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"The Great Conflict Of The Ages"
We see the first great attempt in (Genesis 6:1
And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them,), when Satan strive to corrupt the whole of mankind. He succeeded so far, that only one family was uncontaminated. That is the meaning of the “perfect in his generation” in (Genesis 6:9 These are the generations of Noah: Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God.). Perfect in the Hebrew is (tahmim), which means, without blemish, especially as to pure descent, or blood (Exodus 12:5 Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats: Exodus 29:1 And this is the thing that thou shalt do unto them to hallow them, to minister unto me in the priest’s office: Take one young bullock, and two rams without blemish,). It refers to genital perfection. So vast was the corruption from the irruption of evil angels (2 Peter 2:4-7 For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly; And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly; And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: Jude 1:6-8 And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day. Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire. Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities.It is written in the Book of (Enoch 15:1-10 The addressing me, He spoke and said: Hear, neither be afraid, O Enoch, O righteous man, and scribe of righteousness: approach hither, and hear my voice. Go, say to the Watchers of heaven, who have sent thee to pray for them: You ought to pray for men, and not men for you. Wherefore have you forsaken the lofty and holy heaven, which endures for ever, and have lain with women: have defiled yourselves with the daughters of men: have taken to yourselves wives: have acted like the sons of the earth, and have begotten giants ? You being spiritual, holy, and living a life which is eternal, have polluted yourselves with women: have begotten in carnal blood: have lusted in the blood of men: and have done as those who are flesh blood do. These however die and perish. Therefore have I given to them wives, that they might cohabit with them: that sons might be born to them, and that this might be transacted upon earth. But you from beginning were made spiritual, living a life which is eternal, and not subject to death in all the generations of the world. Therefore I made not wives for you, because being spiritual, your dwelling is in heaven. Now the giants, who have been born of flesh and of spirit, shall call upon earth evil spirits, and on earth shall be their habitation. Evil spirits shall proceed from their flesh, because they were created from above: from the holy Watchers was their beginning and primary foundation. Evil spirits shall be upon earth, and the spirits of the wicked shall they be called. The habitation of the spirits of heaven shall be in heaven: but upon earth shall be the habitation of terrestrial spirits, who are born in earth. The spirit of the giants shall be like clouds, which shall oppress, corrupt, fall, contend, and bruise upon earth. They shall cause lamentation. No food shall they eat: and they shall be thirsty: they shall be concealed, and those spirits shall rise up against the sons of men, and against women: for they come forth from them during the days of slaughter and destruction.
Enoch 18:16 The stars which roll over fire are those which transgressed the commandment of God before their time arrived: for they came not in their proper season. Therefore was He offended with them, and bound them, until the period of the consummation of their crime in the secret year.
The whole race had to be destroyed. Noah and his three sons were alone pure from the awful defilement.
Nothing by Divine interposition saved the race and preserved mankind from a total overthrow. In Shem, the line of “the seed of the woman” was continued, and the promise of Eden preserved (Genesis 3:15
And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.).The second great attempt was made in (Exodus the 1st chapter), to destroy the male children of Israel at their birth. Pharaoh`s object was to prevent the increase of the people, so that they might not get up out of Egypt. Satan`s object was to destroy the male line altogether, and thus make the birth of “the seed of the woman’ impossible.
Again Divine interposition defeated Satan`s plans. It was a spiritual conflict in which Heaven and Hell were taking part all along. It is the same conflict which we see here in (Revelation the 12th chapter). But it is written, in (Job 5:13
He taketh the wise in their own craftiness: and the counsel of the froward is carried headlong.), and what Pharaoh had said with Egypt`s “wisdom” (Exodus 1:10 Come on, let us deal wisely with them; lest they multiply, and it come to pass, that, when there falleth out any war, they join also unto our enemies, and fight against us, and so get them up out of the land.), was frustrated by a baby`s tear (Exodus 2:6 And when she had opened it, she saw the child: and, behold, the babe wept. And she had compassion on him, and said, This is one of the Hebrews’ children.): for when Pharaoh`s daughter opened the ark of bulrushes, “she saw the child, and behold the baby wept. And she had compassion on him.” Thus, Pharaoh`s wisdom was made to end in having to board, lodge, bring up, and educate the very man who accomplished the very object Pharaoh had striven to prevent, and God overthrew his armies in the Red Sea.We see another very special and determined attempt of Satan to break up the Royal Line, by which the seed of the women was to come (2 Chronicles the 21st and 22nd chapter).
