The mystery of iniquity

We are all a bit shocked by the rapidly increasing lawlessness in our countries, and the violent bitter antisemitic protests against Israel and the Jewish people. It is also incongruent that very so-called “progressives” join forces with the very regressive Islamist jihadi holy warriors. 

The only explanation is spiritual, not rational: they are both determined to break off the yoke and bonds of the sovereign righteousness and morality of the holy YHVH God and of His chosen and Anointed One: Yeshua the Messiah/Jesus Christ, and the Jewish people, and the nation of Israel for the physical descendants of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob. (Ps 2) What He says will be! Both the “woke” activists and their supporters, and also the rejectionist religion and politics of Islam resent the absolute sovereignty of the Creator of the Universe, who is also the Redeemer and Savior of all who put their trust in Him, who came in the flesh in order to die a criminal’s death on the cross for our salvation.

The mystery of iniquity/lawlessness is already at work. (2Thes 2:1-12) It has been around for a very long time, since shortly after the beginning.

The great mystery of godliness is the incarnation of YHVH God in the person of Yeshua the Messiah/Jesus Christ, the Son of God to be the Man in the fullness of the image and likeness of God: holy; good; love; humility.

The mystery of lawlessness is the incarnation of the devil/Satan in the Antichrist: vile; evil; hateful; presumptuous pride.

The mystery of godliness has its origin before the Creation, when YHVH God ordained that the Son – the Word of God – would take on flesh and blood in order to be the substitutionary sacrifice to take away the sin of the world, and to allow forgiveness of sinners who repent and believe the gospel of salvation and the Kingdom of God.

The mystery of iniquity/sinfulness began soon after the Creation when Lucifer, a leading angel, rebelled against his Creator, and drew with him many of the other angels to join in this uprising. The motivating factor for this rebellion was pride, the iniquity that was found in him, manifested through rebellion, I believe, by his challenge and complaint to his Maker for choosing humans over the angels to be co-rulers with the Son of God over the Creation. (This pattern of iniquity runs through the Scriptures.) The Creator endowed the angels and human beings with free will to choose to obey and be faithful to YHVH – the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit – or else choose to disobey and refuse to loyally submit to His rightful sovereignty over His whole Creation, including nature and the angels and human beings – whether in Heaven or on the Earth or under the earth or in the seas.

What is the essence of this evil pride of iniquity? Defiance of the truth of YHVH and of His Anointed One/the Messiah/Christ – lying about and denying the truth that the historical Yeshua of Nazareth is the Messiah and anointed Heir of all things, including of David’s throne in Jerusalem in the Land of Israel on the Earth, the nations, the eternal Kingdom of God; denying God the Father and His Son; and an unwillingness to accept that the Land of Canaan has been given by covenant, with an oath, from YHVH – to whom the whole Earth belongs — as an inheritance and an everlasting possession to the offspring of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob/Israel – the Jewish people. 

This mystery began to manifest itself in the Garden of Eden, when the Devil through the serpent deceived Eve to not trust YHVH her God, and when Adam disobeyed the Word of YHVH which was directly told to him.

Then, of course, in Cain, who murdered his righteous brother Abel, out of anger towards God for accepting Abel’s sacrifice, but not his. “It’s not fair!”, we can hear him cry. Was that Abel’s fault!?

Then in Lamech, a descendant of Cain, who not only took to himself more than one wife, but killed a young man who hurt him and threatened vengeance 70-fold on anyone who would dare retaliate to avenge his murder.

Then in Canaan and in Japheth, both of whom were prophesied to through Noah after the Flood that they would dwell in the tents of Shem: Canaan as a servant/slave to Japheth, and Japheth under the influence of the “host” of the tents of Shem. Today we see servants/slaves all around the world uprising to become the rulers, even over the western “Japhetic world”; and the Western Judeo-Christianized world disrespecting the blessings received from being in Shem’s tent, from whom have come the fathers and the people of the Messiah – the Jews, with the revelation of the Name (Shem, in Hebrew) of the one and only true God and His righteous ways that He has given us in the Hebrew-language (and some key Aramaic passages) Scriptures, and in the Greek-language New Testament.

Then we see the further development of the mystery of iniquity in Ishmael, who mocked Isaac, the son of promise from YHVH to Abraham and Sarah, through whom the covenant of YHVH and its promises of the inheritance of the land of Canaan would continue.

