God Bless all who love the unshakable truth of our loving Creator.
??WHO ARE THE HUNTERS?? Why Doesn’t Your Pastor Ever Speak Of Them? Did you know while the Holy Bible speaks of "fishers" it
also speaks of "hunters" in the very same verse? If you are unfamiliar with
this pregnant fact, I will quote it from Jeremiah 16:16: "Behold I will send for many fishers, saith Yahweh, and
they shall fish them; and after will I send for many hunters, and they shall
hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of
the rocks." Have you ever wondered why your pastor emphasizes with very
much intensity and vigor the subject of the "fishers", and never so much as
mentions the "hunters"? It’s as though the Bible had never mentioned the
topics of the "fishers" and "hunters" in the same verse! Have you ever asked
your pastor why he never mentions the "hunters" in all his lengthy and
seemingly detailed sermons? After all, your pastor graduated from seminary and
knows all of this, right? Of course, it is probably just a slight oversight on
his part that he has never taken the time to explain this to you, right? Or,
maybe, he has so many other more important things to dwell on; he simply does
not have time for the insignificant "hunters." Has your pastor ever used
Jeremiah 16:16 for his text? The pastors are seemingly very quick and prepared to
expound that Christ (whose real Hebrew name was Yahshua), when He called his
disciples, had stated to them, Matthew 4:19: "And he said unto them, Follow me and I will make you
fishers of men." Whenever your pastor has quoted this passage, has he ever
made reference to Jeremiah 16:16 and expounded on the relationship of the two
verses? If he hasn’t, it would seem quite strange, for The New Treasury of
Scripture Knowledge; edited by Jerome H. Smith (a special book of
cross-references) takes you to this verse. If then, the calling by Christ
(Yahshua) of His disciples was the fulfillment of Jeremiah 16:16, just when is
the fulfillment of the "hunters" supposed to take place? Has your pastor ever
addressed the question of the "hunters"? If the calling of the "fishers" is
all that important, it would seem the calling of the "hunters" would be
equally significant. Maybe, if your pastor doesn’t want to explain to you who
the "hunters" are supposed to be, with a little ingenuity on your own part,
you can figure who these "hunters" might be, and just what they are to be
hunting for. Remember that Jeremiah 16:16 said, "out of the holes of the
rocks?" Who in the world would go "hunting" in "the holes of the rocks"?
Do you suppose it is talking about archaeologists as being these "hunters"? If
so, who would be the "them", for whom these archaeologists would be
looking? If your pastor wishes to remain mute on this topic, maybe I can help
answer this question of who these "hunters" are. Do you suppose the "hunters"
were to hunt for the same people the "fishers" were to fish for? Maybe, if one
were to read the rest of Jeremiah chapter 16, one might find who these people
are, to whom Yahweh through Jeremiah referred. IF THE ARCHAEOLOGISTS ARE THE "HUNTERS" IN QUESTION, THEY HAVE BEEN QUITE BUSY! In 1717, the Society of Antiquaries was set up in London.
It received a royal charter in 1751 and issued its first Archeologia in
1770. In 1798, Napoleon Bonaparte occupied Egypt, which resulted partially in
archaeological investigation. In 1799, the Rosetta Stone (a trilingual
inscription) was found which provided the key to unlocking Egyptian
hieroglyphics. In 1805, Ulrich Jasper Seetzen discovered Caesarea Philippi,
Ammon and Gerasa. In 1811, C. S. Rich, the first British consul at Baghdad,
excavated and partially mapped the ruins of Babylon. In 1812, Johan Ludwig
Burckhardt discovered Petra. In 1815, Lady Hester Stanhope made an attempt to
unearth statuary at Ashkelon. In 1817, Giovanni Battista Belzoni began the
search of tombs and temples of the pharaohs. In 1821-2, Jean Francois
Champollion finally broke the code of the Rosetta Stone. In 1833, Sir Henry
Creswicke Rawlinson went to Persia as a young officer to organize the Shah’s
army; became interested in cuneiform; deciphered and later published the
trilingual inscriptions of Darius I on the Behistun. In 1838, Edward Robinson
and Eli Smith traveled throughout Palestine identifying and describing
Biblical cites. In 1842, Paul Emile Botta began investigation of the mound of
Kuyunjik, discovered Khorsabad and the palace of Sargon II, which opened the
way to Assyriology. In 1845, Sir Austen Henry Layard began excavations at
Nimrud, discovering the palaces of Ashurnasirpal, Shalmaneser II, finding the
famous Black Obelisk and later making other important discoveries. In 1848, F.
de Saulcy cleared a site at Jerusalem. In 1849, Karl Richard Lepsius published
the results of Prussian expeditions to Egypt. In 1850 Auguste Ferdinand
Francois Mariette began investigating Egypt. In 30 years he excavated and
found 15,000 monuments from Memphis to Karnak in 37 sites. In 1850, W. K.
