“Curse not the king, no not in thy thought; and curse not the rich in thy bedchamber: for a bird of the air shall carry the voice, and that which hath wings shall tell the matter.” (Ecclesiastes 10:20)

ZECHARIAH

 CHAPTER FIVE

5 - “Then the angel that talked with me went forth, and said unto me, Lift up now thine eyes, and see what is this that goeth forth.”

6 - “And I said, What is it? And he said, This is an ephah that goeth forth. He said moreover, This is their resemblance through all the earth.”

7 - “And, behold, there was lifted up a talent of lead: and this is a woman that sitteth in the midst of the ephah.”

8 - “And he said, This is wickedness. And he cast it [her] into the midst of the ephah; and he cast the weight of lead upon the mouth thereof.”

9 - “Then lifted I up mine eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came out two women, and the wind was in their wings; for they had wings like the wings of a stork: and they lifted up the ephah between the earth and the heaven.” 

10 - “Then said I to the angel that talked with me, Whither do these bear the ephah?”

11 - “And he said unto me, To build it an house in the land of Shinar: and it shall be established, and set there upon her own base.”

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The verses cited above have been highlighted and underlined to indicate the areas in which this study will be focused upon.

LIFT UP THINE EYES

This study begins with God giving Zechariah one of many visions. These visions are messages from God and have been penned or written into Holy Scripture for our admonition. “Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come,” 1 Corinthians 10:11.

The angel or messenger who visited Zechariah begins by saying “lift up thine eyes.” When God speaks to His people He communicates through His written and finished Word, the Bible. During Old Testament times when God spoke personally to our scriptural forefathers, He spoke directly to them, and often in forms of visions. As God spoke He often times used the phrase “lift up thine eyes.” This phrase usually preceded a vision that God was about to deliver. In addition, perhaps it emphasized the importance of what He was about to speak. Some quick examples are as follows:

Genesis 13:14 - “And the LORD said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward:”

Deuteronomy 3:27 - “Get thee up into the top of Pisgah, and lift up thine eyes westward, and northward, and southward, and eastward, and behold it with thine eyes: for thou shalt not go over this Jordan.”

Isaiah 40:26 - “Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth.”

Isaiah 51:6 - “Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look upon the earth beneath: for the heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax old like a garment, and they that dwell therein shall die in like manner: but my salvation shall be for ever, and my righteousness shall not be abolished.”

John 4:35 - “Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest.”

God is about to illustrate an important message to Zechariah; a message that will, from that time on, be spoken to the entire human race. The message consists of the going forth of a mysterious ephah. In verse 5 God is saying to Zechariah “see what this is that goeth forth.” Zechariah then asks the question in verse 6, “what is it?” God thus begins to explain.

Zechariah 5:6

“And I said, What is it? And he said, This is an ephah that goeth forth. He said moreover, This is their resemblance through all the earth.”

God discloses to Zechariah the object,which is an ephan, that is to go forth. He also discloses the object’s form (resemblance) that is to go forth and throughout “all the earth.” Remember that God had this vision put into His Word (Holy Scripture) for our admonition. It is doubtful that Zechariah had even a faint clue what he was seeing, only God knows for sure.

We first want to search Scripture in order to identify, or at least get an idea, what precisely an ephan may represent. Many Bible dictionaries define an ephah as “darkness.” Probably because of this very verse we are working on here in Zechariah chapter 5. However, we find the word “ephah” many times being representative of a precise measure for grain or a measure in general. “Ephah” in Strong’s Hebrew is # 374; a ephah or measure of grain; hence a measure in general. It is also translated in Scripture as measure. Some examples are as follows:

Deuteronomy 25:14 - “Thou shalt not have in thine house divers measures [# 374 ephah], a great and a small”.

Deuteronomy 25:15 - “But thou shalt have a perfect and just weight, a perfect and just measure [#374] shalt thou have: that thy days may be lengthened in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.”

Notice in the above two verses that God is telling Old Testament Israel NOT to have many or different (divers) measures or ephahs in their houses. God is telling them to have a perfect and just weight or a perfect and just measure (ephah). Why is this, we should wonder?

The ephah or measure represents a portion

of Old Testament Israel’s offerings unto God. This can be a grain or wheat offering. There are many offerings in the Old Testament that use the ephah as a source of measurement. These offerings ultimately pictured or pointed to the time in which God’s true and completed Israel (Jews and Gentiles) would worship God is spirit and

in truth. Yes, these wheat offerings and other offerings symbolized a then future time in which God’s corporate church worldwide would bring their offerings and sacrifices unto Christ. What is today’s offering or sacrifice that the believer is to bring to God? Should we offer up animals? Do we include an ephah, perhaps of grain or wheat in our offering? Of course not. We are on the New Testament side of God’s plan for our eternal salvation. Christ has already been offered as the ultimate sacrifice. The Old Testament was merely a physical and outward showing that pointed to, and symbolized in many material fashions, the spiritual fulfillment of God’s Law. Today, we offer up sacrifices according to New Testament Scripture.

“By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name,” Hebrews 13:15.HEBREWS 10: 5-18

5 - “Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me:”

6 - “In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure.”

7 - “Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God.”

8 - “Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law;”

9 - “Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second.”

10 - “By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”

11 - “And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins:”

12 - “But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;”

13 - “From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool.”

14 - “For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.”

15 -“Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that he had said before,”

16 - “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them;”

17 - “And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.”

18 - “Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin.”

Today there is no more need for the Ephah or for any and all of the other forms of offerings and sacrifices unto God, as Israel did in the Old Testament era. Notice in the above, verse 14, that it is Christ as the one and only final offering that has perfected for EVER those that are sanctified, i.e. the true believers.

Going back to Deuteronomy 25:14-15 we saw that God is commanding Old Testament Israel NOT to have many different Ephahs or measures [both from same Hebrew word #3374]. In verse 15 God commands Israel to have a perfect and just measure or ephah. God is precise in all areas. How do we explain this wheat offering? Why must it be of a perfect or just measure? What difference does it make if an ounce or two spill form the measure or is added to it? The meaning of “perfect” or “just” in Deuteronomy 25:15 is to be whole; ready; full; quiet or peaceable.

Proverbs 11:1 - “A false balance is abomination to the LORD: but a just weight is his delight.”

Proverbs 20:10 - “Divers [many; different] weights, and divers [many; different] measures [ephah #374], both of them are like abomination to the LORD.”

Why does God demand precise accuracy in the Old Testament ephah offerings? It must be that this exact and precise measurement or exact and precise ephah is representing the straight and narrow path that our Good Shepard calls us to and leads us through. It is the exact and precise way of Christ and His Cross. Christ is our ultimate sacrifice of which all of the Old Testament ephah sacrifices and offerings only represented. As with Old Testament sacrifices and offerings - they had to be exact. Likewise, in the New Testament church, as we worship Christ and offer up our sacrifices of praise unto Christ, the God of Creation, we must be precise and just in our offerings. In other words, the measure or ephah in our New Testament offerings must again be strictly according to Scripture. We must not and cannot expect eternal salvation if we offer up “divers” measures or ephahs in our praises, metaphorically speaking.

What would constitute “divers measures” in the New Testament church? SIMPLY BY ADDING OR TAKING FROM THE INSPIRED WORD OF GOD. These are different measures of offerings that are (as we have seen) nothing more than abominations to Christ - our Holy God.

John 10:1 - “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door [divers measures] into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.”

John 10:10 - “I am the door [just measures]: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out and find pasture.”

Matthew 7:14 - “Because strait is the gate [precise or ‘just’ measures] and narrow is the way [precise or ‘just’ measures], which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it [divers measures].”

The word “Ephah” is also a name given to one of the sons of Midian. However, this name in the Hebrew is an entirely different Hebrew word than that of the ephah, when used as a measurement.

Genesis 25:24 - “And the sons of Midian, Ephah, and Epher, and Hanoch, and Abidah, and Eldaah. All these were the children of Keturah.”

The “Ephah” that God has in view in Zechariah chapter five is the ephah or measurement (Hebrew # 374).

Exodus 16:36 - “Now an omer is the tenth part of an ephah.”

Leviticus 19:36 - “Just balances, just weights, a just ephah, and a just hin, shall ye have: I am the LORD your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt.”

Numbers 5:15 - “Then shall the man bring his wife unto the priest, and he shall bring her offering for her, the tenth part of an ephah of barley meal; he shall pour no oil upon it, nor put frankincense thereon; for it is an offering of jealously, an offering of memorial, bringing iniquity to remembrance.”

