August 4, 2026

How Did Gideon’s 300 Drink?

By The Paleofundamentalist

In Judges 6-8, when the LORD raised up Gideon to deliver the Israelites from their oppression under the Midianites and Amalekites, Gideon assembled an army of 35,000 men (Judg7:3) drawn from the tribes of Manasseh, Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali (Judg6:35). Gideon’s army was grossly outnumbered, as the Midianite army was comprised of 135,000 men (Judg7:10). And yet, the LORD told Gideon, “The people that are with thee are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel vaunt themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me” (Judg7:2). Thus, the LORD reduced Gideon’s army down to such a miniscule number (i.e., 300) that He alone would receive glory for the victory that would come.

Initially, the LORD instructed Gideon to allow “whosoever is fearful and afraid” (Judg7:3) to depart, at which time 22,000 Israelites returned to their homes. This action was unambiguous, and it was fully in accord with the Law of Moses concerning preparations for war (cf. Deut20:3,8).

The second action taken by the LORD to further reduce the number of men in Gideon’s army is more ambiguous, and it is the subject of some debate over its proper interpretation. The LORD instructed the remaining 10,000 to be brought down to the water (i.e., river) and commanded to drink from it. Based on how the men drank from the river, they were divided into two groups: a larger group of 9,700 men, and a very small group of 300 men (Judg7:6). The conventional understanding of this passage is that the 9,700 men put their faces into the water, drinking directly from the river, whereas the smaller group of 300 men used their hands as cups to lift the water from the river up to their mouths. The traditional interpretation that goes along with this understanding is that the 300 who lifted the water up to their mouths were able to remain alert and prepared even while drinking; thus, they were better soldiers who would be more effective in battle. In contrast, the 9,700 who plunged their faces into the water made themselves vulnerable to attack while drinking and were evidently poorly prepared to go into battle. One problem with this interpretation is that in the end the 300 so-called ‘better prepared soldiers’ would not be required to fight at all, so their selection based on that criterion does not seem to follow. I believe the conventional understanding of the drinking patterns of these 10,000 men, and the interpretation that generally accompanies it, is flawed.

Judges 7:5-6 says, “Every one that lappeth of the water with his tongue, as a dog lappeth, him shalt thou set by himself; likewise every one that boweth down upon his knees to drink. And the number of them that lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, were three hundred men: but all the rest of the people bowed down upon their knees to drink water”. The distinguishing characteristics of the two groups were those who: 1) “lappeth of the water with his tongue, as a dog lappeth”, versus 2) “bowed down upon their knees to drink water”. The 300 men selected to go to battle with Gideon were those who “lappeth” the water “as a dog lappeth”. A dog laps water by putting his tongue directly into the river. Indeed, both the Hebrew and English words for “lap” are instances of onomatopoeia (i.e. a word that sounds like the action it describes; in this case, a dog drinking water). For a man to drink water from a river as a dog would, plunging his tongue directly into the water, would require him to be prostrate. In contrast, the 9,700 men drank water “upon their knees”.

So the LORD’s selection criterion amounted to choosing the 300 men who prostrated themselves over the 9,700 men who bowed down upon their knees. This choice seems counterintuitive, assuming the conventional interpretation based on which group was likely to be the better soldiers were correct. Clearly something else is going on.

A better interpretation of the LORD’s selection criterion is based on how the LORD was worshiped versus how pagan rulers and gods were worshiped. In the Bible, men and angels consistently worship the LORD by “falling down before” Him (i.e., prostrating oneself; cf. Deut9:18; 2Sam18:28; Mk3:11; 5:33; Rev5:8). In contrast, pagan rulers and gods were worshiped by bowing upon one’s knee (cf. Gen41:43; Matt27:29; Rom11:4); consistent with this, the LORD had commanded Israel not to worship Him by the making of images, commanding them to “not bow down thyself unto them” (Deut5:9). Thus, Gideon’s 300 responded to the LORD’s command to drink from the river not as a test of their preparation and readiness for battle, but as an act of complete submission to and worship of their God. They were not chosen because they were the best warriors, they were chosen because they were the tiny remnant wholly devoted to following the LORD.

“This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts” (Zech4:6).

“Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the LORD our God.” (Ps20:7).

