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Let's get into Isaiah, Isaiah 19, and look how it begins there in verse number 1, the burden of Egypt. Of course, that's going to be the title of the sermon, Tonight's the Burden of Egypt. Now we've already examined as we go through the book of Isaiah that many times we are looking at God's judgment of nations of that time period when Isaiah was preaching, but many times we also saw prophetic events and times and if you're paying attention to Isaiah 19, you probably noticed several references to the end times. You can't ignore, you can't just read this chapter without understanding the events of end times. So if you're familiar with all of that information about the coming of the Lord, the wrath of God, the new heavens and new earth, the millennial kingdom of Christ, if you're familiar with the book of Revelation, many of the verses probably already stood out to you as it was being read to you just then by brother Anthony. Now let's start there in verse number 1, the burden of Egypt. Now notice immediately, behold, the Lord rideth upon a swift cloud. I mean that's just like that first sentence, right? Or you know, that second sentence, okay, the burden of Egypt is the first sentence, but that shouldn't mean like, hold on, when Christ comes back, he's coming in the clouds. I mean, it shouldn't really be points and hold on, is this, you know, did the Lord ride on a swift cloud back, you know, in the time of Isaiah, or is this referencing something of the end times? And of course, it is referencing the end times, because it says here, and shall come into Egypt, and the idols of Egypt shall be moved at his presence. And the heart of Egypt shall melt in the midst of it. So we see that Egypt, you know, when it comes to the timing of the Lord's return, as it comes to rapture his saints, there's going to be idol worship in Egypt, okay? There's going to be, of course, false religion in Egypt. And then you can see, when Christ comes back, we know there's so many verses where it says that the tribes of the earth shall mourn when Christ is coming. And it says here, the heart of Egypt shall melt in the midst of it. So when they see Christ in the clouds, their hearts are going to melt. Now that should bring another remembrance of the end time. So keep your finger there, and come with me to Luke 21. Come with me to the book of Luke, Luke chapter 21, and verse number 26. Now of course, when we're talking about the end times events, and we're looking at not just the book of Revelation, but when we're looking at the Olivet Discourse, where God spoke of the end times, we know that God is speaking, you know, in general terms about the entire earth. But what we have in Isaiah 19 is what is taking place in Egypt during these events. So it says in Luke 21 and 26, look what it says here, men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of heaven shall be shaken. It says, 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, Jorath Noy. And notice that it says men's hearts failing them for fear, and we see that the heart of Egypt is melting in the midst of the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. And so what I want to show you there just from verse number one is, you know, we can clearly see, though there might be, of course, teaching of the current day events, in Isaiah's time, God is definitely drawing our attention to the end times to come. Notice even verse number two, and actually keep a finger in the book of Luke, please. Keep a finger in the book of Luke, we'll come back to it a few times, and come back with me to Isaiah 19 and verse number two. It says, and I will set the Egyptians against the Egyptians. So God is saying there's going to be civil war, okay, within Egypt. And then it says, and they shall fight everyone against his brother, and everyone against his neighbor. I mean, these terms should be again familiar with you if you know of the Oliver Discourse. Then it says city against city, and kingdom against kingdom, okay? So it's not just Egypt fighting within itself, but also kingdoms against kingdoms. And if you go back to Luke 21, and let's backtrack a little bit in that chapter, Luke 21 verse number seven, Luke 21 verse number seven, it says, and they asked him, they asked Jesus that is, saying, Master, but when shall these things be? And what sign will there be when these things shall come to pass? And he said, Take heed that ye be not deceived, for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ, and the time draweth near, go ye not therefore after them. But when ye shall hear of wars and commotions, be not terrified, for these things must first come to pass, but the end is not by and by. Then said he unto them, nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. Now what we just read there in Luke 21 verse seven, up to verse number 10, are events that take place before the rapture, before the Lord comes in the clouds. And so when we got to Luke 21, 26, we saw the coming of Christ, or Luke 21, 27, I should say, Jesus Christ coming in the clouds. And so, you know, when you look at the book of Isaiah, you say, well, hold on, we saw in verse number one, Christ coming on the swift cloud, and then in verse number two, we see the references of kingdoms up against kingdoms. And so what I want to explain to you there is that you need to remember, you know, that the New Testament shines light on the Old Testament. The book of Revelation is revealing with clarity the chronology of events of the end times. So when we read the book of Isaiah, and we say, well, it seems like things are a little bit out of order, it's not that they're out of order, it's just that obviously a lot of these things happen, you know, in a very short period of time, and God is just pointing about those times to come in the end times, but when we want to understand the chronology, we go to the New Testament, we go to the book of Revelation, explain for us and given us the framework how to understand the book of Isaiah, okay, or any other Old Testament references to end times event. So never make the mistake of going to the Old Testament to explain the New Testament end times