Ezekiel 46:14 - “And thou shalt prepare a meat offering for it every morning, the sixth part of an ephah, and the third part of an hin of oil, to temper with the fine flour; a meat offering continually by a perpetual [everlasting] ordinance unto the LORD.”

As we have discussed the word “ephah” used in the context of Zechariah chapter five, we must conclude that it is a definite measurement used by the children of Israal during Old Testament days. In every instance where the ephah was used, it is vital to understand that it was used in relation to an offering to God. This is what the biblical ephah is all about. It had everything to do with Israel worshiping in a just manner the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. It ultimately pictured or foreshadowed the New Testament believer’s just offering unto Christ our God.

SOME NEW TESTAMENT

 ‘JUST’ OFFERINGS

Hebrews 11:6 - “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.”

Romans 2:7 - “To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:”

2Corinthians 12:10 - “Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.

Galatians 5:24 - “And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.”

Ephesians 4:32 - “And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.”

1Peter 4:13 - “But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.”

Revelation 22:18 - “For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, [divers measures]God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:”

We can continue on and on in describing the true Gospel of Salvation. It is a specific measure that God has designed and demands its righteous offerings from believers in the form of righteous or JUST worship and a righteous or JUST life style reflecting Christ in all things. Yes, the true Christian is still plagued with the sins of the flesh which will continue until all believers receive the transition and resurrection of their physical bodies unto heavenly glorified bodies. No Christian is perfect. In fact, all Christians are eons away from a Christ-like physical perfection. Not even eons - for they will never arrive in and of themselves. However, only those people who know and attempt to live and walk the narrow path of Christ have been made perfect even while yet in their fleshly unregenerate and sinful bodies. Christ has done all of it for them. They, as true believers, have been made perfect in God’s sight. This alone is the PERFECT MEASURE we must have in our offerings. It is the true Gospel of Christ or we have nothing but a future of eternal darkness.

Nowhere in Scripture does it say we are to cease from Old Testament language or terminology. Yes, we are to cease from the Old Testament Law in order to follow the New Testament Law or New Covenant. With this in mind, we can, by borrowing Old Testament terminology, ask the question: ... Is your ephah to Christ a just ephah? Or do you believe in divers measurements (ephahs) in your worship and lifestyle in Christ’s name?

Today, as we steam toward the end of the age, we see the “confessing” Body of Christ worshiping in “divers” ways. They worship according to what pleases them and they have thrown out God’s Law and have replaced it with man-made (feel good, soul exhorting) ordinances designed to please their congregations. Perhaps this is why God uses the ephah in this parable of Zechariah chapter five? God is measuring the sin and abominations of the people that declare they are called by His Name. God uses the ephah to hold and measure these abominations because it is appropriately a unit of precise measurement of holy offerings.

Matthew 7:21-23 - “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

22 - Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?

23 - And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: [divers measures] depart from me, ye that work iniquity.”

Their ephahs of worship and offerings had many and different measurements, thus they were not truly worshiping the one true God of Creation - they were offering to the gods of their own desires.

Today there are religious people, just as the Scribes and Pharisees were religious people in Christ’s day. Many people today claim to know Christ; they claim they are Christians. To a great multitude it matters not how they worship or where they worship. Many will go to new age churches and refer to themselves as “Christians” simply because their literature or perhaps their congregational leader may mention the name Christ in passing. Some will worship in a church that will exalt science and technology. Others may worship together in exalting the universe. Still others may exalt the human body and/or mankind and refer to their meeting places as a “church.” There are still others in large numbers that will exalt the Virgin Mary and many of their appointed “saints,” ignoring the fact that Scripture refers to all believers as ‘saints.’ Sadly, there are many more groups of which would be far too difficult and time consuming to elaborate on. They call themselves churches only because they gather together at a meeting hall or they may own their own building. They converge and ponder something ‘spiritual’ in their thinking - even to the point of being outlandish. Something that is far removed from the narrow path of Christ’s good news Gospel.

There are many congregations and denominations today that appear so Christ-like in doctrine that Scripture gravely warns “. . . if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect,” Matthew 24:24. The reason for this is due to the fact that people do not read their Bibles today and have no real understanding of spiritual things. We must remember that a good place to begin in your understanding of God is to realize that it is He and He alone that opens your spiritual eyes and causes you to believe in Him and in His Word. This then is the just measurement in which to offer up to our God. This alone is the righteous EPHAH of Holy Scripture.

God is about to disclose to Zechariah the identity of this ephah. God has readied His messenger to relate in parabolic form just exactly what this measurement or ephah represents. The remainder of verse six speaks of this ephah’s form or resemblance going forth through all the earth.

Zechariah 5:6

“And I said, What is it? And he said, This is an ephah that goeth forth. He said moreover, This is their resemblance through all the earth.”

God is preparing to unveil the resemblance of this ephah as it fills the earth. The word “resemblance” is translated in Hendrickson’s Interlinear Bible Hebrew as “form.” This word carries with it many slightly different meanings such as eyes, countenance, outward appearance, site, etc. However it is “form” or “resemblance” that best describes or fits this passage according to Strong’s and Hendrickson’s Hebrew. As God is about to display the form of this ephah we must remember two important facts. First, God refers to the resemblance of this ephah in the plural, as ... their resemblance. The ephah must then be representative of many people. Secondly, God tells us that their resemblance will be seen globally. A resemblance or form is something that is or can be observed. God tells us in Zechariah 5:6 that the resemblance or form of this ephah will be seen through ALL the earth. “All” is the Hebrew word for “whole.” The ephah will go out among all of the earth or the whole world. Now God’s messenger begins to paint a symbolic picture for Zechariah of the meaning of this ephah.

Zechariah 5:7

“And, behold, there was lifted up a talent of lead: and this is a woman that sitteth in the midst of the ephah.”

The first thing that God shows Zechariah is that within the midst of the measurement (ephah) sits a talent of lead. This talent of lead was lifted up. We do not read where God or the messenger lifted up this talent of lead. The verse simply states that there was lifted up a talent of lead. As we saw earlier the scriptural ephah is a measurement for holy offerings. ‘If If thou hast done foolishly in lifting up thyself, or if thou hast thought evil, lay thine hand upon thy mouth,” Proverbs 30:32.

Here too we see another measurement, one that surely does not belong in or mixed with God’s just ephah. A talent is said to be the largest Hebrew weights for metals. As we read of the building of God’s House - Solomon’s Temple - we read of many talents of varying metals being used. There were talents of gold, silver, brass and iron. There is no mention in Scripture of talents of lead, except here in Zechariah chapter five.

“And gave for the service of the house of God of gold five thousand talents and ten thousand drams, and of silver ten thousand talents, and of brass eighteen thousand talents, and one hundred thousand talents of iron,” 1 Chronicles 29:7.

 “Unto an hundred talents of silver, and to an hundred measures of wheat, and to an hundred baths of wine, and to an hundred baths of oil, and salt without prescribing how much,” (Ezra 7:22).

“And the brass of the offering was seventy talents, and two thousand and four hundred shekels,” (Exodus 38:29).

What does God say about lead? All of the verses in Scripture that mention “lead” are listed below: We see in Exodus 15:3-12 Lead is used symbolically as the weight of unsaved man sinking into the depths of God’s judgment. Consider these verses carefully.

3- “The LORD is a man of war: the LORD is his name.”

4 - “Pharaoh's chariots and his host hath he cast into the sea: his chosen captains also are drowned in the Red sea.”

5 - “The depths have covered them: they sank into the bottom as a stone.”

6 - “Thy right hand, O LORD, is become glorious in power: thy right hand, O LORD, hath dashed in pieces the enemy.”

7 - “And in the greatness of thine excellency thou hast overthrown them that rose up against thee: thou sentest forth thy wrath, which consumed them as stubble.”

8 - “And with the blast of thy nostrils the waters were gathered together, the floods stood upright as an heap, and the depths were congealed in the heart of the sea.”

9 - “The enemy said, I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil; my lust shall be satisfied upon them; I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them.”

10 - “Thou didst blow with thy wind, the sea covered them: they sank as LEAD in the mighty waters.”

11 - “Who is like unto thee, O LORD, among the gods? who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders?”

12 - “Thou stretchedst out thy right hand, the earth swallowed them.”

In Numbers 31:21-24 (Lead, probably used in armory, was included in the list of those items that would have to be purified after warring with the Midianites.)

21 - “And Eleazar the priest said unto the men of war which went to the battle, This is the ordinance of the law which the LORD commanded Moses;”

22 - “ Only the gold, and the silver, the brass, the iron, the tin, and the lead,”

23 - “Every thing that may abide the fire, ye shall make it go through the fire, and it shall be clean: nevertheless it shall be purified with the water of separation: and all that abideth not the fire ye shall make go through the water.”