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June 15, 2026

The Memorials of Joshua 4

By The Paleofundamentalist

When the LORD directed Joshua and the Israelites to cross the Jordan River into the land of Canaan (i.e., the Promised Land), He commanded them to set up two memorials, each comprised of twelve stones. The first monument of twelve stones was set up by Joshua himself in the riverbed of the Jordan (Josh4:9), which was supernaturally exposed while the ark of the covenant was present in the riverbed and the LORD held back the waters of the river. Thus, after the crossing of the Jordan River by the Israelites, this monument was immersed under water and invisible to succeeding generations of Israelites. The picture symbolized by this memorial would seem to be the burial of the prior (old) generation of Israelites who were disobedient outside of the Promised Land. The second monument of twelve stones was set up on the western bank of the Jordan River by twelve men, one from each of the twelve tribes, just outside the city of Gilgal (Josh4:3,20). This monument, which represented the new generation of Israelites who obeyed the LORD and entered the Promised Land, would be visible to succeeding generations of Israelites, and it was to serve as “a sign” and “a memorial unto the children of Israel forever” (Josh4:6-7) to the supernatural provision made for the Israelites who first possessed the land God promised to Abraham; it was to be used to instruct the “children” of succeeding generations who would ask, “What mean ye by these stones?”

Over fourteen centuries later (i.e., from c. 1405 BC to 29 AD), John the Baptist would begin his ministry of baptizing repentant Jews at “Bethabara” (which means house of the ford; Jn1:28), the very place on the Jordan River at which Joshua and the Israelites had set up their monument of twelve stones. In contending with the Pharisees and Sadducees over their refusal to acknowledge their own need to repent, John asserted:

“And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.” (Matt3:9)

In the context of Matthew 3, there is no obvious referent for the near demonstrative pronoun “these” used with “stones”. As a plausible conjecture, John’s mention of “these stones” as an object lesson for the Jewish leadership likely referred to the monument of twelve stones erected by Joshua and his generation of Israelites, which was apparently still standing after all this time.

Through the Apostle Paul, the Lord has also directed the Church to observe two ordinances (1Cor11:2), both of which are memorial in nature (cf. Rom6:4; 1Cor11:25), and which bear intriguing analogs to the memorials of Joshua. The first ordinance is baptism, which is performed/observed only once, and which immerses a believer under water; this ordinance is analogous to Joshua’s memorial set up in the dry riverbed of the Jordan, and which would be immersed1 under the river once it resumed flowing. The second ordinance is the Lord’s Supper, which is to be performed/observed repeatedly by all succeeding generations of Christians as a method of instructing believers concerning the supernatural provision of God made for us by “the Lord’s death” (cf. 1Cor11:23-26). In an analogous way, the Christian analogs picture the once-and-for-all death of the sinful “old man” and the creation of the “new man” who lives forever in the believer (cf. Rom6:3-11).

ENDNOTES:

  1. Note that Joshua’s memorial placed in the dry riverbed of the Jordan was not sprinkled with water, nor was water poured upon it, but it was fully immersed under the water. This is consistent with baptism by immersion. ↩︎

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May 15, 2026

The Coming Judgment of the Nations

By The Paleofundamentalist

In Matthew 25:31-46, the Lord Jesus Christ prophesied of a future judgment of the nations (Cp., Joel 3:2). In the King James Bible, the “nations” or the “heathen” are references to the Gentile nations, in contradistinction to the nation of Israel. Furthermore, the Greek word translated “nations” is ethnoi, which is also the word translated throughout the N.T. as Gentiles. In this passage, it is evident that at the Second Advent of Christ, Gentiles alive on earth are to be judged as individuals rather than nations, since individuals from “all nations” will be present in Christ’s Millennial Kingdom (Revelation 7:9), and the purpose of this judgment is to determine whether or not an individual Gentile will be granted entrance into it. For comparison with the other coming judgments, see the CHART: THE FOUR JUDGMENTS IN SCRIPTURE.

The Gentiles will be separated into two groups: those set on the Lord’s right hand are categorized as “sheep”, whereas those set on His left hand are categorized as “goats” (v. 33). The destiny of the sheep is to “inherit the kingdom prepared for [them] from the foundation of the world” (v. 34). Note from this is evident that it was always part of the plan of God that Gentiles would have an inheritance in the kingdom. Although it is Israel’s destiny to be “high above all nations of the earth” (Deuteronomy 26:19; 28:1) in that kingdom, that promise to Israel necessitates that there be Gentile nations as well.

The standard of this judgment of the Gentiles (in summary) will be whether they provided food, water, lodging, clothing, medical care, and fellowship (vv. 35-36) to a group of people the Lord calls “my brethren” (v. 40). The “brethren” of the Lord Jesus Christ are the Jews (cf. Romans 9:3-5). Thus, the standard of this judgment is derived directly from the Abrahamic covenant; namely, whether these Gentiles have “blessed” or “cursed” the descendants of Abraham (Genesis 12:3). As Christ performs this judgment on Gentiles alive on earth at the time of the Second Advent, the immediate context of this judgment is the 70th Week of Daniel (Daniel 9:27), or the 7-year tribulation period that immediately precedes the Second Advent. During this period of time, Satan and his Antichrist will attempt to exterminate the Jewish people worldwide (Revelation 12:13,17), and the Gentiles will be held accountable for whether they aided or forsook the Jews during their greatest time of existential peril.

