The He-goats Before the Flocks - Part 3

Below is but a small measure of revelation that my father had received from the Lord. I hope this will be a blessing to you. All that is written below are the words of my father.

10/13/22 

In loving memory of my father
Robert Louis (Bob) Padgett
July 28, 1931-May 22, 2023

Last Thursday, I shared Part 2 of a word about "The He-goats Before the Flocks." That title comes from Jeremiah 50, verse 8, which says, "Remove out of the midst of Babylon, and go forth out of the land of the Chaldeans, and be as the he-goats before the flocks." We must look at the he-goats before the flocks in the greater context of Genesis 15, verses 7 through 17, where we find the first mention of he-goats in scripture. A ram is a he-goat. 

Genesis 15:9-10, "And He said unto him, Take me an heifer of three years old, and a she goat of three years old, and a ram of three years old, and a turtledove, and a young pigeon. And he took unto him all these, and divided them in the midst, and laid each piece one against another: but the birds divided he not."

I was born-again, baptized in the Holy Spirit, and a functioning elder in a New Testament house church. Then the Lord made my wife, Linda, into a she-goat to bring me forth through her behavior and her intercession. That was part of her testimony last week. Perhaps a few believers did not understand a few parts of the word last week. One good brother asked me if that type of message is ever heard in our churches. My response was "never."

The next day, last Friday, a good brother, named Sam (not his real name), came over to our house for several hours of fellowship with my wife and me. Jesus said, in 

Matthew 18:20, "Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them." 

When I shared with Sam for about five minutes the essence of the same word that I spoke last Thursday, he agreed and said, "The reason that is not heard in our churches is because the people are not ready to hear that word." I did not respond to Sam's response. However, what went through my mind was, and still is, "Will the people in our churches ever be ready to hear that type of word?" One reason why believers in our churches are not ready to hear that type of word is because they have no true prophetic ministry. Several years ago, the wife of a very good teacher said she had never met a real prophet. Pastors do not want prophetic ministry because prophets will always challenge the traditional way that our churches have operated ever since Constantine, in 310 A.D. We like the status quo; we don't like change.

Paul taught the pure word of God at Corinth for 18 months. Apollos, Aquila and Priscilla also ministered there. At least 5 to 8 years later, the believers at Corinth still had not matured. On the contrary, that church had a multitude of errors, starting with divisions within the church. Therefore, Paul wrote the epistle of 1 Corinthians.

Paul said to us, in 1 Corinthians 3:1-2, "And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ. I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able." 

Most churches preach milk. Why? either because the leaders themselves do not understand meat or because they know that meat will turn off some of their flock. Many leaders will not talk about several topics and verses in the Bible because of potential controversies among the flock. How many years did it take Peter and the early apostles to understand and walk in meat? How many years does it take for the chosen people of God to hear and receive meat? 20? 30? 50?

Many years ago, the Holy Spirit quickened that ten years is quite enough time for members of a local church to mature to a point where they are able to eat and digest spiritual meat. The New Testament house church that we were part of for about 12 years, from 1968 to 1980, was, in my experience, the "best" church I have ever seen, before or since, but it started going downhill after 10 years. As I have shared several times, the Lord made it very clear to us in 1978 that we would have to leave that church or the ministry that the Lord put us into could not be fulfilled. The Lord also revealed several reasons why we had to leave. However, we still had to wait for the timing of the Lord, which came on May 30, 1980. The Lord gave me wisdom as to what to say to the other elders so that no one would be offended. We left on very good terms. One elder said that we were always welcome in their assemblies. That church totally disintegrated one year later.

The number "ten" is used 242 times in the Bible; "tenth" is used 79 times. In scripture, "ten" is frequently used to signify "testing." God promised Abraham He would not destroy Sodom if 10 righteous men could be found there (Genesis 18:32). God brought 10 plagues on Egypt (Exodus 7:14-12:30). Jesus healed 10 lepers (Luke 17:11-19). All 10 received a physical healing. Only one received a spiritual healing ... the one who came back to give thanks and glory to Jesus.

Revelation 2:10, "Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life." 

Nehemiah 10:38, "And the priest the son of Aaron shall be with the Levites, when the Levites take tithes: and the Levites shall bring up the tithe of the tithes unto the house of our God, to the chambers, into the treasure house."

