THE HARBINGER

As an adjunct to our discussion of the US economy I am posting my notes on Jonathan Cahn's book, The Harbinger, which details the spiritual meaning of the events which took place on 9/11/2001

 

 

FROM RABBI JONATHAN CAHN’S REVELATION - THE HARBINGER - ISAIAH 9:8-10

 

LET US BE MEN WHO UNDERSTAND THE TIMES AND KNOW WHAT TO DO. - I CHRONICLES 12:32

 

TEACHING IS BASED ON THE HEBREW CALENDAR AND SCRIPTURES AS THEY RELATE TO US TODAY. RABBI CAHN IS A MESSIANIC JEW WHO BELIEVES IN YESUHA AS HIS LORD AND SAVIOR. THE KEY SCRIPTURE IS FROM ISAIAH 9:8-12 WHICH WAS READ IN THE U.S. SENATE THE DAY AFTER 9/11.

 

Watchmen on the wall - Ezekiel 33   Isaiah 9:8 Israel has a limited time to repent after the destruction of parts of the nation. This is the first warning to the nation. There is no repentance on their part. They are defiant and determine to rebuild stronger, but not change any of their ways that are displeasing to God.

 

Bricks were not strong enough, they were made of mud and straw. We will rebuild. We will undo the proclaimed judgment of God.

 

Hewn stone - We will rebuild with strong stone. We will replace the bricks.

 

Sycamore trees were cut down in the destruction. We will replant with Cedars. Cedars of Lebanon. Strong trees. We vow to be stronger yet. (And continue in our ways, not God’s)

 

Sept 11, 2001 The United States is shaken by an attack on and destruction of the World Trade Towers. The attack was on the US financial system. It was a warning from our enemies (and God).

 

Fallen bricks - twisted metal.

 

Rebuild - The Freedom Tower. Let us build a tower. A vow to be bigger and better.

 

FINANCIAL CONSEQUENCES:

After 9/11 the Federal Reserve reduced interest rates in order to stimulate the economy. The financial responses could be called the “cut stones” of rebuilding. The 9/11 event transformed our economy and that of the rest of the world. The reduced interest rates made for “free money”. This opened up the avenues for EZ money and expanded credit which fueled the housing boom. People who could not afford future payments where encouraged to borrow during this period. A bubble was forming, we were building a “house of cards”.

 

Divine anger could be called remedial chastening. The Lord chastens those whom He loves. Chastening is designed to get man’s attention and cause man to repent - to turn back toward God. Micah 6:1-2 and Micah 7:8-10. Is America turning back toward God?

 

SUMMARY OF THE INFORMATION TO FOLLOW:

1. The breech or loss of the hedge of protection - God allows the enemy to strike.

2. The Terrorist’s - Assyria and Babylon in Israel’s time. Iran and Iraq on 9/11.

3. Fallen bricks - Ruins - The fallen twin towers.

4. Tower - Rebuilding ground zero

5. Stone - Gahzit in Hebrew - cut stones - hardening ourselves, a foundation stone set at ground zero.

6. Sycamore tree - Fallen trees - the fallen towers - the real tree at St. Paul’s Chapel, corner ground zero.

7. Cedars - hard strong tree - replaced the sycamore at ground zero.

8. Utterance of the vow by the leaders of the nation, often from the capital city. Jerusalem - Washington D.C.

9. Recording of the vow - it becomes prophecy. The nation heads toward judgment.

 

The 9/11 attack was on America’s financial system. The attack was right around the corner from America’s financial district - Wall St. - a few blocks from the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).

 

The NYSE was created on Wall St. in 1792 beneath the shade of a buttonwood tree, also known as an American Sycamore! At the edge of ground zero stands St. Paul’s Chapel, at Broadway and Fulton Sts. Debris from the falling trade tower struck a sycamore tree that had stood for nearly a century in St. Paul’s courtyard. When the dust settled the sycamore was found uprooted and fallen in such a way that none of the historic tombstones in the yard were damaged. No wreckage had touched the chapel.

 

Sculptor Steven Tobin was inspired to create a bronze sculpture that now stands at Trinity Church which is the entrance to Wall St. just a few blocks from St. Paul’s. The sculpture is a recreation of the uprooted sycamore. The original roots of the sycamore are on display at St. Paul’s Chapel.

 

Is God speaking to our nation? Isaiah 9:10...”the sycamores are cut down, but we will rebuild. We will change them into Cedars”. Just a few years later at ground zero a Cedar tree was planted at ground zero. Do the fallen towers symbolize the fallen sycamores? Does the rebuilding of the towers symbolize the Cedars? What are the odds of a sycamore being struck down and replaced by a Cedar at ground zero? There is more.