Those Gentiles found to have aided the Jews will be granted entrance into the Millennial Kingdom. Those found to have forsaken the Jews will be immediately cast “into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels” (v. 41). From this we infer that the Lake of Fire, the final destination of the wicked of all ages, was not a part of the original creation, but “prepared” after the angelic rebellion. However, although God prepared the Lake of Fire as a place of punishment for the rebellious angels, He will also use it to punish rebellious men (Revelation 20:11-15), and that punishment will be “everlasting”. In contrast, those “righteous” Gentiles enter into “life eternal” (v. 46).

Since the Church is complete at the rapture, and the rapture of the Church (to heaven) occurs before the 7-year tribulation period (1 Thessalonians 1:10; Revelation 3:10), no member of the Body of Christ will be subject to this judgment. Indeed, all attempts to view the Church as subject to this judgment have introduced irreconcilable theological contradictions. Namely, whereas salvation for individuals in the Body of Christ is “by grace, through faith … not of works” (Ephesians 2:8-9; Cp., Titus 3:5), the determination of whether these Gentiles who have survived the Tribulation receive “life eternal” (v. 46) clearly involves their works1 (vv. 35-39; 42-44).

This Judgment of the Nations has been misunderstood by those on both sides of the theological spectrum, including the left (liberal) and the right (conservative), because they fail to interpret it literally. Theological liberals see a final judgment of all men based on compassion shown to others; from this error emerges a social gospel (of works) applied to all men, which is heresy. But theological conservatives have also struggled to interpret this passage properly, since they presuppose that salvation “by grace, through faith … not of works” applies to all men in every dispensation, which on its face is clearly contradicted in the Judgment of the Nations.

The resolution of this apparent contradiction is the recognition of dispensational distinctions between salvation for the Church during the Dispensation of Grace and that of Gentiles during the Tribulation. Whereas believers during the Church Age as saved by faith alone, believers during the Tribulation must also bless the descendants of Abraham according to the promises made to him by God (Genesis 12:3), which introduces an element of works in addition to faith (which is required in every dispensation; cf. Hebrews 11:6). Is salvation by faith alone, or by faith and works? It depends on which dispensation is in view.

A final observation of the distinctions between the “righteous” sheep (v. 37) and the unrighteous goats in this passage is that the “righteous” quote the words of the Lord verbatim (Cp., vv. 35-39), whereas the unrighteous merely summarize the words of the Lord (Cp., vv. 42-44) and in effect “diminish” (Deuteronomy 4:2) or “take away” (Revelation 22:19) from them2. Might this typologically point to the omission of many of the words of God in modern Bible versions based on the so-called Critical Text? Such a grievous sin, at least during the Tribulation period, will be judged by having one’s name blotted out of the Book of Life (Revelation 22:19).

ENDNOTES:

  1. Note also that during the Tribulation all must refrain from worshipping the Beast, and taking his mark, else they cannot be saved (Revelation 14:9-11). ↩︎
  2. In their defense, the unrighteousness would surely allege that their version of the words of the Lord means the same thing. ↩︎

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April 25, 2026

Prophetic Understanding of Matthew 24

By The Paleofundamentalist

Introduction

The words of the Lord Jesus Christ recorded in Matthew 24 are known as the Olivet Discourse. This discourse has been understood by theologians in a variety of different ways. Preterism views all of it, or at least everything except the Second Advent (i.e., Matthew 24:30), as history that occurred in the first century in association with the Roman destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple. Historicism views it as prophecy that is being fulfilled during the present Church Age, such that some of it is history now fulfilled, while some of it remains yet to be fulfilled prophecy. However, Dispensationalism correctly understands the Olivet Discourse to be entirely unfulfilled prophecy that relates to the future 7-year Tribulation period also known as the 70th Week of Daniel (Daniel 9:27).