24 - “And ye shall wash your clothes on the seventh day, and ye shall be clean, and afterward ye shall come into the camp.”

Job 19:18-25 (Lead in a rock; perhaps meaning unmovable or forever)

18 - “Yea, young children despised me; I arose, and they spake against me.”

19 - “All my inward friends abhorred me: and they whom I loved are turned against me.”

20 - “My bone cleaveth to my skin and to my flesh, and I am escaped with the skin of my teeth.”

21 - “Have pity upon me, have pity upon me, O ye my friends; for the hand of God hath touched me.”

22 - “ Why do ye persecute me as God, and are not satisfied with my flesh?”

23 - “Oh that my words were now written! oh that they were printed in a book!”

24 - “That they were graven [cut] with an iron pen and lead in the rock for ever!”

25 - “ For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth:”

Jeremiah 6:26-30 (Grevious revolters portrayed as lead consumed in the fire.)

26 - “O daughter of my people, gird thee with sackcloth, and wallow thyself in ashes: make thee mourning, as for an only son, most bitter lamentation: for the spoiler shall suddenly come upon us.”

27 - “I have set thee for a tower and a fortress among my people, that thou mayest know and try their way.”

28 - “They are all grievous revolters, walking with slanders: they are [as] brass and iron; they are all corrupters.”

29 - “The bellows are burned [the bellows blow], the lead is consumed of the fire [the lead is consumed from the fire]; the founder melteth in vain [the refiner refines in vain]: for the wicked are not plucked away [for the evil is not escaped].”

30 - “Reprobate silver shall men call them, because the LORD hath rejected them.”

Ezekiel 27:12 (Lead - along with all other merchandise is portrayed here in a highly symbolical fashion and at times may be shown to be synonyms for the Gospel of Christ. This chapter parallels Revelation chapter 18 in many details. Lead is included with numerous other physical merchandise that was in abundance in that “Great City” of Tyre or Tyrus. Her mariners traded this merchandise by sea throughout the vast world.

“Tarshish was thy merchant by reason of the multitude of all kind of riches; with silver, iron, tin, and lead, they traded in thy fairs,” Ezekiel 27:12.

Ezekiel 22:17-22 (Lead, along with other metals, used here in representing those who are useless to the Lord. “Dross” means “waste” or “refuge” [Strong’s Hebrew # 5509], and is derived from it’s root word [Strong’s Hebrew # 5472] meaning “backslider,” “turn back,” “driven backward,”

17 - “And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,”

18 - “Son of man, the house of Israel is to me become dross: all they are brass, and tin, and iron, and lead, in the midst of the furnace; they are even the dross of silver.”

19 - “Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because ye are all become dross, behold, therefore I will gather you into the midst of Jerusalem.”

20 - “As they gather silver, and brass, and iron, and lead, and tin, into the midst of the furnace, to blow the fire upon it, to melt it; so will I gather you in mine anger and in my fury, and I will leave you there, and melt you.”

21 - “Yea, I will gather you, and blow upon you in the fire of my wrath, and ye shall be melted in the midst thereof.”

22 - “As silver is melted in the midst of the furnace, so shall ye be melted in the midst thereof; and ye shall know that I the LORD have poured out my fury upon you.”.

RETRNING TO ZECHARIAH 5:7

“And, behold, there was lifted up a talent of lead: and this is a woman that sitteth in the midst of the ephah.”

"There was lifted." Hebrew "nise'th," or lifted, is a passive participle used to describe the talent. Literally it is "And behold, a having been lifted talent..." Thus the ephah is presented as having a lead stone as a cover which was lifted or opened to allow Zechariah to see inside. " Verse 7 mentions “talent of lead” while verse 8 refers to it as a “weight of lead.” The weight is the talent. Perhaps the lifting up would represent both unsaved pride and the fact that the talent was literally lifted up in this vision to allow us to view the contents of the ephah? If so, then the ephah is presented as having a lead weight (talent) atop it’s mouth, which was lifted up or opened in this vision to allow Zechariah to see inside. Again, the lead may also represent man’s offerings or unjust offerings. More on the ‘mouth’ when we look at verse 8.

"A talent of lead," Hebrew "kikar," is a frequent dialect used to refer to a weight or talent. The word itself means a circuit or round shape, like a flat round loaf of bread. Most likely it is used here because of its round shape to fit the mouth of the ephah and because it represents a standard weight.

One commentary says the following of this talent of lead: “The ‘talent of lead’ is a lid made of lead of that weight. When the lid is lifted up a woman is found to be inside. The heavy weight of the lid suggests that the woman is eager to break free and must be firmly held.”

That may not be what is implied in this case. As we shall see, the woman in the ephah represents wickedness. Spiritual wickedness has existed since the fall of man in the Garden of Eden. Wickedness has never been eager to escape; it has had its full reign upon this earth. Although Satan was bound at the cross, he will or has been loosed at the Great Tribulation. Another thought on this idea may be that this talent of lead is ‘lifted up’ because the nature of unsaved man self exalts or “lifts” himself up in all areas of life, not recognizing that they are merely passing clouds with no rain, soon to pass on.

What does Zechariah see when God shows him the inside of this ephah? Verse seven ends by showing us what is in the ephah:

“ ... this is a woman that sitteth in the midst of the ephah.”

"This is a woman." The original Hebrew states “woman” in the singular tense. The "is" is misplaced. The text says "This woman."

"That sits." Hebrew "yoheveth," is a feminine participle modifying woman. Since there is no "present tense" in Hebrew, both modern Hebrew and Biblical Hebrew use this grammatical form to show current action in progress. It means "is sitting" or more commonly "is dwelling." A correct and meaningful translation of this verse: "And behold, an opened lead talent [cover] and this woman is sitting in the midst of the ephah."

“This woman sitteth in the midst of the ephah.” What is wrong with a woman sitting in the midst of the ephah? First of all, as previously stated, the highest meaning of the ephah is ultimately representative of Christ’s sacrifice and offering at the cross. It is the measure of God’s wrath poured out upon God Himself. Who then can share Christ’s sacrifice and offering with Him? Who are the recipients of this crucifixion offering? Of course, it is only the true believer who can share this measure with Christ.

2 Coranthians. 1:7 “And our hope of you is stedfast, knowing, that as ye are partakers of the sufferings, so shall ye be also of the consolation.”

Hebrews 3:1 “Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus; “

Galatians 3:29 “And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.”

James 2:5 “Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?”

Ephesians 5:5 “For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. “

Col. 3:24 Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.

1 Peter 1:4 “To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you,”

Question: With this in mind, we ask the question ... who is the woman that sits in the midst of the ephah? Could it be the true Church of Christ, who is symbolized in the New Testament as a woman? Could it be national Israel who is symbolized in the Old Testament as a woman? Who then is the other woman symbolized throughout much of scripture? Her spiritual roots indeed come from Old Testament physical Israel and New Testament spiritual Israel. She has been there all along. She is Satan’s ambassador sent to crush the Christ child. She can only be the religious harlot consisting of ancient idolatry of Jezebel and even the many goddesses who were typical of idolatrous religion and acted as a snare to ancient Israel. She is the pagan religions of ancient Babylon. She is the pagan harlotry of many empires that plagued Old Testament Israel in many ways. The Babylonian Empire not only stripped Israel of her physical and spiritual treasures, but enticed and entrapped the minds of many Jewish followers of Jehovah God.

The woman continues into the New Testament Age. With her cunning guile and counterfeit religions, she leads astray the masses of humanity, generation after generation, century after century. Finally, when God’s allotted time has come, He removes His restraint (2 Thessalonians 2:7,8) and allows Satan to desecrate the temple (the outward manifestation of the true Church) with an overrunning of abominations that causes the church to become desolate. God allows this symbolic harlot to enter into the churches as His final spiritual judgment upon the corporate church worldwide. Judgment for her gradual defilement of herself and the abandoning of her Gospel light for a compromising world of man-made and man-exalting doctrines. The true believers of Christ and His “narrow way” Gospel will increasingly flee these churches. This is the Abomination of Desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet.

Concerning this woman in the ephah, some commentators will say “The picture would seem to represent the fact that measurement is being made, judgment is being carried out and the wickedness and idolatry thus discovered is contained in the ephah.”

