END OF THE AGE
BY
EVAN ANSOT
INTRODUCTION
In the life of Jesus, he spoke of many revelations and prophecies. He prophesied about his second coming, and the signs that would precede that event. Some of his prophecies he spoke to the general masses, while others he shared with just a chosen, select few.
In my second book, “Thy Kingdom Come,” I wrote about the prophecy Jesus gave to the Apostle John which is contained in the Book of Revelations. This prophecy was given after Jesus had passed on from his physical life, and entered into the spirit. His mission accomplished, all that was left was to give to his last disciple his final prophecy. The entire message was filled with all manners of symbolism. The four horsemen, the two beasts, the woman and the dragon, the trumpets, the bowls, etc.
For that is how the spirit speaks to all of us, through symbolism. Dreams and visions which are subject to various interpretations.
Yet before taking on the spirit, Jesus was alive and well in the flesh for over 33 years. And because Jesus of Nazareth was in the flesh, he could speak in plain language. Jesus did speak to his closest disciples about the end of that age, and the one that would follow thereafter. And unlike his prophecy contained in the book of revelations, this time he spoke in common language for all to understand. This prophecy is known as “The Olivet Discourse,” because it was given to his disciples on the Mount of Olives, which overlook Jerusalem.
The Olivet Discourse is contained in two of the four gospels in scripture, the Gospel of Matthew, and the Gospel of Luke. This book will focus on the prophecy recorded in the Gospel of Matthew.
The prophecy was given during the last week of Jesus’ life. A week that will be talked about unto the end of time. Or at least, until the end of this age. I will begin this commentary as Jesus and his disciples enter Jerusalem for that fateful final week of Jesus’ life, which changed all of human history.
Jesus instructs his followers to “Keep watch,” of the signs of the ending of our present age. This book will help you do just that.
I will use the King James Version of the Bible for my quotes of scripture, beginning with the 21st chapter of Matthew, and continuing on to the end of that beloved Gospel. Verses of scripture shall be in italics, with the words of Jesus in bold italics.
Let’s take a journey through the final week of Jesus’ life on Earth. From his triumphal entry into Jerusalem, to his crucifixion. It was the end of the age for ancient Israel, and the beginning of the age of the Church. An age which will last 2,000 years and be concluded at the second coming. An appearance which will lead into the 1,000 year Golden Age. When the lion shall lie down with the lamb.
Matthew 21
And when they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, and were come to Bethpage, unto the Mount of Olives, then sent Jesus two disciples, Saying unto them, Go into the village over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me. And if any man say ought unto you, ye shall say, The Lord hath need of them; and straightway he will send them. Matthew 21: 1-3.
Bethpage is known as the “house of figs,” located on the eastern slope of the Mount of Olives. It is located in between Bethany and Jerusalem. It is in Bethany that Jesus raised his friend Lazarus from the dead. And where he will spend his nights relaxing, after his long, hazardous days in Jerusalem.
By the time he reached Jerusalem, It had been an exhausting three and half years for Jesus. His mission began as he turned thirty years of age. It was agreed to beforehand between himself and the Father that he would not be allowed to preach until his thirtieth birthday. And then once reached, he would be baptized by John the Baptist in the river Jordan, and begin his mission that would forever change the world. He knew his mission all along, yet he had to tarry until he was thirty. It was the will of the Father, and the Son would never depart from his Father’s will.
Jesus was the product of an agreement begun by the prophet Abraham and the Father, that all the world shall be blessed through Abraham’s seed. A plan of redemption laid down long before the foundation of this world, even long before the Big Bang that scientists theorize over. That the Father, the Creator of all worlds, would become flesh, and therefore save all of humanity, which in turn would save all of creation. Yet the Father had to choose from whom he would become flesh. After a test of trials, he chose Abraham’s line to be from whom he would appear.
Once baptized by John, who in Heaven is known as the Soul Elijah, Jesus would then proceed to fulfill that which he was sent here to do.
Two Apostles joined him immediately upon his baptism, Philip, and Andrew. They did so because John instructed both to now follow Jesus rather than himself. The Baptist knew that once he had baptized his cousin Jesus, his mission was fulfilled. Therefore he sent his two closest disciples away. Two friends of his who had been with the Baptist for over three years. He told them through bitter tears that his time was over, and the long awaited for Messiah would now be their teacher. That he had done all he could to prepare them for their mission with the Lord. Despite many protests, Philip and Andrew did as was commanded, and followed their new teacher.
From the river Jordan, Jesus, and his two newly found disciples, Philip and Andrew, travelled to Bethsaida, and Capernaum.
