thou mayest be saved: how long will thy grievous
thoughts be within thee? For a voice of one publishing from Dan shall
come, and trouble out of mount Ephraim shall be heard of.” (Jer. 4:13-15,
LXXE)
When God wanted to warn a people or a
kingdom of His upcoming correction through another people, he presented the
attacking people as a cloud.
“THE
VISION OF EGYPT. Behold, the Lord sits on a swift cloud, and shall
come to Egypt: and the idols of Egypt shall be moved at his presence, and
their heart shall faint within them.
And the
Egyptians shall be stirred up against the Egyptians: and a man shall fight
against his brother, and a man against his neighbor, city against city, and
law against law.” (Is. 19:1-2)
“At
Tehaphnehes the day shall be dark, when I break there the yoke
bars of Egypt, and her proud might shall come to an end in her; she
shall be covered by a cloud, and her daughters shall go into captivity.
Thus I will execute judgments on Egypt. Then they will know that
I am the LORD.” (EZ. 30:18-19)
Indeed, the final
destruction and fall of Egypt by the king of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar,
occurred in 572 BC.
“An
oracle concerning Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum of Elkosh.
The LORD
is a jealous and avenging God; the LORD is avenging and wrathful; the
LORD takes vengeance on his adversaries and keeps wrath for his enemies.
The LORD is slow to anger
and great in power, and the LORD will by no means clear the guilty. His
way is in whirlwind and storm, and the clouds are the dust of
his feet …………………….. The
LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; he knows those who take
refuge in him. But with an
overflowing flood he will make a complete end of the adversaries, and will
pursue his enemies into darkness.” (Nahum 1:1-8)
Apart from his wrath upon
the impious ones, God also pours his blessing upon his beloved ones through
his clouds
“Let
the heaven rejoice from above, and let the clouds rain righteousness:
let the earth bring forth, and blossom [with]
mercy, and bring forth righteousness likewise: I am the Lord that created
thee.” (Is. 45:8, LXXE)
“Behold,
God is great, and we know him not, neither can the number of his years be
searched out. For he makes small
the drops of water: they pour down rain according to the vapor thereof: Which the clouds do drop and distil on
man abundantly. Also can any
understand the spreading of the clouds, or the noise of his
tabernacle? Behold, he spreads
his light on it, and covers the bottom of the sea. For by them judges he the people; he
gives meat in abundance. With
clouds he covers the light; and commands it not to shine by the cloud
that comes between. The noise
thereof shows concerning it, the cattle also concerning the vapor.” (Job
36:29-33)
“Out of
the south comes the whirlwind: and cold out of the north. By the breath of God frost is given:
and the breadth of the waters is straitened.
Also by watering he wearies the thick cloud: he scatters
his bright cloud: And
it is turned round about by his counsels: that they may do whatever
he commands them on the face of the world in the earth. He causes
it to come, whether for correction, or for his land,
or for mercy. Listen to this,
O Job: stand still, and consider the wondrous works of God.” (Job 37:8-14)
It is very clear that God uses the celestial
phenomena (clouds, lightning, thunder, rain, hail,
cataclysm, storm, etc.) in a parabolic language to bring His
wrath upon the impious and disobedient ones or His blessing upon His
beloved ones.
The lamentations of
Jeremiah
In his lamentations,
Jeremiah foretells the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians. Someone
could say that this image prefigured the great destruction that would come
against the Jews of Jerusalem in the days of the Apostles.
“How has
the LORD covered the daughter of Zion with a cloud in his anger, and
cast down from heaven to the earth the beauty of Israel, and remembered not
his footstool in the day of his anger!” (Lam. 2:1)
The LORD
reigns; let the earth rejoice; let the multitude of isles be glad thereof. Clouds and darkness are round
about him: righteousness and judgment are the habitation of his throne. A fire goes before him, and burns up his
enemies round about. His lightning
enlightened the world: the earth saw, and trembled. The hills melted like wax at the presence
of the LORD, at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth. The heavens declare his righteousness,
and all the people see his glory.” (Ps. 97:1-6)
The last days of the
reign, of the God-established biological people of Israel, and of the
typical Judaism
Speaking of the last
days of the reign, of the fleshly people of Israel and of the
destruction of Jerusalem and of its Temple and of those who participated in
the persecution of the First Church of the Apostles of Jesus Christ, the
Lord proclaims:
Then
Moses commanded them, saying: “Assemble
unto me all the elders of your tribes, and your officers, that I may speak
these words in their ears, and call heaven and earth to witness against
them. For I know that after my
death ye will in any wise deal corruptly, and turn aside from the way which
I have commanded you; and evil will befall you in the end of days;
because ye will do that which is evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke
Him through the work of your hands.” (Deu. 31:28-29, Tanakh 1917, see also
CPDV and Darby)
“Rejoice,
ye heavens, with him, and let all the angels of God worship him; rejoice ye
Gentiles, with his people, and let all the sons of God strengthen
themselves in him; for he will avenge the blood of his sons, and he
will render vengeance, and recompense justice to his enemies,
and will reward them that hate him; and the Lord shall purge the land of his people.” (Deu.