Most Christians probably think of a tithe as being one tenth of our money that we are supposed to give to the "church." A tithe of a tithe is one percent. Let me share with you my understanding of the last part of Nehemiah 10:38, which says, "and the Levites shall bring up the tithe of the tithes unto the house of our God, to the chambers, into the treasure house." I believe that means that the he-goats before the flocks shall be used by God to bring up one percent of the body of Christ into the stature of a turtledove, where the treasure house is the kingdom of God. They perform that function through intercession and the preaching of the word. God used less than 1% of Gideons original army to defeat the enemy. God does not need our money. He owns the cattle on a thousand hills. The tithe is an Old Covenant entity. Under the New Covenant, from 

Acts 2:44-45, "And all that believed were together, and had all things common; And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need." 

Today, we Christians have become more sophisticated. One well-known minister in Texas who preaches the false prosperity, name-it-and-claim it doctrine, reportedly has a net worth of 760 million dollars. He says that God has blessed him because of all of his good work. How did he accumulate such an enormous wealth? through donations from professing Christians who have no discernment, by selling all of his books and DVDs, and by the honorariums he requires to be a speaker.

Very early on the tenth day of the tenth month of the year 2022, this past Monday, the Holy Spirit brought back to my mind some verses in Isaiah, chapter 30 and Isaiah, chapter 58. As I shared earlier, ten in scripture frequently speaks of testing. Perhaps the Lord was testing me to see if I would share this word. When I heard those words from the Lord, I wept for a few minutes because I knew it was a word from the Lord. The Spirit could have quickened this word to me any day and any month. Therefore, I must believe this is a word for me and for all true believers. Some saints have called the book of Isaiah the "fifth gospel." To whom are those chapters in Isaiah written? to every born-from-above believer in Christ. We will get to Isaiah 58 and Isaiah 30 shortly.

2 Timothy 3:16-17, "All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works."

Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, and today, and forever. Human nature has never changed. Therefore, we Christians should be changing every day ... being changed into His image. Sadly, the human nature within us does not like to change. What is needful on our part to allow the Lord to change us into His image? an open face.

2 Corinthians 3:18, "But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord."

Apparently, because of the state of the world and the state of the visible church, an open face has been lacking for a long time. Have you ever thought about the great differences between the early church after the day of Pentecost and our modern-day churches? About the only thing we have in common with those early saints is that we are all human beings. Leonard Ravenhill, a highly respected English evangelist and preacher once said: (quote)

I'm sick to death of the so-called Christianity of our day. What's supernatural about it?

When do people come out of the sanctuary awed and can't speak for an hour because God has been in glory there? Dear God, as soon as they get out, they're talking football, or sports or something or there's going to be a big sale downtown or somewhere. We are not caught up into eternity!

When did you last tip-toe out of the sanctuary? When you couldn't say a word to anybody because you were so overwhelmed with the glory of God?

The apostles had no gold, but lots of glory. We have lots of gold, but no glory.

God wants to bring us into a glory we know nothing about. (end quote)

Without any doubt, the state of the world is a reflection of the state of the church. Is the world in a big mess? Donald Grey Barnhouse, in his wonderful book, Genesis, written in 1970, on page 10, says: (quote)

The earth has always been a mirror of its inhabitants. When Lucifer was an unsinning cherub, the earth was perfect. When he fell, it became a wreck and a ruin. When Adam was created innocent, the world was a garden of Eden. When he fell, God cursed the ground for man's sake, and it became the mirror of fallen Adam. (end quote)

Nehemiah 1:1-6, "The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. And it came to pass in the month Chisleu, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the palace, That Hanani, one of my brethren, came, he and certain men of Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, which were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem. And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire. And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven, And said, I beseech thee, O LORD God of heaven, the great and terrible God, that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love Him and observe His commandments: Let thine ear now be attentive, and thine eyes open, that thou mayest hear the prayer of thy servant, which I pray before thee now, day and night, for the children of Israel thy servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against thee: both I and my father's house have sinned."

I cannot find anything in scripture that says that Nehemiah had sinned. Nehemiah identified himself with both the Lord and the chosen people of God. Ezra said the same thing. So did Daniel and Isaiah. Are we missing something? If so, what? Every Christian probably knows that after Eve sinned by eating of the fruit of the forbidden tree of the knowledge of good and evil, she gave of that tree to Adam. When the Lord asked them what they had done, Adam pointed his finger to Eve, and Eve pointed her finger to the serpent, the devil. We all know the result. Where was the repentance? Scripture does not say whether or not Adam and Eve ever repented.

Now let us turn to Isaiah 58.

1 Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins. 

2 Yet they seek me daily, and delight to know my ways, as a nation that did righteousness, and forsook not the ordinance of their God: they ask of me the ordinances of justice; they take delight in approaching to God. 

3 Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not? wherefore have we afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find pleasure, and exact all your labours. 

4 Behold, ye fast for strife and debate, and to smite with the fist of wickedness: ye shall not fast as ye do this day, to make your voice to be heard on high. 