On the death of Jehoshaphat, his son Jehoram, made a beginning to serve his own purpose, of course. He “slew all his brethren with the sword” (2 Chronicles 21:4
Now when Jehoram was risen up to the kingdom of his father, he strengthened himself, and slew all his brethren with the sword, and divers also of the princes of Israel.). So the Royal Line was reduced to himself, one life.But he had children: and of these, we read that the Arabians came up against Judah, and slew all his sons, “so that there was never a son left him, save Ahaziah, the youngest of his sons” in (2 Chronicles 21:17
And they came up into Judah, and brake into it, and carried away all the substance that was found in the king’s house, and his sons also, and his wives; so that there was never a son left him, save Jehoahaz, the youngest of his sons.). Mark the emphasis put by the Holy Spirit on this solemn fact. That they were slain, is clear from (2 Chronicles 22:1 And the inhabitants of Jerusalem made Ahaziah his youngest son king in his stead: for the band of men that came with the Arabians to the camp had slain all the eldest. So Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah reigned.).Ahaziah was then the only lineal descendant of the Royal Line of the seed of the woman, through David, Abraham, and Shem. But Ahaziah had children. These, in their turn, were slain by Athaliah. She evidently left them all for dead, for it says in (2 Chronicles 22:10
But when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed royal of the house of Judah.), she “destroyed all the seed royal of the house of Judah.” That is what she meant to do, and would have done had not God again Divinely interposed and rescued the infant “from among the king`s sons that were slain” (2 Chronicles 22:11 But Jehoshabeath, the daughter of the king, took Joash the son of Ahaziah, and stole him from among the king’s sons that were slain, and put him and his nurse in a bedchamber. So Jehoshabeath, the daughter of king Jehoram, the wife of Jehoiada the priest, (for she was the sister of Ahaziah,) hid him from Athaliah, so that she slew him not.). For six years all the hopes of God`s people rested on that one life. All the faithfulness of God depended on the life of that one babe. While Jehosheba, the wife of the high priest, was hidden, with the child, in one of the chambers of the House of God, her husband, Jehoiada, was going about among the people testifying and saying, “Behold, the king`s son shall reign, as the Lord hath said, of the sons of David.” That was the burden of the testimony, the faithfulness of God. And nothing but the Divine interposition frustrated the designs of Satan, and the plans of Athaliah from succeeding in cutting of the Line by which the seed of the woman was eventually to come into the world.In the book of Esther we see another attempt on the part of Satan to destroy the whole nation: and not merely the males, or the seed royal. He used Haman`s pride as the secondary cause. But again a small thing was used to frustrate the design of “the Jews` enemy.” A sleepless night: that was all: but it was enough (Esther 6:1
On that night could not the king sleep, and he commanded to bring the book of records of the chronicles; and they were read before the king.). And again Satan was defeated.But he still “stood before the woman ready to devour her child as soon as it should be born.” And at length the hour came when the seed of the woman entered into the world.
Herod was used this time: and having ascertained the place Bethlehem from the Scribes (Matthew 2:4
And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born.), and the time when the star appeared from the wise men (Matthew 2:7 Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, inquired of them diligently what time the star appeared.), he slew all the babes in Bethlehem under two years of age, and thought he had devoured the seed of the woman. But again Heaven interfered and defeated his plan.The suggestion of Satan that Christ should throw Himself down from the pinnacle of the Temple (Matthew 4:6
And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.): the attempt of the people of Nazareth to cast Him down from the brow of the hill (Luke 4:29 And rose up, and thrust him out of the city, and led him unto the brow of the hill whereon their city was built, that they might cast him down headlong.): the two storms on the Lake (Matthew 8:24 And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep.), and (Mark 4:37 And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full.): (Luke 8:23 But as they sailed he fell asleep: and there came down a storm of wind on the lake; and they were filled with water, and were in jeopardy.), were all so many attempts of Satan to devour this man child. And when he saw Him on the cross, and laid in the sepulchre, and the stone sealed, and the watch set, he thought he had his prey within grasp. But again Heaven interfered. “God raised Him from the Dead,” and the child was “caught up to God and His throne” (Revelation 3:21 To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.). But we are anticipating._____________________________________________________________________________________________-