events. Know what the book of Revelation, the book of revealing is telling you, then you can go back to the Old Testament, oh, that's the chronology, that's how God is laying things out in the end times. But I want you to notice that in just verse number one, verse number two, isn't that clear that God is drawing our attention to the end times? I shouldn't have to point that out. Like if you know anything at the end times, those two verses alone should be like, hold on, what is this talking about? Is this talking about times of Isaiah? I know it sounds like it's talking about the end times, and of course it is. Now, obviously, in the end times, what we see that Egypt is still going to be, you know, messed up in false religion. You know, even today, Egypt is 90% Muslim, okay? And even the small percentage that is Christianity, 90% of that so called Christianity is Coptic Orthodox Christianity. So there are very few people that are saved in Egypt today, okay? So just keep that in mind, you know, and what we see in the end times that that is still going to be the case. They're still going to be wrapped up in false religion. And so when we continue in Isaiah 19, verse number three, it says, and the spirits of Egypt shall fall in the midst thereof, and I will destroy the council thereof, and they shall seek to the idols, and to the charmers, and to them that have familiar spirits, and to wizards. Now let's take 2024 as the example. You know, when we say the spirit of Egypt, when you think about Egypt's spiritual condition, I just told you, today 90% of it is Islam, Islamic, it's Muslim, okay? So when they see Christ come in the clouds, alright, when they see disaster on their land, it says that the spirit of Egypt shall fail, okay? So it looks like the Egyptians at large realize, man, this Islamic faith is a failure. Like this Islamic faith is not delivering what we thought it would do for our lives. Now they should automatically say, well, we're going to turn to Jesus Christ then. Maybe the God of the Bible is the right God. But what we see instead is they go to idols, they go to charmers, they go to the occult, they go toward people that have familiar spirits, to wizards, witchcraft the occult, you know, they start to reach out to these people, maybe they've got the answers, maybe they've got the solutions. You know, the God of the Islamic faith is not helping us, maybe it's the occult. And of course, the occult is going to continue to increase in the end times because, you know, the devil is going to give power to the antichrist and the antichrist is going to reveal himself or claim to be the God above all gods and the gods be worshipped. And of course, in Jerusalem, the antichrist is going to set up an image, you know, to be worshipped. And if you reject worshipping that image, you're going to be put to death. Can you keep your finger there and come with me to Revelation 9. Come with me to Revelation 9. And we are going to come back to the book of Luke so I hope you've kept the finger there as well. But Revelation 9 verse 20. Revelation number 9 and verse number 20. So, the chronology of what we're up to here in Revelation 9 and 20 is that God has begun pouring out his wrath. The rapture of the saints has already occurred. This is after the great tribulation. Christ has already come in the clouds, as we saw in Isaiah 19 verse 1. The rapture has already taken place. We're now at the point where God begins to pour out his wrath. And in the midst of pouring out his wrath, here in Revelation 9.20, it says, And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues, yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils of gold and silver and brass and stone and of wood, which neither can see nor hear nor walk, neither repent today of their murders, nor of their sorceries, that's got to do with wizards of course, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts. So you can see, even as God is pouring out his wrath, that people are still worshipping their idols. They're still looking at sorceries, the occult, as the answer against the God who is pouring out his wrath in these end times. And the Egyptians have been caught up a little bit in this bad decision. Maybe the answer is in the occult. Maybe the answer is in the idols. And you can see, obviously, this is called the burden of Egypt, because of course, Egypt is going to suffer greatly in these end time events. But this chapter ends so promising. Like so promising. In fact, as I was studying this chapter to preach for you, I realized, boy, so far this has been my favorite chapter to study through, because there's such a great hope for the people of Egypt. And we're going to notice that as we keep going through this chapter. But back to Isaiah 19 and verse number 4, and the reason I'm going to Luke 21 and Revelation is just to show you the consistency with Isaiah 19. He's clearly talking about end times events. And then it says in verse number 4, And the Egyptians, so they turn to the idols, they turn to the wizards, they're trying to get a solution to their disastrous world and the fallen apart of their nation. It says, And the Egyptians will I give over into the hand of a cruel lord, and a fierce king shall rule over them, save the Lord, the Lord of hosts. If you take this to mean the time of Egypt, of course, and for the time of Isaiah, you could say this might be the Assyrian king that has, they briefly took over Egypt for about 10 years, according to secular history. Or this could be talking about future Persian empire, and they had Egypt under their control for a lot longer than that. Or if we keep this in the framework of the end times, this fierce king, this cruel lord, of course, would be the Antichrist. And that's what I believe this is referring to, the Antichrist, the fierce king, demanding that all people of the earth should bow down and worship him and worship his image. And look at verse number 5. It says, And the waters shall fail from the sea, and the river shall be wasted and dried up, and they shall turn the rivers far away, and the brooks of defense shall be emptied and dried up, the reeds and flags shall wither. So you can see that there's great