The
Messenger
CONT., page 3
SATAN—THE COVERING,
THE HEAD
One
of the hardest things there is to accept, and provokes the most immediate and
greatest objection and reactionary criticism, is the fact that Satan was given the
right to rule over the church for 2,000 years, and thereupon has been its head
and even substitutionary covering.
Let us take a close look at this, for it is a sound and broadly-established truth. As you will find, there are multiple
testimonies.
We
will begin with Ezekiel 28, which is widely regarded as being a clear
description of Satan. Though we
have spoken of some of these verses already, let us repeat them, beginning with
verse 13:
ÒYou were in Eden, the garden of God;
every precious stone was your covering:
the ruby, the topaz, and the diamond; the beryl, the onyx, and the
jasper; the lapis lazuli, the turquoise, and the emerald; and the gold, the
workmanship of your settings and sockets, was in you. On the day that you were created they were
prepared. You were the anointed
cherub who covers, and I placed you there.
You were on the holy mountain of God; you walked in the midst of the
stones of fire. You were blameless
in your ways from the day you were created until unrighteousness was found in
you. By the abundance of your trade
you were internally filled with violence, and you sinned; therefore I have cast
you as profane from the mountain of God.
And I have destroyed you, O covering cherub, from the midst of the
stones of fire [13-16].Ó
You
will notice here again that Satan bears the title Òanointed cherub who covers,Ó
or Òcovering cherub.Ó To aid your
understanding of that which now unfolds, four sequential points will be set
forth, starting with what was just stated:
#1. Satan is the anointed cherub who covers.
This
is most important to note. Now, one
must then ask an equally necessary question:
#2. What is it that Satan covers?
Clearly,
Satan is a covering. And, God
indeed provides the answer to this question. We can know with certainty what it is he
covers by simply looking at another passage that speaks of Satan as well.
There
are two chapters in the Bible that are most often assigned to SatanÕs
identity: Ezekiel 28, which we have
already seen, and Isaiah 14. In
Isaiah 14:12-15 we read:
ÒHow you have fallen from heaven, O
star of the morning, son of the dawn!
You have been cut down to the earth, you who have weakened the
nations! But you said in your
heart, ÔI will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God,
and I will sit on the mount of assembly in the recesses of the north. I will ascend above the heights of the
clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.Õ Nevertheless you will be thrust down to
Sheol, to the recesses of the pit.Ó
So,
who is it that is actually being spoken of here as a type of Satan? Verses 4 and 22 tell us, in addition to
the preceding chapter 13. In fact,
chapter 13 has been referred to on a number of occasions in the writings
here. Who is this type? It is the Òking of Babylon.Ó Satan is thus synonymous to the king of
Babylon, who at that time was Belshazzar.
This too is obviously most important.
Now,
by knowing what this king as a type of Satan covers—Babylon—we can know
what Satan himself, this covering cherub, covers. Certainly, it is not natural Babylon,
but it is in fact the fulfilling spiritual Babylon. And what is that? As addressed in AllÕs Well that Ends Well,
page 2, mystery Babylon in Revelation 17 and
18 is Christianity. Therefore, we
find that as the covering cherub, Satan is the covering over the Body of
Christ.
#3. Satan covers spiritual Babylon, or
Christianity.
Likewise,
even as King Belshazzar was the head
over Babylon, so Satan is the head over the Body of Christ. And the outcome for the king of Babylon
tells us something most wonderful, confirming, and revealing about SatanÕs fate
and final purpose.
In
Isaiah 13 and one hundred and ten verses of Jeremiah 50 and 51, Yahweh
explicitly prophesied the complete and utter destruction of Babylon. For example, in Jeremiah 50:3 we
read: ÒFor a nation has come up
against her out of the north [specifically the Medes, 51:11 and 28]; it will
make her land an object of horror, and there will be no inhabitant in it.Ó
In 51:2-3 we read: ÒAnd I
will dispatch foreigners to Babylon that they may winnow her and may devastate
her land. . .
. So do not spare her young men;
devote all her army to destruction.Ó
And Isaiah 13:20-21 clearly states:
ÒIt will never be inhabited or lived in from generation to generation;
nor will the Arab pitch his tent there, nor will shepherds make their flocks
lie down there. But desert
creatures will lie down there, and their houses will be full of owls; ostriches
also will live there, and shaggy goats will frolic there. Hyenas will howl in their fortified
towers and jackals in their luxurious palaces.Ó
But
did this take place as spoken by Yahweh?