 

Do the fallen towers represent the fallen bricks of Isaiah 9? Does the Freedom Tower represent the hewn stone? On July 4, 2004 a huge cut stone was laid as the foundation stone for the Freedom Tower. This stone represented the strength of America and the rebuilding of a better and stronger financial district. There is more.

 

The day after 9/11 at a joint session of Congress, Senate majority leader, Tom Daschle said, “We will rebuild and emerge stronger” referring to Isaiah 9:8-10 not realizing this passage was a judgment passage.  There was no mention of seeking God or turning back to God or repentance. Of all the scriptures he could have used he chose this one concerning God’s judgment on a nation (Ancient Israel) turning their back on God. There is more.

 

In Washington D.C. on the 3^rd anniversary of 9/11, 2004 Vice Presidential candidate John Edwards, during a speech, read the same verses from Isaiah 9.

 

April 30^th 1789 could be considered the birth of the US Government when George Washington was inaugurated at Federal Hall on Wall St., which now faces the NYSE building. In his inaugural speech Washington urged the nation to continue to follow God and be blessed. Departure from God, he warned, would be dangerous for the nation. The nation was dedicated at the corner of ground zero on Wall St. that day. Afterwards, Washington and others in his party, walked the short distance to St. Paul’s Chapel to pray God’s Blessing on the new government.

Could the attack on the WTC be God’s warning, His pleading with America to return to its roots? Is this the first Divine warning to get America’s attention? Psalm 78 is God calling the nation to return. The psalm is a warning to God’s people. Is God chastening us today?

 

THE UPROOTED

Ezekiel 13:10-16:  God says He will take down the wall and expose the foundation if we refuse to walk in His ways. In this verse He is speaking to apostate Israel. He used pagan nations as the tool of His warnings and judgment. God speaks this way today, but many do not recognize His voice or believe He still operates in this manner. 

 

The foundation is that which is at the beginning of a nation - that which the nation puts it’s trust in. America was founded by those looking for freedom of religion. Our foundation was based on the beliefs of those who sought God’s direction. Israel was God’s nation, founded by God. When they strayed God warned them through world events. Is God so warning America now? We were founded on scriptural purposes and have been blessed - but now we are turning our backs on God.

 

We see a pattern of judgment or warning to the nation in the ancient scriptures. A pattern of warning. The prophets were sent to alert and warn the people. The people were stubborn and rebellious worshipping idols (anything that replaces God in our hearts) and sacrificing their children to the fire of false Gods (abortion by the millions today).

 

God used Assyria to chastise the northern kingdom of Israel and Babylon to chastise Judah. Is it possible God still speaks to the nations this way today? What is the book of Revelation saying?

 

Many of our Founding Fathers believed in the Bible and the God of the Bible. They were by no means perfect, but they believed in and sought the Creator’s guidance while creating this nation. America was often referred to as the “New Jerusalem” or the “City on the shining hill.” In a speech at the Republican National Convention in 1976 Ronald Reagan referred to America as the City on the shining hill.

 

The attack on the World Trade Center was an attack on America’s financial power. It was designed to inevitably bring us down financially at some point in time. The end result, hoped for by the terrorist’s, is to bring us down both financially and militarily. It costs America billions of dollars to project her military power throughout the world. The war on terror they hoped would cost us dearly. The attack on the financial structure was the first stage.

 

After the attack the NYSE was closed for the rest of the week. When it reopened it experienced the greatest one day decline in history up to that point in its history. Our economy was in a state of shock.

 

Our response was to create EZ credit and low interest rates to get our economy back on track. The government, under Pres Bush, began programs to make it easy for people to purchase their own homes. Regulations on banks and securities companies that regulated the type of business they could participate in were eased. This began the era of derivative instruments and Wall St operating like a casino rather than a place for sound investments. It also started the housing boom and various mortgage backed securities - the packaging of mortgages for sale to investors.

 

People began to buy homes they could not afford as Wall St. looked the other way. Anyone could get credit to buy a home. When mortgages were packaged they could be sold for big commissions by the Street on the world market. Those who owned homes saw their value increase as the boom continued. They borrowed against the equity in their homes and bought stuff - lots of stuff.

 

Agencies that packaged mortgages for resale began to put anything into the package. Credit checks were not done on buyers and the agencies rated everything AAA. They thought the housing boom would continue forever.  The House of Cards was under construction.

 

Then Wall St began acting like a sports betting casino. They came up with the derivatives that allowed investors to “bet against” just about anything that was a financial instrument. You could bet against bonds being successful, against insurance policies, etc. Now they created a derivative to bet against the packaged mortgages they were creating.