drought that's going to take place in Egypt during these times. And of course, if you don't have water, if you don't have rain, so is, you know, your agriculture's going to fall apart, there's going to be famine on the land, it's going to be an economic disaster for this nation when this takes place. It says in verse number 7, the paper reads, By the brooks, by the mouth of the brooks, and everything sown by the brooks, shall wither, be driven away, and be no more. The fishers also shall mourn. Because the waters have dried up, right? And all they that cast angle into the brooks shall lament, and they that spread nets upon the waters shall languish. Moreover, they that work in fine flax, and they that weave networks, shall be confounded. So they're not going to have the, you know, the crops and the, you know, the merchandise to be able to, you know, sell that in the markets and be profitable because of this great drought that's going to fall on the land in the end times. It says in verse number 10, And they shall be broken in the purposes thereof, all that makes sluices and ponds for fish. Now, notice verse number 11, it says, Surely the princes of Zoan are fools. The council of the wise councillors of Pharaoh is become brutish. Brutish is just stupid. How shall you say unto Pharaoh, I am the son of the wise, the son of ancient kings? You say, pastor, here it's speaking about pharaohs. So this must be referring to past events. You know, there are no pharaohs in Egypt today. And, you know, yes, of course, I think you can apply that. You know, you can definitely say, I'm not trying to strip away this chapter from anything to do with current events from Isaiah, but many times in the Bible, things that are current events are symbolic of future events. And so the idea of just a pharaoh, in general, is just the ruler of the land. You know, the Bible often speaks about kings and, you know, the necessary to honour kings. And, of course, in Australia, well, I guess we do have a king, like King Charles. But really, for us, the application for us is, of course, knowing that we have a prime minister, we have politicians, and we understand that they've got a certain role, they've got a certain responsibility that God has given them, even though they corrupt the laws of the land. But anyway, you can see here that, you know, even though they've turned to idols, now God has allowed, or the antichrist has popped on the scene and the fierce king, you know, breathing heavily upon them, you know, causing them problems, the waters are drying up, it's like, what is the solution here? Right? Okay, we've turned from Islam if we can apply, you know, 2024 to this situation, okay? I don't know what, you know, how things might be 100 years from now, I don't know what faith they might turn to 100 years from now, who knows? But what I'm trying to say is that they've turned from this, the spirit of Egypt had failed them, and then they go like, well, what's the solution? Let's go to the occult. And even when they turn to the occult, then their lands dry up and the great drought, and the fierce king is ruling over them. There's economic collapse for them. And now they go to the kings, the kings are like, hey, what's the wisdom? You know, what's the right decision? God is saying the wisdom of Pharaoh, the wisdom of the leaders of Egypt is brutish, is stupid. Right? They don't know the answer. They don't know how to get right and how to find a solution during these end times events. Can you keep your finger there and come with me to 1 Corinthians. 1 Corinthians chapter 1. 1 Corinthians chapter 1. Well, you turn to 1 Corinthians 1, in Isaiah 19 verse 11 when it said, surely the princes of Zoan are fools. Zoan is a land that belongs to Egypt. Okay? Just so you know, because it's going to come up later on, the land of Zoan. The princes of Zoan are fools. Well, in 1 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 18, the Bible says, For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness. But unto us which are saved, it is the power of God. So you can see that, hey, when we hear the preaching of the cross, we say, I like that. I like that Jesus paid for all of my sins. I like that God has made it easy for us. All we have to do is accept the preaching of the cross. Christ paid for my sins, died, rose from the dead, and it's a free gift. For us, it is the power of God. It's how we get saved. But for those that perish, for those that are dying in their sins and going to hell, it says that same preaching that we received, that same preaching that gives us the power of God, is to them that perish foolishness. Okay? And so, what is the answer for Egypt? God. Jesus. The gospel. But the wise counselors of Pharaoh in Egypt, they've become stupid. They've become foolish. But you can understand for them, the preaching of the cross is foolishness. But look, continue with verse number 19. For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise. That kind of sounds like Pharaoh's counselors. Where is their wisdom? Well, God says, I'm going to destroy their wisdom. They turn to the occult, and it's not been the answer. They've turned to wizards and familiar spirits. It's not been the answer. He says, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this world? Have not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? It's true. What's the wisdom of this world? How do they believe they can be right with God? Be a good person. Do the best. I deserve to go to heaven. I deserve to stand righteously before God. No. Your own righteousness is like filthy rags before God. I'm not standing in my righteousness before God. Forget about it. I stand in the righteousness of Jesus Christ. He saved me. He's my Savior. You know, I mean, not that this is ever going to play out, but if God said to me, you know, why should I allow you to heaven? I'd be like, hold on, let me just find Jesus. This is why. Because of your son. Just give me a few minutes to find Jesus. I'm sure he'll explain it all. I put my faith and trust on the only begotten Son of God. And then it says in verse number 21, and after that, in the wisdom of God, the world by wisdom knew not God. It pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that belief. But the world thinks what we do is foolishness. You know, when we knock doors, and we try to give people the gospel, we try to give them the words of eternal life, you know the people looking at that go, that's foolishness, what are they wasting their time for? It's a 40 degree day and they're out there knocking doors. How stupid are they? That's what they think. You know, the power of God unto salvation, the free gift of Jesus Christ. To them it's foolishness. But for those that get saved, it's the power of God. To them that what? Save them that believe. Praise God. Isn't that all we need to do simply to trust, to believe in our Lord Jesus Christ and thou shall be saved. So the answer for Egypt is Jesus Christ. Okay. Now as we keep going through this, again, you know, when God speaks of a nation, of course we can't say every single person in that nation is this way. Obviously, you know, when we have a look later on and they do turn to God, obviously there's a percentage that won't turn to God. But, you know, God is speaking in general terms about the nation of Egypt. Okay. So come back with me to Isaiah 19. Come back with me to Isaiah 19. Now let me make clear that if someone takes the mark of the beast, someone worships the antichrist and the dragon, the Bible says they were already reprobate. They didn't become reprobate when they took the mark of the beast. They already were. And because they already were, they happily took the mark of the beast. Okay. We're going to see in this chapter that Egypt as a nation is one of those that rejects the antichrist. Again, when we read through the book of Revelation, you know, the antichrist is attempting for the entire earth. He's trying to cause all to take the mark of the beast. He's trying to cause all to worship the dragon. But there are going to be some that refuse. And Egypt is going to be one of those nations that refuses. Okay. Now, let's go back to Isaiah 19, verse number 12. God says, Where are they? Where are thy wise men? And let them tell thee now, and let them know what the Lord of hosts have purposed unto Egypt. He's telling the wise men, the counselors of Pharaoh, Look, you should know what God the Lord of hosts has purposed upon Egypt. Now, how would they know that? How are they going to know what God has planned for Egypt in these end times? Well, that's why we have Isaiah 19. Okay. So we have Isaiah 19, and just by looking at this, what is God's purpose, what is God going to do to Egypt? Well, in those end times, ideally, they will turn to Isaiah 19. Where does God talk about Egypt? Oh, chapter 19, the burden of Egypt. Let's find out what the God of the Bible has to say. Maybe this is the answer. Maybe this is the solution. Verse number 13. The princes of Zoan, there is again the prince of Zoan, are become fools. The princes of Noth are deceived. They have also seduced Egypt, which they that are the stay of the tribes thereof. Now, we are going through Isaiah 19, and what is the 19th book of the Bible? Come on, Tim. Psalms. Okay. All right, brother Tim, the book of Psalms. So keep your finger there and come with me to Psalm 78. Come with me to Psalm 78. Now, you can see again there, verse number 13, the princes of Zoan. Zoan's mentioned twice in this chapter. The word Zoan doesn't appear all that much in the Bible, actually. I think there's one other reference in Ezekiel and I think one other reference in some of the book of the Bible that I can't recall right now. But it does appear twice in the book of Psalms. So in both in the same chapter, Psalm 78 and verse number 12. Psalm 78 and verse number 12. The Bible says in Psalm 78, verse number 12, Marvellous things did he in the sight of their fathers, in the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan. He divided the sea and caused them to pass through, and he made the waters to stand as in heap. So you can see again the land of Egypt is a reference again. The field of Zoan is located in the land of Egypt, and God did marvellous things, of course. You know the ten plagues of Egypt, God used Moses to deliver the Israelites out of that land. When it says divide the sea, they pass through the Red Sea, of course, and God established them as a nation. Drop down to verse number 42, Psalm 78 and verse number 42. Now this Psalm continues. Of course they were rejoicing when God delivered them out of Egypt, but as we see many times in the Old Testament scriptures, the Israelites turn against the Lord, they forget the Lord, they start worshiping false gods, and so when you see Psalm 78, verse number 42, it says, they remembered not his hand. So these are the Israelites, they forget the hand of God, they forget God's help. It says, nor the day when he delivered them from the enemy. So they even forget that God delivered them out of Egypt. Verse number 43, how he had wrought his signs in Egypt, and his wonders in the field of Zoan, and had turned their rivers into blood, and their floods that they could not drink. So notice how Zoan is referenced here, and God is reminding them of the great miracles that he's done. One of those miracles is turning the rivers into blood. Now of course, if we are using these examples that God has laid out for us, in Isaiah 19, referring to the land of Zoan, or the prince of Zoan, and we can see that this is referencing the end time events, we know that one of the plagues that God pulls upon the earth in his wrath is turning the waters to blood once again. The rivers to blood, you can read about that in your own time in the book of Revelation. But I love, just again, the consistency of the Bible. It's like this puzzle, and when you sort of look into one area, it expands into another area, and yet it is always consistent. It is always consistent, God's word. But back to Isaiah 19 and verse number 14. Isaiah 19 and verse number 14. Isaiah 19 verse number 14, it says, So Egypt has been described here as a drunken man. God has allowed a perverse spirit. I believe those, you know, if you read on the end times, at the midst of the week when the antichrist rises from the dead, establishes his idol, causes all people to worship