But is her judgment in view here in Zechariah 5:5-11? Is wickedness and idolatry contained in this ephah? No, God’s judgment has yet to fall of her. No, her wickedness is not contained in the ephah. She sits in the ephah because she has fully entered into the church! In fact, we shall see in verse nine that her harlotry multiplies within and in the “midst” of the ephah! WHAT DOES THAT TELL YOU ABOUT TODAY’S CHURCH?

In concluding verse seven, God speaks of this woman as:

“ sitting in the midst of the ephah.”

According to Strong’s Hebrew, word #3427 “sitteth” is translated as: to dwell; abide; remain; inhabited or inhabitants; to continue; to tarry; sitteth; sat; endure or together. Strong’s states that “to sit” is in conjunction specifically with: 1) sitting as Judge 2) sitting in ambush 3) sitting in quiet.

She dwells in midst of the ephah. The word “midst” is translated also as among or within. This woman is not sitting in quiet. She possibly could be sitting under the false pretense as being judge. More likely she fulfills the many verses of “sitteth in ambush,“ which is according to Old Testament Scripture, to lieth in wait or sitteth in wait. These come from Strong’s Hebrew word number #693, meaning to lurk, ambush, lie in wait or sitteth in wait.

Proverbs 7:12 “Now is she without, now in the streets, and lieth in wait at every corner.”

Proverbs 12:6 “The words of the wicked are to lie in wait for blood: but the mouth of the upright shall deliver them.”

Proverbs 24:15 “Lay not wait, O wicked man, against the dwelling of the righteous; spoil not his resting place:”

Lamentations 4:19 “Our persecutors are swifter than the eagles of the heaven: they pursued us upon the mountains, they laid wait for us in the wilderness.”

Micah 7:2 “The good man is perished out of the earth: and there is none upright among men: they all lie in wait for blood; they hunt every man his brother with a net.”

Psalm 10:8-9 “He sitteth in the lurking places of the villages: in the secret places doth he murder the innocent: his eyes are privily set against the poor. [9] He lieth in wait secretly as a lion in his den: he lieth in wait to catch the poor: he doth catch the poor, when he draweth him into his net.

Ezra 8:31 “Then we departed from the river of Ahava on the twelfth day of the first month, to go unto Jerusalem: and the hand of our God was upon us, and he delivered us from the hand of the enemy, and of such as lay in wait by the way.”

We could continue with verses offering this type of language. Let us now examine a few verses that speak of “woman.” There are a great number of references in Scripture that speak of righteous women but we want to briefly look at those references that allude to the symbolic woman of spiritual unrighteousness.

Proverbs 2:16-21:

16 - “To deliver thee from the strange woman, even from the stranger which flattereth with her words;”

17 - “Which forsaketh the guide of her youth, and forgetteth the covenant of her God. “

18 - “For her house inclineth unto death, and her paths unto the dead.”

19 - “None that go unto her return again, neither take they hold of the paths of life.”

20 - “That thou mayest walk in the way of good men, and keep the paths of the righteous.”

21 “For the upright shall dwell in the land, and the perfect shall remain in it.”

The word “strange” in the above verse: Hebrew #2114; a primitive root; to turn aside (especially for lodging); hence to be a foreigner, strange, profane; specifically (active particaple) to committ adultery :-(come from) another (man, place), fanner, go away, (e-) strange (-r, thing, woman).to turn aside or foreigner.

Proverbs 5:20 “And why wilt thou, my son, be ravished with a strange woman, and embrace the bosom of a stranger? “

Proverbs 6:24 “To keep thee from the evil woman, from the flattery of the tongue of a strange woman. “

Proverbs 6:26 “For by means of a whorish woman a man is brought to a piece of bread: and the adulteress will hunt for the precious life.”

Proverbs 6:32 “But whoso committeth adultery with a woman lacketh understanding: he that doeth it destroyeth his own soul.”

Proverbs 7:5 “That they may keep thee from the strange woman, from the stranger which flattereth with her words.”

Proverbs 14:1 “Every wise woman buildeth her house: but the foolish plucketh it down with her hands.”

Proverbs 23:27 “For a whore is a deep ditch; and a strange woman is a narrow pit.”

Proverbs 30:20 “Such is the way of an adulterous woman; she eateth, and wipeth her mouth, and saith, I have done no wickedness.”

Ezekiel 36:17 “Son of man, when the house of Israel dwelt in their own land, they defiled it by their own way and by their doings: their way was before me as the uncleanness of a removed woman. “

Hosea 3:1 “Then said the LORD unto me, Go yet, love a woman beloved of her friend, yet an adulteress, according to the love of the LORD toward the children of Israel, who look to other gods, and love flagons of wine.”

Revelation 2:20 “Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols.”

Revelation 17:3 “So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.”

Revelation 17:4 “And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication: “

Revelation 17:6 “And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.”

Revelation 17:9 “And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth.”

Revelation 17:18 “And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.”

Revelation 17:2 “With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.”

Revelation 17:4-7:

4 “And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:

5 “And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.

6 - “ And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.”

7 - “And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns.”

Revelation 18:3-11:

3 - “For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.”

4 - “ And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.”

5 - “For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.”

6 - “Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double.”

7 - “How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.”

8 - “Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her.”

9 - “And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning,”

10 - “Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come. “

11 - “And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more:”

Revelation 18:15 “The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing,”

Revelatioon 18:18-20:

18 - “And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like unto this great city! “

19 - “And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas, that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.”

20 - “Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; for God hath avenged you on her.”

Revelation 18:24 “And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth.”

ZECHARIAH 5:8

“And he said, This is wickedness. And he cast it [her] into the midst of the ephah; and he cast the weight of the lead upon the mouth thereof.”

"Cast it." Hebrew for "it" is "othah,”which is feminine, not "it" but "her."

Wickedness is symbolically portrayed much of the time in Scripture by a strange woman or harlot. This can be both physical and spiritual wickedness. We must remember that spiritual adultery is just as horrible to God as is physical adultery.

There are two Hebrew words used in the Old Testament for wickedness. Each are very similar to the other. Every verse using this word has much in common with wickedness toward God. We really need not quote many verses with this word because all mankind is aware of wickedness, however , we will quote some references.

Proverbs 11:5 “The righteousness of the perfect shall direct his way: but the wicked shall fall by his own wickedness.”

Proverbs 13:6 “Righteousness keepeth him that is upright in the way: but wickedness overthroweth the sinner.”

Ezekiel 18:20 “The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.” [The way of Christ is the ONLY means of having one’s sins forgiven.]

Proverbs 4:17 “For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.” [The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the bread from heaven with which we must spiritually eat of. Christ is the manna from heaven. Any other bread that we eat of is spiritual wickedness.]

Psalm 84:10 “For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.”

Proverbs 10:2 “Treasures of wickedness profit nothing: but righteousness delivereth from death.”

Compare the similarities of the following two verses:

Proverbs 30:20 “Such is the way of an adulterous woman; she eateth, and wipeth her mouth, and saith, I have done no wickedness.”

Revelation 18:7 “How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.”

Please read the following verses carefully:

Ezekiel 5:5-11

5 - “Thus saith the Lord GOD; This is Jerusalem: I have set it in the midst of the nations and countries that are round about her.”

6 - “And she hath changed my judgments into wickedness more than the nations, and my statutes more than the countries that are round about her: for they have refused my judgments and my statutes, they have not walked in them.”

This historic parable focuses upon Jerusalem, which is representative of God’s Old Testament church, assemblies or congregations. They were filled with unbelievers just as today’s corporate church is filled with unbelievers. God shows us in the above verses that it was not the nations as much as it was the church of that time that changed God’s laws and turned them into wickedness! They refused God’s judgments and statutes, and did not walk in them but turned them into whatever was more pleasing in their site.

7 - “Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because ye multiplied more than the nations that are round about you, and have not walked in my statutes, neither have kept my judgments, neither have done according to the judgments of the nations that are round about you;”

8 - “Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I, even I, am against thee, and will execute judgments in the midst of thee in the sight of the nations.”

God speaks of this false church of Old Testament times as having multiplied more than the nations. By all definitions this is wickedness multiplying in the name of God, while in reality merely masquerading as followers of God. They have a different agenda than what God has given them. This is typical of all congregations, assemblies and Old Testament synagogues, throughout history. There are true believers within these assemblies, but by far there is great spiritual wickedness multiplying. As in the Old Testament church, God finally took Jerusalem away from Israel, and the people of God were scattered throughout the world. Much of them being slaves and captives in Babylon or the Babylonian Empire - the land of Shinar. Once again, at the end of the New Testament church age, wickedness will have multiplied within the churches to such a high degree that God judges this worldwide apostate church by removing His true Gospel from their midst.

