The Word of God announces the coming changing of the guards, where those who watched over the world, who were in charge of tending the vineyard, will be replaced as they and their leader were found to be unfair rulers leading the souls astray.
Revelation 12:9-10 – And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.
Before we delve into the transition from the old guard to the new, let’s recap the biblical events that led up to God’s transfer of governance over the Nations of the world and why the fallen angels were given this governance.
In the days of Noah, God’s People consisted of those people praying to the one living God who created all life and all souls – the others, the unbelievers, were worshipping the lesser gods or fallen angels (i.e.: fallen sons of God). They were worshipping the creation and sometimes their own creations and not the Creator. God sent the flood following Genesis 6 when these fallen sons of God came down to earth to multiply with women giving rise to the Nephilim (a race of hybrid beings, half “fallen angel-half men). The Nephilim were bent on corrupting and destroying mankind both spiritually and physically. For this reason, God sent the flood. After the flood however, it seemed that some remained on earth – perhaps they had sought refuge underground or the fallen angels protected them.
Genesis 6:1-8 – When human beings began to increase in number on the earth and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that the daughters of humans were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose. Then the Lord said, “My Spirit will not contend with humans forever, for they are mortal; their days will be a hundred and twenty years.”
The Nephilim were on the earth in those days—and also afterward—when the sons of God went to the daughters of humans and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown.
The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. The Lord regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled. So the Lord said, “I will wipe from the face of the earth the human race I have created—and with them the animals, the birds and the creatures that move along the ground—for I regret that I have made them.” But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.
After the flood, in Genesis 10, God divides the Genealogy of Noah into 70 Nations (Table of Nations) and asks that they spread out over the face of the earth and multiply. However, in Genesis 11, the Tower of Babel passage, we see that these Nations also fell under the influence of the lesser gods and that under Nimrod’s leadership, they attempt to exalt themselves and become “gods” in order – to make a name for themselves and build a tower leading to the Heavens, without the help of God (i.e.: Rebellion against God).
In the scriptures, the new name is a gift from God for those who obtain their new angelic garment (read blog From NAOS to Oikētērion – THE ANGELIC GARMENT) by overcoming the world in faith, courage and perseverance, not something one can give oneself in pride. Obviously, the new garment is not something you can create for yourself either (through DNA modifications or anything else). Further, building a tower to the Heavens is equivalent to forcing your way into Heaven and entering through the back door without the proper wedding garment (see Matthew 22:11):
Genesis 11:4 – Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered over the face of the whole earth.”
Revelation 2:17 – Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give that person a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to the one who receives it.
Matthew 22:11-14 “But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. 12 He asked, ‘How did you get in here without wedding clothes, friend?’ The man was speechless.
“Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ “For many are invited, but few are chosen.”
God then disperses the Nations over the face of the earth and confuses their language. God does not send another flood as per His covenant with Noah and his descendants, (Humanity), in Genesis 9 but He maintains His rulership over the Nation that worships Him as God, the Nation of Jacob, and transfers the rulership over the other Nations to the lesser gods they worship, (the fallen angels). The transfer of rulership over the Nations to the lesser gods is documented under Deuteronomy 32:8 where Moses reminds the Nation of Jacob what happened in Genesis 11.
Deuteronomy 32:8-9 – Remember the days of old; consider the generations long past.
Ask your father and he will tell you, your elders, and they will explain to you.
When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when he divided all mankind,
he set up boundaries for the peoples according to the number of the sons of Israel(*) (read here sons of God, also Job 2:1).
For the Lord’s portion is his people, Jacob his allotted inheritance.
The reference to the Nations’ inheritance here is meant to underline that God gave the Nations what they asked for and what they deserved essentially, which was to let them experience for themselves the nature of those they were worshipping in order to realize that they were not really looking out for their best interest. Here again we see God allowing souls to learn from the consequences of their own choices.
Recommended reading on these subjects: Dr. Michael Heiser’s work. You can find a good summary of his work on this webpage from Louis Markos.
