By Nathan Lawrence at www.HoshanaRabbah.org

I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved. And YHVH answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry. (Habakkuk 2:1–3)

A Fresh Vision For the Saints of the Most High Elohim to Combat the Antichrist Spirit of This Age

YHVH Elohim’s end time saints need a fresh, prophetic vision with which to go forth against the spirit of antichrist and to prepare for the coming of Yeshua the Messiah. Without a vision, YHVH’s people will flounder spiritually and perish as they acquiesce to the spirit of the age. Absent such a vision, YHVH’s people may well wither and die on the proverbial vine and cease to exist. 

Where there is no [prophetic] vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the [Torah] law, happy is he. (Prov 29:18)

Prophetic vision comes to those who keep, preserve and guard YHVH’s Torah. Torah-obedience per Proverbs 29:18 involves complying with both the spirit and letter or truth of YHVH’s Torah-word, which is how the saints will be worshipping YHVH in a pleasing way.

But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. Elohim is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. (John 4:23–24). 

YHVH is currently seeking such a people. To confront the present spirit of this age (i.e., the spirit of antichrist), which has a virtual death grip on this planet, will require a special, powerful double anointing of YHVH’s Spirit (e.g., the spirit of Elijah and Elisha) to come upon YHVH’s people. Before the saints can effectively combat the antichrist spirit, the yoke of false doctrine and the blinding spiritual veil must first be lifted from the eyes YHVH’s people including both the Christians and Jews. The blindness on the Christians is the failure to recognize the full validity of YHVH’s Written Torah-law and for the Jews it is failure to believe that Yeshua is the promised Messiah or the Living Torah-Word of Elohim incarnate. When both of these people-groups repent of their sin of unbelief and begin to unite, it is then that a double anointing, Spirit-filled and led, Yeshua the Messiah-trusting remnant of saints from both houses of Israel (i.e., Judah or the Jews and Ephraim or the Christians) will unite like an army to oppose the wicked conspiring cabal of satanic forces who are currently opposing the Messiah (Pss 2:2; 83:3). This coming together and uniting against the antichrist spirit and eventually Antichrist himself is the rising up and the preparation of the warrior bride of the Messiah, who will meet him in the air at his second coming and accompany the sword-wielding Conquering King of kings on his war stallion back to earth from heaven to destroy Satan and his antichrist forces once and for all (Rev 19:1–21). 

The Vision Spelled Out

Now let us dive deeper and unpack this vital regarding the restoration and revival of YHVH’s people. It is essential that the nascent bride of Yeshua understand these issues, so that she can be a wise virgin who will be ready to meet Yeshua her Bridegroom at his coming. The Book of Proverbs tells us, 

Where there is no vision [Heb. chazon; also divine or prophetic revelation], the people perish: but he that keepeth [Heb. shamar meaning “guard, protect, hedge about] the Torah-law, happy is he. (Prov 29:18, KJV)

Without a prophetic vision (i.e., a spiritual sense of direction and purpose), YHVH’s people will inevitably flounder in a morass of spiritual confusion including religiosity, lukewarmness, mediocrity, spiritual stagnation leading to state of declension and even apostasy as has happened to so many other Christians in the past. The law of entropy applies to the spiritual realm as well as to the physical realm. Without the outside input of energy to a both a physical and a spiritual system, the status quo deteriorates into disorder and confusion, and eventually grows cold and dark and then and dies. In the spiritual realm, the external input of energy is divine and prophetic revelation as energized by the Holy Spirit from whom comes specific instructions or vision that YHVH has for his people at a given time and place in history. This divine revelation not only keeps YHVH’s people on track spiritually and heading in the right direction in accordance with the will of YHVH, but it is the fuel that keeps them moving forward personally as well a as a corporate body as they help to advance heaven’s kingdom on earth.

