OUR FATHER WHO IS AMONG THE RIGHTEOUS

From Psalm 14;

God is present

With the righteous

Those who oppress the poor

Are filled with dread

O that the salvation 

For Israel 

Would come out of Zion!

So let Jacob be glad!

4

OUR FATHER WHO COUNTERS THOSE WHO OPPRESS HIS PEOPLE

The book of Isaiah chapter 19 verse 4 says this;

I will hand the Egyptians over to the power of a cruel master, and a fierce king will rule over them,” declares the Lord, the Lord Almighty.

In this passage, the Egyptians being referenced are a type and shadow of an oppressive and exploitative kingdom that have set themselves up over the people of God.

In the time when the Lord moves to free His people from under the yoke of oppression, He will orchestrate a political maneuver that will place a cruel leader over the Egyptian kingdom and the oppressors will suffer oppression themselves.

This change will cause the Egyptians to be economically and culturally discombobulated. They will be struck by unemployment and shortages. 

The kingdom  will also suffer from the lack of wisdom from their intellectuals and policy makers. The fabric of the kingdom will be hollowed out and they will become severely weakened.

In this state, the Lord will have mercy on the Egyptians and when they turn to Him,  He will  heal them and they will become a blessing of God to the world.

As Isaiah chapter 19 verse 25 says?

 The Lord Almighty will bless them, saying, “Blessed be Egypt my people, Assyria my handiwork, and Israel my inheritance.”

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OUR FATHER WHO JUDGES THOSE WHO ARE USED AS INSTRUMENTS OF HIS JUDGEMENT

The book of Isaiah chapter 10 verse 14 says this;

As one reaches into a nest, so my hand reached for the wealth of the nations; as people gather abandoned eggs, so I gathered all the countries; not one flapped a wing, or opened its mouth to chirp.’”

This verse captures the proud words of the king of Assyria as he undertook to capture the nations of the world in order  to destroy them, erase their borders and to subjugate them under his will.

He likened his conquest of nations to the gathering of abandoned eggs where none resisted him with even a chirp. He hautily believed it was by his own strength that he had achieved the power over the nations.

What he did not recognize was that it was God who had bestowed strength to him so that he would act as judgement on God's people.

The king of Assyria went beyond his mandate and attempted to grasp the kingdom of the people  of God for himself.

It was for this overreach that brought the judgment of God down upon the Assyrian.

As verse 12 says;

 When the Lord has finished all his work against Mount Zion and Jerusalem, he will say, “I will punish the king of Assyria for the willful pride of his heart and the haughty look in his eyes. 

The Assyrian spoken of in this chapter is a type and shadow of the anti-christ who, having been released into the world to test the people of God, perceived himself to be above God and used his position of power to grasp for control of the whole world and for this, he is brought into abject destruction.

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OUR FATHER WHO SPARES A REMNANT

The book of Ezekiel chapter 9 verses 3 - 5 says this;

Now the glory of the God of Israel went up from above the cherubim, where it had been, and moved to the threshold of the temple. Then the Lord called to the man clothed in linen who had the writing kit at his side and said to him, “Go throughout the city of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of those who grieve and lament over all the detestable things that are done in it.”

As I listened, he said to the others, “Follow him through the city and kill, without showing pity or compassion. 

In this passage, the prophet Ezekiel, speaking of the idolatrous conduct of the people of Jerusalem, described three things things that he saw in his vision which  that occured when the Lord was provoked to wrath.

First, the Shekina and brightness of the glory of the Lord rose from above the cherubim in the innermost chamber of the temple and moved to the exit of the temple. This was the somber start of the departure of the presence of God from among His people in Jerusalem.

Second, the judgment of the Jerusalem was initiated when a man in white linen and a writing impliment at his side was called and instructed to put a mark on the foreheads of all those in the city who had disapproved of the evil things that were going on in their city. This mark excluded them from the judgement that was about to fall on the city.

Third, six men who had been summoned from heaven with lethal weapons were instructed to follow the man in linen and impartially execute the judgement of death upon those who did not have the mark on their foreheads.