Not at all! When Darius the
Mede did invade Babylon as prophesied, he and his army diverted the Euphrates
River, drying up its bed (a prophetic type of Revelation 16:12), entered
Babylon without any resistance or bloodshed, and one man alone was killed. Who was it? It was the head, King Belshazzar, the
type of Satan! All
the wrath Yahweh prophesied concerning the judgment of Babylon fell upon
only one: the head! Thus in like manner, and in true
fulfillment, the head of the Body of Christ, Satan, will be judged. And as with natural Babylon, he will pay
the price, instead of Christians.
Therefore:
#4. Satan, the head, will be judged to the
preservation of the Body.
Briefly,
we see a like testimony to this in David and Goliath. Vast Christianity is consistently
identified with bronze: the bronze
belly of the statue, the bronze serpent, and more. It is thus most telling that giant
Goliath was completely covered from head to foot in bronze (1 Samuel
17:5-6). And, just as David struck
Goliath in the head with a small stone, and then took GoliathÕs own sword and
cut off his head, so we see again that the head of giant Christianity, Satan,
must be cut off with the word of God.
Let
us quickly examine yet another testimony that Yahweh God provides regarding
SatanÕs covering over Christianity:
the tabernacle, which was Òa copy and shadow of heavenly thingsÓ
(Hebrews 8:5).
In
the holy of holies, there was the ark of the covenant,
and covering it with their wings spread over it were two angels. These were two cherubim (Exodus
25:19-22). Following is a
representation of what the ark of the covenant with
the mercy seat and two cherubim might have looked like (though it seems both
wings would have somehow been over the ark):
Most
significantly, the ark of the covenant was made of
acacia wood. This was the tree from
which the crown of thorns would have been made that was placed upon Christ, and
is thus on the Body of Christ as well.
Why
is all of this significant? Because the ark represented in type cursed acacia Christianity,
with the two Remnant on each side.
This is the same pattern found in Zechariah 4 where we see: olive tree, lampstand, olive tree; or,
first Remnant, Christianity, second Remnant. Thus we find that the two are one and
the same:
|
= |
|
In
this we see that the two cherubs that cover the Body of Christ are in fact the
two Remnant, one on each side. But up to now, there have not been these
two coverings. So, without these
two cherubs, what cherub then covers the Body of Christ? There is only one cherub this could be,
and that is the Òanointed cherub who coversÓ—Satan! Therefore, as testified in the ark of the covenant with the two covering cherubs, once
again we see that Satan, the anointed cherub who covers, has been the covering
over Christianity for 2,000 years.
And
speaking of these 2,000 years, and being equally brief, do
not forget that Satan was given the legal right from Yahshua Himself to take
the 2,000 swine into the sea of death (Mark 5:13). This was of course a legal testimony that,
just as Satan was given authority over Job, so he was given authority over the
Body of Christ. Only in the case of
the Body, he now had the authority to take them to death. (For more about this testimony, read Trinities, page 5.)
Of
course, what did the demons have to say concerning YahshuaÕs timing? They asked Him, ÒHave You come here to
torment us before the time?Ó
(Matthew 8:29.) Yahshua was
not due to come for another 2,000 years, in the Millennial Reign. That meant that Satan and his demons
still had authority over the earth.
This being the case, he had the authority to rule over Yahshua so as to
torture and crucify Him. So, what
has changed since then? Nothing regarding SatanÕs authority. Therefore, he has ruled over the Body of
Christ as well. But the hope we
have today is that his 2,000 swine, his 2,000 years, are over.
We
have noted that the two Remnant serve as a covering
for the Body of Christ. In reality,
this is a relational testimony of the male and the female—the uncircumcised male is covered by the female in order to
bring forth offspring. Read The Covering Bride,
and particularly page
5, to understand this.
But there is actually another important way we have to look at this
matter of a covering as well. Let
us now consider this.
In
the online writing, Coverings, chapter 3,
we find the law and way of Yahweh God concerning changes in a covering. First, Yahweh places a covering over
something. Then with the effecting
of sin, that covering is removed and judgment comes. Thereupon, a substitutionary covering is
now applied. Then finally, in the
end the substitutionary covering is removed and the original covering is
restored. This is exactly what we
find with the covering over the church, the kingdom of heaven.
When
Yahshua came to this earth, we have seen that He came before His time. One of the reasons this had to be was
that in order for Him to become the sacrifice Lamb, men had to have the
authority to kill Him. This, of course,
would not be possible in the Millennial Reign. So, He had to come early when Satan had
the right to rule this world.
In
the wilderness that Yahshua was led into by the Holy Spirit, Satan Òshowed Him
all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time,Ó and said to Him, ÒI will
give You all this domain and its glory; for it has been handed over to me, and
I give it to whomever I wish.