At these two cities, Philip and Andrew would lead Jesus to the next four Apostles. Andrew recruited his brother Simon, whom Jesus had nicknamed Peter, and Philip recruited his best friend Bartholomew. Besides Peter and Bartholomew, their fishing partners, the brothers James and John, were also recruited for this mission.
After staying in these two cities for a few months preaching, Jesus and his six disciples left for Cana. The reason they travelled to Cana was that Jesus was to be married to the one whom would be known as Mary Magdalene. This is very controversial, and not many people believe this, but nevertheless, it did happen. Jesus was a married man, and by the time of his death, he had one child (Joseph), and another on the way (Judah). While in Cana, the group recruited the Apostles Matthew, and Thomas.
From Cana, Jesus and his now eight disciples went onward to Nazareth to pick up three more followers. Jesus’ half-brothers James (the Just), Simon (the Zealot), and Jude. Later on after Nazareth, Judas Iscariot would join the list to complete the Apostles at twelve. All twelve of them selected by the Father beforehand. Eleven of them to be followers, and the final disciple, Judas Iscariot to betray Jesus, which allowed prophecy to be fulfilled.
Now that Jesus had his full complement of Apostles, he could then truly begin his mission. A mission that will be talked about long after Heaven and Earth have passed away. A mission planned from the mind of the Father, at the foundation of the Universe.
Three years and many miracles later, they would finally head to Jerusalem to fulfill the mission Jesus had agreed to before he became flesh. To become the sacrificial lamb sent forth as God, from God, to redeem all of mankind. Not just for this planet, but for the entire universe.
The sacrifice would have to occur during the Passover week, as was the custom of the Jews. There could be no other time of the year for it, it would have to occur during the holiest week on the calendar. Therefore they arrived on a Sunday, March 29th, 33 AD. Once they had come within sight of Jerusalem, Jesus sent Philip and Bartholomew to go retrieve an ass and a colt so that prophecy be fulfilled.
It was Philip, who unlike what many others think, was the true treasurer of the group. He was the disciple in charge of provisions. He took his sidekick, and best friend Bartholomew with him.
It was evidence of the supernatural that Jesus would know what the owner of the ass and the colt would say. That the owner would ask the two apostles what they were doing. The answer to give the owner was that “the Lord hath need of them.” With that answer, it was obvious that the owner was another disciple of Jesus. That once Philip asked for the ass and the colt on behalf of Jesus, the owner would have no objections whatsoever. Permission was therefore granted.
It wasn’t prearranged, it was just that Jesus knew beforehand what the owner would say.
All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass. And the disciples went, and did as Jesus commanded them, And brought the ass, and the colt, and put on them their clothes, and they set him thereon. Matthew 21:4-7.
The prophet spoken of here is none other than Zechariah. In the ninth verse of the ninth chapter Zechariah wrote, “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.”
When Philip and Bartholomew returned with the animals, the disciples had no idea which of the two that Jesus was to ride on, the mother or the colt? So they decided to dress up both animals with their outer garments.
Jesus selected the colt because no man had ever ridden him. He chose an animal which had a virgin back. Despite the fact that the colt had never been ridden, nor broken, it offered up no resistance to Jesus. The reason for this is because he had complete and total dominion over all the animals of the Earth. He instructed the colt, and it obeyed his every word. This is a quality of Jesus that is not spoken of very much, that he could communicate with animals. Another supernatural quality of our Lord. The animal kingdom obeys his every word, as did this chosen colt.
One thing to clarify before we get too deep into this manuscript, is that there is written in the scriptures of two distinctive qualities of the Messiah. A humbled, suffering Messiah, and a conquering one. One that would suffer for our sins, and another that would rule the nations. The Messiah that was represented by Jesus is the humble, suffering Messiah. One that would arrive to Jerusalem on a donkey, and be sacrificed as the Lamb of God during the Passover week. Not the conquering Messiah that would arrive on a white horse, destroying God’s enemies, such as the one spoken of in the Book of Revelations.
This is the very reason the Jews missed their visitation. At the time of Jesus’ arrival, they were patiently waiting for the conquering Messiah. The anointed one who would throw off the yoke of the Roman Army.
The Jews were a conquered people ever since Pompeii put Jerusalem under siege in 63 BC. His conquest spelled the end of Jewish independence, and Judea became a Roman province. It had been 93 years since then, and the people of Judea had about enough of Roman authority. They thirsted greatly for their chosen savior, their prophesied Messiah.
