And upon all the cedars of Lebanon, that are high and lifted up, and upon all the oaks of Bashan,
The day of the Lord of hosts shall be upon all the high and lifted-up cedars of Lebanon and upon all the oaks of Bashan to bring them low, as part of judgment upon everyone and everything lofty and lifted up, including tall trees and high mountains and hills. The cedars and oaks picture what is proud and lofty and what is high and exalted before human eyes. The setting is the humbling of human loftiness and haughtiness, when lofty looks are humbled and bowed down and the Lord alone is exalted, when He arises to shake terribly the earth. Then men shall enter into the rock and hide in holes and caves for fear of the Lord and for the glory of His majesty, idols shall be utterly abolished as men throw away their idols of silver and gold to the moles and bats, and man whose breath is in his nostrils is not to be trusted.
The prophecy means that human pride will soon be brought low because man is weak and frail and his arm is puny. It applies to the humbling of all people under God's judgments, when kings and nobles and rich and poor alike shall bow, when God's withering plagues fall upon them. What the verse outlines is God's clear outline of what is coming upon the world in the great day of the Lord at hand, and it will certainly come to pass. It belongs to the increasing warfare between good and evil preparing for the last great battle, with increasing war and bloodshed and confusion of nations seeking to outdo one another for possession.
The verse is to be read and understood now and warned about with divine certainty before its fulfillment, so transgressors may know how to avoid the judgments. It is addressed as warning to those who have had great light yet have chosen unbelief, and it is given not to destroy God's people but so that all who walk in obedience with uncorrupted loyalty, whom God formed to show forth His praises, may be a separate and holy people lifting up the banner to be borne in these last days. Therefore the Israel of God must arise, renew strength in God, and keep covenant with Him by sacrificing for God and denying self for the truth's sake, instead of holding covetousness, selfishness, love of money, love of the world, and hoarded means, lest they perish with the world.
The day of the Lord of hosts shall be upon all the high and lifted-up cedars of Lebanon and upon all the oaks of Bashan to bring them low, as part of judgment upon everyone and everything lofty and lifted up, including tall trees and high mountains and hills. The cedars and oaks picture what is proud and lofty and what is high and exalted before human eyes. The setting is the humbling of human loftiness and haughtiness, when lofty looks are humbled and bowed down and the Lord alone is exalted, when He arises to shake terribly the earth. Then men shall enter into the rock and hide in holes and caves for fear of the Lord and for the glory of His majesty, idols shall be utterly abolished as men throw away their idols of silver and gold to the moles and bats, and man whose breath is in his nostrils is not to be trusted.
The prophecy means that human pride will soon be brought low because man is weak and frail and his arm is puny. It applies to the humbling of all people under God's judgments, when kings and nobles and rich and poor alike shall bow, when God's withering plagues fall upon them. What the verse outlines is God's clear outline of what is coming upon the world in the great day of the Lord at hand, and it will certainly come to pass. It belongs to the increasing warfare between good and evil preparing for the last great battle, with increasing war and bloodshed and confusion of nations seeking to outdo one another for possession.
The verse is to be read and understood now and warned about with divine certainty before its fulfillment, so transgressors may know how to avoid the judgments. It is addressed as warning to those who have had great light yet have chosen unbelief, and it is given not to destroy God's people but so that all who walk in obedience with uncorrupted loyalty, whom God formed to show forth His praises, may be a separate and holy people lifting up the banner to be borne in these last days. Therefore the Israel of God must arise, renew strength in God, and keep covenant with Him by sacrificing for God and denying self for the truth's sake, instead of holding covetousness, selfishness, love of money, love of the world, and hoarded means, lest they perish with the world.