Loftus succeeded Rassam at Nineveh, visited Erech and other sites in the
Euphrates. In 1859 Konstantin von Tischendorf discovered the Codex Sinaiticus.
In 1863, J. T. Wood explored Ephesus for the British Museum and came upon the
temple Artemis. In 1864, Giovanni Battista De Rosse began study of the Roman
catacombs. In 1865 the foundation of the Palestine Exploration Fund promoted
archeological research in, and later publication of, Jerusalem and western
Palestine. In 1867, Charles Warren, a British artillery officer, was financed
by the fund to investigate Jerusalem. In 1870, Charles Clermont-Ganneau came
to the French consular service in Palestine, later sent the Mesha Stele to the
Louvre; discovered the famous notice prohibiting aliens from intrusion into
the Temple Court and identified the site of Gezer. This same year, the
American Palestine Exploration Society was founded. Also, Heinrich Schliemann
discovered Troy, and, with his successor Dörpfeld, first understood the
importance of a tell. In 1872, the Palestine Exploration Fund sent a party to
Palestine to make an inch-to-mile survey of Western Palestine, headed by
Claude Regnier Conder and Horatio Herbert Kitchener. This survey was
indispensable, basic work for later archeologists and geographers. In 1873,
The Daily Telegraph financed an expedition and George Smith began work
at Nimrud; later to Kuyunjik. In 1877, Ernest de Sarzec worked Lagash, finding
statues of early governors and the Victory Stele of Eannatum, awakening the
world to Sumerian archaeology. In 1878, Rassam resumed work for the British
Museum at Nineveh finding a haul of tablets, a clay prism and accounts of the
campaigns of Sennacherib. In 1879, Hormuzd Rassam investigated the ruins of
Babylon. In 1881, Sir Gaston Camille Charles Maspero discovered many royal
sarcophagi at Deir-el-Bahri and continued clearing work on the temple of
Karnak, later publishing his findings. In 1882, Elouard Naville investigated
Egypt. This year also saw W. Dörpfeld join Schliemann at Troy. In 1884, M.
Dieulafoy continued excavations of the royal buildings of Susa. In 1887, a
peasant woman, grubbing for compost in the ruins of Akhenaton’s town at
Tell el-Amarna unearthed the priceless Tell el-Amarna Letters. In 1888, John
P. Peters, directing an American dig along with Haynes and Hilprecht,
discovered 20,000 tablets at Nippur. In 1890, Flinders Petrie spent six weeks
on the mound of Tell-el-Hesi, in southwest Palestine. He succeeded in setting
a standard in the principles of stratigraphy and the utilization of pottery to
establish dating. In 1894, Sir Arthur Evans began work in Crete probing the
Minoan civilization. In 1895, Bernard Pyne Grenfell, with colleague A. S.
Hunt, began searching for Greek papyri, developing the science of papyrology.
In 1895, Sir William Mitchell Ramsey, Professor of Humanity at Aberdeen, did
archaeological work in Asia Minor and established the reputation of Luke as a
true historian. In 1896, G. M. Legrain initiated work at Karnak temple. In
1897, J. de Morgan saw work at Susa. In 1898, M. Loret discovered the tomb of
Amenhotep II in the Valley of the Kings. 1899 saw Robert Koldewey at Babylon.
1900 saw George L. Robinson at Petra. 1901 saw Gaston Cros at Telloh (Lagash).