The Olivet Discourse was given by Jesus in response to the questions of His disciples, after Jesus mentioned the destruction of the Temple (v. 2), “Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?” (v. 3). The answer to these questions as they applied to the destruction of the Temple is recorded in Luke 21:21-24; the answers to the questions related to “the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world” are recorded in Matthew 24:4-30. The key to the proper interpretation of Matthew 24:4-30 is the understanding that this is a concise exposition of events that are to take place during the 70th Week of Daniel (i.e., the 7-year period that immediately precedes the Second Advent; Daniel 9:27), which is greatly expanded by the Apostle John in Revelation 6-19. As the 70th Week of Daniel has not yet begun, the events described by Jesus in Matthew 24 are prophecy that will be fulfilled in the future after the rapture of the Church.

Correlation of Events in Matthew 24 and Revelation 6-19

This view is supported by the correlation of similar events described in Matthew 24:4-30 with those in Daniel 9:27 and Revelation 6-19. Matthew 24:15 makes reference to “the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet”, which occurs “in the midst of the week” according to Daniel 9:27. Thus, Matthew 24:15 marks the middle of the 7-year Tribulation, such that those events that precede v. 15 relate to the first half of the Tribulation, and those events that follow v. 15 relate to the second half of the Tribulation. The Seal judgments that begin the Tribulation in Revelation 6 find clear analogs in Matthew 24:4-14. Namely, 1) the false “Christ” in Matthew 24:5 correlates with the revelation of the Antichrist at the 1st Seal judgment; 2) the “wars and rumors of war”, “for nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom” in Matthew 24:6-7 correlates with the 2nd Seal judgment which will “take peace from the earth”; 3) the “famines” in Matthew 24:7 correlate with the 3rd Seal judgment which describes hyper-inflation and a scarcity of food; 4) the “pestilences” in Matthew 24:7 correlate with the 4th Seal judgment in which “death” is brought upon the earth in a variety of ways, including “with the beasts of the earth”; and 5) the persecution and martyrdom of believers “for [Christ’s] name’s sake” in Matthew 24:9 correlates with “the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held” associated with the 5th Seal Judgment. Further, the preaching of “the gospel of the kingdom … unto all nations” in Matthew 24:14 would seem to correlate with the ministry of the 144,000 Jewish evangelists sealed in Revelation 7:1-8. As understood from the chronology in the Book of Revelation, these are all events that take place during the first half of the 7-year Tribulation and are described in Matthew 24:8 as “the beginning of sorrows”.

As already noted, “the abomination of desolation” in Matthew 24:15 marks the midpoint of the 7-year Tribulation. Following that, the Jews “which be in Judea” are warned to “flee into the mountains” in Matthew 24:16-20, which correlates to “the woman” (i.e., Israel) fleeing “into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God (i.e., Selah-Petra), that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days” (Revelation 12:6); these 1,260 days represent the second half of the 7-year Tribulation during which the Antichrist attempts to destroy the Jews. This period of time is described as “the great tribulation” in Matthew 24:21, “such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no nor ever shall be”, which correlates with Daniel 12:1. This period concludes with “the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory” (i.e., the 2nd Advent) in Matthew 24:30, which correlates with Christ’s coming to earth in Revelation 19:11-16 (Cp., Daniel 7:13-14). While even many Dispensationalists are tempted to put some (or all) of the events in Matthew 24:4-14 (i.e., the first half of the Tribulation), such as “wars and rumors of wars”, “earthquakes in divers places”, and the world-wide preaching of “this gospel of the kingdom” (often erroneously conflated with the gospel of grace), into the present Church Age, the clear correlation of these events with those during the Tribulation make that interpretation untenable.

The Parable of the Fig Tree (vv. 32-34)

Though there are several difficult interpretive issues that remain in Matthew 24 following the straightforward chronology of prophetic signs given in vv. 4-30, only the Parable of the Fig Tree will be addressed in this article. To begin, it should be asserted that the basic elements of this “parable” are clearly understandable. First, knowing that the Gospel of Matthew specifically targets Jews as its audience, the “fig tree” should be understood to be a Jewish symbol. Second, the “fig tree” used as a Jewish symbol represents the nation of Israel (Cp., Matthew 21:19; Luke 13:6-9). Third, since the first mention of “fig” occurs when Adam and Eve make aprons of “fig leaves” in an attempt to cover their nakedness exposed by their sin (Genesis 3:7), “fig” carries the connotation of an attempted self-righteousness, which is the national sin of Israel (Romans 10:3). Fourth, Jesus’ cursing of the “fig tree” that was found to be without “fruit” (Matthew 21:19; Luke 13:9) was a symbolic foreshadowing of the nation of Israel being subjected to the ultimate “curse” of the Mosaic covenant, which is dispersion from the Promised Land (Leviticus 26:32-39; Deuteronomy 28:63-68), coincident with the subsequent Church Age. Thus, in the parable when the “fig tree” is said to “putteth forth leaves”, it is a picture of the dispersed nation of Israel beginning to reform in the Promised Land. It is reasonable to take this to mean that the reestablishment of Israel as a Jewish nation in the Promised Land, which occurred in 1948, is in some sense a sign that the beginning of the Tribulation is “near, even at the doors” (v. 33).

