The
Apple of His Eye ... commentary of Psalm 74
The Apple of His Eye
… A commentary of Psalm
74
Verse Four
Psalm 74:4 “Thine enemies
roar in the midst of thy congregations; they set up
their ensigns for signs.”
“Thine enemies roar…
This is reference to the future judgement
of God on the house of Israel by “the nations
from far,” and “from the end of the earth”.
There is the judgment of the house Israel
that was near … in the prophet Jeremiah’s day [B.C.
607].
Israel would be taken into captivity for seventy
years by the king of Babylon, and then return to
the land: “And this whole land shall be a
desolation, and an astonishment; and these
nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy
years.” [Jeremiah 25:11]
But there is also, the judgment of
the house of Israel that was afar off.
This is the future judgment of the
house of Israel along with all the nations of the
earth in the Great Tribulation [beyond A.D.
2021].
The prophet Isaiah prophesies of
this judgment in the book of Isaiah, in
chapter five, verses twenty-four through
twenty-eight.
Now, let’s read there: “Therefore as the
fire devoureth the stubble, and the flame consumeth
the chaff, so their root shall be as
rottenness, and their blossom shall go up as dust:
because they have cast away the law of the LORD of
hosts, and despised the word of the Holy One of
Israel.
Therefore is the anger of the LORD
kindled against his people, and he hath stretched
forth his hand against them, and hath smitten them:
and the hills did tremble, and their carcases
were torn in the midst of the streets.
For all this his anger is not turned
away, but his hand is stretched out still.
And he will lift up an ensign to the
nations from far, and will hiss unto them from the
end of the earth: and, behold, they shall come with
speed swiftly: None shall be weary nor stumble among
them; none shall slumber nor sleep; neither shall
the girdle of their loins be loosed, nor the latchet
of their shoes be broken:
Whose arrows are sharp, and all
their bows bent, their horses' hoofs shall be
counted like flint, and their wheels like a
whirlwind: [Isaiah 5:24-28]
The enemies roaring is like a
lion. They close in for the kill.
Back to our text: “Their
roaring shall be like a lion, they shall roar
like young lions: yea, they shall roar, and lay hold
of the prey, and shall carry it away safe,
and none shall deliver it. And in that day
they shall roar against them like the roaring of the
sea: and if one look unto the land, behold
darkness and sorrow, and the light is
darkened in the heavens thereof.”
[Isaiah 5:29-30]
Now there is more than one lion in
the Bible.
a.
The “Lion of Juda” is Jesus
Christ in the book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ
in chapter five and verse five: “And
one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold,
the Lion of the tribe of Juda the Root of David,
hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the
seven seals thereof.” [Revelation
5:5]
b.
The “wicked” of Psalms
ten, twenty-two and fifty-seven, are all likened to
as to a lion.
c.
A “wicked ruler” in
Proverbs twenty-eight, verse twenty-eight, is
likened to as a lion in Proverbs
twenty-eight.
d.
The “nations” are
likened to as a lion: pointing to verse
twenty-nine: the book of Isaiah, chapter five,
verse twenty-six: “And he will lift up an ensign
to the nations from far, and will hiss unto them
from the end of the earth: and, behold, they shall
come with speed swiftly:” [Isaiah 5:26]
e.
The “evil from the north”
is likened to a lion, in the book of
Jeremiah, chapter four, verse six and seven: “Set
up the standard toward Zion: retire, stay not: for I
will bring evil from the north, and a great
destruction.
The lion is come up from his
thicket, and the destroyer of the Gentiles is on his
way; he is gone forth from his place to make thy
land desolate; and thy cities shall be laid
waste, without an inhabitant.” [Jeremiah 4:6-7]
f.
His “heritage” is
likened to as a lion, in the book of
Jeremiah, chapter twelve, verse eight: “Mine
heritage is unto me as a lion in the forest; it
crieth out against me: therefore have I hated it.”
[Jeremiah 12:8]
g.
The “heathen” is like
a lion as found in the book of Jeremiah chapter
forty-nine, verse nineteen, also see verse fourteen:
“Behold, he shall come up like a lion from the
swelling of Jordan against the habitation of the
strong: but I will suddenly make him run away from
her: and who is a chosen man, that I
may appoint over her? for who is like me? and
who will appoint me the time? and who is that
shepherd that will stand before me?” [Jeremiah
49:19]
h.