1902 saw R. A. S. Macalister begin his excavation of Gezer, which lasted seven
years, and, also, Ernst Sellin begin a three-year survey of Tell Taanach. In
1903, G. Schumacher, trained by Sellin, oversaw investigation of Megiddo, the
well-known Jeroboam seal being discovered. 1904 saw David G. Hogarth at
Ephesus. In 1905, James Henry Breasted contributed his Ancient Records of
Egypt and 2nd ed. History of Egypt, showing striking advances in
Egyptology. 1906 found Hugo Winkler working at Boghazkoy, a Hittite site. 1907
saw Herman Thiersch, Herman Kohl, Carl Watzinger and Ernst Sellin surveying
the synagogue of Galilee, with Watzinger and Sellin overseeing a dig at
Jericho. 1908 saw D. G. Lyon, C. S. Fisher and G. A. Reisner at Samaria. 1909
saw Duncan Mackenzie at Bethshemesh. 1910 saw Howard C. Butler at Sardis. In
1913, Watzinger and Sellin investigated Shechem. 1917 saw The Palestine
Department of Antiquities founded, headed by John Garstang. 1919, with WW I
over, saw Albright, Woolley, Fisher, R. L. Hall, Wace, Montet, and Dunand at
various digs. 1922 saw Albright working at Gibeah, Howard Carter discovering
Tutankhamen’s tomb in the Valley of the Kings, A. Schmidt and H. Kaer working
at Shiloh and Sir Charles Leonard Woolley digging at Ur. 1923 saw W. J.
Phythian-Adams and John Garstang at Ashkelon. 1924 saw David M. Robinson on
the Pisidian Antioch. 1925 saw Dr. Edward Chiera at Nuzi discovering the
Patriarchs were true historical people. 1926 saw W. F. Badè at the Biblical
Mizpah. In 1928, Elihu Grant began a series of five campaigns at Beth-Shemesh.
1929 saw Dorothy Garrod investigating Palestinian caves. 1930 saw Theodore D.
McCown with C. S. Fisher continue work at Gerasa, G. L. Robinson discovering
Petra’s "high place" and John Garstang working at Jericho. In 1931, Ernst
Herzfeld was at work at Persepolis and A. Maiui at Pompeii and Herculaneum. O.
R. Sellers with W. F. Albright was working at Bethzur. Also, J. W. Crowfoot
continued the project at Samaria where Reisner left off. Then M. E. L.
Mallowan appeared on the scene with work at Nineveh. In 1932, G. E. Ederkin
explored the site of Syrian Antioch. J. L. Starkey began a dig at Lachish. R.
W. Hamilton investigated a site at the foot of Carmel. In 1933, Roman
Ghirshman began work at Tepe Siyalk. P. Dikaias was working at Cyprus; Charles
Morey continued work at Syrian Antioch, aided by Richard Stillwell. In 1934,
excavations at Bethel were conducted by J. L. Kelso and W. F. Albright. 1935
saw J. P. Black working at Samaria, Erich Schmidt at Persepolis, and Gordon
Loud at Megiddo. 1937 saw Nelson Glueck excavating a cemetery at
Jebel-et-Tannur. In 1938, J. L. Starkey was murdered while Lankaster Harding
and Charles H. Inge continued briefly at Lachish. 1947 brought to light the
Dead Sea Scrolls, of which, W. F. Albright later commented. In 1948, Robert
Braidwood worked at Qalat Jarmo, in NE Iraq. 1950 saw William Morton at Dibon
in Moab. 1953 saw Joseph P. Free at Dothan. 1954 saw Kurt Bittel at Boghazkoy
investigating the Hittite Empire, Zakarie Goneiun busy at Saqqara, Richard
Haines at Nippur, Philip Hammond at Petra, Kamal el Mallakh at Giza and Jean
Perrot at Tell Abu Matar, near Beersheba, etc. etc. etc. ? WHAT DID THESE HUNTERS FIND? While all of these archaeologists found many things
verifying Biblical places, times and events, probably the most important of
these were the cuneiform clay tablets found in the excavations of the Assyrian
royal library at Nineveh. It might appear today, after a lapse of 2500 years,
all hope of tracing the Israelites has been lost in the midst of antiquity.