What is less clear, however, is how to interpret v. 34, “This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled”. Many have attempted to use this phrase as a formula, which by assuming the duration of a “generation” have attempted to calculate either the rapture, the start of the Tribulation, or the 2nd Advent. Early on, a “generation” was taken to be forty years (Numbers 14:33), which resulted in much anticipation with the approach of the year 1988; but after nothing occurred in 1988, speculation concerning the length of a generation transitioned to seventy, or eighty (Psalm 90:10), or one hundred (Isaiah 65:20), or even one hundred and twenty years (Genesis 6:3). In all likelihood, however, “this generation” is not intended to be used in a numerical formula to date any particular aspect of the return of the Lord.

A better understanding is likely that all the sign-events described in Matthew 24:4-30 will be observed by a single “generation”, which is consistent with the understanding that all of the events occur during the 7-year Tribulation period (and also implicitly supports the negative assertion that none of these events occur during the Church Age). Thus, the rebirth of the nation of Israel in the Promised Land is a sign that the Tribulation is indeed “near, even at the doors”, but with no specific time duration intended. Hence, the admonition to “Watch, therefore, for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come” (v. 42) is appropriate.

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April 21, 2026

The Relationship of the Church to the New Covenant

By The Paleofundamentalist

The relationship of the Church (i.e., the Body of Christ, which is being built during the present Dispensation of Grace) to the New Covenant is the subject of long and considerable debate among theologians. On the one hand, Replacement theologians view the Church as having entirely “replaced” the nation of Israel as the one and only people of God, and for this reason they view the Church as the party with which God has made the New Covenant, and that the New Covenant is in effect today. On the other hand, some Dispensationalists of the early 20th century concluded there must be two New Covenants, one made with the nation of Israel and another made with the Church. Both of these extremes seek to make the Church a party to the New Covenant, and both view the New Covenant as in effect during the present dispensation.

Nowhere in Scripture is it stated that the New Covenant is made with the Church. Rather, a literal interpretation of Scripture results in the understanding that God has pledged to make the New Covenant with the nation of Israel.

“Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah.” (Jeremiah 31:31)

Since “the gifts and calling of God are without repentance” (Romans 11:29), God’s pledge to make a New Covenant with the nation of Israel has not changed, nor can it be revoked. Furthermore, Romans 11:26-27 reveals, “And so all Israel shall be saved … For this is my [new] covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.” Since the nation of Israel remains in unbelief during the present dispensation, it should be clear that the New Covenant is not in effect today.

Confusion arises for many theologians when they consider the blessings promised under the New Covenant. Those blessings include, in part, individual regeneration, forgiveness of sins, and an indwelling Holy Spirit (cf. Jeremiah 31:33-34; Ezekiel 36:26-27). Clearly, the Church is experiencing these very blessings (cf. Titus 3:5; Ephesians 1:7, 13-14), so they erroneously conclude that the Church must in some way be a party to the New Covenant, and that it is in effect today.

It is a fact that the work of the Lord Jesus Christ at His first advent, culminating in His death, resurrection, and ascension, secured the blessings of the New Covenant (cf. Matthew 26:28; Hebrews 9:16-17). But those blessings were secured for the nation of Israel1, and would have been made available to individual believing Jews within the nation of Israel had that generation received Jesus of Nazareth as Messiah and installed Him as King. Since that generation of the nation of Israel did not receive Jesus (John 1:11), the formal inauguration of the New Covenant was deferred and awaits that future generation of the nation of Israel which will receive Him during the Tribulation (cf. Ezekiel 20:33-37).

However, with the work of Christ having secured the blessing of the New Covenant in time, God is now free to graciously bestow those blessings upon whom He chooses without violating His attribute of justice (cf. Romans 3:23-26). He is bound by covenant with the nation of Israel to bestow these blessings upon them, once they believe (in the Tribulation/Kingdom), but He has chosen by grace to bestow many of the blessings of the New Covenant upon those who believe during the Dispensation of Grace and are incorporated into the Church. But this does not make the Church a party to the New Covenant; we do not receive these blessings by a covenant commitment, but by the grace of God.

