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EARLY & LATTER RAIN

The rainy cycle of Israel is a prophetic type of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit and the great harvest to come. The history of the church since Pentecost has striking similarities to Israel's rainy cycle.

In late October, the 1) early rain comes. It is called “yoreh” or “the pourer.” It gives the young seedlings their first spurt of growth to really start them on the way to maturity.

The 2) rainy season follows, a time of relatively steady, but not heavy rains. Finally, in late March or April, the 3) latter rain comes. The Hebrews called “malqoesh” or the “harvest rain.” It was much heavier than the early rain, and compared to the rainy season, it was a veritable deluge. The crops grew by leaps and bounds during this time, and the harvest immediately followed.

The early rain could correspond to Pentecost and the First Century Church. The rainy season could be compared to God's sovereign outpourings throughout church history. The latter rain, could occur just prior to the return of the Lord. By comparison the latter rain could make Pentecost or the various revivals throughout church history, pale to the downpour of the harvest rain!

1. Matthew 24:4-14 “And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. Al these are the beginning of sorrows. Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake. And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.”

2. Acts 2:16-21 (Joel 2:28-32) “But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy: And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood and firs and vapor of smoke: The sound shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come: And it shall come to pass that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” (Joel 2:21-27) “Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice: for the Lord will do great things. Be not afraid, ye beasts of the field: for the pastures of the wilderness do spring, for the tree beareth her fruit, the fig tree and the vine do yield their strength. 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. The floors shall be full of wheat(great harvest), and the fats shall overflow with wine and oil(joy & healing). And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the canker worm, and the caterpillar, and the palmer worm, my great army which I sent among you. And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed. And ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and I am the Lord your God, and none else: and my people shall never be ashamed.”

3. James 5:7-8 “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 the receive the early and latter rain. Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.”

4. Isaiah 49:6, 22 “It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth. Thus saith the Lord God, behold, I will lift up mine hand to the Gentiles, and set up my standard to the people: and they shall bring thy sons in their arms, and they daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders.”

5. Isaiah 60:1-3 “Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and the gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.”

6. Daniel 11:32 “The people that do know their God shall be strong and do exploits.”

7. Amos 9:13 “Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed;”

8. Habakkuk 1:5; 2:3, 14 “Behold ye among the heathen, and regard, and wonder marvelously: for I will work a work in your days, which ye will not believe, though it be told you. For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry. For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.”

9. Revelation 7:9 “After this I behold, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands.”