All Jerusalem waited for their prophesied Son of God to liberate them from their Roman masters. The time they felt, was at hand. Yet it was a different Messiah that visited them. One who would take on their sins, and put them on his back.
And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, and strawed them in the way. Matthew 21:8.
As Jesus was approaching the capital city of Jerusalem, thousands of people were there to greet him. A massive crowd, “great multitude” awaiting the arrival of the chosen one. Yet a peculiar thing was also happening behind him. There were also thousands of people who had followed him from Bethany. This was due to the last, and perhaps greatest miracle Jesus had performed. He brought Lazarus back to life just days beforehand. In doing so, word had spread of this great miracle through the countryside like wildfire. As you can imagine it would.
This was all done by design, planned before Jesus even took on flesh.
The Father wanted to make sure that his Son would be greeted by a great multitude, therefore he saved his greatest miracle for last. For how could anyone but the Messiah bring someone back from the dead? A lot of people were asking these questions, and wanting answers. “Who but the Son of God could bring someone back from the dead?” Especially one who had expired for four days, such as Lazarus had. This created a great sensation within all of Judea. The crowd figured that the only miracle left for Jesus to do was to throw out the Romans, and proclaim himself “King of the Jews.” Thousands gathered to witness this event that many Israelites down through history had longed to see.
In raising Lazarus from the dead, Jesus had shown the world his awesome supernatural powers that lie within him. The power over life and death. Such a miracle couldn’t be remembered by any of the Israelites. Certainly, this must be the Messiah, they reckoned. Who but the Son of God could perform this miracle?
All along the roads, people were throwing their garments, along with branches of palm trees on the road, celebrating the coming of the King of the Jews. They literally paved the road with branches. It must have been a spectacle of the ages to be able to witness this grand event.
And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest. Matthew 21:9.
The bible loves using the word, “multitude.” It’s used 243 times in scripture. Merriam-Webster dictionary defines multitude as, “the state of being many. A host, a great number.” Therefore a “great number” of people went out of the city to meet him. As well as the “great number” of people who were already following him. With that being said, my guess would be that there were tens of thousands of Jews all crying out, “Hosanna to the son of David: Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”
Apparently Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem created quite a commotion among the populace of the people, which of course was multiplied due to it being Passover week. A week where for the most part, the entire population of Israel would gather at Jerusalem to celebrate the oldest holiday of the Jews. A time of celebration, when the Lord “passed over” the Hebrews, and struck down the first born of every Egyptian roughly 1400 years prior. The most celebrated holiday of the year for the nation of Israel.
The Passover is the oldest religious holiday in the world, still celebrated to this day.
A key in this verse is “Son of David.” This is paramount to the crowd identifying Jesus as the long awaited Messiah. Allow me to explain why.
The Son of David prophecy was written in the second book of the prophet Samuel. The seventh chapter, and the verses 12 and 13, are as follows;
“And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build an house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.”
This prophecy was directed toward King David. That someone from his line would rule forever. So when the crowd started chanting, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they were naming Jesus as the man being named in this prophecy. In other words, the Messiah, the Son of David.
Yet the bloodline prophecy goes back much further than King David.
Abraham was also given a prophecy concerning a future Messiah which would come down through his bloodline. It’s covered in the twelfth chapter and third verse of Genesis, it reads as follows; “And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.”
This verse in Genesis is one of the first verses in the bible that speaks of an anointed one chosen from a special bloodline, but it’s far from being the last. From Abraham, to David, to Jesus, the prophecy of the bloodline had been foretold for thousands of years. But the nickname for the Messiah has been “The Son of David,” since the time of that great King.
The Messiah would have to come from the line of Abraham, and then King David. It makes one wonder if there is something special about this holy royal bloodline. Was their blood different than everyone else’s? Was it set apart? Was there a special gene in Abraham’s DNA that set this man apart from everyone else that was passed on down through the ages to King David, and further on to Jesus? Food for thought. Perhaps one day science will find this special gene.
And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, Who is this? Matthew 21:10.
Imagine the scene if you can. Tens of thousands, (if not more), of people chanting “Hosanna to the son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest.” Blessings, glory, and honor being paid tribute to this humble man riding into town on the back of a donkey.
The noise would be the same as that at a football game when the home team scores. In other words, it would be extremely loud to any of those not paying attention to what was going on. It would have been deafening. Heaven itself, with all its glorious angels would have heard it.
I would love to be able to go back in time, to that day when Jesus made his triumphal entry into the City of David, being called the Son of David. It would have been a sight for the ages.