Why is God dispensing blessings of the New Covenant to the Church today? There is more than one right answer to this question. First, “Christ loved the church, and gave himself for it” (Ephesians 5:25), and “he is the propitiation for our sins; and not ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:2). While Christ’s intentionality at His first advent was to redeem Israel (cf. Galatians 4:4-5; Romans 15:8), His work of propitiation was sufficient to redeem all men. Second, and often overlooked as an objective, is that God is pouring out the blessings of the New Covenant on all believers today in order “to provoke [Israel] to jealously” (Romans 11:11). It is still God’s purpose to redeem the nation of Israel and bring them into the New Covenant. One means God is using to call Israel to Himself is to bestow on the Church (i.e., Gentiles; Acts 15:14) the blessings of the New Covenant which were intended for them. Jealousy is not always a negative attribute. God Himself is jealous (Exodus 34:14), and He will engender jealously among the Jews for the blessings He is graciously bestowing upon the Church in order to eventually bring them into the New Covenant.

In conclusion, the Church has no formal relationship to the New Covenant. The New Covenant will be inaugurated by God with the nation of Israel during the coming Tribulation (in preparation for the Kingdom), and at that time He will bestow all the blessings promised under the New Covenant upon Israel according to His covenant commitment with them. In contrast, God has chosen to bestow upon the Church by grace certain blessings of the New Covenant secured by the sacrificial work of the Lord Jesus Christ, in part to provoke the rebellious nation of Israel to return to Him out of jealousy.

ENDNOTES:

  1. In Matthew 26:28, Jesus asserted, “For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.” See my article, “Who Are the Many?”, which explains why the pronoun “many”, when used in Scripture without a definite referent, is best understood to be a covenant descriptor for the nation of Israel.  Note that the Apostle Paul asserted that Jesus was “… made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law …” (i.e., the nation of Israel; Galatians 4:4-5). ↩︎

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March 18, 2026

The Appearance of Moses and Elijah at the Transfiguration

By The Paleofundamentalist

The transfiguration of Jesus was witnessed by Peter, James, and John, and it is recorded in Matthew 17:1-9, Mark 9:2-10, and Luke 9:28-36; Peter makes mention of it in 2 Peter 1:16-18. In addition to seeing the Lord Jesus Christ in His glorified form, Moses and Elijah also appeared, talking with Jesus. Their discussion concerned Jesus’ coming “decease” (Luke 9:31) and subsequent return in “power” and “majesty” (2 Peter 1:16).  In this vision of the glorified Christ along with saints of old the disciples experienced a foretaste of the coming Messianic Kingdom (Cp., Matthew 16:28).

Considerable debate has occurred over why Moses and Elijah appeared with Jesus on this occasion. Some have seen in these two men representatives of the Law and the Prophets; others, believers who have died in faith versus those taken to heaven without experiencing death (Cp., 1 Thessalonians 5:17). Many have speculated that since their conversation concerned details of the Lord’s return, the event of the transfiguration supports and strengthens the view that Moses and Elijah will be the two witnesses of Revelation 11:3-13 who minister in Jerusalem during the first half of the Tribulation. All these speculations are indeed valid. However, and probably much more importantly, the vision of the glorified Lord Jesus Christ with Moses and Elijah, O.T. saints long since dead, reinforced Christ’s teaching that His own death would not prevent His coming Kingdom (Cp., Matthew 16:18), and that continued conscious existence follows death for the saints of God (Cp., Matthew 22:31-32).

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March 5, 2026

Can You Receive the Mark of the Beast Unwittingly?

By The Paleofundamentalist

The answer to this question is, No.  To be clear, “unwittingly” means without knowing or without an intention to do so.  For decades now, many have feared that they might innocently receive the mark of the beast (cf. Rev13:16) without intending to do so.  Various new and emerging technologies, such as social security numbers, credit cards, barcodes or QR codes, embedded microchips, and (more recently) vaccines, have been subjects of concern relative to whether they might be, or might be related to, the mark of the beast [1].  While there could very well be legitimate concerns with how such technologies might be used in the future, they are not related to the mark of the beast today.

The issue of what particular technology the Beast may use to implement his “mark” is moot today.  According to Revelation 13, the mark of the beast will be implemented by the False Prophet (on behalf of the Beast) at the midpoint of the 7-year Tribulation (i.e., the 70th Week of Daniel; Dan9:27).  The Beast (i.e., the Antichrist) has not yet been revealed, and the Tribulation has not yet begun, so we are at least three and a half years away from the roll out of the mark of the beast system.  Nothing anyone receives today is the mark of the beast.

