24 Shevat is always a time of reflection. We stand back in AWE of God as Zechariah is asking about peace on the earth.

Horses are seen standing behind the myrtle bushes. Hadassah means myrtle. She hid her real identity from her husband, King Asheraus. In hindsight we witness Yahweh’s hiding Hadassah’s real identity until His appointed. Time. God is not spoken of in The Book of Esther. Yet, Yahweh is seen in His own ‘sign’ language. The Book of Esther clarifies how prayer is answered. It is in sincerity that we kneel before our King. The King ruled the entire Middle East containing 120 provinces. The King granted Queen Hadassah to be second in command to her husband the King. King Yeshua is second in command to The Father. The Father brings The Groom King Yeshua to Israel The Bride.

Do The Gentiles consider themselves part of the Wedding Party? We find the instructions on how to be invited to this wedding in The Torah. What are the Horsemen searching for on the earth? TORAH!

Zechariah’s craftsmen (horses) are ask what they saw while searching out the earth. Queen Esther is asked what she sees in the ‘courtyard’ of her king. YHWH placing them in charge of 120 provinces patterns to Moses walking those same 120 provinces during his 120-year life. And what happens when we track backward to Ya’cov? He also was walking in those provinces TWENTY years with a selfish father-in-law, Laven. And what happens when we fast forward to the TWENTIETH Century? We have ISRA’EL (Ya’cov) becoming a nation in 1948. It is midway into the 20^th century.

My husband was born in 1948. He was hidden from his lineage because of a world-wide Shoah of Jews. Yet now his nine siblings could embrace their heritage if they are still alive. We have moved into the 21^st Century when the pattern of Isra’el’s son Binyamin was born in 2184 years from Adam.

In 2024 Israel found herself at war on seven fronts…America being one of them. The Hebrew year was 5784. Eight – letter Chai: Life. Four – Dahlet: Opening. Binyamin was born in The Promised Land. Beit: house (2) beginning, Aleph (1) strength (Elohim). Binyamin’s birth came with death. He shows us The Messiach suffering when giving birth. A woman (us) resented the ways of God. Our idolatry with the world chasing after gold is seen in Ya’cov’s wife Rachel who thought it okay to steal and lie in order to acquire what she thought was her due inheritance.

Ya’cov saw Rachel’s sorrow even as she named her son, ‘son of sorrow’. On the ‘eight’ day Ya’cov returns home and changes his son’s name to ‘son of strength’. This pattern has given witness to Yeshua Jesus suffering to the point of death for this woman called, The Bride. This pattern completes in Day Eight (earth’s age of 8000 years). God named His only begotten son after himself. His name is Yeshuah. The English use Jesus and Islam used Isa for the name Yeshua. ‘Ish’ in Hebrew means, man.

English is full of chaos as one word can have many meanings. English has brought chaos to our world. And yet, we demand it be learned in every country.

Letter M, (mem) means chaos…like swirling waters.

Moses (letter mem) observed chaos and told the people.

Mordicah (letter mem) observed chaos and told his niece.

Miriam (letter mem) observed chaos her entire life.

Miriam – 3 woman named Miriam were weeping in tears for Yeshua at the stake.

Zechariah observed more chaos yet to be cleaned up. Yahweh granted Zechariah’s prayer request. He was granted to reign a full forty years. Fifteen more years to try to strike down the idols still seen on Israel’s hills.

Whose Peace?

All leaders have contend for ‘man’s peace’ instead of YHWH’s peace. Adam lost his second born to man’s peace instead of The Creator’s way to peace. Cain wanted his kingdom built his way. YHWH’s ways are beyond our ways.

24 Shevat is a time of reflecting upon governments changing. January 20 was 20 Tevet. Trump’s Inauguration. He and staff stood before The Nations vowing to set all nations ‘free’ from tyranny of the previous presidents sitting at his left hand. His family sat at his right hand.