 

Simply put, they could call up an investor and encourage them to buy the Mortgaged Backed Securities that they said were AAA, a sure thing. Then they turned around and sold a “bet” against those same mortgages to another investor. Not very ethical. It was all about making money any way possible with no regard to the consequences or ethics.

 

Our entire system was careening out of control, unregulated, full of greed. The whole recovery, like our entire system, was fueled by credit and the debt that it creates. The bubble was forming and growing at an alarming rate. Finally in Sept of 2008, seven years to the date (on the Hebrew Calendar) the financial crises began. Why is this prophetic?

 

SHEMITA - THE RELEASE OF DEBT

Leviticus 25:2-7, 18-27, EX 23:10-11 - In ancient Israel the seventh year, according to the Hebrew calendar, which is lunar, is a year of rest for the land and the release of debt. In Hebrew this is called the Shemita. This seven year rest is not to be confused with the year of Jubilee which is a 50 year rest and release of debt.

 

Prior to Judah’s captivity in Babylon the nation had not been abiding by the Shemita, the law of rest for the land and release of debt. 2 CHR 36:15-21. Because of their disobedience the Kingdom of Judah went into captivity for 70 years in Babylon. (Daniel 9:1-3) One year for each Shemita not observed. They were warned by God ahead of time but refused to obey. How does the Shemita apply to the financial crises in America?

 

The date of the financial crises, Sept 2008, is the end of the seven year Shemita period from the previous Shemita which was 9/11 2001. Seven years from the beginning of the 2001 Shemita, we have the financial crises at the end of the next Shemita in 2008. On this day the stock market crashed 777 points. It now surpassed the previous one day crash of Sept 17^th 2001 when the market reopened after 9/11.

 

The ensuing bailouts were a release of debt to the banks that were failing due to their unethical lending practices. This toxic waste was purchased by the Federal Reserve Bank, in effect, cancelling the Wall St debt. Who really paid? The American public, the tax payers.

 

The year prior, 2007, was fat and prosperous. As Shemita drew closer housing problems began coming to the surface. The first sign was in Sept 2007! British sub-prime lender Northern Rock collapsed. Northern Rock was in partnership with a company that would later be involved in the American crises - Lehman Bros. In accordance with the Hebrew calendar, Sept 2007 was the beginning of the Shemita year! Is God speaking?

 

In October of 2007 the Dow Jones Average was above 14,000 points. From that time it began its decline until it bottomed at 7,000 points in Sept ‘08. Do you see a lot of sevens? All the gains from the previous seven years were lost by Sept 08.

In ancient Israel when the nation refused to practice Shemita the Lord said they would not gather in their increase. They would sow, but not gather in the yield. Most financial jargon revolves around agricultural terms - sow, reap, yield, increase, etc. Notice that?

 

Now, man steps in and “rebuilds”. The burden of the bailouts were put on the backs of the taxpayers. The unethical financial system reaped profits from false scales and weights. Proverbs 11:1, 20:23. The nation meanwhile is burdened with the release. The fat cats pay themselves big bonuses as a reward for failure! The nation’s economy becomes over burdened and begins the next stage of debasement.

 

The Shemita is a divine act of “letting fall”. This is the root meaning of the Hebrew word Shemita. Is the American financial system in danger of falling? Is God reaching out towards us and trying to warn us? Does He want us to return to our roots (the uprooted sycamore). Does he want us to repair our foundation?

 

THE FINANCIAL PLAYERS AND THEIR CONNECTION TO THE EVENTS

Bank of America was involved in the opening stages of the 2008 financial crises. They were asked to bailout Lehman Bros. by purchasing them. After review, B of A decided not to purchase Lehman Bros. and the government decided not to bail them out. This created shock waves throughout the financial markets world-wide.

 

AIG, the world’s largest insurer was involved in credit default swaps-bad mortgages. They crashed when this market was exposed as toxic. AIG fell along with Lehman Bros., but the government decided to bail them out in order to keep the entire system from failing. These three players, B of A, Lehman, and AIG where the key players early in the crises.

The prophetic connection is that all three of these companies had offices in the north tower of the WTC on 9/11. What is this telling us about our financial system? What is the financial collapse warning us of? What or whom will replace America as the financial leader of the world? If the “pride of our power” is broken (Lev 26.19) who is rising? Read Deut 28 and Lev 26 for the blessings and curses on a nation that is called by God and then turns away.

Will the European Union rise up? Will it be China or Islam? If we refuse to turn back toward our God our power is sure to be broken. The tide of current events is already pointing in this direction. New York City will no longer be the financial capitol of the world. Already Berlin, Singapore, Hong Kong, Beijing, and Moscow are jockeying for this position. The world no longer looks on America as the financial ideal. Our dollar is being debased by the Federal Reserve on purpose. This is causing financial hardship in many countries around the globe. Foreign creditors are less interested in purchasing our debt in the form of US Treasury Bills. They no longer want the US Dollar to be the reserve currency of the world. The “almighty dollar” is in decline.