And thus the vision of Ezekiel detailed how the Lord departed from Jerusalem and then how  judgement started first among the people around the temple and then proceeded to the rest of the city leaving a remnant of people. 

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OUR FATHER WHO JUDGES THE ENEMIES OF HIS PEOPLE

The book of Obadiah chapter 1 verse 2 says this;

“See, I will make you small among the nations; you will be utterly despised.

This verse, recorded by the prophet Obadiah from a vision that he had, describes the judgement that would befall the kingdom of Edom.

Edom, being a neighbour and rival of the nation of Israel, is the area of land given to Esau the brother of Jacob.

Edom's judgement was that he would be demoted and marginalized among the nations because of the indifference shown towards his brother Jacob during a time when Jacob was being attacked and ransacked by enemies.

This judgment is a type and shadow of the judgment that was brought against the sector of spiritual kingdoms that rose up against their brothers in pride and violent malevolence.

12

OUR FATHER WHO IS OUR REDEEMER

The book of Isaiah chapter 47 verses 4 - 5 says this;

Our Redeemer—the Lord Almighty is his name— is the Holy One of Israel.

 “Sit in silence, go into darkness, queen city of the Babylonians; no more will you be called queen of kingdoms.

The Prophet Isaiah, is prophecying the coming judgement on Babylon, establishes that the Lord Almighty, the One who has the standing to redeem the souls of men, is the holy one of Israel.

When Babylon is confronted by the Lord God Almighty, her devastation will be overt and final.

The result will be that the world system of Babylon will be muted and pushed out of relevance. 

From her admired position of pre-eminence in the world , she will be brought down and will no longer be the model kingdom to be followed and emulated by other kingdoms.

Such is the fate of the world's economic, political and cultural center of Babylon.

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OUR FATHER WHO BRINGS JUDGEMENT TO THE BABYLONIAN WORLD SYSTEM

The book of Isaiah chapter 13 verse 11 says this;

I will punish the world for its evil, the wicked for their sins.

I will put an end to the arrogance of the haughty and will humble the pride of the ruthless.

This verse, referring to the day of  judgement and specifically to the judgement on Babylon ( which is a global world system governing economics, politics and culture ), declares that the evil and sinful actions of those who participate in the Babylonian system will account for their deeds.

The main result of this day of reckoning will be that the pride and haughtiness of the culture of Babylon will be terminated.

Even though Babylon thought she was impregnable, a powerful military force will shshssatter her defences and all her wealth and power will be destroyed.

The aftermath of Babylon's judgment is captured in Isaiah chapter 13 verses 19 - 21;

She will never be inhabited or lived in through all generations; there no nomads will pitch their tents, there no shepherds will rest their flocks.

But desert creatures will lie there, jackals will fill her houses; there the owls will dwell, and there the wild goats will leap about.

Hyenas will inhabit her strongholds, jackals her luxurious palaces.

Her time is at hand, and her days will not be prolonged.

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OUR FATHER WHO FORBIDS FAVOURITISM

The book of James chapter 4 verse 1- 2 says this;

My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism.  Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old clothes also comes in.

This passage by the Apostle James declares axiomatically that believers are to be impartial in our acceptance of one another.

The example given is of two people arriving  at a gathering where one person is oppulently attired while the other is poorly dressed in dirty old clothes.

James instructs us not to show special favour to the rich man while belittling the poor man and in fact the Apostle categorizes such discrimination as sinful.

The Lord chose the poor to be rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom of God while the rich are in the category of those who litigiously oppress believers and blasphem the name of the Lord Jesus and as such, it is foolishness to be deferential towards the rich while being condescending towards the poor.

Amen.

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OUR FATHER WHOSE GLORY IS DECLARED BY THE HEAVENS

Psalm 19 verse 4 says this;

Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.

In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.

This verse speaks of the heavens and the denizens of the heavens and the activity that they carry out where knowledge continually pours forth from them wordlessly and even though this knowledge is transmitted in silence, the message nevertheless proceeds to the whole earth and to the ends of the world.

