In an e-mail by Kyle Nixon titled "Lucifer: A Bride in Heaven," he presented some most revealing information which we will now take up here. This information is important in order to understand why Louie was sent to my future wife's bedroom window, and why I left him for her.

In Ezekiel 28:11f, we find an account that is most often ascribed to being a testimony regarding Satan. While the account is directed to the king of Tyre, passages like - "You were in Eden, the garden of God" - provide stark evidence that there is more here than what meets the eye. As an example of the usual association of this chapter with Satan, we read in Bullinger's comments in The Companion Bible regarding this king - "His description is superterrestrial, and superhuman, and can refer to no other than Satan himself."

In this account, twice Satan is identified as being the cherub that covers. In verse 14 he is called the "anointed cherub who covers," and in verse 16 he is called the "covering cherub." Even in verse 14, the word "anointed" actually has the more complete meaning - "expanded or far-reaching wings," bringing with it the clear connotation of the two cherubs whose wings covered the ark of the covenant. But we notice something here that is most important. While Satan is identified as being the covering cherub who in fact falls or loses his place, the ark of the covenant is in contrast covered, not by one but, by two cherub. In both the tabernacle in the wilderness, as well as in Solomon's temple, there were two cherubs whose wings went up and over the ark of the covenant, covering it.

So why is there a difference in these two testimonies? Why do we find Satan being a solitary covering cherub who falls from his place, and also find two cherubs who serve as coverings? Getting right to the point, the reason is because Satan is first the covering over the church, but is replaced by the two-part Remnant!

Kyle points out that Satan is a single part work, while the two-part Remnant is a split work. What difference does this make, you might wonder? A great deal of difference in the laws and ways of Yahweh. Yahweh has declared that any mammal that does not split the hoof is unclean. Thus, the horse is unclean, as well as the camel, though it qualifies in part by chewing the cud. On the other hand, the cow, the goat, and the sheep are clean in that they all split the hoof - their feet are a two-part work.

In the Scriptures, we find that feet represent the rights to the kingdom of God. Yahshua told His disciples that if He did not wash their feet, they had no part with Him. So when the split hoof is acceptable to Yahweh, while the single hoof is not, we can see why Satan, as a single covering cherub, was legally unfit or even unclean to be the covering for the kingdom, while the two-part Remnant would qualify as being fit or clean or acceptable as its covering.

And this transfer of responsibility is precisely what we find in the kingdom. As hard as this may be to accept, Satan has been the legal covering over the church for 2,000 years. What gives him this right? Because the church was placed under his domain. All men in the flesh are of this earth. Though they may even receive the Spirit of God by faith, their bodies and their habitation are still from and of this earth. Beyond any doubt, Yahweh gave His kingdom to earthly men. But the problem with this is that the earth belongs to Satan! There are many passages attesting to this, including that he is the "god of this world" (2 Corinthians 4:4), "the ruler of this world" (John 12:31), and that "the whole world lies in the power of the evil one" (1 John 5:19). Even when Satan tempted the Son of God in the wilderness, he had the authority to tell Him - the domain of "all the kingdoms of the world ... has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish" (Luke 4:5-6). This is the world to which the kingdom of God was imparted. It is a place in which Satan rules, and as that ruler, he has been and will be the governmental covering over the kingdom until Yahweh replaces him.

While this may be shocking to someone at first, this is certainly not the first time Yahweh has placed His people under the covering of an evil one. During the development of the offspring of Abraham, they were placed under the covering of the Pharaoh of Egypt for 430 years (Exodus 12:40-41). Then He placed the ten tribes of Israel in bondage under the covering of the Assyrians, and sent Judah into bondage under the covering of Babylon. Both their development in Egypt, as well as these latter two captivities, were highly specific prophetic foreshadowing accounts of what would happen in the church.

Even as the sons of Israel developed under the covering of the Pharaoh of Egypt, so the church has developed under the covering of Satan. But let us look at the next two testimonies as well - Israel and Judah. Listen very carefully here, and please allow a little digression, as this is most important. We will have to be brief though.

Israel and Judah were both descendents of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Both went into captivity. But how Yahweh dealt with the two of them is most revealing! The ten tribes of Israel were sent into captivity in Assyria; while later the two tribes of Judah were sent into captivity in Babylon. Israel never returned to the land, but was disbursed throughout the nations, throughout Europe. But, this was not how He dealt with Judah. In clear contrast, Judah was sent into captivity for a specific period of time - seventy years. Also, while Israel was dispersed to the nations, a remnant of Judah returned to build the temple of Yahweh and restore Jerusalem. These two periods of bondage reveal the two ways in which Yahweh deals with the two works of the kingdom of God - Christianity (represented by the number "ten") and the Remnant (represented by the number "two").

Like Israel, Christianity's judgment is that when its afflictor or ruler or covering, Satan, is finally dealt with, they will be sent to the nations. This is what will happen to Christians after Yahshua returns and Satan is bound. But the Remnant are dealt with in a completely different way. While the Remnant are in captivity in Mystery Babylon (Christianity), they are not sent to the nations; but instead, upon their release are returned to New Jerusalem to build the temple of Yahweh. These two outcomes of Christianity and the Remnant are precisely why there were these two distinct outcomes for the sons of Israel. But most important, notice that they were each in bondage and had to be delivered. Christianity is in bondage to Satan, while the Remnant have been in bondage in Mystery Babylon.

