Sword of Burning & Justice (2007 Revelation Segment)
By Ryan Pena
On the Day of Atonement my eyes were opened to a vision that reoccurred for a few days afterward. The first time, the vision consisted of a two-edged sword with burning fire all around it. The second time, I saw the same sword, but Isaiah 4:4 was written on the blade. The final vision had Hebrews 4:12 on the blade next to Isaiah 4:4.
Isa 4:4
4 When the Lord has washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and purged the blood of Jerusalem from her midst, by the spirit of judgment and by the spirit of burning,
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This passage speaks of the spirit of judgment and the spirit of burning. These both made up the sword. The sword itself is the spirit of judgment, and the fire around it is the spirit of burning. The purpose of the spirit of justice and burning according to Isaiah 4:4 is to wash the filth of the people as well as the bloodshed (blood guiltiness). The word filth according to Strong’s means excrement and is figurative of pollution. This purging is one of the purposes of the sword. However, there is also a preparation brought to the Body through these two spirits. This will be looked at in more detail in a later section.
Spirit of Burning
In essence the spirit of burning burns out of us all that offends and opposes Lord. This includes all the worthless wood, hay and stubble within our souls. However, along with this we receive a burning within our hearts of those things that attract Him. The Holy Spirit comes as fire to burn out what opposes Him and burn in what attracts Him. Isaiah encountered the spirit of burning when His lips were touched by the coal from the altar (see Isaiah 6).
Isaiah 62:1
For Zion's sake I will not hold My peace, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until her righteousness goes forth as brightness, and her salvation as a lamp that burns .
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The rest of Isaiah 62 reveals what occurs as our salvation burns brightly.
Isa 62:2-4
2 The Gentiles shall see your righteousness, and all kings your glory. You shall be called by a new name, which the mouth of the LORD will name.
3 You shall also be a crown of glory in the hand of the LORD, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God.
4 You shall no longer be termed Forsaken, nor shall your land any more be termed Desolate; but you shall be called Hephzibah, and your land Beulah; for the LORD delights in you, and your land shall be married.
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Our hearts begin to burn for the Lord and He in turn responds to our desire for Him. Along with a burning desire for Him, we begin to burn for His Word. We will experience what the two men on the road to Emmaus encountered.
Luke 24:27-32
27 And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.
28 Then they drew near to the village where they were going, and He indicated that He would have gone farther.
29 But they constrained Him, saying,"Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent." And He went in to stay with them.
30 Now it came to pass, as He sat at the table with them, that He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them.
31 Then their eyes were opened and they knew Him; and He vanished from their sight.
32 And they said to one another, "Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?"
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Spirit of Justice
The prhrase “spirit of judgement” in Isaiah 4:4 can also be translated “spirit of justice”. In fact, the definition for the word judgment in this verse deals with justice and the act of deciding a case. It is also a sentence or decision rendered from a magistrate’s court, the role of issuing decrees or sentences by a judge. The root of the word means to rule or govern and is the governmental process of executing a verdict.
When we think of the term “judgment” we tend to think of destruction that comes from God’s righteous anger. Yet, judgment is not about destruction, it is about our hearts turning to Him.
We see various times in the Psalms that the Lord’s judgments were welcomed and made the people glad (one example is Psalm 48:11). Isaiah 26:9 also gives us a different perspective of judgments.
Isa 26:9
9 With my soul I have desired You in the night, yes, by my spirit within me I will seek You early; for when Your judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.
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Judgments are usually not for destruction, but for learning righteousness. The Lord desires people to turn around from the path that is leading to destruction. On a personal level, when we, as sincere believers, invite the judgments of the Lord into our lives He looks to judge the darkness gripping our heart rather than us. When David invited the Lord to search him and try him, essentially he was inviting the Lord’s judgments on anything displeasing to Him (see Psalm 139:23-24). We are set free from bondage as the Lord renders judgment and justice in our favor.
Dan 7:9-10
9 "I watched till thrones were put in place, and the Ancient of Days was seated; His garment was white as snow, and the hair of His head was like pure wool. His throne was a fiery flame, its wheels a burning fire;
10 A fiery stream issued and came forth from before Him. A thousand thousands ministered to Him; ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him. The court was seated, and the books were opened.
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There is a heavenly courtroom and Judge. What about these books that are opened in this courtroom. I believe these books hold every injustice and assault done against God’s people. From the time of Adam and Eve the enemy has plundered and stolen. This issue of justice is all about restoration.
Acts 3:21
21 whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began.