Those who can incline their ears to hear in the spirit are the ones who can intercept this  knowledge that is being broadcast continually from the realm of the spirit.

Part of this activity in heaven is the service of the sun that the Lord set a path for and it traverses from one end of heaven to the other end and as it moves, it provides heat to every place on the earth. As Psalm 119 verse 6 says;

The sun’s rising is from one end of the heavens, And its circuit to the other end of them; And there is nothing hidden from its heat.

This could be interpreted to be describing the journey that the sun takes around the milky way  galaxy and how it takes the whole earth along with it providing warmth to it as it goes.

Amen.

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OUR FATHER WHO WARNS AGAINST INCITING REBELLION AGAINST HIM

The book of Deutronomy chapter 13 verse 5 says this;

That prophet or dreamer must be put to death for inciting rebellion against the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt and redeemed you from the land of slavery. That prophet or dreamer tried to turn you from the way the Lord your God commanded you to follow. You must purge the evil from among you.

This verse, referencing prophets and dreamers who would try to persuade the people to turn away from God towards false gods, commands that such be put to death.

Even those among them who were  demonstrating signs and wonders were to be seen as false if their messages to the people were to follow gods other than the only true God who brought them out of bondage in Egypt.

The severity of such offences is illustrated when the Lord characterizes them as evil to be purged and prescribes that it be punished as a capital crime.

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OUR FATHER WHO ARISES TO JUDGE AND TO SAVE

Isaiah 33 verse 10 says this;

“Now will I arise,” says the Lord.

“Now will I be exalted; now will I be lifted up.

This verse conveys the singular event where the Lord ascends and is promoted and elevated above all else.

This verse is a textual confirmation of the Lord Jesus being God and the Father, a separate person, also being God. 

Here, the Lord Jesus, after declaring that He will arise by His own will then says that He will be exalted and lifted up. The allusion here is that another person will exalt Him and will lift Him up and the only one who would have the capacity to exalt and lift up the Lord Himself is of course God the Father.

Bless the Lord.

Amen

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OUR FATHER WHO PROVIDES A WAY TO GET AWAY FROM TEMPTATION

The book of James chapter 1 verse 14 says this;

but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. 

In speaking of the progression of wrongdoing, the Apostle James indicates in this verse that it is our personal evil desires that provide the arena for enticement where temptation plays out.

Any part of our lives that are under the control of the flesh rather than the Spirit are vulnerable to enticement because the fleshly nature always seeks ways to express its sinful affinities.

Our fleshly nature, being our original built-in condition, is deeply entrenched in us and so has home-court advantage when it comes to determining which desires to foster.

We are  "dragged away"  from our intention to pursue righteousness by our desires and we are then surrounded by the enticement to gratify our fleshly nature. The temptation then progresses to sin and sin progresses to death.

To avoid getting caught in this inescapable vortex, each believer must continuously pray in the Spirit to strengthen our inner man so that our  spirits can gain dominance over our fleshly nature and thus put to death the works of the flesh.

Regarding the process of acquiring strength in our spirit, Jude chapter 1 verse 20 says this;

But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit,

When built up and strengthened, our spirits can set the agenda of what kinds of thoughts and emotions are harboured in our lives and when evil desires are not given the chance to be conceived in our minds, temptations have no power over us and we can increasingly live free of the ravages of sin.

Amen.

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OUR FATHER WHO JUDGES HIS PEOPLE

The book of Isaiah chapter 3 verses 2 - 4, says this;

1) See now, the Lord, the Lord Almighty, 

2) is about to take from Jerusalem and Judah both supply and support: all supplies of food and all supplies of water, the hero and the warrior, the judge and the prophet, the diviner and the elder,

3) the captain of fifty and the man of rank, the counselor, skilled craftsman and clever enchanter.

4) “I will make mere youths their officials; children will rule over them.”

This passage details the nature of the affliction that will descend on Jerusalem and Judah when their day of judgement commences.

First, the provision of food and water will be disrupted and second, any kind of leadership  among the people will be removed.