In 2025 the ‘chaos’ in the calendars aligned perfectly. The days saw each other day-for-day just as March 2025 shows the calendars aligned face-to-face. There is no excuse not to witness YHWH acting on each day of these months. And, through the entire month of Shevat, the moon and six planets aligned pointing to world governments instructed to align in righteousness.

Mosch almost died because of a foreign government removing any threat of another power taking over when he was a newborn. It continued to happen for his entire 120 years. Pharaoh’s kingdom did grumble when all their slaves left.

Mosch’s first four (ish) years were grounded in the Hebrew language. The remainder of his first ‘forty’ years of life would be learning the ways of the world known as Egyptian. His second set of ‘forty’ years would be learning from the Medianite. Three sections of forty years Mosch was born on 7 Adar and he will die on 7 Adar. March 7, 2025 is 7 Adar 5785. The Hebrew and Pope Gregory calendars will agree in what they see that day on our earth. It will be a Friday with the Sabbath beginning that evening. All could be reading The Book of Deuteronomy as it was his last words. He reviewed their trip to redemption. Mosch is 80 years old when he begins the third segment of his life’s journey. The Scriptures are in full view of Mosch and what he is to mean to our world.

Mosch completed 120 years to the exact day. Noach was also lifted up on his birthday. He was 601 years old on 1 Tishrei when the roof cover came off the ark. Yes, it was exactly the same day the dark was finished and ready to fill with animals and Eight people.

Scholars calculate Mosch was born 1948 years from Adam. Mosch is the foreshadow of Israel bringing Torah to The Gentiles. When you say Mosch, you are also saying The Torah. The Seat of Mosch is The Torah. And we see Yeshua sitting on the Seat of Mosch. Yeshua would once again put it in man’s heart as He walked out every detail of it and the Prophets writings about Him. Every step Yeshua took had been ordained from the days of Creation.

Abraham’s birth year matches Israel becoming a state in 1948 in the 20^th century. Yes, TWENTY is an indicator. The letter Kaph has the numerical value of twenty (20). This letter makes the shape of a cupped hand. This ‘K’ sounds like king. It means hand grasp. Ya’cov was in the hands of Laven through year twenty. In the year 2020 our world was gripped in the hands of a planned plague called ‘Kaph-vid 19’. The breath was taken from many humans. Millions died of this plague. Many wished they could die but did not as they were vented. Government officials vented those that did not need venting. Health organizations were instructed to shut down the kidneys. Many kidneys would not restart.

Abraham dug wells that were filled back in causing him to move further and further away from his homeland of Haran. His great uncle Haran had established this town in the Canaan area. Thus, when Abraham says that he was a foreigner he was not talking about his homeland outside of Canaan. He was a native born Canaanite. He left for twenty-five years covering more footage to be claimed by YHWH. The Promised Land would be his homeland plus the entire area his foot touched while walking for those twenty-five years. When the twelve tribes spied out The Land, they traveled into Hebron known today as Gaza. Today Israel is a miracle back on the earth. Her wars keep winning her more and more land where Abraham’s foot stepped. The 1967 borders stretched from Lebanon to the Sinai Peninsula and into Syria. There were not enough Jews to once again settle The Promised Land.

Abraham and others have referred to themselves being in a foreign land because we are not yet in Heaven. It is that ‘great country’ that we all are to look forward. We sojourn on this earth until it passes into a new setting at 8000 years. Abraham could see into the heavenly realm and knew that is where the ultimate goal was purposed by YHWH. Enoch saw it and told others. Abraham, Ya’cov, John, Stephen, Yeshua, Paul and many people returning from death experiences have seen beyond this veil. There are more realms that await every soul that has been born into this realm.

