THE DAY OF THE LORD

“As I live, declares the Lord God, surely with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm and with wrath poured out I will be king over you.  [34] I will bring you out from the peoples and gather you out of the countries where you are scattered, with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, and with wrath poured out.  [35] And I will bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and there I will enter into judgment with you face to face.  [36] As I entered into judgment with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so I will enter into judgment with you, declares the Lord God.  [37] I will make you pass under the [shepherd's] rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant.  [38] I will purge out the rebels from among you, and those who transgress against me. I will bring them out of the land where they sojourn, but they shall not enter the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Lord.  Ezekiel 20:33-38 (ESV)

Here we come to the real point of the Shepherd’s Rod.  Notice the context which tells the time frame in which this occurs.  “With a mighty hand and an outstretched arm and with wrath poured out I will be king over you,” says our LORD (Yahwah, Jehovah).  Scripture calls the Day of the LORD the Day of Wrath as well.  God’s wrath pours out in the Day of the LORD.  Even today we see the beginnings of his wrath.  Today’s status quo in the earth cannot be maintained.  If God allowed the present powers to continue unabated they would destroy the earth and make all who survived their slaves.  They are well on the way to this satanic goal even now.  God will take up his power and begin to reign and and he will do so soon.

God will establish his authority in “the wilderness of the peoples.”  For many years God has trained his overcomers in this wilderness, a place “outside the camp” of established religion.  The time draws near when these shall be glorified and Christ shall be glorified in them.  These will see Christ (God) face to face and God will be pleased to dwell in them bodily.   The following verses allude to this remarkable event:

And said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified. (Isaiah 49:3 KJV)

Thy people also shall be all righteous: they shall inherit the land for ever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified. (Isaiah 60:21 KJV)

To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified. (Isaiah 61:3 KJV)

Hear the word of the LORD, ye that tremble at his word; Your brethren that hated you, that cast you out for my name’s sake, said, Let the LORD be glorified: but he shall appear to your joy, and they shall be ashamed. (Isaiah 66:5 KJV)

And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Zidon; and I will be glorified in the midst of thee: and they shall know that I am the LORD, when I shall have executed judgments in her, and shall be sanctified in her. (Ezekiel 28:22 KJV)

And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together. (Romans 8:17 KJV)

When he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe (because our testimony among you was believed) in that day. (2 Thessalonians 1:10 KJV)

The ones glorified are those the Bible identifies as overcomers in the Book of Revelation.  “And he that overcomes, and keeps my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations: And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to pieces: even as I received of my Father. And I will give him the morning star. He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says unto the churches.” (Revelation 2:26-29 KJ2000)  This prophecy alludes to the passage quoted from Ezekiel above.  The rod of iron is the Shepherd’s Rod.  It symbolizes the scepter of God’s rule, perfected in the overcomers.  Overcomers, unlike God’s Church during the last two ages (Passover and Pentecost), will be unafraid to rule by God’s Law.  God’s Law brings life, not death, when perfected in the bond of mercy (love) and truth (justice). 

Christ comes again in the clouds foretold the angels, but it will not look like the Church teaches.  Overcomers themselves are the clouds.

And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon it was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he does judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a robe dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goes forth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he has on his robe and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS. (Revelation 19:11-16 KJ2000)

Christ will rule through his glorified overcomers who themselves will administer his wrath in the sword of the Spirit with a rod of iron.