There are two aspects to (prophetic) vision: personal and corporate. A personal vision is individualistic in scope and involves personal development, goals and one’s sense of one’s own unique destiny. A corporate vision is much broader in scope and is outside of as well as above and beyond the private aspirations of one’s own soul (mind, will and emotions) or personal spirit. It involves the larger people-group or one’s spiritual tribe. For the personal vision, it may be no more than being a good Christian and knowing that you will “go to heaven” when you die. On the other hand, the larger vision focuses on people-groups and spiritual activities beyond one’s own personal goals and aspirations. For the Christian, this may involve becoming involved in ministry of one sort or the other including winning the lost and making disciples for Christ as per his Great Commission command. In the discussion that follow, we will focus on the broader and greater vision that involves executing the so-called Great Commission (Matt 28:18–20 and Mark 16:15–18), but with a focus on specific details that pertain to the fulfillment of end times Bible prophecy.

Torah-obedience and prophetic revelation go hand-in-hand as Proverbs 29:18 inform us. Or stated otherwise, to the degree that we obey YHVH’s Torah is the degree to which we will have prophetic vision including knowledge, wisdom and understanding. When YHVH’s people forsake his Torah, and to the degree that they do so, will be the degree to which they lack prophetic vision. They may even come under divine judgment as a result. Why? This is YHVH’s way of waking up his people out of their state of lukewarmness or even apostasy and bringing them back to him is judgments unto repentance.

Her gates are sunk into the ground; he hath destroyed and broken her bars: her king and her princes are among the Gentiles: the Torah-law is no more; her prophets also find no vision from YHVH. (Lam 2:9)

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the Torah-law of thy Elohim, I will also forget thy children. (Hos 4:6)

A mere legalistic obedience to YHVH’s Torah-law is insufficient to tap into the heart and mind of YHVH. The Israelites knew the acts of YHVH, while Moses knew the ways of YHVH (Ps 103:7). Knowing the ways of YHVH involves understanding and living out both the letter or truth as well as the spirit or weightier matters of YHVH’s Torah-law (Matt 23:23 cp. John 4:23–24; Matt chapters 5 to 7). The righteousness of the saints must exceed a mere legalistic obedience to the Torah. No one was more punctilious when it came to Torah obedience than the Pharisees of Yeshua’s day, but he told his disciples that their righteousness had to exceed even that.

For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven. (Matt 5:20)

To be pleasing to our Father in heaven, we must understand that he is seeking true worshippers who will worship him both in spirit and truth, that is, in both the spirit and the letter of his Torah instructions in righteousness.

But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. (John 4:23–24)

The end times move of the Spirit of Elohim will involve spirit and truth coming together in the hearts and minds and then in the life actions of YHVH’s people. In a general sense, the Christians (especially the Spirit-filled ones) or, metaphorically speaking Ephraim, lean toward a more Spirit-led understanding and orientation vis-à-vis YHVH’s Torah-word. On the other hand, the religious Jews (or Judah) lean more toward a letter of the law orientation vis-à-vis YHVH’s Torah-word. As part of the two houses of Israel uniting in fulfilment of Ezekiel’s Dry Bones Prophecy and Two Sticks prophecies (Ezek 37:1–28), as well as countless other Old Testament prophecies too numerous to mention here, both people-groups must stop fighting each other and begin uniting under the banner of spirit and truth.

And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth. The envy also of Ephraim shall depart, and the adversaries of Judah shall be cut off: Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim. (Isa 11:11–13, emphasis added)

The breech between Ephraim (loosely speaking, the Christian church) and Judah (the religious Jews) is beginning to be healed.

For I will be unto Ephraim as a lion, and as a young lion to the house of Judah: I, even I, will tear and go away; I will take away, and none shall rescue him. I will go and return to my place, till they acknowledge their offence, and seek my face: in their affliction they will seek me early. Come, and let us return unto YHVH: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up. After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight. (Hos 5:14–6:2)