Yeshua Jesus came at the OPENING marker. The letter ‘Dahlet’ means open. It’s picture language is a door. Yeshua came at year 4000 from Adam. He is known as the ‘Second’ Adam. This ‘second’ Adam came to save all of the ‘First’ Adam’s children. The ‘Second’ Adam came suffering as seen via Ya’cov with Laven and his son Yoseph with Pharaoh. First comes the ‘giving’ to suffering. Then ‘kingship’ can come. Those that suffer know how to suffer with those that suffer. There is joy in it all when you take yourself out of the picture of ‘you’ being happy on this earth. Life is about others, not yourself.

Mosch’s life patterns are open. He is forty times three. David aligned with forty. This number attaches to rulers and governments. The United States uses four-year terms for the length of a presidency. The four is the letter dahlet meaning door which opens. There is safety in many rulers but not in dictatorships that can span a single man’s lifetime.

Yahweh chooses leaders. He chose Sh’aul to rule 40 years. He chose David to rule 40 years. He chose Solomon to rule 40 years. These three men alone brought another 120 years of Torah on the earth. Now we see Torah returning to the earth through Israel becoming a nation in 1948. There is no stopping The Torah…it has gone viral through the web.

Those honoring The Torah are The Remnant. Why? Because Yeshua completely honors it and showed us how to walk in it. He said that this ‘yoke’ was easy… it was not a burden but a delight.

We witness King Hezekiah weeping at age forty. He began to rule when he was 25 years old. We are living in year 2025 right now. He was told he would die and not finish his forty years. His life was to end at after only ruling twenty-five years. He was a jubilee of age old. FIFTY! It was a marker in time set by HaShem. Time would stop when King Hezekiah was age 50.

Now we have a pattern of 15 years set in government. Hezekiah would rule another 15 years like the former kings for a total of FORTY years. Yahweh hears sincere prayer. He heard him weeping as he lay on his side up against his bedroom wall. Instead of dying at age 50, Hezekiah now dies at age 65. The Jubilee pattern will be disrupted because his tears set him free.

But, starting with that Jubilee year the worst will come from Hezekiah’s loins. His wife has a baby that they name Manasseh. Truly he did NOT want to keep Torah on the earth and defied it by even killing all the great prophets who called him out about not keeping The Torah.

Manasseh killed his own grandfather Isaiah having him cut in half. He killed his own father Hezekiah.

We should not push our own agenda as Hezekiah did. Yahweh knows earth’s history. If it is our time to depart in His peace, then we should accept it. Yah’s peace comes from within. If you do not feel God’s peace then open your Bible and search for it. God’s form of communication has not changed. We are told to ‘remember the stories’ of how ELOYIM brought them out of Egypt.

It is in God’s hand (10, letter ‘yud’) alone that we must trust. They did not do anything to deserve to be brought out of slavery to their world. They had become content building pyramids and temples for other gods.

How has your world grown content? How have governments used their ‘gods’ to influence nations?

Nations are known as water. Nations are designed to spread out across Yahweh’s earth. It is in our leaders that follow YHWH that we are to trust. Communism and Islam bring leaders who control their subjects. These types are not following The Torah issued by YHWH.

Mosch father-in-law Yithro was a prince of a leader out of Median. He observed the ways of YHWH and was impressed on YHWH’s structure for governing. He encouraged Mosch to delegate authority to those of sound mind in The Torah. Yithro converted and even offered his own sacrifice to Yahweh. Yithro went back to lead Median in this same type of governing. He left his princess daughter and his two grandson’s with Mosch. Yithro now trust that his family would be safe. Yitro trusted YHWH.

Mosch’s sister Miriam loved children. She stood for faith in her family. She had an older brother, Aaron. This brother may have given into Miriam’s whims. Aaron did speak confidently where Moses could not speak clearly. Some say hot coal was put in his mouth to keep him from crying out as a baby when Pharaoh was seeking to kill the baby boys two years and under.

Mosch continued to survive many attacks as he moved through experience to the time of The Plagues. We too have learned of plagues and famines to be able to relate to the tribes challenges of accepting to really want to be free of want. When we finally just want to live in order to give others what we have, then we have arrived to a place of peace within.