This then is the time wherein God allows Satan to set up his rule squarely in the midst of the global Christian church. This is the Abomination of Desolation that Christ mentions in His gospels. Returning to Ezekiel chapter five:

9 - “And I will do in thee that which I have not done, and whereunto I will not do any more the like, because of all thine abominations.“

10 - “Therefore the fathers shall eat the sons in the midst of thee, and the sons shall eat their fathers; and I will execute judgments in thee, and the whole remnant of thee will I scatter into all the winds.”

11 - “Wherefore, as I live, saith the Lord GOD; Surely, because thou hast defiled my sanctuary with all thy detestable things, and with all thine abominations, therefore will I also diminish thee; neither shall mine eye spare, neither will I have any pity.

Just as God executed judgment within the Old Testament congregations, likewise He will judge the New Testament church, but on a much broader scale. He will judge the corporate church worldwide. He gives true believers the warning to flee from her or “come out of her, My people,” Revelation 18:4.

The remainder of Zechariah 5:8 reads:

“. . . and he cast it [her] into the midst of the ephah; and he cast the weight of the lead upon the mouth thereof.”

"Cast it." Hebrew for "it" is "othah,” which is feminine, not "it" but "her." Any Hebrew Interlinear will tell you that this verse is actually translated as “cast her” and not “cast it.” Even if it did say “cast it,” it would still be in reference to the woman. In verse seven we saw that the lead talent or stone was lifted up and we saw a woman sitting inside the ephah. Now in verse 8 God reiterates by showing Zechariah that He has cast this woman into midst of the ephah and in addition God has cast a lead weight over the mouth of the ephah. Hendrickson’s “The Interlinear Bible, Hebrew and Greek” renders “mouth” as “it’s opening,” based from Strong’s Hebrew #6310. It can also be translated as “hole” and “mouth.”

As we move into verse nine we recall the beginning of this vision when God stated to Zechariah (through the angel) in verse five to “lift up now thine eyes.” We mentioned that a phrase of this nature usually preceded a vision that God was about to give or God was simply emphasizing the importance of what He was about to speak. As we enter into verse nine Zechariah begins to see - in the spirit - the unattainable things that God allowed His prophets to see. Zechariah remarks “then I lifted up mine eyes.“ This tells us to take special notice. In verse five God tells Zechariah to “lift up now thine eyes” while in verse nine Zechariah states “then lifted up mine eyes.” God is showing Zechariah what is transpiring in this vision. It is God and only God who can lift up man’s eyes to see that which is hidden from man. At the onset of verses five through eight God tells Zechariah to lift up his eyes or open his eyes and God reveals the subject of this vision. The remainder of this vision, verses nine throuigh eleven, God has Zechariah to once more open up his eyes. God is preparing to disclose the second half or the meaning of the vision.

ZECHARIAH 5:9

“Then lifted I up mine eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came out two women, and the wind was in their wings; for they had wings like the wings of a stork: and they lifted up the ephah between the earth and the heaven.”

In the first half of the vision we saw religious wickedness, symbolized by the woman being cast into the ephah. God is measuring out apostasy that is and will go forth into all the earth. God is measuring out apostasy inside of the ephah. As we mentioned earlier, God most probably chose an ephah because it was a tool for measuring holy Old Testament temple offerings. Thus, the ephah is symbolic for ultimately containing the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Every book of the Old Testament deals specifically with the coming of The Messiah. He is the Christ, the Anointed One, the Savior and on and on we could go in mentioning titles that the Old Testament gives to Christ our God. Yes, the ephah was meant to contain a precise measurement and that precise measurement is the door to the Kingdom of Heaven and of Jesus Christ.

John 10:9 “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.”

The fact that this harlot sits inside or in the midst of the ephah tells us that her wickedness is played out or established within the confines of the ephah itself! Yes, this typified the Old Testament synagogues (Old Testament church) as Israel became increasingly more apostate but ultimately this represents the New Testament corporate church as God begins to allow Satan to fulfill God’s judgment, first upon the church of God.

1 Peter 4:17 “For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?”

The ephah looks to be - and may well be - a symbolic synonym depicting those who are “religious.” The ephah was to contain all who believe as God measures out those who are called and presents this in a sin offering of Old Testament days. At the “time of the end” this ephah (representing the church of Christ) will have been filled with wickedness instead of faith. Those of true Christ centered faith will have fled from this harlot.

As God begins to show Zechariah the conclusion of the vision we first notice that the woman has now DOUBLED! This vision is not only for Zechariah but to all who have ears to hear and eyes to see. One woman and now there are TWO! Is it merely a slight increase? Not at all. It is the MULTIPLYING of religious wickedness within the churches! Recall what we discussed in an earlier portion of this study concerning multiplying? Remember Ezekiel 5:5-11? God addressing Jerusalem concerning her changing God’s laws into wickedness more than the nations around her. She had multiplied her wickedness more than the nations around her. She had filled herself up with abominations. God states in Ezekiel 5:10 that He will execute judgment within her or “in thee.” Yes, this judgment did occur in the historical sense but yet it ultimately has its final fulfillment in the end-time corporate church symbolized by Jerusalem or “Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified,” and again symbolized by “Mystery Babylon, Mother of Harlots and Abominations of the Earth.” God will execute judgment “in thee” as Ezekiel 5:10 states. That is to say within the House of God.

Notice carefully Ezekiel 5:9 -

“And I will do in thee that which I have not done, and whereunto I will not do any more the like, because of all thine abominations.”

This is parallel language with which Christ spoke in describing the Abomination of Desolation. The above verse had only a partial fulfillment; its total and ultimate fulfillment will be global and not simply confined to Israel and the Jewish race. In the above verse in Ezekiel, God assures us that He will not repeat this judgment. He says He will do that which has never been done. He is speaking in the context of judgment. God says He will do that which He has never done and will never do again. This verse and judgment has NOT been fulfilled entirely, but had a partial fulfillment in Old Testament time. God is speaking of a terrible, most terrible time. Christ gives us the exact same information regarding God’s judgment upon the corporate churches during the Great Tribulation, of which Ezekiel 5:9-10 was merely a foreshadow of God’s ultimate judgment upon the churches. Let us compare the verses:

Matthew 24:21 - “For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.”

Mark 13:19 - “For in those days shall be affliction, such as was not from the beginning of the creation which God created unto this time, neither shall be.”

God shows Zechariah wickedness multiplying within the ephah in the form of two women. This indeed represents multiplying. Read the following verses carefully:

Proverbs 29:16 “When the wicked are multiplied [#7235], transgression increaseth [#7235 Strong‘s Hebrew]: but the righteous shall see their fall.”

Ezekiel 11:6 “Ye have multiplied [#7235] your slain in this city, and ye have filled the streets thereof with the slain.”

Ezekiel 16:25-26

25 - “Thou hast built thy high place at every head of the way, and hast made thy beauty to be abhorred, and hast opened thy feet to every one that passed by, and multiplied [#7235] thy whoredoms.”

26 - “Thou hast also committed fornication with the Egyptians thy neighbours, great of flesh; and hast increased [#7235] thy whoredoms, to provoke me to anger.”

Ezekiel 16:29 “Thou hast moreover multiplied [#7235] thy fornication in the land of Canaan unto Chaldea; and yet thou wast not satisfied herewith.”

Ezekiel 16:51 “Neither hath Samaria committed half of thy sins; but thou hast multiplied [#7235] thine abominations more than they, and hast justified thy sisters in all

thine abominations which thou hast done.”

Ezekiel 21:15 “I have set the point of the sword against all their gates, that their heart may faint, and their ruins be multiplied [#7235] : ah! it is made bright, it is wrapped up for the slaughter.”

Ezekiel 22:25 “There is a conspiracy of her prophets in the midst thereof, like a roaring lion ravening the prey; they have devoured souls; they have taken the treasure and precious things; they have made her many [#7235] widows in the midst thereof.”

Ezekiel 23:19 “ Yet she multiplied [#7235] her whoredoms, in calling to remembrance the days of her youth, wherein she had played the harlot in the land of Egypt.”

ZECHARIAH 5:9a

“Then lifted I up mine eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came out two women”

In addition to this woman of spiritual wickedness multiplying, we also notice that God uses the number TWO in portraying her identity. The number “two” has always been representative of the church or representative of God’s people. Never forget that there are multitudes of people who have called themselves “God’s people” or “God’s chosen” who were not a part of God’s family. There were, are, and always will be religious imitators who did not want all of God’s Word. They wanted to spiritually “eat their own bread” and “wear their own apparel” (biblical phrases representing believing or worshipping a false gospel) and yet they insisted that they too be called by God’s name to take away their reproach, Isaiah 4:1.