Just when the population will need authority figures to coordinate the aquisition and distribution of vital supplies, every possible leader from judges to elders to captains will be removed which will leave the territory paralyzed and unresponsive.

In this extreme power vacuum, inexperienced  youths will rise to take charge of the affairs of the nation exacerbating the confusion and  misery.

A terrible day of judgement indeed.

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OUR FATHER WHO RESCUES US

From Psalm 13;

Day after day I have sorrow in my heart

My enemies gained a victory

Lord, My God, don't depart

Don't hide Your face from me

Look upon me Lord and give light to my eyes

For my foes rejoice when I fall

But I trust in Your unfailing love

You always hear my call

3

OUR FATHER WHO JUDGES THE EARTH

From Psalm 58;

When God Judges the earth

The righteous will be glad 

They will see their vindication 

And enter their reward

2

OUR FATHER WHO WILL HUMBLE THE ARROGANT

The book of Isaiah chapter 2 verses 11 - 13 says this;

The eyes of the arrogant will be humbled and human pride brought low; the Lord alone will be exalted in that day.

The Lord Almighty has a day in store for all the proud and lofty, for all that is exalted (and they will be humbled), for all the cedars of Lebanon, tall and lofty, and all the oaks of Bashan,

This passage, speaking of the day of the Lord when the Lord establishes His kingdom on earth, tells of how, in the face of the authority of the Lord, the arrogance of men will be brought down.

In every enterprise of mankind from the kingdoms and nations to global corporations where pride has lifted its head among men, they will be dashed  and humbled as men go into hiding in caves and holes to escape the presence and splendor of God.

Amen.

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OUR FATHER WHO JUDGES FALSE PROPHETS

The book of Ezekiel chapter 13 verse 11 says this;

therefore tell those who cover it with whitewash that it is going to fall. Rain will come in torrents, and I will send hailstones hurtling down, and violent winds will burst forth.

This verse is a word of warning to the false prophets of Israel who were falsely declaring that there was to be peace when there was no peace.

These prophets were like those who covered up their flimsy construction projects with whitewash so that it would appear that that there was substance to their  foundations while they were, in reality, just a fascade.

The judgement of the Lord would come in torrents of rain, hail stones and violent winds to bring the whole false premise down.

3

OUR FATHER WHO VISITS HIS PEOPLE

The book of Leviticus chapter 9 verse 13 says this;

Then say to the Israelites: ‘Take a male goat for a sin offering, a calf and a lamb—both a year old and without defect—for a burnt offering,

This verse records two instructions that Moses commanded Aaron the priest to convey.to the the Israelite.

The first was to take a male goat for a sin offering and the second was to take a calf and a lamb, both one year old and without defect for a burnt offering.

Continuing with verse 4, they were also to take  two additional animals for a fellowship sacrifice along with a grain offering mixed with olive oil.

and an ox and a ram for a fellowship offering to sacrifice before the Lord, together with a grain offering mixed with olive oil.

Thus they had five animals and a grain offering to prepare in order to be ready for the appearance of the Lord.

When the sacrifices were meticulously prepared and placed on the altar before the Lord, the glory of the Lord appeared before all the people and they shouted with joy and fell to the ground.

This pattern is a model for preparation that a believer can follow to make way for an encounter with the Lord.

We must attend to the atonement and cleansing of sin through the appropriation by faith of the blood shed by the Lord Jesus.

Then we must press further towards the purging of the influence of the flesh from our lives by giving no quarter to the flesh and burning away any parts  of our lives that are being dictated by the flesh.

Then, in all sincerity and earnest, we must set aside a fellowship offering comprised of the resources of time, worship, obedience and reverence needed to appropriately welcome the Lord as Abram, our progenitor in faith, did when the Lord visited him at the oaks of Mamre.

Amen.

2 

OUR FATHER WHOSE FIERCE JUDGEMENT MARKS THE END OF THE AGE

The book of Ezekiel chapter 7 verse 9 says this;

I will not look on you with pity;  I will not spare you. I will repay you for your conduct and for the detestable practices among you.