Aaron’s lineage would be blessed to be the ‘priests’ in the Wilderness Tabernacle and The Temple. His lineage struck down those in the wilderness when asked to choose sides. His family would now be granted the priesthood of slaying all offerings. Thus the saying, “Not all Levites are priests” Aharon’s family line was challenged to it’s core when two of Aharon’s four children died by the ‘hand’ of Yah. Nadab and Abihu had a pride issue and were burnt offerings themselves. Aharon could not mourn them because we do NOT mourn disobedience. Aharon could not be the High Priest because he had learned what a humble offering looked like. His next two sons could serve only because they realized how HOLY YHWH is.

No matter how many first cousins Mosch had, it would be his own brother Aaron that is to be remembered. Aaron had his own staff that stood between Heaven and earth. Yahweh ordained these two brothers to hold their staffs as signs of strength for Yahweh. Mosch and Aharon are two witnesses that served together before Pharaoh. Could they RETURN to stand before the world once again? They are both Levittes. They both worked miracles once and just may do it again…on a much larger scale.

Aaron, Miriam nor Mosch would cross over into The Promised Land. Pride held each of them. Yes, there is more judgment placed on teachers than the sheep. Instead of speaking to The Rock they smote The Rock. Instead of giving Yahweh credit for the water, they took credit for the water coming out. For 40 years the people thought Mosch and Aaron were the miracle workers when it was The Father.

Our Savior was struck down once because of the words of The Father. The Son Yeshua was obedient to every word spoken from the mouth of The Father. And, he could only be struck at the perfect time to be struck. The Rock could only be struck at the perfect time with the perfect words spoken so Yeshua’s entrance to earth would be recognized as The Messiach.

It is one thing to die for the ‘penalty’ of sin and it is also a miracle to do it all according to the prophetic words that came through The Prophets. Did Yeshua study all The Torah, The Prophets and all The Writings? Absolutely….so all could be completed perfectly. Torah has never been canceled. People could face the torments of hell for not even knowing what The Torah says.

How can one be saved when that person stay in their sin. Is it a time of ignorance? Yes, there is an offering for sins of ignorance. If you are concerned about committing it then I would say you’re not committing it. You are trying not to sin.

Yet, people ignorant of what The Torah means in their life, certainly will be held accountable for being ignorant of what God’s instructions mean to them personally.

Yeshua’s blood saves us to now sincerely seek repentance. It is with our actions that we walk out what God’s instructions are for even The Gentile! Yes, that is a The Mystery… even the Gentile can operate as one with Isra’el. We are all one body grafted in together to be one flesh as seen in a marriage. When The Marriage Covenant is violated, we dissolve the very premise of God marrying us. Divorce should be avoided at all costs.

Why in these ‘end of times as we know it’ are so many couples divorcing? They have misunderstood the word love. They are taught that it is a feeling. Some Greek Agape thing. Love is NOT a sloppy. It is intentional. It is intentional to commit to a person for the rest of their life. God’s love is not sloppy. It is about action. He did not love us because we first loved him. No, He loved us before the foundation of the world. All of what earth is about is to draw the soul to a higher realm. When we learn to GIVE and give and give, we are learning to be selfless. This is where the battle for the soul begins.

God will not divorce those who give of themselves. In giving you take yourself out of life’s picture. You place others as more valuable than yourself. It is in giving of self that grows the love within a human being.

Parents love their children more than children can love their parents. Why? Because parents have had more time to give. Yes, parents give up a lot just in order to be a parent. Parents give and give because LOVE is built into the human nature. If LOVE is missing, it is because life has been about self. If parents bail out on their children by leaving them without a solid foundation of who God is…giving us His only Begotten son as a savior..is a good place to start about giving. God came to earth in the form of flesh. That flesh was torn so severely that we should tear up just thinking about it.

