Yesterday, in our devotional I spoke of the two rains in Israel, the early rain and the latter rain. The prophet Joel speaks prophetically of these two rainy seasons in connection with the outpouring of God's spirit:
"Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God: for he hath given you the former rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month;" [Joel 2:23]
Then Joel continues: "And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions. And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit;" [Joel 2:28-29]
Following the Lord's command to tarry in Jerusalem until they were endued with power from on high, the disciples could not have comprehended what God was about to do. Then, when the Holy Spirit descended upon them, astounding both themselves and all the Jews who had come to Jerusalem for Shavuot (Pentecost), the Apostle Peter explained it, quoting directly from Joel's prophecy [Acts 2:17-18] which speaks specifically in this context of an early rain... and a latter rain.
The Hebrew scriptures often reflect the cyclical/repetitive nature of God's creation. The cycle of the 7 day week, the monthly lunar cycle, the yearly passage of the sun through the heavens, etc. Psalm 23 also describes a cyclical pattern in the Lord's shepherding of His sheep, saying literally, "He leads me in circles of righteousness; the word normally translated as "paths" in verse 3 is literally "circles" ("ma'aglei") in the Hebrew. There are numerous prophetic scriptures which have multiple fulfillments, as well. All of this exemplifies a cyclical or repetitive element in the very fabric of God's story.
In light of this observation, I am anticipating a great move of God similar, or perhaps even eclipsing the events of Pentecost. While this has been a much-debated subject, there are scriptures supporting such a move of God, and complementing my expectation of a repeating cycle of outpouring. "Harvest" (a cyclical event) is one of the main metaphors describing the end of the age and I am believing the Lord's love and power will bring a "latter rain" harvest to this world, culminating what He began nearly 2000 years ago. [see Daniel 12:3].
Anticipating an event inspires us to prepare for it. If indeed, a "latter rain flood/harvest" is impending and the Holy Spirit is seeking wise vessels through whom to pour Himself, our expectation will lead to preparation, purification, and passionate prayer. So be a vessel ready to shine in this world of darkness. We're surely entering a season which we barely understand, just as the Apostles in the 1st century; nevertheless, in faith, we can be expectant and prepared for it.
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy Devotions. This devotional was originally published on Worthy Devotions and was reproduced with permission.
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[worthy_plugins_devotion_single_body]There is an important lesson here and in other places of God's Word, namely that humility and gladness go together. What do the humble and the joyous have in common? They both look up. The humble are those who don't look down on anyone. The truly humble look up all the time. They have to look up, because their eyes are on God, and He's above them. The joyous are always looking up as well, otherwise they wouldn't be rejoicing. The joyous are believing the Good News, so they rejoice!
Picture this — you come home from a long day of work — you walk into your living room — plop down on your couch in exhaustion — and there in the corner of the room — your eyes are drawn to something moving — it’s a rattlesnake! Do you say to yourself, “Oh, I’m too tired to worry about that now, I’ll deal with it later?” Of course not! You’d jump up right away, find a bat or something of the like, alert your family, call the neighbors, call 911, call the fire department and who knows what else! It’s a life-threatening situation!
Have you ever heard of the Valley of Elah? It's the valley near Bet Shemesh where David defeated Goliath, yet this historic battlefield is virtually untouched in Israel. During the rainy season a brook runs through the midst of the valley, however it dries up during the summer. This brook is very likely the one from which David chose his five smooth stones – one of which was used to kill Goliath. Yet, this historic place has no landmarks, no churches – people drive past it all the time unaware of it's biblical or historic significance.
After the Civil War, Robert E. Lee visited a Kentucky lady who took him to the remains of a once beautiful old tree in front of her house. There she bitterly cried that its limbs and trunk had been destroyed by Federal artillery fire. She looked to Lee for a word condemning the North or at least sympathizing with her loss. After a brief silence, Lee said, "Cut it down, my dear Madam, and forget it."
The Book of Daniel prophesied in this passage, that the Messiah will come and be cut off, and then the city of Jerusalem and the sanctuary (the temple) will be destroyed. The city of Jerusalem was destroyed by the Roman army led by Titus in 70 AD.
The Greek word 'aphesis' means forgiveness. But in this particular verse it’s translated as both deliverance and liberty. Isn’t it interesting that deliverance and liberty are directly tied together with forgiveness?
Joshua son of Nun had been commissioned by Moses to bring Israel into the Promised Land. He was a leader and a general. Having spied out the land and returned with the other 11 spies, he was fully aware of the impending battle and the ferocity of the enemy.There were giants in the land. Having miraculously crossed over the Jordan with all the people and 40,000 armed soldiers, Joshua sensed deeply his responsibility to protect and lead Israel to victory and the inheritance God had promised them.