Therefore if You worship before me, it shall
all be YoursÓ (Luke 4:5-7). Have
you ever noticed this fact? All the
kingdoms of the world throughout time have been handed over to Satan, and he
has had the authority to give them to whomever he wishes. Furthermore, 2 Corinthians 4:4 states
that he is Òthe god of this worldÓ; and in John 12:31 and 16:11, he is
acknowledged by Yahshua as being the Òruler of this world.Ó
Clearly,
with this authority, Satan not only had the right to kill Yahshua, but for 2,000 years has had the same right to kill and
corrupt the holders of the kingdom of heaven. Hebrews 2:14 clearly states
that the devil, present tense, Òhas
the power of death.Ó As the god,
ruler, and possessor of this world, clearly he has authority over the kingdom
of heaven that is in this world, especially when the One who provided it went
away.
So,
let us now examine the law of coverings in regard to this truth. After His death, burial, resurrection,
and the essential eight
days in heaven, Yahshua came back to this earth and
was with them right up to Pentecost.
During that time the kingdom of heaven was pure, just as it was
initially so in the Garden of Eden.
And as in the Garden as well, they walked and talked with God. Also, with His presence, He was head
over that kingdom. But, He could
not stay; and just as He was turned over to Satan, so His kingdom and its
possessors had to be turned over to him as well. Therefore, when He left, His headship was replaced by another: the god, ruler, and possessor of this
world and all that is in it—Satan!
When
the apostles cast lots for a replacement for Judas just before Pentecost, they
stood in the place of the Holy One and the abomination
of desolation took place. Yahshua had told them, ÒWhile I am in
the world, I am the Light of the world.Ó
But, He would leave, and warned that Ònight [was] coming when no one can
workÓ (John 9:4-5). He left, night
came, and Satan thereupon took His place as head and covering—the
Belshazzar that would someday die for the church, even as did his Predecessor,
the Lamb of God. Then, Yahshua will
return and the ruler of this world will be bound, and He will once again take
His rightful place.
Thus,
while Yahshua was on this earth following His eight days in heaven, He was the
head and covering of the church.
But when He left, the god of this world became its head and
substitutionary covering—Satan.
And when He returns, He will restore His headship and His covering. Thus we see the following headship/covering
order:
Yahshua —> Satan —> Immanuel
Another
clear testimony of the legal responsibility for and over the church
which Satan was given, is one that others have noted only in part. In truth, they have failed to grasp what
the implication is in drawing their comparison. This is from Isaiah 22:15-23, and is the
account of one Shebna who was Òover the houseÓ during the reign of
Hezekiah. You will see here the
clear comparison of Shebna with that of Satan, who has equally been over the house
of God. And as you read, you will
notice that, like Satan, he is found to be displeasing, and as the type of a
substitutionary covering is replaced by another—Eliakim, or ÒGod raises
up.Ó
Thus says the Lord Yahweh of hosts,
ÒCome, go to this steward, to Shebna, who is over the house: ÔWhat right do you have here, and whom
do you have here, that you have hewn a tomb for yourself here, you who hew a
tomb on the height, you who carve a resting place for yourself in the
rock? Behold, Yahweh is about to
hurl you headlong, O man. And He is
about to grasp you firmly and roll you tightly like a ball, to be cast into a
vast country; there you will die and there your
splendid chariots will be, you shame of your master's house. I will depose you from your office, and
I will pull you down from your station.
ÔThen it will come about in that day,
that I will summon My servant Eliakim the son of Hilkiah,
and I will clothe him with your tunic, and tie your sash securely about
him. I will entrust him with your authority,
and he will become a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of
Judah. Then I will set the key of
the house of David on his shoulder; when he opens no one will shut, when he
shuts no one will open. I will
drive him like a peg in a firm place, and he will become a throne of glory to
his father's house.Õ Ó
Such
is Satan. He was placed over the
house of God, the church, but will be replaced by Him who has the key of the
house of David—Immanuel. But
notice the unmistakable and obligating testimony here. If Eliakim represents Immanuel, there has to be one who has possessed that
office and authority over the house before Him. And as we have seen, this is none
other than Satan Himself, who has been this resident head and substitutionary
covering of the church for 2,000 years.
Thus we clearly see here that Immanuel would receive a place, an office, that was originally held by Satan. Shebna must be reckoned with in this
account.
But
also, there is more to this testimony than just Immanuel. We read here:
Then I will set the key of the house of
David on his shoulder,
When he opens no one will shut,
When he shuts no one will open.