5 Is it such a fast that I have chosen? a day for a man to afflict his soul? is it to bow down his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the LORD? 

6 Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke? 

7 Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?

In verse 7, "deal thy bread to the hungry," does not mean that we all should serve in soup kitchens. Too often we try to bring scripture down to the lowest possible, natural level. "Hide not thyself from thine own flesh" brings to mind what David said, in 

Psalm 19:12-13. "Who can understand his errors? cleanse thou me from secret faults. Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression."

Back to Isaiah 58 and verse 8. "Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the LORD shall be thy r e r e w a r d."

The key to the word r e r e w a r d is to say it as "rear-ward" instead of "re-reward." "Rearward" is found just six times in the King James Bible; in Numbers 10:25, 1 Samuel 29:2, Joshua 6:9, Joshua 6:13, Isaiah 52:12, and Isaiah 58:8. All six passages are in the context of military arrangements, with the rear guard taking the position of rearward or hindmost. Rearward has nothing to do with a reward but everything to do with position within a formation. 

Joshua 6:9 says, "And the armed men went before the priests that blew with the trumpets, and the rereward came after the ark, the priests going on, and blowing with the trumpets." 

Joshua 6:13 says essentially the same thing. So the order of the battle procession was first, the armed men, followed by the priests that blew with the trumpets, then the ark of the covenant, which speaks of the presence of the Lord, followed by the rear ward or rear guard.

The armed men speak of spiritual warfare. The trumpet was used to call the Hebrew nation to assembly. It was most commonly used as a warning of and summons to war. We might recall that Gideon and his 300 men blew their trumpets just prior to when the Lord gave them total victory. Also, in Isaiah 58:1, the Lord tells Isaiah, and those who have ears to hear, eyes to see, and a heart to understand to "Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins." However, it is only the Christ within who can blow the trumpet and see God's purpose fulfilled.

Notice the "rearward" is that which "came after" the Ark of the Covenant, which represents the presence of the Lord. "R e r e w a r d" is simply an alternate spelling of "rearward" - something toward the back ... meekness and humility ... a nobody in the sight of men but precious in the sight of the Lord. The rear guard are the turtledoves who wholly follow the Lord. They have allowed the Holy Spirit to work His humility within them, but the last shall be first (Matthew 19:30 and 20:16). A good question is, "Who is following after the Lord?" 

Paul, in Philippians 3:12-14, said, "Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus."

Back to Isaiah 58 and verse 9. 

9 Then shalt thou call, and the LORD shall answer; thou shalt cry, and He shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity; 

10 And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday:

Blessed are they who do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled (Matthew 5:8). Christ is our righteousness, our peace, and our joy in the Hoy Ghost. For all those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, the Lord will even command the ravens to feed us, if necessary.

Back to Isaiah 58 and verse 11. 

11 And the LORD shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not. 

12 And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in. 

13 If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the LORD, honourable; and shalt honour Him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words:

Under the Old Covenant, the sabbath was a day. Under the New Covenant, our Sabbath rest is Jesus. Watchman Nee, in his book, "Assembling Together," on page 75 says, (quote)

Nowhere in the Bible can we find a Christian Sabbath day, for these two are contradictory. If we are Christians, then there is no Sabbath. If there is a Sabbath, then we are not Christians. The Sabbath belongs to the Old Testament. In the New Testament it has passed away. (end quote)

Back to verse14 of Isaiah 58. "Then shalt thou delight thyself in the LORD; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it."

Note the If-Then phrase, which appears four times in Isaiah 58. After we are born-from-above, everything else in our walk is conditional. The Lord says, "If you do xxx, then He will do yyy." The problem is that we Christians don't fulfill our "ifs" enough to warrant the Lord's "thens." Now let us consider Isaiah, chapter 30.

1 Woe to the rebellious children, saith the LORD, that take counsel, but not of me; and that cover with a covering, but not of my spirit, that they may add sin to sin:

Who are the rebellious children? the chosen people of God who are still carnal.

2 That walk to go down into Egypt, and have not asked at my mouth; to strengthen themselves in the strength of Pharaoh, and to trust in the shadow of Egypt!

3 Therefore shall the strength of Pharaoh be your shame, and the trust in the shadow of Egypt your confusion.

4 For the Egyptians shall help in vain, and to no purpose: therefore have I cried concerning this, Their strength is to sit still.

5 Now go, write it before them in a table, and note it in a book, that it may be for the time to come for ever and ever:

"Forever and ever" includes today. Egypt, which was first populated by Ham, signifies bondage, captivity, human intelligence, and pleasures of all different kinds. Egypt also speaks of darkness of ignorance and obscurity.