Archaeologists have, though, during the last 100 years, unearthed and
published the original contemporary records of the Assyrians who took the
Israelites captive. From these records, in recent years, vital clues have come
to light. These records consist of cuneiform clay tablets which can be found
today in the British Museum. These tablets serve today as archaeological
evidence of Israel’s migrations. These clay tablets were frontier post reports
of Assyrian spies, to the Assyrian king, keeping watch over the captive
peoples. Among these tablets were over 1,400 different texts, including
reports of how the captive peoples (Israelites) were breaking away in small
groups and heading northwest in the general direction of Europe. The texts of
these Assyrian clay tablets were not deciphered until about 1930. These
Assyrian reports were saying in effect: "The last time we saw those sons of
Omri (as the Israelites were called by the Assyrians), they were breaking away
and heading in a northwesterly direction toward Europe." Not to inquire
about this evidence, found by the prophesied "hunters", would therefore be
foolhardy; for there is nothing imprudent in Scripture! After all, who are we
to condemn, repudiate, disavow or scoff at Jeremiah’s inspired written
prophecy? If Jeremiah predicted "hunters", you can be assured there would come
a time for "hunting." To accept the "fishers" without the "hunters" is to
embrace only half of Yahweh’s Word! Besides, all this is substantiated by the ‘apocryphal’ book
that used to be in the original King James Version of the Bible before they
removed it, 2nd Esdras 13:39-45. I have a 1611 edition of the KJV
and its there: "39 And whereas thou sawest that he gathered another
peaceable multitude unto him; 40 Those are the ten tribes which were carried
away prisoners out of their own land in the time of Osea the king, whom
Salmanasar the king of Assyria led away captive, and he carried them over
the waters and so came they into another land. 41 But they took this counsel
among themselves, that they would leave the multitude of the heathen, and go
forth into a further country, where never mankind dwelt. 42 That they might
there keep their statutes, which they never kept in their own land. 43 And
they entered into Euphrates by the narrow passages of the river. 44 For the
most High then shewed signs for them, and held still the flood, till they
were passed over. 45 For through that country there was a great way to go,
namely, of a year and a half: and the same region is called Arsareth."
(Also check Josephus, Antiquities, 8:11:1; 10:9:7 and 11:5:2) At this juncture, we can no longer say no one ever told us
who the "hunters" are, or the people for whom they were "hunting"! As a matter
of fact, our Redeemer made it quite clear who the people were to whom He was
sent when He instructed His disciples, Matthew 10:5-6: "5 These twelve Jesus (Yahshua) sent forth, and commanded
them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles (heathen), and into
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city of the Samaritans enter ye not: 6 But go rather to the lost sheep of
the HOUSE of Israel."
This passage is reinforced by Yahshua the Messiah Himself when He said, Matthew 15:24:
"... I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel."
This coincides perfectly with Amos 3:2 where Yahweh speaks of Israel:
"You only (Israel) have I known of all the families of the earth ..."
These passages also accord with Deuteronomy 7:6 where it states:
"For thou
This is the same idea brought forth in, and conveys the same meaning as 1st Peter 2:9 which says:
"But ye
The same concept is expressed in Psalm 147:19-20:
"19 He sheweth his word unto Jacob, his statutes and his judgments unto Israel. 20 He hath not dealt so with any nation: and
Again, the same thought is advanced in Deuteronomy 14:2, which says:
"For thou
For another rendering of the same basic precept, Isaiah 41:8 says the following:
"But thou Israel,
Contrary to what some advance, Yahweh does not promote the doctrine of universalism.
MORE ON THE FISHERS AND HUNTERS
For this phase of this presentation, I will quote from Howard Rand’s Study in Jeremiah; pages 81-82 entitled "Fishers And Hunters" (I will use Yahweh (Tetragrammaton) instead of God):
"Yahweh sets forth the method by which He will bring Israel back to Himself. This is a most important prophecy for in sending for fishers and hunters the way in which Israel is to be awakened to spiritual values and to the need of obeying His Covenant is revealed to Jeremiah:
"Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith Yahweh, and they shall fish them; and after will I send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks. (Jeremiah 16:16)
"Who are these fishers and hunters and what is the particular task each is to perform in the respective fishing and hunting periods? The sending of these two groups designated as fishers and hunters indicates that there are two entirely different methods by which an appeal would be made to Israel. A fisherman patiently waits as he undertakes to snare the fish in a net or catch it on a line, but the hunter tramps through the woods and over the hills and mountains exerting energy and strength as he travels in search of his especially selected prey. Actually Jeremiah prophetically referred to the two distinct phases of the Gospel in their respective appeals to Israel for the purpose of bringing them back to covenant relationship with Yahweh. The first would require fishers and the period of their fishing is clearly defined by the events of the Gospel Age. The second would require hunters and the period of their activity would be at the end of the Gospel Age. This is demonstrated by the activities of those who have sought to establish the identity of Israel in these last days, hunting out the evidence and tracing Israel from Palestine, throughout her years of wanderings, to the present time. History reveals how faithfully the predicted fishing and hunting missions have been carried out by those chosen of Yahweh for each purpose."