Noah’s ark was a picture of salvation as the animals were brought in two by two. God’s earthly representation on earth is pictured as two candlesticks and two olive trees. There are more verses that identify the church with the number two.

Revelation 11:4 “These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth.”

At the end of time we see God’s judgment upon the corporate church. The perpetrator of course is Satan as God allows him to attack the churches worldwide. We see that his imposter church is depicted also by the number “two.” This is in keeping in accordance with the number of the church. Satan is the imitator of God. Satan wants to be like God. This is what Lucifer says of himself:

Isaiah 14:14

“I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.”

Satan’s end-time false church arises before or at the onset of the Great Tribulation and is cunningly designed to lead multitudes astray from Christ. Satan’s false church comes into world view looking like a true Christian church. It comes as an attack and undetected to those who know not the true Gospel of Christ our Lord. This is Satan’s church in the Great Tribulation:

Revelation 13:11

“And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.”

The first beast is Satan and this seemingly second beast is again Satan. The first beast is Satan coming up out of the sea, which is a picture of the world; humanity and secularism. Satan is again seen coming up out of the earth. This word “eareth” in the Greek is also translated as soil, land, ground, country and earth. It often times is representative of the religious community or the corporate church. Satan is depicted as emerging among the churches during the Great Tribulation as a beast with TWO horns like a lamb but he speaks as a dragon. Satan will appear to the unbelieving world or to the average “church goers” as a solid Christian church. Scripture says he will resemble a lamb and of course that can be none other than the Lamb of God - Christ Jesus. This is what Satan has tried to destroyed since the Garden of Eden. Again we see the number two in view here as it pertains to the end-time false religious system.

This number two may also reflect the two women in the ephah ... they were religious wickedness sit into the midst of an ephah and made ready to go out unto the whole earth. When may we anticipate these two women fulfilling God’s Word? They are sent from Jerusalem to Babylon in the spiritual setting during the Old Testament days. However, they are prepared for the time of the end when they must go forth through all the earth, Zechariah 5:6.

Zechariah 5:9

“Then lifted I up mine eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came out two women, and the wind was in their wings; for they had wings like the wings of a stork: and they lifted up the ephah between the earth and the heaven.”

God is showing us where the ephah is going. How is this religious harlot going to travel unto the ends of the earth? How will she carry her resemblance through all the earth, as verse six states?

God instills “wind in her wings.” Recall at the start of this study we quoted Ecclesiastes 10:20.

Ecclesiastes. 10:20 “Curse not the king, no not in thy thought; and curse not the rich in thy bedchamber: for a bird of the air shall carry the voice, and that which hath wings shall tell the matter.”

Much of Scripture is written in beautiful metaphoric language. Such is also the case when God tells a matter. The Almighty has granted this ephah wind in her wings. Of course the ephah is merely a measuring tool but God has typified it in this vision as a flying ephah. The two woman were figuratively given wings and God puts wind in their wings. Let us observe some very interesting verses.

Psalm 104:3 “Who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters: who maketh the clouds his chariot: who walketh upon the wings of the wind:” [God is everywhere. The clouds are merely His chariots, He is so omnipotent and Almighty. God is everywhere!]

The “wings of the wind” is just one way in which God describes Himself. He is everywhere.

Psalm 18:8-11:

8 - “There went up a smoke out of his nostrils, and fire out of his mouth devoured: coals were kindled by it.”

9 - “He bowed the heavens also, and came down: and darkness was under his feet.”

10 - “And he rode upon a cherub, and did fly: yea, he did fly upon the wings of the wind.”

11 - “He made darkness his secret place; his pavilion round about him were dark waters and thick clouds of the skies.” [Metaphoric language describing the awesomeness of God.] Almighty God is truly in the wings of the wind.

Hosea 4:15-19

15 - “Though thou, Israel, play the harlot, yet let not Judah offend; and come not ye unto Gilgal, neither go ye up to Beth-aven, nor swear, The LORD liveth.”

16 - “For Israel slideth back as a backsliding heifer: now the LORD will feed them as a lamb in a large place.”

17 - “Ephraim is joined to idols: let him alone.”

18 - “Their drink is sour: they have committed whoredom continually: her rulers with shame do love, Give ye.”

19 - “The wind hath bound her up in her wings, and they shall be ashamed because of their sacrifices.”

Hosea speaks of Israel’s abominations. She has backsliden from God and has thus become an harlot. God says that the wind has bound her up in her wings. The word “bound” shows that Israel has been overtaken by the enemy. She is in affliction and distressed as the word “bound“ is defined. Her sins are great and have traveled far, thus the wind in her wings has carried her sins afar and has bound her up. Her sins have found her. No one can sin against God and not be discovered. Your sins will indeed find you out.

These are the only three references that mention “wings of the wind.” The last reference is in our study of the Flying Ephah. God grants the two women in the ephah wings and God puts wind into her wings. Yes, God is simply allowing Satan to increase and multiply. This vision is set for the time of the end. God typifies the swiftness of the workings of this end-time harlot church to wind being in their wings. She will run to and fro throughout the earth with her spiritual harlotry, and yet declare (as today’s apostate church declares) she is called of God. Many will be deceived in that day and that day is more than likely upon us at this very hour.

Lament. 4:19 “Our persecutors are swifter than the eagles of the heaven: they pursued us upon the mountains, they laid wait for us in the wilderness.”

“ ... for they had wings like the wings of a STORK ...”

Not only does this harlot in the ephah have speed and swiftness with which to deceive (wind in her wings), but now God is showing us the type of wings He has assigned to her. He has provided her (in spiritual terms) with wings of a stork. Scripture categorizes the stork as an unclean animal and thus was forbidden food in the Old Testament. As leprosy in the Old Testament was a picture of man’s sins, so too was the stork. God lists other animals and fowls as being unclean. He has a reason for listing these unclean birds and animals, both in the physical realm as well as in the spiritual realm. What does Scripture say about the stork? The Bible only gives us five references for stork, and one is here in our study of Zechariah chapter five. The other four references are as follows:

Leviticus 11:13-25

13 - “And these are they which ye shall have in abomination among the fowls; they shall not be eaten, they are an abomination: the eagle, and the ossifrage, and the ospray,”

14 - “And the vulture, and the kite after his kind;”

15 - “Every raven after his kind;

16 - “And the owl, and the night hawk, and the cuckow, and the hawk after his kind,”

17 - “And the little owl, and the cormorant, and the great owl,”

18 - “And the swan, and the pelican, and the gier eagle,”

19 - “And the stork, the heron after her kind, and the lapwing, and the bat.”

20 - “All fowls that creep, going upon all four, shall be an abomination unto you.”

21 - “Yet these may ye eat of every flying creeping thing that goeth upon all four, which have legs above their feet, to leap withal upon the earth;”

22 - “Even these of them ye may eat; the locust after his kind, and the bald locust after his kind, and the beetle after his kind, and the grasshopper after his kind.”

23 - “But all other flying creeping things, which have four feet, shall be an abomination unto you.”

24 - “And for these ye shall be unclean: whosoever toucheth the carcase of them shall be unclean until the even.”

25 - “And whosoever beareth ought of the carcase of them shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even.”

Thanks to Christ who has released us from the bondage of the Old Testament law!

Romans 3:19-20

19 - “Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.”

20 - “Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.”

Yes, thanks be to Christ Jesus! The Old Testament Law was God’s method of showing arrogant man that he was indeed incapable of keeping God’s Law. As Romans chapter three just showed us, the Old Testament Law was written and given by God in order to expose our inabilities and that every mouth may be stopped! In other words, that there would be no boasting of oneself, because no one is capable of keeping God’s Old Testament Law. It was put there to show us our sin and to expose us to our true sin nature. Yes, today there are still many people who declare that they are strict keepers of God’s Old Testament Law, but in truth they are far, far from God and His Christ who ultimately gave the Law.

Romans 3:27-28

27 - “Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith.”

28 - “Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.”

Now lets take a slight detour and see just how God uses some of the unclean animals and fowls.

Esau, Edom and Idumea: All the Same Person

Genesis 36:1 “Now these are the generations of Esau, who is Edom.”

Romans 9:13 “As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.”

Idumea is Another Name for Edom or Esau

From Strong’s Hebrew Definition:

Edom, ed-ome; Hebrew 123; or (fully) ‘Edowm, ed-ome; from Hebrew 122 (‘adom) red [see Gen. 25:255]’ Edom, the elder twin-brother of Jacob; hence the region (Idum’a) occupied by him: - Edom, Edomities, Idumea. Idumea (word 15) in Isaiah 34:5.