A breech has existed between Ephraim and Judah (i.e., the Christians and the Jews ever since Yeshua the Messiah came to this earth 2,000 years ago. He went away (returned to heaven), and now it is time for both houses of Israel to acknowledge their respective offences against him Elohim as well as each other and together return to him so that he can bind up and heal this breech. After two days (prophetically 2,000 years), this is beginning to occur. A rapprochement has slowly been taking place between Jews (Judah) and Christians (Ephraim) ever since the Jews for Jesus Movement arose in the late 1960s. Out of that, the Messianic Jewish Movement was birthed in the 1970s, and then out of that came the Messianic Israel Movement of the 1980s and 1990s. Since then the Torah restoration movement has been occurring where more and more Christians are leaving the mainstream Christian churches and are recognizing the validity of the Torah in their lives while, at the same time, coming to the realization that they are grafted-in Israelites and no longer Gentiles as the church has falsely told them. They are no longer Gentiles without God and without hope, but are part of the nation or commonwealth of Israel. Whether grafted into the olive tree of Israel or literal, physical descendants of Abraham, they are part of Israel through the blood of Messiah and are now the one new man where there is neither Jew nor Gentile (Eph 2:11–19; Gal 3:28–29). 

While YHVH is slowly bringing the two houses of Israel back together again in preparation for the return of Yeshua the Messiah, another phenomenon is concurrently occurring on planet Earth. The Spirit of antichrist is arising like never before and is currently sweeping across this world like a tidal wave of dark evil and is taking targeted aim at both Jews and Christians. Disparate elements and strange bedfellows of this satanic spirit (e.g.,
Communist Marxists, American Democrats, leftists, atheists, Islamists, Satanists, anarchists, etc.) are uniting because of their common Satan-motivated hatred for Jews and Christians. This is because they are “the people of the book” or the Bible to quote the Koran, There are a plethora of manifestation of this evil spirit that is opposing those who the Scriptures call the children of the light. They include antisemitism, the war against Christianity and Judeo-Christian and biblical values, the war against the family, marriage, masculinity, male and female genders, the rise in and promotion of homosexuality, the promotion of abortion, genital mutilation, transhumanism, pharmakeia and the list goes on and on. The total philosophy of the spirit of antichrist boils down to three things: kill, steal and destroy the human race, which are key goals of all the forces of evil as Yeshua reveals in the gospels (John 10:10). Behind all of this plot to annihilate the human race is Satan the devil, who is the grand architect of this unholy scheme.

While the forces of the spirit of antichrist are uniting and coalescing in an attempt to form Satan’s counterfeit kingdom (which the Scriptures refer to Babylon the Great and Satan’s minions refer to as the Novus Ordo Seclorum or New World Order among other terms), at the same time, this will help to unite both the Jews and the Christians, since they both have a common enemy. That is to say, this common enemy of Jews and Christian will likely help to facilitate the coming together of the two houses of Israel. Together, they must confront the spirit of antichrist. This is already beginning to happen as more and more Christians are supporting the nation of Israel through prayer and financial support in its battle against its antichrist terrorist enemies.

Until this coming together at one level or another occurs, the Christians church will remain largely effete, and the Jews will remain almost totally helpless and ineffective as they continue fighting for their lives against Edom or the Islamic spirit of antichrist as well as generic antisemitism and in a their multi-front war against their physical enemies in the actual land of Israel and elsewhere.

At some point in time, the prophecy of Zechariah 9:12–13 will come to pass. When the arrow of Ephraim is fitted to the bow of Judah, both their physical and spiritual enemies will be defeated. The bow or pride of Judah against the Christians and Yeshua the Messiah must bent, so that the arrow of Yeshua and the gospel message can be shot at the real enemy of the antichrist spirit. 

When this occurs, hopefully the elements or a forerunner remnant people of the two houses of Israel will unite against the spirit of antichrist. This will result in a double anointing coming on the people of YHVH. From this untied front perhaps will come the two individuals who will be the two witnesses of Revelation chapter 11. Together these two individuals, who together and synergistically represent YHVH’s spirit and truth (will they be Moses and Elijah-type persons?), confront the evils of Antichrist with their double (Elisha) anointing accompanied by divine, miraculous powers to defeat their enemies (Rev 11:1–13).