Colossians 2:8, "Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ."

Hebrews 11:23-27, "By faith Moses, when he was born, was hid three months of his parents, because they saw he was a proper child; and they were not afraid of the king's commandment. By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter; Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward. By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing Him who is invisible."

Back to Isaiah 30 and verse 9. 

9 That this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the LORD:

10 Which say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits:

Oh, how we love smooth things! "Deceits" may also be translated as "delusions." 

2 Thessalonians 2:3, "Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;" 

Later, in 2 Thessalonians 2, verse 11, the Lord says to those who received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved, "And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:"

The man often credited with saying "a lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is still putting on its shoes" most likely did not invent the phrase. Commonly attributed to Mark Twain, that quotation instead appears to be a descendant of a line published centuries ago by the satirist Jonathan Swift.

Back to Isaiah 30 and verse 11. 

11 Get you out of the way, turn aside out of the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us.

12 Wherefore thus saith the Holy One of Israel, Because ye despise this word, and trust in oppression and perverseness, and stay thereon:

13 Therefore this iniquity shall be to you as a breach ready to fall, swelling out in a high wall, whose breaking cometh suddenly at an instant.

14 And He shall break it as the breaking of the potters' vessel that is broken in pieces; He shall not spare: so that there shall not be found in the bursting of it a sherd to take fire from the hearth, or to take water withal out of the pit.

15 For thus saith the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel; In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength: and ye would not.

16 But ye said, No; for we will flee upon horses; therefore shall ye flee: and, We will ride upon the swift; therefore shall they that pursue you be swift.

17 One thousand shall flee at the rebuke of one; at the rebuke of five shall ye flee: till ye be left as a beacon upon the top of a mountain, and as an ensign on an hill.

Note from verse 16 and 17 that it is the majority of the chosen people of God who flee. That is clearly stated in verses 12 and 13 of Isaiah 30. A beacon is a lighthouse or other signal for guidance or a radio transmitter emitting signals to guide aircraft. A beacon is also a source of light or inspiration. From verse 17, a beacon speaks of the turtledoves ... the remnant or overcomers. So as the multitudes flee, a few will be left, standing as lights.

Back to verse 18 of Isaiah 30. "And therefore will the LORD wait, that He may be gracious unto you, and therefore will He be exalted, that He may have mercy upon you: for the LORD is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for Him."

The first part of verse 18 says that the Lord will wait. The middle part of that verse tells us why the LORD is waiting. The last part of that verse says that we must wait for Him. If I am waiting for you and you are waiting for me, we have a situation called "stalemate." The Lord is waiting for us after we wait for Him. That speaks of patience.

For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise. Hebrews 10:36

Patience is that grace which enables us to bear afflictions and calamities with constancy and calmness of mind, and with a ready submission to the will of God.

And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience. Romans 5:3

Patience is a humble and submissive waiting for, and expectation of, eternal life, and the accomplishment of God's promises.

Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until He receive the early and latter rain. James 5:7

One of the most obvious characterizations of American culture today is our fast-paced way of life. People hurry to get to work, hurry home after work, and just hurry everywhere. Automobile drivers routinely drive 70-75 in a 55 mile-per-hour speed limit zone and weave in and out of lanes, trying to get ahead of other drivers. Road rage is everywhere. It is dangerous to drive on the Beltway around Washington, D.C., during non-rush hour because of the typical excessive speed of most drivers. One good brother years ago said that driving on our highways is like walking through the valley of the shadow of death. This hectic "rat race" on the asphalt jungle greatly contributes to stress in the life of people. Prolonged stress can cause all sorts of physical problems and will eventually kill you. People in the world just have very little patience ... they have a short fuse.

Even Christians get caught up in this frenzied, hurry-up pace of life. The pull of the world is VERY strong. Some Christians tend to go along with the ways of the world. I have personally observed Christian leaders who speed excessively and use a CB radio to listen for locations of state police and radar traps.

James 1:3-4, "Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience, But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing."

Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us. Hebrews 12:1

The natural man is NOT born with a characteristic of patience; neither can the flesh bring forth patience. Patience is a fruit of the Spirit.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23

The word "longsuffering" may be translated as "patience."

The true prophets, as well as Job, are mentioned as those who had patience.

James 5:10-11, "Take, my brethren, the prophets who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience. Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy."

I waited patiently for the Lord; and He inclined unto me, and heard my cry. 