God [seemingly] as a lion
in the book of the Lamentations, chapter three,
verse ten: “He was unto me as a
bear lying in wait, and as a lion in secret
places.” [Lamentations 3:10] Also,
in the book of Hosea chapter five, verse fourteen:
“For I will be unto Ephraim as a lion, and as
a young lion to the house of Judah: I, even
I, will tear and go away; I will take away, and none
shall rescue him.” [Hosea 5:14]
Also, in the book of Hosea, chapter eleven, verse
ten: “They shall walk after the LORD: he shall
roar like a lion: when he shall roar, then the
children shall tremble from the west.” [Hosea
11:10] [See also: 13:7, 8.]
i.
Israel’s prophets as like a
roaring lion in the book of Ezekiel, chapter
twenty-two, verse twenty-five: “There is a
conspiracy of her prophets in the midst thereof,
like a roaring lion ravening the prey; they have
devoured souls; they have taken the treasure and
precious things; they have made her many widows in
the midst thereof.” [Ezekiel 22:25]
j.
The first of the beasts
in book of Daniel, chapter seven, verse four: “The
first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings:
I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it
was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon
the feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to
it.” [Daniel 7:4] [Also, Revelation
4:7.]
k.
Israel’s leaders are likened
as to lions in the book of Zephaniah, chapter three,
and verse three: “Her princes
within her are roaring lions; her judges
are evening wolves; they gnaw not the bones till
the morrow.” [Zephaniah 3:3]
l.
The Devil as a roaring
lion in the First Epistle according to the
Apostle Peter, chapter five, verse eight: “Be
sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the
devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking
whom he may devour:” [1Peter 5:8].
m.
The “locusts” teeth
as the teeth of lions in the book of the
Revelation of Jesus Christ, chapter nine, verse
eight: “And they had hair as the hair of women,
and their teeth were as the teeth of lions.”
[Revelation 9:8]
n.
The “beast” has as the mouth
of a lion in the book of the revelation of Jesus
Christ: “And the beast which
I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as
the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the
mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power,
and his seat, and great authority.”
[Revelation 13:2]
Thine enemies roar
“…in the midst of thy
congregations;”
1.
It is an inside job.
The enemies are in the midst.
If a nation has God with them, then
no outside enemy can ever take them down
captive or destroy them. They will win every
time – hands down!
If a nation departs, it’s because the
battle was lost within [it’s a matter of the heart],
now if they depart from God, that nation most
assuredly will collapse.
The temple has breaches in the
walls.
You have breaches in your house.
Your house needs repair.
MAINTENANCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Turn to the Second Book
of The Kings, chapter twelve, verse seven: “Then
king Jehoash called for Jehoiada the priest, and the
other priests, and said unto them, Why repair
ye not the breaches of the house? now therefore
receive no more money of your acquaintance,
but deliver it for the breaches of the house.”
[2 Kings 12:7
Go deeper!
Yea, it is more important: You have
breaches in your heart.
You need repair.
MAINTENANCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You have lost your first love.
“Nevertheless I have
somewhat against thee, because thou hast left
thy first love.” [Revelation 2:4]
I have not left you! You left me!
Return! Put away whatever is coming between
us!
…they set up their ensigns for signs.”
2.
They signal for the
kill.
Let me back up here. I am old United
States Navy sailor and something comes to my mind.
There is a maritime example for
this. The use of flags or ensigns
is a method to signal to other ships in the
times of radio silence. An ensign is a
sign. A sign signals a message. Each
flag signals or represents a unique
message.
For example, a few of the International
Code of Signals is as follows:
|
Flag |
Name |
Navy Meaning |
International
Meaning |
|
|
Bravo |
I am taking in,
discharging, or carrying dangerous cargo. |
--- |
|
|
Charlie |
"Yes" or
"affirmative". |
--- |
|
|
Delta |
I am maneuvering
with difficulty; keep clear. |
--- |
|
|
Echo |
I am directing my
course to starboard. |
--- |
|
|
India |
Coming alongside. |
I am directing my
course to port. |
|
|
Kilo |
I wish to
communicate with you. |
--- |
|
|
Lima |
You should stop
your vessel immediately. |
--- |
|
|
November |
No or negative. |
--- |
|
|
Uniform |
You are running
into danger. |
--- |
|
|
Victor |
I require
assistance. |
--- |
|
|
Yankee |
Ship has visual
communications duty. |
I am dragging
anchor. |
Now, there are other flags used for
signaling in maritime operations by
other persons.
