God Is Counting!

By R. J. Plugge

Prophetic time periods given in 4 books of the Bible show God’s foretold timeline.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Dec 3, 2020
• ISBN: 9781664210738

R. J. Plugge

Mr. Plugge was an Aerospace Engineer for 40 years primarily designing microwave systems and their unique components. He’s now writing Bible studies from the perspective of an engineer, not a theologian or story teller. His other books include: Daniel’s Five Visions and On Zechariah. He has degrees in Engineering and Divinity.

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Copyright © 2020 R. J. Plugge.

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Scripture taken from the American King James Version of the Bible

ISBN: 978-1-6642-1072-1 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6642-1074-5 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-6642-1073-8 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2020921359

WestBow Press rev. date:  06/16/2021

INDEX OF FIGURES

Figure 1:     Timelines within Ezekiel: Chap.4 (dates BC)

Figure 2:     Daniel’s time within Babylon, and the King’s Dream Coverage (dates BC)

Figure 3:     From Jeremiah to the Kingdom Confirmed

Figure 4:     Timelines of the First Four Gentile Kingdoms (dates BC

Figure 5:     The Last Two Gentile Kingdoms plus Christ’s Kingdom

Figure 6:     Four Time Periods before the Kingdom was Confirmed

Figure 7:     The 70th and Last Week of the 490 years

Figure 8:     Jesus was Blessed After 1335 Days

Figure 9.     Christ’s Kingdom Confirmation in AD33

Figure 10:   The Olivet Discourse was during the week of Passover

Figure 11:   The Great Tribulation occurred during the first century AD

Figure 12:   The Time-Line was to indicate Israel’s Return

Figure 13:   Star cluster locations

Figure 14:   God provided for the next 1260 years

Figure 15:   The factor of 3.5 from None to New; and the Timeline Extends into 2017

Figure 16:   Examples of Historic Gentile Kings who turned (Rev.17)

PREFACE

Selections from chapters within Ezekiel, Daniel, Matthew, and The Revelation are discussed to show there’s a time line which God has followed, and is following. Not only has God continued to use the calendar and the feast dates which were first given to Israel under Moses’s leading, He has continued to provide specific measured and enumerated intervals to prove He is the One who determines the future, and to show He knows the ends and times before they’re experienced on earth (Rom.11:2; Isa.46:10; 48:3.) Many of the time intervals are defined by symbolic numerics to assist interpretation of the reason or meaning to be given to that time interval. A consistent set of numerics have been used throughout the Bible.

To identify the pronouns, or to clarify terms, numerous parenthetical additions have been inserted within the verses quoted. Similarly, portions of the texts have been underlined or emboldened to indicate the critical words for the points being made. Bracketed extra comments have sometimes been added within, or after, specific verses to hopefully clarified pronouns, intentions, or the points being made in the text.

Unfortunately, many readers might be unfamiliar, or disbelieving of the symbolic interpretations of Biblical numerics. Thus, the numeric interpretations used or indicated within the text have been highlighted by italicizing them.

INTRODUCTION

God has been counting and laying out His Plan and Purposes across the millennia. And, He has been telling, showing, and explaining the time intervals along with defined markers and signs (Am.3:7; Jn.15:15.) Within the referenced 4 chapters of the Bible, dates and timespans are highlighted to provide a ladder of defined dates stepping through God’s calendar. These dates cover a portion of the calendar beginning with Samuel taking office in 1076BC, just before the first king of Israel. It then jumps to the warnings of Jeremiah, the prophetic words of Isaiah, and events in the lives of Ezekiel and Daniel to confirm the precisely foretold timing set for the establishment of God’s King on the Throne of Heaven in AD30. That King was the Stone in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, the Messiah in Judea from the line of David, our Savior who died on a Cross, and the One who then arose to ascend into Heaven. He is the Head of the Church; Jesus our Lord, and He now reigns over all the earth and Heaven, and He will come again to lift His Bride to Him within Heaven.

Proven historic dates not only led up to Jesus’s coming, they have also shown the Time of the Gentiles is completed, and the restoration of Israel came as foretold. All of the dates followed God’s foretold plans and calendar and provided explanations aided by the consistent Biblical numerology. The world now awaits a false-christ attempting to rule the world’s economy for 42 months. After that will come the Rapture with the brilliant appearance of the Christ, the unbinding of Satan’s anger, and the change of Israel’s heart.

God is now counting all those being prepared and chosen for the Wedding Feast He has set for His Son, the Lord Jesus. Those individuals forming the Church will be Raptured (lifted and caught up to Heaven) when the number is fulfilled (Mt.22:10; Rom.11:25.)

Mt.22:10 So those servants (angels) went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good (so the wedding table would be filled): and the wedding was furnished with guests.

Rom.11:25 For I (Paul speaking for Jesus) would not, brothers, that you (of the Church) should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness (not recognizing their Messiah) in part is happened to Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles be come in. (Some day the number desired will be filled.)