and to take the mark of the beast, that there is going to be a great work of evil spirits in those days. Because during that midst of the week of that seven year period, the devil is actually kicked out of heaven with a third of his angels. And they're cast on the earth. And so in these end times, we're going to see a greater involvement of the occult. We're going to see more familiar spirits. We're going to see more possessions of people, you know, like demon possessions of people. And so with Egypt trying to find a solution to their problems, they're going to be like this drunken man. Like, what is the solution? What do I do? Like, no matter which way they turn, it's like they're drunken from some toxic substance. They're drunken from alcohol, and they can't think clearly. And then we continue with verse number 15. Neither shall there be any work for Egypt, which the head or tail, branch or rush may do. There's no work. Like, I told you, because of the drought, because of the economic collapse, and we know, of course, in the end times that, you know, there's going to be famines in the earth. In fact, if you still have a finger in the book of Luke, come with me to Luke 21. Come with me to Luke 21. Luke 21 and verse number 11. Luke 21 and verse number 11, the Bible says, and great earthquakes shall be in diverse places and famines and pestilences and fearful sites, and great signs shall there be from heaven. And don't turn there. I'll just read to you from Revelation 6.5. And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld a lower black horse, and he that sat on him had a pair of balancers in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny, and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine. So when you read about a penny in the Bible, that is the average of a day's wage, a day's labour. And for an entire day's of labour, I don't know, what is it today? 200 bucks a day, I don't know, I'd say the average, I don't know what it is, okay? That is just going to get you a small measure of wheat. A small amount to be able to make some bread for an entire day's labour. So you can definitely see, you know, hyperinflation or just the collapse of currency and the inability to work. Because what we saw there in Isaiah 19 verse 15, it said, Neither shall there be any work for Egypt, which the head or tail, head is like employers, businesses, tails are like the employees, branch or rush may do. It doesn't matter what your status is, what your position is, okay? If you're just an employee or you run your own business, God is saying at these end times, Egypt's going to stop economically completely, okay? They can't fish, they can't grow crops, they can't feed themselves, they can't even drink water, they can't go to work, they can't labour, complete economic collapse. And of course this is not just localised to Egypt, this is going to be the state of the entire world, which is why the antichrist is going to have a solution. What's the solution? The mark of the beast, okay? That's going to be the new financial system that in order to buy and sell, in order to run commerce, to run business, you must take the mark of the beast, and that is going to be the antichrist's solution to the economic collapse of the world. We can see that Egypt is going to suffer mightily during these times. Let's keep going there in Isaiah 19 verse number 16. In that day shall Egypt be like unto women, and it shall be afraid and fear. So in what ways is it like unto women? Because Egypt's going to be afraid and have fear, okay? Now of course when it comes to women, now men can fear of course, okay? But when we think about women, we think about going to war, soldiers. You know, in the Bible women were not to be soldiers. I mean I don't know why today people put women into positions in the defence force, makes no sense at all. But it should be men that make war. It should be men that labour hard by the sweat of their brow. It's what we've been made for. But all of Egypt will be like women. It shall be afraid and fear. Why? Because of the shaking of the hand of the Lord of hosts, which He shaketh over it. So you can see even though God is observing the entire earth during the end times, He's also paid attention to different nations. And in this reference we can see that He's paying attention to Egypt. He's shaking Egypt. He's trying to wake them up. This is the burden of Egypt. They're afraid. We already read this in Luke 21-26. Man's heart's failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of heaven shall be shaken. Isn't that what it says in verse 16? It shall be afraid and fear because of the shaking of the hand of hosts, which He shaketh over it. There are so many references. There's probably even other references in this chapter of the end times that are probably overlooked. If you spend your own time you'll probably find some other things. Now verse 17 is interesting. Actually, before we read verse 17, remember when the Antichrist comes? In fact, we're going to have a look at this in a moment. You've still got a finger on Luke 21. We're going to look at it in a moment. But the Antichrist takes over Jerusalem, sets up his image to be worshipped in that place. And when you think about that, when you think about Jerusalem and what was known as Judea in the time of Jesus Christ, what was known as Judah in the time of Isaiah, I don't know what the term is going to be. I guess we call it Israel today in 2024. But look at verse 17. It says, And the land of Judah shall be a terror unto Egypt. So the Egyptians are afraid of Judah. Everyone that maketh mention thereof shall be afraid in himself, because of the counsel of the Lord of hosts, which He hath determined against it. Because of the counsel of the Lord of hosts, which He hath determined against it. Now, come with me to Luke 21, verse number 20. So of course, what we're about to read, when we have that final seven year period of the end times, this is again taking place in the middle of the week, in the midst of the week. In Luke 21, 20 it says, And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that desolation thereof is nigh. Then let them which are in Judea flee into the