September 23 and 24 in Prophecy

On September 23, 1996 we were led to declare the 120th Jubilee from Adam. This declaration came 10 years late, of course, since the actual Jubilee in 1986 had already passed without anyone knowing about it or being led to declare it with authority. We were able to declare it in 1996 by the Hezekiah Factor, which I have explained in the past.

In the story of Hezekiah (2 Kings 20), God gave King Hezekiah an extension of 15 years of life. The sign of this extension was that the sun would go backward 10 steps on the sundial of Ahaz. 2 Kings 20:11 says,

¹¹ And Isaiah the prophet cried to the Lord, and He brought the shadow on the stairway[sundial] back ten steps by which it had gone down on the stairway of Ahaz.

This manipulation of time by the Lord of Time occurred ten years after Judah's 14th Jubilee dating from their Jordan crossing. This manipulation of time was necessary on account of Isaiah's prophecy in the previous chapter, wherein Isaiah prophesied that God would "turn back" the Assyrians. In that chapter, God gave a Jubilee sign (18:29-31).

Their Jubilee had already passed, however. So how could God grant them a Jubilee? By turning the clock back ten years to that year of Jubilee, God allowed the fulfillment of prophecy to occur ON TIME.

So also was it with us. In 1986 the Jubilee passed without notice. But God then had us declare the Jubilee ten years later, but He turned back the clock so that it was actually ON TIME.

That was done on the Day of Atonement, Sept. 23, 1996. Not only did God turn back the clock, but He also gave "Hezekiah" an extension of 15 years into the future. That extension ran out last Friday, Sept. 23, 2011.

Hence, we have now been able to see what this all means to us today. We are now able to see what God is doing in the overcoming remnant.

Isaiah's prophecy was given when the Assyrians were laying siege to Jerusalem in 2 Kings 19. King Hezekiah had no children at the time that his very life was being threatened. And then when became fatally ill in chapter 20, he prayed for mercy because he had no heirs to the throne. His lineage was to produce the Messiah later, so this was another reason he needed an heir. So God granted him an extension of 15 years of life, and during that time, he brought forth a son whom he named Manasseh.

Manasseh was born three years into this extension, we know, because he was 12 when Hezekiah died. 2 Kings 21:1 says,

¹ Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned fifty-five years in Jerusalem; and his mother's name was Hephzibah.

Hephzibah means "my delight is in her." When the King of Judah married Hephzibah, it prophesied of Christ and His Bride. There have been TWO BRIDES in history, even as Abraham had two wives, Hagar and Sarah. Paul equates them to the two Jerusalems and the two types of marriage covenant (Gal. 4:25, 26).

Though Hezekiah was the king in the earthly Jerusalem (i.e., "Hagar"), his marriage prophesied of a greater marriage yet to come under a New Covenant, by which the heavenly Jerusalem ("Sarah") would become the Bride. This heavenly Jerusalem would bring forth "Isaac," the inheritor of the promises.

Hephzibah's son, Manasseh, prophetically represents the "Isaac" company, the inheritors of the Kingdom. His name means "forgetfulness." The original Manasseh (the son of Joseph) was so named because God had caused him to forget all his troubles. So also was it with Manasseh, the son of Hezekiah and Hephzibah. Hezekiah had been overwhelmed with troubles, including the Assyrian siege and his own fatal illness.

The birth of Manasseh spoke of the beginning of the end of those troubles, for it was like the birth of the Manchild who was to reign in the years ahead. In fact, Isaiah's prophecy identified Manasseh with "the remnant" in 2 Kings 19:30 and 31,

³⁰ And the surviving remnant of the house of Judah shall again take root downward and bear fruit upward. ³¹ For out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and out of Mount Zion survivors. The zeal of the Lord of hosts shall perform this.

Recall that the number for the "remnant" is 318. Isaiah had a son of his own named Shear-jashub, which means "the remnant will return." This "remnant" theme is one of the most important in the entire prophecy of Isaiah. It spoke not only of a future remnant that would return from the future Babylonian captivity, but more importantly, it spoke of the overcoming "remnant of grace" (Rom. 11:5).

From the perspective of timing, we can begin with Hezekiah's 15-year extension from 1996-2011. In that context, "Manasseh" was born in 1999 and comes to the throne at the death of Hezekiah. Manasseh's birth coincided with Jesus' 2000th birthday on the night of Sept. 11-12, 1999 (feast of Trumpets).

"Manasseh" is now 12 years old. Hezekiah's 15 years ran out on Sept. 23, 2011. From the view of prophecy, we can say that Hezekiah died on Sept. 23. The next day, Sept. 24, was the first day in the reign of Manasseh, the overcoming remnant.

We are now in a new day, a new prophetic time.

Manasseh was born on Jesus' 2000th birthday. Therefore, in prophetic terminology, both Jesus and Manasseh are now 12 years old. Jesus is the Head, and the remnant is the Body. They are one, prophetically speaking. Thus we find another prophecy to be of particular interest to us today. It is found in Luke 2:42-49. Verse 42 says that Jesus was 12 years old. He became separated from his parents, and three days later they found Him in the temple speaking with the scholars.

Mary had been worried sick, of course:

⁴⁸ Son, why have you treated us this way? Behold, Your father and I have been anxiously looking for you. ⁴⁹ And He said to them, "Why is it that you were looking for Me? Did you not know that I had to be in My Father's house?" (NASB)

The KJV reads, "Wist ye not that I must be about My Father's business?"

This is the current revelation for us in the time ahead. The remnant must be about their Father's business. Like Manasseh, we have come to the throne and must begin the work of reigning with Christ.

For me personally (and others), it was marked by a local conference that began Friday evening right after the death of Hezekiah. On Sunday afternoon, as we ate lunch at a restaurant, a strange prophetess that I had never seen before came to our table and began to prophesy to everyone at the table. Though she had the appearance of being mentally handicapped, she flowed by the Spirit with great ease. Though her speech was sometimes difficult to understand, her prophecy was very clear and precise.

In essence, she prophesied things to me of the coming year that would begin in three months--that is, by the first of January 2012. She said a new ministry would begin with a 6-month "vacation." In my view, it probably speaks of a 6-month time of preparation, fasting, prayer, and rebuilding my health and energy level to do the work that lies ahead.

At one point, this prophetess pointed to me and said "INCREASE." I knew instantly that this was a reminder of a prophetic word given to me by another prophet in October of 1986. The "increase, tremendous increase" that he saw was so overwhelming that he could hardly articulate it. He finally just quoted Hab. 1:5,

⁵ Look among the nations! Observe! Be astonished! Wonder! Because I am doing something in your days--you would not believe if you were told!

It will be interesting to see what happens in the months ahead. But in the meantime, it is clear that we have crossed over into a new era.