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We cannot limit this work of justice and restoration to only our personal lives or ministries. Every mantle, outpouring, commission, anointing, awakening and revival that has ever been cut short and stolen will be restored to the earth. All that has been stolen, forfeited and lost from Adam till now has been recorded and a day of reckoning is at hand. Justice is an end-time work of the Lord. He has allowed those like Isaiah, Zechariah, John the Baptist, Steven, William Branham and others to have injustices done against them in order for Him to be just in the judgment rendered to the enemy in the last days.
It is no different then when Israel walked out of Egypt with all the gold, silver and bronze. Generations before them had labored and been unjustly treated. One generation received from the injustice of generations past. This is a prophetic type for those living in the end-time generation (see I Corinthians 10:11).
May of us look to the insight given in Joel 2 and Acts 2 concerning the end-time outpouring.
Joel 2:28
28 "And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.
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This is wonderful, but we must take notice of the word “afterward”. This outpouring occurs after what? In reading the previous verses we see events that must take place before this outpouring. In verses 15-17 those in leadership experience a burning in their hearts that causes them to weep over their condition and the condition of the people. This in turn causes the Lord to respond to them (vss 18-19). He begins to war on out behalf (vs 20).
It is at this point that the Lord begins to release the restoration and justice of heaven.
Joel 2:23-25
23 Be glad then, you children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God; for He has given you the former rain faithfully, and He will cause the rain to come down for you —
The former rain, and the latter rain in the first month.
24 The threshing floors shall be full of wheat, and the vats shall overflow with new wine and oil.
25 "So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the crawling locust, the consuming locust, and the chewing locust, My great army which I sent among you.
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Before the outpouring, there is justice and restoration. The Lord is not blind to the way His people have been ripped off, but we must join heaven in crying out for justice (see Revelation 6:10 and Isaiah 42:22).
Realize, even the “sickness” of lukewarm Christianity is the result of the enemy stealing from the Body. Jesus died as a grain of wheat to produce a harvest of others that would walk like Him and more. If we are not walking in His fullness, we are being kept from our birth-rite. There will be a people who are restored to true Biblical Christianity that models what Jesus walked in.
The passage of Isaiah 4:4 also mentions that the blood guiltiness of the people will be cleansed. Why is it important that this sword cleanses not only sin, but the guiltiness? We must understand when judgments come upon the land not all people are affected by it, only those tied into the guilt of the land.
Take for example the children of Israel in bondage to Egypt. Both Exodus 6:6 and 7:4 state that it was the Lord’s judgments that brought the people out of Egypt. The plagues were judgments, yet they did not affect the people of Israel, only those tied into the guilt of the land.
Another example cn be seen in Revelation 7 when an angel speaks to some other angels who are about to release judgments on the earth:
Rev 7:3
3 saying,"Do not harm the earth, the sea, or the trees till we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads."
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Just like with Israel and Egypt, we can experience the greatest outpouring of light at the same time the world is experiencing the deepest darkness it has ever known (see Isaiah 60 again). This means we do not have to fear what is to come upon the nations. We must recognize that judgment is made in favor of the saints.
Along with this we must cease in partaking of the lifestyle of the guilty. This is critical if we are going to experience a true sealing from heaven and walk above all that will come over the earth in these last days.
The Work of the flaming Sword
The following are a few examples of how this sword operates. The sword’s fire is refining, but also the Lord desires to cut the sin that so easily entangles us.
Heb 12:1
1 Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,
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This sword is coming to cut roots of family lines (generational tendencies and sins), desires of the world within us, traditions (especially the thought processes that oppose the work of the Spirit) as well as worldly living that is in the Church.
This brings us to Hebrews 4:12.
Heb 4:12-13
12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. 13 And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.
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The Word of God is a Sword. Though we tend to limit this to only the Bible, which does apply, this verse is also speaking of Jesus. Verse 13 records that nothing is hidden from His sight. He is the living word and the sword. Jesus is coming as the sword in order to divide soul and spirit in us. The soulish Christian is lead primarily by emotions, selfish desires, flesh, convenience and unbelief in the mind. The Lord’s desire is to cut this from us in order to make us Spirit led. This is part of the cleansing of the threshing floor.
If we will open hearts before the Lord and be honest with what is inside us then heaven will separate all that is in the way. The spirit of burning (the fire around the sword) and the spirit of judgment (the sword) will free us and transform us.
Also, the flaming sword was at the entrance of the garden after man was pushed out. We must go through the burning sword to enter the place of intimacy and walking with Him. It will purify our motives and desires. It is not enough to have clean hands (right actions), but we must also have a pure heart (right motives) according to Psalm 24.