Currently, both Judah and Ephraim are spiritually blind. The majority of Jews have a veil of their eyes to Yeshua the Living Torah, and the majority of Christians or Ephraim are blinded to the Written Torah. Only when this blindness is lifted, eyes opened, yokes broken by the anointing and through repentance or teshuvah (Zech 9:12; Hos 6:15) by both parties will Judah and Ephraim be victorious over their enemies—the inebriated sons of Greece or spirit of antichrist—the whore of Babylon (Zech 9:13 cp. Rev 17:2).

Until this prophetic word comes to pass, it must be written down, and the awakened saints must stand watch waiting in faith for YHVH to fulfil is prophetic word.

I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved. And YHVH answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry. (Hab 2:1–3)

While waiting for this prophetic word to come to pass, perhaps it is apropos, in the spirit of Ezekiel, for us to prophesy to the dry bones of the houses of Judah and Ephraim and command the breath or Spirit of Elohim to cause them to “will hear the word of YHVH” (Ezek 37:4), and that YHVH “will cause breath to enter into [them] and [they] shall live (Ezek 37:5). That they will “come together” (Ezek 37:6), so that an exceedingly great army will rise up and stand on its feet (Ezek 37:10). These bones are the whole house of Israel (Ezek 37:11) that has been made alive and energized by the Spirit of Elohim (Ezek 37:14).

The two sticks of Ephraim and Judah coming together (Ezek 37:15–28) is a process that has been occurring incrementally over time. It started in the days of Yeshua and the Book of Acts. This process got subverted and sidetracked by rabbinic Judaism and Catholic Christianity and her harlot daughters. Since then, there has been a slow and gradual restoration of Spirit and Truth in the Christian body of Yeshua from the Protestant Reformation until now. The restoration of the two houses of Israel commonly referred to as “the two-house message” and the Hebrew Roots Movement has been the latest iteration of that restoration. Now we are waiting for the two houses of Israel to begin coming together in more ostensibly tangible and visible ways as the Christians return to the Torah roots of their faith (i.e., the hearts of the children returning to their patriarchal fathers) as Malachi prophesied.

For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith YHVH of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall. And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith YHVH of hosts. Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments. Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of YHVH: And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse. (Mal 4:1–6)

At the same time, we pray that more Jews will be coming to understand who the true Messiah is as opposed to the caricaturized, Greco-Roman Jesus Christ that the mainstream church has been promoting for the past 1,900 years. As Yeshua, the real Torah-promoting Messiah, is revealed and promoted, the veil will begin lifting and the eyes of many Jews will be opened and many will come to faith.

As the veil over the eyes of both the Christians and Jews is being lifted, YHVH will send an anointing to break the this yoke of spiritual blindness and the aversion that the one side has had historically for the other and each will accept the totality of who Yeshua is as both the Written Torah-Word of YHVH and the Living Torah-Word incarnate (John 1:1, 14). 

And it shall come to pass in that day, that the remnant of Israel, and such as are escaped of the house of Jacob, shall no more again stay upon him that smote them; but shall stay upon YHVH, the Holy One of Israel, in truth. The remnant shall return, even the remnant of Jacob, unto the mighty El. For though thy people Israel be as the sand of the sea, yet a remnant of them shall return: the consumption decreed shall overflow with righteousness. For the Adonai YHVH of hosts shall make a consumption, even determined, in the midst of all the land. Therefore thus saith the Adonai YHVH of hosts, O my people that dwellest in Zion, be not afraid of the Assyrian: he shall smite thee with a rod, and shall lift up his staff against thee, after the manner of Egypt. For yet a very little while, and the indignation shall cease, and mine anger in their destruction. And YHVH of hosts shall stir up a scourge for him according to the slaughter of Midian at the rock of Oreb: and as his rod was upon the sea, so shall he lift it up after the manner of Egypt. And it shall come to pass in that day, that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing. (Isa 10:20–25)

The occurrence of all of these events is critical in preparing the warrior bride of Yeshua to meet him at his second coming (1 Cor 15:51–54; I Thess 4:13–18; Rev 11:18) and then return with him from heaven to destroy the satanic forces of Antichrist once and for all (Rev 19:1–21). 