Those chosen from Israel and from all the regions of the earth will attend. They were symbolized by the numeric 153 (=17x9) fishes gathered in the fisher’s nets (Jn.21:11; Mt.13:48, 49.) The numeric 9 speaks to a final judgment and 17 to things being as in Heaven.

Jn.21:10 Jesus (resurrected) said to them (disciples), Bring of the fish which you have now caught.

Jn.21:11 Simon Peter went up, and drew the net to land full of great fishes, an hundred and fifty and three (153): and for all there were so many, yet was not the net broken. (A fixed number of followers will be chosen.)

God, the Father, wants the wedding to be full; a fixed number in the Church will be Raptured.

Mt 13:48 Which, when it (a previous net) was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away.

Mt 13:49 So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just,

God numbers the stars and knows them by name. He knows the number of hairs on your head. He’s already lifted a specific number, 144,000 from the first century Judeans into Heaven, and He is now filling the number within the Church to be ready for the Wedding Feast in Heaven.

Ps.90:12 So teach us (of the family of God) to number our days, that we may apply our hearts to wisdom. (to number: to measure, schedule, and plan)

Ps.90:13 Return, O LORD, how long? and let it repent you (Lord) concerning your servants. (How long? The question of the ages, return us to Eden, to fellowship, to prosperity of God’s grace.)

God Numbers the Days

We are to number our days (Ps.90:12)

Figure1.jpg

Figure 1: Timelines within Ezekiel: Chap.4 (dates BC)

Figure2.jpg

Figure 2: Daniel’s time within Babylon,

and the King’s Dream Coverage (dates BC)

ON EZEKIEL 4: SETTING

INTERVAL TIMES

INTRODUCTION

Ezekiel was one of those in leadership who were taken into Babylonia along with King Jehoiachin by Nebuchadnezzar of the Chaldeans. He was taken out of Jerusalem in 597BC after 2 years of siege on the city (2Ki.24:14, 15; 29:17.) Babylonia was a large wheat growing region east of Babylon, between the two major rivers where numerous irrigation channels and smaller streams existed. Ezekiel mentioned two of those streams.

Ezekiel was apparently about 26 years old at that time, and he became a priest at age 30 (the minimum required age) while in Babylonia (Ezk.1:1-3.) He was accepted as a prophet (Ezk.2:3; 3:7-8; 8:1; 20:1.) He became a major prophet providing God’s Word during the exile of the Israelites. Ezekiel was also married, as required for the priests. At that time, individuals from all 13 tribes of Israel were under the Babylonian king. There were no 10 lost tribes.

Ezekiel was told to become a watchman by God with strict warnings of his responsibilities (Ezk.3:17.) His name means God makes strong, hardened, or unyielding, and God made him to be like that so he could tolerate and inform the Israelites (Ezk.3:7, 8.) God spoke of the Israelites as rebellious, obstinate, stubborn and not willing to listen (Ezk.2:3, 4; 3:7.) Earlier, He had included their being stiff-necked and stiff-hearted.

Jeremiah had warned the Judeans for 23 years of the Babylonian’s coming (Jer.25:12.) Then, Ezekiel’s prophetic ministry lasted for 23 years, i.e. July 593BC to 570BC; again showing 23 as the fitting numeric of warning. So Ezekiel’s record ends about the time he was 50 years old (also the age of military retirement.)

Daniel had been taken into Babylon from Jerusalem at the age of about 14 in 605BC, so he was about 22, and already part of the Chaldean court leadership when Ezekiel arrived, but apparently their paths never crossed. Daniel was a part of the Babylonian government until 535BC; i.e. for a symbolic and required literal 70 years which was indicated in 3 different ways during the period of the exile. (The numeric 3 is indicative of things revealing a manifestation of God, His plan, or power.)

God had set 70 years for the exile because it was the number of years during which the Israelites had ignored their requirement to let the land rest. They had been told to let the land rest every 7th year, but for 490 years they did not do it (Lev.25:4.) So God gave the land 70 years of rest, beginning while the Israelites were exiled within Babylon (Jer.24:5; 25:11.) King Josiah held the Passover within Jerusalem during his 18th year, and noted that it had not been held since the days of the Judges (2Ki.23:22, 23.) Samuel became the voice of God over Israel in 1076BC, 490 years later (1076-586=490) Jerusalem was destroyed by the Chaldeans. That came after the last king, Zedekiah, rebelled (2Chr.36:21.) So, God counted all the years after the judges to be 490 years during which they had not honored the Sabbath-of-the-Land. Thus the 70 year interval of the exile giving the land its rest was officially the period from 586BC when the temple was destroyed, until 516BC when the second temple was dedicated under Joshua, Zerubbabel and Zechariah (Zech.3:6; 4:9; Ezk.3:1; 4:3.)

There were actually 3 periods of 70 years which were associated with the exile. Daniel had been taken to Babylon in 605BC and probably died in the year of his last vision, 535BC, 70 years later. King Josiah died in 609BC. God allowed his being killed at