Then in Esau/Edom, and in his physical and spiritual descendants, who never fully reconciled with his fraternal twin brother, Jacob, to whom he sold his birthright for immediate gratification of eating a bowl of soup. YHVH had promised that Jacob would be the chosen son of Isaac and Rebecca, to receive and carry on the promise of the inheritance and the blessing of the firstborn in God’s covenantal reckoning. “It’s not fair!!”, we can hear Esau’s cry, even though he had cared nothing for the birthright before. Now he claims that he is an innocent victim, in his own resentful eyes, both of his own foolishness and of Jacob’s opportunism, and of YHVH’s sovereign election of Jacob before they were even born. Was that Jacob’s fault?! Their father Isaac hesitantly confirmed the promise and blessing to Jacob, but told Esau that the day would come when he would shake off (intifada, in Arabic) the yoke [and reins] of his brother Jacob. Esau envied and resented his brother, and vowed to himself that he would kill him [when the time seemed right].

Esau/Edom and his descendants have never accepted that the land will go to Jacob and to his descendants. In his perpetual murderous hatred toward his brother, and towards YHVH God, Esau thinks himself justified by however he seeks to prevent Jacob’s descendants from inheriting the land of covenant promise. We see this being played out even until today. (While there are those who want to dispute the physical genealogical lineage of both the Jewish people and of the Arabs and Palestinians, the spiritual lineage is unmistakable; and YHVH remains ever the same, faithful and true.)

The same pattern of iniquity revealed itself in the envy of Joseph’s brothers towards him, the son whom their father Jacob loved. They also would rather that he die than to have his dreams come true. Were those dreams Joseph’s fault, or that his father had a special love for him?! And despite all, his dreams did come true, and for the good and blessing of his whole extended family, for Egypt, and, ultimately, to all the nations through Moses and the revelation of YHVH God on Mt Sinai. This lawlessness is aimed at the Father/Sender of the message by His servants; at the message itself; at the messenger; and, at the recipients of the message: against all that has to do with one true holy God and His righteous wisdom.

This mystery of iniquity was demonstrated through the antisemitic Pharoah, who did not know or appreciate Joseph and his family, who had greatly blessed Egypt, and defied YHVH, the God of the Hebrews, whose people he enslaved under harsh bondage.

In Goliath the Philistine giant, who taunted the earthly Army of YHVH, the God of Israel, but was struck down by a young champion, David, who defeated the giant in the name of YHVH, his God. The Philistines – and both their natural and spiritual descendants – have never accepted the sovereignty of the Israeli Jewish people in the promised land.

YHVH decreed that the messianic royal Seed of the woman would run through David, son of Jesse. David decreed that his son Solomon would succeed him on the throne. God had even greater things in mind. In any case, there was a rebellion led by David’s son, Absalom, with some priests and key assistants to David joining him. This eventually led to a division of the kingdom and of enmity and jealousy between the two primary camps. Yet, as always, the purposes of YHVH were being carried out, even until today. The King Messiah on David’s throne will be the King of the Jews, Yeshua the Nazarene, just as YHVH God promised with a covenant and an oath to King David!

The satanic influence of lawlessness was seen through the antisemites who resented and envied Daniel the Jewish prophet, whom the kings of Babylon and of the Medes and Persians came to highly respect as a blessing to themselves and to their kingdom. They deceived the king to change the laws of the kingdom, plotting to trap Daniel and his friends, who prayed to and bowed down to only YHVH their God. The holy and righteous God of Israel blessed the kings when they realized that they had been duped by their servants against Daniel and his friends, and had put the schemers to death for wanting Daniel’s death.

In Haman, the descendant of Esau/Edom through Amalek, who hated Mordecai the Jew because he would not bow down to him, but only to his God. In this perpetual hatred of Esau, the mystery of lawlessness enlarged and expanded to Haman’s plot to kill every Jew in the Persian Empire. He, too, received the just recompense upon his own head.

The lawless iniquity is manifested in the many historical battles against the holy city of Jerusalem, chosen by YHVH as the place where His earthly throne will be, the city of the great King. YHVH is the God who is greater than every other god, by whatever other name!

This mystery is also seen in the Israelis and Jews who killed the prophets of YHVH sent to them, calling upon them to return with their whole hearts to YHVH their God; but most would not. (Mt 23:37-39) 

This mystery is seen today in the refusal of Judaism to acknowledge and accept the truth of the Messiah being Yeshua/Jesus Christ, the Son of God; and in Islam denying the truth that God is a Father, and does have a Son – both as a nation, Israel, and in the Person of Jesus Christ/Yeshua the Messiah; and in all humanity and angels; and in all who are born-again from Above by the Holy Spirit through repentance and living faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. YHVH, as Creator, is the Father of all spirits and flesh, but is personally one’s Father only through the blood-bought new Holy Spirit-birth.