Esau is a picture of the unsaved throughout Scripture. He is also called Edom and was known as Idumea by the region or land that he dwelt in. Many of scriptural verses that deal with Edom have the judgment of the world at the last day ultimately in view.

Ezekiel 35:15 “As thou didst rejoice at the inheritance of the house of Israel, because it was desolate, so will I do unto thee: thou shalt be desolate, O mount Seir, and all Idumea, even all of it: and they shall know that I am the LORD.”

Ezekiel 36:5 “Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Surely in the fire of my jealousy have I spoken against the residue of the heathen, and against all Idumea [Esau], which have appointed my land into their possession with the joy of all their heart, with despiteful minds, to cast it out for a prey.”

This is being said in order to set a base or foundation for what we see in Isaiah 34: 5-15.

It is there where God speaks of the literal destruction of the earth at the Last Day. God uses the name Idumea as the subject of His judgment. When reading these verses it is imperative to realize that God is speaking of judging the earth at the end of time. While some of these prophesies may have unfolded in the past as historical occurrences of Old Testament days, they will have their final fulfillment at the end of time. Thus we see that God, in the following verses, speaks of the time wherein He will bring judgment not to the region of Idumea in general, but to the subject or subject matter of which Idumea was merely a synonym for or a portrait of. In other words Edom or Idumea can represent the unsaved of the world. Read here is Isaiah chapter thirty-four what God has to say about it’s judgment.

Isaiah 34:1-15

1 - “Come near, ye nations, to hear; and hearken, ye people: let the earth hear, and all that is therein; the world, and all things that come forth of it.”

2 - “For the indignation of the LORD is upon all nations, and his fury upon all their armies: he hath utterly destroyed them, he hath delivered them to the slaughter.”

3 - “Their slain also shall be cast out, and their stink shall come up out of their carcases, and the mountains shall be melted with their blood.”

4 - “And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree.”

5 - “For my sword shall be bathed in heaven: behold, it shall come down upon Idumea, and upon the people of my curse, to judgment.”

6 - “The sword of the LORD is filled with blood, it is made fat with fatness, and with the blood of lambs and goats, with the fat of the kidneys of rams: for the LORD hath a sacrifice in Bozrah, and a great slaughter in the land of Idumea.”

7 - “And the unicorns shall come down with them, and the bullocks with the bulls; and their land shall be soaked with blood, and their dust made fat with fatness.”

8 - “For it is the day of the LORD'S vengeance, and the year of recompences for the controversy of Zion.”

9 - “And the streams thereof shall be turned into pitch, and the dust thereof into brimstone, and the land thereof shall become burning pitch.”

10 - “It shall not be quenched night nor day; the smoke thereof shall go up for ever: from generation to generation it shall lie waste; none shall pass through it for ever and ever.”

11 - “But the cormorant and the bittern shall possess it; the owl also and the raven shall dwell in it: and he shall stretch out upon it the line of confusion, and the stones of emptiness.”

12 - “They shall call the nobles thereof to the kingdom, but none shall be there, and all her princes shall be nothing.”

13 - “And thorns shall come up in her palaces, nettles and brambles in the fortresses thereof: and it shall be an habitation of dragons, and a court for owls.”

14 - “The wild beasts of the desert shall also meet with the wild beasts of the island, and the satyr shall cry to his fellow; the screech owl also shall rest there, and find for herself a place of rest.”

15 - “There shall the great owl make her nest, and lay, and hatch, and gather under her shadow: there shall the vultures also be gathered, every one with her mate.”

This does seem to be a portion of God’s description of His physical judgment of the world at the Last Day. Why then do these unclean animals and fowls seem to continue on in this ravished land? First of all take notice that these are all unclean fowls and animals. They are spiritually signifying all of unsaved humanity that have ever lived. Their souls do indeed continue on. However, they continue on but NOT on a ravished earth that has been destroyed by God. Our God will create a new heaven and a new earth wherein dwelleth righteousness (2 Peter 3:13). These masses of humanity, represented or symbolized by unclean animals and fowls, will indeed continue on, but not on Earth. They will continue in an eternity of outer darkness without God. The owl and the raven shall dwell there along with the stones of emptiness (verse 11). All the princes of the earth shall be as nothing there (verse 12). This is the pit, know in Scripture as eternal darkness; the abode of Hell. The wild beasts also will be there. Their streams thereof will be turned to pitch (verse 9). Yes, there will be no more living waters of Christ once your soul goes down to the pit. This is God’s eternal WORD and it’s here to stay! Verse 15 tells us: “there shall the vultures also be gathered.” The vulture is another type of an Old Testament unclean fowl. It too symbolizes unsaved humanity.

Matthew 24:27-28

27 - “For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.”

28 - “For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together.”

The eagle is yet another unclean bird. Jesus uses the eagle to teach that where the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered. What was He teaching? A “carcase” in the Greek is simply a corpse or dead body. Was Jesus teaching that where there are dead bodies you may find eagles feasting on them? Of course not. Christ was putting forth a great spiritual truth.

“Where the carcase is” is a phrase meaning those who are DEAD to Christ.”

James 2:26 “ For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.”

1 Tim. 5:6 “But she that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth.”

All who are dead to Christ and His everlasting Gospel are looked upon as belonging to or being a part of those “WHERE THE CARCASES ARE.” Where the carcase is, As Christ stated, there will the eagles be gathered. All of unsaved humanity will be there. It is outer darkness, symbolized in part by the unclean fowl of an eagle. All unclean birds and animals throughout Scripture pictures, in the final analysis, all of the unsaved people of humanity. Where the carcass is (unbelievers), there will the eagles be gathered together (the unclean or unsaved of eternity).

The stork was also an unclean bird. His rightful place is also where the eagles are gathered.

Some Biblical references for “stork” are as follows: Leviticus 11:19; Deut. 14:18; Psalm 104:17; Jeremiah 8:7; and Zech. 5:9.

We see then why God allows this harlot in the Ephah to be carried away by the wings of a STORK. She is spiritually unclean and she is carried away by those of her own. God focuses on the unclean bird for obvious reasons. God (in this vision) grants the harlot wings of a stork. Remember, “that which hath wings shall tell the matter,” Ecclesiastes 10:20. She has something to say; something to proclaim.

Zechariah 5:9

“and they lifted up the ephah between the earth and the heaven”

She has something to proclaim! God does not lift her up, she lifts herself up. God is allowing her to exalt herself. Her wings of a stork now lift her up between the earth and the heaven. She is set to proclaim, to declare, to blaze abroad with her unclean lips a god that is not there. A false god.

Jeremiah 23:14-18

14 - “I have seen also in the prophets of Jerusalem an horrible thing: they commit adultery, and walk in lies: they strengthen also the hands of evildoers, that none doth return from his wickedness: they are all of them unto me as Sodom, and the inhabitants thereof as Gomorrah.”

15 - “Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts concerning the prophets; Behold, I will feed them with wormwood, and make them drink the water of gall: for from the prophets of Jerusalem is profaneness gone forth into all the land.”

16 - “Thus saith the LORD of hosts, Hearken not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you: they make you vain: they speak a vision of their own heart, and not out of the mouth of the LORD.”

17 - “They say still unto them that despise me, The LORD hath said, Ye shall have peace; and they say unto every one that walketh after the imagination of his own heart, No evil shall come upon you.”

18 - “For who hath stood in the counsel of the LORD, and hath perceived and heard his word? who hath marked his word, and heard it?”

Why is this harlot now ascending up between the earth and heaven? Other than Zechariah 5:9 there are only three other verses in Scripture that speak of being between the earth and the heaven. We know from Genesis 28:12 that this space is occupied with the innumerable armies of God’s holy angelic beings.

Genesis 28:12 “And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it.”

We also see that being between the earth and the heaven is a phrase that signifies visions.

1 Chronicles 21:16 “And David lifted up his eyes, and saw the angel of the LORD stand between the earth and the heaven, having a drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders of Israel, who were clothed in sackcloth, fell upon their faces.”

Ezekiel 8:3 “And he put forth the form of an hand, and took me by a lock of mine head; and the spirit lifted me up between the earth and the heaven, and brought me in the visions of God to Jerusalem, to the door of the inner gate that looketh toward the north; where was the seat of the image of jealousy, which provoketh to jealousy.”