Selfish people have not given enough of themselves to cancel out self. Humans that give in order to receive have no place in The Kingdom. You can NOT buy salvation. Yeshua Jesus is, was and will be again. God came in flesh to crush any demonic thought. Our world is set up on a system of being saved. It is not ‘saved’ yet. Saving us is a process. YHWH is looking for selfless hearts. In that selflessness our world will become what The Gan of Eden was meant to be.

All things that happen are allowed by Yahweh. His perfect will must happen on earth. The nature of man to ‘think on his own’ can bring man to ‘pride moments’. The ‘best of men’ must realize they are mere human. It is in our failings that we realize we are not robots. Our ‘free will’ stops us from being ‘robots’.

AI is not evil unless it’s programming is evil. If men live out their lives in choosing Yahweh’s will then AI can only act in Yahweh’s will.

Can there be enough GOOD programmed into AI so it helps us overcome EVIL? This should be the goal. Yahweh is allowing the development of Artificial Intelligence. Yahweh created all things including ‘angels’ known as ‘messengers’.

Is there enough GOOD ‘Angel Intelligence’ to overcome EVIL ‘Messengers’?

Intelligent Isaac Newton’s curiosity was not evil. He was asking the right questions and had friends who tried to guide him. He lived his life in a community of lower and upper class.

Intelligent Albert Einstein curiosity was not evil. He was asking the right questions. Yet was laughed at as only a few friends could grasp his ideas. This peace-loving man wrote a letter telling that an atomic bomb would only lead to the world being destroyed. His letter renouncing The bomb built from his original thoughts was never delivered to the President FDR as he died. FDR’s desk was wiped clean with Einstein’s letter waiting to be read.

History shows us that the curious mind of Einstein…and yet detracted by the lusts of the flesh with woman. He was not Torah observant. He lived at when The Jew was scorned. Time Magazine beheld his wild hair exploding outward along with the atomic bomb exploding in the background. The thing Einstein detested was allowed by Yahweh.

Man is not spiraling up but spiraling down. By the year 2025 AD we can calculate we are well into Day Seven on a Gregorian calendar. If we look at a Hebrew calendar scholars calculate we are 5785 years from Adam. And yet, even this group confirms 5785 is behind about 210 years. Many say we re beyond 5995 years from Adam.

So where are we in history? We are exactly where Yahweh designed it.

We see churches closed during a planned ‘plague’. They still have not re-opened. Many Sunday school teachers died during the world-wide scare that began in 2019. Many parents are afraid to send their children back to church.

When you shut down a world you shut down it’s economy. Our world-wide governments are now reviving because man refused to die off. Yes, God is Alive and Well.

I began this article in wanting to look at the ‘Hand of Yahweh’ via Zechariah 1-2. Sabbath, February 22, 2025 was the Hebrew date of 24 Shevat.

Zechariah had an experience of seeing a vision of horses. These colored horses may indeed match up with Islamic nations colors of their flags. But, the main emphasis is that these horses or winds went out onto all the four corners of the earth. This simply means that it was not just exclusive to The Land of Israel. Creative artisans are at play all over our earth…in every city.

What are they doing? They are told to ‘remove’ man’s peace.

Earthquakes…yes! FIRE…Absolutely! WINDS…Historical! Earth’s beaches…destroyed!

Since The Plague many humans have settled back in to ‘helping’ the poor. North Carolina’s Helena hurricane makes front page almost every day since fall of 2024. Helena is a ‘goddess’. Constantine’s mother was named after this ‘goddess’. In 2025 we have The Helena Trench near Greece now churning at it’s ‘ancient’ volcanic cauldron.

And across our earth we have this ‘help thy neighbor’ syndrome. We are now feeling sorry for thieves. We are feeling sorry for those against Isra’el when I Samuel tells Israel to take up arms to kill those called Philistines.

