Ecclesiastes 12:3-5
King James Version
3 In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble,
and the strong men shall bow themselves,
and the grinders cease because they are few,
and those that look out of the windows be darkened,
4 And the doors shall be shut in the streets,
when the sound of the grinding is low,
and he shall rise up at the voice of the bird,
and all the daughters of musick shall be brought low;
5 Also when they shall be afraid of that which is high,
and fears shall be in the way,
and the almond tree shall flourish,
and the grasshopper shall be a burden,
and desire shall fail:
because man goeth to his long home,
and the mourners go about the streets:
It's started again.
Dreams that tell much.
I've had a bunch of that, all my life.
And I've written about it in my blogs.
For a time, there was nothing worth exploring.
As the world circles in chaos, I start dreaming again.
This morning, I dreamt of bright green grasshoppers.
Young, hale, and healthy.
How they seek an opening into our house.
And how I've alerted my family to shut all windows.
Making sure no opening was available to them.
Even as a few have come in, from gaps found.
Mercifully, I was alerted, on time.
So, I wake up to this dream.
And know I must search Scripture.
What does it say about "grasshoppers"?
What are grasshoppers?
What do these do?
What damage are these capable of?
What is GOD trying to say?
What warnings are being given?
What's the significance to us all?
FIRST, about grasshoppers.
We turn to Wikipedia:
"Grasshoppers are typically ground-dwelling insects with powerful hind legs which allow them to escape from threats by leaping vigorously."
"At high population densities and under certain environmental conditions, some grasshopper species can change color and behavior and form swarms. Under these circumstances, they are known as locusts."
"Grasshoppers are plant-eaters, with a few species at times becoming serious pests of cereals, vegetables and pasture, especially when they swarm in the millions as locusts and destroy crops over wide areas."
SECOND, about locusts.
What Wikipedia says:
Locusts (derived from the Latin locusta, meaning grasshopper[1]) are various species of short-horned grasshoppers in the family Acrididae that have a swarming phase.
Both the bands and the swarms move around, rapidly strip fields, and damage crops. The adults are powerful fliers; they can travel great distances, consuming most of the green vegetation wherever the swarm settles.
THIRD, their significance in the Bible.
SPIRIT led me to these:
Exodus 10:12
King James Version
12 And the Lord said unto Moses,
Stretch out thine hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts,
that they may come up upon the land of Egypt,
and eat every herb of the land,
even all that the hail hath left.
1 Kings 8:37-40
King James Version
37 If there be in the land famine,
if there be pestilence, blasting, mildew,
locust, or if there be caterpiller;
if their enemy besiege them in the land of their cities;
whatsoever plague, whatsoever sickness there be;
38 What prayer and supplication soever
be made by any man, or by all thy people Israel,
which shall know every man the plague of his own heart,
and spread forth his hands toward this house:
39 Then hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place,
and forgive, and do,
and give to every man according to his ways,
whose heart thou knowest;
(for thou, even thou only,
knowest the hearts of all the children of men;)
40 That they may fear thee
all the days that they live in the land
which thou gavest unto our fathers.
2 Chronicles 6:28-31
King James Version
28 If there be dearth in the land,
if there be pestilence, if there be blasting, or mildew,
locusts, or caterpillers;
if their enemies besiege them in the cities of their land;
whatsoever sore or whatsoever sickness there be:
29 Then what prayer or what supplication soever
shall be made of any man, or of all thy people Israel,
when every one shall know his own sore and his own grief,
and shall spread forth his hands in this house:
30 Then hear thou from heaven thy dwelling place,
and forgive,
and render unto every man according unto all his ways,
whose heart thou knowest;
(for thou only knowest the hearts of the children of men:)
31 That they may fear thee,
to walk in thy ways,
so long as they live in the land
which thou gavest unto our fathers.
Psalm 105:34-35
King James Version
34 He spake, and the locusts came,
and caterpillers, and that without number,
35 And did eat up all the herbs in their land,
and devoured the fruit of their ground.
Amos 7:1-2
King James Version
7 Thus hath the Lord God shewed unto me;
and, behold, he formed grasshoppers
in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter growth;
and, lo, it was the latter growth after the king's mowings.
2 And it came to pass,
that when they had made an end
of eating the grass of the land, then I said,
O Lord God, forgive, I beseech thee:
by whom shall Jacob arise?
for he is small.
Now we know the damage that can be done by grasshoppers.
Now we know that only GOD has power over locusts.
Now we know that it signifies His judgment, too.
How long before people turn to the LORD?
Why wait for punishment, and judgment?
Why suffer at all, when JESUS already offers eternal life?
It's really time to heed the LORD's call.
The times are ripe to do so.
Psalm 91:1-12
King James Version
91 He that dwelleth
in the secret place of the most High
shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the Lord,
He is my refuge and my fortress: my God;
in him will I trust.
3 Surely he shall deliver thee
from the snare of the fowler,
and from the noisome pestilence.
4 He shall cover thee with his feathers,
and under his wings shalt thou trust:
his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.
5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night;
nor for the arrow that flieth by day;
6 Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness;
nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.
7 A thousand shall fall at thy side,
and ten thousand at thy right hand;
but it shall not come nigh thee.
8 Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold
and see the reward of the wicked.
9 Because thou hast made the Lord,
which is my refuge, even the most High,
thy habitation;
10 There shall no evil befall thee,
neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.
11 For he shall give his angels charge over thee,
to keep thee in all thy ways.
12 They shall bear thee up in their hands,
lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.
Acts 16:30-31
King James Version
30 And brought them out, and said,
Sirs, what must I do to be saved?
31 And they said,
Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ,
and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.
Before hunger strikes, let's turn to GOD.
The LIVING WATERS.
Before bread is gone, let's turn to JESUS.
The BREAD of LIFE.
Before breath is gone, let's turn to the HOLY SPIRIT.
P.S.
As SPIRIT guided me to the verses for this particular post you're reading now, a strange, but pleasant experience happened.
I "stumbled" upon the VERY verses I needed.
In explanation to the 7 October 2023 carnage in Israel.
For I did pray to GOD to please help me understand.
I needed to know why it happened, according to Scripture.
And here's where SPIRIT led me -- "THINGS are CLEAR".
When you work with SPIRIT, be prepared for many ideas, surprises, treasures, teachings, and connections.
How I LOVE working with the SPIRIT of GOD!
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