In the coming wilderness tribulation those who fear the Lord will have places of refuge. (Pr.14:26) In the fear of Jehovah is strong confidence; And his children shall have a place of refuge. The most important place of refuge is to “abide in the secret place of the Most High” where the psalmist says “He is my refuge” (Ps.91:1,2). This of course is to abide in Christ, the only true refuge. From among these people will be those who inhabit cities of refuge. I wouldn’t call these "cities" in modern day terms, for most, if not all of them, will be very primitive. Any more than this in the seven years of famine would invite the beast people to come and join or come and plunder. Some are building their plush homes and prosperous hideaways in their plans to wait out the wilderness. However, I suspect this does not fulfill the type of Israel in the sparse wilderness seeing their needs met by God. Steve and Doris Spanios shared on our broadcast how that an angel took her to a plush refuge where there were homes and everything was green and pretty. She was warned not to go there for it was a place of antichrist. She was then taken to one of the real camps where she saw her shanty of tin and wood thrown together. She was there cooking, washing clothes and taking care of the women and children. She said there were always vegetables in the garden -- enough for them to pick and eat every day since they were replenished constantly. There was a well with a hand pump and it always had water. She was told never to leave the camp and the forest around the camp. However, two men left and returned, probably to preach the gospel and bring others drawn to the refuge. These represent the corporate two witnesses. She said they studied the Bible every day and the leaders were these two men, who gave others responsibilities for teaching, praying and healing. Jesus sent out a corporate body of two witnesses who ordained elders to train the Church. In another vision, a man who appeared to be dressed like Jesus was present, and she and Steve thought He must be representative of the man-child.

We are very close to the beginning of the tribulation. I believe that before the middle of the tribulation when the mark is imposed many will have escaped to places of refuge like this. Some will be there before to prepare and some will find their way there afterwards. Do not be afraid if God does not call you to one of these cities but abide in Christ, the great city of refuge.

A brother I have known for several years and is a part of our larger broadcast fellowship, bought some property during this time. Later he told me that he had seen a vision of campers, motor homes, and RVs in the area. Recently he got satellite photos of this property and what he saw shocked him and then us. He saw a man-child with a crown upon his head being birthed out of a mountain. Then he saw a lamb’s head. Then I saw a dragon which had the lambs head in its mouth, which makes sense since he devoured Jesus almost 2000 years ago. Others saw a lion, Jesus, a pyramid, which is the timeline of the end-times. Then I went to sleep one night and the Lord spoke to me that the woman who brought forth the man-child was there too and when I got up I saw her.  Her picture was in the mountain and she was birthing the man-child. None of this is hard to see once one sees it. I wrote this brother, “The whole story of the end-time is there in the satellite picture which can be seen best when the sun is in an exact position. It does not exist on the ground except as trees and rocks, which reflect the Sun (pun intended) to show “signs in the earth beneath” (Acts 2:19).  The land is a city of refuge for the man-child to protect and educate the Woman church of Rev.12 in the wilderness.  For the manslayer to take refuge from the avenger of the death. … The man-child is hidden from the dragon behind his head. … I believe that this revelation is not to be widely known except to the elect who will be told to go there by the angels before the complete devastation…” 

Angels of God will lead the righteous to these secret cities while leaving apostates to suffer at the hands of the beast system in the hope that those who refuse the mark will repent through losing their old life. Many will need to go into captivity in the concentration camps and underground cities where the sheep will be separated from the goats. (Rev.13:10} If any man [is] for captivity, into captivity he goeth… Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.  Without ten righteous in modern day Sodom, it is doomed with all of its sinners (Gen 18:32). Angels will once again take Lot’s spiritual offspring by the hand and lead them out of the perversion and imminent judgment of end-time Sodom saying, “Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the Plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed” (Gen.19:17). To this modern Lots might plead, “[B]ehold now, this city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one. Oh let me escape thither (is it not a little one?), and my soul shall live. And he said unto him, See, I have accepted thee concerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow the city of which thou hast spoken. Haste thee, escape thither; for I cannot do anything till thou be come thither. Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar (20,21). Zoar means “little” for there will be comparatively few, even among so-called “Christians” who will “escape” the judgment on this wicked world. (Rom 2:3) And reckonest thou this, o man, who judges them that practice such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God? (Heb 2:3) How shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? We are exhorted to pray and overcome sin to escape. (Heb 2:3) But watch ye at every season, making supplication, that ye may prevail to escape all these things that shall come to pass.