This mystery of iniquity was seen through the Christians during the Crusades and the Spanish Inquisition, and through the many Christians of Japhetic Europe who did not stand against the Nazis masquerading as Christians. These all presumed that God had replaced the chosen Jewish people and Israeli nation by the Church and Christians, relegating the Jews to survival only, but no future and a hope as Jews and Israel. 

If I/we can’t have it, neither will you! This is Edom’s raison d’etre. “Here comes the Son; let us kill Him and take the inheritance for ourselves.” This is unbelieving Israel’s deceived thinking. “We will take the inherit the pastures of God for ourselves!” This is the ‘Palestinian cause’ murderous vengeance.  We will kill everyone if that is what it takes that YOU will not have the promised land!  This includes unredeemed Jews killing Jews who believe in Jesus/Yeshua, as in the days of the Messiah and of His Apostles. This includes Muslims killing Jews and Christians because they represent the sovereign Creator and Savior, YHVH, whom they have been satanically lied to to hate, to steal, to destroy all that is His, and all that He chooses according to His will.

The mysterious mystery is evident in those who willfully forget the Flood, and deny the reality of the righteous Judge of all the Earth against all ungodliness, who created the heavens and the Earth and the seas, and all that is in them in six days, and ceased His work and rested on the seventh day.  

A bitter root defiles many. Satan attracted 1/3 of the angels (so some say); Esau is attracting many to his version of why it isn’t fair that the inheritance of the land should go to Jacob and his descendants. Many Jews have encouraged others not to believe in Jesus for who He is, including that He rose from the dead. Many Christians are falling away from the truth and from the faith, and drawing many after them to make the claims of Jesus and of the gospel less “dogmatic” and unique, and more “user-friendly.” Their hope is in “making a better world”, compromising with other gods and worldviews, and without the promised physical return of the Lord Jesus Christ to put an end to unrighteous rulers and the evil deceptions and manipulations of the evil one. 

The exclusiveness of the risen and only Savior, and the only way to God the Father, and the only Name under Heaven given by which any person may be saved is an embarrassment and an offense to the disloyal covenant-breakers. This loss of flavor in the salt of the covenant; the dimming of the light that we are to shine out, and back upon Jesus/Yeshua; our fragrance of Messiah becoming a bit like needing a good shower – all these elements of the falling away/apostasy are what will give place for the embodiment of the devil in the antichrist to manifest the fullness of the mystery of iniquity on the Earth.

Many who are called Jews and Christians – those to whom the Word of God has come – no longer can make a distinction between what is good and what is evil, not to mention choose the good, which is a characteristic of spiritual maturity by human beings in general, and by children of God in particular. The Hamas demands for the release of Israeli (and others) hostages is outright capitulation and selling out, for a false and deceptive temporary “peace,” the righteousness and grace of God for working out His own plan of redemption to restore His chosen people and His chosen land and city back to Himself in His righteousness, for His holy name’s sake, vindicating His Name that He is the faithful and true God Most High who speaks, and it is so.

Yet there are many in the world who are listening to the voice of the lying and deceiving serpent in many different things and ways – “disbelieve and disobey this unfair YHVH God so that you can be god” — rather than hearing the voice of the Lord, trusting and obeying in His wisdom and goodness. AI (Artificial Intelligence) is misleading the very undiscerning with artificial knowledge, artificial understanding, artificial wisdom, artificial hope. Hamas and the “Palestinian cause” and the “woke” adherents see themselves as innocent victims of an unfair God and an undeserving people whom they hate with a passion, rather than willingly submit to His sovereign will, which will be a great blessing for all people who trust and love Him. What He says will be! 

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but inherit everlasting life. Is that fair!? By grace and mercies we are saved; we know that we do not deserve it, but we believe in the righteousness of God, and forever praise Him that Messiah died for us – including me — to put away our rebellious iniquity and sin and transgressions.

God’s judgments begin in His own household before He pours out His wrath on all those who prefer the darkness over the light, because their deeds are evil in the sight of the Lord, resisting the Holy Spirit of truth. Jesus Christ is mighty to save all who call upon His name for salvation! “Today” is the day of salvation; “Now” is still the acceptable year of YHVH. Even, so, come, Lord Jesus! And the whole Earth will be full of the knowledge of Your glory as the waters cover the sea!