Psalm 40:1

Moses had to wait in the mountain for 40 days and 40 nights (twice) to receive the commandments of God. Moses also had to wait for 40 years after he had a burden to deliver his people. Abraham had to wait fourteen years from the time of Ishmael to the birth of the promise of God in Isaac. Why all of this waiting? It runs counter to our natural flesh. Man is a "doer." Christian man wants to "do" something for God. Meanwhile, God waits patiently for us to cease from our works of the flesh so that His work might be manifested and His graciousness extended to us. The Lord waits for us to be in the proper posture spiritually, which includes our patiently waiting on Him, in order to bless us. The "precious fruit of the earth" is NOT apples, peaches, or pears or any other natural fruit. It is the fruit of the Spirit developed within the earthen vessels ... you and me! It is the grace and mercy of God to wait patiently for us.

As with any other fruit of the Spirit, patience is primarily exemplified by the Lord Jesus Christ and God the Father.

Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be like-minded one toward another according to Christ Jesus. Romans 15:5

Lord, work your patience into us ... that we might cease from our own works and our own ways ... that we might see your glorious work done within us and through us.

Back to Isaiah 30 and verse 19. 

19 For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem: thou shalt weep no more: He will be very gracious unto thee at the voice of thy cry; when He shall hear it, He will answer thee.

20 And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity, and the water of affliction, yet shall not thy teachers be removed into a corner any more, but thine eyes shall see thy teachers:

21 And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.

22 Ye shall defile also the covering of thy graven images of silver, and the ornament of thy molten images of gold: thou shalt cast them away as a menstruous cloth; thou shalt say unto it, Get thee hence.

Verse 22 says the same thing, in different words, as the first part of Jeremiah 50, verse 8: "Remove out of the midst of Babylon, and go forth out of the land of the Chaldeans." Verse 22 constitutes the implied "If" prior to the "Then" in verse 23.

23 Then shall He give the rain of thy seed, that thou shalt sow the ground withal; and bread of the increase of the earth, and it shall be fat and plenteous: in that day shall thy cattle feed in large pastures.

24 The oxen likewise and the young asses that ear the ground shall eat clean provender, which hath been winnowed with the shovel and with the fan.

25 And there shall be upon every high mountain, and upon every high hill, rivers and streams of waters in the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall.

26 Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days, in the day that the LORD bindeth up the breach of His people, and healeth the stroke of their wound.

27 Behold, the name of the LORD cometh from far, burning with His anger, and the burden thereof is heavy: His lips are full of indignation, and His tongue as a devouring fire:

28 And His breath, as an overflowing stream, shall reach to the midst of the neck, to sift the nations with the sieve of vanity: and there shall be a bridle in the jaws of the people, causing them to err.

29 Ye shall have a song, as in the night when a holy solemnity is kept; and gladness of heart, as when one goeth with a pipe to come into the mountain of the LORD, to the mighty One of Israel.

30 And the LORD shall cause His glorious voice to be heard, and shall shew the lighting down of His arm, with the indignation of His anger, and with the flame of a devouring fire, with scattering, and tempest, and hailstones.

31 For through the voice of the LORD shall the Assyrian be beaten down, which smote with a rod.

32 And in every place where the grounded staff shall pass, which the LORD shall lay upon Him, it shall be with tabrets and harps: and in battles of shaking will He fight with it.

33 For Tophet is ordained of old; yea, for the king it is prepared; He hath made it deep and large: the pile thereof is fire and much wood; the breath of the LORD, like a stream of brimstone, doth kindle it.

Tophet is a location in Jerusalem in the Valley of Hinnom (Gehenna), where worshipers engaged in a ritual involving "passing a child through the fire," most likely child sacrifice. The Greek word Gehenna is always translated as "hell." Traditionally, the sacrifices have been ascribed to a god named Moloch. The Bible condemns and forbids these sacrifices. The modern-day version of Tophet is abortion. According to the Center for Disease Control, there have been 63.6 million abortions in the U.S. from 1973-2020.

Donald Grey Barnhouse in his book titled Genesis also said: (quote)

The man who is truly separated under God has the real power to help in the time of need. Though the world will not admit it, the presence of groups of surrendered, praying Christians is of more importance to our land than the possession of the atomic bomb.

The enemy may have bombs, but he cannot duplicate righteous men, whose effectual, fervent prayers avail much. (end quote)

Perhaps a good question is, "Who is truly separated unto God?" It doesn't take too many turtledoves, a tenth of a tenth, to bring forth the young pigeons so that the Lord will move mightily on behalf of His chosen people. Therefore, my purpose for sharing this word is that at least a few listeners will be inspired to remove out of the midst of Babylon, and go forth out of the land of the Chaldeans, and be as the he-goats before the flocks. Amen and amen.