“‘Then you will know that it is I the Lord who strikes you.

This fearsome prophecy recorded by the prophet Ezekiel, speaks of the end of the age when judgement would be brought down upon the people for their evil conduct.

They had occupied their time accumulating gold and silver for themselves and used it to make jewelry of vanity and images for idolatry.

For these detestable practices, the fierce judgement of God struck the people and no pity was shown and there was no uncertainty that the calamities that repeatedly struck them were from the Lord.

Amen.

1

OUR FATHER WHO WILL PRESERVE THOSE WHO TAKE REFUGE IN HIM

The book of Isaiah chapter 57 verse 7 - 9 says this;

You have made your bed on a high and lofty hill; there you went up to offer your sacrifices.

Behind your doors and your doorposts you have put your pagan symbols.

Forsaking me, you uncovered your bed, you climbed into it and opened it wide; you made a pact with those whose beds you love, and you looked with lust on their naked bodies.

You went to Molek with olive oil and increased your perfumes. You sent your ambassadors far away; you descended to the very realm of the dead!

The prophet Isaiah, in this passage, catalogues the activities of darkness that the people were participating in rather than remaining true to their own God.

They set up altars on high places to engage  with spirits from the realm if darkness with sacrifices.

In their homes, they put symbols of their pagan practices in discreet places.

They abandoned their intimacy with God and pursued intimacy with evil spirits.

They presented olive oil and perfumes at the altar of Molek to gain passage into the underworld in order to traverse the realm of the dead.

They fled from the  light of God to plumb the depths of darkness.

The Lord, through His prophet, warned the people that these idols they had followed could not save them from destruction.

Only those who seek refuge in the Lord will be saved.

As Isaiah chapter 57 verse 13 from the Amplified version says;

“When you cry out [for help], let your [ridiculous] collection of idols save you. But the wind will carry them all away, A [mere] breath will take them. But he who takes refuge in Me will possess the land [Judea] And will inherit My holy mountain.”

Amen 

1 

OUR FATHER WHOSE WORDS OF WARNING ARE SERIOUS

The book of Ezekiel chapter 6 verse 10 says this;

And they will know that I am the Lord; I did not threaten in vain to bring this calamity on them.

God's people, having engaged in idolatrous practices like maintaining false altars and burning incense to idols, are warned in a prophecy recorded by the prophet Ezekiel, of a coming judgement that would destroy the idols they had fashioned for themselves. 

The judgement would also be a fatal calamity to the people leaving only a remnant of the people alive.

This surviving remnant, having escaped the disaster that had struck them, would then remember the Lord and they would understand how grievous their detestable actions had been towards their God.

This realization would show the remnant that their God was the only true and living God and that His warnings to them were not empty threats.

Amen.

OUR FATHER WHO WILL GATHER HIS OWN  PEOPLE

Isaiah 27 verse 13 says this; 

And in that day a great trumpet will sound. Those who were perishing in Assyria and those who were exiled in Egypt will come and worship the Lord on the holy mountain in Jerusalem.

The prophet Isaiah, speaking of the day of redemption of Israel, describes a great trumpet sounding. 

This event is also captured by the Apostle Paul in the book of 1st Corinthians chapter 15 verses 51 - 53;

Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality.

The day will come when all those of Israel and those grafted into Israel will be brought out of the world ( represented by Assyria and Egypt ) and they will worship the Lord in the eternal realm. 

Amen.

7

OUR FATHER WHO PROVIDED SALVATION FOR THE WHOLE WORLD

The book of Isaiah chapter 55 verse 4 in the Amplified Version says this;

“Listen carefully, I have appointed [b]him [David, representing the Messiah] to be a witness to the nations [regarding salvation],

A leader and commander to the peoples.

The whole of Chapter 55 is a record of the words of the Lord God exhorting Israel (and ultimately the human race) to accept the great salvation that He was going to provide for them.

This specific verse captures the Lord informing Israel that the coming Messiah was going to be in the line of David as a leader and commander of the people and that He was going to hold an office that was global in scope.