Now for some excerpts from this same book from pages 85, 86 & 87 on this same subject of the fishers and hunters:
Page 85: "The fishers were to be followed by many hunters according to Jeremiah, thus indicating a change in method and message. The task of the hunters was to
Page 86: "‘Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come.’ (Matthew 10:23)... But the Gospel of the Kingdom was to be proclaimed exclusively to the Israel peoples. All the cities and towns in the Israel lands have not yet heard this message which the hunters have been commissioned to proclaim ..."
Page 87: "Hearken to me, ye that follow after righteousness, ye that seek Yahweh: look unto the rock
whence ye are hewn, and to the hole of the pit whence ye are digged. Look unto Abraham your father, and unto Sarah that bare you. (Isaiah 51:1-2)"THE NEW JERUSALEM
In the Book of Revelation, chapter 21, we are told of a city four-square having twelve gates in all. The city is described as having a great, high wall. There are three gates on each of its four sides, east, north, south and west, with the names of the twelve sons of Jacob-Israel. In order to enter this city, one is required to be able to enter the gate according to their tribe. Because nothing abominable will be allowed to enter, each one entering will have to be a racially pure Israelite with his father’s line going through one of the twelve Patriarchs. Unless one can enter through one of the gates named after the twelve Patriarchs, there simply is no other way into that city. If you are a racially pure Israelite, it was your father and mother who made it possible in qualifying for entering into that city. When we consider all of these things, it becomes quite evident why we must understand just who the "hunters" are of Jeremiah 16:16!
"JEWS" ARE NOT HIS SHEEP
It may come as a surprise to many, but the "Jews" are not Israelites. I know that this is the message echoed throughout the Church-world and among the "Jews" themselves, but it simply is not true. And, wishful thinking is not going to make it so. Not one single "Jew" on the face of the world is an Israelite. Therefore, the biggest lie in the world is: "the ‘Jews’ are God’s chosen people." The second biggest lie is: "Jesus was a ‘Jew.’" Anyone making these statements is a liar, or is repeating another person’s falsehood. Yahshua told the "Jews", John 10:26: "... ye are not of my sheep." Again, Yahshua told the "Jews", John 8:47: "He that is of Yahweh heareth Yahweh’s words: ye therefore hear
them not, because ye are not of Yahweh." Yahshua further disassociated Himself from the "Jews" by saying to them, John 8:23: "... Ye are from beneath; I am from above: ye are of this world; I am not of this world." In Revelation 2:9 and 3:9, Yahshua said of the false Jews: "... I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews (of Judah), and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan." From this, you can plainly see the "Jews" will not be able to enter the gate of the city mentioned in Revelation 21:12 which is inscribed "Judah."William MacDonald, in his Believer’s Bible Commentary, pages 2356 & 2359 remarks thusly on Revelation 2:9 and 3:9:
"As Jews, they claimed to be God’s chosen people, but by their blasphemous behavior they showed that they were a synagogue of Satan ... Those who claimed to be God’s chosen people, though actually a synagogue of Satan, would be forced to admit that the despised Christians were actually the chosen flock."
Matthew Poole’s Commentary on the Holy Bible, volume 3, page 954, goes one step further in identifying the "Jews" as being the descendants of Cain the murderer:
"
Cain was the murderer from the beginning who was fathered by Satan himself in the seduction of Eve. The "Jews" are actually genetic descendants of Satan himself walking about in shoe-leather. What does the future hold for Israel then? Jeremiah 46:28 says to our people:
"Fear thou not, O Jacob my servant, saith Yahweh: for I
Again, I ask the question: Who are the hunters? Don’t you think it is about time the pastors in the churches of our Israel lands are asked this question? Why is it that they refuse comment? After all, the subject of the "hunters" is in the Bible and it is not going to go away, and the Almighty is going to demand an answer to this question! In Isaiah 56:10-11, it speaks of "shepherds
that cannot understand." If our "shepherds" won’t inform us, in the end, it becomes the responsibility of each one of us to, (2nd Timothy 2:15):"Study to shew thyself approved unto Yahweh, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."
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