And it is this bondage of Christianity under Satan that legally makes this period of the kingdom a work under his covering. For both Israel and Judah, their captors became their legal coverings, even though in truth they were Yahweh's people of promise. Assyria and Babylon were as much the legal coverings over Israel and Judah in their captivity, as Satan and the body of Christ have been the coverings over Christianity and the Remnant. This is an entirely legal matter regarding captivity being set out here, even though one's initial response might be wonder or even revulsion. So again we point out that the first 2,000 year period of the church has been under the covering of the covering cherub, Satan.

Let us consider another remarkable testimony to this change of coverings. You will undoubtedly recall that after the flood, Noah sent two birds out of the ark. The first was the bird that is the subject of this writing - the raven. What was the outcome of its preceding release? In Genesis 8:7, we read that "it flew here and there until the water was dried up from the earth." The raven did not return to the ark, so Noah next sent out a dove. What was the outcome of this next bird's release? We read - "but the dove found no resting place for the sole of her foot, so she returned to him into the ark; for the water was on the surface of all the earth. Then he put out his hand and took her, and brought her into the ark to himself."

Noah waited seven days, and sent the dove out from the ark a second time. "And the dove came to him toward evening; and behold, in her beak was a freshly picked olive leaf. So Noah knew that the water was abated from the earth."

Again Noah waited seven days, and the dove was sent out a third time. This time, "she did not return to him again." Thus we see that following the release of the raven, the dove was released three times in order to obtain the complete witness that the waters had abated from the earth.

Do you see the prophetic testimony here? What was the first bird that was sent out from the ark? The Satan-representing raven! And who became the first covering of the earth, and even the church? The raven, Satan! He has been the covering of the church for 2,000 years. Why? Because the wrath of Yahweh that floods the earth has not yet been abated. But as we are seeing, the covering of Satan must be replaced by the two-part covering of the Remnant. Thus we see that the raven is replaced by the work of the faithful and successful dove. Let us now look at this in more detail.

Even as the former rain that was poured out on the first Remnant was too early to bring the necessary results, so we see that the release of the first dove was likewise too early and did not bring the necessary results. Yahweh's 120 Jubilee period of testing mankind (as we saw in THE ISSUE - II) was not yet complete. Thus the first Remnant had to die (even as testified by the first bird in Leviticus 14), and the dove was taken back into the ark. The former rain at the first of the church that produced the first Remnant did not bring forth the needed testimony - "the dove found no resting place for the sole of her feet." Again, feet speak of kingdom rights, and the true kingdom that must come to this earth could not come. Like the little sister who had no breasts (Song of Solomon 8:8-9), the first Remnant was not the door by which Yahshua could enter as King of kings, so His kingdom had to wait until the time of probation was complete.

But while the former rain, the first release of the dove, was too early, the latter rain will be and is on time. It occupies the place at the end of the 2,000 year period of Christianity, and these second and third releases of the dove of the Spirit will bring forth the desired testimony - the olive leaf and the abiding of the dove upon the earth.

Where else have we seen this olive testimony? Whether it be the two olive trees separated by the 7-branched lampstand in Zechariah 4, or the two olive tree witnesses in Revelation 11, or the Mount of Olives split into two parts by the very large valley in Zechariah 14, or even here at the second release of the dove of the Spirit in order to obtain the olive leaf, clearly the repeated testimony is the two-part Remnant formed by the former rain and the latter rain, separated by the period of Christianity.

But the witness of the olive leaf alone was not sufficient, for it was the release of the dove the third time with its abiding upon the earth that attested the time of their own release from the ark had come.

There are many evidences that the latter rain is a double portion of the Spirit, while the former rain is a single portion. As one example, in the beginning Job was blessed with great wealth; yet Satan was allowed to have his way in his life for a while and took everything from him. In the end, however, Job was blessed with a double portion of wealth. Thus we see the pattern of the church, where there is a period in the beginning in which a single portion blessing is received with the former rain, followed by 2,000 years of Satan's corruption and desolation of the kingdom, but in the end completed by the double portion blessing of the latter rain. And this is precisely what we see with the three releases of the dove. The first release is the single portion former rain, followed by the successful release of the dove two more times as the double portion latter rain.

We have already seen that the receipt of the olive leaf on the second release reveals the establishment of the second Remnant; so, what does the third release of the dove reveal? We know that the second Remnant will ascend alive and, along with the first Remnant, be the first among mankind to receive their glorified incorruptible immortal bodies that are born from above, born of His Spirit. It is these bodies that the dove of the Spirit will inhabit, and from which will not depart! These bodies will never die (as do the bodies of mortal kingdom-receiving men; thus the Spirit can no longer move in them). In contrast, the Remnant will receive pure immortal incorruptible bodies which are born of the Spirit, and the dove will abide in them forever!

Thus we see that the two-dove release corresponding to the double portion of the latter rain, will produce the second Remnant, completing the testimony of the three releases of the dove. Now that we see the certainty of this witness, let us once again consider the issue of the covering cherub/cherubs.

First, you will notice here the same testimony of both the single hoof versus the split hoof, or the covering cherub versus the two covering cherubs. The raven was sent out only one time. Its release was an unclean "single hoof" work. But the three releases of the dove produced a clean two-part or "split hoof" work, the two-part Remnant. And most importantly, we note once again that the release of the raven upon the earth preceded the two-part dove work. Why? Because the covering cherub that has been over the church for nearly 2,000 years, is the preceding raven covering. But even as the raven is unclean, this covering is unclean and fails to be sufficient. Thus, Yahweh must establish a new clean covering over the church, or the body of Christ, Christianity. This covering is provided by the clean dove. The clean two-part covering of the two-part Remnant replaces the unclean single covering of Satan. The single part "covering cherub" is replaced by the "two cherubim" that cover.

Continue to page 3 of The Raven for THE BRIDE OF YAHSHUA

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