Mind you, there are others plying
the seas of the world that are up to no good.
These may be called the pirates of the world
that seek the souls of men, and these
pirates fly a signal flag or an ensign
with a sign of death. They call it the
Jolly Roger. These pirates are
the enemies that are the minions for the
E-N-E-M-Y of whom we have already identified in the
above: THE DEVIL.
Now, pirates do not fly the Jolly Roger at
all times. Like other vessels, the pirate ships are
usually equipped with a variety of flags, and will
often normally fly a false flag or
one with no colors until they have their prey within
their firing range.
When the pirates' intended victim was
within range, the Jolly Roger would then be raised,
often simultaneously with a warning shot. Then the
prey is all done!!!
Now, a false flag operation is an
act committed with the intent of disguising the
actual source of responsibility and pinning blame on
a second party.
Here is an instance of the use of a
false flag and it is located for us to see in
the book of First Kings, chapter eighteen: Do you
remember Ahab calling Elijah a troubler of Israel.
“And it came to pass, when Ahab
saw Elijah, that Ahab said unto him, Art thou
he that troubleth Israel?” [1Kings
18:17]
But the truth was really this: In fact, it
was the polar opposite: the true troubler of
Israel was Ahab.
Run the Jolly Roger up on him!
Read the next verse: “And he answered, I have not
troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father's house,
in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the
LORD, and thou hast followed Baalim.” [1
Kings18:18]
Now we understand what it means when they set
up their ensigns. It is for signs!
·
In the book of Numbers,
chapter two, verse two: This ensign or flag
was to identify the tribe:
“Every man of the children of Israel shall
pitch by his own standard, with the ensign of their
father's house: far off about the tabernacle of the
congregation shall they pitch.”
[Numbers 2:2]
·
In the book of Isaiah,
chapter five, verse twenty-six: This ensign
or flag was to call the nations to the attack:
“And he will lift up an ensign
to the nations from far, and will hiss unto them
from the end of the earth: and, behold, they shall
come with speed swiftly:” [Isaiah
5:26].
·
In the book of Isaiah,
chapter eleven, verse ten and twelve: This
ensign or flag was to show the Gentiles
seventh millennia has initiated: behold the
Kingdom of Heaven: “And in that day
there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand
for an ensign of the people; to it shall the
Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious.”
[Isaiah 11:10] “And he shall set up an
ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the
outcasts of Israel, and gather together the
dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the
earth.” [Isaiah 11:12]
·
In the book of Isaiah,
chapter eighteen, verse three: This ensign or
flag was to notify the inhabitants of the
world that the Tribulation has arrived: “All ye
inhabitants of the world, and dwellers on the earth,
see ye, when he lifteth up an ensign on the
mountains; and when he bloweth a trumpet, hear ye.”
[Isaiah 18:3]
·
In the book of Isaiah,
chapter thirty, verse seventeen, and in the book of
Zechariah, chapter nine, verse sixteen: This
ensign, or flag, was to tell people of the
household of Israel that he will bring them
through the trouble: “One thousand shall
flee at the rebuke of one; at the rebuke of five
shall ye flee: till ye be left as a beacon upon the
top of a mountain, and as an ensign on an hill.”
[Isaiah 30:17] “And the LORD their God shall save
them in that day as the flock of his people: for
they shall be as the stones of a crown, lifted
up as an ensign upon his land.” [Zechariah 9:16]
·
In the book of Isaiah,
chapter thirty-one, verse nine: This ensign
or flag was to signify to the Assyrian that God
is moving; You had better fear!: “And he
shall pass over to his strong hold for fear, and his
princes shall be afraid of the ensign saith the
LORD, whose fire is in Zion, and his furnace
in Jerusalem.” [Isaiah 31:9]