It would have definitely got your attention, and made you look in that direction. Your next response would be to turn to the person next to you and ask, “What are they all shouting about? Who is this on the back of a donkey? And why are they praising him like he’s the Messiah, by calling him the ‘The Son of David?’
Everyone within earshot of this scene, (which would have been the entire city), would have witnessed one of the greatest events in all of human history. Perhaps 100,000 people witnessed this glorious event. It would have been something on par as Caesar returning to Rome after conquering a nation. Thousands lining the streets saluting the conqueror in a March of Triumph.
And the multitude said, This is Jesus the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee. Matthew 21:11.
Well that would have answered your question, if you had asked your neighbor what the uproar was all about. Unless you lived under a rock for the past three years, you would have immediately known who everyone was shouting about.
Jesus the prophet from Galilee. The man who had been creating quite a sensation throughout the Galilean region for the last three years. The same type of sensation created by John in Judea and the Jordan region, for three years prior to that.
The man who had fed the five thousand with miraculous fishes and loaves. The man who had brought a child back from the dead. The man who had healed a countless number of lepers, walked on water, healed the blind, cast out demons, and many other miracles.
The reputation of this prophet from Galilee preceded his entrance into Jerusalem. The city had talked about Jesus since he began his ministry. They had patiently waited three and half years for Jesus to pay homage to the City of David. But like his predecessor John the Baptist, Jesus had avoided Jerusalem at all costs. He knew beforehand that once he entered Jerusalem, the authorities would arrest him.
But now it was time for his mission to be fulfilled. It was time for the Messiah to enter Jerusalem, and offer up the heavenly sacrifice.
It was time to fulfill prophecy.
And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves. Matthew 21:12-13.
So what is the first thing Jesus does as he enters the holy city and the temple? He creates an uproar by overthrowing the moneychangers and the temple merchandisers. Of course! Now that he is in Jerusalem, and since he knew his own destiny, there was no point in him hiding in the shadows anymore.
This act of rebellion by Jesus simply astounds me.
Imagine the scene. Thousands upon thousands of Jews praising Jesus, calling him the Son of David. People throwing palm branches into the streets as he arrives. Shouting to the heavens, thanking God for their deliverance. The entire city watching this man’s every move, wondering what he will do next.
Three years Jerusalem has awaited the arrival for this well talked about prophet from Galilee. Three years they have patiently waited for this Son of Man to make his appearance. And the first thing Jesus of Nazareth does upon entering the city is to create a riot.
He, along with his apostles, rush to the tables of the moneychangers and start toppling them over like a strong wind toppling over houses, smashing them to bits.
He took a whip and boards, and proceeded to unleash his fury on those whom would sell the Father at a price to the faithful followers. Chasing them out of the temple, thereby cleansing it before he could make his entrance into this most holy place. Shouting at them in the process, “It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.”
A den of thieves. Harsh words from the Son of God. Such was the state of the organized religion of Judaism at the time of their visitation from their Messiah. Yet sadly, such was the case in Jerusalem at this time.
It was all big business to the High Priests of the Jewish faith during the time of Jesus’ visitation. A certain percentage of each transaction was kicked back up to the Sanhedrin. So for every sacrifice that was offered to the highest at the temple, the Priests were getting their cut. In other words, God for sale.
It was big business then, as it is big business today.
Take a look around organized religion of today and what do you see? The same thing that infuriated Jesus on that day, infuriates the Holy Father today. God for sale. In other words, place a donation into the offering plate and you will be forgiven. Can you think of anything more blasphemous than that? I surely cannot.
Just send us your donations, and you will be rewarded in heaven. Never mind that some of these televangelists are living in ungodly huge mansions. Just send us your donations, and God will forgive you.
From John the Baptists living off of locusts, honey, and prayers in the desert. To Jesus riding into his Kingdom not on a white stallion, but a humble mule. These are the images of holy men. Not an image of a 13,000 square feet mansion fit for a king.
Jesus and John didn’t come into this world to make money, but to preach the holy word of God. They didn’t come into this world to live in mansions off the backs of the poor, but to give salvation for those who believed in them.
You cannot serve two masters, nor can you ride two horses. One must choose to either serve mankind, or serve yourself. Such was the message of the Lord.
Jesus came into Jerusalem to serve the humbled masses, not the high priests who were simply interested in lining their own pockets on the backs of poor widows. Sadly, this serving of selves on the backs of the poor still hasn’t changed in two thousand years. It still remains.
I will go on about this in future verses of this Gospel. It makes my blood boil to see God for sale, yet it continues to this very day. Nor will it change until the return of the Son of Man. Then, and only then, will this practice cease to exist.