It is a little known fact that Henry Hudson sailed up the river named after him to what is now Manhattan Island on Sept 11, 1609. Could we say this was the beginning of the establishment of the USA as the world financial power? Isn’t it amazing that God’s warnings are clustered around this time? What is God trying to tell us?

BREAKING OF THE JAR - JEREMIAH 19:1-11, ISAIAH 9:8-10, MICAH 6:6-9There is a pattern in the Old Testament of warnings and judgment towards a nation that knows God and falls away. They are given warnings to return. The smashing of Jeremiah’s jar/the WTC is God beseeching us to return to Him. Our protective hedge has been breeched by our enemies - God’s protection has been removed to get our attention. Just like Israel, America was established by God. Look at the names of towns just in our area alone: Bethlehem, Emmaus, Nazareth. Look across America: Zion National Park, Bethesda, Bethany, Bethel, Shiloh National Park, just to name a few. Our country was founded by those who believed in the God of the Old and New Testament. They in many ways tried to live according to God’s laws. After the attack of 9/11 we vowed revenge, we declared we would rebuild and replant. Politicians used Isaiah 9:8-10 as the scripture to rebuild not realizing it was a scripture of judgment. There were no signs of repentance. For a short time people went to church, but it didn’t last long.

In the scripture there is the principle of nothing being established but in the mouth of two or three witnesses. 2 Cor 13:1. Deut 19:15. We saw Senate majority leader Tom Daschle make a speech the day after 9/11. Then in 2004 we see Vice Presidential candidate John Edwards make a speech. Just as the high priest Caiaphas said, “it is expedient that one man die for the nation”, and didn’t realize he was prophesying (John 11:47-51) so did these two men.

Then on February 24, 2009 President Obama in his first speech as the nation’s leader said to a joint session of Congress, “The state of our economy is on all minds, but we will rebuild.” The Lord sent a word into Jacob (the nation) that night. The next day papers around the world used headlines such as: OBAMA SAYS WE WILL REBUILD. This was a testimony by a third witness, but there is more.

In addition to these three witnesses proclaiming the judgment of Isaiah 9, on that night the three branches of American government were present. The executive (Obama), the legislative (the House and Senate) and the executive (members of the Supreme Court) were all present that evening. Three witnesses.

Later that year on the anniversary of the economic crises Obama spoke at Federal Hall on Wall St where George Washington had been inaugurated as President back in 1789. Today (and that day) a statue of George Washington sits in front of Federal Hall looking directly at the NYSE building. That day, after Obama’s speech, the stock market closed at 9,065 points. Incredibly, eight years earlier, on 9/11 2001 the stock market closed at 9,065 points. That is 9, zero, 6 + 5 = 9/11. Is God trying to tell our nation something?

People on Wall St said it was spooky, strange...Everything about these events from Sept 11, 2001 onward points to the divine prophetic hand of God.  He surely is speaking to us: “Turn to me, repent, remember the days of old when you walked with me and were blessed.”

After World War Two when the British pound sterling fell and the US Dollar became the world reserve currency it was the beginning of the demise of the British Empire. Is the demise of American Power looming?

The World Trade Center was conceived in 1945. Construction began in the 1960’s. The north tower was completed in 1970 and the entire complex was dedicated in 1973. In 1970 abortion was made legal in New York State. In 1973 abortion was legal throughout the country. Every day in America approximately the same number of babies are aborted as the number of people who perished in the collapse of the twin towers. God says, “ I knew you in the womb, before you were born.” Could there be any correlation in these dates and numbers? This is not to disparage those who died in the attacks in any way. They were victims of a horrendous crime and should be honored. The question I ask: Is our creator crying out to us?

Someone once said “Where is God? Why does He allow these things to happen?” We have kicked God out of our schools, our homes, our government, and turned our back on His word. Where is He supposed to be?

It is time to rise up as the people of God and pray, fast, plead, and seek direction for our nation and ourselves. Zechariah 7:8-14 is a warning and a plea from God to us.  In 2 Chr 7:14 the Lord gives us some direction and encouragement. Now is the time. He who has ears to hear let him hear. Amen

 

JUST BECAUSE SOMETHING IS INEVITABLE DOESN’T MAKE IT IMMINENT - Doug Casey

BY INDIRECTIONS WE MUST FIND THINGS OUT - William Shakespeare

the sons of Issachar…had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do, their chiefs were two hundred; and all their brethren were at their command; 1 Chronicles 12.32