mountains, and let them which are in the midst of it depart out, and let not them that are in the countries enter therein to. Let me stop there for a moment. These are the words of Christ. These are the instructions of Christ. When He says, let them which are in Judea flee, who's going to obey those commands? Christians. Yeah, Christians. Will it be unbelieving, Christ rejecting Jews? No. Why would they obey the commands of Jesus? These are going to be believers that are on that land. Whether they're Jews, whether they're Palestinians, whether there are other people on that land during that time. When they see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, I believe this is referencing armies of the Antichrist because he captures this city, he sets up his image, he takes over that land. But notice what it says in verse number 22. For these be the days of vengeance, and all things which are written may be fulfilled. That kind of reminds me of what it said in Isaiah 19, verse number 17, because of the counsel of the Lord of hosts, which He has determined against it. So God has already determined, He's got His counsel of what is going to happen in Judah. And of course we're talking about Jerusalem here being the capital city of Judah or Judea. So this is something that's going to take place. It's said here that all things which are written may be fulfilled. And of course part of that fulfillment is what we're reading about in Isaiah 19. Then it says, verse number 23, But woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days. For there shall be great distress in the land, and wrath upon this people. And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. According to Revelation chapter 11, that times of the Gentiles last for 42 months, three and a half years. Now, Judea, Jerusalem is captured by the Antichrist. He sets up his image, it's his headquarters, it's his base of operations. And we see people being taken captive from the land. And it said, led away captive into all nations. And so Egypt might be, because Egypt's a close neighbor of course. And so Egypt might be one of those lands. And so when we look at Isaiah 19, Egypt is afraid of Judea. Like, Egypt is afraid of Judah. Why? Again, if we apply this to the end time events, it's because that is where the Antichrist is ruling from. That's where the persecution is coming from. And again, clearly in this chapter, Egypt is rejecting the Antichrist. And of course, if you're going to reject the Antichrist, it's not going to turn out well for you. In his eyes, of course. Now we start to see a change in Egypt. God has told them they're foolish, they've turned to the occult. Now, verse number 18. Isaiah 19, verse 18. Now, I'm going to assume the language of Canaan there is the language of Hebrew. I'm going to assume that's what he's referring to. I could be wrong. What language do they speak in Egypt today? Does anyone know? I didn't look it up. Arabic. Is it Arabic? Okay, so obviously, when it comes to Islam, they say that in order for you to be able to read the Quran properly, you've got to read it in Arabic. This could be, well, if we want to, maybe that now they've said, hold on, Isaiah 19 is about us. Maybe we need to go back and read it in the original language of Hebrew, potentially. That could be what's happening. It could be sort of a similar parallel. And they're trying to get an answer against the fears that they have that is coming from Judah. And then it says in verse number 19. And a pillar at the border thereof to the Lord. Say, what? They've gone from the occult, they've gone to the familiar spirits, that didn't answer the questions. They've turned from Islam or whatever faith they have in those end times. You know, that didn't answer them. Now they're like, man, okay, that's what the Bible says. We better get right with the God of the Bible. That's what's happening. And so what they do, they build an altar in the middle of the land. They build a pillar at the border thereof to the Lord. I guess that border would be bordering Israel or something like that. And maybe they're like, let's get right with the Lord. Obviously the Bible speaks many times about the Old Testament forefathers building altars and offering sacrifices and things like that. And they do offer sacrifices. We'll touch upon that in a moment. It says in verse number 20. And it shall be for a sign and for a witness unto the Lord. They're like, God, we want to get right with you. So, you know, again, a large portion of Egyptians aren't going to bend their knees to Baal. They're not going to bend their knees to the Antichrist. I mean, this is so promising. Because we think of Egypt today, and you might hear in the media, and it's true that the Muslims burned down churches and things like that, destroyed churches. I mean, I don't get bothered so much because they're just orthodox Coptic churches. Who cares? It's just false religion attacking another false religion. I'm not so bothered. But there's come a time where they have a fear of God. And they're like, look, Islam didn't work. The occult didn't work. Maybe the God of the Bible is going to work for us. Maybe here's the solution. Maybe here's the answer. And so they start to build these things before the Lord. And verse 20, I didn't finish verse 20, sorry. Wow. You know, of course, Christ, the rapture is already taking place. This is when Christ comes back at the end of the seven-year period. Of course, when Christ comes back, there's the Battle of Armageddon. The Antichrist and his kingdoms, they're going to make war against the Lord God. But God's going to wipe out those oppressors. Those oppressors are also oppressing Egypt. Verse 121. And shall do sacrifice and oblation. Yea, they shall vow avow unto the Lord and perform it. So are they trying to get right with the Lord? A hundred percent they're trying to get right with the Lord. Now, you might say, your pastor, you know, building an altar and offering sacrifices, that's not going to offer them salvation. And I agree. You know, even in the Old Testament days when the Jews offered their sacrifices, that didn't save them. Okay? We know that these are, as it's said there in verse