The Evaluation of the Rulers
Between Deuteronomy 32:8 and the arrival of Christ, God examines the rulership of the rebellious Sons of God and their earthly counterparts over the Nations and promises that there will be a changing of the guard.
Psalm 82 – “God presides in the great assembly; he renders judgment among the “gods”:
“How long will you defend the unjust and show partiality to the wicked?
Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed.
Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.“The ‘gods’ know nothing, they understand nothing. They walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken.
“I said, ‘You are “gods”; you are all sons of the Most High.’
But you will die like mere mortals; you will fall like every other ruler.”Rise up, O God, judge the earth, for all the nations are your inheritance.“
Matthew 21:33-46 The Parable of the Tenants
“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. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and moved to another place. When the harvest time approached, he sent his servants to the tenants to collect his fruit.
“The tenants seized his servants; they beat one, killed another, and stoned a third. Then he sent other servants to them, more than the first time, and the tenants treated them the same way. Last of all, he sent his son to them. ‘They will respect my son,’ he said.
“But when the tenants saw the son, they said to each other, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him and take his inheritance.’ So they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.
“Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?”
“He will bring those wretches to a wretched end,” they replied, “and he will rent the vineyard to other tenants, who will give him his share of the crop at harvest time.”
Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures:
“‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?
“Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit. Anyone who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; anyone on whom it falls will be crushed.”
The “gods” and tenants in these passages are not only the high priests, kings, and judges who were supposed to rule fairly on earth, but also their heavenly rulers, the rebellious sons of God working through their earthly counterparts.
Many people interpret the use of the word “gods” in Psalm 82 to refer to earthly rulers who are to act justly as the emissaries for God, and this is true. On the other hand, since these were under the rulership of the rebellious angels assigned to their respective Nation, there would at the very least be a shared responsibility. Further, the following verse:
“But ye shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes.”
seems to refer to beings who are not men however if the verse only refers to earthly rulers as “gods” due to their earthly divine mandates, why mention “that they will die like men”? Weren’t the earthly rulers subject to death in biblical times? And the warning that they would fall like “one of the princes, (a term used in the Book of Daniel to speak of the fallen angels) – Might it be referring to the fall of Lucifer as a warning to all the angels ruling over the Nations?
As for the Parable of the Tenants, this verse provides some indication that the Tenants may have also been those “gods” temporarily in charge of ruling over the Nations: “But when the tenants saw the son, they said to each other, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him and take his inheritance.’ So they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.” Considering that the inheritance of Christ is His Bride, the perfected souls, the Tenants would be all of those involved in keeping all souls captive either through sin or ignorance with a view to preventing them from reaching the Kingdom of God.
The beginning of the changing of the guard
When Jesus came to earth, He came for the Nation of Jacob first because it was the Nation of believers over which God had kept His rulership after the events of Genesis 11 as it was supposed to be the one to generate the “Firstfruits of the harvest” that is, the first good fruits harvested from the vineyard after Jesus, who was the first, He who showed us the way out of the World. However, Jesus also mentions that when He returns later for the Remnant of Jacob, He will come for the believers of the other Nations as well. “For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Romans 10:13).
Following the resurrection of Jesus, the Holy Spirit was poured out onto the Believers in Jesus at Pentecost (Acts 2). These Believers were from God’s People the Firstfruits to be and from the Nations as well (see Caleb). This opened the way to a reclamation by Jesus Christ of the Nations controlled by the “lesser-gods” which will lead to the Millennium Reign of Jesus. From that moment on, the gospel was carried to all those lands ruled by the rebellious sons of God.
The new earthly King and His judges for the Millennium Reign
1 Corinthians 6:3 – “Don’t you realize that we will judge angels?
Revelation 20 – And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain. He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. He threw him into the Abyss, and locked and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time.
I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
(The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection.
Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.
During this 1000-year reign, Christ will rule and demonstrate how the Vineyard should have been tended. During this period, those who reign with Christ will witness His leadership and learn from Him and from the judges that He appointed before they were translated to the new world, the New Jerusalem.
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