Where
might this passage later be quoted, indicating its fulfillment? In the book of Revelation, chapter 3,
verse 7:
ÒAnd to the angel of the church in
Philadelphia write: He who is holy, who is true, who has the key of David, who
opens and no one will shut, and who shuts and no one opens, says this: . . ..Ó
Why
is this so significant? Because
Philadelphia speaks of the second Remnant, while Smyrna, in 2:8-11, speaks of
the first Remnant. (Read
here for more on this.) It is the Smyrna first Remnant that lost
the rights to be the fulfilling Elijah and died, and it will be the
Philadelphia second Remnant that is that fulfillment, bringing Immanuel to this
earth so that the Eliakim can replace the Shebna. Therefore, it is most relevant that the
fulfillment of this passage regarding the key of the house of David, actually
comes with the establishment of the work to which the passage speaks—the
second Remnant. And, it is greatly
encouraging for us today that there is the promise that this is a work that is
most certain to find fulfillment:
ÒWhen he opens no one will shut, when he shuts no one will open.Ó
But
let us note here as well that this affords great hope for the fulfilling
Elijah, who stands in that office before Immanuel comes. And, there is the hope that this work is
predestined by Yahweh God, and will be fulfilled! We will consider this in the next
section. But for now, we will look
at the first thing that Yahweh used to show me that Satan was the head of
Christianity. And again, we have to
be brief.
In
the latter half of the 1990s, I was fixing breakfast for the family one morning
when Yahweh showed me from some recent events that Africa was a type of
Christianity. After breakfast, I
went to the living room and opened an encyclopedia to Africa to see what
evidence there might be regarding this.
Before me was a map of that continent. As I was looking at it, I happened to
turn it slightly, and when I did my blood turned cold! Right there before me was the image of
Satan! You can see the same in this
image as well.
SatanÕs
eye is Lake Victoria, the Limpopo River is his mouth, there is a little horn on
his forehead, and you can see that the boot of Italy is crushing his head. Much more can be read about this at The Signs That Cause Belief, page
4 and page
5. Thus I realized
for the first time that with Africa representing Christianity, and SatanÕs head
in fact engraved upon that continent, that Satan was the head of Christianity (page
9).
At
that point, I knew that anything this dramatic and significant had to be
recorded in the Scriptures, and that is exactly what we find. In Zechariah 3:1, we find Satan accusing
Joshua the high priest. Yahweh
rebuked Satan, took away Joshua's iniquity, and proclaimed this prophetic
promise:
ÒFor behold, the stone
that I have set before Joshua; on one stone are seven eyes. Behold, I will engrave an engraving on it,Ó declares Yahweh of hosts, Òand I will
remove the iniquity of that land in one
dayÓ (vs. 9).
That
stone is in fact the land of Africa, and the engraving on it is of the one who
was accusing the high priest, Joshua:
Satan. Africa, which is
indeed a cursed land in so many ways, is a type of cursed Christianity, but at
the nations level.
The
day that I saw this, our family was going through a very real test. My oldest daughter wanted to go see a
Christian family we had fellowshipped with in the past, but there was a
problem. That family wanted to cut
off the head! They would allow my
wife and five children to come over; but, they would
not allow me to come. This turned
out to be a real struggle with my oldest daughter because she wanted to go, and
I feared that it was going to lead to a conflict. My position was that all they wanted to
do was to separate our family, and I would not allow them to cut off the
head.
When
I saw this frightening and sobering image, I asked this daughter to come and
sit beside me on the couch. I told
her what Yahweh had told me that morning, and then handed her the encyclopedia
and asked her what she saw. There
was no response until I turned the book in the same way as I had before, and
her eyes got very big. She too saw
Satan! That, I said, shows whose
image is on Christianity. With this
solitary event, my daughter never said anything else about going over to see
that family.
It
is most relevant and significant that this entire matter of Yahweh showing me who the head of Christianity is, took place at the very
time when a Christian family was trying to cut the head off of my family. The reality is that what they were
trying to do to me, is the very thing that must happen
to them as Christians: Satan must
be cut off as the head of Christianity!
And
remember, most importantly, the head controls the body. In fact, the natural tells us that the
body is merely an extension of the head.
As with diving or in gymnastics, wherever the head goes, the body goes. Knowing this truth then, to look at
Christianity for the last 2,000 years and think that Christ is the head, is
impossible to conclude and even an insult to Him! If He is head, then something is
dramatically wrong with Him! The
divided and entirely corrupted Body of Christ with its worldliness can in no
way represent Christ as head. Therefore,
it is once again obvious as to who that head has been and is today, and that is
the covering angel Satan. In every
way, and as we have seen in many ways attested in the Scriptures, he has been
head.
Continue
to the final page of The Messenger
for THE MESSENGER