Make no mistake, and the Bible is clear on this: Yeshua is coming back for one bride, not two brides. The Bible refers to this one bride as the elect, the one new man, the bride, the called out ones and the body of Messiah where there is neither Jew nor Greek Gentile. Yeshua, the Torah-Word of Elohim and Jewish Torah-obedient rabbi is neither a polygamist nor a Torah violator who is coming back go marry two brides: a Torah-law ambivalent, swine-eating, Christmas keeping, Sunday go-to-church bride plus a rabbinic Jewish, Yeshua-denying bride. He is marrying only one bride. Not everyone will be the chaste, spotless bride of Yeshua. Many will be in his forever kingdom, but not all will be his forever bride. However, there will be a remnant of a remnant who will be prepared to meet Yeshua when he comes and who will be his chaste, Torah-obedient warrior bride (see Rev 12:17; 14:12). The rest of the saints may be saved, but they will not be his bride. There are multiple levels of rewards in his kingdom from the least to the greatest (Matt 5:19). Amein.

A Call to Action

What can each of YHVH’s saints now do to help fulfill this vision of the two houses of Israel being reunited in order first to oppose the spirit of this age—the spirit of antichrist, and then to be a bride who will be spiritually clean wearing spotless garments which are her righteous deeds (Rev 19:7–9), and who will have oil in their lamps which is YHVH Spirit and Torah-truth?

• Renew one’s first love for Yeshua and the joy of one’s salvation.
• Repent of Torahlessness.
• Return to a life of prayer to draw closer to YHVH Elohim through Yeshua the Messiah.
• Pray for wisdom and direction and to be able to hear the voice of the Spirit of Elohim, and then to act on what you hear.
• As the powers of antichrist are more intensely and determinately oppressing, marginalizing, excluding, banning, censoring and persecuting the Christian saints (both mainstream Christians and Hebraic Christians) worldwide, this will necessitate them to begin coming together in localized, neighborhood prayer groups (irrespective of church affiliation and generally outside of church buildings and in homes). Why? To pray for divine guidance, direction and protection from the malevolent forces of antichrist that are gunning for them. These groups will also be essential for mutual support and eventually for the purpose of not only physical but also spiritual survival against the satanic forces of darkness.
• Forming spiritual support communities by first getting to know your neighbors and finding out who the serious, Bible believing saints are as opposed to cultural Christians who are Christians in name only. These serious believers should start praying together. Little-by-little relationships of mutual trust and reliance will begin to form in preparation for the harder times to come. 

This will be an opportunity for the Hebraic, more Torah-orientated Christians in love and respect to begin to show their Christian brethren (or “Ephraim”) the ancient and good paths of Torah (Jer 6:16), and for the hearts of the children (i.e., Christians) to begin to be turned back to the fathers of the Christian faith (Mal 4:4–6). This may be the precursor fulfillment of YHVH bringing his people into the wilderness of the people and reasoning with them over the validity of his Torah and the covenants he has made with his people in preparation for their return to the Promised (Holy) Land (Ezek 20:33–38).

As small groups of Ephraimite Christians begin coming together, at the same time, this will be an opportunistic stepping stone to be able to reach out to one’s Jewish neighbors in love and support especially as antisemitism increases. They can be brought into the arms of Christian love and perhaps be won to faith in Yeshua. This could help to facilitate the coming together of the two houses of Israel in fulfillment of the larger vision delineated above as well as the fulfilment of many end time Bible prophecies that predict this occurrence.

Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of YHVH unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith YHVH of hosts.…or who hath despised the day of small things? for they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the eyes of YHVH, which run to and fro through the whole earth. (Zech 4:6, 10, emphasis added) 

Then they that feared YHVH spake often one to another: and YHVH hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared YHVH, and that thought upon his name. And they shall be mine, saith YHVH of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him. Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth Elohim and him that serveth him not. (Mal 3:16–18)