In this feeling ‘sorry’ for every thief on the earth we have lost our basis of what defines good and evil. It is Mosch’s instructions received from Yahweh at Mt. Sinai that we must RETURN. Where is Mt. Sinai? It is in Arabia. Yes, this shows us that Yahweh’s instructions are also for Ishmael. Yahweh’s instructions are for ALL the earth. In ‘The Sorrows’ of The Tribes being dispersed there is JOY to the Gentile nations.

To the Jew first and then The Gentile is clearly seen of who lived together as foreigners and strangers in

the forty-year experience in The Wilderness in Egypt. It is the verbal instructions that were heard by all standing at the holy base of that mountain. This mountain still has burn marks on the top of it showing the fire of YHWH on it. There is also a split rock with evidence of water coming from it. These are the new ‘tour’ spots people should give witness to.

So what does Zechariah teach us? It is a very prophetic book as we note the character of Yahweh does not change. Zechariah is about governments on our earth. Israel’s cities will overflow with prosperity.

A Vision of a Horseman

Zechariah 1:7  ¶ Upon the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, which is the month Sebat, in the second year of Darius, the word of the LORD came unto the prophet Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo, saying, 

Zechariah 1:17  Cry yet, saying, Thus saith the LORD of the hosts, My cities through abundance of good shall yet be widened; and the LORD shall yet comfort Zion and shall yet choose Jerusalem. 

A Vision of Horns and Craftsmen

Zec 1:18  ¶ Then I lifted up my eyes and saw and behold four horns. 

Zec 1:19  And I said unto the angel that talked with me, What are these? And he answered me, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem. 

Zec 1:20  And the LORD showed me four carpenters. 

Zec 1:21  Then I said, What do these come to do? And he spoke, saying, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, so that no one lifted up his head, but these are come to cause them to tremble, to cut down the horns of the Gentiles, which lifted up their horn over the land of Judah to scatter it. 

We know this is prophetic to the end of the age as we know it. It is prophetic to end Gentile governments that raise up their might against Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.

There is no doubt that Israel today is being battered down from more than SEVEN sides. What happens to these more than SEVEN sides around our world?

Our beaches continue to burn. The Hawaiian gods are burnt up. The Hollywood crowd and what it is about has burnt up. From Hawaii to California beaches and inland we continue to burn. Wokness is thick on our earth.

Flooding The nations has become the norm. We keep witnessing floods to Israel’s enemies.

Historical winds batter all nations. With the wind comes more fire. That nations on all four corners burn…as do America’s beaches where people don’t even know what ‘shame’ means. We stand ‘naked’ as sun worshipers.

Dictator Russia is even having their own troubles as they continue to take land not theirs. They lose wars but in their minds they do not concede. Germany lost WWI yet in the mind of Hitler they did not concede. Men are about conquering as we see in the statue Daniel describes. We definitely are not without prophetic information to say we have not been warned.

Yet, it always goes back to Joshua who ask them, “Choose ye this day whom you will serve. As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”

I sold Home Interiors and Gifts for many years and it is still a favorite memory of going into homes and talking about Joshua 24:15.

We have just recognized three ‘trumpet calls’ in our life time.

We have even witnessed U.S. Presidents trying to be assassinated. Each intent is covered up by evil. There is no justice for mankind when it’s own government tries to kills off it’s righteous leaders.

When man proves himself so wicked that it seems it just can’t get any worse, there is still a remnant that will be able to point to ‘the original instructions’.

The middle page of partition was torn down by Yahweh’s flesh put on a wooden stake.

Wickedness put a middle page of partition in Bibles denying these instructions are for today. Whoa to him that calls good evil and evil good. We have counted The Torah as evil but no more. The line has been drawn in the sand. The Living Word of God has now walked on the earth once and will come again soon.

The gloom of darkness has been uncovered all over the earth by the richest man on the earth. Who made Elon rich? Yahweh builds up every king. They are to tear down evil that is called good.