But when the midpoint of the Tribulation arrives, and the mark of the beast system has been implemented, can one receive the mark of the beast unwittingly then?  I believe the answer is still, No, and this conviction comes from a plain reading of the text of Scripture.  At that time, according to Revelation 13:15, “as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed”.  The central issue during the last half of the Tribulation will not be whether one has taken the mark of the beast per se, but whether one has worshipped the beast.  This is made clear in Revelation 14:9-11, “If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead or in his hand, The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever; and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name”.  Note that this dire warning immediately follows the worldwide, angelic exhortation to all those that dwell on the earth to “worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters” (Revelation 14:7).  Thus, the determinative issue is whether one worships God or the Beast.

During the last half of the Tribulation there will be immense pressure on all to take the mark of the beast, since those who do not have the mark will not be able to “buy or sell” at best (Revelation 13:18), or will “be killed” at worst (Revelation 13:15).  However, one will receive the “mark” as validation that he has worshipped the Beast, and worshipping the Beast is a conscious, voluntary, and willful act.  One cannot receive the “mark” without worshipping the Beast, so no one will receive it unwittingly or unknowingly.

The Beast will begin his career as the ruler of the final phase of Daniel’s fourth Gentile kingdom (cf. Daniel 7:23-25), often called the revived Roman empire.  He will literally be an end times Caesar, and there is a direct analogy between the end times worship of the Beast and the worship of Caesar in the first few centuries AD.  In the Roman empire of the first few centuries after Christ, all subjects of the empire were required to worship Caesar as a divine person [2].  They demonstrated their allegiance to Caesar in a public ceremony held annually in which they offered a pinch of incense on an altar devoted to Caesar and confessed, “Caesar is Lord” (Cp., Romans 10:9).  In doing so, they received a written certificate called a libellus validating their compliance with the requirement to worship Caesar.  Roman subjects were required to present this document when stopped by Roman officials or when engaging in commerce in a Roman market.  The future mark of the beast will be analogous to the libellus of the early centuries of Christianity.  It will be the means by which one’s compliance with the requirement to “worship the beast” is proven.  No one will receive it unwittingly; on the contrary, the giving of it will be very closely guarded and awarded only to those who have publicly worshipped the Beast.

In conclusion, no one today has received, or can receive, the mark of the beast.  Even when the mark of the beast system is formally implemented at the midpoint of the Tribulation, no one will receive the mark of the beast unwittingly.  The mark of the beast, however it is manifested, will only be applied to those who have willfully worshipped the Beast.

ENDNOTES:

[1] For textual reasons I believe the mark of the beast will most likely be a permanent and visible mark, something akin to a tattoo or a brand, applied to the surface of the skin on the right hand or forehead.

[2] The Jews had a special dispensation exempting them from the general requirement to worship Caesar.  In the early days of the Church, the Roman empire viewed Christianity as a sect of Judaism, which allowed Christians to enjoy the same exemption (cf. Acts 18:12-16).  In time, however, Christianity became visibly distinct from Judaism, Christians lost their exemption (but largely refused to worship Caesar), and the Roman persecution of Christians resulted.

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February 20, 2026

Interpretation of Parables

By The Paleofundamentalist

It is often asserted that not every detail in a parable has significance, that parables are fictitious stories intended to each a moral/spiritual lesson (which is a fable, not a parable; cf. 2 Peter 1:16), and that only the overarching spiritual lesson is important. For a discussion of why this view is not consistent with Scripture, see the article Parables under the Biblical Studies tab.

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December 18, 2025

Who Were the Wise Men?

By The Paleofundamentalist

In Matthew 2:1, “wise men from the east” came to the land of Israel in association with the birth of Jesus Christ.  Here, “wise men” is a translation of the Greek word, magoi.  Modern Bible translations tend to transliterate this word as magi, from which the English words magic and magician are derived, but in doing so there is a danger that an occultic connotation might be associated with them.  It should be noted that the text/context of Matthew 2 suggests no such wicked association; indeed, they are the good guys in Matthew’s birth narrative.  Thus, the KJV translators properly translated magoi as “wise men”.  In contrast, the singular magos is translated as “sorcerer” relative to the “false prophet” who went by the name “Barjesus” (cf. Act13:6).