Disciples of Christ who are living the crucified life will escape. One method God will use is to protect a few little cities from the destroyer as Goshen was protected when Egypt was destroyed. Also cities of refuge were provided throughout Israel to protect the manslayer who killed someone “unwittingly.” Spiritually this means they did not kill him by their own knowledge or wisdom. (Num 35:11) then ye shall appoint you cities to be cities of refuge for you, that the manslayer that killeth any person unwittingly may flee thither. (12) And the cities shall be unto you for refuge from the avenger, that the manslayer die not…. A disciple of Christ is one who by the wit of Christ and not his own is a manslayer by putting to death his old man. The avenger of blood, the wicked beast people, are relatives and friends of the old man. They are both beasts, born of flesh. The avengers of this world hate and seek to put to death those who have put to death self. Satan and his army are coming to avenge the blood of the old man like Pharaoh's army at the Red Sea. Spiritually speaking, if you are caught outside the city of refuge, whether of Christ or a physical city, the avenger of blood may put you to death. (26) But if the manslayer shall at any time go beyond the border of his city of refuge, whither he fleeth, (27) and the avenger of blood find him without the border of his city of refuge, and the avenger of blood slay the manslayer; he shall not be guilty of blood, (28) because he should have remained in his city of refuge until the death of the high priest: but after the death of the high priest the manslayer shall return into the land of his possession. Notice that after the death of the high priest, who is Christ, has been fully manifested in our life we may go where God wills and be safe for there is no curse upon us. (1Cor.2:2) For I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified. (Phl.3:10) that I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, becoming conformed unto his death.

The wicked are also manslayers for they have put to death their spiritual man and the people of God. They are guilty and they will die for they did it wittingly by following their own wisdom. They also are outside the city of refuge, Jesus Christ. In this case God himself is the avenger. (Rom.12:19) Avenge not yourselves, beloved, but give place unto the wrath [of God]: for it is written, Vengeance belongeth unto me; I will recompense, saith the Lord. (Ex.11:4) And Moses said, Thus saith Jehovah, About midnight will I go out into the midst of Egypt: (5) and all the first-born in the land of Egypt shall die… The first-born is the flesh and the born-again man is the spiritual man.

If you would like to know more from the Word about how the righteous will walk in the wilderness and be encouraged by many exciting testimonies read our book Sovereign God, For Us and Through Us.
 

Garrett and I are Ohio State football fans and we watched our team get crushed by the Florida Gators in the championship football game in January.  This was an anomaly because the previous season Florida won the basketball title, too.  A month or so ago, we both predicted that Florida would repeat with a basketball title and that it would also come at Ohio State's expense, which it did.

We noticed that in the scene above, that the figure to the left of the woman looked more like an alligator than anything.  So Garrett found an image of the Florida Gators mascot and they are spot on in likeness.  Despite that, we were largely ignored or even chuckled at.  We couldn't figure out why, since it seemed so obvious to us and all we were saying was that it was a sign that the Gators would pull off an anomaly before the anomaly of the birth of the man-child.

Garrett: I made a big deal about the fact that Florida held both championships in football and basketball at the same time in 2007, but they did not win those in the same sports season. But now Florida has repeated in basketball and has won the 2007 title. That makes them the only school ever in the history of college sports to have won both football and basketball titles in the same season (2006-2007). Florida defeated Ohio state 84-75. Florida defeated Ohio state in football in January of this year by the score of 41-14.

Note from Dave: If we took the satellite photo as a timeline, the gator is extremely close to the woman birthing the man-child.  Also, the dragon in Job 41 is a fire-breathing dragon (18-21) but a footnote that is usually on Leviathan (1) is crocodile.  Remember the serpent in the garden was a dinosaur with long legs that was cursed to crawl on his belly for his part in the fall of man.  {Rev.12:9} And the great dragon was cast down, the old serpent...  The gator represents the dragon on this end of the curse that is rising back up as the depiction of the Florida Gator and the satellite photo.