32:43, LXXE see also ESV2011)
“In that
day the branch of the LORD shall be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit
of the land shall be the pride and honor of the survivors of Israel. And he who is left in Zion and remains
in Jerusalem will be called holy, everyone who has been
recorded for life in Jerusalem, (the book of life) when the Lord shall have washed away
the filth of the daughters of Zion and cleansed the bloodstains of
Jerusalem from its midst by a spirit of judgment and by a spirit of
burning.” (Is. 4:2-4)
“The
kings of the earth did not believe, nor any of the inhabitants of the
world, that foe or enemy could enter the gates of Jerusalem. This was for the sins of her prophets
and the iniquities of her priests, who shed in the midst of
her the blood of the righteous.” (Lam. 4:12)
“And
they threw dust on their heads as they wept and mourned, crying out, “Alas,
alas, for the great city where all who had ships at sea grew
rich by her wealth! For in a single hour she has been laid waste.
Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you
saints and apostles and prophets, for God has given
judgment for you against her!” (Rev. 18:19-20)
“And in
her was found the blood of prophets and of saints, and of all
who have been slain on earth.” (Rev. 18:24)
In the last days of the
apostles' generation, the disobedient Jews would unleash a terrible
persecution against the believers of the true church of Jesus Christ with
the help of the Romans. Indeed, in the last three and a half years of
Nero's reign, from 64-68 AD, the worst until then persecution of Christians
took place in Rome, motivated by the Jews of Rome with the help of his
wife, Poppaea.
But the Romans who
supported the Jews against the Christians would become the instrument of
the annihilation of the entire renegade Jewish people by the Emperor
Vespasian and his son Titus, with the destruction of Jerusalem and the
Temple in 70 AD.
The servants of God, who
were wise men, secretaries and prophets, proclaimed that the end of the
spiritual Babylon was approaching, which was no other than the city
"which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also
their Lord was crucified," namely, the earthly Jerusalem at
the time of the Apostles of Jesus Christ.
“Blow a
trumpet in Zion; sound an alarm on my holy mountain! Let all
the inhabitants of the land (of Israel) tremble, for the
day of the LORD is coming; it is near, a
day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness!
Like blackness there is spread upon the mountains a great and powerful
people; their like has never been before, nor will be again after them
through the years of all generations.” (Joel 2:1-2)
“The
great day of the LORD is near, near and hastening fast; the sound of the
day of the LORD is bitter; the mighty man cries aloud there. A day of wrath is that day, a day of
distress and anguish, a day of ruin and devastation,
a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick
darkness, a day of trumpet
blast and battle cry against the fortified cities and against the
lofty battlements.” (Zeph. 1:14-16)
“Therefore
the LORD heard this, and was wroth: so a fire was kindled against Jacob,
and anger also came up against Israel; Because
they believed not in God, and trusted not in his salvation: Though he had commanded the clouds
from above, and opened the doors of heaven.” (Ps. 78:21-23)
No man, king, or people
can compare to the power of God's judgment and wrath. The army, the
chariots and the horses cannot be a point of bragging and
arrogance even by the great empires, against the Omnipotence of God. That's
why the psalmist in the following psalm wonders:
“For who
in the heaven can be compared to the LORD? who among the sons of the mighty
can be likened to the LORD?” (Ps. 89:6)
Just who can overcome the
power and sovereignty of the true God?
Epilogue
No one can see the
kingdom of God unless "they are born again from above,"
and no one can enter the kingdom of God unless "they are
born of water and the Spirit."
“That which is born of the
flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit».
(John 3:6)
The Lord Jesus Christ is
the wonderful King who, after His crucifixion, burial and glorious
Resurrection, becomes the Father of a New Nation and a Kingdom that will no
longer be left to another king and people. All this would happen in the
days of the fourth beast (i.e. in the days of the reign of Rome, Daniel
2:44-45). But during the consolidation of this Kingdom, the faithful heirs
of this Kingdom should wait until the enemies of the Kingdom are crushed
under the King's feet.
While the heavenly
New Jerusalem was being built with "its spiritual children"
in heaven, and until the completion of its construction, the fall and
destruction of the earthly Jerusalem and "its fleshly
children," who not only didn't accept the Lord Jesus Christ as
their Only Eternal and True King, but they also persecuted his church, were
being announced. The inhabitants of the spiritual New Jerusalem, whose
craftsman and creator is God, who is Spirit, are alive and cannot be
shaken in the New World of God, unlike the Jerusalem below, which was built
by human hands, and its inhabitants, who were shaken and perished at the
rebuke of the Lord's countenance in 70 AD.
“It is
burned with fire, it is cut down; They perish at the rebuke of Thy
countenance.” (Ps. 80:16)
Thus, the written: “Behold,
He is coming with the clouds (Rev. 1:7)” was fulfilled.
Amen
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