number 20, and it shall be for a sign. We know that these are signs of their faith on Jesus Christ, the story of Christ, the sacrifice of Christ. But you need to understand that, you know, even though we might look at this and we realize that offering a sacrifice today does not appease God. In fact, come with me to Hebrews 13. Come with me to Hebrews 13. Come with me to Hebrews 13, please. We know that that doesn't satisfy God, because it was just a sign. It was just a picture, a shadow of the sacrifice of Jesus. But what we see here, and what I believe God is seeing here from the Egyptians, is a heart trying to get right with God. Even though their methods are unorthodox, their methods are not the way that you get right with God. The way you get right with God is by believing the gospel. Okay? But they're trying to get right with God. They're looking at the scriptures. I guess we've got to build an altar. You know, to have God show His mercy to us, let's build a pillar. That's what some of the Old Testament saints did. Let's try that. Let's try the altar. Let's try the sacrifices. Let's try to make vows to God. Let's try to promise to God that we want Him to be our God, and we'll do what He says. Look at Hebrews 13 verse 10. Even though there was Old Testament altars and sacrifices, Hebrews 13 verse 10 says, We have an altar, whereof they have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle. For the bodies of those beasts, that's animals, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, is burned without the camp. Wherefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered without the gates. So our altar, our sacrifice, is the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen? And so there was an altar of the Old Testament, where the blood of beasts were sacrificed. But again, it was just a sign, a symbol, a picture, of our altar and sacrifice, the Lord Jesus Christ, who shed His blood on the cross for our sins. So, would you say that even though God would not... God's not instructing Egypt to build altars. They're just doing it. You see that? They're just doing it. God's not told Him to do it. They're just doing it. Alright? Now let's continue in Isaiah 19 verse 22. So even though they're building altars, even though they're trying to get right with God here, notice what happens. Verse 22. And the Lord shall smite Egypt. Because building altars and making promises to God does not make you right with God. Okay? Their burden is still falling upon their shoulders. God's judgment is still coming down on Egypt. But when He smites Egypt, unlike when He smites other nations like Babylon, where He says He smites the nation, and it will never be inhabited ever again. It will smite the city. It will never be inhabited again. But when He smites Egypt, He says this. He shall smite and heal it. And they shall return even to the Lord. And He shall be entreated of them and shall heal them. So God still brings the hammer down, but then once He brings the hammer down, then He heals them. So the way, of course, if you read in Matthew 24, the Bible says that the gospel of the kingdom is going to be preached in all nations. We also have, when God's wrath is being poured out, we have the two witnesses, which I believe is Moses and Elijah. And we have the 144,000 of the 12 tribes of Israel probably also preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. And so, of course, it's not the altars and the sacrifice that provides healing. It's the gospel of Jesus Christ. And God will heal them. God fixes this. Now, when I think about their method of trying to get right with God, building altars, it's unconventional methods to seek God. But the Bible does say in Luke 11, 9, And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you. Seek, and ye shall find. Knock, and it shall be opened unto you. And everyone that asketh receiveth, and he that seeketh findeth, and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. They've gone through a strange method to seek God. Let's build altars. Let's build pillars. And even though that doesn't get them right with God, God still smites them. Of course, God sees the heart and sees them. They want to get right with me. They're trying to seek me. I'll give you an example of my life. Actually, it's my wife's life. When she grew up Roman Catholic and she had all, in her bedroom, she had the rosary beads and the pictures and the idols, and she had a Bible. She kept the Bible open, not because she read it, because it's good luck. You know, I don't know, good luck. I don't know how that works exactly. Somehow, when you keep the Bible open, it keeps the evil spirits away or something like that. And Christina told me this was before she was saved. She, of course, before she was saved, she would be praying to Mary and be praying to the saints. You know, one day her dog was sick, so she prayed to the saints of the animals, and she said, you know, they never answer my prayers. They never, they don't. It kind of reminds me of the Egyptians here, that they're trying to seek different faiths and different spiritual entities, and they're not getting the answers. They're not getting deliverance. And she said, you know what, I decided, even though Catholics generally do not pray to Jesus, she said, I'm going to, you know, praying to Mary and these saints aren't getting me anywhere. I'm going to pray to Jesus. And so she had an image of Jesus, because, you know, she got images when I'm a Catholic. Probably long, blonde hair Jesus with blue eyes, probably, okay? And she was like, you know, praying to Jesus, Jesus, I'm not getting any answers from Mary and the saints and all these things, but I need your help, Jesus. I need you to come through for me. Unconventional, using some image of Jesus, okay? And obviously that image did not answer her prayers. It was the real Jesus that answered her prayers. But the Lord saw her heart, right? The Lord saw her being softened, seeking the real God, the real God of the Bible, seeking the real Jesus of the Bible. And then not long afterwards, she met the man of her dreams and she got saved. Poor woman. I mean, she got saved, praise God for that. That's true. And