Amen.

3

OUR FATHER WHO GREATLY LOVES US

Psalm 117 says this;

Praise the Lord, all you nations; extol him, all you peoples.

For great is his love toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.

Praise the Lord.

This passage, which is the entirety of Psalm 117, calls on all people and all nations to praise the Lord and speak of His goodness and greatness.

There are two reasons given why we should all praise the Lord. 

The first is that He loves us greatly and the second is that His faithfulness towards us is evelasting.

Amen.

1

OUR FATHER WHO IS HOLY

Psalm 99 verse 3 says this;

Let them praise your great and awesome name— he is holy.

Predicating this verse is a declaration that the Lord Jesus has arisen to absolute rulership over every nation on earth.

So great is His power that all the nations tremble before Him and the whole earth shakes as He sits enthroned in authority.

It is in this context that the verse exhorts the nations to praise the great and awesome name of the Lord for He is Holy.

Amen.

6

OUR FATHER TO WHOM WE PRAY 

The book of Isaiah chapter 64 verse 9 says this;

Do not be angry beyond measure, Lord; do not remember our sins forever.

Oh, look on us, we pray, for we are all your people.

This verse speaks of God's people coming to the realization that even though they had seen the unmatched power of their God, they had drifted away from Him and sinned against His ways.

They were steeped in uncleaness and they no longer searched for their God.

In this state, surrounded by the devastation of their nation, they pleaded with God to relent from His anger and to forget their sins.

They pray to remind God that they are His people and as such, they have no other way to be saved.

As Isaiah verse 5 says;

You come to the help of those who gladly do right,  who remember your ways.

But when we continued to sin against them, you were angry. How then can we be saved?

Amen.

2

OUR FATHER WHO RESTORES HIS PEOPLE

From Psalm 53;

God looked down from heaven on all mankind

To see if there were any, any who understood

Everyone had turned to go their own way

There were none of us who did good

Oh, that redemption for Israel

Would come out of Zion! Out of Zion!

When God restores His people

Let Israel be glad in our salvation

7

 OUR FATHER WHO ESTABLISHES EQUITY

Psalm 99 verse 4 says this;

The King is mighty, he loves justice—you haed ca lotve established equity; in Jacob you have done what is just and right.

This verse establishes the main attributes of God that make the nations quake before Him and make Him worthy of honor and praise.

He is firstly a sovereign King who is exceedingly strong in power.

He also loves justice and undergirds equity by always doing what is just and right.

Amen.

5

OUR FATHER WHO VINDICATES HIS PEOPLE

Psalm 9 verse 4 says this;

For you have upheld my right and my cause, sitting enthroned as the righteous judge.

This verse, the words of the Lord's servant, gives the reason why he sings praises to the Most High God.

The servant was under attack from his enemies and stood accused in the courtroom of judgement.

In this court, the Lord who is a righteous Judge, ruled in favor of His servant and protected his right and his cause.

Those who had brought the accusations against the servant were beset with destruction and  ruin.

This prophecy in Psalm 9 speaks of the Lord Jesus facing trial in the spirit when He descended into hell but was vindicated by God the Father  and the spirit kingdoms that  had falsely persecuted Him were uprooted and blotted out as Psalm 9 verse 6 says;

Endless ruin has overtaken my enemies, you have uprooted their cities; even the memory of them has perished.

2

OUR FATHER WHO BLESSES THE FAITHFUL

The book of Isaiah chapter 65 verse 3;

a people who continually provoke me to my very face, offering sacrifices in gardens and burning incense on altars of brick;

This verse speaks of the people of God who offered sacrifices in gardens and burned incense on altars to false gods thus angering the Lord.

These rituals were part of the evil practices that the people were getting involved in which also included necromancy and occultic vigils.

It is these practices that alienated the people from their God and brought down judgement on themselves and caused their destinies to be truncated.

Conversely, those who remained faithfull had their lives blessed by the Lord and their futures secured by Him. 

Amen.

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