He Cometh With Clouds

Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen. Revelation 1:7

It is like this every day here from the 1st of May to 31st of October. From seven or eight o’clock in the morning till five to six o’clock in the afternoon there is not a drop of rain, and never a cloud between earth and sun. Every day at about one o’clock pm if an east wind is not blowing, (which fortunately it seldom does except for a fortnight on and off in May and October), a delightfully cool breeze, laden with slight moisture, such as we are now enjoying, sets in from the great sea westward, the Mediterranean Sea, which lies along the west of Palestine.

If you want to realize Bible stories you must think of such unbroken fine weather for some six or seven months running every year! This accounts for the allusions to “clouds” in the Bible as a strange and wonderful sight; for from 1st of May to 31st of October they are as rare in the Holy Land as they are common in England.

The very thunderstorms come only in the winter in Palestine, whereas here they only come ordinarily in the summer. Hence the alarming and miraculous judgment when Samuel called down “thunder and rain in wheat harvest” (1 Sam 12.17-18), that is, from 1st of May to about the 15th of June, for harvest comes in Palestine before summer, not, as with us, after it in the autumn.

Thus Jeremiah cries, with fine accuracy, “The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved (Jer 8.20).” The “cloud” that covered Israel with a glorious shade all day in their desert wanderings was a truly wonderful and miraculous sight in itself alone, as well as in its situation (Exod 13.21-22, Num 14.14 etc).

When it is said, in the month of June, at our Blessed Lord’s ascension, “a cloud received Him out of their sight” (Acts 1.9), it was a much more remarkable event than many suppose. When, too, it is declared of His second advent, “He shall come with clouds” (Rev 1.7), “they shall see the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven” (Matt 24.30), it means, as you now see, under this unbroken cloudless sky, much more than it would mean in England.

(Neil, Revd James., Peeps Into Palestine, Stanley Martin & Co. Ltd, UK, ~1913)

Rain During Wheat Harvest

Is it not wheat harvest to day? I will call unto the LORD, and he shall send thunder and rain; that ye may perceive and see that your wickedness is great, which ye have done in the sight of the LORD, in asking you a king. 1 Samuel 12:17

Is it not wheat harvest? The time of wheat harvest was May and June. From early spring till late autumn no rain falls in Palestine. During the summer months “a cloud seldom passes over the sky, and a thunderstorm is a miracle” (G.A. Smith).

(Hertz, Dr. J.H., The Pentateuch and Haftorahs, 2nd Ed., Soncino Press, London, 1992, pg 651)

Cisterns and Survival

The nobles send their servants for water; they go to the cisterns but find no water. They return with their jars unfilled; dismayed and despairing, they cover their heads. Jer. 14:3 NIV

Judah depends on wells and underground reservoirs called cisterns for its water supply. The people dig cisterns out of solid rock or line clay reservoirs with cement to prevent seepage and evaporation. Women regularly gather around the cisterns to fill household water jugs and visit with each other. Irrigation trenches from the cisterns also nourish elaborate palace and city gardens.

In a land of little rainfall, cisterns provide water for the people’s survival and their social well-being. A drought impacts rich and poor, young and old, alike. The Israelites fear the droughts that have plagued their land over the centuries, realizing that God often uses such dryness as a judgment (1 Ki 8:35).

(General Editor Jean E. Syswerda, NIV Women of Faith Study Bible, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2001, pg 1252)

Shechinah on the Mt. of Olives

And the Spirit of God came upon Azariah the son of Oded: And he went out to meet Asa, and said unto him, Hear ye me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin; The LORD is with you, while ye be with him; and if ye seek him, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you. 2 Chronicles 15:1-2

Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Isaiah 55:6

Thus far the Rabbis: All the more impressive is their own admission and their lament–so significant as viewed in the light of the Gospel: “For three years and a half abode the Shechinah” (or visible Divine presence) “on the Mount of Olives,”–waiting whether Israel would repent–and calling upon them, “Seek ye the Lord while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near.” And when all was in vain, then the Shechinah returned to its own place!”

(Edersheim, Alfred. 1994. The Temple: Its Ministry and Services. Updated edition. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers., pg 17)

Two Mules' Burden of Earth

And Naaman said, Shall there not then, I pray thee, be given to thy servant two mules' burden of earth? for thy servant will henceforth offer neither burnt offering nor sacrifice unto other gods, but unto the LORD. 2 Kings 5:17

Two mules’ burden of earth. i.e. of the Holy Land, for constructing an altar to the God of Israel in Syria. Naaman held the heathen view that a deity was only powerful in the country which recognized him; and therefore that outside Palestine, God could only be worshipped on soil from Israel’s land!

(Hertz, Dr. J.H., The Pentateuch and Haftorahs, 2nd Ed., Soncino Press, London, 1992, pg 468)

Watch Tower

Dr. James Fleming writes,

"The watchtower is a tall structure built of field stone in the midst of steep, terraced vineyards. Often the vineyard is far from the village, and needs to be protected both from natural enemies and from thieves. The watchtower serves as temporary living quarters for the owners during summer. When the grapes become ripe in July, the family will be found camping out in the watchtower by night while harvesting the fruit during the day.

The watchtower is symbolic of divine protection:

"the name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous flee into it and are safe" (Proverbs 18:10)

"Let me sing to my friend the song of his love for his vineyard.He dug the soil, cleared it of stones, and planted choice vines in it. In the middle he built a tower, he dug a press there too." (Isa. 5:1-2, JB)

"Listen to another parable: There was a landowner who planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a winepress in it and built a watchtower." (Matt 21:33, NIV)

Special watchfulness was required before the grape harvest to guard the fruit from animals and thieves. But once the grapes were gathered, it was a time of joy. Singing and shouting accompanied the treading of the grapes (Isaiah 16:10).

To the ancient Israelites, the bursting grapes and shouts of joy suggested the destruction of enemies and the victory conquest. The fruit of the vine is often referred to as "blood" (Genesis 49:11) and the destruction of enemies as "treading" them underfoot. This image is extended to God, who is pictured in judgment as shouting "like those who tread the grapes" (Jeremiah 25:30), His garments stained with blood from the enemies trampled under His feet (Isaiah 63:2). "

(http://www.biblicalresources.net/watchtower.htm)

Living Without Olives

Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation. Habakkuk 3:17-18

The olive was very important to people during Bible times. The berry, when pickled, was used in the relish put on bread for almost every meal. Almost every kind of dish was cooked in olive oil. It was very difficult to cook right without it. Olive oil was used in the lamps. The entire supply of soap was made from parts of the olive.

The worker left home in the early dawn with nothing more than olives wrapped up in a quantity of his paper-like loaves of bread. Most of his meals when away from home and at work were this type of meal.

Habukkuk says that even if there are no olives he will have joy in God. For there to be no olives would mean there would be almost no way to have a fire in the lamp. There would be little food prepared the way most was usually prepared. In fact, there would be little to eat because the olive was a part of almost every recipe. It would mean staying dirty because there would be no soap.

Habukkuk is stating that he will joy in the Lord no matter circumstance he finds himself living in. He can be hungry but he would be joyful for his salvation in God. He can be out of a job and dirty but he would rejoice that God loves him. He would follow God no matter what the situation is.

(Mark McWhorter , Copyright 2002, Published by The Old Paths Bible School, http://www.oldpaths.org)