some of you guys have unconventional ways of seeking God and, you know, like offering altars or praying to some blonde haired, long haired Jesus who didn't answer the prayers. But again, God sees that condition of that heart and goes, no, they're seeking me. I'm going to help them find the answer. I'm going to lead them to the words of eternal life. And so that's what I see playing out here. You know, sometimes people say, you know, I've come to know the Lord. I had some vision, I had some dream, had this issue, I had that situation pop up. And I always know those situations did not get them saved, obviously. Okay, but we all have different backgrounds, we all have different experiences. But sometimes these situations pause you to think, hold on, I want the God of the Bible. I want the real God. You know, God, reveal yourself to me and God will maneuver you to hear the words of eternal life, to hear the gospel message and you get saved. So I believe that's what God is doing for Egypt. They're trying to get right with God, they don't know. Build an altar, build a pillar, offer sacrifices, maybe that's going to be the solution. God still smites them, but then he heals them. Okay, of course, the healing must be coming through the preaching of the gospel in the land of Egypt. Isaiah 19, verse number 23. In that day, I believe what we're about to read here is the millennial reign of Christ. Because we already saw that Christ we saw earlier in verse number 20, it says, And he shall send them a Savior and a Great One and he shall deliver them. So I believe now Christ has already come to the earth, he's established in his kingdom. And of course, we need people to go into the millennium. So it makes sense for me for a large portion of Egypt that got saved during God's wrath, did not bow the knee to the devil, did not take the mark of the beast, are now being ushered into the millennial reign of Christ. It says in verse number 23, In that day, there shall be a highway out of Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrians shall come into Egypt. So the idea there is because Assyria took over Egypt, now there's peace. Instead of there being hostility between these two powers, now there's peace. It says, and the Egyptians into Assyria, and the Egyptians shall serve with the Assyrians. Not serve under the Assyrians, but serve with the Assyrians. Together, there's peace. There's trade agreements, they're working together. Verse number 24, In that day shall Israel be the third, with Egypt and with Assyria, even a blessing in the midst of the land. So all three nations, Israel, Egypt, Assyria, working together. Not at odds, not fighting, Egypt took over, persecuted Israel, Assyria persecuted Egypt, but all three working together in harmony. And then verse number 25, Whom the Lord of hosts shall bless, saying, Look at these words, Blessed be Egypt, my people. What? You go to most Baptist churches, the Jews are God's people. Blessed be Egypt, my people. That's our God, that's the God of the Bible. I did not write that in your Bible before the service today. Who's the people of God? The Egyptians! In the millennium, though. And Assyria, the work of my hands, and Israel, mine inheritance. So the burden of Egypt. Go back to verse number 1 again. The burden of Egypt, behold, the Lord writeth upon a swift cloud. Let me end on this. We said that the 19th book of the Bible is the book of Psalms. So come back with me to Psalms. Psalms 68, please. Psalms 68. Psalms 68 in verse number 31. Psalms 68, verse number 31. It says, Princes shall come out of Egypt. Ethiopia shall soon stretch her hands unto God. Sing unto God, ye kingdoms of the earth. Oh, sing praises unto the Lord's sealer. So I strongly believe, I already preached with Psalms 68, not that long ago at New Life Baptist Church, but I definitely believe this is talking about the end times. Sorry, the millennial end of Christ. When all kingdoms of the earth, all kingdoms are praising Jesus Christ. But not as princes shall come out of Egypt. People are going to believe in Egypt to go and praise Jesus Christ. But look at the words in verse number 33. Look how connected it is to Isaiah 19. What did it say in Isaiah 19, verse number 1? Behold, the Lord writeth upon a swift cloud. Well, here it says, to him that writeth upon the heavens of heavens, which were of old, lo, he doth send out his voice and that of mighty voice. Ascribe ye strength unto God. His excellency is over Israel, and his strength is in the clouds. I remember we saw that the Lord is riding on the clouds. So it's quite interesting that Psalms 68 kind of uses the same language that Isaiah 19 does. You know, I guess we often think about Christ descending on the clouds, but of course, I guess he's riding on the clouds as well. The Bible says it's a swift cloud. You know, the Bible says that the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ is like lightning, shining from the east to the west. But I do believe that Christ is going to circle the earth, you know, as saints are being raptured to be in the clouds with him for all eternity. But what an end to Egypt. Like, we think of Egypt today, we think of it a wasteland. Okay, they've got nice pyramids. Like, what is there good to say about Egypt today? Pyramids. That's pretty much it, right? It's not a place that we generally want to visit. It's definitely not a place that we would consider going to preach the gospel for fear of losing our lives. But there's going to be a burden of Egypt. God's going to judge Egypt severely. And they're going to seek, you know, the answers. Eventually they're going to seek Jesus Christ. They're going to seek the Lord of the Bible. And what a wonderful end that they're going to come to know Christ as their saviour and they're going to be ushered into the learning reign of Christ. And, you know, if God can do that for a nation that is 90% Islamic today, boy, the gospel is going to definitely work in Australia today, isn't it? Praise God. Praise God. The gospel, you know, the good news of salvation, even to those that are Islamic, even to those that are part of the occult, the answer is always the gospel of Jesus Christ. Let's pray.