Why has the ephah lifted itself up between the earth and the heaven. Why has this global harlot taken up this holy space? When is this prophecy due to begin? Perhaps it has been going on for centuries.

We know that portions of this vision transpired within Old Testament Israel and her abominations with the surrounding kingdoms or nations. But is this all there is to this vision of the flying ephah? God’s Word is the same yesterday, today and forever. Therefore much of Scripture will not have its final and spiritual fulfillment until the consummation of all things here on earth.

Daniel 9:27 “And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.”

Daniel 11:36 “And the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done.”

The harlot is the false religion and the main focus of the teaching of Zechariah chapter five. It transpires during the Great Tribulation when spiritual deception is at its peak. There can be no other time. This is the time wherein the beast arises from within the corporate churches (the earth) disguised as Christ - having two horns like a lamb but speaks as a dragon. This harlot in the ephah is not just any false religion. She is not the Middle Eastern or Eastern religions that are so prevalent today. She is NOT disguised as one of them. She may have entailed other pagan religions in the early days of Israel, in order to seduce them, but today she must go after the New Testament Gospel. That is where her focal point is! She cares nothing about the great many useless and false religions of the world. There is one and only one truth that can eternally destroy Satan ... and that is, as has always been, the Christ child. Satan will send his imitation church directly to the front lines of his enemy! He will send his troops into the churches of Jesus Christ.

Satan will disguise his troops with the same uniforms of his enemies. He cannot enter into the enemy’s camp dressed as their enemy. Satan is not going to win over many souls if he comes preaching anything other than love and peace. This is the heart and soul of the religious harlot’s churches of today. They preach love and peace and the masses of humanity, who do not study nor even open their Bibles, fall effortlessly into this prey. Because love and peace is heard, the captured believe this is the Gospel of Christ. They have no need nor tolerance for a message that teaches eternal darkness. They can not hold to a doctrine that teaches salvation by one name only. They refuse to “discriminate.” They preach only diversity. The HARLOT church will accommodate them to no end.

They will not preach division, such as we find in Luke 12:51 “Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division:”

The global harlot will win her converts with smooth talking and “feel good” doctrines of devils. She will not tell them that they are sinners. She will cunningly encourage unity of faith in other religions as well as the Christian doctrine. She will not dare repeat God’s Words ... “many are called but few are chosen.“ Why then will she appear to look so much like the true Christian doctrine? She will appear like the true Christian church only to those who know not Christ. God assures us that He will not allow any saved person to be deceived into hell by this end-time imitation church.

Matthew 24:24 “For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.”

Satan will distract those in his church by the means never used before until the second half of the twentieth century. He will introduce entertainment and excitement such as “holy laughter,” “being slain in the spirit,” “giving out new visions and prophesies“ in the name of God to replace the studying of God’s Word. Satan will use every means at his disposal to conceal the truth from his global flock.

Returning back to Zechariah 5:9 we see what is more than likely and most probably the result of the Abomination of Desolation. She is the end product of Satan’s attack. He has now entered into the New Testament holy place and has committed the act that has desecrated the church of Christ and has made it desolate. Christ is still in charge. These things must come to pass in order for God to cleanse His temple by bringing out His elect from the harlot’s midst. These things must also come to pass in order for God to judge the corporate church of Christ as judgment must begin at the house of God, 1 Peter 4:17.

Matthew 24:15-16

15 - “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)

16 - “Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:”

Luke 21:20-22

20 - “And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh.”

21 - “Then let them which are in Judaea flee to the mountains; and let them which are in the midst of it depart out; and let not them that are in the countries enter thereinto.”

22 - “For these be the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled.”

The harlot in the ephah has exalted herself and lifted up herself to such a high degree that she now dwells between the heaven and the earth! (Zechariah 5:9) Of course God is showing that this is her real desire and intent.

Zechariah 5:10-11

“Then said I to the angel that talked with me, Whither do these bear the ephah? And he said unto me, TO BUILD IT AN HOUSE IN THE LAND OF SHINAR: and it shall be established, and set there upon her own base.”

Conclusion

Zechariah asks the angel where the two women are taking the ephah? The angel replied: “to build it an house in the land of Shinar.” This Hebrew word for “house” is very general and can mean family, household, places, prison or within. It is clear that the harlot intends to put down roots in the land of Shinar.

LAND OF SHINAR:

Shinar existed in Biblical times, in the land of Mesopotamia, later known as Babylonia or Chaldea, through which the Tigris and the Euphrates Rivers flow (Gen. 10:10; 11:12). Nimrod’s kingdom in Shinar consisted of the cities of Babel (Babylon)… It was here that the Tower of Babel was situated (Gen. 11:2) In about 606 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, took the Temple vessels from Jerusalem to Shinar (Dan 1:2)… Zechariah saw a vision of the removal of a woman from Israel to Shinar (Zech 5:11).

The surface interpretation or the historic setting of Zechariah 5:5-11 may be the removal of the Temple vessels from Jerusalem to Shinar. This, however, is not the final interpretation of these verses. As the Babylonians of old did destroy the Temple and take captive those in Israel, so likewise in the wider interpretation we can see the spiritual resemblance in these final days of the world (represented by Babylon) taking captive those in spiritual Judea, Israel or Jerusalem. This is to say those vessels of unsaved humanity within the congregations of the world. The apostate church has opened their doors and has welcomed with open arms the world of Babylon.

2 Tim. 2:20 “But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour.”

Romans 9:22-23 -

22 - “What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction:”

23 - “And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory,”

Today we see before our eyes exactly what took place in Old Testament days. The only difference is that today it is not physical Israel that is being taken captive into Babylon. Today it is spiritual Israel who is being taken captive by Babylon. Today it is not the physical vessels of the physical Temple in Jerusalem that is being taken to the land of Shinar. Today it is not the literal Temple at Jerusalem that is being destroyed as in the days of old. Today it is the spiritual temple that is being destroyed. Her vessels are once again being taken; not by man but by Satan, pictured as the king of Babylon in Isaiah 14:4!

Once again this is the Abomination of Desolation. Christ’s true Church can never be hurt by these occurrences. The spiritual vessels of today’s churches that are being taken captive are the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction, as Romans 9:22 shows us. Yes, these are vessels in the House of God foreshadowed by the literal vessels in the House of God at the onset of the Babylonian captivity. That too was an abomination but today we are witnessing the Abomination of Desolation that Christ spoke of in the Gospels and throughout Scripture.. If it hasn’t reached its sum yet, we are extremely close to that time.

Zechariah 5:10-11

“To build it an house in the land of Shinar: and it shall be established, and set there upon her own base.”

It is more than likely and the opinion of this study that the woman in the ephah can only be the fulfillment of Mystery Babylon, the end-time global corporate church of Jesus Christ. "

“And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH." (Revelation 17:5) Revelation chapter eighteen gives much detail as to this harlot’s true identity. She is the religious counterfeit church of Christ led by the dragon, which is Satan. She is an imposter, only appearing to be a Christian church. She is Christ-like only to those who know not Christ as their Savior. It seems certain that there will be true Christians caught up with her, but in time Christ will bring them out, for He will never leave us nor forsake us, Hebrews 13:5.

The angel tells Zechariah that the woman is going to the land of Shinar, which we know to be the land of Babylon. It is there that she will build her own house. Please recall in the study “Mystery Babylon: Abomination of Desolation?” we looked at the desires of these early Babylonians. We saw in Genesis 11:1-4 that all of their desires and ambitions were solely self exalting and man glorifying. Today’s corporate church secretly has not changed from the original building of the Tower of Babel.

Let us review Genesis 11:1-4.

1 - “And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech.”

2 - “And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there.”

3 - “And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them throughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for morter.”

4 - “And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.”

It is only themselves that they seek to please. Today the world of Babylon has entered the churches of the world. Not to please God but to please themselves. This is Satan’s finest hour and last attempt. Shinar was one of the earliest references in Scripture that pertained to Babylon. She is with us all the way through Scripture until the very end of time. However, keep in mind, she will be judged!

"And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God: For true and righteous are his judgments: for he hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her hand." Revelation 19:1-2

Concerning this house she is to build, Zechariah 5:11 tells us plainly that it shall be established. He goes on to say that it will be established, and set there upon her own base. It surely will and is coming to pass. The harlot with the wings of the stork has placed it or set it there. “Set” in the Hebrew is defined at to lay; to put; or to place. It will be established there or “fixed” as in stationary. Notice that this ephah will be placed there upon her “own” base or place. The harlot church will be built on her own principles and not on Christ’s doctrines.

“And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues,” (Revelation 18:4).

End of Study