Recognizing these “wise men” as such is an important aid in their proper identification.  They came “from the east”, which is understood to be relative to Jerusalem and the land of Israel.  In Scripture, such a geographic designation generally denotes Babylon and/or Persia (cf. Gen11:2; Isa43:5; 46:11).  In Daniel 2:2, the advisors to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon are designated as “magicians”, “astrologers”, “sorcerers”, and “Chaldeans”.  Certainly, “magicians”, “astrologers”, and “sorcerers” are all categories of occult practitioners; however, the “Chaldeans” are to be distinguished from these.  Strong’s Hebrew lexicon indicates that the “Chaldeans” (when used as a title, rather than a geographical designation) were “those persons considered to be the wisest in the land”.  After successfully interpreting Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, Daniel was promoted by the king to be “chief over all the wise men of Babylon” (Dan2:48).  Daniel outlived the Babylonian empire, and “prospered in the reign of Darius, and in the reign of Cyrus the Persian” (Dan6:28).  In Esther 1:13, we see that even during the Persian empire this caste of advisors to kings continued, characterized as “wise men, which knew the times”.  Research into extra-biblical literature indicates that these “Chaldean” wise men were an ancient and hereditary caste of scholars with particular expertise in astronomy and dream interpretation (which was undoubtedly why Nebuchadnezzar made Daniel the “chief” of their order).

That Daniel was made chief of these wise men “from the east”, and that they were experts at astronomy, provides the outline of a plausible explanation for why they knew what they knew, and why they came to Jerusalem when they did.  Balaam, the ancient prophet from Mesopotamia (cf. Deut23:4), who some suggest belonged to (or even began) their order, had long before prophesied that “there shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Scepter shall rise out of Israel” (cf. Num24:15-17); that is, the arrival of a future Jewish king (i.e., the Messiah) would be heralded by a “Star”.  Observing an unusual “star”, they associated it with “he that is born King of the Jews” (Matt2:2).  That they were anticipating the season of His arrival was nearing can be inferred from the fact that they were undoubtedly in possession of, and revered, the Book of Daniel (their former chief) which predicted the very day of Messiah’s arrival (cf. Dan9:25).

To dispel common myths, they were not kings; this is erroneously supported by Psalm 72:10, which describes the millennial kingdom.  Coming from Persia, they would have ridden horses, not camels.  Nothing in the text of Matthew 2 indicates how many “wise men” there were, but there were likely many more than three.  Furthermore, having undertaken a journey of almost a thousand miles, they would have travelled in a sizable caravan that almost certainly included a military escort.  Such a large delegation from Persia arriving unexpectedly in Jerusalem was undoubtedly the reason “Herod … was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him” (Matt2:3).

Who were the “wise men”?  They were an hereditary caste of Babylonian/Persian scholars (not occultists) who had been influenced by the prophet Daniel to anticipate the coming of the Messiah who was to be the King of Israel, and who was to be “worship[ed]” by all (Matt2:2).

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November 19, 2025

The Translation of Enoch and the Rapture of the Church

By The Paleofundamentalist

In His Olivet Discourse, Jesus said, “But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be” (Matt24:37). The Flood of Noah is a type of the coming Tribulation period (i.e., Daniel’s 70th Week). Noah and his family, who endured the judgment of the Flood on earth, but were Divinely preserved through it, are a type of the nation of Israel; Israel will endure the judgment of the Tribulation on earth, but will be Divinely preserved through it (Zech13:8-9; Rev12:6,14). In contrast, the translation of Enoch from earth to heaven (without dying; Gen5:24; Heb11:5) is a type of the pre-tribulational rapture of the Church (1Thess4:15-17; Rev4:1-2); the Church will be supernaturally removed from the earth before the judgment of the Tribulation begins (Luk21:36; 1Thess1:10; Rev3:10). In the translation of Enoch prior to the Flood, only a single person was removed from the earth; in the rapture of the Church prior to the Tribulation, the singular Body of Christ (i.e., the “one new man”; Eph2:15) will be removed from the earth (1Cor12:27; Eph1:22-23). Note also that Enoch was supernaturally translated from the earth to heaven, whereas Noah had to build an Ark according to God’s revealed specifications in order to be saved from the Flood; this comports with the fact that the Church will be raptured according to grace, whereas Israel was required to keep the Law delivered by God through Moses (Cp., Jn1:17).

Note that there was a gap of time between the translation of Enoch and the beginning of the “days of Noah”; from the translation of Enoch to the birth of Noah was 69 years. Since the “days of Noah” correspond typologically to the Tribulation, this observation is consistent with the expectation that there will be a gap of time between the rapture of the Church and the beginning of the Tribulation (i.e., the rapture is not the event that begins the Tribulation; cf. Dan9:27). However, to conclude that there will be 69 years between the rapture of the Church and the beginning of the Tribulation is almost certainly pressing the type too far; whereas the Flood was a type of the Tribulation, it lasted only slightly more than a year (not 7 years), and the “days of Noah” were 950 years (Gen9:29).

While the 69 year gap between the translation of Enoch and the beginning of the Flood likely has no literal connection to the gap of time between the rapture of the Church and the beginning of the Tribulation, it may yet be found to have a typological significance.

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