President Trump has realized his life is not his own. He is owned by God for such a time that even Esther declared. She is the bride that fasted with her lineage defined as having lived in Judea. They came from the loins of Abraham that offered up his only ‘begotten’ son Ya’cov that was chosen to represent Yeshua, God’s ‘only begotten’ son. And he did it exactly on the spot Abraham was guided to offer up Isaac.

President Trump was anointed by his aunts at a young age for spiritual greatness. If he would have had a Torah Scroll it would have been perfect for him to swear by it. Yet, we are not to swear by anything on this earth. I’m glad his aunt’s bible was there but I’m also glad that he swears by nothing as YHWH is his covering.

February 25, 2025 from Jubilee daily devotion e-sword

“The wrath to come.” — Mat_3:7

It is pleasant to pass over a country after a storm has spent itself; to smell the freshness of the herbs after the rain has passed away, and to note the drops while they glisten like purest diamonds in the sunlight. That is the position of a Christian. He is going through a land where the storm has spent itself upon his Savior’s head, and if there be a few drops of sorrow falling, they distill from clouds of mercy, and Jesus cheers him by the assurance that they are not for his destruction. But how terrible is it to witness the approach of a tempest: to note the forewarning of the storm; to mark the birds of heaven as they droop their wings; to see the cattle as they lay their heads low in terror; to discern the face of the sky as it groweth black, and look to the sun which shineth not, and the heavens which are angry and frowning! How terrible to await the dread advance of a hurricane-such as occurs, sometimes, in the tropics-to wait in terrible apprehension till the wind shall rush forth in fury, tearing up trees from their roots, forcing rocks from their pedestals, and hurling down all the dwelling-places of man! And yet, sinner, this is your present position. No hot drops have as yet fallen, but a shower of fire is coming. No terrible winds howl around you, but God’s tempest is gathering its dread artillery. As yet the water-floods are dammed up by mercy, but the flood-gates shall soon be opened: the thunderbolts of God are yet in his storehouse, but lo! the tempest hastens, and how awful shall that moment be when God, robed in vengeance, shall march forth in fury! Where, where, where, O sinner, wilt thou hide thy head, or whither wilt thou flee? O that the hand of mercy may now lead you to Christ! He is freely set before you in the gospel: his riven side is the rock of shelter. Thou knowest thy need of him; believe in him, cast thyself upon him, and then the fury shall be overpast for ever.

Evening

“But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the Lord, and went down to Joppa.” — Jon_1:3

Instead of going to Nineveh to preach the Word, as God bade him, Jonah disliked the work, and went down to Joppa to escape from it. There are occasions when God’s servants shrink from duty. But what is the consequence? What did Jonah lose by his conduct? He lost the presence and comfortable enjoyment of God’s love. When we serve our Lord Jesus as believers should do, our God is with us; and though we have the whole world against us, if we have God with us, what does it matter? But the moment we start back, and seek our own inventions, we are at sea without a pilot. Then may we bitterly lament and groan out, “O my God, where hast thou gone? How could I have been so foolish as to shun thy service, and in this way to lose all the bright shinings of thy face? This is a price too high. Let me return to my allegiance, that I may rejoice in thy presence.” In the next place, Jonah lost all peace of mind. Sin soon destroys a believer’s comfort. It is the poisonous upas tree, from whose leaves distill deadly drops which destroy the life of joy and peace. Jonah lost everything upon which he might have drawn for comfort in any other case. He could not plead the promise of divine protection, for he was not in God’s ways; he could not say, “Lord, I meet with these difficulties in the discharge of my duty, therefore help me through them.” He was reaping his own deeds; he was filled with his own ways. Christian do not play the Jonah, unless you wish to have all the waves and the billows rolling over your head. You will find in the long run that it is far harder to shun the work and will of God than to at once yield yourself to it. Jonah lost his time, for he had to go to Nineveh after all. It is hard to contend with God; let us yield ourselves at once.